Chapter 4: Friendship
The light flickered through the window, it's rays hitting the face of the man who has the highest luck, Kazuma. He awoke shortly after as the discomfort on his face was too much for his sleeping brain. He tried to get up but felt a tug on his body. Weird. That's not supposed to happen. He turned to investigate on what's causing it and soon enough was surprised to see the cause.
Apparently, Chris really liked hugging things while she slept. Her mind unconsciously wrapped her arms on anything to hug, and it just so happened to be Kazuma. Guess she didn't notice. Now here's the tricky part. Yes, he liked that she was hugging him, he wished he could do the same as well. But he knew, she would kill him if she woke up and saw her position. So he swallowed up his pride and tried to get out of there as soon as positive.
But sure enough, lady Eris saw his situation and wanted him tortured. His luck ran out as Chris flickered her eyes open due to the sudden movements that were tugging her arms. She fully opened them as she saw her arms wrapping around Kazuma's body. Kazuma was still looking at her this entire time. He decided to say something to ease out the tension.
"Uuuhhh, good morning, um, Chris."
"You absolute Idiot!" Chris jumped away as she landed on the floor from fear. "I'm gonna fucking kill you!" She then ran towards him, her hands ready to strangle the delicate and soft neck that was vital for life to Kazuma.
"Aaaahhhh! Chris I'm sorry!" He then ran on instinct when he saw the bloodlust that were in the eyes of the thief. "Please, it's not even my fault! You were hugging me!" He tried to plead as they both run around the room like little kids.
"Do I look like I care? I'm gonna have so much fun strangling that neck of yours!" Chris shouted at him. She ran towards him, with Kazuma running in the opposite direction to avoid her. She had to come up with a plan, if they run around like kids, she's not gonna catch up to him. It would be a waste of time. She looked around her surroundings as she ran, she then caught a glimpse of the blankets they used last night. Perfect, she'll just trip him over.
As Kazuma ran up the bed and hopped down from it, she followed. Trying to act as seamless as possible. She ran up and took the blanket in her hand. They had run around in circles, she knew where he would run. She saw him running in the predicted direction and threw the blanket on the floor. He didn't notice and was easily caught when he felt something tugging on his leg.
It was too late. He prayed to Eris as he fell down face flat on the floor. "Ahhh-Ow!" He groaned in pain. He then heard some footsteps approaching towards him, and he knew exactly who that belonged to.
"Say hi to Eris for me, okay?" She said sadistically, Kazuma felt something wet was in his pants. Chris then took both of her hands and turned him around to face him. She wanted to savour this moment, seeing his face being filled with fear, it filled her with happiness.
"What's wrong with me?" Apparently, Eris had peeked through her mindscape. "I'm returning the favor." Chris said in her mind as she started strangling the poor boy. "You're not going to kill him will you?" Eris said skeptically. "Of course I'm not, I'm not that evil."
She strangled him some more until she was satisfied. She saw his pleading face, his eyes looked like it was spinning around. Alright, that's enough. She let go and Kazuma took in a deep breath as he gasped for the air that was needed to keep him alive.
"Welp, I'm satisfied. I'm going to take. a shower now." She said nonchalantly as If she didn't strangle a man just seconds ago.
"*Gasp* Ugh, Damn you Chris. Just you wait." He gasped as he grunted cursings on the silver thief. He saw her grabbing a towel and going into the shower. Locking it behind her. He got up, taking in a few more breathers as he went to grab his towel as well. He. waited for her to finish, and to fill in the time, he plotted on many ways to strike back on the cheeky thief.
He didn't have to wait too long however as Chris came out the shower looking clean and smelling fragrant. She even changed her clothes inside the shower.
"Waters hot, so enjoy yourself." She said like everything was normal. He glared at her when he passed her, getting into the shower and locking it behind.
"You should really say sorry to him you know." Eris, the goddess of luck, had appeared in the room in front of Chris. Though, only she(Chris) can see her.
"And why would I do that." Chris said grumpily.
"It's because he wasn't in the wrong. You know it. I can see it in your heart." Eris tried to be intimidating by scowling at her, but it only made her look like a child pouting.
"Of course you know, You're me." She spoke the obvious as she looked away at her in guilt.
"I could feel guilt our hearts." Eris noted as she felt her heart feeling weighty from the emotions that Chris was having. "You should say sorry to him after he's done."
"Ugh, why do you have to be so annoying!" Chris mocked her as she got up in frustration. "You always tell me what to do. You're the reason why I can't have fun in this world." She complained to her like a spoiled child.
"It's because I'm your boundary. I created you. So that means, my morals apply to your emotions. Our hearts our connected, so you feel my emotions whenever you travel around." Eris explained. "There's a reason why always feel guilty when you pickpocket Kazuma all the time." She remembered the nights where Chris would sneak into his room and steal a bit of his money to buy some drinks from a nearby bar.
"Why you- Gugh, now I feel guilty. I hate you!" Chris was feeling her heart grow heavy like a dumbbell. She then sat down with her arms crossed, her look was of sourness.
Eris only gave a chuckle at the behavior of her other self. "Huhu, you always crack me up, me. Anyways, be sure to say sorry to him. Make sure he eats well! Buh-bye~" Eris then disappeared into thin air, leaving Chris to think about her conflicting feelings.
Should she say sorry? I mean, she was the one who hugged him, and she was the one who strangled him. But, she didn't want to! She had pride damn it! Suddenly, her heart felt like it was being squeezed by a hand. She gasped in pain, the pain was just unbearable. Her eyes shot up, her whole body cramped up from the pain. It only lasted a second, but the pain? It felt like it was being stabbed a million times. What was that feeling? She never in her creation ever felt that pain before.
"Pride, is a terrible sin." She suddenly heard a voice. It wasn't Eris, it was something else. It sounded like a powerful voice, a voice that demanded attention and respect. And she knew exactly who it belonged to. The higher-ups. It was scary. To think she would get judgement from the higher-ups just like that? For only thinking of one of the seven deadly sins? She definitely didn't want to feel that again. And she knew for sure she wasn't alone, Eris had also felt the pain she never felt before.
Her body went to normal. Her hands and legs could move freely again. Her face for some reason felt cold and wet. She investigated by touching her face, what resulted was that her face was full on sweating, and her heart rate had rapidly increased. She was scared.
"My goodness," She whispered, looking at the palm of her hand which was full of sweat. Never in her creation had she felt fear before. It was the first time the gods had given her punishment, and it hurt like hell. She put her hand on her lap, rethinking the things that she has done.
"Maybe I should forgive him." Yes,she was the one who hugged him. Yes, she was the one who strangled him. It was wrong, and she knew it. She has to say sorry! she had humility damn it!
She then heard a door unlocking, what came out was a man who had taken a shower and changed into fresh new clothing. He rubbed his hair with a towel to dry it faster.
"Yo Chris, was there a person in this room or something? I heard you talking to someone..." Kazuma asked curiously as he heard her talking faintly.
"O-oh, it's just me. I like talking to myself." She tried to come up with a lie. Well technically, she isn't lying, she was talking to herself, Eris. But of course, saying that wouldn't make sense to Kazuma who doesn't know Chris's true identity.
"Uh, okay then." He chuckled. Chris decided to take this opportunity to apologize to him now since she knows, later in the day it would eat her away. And she definitely doesn't want devine retribution from the gods again.
"Hey, uh, listen Kazuma..." Chris got up and rubbed her arm in nervousness. "I'm... I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't strangle you when it wasn't your fault." Chris looked down at the ground, mixed with guilt and fear. Guilt, due to her doing an action that was unnecessary and he wasn't even at fault. Fear, due to the outcome of her apology. How will he react? Would he forgive her? Will he brush it off? Will he be mad? She doesn't know. Only now, she'll just brace for impact.
"Um, Chris, I appreciate you being considerate. I never really expect it, since um- y'know - uh, forget it about!" He sweated. "Wh-what I'm trying to say is that, I forgive you. And thank you, no one has really, said sorry to me before..." He forgave her, but slowly muttered that last sentence.
"Anyways, just, thank you." He brushed it off and have his thanks. Chris, was honestly relived. She was glad he took it well, and not something where he took more drastic emotions. "I'm glad, Kazuma."
"As your leader, I will restrain myself from doing any further harm towards you. Except, if you do something wrong." Chris closed her eyes and declared her promise.
"Jeez Chris, you don't have to be so formal." He chuckled. " We're still friends y'know."
"I know, I just have to make it official." She then opened her eyes again. " Well, now with that out of the way, why don't we go out and learn some new skills." She gave him a look of determination.
"Yeah!" He pumped his fist up. "*Grumble*" Suddenly, Kazuma's stomach had grumbled from the lack of food it had. "Uh, how bout' we go eat first?" He looked at her in embarrassment, she chuckled. "Yeah, let's go."
Chris then grabbed his hand and the two went out of the hotel, leaving it with a very happy looking clerk that had saw the "couple" leaving the building all cheery. The duo then went on the the guild hall, to eat, to learn a new skill, and potentially, a new friend
Darkness felt the sunshine that was hitting her face. She didn't want to wake up, she just wanted to sleep. To be in deep slumber, forever. But, her human instincts wasn't having it. Her body refused to sleep once more. She grumbled, looks like she has no choice. She got up, her hair being a mess and she was still wearing her clothing from yesterday! Honestly, she didn't felt like changing her attire last night and went straight to bed. Bit due to her circumstances, we'll but her some slack.
She walked begrudgingly, not having the energy to even go to the toilet and pee. Bit she had to, her body told her to. She walked aimlessly in the empty hallways of the mansion, going to the bathhouse which they had. She's eventually got here, usually it would take a minute, but this one took five due to her low energy levels.
She took a piss and flushed, going to the sink to wash and brush her teeth. She went u to it and looked at the mirror, what came was of course her reflection, bit what she saw? She saw nothing but a devil.
A demon. A person who shouldn't exist. How could a person who abused their friend, didn't help them one bit, embarrassed them out of amusement, still live on this cruel but wonderful world? She didn't know. All she knew, is that she didn't want see her face ever again!
She heard little taps coming from the sink. They didn't have a leaky pipe so it could only mean one thing, shee was crying. Her mental health has gone down drastically, it was only a day but her mentally had changed from happy and courageous, to depressed and pessimist.
She decided to still wash her face and mouth, but not looking at the mirror. She did her routine sloppily and went out of the bathhouse and to the living room. She heard some footsteps coming from the hallway, hmm, it seems that they were awake as well. Better make breakfast.
she walked down the stairs that lead to the kitchen and to the living room, she saw Megumin sitting on the couch with Chommuseke, her skin looking pale as a ghost, and her eyes being devoid of all life.
"Good morning Megumin, do you want breakfast?" Darkness said groggily, her whole mood being unenthusiastic. What she got was no response, figures. Looks like she'll eat with Aqua then.
She went into the kitchen, looking in the pantry to see if there was anything to cook. They only had eggs, and a loaf of bread. Eggs and toast, that'll do. She grabbed the eggs and heated up the pan with a splash of oil in it. After it was heated up, she crack some eggs open and cooked them to her preferred doneness. Which was-
"I don't care. I don't have a preferred doneness. Why do I even bother with it? it doesn't matter. It's eggs. It's done when it's done. I don't want to bother with cooking time. I just want to eat. Do I want to eat? why does my body tell me these things? Why do I have to listen to it? I don't want to eat. I want to sleep. I don't want to wake up."
Oops, she burned it. Smoke was coming out of the pan, the egg was now a dark color. She sighed as she put the burnt egg inside the trash bin. "Guess I'll bread then." Darkness thought.
She grabbed the loaf of bread and went to the dining table. She took the chair out and sat on it, she then began to eat the loaf of bread. Munching away as she stared into nothingness, contemplating on life and how it came to be.
"Good morning guys." Aqua said enthusiastically, but not on the same level as Darkness. Her voice had a bit of emotion in it than Darkness's dead and cold voice. "What's for breakfast?" She walked up to the dining table and asked her.
"Bread." Darkness answered as soon as she finished chewing. Darkness wasn't even bothered that she was just eating stale, un-toasted bread. She gave up on making eggs, and she didn't have any energy to at least put butter on the bread, she just, gave up.
"Oh come on, at least try and get a good breakfast or something." Aqua walked in the kitchen and saw the burnt pan in the sink. "And also clean after yourself." She yelled loud enough to hear from the kitchen.
For some reason, Aqua was the only one who wasn't all moody and down in the dumps. Of course, her energy is slightly down and her usual cheeriness wasn't there, but she still functioned like a typical healthy human being that had needs and desires.
Aqua cleaned up the pan and refired the eggs. Cooking them to her preferred doneness, crispy but still soft in the middle. She put it on a plate and walked towards the dining table which darkness sat at, sitting down and grabbing her knife and fork.
"Give a little of that bread please." She requested, Darkness obliging and taking a chunk of the loaf, giving it to the goddess. "Thanks." She thanked and started eating it. The two ate in silence, not bothering to strike up a conversation. They were too busy thinking in their own heads.
"Hey Darkness, about last night..." Aqua spoke up in between bites. "Maybe we should find a new member to decide on the leader." She finished speaking and took another bite on her bread.
"A new member?" She took a bite of her stale bread, chewing it and swallowing. "Don't you think it's a little early to be replacing him." Darkness said as she was having doubts on replacing her friend so early.
"Well, if we have a vote on who the next leader is, it'll be uneven. So getting a new member would solve that problem." Aqua explained her thought process. "Plus, we need a new one. Our team is just, to extreme to operate. We need to balance it out." She explained further, saying that their lineup couldn't hold much longer if they continued.
"I guess you're right." She looked to her side, contemplating if she could handle a new member already replacing him. "Alright then, we'll set up a poster in the guild. You can design it or something." She agreed, saying that she'll be in charge of posting the notice.
"Okay." She gave a thumbs up, giving a tired smile. She then continued to eat her meal and finishing it.
"okay, how the hell did she do that?" Darkness saw the smile and gesture Aqua gave her. "I'm jealous of you Aqua. You can have a mental breakdown before, and then come out and smile after. I wish I could have that ability, forgetting the past and living the present." Darkness felt envious of Aqua's happy go lucky attitude, just forgetting about realities problems and living life up to it's fullest. She wished she could have that.
But, Aqua's attitude isn't like that at all. Right now, she wished she could just be in her room, drink some booze, and sleep for all of eternity. She absolutely hated this feeling, the feeling of being sober. Being able to realize and face the cruel world that is reality. But, after seeing these twos mood, she knew she had to stop. She knew she had to stop drinking, and be the one to help these gals out of the dumps. By either making a fake smile, or cooking them actual meals, she had to be there for them.
After Aqua finished her meal, she got up and washed her dirty plate and fork. Finishing that up, she headed to her bedroom, grabbing her towel and went to the bathhouse to shower. Darkness also got up after Aqua finished, she went and told Megumin of their plans for today.
"Hey Megumin, get ready. We're about to go out." She said as she shook her to try and get her to jerk her head up, no response. "*Sigh* Come on Megumin, get up and change. You haven't even eaten breakfast yet." Darkness shook her some more, she won't budge.
"Forgive me Megumin." She whispered in her ear. Darkness then picked her up effortlessly, putting her on her shoulder and bringing her to her room to change. Marching along the hallways, it did stir up the depressed Megumin to ask a question.
"Where are we going...?" She barely asked loud enough for Darkness to hear, her tone being groggy.
"To the guild. We're finding a new member." Darkness answered.
"What...?" Megumin then went wide eyed.
"W...we... we're... re-replacing... him...?" She spoke in between gasps, her voice cracking on every single word.
"I know it's sounds tough but, you have to face it. We, have to move on. He's... he's gone..." Darkness tried to say without tears falling down but she failed. Her steps gradually getting slower by the second.
"We have to move on. For his sake..." She took a deep breath, stopping for a moment. Then carried on walking to Megumin's bedroom.
"But... I... can't move on... He was... everything to me..." Hearing Megumin's voice cracking was making Darkness breaking down again but, she had to be strong. Being the oldest (excluding Aqua) here, she had a sense of responsibility. She had to make an image, to show them that there is hope.
"He was that to me as well, but now we must fast the future." She looked out of the windows to strengthen her mind, anything to distract her negative thoughts.
"You're not alone Megumin, we're in this... together." Darkness continued further, looking away from the window and towards Megumin. Well, her behind, but still.
"Easy for you to say..." Megumin said, her voice being stoic instead of cracking. Hey, it's progress. They eventually arrived at Megumin's room, Darkness plopped her down and suggested her to change. She obliged by entering it without a hint of emotion.
Darkness saw the door closing and stood there, her face now matching Megumin's, no emotions. She then walked to her room, which was right in front of Megumin's. Pretty convenient.
The trio all got changed, their normal attire's as per usual. Both Darkness and Megumin got out at the same time. Darkness looking the same while Megumin wasn't carrying her iconic staff. Darkness questioned the staff's absence.
"Hey Megumin, where's your staff?" She pointed at the air that was usually occupied by her staff.
"Oh, I just didn't bother. It's not like we're going adventuring or anything..." She answered, her voice being flat instead of the usual fiery and hot headed Megumin. Her voice sounded like a kid who was bored out of their mind, not bothering to care about anything.
"Can't blame you." Darkness quipped, she understood their circumstances so it was understandable. They both went together to the living room, where they saw the awaiting Aqua. Huh, usually they were the ones who waited for her, not the other way around.
"What took you two so long?"Aqua asked, her hand holding a few sheets of paper. Her other hand were holding a pencil and eraser. No doubt making the recruitment posters for them.
"What do you mean. We didn't take that long..." Darkness answered honestly, she didn't feel like she was being slow, nor was Megumin.
"Um, it's like, 25 minutes now. You two didn't even shower." Aqua looked at her non existent clock on her wrist. Ironically, they had a grandfather's clock right beside the wall.
"Wait what? Surely we didn't take that long?" Darkness was honestly shocked she had taken that much time to change. Usually, it would take 10 minutes.
"*Sigh" Whatever... Let's just get going. You guys ready." Aqua sighed, seeing as there's no further reason to argue.
Both Darkness and Megumin nodded, signaling that they were ready. Aqua nodded and the three all went outside of the mansion, heading towards the guild to hopefully find a new member, and potentially, a new friend.
They shortly arrived at the guild hall. The inside being busy as ever, just like usual. But hey, without all the noise and bustling, it wouldn't even be the guild anymore. They walked in and can already feel the stares. Everyone has heard of the news, and all of them were having mixed thoughts just like last night. They just couldn't shake the feeling that yes, Kazuma has left. So what now? They didn't know. And the team certainly didn't want to be reminded of that, so they pushed through the stares and got to a table.
Since they sat on a table, a waitress of came and went to their table to order.
"Hi, um, what would you, like to order?" The waitress was nervous due to the team being wildly known and looking like they just witnessed a tragedy.
"Sorry but, we're not ordering anything." Darkness spoke up, since she and Aqua had breakfast already. Except Megumin, but she looked like she didn't have an appetite right now.
"Oh um, if you do want to order, just call alright." The waitress gave a nervous smile before leaving hurriedly due to the atmosphere already going in her head.
Darkness saw the waitress left and decided to ask Aqua about the poster.
"So Aqua, is the poster finished?" Darkness asked.
"Eh, it's almost done. Juuust needs a few more finishing touches." Aqua inspected her new poster and decided to add in a bit more color to it. Make it more flashier. Darkness grew envious seeing Aqua's carefree nature.
"A bit of this... A bit of that... And... done!" She whispered as she colored in the final details before deciding it was finished. Presenting it to her party mates.
"So, what do you think?" Darkness saw the poster which Aqua gave. She read the text that was on it. It all looked good like, 'we need new members', 'Our party is high leveled', it was going fine until she saw one line. "The wonderful goddess Aqua." She mumbled.
"Aqua, why does it say 'The wonderful goddess Aqua'?" Darkness asked.
"Because it's true." Aqua answered innocently.
"Um, you do now imitating a goddess is frowned upon right?" Darkness said disappointingly at her. In this world, gods and goddesses are real so having to imitate one would be considered unwise or blasphemy, it's generally looked down upon. Darkness, Megumin, practically everyone except Kazuma didn't believe she was actually a goddess.
Though, Aqua did have a slight suspicion that Eris would be believed immediately if she said she were a goddess.
"What do you mean? I am a goddess." Aqua didn't shout this time due to her mood but just, argued with her well mannered. You know, like normal people.
"Aqua, I don't know how many times we have to say this but," Aqua already knew what she was gonna say. "Imitating a god or goddess is considered rude to everyone." Aqua sighed on that. She didn't have the energy to shout or whine right now.
"Ugh whatever, do you want to change it?" Aqua gritted her teeth in frustration, her friends still didn't believe she was a goddess.
"Yes, give me a quill." Aqua gave her a quill and looked away in a huff, Darkness rolled her eyes and she started 'correcting' the 'mistake'.
"Do you think this looks good Megumin?" Darkness finished touching up the poster and asked he friend r if she thought it was okay.
Megumin this entire time looked at her friends with dead eyes, not interacting or participating in anything. She just watched as their conversation and argument unfold, not bothering to speak up. But she did respond when she was spoken to when she picked the flyer up from Darkness's hand.
"It looks good." Megumin said dryly as she handed the paper back to Darkness. While it wasn't much, Darkness was glad that Megumin was still able to talk and engage in their activities.
"Alright then, I'll post this up and see if anyone wants to join." She got up and notified her party mates of her departure.
"Alright then." Aqua acknowledged her while Megumin only silently nodded. Darkness then went to the quest board, which doubled as a recruitment board as well. How convenient.
She posted it on and looked at it. Her mind reading back at the letters that were present on the poster. A new recruitment, hiring members, Herself and her friends. She realized that this was a new chapter. A new team which held a different leader, new adventures to be going. All of it, without Kazuma.
She eyes turn to a look of sadness. Never in her life would she think that a few words would break her heart so, so much. She thought back at what happened yesterday, how it went wrong when they took that quest, how it all built up to that moment.
To think it could've been prevented had she been better. All that negativity really built up in that man's head, piling up until it exploded yesterday. All because of her. No. She didn't want to think about that again. Not after what happened yesterday.
She knew she had to move on, and this day would be the start of that. She looked back at the poster, her eyes now consist that of determination. Determination to change.
"I'm gonna change, for me, and for you, Kazuma." She whispered, hoping that these words would stick to her until she's fully confident with herself.
She walked back to her party, Aqua tapped the table in boredom while Megumin looked at one direction without saying anything. Darkness sat down with them, not striking up a conversation. They all sat silently, waiting for a person, any person to come and join them. Though, they didn't have to wait long as one girl did come to meet them.
"Hi, I would to join you party."
"So, where did you come from?" Kazuma and Chris were together eating breakfast in the guild hall. Eating while there wasn't any talking really irked him so he decided to ask Chris about her past. Since he himself was curious.
"Well, I was actually a resident back in Elroad. You know, the neighboring kingdom." Kazuma nodded at that. "My life back there wasn't really great. I grew up poor and I had to steal to survive." She began telling her automated answer. She used this fake story many times to conceal her identity.
"Many years later, I met this guy who can make fake passports. Getting a passport in Elroad is significantly harder than any other kingdom." She recalled the rule that Elroad had stated, only a handful of people actually got a passport to immigrate to other countries. Wouldn't you know it, all of them, were rich.
"Wait, why is that?" Kazuma questioned.
"It's some dumb rule where you have to be at this specific wealth or something. Basically, if you're rich, you get one." She explained the rule. While other things she's said are made up, the rule of which wealthy people get access to immigration is actually real and that you need to be at a specific quota to actually make and get a passport.
"And here I thought Elroad was a good kingdom." He joked.
"Heh, you have no idea how corrupted that place is." She continued. "Well anyways, I got my passport, went to the border control and easily faked my way out of there."
"Woah, so you're not actually a citizen here?" She nodded. "Huh, that's pretty interesting." He didn't have anything other than thinking it's good that he knows where she came from now.
"I guess, but, you haven't told me where you came from." She finished her breakfast and leaned back on her chair, waiting for Kazuma to answer.
"Well, it's fair. I actually the same as you, I'm an immigrant." Chris was listening idly, she already knew but wanted to seal the deal that she wasn't hiding anything.
"It's not a country you heard of, but I'm from Japan. Let's just say it's far, far away from here." The least he could do was tell a bit of the truth. Yes, he did come from Japan. Just not from this world, he wasn't comfortable with exposing where he actually came from. Plus, he's pretty sure she would think he's crazy.
"It's pretty far away so, I'm not going back. Not that I want to anyways..." He muttered, but Chris could hear it.
"Hmm? why is that?" She questioned.
"What's what?"
"You know, you not wanting to go back." She explained.
"Oh um, it's just that, my place. wasn't very exciting. And the people there were a bit, rude. So I want to stay here." Kazuma didn't expect for her to hear that but he had to answer her. He couldn't tell her the truth out of fear so he had to improvise, sprinkling in some truths while also making up lies.
"Can't blame ya. My place was also bad, I'm definitely not going back." She closed her eyes as she crossed her arms in remark.
"Oh well, guess we're in the same boat then." He chuckled nervously, deciding to eat more of his breakfast.
"Say, how did you and Darkness meet?" Actually, maybe engaging in more conversations wouldn't be so bad. He asked as he was pretty curious at how this thief girl managed to befriend a mega masochist.
"Hmm, I don't know if I should say this but Darkness back then was pretty lonely. She only ever interacted with her father while trying to be friends with others." Chris explained as she remembered seeing the tiny little darkness conversing with her father.
"She had some trouble with it, being shy and all that." She waved her hand.
"It's because she's a masochist isn't it?" Kazuma deadpanned.
"Yes." She deadpanned as well.
"But anyways, like I was saying, she had trouble making friends. So bad, to the point where she prayed to Eris for a friend." She continued further.
"Oof, that's just sad." Kazuma thought in his head at the scene where Darkness is praying to have a single friend. He knew he was a loner, but he didn't have to beg to the gods for one. He wasn't even religious.
"That's when, I heard a call." Chris gestured in a call motion, Kazuma not wondering how she even knew what that sign meant or how she knew it was a call. "Since I'm a devoted Eris follower, I easily got contacted to meet this person." She continued.
"And the rest was history, I got to meet her, we went to out first quest,she passed out in euphoria, and I had to sneak away so that I din't get executed by her father." She breezed past through her history on how she met Darkness, her eyes told that of nostalgia.
"Wait, passed out?" Kazuma did catch on this little detail.
"Yup, she got so into it she passed out due to a road eating her." She explained while looking away in boredom, she clearly wasn't phased by it.
"Heh, classic Darkness." He chuckled at it, he's not gonna miss them but he sure will slightly miss their antics, just slightly.
"Since we're on the topic of friends, I wanna know how you got to meet that lunatic godde- priestess." She was about to say it but instantly fixed it.
"You should be careful next time." Eris spoke in her head.
"Yeah yeah, I'll remember next time." She mentally rolled her eyes and continued on with reality.
"You mean Aqua right?" She nodded. "Oh boy, do I have a story for you." He was gonna need a stretch for this one.
"So we first met..." Hold up, this isn't gonna go well.
"Crap! should I tell her truth?! If I do, she's gonna think I'm nuts! Okay Kazuma, you just need to sound logical. Make sure everything makes sense. Maybe, I should start with..." Kazuma didn't think this through at all. While Chris had played the game smoothly, Kazuma had trouble on making a good lie, and all of it was on display.
Chris saw the internally panicking Kazuma, knowing full well he's trying to come up with a lie. She wanted to chuckle, or even laugh out loud, but she had to act professional now. Otherwise, he's gonna find out. She held it in and just watched the fireworks go off in amusement.
"*Cough* Okay um, like I was saying hehe..." He chuckled nervously. "We first met when I was... traveling to Belzerg." Chris nodded in amusement.
"And um, she was just in a bar drunk, and I approached her." He set his arm on the table, trying to look cool, "And I said, "hey, you wanna, join me?" He failed miserably.
"Okay? and?" Chris gave a chuckle at Kazuma's sad attempt.
"She decided to join because she was so useless and desperate. Then we ended up in Axel. We didn't really start to well, having to be construction workers." Okay, now this was a lot more easier. He could finally tell some truths, having to lie about his meeting with Aqua took a lot more effort than he thought.
"Especially taking our first quest. Sheesh that was a disaster." He remember that quest like it was yesterday. "Aqua literally got eaten, twice! By some giant toads."
"It was easy killing them,but my god, the smell. The smell was fucking insane!" He waved his hands in dramatically, Chris giggled at this.
"I had to walk with that dumpster all the way to the bath house! All the way,while crying?!" Kazuma then slammed his hands on the table, getting a few weirded stares towards the two. Chris payed no mind, but Kazuma was the opposite.
"Uh, ye-yeah. Uh, sorry about that, guys. Carry on..." He nervously looked around at the onlookers, they all just shrugged and continued doing their own business.
"Yeah, that's basically it. Other than that, the rest was history." He sighed as he closed his eyes.
"Hehe, you really are something, y'know." Chris smirked at him.
"Hey, what's that's suppose to mean?" He questioned her but she just brushed it off.
"Nothing, nothing. Anything, since we're done," They looked at the now empty plates. "How 'bout we take a quest and learn a skill." She looked at him mischievously, Kazuma already hooked on the idea.
"Alright, now you're talking." Kazuma had also shared the same look, but Chris backed away in disgust. Kazuma gritted his teeth at this.
"Don't do that okay?" Kazuma gritted his teeth some more, she could've sworn she saw some sparks. "Anyways, I'll go look at the quest board to take a fitting quest for you to practice." She got up, notifying him of her plan.
"You stay here and wait. I'll be back in a minute." He nodded, she then went to the quest board disappearing into the crowd of people.
He didn't have to wait long though as Chris appeared rather quickly, and she even has a new friend. Wait, what?
"Hi Kazuma, now I know I said I'll go fetch a quest for us, but I just so happen to pass by this gentleman." She motioned towards the mysterious man beside her.
Kazuma looked at the new guy and saw all of his features. He was pretty tall, maybe the same height as Darkness. He has those tired eyes, probably making him around his thirties. His facial features aren't all that exciting except for a few noticeable scars and his shaved beard. His hair was messy just like him except shorter.
By his side was a sword, a long one that is. He's definitely in the swordsman class. He wore a bit of armour, mainly a chest piece, some arm guards, and knee caps. Other than that, he just wore a plain white shirt and brown pant like Kazuma. His boots were pretty heavy duty, the leather looks like some tough leather to get through. All in all, he looked like a decent man that was also very well built.
"Hi, I'm Ferdinand. Ferdinand Medium. Nice to meet ya." He greeted him, his voice being rather raspy. He extended his hand out to shake, Kazuma took it.
"Nice to meet you too. I'm Kazuma Satou." He greeted him back, announcing his name for him to know.
"I heard a lot about ya. You're an adventurer right? Didn't think someone would stick to it for so long." He said impressed.
"Oh, well, it's the only class which I'm capable of. Plus, I get to learn a whole lot more than just stickin' to one." He was rather flustered by the complement, deciding to explain his reasoning behind it.
"I admire ya. It does make sense though, having to have all of the basic skills." He rubbed his beard in thought. "Though, you can't master all of them. It's like the Jake of all trades, and master of none. I'd rather be good at one thing than being mediocre at all." He put his hand back to his side.
"Yeah, I get that. I want to change to but, I kinda like learning the basic skills. I have a lot in my arsenal." Kazuma understood his reasoning, but decided he likes being an adventurer better.
"Well look at you two already bonding~. I knew it was the right idea to invite you." Chris saw the two guys conversing with each other already, getting excited that they were already being friends.
"Haha, well, I kinda like talking about people's other decisions." Ferdinand chuckled at this.
"Haha, yeah..." Kazuma however, was a bit more shy. Nervously chuckling to himself.
"Huhu, don't worry Kazuma, you don't have to be shy~." Chris saw his nervousness, calling it out with him responding like a typical tsundere.
"I'm not shy! I'm just, nervous..." He shouted, while muttering those last few words to net let them hear it. Ferdinand also chuckled at this exchange.
"Haha, it's fine Kazuma. Now then, I should tell what our next plan is." Chris laughed a bit at Kazuma's antics, but decided to brush it off and tell him about their next course of action.
"Alright so," Ferdinand and Kazuma huddled up. "Later in noon, there's this fortress in the forest nearby that was abandoned years ago." She pulled out a map and showed them where the fortress is located.
"Our mission is to go to the basement and clear out any enemies within. We clear it out, get back here, get paid, easy peasy." She rolled back the map while closing her eyes, explaining her plan.
"Clearing a basement? oh great, my favorite..." Kazuma deflated at the 'clearing' part.
"Wait, I thought you liked cleaning." Chris asked confused as she remembered yesterday how he was a clean freak.
"That was my bedroom. We're talking about a basement here! And it's in a fortress? we're gonna be there all day!" Kazuma complained how they have to clear the basement of the fortress, criticizing it's labor time.
"Don't be a baby like Aqua Kazuma. It's not like we're out there fighting a lich or something." Kazuma looked physically offended that he was compared to with Aqua. That easily shut him off.
"Hmm? Who's Aqua?" Ferdinand asked as he didn't know or see this person.
"Oh, it's just an old friend of mine. Don't bother trying to talk to her. She's in the Axis church." And this one easily shut Ferdinand off. He knew about the Axis church and it's people. He's never going back to talk to them ever again. He prayed for safety towards Chris for even talking or knowing an Aqua believer.
"Well anyways, that's the jist of it. Like I said, we'll be going till noon. So Ferdinand, go prepare some equipment if you need it. Me and Kazuma are about to go and buy something." Chris concluded her meeting and wanted to dismiss it.
"We'll meet back later right here. Got it?" And with that, Ferdinand nodded. And gave his farewells to the adventurer and thief.
"Alright then, I'll see ya later guys." He bid them farewell and went off to go and sharpen his sword at a nearby blacksmith.
"With that out of the way, let's go to the fields and see how well you can handle a few toads." Chris patted Kazuma's shoulder, eager to teach him about a skill she wanted him to learn.
"Wait, I get to finally learn a new OP skill?" Kazuma said excitedly, if he could, he could form stars in his eyes.
"Hehe, yeah. Something like that." She chuckled at Kazuma's eagerness. Guess he really wanted to be strong for a long time now.
They walked towards the fields outside the gates, the guards didn't even bat an eye as they knew who these guys were already. The terrain was kinda like the terrain back in Axel, very hilly, and had little to no trees. I mean, it's called a field for a reason.
And of course, we can't have grassy fields without some toads lying around.
"Alright Kazuma, since you really want to be strong," Chris saw him eagerly waiting like a puppy. "I'm gonna teach you, 'Mana Manipulation'".
"Uh... what?" Kazuma stopped looking at her eagerly and changed his face to that of confusion. 'Mana Manipulation', what's that? Can I eat it?
"I know you're confused. Let me explain?" She saw his confusion and decided to explain to him about this new power.
"So the jist of it is that, You say 'Mana Manipulation' under you're breath. You charge up, you'll feel it in your body when you're charging up, and put it all inside any spell of you're choosing."
"Then, you release it like any other. Except, the spell will be much more advanced and powerful than what it was." She explained, Kazuma listened carefully.
"So for example, let's say... Creat fire. I use 'Mana Manipulation' and charge up mana. Then, I put that mana into create fire. Finally, I fire it, and what comes out is a advanced fireball spell." Okay, now he was hooked. This, could change everything. He could literally change how he fights from now on.
"That, Is soo god damn OP." He salivated mentally at the sheer power he could have.
Before, all he could do was make a few sparks, tap water, and dirt that looks like he just got it from the ground. But now, he could produce fireballs, create water jets, make rocks and maybe even boulders. All from just whispering a few words.
"I know you want it~." She saw his excited look." Don't worry, it's very easy to obtain." She searched for something in her bag, what she pulled out was some sort of notebook of sorts.
"Since I can't really show you how to do it, you have to read it to obtain it." She flipped through her notebook until she stopped at a page. She showed it to him, he leaned in to see what it read.
"Mana Manipulation, the act of taking mana out of the air. Using it would take mana nearby and will be added to your desired spells or skills." He read aloud and felt some type tingly glow from his adventurer card.
He pulled out his card and wouldn't you know it, 'Mana Manipulation' was displayed on it. Ready to be learnt. And it didn't cost anything! He tapped it, instantly learning the new skill, but he didn't feel like anything. He checked his body and yes, nothing's changed.
"How about you test it on some toads or something." Chris saw his confusion and leaned him towards testing it. "Be sure to say it or whisper it to activate." She said out loud.
He nodded confusingly, walking in the field to find some toads. Luckily, he didn't have to walk far as a giant toads was slowly hopping towards him.
"Alright, this better work." He thought internally. "'Mana Manipulation'," He whispered those words. Soon, he felt something tingly flowing through his body and into his chest.
"That must be the mana." He gather more and more in his body, his whole body now sensing a new wave of power. He saw the toad getting closer and closer.
"I need to fire ASAP." He thought in his head what to do. Toads are pretty resilient against spells. But, since their skin is pretty moist, their easily defeated by fire spells. Perfect.
He then subconsciously moved all of the mana into his chosen spell, creat fire. Gathering the mana in his hands, he pointed his palm towards the incoming amphibian and said,
"Create fire!" What came out, was a fireball, bigger than his body, heading straight towards the toad. It's brightness was too much for Kazuma as he closed his eyes for protection. He didn't see, but he did here something hit, the toad screamed in pain as it got burnt, with It's skin dehydrated from the heat.
He opened his eyes, and saw his masterpiece. The toad now laid dead on the ground, it's chest opened from being burnt alive, the fireball had disintegrated it's chest into ashes. It's skin looked noticeably dry from the heat, it's mouth hung open and the body played flat.
"Holy shit! I did it!" Yes, he did it. His first ever advanced spell, and it wasn't even one. He jumped in joy at his kill, hooray-ing at the thought that he's finally gonna get strong. Chris looked down at his celebration smiling at her accomplishment.
She walked down, steadily getting closer to the celebrating adventurer.
"Hey Kazuma," She called out. "I see you've successfully used mana manipulation."
"Huh, oh ye-yeah." He was too busy celebrating to hear the grass rustle a bit under the footsteps of his partner. He eventually caught up when he heard her speak.
"Haha, don't be shy, be happy with yourself." Chris chuckled. "Anyways, I do have something to tell you." Her face then got serious.
"Um, okay." Kazuma stopped his celebration to hear what she has to say.
"This skill, is very powerful. If someone whose bad got to learn this skill, who knows what will happen next." Chris warned him of the dangers this skill possessed.
"I'm entrusting you to never tell anyone about this. Just say that you have advanced spells or something." Chris entrusted him with keeping Mana Manipulation a secret.
"I understand Chris." Kazuma was a bit put off by how serious Chris got, but ultimately understood her reason behind it. This was a very powerful skill to have, and if someone other than him were to possess it, it could lead to destruction and catastrophe.
"Now then, I believe you full understand the situation." He nodded. "Good, now there is also another thing you need to learn about." Hmm? what is it now?
"Mana is everywhere in the air, and it produces heat." She began explaining." So if you take mana from it, what's left is some very icy, cold air. So if you take too much, the cold air around you could freeze you to death."
"Excuse me, what?!" What the hell, this OP skill could kill him?! Now his whole world is turned upside down, he thought he'd done, getting a new skill where he could tear down enemies. But now, he just learned it could tear down him as well?
"God I hate this world!" He screamed in frustration.
"Hey, what did I say of watching your mouth?" Chris called him out on his vulgar words. "Plus, it's fine. If you know how to do it, you won't take too much where you freeze yourself to death."Chris calmed him down on his dilemma.
"It's pretty easy to control, you'll feel the coldness in the air. If you just wait until the air turns back to normal, you can use it again." She explained further.
"Mana is pretty quick to fill up space, so it would only take a few seconds until the air gets warm." She shrugged.
"Wait, so I only have to wait like five seconds to charge up again?" He asked, she nodded.
"Phew, and here I thought I have to wait like a minute or something. That completely changes everything." He wiped the non existent sweat on his forehead. While the cool-down may set him back, it was understandable since this was a pretty OP skill. And it makes sense that it has it's drawbacks that will make it balanced.
"This place really is. a video game." He thought.
"Anyways, now that you know it's cautions, how does testing it around some more toads sound?" Chris nudged him to use it more on some unsuspecting toads. He grinned mischievously.
"Oh my Eris, I thought I told you to not do that again..." She recoiled I disgust, seeing his grin again. He looked at her angrily, bit brushed it off pretty quickly.
Kazuma did what Chris told him to, running around like a maniac, killing toads left and right with his new found power. He used it on all of his arsenal. Water, earth, snipe, wind, anything he had, he used it. He ran around killing almost the entirety of the toad population, and wasn't even getting paid for it.
But he didn't care, all he cared about was finally being strong. Chris looked at him int the distance, not sure if she should be proud or concerned.
"Um, shouldn't he stop by now? he's killing those toads relentlessly." Eris had appeared beside Chris, looking at the genocide in front with concern.
"Eh, I think it's fine. It's not like he's killing people or anything." Chris being the opposite, was proud that he was so happy with himself by... killing toads.
"But, their toads! Their living just like humans!" Eris didn't accept how casual Chris was with the killings.
"Well, aren't demons the same as well?" That definitely shut her up. Eris and Chris both shared the same look of disgust at the mentioning of 'demons'.
"Actually, I'm sorry for bringing that up... I'm getting sick at just thinking about it." Chris apologized to herself, the two sharing the same thoughts; Demons should be eradicated.
"Anyways, I'll be leaving for now. Make sure he's not making any trouble okay?" Eris moved on to a new topic by bidding farewell to herself, entrusting herself in the safety of her partner.
"Heh, don't worry. He'll be fine." Chris said.
"I'll be going now, farewell me!" Eris then disappeared, going back into heaven to guide more souls into peace.
"See you later, me..." Chris said goodbye as well, but not fast enough as Eris disappeared already. She signed, looking back at Kazuma running around like a kid.
"I wonder what the future holds for us..." She wondered, while she was goddess, she didn't have the ability to see the future like other gods. So she pondered, hoping for the best.
"Hopefully it'll be happy..." She saw Kazuma running in fear, the toads are now taking revenge, chasing him in numbers. She could've helped, but seeing it happen was just to entertaining for her.
She did get the pesky Eris telling her to help him. She sighed, and ran downhill to help him.
Author's note:
Oooohhhhh boy, this one's long. I do have something to say, while it was fun writing and seeing the chapter finally be finished. I just can't shake off this feeling off my head.
So basically, this book is a rewritten version of my previous book. That book was home to an account which I can't access anymore, so I had to write it back all from scratch to continue the story. While I am happy to see the chapters being written much more better this time, I just can't help but feel like I was being forced by myself.
There's this feeling of burnout when I have to write it back all over again. I was anticipating on moving on, write new chapters that will move the story forward, and see progress. But I'm just writing the same thing but with more descriptions and dialogue.
With school break nearing it's end, I plan on taking a break from writing. Now that isn't to say I hate writing. No, not at all. I'm just burnt out by it. I love writing, I love this book and my others. I want to see this book one day finish, and I will not give up on it. No matter how many times I take breaks.
I hope you understand that the next chapter may release in like, December or maybe even next year. I just need a break. Also, I won't be completely stop my writing. I'll write here and there and maybe you'll see the chapter come out sooner than I said. It'll just be much slower now.
Anyways, I think that's all. As always, if you have anything to say or criticisms, please let me know in the comments. Thank you for reading and see ya later!
