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Alfred’s POV
My eyes shot open, and for a moment, I forgot what had just happened. I shot up a little too fast, but an intense headache assaulted me.
Ahh- fuck…
I sat back down slowly while holding my head. After scanning the room, I found that a pillow and blanket had found themselves with me, most likely Master’s doing.
Speaking of Master, he sat against the wall not far from where I sat with his eyes closed.
Damn…
Before I… blacked out? Fell asleep? Well, before that, I think I finally snapped. I thought I dealt with this… I can’t get revenge. But, when I saw that centipede-like thing… it felt like I was there again, like he was there right in front of me. I swear I saw his smile on that fat fuck’s face.
What happened? This whole time, I thought I only wanted to kill him. Has it affected me this much? Enough for me to have a public breakdown? Enough to trump all reason? What is wrong with me?
Fuck~
Next to me, I heard a light movement. I didn’t sense anything, so such a sound alarmed me. I looked over.
!!!
Next to me was… that slave boy? Did Master take him with us? I find that highly unusual. Well, my actions were also highly unusual, so I guess this outcome isn’t that crazy. Still, what are we going to do with this one…
Wait. No, I’m missing something here. How did he avoid my detection?!? Does he know techniques? Or does he… do this naturally?
!!!moveme-
“Öthe, you’re finally awake. Do you feel any better now?” Master asked.
Ah~ i-it’s just… Master.
“...Marginally,” I responded with a quiet voice.
“*Sigh*
“Do you want to talk about it? It’s fine if you don’t, but I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.”
“I-”
Should I? Should I tell him? Even if I do, will he believe me? D-do I even want to tell him? Can I even…
“I don’t think I want to… right now,” I professed meekly. Slightly annoyed with my cowardice, I looked at the floor.
Master walked over and put his hand on my shoulder. “That’s fine, that’s fine. Just know that I’ll always be here for you, Öthe. If you ever feel ready to talk about it, don’t be shy.”
I nodded. I couldn’t help but feel the slightest bit happy at such a simple statement.
Seemingly in better spirits, I stood up and asked the question that has been nagging me after I noticed the slave’s existence. “Master, who is that? Also, why is he here?”
“*Sigh*, I thought you might have known the answer to the first question, so I brought him along. I wasn’t going to take any chances.
“So, I’m guessing you don’t know either.”
We both looked over at him. I saw a tinge of fear well up in the slave boy’s eyes, but he swiftly hid them by looking down.
Master walked over to him and knelt down on one knee. “Boy, what is your name?” he asked.
“I-”
The kid began to respond, but began furiously coughing after beginning his sentence. Master gave him some space, and the fit eventually ended.
“I-I d-don’t know…” he finally managed to say.
Master chuckled. “Just like you, Öthe,” he said while patting the kid on the head, the kid flinching every time he did. “No matter, no matter.”
He turned to me and began whispering. “Öthe, while you were resting, I had some time to think alone. I’ve come to the conclusion that we… must take responsibility for this one.
“Now, don’t get me wrong,” said while raising his hands up as if he was admitting something, “I’m not the most responsible man in the world, far from it, but both you and I are partially at fault for the position he’s in right now. And, if we leave him alone, he’ll simply return back to where he started.
“I’d like to avoid that, if possible.”
Master paused mid-explanation to look back at the boy. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, he turned back to me.
“I believe that our best course of action is to get him back into normal health and find an orphanage along the way. By law, every city in the Illianor Province must have one, so if we go that route, we’ll be guaranteed to find one.”
“Master, do you think that’s wise?” I asked. “Illianor can get extremely cold, as you know. There’s probably dozens of centimeters of snow on the ground up there as we speak.”
“Not in the cities.”
“??? How so? Is there some Manifesto item that can prevent it?” I guessed.
“Mhm, right on point, actually. The Prime Minister of Illianor has a manifesto, although the details aren’t known to the public. All I know is that with it, they were able to significantly reduce the effects the freezing temperature and snow has on their cities.”
I nodded, and the conversation ended there. Although I wanted to ponder on what type of power could prevent snow or change the temperature, I had other things to deal with.
““*Sigh*””
Heh, the two of us sighed at the same time.
…
I sat down and put my head between my knees. Only a slight headache remained, but it still was a little distracting. I… I think I’ll skip training again today. If I don’t, it’ll take longer to recover.
To my left now, the boy still had his head down and had barely moved a muscle. I scanned his emaciated body up and down, but what I found only worsened my mood.
How long has this boy been a slave? All his life? Fuck… that’s probably the case, isn’t it? This whole time… he’s had to live in such conditions without a shred of hope to cling on to.
“*Sigh*”
Honestly, despite the inconvenience of having to take care of him, I think it was… it was good I snapped. Does he feel the same?
I don’t know. Despite being in a much better spot, the kid is clearly mortified. I mean, I did execute that slaver without warning, so could he think I have an anger issue?
On second thought, I think I may have an anger issue.
.
.
.
======
Slave Boy’s POV
The two people still haven’t hit me once. Odd.
I looked them in the eyes, but no kick to the legs.
I didn’t know my name, but no one pulled my hair.
I haven’t talked, but they didn’t push me down.
I talked, but I still haven’t been slapped.
These two are so… odd.
The pretty lady slept for such a long time. She must be a noble, only nobles are that pretty. But, she has scars, like me…
And the man-
I shuttered-
The man is scary. Those yellow eyes of his glow in the dark. I saw it. He looks at everything like a hawk does its prey. I felt like I would die the second he asked me my name, but he didn’t. Have my senses failed me? I can’t tell…
But, there is something his eyes don’t look at with such intensity. The pretty lady. Maybe, maybe she’s his daughter.
“...id…”
Ahh, I’m so hungry… do they have soup? I hope they do, I think there is a holiday coming up. That’s when we all get to eat soup, so they should have some around here somewhere.
“-kid…”
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Hmm?
“Oi! Kid, ‘you good?”
!!! oh no. I-
I ignored him.
I’m dead. I’m going to die. The hawk man will kill me. It’s over.
“Kid, do you not like the name?”
What name? I’m about to die? Why should I care about a name?
The Hawk turned to the pretty lady and whispered, “Öthe, I don’t think he likes it, was the name that bad?”
She shook her head and placed her thumb and index finger on her lips. “I don’t think so. ‘Sounded good to me.”
“Hmm~
“Kid, do you really not like the name?” he asked me.
“W-w-w-w-what-t n-name?” I managed to squeak out.
!!! now I’m finished. I spoke disrespectfully-
“Morrissey, that’s the name I’m suggesting you take on. I’m not the greatest with names, I know that well enough…” he said as his eyes seemed to drift off out of the room itself. “But! That name… it has some history behind it!
“The third Master of our discipline, and the one who created this grimoire was…”
History? What does it matter…. I’m going to die anyway.
The hawk-like man continued his rant on the “History” behind “Morrissey”, harping on about how he created some “grimoire” thing, one way or another. But… I just couldn’t listen. I had already disrespected him on multiple occasions, so it’s not like I would remember anything anyways.
Sigh, I guess this is the end…
“Master.”
Eh? Why would someone, especially a noble, call their father Master?
“Master, he’s obviously not listening,” she said while facepalming.
“Hmm… well, I guess the history isn’t thaaat important… no, it is. Gah! Anyways, do you like the name? Öthe over here can’t do much better, I’ll tell you that much.”
“*Sigh*
“Kid,” she put her calloused and scarred hand on my shoulder, “accept the name. You look at us as if we’re gonna kill you.”
“...You’re not?”
O-okay.
…
Wait!
“He really thought we were going to kill him? Why’s that?”
I said my thoughts out loud!
“Must have been conditioning. Maybe, maybe he thought he’d done something wrong?”
“But I have!” I blurted out. I ignored their surprised faces and continued shouting.
“I looked you in the eyes!
“I don’t know my name!
“I didn’t speak when spoken to!
“I spoke when spoken to!
“I ignored you!
“I asked a question!
“Why? Why haven’t you killed me yet? It doesn’t make any sense! Do you have any idea how scared I am? But you’re still asking ‘Why’s that?’!”
I fell to my knees with tears streaming down my face. They tasted salty, but that might have been the smell of the ocean I was breathing in so heavily. I felt my vision wavering. That outburst used up all of the energy I had left in my body.
All I can see now is the floor. Ahh, the floor. My only friend~
.
.
.
======
Alfred’s POV
W-well. That was… unexpected. The kid-no, Morrissey, had such a big explosion that he knocked himself clean out.
I looked over at Master. He seemed a little surprised, although he recovered quicker than I did. I am still a little exhausted after my explosion.
Using a sleeping bag and some extra blankets he had in his item compressor, he made a makeshift bed for the kid to sleep on. After he was finished, I walked up to him.
“Master,” I whispered, “I know this doesn't really have to do much with what just happened, but I’ll say it anyway.
“I think that kid has been using martial arts this whole time. I mean, I completely overlooked his existence up until a few moments ago. I know that isn’t possible without them.”
He thought for a moment. “Hmm… I was thinking the same thing, you know. Although I’m not entirely sure what he was doing was in fact martial arts, so we’ll have to confirm later. If it is, though, then that implies that the kid probably made it up on his own.”
Damn! If that’s the case, wouldn’t…
“I'm thinking the same thing you are, Öthe. It would be a waste to leave him at some orphanage. Still, we can’t act rashly. We shall wait until he wakes up, then make a decision.”
“That is…?” I inquired.
“Whether or not we should train him.”
“We? As in, both you and me? Also, are you even allowed to do that?”
He looked at me sideways before an understanding expression appeared on his face. “Ah, I see what you mean. I assume you guessed that masters of Junanbi can only take on one disciple at a time based on our history, and while it is a precedent, it is not the rule.”
“...Oh.”
“And yes, both you and me. I’ve heard that teaching somebody improves your skill in what you teach, so it won’t be a waste of your time. Also, you… kind of need the socialization.”
He’s not wrong.
“*Knock Knock Knock~*”
Knocking sounded on the door to our little room, and behind it, a meek voice said, “U-uhm, S-sir, we may or may not have some trouble up here.”
“Who’s that?” I asked.
Master shook his head, “I don’t know.”
He appeared at the door and opened it without a sound, leaving the short teenager behind it dumbfounded.
“Ah, the deck hand. So, what do you mean by ‘Trouble’?”
“Eeep!~”
…
“T-trouble! Yes, t-the lookout spotted… p-pirates…” he mumbled. “And, we believe they are headed our way.”
.
.
.
Damn. There really are pirates. And their ship.
It’s fucking huge.
Compensating much? I mean, it’s at least the size of a 21st century cruise ship! Maybe even larger! I’m surprised it can even function to begin with, but my eyes don’t deceive me.
Currently, the entire crew and all of the passengers of our ship piled onto the deck, many looking up at the massive pirate ship that had pulled up only a couple meters away from our puny little vessel. Sadly, the majority seemed like perfectly average people, and the crew of our ship wasn’t much better.
Most of the passengers were huddled near the entrance to the underbelly of the ship, some crying, some praying, and most staring stupidly at the ship.
A few heads popped over the railing of the pirate ship, but they disappeared almost as quickly as they arrived. For what felt like hours, the pirate ship just kept pace with us and stayed silent.
I leaned over to Master and whispered, “It seems like this will take a while. I’m going to refine.”
He grabbed my shoulder. “Hold on, hold on. They usually board right about now.”
“Ehh? How do you know?”
“It’s happened to me a… few times before. They usually wait about an hour for the best effect, and seeing as you fell for it, it’s probably a decent strategy,” he responded nonchalantly.
“*Tsk~*”
I looked back up at the ship. Even now, there wasn’t any sign of movement up there, I’m sure people were moving around, but at our angle, it was completely impossible to tell. Without much else to do, I drew my claymore and opened up my stance.
“What do you reckon they’re after us for?”
“My guess is as good as yours. Most likely, they want someone in particular. They know this ship has little to no cargo, at least none they would particularly want or need.”
“Meaning?” I asked.
“Everyone else is useless to them, so none will be left alive but the target. I don’t know about you, but I cannot captain a ship, so we can’t let that happen. Kill them all before they reach the ground.”
“Understood.”
Master stepped back and sat down on a bench near the far edge of our ship. Knowing he wouldn’t let me simply die, nor let the ship be taken or destroyed, turned my focus on the pirate ship.
…
A few moments of tense silence later, and a massive silhouette appeared on the railing of the pirate ship. It was now midday, so the individual’s facial features were well hidden by the sun’s direct glare positioned behind him.
“WOLF CONTINENT SHIP!” a deep voice bellowed. “We are looking for a specific passenger on your ship! Do not resist, and we shall give you a swift death!”
The apparent crew of pirates chanted behind him.
““““HURAH!!!! HURAH!!!!””””
“-W-WAIT!”
I glanced up at the quarter-deck, and behind the wheel was the person who just yelled “WAIT!”. I assume that’s the captain.
“Who are you to demand anything from us?!”
“-AND WHO ARE YOU TO TALK BACK TO ME!”
…
“Wh-
…
“What?”
The response was so quick and matter-of-fact that all the captain could say was “What?”.
“That’s what I thought,” the pirate said.
!!!
Suddenly, the sun was almost blocked out entirely with bodies. The pirates had finally jumped ship.
I took a sharp breath in and focused. Pirates do not play nice. I can’t be sure they didn’t use poison on their weapons. Activating HSM is the safest bet.
The slowed perception of HSM took over my vision. All of the pirates had disgusting grins on their faces as they fell. Amusing.
I tore through the air, up the mast and swung my claymore. The movement was so fast that the few pirates my blade bisected hadn’t even looked my way. Without missing a beat, I used Grasshopper to jump across the ship in an instant. During my flight, I skillfully decapitated 7 pirates before hitting the ground.
The first few pirates who jumped still hadn’t met the deck, so I was able to reposition below them. These pirates had caught on to the massacre happening around them, but they couldn’t do anything since they were at the mercy of gravity, and my blade. Neither of which are particularly merciful.
And, before a single live pirate could touch the ground, I had killed 30.
The crew and other passengers were all unmoving with their mouths agape. “*Sigh~*”, if I weren’t here, they wouldn’t have lasted ten minutes.
In contrast, the pirates were all looking in my direction with a serious visage plastered on their ugly mugs, well… they weren’t so ugly. It seems äura can even make pirates handsome.
“The bitch’s advanced. ‘Good’n too. No messin' ‘round boys.”
Void of sound or warning, I dashed towards the closest pirate. My attack was straightforward enough for him to react despite the speed, but my blade had already split him down the middle before he could finish winding up a swing with his cutlass.
The group piled on my after the first one fell.
“““RRRAAAAAAAA!!!!!!”””
My blade spun, flicked, stabbed, and parried every pirate that stepped up. At times, four were able to attack me all at once, which was the only time at least one didn’t fall in a single exchange.
“*Clang!~*”
Heh~, How original-
“*Shhing~*”
These pirates-
“Fucking bit-”
-are only using-
“*Belch~*”
-classic pirate weapons.
I stepped back. They gave me a pretty difficult time dealing with their coordination, but HSM and the split focus Nidas al-Djol taught me made the task feasible.
Only a few left.
After flicking the blood off my blade, I got back into stance-
“BOYS! IS SHE GIVIN’ YOU TROUBLE?!?!?!” the large pirate roared out of nowhere. His sudden voice stunned me momentarily.
“YES BOSS!” they replied without hesitation.
My eyes snapped upwards, just to see a giant axe hurling towards me. HSM was still active, so I could see the terrifying power behind it. The air itself was rippling around it.
I brought my sword up at an angle and willed my body to move. Due to my quick reaction, I was able to redirect the axe off into the deck and not through me. Still, that didn’t completely remove the impact.
“*BOOM!!~*”
“-Gah-”
Shit, that knocked the wind out of me.
Thankfully, one of the masts of our boat was able to stop my momentum, but the impact shook me to my core. After brushing myself off, I stood up and got my bearings.
The Pirate confidently landed on the deck and retrieved his war-axe and began strutting towards me. “A few splinters’ a great price to pay for redirecting my attack, girl,” the pirate said. “Now, who sent you?”