“What’s wrong? Did someone bully you? Tell me who they are and big brother will teach them a lesson.”

Asia shook her head into his shoulder. She then pushed herself up before looking him in the eye.

“I-I…I thought y-you were…gone.”

“Gone? Impossible.”

He gave her a kiss on the forehead before ruffling her hair.

“Why would I leave my lovely sister behind.”

Vasco then made his presence known.

“Because we all thought you were dead.”

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|DxD|

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“Dead? Why would you think I’m dead?”

Igor asked the question with such innocent confusion that Vasco couldn’t help but chuckle as he shook his head.

“Three-hundred-and-sixty degrees, top to bottom, you are an idiot through and through. Rushing over to Kyoto like that really was a stupid move, lad.”

Igor did not take kindly to that analogy. With inflated nostrils, he was unconvinced at his sudden mental evaluation.

“Hey! If you’re so smart, then what was I supposed to do!”

Vasco shook his head.

“You misunderstand me, Igor. I actually commend your actions. But first, let’s get this out of the way.”

He walked over to Akeno and crouched down to her level. Well…he tried but with how tall he was, the little girl still had to look up. Vasco tried to portray a kind face but all his smile did was make Akeno grip Igor’s hand very tightly.

Igor smiled lightly before reassuring her.

“Relax, little chick. Old man Vasco is a nice guy. Look. Even Asia isn’t afraid of him.”

The little blonde in question looked down at Akeno from her vantage point on Igor’s arm with a smile.

“Big brother’s right. Grandpa looks big and mean but he isn’t.”

Vasco’s lips twitched when Asia revealed that he looked mean. But considering his bulging physique, he guessed it was a fair argument.

Akeno listened to their words of encouragement and meekly stepped forward.

“Um…hello, mister?”

“Hello there little one? What is your name?”

Akeno hesitated to answer. But getting an encouraging look from Igor, she replied.

“A-Ah…Akeno.”

“Such a lovely name.”

Vasco tried to reach out to her but apparently that was too much. Immediately, Akeno darted back and hid behind the blonde, her arms wrapping tightly around his leg.

“Hehehehehehehe…”

Igor couldn’t help but chuckle at the blank face Vasco was making.

“Maybe if you comb your hair for once you wouldn’t scare her, old man.”

Vasco ran a hand through his unkempt white hair. His hair had spiked out almost as if someone ran a current of electricity through him.

“I think I’ll shave it instead…”

Knowing his attempts at endearing himself to the little fallen had somewhat failed, he stood up. Straightening his attire, he then smiled at his granddaughter.

“Asia. Why don’t you show Akeno around the house? Grandpa has something to say to your big brother.”

“?!”

Akeno immediately tightened her grip on the blonde’s right arm the moment she heard she had to be separated from him. This was unknown territory and releasing her grip from him was already asking a lot, not to mention asking her to disappear from his sight.

She looked up to him, her violet gaze silently pleading for him to refuse.

“Big brother…?”

She was already intimidated by Vasco’s appearance. His hulking figure reminded her of Masaru, the same hunter who killed her mother. With how big and muscled Vasco was, his image overlapped with that of Masaru. Her body trembled just thinking of the deranged hunter.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

But fortunately, Asia was there for the rescue.

“Okay, grandpa~!”

Sliding down from the blonde’s hold, she eagerly grabbed Akeno’s arm but found that she couldn’t get her to budge.

“Come on, let’s go! Since you call Igor ‘big brother’ too, that means we’re sisters!”

Asia’s liveliness made Akeno unsure of what to do. But an encouraging gaze from Igor made her slowly release her grip on his arm.

“A-alright…”

It was cute how she suddenly turned shy when faced with different people. But when one thought of the circumstances surrounding her shyness, it was understandable. But Asia really was too persuasive and her smile alone broke down Akeno’s apprehensions and watered down her vigilance.

Both girls eventually retreated back into the house, one with a joyful smile on her face and the other who seemed to suddenly have regrets. Once the girls disappeared into one of the rooms, Vasco’s gaze suddenly turned serious, and he did not waste time.

Looking at the blonde in the eye, he got right into the topic.

“Your individual action of storming into the heart of Japan and launching such an attack was the height of stupidity. The Shinto Pantheon alone harbours hundreds of gods, allowing them to rank amongst the top five most strongest pantheons in the world. A smart person would consider that before going out of their way to annihilate one of the five principal clans that are known to be devout followers of the LEADER of the Shinto Pantheon-”

The blonde’s gaze narrowed.

“Old man. Are you saying I should’ve let them get away with what they did? They KILLED aunty. I would never leave them alive. I don’t regret what I did, and I would do it again.”

Sensing that the atmosphere was getting tense, Vasco waved his hand to calm him down.

“You didn’t let me finish, lad. I’m saying, a smart person would think twice before making such a move. They would consider the consequences not only for themselves, but for the people around them.”

He stopped right in front of the blonde and placed his hand on his shoulder.

“But you didn’t. Like a true warrior, you alone stormed into the heart of the enemy’s territory to exact vengeance without a trace of fear. Swift and decisive. I like it. I don’t agree with it, but I like it.”

Looking into the blonde’s eyes, Vasco could see a trace of his former self.

“Your actions made me remember who I was before I also got ‘smart’, before I started thinking of politics and consequences. I was just a man with a sword. Nothing else. All I knew was that I had to swing my sword to get strong and kill who I have to kill to get stronger. Consequences? Impact? Politics? I didn’t know that. But as I grew older, as I got showered with high positions and praise, my sword was put down in favour of the pen. Fighting was now based on tongues and connections, not steel. If someone wronged me, I had to think twice because maybe they were an important sponsor or supplier of the church. The flame within me gradually died, until today.”

He tightened his grip on Igor’s shoulder.

“Igor. You could’ve died today. Do you acknowledge that?”

Without blinking, Igor replied without a single stutter.

“The moment I threw my fist for the first time, the moment I formed ki in my body, I accepted that I might die at any moment. The moment I killed, I was prepared to be killed. As long as I am at my strongest, I have no qualms with dying.”

He then looked at Vasco with a fiery gaze.

“As long as the final blow-”

“-is not from the back.”

Silence…

Vasco began shaking his head, the words reaching deep within him.

“Good words. Good…words. A true warrior’s philosophy. ‘I do not seek a long life, but a worthy death. As long as I am not felled by poison, betrayal, or deceit. As long as my back is clean of scars. As long as the final blow does not come from the back, it will be…’?”

“A worthy death.”

Vasco sighed in disappointment, more so at himself than the blonde. A true warrior’s code, the crux of their philosophy. Igor’s actions made him remember what a true warrior was. Over the years he had regressed from being a warrior to a schemer. Circumstances forced him to renege on the philosophy he once held. Age came with wisdom…and realisation. Politics, connections, backing…everything was different from the battlefield.

Vasco was sure that if he were fifty years younger, he would’ve made the same decision as Igor and rushed over to Japan for vengeance. An idiotic decision? Yes it was. Consequences? Far too many to list. But he was sure his hot-blooded younger self would seek vengeance, just like how the blonde rushed over without thinking.

“I wish I retained the same ideals as you. Maybe I wouldn’t hold so many regrets.”

He let the statement hang in the air, his mind reminiscing of similar past situations where he was forced to sit back because of the other party’s faction or backing. For too long he had sat down and let his sword rust.

But today, he changed his mind.

“I won’t make the same mistakes this time.”

He looked at Igor meaningfully.

“Lad. I want you to take Asia away from here.”

“...”

It took a moment for the blonde to process his words.

“Heh?!”

But Vasco didn’t pay attention to his astonishment. Instead, his gaze turned solemn as he looked at the towering buildings of the Vatican.

“I have been in the church all my life. I have seen its good sides and I have seen the bad. Unfortunately, the bad is more prevalent. If nothing is done, Asia will be used as a tool for the rest of her life. I love my little girl too much to allow that, but I also can’t bear to leave the church I dedicated my whole life to. It is why I ask that you as her elder brother, take her away from here. The church, as much as I love it, will not value her as they should and I’m not around all the time to enforce that.”

Igor was momentarily surprised. He had intended to take her away forcefully if need be, but he never expected Vasco to ask him to take her.

“Old man…”

“I know you think the same as well. I talked with Sister Miriam and I learned of the situation. This isn’t a place where a child like Asia should grow up. Since I wasn’t here, I expected the church to treat her as a family. I expected them that to RESPECT my name and my contributions. But it is clear that after a few measly decades, my name no longer carries weight.”

Vasco clenched his fist as anger threatened to take over. All this time he assumed that Asia was lonely. The little lass never told him about the troubles he was facing and whenever he arrived, everyone hid their envy and loathing behind smiles and treated her with respect.

He was immensely disappointed with the church when he learned of the truth from the old nun.

“All she is to them is a tool to bring in more believers. As long as she does her job and heals the patients, the church won’t interfere with what the other people do. But I know that if she leaves with you, she will experience the feeling of growing up in a proper family. And…”

He his gaze darkened.

“It will soon become too dangerous for her to remain here.”

Igor processed his words in his mind. He could feel the subtle trace of killing intent emanating from the old man. He wanted to ask what he would do, but he felt it was not his place.

So he could only agree to his request.

“...Alright. I will take Asia with me.”

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AN

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