And back with Chapter 6.
Going over this old fight was fun.
I love writing action scenes, after all.
And I can see that my old self from months ago really tried his best, as I did not need to correct more than 2 words or so regarding that fight near the end of the Chapter.
Anyway, that's about enough of that for now.
Hope you enjoy reading or re-reading the Chapter.
Kay bye.
XXX
Two days have passed since his trip down into the 26th Floor. Naturally, his punishment was still in effect, and he could neither train nor dwell into the Dungeon. It had been very...unsettling for him.
Fuzen had trained for as long as he could remember, from as young as when he was three years of age. He had held a sword, wooden or otherwise, for as long as he could remember. One just had to looks at his hands to realize he was not lying: corns and callous were spread on his palms and fingers from countless hours of swinging and training with a sword.
It was thus no surprise that having to take a break had been very strange to him. He wanted to talk back to his Goddess, and ask to be allowed to do so. However, he knew it would be futile: his Captain and Goddess had already made up their minds, and they would not flinch.
Almost as if they were plotting against him, trying to hinder him from grasping the heavens…
Fuzen could also simply train in secret, but...that would not do.
He would be too ashamed of himself. After all, that would mean going against punishment, which was meant to correct his wrongdoings. All he could do was endure it. Tomorrow, he could train again.
And boy, was he going to go all out...
For today, however, he simply decided to mediate and temper himself mentally. He began early, at the same time he would normally start his training, just as the sun began to rise. It had been a good day for meditation so far: the sun was warm and welcoming, it's warmth embracing all who stood in it's light, the grass beneath him was soft and still damp with morning dew and the wind was gentle and ever lasting. Truly, it had been a good time to mediate.
Had.
That was the word to describe it.
Had been.
"Come on, fight me!" The girl yelled again, this time even closer to to his ear. She had been pestering him for the better part of fifteen minutes now. How someone could be this...unbearable, he could not figure out.
It was fine though, he would simply continue ignoring her, as he had done so far. Twenty seconds passed, then forty. Just after the one minute mark, she had enough of being ignored. "Fight me!"
"Gahh-!" Her scream had been so close to him ear, Fuzen was certain she had destroyed his left eardrum. "Stop!-...yelling in my ear, Tiona-sama."
"No." She replied immediately. "How can you half-kill a Monster Rex at only Level 2?"
"I'm quite certain that's none of your business, Tiona-sama." Fuzen shot back, still holding a hand over his pulsing ear and the pain within. "Now, if you will, I want to go back to meditate."
"I won't stop pestering you until you either fight me or tell me." The cooper skinned Amazon replied with determination.
"...I won't tell just anyone the secrets of the Lighting Sword Style, Tiona-sama." Fuzen informed as he just barely managed to hold his eyebrow from twitching. Was there really a person alive who thought such secrets would be discussed openly?..."And secondly, even if I wanted to fight you, and that's a big if, Tiona-sama, I cannot as my punishment is still in effect. Please try again tomorrow."
"No!" From behind him, Tiona wrapped her arms around his neck, and held him in a lock... "Who cares about punishment and all that?! Fight me now!" ...and without any sort of hesitation, she bit into his ear.
It took a lot of self-discipline out of him to not scream at the sudden pain, and now without hesitation himself he grabbed the Amazon under the arm pit and threw her in front of him, her butt making a loud Thump sound as it hit the hard, cold ground. "Auch…"
"…! Tiona-sama, I will say this one time, and one time only: do that again and I will cut you." The boy stated, holding his now reddened ear.
"...But, I did manage to make you fight me." She said with a smile, almost as if proud of her achievement. "You said no fighting, but you threw me. That counts as fighting."
"No, it simply counts as self-defence against irritating girls." He hissed through his teeth while trying to calm his ever-growing anger.
"Come on, just fight me already, you wuss." She jumped back to her feet, facing the much shorter boy. "You can take on that kind of Monster but you can't fight a girl?"
"...Your taunts will do you no good, Tiona-sama. My punishment still is in effect. Not to mention you are not just a girl. You are a Level 5 Adventurer."
"...Tsk…" She tsked in disappointment. "I just wanted to compare our power. Ever since you joined, you just trained here all on your own, without even talking to the rest of us, looking all lonely...Don't you ever want to just...hang out with someone?"
Was that the impression he gave them? Lonely? He was most certainly not lonely. Why she thought of him like that, he did not know. But...had he truly not interacted with the rest of the Familia…?
...I certainly did a lot of training, shooing everyone away who came to talk to me besides the Captain...As a newcomer, am I being rude? But this is how it's been in my last Familia...
He had a vague idea about how a Familia worked, to say the least. Though he had been blessed by the God Hachiman before he came to Orario, he...did not have a Familia, per say.
Warriors and those who desired to become warriors came to him all the time, and if they proved worthy and passed his trials, Hachiman granted them his Blessing. He was a fair God, and supported those who sought strength if they could prove worthy of it. Still, most people who came to him either left soon after, being deemed unworthy warriors, or proved worthy, gained the Blessing of the God of Warriors, and then walked on to seek higher challenges that would elevate them to even greater heights. They would return from time to time for regular Updates, but besides that…
I have lived most of my life with Hachiman-sama and my Mistress only. Is it rude to not talk and interact with other members of one's Familia…? As long as we all stay out of each other's way, I thought it would be enough…
"...Fine. One minute." He said after many seconds of pondering on the words of his senior.
"Really?!"
"Yes. However, I will not fight. I will not attack you."
"...Wait, what?"
"I shall avoid all of your attacks. If you land one single attack on me, you win. If I avoid everything for one minute, you lose. Will that satisfy you?"
"...Hmmm, it will do!" The Amazon exclaimed happily, already taking a fighting stance. "So I just try to touch you, right?"
"Yes. Give me a second…" He relaxed his body as he drew the sword at his hip, inhaling and exhaling to change his breathing rhythm. It took a couple of seconds until he felt ready enough to dodge a Level 5 Adventurer, and then gestured for the Amazon girl to attack.
Not one second later, she appeared in front of him, fist ready to punch his head off his shoulders. He knew that using big movements would only sap away at his stamina, and he would need a lot of said stamina to dodge a Level 5 for one minute. As such, Fuzen decided on small steps and movements. With a single side step, he allowed the punch to slip by his head.
However, he noticed from the minute movements of the Amazon's core that the attack was not ready. She was pulling her right side back...which meant she tried to pull back her arm. Fuzen lowered his body by bending his knees and felt the girl's arm rush past where his head was just a moment ago.
Tsk.
Now aware that the girl would not simply attack frontally as he initially believed, Fuzen took a step back. Tiona did not let him do so, and also dashed forward with a frontal right kick.
...This girl does understand that one such kick could kill me if it landed...right?
He side-stepped to the right, and just then he noticed the Amazon using her left leg to jump and kick towards him with the same leg. She was truly nimble and fast, he would give her that much. He could not jump back, his current position would not allow it. The only option he had was to once again duck and slide under the kick. Once the leg whooshed past him with incredible force, he took a step back again. Tiona was also thinking ahead, however, and twisting her body mid-air she landed on all four before lunging forward, one knee ready to strike Fuzen in the gut.
A flying knee...She really is trying to kill me, sigh...However, I am thankful.
He could use this to his advantage, after all. As soon as Tiona was within his space, he raised his left leg and placed his foot on her knee, using the incredible force behind her own attack to jump some couple of meters backwards, gaining a good distance between him and the Amazon. She looked in awe, at least for a moment, before dashing towards him at full speed.
Some twenty seconds had already passed, one third done, two-thirds left.
Tiona proved to be quite the challenge. Going by her personality, he thought she would simply throw a lot of punches hoping one would hit him in the end, but all her actions were linked.
He was truly impressed.
Now, how to hold on for the next forty-something seconds…? Only one way. Forward.
He also rushed forward, to intercept Tiona. A confusing tactic which also worked on the Amazon in question: he said he would not attack, so why would he get closer to her?
Why, to throw off his opponents movements, of course.
By looking at her core, he could tell she wanted to use kicks again, however because he now closed the distance between them, that was no longer an option. Tiona also knew this, thus she planted her feet on the ground, her brute Strength sufficient enough on it's own to cancel the inertia brought by her speed, and then she pulled her arm back, throwing a straight punch in his direction. He threw his head to the side, right foot up front while the left leg was behind, ready to jump back if he needed to.
Tiona drew her arm back, and then a flurry of punches followed: straight, jab, jab, hook, uppercut, haymaker, one-two, jab again, one-two, uppercut, punch, punch, punch, hook again.
One by one, Fuzen dodged them all, however he could not lie: it did take everything from him to keep up with the speed of the Level 5's punches. His strength lay in finishing a fight as fast as possible: extended fights were truly not his strong point, especially with his current, weak self.
As he focused every ounce of his strength into his eyes to allow himself to keep up, he tried to read Tiona's next move by reading her body movements and what they would lead to. And then, he realized what she was planning.
Ohh, you got to be kidding me…
As he face-palmed mentally, Tiona jumped with both legs upwards and drew her knees to her chest.
A dropkick, really? She truly is trying to kill me...Sigh...
Tiona pushed forward, confident that Fuzen could not dodge: he was both too close and his footing had been disturbed by her flurry of punches, no longer able to dodge to the sides.
I win!...Wait, isn't he going to die?
Her legs extended, and then...she kicked at nothing. Just air, as Fuzen was no longer before her, nor below her. As she questioned where the boy disappeared, she fell down, her butt taking the brunt of the fall, which was quite painful. And so, laying there on the ground facing upwards, she saw him.
Fuzen.
Roughly ten meters high in the air.
"...Times up. I win." He informed as he began to spin in the air, decreasing the speed at which he would fall. Nonetheless, he still landed on the ground with a loud and powerful Thump. "...Were you, perchance, trying to kill me?" He asked as he sheathed his sword, having not used it at all during the spar but it's importance having played the biggest part in his victory.
"Uhh...Tehe~?" She played dumb, trying to ease the situation with a smile, hands behind her.
Another man might have thought her cute.
Fuzen, as a boy, did not.
"...Tiona-sama, you need to learn to keep your power under control."
"Sorry, sorry~ Still, you won! I'm not even mad about it, your moves were something else!" The Amazon exclaimed excitedly, the fire in her eyes burning even hotter than before. "How are you even doing it at just Level 2?!"
"...As I said before, that is a secret. If you were a disciple of the Lightning Sword Style, mayhaps I could tell you." He informed, then shrugged. "Alas, you are not."
"Then let me be one! I want to get stronger, too!" Tiona blurted out, but all she got from Fuzen was a blank, unreadable expression in return.
"...Only the Lighting Sword Style Master can decide who is worthy to learn our secrets." He explained to his Familia comrades, arms crossed around his chest. "I am not the Master, only the appointed Successor. And my Mistress is...not taking any other disciples right now. Also, she's all the way back in the Far East, so there's that."
"Aww, I really wanted to...Guess asking you nicely won't work?"
"No."
"Fine, fine, keep your secrets...So anyway, did you have fun?" She asked, and Fuzen needed a moment to process what she just asked.
Fun?
He agreed to spar with her because he didn't want to be rude, even if it was Tiona and she didn't really deserve it after screaming in his ear. However, fun?
He didn't really understood what she meant by it. He actually even read about it a day ago after Loki had tasked him with trying to have fun: fun was described as enjoyment, amusement or light-hearted pleasure. Did he have fun having an Amazon scream in his ear? No. Did he enjoy almost getting kicked to death? No. Did he have fun wasting time not training and grasping the heavens? No.
So naturally, there was only one answer he could give. "No, I did not have fun, whatever you mean by it."
The cooper-skinned Amazon gazed at him, and Fuzen felt uncomfortable for the whole duration of being observed, which ended with Tiona doing what he would never expect of her. She shook her head. "You really are sad."
He felt his eyebrow twitch at her words. Sad? He thought he was...sad? "...I am most certainly not sad, Tiona-sama."
"But you are." She replied. "Only training, you don't know any fun, you don't do anything else. Isn't that kinda...sad? Isn't there anything else important in my life? What does strength matter if you don't have some fun once in a while?"
Oh really? Is that so?
"Tiona-sama." He took a step closer to her, barely a meter apart now. His eyes met hers, and he didn't hesitate nor did he think about his next words. "Do you mayhaps believe I say I'm going to grasp the heavens just for this so called fun of yours? You wanted to know why I am so strong at only Level 2? Fine, I'll tell you." He was five years older than her, and also roughly half a head shorter than her.
However, in that moment, she saw something in the boy's eyes that made her take a step back: the obsession of a madman. "It's because I'm going above and beyond to reach that which I seek. I'm ready to get hurt, and suffer, and train until I collapse from the strain only to continue training even while unconscious. I'm ready to give everything I have to reach my goal. I'm ready to die for my goal. That is the bare minimum requirment to even be at the starting line when one's goal is as high as mine own."
"T-that's not what I-"
He cut her off before she could finish, taking another step closer to her, now barely inches away from her face. "And do you know why I'm ready to die in order to grasp the heavens? Because if I don't, nothing matters anyway."
"...I-I'm sorr-"
"So if that means I'm going to look sad and boring in the eyes of unmotivated people like you, Tiona-sama, then so be it: I'll be as sad and boring as I need to be. That is the reason why I am stronger than you, and you are weaker than me. Forget my Sword Style's secrets, and forget the difference in our Levels. That is the sole reason you are weaker than me."
"…"
"...We are done here. If you will excuse me, I don't want to get in the way of your...fun." He looked away, no longer interested in keeping eye contact with his senior, and walked back inside the Manor. His meditations had been ruined by both the Amazon and his own lack of self-restraint. He needed to be anywhere but...there.
"...I'm sorry."
XXX
She leaned back in the chair, and enjoyed the peace and quiet which now enveloping the Twilight Manor. Most of her Familia were out of their home, either on Quests or doing small-scale expeditions in the Dungeon. Apparently, Finn complained a while ago that Aki simply showed up in his office and asked to be allowed to go on an expedition in the Lower Floors. She had to help him with the logistics, as it was too sudden for him to finish alone in a single day.
And now, with the energetic members away, she could finally enjoy a bit of peace, leisurely enjoying her tea while reading a new book by a favourite author of hers. This time around, his new book encompassed his adventure to the northern part of the world, and his findings there.
Truly fascinating.
For a good hour, she had been alone in their Manor's study room, mostly resembling a small library than just some normal study room. Then, the doors opened and Fuzen walked in.
"...Ah. Alf-sama. I apologize, I did not wish to disturb you." As soon as he saw her, his head bowed low and he backtracked.
As he always did.
...This is really ticking me off..."Fuzen, come back."
"Uhh, no. I just...got lost. Yes, indeed. I have no business here."
"Come. Back. Now."
Luckily for Riveria, she did not need to repeat herself and the boy finally stepped back inside the study room, closing the door behind him. "As I was saying, don't let me intervene with your task here. You wish to learn something, yes?"
"Uh, yeah. I mean, yes. Apologies. I will simply...go over there." He bowed again, and dashed to the other side of the room, focusing on finding the book he came for.
...He's even worse than the Elves…The High Elf sighed mentally. One of the many reasons she rarely had peace of mind was the Elves behaviour around her.
Even though she was royalty, why was it this hard for people to understand she did not seek to be venerated nor did she wish for special treatment? Her mind could not comprehend this, even after ninety-seven years of being alive. It was one thing when only Elves behaved like that, but now even a Human boy does the same…
She wanted to shake him out of this behaviour, if for nothing else than her peace of mind, self-serving as that sounded. The thought of even a single member of another race venerating her like her kinsmen...she didn't want to think about it.
Her current social standing infuriated her enough as it was.
However, how could she make him less...humble towards her? Unlike Ais, who didn't hide the fact she was using Riveria, Finn and Gareth to her own advantage in order to get stronger when she first joined, the boy was too collected, too calm and socially uninterested in other people.
She didn't even knew why he was so polite to people in the first place, seeing how he never desired to spend time with anyone, nor did he try to gain something like knowledge or skills.
Riveria, after many months of observing the boy, came to the conclusion that people, Loki Familia included, were simply something either very foreign to the boy, or something he regarded with as much interest as one would regard furniture.
He greeted, he bowed, he answered when asked something and that was it.
All his interactions were just movements responding to his outside on something like a pre-written script: if he saw a person, he greeted them. If someone extended his hand, he would return the handshake. Nothing overly out of the ordinary, every person did it: however, there was no emotion nor intention behind those actions when Fuzen performed them: only response.
Truth be told, she found it slightly disturbing.
Maybe it was because as someone who grew up as a princess of the High Elves, she needed to learn to read people and the intentions behind their actions and words, something she unconsciously practiced even today after all those years away from her home.
...Still, I want to make him less humble towards me. Even Ais and Lefiya got over that wall, surely I can make him climb it, too...Hmm? During the time she was pondering, Fuzen had already found the book he was looking for and she recognized it by the cover alone: a common book describing the Amazon race and their history, as well as traits and other such peculiarities.
...Amazons? Why is he interested in them all of a sudden?
The boy sat down on the farthest table from her and opened the book, reading through it's content at lightning speed. Riveria decided to not disturb his reading session, and returned to her own book.
Twenty minutes passed, then forty-five, and then one hour. The two were reading in silence, until Fuzen broke said silence. "...This is not helpful at all…" He muttered silently, however Riveria's enhanced hearing picked it up just as well as if he were talking normally.
...This is my chance.
"Is there something you don't understand, Fuzen?" She asked him, putting her own book down. The boy looked at her with a blank expression for a mere moment before his eyes darted to the side, then shook his head vigorously.
"No such thing, Alf-sama. I am done, I shall leave now." He put the book back where he had found it and then almost ran out of the room. As always. He always ran away from Riveria when he saw her.
If she was in a room, he would run out of said room. If she walked down a corridor opposite of him, he would backtrack to the nearest exit and then run away.
Not this time.
"Stay." She ordered, and he froze in place upon hearing the command. "...Would you like some tea?" She quickly offered, realizing she had threatened the boy, as he looked like just waiting for her to continue saying Or else. "This tea pot keeps the tea warm by using a small Magic Stone inside as fuel for a heat-emitting magic."
"...Sounds like a very expensive tea pot, Alf-sama."
"...Anyway, would you like some tea?"
"...I...don't want to bother Alf-sama with such requests. I would rather just run- I mean, be on my way." He informed her, the run part not escaping Riveria's ears.
"I offered, did I not? As such, it is no such thing as a bother to me."
Fine, if he wanted to play the polite and logical game, she could play it too.
"...I understand. I gratefully accept your offer, then, Alf-sama." He bowed and then waited while standing as Riveria poured him a cup. Luckily, she had brought more cups with her, as many people, and by that she meant Loki, would bother her while she was reading and a cup of tea usually kept the Goddess calm for a short while. Once done she extended the cup to the boy, as well as a spoon and the jar of sugar cubes.
He looked at the sugar with an unreadable expression. Unknown to Riveria, he was having a great dilemma. A disciple of the Lightning Sword Style needed to mind their food as much as their training.
They needed to eat little, but the little needed to be a lot.
One sugar cube.
Indeed, they were taught to be minimalists, and to desire little.
Two sugar cubes.
Food was the exception. It was better to eat quality than simple quantity.
Three sugar cubes.
However, sugar was bad for the body, that he learned from the Founder's journal.
Four sugar cubes.
Sugar could lead to heart attacks, heart diseases, diabetes…
Five sugar cubes.
Strokes, excessive weight and much more. However, Riveria herself offered him tea, and he knew that westerners drank their tea with sugar, unlike the easterners and their bitter, green tea. This was a necessary sacrifice, in order to not show rudeness to Riveria.
Six sugar cubes.
Yes, it was a necessary sacrifice. Fuzen nodded confidently as he let the sixth and last sugar cube fall within his tea.
He...must really like sugar…
"I do not."
"…?!"
"Your expression was saying it all, Alf-sama. I do not like sugar."
"Then…?"
"It was a necessary sacrifice." He nodded again and then made his way to the table between the one he sat down at before, and the one Riveria was sitting at.
"…?" Without hesitation, Fuzen drank out of the cup, as if not noticing the blank stare the High Elf gave him. "...I am not going to bite you, Fuzen."
"I am quite aware, Alf-sama."
"It is rude to have a conversation over two tables, Fuzen." She informed, and he finally looked up at her.
"...We were having a conversation? I apologize, I did not notice, Alf-sama."
...Usually he runs away from me, so I barely had time to exchange ten sentence with him. Is...is this what Finn has to put with…?
"Exactly what part of the exchange of words between us failed to make you realize we were having a conversation, Fuzen?"
"...Everything, in fact." He replied with a confused expression. "I wished to leave the room. You threatened me to stay. You offered me tea, and I decided to accept in order to not be rude to Alf-sama. At the current moment, I am drinking said tea. Is there something I failed to comprehend? As far as I can see, we have never decided to have a... tête-à-tête. Alf-sama."
He's...surprisingly not wrong. No, before that, I am surprised he used that word. But, as I originally thought...he's devoid of interest in anything around him…
"...Is the prospect of having a conversation with me that uncomfortable to you?"
"Quite so, Alf-sama."
"...Why? I do not believe I have done anything to you."
"You are correct, Alf-sama. However, I simply do not enjoy the idea of having to talk to Alf-sama, in private least of all."
"...We have been having a conversation for the last couple of minutes. Has it truly been that horrific for you?"
"...Rude as it may be, I believe Alf-sama deserves the truth. It has, indeed, been quite uncomfortable for me."
"Why?"
"… I would rather not say."
"...Very well." Riveria nodded. She was far from giving up, but this looked like something she would need a lot more time to crack, time she did not have at the moment. "Then, back to the original reason as to why I stopped you."
"Hm?"
"You have been reading a book about the Amazon race, yes?"
"...Indeed."
"Then, what is it you were looking for specifically? I did hear you say something along the lines: this is not helpful at all. I believed you needed some sort of knowledge on them and I simply wished to lend my knowledge to you, if you so desire."
"...It is too foolish to bother Alf-sama with." He shook his head with a sigh.
"Why not try me? Even I can be foolish at times." Riveria replied, a faint smile directed at the boy. He was silent for many seconds, pondering on the thought. Then, finally, he nodded.
"I...have done...something foolish."
"Oh? And what might that be?"
"...Tiona-sama. I...uhh. I told her something bad. No, that's not right. I only said the truth. Uhh...Yes. I told her the truth. However, it was in...a bad way. Rude? Yes, I was rude to her. Very much so."
Riveria listened with great interest, for the first time seeing the boy conflicted about something. Almost as if he was opening up to her, which did bring a smile to her lips. "How so?"
"...She...uhh...Said I was sad and boring because I am trying to grasp the heavens and nothing else. I...got angry?"
Wait, does he...not know if he was angry? "...Why? What did you say to her?"
"I...told her the fun she kept talking about was a waste of time, and that I don't need distractions like that for the goal I have set for myself. I still think I was right." He nodded, more so to himself than Riveria. "Whatever fun is, it cannot allow me to grasp the heavens. I have no need for it. However, I also know that not all people are like me. Everyone has different...uhh...values? Yes, values. My values are not Tiona-sama's values. However, while I think I am still right, the way I went about it was...far from ideal. I did tell her the only reason she was weaker than me was because she chased fun, while I only engaged in that which allows me to reach my goal."
"I see." She nodded, going over the information she had received from Fuzen. It was truly fascinating for Riveria to finally be allowed a peak into the mind of her Familia's newest member. "As far as I can say, Tiona was indeed in the wrong."
"...You also believe so, Alf-sama?"
"Yes. It was foolish of her to try and push her own values on you. She should have not done so. You are you, and no one should try and change you for their benefit alone."
"…M-Mhm."
"While you were also wrong in your reply, at the very least, you understand your own mistakes and as I can clearly see now, are conflicted about them. If I know Tiona half as well as I believe to do, I doubt she is quiet as conflicted as you about her words and actions."
"Conflicted…? I...don't think I'm that good a person. I simply wish to apologize and make up for my mistakes. Conflicted...no, I'm not. I still think I am right, while she was wrong. A conflicted person would not feel this way."
Well...he's not wrong. Still, I'm amazed at his ability to self-reflect on his actions. Few could do so openly, as their ego and stubbornness would stop them from doing so.
"So you wish to apologize? Then, why were you reading a book about the Amazon race?" The High Elf asked. She could see little connection between trying to apologize and a history lesson on a race.
"A simply verbal apology...would not do. I was trying to see if the Amazons had some sort of...ritual, or ceremony, or something, in which they express their apology. If Tiona-sama was an easterner like myself, I could simply do a dogeza and rub my head against the ground in a display of apology. Alas, she is not, and if I had to explain my actions I believe it would downgrade the apology."
"Oh, so that's why you were reading about Tiona's race?"
"Quite so." He nodded, taking another sip of his tea. The conversation had been going on longer than Fuzen planned, and he was almost done with the refreshment. "Alas, I found nothing written about such a thing. Should….should I cut off my pinky finger and offer it to her as a sign of apology?"
Wait, what? The High Elf cringed at the question. Why would someone even do that?!
"...Why do you think that would be helpful?"
"I...don't know. I think I heard about such a practice in the Far East...Is it not good enough? Should I cut off the ring finger, too?"
"No! Of course not."
"Then, does Alf-sama know what apology is best to an Amazon?"
A good question, which Riveria had to think about. Amazons were strong-willed, and overall a head-strong race. However, Tiona was a special case even then. As such, the best answer would be..."Why not let your fists do the talking?"
Riveria suggested after a moment, a suggestion which confused Fuzen. He lifted his hands, and curled them into fists. "Y-You want me to...to beat her into submission?" The question was hilarious, so much so that the High Elf almost chocked on her tea, even more so because of Fuzen's pure shock at her words which showed on his face.
She had never seen his eyes ever go that wide before.
"Fuhuhu...That's not what I meant, Fuzen. Think about it this way: Amazons love fighting. As such, would the best apology not be letting your feelings known by fighting her?"
"Fighting her…? But I will win, nonetheless. Won't losing make her even more...frustrated?"
Well...it's a good thing I know he doesn't mean that in an arrogant way, or I would be forced to educate him…
"It is only a suggestion, Fuzen. Whatever she wins or loses is not the important factor. What's important is that she would see you took time off your training to spar with her. I think that action would speak more than a thousand words to her."
Fuzen lowered his head, a frown on his face. It seemed he was thinking hard about the implications of such an action. He would certainly lose valuable time he could use to train...but it did sound like a good idea. "I...see. I thank you, Alf-sama, for the insightful suggestion. I will think about this. Then, I shall now take my leave." He then rose to his feet, brining the cup back to Riveria.
"...Already running away?" She asked, and she noticed him flinch at the question. "Fuzen, I have been meaning to ask...but do you perhaps hate me? You always run away whenever you see me. Have I done something to you?"
Their eyes locked, emerald meeting hazel. Still, for all the practice she had from her upbringing, she could not gather anything from what Humans called the mirror of the soul. They continued staring at each other, neither of them saying anything. And then, after a long time of silence, Fuzen slowly began to tilt his head to the side with a gasp, his eyes going wide open in shock and surprise.
What? What happened? What is he looking at? Riveria questioned as she followed the direction he was looking towards: the wall to the left.
It was a simple wall, and nothing of interest on display whatsoever.
Then, why did he look so surprised upon looking there-
Whoosh!
Riveria felt a gush of wind run past her, accompanied by the sound of a door being kicked open. She looked back to where Fuzen stood just a second ago, and there was no trace of him.
Not one at all.
She looked towards the door with mouth agape, and she noticed how it swung back and forth.
One second passed.
Then two.
Then five.
Riveria rose to her feet so fast, the chair was thrown back. In an unusual display of anger she slammed her palms on the wooden table, hearing it creak from the force of her Level 6 Strength. "D-Did...Did that boy just trick me?!"
XXX
Ais had made up her mind: she was going to have Fuzen duel her right here and now
She had heard about the boy's punishment, and how he was not allowed to train or spar. She wished to honour this punishment, and decided on challenging him after his punishment was over, which would mean the next day. However, just a while ago she heard from Tione that Fuzen had a one minute spar with Tiona and defeated her at the rules they both agreed on.
If he had time to spar with Tiona, he had time to spar with her.
She had no doubt about that.
With determined steps, she was heading towards the study room. Bete told her while she was searching for him that he was last seen going that way.
She would challenge him.
And I will win!
As she made it to the first floor and walked down the corridor leading to the study room just a distance away ahead of her, she noticed the door being forcefully kicked open and stopped in her tracks.
Fuzen himself kicked the door open with a flying kick. As soon as his feet reached the ground he ran with incredible speed towards her. However, Ais could tell it was not his usual speed.
Did he know I was going to challenge him?! Her left hand grabbed the scabbard of her rapier, the right grasping the hilt. Is he taking on my challenge?! Then… I will strike first!
Ais drew her rapier as Fuzen approached her and slashed at him horizontally in a wide arc. He had been prepared for her, however, and with a single, well-timed forward flip, he avoided her attack and jumped past her head and down the stairs she had just used to arrive here.
Ais was confused, and simply stood still.
He...he avoided my attack so easily…
Then a loud creak snapped her out of her state, and she looked towards the door which swung back and forth. "...Did that boy just trick me?!"
Before she even realized it Ais was following in Fuzen's trail at her maximum speed.
"Angry Riveria bad. Water training. Angry Riveria bad. Water training. Angry Riveria bad. Water training..."
With her childhood fear rekindled, Ais forgot about challenging Fuzen anymore on that day, running straight to the Dungeon and as far away from Riveria as possible...
XXX
...That was close. Fuzen thought as he just stopped himself from running.
Orario was a circular city, thanks in no small part to the high wall surrounding it which had been built in the era when the Gods descended to keep any Monsters which came out of the then-lidless Dungeon from escaping into the world
It was also separated into eight different sections, also called Districts, in a clock-wise direction: the Twilight Manor, home of the Loki Familia, was located in the 1st District. Fuzen himself now found himself in the 6th District, almost opposite from where he ran away from a certain High Elf.
"...Way too close. I need to keep my distance from her better from now on." He sighed and took a moment to gather his breath.
Of course, he did not hate Riveria.
Far from it, in fact.
He highly admired her. When one looked at the sun, they could not help but close their eyes before it's majesty. Riveria was no different for him: a person pure of blood, kind, strong, dependable, knowledgeable, wise...if mortals could achieve a state of nigh-perfection, he guessed Riveria would have already reached that state.
However, he himself was trying to grasp the heavens. He had no time to admire others, or to be made to feel safe because of others.
Not to mention, he could not keep looking at her face without his stomach starting to churl and hurt.
"...I walk the path of the Lighting Sword Style." He reminded himself, and sighed. Twice now in a day, he had been rude to his seniors. "...This is all Loki-sama's fault. Had I been allowed to continue my training, my discipline would not falter like this...Sigh…What to do now?"
He was not allowed to train, to go to the Dungeon and now he couldn't even return to the Manor, seeing how Riveria would probably still be too angry.
Walking.
He could do some walking around the town.
He knew Orario pretty well, but maybe he could learn something new. After all, he did meet that Mikoto girl two days ago, and she had been lost. If he could learn something new by walking around, maybe he could be helpful to the next person he would meet.
So, he walked.
He saw children play, and people work.
He saw flamboyant clothes on display from shops along the main streets, and Gods and Goddesses hanging out in groups.
He saw some street performers do tricks and so called magic, and couples holding hands while laughing at each other for no reason.
The last two days had been helpful at least in letting him know about the world, and how strange it was.
So many people, doing things that, in the end, amounted to nothing.
Fun and enjoyment, was it? If he could use the people around him as a comparison for those words, then he did not need neither fun nor enjoyment. However, seeing the people of Orario going around their daily life helped him understand something.
Mayhaps fun is as important for others as grasping the heavens is for me, so maybe I am wrong in demoting said fun and saying it is useless…
He had been right in what he said to Tiona...but he had been wrong in what he thought about her. She had nonetheless reached Level 5 even while being as air-headed as she was. Mayhaps just like his goal had allowed him to break through the walls of his own weakness, her strive for fun had allowed her to do the same.
"...Countless paths, one end destination. I failed to realize this. My own lack of insight is shameful…"
He remembered Riveria's suggestion and decided upon it. Though it would take up time from his training, he would nonetheless make some time for Tiona. To spar a bit, nothing else. It was also helpful to him in learning about the strength and speed of a Level 5, so there was that.
Still, for that to happen, he needed to apologize first. And just as it so happened, he had a good idea now how to do so, all thanks to Riveria. He needed some money, though, and that meant going back to the Manor.
...I hope Alf-sama is not actively searching for me...Sigh…
XXX
She had never imagined this would happen.
After their last Dungeon trip, both of their weapons had been in dire need of maintenance. Going by the Goibniu Familia smiths instructions, today had been the day the two could finally retrieve their weapons. Even when they launched their sudden search mission for the idiot boy, the two had to use their Familia's spare weapons. So, with today being the set date, Tione grabbed her sister and both made their way towards the Goibniu Familia.
Now, for as long as she remembered, her other half had never been...silent.
Merely thinking about it had been impossible.
And yet, Tiona had not uttered a single word on the way. Tione was not used to this, far from it: to be honest, it quite literally freaked her out. Tiona was the ever energetic and cheerful one, and it fell upon her to usually start conversations. As such, Tione was not used to her younger twin sister just being...quiet. Even worse, it seemed like she was actually thinking about something.
This...is...so...awkward…
Even when the older twin tried to ask something or start a conversation about the most random of topics, like Tiona herself often did, all the younger twin used as a reply was simply Mhm.
Even stranger, Tiona did not show any sort of excitement upon receiving her Urga back from the smiths. Usually she would jump around from joy, suggesting they go straight to the Dungeon to test their newly-sharpened weapons.
This time around, she made no such suggestion.
"...Okay, that's enough!" Tione finally had enough and slapped her sister. Tiona's head swung to the side from the sudden impact, turning back around with a shocked and angry expression alike. They were still on the way back home and so the sudden slap gained the attention of other people walking past them.
"What the hell was that for?!"
"Stop being gloomy you idiot! That's not like you, and I don't want any more of this awkwardness!"
"I'm not gloomy you boobs for brains!" The younger twin shouted back.
"Yes you are, you flat idiot! Now tell me what's bothering you!" Tione demanded, hands resting on her hips as if trying to clarify the fact she was the older of the two.
"...You only ever think about the Captain, so how can you even help?"
"...Even I can spare a minute for my idiotic sister, you know." Tione sighed, and made a head gesture for them to continue walking. Tiona agreed with a nod, and they walked in silence for another minute.
"...Say. Could you ever wish for something so much you would die for it?" Tiona asked.
"No." Tione replied with confidence. "My wish is to become the Captain's woman. I will kill anyone, and I mean anyone, standing in the way, but if I die, then I can't continue towards my goal. Likewise, if I reach my goal by dying in order to achieve it, then what's the point anyway?"
"I know, right?!" The younger twin nodded vigorously. She could understand Tione's way of thinking. It was logical, unlike his. "So then...how?"
The older twin looked at her other half, and only a second later, she understood what Tiona was going on about. "I told you he would eventually snap at you if you continued your antics. I'll say this now: whatever happened between you and Fuzen earlier today, you were at fault. I don't even need to know what happened to come to that conclusion."
"Gah-! Have some faith in your own sister, goddamn it!"
"No."
"...Sigh…"
"...I don't know what's going on in your mind...But in the end, all you have to do is apologize."
"...Is it that simple?" Tiona asked.
"Of course it is. Unlike you, that boy is intelligent. He probably already knows whatever he did or said to you was also bad, and is thinking the same. The more complex a person, the easier they are to understand."
"...Apologize, huh…? Will that really just work like that…?"
They walked on, once again silence between them. However this time around, there was no more awkwardness between them, and Tione left her sister to her thoughts.
They had arrived at the Manor within the next dozen minutes or so and made their way back to their shared room. As Executives of the Loki Familia, both of them could have asked for different rooms, however it was simply...normal for them to sleep within the same four walls, so they decided upon it without even mentioning it. They opened the door and Tione's eyes immediately fell upon the foreign object in the room: a box, on Tiona's bed.
"...What's that?"
"A box? Is it for me?" The younger twin grabbed the box: it was simple and medium-sized, white in colour and neither a sender nor a receiver written on it. She opened the lid, and her eyes immediately fell upon the letter within.
"Next time you wish to spar, please do wear these. And please, do stop trying to kill me, my Vitality is still only that of a Level 2, in case you wondered…" After reading the letter out loud, she looked back at the other item in the box: a pair of fingerless and padded fighting gloves.
"Tione!" The younger twin spared no time in throwing her precious Urga in the corner of the room, quickly equipping the present she received. "Let's fight! I want to test them out!"
And...she's back. Must be nice being that simple...Tione shrugged at her younger sister's quick change of heart. "Sure, sure. Why not?"
XXX
It was finally time.
His shackles were now removed, and he could breath much easier knowing this as soon as he opened his eyes. After a quick look outside the single window to be found in his room he nodded: it was still dark. It was four o'clock, or 4am as some westerners said it. No one else was awake at this hour, he could say that quite confidently after some eleven months of being part of the Familia and having the same daily routine every single day.
The boy got off his bed, neatly tidying his sheets and pillow. Taking off his pyjamas, called Jinbei back in his home country, consisting of a pair of shorts and a side-tying kimono style top, he equipped his usual clothes, his haori jacket included. Then he grabbed the swords on the wall-mounted wooden stand and fastened them to his hip. For training, he only needed the Raiju no Yoki replica and his chisa katana.
With that said, in roughly four minutes after waking up he already left his room, leaving the window open to freshen up the air inside. Slowly and quietly, he did not wish to wake anyone else up, Fuzen made his way to the dining area which was the largest room in the Manor, closing resembling a hall of sorts with enough tables and chairs for every member of the Familia.
Once in the kitchen, he made for one of the many ice-boxes: a sort of westerner technology in the form of a box made of metal with a Magic Stone at it's core, which somehow kept the food stored inside cold so that it would not spoil.
Truly, a magnificent piece of technology.
Thanks to this ice box, Fuzen could shave a lot of time off preparing breakfast, as he always prepared the ingredients and food necessary for his breakfast the night before. After boiling some white rice and heating up some other ingredients, the food for breakfast was done in less than twenty minutes: a bowl of cooked rice, a grilled fish, soup, pickled vegetables salad and an egg roll, neatly cut in, surprisingly, rolls.
He grabbed the food tray and sat down at the nearest table.
It was quiet, and the only sounds he could hear was his own chewing and the wind outside. He did not mind it, nor did he think anything special about it: he had been eating alone for a long time, and there was nothing else to it.
After finishing he washed his own dishes and then headed outside.
It was time to train.
Firstly, he would meditate for half an hour to prepare his mind, then he would continue his sword training. Finally, he was back to his normal-
"...Good morning." Not a second later after turning left towards his usual training spot, he heard a female greet him. It was no one else than Ais Wallenstein, the Loki Familia's most famous Adventurer. Apparently she had been waiting for him: she was fully geared and prepared for battle. Fuzen knew what she wanted and he sighed mentally.
This was all the product of his own past mistakes.
"...Good morning, Wallenstein-sama. I was not aware you woke up at this early hour."
"I was waiting for you." She replied.
Of course you were…
"Anything I can help you with, Wallenstein-sama?" At his question, she simply drew her rapier and locked eyes with him.
"Fight me."
"...No."
"...Why?"
"Because I have no desire to. Now, if that is all, I would to-"
"Fight me." She repeated, cutting him off. Fuzen could see the resolve in her eyes. Unfortunately, she didn't look like she would take no for an answer. "I need to fight you."
Need, is it?...Sigh...Why do all these troublesome women keep seeking me out…?
"Why?"
"Because...I want to surpass you."
"That is quite an impossible task."
"...You are saying...I can never win?" Ais asked, though Fuzen did not sense any threat in her question, only interest in his pick of words.
"...How many times have you challenged me so far?"
"...Many times."
"How many times have you won?"
"...Never."
"Why do you think that is so?"
"...Because of your...Sword Style, and the...mysterious strength behind it." Ais replied, needing a moment to think on her answer. "You are Level 2, but you defeated Amphisbaena. How?"
"...Quite as you said, because of my Sword Style."
"Then...I want to fight you, and win."
She will never understand. As long as I hold a sword in my hand, I cannot lose. Either I win, or I die trying to win. Wallenstein-sama is a kind person, deep down. She could never kill me simply to stand over me. That is why she can never win against me. Because I am not like her. Because I would.
"...Sigh...I understand. I shall accept this duel."
They both took their stance, and Fuzen grabbed the handle of his chisa katana. Ais did the same, ready to attack.
Both remained motionless, simply staring at each other. From an outside perspective, one would say they are too afraid to make the first move.
Nay.
That is far from the truth.
When two swordsmen were about to clash, this long time of motionlessness had a greater meaning behind it: both fighters were going over possible patterns of attacks in their mind, similar to visual training. What technique to use, how it might get blocked or countered, what to do in that case, many variables had to be taken into account and others had to be thrown out. With that said, it is not wrong to say that the fighter who made the first move found the best way to defeat his enemy first, already at two advantages by the time they took their first step towards the enemy: that they found a way to win, and that the enemy hasn't.
Fuzen dashed forward, chisa katana ready to be draw. Ais tsked, angry that she could not attack first herself. She drew her rapier, Desperate, and got ready to block or step to the side, depending on Fuzen's attack. He then drew his sword, and...an overhead slash.
So...easy…?
She blocked the attack, their blades clashing, just a spark taking form at the initial point of impact. Her eyebrows twisted into a frown: this was far from his actual strength. "...Are you...looking down on me?"
"...No. I am giving you an advantage." he replied at the same time as his leg made impact with Ais's abdomen, sending her a couple of steps back. "I always win in one or two moves, correct?"
"...Yes."
"Then...let's see if my power can compete with yours in an extended fight."
It was Ais's turn to attack first, doing so in a single leap, her rapier pushing forward towards Fuzen in a thrusting motion.
"Amble Lighting Stride." He uttered and side-stepped the attack to her right.
She was not going to stop just yet, however.
As soon as her heal made contact with the ground after her forward leap, she twisted her core and slashed horizontally at him. In response, the boy took a step back. She followed up with another leap, her rapier coming at him from below. The tip of his sword met her blade, and he added his own force to the attack while jumping back, making Ais's attack faster than she planned it to be and brining her to lose her footing in the process as her body turned in the direction of her attack.
"...Don't do this." She said after her attack lost momentum, and she faced Fuzen again. "You could have attacked."
"I could have."
"Then why didn't you?!" Her voice went up just the slightest bit, however compared to the usually aloof and collected Ais, this was a great change of personality. After all, she felt anger.
"Are you asking your enemy on his motives?" He shot back calmly, never losing his composure.
"But...we are not enemies."
"...Is that so, Wallenstein-sama? As far as my own reasoning goes, if someone has a drawn weapon and said weapon is directed at me, they are an enemy."
"…?"
"Lightning Sword Style." Her eyes widened, already going into a defensive stance upon hearing those three words. "Drifting Lightning Hail."
He disappeared from before her and appeared again to her right. Ais tried her best to follow him with her eyes: she knew he was pounding the ground with extreme strength, gliding from one location to another as if the ground was his own private trampoline. One slashing attack came towards her as he glided from her right to her left and then towards her in a straight line. She managed to block the attack, but felt her sword almost bouncing off the attack and the power behind it. Once behind her, Fuzen turned on his soles to face her again and repeated the same pattern: dashing past her while attacking at the same time. She had managed to somehow block all eighteen of the lighting fast attacks, however her sword continued to almost bounce off and out of her grip. The power behind each attack as well as the momentum behind it were incredible.
Still, after the eighteenth attack, he had slowed down, if only by a fraction but enough for the Level 5 Ais to take advantage of it: before he could turn around and attack again, she moved forward, attacking him from the side. Halfway still through his action of turning around, Fuzen saw her attack over his shoulder and somehow managed to stop his movement and the momentum behind it, turning back the other way, his back turned to her.
Then, he threw himself down on his hands, avoiding Ais's overhead attack and extending his leg upwards as well, kicked the sword out of her hand. She was both surprised and infuriated: he was right in front of her, his back facing her. She could have won. But, without her sword, she knew she could not win. She was severely lacking in hand to hand combat, and Fuzen was too fast for any mediocre attack she could perform without a sword. And so, letting go of the opening before her she jumped up, grabbing her sword again. A forward flip and a landing later, she turned to face her sparring partner.
Now, the boy was facing her again, inhaling and exhaling to gather his strength, as he had once told. "It appears extended fights are not my forte. I feel my stamina being depleted very fast. As such, I shall end this."
She felt the change in him herself: his...aura, so to say, had changed. It was more focused now and also more threatening. Fuzen exhaled again and brought his sword back, the tip facing Ais. "Lightning Sword Style: Ninety Eight Lightning Arcs!"
In a single step, he had appeared before her. There was no time to evade or back away for her. Going by the position of his body, he would attack with a thrust, so she held her rapier ready to block with the width of the blade, left hand resting on the back of her blade to balance the force of his attack on both arms.
Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink!
Ais had been wrong.
It had not been a single thrust, but rather a barrage of thrusts, all hitting the same spot of her sword. One after another, he pulled his sword back, thrust, then repeated the action again and again. By now all she could think of was that his attack resembled the drumming of a Woodpecker.
He's...he's not going to attack for ninety-eight time..right?
He continued, on and on, and with each thrust she felt herself being pushed back, her feet sliding on the ground beneath her. Then, a change: his attacks began to hit to the left and right of the initial point of impact, as well.
Middle. Left. Right. Middle. Left. Right. Middle. Left. Right.
On and on, the distance between the strikes ever widening. After a few short moments, she also noticed what he was doing.
M-my sword! I'm losing the grip on my sword! I can't keep it still and stable!
He continued his attack, holding his breath in. Unknown to Ais, her opponent was no longer breathing, instead holding his breath to increase his accuracy: when one breaths, their chest is moving, and with that chest movement, so does their shoulders, and that extends to their arms, as well. As such, many techniques existed where one's breathing had to be halted for maximum efficiency output.
I...I can't hold on!
By now, Ais could no longer keep her sword stable and her blade kept leaning in the direction of where he attacked. She had also been pushed back more than four meters from her original position, her footing now reliant on Fuzen to keep attacks as she used her own force to push her blade in front, as to withstand the barrage of attacks.
Then, it ended.
When Fuzen drew back his sword from his last thrust, he jumped back with a spinning motion and Ais began leaned forward. Indeed, Fuzen's thrusts had much power behind them, and she needed to push back with her sword. As soon as he retreated, the own force she put in pushing her sword made her lean forward, her footing lost.
"Ninety-Nine…" The boy grabbed his sword with both hands, and dashed forward again, slashing upwards. "Continuation!" The sudden force helped Ais take a step back again, no longer falling. However, this came at the cost of her sword flying out of her hand. "One hundred…" The sword which was now above his left shoulder turned around, sharp edge facing Ais. Then, it came down. "...Conclusion." He had stopped the attack at her neck, neither cutting her skin nor drawing blood.
However, the damage had been dealt.
I lost...again...The golden-haired Adventurer thought as her eyes lifted up, looking at the clear skies above her. The sun's first rays of light, kept hidden by the horizon, touched her face with their warmth. "...How are you this strong?" Came the barely audible question from her side.
"...I do not have an answer for you." Fuzen sheathed his sword, slowly making his way back to his usual training spot, his back turned towards Ais. "I do have a question for you, however. I do not need to hear the answer: it is a question which, maybe, can help you reach an answer on your own."
"…"
"What does being strong mean to you?"
XXX
...How? How? How?...How?
Unknown to the two swordsmen, their sparring session had not been entirely private. After all, they were still sparing just to the side of the Manor and many rooms of their Familia members were close by their training ground.
The girl's room also counted as one such room, as well: the windows of her room overlooked the back garden, and as such, the sound of blade meeting blade reached her ears while she slept, waking her up.
She knew the easterner boy was training from an early hour. However, the clangs of swords meant at least two people were behind the noise which woke her up. Even half-asleep she was curious, and so decided to head to the garden and see what was going on for herself.
She had not been emotionally ready for what she witnessed: a boy, defeating the Sword Princess.
Her idol, which she admired because of her strength, beauty, elegance, kindness and much more, had lost. Not a close loss, either, but a complete loss: starting at the second half of their sparring, everything Ais did had been planned for her by Fuzen. The Ais which was unstoppable in the Dungeon, taking on hordes upon hordes of Monsters, had lost to a single...boy.
This...can't be right. She shook her head from her hiding spot, from where she watched the sparring session unfold. Ais can't lose. Maybe to Captain Finn. Maybe to Lady Riveria. Maybe to the twins, if they fight together against her. But not...against a boy…a Level 2...I won't accept this…
She continued to shake her head, as if it helped with calming her down. I won't accept that boy as stronger than Ais!
Such was how a certain Elf girl, Lefiya Viridis, came to harbour feelings of jealousy towards a foreign boy, which were, unknown to even her, accompanied by another set of feelings, quite different from jealousy and quite close to what she had felt for Ais herself...
XXX
I don't know how many of you readers will remember everything exactly as it was, but I did indeed change a lot more in this Chapter compared to the past five Chapters.
Firstly, Fuzen holding a sword while sparing against Tiona. Very important detail my past self forgot to insert in that scene. Probs because I didn't have the whole plot down at that time.
Secondly, a bit more info on what Fuzen thinks of Riveria, and what her being near him makes Fuzen feel.
Thirdly...hmm...actually, find that out for yourselves.
I did say this story is not meant to hold anyone's hand. Compared to stories where every important info is thrown at you from the very pilot Chapter or episode, this fic is meant to make you a part of the journey.
"I want this to be a story where the reader does not simply follow a path set in front of them, but rather, that they also walk the path alongside the OC."
I remember that is what I wanted this to turn out into while I was still creating the plot for Kenshi. That desire still holds true.
So yeah, I'll leave it at that.
Kay bye.