Chapter 22
Knight's Means to an End! Fruitcake!?
Will felt that it was pure luck for Nowa to show here of all places as she explored the Continent and helped Will with the plan he had in mind. After it was discussed; Nyx, Nowa, and Elina stayed in the Village while he headed to the hot springs.
Will's POV
A one man march towards some wannabe God that's likely to be soaking in a unisex bath while a platoon of the living dead are waiting for him to snap his fingers so they could raze a village. This is a Hell of a way to spend a weekend out of town and I envy anyone who doesn't have to worry about this shit on a regular basis. At least I'm prepared for when he decides to stab the entire village in the back during my little visit with the team's game plan.
I started hearing something that sounded like a woman moaning as I got closer until I had a sight of the woman in question finishing a little hot spring fantasy sex with the damn steam making it so the only action I could see is a silhouette showing her riding on top of some lucky bastard's lap.
Will's POV ends
Will snapped out of when the said with a familiar voice, "Feeling sorry for yourself for not getting sooner. Well don't, even if you did arrive earlier my concubine has standards that a cur like you would never fit. Now if you be so kind as to let us cover up so you can at least try to think with the head on your neck instead of the one you have dangling between your legs".
The woman just giggled before she said, "Why bother Knight-sama? I say let have a reason to envy you or maybe reasons would be a… better way to say consider your –greatness-".
Impatient and slightly insulted by their remarks Will said with black steam once again seeping through his armor, "Just cover yourselves, get dressed, or whatever you have to do. I rather fight someone that's at least half-way decent". Knight was the first to emerge from the steam in his human form wearing a towel on with his recently restored mask in his hands. "You could've put that mask on before I could see your ugly mug" he said as the flow of black steam began to stop.
"If you think this form is hideous then wait for me to get dry so you can see my true form"
"You mean that Tenma reject I heard about from one of your leftovers. That's actually an improvement from looking like my old man after a social gone wrong".
He put his mask on as he replied with curiosity, "Sounds like an interesting man to meet for dinner".
"You wouldn't stomach him. I heard humanitarian ideals spoils the meal for you guys". That's when parts of his armor began fly towards him putting themselves on him like they had a mind of their own until the towel vanished so the rest would have a perfect fit. Will added, "Nice trick but I didn't need to see what the towel was hiding".
"Jealous?"
"No, mines bigger plus I don't praise from some brainwashed lackey to feel like a man"
"Adelle offered her services as a concubine willingly and her praise is from experience"
She soon stepped out of the steam dressed in classic bondage leather with her attire not being the only thing that has changed; long silver hair, double D sized breasts, firm round ass, yellow eyes with diamond shaped iris, and the stone in her right arm has moved to the back of her hand. She said, "Now don't worry about proving anything to this mutt Knight-sama. He just jealous that you know how to recognize when a woman is ready to offer some real fun and to make toes curl". Will actually felt sick to his stomach just watching this so he just had to break it up by saying, "Just what the hell did you do her? I don't remember someone telling me she looked like that"
"It's an improvement" Knight answered, "It is simply amazing that there are a variety techniques, rituals, and spells can be found and used across the worlds with others while there are still isolated laws for others. The world where I learned how to perform this little transformation even has a distinct name for what she is now. The power she can wield, the abilities she can use, and even how she is able to recover so quickly after fight that would've killed any other mortal…"
"Nice to know you have a fascination with this but I here give you a message. LEAVE AND STAY -THE FUCK- AWAY FROM THE VILLAGE!"
"I guess that worthless figurehead of a village leader sent you" Adelle left to get their weapons as he continued, "I guess he thinks it will be enough to get rid of whatever hatred towards non-humans is effecting the minds of the villagers. I told the only solution but no one would listen to someone who's grown soft towards knife-ears especially with that lands history".
"Should I care about what you're saying or make you skip the lecture with a broken jaw"
"I'll make it simple: the village was built on countless unmarked graves for humans that died in a manslaughter during the Great War. Because of their settlement their spirits became restless and they somehow began to channel the hatred that was reawakened through most of the villagers. All that prejudice that the village had for generations was nothing more than the power of dead soldiers that had their grave sites disrespected by the same ignorant humans that they had to DIED FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE! The same ignorant sin driven filth that they had to fight the elves for decided to build their homes in the same spot that they were put to rest. I still remember how there sin driven nature made my own men bind me and lock me in a cell while they BROKE THE SOLE PERSON THAT I WANTED TO PROTECT, THE SOLE PERSON THAT FOUGHT FOR, AND THE SOLE PERSON THAT I CHOSE TO SPEND THE REST OF MY DAYS WITH!"
"Nice to learn your history but…"
"But what!? I should've stopped centuries ago, that what happened to her should be left with her turned from a proud woman to a broken dehumanized harlot, or I should act as man's protector from themselves. I MADE MY CHOICE YOU INSUFFERABLE LITTLE SHIT! I WILL CONTINUE WHAT I SOUGHT OUT SINCE MY AWAKENING EVEN IF IT MEANS LOSING MY CROTESQE HUMANITY FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY!"
Black steam began to erupt through the smallest openings in Will's armor as they continued, "WHAT ABOUT HER?! DO YOU THINK SHE WOULD WANT YOU TO DO ANY OF THIS?! TO WATCH THE PERSON SHE LOVES DOING ALL THIS FROM THE OTHER SIDE?! Just stop this and I'll make sure that you can try atoning for all of this and start using what you know to help people. You just have to stop this".
"That's just it boy… I can't stop this. You heard what I did to Baroque and Claudette's soldiers didn't you? This is the cost when men try to become gods in this world, we become no better than monsters in the eyes of our former men for attempting to achieve what they dreamt while I did this for the sake of revenge. Worse is that I have taken on a trait of some pagan God since then. Once this is over, once my mistress gets what she wants, she will then aid me in my efforts to be rid of this pagan habit along with giving her a second chance at my side. And from there I will be able to fulfill the crusade I began all those years ago".
Adelle finally returned to give him his sword with her own rapier in tow when Will asks, "Crusade?"
Knight just started laughing to point that a crack appeared on his mask that almost outlined a devil's smile, "The rebirth of sentient life from the ashes of its genocide with us as the God and Goddess that will guide them…" drawing his sword he yelled at the top of his lungs to whoever would hear him, "TO ARMS! TO ARMS! NOW KILL THEM ALL!" Adelle bolted passed them to lead the platoon with Will's attempt to intercept her stopped Knight managing to get ahead of him saying, "You're not going anywhere except for the Swamp Witch's palace you little shit". The steam coming from Will's armor became black smoke erupting from his armor making it impossible for anyone to even see Will's eyes through his helmet.
"I hope you don't have any regrets" Will said as his voice began to change, "because I'm going to send you straight to hell". The smoke consumed him completely with no way to tell if there is anyone within it. Thinking that it was just for intimidation Knight attempted to make the first blow when a sudden flash light stopped him with the first thing he noticed the pillar of smoke vanished with Will.
*Back at the village*
Adelle and the platoon just arrived when Nyx uses her flames like artillery to reduce their numbers while Nowa and Elina cut down the others that managed to cut through her bombardment. Adelle decided to stay back letting the platoon wear them down before making her move towards her former leader.
*Back near the hot springs*
He tried to figure out what happened when a he heard a demonic voice that was strangely similar to the he had with his true form say, "Knight". He turned around to see what thought at first as Will's backup wearing plated armor; the helmet was designed to resemble a broken knight helmet, the gauntlets were designed with the appearance of layered dragon's scale opening up slightly with the fingers the appearance of claws, the chest plate matched the gauntlets with a neck guard, the boots match with a bloody red pattern resembling the stains of his enemies on the helmet, and wielding a katana with a blood crimson colored blade with a small stone embedded into the blade. He continued, "Ready to go to hell" Knight tried to attack again only for a single slash of his enemy's sword to cut his sword in two. His opponent finished, "because I'll be the one to send you there". He couldn't believe what he came to the conclusion of; that same person he encountered in Zanef, the same person that he was tricking second class thugs into fighting, and he was the same person who just sliced the blade of his long sword like he was cutting air. The raw aura emanating from Will left Knight trembling in fear for the first time since his awakening as he stuttered "W-Wh-What the…?" Will made his second strike cutting his mask vertically in half causing the chain reaction leading to his true form. Losing the strength to stand he fell to the ground still trying to get away from him as he continued to speak, "What are you? One of the Horseman, Damocles, Death, Lucifer incarnate?" His body continued to tremble until he backed to a tree before he yelled, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU!?"
Flashback: Two Months after Zanef
It was in Ymir's lab when Will and Ymir went over the results of her tests that she had conducted on Will with the final test being the most questionable. "NO WAY!" Will yelled at Ymir over what she was able to determine about his powers, "You expect me to believe that I could do that. I don't care what happened to me when I blacked out during that test but I'm sure as hell that can't happen. You said it yourself that the best I would be able to do is summon demons".
"I said that's what's been known so far. Hybrid races can have unpredictable abilities and the abilities of a majin can't be determined by both demon and non-demon parents alone. Besides I can make it so you can have better control over it"
"Or you could end up making something that could turn Gainos into a big pile of rubble"
"Just trust me on this Will"
He gave himself a moment to think before he said, "tch…fine but it better be as close to foolproof as you can make it".
She reassured to by saying in her excited tone, "Thanks…Oh yeah! I need to examine that katana Claudette entrusted you with".
"Are you doing this just so you could figure out how to…"
"You said you would trust me Will" with that she was able to make a new katana in a few months with a wizard stone embedded in it under the conditions that it will be the only one she'll ever make.
Flashback Ends
He continued walking towards him not responding to his question as though he became mute. His silent answer left Knight hysterical as he laughed to shake the fear from his system before he mocked him by saying, "This act…it…it's just for intimidation I know it. That's right… nothing more than a farce because you can't kill me… Th…that's right. I can't die by mortal hands" he snapped his fingers for a cloak to appear on him he continued by yelling for the sake of his confidence, "I SURVIVED THE SLAUGHTERS OF THE GREAT WAR! I SURVIVED COUNTLESS HUNTS THAT WERE MADE FOR MY HEAD FOR THE FIRST EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS! I SURVIVED THE WARS THAT TEARED THESE LANDS APART COUNTLESS TIMES OVER AND GAVE BIRTH TO THE QUEEN'S BLADE OVER A CENTURY AGO! I SURVIVED MUTILATIONS, IMPALEMENTS, DISMEMBERMENTS, BEING BURNED ALIVE, BEING TOSSED IN A POT ACID OR BURNING OIL, I SURVIVED WHAT OTHERS WOULD NEVER THINK POSSIBLE AND HELL WILL FREEZE OVER BEFORE I FALL NOW BY YOUR CROTESQUE MORTAL HANDS! YOU HERE ME HALF-BREED! I WILL -NOT- BE DEFEATED!" He tossed his broken sword aside and with memories of a lost love filling him with despair and hatred he punched through the ground beneath him to pull out a corrupted sword out of the ground. Regaining what little confidence he had he said challenging Will, "Be ready to submit yourself to Werbellia or you'll die at the hands of her commander". Will's only response was giving him the finger as a way to challenge him before he attacked him once again as Will only had a simple description for his opponent in mind.
Suicidal Fruitcake
Hollow: So much potential in origin stories... but so little time to choose before a new one comes to mind, mistress. Now I have to come up with a fight scene worth remembering like in Rurouni Kenshin maybe. I might need help due to a limited knowledge on such things. Any ways thank you all for reading the latest chapter of Where's Anne? Leave your thoughts and reviews with and we hope to see you next time. Now to find my help if there's any who would actually help me.