Arc 4: What families entail
Road to a hero:
Three chances in another world
Chapter 8. Offer accepted
Leo: “I would love to help yah, but I got an army to lead.”
Edward: “We understand that and want to help you win your war.”
Leo: “Seriously! Did you bring your army of somethin’?
Soku: “Nah.”
Edward: “Think of us as extra manpower…hehe…”
Leo: “Well I’m glad about it!”
Edward: “If you give us a location I can meet with you and your people if you want.”
Leo: “Gotcha alright if you give me an address I’ll come by tomorrow.”
Edward: “Okay…we’re staying at an Inn just out of town that way. Thank you for your cooperation!”
Leo: “Heh I should be thanking you! Alright, I’ll see ya tomorrow!”
Edward and Soku walk back to the inn, out of breath due to the bar fight.
Edward: “You didn’t get hurt did you?”
Soku: “Nah, I’m good. You?”
Edward: “Nothing but a little sore.”
Soku: “I say we don’t talk about the bar trouble…”
Edward: “Yeah…Rosemary will freak out about it.”
Soku: “Do you think we’ll be able to help them? Like, help them win, not just assist them.”
Edward: “It’s a gamble…we need to be able to last…no matter how long it takes I want to help them.”
Soku: “Alright then…if you feel confident then I think we all can.”
Edward: “Just stay optimistic but realistic…it’s all we can do.”
Soku: “Will do.”
They return to the inn, noticing Rosemary has fallen asleep.
Soku: “Goodnight then.”
Edward: “To you as well.”
Soku: “Wait…before we part…do you have nightmares?”
Edward: “When I was younger I had them all the time…but after a while they just…well they just stopped.”
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Soku: “How long did it take for them to stop?”
Edward: “Well I don’t know the exact time…overtime I just forgot about them.”
Soku: “Alright…thanks now I’m going to sleep.”
Soku sighs before entering her room, leaving Edward alone in the hallway.
Edward {Poor kid…going through so much so young…and she feels like she can’t talk about it. Living this type of life…being around these types of people is dangerous. But as long as we remain strong we will be able to cope with it… because it’s all we can do.}
Edward walks into his room, noticing Julius isn’t there.
Edward {He must be out somewhere. Oh well.}
Edward lies in his bed, falling asleep shortly after.
Unlike Edward, Soku stays awake unable to sleep.
Soku {I’ve been laying here for what feels like hours…I’m just gonna go downstairs and get some coffee.}
Soku leaves her room and enters the common room. Surprisingly see she's Julius sitting at one of the few tables sipping coffee and cleaning his shoes.
Julius: “What are you doing up so late?”
Soku: “Can’t sleep, you?”
Julius: “I don’t sleep much.”
Soku: “Oh yeah forgot about that.”
Julius: “Would you like some coffee?”
Soku: “Yeah sure.”
Julius: “You seem tired.”
Julius continues to talk with Soku while making her coffee.
Soku: “I’m fine.”
Julius: “I agree that you are mentally sound, but I don’t think the others would agree.”
Soku: “Yeah Rosemary has been up my ass about it…”
Julius: “You went through something horrible and didn’t want to talk about it. It’s not an uncommon thing to do.”
Soku: “See, at least somebody understands it.”
Julius: “I don’t understand why you won’t talk to your friends about it. If it interferes with the mission it is a problem. You being tired and quick to anger will be a complication.”
Soku: “Look dude I’m not gonna pull a Gray and shout all my problems at the top of my lungs. I’m just gonna deal with it until it all blows over.”
Julius: “If that is what you wish to do. Would you like milk and sugar?”
Soku: “Yeah I would.”
Julius: “Alright then…well here you go.”
Soku: “Me and Edward met the leader of the Red Arrows by the way.”
Julius: “That’s great…I figured it would take a lot longer to get this far.”
Soku: “Yeah we might be here for a lot less time than I thought.”
Julius: “The sooner we leave the sooner we take Walgonia back.”
Soku: “Now what do we do while we wait?”
Julius: “I recommend that you train your body outside, I can assist you in doing so if you want?”
Soku: “Sure I guess…I need to pass the time with something.”
They walk outside, stepping onto the wet grass, and the two combatants pull out their swords.
Julius: “Your wind magic is a strong asset to our team. If you better yourself at combat you could be a deciding factor in our victory. Speed, range, and pressure are all things you could be excellent at.”
Soku: “I have been working on it, I'm just…”
Julius: “You are lazy, that is obvious, and if you are the main support in our team dynamic you must put a stop to your laziness. We can not win if you don’t fit the mold I need. So come at me with everything you have. Try to impress me.”
Soku {Who the hell does this guy think he is? He talks like he’s so powerful but at the same time he doesn't… I can’t read him at all!}
Julius approaches Soku slowly. Soku takes a deep breath, surrounding herself in a thick layer of wind. Like a backup source of wind just in case she can’t summon some when needed.
She propels herself forward with the wind, then flows the mana around her sword attempting to just attack head-on. Julius sighs before simply moving out of the way, looking unimpressed.
Soku: “No fair! You can perceive my movements!”
Julius: “That tool can only be used if I wish it to. And right now I’m not using it.”
Soku: “Then what should I do?!”
Julius: “Use your small stature to your advantage. Make your opponent go to you because you have range and area of effect attacks. Control the battlefield instead of letting your opponent control it.”
Soku {Think…what would Gray do right now…dammit, I’m acting like Rosemary right now…}
Julius continues to approach Soku, though this time instead of approaching Julius, Soku stands her ground. Soku crosses her arms, makes a thick wall of wind, and blasts it toward Julius. Julius slices his repair through the wall cutting through it causing it to lose its’ shape and explode. Julius quickly moves you out of the way dodging the blasts of wind. Soku then throws a dense wind blade at him. Again Julius simply swings at the attack, destroying the construct of wind.
Julius: “Good job, see when you try you can be creative with your attacks.”
Soku: “Can’t tell if that was a compliment…”
Julius: “To put it bluntly you lost to Gray in the tournament due to overconfidence, low creativity, and overall lack of skill. I would like to spend our free time making sure you overcome those faults. And if you come to a better understanding with your Mark of Providence that will be greatly appreciated.”
Soku: “Okay…and I can’t really use my Mark on command…at least not all the time.?”
Julius: “Well if you accept my offer we can work on that. So do you accept my offer?”
Soku: “Yeah I do. Now let us get back to you beating me up.”
Julius: “That was a very Gray of putting it.”
Soku: “Don’t ever say that to me again please.”
Julius: “I’ll remember not to.”
END OF : Chapter Eight.