by Vereliosi » Sat Jun 15, 2013 9:10 am
He was a hunter by trade.
With only a long sword slung over his back, and a wandering cloak wrapped around his shoulders, he roamed the continent. Without friends or allies, he marched into numerous dungeons. Killing without stopping was his only goal, ceaselessly swinging his blade.
The Hunter sought to erase everything.
He had forgotten how to laugh.
And more importantly, he had no desire to learn again.
Boss monsters, mobs, everything that came into view--he hunted them across the continent; people could call him nothing short of a berserker. Ceaselessly, he slayed and killed, until he sat atop their corpses, the slick downpour beating against him.
When monsters became too tedious, he began to solely live in dungeons. When dungeons began to bore him, then, he became a hunter of an entirely different intonation—one who worked with bounties.
His eyes that no longer believed in life were cruel.
Why does he live?
He lives to hunt.
Why do others live?
They live to be hunted.
A heart that did not waver, and a determination which did not falter; those were his weapons, and also his weakness.
Carrying on, he made mountains of enemies along the way, and to his many foes, he unsheathed the blade he treasured, and despised the most.
The singing sword,
An annoying relic of a past age which would talk incessantly when drawn—it had been with him ever since the first dungeon he had cleared.
The rumors floating on the wind brought him news of a new job. Finding his client, who was surrounded by five other highly armed men, he walked unconcernedly, the cloak only revealing the perpetually red eyes he donned.
“Ah…thank you for coming to meet me. I’ve heard a lot about you…yes, quite a lot”
The client was a man dressed impeccably, in a white suit with gelled hair and a trimmed mustache. Waving to the man nearest his left, a suitcase was produced.
“This is the down payment. Half now and half when you finish the job.”
Standing still, the hunter didn’t show any sign of moving. He only stared at the man blankly, with an eerie gaze.
“…As for the details of this job, I’ll be needing some of your…expertise on a matter. A certain annoyance has popped up. I hope you’ll be able to do something about this.”
Receiving the money, the hunter stared at it for a second and then put it in his bag.
“This is the target…”
Snapping his fingers, the client motioned to another man before the hunter spoke, breaking the client off. His voice was sweet, and slightly young.
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“…Your name is Edmund, isn’t it?”
“Where did you…?”
“Good, then I won’t have to waste time tracking you down.”
Unsheathing his blade, the hunter walked forward, while the client backed away, his face an ashen white.
“Y-you…you’re hunting me!? Me!? Do you know who I am!? And you want to kill me!? Have you lost your mind!?”
“Count Edmund— 40 years old, not married; belongs to the republic in Brent.”
“So you do know…? Who hired you?”
“It doesn’t matter anymore.”
Looking left and right, the men surrounding the count sprang into action. However, before any could even move more than a step, the Hunter’s sword raged like a hurricane, devouring everything around him. A swirl of red floated into the air, and then silently, dropped down.
The men’s bodies were torn in two and they disappeared like ash before they even had a chance to wonder what had happened.
All that was left of them was rust on his blade.
Trembling, the client fell down, desperately trying to scramble away.
“I-I’ll pay you…double…triple…you name the price and I’ll pay you! More than whatever you’re getting now! Please…I can’t die here!”
Kneeling so that their faces were right next to each other, the hunter softly whispered into the counts ear.
“Tell me why you’re alive” he asked, sending chills down the count’s spine.
“W-what do you mean?”
“Why do you live? Why were you born?”
“T-that’s…” He didn’t want to die, so the count said anything possible to appease the hunter “For you?”
“Yes, you were born to die for me.”
“Eh?”
*Stab
Looking down, the count felt a long blade gouging his insides as blood trickled down his chin. Staring at the hunters face, he couldn’t believe what he saw.
It was the face of a beautiful girl, smiling with an empty expression which froze his heart. And in his final moments, he thought vaguely, that there were greater evils in this world than he.
To know that before he died, was truly… his eyes lost their light, and the Hunter slung him of his blade. Cleaning it, the blade shone with a strong light.
“Can’t you handle me gentler? I’m not a common sword!”
Her sword talked, jumping up in her hands. Smacking it lightly, she only gave a curt response while hearing the familiar ping of a completed quest.
“Shut up, Michi.”
“Waaaah, you hit me!”
Fluttering downwards was the image of one penguin—hot news floating around the internet. Picking the photograph up, the hunter sheathed her blade and then turned around, headed straight for her next job.
She was off to meet her next prey.