*SQUASH*
"AARG-"
*CLINK*
*SQUASH*
W-What's going on?...
Blood!? This much?
"Oh, my bad. I guess one of my playmates is going to leave our game soon."
The black dressed woman was standing several metres before Emilia, looking distractedly at her own right arm…
…or at least where it was supposed to be, attached to her shoulder.
How…?
"La…dy E…mil…"
"Sir Rupert!"
Shit!
The half elf knelt in a loud cry on the young man lying on the ground, the upper part of his body hidden by her candid figure.
As Emilia put her hands on him, azure light enveloping them, he murmured faintly.
"D-Don't talk." She cut him off. "Save your strength. Everything's g-going to be fine…"
No… This cannot be real.
The boy looked down at his opened palms.
Soft and clean hands, the ones belonging to a teenager living in a peaceful country.
Someone living almost all day in his house, not going in dangerous places or befriending the wrong people.
One who hadn't seen magic, war, swords, bloody weapons…
...death.
I'm scared.
The tips of his fingers were blurred due to their trembling.
This is real.
The half-elf's candid white socks had red stains on her knees, and a crimson pool expanded beneath them from the lying man.
I'm scared.
I don't want to get hurt.
Inhale.
Exhale.
I don't want to die.
Inh-
"Now, it's time to resume our show."
I don't want to die!
The woman was now slowly approaching them, one step before the other. Her left hand was holding a metallic knife.
She put a lock of black hair behind her right ear with her right arm-
-her right arm?
"Oh, shocked to see this? Just one of the tricks upon my sleeve." She chuckled, straightening it forward and moving its fingers. "As if I had sleeves at all."
She's scary. She's not afraid. She doesn't fear death.
With such a power, no harm can be feared.
The gorgeous yet terrifying woman met Subaru's eyes.
Mom, dad, please help me!
I don't want to die!
"Subaru."
He automatically focused on the girl, who was still facing the woman while still kneeling before the lying knight.
"I'm reeally sorry for dragging you into this." Her voice was slightly trembling, but she didn't stutter. "If it wasn't for me, you would have never gotten involved."
She turned to him, her pupils now contracted.
Is Emilia feeling what I am? Is she afraid too?
".."
"So please, run away. I'll give everything I have to protect you."
The half elf shortly looked at the soil.
"I owe you at least this." She muttered.
"..."
She is the one who had caused this, sure, but now she wants to buy me time.
Perhaps she's better than what I thought. She seems effectively a nice girl.
Is now-
"Fufufufuu, what a nice scene."
The black haired woman now was covering her mouth with one hand, still handling both her knives. She made the gesture of wiping off a tear from her cheek.
"Oh my… Girl, do you seriously believe I'll let a witness run away?"
Oh shit, that smile again.
Nonono-
"Run!"
The boy instinctively obeyed the silver bell and turned his back to them.
Right, run. If I run, I won't die.
As he pushed on his right leg, his feet slipped back on the mud.
Luckily, he managed to stay still.
*SWISHH*
*CLINKCLINK*
*CLANG*
Please, no! I want to live!
In a moment, the image of the young thief running and jumping with swiftness and coordination crossed his mind.
If I only had that girl's speed…
He pushed on his left one.
This time, it went right.
*CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINKCLINKCLINK*
*CLANG*
*CRACK*
*CLINKCLINK*
*CLANG*
He jumped into an alley on his left, then he kept running.
He never recalled being so fast.
Inhale, exhale.
I don't want to die.
Mud made his tennis shoes slick and his run dangerous.
Yet, nothing stopped his run.
Inhale, exhale.
I want to live.
A side street on the left.
He took it.
I don't want to die!
A low wooden fence was blocking his way.
Putting his hand on it, he jumped over it.
A splinter of wood was planted in his palm.
I don't want to die…
Now the brownish soil had been replaced by whitish stones, making his run easier.
Under the moonlight, the street was almost silver.
…but…
He was terrified for his life. His hands were still shaking and the adrenaline pumped in his blood was still affecting his perception of the world around him.
Then why were his footsteps slowing?
[A girl was lying on the ground, right above a brown-haired man she had tried to protect. Her clothes were stained in red and a crimson pool was expanding beneath her, reddening the last white on his trousers. Her eyes were vitreous and her mouth agape. With her dying breath, her lips moved, but no words could be understood; then, her head tilted down.]
Now he was almost walking.
Oh c'mon, seriously? You're far beyond redemption.
His feet stopped.
You know you cannot lift a finger against that woman, right? You could barely see her.
The boy looked down at his hands. Their tremor was not attenuating.
Still...
He clenched them tightly.
I wish I could do som-
"Looks like you're in trouble, and your face is undoubtedly a concerned one."
Subaru raised his head.
A man dressed in a white- no, a knight was before him, his candid cape almost shining in the darkness of the night. His scarlet hair seemed like a flame and, even if he was wearing the politest smile, his eyes were looking directly at Subaru's soul.
"Can I do something to assist you?"
"O-Oh." The Japanese boy snapped out and blinked twice. "Right, l need help!" He clapped his hands together. "There is a girl with silver hair, Lady Emilia..."
The knight's eyes narrowed slightly.
"...and with one of your companions, she is fighting a black-haired woman with strange knives!"
He stepped forward…
"They're in trouble, he's already heavily hurt." The boy closed his eyes and bowed. "So please, call for-uh?"
…and put his right hand over Subaru's left shoulder.
"You don't have to worry, I'll take care of this."
The Japanese boy's eyes widened.
"T-thank you! But please, hurry!"
"I certainly will."
Now the knight's smile was undoubtedly a warm one. Then, in a heartbeat, he was gone.
A last gust of wind swept the silent alley.
Well, I guess he's someone reliable. I haven't seen him even moving away, so I believe he has the feats to oppose that woman along with Emilia.
What should I do now?
Subaru looked around.
Dilapidated buildings partially shielded the road from the moonlight, keeping the alley partially in the darkness. All the windows had their fences closed, and no voices or sounds of footsteps could be heard. The air was filled with not a strong yet arguably upsetting smell, as if mud was stagnating in the air and partially breathable.
I mean, it's night and I don't have a place to stay. There must be at least an inn or something like that in this city, but I have really no clues about how far the closer is… and in each city, even more in a medieval one, going around at night is dangerous.
He pressed his right thumb below his chin and scratched it with his finger.
Hold on, right now I am in danger! Even if I don't consider what is on with that assassin…
A shiver ran down his spine, making his back tremble.
…I'm a walking target for bands of thieves or worse. Luckily I'm wearing this thing that covers my tracksuit, so I'm not drawing out too much attenti-uh?
Rays of white-azurrish light enlightened the street.
Were they coming from where he had escaped?
*SWOOSH*
He turned back to-
*BOOOOM!*
As the ground violently shook, he instinctively raised his arms to cover his head and face. An impactful air blast forced him to step back and pieces of tiles, wooden boards and stones flew and fell around him. One of them tore his left forearm sleeve, and something impacted his right knee.
What's that? A whirlwind? An earthquake? No, they don't cause strange blue lights.
As the strong wind ceased, Subaru lowered his hands and opened his eyes.
The buildings facing the street had their upper part showing craters of variable sizes and their rooftops almost ripped off, with several tiles and wooden beams from the structure missing. The alley itself was scattered with debris like small stones and shards of bricks and shingles.
Several light trails, extending for dozens of meters in the air, were fading away in white particles. They seemed like the Aurora Borealis he had heard of, but they seemed to irradiate somehow from a point on the ground and not in the sky itself. The night, that had been brightened up as if it was midday, was slowly regaining its usual darkness.
Hold on, it's coming from where Emilia and Rupert were.
Subaru looked at the direction he had come from. It was around the base of the strange lights, from where the light still was enlightening that part of the town.
You know, you're going to waste whatever she might have done to buy you time.
He rubbed his left arm at his elbow with his right hand.
At least, try to get ready for possible red flags.
Sighing at himself, he slowly moved forward his foot.
"...so you really don't have to worry, Reinhard. I appreciate all of your help, and thank you for saving us, but from now Puck and I will take care of this by ourselves."
"But Lady Emilia, you have just…"
"Once I have finished treating him and his condition is stabilized, please take care of Rupert and take him to a more experienced healer."
The girl who had just spoken was kneeling on the ground, her hands placed on the chest of the lying man. A bluish light was irradiating from them, including both her forearms and the knight's torso in a sphere.
"..."
The red-haired knight scratched the back of his head with his right hand, then he let his arm fall along his side. In contrast with the half-elf's and his colleague's clothes, stained with soil and blood, the white of his uniform was pristine. The greatsword hanging from his belt had never left its scabbard.
"This should be your priority right now, Sword Saint." A tiny, gray cat floating at the girl's side opened its mouth.
"...understood." He slightly bowed his head at the lady's and the Great Spirit's words.
An awkward silence descended upon them.
The four of them were in the middle of an untouched zone of mere meters of diameter. All around, scattered debris dotted the Road and the surrounding terrain. The last floor and the roofs of the nearby buildings were missing, as if removed in an eraser stroke at 360 degrees.
"In the meanwhile, may I ask you to bring the boy here?" Emilia's voice came out softly. "I let him escape before, but these neighborhoods are reeeally dangerous." She shook her head, turning it quickly from left to right as if to snap out of something. "Also, now that Puck and I are going to settle the matter, he would like to be here to get back his mitia."
The corners of Reinhard's lips slightly rose in a faint smile. "Lady Emilia, I agree with you. I would do that, but…"
"But?"
The redhead's eyes focused on a point behind Emilia. "...he's already here."
The young woman turned back as much as she could.
A disoriented lad with dark hair was slowly putting one foot after the other, walking towards them while looking around himself.
"Woah. This is impressive…" He focused on the redhead, meters before him. "Have you really done this? Gosh, you're so OP!"
The half elf sighed with relief.
"Here you are, Subaru." Puck flew next to him, a smile on display.
"Glad to see you managed to safely leave this place."
It started gradually fading away.
"My bad, I thought I had entrusted Lia to you. So-"
"Puck, don't be mean to him." She almost pouted from behind at her father. "I myself told him to run away, since he wouldn't have had a choice against that woman."
"Lia, you're too good." The spirit lowered his shoulders, then he turned to her. "Still, I cannot say you're wrong." He looked at the boy out of the corner of his eye. "Someone like him would have had no hope facing such a nasty girl."
"Speaking of which…" The boy cut Puck off. "Where is she? Is she dead? I've seen she has a freaking regenerative skill, but that attack seems to be one of those who one-shot you."
"I don't completely get what you're trying to say, Subaru Natsuki, but the woman you met before shouldn't be a threat anymore." The knight looked at the last azure waves in the night sky. "She was Elsa Granhiert, from the Holy Kingdom of Gusteko. A dangerous assassin, known to the guards of all the four great nations for using particularly shaped blades and… killing people by cutting their bowels. That bought her the title of 'The Bowel Hunter'."
"Ewww." Subaru grimaced.
Seeing the Japanese boy, he smiled slightly. "I have to agree with you, it isn't quite the nice nickname."
As Reinhard looked down, at human level, the boy followed his gaze.
Emilia had now got up and was softly cleaning her hands on the white cloth on her thighs. At her feet, Rupert was lying on the brownish cape she wasn't wearing anymore.
"I've now stabilized his condition and he can be moved; still, he isn't totally out of danger. He needs a more talented healer." She met the redhead's gaze. "I entrust him to your care now, Reinhard."
"But…" The knight stopped talking, then closed his eyes and sighed. "Lady Emilia, this area is still full of danger, especially at this time and for the ones who are not from here."
"Don't worry, we'll be fine." Puck floated between them and smirked. "After all, we're getting reinforcements."
"What do you- oh!" Emilia widened her eyes and put her right hand on her opened mouth. "I had totally forgotten about her. I bet she's going to be really upset at me…"
The spirit facepalmed with his white paw. "Seriously, Lia…"
The sound of footsteps approaching at a fast pace made all of them turn their heads toward it.
Even in this world there are maid outfits!
A feminine figure was running in their direction, her pink hair adjusted in a helmet haircut. She wore white stockings and a black dress, cut above her knees, with something similar to a white apron over it. She slowed her pace meters before reaching them, so she was slowly walking when she faced them.
"Here you are, Lady Emilia." Her gaze jumped to the other men around, then she slightly bowed. "I apologize for not being able to follow you all along."
So… is this girl Emilia's personal maid?
"Nono Ram, there's no need for that!" The half-elf opened her palms in the maid's direction and started quickly rotating them. "I'm sorry for losing sight of you. It was my first time in the capital, so I got too distracted."
" 'Like a child among the candy stalls' is what Lia truly wanted to tell you, Ram." Puck joked.
Emilia pouted. "You don't have to be so mean!" After she puffed, she regained some composure. "Well, truth to be told, we were helping Subaru in getting his mitia back. Now that Reinhard is going to take care of Rupert, we'll head there and talk with the ones inside, so they'll give it to us." The young woman nodded in self confirmation.
"Uh?" Ram's slightly confused gaze made eye contact with Puck, then Subaru and Reinhard. "Sorry to bother you, Lady Emilia, but… may I ask in which way your actions involved the Sword Saint, Sir Reinhard Van Astrea" She nodded at the knight. " himself? Also," she quickly analyzed the surroundings. "It seems there has just been a fight here. Truth to be told, I found you reaching the center of the light waves visible in the sky."
"You don't need to be so formal. 'Reinhard' is enough, Ms. Ram. After all, I believe I have already met your sister and one of your colleagues once, here in the capital." The redhead smiled at the maid, then looked at the black-haired boy. "About my involvement, I was returning home after taking a stroll on my day off when I saw a fire magic alert signal. I followed it to check the situation and so I met Subaru not far from here. He told me about Lady Emilia and Rupert fighting against someone who matched Elsa's description, so I rushed here and…"
"Weeell, we were having a fight with the Bowel Hunter, but Reinhard disposed of her."
"I won't argue on that." Ram added.
"So, Reinhard, I believe now you may go. I've all the assistance I may need from Ram and Puck."
"Understood, Lady Emilia." Reinhard went next to Rupert, leaned on him, wrapped him in the cape he was lying on and took him in his arms. "But please, pay attention. This part of the capital is really dangerous, especially at night. I'll communicate to the guards around here that the issue has been settled, but they should still pay attention to any emergency signal. In particular… Fire magic in ice form, if I'm not mistaken."
Emilia nodded.
"Well then." He slightly bowed to the four of them. "Once again: please, take care."
A blink and a little blow of wind later,he was high in the dark sky.
They all followed him with their gaze.
Moments later, the pink-haired maid addressed her mistress. "So, Lady Emilia, why did you want to send the Sword Saint away so desperately? And, also," She scanned Subaru. "Who is him?"
"Why do I feel like I've not made a great first impression?" The boy muttered.
"He is Subaru. He got his mitia stolen because of me, so the least I can do is help him get it back." Emilia answered. "This way, my debt toward him will be canceled. All I am doing is for things on my behalf."
Ram and Puck exchanged a gaze.
"Sigh"
"You know, Lia, as your father I shouldn't tell you this but… if you want to lie, you should become better at it."
"I'm not lying. I'm here only for my own reasons. I want to cancel my debt and get back my insignia. It's not- Ram, are you feeling well? Today must have been reeally tir-"
The maid opened her right palm wide open before herself. "Lady Emilia, stop, please." Then she put her hand- which was trembling- on her own face. "You seriously got your insignia stolen?"
"Weeell… I did, didn't I?" The half elf tapped the points of her index fingers one against the other. "But that girl was super-duper quick! I tried to scare her by throwing magic above her head, but I almost hit someone and had to make sure I had hurt no-one. In the meantime, she disappeared."
"And I was one of the ones almost hit." Subaru murmured. "So that's how it went," He raised his voice "And that's why-"
"Shut-up." Ram cut him off.
"Hey!"
She ignored him. "Lady Emilia, you understand what losing that insignia means, do you?"
"I know that!"
"Then why…"
"I… I thought that since we had the same target, joining our forces would have fairly improved our research. That's why I believed letting him join us wasn't a bad idea."
"..."
Emilia eyed her father, who was wearing an amused smile on his muzzle.
"Ah, Lia is so cute when she's trying to make it all by herself!" The spirit briefly chuckled, then he floated in front of the pink-haired girl. "Well, if you think about it, Lia and Subaru had both been robbed by the same thief. Since my daughter couldn't report the guard her insignia had been stolen, the city was so big and this boy," Puck's eyes flashed towards him, followed by Ram's ones. "was even less experienced about this place than her…"
"Tch!" The maid snorted. Subaru, on the other hand, stared back at her slightly clenching his jaw.
"...we believed that using him as a pretext to get some help wasn't a bad idea. This wouldn't have influenced the Royal Selection, or damaged your master in any way."
"..."
"Well, we can say it worked." The cat pointed with his right arm-paw the large building leaning against the city walls. "The girl who stole it should be in that building." He narrowed his eyes. "Even after all of this, I still sense someone inside there." The spirit addressed his daughter "Now that she is with you, Lia, I'll be back to sleep." He yawned. "As you have done, in case of need, don't hesitate and call me back."
"Mm-hm." The half-elf nodded. "Goodnight, Puck."
With nothing more than a glance for the other two people there, he disappeared again in a white-bluish glow in mid-air.
"To the giant rats…?"
"What is that? A password? Well, we should carefully think what to answ-"
"Hmmm… a gargantuan piece of cheese, isn't it?"
" Who even says such a word these days..."
"..."
"...To the great White Whale…?"
"Got it! A harpoon, or a giant fish hook!"
"The White Whale is reeally a meanie, so I won't argue on that."
"..."
*Sigh* "To our most honorable Great Dragon?"
"The Divine Dragon? Well, maybe-"
"Really? You've dragons here!?"
"I'm tired of this." Ram raised her voice. "By the name of my Master, Marquis Roswaal L. Mathers, I command you to open this door. Otherwise, I shall serve you his judgment.."
No reply came behind the rough door.
Under Subaru's and Emilia's gaze, the pink-haired maid pinched the bridge of her nose.
"I see," Ram muttered after a short while. She pulled out a brownish wand, about half the length of her forearm, from under the hem of her skirt. "Lady Emilia, Barusu, stay back."
"Hm-mm."
"Ok-wait, when did my name become a curse?"
"Well then." She pointed it against the locked entrance of the building. Gusts of wind started spinning around her feet, throwing a handful of dust in mid air. "Al Fu-"
"Cut it out, girl! I'm opening the door!"
The heavy and wooden door creaked, then it suddenly opened.
What did Rupert say before? A giant? Well, I guess he was right.
There were no other words to describe the man holding its handling. He was way taller than your average man and - despite his bald head and the wrinkles on his sunburnt face - had massive muscles on his arm, shoulders and abdomen. He wore a sort of black vest opened on his chest, where white hair spots spreaded, and similarly dark trousers.
The boy glanced at Ram and Emilia. While both of them had almost unnoticeably widened their eyes, not a hint of fear or worrying was on their face.
Impressive of them not even blinking. Still, if you consider what technique that redhead knight used before…
"Who are you?" The giant stepped forward, one of his brownish feet now visible under the moonlight ."What do you want?" Another step. He was holding a sort of wooden club, its size proportional to its owner's one. "Are you the ones who caused all this trouble?"
Subaru scratched the back of his head with his right hand. "To be fair, it wa-"
"Yes, it was us." The maid cut him off. "Look around you and realize what will happen to this dump of yours if you won't listen to our requests."
"Tch!" The giant snorted while quickly scanning the surroundings. "You kids…" He focused on the peach-haired girl, then on the black-haired boy, ending with the- "...oh."
"Please, we don't want to cause any harm." Emilia stepped forward while raising her left arm on her side, keeping Subaru and Ram behind it. "We came here 'cause we have reason to believe that the girl who stole a- no, two items very precious to us, is inside there."
"Why are you so sure to know who's inside?" He narrowed his eyes. "I'm not supposed to let everyone slam fists on that door in."
"This is not something we can give up on." Emilia replied calmly yet firmly. "If you hand it over to us, we won't hurt you in any way."
The old man's mouth tightened in a straight line. He clenched his grip on the club.
The maid slightly flexed her legs and the arm holding the wand and glanced at her mistress.
With a faint sound of shattering, several icicles started forming and floating in mid air before the half-elf. Even if their tip wasn't pointy, they were way more than fist-sized.
Fuck, things are going to explode!
Emilia and the giant made eye contact through the curtain of icy spears. Everyone was almost frozen for a long moment.
He deeply inhaled… then he blew it out and let his right arm fall down. After murmuring something, he sighed in a defeated tone: "Misses, stop that. You can come in." He turned his back to them and, as entered the building with dropped shoulders, the icicles before Emilia vanished.
"Hmpf." Ram acknowledged her own victory. She stepped forward and gripped the handle, then she addressed the half-elf. "Lady Emilia, please, let me come inside first."
"All right Ram, go ahead." Her mistress nodded.
"Barusu, close the door behind you."
"You know, you could be nicer…" The Japanese young man retorted. As the peach-haired maid stared at him, he muttered. "All right, all right. Fine. Go, I'll be the last."
Ram entered the loot cellar, followed by Emilia. He walked after them backwards, closing the heavy door using both his arms.
"...You've let her in!? What is wrong with you, old man Rom?"
She's that girl!
"I can't make a move against them. If I had done nothing, they were going to destroy the door… and maybe more."
Turning to the voices, Subaru saw a room similar to a bar area of an inn. Behind something like a reception desk, a lot of different items - small boxes, pots, swords, metallic objects - were cluttered close together.
"But… You've given up before the fight has even started!?"
Standing next to two chairs near said desk, the giant was discussing with the blonde girl.
Ram and Emilia were standing a couple of meters before them, apparently waiting for the two of them to end their argument.
"It's your fault for bringing here things so troublesome along with their troubling owners, Felt."
"Ugh…" Felt groaned. Her gaze shifted from Rom to Emilia. "You really are a persistent woman, aren't you…" She spat, her mouth twisted in frustration. "Why couldn't you just give up already?"
"Sorry but I can't let you get away with this." Emilia stepped forward. "You stole two items reeeally important to us."
The temperature in the room dropped.
"As I said to your co-conspirator, if you'll be a good girl and give them back, we won't hurt you. This is the right thing to do for you."
Wait, this way it seems we're the villains here!
Rom glanced at the kid. "Felt, look carefully at her. I don't know what she'll be capable of…"
"Uh-gh!" The young thief's eyes widened for a moment at those words, then she frowned and gritted her teeth. "An elf with silver hair and amethyst eyes. Damn it!" She cursed. "If only my client had come in time…"
"Client?" The peach haired maid raised an eyebrow. "So you were asked to steal that thing, didn't you?" Her voice was the coldest the boy had heard till that moment from her.
"I…" Felt went silent for a heartbeat. "What am I supposed to do with her? That woman was not someone to joke with!" She addressed Emilia. "She was almost as scary as you!"
"Huh" Ram grabbed her own chin with her right index finger and her thumb. "That's absolutely suspicious."
Emilia's eyes shadowed and her mouth regressed in a straight line for a moment, her lips tightened one against the other. She suddenly blinked twice, as if she had snapped out from something. "A scary woman…" The silver-haired girl murmured, then she picked the young thief. "She had black hair and pale skin, didn't she?"
Felt bit her inferior lip, her right hand holding her own left wrist.
"Mm-hm, I see." The half-elf nodded. "That's the Bowel Hunter. She's undoubtedly scary and a super-duper meanie. We've just met her outside here. Thanks to Reinhard, she won't be a problem to you."
"The Sword Saint…" The old man murmured.
"Yup, he's really strong. She could not lay a finger on him, then his sword became all blue and 'swoooosh!' she was no more."
What a display of power…
As the young thief's frame grew stiffer, Emilia made another step towards her.
"S-Stop! Don't come closer-"
"You don't have to be afraid of her anymore."
Suddenly the air got warmer.
"If you give me those things, all of this will be finished. We'll pretend all this fuss never happened." The half elf smiled. "I bet you're tired, aren't you?"
"T-tch! Are you treating me like a kid?!" Felt retorted. She saw Ram's glacial gaze behind Emilia's shoulders. "Are the two of you kidding me?"
She's really a child, after all?
"You know what? Fine!" The girl clenched her fists. She walked behind the desk and crouched behind it, disappearing for a moment. As she got up, she was holding in her right hand something who was emitting a crimson light.
Emilia raised an eyebrow, then her mouth took a 'O' shape. "Oooh! This means-"
"Take this and leave us alone!" Felt loaded her arm backwards, then unleashed it forward. A yellowish item quickly traveled in a straight line toward Emilia, though the half-elf catched it without moving anything else than her right arm. After glancing at the item, she slightly bowed.
"Thank you."
"Hey, you know, that's rude even for a thie-"
"And you, take this too and shut up! You won, I cannot do otherwise, so just go away!" Felt cut Subaru off by throwing back at him his flip phone too. He just managed to raise his arms and cover his head before the item hit him on his forearms. Luckily, he avoided its fall by blocking it with both his hands right after the impact.
"Wha-hold on! Even if it isn't a smartphone, it's still frail!"
"I don't care! Now you have whatever you came here for. Just leave!"
Raising his head, Subaru saw the badge in Emilia's hand: a golden jewel with a crimson gem set in it. She extracted a purse from somewhere in her dress and put the insignia into it. Instinctively following her, Subaru put the phone back in the right pocket on the belly of his jacket.
"See? You've been a good girl, so nobody got hurt." The silver-haired girl smiled again at Felt, who was now gritting her teeth and was having a pronounced eye contraction. "Take care!"
The half-elf turned and headed to the exit. As he put her right hand on the handle, Ram approached her, whispering in her ear: "Lady Emilia, shouldn't we report them to the guards?"
"Hmmm…" She pushed the door open and stepped forward. "Well, nobody got hurt today. Since I got my insignia back, I don't want to put them in trouble."
A gust of wind breathed through the entrance of the room.
"If we let this slide, there'd be a lot of potential victims in the incoming future. The girl was put on your tail by the Bowel Hunter, but she deliberately stole the mitia from that guy."
The young woman put her left index finger on her lips, then she stood silent for moments.
"I believe that, if they promise they won't do such a nasty thing again, we can turn a blind eye to them."
"Huh?" As Ram skeptically looked at her, Emilia looked at Felt and Rom.
"I hope you will-"
"Lady Emilia! Behind you!"
"-uh? Oh!"
The half-elf faced again outside. The air before her started vibrating. A moment later, an icy wall formed and-
*THUD*
*CRACK*
-as Emilia quickly jumped back next to Ram, it shattered under a heavy impact.
"Oh, my bad. The pink one is a quickie, isn't her?"
No way… Wasn't she dead!?
Elsa was holding both her knives, her provocative and now ragged black dress revealing even more her body. None of her hair was bruised or cut, and not a scratch was visible on her. The only exception was a diagonal wound that almost crossed diagonally the upper part of her torso, starting from her shoulders and passing on her collarbone. Her dark cape was missing and her voice was lacking her usual half-joking inflection.
"Well," She played with one of her knives, throwing it upwards in mid air and catching it while the weapon was still spinning. "Since the person I had entered into an agreement with has miserably failed, letting herself be tracked down, I have now no other choice than taking care of the matter all by myself."
As she made a step forward, Subaru's hands started trembling.
Oh no…
The woman laid her gaze on Felt, who was now clinging to Rom's trousers from behind him. "Hold on dearly to your grandpa, little brat… That's just all you can do." She spat.
Emilia and Ram looked into each other's eyes and nodded almost unnoticeably.
*CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK*
Several icicles appeared floating in mid-air and were thrown in a heartbeat towards Elsa. In a fluid movement, she dodged some of them while smashing the others with a dance of her knives.
As Emilia continued attacking her frontally, the assassin kept making forward towards her.
*CLINK* *CLINK*
*CRANG*
*CLINK*
*CLANG*
No! It cannot end this way!
Though, each step the woman made forward, she had a little less time to avoid or crack the icy bullets. While at first it hadn't been a big problem, the relentlessness with which Emilia was throwing them at her never let Elsa recover that disadvantage, that was accumulating.
*CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK*
*CLANG*
The half-elf was getting her teeth, while Elsa's expression was growing more and more focused and serious with each icicle she had to face, her facial muscles slowly stiffening.
I don't know for long Emilia will manage to keep her at bay, and that crazy woman is gonna do something to escape from this.
Subaru's eyes fell on the pink haired girl.
What is she doing? Is she waiting for Elsa to recover from her disadvantage?
As Emilia took a short breath, she shot the next icicle slightly late. The assassin took advantage of it, moving away from the line of fire and trying to get around it to reach the half-elf. Ram, who was behind Emilia, stepped on the side Elsa was attacking and rotated upwards the wrist of her right hand, which was still holding the wand.
*SWISH-*SWISH-*SWISHHHHH*
The black-haired woman tried to get away, but she was hit by a close succession of wind blades.
Yess! Take this!
However,
"Ah pinkie, you almost had me here."
Oh shit!
Elsa continued sprinting forward even with bleeding scratches on both her face and torso. Her left arm had been torn off and was lying on the floor, but the right one was still holding her knife.
As she was approaching Emilia, her gaze fell on Subaru for a moment and the two of them made eye contact.
Oh no oh no oh no… That knight isn't around to save us again.
If this bitch manages to defeat Emilia, all of us will be- I'm scared. I-
"-don't want to die." A murmur escaped from his lips.
The corner of her lips slightly turned upwards in a contorted smile.
Emilia turned on her side and-
*CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK*
-she summoned a handful of icicles to throw at Elsa.
The assassin noticed the summoned floating projectiles and dodged them at the last moment.
If only I could do something, like one of those fireballs…
He instinctively raised his right arm, pointing it at Elsa, while she was approaching Emilia.
The assassin's hand, holding the knife, was describing an arc in mid air aiming at the half-elf..
Emilia, now late on the dynamic of the scene, flexed her legs to react to the incoming woman.
Ram waved her wand-
"Goa!"
The room got bathed in a warm orange light.
What?
*PTOOM*
"Aargh-"
A sphere of flames exploded as it impacted frontally with Elsa's torso and made her fall to the ground and roll on it.
It worked!?
"G-gh-" She tried to raise herself up, landing her weight on her knees and her remaining forearm.
This isn't enough…
"Goa!"
*PTOOM*
The second fireball hit her on the base of her neck, among her uncovered shoulder blades. It pushed her on the ground, making her violently hit her chest. Her head recoiled while her neck made an unpleasant noise.
Ram looked at the woman, then at the Japanese boy -panting with his arm still raised on- , then at the giant and the girl, who had made a couple of steps back from the scene. "Let's leave this place, now!" She ordered. "She will be back on her feet in no time."
"C'mon, Felt, let's go." Rom gently tugged the arm Felt was holding at him with.
"But, Old Man Rom…"
"We reeeally should hurry." Emilia added, her gaze falling on the reluctant girl. "Also, we need to find someone able to deal with her."
She looked at the lying figure. The dress on her back and her sides had been turned to ashes, leaving her with no more than her stockings from knees down and her blackened shoes. The hair on her back was irregularly burned, discolored and turned into a mess that totally covered the front part of her head. On her back there was no skin, leaving her flesh exposed. It was almost caramel-coloured, but heavily reddened by her blood.
"C-Can't you do something to block her?" The half-elf snapped out and turned her head towards the source of the trembling voice. It was Subaru, who had been agape till then; he was pointing his index finger at the assassin. "Just to… you know…"
"Hm-mm. Right." Emilia raised both her arms, opening her palms.
*CLINK* *CLINK* *CLINK*
Her magic summoned three smaller icicles, as if they were icy knives or pickets…
*SNIP* *SNIP* *SNIP*
…and she used them to pin her to the ground through her feet and her remaining arm. Subaru and Felt both shuddered seeing the ice piercing Elsa's flesh.
"Now sorry, but you'll have to wait for someone taking care of you." Emilia put her hands on her hips and nodded twice. "Now, I believe we should call the knights to end this fuss and leave the baddie in their hands." She walked outside the Loot Cellar through the door Ram was holding open and, once far enough from the building, raised her arms. Rounds of icicles were thrown into the sky.
Now that I'm thinking about it… How much magic can this girl spam!? How much mana does she have?
As she clenched her fists, they exploded in dry noises and disappeared in the air, without any fragments coming down.
He looked at his own hands. And what about me? I really have a unique power: I launched fireballs, and good ones too! And I bet I run away with some kind of ability before, the way the kid run away from me.
He assumed a mix between a superhero's pose and a martial fighter's position: his legs were flexed, with his right foot before the other. His right arm was stretched onward while his left one was near his face in a guarding position. Both his palms displayed before him, with all the fingers except the thumb tightened together.
Oh yesss, Natsuki Subaru's gonna strike!
"…"
"…"
"Nobody hit him in the head when we weren't looking, right?" Felt whispered to Rom covering her mouth with her right hand, while he was looking at the Japanese boy as he finally had lost it.
"No… but maybe I slammed the door on his face before. This kiddo should be alright in minutes." He answered her without even bothering to cover his mouth or lower too much his voice.
Doh! It's even worse if you hear it! But at least the maid will appreciate I kept her mistress safe…
The pink-haired girl was glaring at him the same way he would have welcomed a shit under his shoe mere minutes after having meticulously cleaned it.
Sigh, I guess it's not my time yet.
He returned to his previous position, i.e. standing next to the wall with his arm along his side. The maid shook horizontally her head a couple of times, then she focused on the assassin. She couldn't help but snort-
"Let's leave this place." Ram muttered after a moment, looking away from the woman pinned on the ground and, with a hint of disgust on her face, she crossed the door.
"..." After exchanging a nod with Rom, Felt was the next one to leave. She passed before Subaru without a word, her shoulders lowered. The giant followed her, without sparing controlling looks at Elsa.
This seems so sad for being a victory. Still, considering how much that woman can be dangerous...
"Subaru?" Emilia's face peeped from behind the door, pulling him out of his trance. "What are you doing there? You know, that woman is reeeally dangerous. I…" Her gaze fell on the floor and the volume of her voice dropped. "...I would never forgive myself if something…"
Awwww, what a cutie!
"Aight, I'm coming!" He moved towards the door. The half-elf smiled and disappeared to his eyes, walking away to let him out.
Still, she's not wrong. Truth to be told, I wouldn't be there if it wasn't for her.
He exited the building, getting bathed in the light of the full moon. Ram was leaning against the wall of the building; her eyes were closed and she was pitching the bridge of her nose with her right hand. Her white wand was nowhere to be seen.
But still, without Emilia I would have died. Twice. Also, I got some lore from this world during the whole trip. In the end, I can assume she's repaid her debt towards me.
"Mister, we've made a fuss in your place." Said girl was now speaking to the thieves, rolling herlong silver hair around her fingers. "Do you have a place to stay until it will be repaired and everything will be settled?"
Felt looked at Rom, then at Emilia. "Well, I live in another place," She held her right arm with her left and swayed with her hips while staying in place "But he simply cannot live there." She apparently found something really interesting on the ground between her feet.
"Oh, Felt," He gave Felt a pat on her back, almost making her fall. "You don't need to worry!" He laughed loudly; still, no new wrinkles appeared around his eyes and his cheeks remained low. "We just need not be there while this lady's friends will come to take care of that scary woman. I'll put this place to good use with some days, no, some hours of hard work!" He winked at her. "I'm old, but not that old - yet."
Emilia came near Felt and put a hand on her shoulder. The girl flinched, but the half-elf slightly caressed her.
"In that case…"
Ram reached the three of them, drawing her mistress' attention."Lady Emilia, please assess the situation carefull-"
"Oh my… You almost had me before, boy." A voice whispered in his ear.
OH SHI-
*SPLOSH*
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGGHH-gglll"
"Subaru!"
AAAAAAAAARG! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! IT HURTS!
*SWING*
As Elsa pulled out the knife from his back, Subaru fell to the ground on his stomach.
*TONF*
It hurts! It's hot! It hurts! It's hot!
His arms were dull and he could not feel his fingers. All he knew was something was burning him from his back till the inside of his stomach. Subaru felt an unparalleled heat from inside while freezing to dullness outside.
It hurts! It's hot! It's cold! It hurts! IT HURTS!
"AAAA-aarll-blblb" *COUGH* *COUGH* "Aaar-glgl-"
He could see nothing. He couldn't manage to keep his eyes open. All he could figure out was stars and flashes, but he didn't know what was on his mind and what was coming from behind his eyelids. Not that he was able to ask himself this.
It hurts! It hurts! I'm burning! I'm freezing! I'm dying! I don't want to die!
He tried to put his hands on his back and his stomach, both cut open when Elsa stabbed. At least one. At least, a little. At least, not to stay still and fading off.
It hurts! It's hot! It's cold! It's… hot.
The dullness won him.
It hurts. It's cold. I… am I dying? I don't want to die.
He was leaving behind… who was he leaving behind?
A handful of unknown people, dying at a crazed and undefeatable assassin? Were they even something to him?
His friends? He had no friends. Maybe, if he had been worthy enough, he could have had.
Better this way. Nobody would have cried for him.
His parents? The ones he wished he wasn't born from? The one he disappointed the most? The ones who had kept loving him, till he left them behind?
I-I'm sorry…
If he had had eyes, he would have cried.
Mom, Dad… I'm sorry for everything.
Maybe he could have accomplished something more in his life
Maybe he could have grown into a man worthy of being compared to his dad.
Maybe he could have become someone people, or at least himself, could think to love.
If only…
...he had that woman's skill to cheat death.
"That's no good. You have to be gentler with girls."
"Gwah! Don't talk to me as if you were a princess or whatever."
Elsa bended backward, easily dodging the club aiming at her head. The giant before her was swinging it with a power she hadn't expected from him; still, it was far from enough to cause her trouble. However,
*SWISHH*
she was forced to jump back, away from him.
"Impressive, I must admit that."
"Huh. If it had really been, you wouldn't have been able to talk back to Ram."
The pink haired woman -a maid?- using wind magic was being a thorn in her side. All the chances to hit the man or leave him behind herself, gained by outclassing him in speed, were wasted by the timing and the precision of the girl's techniques.
"Subaru? Subaru? Please… I'm sorry."
Elsa's true target - the half-devil or, better to say, the insignia in her pockets - was between her two opponents, kneeling near the boy the assassin had stabbed before. She was trying to help him, who was lying half-curled on the ground on one side. Anyway, Elsa knew it was a matter of time before he was going to bleed all his life out from the wounds on his stomach and his back.
"Is he…?"
The girl Elsa had originally hired to steal said insignia - a blonde skinny girl, not too much older than Meili - was next to them. She was the reason the giant kept engaging her, preventing Elsa from easily disposing of the girl with the wand.
Elsa looked at her left forearm. One of the last wind attacks had almost caught her, scratching it.
It had almost been exciting.
"Don't turn your eyes away from me, girl! Gwaaaaa!"
Elsa jumped on the bat the old man was swinging horizontally. He stopped and raised his widened eyes at her.
"What?"
"It's only 'cause you're so strong tha-"
*SWISHH*
A moment later she was forced to retreat backflipping, almost feeling the wind blades on the nude skin of her chest. She landed on her feet and looked at the maid, who was eyeing at her in an annoyed air.
"Fufufu. What a luck, they didn't jiggle too much. I'm almost sorry you didn't get that hit" Elsa softly hit twice with her closed right fist each one of her candid breasts, making them bounce one before the other. She could still feel the wound she had received from the Sword Saint pulsing faintly. Her fingers were now sticky due to the blood she'd lost before.
"Ram gladly hopes you're not trying to mock her." The pinkie one stated, her eyes colder than the half-devil's ice.
"Old man Rom, what are you staring at? What the hell is wrong with-"
*COUGH COUGH*
"Subaru!?"
She raised an eyebrow. Wasn't the boy on the verge of death?
"Oh-ouch. Man, it still hurts-" *COUGH*
Despite the half-witch trying to stop him, he put his weight on his right forearm and hardly managed to sit, keeping his back straight by leaning on the ground with his trembling arms.
This boy possesses an ability that can rival my curse. Oh my, it can become interesting.
He was now staring back at her. Due to the pain he was feeling, his lips were twisted in a contorted smile.
Suddenly, his emotions hit her. Elsa expected fear or anger from him, maybe with a hint -why not?- of sexual desire. All she could distinguish in his smell instead was…
Relief.
Excitement.
Fulfilment.
Does he like clinging to life by his fingertips? Is he amazed by the fight? But it doesn't match with him at all.
He uncovered his teeth, his grin spreading on his face.
Now now, I get it. I know this piggy smile.
She instinctively touched her left forearm with her right hand, where it was hurting- was it still hurting? Why was a scratch taking all this time to heal?
Could it be that…
The wound on her torso wasn't relenting its pulsing. The upper part of her back was still sore, like after a sunburn, making her slightly shiver in the cold of the night.
Her eyes widened.
I'm- "She" will be so angry about that. I must…
Elsa felt vulnerable. She had goosebumps and, for a split second, all her body tingled as never had done after that time in the chapel in the Featherrun mansion.
So, even if she felt so alive, she must-
Cold.
As feeling ice - no, metal on bare skin.
The ones before her sighed in relief and, relaxing their shoulders, let their arms down on their side.
Getting lost in herself for a second, she hadn't heard someone approaching her from behind. Now, a blade was held against her neck while leaning on her collarbone. The hand wielding the sword was wearing a dark-gray glove, and she could also catch a white sleeve in the border of her field of view. That wasn't a desperate situation - she had been in far worse ones…
"Oh my. I guess I got caught." She murmured, a hint of a smile on her lips.
…but this time there were a couple of complications.
First, her body - the distorted result of an ancient curse, which had made her able to cheat death more than once - was now unknown to herself.
Second, due to the almost total absence of smell,
"Once again, I recommend you surrender."
she had no need to turn her head back to see who was speaking in her ear.
Hi guys (and Merry Christmas to everyone, even if at least 2 days late lmao)
I hope you'll like it a least a bit and I managed to keep everyone at least a little in character, but giving different cuts of characters in the early canon (to leed the story towards a different direction) has been harder to me than I had thought.
As always, R&R.
Thanks (and Happy New Year?) everyone.