September 9

After that little hiccup, my path to power, as I decided to call it, officially started. Every morning, we take a kill quest, preferably on living targets. And then in the evening, if she hasn't done so yet, Megumin and I go back out to this beaten path so that she can lob more explosions at this old castle we found a while back.

From the looks of things, it's probably abandoned. I say that only because nothing has made itself known to us just yet.

BOOOM!

"Uwah-"

thunk

At this distance, the only part of the explosion we ever actually get to feel is the light flow of wind in our faces. But is it just me or does it seem to get stronger each time? I try not to think about the possibility that she's been reaping the experience points of dozens of forest critters being turned to ash.

"Not bad. Not bad. But when are you going to topple that thing, that's what I'm wondering."

"Ehh. Give me a few more attempts, and I'll leave that castle as nothing but a few foundations."

"Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it."

"Hah? You don't think I can do it?"

"I mean, you've said that exact same thing like three times now?"

"Euuh-"

Defeated, Megumin raises a weak finger in my direction, signaling she's ready to stop eating dirt and return home.

Shaking my head at the sorry sight, I hunch down and lift her up as usual, getting a good grip on the girl's thighs while she holds onto my shoulders.

"Jeez, did your past parties spoil you this much too?"

"Eh- well…actually this would be my first party."

"Hm? Really?"

'No other party in town will take me!'

Yeah, she did say something like that, didn't she?

"Ah, now I get it. Let me guess, you showed up to Axel on your high horse, then you tried to show what you were made of and blew up a portion of the town or something."

"Huh? Is that what you think of me? Of course I didn't do something like that!"

"Alright then, you blacked out in front of everyone? Accidentally hit someone with your explosion?"

"None of the above thank you very much…No one in the kingdom would be interested in partying with a crimson demon."

She sinks her chin onto my neck in an uncharacteristic show of weakness.

"Got that type of reputation huh? Well hey, I don't really mind your psycho tend- yOUCH!"

Ironically, she nibbles pretty hard on my skin.

"That's not what I meant. I meant that crimson demons are looked down upon. I didn't really get the memo until I got here. Only a few people here and there are willing to even speak to me."

"That's surprising. Aqua told me that crimson demons were supposed to be pretty strong right?"

"It's not about our power. They mistrust us because of the war. Or, I guess the lack of war where I live."

"That samurai guy said there was an alliance or something?"

"Yeah, some of our people went to fight, but for the most part, everyone stayed in the village, maybe they were waiting for the day the Tyrant and his armies would come knocking at their door… except he never did."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that to this day, the empire has never stepped foot inside the crimson demon village. It's probably the only village in the world to still have independence. And so people started to believe we were in league with the empire."

"Damn, that's pretty heavy. So that's why people in Axel always act kinda weird around you…"

"That's right. This is a burden that is mine to bear. A sacrifice I make every day."

"Oi, where's this inspirational energy coming from? Don't tell me you like being ostracized?"

"O-of course not! It's just that I have to take the good with the bad."

"What good is there in having people dislike you? You remind me of an outcast group in my old school."

"School? You went to an academy too?"

"Agh- Well, yeah something like that." Shit. Didn't really mean to say that out loud. "But, anyways, there was this group in my old school, right? They tried to spin this tale that they were somehow superior to others at the erm, academy because no one liked talking to them."

"I see, so they too, walked a path of their own."

"No, they were just aggressively difficult to talk to and had bad hygiene. But as for the whole being treated differently thing, trust me, I get it. For me, it all started in uh…secondary academy. It was show and tell. Turns out, bringing a pristine collectors figurine of an anime babe wasn't the way to go. And from that day onwards, I was relegated to the outcast pool…sniff."

I can feel this girl's disgusted glare from the side of my vision.

"...Is it just me or is there a vast difference in our experiences?"

"Nope. they're completely the same."


September 10

"Uwah-"

Thump

"Another few tries huh?"

"Just shut up and pick me up already."

Today's earlier kill quest left me realizing a lot. For starters-

I NEED BETTER GEAR!

I don't know what I was expecting with a monster called a 'Shredding Turtle', but a giant spiked turtle that moves like a spinning top wasn't it. It broke another sword, which I just bought the other day, and tore my shirt and green cloak!

Aqua managed to sew it again, but it's obvious that the gear I've been running with isn't going to keep up with the more difficult quest that we've started going on. Luckily, Darkness let me in on a little tidbit of information: If I want a sword that will last me a long while, I need Adamantite. It's one of, if not the strongest metal available for smithing weapons.

Of course, that just means I have to save up a metric ton of Desidia from quest while I wait, as even a single sword of the stuff will cost a small fortune. But, being a former gamer, sometimes doing quests pales in comparison to one other way of making money.

"Megumin, hold tight."

I begin to sniff the air around me, and my body tenses. Her grip on me follows suit when she notices me going through the motions.

Apparently, there's an entire skill that allows the user to feel out and track enemies around you, but I don't have that luxury. Instead, after becoming a vampire, I can almost smell living things that get within a certain distance from me. Of course, it took a while to differentiate the smell of the usual deer and other wildlife. It wouldn't really have a use if I couldn't even tell a dog from an actual threat.

But this…

"There's…two? Maybe three people waiting in the tree line up ahead. Something about them smells familiar, like the smell of old coins, bleagh."

"What do we do?"

"We keep walking."

It might be a stupid decision, but I'm kinda curious to see what comes of this. But just in case, I keep my legs loose, and my hold on Megumin tight. Hope I'm not constricting her blood flow or anything.

We get maybe another couple hundred feet down the path back toward Axel before they show themselves.

Two walk out in front and one behind us. I'm not worried in the slightest, but I feel Megumin's heartbeat get faster. I try to gently squeeze twice to let her know to remain calm.

All three of them have matching dark brown leather leggings and vests, with a badly painted insignia of a scorpion near their heart. The only thing that worries me, however, is the random mish-mash of familiar mechanical equipment they all have over their leather armor.

"Are these citizens of that Wulfrum city you told me about?" I whisper.

"How should I know? I told you I've never been there before."

"Nice day for a walk. But isn't it a bit early for you? That cheap-looking hood can't be offering that much shade." One in front says to me. He has some sort of strange cannon-looking thing attached to his arm.

Also, why is it that the only people who ever actually seem to realize troublesome aspects about you are always the most convenient? Like, is it just me or are the girls at the guild blind. Or anyone who shops at Wiz's shop for that matter. Is there a race in this world of people with pale dead skin?

"Guess I wasn't hiding it as well as I thought. What do you want?"

"We have no quarrel with you, vampire, so I'll be quick. Give us the girl, and we don't turn you to ash." To punctuate his threat, the arm cannon begins emitting blue lights. The one next to him cocks a rusty-looking rifle, and behind us, I hear the sounds of a drill.

No, I can see now that they aren't actual people from that city. Their gear looks half-broken and old. I'm assuming they either stole it long ago or salvaged it.

"What's with the scorpion emblem? Is this some kind of clan you guys are in?"

"Don't worry about it. Now, the girl."

"What the hell do you want Megumin for? You realize what kind of upkeep this girl needs? You have to feed her, take her for a walk-"

"What are you talking about!?" She yells out.

Bzzzzt!

Knew it.

The moment my body language showed the slightest bit of relaxation, They all decided the conversation was over. Of course, I counted on that from the start.

"Ah!-"

Megumin holds in a scream and buries her face onto the back of my neck when I backflip high into the sky, dodging an attempt to drill us from behind. Okay, are they trying to kill her or take her alive?

Landing back on my feet, I don't have much time to think before I see one on the far end, with the 'rifle' take aim.

Bang!

I attempt to sidestep the 'bullet', except it wasn't a single bullet, and that definitely wasn't a rifle. A set of tiny scrap fragments tear into my right leg and I bite down.

Really? A blunderbuss?

"Kazuma!"

"Don't worry about it."

It hurts like hell, but over these past few days, I've learned that I can regenerate from most injuries as long as I get a source of blood to keep myself balanced. Like when I was impaled back in the cave.

Bzzzt!

What an annoying little setup they have. While blunderbuss guy slowly reloads, the one in front with the large drill can swing that damn thing randomly to keep me occupied. The only thing that worries me is the guy with the weird prosthetic cannon, who hasn't moved a single time.

I duck and weave the drill with ease, but I don't want to get careless. At the speed its spinning, the smallest graze will probably rip right through my flesh.

Click

I hear the sound of his gun, and right on time, the guy in front tries to step away.

Not happening!

I Lift my uninjured leg straight up and kick the machine out of his hands. He starts to fall back and I deliver another kick to his midsection that throws him with enough force to knock the guy behind him over like a bowling pin.

"Haaa…haaa…"

What? Why do I feel tired?

"Tch, Let's hope the girl survives this. DIE VAMPIRE!"

Finally, the man I was most worried about steps in front of his comrades and aims his mechanical hand at me, where a bright blue light charges up.

The hell!? Is he gonna hit me with a damn ki blast!?

A small amount of dust kicks up and a blue laser-like projectile beams towards me.

"Gh!" Before it even fired, I lowered my center of gravity, trying to dodge it limbo style, but I never imagined that the damn thing would curve and burn right through the side of my gut.

I fall onto my back and hear a small yelp.

"Megumin? You alright?"

"I'm good! But we need to get out of here!"

I look back at the men, who start regrouping for another round at me.

"Nah, we're fine."

"What!? But, you're injured!"

Yeah, that weird beam attack thing hurts like a bitch! But, I'm not being completely honest about this whole situation. A case of playing too much and getting bit in response.

Against Megumin's wishes, I stand back up and square my feet toward the trio.

"He's already weak, just finish him off!"

"Seems like it."

Noticing my heavy breathing, they drop their guards, and the man with the cannon steps in front.

"One more should do it."

"Kazuma?"

"Trust me."

Like before, he raises his hand and a blue light begins to charge throughout the cannon.

Praying that I'm timing this just right, the moment before he fires, I raise my foot and stomp it hard into the dirt in front of me.

Smash!

"Wuagh!"

A large piece of rock and debris raises just enough to give me cover and block the shot. Through the dust, I notice them scramble towards me, and when they're close enough-

"Greater Freeze!"

A sudden torrent of icy wind releases from my palms and leaves the wide-eyed attackers completely paralyzed, and soon, the ice forming on the ground spreads from their feet to their legs and upper body.

When I end the spell and lower my arms, three human-shaped icicles stand like ornaments in front of us.

"K-Kazuma? You know ice spells!?"

"Actually I just learned that this morning. Did you know Wiz is an ice mage?"

Megumin stares at my handiwork for a few seconds before responding.

"I've never seen it for myself, but she earned a reputation for it during the war."

Thanks to our kindred nature, I've been going over to her shop more often to learn more about myself, and how to utilize my abilities more efficiently. Undead seem to have a pretty good affinity with ice, so she said that was a good starting point.

Tapping on one of the motionless pieces of artwork I just made, I like to think she was right. Ice magic is badass!

"...So I guess I should get them out of there."

"Yeah, especially since when they're frozen solid like that, I think they'll die in a few minutes."

"MINUTES!?"


"Did you really have to bring all of it with you?"

"Duh!? This stuff will probably net me a fortune! Remember those hover drones we sold? They were like half a million each! Imagine what this armor and these weapons will get me hehehe!" I smile like a creepy old man just thinking about it.

"Another question, if you don't mind."

"Sure go ahead."

"Do we have to be sitting like this?"

She refers to the fact that instead of walking back to town, we're leaned up against a tree, her sitting on my legs and my big bag of loot to the side.

"Obviously. What if more of those guys show up? If you're not within arms distance of me, how the hell can I protect you?"

"R-right. Yeah, that makes sense. Here I was thinking that you were just trying to enjoy the feeling of me being on your lap like a degenerate, sorry."

"No need to apologize. When the safety of a friend is at stake, I got to do what I got to do."

…Actually she's right on the nose. But she doesn't need to know that.

As for why we're bothering to actually take a break like this when we rarely do, it's all in that weird arm cannon weapon I took. It was sapping me of my mana from the moment it turned on. I don't get how it works, but it's pretty scary.

"Hey Megumin, does that scorpion symbol mean anything to you? They said they wanted you, alive I'm pretty sure."

"Nope. First I've heard of it. And there are plenty of reasons to want to kidnap me. Maybe they've heard of my amazing exploits and wish to obtain knowledge of my magic power, or see me as a threat to whatever powerful crime boss they serve!"

"...Sure."

Yeah right. But it does make me think. What would some thugs with advanced technology want with a small crimson demon girl? The ability to sap mana isn't out of their realm of abilities, is it possible they could infuse a target with mana? The resulting thought scares me a little. Megumin overcharged with magic?

"Hey, you better not ever get any crazy ideas like joining a terrorist group just for the chance to blow something up."

"W- huh!? Is that the mental image you have of me in your head!?"

"Yeah sure- wah, hey don't move so much you're right on top of m- AuaUAGH!"


September 14

Clip

Shhhnt!

Exiting the dressing stall in dramatic fashion, I fail to keep a smile from growing on my lips when I see the girl's reactions.

"Talk about an upgrade!"

"That blade, pure adamantite!"

"Wow Kazuma, you actually look pretty cool for once!"

With the several million I made selling all that Wulfrum armor and weaponry, I was able to put in an order for leather armor made from a Rookie Killer, retaining its black, shadowed appearance, and a katana made of pure adamantite. The blacksmith didn't take me seriously at first, but after dropping a few mil' on the table, he changed his tune pretty quickly.

But then there was added cost for actually sourcing the adamantite.

And putting in the order to have it brought from the capital.

And then the customized crafting process…

I thought I would have plenty left over, yeah not even close. Darkness wasn't kidding when she said that it was highly sought after and expensive.

What surprised me at most was its color, I was expecting something white like Darkness' armor, but instead, it's almost like a Christmas red color. I guess that's just how it looks in its pure state.

"You haven't seen nothin' yet, check this out!"

Something I never knew I would have liked so much, was the little green cape I used to wear, so I had a tattered black one made in a similar shape, but with a cowl that completely obscures my face!

It feels weird, looking into a mirror and just seeing a black void, what am I? Part of the organization? But, this has a big added benefit of totally blocking out the sun.

Hm, ya know, the more I look at myself, the more I get a weird sense of Deja vu…

"Oh yeah, kid! Here's the naming plaque. Make sure you think real hard about it, that blade is going to last you a lifetime."

"Oh, don't worry mister, I got that more than covered. Alright girls, how about we take out a kill quest and try this-"

Thunk

I take some time to adjust the sword from my back to my hip like a Samurai…

"...Let's just go."


"I mean, there are only two options it could possibly be. It just depends on whether or not I want to go western or eastern…actually, I guess both are technically eastern in a way."

"Will you hurry up? I didn't come here to sit around and watch you try and give a piece of metal a name."

"I don't expect you to understand, since you use your staff as a clothes hanger sometimes. Like you would get forming an attachment to a weapon."

"Kazuma is right, especially for something brimming with power like this. Which is why I've been helping of course."

Megumin, hopelessly addicted to the blade and its color, keeps sheathing and unsheathing it incessantly.

"Helping? Yeah right, I already got two names picked out. I'm either going Rebellion or Murasama. Murasama feels a bit on the nose, being a red katana and all. But I mean come on you have to admit that's a cool ass name!"

"Rebellion? Are you planning to rebel against something?" Darkness asks.

"Er, no, it's just a name from something I used to know."

"Can we go already!?"

"Fine, whatever, I'll think about it on the way there. This is the quest we'll be going on."

I slap a paper on the table.

'A sighting of a follower of the way of slime has been reported! Target is to be killed on sight, and is considered extremely dangerous'

The girls all react with serious expressions when they see it, then give me a look as if asking 'are you sure?'.

"Oh yeah, round two."


"Hmmm, Rebellion or Murasama. I mean, Murasama is the meta. That's THE name to pick for what I have. My sword doesn't even look anything remotely like Rebellion, but at the same time, Rebellion is a name that fits this world a lot more right? What was that guy's sword called again? Gram? Graham?"

"He's been talking to himself like since we've left the city…"

"Leave him, it is nice to see him thinking so hard for once!"

"I heard that!"

I stop in place, and a new scent enters my nostrils.

"We're here. Focus up."

With small sounds of determination, I can almost hear each girl gripping their gear tighter.

I'm not exactly sure what all the fuss was about, sure, last time he was a pretty strong opponent, but Darkness was exhausted, Megumin was out, and I wasn't an absolute beast with an adamantite sword!

Walking into the derelict village, it's just as quiet as last time, and similarly, I can smell him inside the last standing building toward the back.

"So how should we do this?"

Megumin steps out in front and raises her staff to the sky.

"I could just blow him up from the start you know?"

"What!? And let you take all the glory? I came out here to test out my new gear, what would the point of coming out here be if we just wipe him out from the start? No, Darkness, you'll protect Megumin and Aqua while I face him head-on."

"Mhn…I would much rather be in front, acting as the vanguard."

"Vanguard? Last I heard, vanguards are supposed to actually hit the enemies in front of them. To clear the first wave? That's like their whole point?"

"Ah! You! To be getting onto me at a time like this."

"K-Kazuma?"

"Not now Aqua. So we got our roles right? Megumin, you'll do the same as you usually do, our emergency button. Something goes south, you blast him."

"Kazuma."

"Darkness, you high tail it with Aqua and Megumin if something really bad happens, which it probably won't, I can handle myself now."

"Kazuma!"

"What!?"

She points across the village, where our 'friend' from last time stands atop the roof of his house, scouting us out. He has another weapon on his back that I haven't seen before, a bow with the same pink and blue color scheme as his sword and armor.

We wordlessly get into some formation loosely based on the roles I explained a moment ago, and slowly approach him.

"I knew you four would eventually come back for me. It seems you've changed a little. I hope you realize no amount of training in two weeks will ever be enough to close our gap from last time. Nor a new set of gear."

He reaches to his back and pulls out a pair of goggles…

"And now, your tricks won't work on me either."

"Yeah uh, trust me, dude, I wasn't planning on putting some dirt in your eye this time alright?"

"Oh? So you've managed to what, gain some confidence with the one or two levels you've risen? Forget it. I will never forgive the em-"

"Yeah yeah, empire this, empire that. I got the story down pat. Do you think you're the only one who lost everything? You're sitting here like some edge lord going all 'boohoo I hate people now' It's annoying as hell. You remind me of another edge lord I know, but at least he's doing something about it."

I'm not actually sure that's much better for us in particular, but hey in the grand scheme of things it beats sitting around on your ass all day.

"You dare!?"

"Me? No, not just me."

Smirking, I slowly pull out my red blade and swing it to the side, then point it straight at him.

"This here's Mura-"

"Chunchunmaru! You face the awesome might of the legendary Chunchunmaru!"

"Would you shut up!? I'm having a moment! You don't interrupt the hero when he's talking to the boss! And besides, as if there's a chance in HELL that I would name the sword that cost me millions something stupid like-"

'Chunchunmaru'

…it says on my blade handle.

"UUAAAAGHHHH!"