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JULES
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The Painter’s smile grew crooked and wicked. Then he disappeared. Jules could tell he was actually gone this time. Sometimes their teacher would leave for hours, sometimes days, but never more than a few.
Cyrus and Katarina melted into their chairs in silence. Jules' Regeneration would need another hour. At least.
“I’m off.” Cyrus got up first. Katarina sighed heavily and forced herself up as well.
“Same.”
“Where are you two going?” Jules basked in the pulsing relief of a healed spleen.
“Wander around. By myself.” Katarina looked at Whiskers when she said it. He purred, but Jules thought he blushed, like he was embarrassed.
“I’m just gonna explore, see where I end up.” Cyrus faced Jules. “Kinda like you that one night.”
Jules laughed. “Busted.”
“Yeah, I woke up and saw you were gone. But I understood, so I stayed back.”
“What will you do, laze around some more?” Katarina crossed her arms.
Jules spread his limbs out like a starfish. “Kaizen said to meditate, so meditate it is. Especially while he’s gone.”
“Don’t forget to let the pets out, Jules.” Whiskers hissed at Cyrus.
"Jules," Rukia jerked her head at Katarina and Cyrus. "Today's the day."
“Right—you two—at some point today, I’m going to try to reach out to you while you’re gone. In your mind. Part of my training.”
“Sounds like a breach of privacy,” Katarina said.
“It won’t last long, and I won’t pry. In fact, you should resist it as much as possible. I’ll just try to see where you are, is all. Kaizen said it’s important to learn this technique. Might be good for you to learn how to fight back.”
“Invade all you want, Jules,” Cyrus said. “I’m tired of fighting. I’m taking my full day off to enjoy myself and rest up before it’s back to the grinding stone.”
“If you pry, you die.” Katarina glared at him, and Jules gulped.
Then the two of them left the art supply store for the first time in months. The two animals turned their attention to Jules, but he was already meditating.
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Jules stopped walking in the middle of the street, closed his eyes, and inhaled through his nose, slowly and deeply. For one moment, just one moment, he'd ignore his stalkers to take in the scenery.
Salt in the air. Real salt. And fish.
Freshly baked croissants. Citrus. A hint of saffron.
Wait, what’s this—teriyaki, this early? Oh. Oh fuck yes. Brilliant—
Agh, gross! Is that B.O.?
Jules opened his eyes and wrinkled his nose. A mammoth of a man who looked like he’d been at sea for seven years walked past him. The smell faded with him.
He watched as a crowd of people hustled about their mornings all around him, rushing through the morning foot traffic. Docking boats blared their horns. Birds chirped and cawed, people laughed. Jules felt sunlight, real sunlight, on his pale skin for the first time in a half-year.
I have been tan my entire life until now. I guess not even The Painter can simulate the sun. He raised tilted his head to the sky. Rays of light fell onto his back, but so too did a pair of eyes.
A salivating Jules ran over to several food stands and gorged himself on a variety of fruit and pastries. When he had just primed his appetite, he surveyed the streets, but didn't see anyone following him. Fine, I give up. Jules focused on sensing Cyrus and Katarina through his Telepathy Skill.
Big surprise, Cy’s back there. Again. Sweet Salvos, dude, give it a break. Jules released his focus on Cyrus and shifted to Katarina.
So it seems Kat’s the one following me, with Whiskers close behind. Good. Figured they’d be curious that I left this time. Kaizen is expecting us all.
> [Pang! Telepathy increased to Level 15.]
Rukia shifted in Jules’ backpack. He felt guilty about this heat, but for now, it was the only safe way to travel through town with her in broad daylight. An odd combination of relief and adrenaline carried Jules through Aquilantis. He swiped his hand in the L-formation to look at his most recent accomplishments.
> [Paint It Black — Quest Objective COMPLETED: Level Up all magic Skills to 10.]
>
> [Paint It Black — Quest Objective COMPLETED: Level Up all crafting Skills to 10.]
>
> [Paint It Black — Quest Objective ADDED: Level Up your preferred Skills to Level 20.]
Level 10 transformations are finally done. Crafting sucks, but combat and magic were worthwhile. It was their final day off for the foreseeable future, and he wanted to spend it with Rukia and Kaizen; Katarina and Whiskers would be bonus company.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
Three kids carrying a shoddy hand cart cut him off and crossed the road. Jules paused to smile. He felt nostalgic about a moment that felt like an entire lifetime ago. Don’t dwell on it. Stay focused. Jules looked over his shoulder. He wanted to make sure Katarina noticed the scene as well.
To mess with Kaizen, he took a long and convoluted route to the Fountain of the Virtues. I'll test his patience for once.
He walked to another food stand and bought four servings of raw fish on rice balls. He left two behind for his pursuers, to let them know he was onto them. They caught up to him moments later. “Not very stealthy, either one of you.”
“It’s cheating when you can track me anywhere I go.”
“I didn’t have to sense you to feel your presence, Kat. But I did want you to follow. There’s someone I want you to meet.”
“Figured there has to be a good reason for you to break your monk's vow and step outside for once. The real world reeks, doesn't it?"
"Eh, only sometimes."
Katarina shuddered. "Please don't say that word." Her face fell flat.
A shit-eating grin spread across Jules' lips. "What's the matter, eh? Don't like the new way I talk, eh?"
"Ugh." Katarina shook her head. "I despise that man."
"Eh, The Painter's not that bad. We've come a long way—"
"To get a break from him. One more word about him, and I'm gone. Can it." Katarina walked a few steps ahead of Jules, who couldn't think up a clever response before they reached the plaza.
"Last time I was here with you…"
"You probably wanted to kill me," Katarina said. "If only for a second." Yep.
Jules laid out a blanket for them and pulled out a picnic basket from his Inventory. He set placemats and glasses for five. "Want me to silence us?" Salvos, what'd I say this time?
"Whatever, sure." Katarina looked off to the Fountain and the cliffs. Jules invoked his Seal.
> « Muffle »
>
> « Conceal »
>
> [₹6,700 // ₹10,000]
Jules took out some fruit, pastries, and sushi, plus a bottle of booze that he'd stolen from The Painter.
"Check out this wine."
> [Item: Hinomura Desert Wine. Exceptionally rare. Value of ₹10k+. (Stolen)]
Katarina ripped the bottle away from him to study it. “Seems like it pairs perfectly with our celebration. Cheers to perfect 10s across the board.” She poured only two glasses, for him and for herself.
“You know, I’ve had the best time of my life with you four,” Jules said. “Fighting, getting stronger, building our trust together.”
“Only four, huh? Guess you’re leaving out Whiskers from that count.” The cat angrily mewed back at her.
“Of course. I’d trust The Painter over a bad luck omen any day.” Jules rubbed the kitten's head to further annoy him.
Katarina went to cheers, but Jules held back. She held her glass there, awkwardly, frowning. You could use some patience, too. Katarina looked at the Fountain of the Virtues. “So why bring me here now? Didn’t trust me before?” She lifted the glass to her lips, but restrained herself from drinking without a toast.
“Of course I trust you. First of all, I couldn’t have introduced you two sooner because I lacked the Telepathy Skill Level. Second, he’s finally gone. Out-of-the-city-gone, so it’s the perfect chance.”
“You can sense him now, too?”
“For a while now, yeah. At first he would screw with me, making me think he was gone when he wasn't, but over time I've learned to separate the noise and—"
“And you believe that it’s real—real information? No illusions?”
“Telepathy is Level 15, so—”
“Idiot,” she whispered. She shook her head and placed her glass back on the blanket. “You put too much faith in yourself and underestimate our instructor. Level 15 versus an Alter, I swear."
“It’s not just me who’s certain I’m right, Kat. I'll let him tell you." Jules' eyes and Seal lit up white.
> « Summon »
>
> [₹4,200 // ₹10,000]
Kaizen’s ghost materialized in front of the three of them. He sat tailor style between them. Rukia wriggled about inside Jules' backpack. Oh yeah—
“Hello, Wrath,” Whiskers said.
Kaizen twisted his knuckles into the cat’s head. He made brief contact before his rough hand turned ethereal and slipped through Whiskers. Well that's an improvement. Then Kaizen reached through Jules’ backpack to give Rukia some love. The fox giggled. Hm, seems like he can always touch Rukia, though. Jules let her out of his pack, and she climbed into Kaizen's lap without a word. Lastly, Kaizen turned to face Katarina.
“Hello, Envy,” he said with a warm smile. For a moment, Jules wished he were more like Kaizen.
“I prefer—”
“Address her as Katarina, if you would,” Whiskers said flatly.
“You look just like her,” Kaizen whispered. His smile transitioned into a solemn frown. The red flush of Katarina's cheeks faded away. She seemed confused to Jules. “Why come now, Jules? Better be an emergency. I’ve been on edge all day since you left your little stronghold.”
“It’s been a grueling half to this year. Kat and I have put Greed and Sloth’s punishments to the test. We’ve died hundreds of times, and surely more are to come.”
“OK, that’s not at all what I asked, but I’ll play along.”
“Surrounded by idiots,” Katarina muttered.
Kaizen looked back and forth between the two Sins suspiciously, devilishly even.
“Say, have you two noticed anything different between the two of you?” Kaizen asked.
“We have faster Regeneration,” Katarina said.
Kaizen laughed. “Not what I was asking, but that is good. I could grow back an arm in minutes, there at the end…”
Trailing off again, probably realized he said too much. Kat still doesn’t know about Kaizen’s battle for the Apocalypse. Not that I know much about it, either. Jules changed the subject.
“Cy's back in control. I can tell he’s more focused on our mission again, though I am worried about where he’s been going—”
“I’m so exhausted.” Katarina clanked her glass to his, then she took a long swig of wine. Whiskers climbed into her lap.
“Yeah, me too. I like the stimulation of battle, though. Not sure what that says about me as a Sin, and Wrath at that. Crafting Skills were boring as hell for me, but still, the progress through it was rewarding enough.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever take my System Notifications off silent again. The relentless panging was going to drive me insane faster than dying every day.”
Jules laughed. Kaizen smiled at them both.
“Yeah, after combat was over, Cy really took to killing us with magic. I guess crafting wasn’t so bad after all. Decent break at least.”
"Because I tried all the poisons."
"Yeah, because Kat… You were supposed to be making potions. You just suck at Alchemy."
"Sounds about right," Kaizen chimed in.
“He has become more aware of your vulnerabilities and weaknesses.” Whiskers brought them all back down to earth.
“True. What he thought was our greatest asset, he’s now starting to see as the curse it really is.”
“Sounds bad when you say it like that,” Katarina said.
“It’s really not,” Kaizen said. “It’s good that he knows your weaknesses. It will help him protect you in the future, and it shines a light on them today, so you are also aware. I was happy to see you two stop holding back with Cy, and at least trust The Painter to keep him alive. He doesn’t need a false sense of security either. I’m proud of you three.”
Rukia laughed at the ghost. Kaizen furrowed his brow and hawked a loogie off to the side of their picnic. Katarina wrinkled her face in disgust, and Jules joined in with Rukia.
“He hates that word, Pride.” Kaizen winced again at the sound. “But I agree. Plus, I’ve made sure to ask a lot of questions about the Arcanics being studied, tortured, killed…that’s helped keep Cy focused. He still wants to be an Alter for his own reasons, which I'm happy for, but he’s also more aware of how much we are actually going to need him as our teammate.”
“So…no emergency.” Kaizen looked around at all the passersby. “You just risked your life to chit chat, then?”
“Of course not.” Jules filled their glasses again. Katarina lifted her glass to her lips. “And cut the act. I can't hide my thoughts from you two, yet. I brought us all here because I am terrified.”
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