Twenty-first day of Sat’xahr, 4043 AOT
Arbhur City, Zone-0, Wave 5
The area is full of drums of toxic waste. Some of those have leaks that is either being absorbed in the soil or dispersed in the air. These chemical wastes are from the plantations from different parts of the Wave 4 and 5. They are simply being dumped in an isolated area not far from the slums. Well, it probably was farther away a year ago however the lawless zone has rapidly grown.
This toxic dumpsite is a place that normal people would avoid in fear for their health. Exposure to these unknown chemicals can cause serious illnesses that may cause irreversible organ damage. Knowing that, it makes a perfect hiding place for Azalea. She has spent the previous night here and she plans to stay in this peaceful and quiet place again. Nobody in their sane mind would look for her here, since nobody in their sane mind would take this abandoned poisoned land as a place for camping and resting.
“I still have two potatoes.”
She used her magic to make fire and then proceeds to roast the potatoes. With magic she maintains the small fire and keeps the potatoes floating above it. She leisurely sits on the ground in front of the dim light and heat that the fire provides. She ponders while waiting for her meal to be ready.
“Grow up and become a good person.”
What does being a good person mean? Sometimes it’s more complicated than it sounds. What’s “good” for someone is not always the same “good” for everyone else.
She decided to leave the children for tonight. They need some time to think and take in the whole situation. Her plan still needs some major players to agree before she can proceed. Once Qin calls again, everything should be ready. And now, she also found someone to become their guardian, ensuring their safety once she leaves the country.
“Should you really be starting a fire in this kind of place?” A grown man’s voice rings from behind. His voice is a little muffled. “I happened to see you go into this dumpsite…”
The whole area is covered with unpleasant smell. It’s like a mix sulfur or ammonia, along with rotting stench of expired fruits. Could someone really breathe this kind of air and still have the appetite to eat their meal?
“Oh, Fred-guy.” She turns towards him for a moment. His mouth and nose is covered by a piece of cloth.
“Did you even consider that the fire you made could react to some unknown chemical in the air and cause a major explosion?”
“Well damn. That would be unfortunate.”
He spends some time staring at the young girl who is waiting for her meal to cook. “Are you planning to stay here tonight?”
“You’re lucky. I have two potatoes. I can share you one if you haven’t had your dinner yet.”
“This isn’t the time for that.” He steps closer. Then he remembers that he was actually the one who paid for those potatoes. He shakes his head a few times. He should not get distracted by trivial details. “I didn’t comb through this lawless zone to play around. Cassandra would have come rushing to your aid if her hands weren’t full.”
“I see. She would have been a big help. So, what are you planning now? Do you think you can forcefully take me out of Aesbyl?”
“You are one stubborn child.”
Azalea stands up to face Fred. “Hey mister, how about we settle on an agreement? Let’s make this quick. I have a proposal, and you can voice your demands as well.”
He is a little skeptical however he knows he does not have the power and skills to force her to leave now. “I’ll hear you out.”
“But before that, we should get out of this place first.” She then leads the way.
The small fire changes its shape into a ball and floated in front to light their way. She keeps the potatoes that seems to have been well roasted floating beside her. Fred thought that her skills are quite convenient and wonders how much she trained to maintain such level of magic control.
“This place is not safe for people like you.”
“And you? You’re telling me that your resistance is strong enough not to be affected by this hazardous elements?” He follows her looking at that small figure in front of him.
“Not specifically my resistance.” She moves one potato in front of him. “Here. It’s cool enough not to burn you but still warm inside. I made sure it’s safe enough to be eaten.”
He focuses his sight towards her dimly lit face. Her voice sounds cheerful but her dead eyes says otherwise. It evokes an eerie feeling.
“I don’t need it.”
“What shame…” She takes a bite off the roasted potato. “It’s delicious.”
They continued walking out of the dumpsite. On their way, Fred noted some leaking drums, and a pile of garbage bags with pungent stench emanating from it. Soon, there are less of those towering drums stacked over one another. The foul-smelling air gradually disperses. They must be close to the exit.
Azalea turns and faces him. “Here’s the deal. You’re a licensed demon hunter too. So, I’ll go hunt Quia’el, and you’ll go claim the rewards.”
“You want the two of us to hunt a rank B demon that would usually need multiple parties of twelve to sixteen people to take down?”
She smirks. “I said, I’ll go hunt. All you have to do is claim the rewards.”
Fred stares at her lightless eyes as he slowly comes to understand what she wants. “This ridiculous. What do you want?”
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“You’re very smart. I’ll send you the coordinates. I want you to help those kids.” She continues forward.
“You’re going through all these for a bunch of kids you met for the first time here?” He noticed faint small glowing sparkles that appears and disappears around her. Are those magic?
She smiles coldly. “You can take the reward as well as all the rights to the land surrounding the demon territory.”
“Impossible. You’re going to die.”
They are finally outside the dumpsite. Far enough that they can no longer catch a whiff of that pungent smell.
“If so, then go claim my bounty.”
“H-huh?”
Her voice is calm and deep but also raging. “If I happen to fail and die, then go drag my corpse out and present it to that bastard.”
“Are you insane?!!”
“It’s a win-win.” She is smiling but her tone remains the same. Her purple eyes are colder than the night. “Though there will be a huge set back if I lose, still we’ll get something out of it. Ah, but then again you have nothing to worry about because I’ll definitely slay that demon.”
Fred thought process fell into a disarray leaving him speechless. Something is very wrong but he is unable to put his words together. What advice could he possibly give to this lost child? After saying everything she wants to say, she proceeds to walk back to the dumpsite.
“W-wait-!!”
“Don’t follow me. You’ll definitely die if you continued to breathe this toxic air.”
He stayed fixed in his place watching Azalea disappear in the distance. He removes the piece of cloth that was covering his mouth and nose. Maybe they both need some time to think. He walks away distraught.
Fred is just another one of those people who started rough in life. He can barely remember his parents’ faces as he was too young when they left his life. His father simply disappeared one day and he was never mentioned by his mother again. That same mother who worked hard for her two sons who are barely three years apart. She single-handedly raised them until she succumbed to some disease. He was too young to understand what it was or remember any details about it. At that point, he still have not fully grasped the concept of death. Sometimes he thinks that he has not cried enough on her mother’s funeral.
The orphaned brothers were then taken in by their grandparents and they were helped by other family members in raising them. Looking back, he considers himself lucky to have such caring family. However, that time, he still waited and wondered when his mother would return. Fortunately, he had a lot of activities that took much of his attention, and he also needed to take care of his younger brother, so his young mind was not purely occupied by the thoughts of his mother all the time. Still, there are days when he would wake up and excitedly check the kitchen because he might see their mom preparing breakfast for them again. Unfortunately, that excitement always dies down and ultimately ended up in disappointment. Eventually he grew up, his understanding of life have expanded. He cannot remember the exact time he stopped waiting for her, or the moment he came to the realization that she is gone. It’s as if the understanding just came to him naturally, but at some point it made him feel empty.
As he grew older, he became more aware of the difficulty their grandparents are going through in raising two children. He knew that he was not that smart as child so he believes that it was a waste of money to keep sending him to school. He was eleven years old when he first awakened as a reveil. He was only able to make small balls of ki which made him very interested in improving his powers. He practiced alone until he caught the attention of a monster hunter who taught him the basics. When he reached his teen years, he started hanging out with the monster hunters and eventually dropped out of school. Not long after that, he decided to become a monster hunter and got his license. He earned a lot as a monster hunter, enough to support his aging grandparents and support his younger brother’s education. Just like that he became the family’s breadwinner.
After his twentieth birthday, he started joining demon hunting jobs and two more years later, he also got his demon hunting license. He then also supported his cousins’ education and helped his aunts and uncles when they are in financial trouble. Becoming a demon hunter was a huge help for him to provide for his family.
He has been hunting and fighting for more than two decades now. He has gone through plenty of life and death situation. He was lucky to survive every time without having to live with severe injuries or a missing limb. His brother and cousins have all finished college years ago. They got a job and have stable life now. His grandparents has naturally and peacefully passed away more than a year ago. He is already at the age where most demon hunters have saved enough to start a different business and retire. However, he does not have anything that he wants to do. He continued demon hunting because the thrill of battles made him feel alive. But in the last hunt, he came really close to death. It made him rethink his choices and ponder on his future, not only for his sake but for his loved ones too.
∞×∞
Twenty-second day of Sat’xahr, 4043 AOT
Arbhur City, Zone-0, Wave 5
It is supposed to be just another day to get over with for the children. Jad and Romi just had to leave to get water much earlier. They all decided to stay home for now and avoid situations where they can be trapped or ambushed by the gang. They still have some preserved food stored. Before it runs out, they have to go out early to hunt instead of relying on buying food from the crowded market place. Their life will be more difficult if they do not find a solution to their current predicament.
“What do you think did Mary and Mark talked with Lea last night?” Jad asks Brenda as he pours the water into the jar.
“Something they don’t want to let us know.” Brenda takes a deep breath. “After that she just left. She didn’t even join dinner.”
“Right. I don’t like the way they’re keeping things from us.”
“I’m sorry.” Leika says softly. “I shouldn’t have been impulsive.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about. This situation is bound to happen whether they knew about your powers or not.” Jad pats her head. “We’re not going to go down without a fight! We’ll beat the shit out of them!”
“Understood!”
“Shut up! Don’t say that!” Brenda softly raises her voice. “Leika don’t agree to him! I’m sure Mary and Mark have a plan.”
∞×∞
Half a day has passed since Fred scouted the coordinates that Azalea gave him. There is indeed a house there that are full of kids. No adult has either came out or into that house since he is watching it.
“She’s not here.” Fred talks to himself. He stands on top of the neighbor’s roof. “She didn’t give me a different coordinates, did she?” He sighs.
Few more hour passed. He stealthily jumped around from one roof to another to scout the perimeter. Though there are some suspicious people keeping watch not far, he does not sense any hostility from them. Maybe, not yet. Hence, on that late afternoon, he finally decided to approach the house and maybe ask the kids a few questions. Fred jumps down from the roof directly into the front yard which garnered some wary looks from the children.
“Mister, I don’t remember inviting you to our humble home.” Jad greets while gesturing to the other children.
Brenda quickly takes Leika and Lei into the house while making eye contact to Kou and Raichi who immediately follows her.
“Well, yeah.” Fred replies while observing the yard and the front house. “I guess someone else did… ah, you know, invite me.”
“Ha, ha. You’re funny mister.” Jad walks closer while Romi follows close behind. “Who are you?”
“Guess?”
“He’ll be your new dad!” Azalea suddenly appears behind Fred.
“What the fuu-?!” Fred steps aside. He did not feel her presence at all. “Since when?!”
“I just arrived.” She walks pass him and then gives the two dead birds she hunted to Romi. “I got us dinner.”
“I’m thankful for that.” Jad raises his brow as he finds the situation weird. “Seriously, who’s the old dude?”
“I’m not anyone’s father.”
“Hm?.. You still haven’t made up your mind, dad?”
“I’m not your dad.”
“Sure, sure.”
“Well…” Jad looks at them back and forth. “If you know him and he’s not a bad guy, then I’ll treat him as a guest… but only until Mark and Mary comes home. They have the last say.”
Brenda peeks from the front door. “I don’t think this is a good idea. ”