It’d been a few days since the whole Futakuch-Onna debacle, and we’d spent that time resting and assisting Hana with menial tasks like helping with cleanup and killing some weak Curses outside of town that’d been attracted to all the fighting. Yugo’d promised that we’d get back to training as soon as the Galeroses arrived, and I’d found myself mentally counting down the days. As simple and quiet as these past few days had been, I hadn’t joined the Seekers to be a maid of all work.
Alongside waiting to train, I’d also been considering the current state of my body. I’d permanently removed two of my fingers. It wasn’t like my temporary fire manipulation from my Jikininki fights, either. I couldn’t just ask Yugo to replace my missing parts. No, my pinky and ring fingers had to stay gone or I’d lose my [ELEMENTAL MANIPULATION] Skill. In the grand scheme of things, two fingers on my right hand weren’t major losses. But that raised a different, more unsettling question: How much more would I end up [SACRIFIFCING]? How much more of myself would I lose in my pursuit of the Horsemen?
I was surprised to find myself willing to give everything up to kill them. I’d felt the same way in my youth, though I lacked to means to follow through on that desire. So strong was my hatred, and my burning desire to see them dead. My mother wouldn’t have approved of that, I knew, but she wasn’t in my position. I was trapped in a paradox. I wanted to fulfill her desire for me of being “free”, but I couldn’t be free in a world that I shared with the Horsemen. I’d need to get stronger to do that, and the [SACRIFICE] Skill was one of the fastest ways for me to do that.
I’d attempted to consult Fallen Star on the matter given his desire for me to use his power, but his answers all resulted in some cryptic form of “You’ll be a god either way” and “The strong forge their own path” or another. He spoke like Ares sometimes, which particularly grated on me each time I’d notice it. I needed to grit my teeth and bear it, though. As much as I’d rather it not be the case, nothing I wanted to achieve would be possible without the use of Fallen Star.
***
Over the past few days, the four of us had made a tradition of meeting in the Tiger Lily’s main dining hall for breakfast each morning. Unlike the first time we’d been here, the room was decorated like a family-style diner in Burnchester; brown-cushioned booths were lined against walls decorated with expensive-looking lamps and old paintings donated by Hana from the Shogunate’s collection. I sat in a booth beside Somnia, who was dressed in her black and gold Galerose uniform. Across from us were Archie and Yugo, who’d been wearing a black, striped tracksuit and a disheveled shirt, suit, and tie combo respectively. We’d already eaten our traditional Saikoujin breakfast – a meal of rice, tofu, fish, and fruit –, and we were now in the middle of a conversation about innate Skills like the [WRAITH STRIKE]. Somnia had informed me that she had a few, though Yugo insisted that they were just “minor buffs not worth mentioning.”
“If you had a Contract, you wouldn’t need any of them because your Rogue would provide them to you!” Yugo had been saying, a challenging expression on his face.
Somnia frowned. “Even so, I don’t need one. I was more than enough for Masamura and he’s much stronger than me.”
I hadn’t gotten a chance to scan him during the meeting with Hana, but he did look pretty messed up when I saw him there. He couldn’t have been that strong, though. Not to discredit her or anything, but Somnia was Level 86 now. Archie and I had grown to 57 and 68 respectively, something we’d both been proud of before Somnia came trotting in.
“Masamura was a broken man, and I weakened him before you saw him. He hardly counts.”
“He healed himself. I fought him at full power!”
“And how long did it take you to beat him?”
“No more than ten minutes.”
“I bet you would’ve beaten him in half the time if you had a Contract.”
Somnia looked about ready to reach across the table and choke Yugo out. Thankfully, Archie finally stepped in to stop that before it could happen.
“You guys, we don’t need to go over this again,” He turned to Yugo. “If Somnia wants to fight without a Contract, she can do that. She’s the strongest of the three of us for now, so she obviously knows what she's doing.” He turned to Somnia. “And you’ve been with us long enough to know that you can just ignore Yugo when he gets like this. You don’t have to engage him every time he provokes you. He’s only doing it because you react.”
“Tell him to stop being annoying and I’ll stop reacting!”
“I’m your teacher! You can’t ignore–”
Archie ignored him and chinned at me.
“Weren’t you asking about innate Skills, anyway? Let’s get back to that.”
“If it’s gonna turn into a whole song and dance again, I’d rather not.” When nobody said anything, I continued. “Well, I do want to know some more Skills that I could learn without losing body parts, though.” I waved my right hand for emphasis.
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Yugo smiled as if called out by name. “I brought it up briefly a while ago, but there is one more Skill available to you, and it doesn’t require any more visits to your Mindspace!”
“What is it?” I said, interest piqued.
“Eruption! It’s that self-destruct ability.”
I deflated, though my interest was still piqued. “How does it work?”
“You know how when most people try to form multiple Contracts they die? That happens because there’s too much aura bouncing around in their body. If you overload your body with all of your aura as well as all the aura you can draw from your Myth, you’ll cast Eruption! It’ll kill you instantly, but it’s very powerful.”
I recalled my battle against Futakuchi-Onna where I’d attempted to pair [ELEMENTAL MANIPULATION] with the [WRAITH STRIKE]. Fallen Star warned that I’d attempted to use too much aura at once. Was I that close to killing myself?
He’d also mentioned that I’d need another [SACRIFICE] to pull that technique off…
“Define ‘very powerful’,” Somnia asked.
“‘Very powerful’ as in, double your base level.” Yugo jabbed a finger at me. “Rui is Level 68, right? Well, if he cast Eruption, he’d cast a Level 136 Eruption!”
“What about you?” Somnia asked.
Yugo squinted a bit, looking somewhat uncomfortable. “Well, both of my Myths are Level 500, so my Eruption would be Level 2000.”
Everyone at the table stiffened. Level 500 seemed far enough out of reach for us. Level 2000? Those were video game numbers!
“It sounds impressive,” Yugo began, before any of us could ask him what Level 2000 even meant. “But it’s more dangerous than its worth. If I cast it, it’d be enough to take out an entire region. Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of people I hate enough to want to cast Eruption on. I still haven’t forgiven Masamura’s club for that horrible price gouging! But the innocent people that’d be lost in that blast don’t deserve that.” Yugo smiled, somewhat earnestly. “That’s why I’m training you three. You’re my wittle ewuptions you!”
Somnia gave Yugo an ominous smile “So long as your enemies deserve death, I’ll be more than happy to provide it.” She coughed. “For the greater good of Minashire.”
Archie nodded his agreement as Yugo gave Somnia an equally ominous smile. “Oh believe me, they do. You’ll take back every negative thing you’ve ever said about me when we really get started.”
“Yeah, I doubt that.”
As the two of them continued their conversation, I received a text on my phone from Hana of all people. I’d never given her my number! Yugo urged me to respond, and while Somnia acted indifferent I could see her peering over my shoulder in my peripheral vision.
Hana: Hey, Rui! Are you going to be busy today?
Rui: Yes
“Hey! What are you doing?! That isn't smooth at all!” Yugo shout-whispered.
“Yeah!” Archie agreed. “You’re supposed to lie and say no!”
“How do you know what I–” I began, but I learned the answer when The Historian brushed against my head from his perch beside me on top of the booth. “And I don’t need to be smooth. I’m not interested in Hana!”
“Just say what I say. Trust me!" Yugo urged.
“Fine,” I sighed. I didn’t want to spend all day going back and forth with them.
Rui: Sorryyyy, my little brother took my phone🙄 I meant to say I’m available! Wanna hang out👀👀
Hana: Are you one of Rui’s friends? I know he didn’t type that haha! Anyway, tell him I said I want to meet him later.
Rui: Nooooo it’s me! I promise!!!
Rui: Where do you wanna meet up?
Hana: There are so many people looking out for me now. I don’t want to get stopped if we go out. All I want to do is talk to you for a little bit. Meet me in that alleyway you and your friends were hiding in when you were following Mr. Yugo and his companion.
“You all were following me?!” Yugo yelled.
“Yeah, because we didn’t think you were focusing on the mission! Turns out we were right and you were getting familiar with some stripper behind a building!” Somnia challenged.
“I didn’t even know she was following us,” Archie mused. “Futakuchi-Onna was petty scary, huh?”
“First off, they are ‘Hostesses’, not ‘Strippers’. Second, I was not getting familiar with that woman, I had bribed her into telling me what she knew about the teleporter beacons. The beacons you didn’t even know existed! I had to make it look believable in the event we were getting watched. Turns out, I didn’t need to worry about being watched because you three were being watched!”
Somnia winced, and Yugo seized the opportunity. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna help my student get his first girlfriend because I think he’s uptight and he needs some love in his life.”
“Wait, what?!” I tried, but I was too late. Yugo snatched the phone from my hands, reading his texts out loud in a mocking tone. I tried to take it back, but Yugo held me back with a hand.
Rui: Got it, I’ll meet you there in an hour.
Rui: Wear that kimono I like plzzz😉
Hana: Oh my gosh, Rui… Which one…?
Rui: You make them all look good, babe😩
Rui: You in s white floral kimono tho😍😍😍
Hana: Okayy. I’ll see you soon!
“You see that? Two y’s!” Yugo said with a proud expression.
“You’re basically in there,” Archie noted.
I punched Yugo in the face with a [REINFORCED] fist. Moments later, the Tiger Lily staff dragged me out of the dining hall. I regretted nothing.