Chapter 22
Junichiro let out a soft yawn as he slowly woke up. As he opened his eyes he spotted a mop of golden blond hair splayed over his chest and felt a warm body cuddled up against his own. It took him a moment to recall the events of the previous evening. It'd been a couple of months since his first date with Mittelt and things had been going well between them, though they were still taking things slow. Mittelt was in no rush and despite her age had standards and wouldn't do anything with Junchiro, not even kiss, until he was at least fifteen. According to her it was too 'creepy' to even consider kissing someone who was only fourteen.
He unwrapped his left arm from her shoulders and stretched it over his head. Last night they'd watched several movies on the massive television that resided in his room while lounging on his bed. They'd both fallen asleep and were both still clothed in light outfits. No hanky panky had happened the previous night and that was alright with him.
After stretching, he carefully extracted himself from Mittelt and made his way to his bathroom. As much as he wanted to just snuggle with his girlfriend, nature was not so much calling as screaming at him. After taking care of his business he stepped back out to the sight of Mittelt stretching and letting out a cute moan. Seeing her do so brought a smile to his face, not because it was erotic, though it was, but because he could already see the difference the aging potions he'd been making for her were having on her physique.
It might have only been two months since he'd cracked the recipe and found all the materials he'd needed, but she was aging faster than expected. His best guess was it either had to do with her race, or the fact she'd been stuck looking like a young teenager for millenia so it was working faster to fix that. It wasn't a huge difference but she had grown three centimeters in height, but it was the small increase to her bust that had earned him a kiss on the cheek. She'd never said anything, but she'd always had a bit of a complex about her small chest when compared to her many varied and bustier sisters.
After sharing a good morning, he left his bedroom and grabbed a couple of breakfast bars on the way to his workshop. Sitting in a large open area was his current personal project while a few partially completed requests littered tables. His personal project was a two-seater ATV. He had no idea what kinds of terrain he could expect while hunting for items with Mittelt, but he wanted a good mix of comfort and the ability to traverse any terrain. While he could modify and enchant any vehicle to tackle any terrain, size was also a factor. If the vehicle was too big then traversing a dense jungle would be a complete pain in the ass.
The ATV just needed a few more modifications to be finished and it would be ready to take them anywhere they wanted. He'd forgone a regular gasoline engine and powered the entire thing with a magical engine. Doing so let him make it so the vehicle could drive like normal, fly, and even act as a submersible. It could drive on any terrain including up vertical surfaces, upside down, and on top of water. He estimated the flight speed to be a little over Mach One, not the fastest thing in the sky but still impressive. It was much slower in the water but estimates put the depth it could dive at a two-hundred meters, which was pretty nice.
On top of being able to go just about anywhere, except space, it also had a huge amount of storage space. The 'trunk' of the vehicle was more like a trapdoor leading to a set of stairs and a massive open area. Space expansion wasn't all that hard when you knew what you were doing. The entrance could even be expanded outward to allow larger objects inside, objects such as a massive dragon skull. Inside of the space was a small area dedicated to living space. While exploring they could park somewhere, enter the trunk and sleep in a comfortable bed. All the comforts of home on the go. It was high class van living, a somewhat popular trend in his last life, at its finest.
He'd also included a small workshop in the area so he could do some work while Mittelt drove or while they weren't doing anything else. As much as he would like to just take a break and do whatever he wanted, he had commitments and he wasn't going to neglect them. It was the same reason he didn't run away the instant he met Azazel way back when. He'd made a commitment to deliver that sword and he kept it, dammit!
For now, he just needed to finalize the enchantments, do some packing, and they would be ready to go!
Mittelt left Junichiro's bed with a smile on her face. She was excited to have a boyfriend once more. It'd been a long time since she'd last been able to date someone who wasn't a complete creep. Her physique only really attracted two kinds of males to her. The first were just boys around her apparent age and that was alright, but they were very rarely even remotely interesting. Boys that young just didn't have anything to really offer to someone like her. The second... belonged in jail, 'nuff said.
Junichiro, on the other hand, was young but very interesting. Still, she didn't want to be the creep in their relationship so she'd been forced to set some rules. First and foremost, no sex until he was at least seventeen. No matter how cute she thought him begging might be she'd never change her mind on that. She'd also refused to allow kissing until he was fifteen, which was pretty soon. That was mostly because she knew that kissing would eventually lead to touching which would lead to heavy petting. That would be as far as she would let it go until he was sixteen, then they could explore a little more.
On the bright side, having those limits meant they had time to find out just how well their relationship would go without involving sex or sexual acts in it. It also, much more importantly, would allow her body to mature more alongside his. If things kept going like they had, she wanted him to have all the joys of exploring her new body as it aged to a more mature one. Knowing she would be able to 'grow up' while their relationship grew was something truly special to her and something she wouldn't let get damaged in any way.
Mittelt had a breathtaking smile of pure joy as she made her breakfast that morning.
Junichiro looked up from the sphere he was carving runes into as the door to his workshop opened and Azazel walked inside. Rolling his eyes at the leader of the fallen, he set down the sphere in a box containing six others that looked just like it, "First I don't see you in a year and now it feels like you're coming over almost weekly. What's up this time?"
Azazel dramatically held a hand over his chest, "I'm hurt! Here I am taking time out of my busy schedule just to come down here and talk to my favorite business partner..."
"Oh knock it off. I'm sure you're just skipping out on paperwork. Mittelt's told me all about Shemhazai's rants about you."
Azazel dropped the 'hurt' act with a chuckle, "Well... Anyway. I'm actually here for a reason. It's been confirmed that the heiresses to the Gremory and Sitri families will be moving to the human world next week. They've already bought living areas for their peerages and themselves. I expect they want some time to get used to the area before starting the new school year as transfer students."
He gave Junichiro a rather serious look, "Are you sure you want to stay here? After your last incident with a stray... Well, no one would blame you if you just wanted to avoid them all together."
Juncihiro grimaced and looked at his right arm at the mention of that siren bitch. He still held a lot of anger towards her for that, but he didn't blame the devils as a whole. He knew holding an entire race responsible for the actions of a single member was just plain stupid. It'd be like hating all of humanity because Hitler had existed. Aside from that, he felt his anger was actually well placed since he was pissed at himself for being so weak and unprepared, and Azazel for the oversight that lead to the incident. He still planned to get a bit of revenge on Azazel but that still had to wait until he was strong enough.
After taking a deep cleansing breath, he let his dark thoughts go and focused on Azazel, "It's fine. I've updated my wards over time so they should ignore this area and leave me alone while I'm here. I'm sure I can whip something up to make them ignore me when I go out too. It's not a big deal."
Of course, he had no intention of doing anything to hide himself from the two girls. He wanted to be found, after all, "Either way..." He gestured to the ATV sitting nearby, "Mittelt and I plan to be out of town for a while anyway. I want to do some exploring and treasure hunting, see what I can find out there."
Over the last few days he'd completely finished the ATV, stocked it, and was prepared to leave, "We'll be heading out tomorrow morning and seeing where we end up."
Azazel nodded, "That's fine. Just remember, pretty much everywhere on Earth is claimed territory of one pantheon or another, and usually broken down further by faction. Try not to pick any fights with others while you're exploring. You might have an excellent reputation as the 'Artificer' but as Arai Junichiro you're a nobody whose only about as strong as a mid-class devil or four-winged fallen."
Junichiro nodded in understanding. His personal power was, indeed, not all that impressive. Add in all the toys, gizmos, and surprises that he'd made to protect himself though? He was confident in being able to take down anything below Ultimate Class in a one-on-one fight. There was just an overwhelming gulf between High Class and Ultimate class that couldn't be easily overcome. The gulf between Ultimate and Satan Class didn't even need to be considered.
After some chatting, Azazel made his exit. He'd gotten a call from a pissed off Shemhazai and booked it out of Junichiro's workshop like Big G himself was after him.
Azazel walked into the main house and over to Mittelt, "How've things been here?"
Mittelt shrugged her shoulder noncommittally, "Nothing's really changed. Though I am curious about what he hopes to find while we're out exploring. I've asked, but he just gives me this cu-mysterious smile in reply. So he has some sort of plan but isn't sharing what it is."
Azazel hummed and sat down to make himself comfortable, "What about those sphere's he's been working on? He's working on a seventh and I still can't figure out what they're for despite the clear time and effort he's putting into them. Not to mention the materials."
"I couldn't tell you. He only shows me the occasional item, usually when he's proud of something new, and that's it. I know he has plans to make himself stronger and I suspect those little balls of his have something to do with that, I just have no idea how. You know this kind of crap isn't my specialty."
Azazel grumbled but nodded in understanding. It's just that his curiosity was killing him! It had been ever since the kid disabled all his spying capabilities. He didn't plan to take any of the kids processes for himself... well not unless he could apply it to his work on Sacred Gears. The kid should be more trusting!
"Well, if the kid finds anything interesting while you two are out gallivanting about, be sure to let me know."
Mittelt waved him off, "Yeah yeah. If he finds the lost city of Atlantis or a lost dragons hoard or the missing piece of Excalibur I'll be sure to let you know."
Azazel blinked at the sheer weight of the sarcasm Mittelt had managed to lace into her words before snorting. His reply was just as sarcastic, "Yeah yeah, I'm sure he'll find Excalibur Ruler when even I don't have a clue where it is. Maybe he'll even find the lost scabbard?"
At that, both of them snorted. The scabbard was known to be just as powerful, if not more powerful, than Excalibur had been before it was shattered. No one had a clue what had happened to it and it had been lost for hundreds of years. The odds of anyone finding it were so absurd it was a joke. After sharing a bit of a laugh, Azazel left. Shemhaizai was going to spend at least an hour reaming him for ducking out like he had.
Junichiro closed the trunk of the ATV and looked over to Mittelt, "You sure you're not forgetting anything?"
Today was the day they were leaving to find various treasures that Junichiro was interested in locating. Any mythological item he could think of, he was going to look for. He didn't care what pantheon it supposedly belonged to, he was going to hunt down any loose treasure and claim it for himself! He also had a surprise item he knew was out there to really give Mittelt a small heart attack.
Mittelt thought to herself for a moment before shaking her head, "Nope."
Together the pair of them got into the seats of the ATV. Both had been heavily enchanted to be the most comfortable seats either of them had ever sat in. Mittelt had compared the seats to sitting on a cloud in heaven. After pressing the 'Start' button, the magical engine came to life with very little noise. Another button press caused a globe of energy to surround the ATV and render it invisible. No matter how weird the world might be, an ATV with no wings or propellers of any kind flying through the sky would be too much.
With the flick of a switch, the ATV lightly lifted off of the ground while emitting a soft whirring sound. The wheels all folded down so that their rims were aimed at the ground. While not strictly necessary with the method used to fly, it was far more aesthetically pleasing to look at. Even if only the pair of them could see it.
A gentle pull on the steering wheel had the ATV ascending into the air at a rapid speed, though they barely felt anything. Within a few moments they were hundreds of meters up and still climbing. As they did, Junichiro glanced at the compass located in the center of the console and aligned the ATV's nose in the direction the needle was pointed. Once aligned, he pressed harder on the gas pedal while leveling the ATV out. The vehicle burst forward and accelerated at a breakneck pace that saw them soon breaking the sound barrier.
As they flew Mittelt glanced over at Junichiro, "So, now that we're on the way, will you finally tell me where we're going?"
Feeling cheeky, he pointed at the compass, "Where it's pointing us to."
Mittelt rolled her eyes, "Jackass. Fine! What's it pointing to?"
Though he could come up with another snarky answer that wasn't really an answer, he relented and looked directly at her, "Why, my dear Mittelt, my lovely Mittelt, we're going to find Excalibur's Scabbard!"
At first, she looked surprised. Then, she snorted. After that, she began laughing so hard she had to hold her stomach. Nonplussed, Junichiro continued to drive in the direction the needle pointed. Once she calmed down, Mittelt turned to look at him. She still had a wide smile and was trying to muffle the last of her giggles, "No, seriously, where are we going?"
In reply, Junichiro just turned to look at her and grinned broadly. It took longer than Mittelt would be willing to admit later, but she eventually realized that Junichiro wasn't joking, "You know where Excalibur's Scabbard is?! HOW?!"
Junichiro shook his head, "I haven't a clue where it's located."
"Then how..."
"The compass. I call it a Loot Compass. Though it has a proper name, but in this case Loot Compass is more apt. The enchantments on it let me find anything I can think of, with limitations, and will give me the direction the item is located in relation to itself. It's a bit of limited divination and scrying magic. It can't get any more specific than a direction, sadly."
Mittelt stared at the compass in shock. Even with the limits he'd mentioned it was one of the most powerful things she'd ever heard of! She reached toward the compass, almost reverently, before pulling her hand back, "It can find anything?"
Junichiro made a so-so motion with his hand, "It can only find items. Add to that, it can only find items that aren't properly 'claimed' or otherwise in the possession of someone else. It also can't point to anything located in other realms, only to things located in the realm it currently occupies, Earth in this case. Lastly, it doesn't give any indication of elevation, so if it pointed to a mountain it could mean the top of the mountain, beneath the mountain, or anywhere in between."
Mittelt just shook her head, still in a bit of shock over the power of the innocuous item, "You don't understand, at all. Even just knowing the general location of something like Excalibur's Scabbard is a huge thing! Even if you could only narrow it down to a hundred square kilometers it would be phenomenal! Narrowing it down to just a single mountain? Someone like Azazel could search an area that size in minutes!" She pointed accusingly at the compass, "That thing is crazy and if anyone ever heard of it, it could cause every faction on the planet to break out into a massive war over it! There are so many lost treasures I can't even remember a hundredth of them!"
Junichiro smirked a little, "Good thing its bound to me and me alone and no one else can make it then!"
Mittelt looked at him in horror, "That's even worse! All they have to do is kidnap you and torture you into pointing them to whatever they want! You'd become a commodity going to the strongest person!"
Letting out a sigh, Junichiro looked at Mittelt dead in the eyes. He could see the panic building there along with her concern over his safety. Honestly, it was rather touching since no one else had ever cared for his well being before, "Mittelt, it'll be alright. No one but you or I know this thing exists and no one else needs to know. If neither of us says anything, no one else will ever learn of it. If it makes you feel better, I'll completely destroy it once our little trip is over. Alright?"
Still feeling a little sick over her realization of just what the innocuous little magical gizmo was capable of and what others would do to possess it and her boyfriend, Mittelt gave a somewhat relieved nod. She wouldn't really feel completely better until the compass was a pile of melted slag. She took a few deep breaths and tried to ignore the compass and the fear it caused, "Just... don't remind me about it if you can avoid it. I'm going to try to pretend it's just a normal compass that's broken."
Junichiro nodded in acceptance while pushing the accelerator to the floor to get the ATV moving at it's fastest speed.
Neither of the pair were surprised when the compass took them into the British Isles. While Arthur had fought a lot, his Scabbard had been stolen while he was in Britain. Honestly? Junichiro had little respect left for Arthur after listening to Mittelt talk about the idiot. Despite how ungodly powerful the Scabbard for Excalibur was, apparently the idiot didn't care about it and let it get stolen by Morgan Le Fay. While Excalibur itself was really powerful, when whole, the Scabbard was technically even more powerful.
Why? Because, unlike the sword, the Scabbard gave the user a limited form of immortality and nigh-invulnerability. Seriously, he'd never seen or read it, but he recalled some videos and discussions about how the Scabbard allowed Xenovia to tank blows from a goddamn Sun God and shrug them off like they were nothing. It had weaknesses and didn't make the person using it actually invincible or unbeatable, but it sure as hell made them the next best thing!
That's entirely why it was the first thing that Junichiro wanted to get his hands on. It was the ultimate defensive item, that he was aware of, was owner-less at the moment, and free for the taking. With it even someone like Azazel would be incapable of hurting him. Of course that didn't mean Junichiro would be able to do anything to Azazel either. Not to mention it would be ungodly easy for Azazel to retrain him and hold him helpless with ease. Not to mention it was probably possible for Azazel to forcefully take the Scabbard from him. So, he could survive high level threats but couldn't beat them and if they knew what to do they could prevent him from being able to do anything but survive.
That's what mattered most, survival.
AN
That's right, another double release. Since I'm shifting to longer chapters I don't feel the need to stockpile as many. Still, both chapters 29 and 30 are over 10k words long and available for reading on pat-reon slash thomasdarkrose
I've not really got anything else to add to these chapters, I just hope you enjoyed them both!
