Chapter 16

~Rock music~

She knows it by heart, be it the lyrics, the bass, or the drum, she knows this song as if she had created it.

As if she had made the whole album.

Not as impressive as composing music for orchestras while being deaf, but still an achievement that few can boast about.

She could write it all down... If she had learned music, that is.

Had she had a normal childhood, perhaps she could have been a musician?

It is a thought that often crosses her mind.

What if she had the possibility to learn an instrument?

The piano?

'Too big and not catchy enough.'

Percussions?

'It's too big too.'

She could just sing.

'Boring and sooooooooo embarrassing...'

What about an electric guitar?

'That's better, but not quite what I want.'

The bass.

That is what she has always wanted to learn.

Well, if you were to ask her younger self, she would most certainly answer the electric guitar. But it does not count, she did not know the difference.

...

The music keeps playing, Kamui staring aimlessly at the display.

...

A ray of light takes her out of her trance.

'The sun has risen, time for work, I guess.' Kamui stands up, waiting just the right moment to stop the music. 'You know, right when it switches track.' She stares at the display, time slowing as her brain endures the full might of her inhuman speed.

'There!' She pushes the button. 'Perfect.' Her headphones get thrown on the couch carelessly.

Her phone rings, Jimini's number appearing on the screen. 'Well, that's what you call convenient timing.' "Hola, como estas?"

"Hola! Are you fluent in Spanish too?" The Salamander chuckles from the other end.

"No." Kamui answers with a smile. "You just heard around 50% of my Spanish vocabulary."

Jimini hums in amusement. "Alright, are you free today? I need you to meet someone."

"Hu hu~. Where is it?" She asks as she quickly puts her shoes on

"Just meet me at my house, I will go with you." He explains.

Kamui closes her front door. "See you then."

"See you in a bit."

Magatsuchi Shouta is the son of a well respected archmage.

Shouta had made sure the magic circle had been drawn correctly three times and followed all the instructions perfectly.

He was supposed to summon a demon as a familiar.

But it isn't. It would be an unforgivable insult to refer to the being before him with such a foul word.

messy, semi-long blond hair partially hiding exotic eyes of gold. An Amazonian stature and an aura that only the greatest of heroes can hope to have.

A hideous scar on her muscular stomach indicates where her liver is, a similar mark can be found on her back.

She passes her hand in her hair, willing a headband into reality. "What a peculiar way of summoning, making me climb out of a caldron butt naked." She chuckles wholeheartedly, basic clothing now hugging her frame. "By such a young man too. What may have caused you to perform such summoning?" She kneels to eye level, giving a stunned Shouta a good view of her face.

A blade wound marks her upper lip, and another, older scar travels from the end of her left eyebrow to her left cheekbone. "It was a door, a formidable opponent." She smirks as she hands Shouta his hat, trying to calm him down.

She succeeds, the boy managing to talk. "I was supposed to summon a demon..." He whispers, disappointed in himself.

"An obvious failure." The woman states, making the boy wince as she grabs the grimoire. "Hmm... It is missing several pages, you know?"

"What?" Shouta's eyes open wide. "It is?"

"Well, if the indications were false, it is no wonder you did not get the result you were hoping for." She smiles, grabbing him by the shoulder and gently shaking him. "Cheer up! I'm here to help you find the missing link."

And so they searched around the house, the blonde not missing a chance to show how strong she was.

After some research, they ended up finding the missing pages under one of the libraries.

"See, this one is way easier." The woman ruffles his hair. "Summoning a full heroic spirit by yourself is no small feat. But unfortunately, I cannot stay." She checks the grandfather's clock before leaning in with a whisper. "I was told that you can summon the strongest demons at around 1 am"

The boy blushes, not used to being praised for his work by someone other than his father. "I will try my b-best!"

"Well, good luck with the rest." She starts to vanish into a cloud of golden particles. "Summon me if it is the end of the world, or something."

"I will! Thank you very much, madam!" Shouta bows with a smile, hugging the now complete grimoire.

"See ya, kiddo." She gives him a lazy military salute with a wink. "Also, say hi to your father for me."

And then she was gone.

"That's where Kobayashi works, right?" Kamui enters the building, Jimini in her sweatshirt's pocket.

"That's right! We have a meeting with the CEO." The salamander chirps.

Kamui balances back and forth on her feet as she waits for the elevator to reach the last floor. "Are they a millennium-old vampire? Or perhaps another dragon?"

The doors open and both come face to face with an old individual who was ready to leave. His cloak and long grey beard create a menacing atmosphere.

Kamui walks past him, the two sharing a glance.

One, of burning superiority.

The other, of blinding defiance.

Their interaction ends after she enters Magatsuchi Sr's office without knocking. "Good evening." She smirks.

It is 10 in the morning.

"Good morning." The man smiles politely. He has blue eyes and hair of the same color. "May I know who you are?"

"It's us!" Jiminy waves, his head poking from Kamui's pocket. "Please pardon Kamui here, she is quite the free spirit."

The man hums, a real smile replacing the polite one. "So it seems. Would you like to take a seat?"

Kamui sits down. "Well, thank you. It is quite unusual for a human to know Jimini personally."

"Mr Magatsuchi is an Archmage who came from the other world to start a family away from his home's troubles." The salamander presents the CEO before doing the same for Kamui. "Kamui here is a heroic spirit who lost her way into our dimension. She has now taken the burden to prevent otherworldlers from wreaking havoc in this world."

They shake hands.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise."

"Now old friend. What warranted your call?" Jimini wonders, now wandering the coffee table.

The man nods, proposing tea for his guest. "My son, Shouta, has been immersed in his magical studies lately and I wanted to ask if you could keep an eye on him, whenever you have a chance of course."

"I'm not a babysitter." Kamui states in all seriousness.

"Excuse me, I omitted important information." He sips on his tea. "Lately, there has been a new addition to the school he goes to. A young dragon with powers linked to electricity, I believe."

Kamui leans back with a huff. "Is there a problem with that?"

Mr Magatsuchi puts his teacup down. "Oh no, not at all. But I hope you can understand that as his father, I cannot stop myself from being worried."

The spellblade sighs with a small smile. "Alright, I'll keep an eye on that school."

"You have my gratitude."

'I hope you are having fun.' The old man frowns, staring at his daughter putting the laundry to dry.

'Sooner or later, you will understand why we cannot coexist with humans.'