Chapter 16

Many years ago

'…CRUMBLE…'

It was a rainy night.

A young boy was in an alley in the Kingdom of Vale, sitting on the cold and dirty ground with ripped clothes, no footwear and various scars visible on his ragged body. His skin had become rather pale with the passage of time, his eyes were as empty as the current night sky.

The sound of various footsteps could be easily heard in the alley's entrance. They were all easily visible, as was the boy despite being inside a dark alley. And yet, he was easily ignored.

Long gone were the first days in which he wondered why this was happening to him: Why was he alone? Who was he?

But more importantly.

'…CRUMBLE…'

What was the voice he heard?

The young boy had been hearing it since he woke up alone in the city, especially during the night. Also, he had not only noticed the shadows around him moving in weird ways whenever the voice spoke, the same happened when he started to see and hear people's negative thoughts and intentions; making approaching them for help a challenge.

Not that he would expect any kind of help at this point, nor did he have the strength or will to even stand up. No, it wasn't just the sheer cold of the night or the hunger he had been putting up with for a full week since he woke up, it was the despair that had been increasing little by little until reaching a critical point.

Now, his whole vision was darkened and his hearing was deafening. And yet, he could still see the shadows moving towards him as if they were chains and then the voice made itself present again.

'…CRUMBLE…'

He gritted his teeth in sheer terror, he couldn't really move, but that wouldn't solve anything.

He just wanted to stop thinking, to stop being scared. He just wanted everything to stop.

'…THEN…SUBMIT…'

His look became dull as the world lost its remaining color all around him.

And then-

"Are you ok?"

He appeared, as all the color and sound in the world returned to him in an instance.

It was a kid around his age holding an umbrella. His clothes weren't ripped; therefore he wasn't homeless or poor. So, beg the question, why was someone like him approaching an abandoned child like him, the boy questioned.

Because he was good hearted, even if their meeting had been an act against Fate.

The boy extended his free hand towards him. The homeless boy extended his hand with hesitation before fully taking it.

Yes, that's how Drake and Lloyd Aurion met each other; and how the latter would become the biggest inspiration for the blonde.


Present

"Anything to say in your defense?" He was currently in his mindscape.

But unlike the previous times, he was not standing on a grass field under the night sky, nor was there a giant tree and round table near them.

Not, it was a void-less space, with only him and his brother present; the former throwing a scowl at the latter, who was giving a blank face in return.

"I am the one that told the others to keep quiet about the woman. If you are gonna complain to someone, then it's-"

"Oh, I am complaining." A tick appeared on Lloyd's forehead at Drake's interruption, but quickly waved it away.

"Usually, you are the one that would rush to this kind of bullshit, and yet you decided to play a blind eye at this." Drake's eyes narrowed. "Wasn't your justice 'all seeing'?"

"First of all, it would have been either Zelos or Guy going to the rescue of the damsel in distress." Lloyd answered, seeing as both of them had womanizer tendencies, even though one of them hated women and the other used to fear them in the past.

The irony.

In reality, every single one of them would have given a helping hand; even Yuri, even though they would have been more reserved than Drake.

So, it begs the question.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Lloyd, who had his arms crossed gripped his hands tightly in frustration as his face remained neutral.

"Let me remind you, you are no longer in Remnant. You have no political or influential power whatsoever here, you have no information network either," his face softened. "You have no Spirits wanting you dead, nor a world ending weight on your shoulders. This was supposed to be your clean slate."

Drake didn't say anything, forcing his face to maintain his scowl.

"And let me remind you again, me-" Lloyd pointed at himself. "And the rest are not real. The support we can give you is greatly limited-"

"And yet I am sure the dumbass who believes in Justice would have given a helping hand." Drake walked to him and patted him on his shoulder, almost pushing him back. "I am pretty sure I didn't ignore your righteousness when I recreated you from soul and memory, so there's something else, isn't there?"

Lloyd's eyes narrowed.

"I realized just how much I have overlooked while in your mind and soul." His response managed to make Drake tense. "Even with Jude's Link you managed to keep some of your guilt and struggles to yourself… and I never noticed it." Lloyd stated, the most recent proof was Drake's death by becoming the World Tree back in their original world.

"If I am guilty of something right now, it's wanting what's best for you. And only you."

To stay away from the matter of these World's deities, to try and live a normal life, free of struggles and past grudges.

But he couldn't.

Drake didn't absorb Sophia Flores's despair as an act of kindness, nor did he do it as a good act came to the top of their head. In the end, all of it came down to his own anger at the existence of something that could easily be considered inhumane.

No.

What he was planning to do couldn't be considered an act in the name of revenge, because that thought will never cross her mind being someone who has been taught to think of deities as beings of absolute reverence; and even if you hate them, one couldn't lay a finger on them.

So, in the end, it all came down to his own selfishness. The simple thought of the term made him go for his armband unintentionally.

"That." Lloyd's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, glaring at his right arm in the process. "Do you really want something like that to happen again? To be forced to make a harsh decision and have to carry the burden on your own?"

Drake's eyes narrowed.

The marks laying under his armband were of his own making, in every sense of the word. Had a situation like that one came to occur again under similar if not exact conditions, he would do it again, even if his guilt were to increase.

Lloyd couldn't help but grit his teeth as he saw the determination on his brother's face, the unspoken answer to his previous question.

"Why the fuck does your solutions always have to be so fucking reckless!?" His face of seriousness was replaced with one of anger as he approached Drake to grab him by the collar of his jacket, to which the blonde did the same in return after a second.

"Because I am always fucking right!"

Little time passed, to the moment in which they psychically started to choke each other with both of their hands.

"…Guys." Zelos appeared next to them. "As much as I missed the whole Aurion brothers dynamic, you need to-"

"Shut up!/Quiet!"

Each Aurion used their own free hand to choke Zelos, who in return gave each an annoying glare before proceeding to use the moment to grasp each of their throats and apply pressure on them.

"A three-way choke off… you don't see that one every day." Zelos managed to move his eyes to see Yuri standing on the side. "He-lp m-e" the redhead managed to state, to which the Third Guardian simply smiled smugly as he mouthed a 'no' as his reply.

The red head twitched at his brother but mentally calmed down as he saw Flynn walking next to Yuri. The blonde sighed in annoyance before raising his arm as it glowed in a yellow light.

"Enough."

Three walls made of yellow light manifested between Drake and the others, separating them out of instinct, not wanting to be in contact with said manifestations.

"Please, stop fooling around." Flynn got their attention before the rest made themselves present.

"You are needed on the outside." Guy said, looking at Drake before he snapped his fingers; their surroundings changed to their usual setting under the night sky.

Both Drake and Lloyd glared at each other, a clear message could be shared between the two.

'This isn't over.'

And so Drake faded, leaving seven guardians standing on the grass.

"You do realize that trying to keep him away from trouble is impossible, right? Especially here." Guy expressed his thoughts. "He has always reacted towards that which he doesn't like or accepts, selfishness or not."

"I just don't want him to suffer anymore, I just can't go with the flow like someone else here." Everyone gave Yuri a dirty eye, who simply shrugged.

"Haters gonna hate." He replied, his gaze turning serius soon after. "I agree with you, Lloyd, I do. But I think all of our previous ideas of him leading a peaceful life was thrown out of the window when we saw Adam Fucking Taurus alive and kicking, hunting for Centurions."

That pretty much won the argument. "Then it's settled." Lloyd turned around and walked to the tree. "Back to our usual business then."

Luke groaned. "I can already imagine us going on bloody night walks again."


"Origin fucking damn it, Tsubaki." Drake cursed, making sure to use the name of the kings of the Spirits and Ruler of all as an insult.

When Tsubaki had stated she was gonna boast about Udaeus Sword, she meant it. As there were not just members of the Hephaestus Familia, but also what he recognizes as the Goibniu Familia present, as well.

The group of Adventurers was so big that there was a row from the entrance of her mansion to the middle of the street.

"Blacksmiths and their fucking-" he stopped his words, and instead took a deep breath before exhaling. He had to calm down, his body was in a delicate state thanks to Sophia's despair; he would flinch at any kind of contact giver her experience with sexual abuse. To him, this was dangerous, because he might just cripple someone out of pure instincts if that were to even just accidentally touch him.

The Former Noble started to walk, ignoring the row of people discussing the sword and Tsubaki's antics.

"Hey! No cutting in line!"

'And here we go.' He had managed to get near the door, one of Tsubaki's servantsnear the entrance had even recognized him before someone had grabbed him by the shoulder, his body froze in that instant, trying his best no to submit to the sudden urge of murdering that person.

"Don't think yourself so important, boy. Get back in line like every-" his words died in his mouth. Drake had looked over his shoulder, giving the Adventurer behind him the coldest glare he could ever give someone.

"I am gonna give you three second to take your hands off-" he didn't get to finish the sentence as the Adventurer did as told; this made many complain as he continued on his way, until his ears caught something he didn't like one bit.

"I think he's the guy that is fucking Cyclops."

His steps became slower, making the servant from before look at him as if puzzled.

"Guy must be mental," another one said. "Makes sense though, going for someone crazy like her."

The servant's face started to become pale, as did everyone's who was part of the line that was in front of him after fully stopping in his tracks with an expression only they could see.

"No kidding. Don't let her friendly personality fool you, she's a fucking bitch like every single first class Adventurers, an opportunistic piece of-" his words were left unheard It was, after all, pretty hard to finish them when someone slams your face into the ground, creating various cracks in the pavement in the process.

"Hey!" The second Adventurer exclaimed in shock, looking at the blonde staring at him with an empty glare as he forced his friend's head into the ground. "What the fu-"

Drake didn't waste a moment in choking the Adventurer by the throat. "Goibniu Familia. Good, I don't think Hephaestus will give me an earful if I cripple you." The eyes of the man widened as the lack of air reaching his lungs started to make him dizzy.

"Please stop!" Another Adventurer, one of Hephaestus's, approached him. "Even if he's not a member of our Familia, harming them might bring repercussions to Lady Hephaestus."

The Adventurer flinched as Drake's eyes landed on him. "… I know you."

He did, but not personally. The Adventurer in front of him was one of the member's of Hephaestus party during the Goliath incident which happened during his first days in this world.

"It has been a while, sir! I am glad you remember me." He made a bow, but not out of respect; but out of fear of being under the blonde's gaze.

Hephaestus had given everyone the order to not approach Drake unless strictly necessary for a good reason. And even if the Adventurer didn't know what had happened after he and the rest returned to Rivira following the Abnormal Goliath inciden , it was a known fact that he and Tsubaki had dealt with it. Not to mention he had also witnessed what Drake could do before they were gone.

He was dangerous, everyone who had been there that day could figure that out easily. He had even become quite the unspoken topic by the Adventurers in Rivira.

"I guess you are right… even if I am not one of her children, my association with her might come up as a problem." He let the man go, making everyone sigh in relief. "However," everyone panicked again as the Former Noble slammed his foot on the Adventurer's throat.

"Let this be a warning, if I ever hear anything about that rumor about me 'fucking Cyclops' or speaking of her negatively, again" his killing intent increased. "I will break your fucking legs." Everyone couldn't help but stare at the ground as they nodded. "It's not that I don't think she can defend herself, she might just slam you against a wall if she's in a bad mood… me on the other hand am not as nice."

They all nodded obediently.

"Isn't that a little too much?" The Hephaestus Adventurer managed to ask as Drake retreated inside Tsubaki's mansion.

"What are you on about? I am being kind." He looked over his shoulder. "You don't need your legs to forge, do you?"

Everyone paled even more, seeing as it looked like he actually meant his words..

"Oh, one last thing." He stopped and turned around, his death glare still in place. "Scram. Now."

They all did as ordered; leaving in their minds that there was an even more dangerous psycho than Tsubaki around.

A new rumor was born that day.


"Guys, guys, guys." Tsubaki grinned, her hands moving in a way as if to calm the group of people. "You can claim all you want about your weapons being the best in the world, yada, yada, yada. But…" She stepped aside to gesture at the massive black sword that was stabbed in the middle of her backyard. "Mine's bigger than yours!"

"And there it is!" There were a series of collected groans at the clear sexual innuendo, except for a silent sigh near the entrance.

The servants had been kind enough to open the way for him to avoid all of the other blacksmiths in the house, and here he was; resting against the wall as many blacksmiths admired the first sight of Udaeus Black Sword.

"This definitely will not get me unwanted attention in the future." Drake thought out loud, pinching the bridge between his eyes.

"Come on Cyclops, one ingot! That's all I am asking." An Adventurer said, making a much younger blacksmith snort.

"You and everyone else in this room, Viejo."

Drake's eyes looked forward at the young boy, blinking as if making a double take at what he heard.

'Did that brat just…?'

'Yes/Si' his brother's replied.

"Come on, vieja desquiciada. Why don't you share some of this with only Hephaestus Familia members? Especially those who have actual talent." He looked at a red head standing close to him. "Not you Crozzo."

Many laughed at the red head, while Drake narrowed his eyes at the kid and how he was addressing Tsubaki.

"Play nice, Leo." She sighed. "Also, calling me nice things isn't gonna get you nowhere." Who by the looks of it, she didn't know the real meaning of his words.

"How the hell did you even get this? Was the whole rumor about a small party about Udaeus true?"

"Yup!" She replied, tapping the sword in the process.

"I know you are crazy, but I didn't know you were that unhinged to pull that stunt off." A random Adventurer said, making her snort.

"I am not. A friend of mine made sure to go an extra mile for me." She smiled.

Some members of the Hephaestus Familia already knew who she was talking about and knew to stay quiet about him… but there was always that one black sheep.

"You mean that hijo de puta that our Goddess mentioned?" Tsubaki narrowed her eye at Leo, seeing as they were told no to mention him at all in the presence of other Familias, even if they had never met him.

She was about to scold him about it, but stopped as she saw Drake himself opening his way to the crowd. The Captain was about to call him, however; the look on his face told her not to.

"Detrás tuyo maldito Bastardo." Her eye widened the moment those foreign words left his mouth.

"Who the fuck are you calling a… bastard?" Leo Valdez became hesitant as he turned around, only to see an angry blonde giving him a deadly glare.

"Now, what was that you said about my mother?" Drake asked, cracking his fingers one by one as the young Adventurer.

"He called her 'a great woman'." The blonde couldn't help but give Tsubaki a blank stare, making her puzzled as her face turned into a scowl little by little after realizing what was going on. "It doesn't mean that, does it?" her gaze landed on Leo.

"Son of a Whore." That was all Drake replied, leaving the confirmation of the young man's words sinking in everyone's minds before glaring at the young teen.

"Blondie, I don't know you. But don't you fucking dare to sell me out, please. I have been pulling this crap for years, they are gonna eat me alive." Leo stated in a different language.

"Even if I wanted to, which I don't, I am completely unable to lie." he replied in the same manner.

"Drake." Tsubaki placed her hand on his shoulder, she felt a slight flinch on his muscles, and even some of his electricity acting up against her. There was a short glare between the two, confirming that her sudden contact was bothering him, but decided to address it later.

"Perra psicópata, mal nacida, anciana." His eyes twitched with every single insult that came out of her mouth in a different idiom; She clearly wanted to confirm if those words were insults. Drake's reactions were all the prove she needed.

"Little shit has been bad-mouthing us for years!" a random blacksmith shouted, making everyone start gathering around the young Adventurer.

"Enough." Tsubaki's deadly glare made everyone stop and step away, making sure all of them had a look at her serious glare. "And you, leave." Leo nodded silently, not daring to take his eyes off his Captain. "Hephaestus and I will have a long talk regarding this."

"Si señ-"

"In Koine, Leo." She warned him. "I don't want to ever hear you speaking something that isn't Koine ever again."

"… Yes, ma'am." The boy turned around and left, leaving an uncomfortable silence hanging in the air.

"The Sword aweing event is over, please leave calmly unless you want to be thrown out." She turned around rubbing the side of her head, not leaving any room to complains.

"Hey,"

'Fuck my life' she cursed under her breath as she looked over her shoulder and notice the voice wasn't addressed to her, but at Drake. 'Shit.'

"You were the one that defeated Udaeus, right?"

It all started with that question, and then all hell broke loose as they realized it had been him. Some members of her Familia remembered Hephaestus' order and decided not to approach him, others not so much, and then there were the blacksmiths of many other Familias who just decided to invade his personal space.

"Mind entering into a contract with me!?"

"Can you get another Udaeus drop!? I will pay!"

"What Familia are you from?!"

Her eye narrowed.

The simple fact that he wasn't acting high and mighty at the moment told her something was wrong, especially since his hands were twitching as black currents of electricity were dancing on the tip of his fingers.

'He's holding back.' She realized.

"Do I really-" she picked up Udaeus Sword with ease, getting their attention as she threw it in the air to then catch the Drop Item by the handle. "-have to repeat myself?!"

If she had a deadly glare before, now it was an unreadable one, making everyone nervous of what was going to happen if they continued. "It will be hard to explain to each of your deities how Udaeus' Sword mysteriously fell on every single one of your heads." She tilted her head and smiled. "So, get the fuck out of my backyard."

Everyone ran out immediately after her threat… all but one.

"That includes you too, Welf."

Drake, who had managed to calm down a little, couldn't help but look at the one other blacksmith in the backyard.

'Right, a redhead.' Drake thought, his eyes managing to catch a specific word shown to him by the Darkness.

"One ingot, one bloody ingot. That's all I am asking for."

Drake ignored it and instead focused on the two blacksmiths.

Tsubaki rubbed the side of her head in annoyance, not really paying attention to the serious face from the other blacksmith. "For what?" she threw him a glare. "So, you can forge something mediocre?"

His eye twitched. "Again with this? I told you I don't need to forge magic swords to be a great blacksmith!"

She snorted. "And yet nobody uses your goods."

"Because the clerks always put them in the fucking back! Only an idiot would look at the back and overlook what's in the front, which mind you, is supposed to be made up of the best the store has to offer."

Tsubaki waved her hand, dismissing his words with ease. "Well said, 'supposed' is the correct term. Only because the best is placed at the front doesn't mean it's what the Adventurer looking for equipment needs or even if it fits him. Also, I don't know if you noticed, but the Hephaestus Familia doesn't do charity work with our prices, so what's in front it's easily overlooked the moment they see the cost."

Welf wanted to complain again, but he was quickly met by Tsubaki's face millimeters from his. "Go and tell the clerks I ordered to display your products where you want for a week. Just don't come bitching to me when the result is the same."

He couldn't help but look confused at her behavior. Yes, she had always given him a hard time, more than she has done to others seeing as he rejected the idea of using his 'gifts'.

But despite that, she was overall friendly with everyone.

He looked reluctantly and nodded, turning around to leave, only to stop as he noticed Drake. The blacksmith flinched for a moment at how empty his eyes were, but quickly shook the thought away as something came to mind.

Welf knew who Drake was, solemnly through his Goddess's order to not approach him. And yet, for some reason Tsubaki was the only person that could interact with him. Why? He didn't know, and for some reason neither did the rest of his Familia. What he did know however, was the fact that Drake was responsible for the Udaeus drop… that, and the rumor about him being in a relationship with Tsubaki.

Of course, he wasn't stupid enough to ask if that was truth.

'Tsubaki would kill me.'

But it would make sense as to why he would do this exclusively for her. He started to ponder about something, and an idea came to him.

"Nice to meet you, I am-"

"Welf, don't." He heard Tsubaki's warning tone.

"Don't what? I am just extending my list of relationships, just like you and Lady Hephaestus told me to."

Her eye twitched once again. "But not with him."

He mentally shrugged her warning and looked at him. "I was wondering if you could take a commission from me."

His captain snorted. "And pay him with what? This guy keeps breaking everything I give him with ease, yours wouldn't even last five minutes if he got his hands."

Welf couldn't hide his surprise, his eyes widened as he looked back and forth between the two, a smirk morphed in his face. "The Great Tsubaki Collbrande can't forge something to keep up with someone?" he was playing with fire, he knew that; but it was too much of a chance to let it pass seeing as he could notice a vein popping on her forehead. His focus returned to Drake, his hand going for the blonde's shoulder. "I may not have the money, but I am sure we can reach a- argh!"

Welf never managed to touch the blonde.

Tsubaki had grabbed his forearm with enough force to make him fall on one knee. "I told you to drop it, Crozzo. Get a fucking hint." Her tone was as soft as it was deadly, the same could be said for her glare before letting him go.

"Try that again and I will actually break your fucking arm." His eyes widened in panic, seeing as they both knew Hephaestus would chew her out for it. "I will even pay for the recovery, ain't I so nice?"

"Actually," her glare shifted to Drake, whose hands were resting inside his jacket pocket as he walked past her, avoiding any contact in the process. "Go for his legs, that's how I threatened all the blacksmith outsides saying we were fucking."

Her glare broke, turning into the most unreadable stare Welf had seen in her life. However, it soon shifted into her usual sly smirk. "You mean we aren't?"

Drake didn't hesitate in flipping her off, something she took advantage of.

"I mean, if you are offering…."

Her response made both men groan before Welf managed to stand up, his hands in slight pain. "Aren't you too old for him?"

Welf could see how Drake winced away, despite his face being covered by his scarf. He could even swear he heard a 'Fucking idiot' coming from the blonde. And for good reason, seeing as Tsubaki waved the massive sword at Welf and stopped only millimeters away from him.

"Leave. Not a word. Not a glare. No complaints. Just. Leave." He nodded repeatedly in a terrified manner before finally leaving in a rush.

"Now then…" she let the sword down before looking at the blonde. "What the fuck is wrong with you? Usually, you would have given everyone the 'You are gonna die' glare and sent them on their way; and I meant the last part in more ways than one."

She saw him sigh as they stared in each other's eyes. His usual edge was there, but there was a slight tremble in there that told her something was wrong.

"Let's just say… I am gonna do something later."

She stared blankly at him. "Something stupid?"

He shook his head, making her shrug. "That's all I need to know." She replied, knowing it was something he could take care of with ease.

"Come." She motioned to the mansion after placing the sword on the ground. "I feel like cooking today, so help me out a bit, Mister Master Chef."

He followed close behind, her sly smile making itself present. "So, about that rumor regarding us. Come on, tell everything about it to Onee-san."

Drake rolled his eyes as he closed the door to the backyard.


Drake had been nice enough not to mention anything as they cooked or as they ate, seeing as such a touchy subject would no doubt bring down the mood.

And guess what? He was right.

What a shocker.

Tsubaki was currently sitting on a tatami floor around an eastern circular table. Her right knee was bent, serving as a support for her hand while her head resting on it.

Had it been any other kind of situation, he would have asked 'How does it feel being a woman?'.

But it wasn't.

Her eyes looked conflicted for a moment before taking a bottle of sake by the rope around the tip and took a sip from it. She then stared at her friend, who was pretty much with a look of his own, his head resting lazily over his hand.

"…So." His eyes met hers. "Do you want a hug?"

He tried to search for some humor in her voice, finding none. However, he could see the corner of her lips twitching a little.

"Fuck you."

"Oh, come on. I was honestly being serious there!" she laughed a little, trying to raise the mood knowing Drake would pretty much reject it.

"At least I tried…are you sure about what you are going to do?" she muttered the last part, a doubtful face in place.

"You don't think I can pull it off?"

She shook her head with a snort. "I have seen what you can do, and I know you can do this." Her eye narrowed. "But the thing with the rest of the despair; one abused woman is enough to make you into even more of a damn introvert to the point you flinch at the touch of people."

He sighed. "Don't worry, I am not going through this without a reason."

"Could have fooled me," she said in an indignant tone. "I clearly remember you saying 'You lacked self-preservation', what the fuck do you think what you are doing is? Also, didn't your brother try to stop you?"

"They don't have a wheel on my domains, Only I do. but they did try, yes." He replied, explaining what had happened earlier with his brother.

"… you do know he's just looking out for you, right?" Tsubaki fully understood Lloyd's stand in this, especially seeing Drake's self-destructive tendencies. "As a matter of fact, why are you even doing this? From what I get, Aeshma has pretty much left you alone, not to mention you gain absolutely nothing from this. And I know for a fact you are not a good fucking brat with a Hero complex."

She wasn't saying he was an absolute asshole. Rather, stating he's a realist with his actions; just like her.

"Hmm… many people act according to their beliefs, virtues, means and so on; as do I most of the time. Any of my brothers would try something different from what I have planned," one of them certainly would take a bloodier approach. "Although all of them would say something along the lines of 'this is wrong, therefore I must act.' Or 'If I do nothing, I will feel guilty'. Of course, a normal person could reach those same conclusions of their own and either act or not despite knowing that the world is painted in a gray scale and not black on white."

She raised an eyebrow. "And you are different in this kind of scenario because…?"

He rubbed the side of his head and chuckled, even though he was actually annoyed. "I have always helped my brothers when these kinds of situations took place, following their will as they wanted to approach something, and making sure they understood the ramifications of what they were about to do. However, me on the other hand… despite acting logically or not, I just want to destroy whatever I think shouldn't be."

Tsubaki couldn't help but snort. "Careful there, that sounded almost like a God."

His eye twitched for a moment. "Except I will take with me the consequences of my actions regardless of being judge, jury and executioner."

The blacksmith raised her hands in a 'peace' manner with a mocking smile on her face. But even so, she understood. Drake didn't hide behind words to justify his actions when the time to act came, and instead just acted according to his judgment and instincts, even though most of it could be considered as filled with rage like it was just now.

'You are just too fucking honest for your own good.' She sighed.

"But enough about me." He broke her out of her thoughts. "What's with you and ginger?"

Tsubaki snorted, instantly knowing he meant Welf. "What? Jealous I actually speak with more people than you?" Drake didn't answer; instead he just stared at her, or rather, he was focused a little over her head.

"…" her eye narrowed, realization came shortly after as she ran her hand through her face. "Son of a-" she sighed, her hand covered part of her face in exasperation. "What does the mighty and all-knowing Darkness say about me?"

"I think you are smart and realist enough to figure it out." She sent a glare his way, but said nothing as she started to think.

Drake had brought up the subject of Welf Crozzo, someone he had never seen until today; all the blonde knew about him before that was from him and Hephaestus, which was not much really. But she knew this whole subject was related to him, so…

'What is the first thing that pops into my head when the name Welf Crozzo comes to mind… that's easy.'

"Frustration." She replied within a heartbeat, but Drake simply stared at her. She raised her eyebrow seeing his silence only indicated it wasn't it.

"What else could it be? Asshole has a better understanding of Magic Weapons than even me. Make no mistake, I can also make them, but not like him." She started to rant, taking a sip from her bottle of sake before continuing. "And he doesn't use that fucking talent because of his stupid pride. I get it, everyone is justified to not do something if they don't feel like it, but he's just being a little bitch with his reason for not using them." She started to rub the side of her head, her eye closed in frustration. "All because he has spirit blood in his veins, meanwhile I had to bust my ass off learning from zero everything I know about magic weapons and it seems like child's play compared to his work…" Tsubaki sighed, and stared back at Drake, who looked like he was waiting for something despite having the same passive glance as before in his eyes.

Her own words started to sink in her mind, a groan escaped her lips in realization. "… You can't be serious."

"I am afraid that's the case." He replied, staring at the word 'Jealously' above Tsubaki's head.

She slammed her face on the table, groaning internally as acceptance sank in her mind .

"Despite showing signs of complaint, you are accepting this rather easily." Drake remembered how almost everybody would deny their own emotions, despite the blonde telling them what they really felt on the inside.

"I am a grown-ass woman, Drake." Tsubaki stated, mentally facepalming in the process seeing she accepted the fact she was old. "Besides, you can't lie. And the Darkness pretty much shows everyone's true emotions… might as well just accept it instead of throwing a temper tantrum."

He pressed his lips and waved his head from side to side, seeing no flaw in her logic.

"It just isn't fair. Here I am trying my hardest, but there are always some people who are blessed… literally in this case." She stared at him. "His ancestor received blood from a spirit. I am pretty sure they are nothing compared to the ones from your world; like comparing a well forged blade with a godly construct. But still, they are the closest thing there's to our world's divinity. So, compared to me, it would be like a messed up product." She sighed in resignation.

He understood her.

After all, Drake had not been that open the night following the incident with the Abnormal Goliath. Even if she didn't tell him her life story, she did talk about her.

'To be the best. To reach the domain of Gods.'

His memory of Tsubaki's ambitions came to mind. And in all honesty, he couldn't help but respect her for that. A mortal that wanted to surpass the work of divinity.

She had been fairly drunk by that point in the night. But had she not been in that state, she would have remembered Drake giving her a kind and honest smile.

"Fear not the man who has practiced 10000 Artes once, but fear the man who has practiced one single Arte 10000 times."

She raised an eyebrow amused. "One of your many Masters' teachings?"

"They all thought the same. After all, Artes tend to become stronger the more you use them."

Tsubaki snorted as she rested her face down on the table.

"Your experience is something ginger will never get, Tsubaki. A wise guy once said 'Hard work betrays none, but dreams betray many. Working hard alone doesn't assure you that you'll achieve your dreams. Actually, there are more cases where you don't. Even so, working hard and achieving something is some consolation at the very least.'"

"If you are trying to make me feel better, you are doing a terrible job with it." she groaned, thinking who would be cynical enough to think like that.

"However," She heard him reply, waiting for the rest. But instead, all she got was the feeling that something hit her head.

She quickly raised her head and rubbed the top of it before staring at what was thrown at her, a yellow book.

"What the fuck, man!?" she exclaimed as she picked the book up. "Why the fuck are… are you throwing me this…" her rage died down as she read the cover of the book.

"Divine/Spirit/Angelic/Demonic Runes for dummies by Drake Aurion." She read the title of the book with a critical view.

"As I was saying," he cleaned his throat. "I am never gonna let my friends' dreams be something they can't achieve."

Her hands started to tremble a little as he continued.

"Of course, only because you have the knowledge doesn't mean it's gonna come easy." His eyes narrowed. "This is the same knowledge my brother learned as he grew up, and then drilled down into my head; not some stupid inheritance that makes you do some stupid shit by default."

Drake was angrier at the memory of his brother's intensive bootcamp than the fact Welf Crozzo got his skill handed down to him.

"Why?" Tsubaki asked in a low voice, carefully reading the details on each of Drake's notes for her. "I thought you said you weren't awakening my Aura, or that the materials needed to teach me anything you had couldn't be found in this world. And let's not forget the fact that you were rather reluctant to the whole idea in the first place."

He nodded. "I did say that, and I am still pretty fucking doubtful about this. However, my brothers, in their infinite wisdom-"

'You are welcome bro.' The blonde almost cursed Zelos's name the moment he heard his voice.

"-made me realize I was being a crappy friend by not helping you as much as you had been helping me." He smiled.

"That's not true." She replied. He had been going Dungeon diving and gathering materials for her, solemnly for her. And he even got her a new rare drop than no one else had.

Drake had been a friend from the beginning.

"As for my reluctancy," he snorted. "You said it yourself, you are a grownass woman; I think you are old enough to be responsible with this knowledge."

Her eye was still glued to the book's contents, but she still flipped him off nonchalantly.

"As for the tools you are gonna need," she looked up to see Drake rubbing the side of her neck. "I am gonna need to make them… which is gonna be a fucking pain by the way."

'Literally.' He thought to himself as he stood up.

"In the meantime, study that shit as if it were your bible."

"The hell is a bible?" she asked in honest confusion, making him facepalm before shaking his head. "I am going for a glass of water, want something?"

She waved him away, focusing once more on the book as he left.

'How to combine Runes. Absorbing Runes. Elemental Runes. Enhancing Runes.' Her eye went through every page to have a quick idea of its contents, an exciting smile starting to form on her face… until she stopped at a certain page, making her look shift into complete shock.

"Draconic Attribute Runes." She read out loud, her eye quickly reading the content under the title. This could harm Drake in the same level her 'Dragon Slayer' Skill could.

Tsubaki Collbrande frowned.

Drake really wasn't holding anything back for her with this, knowing full well she could forge something that could harm him.

'He really, and truly wants me to succeed.'

His steps broke her out of her pondering, making her carefully close and place the book on the table before she stood up.

"Hey," she got his attention as he drank from a wooden glass. "I know you are rather sensitive to touch due to the whole rapey experience." He raised an eyebrow as she continued to approach him, until she was close enough to embrace him with her arms. "But please bear it for a moment."

It was for a mare instant, but a shock of electricity ran down her body; but she still didn't let go. They stayed for that for a moment, as Drake started to raise his trembling hands little by little until he was finally able to return the hug in kind.

"… What brought this up?" he asked in a low tone, completely forgetting the fact he had dropped his glass after Tsubaki's stunt.

"I am not the type of easy woman that would run into a man's arm to feel comfort." She replied, in the same tone as him. "However, no one has ever given me anything, let alone lend me a helping hand like you have today."

'Not even Hephaestus.' Her Goddess had imparted every little bit of knowledge she had about being a blacksmith with her years ago. However, what it was taught to her was fairly limited.

"So… thank you."

He couldn't help but chuckle. "Wonder why everyone I know can't appreciate my help in a less corny way."

Now she snorted. "What? One of your brothers pulled this crap too?"

He rolled his eyes. "At least you aren't crying."

'… fuck you, Drake. One hundred and fifty percent fuck you.' Luke complained, making him internally chuckle.

'Then again.' She started to think. 'Knowing how far he's willing to go for someone, it's not a surprise.'

"Hey…" her tone became somber, but there was absolute determination in her voice. "Do you need help with what you are gonna pull later?"

His eyes softened a little. "Not really… although… you wouldn't happen to have a pair of shovels, do you?"

"… Do I want to know?"

Silence was all the answer she needed, and it continued that way until an idea came to her mind.

"You know," he could feel her usual smile creeping on her face.

"Don't you fucking dare to ruin the moment."

"If you were shorter, your face would be right in my breasts." He groaned. "I think it wouldn't be too uncomfortable if you kneeled a little."

He sighed. "It was good while it lasted." He replied, an amused smile gracing his face.


Drake had been right.

Despite all her efforts to keep the incident at the lake in Rivira a secret, a simple slip of the tongue marked her as the 'Perverted Genocidal Elf' between her closest friends in the Hostess… and Mia.

The Dwarf almost died of laughter when she heard the reason as to why Ryuu had passed out. They didn't know the whole story, just the fact that the Elf had seen Drake naked while taking a bath.

That was enough for all of them to mark her for the rest of her life.

However, when asked about what was happening with the blonde's attitude, the owner of the pub ordered to stop mid-explanation. When asked why by her and the rest, she replied 'The less I know, the better.'

It looked like Mia was able to piece the puzzle together without all the detail, and she was right, the less she knew the better. Because, right now she was heading towards the location of the Aeshma mansion.

It was way past midnight; she hadn't been able to sleep. Not only because she couldn't stop thinking about the atrocities Aeshma was doing, but also how and what Drake would do.

Yes.

It wasn't a matter of if, just how.

'… It looks like I was too late.' She thought to herself. The Elf looked from a building afar at various members of the Ganesha Familia near the entrance of the area. There were also members of what she guessed was Aeshma Familia, spotting the purple haired woman that came into the pub recently, confirmed it.

Most of its members were female, while the only few males one were young, pretty damn young.

Her eyes narrowed as she finally spotted Shakti speaking with a black dressed man with red hair wearing a weird kind of black glasses and a pair of horns coming out from each side of his forehead.

'Who would wear those in the middle of the night?' Ryuu couldn't help but ask before shaking the idea away. The Elf went around the mansion and quickly found an open window on the second floor to sneak in.

She carefully and silently started to walk through the halls, not wanting to alert Ganesha Familia or anyone inside of her presence. She did however start to slow down as the distinctive smell of blood reached her nose.

Little by little she approached what she figured out was Aeshma's personal chambers, stains of blood visible everywhere on her way. However, despite the incredible amount of blood at the place, there wasn't a single piece of flesh present.

The Elf slowly opened the door at the end of the hall, finding herself a bigger display of blood through the whole room.

She couldn't help but sigh as she fully went in with a single thought in mind.

'Just what did you do, Drake?'


So, Leo Valdez from the Percy Jackson series, a demigod son of Hephaestus. I needed some OC for a subplot in the future (still debating whatever to do it or not). Also, the character Drake spoke with that's part of Hephaestus Familia, is supposed to be another character from the same series.

Finally, next is the last chapter of what I would consider a Volume, then followed by an interlude.