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Triggers: Injury, Hurt/Comfort

Published: 07/05/2024

Chapter 7:
Taking Back Trust

Happy to be able to bring the priest down to a reasonable level, Yusuke hoped for him to stay that way. The yelling outside continued and he knew the hunter had taken Kurama's place on top of the stairs, right in front of the door.

"This world is cruel, Yusuke," Kurama said suddenly. "If only she were a male, she'd been seen as a wizard, and received some form of respect."

Yusuke looked at him, his eyes were locked on the doors, the hunter's voice ringing loudly on the other side. "He's manipulating them…"

"I can't let this slide," Kurama grumbled.

"Then fight." Yusuke budded in.

Turning towards him with an expression of shock, Kurama lowered his voice just above a whisper. "Do you know how bad it'll be if I attack a monster hunter hired by the people?! They believe him now, he has forced his way to their trust. To them, he saved them from an evil being. If I were to attack him, I would be seen as insane and siding with evil."

Holding the cross between his fingers, Yusuke scoffed softly. "They trust him and that's how he's trying to get to you?"

"He'll be trying to pitch them against me."

"What does he want from you?"

"Power. You don't believe he's doing this for money, do you?" Scoffing softly, Kurama straightened his back. "Money doesn't get you anywhere here, everyone works within a trading system."

"No money?" Yusuke gave a small chuckle as he shook his head. "So why are there 'rich' cities when no one works with money?"

"Because their priests haven't fallen." Kurama clenched his jaw. "Priests in power stay in that position without any fail until they have appointed and trained a successor. When trust in a priest falters, so does the entire trust between inhabitants. Distrust causes the collapse of a city."

"I think I understand," Yusuke grumbled thoughtfully.

"I got to find a way to turn all of this back." Kurama sat down, his head in his hands as he started to think.

There was silence, only Hiei's voice and the continuous crackle of wood and fire were audible from the other side of the door.

"Let him attack you," Yusuke spoke suddenly.

"What?!"

"Cuss him out or something, anger him, let him attack you," Yusuke said nonchalantly.

"I don't have enough spirit energy to deflect an attack from him."

"You don't have to."

Kurama looked at him, mouth agape as he tried to process Yusuke's plan. "You want him to kill me. I see how it is now, you want me dead but you don't want to do it yourself. Is that it?"

"No! Not at all." Yusuke sat down next to him. "Listen, if he hurts you, he has hurt the one everyone looks up to. If he as much as scratches you, I'm sure his power over them will dwindle again."

"This is not going to work. He doesn't 'scratch' anything. He either kills or not pursue at all."

"So what? Last time someone did a number on you, the entire town armed up to make sure you were getting back on your feet as soon as possible. Besides, you got a better plan?"

"That someone was you, Yusuke."

"Does that matter? They didn't see me or else I would've already been dead by now. Imagine them seeing their hired hunter use violence against the person they hired the hunter for!"

Kurama stood suddenly. "Maybe you have a point. I will give this a try."

"You will?" Yusuke joined him as he walked towards the door. "I will try to protect-"

"You will not mingle into this matter. If someone needs to keep a low profile, it should be you." Kurama cut him off before throwing the doors open.

Hiei turned in surprise as they exited. Yusuke kept his head low, hiding behind Kurama's physique again as he acted like a good student.

Refusing to step down from the platform, Hiei stared Kurama down with a haunting look. "So the priest has returned. Were you feeling squeamish, sir?" He said mockingly.

"Get off of my property," Kurama said coldly. "You're staining the marble with your trickery."

"You want to talk about trickery? Then let's start with the biggest trickster of all." Hiei grumbled as he got closer to Kurama.

Yusuke felt his heart race, was he talking about him? Had he found out? There would be no way for him to sense him, his powers haven't manifested yet and without that awakening, he'd blend in with no problem regarding energy signatures. But the hunter didn't spare him a glance, he was trying to square up to the priest. Despite his lack in the height department, he still managed to garner a feeling of threat.

"I'll say it again," Kurama said in a very calm manner. "You're overstepping your bounds, step down from here, I don't want you near me."

"Oh no? Why not?"

"I rather not mingle with people who have no sense of honor." Kurama presented him with the stairs. "You're hired to work for the people, you are above no one."

A sense of pride flowed through Yusuke's conscious, the way Kurama was speaking to this hunter was with such confidence that he wouldn't dare intervene. He knew the priest was strong, even without his energy.

How one could replenish their energy depended on the kind of energy they wield. With Kurama, it would probably be connected to rest whereas Yusuke's was replenished with blood.

The hunter gritted his teeth as he still refused to step down from the platform. "And what are you going to do about it?" He whispered. "You have no energy left, or have you forgotten that I've drained you of everything you had?"

"I didn't forget. But I don't need mana to use force." Kurama hummed.

Keep your cool! He's trying to anger you. Yusuke thought as he eyed them from his position. The small hunter wasn't backing down and the frown lines between his brows were a sign of pending anger. It wouldn't be long until he'd lash out.

"I will show you force." Hiei spat at him.

"You're not here to help the people, are you?" Kurama questioned his motives, effectively making the hunter enraged. "You're a priest killer, aren't you? An exorcist of sorts?"

"I am here to help them, though that is just a small reward of the job."

"You're here to kill me."

Hiei looked around at the townspeople, they were rummaging amongst the rubble as the fire had died down, fishing for valuables and cleaning any leftovers. They were somehow perfectly coordinated.

"What's stopping you?" Kurama folded his hands behind his back. "Or are you afraid they will fire you? If you really believe them to be suffering under my supposed control, then do something about it."

"You dare question my abilities?"

Kurama knew he was going to pay for this physically but it would be needed for him to gain some form of upper hand. Yusuke was right, one of the people had already defended him when the hunter first appeared, and they would do it again. "I can't judge what I haven't seen yet."

That was the last drop in the bucket, though Hiei seemed to try and keep his cool as he walked away.

He had just reached the burned pile of wood when Kurama placed a nail in his coffin. "Return to your master, beg for him to forgive your incompetence."

Hiei's sword found itself embedded between Kurama's ribs within a second after the words left his mouth.

"I see…" Kurama muttered as he merely eyed the hilt of the katana. It was thrown, with enough speed to pierce right through him, the guard pressing against the fabric of Kurama's cloak.

Yusuke was unable to react in time. No, he wasn't able to react at all! Kurama stood calmly, the back of the sword stained red. Searching for words, Yusuke's hands started hovering as his jaw opened and closed without a single sound.

Allowing his gaze to scan over the crowd, he saw realization reach the people as they barraged the hunter, apprehending him. Overpowered by sheer number, the hunter's struggles were short-lived.

"Ku… Shui… Fa…" All his names crossed Yusuke's mind but he didn't dare finish them. He didn't know what kind of vitals the sword had pierced but hearing the raspy breathing of the priest, he suspected for the lung to be punctured. He feared for his well-being, completely out of energy, still not fully recovered from what he had done to him, and his heart was beating out of his chest.

Wanting to help him, Yusuke took a few steps forward only to be stopped as the priest raised his hand, it traveled to the grip of the sword. He slowly and steadily pulled and maneuvered the sword out of his body, only allowing for a low groan to escape his throat. "Take him to the catacombs," Kurama ordered as the sword clattered on the marble tiling, staining the whites with red patches.

His stomach reacted to the scent of the blood. He held his hand in front of his nose and mouth to cancel out the smell which had become so intoxicating to him.

The people holding their hired hunter walked past him, Hiei didn't kick and scream, seemingly accepting he wouldn't be able to fight against their quantity. He knew he lost the little amount of trust he had gained.

One of the women approached Kurama, careful not to touch him. "Let the apothecary look at it."

"She can't, now can she?" Kurama grumbled as he gestured towards the pile of burned wood and ash. Yusuke saw he was having trouble speaking, swallowing multiple times as he finished his sentence. "Please don't make yourself worry, it's but a scratch. It didn't hit anything important."

…

"I'm sorry for proposing this plan…" Yusuke muttered as he wrung the cloth out into the bucket of water, staining it red the more he repeated his action of wetting, blotting, wringing.

"Why are you sorry? It worked, didn't it?" Kurama sighed as he prepared himself for another round of placing unnecessary pressure on the piercing wound.

Pausing for a minute, Yusuke stood to head towards the door, dumping the bucket of red outside and replacing it with clean water. Once returning, he was displeased with the sight of the priest trying to get up. "You should really stay down this time."

Wringing out a clean cloth, he pressed him back down as he pushed the cloth on the wound. He hissed, laying back down as he covered his eyes with his arm.

"You are the most stubborn priest I've met, that's for sure." Yusuke examined him as he lifted the cloth. The bleeding had mostly halted but the sword had completely pierced him.

"I'm also the first priest to be nice to you." Kurama sighed, then shivered at the touch of the cold cloth.

Without a single word, Yusuke forced Kurama on his side. It was insensitive, he knew that. The sound coming from the priest was a testament to the amount of pain it caused him. "He skewered you, it went completely through."

"Oh really? I didn't notice that." Kurama didn't protest as Yusuke continued blotting on the other side.

"You pulling it out didn't do it any good either, you should've let it be until someone else could pull it out straight." He tutted.

"And walk around with a blade stuck between my ribs and poking out of my back? No, thank you." His voice was getting softer.

Yusuke knew his depleted energy and another injury didn't make anything easier on him, he would fall into a deep sleep sooner rather than later. "The catacombs, where are they?"

It took a few seconds for Kurama to answer, his eyes falling shut, making it difficult to keep them open. "Underneath the chapel."

"And he can't escape?" Yusuke applied extra pressure to ensure he'd be awake for a bit longer.

"No." The priest's short reply concerned Yusuke, he could fall asleep, but not now.

"What if he uses those flames again?"

"Catacombs are under my spell," Kurama whispered. "No energy can be used there."

"What are you planning with the hunter?"

No reply came, he'd been too exhausted to speak again and it wasn't long after when he fully relaxed. Yusuke understood that he needed to rest in order to recover his energy. He was glad no vitals were damaged as he had feared a punctured lung. However, his fears were misplaced. Kurama had explained to him that he had concentrated his mana around his vital organs, guiding the blade right past all of them.

There was no mistaking that Hiei had deliberately chosen the woman with a large and important role within the community. An apothecary who healed the priest after his attack and had made conversation with Yusuke quite often.

Tonight, he'd stay with the priest, he didn't dare leave his side. Not for fear of him suddenly passing, but for the clanking noises coming from the chapel's basement, the catacombs.

See you in the next one!