The room Adonis secured at Dale's inn proved more spacious than the one he had rented in Phyla. Notably, it accommodated two single beds, in contrast to the solitary one he had encountered before.
Upon entering the room, Adonis threw himself onto the soft mattress and sighed in exasperation; releasing all the tension from the previous day.
{I didn't think you could be so cruel, kukuku. I'm proud.} The Devil God chuckled amusedly to himself.
"It wasn't cruel... I told her the truth, what she needed to hear." In a solemn tone, Adonis spoke while fixing his gaze upon the stone ceiling.
{That was the truth? So you DO agree that you should've killed Quin back at the bar?}
"Although I hate to admit it, I was naïve," Adonis replied bitterly before he turned to his side.
{Of course, you were! So what are you going to do moving forward? When are you going to grow up?}
"I don't know..." He curled his form into a ball.
***
5 years ago.
"My dream?" a 5-year-old Oizys opened his large brown eyes to look at his father.
"Yes Ozzy, your dream. No matter how big or small it might be... What is your dream?" Eurodos clarified.
"My dream? I don't really have a goal in mind Papa..."
"You don't have a dream?" Eurodos asked being slightly taken aback as his son was usually pretty ambitious.
"Not a dream... But I do have an image of how I want to live."
"How you'd like to live?"
"Yep! I'd love to live peacefully! I'd like to get rid of all bullies!" Oizys smiled, his large brown eyes lighting up happily.
{How childish.}
As the deity's words reverberated, the boy's dream underwent a transformation, shifting into an entirely different memory.
***
6 years before the present.
In a diminutive park adorned with small wooden football goals at opposite ends, a cluster of four boys encircled a slightly smaller lad who clutched a leather ball in his hands.
The young boy in possession of the ball was dressed in notably finer attire compared to the rest.
His ensemble featured long brown pants, meticulously polished black leather shoes, a crisp white shirt with its collar unfastened, and a blue jacket layered over the shirt.
This four-year-old boasted short, golden locks and captivating cyan eyes. Evidently, his attire and healthy appearance marked him as a noble.
"C'mon, no need to be selfish Lutz." One of the boys surrounding him sneered.
"Yeah, you're a noble. You can afford plenty of other balls... Just give us this one." Another interjected.
Opposed to Lutz who was dressed pretty nicely, the other boys were dressed in plain tunics and pants which had a few holes in them.
"B-but... My Mother bought me this ball." Lutz said timidly in retaliation.
"She can always buy another one!" Amidst the group, one of the boys hollered, and they collectively initiated their approach toward the boy, their intent clear as they readied themselves to wrest the ball from his possession through sheer force.
"P-please... No!"
The group's apparent leader, a seven-year-old with closely cropped brown hair, propelled himself forward, targeting Lutz.
With a suddenness that caught Lutz off guard, the leader delivered a sucker punch directly to Lutz's stomach.
The force of the blow caused the noble lad to crumple to the ground, clutching his abdomen in agony.
Gasping for air, he struggled to recover from the unexpected attack.
"Ow!"
"Stop being so stingy! Your parents will buy another one." The seven-year-old snatched the ball.
"M-my ball!"
"C'mon everyone, let's go play!" The seven-year-old bellowed triumphantly, his gaze shifting around to his companions, seeking their validation and approval for his action.
Approximately thirty minutes later, Lutz found himself sulking, seated upon the grass, a disheartened observer as he watched the other children engage in play with his ball.
"Hey... Are they not letting you play?" A four-year-old Oizys asked, with a red lollipop in his mouth.
"..." Lutz, still harbouring bitterness over the pilfering of his ball, remained silent, his gaze fixed on the boys enjoying themselves, his emotional turmoil unspoken.
"Hello?" Puzzled, Oizys took the lollipop out his mouth and addressed Lutz once more.
Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!
"No..."
"Why? What'd you do? Don't tell me you're one of those kids who cry after being tackled." Oizys said as he narrowed his eyes.
"I didn't do anything... They took my ball." Lutz said, sounding irritated.
"And you just let them?" Oizys asked confusedly.
"What was I supposed to do?!" Lutz redirected his attention toward the curly-haired boy, who maintained a nonchalant demeanour while continuing to lick his lollipop.
"I don't know... I just know I wouldn't let them take my ball." Oizys merely shrugged.
"It's not that easy..."
"It's not?"
"No, Brandon hit me then took my ball."
"And? Just hit him back..." Oizys turned back to watch the kids, itching to go join the fun.
"Brandon's seven. He's way bigger than me."
"You sure have a lot of excuses."
"Shut up! I just want my ball back." Lutz said, his voice breaking and the waterworks resuming once more.
After a few seconds of watching the noble cry, Oizys sighed.
"Then let's go get it."
"Hm? How? Brandon's seven!"
"Seven or not... All bullies are the same."
After Oizys got Lutz to stop crying, the two walked onto the field to confront Brandon.
"Hey! Brandon!" Oizys screamed as he approached the group.
The boys who were playing in groups of two stopped abruptly to listen to the boy who approached.
"What?" Brandon, the seven-year-old scooped up the ball and watched the two who called his name.
"Who's ball is that?" In a relaxed manner, Oizys asked; alternating between talking and taking his lollipop in and out of his mouth.
"It's mine now." He replied smugly.
"Now? Did you take it from this guy?" Oizys pointed at Lutz using his left hand.
"So what if I did?"
"Give it back." He said sternly.
"And If I don't?"
"Then I'll take it."
"Try" The seven-year-old dared as he grinned at the curly-haired four-year-old.
"Hold my lollipop..." Oizys turned to face Lutz and handed him his lollipop.
***
20 minutes later.
After a one-sided beating, both Oizys and Lutz found themselves sprawled side by side in the now deserted field, covered in light bruises.
"I thought you could fight!" Lutz screamed as he turned to face Oizys.
"What made you think that?" He inquired, while he attempted to rid his lollipop of sand, his tone casual despite the circumstances.
"Well... You sounded like some kind of hero earlier."
"Hehe, thanks!" Oizys smiled brightly.
"You're a fraud!"
"That's mean." Oizys put the lollipop back in his mouth.
"Sorry."
"Why try to fight when you knew you'd lose?" Lutz asked curiously.
"Because Brandon is a bully... No matter how much stronger a bully is, you must stand against them. The moment you give up is the moment you've lost."
"..."
"By the way, I'm Oizys Hermes... You can call me Ozzy though." Oizys smiled softly, turning to Lutz.
"I'm Lutz... Lutz van Alexia. Let's be friends!"
"Nice to meet you, Lutz. Sorry that we didn't get your ball back." Oizys said regretfully.
"It's fine, don't worry about it!"
"Hey Ozzy."
"Yes?"
"You talk funny... Like a grown-up."
"Hehe..."
***
The present
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
After 69 hours of straight sleep, Adonis was woken up by the sound of someone knocking on the door.
Rubbing his eyes wearily, Adonis dragged his feet towards the wooden door.
"Naomi?" He reached for the brass handle.
"Good morning young Adonis, I noticed you haven't left your room in three days; so I thought I'd bring you some food!" Dale: A short old man, stood outside the boy's door with a tray of food in his pruny bronze hands.
"Three days?!"
"Being inside the whole day isn't healthy for a growing boy! You should eat something and take a walk later."
"Sorry to make you worry sir. Thank you." The boy chuckled as he thanked the man and took the tray.
After he left, Adonis closed the door and put the tray on the small table next to the bed he slept in.
{Don't tell me you thought that girl was coming back. I bet she already killed herself. Kukuku!}
"She'll come," Adonis said determinedly.
{Enough with wishful thinking, let's evaluate your performance.} The deity sighed.
{Your clash with the knight at the house was pretty satisfactory other than your use of Earthly Aura instead of Demonic Aura. Had you opted to coat your foot in Demonic Aura instead you would've not only shattered his blade but also would've broke his skull. House encounter: C plus}
"..."
{It gets more impressive when we move onto your second encounter in the alleys, your hand-to-hand combat was below average but for your age, I guess you were impressive. You outclassed him tactically and still managed to hold your own despite your disadvantage in physical capabilities and experience. Alley encounter: B}
The boy grinned slightly as he heard the Deity's words.
{It gets very interesting when we begin to look into the dead end... the climax of your battle. Your prep was simply phenomenal... From the very beginning, you were three steps ahead of the knight. You made him chase you around for a while acting like you were scared of him. You hid the girl in the alley, devoured a stamina and healing potion and most importantly set up the steel wire trap around the girl. You then went back to the knight and acted like he was the one who caught you and purposefully let him wound you to sell the idea that he caught you off guard. You let him conclude that you hid Naomi in the dead end when in reality you left her there as bait.}
"Bait is a strong word." Adonis sighed.
{As he headed towards the dead end you collected your staff and took a shorter route which you had surveyed earlier. You then activated the steel wire trap as he got closer to the girl. Using the brief moments in which he was trapped, you drank three potions: Healing, Stamina recovery, and Strength enhancement. With your newfound vigour, you then dominated your opponent. The impressive part wasn't the trap you set but rather your use of psychological warfare... You made sure to coat the steel wires in Black Serpent's venom so that your opponent would become slower and weaker, making your opponent feel like you were leagues above him; further impacting their mental state.... A plus.}
(Pink Viper's venom: a venom from the Pink Rank rank magic beast, the beast's venom slows down the opponent's motor skills and makes them experience a slightly distorted version of reality. The more venom the prey is exposed to, the higher the effect. )
"Surprised you praised me so much, thanks, Lord Eos." Adonis smiled softly.
{Don't get used to it.} Eos scoffed.
KNOCK KNOCK
"I haven't even started eating yet."
Adonis jumped up and dashed towards the door, getting ready to greet Dale.
To his astonishment, as Adonis swung the door open, he was met with the sight of a lovely teenage girl.
She stood at a diminutive stature, her appearance characterized by long, ebony hair and striking yellow eyes that held a captivating allure.
"Naomi?"