Having been reprimanded so openly and so viciously by what in his eyes was a child that was naive and knew little of the real world, Erikson was annoyed rather than afraid or worried. In his mind, Noel was just some kid with rose colored glasses who didn't understand how things were. People with power and status don't tend to act righteously as she seemed to think. He may not have been with her family more than a year or so, but he felt that they probably weren't much different from other high society families who threw around their money and status. What he failed to realize was how different the Silverblood family was from those other self-entitled egotistical tamer families. They instilled in their kids a sense of justice as strong as Noel's, and it would be those children who grew up and took over the family and who would do the same for their kids.
On top of that between him who had only spent a year with her family and her who had literally lived her entire life in their company, who would understand them better? He was merely projecting his own beliefs, after all he was the one who turned into a snobbish elitist the moment he gained even a little status and recognition. Noel didn't argue with him further though. She merely looked at him with pity, she could see his true feelings even if he tried to hide them. She decided to give details on the whole situation to her father later, he would be furious when he learned that the person he had trusted with his daughter's safety had almost let her die right in front of him let alone the rest of his actions.
"The transport will arrive in about an hour, if you need to prepare anything we can rendezvous back here when you're ready. Though if you don't show up within ten minutes of it arriving, I won't be able to convince them to wait longer." Noel didn't seem to really believe that she couldn't make them wait, by her tone it was clear that she simply didn't want Owari to dawdle. Not that Owari would pick up too closely on such a thing, at most he just caught that she didn't want him to be late.
"I only need to go back to my car and pick up my luggage if it's still in one piece by this point. By the way, what about your injuries? I don't think you could have had them checked so quickly after all." Owari decided to bring it up since she didn't seem to be in a rush to get her wounds tended to.
"I always carry some emergency medicine in case something happens. I have already treated my injuries, I shall be back to full health soon. But thank you for worrying about me." She smiled quite happily as if she was very pleased.
Owari shrugged and looked over towards the train cars. "You were the one who asked me first, I'll be back in a bit. I'm going to go grab my stuff, I'll find you when I get back so you don't need to wait up." True to his word he didn't wait and immediately rushed off. In just a few steps he had reached close to the train and jumped up onto the car before rushing along it and disappearing from sight.
Noel was a bit surprised both with his speed and with how he hadn't even waited for her to respond. Luckily for him she didn't really seem bothered by this, instead she just found it amusing. Most people in his situation would probably do everything they could to suck up to her and get in her good books, but he seemed completely unfazed by her status or appearance. Naivety and ignorance in one subject didn't always mean you would be naive or ignorant in every regard. While she lacked experience in matters of the heart as well as some of the darker aspects of people, she did at least know what her family name represented. Not to mention she had met a fair number of guys both in and out of her family in her age group and had been approached enough to be aware of her own appearance.
Though personally she wondered why any guy would be interested in a girl who looked like they could fall over from a light breeze, that was a part of her naivety in a way. After all, guys, especially those with strength like the ones she had met so far, would feel a natural instinct to protect her. However little did many of those guys know she didn't at all need such protection. But that was neither here nor there. What did matter to her was that Owari didn't really see her much differently from anyone else, and she was quite happy with this.
Owari on the other hand didn't think about anything complicated like that. He was a relatively simple guy, one reason he chose his current profession was that it was devoid of the complexities that most work had. Of course there is a difference between being simple and being stupid. Owari was actually quite smart in some regards and he picked up on things quickly. He just didn't like to bother with complex stuff. To be perfectly honest he was lazy. Of course one thing he was not lazy about was his fighting skills and training. Swinging a sword and running with some weights was easy, at least for him. Though his recent fight made him realize mastering the sword wasn't as simple as he had originally thought. He had mostly relied on strength and speed to fight, but now he knew that was a recipe for failure.
Although he could easily respond and had flexibility and adaptability in a fight, he was severely lacking in skill and finesse. However now that he had found the problem it was only a matter of fixing it. He would look into it later though, for now he wanted to rest and relax. It was about the time he had finished thinking this that he arrived at his old train car and dropped in. There were no insects thankfully and after some quick looking he found his suitcase which was a bit dirty but in one piece. Thankfully he had chosen a suitcase that was quite sturdy, otherwise if it had scattered everywhere he would have just left everything and bought new stuff later.
He quickly made his way back, by the time he had made the round trip he had only taken about 10 minutes. He dropped down lightly from the train and glanced around. He found that Noel was not far from where he had previously left her, and around her was Lance, Rebecca, and a few other front-liners who were all talking. Owari walked over and tossed his luggage on the ground before sitting down and leaning against his bag with his hands behind his head. Obviously his movements had not gone unnoticed by the half dozen people, however they had not expected him to just sit down on his own. Lance especially had seemed like he was preparing to talk to Owari once he came close, but was flabbergasted as Owari stopped and sat down like he didn't even see them. He wasn't very interested in socializing, and he was exhausted. He wouldn't even know what to say if he did walk over, not to mention he didn't see himself as their equal on any level. They were a cut above him in terms of ability, so he didn't think it would be appropriate to just walk over and stand there, it would just be awkward for everyone.
"Owari, I see you found your luggage." Noel took a few steps over and placed herself between him and the group.
Owari glanced over and saw the group looking at him, it was bothersome but he realized he had attracted too much attention to himself at this point. He couldn't escape socializing, much to his dismay. "I did." That didn't mean he would make it easy though.
"Right." Noel seemed a bit at a loss on how to continue this conversation so she just looked over at Lance. "You mentioned wanting to meet Owari before, correct?"
Lance chuckled a bit as he watched these events unfold. "I did. I hear you were the one who made the plan at the last minute for Noel to save me and Rebecca. I wanted to thank you since I'd have probably died if not for that. Though I also wanted to thank you for when you kept the line from falling apart earlier as well. You seem to have played quite an important role in everyone's survival today." His tone was very genuine and he was clearly not at all looking down on Owari despite the differences between their ability and Owari's previous rudeness.
"Noel was the one who saved you so you should thank her. I just gave her a hand. But I'll gladly accept the gratitude for the other thing. I'm also thankful for your leadership ability, if not for you leading everyone and directing us we would have all died including me." Owari sat up straighter and responded back with an equally genuine tone, he wasn't the type to return gratitude with disrespect.
The group as a whole seemed a bit surprised at his change in tone. He had changed moods like the flip of a switch, it was a bit difficult to follow. "I'll also accept the gratitude, let's call it even then." Lance gave a refreshing laugh as he spoke as if he didn't mind Owari's attitude. Owari noticed that he seemed remarkably better off then he had been when he got dragged off the battlefield earlier. He had likely received some seriously good treatment while Owari had gone off to grab his stuff.
"By the way," One of the people Owari didn't know the name of spoke up next. Owari only knew that he was a longsword wielder and had only given him a glance over during the fight. He had been one of the final people in the encirclement and wasn't too much older than Owari, probably in his late teens or early twenties. "I was curious about something. You said you don't know any mystic arts right? But you were able to fight so well on the front lines. Were you holding out?" He seemed to be a lot like Owari and lacked tact and was maybe a bit too honest, his tone showed he didn't mean anything by his question but it made the atmosphere a bit awkward. Unlike Owari though he seemed a bit better at reading the mood and noticed his words had upset everyone.
"I really don't know any mystic arts though?" Owari didn't seem all that bothered by what he said, he was just confused why the guy thought he used a mystic art.
"Are you saying you're just that strong even without a mystic art?" Although he had realized his words had caused some awkwardness before, the guy couldn't help but respond with doubt when he heard Owari.
"He should be, it truly isn't that strange to be able to do what he did without a mystic art should it?" Instead of Owari it was Noel who responded with confusion this time.
Among the frontliners only Rebecca and Lance seemed to be on the same page as Noel in this regard. Even Erikson to the side seemed a bit bewildered. "But how could he cut through their shells? Even the weakest one is as hard as stone, and those big ones were as hard as iron."
"You can't cut stone without a mystic art?" Noel asked as if it was the most natural thing in the world leaving the guy dumbfounded and unsure what to say.
"No need to talk about these things. It'll only make people self conscious." Lance chuckled as he watched the exchange. "By the way Owari, what do you think of joining my group?" He threw out the question almost as if it was an afterthought and without any explanation.
"I'm not interested in joining any organizations." Owari answered right away.
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"I figured." Lance didn't take the rejection all that poorly. He hadn't put much hope into it in the first place. He had a good eye for people and could see Owari was too much of a free spirit to rope into any organization. "You're probably gonna be staying in Leviathan city then right? Let's go on a hunt together one day when you're free. I know some spots nearby and it could make for a good way to relax." Of course even if you can't directly recruit someone like Owari, it was still possible to keep good relations with them. Since Owari was free-spirited he also would likely not join other groups so it wouldn't make things awkward to team up with him on occasion or sign the occasional contract for work. Even agencies had a few independent hunters they would work with.
"If we happen to meet up again I wouldn't mind, though I'd probably hold you back." Owari also had some inkling as to what Lance was getting at and so he didn't reject. Success as an independent hunter meant making connections and he felt Lance was no simple person. Hence why he did his best not to let his exhaustion and annoyance at having to talk show through as they talked.
"No worries about that, we may not be on the same level because I have a mystic art, but your skills are definitely worth their weight." Lance did his best to dance around the subject of their difference in strength, but he had to address it to some extent so he didn't hide it. He could tell Owari wasn't the type to like flowery words or complicated compliments. It was best to be honest.
"If you don't mind then obviously I have no problem with it." Owari just smiled calmly and showed no signs of discomfort. This definitely increased everyone's impression of him a step, especially Noel off to the side who thought he was being quite cool. Not everyone could so honestly accept their own weakness in comparison to others. But Owari's way of thinking was simple, he may be weaker now and maybe in the future, but if he continued to practice and work hard he could catch up one day. Even if he didn't fully believe it, just by thinking it he would be able to maintain his resolve to grow.
"Good to hear, just in case though I should probably introduce myself. My name is Lance Schmidt, and I'm a member of the Amber agency. If you ever need to see me for anything you can probably find me at the branch in Leviathan city. Just tell the receptionists your name, I'll let them know you're an acquaintance." Lance spoke like this was no big deal, but Rebecca and Noel could see through him. He obviously saw Owari's potential and intended to befriend him in the future. However nobody brought up his ploy.
"I'd like to promise the same, but I don't really have that much sway in the sapphire agency so they probably wouldn't allow it. Instead you can just stop by my home if you ever need me, I'll write the address for you." Rebecca also seemed to be eager to get closer to Owari. She seemed to be regretful as she started talking, but midway through acted as though she suddenly thought of something and began writing on a piece of paper she pulled from her handbag. Lance and Noel seemed a bit shocked at how forward Rebecca was, but she secretly flashed them both grins as she handed Owari the paper, which he took and casually put inside his pocket. They weren't being as subtle as they thought they were, but Owari didn't say anything. After all the more friends and connections he had the better.
Noel stood off to the side without making any obvious signs of trying to rope Owari in which made Lance and Rebecca a bit wary. After all of the three of them Owari had interacted with Noel the most, and so they weren't sure what had happened before Owari had gone to get his stuff. Seeing her being so casual they wondered if she just didn't think Owari was good enough for the Silverblood family. In truth Noel was inclined to try and hire him, after all both his disposition and skills matched her family's preferences. However she knew Owari didn't have an interest so why force the matter? Plus she would have the next three days to talk to him so she wasn't all that rushed. Truthfully Owari wasn't actually as valuable as they thought he was.
Certainly as he is he would be considered a good addition to any of their groups. However he only got there due to training for his entire life and putting in hard work before sublimating it all in the heat of battle. His growth had a lot to do with his potential exploding in combat. He knew this, and if he was asked to practice in the safety of some organization's walls he would definitely not be all that impressive. He needed the thrill and fear of life and death combat to improve rapidly, and that was how he intended to grow in the future. The reason they had been so interested in Owari boiled down to his decision-making skills which saved everyone not once, but twice, as well as the fact that he had fought beside them in life or death combat. When people endure hardship together they naturally grow closer, this was true even for the other hunters among the front liners. The longsword wielding guy had also been just a random member of the sapphire agency before this, but now he had Rebecca's attention which could certainly help him in the future. After all she was considered an elite of the younger generation among the agency even if she wasn't as valuable to them as Lance was to the Amber agency.
Owari didn't pay much mind to all the politicking everyone was doing. He preferred simple stuff and all the complicated relationships and considerations they had would just annoy him. Because of this he just let them silently compete. Since he didn't have a preference for any one of them in terms of the group that backed them whether it be the Sapphire agency, Amber agency, or SIlverblood family, he didn't mind working with any of them should they want his help. However he didn't really think he was worth recruiting as he was now. He just calmly sat off to the side, and seeing that he didn't intend to enter the conversation in a meaningful way everyone else just started to stray away from trying to talk to him.
Even though all the others should be more tired than him because they had also used their mana the truth was that Owari was the most exhausted frontliner. His left arm had cracked, his insides felt like jelly, and his muscles were sore and he had trouble even moving after pushing himself so hard. He sat in place and steadied his breathing before entering meditation. He only allowed himself to focus a bit on what was going on around him, though he did also try to pay some attention to the conversation going on around him since he didn't want to miss something if someone called out to him or when it was time to leave.
Over time people slowly left as they found accommodations, this included Rebecca and the longsword wielder who had it easiest since the sapphire agency was already here. They also took a couple of people with them including the woman who had treated Owari, she seemed to have impressed them and was being recruited which was good for her. It seemed she had been independent before but had finally bitten the bullet after this whole situation and realizing the benefits of having a backer. Eventually someone from the Amber agency showed up, and Lance approached Owari. "If you need I can have my people help you to a nearby town to drop you off." He approached Owari and only said this after seeing Owari open his eyes and look over.
"There is no need." Noel interrupted from nearby. "I have already offered to help bring him to the city." She gave a smug grin as she looked at Lance who finally realized why Noel had not been interested in competing with them earlier.
"As expected from someone from the Silverblood family. As generous as the rumors say." Lance chuckled as he saw her expression. He didn't feel it was so bad being outplayed in this situation. He was definitely a very open-minded and easygoing person. As he was about to leave a bird call sounded and crackling could be heard as a bird swooped down. Lance held out his arm and the bird landed gently. It had electric blue feathers and it was very majestic looking.
"A thunderbird?" Noel couldn't help but look at it with some surprise. "Quite rare, no wonder your lightning affinity is so high to practice the thunder spear." Her tone had quite some praise to it, but she was only somewhat impressed.
"I was a bit lucky to find this girl when I was young. Since I had talent with the spear and good mana, and she had imprinted on me the Amber agency was quite kind to me. She's been my companion most of my life." Lance lovingly stroked the bird's chin, and it gently started rubbing its face against his hand like a cat.
"It thinks you’re its mate." Owari said this from the side with a laugh causing both Lance and Noel to look at him suddenly. "What? Thunderbirds are naturally very aggressive among bird magical beasts. They’re only gentle like that with their mates, even tamers have trouble keeping a thunderbird under control. Considering they mate for life the reason the Amber agency values you so much is because they know this. Since it won't be as aggressive and will listen to you well you won't have to worry about the problems most thunderbird tamers have." Owari had quite a lot of knowledge on magical beasts of all varieties, it could be seen as his passion of sorts. He loved learning about all the varieties and their habits, as well as their origins. He had only originally started researching so he could find a magical beast that suited him, but in the end he went a bit overboard.
"Is that so?" Lance awkwardly smiled as he glanced at the bird on his arm. Soon he chuckled with embarrassment. "That indeed seems to be the case. To think they didn't even warn me." Lance sighed before quickly moving on. He was a very go with the flow guy, so he didn't let it bother him. "Well, not much I can do about it. Thanks for letting me know though. It would have been quite embarrassing had this come up under different circumstances. I'll be going now, let's meet again one day." Although he seemed to have recovered he was still quick to escape the situation.
Owari laughed as he saw this, they had probably refrained from telling him since it was always awkward to talk about relationships between a magical beast and their tamer. After all the bond between them was quite strong and it even allowed people to experience the things their beast experienced. Obviously this led to some very odd choices that would leave some people feeling a bit odd. For instance there was one woman who was known to surround herself with humanoid-type magical beasts like orcs and goblins, and nobody was being fooled as to why. So the agency had probably assumed he knew but just didn't care, or that he knew and asking him would lead to some awkward conversations that nobody was willing to have.
Owari personally didn't care what interests others had. If they wanted to do that stuff that was on them, as long as they didn't force him to be the same he wouldn't judge them. As for Noel she found the situation amusing for a less inappropriate reason. The two chuckled a bit before falling into silence. It was only the two of them and Erikson off to the side, the rest of the group had either left or were resting and making accommodations to leave. Noel felt a bit awkward as she wasn't sure what to say as Owari went back to meditating. She was usually good at small talk, but he felt quite distant and unapproachable.
Soon enough though she couldn't hold herself back and walked over to sit beside him. "I thought you do not use any mystic arts. Is there another reason you are meditating? You shouldn't have used any mana after all."
"I'm controlling my breathing to help me recover faster." Owari answered calmly without opening his eyes.
"Breathing? Does it help at all?" She seemed quite curious.
"It can, breathing is quite important after all. The body requires oxygen to function, and almost every part of the body needs it to work properly. By controlling your breathing you will have the greatest control over the body a person can. Different ways of breathing can have different effects on the body." Surprisingly Owari showed quite a bit of excitement when talking about this.
"I see, what kinds of effects?" Noel also seemed a bit interested. Not only did she want to get to know Owari better and thus was curious about his interest, she was curious if his breathing techniques were really effective. After all she was always interested in discovering new ways to improve herself.
"Well did you know that as you breathe you don't always remove all of the excess gases in your lungs? By breathing out more than you breathe in it helps clear the lungs and improve your blood flow and stamina." Owari wasn't at all worried about sharing this, to him it wasn't all that big a secret.
"Is that so?" Noel seemed a bit surprised to hear that and started to try it herself. After a few moments she already felt her breathing ease up which shocked her. She hadn't really put much thought into her breathing before other than making sure it didn't stop.
"If you take in rapid short breaths you can actually increase your heart rate allowing you to ready yourself for danger faster then the body does on it's own." Owari seemed very forthcoming and excited to talk about this, even opening his eyes and sitting up straighter.
"Is it really that impressive? I would have never guessed." Noel also decided to try this out, and soon found that it genuinely did work. However she didn't stop at breathing and started to think about the many minor processes in the body she had never considered before.
Owari and Noel proceeded to talk for the next half an hour about various methods of improving themselves. Owari shared his thoughts and findings on breathing methods, meanwhile Noel started to share some tips on developing martial arts techniques and how to develop mystic arts. Her family had taught her a number of basic martial arts, but by the time she was eight they stopped and told her she was on her own. Her current fighting style is entirely self-made. Of course her family had some secrets to help people develop mystic arts, and she couldn't share those with just anyone. However she had found some things out on her own and she decided to share them with Owari in exchange for his information on breathing techniques and a few training methods he used to improve his bodies base strength since unlike her who relied on mana to have greater base strength, his body was just that strong which was certainly impressive.
As they talked Noel had gone and sat down right next to Owari and whenever she gave out tips she would say them quietly so that Erikson wouldn't hear. After all she had only intended to share this information with Owari. At some point he also started to share his tips and tricks in a whisper and the two soon began whispering back and forth like old friends. Anytime Erikson tried to approach to hear them, which he did a few times, they would stop whispering and Noel would give him a look of disapproval at which point he had no choice but to awkwardly step away. Although he was strong he had noticed that Owari's couple tips on breathing were things that helped even him, however after they started whispering he could no longer listen in. It might seem despicable to steal children's training methods to grow yourself, but Erikson had already proven he wasn't the most morally pure person. Though both Owari and Noel had their opinions of him lower even further, watching how shameless he could be despite how proud he pretended to be. At least if he stuck to that pride Owari could respect the dedication, but this was just sad.