Knock Knock
Kurose opened his eyes slowly, looking at his surroundings. What was that noise?
Knock Knock
He stood up from his bed, stifling a small yawn as he made his way over to the door, opening it before the person could knock again.
"Oh… Beule, what's up?" Kurose asked, trying and failing to stifle yet another yawn.
"Accessory hero. I'm sorry for disturbing your rest, but his majesty has asked for me to tell you that food has been served if you would like to eat."
Kurose nodded his head at that, stretching again before speaking.
"Yeah, sure I'll go." Kurose made to move before pausing, his question from before his unexpected nap coming to mind.
"Before that though, can I ask where my armor has gone? I put it on the chair over there…" He gestured towards the chair at the desk, the egg still sitting there."...last night."
"Of course. I noticed your armor was damaged, so I sent it off for repairs. It shouldn't take long, and I expressed the importance of having it repaired by tomorrow. I hope it didn't inconvenience you."
Kurose smiled at that. He wasn't expecting the armor to get repaired any time soon, but for it to be repaired before they go and do whatever they were going to do tomorrow was pretty good.
"I see. Thank you for that Beule, I appreciate it."
Kurose only had one small issue, and that was with himself. He had completely forgotten to wear his armor today. Just how had he forgotten that?
"It's no problem." He responded, ignorant of the question Kurose had asked himself. "I simply did what I could to assist you. I presume you know where the dining hall is?"
"I do," Kurose answered.
"Fantastic. I hope you have a good meal. If I do not see you tonight, then I will see you tomorrow. Have a good evening, Accessory Hero." Beule spoke, bowing once more before walking away.
Kurose slowly began walking towards the dining room, taking his time. Mainly to give himself time to wake up.
Kurose entered the dining room, Matthias waving at him. There was no sign of Eorna in the room, so he had to assume she was still making her way over.
"Kurose! Fantastic, you're here. Have a good time out today?" He asked.
"I did. It was nice exploring the city." Kurose replied, sitting down opposite the elder hero. "What have you been up to whilst we were out?"
"Just trying to get in contact with Queen Lamaera. She's the Ruler of Dajero." Matthias explained.
"I know a bit. Mainly because Eorna told me some of it."
Matthias nodded his head, picking at the plate in front of him for a moment before speaking again. "So, can I hear what you actually did whilst you were out?"
"Don't you want to wait until Eorna is here?" Kurose questioned.
Matthias simply shrugged. "I mean, we could. But I'm curious to hear from you. You aren't exactly from this world. Eorna knows a bit, but I want to hear your thoughts on the city. How it compares to places in your world."
Kurose picked up the glass in front of him, taking a drink from it. It seemed as if today was intent on making him think about his world. First with the proisans, then Eorna asking if he missed his world, and now this.
"The city was… lively," Kurose spoke slowly, choosing his words carefully. "It just depends on what you want me to compare it to. What was sold? Anything specific you would like me to compare it to?"
Matthias thought about it for a moment before answering. "Just the general atmosphere of it I guess. How did it compare?"
Kurose nodded his head, leaning back. "Well, I guess it was close enough. Though, it's incredibly silent at night here. Back home, there was just a constant background noise, both throughout the day and the night. There would always be people going around, people doing their jobs and getting to places they need to be. It was nice. The city itself was kind of the same. It gave me that same feeling as being back home, just wandering through the place with Eorna."
Matthias nodded. "Do you miss your world?" He asked, suddenly changing the subject.
"Yeah. I told Eorna already. You probably don't know… but well, I kind of died, just before coming here."
Matthias stopped picking at his food, blinking at Kurose for a moment before saying anything.
"Explain." He said seriously. Kurose simply gulped.
"Well, I had just come back from the shop after collecting some stuff, and I had met up with a friend. We started crossing the road and all that, but well, a car decided to just run me over. It hurt a lot, but I'm fine now, trust me!"
Matthias continued to stare at him, and Kurose didn't say anything else. After a bit longer, Matthias sighed.
"So… you died? Like, actually died?"
"I… guess?" Kurose said questioningly. Upon receiving another stare from Matthias, he tried to explain further. "Well, it could be that my weapon summoned me just before getting crushed by the car! I mean, it might be that I didn't die, and I just had my legs crushed! So if I do somehow get sent back, it won't be the absolute worst case for me." He said quickly.
"But still. I'm sorry you got crushed by this… car. It sounds like a fearsome beast."
"Wait, you think a car is an animal?" Kurose asked suddenly.
"...Yes? It had the power to crush your legs, so surely it's some sort of monster, right?" Matthias questioned.
Kurose shook his head quickly at that. "No, it's not a monster or anything. It's how we get to one place from another in my world. I can't give you all the details on them, mainly because I didn't really own a car, but…"
The duo kept talking, with Matthias asking questions about Kurose's world, and Kurose answering those questions to the best of his abilities.
Eventually, there came a lull in their conversation, and Kurose took that opportunity to speak.
"I've… I've had some questions since I was summoned here, but I haven't been able to ask them. Do you mind if I ask about them now?"
"Sure, go ahead. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have."
"Great. This first one is a more recent question I had. Just what roles do Accessories have here?" He asked. "I mean, there's a shop called Bartholomew's Accessories and Weapons. Why specify accessories?"
"Well, accessories have a variety of uses. Of course, since it's the basis for your weapon, plenty of people in the three heroes church wear some sort of accessory." He explained. "Another one is enchanting. People skilled enough can enchant accessories, giving them bonuses. I'll admit, I have tried my hand at making enchanted accessories, and it's difficult."
"It makes sense. You are the Jewelry tools hero…" Kurose responded. Matthias simply nodded at that.
"Exactly. The accessories I make are generally just necklaces and the like. They are pretty basic design-wise, but when I manage to enchant them, they usually give bonuses like an increase in fire resistance and other stuff like that. It depended on the materials I used, and how much care I put into them."
"So, accessories are just items that give you buffs and all that?" He asked.
"Exactly. Though, I'm not sure if you would actually be able to wear other accessories, now that I think about it." Matthias thought out loud. "I mean, you have the Holy Accessory with you, so it might just reject them."
"I guess I'll just have to find out at some point, won't I?" Kurose spoke with a shrug.
"That's true. What's the next question?" Matthias asked.
Kurose obliged, beginning to ask his questions. At some point during their conversation, Eorna made her way into the dining hall. She waved at both of them, with the pair waving back at her before she sat down, starting to pick at the food set down for them.
The questions that Kurose was asking Matthias had died down as they waited for Eorna to finish picking at her food. Once Matthias saw that she wasn't going to eat anything else, he clapped his hands together, getting their attention.
"Right, you two." He began. "There's something we need to speak about. I want your opinions on how we should deal with heroes from the waves." Matthias spoke simply, "What is our policy on them?"
Kurose hesitated whilst Eorna spoke. "I think we should fight them off." She answered clearly.
"Is there a reason for that?" Matthias asked, pressing her to expand on her answer. Kurose simply looked at her in shock.
"Well, the previous hero was sent here to kill you specifically, right?" Matthias nodded, and Eorna continued. "What if the next one is sent to kill me or Kurose? It's better than just letting them move first, right?"
"You make a valid point. Kurose, what do you think?"
He thought about it for a moment, still shocked by Eorna's instant answer. He tapped his fingers against the table. He didn't want to have to fight other heroes. They were meant to be saving their worlds, not fighting heroes of other worlds!
"I think… we should hear them out. We should see if they are here to fight, or if they want to offer something." Kurose spoke slowly. "Like that Mace hero! He said he was forced to come here right? And once he had finished, he offered us an alliance with his world!"
"That does sound like a good idea, but you have to be aware of one thing, Kurose."
"Hm?"
"What if they offer an alliance, just to betray you? There's always a chance they won't stick to their word." Matthias spoke simply.
"I… Well… They are heroes, right? Surely they wouldn't go back on their word!" Kurose exclaimed.
Eorna continued to pick at her own food, and Matthias let out a sigh.
"I suppose you wouldn't know this, but… not every hero is perfect. Sometimes, they just snap." Matthias spoke slowly, making sure that Kurose was paying attention. "For example, have you heard anything about Anzhuil? The dwarven clan?"
Kurose thought about it for a moment. "I have. My Charme teacher spoke about them during my short time in Ortensca."
Matthias nodded before speaking again. "Well, they hate all heroes due to past events. If I recall correctly, a past jewelry tools hero went on a rampage in the dwarven empire. They destroyed information, killed several clan heads, and almost wiped out Anzhuil. They were eventually stopped by the Irminud of that time, but the damage done couldn't be reversed."
"...but why did they go on a rampage?" Kurose asked.
"We don't know. None of the history books the dwarves hold want to say, and any time I have asked, I have been turned away, or rejected. It's getting kind of annoying." Matthias spoke with a sigh.
"Is it maybe because you're the Jewelry tools hero?" Eorna asked curiously.
Matthias went to speak, looking at her before closing his mouth again.
"You're right. It's probably that. How didn't I think of that!?" He almost shouted. He let out a small groan, laying his head on the table.
Eorna let out a small laugh, and Kurose followed suit
"Yeah yeah. Laugh at my expense won't you." Matthias grumbled playfully.
After a few more moments of laughing, Kurose asked a question.
"So, what did you mean by that times Irminud? What is their role?" He asked curiously.
"Yeah, I've never actually heard of it either!" Eorna added on.
"Makes sense. It's usually only knowledge known by both heroes and the dwarves. To actually know what an Irminud is, you'll need some more background information on the dwarves."
Matthias cleared his throat, sitting up more before speaking. "Right. Well, the dwarves are split into nine clans. They all live together in the Brightsteel Empire and each clan has its own craft they specialise. Each clan also has its champion. Not all these spots are filled at all times though." Matthias explained.
"Every so often, mainly when all the previous champions have died or retired, or the Irminud has died, the current champions of each dwarven clan meet up to fight for the right of becoming the Irminud, as there can only be one active at a time. I don't know what happens after they win the fight, but they are given the title Irminud, along with abilities specialized in putting down heroes."
"Wait, they are trained to specifically take us down?" Kurose asked quickly.
"Not exactly trained. More suited to fighting us. How exactly they are suited to fighting us, I'm unsure."
Kurose thought about it for a moment before speaking up.
"This… could maybe help us deal with heroes from other worlds." He began.
"I mean, if they are suited to fighting heroes, then why don't we ask for the current Irminud to assist us?" Kurose asked.
"We could." Matthias conceded. "The only issue with that is actually getting into contact with the Irminud. Plus, there is the possibility that the Irminud might be from the Anzhuil. And if that's the case, they might reject it out of spite."
Kurose let out a sigh. "Well, do you have any idea on how to deal with any heroes who cross over?"
"Not really," Matthias answered. "I will admit, I talked this over with some advisors of mine. They did suggest the idea of… us crossing over and doing what they attempted to."
"You mean have us attempt to kill their heroes?" Eorna asked quickly.
"Yeah. They suggested it, but I almost immediately discarded it. Probably far too much of a consequence for doing that. Plus, if we did end up leaving the job half-finished, then there's the chance they could come back for revenge. And, for me personally, I don't want to kill any heroes. Whether they be lesser or holy."
Kurose nodded his head. "So, you wouldn't kill a hero at all?"
"I never said I wouldn't. It's just that it would be my very last option." He responded. "I would much rather try to restrain them or knock them out instead of killing them. I don't want another world's blood on my hands just because I killed one of their heroes."
Eorna nodded her head at that. "Yeah, I can understand that," she spoke simply.
Kurose simply nodded his head. "So… what is our stance on this?"
Matthias leaned forward. "We will try your suggestion. I will try to get in contact with the current Irminud, though it is more likely we will be able to contact them after the wave in a week's time." Matthias admitted.
"So, a week. There are two waves within that period, and after that, we have some time between the waves, don't we?" Kurose asked.
"We do. But it also means that they are going to start up that gameshow thing I said about. So it might get more rocky from there on."
"Do we know what the game show thing is going to be?" Eorna asked.
"Nope, no idea," Matthias answered quickly.
Kurose let out a small sigh. "Well, can I ask what we are planning on doing tomorrow?"
"Well, we will all be going back to the mountains, but I'll be sending you to level without me. I have some stuff I need to sort out with the soldiers there, mainly preparing them for the wave in a couple of days. I need to get them sorted into groups so they can join your battle formations."
"So, you just want us to level up some more tomorrow?" Eorna spoke up.
"Exactly. I said I wanted you at level 40 before the wave, but I don't exactly have any other portal spots available. As it is, two spots are taken up by two hourglasses, and the third is to bring me back here. So we are just going to have to make do with what we have. As it is, the Farkas and Jiralyks should give you some decent experience. Plus, it gives you a safe space to try out any new skills you get and the likes."
"That's another question I wanted to ask!" Kurose spoke quickly. "What level did you unlock your portal weapon? Me and Eorna couldn't remember earlier."
"Oh, that? It was… oh that was a long while ago…" Matthias looked pained as he thought of it. "I think I was around level 50 or so? Why are you asking?"
"There's no reason. I just couldn't remember. exactly, so I wanted to make sure."
"Well, you are pretty close to it yourself. Once you two have got that unlocked, I would be more than happy to let you go out by yourselves. You could technically do it now, the only issue is that I want you to have a way to escape situations, and having the portal skills is kind of the best way to do so."
Kurose and Eorna both nodded their heads in understanding.
"But back to our stance. As I said, I'll try to get in contact with the current Irminud, but until that… If another hero comes from the waves before we get in contact with the Irminud, I will try and convince them to go back and leave us. If they want a fight, I'll give it to them, but I don't want you two intervening. Not unless you are certain you can help. As it was, the guy with the mace actually hurt me. Considering that and the fact I'm over tiple your levels, I don't want to risk you two"
Kurose nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense…"
"Oh, but what are we going to do about the Mace guy? He offered an alliance, so what are our thoughts on it?" Kurose asked quickly.
"Hmm, well, I think we should accept it."
"Same here!" Eorna spoke quickly. "It gives us an ally, and if after a while we decide it's a good idea, we can start trading with them. I'm sure they probably have some unique monster materials which could give us some decent stuff."
"That's true. Plus, they might have some information on what's happening with the game shows." Kurose spoke up. before letting out a small yawn. Matthias simply looked at him.
"Sorry, I just kinda fell asleep in my room and got woken up for this," Kurose explained.
"It's fine. I think we have discussed everything anyway. You can go back to your room if you want. Shouldn't have anything else tonight, so just get some rest. You have had a long day, both of you."
Kurose nodded at that, standing up slowly. "That sounds good to me. I'll see the both of you in the morning then I guess." Kurose spoke.
He waved at the pair of them, walking out of the dining room slowly.
Once Matthias was sure Kurose had left, he turned to Eorna, who continued to pick at her food.
"What's up with you?" He asked. "You didn't speak as much as you normally do. Got something on your mind?"
Eorna nodded her head. "Kind of. It's just… a bunch of things." She spoke simply.
"Well, if you need someone to talk to about it, feel free to tell me."
Eorna seemed to hesitate for a minute before speaking. "It's just… Kurose. He's kind, maybe a bit too kind." she admitted.
"How so?"
"It's just… he wants to talk to the other world heroes. From what I can tell, he doesn't want to fight them."
"To be fair, I don't exactly want to fight them either," Matthias spoke up.
"Neither do I! It's just, that he seems to think he can get through to them. What if they are just like that past jewelry tools hero you spoke about?"
"Well, that's why we will be there. He has an optimistic approach, and it's not a bad thing to have. It's just… I'm wondering when it will fail, and when he will realize that people will kill just for the sake of it."
"Yeah. I just… I don't want him to get hurt, you know?"
"I do. I really do know. But we can't always protect him, you know that?"
"I know! It's just I don't want him to get hurt because he trusted someone."
Matthias simply nodded, and the conversation seemed to stop there.
Eorna stood up and nodded toward Matthias. "I… I'll see you in the morning."
"See you in the morning, Eorna."
Eorna walked out, and Matthias sighed, rubbing his eyes.
"I hope everything goes well…"
A small cracking sound echoed through the room, and Kurose jolted awake. He stifled a yawn as he looked around.
What was that noise? The sound of something cracking echoed out again, and Kurose followed the source of the noise. His eyes widened slightly as he threw the blanket off of him, almost scrambling to the egg.
Kurose left the egg alone, and after a few moments, another crack seemed to form on the surface of it.
"Come on…" He whispered, more to himself than the egg.
After a few tense moments, something seemed to hit the cracked bit of the egg, fully breaking it. A small, green eye peeked out of it, catching sight of Kurose.
"Gao!" With that noise, the egg seemed to fully crack, leaving a small pile of its remains, along with the creature that was inside of it.
The creature popped up in his party menu, simply titled "Vindr Glaedr", with its level displayed by its name, much like any other party member. He held his hand to the edge of the desk, and it seemed to slither over slowly.
It eventually made its way to Kurose's hand, and he slowly lifted it towards him. It was incredibly small, being able to fit in the palm of his hand. He let his other hand pick off the small bits of its egg that had landed in its feathers.
As he stroked his hand across its back, making sure he got all of the egg remnants off of the Vindr Glaedr, it let out a small noise. Kurose immediately stopped, looking at it for a moment before continuing. It let out the same noise.
"Are… are you enjoying this?" He asked.
The only response he got was the Vindr Glaedr making the noise once more, and so Kurose kept it up, letting his hands stroke across its feathered body. It went on for a little while longer until Kurose eventually stopped.
"You're probably hungry, aren't you?" He said softly.
He stood up, making sure that the Vindr Glaedr was still resting in the palm of his hand before moving to the other side of the desk. He opened up the package that held the food he had been given, picking out some of the smaller pieces quickly.
It was mainly sliced fruits. A mixture of what looked to be apples and grapes, among other things. Though they knew everything, they probably held different names in this world. Despite that, he put it beside the Vindr Glaedr in his palm, and he watched as it seemed to nibble at them.
Kurose blinked and almost immediately, the fruits were gone. The Vindr Glaedr simply looked up to him with its unblinking eyes. Kurose reached into the bag again, bringing out some more fruit for it. Once again, it ate them all immediately.
"Just how much do you want to eat?" Kurose asked, looking down at it.
In response, it let out a little "Gao!" before shifting in his hand. Kurose watched as it uncoiled itself. Even uncoiled, it fit into his hand, with its tail reaching to the edge of his fingers. Kurose moved his hand back down to the desk, and he watched as it slithered off of him.
The creature looked up to him again and seemed to shake on the spot. After a few moments, it began to move again, but it seemed faster to Kurose. He looked at it curiously, watching as it moved around the desk at a faster speed. It wasn't until he put down a small leaf on the table did he realized what it was.
As the leaf was blown away from it, Kurose let out a small sigh. "Already floating? Just how fast do you develop this sort of thing…"
Despite that, he moved his hand, letting his finger gently run across its back with a small content smile. The Vindr Glaedr simply let out small purrs as Kurose did that.
"Right, let's get this all cleaned up I guess. You can eat some more while I do that."
He quickly scattered some more of the food across the desk before reaching over to the egg shards. He lifted it towards the gem of his scarf, and he let his weapon absorb them.
Monster Egg Bracelet Unlocked!
Monster User Amulet Unlocked!
Kurose ignored them for the moment, more intent on cleaning the area from the eggshell remnants.
"Right, that should be all of it," Kurose spoke to himself. He looked down towards the Vindr Glaedr, watching as it ate some of the fruit.
"Now, let's get you a name… Wait, are you male or female?" He asked himself.
Kurose looked at it for a moment before sighing.
"Yeah, I'm not doing this tonight. I'll ask Eorna to see if the paper she got says anything about deciding. Let's decide on a name for you, yeah?"
The Vindr Glaedr simply looked at him before tilting its head slightly. "Gao?"
"Let's see… Nem?"
The Vindr Glaedr simply continued to stare at him, but it seemed to have a sort of disappointment in its eyes.
"Alright, alright, you aren't a Nem then. How about…"
And so, Kurose began to list off names. Each and every time he suggested one, he didn't get a response from the Vindr Glaedr. No matter how many he tried, he didn't get a single "Gao" or any other noise from it. It seemed to simply stare up at him, blinking slowly.
After a while, Kurose let out a sigh, letting his head rest against the table. The Vindr Glaedr moved, resting itself against his head.
"I've gone through a ton of names, and you don't like any of them…" He spoke tiredly. "I don't think I have many more left in me, and I want to name you before I go to sleep…"
He let out another sigh. Where could he draw inspiration from? He thought back to any sort of book he had read, and he spoke.
"Let's see, there were those books, they had some decent names in them, and a ton of them were unused as well. Let's see…"
Kurose took a breath, sitting up again. "Let's go through these names real quick. Kiandli, Oromis, Belgabad, Briam, Eridor… Any of them?" He asked almost desperately.
He didn't get a response, sighing once again.
"One last try. How about…" He took a pause, thinking about it. "How about Firnen?"
The Vindr Glaedr looked up to him, blinking slowly, and Kurose almost laid his head down in defeat. Yet, even as he was about to, a small "Gao" came from the Vindr Glaedr.
Almost immediately, its name changed to Firnen in his status, and Kurose let out a small laugh.
"Making me wait until the last name, weren't you Firnen?"
"Gao, Ga Gao!" was Firnen's response, He spun around on the spot, seemingly happy, and Kurose let out a small laugh.
"Yeah yeah. You're happy to have a name, but I need to go to sleep now. We have some stuff to do in the morning."
Kurose lifted it into the palm of his hand again, holding back a small yawn. He walked back over to his bed, settling into it.
Firnen moved slightly, moving from his hand to rest on Kurose's stomach. He let his hand run over its feathers again, smiling as it let out small purrs.
He checked whether the Orxite scarf had unlocked, and to his relief, it had. He quickly switched to the ring of fire, equipping it before shutting his menu.
During that time, Firnen had fallen asleep, content with itself if the small noises it was letting out were anything to go by.
"Night Firnen," Kurose spoke quietly so as to not disturb his newest companion.
He laid his head down on his bed, attempting once more to sleep away the night.
Ortenscan Capital
Reval let out another sigh as the man before him spoke.
"Did I not say to get the Dagger hero and Accessory hero back by any means?
"I-well, yes." The man spoke quickly.
"Then, please tell me, what are you doing here? As far as I can see, there is no hero with you."
He let his fingers tap against his throne, and the man below him trembled.
"I'm sorry your majesty. It's just that… it takes a while to reach Palinfa, and even then, we would still need to find their location."
"They will be in the capital," Reval spoke offhandedly. "Where else would they be other than by another hero's side?"
"I…I see. I will tell the Pleiades company of this information immediately. They will put the information to good use, though they are still some time away from Palinfa."
"It doesn't matter. I only care that they get the job done. I want the heroes back here."
"O-of course Your Majesty." The man spoke, bowing once again before leaving.
Reval waited for him to fully leave before letting out a sigh.
"Fools, every single one of them. If she had just let me take the dagger, then I would have let her live. Matthias would have been dealt with by the waves on his own, and the Accessory Hero wouldn't even have left the castle until the waves were done."
He shook his head again.
"What's done is done. Once I have one of them in my grasp, the other will likely come running." he spoke to himself, leaning further into the throne.
"Soon it will all be mine…"
So, a bit of a shorter chapter with not much really going on. Just them talking about their position on invaders and Firnens hatching. As well as what's happening with the new king of Ortensca. What a weird person.
Hopefully, the next few chapters should be more exciting if you are looking for fights and the like as the wave draws closer.
Until next time.
