Hey guys! Kamen Rider Duelist finally for another chapter of Silent Magi's Apprentice! Sorry I wasn't able to update this story in such a long time! As you already saw, I've been cranking out chapters of Kamen Rider GX like clockwork! I was that laser focused to getting them out, that I almost completely forgot about this story! So I profoundly apologize for the long wait! Your patience will now be rewarded!
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! All creative rights belong to Kazuki Takahashi.
Mana was in her bedroom studying like any other apprentice would. But lately she's gotten bored as of late. Ever since the Thaumaturge Trials and the party that followed ended, things had returned to normal. At least, as normal as it would get. She would spend time at the Beach dimension in the Mystical Cathedral, but even that has gotten tiring. Not only that, she hasn't talked with Kuromu for a while either. Ever since he passed, he had been concentrating on his new magic. Which, granted, was paramount to further his studies, however…
"He must be overworking himself again…" Mana pouted.
"Who's overworking themselves?" A familiar voice rang in Mana's ears, causing her to snap to attention upon this voice.
Who she saw was an older woman who, for all intents and purposes, had an uncanny resemblance to Mana, only the blonde hair was darker and brown and she had a much better figure. She wore a hat similar to Mana's being blue, but had green gems on it, and she wore an outfit similar to Mana's as well. Her staff was somewhat large which was dark bluish-gray in the shape of a large hook with green embedded along the staff.
"Sister!" Mana smiled excitedly, before jumping into the older woman's arms.
"It's good to see you, little sister." The woman smiled, patting Mana's head.
"What are you doing here? I thought you weren't back from your trip until next month."
"The mission was completed sooner than expected, so I thought I'd surprise you." She smiled, "Now who's acting like Master in his youth, again?"
Mana looked sheepish as she scratched her cheek with a finger, "Ehehe, you heard that, huh?"
"Indeed, now tell me."
"Oh, just a friend of mine."
"Not cheating on him, are we?" She teased her sister.
Mana puffed her cheeks as she stomped her foot, "Of course not!" But then looked away, mumbling, "Even though he is cute…"
"Oh so you do like this other boy?"
"Not like tha~t!" Mana whined childishly.
"Hehe, well then. Why don't you tell me about him? I'm curious to know more now."
"Oh alright." Mana sighed, as the two sat down on the bed. "I don't know if you know this, but Silent Magician now has an apprentice."
"Ah, so she finally found someone? Good for her." The older mage nodded, "Now who is this boy that's on your mind?"
"That's exactly it. Her apprentice." Mana answered.
"Oh~? Now this boy seems interesting if he swayed the hearts of two maidens." She giggled, teasing the young Mana once again. "Perhaps I should pay them a visit, it has been a bit after all."
"Hey, I said I'm not cheating on him!" Mana huffed.
"Yet you don't deny how much your heart is pittering to him, no?" The mage smirked.
"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!" Mana puffed her cheeks, now more annoyed as steam puffed out of her ears.
"Now, how about telling me more?" The older mage asked, interested to know.
Mana pouted before calming down. "His name is Kuromu. And… he came from another world with no memory as to how he got here. So he became Silent Magician's apprentice and learned magic, even passed the first Phase of the Thaumaturge Trials, with the title Eclipse Alchemist."
"Hm? 'Another World' huh? Fascinating…" She nodded, "I believe I'll pay Silent Magician a visit, I'm curious to know more now."
"You just wanna steal him from her aren't you…" Mana deadpanned dryly.
"Hehe, nothing of the sort. I'm just curious about something that came across the mission is all… And seeing if it possibly connects with your new friend?"
"Huh? Whaddya mean?" Mana asked, confused.
"We found some kind of item… we do not know what it could be or entail… Nor were we able to even detect everything about it through magic." She said, revealing what looked to be a slab of metal, but then gripped one side of it as it was flipped up, showing some kind of screen and buttons.
"What… is that?" Mana asked, as she examined it, "Wait, I think I've seen this before."
"You do?" Her sister turned her head to Mana.
"Mmmmmm… I don't know. It's kinda vague." Mana pondered, trying to think.
"Then all more of a reason to visit your friend. Perhaps its the same kind of thing that he came from? After all, you said it yourself that he was from another world. This could be a clue to where exactly."
"I see. Well, nothing like the present then!" Mana chirped.
"WAIT!" Several more voices called out, as soon the door was busted down as several other mages came rushing in and falling down on each other after, ones Mana knew too well.
"Ugh… What are you all doing?" Mana facepalmed.
"We wanna come too!" They all said in unison.
Mana looked at her older sister with a dry look, as if demanding, for an explanation.
"They all came with me the moment they saw me, so I figured we all could just come along too." She shrugged softly.
"Great…"
Chapter 17: Sweet Mages & Hot Swordsmen
Several days have passed since Sora and Ulrich had visited Shizuka's residence. The days went by as normal, as Kuromu continued learning his magic and crafting his potions with his magic. He would take his creations to the Capital and earn money from Garie, selling all of them to her as a side hustle. Of course, his education became more important. But lately, he had been too focused on it, eating later than usual and foregoing sleep a bit longer than usual and the next day he would start all over again.
The Crystal Beasts and Nia were somewhat worried, but they nonetheless supported him as best they could. Even if it took Nia to cast heavy sleeping spells on Kuromu to give him the sleep he needs.
"Mou… what can we do, Shizuka? At this rate, he'll be like those old bags in the capital, only caring about the study and devotion for it… not the love for magic like you do…" Nia pouted, as she was talking to Shizuka for help.
"Do not worry, I will speak to him…"
"Please…"
Shizuka then walked over to his room and knocked on it.
*KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK*
"Come in."
Shizuka sighed softly, before opening the door revealing Kuromu at his desk, studying his Book of Eclipse. He turned around and saw her, "S-Sensei!" He panicked, immediately shutting the book and pushing it away. "I uh…"
"Kuromu…. Why are you going this far for your studies?" Shizuka questioned.
"Uh… well…" Kuromu trailed off.
"Is it… about…"
…
…
…
"I'm sorry…" Kuromu trailed off, looking downward. "I just… needed to distract myself."
"Kuromu… you should not lock yourself away and devote yourself to your studies…" Shizuka frowned, "It is fine to be passionate about your work, but not at the cost of your own health and well being."
"…" Kuromu didn't say anything, looking away almost in shame. "It's just… I… guess I'm still reeling from that talk we had."
"I know… And it hurt me just as much to tell you… but you needed to know the truth. I could not keep it hidden from you any longer."
"I know…" Kuromu sighed, before sitting back on his chair. "So what now? Do I just… give u-?"
"No." Shizuka said immediately, now holding his hands as she knelt on one knee, "Do not ever give up on yourself…"
"Sensei…"
"No matter what, I chose to make you my apprentice… and it is why I am still here with you, despite what I have told you." Shizuka said, now placing a hand on his cheek caressing it ever so softly, "So please… do not do this to yourself…"
"Sensei, I…" Kuromu murmured, before his hand touched her own, eyes closed.
But right when the moment was going well, there was a knock at the door, signaling the two that there were guests.
"I'll get it." Kuromu said, as he went out of his room and Shizuka followed after him. When they arrived at the front door, the boy opened it and blinked in surprise, seeing someone similar to… "Mana?" He got out. "What's with the growth spurt?"
"Hehe, I get that a lot when people only have seen my little sister." The mage giggled softly.
"Ehhh?! Sister?!" Kuromu gawked, rubbing his eyes making sure he wasn't seeing things.
"Valkyria. It has been awhile." Shizuka smiled softly.
"You know her?" Kuromu looked at his teacher in surprise.
"Yes. This is Magician's Valkyria, Mana's older sister as well as Mahad's first pupil." Shizuka informed him.
"Wait, what? But I thought Mana was-"
"An only child? No, she has me." Valkyria noted, "But in order to protect her from more dangerous foes, I was the one pointed to while she was looked after and protected by Mahad and her fiancé."
"I… see." Kuromu got out.
"And well, the others and myself became curious about you, so I thought it would be best for us to come by and pay a visit." She playfully winked.
"Others?"
"Kuro!"
*POW! THUD!*
"Ughhhhhhhh…" Kuromu groaned, before looking to see… "Mana?!"
"How are you doing?" Mana smiled happily at the mage, "I brought some guests this time!"
"Hey, what's with all the noise?" Nia huffed as she and the Crystal Beasts showed up.
"Kyuuu, kyuuuuuu~!" Ruby Carbuncle chirped.
"Hehe, its good to see you too Carbuncle." Mana smiled, floating over to pat its head, while Kuromu managed to get back up and dust himself off.
"So… who are these other guests?"
Valkyria smiled as she moved to the side as many other mages were behind her, each one vastly different from the rest.
One looked to be as old as both Valkyria and Shizuka as she wore a black outfit with cyan highlights around her. She had long purple hair as there was a small heart gem on the forehead of her hat.
Next to her was a girl around Valkyria's age as she had black outfit with red highlights and seemed closer to Mana's outfit and also with the same heart gem on her hat as her long light cyan hair was flowing.
Next to that girl as another one that was more close to Mana's age with short purple hair and red clothing in her outfit, even with two pink angelic wings for her, as next to her was another one with the same kind of outfit but yellow highlights than red with pixie-esc wings and medium length blonde hair.
The final girl was holding Valkyria's hand as she looked to be more of a toddler with fairy wings instead as her outfit was like the others but for her size and only red as she looked at the boy with awe and delight from her innocent eyes.
"These are Mana and my best friends. We call ourselves 'Flavor Magician's'. Most of these girls love certain treats. Meet Berry, Lemon, Apple, Chocolate, and Kiwi Magician." Valkyria introduced, "They insisted on knowing more about you. So I convinced my sweet little sister to bring them along."
"Oh. Uh… hi there." Kuromu waved sheepishly.
Kiwi, Apple and Lemon were the ones to swiftly rush up to the boy, slightly surrounding him as they all looked at him with awe and interest.
"Wah! So this is the boy? He's super cute!" Kiwi gasped.
"So this is who Mana was gushing about?" Apple noted as she looked him up and down.
"Say, boyo… If you aren't interested in her, how about me?" Lemon playfully winked.
"Uh… excuse me?" Kuromu blinked.
"Hey, hands off!" Nia huffed, flying up to Lemon's face. "He's already spoken for!"
"Ara? He has a familiar too?" Chocolate noted with surprise.
"Hehe, well isn't this cute? Fairies and Pixies never try to have such an intimate idea of a relationship." Lemon giggled, "But sadly, I have the size advantage. In more ways than one." Lemon smirked at the small pixie.
"Oooooooh, I'll show you, size advantage!" Nia huffed as she grew her body to human standards.
"…eh?" Lemon blinked in surprise.
"Ara? This pixie truly loves the boy." Chocolate noted once again with a surprised look.
"Hah! How do ya like that?" Nia smirked victoriously.
"Oi…" Kuromu deadpanned.
"Hehe, sorry for my friends and their antics." Valkyria bowed softly.
"No it's… fine. I… could actually use a distraction." Kuromu trailed off with a soft smile. Kuromu soon felt something tug on him as he looked down to see the small toddler now holding his hand and looking up at him with sparkles in her eyes.
"Hehe, looks like Berry likes you very much." Valkyria giggled at the innocent nature of Berry.
"Yeah, I guess so." Kuromu chuckled. "So~ what do you girls wanna do?"
"How about we relax and chat for a bit?" Shizuka offered the idea, settling any chaos the two parties would cause.
"That would be wise." Valkyria nodded.
After rounding the others up, Shizuka and Valkyria were able to settle everyone down as treats and drinks were given out, letting everyone relax. Kuromu this time was sitting at the head of the table, with Berry Magician sitting on his lap. "So uh… what do you girls wanna know about me? Fair warning, I'm not all that interesting."
"Oh! Oh! What about where you came from?" Apple swiftly raised her hand, curious to know more.
"Ah, that. Well, I'm from another world. Apparently, from a place called Earth."
"That's a boring name." Lemon deadpanned with a puff of her cheeks.
"Well, I don't know about boring, but at the same time, given how I still don't have all my memories. I couldn't exactly tell you."
"You… don't have any memories?" Kiwi said with surprised look.
"Only bits and pieces. Master Endymion is still trying to piece them together at the Citadel."
Berry stood up, hugging Kuromu, wanting to be supportive. Even as a toddler, she understood how it could feel.
"Uh… thanks." Kuromu blinked, somewhat awkwardly returning the hug.
"Well, then tell us what you can remember." Chocolate smiled softly.
"Right… well…" Kuromu trailed off. "It was during my training with the Charmers. Specifically with Eria and Hiita. The first one, I was… in some alleyway, surrounded by these thugs. I don't know why but they all ganged up on me and… well, I don't think I need to finish that last part…" He grimaced, the girls looking shocked, "And the second memory was a continuation of it. They grabbed something from me. I don't know what it is, it's blurred out, but… they took whatever it is and burned it."
"Oh… Kuro…" Mana frowned softly from hearing that.
"Well, it's still no big deal. At least for now." Kurromu smiled sadly. "But enough of that. What else do you wanna know?"
"How about how you decided to be a mage." Lemon questioned.
"Ah, that's actually… well, it was actually Master Endymion's suggestion that I become Shizuka-sensei's apprentice for the time being, while he pieces back my memory together." Kuromu answered sheepishly. "So it's something I'm doing to pass the time, but…" He looked at Shizuka with a soft smile, "I don't mind waiting it out for just a while longer."
"Well, now you have all of us!" Mana smiled happily.
"Yeah, and I'm thankful for that." Kuromu smiled.
"Hoho~ judging by the way you're looking at your teacher~" Lemon smiled a cat-like grin.
"Eh? Wha- no! It's not like that!" Kuromu stammered with a blush.
"Well, then my question is… what's your type?" Chocolate asked, cupping Kuromu's cheek teasingly.
"I uh…" Kuromu gulped, "I don't think I should answer that."
"Aw, embarrassed to tell us pretty girls?" Kiwi added with a giggle, "It's okay, we won't tell anyone…"
"STOP!" Mana shouted, pushing the two flirtatious girls away, "I won't let you two tease Ku-Ku like that."
"We're just playing Mana." Chocolate giggled.
"Indeed. Besides, if he isn't sure of himself, than we have free reign." Kiwi nodded.
"And besides, you don't get to talk when we did the same thing for you and your fiance~" Lemon giggled, which pissed off Mana a bit with steam coming out of her ears.
"Why you-!"
"Now now, Mana, let's not blow a fuse." Valkyria placated her younger sister, to which she pouted, and crossed her arms, looking away with a huff.
"Glad to know I'm at least not the only one being given this treatment." Kuromu sweat dropped.
"That reminds me, I found something while I was out on the field on mission. Do you happen to know what this thing is?" Valkyria handed an item to Kuromu, "Nobody is able to tell exactly what it is."
"Hm?" Kuromu took the item to examine it. "This is…" He said, looking at it from all sides and angles, before he saw a small latch and opened it, revealing… a screen and… a board of squares with letters? "Wait… is this…" He trailed off.
"Hm? Do you know what it is, Ku-Ku?" Nia asked.
"I… think so. It's-"
*BZZZT!*
"Ergh!" Kuromu held his head.
"Kuromu!" Shizuka gasped in surprise, before the young man shook his head.
"I'm fine." Kuromu reassured, before looking at it again, "I know this… this is a computer. Or rather, a laptop."
"Lab… top?" Berry tried to speak correctly.
"Laptop." Kuromu corrected. "It's an electronic device that store, retrieves, and process information."
"So its like a Grimoire?" Apple questioned.
"Only more advanced. And it stores way more information than tomes and grimoires." Kuromu said, before looking at Valkyria, "Where did you find this?"
"Within the Ancient City of The Blue-Eyes." Valkyria informed.
"Ancient City of the Blue-Eyes?"
"It was a city that house one of the most fearsome creatures… The Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Valkyria informed, "Sadly we had to flee recently as The Council put a blockade around the ruins."
"Why? Is the Blue-Eyes White Dragon acting strange?"
"It has been dead for over a millennia." Shizuka revealed.
"Dead for a millennia?" Kuromu gasped. "How did it-"
"From… the same one who hurt you…" Mana frowned softly.
"Darkbishop…" Kuromu grunted.
"He feared the Blue-Eyes power and used an ancient spell to destroy it and the Blue-Eyes's servants." Valkyria informed. "Since then, The Council kept a close eye on it and only recently built that blockade. Worried he may return to take whatever lingering power it has left."
"I see. So unless we get from permission from Master Endymion, we're blocked access to that city."
"Indeed." Shizuka nodded.
"Enough talk, I wanna know what it can do!" Lemon smiled, curious to know what the laptop does.
"See? That's a problem, because there's nothing to charge it with." Kuromu said, trying to turn on the power button.
"Forget that you have me?" Nia winked as she flew over as the pixie dust fell onto the device only for it then to come to life as the screen turned on.
"Never mind…" Kuromu muttered before it loaded. A few moments later, he was taken to the homescreen. But… "It's locked."
"Huh?" Mana voiced out.
"I'm locked out of the computer. It needs a password before I can be given access."
"Pass… word…? I don't understand what that means!" Nia pouted, flying over and over the laptop as more pixie dust fell, but nothing came up causing the fairy to drop onto Kuromu's shoulder, feeling sad and useless.
"Basically, I need a key in the form of a word in order to unlock it. Problem is, I have no clue what it is."
"Just type random stuff. How long could it even take?" Lemon shrugged obliviously.
Kuromu looked at Lemon Magician with a deadpanned look, "The fact that you're saying that means you know nothing about technology. The words can be a jumble of letters, numbers, and/or symbols. The possibilities are virtually endless."
Berry looked up at Kuromu before back to the device as her small hands tried to reach out to it.
"Berry what are you doing?" Kiwi asked the toddler magician.
As she reached the keyboard, she made a few typings that spelled the word, "Beautiful Magician" as the password accepted it.
"HUH?!" Kuromu gawked, before looking at the toddler, "How did you-"
"Ba-Ba… Berry!" The toddler mage smiled happily, as she wanted praise.
"Uh…" Kuromu got out, not sure what to say, looking at the others.
"Berry usually is able to discover certain things just through emotions. Even we don't know how it'll fully work out." Mana shrugged before smiling, "But now that means you can see what this device holds."
"Ah, well, thank you Berry." Kuromu smiled, patting her head.
"Ba-Ba!" She cheerfully enjoyed the praise.
"Alright, let's see what this has." Kuromu said, as it finally showed the homescreen… only for it to be blank. "There's… nothing."
"Maybe it has other secrets?" Mana pondered.
"No. This is it. It's blank. Clean. There's no information whatsoever."
"But didn't you say it can hold more stuff than a tome or grimoire?" Chocolate questioned.
"I did, but the thing is, there's nothing stored in this. Someone must have erased everything on this laptop."
"What about that one?" Mana points to what was obviously the start icon.
"That's not-"
"Why don't you see what it does." Valkyria suggested.
Kuromu sighed, figuring there was nothing that could hurt, he clicked the icon as the status bar appeared… along with one folder. Curiously he clicked on it as a window popped up… but also other folders, each one showing a locked icon on it.
"Great… these files are locked." Kuromu said, before typing the password 'Beautiful Magician', but was denied access. "Okay, this password doesn't work, meaning it's multiple passwords to unlock each file."
"Well, bright side! At least you got through the most toughest part!" Nia tried to cheer him up.
"Yeah,"
"So… if its like a tome or grimoire… That means it can record things too, correct?" Kiwi questioned.
"Not exactly, I would have to input information manually on the keyboard here."
"Then, why not do that? Make new memories even if you can't access whatever this holds?" Kiwi pondered.
"I mean I could, but there's little to no applications to use for the meantime." Kuromu said, before turning off the computer and closing it. "So for now, this is going to my desk. Let's finish up these treats and I'll show you the Apothecary Lab."
"Yes! More snacks!" Chocolate licked her lips with interest.
After finishing up the rest of the treats, Kuromu led the Flavor Magician, Mana and Valkyria to the Apothecary Lab. They were amazed at the sight of the forest-like laboratory and were shown the chemistry set.
"I remember when you asked me to make the glyph carvings to save this place, Shizuka." Valkyria smiled softly, "I always wondered what you did with it."
"Well, now you know." Shizuka said, as Kuromu demonstrated his alchemy.
"Alright, now watch this." Kuromu said, before closing his eyes and a magic circle appeared below his feet. "As Source of Thy Power, I Order Thee. Decipher the Laws of Creation, let moonlight shine on my domain. Nightfall!"
And just like that, the atmosphere of the Apothecary Lab changed as the sun had prematurely set, allowing the moon in the Pocket Dimension to rise as the sky darkened.
"Now." Kuromu said, holding up the gold-colored potion into the air. The rays of moonlight shined on the potion and the liquid glowed brightly from the moonlight's concentration.
"Wow! You've gotten so much better!" Mana gasped, praising his magic control.
"What… is this?" Apple asked curiously, eyeing the glowing potion.
"It's my Moonlight Potion. Whoever drinks it can gain temporary Moonlight Magic." Kuromu grinned. "When not drunk it can light people's way through the dark."
"It's quite lovely." Kiwi smiled. "May I?"
"Of course. Go ahead." Kuromu said, handing her the glowing golden potion. Kiwi took the Potion into her hand and uncorked it before downing the contents. From there, her body glowed, a golden light enveloping her.
"Too bright! Too bright!" Lemon cried out, covering her eyes.
"Amazing, I feel the moonlight's power." Kiwi said, looking at herself.
"Try using Moonlight Magic on that tree over there." Kuromu pointed at one of the trees. Kiwi nodded, then turned towards said tree. Concentrating, she held out her hand and a beam of concentrated moonlight shot out of her hand, hitting the bark and scorching it, producing a burn mark.
"Oh my!"
"It's not that powerful, but it will help you in a bind."
"Have you tried pushing forward with sending this to a vendor?" Valkyria questioned, "You could make serious money from that."
"I was… that is until Shizuka-sensei's brother tried to kill me…" Kuromu deadpanned dryly.
"Your brother visited?" Valkyria looked at Shizuka in surprise.
"Yes… and as usual, Sora became overprotective." Shizuka sighed.
"When is he not?" Valkyria sighed with a headshake.
"We at least cleared the air." Kuromu said. "That being said, I planned on visiting Garie to sell this off to her."
"Then I wish you well with your endeavors." Valkyria smiled. "You've trained a fine apprentice, Shizuka."
"I am truly proud of him." Shizuka smiled softly.
"And on that note, I must be leaving."
"Awww, you're leaving again? But you just got back." Mana whined.
"Unlike you, dear sister. I am a very busy lady." Valkyria smiled, poking Mana's forehead playfully.
"Mmmmmm…" Mana pouted.
"But don't worry, I'll be back soon." Valkyria smiled, before turning to Kuromu, "Please look after her. She may be a troublesome girl, but she means well."
"Hehe… not a problem." Kuromu chuckled.
"Hey~ what's that supposed to mean?" Mana asked indignantly. "I can behave myself!"
"Ehhh…" The Flavor Sisters grimaced, looking away slightly.
"Oh come on, that was one time!"
"It was more than 'one time'…" they said in unison.
"Should I be worried?" Kuromu sweat dropped.
"That's for you to decide." Valkyria giggled.
"Yeah~ no thanks." Kuromu muttered.
Valkyria giggled before turning to Shizuka, "Mind showing me out?"
With a nod, Shizuka helped Valkyria back to the entrance to see the older mage off as the students all chatted away without them.
"You truly did raise a wonderful student." Valkyria praised the older mage, "And before, you wanted to simply be alone with your studies."
"Yes, but… ever since he arrived, everything… my whole life has changed." Shizuka smiled fondly. "If I had not taken the initiative of saving him, it would have been very different."
"Perhaps, there is more to it than you believe? Maybe your heart desired it such, and was granted in kind."
"My… heart…" Shizuka pondered. "While it is true that I enjoy all that I do with my apprentice, I… I do not know if I am ready to take that relationship further."
"Only time will tell, Shizuka. Who's to say what the future holds?" Valkyria noted, "But… do not wait too long. You may never know when the worst outcome… or a sudden change could happen. After all…" She winced, holding her arm.
"I am sorry, Valkyria." Shizuka apologized sadly. "I know you loved Darius very much…"
"When I… heard of his demise… I didn't want to believe it." Valkyria said. "If only I had been at his side…"
"There was nothing you could have done." Shizuka shook her head.
"Maybe so… but I still… wished I told him my answer to his proposal…" Valkyria said sadly.
"We all have regrets, but we should not dwell on it and on the past." Shizuka said, holding Valkiyria's hands. "You must live on… for him. Keep him alive in your memories."
"Indeed…" Valkyria smiled, hugging her friend. "If I hadn't known any better, I-"
"Ah, ah, ah. No." Shizuka placed a finger on Valkyria's lips. "You must never speak of that."
"Hehe, as you wish. But rest assured… I still have such moments put closely within my heart." Valkyria smiled softly with a slight blush.
"As long as you do not tell my apprentice."
"I won't tell if you don't." The mage playfully winked.
"Fair enough."
"Good. Until next time, Shizuka."
"Farewell, Valkyria." Shizuka smiled, "And for what it is worth. I know you will find someone else worthy."
"And you as well." With a bow, Valkyria flew off, most likely to enjoy the breeze today as well as reminiscing those days long ago.
It was the next day at Silent Magician's residence. Kuromu, Mana, and Flavor Magician Girls stayed up well into the night, so the girls decided to have a sleepover, which Shizuka didn't mind. So she gave each of them a spare room to sleep in for the night. However, it was this morning that things started to happen.
Kuromu slowly opened his eyes when the sun's rays peeked into the window of his room. Sitting up, he yawned and stretched out to loosen up whatever knots he had. However, looking to his right, he noticed a bulge on his bed.
"Huh?" Kuromu got out. What was this thing? He slowly pulled off the blanket to reveal… a sleeping Lemon Magician Girl… who was naked…
…
…
…
…
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Mmngh… do you have to scream? I was having a nice dream…" Lemon grumbled, rubbing her eyes before looking to see what Kuromu had tumbled to the floor and crawling backwards away, smiling down at him. "Still, good morning handsome… Enjoying the view?"
"W-W-W-What are you doing in my room?! H-How did you even get in?!" Kuromu stammered with a heavy blush.
"Well, I figured I could give you a nice taste of what it means to be an adult…. Plus, I'm a mage, cutie." Lemon winked, teasing the young mage more.
"I had the door locked! There was no way you could've gotten in!" Kuromu got out. "And I don't buy that explanation either!"
"You forget what magic can do." Lemon said, poking the tip of Kuromu's nose before giggling, "As for the taste? Well… want to find out?" she asked, her voice husky.
"NO THANK YOU!"
"Aw, but why not? Seems to me, you're single. So why not have some fun?" Lemon questioned, soon having his hand placed against her chest. Kuromu's face became red and steam hissed out of his ears, quickly pulling his hand away and getting up before attempting in vain to escape his room.
Lemon quickly jumped and tackled him down, Lemon's cheeks tint with a blush as well as her body feeling hotter to the touch, "Come on~ I know you want this too! Why not just have some fun with me already? It's not like you have someone anyways."
"Please, I'm not ready for this!" Kuromu cried out waterfall tears.
"Aw don't be scared… This'll be more fun…" Lemon giggled as she puckered up her lips, ready to kiss the young mage.
*WOOSH! BAM!*
Kuromu and Lemon were surprised when the door suddenly swung open. Kuromu looked, only to pale in horror upon the sight of Mana, the rest of the Flavor Magician Girls, Shizuka, and Nia.
"Aw man… just when it was getting good." Lemon huffed.
"This isn't what it looks like, I swear!" Kuromu panicked.
"Lemon! I thought you swore not to try anything!" Mana huffed.
"Wait… you mean this happened before…?" Kuromu paled even whiter.
"She likes to be around boys…" Apple sighed, shaking her head. "For a moment, we thought Kiwi would try something, but guess this time it was Lemon."
"Lemon, please remove yourself from my apprentice… now." Shizuka said sternly.
"Hey, you and Kuromu said nothing was going on. So, why can't I have some fun?" Lemon crossed her arms with a huff, covering her chest with said arms.
"For one, your antics are traumatizing my apprentice. And second, it is common sense to have common decency when around guests."
"Fine… Just so I don't get scolded by my master later on…" Lemon pouted as she stood up, only to wink to Kuromu, who flinched, before taking her wand and reapplying her clothes. "There… Happy now?"
"Very." Shizuka said dryly.
"You okay, Ku-Ku?" Nia asked, floating up to his face.
"I… think so…" Kuromu got out, before standing up. "I'm gonna go freshen up… and scream my head into a bathtub of cold water…" He added before leaving the room.
"Haaaaaaaaaa…" Kuromu sighed heavily as he, Mana, and Kiwi were walking in the bazaar of the Secret Village of Spellcasters, buying groceries. "That was definitely not how I wanted to start off my morning…"
"We're so sorry about Lemon…" Mana apologized. "She can be… daring."
"Understatement of the century…" Kuromu grumbled. "Why is she this perverted anyway?"
"She was… restricted a lot as a child. Not even allowed outside or any boys… But once she had the aptitude for magic and transferred over? She was able to freely express herself. And that turned into her being boy crazy." Kiwi informed.
"I must ask… has she been… er-hem… sleeping around?" Kuromu gulped.
"Yes."
Kuromu facepalmed, "I was afraid of that."
"I'm so very sorry about her…." Kiwi bowed her head once more.
"No, it's fine. I was just surprised about her… forwardness, that's all."
For a moment, it looked like Lemon was about to rush in to speak up, but luckily Shizuka stopped the girl as they heard a thud and Lemon's groans.
"Well… just know if she does that again, you let us know." Mana smiled assuredly.
"Thanks, Mana." Kuromu smiled sadly. "I'm just not ready to have my notch added to her bedpost, if you know what I mean."
"Of course, plus we're aware that you have someone else on your mind." Kiwi giggled softly. This prompted Kuromu to blush slightly.
"Now come on, there's still things we need to buy!" Mana chirped, grabbing Kuromu's arm and pulling him along.
"O-Oi, Mana, slow down, I'm going." Kuromu said surprised.
"And don't worry, Lemon won't join us. I'll be staying behind and keeping an eye on her." Kiwi revealed with a playful wink.
"R-Right."
"Mmmmmmmmmm…" Lemon pouted, with puffed cheeks. This wasn't fair. She wanted to get to know more about the boy. Even if that meant through intimacy. But no~ the other girls and his teacher are ruining her fun.
*BONK!*
"Oww!" Lemon held her head as she looked to see Nia with a club in hand, glaring at the Flavor Sister.
"No bad thoughts you pervert…" Nia huffed.
"But…"
"No!" Nia reiterated making Lemon pout.
"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!"
After buying and paying the groceries for lunch later on, Shizuka allowed him and the girls to go off into town and enjoy themselves, and made Lemon help her in the kitchen, Kiwi supervising her as well. Kuromu took this opportunity to have his Moonlight Potion be sold. So he, Mana, and Apple, decided to teleport over to the Capital and visit Garie's shop.
"Feels like forever that I've been here." Kuromu mused, standing in front of the potion shop.
"Hm? How so?" Mana questioned.
"I haven't visited Garie in a while, so I gotta start making more potions and visit more often."
"You can always set up a supply chain for it?" Apple suggested.
"Possible. We'll see." Kuromu shrugged. "Shall we, ladies?"
"Lead the way." Mana smiled as the two girls hugged his arms, as friendly as possible as they began to lead the way, simply doing this for a little fun but also to deter any "advances" from anyone nearby for both of their sakes.
Once the door opened, the two lady magicians went in first, followed by Kuromu, before closing the door. "Garie? Are you here?"
*POOF! BOOM!*
"Awww dammit! Not again!"
'This is gonna be a recurring thing, isn't it…' Kuromu thought to himself with a sweat drop, realizing that every time he visits the shop, some mishap always happens.
But he also realized that it was a new voice. That wasn't Garie or even Gabby.
As the group went in further, standing there over the pot was another person, she was small, almost up to Kuromu's chest with long violet blue hair. She had goggles on her head that had many glyphs drawn onto the lens of it, a red dress with rings on her wrists and on her waist was pouches, vials and more. But her eyes that were the same color as her hair, also showed she was the type of person who has had 12 pots of coffee and barely any sleep as the rings around her eyes showed as much.
"Uh… are you… Gabby?" Kuromu asked unsurely, wanting to make sure.
"Yes, yes. I'll get your order soon ma'am." The potion maker said, as she hopped off of her booster stairs to grab something before heading back over to the pot.
"She didn't even acknowledge me…" Kuromu muttered, looking at Mana and Apple in confusion.
"Let me." Apple offered as she stepped forward before clearing her throat. "HEY! You have customers!" She shouted loudly, startling the potion maker.
"UWAHHHH! WHO, WHAT, WHERE?!" The potion maker shouted, looking around wildly before noticing the trio. "Wait… who are you three?"
"Okay, so you're not Gabby." Kuromu said dryly.
"That's my sister. And what do you need her for?"
"I was actually looking for Garie. Is she here?"
"She's out right now, doing a special delivery." The potion maker revealed.
"Galia, who's that?" A familiar voice said, as they poked their head out from the curtain.
"Ah, seems she's got back."
"Garie?" Kuromu blinked.
Walking into the room was the said potion maker who smiled upon seeing the familiar face of the boy.
"Ah, kiddo! What brings you back here? How have you been?" She smiled, patting his back for support.
"Been… through a lot. Feeling a lot better." Kuromu said sheepishly. "After… you know… the whole thing with uh… you-know-who and…"
"Ah, yes yes… I've heard. Well glad to see you're doing better kiddo, and with two pretty ladies! How lucky of you." Gabriel chuckled, patting his back more.
"Mana is engaged, you know…" Kuromu said dryly, as Mana gave a glare to the Alchemic Magician.
"Hey, I won't tell anybody." The potion maker teased. "So, what brings you here actually?"
"Got a new potion." He said, before putting the crate down and opening it up.
"Hm? What's this one?"
"Oooooooh~" The new blue-haired girl awed, seeing the golden liquid in one of the bottles.
"Before I explain, who's this? This isn't Gabby." Kuromu pointed out.
"Ah yes, she's my other sister. Galia, the Downerd Magician." Garie introduced, before snapping her fingers at said girl. "Hey, go and introduce yourself."
"Ugh… do I have to? Can't I just stay in the lab?" Galia groaned out.
"No." Garie said sternly.
"Ugh…" Galia groaned, "Yes, I'm Galia… Downered Magician. I'm the one who does a lot of the processing, testing, and potion quality control…"
"Wow, the complete opposite of Gabby…" Apple blinked. "While Gabby is lazy, Galia's a workaholic…"
"Hey! I'm not lazy! This is my shop after all!" A familiar voice huffed, poking their head out of the curtain and lo and behold the Slacker Magician was there.
"Oh, you're here too Gabby. Hi." He acknowledged.
"Hey there." Gabby deadpanned. "And for the record, while Garie runs the place, I pay the rent!"
"Alright, sorry I brought it up." Apple raised her hands in defense.
"Just hand over the potion and let us test it." Gabby sighed out.
"Here." Kuromu said, handing the golden colored potion to Garie for her to handle. "This is a Moonlight Potion. It glows in the dark and gives the user temporary Moonlight Magic."
"Lemme see it!" Galia said, quickly swiping the bottle from Garie, swiftly downing the potion.
"Oi!" Kuromu gawked, as Galia's body glowed, shivering from how it felt.
"It tingles…"
"Ugh… too bright." Gabby groaned, raising her arm to cover her eyes.
"Well, it seems to me that it works well and is very high quality. We'll take your stock and do some testing before discussing payment. Gotta test and make sure everything works well enough for customers, no?" Garie said.
"I'll leave it to you then."
"Hehehehe, I'm rich!" Kuromu grinned widely, carrying a satchel worth of gold with him, the strap slung over his shoulders. This payday was definitely what he needed.
"So what are you going to do with it?" Mana asked with a giggle.
"Good question." Kuromu pondered. "I could buy more potion ingredients, a weapon, or even lunch."
"Or~ You get your master a nice gift!" Mana pointed out with a sly smirk. "Maybe a bikini?"
"Hey now, I want none of that." Kuromu said dryly. "And besides, I already gave Shizuka-sensei a gift. A ring made by my own magic with the help of the Crystal Beasts."
"Ohh~ proposing so soon?" Apple teased.
"Not that kind of ring." Kuromu deadpanned. "It's just… a gift of gratitude after everything she did for me."
"Well, I'm still sure she'd be glad to receive whatever you give her." Mana patted his back.
"I suppose." Kuromu said, before something caught the corner of his eye. He looked to his left and noticed a food cart on one side of the street.
"Hm? See something?" Apple asked him as they took notice of his stare.
"That food stand… I recognize it somehow." Kuromu noticed. "Something from my world, I think."
"Well, why don't we check it out?" Mana suggested, "Who knows? Maybe it'll be something good for once!"
Kuromu nodded, and the two magicians and alchemist went over to the food stand. As they got closer, Kuromu's eyes widened significantly, now fully recognizing what it was. The food stand itself was actually a food cart with its wooden structure and wheels but what made it recognizable was the flaps that covered the patrons head as they sat down… slurping something.
"It's… It's a ramen stand!" Kuromu exclaimed.
"Ra… men?" Apple blinked.
"Only the best tasting noodle soup in the entire world! It's globally popular in my world!"
"Best noodle soup?" The mages questioned before they nodded.
"Well then, show it to us." Mana requested.
Kuromu nodded before the three of them went towards the ramen stand and pulled back the curtain.
"Ah, welcome! Please, have a seat!" The cart-owner smiled, gesturing them in. The cart owner, or rather owners look to be brothers. One had an oversized orange samurai helmet of sorts while the other had a blue helmet. The one with the orange helmet had a blue bodysuit with orange robes on his legs while the other one had a blue bodysuit that was sleeveless and blue robes on his legs. Their oversized large swords were leaning on the side of the cart orange and blue respectively.
Currently, the blue helmeted brother was making the ramen noodles itself while the one with the orange helmet was cooking them and the broth.
"Flame Swordsman? Is that you?" Mana asked surprised.
"Huh?" Kuromu looked at her confused. "You know him?"
"I learned the sword from him! He's an old friend of Master Mahad!" Mana smiled.
"Well, if it isn't Mana!"
"How long has it been?"
The two brothers said, finishing one another's sentence.
"Not long enough." Mana giggled. "So this is what you two have been up to? Running a mobile food stall?"
"Ah… well that's what happens… when you lose…" The brothers soon stood up as they walked out from behind the stall, showing that they both had lost a leg and arm, only replaced by a prosthetic.
"Whoa, what happened?" Kuromu said wide-eyed.
"We… were attacked by the Darkbishop Archfiend…"
"What?" Mana gasped. "Him again?"
"Again?" Flame Swordsman asked, confused.
"He's after me." Kuromu answered, solemenly.
This made the Flame Swordsman brothers remain silent, "I see… so you're the one we were told to protect…"
"We were tasked to stop the Darkbishop from reaching you… But it seems it was for naught. And now we're no longer warriors."
"Can't you ask Time Wizard to rewind your arm and leg back?" Mana asked.
"He cannot… This is a curse by him… one that will never go away…"
"What kind of curse?" Apple asked. "Maybe Master Endymion can-"
"He couldn't remove it… and it almost cost him his own arm."
"I… I'm sorry." Kuromu apologized. "Because of me, you're not able to raise a sword again."
"Nonsense, young man!" The Flame Swordsman said, much to the Eclipse Alchemist's surprise and shock. "Sure, we can't fight again. But our passion never dies! We just change it into something else!"
"And thanks to the Ryu Estate and their assistance, we found that by becoming chefs! One trained by both their head chef and the head of the Ryu Estate who taught us this dish."
"The Ryu Estate?" Kuromu parroted.
"Ah, I know them! The Ryu Estate is one of the biggest corporations out there! From art, to music, and food. They are the ones to help give it all and expand our world!" Apple said with delight.
"So you're well informed. Impressive." Blue Flame Swordsman nodded with approval.
"Oh, how I wish to go to one of their onsens! I heard its divine~" Apple sighed with delight.
"You know Hiita has one too, y'know." Kuromu pointed out.
"Yes but the Ryu Estate's onsens are on another level! As if you're bathing in the pool of the divine!"
"Wasn't Hiita's onsen blessed by Ra though?" Kuromu sweat dropped at Mana.
"Yes it was, but the Ryu Estate's got blessed by my fiancé himself!" Mana said with excitement.
"Y-You don't say." Kuromu said sheepishly.
"Indeed! The strides, evolution, and changes to the world are just starting! The head is a genius with what he's given out to the world." Flame Swordsman said. "But enough of that! We're here to serve you! What would you like? Be warned though, our ramen is spicy!"
"Hoho~ is that a challenge I hear?" Kuromu smirked, "In that case, give me the hottest one you got!"
"Ah, one Red-Eyes Ramen, coming up!" The brothers said in unison as they started working on the order. Moments later.
*KA-DONK!*
Kuromu stared at the ramen, as broth almost looked blood red that was boiling hot, the noodles were black and sat on top with various ingredients added to it
"Chicken, boyo?" The brothers snickered.
*SLURRRRRRRRRRRRRP!*
The Flame Swordsman brothers and even Mana and Apple were shocked that he started slurping noodles and broth away…
*FWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!*
"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kuromu screamed out with fire coming out of his teeth, but then closing said mouth, he was grinning from ear-to-ear. "Just the way I like it!"
"N-No way! Not even we can handle that spice!" The brothers said in shock.
"Then your ramen is WEAK!"
"WEAK?!" The brothers growled, "We were trained by the head chef of the Ryu Estate! One of the greatest chefs ever! They made a Sushi Battleship!"
"Okay, now that's just ridiculous." Mana deadpanned.
"Actually… I think Master said something about that too, saying how it could even float." Apple noted.
"Ehhh?!" Mana gawked.
"C'mon, what else ya got?" Kuromu challenged.
"Grr… Fine! How about a Volcanic Doomfire Ramen?!" The Blue Flame Swordsman snarled.
Once they cooked the ramen and served it, Kuromu went straight to work. Even though there were times that it may have gone wrong, he powered through it like a champ and slammed the empty bowl down.
"WEAK! NEXT!"
"Dogoran Kaiju Ramen!" Flame Swordsman said.
*SLURRRRRRRRRRP! DONK!*
"WEAK! NEXT!"
"Firestorm Monarch Ramen!"
*SLURRRRRRRRRRP! DONK!*
"WEAK! NEXT!"
"Uria Searing Ramen!"
*SLURRRRRRRRRRP! DONK!*
"WEAK! NEXT!"
"Fire King Garunix Ramen!"
*SLURRRRRRRRRRP! DONK!*
"WEAK! WEAK! WEAK! WEAK! WEAK! NEXT!"
"Uh… Kuro?" Mana said, afraid, paling considerably. "I think you should stop."
"Yeah, this isn't free food…" Apple nodded in agreement.
*RUMBLE!*
"Eh?" Kuromu looked down at his stomach.
*RUUUUUUUUUMBLE!*
"Oh no…" Kuromu groaned, holding his stomach with both arms. "Where's the nearest bathroom?" He squealed.
The brothers soon grinned as they pointed to the long alleyway nearby. Kuromu quickly rushed towards said alleyway.
"Uh… is he-" Apple got out.
"Wait for it~" Flame Swordsman got out. Mana and Apple were confused before-
"EYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
"Hmph! That's what he gets for calling our ramen weak!" Blue Flame Swordsman harrumphed.
"Though you gotta give him credit for eating all that spicy ramen." Mana admitted.
"Maybe so, but its nothing compared to that head chef." Flame Swordsman noted. "You'll never be able to enjoy good food again, because everything can't compare to it."
"I'll take your word for it." Mana said sheepishly. "So uh… how much for all of that?"
"We'll be fine with 10 gold coins. Think of it as a discount because we met again."
"Aww, you're sweet." Mana gushed.
"Also, I would suggest that your friend consume ice cream over the next few days." Blue Flame Swordsman advised. "Given all the spicy ramen he ate, his bowels will be burning for quite a bit."
"Noted… and gross…" The girls frowned.
"Ughhhhhhhhhhhhh…" Kuromu groaned in pain, being in the fetal position while laying on his side in his bed, holding his stomach with his arms.
"Maybe next time, don't push your luck…" Nia patted his back.
"Oh Kuromu…" Shizuka sighed, shaking her head.
"Sadly, there is no magic that can be rid of such pain." Mana noted. "He'll be eating ice cream for a while if he's to tolerate it."
"Ew… too much…" Nia blanched.
"At least he'll learn not to test fate with spicy food." Mana huffed.
"I'll never eat anything spicy ever again…" Kuromu moaned. Though he swore he heard the laughter of the Flame Swordsman Brothers. "At least I got to eat something from my world again…"
"Right, something that was learned at the Ryu Estate… Perhaps you would like to visit, one day?" Shizuka suggested.
"No spicy food… urp… ughhhh…"
The Silent Magician giggled softly, gently petting his head, hoping it'd sooth him enough so the pain would be more bearable. Mana and Nia were about to tease her, until Apple shook her head and dragged them both out of the room, much to their dismay.
"Mmmm…" Kuromu muffled out, feeling embarrassed that he was being pampered by his teacher, though he didn't mind.
"Even though the end result was bad… I do hope you enjoyed having something from your home?" Shizuka smiled softly, wanting to make him feel better.
"I did…" Kuromu mumbled.
"I am glad to hear… At least you now know there is someone bringing things from your home here… You will not lose what holds dear to your heart."
"Yes sensei…"
…
…
…
"Sensei…?"
"Hm?"
"About earlier…" Kuromu trailed off. "When you said that you chose to be my sensei despite what you told me… do you really mean it? You'll still stay with me…?"
Shizuka smiled softly as she patted his head, "Of course I will… You are my precious student. I cherish our time together and I do not want it to end."
"I don't… want it to end either…" Kuromu muttered. "Maybe… I shouldn't remember my old life. Whatever it was back then, those bits and pieces of my memory, I don't think I want to find out the rest if it was that terrible…"
"Kuromu…" Shizuka frowned sadly. "Why would you say such a thing?"
"It's not that I hate what I saw, but… it scares me… just thinking about what could've happened that led to this."
"I know you are scared… But you may never know the truth unless you search for it. Who knows what truly happened? Perhaps it is more touching than upsetting. Do you honestly want to never learn, even if it turns out it was to save you?"
"…" Kuromu remained silent at that. How could he argue with that?
"The unknown can be frightening, there is no question about that. But… you do not have to face the unknown alone. I am with you, as do the others that have helped you on this journey."
"Sensei…"
"Besides, you may regret not wanting to search for the truth… What if it was the only way for you to meet your family and world one last time?"
Once again, Kuromu remained silent, but then felt remorseful. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said such things…"
Shizuka simply hugged the young mage, holding him close to her. "Do not be sorry… I simply wish for what is best for you… And that you do not make the same mistakes as I did…"
The Silent Magician then felt his body tremble and the sounds of whimpering reached her ears. She gently caresses his head, comforting her student as she allows him to vent out any bubbling stress and frustrations.
"Don't leave me…" He sobbed.
"Never… Not now, not ever… I will be by your side, even if reality itself ceases to exist…"