Deacon

After the new leader of the Branwen Tribe had been announced…

I wasn't for being beneath someone—be it in video games, game boards, duels, or everything, I see them all as competitive. If I don't come out on top then it's not just a game to me anymore. It's one of the few things I hate about myself. If you're not the best, you're cannon fodder. I loathe my weak existence. I despise it. Yet, there's nothing I could do to change that… not at the moment.

I kneel, "S-sir!"

A man named Lu Bu, the new leader of the Branwen tribe…. sat inside the biggest tent in the tribe meant for our previous leader—Raven. Now it is Lu Bu's right to take it as his own. He is our new leader. He has already proven his prowess. His strength. The proof is shown by the corpses of an innumerable amount of idiots who attempted to take the title of leader from under Lu Bu's nose. From sneak attacks to directly challenging him head-on—all met with instantaneous death. Thrown outside in a ditch, to be burned to ashes.

The moment he laid his eyes on me was the moment I felt his intimidating pressure. It reminds me of the first time I met him—petrifying. It took all I had to meet eyes.

Lu Bu leans on his fist as support for his head, wearing a look of absolute boredom. "What…?" He says, raspy and deep.

"We… we have an intruder that is requesting for an audience with you."

It was more of a demand than a request though. The five guards on the lookout at the front entrance were entirely beaten to a pulp, all of them on the brink of death by the time I arrived. The intruder, who easily towered even our new leader in height, wanted to speak to the leader of our tribe or he'd force his way through everyone. I already ordered nearby men to keep an eye on him while I went to speak with Lu Bu. I just hope those buffoons don't get themselves killed because of their pride or get the entire tribe killed. It's the reason why I'm here now.

Lu Bu hums with no emotion present on his face, "Bring him in."

I nod, giving him my respects before heading off to retrieve the intruder. Thankfully, without much of a problem, the intruder came with. Though most of the tribesmen already resent the man, hating his very guts. In response, he shrugs it off.

Entering the leader's tent, I kneel, "Here he is, sir."

I listen to the sound of fabric shuffling beside me. I turn to see that the intruder is also kneeling which was a surprise. I thought he was going to be a cocky prick of a guy, but I guessed wrong. Although… the intruder's respect didn't faze Lu Bu, not one bit. Our leader has one hell of a poker face. I thought.

"I don't mean to cause trouble. Needless death is the last thing I wish for." The intruder says, "Ah- I apologize for being rude, you can call me Hazel."

"Leave." Lu Bu says, nonchalantly.

I did a double-take when I heard his response. It was so straightforward that it made me speechless. Is he angry? I thought. If so, Lu Bu didn't show it. There weren't any signs of aggression or annoyance, or anything like that. Only his usual emotionless husky tone and his intimidating face too, but it practically showed as much emotion as a dead fish. A dead fish with a permanent scowl—that is.

Hazel sneers. Guess that's the end of him. Where's all that confidence coming from, anyway? To sneer at the man who took down Raven has gotta take some real balls of steel. Frankly, I left my balls of steel a long time ago—this man must've picked them up, seeing how he's not afraid to die.

I faintly hear Hazel holding back a low deep growl, "I've heard that you took down the previous leader without a single scratch, an impressive feat considering she was one of the best huntsmen this generation had to offer. Rumors spread quick, I suggest keeping a tight plug on your men. With what I've heard around camp is that you're looking for a fight worth your while. While I can't provide that, I know something that could help you find that fight of a lifetime." Hazel says.

Never mind, this guy is going to be fed to the grimm. You know, he was respectful at first, but now he's on a whole level of disrespect. I look over to Lu Bu, no reaction, but he's not doing anything to force the intruder to leave. So, does that mean he's interested to hear what the man has to say or is he just holding back his rage? Probably the latter.

"A relic—the relic of knowledge. It can answer any question… like someone who's able to go toe to toe with you, perhaps defeat you. However, there's one small problem, a friend of mine has this relic in their possession, but someone had taken the key from us—a powerful man. Get him out of the picture, bring back the key, and you can get the fight you're ever so yearning for-"

PSSSH. BOOM.

The surrounding area shook violently. My blood runs cold as I tremble in fear. I peek over my shoulder, catching a glimpse of Hazel. Just a moment ago he was kneeling next to me, now he's lying in a small crater with a bloody face and a nose that surprisingly hadn't been broken.

If I had taken a hit like that, I would have been turned into a fine paste. Maybe a smoothie. I snap out of my thoughts as I become aware of something standing above Hazel—a pair of legs. My eyes follow up the pair of legs standing over Hazel to see Lu Bu, grinning wildly.

Lu Bu, without wasting any time, picks up Hazel by the neck, "I hate sly lying bastards like you. Buttering me up trying to get me on your good side, makes me sick. It's not hard to tell you want to use me as a pawn in your little scheme—running away once you've got what you wanted." Lu Bu growls,

Hazel struggles to break free of Lu Bu's grip, grabbing at the hand choking him. It was an astonishing sight, especially since Lu Bu is at least three heads shorter than Hazel.

A frown slowly replaces Lu Bu's wild grin, "Whatever, I guess I'll take the bait." Lu Bu throws Hazel to the ground who proceeds to cough in a fit. H-he didn't kill him? I thought. Lu Bu looks over his shoulder, returning to his seat, "Remember this, betray me—no matter where you are or how long it takes, you will die by my hands."

Lu Bu sits back down, leaning his head on his fist. His brows furrowed and his nose scrunched, replacing his scowl was now a blood-chilling gaze, "Now… tell me more about this relic of knowledge."

Saffron

Repeating cycles…. The cycle of life…. The cycle of death….- wait, is there a cycle of death? Never mind- there's a cycle for everything.

So, there must be a cycle for aura. I reach deep within my core, grasping my soul, and layering it over my skin. And there it was. Aura begins to cover the entirety of my body, protecting me from the dangers of the world.

Click-clack. Click-clack. Click-clack.

Someone is approaching…

"Hey, Saffron."

My shoulders loosen as I lose my clear mind along with my aura covering me. I sigh in annoyance "Adam~ I told you to not interrupt me when I'm meditating."

I fall back, lying on the wooden deck of an airship with a straight course to the city of Mistral. We already said our goodbyes to Buddha a while ago, two hours ago, I think. Too bad he didn't want to say goodbye at the very last moment when we entered the airship. Something about having people who worship him and having to go into hiding—something along the lines of that.

...But, thanks to Buddha, I have more control over my aura. He taught me how to clear my mind and meditate, focusing on my soul. However, he did mention letting go of all mortal attachments... not sure why, but I didn't do it. Within a day, I got the hang of it, now it's just training my aura to be on at all times.

Rumble.

There goes my stomach growling again. I would love to eat some food, but I can't. I already spent a lot of lien buying those maps and that's not mentioning all the lien I had to use to get out of the city—only to return not even a week later.

"Sorry, I just wanted to ask if I could see the map. I couldn't get a good look at the map before you stuffed it away in your pocket right as Buddha gave it to you." Adam says, pointing at my pocket.

I pick myself up off the ground, "Oh, right- sorry. We were almost close to missing out flight, I didn't get to see it either, so let's check it out together. We are looking for your wife after all, and you deserve to see it too, so, here it is." I rest over the wooden railing, pulling out the map, and rolling it open for us to inspect.

I place an index finger on Mistral, "So, right now we're going to Mistral, the city of mistral to be exact. Mistral is in Anima, which is the name of the continent it's in and we're in. When we arrive in the city of Mistral we've got to keep on going west—a little over west, kind of like north west, but more west. We keep going in that direction and hope we find your wife. And… that's about it. Too bad Buddha couldn't pinpoint her exact location, but he gave us a general direction to head in. Anyway, does that make sense?"

Adam hesitantly nods, "I believe so, but how far in that direction do we have to cross?"

I slid my finger from the city of Mistral to the dragon-shaped continent, "That far—well, not really, we just got to head in this direction, that Buddha had lined out for us, until you get some sort of sensation, a tingly sensation. He marked down some towns we should sweep over, just in case Eve is there. Buddha also said you'll feel a tug in a certain direction when you're getting close to your wife. He said you both are of the same soul, or share the same soul, one of the two. I don't really know the difference, and I don't think he does either."

Adam nods, less hesitantly than before, "Alright-…. Didn't you say that you're 'too broke' to afford another trip by airsh-"

CREAK

The airship, without warning, leans to one side, causing everything from shipments to carts of cheap food, to slide down the deck and off the ship, soon falling beneath the clouds. My hands latched onto the railing reflexivity like my life depended on it, which it did.

"No!" I shout, reaching out for a certain object—the map. I was in a panic. I didn't mean to let go of the map.

I watch the map get blown violently in the wind before following the barrels under the clouds. I clench onto the railings tighter as the tilting gets even worse. I open my eyes to see the airship tilting at a forty-five-degree angle. The once beautiful and mouth-gaping clouds were now as frightening as the darkness that was engulfing a small cloud- Wait. What? I watched as an adult Nevermore came out of the clouds, flying towards us.

Usually, I'd be afraid to see such a giant grimm, especially when it's huge enough to swallow you whole. Yet, I couldn't find the time to be afraid, but I found the time to be disappointed. Not towards anyone or anything but myself for letting go of the map.

….And I guess I wasn't afraid because airships are usually equipped with enough artillery firepower to take on a couple of adult nevermores, probably two or three at once. In awe, I catch sight of the cannons shifting out from the sides of the airship and shooting down the Nevermore which immediately went diving under the same cloud it came flying out of after being shot at.

A smart move for the grimm, but a greater threat for us in the future. It will learn from its mistakes either using its experience to its advantage or using it uselessly, not bothering to go near airships again.

Well, it's not like we only had one map…

The ship began to stabilize, allowing me to dig my hand around in the pocket of my cloak. I found… nothing. I face-palm. "Right, I forgot that I left the other map at Buddha's place. I should've gone back for it." I whisper to myself, regretting my actions thus far.

It's not like we need it anyway, I think. I can always just guess the direction of the west, right?