Chapter 7
Hotaru
I always thought that guilds would be cramped, as if you had no personal space or freedom. I had always seen them as extra weight, other people dragging you down as you struggle to move forward.
And in a way, I was right. But the Midnight White Wolves were an exception.
At first, they seemed like a carefree group of friends who didn't seem that determined to do much. But later, I realized that they really wanted to reach the front lines. "We may not be that strong, but we want to help all we can." Inui once told me. "We've helped clear a few floors, but we aren't exactly there yet."
It was then that I realized that, even though they were a small, ragtag guild, they were really strong. They were fighting as hard as they could while holding onto their friendship. They'd laugh and play during missions but still battle with such determination. I soon began to admire them and loathe that warm feeling of a family that they all shared. Even though they welcomed me, I still felt like the oddball of the group.
I got along with all the guild members, especially Tsumiki. Inui asked me to train her since her sword skills weren't all that great. He asked if I could teach her how to use a dagger, thinking that she may be better off with a smaller weapon.
On our first day, I led her to the empty field near my house. I leant her one of my daggers, which she held awkwardly in shaky hands. "Don't be so stiff! I'm your teammate, right?" I laughed. "Now, watch how I hold the dagger." I fixed my grip on the hilt of the knife and took a fighting stance. Tsumiki slowly followed. "You're thin and light on your feet, so try moving on the balls of your feet. You have to leap as forward as you can possibly go, and swipe downwards diagonally like this." I demonstrated. I bent my knees slightly and launched off my toes, cutting through the air, and landed on my toes again. "You try."
"U-um, okay." Tsumiki bent her knees way too far and jumped. With a weak grip, she tried slicing through the air, but ended up tripping on a rock. With a yelp, she tumbled to the floor. "Ha ha ha. I guess you can't get it right away." I grabbed her arm and helped her up onto her feet. "Dagger-use isn't that popular, after all." "I don't think I can do this." Tsumiki looked down at her boots sheepishly.
"Man, she's cute. There's no way she's gonna survive that long, though." The scene where she jumped straight in front of Inui the day I first met her flashed in my mind. This girl actually had some guts. "Yes, you can. Remember when I first met you?" I smiled reassuringly. "You were so cool back then! Try and be as brave as you were back then."
"B-brave?" Tsumiki squeaked. "Um, that wasn't…" She trailed off. "Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it." I assured her. "Let's try again."
After a few more failed attempts, we received a message from Lilia calling us back to the house for dinner. We hurried back as fast as we could, only thinking about fresh food in our bellies.
The Midnight White Wolves had made themselves home in my once deserted house. They'd bought a cheap yet comfy set of new furniture and painted the walls a bright blue to lighten up the setting. The dusty windows had been cleaned till they sparkled. Sera, who had mastered her gardening skill, had even planted flowers in the front that could be viewed from inside.
"Yo, guys! How was training?" Inui greeted us at the door. "Fun! She needs to work hard, though." I replied. Tsumiki blushed. "Work hard!" Ryo cheered. "The food's almost ready. Please have a seat." Sera gestured to the table where plain silverware had been set. We took our seats and waited for Sera to bring out the food.
"How was your day, Mikage-kun?" I asked Mikage, who was sitting next to me. "Stop calling me that!" Mikage growled. "Ah, sorry, Mi-Oshiro-kun." I giggled. Mikage and I still didn't get along well. He was grouchy and seemed pretty ticked off whenever I was in the room. It might've been because of that one time when I drew on his face while he was sleeping. I had a marker, he was asleep. It was just too tempting.
"This guy's annoying me as well."
"Why not? Aren't we friends?" I pouted. "As if!" Mikage snapped.
"Not like I want to be, anyway."
"Don't be so mean!" Lilia scolded playfully. "Hotaru-kun's such a nice person!" With a squeal, she wrapped herself around my arm. I'd gotten used to Lilia's death hugs, but they still hurt. "Stop it, Lilia-san Dinner's ready." Sera set down a pot of steaming beef stew in the center of the table. Drooling, we helped ourselves.
"Delicious as usual, Sera-san!" I beamed. "Arigato." Sera flashed me a smile. "I'm exhausted!" Ryo complained through a mouthful of bread. "Lilia and I partied with some members from Furinkazaan in the dungeons. We didn't find anything interesting, though." "Ryo found a hot girl, though." Lilia rolled her eyes. "He was hitting one of the female members the entire mission." "She was smoking hot!" Ryo beamed. This earned him a smack on the head from Sera. "Anyway," She said with a sigh. "We're almost out of ingredients. Could someone got into town and buy some for me?"
"Oh, me!" I volunteered. "I have to get some stuff for myself, anyway." "Oshiro, why don't you join him?" Inui suggested. "What? Why?!" Mikage protested. "Do you really hate him that much?" Inui smirked. "This'll be a good chance for you two to get along for once." Ryo stirred his stew with his spoon. "Maybe all your quarreling will start to lessen." "C'mon, Oshiro-kun, go with me!" I pleaded. "It'll be fun, like friends hanging out or something!"
"I really don't want to go with him. Anyone but this bastard."
"Fine. Guess I have no choice." Mikage huffed. He washed down the contents of his goblet.
We headed out after helping clear the table. To get to the closest town, we had to walk halfway around the Forest of Wanderings. We walked with a ten feet distance between us, Mikage striding in front. I honestly hated him just as much has he hated me, but that was the real me. The me he knew was fun and cheerful and just plain annoying.
"Ne, ne, Oshiro-kun." I caught up with him. He ignored me and continued walking. "How do you and the rest of the guild know each other?" "Haven't we told you a million times?" Mikage groaned. "We were all part of the Student Cultural Society at school." "What's that?" I cocked my head. Mikage sighed. "You seriously are an idiot."
I never really paid attention to anything related to school. I just showed up, went to class, and left. I never had any thought of joining any clubs. "I've never joined a club or anything." I admitted truthfully. Mikage stopped and studied me with his sharp blue eyes. "W-what is it, Oshiro-kun?" I shrunk under his gaze. "You're one mysterious guy." Mikage observed. "Huh? Why?" I continued walking.
"You just seem like the type of person who gets along well with others." Mikage began kicking around a pebble he'd located on the path. "Why is a guy like you a solo player?" "Why not?" I tried playing innocent as I kicked the pebble out of his reach. I stuck out my tongue, and he scowled. "What do you mean?" Mikage said gruffly. "You're so…friendly, I guess. The type of guy who goes along with anything. Very easygoing."
I paused for a moment. This is the first guy who's asked me something like this. No one ever questioned why a guy like me had no friends. And I could see something in his eyes…envy?
"Is that what you think?" I stared off into the trees beyond. "I'm pretty sure that's what everyone thinks." Mikage stated bluntly. I began to laugh. "I guess you're right. Aren't I good?" "Hmm? At what?" Mikage raised an eyebrow questioningly.
I held out my arms and arched my head so that I was facing the sun. I whirled around halfway and leaned my head against my hands. "Acting." "Hah? What are you saying, idiot?" Mikage suddenly seemed interested in me.
"Why the sudden interest?"
"The guy you see me as…" I faced him again and grinned through my long bangs. "isn't me." This seemed to confuse the oh-so-wonderful Mikage. Without waiting for a reply, I kept on walking, humming a merry tune until I spotted the town not too far away.
"Maybe you're not as much of an idiot as I thought."
"Hm?' I turned around to find Mikage observing me once again.
"What's with this guy?"
I laughed lightly. "What? One minute you hate me, and now you're complimenting me? Aw, Oshiro-kun is finally worrying about me!"
"Shut up, you!" Mikage whacked me in the head. "That hurt, Oshiro-kun." I pouted.
"Mikage."
"Eh?" I stopped rubbing my head.
"We're in the guild members, right? So, Mikage is fine" He averted my gaze.
"S-Seriously?" I beamed "Ha ha! I can call Mikage by his given name now! I'm so happy! Then, call me Hotaru! Like friends!"
Mikage scowled. "Ah! We're here! C'mon, Mikage!" I began to run. "Slow down, brat." Mikage leisurely trailed behind me.
"You're the brat, here."
It didn't take us long to find all the items on the list Sera had given us. We were about to leave, but then Mikage stopped by a small blacksmith's shop in a less crowded part of town.
"Huh? Where're you going?" I asked. "My weapons need some repairs." Mikage opened the door, the bell ringing as we stepped inside. "Huh? They seem fine." I observed his perfectly normal sword and shield. Then I noticed the look on his face.
"Welcome!" A girl with long orange hair emerged from the back room "Ah, why if it isn't Mika-kun!"
I snorted. "Mika-kun?' Mikage glared at me. "H-Hey, Rima."
"Oh-ho. Is this…" I snickered.
"Oh, who's this?' Rima faced me. She was cute, with rosy cheeks and bright blue eyes. I smiled.
"A friend of Mika-kun's?" The girl cocked her head. "He's a new member." Mikage replied. "Oh, is that so?" She smiled sweetly at me. "Nice to meet you. My name is Rima."
"Yo! I'm Hotaru!" I introduced myself Nice to meet you, Mrs. Oshiro!"
Her pink cheeks grew deeper. Mikage punched me hard on the head. "Ow!" I yelped. "Shut your mouth, you freaking bastard!" Mikage was seething with rage. I dragged him towards the corner of the shop.
"Ne ne ne!" I poked Mikage teasingly. "Who's the girl? She's cute! Unfair, to think Mikage has a girl! She even gave you a nickname!"
"She's not-!" Mikage snapped he faltered then regained his composure. "Sh-she's a childhood friend from the real world." "Ah, I see. Childhood friends." I nodded. "The typical romantic story. One minute you're childhood friends and then, bam! You're together forever." "Shut up!" Mikage hit me on the head again.
"So he's this type of guy, huh? He actually has a soft side." He was actually blushing. I guess he wasn't as tough as he looked.
"Did you need anything?" Rima asked from behind. "Ah, my weapons need a little repairing" Mikage whirled around. "Oh, ok. Come into the back and I'll have a look at them." Rima motioned for him to follow her into the back room. I gave him a little shove.
"Good luck, Mika-kun!" I grinned. He scowled at me one more time before walking into the room.
I peeked through the doorway. They seemed to be chatting like a normal couple, as if the weapons on the table didn't exist. Mikage was actually smiling. He even laughed once. His normally tight face was much more softer.
"This is the first time I haven't seen him so grouchy." I chuckled slightly to myself.
After what felt like hours of lovey-dovey chit-chat, we left.
"So, how was it, Mikage?" I leaned into his shoulder. "Confess? Propose? Gonna have sex?" He just punched me in the gut.
"Ah, it's so late!" I moaned, my arms loaded with heavy bags. "Ne, Mikage, wanna carry these for me?" "As if!" Mikage growled from behind his own share of bags. "Let's just hurry up before any monsters show up!"
We made our way down the same path we came, tripping and stumbling occasionally in the dark. "Oshir-kun, are you scared of the dark?" I asked him from behind. "Of course not!" Mikage barked. "Oh, really, cuz-" I stopped short. "Oi, move it." Mikage stopped next to me "What is it-" "Get down!" I ordered. Before he could react, I dropped my bags and tackled him to the ground. A flash of light whizzed past the area where we once were and hit a tree on our far right. I examined the weapon. A knife.
"Who's there?" I pulled out a dagger and searched the shadows for any signs of movement, but all I got was silence. "Watch out!" Another knife suddenly appeared in front of me. Mikage pulled out his shield. The blade pierced halfway through the metal, only inches away from my face. Four cloaked figures emerged from the shadows.
"Oh, look, they're just kids." One of the cloaked figures cackled. Their hoods concealed their faces. They each had similar swords and some sort of tattoo on their arms. I squinted to examine the tattoo closer.
"I remember that symbol. Inui showed it to me once…"
"Laughing Coffin!" Mikage exclaimed with a tight, grim expression. "Oh, so you know us?" A tall man with a deep, gravelly voice sneered beneath the hood of his cloak. "Well, we are quite famous, you know!" "Do you want anything?" I asked. "Cuz we sort of have to get home, so if you could just-"
"Maybe you haven't heard of us, brat." The man in the front interrupted. "We are not known for letting our prey escape."
"They're planning on killing us?"
"Oh? Is that so?" I gripped my knife. "Stop, you idiot." Mikage hissed. "You have no idea how strong these guys are." "Ah, you're right, I don't." I smiled.
"These guys are feared all over Aincrad. They must be pretty strong." I examined the color cursors above their heads. They were all bright red. Beneath the cursors were their full hp bars and levels, which were all around 40 or so.
"Since you're just brats, we'll be nice and make sure your death is short and less painful." The Laughing Coffin members drew their swords.
"Level 40? That's freakin high! Then again, I don't know what level I am myself…"
"Oi, oi, are you seriously thinking of fighting these guys?" Mikage tried holding me back. "This is just-"
"Don't get in my way, bastard." I snapped without thinking. Mikage backed away, shocked. I silently scolded myself for blurting out such cold words before facing the Laughing Coffin members. With gleeful cries, they attacked.
I pivoted on the heels of my feet and ducked. The cloaked man in front of me swung his sword, barely missing my head. I adjusted my grip so that the blunt side of the blade was facing upwards and swung at the man's stomach. With a grunt, he stumbled backwards.
Another member attacked me from the left. I sidestepped and swung upwards, making a cut on his left arm. Mikage was busy fending off another few Laughing Coffin members on my right. The two that I had just attacked quickly recovered and lunged at the same time. I held out a blade in each hand and swiped upwards, but the blow only slowed them down. I glanced at Mikage out of the corner of me eye. He seemed to struggling just as I was, swinging his sword wildly and blocking as many blows with his shield as he could.
"We should make a run for it." I suggested. Mikage, with a scowl, swiped at another cloaked man. "Ya think?"
"But they'll just follow us" I gritted my teeth. "They may even have comrades spread out just in case we attempted to escape."
"Let's-" "I froze. I could sense something lurking in the shadows behind us. Probably just some more Laughing Coffin members.
"Use us."
"Did you say something?" I asked Mikage. His scowl just deepened. "Get it together."
"Use us."
"There it is again." I looked around. It wasn't really the time for strange hallucinating voices.
"You can use them."
The voice made me falter. The Laughing Coffin member I had been fighting saw his chance and attacked. I doubled over from the large blow to my gut. He quickly brought his sword up above my back. The blade was only inches away from my body when I came to my senses and brought my knife back up. I barely managed to block the blow and staggered to my knees.
I cursed myself for not paying attention before noticing an icon had popped up in front of me. "Huh? What the-" I squinted to read the icon.
"Raven tamer."
"Huh? What's this?" I read the icon again. A new skill? Raven Tamer. I've never heard of it before. I searched through the list on my menu.
"It isn't here. So, what…?"
"Oi, Takahashi!" Mikage's voice snapped me back to reality. "Behind you!" I turned my attention towards the cloaked figure sneaking up behind me and leapt out of the sword's path. "Guess I'll use this…" Mikage muttered to himself and scrolled through his menu. He clicked an icon and activated his "Great Knight Skill." His sword and shield began glowing in his arms, and he attacked. He whirled around and slashed at the circle of men surrounding him. They held up their swords and shields in defense.
'That won't be enough." I pursed my lips in desperation. I turned back to the new skill. "I guess it's worth a shot…" Hesitant, I clicked the skill with my finger.
"Finally."
I gasped. The voices were speaking to me from the shadows in the trees behind me. "You have the power to use us." "Who are you?" I asked in annoyance. "The man who's gonna kill you if you don't get a move on!" Mikage called out from beneath the pile of Laughing Coffin members on top of him. "O-Oh, sorry." I said sheepishly. I turned my attention back to the source of the strange voices. I could sense something growing. My hands were starting to shake.
"O-Oi…" Mikage seemed to notice me spacing off.
"It's simple. Just destroy them. Just destroy them all." The whispering voices grew louder. "You can just destroy them. You can. You can…"
The shadows seemed to ripple. A flock of black birds emerged, screeching and flapping their feathery wings. "What the-" Mikage grunted, shielding his face from the birds.
"Ravens?" Was this Raven Tamer?
"W-what the heck am I supposed to do with a bunch of birds?" I mumbled.
"Just let us take care of them." The ravens told me. In sync, they flew above us in a large circle of dark feathers and swooped down. The Laughing Coffin members cried out as the ravens began pecking wildly at their heads and yanking their hair.
"What the-" Mikage staggered back. "What the heck are these?!" A Laughing Coffin member swatted at a cloud of birds above his head. One of the raven's let out a loud, high-pitched screech and dived downwards. "H-Hey! What are they-" The raven flew straight through the man He screamed in pain and dissolved.
"Wh-what?"
The battle momentarily ceased. Everyone stared in shock the ravens continued cawing and flying around in a frenzy.
"N-no, this wasn't what I mean to do. I-"
"Why not? No one can tell you what to do."
I turned around. All the ravens were staring straight at me with glowing red eyes.
"Those eyes, they're…"
"We are you."
I felt my fingers grow numb, and my knives barely slipped from my hands. These ravens were starting to scare me I could feel panic arising in my chest.
"We are all one. We are all you." Many voices spoke in unison. "You are just like us, right?"
"Just like you?"
You control us. You-"
"Shut up" I growled. "I don't know what the hell you damn chickens are talking about, but just shut up."
"Th-these are your doing, right?" The Laughing Coffin members were starting to recover from their shock. "Y-you killed him. How dare you…only we are allowed to kill!"
The Laughing Coffin cried out and attacked. This time they were even stronger with the motive to avenge their fallen comrade.
"Use us. You can simply kill them all."
"Not a chance in hell." I scowled.
"But this isn't good. We can't hold them off for long." I scanned the mini battle. I was now back-to-back with Mikage, surrounded by more Laughing Coffin members that had poured in from the dark.
We both stepped forward and fought back as hard as we could, but it was no use. We were exhausted, and it was two against a whole group. We were complete goners.
"Ah!"
I held off a blow with the hilt of my blade and looked over my shoulder. Mikage had falled to the ground. His sword and shield were out of reach, and a sword was pointed directly at his throat.
"He he he." The man above him softly chuckled. "I'll stab a thousand holes into you until you die!" With a roar, he pointed his sword straight down. Without thinking, I abandoned the men I was fighting and dashed forwards. While running, I felt time slow down.
"What am I doing?"
The man brought the sword down towards Mikage. Helpless, he raised his arms and closed his eyes shut.
"This guy-"
His determined face in battle flashed in my mind. The way he fought. The way he smiled and laughed with Rima. He had a life. Friends. Someoone he loved.
"And I…"
I jumped forward without thinking.
I'm a selfish person. I only think for myself. When people are hurting and in pain, I just walk away.
"But these people…"
The Midnight White Wolves Honestly, I envied them. Their unity made me long for something like a family. I thought I hated them. But, really…
I grabbed Mikage's arm and hauled him onto his feet. I brought up my knife and tried to block the oncoming sword. The blades met with a clash. I was shaking under the heavy pressure of the sword. The sword soon slipped past my knife. I sprinted forward, heaving Mikage along with me. But I was too slow. The blade slightly grazed my shoulder, then pierced deep into my back. I winced in pain. Bright red blood spurted out of my mouth. I pulled as hard as I cold and stumbled to the ground along with Mikage.
Red-hot pain sprouted in my back and spread all over my body. I gritted my teeth so hard that I could hear them through my pounding ears.
My vision was blurring, and I could feel my consciousness slipping away. I could faintly see the Laughing Cabin members fathered above me.
"Wait…am I dying?" The feeling in my body was slowly fading away. "Is this how it ends?"
"Well, whatever." I sighed in my head. "I'll just die quietly and escape this damn world. There'll be no one I'm leaving behind anyway, so…"
"hashi…-san…Taka…Takahashi-san!"
"Huh" I looked up and found a blurry face staring down at me with worry. "Who's that?"
"Takhashi-san! Can you hear me? Takahashi-san!"
"Tsumiki…san?" Her face soon came into view. Tears were streaming down her face.
"Huh? Why is she crying?"
"Oi, Hotaru!"
Another face popped into view.
"Mi-Mikage…"
No, that couldn't be him. He would never be that worried about me, right?
"Hotaru!"
Inui, Lilia, Sera, and Ryo's voice crowded the rest of my eyesight.
"Every…one?"
"Hotaru! Can you hear us?"
"Oi, hang on!"
"Takahashi-san!"
"They're all shouting my name. What's with these guys?"
Their faces were slowly beginning to fade away. Their voices were growing faint.
"They're…worried about me…why?"
"Takahashi, get a hold of yourself, oi!"
"So noisy…" I began to drift off. "These guys are so stupid…
"So stupid for caring about me."