Chapter XXV: Further Developments
"The Black Knight... A rising legend that became famous overnight. It says he can bring down small armies with little difficulty and can even stand up to a hoard of those Risen monsters. It looks like someone's finally making some of our nobility squirm in their high seats."
A small gathering of villagers were standing in front of their town's bulletin board which gave messages and other information from the surrounding regions of the Plegian kingdom. The poster that had gathered their attention was none other than the picture of the Black Knight, apparently illustrated based on what they'd gathered in the reports (it was surprisingly accurate). The city on the northwestern end of the kingdom had been barely missed when Chrom and the Shepherds had made their way to the capital in the quest to save the Exalt. It wasn't the largest of cities, but it had been vital in trading with Regna Ferox before relations had turned aggressive.
"Any news about the Sacred Wings?" an illiterate villager asked from the crowd.
"Not anywhere here, but I doubt that they're just sitting on their asses like the high and mighty nobles are," the first villager said. "At least someone's trying to look out for the rest of us…"
As the rest of the villagers looked to the bulletin board, they were too preoccupied to notice the young silver haired dark mage walk behind them as he carried a few bags of food that he'd grabbed from the villages market. Two black crows were perched on his shoulders, letting out the occasional caw. The youth quickly made his way out of the village and traveled a short distance through the sands before he found his other traveling companion.
"I'm back with the food!" Henry said happily as the crows cawed at the traveler; their way of saying hello… or annoying the hell out of him. "Let's dig in Shi-"
"If you don't want a one-ticket to hell you won't call me that name again," the Black Knight growled beneath his helm where he sat on the sandy ground.
"Awwwww…" Henry whined, though the fact that he was still smiling made it hard for the enigmatic knight to think that he was really complaining. "So what should I call you?"
"Think of something, as long as it's better than that last name."
"I get to choose? Sweet! Can I call you Crow?" Henry asked rather giddily even for his standards.
"No."
"Vulture?"
"Worse."
"Black?"
"That would cause problems…"
"Knight then?"
"...It's a start," the enigma finally conceded.
"Okay then Knight, I saw a picture of you on the town bulletin board."
"A picture of me… was it a bounty poster?" the knight questioned darkly as he grabbed a loaf of bread and started tearing it to little pieces.
"Think it's more of a search poster for info on you big guy," Henry said as he fed small bits of meat to his crows. "Let's see… you're dark and moody, you don't like my birds, you never take your armor off, and you're a man of very few words… How much do you think I can get for that?"
"A kick to the ass," Knight responded gruffly as he brought the small pieces of bread he'd torn. It was annoying to eat this way, but at least he wouldn't give the dark mage satisfaction in seeing his face.
"Speaking of money, how do you have so much on you?" the dark mage asked as he looked down to the money bag on his belt that the Black Knight had given him. "Do people pay you for wiping out the Risen?"
"No, if I'm lucky I can wipe the monster's out before they get town. Some of the Risen actually got coin on them so I take that."
"And how do you spend it?" Henry asked, ever the curious child.
"...Honestly I haven't really had a need to," the Black Knight admitted. "It's either I leave it in the sand or I take it with me."
"So zombie hunting does pay! Sweet!" Henry said with enthusiasm. Though it was obvious he couldn't see it, the Black Knight rolled his eyes beneath his helm. "Hey Knight, can you always tell if there's a group nearby? The townspeople don't seem to be that worried about an attack and I don't think there's any sign of the Risen."
"That's what makes these attacks dangerous," the Black Knight said as he ate another piece of his bread. "I don't sense any nearby now, but it's the Risen you don't see coming that do the most damage."
"But you see them, you probably know which town the Risen are going to strike before anyone else in the kingdom," the dark mage said. His face was the same, but his tone made the man under the knight's armor feel like he was being judged.
"What're you getting at?" he demanded in a harsh tone.
"Oh, scary," Henry mocked. "Just saying you seem to know a lot more about these Risen's attack patterns, but you're not doing your part to let anyone know… Care to expand?"
'...Despite acting like a kid, he's actually managed to piece that together? Just who the hell is this guy?' "...I don't know where they're going to show up, I only know when they're close by and how to kill 'em. It's a… feeling I get."
"Oh, so you can't see the future then," Henry said with a less eager complexion. "Well that's kind of disappointing, I was hoping you could tell me if I ever got my true desire."
"You have a desire?" the mysterious swordsman repeated with doubt. "What on earth could someone like you possibly dream of?"
"Simple! I want to die bloody and gruesome, but painless death!" Henry said ecstatically.
"Somehow that surprises me less than it should," the knight groaned. After a short time the two had finished eating, and the Black Knight rose and began walking off.
"Hey, where're you going Knight?" Henry asked as he brushed himself off and hurriedly rose to his feet.
"This town seems to be safe enough, no need for me to waste my time here," the Black Knight told him as his cape flapped in the wind behind him.
"And you're trying to leave without me?" Henry asked, feeling a little hurt as he followed closely behind.
"...I knew I wasn't going to be that lucky."
"Nope! Nya ha ha!" Henry said with mocking laughter as the birds on his shoulder cawed at the groaning knight.
Ylisse Castle -Training Grounds-
Lon'qu narrowed his eyes as he harshly focused on the training dummy in front of him, laxly holding a curved training sword to his side. When he finally decided he'd attack the was no hesitation, no tensing, no deep breath, he simply acted and drove his training sword through the air managing to strike the target trice with well-aimed blows to the hip, shoulder, and chest. To any untrained ear it might've sounded like a single strike, but Lon'qu could easily tell where the gaps were in his rhythmic attacks were.
"Gregor is beginning to wonder if swordsman has vendetta against training dummies," the mercenary said as he entered the field behind Lon'qu. The Feroxi sword wielder said nothing as he turned to face the new arrival. "Why is Lon'qu glaring at Gregor so?"
"It's how I normally look," Lon'qu told him passively. "And if you feel so sorry for these mannequins feel free to take their place. I've been hoping for a duel between the two of us for a while now, I want to see just what the man who fought Basilio to a draw is capable of."
"Gregor is sorry to disappoint young swordsman, but Gregor only fights when gold is being offered. Must maintain reputation as a swell sword, even with Shepherds."
"I figured you'd say as much," Lon'qu acknowledged. "But I'm afraid I wouldn't have money to spend on every fight. Suppose I only pay you if I lose? Would you consider that?"
"Oh, Lon'qu speaks a large game," Gregor said as he gave a firm smile. "Overconfident behavior is warrior's own undoing, but Gregor is feeling very generous. First lesson will be for free, regardless of Gregor winning."
"Now who's talking the large game?" Lon'qu asked as the closest thing to a smirk came to his lips while his dueling opponent grabbed his own practice sword. "At your ready…"
"Agreed," Gregor said before the smallest movement was seen between the two. "Gregor wins."
"Ugh!" Lon'qu said as he looked at the practice sword being held right at his neck.
"Lon'qu should be saving gold, Gregor's lesson are not cheap!" the mercenary said with a somewhat gleeful smile, one that was strangely genuine and not at all mocking.
"Hmph, are you really so sure that you've won?" Lon'qu asked as he glanced downward. His own blade was pointed right in front of Gregor's heart. Perhaps not as threatening as Gregor's sword would've been, but enough to consider the second-long duel a draw.
"Not half bad," the mercenary complimented as the two withdrew their swords. "Gregor was sure that Lon'qu had not earned such speed yet."
"Under other circumstances I'd still be trying to get to this level, but after fighting a red coated swordsman I've become stronger," Lon'qu admitted.
"Lon'qu fought scary man?" Gregor asked, referring to their deceased comrade. "Did he help to improving your swordplay?"
"He did, even if it was a single fight," Lon'qu said as he grit his teeth. "Even if I have my own reason, I'll never stop improving my skills to honor the memories of my fallen friends. They stood with me in their lives, now it's my time to focus on returning their favor."
"Gregor does not think someone should be focusing on the dead, but then again what does Gregor know?" the mercenary asked with a jolly chuckle. "Very well, Gregor has seen Lon'qu's inner lion. Gregor will spar for cheaper now!"
"Very well," Lon'qu said as he grabbed a second practice sword off of the equipment rack to duel wield. "Come and fight me at your full! I shall not fall easily!"
"Gregor is on job!" the mercenary yelled as the two warriors charged each other.
Across the training field, two more of the Shepherds were also locked in their training, Donnel was having less luck with Frederick than Lon'qu was having with Gregor. The Great Knight was fighting the farming boy on foot and though he no longer had the mobility of a mounted warrior, that wasn't stopping him from easily disarming or striking his new student down.
"You tensed your arms too tightly," Frederick observed. "If you do that right before you swing your sword you'll lose accuracy and range. If you don't remain calm and let the attack flow smoothly you'll never hit your opponent."
"I know, I know," Donnel tried to say as he barely blocked Frederick's next sword swing. The swing afterwards was aimed at his head and the one after that was his thigh. All throughout the onslaught of Frederick's attack Donnel tried his hardest to look for an opening in his tutor's defense, but he couldn't find one.
"You're taking too long to attack me," Frederick told the farm boy as the two entered a bladelock. "If you were in the middle of a battle right now the enemy would have surrounded you and cut you off from the enemy. Pick a moment and follow through on it."
"Pick a moment? How will I know it's tha right one? Donnel asked before grunting as Frederick pushed him back.
"Because after you pick it you'll land a direct hit," Frederick said without a single hint of humor in his voice. Taking his words to heart after guarding against attack Donnel immediately reposted, barely managing to nick his opponent's armor. "You're making progress."
"If ya say so, it's not easy for me ta find my way around a sword," the farm boy told him. "Folks always said I was meant for farmin', maybe they were right."
"Nonsense, if I didn't know better I'd say you were a seasoned member of your village's militia," Frederick encouraged. "Of course if you wish to fight in the Shepherds you've still a way to go, I'd suggest you continue to keep training seriously."
"Don't worry, I'm always takin' it seriously," Donnel assured him.
"Good, then I suppose it's time we moved on to your fitness training," Frederick said with his famous 'executioners smile.' Donnel's complexion immediately turned a couple of shades paler. "Let's see, where to begin? Perhaps we'll take a brisk ten laps around Ylisstol just to get our muscles limber.
"T-ten laps!? Around the whole city!" the poor trainee stuttered as he wondered if Frederick was trying to kill him.
"Hmm… Hearing you say it makes me think that we need some extra challenge, perhaps some weighted training armor? You do want to be serious when you run, don't you?"
"Ma… I promised ta make it home strong enough to protect tha village… but I'm not sure if I'm gonna be in one piece…" Donnel whimpered as Frederick pondered the possibilities of the day's training.
Ylisse Castle Gardens
Mustafa let out a soft and content sigh as he sat crossed legged in the castle's garden. Now that the war had ended and his injuries from fighting Chrom had long since healed, the former Plegian general had taken to living in a small house just outside the capital city's walls. When he and his family had finally made it out of the castle he'd feared the worst, but it turned out that he'd gotten a reputation since the last Crusade, getting the title of 'The Warrior Pacifist.' This made things easier for him and he'd soon acquired a job working as a lumberman for the time being.
Normally he wasn't one to go to castles and manors even during his days as a general, but Emmeryn had always said that the castle gardens would always be open to the public during the day and his wife always enjoyed walking here with their son. The guards understood that as long as Mustafa didn't cause trouble for them there was absolutely no reason for them to bother him.
"I say, is that barbarian actually sitting in the castle gardens? It's no wonder the flowers are looking worse by the day if HE'S dropping by."
The noblemen, however, never got the memo.
"I can't believe our Lady Exalt is actually allowing that thing inside our castle, her ladyship is far too kind for her own good." Mufasa didn't bother turning to address the men speaking; if it was only a few people that hated him then why should he bother with them? "Speaking of people where they shouldn't belong, have you heard the rumors surrounding the prince?"
"Rumors? Oh do tell," one of the pompous aristocrats said as the two nobles continued to walk through the garden.
"I hear that he's finally found a lady to chase after in the hopes of seducing; apparently he's now looking to his tactician to finally satisfy his urges."
"He's looking to a common girl with little title and no wealth or land behind her!? Is he mad!? He's the prince of Ylisse not some mayor's son! Any of my three daughters would make a bride dozens of times more suitable for the boy!"
"That's just the rumors that I've been hearing, but it could be nothing! Perhaps he's just readying her to become a mistress? You remember how things were with the former Duke of Graindor? The bedder of a dozen women?"
'Are these supposed to be the noble men of Ylisse? They don't seem very noble,' Mustafa thought to himself as he continued to meditate. 'Then again, they don't differ much from some of the nobility back in my kingdom…'
"Still, these commoners… they're getting far too comfortable here, something needs to be done about it…"
"Something is going to be done with it, starting now," the nobleman said as Mustafa heard his footsteps come closer. "You. Get out."
"I have my rights to be here, the same as anyone else," Mustafa said. He didn't open his eyes, nor did he move.
"The city of Ylisse is still repairing itself from the disarray that you monsters caused last time and here you are taking advantage of the kindness we've given you by letting your family into the kingdom."
"Who do you think was the one gathering lumber and building the outer farms that had been destroyed?" Mustafa question rhetorically. "Perhaps if either of you had actually spent time amongst your people instead of vainly attempting to influence your Exalt you'd understand the real face of the world."
"Why you-!" the nobleman shouted as his hand went for his saber.
"Is there a problem?" Mustafa recognized that voice and it was clear that the two nobles in front of him did as well. Finally allowing him to look he noticed a scarlet haired Pegasus rider who'd spoken accompanied by a pink haired woman in white approaching the three. While the Pegasus rider was missing her spear, the swordswoman seemed to have her katana sheathed at her side.
"Lady Cordelia…" the noble greeted as he took his hand away from his saber. "I was insisting this man be removed from the gardens and he was being rather uncooperative."
"And why do you insist on removing him? From what I see Mufasa's caused the least trouble here," Cordelia told him as she cast a steely glare at the noblemen.
"Come now, you really want to allow his kind into the royal gardens?" the other nobleman demanded. "First the townspeople are given privilege to enter, then commoners, and now former enemies of war! Next thing you know we'll have filthy gypsies making camp on our front door."
"Filthy?" Olivia repeated as her eyes went into a deep scowl aimed at the two men. Back in her days as a traveling dancer she'd traveled with a caravan of gypsies, in fact she herself could've easily been considered a former gypsy.
"Well my dears, I'd like to stay and see justice dealt but I'm afraid I have a meeting to attend to. Be good little knights and get him out of here would you?" And with that the two men of 'nobility' left the gardens, laughing at the mockery they thought they'd caused.
"...You didn't have to step in," Mustafa finally said from where he was seated. "I doubt that they'd have done anything heinous."
"They already have with the way they've been speaking lately," Olivia said with ire. "How the word 'noble' can apply to men like them is beyond me."
"Aye, but they're not all bad. I remember meeting more than a few nobles back in Plegia who I was proud to have known, many of whom spoke out against and worked to end the old war… in fact it was thanks to Tharja's grandmother Anuket that I was able to meet my wife. She was once a maid in service to House Ultaras and we met-"
"Mustafa, are you trying to retell your fable of sweeping me off my feet and carrying me off into a romantic life of wedlock?" Kellie, Mustafa's wife, said as she approached with their child, Edward. Kellie's hair was as dark as a raven and tied back into a ponytail and her skin was about the same shade as Mustafa's. Edward was six years old and was a gentle soul much like his father. He was a typically jolly fellow and was never missing a smile on his face. "Sorry if my husband was boring you, he does love to tell his stories. Part of our wedding vows was he'd stop telling me 'The Drake's Saga' for the fiftieth time."
"Dear…" Mufasa groaned while Cordelia and Olivia both gave short chuckles.
"It's not a worry Kellie, Mustafa hasn't started any of those stories yet," Cordelia assured her as Edward stood patiently next to his mother. "We were just making sure those nobles know that your family was brought here on Lady Emmeryn's invitation."
"Something we'll always be thankful to the Exalt for," Killie told them. "I'll admit when my husband's men came running to our house and told me that he'd been taken north I thought I'd lost him, but now we've been relocated and life in Ylisse isn't bad; certainly less humid than in the desert."
"And how are the people treating you?" Cordelia asked.
"Everyone's really nice to us!" Edward said with a large smile. "They're always trying to make sure we're doing okay and all of the kids let me play with them all of the time!"
"It's nice and peaceful," Mustafa said before he grimaced. "Well… there is one person…"
Le Flashback
It had been early in the morning and Mustafa was sitting at the table drinking coffee before he was about to head out to work. There was a loud knock at the door, causing the former General to narrow his eyes at its force. Slowly getting up, he headed over to the door as the person outside continued to knock. He opened it to find a man standing outside with blonde hair clad in leather.
"So you're the guy that managed to almost beat Chrom…" the stranger said to him as his own eyes were narrowed.
"Aye, and I think I remember you… You were with us at the Midmire, weren't you?"
"Yeah, I was there… And I've been meaning to do this for a while…" Mustafa was about to call out for his wife and kid, to worriedly tell them to run… but the man then immediately went to a kneeling position at his feet. "SHOW TEACH HOW TO USE AN AXE LIKE THAT!"
...Understandably, Mustafa was speechless.
"So Vaike's been begging you for lessons," Cordelia summarized. "Is that why he's been missing during training lately?"
"Tis likely," the general told the two. "I tried to turn him down, but he's a persistent one… It was either give in to his demands or continue to be hounded by the man. Eventually he even started following me to work and asking for lessons their while he helped me… So I gave him his lessons on the condition he'd continue to help us with the repairs."
"No wonder he's been getting better lately, last time I saw him duel Chrom he almost had him," Cordelia said. "Sorry to have Vaike trouble you though, he's always sort of been like that."
"I don't mind, he's got a good heart and he's always a laugh for Edward to be around," Mustafa assured. "At any rate, I believe we'll be going."
"I need to go home and get dinner started for these two," Kellie told the Cordelia and Olivia. "Naga knows I didn't marry Mustafa for his cooking."
"Dear…" the former General groaned.
"Oh, hush you! You know it's true," Kellie told him with a smirk. "Remember our anniversary last year where you tried to make me breakfast in bed? What happened to our house?"
"I'm don't want to say it."
"My dad almost burned it down and I had to help him put it out," Edward told them, Mustafa shook his head as he began to leave with his wife. "Bye miss Cordelia, bye miss Olivia."
"Take care of yourselves," Olivia called as the family walked away. "They seem happy."
"Yeah, I'm glad to see that they've still doing well," Cordelia said. "With tensions high after the war I was worried that someone would in town would do something drastic."
"Well he has been seen a lot around the castle and he's occasionally with someone in the Shepherds, that's probably helped him," Olivia said as she and the Pegasus rider continued to walk through the gardens.
Deciding she'd do another take, the swordswoman glanced back and looked to the man in question as he continued to depart with his family. The former general had lifted his son so that he was riding on his father's shoulder as they walked while Mustafa and Kellie discussed plans for dinner that night. Cordelia noticed where Olivia was looking and got the message and smirked.
"They make a cute family, don't they?" Olivia nodded her head in agreement. "So… thinking about starting one yourself?"
"N-No!" the young dancer immediately denied as her face turned deep crimson.
"Huh, so there's that cute blush that Emmeryn told me about," Cordelia said as she observed the dancer's face closely. "You know I'd bet the idea of marrying someone as cute as you would make any man happy."
"S-stop it! You're embarrassing me!" Olivia yelled in protest, the dancer blushing far more than she had in recent memory. At Cordelia's friendly laughter she scowled slightly "...Then what about you, are you looking to start a family?"
"D-don't be silly! I'm not ready to commit to something like that yet!" Cordelia shouted in her defense as her face's colors matched that of her hair. "Why are you asking me anyways?"
"Well you asked me in the first place, so fair's fair," Olivia reminded as the girls made their way out of the garden. "Besides, is there anyone else here to ask?"
"No, I guess there isn't," Cordelia admitted.
"...I'm here," Kellam whined as he sat in the garden barely five feet from where Olivia and Cordelia had their conversation. Neither of the girls seemed to have noticed him and he'd been calling out to them and Mustafa since they'd arrived. "I miss Ragna; he was the only one that could actually see me…"
Meanwhile -Northern Plegia-
Once more a lone wander in a hooded cloak traveled the endless sands of the Plegian desert. Unlike the wander previous, this one's cloak was well made and weaved out of a lovely light pink silk. They also had a much clearer purpose than the one before, tireless continuing their journey even through the long nights… though even such determination would not stop the shadowy beasts that stalked the traveler from behind.
When the Risen slowly began to close in the traveler came to a stop and gave a cautious glance around. It was a cloudless day and people would be able to see over the dune for miles if they were at the right elevation. Not the ideal place to deal with the Risen, but it would have to work. She was about to remove her pink traveling coat right before she heard a pained hiss come from behind her as one of the Risen was impaled through the back of the head with a wide blade. The remaining Risen let out feral snarls as they turned to face the newcomer with pure savagery.
"Unfortunately for you I'm not one for honor either," the Black Knight told the beast as he roughly yanked his weapon out of the Risen's head. It fell forward and burst into dark shadows the moment it touched ground and the shadows were absorbed into the knight's right arm.
"ELFIRE!" came Henry's shout as his spell soared through the air before it impacted an Archer's chest and exploded, completely obliterating his target. An axe wielder saw the newcomer and immediately rushed toward him only to attacked by two crows that pecked at its face. The beast snarled as it tried to shoo the crows away, leaving it vulnerable. "Aw, thanks you guys! Ruin!" Dark tendrils emerged from the ground and stuck the Risen through and destroyed it.
"Having fun?" the Black Knight questioned before he braced his Armor Slayer and unleashed a cleaving strike through several Risen.
"Blasting monsters into little, tiny bits? How could I not!? Nya ha ha ha!" the dark mage cackled before narrowly dodging the lance thrust from a soldier type Risen. Henry then charged Elfire into his hand before blasting the monster in the chest at point blank range. "Aren't you?"
"Hard to say no," the Black Knight admitted, smirking somewhat underneath his helm. He then sent out a massive blade of wind that struck many Risen through and slayed them instantly. The remaining two Risen charged him in a final desperate rush, but a single slash from the enigmatic warrior was enough to rip them both to pieces.
"That was a bit too quick for my taste," Henry said with a nonchalant shrug as he turned to face the traveler who'd yet to move. "Hey! You're okay now, the monsters are gone!"
"They would've been fine without us," the knight told him as he seethed his sword and waited for the shadows to be absorbed into his arm. "Risen like these aren't a match for what that one's capable of."
"That so?" Henry questioned. "Well then why'd you try to step in big guy?"
"...You'd have whined if I hadn't," the knight told his companion, who merely chuckled. As the last of the Risen's shadows became absorbed into his right arm, the knight was about to leave for his next location, but noticed the traveler approaching him. "Mind telling us what you're doing out here?"
"I'm on a rather important errand," the person under the hood told them coolly, the tone revealing the travel to be a woman. "Thank you for assisting me, it might have proven… problematic had I needed to face those monsters myself."
"Aw shucks, it was nothing," Henry said happily. "My name's Henry, a travelling dark mage out to see all the world's conflicts and cause more of them! And these are my friends Nathan and Morty." The crows then cawed something of a greeting.
"You named them…" the armored enigma noted though another groan. "So you're keeping them?"
"Yep! And I call the dark and moody one here is Knight; he's really shy, especially around girls."
"You've never seen me around girls!" the Black Knight shouted in his frustration.
"Not until now, so now you're on the Henry watch. Nya ha ha ha!" the dark mage cackled, further annoying his traveling companion.
"Well it's very nice to meet all of you, please call me Tiki," the woman told the two pleasantly. "I'd hate to ask any more from either of you, but could I have your help in getting to Ylisstol?"
"Ylisstol? If you're trying to get there you're on the wrong side of the continent," Henry told her. "Where are you from anyways?"
"Across the seas," Tiki told them. "It was difficult enough just to get this far, but now I need to make my way in order to convey a message to the Exalt."
"That sounds really important, but also reeeeally suspicious," the young dark mage told Tiki playfully. "So what do you think we should do Knight?"
"You're asking me?" Knight asked in mild surprise.
"Hey, you're the guy with the things to do, the places to go, and the people to avoid, I'm just following you to keep you sane," Henry told him.
"You're terrible at your job then." The enigma thought it over for a time before finally relenting. "Fine, but I'm only taking you as far as the border. You'll have to manage the rest of the road from there… Manakete."
"Y-You know?" Tiki asked in evident shook from beneath her hood.
"I've encountered your kind before so I know what to look for," was Knight's ominous response. "We'll head north and try to get through Regna Ferox first; with things as bad as they are, trying to get through the Eastern border is just going to be a pain to deal with."
"A-as you say," the young woman nervously agreed as she tried to get a better look at her new guide. As she gazed at the Black Knight trying to understand him and gazed back, she was able to see under the cracks of the helmet an eye of emerald and an eye of crimson. Staring into them she saw a sudden flash of an image of a demonic horned head made darkness and death. Tiki's gave a surprised gasp before she took a step back in shock.
"What's wrong now?" the Black Knight questioned at her distress.
"Pretty sure you're just scaring her big guy," Henry guessed. "Don't worry about Knight Tiki, he's probably a real softy under all of that black armor."
"Keep telling yourself that," Knight muttered as he began walking off to lead his new group northward.
'What is he?' Tiki thought with worry as she followed behind the two (four if you count Henry's crows). 'He has a darkness in him, one pulsing through his very being… Is he a catalyst for Grima's revival? But if he was, why wouldn't he try to kill me now? No matter, I need to keep my eye on him…'
Author's Note: Don't Own Anything
*Important* First, with Tiki now joining the party I'll allow her to be included if you have any desire to add her to any of the Harem add-ins later. I know I said last chapter that she wouldn't be included, but I didn't know I'd be writing her in.
Okay, not my best chapter, but I had to get this out eventually. I'll be honest, I had to completely scrape and then rewrite this thing three times before coming to this for a conclusion… Filler's getting harder to write for, but I'll make it work , but no Omake or review responses this time. I've had on and off head colds that've been killing me these past few weeks and I think it's starting to affect my writing.
I promise I'll give you guys a more concrete chapter next time, but next up is the long awaited Azure Guilt chapter. Until next time everyone!
Ciao!