Chapter 1: Prologue of the saviour
Chapter Text
The sun was just setting.
The lazy sun’s red light painting the clouds that littered the sky in a brilliant color of orange, the sky gradually turning from its bright palette to a more cold purple and blue hue. It was late afternoon of an autumn, signaling the end of a long day and as such, people were flooding the streets, going from one way to the other. Workers exiting their respective offices to head home or into a bar with their colleagues, a gang of high schoolers enjoying their remaining free time at arcades or just hanging around and heroes silently patrolling, keeping up the peace and making the citizens feel safer just by their presence.
Simply put, life was bustling for all, except for the green-haired teenager of Izuku Midoriya.
Even for him his day just started out as the previous hundreds before that. Get up in the morning, make himself presentable by brushing his teeth and soften out any wrinkles on his uniform, check his supplies and say goodbye to mom, catch the train to his school and arrive on time, sit in class silently and diligently take his notes, obey his classmates orders of giving up his food all while strictly avoiding eye contact, pretend to not hear any of the jabs thrown at him and most of all, under any circumstances, don’t piss off Bakugou Katsuki.
Even when Izuku somehow did manage to make him angry and got told by him, as advice, to simply just kill himself, by jumping off from a building, in the end, it was still a normal day in his life. What really served as the cherry on top that finally made his mind topple over, was the little act of his lifelong idol telling him to give up on his dream he had since he was four years old.
The dream of one day becoming a hero, a person who would bring comfort and happiness into people by assuring them that everything will be all right, single handedly crushed by All Might, the No. 1 pro hero of the Japan himself, not that it was hard, considering the man could change the weather with a single punch on a whim.
Although cruel as he thought he was, his reasoning was not without merit. There was a fact that even after 11 years was still hard to swallow. That he was quirkless, powerless in a society where everyone had a superpower upon birth. Due to this, he had to face the animosity from his peers ever since he was officially diagnosed, meaning ever since he was four years old. Basically, all his life was spent in this pressure.
And so, ever since he had that talk with the greatest hero of Japan on that rooftop, he has been on an autopilot, somberly strolling in the city, slowly making his way home, even ignoring as an explosion was heard in the distance, probably a villain causing ruckus.
He simply did not know how to proceed forward. Eleven years of fiery ambition, admiration, inspiration and hard work flushed down the drain, all leading back to the working table to be processed anew. Even if the hard work only consisted of geekily stalking heroes to find out about every strength and weakness they possesed and to know their true potential.
It was in that moment did he realize he did not even do any real feats to bring him closer to his dream, only hoping that perhaps that getting to know quirks will give him the magical power to be a hero, to be a fighter.
After all, he was a twig. No muscles he trained at the gym and no martial arts he learned to give him an edge in fights if he truly wanted to be a hero, he just, wrote in books speculating what powers would be best for him. He did not even consider learning mechanical engineering to make himself support items that could actually help him!
Did he... really wanted to be a hero? Or did he just wanted to have a quirk and be loved?
The universe did not give him the moment to ponder further, as it wrapped him in his arms and knocked him off his feet. Literally.
A criminal, or what today’s people would call a villain, had his arms tightly bound against his neck that made it very difficult to breathe. He wanted to shout, but quickly found himself deadly pale and silent as a scorchingly hot metal pressed against his temple. It was a barrel of a gun, one that was fired not so long ago.
As Izuku was having an internal panic attack of a lethal weapon pointed to his brain, a hero appeared before him, or rather, the villain. Izuku, due to his immense knowledge on the topic, recognized him as ‘Homerun Hero: Battler-Batter', his quirk simply made his wrist extra strong and allow it to rotate inhumanly, allowing the hero to use a baseball bat with deadly precision and power.
“Let the kid go.” Battler-Batter said holding his hand up, slowly trying to close the distance between them.
It was noticed by the villain, who only pressed the nuzzle further into his temple “S-stay where you are! Or I-I shoot!” he yelled and even with his stuttering, Izuku was mortified.
All onlookers from the streets now watched the confrontation, some with horror on their faces, some with concern but a large number of them just stared in boredom, even leaving the scene just after a quick glance, not having enough interest in the matter, a matter which his very life depended on.
Was this how he looked at villain attacks before, just as a means of entertainment he could choose to be in or simply ignore?
The hero froze in his tracks as the villain threatened Izuku, seemingly pondering on how to proceed, the criminal however was not keen on giving Battler-Batter time to strategize. “S-slowly take back t-ten steps, I will slowly move forward, and you will let me, or the kid is dead.” the criminal, heavily sweating, ordered the hero.
He looked conflicted about the idea of giving up a fight, to let the bad guy win, but he swallowed his ego and complied. Once he gestured the tense crowd to do the same, the villain lightly nudged him, prompting Izuku to move forward, making a straight line towards a street-drain. Izuku deduced the villain most likely had a water-quirk, prompting from the sweating, and would maybe use the drainage as a means to escape? Maybe he will transform into water?
It did not matter, what really did that Izuku will probably be safe after a couple of moments. His naive early celebration was punished by the very gods.
The sound of a huge explosion cut through the tense air, momentarily startling the criminal, a reaction that didn’t went unnoticed by the seasoned hero. In reaction times unimaginable, he was before the villain, bat in hand, intending to knock the wrongdoer unconscious. His demeanor however, while successful, came at a cost. The villain, once again startled, accidentally activated his quirk, inducing his sweating, and instead of firing at the hero adamant on defeating him, the bullet went straight through the head of the young boy in his grasp.
Izuku felt the flash burn the little fibers of hair on his face, promptly followed by the skin. It was but a small inconvenience next to what damage the bullet did though. One moment he was alive, and in the next the lead projectile made a straight line through his head, penetrating his skull and brain.
-
Izuku opened his eyes. Before he blinked, which was mere milliseconds ago, he was held hostage by a villain all the while a hero rushed towards him in the attempt of saving him, and now a sight entirely different welcomed him.
As far as his eyes could see, pitch black vastness surrounded him on all sides, only sparsely decorated by faint particles of radiances, probably stars, that made the otherwise empty horizon somewhat less boundless. He was not standing on thin air though, as in a small vicinity around him, clearly polished and reflecting black and white tiles made up the floor, before slowly fading into nothingness towards the void.
Looking around, he questioned the possibility if this was the afterlife, although if it was it really differed from what he was expecting. Because he more likely imagined it be a grand staircase in the clouds, leading to golden gates or his spirit ascending from his body towards the skies as it unbounded from its mortal vessel, rather than this.
The idea of this being the work of a pocket-dimension quirk sounded more than that.
A feminine cough drew his attention away, as he only now did he realize he was not entirely alone in this place. Before him, sitting in a simple wooden chair of no expectational decoration, was what he would simply call an ethereal beauty.
Her figure was slender figure emanated elegance, the fair porcelain white skin only enhancing said attribute. Her hair, a shade of brilliant cyan, cascaded down her shoulders into her back, flowing all the way to the edge of the chair, its length only stopped by a ornate hairpin keeping part of it in place atop her head. Her clothes consisted of turquoise, sleeveless dress made of a thin material, and if Izuku blushed at the sight of her clearly braless breasts, then the remainder of what he wore would make him die due to nosebleed.
Her legs were only obscured with a pair of knee-length boots, along with thigh-high stockings which bit into her soft flesh, while only an extremely short AND translucent skirt obscured her panties. It made matters worse, only for Izuku, that she was sitting crossed legged, uncaringly, or unbeknownst to her, flashing him. So blush he did.
“Finally, I was beginning to think you wouldn’t even notice me” the girl stated, her youngish voice hinting her annoyance at the teenager before her.
Izuku on the other hand was clearly embarrassed, lot of things were enough to induce that feeling in him, but the fact that he was clearly alone with such a beautiful girl just made it all the more strenuous. “S-s-sorry... u-umm... w-who are yo-ou if I can a-ask?” he barely stuttered out.
The girl in question only smugly smiled as she straightened out in her chair while delicately placing a hand atop her chest “My name is Aqua, I'm the deity of water and the goddess of the Axis Church.” she proudly declared.
Oh nice, so he casually greeted a literal god, way to go Izuku.
Quite literally dropping to the ground in a bow Izuku quickly tried to apologize “I-I-I'm s-s-so s-sorry g-goddess A-aq-”
His apology was cut of by said goddess, who nonchalantly waved his hand at him “Stop it, I get it you’re sorry but I don’t really have time for this.” Aqua stated “You already wasted so much time.”
Her clearly disinterested attitude towards him made his heart sting quite a bit. It seemed that not even gods can see his existence anything beyond useless, although they were gods, most likely any person’s life proved to be unremarkable in their eyes. It still hurt though.
Aqua quickly continued once he got up, manifesting a scroll out of the air before speaking “If you did not catch up until now, I let you quickly know that you died, and I will be conducting your judgement on how to proced.” she explained in a businesslike tone, which did not help Izuku’s mental conflict, which was the realization that he did die.
He was right after all, this was the afterlife, or rather a part of it. Considering that fact, he was taking the matter of dying rather calmly, because in all honestly, he felt as if a part of his spirit also died with him. A part of him that left all that ambition and motivation back on Earth, as he could not explain why he would feel so empty than right now.
He internally laughed, because he proved every one of his classmates wrong, even Bakugou. During their time at school, everyone said that he would be a total nobody, a person with no real value, someone who will grow up to be an deadbeat officer worker, working for a minimum wage job all through his life, not making any friends to hang out with, no wife to come back home and of course, no kids that would pass on his disgusting quirkless genes. As they would like to phrase it.
He proved them wrong, because he could not even become that.
Izuku ahd to fight back tears now, this was really not his day. Getting his dreams shattered, having a mental revaluation of his life, dying and then repeating that mental reevaluation, this time on the fact that in his time at Earth, he did not achieve anything. He had a pipedream, one that would never bear fruit, a series of notebooks holding knowledge that would never benefit him, and a room full of expensive plastic figures, either bought by his allowance or by his mother.
The thoughts of his poor mother came surging forth at the last thought, of how much of a burden he was to her. While she never openly talked about it, or even hinted at it, the reason for his father’s divorce likely was caused due to the sheer shame he felt for having a quirkless son, leaving a her alone to deal with him, both parentally and financially. They were always deep in debt, yet her mother would always made sure to buy extra special All Might figurines and make his favorite dish at home, showing just how much she truly cared about him.
Izuku was sure that she will mourn his early passing, He was after all her only son, and he could not possibly image the feeling of outliving his own son. It seemed even in death he made her life worse.
Izuku then realized, that his bullies got the last laugh in the end, because they were right, he lived his whole life only as a waste of space.
Entirely unacknowledging the teenager boy’s internal dilemma, Aqua finished reading over whatever the scroll contained as she let go of the faintly glowing parchment, which dissolved into nothing upon losing contact with her hand, and addressed him “Izuku Midoriya, aged 14, died by gunshot to the head.” she remarked “You were actually the 100th person to die by a villain attack that month, so congratulations I guess?”
Izuku was not amused, so Aqua took that as a sign to continue “During your life you lived a humble life without doing harm, however without anything noteworthy act of kindness in your records, your entrance to heaven is declined.” she plainly said, not caring as the information just shattered Izuku.
“D-declined passage to the heavens!?” Izuku shouted “B-but when I was a kid i always protected other children... and all of that beating...”
The goddess remained unfazed by his retort “Children are pure untainted souls, but at the same time cruel, so most of the times only marty-like acts are recognized as virtue and petty suffering, if not done for a holy cause, is just misfortune.” she explained to the boy, basically noting his whole life’s suffering as nothing.
Quite obviously Izuku did not agree with that, Aqua could feel the boy be frustrated at her answer but she and Izuku came to the same conclusion, one that made the deity smile in victory while Izuku frowned. It was the judgment of a god, there was nothing he, a mortal, could do to change that.
So he relented “Then... what are my choices?”
“You can reincarnate on Earth.” she answered “But due to your lesser status, you will most likely become an animal of some sort”
“W-what, w-why!? Because I'm quirkless?” Izuku stuttered out.
Aqua simply nodded “In short yes, but don’t worry, it’s not explicitly because you’re quirkless that you reincarnate as an animal.” she tried, and failed, to elevate his worries “Every people has a certain value, strong people with achievements reincarnate either the same, or a little stronger, and then judged according to the life they then live. In a way, it ensures people with great attributes live on”
“So I... become an animal due to my value?” he somberly muttered.
The goddess smiled in happiness as she cheerily pointed at him “That’s right! Mentally disabled, handicapped, criminals, psychopaths and nobodies all end up on the other side of the reincarnation cycle to serve as food on Earth.”
If Izuku wouldn’t have gone through a set of mental battles that degregated his sense of mind, he would have retorted, to fight how this system was unfair and how his lifelong suffering was unacknowledged as nothing, but unfortunately, he lost his drive. It seems even Izuku overestimated himself in term of how useless he truly was. So now, he will live on as a cow, live on a farm crowded with other animals for a couple of years again until he was deemed worthy enough to be a human again?
He was about to accept the fact when the same deity he grown to dislike presented an opportunity “...although there’s another option for you.”
Izuku grew interested, so she continued “There’s a world, very similar to yours, but the difference is that their residents don’t wish to reincarnate anymore, so there's is a serious birth decline. The reason?” she theoretically asked, likely for dramatic effect “The world is threatened by a unimaginable force that looms over the lands, spreading despair, this man is the Devil King.” Aqua revealed.
“The Devil King, in that world, is a being with boundless power, who built an army which he then entrusted to his selected generals” she explained “And every day, these armies are marching closer and closer to the rest of the world, putting innocent lives to end by pillaging, slaughtering and raping!” she exclaimed while dramatically holding his hand over her head in an obviously faked manner of grief.
A quiet rage started to boil inside Izuku, it did every time he learned the cruelty that was committed around the world, because as naive people thought him to be, he was at the end of the day, a nerd, someone who was well-informed. It always irked him he could never do anything against it, and it always fueled his ambition to be a hero further. This time was no different as a spark was reignited inside of him. But he snuffed it out, he was useless and dead now, he could do nothing for them.
“With such horrible living conditions and sight of future, it is no wonder that the people instantly take up on our offer to go to the heavens, leaving their world in a state of distress.”
“That’s... terrible” Izuku somberly noted “But what does it have to do with me?”
The deity only smiled “Well, we gods, thought up a good idea on how to save this world, which is simply by sending people from another worlds down there as heroes to battle the Devil King!” Aqua declared.
Izuku’s mind short circuited, although not because how insane that prospect sounded, but due to an entirely different reason “S-so... you say... that I should become a hero?”
Aqua simply nodded “Exactly, and to aid you in this adventure, we also grant you a special power that you can personally choose out.”
If Izuku was not on the verge of an emotional outburst from her earlier sentence, he was definitely now, as it took up all of his willpower not to burst into tears in front of a goddess, which was the good call, not because it would have been extremely embarrassing to do that in front of a girl, the deity could easily turn back on her promise on a whim if he pissed her off.
He simply could not believe it, his day looked to be the worst of his life, and it seemed not only one, but two of his dreams would come true. He would be a hero, on top of getting a superpower!
“I take it you accept my offer?” she inquired, getting a frenzied series of nods from Izuku, in response she manifested a stack of parchments “Then, you now have to choose a power which we can bestow on you.” before promptly throwing it into the air.
The papers however, magically landed on the ground before Izuku, neatly arranged, all of them facing upwards. “Also, because you’re quirkless, you can have two powers” Aqua added in “Thank Eleos for that, she had a soft spot for you guys.”
Izuku was once again in awe, ass he looked at the two dozen or so abilities before him, knowing that at least two of them in this pile would be his. This was a tough choice, one that he has to take cautiously, slowly and consider it to the end.
.
Fifteen minutes passed, and he was not exactly close to choosing. He had of course, selected out a few to cross out and stacked together the ones that had the most merit, but he was in no manner ready to select which one to take. All of them sounded much stronger than an ordinary quirk, there was a sword which could would slash through anything without fazing, an armor which stored up attacks which it then used up to enchance your attack and even a spell which literally stopped time for a short duration.
He was also given a pamphlet, one that contained crucial information about the other world, wherehe will wake up in the city of Axel, a settlement perfectly ideal for starting his adventure in the world due to its distance from the Devil King’s frontlines. It ensured that he would not have to worry first about surviving in the world, rather he could focus all on becoming stronger.
Sadly, he did not get much out of said pamphlet, because when he started to read a little box in the side about brain damage, Aqua just silently tore the piece of paper out of his hands.
And the reason he did not ask her to give it back? Because apparently, he did manage to piss of the deity, who now sat on his chair, looking bored out of her mind as she munched on a bowl of crackers she poured out for herself.
It seemed her patience ran out “Seriously, what’s taking you so long? There are other people in line of waiting to be guided.” she annoyingly remarked, much to the dismay of the teenager.
“I-I'm trying... but this is still my chance to gain a superpower, this is what I had theorized all my life, I can’t just make this choice on a whim!” Izuku explained.
The goddess looked unamused “You can also make up a power for all I care just get on with it...” she offered while loftly taking a bite out of her snack, unbeknownst to her just making her job even longer.
Just only five minutes after she said that,it appeared the goddess’ patience finally ran out. With a quick motion of her hands, Izuku was sent skidding sideways on the floor he was sitting on, and for a moment his heart skipped a beat when he neared the edge of the void, but an opened door appeared in his path, which he slid through. The other side of the door was exactly the same as the one he entered from, with the exception of Aqua not being there.
Two pieces of paper and a pen followed him shortly “Write down two powers and only if you’re done should you knock! I’m going to continue working, and if you knock for before you’re done, I'm going to send you there without nothing!” with her angry remark, the door slammed shut.
Well, at least he wasn't being pressured into a time limit now.
With his newfound peace, Izuku quickly started to mumble on what powers he should give to himself. He had a lot of ideas, the amount he gathered through a lifetime, but he quickly came to a similarity both his theorized quirks and the sacred powers shared.
Which was the fact that all of them, without exception, had a flaw, or rather only achieved one thing only. They made him overpowered early, making his job easier when starting, but none of them offered anything beyond that
If he wanted to defeat the Devil King, he needed a power that would be versatile making him able to do multiple things at once, yet be powerful enough to be on par with an overwhelming force, essentially avoid being a jack of all trades that could do all, but nothing well. And to ensure that, he needed a power that would make him grow, advance to the skies, limitless.
After realization dawned upon him, the ideas flowed through his mind and once ideas overflowed, a resolution quickly followed.
After knocking the goddess opened door a while latter, and he presented the two pieces of paper. Aqua read the parchments, taking a long look over them, before adorning them with a red-inked seal in the middle.
“Just so you know I managed to deal with seven people by the time you actually finished, so don’t be offended when I say that I’m glad you’re going to finally go now.” Aqua exasperated, but at this point Izuku did not care.
Aqua promptly begun the ritual to reincarnate him to the other world. A blue magic circle appeared below him, engulfing him a brightly glowing blue light, making him feel weightless as particles of magic danced through the air around him. The water deity threw the two papers which contained his wishes into the circle, both disintegrating into blue sparks which circled around him before absorbing itself to his body.
The feelings it gave him felt like a cold shower in all honesty, making him feel more alive and awake then he ever was. Was this how a quirk felt? Or was this just the pure power of a goddess?
He had no time to think, Aqua started to chant, rhythmically waving his staff around in the air as the magic cirlce pulsated below him, growing stronger with each beat, lifting him further. He was about 6 meters above the floor when Izuku felt light-headed, he knew he was about to go, but before unconsciousness would take hold of him, the goddess spoke.
“Izuku Midoriya, you will now become a hero candidate that one day may defeat the Devil King. If you do so, you will receive the highest gift of the gods...” she spoke to me, this time lacking any malice or annoyance in her voice “...you will be granted any wish you desire, whatever it may be.”
By this point I could not really think straigt, but what more could I wish more... other than the chance to be a hero?
.
Izuku had to instantly shut is eyes close to stop of the invading light which blinded him. He felt disoriented like never before, his head was spinning and in generally he was not feeling well. Upon his symptoms no longer caused him physical pain to him did he open his eyes and what welcomed him was a sight he, while expecting, still filled him with awe.
It was early afternoon, the sun was still up and about in the crystal clear and blue sky, painting-like clouds devoid of any pollution.
He was in a town, a medieval one to be exact which was made up by separate cramped together communities.
He was standing before one such community. Simple and cobbled together cottages made from variously mixed materials only costs mattering in their making, tightly knitted together to serve shelter to as many families as possible, using up all space they could. Some homes only consisted of a small shack between two houses, similarly small in stature. It was unremarkable, unimpressive sight of a city, to some even revolting and disgusting, but not to Izuku, who observed in fascination as he essentially traveled back in time.
And although he described the living conditions of those people who lived here as horrible, the faces of the people said otherwise. Children boys chasing each other around in a game of tag, with a group of girls sitting in a small circle all adorned with their homemade dolls, the mothers did various chores while lightfully chatting with fellow wives and the men of the community was either at work, fixing or improving part of their houses or joined together with other people.
It was an idyllic sight.
It served as the greatest reminder of what he wanted to achieve as a hero, this is what he was aiming for, what gave him his drive. Together with the knowledge that this happiness is being threatened and broken by the Devil King’s ambitions, only served to fuel said drive further. But now he had an actual chance at achieving that, with two new powers under his belt.
Looking down the street and noticing a group of people fashioning weapons and armors that only resemble in shape of what his world has by the sheer uniqueness and fantasy-like look they had he was reminded how he was going to achieve that.
He would be an adventurer, so that in the end, he would become a hero to these people.
Boosted by ambition he took his first step in the town of Axel with confidence he never did before towards the Adventurer’s Guild, the location which the pamphlet suggested he should take first.
It took him a little while to get there, it was a little difficult remembering the map, but by asking a couple of people on his way he finally reached it. It was located in the heart of the town, surronded by vendor stalls, where compared to the small cottages, was a rather spacious building, although it did not stand out that much since all buildings in the centre were much larger. Taking a deep breath Izuku steeled himself and entered.
A woman at a built-in booth in front of him greeted him the moment he took his foot in “Greetings! If you’re here for a meal, just take a seat to your left, if you’re looking for a job, take a look at the bulletin board to your right!”
Looking to his left a grand hall opened, where about thirty or so tables were situated in various sizes and capacities, some of them being even being occupied at the moment either by groups of adventurers or even lone warriors. One such warrior, a man with a rather scruff face wearing metal armor was silently observing him while sipping on a mug of ale.
Izuku felt a little bit pressured by the man, even more so when he shouted at him “What’s with your clothes? They look strange. What are you even doing here?” he questioned.
The green-haired teenager only now did he look down to see he was still in his gakuran clothes, something that must look extremely out-of place here, so he begun to panic a little “T-this is just my school uniform, a-and I'm just looking to be an a-adventurer.”
The man gave him a momentary look that made Izuku gulp “Oh, is that so? So you must be from an academy trying to be a wizard here? Just go to the receptionist and ask her to register you!” the man explained, his tone of voice and demeanor doing a full 180 turn in terms of friendliness.
“O-oh, thank you!” he thanked the man, who only nodded before going back to enjoy his beverage.
Approaching the rows of booths, he picked the one where the woman who greeted him earlier was sitting in. She had pistachio green colored hair, with slightly reddish, brown-colored eyes and an all-around pretty face. The most striking feature she had however were the two long elvish ears she sprouted. As the woman, whose nameplate said: Senja, sent a politely smile to him, Izuku couldn’t help but blush a little “Hello, I figured you were new since I did not see you here before and I overheard you” she greeted “So you’re looking to register as an adventurer, yes?”
He affirmed “Y-yes, I do.”
Senja nodded before shuffling around various papers in her booth “Okay, if you would gibve me the admission fee, we could get stated right away with the registration.” she requested.
Izuku froze, whatever they used to pay here he did not have. Not only that, he had nothing at him at all! Everything was left in his backpack, which he must have left at Aqua. Izuku was about to embarrass himself by admitting this fact, but a rather large hand on his shoulder stopped him from doing so. It was the man before.
“Figured you didn’t know about the fee, didn’t you? I bet you don't have a single coin on you, no?” the man questioned, making Izuku’s face red from embarrassment. The man took it as a sign of ‘yes’.
Withdrawing a single silver-tinted coin from a purse at his side, the man offered it to the receptionist “Take this ma'am, let me pay for the boy.” he offered and Izuku was about to interject, not wanting to waste his money on him, but stopped himself, knowing this was the only way he could get registered. So he remained silent as Senja completed the transaction, and after some time she stepped out of the booth in the back, while placing a device on the stool before them. It reminded Izuku of a world globe, expect built with much more frail. Ornate iron designs supported a fainty-glowing blue ball, with a slot below it, in which Senja placed a small card inside.
“Now, to finish the registration, just place your hand above the crystal ball, and after we get to know your attribiutes, we will choose you a class” Senja informed, stepping aside to let the boy closer.
Izuku on his part was surprised “That will be all? No papers to fill in?” he questioned.
The receptionist only shook her head “The ball will automatically fill out those details for us on this card below, so we don’t have to mingle with things like that”
It sounded interesting, and Izuku was happy he did not have to waste time with filling forms in, so he enthusiastically stepped forward and hoovered his hands above the globe.
The moment he did so, it begun to glow. It started to shake, increasingly violently, before wildly starting spinning in its confines, activating numerous switches and sensors, starting a chain-reaction of myriad machinations activating. Izuku visibly flinched when the globe shoot out a laser with a high-pitched sound, which startled him, though after taking a closer look, he noticed the laser was printing out various information on the card. When it stopped, Senja waited a few moments before plucking the card out.
“Izuku Midoriya, age 14, yes?” she inquired, Izuku nodding in response “Let’s see your stats... your Strength and Agility is way below average sadly, but your Vitality, Dexterity and Luck are much higher compared to most strarters.” she stated before her eyes widened “But the start of the shows is your intelligence! It surpasses even that of intermediate wizards!” Senja praised, before she hulked a little after reading further.
The two men noticed it “What’s seems to be the problem ma’m?”
“Oh nothing, is that unfortunately your Magical Power is not exactly on par with your Intelligence, it’s avarege at best.” she grimly stated.
The armored man seemed to sulk a little, but he did not understand “Sorry, but why exactly is that a bad thing?”
Senja answered “To put it simply, for spellcaster’s high Intelligence opens the path to many spells, but to be able to cast them, they also need Magical Power, that’s what governors your mana and the strength of your spells. Without it, you could have the best spells, but their power would match that of a beginner's.”
“That’s right, although it can be increased as you level up, you’ll need to join a party to be safely do that.” the man piqued in his own wisdom, while Izuku finally had a slight grasp on the matter. In all honesty, this system reminded him of a MMORPG game he used to play occasionally.
“Now, you need to choose a class” Senja stated “Don’t worry, for a small fee it can be changed later on without any drawbacks, but still, put some thought into it okay?”
“I-I will, don’t worry” Izuku answered, blushing a little at the girls considerate tone of voice. The man hid a smirk at the obvious embarrassment he displayed.
“Okay, then, due to low Strength, most physical classes are closed down on you. With your high intelligence, you can easily become a Wizard, Priest or even Druid, but once again you would struggle a little early on with your Magical Power.” she informed “However, you also have fairly high Dexterity and Luck, while i wouldn’t recomend you to become a Rogue, I do however for the Ranger.” Senja finished.
The warrior seemed to agree with her as he boisterously yelled “Oh! That’s right!”
Izuku was about to once again question the sudden agreement between the two, but Senja foresaw that, so she answered before that could happen “Rangers are hunters, who specialize in exterminating various creatures and monsters, as well as survival. They have an imminet boost to porjectile weaponry, such as bows, crossbows, throwing knives, which are all primarly boosted by Dexterity and Luck.”
The realization dawned on him “Oh! So not only would I have an edge on it because of my stats, but they also have a passive boost as well?” Izuku wondered.
“That’s right!” Senja beamed “Not only that, but they also have the ability of using spells, which also makes your Intelligence usable as well.”
“That would make all of my current strengths put to use, which would mean I can focus on raising other attribiutes as well!” Izuku concluded. Senja and the man nodded in agreement.
The warrior also perked up “Rangers are also quite rare nowadays because of that. Most people who have high intelligence become a wizard or priest, so your services for other parties would be irreplicable. Not only you could always have a job by hire at a party. You can also pretty easily join one.”
By this point, everything screamed at him to choose this class, even Senja who bought the card closer to hands, seemingly ready to finalize the choice “So, should I select that for you?”
“N-not at the moment please!” Izuku loudly pleaded “I would still like to think about it, after all I can’t afford to change my class after that.”
The receptionist seemed content with that answer “It’s alright, just finalize your choice by at least the end pf the day. You can take a seat at one of the tables to think about your answer” she offered.
“I would like that, thank you very much.” Izuku was reflexively bowed, much to a mild confusion to both people in his vicinity.
“Well, if you won’t answer one, they I will be on my way. I have a long journey ahead of me.” the armored warrior declared.
Izuku instantly turned towards him “B-but I wanted to repay you later!” he pleaded.
As the receptionist got to work on putting away the quite heavy inspector globe, if the way she struggled to lift it was any indication, the man only heartfeltly laughed “No need to boy!” he remarked “I was just happy to help and after all it was pocket change for me!”
Izuku sulked a little, feeling as if he used the man, but soon realized he would have done the same in his situation, so maybe this once, he should accept the help “T-thank you.”
The man smiled “I’m sure you are.” he hummed, before picking up his backpack from the table he was sitting at earlier and making his way towards the exit. But before he could leave, he said to Izuku “Have a good luck on your adventures and don’t you dare die on me!” and after that he left.
Maybe for the man, who Izuku could not even got his name, this whole event was utterly unremarkable to him, but the green-haired boy was sure to remember this moment, For it was the first time someone showed him just a hint of kindness. Slowly, a thought that would have been utterly ridiculous to even think about entered his brain. Which was the idea that maybe he will be accepted here.
After all, everyone was quirkless here. Although stats most likely had a thing to do with genetics, it had way less saying in the grand scheme of things because at the end of the day, everybody who was powerful here worked for it.
Which meant, he was finally at an even starting line, he had a chance just as everyone had. The thought made him giddy. He would be an adventurer. He would become powerful and when the inevitable time will come, he will face the Devil King, becoming a hero everyone could count one.
Before that come could however, he needed to choose his class.
Izuku took a seat at the same table the man had, it was close to Senja’s booth, and it was a table for two, so he did not occupy much space at all. Not that he needed really, the guild hall was rather deserted at the moment, since most people have either gone on quest or did not feel like going out in this chilly autumn day. He had also gotten an Adventurer’s Guide from Senja, which according to her, contained many useful info regarding not only classes, but various monsters he might encounter on his adventures. So equipped with it and his newfound peace at the table, he begun to wager his options.
The first he had considered was the Wizard.
He had high Intelligence after all, and Senja said Wizard’s were quite few, so he could easily join a party where he could level up his Magical Power. What really appealed to him though was the fact that he could then use magic. Shooting fireballs, casting lightning storms upon his enemies, it would basically be like having multiple quirks! So it was safe to say that he was very tempted to choose that class.
Although one thing stopped him from doing so. He would focus too much on magic. If he were to go against the Devil King, and if the scenario of him depletoing all of his mana reserves during the middle of the fight occured, the Devil King would surely capitalize on this to close the distance and finish him. Essentially he was afraid that his fascination would make him a glass cannon, or that because he needed to upgrade his Magical Power first before venturing towards melee weapons.
Cleric was next, and it was quickly crossed out, followed by the Rogue. Priests, if he was going by RPG standards, was a cleric, a spellcaster that generally did not possess offensive capabilities, rather acted as support. If he chooses this class, he would need to have a reliable group of people if he wanted a fighting chance against the Devil King.
Rogue actually sounded nice. If done right, its skill allowed him to deal critical damage against creatures by using various weak spots. It was also able to use a decent amount of niche skills which would help him against a number of situations. The problem was that it needed a LOT of Agility and forced him to play in a very-close combat to deal significant damage, but since any armor that gave him a decent protection was heavy, it burdened his Agility.
That left him with the Ranger. Acting as a hunter, it also offered survivability and knowledge skills in the wilderness, one that would surely help when traversing the lands to the Devil King’s lair. Its spells are actually shared by the Druid, with all of them being nature-based spells, providing him a great boost when in forests or nature. It specialized in the use of bows, but did not apply a general debuff to weapons like most spellcaster jobs did. For example, Wizards and Clerics had a penalty when using melee weapons by making them heavier.
So the decision was made just under 10 minutes. Long to some, but a massive improvement compared to his 34 minutes when he selected his god-powers.
Approaching Senja’s stand, the girl instantly took notice of him “Hey! So did you manage to choose?” she smiled, and even though he managed to talk to her for quite some time just earlier, the fact that he was now alone with her made him a little bit more shyer.
“Y-yeah I did. I would like to by a Ranger after all” he answered, Senja only dragging her finger across the card, making it glow, before handing it to him.
“Thank you.” Izuku thanked her.
Inspecting the card, he was met with a lot of information. Some of it was quite normal, full name, age, weight, height but others were new. He had a level, Health Points, Magic Points, Stamina Points, Physical Damage, Magic Damage Skill Points, Attribute Points, Damage Resistances, all of his stats and two leverages that stated ‘Skills’ and ‘Spells’.
[ Name: Izuku Midoriya ]
[Gender: Male ] [Age: 14 ]
[ Level: 1 ]
[ Class: Beginner Ranger ]
[ Health Points: 632 ] [ Magic Points: 32 ] [Stamina Points: 76 ]
[Attribute Points: 5 ] [Skill Points: 5 ]
[ Attributes: ]
Vitality: 21
Strength: 8
Dexterity: 23
Agility: 11
Intelligence: 53
Magic: 14
Luck: 28
Skills: [Minor Fire Damage Resistance Increase], [Bone Resilience Increase]
Spells: None
To his surprise, he had a few skills. A frown etched his face once he realized, the fire damage resistance one probably came from the constant beating he got from Bakugo’s scorching explosions. But it was good to know you gained passives by adaptability.
Speaking of adaptability, his Health Points and Poison Resistance were also quite high, which he guessed was because of his modern living conditions, this however also brought drawbacks, namely that everything that was magic related was low since he did not grow up in a place where magic existed. Magic Points, Curse Resistance, etc., were are meagerly low. He had some Skill and Attribute Points as well, which while he wanted to spend, choose to store for later, because he wanted to gauge what abilities he wanted first.
Unfortunately, he had no equipment, no armor and no weapons to speak of and without any money, he would stay that way. He needed to find a job, namely a quest, so he approached the bulletin board that Senja mentioned when he first entered.
On the board, were a bunch of numbered papers clipped on them. All of them had a basic description, sometimes written by the Adventurer’s Guild or by the issuers itself, it stated the objective and, in a box, below it contained a simplified explanation of what the offer wanted, and as a finish, a large red seal was stamped on the paper, stating that the quest was approved by the guild itself.
Izuku eagerly begun to look through the displayed quests, looking for one that he could complete, but after about two minutes he realized something.
Namely that he could not achieve even one quest.
Since he had no offense capabilities to speak of, monster extermination quests were out of the way, which sadly, proved to be almost 70% of the total quest displayed here. The rest were fetch or gathering quests which while he could complete, meant that he would need to go to a place where said monsters resided, otherwise the issuers themselves would go collect the required materials.
For measure, he checked his learnable skills, hoping one would be able to give him some offensive capability. Four selections awaited him.
[Archery] - Gives beginner proficiency with bow and arrow, opens path to various archery arts. (2 Points)
[Herbalism] - Connects soul to nature, revealing its powers, opens path to various floral spells. (2 Points)
[Combat Arts] - Gives beginner proficiency with most melee weapons, opens path to various combat skills. (4 Points)
[Beginner Spells] - Connects one’s mind to the elements, opens path to various elemental spells (2 Points)
Scanning his options, it revealed that most likely choosing one made bunch of other skills learnable from that category, essentially it opened up a skill tree.
He did not have any weapons, so both Archery and Combat Arts were useless to him at the moment, and spells would be insufficent without the required mana points to cast.
Dejected, he had no other choice but to find a real job, but having no idea where everything was in the town, he decided to ask Senja “Umm... sorry, but are there any other jobs in town where I can gather some money for myself?” he asked.
Without missing a beat, she replied “You’re in luck actually, about two days ago they started to improve the town’s walls on the west side, and they have shortage of workers, so they’re hiring!”
“Really? That’s good to know... so they’re on the west side of the city?” Izuku questioned, glad that he was provided with this opportunity this soon.
“Yeah, just go right once you exit the building and when you hear the clinking of hammers, just follow it, not that they’re hard to find.” Senja commented.
“Okay thank you.” Izuku replied, and started to head towards the exit, but before he left, he waved at the receptionist “Goodbye Senja!” and closed the door.
Inside the booth, Senja could only think of one thing “Huh, he actually read the nameplate.”
-
Just like Senja said, it wasn’t hard to find the workers. Not only by the hammers or the sounds of construction, but because they were quite loud to begin with. Approaching the site, he spotted a large man who observed the workers, occasionally barking out orders to the people at the top. Must be the supervisor.
The man also noticed him and called out to him “Hey! You! This is a workplace kid, if you don’t want to be squashed by a stone then don’t wander around here” he ordered, more out of genuine concern that malice. Still, it was intimidating.
“A-actually, I’ve heard you’re hiring... and I’m looking for a job.” he meekly blurted out.
The man instantly beamed “Is that so! You’re a real helper, I’m Teijo, the worker supervisor.” he introduced himself “I’m happy to employ you as an assistant worker, but you can only start tomorrow, since we’re about to call it a day.”
Izuku sulked at that, but decided not to outright show it “I see... when will I start then, and how much is the pay, if I can ask?”
Teijo laughed “To the point I see! Be here at six in the morning, and we will work endlessly until five in the afternoon, for a total off 6000 eris, is that good for you?”
Izuku did not have a good grasp on money yet, so anything was good for him “Yes, absolutely.”
“Good, then see you in tomorrow! I still have some work to do so go!” he shooed him away, the other workers lightly laughing at the display much to the dismay of Izuku “And who told you to stop working!? We finish this segment today even if like it or not!”
After his successful employment, Izuku absent-mindly strolled through town, basking in the peaceful sight of the rustic townscape as today’s events rerolled themselves in his mind. It started out badly, sinking to the level he would confidently call the lowest point of his life, but after that it also skyrocketed.
Changes got done through him like never before, not power wise as getting a class or the abilities granted by gods, rather the small, everyday changes. Despite being in a completely unfamiliar town with no information to rely on, he had managed to proficiently navigate through it, managing to hold short and long conversation he had never meet before, including a pretty girl as well, and even managing to find himself a mean of income.
He knew the reason behind it, it was the feeling of knowing he was not an outsider. That he was now normal.
Freely being able to talk with the fear of being belittled, not having to worry about being unfairly judged, no more pitying stares directed at him for something he was not at fault.
In short, Izuku looked forward to living his life here in this new world, and he silently vowed to make the best of this miracle of a chance he had gotten.
The fate of course still had some il-omens in his bag to vent out on the boy it did not deem unfortunate enough.
A strong, but more importantly, cold wind blew down the streets. The sun was begining to set, and with the autumn air getting increasingly colder, it rattled Izuku’s bones. It was only now that he realized a very crucial things he missed when he planned out his day.
He was so focused on registering that he forgot that he also needed to secure himself basic living conditions like food and shelter.
Knowing the sun would only be up for a little time to provide meager warmth, Izuku begun to reasonably freak out as he frantically tinkered his brain. He first considered trying to, but the idea of bothering the already dirt-poor townsfolk filled his mouth sour, so it was quickly put of the table.
Instead, he tried his luck at a local church nearby, a female priest draped in thick blue cloth opened the door upon his knocking, who after explaining Izuku’s situation was all too happy to provide for the teenager’s needs, suspiciously eager. Izuku was not one, however, to refuse the generous offer, so he let himself in. It quickly dawned upon him that he should have followed his gut feelings, as the church was apparently functioned more like a cult, with the priest constantly attempting to persuade Izuku to join their church of Axis, even resorting to blackmail and seduction when her ways proved to be futile.
It took him a full hour before he could escape “Nooo! Come back! If you join the Axis Church, I even let you enjoy my body!” the priestess, showing not a hint of shame, shouted after him. He picked up his pace after that.
There was another temple in town, it was under the ownership of the Eris Church, so while he gave it try, he was still on an edge after the earlier. An older priest opened door, and after telling his tale, he agreed on letting him in. But before he could enter, he blocked his path, and with a fake-cough, gestured for him to lend some money. When he revealed he had none, the priest was quick to shut the door in his face. It was only a little while after that did Izuku realaize the priest did not even listen to his tale if he tried wringing money out of him.
That’s how he found himself in the pitch-black streets, trying to find shelter in a small-cravice between two-buildings. It was damp, uncomfortable, but at least he had a wooden roof above his head. Most likely part of vendor’s stand.
He was about to let unconsciousness take hold of him, but two patrolling soldiers, carrying torches, did not agree “Hey, kid! You can’t sleep there” one of them shouted.
Izuku sat up groaning, both from being woken up and by his back aching from the awkard position he rested “B-but I-I don’t have a place to stay!” he explained, his pleas only felling on deaf ears as the soldier merely grumbled in annoyance.
“I don’t care! All you need to know that you can’t sleep on the streets here!” he growled.
“Th-hen where should I go?” Izuku asked.
The other soldier spoke up, apparently irritated as well “Outside the town! Just go kid, we are about to have a long night ahead of us so leave us alone with your questions!” he hurried Izuku.
The green-haired teenager was then forced to give up his shelter and was escorted by one of the soldiers to the premise of the town, outside the city’s walls. Izuku expected to be meet with a smaller agglomeration where he might could find another crevice to squeeze himself into, but instead found a vast and empty field ahead of him, ending after a couple hundred meters by a forest.
Looking back, the two soldiers that guarded the gates watched him intensely, only gesturing with their gazes at Izuku to leave, and without any other choice, he was forced to comply.
He walked across the field aiming for the forest. He wanted to at least be shielded from the wind by the bushes and trees, instead of being out here. His basic instincts also told him how wrong it would be to sleep on an empty field where everybody could spot him.
He reached the forest feeling miserable, tired and hungry, but most of all thirsty. Although his last wish was fulfilled in the form of a small miracle, as while he trudged through the forest, he encountered a small brook gently flowing down the hills. He immediately rushed over to quench his thirst, greedily gulping down the cool water, it also mitigated his hunger a little.
He had no more power to stand after that however, practically collapsing on the grass below him. It was rather soft, but compared to his bed it was horrible, with the droplets of dew that remained on the blades only serving of soaking his back. The wind also howled though the crown of the trees and without blankets, he shivered from the cold. Even so, sleep was quick to take hold of him.
-
The sun shining into his retinas woke him up. Izuku rolled over with a quiet groan, idly wondering why the alarm did not wake him up but sleeping in never felt so relaxing as of now, so he did not wonder about it that much. His throat was a little sore, but he would just take in a cough drop once he got out of bed. Once he could not find his blankets and felt little nudging motions on his arms however, he was quick to wake.
He was not at home, he was in a forest, without a bed, and a batch of ants were wildly crawling upon his arms. Izuku screamed as he got up and quickly shoved the insects off his arms, wincing once or twice as they bite him. Even when he succeeded in doing so was he not relaxed, realizing he was late for work.
He rushed into town, some people even turned their heads as he ran, panting like a fox with rabbies. From the distance, he could see Teijo yelling orders to his subordinates and he was quick to notice him once he approached the man.
It was evident that the man was not happy “Sleeping in late on the first day? That’s not an impression I would like to make to my boss when starting!” he remaindered
While trying to catch his breath, Izuku tried to apologize “I-I’m... sorry... I... overslep-”
He did not want to hear it however “I don’t care about the reason, work THEN apologize!” he yelled, pointing at the wall “You’ll work with Lando today, together you will hoard the rock fillings to the wall, he’ll be your superior untill I say so.” he instructed, a bald and bulky man, Lando, gesturing for Izuku to come. Seeing he was not fired, the boy was happy, eagerly rushing to his new post.
The day continued, and in short, Izuku found himself in hell. Pure physical strength was never his strongest suit, so lifting heavy objects, such as the tank where they carried the filer stones, was hard to him. Taijo also noticed this as he struggled in performing the tasks he had given him, so he gradually put him in easier jobs. It helped, but everything here required great muscle power to do, so he still not uphold the same output as the others.
His saving grace was his endurance as even though he was left as a panting and sweating mess while his muscles screamed from pain, he continued. Some of his colleagues were even impressed, quietly whispering amongst themselves at how he could still stand. When work was over at 17:00, he was tempted to just give in and collapse, but he would have liked to keep his dignity, so he endured.
Everybody stood in a line as Taijo gave the daily wage to everyone, some people hurrying to pubs upon receiving it, intending to drink some of it away. When Izuku was left, Taijo gave him has share, 6 silver coins. That meant a silver was worth 1000 eris, good to know.
After that he bid farewell, but Taijo gently grabbed his shoulder “Kid, I need to talk you.” he spoke rather somberly.
Izuku recognized the look he was giving him, it was one he was rather familiar with “I’m sorry kid, but I have to lay you off” it was the gaze of pity.
“W-why? D-did I do something wrong?”
“No, not at all, the problem is...” he paused to gather his words together ”...that you’re not fit to be in here. You were struggling, yet you endured, it’s admirable, but I’m afraid if you keep working to your limits, one day you will collapse and get into an incident where even we can’t save you.” Taijo solemnly explained.
Izuku understood, his reasoning was not without merit, yet it still stinged. While his sad performance was likely due to his lack of strength, it was also because he had not eaten anything for two days. He still accepted it in the end, “I-I understand...”
Taijo looked Izuku a bit more with an unreadable expression, before roughly patting his shoulders, and with a brief farewell, he was gone.
Izuku stood for a few moments there, sulking, but quickly shook himself out of it. He had some money, not much, but enough to get himself some food, so rushing to the market, he got himself a loaf of bread for the cheap price of 150 eris, it was not the most fulfilling food, but it felt marvelous after two days of not eating anything, so he ended up eating a quarter of it.
He would have went to find a new job, but before dusk would come he wanted to browse the market before it closed, hoping something could potentially be helpful to aid him. Idly browsing through the stalls, he found variety of items, mundane consumer products, delicate foods, vegetables, magic items and of course weapons.
He had approached an archery stall first, where the cheapest bow he could afford was 5,000 eris, a wodden bow priced at 50 each. The owner noted that the bow while cheap, was bound to be broken if exerted so it came with a little risk, one that Izuku took. He bought it, along with 6 arrows.
He also purchased a gourd bottle for 300 eris. He would have preferred a leather flask, but with a cost of 2,000 eris it was quickly forgotten.
In the end, he was left with 250 eris, enough to buy another bread if needed.
When he got back to the forest, next to the small brook as the sun was setting, he filled his bottle with fresh water and sat down on the grass, grabbing his adventurer card while doing so. Now equipped with a bow, he decided to learn the [Archery] skill with 2 points, by swiping his finger across the skill’s text on his card.
Skill [Archery] has been learned
Skill [Bow Proficiency] has been learned
New learnable skill , [Quickdraw], [Snipe], [Enchanted Shot], [Curved Shot] and [Sky Shot] unlocked
New learnable branch [Archer Arts] unlocked
It seems along with [Archery],he also learnt [Bow Proficiency] which gave him better handling to his bow, as well as increased power to his arrows.
A lot of skill became available, and since he still one skill point, he decided to browse through them. All of them had very nice attributes, save for [Sky Shot] as cool as it sounded. That skill allowed him to shot up an arrow to the air, which then came back with extra force at his foe. But arrows fired above probably missed their target, and [Enhanced Shot] also provided extra force, most likely even a higher amount.
[Curved Shot] sounded nice as well, making him able to bend the trajectory of his arrows. [Quickdraw] was also useful, making him able to rapid fire, but since he had only 6 arrows it was useless for now.
But he choose to unlock [Snipe], which made all of his projectiles hit their intended target, based on his Dexterity and Luck, two stats he had a good amount of, for the price of a single SP.
Skill [Snipe] has been learned
Armored with his first real skill, he decided to try it out. Getting up, he walked deeper into the forest, intednign on using a tree to practice both using a bow and activate his skill, but when his eyes just barely saw a lone brown rabbit gently wandering, he switched his sights to him instead.
He quickly, and quietly closed the distance, only stopping behind a bush when he was about 20 meters away from him. Grabbing a wooden arrow from his side, he swiftly placed the nock in the string with a quick and smooth motion as if it was second nature to him. It was most likely the work of [Bow Proficiency].
He pulled back the arrow with just enough strength, and his hands aided by his passive skill, aimed precisely at the small creature.
Izuku was sure, that if he let go of that arrow, it would hit his target. But he wanted to try out his [Snipe] skill anyways, problem was that he did not know how he could activate it.
He was about to mumble out possible solution to his problem, but stopped himself in doing so. He would alert the rabbit and just for this once, decided to not overthink it and just go with the flow.
He closed his eyes, exhaling while doing so. In his mind, he conjured an image, a picture where upon releasing the string, the arrow would pierce through the air, landing squarely in the bunny. Unconsciously, a warm and fuzzy sensation filled his hands, his mana channeling inside his hands, and in the next moment, let go of the string.
He heard a quick sizzling sound, and a faint thump. When he opened his eyes, in the distance, his arrow was burrowed deep inside the rabbit, the little animal lying dead. It died instantly, without pain.
Creature [Brown Rabbit] eliminated
+7 EXP gained
A notification popped up into his vision, noting him of his kill, on his part, Izuku felt glad he did not make the animal suffer, on the other, he was filled with awe. That shot was clean, and he had made it with his eyes closed. For a moment he even wondered if he was really the one who did it, but surely, he realized it was indeed him.
This was magic, no. This was just a skill. And if a simple ability for 1 point did this, what other possibilities lied ahead of him?
After collecting his arrow and the rabbit, Izuku returned to his usual spot in the forest with a goofy smile etched across his face. While this was just a small step, he looked forward to adventuring even more now, finally having tasted just a smidge of power.
In his excitement on starting his caareer, he also forgotten that he has to once again sleep below the clear skies instead of a roof above his head. Water under bridge now, he will endure it. Besides, he could probably sell the rabbit for a little money at the market tomorrow.
Wait, maybe he could even get equipment solely out of selling animals he could hunt in the forest? It sounded easy and profitable. A line of thought for tomorrow, for now the sun already set, so he had no time to spare on building a makeshift tent, forcing him to sleep once again in the grass. But despite the uncomfortable surface, he was quicky put to sleep.
-
It was the middle of the night. Izuku quickly prayed his eyes open when his ears picked up a sudden, yet faint sound of rustling, one that seemed to get louder every second. He jolted awoke with his heartbeat quickly beating as he tried scanning his surroundings, but with only the half-moon's dull light illuminating his area, his vision was heavily limited.
Izuku quickly prepared an arrow to shoot, holding the bow with trembling hands towards the origin of the sound. His heart was beating up in his throat by now. Seconds passed, the sound only getting louder, and with time, proved to be coming from three sources. When it became obvious that three figures were approaching him, they appeared.
A pack of wolves, in the number of three.
Izuku had a staring contest with them, and his eyes idly wondered to the rabbit besides him. Did they get attracted to the smell of it, or he juts merely had bad luck?
Thought for another time, as the three wolves started to faintly growl at him, much to the dismay of the teenager. It was a standoff, and after a while, the wolves seemed to have lost their patience, as two from the sides begun to advance around Izuku, the middle one, staying in its place.
Izuku, not letting himself be surrounded, choose to attack. Letting loose the arrow he readied, he used [Snipe] and fired it at the wolf in the middle. The shot hit the wolf in the center of its head, entering from his snout until it pierced his whole head. It instantly collapsed in death.
Creature [Grey Wolf] eliminated
+24 EXP gained
Izuku ignored the notification, as now with his path open, he run straight ahead, ignoring as the two wolves, even with their imminent leader clearly dead, begun to chase after him.
Izuku blindly ran ahead, hoping if he could lose the wolves, damn full knowing a wolf ran faster than a human, much less a weakling like him. So he had to attack, something that was extremely difficult with a weapon he only used twice in his life, while the whole forest was encased in pitch-black darkness. If he stopped, and did not eliminate at least one wolf, he was bound to be mauled to death. It was a risky move.
The barking of ever closer wolves gave him a hell of a motivation though. Preparing another shot, he quickly turned around, meeting a wolf about 4 meters away from him, and channeling his [Snipe], he shot his arrow.
However, due to his inexperience with skills, he failed to properly use [Snipe] in the heat of the moment, and without his ability, his pure proficiency with his bow was not enough. The arrow missed the wolf’s slender figure, much to the horror of the boy and in no time, the wolf caught up to him, and with a powerful jump, sank his teethes into Izuku. Before the pain could register, the another followed suit.
“AAHHHHH!” he screamed on the top of his lungs as the two wolves madly shook their heads while tightly clenching their jaws, pouncing on his flesh. His saving grace was that his school uniform covered his whole body and was quite thick, he couldn’t even imagine what this would feel like without this slight protection.
It did not dampen the agony he was going through however, as the two wolves continued to maul his limbs and Izuku was forced down on the ground.
The pain was something he had never experienced before, excruciating, agonizing. His mind was also filled with the thought of death, a final one this time, one that would really mean the end of him.
But, something awakened. It was not anything magical or grand ability, that gave him an upper hand in this one-sided battle, nor a miracle bestowed by gods. It was the simple primordial instinct to live, the fight-por-flight response.
And to Izuku’s surprise, the meek, shy and introvert weakling boy’s body and mind, choose to fight. Adrenaline flooded his veins in an instant and grand dose, shotting of all receptors of pain in his body, granting him with a feeling of restlessness like never before.
With his muscles limits also unbound, he grabbed one of the wolves that chomped on his calves by the neck, and with a single motion, throe away from him. The wolf however did not gave up without a bounty to claim, as his mouth was bloodied and filled with chunks of his flesh he mauled away. Izuku did not acknowledge it, instead, he forced his other hand to grip the wolf’s neck, the one that was still currently bitten, and started strangling the wolf.
It fought, viciously so, trying to pry itself away from his iron-like grip, but Izuku did not let go, even with his weakened arm that was ferociously being damaged. About a minute later, the wolf collapsed.
Creature [Grey Wolf] eliminated
+24 EXP gained
The lone wolf that remained visibly flinched when he was meet with the stare of Izuku, yet still kept attacking his arm. In a small part of his mind, he hoped that without another arm, he will be victorious.
Izuku however did not need two-hands, simply grabbing an arrow, he clenched it with his right arm, and stabbed it in the eye socket of the wolf.
It shrieked in pain, having let go off Izuku’s arm, and tried to hurriedly escape from his prey-turned-predator, and started running. The boy on the other hand, prepared an arrow into his bow, and without the use of a skill, sniped the retreating wolf down.
Creature [Grey Wolf] eliminated
+24 EXP gained
Skill [Lesser Night Vision] has been acquired
Group [Small Grey Wolf Pack] has been wiped out
+31 EXP gained
‘Izuku Midoriya’ has successfully leveled up [Lvl. 1 -> Lvl. 2]
Skill Points and Attribute Points have been acquired
Attribute [Vitality] has been increased [21 -> 22]
Attribute [Strength] has been increased [8 -> 9]
After that, despite the number of hormones raging through his body to make him stay awake, Izuku collapsed in shock and exhaustion.
-
Izuku’s head threatened to split in two when he gained consciousness in the morning, the rays of sun that slipped through the forest’s foliage to his retinas feeling like needles poking him to both shut his eyes and wake him up. His body was no better condition either, on top of extreme exhaustion, he felt his cold had also progressed, most likely due to him sleeping in the breezy outside and of course, two prominent chunk of his flesh were missing, one his left lower arm, and a larger portion out of his calves.
It was caked in dried blood, black in its color due to time, and when Izuku gazed up on it, to see his own flesh be exposed to the outside and to his sight, he was mortified.
His breaths became shallower and quicker as he rattled his mind to process the information ahead of him. At first came denial, that he was fine and that something this extreme could not happen to him and like every injury he got so far, he would just walk it off, he attempted to do just that by literally walking it off, and failing both in the sense that it was unfeasible to do, and that his face gave a nice kiss to the ground.
It was in that moment the pain truly registered. It stinged, like a cramps on your legs in a midnight, except the pain was tenth fold of that. He begun to think ahead, that he would have to live his life like this, disabled, because if he did not reach Axel in time, his injuries would get infected, and even if this world had magic, he doubted it could restore his limbs. But as it stands, he could not even budge.
He tried to come up with a solution, use fire to seal the wound, but he did not have any objects he could heat up, perhaps he could use dirt?
That’s when it him, a streak of clarity from last night. He had leveled up, and had gotten Skill Points.
Fumbling with his uniform the get his card out his pocket, the piece of paper becoming nigh undreadable from the way his hands shook while he gripped it. He had two choices.
[Herbalism] and [Beginner Spells].
Checking his card, he had 3 points, probably enough to learn one branch of skills and unlock one within them. The question was which branch contained a healing magic.
Logically speaking Beginner Spells should, but a part of his mind was hesitant to choose that right away. Namely, that beginner spells only contined offensive spells in nature. If it would have supportive, why would Clerics exist? On the other hand, Herbalism unlocked powers related to nature, which most likely had some connection to restoration?
He did not know, but he trusted that his class’s skills would help him, so he took this gamble, and learned that branch.
Skill [Herbalism] has been learned
Skill [Forest Dweller] has been learned
New learnable skill , [Cure Wounds], [Goodberry], [Entangle], [Plant Growth] and [Sprout Thorns] unlocked
New learnable branch [Animism], [Forest’s Hermit] and [Hunter] unlocked
He had unlocked a nice amount of skills and branches too, but Izuku ignored it in joy at seeing that one particular skill, [Cure Wounds], he did not even hesitate to unlock it.
Skill [Cure Wounds] has been learned
After getting hold of the skill, Izuku tried activating it. He compared the sensation to when he used Snipe, conjuring all of his mana in his wounds, and tried imagining the motion of it turning back to what it was once, beofre it was bitten of.
A green light shone up at the surface of the wounds, gently emitting particles of gently flowing lights, and before Izuku’s two very own eyes, his flesh started to move. Lightly wangling at first, it quickly begun to grow, rebuilding itself. The thin and wet patch of scab disintegrated to make way for the new tissues to form, thin strings, nerves formed at first, hovering in the air, burrowing itself in his arm to connect itself, while the hole slowly got filled in. When all was done, layers of various skin formed, the glow was gone, and all that was left of his injury was two patches of slightly pink skin.
Izuku let out a shaky and quick laugh of relief after marveling at the sight, knowing he didn’t go through a drastic drawback to his life. The skill worked like a charm, better than any healing-type quirk he knew, although it did come with the cost of using up all of his mana, but that matter can be resolved and so, Izuku spent his 2 Attribute Point to increase his Magical Power stat.
After taking a short break, getting his bearings together and collecting his arrows, he set out to get back to Axel. Unfortunately, he now only had 4 arrows, one was lost to the grey wolf he shot first, and the other he used a spear broke in half from the force, but it was not that much of an issue.
What was, however, was that he had no sense of direction, or rather, where he needed to go. Last night’s events were rather intense, so he did not focus much on where he ran off to, it did not help that everything was dark at the time. It did not help that the thick vegetation and tress did not allow him to see much further ahead of him.
His only option was to pick a direction, and hope if it lead to a high place where he could pinpoint himself, or better yet a road that could lead him back to town.
Deeming he had no other reason to stay anymore, he got on moving, which he found out was rather hard and slow process. The forest was dense, trees sprouting closely to each other and other vegetations fighting for whatever space that had been left by said trees. It was a sheer miracle the part of the forest he was chased in was not this impassable either, because if that had been the case, the wolves most likely would have reached him quicker.
He traversed through the thick fauna all day, with the sun just barely providing its light for him to see before his eyes. He was out of breath, his flask long empty and he was coursed in dirt and grime, so all in all, he was in a pretty bad shape. Although his newfound skill [Forest Dweller] proved to be tremendously useful in his traversing.
[Forest Dweller] - Grants special effects while being in forest or heavily vegetated locations. Currently providing: +1 Agility, +1 HP recovery, Lesser Stamina Recovery
But even with this skill he was left absolutely exhausted. It was a small miracle when he spotted an end to the forest just as the sun had set, where he encountered a dirt road cutting through the woods.
A group of three travelled along the road not far from his location, and judging them by their attire, they were adventures. Izuku mustered the strength to break through the thick bushes to stumble on to the road, getting the group to notice him.
The tall warrior was the first to approach him upon seeing Izuku’s sorry state, but the other two also soon followed “Hey kid, are you alright?” he was tall and bulky, yet young, whose body was armored in thick leather armor along with a mace and a great shield on his back.
“Yes... just... tired...” he managed to barely huff out in between deep breaths. The adventurer noticed it, along with the dry sounding of his throat, as he grabbed a nicely made leather flash from his belt.
“Here, take this.” he offered it to Izuku, and he eagerly, if a little forcefully, took the container and greedily gulped down its contents, plain and cold water. It felt even better than time he drank from the brook’s water, his muscles untensed and his head’s throbbing lessened slightly due to the blood now able to freely flow through its veins.
After he finished the entire flask, he sheepishly handed it back “Thank you...” after he downed the entire flask, he sheepishly handed it back, though the adventurer did not seem to mind it.
As the bulky man was putting away his now empty container, the only girl in the group squatted down in front Izuku. She wore a black nun uniform and she seemed to have no qualms by invading Izuku’s personal space by pushing his face closely between his, much to the teenager’s dismay. It did not help his matters that said girl was a rather pretty, her skin was white like flour, young and soft without any blemishes or faults.
He found himself a little engrossed in her chaste beauty, his face flushing up a little, but when he tried to ask what she was up to, she only started to chant a verse, the chime she held in between her hands in prayer glowing up white, as well as his own body.
“[Revitalize]!” she shouted after finishing, and the light flared up after that, momentarily blinding him. When he opened his eyes, he found himself, clean, undamaged and most importantly, fully energized.
He was about to ask what she exactly did, but the priest beat him first by speaking up “I casted a energy recovery spell on you.” she said as if she was reading Izuku’s mind “But sorry in advance if you can’t sleep well tonight” she added a little sheepishly, while scratching the back of her head.
“N-n-no it’s not a-a problem at a-a-ll" Izuku stuttered out, still a little shy due to talking with a girl. While Senja was also a girl, she was a little older than him, while she on the other hand seemed to be on the same age as him. His past experiences with his female peers did not help him, as they found pulling pranks on him by fake love letters quite funny and the only real conversation she had with them were either one-sided beratement or him apologizing for being just in the same space as them.
He did not had to accidentally embarrass himself further though, as the final member of the group approached him “Poor thing, what driven you inside that forest in such state and late time, pray do tell?” the man, middle aged had a rather soft and gentle tone, yet his voice was hoarse. Izuku could only guess his age though, as he was draped head-to-toe in blue cloth armor, adorned with numerous talismans and ornaments on it, while carrying a long curved sword at his waist.
“I-” his cough interrupted him, his dry throat unaccustomed from talking “-have been c-chased by wolfes inside of the forest, but when I ran away from them, I got lost as well.” the group nodded in understanding, and the swordsman voiced his question in a monotone voice, emotions completely obscured and unknown.
“I see, a rather unfortunate situation.” Izuku weakly nodded in agreement, it was true after all “And pray do tell, what do you wish to do now?”
“I-” Izuku stumbled on his words as he pondered on the simple question. It was not intended to bring up any thought, but for Izuku it did, because right now, he felt like he was in a strange state of limbo, out of place from everywhere. While his goal could be to go back to Axel, nothing tied to him there, he mainly needed a way to stabilize himself in this world and find a way to comfortably train his skills. “-I... don’t really know. I’m an adventurer from Axel, but right now I’m in a little financial crisis...”
The bulky man sucked in a breath at that, sheepishly scratching his head “Well... whatever you’re going to do, you going back to Axel is thrown off the table for now”
He did not truly understand “W-why?”
“Because-” the cleric girl steeped forward “-the sun has almost set, making a trip back down this road rather dangerous. Bandits are not frequent around here, but monsters do tend to wander out of their caves into the roads, so it’s unadvised to walk it alone.”
Izuku lowered his head in distress, completely at loss on how to procced. His mind wandered back to his old life, or at the goddess Aqua, of how he felt so lost. It was pathetic, he was given this chance by the very gods, and he squandered it just after a matter of days. His eyes became wet, but he ground his teethes to hold them back, he will not let himself cry in front of strangers.
The group itself felt the change in the air, even though Izuku did his best to not show it, standing silently and awkwardly around the boy.
“Umm...” the bulky man fumbled with his words, even more so as all three of them looked towards him expectingly of an answer to their matter at hand “...what about joining us? You said you were an adventurer, maybe you could tag along with us for a while.” he proposed.
The offer was meet with ample amount of positivity from the other members, the swordsman idly humming in approval while the cleric girl expressed her opinion much more expressively, excitingly pumping her fist before her, and casually invading Izuku’s personal space once again “That’s a great idea! Say, what class are you?”
The now beet red boy dumbfoundedly looked at the party. They offered him, a mere stranger to them, a means of escape from this predicament? Izuku heart skipped a beat, not by the girl’s closeness who once again casually invaded his personal space when inquiring his class, but by the kindness they provided him. “I-I’m a Ranger.”
His answer was meet with a chorus of ‘Ooooh’s, with a varying degree of awe, even from the more stoic swordsman, much to the confusion of the green-haired boy.
Their reaction was both meet with embarrassment and confusion on Izuku “W-what?”
“Ranger’s are very rare! Usually if someone want’s to be a ranged fighter, they pick wizard or archer, making it an uncommon choice” the nun explained “This is the first time I have meet a Ranger!”
The swordman also steeped in to share his thoughts “It’s true, and at the moment we lack serious ranged offensive capabilities, a role that you could easily fit in.”
Izuku was at a loss for words as he processed their words, it felt great in all honestly, but he didn’t miss the expectant glances all of them directed toward him. By all means wanted a way out of his unfortuness, but if it would be only achievable by misdirecting all disappointing them, then he would rather refuse.
“But I’m still really new to adventuring...” he paused “...and I only have this cheap bow and a couple of arrows, I would just hold you three back...” he shamefully admitted, casting his gaze downwards, ready to be tossed aside. It reminded him of the time he first revealed to his junior high class that he was quirkless. The stunned silence, the slow realization, only to be meet by either belittling laughter, cold gazes of disgust or glances of pity.
Though it seemed his expectations were wrong “Actually... none of us are really experienced either, we only started out just 3 weeks ago this will be only our second guest.” the bulky man admitted “As for equipment, we can actually lend you some Eris for gear if you promise to be part of our team for a while.” he looked at his groupmates for approval, to be only meet by nods of agreement from the two.
“B-but... w-why do you p-put so much f-faith in m-me?”
“If you’re asking from a rational way, a low level and inexperienced adventurer would have to join a group for a while if he wished to live, one that we would provide you and as Ilves said, we are in need of a ranged fighter.” the warrior punctually listed his reason, but soon truned towards Izuku with a kind smile on his face, his eyes holding an emotion unknown to Izuku “But what kind of paladin, or man, would I call myself if I wouldn’t at least offer a helping hand?”
His words were punctuated with the hand he offered to Izuku, who all this while still din’t get up from the dirt road he collapsed into. His green eyes studied the calloused hand, then the yellowish-green hue of the warrior’s eyes, searching for a hint of lie within it’s light. But none were found. He gazed upon the cleric’s big and round brown and the one still barely showing eye of the swordsman, doing the same and finding the same result.
He couldn’t hold back the tears this time.
Izuku didn’t even care as he heard a small chuckle from the two man and a small ‘aww’ from the cleric girl.
-
Izuku put the thin-wodded bow and handful of arrows to the floor. Basically all of his possession he owns as of yet, beside his clothes of course and his flask got left behind the other night.
After he got out of his shoes, he wasted no time in flopping down in the bed that he was before, falling into the mattress as if it was heaven itself. By his standards, coming from a modern time, the bed was rather hard and smelly, but comparing it to the bug-ridden grassy ground of the outside, it was a difference of day and night.
Looking around in the room he observed as the other were preoccupied with loading of their more heftly amount of package they had, food supplies, flasks, weapons, clothes and many more trinkets and personal belongings they each carried got stuffed somewhere into their respective spaces they assigned in this smaller cabin they rented.
Because after the heavy moment of acceptance, which Izuku looked back with a little embarrassment of how he cried until his whole face and uniform was drenched in tears, the group travelled along the road to the nearby village of Solymos, a small settlement that grown accustomed to make accommodation for travelers or adventurer who wished for a cheaper rent than what Axel offered, where the group gave him a place to stay.
Of course it wasn’t without a price, even though in Izuku’s opinion it was rather one-sided. On their terms, he agreed to join their party in a ranged offensive role, while also acting as guidance in the wilderness where they would go on their journeys. The party’s payment was also well designed, a quest’s total pay would be divided into 5 equal parts, each person getting a share, while the rest went to a shared point, used only for emergencies and purchases for all, such as commuting and accommodation. It’s also where his new equipment will be paid from.
His term would last until they either earned a total of 1,5 million eris, or he reached level 17, where he would be free to leave on his own violation. A fair deal he easily agreed upon.
After his joining, he also got to know the three people he would be working and living with for the unforeseeable future.
The name of the bulky man was Rootare, who seemed to be the honorary leader or the party, and as a Paladin class acted as the tank with his great shield. He was rather shy, and not very confident in himself, although if the other two trusted him as their leader, he most likely undersold himself.
Following him was Ilves, ‘blue dancer of the flowing blade’ as he dubbed himself, which Izuku found a little edgy to be honest, but judging by their groupmates reaction, maybe wasn’t without merit.
And lastly was Rikku, the supporter of the party as her class was Priest and despite their gender difference, Izuku would admit she was the one he grew the closest to since he meet the group.
Throughout the walk to the village, she always striked up talks with him, closely following him and telling funny stories about Ilves and Rootare to him. Maybe it was because he was a new member, or she just had this inherit urge to share these tad-bit of gossips, but Izuku suspected it was likely due to meeting someone of her age, since it was a notion the bullied and lonely Izuku also shared, so despite the way he constantly blushed whenever she was around, he tried his damn hardest to reciprocate the conversations.
All to Rikku’s utter joy and pure giddiness, unbeknownst to Izuku of course.
By this time the other’s finished their packing, all changed to some comfier sleepware, which was just their clothes they wore without armor, and generally looked ready to finish the day. Izuku was on it to and he fought back the urge to thank them once again, remembering how they chewed him out once he couldn’t stop thanking them. He laid down on the mattress, and threw the covers over himself and closed his eyes, getting ready to sleep.
However, the faint rustling, ever increasing in his direction, stooped unconsciousness from taking him, Prying his eyes open, he was meet with a ludicrous sight.
Rootare and Ilves stood tall beside his bed, the two holding faces bereft of emotion, the two holding a rather large sack between them as they eyed Izuku in a way that made him worried.
“W-what?” he meekly asked, the two still unmoving. Expecting no further response from the two, he instead tried to search for salvation from Rikku, who stood rather awkwardly in her sleepwear at her own bed, looking sheepishly at him, but held no surprise or strangeness at the situation.
“I tried to talk the two of them out of it but...” she said sheepishly “...they insisted. Sorry.”
Left alone with just an apology against the two grown men, Izuku couldn’t resist as the bag was put around him, constraining him of all movement.
-
Izuku’s back was killing him as they walked the dew-littered fields of the dawning day. His last night was horrible, since spending it in a tightly woven flour sack made sleeping rather uncomfortable and difficult, evident by his strange walking with his hunched back, all the while the rest of his party argued.
“It was a necessary procedure.” Ilves simply stated, Rootare just nodding along as they traversed.
“like hell it was!” the feminine voice of Rikku protested.
What simply happened last night was a security meaure the two men put against him, something Izuku just faintly heard from history books in his school. If a man visited a home and was made guest for the night, he would be constrained to said bed for the whole night if any woman were present, to ensure their safety and innocence.
In short they were worried for Rikku, something she found absolutely unnecessary, if the way she was defending him was any indication.
“Look at his back! He now won’t be able to even fight properly!”
“It’s okay Rikku...” he finally straightened his back with a grunt “...I’m fine, besides, in a way of sense they were right.”
Rikku looked towards him, his features looking confused before turning into something more smug “Oh? So you say you wanted to do things to me? Are you that kind of guy?” her tone of voice was teasing, switching to a mock fear as she teased the poor boy “You’re getting off on ravaging a pure body of a nun like me? Oh how awful!”
If Izuku wasn’t fully awake by now, he was as his face was confronted in a wild red blush, hiding his freckles by how dark they were “O-o-of c-course n-not!” his hand were thrown wildly around in refusal “I-I-it's ju-ust t-that I-I was s-still n-new to you g-guys a-and it was n-natural for you to no trust me f-fully..!”
Rikku on her side only laughed, along with Ilves and Rootare, made Izuku’s heart quicken, but not due to embarrassment at the situation, rather by the way her gentle voice emitted these sounds of happiness and joy. After the cackling finally died down, Rootare refocused on their mission at hand, gathering the attention of their fellow members, making Izuku miss how the girl looked at him.
“Okay, quiet down a little” Rootare stopped and faced the group “We should pay attention to our surrondings now, our quest here is to kill 10 Giant Toads, and if all is true, they should be hiding in the clearing after this forest trail.” he informed, motioning behind him.
“Our formation doesn’t change, but for Midoriya’s sake I re-explain" he continued, before pointing at each member “Ilves and I will take on the front, I gather the attention of the enemy and Ilves will get next to it, dealing the most damage. Rikku will be positioned further back between us, making it able to heal us both if necessary” he recounted before focusing on Izuku.
“As for you, you will stay next to Rikku, also dealing damage, but if it comes to it, you will act as a way of baiting away the enemy if Ilves or I need a break or support.” he explained.
Izuku nodded “I understand”
Rootare was content on that answer, and witha silent motion, each of them got on moving to make their way to the vast clearing couple meters ahead of them, instantly taking position as instructed. Izuku was noticeable tense, clenching the new bow they purchased for him in a silent preparation while preparing an arrow, feeling as the much more sturdier material in his hands.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, belonging to Rikku, who sent him a small and comforting smile. “It will be alright, Giant Toads aren’t very harmful.” she consoled him “They don’t have fangs or teeth, so at worst they will just swallow you, but even then we could just cut you out easily.”
Despite the rather morbid and concerning thing she said, Izuku still found himself much more relaxed at Rikuu’s gentle soothing, and thanked her with a determined nod.
It was needed, the next moment their target emerged from the ground, likely burried itself there for warmth against the cold. Just as it’s name, it was giant, easily measuring 3-4 meter tall in height, it’s skin was rather clear and soft, its color not in the shades of ugly green, but rather in a almost gentle and faded baby blue.
“Everybody! To your positions!” they did as instructed, Izuku and Rikku only shifting a little bit to the side, while Ilves fully confronted the toad at it’s side, however the assault was initiated by the bulky warrior.
“[Determination]!” he chanted, his mace gaining a faint white sheen to it, and with a heavy grunt, swung the heavy iron with all his might at the chin of the toad. A resounding blow echoed through the field from the hit, making the toad lose his balance, but not falling completely. This was their cue to attack.
Ilves brandished his blade, unsheathing his sword with an elegant and swift motion out. “[Vacuum Slice].” his curved blade was spun in his dexterous hand, a gust of wind tapping itself to the steel and with a flick of his sword, let out a razor-sharp arc of pure wind, cleanly slicing through the soft flesh of the toad at his leg, making escape nigh impossible.
Rikku also begun to chant, holding her hand in prayer around her chime, before pumping them in the air, releasing a wave of light in the process, engulfing all three of them in a sparkling aura “[Tears of the Widowed Sieger]!”
Seeing all of them in action, Izuku did the same, pulling back his iron-tipped arrow as he called forth his own skill [Snipe], and without much effort, let it free. The arrow hit the toad’s left eye, blinding him of sight against them that instant, bascially fating the animal to a certain death at that point. One that happened with another strike from Rooatre, this time at the lowered head of the toad, breaking in his skull to deliver him to the afterlife.
The toad collapsed to the ground.
Creature [Juvenile Giant Toad] eliminated
+68 EXP gained
+17 EXP gained (shared)
Izuku looked a,little confused at the notification, though ‘looking’ was a strange word, since it just appeared on his vision before fading away. The object of his confusion of course was the EXP gain, which from what he learned from the party, usually fell to the one who ended the beings life last, creating a power imbalance in most groups if left unchecked. Since support classes then wouldn’t be able to improve, and would result in a tug-of-war for the final attack, often leading to dangerous situation if the party’s attention was brought away.
To solve this, most parties made a little purchase for a Spirit Stone. Since EXP is the essence of a soul, which befeel to the one defeat it, strengthening his own soul, connecting souls would mean the EXP would be shared. That’s what the Spirit Stone did.
With a quick ritual performed by Clerics, Rikku in this case, a Spirit Stone is linked to a person, which is then linked to another connected Spirirt Stone, creating a chain of connections, where the individual’s soul are connected, though made sure only in the process of EXP sharing.
So by all means, he should be getting 11 EXP out of that 47 EXP toad, yet he got both the full EXP, and the shared, which was just plain strange. Then it dawned upon him.
[Sthenolagnia] - Fallen foes in user’s vicinity yield their whole being to the user, submitting all of their power.
His god-given ability, which by its description, promised a full delivery of power, in this case, EXP, even if it would be otherwise shared, by creating EXP out of thin air. Now Izuku understood why the goddess Aqua dubbed them as cheats.
He flinched out of his thoughts by the sound of rumbling, quickly looking up to see two toads emerging from the dirt, getting ready to engage their group, who without hesitation took up their battle stance.
“We will focus on the left one!” the leather-ridden warrior yelled, motioning for the team to follow him “Midoriya, you will attract the attention of the other one, distract it!” he commanded, and Izuku was promptly drenched in sweat, his heart beating even louder and not because of running. He knew the time would come when a responsibility would fall upon his hands, but he still felt early for it.
Nevertheless, he complied, switching positions with Rikku to leave the formation to the way of the toad on the right side. It now stood tall and fully, easily overshadowing the juvenile they defeat earlier by roughly one and a half meter, with its skin being also much rougher and tattered. Izuku wasted no time on shooting an arrow into the face of the amphibian. The soft and fat flesh easily stopped the projectile, making it as effective as an overgrown toothpick, but had to desired effect of angering the toad, bringing his two yellow eyes towards the green-haired archer.
Its mouth enlarged, and within a second, the toad released an ear-splitting croak, submitting Izuku down to his knees in pain. The sound made his head throb, threatening for the blood vessel to pop inside his veins, before it ceased.
Izuku hastily made move to pick up his bow, but found himself drowsy and disoriented, taking him much more time than what it should have been normally, allowing the toad to close the distance between them. He could barely manage to leap out of the way as a tongue made impact with the ground where he stood just moments ago, though tripping himself as well.
It retracted the long appendage, once again locking irises with the boy on the ground and made move to his dismay.
Izuku fumbled with his fingers to catch the quill of an arrow, shakingly placing it in the string before pulling. He activated [Snipe] this time, and poured as much MP into the skill as it allowed him, the toad slowly hopping to his way. The cold-blodded animal opened his mouth to pounce on the boy, before Izuku managed to let out his shot.
It hit the toad squarely in its eye. The proximal shoot cleanly pierced through the mirror of the toad’s soul, pulverizing and staining those yellow iris with its own bluish blood, though it the soft flesh allowed the arrow to travel further.
The toad at first screamed in pain, but soon stilled once the cold iron burrowed inside his mushy brain, making the toad collapse.
Creature [Giant Toad] eliminated
+82 EXP gained
+20 EXP gained (shared)
Izuku breathed a sigh of relief after a while, seeing he was save, and after a minuscule breather, made his way back to the group. It looked like they failed in their plan to eliminate the juvenile toad, not because of their inability to do so, but because another one was splitting their attention.
Izuku rushed in, letting out a bow to distract one of the toad, strafing off one it from breathing down their necks, much to their relief, their enemies quickly fell to their hands after that.
Creature [Juvenile Giant Toad] eliminated
Creature [Juvenile Giant Toad] eliminated
+136 EXP gained
+34 EXP gained (shared)
Skill [Leaper Jump] has been acquired
‘Izuku Midoriya’ has successfully leveled up [Lvl. 2 -> Lvl. 3]
Skill Points and Attribute Points have been acquired
Attribute [Vitality] has been increased [22 -> 23]
Attribute [Agility] has been increased [11 -> 12]
Izuku idly observed the notification as the group approached him, clearly out of breath, all except of course Rikku. They all took a small time to take a break, chugging down a healthy amount of water as a plus.
“You really saved our asses from those toads...” Rootare breathily spoke “...it wasn’t deathly per say, but still, spared us from an uncomfortable situation.”
“It’s true, our capabilities, while aren’t lacking, were in dire need of assistance, which you timely filled in” Ilves praised, his breath much more even that that of the warrior. Maybe because he wore light armor or did have to do with the winds he produced? Either way, it was a question for later, and Izuku shyfully turned away from the now sudden praise.
“I-I just did what i was told to...” he bashfully admitted, only to be grabbed by the shoulders with two small hands belonging to a sparkling faced Rikku.
“Are you kidding!?” she exclaimed, emphasizing her words by shaking the boy in her arms “You killed a toad single handedly and saved us on top of that! How cool is that!?” she had still no idea of the term private space with Izuku, since she still particularly spoke into his face as she beamed, making Izuku blush.
“Ahh... umm... I-it w-wasn't t-that i-impressive...”
The cleric girl did not like that answer, punching him in the side suddenly “You don’t have to be shy, Midoriya! Just admit it!” the smile that appeared on her face filled Izuku’s chest with something quite funny, restraining and heavy, yet pleasant force. The way her eyes closed with the wide grin that playfully split her face, showing of her white teeth, he found his eyes drawn to her, something he would be very conscious about otherwise.
He shook himself out of his stupor quick enough, since this positive attention was somewhat still new to him, and to his poor heart which beat irregularly fast, so he subtly looked towards his two other companions in request for solace. Something they fortunately they provided him upon seeing him.
“Now, now Rikku, we need to continue the quest-” Rootare glued off the girl from Izuku, turning to her “-we can’t burn the daylight, you know how short days are in the autumn.”
The short girl looked upset about the separation, and Rootare’s explanation for doing so was only meet with a pout “But we woke up early just for that reason! We have time!” she remarked.
Ilves took his cue, stepping in “Time is precious, my friend, so we must make the best of it” he chimed in, and at that point, Rikku knew her fight was futile. With a perplexed sigh, she tidied up her attire and loose strands of her into the headband of his veil headpiece, accepting her fate.
“Alright.” she huffed “Let’s kick some frog butt.” she vowed with a determined and scary face.
-
The next week passed rather fruitfully for the rookie adventurer party. Thanks to their new addition for their ranks, they practically waltzed through the guest in a couple of days. They have sent a message for the guild, requesting their services in hauling and appraisal of the bodies of their bounty, but got eager in their waiting, and spent that small time to eliminate ever more toads, resulting in a bountiful hunt by the end of the week, something that could be applied to Izuku as well.
[ Name: Izuku Midoriya ]
[Gender: Male ] [Age: 14 ]
[ Level: 6 ]
[ Class: Ranger ]
[ Health Points: 632 ] [ Magic Points: 32 ] [Stamina Points: 86 ]
[Attribute Points: 9 ] [Skill Points: 12 ]
[ Attributes: ]
Vitality: 23
Strength: 13
Dexterity: 23
Agility: 18
Intelligence: 53
Magic: 14
Luck: 28
Skills: [Archery I], [Snipe II], [Enchanted Shot], [Herbalism], [Leaper Jump], [Mucus], [Bow Proficiency II], [Forest Dweller I], [Lesser Nightvision], [Minor Fire Damage Resistance Increase], [Bone Resilience Increase]
Spells: [Cure Wounds]
The boy appraised his adventurer card with glee and proudness at his quick and steady growth. Not only did he managed to level up multiple times, a handful of useful skills and passives getting into his possession as well in the process. Of course, he wasn’t the only one marveling at his success.
“I must say, Midoriya, I have never seen an adventurer like you-” Rootare praised as he eyed the card “-not only you’re a skillful for rookie, but you level up like crazy! You’re practically on my level now!”
“Well... It is part of my hereditary skill, though it feels like I’m cheating...” Izuku said, going with the lie he built up in his head at their second night at the cabin. This hadn’t gone unnoticed to the team, and Izuku figured it would be found eventually, so he fabricated this quick but simple lie, that he was born with this skill. It was simple enough that even he, a terrible deceiver, could pull off.
“It isn’t, believe us.” Ilves confronted “Though I must also admit, your haste progression has left me worried and perhaps...” he paused, sulking “...envious.”
He was promptly hit in the side by a small fury of Rikku “Don’t say that! He’s already shy enough as it is!”
“I will try to...” Ilves rubbed his arm absently.
Momentarily satisfied, Rikku left her gaze on the older man for a second before turning to Izuku, her face full of smiles “Don’t listen to what they say Midoriya, you should be proud of yourself!” she encouraged.
The teenager faintly blushed, still somewhat accustoming that he was surrounded by supportive people here, and only managed to nod in response to her, which was quite enough it seemed for now. After that, the team stood without speaking for a minute as they watched the handful of guild wagons haul the toads away in the night, all just staring ahead. This was a long week after all, even if their pace was considerably faster than normal, they grown tired, and they just let themselves enjoy the peace for now.
“Say-” Rikku began, having enough of the silence “-why don’t we hold a little celebration? Let’s have a feast at the tavern!” Rikku suggested to his team, all of them beginning to imagine the grandiose foods they would be presented with, their stomachs aching at the mere thought.
“Well... I’m not opposed to it, but do we have money to spare for that?” Izuku asked
“We have actually, plenty to be honest-” Rootare complemented “-and I admit, I had enough of jerky and stale water for the week already.”
The warrior shifted his gaze to Ilves, the last team member for his opinion “It’s not a bad idea, although I wonder...” he paused, looking at their resident cleric “...aren’t your enthusiasm only fueled because you want to drink, even though you aren’t supposed to?”
His accusation hit the nail in the head, if the way she turned away from the glance was any indication “O-of course not! My only reason is because I want to properly welcome Izuku into the party!” she protested.
While at this point everyone knew she was lying through the skin of her teeth, her reasoning wasn’t half-wit either.
“You know what I think she’s right.” Rootare said, grabbing Izuku by the shoulders “This champ deserves a proper adventurer’s welcome, because I think, our future will be bountiful together!”
“Much agreed. His collaboration to our quests were exceptional, so I say a celebration is in need.” Ilves chimed in.
While the two men were in a state of agreement, Rikku in relaxation of getting away with her lie, Izuku was livid, Not in rage mind you, but by confusion. “W-wait, wait, wait!” he spoke “W-we don’t need to hold a celebration for me!”
Rootare laughed, and batted, quite forcefully, the back of Izuku at the radicalness he said “What are you talking about? You deserve it!” he patted his back again “We will order the best beer for you tonight, so enjoy yourself to the fullest!”
Ilves nudged him in the side “I recommend lager, their bitterness and crispiness is a heaven for the tastebuds, i assure you!” he persuaded, showing the most amount of emotion ever. He was enthusiastic.
‘But I haven’t drank any alcohol ever in my life...’ he balked inside his head as he was dragged away against his will.
The local tavern, for a town of this size, was rather impressive, it’s size overshadowing that of the townhall’s by quite amount and seemed the most livelier part of Solymos at this time of the day, since it was well into nighttime by now. The sun had fully gone down hours ago after all. Music and laughter echoed from the establishment even form the distance, becoming ever so louder as they approached it.
“Wow, I can't wait to ge-” Rikku begun entering, only for her clothes to be grabbed by Rootare, who lifted the little girl easily, promptly stopping her in doing so.
Rikku slowly turned her head around, sweating bullets as she faced the larger man holding her “Just because we’re here, doesn’t mean we forgot you.”
“W-well I just t-thought t-that maybe I-I old enou-” she meekly tried resisting, fumbling with her words.
“No.” both Ilves and Rootare spoke, before turning to each other.
“One of us needs to watch over her.” the warrior said.
“You’re an excellent candidate for that job.” Ilves immediately bit back.
A sense of weight settled on the company as the two men glared at each other, staring daggers at each other, much to the dismay of the cleric girl who still hung from the ground by her clothes, sweating like her life depended on it. Izuku wasn’t oblivious to their fight, nor their reason so he tried to intercept by ‘sacrificing’ himself for the cause “Maybe I could watch over Ri-”
“NO!” they once again said in perfect unison, Izuku promptly retreating next to Rikku, who somehow managed to escape from the iron-tight grip of the warrior betwixt their stand-off.
“But now, that means...” Rootare begun.
“...one of us has to stay sane.” Ilves finished, his sound even and cold.
They each darted their eyes slowly at each other, subtly glaring at one another with their eyes full of determination. Both of them stood in silence, unmoving, only the wind and the echoes of joyous singing from the tavern between the two, with occasional glances between them and the door before them. Then both of them took off in a hurried sprint. Each brawling on the way like unmature kids on a playground, fighting for their favorite toy.
“I may be the more mature in this group, but I’m not giving up on my beer!” Ilves yelled, using his wind skills to gain the upper hand against Rootare, who went with the strategy of sabotaging Ilves to win the race for the booze.
“Me neither!”
In the end, none of them were willing to give up the sacred nectar that was beer, except Izuku, but his refusal to drink was turned down the moment he uttered the sentence. Rikku also wasn’t left behind, as Rootare ordered a jug for her as well, on the reason that this was a special occasion. Now, seated on a rectangular table on the corner of the building, all four adventurers had a well-sized mountain of food before them, coupled with a ample amount of beer, save for Rikku, who only got a smaller one.
Hoisting his own wooden jug in the air, the others followed suit “Cheers!” he yelled, clancking them together, and they digged in, each one in their own ways.
Ilves and Rootare practically downed the beer down like it was a shot, finishing in seconds, despite Ilves preaching before that you need to choose beer on taste.
Izuku eyed the two men, then his own jug. The yellowish and foamy liquid reflected his face, his nose being hit by the crisp smell of the alcoholic oxides escaping from the surface. He was hesitant, though looking at Rikku, it was a notion shared, despite her adamant efforts to obtain said beer.
She looked towards his way, and Izuku quickly tried to avert his eyes, but the nun merely smiled “First time for you as well?”
“Y-yeah, never had any alcoholic stuff before...” he admitted.
“This is my first time as well, with my religious parents, alcohol was never really around the house.” she explained “Except wine, but they never let me have any.”
“Is that why you became a cleric, with your religious upbringing I mean.” Izuku asked, genuinely curious, since he still held small knowledge on his party members.
Rikku pondered a little before only shrugging “Maybe it had a part, but since I knew that I had zero combat capacity, becoming a supporter was a no-brainer choice for me, the fact that it was in a form of being a nun was just a bonus.”
“I see.”
“But-” she held up a finger “-I became an adventurer thanks to them.”
Izuku hadn’t missed the slow pause after the sentence, and he couldn’t help but be worried “How so?” he tentatively asked.
Rikku stood still for some moment, unmoving, and Izuku thought he might have overstepped, before saying “Debt.” she simple uttered, voice even and monotone “They were content on just spending their inherited money instead of putting it into work, and after a while, our expenses caught us in the end, pilling up a large amount of debt as well.”
She sucked ina breath, looking up at the ceiling “And let’s just say... they were more than okay with unconventional methods of paying, even if it meant losing their daughter.” she finished, the implications loud and clear, one that made Izuku shudder.
“I-I’m so sorry for asking, I-I shouldn’t have...”
She simply waved her hands “It’s okay! Really, you don’t have to feel bad about it. You just asked”
Izuku wanted to protest, but he knew Rikku’s persistent nature by now, only nodding as he continued to eye the foamy liquid in front of him as both him and RIkku sat in silence.
But despite his expectations, it wasn’t one filled will a suffocating pressure, reasoned by their earlier heavy subject, but a calm and rather comfortable one. They just sat without a word, staring ahead blindly, emptying their heads of all coherent thought as they just basked in the mundane moment, forgetting their own problems behind, with the tavern’s joyous mood giving a suitable background noise for both of them to relax into.
“You know what-” she finally sat up “-let’s stop this all gloomy and sad talk and let’s just enjoy this moment, this is the point where we become adults, no? Our first beer after all.”
“I mean... kinda? Not much will change but...” Izuku eyed the liquid in his jug in front of him, hesitant, before holstering it up and looking Rikku directly in the eyes “...you’re right, no need to overthink. Let’s just enjoy it.”
She chuckled, bringing up her own jug, and they clanked them together once again, to promptly dig into their drink. Their reactions were pole opposites.
“Eww... it’s really bitter...” Rikku stuck her tongue out, face scrunched up, before softening “But maybe, it’s not so bad after all” she complemented, before taking another experimental sip, and deciding it was good now, begun to consume it to the earnest.
“Oh, it’s nice, it’s really bitter and the cold just makes it even crispier.”
“Yeah, totally!” Rikku eagerly agreed, taking more and more gulps every time she took another sip.
It didn’t take long for the both of them to fall in line with the general state the other customers were in, happy with flushed cheeks and noses, hysterically laughing at anything that was said, no matter if the thing was a joke or was even finished at all, and of course, drunk to the bone. After all they had eaten nothing filling this day, and the alcohol quickly took its effects. Izuku wasn’t an exception either, who gained quite a taste for the bitter taste of the commoner’s nectar, and swiftly ordered a newer round for himself and RIkku, who was in a similar attitude herself.
Izuku’s head was throbbing, his thoughts swirling, even so, he continued to gulp down his second jug like it was nothing. The cup was slammed down, empty, and he found that the feeling was gone, and a wave of emotions passed through him never experienced before. It felt rejuvenating, he felt like he was a giant, confident and strong, and of course, not a drop of shyness present in him.
With his greatest inhibitor gone down from service, a wall that he had built up between Rikku and himself was quickly torn down, as the two spent the night together in that little tavern.
Music and laughter filled their ears as they danced hand in hand together with the crowd, consisting of drunken couples of the village be it young or old. It wasn’t really dancing what the two of them did, neither of them was taught any kind and besides, none were in the state to complete such a mind-consuming task. Instead, they had gone with the flow, moving their bodies in a way they felt it was right, eyeing the other to match their movement, and occasionally getting bold with a touch, getting increasingly heated and longer then longer they went on.
Their eyes were glued to the other, appreciating all the ways the other looked, a small part influenced by the magicall capabilities of the alcohol, but mostly, it was genuine. Iris captivated by the other, their red tinted and hot faces slwoly came closer to the other’s, heart beating faster in their chest with every centimeter they closed in. Their hot and laboured breaths were puffed out at the other’s face by now, but neither of them cared as they both dared to take that one last inch, clashing their lips together.
It was tender, despite the ravenous and sultry way they treated the other on the floor, neither of them having the experience to do much more than just held their soft lips together, their lips occasionally entering to feel up the other’s.
It was a blur after that, the next moment that Izuku could remember, instead of the warm and yellowish torches of the tavern, the pale and cold moon illuminated his surroundings. But despite the way the wind sharply howled, he did not shiver or feel cold, for there was Rikku in his arms, pressed against a buildings wall tightly against his chest as the ferociously made out. Their blood and body was boiling at this point, trying to satisfy their need by the way they knew how at the moment, by kissing in the most aggressive way they could.
Rikku made for an eager partner, she hungrily bit and sucked on his lower lips, and using her tongue to feel up the insides of his mouth, something Izuku absolutely melted into and let the smaller girl dominate him, who had her arms wrapped around Izuku’s head for support and of course control.
Their need wasn’t satisfied with just their kissing, with Rikku’s hand occupied, Izuku felt free to touch the defenseless girl body, feeling up portions he knew nobody every touched before her up until this point, a fact that a primal part of his brain especially liked. The indecent cleric girl let out small moans into his mouth as Izuku slid his hands to her covered buttocks, kneading the two small bumps, appreciating his hands sank into the soft flesh.
A needy moan left Rikku, one that drove Izuku to even greater heights, as he lowered his attention, to reach the end of her uniform, to swiftly slide his hand under her enveloping clothes, bringing it up to cup her equally small breasts. There wasn’t much to play with to be honest, but Izuku couldn’t give a single fuck what anyone would say about that, as he eagerly begun to circle his palm, his finger latching onto the rock-hard nipples of Rikku, who was a howling mess at this point.
It was a pleasurably act for the girl, but she wasn’t one to give up control she grew a liking to within kissing Izuku, so she decided to up the game. Untangling one of her arms, she made no hesitation to plant her small hand onto the pants of Izuku, on the top of a prodding tent.
Izuku flinched at the sudden contact, quickly stopping his own ministrations and pulling away, looking the girl before him in the eyes, who hadn’t shared his thought of stopping, Still palming his erection through his pants.
“Rikku...” he breathed heavily “...isn’t it too early?” he asked, some sense still left in him after all. But to Rikku, it only signaled he hadn’t drank enough.
The girl looked unfazed by the question, grinding her hand on his tent, finding satisfaction as the boy who was so much stronger than him, was slowly forfeiting his dominance as he squirmed under her ministrations. The sensation left the girl incredibly aroused.
“Oh? So you don’t want to go further with me?” she questioned with a sultry tone “Are you perhaps not interested in me?”
“No!” Izuku immediately blurted, voice entirely certain, making Rikku blush. “It’s just that I don’t feel like I’m prepared to do that with you yet... and besides... I want our first time to be... more special, not in an alley like here...”
The boy had a point, quickly looking around, they were just standing at the back of the tavern, in a rather short alley, made them quite exposed and while ferocious kissing was something generally more accepted to do in public, having sex wasn’t. This openness brought even the sky-high Rikku down to earth, who promptly slide her hands down to her sides, stopping their act.
Izuku breathed a sigh of relief, though quickly froze when Rikku sent a glare at him. It wsn’t one filled with hate, annoyance or anything like that, but rather like it was that of predator, whose eyes were filled with burning arousal and anticipation.
“I humor your wish for now, but when we get back to Axel, I will make you scream my name” she stated as a matter of fact, one that made the boy gulp.
Rikku wholeheartedly chuckled, grabbing the boy’s arm and leading him out to the streets “Now, let’s get to sleep, although I don’t want to go back to the cabin with Rootare and Ilves, do you?” she asked.
They rented a room at the tavern, and let’s just say, even though Rikku held on to her promise and hadn’t started anything while they were in bed, together, the calmness allowed Izuku’s thoughts to came back, to haunt and pester him all night, making his heart race at the fact of what he had done.
Safe to say, he couldn’t sleep that night.
-
“You sly bastard!” Rootare cackled as he wrapped an arm around Izuku, shoving him away from Rikku who he had walked together, accompanied by Ilves.
They were on their way to return to Axel, to collect their bounty of 85,000 Eris they had gained, spend said money on supplies, and to take up on another quest if possible. Though both Ilves and Rootare noted with winter coming, most quests will take an incredulous leap in difficulty, since apparently only strong monsters wandered out during the cold season, making money-making difficult for adventurers.
It was during said walk that both men noticed the two younger member’s closeness to one another, and they were quick to draw a conclusion, one that turned out to be the correct one in the end.
Izuku and Rikku were boyfriend and girlfriend now.
The thought alone made Izuku’s heart race, making him think if it was a dream that he was experiencing even at the moment, but whenever he looked to the side, when he felt his hand be wrapped around a much smaller one, it reassured him and refaced him with reality that yes, despite all the odds he had made against himself, that he would never have a girlfriend, he had done it somehow.
With ‘somehow’ being getting drunk to the point where he had zero shyness or mental block to openly flirt with a girl. He questioned if he had really done that, since last night’s events were rather hazy, but it was backed up by Rootare and Ilves both.
One thing, however, wasn’t left blurry in his memories at all, one that remained crystal clear. The sensations of the flesh, on his lips that kissed, on his hands that enveloped those sickly soft orbs of flesh, and those words from that feminine voice, that promised him even more pleasure once this road was over.
He promptly blushed at the thought, one that Rootare interpreted as his own doing.
“Man, It has been only a week and you hit on one of your teammates? What a sick man you are!” Rootare laughed, much to the embarrassment of Izuku.
“S-stop saying that to him! I-I also made advancement y-you know!” Rikku retorted. Despite the earlier night, where he promptly showed just how much more dominant he was in their relationship, it seemed that bravado quickly died down once they were in public. Rikku was still the stubborn and brash, yet kind girl she was earlier, but one that quickly grew flustered, even so when she was the one being teased.
“Well, I am more than happy for you on your newfound relationship” Ilves chimed in “I wish the best for both of you, even more so since we will be stuck with one of you If you two break up.”
Rikku faked a gasp, running to Izuku’s side and latching onto his arm affectionately “No way! We will stay together!” she stated, turning to him in confirmation with pleading eyes “Right?”
“O-of course.” Izuku flusterly replied, but the answer was satisfactory nonetheless to Rikku, who tightened her hold on him.
The two grown men laughed at their antics, ant the way their Ranger turned to a strawberry by the way he blushed, and Izuku, despite his clearly apparent embarrassment, never felt so alive and happy.
Here he was, surrounded by friends, laughing and talking together without ulterior motives, just enjoying their company. He had a stable job for moneymaking and getting stronger to be a hero and most of all, he had a loving, and very, very cute and adorable, girlfriend by his side. One that he would lose his virginity to if all went right, and that thought just only made him redder.
Altough the gods still didn’t really like him.
A black blur escaped from the bushes, its speed making it nigh impossible to dodge or even recognize what it was before it reached them. It was huge, fast and slender, as with a single swipe which cut through the air, Ilves was forced down on the ground, his now tattered blue armor dyed in his own crimson blood, three deep lacerations running through his body.
Everybody tensed, and within moments took up a stance as they eyed their fallen teammate, then their attacker. It was a giant saber tooth, it’s fur in a shade of coal black, without a speck of shine reflecting upon its matte surface, two large and sharp fangs growing out of its upper jaw, the white bone painting a menacing contrast against his black fur.
Izuku didn’t recognize it, but by the gasp emanating both from Rootare and Rikku, his heart sank, knowing this wasn’t good news.
“A-a-a B-beginner's B-bane...” Rikku stuttered breathlessly, shaking, Rootare also in a similar state of distress.
Izuku was also next to a breaking point, but the sight of his bloodied teammate gave him enough drive to break free out of his stupor.
“Rootare, block his way while Rikku heals Ilves, I will pester the monster!” Izuku barked his orders, bringing the tow back from their frightened state. Both of them acknowledged their order, Rootare raising his shield, and Rikku rushing to the side of Ilves and begun to chant a prayer.
The monster wasn’t idle though, moving like water, it raised its claws to deliver a razor-sharp swipe at Rootare, one that rattled the warrior’s bones even through his shield. Izuku pulled back his bow but found no opportunity to let louse the arrow within, the feline moving with such speed and ways that even with [Snipe] proved to be difficult. The ever so present position of Rootare was also a problem, but since the road was small, he had no space to correctly position himself to the side without getting in close range to the saber tooth.
The chant also finished and Ilves got up grunting, clutching his wounds that were now healed and gone. The sounds of distress made Rootare lose focus for a single moment, who worryingly stole a glance at his teammate to gauge his status, which unfortunately served as his demise.
Hinding on his back legs, the bane raised his front legs and using all of his weight and might, pressed down against the shield-bearing adventurer, who was promptly forced down. The sudden landing on his knee quickly shattered it, and Rootare howled in pain, weaking his hold on his shield, which crushed against him together with the beast’s weight. His head turned blue in the matter of seconds from the pressure, his eyes bulging out from their sockets, vomiting up blood from the numerous organs that were punctuated by his broken ribs.
The rest of them watched in horror as their teammate cried hoarse curses, unintanligable to no other than himself, slowly dying in front of them. Ilves was the one whose fright turned to boiling rage, as he brandished his blade, rushing ahead with the winds and a war cry accompying him.
“[Storm Dance!]” his blade was surronded by sharp winds, ebfore his hands moved in a blurry, delivering a series of slashes in the number of dozens in a matter of seconds, each letting out blood from the beast the swordsman cut at.
It wasn’t enough however, the beast howled in mere annoyance, and turned sides by jumping with his back legs, making the dying Rootare literally burst from the pressure, before it quickly dashed forward.
The swordsman could not even blink once ebfore his head was enveloped by the mihghty jaw of the beast, his lower fangs punctruing his eyes for support, toring down his whole head with a single motion from the rest of his body, also swallowing it whole.
After that, the bane idly licked of the excess blood from his paws, and grabbed the body of the sworsdman with his teeth, and leaving the carnage behind, slowly walked into the meadows with a succesfull meal.
Izuku and Rikku were the only one left, on the ground kneeling, while the other looked in bewidlerment, cliutching his arrow in hand, as he wasn’t even able to let out a single arrow. That’s just how quick things happened. One moement they were walking home, and now only two remained.
A faint hiccup brought his thousand-yard stare back, noticing the occasional tremble that run through the smaller girl. He immediately rushed to his side, at first only brushing his back, but quickly knelled down beside her to envelope her in a warm and tight hug.
The girl flinched, trembled in his arms as she cried, Izuku not caring as it stained his attire, as every sound of hiccup felt like a knife in his heart. He did not like seeing her in a way like this, it hurt him physcially, and he knew how hard it must have been for her, how tramutasing it must have been for her to watch two of her long firend die.
“I-it’s okay Rikku... I’im here...” he tried assuring, though with his wavering voice he doubted it had the desired effect, enevrtheless he continued.
“It’s going to be alright... it’s over now... we’re safe...” he whispered, rubbing her back, soothing her and trying his best to calm her down.
He continued like this for a while, saying conforting words as the girl continued to cry in his tight envelopment, and after a while, only the faint and occasionall hiccups remained. Izuku felt satisfied to break free, and untangled one of his arms, but a faint word left RIkku.
“It’s...” she started, and Izuku stopped, wanting to hear what she had to say. “...your fault.”
The green-haired boy froze, in that awkard position between a hug and wanting to left, his heart sinking the miniscule second after those words reached his processing. A part of brain assured he must have msiheard, and Izuku believed it.
He was proven wrong as he harshly landed on his back with a thud, courtesy of two little hands that pushed him from his chest, looking up after the sudden change in positions, his eyes landed on the sight of a Rikku, whose teeth were tightly clenched, her puffy and red eyes holding nothing but malice and hatred feeling like daggers.
“It’s all your fault!” she yelled at the top of her lungs, her voice uneven from the way she cried earlier “Rootare and Ilves died because of you!”
“W--wha...” he tried to find words, but his mind and of course Rikku, wouldn’t let him.
She clutched her head, ruffling his head, removing her headband in the procces as stray strand of hair escaped withing it’s confines, which the confused girl promptly grabbed to either pull and carres “If y-you hadn’t joined... maybe the guest would h-have been delayed... then s-somebody else w-woul dhave d-died... y-yes! I-it's you fault!” she crazely came to the conclusion, his hair disheveled and all over the palce by now.
Tears rolled down on her face once again as she locked her pink eyes with his viridian ones “Y-you’re the mistake here!” her finger, which she accusingly pointed at him, served a greater pain than any wolf’s jaw or sword could, because it came from a person he thought he loved, and in this moment still loved. It just became apparent that it wasn’t mutual now.
He tried to defend himself, to maybe calm Rikku down since it was easily to see that she was scared and confused, but he couldn’t see and words couldn’t escape his throat, because a part of him, a part that he hoped left behind back in Japan, a dark thought that always accompanied, told him that she was right. He was just a mistake, one that he always been. His quirklessness was a mistake, his dreams were a mistake, his existence was a mistake.
A dark feeling, a clutching of his heart, a locked chain, a long-lasting partner of his life came back tha moment. It was the ever-present despair, hopelessness, loneliness and sadness all in one pack of unspeakable negative emotional luggage.
He lowered his head, his ears and mind ignoring the crazed rant the girl was giving him, all only heard by the deaf ears of the empty air of the forest. He didn't even register when that buzzing of the way she talked stopped, signaling that she left for god knows where, or when the sun came down upon the horizon, shrouding the forest in dark. He got up, his legs moving out of his own volition, bringing him into the shadowy encasement of the forest, to a path his mind knew he walked once upon before, the subtle crimson patches on the ground serving as its proof.
He was but an observer inside his body, his thoughts going mile an hour, only passing second of image getting through the shroud that was his clouded mind. An inner self of his hoped that the inhabitants of the forest would grant him the final death, to remove him from the list of the living, delivering him once again to the pedestal of that blue-haired goddess.
He hoped, that by dying, and since heaven was unobtainable, he would be rebirthed, to be reborn as something remotely useful. Maybe his unworthy soul could be sued for livestock, his flesh providing food for children and the ones in need, he could be useful. Or even there he would be marketplace food that slowly spoiled and rotted withing its plastic confinements?
It was thoughts and brain cells wasted upon, since whether it was a cruel joke or a blessing in disguise, the forest was calmful that night. No monster roamed the premises in search of a prey, and no predator animals were hungry enough to seek him out.
His legs burned, yet he continued, he couldn’t stop. Recent memories resurged when he idly crossed a small crook, a broken clay flask sitting in pieces next to it. The wolf was gone, along with his rabbit, if the blood trail was any indication, it was found by some other carnivore which had ate it.
Izuku finally willed his body to move by his own, shielding his eyes from the rays of light that welcomed him once he reached the edge of the forest. Before him stood a town, one whose thick wall enveloped the hundreds or so houses within it, shielding it from all wrongdoers. The chimneys lazily belched smoke, the nightly fireplace giving its last breaths.
The sun was rising.
Chapter 2: Victim of a god
Notes:
Shorter chapter this time around, though only because the POV would be back to Izuku after this, and I really wanted to just post a chapter out.
For those small number of people who read this story from Chp. 1 noticed I changed the pairing from Female Hitoshi to Kyouka. Sorry for those who exclusively came for that, Kyouka is a much more easier and fun character to write than Hitoshi, even more so with the current circumstances I placed upon her in this story.
That said, not much changes structurally in the story, since with small modifications, almost every character could replace this role. Altough I might add that personality-wise, she was the one that fit the most.
Anyway, enough of my ramblings. Please enjoy this small introduction chapter to our second main character!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
“Come here sweetie.” a tender and gentle sound was heard, belonging only to a mother with plum colored hair and tired eyes, the mature wrinkles of a crow’s feet invaded by the dark circles on her eyes. She looked tired and old, yet her voice was like of honey, sweetly beckoning her child to come closer to the fireplace where she was sitting.
Said child, a young girl only just four years old, shot her head up at the voice of her mother, and with energized steps only fitting for a child, skipped towards her, obeying her words as if it was a command.
The woman faintly smiled, placing a hand atop her kids head, idly rustling the thing but ever so soft lilac hair of her child. It was something she inherited from her, that beautiful shade of purple on her hair, and the pale complexion of her skin. It made for a quite combination, one that would surely age well with time.
The girl giggled at the touch of her wild and uncombed hair being rustled, liking the warmth and pressure it gave. She eventually sat down on the floor, the side of her face idly being licked by the fire’s intensity, but in the cold room, it felt nice.
“Kyouka,” the woman called her child “you’re beautiful.”
Said girl could only grin in pride, basking in the praise from her mother as she puffed out her chest, but not shortly after stating her own opinion “You’re beautiful too, mom! The prettiest in the world!”
The woman laughed, grabbing her daughter at her armpits to gentle place her upon her lap, who immediately nestled into the embrace of her mother, placing her head atop her breast, falling into the soft mattress of her bosom, while the mother cradled her children in her arms. They sat there for a while, just listening to each other heartbeat and the way the fire crackled the fire beneath them. Kyouka couldn’t be happier at the moment, he had everything after all.
Then she felt it, despite the fire and the body warmth they shared, she suddenly felt cold. It was the instinct and bond a mother and their children shared, just like the millions before them. Her heart shook, and with a face painted with worry turned to her mother.
“Are you alright, mom?” she asked innocently, her chin resting atop her chest.
Her mother was frowning, not in a playful way when they played together, or when she was angry with him, rather just a faint expression upon her lips, one that expressed all the somberness it could. But what gave it away the most was her eyes, those dark onyx orbs of brilliance that looked down upon her in an unreadable way, but deep in her heart, Kyouka knew it wasn’t good.
“Kyouka,” her mother called to her, this time much more seriously than before “when you will grow up... you...” she stuttered, trying to articulate words that she couldn’t find. Kyouka could only hug her mother, clearly apparent she was upset and sad, and being the good child she was, she tried her best to offer her support, but of course, she couldn’t understand why.
“I love you...” those choked words rocked by crying ringed in her ears.
-
Kyouka shot up in her bed with a gasp, followed by rapid intake of labored breaths, her fair and pale skin covered in a thin layer sweat. Her eyes were wide and bloodshot as the memory resurfaced through her mind, making her relive emotions and sensations she thought were lost so long ago to her. The tenderness of her mother, the kind words only she could ever give, all these lingering feelings coursed through her for but a split second, something she cherished and oh so wanted to bask in longer.
But of course, after a blink, her brain quickly registered what actually happened, that it was a dream, a chemical cocktail her mind drugged itself to make her hallucinate these images, and her eyes quickly fell back to the half-lidded and bored way they usually looked throughout the day. Evening her breaths she sighed once she realized the feeling was gone, and got up from the cheap and creaky bed she was in.
A wince and small curse immediately left her mouth when moving, her hand shooting to her sides, clutching the wounds she suffered last night. Lifting her thin line shirt, she inspected the damaged area, only to find a running pinkish line running through her skin, now lightly seeping crimson liquid within it.
Grumbling in annoyance more than worry, she got up, trying to ignore the internal pain she was having, and reaching into her wooden drawer withdrew a small box, with four green pellets inside. Quickly popping one into her mouth, she broke it with her teeth, belching at the bitter taste as the medicine did its work on sewing up the wound.
Satisfied with the results after a few minutes, she let out a long sigh and got on putting on her everyday attire. She slowly took off her linen pajamas, haphazardly throwing them on the bed. Now fully naked, she stretched her arm to snatch her clothes, but the sight on her arm stopped her. It was a scar, pinkish in nature, greatly contrasting against her white skin.
Reluctantly, she looked down upon herself, brushing a hand across her figure, her fingertips feeling up her dried but soft skin, increasingly coming in contact with the much more jagged surface on her. Uncountable imperfections and scars littered her otherwise spotless skin. Each of them were nothing more than scratches or tears, but together, when every inch of her skin was littered with them, it made for quite an eyesore for her.
‘You’re beautiful.’ the words of her dream rang in her head, and she couldn’t help but scoff at the ridiculousness of it. Even if there were no numerous ugly wounds on her, she had no other exceptional assets either. Not that she actively cared. It would be a long while before she let any man near her naked form, so she didn’t worry about that.
Done with her own self demoralization, she got on the clothes she wore for the last couple or so years. A black leather armor, fastened with numerous straps and belts, equipped with uncountable pockets each hiding a useful gadget or item for Kyouka, the leather’s matte surface reflecting not even the moon’s light. At her side was a sheathe, with a razor sharp and equally black rapier inside of it. A pair of boots adorned her feet, each enchanted with a quite expensive spell which silenced her footsteps.
The last piece to her abyss-dark outfit was a scarf, the orangish-red color contrasting greatly against the rest of her attire. But she couldn’t care less as she gently bundled it around her neck, hiding her lower face into the fabric. The soft material, along with its hiding capabilities, instantly made Kyouka felt at ease, who leaned into the comforting textile. Although most of its charm came from its origins. It was the last item she could salvage from her childhood, and she was adamant on basking in its presence, even if it came with the drawback of making her more seeable.
Now finished, Kyouka exhaled, and exited the room, making sure to thoroughly lock the door behind her. She strolled down the creaky wooden floor and stairs, entering into the suffocatingly small reception hall of the inn she was, ignoring the dozen or so eyes that fell upon her the moment she entered. All gazes directed toward her figure, making her skin burn with disgust as they shamefully gazed at her. But she wasn’t one to show it though, she silently strolled through the crow of rowdy men, leaving the establishment while making sure to properly shut the door in their faces.
She shuddered once she left, glad that it was now over. Though it didn’t help her mind once she realized she would have to repeat this once again tomorrow. Her very hiding outfit also helped a ton in making the already whole ordeal less agonizing, though in a crowd like that, she would feel naked even with a cape draped over her.
But that was life, she had no money to afford more classy inns than this, other than the stables of course, which were much more unprotected than this. Not that she even wanted to sleep next to horse crap, while any man walking at night could just waltz into her room to play out their fantasies against her will.
Yeah, she would rather stay in that small room. It had 4 walls on all sides and a bed. That’s all she needed.
She sighed loudly as she walked through the street towards her guild, hoping her day would fare better.
-
Curse the gods. It’s like they were directly playing against her, though she didn’t understand why. What did she do against them?
The simple reason for her wrath against the deities was simple in nature, she was tasked with the guild data exchange.
When she entered the Brigand’s Guild, what was essentially her workplace, she expected the day would be uneventful. She would enter, get to her desk, sort through the management papers, tutor some of the newbies, avoid talking with the constantly gossiping part of her coworkers and hopefully collect her daily wage to buy a cheap dinner and then get home without any trouble.
A simple, boring, yet beautiful day for Kyouka. Of course, wishing and praying didn’t always got completed, which was the exact case for this time.
She was tasked by the manager to exchange data with the Adventurer’s Guild, which was in simplified terms trading quests with each other. They had this cooperation with each other, where the Adventurer’s Guild would exclusively lend some of their posted quests towards them, which they would complete. When a data exchange was held, it meant that they would cash in all the completed quests, so they can be distributed, while also getting the new quest to the Brigand’s Guild.
To be honest, it was not the end of the world, the process was simple and the girl that Kyouka usually done these tasks with was a rather nice and cool one. The thing she dreaded the worst was the adventurers.
It was rather ironic, since she was one herself, but the people at that place were just another different breed. They were loud and rude, always boasting about their newest exploits, shining themselves in front of a crowd. That place was also filled to the brim with perverts. Since she was part of the Brigand’s Guild, she held quite information over the city, and in turn, with the people of Axel. They had ears everywhere, and it took less than a week for them to discover what the male side of the guild did in secret.
They sneaked succubuses into the city and helped them establish a brothel inside Axel. All illegal of course, but for some reason, said male adventurers would always talk about that in broad daylight, as if wanting this secret to be heard. They would share their depraved desires and dreams they had of their party member or acquaintances they had, or actively tried encouraging other people to try this and this.
The only reason they didn’t report this because it lowered the number which male adventurers sexually assaulted their female party members or the various townsfolk.
At last, she reached the giant building that lay at the heart of the city, glaring daggers at the door, already hearing the loud talking inside the building. But as much as he wanted to turn away, this was her job, so she steeled herself, and after putting on her neutral face, she entered.
The hall was a mess, it was crowded to its limit, since most adventurer teams had their daily meeting at the start of the day, going over the possible lists of guest they could take. Waiters strafing through the tables, numerous trays of piled up food resting on their arms and shoulders as they dutifully served breakfast, not failing to sway their hips and puff their lips at the more handsome customers, even doing rush hour.
Kyouka walked forward, concreating on appearing bold and confident in her steps as she made her way towards the counter of the guild with the fastest speed possible that wouldn't make her appear as if she was in a hurry.
She let out a small breath of air when she entered the secluded part where the booths resided, doubled with the fact no other costumers where there. Her indigo eyes scanned the cabins, landing upon a familiar pale green she grown accustomed to.
“Kyouka!” Soumi greeted her.
“Hey.” her monotone voice might have been offensive to some, but the receptionist knew her long enough to sweep down these quirks of hers.
“It has been such a long time since we’ve seen each other! When was the last time? Two weeks ago?”
“Probably.” she replied shortly.
“I think it was there, yes. Anyways, that just means you don’t visit me often enough! You should give this good old pal of yours a visit occasionally you know?”
“I will see.”
“That’s a promise for me! Anyways, what can I do for you?” she asked, before excitingly pushing her face out of her booth “Or did you just come to talk with me!?”
“No, I need to exchange to quest documents with you.”
Soumi stilled for a second, before pouting and dropping back to her chair in her cabin in disappointment. “So, the usual?”
“Yes.” she replied, handing over the thick set of papers to the receptionist, who began to sort through the dozen papers with ease, sorting them in different drawers and boxes, stamping them, or copying data from one to the another.
“Anyways, how have you been? Things are going fine over the Brigand’s Guild?” Soumi asked idly while doing her own job without a break.
“Yes.”
Her tone of voice, while still monotone, was something her old friend could differentiate from the usual. Soumi stopped her work to look up to her, and to most people her current expression was nothing unusual or different. Unchanged, unexpressive, half lidded eyes just all screamed of boredom and uncaringness. face being uncharged as ever, but nothing could be hidden from her as she instantly recognized the combinations of signs.
Turning her chair, she came face to face with the other sole occupant of the cabin, a black-haired guy with very thin eyes, and nothing more to be noteworthy besides that.
“Hey Klaive, can you get the thief and assassin categorized quest for me in the storage room?”
To her request, the person nonchalantly got up with a sigh and made his to the exit door of the little office, knowing her demand was just a masked plea for him to leave the room. After all, this wasn’t the first time she had done so.
“You’re taking over my evening shift for this.”
“Yes, I know, thank you, thank you!” Soumi frantically bowed to him in gratitude, even after he left.
Once gone and out of sight, Kyouka’s serious and nonchalant attitude, like a poked ballon, instantly deflated as she lowered her tense shoulders and her stern expression to one more fatigued. Soumi dropped all of her previous task and got up, fully focusing her attention to her as she looked her in the eye, a worryful expression lacing her face as she did so.
“What’s wrong Kyouka? Are you okay?” she asked softly and quietly, barely audible next to the roaring crowd of the guild hall.
The indigo haired girl stood quiet for some seconds, taking some breaths to steel herself. “Yeah... I’m fine.”
Soumi’s worries were reduced a little, though she did eye her friend a few more seconds before plopping down to her chair with a sigh. “You should really get this paranoia of yours under control. You can’t keep going like this.”
“I know, but...” she started to reply.
“What?” Soumi asked, curiously tilting her head.
“The dreams... they’re much more livid now.” she admitted. Her dreams, one of the only memories she had of her childhood, was a strictly forbidden topic for her, one that she only shared with great caution.
After all she learned it the hard way how opening up yourself can be used against you.
“How so?”
Kyouka scratched the back of her head “I-I don’t know, it's just that around three days ago everything became much more clearer, the words, images, the feelings, everything really.” she said, recalling the way she even now remembered the strong lavender odor of their house, since they always had a couple of them drying near the kitchen. “...and I don’t know why.”
Soumi put a hand against her chin, humming in contemplation.
After the silence strecthed a little too much, Kyouka decided to be the one break the ice this time around “So, anything peculiar happened to you lately?”
Just like a switch, the wise and quite girl was replaced with the bubbling excitement that was Soumi.
“Oh! I thought you wouldn’t ask!” she opened her mouth, lightly edging out of her seat to start her ramble, body shaking and fingers tensing, before unexpectedly plopping back down “But no, nothing.”
Well, that was disappointing. She couldn’t even help when one of her eyebrows subconsciously lifted itself up in chaste surprise and questioning. It wasn’t missed by the receptionist.
“Don’t look at me like that!” Soumi playfully accused “Unlike you, who’s an adventurer, I’m just a guild receptionist!”
“I’m an assassin.”
“That’s not the point!” she yelled, dropping her head back in her chair “All I do all days is sit in this booth, answering questions for people, doing paperwork, so that I can do paperwork for customers...” she longingly sighed, arms dangling at her sides while she recounted her daily boredom, with a faint memory popping onto mind. “...although there was a newcomer lately.”
Kyouka smugly smirked “Oh? Did he caught your interest?”
Sensing her humor, Soumi also bit back with a smirk of her own “I didn’t even tell you he was a guy, though while he was cute, he isn’t my type, but he was definitely something else.”
“How exactly?”
“Well... as I said, he was cute and kinda awkward, had a slight blush while talking to even me,” she playfully recounted, puffing out her chest in feminine victory “didn’t know a bunch of stuff when registering, always asking basic questions despite being a scholar from what I heard, and even needed money from another guy to pay for his fee.”
“He sounds a little...” Kyouka’s voice dragged off.
“Like a loser?” Soumi finished for her, which she nodded in confirmation “Nah, he was awkward and all, but very polite and kind otherwise, also had nice stats.”
Kyouka idle hummed “Still a little weak in my tastes.”
The next moment, Kyouka knew that she had made a crucial mistake in her phrasing. Or rather by speaking at all. Sucking in a breath, she watched as Soumi smirked at her with a predatory gaze, leaning forward in her seat like a fisher who got a catch on her hook “Oh? What is your tastes then exactly? I never heard of you speaking about them...” she remarked. “Did some guy finally caught your interest to make you have some?”
The whole sentence was laced with traps, better play the cold and uncaring one “What? Of course not.”
Soumi wasn’t the one giving up early though “Come on! Surely there’s got to be someone!”
“There’s absolutely none, and you damn well know why.” she replied.
The hidden fact that they shared made Soumi back off, knowing she was right. Only a little “Aren’t you perhaps on the other side?” she added.
“Girls?” she questioned “To my knowledge, no.”
Soumi pouted and dropped herself on the stall which he leaned on, apparently giving up for now “Phew, you’re a tough one, how will you get anybody to like you?”
“Don’t know, time will tell.” she said more as a reply than anything. She had not a slightest bit off intention to go oit of her way to get someone to like her.
“What? Y ou’re telling me you expect for your dream guy to walk in here and sweep of your feet?” Soumi asked more as an insult than anything else.
Though the image still made Kyouka chuckle, as if that ever happened. She couldn’t even image herself in a lovestruck position. The green-haired receptionist grew a small smile at Kyouka’s reaction, more glad that she elevated her worries for now. But just as the smile came, it was washed off, her expression quickly turning to weary in the next moment. The indigo haired girl picked up on it, noticing the way her eyes shrunk as she looked somewhere behind her.
She followed her gaze silently, all the way to the entrance of the guild, to see a young man about the same age as Soumi enter.
Black, long-sleeved pants, bundled with rugged leather pauldrons and armor attached around it was his lower choice of outfit, while his chest was draped in light leather armor, devoid of any hint modification, only sporting its default brown shade. What was the only noticeable piece of cloth was the black long-sleeved jacket he had hanging over his back, worn-like a cape and seemingly made from the same material as his pants.
He made his way towards them with confident and continuous steps, his black cape broadening his shoulders as it cascaded in the air, while his hand fished out a quest registration paper inside his pocket. He approached the booth Soumi was in, lightly getting around Kyouka as he did so, who was now reverted back to her uncaring form.
“I would like to check out a quest.” his voice was cold and emotionless, not originating from malice or because he thought he was above the receptionist in status, but from something else. Kyouka knew, how couldn’t she, since that was the way she also talked.
“O-of c-course, the p-papers and adventurer card please.” somehow Soumi seemed frightened by him, though Kyouka couldn’t explain why.
The green-haired adventurer did as told, pushing the quest paper on the table along with his card. Soumi did her duty she had done hundreds of times before, checking the adventure card in the elimination section to confirm if the extermination quest’s quota was met. Her eyes traced over the lines, followed the registration paper, where her face took on a more confused tone.
“Umm, your elimination record while completed, if the quest was taken by a group, I would need their cards as well for finalization.” Soumi stated, looking up at the figure.
“They’re dead.”
“W-what?” the sudden and monotone reply caught Soumi off guard, making her unable to not blurt out the sudden question.
“Two died to a Beginner’s Bane, one most likely got lost in the woods.” his reply was just as cold as before.
Despite the weight of those words the guild was still bustling with the sounds of laughter and conversations, but for Kyouka and Soumi, it was all silenced. Death of an adventurer, while a prominent risk of any team, was something that was still fairly rare and even if it happened, only resulted in one death. So to learn that a whole party, save for this man, died was still a haunting news.
“I-I see...” Soumi couldn’t find words, but she had to, for she was the receptionist here “...my deepest apologies for your loss.”
The man only bowed his head in response while Soumi continued on finalizing the quest completion. She soon stamped the paper, and returned the adventurer card, along with a quite large amount of money served on a tray.
“The payment is 47,500 Eris, plus a 85,000 Eris bonus for the delivered Giant Toad corpses.” Soumi said while the man collected the bounty. “I-if you need to eat, the giant toad meat is now 40% cheaper.”
The adventurer once again bowed “I will consider it, thank you.” then he promptly turned away, focusing his eyes to the bulletin board featuring untaken quests.
But not before making eye contact with Kyouka who was standing at the side all this time. And the petite assassin could swear that in that minuscule moment, where their gaze meet, was like if she taken a look into a mirror. The image before her, sunken and ringed eyes, pale expression devoid of any visible emotion, the colorful pupil which would otherwise shine brightly, lay now dull and lifeless. She marveled in fright at the identicality of him and despite her fear of man planted deep inside her, she still followed his gaze and only after did he finally broke contact did she was shaken out of her stupor.
Freed from his presence, Kyouka focused her attention to the visibly shaken form of Soumi. It was quite surreal to see the usually giddy and happy girl in a state like this, which only prompted the indigo-haired girl to comfort her friend.
“Hey, you alright?” she asked, leaning in the booth for both privacy and to pat her shoulder.
“I-It was him...” she murmured.
“Who?” Kyouka couldn’t help but ask.
Soumi struggled with speaking, wordlessly forming her mouth to say something “T-the kind a-and awkward newcomer I told you about.” she stammered out after some time.
The mental image Kyouka conjured up for that person swiftly fragmented into oblivion and to thousand pieces, and she couldn’t help but do a double take at the man eyeing the quest displayed on the board and the one Soumi described to her.
It didn’t add up. Not in the slightest.
It was then that a new picture formed in her head as he recounted the words of Soumi and the tone of this guy. A cheery and motivated, awkward newcomer, who did a complete change in nature in a couple of days, where he meet up with a party, and he was the only one surviving the whole ordeal. When it dawned upon her, her gaze subtly landed on the green haired boy’s figure, who aimlessly scavenged the board for quest. Her mind rattled, focusing only on him as everything around her was closed off and silenced, her brain only filled with a single line of thought.
Could he, perhaps, be the one to finally understand her?
Kyouka hummed in thought, before waving it off and thinking, 'Nah, fat chance.'
Notes:
As I have said, small chapter, only 4K.
That said, I hope you did enjoy, since I hate making dialogues, even though I have to come in terms with them.
Angelfuentes on Chapter 1 Sun 31 Mar 2024 08:15PM UTC
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Zyoidaxx on Chapter 1 Sun 31 Mar 2024 09:45PM UTC
Last Edited Sun 31 Mar 2024 09:47PM UTC
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