Chapter 15: Stuck with a Noble and Amazon

Once again she was back in the dream. These dreams that she'd been having these past few nights had shown her nothing but pain and had been testing her will power. She wondered what she would be shown tonight. She readied herself.

What she was brought to tonight was… a quiet peaceful night?

Confused, Astraea began to look around to see what the catch of tonight's dream was. The area was just too peaceful that she knew there would be something to break her heart. It was then that she finally noticed the building in front of her.

The building itself was a bit smaller than Stardust Garden and the structure was more wooden. She then remembered that housing like this was common in the far east as Kaguya talked about it once before. Remembering what Kaguya had told her, she took in the details of the building in front of her.

It was then that she heard footsteps coming from inside the building. Entering her view was none other than the man with black hair wearing the suit, only he was looking much weaker and paler than before wearing a traditional far eastern kimono that Kaguya likes to wear. The man stopped at the edge of the wooden platform and sat himself down looking up to the clear night sky where the stars and moon shone above him.

Astraea took a closer look at the man. Moving closer to him she could tell that he didn't have much time left. There was a lot of sadness in him as well. She wondered what burdens and regrettes he was holding on to. She wanted to comfort him but she knew that it was pointless to even try as her hands would phase through him. She decided to join the man by sitting down to the man's left side on the platform and looking at the night sky.

It was then that she heard another set of footsteps moving closer to them. Entering was the boy with red hair that she had been seeing in her dreams these past few nights but a bit older than when she last saw him. It made her wonder how much time had passed.

The boy took a seat next to the older man and began talking to him. Unfortunately for Astraea she couldn't hear or make out what they were saying but she could tell that the two were close, almost like a parent and child.

"Just leave your dream to me."

She managed to hear those words. She was quite surprised that she heard them when she couldn't hear them previously. Turning she just managed to see the small faint smile the older man made, like a burden was lifted off his shoulders.

"Right. I can be at peace now."

Those were the words that Astraea managed to hear from him. She was glad that the man looked a bit happier than before. Like the two beside her she joined them and looked up at the sky and enjoyed the scene in front of her. She wasn't sure how much time had passed but she did notice that the young boy had left them, probably off to bed. He was still young after all.

Looking right next to her she noticed that the older man had fallen right asleep. However looking closer she could see that there was no life left in him. He had passed away but had a smile on his face. She guessed it was because of what that boy had said to him. Astraea shed a few tears at his passing. Even though she didn't know him, the passing of life was always tragic.

She hoped that the man would find peace in his next life.

Waking up from the dream, Astraea could still feel her wet tears on her face. She took a few moments to recount and recollect her thoughts and sent a silent prayer to the man she saw in the dream. After that she got out of her bed and prepared herself for the new day.

Making her way down the stairs noticed that everyone was gathered outside in the training yard. Curious about what was going on she made her way towards it. Stepping out she saw that everyone was too focused to notice her presence. She expected at least one of her followers to at least greet her but she could see that they were all too engrossed in something. Curious, she looked at what they were so focused on aaannnddd it all made sense now.

In the center of the yard was Archer, sparring with Iska and Kaguya at the same time and holding his own. After what Archer had told them yesterday she shouldn't have been too surprised that they wanted to spar with him. Iska was an Amazon, so it was in her nature to find and fight strong men. As for Kaguya, Astraea guessed it was because she wanted to see his skills in person. She did have an odd look in her eyes that she'd never had seen before.

Out on the field Archer was busy fighting two members of his master's Familia that he really didn't want to fight. How he roped into this well it all started a few minutes prior.

Earlier

After a very late night of searching, Archer had finally returned to his temporary home. After searching half of the city for any clues he found nothing. Granted he may have missed a few spots here or there but to come out empty handed irked him. Thankfully after returning to Stardust Garden and his room, none of the others were up just yet. He wasn't sure when they would've returned but he did know that it was way before him. It was early morning after all.

After making sure to cover his tracks of ever leaving his room during the night, Archer thought to get a head start on preparing breakfast for everyone. He had made certain plans for the day and the sooner he could start them the better but sadly it was too early to start them just yet.

Thankfully he and Astraea had stocked up on ingredients yesterday so his menu options had opened up once again. Perhaps he would go for making a classic western style breakfast today or maybe something that was light but rejuvenating to help the ladies after their night patrol.

Decisions, decisions.

In the end he decided that the latter was probably the better option, so he got to work. Thankfully starting early also meant that he had time to make the sauces he needed for lunch. Since they didn't have any in the market he would need to make them from scratch and without the modern tools he was used to the process would take a bit longer but he would manage.

After much hard work he finally managed to create the sauces he was after, mayonnaise and a garlic aioli. After clearing his work bench he finally moved on to preparing breakfast. The ladies of the house would soon awake in the next hour or so, so it was best for him to start now. Perhaps a mushroom omelet with a small side salad would suffice and for lunch, bacon and egg sandwiches.

"Good morning Archer."

Before he could even begin, just outside of the kitchen entrance was none other than Kaguya. "Up and early cooking I see," she said, making her way towards him.

"Good morning Gojouno-san, I see you're also up early," Archer greeted back. "How did the search go last night?"

Upon being asked, Kaguya let out a heavy sigh. "Our search didn't go so well. None of us were able to uncover anything related to the Evilus," It was clear to Archer that Kaguya was upset and disappointed with last night's patrol. "Hopefully we'll be able to make some progress today."

"Well I wish you luck in your search," Archer replied nonchalantly before continuing his work.

Kaguya, already in front of the counter where Archer was making his food prep, took notice of two white sauces she had never seen before. Curious, she guessed that Archer had made them. "What kind of sauces are these Archer? I've never seen these before?"

"The one with the herbs is a garlic aioli and the one next to it is mayonnaise," Being asked this question Archer was a bit surprised that Kaguya hadn't heard of either of these sauces. Maybe where she grew up didn't have such sauces but surely mayo and aioli existed somewhere in the city. "Please feel free to try it."

Happily accepting Archer's offer to try this 'new' sauce he just created, Kaguya happily got her first spoonful. Starting with the mayo then moving to the aioli. Each of these sauces tasted wonderful in her mouth. She was beaming in bliss after tasting them.

After her minute of bliss, Kaguya regained her composure. "I must say these sauces you've created are quite delightful Archer. What are you planning to use them for?" she asked.

"I plan to use them as spreads for your lunches today," he answered. Once those words left his mouth he could see the small sparkle in her eyes. One was clear and that was that Kaguya really liked these sauces.

Once again Kaguya regained her composure after a few seconds. "*Ahem* Well Archer if you'll excuse me," As she was about to leave the kitchen an idea popped up in Kaguya's head. One she was itching to try after witnessing a certain display not too long ago. With no one else around now was the perfect time to try it. Yes she very much liked that.

Archer wasn't sure why but he was starting to feel a chill down his spine and he had a strange feeling the cause of it was from the swordswoman in front of him.

"Say Archer, why don't you join me in my morning exercise. I'm just itching to know how strong you are myself," Yep, it was just as he thought.

"Apologies Kaguya but I'm afraid I don-"

"Ahhh! No fair Kaguya, I told you I wanted to spar with Archer first!" From outside the kitchen the one calling out was none other than an upset Iska.

Great, another headache…

Archer could've sworn that he also heard Kaguya click her tongue in annoyance.

"Sorry Iska but you know the rules, plus I have vice-captain privileges," Kaguya's response only made Iska more angry and upset.

Whilst those two were busy arguing, and hopefully forgetting about him, Archer continued with his preparations. He had a busy day planned ahead so the sooner he finished the better.

"Come now Archer. We have a session to attend to."

It seemed Kaguya didn't get his memo.

"Kaguya, as I was trying to say, I don't have the time to join you. I have plans for the day and the sooner I can start them them the batter,"

Naturally Kaguya was disappointed with the decline. Iska however was barely holding in a laugh from the rejection. Seeing that her initial plan failed, Kaguya decided to try a different tactic.

"Come now Archer, surely you can spare a bit of time to entertain me for a bit. I'll make it worth your while."

He could see what she was trying to do. He found her attempt almost entertaining, reminding him of what a certain twin tailed master of his would try and pull. Unfortunately he wouldn't fall for her tactics or get roped in like he did with Alise. If he just kept ignoring her and continued to make the food then he would be right on schedule.

"HAHAHA!

Or he would if a certain someone else would stop adding fuel to the fire.

"So there is someone who can resist Kaguya's charm. Well if Archer doesn't want to spar with you then maybe he'll prefer someone like me instead," Iska boldly declared. She was quite confident that Archer would want to spar her.

"The same goes for you as well Iska,"

Only for her to be shot down immediately. Kaguya couldn't help but stifle a small chuckle.

"Ehhhhh. But why!? What would be so important that you wouldn't want to spar with me!?"

"I think it has something to do with a little promise he made yesterday. It would explain why he's up so early," It was a random guess on her part but one that did make sense when she thought about it. After hearing Astraea's recount of the events following the Evilus attack, she recalled a part in the story that had Archer make a promise to Maria. A promise to to grow some herbs and plants to make soup for the kids. She found it cute.

There was no point in denying or hiding it now. Kaguya had hit the nail on the head and that smile she was wearing was just asking him to try and deny it. "And you would be correct on that Gojouno-san. In order to fulfill the promise I made I need money to make it happen. Since I can't enter the dungeon I need a different approach," He started to explain. "Business will be opening up soon, so the sooner I can finish my work here the faster I can leave to get a job."

It took a minute for Iska to catch on what they meant. Once she figured it out, the pout she once had vanished and was replaced with a big smile and a small laugh. "Haha, I get it now. You want to help Maria as soon as possible. That's quite admirable. I'm sure you'll be able to find a job no problem, I mean after yesterday's event I'm sure people will be more than willing to hire a hero such as you." Her voice was full of optimism, something that made Archer feel a little better.

"And that means that you still have time to spar with me!" And then the moment was ruined.

"Forgive her Archer, Amazons like her go crazy when they find a strong man. She won't stop until you give her what she wants,"

He could see that there was truth in her words, after all he knew an amazon that wanted to kill humanity's 'fastest great hero' and was absolutely dead set on doing it. But he could also see that Kaguya wanted to have that spar with him instead.

Honestly, why was his luck with women so troublesome…

There was no way he was going to let either of them convince him to go out and spar with…

…he found himself outside ready to spar with the both of them.

How? Not even he was sure how they did it but they somehow managed to convince him to get out of the kitchen. They were sure persistent in getting what they wanted.

"So who are you going to spar with first Archer? Me or that pesky amazon?"

"Obviously you'll pick me over that foul mouthed Kaguya, right Archer?"

The two turned to glare at each other. If you looked close enough you could see sparks fly.

Yep, nothing but troublesome…

He was starting to get more frustrated but the second. If this kept going the whole day would be gone and he needed to get a move on soon. There was only one way to get out of this situation and satisfy both of them. "Enough, I'll fight both of you," Both of them turned to Archer in response.

Once both of them had their full attention directed at him, Archer projected a sand hourglass.

"This hourglass contains roughly 5 minutes of time so we'll use this as a timer. Once the sand has run out, the fight will finish. Understand?"

Both of them looked at each other before turning to Archer in agreement. It wasn't how they wanted it to go but they couldn't complain too much about it. They accepted his proposal.

Walking away from them, Archer placed the hourglass on a nearby table before returning to his starting position and grabbing a pebble off the ground. Both Kaguya and Iska readied themselves for Archer's signal to start.

Once Archer confirmed both were ready, he shot the pebble with his thumb directly at the hourglass with enough force to flip it over so the timer would begin.

With the timer started both ladies launched themselves directly at Archer with Kaguya taking the lead. Seeing them coming at him, he projected Kanshou and Bakuya and stopped Kaguya in her tracks. Both were locked in a standstill.

While both were locked in, Iska took the opportunity to jump in at strike from above. Seeing this, Archer broke out of the lock and jumped back to avoid Iska's attack from above. Before Archer could fully recover, Kaguya took this chance to strike back. Drawing her katana back she prepared her next attack. Taking a deep breath and steading her stance she launched herself at Archer preparing to draw her katana.

Sensing the danger Archer barely managed to put up some form of defence to prevent Kaguya's attack doing major damage to him. Her attack was so strong and swift that it broke both of his projections and pushed him back further.

Landing on the ground he managed to catch his breath. Kaguya, recollecting herself, was quite impressed that Archer managed to block one of her sword techniques. She showed him a sly smile. Even Iska was starting to get excited.

Discarding his broken blades, he instantly replaced them and went on the offensive. Crossing his arms he began to prepare his attack. Seeing this Iska charged to meet him with Kaguya following close behind. Once the distance between them Archer threw his blades at them. Iska slid under them whilst Kaguya deflected them with her blade.

With the second pair out of his hands, Archer once again projected another pair to his hands and clashed with Iska. It was Archer's blades versus Iska's fists. Under normal circumstances the blades would cut her skin but Archer made sure to project them dull enough so they would still be effective but wouldn't cut too deeply.

Each of Archer's strikes were being parried by Iska's hands. She made sure that each of her fists would hit the side of the blade to put him off balance with the momentum of his swings so she could counter attack. However with each of her attempts, Archer always managed to recover and parrie her attacks.

It wasn't until Iska ducked and pivoted that Kaguya came back into the ring, attempting to strike Archer which was naturally blocked by Kanshou. Now that Archer was locked in with Kaguya, Iska used this opportunity to attack. Sensing her attack coming he blocked it with Bakuya but this block only gave the two ladies the opening they needed.

Using their legs, they pulled back and swept Archer off his feet causing him to lose all of the balance he once held on the ground and dropping his blades. Keeping their momentum going both were ready to strike until random objects struck them, causing them to be pushed back.

Now in the clear, Archer was barely able to catch himself using his hands to spring himself into a flip and land his feet back on the ground. He took this brief moment to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

Recovering from the mysterious attack, Kaguya and Iska took a moment to quickly recount what just happened. Both were in a perfect position and had Archer in a lock when something had hit the two of them just as they were about to deliver. Confused, Kaguya then noticed Archer's blades on the ground, two pairs to be exact. One pair where Archer just was and another closer to them, only a few feet apart.

She recalled that she deflected that second pair and sent them flying back. Just how did they manage to come back? Whatever it was, she wouldn't fall for it again. She once again prepared her stance.

On Archer's side he counted himself lucky that his second pair managed to interrupt their attack and get him out of that bind. He would've been in serious trouble if that coordinated attack managed to land and if it were the real deal he would've been seriously injured. But it was clear that his usual fighting style was barely able to handle the both of them. He needed to try something different.

Both Iska and Kaguya had recovered from Archer's surprise attack and began to plan their next coordinated attack. Once both had figured out their plan of attack they once again rushed at him charging forward.

In response Archer quickly projected his trusted bow and began to fire arrows at them, making sure to hold back the power so they wouldn't hurt them too badly. Upon being fired both were dodging their best to avoid Archer's projections, Kaguya even managing to cut through some with her katana.

Once they were close enough, both broke away from formation to attack Archer from the side whilst also dividing his attention. Kaguya being a level higher than Iska, put more leg power into striking at Archer reaching him first.

Knowing that both were coming from the sides., Archer tried to back away dodging Kaguya's first swing; however he didn't account for her quickly pivoting and coming at him again. He quickly blocked her swing with his bow. Not wanting Archer to get a chance to recover, Kaguya kept up the pressure forcing him to keep blocking her incoming attacks and each time he attempted to get away from her she would let him escape from her onslaught.

Because his attention was kept on Kaguya, Archer had almost failed to notice Iska coming from behind. Quickly thinking of something he projected Bakuya and turned his body so that his and Kaguya's blade would connect. Wanting to use the momentum he planned to use his bow to block Iska's attack only for her to jump over him at the last second to land next to Kaguya and back kick him in the ribs sending him back a few feet and onto the ground.

"Oho… maybe I put a bit too much pressure into that last attack. My bad."

"Honestly Iska show some restraint. This is a spar remember. If I didn't know any better I'd think you were that useless elf."

"Ehhhh… like your one to talk Kaguya. You're not doing much better holding back. I know you're trying harder than usual."

"*Hmm* I don't know what you're talking about."

On the other side, Archer was recovering from Iska's strike. He quickly looked to see how much time was left in the hourglass only to notice the rest of the Familia and his master watching from the outside. So far three minutes had passed, he only needed to last less than two minutes and this whole thing would be over.

Oddly enough he almost wanted this sparring session to last longer. Ever since being summoned he hadn't had a proper challenge yet. It was... refreshing.

Dusting himself off he dispelled his bow and planned his next move when he decided to try a new blade he acquired recently. Time to see if his plan would prove useful. He dashed towards them.

Kaguya and Iska quickly stopped their bickering to notice Archer going on the offensive and… unarmed? Knowing that he would have a trick up his sleeve both drew their stance again to prepare for whatever he had planned.

Once Archer was close enough to them he began to project his weapon. The details, the history, the wielders fighting style, it was all coming to his mind. One wielded for Justice with a burning fiery passion. He took grasp of it.

"Trace On"

Meeting Kaguya, their blades once again clashed only for Kaguya to look at him in shock or more appropriately at the blade he just projected. Iska looked just as surprised. Even the audience watching was just as shocked but the one most shocked was Alise.

"W-w-what. H-how did he…"

"But that should be impossible."

"But there's no doubt that's…"

"Crimson Order."

The blade that Archer had projected was none other than Alise's own blade 'Crismon Order'.

Everyone knew that Archer could summon blades and bows but they didn't think he could summon other people's weapons. Alise even held on to her blade to make sure what she was seeing wasn't an illusion or that it was stolen. But no matter how many times she looked at what Archer was holding, that was definitely her blade in his hands.

Back to the spar, Kaguya had quickly regained her concentration only for her to be knocked off balance and kicked back. She gritted her teeth in frustration for letting him get another one up on her.

Iska had tried to quickly recover from her shock as well, only for her to be quickly knocked off her feet, landing next to Kaguya.

Both waking up from Archer's little surprise both were about to attempt to go on the offensive only for them to go on the defensive instead. The way Archer was fighting was similar to that of Alise's fighting style only lacking her use of fire magic. Archer had been able to replicate her fighting style extremely well but that also meant they had an advantage. Both were very familiar with how she fought.

As both were ready to counter Archer's implantation of Alise's fighting style he deprojected the Crimson Order in his right hand making them widen their eyes. Neither of them noticed Archer projecting something in his left hand. It was when they saw his right hand moving down towards his left hip that they saw just what he was up to. He projected a new blade in a sheath, a katana.

Grasping the new blade he drew it from its sheath to clash with them. The katana he projected was another blade that the Astarea was familia with, Kaguya's 'Higanbana'.

Kaguya, seeing Archer holding her own blade in his hands, her own weapon used against her. She started to grow a dark frustrated smile, one that no one in the familia had seen before. She was going to make Archer pay for trying to make a fool out of her.

Using this extra 'motivation' Kaguya's attacks started to be more aggressive towards Archer, forcing him back on the defensive. Iska would occasionally jump in for a surprise strike that would keep him on his feet and give Kaguya an opening.

After locking in with Archer, both of them pushed off each. Landing, Kaguya immediately drew up a stance, Archer mirroring her which only grew her frustration. Both took off at the same time and crossed swords, ending on opposing sides.

Kaguya took in a deep breath. She knew Archer was skilled but she didn't think he was that good. She turned to strike him again only for him to deproject his katana and walk away from her.

"Hey! Just where are you going Archer, we're not done yet!" She yelled with frustration. The nerve of him to walk away when they were in the middle of something aggravated her. Even Iska was confused as to why he stopped.

Stopping, Archer turned his head slightly. "Time is up. I said our session would only last five minutes," he pointed towards the hourglass he left to the side. When they began the top of it was full of sand, now the top half was empty with the sand resting in the bottom. "Now if you'll excuse me I have breakfast to attend to. Thank you for the session Kaguya. You as well Iska." He quickly made his way back inside.

Seeing as their time was over, Kaguya sheathed her blade and clicked her tongue in annoyance. She hadn't realised that the time had gone by so quickly. Things were just getting good. She didn't even notice that the rest of the Familia had been watching her and Iska.

"You right there Kaguya?" Kaguya had jumped back startled. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice Alise sneak up on her.

"Gosh, I didn't think you were the type to sneak up on people captain. Warn a lady next time," Kaguya complained. She quickly turned her head away from her to hide the blush on her face. She couldn't see it but she knew Alise had a big dumb smile on her face.

It was then that she realised that Alise was here. Turning around she noticed that everyone was at the training grounds as well. "Wait just when did you and everyone else get here?" she asked.

"Hmm… just after you started. Lady Astraea arrived shortly after," she answered. Kaguya could see everyone else gathering around Iska. Maryuu even healing Iska's small bruises. "So what did you think? Did Archer meet your expectations?"

Smiling, she answered her captain's question. "He did. I only wished that we didn't have that pesky time limit," she responded whilst sheathing her katana. "We should be grateful that we have a strong ally on our side. I'd hate to think how terrifying he would be as an enemy."

"I'm glad we both agree on that. Now imagine if we had him as a member of our Familia."

"Well I wouldn't be opposed to the idea," Kaguya smiled. It was one of the rare times Alise got to see Kaguya with such a genuine smile. No sass, no sarcastic remarks. Alise could smile to that.

Back to Archer, returning to inside the building he was greeted by Astraea standing just outside the door.

"You're not hurt are you Archer?" she asked him. She saw just how hard he fought Iska and Kaguya and just how hurt he got during that spar.

"Nothing but a few minor bruises. They'll heal in no time," he responded. It would take a while but injuries like those wouldn't hinder his combat ability should he need to engage in combat again. "Shouldn't you be out there checking on your members?"

"Mou.. it's you that I'm worried about right now," she cutely pouted while crossing her arms. "Kaguya and Iska are being well looked after by the others. If I didn't check on you, who would?"

"R-right… sorry and thanks." Astraea smiled at his cute response.

"So what does our private chef have planned for breakfast today?" she lightly teased.

"Nothing too special, just a small nutritious breakfast omelet," he replied with a smile.

"Sounds wonderful. Let me help as well."

Both took off to the kitchen to prepare a wonderful breakfast for everyone.