Staring at Soom while leaning against a tree for support, I couldn't help but click my tongue in both anger and annoyance as I listened to him speak; because of his actions from long ago, he had inadvertently put us in danger as those assassins didn't seem like the ones who cared for unnecessary casualties.
Yuki and I would've been able to survive such an attack, especially now that she's gotten a Mythical class change, but Chloe and Michelle wouldn't have made it out alive; they were just regular people; a slight punch from any of those assassins could've killed them with ease.
"Tsk, you knew those assassins were coming for you, seeing as you walked far away from the campsite; is this their first time attacking you?" Asked Alexander in annoyance as he narrowed his eyes at Soom, who slightly shook his head while sitting on the ground with his cane resting on his lap.
"No. They first attacked roughly two weeks ago at my home, though I've always been anticipating their arrival as I knew I couldn't hide forever. I've managed to stay under their radar for a few decades, but it was only a matter of time." Replied Soom softly as he sighed and shook his head, causing Alexander to grunt.
"Now that they've found you, why did you bother accepting my offer to ride with us? It's pretty messed up to do such a thing when assassins are coming after you. Were you intending to use us as a distraction and escape?" Asked Alexander with a frown as he stared at Soom, using [Heroes Gaze] to read his intentions and raw emotions.
"NO! I wouldn't ever do such a thing; I wasn't so cruel as to do that." Stated Soom as he vehemently shook his head while solemnly staring at Alexander, who scoffed before nodding.
"Then why?" Said Alexander as he squinted his eyes at Soom, who bit his lip before lowering his head and sighing.
"It… It was for Lazuli. When the organization finally found my home, I knew I didn't have much longer to live; I was an old man past his prime. I knew my death was just around the corner; in fact, I had expected to die today; then, you came along and helped me." Replied Soom softly as he glanced at his cane with a bitter-sweet expression before looking at Alexander.
"Lazuli? Does she know about the assassins? I'd assume not." Questioned Alexander with a frown as he glanced behind him, looking in the direction of the campsite.
"No. I wish to keep it that way. When I die, she'll have no one to help her, and that's why I accepted your offer those days ago; I needed someone to look after Lazuli, to care for her when I'm not there. Knowing how cruel and unforgiving this world is, I wasn't expecting to come across such a person, though not even a week after we left our home for good, we met you, someone whom I could entrust my daughter to without needing to worry about her safety. The only thing I needed to worry about at that point was if she'd become one of your lovers in the future." Remarked Soom lightly as he shook his head while looking at Alexader, who nodded in agreement, only to faintly smile while looking at him.
"I've already got my hands full with Michelle and Yuki, though thanks for your blessings in advance." Said Alexander blandly as he looked at Soom, who softly chuckled.
"Speaking of Lazuli, those precious metals you stole from the organization, unalloyed Caldimite and Orichalcum; they were used to build her. To construct Lazuli, weren't they?" Asked Alexander lightly as he eyed Soom, who chuckled slightly before suddenly waving his hand, causing a large earth pole to fly straight at him.
Seeing the attack heading straight for me, I quickly raised my arms, blocking the initial attack before using [Blink] to escape its range while eyeing Soom, who was looking at me with the intent to kill, causing me to frown.
Dodging another attack from him, I grabbed Trina off my back before swinging downwards, slicing through a large boulder he had thrown at me while launching a [Wind Blade] at him as well, which he blocked by creating an earth dome around him; however, I used that moment to appear right beside him using [Teleport].
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Raising my fist, I punched right through Soom's earth dome as I placed my hand on his shoulder, causing the rest of the dome to crumble, revealing his exhausted figure.
"That was pointless, you were still greatly exhausted from that earlier fight; you were never going to win, Soom." Remarked Alexander with a frown as he eyed Soom while holstering Trina.
Soom didn't say anything and merely glared at me, causing me to sigh in annoyance as I forced him back onto the ground.
"Lazuli, she's a robot, isn't she? Or a Cyborg. One of those two." Asked Alexander with furrowed brows as he folded his arms and eyed Soom, who slightly widened his eyes before narrowing them once more.
"You… You're not from this world. You're a reincarnator." Said Soom solemnly as he eyed Alexander, who raised an eyebrow before nodding.
"Yes, this is my second life, sort of. Though, you must also be a reincarnator since only they would know what a robot or a cyborg is." Remarked Alexander lightly as he eyed Soom, who frowned before nodding.
"Well then, now that we've got that out of the way. Lazuli is a robot or a cyborg, right?" Stated Alexander calmly as he found a new tree to lean on while staring at Soom, who hardened his gaze.
"How did you know?" Asked Soom sternly as he stared at Alexander, his focus never once shifting.
"Well, anyone with half a brain should've been able to figure it out; she talks just like I'd imagine an AI would; she doesn't eat, though surprisingly, she drinks water." Declared Alexander lightly as he glanced at Soom, who remained quiet.
"Is that why you were practically pawning her off to me? I think we both know what will happen if the people of this world find out Lazuli is a robot." Added Alexander firmly with a frown as he glanced towards the sky, shifting his eyes between the three moons of Azeroth.
"The same thing that would happen if the people of our previous world found out about someone possessing mana." Said Soom, his words causing Alexander to snap his fingers while nodding in agreement.
"Yeah, and that won't end well for her." Muttered Alexander with a frown, only for him to shake his head.
"Listen, you don't need to worry about me saying anything; no one will know Lazuli is a robot or cyborg. I wouldn't want harm to come to her; besides, I feel like I'm finally starting to rub off onto her." Added Alexander with a faint smirk as he looked at Soom, who nodded though he still stared at him with a skeptical look.
Rolling my eyes at Soom's skeptical look, I walked forward and outstretched my hand, which he hesitantly grabbed before pulling him onto his feet.
"Now then, let's dispose of these bodies; I don't want any evidence remaining." Said Alexander lightly as he patted Soom's shoulder with a faint smile before approaching one of the many corpses that lay scattered across the ground.
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After collecting all the corpses, I burned them to ashes while Soom buried their skeletons deep underground before we began our long walk back towards our campsite, which got me thinking about Yuki.
'Haa, Yuki and I are supposed to be making love right now, yet instead, I'm out here with an old man. This is not how I wanted tonight to go.' Mused Alexander with a sigh as he glanced at Soom before shaking his head and sighing once more.
"So, regarding Lazuli, was she created by you, or was she originally a human?" Asked Alexander curiously as he glanced at Soom, who gave him a side glance before sighing.
"She's originally a human." Replied Soom lightly as he used his cane to help him walk though the uneven terrain of the forest.
"How old is she?" Asked Alexander, his words garnering a suspicious look from Soom while defensively raising his hands.
"She's mentally 18. However, if we count the time since she was born, she's roughly 43 years old." Said Soom, his words surprising Alexander as he clicked his tongue while rubbing his chin.
"So I'm slightly older yet younger than her at the same time. Weird." Muttered Alexander lightly as he looked up at the sky, only to suddenly reach down and pick up Soom.
Not saying anything to him, I took off into a full spring while filling my body with mana, allowing me to move even faster as I sprinted through the forest, returning to our campsite in minutes rather than an hour.
Stopping beside the carriage, I set down Soom, who looked like a complete mess, before patting his shoulder.
"We'll talk more later. Good night." Said Alexander with a small smile as he glanced at Soom, who nodded.
Approaching my bed in the distance, I was about to fall asleep, but before I did, I heard someone's voice, prompting me to turn and look at the carriage as I saw Michelle's head peeking from behind the curtain.
With Yuki still not having returned, I smiled as I approached Michelle, who was about to ask me something, and lifted her out of the carriage while carrying her to my bed.
"Shh, try to keep your voice down." Said Alexander softly as he gently set down Michelle and started stripping her of her clothes while doing the same.