Here we are at Chapter 13. Time for Fuyumi to begin her next journey along with Anelia, to the royal magi academy. I do not own Code Vein or Skeleton Knight. They belong to their respective owners. I only own my OCs. Here's chapter 13. Enjoy.
Chapter 13: Freedom Fighter
A few days have passed since the party with Fuyumi and Emilia. Now with all that noble stuff out of the way, Fuyumi and Anelia prepare to embark on their journey to the northeast city of Ustia. While the duke was happy to provide a carriage, Fuyumi and Anelia declined his offer. If Fuyumi had to teleport back to the manor, they would end up leaving the horses behind. Outside the manor, Fuyumi, in her secondary outfit, and Anelia have finished prepping for the trip when the duke's family come out to bid them a safe journey.
"I know you two can take care of yourselves, but do be careful. Whoever started these attacks may likely strike again along the way. Who knows what else they have up their sleeves," Duke Joseph notes.
"We'll keep our eyes out, but we still need to go. Perhaps when we get to the school, we may also find out who's behind these attacks. Anelia also needs answers from the headmistress at the school. I believe the two may very well be connected," Fuyumi makes a theory.
"If that is the case, then the situation could be more serious than we thought. If those assassins were as good as you said, then they likely wouldn't work for cheap. Whoever hired them has money, so it might be a noble. Hopefully, the headmistress can provide some answers," Eleonora says.
"We'll be sure to ask her," Fuyumi says as Anelia joins them.
"Everything is ready to go, Fuyumi," Anelia says.
Emilia nods, "Good. You two had best get on your way. The sooner you get going, the sooner you can come back," she then walks up to offer a quick peck on Fuyumi's cheek. "For luck,"
Fuyumi smiles at the affectional action, "With that, I have all the luck in the world. We'd best get going now, but we will return soon," she returns it with a hug before they separate.
Fuyumi and Anelia store their supplies in the former's inventory and leave the manor, with the duke's family waving them goodbye. They don't take long to exit the city and are well on their way. The closest town would be at least a few days on foot, so they'll have to camp out at time. Luckily, they have the supplies for that. This would also be a good time for Fuyumi to get some blood. It's been a little while since her last drink. She hasn't felt the urge as of yet, but she must never be too careful. But, that also brings another thought to mind. What about Emilia and Anelia? Should she tell them her secret? That she's not human, or that she used to be human before she was brought back from the dead as something else, for the sole purpose of fighting? Would they still accept her? Or would they call her a monster and hate her for it? These thoughts would continue to plague Fuyumi from time to time as they travel through the land.
…
As dusk begins to set, Fuyumi and Anelia decide to set up camp for the evening. While Anelia gets the camp set up, Fuyumi goes hunting for some food for dinner, and for her next drink. Searching through the forest, she hunts for prey. However, as she does so, she hears some noise nearby. Deciding to check it out, Fuyumi heads deeper into the forest, she finds a group of boars moving through the forest. Just her lucky day. Picking a good-sized one from the middle, Fuyumi sends out a blood shot at her target. The boar goes down in one shot, while the others freak out and scatter. As Fuyumi approaches, she scans the area to make sure that no one is around to see her. When the coast is clear, she sticks her fangs into the carcass for a drink. Now that her little issue is solved for the time being, Fuyumi puts the carcass in her inventory and heads back to camp. When she returns, she finds Anelia with a fire all set up along with their tent.
"Fuyumi, did you find some game?" Anelia greets her.
Fuyumi reveals the carcass, "Yeah, this should suffice. I already drained it to. This way, it makes less of a mess here. If you get the other ingredients ready, I'll finish the boar,"
"Okay, sounds like a plan," Anelia agrees.
The real reason Fuyumi didn't have Anelia take care of the body is because she didn't want her to see the puncture marks on the carcass from her drink earlier. After the two have a meaty dinner, they look up at the night sky.
"Can't really see much like this back home," Fuyumi notes as she gazes at the stars.
"What was your home like? Did you have friends there?" Anelia gets curious about her homeland.
Fuyumi thinks sadly, "It was... a constant battlefield in a way. There's a reason my people are warriors. It's because we live in a dangerous place, teeming with monsters. Not quite like the monsters you see here, but dangerous nonetheless. We had to fight to survive. I've already told you about my rite of courage and cowardice. Not everyone takes this right at the same time or age. We can't afford to lose too many warriors at a time back home. Recently, things have gotten better. Some problems that were making things harder for my people were solved, and things have gotten easier. That was what made things easier for me to leave when my rite came. It wasn't easy, but it was fulfilling in a way," she smiles towards the end of her story.
"Wow, I had no idea. What about your friends?" Anelia asks.
Fuyumi smiles fondly, "Yeah, first there was Louis. He was like the leader of our group of friends. He was always serious and a real bookworm like you. A bit of a researcher too. But, that doesn't mean he wasn't a skilled fighter. It's just his mind was always his greatest weapon. The main thing about Louis is that he always keeps us looking forward towards a goal. Next up was Yakumo. He was like the big brother of the group. Always looking out for each of us. He was an orphan before he met some friends of his. Lost them down the road for a time, and then ran into Louis, and then eventually me. He sees his friends like family, and that's why he's always there to help them when they need it. When he's not fighting though, he enjoys a good drink. Next up is Rin Murasame. She actually handled maintenance on our weapons and gear. While she didn't call herself one, you could say she's like a bladesmith. She used to be a fighter too until she lost some close friends of her, before she joined up with Louis. She was their leader and blamed herself for what happened, and so she never fought again... But, one time, we learned the truth. The group she was with before actually knocked her out during a big battle in order to save her. They loved her so much that they were willing to sacrifice themselves so she could live. After that, she strived to work harder for her friends, old and new."
"Next was Coco. She was a merchant basically. Always had something to sell, or looking for something to buy. She had known Louis for some time before he started his little group. I've never seen her fight, but I can tell that she knows how to defend herself. Back home, merchants and dealers didn't last long if they couldn't fight. In a way, she was like an older sister. She appears rough around the edges, but deep down she's actually pretty nice, though she'll never admit it. Next up was Mia and her younger brother Nicola. Mia was very protective of her little brother. In fact., when we first met, she attacked Louis, Yakumo, and I while we were on an expedition. She wanted something we had for her brother. But, we were able to calm things down before anyone got hurt. Not long after, we pulled her out of a jam, though she got separated from her brother. She joined our group, and was a capable fighter. We found her brother again soon enough, and he was okay. Nicola apparently wants to be a knight, so he can protect his sister one day. I thought it was both charming and adorable. Next was Davis. He was a knight of sorts, obeyed the working government back home, but he helped us out a time or two. An experienced warrior, he had some wisdom to his name. Finally, there was... there was Io..." Fuyumi trails off.
"Fuyumi?" Anelia grows concerned.
"Io found me after I was hurt one time, before I met Louis and the others. She was a little curious at times. However, she was always supporting me. We were... close," Fuyumi says, feeling melancholy.
"Were you and her..." Anelia trails off.
"Were we together? No. We... never had a chance for it to go that far. Io... is dead. She sacrificed herself to save me when we were fighting a very dangerous opponent. One that threatened everyone and everything back home. We defeated him, but not without cost," Fuyumi pulls out Io's seed from her inventory. "This is a memento from her. Something to remember her by. It's all that's left,"
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have made you bring up something so painful," Anelia hangs her head.
Fuyumi smiles and shakes her head, "You have nothing to apologize for. I will always treasure the memories I have of her. However, I can't stay stuck in the past. I have to keep moving forward. To keep living my life. Io would want me to do just that anyway. It also doesn't change my feelings for Emilia, and for you. Besides, since we're engaged, it's only natural to be curious about your fiancé's homeland. I enjoyed the talk actually,"
As it's getting late, the two clean things up and head into their tent for the night. However, as Fuyumi lies down and gets ready to fall asleep, she feels something on her back. Glancing back, she finds Anelia snuggled up to her back.
"Anelia?" Fuyumi mutters.
Anelia's eyes dart around, "W-Well, we're supposed to be engaged now; like a couple. Don't couples sleep like this when they're engaged?"
Fuyumi smirks and rolls around to pull a squeaking Anelia into her embrace, "It's perfectly fine, Anelia. Good night," she rubs her back as she drifts off into sleep.
Anelia feels safe and warm in Fuyumi's embrace and falls asleep as well, a smile on her face.
…
The next day, Fuyumi and Anelia have a quick breakfast before packing up their equipment and continue on their journey. Luckily for them, the weather was nice out on that day.
"Hey, Anelia, aside from the academy, what is the rest of Ustia city like. I'm curious?" Fuyumi asks.
"I'm too familiar with it, actually. I was usually at the school. Even on days off, I would spend most of my time studying. I didn't have a lot of friends there. I think it was something like Crystalglove, but smaller. No, I can't really say," Anelia thinks.
"Hmm, then I guess we'll just have to check it out while taking care of our business there," Fuyumi says.
As Anelia looks up into the sky, she spots something up above, "Fuyumi, look at that," she points up.
Fuyumi looks up to spot a bird in the sky. The bird has mostly blue feathers, but has extra-long green feathers for its tail, and even a few red feathers on its head and part of its wings. The bird is circling above them.
"Such a pretty bird. I wonder if it's a spirit creature," Anelia notes.
"A spirit creature?" Fuyumi asks.
"Spirit creatures are kind of like animals that can use magic. They are very rare and special. However, they don't trust humans that much so they tend to stay away from them. I remember reading about them back at the academy. What is one doing here?" Anelia explains.
They look back up at the bird, only to see the bird swoop down and fly right in front of them, spooking Anelia a bit. The bird flies back up to land on a tree branch nearby. It stares at them and then turns to face in the direction of the forest. It turns back to them before flying off into the forest.
"What was that about?" Anelia asks.
"I have an idea. Come on," Fuyumi takes off after the bird.
"Huh? Fuyumi, wait for me!" Anelia goes after her.
Fuyumi keeps her eyes on the bird as she chases after it. It feels like the bird is leading her somewhere. As she gets deeper into the forest, she takes out her blade just in case. The bird eventually lands on another tree branch and Fuyumi stops under it. It is then that she hears some noise up ahead.
"Hurry up and get the goods loaded into cage!" she hears a male voice and peaks through the brush.
She finds several men in shabby equipment with weapons, all around a cart with a large cage on it. Inside the cage are children crying for help. But, what gets Fuyumi's attention the most are their pointed ears. That can only mean one thing: these children are elves.
"Try not to damage them, you idiot. These people are expensive," one that appears to be the leader calls out.
Anelia comes up beside Fuyumi, "What's going on?"
"I see why the bird came to us. Look, those kids are elves. And I'll bet these guys are slavers. Probably kidnapped these kids and plan to sell them as slaves," Fuyumi gets a nasty look in her eye.
"Fuyumi, you look kind of scary," Anelia notes with worry.
"Sorry, but if there's one thing I hate, it's slavery. I'll make the first move. Be prepared to back me up once I've thrown them into disarray. They may try to use the kids as hostages. We can't give them that chance," Fuyumi says.
While still a little worried, Anelia prepares her staff, "Okay, I'll be right behind you,"
As the slavers get ready to move while scaring the kids, Fuyumi suddenly appears right behind the guy closest to them. Without him noticing, she swings her blade down, taking him out in one strike.
"What the Hell?!" the rest see this happen and freak out.
"Where did this chick come from?!" another yells as they draw their weapons.
Fuyumi glances back at the children, "It's alright. I won't let them hurt you,"
She tries to calm the children before turning her attention back to the kidnappers.
"Hey guys, check this girl out. She's totally hot," one guys leers at her.
"I'll bet we'd get a huge price for her. But, we'll need to inspect the goods first," one licks his lips.
Fuyumi looks disgusted, "You men are all the same," she casts a blast bolt at one, shocking him to death.
The rest charge at her together, but two get cut down from behind. The remaining enemies look back to see Anelia with her staff out.
"I won't let you touch Fuyumi!" Anelia says.
While they hesitate, Fuyumi comes in from behind with a quick slash at one guy's back, following it up with another at a second. One tries to attack her left flank, but she kicks him back in the stomach. Another goes for her rear, but Fuyumi backflips over him and deals a lightning charge, sending him flying into one of his allies.
"Spirits of wind, blow away my enemies. Air torrent!" Anelia sends out a cyclone of wind at two more, sending them crashing into nearby trees.
Fuyumi takes on the last three by sending out Indra's coil, killing them with her lightning. Fuyumi and Anelia do one last check to ensure there are no more goons around and find none.
"That looks like the last of them. Come on, let's help the children," Fuyumi holsters her blade and turns to the children, seeing how scared they are. She holds up her hands and slowly walks towards them. "I'm sorry you had to see that, but it's alright now. I'm going to get you guys out of there. It's going to be-," before she can finish, an arrow flies right at her head, but she leans back at the last second.
"Step away from the children, human!" Fuyumi and Anelia look to see a woman with a bow and arrow aimed right at the former. "You human slavers have harmed enough of my people," the woman seems very angry.
"Wait, you misunderstand. We are not with the slavers. We stopped them from hurting these children and want to set them free," Fuyumi says, keeping her hands up and slowly step away from the children.
At this point, Fuyumi gets a good luck at the woman and realizes that she is an elf, just like the children. She must've come to save her kin. The elf woman is beautiful, with long blonde hair and green eyes. She is wearing a green, sleeveless top with gold accents, with a short skirt under a longer half-skirt that goes down her rear. On her right arm is a brown glove with a small piece of shoulder armor. On the left arm is a shoulder length, fingerless black glove and an armored gauntlet over it. In her ears are a pair of brown crystal earrings. She has on a pair of knee-high brown heeled boots and white stockings. On her back is a quiver with an assortment of arrows, followed by a short sword on her rear waist, all on a belt. Finally, her bow is white with intricate green designs on it.
The woman looks around at the dead bodies, but her glare at Fuyumi doesn't fade, "So, decided to kill your cohorts to get more money for yourselves. You're even more disgusting than I thought. Don't worry, children, I'll save you from these loathsome humans."
"But, wait it's not-," one of the children tries to say, but is still too traumatized to say much.
"Wait, please, we're not your enemies!" Anelia steps forth.
"Silence!" the woman fires her arrow at Anelia.
Anelia is too stunned to move, but Fuyumi disappears and reappears right in front of her to take the hit in her right shoulder.
"Fuyumi!" Anelia screams.
"I'm alright, Anelia. Please, no matter what you see, no matter what, do NOT retaliate. She is just here to save her kin, same as us. She's not our enemy," Fuyumi mutters. She holds her arms out and slowly walks towards the woman. "We only wish to help the children. We are not your enemies."
"Stop moving, or I'll shoot again!" the woman threatens her. When Fuyumi doesn't listen, she fires another arrow, this time hitting her left thigh. Fuyumi grits in aim, but walks through it. "What is with you? You want to die that badly?!" she fires off another arrow, hitting Fuyumi in the right abdomen this time.
Fuyumi doesn't stop, and the woman fire another arrow into her left arm. Just as she gets ready to fire another arrow at her heart, something swoops down in between them. The bird that led Fuyumi and Anelia to the children.
"What the hell?" the woman mutters.
"It's that bird again," Anelia says.
The bird caws t the elf woman before flying around Fuyumi a few times, only to land on her shoulder that doesn't have an arrow in it.
The scene stuns the woman into lowering her bow, "That's... that's impossible,"
"Do you know... this bird?" Fuyumi asks in her condition.
"That is a Hydras Helioptas. A rare spirit creature. They can use magic depending on the color of their feathers. This one seems to use primarily water magic, but it has feathers of other colors as well, which makes it even more uncommon. They are said to be attuned to nature itself and are quite intelligent. However, they are also very cautious of humans. Why is his one with you?" the woman asks.
"Can't say. This is the first day we've seen one. It guided us here into the forest where we found the children and their kidnappers. I think it was telling us to help them," Fuyumi says before gritting her teeth in pain and bending a knee.
"Fuyumi! Hang on, I'll heal you!" Anelia rushes to her side.
"No, it's alright. Don't waste your magic power on something minor like this. I chose to not dodge the arrows, so I must fix this myself. Just give me a moment," Fuyumi pulls out the arrows, much to her painful displeasure, and then regenerates and heals her injuries.
This surprises the woman, "Magic without chants? How is this possible?" she mutters in astonishment. The Helioptas caws again in the air, gaining her attention. "If the Hydras asked these women for their aid, then perhaps..."
"Are you alright, Fuyumi?" Anelia asks, concerned.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Right now, we have more important things to worry about," Fuyumi turns to the children.
The elf woman heads to the cage and destroys the lock to open it up, "It's okay, little ones, you're safe now. You're all going home," she speaks softly to them. The children slowly start to smile and come out of the cart one at a time. The woman checks each one for injuries and finds something that upsets her. "Damn, so that's why..."
"What's wrong?" Fuyumi asks as she and Anelia approach.
The woman gestures to the black collars around the children's necks, "Mana collars. They prevent someone from using magic as long as they are on, by placing a curse on them through it. That's why the children couldn't escape. I can remove them, but it would take some time, and we don't have that right now,"
Fuyumi then gets an idea, "Would Panacea's Essense work on something like this? Normally, it would work on me and my partner, and only if cast before getting afflicted. But, I don't have a typical partner anymore, and this is no longer a game. Could I try it here? My ichor and my HP remain unknown, and the currency from the game got changed into the currency of this world. Perhaps, I could give it a shot?" she steps forth. "Perhaps this will help get rid of those collars."
"I just told you; I can't get them off right now. If I can't do it, then how could-," the woman stops when Fuyumi casts Panacea's Essense upon all the children. To Fuyumi's more subtle surprise, and the elf woman's more obvious shock, the spell works on all of them. It removes the curse from the collars and then they fall to the ground. The elf woman is astounded, "H-How... How is that possible?"
"I didn't think it would work, but it's good to see it did. They should be able to use their mana now," Fuyumi says.
"That was amazing, Fuyumi. It always astounds me how you can use so many different forms of magic without any chants," Anelia praises her.
"Well, it was more of a test, but nothing bad would've happened to them. The worst that would've happened is the spell simply not working," Fuyumi rubs her head.
The elf woman stares at the two, "She can cast different types of magic without any chants. What's more, the Hydras Helioptas stopped me from attacking her and guided her to the children. Normally, they'd never trust humans, and they even don't always trust us elves. She even helped free the little ones. Just who is this woman," she wonders. After making sure the children are okay, the woman approaches them. "Humans, it seems I was wrong about you two. You are not the scoundrels I thought you were. Despite that, I refused to believe you and even harmed you as well, all because you were human. Please, allow me to apologize," the woman bows to them. "I am Elane Mistral Glendas, an elf warrior from the Glendas clan. I must thank you for helping to save my kin."
"I'm Fuyumi Kusanagi, and this is Anelia Lumare. We're mercenaries on our way to Ustia City to handle some business. However, along the way here..." Fuyumi looks up to see the Hydras flying over them. "That bird led us to this location, and the rest is basically history."
"The Hydras must've trusted you to be noble humans and came to you for help. It's not something I've seen every day. Most humans I've met have been vile, corrupt, or greedy and evil. However, I must get these children to safety," Elane looks back to the children behind her.
"As long as they are safe, that's all that matters. I'm sure they'll be safe with you, so we'd better be on our way. Take care," Fuyumi and Anelia get ready to leave.
"Wait," Elane stops them. "Why did you help the children? You could've just walked away, or even helped those despicable slavers for some coin,"
Fuyumi doesn't hesitate, "Because freedom is the right of all sentient beings. These children have harmed no one. They shouldn't have their freedom stolen from them. Plus, I've never been a fan of slavery. That is all," and with that, Fuyumi and Anelia take their leave.
Elane watches them go, "...Freedom is everyone's right, huh' she mutters Fuyumi's words as she watches them leave.
And that's the chapter. Fuyumi and Anelia begin their journey to Ustia city, only to encounter the elf warrior Elane while helping free some enslaved elves. It seems the hands of fate are moving Fuyumi to all sorts of encounters. What awaits her and Anelia on this journey? Until then, please Read and Review.