Author's note: Thanks for waiting! In case you're wondering, I've taken a break for each seven chapters I've done, so that I'll be ready to keep going.
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A few days has passed, and though Patroklos was quite obsessive about tracking down Tira, Marie had something else on her mind. She had wanted to bring up Rothion, the blacksmith he had some beef with, since she had found out that he was Patroklos and Pyrrha's father.
After getting a tip from Hilde, she was able to locate him near a lake, conversing with Viola. Though she wanted to interrupt, she couldn't because that would ruin their conversation.
Instead, she hid from behind a tree and listened in.
"I remember a place where I used to go...he would always ask if I would play in the water." she heard Viola say.
"Who's this man, I ask?"
She sighed, before she replied, "He was...a close friend of mine. He wielded a rapier, too."
Slowly but surely, Viola had begun piecing a bit of her past together lately. It wasn't just Z.W.E.I. that helped her out, but also the Mad Hearts Neo, as well; especially since the numerous excursions to countries outside of Germany.
"Sounded like a decent guy to me..." he said. It didn't take long for him to change the subject, though.
"Y'know, this lake seems pretty relaxing."
"Marie said that she and her friends choose to go there every summer to swim and play."
"Excuse me! Can I talk to you guys for a bit?"
They both recognized Marie's voice, and Viola smiled. "Oh, greetings there, Marie. What brought you here?"
At the same time, Greed and Malice were behind another tree, and Greed couldn't help but lick his lips and mutter under his breath, "It's that peppy little firecracker again..."
As usual, he would admire Marie, and rather raunchy thoughts came clouding his mind. Thankfully, Malice would take notice.
"Dude, keep your mouth shut. They could probably hear you."
"Yeah, so?"
The pudgier man rolled his eyes, before the discussion continued.
"So Patroklos told me and the others about his and Pyrrha's dad, and he brought up the fact that his father once encountered one of you." Marie said.
"I met him before."
Z.W.E.I.'s words prompted her to be surprised, and asked, "Was it some kind of slight?"
"No. I wanted a stronger weapon as I got older, so I asked Rothion if he could make me one. Things fell through, however, and I ended up taking up building a sword from scratch."
"But he also says that there's a being hidden within that blade; a creature that is more than happy to help him out." Viola added.
"You mean E.I.N.?"
"So you do remember his name, after all."
As he finished his sentence, Z.W.E.I. smiled. The MHN's leader smiled back, and the trio would then continue to talk about things that had happened for the past few days.
Even when Greed and Malice left, because the latter heard a voice behind them.
"Excuse me; what are you boys up to? Spying on her again?"
Freyja's stern gaze was enough to prompt both men to quickly flee, leaving her to watch over Marie with a content smile as she disappeared.
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While Marie was out, Patroklos was busy snooping through the base. He seemed inquisitive about what the other members's rooms looked like, and thought it was a good idea to check them out.
When he entered one of them, he was greeted by Elizabeth, who just so happened to own said bedroom. "Have you learned to knock?" she asked him with a neutral (if somewhat peeved) gaze.
"Sorry about that. I guess you were just too busy making medicine."
A rather embarrassed chuckle escaped his lips, before she replied, "In fact, I am."
"Lydia - and to some extent, my sis - told me about all kinds of herbs, but you'd only use them for medicinal purposes, right?" he inquired.
"Correct."
It didn't take long for her to ask, "Would you like to see what I'm making?"
Patroklos shrugged, before he stood next to Elizabeth. "As you can see, I have been growing herbs, vegetables and flowers such as lavender, carrots and roses, respectively, in my garden for a long while. Right now, I'm in the midst of crafting a healing potion with fennel and lima beans."
"So where'd you get all that from?"
"Since the beginning of the 1600s, people from my country had been working on medicine. And since I've been a doctor most of my life, I also took up crafting medicines, too." was her reply, and she also added. "It wasn't easy bringing them to Europe, as it is a very long trip from there to here."
"Sounds to me you're really good at stuff like that. Maybe Pyrrha should take notes from you."
Elizabeth smiled at his sincere compliment, and said, "Thank you so much for saying that. So..."
She'd then look over at him, asking, "Would you care to join me in making potions?"
"Actually, I've never really made anything like that before so...why not?" Patroklos replied, shrugging again.
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After some time passed, Elizabeth had finally finished making the potion, even with Patroklos's help. "So you're sure you'll be stocking up on these in the future?" he asked her.
"I believe so; in case any of the other Mad Hearts Neo, or even myself, aren't feeling allright, then they'll do the trick."
Her response made him smile, nodding his head in agreement. "Thanks for letting me help out there, Liz."
Hearing him refer to her as 'Liz' made her also smile back as well. "You're welcome."
"Well, if you excuse me, I'm gonna go out and see if I can get myself something to eat." he said to her.
"Sounds good. I hope to converse with you again soon." she replied.
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Leaving the base, he went towards the tavern, and noticed as to how there were a few people present there. It wasn't as packed a few days ago, but at least he was content.
Taking a seat, Patroklos waited until a waitress showed up. "May I be of some help?" she asked.
"Just some cooked beef; and maybe some ale along the way."
The waitress smiled, before she took her leave. As he waited, he discovered that he had also seated nearby Isuzu, who had enjoyed her sake with a smile.
"Oh, it's you again, Patroclus!" she exclaimed, turning her head to see him.
"It's Patroklos, Miss Isuzu."
"Yeah, whatever. Why don't you take a seat next to me? That way, we can talk together." she inquired.
Patroklos rolled his eyes, before sitting next to her at her table. "Looks like another one of your drunken misadventures, huh?" he asked.
"As usual, yeah." Isuzu said with a fairly sincere smile, before she asked, "While you're waiting for your food, why don't you take a drink with me?"
Her question made him ponder a bit, before he nodded his approval. "Sure, give me some!" he told her.
Isuzu then gave the small cup containing the sake, and it didn't take long for him to gulp it down in one fell swoop. "Oh man," he managed to say, "that stuff is potent."
"Just don't go drinking it too much or you'll be shit-faced all day. I've learned that the hard way, you know..."
"So, I've heard from Lydia that you got a family?"
"Yes, I have. An older brother and a little sister; while they're taking up the way of the ninja, I'd prefer to be a samurai, instead." Isuzu replied.
"Really? What are their names?" he asked.
"Riku and Natsu, respectively. As I've said a long time ago, I believe I haven't seen either of them in a while."
"Y'know, perhaps they can visit you here in Lasberg?"
"From Japan to here?! That would seriously take a long time! And I dunno how long it'd take, anyway." she said, taking another sip.
Patroklos smiled, before the waitress eventually returned with his meal. Outside the tavern, though, Athena materialized whilst hiding from any onlookers (she was thankfully donning a cloak similar to the one Ares worn), and was rather peeved as to how he was drinking alcohol.
It's about time I had a word with you about that...
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Upon coming back, Patroklos lounged in his guest room, ready to take a small nap. And yet, it wouldn't take long for a familiar figure to appear before him.
He had expected it to be Ares, congratulating him on drinking his first alcoholic drink. But to his surprise, it was Athena in her white armor, crossing her arms and giving him a rather angry glare.
"You said that you and Pyrrha weren't old enough to consume such drinks, didn't you?" she asked.
"What? Oh, come on, Athena! Isuzu asked me to drink with her, so I just had to."
"Then I'm afraid you've lied about it to the Mad Hearts Neo. My god, I am deeply disappointed in you."
Patroklos grumbled to himself, laying back on the bed. As much as he wanted to silently curse himself for breaking a vow, he had no regrets hanging out with Isuzu and enjoying some sake (and maybe some ale) with her.
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Later on in the night, the Alexandra siblings, as well as the Mad Hearts Neo were once again summoned to Schwarzwind's base. It wasn't another announcement, but it was certain that a new weapon was in store for Patroklos.
As they were en route though, Lydia heard the sound of feet walking, and it certainly wasn't coming from her or anyone else. "You hear something?" she heard Elizabeth ask.
"I haven't a clue, but...it could be someone nefarious."
Her reply was enough to prompt everyone, except Elizabeth and Helen, to hurry things up and get to the base quickly. "So that leaves the two of us to take care of this threat." the Russian girl told her.
"I guess so..."
Elizabeth began to look around, sporting a look of suspicion. "Who's there?" the blonde asked.
It wasn't long before a tall, and rather pale-ish man, covered head to toe in leather, and wielding dual katars known as Shame and Blame. It wasn't long for Helen to speak up, "He's unusually limber for someone of old age."
"That's because he's a malfested."
The Russian girl was surprised by the blonde's statement, but nodded her head in agreement. Both girls would then draw out their weapons: a fairly large lance for Helen, and a pair of daggers for Elizabeth.
"I get the feeling you're under Nightmare's influence, right?" the taller woman asked.
There was no response from the man, just a simple deep breath, and nothing more.
You are allies to the Fated Heroes...who wish to stop Nightmare...you shall suffer alongside those two.
Helen knew for certain that he was Voldo, and he lunged for her, slashing at her upper body.
Thankfully, she had worn golden armor under her clothes, and if she weren't donning it, she would've been wounded, and even worse, close to death. He was about to slash at her again, when she blocked the attack.
Almost as though it was a rapier, Helen's lance would pierce through Voldo several times, before he used both katars to catch her off-guard. His stance had changed drastically after that, with his upper body stuck out.
He would crawl over to Elizabeth, one of his blades almost sinking into the side of her torso a couple of times. Even she and the other members of the Mad Hearts Neo had on armor, she did sustain such a wound as did Helen.
Just as he performed another blow, though, she narrowly dodged him, before he took on his main stance once more. Brandishing her daggers, she charged for him, her blades slicing into his skin.
"An eye for an eye, huh?" she asked.
To her surprise, however, he was malfested, and according to Hilde, malfested were presumed to be immortal. Luckily, several Schwarzwind soldiers arrived to back them up. "You girls get moving! We'll take care of him!" one of them called out.
"You're quite lucky, he's a bit vulnerable." Helen replied.
The soldiers nodded, before she and Elizabeth quickly headed for the base. They still had an important meeting there, and although they did their best to quell Voldo, they had learned that malfested were completely different from normal humans.
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Don't worry, we'll be picking up where we left off in this chapter.
With love for my fans,
Chrissy