SOD: Hey.
Andrew: We're back.
SOD: Just finished Cold Steel Four.
Andrew: We cried.
SOD: More than either of us expected.
Andrew: We won't spoil anything.
SOD: ZERO SPOILERS! But damn was it satisfying to no life.
Andrew: So here we go.
SOD: You mean here I go. I'm the one who writes the stories and plays the games. You just grinded off of the demo.
Andrew: Well true, but I am the one that usually do the side quests.
SOD: Yes, because I let you since you don't have the game!
Andrew: Speaking of which, we need to check our quartz and orbments for our nightmare playthrough.
SOD: YOU MEAN MY QUARTZ AND ORBMENTS SINCE I AM THE ONE WHO SPENT HOURS EDITING EVERY SINGLE DAMN CHARACTER! I HAD 500K MIRA BEFORE THE LAST DUNGEON AND AFTERWARDS, I ONLY HAD 100K!
Andrew: Ah yes. My apologies, Shinn-sama. And that money was well earned and spent.
SOD: Tell me something I don't know. I'm just happy I got to get my Fie moments. That and see plenty of Claire.
Andrew: You certainly took plenty of screenshots. And Speaking of Claire-
SOD: ZERO SPOILERS, ANDREW!
Andrew: But-
SOD: ZERO! SPOILERS!
Later That Night
"Ugh. My head."
Relon can be seen walking down the corridors having awoken and finished his shower. His sword floating beside him. Afterward training, he'd opted for heading towards the library. Relon having went there with the princess yesterday.
"Everyday is going to be the same as today. Ugh, his training really will be worse than Uncle Victor and Klaus'." His sword circling around the boy elevating up and down in agreement. "I know we'll get better but still." Relon stops gaining a perturbed look. "Now that's four times I've transformed. Three out of the four were I was out of control. The other time I guess the king snapped me out before I crossed that line. Now, I just have to figure out how to get there easily instead of getting beaten to a pulp."
Suddenly hearing footsteps, he looks up to see none other than Giliath Osborne walking his way. Just as he approaches, the sword takes up a defensive position in front of Relon though this seems to not bother the man.
"Easy, partner." Relon says moving the sword to the side of him with a hand.
"So that's the infamous weapon I've heard about. I wish I could have seen it sooner when we were having our... 'discussion.'""
"There was no need to come out. If anything happened, I'm confident I could handle it. But I have to wonder, did the king tell you about it?" Relon questions.
"No. Not everything I learn is from his majesty. Though I suppose it's fate that we've run into one another once again on the same day no less."
"Oh? So who told you? Or are you perhaps a stalker." Relon states, his eyes searching for any ounce of evidence the man holds as taught back in Legram.
Though all that comes is a small laugh.
"No. I am not that low of a human. I can assure you that."
"Could have fooled me. What, you got eyes all over Heimdallr?"
"What makes you think it's just Heimdallr?" He retorts, Relon narrowing his eyes. "It's a shame. You would have been an excellent addition to the Ironbloods. A pity even. So much potential wasted."
"Sorry, but I'm not interested in listening to what you can and can't see within me. And the idea of being an Ironblood? The name is nice but you as my boss? Sorry, not interested." Relon begins walking past the man to stop. "Though... I am sorry to your student." This causes Giliath to glance past himself at the boy. "Tell them that I am. I'll live up to the hard work for the both of us. If you don't mind that is." With that, Relon and his sword walks off.
"Hmpf. I'll be sure to pass along the message." Giliath gives a bow before raising up, a grin on his face.
I need to seriously watch where I am. The chancellor is dangerous as he is bad news. Trampling over the lives of others just to claim victory. There's a better way of doing it than ruining those peoples' lives.
Eventually he turns a corner.
It shouldn't be far now.
Down the other side of the corridor walking his way is a girl seeming to be a few years older than himself carrying some books. Maybe around the age of 15. She has sky-blue hair ending just above her shoulders with a portion in a braid circling around from the back and has hot pink eyes.
Both stop before the other taking in their appearance. Relon swears her eyes grow wide as if she sees a ghost before muttering a name.
"Emil...?"
Emil?
Relon tilts his head for the girl to take note of his sword hovering next to him which seems to snap her from whatever thoughts.
"My apologies. I thought you were someone else." She begins walking as does Relon.
Time seems to slow as both approach the other. For the briefest of moments, their eyes meet to then look forward. And oddly enough, time seems to resume as they pass each other. After a moment, Relon glances back to the girl.
Who was that...?
Not pondering for long, he continues walking. The sword orbiting the boy to his amusement. Turning the corner, the girl runs into her caretaker walking her way.
"Chancellor Osborne." She salutes.
"Ah, Claire. Finished with your studies I assume?"
"Yes, sir."
"I just had a rather brief discussion with the very man, or should I say boy, who took the position as the princess' bodyguard."
"Boy?"
"Yes. He has a unique weapon." At his words, her eyes widen slightly remembering the boy she just passed. "You don't say." She answers calmly.
"Yes. I'm sure you noticed. He was heading in the direction of the library."
Turning around, she glances at the fading boy.
"Him? He's only a child, sir."
"No. He is no child. He's something more. It would be best if we kept an eye on his growth." With that, Giliath turns walking away with Claire behind him.
"Sir?"
"Yes?"
"What is his name?" This causing the man to stop, a mysterious look on his face before it changes to what one could only guess to be a poker face.
"Relon Lucinance." He begins once more.
"Relon... Lucinance..."
2 Year Timeskip
"How did I get into this situation again?" Relon questions to himself.
It's been two years since Relon's job as Alfin's bodyguard began and much has happened since. With two years passing, so too did everyone's' age. Relon now 14, Alfin 12 and Musse having recently turned 11. As for the trio, they've become rather close. Relon having often hung around the city escorting Alfin when she was as the princess to events or undercover when she wanted to enjoy Heimdallr. Whenever she opted for the undercover route, they would often meet up with Musse and the three would enjoy themselves all over the districts. Not an incident ever occurring. Aside from school and her royal duties every so often, nothing really happened to Alfin. As for Musse... well, her attempts at teasing Relon continued. Relon seriously questioned how a girl her age could act in such a way and whenever Musse was willing to tell him, Relon shut her down every single time.
As for Relon, a few things happened. For starters, he had received a letter telling of Rean beginning his training under Yun Ka-fai as well as Elise coming to St. Astraia. Much to his surprise. Not long after and she had arrived, Relon having chosen to meet her at the station. From there, he escorted her to the dorms as well as found out she'd be in his homeroom with Alfin and Elise. To say she was surprised would be an understatement but nevertheless, she quickly fit in becoming close with Alfin and Elise.
Something that didn't occur was Relon's control over his transformation. After many grueling hours worth of training, he had yet to find anyway of controlling his anger much to his and Yujiro's annoyance and frustration. While training, Yujiro finally began to teach Relon his martial arts or what Yujiro called his "Beastial Arts." A series of martial arts that makes the user gain the presence of a predator. Devastating yet unpredictable. With Relon's unique style of fighting, learning the techniques were rather easy but the hard part way the training regimen that Yujiro tasked him with. 1000 push up, 1000 sit ups, and a 10 kilometer run every single day. One after the other with no breaks until the whole regimen was completed. Thanks to this, he gained the ability to emit a flamethrower albeit for short bursts before running out of 'fuel.' Regardless, it was a technique he was happy to finally have.
The point of this was to strengthen the body. As Relon leaned more towards the speedy and evasive style, whenever he got hit he'd be down after a few hits. This was something Yujiro wanted to fix as soon as possible. So Relon had a schedule. Wake up, watch over the princess until school was over, and then proceed to begin his training. One crazy idea Relon had thought of was to wear a scarf around his neck. The reason being that in the first few days, his throat became incredibly dry so he thought that placing something around his neck would help with the heat his body releases.
And as odd as it sounded, it worked. His neck no longer felt dry and he was able to clear the whole regimen much easier. Yujiro had to hand it to the boy for thinking of such an odd way to help out but more clothing meant more weight even if it was a scarf so he had no problems. He simply doubled everything once Relon hit the first mark. Relon would follow this daily schedule all the way to today.
Relon then came to the realization of something. He had three styles of fighting. One; his Arseid style whenever he wielded his sword. Two; his new martial arts. And three; his special style combining the two. More versatility meant a higher chance of being prepared for anything and his third style was one he favored overall. It was what made the human and his sword unique.
Between his training in Legram and with Yujiro, Relon had to look in the mirror to see just how much his body has changed. It gave him an odd feeling whenever he would stare at the red marking on his stomach. Though the girls back at St. Astraia seemed to notice as comments came one after another and right when Relon thought the commotion had settled, Musse would happen. And the commotion would last the rest of the day to Relon's chagrin.
Another occurrence that Relon wasn't happy of involved Giliath Osborne. The man seeming to always know where Relon was and what he was up to drove the boy insane on the inside but on the outside, he always remained stoic. He knew the man was a mastermind and Relon was careful with what he said, did, and even how he acted body language-wise, around the man. Relon genuinely thought the chancellor was following him with how much he ran into him. Relon quickly learning afterwards how Osborne worked. Any duties he had lined up with his appearance. Such as an excuse from returning from a meeting. Somehow the man knew where Relon would be at what time and would have an excuse prepared.
Relon had to thank the fact that their "talks" lasted no more than a minute if not two. Sometimes the man would be accompanied by his redheaded Ironblood. Relon later found out the boy's name to be Lechter. There have been a few instances where Relon would meet the teen walking throughout the corridors and their small talk was the same. Albeit better compared to Osborne. Though Relon was still wary knowing full well of who Lechter worked under. As for the blue-haired girl, Relon would often see her in the library and every time their eyes made contact, she'd look away. Relon could swear he could feel a sense of disdain from her but he dismissed it and went about his business. Though he did have to admit she was attractive.
So here Relon was. Another early morning at St. Astraia. Through some odd events, Relon now finds himself teaching Alfin's class.
"And that is the reason x equals one over three. Any questions?" He looks around to see not one hand.
"Instructor Relon is so smart." One girl comments.
"I know, right? He makes it so easy to understand!"
Seriously, how did I end up like this.
Hey readers, lemme explain how our boy Relon ended up in his situation. Bad luck plus Musse. There you go.
To his relief, the bell signaling lunch rings as the girls groan thanking him for his help as they are dismissed leaving the boy with his trio of companions.
"Finally." Relon sighs. "To think, Ms. Freda wasn't feeling well today."
"You did a wonderful job though." Elise compliments.
"Thanks. I'm just glad she left the material on her desk. I'm not so glad that a certain someone talked the girls into making me teach you all instead of having the principal come in." He states, his eyes locked on Musse as the other two nervously laugh.
"Hehe. Oh instructor, I simply believed you wouldn't let us down."
"You calling me instructor is giving me bad vibes. Really bad vibes. And Princess, I thought you would side with me on this like Elise."
"I'm sorry but the chance to be taught by you was something even I couldn't pass up. You have to admit you enjoyed it~."
Sighing at the two girls, Relon can only shake his head as they begin their lunch.
I should be focusing on possible attacks but I can't like this. Mister wouldn't stop laughing at any of the times I've been dragged into the girls' antics and I feel like this time will be no different.
"Instructor Relon, I'm still having some difficulty with understanding algebraic expressions." Musse says gaining the other's attention.
"You're still bent on calling me that? Well, I'm sure the princess can help you."
"Oh, I couldn't possibly bother her with such a problem. I was hoping for maybe... some private tutoring." She eyes the boy, Alfin letting out an audible squeal and Relon simply shaking his head.
"Of course, Musse. Anything for my favorite student. Although... there won't be any studying involved if you follow." Relon grins seductively back at the girl.
"My! I wouldn't have it any other way~."
"Eeeeeeeck! Y-You two are teacher and student! You both shouldn't be acting in such shameless ways!" Elise exclaims.
"Calm down. Musse is just trying to get a rise out of me. One she isn't getting so easily."
"Hehe. Your reactions are simply the best Elise."
"Why are you like this?" She sighs.
"Hehe. What can I say?"
"You must admit, Elise, there is never a dull moment~." Alfin chimes in.
Relon can only watch as the three converse amongst themselves.
Elise fits in nicely with those three. I remember her freezing up when she first met Alfin. He chuckles to himself.
"What's so funny instructor? Are you having naughty thoughts of one of us by chance?"
"Nope. Just thinking about when Elise first met Alfin." This statement causing Elise to blush in embarrassment.
"P-Please let's not bring that up!" She pleads to gain nothing but laughter.
"By the way, Alfin, you're representing the family down by the port for the reopening of a new ship, right?"
"That's correct. Supposedly, it had been hit by an iceberg at one point and was heavily damaged so many of its crew are excited to see it reopened."
"And you'll be with her, won't you instructor." Musse looks over to said young teen.
"I am her bodyguard so of course. Why? You aren't planning to pull some heinous crime are you?"
"Why, instructor. I'm appalled you would even consider innocent me able of pulling such a stunt." Musse says in a dramatic tone.
"I'm more appalled at the fact you didn't see it coming. That or you're just acting like you didn't see that coming."
"Teehee, it seems I have been caught in my own act. Wow instructor, maybe I should start calling you detective."
"Honestly, I'd prefer instructor."
"With how much reading you did when we were younger, I'm not at all surprised you're great in academics let alone capable of teaching a class." Elise comments.
"It wasn't all me. I have to thank Klaus, a great butler that cared for me back in Legram. There were nights where I stayed up late not because I didn't understand the material but because it interested me. There were a few times we stayed up all night without realizing it. It's thanks to him, Laura, and Uncle Victor that I was able to get back to using my partner." Relon smiles as his sword floats out of its sheathe.
"The fact that we still haven't found a name it likes bothers me." Alfin sighs.
"And we've come up with so many too." Musse sighs along.
"I'm sure we'll think of one eventually." Elise comments.
Relon glances to his sword hovering around the girls.
In that dream, mom mentioned calling it Kernviter. Some time after the four of us began thinking up names, I asked if it wanted to be called Kernviter and it disliked the idea immediately. It knows what its official name is yet dislikes it. Hmm.
"Oh well, we'll just have to brainstorm some more names later." Alfin claps. "Instructor Relon, you may want to get ready for history." She winks.
"Great..."
He watches as the three go back to their assigned seats. Alfin; front of the class dead center row. Musse; far right column near the window and Elise back one and over to the left of Alfin. The three in a diagonal seating arrangement.
Hearing the sounds of footsteps, Relon watches as his 'class' piles back in and seat themselves.
"Alright... is everyone ready?"
After School
"Have a good day, everyone." Relon bids to his class.
"Thank you, Instructor Relon!" They all bid leaving the four alone.
"Phew. Glad that's over. Being an instructor is tiring. How does Ms. Freda do it?"
"But you were great considering you had no preparation." Elise compliments.
"She's right. Maybe you were destined to be an instructor." Musse grins.
"I think I was just destined to have bad luck." Relon corrects with a deadpanned look.
"So will you two head for the port?" Elise asks.
"Yeah. People should be gathering around now so we don't want to keep everyone waiting."
"So what all are you two doing exactly?"
"Alfin gives her usual speech along with a red ribbon signaling the opening of the ship while I just watch. Then it's off to the palace to drop off Alfin before I have to do my training regimen with Mister."
"My, I can't seem to recall but you certainly have buffed up ever since coming here~." Musse says feeling his muscles.
"Alfin, deal with her. I refuse to be a victim to Musse and her... odd antics... Again." Relon states ignoring the obvious lie as he moves Alfin in between him and Musse.
"Oh, Instructor Relon, don't be like that. I'm simply giving you a compliment~."
"Your words say one thing, your body language says another, and vibe check. Yeah, you're up to something. Something I want no part of." Alfin and Elise laughing off of the two.
"What will you two do?" Alfin asks.
"I'll be returning to the dorms to review some notes."
"That's Elise for you. Diligent just like your family. I'm sure they must be proud." Rean compliments placing a hand on his hip.
"I simply want to do what Elise Schwarzer can do. That is what I've chosen to do and I shall carry that out to the best of my abilities."
"I'm glad to hear it but try not to push yourself. I worry as I'm sure your parents, the people of Ymir, and especially Rean do too." He caution with a smile patting her head.
The faintest of a blush forming as she can only nod.
"My, now our instructor is getting physical with us? Oh, please praise me and pat my head too~."
"Musse. I don't know why, but I have a feeling you'll cause me the most trouble as a student." He deadpans once more.
"Teehee, whatever do you mean? Is it not the instructor's job to guide their students down the right path? What if I became some villain solely off of not getting praise in the form of a headpat?"
"... Really?"
"Hmm? An honest question." She winks.
Sighing, he can only shake his head as he reaches over patting Musse to her enjoyment.
"Keep up the good work, Musse. Though I'm scared to ask what your plans are."
"What else? Go home and open my notebook to write down the ways you make my heart aflutter."
He stops gaining a nervous look.
"And...?"
"And list more ways to break that hard shell of course."
"And praising is over." He lifts his hand in an instant.
"Ooooh, I want to get praised too." Alfin squeals.
"Alfin, you get praised by the literally everybody. What difference does it make to get appraisal by me?"
"Simple." She walks to stand in between the girls. "You don't treat me like a princess. None of you do and for that, I am more than grateful to call you my friends."
"Awe, Alfin." Elise smiles from the heartwarming words.
"My, words from such a close friend have never hit more than those. I may tear up." Musse sarcastically tears up. "But don't think we're forgetting you just want praise from Relon because we got it."
"Ehehe. Was it that obvious?" Alfin giggles.
"Oh, brother." Relon shakes patting the princess' head to her joy.
"All three of you have goals you're striving for. Some more noble than others." Relon comments under his breath eyeing a smiling Musse. "But regardless, you're sticking to it and as long as you do, you won't waver. I'm sure you three will succeed. Well... maybe you two will." Relon corrects.
"Teehee, never underestimate a woman, Instructor. You'll be quite surprised if you do." Her eyes giving that seductive look for a shiver to run up his back.
Seriously, what's with her? I swear there's more to her than meets the eye.
"Duly noted. Now we should get going. The car should be outside by now."
In Car
Now in the car, the princess having changed into her royal attire sits next to her bodyguard.
"So, we get to be aboard a ship, huh? This will be a first for me."
"As will I. I'm happy that the people will have their hard work once again recognized."
"Same, Alfin." His smile soon fades.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know. I just have an odd feeling."
"Do you have any idea why that might be?"
"I may be thinking too much but Ms. Freda seemed just fine yesterday and to suddenly say she wasn't feeling well bothers me."
"Well, it is normal for a fever or cold to come suddenly."
"Yeah, but yesterday when we arrived at school, you asked how she was feeling and she commented feeling better than ever. That just makes it harder to believe."
"So what do you think? She may have lied? But then why?"
"Alfin, do you know how long she's been a teacher?"
"Shortly after I started attending due to a teacher passing away from an accident." Relon widens, his head snapping so fast to her before he looks forward.
"Whoa. Okay. Okay. Okay. Lemme stop before I get ahead of myself. Assuming never helps." He calms himself.
"Relon?"
"Princess." He begins, the mention of her status causes Alfin to listen with seriousness. "I have a hunch. One that I hope is wrong."
"You think Ms. Freda may be after me?"
The calmness of her voice takes a moment for him to process before he nods.
"Do you think she'd do something like that?"
"I want to say no."
"But?"
"I don't know honestly." But then she smiles at him.
"Why are you smiling like that? You're giving off Musse vibes."
"Teehee. Oh, I'm just thinking."
"Alfin?"
"I meant what I said before. I wanted no one else but you as my bodyguard. You saw me as a normal girl and through your life in the line to protect mine. That's why I'm confident that no matter what, I won't have to worry one bit even if something happens."
At a loss for words, Relon can only look on as Alfin takes his hands in hers.
"So don't worry too much. Just do what Relon Lucinance can do."
Her life is on the line and yet...
"Right. You don't have to worry Princess. Leave everything to me." His confidence renewed.
"Good. That's the cheery face I love seeing~."
He can only chuckle as he looks out the window towards the passing buildings waving a hand.
Heimdallr Port
Arriving at the port, Relon steps out lending Alfin his hand out as they are greeted by some business people and guards.
"I'll be back soon, Alfin." She nods as she and the other people are escorted by the guards.
Running towards a nearby alleyway, he jumps on his sword as they elevate to the rooftop. Hopping off, he walks over to a crouched Yujiro.
"I saw your signal."
"So you feel it too." Yujiro nods.
"Something's off at the very least. I'm curious on your take."
Relon explains his reasoning for both to look over the building past the street at the port where the ship is located along with the people.
"Hmm."
"How should we go about this? Should we call off the event?"
"We've waited two years for this group to act so this should tell us they're a patient bunch. If we cancel now, who knows when the next time they'll act. They know you're protecting the princess so there's no point in canceling it if they seem to not find you a threat."
"But they don't know that you're here..." Relon ponders the idea to widen his eyes. "So wait, you expect to use the princess and the people as bait?!"
"They're not bait if you're down there to act at a moment's notice."
"That makes zero sense."
"To you maybe. Your job is to remain at the princess' side no matter what. Leave any other trouble to me."
"... Alright, let's take them down, Mister." Relon turns hopping onto his sword.
"Hey kid."
"Yeah?"
"I'm sure Vic asked you this a lot but... how are you feeling?" He glances over his shoulder at the young teen.
"Is it wrong to say I'm excited?"
"Nope!" Yujiro gives his crazed grin.
"Good. Then I'm excited and nervous as hell." Relon turns flying down.
A moment later, he can be seen crossing the street heading into the port.
"Hmpf, who the hell does he think he is talking to me with that language? Tch, being a parent and a role model is hard."
Reaching the staircase with four guards at the top, they all salute to Relon before letting him in.
One perk of being Alfin's bodyguard; almost every guard in Heimdallr knew of you.
Stopping halfway down the staircase, Relon scans the area. Guards scatter circling the whole area except for the ship itself. Many civilians, most likely suppliers for the rebuilding of the ship mixed with workers themselves and Alfin sitting on a elevated platform with a few other people. One dressed like the captain conversing with Alfin.
If the group is attacking, could they be blending in with the crowd? How tight is security? Mister is watching the rooftops so I'm sure he'll spot anything should there be an attempted attack from long-range. I just hope this sick feeling I have isn't right. For now, standing out like a sore thumb won't do much.
Continuing down the staircase, he enters the crowd making his way through until finding some benches in the rear of the crowd where he takes a seat.
Now we just wait. The worst part of this operation. Up until now, I've been wary of the possibility but now that it could actually happen, by body can't stay still.
Glancing around, all of the adults are too preoccupied conversing with one another. Sighing, he leans back against the stone wall trying to calm his nerves. Feeling a slight rattle, he looks to see his sword moving slightly.
"Sorry buddy. Nerves are getting to me which must be bothering you." He gives a small smile rubbing the handle.
"There you are." A voice interrupts gaining his attention.
Looking up, Relon is met with a familiar redhead.
"Lechter? Or... should I call you Scarecrow?" He asks as the 17-year-old takes a seat next to him.
"Either is fine. I feel like we're no longer strangers, wouldn't you?"
"After a year of nothing but short conversations from most likely following my every move, you believe we're not strangers? If anything, it feels like you're the stranger that I know nothing about and I'm the hottest trend that you and the chancellor know almost everything about." Relon states looking ahead to the crowd.
"Well, I can't say you're not wrong but then again, not everyone talks to themselves, eh?" He says leaning back against the stone tile with arms behind his head.
"And if you know better, you know to stay away from people that do. Those people often aren't exactly the safest."
"Then why are you the one tasked with protecting the princess?" Lechter cuts his eyes.
"Who knows? Why are you the one following the chancellor's every order?" Relon cuts his eyes back.
"Who knows..." As a moment of nothing, both ease their tensed bodies.
"There's no point fighting when we're on the same side. You have your reasons for doing what you do as do I. I'm sorry." Relon apologizes which seems to take Scarecrow aback for a solid minute before he comes to.
"Wow, didn't see that coming. Well, as your senior, I shouldn't exactly be instigating anything. Truce?" He extends a hand, one Relon shakes after a second.
Choosing to ignore the mention of his 'senior,' Relon asks the big question.
"So what are you doing here?"
"Here for the same reason you are." This catching Relon's attention. "I call it my 'Natural Intuition.' Those tend to be spot on in these kinds of situations you could say." He gives a shrug though his demeanor shows... sadness?
Though Lechter quickly hides this.
"So, is it safe to assume you and the other Ironbloods here?"
"You mean Ironblood. There's only two of us at the current moment and yeah, she's handling things on another end. I'm guessing the Wandering Beast is around somewhere?"
"He is. Seems we're well prepared."
"Indeed we are."
"If so..."
"Then why is this sick feeling still present?" Lechter finishes aloud, their gaze returning ahead to the princess, an ominous feeling set in their hearts.