It was dark out. When they'd visited the guild and then left, the sun had dipped below the horizon, darkening the streets. While Axel wasn't as advanced as the Capital was rumored to be, it did have magical lighting on its main streets, with lamps much like the ones in the guild lining the streets and making nightlife possible for those with the time for it.
Walking through the streets of Axel, they had hit everywhere Tanya could think of: first had been the Tailor, who had been happy to get Viktoriya out of the smelly, dirty clothes she had been utilizing for a bit too long and into something more appropriate.
In keeping with Tanya's monochrome clothes – gray evening gloves, a white shirt, black pants, black boots, with the only color coming from her green cloak – Viktoriya had opted for something in the same vein of color, if not style.
She too kept her boots, and choose pants that might have looked more fitting on a man and that were necessary for the colder conditions higher in the sky. Besides that, she opted for a longer white shirt than Tanya's, one that was much baggier than anything Tanya had seen her wear, with the sleeves opening up at the ends.
Both of their gloves matched, at least, and instead of a mantle like Tanya, she decided to wear a green jacket that resembled their old flight gear.
Tanya sighed at the thought as they headed up the stairs of the inn they were in. Their old flight gear…
She had to admit she missed having the stuff. The clothing was much warmer than anything here, and while that wasn't necessary on the ground, it would be if they ever stayed in the air for extended periods of time.
So would those boots, come to think of it. Tanya, unfortunately, was no scientist, and while she had often deconstructed both her rifle and her Computation Jewels for maintenance, the clunky, flight-stabilizing boot that each mage wore were not one of the things Tanya had looked at often. Recreating them would likely be impossible.
Tanya's thoughts turned back to what had led them into getting a room at this inn. After getting Viktoriya new clothing, Tanya had dropped Viktoriya's old clothing off at the Blacksmith's, before thinking better of that – Tanya was still… unhappy about the looks he had sent her – and leaving the place with more than they had planned to drop off.
They had come here a little while ago to purchase their rooms, and then they had split up.
After some deliberation, Tanya had dropped by the guild while Viktoriya went to that barn. Tanya paid her tab that everyone had managed to rack up in the two hours they had been gone, and Viktoriya had picked up the few possessions Tanya felt were safe enough to leave in the barn – a clothes line, a pillow, and a bed sheet.
Tanya pushed open the door. Now, they were in that room Tanya had paid to be allowed to stay in for the next month. It wasn't overly large, but it had room for the both of them, two beds, and a small window that overlooked one of the quieter streets of Axel.
A magical light illuminated their room, but Tanya wouldn't have cared if she had needed to use candles. She was just happy to be inside and out of that barn.
Of course, to get the room, pay off those debts, and help out Viktoriya, she'd burned through half of the million Eris reward. She thought that having a place to stay and calming the other adventurers' fears that they were somehow evil for taking care of a measly ten monsters.
The day as a whole had been one of the best yet, and it was all thanks to the woman resting in the opposite bed. Darkness and Chris were nice, but neither knew her, not like Viktoriya did…
Although…
Tanya grimaced. Viktoriya really didn't know Tanya's first life, and Tanya had been meticulous in keeping the fact that she even had one hidden from everyone. She had slipped up a few times, referenced things that weren't invented yet here and there, but no one had suspected the ridiculous truth.
She looked at her adjunct, and decided. She'd tell her. She knew that she had another past, and keeping it secret would only cause her to resent her all the more.
"Viktoriya." Immediately, the woman's eyes shot open, staring at Tanya. After a few seconds of pessimistic procrastination, Tanya began simply.
"I haven't been honest with you, and I suppose it's time to fix that." Another moment of hesitation, and Tanya began to lay out her first life.
Being born a man, growing up in Japan, being an atheist, going to college, working a nine to five job, and getting killed by someone she had fired. Her meeting with the one who claimed to be god, and her continued spurning of his insistence that she convert.
Finding herself in a world similar to her last, but one with magic. Enlisting, being given a cursed piece of jewelry that she now had to rely on.
She left out a bit. Some vivid descriptions of how much she despised her body, hatred that she wasn't taller – but there was nothing for that, thanks to the Reinforcement spells that protected her from the neck-snapping forces inherent to being an Aerial Mage at the cost of stunting her growth – and, of course, each and every memory from the last month before they'd left.
Tanya wouldn't be talking about that last thing.
Ever.
Finally, after nearly an hour of explaining herself, she finished. Viktoriya was quiet, and seemed to be deep in thought, probably trying to reconcile what she'd learned with what she knew. Tanya didn't hope for lenience, but-
"Okay."
Tanya blinked, and then blinked again, waiting for an elaboration. Or hatred. Or suspicion.
However, Viktoriya's smiling face just shone, not wavering in the slightest. It did waver when Tanya began to show signs of confusion, such as her mangled screeching. "What do you mean!?"
Viktoriya said nothing, and Tanya decided she'd elaborate, if Serebryakov wouldn't. "'Okay' doesn't cut. Are you angry? Unhappy? Filled with enough potent rage to spite me for nearly two decades? I need more than 'okay!'"
Viktoriya just sat there, considering her words for a moment. Then, happily, she said, "Well, I did say I'd believe you, right? Besides, considering everything else I've seen today, it doesn't seem that outlandish. Although…"
Tanya winced. Here it was. Viktoriya was going to begin to rant and rave at her for keeping so many secrets for so long. Emotional scarring on both their parts was sure to follow, and-
"Are you okay?"
Tanya blinked at the question. Was she okay?
She gazed at Viktoriya curiously. "Okay? What do you mean?"
She winced slightly. "I… after everything you've been through, after everything you've had to fake and lie about and hide, and after what happened in-"
Tanya cut her off with a glare. Her statement died on her lips, as did the nervous bravery shining in her eyes, and Tanya sighed. "I think I'm mostly good, Viktoriya. Anything else?"
Tanya could clearly see she wanted to talk about that, about what had happened after her battle with the Bloody Valkyrie, but Tanya wouldn't, so she was trying to move the conversation away from-
"Are you really a man?"
Twitch.
The girl across from her brought a hand up to her mouth, hiding her snickering and trying to look anywhere accept for the strand of hair on top of Tanya's head that had just bobbed in annoyance at an unavoidable reminder of her situation. Tanya just sighed, cursing her hair in addition to everything else.
"Is that really all you have questions about?" she asked. An earnest look from the woman across from her confirmed it. Tanya grimaced.
"Well… I don't have a dick, if that's what you're asking. Although, you already saw that much at Bidin-Budin. On the inside, though, I still consider myself a guy. Plus…" she trailed off, smirking evilly and not upsetting a lightly blushing Viktoriya, who was very much used to those smiles by now.
"This world has magic items, similar to that truth-detecting item that the guild gave us, that can change a person's gender. And once I get one, I'll be slightly more free from this prison of a body!" she shouted happily.
And it was a prison. There were upsides, of course, but her ability to peep in on women was much like having a great view of the beach from a prison cell: you couldn't exactly get to what you saw.
"Really?" Viktoriya asked, shock ringing in her voice. Tanya nodded, and began to wonder why she seemed so surprised. She had already said that Tanya's past was nothing compared to this place, although…
Tanya's eyes widened. Was the reason that Viktoriya hadn't ever wanted a relationship with any of the men in the 203rd…
"Wait! Uhm…"
Tanya trailed off, and she felt a blush begin to build on her face. "I… suppose I never considered the idea, but, Serebryakov, do… you need one of those-"
Tanya's face had continued to burn until it felt like it was practically one fire, and Viktoriya's face soon mirrored her own. She was sputtering, and Tanya felt incredibly awkward, and-
"No! Of course not, why-"
Tanya felt extremely uncomfortable, but Viktoriya just sighed and straightened her hair nervously. "Tanya. With all due respect, hell no!"
Tanya breathed a sigh of relief. Obviously, Tanya had made a huge leap in logic. She was just as straight-laced as she assumed she was, and her lack of relationships was simply due to the war and nothing else.
She shook her head. What an absurd thought, that a pre-modern Europe would ha
Things were silent, for a moment, and then Viktoriya cleared her throat. "Well, I guess that's everything…"
Tanya nodded, ignoring the contemplative look on the woman's face – Tanya had just dumped a lot of information on her – and she went to turn off the light. As she turned it off, Viktoriya asked another question.
"Tanya. Do you remember all of those times we changed in the same room? Or those times that I unbuttoned or took off my uniform? Or the time we were invited to that hot spring in Bidin-Budin? Or that time we were on the eastern front and we needed to bunk together, and you were very insistent on us sleeping together in order to keep warm?"
Tanya smiled. She remembered each of those times fondly, and had thought of the many times in the last few months, with her separation from her last life and Viktoriya.
While they weren't exactly safer times – only the Tranquility Princess and that pair of Reincarnates had matched the danger of a single veteran aerial mage, proving this war was just… ridiculously peaceful compared to the Empire's war – she had certainly had a much more concrete life ahead of her.
"Yeah! Why…" Tanya trailed off, gulping reflexively. Right. Viktoriya now knew why Tanya had been so insistent.
Stiffening her shoulders, she braced herself for abuse, but it never came. She turned away from the switch on the wall, only to see that Viktoriya was turned towards the wall next to her bed, away from Tanya. Thankful for her mercy, she slipped into her bed and stared at the ceiling.
A voice pierced her ears and thoughts of safety. "I won't attack you. I just hope you can live with yourself for taking advantage of me when I was unaware," she said softly.
Tanya paused for a moment, before she began to softly chuckle. Wow.
She knew that berating Tanya wouldn't really do much, so she opted to let her stew in her shame. Plus, the way she worded that soft statement was suggestive enough to make Tanya associate that with something much worse than simply staring.
A magnificent move on her part, because it would definitely get her to apologize, eventually.
Turning over, Tanya attempted to snuggle into the soft sheets to imprint the comfortable feeling into her body and to suppress any memory of lying in itchy hay.
She was also trying to hold out. She wouldn't apologize…
Not for at least a week. Yes, she was fine with what she'd done, and some of those situations that Tanya had used to snuggle up to or get a better look of Viktoriya had also had legitimate reasons for occurring other than Tanya's puberty-driven urges.
She could hold out for a week.
She was a war veteran, after all; how hard would it be to resist the lingering guilt she felt… even if Viktoriya's presence meant it wasn't exactly lingering anymore?
-OxOxO-
Arrayed in a dark room, women dressed in casual clothing sat around a table, each clutching a drink of some kind in their hands. Most adventurers would be shocked to see them in anything that had more cloth than your average fishing net, but they weren't catering to the male adventurers of Axel.
Not tonight.
A gathering of devils had begun. The average human imagination would place such a thing as heinous, as a meeting between separate eldritch horrors, each bent on enslaving humanity to serve their whims and ready to betray the others for the barest hint of additional power.
The male adventurers of Axel, more familiar with them, would think of such a thing as dream-worthy material.
Among a group of such low-ranked devils, however, it looked more like a meeting between good friends or business partners. They had been in Axel for years, and they weren't going to leave anytime soon, barring some sort of tragedy.
No one knew each other's actual, full name, of course; those held particular power over devil-kind, but the lack of knowledge about that area was expected. Most arrayed around the table knew her as the youngest one there.
An outside adventurer would likely just call her a 'Loli Succubus', when comparing her flat-as-a-board chest to her associates' assets, but she was fine with that.
Everyone had their fetishes, and they were happy to cater to them, as long as everything was in a dream. No human could punish another for their thoughts.
Tonight, however, they had closed their shop. They had had to apologize to the various adventurers, and even had to pay them back for failing to provide their service.
The Succubi were not particularly fussed about that, however. This meeting was important, more important than regular money.
The Succubus that adventurers knew as the 'Receptionist Succubus' stood, clearing her throat. "Now, we're going to party, but before we get too inebriated, we should discuss the reason we're partying," she said, cyan eyes flashing in delight.
Everyone else there was only slightly put off by the delay – they did want to know of their benefactor.
"We got word from several customers, and, when I went to the guild itself, from nearly everyone there, that someone decided to take care of some of our oldest foes," she intoned.
They had all learned this hours ago, but no one interrupted. It was fun to pretend you were some high-ranking devil, like Vanir or Maxwell, making a speech to hordes of weak, pitiful devils.
"That's right; Tranquility Girls!" she shouted. Everyone scowled, barely repressing hisses of anger.
"They entice adventurers, get them to stop approaching our shop, and consume their bodies once they've died of malnutrition! We can't take them on – we are too physically weak – and despite the money we've put up for their extermination, no one has been able to kill any," she said, muttering the last part. No one here held any sympathy for them.
They killed humans that were weak enough to fall to their charms, humans that they would have an easy time extracting money and emotion out of.
"Until today! Today, not only was the Tranquility Princess finally exterminated, but nine others with her! Tonight, we celebrate their destruction!"
A cheer went up, but no one drank. Receptionist Succubus wasn't yet done.
For effect, Loli Succubus stood. "Who do we have to thank?"
Everyone turned to Loli Succubus, deep in thought. Receptionist Succubus sighed. "We haven't yet determined that. Despite asking people in the guild, we only learned a few things." All were quiet, waiting to absorb this information.
"One: it was a pair of adventurers, but nearly everyone agreed that one probably pushed the other into it. Two: one is thought to be a noble, since they're very powerful and have blonde hair. And Three: both were women."
At the second pronouncement, everyone's spirits wilted, but at the last one, everyone became visibly saddened. Finding them would be hard, and paying them back would be even harder.
They did, after all, want to thank whoever it was; those quests were technically contracts, and the fine print at the bottom did say they were entitled to further compensation from the people at this building.
It was hoped that male adventurers would see the writing, realize who was offering the quest, and take off to do their bidding.
That two females had been able to complete the quest was odd – none of them thought that they were capable of that sort of thing – but they didn't really care. They did need to complete the contract.
Silence reigned, until Loli Succubus spoke once more. "How do we find them?"
No one seemed to know. Even Receptionist Succubus seemed troubled.
"Well," she began, playing with a strand of her hair, "we could try to ask our customers about blonde-haired adventurers; there can't be many of them, right? We'll be able to find the Tranquility Destroyer that way."
Everyone made sounds of agreement, and then began to throw themselves into their alcohol, forgetting about their troubles. Even Loli Succubus, who looked like she was too young to know what the word 'inebriated' meant and who was centuries older than any human, was having some.
They were enjoying themselves, intent on worrying about and figuring out the identity of their benefactor at a later date; for now, they would drink!
"Three cheers for the Tranquility Destroyer!"
They partied long into the night.
-OxOxO-
Blazing eyes surveyed the brightly lit room, and an aging body, tired from fighting long past its prime, tried to act as regally as it could when there were possible enemies all around it.
Oh, Hans, Sylvia, and Vanir had all sworn allegiance, but he was getting very old for a Demon King. He didn't really fault the first two for testing plans to try and usurp him.
It was only natural for those that saw him as weak to try and become the most powerful, but without him at the helm, he was sure things would collapse. He was the only one who knew why this fucking war had been started in the first place.
Or he was the only one who cared, anyway.
While he would love to retire and let his daughter lead, she hadn't yet consolidated power. He had to wait for that, at least.
Suddenly, one of the doors at the far end of the room burst open, and two things walked in. Calling them people, despite their looks, would be folly.
One appeared to be a rather normal looking man. Not overly normal that some people would be disgruntled by it – he was nearing six foot, and his blonde hair drifted passed his shoulders, which was odd for a man – but normal enough that people wouldn't be able to describe him as either ugly or handsome.
Of course, this was by design.
Everything from his perfectly tailored black clothing with golden highlights to the very shallow cut on one of his cheeks, where one might cut oneself with a shaving razor, was manufactured, for standing before him was Ragcraft, the leader of their intelligence division and a Doppelganger of the highest order.
Next to him stood Vanir. Clad in a dark suit and a bright yellow tie, he looked like the perfect gentleman, besides the odd, black and white mask that was divided down the middle. While unassuming, these two were some of the best people in his entire army.
Vanir sat down opposite of him, across the long table that could seat ten beings – his generals, himself, and the 'retired' General that Wiz had taken the place of.
Of course, that NEET hadn't actually ever shown up to a meeting after his place had been taken by Wiz, so they just used it for guests.
All of the seats were not filled.
Wiz was in Axel, maintaining the barrier and losing him money. Celestina was retraining herself, since she had gotten that power boost, presumably because her Goddess had been released or, more depressingly, the number of her followers in the world had gone down. Wolbach was still searching for her other half, and Verdia was in Axel, currently keeping watch for a specific Reincarnate.
Not that the others in the room knew about the Reincarnates' actual origins. Only Verdia knew that they were more than people from a faraway land blessed by the Gods to fight him and his forces.
The two of them called the Reincarnates 'Hero Candidates' like everyone else, but they knew what they really were.
Instead of ten, only six chairs were filled. Hans, Sylvia, and Vanir on one end, and him, his daughter, and Ragcraft on the other. He'd called this meeting due to the new threat.
Of course, Hans had an objection. "Hey, when are you gonna get more people? I'm getting kinda hungry, and-"
"Silence."
He didn't often demand they be quiet – he needed them to be happy so they'd take orders, and he couldn't afford to easily kill subordinates as good as these.
However, he was angry.
"All I ask is that you serve me. Not even well. I just need you to follow orders if I give them, and in return, I try and help you achieve whatever desires you have, since you couldn't care less about my cause," he spat out.
The two at the end of the table attempted to act above his words, but his personality had only gotten more forceful as he aged, unlike his power.
"Sylvia. The Chimera. You finished your modifications to your body ages ago," he began. The man – because no matter how feminine his face was or how beautiful his tits were, she had a penis and thought of himself as a man – tried smirking. That smirk rapidly faded at his next pronouncement.
"Now, instead of leading my forces, you sexually harass whichever minions don't know about your modifications, which is far too many because you two," he continued, pointing at both Hans and Vanir, "ensure I have to replace them constantly."
Neither looked particularly upset, especially Vanir, but he let his annoyance be known.
He first addressed Vanir. "In battle, you do nothing but get our force's hopes up with pronouncements of victory and then feast on their disappointment when a Hero Candidate – or ten – shows up. Then you actually help out, fighting the adventurers and feasting on their shame and disappointment. Then you abscond from the fight, leaving both sides to go home with few casualties and you to come back more well-rested than anyone fighting a war has ANY right to be."
"Then you come in here, feasting on my guards' emotions," he finished. Vanir still didn't look upset, and the Demon King didn't care.
Hans snickered, and he glared at the Toxic Mutant Slime. He might look like a man now, but the sheen of purple sweat showed what he really was. "You're no better. You eat. I understand that you're a Slime, but if you want food, go out and get some of it from whichever battle we're fighting in instead of using my guards as fucking toothpicks!"
Hans seemed to have melted into his seat a bit, but he raised a hand anyway. The Demon King grit his teeth. "I know Slimes don't have teeth; it's a metaphor, you fucking dipshit."
He let his words sink in, and then he sighed. "Those not with us are trying to amass power, at least. And Ragcraft."
He turned to their guest. While not a Demon General – he was too weak, physically and magically – he was the leader of their intelligence division.
The Demon King's tone became honestly mournful. "I apologize for ruining your thirty-year plan. You've been so deep undercover, and to force you to fake your death to carry out another plan is in bad taste."
The Doppelganger, who had been shifting his form idly, settled on the intimidating, expressionless, pitch-black human silhouette. A slightly nervous voice echoed from it. "Of course, my Demon King! It's no problem. We live to serve you, after all…"
"Yes…" he trailed off, eyes narrowed at the nervousness present in his tone. Then Vanir stood, and Ragcraft sunk into his chair.
"Moi would like to inform the enfeebled and slightly insane Demon King that what the idiotic Doppelganger said is not the whole truth!" he shouted, smirking happily.
A weak, pleading, "Vanir…" was emitted from Ragcraft, but the Duke of Hell carried on.
"The one known as Ragcraft the Prime Minister of the nation of Elroad forgot his original purpose! So entranced was he by his position and his wealth and the splendor he brought to 'his' nation, that he forgot that he was sent to destroy Belzerg's chief economic supporter!"
The Demon King looked at Ragcraft, who had taken the form of a mouse and was trying to burrow into his seat. It wasn't hiding them from his shame.
"That's right! And what Ragcraft learned from his experience, was that if he had not become a part of their government, their monarchy would have already gone bankrupt long ago and been unable to support Belzerg anyway!"
The Demon King fought down the disappointment he felt towards his underling – that was what that Duke of Hell wanted – and took a deep breath. He counted to ten. He tried to do a bit of math.
Still, excess energy, created through his emotions, leaked out. The others were too distracted with their amusement to notice.
He finally calmed down, and when he looked up again, Vanir was rolling on the ground, pointing and laughing at Ragcraft. Sylvia and Hans were trying to hide their own amusement, but it was pretty obvious they wanted to join Vanir in rolling on the floor.
"Fine," the Demon King muttered, trying to figure out just how he would salvage this. His daughter, seated to his right, touched his arm, and the last of the anger drained out of him.
"Fine. Everything's… fine. You aren't there anymore, and Belzerg was implicated in your assassination. They'll be distracted by that, and we can begin a few plans early. I have orders, and you all will follow them," he bit out angrily. Sylvia and Hans straightened immediately, while Vanir and Ragcraft took a moment to adjust themselves.
"Hans. The Axis Cult is poised to fall, with nearly all of their resources committed to one city?" he asked rhetorically. Hans nodded slowly, but the Demon King didn't shirk his duties and had read the slime's reports over the years. He already knew this fact well.
"You'll travel for two months and destroy their main resource. Remember the promise we made to Wiz, or I'll personally teleport her to you so she can kill you," he said, ending with a glare and a warning.
They wouldn't harm any non-combatants and get torn to shreds by an undead, no matter how much easier it would be to finish the kingdom off if they could just massacre a few towns and turn their inhabitants into their own soldiers.
"Sylvia. You're on the front line duty. We need them distracted while Verdia does his best in Axel, and Vanir is too unreliable." Said Demon didn't seem to take any offense, but the Demon King didn't expect him to. He was older than nearly anyone, and it took quite a bit more to get under his skin.
"Daughter. You're going to continue training and consolidating." She nodded, and what went unsaid was that she would be trying to win Hans and Sylvia's supporters over to her side. With them absent, she should be able to win over some of the more indecisive among those plotting his death.
"Vanir. You have another month, and then the majority of our contract will be finished." Vanir gave him one of those smiles that he knew meant he was completely satisfied, which wasn't good, since Vanir's satisfaction usually meant he was getting fed some disappointment eventually.
Soon, Vanir would be gone from the castle, the residence and fighting portions of the contract finally done. He provided a very important piece in balancing his forces and the forces of that foolish king. And, with most of the contract done, Vanir would be obligated to help him recruit more demons and continue maintaining the barrier.
He felt very foolish for being made a mockery of in his own castle, but it was almost over.
Foolish… King…
The Demon King grit his teeth and snarled. That damnable pawn! His opposite in Belzerg might have been old, but he was nothing but a battle maniac, too jumped up on adrenaline to care that the people and powers around him were using him.
He sighed angrily, and dismissed everyone besides Ragcraft. All of them left without a word.
Ragcraft was still slumped in his seat, but the Demon King didn't care. He sighed and spoke slowly. "Ragcraft. Make sure your intelligence gathering apparatuses are up to date, and then you'll be meeting up with Verdia for some special work."
Suddenly, Vanir burst into the room again. "Moi would like you to know that the Doppelganger has already checked his minions in Belzerg on a vacation he took when he remembered he was your minion, using it as an excuse to take a break from thirty years of dealing with royalty."
The Demon King shook his head, once more trying to convert his disappointment into something else, since the Duke of Hell wouldn't get any pleasure out of anything but shame and disappointment.
"Whatever," he snarled, settling on feeling angry. "Go join up with Verdia, and begin building a network in Axel. The Kingdom's source of new adventurers and Hero Candidates is a target we want to be informed about, no matter how weak they might seem."
Ragcraft nodded helplessly, and with room empty, the Demon King sighed. Usually, the room would have soldiers in it, but Vanir and Hans and Sylvia scared his forces. They all tried their best to stay away if they could.
He grumbled to himself. There was no one that had more troublesome companions than him. None of them got along, they bickered with him and each other constantly, and they were almost not worth the effort.
And, if there was someone with a more annoying, grating, expensive group of idiots around them, then he genuinely prayed for their health. They must be on the verge of death with friends worse than his generals.
-OxOxO-
Darkness sighed, once more disliking her noble heritage.
Oh, it had its uses; if she hadn't inherited her mother's magical resistances, she was sure that Tanya's spells would have killed her during the Eris Thanksgiving Festival, and she would never have been able to deal with the punishment she took from monsters.
Her father's insistence that she get married was grating, however; she liked punishment, and her father knew this fact.
Instead of settling on punishments she would like, he got creative. This time, she'd been told by her father to sift through piles of birth registries if she wanted to find Tanya's family.
That hadn't been enjoyable in the least.
It was, however, very effective, since her father was getting closer to just ordering her to sit down for a meeting with some nobles son. Maybe even Alderp's.
She shuddered at the thought, and made her way through Axel even faster. Some adventuring would be calming, and then she could try to help her father with the latest crisis: the appearance of some sort of Archpriest.
A massive Heal had been used four nights ago, and while no one knew who had used it, the effects were far reaching. It had managed to cure the wounds of people in a mile radius from it.
If the Priest had come forward, or if the churches didn't have a monopoly over who their adherents were healed by, there wouldn't have been a problem.
However, no one had come forward and the churches did have a monopoly, which meant both the Eris cultist and the very small number of Axis cultists present had decried the other, spouting that the other was overstepping their boundaries and that they should be punished. Hopefully, a few hours adventuring would take her mind off things.
Finally, she burst into the guild, and made her way to the table Tanya always sat at – right in the center, equidistant from the counter, the kitchen, and the front door. She made to sit down, but she paused.
Chris was standing, staring at the back of Tanya. Darkness couldn't blame her as she walked forward and stood next to the Thief.
Someone was sitting next to Tanya, conversing amiably. Long brown hair that drifted halfway down her back and clothed in a green jacket, her tone suggested she was happy. Darkness wasn't sure if she was, because the words flowing out of both of their mouths were utterly incomprehensible to her.
She looked at Chris, who didn't react to Darkness's added presence. Sighing, she tapped Tanya on the back warily. Tanya turned around, stopping her conversation.
She looked annoyed, for a moment, and then she loudly exclaimed, "Oh, Darkness and Chris! I kinda forgot you two existed. Come sit down, I can introduce you!"
Darkness moaned a bit, getting a rather alarmed look from the new addition. Tanya spoke more rapid-fire nonsense at her, until the woman gave a Darkness a look that spoke equally of confusion and judgement. Darkness sat down, soon followed by a golem-like Chris.
"Darkness, Chris, allow me to introduce you to my…" she trailed off, apparently confused about how to introduce her. She introduced herself. "I'm Viktoriya Serebryakov. I'm her friend."
Darkness shook the woman's hand. "I am Darkness, Crusader of the Eris cult," she provided simply. She was thinking too much for any superfluous introductions.
She was trying to figure out how this woman played into Tanya's history. She was older than Darkness was – maybe in her early twenties. Was she some sort of trainer or protector? Someone who had taught Tanya?
Chris also shook Viktoriya's hand, providing even less than Darkness had. "Chris. Thief."
Tanya, about to talk more, was cut off by the sound of a bell echoing through Axel. She stood. "Sorry you two, but we've got places to be. I've been showing the ropes to Viktoriya for a few days, so we're going to take a break. Have fun!"
Without another word, the two left. Darkness felt incredibly lonely, for a moment, before shaking her head. It was fine.
With Chris there, Darkness could still get some experience. Even if she wouldn't get scolded for being pathetic by Tanya in the process.
Chris stood, ignorant of her surroundings and of Darkness, and Darkness let out a small whimper at the thought of being cruelly abandoned. Chris turned to her, about to say something.
Then, she thought better of it. Maybe Darkness could help?
"Say Darkness? Isn't it sort of suspicious that Tanya suddenly has a new friend?" she asked. Darkness nodded slowly. Chris smiled, but then frowned as Darkness began to speak.
"Well, I guess… but we really don't know everything about her, right? It's not like we've been adventuring together for years. I'm sure she has her secrets. Let's just go on a quest."
Chris scowled. Even if she didn't exactly like it, she couldn't take down tons of money from Heaven, and she did need to earn more. With Darkness, however, she wouldn't need to worry about being kicked out for loitering; no one would dare touch her with how much money the noble had.
She smirked. "I've got a better idea. Want to hear it?"
Darkness nodded hesitantly, and Chris began to talk. She didn't have access to the millions of languages she could usually access when she was in Heaven, but neither of them had been speaking this world's language. That meant a Reincarnate had come to her side, instead of only being deprived of their relic. She needed to figure out what had happened.
-OxOxO-
Both women tried their best to be unseen. However, Darkness was very recognizable.
Chris did her best to change that – armor was stashed at the guild, and her long hair was put in a bun. Her Lurk skill made most of that moot, but an emergency wasn't out of the question.
Unseen, they stuck close to walls, attempting to follow the pair.
Chris scowled as they trailed behind. Axel wasn't as populous as many other cities, but it was nearing midday and people were beginning to do their daily tasks. Going to market and selling what they'd made, or trying to get passing adventurers to buy their supplies. It wasn't easy.
They managed to keep travelling, ducking and dodging, and attempting to keep sight of them. Tanya had thrown up her hood, but the woman with her – Viktoriya – was tall.
They followed, followed, and eventually found their way to what appeared to be Tanya's place of work.
She claimed to have worked for a Blacksmith, and Darkness had claimed to see some of her work. Chris thought it was rather obvious; she was nothing without her modern weapons, and believing The Atheist would adopt the ideas of her situation was a bit naïve, seeing as she was still denying her actual gender.
They didn't dare go in; that place didn't look big enough to remain unseen for long, even with Lurk. Despite the warnings Chris had given on the way there, Darkness still attempted to make small talk.
"Who do you think she is, Chris? She must have to do with her past, if they can both speak whatever that language is," the Crusader mused. Chris shrugged, trying to ignore her; she was trying to think on just how this had happened.
Soon enough the pair came out again. Only this time, both were sporting upgraded equipment.
Now, both of them had pistols strapped to their waists and rifles slung across their backs. Chris searched her mind furiously. What Japanese reincarnate looked like that and could use weapons? Some sort of foreigner?
"Did she teach her how to use those?" Darkness suggested. Chris froze. No, they couldn't have taught each other, even if-
Chris gasped. Could they have served together? In that war?
Oh no. Chris turned white as her thoughts began to spiral downwards. Now she had two relics and one of her sycophantic subordinates? This was bad.
"Chris? Hey Chris? Do you… what's wrong!" she said, getting louder and louder. Chris shook her head.
She could have a mental breakdown once she was back in Heaven and had taken a closer look at those papers Aqua had so flippantly signed.
They were off again, and Chris worked to shut out Darkness's questions about what she was scared of. Winding through streets and pedestrians trying to keep up, Chris was still trying not to panic, and she was able to manage that much.
She cursed herself under her breath. Why could she only manage? She was a Goddess; why hadn't they beaten this maniac already?
Finally, they caught up again. Now, they were stalking down an alley in one of the dingier parts of Axel. Chris smirked. Whatever dirty dealings they had with a shop down here would turn Darkness to her side, at least. The pair stopped at a shop, and Darkness and Chris jumped behind a pile of trash.
Trying to ignore Darkness's cries of pleasure as she was pecked by Crows, Chris looked through the open door, at the two people inside talking to someone else. She seemed to be the shop owner, seeing as she was standing behind the counter.
They were talking with the owner of the shop. Animated discussion was taking place, and it seemed that they were learning some sort of skill from her.
Or, at least The Atheist's lackey was. A gust of cold air blew the door shut, and Chris swore.
She turned around, and shooed the Crows away. "Stop messing around, Darkness. This is serious."
Darkness, seemingly put out for some reason, stood from the ground. "I don't get it. Why are you so scared? Is that woman dangerous to Tanya?"
Chris's eye twitched, and she was tempted to say something she'd probably regret. Then an idea came to her.
She nodded slowly. "I know of that language they were speaking. It's a harsh language used by a warmongering nation in a faraway land. They're even more militant than Belzerg."
Darkness's eyes widened.
That was a shocking statement, since Belzerg was… quite militant. Their royalty were referred to as 'Barbarian brutes' by their detractors in the surrounding nations, and for a nation to somehow be even more militant was…
Darkness nodded, and Chris thanked the Crusader for being so curious about her party leader's history. She cleared her throat, wondering how to word this.
Driving away support from The Atheist was the best she could do, since Chris couldn't exactly come down and do battle with the girl. Heaven needed all the mana it could get.
Slowly, she began to speak. "I think that that person might have tricked Tanya, somehow. She's obviously much older than her, but Tanya acts as if she's her leader, with how she's catering to her desires to show her around. That's awfully suspicious. It's entirely possible that this Serebryakov is trying to use Tanya."
Darkness's eyes widened, and Chris only felt a bit sorry for using the Crusader's suspicions that Tanya was a noble against her.
She shook her head. Chris was her Goddess, after all… it was only right.
"Then… what should we do? Tanya doesn't strike me as someone who's easily tricked, so she must be powerful. And if the rumors that they killed ten Tranquility Girls are true, then she might have pushed Tanya into doing something that cruel…"
Chris just nodded along. This was perfect! Darkness would help her drive a wedge between the two, and then Tanya would spurn Darkness for trying to do so.
Her faithful Crusader would be saved from their influences, and The Atheist would get deprived of help.
Both waited, staring at the shop. Another fifteen minutes passed, during which Chris had to 'save' Darkness from the Crows more than once. Then the pair came out again. Viktoriya seemed to be pocketing her Adventurer's Card, while Tanya was skipping. Both watched, concealed with Lurk.
"Skipping? She definitely did something to Tanya. She's never that carefree."
Quietly, both continued to follow after them, but nothing else seemed to happen. They visited a restaurant, had lunch, and then just… walked around, conversing in that language of theirs.
Soon, Chris and Darkness stopped, ducking down an alleyway. Chris wasn't weak, but keeping up Lurk for hours at a time was not exactly easy work. They rested in the shade, thankful that the sun had begun to dip down in the sky.
Soon enough, Chris was rested. The pair stood from where they had been sitting, making their way through the streets and asking people if they'd seen two people with odd staffs walking about. They caught up to them just in time.
People were shouting. Whether they were shouting to run, or for the police, Chris wasn't sure which was more prevalent. It seemed that someone had made trouble.
In the middle of the street, it seemed they were surrounded. Six people, four male and two female, were staring at them angrily. Serebryakov seemed wary, but The Atheist hadn't even taken up her gun.
"What do you all want?"
All of them had black hair and dark eyes. Most of them were sporting regular clothing, but some hadn't yet given up the clothing that marked them as being from Japan. All of them were holding weapons – a spear, a wand, a staff, a pair of knives, a sword, a bow.
Chris was confused. They were alive?
She scowled. How had she taken their weapons from them, then?
She shook her head. She really needed to begin looking through some of those files. Maybe The Atheist had some sort of power that could do that? She didn't know.
Regardless, she needed to begin acting. Maybe she should try and diffuse the situation-
"You can probably guess, Degurechaff! You took our weapons and got us stuck in this backwater instead of going to the capital like all the others! You're going to pay for that!"
Then they all readied their weapons. "Did the other…" she trailed off, counting off her fingers. "…Three people not think you could do it?" she asked, apparently unfazed.
Their leader, the one with a pair of knives, growled. "No. Those cowards don't think we can take you. They're scared of your weapons, but we know the truth."
Tanya readied her mana, and Viktoriya did the same, both ready to respond in an instant. Darkness made to jump out from the small crowd that had surrounded them, but Chris held her off with an arm. "If we let them attack, we might figure out how Serebryakov is controlling Tanya. Patience."
Darkness shook her off. "No. I'm not convinced that Viktoriya is doing something. We should stop this before things become dangerous."
The leader continued to monologue, drawing all of their attentions. "The truth is, that for all of your power, you're a pathetic fool! You've relied far too much on your technology, when we have magic at our fingertips!"
With that, the two mages – the ones with a wand and a staff – began chanting. Tanya almost just put up an Active Barrier, interested in what the weaklings thought they could do, but she wouldn't allow herself to be caught off guard just because she was curious.
Maybe she'd extract information later. For now, it was time to fight.
"Engage!" Tanya shouted. As one, the pair of women jetted off, moving faster than either Chris, Darkness, or the crowd could follow.
The effects of their movement were much more obvious than their movements.
Both the mages doubled over, holding their stomachs. The leader, blades in hand, rushed towards the repositioned Tanya, as did the one holding a short-sword in her right hand. The apparent Ranger held back, while the one with a spear moved towards Viktoriya.
Darkness moved forward, breaking through the crowd, and Chris followed, scowling all the while. She needed to keep up the illusion that she was Degurechaff's ally, for now.
It appeared neither were needed. From the time they'd pulled their eyes from the pair to focus on getting through the crowd, both had already begun fighting physically.
Tanya ducked a frenzied blow from the one with the sword, pulling her rifle from her back. She jumped back from the pair, hanging in the air for longer than normal thanks to the barest hints of a Flight spell. All three of her opponents scowled at her, and Tanya smirked right back.
Above all else, this was a good stress test for their new equipment. Not the guns; Tanya had already tested those.
No, a pair of Type 97s, hanging from both of their necks, were the real reasons they hadn't just run away and let the police handle them.
It had taken her a few days, but with the Type 95 and a few more points into Smith, it wasn't extremely difficult. Both had one in the past, and the Type 97s were made using the Type 95 as a template anyway.
However, Tanya wouldn't have been able to make it without Viktoriya's help. Her skill had been the ability to gain an intrinsic understanding of weapons, armor, or anything that could be considered an 'item.'
Upon her arrival, she had immediately used that skill to learn the inner workings of the Type 97s. She was probably nearly as good as Schugel had been, and Tanya had been immensely thankful.
Regardless of their new equipment, these attackers weren't stupid; or rather, they weren't in their preparations.
They were stupid to try and fight her.
The probable-Warrior and the probable-Thief closed in on her, while the ranger nocked an arrow on his bow. Tanya, finally having landed, shouted, "Active Barrier!" and waited.
They came forward, striking her shield, and doing nothing to it. Arrows, knives, and swords; nothing was really doing damage. They were draining mana, of course, but Tanya didn't much care. She needed to demoralize them, since it would be annoying if they kept attacking her.
Besides, the Type 97 made it so that she didn't have to do nearly anything to simply stand there and revel in how much more efficient her spells were.
Slowly, the hits let up, and they just stared at her shield, unnerved. "Damn you! Let's get out of here, before the police get here!" the Ranger shouted. The other two seemed to think it as a good idea, but Tanya quickly burst that bubble.
She aimed her rifle, and shot each person in the leg. They were only twenty meters away, so she was sure that the wounds hadn't hit any bone and had gone clean through.
Their screams reminded her that they definitely still hurt, though.
Tanya looked to Viktoriya and her opponent. His leg was encased in ice, and Tanya sighed appreciatively. Learning a bit of this world's magic wasn't bad, and Viktoriya had expressed an interest.
Tanya was just happy Wiz had been nice enough to teach her 'Freeze' and 'Freeze Gust'.
She had also confirmed the existence of a gender-swapping item, after phrasing an interest in the limits of magical items and referencing the Shapeshifting 'Hero Candidate' that had tried to kill her.
Portions of the crowd began to move, and police started to close in. Tanya cursed; as much as she'd like them behind bars, she was sure they'd reveal some things she really didn't want known.
Blindly, she cast 'Heal' on all three of the people she'd shot, and dragged the two mages who had just started to recover towards them. Viktoriya dragged the one encased in ice over, and all eight of them presented themselves to the rapidly assembling police.
"Gerrard!" Tanya cried amiably. The thinly-mustached man smiled weakly as Tanya walked towards him, shaking his hand.
They hadn't met since their last interaction, and he was glad for it. He just wanted to be the Head of Police in a relatively quiet town; dealing with nobles was not his idea of a good time.
"Miss Degurechaff. I suppose you can tell me what's going on?" he asked hesitantly.
Tanya beamed at him. "Of course! These adventurers are all upset about a… trade they had with me in the past. They decided that they wanted to try and take their revenge, but I and my friend Viktoriya were able to handle them."
Gerrard looked at the group. All six likely had dark eyes, in addition to their dark hair, but he couldn't tell, since all of them were staring at the ground mutely.
He didn't like where this was going. "Well… what would you like me to do with them?" he asked. He was praying to Eris that she wouldn't ask them to be executed.
"Oh, I don't want you to do anything. Let me and the guild handle this one. Those are within the rules, right?"
Gerrard gulped as he looked down at the noble. Well, it wasn't horrible…
Unless she meant she was going to do something like have them fight in the fighting pits that wealthier nobles were rumored to have, never to be seen by the outside world again. Then it would be decidedly less not-horrible.
One of the kneeling adventurers shouted, and the others followed suit, attempting to decry Tanya.
"She's pure evil!"
"She's lying!"
"She killed ten Tranquility Girls!"
He blinked at the last accusation, and then he suppressed a gasp of surprise.
Nearly frozen, he looked down at Tanya, a question shining in his eyes. She shrugged. "I killed three, Viktoriya killed seven. They're a public menace anyway."
Gerrard gulped, mind suddenly focused on a building far away from his current location and situation. "You can do what you wish with them. You've proven yourself to be a capable adult, so I think you can handle them. Just don't be too rough."
Tanya spoke to him. "Oh, I'm not going to hurt them. I don't want them to attack me, so-"
A cloud of dust interrupted her.
Tanya looked around, and realized that a large portion of the crowd had disappeared suddenly. Tanya shrugged; she got what she wanted. She turned to the six people – prisoners might be a better word to describe them, but she wasn't going to be keeping them like this for long.
Tanya picked up their weapons, and began to walk. "All of you, come on," she ordered. They began to march towards the guild, all six of them glaring daggers at Tanya and the mystery woman at her side.
"We'll just make a run for it; you can't catch all of us…" muttered the man who had held a spear. The other five seemed to think it was a good idea, so Tanya stopped, fixing them all with a dangerous glare.
They were subdued by that, for the most part. Tanya hadn't healed up the legs of the people she'd shot entirely, and sprinting would likely tear their wounds open again.
She looked at the two that had been damaged the least; the Mages.
One – a short girl who had decided to adopt the stereotypical attire one often imagined mages wore – was sniveling. The other – a tall man who was still wearing a t-shirt – was stone faced. She looked back to the girl. Tanya would try her first.
"What was your plan? It's obvious that you were going to try some sort of magic. If you two teach it to us, we'll let you go, no further punishment needed."
The girl perked up, but the tall, stone-faced male was the first to speak. "It's a deal."
The other five looked at him, betrayed, but he shook his head. "I spent two weeks saving up for that staff; I'm not gonna risk losing it. Come on, Shizuka. We need to live to fight another day."
"Rin…" she trailed off, looking at the others. They were glaring at the two, but the girl caved to her fellow mage. "We… we were going to use paralyze on you two. After that, the others said they'd take your money and weapons…"
Tanya nodded slowly. "Alright. Teach us the skill and you're free to go."
Rin smirked, and Tanya, hands full with their weapons, said, "Viktoriya, aim." She did so without question, and the group jumped backwards.
"Not here. We'll be going down this alley." They moved, a group of eight varyingly dressed people filling into a dark alley. Some of the pedestrians thought it was somewhat comical, but the shock of blonde hair, not hidden by a hood, told them it was noble business.
They ignored them.
Tanya handed the girls wand back to her. "Use it on your friends. If you turn on us, you can be sure to get a bullet in the leg for your trouble," Tanya said. The girl whimpered, but she took her wand and leveled it at the group of four.
They were protesting, but the blade of her gun weighed more heavily on her mind than their pleas.
"Paralyze!"
Their movements stopped, all of them frozen. Only their mouths could move, and they were all cursing Tanya, who shook her head. Of course they would blame her when it was their own fault they were in this situation.
"Alright. You two can go," she said, handing the man his staff back. Both Mages, conflicted about what they had done, quickly left, avoiding the gazes and remarks of their friends.
Tanya, meanwhile, looked at the rest. All of them squabbling among each other about who was to blame for their failure, since their plan was obviously foolproof. It seemed they had reached the consensus that their Mages were to blame.
Tanya shook her head. "I could do whatever I wanted with you all."
With her declaration, their squabbling ceased. She took the respite to illustrate the possibilities.
"I could shoot all of you and Heal you. I could take all of your clothing, weapons, and money, and then I could leave all of you in this alley. Or I could have let the police have you."
All of them were silently staring at her. "I told each and every one of you that your lives were built on the fact that as long as you weren't threats to me, you could do whatever you wanted."
Tanya muttered, "I knew I shouldn't have let people who wanted to murder me go free…"
One of them spoke up. Their probably-a-thief leader. "Not all of us wanted to kill you."
Tanya froze, and then fixed him with a glare. "Explain."
He looked entirely uncomfortable, but he continued to talk. "You just assumed that we'd take up arms against you, but we didn't have to-"
Tanya cut him off. "The possibility was still there, and I can't take the time to get to know you all. One of you come in every week, and I don't have the time to make friends with all of you and kill the Demon King."
Tanya shook her head, dropping their weapons in disgust. "We're done here. I'll let you live. You all are young, and-"
The other female – their warrior – interjected. "We're older than you are, loli."
Twitch.
"She really does have an ahoge."
She shook her head, staving off her anger for a moment. "Idiots. I've been reincarnated before, so despite my appearance, I'm closer in age to fifty than five."
All of them looked rather shocked, except for the man who had had the spear, who looked… intrigued. Tanya quickly realized why he might feel that way, and fought down the urge to end him for thinking things like that about her.
She sighed tiredly. They had tested their Type 97s, and they had gotten an extra spell out of it. Tanya and Viktoriya better things to do that to lecture lackluster losers. "Whatever. Next time I'll steal your stuff. You all really need to learn not to mess with someone stronger than you."
Tanya walked off, turning her back towards them and heading towards the guild. Viktoriya followed, and the four people, trapped in an alley, were left to think for the few minutes that the Paralyze spell would last.
-OxOxO-
He was sprinting, attempting to push his body harder than the four younger men he'd brought with him and a number of other male adventurers that had heard her words. All of them were heading towards one place.
Last night, the Succubus had said they weren't doing any dreams, full stop. Nothing for anyone. After everyone at the staff meeting the police were having mentally acknowledged that everyone else there hadn't reported the Succubus, including himself, they had asked the girl why.
She'd said something about celebrating the death of the Tranquility Girls, but he hadn't cared about that. He was much more interested in their description of the one they wished to thank.
They had claimed that the slayer was blonde, worked with another female, and was probably a noble. Everyone in that room had thanked the Succubus for the information and thought the same thing:
Degurechaff.
She worked with that heir of the Dustiness family and she was almost definitely a noble, even if no one had found her name in the registry.
Before leaving, the Succubus had promised them, if they could find the person, free dreams for three months. Straight.
And Degurechaff was that person.
And so, they were fighting to get to the shop. The small, unassuming shop where dreams were made.
It wasn't like Gerrard didn't dislike himself for breaking the law partaking in their wiles, but he was a man with urges that he couldn't resist forever.
His wife of nearly thirty years had been dead for five, and with their help, it was almost like she wasn't gone.
In the dreams, he didn't even always have sex with his wife; sometimes, he just talked with her, desperate to have even a piece of her back.
Three months, free of charge, was more than very tantalizing.
He was lagging behind, gulping in heavy, frantic breaths. Gerrard cursed. He looked to the adventurers that were pulling ahead, fighting against the more able men he'd brought with him, and saw that they were pushing down pedestrians and carts in an attempt to slow each other down.
An idea came to him, and Gerrard smirked.
"Hale, Michael, Fischer, Gabriel; as the Head of Axel's Police Department, I order you to stop the adventurers who are causing property damage," he panted out.
All four men paused their running, for a moment, but continued to sprint forward, uncaring of his orders. "Sir, we're sorry, but we won't!"
He continued smirking despite the pain in his lungs. "If you don't do it, I'll be assigning you to night duty for six months. With oversight from the female policewomen!"
The implication was obvious: if you got the reward, you wouldn't be able to enjoy it, and wouldn't get to make usage of the shop for another three months. The female policewomen were also very hardworking and wouldn't allow them to slack off.
All four paused again, and then began to shout as they tackled adventurers to the ground.
"Goddamn it!"
"I'll get you for this, Gerrard!"
"You better enjoy yourself, you bastard!"
"FUUUUUUCCCCK!"
He pulled ahead of them, panting for a different reason now. Free dreams for three months!
The idea tantalized him, and he continued to push forward. Just a few more buildings, and then…
It came into sight, and began to walk more slowly, assured of his victory. He reached the door, and reached out a hand to turn the doorknob.
He paused as his hand touched another. Blankly, he turned his head to his right, and stared right into red eyes and blond hair.
"Why hello, Mr. Police Chief! Fancy seeing you here."
It was Dust.
Judging from his tone, the color of his cheeks, and the way he was talking to him as if Gerrard didn't despise Dust for abusing their kindness by using their prison as a free inn, he was drunk. Very drunk, if he was judging the stink of vodka correctly.
Gerrard was still wearing his uniform, giving up all pretense that he was just another citizen making use of the Succubi. He grit his teeth, and gave an angry smile to Dust. "Hello Dust. If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to."
He attempted to remove Dust's hadn't from the doorknob, but it stayed firmly in place. He looked back up, to see Dust's smug, smirking, satisfied face. "Now, now, old man. We can… can negotiate. I'll let you take their prize, as long as I can use the police station as my personal inn for the next year."
He weighed his options in his mind. A year of having to put up with Dust for three months of dreaming of his wife and having sex with her.
"And don't threaten me with an extended jail stay; I'm giving T- Tanya lessons, and she'll be very, very upset if I can't attend them anymore," he claimed.
Gerrard doubted it – what this petty criminal could possibly teach Tanya, he hadn't the faintest idea of – but even the threat of a noble wasn't something one took lightly.
He glared at Dust, and let out a single bark of laughter. "Cunning, Dust. Real cunning. But you forget: the police of Axel don't deal with criminals!"
With that, the figure of a small, aging, only slightly emancipated man, with tanned skin, small, shrewd eyes, and a thinning, graying mustache, burst through the window of the door, sending glass across the interior of the room and ruining his uniform.
Uncaring of the incredulous Dust – "He's dealing with Succubi; of course the police of Axel deal with criminals" – Gerrard shouted at the top of his lungs to the crowd of shocked customers, surprised at seeing the chief of police in an illicit shop.
"It's Tanya! Tanya von Degurechaff is the Tranquility Destroyer!"
-OxOxO-
They all sat around a table in one of the more secluded corners of the guild. They had banded together loosely, a team of four and a team of five. Earlier that day, they had attempted to extract revenge. But they had nothing to show for it.
"Why did you two help her? She gave us back our weapons anyway, and we wouldn't have been restrained if it weren't for you two," Kei said.
He was, nominally, the leader of the nine of them, and a Thief. He wasn't exactly the best planner, but he was willing to mediate between all of them if it meant he moved closer to getting revenge against The Atheist.
Shizuka was reserved, but Rin tried to make excuses. "I didn't know that! I wasn't losing something I've worked for two weeks to get."
All of them glared, but none of them said anything after that, or, almost nothing.
There were three there that hadn't helped in the assault. One couldn't care less – she'd help if she thought they had a chance, but she didn't think that would be happening, since Tanya had guns. The other two had the gall to defend the loli.
"What did we tell you would happen? Trying to fight her is stupid, and with her experience, we should be working with her," spouted off the tallest among them. He'd given up all of his old clothing for the stuff they had here, despite him being one of the newer recruits.
Kei slammed his fist on their table in the guild. "Why do you insist on defending her, Takashi? She almost killed you-"
Takashi cut him off. "She saved my life by using her own skills. She didn't have to, and could have left me to die. No one would have known, but she decided to save me. And she has helped all of us!"
All six of them who thought she should be punished looked down, while Aya pointed out, "He's right."
Hiroshi, the spearman among them, glared at the woman who thought they shouldn't be involved with Degurechaff at all. "Can it, Aya."
She laughed to herself, and everyone else rolled their eyes. They'd grown used to each other's bickering, and the only thing that really united them was their similar origin and how all of them had been beaten down by The Atheist.
Just as it seemed Shizuka was about to speak, someone cleared their throat. All nine turned towards the noise. They didn't draw their weapons – they were in the guild, and none of them had seen The Atheist come in.
It was someone they didn't recognize – which wasn't just possible, it was likely, since all of them were rather bitter about their experiences and had acted very much like brats to whoever had a good opinion about Tanya.
Tanya, while not a paragon of moral fortitude, did give people free alcohol and was polite. Subsequently, she had acquaintances and drinking buddies, and they had no one.
"Yes. I assume you all are Hero Candidates?" she asked, a confused and hard look in her eyes. All of them were shocked, for a moment. No one had asked them that question, since none of them had an overtly powerful weapon, despite their odd appearance.
Aya spoke first. "We don't have weapons. What'd lead you to that conclusion?" she asked. While the girl wasn't convinced about getting revenge, she was surprisingly protective of them.
The person smiled. "Let me make myself clearer. You all are Reincarnates?"
That really got their attention, and even Aya couldn't speak immediately. This was, apparently, to the silver-haired person's design. She wanted to talk.
"I have a proposition for all of you. It involves getting revenge on The Atheist and the relics she unjustly robbed from you. Would you like to hear me out?"
One by one, the people there agreed to hear her out. Slowly, as the silver-haired thief spoke, matching grins broke out on all their faces, all of them eager to complete her tasks.
Kei the Thief, Rin the Mage, Hiroshi the Spearman, Saki the Warrior, Jin the Ranger, Shizuka the Mage, Aya the Mage, Evan the Priest, and Takashi the Warrior. All of them, despite their misgivings about fighting Tanya, agreed to do so, if they were reunited with their possessions.
Chris smiled as she watched the group of nine rejoice, thankful that she had finally figured out how to best The Atheist.
-OxOxO-
A/N 1: And that's that! Gerrard gets a bit more focus – he's one of my favorite OCs in this story so far – and we meet the almost ten Reincarnates that Tanya probably should have killed. Too bad she didn't realize that Heaven lowered their karma requirements so they'd get more loyal Reincarnates.
Oh well. We also catch up with the Demon King, and I introduce the hilarious idea that Kazuma and Co. do so well because the Demon King genuinely prays for the health of anyone with a worse party than he has.
Anyway… how are you guys liking the pacing? An odd question, compared to the other ones, but I think that the pacing is one of my weaker areas . Do you think things should be different or not?