They both stared at each other, Mizuki felt a drop of sweat fall, his mother was staring at her, her hand moved to hold Yuto's who held her hand back in response.
"W-what do you mean Mom?" His mother lifted her staff and pointed it at Mizuki, Yuto got in front of Mizuki to protect her.
"The one next to you Yuto, I sent your father and sister to do their own thing so we can talk, now tell me son, who is that?"
Yuto felt his throat tighten, he looked over to Mizuki who felt his mother's strength, with their current strength they were no match for her.
"S-she is my partner"
"Your partner, huh? What kind of 'partner'?"
"Sigh, I can't lie to you mom, she's my ego sword, we made a contract before we started the trip to aunt's"
Surprised by this sudden reveal, his mother does her best to keep her thoughts down and is not happy about Yuto having an Ego weapon without her knowing.
"An ego weapon... Why didn't you tell me about that? Does your father know?'
"I can't tell him either," Yuto grips Mizuki's hand tightly, she can feel his heartbeat picking up, and caresses his knuckles with her thumb.
She raised her eyebrow when she noticed that he had gripped his sword's hand tightly.
"Why can't you tell your father, sweetheart?" She puts her weapon away and simply stares at him, waiting for an answer anything to explain what is going on with him.
"I know he'll just say I'm relying on others and not my strength"
His Mom crossed her arms in front of her chest with a stern expression, "Sweetie... your father has a point. You become stronger when you rely on yourself and not on a weapon"
"SHE'S NOT A WEAPON!", His mother flinches slightly, surprised that Yuto shouted at her,
Mizuki tugs his hand to calm him down, Yuto looks at his mother and sighs, "I'm sorry Mom"
His mother sighs as well, her expression becoming softer again.
"It's ok sweetie... just calm down and use a normal tone when you talk ok? I don't like it when you shout that loud in anger"
Yuto nods as he sits back down, "I can't explain everything right now, but she's my partner. She was in the fight with Dad too, remember the sword I used during that fight, it was her"
She nodded as she was reminded of the 'fight', "Ah... that was your Ego weapon, huh? It was a pretty impressive sword"
"T-thank you, ma'am"
His mother looked at her and looked her up and down, when she saw her blush from the compliment, she gave her a warm smile, "No need to call me ma'am sweetie, just call me Mom"
Mizuki's blush deepens, and so does Yuto's as he can't believe what his mother is suggesting.
["No comeback?"]
Yuto snickers at Mizuki as she covers her face with her hands, clearly embarrassed and flustered at his mother's statement
His mother can't help but notice that both of them are blushing from her words and gives them both a soft chuckle.
"You two are honestly so cute"
"So yeah, she's my partner, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you, it just I couldn't predict how you would react"
His mother strictly looks at him as she crosses her arms in front of her chest and gives Yuto a stern look.
"Sweetie... you really should have told me about that before. Ego weapons are quite serious and powerful things and I don't like the fact that you had one before this adventure started and kept it a secret from me until now"
"Ma'am I can explain", Mizuki raised her hand and stepped in front of Yuto, His mother raised her eyebrow as she looked at Mizuki.
"Explain then…"
"Although we can not tell you the full story, Yuto only has good intentions, and all he cares about is the safety of this family, and trust me when I say it hurts him to keep secrets, especially from you"
His mother looks at Mizuki as she speaks, she continues to have her eyebrow raised while she listens to her words.
"Good intentions, huh?" Mizuki nods as she pats Yuto's back and rubs it in support.
She looks at both of them for a few seconds in a serious way, before letting out a heavy sigh and letting her arms fall by her side again.
"Fine... but you have to promise to always be truthful to me and tell me when there's something important going on, sweetheart. Understood?"
Yuto bit his lip and so did Mizuki, they put their heads down, and Yuto clenched his fist as he spoke, "O-of course Mom"
When his mother notices that both of them put their heads down, she can already tell that there is something else he is not telling her.
She puts her index finger under Yuto's chin and lifts his head so that he is looking into her eyes.
She spoke firmly but gently, her eyes bore no malice or anger, only a concerned mother worried about her son.
"Sweetheart... is there something else you want to tell me? Be honest, please"
Yuto felt his tears forming before shaking his head, "I'm sorry Mom, I just can't tell you"
She can see that he is trying his best to hold back his tears, and her expression becomes softer, she gently places her hands on his cheeks.
"Sweetie, look at me..." She tilts his head to look her straight in the eyes, Yuto looks at her, his eyes holding back tears.
She sees the tears in his eyes and speaks gently and softly, "Sweetheart... I know you're hiding something else from me…so please... be honest. You know I wouldn't get mad at you... I'm your mother. You can tell me anything, sweetie..."
He puts his head down, "I can't, I want to so badly but I can't tell you"
She could see that he was still trying to hide something from her even though she was trying her best to convince him to tell her.
She spoke in a firm but soft tone again.
"Sweetheart... please... don't hide important things from me. I can see that you and Mizuki are trying to hide something from me, so please... I'm begging you as your mother to tell me the truth..."
Yuto got up and helped his mother get up as well, "Next time when I get a bit stronger, I will tell you"
His mother looked at him for a few seconds after he stood up and promised to explain everything to her once he became stronger.
She let out a heavy sigh before she nodded, giving him a warm smile and a pat on his head.
"Alright, sweetie... as long as you promise to tell me the truth. I can wait a little longer"
He helps Mizuki up, but she can't help but stare at the ground in awkwardness, Yuto only nods his head in agreement with his mother.
"So how did you even see me, ma'am?"
She looked at Mizuki and chuckled softly when she heard her question. She can't help but think "God she's cute..." before she answers Mizuki's question.
"Well... I actually could feel your presence next to Yuto, sweetie. It's quite weird to explain but it just didn't feel like Yuto was alone, if you understand what I mean"
"Exorcist powers?" Mizuki said bluntly
She raised her eyebrow, surprised about her direct response before letting out a lighthearted chuckle, "Exactly, Exorcist powers. My power to see supernatural presences also allowed me to see and sense you"
They all laugh as Yuto hugs his mother, "Someday Mother, I will tell you everything, for that is a promise." Yuto stepped back, surprised that his body moved on his own but ignored it and looked back at his mother "A promise"
His mother is also surprised when Yuto suddenly hugs her tight. After he takes a step back and tells her that he promised to tell her everything eventually, she gives him a warm smile and nods.
"Yes, a promise. I will wait as long as I have until you tell me, but you will someday tell me the whole truth, sweetie. I trust my son"
Mizuki went back into her spiritual form and stood behind him, "So please keep it a secret from Dad and Cynthia", Yuto glanced at Mizuki in her spiritual form before he looked back at his mom.
She crossed her arms before her chest, "Are you sure you don't want me to tell your father?"
"No, now is not the time, we can tell him when we get back home"
His mom sighed but nodded as she uncrossed her arms, "Very well, then I promise I won't tell your father for now. I will wait until we're back home before I say anything"
"Thank you, Mom", He walks with Mizuki back to the river to just relax a little and enjoy the scenery.
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His Mom watched as both of them walked away to the river. She let out a soft sigh and sat down near a tree, crossed her legs, and leaned back against the tree.
She mumbled to herself, "What are you both hiding from me"
-River-
Mizuki sat beside him by the river, her warm smirk replaced with a more pensive expression as she thought over the conversation they just had with his mother.
She knew how painful it was to keep such a secret from his own family and lie even when questioned directly about it.
"Mizuki?" His tone seemed tired and yet calm and warm at the same time.
"Yes? What is it, darling?"
"We will tell them everything when I recover my missing memories and power right?"
She paused before nodding in agreement, a serious and confident tone in her voice.
"Of course, I never intend to lie to your family permanently. I only agreed to keep everything hidden and stay quiet until you regained your memories. Once you recover your memory, we will tell them everything, I promise."
Yuto kissed her cheek, "Thank you, honestly, I don't think I would have been able to hold on much longer without you"
A warm smile spread across her face as she felt him plant a kiss on her cheek, her expression softening as the affectionate action stirred her heart.
"Hehe, you're very welcome. I'm glad I've been able to help you keep going and holding out. You're stronger than you realize."
"Well I do have you now by my side" She chuckled and smirked warmly, her smile growing a bit as she heard his lighthearted comment.
"Hehe, yes I suppose you do have me now. Does knowing that you have me make you feel a bit more confident? Do I make that much of a difference in your life?"
Yuto takes her hand and kisses it, "I held so much in for the past 3 years, so to have someone to laugh with, to fight with, to cry with, made me not feel alone anymore"
She blushed softly when he kissed her hand, her heart fluttering with affection from his words and actions, her expression softened and her smirk faded into a warm, genuine smile.
"Hehe, I see. So that's what I am to you... Well, know that you can continue to rely on me and laugh with me, fight with me, cry with me. I'll always be there with you and help lift you when you're feeling alone or down."
"Hah is that a proposal?" He patted her head with a chuckle.
She chuckled warmly at his playful question, her expression becoming a bit amused and teasing, "Hmph, and what if it was a proposal? Would you accept it if I was proposing to you?"
"Of course, I would," he turned his head away, his right hand covering his mouth as a light blush began to build
She smirked, her expression turning both teasing and affectionate.
"Oh really, you're saying you would accept it if it WAS a proposal? You would want to get engaged to me, be with me forever? Even though I'm an egotistical, overprotective, ego sword?"
"Yes, but let's wait a bit till I get stronger," She chuckled warmly at his response, a hint of amusement on her face at such a cute reply.
"Hehe, very well I suppose we can wait... Although you know, you don't need to wait until you are stronger. Your level of strength doesn't have anything to do with how much I want to be with you."
Yuto kissed her lips before getting up, "We are going to travel Mizuki, me and you will travel to find out the truth"
Her eyes widened with surprise for a moment as his lips met with hers in a kiss, her heart skipping a beat before a warm, affectionate smile spread across her face. She chuckled softly and nodded in agreement before replying.
"Yes, me and you... we're going to travel together, and spend every day with each other, growing stronger and getting to experience life together."
Mizuki goes back into her spiritual form as Yuto leaves to go check up on his sister, as he left to check on his sister, staying in a dormant state inside the mental realm as their minds become connected again.
"Wanna see the pig do a backflip again?"
She chuckled warmly as she heard his voice echo in the mind realm, a smile spreading across her face as she replied with a chuckle.
"Hehe, sure, why not? I could go for another mental performance from the backflip pig. This time, maybe I'll even imagine doing a front flip instead."
They both laugh as Yuto imagines the pig doing crazy acts that would normally never happen.
Eventually, Yuto reaches his sister who is practicing some new spells, when she sees Yuto she smiles, stopping her magic and running up to him.
"Hi, brother! What are you up to now?"
Yuto ponders for a bit before he smirks, "Wanna spar?"
She raised her eyebrow, her expression was one of surprise but also a bit of curiosity, and she couldn't believe the balls on this dude.
"Sparring? Sure, I'm up for that, we haven't sparred in a while, but don't start complaining when I win"
"This time I'll use beginner magic", Yuto was confident since the system had handed him some basic spells, obviously not to win but to improve his magic's quality.
She chuckled and placed her hands on her hips, "Oh really? Think you're good enough to beat me, using beginner's magic huh?"
He nods and lifts his hand, in a come-at-me motion.
She smirked, her competitive nature starting to shine through as she also lifted one of her hands and began muttering an incantation under her breath
"Ready to lose so quickly?"
"Let's go!"
She smirked as he said 'Let's go', and almost immediately, she shot out a medium-sized fireball near his head.
Yuto nearly got hit but dodged at the last second ducking his head down.
[ Water Blade: Tier 1 ]
Seeing that Yuto got out of the way made her a bit frustrated as she expected to hit him with that fireball at the start.
She was about to launch another one but she was surprised at his 'Water Blade' being mixed with another elemental magic.
[ Air Cutter: Tier 1 ]
She had no time to react at all when he shot out the air cutter x wind blade, it hit her straight on and sent her flying back a couple of meters.
"Oomph! Oh... my god... you hit me- I can't believe you-! I was not expecting that..."
She looked at him in disbelief, her eyes slightly widened in shock that he managed to get a hit in one.
"Who's gonna lose now?", Yuto was confident his stats weren't that bad, his mana was at 103, of course, he still had no way of knowing her stats since her level was higher than his
Although he knew one thing, and that was that her class -Mage- was there for a reason, and she was still holding back on him.
She grumbled under her breath as she got up from the ground, brushing the dirt off herself as she let out an irritated huff.
"Oh shut it... I was caught off guard, I wasn't expecting you to shoot out the air cutter!"
"Just came up with it, mixed it with simple wind and water magic"
"Of course, you'd come up with something like that on the spot, why am I not surprised..."
She muttered quietly, although she was thoroughly impressed and a bit annoyed that he was able to create a whole new spell just by combining two basic spells.
"Come on, sis. You're a 6-tier mage, so start using some advanced magic, you're holding back right?"
She huffed, her irritation growing a bit further as he had challenged her and told her to use some "advanced" magic, usually anyone who would dare tell a mage of her caliber to step it up would die on the spot.
"Oh trust me, I'm holding back. The moment I use anything above tier 5 is when you'll be on the floor."
He waves his hand in a come at me motion again, this time his smirk looked a lot more stupid and cocky.
She smirked as he waved his hand, her irritation fully turning into her competitiveness showing, and she started to feel excited to take him on in a real fight, not some stupid spar but a fight where only one would stand.
"Careful what you wish for, brother", She lifted her hand and a blue glow began to appear in her palm.
Yuto wasted no time setting up his defense, he raised his right arm.
Stone Wall: Tier 2
Ring of Ernaline: His suit of armor reinforces, and his defense stat increases 103 + 1000 = 1103 Defensive stat
"Come at me", his voice was confident but he also knew that his level was not high enough to fully tank this hit.
She raised her eyebrow as he set up an earth stone wall, "What the? You seriously are improving way too fast..."
"I have an excellent teacher", although she couldn't see his face, she could tell he was giving her a genuine smile.
Her cheeks tinted red as she was complimented, her competitive attitude fading slightly as she mumbled quietly.
"Hmpf, you're just trying to flatter me now... it won't work, of course, I'm immune"
Yuto could see her spell building in power and yup it was above 5-tier magic, he took a defensive position, his current defensive stat should at least keep him alive.
~Master will you survive this, that spell holds a lot of power even if she does hold back
Yuto just smirked, a reassuring chuckle was all he gave her.
Cynthia took on a more serious expression as she saw that he was ready to defend against her incoming attack, she put all her focus into this upcoming attack, as even with Yuto's high defense stat, she still wanted to test the limits of his strength.
She muttered an incantation under her breath, the glow in her palm growing brighter than it was before as lightning began to form in her palm and it took only a second before she launched it.
[ Divine Judgment: Tier 6 ]
She launched a massive lightning bolt straight at him, it was going at an incredible speed, and it was headed straight toward his chest.
It broke through the 3 earth walls that he had built and sent giant jolts inside of him.
He bit his lips to not yell in pain, some of his wounds reopened as some blood started to leak out, eventually sending him flying to a nearby tree.
She watched as her attack made a clear opening in all three of the stone walls, and then it made a direct hit on Yuto, sending him flying into a tree with a loud thud.
She was quite surprised and shocked that her attack was successful, and she wasn't expecting him to get flung back like a piece of meat.
She rushed over to him, her competitive attitude was completely gone and replaced with nothing but worry, "O-oh my- are you okay??!"
She was starting to panic as he didn't respond, it didn't help seeing that the wounds on his body began to reopen a bit because of her attack, she knelt beside him, gently shaking him.
"Brother? Hey come on, say something! Did I go too far with that one?!"
Yuto lifts his right hand and pinches her cheek lightly, "Aw, is someone worried?"
She pouted as he pinched her cheek, slapping his hand away, "Hey-! Don't give me that tone! Of course, I'm worried, I just hit you with a lightning bolt for crying out loud!"
<- System ->
[ Cancel Rings Effects? ]
[ Yes or No ]
[ The host has clicked YES ]
The armor around Yuto begins to disappear, he struggles but succeeds in taking off his shirt, and it is clear that her spell did do a lot of damage as he now has a small ball-sized burnt on his chest.
~It seems like your sister earned her title of mage, even with high defense she left you a small mark and sent you flying
Yuto nodded
~This also means that I must get stronger if 5th and 6-tier magic can injure me like this, she managed to reopen my wounds and send me flying back despite having the ring of Ernaline activated
"Haha and just a day ago you were giving Dad grief for beating my ass in a fight," Yuto could only chuckle through the pain.
"W-well this is completely different!" She protested, still pouting a bit, her hand gently grazing over the areas where your wounds had opened up again due to her lightning bolt.
"I don't know if you've noticed, but you're bleeding again..."
"I am indeed bleeding again," he pinches her cheek again, "So you see, accidents can happen in these 'spars', that's why it's important to get along with Dad"
She gently grabbed his wrist and moved his hand away as he pinched her cheek yet again, although she didn't say anything this time around.
"Yeah yeah, whatever... I guess this time I do get why he beats you so much. You're annoying as hell sometimes, you know that?"
"Hmm, I remember someone crying and clinging to my chest begging me not to leave them, and making me promise, I wonder who that could be?"
Her face began to turn red as Yuto brought up a couple of very embarrassing memories, she was about to say something in protest but ended up sputtering, flustered beyond belief at the fact that he brought up such memories.
"S-shut up! T-that was years ago!"
"That was yesterday", he gave out a little chuckle patting her head.
"Oh my god- Shut up! You know what I mean!" She swat his hand away.
She huffed and looked away from him, pouting as she tried to look tough despite her bright red cheeks that were probably making her look just cute rather than intimidating.
"Come here," he pulls her into a hug.
She didn't resist the hug and let him pull her into it, her arms wrapping around you gently, being quite careful not to touch any of your open wounds.
"Hmph...you're so... annoying... you know that?"
"I'm also your big brother"
"I know that, idiot"
She said this, but she still hugged him tight, her head resting on his shoulder gently.
"Cynthia, it's my job to show you, that as long as I'm around I'll protect you"
She nuzzled her face into his shoulder gently, her expression softened at his words.
"I know you will... you're always gonna be there to kick anyone's ass that hurts me, but I'm also not defenseless you know. I can protect myself just fine"
"Cynthia, one day, I will tell you the truth about why I have to get stronger and why I'm asking for our family's support"
She paused, a bit surprised to hear these words, she pulled away from the hug, a quizzical expression on her face as she tried to get a look at his
"The truth...? Get stronger...? Family's support? Why? Is there something you're not telling us? Something serious?"
"I already spoke to Mom, and she understands"
She paused, she had no idea what he was talking about and felt a bit left out that he would tell their mother but not her.
"Mom knows? So does that mean you're not going to tell me? Why am I not in the know about this?"
"Because it would hurt you"
Hearing those words only caused her feelings of curiosity and slight irritation to amplify, her hands clenched into loose fists as she looked at him with a pout and a mixture of annoyance and worry.
"Not telling me isn't going to make this any better, it'll just make me more worried! Just tell me already, whatever it is, I can handle it."
"Mizuki", as he says that name a beautiful woman with short silver hair and beautiful crimson eyes appears next to him straight out of his ring, "She is my ego sword"
She watched, a bit baffled as a woman appeared out of his ring, she stared at the woman for a few seconds before turning her attention back to Yuto.
"Your...ego sword? So...is she your partner sort of? And your ego sword? I'm... so confused..."
"Let me explain, I am his ego sword, partner, and part-time lover, we made a contract before you all left to see your aunt, as for what is an ego sword, well it is a sword with a soul of its own, and will grow with their contractor, in this case, your brother"
She was even more confused by the explanation, she had even more questions but decided to focus on the most important one, well at least important to her at the moment.
"Part-time lover- what? Wait- hold on-"
She stumbled over her words, trying to process exactly what was going on. After a few seconds of sputtering in confusion, she took a breath and spoke again.
"Okay... so basically, what you're saying is that you have a sword, who's your... lover? And she can come out of your ring?"
Yuto flicks Mizuki's head, "Her form is a very beautiful sword. She's only taking on a ring appearance for now"
She looked at the woman again, trying to imagine her but as a sword instead. But then a thought came to mind and she looked at him again.
"That... still doesn't explain the part-time lover thing... unless you're joking. You are joking, right? You're not serious about dating a sword"
Yuto quickly darts his head away, while Mizuki with a smirk clings to his arm.
She raised an eyebrow, noticing him look away and the sudden change in their body language.
"Hey... answer the question. Are you seriously dating your sword or did you just forget to add the "just kidding" at the end of your joke?"
"Cough, is that important?", Yuto stared dumbfounded.
She pouted and crossed her arms again, growing irritated that Yuto didn't give her a straightforward answer.
"Yes, that is important! You can't just drop something like that on me and not expect me to ask you about it!"
"A woman comes out of my ring, is an ego sword, and has a powerful presence but you're more focused on the lover part?"
"Of course I am! The fact that she's your ego sword is weird enough! Adding 'lover' to the mix is even weirder!"
"Hev. I didn't judge you when you had a crush on-"
She flinched when he started to mention her embarrassing secret, her cheeks immediately turning redder as she quickly interrupted him by placing her hands over his lips.
"SHH! Don't talk about that out loud!!"
"Anyways, this is all I can tell you for now. No more questions, and you better hide this from Dad"
She huffed in annoyance as he once again wouldn't tell her much but she nodded in agreement, "Fine fine... I get it, no more questions. I'm great at keeping secrets, so you don't have to worry about Dad finding out from me"
Mizuki hovers over Cynthia and pats her head, "What a cute one, no wonder you care for her"
She looked at Mizuki as she patted her head, her cheeks turning a brighter shade of red.
She couldn't help but blush slightly from having a beautiful woman compliment her like that.
"H-hey... th-thanks..."
She mumbled out quietly, she wasn't expecting a compliment from her, which only made her cheeks turn even redder.
Mizuki smirks as she goes back into the ring, "Trust this brother of yours, Cynthia"
She watched as Mizuki went back into the ring and huffed, shifting her focus back to Yuto.
She sighed, crossing her arms and giving him a pouty look.
"I do trust you. Just don't be stupid, got it?"
Yuto leans forward and gives her a quick peck on the forehead, he used to do this when they were younger as a promise to be kept.
A light shade of pink dusted her cheeks as he kissed her forehead, and she huffed, looking away in an attempt to look like she wasn't that flustered.
"Ugh- I know that already, you idiot..."
"Man, I kinda miss when you were crying and practically holding me down not to leave"
Her face turned even redder as he brought up that memory, and she looked at him with an expression that was a mixture of irritation and embarrassment.
"Wha- HEY don't bring that up out of the blue like that! That was years ago, back when I was a lot younger and didn't know how to handle my emotions!"
"Come on we have to get back to camp, only 2 more days and we are at aunties"
Cynthia sighed after recovering from her embarrassment and nodded in agreement, "Yeah yeah, let's go. I can't wait to see Aunt Lily, you know how good her cooking is?"
"Except Mom hates her," Yuto rolls his eyes remembering all the annoying fights they've had to break up between the crazy duo.
"Yeah, Aunt Lilly always has a way of annoying her, and Mom always gets worked up over what she says."
<- System Reward ->
[ New Passive: Recovery twice a day ]
Yuto forgot about his injuries for a second before noticing a green light envelope him, his wounds started to close and the smaller scars started to disappear, and was a bit shocked to gain a new ability, one that healed every wound and restored a bit of mana and stamina.