Neptune saw. She saw the monster was ready to lunge towards Nepgear with killing intent. Time seemed to slow for a moment, as she watched Neith's legs bent, sickles up and roared at the child.
The purple haired character felt her heart thudding in her chest, adrenaline activating more than ever and temporarily forgetting about her foot. Neptune understands, she understands that she doesn't give a shit if she dies or not. All that was revolving her thoughts was Nepgear. Get Nepgear out of here.
Run
"Aaaaahhhhhhhhhh!" The purple haired character let out a battle cry as she ran towards her new found sister, who fired another spell.
QuickstepQuickstepQuickstepQuickstepQuick-
Neptune's foot was caught on a debris. She tumbled hard on the ground as blood dripped down the side of her mouth, it suddenly dawned on her that she was biting her cheek. The older of the two felt her stomach drop, as she watched.
Neith lunged Nepgear fired another Streaming point, with the monster easily dodging it mid air. It seemed to cut through air as the spider like monster approached the child in a bullet like manner. And all Neptune could do was helplessly bring her hand up, as if reaching for the child.
"NEPGEAR!"
"Sword Arts: Still cut!"
It was for a brief moment. A brief moment when a transparent like blade cut through the air and directly at Neith's neck. Purple blood splattered everywhere, as Neith tumbled halfway across the room. The monster let out a strangled cry, it's blood spurting from it's neck but not enough to kill it.
"Fuh, guess I arrived on time." A gruff voice said beside Nepgear, who could only stare at the man beside her. He had fierce but gentle brown eyes, his arms were littered with scars, but the most noticeable one was the one found on his left cheek. He wore a green tunic, to which could be mistaken as brown because of all the grime, and on his hand was a beautiful Katana that seemed to glow in the dark.
Wasn't this the man they were looking for?
"What in the world are you two doing here?" He said, his eyes analyzing the little girl before shifting towards Neptune's wide eyes. His eyes paused on the downed purple haired girl, narrowing as he reads through her status. "You're...green. What the hell is a green doing in a place like this?"
A roar erupted from the bleeding Neith. The mysterious man removed his gaze from them and sighed, before looking at Neith. "Hmm, seriously..." Like a flash, he vanished beside Nepgear before appearing infront of the monster.
Neith's eyes widened, stumbling a little before roaring and cut towards the opposing man. He vanished once again, causing the monster to let out a frustrated sound. It's movements were erratic, as it swiped it's sickles everywhere in hopes of cutting the threat.
"You're being a pain..." He whispered beside it's face, to which he delivered the final blow. "Sword Arts: Blade Lance!" Aiming for the neck, the man swiftly brought his blade down, an imaginary sword, seemed to pierced through the it's target. A swooshing sound could be heard from where the two were fighting, before a compressed air suddenly burst out.
Nepgear and Neptune blocked their eyes with their arm, as they tried not get blown away. It was deafeningly silent, the two removed the arm shielding their eyes and saw the man severing the head of the spider like monster. Once done, he took a rope strapped on his shoulder and tied the head and hang it around his waist.
The brown eyed samurai looked behind him, to where Neptune and Nepgear were staring at him.
He sighed. Walking towards the two without uttering a word, he noticed Neptune's swollen leg. "You're poisoned." He said, breaking the tension that existed between them.
Neptune snapped out of her trance, suddenly realizing the predicament she was in. It wasn't her fault, seeing the mystery man slay the monster that was trying to kill them, in what seemed like mere seconds, was enough to impress her. Nepgear also felt the same way, seeing how their savior wield his sword and comparing it with her big sister skills were leagues apart.
"Uh, ah! Right, my leg." She said, before the adrenaline rush ran out and a searing pain suddenly shot through it. "Ah! My... leg...Ack!" Neptune panted, suddenly feeling cold and feverish. The veins in her leg pulsated sickeningly, the previous sick purple was now a mixture of purple and red. It was unbearably painful.
The mystery man knelt beside her, rummaging inside his tunic once again, procuring a vial. "Drink this."
Neptune eyed the vial that was being handed to her. It was... disgusting to look at. The liquid inside the bottle was like puke in color. Bits of unknown ingredients seemed to swim through it, and to be honest, she really doesn't want to drink the concoction.
But she shouldn't be too picky right now. She's literally dying.
Maybe it's healing grass, or maybe it'll taste like chicken. She could go for a chicken right now.
With a shaking hand, Neptune took the uncapped vial and chugged it down. Turns out, it was as bad as it looks. Neptune almost spat the liquid. Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to swallow it. She made a disgusted face and groaned.
"What were you two doing here?" He asked. Nepgear, who was knelt on the other side of the purple haired character, explained that they were looking for a person. The man raised an eyebrow, and laughed when the witch told him that it was him they were looking for.
"Me? Missing? I've only been gone for a few hours!" The man's eyes suddenly froze as realization dawned into him. "And you decided two look for me? Who posted the quest?" Nepgear nodded.
"Mas- Big sister took the quest..." She said meekly, her worry rising when she saw Neptune's eyes shut.
The mystery man noticed this. "She'll be fine, just exhausted. It's normal to pass out, that means the antidote is working." Brown eyes looked around their surrounding. "But we should get out of here. As much as the antidote helped your sister, that isn't enough to completely remove the venom." The purple haired child's eyes widened at the information.
"It'll be okay, I know someone who could remove it."
Hoisting Neptune on his back, he lead Nepgear out of the power plant. The walk towards the exit was silent, the two didn't talk besides the occasional signal whether they should stop for a moment. It took them an hour to finally find the exit, and Nepgear noted that they were in a really different area than the one her and her big sister had gone through.
Afternoon sunlight greeted them warmly. Nepgear sighed in relief, thank god they were out of that place. She looked at Neptune and found the purple haired character still in a deep slumber. She's really worried.
Nepgear bit her lip. If only she was stronger...
"Hey, are you coming?" The kid snapped out at her own thoughts. She looked at him, who was now looking back at her. Nodding meekly, Nepgear walked towards him.
They went to the guild house first, as their savior reported back a finished quest. He opted for Nepgear to look through Neptune's pockets and procuring the quest information, thus finishing their quest. Obtaining the credits the child held on with an iron grip, the two went to the man's house. It was a little bit far, as the house was located just a little outside Leanbox, but they have no time to stop now.
It was a modest looking house. It's a structure that could be described as homely, with patches of flowers in front, which seemed to be extremely taken care. There wasn't much really to say about their savior's house.
"She should be inside-"
"Kojiro!" A woman's voice reached Nepgear's ears. The front door opened and found a busty woman with blonde hair styled in a ponytail, a pair of green eyes and a height that was slightly shorter than their savior, but still tall nonetheless. Beside the woman was a child, shorter than her own and younger. She had brown hair that matched the mystery man's hair, but with green eyes like the woman holding her hand.
'They must be his family.'
The woman huffed at him before slapping him across the face. The sound that came from flesh hitting flesh could be heard and Nepgear flinched as she stood frozen. That scared her.
"Where have you been?! Do you know how worried I was? I nearly stormed the tavern looking for you only to find out that you went on a quest!" Lyka shouted. "It would have been okay if you came back right away, but no! You just have to be gone for five days!"
Nepgear watched as the two bicker, it was really awkward. She stood as she waited for their argument to simmer down. The purple haired child looked at Neptune, she was still deep in slumber. It was actually impressive how her master sleep through the woman's shouting.
The blonde glared at him, but the child beside her removed her hold from her mother and went straight to him. "Papa! Where hab been?" The brown haired child stumble through her words.
That seemed to snapped the couple their bicker, and for Kojiro's personality to change completely. "Ah, I was on an adventure, my princess. I have so much stories I want to tell you." He smiled gently. "But papa have to do something with mama first, okay? Have you two ate dinner?" Kojiro's child shook her head cutely. "Then after we finish, let's eat together. Go to your room first, Alyria."
"Un!" Alyria's face lit up, before kissing her father's cheek.
Watching their interaction made Nepgear felt something. It was envy. But it had seemed to simmer down these few days. The purple haired child looked at her big sister. Yeah, it really has.
"Lyka, I need your help." Kojiro said as he showed Neptune to the woman. Her eyes widened, the realization dawning upon her as she looked at the two new people beside her husband. Lyka finally beckoning them inside, as she leads them into an empty room and laid the slumbering Neptune.
The blonde haired woman examined her leg and nodded. "She's been poisoned by Neith?"
Her husband nodded. "These two saw the quest you posted. Thought it was an easy quest 'cause of the reward credit." Lyka's eyes widened, her stomach dropped.
"But-! Didn't you see that it was only for high ranked adventurers?" The woman asked with a slight tilt of her head. "I didn't know any low grade adventurers would take this on as it's the powerplant!" The woman apologizes profusely. "I should've known new people would be stubborn to take on this quest! Ughhh I'm really sorry!"
Nepgear took a step back at the sudden apology, hiding behind Kojiro who shared a glance with his wife.
"U-um! Anyways, dear, I would need a basin and a towel please." The brown haired man nodded his head, before stepping out of the room to fetch the needed objects.
"Hey, what's your name?" Lyka asked as she looks at Nepgear with gentle eyes. The purple haired child looked at her big sister, before looking at the woman meekly.
"...Nepgear."
"I see, Nepgear, I would need your help okay?" At this Nepgear perked up. "Your sister would be in a lot of pain, so I need you to hold her hand tightly, okay? Don't let go until it's necessary. Could you do that for me?" Lyka instructed, as the child nodded profusely.
The woman saw her husband enter with a basin and towel. "Alright, stand beside her. She'll need your help too." The purple haired child rushed beside the bed and clutched Neptune's hand, holding it like her life depends on it.
Lyka walked towards the drawer and procured a dusty looking book that aged well in the past years. She flipped through the pages until stopping at a leaf, before proceeding to walk towards the slumbering body of the purple haired girl.
"Kojiro, give me your knife." The man, who was standing at the corner of the room, handed his wife the said item before returning to where he previously stood. Lyka gripped the blade as she knelt and placed the book down the floor.
The woman looked at Nepgear. "Hold her hand tightly okay? I suggest you close your eyes too, its about to get gnarly." The child tightened her grip on her big sister's hand and gave Lyka a determined look.
Lyka, who saw Nepgear's face, nodded hesitantly. She returned her attention on Neptune's pulsating foot, before creating horizontal cut behind her leg. Blood easily flowed from the cut, but instead of red, purple black substance seeped out. The purple haired girl gripped on Nepgear's hand, as her scream tore through the surroundings. The young witch bit her lip as her big sister's nails were digging through her flesh enough to draw blood.
The blonde woman didn't stop her ministrations, she cut, flesh after flesh carefully, until she found what she was looking for. A small parasite looking vein pulsated inside Neptune's leg, beating like a heart as it pumped more venom. Lyka didn't waste any more time, she beckoned her husband to hold the wound open in order to remove the parasite.
Kojiro looked at the wound, a gnarly cut by his wife and that little parasite of death. The blonde woman carefully cut the black veins where the parasite was attached and plucked it out easily. As if on cue, the veins that pulsated on Neptune's leg rescinded. Lyka sighed in relief as she put the venom causing parasite on the basin and grabbed the piece of clothing beside it and wiped the excess, normal looking, blood that was spilling from the wound.
"This part should be easy." She smiled at the child who was shifting her gaze from Neptune to her. Lyka looked at Kojiro and told him to get his alcohol, who was hesitant at first but shook his head before grabbing the stashed booze in their room. It took another painful minute of Neptune's scream as Lyka poured her husband's alcohol all over her leg, but overall everything seemed to be fine.
"You did well child." Lyka smiled as she did the final knot of bandage on Neptune's leg.
"She'll be fine now, she just needs rest." Kojiro also nodded at the child.
Nepgear spit out a series of 'thank you' bowing profusely but refusing to let go of the older purple haired girl. The blonde pat the girl's head and noticed the state she was in. To be honest, the little girl does not sustain any serious damage except for a few cuts on her hand, over all it seemed like her big sister knows how to look out for her.
"You're probably hungry after all that, join our supper. Then you could take a bath."
Nepgear's eyebrows furrowed, causing Lyka to chuckle. "Hey, I know you're worried about your sister, but you can't take care of her on an empty stomach." The kid turned her gaze back to her sister with contemplation. This was a choice. A choice she's about to make since forever. What would happen if she left Neptune? Her big sis might need her help and to be honest she didn't really want to leave her. All the worry she's feeling made her forget about being hungry, she doesn't want to eat knowing Neptune was over here.
Nepgear's gaze lingered on her sister, then returned it back to the blonde woman. "U-Uhm!" She started with a squeaky voice. "Would it be alright if... If I stay here?" Lyka's eyebrows rose and shared a glance with her husband, before she gave the child a warm smile.
"Of course," The purple haired girl perked up. "but!" The woman chuckled when she saw the kid froze. "You're gonna wash yourself first. Am I clear?" Nepgear observed Lyka then she looked back at Neptune's figure, contemplating once more.
"O-Okay." She said softly, causing the woman to nod.
"Good, the baths just down the hallway. I'll go get you some clothes and then I'll bring food here, sounds good?" Nepgear nodded profusely, causing the blonde to chuckle before ushering Kojiro to follow her out of the room.
Shifting her gaze back to the older girl on the bed, Nepgear slowly lifted Neptune's hand to her face and nuzzle into it as she watched the other girl's slow but peaceful breathing. "Please be alright, big sis."
It's been a day since they arrived Kojiro's house and Nepgear was getting anxious. The older purple haired girl has yet to rouse from her sleep, and had not shown any indications of waking up. The younger girl continued to hold her big sister's hand, casting healing spells to speed up the process.
Lyka, who always reminds Nepgear to eat and sleep, reassured her that it would take time for Neptune to wake up since the poison also eats up her mana, so it was not a surprise to see her taking her sweet time to sleep. Nepgear understands, but it does not lessen her worry. For the past hours, the little purple haired girl had wiped Neptune's sweat, making sure the older girl was comfortable. She watched the rising and falling of Neptune's chest, lulling her to sleep only to wake up and grasp her big sis' hand.
Breakfast was filling, but the little purple haired girl would only eat a small portions of food before excusing herself to go back to Neptune's room. Kojiro frowned at the child. Of course, it was natural to worry about a loved one, but Nepgear was starving and exhausting herself.
"Nepgear sure is caring." Lyka said with a hint of worry, before feeding her child, who giggled at her mother's silly looking face.
"Yes, but she's over doing it. She may care for her sister, but if she doesn't take care of herself she wouldn't be continue to do so." Kojiro sighed.
"I mean, her big sister did almost die. I suppose it's only natural."
"I know, but she's healing now. Nepgear on the other hand..."
The blonde woman looked at her husband and gave him a reassuring smile. This is one of the things she loved about him, always worrying about people despite not knowing them. "Dear, you worry too much."
Kojiro could only looked at his wife, who was now walking towards him. "I know, but she need to take better care of herself."
Lyka chuckled and pecked his cheek. "Don't worry, I'll do something about it."
...
"Can you help me with something, Nepgear?"
Nepgear looked at Lyka, who has a gentle smile on her face and Alyria looking at her from behind her mother. "I..." The purple haired furrowed her eyebrows as she looks back to Neptune's slumbering figure. She answered hesitantly. "I...Yes..."
The woman grinned widely with a twinkle in her eye. "Perfect, I'm about to fetch something in the market and with my darling husband out on a quest again, I don't have anyone watch Alyria for me? So can you?"
Nepgear shifted her gaze down to where the child was staring at her with her wide bright green eyes. It was quite a big responsibility to look out for Miss Lyka's child. But, it was the only thing she could do to repay them with their kindness.
"Come on, Alyria, go introduce yourself to Nepgear." The brown haired child behind Lyka clutched at her mother's skirt, burying her face in them before peeking out to meekly say out her name.
"Uhm, nice too...nice to meet you. I'm Alyria Rochenfort..."
"Sorry, she doesn't know anyone around her age, or close to her age." Lyka giggled at her child's shyness, patting her for a job well done.
Nepgear could only stare at the child in front of her, before nodding her head slowly to the girl. "I, uhm, I'm Nepgear and nice to m-meet you too." The purple haired girl fidget as she was under gaze of Lyka's green eyes.
She bites her lip, nervousness eating at her nerves as her heart rattled in her chest.
"So, Nepgear, can you watch over her?" Lyka said with a gentle smile on her face. Nepgear searched the green eyes of the other woman looking for...something. She can't really understand why in the world would Lyka decided to entrust her child to a complete stranger?
"But... Miss Lyka, are you...are you sure you want to trust me in looking out for your daughter? I'm a stranger..."
"I understand that you think I shouldn't trust you, and yes I probably shouldn't." Lyka nodded, and Nepgear could only look at her in horror. The woman laughed at her expression and gave her a gentle smile. "But didn't you entrust your sister to me? You trusted me enough to treat your sister, and I'm also a stranger."
"I... I..." The purple haired child furrowed her eyebrow. How come Miss Lyka could trust her? She couldn't even trust herself. But... What would Neptune do?
Nepgear looked at her sleeping sister's face, and her face soften. Another decision was made. "I'll do it... I won't let you down miss Lyka."
Sorry for the delay. Anyways the next chapter would be Nepgear focused.
