ã€ŠThe Demon Slayers Sidekickã€‹


 Chapter 1: The Long Awaited Reunion

    Have you ever heard of the story of the Demon Slayer?

    Judging by your response, either you haven''t, or you¡¯re thinking of a Demon Slayer completely unrelated to this tale.

    But moving past that for now, I think it''d probably be best to start at the beginning of this story. So, allow me to tell you the tale of the both Demon Slayer and his sidekick.

    It all began a little over twenty years ago. It was a night like any other when an angel suddenly flew down from the heavens and landed in front of a young boy.

    Unlike the others watching, the boy showed no fear. All he did was watch the angel with a sparkle in his eyes. Smiling, the angel patted the boy on the head as its hand began to glow.

    ¡°I bestow these powers on you, my boy. When you grow older, use these powers for the good of this world.¡±

    Not quite sure what to think of those words, the boy simply nodded his head.

    Seeing his response, the angel¡¯s smile grew wider before it ascended back to the heavens. Never to be seen again.

    Since that day, the boy trained day and night in preparation for his one and only goal. What was said goal? After having finally understood the angel''s message, the boy thought about the evils in this world and found one true evil rose above all others. That evil was none other than the Demon Lord known as Darterest, a terrible demon who¡¯d been spreading terror across the entire world.

    "One day, I swear I''ll slay the Demon Lord no matter what!"

    Much to the adult''s surprise, the boy seemed completely unfazed as he declared this goal to the world. In fact, he seemed quite excited at the thought.

    And so, using the gifts given to him by the angel, the boy trained his hardest to grow strong enough to defeat Darterest.

    A few years later, the boy set out at the age of twelve and officially started his journey.

    However, not too long after his quest had begun, he found himself struggling to manage everything that he needed for his quest. As skilled as he was with a blade, he wasn¡¯t very good with finances, or equipment management among other things. Soon enough, he found himself constantly struggling to keep up with the world around him.

    That was when he appeared. A young demi-human who was amazed by the boy and admired his goal to defeat Darterest. And then, without hesitation, the young demi-human asked to join the boy¡¯s party.

    The boy almost wanted to reject this demi-humans request. However, he found himself intrigued by the young demi-human''s attitude. Thus, the boy brought on the demi-human to work under him as his sidekick.

    With that settled, the two trained together for almost a full year before finally beginning their quest to slay the Demon Lord.

    Three more years passed.

    Even though many hardships had befallen them, they still fought onward and eventually made it to the castle of the Demon Lord Darterest.

    The two fought battle after battle to the best of their abilities before finally reaching the chamber of Darterest himself.

    Despite their struggles, the Demon Slayer refused to admit defeat. And after what felt like an eternity, he finally managed to defeat Darterest once and for all.

    The boy, who was now at the age of sixteen, was worshiped all over the land as he was officially given the title of Demon Slayer.

    With all the cheers and celebration, it looked like the world was finally at peace. And both the Demon Slayer and his sidekick could finally rest easy...at least that was how it was supposed to be. However, less than two weeks after the destruction of Darterest, the Demon Slayer¡¯s sidekick suffered a great loss.

    Because of said loss, despite understanding stuff like this was bound to happen when hanging around the Demon Slayer, the sidekick left the Demon Slayer¡¯s side without any hesitation. The person who was once considered the Demon Slayer¡¯s most trusted and loyal companion had left him behind.

    Knowing how it waswhen it came to his friend''s feelings, all the Demon Slayer could do was simply hold back his tears as he let his best friend go.

    However, right before he left, the Demon Slayer''s sidekick stopped and turned around. In almost a whisper he said: ¡°Come find me in ten years. If you do, then I¡¯ll return to adventuring with you once more.¡±

    With that, the two parted ways.

    The Demon Slayer continued to fight evil all across the land and ended up saving the world on several more occasions.

    But what became of his sidekick remains a mystery to this day.

    However, despite everything he did to help the Demon Slayer on his journey, none cared about what had become of him as long as the true hero, the Demon Slayer, continued to thrive.

    That was, at least. until ten years had finally passed, and the Demon Slayer announced to the world he would set out once more to find his old and trusted companion from so long ago.

    With that, we¡¯ve reached the end of that tale. While we may one day discuss the adventures the Demon Slayer and his sidekicks went on as they journeyed to defeat the Demon Lord in greater length, for now, a new adventure was about to begin.

    Somewhere off to the south, a little ways away from the capital of IronForm, a little town named Gogonai bustled with activity.

    From the men and women hanging up streamers to the children blowing up balloons with smiles on their faces. Everywhere you went, someone was doing something.

    Among them, a boy who seemed to be in his late teens made his way down the street carrying a basket of apples.

    While he was walking, he noticed someone he recognized stepping out of their house who looked like they¡¯d just woke up and he called out to them.

    ¡°Hey Rorio, you doing well today?¡±

    The boy had a beaming smile on his face as he asked this.

    Hearing his voice, the person the boy called out to known as Rorio turned around and responded with a simple shrug.

    ¡°Y''know, the average I guess,¡± he replied.

    The boy holding the basket put it down on the ground and walked up in front of Rorio.

    The boy speaking was Sodu Fruveo. He had short, light brown hair that stopped right above his neck, as well as bright brown eyes. In terms of looks, he looked like the very definition of an average villager. Nothing stood out about him and no one really thought much about him. Being quite aware of his own appearance, he found himself pondering how he became familiar with someone like Rorio.

    Rorio, in comparison, had sharp black hair, and dark blue eyes. And even though he wore clothes similar to Sodu, he clearly had some muscle on him that showed he kept himself in good shape.

    The two of them looked so different from each other, that it was hard to believe the two actually considered each other good friends.

    As he stared at Rorio, Sodu noticed he was looking around confused.

    ¡°Something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Hm? Oh. I was just wondering what all the decorations were for.¡±

    As Sudo looked around the two of them, he saw streamers, balloons, and banners being hung up all over the place.

    Having already understood why they were there, Sodu turned back to Rorio.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear? Apparently, the Demon Slayer is coming to our village to see if his old sidekick is living here.¡±

    Rorio¡¯s eyes went wide with surprise.

    ¡°That so?¡±

    He then looked back at the decorations.

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s exciting. But is all this really necessary? The sidekick or whatever he is might be might not even be here.¡±

    Sodu shrugged.

    ¡°That may be, but according to what I¡¯ve heard, if people set up a party for the Demon Slayer before he arrives, he hangs around for a bit to sign autographs and interact with the townsfolk. Once word got around about that, everyone immediately started to prepare everything they could in hopes he¡¯d stick around for a little bit before he had to set off again.¡±

    Seeing the excitement in Sudo¡¯s eyes as he talked about the rumors, all Rorio could do was chuckle awkwardly. He wasn¡¯t that interested, but seeing how much Sudo was looking forward to this, he just tried his best to smile and let Sudo have his fun.

    ¡°Well with how much everyone seems to be working, I hope he sticks around like you want him to,¡± Rorio said in hopes of not souring Sudo¡¯s attitude.

    Sudo nodded excitedly but soon found himself frowning at the lack of thrill on Rorio¡¯s face.

    ¡°Shouldn''t you be at least a little more excited about this event?¡±

    Rorio scratched the back of his head and sighed.

    ¡°Sorry. I¡¯m just not really one for festivities. But don¡¯t let my feelings ruin your mood. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s quite exciting for you to see the Demon Slayer for yourself.¡±

    A little disappointed by his words, Sodu nodded in understanding before hoisting up his basket of apples and started making his way off.

    Just before he left, however, Rorio turned to him.

    ¡°Hey Sodu, before I forget to ask, do you think you can assist me after you¡¯re done with that? I need someone to help me get some wheat delivered to Uncle Stiff before lunch or he''s gonna flip.¡±

    Facing Rorio, Sodu nodded.

    ¡°Sure, I can do that.¡±

    Hearing that, Rorio smiled and thanked him before walking off to do whatever he did in the morning while Sodu continued making his way down the street.

    After dropping off the basket of apples, Sodu found Rorio and the two of them went and picked up the wheat before heading over to Uncle Stiff''s barn.

    This wasn¡¯t an uncommon thing for Rorio to do. In fact, he frequently delivered stuff to his Uncle Stiff. The surprising part was that said barn was quite a ways away from the village. As such, Sudo found himself amazed that Rorio was willing to make the trip there and back as often as he did.

    When they reached said barn, they found Uncle Stiff lying in a rocking chair on his porch.

    Uncle Stiff looked to be around his mid-forties. Similar to Sodu, he wore the exact outfit to represent his part in society. Meaning he looked like the epitome of the farmer archetype with a set of dirty overalls, a bald forehead with thin lines of hair wrapped on the sides of his head, as well as a hoe off to the side for plowing in the fields. He even had a snore loud enough to wake a rooster. Sadly, Sodu and Rorio had to learn this firsthand.

    As Sodu and Rorio stared at him, Uncle Stiff continued snoring loudly.

    Growing irritated at the sight in front of him, Rorio walked up to Uncle Stiff and shook his shoulder.

    ¡°Wake up you old geezer,¡± Rorio mumbled, irritated.

    Slowly, Uncle Stiff stopped snoring. However, rather than opening his eyes, he suddenly jumped out of his chair screaming which caused Rorio to jump back in surprise.

    ¡°I ain¡¯t ever gonna let you take my liver ya hear me!!¡± Uncle Stiff shouted as he grabbed hold of his hoe ready to swing.

    However, as his vision cleared, he saw Sodu and Rorio standing in front of him.

    ¡°Oh, Rorio. Sorry bout that. I was dreaming bout my old adventur''n days and mistook you for a monster tryin to steal my liver.¡±

    ¡°What kind of monster would want to steal your liver?¡± Rorio asked shaking his head.

    Going off to put the wheat in the barn, Rorio left Sudo and Uncle Stiff to talk to each other.

    ¡°So you really think the Demon Slayer will find his sidekick out here in our village Mr. Stiff?¡±

    Still excited about the Demon Slayer¡¯s arrival, Sodu decided to ask someone like Mr. Stiff, who was a self-proclaimed famous adventurer, what he thought about the whole thing.

    Uncle Stiff nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m positive. That¡¯s what my adventurers gut is tellin me and it¡¯s never been wrong. Plus, if you remember, the guy''s sidekick is said to be a real strong demi-human. And if I remember correctly, we have quite a few there in the village you guys live in.¡±

    Sodu nodded in agreement.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. If I remember correctly, we have six demi-humans living in the village. All of which are quite strong in their own areas of expertise.¡±

    Having finished putting away the wheat, Rorio returned to the two right in the middle of their discussion.

    They quickly caught him up and he gave his own thoughts.

    ¡°Well, you could limit it down that number a little more. If you take into account that Demi-Human''s age slower than humans do. Using how long it¡¯s been as a reference, they probably don''t look very different from whatever age they were once they retired. So we''d have to think about the Demi-Humans who are on the younger-looking side.¡±

    ¡°That''s not a bad idea, but that only eliminates two candidates. That still leaves four left.¡±

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    After saying that, Sudo scratched his head in frustration.

    Uncle Stiff, apparently done with the conversation, leaned back into his chair and closed his eyes.

    ¡°Well whoever it is, come on over and tell me when you get the chance. I¡¯d love to know who it was.

    ¡°You¡¯re making it sound like the Demon Slayer''s sidekick is definitely here in this village,¡± Rorio stated as he gave his Uncle Stiff a look of suspicion.

    Uncle Stiff shrugged.

    ¡°I just listen to what my gut says. It¡¯s usually right on the money.¡±

    Having said that, Uncle Stiff began rocking his chair a little as he got into a more comfortable position.

    ¡°Anyway, I still gotta catch up on some Z''s, so I''ll see ya two later.¡±

    Not giving them a chance to respond, Uncle Stiff passed out almost instantly.

    Upon seeing that, Rorio let out a frustrated sigh.

    ¡°How can you be tired when you didn¡¯t even move from your seat, you old geezer?¡±

    Sudo chuckled awkwardly before he and Rorio turned around and went on their way.

    As they walked back, Sudo and Rorio decided to continue the conversation from before.

    ¡°So the only candidates left for the position are Soul, Sammy, Gola, and Finji. Which do you think it is?¡± Sodu asked.

    ¡°Hm...that''s a pretty tough call. While each has their own skill in terms of prowess, none of them have what a Demon Slayer would need in a sidekick.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well, Soul is skilled when it comes to having physical strength, but he¡¯s also kinda dumb. As for Gola, I¡¯d say she the exact opposite where she¡¯s crazy smart, but lacking in physical abilities. Sammy¡¯s kind of a wimp and rarely leaves his house, and Finji¡¯s claimed he¡¯s never been one for adventure. Taking all that into account, none of them feel like the correct answer.¡±

    Knowing Rorio had a point, the two of them both let out a frustrated sigh at the exact same time before they continued discussing their theories until they made it back to the village.

    Walking through the streets, Sudo and Rorio heard cheers of excitement in the air.

    Rorio turned toward the direction of the cheers with a confused look on his face.

    ¡°What do you think¡¯s going on over there?¡±

    After thinking about it for a moment, Sodu¡¯s eyes started to sparkle.

    ¡°Maybe the Demon Slayer is finally here! Let¡¯s go check!¡±

    Rorio held out his hands as if to say ¡°Hold on a second¡± and then scratched the back of his head.

    ¡°Er...Maybe in a bit. I¡¯ve got a few more things I need to do. How about you go on ahead?¡±

    ¡°Oh...You sure?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll catch up to you in a few minutes.¡±

    A little disappointed, Sodu nodded in understanding.

    ¡°Got it. See you there!¡±

    The two waved goodbye to each other and went their separate ways.

    Thus, Sudo began making his way toward the cheers of excitement as fast as he could.

    Finally reaching the crowd of people, Sodu saw a stage had been set up in the middle of the crowd. And once he saw who was standing on the stage, the smile on his face grew even wider.

    ¡°Hey everyone, I''ve come to bring my sidekick back to my side and I''m positive he''s among you!¡±

    The person¡¯s voice was filled with so much energy and prestige, there was no doubt it was the voice of a legendary warrior.

    There was no mistaking it. This was, in fact, the Demon Slayer himself.

    Sodu pushed through the crowd to get a better look.

    The person standing on the stage was a man who looked to be in his late twenties to early thirties. He had puffy short bright brown hair, a chiseled face, a black t-shirt, both a metal chest plate and shoulder pads, long black pants, a set of dark brown shoes, and a smile that instantly won over every girl within the stage¡¯s vicinity.

    This was him, the Demon Slayer. The legendary warrior that slayed the Demon Lord Darterest and saved this world from destruction on multiple occasions.

    The Demon Slayer let out a laugh as he looked around at the crowd.

    ¡°I''m sure he''s here. I can feel it!¡±

    Sodu listened to his words with a sparkle in his eyes.

    The Demon Slayer continued to scan the crowd when his head suddenly stopped moving.

    His smile suddenly grew wide and the Demon Slayer stepped off the stage.

    Pushing through the crowd, the Demon Slayer began walking straight toward Sodu.

    Surprised, Sodu took a few steps back.

    ¡°Wait. Is he coming up to me? Why? I''m not his sidekick!¡± thought Sodu as he saw the hulking figure of the Demon Slayer walking toward him.

    The Demon Slayer was getting closer by the minute. Panicking, Sodu looked around confused.

    ¡°He''s getting closer! What should I do?''''

    The Demon Slayer got even closer and Sodu was losing his mind.

    ¡°What do I do!? What do I do!?¡±

    Sodu had no idea what was going on. Did the Demon Slayer think he was his old sidekick? As much of an honor as that would¡¯ve been, Sudo was just your average villager with nothing special about him.

    With the Demon Slayer being less than a few steps away, Sudo closed his eyes-

    ¡°....?¡±

    -and the Demon Slayer walked right past him.

    Sodu let out a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Oh thank goodness. I was starting to worry I¡¯d have to clear up a misunderstandi-¡±

    ¡°I knew it was you! I¡¯m so happy to see you again R-!¡±

    CRASH!

    Jumping in surprise, Sodu turned around to find the Demon Slayer on the ground, groaning in pain as a guy with blue hair that looked to be in his teens pinned him down.

    ¡°Dammit, Domino! Why can''t you just let me live my life in peace!¡± the man shouted angrily.

    Sodu stared at him in complete shock. Completely amazed at how easily this man threw the Demon Slayer onto the ground.

    Just then, the man seemed to notice the crowd staring at him and he released the Demon Slayer with an awkward chuckle.

    Recomposing himself, the man spoke to the crowd.

    ¡°Uh...Wow. I never knew I was strong enough to do something like that! Heh heh heeeh....¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    There was nothing but silence after those words. It seemed the man had wanted to just play it off as an accident but no one appeared to be buying it.

    At a moment, a realization hit Sudo as he looked closer at the strange man.

    Stepping forward, he spoke up.

    ¡°Rorio?¡±

    Hearing that, the man turned to Sudo letting out a frustrated groan.

    Indeed. Standing in front of Sudo was none other than Rorio.

    While his hair color was different from before, he still had the same face and wore the same clothes. Making it all too easy for Sodu to recognize him.

    Seeing how shocked Sodu was, Rorio scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

    At this point, Rorio knew he wasn¡¯t able to make up any believable excuses and just rubbed his eyes.

    ¡°Allow me to introduce myself to everyone. My name¡¯s Rorio Alvas. Believe it or not, I¡¯m the Demon Slayer''s sidekick.¡±

    Letting his words sink in, Rorio let out another sigh as he stood there awkwardly.

    The Demon Slayer that Rorio called Domino popped back up a moment later and let out a hearty laugh.

    ¡°Oh, man Rorio. You still pack quite a wallop. It''s good to see you, old friend.¡±

    ¡°Tsk.¡±

    CRASH!

    After clicking his tongue in annoyance, Rorio smashed Domino into the ground once more.

    While he twitched in pain, Rorio glared at Domino.

    ¡°Why the hell are you here Domino?¡±

    Rorio already knew the answer, but he was too angry to realize that. Something about seeing Domino again seemed to irritate him.

    Domino laughed heartily once more as he got up and put his hand on Rorio''s shoulder.

    ¡°Isn''t it obvious? It''s been ten years! I''ve come to retrieve you so we can continue our adventures together once more!¡±

    Rorio rolled his eyes. Even after that explanation, Rorio still didn¡¯t like how touchy-feely Domino was getting and was about to slam him onto the ground again only to notice the people watching were clearly growing quite agitated with how he was treating Domino.

    So trying his best to hold himself together, he let out a frustrated sigh.

    Sodu looked at the two of them still completely dumbfounded.

    He wasn''t the only one either. Several people there were still watching with shock on their faces.

    With a grin, Domino shouted out, ¡°Everyone! This is him! The Demon Slayer''s Sidekick!¡±

    Domino¡¯s words hung in the air for several moments.

    And after a few seconds of silence, the crowd erupted into cheers. Apparently happy to hear Domino had found who he was searching for.

    Not too long after, the cheers began to subside and a woman walked up to Domino and Rorio.

    She stood in front of Rorio and bowed politely.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you Demon Slayers sidekick.¡±

    Lost on who this girl was, Rorio turned to Domino.

    ¡°Oh right! You haven''t met one another yet. Rorio, this is Filora. She''s been traveling with me for the last eight months as per the request of her father King Melodis.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Rorio took a quick look at Filora.

    She had long blonde hair that was tied into a ponytail, a light blue long-sleeved shirt that was mostly covered up by her breastplate, dark grey pants, brown shoes, and a leather bag that she hung over her shoulder.

    She gave Rorio a smile that caused several men still hanging around to blush.

    However, her beauty didn¡¯t seem to register with Rorio.

    ¡°Whatever,¡± he replied in a bored tone as he rolled his eyes.

    Upon hearing that, Filora''s smile twitched slightly.

    Clearly uninterested in talking any further, Rorio began to walk off.

    ¡°Wait! Where are you going Rorio!? We''ve just been reunited! You could at least show a little more enthusiasm!¡±

    Cleary upset at Rorio''s cold response, Domino reached out his hand to grab him only for Rorio to duck out of the way and continue walking. Slightly put off by Rorio¡¯s attitude, Filora let out an awkward chuckle.

    As he watched the three interact, Sodu couldn¡¯t help but watch them with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

    Rorio glanced over at him for a moment before letting out a sigh and making his way back toward his house.

    Upon returning home, Rorio walked over to his stove and saw a pot sitting there with boiling water lying inside it.

    Realizing Domino might notice him if he stepped outside, Rorio had prepared to spend the entire day hiding inside his home. Sadly, he forgot to go pick up some potatoes for the stew he was planning to make so he decided to risk stepping out in order to get some.

    Sadly, he not only failed to avoid being noticed, but he also stormed back home in a huff and completely forgot about the potatoes.

    Letting out a frustrated groan, Rorio poured some water under his stove to cool down the coal beneath and he grabbed hold of the hot water.

    ¡°Guess I¡¯ll just make a sandwich,¡± he mumbled before pouring out the hot water and walking over to the kitchen counter to grab a loaf of bread.

    As he did so, however, he heard a knock on the door.

    Since he was already all too aware of who it was, he didn¡¯t even bother to answer. He simply tried his best to ignore it.

    Sadly, that didn¡¯t end up doing much as Domino opened up his door without any hesitation a few moments later.

    ¡°Whoa. This is a nice place you got here Rorio!¡±

    Domino started to mess the place up and Filora just sat down at Rorio¡¯s kitchen table. Letting out another groan, Rorio angrily at his unwelcome guests.

    ¡°Remind me again when I let you guys come into my house.¡±

    ¡°Oh come on Rorio! Best friends shouldn''t have to worry about small things like this!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s small about messing up my house!?¡±

    The two went on a back-and-forth dispute between each other for several minutes before Rorio rubbed his eyes.

    Clearly about to snap, Rorio finally flung the two intruders out of his house and slammed the door behind them.

    Having watched how the two interacted up until now, Filora turned to Domino with a rather stiff smile.

    ¡°He uh...definitely has character.¡±

    Domino shrugged.

    ¡°He can get pretty cranky from time to time, but I''m sure the call of adventure is reaching out to him. I just know it!¡±

    Having said that, Domino and Filora decided to give Rorio space for now and left to go explore the town.

    Around an hour later, Rorio left his house and made his way over to a grassy field outside the village where he found himself lying down on the ground while getting his thoughts together.

    Hearing footsteps coming from behind him, Rorio looks up to find Sodu standing there.

    ¡°Mind if I join you?¡± he asked with a smile.

    Rorio shrugged.

    ¡°Go right ahead.¡±

    Sodu lied down next to him and looked up at the sky.

    ¡°Sooo...You¡¯re the Demon Slayer''s sidekick, huh?¡±

    ¡°Yup. Surprising?

    ¡°A little. I just thought the sidekick was a demi-human, that¡¯s all.¡±

    ¡°Hm? Oh yeah. I guess my disguise didn¡¯t fully slip, did it?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Rorio stood up and faced Sodu. Suddenly a pair of wolf ears and a wolf tail popped up onto Rorio''s body.

    ¡°Whoa! You¡¯re a Demi-Human!¡±

    Rorio nodded, slightly uncomfortable.

    ¡°I''ve personally never really liked my ears and tail, so I just hide them away using a special type of magic that lets you hide certain features on your body.¡±

    After he said that, Rorio¡¯s ears and tails vanished with only his change in hair color remaining. Making him look human once more.

    Laying back down on the ground, Rorio went back to thinking as Sodu laid there next to him.

    ¡°So, I guess you¡¯re leaving then?¡±

    Rorio let out a sigh.

    ¡°If I had a choice in the matter, then no. But it''s a promise I made. And I intend to keep it.¡±

    ¡°...I see.¡±

    There was a calm silence between them for a few minutes after that. Then Sodu opened his mouth.

    ¡°I''m gonna miss ya. I hope our paths will cross again.¡±

    Rorio shrugged.

    ¡°Who knows? Maybe they will, maybe they won''t.¡±

    With how uncertain the future was, it was impossible to know for sure if these two would ever meet again. Still, even if the chance was small, the two hoped they¡¯d cross paths once more.

    With nothing else to say, the two of them went back to lying on the ground in silence for what felt like hours.

    ¡°Well, that''s enough of that.¡±

    Having cleared his head, Rorio got onto his feet as Sodu sat up to look at him.

    ¡°Good luck,¡± he said as Rorio started to walk off.

    Rorio waved his hand back at him before making his way off the grassy plain.

    As Rorio walked through the streets, he took note of all the memories he made in this village. His days of peace were finally at their end and it was time to return to the world of adventure once more.

    Making his way over to the road leaving the village, Rorio saw Domino waving at him in the distance.

    To his surprise, a feeling of excitement started to well up inside Rorio and a small smile spread across his face.

    Rorio reached Domino and Filora and Domino grinned before making an expression like he¡¯d just remembered something.

    ¡°Oh. I probably should¡¯ve mentioned this back at your house, but we''ll be making our way to Filora''s home, the kingdom of Storm first to give our report on how things are going on our journey so far. Is that good with you, Rorio?¡±

    Rorio gave him a shrug to which Domino took as an ¡°I¡¯m cool with that.¡±

    ¡°All right, guys! Then to the kingdom of Storm we go!¡± Domino shouted happily as he began walking down the path leaving the village.

    Filora followed close behind him while Rorio took up the rear. As he looked up at the sky, Rorio listened in on the conversation Domino and Filora were having when something Filora said caught his attention. But thinking it best to ignore that for now, Rorio just followed the two of them from behind as they continued their conversation.

    Little did Rorio know, however, that what he heard would lead both him, as well as Domino down a dangerous path that would change their new journey forever.

 Chapter 2: A Journeys Rough Start

    Having finally set off on their journey, the group made their way through a path leading towards the kingdom of Storm before deciding to stop for the night and get some rest.

    As Filora prepared her and Domino¡¯s sleeping bags, she glanced over at Rorio, who stood there shuffling through a tiny bag in his hand without even attempting to prepare himself for bed.

    Actually, now that she thought about it, he didn¡¯t appear to bring anything along with him when they left Gogonai. At least, nothing else other than his old adventuring outfit which still fit perfectly.

    Giving the outfit an actual look, Filora noticed just how weirdly simple it was. The outfit consisted of a maroon-colored t-shirt with a brown strap going from Rorio''s shoulder down to his waist, black jeans that stopped right before reaching his feet, and some dark brown shoes.

    The shirt seemed to be made of a unique type of cotton while the pants reminded Filora of jeans. However, with how easily Rorio moved around in them, she had to assume they were made of nylon and polyester.

    Looking down at herself, Filora noticed her outfit was similarly average.

    She wore a long grey shirt that fell to her hips, and skin-tight pants that, while constricting movement, made it easy for her to strap things onto her legs such as daggers and other weaponry.

    Along with all of that, she also had a set of dark grey shoes as well as a brown bag she had hanging over her back.

    Seemingly deciding to compare outfits, Filora glanced over at Domino and looked him over.

    He wore the same outfit he¡¯d been wearing ever since six months ago. It consisted of a black t-shirt, a metal chest plate, shoulder pads, long black pants, and lastly, a set of dark brown shoes.

    After seemingly thinking her outfit was the best, Filora grinned to herself and finished the last of the sleeping arrangements.

    Turning back over to Rorio, Filora still found herself feeling rather curious as to how he was going to sleep.

    Would he try to sleep on the ground, or perhaps on a nearby tree?

    Since they hadn¡¯t bought him a sleeping bag or anything, she figured he was just gonna have to make do with whatever was around them.

    However, a few moments later, she widened her eyes in surprise as Rorio reached inside the tiny bag in his hand.

    Was it just her, or did his hand go deeper than the bag itself?

    Feeling lost on Rorio''s actions, Filora kept watching him curiously. And then...Rorio pulled an entire sleeping bag!

    ¡°Huh!?¡± Filora cried out in surprise.

    Domino glanced over to them and let out a chuckle.

    ¡°Still have your inventory bag, do you Rorio?¡± he said with his voice full of nostalgia.

    An inventory bag. A special item adventurers obtain upon reaching a certain rank and passing a dangerous trial.

    To explain, inventory bags have the ability to store almost anything inside them with only a few exceptions.

    Despite its convenience, however, the reason this item is only obtainable to adventurers of a certain rank is because the only way you can get it is by going through the previously mentioned trial set by each of the guild leaders from every stationed adventures guild all across the world.

    Said trials not only prove your skill as an adventurer, but they also exist to help you obtain the items required to produce said inventory bag. In short, it¡¯s a task so difficult that only the most dedicated and hardworking of adventurers have ever gained such an item.

    Another massive downside to trying this trial is that you¡¯re only allowed to attempt it once. And if you accidentally lose the bag, then there''s no getting a second one.

    Once obtained, you can put pretty much put anything inside the bag without ever running out of space.

    However, as also mentioned, there are a few things the bag rejects. Things such as living creatures, ancient relics that are more than ten thousand years old, as well as corpses from recently deceased humans, and other human-like creatures will be instantly ejected if you attempt to stick them inside the bag.

    As you might expect, it¡¯s quite a useful tool for any adventurer.

    But with all the work that came with obtaining it, most adventurers decide to either just hire a bag carrier to watch over their stuff or carry their items themselves.

    ¡°Of course I have it. Unlike you, I don¡¯t accidentally forget it inside a demon lord¡¯s castle and only remember leaving it in there after we¡¯d already burned the place down.¡±

    ¡°Er...¡±

    Upon hearing that, Domino¡¯s shoulders slumped as he gave an awkward smile in response. All the while, Rorio laid down in his bed and shut his eyes. And then...

    ¡°...Zzzz¡±

    ¡°He''s out just like that!¡± shouted Filora, completely dumbstruck.

    Domino, having got over his slump, smiled again as he looked at Rorio.

    ¡°That''s Rorio for you. First to rest and first to rise.¡±

    Seeing how easily Domino rolled with everything Rorio did couldn¡¯t help but make Filora laugh awkwardly.

    After that, she went to lie down in her own sleeping bag with Domino following suit.

    Filora fell asleep a few minutes later. Meanwhile, Domino lied in his bag while looking up at the stars in the sky.

    ¡°We¡¯re finally back together...after all this time I can finally reach out to him again.¡±

    Glancing over at Rorio, a memory flashed into Domino¡¯s mind. A painful memory he¡¯d rather forget. One he was sure Rorio wanted to forget just as much as he did.

    ¡°I just hope things can go back to the way they used to be...before that day.¡±

    As he said that, Domino wrapped himself up in his sleeping bag and closed his eyes.

    A few weeks later, the group slowly started to come up to the capital of Storm.

    ¡°We¡¯re almost there guys! Come on!¡± Domino shouted excitedly.

    Filora responded with a smile, but Rorio just rolled his eyes and looked at the kingdom ahead of them.

    He couldn¡¯t explain why, but for some reason, he felt like something about this whole kingdom was a bit off. But trusting his old friend''s instincts, he looked over and saw Domino continuing to march forward.

    Figuring Domino had everything covered, Rorio decided to ignore this strange feeling and continued walking toward the capital.

    Once they reached the entry gate, the three of them were let in almost immediately. And as Domino and Filora walked through the streets, everyone stared at them with looks of admiration. On the other hand, no one seemed to take any notice of Rorio who followed them from a little farther behind.

    While the other two continued to happily look around and greet people, Rorio gathered a bit of food from some stalls in town and put it inside his inventory bag.

    After about an hour, Domino and Filora appeared to be finished with their greetings and they started making their way to the castle at the center of town with Rorio close behind.

    Upon reaching the castle gate, the trio introduced themselves. While some of the guards glared suspiciously at Rorio, the group was still let inside and guided to the throne room of the king.

    They reached the castle without any issue and were instantly given access to go toward the throne room where the king resided.

    Before long, they found themselves standing in front of two giant gold and blue colored doors that were pushed open to give our group entry.

    As they walked inside, Rorio looked around the room. As if scanning its design.

    What faced them were walls coated with bright tan bricks, along with a mix of red carpets and dark blue curtains that added to the aesthetic.

    Inside the room laid a giant chair that you¡¯d normally consider to be the throne.

    However, with how many steps it took to get to the top, people wondered why the king even bothered to sit up there at all.

    Above everything else, however, the thing that stood out the most inside the room was the man who sat on the tall throne.

    He had an average figure for a king, but the beard that was growing heavily over his mouth made it clear just how old he was as it consisted of a mixture of both gold and white hairs.

    Taking notice of their presence, the king looked down at Domino, Filora, and Rorio.

    Domino and Filora knelt immediately. This was the king after all. The man known as King Melodis. The king who ruled over the entire kingdom of Storm.

    Seeing the two adventures bow caused the king to grin. However, that grin instantly turned to a frown when he saw Rorio leaning on a pillar nearby. It also didn¡¯t help that Rorio let out a yawn while continuing to look around the room.

    ¡°What kind of fool are you to disrespect a king by not bowing boy? do you not know the custom when it comes to being before royalty?¡± said the king with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

    Hearing him, Rorio let out a sigh as he stopped leaning on the wall and looked directly at the king.

    ¡°I can assure you sire that I understand your customs. I just think they¡¯re stupid.¡±

    When he heard that, King Melodis''s face twitched slightly.

    Sensing things were going south quickly, Domino spoke up.

    ¡°I apologize sire. My comrade here is more accustomed to village life these days and doesn''t know of normal customs that come with how you should treat royalty.¡±

    Rorio looked at Domino and tried to speak up.

    ¡°I literally just said-¡±

    He was instantly interrupted by King Melodis.

    ¡°I''ll excuse his rudeness this time. However, I won''t be so forgiving if it happens again.¡±

    Domino let out a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Your kindness knows no bounds, sire,¡± he replied before looking over at Rorio and mouthed not to say anything else. Rorio simply shrugged his shoulder in response.

    After talking for a little while longer as Domino went over his adventures during the last six months, the discussion eventually came to an end and Filora stayed behind to talk with her father while Domino and Rorio left to go look around the castle.

    However, as soon as the two of them left the throne room and began walking down the hall, Domino turned his head to Rorio.

    ¡°Come on Rorio! Being cruel to me is one thing, but to royalty, it¡¯s almost a crime. Actually, scratch that. It is a crime!¡± shouted Domino as he attempted to lecture Rorio about what had just happened.

    Rorio let out a sigh.

    ¡°Just because these people wanna worship some dumbass on a chair doesn''t mean I have to.¡±

    Hearing that caused Domino to let out a frustrated groan.

    ¡°But there are certain rules and regulations everyone has to follow. You used to be a stickler for these types of things!¡±

    ¡°Don''t compare me to how I used to be. I was only like that because I thought I had to carry your story. Now, I don''t give two shits about that.¡±

    Domino felt himself starting to lose a handle on his emotions and before he knew it, he let out something he never should¡¯ve said.

    ¡°Well, I''d rather have the complacent version of you instead of who you are now!¡±

    Domino expected Rorio to simply take a step back in surprise, but instead, Rorio glared at him, angrily. It almost made Domino himself take a step back as Rorio¡¯s eyes began glowing a crimson red.

    ¡°I dare you to say something like that again.¡±

    His voice full of malice, Rorio kept his attention on Domino who gulped nervously as he stared into his friend''s eyes.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Finally done with the staring contest, Rorio let out a sigh, and his eyes faded back to their normal deep blue color.

    After that, Rorio turned away and walked down the hall as Domino just stood there gripping his palms tightly.

    Rorio walked away furious, not even attempting to look back at Domino, and ended up exploring the castle on his own.

    He passed many people who gave him looks of suspicion but he simply ignored them and kept walking.

    Once he reached the castle quarters he was given to sleep in that night, he slammed the door and tried to hold in a shout before turning his head to a wall nearby.

    Unable to contain his rage any longer, he put all his energy into his fist-

    ¡°RAAHH!!¡±

    -and slammed it into the wall which exploded on impact.

    Rorio breathed heavily as he looked at the hole he just made before letting out a frustrated groan.

    ¡°Who does that idiot think he is saying something like that!? GRAAAH!¡±

    Screaming out to no one, Rorio resisted the urge to punch another wall and let out a sigh.

    He didn''t want a single comment to make him lose control of his emotions, so he attempted to calm himself down taking in several deep breaths until his anger started to subside.

    As he did so, he looked out the hole he just created and saw two people on the ground below him. Those being King Melodis and Filora who appeared to be talking to each other.

    ¡°Hm?¡±

    Watching them walk by below him, the strange feeling Rorio got before returned.

    Still having some hesitancy, Rorio just shrugged his shoulders and crashed onto the bed inside his room.

    After a few minutes of mindnumbing boredom, Rorio decided it would be best to patch up his old weaponry so he sat up and got to work.

    Pulling out his two favorite swords, Xeto and Rolphin, he held them each in one hand as he felt a wave of nostalgia wash over him.

    Grabbing a cleaning cloth from his inventory bag, Rorio started wiping off what little dust was on his old swords. As he did so, he felt like his mind had finally cleared up.

    Having finished cleaning off Xeto, Rorio was about to clean Rolphin as its shiny green texture reflected his face when Domino walked in.

    Rorio ignored him as he began cleaning Rolphin.

    ¡°I see you''ve kept your blades in good condition.¡±

    Rorio didn''t want to respond to this conversation starter, but since he knew Domino would keep pestering him if he didn''t talk, he decided to respond.

    ¡°I personally think that a man is only as good as his blade,¡± Rorio said calmly.

    Domino chuckled.

    ¡°Do you even know how clich¨¦ you sound right now? Even I thought that was a goofy line.¡±

    Rorio didn¡¯t say anything and instead continued cleaning the weapons.

    After a few minutes of silence, Domino cleared his throat and started talking again.

    ¡°Well Rorio, while I can''t say that I¡¯ve really enjoyed your attitude throughout this whole situation, I¡¯m still glad you joined me again. I must admit, I half expected you to tell me to shoo until I actually left.¡±

    ¡°Wait...I could''ve gotten you to leave?¡±

    ¡°Wha-! O...Of course not! There¡¯s no way I¡¯d ever leave without you!¡±

    ¡°That so? What about the time I nearly got trampled by that rhino when we first met?¡±

    ¡°I barely knew you back then so that doesn¡¯t count!¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡±

    The two continued this back and forth for a little while until a soldier suddenly entered the chamber looking slightly exhausted before recomposing himself and looking at the two of them.

    ¡°Sir Demon Slayer! You and your sidekick have been requested to meet the king in the throne room as soon as possible!¡± relayed the soldier with a salute.

    Domino and Rorio stared at him for a moment before Domino spoke up.

    ¡°Very well. We''ll be there as soon as possible,¡± he said with a smile.

    Instead of responding, Rorio turned his head to the hole in the wall as he recalled what he saw before.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got a bad feeling about this,¡± he muttered as he got up from the bed and both he and Domino began making their way to the throne room.

    Upon arrival, Domino and Rorio were met with an angry glare from the king.

    ¡°I suppose you two are wondering why I brought you here?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sire.¡±

    ¡°Not really.¡±

    Ignoring Rorio, King Melodis focused his attention on Domino.

    ¡°Do you have any idea what you¡¯ve done Sir Demon Slayer?!¡± he shouted.

    Domino gave him a quizzical look.

    ¡°I''m sorry, sire. I don''t believe I know what you¡¯re talking about.¡±

    Domino was clearly confused by the king''s attitude. Without saying anything himself, Rorio kept his eyes on the king.

    His anger growing, King Melodis pointed his finger at Domino.

    ¡°I have heard from my daughter that while on your journey, you tried taking advantage of her several times and even managed to defile her! What say you to this!?¡±

    The king put so much passion into these words that it was clear he meant every word.

    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    Completely lost, Domino stood there silently for a moment before shaking his head.

    ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about sire.¡±

    These words seem to only anger the king more.

    ¡°Don''t you dare even try to weasel your way out of this! I demand you explain yourself this instant!¡±

    Silence filled the room at those words.

    Rorio turned to Domino and waited for his response. But his next words left not only Rorio but the king as well completely dumbfounded.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how that¡¯s even possible. I mean, I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m still a virgin.¡±

    ¡°.........?¡±

    No words could be uttered that would make that sentence any less awkward.

    The king, who seemed insulted, began gritting his teeth.

    ¡°That''s it! I''m done trying to talk with you. It''s clear you¡¯re just going to deny everything! Therefore, I am judging you guilty of assaulting royalty and your punishment shall be death! Get him, guards!¡±

    As he said that, guards instantly began filling up the room with their weapons ready.

    All the while, Domino found himself completely lost on what was going on.

    Starting to get the picture, Rorio sighed and stepped up next to Domino.

    ¡°Alright, I see what''s going on here. Domino, can you meet me back at that mountain we used to hang out on that¡¯s not too far from here? I''ll clean these guys up here and join you in a bit.¡±

    Hearing that, the king let out a loud laugh. Domino, however, responded with a nod.

    ¡°Uh...Okay. Just don¡¯t overdo it please.¡±

    ¡°You got it.¡±

    Feeling satisfied with that answer, Domino ran over to the door and flew it open before dashing away at an incredible speed.

    ¡°What!? After him-!¡±

    ¡°Pretty clever ruse I must admit.¡±

    Hearing Rorio¡¯s words, the king¡¯s own words got caught in his throat as he turned to look at Rorio.

    ¡°And what possibly could you mean by ruse?¡± he asked as if trying to feign ignorance.

    ¡°A person of royalty travels with adventurers and she claims she was assaulted or something of the like. With accusations like that, even the world''s most popular hero would be considered disgusting filth. And since the one giving said accusations are royalty, there wouldn¡¯t be any need for proof. That¡¯s what you¡¯re doing, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Rorio kept his eyes on King Melodis as he stated his theory.

    Melodis was silent for a moment. But soon enough, a creepy grin spread across his face.

    ¡°You''re pretty smart for someone who works with that idiotic Demon Slayer.¡±

    ¡°You know, you''re probably the first person to ever tell me that, and I don''t think I like it.¡±

    The king sneered at Rorio before shouting orders to his guards.

    ¡°Attack!''''

    All the guards immediately charged at Rorio.

    However, in response, Rorio simply stood in place.

    And then, when the first guard who approached Rorio tried to strike him with their spear, Rorio vanished from sight.

    Confused, the guard looked around for a moment before a fist nailed him in the chest and sent him flying across the room.

    ¡°What the-¡± Another guard said before Rorio appeared behind him. With unbelievable speed, Rorio pulled the blade he called Xeto from his inventory bag and sliced right through the guard''s weapon before he had a chance to react. And as the blade clattered to the ground, the soldier glanced down at what was now only a hilt, before his face went white with terror. Seconds later, Rorio slammed his fist into the guard''s face.

    As the guard smashed into the ground, Rorio turned away and continued taking down every guard one after the other as they charged at him.

    Seeing how poorly things were going, one guard tried to fire an arrow from a distance in hopes of catching Rorio by surprise. But just as the arrow was about to hit Rorio, he reached up and snatched the arrow mid-air and threw it back at the archer who barely managed to duck out of the way before the arrow slammed into the wall behind him.

    Dodging another guard¡¯s attack, Rorio spotted someone with a shield.

    ¡°Perfect,¡± he muttered.

    Grinning to himself, Rorio ran past his opponents before reaching the shield wielder.

    Not giving them time to react, Rorio kicked the shield off the guard¡¯s arm and grabbed hold of it.

    Then, like a frisbee, Rorio threw it across the room and it smashed into guard after guard before flopping onto the ground completely destroyed.

    As it stood now, it was easy to see who had the upper hand and Melodis glared at Rorio. As he did so, however, there was a strange look of excitement in his eyes that Rorio couldn¡¯t help but feel put off by.

    Before long, the only ones left standing were Melodis and Rorio

    Grinning, Rorio turned to Melodis and pointed his blade at him.

    ¡°I don''t know why you¡¯re doing this, but I promise that Domino and I will take you down.¡±

    In response to those words, all Melodis did was chuckle.

    Irritated, Rorio was about to ask him what was so funny when he heard the sound of footsteps quickly approaching.

    Figuring more fighting would be a waste of time, Rorio turned around and dashed out of the throne room before completely disappearing from view.

    Still sitting on his throne, Melodis let out a laugh.

    ¡°Something tells me this is gonna be more fun than I originally thought.¡±

    After saying that, he got up from his throne and made his way out to a special broadcasting tower only royalty were allowed to use. Once he turned it on, he set the broadcast to be played across every kingdom across the land. And the words he stated caused shock across the entire world.

    ¡°Attention everyone! The Demon Slayer and his sidekick are heretics against the kingdom of Storm under the jurisdiction of assaulting royalty! There''s a bounty on their heads as of now of twenty million gold, and are to be brought in dead or alive!¡± Melodis announced.

    As of that broadcast, Domino and Rorio were officially criminals against the kingdom of Storm. And with that bounty placed on their heads, it was safe to say the whole world was against them.

    Rorio made his way toward his destination and soon found himself standing atop a hill that loomed above the ground below.

    As of now, the kingdom of Storm was off in the distance and was barely visible unless you focused on it with your eyes.

    Looking around for a bit, Rorio soon found Domino sitting on a giant rock waving at him with a smile.

    Rorio rolled his eyes before walking over to Domino.

    As they sat on top of the rock, Rorio decided to ask Domino if knew about how he was going to be betrayed.

    Despite Domino¡¯s clear confusion, Rorio was curious to see if Domino was actually aware of what was happening and had merely been playing dumb.

    However, Rorio¡¯s expectations were clearly too high.

    ¡°In all honesty, I had no idea.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    Letting out a sigh, Rorio shook his head.

    ¡°What the hell man? You mean that despite being one of the most skilled adventurers in the world, you seriously got deceived that easily?¡±

    Domino shrugged.

    ¡°I guess Filora was just really good at deception.¡±

    Rorio rubbed his eyes.

    ¡°How the heck did you survive these past ten years? I thought you would''ve gotten at least a little bit smarter after a gap like that. Guess it only made you dumber.¡±

    ¡°Wha-! Now you listen here!¡±

    The two instantly started bickering.

    After a few more minutes, the two finally cleared their heads.

    Taking in a deep breath, Domino looked Rorio in the eye.

    ¡°Well, we¡¯re trapped in this situation now. My guess is that King Melodis will more than likely send out a broadcast and pin some price on our heads. And with how rich someone like him is, he probably set a pretty high bounty. That means even if we try and flee, there will always be someone chasing after us.¡±

    Rorio nodded in agreement.

    ¡°That¡¯s more than likely the case. Meaning that if we want to avoid being hunted every moment of our lives, we¡¯d need to go somewhere that isn¡¯t influenced by royalty or the like.¡±

    ¡°Agreed. But is there even such a place?¡±

    Rorio pondered that question for a moment before an idea popped into his head.

    ¡°There is one place we can go that Melodis can''t. Or rather, a place he wouldn¡¯t dare go.¡±

    Domino cocked his head in confusion.

    ¡°There is? Wait...You don¡¯t mean...¡±

    Without saying a word, Rorio pointed his finger off toward an empty field of grass off in the distance.

    To most, it looked like a rather peaceful spot of land. However, Domino understood all too well what really lied there.

    ¡°We need to go to the Outbursts,¡± Rorio said before lowering his finger while waiting for Domino¡¯s response.

    To explain, the Outbursts was a place that belonged to monsters and humans weren''t normally welcome there.

    Although the Outbursts didn¡¯t exist until after he had quit adventuring, Rorio was well aware of what laid on the other side thanks to the many rumors he¡¯d heard over the years.

    According to said rumors, it became a safe haven for monsters everywhere. Meaning a human-like Melodis wouldn''t dare go in there. And since no one knows what caused the creation of the Outbursts, the only thing that was clear to everyone is that it was a place that most humans tried to avoid.

    Since Demi-Humans were technically listed as a monster race, Rorio wouldn¡¯t have any trouble going in and out of the Outbursts. But Domino, on the other hand, was human. Meaning he¡¯d have to struggle through quite a lot in order to survive in such a place.

    But as rough as it would be, it was probably the only place the two could run to without worry of having to deal with Melodis.

    Domino thought about the suggestion for a few minutes while also trying to rack his brain for any other good solutions. But in the end, nothing came to mind.

    ¡°I can''t think of anything better. I guess we have no other choice.¡± Domino said, grimly.

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°All right. Should we get moving?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    With that plan agreed upon, the two began making their way off toward the empty grassy plain off in the distance.

    After about two to three hours of walking, the two of them finally managed to reach their destination.

    Stopping for a moment, Rorio squinted his eyes a little before reaching out his arm.

    Upon doing so, his hand vanished from sight and a barely visible wall jiggled in front of him

    He turned to look over to Domino who was doing the same.

    Giving Rorio a determined smile, Domino said one last thing before walking forward.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡±

    And with that, the two of them stepped through the jiggly invisible wall, and their adventure within the Outbursts had officially begun.

 Chapter 3: Information Gathering

    As Rorio finished reaching the other end of the strange portal-like wall, a gust of wind hit his face.

    When it did, he couldn''t help but blink before opening his eyes to look at his surroundings.

    What laid before him was a beautiful grass field coated in an array of differently colored flowers. With a sight like this, you¡¯d find it hard to believe you were in a land that belonged to the monsters.

    With a small grin, Rorio took in a deep breath before turning his head toward Domino who seemed rather dazzled by the terrain in front of him.

    Making his way over to Domino, Rorio waved his hand in front of him which snapped him out of his daze.

    Not sure what to do next, the two began walking across the grassy plain.

    ¡°Not as murky as I''d expected,¡± admitted Rorio as he continued looking around.

    Domino nodded in agreement.

    ¡°Yeah. I never thought a spot as peaceful as this would exist in a land infested with monsters. But moving past that for now, we need to be careful with how we go about things here. After all, you never know what could happen even in a place like this.¡±

    ¡°What with you going all worrywart all of a sudden? That¡¯s quite unlike you."

    ¡°This coming from someone who isn''t part of the one hated species in this region..¡±

    Rorio simply shrugged and was about to give him a comeback when his wolf ears suddenly popped out and he turned his head toward something off in the distance.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Dunno. But it''s coming this way.''''

    The two immediately pulled out their weapons. Ready for battle.

    A howl could be heard not far off as Domino and Rorio watched strange black wolves that appeared to be made of smoke charging toward them at a rapid pace.

    ¡°Hell Hounds,¡± Rorio muttered as he glared at the monsters.

    Preparing his sword, he faced the opponents in front of him, ready for battle. But then-

    ¡°RAAHH!!¡±

    -Rorio stood still in shock for a moment before noticing something breeze past him as Domino charged straight at the beasts.

    ¡°Dang it! I just fully realized our situation and now I''m annoyed!¡± Domino shouted.

    ¡°...Huh? You just realized it!? Is that why you were so calm before!?¡±

    ¡°Yep!¡±

    ¡°...Really? I just...I can''t...haaah.¡±

    Not sure how to respond, Rorio simply let Domino do his thing as he charged at the hell hounds.

    Jumping into the air, Domino brought his blade down on the monster¡¯s and their pained yelps echoed through the air.

    Domino continuously slashed through the monsters with all his might and sadly, the hell hounds never stood a chance.

    Before long, Domino finished off the last of the monsters and pretended to wipe sweat from his forehead even though he really hadn''t broken a single sweat and let out a relaxing sigh.

    In the end, all that remained of the wolves were scattered pieces of bloody flesh on the ground.

    ¡°Phew! I feel way better now. Thanks for waiting Rorio!¡±

    Taking a moment to glance at the slaughter, all Rorio could do was let out a sigh and began walking away.

    ¡°Hey! Wait up!¡±

    Trying to catch up to Rorio, Domino quickened his footing until he was walking in front of Rorio.

    And thus, while not sure what they¡¯d face out here, the Demon Slayer and his sidekick started their adventure within the Outbursts with not even a map to guide them.

    Not wanting to get lost, the duo figured they should stop and ask for directions.

    But sadly, with humans being considered outcasts here in this land, it would only make it harder to find information.

    Add that on to the fact that Rorio was all too aware of how easily Domino could pick fights, and it seemed the two were in quite a tough pickle.

    The worst part of it all, however, is how dense Domino can be when it comes to his own flaws.

    Thankfully, as dense as he can be sometimes, he still focused on his friends first...at least most of the time.

    After a few hours of walking through the grassy field that slowly morphed into a small wasteland, the two located a small cabin-like building.

    As they got closer, Rorio looked at the sign that hung above the door.

    ¡°The Booze is the News?¡±

    As Rorio read the sign out loud, he found it to be quite cringe-worthy. Nonetheless, the two needed information and so they made their way inside.

    However, just as Domino was about to open the door, a ruckus could be heard from the inside.

    Not sure what was going on in there, the two slowly walked inside. Remaining cautious as they entered.

    Once the two got inside, the previously ruckus-filled bar went silent as all the creatures relaxing inside turned to look at the two of them.

    Understandable for the most part since it was clear that a majority of the creatures here were known for their keen sense of smell and could figure out who was a human almost instantly.

    But thanks to caution, Rorio was able to bring up his ears and tail before anyone got suspicious of him.

    With all eyes on them, Domino and Rorio walked across the room toward the counter where a monster stood there cleaning a glass.

    Stopping at the bar counter, Domino spoke with the monster.

    ¡°We need information on the layout of the Outbursts. Do you have any we could use?¡±

    The strange monster, which seemed to be a mix between an ant and a monkey, just looked at Domino.

    ¡°I''m sorry sir. We don''t provide information to humans here.¡±

    This was one of the more natural responses in the Outbursts. However, that didn¡¯t stop a vein from popping on Domino''s head.

    More than likely, the wolves hadn¡¯t been quite enough to fully satisfy his anger so this road bump had started to fuel his anger once more.

    Suddenly, footsteps could be heard behind the duo as a weird fish-like monster started to speak to Domino.

    ¡°Say, you¡¯re a human ain¡¯t ya? Why don¡¯t you let me show how we treat yer kind round here?¡±

    Seeing where this was going, Rorio pulled some gold coins out of his inventory bag and whispered to the bartender.

    ¡°Meet me out back in thirty seconds. I need some questions answered.¡±

    The ant-monkey hybrid at the counter took the money and nodded as he took a small glimpse at Rorio''s ears and tail.

    Then, Rorio made his way out of the small building. As he left, shouting and hitting could be heard from inside as Domino¡¯s hearty laugh echoed from within.

    ¡°Dammit. We can¡¯t go anywhere without you picking a fight, can we?¡±

    As he muttered this, Rorio reached the back of the building and stood there waiting. Thirty seconds later, the creature who was at the counter approached Rorio and greeted him.

    ¡°Greetings adventurer. My name is Quiv. I¡¯m the one who runs this establishment and can give you the basic rundown of the Outburst. However, your payment was just enough to fill in a little bit extra so I can answer any personal questions you might have as well.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear it. Please start with the basic rundown if you can.¡±

    Quiv nodded and began his explanation as Rorio silently listened.

    To summarize what Rorio learned, the Outbursts isn''t just a single location, but actually, two layers of land that consisted of an inner and outer circle. The outer layer was for normal monsters that were simply trying to escape to this land, while the inner layer were people born and raised in the Outbursts. And the only way to leave or enter the inner later was by passing a trial that required true strength to complete.

    As stated before, most creatures hung out in the Outer Outbursts, and the ones within the Inner Outbursts who weren¡¯t strong enough to escape, were trapped there. And the one who created these lands was someone known as  ¡°The Creator¡± who never showed his or her face to anyone. However, they did have a defense force. This came in the form of four knights who went by the term of Creator Knights and were each chosen by their skills in a specific type of magic element.

    The elements they used were Earth, Water, Fire, and an uncommon one known as Darkness.

    Surprisingly, while it''s true that the Outbursts is a safe haven from humanity, it is also a prison. Once monsters that have no human blood enter the Outbursts, they¡¯re not allowed to leave. Demi-Humans are the only exception due to the human blood that runs through their veins.

    While Rorio took this all in, his brain was already hard at work processing what to make of all this new information.

    As for locations Domio and Rorio could go from here, all Quiv could offer was a map that covered the area of the Outbursts nearby where they currently stood.

    Noticing a few places on the map, Rorio turned to Quiv.

    ¡°Quiv, where is the closest village to here?''''

    Thinking for a moment, Quiv then reached out his hand and pointed at two different locations.

    ¡°There are only two places close to here. Dragon Bane City, and the city of Lust Street.¡±

    Looking at the two spots on the map, Rorio thought about his options.

    Another thing that Quiv mentioned during his explanation was that unlike where Rorio came from, things like kingdoms and villages were instead referred to as towns and cities out here.

    Apparently, both places closest to them were cities. But with one sounding like a death trap and the other sounding like a nightmare, Rorio really didn''t want to go to either of them.

    ¡°Both don''t sound very fun,¡± Rorio muttered.

    Not responding to his comment, Quiv stood there silently.

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    After having finished thinking it over, Rorio turned back to Quiv.

    ¡°I appreciate your help with information. If it makes you feel better, the next time I come around, I can order something.¡±

    Quiv bowed politely in response.

    ¡°As long as you don''t bring that thing close to me next time, I''ll welcome you with open arms.¡±

    Rorio could easily guess what he was referring to and nodded.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    After asking a few more questions, Rorio left Quiv behind and made his way to the front of the building where Domino stood with a few bruises looking rather proud of himself.

    ¡°There you are Rorio! Glad you''re okay!¡± Domino said, giving Rorio a cheerful grin.

    ¡°Well duh. Unlike you, I''m actually considered on equal footing here.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Still, I''m sure you''re happy to see your fellow companion has conquered those who sought to harm him!¡±

    Rubbing his eyes in order to quell his frustration, Rorio let out a sigh and began to walk away.

    ¡°Well, I have information on the cities closest to us. I think it might be best if we talk about it while we walk.¡±

    ¡°Brilliant idea!¡±

    Running in front of Rorio, Domino spoke up happily.

    ¡°Well, let''s move Rorio!¡±

    As he said that, Domino trotted ahead at a fast pace.

    ¡°...Do you even know where you¡¯re going?¡±

    Domino immediately froze in place when Rorio as him that.

    After doing that, he craned his head towards Rorio and chuckled in embarrassment.

    Despite Rorio just mentioning they¡¯d talk while they walked, Domino had already started moving along without even slowing down to listen.

    Rorio groaned as he walked over to Domino and started informing him of what he learned.

    Once he reached the topic of the cities, Rorio remembered something interesting Quiv told him.

    ¡°If I remember correctly, Quiv told me that Lust Street is one of the few places humans are actually welcomed in the Outbursts. However, that¡¯s only due to the fact that humans have a heavy urge to procreate which helps businesses. If that wasn''t the case, it would be like everywhere else in the Outbursts.¡±

    After taking Rorio¡¯s words into consideration, Domino pointed his finger forward.

    ¡°I¡¯ve made my decision! Onward Rorio! To Lust Street!¡±

    "W-Wait a minute. I think we should talk thing''s over before anything else."

    "Nope! To Lust Street we go!"

    "But...Argh..."

    With a groan of resignation from Rorio, it seemed Lust Street was the final choice in the end.

    The name itself didn''t exactly inspire confidence for Rorio, but knowing Domino, he figured he¡¯d make that choice. In truth, Domino loved being around women.

    While not exactly obsessed with them, he still seemed to have way too much fun when girls came flocking towards him on the streets after saving the day.

    Rorio, however, never really dealt with women.

    It was just another thing that came with being the sidekick. Not to mention that Rorio wasn''t exactly a big fan of love.

    He didn''t hate it, he just didn''t understand it. Even when he hit puberty, the concept was lost on him.

    Because of this, Rorio didn¡¯t even know if he''d ever experience love or not.

    But that wasn''t his focus. His focus was completing the task at hand.

    So the two set out for Lust Street. At their current speed, they would arrive within two days. As such, they began making their way there almost immediately.

    About two hours later, Rorio was chilling on a hill eating an apple as Domino was off taking care of the business.

    While Rorio was relaxing, he heard a strange rumbling sound below him.

    Looking down the hill, he saw a carriage pulling multiple cages.

    ¡°Slave Trader,¡± thought Rorio as he looked at the cages below.

    While they weren''t too common in the Inlands, the land Rorio comes from, the Outbursts didn''t have any laws against slavery.

    This was why so many people in the Outbursts tried to find a settlement as soon as possible to make sure not to get scooped up by a Slave Trader.

    Rorio looked down at the cages when one piqued his curiosity.

    Inside was a young human girl. She didn''t seem to be out of her teens yet, but she looked so dead inside, her eyes almost seemed distant from the body itself. As if she had given up on all hope.

    Rorio seemed to focus on her for a moment longer before moving on. He looked through the rest of the cages, but most were just your average magic beasts.

    After they had finished driving by, Domino returned and the two got back on track.

    As their trek continued, Domino and Rorio went around hunting for some wild animals they could cook.

    Finding a giant boar in the woods, they took it down with ease and prepared to cook it.

    Domino offered to make some stew with the meat, but Rorio instantly declined as he had flashbacks to the first time Domino cooked for him. He was just lucky his senses told him how dangerous it was. If they hadn¡¯t, he wasn¡¯t sure if he¡¯d be alive today.

    Thus, Rorio took care of cooking for the two of them.

    Shoving it onto a stick he found, Rorio handed a giant piece of meat to Domino who gobbled it down instantly.

    Leaving him to his own devices, Rorio took off into the woods.

    Since demi-humans didn¡¯t require as much sleep as humans, Rorio more often than not took over the night watch back during their old adventuring days.

    Noticing some wolves nearby, Rorio jumped down and instantly sliced through their heads faster than they could blink.

    Looking around a bit more, Rorio found a lot more monsters and beasts roaming around and he got to work taking them all out.

    Rorio was grateful there were still monsters like this even in the Outbursts.

    Recalling how he asked Quiv if it¡¯d be rude to kill normal non-intelligent monsters, Quiv simply shrugged and told him to do as he pleased.

    Thus, Rorio took that as a sign it was okay to kill monsters that existed solely to kill, eat, and sleep. Otherwise referred to as the non-intelligent monsters.

    And before he knew it, it was morning.

    Making his way back to where he and Domino were camping, Rorio found Domino lying there in his sleeping bag snoring loud enough that even a rooster would struggle to compete with him.

    ¡°So he hasn¡¯t fixed that issue yet huh?¡± Rorio muttered while chopping apart the monster parts so that he could carry them around.

    Not too long after he was done, Domino started waking up. And they got back on the road.

    Standing within his castle, a man watched as Domino and Rorio made their way toward their destination.

    ¡°What are you watching there Sir Bartholomew?¡±

    Hearing a voice behind him, the man turned there to find a girl with long purple hair staring at him with a confused look on her face.

    ¡°It appears some rather interesting people have made their way into the Outbursts.¡±

    Walking up to the one she called Bartholomew, the girl tilted her head up to look at the screen and found her eyes resting on Domino.

    ¡°Is that...?¡±

    Bartholomew nodded.

    ¡°Yes. The Demon Slayer. Quite the strange visitor isn¡¯t he?¡±

    The girl didn¡¯t say anything. Instead, her attention went to the one standing next to Domino.

    ¡°Who¡¯s that guy?¡±

    Bartholomew thought to himself for a moment.

    ¡°My best guess is that he¡¯s this sidekick that the Demon Slayer stated he¡¯s been searching for.¡±

    ¡°Really? You think that guy is the Demon Slayer¡¯s sidekick?¡±

    Bartholomew shrugged his shoulders.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. As I said, it¡¯s just my best guess.¡±

    Staring at Rorio for a bit longer, the girl frowned.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why do I get such a powerful sense of strength from him? Shouldn¡¯t the sidekick be weaker than the one he supports?¡±

    Bartholomew shook his head.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so foolish. Just because someone plays a supporting role doesn¡¯t mean they can¡¯t be strong. At least, that¡¯s what I¡¯ve learned from my experience.¡±

    As he said that, Bartholomew thought back to his past when he had foolishly thought lower of his opponent. Only to find himself lying in the dirt.

    Turning away from the screen, the girl put her arms behind her head.

    ¡°So what should we do? Should we tell the Lord about them?¡±

    Bartholomew, who was brought back to reality upon hearing her words, nodded his head.

    ¡°That would probably be the best option for now.¡±

    ¡°I see. Then let¡¯s get moving.¡±

    The girl said as she started walking ahead of him.

    Letting out the smallest of chuckles, Bartholomew turned off the screen and began following close behind her.

    ¡°I¡¯m curious. Just what are your intentions in these lands, Domino the Demon Slayer?¡±

    Bartholomew muttered this question to himself while he walked. All the while, Domino and Rorio continued making their way toward the city of Lust Street.

    After a few more hours of walking, Domino and Rorio arrived at their destination. Domino¡¯s eyes sparkled as he looked at the sight in front of him.

    Looking at the same sight, all Rorio could do was roll his eyes and let out a sigh.

    ¡°Alright! Let¡¯s get moving Rorio!¡± Domino shouted excitedly before running inside.

    Letting out another sigh, Rorio followed close behind, and thus, their small expedition into the city Lust Street had officially begun.

    Lust Street was an odd place. It had women in cages and patrolling streets, there were even some guys willing to go both ways.

    This was the place of love for practically anyone. In other words, it was one giant brothel.

    And while people were free to do how they pleased, for the most part,  there were still some restrictions.

    Because while almost everything love-related is tolerated, there are some things that just aren''t allowed. Such as trying to flirt with other guests who aren''t interested, as well as doing the deed anywhere other than inside rooms designed for such activities.

    However, there is one rule that must never be broken. One that is by far the most crucial as well as the most ridiculous rule of them all. That being everyone must engage in romantic actions or it could result in either being hit by a love spell or forced to be seduced by the queen who was said to be the most beautiful woman in the city.

    Though the latter punishment is kinda funny considering the queen had yet to actually engage in such activities as flirting and the like

    Sadly, these rules weren¡¯t clarified to Rorio and Domino who were standing at the gate.

    ¡°The city of lust. The city every creature desires to be in,¡± says Domino as he reads the sign near the gate.

    Peeking inside, Domino¡¯s smile couldn¡¯t help but grow.

    Seeing Domino¡¯s reaction, Rorio let out an annoyed sigh.

    As mentioned before, Rorio wasn''t really one for romance. The very concept of love actually made him pretty uncomfortable.

    Little did he know that these feelings would eventually lead him to a lot of problems within the city before him.

    So. with two entirely different expressions, the two adventures entered the city of Lust Street.

    The air echoed with happy laughs, sad crying, and seductive chuckles, as the two walked through the streets.

    Rorio looked around and surveyed the area.

    The houses all seemed to give off a purple and pink-like hue, the streets were made of solid concrete that was painted to look like a blend of blue, purple, and pink.

    And while Rorio was looking around and checking his surroundings, he suddenly heard flirtatious chuckles nearby.

    Looking toward the directions of the chuckles, he found a bunch of girls heading straight towards the two of them, or to be more precise, Domino.

    Moving in close, Rorio whispered into Domino¡¯s ear.

    ¡°I''m gonna keep looking around and obtain more information.¡±

    Domino turned over to him and gave him a small frown.

    He was hoping that Rorio would join him in enjoying the woman around here.

    ¡°Aw come on! Why not join me? You might even find a girl you like.¡±

    Rorio rolled his eyes and turned around.

    ¡°I highly doubt that.¡±

    Domino pouted in response.

    ¡°Well, I plan to have fun here! So if you wanna be a party pooper, be my guest!¡±

    Moving towards the woman with a hearty grin, Domino left Rorio behind to his own devices.

    Using his agility, Rorio quickly jumped from wall to wall before reaching the roof of one of the buildings.

    Looking around, Rorio learned that the whole city was actually an enormous circle that spanned over several miles.

    The whole thing reminded Rorio of a book he read a long time ago. It was honestly quite incredible.

    After getting a good look at everything, Rorio started running from roof to roof to get a good look at the other parts of the city his eyes couldn¡¯t see.

    However, not too far off in the distance, there was someone watching him.

    A strange-looking woman dressed in what seemed to be a ninja suit with a bow and quiver strapped to her back stared at Rorio with a furious expression.

    She placed her hand to her ears in what seemed an odd technique when her finger started to glow.

    ¡°Attention Queen Lustrous. Someone isn''t partaking in the loving activities of our city and instead is trying to run on roofs.¡±

    She spoke in such a strange tone, that it almost sounded robotic. Although to be fair, it was protocol to speak in that manner.

    Waiting for a response, the girl continued staring at Rorio as he hopped from roof to roof.

    Suddenly a voice came through her ear.

    ¡°Understood Officer Quinta. Prepare to engage.¡±

    The person whose name was apparently Quinta nodded in response and pulled an arrow from her quiver and aimed her bow at Rorio. The arrow shined a bright pink as an almost intoxicating smell floated off the arrow tip.

    And then, a few moments later, a loud sound rattled through the air as the arrow flew straight toward Rorio.

 Chapter 4: The Odd Ninjas of An Odd City

    ¡°Damn it. Why do I have to rely on a bow? We all know I''m better with daggers," muttered the ninja known as Quinta as she notched an arrow to her bow.

    While she was preparing her shot, Rorio looked down at the crowds below. Using a bird¡¯s eye view to get a read of the city.

    As he did so, he quickly found Domino in the crowd.

    Despite never actually sleeping with any, Domino was great with women.

    This was proven by the fact that in a matter of maybe thirty minutes, almost twenty-six of them had flocked to Domino

    Seeing that caused an irritated expression to form on Rorio¡¯s face from his traveling partner''s carefree attitude toward their current situation.

    Deciding it would be best not to dwell on it, Rorio let out a sigh and recomposed himself.

    Ready to keep moving, Rorio took another step forward when he felt something whizzing toward him.

    Acting on instinct, Rorio quickly pulled up his hand and caught the item in midair before snapping it in two.

    The loud sound of the item breaking rattled through the air as Rorio looked at his hands to find part of the item he was holding appeared to be some kind of arrow with a glowing pink tip.

    Keeping hold of the arrow, he turned toward the direction from which it was shot.

    ¡°So the presence I sensed was hostile,¡± he muttered with a weirdly relieved voice.

    However, when he looked toward the location where he was shot at, there was no one there.

    That was because Quinta had ducked behind a chimney as soon as possible while trying to catch her breath as fear overwhelmed her mind wondering what just unfolded in front of her.

    ¡°I can''t believe he actually caught it!¡± she muttered in shock

    Taking a chance, she glanced over for a moment and saw Rorio snap the arrow in two before turning his head in her direction.

    Quinta looked at him nervously before ducking her head back behind her hiding spot.

    ¡°Well, no matter. The minute he inhales the fumes of the spell, he should immediately fall under its effects and-¡±

    ¡°Excuse me? Were you the one who tried shooting this at me?¡±

    She froze on the spot.

    Turning her head, Rorio was standing there looking at her with a bored expression.

    She was stuck in a state of shock. No one had ever inhaled the fumes of her lust arrows and not fallen under its spell.

    ¡°Lust Arrows¡± as they were called were special arrows designed using magic that originated in the Outbursts that could enhance someone''s romantic urges.

    In other words, it increases the sexual hormones in the body. Making the one under its effects more susceptible to flirting as well as other things.

    While not permanent, the effects still lasted quite a bit and packed a pretty big punch in terms of potency.

    But the man before her didn¡¯t even flinch when he smelled the arrow¡¯s aroma. He was completely unaffected.

    Upon seeing this, all Quinta could do was stare as Rorio waited for her to say something.

    Then, Using all the courage she could muster, she shouted out the biggest question she had.

    ¡°W...Why aren''t you affected?¡±

    Rorio¡¯s expression never changed as he looked at the broken arrow in his hands.

    ¡°I''ve been training myself to be better than my traveling partner for years. Even going as far as staying in a forest covered in mind-altering flowers until I became immune. At this point, magic like this wouldn''t affect me in a thousand years.¡±

    He wasn''t even bluffing.

    After so many years of Domino always beating him at almost everything, he¡¯d found himself feeling quite frustrated at his inabilities.

    However, instead of this turning into jealousy, he used his powerlessness to give himself the motivation to become stronger.

    Now, even he wasn''t completely immune to stuff like mind magic.

    And physical attacks could still pack quite a punch if they were delivered hard enough.

    But Rorio wasn''t about to let his life be determined by how skilled Domino was in comparison to himself. Leading toward his outstanding improvements in personal growth.

    Moving past that, however, Rorio continued to glare at Quinta as her body shook in fear.

    Then, in an act of panic, she put her hand up to her ear.

    ¡°All units! Report to my location! We have someone unaffected by my magic! More may be needed!¡±

    Rorio let out an annoyed sigh.

    She completely ignored his explanation and seemed to think all she needed more magic.

    But to scare her, he gave her a wicked smile.

    ¡°Intercom magic huh? Not that reinforcements are gonna help you pull this crap. Still, I guess I wouldn''t mind using some of you to get me some answers.¡±

    Putting on a sinister tone, he stood there for a moment before a gust of wind blew by his ear.

    Sensing something coming towards him, he quickly dodged out of the way of an arrow that was about to hit him right in the head.

    Quinta ducked down into a nearby window while Rorio was distracted.

    After regaining his footing, Rorio turned around to find the girl gone.

    ¡°Great. I knew she was gonna pull that stunt and I looked away anyway. Talk about an idiotic move,¡± he muttered, annoyed.

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    Pulling out his sword ready for battle, he turned towards the location of the shooter of the aforementioned arrow.

    In almost an instant, a whole group of ninja women surrounded Rorio.

    The one who shot the arrow still had her bow out and had notched another arrow as the others around her did the same.

    Holding his blade at the ready, Rorio prepared to attack the minute any of them made a move

    ¡°We''re members of the queen¡¯s cupid ninja squad and we''re here to arrest you for disobeying the biggest rule of Lust Street!¡±

    ¡°The biggest rule?¡±

    Rorio looked at the girl with a quizzical expression on his face.

    The girl nodded.

    ¡°You failed to follow our biggest rule of them all. And that¡¯s indulging yourself in this land of women!¡±

    ¡°....Huh?¡±

    Rorio looked at the ninjas in utter bewilderment.

    As Rorio didn¡¯t know the rules of this place, he didn''t understand what the hell they were talking about.

    ¡°Wait! Wait! Wait! Are you telling me that I¡¯m required to do stuff like what''s going on below!? What kinda bullshit is that!?¡±

    The ninjas only glared at him.

    ¡°Our queen wants this place to be somewhere those who want love can have it. You¡¯re ruining it for others by not doing it yourself!¡±

    Rorio couldn''t believe the crap he was hearing.

    ¡°What the heck!? I don''t even wanna be here! I came here solely because Domino wanted to!¡±

    He wasn''t lying. Domino had vetoed Rorio''s idea of sneaking into Dragon Bane City and playing Domino off as an undead monster of some sort.

    But because of Domino''s obsession with women and booze, Rorio¡¯s idea was denied and the two of them made their way toward Lust Street.

    With Domino going off and enjoying the festivities of this place, that meant Rorio was stuck in this situation against his own will.

    All the girls had their arrows notched at the ready.

    Rubbing his eyes, Rorio came to a decision.

    Taking a deep breath he shouted his feelings into the sky.

    ¡°Dammit, Domino! Why did you have to pick this stupid place!¡± he screamed as he stuck his hands out into the air before lowering them and turning his attention back to the ninjas who looked a bit taken aback by his actions.

    Letting out a sigh, Rorio finished calming down and prepared himself for battle.

    ¡°Okay. I can tell this is gonna be a boring fight, so can you all just please give up now?¡± he asked.

    Sadly, the group acted exactly as you thought they would. They all instantly released their arrows from their bows.

    However, in that instant, Rorio''s hand started glowing green.

    ¡°Bring time toward a quick stop. Slow-Mo!¡±

    As Rorio said those words, the people, objects, and even the air itself seemed to slow down.

    It was like everything was moving in slow motion.

    This was Rorio''s special time-freezing magic he called ¡°Slow-Mo.¡±

    Slow-Mo was a spell that slowed down time for about thirty seconds.

    In that time frame, Rorio was allowed to do whatever he wanted.

    While most people would probably like to use this power for something like rape or murder, Rorio only ever used it for fighting.

    Also, the spell could only be used once every six months. Despite that issue, it was one of the few spells Rorio ever used.

    While he¡¯s good at magic, he preferred fighting with a blade.

    In fact, the only times he used this spell was to wrap up battles quickly.

    As time moved to a halt, he took action.

    Walking to the first woman who spoke, he sliced through her arrow and pointed it at the ground.

    Moving over to the next ninja, Rorio turned the arrow back toward the girl who fired it and repeated this process with the rest of the ninjas.

    After finishing off the last of his setup, Rorio returned to his original spot just as the spell wore off. And everything happened in an instant.

    Arrows nailed all the girls'' shoulders, chests, and stomachs as they were sent flying off the roof one after the other.

    Before long, only the ninja that spoke first was still standing.

    She had no idea what had just happened, but whatever it was, it sent a chill down her spine.

    In a panic, she shot her hand up to her ear.

    ¡°Attention! This is Bell Quartoz from Unit 4! All units in the area close in! We''re dealing with a heavy fighter here!¡±

    Keeping her eyes on Rorio, she held her hand to her ear.

    However, a few moments later she realized no one was responding.

    Confused, the girl whose name was apparently Bell turned to Rorio.

    ¡°Something wrong?¡± Rorio asked in a confident tone.

    An idea starting to form in her head, Bell looked at some nearby buildings and found most of the other units were already taken out.

    ¡°How did you-!?¡±

    Terrified, Bell snatched an arrow from her quiver in an instant and notched an arrow before shooting it straight at Rorio.

    ¡°Okay, now you''re just getting desperate,¡± Rorio said before grabbing the arrow mid-air and throwing it right back at Bell. Hitting her off the roof.

    She landed in an alleyway below in a pile of trash.

    While unharmed, Bell reeked. And the fact she had fallen under the effect of her own arrow didn¡¯t really help things.

    But moving past that, Rorio looked around to make sure no other ninjas were coming.

    ¡°Looks like I really did take care of them all. Talk about a letdown,¡± he muttered.

    He¡¯d run into a few ninjas before he met with Quinta. However, he had dealt with them before they could do anything so he hadn''t had time to register that they might be part of the same group.

    With that out of the way, Rorio turned his head to the castle at the center of the city.

    As he did so, he recalled how the ninja''s had mentioned romance was a requirement in this place. Meaning someone made that a rule at some point. And there was only one person with a high enough authority to make a rule like that possilble.

    ¡°I bet this place''s queen is behind this. Guess I should just pay her a visit,¡± Rorio grumbled before dashing off toward the castle.

    Meanwhile, from a window in the building near him, Quinta watched Rorio with a hint of curiosity.

    ¡°That move he just did...it almost looked like...¡±

    A memory came back to Quinta at that moment. However, trying to focus, she shook her head. Then, regaining her composure, Quinta looked toward the direction Rorio was heading.

    And then, Pulling her hand up to her ear. She muttered something to herself.

    ¡°I must inform the queen that the rule breaker is on his way.¡±

    That was all she said while she waited to act on her words.

    Meanwhile, Domino was relaxing in the streets with a huge group of women surrounding him.

    While he was here to have a little fun, he didn''t forget about the mission of learning information. So he went around and tried to obtain as much info as he could.

    But sadly, most of the information he received was just stuff he already knew. Like how the Outbursts was separated from the Inlands and had two layers. Nothing Rorio hadn''t already told him. So when he started to wonder if there was any real new information he could find, a woman let him know that if he wanted info that normally wasn''t available to the public, he''d have to speak to the queen of Lust Street herself.

    After learning about this, Domino slowly started to make his way toward the castle.

    However, as he was walking, he noticed a bunch of strange women in tight black suits, also known as ninja suits, moaning on the ground as they struggled to get to their feet.

    ¡°Talk about weird getup,¡± Domino muttered before realizing he should probably separate himself from the crowd surrounding him.

    So, turning around to the women he was with, Domino put on the most charming voice he could muster.

    ¡°I''m afraid this is where we part for a while ladies. I thank you for your company.¡±

    He then used his agility to leap onto the roof of one of the houses.

    Facing the giant building in front of him, Domino quickly made his way toward the castle where the queen was awaiting him.

 Chapter 5: Confrontation and Salvation

    Rorio dashed towards the castle at full speed. There were a few more ninjas that tried to catch him, only to fail and end up on the ground either unconscious or withering in pain not long after.

    Other than those slight inconveniences, Rorio managed to make it to the castle pretty easily.

    Once he did, Rorio scanned the building from the outside.

    There were plenty of baren rooms, as well as sleeping chambers. But despite that, there wasn''t anywhere Rorio could easily slide into. That was until he noticed an opening in one of the castle windows and jumped through it.

    Once inside, Rorio walked down the halls of the castle as his footsteps echoed in the halls.

    At first, he thought the castle was empty. But then, as he made his way deeper inside, he could hear the sounds of moans, kisses, and weird squishing sounds.

    Ignoring them, he continued walking further inside.

    As he did so, he eventually came upon an open room that had an entrance completely lacking any doors. Making it look similar to the entrance of a ballroom.

    Deciding to take a look around, Rorio stepped through the entrance and made his way into the room.

    The place was fairly large and had loads of empty shelves making it look like a ransacked library.

    In fact, there were a few books lying all over the place on a single shelf which Rorio decided to walk over and take a glance at the titles.

    ¡°How to Catch a Slime and Eat it too, Baby Making for Beginners, and Sudoku Times Ten.¡±

    All these books were completely different from one another and Rorio could easily tell that the sole purpose of their existence was probably just to pass the time.

    Turning toward the door, Rorio let out a sigh.

    ¡°This has got to be the saddest place I''ve ever seen,¡± he muttered.

    But then, quickly glancing back, he noticed a book that was hidden away from the rest.

    His interest piqued, he walked over and picked up the book.

    ¡°The History of The Outbursts? Hm. Could come in handy.¡±

    Not even considering that he was stealing, Rorio pulled out his inventory bag and stuffed the book inside.

    After that, he left the room and returned to walking down the halls until he found himself standing in front of a giant set of doors that screamed this was a throne room.

    Not thinking twice, Rorio pushed the doors open and walked inside.

    The room was pitch black. And when Rorio tried looking around, he suddenly heard a slamming sound behind him.

    He turned around to find the doors were completely shut.

    ¡°How predictable,¡± he muttered to himself before a spotlight lit up in the middle of the room.

    Under said light stood a woman.

    Her skin seemed well-tanned, wore make-up that showed just how much she wanted to look pretty, and had a well-balanced body.

    She had thick thighs that were just right, breasts that any man who wasn''t into flat chests would gush over, and the face of a fashion model. It was all topped off by her silver and gold crown that sparkled on her head.

    She looked at Rorio and spoke with a tone that sounded like the voice of a goddess.

    ¡°Welcome rule breaker. I am Queen Lustrous. And I have been informed of your visit and wish to teach you a thing or two myself about what you''re missing out on.¡±

    As she said this, she struck a seductive pose.

    ¡°No man has ever been able to look at me and stay sane for more than a few seconds. So I do hope you coopera -¡±

    ¡°Oh, you''re the queen? Perfect! I was actually hoping to get some answers on the Outbursts and your minions are a little too hostile.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    There was silence for a moment between them.

    The reason behind this silence was simple. Normally, by the time a man just looked at the queen, their face would already be blushing harder than a tomato.

    But Rorio just stood there unfazed. As if he was just talking to another average person.

    ¡°BWA!¡±

    Caught off guard by his reaction, the queen backed away for a moment. But, figuring it was just taking a bit of time for his desires to kick in, she tried to calm herself.

    However, Rorio continued standing there completely unfazed.

    After about of minute of silence, Rorio looked like he was starting to lose his patience as he tapped his foot.

    At this, the queen finally reacted.

    ¡°Y-You¡¯re not drawn in by my beauty?¡± She questioned while trying to sound as composed as possible only to fail as her voice cracked a little while she spoke.

    ¡°Why would I be?¡± Rorio asked with a frown.

    She held a gasp in her throat as the queen focused her eyes on Rorio before a mix of confusion and rage began swelling up inside her.

    ¡°I don''t understand! No man has ever resisted me! How dare you resist! I will make you fall for me!¡±

    At those words, the queen bent her legs and jumped at Rorio with the intent of hugging him into her chest.

    However, when she landed, Rorio had vanished.

    A strained smile appeared on her face before she looked around the room to find where Rorio had gone.

    Feeling a wind blow by, she suddenly spotted him standing next to her with a bored look on his face.

    ¡°What was that for? Is this really how you treat your guests?" asked Rorio.

    Despite it not being his intention, the queen took his words as a taunt which only made her anger flare.

    ¡°Why you!''''

    She jumped at Rorio only for him to dodge once again and the two continued this for a few minutes before Rorio let out an annoyed sigh.

    ¡°If you keep this up, I may have to hurt you. And I¡¯m already in enough hot water with a jerkwad of a king, so I''d rather not sour my reputation in the Outbursts right off the bat.¡±

    Ignoring his warnings, the queen charged at Rorio once more.

    Seeing as things were getting nowhere, Rorio realized he would have to end this sooner before reinforcements could have the chance to arrive.

    So, during the next attack, when the queen once again jumped at Rorio with the intent of grabbing him, Rorio didn¡¯t move this time.

    Thinking he had finally given up, the queen zoomed toward him at full speed.

    And as she drew closer and closer a wave of excitement rose within her.

    But then-

    SLASH!

    -with what seemed like super speed, Rorio pulled out his blade.

    He jumped off to the side as she was coming at him.

    And, with pinpoint accuracy, cut right into her shoulder.

    The sword dug through her flesh almost like paper and in just a few mere moments, she landed on the ground as her arm slumped to the ground next to her.

    ¡°...¡±

    She was silent for a moment.

    ¡°...¡±

    Then two.

    ¡°..A..A...AHHHH!¡±

    Suddenly, she screamed out in pain as her body began processing what happened.

    And as blood gushed out from where her arm used to be, her voice echoed in agony.

    ¡°Oh my god! my arm! What the actual hell!? Why does it have to hurt so bad!? Stop the bleeding! Make it stop! Make it stop! PLEASE!¡±

    Screaming like a newborn baby, all she felt was fear as she tried over and over again to heal her wound but couldn¡¯t stay focused as the tears clogged her vision.

    Figuring she got the point, he push his hand out as it glowed a lime green color.

    ¡°From the one who heals all, Heaven''s Healing!¡±

    This was another one of the few magic spells Rorio used.

    While he kept it on hand, he disliked the spell since it was a person he hated who taught him about it.

    He hadn''t seen said person in a while, but just thinking about them still pissed him off.

    To be clear, it wasn¡¯t a full healing spell, but it was powerful. It¡¯d be a great tool if it didn¡¯t have one dumb restriction. That being it couldn''t be used to heal the user casting the spell which was a huge setback.

    Despite that, it had helped heal up Domino on many occasions. That¡¯s why Rorio kept it around.

    The spell reached the place the arm used to be and sealed the wound. Leaving only a small knot to tie it together.

    Only gods had the power to repair full body parts that were cut off, so this was the best any normal person could do.

    The queen started to calm down as the pain subsided. Still slightly terrified about the fact that she now had a missing arm.

    Rorio walked up to her and looked her in the eye.

    ¡°So, are you up to talking now?¡±

    After a few maids came in and cleaned the blood, they left Rorio and the queen, whose name was apparently Lori Lustrous, alone so they could have a small chat.

    ¡°I''ve never witnessed someone with the ability to resist my beauty before,¡± Lori said as if somehow still amazed at how Rorio wasn''t fazed by her at all.

    Rorio simply shrugged. Not wanting to elaborate as to why that might be.

    If he had to guess, it was probably due to his disinterest in the topic of romance, along with his training when it came to honing his mind.

    ¡°Meh. Guess I¡¯m just hard to enchant. Now then, would you please just give me information about the Outbursts?¡±

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    Lori realized that it was pointless to try anything else, so she just sighed and started explaining what she knew.

    She went over most of the basic stuff that Rorio had already learned. Such as the stuff with the Creator Knights, how the Outbursts only came to be around ten to twelve years ago, and even the stuff about the inner and outer layers of the Outbursts.

    Already knowing about all this, Rorio started to think that he did all this for nothing when something Lori said piqued his interest.

    ¡°I''m sure you''ve heard most of this already, but there is something that only the leaders of cities know that they don''t inform any of the citizens about.¡±

    Lori¡¯s expression grew serious.

    ¡°Most citizens don''t know it, but there¡¯s something strange going on behind the scenes here in the Outbursts. While many monsters have sought this place for the purpose of freedom inside its borders, there¡¯s been information leaking out that the Creator has been summoning monsters to the inner layer to use them for some dangerous unknown purpose.¡±

    As she said this, Lori clenched her fists.

    ¡°Because of these concerns. several monsters seek to escape the Outbursts. But because of the barrier, it''s impossible. And with the only way to freedom being the defeat of the four Creator Knights and the Creator themselves, no one has any hope anymore.¡±

    ¡°So in short, you¡¯re telling me this because you¡¯re asking for help in freeing the people from the barrier?¡±

    Lori nodded.

    Rorio put his hand to his chin as he processed the information.

    After a few moments, Rorio let an excited smile slip onto his face.

    ¡°Sounds like it could be a fun adventure. I''m all for it,¡± he replied.

    With Rorio giving her such a confident smile, a few tears of happiness seemed to enter Lori''s eyes before shaking her head.

    ¡°Well, I hope you can do it. After seeing your skill firsthand, I think you might just be able to handle this task.¡±

    Rorio beamed proudly.

    However, the next words she spoke made him freeze.

    ¡°However, I don''t think it would hurt to expand your party a bit. I know you have the Demon Slayer on your side, but I don''t know if that will be enough to beat the Creator.¡±

    These words sent a chill down Rorio''s spine.

    Not the idea of getting more teammates, but the other thing she said.

    ¡°People know about the Demon Slayer out here?¡±

    He had hoped that due to the response of the people back at the bar a week back, people didn''t really know about the Demon Slayer here, and it could be Rorio''s chance to prove he¡¯d grown to be on the same level as Domino.

    But as long as people knew who Domino was, they would always look at him as inferior.

    ¡°Of course! His story has traveled long and far. While it''s true he''s human, and because of this, he is still treated harshly by most monsters, it''s still nice to know he took care of the major bad apple of all monsters. You must feel lucky to have him as a teammate.¡±

    She said this as if somehow it was Rorio who was the lucky one to have Domino on his side rather than the other way around.

    ¡°I wouldn''t call it luck,¡± he murmured to himself.

    Lori looked at him with confusion.

    ¡°What was that?¡±

    ¡°Hm? Oh, nothing. I''ll definitely give it some thought! One hundred percent! New members or something I dunno!¡±

    Rorio was trying to escape the situation before he made a slip-up in his words since he didn¡¯t want to look petty when as if it was a signal, a familiar face entered.

    ¡°Have no fear, my dear sidekick! I have come to save you from this witch!¡±

    Domino burst into the room full of energy. But as he looked over to the two of them, the queen gave him a warm smile.

    Walking over to Domino, Rorio patted him on the shoulder.

    ¡°It''s fine, idiot. I''ve already taken care of everything and got what I wanted. Let''s go.¡±

    Domino looked at him confused for a moment before looking at the queen.

    ¡°Holy crap! You''re beautiful!¡± he shouted out.

    Lori¡¯s smile widened before she turned to Rorio and gave him an expression that said  ¡°At least someone thinks so!¡± only to find Rorio wasn''t there.

    He had walked completely past Domino and was already almost out of the castle.

    Domino immediately regained his composure and noticed his companion missing and turned around to chase after him.

    ¡°Hey! Wait up Rorio!¡± he shouted.

    He left Lori to stand there as her smile grew a bit bigger.

    ¡°Maybe, just maybe, they could be the ones to bring the Outbursts and the Inlands together.¡±

    After that thought, she brought her hand to her ear.

    ¡°Disengage all units from following the Demon Slayer and his companion. I''ll allow their behavior for this visit.¡±

    After making her orders clear, she thought back to Domino and Rorio when Domino¡¯s appearance appeared in her head.

    ¡°Now that I think about it, the Demon Slayer sure was handsome.¡±

    As she muttered that, her cheeks seemed to grow a bit warmer.

    Rorio and Domino made their way out of the castle and jumped from roof to roof on their way out of the city.

    Thinking about some of the stuff Lori talked to him about, Rorio tried to think of what to do next when he suddenly turned his head to look down at an alleyway.

    He must¡¯ve been staring at it a bit too long since Domino turned back to him with a confused look on his face.

    ¡°What''s up?¡± he asked.

    ¡°It''s probably nothing. This place has my senses acting up and I think it''s putting me on edge.¡±

    Rorio''s response wasn''t entirely wrong either. With all the people he''s had to face thus far, his senses really were on high alert.

    Leaving the alleyway behind, the two continued making their way across the rooftops at a fast pace.

    After they were gone, someone pulled down a pitch-black coat from inside the alleyway. He had set it up with the intent to hide his favorite slave till the grand event. And it was finally time.

    Walking over to the cage of his most prized slave, he opened it up and grabbed the leash on the girl inside. She was a human with bright red hair, a body so thin it was clear that she was barely allowed to eat, with dead eyes that seemed to have given up all hope. As if she knew that no one would come to save her and that she was just a prize that the trader would never be willing to give up.

    ¡°It''s your time young lady!¡± he said aloud as he pulled her out of the cage.

    She got out and barely seemed to be able to walk. The man then grabbed a big sign that had the sentence ¡°SpellsWorth''s Chain Breaking Slave Challenge'''' on it.

    And after pulling on her chain, the man started to guide the girl toward the location of the big event he had planned. And all she could do was follow behind him.

    Deciding it was better to be safe than sorry, Rorio and Domino scanned the city one more time for information.

    Sadly, only the queen had any useful information for the two of them. Meaning they had wasted a lot of time out here. So they decided it was about to get out of here. But as the two started to make their way out of the city, a sign caught Rorio''s eye.

    ¡°I''ll be right back. Can you meet me by the gate?¡± Domino turned back to Rorio and gave him a thumbs up.

    ¡°Will do!¡± He shouted as he dashed off and left.

    Glancing down at the growing crowd on the ground below, Rorio jumped down and joined the crowd.

    At the center, was a man standing with a stick enchanted with audio amplification magic as he was shouting out to the people around him.

    ¡°Step right up! You could walk home with your very own slave! All you have to do is cut this dragon chain and she''s yours!¡± he shouted, full of energy.

    This man''s name was SpellsWorth. He was a slave trader that used the people he''d obtained as both sellable products and carnival prizes.

    The woman currently attached to the chain was a redhead who seemed quite frail. Her skin was pale, and her eyes looked empty. She may have seemed like quite a worthless slave to anyone else, but to SpellsWorth, she was a prized possession. She was so special, that he made sure not to inform anyone of the truth.

    ¡°Jokes on them! Dragon chain is almost completely impenetrable! And as long as I keep using this loophole, I¡¯ll be able to hold onto my favorite slave forever!¡± SpellsWorth muttered to himself.

    Some might wonder why he even brings her out in the first place. The reason behind this is that it''s in the slave trader code.

    It required that any and all slaves obtained were to be either sold or won in some way.

    If a trader kept the slave without paying for it themselves, which SpellsWorth was too cheap to do, then it could result in both a suspension of their license, along with over forty years of jail time.

    These rules applied to both the Inlands and the Outbursts so there was no escaping them.

    That¡¯s why SpellsWorth found this loophole.

    It¡¯s indeed true that dragon chain is pretty much impenetrable.

    This is only proven more by the fact only a hundred swords in the entire world have the ability to break it. And the odds of someone having one of those hundred swords in this day and age was pretty slim.

    SpellsWorth chuckled to himself as person after person came up and attempted to win the prize in front of them.

    But no matter how hard they tried, they couldn''t break it. SpellsWorth looked at the sky to see the time before turning back to the crowd.

    ¡°It seems this challenge is far too hard! However, I shall permit one last try before I go! But after that, no more attempts!¡± he shouted out in a way that almost made it sound like he was pitying the people for not being strong enough to break the dragon chain.

    ¡°So! Which one of you thinks they can-¡±

    ¡°I''ll do it.¡±

    As SpellsWorth was about to finish his sentence, a boy who seemed to be in his teens stepped forward. He had blue hair that spiked upwards, his blue eyes seemed to add to his hair as they sparkled in the setting sun.

    He wore an odd-looking adventuring outfit that seemed to be what someone ten years ago would wear, along with a sparkling gold sword on his hilt.

    SpellsWorth looked at him hesitantly for a moment before regaining his composure. The strange man looked at SpellsWorth for a moment and then...

    CRASH!

    The man plopped down to the ground, unconscious.

    Standing behind him was another man with very similar attire.

    ¡°No. I''ll do it,¡± he said in a calm voice.

    People just stared at him as he stood there with his sparkling black sword at his side. This man looked down at the girl for a moment before turning over to SpellsWorth who didn''t seem fazed by this new opponent.

    ¡°What are the rules?¡± he asked.

    SpellsWorth ignored the man that just got knocked out and turned to the new challenger.

    ¡°The rules are simple. Do whatever you can to break the chain. If you break it, then she''s yours!¡±

    ¡°Am I allowed to use my own weapon?¡± the man asked.

    ¡°But of course,¡± replied SpellsWorth.

    SpellsWorth then stepped back as the man pulled out a new sword from behind his back and prepared to strike.

    ¡°Just need to finish this last turn. Then me and my prize will be alone together once again.¡± he thought to himself.

    The man who stood in front of the chains turned and looked at the girl. There were so few emotions flowing from inside her eyes, that it almost made it difficult for the man to tell how she truly felt. But after a moment , he brought his sword and just like everyone else, he brought his blade down on it with a loud SLAM!

    ¡°....¡±

    The chain remained unscathed. Everyone looked at the man who swung the weapon as he stared at his sword in confusion.

    ¡°Oof! Well, you get one more swing so give it a try buddy!¡± SpellsWorth shouted cheerfully.

    The man looked at his sword for a moment more.

    ¡°Shoot! Wrong sword!¡± he whispered to himself.

    He then immediately pulled out the bag he was carrying and dug around until he pulled out a blade that looked very similar to the previous one.

    Stuffing the other sword in the bag, he turned back to the chain. Then, with a heavy swing, he brought the sword down on the chain.

    SLICE!

    It cut through it immediately.

    The chain''s two halves fell to the ground with a thud as one laid on the street while the other hung limply from the girl''s neck.

    SpellsWorth just stood in shock. He couldn''t believe his eyes and wasn''t even able to respond to the contestant''s next question.

    ¡°Did I win?¡±

    SpellsWorth had nothing he could say about the event that just occurred in front of him.

    Thus, the man simply walked over to the girl who was previously tied to the chain and scooped her into his arms.

    Everyone, even SpellsWorth was in complete and utter shock. No one was able to utter a single word as the man made his way off with the girl.

    And before long, the two vanished from the streets entirely.

    Domino stood by the gates waiting for Rorio.

    He had no idea what was taking his friend so long but figured that it was probably something important so he tried his best to remain patient.

    As he waited, Domino thought of how different Rorio had become over the years. He didn''t know if it was a change for better or for worse, but he accepted it nonetheless.

    Sighing, he looked into the sky for a few minutes before hearing some footsteps behind him. Domino turned around to find Rorio walking up to him. In Rorio¡¯s arms was a girl in her teens with red hair. Who was completely passed out.

    Moving past his friend, Rorio kept walking with Domino trying to speed up in order to get in front of him.

    The two walked in silence for a bit after that.

    Domino didn''t know how to bring up the topic of the young girl without it sounding weird, so he kept silent.

    After about twenty minutes, Domino finally decided to ask.

    ¡°Hey Rorio, Why¡¯s that girl in your arms?¡±

    Rorio waited a moment before speaking.

    ¡°They were having a slave competition and I decided to compete and won. Simple as that.¡±

    Domino took a few moments before processing everything Rorio had said.

    ¡°Wait! Don''t tell me you''re gonna make that girl your slave!¡± he shouted.

    Instead of responding, Rorio just kept walking. However, it wasn¡¯t because he was ignoring Domino. He was busy thinking about what he just did and why he did it.

    ¡°Who knows? Maybe,¡± he replied without thinking.

    ¡°Wait! What! That would be wrong on so many levels! Also, when were you into picking up slaves!? What the heck have you been keeping from me Rorio!¡±

    After a few seconds, Rorio had finally processed what he¡¯d said.

    However, rather than correcting himself-

    ¡°Oh would you just shut up!¡±

    -he decided just to dismiss the conversation entirely.

    After that, the two adventurers walked in silence until nightfall.

    In truth, Rorio didn''t know why he competed. Maybe he just felt bad for the girl, maybe she reminded him of himself back when he was younger before he met Domino, or maybe it was some other reason entirely.

    All he knew was that he wanted to help her. That was all there was to it.

 Chapter 6: The Knights Tale Part 1

    ¡°No....No...NO!¡±

    Shooting awake, a girl with red hair shot jolted her body upward in a terrified panic. She¡¯d just been through a horrible nightmare.

    In the nightmare, she¡¯d been standing face to face with a horrible screeching monster.

    Its body was a mix of red and orange and as it spread it''s flaming wings, it destroyed the people closest to her. It was terrifying.

    However, when she woke up, she felt a warm wind hit her face and she looked at her surroundings.

    She had expected to find herself inside her normal cage that she had been forced to suffer inside for the last few years.

    But instead, she was lying inside a fluffy and comfortable little pouch that somewhat resembled a bed.

    Confused, she looked around and saw bright grassy fields all around her as well as a small forest nearby while the wind caused her hair to flow backward. It clearly hadn''t been cut in years.

    ¡°Well look who finally woke up.¡±

    Jumping in surprise, the girl turned to find a boy with spiky blue hair looking at her.

    For some reason, the expression he seemed to be wearing was like that of a caring sibling.

    She huddled a little bit into the bag, nervous about her new supposed captor.

    ¡°Hiya. How''s it going?¡±

    She was immediately startled by another voice. This time, it was a man with brown hair. He seemed to be in his late twenties to early thirties, while the blue-haired one seemed to be in his teens.

    She felt like burying herself even deeper in the bag before thinking back to before.

    While her vision was a blur, she recalled the blue-haired boy had stepped up and broken the chain keeping her captive. And then he carefully carried her in his arms before she passed out from exhaustion.

    She looked back at the blue-haired boy as he handed her a loaf of bread.

    ¡°Well don''t just sit there dazed. Go ahead and eat something,¡± he said.

    The girl hesitantly took the loaf of bread and took a bite out of it.

    Approximately eight seconds later, the whole loaf was gone. She chewed it down as fast as possible. She hadn''t tasted something so nice in ages.

    The blue-haired boy smiled as he pulled out a cup of water which she sipped down as fast as she could.

    The blue-haired boy looked at her curiously while the brown-haired man stood up.

    ¡°Whelp! I''m gonna go get some more firewood to help cook the boar we came across. If she needs anything, let me know.¡±

    With that, the brown-haired man walked off into the woods nearby. Leaving the girl with the blue-haired boy who figuring the girl would still be hungry, started preparing things for another meal.

    While he did that, the girl watched him. Unsure of what to do in her current situation.

    About an hour earlier, Rorio and Domino decided to discuss their plans.

    ¡°So I''ve decided where we''re going next on our journey Rorio!¡±

    ¡°If it''s not to take down the four Creator Knights and defeat the Creator, then I''m out.¡±

    ¡°Oh come on! We''re in a brand new land that we''ve never explored before. The least we could do is take a look around.¡±

    The two talked back and forth for almost twenty minutes until Rorio let out an annoyed huff.

    ¡°You do know we''re out here because we''re fugitives in the Inlands, right?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Well...yeah. But I figure we should at least make the most of this chance! We¡¯ve never been here before!¡± Domino said as he frowned at Rorio¡¯s lack of interest.

    ¡°The only reason we¡¯re in this mess is because you couldn¡¯t see through that woman''s stupid lies!¡±

    ¡°So why didn¡¯t you stop her if you knew she was up to no good?!¡±

    ¡°Because I thought you weren''t dumb enough to actually fall for her trickery!''''

    The two continued bickering for quite a while.

    It went on until Rorio finally gave up on arguing.

    ¡°Well, we''re here now. So we might as well try to help while we can.¡±

    ¡°Fine! But only if we get to explore while we search for these four creator people,¡± Domino huffed.

    Rorio groaned in frustration from how stubborn Domino was being. But in the end, agreed to the compromise.

    Returning to the present, Rorio grabbed what seemed to be a bottle from his bag and handed it to the girl.

    ¡°Here. I''m sure you need another drink to replenish your energy. You looked like you were completely out of it when I saw you stuck to that chain before.''''

    Hearing these words helped confirm to the girl that this was indeed the same boy who got her out of those chains and carried her away.

    She took the drink and gulped it down.

    It wasn''t a special healing drink or anything, but water probably wouldn''t be enough to quench her thirst. So Rorio made her a drink using some apples he¡¯d found.

    She finished the last of her drink and looked at Rorio. Still unsure of what to think.

    ¡°I never asked, but what''s your name?¡± Rorio asked

    The girl seemed hesitant to answer. More like she couldn''t answer. She tried mouthing the words the best she could, but no sound came out.

    ¡°Risa Florumia, huh?¡±

    The girl¡¯s eyes widened in surprise.

    Rorio just smiled.

    ¡°Sorry if that surprised you. I''ve kinda trained myself to read lips for a while now. It''s a skill I obtained while adventuring.¡±

    As he said that, Rorio let out a light chuckle.

    The girl whose name was Risa looked at him with an expression that seemed to be one of both relief and fear. This person had heard her name when she herself could not speak it, he treated her with care even though she was technically a slave, and he didn''t show any malice toward her at all. Was this all real? Or what it some kind of trick? Either way, she refused to stay calm in this situation and tried to move away.

    However, just when caution was about to get the best of her, she felt a warm embrace around her which caught her by surprise.

    Rorio was hugging her tightly.

    ¡°I can see through your eyes that you''ve suffered quite a bit. I don''t know what I can do to help you feel better, but I''m here to make sure you''re protected from now on.¡±

    The reason behind this embrace was simple. Rorio could see how much she had been suffering all this time just by looking at her eyes.

    He wasn''t very good with people, but all he wanted to do was embrace this girl and give her protection. Not because he felt obliged too, but because he just wanted to give someone hope that they could cling to when they thought they¡¯d never be able to escape the darkness. So no one suffered the way people he had once suffered.

    Rorio continued hugging Risa as he loosened his grip to make her feel more comfortable.

    She couldn''t explain why, but it felt as if the savior she had called out to for so many years had finally come and saved her. Because of this, the cation faded away as Risa felt a sense of relief washing over her. And as it did so, she felt tears fall from her face.

    She still couldn''t talk, but Rorio could hear her crying as she hugged him tighter.

    The two hugged for what seemed like hours before finally letting go of one another.

    Risa wiped the tears away from her eyes as Rorio stood up and turned his head toward Domino who was returning with something in tow.

    ¡°Let me go you bellowing oaf! I''ll have you know I''m one of the most benevolent slave traders in all the land and I refuse to be treated like rags!¡± said a voice that belonged to the one being dragged.

    Risa immediately jumped in surprise and hurriedly hid behind Rorio.

    Her body was shaking.

    ¡°Hey, guys! Look what I found!¡± Domino shouted happily as he held up SpellsWorth who wriggled around in Domino''s hand angrily.

    Keeping an eye on Risa, Rorio spoke out to the person in Domino¡¯s clutches.

    ¡°What do you want you annoying slave trader?¡± Rorio said in a cold tone that would send a shiver down any normal person''s spine.

    ¡°You imbeciles! I''m the mighty SpellsWorth. I decide which of my slaves come and go! You weren''t supposed to break the chain! You must have cheated in some way! There is no way I would ever let my most precious slave be taken! Not in a million light years!¡± SpellsWorth shouted. Completely oblivious to Rorio''s tone.

    Domino tossed SpellsWorth to the ground in hopes of pinning him down.

    However, SpellsWorth was ready for this and immediately spun backward before shooting a beam of magic at Domino who barely dodged it.

    He then spun around once more and attempted to shoot a new dragon chain from his ridiculously long robe toward Risa.

    ¡°You''re coming back to me Risa, Knight of IronForm!¡± he shouted with a smile on his face.

    All the while, the chain moved in on Risa who was frozen in fear.

    However, the chains didn¡¯t even get close to Risa as Rorio, who used speed that seemed almost unnatural, grabbed hold of the dragon chain and brought it to a halt.

    He then yanked the chain forward and SpellsWorth came flying at him.

    Rorio brought SpellsWorths face straight into his fist and swung with everything he had, sending SpellsWorth flying while letting out a very odd squeal as he flew through the sky.

    ¡°Man. This guy has already become a major pain in the ass.¡± Rorio grumbled annoyed while shaking his hand from the power of his punch.

    SpellsWorth crashed not too far from the group and let out a goofy sound of pain. He almost seemed like a cartoon character as he popped up barely bruised somehow.

    ¡°You blue-haired Bozo! I''ll make you pay for harming the great SpellsWorth and making him look like an idiot!¡± SpellsWorth shouted as he seemed even angrier than before.

    But before he could get another word in, Domino charged straight at him and punched him clean in the stomach.

    ¡°AHHHH!¡±

    Screaming, SpellsWorth flew off through the sky too far away for any of them to see.

    Domino patted his hands against one another with a smile before he walked back to the others.

    Satisfied to see the enemy get sent flying off, Rorio turned around to find Risa still shaking nervously.

    While she did that, Rorio suddenly came up with an idea.

    "Say, she can''t talk because something is stopping her, right? I wonder..."

    Having come to a decision, Rorio walked over to Risa while pulling out his inventory bag.

    Reaching inside, he pulled out a blade he was quite familiar with.

    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°Here. I may need to teach you how to use it, but this is one of my spare legendary weapons.¡±

    He was of course lying as this was one of his most prized possession. But he said that so as to not make her feel bad for taking it.

    With a look of curiosity, Risa took it and gazed at its design. It was a shining black that looked like it could both break at any second or take on the strongest of blows. And with the color matching that of obsidian, it was hard not to find it somewhat mesmerizing. And as Risa gripped the blade tightly, the color started to return to her eyes.

    ¡°Is this-?'' she whispered just barely audible but still enough to be considered talking.

    ¡°Yep. The legendary blade Xeto. Obtained it during a simple cave boss battle back in the Inlands.¡±

    That wasn''t entirely false on Rorio''s part. It''s true it was both a legendary blade and he retrieved it in the Inlands. But he went to hell and back to retrieve it due to how rare it was.

    Hearing Risa¡¯s muttered words, Domino smiled.

    ¡°So you could talk after all huh? Good to hear!''''

    Risa didn''t seem to properly process Domino''s words at first. But as what he said dawned on her, Risa touched her lips.

    ¡°I...I can..then the curse..¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°That''s Xeto for ya. The sword of curse breaking!¡±

    Xeto. The obsidian curse breaking blade. A weapon that was not only powerful but could also cancel out any and all curses that affect the user of this blade.

    However the effects only work if the previous user hands it over willingly, and the one being given the weapon accepts it as well.

    Domino looked over at Rorio confused.

    ¡°Curse? You mean to tell me the reason she couldn''t speak was because of a curse?¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. Curse of the unspoken. That''s literally one of the oldest ones in the book. Since Xeto can break any curse just by being held, I figured this would be an easy method to free her.¡±

    When Risa heard that explanation, tears began to form in her eyes as she only seemed to feel even happier about the sword Rorio had given her.

    So, with her voice restored, Risa began talking with Domino and Rorio as the group decided to sit around for a little while.

    And as Risa tried readjusting back to her vocal cords multiple times, Domino eventually walked off to scout the area while Rorio kept Risa company.

    They ended up setting out and walking down an open path a little while later and after three to four hours, the group decided to set up to prepare for the night.

    Once the fire was good to go, the trio sat down and Rorio turned his head to Risa.

    ¡°I know this may sound kinda out of nowhere, but would it be okay for us to know your story?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Risa seemed surprised at the question.

    ¡°I can tell you¡¯re not from the Outburst. So I want to know why you''re out here.¡±

    This wasn¡¯t some baseless assumption, since raising a human in the Outbursts was close to impossible, it didn¡¯t seem likely Risa lived here.

    Plus there was the thing SpellsWorth said about her being a knight from IronForm which was a kingdom that resided within the Inlands.

    Risa looked down as she fidgeted with her fingers.

    ¡°I didn''t want to be out here. It''s because of my mother that I was with that slave trader.¡±

    Domino and Rorio stayed silent while Risa collected her thoughts and thought about where to start her story.

    Finally, she took a deep breath and began her tale.

    ¡°It all started back when I moved to the kingdom of IronForm at the age of 13. I worked as a squire to my father and was set to be knighted a year later.¡±

    ¡°What idiot would let you be a knight at such a young age!?¡± shouted Domino.

    Rorio let out a sigh.

    ¡°Did you forget that we started our adventure when you were 12?¡±

    ¡°Ah...fair point. Please continue.¡±

    Moving past it, Domino let Risa continue her story.

    ¡°After being knighted a year later, I was assigned to guard the prince since the two of us had gotten along since I first visited the castle. Plus, with my Father being the one to guard the king, it almost felt natural. However, my mother wasn¡¯t pleased with any of it. You see, she was a maid who absolutely loved the thought of taking things easy. And when she saw how far I¡¯d gotten as a knight, she was enraged at the fact I hadn¡¯t tried hooking up with some rich aristocrat she could mooch off of instead.¡±

    Risa clasped her hands together.

    ¡°That¡¯s why, two years ago, she made a plan.¡±

    Two years ago, Risa stood in the king''s throne room behind Prince Daniel. The man she was assigned to protect.

    In front of them, a situation was beginning to unfold as a messenger was reading demands by the people of IronForm.

    ¡°And furthermore, the kingdom¡¯s people demand for prices to drop since it makes it impossible for them to survive on a day-to-day basis,¡± finished the messenger before lowering the paper and turning her head to the king.

    Sitting on the throne was a man who seemed like a rather cold individual. With a chiseled orange beard, the man had a muscular build and despite being in his late fifties, didn¡¯t look a day over thirty. This man, who had a rather chilling glare, was known as King Quither.

    Bringing his brown eyes down on the messenger, his gaze was absolutely intimidating.

    Next to him, the castle wizard watched the proceedings without any expression on his face. The wizard next to the king was of a special variety as he possessed a magic rare to be seen in this day and age. This magic made it so that the wizard could be summoned by either the king or prince at any time with a magic bell they kept in their rooms.

    However, despite the usefulness of these bells, they weren¡¯t used very often and the wizard remained by the king''s side a majority of the day.

    Getting up from his chair, King Quither¡¯s gaze fell down upon the messenger who had goosebumps forming on her skin.

    ¡°If that¡¯s what they want then go tell those peasants to go screw themselves! Without these prices, our kingdom would only become even more of a dump! If we lowered the prices any more then we already have, we¡¯d fall apart before we knew what hit us!¡± he shouted out angrily.

    The messenger shrunk back.

    ¡°U-Understood!¡±

    With that, she bowed and dashed out of the room as soon as possible.

    Sitting back into his throne, Quither let out a sigh as he rubbed his eyes.

    After that, the meeting was quickly disbanded and Risa followed Prince Daniel out the door.

    Daniel grumbled random stuff to himself before scratching his head in frustration.

    ¡°Man. I wish my dad wasn''t such a jerk sometimes. It makes us look like demons to the people,¡± he mumbled.

    Seeing how frustrated he looked, Risa smiled in an attempt to calm him down.

    But seeing that wasn¡¯t working, she tried to start a conversation.

    ¡°It must be rough to be king,¡± said Risa.

    Picking up on her conversation stater, Daniel sighed and recomposed himself.

    He turned over to Risa and pointed his finger at her.

    ¡°Maybe. But I promise this, when I become king, I''m gonna try to take IronForm in a better direction. I''m positive I can do it!¡±

    At her age, Risa didn¡¯t really understand his words. So she simply shrugged off his statement.

    However, despite him only being at the age of fifteen, Risa knew he¡¯d pull it off.

    She¡¯d seen his determination plenty of times already. So she was certain he would make this goal a reality. Even if it didn¡¯t make much sense to her.

    ¡°I''ll look forward to that day, Your Highness,¡± she replied.

    After that, the two made their way down the hall to the prince''s chamber when Daniel decided to pop a random question.

    ¡°Hey Risa, is there anyone you like?¡±

    Risa wasn''t expecting such a sudden question and this caused her face to flush red.

    ¡°Huh?! What brought that about your Highness!?¡± she asked.

    Despite being a knight, Risa was rather informal with the prince. That was why a reaction like this didn¡¯t surprise him.

    It was clear the connection these two shared was one that was built on true friendship.

    Thus, despite being prince and knight, they got along incredibly well.

    ¡°Er...it''s just...I don¡¯t mean anything weird by it. I guess I just wanna know what it feels like. I always hear stories of how much the people of this land love their friends and family. How much they love their communities and how much they mean to them. I just has me curious about the concept. Especially since my Father won''t stop talking about wives and concubines as of late.¡±

    Despite the awkward topic, Risa understood what he was saying.

    So while her face was still a little red, she replied to his question.

    ¡°Well if we''re referring to family, I guess you could say I love my father. But it¡¯s more of a love born out of respect than anything so I guess that doesn¡¯t really count. As for romantic and the like, I can¡¯t say I¡¯ve ever experienced it before.¡±

    Daniel seemed a little disappointed with that answer but tried his best not to show it.

    ¡°I...see.¡±

    Even though he tried to keep his voice stable, you could easily tell his voice was shaking when he spoke.

    With that conversation done, the two continued walking in silence before arriving in front of Daniel''s chambers.

    The two had planned to just pop in for a bit before Daniel went off to take care of more duties.

    However, they were caught by surprise when they saw someone standing at the door. Seemingly waiting for them.

    ¡°Mother?¡± Risa said with a confused look on her face.

    The person who Risa just called Mother looked down at the two of them and turned her head to Daniel.

    ¡°I must speak with my daughter for a bit. Would you leave us alone for a second, Prince Daniel?¡± she asked in a stern voice.

    Daniel gave her a look of suspicion before forcing on a fake smile.

    ¡°Of course Mrs. Distrona. Please excuse me.¡±

    Daniel walked past Distrona and into his chambers.

    Distrona turned back to make sure Daniel had closed the door before turning to Risa and giving her a look of disgust.

    ¡°How did I ever give birth to such a disappointment? You could have grown up to be an amazing wife or concubine. But instead, you chose your father''s job to be an idiot in shiny armor.¡±

    Her words were as cold as always. Risa had grown accustomed to this kind of torment.

    Most would probably call what she was saying cruel. And while they would be entirely right, no one dared to attempt speaking back to Distrona.

    Due to her skill with words, she could easily trick the king into thinking Risa and her father were heretics and have them killed. Meaning Risa wouldn''t be able to complain about her even if she wanted to.

    But leaving that be, Distrona continued to list the reasons she thought Risa was a disappointment for a few more minutes before saying something that caught Risa¡¯s attention.

    ¡°Well, the thing me and the king agreed upon should fix everything in one fell swoop.¡±

    Risa, whose mind had drifted off during the conversation, turned to look back at her mother with a look of both curiosity and concern.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked.

    Distrona gave her a sinister smirk that was followed by a creepy chuckle.

    ¡°Me and the king have seen how close you and Prince Daniel have become.¡±

    ¡°Close?! I''m his guard! It''s my job to protect him at all times!¡±

    Risa¡¯s mother rolled her eyes.

    ¡°From what has been seen, you two are close enough to engage in personal conversation. And because of that, the king and I reached an agreement.¡±

    Risa''s voice was caught in her throat. She understood what her mother meant.

    As mentioned before, Daniel and Risa got along quite well. The connection the two made was clear as day to anyone. Still, that was all it was. They were simply close.

    However, with their friendship as her angle, Distrona used this to her advantage.

    Thus, without much else to say, Risa asked a single question.

    ¡°What....kind of agreement?¡±

    Distrona responded immediately.

    ¡°Due to how close you two have become, the king and I have agreed on your two¡¯s engagement. I trust you¡¯ll be a wife worthy of the honor.¡±

    This was Distrona¡¯s plan.

    If Risa were to marry into Daniel''s family, then the ones related to her, such as her father and mother would be given luxury and leisure far beyond what any commoner could imagine.

    However, this wasn''t the only reason Distrona did this.

    Walking up to Risa, Distrona whispered quietly into her ear.

    ¡°I hope you enjoy living through this forced marriage. Just like I had to with your father.''''

    The other reason was her own grudge toward personal circumstances.

    Pushing away her mother, Risa took a step back.

    ¡°No! I don''t want this! You can¡¯t just force us together!¡±

    Smiling, Distrona let out a chuckle that sent a shiver down Risa¡¯s spine

    ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice in the matter. And I intend to see this all the way until the end. Let¡¯s pray you¡¯re ready.¡±

    Shocked at the current situation, Risa slumped to her knees and curled up her fists in frustration.

    Seeing Risa in this state, Distrona let out a hearty laugh. That''s when it happened.

    SLAM!

    To her surprise, a door shot open behind her.

    Turning around, Distrona found Daniel standing there with an angry glare in his eyes as he held what seemed to be a silver sphere in his hand.

    ¡°You monster! I refuse to allow this! I don''t care if I must talk with Father personally, I won¡¯t allow you to toy with Risa¡¯s feelings!¡±

    In response to his words, Distrona simply smiled.

    ¡°Ha! Like you can do anything to change these arrangements. All I have to do is whisper a few lies to the king and your words will mean nothing. In fact, I¡¯d like to see you try and change his mind.¡±

    Distrona¡¯s grin widened as she stood there triumphantly. However, her expression of confidence quickly changed to fear when a familiar face stepped out of Daniel¡¯s room.

    ¡°T-The castle wizard!?¡± Distrona shouted.

    Lost on what the wizard was doing there, it took her a second to notice an item resting in Daniel¡¯s hand.

    As mentioned before, both the prince and the king had been given a special bell that, when rung, would immediately summon the wizard serving under the king. A wizard respected by not just the king, but the people as well. Meaning that if he had informed the king of anything wrong, it was trusted without a second thought. That was the type of respect this wizard had gained after serving under the king for the last twenty years.

    Slamming his staff on the ground, the wizard glared at Distrona.

    ¡°Miss Distrona! It has come to my attention that you plan to force these children, who share nothing but a mutual friendship, into holy matrimony. As one who serves under the king directly, I find your plans despicable and entirely immoral. Something I¡¯m sure the king will agree with.¡±

    At those words, Distrona''s face went pale as she realized what was happening. All of her plans were starting to fall down the drain.

    Feeling anger swell up inside her, Distrona dashed away as fast as possible before turning back and glaring at Risa.

    ¡°My plans may have fallen today Risa, but I will make you suffer for choosing the path of the knight! I swear this on the gods themselves!¡±

    After screaming those words, Distrona ran away as Risa breathed a sigh of relief.

    Turning to Daniel, she bowed her head in thanks.

    ¡°Thank you for your help, Daniel. You too Sir Wizard. That was a truly terrifying situation.¡±

    Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°It was nothing. But moving past that for now, are you okay? You still look a bit pale.

    Risa lightly shrugged her shoulders.

    ¡°It''s fine. I''m not injured or anything. Though I am concerned by my mother''s words. ¡°

    Despite the chance of them being an empty threat, Risa knew how relentless her mother could be.

    And little did she know at the time, just how far her mother was willing to go.

 Chapter 7: The Knights Tale Part 2

    A week had passed since Risa¡¯s confrontation with Distrona and the marriage arrangements.

    Distrona had mysteriously disappeared from the castle and the arrangements for Risa and Daniel¡¯s marriage were put on hold.

    Feeling everything was turning around, Risa returned to her room having finished her duties as Daniel¡¯s guard for the day.

    Putting her sword in her sheath, she placed it near her closet before heading over to the soft bed she slept in every night and snuggled up under it. Soon entering the realm of sleep.

    A few hours passed. Then a few more. Everything seemed peaceful.

    Suddenly, a rustling sound could be heard from the front door of her room. Causing her to open her eyes and quietly grab her sword before approaching the door. However, when she opened the door, ready to attack who was on the other side, she was met with a rather surprising visitor.

    ¡°Whoa! Whoa! It''s okay kiddo! It''s just me!¡±

    Risa¡¯s father, who normally guarded the king day in and day out, was standing at her door.

    Her father, the proud knight known as Richard, was normally quite composed. However, he currently stood there in a nervous sweat. Causing Risa to remain vigilant.

    ¡°Dad? What are you doing here at this hour?¡± she asked.

    Instead of responding to Risa¡¯s question, he grabbed hold of her arm.

    ¡°That doesn''t matter! We need to leave here! Now!¡±

    Not giving her a chance to react, he yanked her hand and the two bolted through the castle halls. Lost on her dad¡¯s actions, Risa spoke her mind.

    ¡°Dad!? What''s wrong!?¡±

    Richard continued running forward as he responded.

    ¡°I''ll explain later! But we have to hurry! Before she gets here!¡±

    ¡°She?¡±

    Still not sure about what was going on, Risa let her dad drag her through the halls. All the while, the ground began cracking beneath them.

    The two continued running before coming to a stop as a wall of sand shot up from the ground below. Locking them in.

    ¡°Damn! It''s too late! She''s here!¡± Richard whispered.

    As he said that, a laugh echoed from the wall in front of them as three more walls popped out of the ground. Sealing them in from all sides.

    ¡°Well Well Well. It appears my catch has fallen right into the trap,¡± said the voice beyond the wall in front of them.

    Deciding to make themselves visible, the person who was talking stepped through the wall and turned their head toward Richard and Risa.

    The person standing there was a woman dressed in a rather strange outfit.

    How strange?

    Well, if one were to describe it best, it was like it was the most revealing clothes in the world, and yet not at the exact same time.

    The cloth covering the thighs was completely black, and the armor around the chest looked like the bare minimum which covered up a shirt that was a dark grey.

    Bright red lines circled around the woman''s hands looking almost like gloves. However, the transparent texture made it almost impossible to see these lines.

    The rest of her body was hardly covered up by anything more than thin lines of cloth that made it so that the woman appeared covered up. But one look would make it clear this wasn¡¯t the case.

    But moving past her outfit, one look at her rather creepy smile caused Risa to freeze in place.

    The blood lust was painfully obvious. She¡¯d only heard about this woman through stories, but Risa never knew she could be so terrifying.

    This woman was Angelica. The Angel of Death.

    A woman so skilled at assassination that the only reason people know about her existence is because she let them know.

    She was truly terrifying.

    Richard jumped in front of his daughter, sword in hand as he glared at the woman.

    ¡°Don''t you dare lay a hand on my daughter you monster!¡± he shouted.

    Angelica''s smile never faded as she looked Richard up and down.

    ¡°Well Well Well. It appears that the father has come to protect his daughter. How amusing.¡±

    She let out a chuckle.

    ¡°Well Well Well. Too bad it¡¯s futile!¡±

    In what seemed like an instant, Angelica charged straight at Richard and formed a glove made of stone in her hand before striking Richard in the ribs. Causing him to spit up blood as his body was flung into the ceiling.

    Richard gasped for air as he fell to the ground. Risa looked up in terror as her father landed on his feet.

    With just a single punch, he already looked like he was on the brink of death. Solidifying just how powerful Angelica truly was.

    ¡°Dad!¡± Risa shouted as she ran over to her father.

    However, as he coughed up a little more blood, he held out his hand to signal for her to stop.

    Scared, she looked at her father who turned his head toward her.

    Tears streamed down Risa''s face as she looked at her dying father.

    Seeing her like that, he simply smiled and tried his best to look strong for her.

    But as he did so, Angelica jumped forward and jammed her fist into Richard''s heart.

    He screamed out in pain for a few moments before the light vanished from his eyes.

    In a matter of twenty seconds, the man known as Risa''s father was dead.

    ¡°Father!¡± Risa shouted as her tears continued falling down her face.

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Feeling powerless at the situation, Risa fell to her knees.

    Only a single thought echoed inside her head as she stared at her father''s corpse.

    ¡°Why...Why is this happening?¡±

    Leaving the man''s corpse to rot, Angelica turned to Risa.

    ¡°Well Well Well. Now that that¡¯s taken of, you¡¯re coming with me, little lady!¡±

    Risa couldn¡¯t move.

    And so, without little to no resistance, Angelica lifted Risa over her shoulder and carried her out of the castle and toward the meeting spot of her comrades.

    Upon arrival, Risa was tossed into a cage as two other people walked up and looked down at her.

    Risa recognized one of them immediately while the other was a person she¡¯d never met before.

    The two Angelica had met up with were none other than SpellsWorth and Distrona.

    ¡°Well done Angelica. I knew I could count on you,¡± said Distrona with a smirk.

    ¡°Well Well Well of course! However, my work isn''t quite done yet. I should make sure this little pipsqueak doesn''t tattle to anyone.¡±

    Having said that, Angelica walked over to Risa and shot a small speck of some kind into Risa¡¯s body. Causing a strange feeling to jolt throughout Risa''s throat.

    After the horrible sensation was gone, Risa attempted to say something only to find her voice was completely gone.

    Angelica turned back to the others.

    ¡°There. That should keep her from tattling.¡±

    SpellsWorth turned to look at the prey in his cage.

    ¡°This is quite a fine specimen you have retrieved for me, my friends. I shall treasure it for as long as I live.¡±

    Distrona turned to SpellsWorth as her smile grew bigger.

    ¡°Please make sure she suffers!¡±

    SpellsWorth bowed to Distrona.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    With that, Spellsworth led his cart away towards the Outbursts with his new slave in tow.

    With no hope of escape left, all Risa could do was sit in the cage as the wagon raddled onward.

    Finishing her story, Risa''s eyes were filled with tears.

    Rorio simply sat there in silence as Domino looked about ready to give Risa a hug.

    Clearing away her tears, Risa clenched her fists.

    ¡°I truly hate what my mother did and I''ll never forgive her, but I also can¡¯t forgive myself for giving up hope as quickly as I did. That''s not something a knight should do!¡±

    After that, things went silent within the group until Domino opened his mouth hoping to break the tension.

    However, before he could get a word out-

    ¡°Well, no matter what happened in your past. You''re here with us now. And I promise that I won''t ever let anything like that happen to you ever again.¡±

    Not sure if he heard him right, Domino turned to Rorio who stared at Risa with a relaxed smile on his face.

    It was a bit out of character for him, but Rorio truly did care for others more than himself. It''s just that Domino always beats him to the punch before he could say or do anything.

    Risa looked at Rorio as a small smile spread across her face before getting up and hugging Rorio¡¯s chest. Letting out tears as she wrapped herself around him tightly.

    Rorio didn¡¯t say anything as she cried into his chest. Instead, he simply sat there waiting for her to let it all out.

    The group ended up lying around for a little while longer until Risa finally stopped crying.

    When she finally came to her senses, she realized she¡¯d been lying on Rorio the whole time and turned away as she blushed in embarrassment.

    Deciding it was time for bed, the group laid out their sleep bags.

    Finishing the last of her setup, Risa let out a yawn before looking out toward the night sky.

    It shined as bright as ever. Even out here in the Outbursts.

    Eventually, Risa lowered her vision and spotted Rorio looking off into the sky by himself on a nearby hill.

    Getting out of her sleeping bag, Risa ended up walking over to Rorio and gazed out at the sky next to him.

    ¡°It''s amazing how the sky doesn¡¯t lose its beauty even here in the Outbursts,¡± Rorio muttered aloud.

    Risa nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. It''s pretty amazing.¡±

    After she said that, Risa joined Rorio on the ground and the two sat in silence for a little while before Rorio turned to Risa.

    ¡°I know it may seem a little late, but I actually wanted to ask you something before anything else happens.¡±

    ¡°Hm? What is it?¡±

    Looking like he was struggling to get the words out, Rorio looked at the ground before turning his head back to Risa.

    ¡°We''ll be going up against some pretty difficult enemies on our journey. I don''t want you to get hurt if possible, so before you lose the chance, I wanna know if you''d like to join us or not.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°While it may not be easy, you¡¯re free now. Meaning if you wanted, you could return to the Inlands. Guaranteeing at least a somewhat peaceful life. But if you¡¯re with us, your life will be in constant danger. You might not even make it out alive. I just...wanna make sure you know you can choose to run away.¡±

    Risa understood what he was saying. While there was still the risk of Spellsworth being out there, Risa had a much higher chance at peace in the Inlands than here in the Outbursts.

    Even so, Risa shook her head.

    ¡°I may not be it in title anymore, but I was a knight. And as the ones who saved me, I have to repay you. That¡¯s why, even if it¡¯s just because of a favor, I want to travel with you two.¡±

    When she said that, a small smile formed on Rorio¡¯s face.

    ¡°In that case, I have something to ask you.¡±

    Getting onto his feet, Rorio held his hand out to Risa.

    ¡°Risa. Knight of IronForm. How would you like to join the party of the Demon Slayer and his sidekick?¡±

    As Rorio asked that, Risa didn¡¯t hesitate to take his hand

    ¡°I''d be honored.¡±

    Once those words left her mouth, the two looked at one another in silence when...

    ¡°WAHOO! Welcome to the party Risa!¡± came the booming voice of Domino.

    Rorio and Risa both dropped their heads at his unwelcome response as Domino stood there with a gleeful smile on his face. Oblivious to the moment he just ruined.

    ¡°Wow. Way to destroy the moment, dumbass.¡± Rorio growled as he turned to Domino.

    Domino, who didn¡¯t know what he did wrong, took a step back in shock.

    ¡°What! Why are you so cold all of a sudden!?¡±

    ¡°You should know damn well why!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t! So I¡¯d appreciate if you¡¯d explain!¡±

    ¡°Why you-!¡±

    Domino and Rorio continued this back and forth as Risa let out a light chuckle.

    Something told her, this was gonna be a very interesting adventure.

    Within the darkness of the night, a girl ran as fast as she could. Struggling to catch her breath as the monsters closed in on her.

    She could use her powers on them, but that would leave her magic completely depleted.

    As she ran, she thought back to her friend who vanished from her site only a few hours prior.

    The two had just made it to the Outbursts in an attempt to escape the terror that was occurring within the Inlands.

    However, while she was off fetching food, her friend mysteriously vanished.

    In terms of their whereabouts, the only clue she had was their sword which she found lying on the ground near the campfire.

    Terrified, she continued to run at a speed she could barely hold when the sounds of the monsters started to slowly vanish from her ears.

    Believing that she lost them, the girl stopped for a moment to catch her breath.

    She hadn''t anticipated this to happen, but she still felt terrible about how she wasn''t able to help her friend.

    Never once considering that maybe it wasn''t her fault since she was just trying her best, she let out a frustrated sigh.

    After a few heavy breaths, she managed to calm down and looked around. Keeping her senses on high alert despite how terrible they were.

    She had no idea how she was gonna survive out here, nor did she know how she could save her friend.

    Still, she knew she had to find someone out here who could help her.

    And so, she set off once more.

    ¡°If only the Demon Slayer hadn''t been put on a wanted poster a few weeks ago then none of this would have happened.¡±

    This thought echoed through her head as she continued dashing through the forest.

 Chapter 8: The Temples Treasure

    With Domino, Rorio, and Risa beginning their adventure together, Rorio decided Risa needed to be re-trained since it had been a while since she last held a blade.

    Thus, the two began training with one another. However...

    ¡°Ow!¡± Risa shouted as she fell to the ground.

    ¡°Get up. If you don¡¯t recover quickly, an enemy can take advantage of you when you''re down.¡±

    ...the training seemed to be going quite poorly.

    Rorio wasn''t very accustomed to teaching people, but between Domino and himself, it was clear he was the far better teacher.

    Risa and Rorio continued their training as they traveled over the next two weeks when one day, Risa finally managed to block one of Rorio''s attacks.

    "I-I did it! I actually blocked an attack! Alright! Hahah!" Risa shouted as she jumped for joy.

    This only seemed to piss Rorio off.

    "It just blocked a single attack. No need to be that happy about it," he mumbled as they resumed training.

    Most days played out similarly to this as Rorio continued to knock Risa around while she got excited after doing something as simple as blocking an attack or successfully striking back.

    Domino stayed off to the side watching the two of them while smiling brightly.

    ¡°What a nice expression,¡± he muttered as he looked at Rorio before closing his eyes.

    The training continued for a couple more weeks. The group didn''t seem to be getting anywhere at this point until Domino came up with an idea.

    ¡°Why don''t we go treasure hunting?¡±

    This wasn''t a terrible idea either. After all, like the Inlands, the Outbursts had their fair share of undiscovered territory.

    So, after finding a small village that sold maps of the outer layer of the Outbursts, the group started getting their adventure going.

    ¡°Hurry up guys! I¡¯m positive we¡¯ll find treasure soon!¡± Domino shouted cheerfully.

    Risa couldn¡¯t help but smile at Domino¡¯s enthusiasm.

    Meanwhile, Rorio tried to appear calm, but he knew if his tail wasn¡¯t hidden, it would be wagging excitedly.

    After about two hours, the group arrived at a strange ancient temple located on the map and Domio¡¯s smile widened as he looked it over.

    It looked just like a generic temple. Right down to the dusty stone wall and overgrown vines.

    As the three of them gazed at the temple, all three seemed to have different expressions on their faces.

    Domino''s eyes sparkled with excitement, Risa''s gaze was filled with curiosity as she had never seen a temple before, and Rorio looked it up and down before frowning.

    ¡°I''m skipping this one. You guys go in without me,¡± he said before walking off.

    Domino seemed taken aback by Rorio''s words. Between the two of them, Rorio used to always be the first to hop into a temple back when they first started.

    However, now Rorio simply ignored the expression of surprise on Domino''s face and sat down in some nearby shade.

    Risa looked at Rorio, confused as to why he didn¡¯t want to join.

    Opening her mouth, Risa was about to ask why when Domino suddenly grabbed her arm and began dragging her off.

    ¡°Come on Risa! Adventure still awaits the two of us! Let¡¯s get moving!¡± he shouted.

    "Wah...Wait! Huh!!?"

    It appeared Domino had already moved on and planned to bring Risa along with him.

    As soon as the two entered the temple, Domino kept his blade at the ready. Meanwhile, Risa fumbled to pull hers out before the two of them started their trek.

    Risa walked slowly as she shook nervously while Domino marched forward proudly.

    ¡°You''ll see soon enough how much fun adventuring can be Risa! Trust me!¡± Domino shouted.

    Despite his words, Risa continued to fidget around.

    While she agreed to join these two, adventuring wasn''t exactly her forte.

    She was certain she¡¯d adjust with time, but she wasn¡¯t quite ready yet.

    Still, not wanting to be a burden, she kept her eyes out for possible traps.

    And as the two got further inside, a look of worry started to form on Domino''s face.

    ¡°Weird. Normally we should''ve encountered a trap by now,¡± he muttered to himself.

    That wasn¡¯t the only weird thing.

    He couldn''t explain why, but the layout of this place seemed a bit off.

    ¡°Eh. I¡¯m probably just imagining it,¡± he said.

    Thus, the two continued walking a bit further before reaching a tiny square room.

    Spotting a chest in the middle, Domino walked over to it as his eyes sparkled with excitement before turning to Risa with a huge grin.

    ¡°This must be a trap that leads to the real treasure! Let¡¯s activate it!¡± he shouted.

    ¡°Huh? Are you sure about thi-?¡±

    Before Risa could finish speaking, Domino opened the chest.

    A clicking sound could be heard as a trap door opened under the two of them.

    Domino laughed triumphantly as Risa screamed while the two of them fell into the hole.

    Thus, the two began falling.

    ¡°...¡±

    And continued falling.

    ¡°...¡±

    And still continued falling.

    ¡°...¡±

    But nothing seemed to change. They just continued to fall without end.

    After a while, the two seemed to grow accustomed to their situation as they had both calmed themselves down.

    ¡°Hey, uh...Demon Slayer?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°How much longer are we gonna be falling?¡±

    ¡°Hmm...¡±

    The two seemed completely stuck.

    After a few more minutes Risa started to grow frustrated

    ¡°It feels like we''ve been falling for forty minutes!¡± she shouted while they kept falling. And as Risa continued shouting in frustration, Domino began thinking of what was wrong when he suddenly took notice of a strange out-of-place brick that they seemed to pass every five minutes or so.

    Trusting his instincts, Domino pulled out his sword and just before the brick appeared again, he tossed his blade forward.

    Sure enough, the sword hit the brick with perfect precision and a moment later, a loud clicking sound echoed around the two as they continued falling.

    ¡°What the heck was that supposed to do!?¡± Risa shouted. Thinking nothing was happening.

    Domino ignored her and waited.

    Just then, the sound of gears moving could be heard from the walls.

    And five seconds later, the two¡¯s fall started to slow before they were teleported to a different room.

    ¡°Whoa! Oof!¡± Risa shouted as her fall came to a stop and she crashed onto the hard ground.

    Domino landed on his feet as dust shot through the air under him.

    Risa got up off the ground as Domino smiled proudly.

    ¡°I knew something was off! What an adventure!¡±

    At this point, Risa started to feel uneasy seeing Domino¡¯s gleeful smile and she thought back to how annoyed Rorio always looked when Domino got like this. She was starting to get why this irritated him so much.

    A moment later, Risa could hear the sound of something swinging and turned around to find a bunch of giant metal axes moving from side to side before her and Domino.

    Feeling goosebumps rise on her skin, Risa looked at the rapidly moving blade.

    Domino, on the other hand, looked even more excited than before.

    ¡°Aw yeah! Now this is an adventure!¡±

    He was completely ecstatic.

    This may have been her first adventure, but with how much Domino had been trying to hype it up, Risa was getting more and more frustrated with how excited Domino looked. However, the man before her just continued to smile happily as he looked in front of the two of them before charging forward and leaving Risa behind.

    ¡°Haha!¡±

    ¡°Hey! Wait for me!¡±

    Domino charged forward and easily moved in between the axes without any problem and even managed to catch some arrows that were being fired at him which came completely out of nowhere. It really showed just how agile he was despite his muscular build.

    The same could not be said for Risa.

    Her hair long hair was cut short as she barely dodged one of the axes.

    In the end, she barely made it to the end which led to her gasping for air.

    Going through all this, it amazed her that Domino and Rorio did this kind of dangerous stuff for a living.

    Having reached the end of the course, Domino and Risa were faced with a singular door. Domino''s eyes sparkled as he moved forward.

    Then, without the slightest hesitation, Domino started opening the door.

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    To no one''s surprise, another clicking sound could be heard and a new pit opened up beneath Domino and Risa making them fall into the infinite abyss once more.

    As they fell, a single word left Risa¡¯s mouth

    ¡°DAAAAMIIIITTTT!¡±

    After escaping the trap once more, the two went through a few more before finding themselves standing in front of a temple chest.

    Temple chests were a special kind of chest where any and all treasure was stored.

    They couldn¡¯t be wired to anything. And the design and mechanics were quite unique which made it impossible to create a fake.

    They were basically the chest you¡¯d see at the end of every temple once you got through all the traps and troubles.

    Domino jumped for joy as he dashed over to it.

    ¡°We did it! We made it to the treasure!¡± Domino shouted excitedly.

    As Risa heard this, she immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

    Walking over to Domino, Risa stood next to him as he placed his hands on the chest.

    Then, without any hesitation, Domino flew it open and both he and Risa looked inside.

    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    It was empty.

    Domino and Risa walked out of the temple. Both had empty expressions on their faces as they made their way over to Rorio who was still relaxing in the shade.

    He turned his head over to look at the two of them.

    ¡°You knew. Didn''t you?¡± Domino asked. His voice devoid of emotion.

    ¡°Well yeah. It was kinda easy to tell.¡±

    Risa looked at Rorio confused

    ¡°Wait. You mean you can tell if temples have been run through already?¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s something I picked up during my last year of adventuring. There are usually a few different ways to see if temples have already been looted. For example, this temple had scratch marks all around its sides that were way too big to form naturally. Meaning someone came through here and damaged the temple. So it was safe to assume someone had already rummaged through it.¡±

    Domino fell to his knees.

    ¡°You mean...we went through all that for nothing.¡±

    Despite Domino¡¯s excitement up to this point, even he didn¡¯t like going through a temple without treasure inside.

    It was like accomplishing a great feat with no reward.

    In the end, Domino¡¯s excitement led him to be hasty. And both he and Risa paid for it.

    Because of this, Domino looked like he was on the verge of crying.

    However, the terrifying presence he sensed behind him made him freeze.

    ¡°Demon Slayer. Did you really just make me suffer through a temple that didn¡¯t even have any treasure inside it?¡±

    The voice sent a chill down Domino''s spine as he turned around. His face grew pale as Risa¡¯s terrifying aura overwhelmed him.

    ¡°Ehhh...¡± was all Domino could muster before he made a run for it.

    ¡°Hey! Get back here!¡±

    Risa was quick to follow after him while swinging her sword wildly.

    All the while, Rorio went back to relaxing in the shade. Only helping out Domino after he was ready to get moving again.

    The trio continued trekking through the Outbursts for another week.

    They came across multiple temples along the way which weren''t located on the map.

    Once Rorio had confirmed they hadn¡¯t been looted, the three of them went from one temple to the next and discovered all kinds of small treasures that would help them on their journey.

    One temple, in particular, seemed to pique all their interests.

    When the group approached it, they had a good look and noticed a change from the other temples they came across.

    The walls seemed to be made of metal instead of stone and while abandoned, it didn¡¯t look that old.

    It also gave off powerful waves of magic which were normally uncommon for temples. Meaning there was probably a powerful item inside.

    The most offputting thing about the temple had to be its shape which was more like a triangle instead of a square or rectangle.

    Rorio did a quick scan of the building before returning to the others.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t see any indications this place has been looted. However, I also noticed there weren''t any wires for traps on the outside either. Meaning whoever built this either planned for it to be explored or rigged the traps from the inside.¡±

    Domino put his hand to his chin as he thought about their options.

    What Rorio was talking about was how traps were laid out in a normal temple.

    With how many traps were needed in your average temple, most people who made them tried to place the triggers for the traps inside the outer walls of the temple due to how much more space the vacant walls offered.

    The way the creators of temples protected these triggers from being destroyed so easily was by covering them with an extremely thick layer of stone that made sure adventurers couldn¡¯t just smash through to the wiring and destroy the triggers for the traps.

    However, while outer layer triggers were the most commonly used method of creating traps, some people were so confident in their rigging abilities that they''d set up traps from the inside.

    One such example would be traps that could be activated and deactivated by the press of a button.

    Like in action movies where the main character dodges traps and pulls a lever that deactivates said trap.

    Those were examples of triggers built from the inside.

    While both inside and outside were quite similar, one was much more effective than the other. Especially since inside triggers could be shut down quite easily if you¡¯re skilled enough whereas outside triggers are almost always guaranteed to be safe and protected.

    According to Rorio, since this temple didn''t have any cracks or creases to show wiring had been covered up, this temple more than likely had triggers on the inside.

    After a few more minutes of thinking, Domino turned to Rorio.

    ¡°In that case, I''ll take the lead, followed by Rorio, and then Risa in the back. Understood?

    The two beside him nodded.

    Despite not being able to do basic necessities such as cooking and cleaning, Domino¡¯s strategies and leadership skills were incredible. Even if such skills were held back by his carefree attitude.

    Standing in front of the temple, Risa was trembling with her sword in hand.

    While they had visited a few temples up to this point, she still hadn''t gotten quite used to putting herself in danger just for treasure.

    Still, she still followed behind Domino and Rorio.

    She may have been terrified, but she wanted to travel with them. So sucking up her fears and anxieties she walked behind them as they made their way inside.

    Before they knew it, the group had encountered their first trap.

    In front of them, arrows were shooting from both walls repetitively. Normally, this wouldn''t be that different from an average temple. However, something that amazed Rorio and Domino was how the arrows were aimed.

    The arrows were sent straight into these strange holes in the walls and immediately loaded into another dispenser that would shoot any arrow that hadn''t hit anything.

    Normally arrows would just fall to the ground and be left lying there to gather dust.

    But this method made it possible to both reuse arrows and have both sides shooting rapidly without running out. A truly brilliant idea.

    Risa found herself unsure of how to feel about the contraption. So she just left things to the others.

    Moving his hand to his chin, Rorio stated what he was thinking.

    ¡°Damn. Whoever made this must¡¯ve been quite the engineer.¡±

    It was a genuine comment.

    Stuff like this didn¡¯t appear too often in temples so this was a truly fascinating concept to see in action.

    After thinking it over a bit longer, Rorio turned to Domino.

    ¡°So what''s the plan?¡± Rorio asked.

    Domino immediately gave his thoughts.

    ¡°This was clearly set up to ensure that no one could survive the barrage. With that in mind, Rorio! Get your bow out!¡±

    Rorio immediately pulled out his bow on Domino¡¯s command.

    Risa wasn''t sure what Domino was trying to get at, but Rorio seemed to have faith in what Domino was thinking. Faith built from years of traveling together.

    Rorio walked over to Domino who pointed directly at the glowing red button at the end of the passage.

    ¡°You see the button at the end of that barrage of arrows?¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°Try to get a direct hit on it.¡±

    Rorio looked at the button for a moment before gripping his bow tightly.

    Facing the wall of arrows, he notched his bow and searched for an opening. And then...

    ¡°Found it,¡± Rorio muttered before releasing the arrow.

    It shot through the air with incredible speed before slamming right into the button on the other side.

    After a moment, the sound of metal gears turning could be heard all around the room and the constant barrage of arrows came to a halt.

    As the trap deactivated itself, a door began opening at the other end of the room.

    Domino smiled proudly as he patted Rorio''s back.

    ¡°All right, Rorio! I knew you could do it.

    Rorio just rolled his eyes and gave him a light smile before walking towards the door.

    While Domino tried running up and taking the lead again, Risa followed behind the both of them. Letting out a sigh.

    One look at her face could show just how useless she felt in this situation. Domino used his skills in strategy to solve the problem, while Rorio used his skill to disable the trap. In the end, she didn''t do anything.

    The trio continued to walk through an empty hallway before reaching a giant solid white room.

    ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Rorio murmured aloud.

    Risa looked around as she squinted her eyes at the bright white walls.

    Suddenly, the doors slammed behind them and the room turned a bright red as a blaring alarm started going off.

    ¡°The heck!?¡± Rorio shouted.

    Domino looked around the room as Risa stood off to the side and tried to wrap her head around what was going on.

    It was then that she noticed a strange black liquid had started dripping from the walls.

    ¡°What¡¯s that!?¡± Risa shouted as she pointed toward the wall.

    Rorio and Domino turned to where she was pointing and quickly noticed the black liquid.

    ¡°Damn. Liquid steel.¡± Rorio murmured.

    Liquid steel. A special type of metal that was heavy as iron, but smooth as silk. A special type of metal used primarily for things such as torture or interrogations. Not something you¡¯d see in a temple. The reason behind this was because of the metal¡¯s inability to solidify. Making it much harder to move around and keep in check. That¡¯s why seeing it here was a rather strange sight to see.

    However, the team couldn¡¯t spend time pondering what it was doing here. They had to act fast.

    ¡°What should we do?¡± asked Risa, concerned.

    Rorio turned to Domino who struggled to come up with a good idea.

    ¡°Tsk!¡±

    Rorio clicked his tongue in frustration. He wasn''t great when it came to planning. This wasn''t because his plans were bad, he was just terrible at describing them to others. That¡¯s why he liked how easy Domino¡¯s were to follow.

    Trying to think fast, Rorio turned to Risa.

    ¡°Risa! Now¡¯s the time to show your training! Use that double spin move I taught you to get us out of here!¡±

    ¡°Double spin?¡± Risa looked at him confused.

    She knew what move he was talking about, but she didn¡¯t know how that was going to help.

    Rorio groaned as he pointed to a button he had spotted on the ceiling.

    ¡°Use that move to get to that button!¡±

    That cleared things up for Risa.

    ¡°Got it!¡±

    Trying to act as fast as possible, Risa dashed through the liquid metal around her feet before reaching out her foot and pressing it against the wall.

    Then, using all the strength her legs could muster, she thrust herself into the air and jumped off the nearby wall to keep momentum as she gazed at the button.

    Then, pulling Xeto off her back, she tossed it at her target

    The sword practically flew toward the button.

    After a few moments, a loud CLUNK sound could be heard as the sword made contact.

    ¡°...¡±

    There was no sound at first. That was until a whirring sound that could almost be passed off as the sound of a vacuum cleaner began to suck all the liquid metal back up into the holes they came from and doors at the other end of the room started opening up.

    Rorio and Risa both breathed sighs of relief just as Domino seemed to come to his senses.

    ¡°I got it! Quick! We need to-¡± but it was already done.

    Domino looked around confused while Rorio and Risa walked past him.

    Thus, the group made their way through the next door and dove deeper into the temple.

    Several traps later, the group came upon the treasure they were looking for.

    Risa breathed a sigh of relief at this being the end of the trek while Domino started getting riled up about what a fun adventure this was.

    During all that, Rorio walked over to the chest and opened it up.

    He didn''t know what he would find, but it must¡¯ve been worth a lot considering how far the person who made this place went to protect it.

    Thus, Rorio gazed into the chest.

    However, the only thing inside was a single scroll.

    Picking it up, he turned his head to its title.

    The scroll simply read, ¡°The Spell of Extinction.¡±

    After the group returned to the surface, they all decided to stop and rest for the night.

    Rorio simply told the two of them that what he found was a strange bow that wasn¡¯t worth much.

    The reason he lied was simple. He just didn''t want them to know what he really found.

    The spell of extinction that he found was a spell that, once cast, could kill anything no matter what stood between the user and the target. However, it came at a price. That being the life of the user themselves.

    Rorio knew he''d have to discuss this spell with Domino later when Risa wasn''t around.

    But for now, he decided to keep it hidden. Thus, the group was left rather disappointed that day.

    A few hours later, while Risa slept, Rorio discussed the spell with Domino and he agreed they should keep it a secret since a power like that was far too risky for anyone to know about.

    With that, another adventure had come to an end. With more no doubt on the way.

 Chapter 9: Disgusting Temptation

    A few weeks after the group''s escapades, things continued on as usual.

    Domino did his own thing while making sure his friends were safe, Rorio trained Risa and improved her swordsmanship, and after a few more treasure hunts, Risa grew accustomed to the danger and found herself growing an adventurous side.

    Because of these escapades, the trio now found themselves standing before what the people of the Outbursts considered to be the most dangerous cave in the land.

    The reason behind this claim was simple. Anyone who entered never came back out.

    Even so, the trio stared down the cave with excitement in their eyes.

    Or at least, Domino¡¯s did.

    While he had been excited about this trip, it was painfully obvious how much the people of the Outbursts hated humans as no matter where they went he was always treated terribly.

    In fact, had Risa not been wearing a hood to hide herself, there was no doubt she would¡¯ve faced the same ridicule.

    The whole thing just proved how much humans were truly despised in the Outbursts.

    But moving past that, it was time for the three of them to enter this cave that was no doubt fraught with danger.

    Domino looked down into the cave and then turned his head back to the others.

    ¡°I can make out a few specks of light, but that''s about it.¡±

    Rorio and Risa looked at one another before turning back to Domino.

    ¡°So what do you two think is the reason why people go missing in this cave?¡± Risa asked

    Domino turned to her.

    ¡°I can''t say for sure. But if I¡¯d have to guess, it¡¯s probably due to mind manipulation magic.¡±

    ¡°Mind manipulation?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It may not be as common as it used to be, but mind manipulation magic is the ability to alter one''s thoughts and make one think and see things differently than they usually would. Like, say that you think of us as friends right now. With this magic, you could easily be convinced we¡¯re enemies instead.¡±

    ¡°That sounds like some terrifying magic.¡±

    ¡°It was. That''s why the ancient magicians used their abilities to seal anyone from ever being able to use such things. However, traps or magic items with a similar effect can still function even now. That''s why the legendary warriors before us sought out and destroyed most of them. Sadly, no one knows if they were successful or not. That¡¯s why we should still be careful in case something like that magic appears.¡±

    Getting impatient, Rorio began walking into the cave''s entrance.

    ¡°Can we just get a move on?¡± he asked.

    Domino turned his head over to Rorio before grinning.

    ¡°Sure! It¡¯s time for a new adventure to begin!¡± Domino shouted excitedly as he dashed forward leaving Rorio and Risa in the dust.

    A vein appeared on Rorio''s forehead as he watched Domino charge forward.

    ¡°Idiot. If there really is magic like that in there running off is the last thing you should do,¡± he muttered before following suit.

    Risa found Rorio¡¯s frustration a bit adorable as she let a small chuckle escape her mouth before following behind him while she pondered what interesting adventure awaited them this time.

    Little did she know, they were about to deal with something that they never could have anticipated.

    When they entered the cave, Rorio had expected something like magic stones, or strange creatures with odd powers to jump out at them.

    But instead, all that was there was a banquet of food.

    While Rorio stared at it with a confused look on his face, Domino and Risa had already started digging in.

    Why had they decided to eat so quickly?

    The answer was simple. They hadn¡¯t had lunch yet.

    As Domino snarfed down, he turned to Rorio.

    ¡°Come on Rorio! The food is great!¡± he shouted as small chunks fell from his mouth as he spoke.

    Rorio let out a sigh as he shook his head.

    ¡°Need I remind you both that this is more than likely a trap? And you¡¯re both just eating away at it.¡±

    Realizing Rorio might have a point, Risa stepped back for a moment only for Domino to keep eating and shrugging off Rorio¡¯s words.

    ¡°I''m not sure about that. I trust my senses and right now they¡¯re saying this food is perfectly safe,¡± Domino said with his mouth full of food.

    Seeing his lack of concern, Risa trusted what Domino was saying.

    ¡°That''s good enough for me!¡± she shouted before digging back in.

    Watching the two of them, Rorio groaned as he looked around the room.

    While Domino''s senses were sharp, they didn''t always go off when he needed them to which made Rorio rely more on his own instincts. And these instincts were practically screaming the whole thing was a trap.

    Just then, something caught Rorio¡¯s eye. But just as he was about to bring it up...

    ¡°You need to lighten up Rorio. If you don''t, then you''ll never get anywhere in li-iiiiiifffe¡±

    Domino immediately fell down into a hole below himself. Risa''s screams followed soon after as she fell into a hole of her own.

    Rolling his eyes, Rorio walked over to Domino''s hole and shouted ¡°I told you!¡± then walked away.

    Not bothering to wait for a response, Rorio knew he wouldn¡¯t get anywhere just standing around, so walking over to the table, he grabbed a piece of food, and the trap activated under him. With that, he fell down into the pit below. Not knowing what to expect.

    Domino continued to fall. He could''ve sworn he heard Rorio shout down ¡°I told you!¡± from above him, so he shouted ¡°Oh shut up!¡± in response. He figured Rorio wouldn¡¯t hear him, but he still wanted to shout back for the heck of it.

    Eventually. he reached the ground and landed with a THUD!

    He was hoping to land on his feet, but because it wasn''t a straight drop and was more of a curve, it made it harder to get an exact idea of how he would¡¯ve landed. Thus, he ended up landing on his rear.

    Domino groaned as he got up from the ground and looked around his surroundings.

    ¡°Where the heck am I?¡± he muttered to himself as he scanned the room.

    The place was covered in four stone walls that seemed to give off a dark orange color scheme without any dust coating them.

    Domino wasn''t entirely sure what to make of this whole thing, so he walked over to one of the walls.

    ¡°Hello! Is anyone out there?!¡± he shouted.

    There was no response.

    Deciding to try again, he continued to shout out in hopes of locating his companions.

    After about twenty minutes, he gave up and sighed.

    He decided to lean on a wall and fully gather his thoughts on the situation when he felt a brick move behind him. It creaked and a door started to up nearby.

    Domino stepped back in surprise before staring at the door.

    Light shined from the other end of the tunnel as Domino looked into it, confused.

    ¡°A light? Could it be the way to some treasure?¡±

    Trying to be as cautious as he could be, Domino began making his way down the tunnel

    It was quiet as he walked forward. However the light seemed to be getting closer and closer, so he kept on walking.

    But when he reached the light, he stretched his arm out and a gust of wind blew through his face which caused him to close his eyes shut.

    After a moment, Domino felt tired and forced himself holt awake only to find himself sitting around in a beach chair. Much to his own surprise.

    He kept breathing in and out heavily as he attempted to recompose himself.

    ¡°What''s up Domino? You just bolted awake like a crazed hound?¡± said a voice next to him.

    Domino turned his head over to see a boy who seemed to be still in his teens with blue hair standing there.

    ¡°Rorio? What¡¯s going on? Why are you talking so happily? What is this place?!¡±

    Domino kept bursting out question after question at Rorio who seemed to be taken aback.

    ¡°Uh...Are you okay? Are you drunk again?¡± Rorio asked.

    ¡°Uhh...No?¡± Domino responded as if he was unsure himself.

    Not sure what to make of his friend''s actions, Rorio let out a sigh and turned away from Domino.

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. Well, come on. It''s time to party!¡±

    ¡°Party?¡±

    Not even acknowledging the confusion on Domino¡¯s face, Rorio ran off to a group of people that Domino thought looked familiar but not at the same time.

    The rest of the group immediately jumped into the ocean as Domino realized that he was at a beach house and memories he somehow forgot returned to him.

    How he met Rorio here in Hawaii, how he had a bunch of women swarming over him constantly which made him wonder how he wasn''t dead yet, and how he had a love for medieval stories that far outweighed anything else in his life.

    He looked into his lap and saw a book he had failed to finish writing called ¡°The Demon Slayers Sidekick¡± and read the last little bit of what he wrote.

    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    ¡°But when he reached the light, he stretched his arm out and a gust of wind blew through his face which caused him to close his eyes shut.¡±

    The book seemed to have everything he thought he had been living through inside it''s pages.

    He flipped through it and it almost felt nostalgic as he read it.

    ¡°So it was all just a story huh?¡± he murmured to himself as he flipped through the book a bit more.

    Letting out a sigh, Domino looked out at the sky.

    ¡°I guess...this is real life. Maybe I''ll try my best to enjoy it as much as I enjoyed my fantasies,¡± he muttered to himself.

    With that, he took off his shoes and t-shirt as he ran over to the others with a smile on his face. Ready to finally live his life to the fullest.

    Risa could hear the sounds of bells ringing as her eyes felt blinded by the sparkling lights above her head.

    She blinked a few times before fully adjusting as she gazed at her surroundings.

    Before, she had been falling through some strange hole. But now, She was standing in a church.

    She saw the stands packed with people in nice attire, a little girl who was tossing flowers left and right at the people in the stands, and when she looked at herself, she saw that she was wearing a nice wedding outfit that practically glowed on her body.

    Not only that, but she also found a man standing in front of her in a black suit who gave off a smile that made her heart skip a beat.

    Memories started to flow into her head as she started remembering everything.

    Her name was Risa Violet, she was getting engaged to her one and only lover, and those people in the stands were people she cared about dearly.

    She felt tears drip down her eyes as the memories caused her emotions to spring forth.

    To everyone in the stands, however, it seemed like she was just crying over how happy she probably was over getting married.

    Risa turned back to the man in front of her and gave him a warm smile and he turned away for a moment with his face bright red.

    After a few more moments, a pope walked up on stage towards the two and gave them a kind grin as he started to speak.

    ¡°Today we are gathered here to celebrate the unity between these two in holy matrimony. The beautiful Risa Violet and her lover %#&&#.¡±

    The pope continued onward with the normal stuff he had to go over during a wedding as Risa just felt happy that the pain she thought she had suffered was only memories of her past that she never knew existed.

    She didn''t know if they were from a past life or some traumatic experience, but she was just glad it was all over.

    Domino tossed the ball over to Rorio who caught it mid-air before tossing it over to another one of their friends.

    The group continued to laugh and have fun for what felt like hours and Domino felt like this was the most fun he had ever had in his life.

    After a little while, Domino decided to take a break and get a drink.

    He made his way over to the porch of his beach house and took a sip of beer that he had in his hand and looked up into the sky.

    ¡°Hey, Domino! I''m about to go pick up some more drinks! I need your help carrying them! Can you come along?¡± shouted Rorio from below.

    Looking down, Domino nodded.

    ¡°Sure! I''ll be right there!¡± he shouted.

    Rorio grinned and ran off ahead.

    Domino couldn¡¯t help but smile at how pleasant his life was.

    Turning back to the book he had been writing, he found himself pondering something.

    ¡°Hmm...What should I add next?¡± he thought as he made his way down toward the nearby convenience store Rorio had run off to.

    Spotting Rorio, Domino waved to him.

    Rorio waved back and patiently waited for Domino to make his way over.

    However, Domino was so focused on Rorio, that he didn¡¯t realize there was someone in front of him.

    ¡°Oof!¡±

    Domino suddenly bumped into said person.

    ¡°Oh! Sorry!¡± he said as he looked at the face of the person in front of him.

    ¡°No! It¡¯s fine!¡± said the person simply shrugging it off before turning around and leaving.

    To most people, that would¡¯ve been the end of that event. However, as the person left, Domino felt his blood go cold.

    ¡°Was that...?¡±

    Things went on smoothly at Risa''s wedding as the pope had finished up the last of the things he needed to say and he turned to look at the groom.

    ¡°Now, Do you %#&&# take Risa Violet to be your lawfully wedded wife?¡±

    Risa didn''t understand the name the pope said. However, she recalled that her lover was foreign so his name was different than what she was used to.

    She figured this would clear things up, but there was still this nagging feeling that something was wrong.

    After the groom replied with what Risa thought was probably an ¡°I do.¡± the pope turned to Risa.

    ¡°And do you, Risa? Take %#&&#, to be your lawfully wedded husband?¡±

    Risa, unlike her lover, was unsure how to respond.

    She had finally remembered who she was, but it just didn''t feel right to her. She kept trying to shake the feeling of uncertainty, but it stayed there no matter what she did. The pope looked at her confused.

    ¡°Uh...Risa Violet?¡±

    Risa didn''t respond. She just kept trying to shake the feeling.

    ¡°I...I...I..¡± she struggled to respond to the situation in front of her. She was finally happy, but it just felt wrong. She wasn''t sure how to respond and ended up taking a step back.

    ¡°I...I D-¡±

    CRASH!

    From out of nowhere, something smashed through the wall as the crowd ran around terrified as their screams filled the air.

    Some had gotten stuck under the rubble, while others ran away in fear.

    In the middle of the dusty field created by the crash, a single individual stood there with something struggling in their hand.

    Risa got a better look and her eyes grew wide at what she saw in front of her. It made her blood run cold and she found herself unable to speak more than a single word.

    ¡°Rorio?¡±

    Rorio stood there with his hands around the neck of some strange creature.

    Risa couldn¡¯t believe what she was seeing.

    Just then, she took notice of another figure in the smoke.

    Domino stood there with an expression of anger on his face as he looked at Rorio with eyes that said. ¡°Just do what you think you should do.¡±

    She turned back to Rorio and saw his eyes. They were completely red. The only thing that seemed to ooze from his body was the intent to kill and nothing more.

    Risa almost felt herself taking a step back before she started hearing the monster in Rorio¡¯s clutches talk.

    ¡°Please! I promise I was only trying to fill your heart¡¯s desire! I didn''t mean to hurt you! Please!¡± it shouted.

    Rorio''s eyes seemed to light up for a moment which made the monster think it was gonna be okay before Rorio released his hand and sliced through its neck. Decapitating it in one quick strike.

    The monster that had been alive just a few moments earlier had its body flop to the ground. Blood leaked from its headless neck as its head rolled off under one of the seats.

    Risa couldn¡¯t believe her eyes as she watched Rorio. Suddenly she felt someone grab her and she let out a light scream as both the groom and the pope kept her from moving.

    ¡°Not one more step you monster! If you try to even touch me! I will kill this girl!¡± shouted the pope as he held a knife to Risa''s throat. Feeling the blade on her neck, Risa started to panic.

    But then, like magic, as soon as Rorio turned to face the two creatures, he vanished.

    After that, Risa heard shouts of terror and pain behind her.

    Turning around, she saw the corpses of both the groom and pope lying on the ground.

    Both were sliced in half.

    Bringing her sight to Rorio, Risa watched him as he whipped the blood off his blade.

    Unsure of what to do, the chill in Risa¡¯s body only continued to grow colder as Rorio¡¯s intense bloodlust caused her to reach for her blade.

    However, as she stared at his face, she noticed something strange about the way he looked.

    While he did look angry, it didn¡¯t seem like your normal anger. It wasn¡¯t like the anger you got from someone playing a trick on you or someone getting on your nerves. This looked like the kind of anger that only showed when someone was spitting on your loved one''s grave.

    It made Risa worry about what Rorio had seen that made him act like this.

    Rewinding a bit, we return to Domino as he finally recovered from his shock and made his way over to Rorio.

    ¡°Come on Domino! Let''s get moving!¡± Rorio said with a smile.

    Rorio had planned to just keep moving things along.

    But when he turned around to enter the store, he felt Domino grab him by the hand.

    ¡°Stop it,¡± Domino whispered. Rorio looked at him confused.

    ¡°Stop what?¡±

    Domino could feel the anger welling up in him.

    ¡°STOP PRETENDING TO BE RORIO YOU PIECE OF SHIT!!!¡± Domino shouted.

    Domino had finally understood what was happening, and he intended to make it stop.

    ¡°Huh? What are you talking about?¡± the one who called himself Rorio asked as if trying to act innocent.

    ¡°You damn well know what I''m talking about! Cut the crap!¡±

    Rorio looked unsure of how to respond to Domino. However, after a minute, he realized it was pointless to hide it anymore. Thus the one calling himself Rorio sighed.

    ¡°Dang it. And we were so close too.¡±

    ¡°We?¡±

    ¡°Yes, we! All that had to be done was slowly eat off your life force while you lived in our happy little illusion! We can''t do it while you''re aware! We tempt you with something you''ve always wanted and make you happy...and I just told you how our world works...Dammit!''''

    The monster seemed to go from confident to frustrated as he realized he gave information that wasn''t supposed to be shared.

    Bringing himself back together after realizing his mistake, the look-alike faced Domino.

    ¡°Crap. Guess I¡¯ll have to kill you now before you go tattling to other adventurers!¡±

    Upon saying that, the Rorio look-alike''s body slowly started to mold and change shape.

    His form changed to look like an empty face that had no mouth, nose, or eyes. His skin seemed to be a mixed texture of dark blue and dark red, and his clothes morphed into part of his body.

    ¡°I guess I can''t let you live now that you know our secret!¡± he shouted as he launched at Domino.

    Domino immediately ducked under his attack and swung his fist right into the monster''s stomach which caused the monster to fly back.

    It grunted in pain as it clenched its stomach and turned to Domino. It swore under its breath as it continued to try and tackle Domino over and over as Domino delivered blow after blow.

    ¡°GRR...DAMN YOU!¡± the monster shouted as it tried one last launch attack.

    Having had enough, Domino pulled out the pencil that had come with his book and it immediately transformed into his sword.

    The monster gawked in surprise, but it was too late. Domino sliced him in half and its body collapsed to the ground.

    The monsters around Domino immediately ran away not wanting to die so Domino sheathed his sword.

    But as he did, he felt a small rumble across the floor under him as he looked over to find another monster getting slammed into the ground with someone on top of it.

    ¡°Rorio?!¡±

    Rorio didn''t seem to notice Domino as the monster begged for mercy.

    ¡°PLEASE SPARE ME!!¡±

    ¡°WHY THE HELL DID YOU TAKE HER FORM!? ANSWER ME!!¡±

    Rorio was in a frenzied rage. This immediately helped Domino realize what had happened, and who the monster had taken the form of.

    Only one form could ever make Rorio this mad.

    Rorio grabbed the monster by the neck once more and threw it off into the distance as Domino followed close behind.

    Returning to the present, Risa looked down at the corpses in front of her before facing Rorio once more as his eyes softened a little bit.

    ¡°If you two are done with your little temptation fest, can we please get out of this place and go somewhere a little less death-infested?¡± asked Rorio as his eyes returned to their normal blue color.

    Risa struggled to respond, so she simply nodded. Still not understanding why Rorio had lost it.

    Not bothering to see if the two had said anything, Rorio walked away with his hand still tightly clenching his sword.

    Trying to understand what was going on, Risa walked up next to Domino.

    From what she understood, these monsters were creatures that could transform into something that would make the subject happy.

    ¡°Was the form that monster took really that messed up?¡± Risa whispered to herself. She was surprised when Domino answered her.

    ¡°Without a doubt,¡± he replied with a grim expression.

    Risa turned to Domino only to be caught off guard by how he had a more serious look on his face compared to his normally more cheerful demeanor.

    She knew that she shouldn''t dive further, but she decided to ask.

    ¡°Who was it?¡±

    Domino''s face seemed to grow a bit darker as he replied.

    ¡°Rorio''s....sister.¡±

    Risa''s eyes widened when she heard that.

    ¡°Rorio''s....sister?¡±

    She turned to look at Rorio who still had a somewhat deadly aura around him as he walked away.

    She still didn¡¯t get it, but something told her that was as deep as she should dive right now.

    Thus, the journey into one of the most dangerous caves in the Outburst ended on a rather cold note.

 Chapter 10: The First Creator Knight

    The group managed to safely reach the surface and Rorio turned to Domino.

    ¡°Here. I found this while I was in there.¡±

    He tossed a small bag of gold to Domino who barely managed to catch it.

    Then Rorio turned around.

    ¡°I''m gonna scout around a bit. You two get some rest.¡±

    After saying that, Rorio dashed off into the forest.

    Risa watched as he vanished before turning to Domino.

    ¡°You won¡¯t try to stop him?¡±

    In Risa¡¯s eyes, Rorio wasn''t in a good state of mind to move around too much. However, Domino just looked to the sky.

    ¡°Sometimes, people just need a little time alone. Just leave him be for a while.

    Risa felt her worry grow as she looked at Domino before turning her head to the forest.

    Rorio was already long gone.

    Domino and Risa started collecting items such as firewood, food, and other normal camping equipment in order to pass the time until Rorio got back.

    But even after a few hours, Rorio had yet to return which made Risa worry he had gotten stuck in something.

    Ever since Domino and Rorio saved her, the two of them had started to feel like family to her. So seeing someone she cared about suffering made her feel miserable inside.

    Eventually, Rorio returned to the two of them and said he found a small cave where the three of them could stay for the night.

    Thus, Domino and Risa followed him to the location.

    Once they arrived, they all prepared for the night. Risa watched Rorio throughout the entire setup. His grim, serious expression stayed throughout the whole process and she felt too nervous to ask him anything so she kept silent.

    Before long, it started to rain outside.

    Deciding to change what she was looking at, Risa turned her gaze away from Rorio to the rain outside.

    Sadly, even as she watched it fall, her thoughts were still on Rorio.

    ¡°I want to help. But how can I if I don''t understand?¡± she wondered as she saw the rain drip down the front walls of the cave.

    She continued to watch the rain for quite a bit longer before hearing someone come up to her.

    ¡°The rain sure looks beautiful,¡± she said calmly trying to start up a conversation.

    ¡°You think?¡± Rorio responded behind her in a tone Risa couldn''t quite place.

    Domino immediately jumped on the opportunity for a joke.

    ¡°You''re right! Makes you wonder if it''s wet or not!¡±

    He expected to at least get a chuckle, but all he got in return were blank, empty stares which caused him to take a step back.

    ¡°Did you really just say that?¡± Risa said emotionlessly. Domino chuckled nervously.

    ¡°Hey. Gotta lift everyone''s spirits somehow,¡± he replied, slightly disappointed that his joke didn''t land.

    Things were silent for the rest of the night after that as the group all decided to just head to bed and deal with problems like Domino tomorrow.

    Thus, the day''s events came to an end.

    Risa was the first to wake up the next morning and groaned from the pain in her back. She was used to sleeping in a crate, but rocks were a whole other matter. So she still needed to adjust.

    Letting out a yawn, Risa looked around the cave a bit as she rubbed her eyes as they were drawn to Rorio upon hearing strange sounds coming from his direction.

    But what she saw shocked her.

    While Rorio was still asleep, she could see tears trickle down his eyes as his face formed into an expression of pain which caused Risa to jump up from her bed and run over to Rorio.

    "No...Don''t do it...No!"

    He was sweating up a storm and his breathing was growing faster at a rapid pace.

    Looking him over, Risa remembered what her dad always did for her when she dealt with stressful stuff and grabbed hold of Rorio''s hand.

    After a moment, She was surprised to find that his tears did seem to slow down and the tension that was there seemed to drain bit by bit.

    The tears stopped after a few minutes and Risa watched Rorio quietly.

    After a few more minutes of silence, Rorio started to open his eyes and turned his head to find Risa sitting there holding his hand.

    ¡°Risa?¡± he asked tired and confused before noticing tears slowly streaming down her eyes which caused him to freeze.

    She tried her best to wipe away some of the tears with her other arm as she looked ar Rorio with a serious expression.

    ¡°I don''t know what you''re going through, but I can promise this much, I will always stay by your side.¡±

    Looking into her eyes, Rorio¡¯s memory flashed back to the day before and how confused and terrified Risa must have been as she saw him ruthlessly kill those monsters.

    ¡°How? How can you say that after you saw what I did?¡± he asked.

    Risa just shook her head and gave him a calm smile.

    ¡°No matter what happens, no matter what you think you are, I won''t ever see you as anything but one of my friends.¡±

    Rorio could feel water starting to form in his eyes before he turned away, trying to hide the fact he was about to let the waterworks flow.

    Meanwhile, Domino, who had woken up silently, just watched the exchange with a smile.

    A bit later, the group had finished packing up and were about to head out when Domino decided to ask Risa a question.

    ¡°Hey, Risa? What was up with the vision you saw in that cave?¡± Risa looked at him confused for a moment before getting at what he was saying.

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    According to what they knew, the monsters in the cave would play out a person¡¯s desires while they got drained of their life force.

    This caused Domino to wonder why Risa''s vision seemed to represent a wedding.

    Risa thought for a moment before responding.

    ¡°I dunno. I''ve always wanted to get married, but because I was sold off by my mother, I found myself trying to give up on that dream. But I guess deep down I still wanted it even after all this time.¡±

    Domino seemed to understand that response and nodded before continuing.

    ¡°While that does make sense. What still doesn''t make sense is the guy who was supposed to be your husband. He looked more like an empty shell than a person.¡±

    This was indeed true. While most of the monsters in the illusion were people Risa knew or may have known, the one she was being wed to was completely empty. It was just a void of color and that was it. No facial features or anything of the sort. It seemed to just be a completely empty being.

    Risa just shrugged.

    ¡°I guess it just means that I haven''t found the right man yet. But maybe I will someday, and I think that''s something to look forward to. Who knows, maybe the one I''m looking for is someone I already know!¡±

    She ended her reply with a cheerful smile which Domino returned.

    Then Rorio ruined it.

    ¡°Good luck with that,¡± he muttered in a bored tone.

    Risa immediately turned toward him, upset.

    ¡°What''s that supposed to mean!?¡±

    ¡°Well from what you''ve told us, it seems like you don''t know that many people. Let alone feel a certain way towards them.¡±

    Rorio''s words cut like a knife as Risa admitted defeat.

    ¡°You...have a point,¡± she said as she pouted. Rorio just chuckled a bit as he gazed at his companions.

    The group chatted for a bit longer before Rorio looked at the sky.

    Their next stop would be DragonBane City. Thanks to some information from Lori, Rorio learned that DragonBane was actually the location of the first Creator Knight. It made Rorio glad they waited to visit as he wouldn''t have had time to prepare for such a fight on the spot.

    The Creator Knights were spread out throughout the entirety of the Outbursts. Two were located on the outer layer, while two more were inside the inner layer.

    This was all decided by the Creator who seemed to be the oddest of the group. No one knew anything about the Creator at all. Not their name, gender, voice, not even their face. Nothing was known about them other than that they were the Creator.

    But saving that for another time, the primary focus was the Creator Knights.

    According to what Rorio had learned, each Creator Knight used a unique single element used solely by them.

    However, the elements of the Creator Knights were kept hidden in terms of who was where. So they couldn¡¯t prepare for one element over another beforehand.

    The elements themselves were fire, water, earth, and darkness and all the knights acted as protectors for the Creator and were entirely loyal to them and only them.

    Because the location of each element was unknown, the group would have no idea who they''d be fighting going in which concerned Rorio.

    But as they got closer to DragonBane, Rorio easily understood who they''d have to face.

    After about an hour of walking, the group finally entered DragonBane, with the intent of defeating the Creator Knight lurking there.

    As the trio walked through the streets of DragonBane, all they found were empty stone buildings that seemed to keep their tan complexion despite how old they looked. It seemed like a desolate wasteland and made it clear who the group was about to deal with.

    While the city seemed to be somewhat normal, what stood out was the statue in the town square that towered over everything. It was the picture of a dragon that seemed to be on its last breath as it sprawled forward in an attempt to claim victory against something. Its left wing had been cut off and a shiver went down Risa''s spine when she noticed that its belly was gaping open with the organs leaking out.

    Quite disturbing for a simple statue.

    After a bit more walking, the group found themselves standing in front of what seemed to be a church.

    According to what he¡¯d been told during his conversation with Quiv a while back, Rorio knew that the Creator Knights resided in churches. Why? No one really knows. But the best guess was that since the knights were so loyal to the Creator, it was safe to say they thought of them as a god and saw themselves as the Creator''s followers. Taking that into account, it was probably safe to assume these churches existed to show their devotion.

    Staring at the church, Domino was the first to step forward as both Risa and Rorio followed behind him. And as he pushed the door open, the three of them walked inside.

    After making their way inside, the three found themselves in what seemed to be a giant empty room.

    It was made of sandstone that looked as dry as the desert while the sound of the wind blowing by leaked through the walls.

    Suddenly, the door slammed behind them and Domino let out a rather lady-like yelp as he jumped in surprise.

    Risa chuckled while Rorio rolled his eyes.

    Once the group made it a bit further into the empty room, they saw a sign sitting in the middle and walked over to it.

    ¡°Only those who face their trial of sins are worthy of facing the godly being of the Earth Creator Knight. Face your past pains if you wish to pass,¡± read Domino aloud.

    It seemed both straightforward and confusing at the same time.

    Unsure of what to do, the group looked at each other and were about to discuss what to do next when a voice echoed in front of them.

    ¡°Well Well Well! What do we have here?¡±

    Risa¡¯s blood went cold. She nervously moved her head to look in the direction of the voice and the one who stood there sent a chill down her spine which only caused the one in front of her to smile.

    The one standing there was none other than Angelica. The woman who not only killed Risa¡¯s father but also helped in handing her over to the slave trader.

    Angelica¡¯s grin widened as she looked into Risa¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Well Well Well. If it isn''t little miss knight. Find your voice yet?¡± she asked as she let out a small chuckle

    Risa didn¡¯t respond. She was frozen by fear. Even with Xeto at her side which she gripped tightly.

    Angelica didn''t look any different from all that time ago. However, she was now wearing what seemed to be a set of shining armor that glowed with enchantments that would make penetrating it quite difficult.

    ¡°Well Well Well. I sense my precious little curse has been broken and yet you still refuse to talk. Such a shame.¡±

    Deciding to move her attention away from Risa for a moment, Angelica turned toward Domino and Rorio before she pointed her hand out.

    ¡°Well Well Well. I guess I''ll just take my frustration out on your friends here. Now, let''s dive into their worst failures, shall we!?¡±

    Angelica immediately shot a strange glowing ball of energy toward Domino at full speed.

    Domino prepared for impact. However-

    ¡°What the-!?¡±

    Before he could take the attack, Rorio sensed something up with the ball of energy. Thus, moving without thinking, he jumped in front of Domino. Taking the attack full on.

    ¡°Rorio!¡± Domino shouted. But it was too late.

    As Rorio slammed into the ball of energy he was sent flying backward. He crashed into the wall and the stone shattered on impact.

    After that, Rorio slumped to the ground and fell unconscious.

    Risa, who had been frozen up to that point, turned to Rorio and looked at his unconscious body lying on the ground.

    ¡°Rorio!¡± she shouted terrified.

    Angelica smiled before another ball grew in her hand.

    ¡°Well Well Well! This is getting interesting. How about we all enjoy the show!? This is gonna get good!¡± she shouted.

    She then immediately shot the ball into the air and a dome surrounded her, Domino, and Risa before she fell to the ground unconscious. Domino followed soon after. And after a moment, Risa collapsed as well. Everyone in the room was out for the count.

    Rorio thought he was falling from the sky. The wind blew past him as he felt a breeze forcing itself onto his back.

    He wasn''t sure what was happening, but just as he started feeling his consciousness come back to him, he crashed through some trees and continually landed on branch after branch while shouting ¡°Ow!¡± the entire way down before finally landing on the ground with a CRASH!

    ¡°Oww. What the heck?¡±

    Sitting up, he groaned as he rubbed his head.

    Blinking, he noticed his voice seemed to have gotten a little higher, along with his body feeling a bit smaller.

    Suddenly, he heard a voice behind him.

    ¡°Rorio! Rorio, are you okay!¡± came a voice he recognized all too well.

    He turned his head to look and there she was. A young girl around the same age as Rorio was holding out her hand with a concerned look on her face.

    Her hair was smooth and straight as it fell all the way down her back.

    It was a slightly brighter blue than Rorio''s hair and her eyes had a different shine then her brothers. Add on the aura that made her kind soul shine, and it almost made it difficult to look at her.

    Rorio stared in shock for a moment before rubbing his eyes and looking at her once more.

    ¡°Sis?¡± he said in shock.

 Chapter 11: The Day of Tragedy

    Rorio rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn¡¯t seeing things.

    But it was impossible to deny what he was staring at, he knew the one he was looking at was his sister.

    ¡°Sis?¡±

    The one he called ¡°Sis¡± had ignored his confused tone and put his arm over her shoulder.

    ¡°Come on. That''s enough tree climbing for one day.¡±

    Rorio wasn''t sure how to react but nodded and held onto his sister.

    Returning from the woods, the two walked back to the balcony of the mansion Rorio¡¯s sister lived in.

    Unknown to most, the two had been separated as kids.

    Rorio went off to live in a few different locations over the years, whereas his sister was brought in by a rich couple that felt bad for the little girl who was being sold off by her parents for drinking money.

    The two had reunited about four years ago. Little did people know how close they¡¯d gotten during these last few years.

    The two now sat on a balcony drinking some water as Rorio''s sister tried to talk about how dangerous being out in the wilderness all the time was.

    ¡°Seriously Rorio. I told you hanging out in the trees for training was dangerous. Why didn''t you listen to me?¡±

    The only response she got from her brother was a happy smile.

    ¡°I can''t help it! I want to be as useful to Domino as I possibly can! And if falling from some trees can help improve me even a little bit, I¡¯ll do it without a second thought!¡±

    Domino, the young boy who was chosen to be the one to slay Darterest the demon lord, had asked for Rorio to become his sidekick.

    Rorio was ecstatic about the offer and had been training day in and day out to make himself skilled enough to be Domino''s sidekick.

    Even though he already had plenty of experience under his belt from training ever since he was three, Rorio still wanted to be the kind of person to be able to protect those he cared for. Making it hard for people to convince him to stop his training for a lengthy period of time.

    ¡°While I like the enthusiasm, I don¡¯t see what kind of training you could get from falling out of trees,¡± said Rorio''s sister as she shook her head.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much Yuna. As you can see, I''m perfectly fine!¡± Rorio said trying to reassure her.

    Yuna, someone who liked adventure but was unable to travel, looked at Rorio with concern.

    ¡°Say Rorio, do you really have to face these dangers?¡± she asked.

    As much as Yuna wanted to go on adventures too, she cared about her brother even more. And the idea of him facing danger without her being there to support him made her feel uneasy.

    Rorio tilted his head in confusion.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well, you only started your adventure a year ago and have already come back to get my help with patching up Domino after your last battle. I don''t want you to keep trying to be adventurers if you could end up dead.¡±

    Domino and Rorio had just finished another quest with a curse involved and it led to them having to stop at Yuna¡¯s house to talk with their healer to cure the curse cast on Domino.

    Now these two were just waiting to hear if they cured Domino or not.

    Rorio just smirked proudly at his sister.

    ¡°Don''t worry so much Yuna. While Domino is pretty incompetent, when it comes to his skills in battle, I''m fully protected against pretty much anything.¡±

    Yuna looked at him dumbfounded at how he somehow managed to contradict himself in the same sentence.

    ¡°Yeah...But still.¡±

    Even Rorio could tell that he wasn''t getting through to his sister. So he walked up to her and held out his hand.

    ¡°Then how about this, I promise every year, on this day, I¡¯ll come back and prove to you that there¡¯s nothing to worry about.¡±

    Yuna didn''t entirely see what that was going to prove, however, it did mean she''d get to at least see him once a year which was enough for her.

    ¡°You promise?¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°I promise on my life!¡± he shouted proudly as the two shook hands and Rorio gave her a childish smile.

    ¡°Hey, Rorio! You ready to go?¡± came a voice from behind them.

    Rorio and Yuna looked over to find a young Domino who seemed to be in his early teens waving at them, clarifying that the curse had been lifted and he was ready to roll again. Realizing their family reunion was up, Rorio shouted a response back to Domino.

    ¡°In a minute!¡±

    Rorio started to run off before turning around and shouting back to his sister.

    ¡°See ya, Sis!¡±

    With that, he ran off to join Domino while Yuna simply waved him goodbye

    With that, many years went by.

    Rorio had kept his promise and visited Yuna every year on the same day without fail. He went even if Domino couldn¡¯t and it made Yuna happy to see her brother. Everything seemed to move by too fast and Rorio felt like his life was flashing before his eyes as he continued on with his life day after day.

    Before long, six years had passed since the day of that promise and Domino and Rorio were on their way to visit Yuna again.

    It had been a few weeks since the defeat of Darterest, so the two were feeling more cheerful than ever.

    The two were messing with one another in an innocent enough manner, but when the two got close to the mansion, Rorio froze.

    Domino looked at him confused.

    ¡°What''s wrong?¡± he asked.

    Rorio didn''t respond. Instead, he dashed straight toward the mansion.

    Rorio didn¡¯t know why, but he felt like something was wrong.

    Domino tried running after Rorio, only to find himself struggling to do so.

    Arriving at the mansion, Rorio burst through the front door. Inside, there was blood everywhere.

    Lying on the ground near the front of the stairs was the head maid, along with the headless bodies of both of Yuna''s parents.

    Rorio rushed over to their corpses and looked them over before noticing a letter near the stairs.

    Picking it up, he skimmed through it as fast as possible.

    As he finished reading the letter, his eyes grew a fiery red as he ran for the door.

    He dashed past Domino who had just arrived and vanished from sight as he sped off as fast as he could possibly run.

    Trying to figure out what got his companion so worked up, Domino walked inside and saw both the corpses and the note. He read it as fast as he could.

    ¡°Hello, Demon Slayer. We have taken your sidekick¡¯s sister to help create the new world. If you somehow think you can stop us, then, by all means, meet us at the abandoned Rosetta Tower.¡±

    Like his companion, the minute Domino finished reading the letter, he too dashed out the door at high speed toward Rosetta Tower.

    While he didn''t have as strong of a connection as Rorio, he knew Yuna and cared for her like a younger sister. All he could do was hope he could make it there before it was too late.

    Rorio burst into Rosetta Tower and looked around infuriated.

    ¡°Rorio!¡± came a terrified voice.

    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Rorio turned his head to find his sister tied up by her hands to a rope on one of the planks of the tower.

    Rosetta Tower was a place that existed as a final resting place for the Goddess Rosetta which was a shallow hardwood tower that only had four planks on the inside that was tying the room to the rest of the building.

    The four planks were extremely high up and there was no doubt that anyone who hit the ground from that high would die on impact.

    ¡°Rorio? Where''s your dumb master, you little runt!?¡±

    Rorio turned his attention to a taunting voice he was all too familiar with.

    Behind Yuna was a man in all black with bulging eyes that looked like they could pop out at any second. This man''s name was BloodBlade. A psycho assassin who killed for sport and used to be Rorio''s teacher in the art of the sword, as well as one of his closest friends.

    But that was a long time ago.

    After an incident that caused BloodBlades village to burn and he had to watch his mother and sister get raped, BloodBlade blamed everything on Domino and Rorio for not being there. Rorio never knew why BloodBlade was so focused on Domino since the two barely knew one another, but it became a rivalry between them and Rorio was simply just someone on the sidelines.

    Rorio kept his glare focused on BloodBlade as he pointed his sword at him.

    ¡°Let my sister go, you bastard!¡±

    BloodBlade just gave him a creepy smile.

    ¡°And why should I? She wouldn''t be a captive if I let her go!¡±

    BloodBlade and Rorio looked at each other for a few more moments before BloodBlade let out a sigh.

    ¡°Well, I suppose you could entertain me until your master gets here!¡± stated BloodBlade as he jumped down from the wooden beams.

    In an attempt to slow his descent, BloodBlade pulled two swords from his back and dug them into the wall. Bringing his fall to a halt and he landed safely in front of Rorio.

    Let¡¯s do this,¡± says BloodBlade with a chuckle as he charged at Rorio.

    Sadly, the battle that ensued was so one-sided that it hurt.

    Rorio tried over and over to block BloodBlade''s attacks as well as strike at him again and again only to miss without BloodBlade struggling at all.

    No matter how much Rorio tried to slash BloodBlade, he never managed to hit him once. And after many fierce attacks, BloodBlade slammed his foot into Rorio''s left arm which broke upon impact.

    ¡°GAAAH!¡±

    Taking this opportunity, BloodBlade kicked Rorio into the wall of the tower which caused Rorio to puke up blood before he fell to the floor. However, before his body made an impact with the floor, Bloodblade appeared above him and brought his foot up, and smashed it into Rorio''s legs causing Rorio to scream out in pain once more.

    With a grin, BloodBlade moved away from Rorio as he stared at the man''s beaten and battered body.

    ¡°How sad. The mighty Demon Slayer can''t even make his Sidekick a worthy opponent. Oh well.¡±

    BloodBlade sounded quite disappointed.

    Having grown bored, BloodBlade jumped back up to Yuna and gave her a smile.

    ¡°Now my dear, maybe it''s time I help myself before the Demon Slayer gets here,¡± he said as he licked his lips.

    Yuna shouted in terror.

    She thought she wanted to go on adventures and protect her brother, but if this was all that would ever happen to her, she would rather have locked herself in a room with Rorio and never let either of them leave.

    Her screams of terror started to fill the tower as the battered and bloodied Rorio looked up terrified.

    ¡°YUNA!¡±

    He tried standing on his feet, but he just couldn¡¯t move his broken bones.

    Grinning, BloodBlade started to reach his right hand out toward Yuna as her eyes grew wide with terror.

    SLICE!

    Suddenly, he heard the sound of flesh being cut and stepped back, confused.

    Then, he heard a plop from below and looked down to see an arm that looked similar to his lying on the ground of the tower.

    Curious, BloodBlade turned towards his own arm to find that half of it had been cut off and was bleeding like crazy.

    Once it started to dawn on him what had happened, BloodBlade immediately shouted in pain as blood splurged from his arm.

    BloodBlade growled angrily as he grabbed what was left of his arm and forced the wound shut before looking around and spotting a sword lodged in the wall of the tower.

    Turning to see where it was thrown, his smile returned.

    ¡°I see your skills are sharper than ever.....Demon Slayer.¡±

    Domino stood and looked at the monster in front of him.

    ¡°You disgusting pig! You''re gonna pay!¡± he shouted.

    All Domino got in response was a simple snort.

    ¡°She must really mean a lot to the both of you to go this far! I wonder how serious you¡¯d get if I snuffed her out!¡±

    Domino continued glaring at BloodBlade as he prepared to launch another sword when four bandits cloaked in black appeared before Domino and one snatched his sword.

    Domino looked around him to find himself surrounded.

    BloodBlade chuckled.

    ¡°Looks like it''s time, ey?¡± he asked happily.

    One of the bandits nodded in response. BloodBlade smiled as he grabbed Yuna and tucked her under his arm and she squealed terrified.

    ¡°You bastard!¡± Domino shouted as he tried to dash after BloodBlade who was climbing even higher into the tower.

    But every time he moved, he was stopped by the four bandits which held him in place no matter how much he struggled.

    Rorio just watched in terror as he heard his sister''s squeals.

    He kept trying to make his broken legs move, but they refused to let him do anything. He could feel tears stream down his eyes as he watched BloodBlade climb higher and higher before reaching the top of the empty tower.

    He held Yuna over his head and shouted out for the heavens to hear.

    ¡°Oh, gods above! We offer this sacrifice to help create a new world! Please grace us with your power and blessing!¡± he shouted.

    With that, BloodBlade let Yuna go and she started to fall.

    Yuna''s screams of terror filled the room. But to Rorio, all he could hear was the whooshing of air. He watched in horror as his sister fell. Domino felt tears stream down his face as he tried to stop it. But the bandits kept him back.

    It all felt like it was all moving in slow motion as Rorio watched his sister fall. His eyes grew wider and wider before finally...

    SMASH!

    Time seemed to freeze...

    Rorio just looked in front of him to see what happened...

    However, as the dust cleared...

    All he could see...

    Were his sister''s body parts spread across the floor.

    Everything was silent. Domino faced the terror and felt himself start to go over the edge.

    What was once a beautiful girl that wanted to have a happy life with those she cared about, had her life snuffed out for something she wasn''t even involved in.

    All that remained was the splattered skin, bright blue hair, and blood that covered the floor.

    BloodBlade''s laughs could be heard echoing throughout the entire tower as he looked at the bloodstain of a person who used to be there. Rorio just stared at the scene before letting his voice ring out.

    ¡°YUUNNAAAA!!!!!!!¡±

    Tears streamed down his eyes as snot fell through his nose and sounds of emotional pain echoed throughout the entire tower.

    BloodBlade continued to laugh at the demise of Yuna as Domino went into a rage.

    He tried to charge right at BloodBlade to kill him, but the bandits blocked his path.

    He tried to punch through them but struggled to see through the tears.

    BloodBlade''s laughter was finally starting to calm down as he looked down at Domino and shouted out to the heavens once more.

    ¡°Now the Gods can finally accept us into the new world and we will forever be happ-Hpf!¡±

    BloodBlade stopped mid-sentence.

    Suddenly, BloodBlade''s head slid off his body and fell down to the floor below.

    Standing behind BloodBlade''s headless corpse was Rorio who was bleeding from all sides as his eyes glowed a red so bright it was almost blinding. This was a trait all Demi-Humans had. If their emotions were pushed to the brink, they obtain superhuman-like abilities even more powerful than their raw power. In other words, it was an enraged adrenaline rush.

    While Rorio''s legs were still broken and bleeding, he stood up and turned down to Domino and the bandits before charging at them at full speed.

    All the bandits shouted in terror as Rorio sliced through each of them one by one with ease.

    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you! I¡¯ll kill you! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± shouted Rorio over and over again.

    In a few minutes, all the bandit¡¯s sliced flesh was lying on the ground as Domino looked at Rorio nervously.

    ¡°R-Rorio?¡±

    Rorio turned his head to Domino and charged straight at him with an angry shout.

    ¡°I¡¯LL KILL YOU!!¡±

    Domino barely dodged attack after attack as Rorio continued swinging over and over without any plans of stopping until Domino was dead.

    Knowing his friend''s mental state wasn¡¯t stable, Domino used an opening he spotted and grabbed hold of Rorio. Hugging him tightly.

    ¡°I''ll kill everyone! I don''t care! You will all die! I won''t stop till you''re all dead!¡± Rorio continued screaming with his eyes glowing red.

    Domino''s expression softened to try and calm Rorio down but to no avail

    Figuring there wasn¡¯t anything else he could do right now, Domino struck Rorio in the stomach, knocking him out.

    ¡°I''m sorry my friend. You must calm down for now,¡± states Domino as he carried the unconscious Rorio out of the tower and never looked back.

    To this day, Rorio blames his own weakness for not being able to save his sister.

    And it¡¯s because of this blame that even now, he trains himself as much as he can to be stronger than anyone else. All to make sure he never loses anyone important to him ever again.

    A few months passed after that, and now both Domino and Rorio found themselves standing in front of Yuna''s grave as tears flowed down Domino''s eyes.

    However, Rorio just looked at the grave and thought back to a past conversation with his sister.

    ¡°Hey, Rorio?¡±

    ¡°What''s up?¡±

    ¡°Do you think...when I''m older...I can join you guys on your adventures?¡±

    ¡°What!? Why?¡±

    ¡°Because I want to protect you silly!¡±

    ¡°Hm..well it''s not my call to make, but tell you what, if Domino agrees to let you join when you turn eighteen in demi-human years, then you can come aboard!¡±

    ¡°Really! Yay!¡±

    Rorio looked down at the grave.

    ¡°Yuna Rintov, Demi-Human Age 17, Year 234-268¡±

    While she had long since passed that age in human years, in Demi-human years, she was just a few months from being allowed to join them.

    And when Rorio thought about that, he could feel emotions well up inside him as he let out a shout followed by tears that would scar him for years to come.

 Chapter 12: Creator Knight Vs The Former Knight

    Risa, Domino, and Angelica all rose from their slumber while Rorio remained unconscious. Upon doing so, Angelica let out a burst of laughter.

    ¡°Well Well Well. With a failure like that, it doesn''t look like he''ll get out any time soon!¡± she shouted. Laughing as if Rorio¡¯s pain was the most hilarious thing in the world.

    Risa, however, felt tears flow from her eyes as she thought about what she had just seen.

    This was why Rorio was so enraged before. The monster took the form of Yuna to trick him, which resulted in what transpired. Anger started to rise up in Risa as Angelica''s laughs echoed through the chamber.

    Turning toward Angelica, Risa was about to attack her when Domino stepped forward.

    ¡°I''m gonna kill you, you piece of shit!¡± he shouted at the top of his lungs as he launched himself at Angelica.

    She immediately pulled a stone sword out of the earth and blocked Domino''s attack.

    He tried swinging at her again only for her to block once more.

    Domino rolled across the floor and tried to attack from behind only for a pillar of stone to rise from the ground and block his attack.

    It was clear now that Angelica was the Creator Knight who used the element of earth.

    Ignoring his senses that were calling out this was dangerous, Domino charged straight at Angelica over and over as he tried to find an opening.

    While their battle continued, Risa turned over to look at Rorio who was still unconscious.

    She tried to dash over to him only for something to whoosh past her.

    Domino crashed into the wall and fell to the ground as the wall shattered behind him. He was knocked unconscious upon impact.

    Risa looked over to Domino nervously, before turning around to find Angelica had her sights on her.

    Nervously, Risa pulled out her sword and held it the way Rorio taught her. She felt goosebumps appear all over her body as Angelica drew closer.

    ¡°Well Well Well. Looks like it''s time to shut you up Permanently!¡± Angelica shouted as she charged at Risa.

    Angelica held out her hand and a long whip of stone smashed into Risa causing her to roll across the ground before forcing herself back up on her feet.

    Struggling to keep herself together, Risa shakily held her sword as her body screamed in pain.

    Giggling in delight, Angelica shot forward with her stone sword in hand and swung it at Risa¡¯s neck.

    Time seemed to slow for a moment as the blade grew closer to Risa.

    She wanted to do something, but she wasn¡¯t ready. This was completely out of her field.

    As Rorio¡¯s lessons flashed through her mind, she wondered if they were truly of any use. And as the weapon drew close...

    CLANG!

    A heavy sound rattled throughout the entire building, resembling metal hitting stone.

    And when the dust cleared, Risa looked to find Rorio holding back Angelica''s attack.

    ¡°Rorio!¡± Risa shouted, surprised.

    Not just at how he managed to block the attack, but how he blocked it.

    Rorio held two blades in his hands, the same way BloodBlade did. He was wielding two swords!

    Angelica didn''t seem to pay much attention to this though. She was, however, surprised for her own reason.

    ¡°Well Well Well. How the hell are you already out of that memory prison!? No one could possibly escape such a place that quickly!¡±

    Not giving her a chance to push him back, Rorio immediately jumped away while gripping his blades tightly. One shone a bright green while the other glowed a deep red.

    ¡°I hate myself for what happened, but I understand that''s how things went. I hate it beyond belief. But I refuse to accept that the past should affect who I am now!¡±

    Angelica just looked at him dumbfounded. He didn''t forgive himself for what happened, but he didn''t want to have the past hold back his present. It didn''t make sense.

    Ignoring her dumbfounded look, Rorio glared at Angelica for a moment before noticing a strange green smoke surrounding her.

    ¡°Before we continue, can I ask you something?¡±

    Hearing him, Angelica calmed herself down and looked at Rorio.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Rorio pointed toward the green smoke.

    ¡°Are you willing to strike a deal?¡±

    ¡°A deal?¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already noticed that thing surrounding you. It¡¯s a shield of some sort is it not?¡±

    ¡°Well well well. I¡¯m surprised you noticed. But yes. It is a shield.¡±

    ¡°In that case, I have a proposal. In exchange for letting go of your shield, I won¡¯t lay a finger on you until it¡¯s defeated.¡±

    ¡°Well well well. That¡¯s not much of a deal. What do I gain from letting my shield go?¡±

    ¡°It means you¡¯re open to fighting Risa without my intervention. Or are you saying you can¡¯t defeat a single girl without some secret weapon?¡±

    Angelica glared at Rorio for his words, but then gave him a sinister grin.

    ¡°Well well well. Sounds interesting. Very well. It¡¯s a deal.¡±

    With that, Angelica began removing her shield as Rorio turned to Risa.

    He glanced down at Xeto in her shaking hands before giving her the best words he could.

    ¡°Xeto is your blade now Risa. Use it to face your past and protect your future.¡±

    Upon hearing those words, Risa¡¯s body stopped shaking as she looked at Rorio.

    At that moment, she couldn¡¯t describe why, but when Risa stared at Rorio, he looked like the bravest man in the world.

    And seeing that caused her to fill up with the courage she needed and she gripped the blade tightly. Ready for battle.

    As the two returned their attention to Angelica, she was just about finished releasing her shield.

    ¡°Well well well. It''s been a while since I''ve been challenged. This should be fun,¡± she muttered to herself upon finishing the incantation.

    A few moments later, the green smoke turned into a charcoal skeleton warrior.

    This was a shield, a monster that existed only for the protection of others.

    However, it only protects those with magical abilities since it takes the element the one it is protecting has and uses it as food and protects the provider in exchange. Which is why it¡¯s called a Shield.

    However, once removed from its smoke form, its abilities grow quite limited.

    Knowing defeating Angelica with it on hand would be almost impossible, Rorio used her ego to draw it away and now the fight was finally even.

    Once the shield was out, Rorio and Risa prepared their weapons.

    Risa still felt slightly nervous, but knowing Rorio was there with her made her feel like she could do anything. That was the kind of strength the one who saved her had made possible.

    After a few more moments, the two charged at Angelica and her shield, and the battle against the first of the four Creator Knights officially began.

    Rorio attacked first as he brought his sword down on the Shield in front of him. The Shield immediately went into a defensive position as it prepared for his attack.

    Forcing all of the energy he had into his arm, Rorio swung down on the Shield causing some cracks to appear on its armor.

    Rorio jumped back and looked at the monster. Its armor started repairing itself almost immediately.

    ¡°So it can replenish itself. Talk about annoying¡± Rorio muttered as he charged at the skeleton once more.

    Clearing the fear from her head, Risa charged at Angelica.

    Keeping on a creepy smile, Angelica watched as Risa approached.

    Deciding to attack first, Angelica shot rocks toward Risa at a rapid speed.

    The rocks lightly grazed Risa as she barely managed to dodge the attacks over and over again and finally started drawing in close to Angelica.

    But before she could do anything, a rock pillar appeared out of nowhere and sent her flying back.

    She managed to block most of the damage with Xeto, but still let out a growl as she felt pain course through her arm when she crashed to the floor.

    She immediately jumped back up and attempted to attack once more.

    Angelica chuckled.

    ¡°Well Well Well! It looks like you''re making this a little more fun for me this time around!¡±

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    Pulling up larger rocks than before, she shot them at Risa.

    One nearly took her arm, but she managed to dodge it by a hair¡¯s breadth before once again getting close enough to attack Angelica only for her to dodge when Risa tried striking her.

    No matter what Risa did, she couldn¡¯t seem to keep up with Angelica¡¯s speed.

    As thoughts of whether she could truly win or not started to surface in Risa¡¯s mind, she saw Rorio out of the corner of her eye fighting as hard as he could.

    Using this to push those thoughts out of her head, she kept her legs moving as she continued searching for an opening.

    Meanwhile, Rorio continued his attacks on the Shield while trying to find its weakness.

    He had encountered enemies with good defenses before, but trying to find the cracks in this one seemed to be quite difficult.

    He tried several attacks on the monster only to find that the armor coating its entire body dealt with the bulk of the damage.

    Rorio mumbled curse words under his breath as he continued his attacks.

    Risa dodged another boulder as best she could, but she felt a scratch appear on her cheek as a bit of blood leaked out.

    Angelica saw the wound as a moment to strike and sent a stone pillar spiraling straight at Risa who immediately dodged out of the way as the pillar crashed onto the ground next to her.

    Angelica shook her head and let out a growl of frustration before bringing back her creepy smile.

    ¡°Well Well Well! It seems you¡¯ve improved your skills, little girl! Maybe it¡¯s about time I finally get serious!¡±

    Saying that, Angelica used some stone cylinders to shoot herself into the air before rushing forward in hopes of slashing at Risa before she could react.

    But acting on instinct, Risa dodged Angelica''s attack as Angelica turned around and tried to swing at Risa¡¯s chest.

    Avoiding that as well, Risa swung her sword as Angelica swerved out of the way. Giving Risa the chance to jump back and gain a little distance between her and Angelica.

    Glaring at her enemy, Risa was prepared to attack again when she noticed Angelica go frozen stiff. Risa was confused at first before noticing the scratch on Angelica¡¯s cheek. It seemed Risa had been able to hit Angelica after all. Though it was only a scratch.

    Reaching out her hand, Angelica touched the wound for a moment before she let out a bloodcurdling scream.

    ¡°How dare you!¡± she shouted as if the scratch was the most indescribably cruel thing Risa could have ever done.

    Acting like she suddenly got a power boost, Angelica charged straight at Risa with even more force than before.

    This time Risa was unable to dodge Angelica¡¯s attacks and she was sent flying straight into a nearby wall.

    Risa coughed up a bit of blood upon impact and crashed to the ground. She groaned in pain as she shakily got back up on her feet and saw Angelica once again coming at her full force.

    Trying to ignore the pain, Risa prepared herself for the next attack.

    Rorio wasn''t fairing much better.

    After a few more attacks from his sword, the Shield started casting its own spells which only made the challenge more difficult.

    Rorio tried his best to dodge the stones that had started bursting up from the ground, but upon taking notice of Domino still lying unconscious, he let out a growl of frustration.

    ¡°Damn it Domino! Why is now the one time where an attack actually knocks you out cold?¡± he muttered under his breath before he turned to the skeleton with both his blades gripped tightly.

    One of the biggest issues right now was that Rorio had never faced a Shield before.

    Had he gotten the chance prior, he would¡¯ve been able to beat this thing easily. But as things were now, he had to try his best to find its weak point.

    With that in mind, Rorio dodged more and more of its attacks as they grew increasingly rapid.

    It was times like these he wished his slow-mo spell didn''t take three months to recharge.

    Then, as if by a stroke of luck, Rorio noticed a strange green gem glowing that was partially visible within the monster¡¯s chest.

    ¡°That must be its weak point!¡± Rorio thought as he jumped away from another one of its attacks.

    Pushing his legs to go full speed, Rorio charged straight at the monster and pulled out his bow. Since he didn¡¯t have time to pull out an arrow, he notched one of his swords to the string.

    Digging his feet into the ground, Rorio jumped over the monster and shot his sword through the air right toward the small gap in the monster¡¯s armor, and a shattering sound could be heard as it pierced the glowing green gem within which fell into thousands of pieces.

    The monster shouted out in pain as the shattered gem¡¯s glow vanished.

    Rorio landed and turned to face the monster, only to find it was hurling even more magic than before.

    ¡°That crystal wasn¡¯t the source!? Then what is!?¡±

    Trying to figure out a different solution, Rorio dodged a stone spear from hitting his face and thought about what to do next.

    Meanwhile, Risa wasn''t having much luck either. She continued to dodge rock pillars being shot at her from all sides.

    And when Angelica sent stones flying at her, she barely managed to keep her feet moving and the exhaustion was starting to catch up with her.

    Meanwhile, Angelica just grew more and more enraged at how long it was taking to kill Risa which caused her to become almost hysterical as she laughed maniacally while speeding up her attacks.

    Sweat dripped from Risa''s body as she felt herself getting tired.

    However, she knew if she stopped now, it would spell the end for her. So she kept going.

    All the while, Rorio was starting to grow impatient fighting the monster in front of him.

    While he wasn''t that tired physically, he was exhausted mentally and just wanted this thing to go down already. But no matter how many attacks he threw at it, it just kept regenerating.

    Then, just when he thought it was impossible, he saw a strange glowing bracelet on the monster''s wrist.

    While Rorio didn''t know if that had any importance or not, he figured it was worth a shot.

    So, pushing all his strength into his feet, he dodged multiple more attacks as he drew close to the monster and snatched the sword he used with his bow earlier off the ground.

    Then, pulling said sword over his head, he appeared before the monster and slammed the sword down on both the bracelet as well as the skeleton''s arm.

    Immediately backing up, Rorio heard the monster let out a horrified scream before crumbling to the ground and turning to dust. The Shield had been defeated.

    Risa continued to dodge attack after attack thrown at her as Angelica threw stones of all sizes her way. However, Risa wasn¡¯t in a very good position at the moment since as of now, she could barely move at all.

    In fact, if her instincts didn¡¯t keep shouting out DANGER, she would¡¯ve already been dead.

    Just then, one of Angelica''s stones hit its mark and pierced Risa''s leg causing her to fall to one knee while trying to hold in the urge to scream in pain.

    Angelica saw this as her chance and jumped at Risa.

    ¡°Well Well Well! Now die you bitch!¡± she shouted gleefully.

    Risa could feel her life starting to flash before her eyes as Angelica grew close.

    She couldn¡¯t move well in this condition, she had used up all her energy, and this meant she really was about to die.

    And as feelings of despair shot through her mind, Risa''s eyes started to water up.

    ¡°I guess this is it. I''m sorry Dad. I guess I just wasn''t strong enough to avenge you...I really am weak.¡±

    She could feel the tears fall and Angelica''s stones dove straight at Risa''s heart.

    SLASH SLASH SLASH SLASH SLASH!

    Suddenly, the sound of a sword swing could be heard as the echo of a punch entered the air which was followed by a loud CRASH!

    Risa knelt there for a moment in shock at what just happened when a voice rang out to her.

    ¡°Stop mopping around Risa! We got work to do!¡± shouted an irritated voice.

    Risa looked in front of her to see Rorio standing there with an expression she couldn''t quite read before he offered his hand to her.

    ¡°I didn''t let you take her on to get yourself killed! So get up and keep fighting dammit! Keep fighting until you''re dead!¡±

    A spark seemed to relight itself in Risa''s heart at that moment as her cheeks grew warmed up slightly before she shook her head and grabbed hold of Rorio''s hand.

    She struggled to stand as her leg was still bleeding, but she faced Rorio who turned his attention to the woman he had smashed into the wall.

    ¡°Now, how about we finish off this pain in the ass?¡±

    Seeing the determination on his eyes, Risa gave him a confident nod.

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    Upon those words, the two focused their attention on Angelica.

    As she finally made her way out of the rubble, she turned and faced the two of them.

    ¡°Well Well Well! You¡¯re gonna pay for that you bastard!¡± she shouted as she charged at them. That was when the battle truly began.

    Angelica tried to take another stab at Risa only for Rorio to be there to block her attack.

    ¡°Take her down! I''ll protect you!¡± he shouted.

    ¡°Right!¡±

    Risa immediately charged at Angelica who just bounced back from the recoil and Risa swung her sword down on her.

    Angelica barely dodged out of the way as her anger was starting to reach its peak and she couldn¡¯t think calmly anymore.

    She shot her rock pillars straight at the two of them.

    ¡°Now die dammit!¡± she shouted with her normal ¡°Well Well Well¡± being noticeably absent.

    Rorio pulled out a blade that emitted an orange hue from his inventory bag and used it to slice right through the giant stone pillars, cutting through them like butter. Risa and Rorio dashed forward.

    They worked as a team flawlessly as Rorio protected Risa while she got her attacks in on Angelica who attempted over and over again to avoid them.

    It didn''t seem like risking her own life to kill them was something she had planned to do, so they kept their attacks going.

    Then, with a slice of her sword, Risa managed to make contact with Angelica''s left arm and sliced it clean off and blood started to gush out.

    ¡°HOW DARE YOU!!¡± Angelica shouted as a giant stone pillar that was almost double the size of any of the other pillars shot down toward Rorio and Risa.

    Risa looked at it, nervous about how they could possibly dodge such a thing.

    It was then that Rorio brought up his blade. ¡°DOMINO!¡± he shouted.

    Domino, who seemed to barely be conscious, held out his hand, and sparkles of light emitted from them.

    ¡°To become what you couldn''t before...enlarge!¡±

    As Domino said those words, Rorio''s sword immediately grew double the size it had been before and just continued to grow to the largest point Rorio could hold.

    Using the giant blade, Rorio swung with all his might and cut clean through the giant pillar.

    Risa quickly recovered from her shock at the sight and dashed forward as Rorio''s blade started to shrink back to its original size.

    Angelica tried throwing rock after rock at her and scratched Risa many times as she continued toward her.

    Floating into the air, Angelica formed more stones that covered her surroundings and threw them at Risa who managed to dodge them all and started to use them to jump up through the air toward Angelica when...

    ¡°GRH!¡±

    One of the stones shot straight through Rorio''s chest. He coughed up a little blood as Risa turned back.

    ¡°RORIO!¡± she screamed.

    WHAM! She was immediately hit with a boulder of her own and Risa was knocked back to the ground.

    Risa could feel the pain throughout her body when she crashed to the ground and Angelica glared at them with an expression that seemed like she was going insane.

    ¡°How dare you try and take me on! You¡¯re just a bunch of worthless scum from the outer world! None of you deserve to be in our lands! We worked too hard for anyone, especially outsiders, to take it away from us!¡±

    Angelica threw down more pillars which seemed to be smaller than before as Risa and Rorio both lied on the ground.

    Pulling all of the strength he could give, Rorio got up and continued to slice through the rocks.

    Even while his chest had a bleeding hole in it, he was still doing his best to protect Risa.

    Risa struggled to get up but managed to push herself onto her feet as she faced Angelica once again.

    ¡°You, my Mother, that wizard! All you did was make me suffer! And I won''t let you make me suffer anymore!¡± Risa shouted as she and Rorio charged forward at full speed.

    Angelica almost seemed amazed at how they kept up their speed with how injured they were, but she quickly recomposed herself and shot all the stones she could muster.

    ¡°Stones stones stones! Is that all you know how to do!?¡± Rorio shouted, annoyed.

    The two closed in on Angelica and she was starting to get frantic. She was still throwing everything she had at them, only to be met with them getting closer and closer as they jumped on top of her attacks. Using them to close in on her.

    ¡°No! I''m a knight of the Outbursts! I can''t die! I''m made to be invincible!¡± Angelica shouted in a panic.

    But at long last, Risa reached Angelica who looked at her with terror in her eyes.

    ¡°This...is...over!¡± Risa shouted as she brought her sword down onto Angelica who screamed as Risa sliced through Angelica''s head and then completely cut her in two. Moments later, Angelica''s dead body fell to the floor.

    Angelica, Creator Knight of Earth, was dead. And the battle was over.

 Chapter 13: The Desperate Ninja

    There was silence in the room for a moment.

    Angelica''s eyes started to fade as her soul left her body.

    Just then she silently turned her attention to Risa and held out her arm towards her before her corpse turned to dust. Just like the earth.

    With that, Risa let out a sigh of relief.

    But then, the earth under her began to rumble and she was launched into the air. She felt like her life was flashing before her eyes as she began falling. She didn''t even know how many times that had happened today.

    This was Angelica¡¯s last attempt to get rid of her. However, the attack was for nothing.

    Fwoosh!

    Feeling something warm grab hold of her, Risa opened her eyes and saw Rorio there. Holding her in his arms.

    ¡°You alright?¡± he asked.

    Risa was too tired to respond with words, so she just nodded. Letting out a sigh of relief, Rorio landed on the floor and gently placed Risa on the ground.

    Feeling her strength come back to her, Risa sat up and faced Rorio.

    ¡°Did we....do it?¡±Risa asked.

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. She''s gone.¡±

    Risa let out another sigh of relief as she laid back on the ground.

    It would only take her about ten minutes to recover enough stamina to move, but she knew that the wounds she obtained would take at least a few weeks to heal even with healing magic. Domino, however, seemed to finally get back up on his feet and he stretched out his arms as he spoke to Risa and Rorio.

    ¡°Rorio? Risa? What I miss?¡± he said in a way that sounded more like someone who just woke up from a nice nap rather than someone who slept through pretty much an entire battle.

    Risa noticed a raging fire start to burn in Rorio''s eyes as he turned to look at Domino.

    ¡°Well, while you were napping. We had to take down the first of the four Creator Knights. Again, while you were napping!¡±

    Rorio''s tone made it clear he was quite pissed.

    Walking up to Domino, Rorio got up in his face.

    ¡°What the hell was up with that, Domino!? You didn¡¯t help in the fight at all!¡±

    Domino looked slightly offended.

    ¡°It''s not my fault that lady knocked me out!¡±

    ¡°You''re the freaking Demon Slayer! You shouldn''t be that easy to knock out!"

    ¡°My ability to stay conscious has no connection to my title as the Demon Slayer! She hit me really hard! At least acknowledge my help at the end there!¡±

    The two continued to bicker for a few more minutes before Rorio finally had enough and stomped out the door.

    ¡°Well, whatever! We¡¯re done here so let''s get moving!¡±

    Risa finally had enough strength to walk and got up to follow Rorio as Domino was left behind.

    ¡°Hey! Wait up Rorio!¡± Domino shouted.

    ¡°No!¡±

    ¡°How cold!¡±

    Receiving such a disappointing response, Domino trudged behind them as the group made their way out of the building.

    Once outside, they decided since the city seemed abandoned, they might as well use some of the empty buildings as a place to sleep for the night as the moon rose in the distance.

    It had been pretty early in the day when the group entered, but with the all-too-clear darkness around them, it was obvious several hours had passed.

    After about twenty minutes, they all decided to rest inside a building with a few spacious rooms inside it.

    Domino had insisted that they find a smaller, more compact place as a bonding exercise, but Rorio and Risa vetoed that idea without hesitation.

    Thus, with their battle over, the group all went to sleep that night proud of themselves...besides Domino who still tried justifying being knocked unconscious.

    Rorio woke up first and looked outside to find the sun coming up in the distance.

    He took in a morning breath ready to see what the day brought when his ear suddenly perked up.

    ¡°Found you!¡± shouted a nearby voice.

    Rorio¡¯s attention was immediately directed to the roof in front of him.

    What he found was a woman clad in a ninja suit standing there looking at him.

    ¡°Shit!¡± Rorio grumbled as he pulled one of his swords and jumped from his room window.

    He landed on top of the roof with ease and faced his opponent.

    Sensing the danger, the ninja immediately drew her duel-daggers and barely dodged Rorio''s attack as he charged at the ninja and attempted to kill her.

    The woman jumped back a step as Rorio continued to swing.

    She dodged over and over without attempting an attack which confused Rorio.

    After a few minutes, Rorio let out a loud groan and rubbed his eyes.

    ¡°Look. It''s been a long week. I''m just gonna make this clear right now, I don''t give a damn about your city''s stupid rules about love and stuff. And for you to be so focused on it to the point that you¡¯ve tracked me down, I''m starting to get really sick of it.¡±

    The ninja spoke up with a squeak.

    ¡°No! You''ve got the wrong idea! I swear that any problems you had to deal with within the city of Lust Street have been dismissed! Actually, there''s something I need to discuss with you and your party!¡±

    Rorio raised his eyebrow in confusion.

    ¡°Huh? What do you mean?"

    Domino and Risa woke up around the same time as each other and came downstairs from their rooms to find Rorio and a strange ninja woman sitting at a table. Remembering what Rorio had told him about the ninjas of Lust Street, Domino was about to draw his weapon when Rorio spoke up.

    ¡°Relax. She said she had something she needed to discuss with us. We have to be willing to hear her out for her to leave us alone.¡± Rorio said in a bored tone.

    Domino turned his head from Rorio to the ninja woman before loosening the grip on his blade. Domino turned to Risa and signaled her to calm down as she looked about ready to attack this stranger herself.

    The ninja woman looked at the three of them before turning back to Rorio.

    She stared at him for several moments. As if recalling something before nodding her head.

    ¡°I see you¡¯re just as cold as last time we were like this.¡±

    Rorio looked at her confused.

    ¡°Huh? What are you talking about? Am I supposed to know you?¡±

    Taking notice of his tone, the woman suddenly grew flustered.

    ¡°Oh! Sorry! I should probably introduce myself! I''m Quinta. The one who tried shooting that arrow at you a little while back.¡±

    Taking a moment to think back, the events came back to Rorio

    ¡°Oh yeah. I forgot about that,¡± he muttered as he remembered the event with the ninjas while inside Lust Street and how the first one he had spoken with was trying to shoot him.

    ¡°What''s this about arrows?!¡± Risa blurted out.

    It made sense she didn''t fully understand. She wasn¡¯t there for most of those events after all.

    Rorio shrugged his shoulders.

    ¡°Meh. It''s not important.¡±

    Blowing off Risa¡¯s confusion, Rorio kept his attention on Quinta.

    ¡°Back on topic. Why were you looking for us? You said you had some reason. I¡¯ll listen to what you have to say. However, If you don''t word it correctly, I might have to consider you a stalker.¡±

    Quinta let out a pout.

    ¡°I''m not a stalker! I needed to talk with you all!¡±

    ¡°What for?¡± Rorio groaned.

    Quinta was silent for a moment before her face went a bright red as she attempted to speak.

    ¡°Um...Well...there''s...a favor I need to ask of you.¡±

    ¡°Not interested.¡±

    Rorio got up and started walking out the door.

    Quinta let out a gawk of surprise before glaring at Rorio.

    ¡°You didn''t even hear what I had to say!¡±

    Rorio let out a frustrated sigh.

    ¡°I don''t normally do favors. And considering our history, I don''t exactly think of us as friends. So no.¡±

    After those words, Rorio started to take his leave once again.

    ¡°Come on Rorio. Let''s hear her out.¡± Domino said trying to get Rorio to give her a chance.

    Domino probably felt bad for her. She had come all this way to ask something of them, and Rorio was just blowing it off the minute she attempted to get to the point.

    Realizing there was no budging on Domino whenever he got like this, Rorio let out a groan and rolled his eyes before returning to his previous spot.

    ¡°Ughh! Fine!¡±

    He plopped back down in his chair as he looked at Quinta.

    Quinta smiled at Domino even though you couldn''t tell through her mask, and stood up to speak directly to Rorio.

    ¡°I, commander of the B squadron of the Lust Street regulation force...request to join the Demon Slayer and his companions on their journey!¡±

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    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    In response to those words, everyone gave the same collective response.

    A little ways away from the Demon Slayers and his companions, a man clad in silver armor ran down the hall of a large castle.

    Soon enough, he stopped at a set of giant doors that were created from gold and iron and sparkled in a way that seemed like it was begging to be opened.

    With a deep breath, the man opened the doors and walked in.

    The doors closed behind him with a loud clang and he found himself standing face-to-face with someone cloaked by the shadows.

    Without any hesitation, the man got down on one knee and lowered his head to the ground.

    ¡°My lord. Angelica has been defeated,¡± he said, reporting what he had seen with his own eyes. This man was one of the most powerful Creator Knights in the Creator¡¯s ranks.

    So powerful in fact, that the Creator kept him at their castle as a personal guard and informant. The one cloaked in the shadows seemed to think to themselves for a moment before reaching out their hand and a list of people that they considered allies appeared on a paper before them. They crossed out the name ¡°Angelica Devolt¡± and then made the list vanish.

    The person then turned to look at the knight and spoke words that were so quiet that only the knight could hear them.

    The knight nodded and stood up as he placed his hand against his chest in salute.

    ¡°Understood. I promise that if whoever did this manages to accomplish defeating the other two knights, I will crush them without fail.¡±

    The one before him nodded and moved their hand signaling for him to be dismissed.

    The knight gave a single bow and then left.

    After his departure, the person cloaked in the shadows leaned into their chair. Pondering what the future had in store as an eerie smile crept across their face.

    Domino, Rorio, and Risa made their way down the road as the sounds of someone humming could be heard behind them.

    Rorio looked back to Quinta who was happily walking behind them.

    To understand why she was with them, we must return to a few hours prior.

    ¡°Please let me join your party!¡±

    ¡°Not gonna happen.¡± Rorio rejected Quinta without a second thought.

    Quinta crashed to the ground like she was hit by an anvil from his response.

    She immediately jumped back up in a way that seemed almost cartoonish.

    ¡°What!? Why not!?¡±

    Rorio didn''t answer. Instead, he started making his way out the door.

    However, Domino interjected.

    ¡°What''s wrong with that Rorio? With our current situation, wouldn¡¯t more party members be a good thing?¡±

    Rorio rolled his eyes and turned to Domino.

    ¡°If I recall Domino, you''re the one who always kept us from adding new party members since you claimed it was your destiny to fight the Demon Lord with no one but your sidekick at your side. Also, this lady practically tried to poison me back in Lust Street and had her friends attack me when I found her out. Not exactly someone I could put my faith in.¡±

    Risa went wide-eyed.

    ¡°She did what!?¡±

    ¡°Long story. Anyway.¡±

    Rorio moved it along as he turned back to Quinta.

    ¡°The answer is no and that''s final.¡±

    That was the last thing Rorio said before shutting the door behind him with Risa not far behind.

    Domino stood there for a moment with a look of surprise.

    Normally, Rorio wasn¡¯t this stubborn on things. In fact, even after everything that happened before coming here, he just went with the flow and followed behind Domino while helping out any way he could.

    But this time, he didn''t hesitate to shut down something Domino was supposed to decide. How much had he really changed since their last meeting?

    Domino''s mind went back to their final discussion ten years ago. He could see Rorio trying to keep his anger in check. All while trying to hold back the depression and sadness he had when requesting to stay behind while Domino continued his adventures

    He wasn''t acting too different now than he was then, but he seemed to lose his temper a bit faster and didn¡¯t hesitate to harm those who got in his way. He seemed to have almost lost his compassion for others. At least, to a certain extent.

    After a moment of silence, Domino turned to Quinta who looked to be on the verge of crying.

    Trying his best to ignore her tears, he walked out the door to catch up with the others.

    As the group found a new path to travel on, Rorio stretched out his arms and looked to the sky.

    ¡°Now that that''s over, what should we do now?¡±

    Risa made her way over to him and started talking about what she thought they should do.

    As the two continued their conversation, Domino walked a little behind them unsure where to squeeze into the conversation.

    A few hours passed after that. And eventually, the group came upon a strange-looking stall on the side of the road with a person who spoke out to them.

    As they drew close, Rorio let out a loud groan.

    ¡°Hello, lucky travelers! I''m the one and only Party Saleswoman! Looking for a new party member? Well, I got the one just for you! She''s brave, and good with a bow, not to mention she¡¯s hella hot! Whattaya say?¡±

    The group walked right past her.

    ¡°No thanks,¡± Rorio replied in a bored tone.

    The Saleswoman froze in place at his cold response. He recognized her as one of Quinta''s ninja buddies.

    As the group walked away, The girl patted Quinta, who had been sitting under the stall, on the head as Quinta looked to be on the verge of crying.

    They continued walking for another hour when Quinta jumped out of a bush and faced them in what was a surprisingly revealing ninja swimsuit.

    ¡°If you agree to let me join your party, it''s all yours!¡± she shouted.

    ¡°No,¡± Rorio responded as the group walked past her once again.

    Quinta froze on the spot as her hair blew through the wind. It was as if she wasn''t expecting the same response.

    Twenty minutes later.

    ¡°As commander of the B squadron of the Lust Street regulation force! I demand to join your party! This is not a request!¡±

    ¡°HAAA!¡±

    SLAM!!

    ¡°HIII!!¡±

    Risa punched Quinta hard enough that she was sent flying off through the air before crashing to the ground not too far away.

    Domino and Rorio looked at Risa in surprise.

    ¡°Holy crap Risa!¡± Domino shouted.

    Risa turned around red-faced as her voice hissed with anger.

    ¡°She''s just..so...annoying!¡± Risa growled.

    Rorio turned to look between the dizzy Quinta and the angry Risa.

    ¡°Huh. And I thought I was gonna snap first,¡± Rorio muttered as he and the others left Quinta to lie on the ground.

    The three continued on with a few more attempts from Quinta which normally resulted in either Rorio or Risa sending her flying.

    After a while, Domino decided it was finally time for a break.

    ¡°All right, guys. Let''s rest here for a bit before making our way to Con-die City!¡±

    The other two nodded and the group set up a small resting spot.

    The location they were traveling to was Con-die City which was a place in the Outburst very well known for their outfits and weapons.

    While Rorio and Domino were fit with some pretty good weapons already, they still wanted to make sure they got a change of clothes since they''d already been wearing the same outfits for an extensive amount of time. Risa also wanted to get to the city and grab a proper shower.

    The boys normally just used Domino''s water magic to clean themselves, but Risa wasn''t on board to do something so uncivil quite yet.

    After about another half an hour of walking, the group reached the end of the road and looked down at the city below them.

    Con-die was a place that seemed to be bustling with life. Demi-Humans, Wolfmen, Lizardmen, and other strange and unique creatures moved through the streets.

    The town itself seemed to be a giant square consisting of over a thousand houses and almost looked like a mix between a modern town and a desert village with how the houses seemed to almost all be made out of sandstone.

    Unlike the houses, the streets were paved with cement and gravel. Even dark gray sidewalks were visible from far away if you looked close enough.

    The group stared at the sight in wonder.

    While Rorio and Domino saw many sites on their adventures, they never got the chance to see stuff like this. It almost left both Domino and Risa mesmerized.

    "Here. Put these on."

    Suddenly, Rorio threw a cloak at Domino and Risa the prior of which struggling to get a hold of it. But after several minutes of struggling, he finally managed to see and turned to Rorio who was already putting on his own.

    ¡°Remember, humans aren''t normally considered friends here in the Outbursts. So make sure to keep the fact that you¡¯re human as hidden as possible.¡±

    Risa nodded in confirmation, but Domino looked at him as if lost about something.

    ¡°If that''s the case, then why are you putting on a cloa-mphf!?¡±

    Rorio immediately shut Domino up as Risa looked at them confused.

    Rorio hadn''t mentioned to her that he was a Demi-Human, and he understood that by her reactions to the two of them before, she wasn''t really aware of who the Demon Slayer and his Sidekick true forms were.

    She mentioned hearing stories about Domino, but almost nothing about Rorio other than he was Domino''s sidekick. And Rorio preferred to keep things that way until he was ready to tell her since people always got weird around him when he pulled out his ears and tail.

    Rorio gave one more serious look to Domino before letting go of his mouth and walking away.

    Domino wasn''t really sure how to respond to his friend¡¯s actions, but knew it was best to leave it at that for now and followed behind him.

    Risa felt like she was missing something, but followed behind Domino silently.

    The group entered the city undetected and looked around.

    Now that they were inside, everything seemed much more impressive.

    The buildings didn''t just consist of sandstone, but also some quartz and other materials that made for more sturdy houses.

    The colors seemed to mix well too. From time to time, a few people glanced in their direction but none tried confronting them.

    As the group continued making their way through the city, Domino seemed to catch a glimpse of something.

    Telling the others he needed to do something, Domino left Rorio and Risa alone for a bit.

    Rorio didn¡¯t think much of it and was about to move things along when Domino came back holding an all too familiar face.

    ¡°Look who I found following us!¡± he said proudly.

    ¡°Hey! I wasn''t following you! We both were just...uh..just conveniently going in the same direction!¡± said the nervous Quinta who struggled to get out of Domino¡¯s grasp.

    A vein popped onto Rorio''s head as he let out a frustrated sigh.

    Deciding it was best to just get this problem over with, Rorio made a decision.

    ¡°Haa...let''s just sit down. I''d rather not cause a scene that would make people suspicious.¡±

    Rorio turned his head to Domino as if asking for permission and Domino nodded.

    The group walked over to a small table outside one of the city''s many restaurants and waited for Quinta¡¯s explanation.

    ¡°So tell me. Why do you wanna join us so bad?¡± asked Rorio in an irritated tone.

    Quinta turned to Rorio.

    ¡°Uh...Well...ya see...I..I..¡± her voice started to trail off which caused a vein to pop onto Rorio¡¯s head.

    ¡°Just spit it out already!¡± he shouted.

    ¡°YEEP!

    This caused Quinta to almost let out a yelp.

    She looked down, blushing nervously as she fidgeted her thumbs.

    ¡°Because...I think you¡¯re cool...¡±

    Domino looked at her confused.

    ¡°What was that?¡±

    ¡°I said because I think... you¡¯re...cool.¡±

    Domino still struggled to hear her.

    ¡°I don''t entirely understand what you mean by that. But maybe you should speak up so the others can hear.¡± Rorio said despite already hearing her words thanks to his enhanced dem-human hearing.

    ¡°I said It''s because I think you guys are the coolest people I''ve ever seen okay!¡±

    Upon saying that, Quinta¡¯s cheeks went so red that she looked like a tomato.

    Domino looked at her, surprised. Meanwhile, Risa was speechless, Rorio just rolled his eyes and looked to the sky. This wasn¡¯t something he needed to hear. He already heard enough praise towards Domino to know where this was going.

    ¡°Well...Mostly you blue-haired guy.¡±

    Rorio¡¯s eyes went wide for a moment as he turned to Quinta.

    ¡°The way you stood up to my boss so easily was one of the most incredible things ever! It inspired me to leave my post in search of you and maybe get to know you and your friends better!¡±

    A sparkle seemed to gleam in Quinta''s eyes as she recalled the events of Rorio when he faced Lori in her castle throne room in Lust Street.

    Rorio didn''t know it, but Quinta went to watch the events play out and ended up viewing the entire thing and found herself captivated by Rorio''s fighting skills.

    While Quinta continued to think back on the events, Domino flopped onto the ground in defeat. He was so used to being complimented and adored that someone treating him as more of a side character had him completely distraught.

    ¡°She didn''t get to see me in action, and now she thinks you''re the only cool one Rorio. My self-esteem can''t take it,¡± he groaned.

    After recovering from the surprise, Rorio relaxed into his seat and tried to ignore his face growing a little warm from the compliments.

    A few minutes passed without words from anyone else after that.

    Wanting to break the uncomfortable silence, Domino finally popped off the ground.

    ¡°Well! I guess I''ll just have to show you how cool I really am! Welcome to the party Quinta!¡± he shouted happily.

    Rorio looked at him with an expression that read ¡°Really dude!¡± before looking over to Quinta and sighing.

    ¡°Haaah. Fine. As long as you don''t pull anything, I guess you can join our party,¡± Rorio grumbled.

    ¡°REALLY!?¡±

    Quinta burst up from her seat and tried to tackle Rorio in a hug which he attempted to dodge. Leading to Quinta hugging his leg instead.

    ¡°THANK YOU!¡± she shouted sobbing in happiness. Rorio glared at her and attempted to kick her off but she clung on no matter what he did.

    Thus, a new member was added to the Demon Slayers party.

 Chapter 14: The Babe Bandits

    With Quinta having officially joined the team, it meant the group had one more person they needed to shop for.

    Since Quinta had brought only the bare minimum with her, she needed more clothes and other necessities to help prepare herself for the journey.

    So, after things settled down for the group, the boys and girls split up and went shopping in different areas of town.

    As the group split up and both Risa and Quinta left looking for their new clothes and items, Rorio and Domino went off to find new outfits of their own.

    However, once the two girls left, Rorio turned around to find Domino mumbling to himself. Apparently what Quinta said about him not being cool affected him worse than Rorio thought.

    With Domino constantly getting praised, it made sense he wasn¡¯t used to the lack of attention. With this in mind, Rorio let out a sigh and rubbed his eyes.

    ¡°Look, If you agree to snap out of this funk, I''ll acknowledge being your friend for one minute.¡±

    Domino''s energy immediately shot up on the spot.

    ¡°Really!¡±

    ¡°And your minute has begun.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡±

    With that taken care of, the two went on their way toward the shops they were looking for.

    After about ten minutes, Rorio and Domino stepped out of the clothing shop they¡¯d found in new outfits.

    Smiling happily, Domino looked at his new clothes proudly.

    He wore a long-sleeved, loose brown shirt that was easy to move in, a pair of dark brown jeans, black shoes that looked like ones you could find pretty much anywhere, and he also found himself buying some fingerless gloves he liked that were a grey-ish black.

    He couldn¡¯t help but grin at his choices.

    Rorio, however, looked quite different from his original generic adventurer outfit.

    He now wore a black t-shirt that was covered by an odd but cool-looking reddish-brown coat, some black jeans that stopped right before reaching his feet so he could still maneuver around well enough, and a belt that tied it all together. Oddly enough, his blue hair stood out quite a bit compared to the rest of the design. However, he didn''t seem to mind.

    Rorio looked around while Domino dug through his friend''s inventory bag with a sad look on his face.

    ¡°Hey...why is it I have less money than you when I''m the one who''s still adventuring?¡± he asked with a slightly upset tone.

    When he looked into Rorio¡¯s inventory bag and saw just how much his friend had, he couldn¡¯t help but be a little jealous.

    Rorio rolled his eyes.

    ¡°Could it probably have something to do with your spending problems?¡±

    ¡°Hey! I don''t have spending problems!¡±

    ¡°After our first mission, you spent almost all our reward on beer.¡±

    ¡°Well, that''s...!¡±

    ¡°After the mission with the people in Fimpor, you spent ALL your money on a new supply of spare swords you didn''t need.¡±

    ¡°But they were limited edition!¡±

    ¡°Bringing it back to the beer, you spent over ninety percent of the money from defeating the Demon Lord on enough beer to last at least fifteen years and drank it all in one night.¡±

    ¡°I...it...it was good beer...¡± Domino started to mumble his words as Rorio continued to list more and more instances where Domino spent boatloads of money on simple things they didn''t need. It went on long enough for the girls to get back to them.

    Risa looked at Domino confused as he laid on the ground in tears.

    Rorio looked at the girls who now wore new outfits with Risa¡¯s hidden under her cloak.

    Risa wasn''t wearing the clothes Rorio had lent her anymore but instead was wearing an outfit that consisted of a t-shirt that was dark red, a black belt that tied the look together as it stuck strongly to the shirt, as well as skin-tight black jeans that made it seem like she would struggle to move but she didn''t seem to have any problems.

    Some by-passers seemed to stop for a moment to look at her legs which were still in view but quickly turned away thanks to the furious glares from Rorio.

    Letting her smile show from under her cloak, Risa readjusted her hood as Rorio heard a cheerful chuckle behind him meaning Domino had recovered from his depressive state.

    Rorio rolled his eyes and looked at Quinta.

    She didn¡¯t have her mask anymore, but her bright purple hair seemed to cover most of her head as she stood there seemingly uncomfortable due to not wearing her ninja outfit.

    She was now wearing a dark purple loose t-shirt, pitch-black pants, and dark purple fingerless gloves.

    As much as Risa seemed to stand out, Quinta stood out even more thanks to her not wearing a cloak like the others as many men stopped by and looked at her which caused her to blush in embarrassment.

    Some tried to walk up to her and Risa, but they were quickly stopped by Rorio¡¯s glare.

    Domino looked between the two of them.

    ¡°Looking good you two!¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. You guys look great.¡±

    Risa grinned at Rorio¡¯s compliment as Quinta turned away appearing unsure how to react.

    The group stood there for a moment before Risa decided to move things along.

    ¡°I''m just amazed at how we didn''t run into any of the babe bandits during our trip.¡±

    Rorio¡¯s looked at Risa confused.

    Seeing as he didn¡¯t understand either, Domino turned to Risa.

    ¡°Babe Bandits?¡± Domino said while tilting his head.

    Risa nodded.

    Finally starting to regain her composure, Quinta turned to Domino.

    ¡°Yeah. According to rumors, there''s recently been this group of people who''ve been going around and kidnapping girls and doing all kinds of things to them.¡±

    Risa felt a shiver run down her spine.

    ¡°The thought of it gives me shivers,¡± she said as she wrapped her arms around her shoulders. Disturbed by the thought.

    Rorio sighed.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°Sounds like a bunch of idiots who can''t get a girlfriend.¡±

    Domino leaned against Rorio.

    ¡°Kinda reminds me of someone we know. Right, Rorio?¡±

    Knowing Domino was referring to Rorio''s lack of a dating life, Rorio slammed his fist into the back of Domino''s head and Domino crashed into the ground.

    He groaned in pain as he got back up and Rorio glared at him.

    Trying to move the conversation along, Rorio turned back to find Risa looking at Quinta who was fidgeting around awkwardly.

    ¡°What up?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Hm! Oh nothing!¡± shouted Quinta.

    As if remembering something, Risa jumped in.

    ¡°Uh! Yeah! It''s nothing!¡± Risa shouted.

    Rorio¡¯s ears flinched at their loud responses.

    After that, Risa clapped her hands together.

    ¡°I-I''m just glad it all went well for everyone! So let''s get moving along!¡±

    Not really understanding why they were acting weird, Rorio figured it''d be best to not dig any further, otherwise, he might get the wrong idea.

    Clearing his throat to remove any tension, he was about to agree with Risa when...

    ¡°Huh? GET DOWN!¡± Shouted both Rorio and Quinta at the same time as smoke bombs came raining down on them and shouts of shock and surprise filled the air.

    Within the smoke, Risa found herself coughing uncontrollably.

    ¡°Hello?! Where..is...every...one..¡±

    Suddenly feeling drowsy, things started to get dark, and soon enough, Risa lost consciousness.

    When Risa came to, she found herself in an empty stone room that seemed plastered with a mix of dirt and sandstone.

    She groaned tiredly before taking notice of how she couldn¡¯t move her hands.

    She seemed to be tied to a chair with some rope.

    That wasn¡¯t all.

    Standing before her were some people clad in strange, loose brown garments that looked like something a thief would wear.

    Risa quickly thought this through and figured these were the babe bandits she heard about.

    The bandit in front of all the others stepped forward and looked at Risa and spoke in a voice that seemed quite odd for a bandit.

    ¡°We have a new victim. Now dear, do exactly what we say and you''ll be just fine.¡±

    It was like a girl trying to put on a boy¡¯s voice.

    Risa looked at the odd person for a moment before suddenly remembering one of the things Rorio had told her during training.

    ¡°Listen. Domino and I might not always be there to protect you. So just in case, I¡¯m gonna teach you ways you can fight back.¡±

    Keeping in mind what he taught her, she put all her strength into her feet and threw herself into the air.

    Using the momentum, she pushed the chair over her head and slammed it into the ground with the chair shattering into pieces upon impact.

    Not giving the bandits time to think, Risa grabbed a piece of wood and jammed it into the ropes tying her hands causing them to split in two and let her move around freely.

    Shaking off the wood from her body, Risa noticed her sword next to a nearby wall and dashed toward it at rapid speed.

    Realizing what she was going for, the bandits began to close in on her only for her to dodge them one by one before reaching her sword and gripping it tightly.

    Turning to her enemies, she smirked.

    ¡°I should thank Rorio later for teaching me that move,¡± she mumbled under her breath as she kept her eyes on her opponents.

    The bandit who had spoken to her earlier barked out their orders as fast as they could.

    ¡°Formation B guys! We can¡¯t let her escape!¡±

    The bandits charged at Risa as Xeto gleamed in her hand.

    The first bandit tried to high dive down onto Risa only to be met with hard ground as Risa jumped out of the way.

    Continuing to dodge attack after attack, Risa eventually spotted an opening on one of the bandits and kicked her leg up in the air, knocking another bandit into the ground.

    AMore charged straight towards Risa in an attempt to try and catch her by surprise, only for Risa to dodge with ease and send a kick straight into the bandit¡¯s stomach as they crashed into the wall.

    This process of Risa dodging and kicking repeated for several minutes until finally, the only ones left were her and the bandit who¡¯d been barking out orders earlier.

    The bandit let out a nervous laugh before pulling out their blade.

    ¡°Dang. I wasn''t expecting you''d fight back. Well, no matter.¡±

    Pushing their foot forward, the bandit charged straight at Risa who braced herself.

    But just as the two were set to clash...

    ¡°Bell! Stop!¡±

    ¡°Quinta!¡±

    The bandit stopped dead in their tracks and turned to look behind themselves.

    Quinta was standing in the doorway of the room.

    Rorio walked in after her and looked around the room before his eyes stopped on Risa.

    ¡°Glad to see you¡¯re okay. I really wasn¡¯t looking forward to being your knight in shining armor again.

    Risa let out a pout, upset at how he made it sound like she would always be a damsel in distress. Ignoring her, Rorio walked up to Bell.

    As soon as he made eye contact with her, a chill ran down Bell¡¯s spine as Rorio¡¯s terrifying aura washed over her.

    ¡°Now. Care to explain what''s going on here?¡± he asked coldly.

    His tone made Bell want to take a step back.

    ¡°Uhh...Well, you see...¡±

    Rorio''s aura grew more intense which caused Bell let out a small squeak.

    ¡°We were planning to bribe your friend to let Quinta join your group!¡± Bell admitted, terrified.

    Hearing that, Rorio seemed to calm down a bit as he let out a frustrated sigh.

    ¡°I see. That means this was your fault.¡±

    Sensing danger, Quinta tried backing up as Rorio focused all his attention on her.

    ¡°Alright, Rorio! Put your fangs away! Quinta got us here so just cut her a little slack.¡±

    Before things got any more messy, Domino walked into the room and stepped in front of Rorio.

    Giving Quinta one last growl, Rorio put his sword back in his bag and Domino let out a sigh of relief before walking over to the confused Bell.

    ¡°I''m sorry you weren''t informed. The thing is, we already agreed to let Quinta join us just a bit ago.¡±

    ¡°...What!?¡±

    Bell jumped in surprise.

    After a few minutes, Domino finished telling her the whole story.

    Rorio decided to chime in and said if they attempted this earlier, he would''ve never let Quinta join. Which made Bell feel even worse.

    After it was all done, Bell was sitting on the ground cradling herself in embarrassment.

    Rorio walked up to her.

    ¡°Well, it''s all said and done now...However!¡± he pulled out Rolphin, one of his favorite swords, from his bag and pointed at Bell.

    ¡°Pull that stunt again and you¡¯re not gonna see the light of day ever again!¡±

    Bell let out a loud long squeak as she ducked behind Quinta.

    ¡°He''s...He''s scary.¡± she whimpered.

    Rorio looked over to Risa, signaling for her to follow him.

    Risa nodded and followed behind him as Domino leaned down and looked at Bell face to face.

    ¡°Sorry. He¡¯s not normally this overprotective, but Risa is someone he really cares about. I hope you understand.¡±

    All Bell could do was nod as she shivered in fear while Domino made his way out the door.

    Quinta just smiled awkwardly before following the others.

    After a bit, she caught up to Risa.

    ¡°Sorry. I guess my friends went too far.¡± Quinta said with an awkward chuckle.

    Risa shook her head.

    ¡°Just promise you''ll make sure your friends never pull that kind of stunt on us again.¡±

    ¡°I promise!¡±

    In the end, the group walked out of the building and back out into the world.

    But as they were walking, Risa noticed Quinta looking at Rorio in a strangely happy light.

    This brought her thoughts back to a conversation she had with Quinta a bit earlier while they were shopping.

    After the group split up, Risa and Quinta got their clothes and when they were done with everything, Risa asked Quinta if there were any other reasons why she wanted to join them. Quinta thought for a moment.

    When she did, her cheeks grew a light pink as her voice got a little shaky.

    ¡°I...I''ll tell you. But you have to promise me you won''t tell the others!¡±

    Risa wasn''t sure why she wanted to keep it a secret but nodded nonetheless.

    ¡°I promise.¡±

    Quinta smiled.

    ¡°The reason is because...¡±

    As Risa continued to think of what Quinta had said, she found herself falling behind and tried to catch up to the others.

    With their business finally done, the group left the city of Con-die later that day.

 Chapter 15: Just Like The Good Old Days

    With Quinta now in their ranks, the group made their way toward the next Creator Knight.

    And despite Quinta¡¯s sudden addition, things didn¡¯t really change between the group members.

    Risa continued to train with Rorio as Domino went off to do his own thing while Quinta would take care of her weapons and even joined in on Risa¡¯s training from time to time by giving her pointers and other methods of attack Rorio wasn¡¯t too familiar with.

    However, despite these moments of bonding, Risa couldn¡¯t help but notice how much attention Quinta was giving Rorio.

    Whenever she had a spare moment, Quinta would try chatting things up with Rorio and try to get in his personal space.

    While Rorio didn¡¯t seem to care about it that much, it irked Risa for some reason.

    After a bit more traveling, the group heard about a cave that supposedly proved people''s worth and decided to check it out.

    Thus, they found themselves in front of an oddly shaped cave that was reminiscent of a bowling ball.

    As he gazed at it, Domino grinned.

    ¡°Just like old times, ey Rorio?¡±

    He was referring to how they had journeyed through many different caves and structures that had rather unique designs that you normally wouldn¡¯t see such as this.

    Rorio simply shrugged.

    ¡°I dunno. This just looks like a normal cave.¡±

    ¡°What!¡± Domino jumped back as if being shocked by Rorio''s response.

    As stated before, the two of them had seen plenty of caves with strange shapes like this one. So Rorio found himself rather unimpressed.

    ¡°This is a new challenge! A place to test our skills and prove we have what it takes to be heroes! How can that NOT excite you!?¡±

    Rorio looked at him confused.

    "Didn''t you already prove you¡¯re a hero by slaying the Demon Lord?¡±

    ¡°Ah...Well...¡±

    With this realization hitting him, Domino struggled to come up with a counterargument.

    ¡°Well yeah. But I still wanna see if the traps in this place could be as hard as slaying the Demon Lord!¡±

    Domino was clearly desperate to try this place out and Rorio decided to give in.

    ¡°If you say so,¡± he replied, shrugging.

    Risa walked over to the two boys with a concerned look on her face.

    ¡°Are you sure you guys don''t want us to tag along with you?¡±

    Risa was talking about what Domino had asked her and Quinta beforehand.

    Apparently, he wanted to test this place with only his sidekick at his side, so he requested for Risa and Quinta to wait for them until they got back.

    Seeing the concern in Risa¡¯s eyes, Rorio began to open his mouth.

    ¡°We¡¯ll-¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll be fine! We¡¯re the best of the best! Nothing can beat our amazing teamwork!¡± Domino shouted proudly. Interrupting Rorio mid-sentence.

    Risa could practically feel Domino''s confidence. Turning her head to Rorio, he just shrugged.

    ¡°Sure. What he said.¡±

    Still feeling a bit unsure, Risa just nodded.

    ¡°Okay. Well, get back as soon as possible.¡±

    Domino¡¯s smile widened as he gave her a thumbs up.

    ¡°You bet!¡± he shouted before grabbing Rorio''s arm and dragging him into the cave.

    After that, Domino raised his fist up into the air with a cheer.

    ¡°Let the adventure begin!¡±

    The two walked inside and found the cave was much bigger inside than it was outside.

    The tunnel was long but expansive as grey stones covered the walls, accompanied by bluish-green vines that looked like they''d been growing in there for years.

    ¡°I''ll admit. It''s much bigger than at first glance.¡± Rorio said as he looked around.

    Domino¡¯s smile never faded as they continued journeying deeper inside.

    They walked for about another half an hour or so but failed to really find anything of value.

    ¡°Weird. Where are all the traps?¡± Rorio murmured to himself.

    As if on cue, Domino stepped on a pressure plate and the sound of clinking could be heard through the cave.

    Upon instinct, Domino dodged out of the way of arrows shooting from the walls

    The arrows pierced the opposite wall and Domino wiped his brow with a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Talk about a close one!¡±

    Rorio walked up to him.

    ¡°It''s been a while since I''ve seen you fall for a trap,¡±

    Domino scratched the back of his head with an awkward chuckle.

    ¡°You''re right. Guess I''m just a bit rusty when it comes to traveling through caves!¡±

    That¡¯s what he said. However, Rorio noticed someone seemed to be off about Domino today. Like his head was off in another world.

    Deciding to leave it be for the time being, Rorio began moving ahead as Domino followed close behind.

    The two ran into multiple more traps as they continued.

    Thankfully, they managed to push past them without much issue. And eventually, the two of them ran into their first monster when a creature with green skin and pointy ears jumped out at them with a clobbering stick.

    It didn¡¯t last longer than a second as Domino slashed through it in an instant.

    ¡°Wow, a goblin! Haven''t seen one of those in a while!¡± Domino shouted excitedly.

    Rorio kicked the corpse away before turning to Domino.

    ¡°I gotta say, for what''s meant to be a challenge, the things we''ve run into so far have been pretty bland.¡±

    Domino let out a pout.

    ¡°Oh come on Rorio! Where''s your sense of adventure?¡± he asked.

    Instead of responding, Rorio just shrugged and continued making his way down the tunnel.

    ¡°I lost it the moment my sister hit the floor. Simple as that.¡±

    As those words left Rorio¡¯s mouth, Rorio continued walking away,

    As he did so, Domino stopped walking and a frown formed on his face before immediately returning to his normal smile.

    ¡°In that case, we need to help you find your sense of adventure again! So let¡¯s get moving!¡± Domino shouted before running over to Rorio.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why we would need to-GAH!¡±

    Then, without warning, Domino grabbed Rorio and tucked him under his arm.

    ¡°Come, my friend! Adventure awaits!¡±

    With that, Domino charged forward with Rorio trying to escape his grasp.

    Risa and Quinta sat outside the cave, relaxing.

    At least, that was what Quinta was doing. Risa, however, couldn¡¯t stop fidgeting as she looked at the cave over and over again.

    Quinta, who was just chilling out in some grass, got up and walked over to Risa.

    ¡°Worried about them?¡±

    Risa turned to her and nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. I just wish I knew how things were going in there.¡±

    Looking at Risa¡¯s face, Quinta gently patted her on the head.

    ¡°Don''t worry about it. I can''t speak for that Domino guy, but the blue-haired swordsman seems to know how to handle himself in there.¡±

    For some strange reason, Quinta had avoided saying Rorio''s name too often. Replacing it with the title of blue-haired swordsman.

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    No one knew why, but they just accepted her alternative name.

    Even though she got those words of reassurance, there was still a part of Risa that kept her from relaxing.

    ¡°Even so. I hope they''re all right.¡±

    Quinta felt like chuckling a little as she patted Risa on the head again.

    ¡°I''m sure they¡¯re fine.¡±

    Risa sighed.

    ¡°I hope so.¡±

    All Risa could do was hope for the best. Even if she couldn¡¯t stop worrying about how the two were faring in there.

    Domino sliced through another monster that jumped out at them and laughed heartily.

    ¡°I feel so alive!¡± he shouted out, filled with energy.

    He ignored the huge amount of arrows and tunnels he''d opened as his laughter echoed in the halls.

    Seeing his friend like this, Rorio shook his head.

    ¡°If you¡¯re finished setting off every single trap in here, can we please move forward?¡± he groaned. Domino looked back at him.

    ¡°Of course! Just give me a second!¡± Domino then stepped forward and one last trap activated as rocks shot out and hit his face.

    He''d only been able to dodge some traps, and his face was covered in bruises. And the rocks added to that as Rorio just sighed and walked past Domino.

    ¡°Let''s get moving,¡± Rorio said before walking ahead with Domino following close behind.

    The two continued to march forward at a normal pace before coming upon a dimly lit tunnel. Figuring this was the path they needed to go down, Rorio kept moving.

    However, Domino seemed to be a little fidgety.

    ¡°Hey...Rorio?¡±

    ¡°Hm?¡± Rorio looked back at him to see Domino had stopped walking and was looking at Rorio with a serious expression on his face.

    ¡°There''s a reason I wanted just the two of us to come here. And it wasn''t because of nostalgia. Er...Well that was part of it. But it wasn''t the only reason."

    Rorio gave his friend a confused look.

    ¡°Huh? What do you mean?¡±

    Domino seemed to fidget with his fingers for a moment before shaking his head to focus himself.

    ¡°T-The reason I brought you in here was because I wanted to...apologize.¡±

    ¡°Apologize?¡± Rorio stopped walking and turned around to face Domino.

    ¡°I wanted...to apologize for not being able to save Yuna.¡±

    Rorio''s body stiffened at the mention of his sister. But Domino continued.

    ¡°I''m the Demon Slayer...the world¡¯s hero... And yet I couldn''t save one singular person. The one person you cared about the most. And for that...I''m truly sorry.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    Silence seemed to linger over the two of them as Domino looked down, frustrated he never apologized to Rorio before.

    Originally, Domino hadn¡¯t planned to bring it up.

    But after everything that happened with Angelica and Rorio having to relive those terrible memories, Domino had been struggling with his own feelings on the matter.

    And as he looked at Rorio, it was clear just how serious he was about this apology.

    Waiting to hear his friend''s words, Domino closed his eyes.

    However, all he heard was footsteps as Rorio continued silently walking forward.

    Figuring his friend didn¡¯t want to speak of the matter right now, Domino followed him without uttering a word.

    After a bit more walking, the two came upon an open cavern with a giant pit in the middle. The only other thing there was a bridge that led to the other side of the pit with a medium-sized chest lying on the other end.

    Domino noticed the chest and attempted to walk across the bridge leading to it when Rorio raised up a hand to block him.

    Domino looked at Rorio confused.

    Even if the bridge wasn''t that sturdy, Domino should''ve been able to run over it before anything fell.

    Rorio shook his head and walked over to the bridge. He picked up a nearby rock and plopped it on the bridge.

    In an instant, the whole bridge collapsed at once as the rock fell into the pit below.

    ¡°Just as I thought. This whole bridge was a trap.¡± Rorio sighed in frustration.

    Domino scowled at the horrible trap he almost walked into before looking at Rorio.

    ¡°So how are we supposed to get to the other side?¡±

    Rorio got back up on his feet.

    ¡°Damn it, I hate using magic,¡± he murmured to himself.

    Domino seemed confused by the sudden statement, but Rorio ignored him.

    Walking up towards the edge of the pit, Rorio''s hands started glowing a light brown as he muttered words under his breath.

    Domino watched him at work when Rorio lifted his hands in the air and then slammed them down on the ground.

    The earth below Rorio immediately started to shift as the ground began to form a bridge where the rigged one used to be.

    Domino stared in amazement before turning to Rorio.

    ¡°Wait a second! When did you learn earth magic!?¡± he shouted in surprise.

    Rorio ignored the question and started walking across the bridge.

    ¡°Stupid earth magic. Always makes my hands feel stiff.¡± Rorio murmured as he made his way across the bridge will shaking his hands around in the air.

    After that, Rorio reached the end of the bridge and opened the chest. Inside was a strange black sword that had an odd orange glow to it.

    ¡°Hm.¡± was all Rorio decided to say before putting the sword in his inventory bag.

    Closing the chest, Rorio was about to make his way back when the ground under him started to rumble.

    ¡°Rorio!¡± Domino shouted as the earth bridge Rorio created started to crumble.

    Rorio ran past the falling debris above him and rushed to the other end. It looked like the whole place was starting to come down.

    As he neared the end of the bridge, Rorio jumped in an attempt to reach the other side...only to miss completely and fall into the pit.

    However, a hand suddenly reached out and grabbed his own.

    Looking up, Rorio saw Domino had grabbed hold of him.

    ¡°Got you!¡± Domino shouted as he kept his grip on Rorio.

    Once Rorio had been pulled up, Domino looked around the cave and saw the whole thing was on the verge of collapse.

    ¡°Let''s get out of here!¡± Domino shouted as he tucked Rorio under his shoulder and dashed out as fast as he could.

    The two ran past multiple pieces of debris before the outside of the cave started to come into view.

    Meanwhile, Risa and Quinta were relaxing outside the cave when a shout could be heard from inside.

    They both walked up to the entrance.

    ¡°Out of the way!¡± Domino shouted causing the two girls to shout in surprise as he ran past them at full speed and dust filled the air behind him.

    ¡°What the heck just happened?!¡± Risa asked as she coughed through the dust trying to keep her eyes covered.

    Risa and Quinta both turned to look at a sweating Domino who was holding Rorio in his arms as he gave a thumbs up.

    ¡°We! Are! Okay!¡± he shouted happily and followed it with a hearty laugh.

    However, Rorio looked quite annoyed at how he was still in quite an awkward position.

    ¡°Greaaat. Can you put me down now?¡±

    ¡°Oh! Right!¡± Domino shouted before plopping Rorio onto the ground.

    After that, the group ended up settling a little farther away from the cave for the time being and Domino tried explaining the entire story to the others.

    But due to his terrible story-telling abilities and need to make things over-dramatic, Rorio had to retell the story from scratch.

    He then showed the strange blade he found in the chest to the others and they gazed at its surprising beauty.

    The blade was a cold black and had this beautiful orange shine to it that made it glisten in the moonlight.

    In the end, the journey was completed and the reward was obtained.

    A few hours later, Domino took on night watch while the others rested and he moved off into the trees.

    After spending some time looking around, Domino stopped on a cliff coated in a light trim of grass.

    He sat down and stared off into the sky, lost in thought.

    Just then, he heard a rustling sound from behind him but didn''t turn around.

    As he heard the footsteps grow closer, he felt a presence standing next to him.

    ¡°I never blamed you for the death of my sister,¡± Rorio said next to him.

    Domino''s head lowered.

    ¡°I know. I just felt so helpless that day. You cared for your sister more than anyone else in the world, and I couldn''t save her. I felt like a complete idiot.¡±

    This was something Domino had felt ever since that day. Domino knew he could never help Rorio regain what he lost. But, he still wanted to try with helping his friend cope. That''s why he let Rorio leave that day all those years ago despite his own personal wants and needs.

    Rorio''s face seemed covered by darkness for a moment before he looked up at the moon.

    ¡°While I agree that you are an idiot, I just wanted to let you know something. Even if you were the cause of my sister¡¯s death, I wouldn''t have hated you for it.¡±

    Domino looked at Rorio confused. Rorio continued.

    ¡°We may not be friends like the way we used to be, but the fact that we still know what it''s like to be who we wanna be and won''t listen to the reasoning of others helps me know that you and I are still the same where it matters most.¡±

    Domino chuckled sadly before looking back down at the ground.

    He wanted to point out Rorio had actually changed quite a bit, but decided against it and instead decided to share his true feelings.

    ¡°I''m sorry for dragging you into this,¡± Domino said.

    It took all the strength he had to keep himself from crying.

    Rorio sighed.

    ¡°It''s fine. Besides, if you didn''t bring me along, I probably wouldn''t have done anything with my life. Or met Risa and learned that there are people who deal with worse than me. It really helps me feel like I''ve grown a bit from this experience.¡±

    Rorio''s words caused Domino to go wide-eyed in surprise.

    It was then that he noticed Rorio''s expression.

    It was a smile of excitement and curiosity. The exact same expression Rorio used to give back during their early days as adventurers.

    ¡°Man. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve seen you smile like that.¡±

    Upon hearing this, Rorio quickly changed his expression and cleared his throat. Blushing a bit out of embarrassment.

    ¡°This doesn''t change the fact I still hate how things are. But at this point, I guess things are the way they are because I chose to let it go that way. So I guess, we¡¯re gonna be a team for a while longer.¡±

    Rorio attempted to avoid looking at Domino while he said this due to how embarrassing it was which caused Domino to let out a chuckle.

    ¡°Hey! What''re you laughing at!¡± Rorio shouted as his face grew redder than before.

    Domino couldn¡¯t hold it in anymore and he burst out laughing.

    ¡°Hey! Stop it!¡± Rorio kept trying to get Domino to stop but failed to do so. The way Rorio looked right now was the most emotional Domino had seen him in forever.

    It brought an overwhelming feeling of happiness and relief to Domino as he wiped the tears from his eyes and smiled at Rorio.

    ¡°Let''s keep doing our best Rorio! And let''s free the Outbursts!¡±

    Rorio turned away, still embarrassed.

    ¡°Whatever. I was planning to do that anyway.¡± Rorio murmured as he walked away.

    For the first time in a long while, Domino felt like he¡¯d had a nice conversation with his best friend.

    The next day, while the group was walking, Risa looked at Quinta and thought back to what she told her back in Con-die.

    She then looked at Rorio and Domino who seemed to be talking more frequently than before.

    Right then, she suddenly felt a strange feeling in her chest she¡¯d never felt before.

    Trying to ignore it, she shook her head and kept walking.

    ¡°No! I''m just gonna focus on what''s ahead and try to help stop these Creator Knights and their control over the Outbursts. Even if I have to ignore these strange new feelings.¡± she thought to herself as her mind began to clear.

    And so the journey continued onward. Little did they all know, things were about to get a whole lot weirder in their group.

 Chapter 16: A Rather Sudden Confession

    The group continued their adventure as if nothing was different than usual.

    However, something appeared off with Quinta as she took glances at Rorio time and time again while the group made their way to their next destination.

    Then, one day, Quinta looked like she had steeled herself for something before moving next to Rorio.

    Feeling her next to him, Rorio turned toward Quinta only to find her eyes looked glossed over as if she was just letting her body move while her mind was elsewhere.

    ¡°Uh...What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Hm? Eep!¡±

    As if not realizing what she was doing, Quinta¡¯s eyes returned to normal as she jumped back a few feet with her cheeks shining a light pink.

    ¡°Oh...uh..nothing!¡±

    Rorio looked at her confused before shrugging it off.

    Seeing he wouldn¡¯t investigate any further, Quinta breathed a sigh of relief.

    As she did so, she spotted smoke rising in the distance.

    ¡°Hey, what''s that?¡± She asked aloud.

    The group stopped and turned in the direction she was pointing.

    Upon seeing where Quinta was pointing, Rorio frowned.

    ¡°It looks like goblin bandits are out there,¡± he groaned.

    ¡°Goblin bandits?¡± Quinta asked, confused. Rorio looked at her to explain only for her to turn her head away.

    Deciding to ignore it, Rorio began his explanation.

    ¡°They''re like normal bandits, but along with the supplies, they also try to steal women regardless of age so they can breed with them before leaving their bodies to rot. They''re disgusting creatures. ¡±

    Hearing this, Quinta turned to look at the monsters off in the distance and her expression soured.

    ¡°They sound terrible,¡± Risa said as she mimicked Quinta¡¯s expression.

    Thinking to himself for a moment, Domino turned to Rorio.

    The group was far away enough that they could flee without being noticed. However, Domino wasn¡¯t one to let monsters like that roam free.

    ¡°Might as well take care of these guys. Let''s go Rorio!¡±

    ¡°Right!¡±

    Rorio and Domino started to charge off before Rorio turned around to look at the two girls.

    ¡°You two stay here. We don''t want to risk you getting turned into targets.

    Risa frowned.

    ¡°Are you sure? I¡¯m way stronger than I was six months ago. I think we can help out.¡±

    Rorio shook his head.

    ¡°When it comes to these monsters, they¡¯re not against using dirty tactics. If you go out there with us, there¡¯s a chance they could grab you and use you as a meat shield.¡±

    ¡°That...sounds unpleasant.¡±

    Rorio nodded.

    ¡°So stay here for now. We¡¯ll be back soon.¡±

    ¡°O-Okay.¡±

    Risa didn¡¯t look happy being left on the sidelines, but if that¡¯s what Rorio wanted her to do, then she trusted his judgment.

    Seeing she understood, Rorio dashed off to catch up to Domino.

    Risa watched the two of them running off toward the monsters and let out a disappointed sigh.

    ¡°I thought we were supposed to be teammates, but I guess sometimes it¡¯s best to just take care of things yourself,¡± Risa muttered as she waited for the boy¡¯s return.

    Waiting alongside Risa, Quinta sat down on the ground as she thought about how the two boys ran off to fight in order to keep her and Risa safe. Those actions couldn¡¯t help but make her feel giddy.

    However, Quinta wasn¡¯t aware of how much she was letting her feelings show and started giggling to herself rather creepily. Leaving Risa slightly disturbed.

    ¡°I...don''t even wanna know what you¡¯re thinking about,¡± Risa muttered as she watched the boys run off.

    Rorio managed to catch up to Domino and looked over at him as they ran.

    ¡°So what''s the plan?¡±

    ¡°Aim to kill. I want them dead as soon as possible!¡±

    ¡°Understood!¡±

    After Domino relayed his orders, the two split off into different paths as they headed toward the goblin bandit group.

    There were forty goblins in total spread throughout the terrain.

    Rorio sped ahead of Domino as he pulled out the green blade he called Rolphin and immediately sliced off the head of the first goblin he came into contact with.

    The goblin could only let out a single small squeak before its head plopped onto the ground.

    Hearing the head hit the floor, the other goblins turned around to find their dead compatriot on the ground as blood leaked from its headless neck.

    Not giving them a chance to react, Rorio gripped his blade tightly and charged straight forward as he brought his blade down on the monsters one after another. Cutting them with a strange amount of elegance.

    Realizing the danger they were in, the goblins charged at Rorio under the idea that they had the advantage of numbers.

    However, Rorio smirked with anticipation as the monsters came down on him.

    He easily dodged out of the way of the first goblin and slashed clean through the chest of the second goblin that approached him.

    Running over the bodies of their fallen comrades, the monsters once again tried to attack Rorio.

    However, none of them had expected Rorio to leap into the air as Domino came running up at an incredible speed

    ¡°Earth Shattering Slash!¡±

    Domino sliced through the monsters in front of him as he took out his fourth favorite sword Eihgt and with a single slash, destroyed almost twelve goblins before they even realized what had happened.

    Landing next to Domino, Rorio whipped his blade to clean off the blood and the two started tearing through the group of monsters even faster then before.

    After about another minute of fighting, Rorio and Domino stood at each other''s backs.

    Despite their rampage of attacks, the duo still found themselves surrounded by goblin bandits.

    ¡°There sure are a lot,¡± Rorio shouted.

    ¡°You said it!¡±

    ¡°So what should we do next!?¡±

    ¡°Hmm...Let''s do plan eighteen!¡±

    ¡°What!? Dammit, I hate that one.¡±

    With their plan set, the duo sliced through enough enemies to give them breathing room. After that, it was followed up by Rorio getting onto one knee and holding his hands out. Domino jumped up onto his hands and Rorio hoisted him into the air.

    Domino''s blade glowed a dark black as he raised it over his head and shouted a small chant mid-air.

    ¡°I call upon the technique of the ninja master Kojuju and his spinning blades of fury! Circle slash!¡±

    Once Domino landed, he spun around in a circle. Then, all goblins within six meters of him were sliced in half as their corpses fell to the ground.

    Domino could see the fear growing in the goblin¡¯s eyes as they realized they were at a disadvantage.

    Seeing those expressions, Domino chuckled to himself before turning his head.

    ¡°Now Rorio!¡±

    At those words, Rorio''s sword glowed a mix of yellow and green. As if giving it a lime hue while Rorio shouted out his attack.

    ¡°Death''s Swing!¡±

    He swung through the pack of goblins and all the monsters that were in the vicinity of the blade were immediately cut down.

    The ground was littered with even more corpses than before as blood dripped down Rorio¡¯s sword.

    After those attacks, only four goblins remained. They were cut down in an instant.

    After they were done, Domino let out another happy chuckle as he laughed off the massacre that had just happened.

    Meanwhile, Rorio scanned the field to make sure nothing was missed.

    After seeing their business was done, Domino and Rorio made their way back to the other two. Quinta was still giggling, while Risa was staring at her, completely lost.

    ¡°Uhh...Do I even wanna know what¡¯s going on?¡± asked Rorio.

    He was met with Risa shaking her head with a sigh while Quinta sat on the ground giggling to herself for some reason. It took a few minutes, but once Quinta was brought back to reality, the group continued onward.

    However, Rorio noticed Risa seemed to have something on her mind while they walked.

    But not wanting to bring it up, he kept silent and the group kept moving onward.

    While Risa and Quinta were behind them, Domino and Rorio discussed the move they used before.

    ¡°Did we ever give that move a name?¡± Rorio asked.

    Domino puts his hand up to his chin.

    ¡°Now that you mention it. I don''t think we ever did. While our separate attacks have names, the plan itself doesn¡¯t have one.¡±

    ¡°Hmm...¡±

    The two seemed lost in thought.

    Suddenly, Rorio sensed something rustling in a bush nearby and went to check it out.

    ¡°Rorio?¡± Risa was the first to notice him walk off as the group stopped to wait for him.

    After about five minutes, Rorio came back with something in hand before slamming it into the ground.

    ¡°Why is it always this creep?¡± mumbled Rorio as he looked at the person in front of him in disgust. The one he was referring to jumped up in anger.

    ¡°You imbecile! I''m the king of the slave trade!¡± he started to shout.

    The goofy-looking outfit was already a dead giveaway, but the one who stood before them was SpellsWorth. The man Rorio freed Risa from. He had been tracking them since the goblin bandit fight with only one goal in mind.

    ¡°I promise I will reclaim my property today!¡± He started shouting before he felt a glare from behind.

    ¡°I....I...I....¡± cold sweat started to drip down SpellsWorth''s back as he turned to find Risa glaring at him. An unbridled rage in her eyes.

    ¡°I...I..I promise I will reclaim my property one day!¡± he shouted before shooting off in fear.

    Apparently, the glare from his once most quiet slave was enough to scare him off in an instant.

    After he was gone, Rorio sighed as he felt the stress and frustration leave his body.

    ¡°I hate that guy,¡± he muttered to himself.

    Quinta, who was unfamiliar with SpellsWorth, looked at Rorio in confusion.

    ¡°Who was that guy?¡±

    Rorio turned and looked at her.

    ¡°He''s a slave trader who keeps trying to kidnap Risa. He¡¯s a real pain in the ass.¡±

    Quinta turned to Risa curiously.

    ¡°Wait. Slave trader? Are slaves still a thing?¡±

    Slaves were still quite a prominent part of society. They were even allowed in Lust Street.

    However, since Quinta never saw them herself, she didn''t seem to grasp they were still quite commonplace.

    Rorio nodded to Quinta¡¯s question.

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    ¡°Apparently. All I know is that as long as people like that creep exist, stuff like slaves are gonna be a thing. Not that I care. As long as Risa¡¯s safe, that¡¯s all that matters.¡±

    Rorio stated that without thinking much of it only to turn to Risa whose cheeks were a light pink.

    ¡°Huh? Are you okay Risa?¡± Rorio asked, slightly confused.

    Realizing she was blushing, Risa quickly turned around.

    ¡°Uh! No! It''s nothing!¡±

    Rorio wasn''t really an expert when it came to emotions, so he wasn¡¯t exactly sure how to react to Risa¡¯s words.

    In the end, he tried his best to shrug it off before turning to Quinta who seemed to be lost in thought.

    ¡°You okay Quinta?¡±

    Realizing he was staring at her, Quinta¡¯s face turned beet red.

    ¡°Oh! Yes! Perfectly fine!¡± she replied, sheepishly.

    Rorio found her behavior odd but decided to shrug it off like he did Risa''s.

    Starting to walk ahead of the group, Rorio noticed Domino looking at him with a strange smile.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Hmm...Nothing.¡±

    Domino then turned around and marched forward.

    Rorio was still confused but decided it would be best to just get moving.

    But as he began walking, he noticed Risa walking up to him.

    ¡°Uh...Rorio?¡± she seemed a bit nervous which made Rorio''s mind speculate a ton of different things before giving a response.

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    He didn''t really know why she looked at him like that, but it made him feel like she was about to ask something weird.

    ¡°Uh...I don''t know if this seems strange to ask, but what exactly are you?¡± Risa asked.

    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    With this out of nowhere question, Rorio looked at Risa completely lost.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well. I''ve noticed for a while now that you¡¯ve done multiple things no normal human can do. I thought maybe you were a demi-human, but you don''t have any animal ears or a tail. So I was just curious.¡±

    It was then that Rorio understood.

    Up to this point, Rorio hadn¡¯t been hiding his demi-human strength at all even in front of Risa.

    And considering how high he was able to throw Domino when dealing with those goblin bandits, as well as the strength he would need to hold someone like SpellsWorth, it was safe to say she might¡¯ve gotten a bit curious. Especially since Rorio never told Risa about his demi-human form.

    There was a part of him that wanted to explain the truth to her.

    However, he wasn¡¯t quite ready yet.

    ¡°Hmm...I''ll have to get back to you on that one Risa,¡± he replied.

    Risa slumped her shoulders.

    ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°It''s just...a very sensitive topic for me.¡±

    As stated before, there was a part of him that wanted to tell her the truth.

    However, knowing how most people react to his animal ears and tail, he wasn''t exactly comfortable with the idea of sharing quite yet.

    Realizing he wasn¡¯t going to cave in on this, Risa finally gave up.

    ¡°I understand,¡± she replied clearly disappointed as the group continued forward.

    After another hour, the group reached their next destination.

    It was a place that could best be described as your generic town.

    The reason for them coming here wasn¡¯t a big one.

    They just needed some more food and supplies. Simple as that.

    However, as everyone began putting on their cloaks, Quinta approached Rorio.

    ¡°Hey...uh...Rorio?¡±

    Rorio turned to Quinta who was fidgeting with her fingers.

    ¡°Need something?¡± he asked.

    Her lips quivered as she tried to get the words out.

    Rorio wasn''t sure why she was struggling to talk, but he waited patiently for her to speak.

    ¡°Um...I was just wondering if it would be okay if just you and me hung out alone for a little while when we get to town?¡±

    Risa''s ears perked up in surprise as she looked at Quinta whose cheeks were a bright pink.

    Rorio tilted his head in confusion.

    ¡°What for?¡±

    As if not entirely expecting that response, Quinta fumbled with her words.

    ¡°Uh...Well, you see...I just...¡±

    She continued to fidget around as she struggled to speak. Her ears glowed a bright red. Despite being hidden behind her purple hair.

    Seeing as they weren''t getting anywhere, Rorio sighed and turned around. Beginning to walk forward.

    ¡°Fine. But if we get ambushed by your friends as some sort of evil plan, you¡¯re out of the party.¡±

    He didn''t know why she was acting this way, but with a few ideas floating around in his head, he decided to try his best and roll with it. Quinta responded with an excited nod of her head.

    ¡°Deal!¡± she shouted. Then she and Rorio continued ahead of everyone else.

    Meanwhile, Domino and Risa watched them from behind.

    While Risa seemed to have mixed feelings about this turn of events, Domino chuckled as he thought of what had just transpired.

    Rorio and Quinta arrived in town first.

    Rorio had put his hood over his head to keep himself disguised from the other creature¡¯s views and found himself being tugged along by Quinta who had a sparkle in her eye.

    ¡°Come on Rorio! Let''s check this place out!¡± she shouted happily as she dragged him from place to place.

    She never told Rorio or the others what type of creature she was, but the other creatures didn''t seem to mind her as they went on with their days as if nothing was wrong.

    Quinta continued to drag Rorio around as he felt himself grow more and more mentally exhausted.

    ¡°Maybe it''s because I don''t know that many girls, but I don''t think I understand them at all,¡± he thought to himself as he saw Quinta freak out over a dress in one of the shops.

    It could almost make you forget she was originally a ninja who enforced romance no matter the cost.

    A few hours passed and the sun was beginning to set as the moon started rising into the sky.

    Rorio turned to Quinta.

    ¡°Remind me again why we¡¯re doing this?¡± he asked.

    He thought they had a reason for all this, but the only thing Quinta did was drag him around all day without any real explanation. She even attempted to make him buy her stuff. Which was where he put his foot down.

    Quinta smiled as she responded.

    ¡°I want to show you how trustworthy I am so you''ll see I''m capable enough to stay in your party!¡±

    Rorio just looked at her confused as he thought back on the day¡¯s events.

    ¡°I don''t see how just the two of us hanging out is gonna help that. For all I know, you could be leading me straight into a trap.¡±

    Quinta pouted at Rorio''s words.

    ¡°You don''t have to take everything so seriously!¡±

    ¡°So you''re saying I shouldn''t act like myself?¡±

    ¡°No! I just...haaaah...¡±

    Quinta could tell she wasn''t getting through to him so she tried to explain it better.

    Meanwhile, two faces watched them from a nearby table.

    Domino chugged down a cup of beer.

    ¡°I just can''t believe it! Did Rorio seriously score a girl!?¡± he asked, astounded.

    Risa just frowned as she watched the two of them.

    ¡°I don''t know why, but this whole setup feels wrong,¡± she murmured in frustration.

    Domino chuckled.

    ¡°Well, we are basically stalking their date. So it does feel slightly wrong.¡±

    ¡°It''s not a date!¡± Risa shouted at him.

    Domino raised his eyebrow curiously.

    ¡°Really? Sure feels like one to me¡± he said as he looked at Risa who turned away with a frown.

    ¡°I''m just...saying what Rorio would say in this situation,¡± she muttered as she looked down.

    ¡°Ohh. Makes sense. He probably would say that. He''s never really been one for romance.¡±

    Risa let out a sigh as she turned to look back at them when...

    ¡°Wait! Where did they go!?¡± Risa shouted, surprised.

    ¡°They left a while ago.¡±

    Risa glared at Domino.

    ¡°Why didn''t you tell me!?¡±

    Domino responded with a smile.

    ¡°Because we were having such a nice conversation.¡±

    Risa felt her anger about to boil as she jumped up from her seat and attempted to hit Domino only for him to easily dodge her and watch as she crashed into a wall.

    Risa groaned in pain as she collapsed to the ground unconscious.

    Domino tried his best to hold in his laughter as he lugged her over his shoulder.

    ¡°Now, where did they go?¡± he said aloud before taking Risa off somewhere where he could apply some first aid.

    The moon had made its way into the sky. Its calm light illuminated the hill Rorio and Quinta sat on outside of town.

    ¡°It''s a good thing Domino is so carefree. Otherwise, we never would have gotten out of there without them seeing us.¡± Rorio said as he let out a sigh.

    Rorio had noticed the two of them following and knew they''d only continue to watch.

    The idea felt somewhat uncomfortable, so he ended up leaving with Quinta while Risa was distracted.

    He knew Domino lived for these kinda silly experiences, so he probably wouldn''t have said anything until after they were already gone.

    ¡°I can''t believe they would follow us and ruin it,¡± Quinta murmured so quietly that it was hard for anyone to hear.

    ¡°Hm? You say something?¡±

    ¡°Oh! It''s nothing!¡± Quinta shouted as her ears turned pink behind her purple hair. Unable to be seen by Rorio.

    Silence filled the air after that. But as they sat there, Rorio took notice of how much Quinta kept peeking at him.

    ¡°So you were wondering too huh?¡±

    ¡°Huh!? Uh...Wondering what!?¡± Quinta responded nervously. Rorio looked up into the sky.

    ¡°What I am. When Risa mentioned it, I¡¯d almost forgotten you probably didn¡¯t know either.¡±

    Quinta looked down and nodded.

    ¡°Well. You¡¯re not wrong. But in all honesty, that really doesn''t bother me.¡±

    She lifted up her head and smiled.

    Rorio put his hand to his chin before looking at Quinta.

    ¡°Well then, let''s make a trade. You tell me what you are, and I''ll tell you what I am.¡±

    ¡°Huh!?¡±

    Quinta was caught off guard by this sudden exchange. Rorio chuckled.

    ¡°What? You thought I couldn''t tell that you weren''t human?¡±

    Quinta''s eyes went wide and looked down, embarrassed.

    ¡°It''s just...I thought I hid it really well.¡±

    ¡°This coming from the girl who walked around with no cloak on and no one batting an eye.¡±

    Quinta groaned as she suddenly realized how obvious it had been from the start.

    This made Rorio chuckle.

    ¡°So, whatta ya say?¡±

    Quinta thought about it for a moment before nodding.

    After the deal was made, Rorio deactivated his magic disguise and his wolf ears and tail popped out.

    ¡°You¡¯re a Demi-Human!¡± Quinta shouted, surprised. Rorio nodded.

    ¡°I''ve never really been proud of it, but yeah.¡±

    Quinta''s eyes sparkled as she looked at Rorio''s ears and tail.

    Rorio started feeling a little embarrassed as he cleared his throat.

    ¡°Your turn.¡±

    As if being broken out of a trance, Quinta nodded and slowly pulled back her hair to let her spiky ears poke out.

    ¡°I see. You¡¯re an elf.¡± Rorio stated as he looked at her elf ears.

    Elves weren''t too uncommon in the Outbursts since they were technically considered monsters so they weren''t really welcomed into normal human society.

    However, there were occasions when elves became part of an adventuring party. But that was quite a rarity. They were usually sold off to the rich for things such as pleasure or to normal folk for labor. They weren¡¯t really considered useful for anything else.

    Rorio seemed to be looking at Quinta''s ears for a bit longer than she expected as she turned around and her face grew bright red.

    ¡°Please don''t laugh at me!''''

    This caused Rorio to look at her in confusion.

    ¡°Why would I do that?¡±

    Quinta didn''t really know how to explain how she felt.

    ¡°It''s just....everyone out here says how useless elves are when it comes to adventuring. It''s sometimes even frowned upon. I always got laughed at back during my training before I became a ninja for wanting to be an adventurer and I hid my elf side because of it.¡±

    Rorio listened to her explanation before rolling his eyes.

    ¡°There''s nothing wrong with wanting to be an adventurer. Whoever told you otherwise was probably an idiot.¡±

    Quina''s eyes widened in surprise at his response. Because of how elves were always frowned upon, she was always taught that she would never excel at anything. If it wasn''t for her best friend as a kid, along with her caretaker in Lust Street, she would''ve never attempted to grow as a person and improve things for herself.

    Without making a sound, Rorio laid down on the grassy plain with a smile.

    ¡°When I was young, I wanted to be an adventurer too. But because of the law, demi-humans were only allowed to travel if they had a human companion with them. I always thought that rule made it sound like my species were just pets to humans, and I hated it. But, Domino somehow made what sounded like discrimination and distrust a long-lasting partnership. Even if the rest of the world saw me as a lesser being, I still loved adventure. And that''s why I''m glad to be here with everyone now.¡±

    Rorio¡¯s smile glowed brightly as he thought about his past. He still had some stuff he wasn''t able to face, but just because there were some bad memories, didn''t mean there weren''t any good ones.

    Rorio stopped thinking back for a moment as he noticed Quinta was staring at him.

    ¡°What is it?¡± he asked.

    Quinta twiddled her thumbs nervously.

    ¡°Um...Would it be okay...if you kept your ears and tail out for a little while?¡±

    Rorio raised his eyebrow, confused.

    ¡°What for?¡±

    Quinta''s face grew red.

    ¡°It''s just...I think this look really suits you.¡±

    Rorio didn''t fully understand what she meant by that but decided to not think too heavily about it and shrugged.

    ¡°I suppose for a little while it wouldn''t hurt,¡± he said as he went back to relaxing in the grass.

    Quinta smiled.

    ¡°In that case, can I request one more thing?¡± she asked excitedly.

    Rorio shrugged.

    ¡°Go for it.¡±

    ¡°Um...Could you be my boyfriend!¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Instant rejection!¡±

    After the sudden confession and rejection, Quinta stared at Rorio with small tears in her eyes.

    ¡°Why not!?¡±

    ¡°Is the one who asked me that out of the blue seriously wondering why I rejected her? Sorry, but I¡¯m not that easy to win over.¡±

    ¡°Well...Well...I don''t care! I''m gonna make you fall for me no matter what!¡±

    Rorio yawned.

    ¡°Knock yourself out. There¡¯s no way that¡¯s gonna happen.¡±

    Quinta pouted, upset.

    Little did Rorio know, that was the day his peace and quiet would slowly begin to diminish.

    From nearby, the two heard the shouts of some familiar voices.

    ¡°There you guys are!¡± Domino shouted cheerfully.

    Risa was right behind him with a bandage on her head when she noticed Rorio''s animal ears and tail.

    Stars shined in her eyes as she gasped with excitement.

    She dashed over to him and stared at his ears.

    ¡°Can I touch them?!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡±

    In an instant, Risa started petting Rorio''s ears as he jumped up from his resting spot.

    He tensed up immediately.

    ¡°You''re a demi-human! Your ears and tail are so freaking adorable! Oh my gosh! They''re so cute!¡±

    Risa continued to pet him, despite Rorio''s discomfort.

    ¡°Cut that out! They''re sensitive!¡± Rorio shouted.

    Risa just smiled and continued petting him despite his protests.

    This caused Rorio to turn away his head in embarrassment.

    That was when she started to stroke his tail and he tensed up even more.

    Domino turned his head over to Quinta who had her elf ears in full view.

    ¡°So you''re an elf huh? Glad to have you on the team!¡±

    He didn¡¯t seem fazed by this reveal at all.

    Quinta responded with a smile and nod.

    ¡°Stop trying to touch my damn ears!¡± Rorio shouted as he got up and dashed away with Risa right on his tail.

    And as darkness finished covering the sky while a shining moon sparkled from above, the group ended up staying at one of the town''s inns.

    As of today, their adventures were about to become a lot more of a hassle.

 Chapter 17: Time Loop

    It had been about two weeks since the events with the sudden confession.

    Having finally expressed her feelings, Quinta had changed quite a bit.

    Risa found herself noticing Quinta watching Rorio¡¯s every move while he was training Risa, and she had a constant grin shining on her face.

    Every now and then, Quinta even attempted to jump on Rorio and hug him after training was done only for him to dodge her and walk away as she collapsed onto the ground.

    All Risa could think about when watching this was what Quinta had told her back during their little shopping trip

    It was where Quinta ended up admitting she had feelings for Rorio due to something about his sword skills or attractive appearance or something.

    Risa didn''t really think about it too much. But for some reason, she was constantly reminded of that conversation whenever she looked at Rorio.

    Even though he was like a mentor to her, her mind filled up with thoughts of what-if which made her face grow red. Making it hard to keep eye contact with Rorio.

    Rorio took notice of Risa¡¯s strange behavior but just assumed she was acting off due to what Quinta had doing earlier that day.

    ¡°As Quinta wrapped herself around Rorio, he embraced her with a heated passion. Their lips pressed against one another as they felt their love collide with one another. Like two smoldering flames that refused to be put out.¡±

    Risa''s face was beet red as she listened to Quinta read a story that she had written.

    It was obvious that it wasn''t going in a very nice direction, so Rorio grabbed the book and threw it off into the wind.

    ¡°No! My story!¡± Quinta shouted as she reached out to the book that was no longer in her grasp.

    Rorio only glared at her.

    ¡°Save your smut for another pervert. Don''t even think of poisoning Risa with that crap.¡±

    Risa wasn''t sure how to feel when Rorio treated her as if she were a child, but she decided to ignore it since he wasn''t entirely off about how she felt queasy and embarrassed while reading Quinta¡¯s book.

    ¡°Aw come on Rorio. She was just embracing her talent for writing!¡± Domino said with a cheerful smile.

    He only gained a cold glare from Rorio in response.

    The glare was so strong it made Domino take a nervous step back despite his grin remaining.

    Rorio rolled his eyes and picked up the swords he had stuck in the ground. He had taken a break from training to find the others reading the trash Quinta had written.

    Now that it had been resolved, he went back to training.

    Quinta stared at Rorio while Risa got up and picked up her own sword.

    She didn''t have an inventory bag like Domino and Rorio, so she ended up carrying her blade Xeto around and kept it attached to her back using a sheath Rorio had given her.

    She went on to swing the sword herself and tried out some different techniques Rorio had taught her.

    Domino watched both of them with a smile as he stood next to Quinta.

    The two ended up watching the others as they trained for another hour until they were done for the day.

    As night was almost upon them, Rorio felt slightly tired, while Risa was completely exhausted so Domino agreed to do the night shift.

    With everyone going to bed, Domino kept watch from his sleeping bag.

    The night was silent as Domino looked around. However, after about an hour, he felt himself starting to feel tired and passed out right then and there.

    Meanwhile, several hellhounds and other monsters that even normal Outburst creatures feared started to close in on them. That night wouldn''t be a fun one.

    But day came soon enough and Domino let out a yawn.

    Opening up his eyes, Domino saw everyone else was still asleep.

    He smiled thinking they wouldn¡¯t know he¡¯d fallen asleep and got up only to notice a pile of dead monsters laying next to his bed which reeked of death.

    Domino covered his nose, but the smell had already entered his nostrils.

    ¡°Next time, don''t sleep on the job.¡± said a voice behind him.

    Domino turned his head to find Rorio sitting there cleaning his blades.

    Domino gave him an awkward chuckle as he pulled out his inventory bag and stored the monster meat they could eat inside before dragging off and burning the animals they couldn¡¯t eat.

    After he made sure it was all cleaned up, he made it back just as the rest of the group started to get up and they got back on the path they had been traveling.

    However, both Risa and Quinta kept far away from Domino since he smelled horrible for some reason.

    As they walked, Domino pulled up a map and learned that there was a bathhouse resort not too far from the castle of the next Creator Knight. So the group agreed to go there right before the battle.

    Continuing their trek, the group eventually found a lake and Domino got himself cleaned. Risa asked ¡°Why didn''t he have any magic that could clean himself?¡± to which he replied with ¡°If there were a spell that convenient, then I would''ve learned it ages ago.¡±

    With the group deciding to just take the river as a chance to bathe, the girls went off to bathe a little further upstream, while the boys bathed where they were currently standing.

    Domino suggested peeping on them as a joke, which resulted in Rorio slamming him to the ground.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Something similar must¡¯ve happened on the girl''s end as Risa came back with an unconscious Quinta who she dragged by a single foot.

    After about another hour of walking, the group stopped for lunch and Domino pulled out one of the giant pigs Rorio had killed the night before, set up a fire, and started to cook.

    Rorio immediately stopped him as he remembered the last time Domino tried such a thing and took over the duty himself.

    Risa trained with Quinta as the two tried to one-up the other, while Domino sat off to the side mumbling how he ¡°didn''t feel included in his own adventuring party¡± and things were pretty peaceful.

    Rorio finished cooking the giant pig and the group sat down to eat.

    Domino still felt tears dripping down his face as he ate the delicious food, but the others ignored him as both Quinta and Risa chowed down like wolves and Rorio sat off to the side relaxing on the ground.

    As they ate, the others explained how good they thought Rorio¡¯s cooking was as he tried to hide his delight.

    However. his tail made it all too clear how he felt as it swung rapidly behind him. Causing him to look away embarrassed.

    Finally, the group set out once more.

    They traveled through many grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations as they made their way to the next Creator Knight''s location.

    Before long, they found themselves in even more grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations. Struggling to get through them every time.

    Walking for a bit longer, the group made their way through more grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations.

    Finally stopping to take a break, the group sat down for a few minutes before deciding to walk once more.

    However, right before they departed, Rorio stopped himself and looked.

    ¡°You guys can go on ahead. There¡¯s something I need to check first.¡±

    The others didn¡¯t understand what he meant but nodded and continued walking without him.

    As they continued, they ended up traveling through some grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations before finally stopping once more to catch their breath.

    ¡°You guys are back already?¡±

    The group was surprised when they heard a voice and turned to find Rorio lying there in the same spot they left him.

    ¡°Wha...how?¡±

    Even Domino wasn''t sure what was going on.

    He decided to run ahead of the others as he went through grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations before arriving at the spot he found the rest of the group relaxing.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on!? Is this a loop?¡±

    Rorio got up from lying down and turned to Domino.

    ¡°I figured you would''ve learned that before going around it four to five times, but yeah. It appears we''ve been trapped in a magic loop.¡±

    A magic loop. A spell that traps an individual in a certain location by making it so that they''re not allowed to leave a path as it only has them end up back at the starting point.

    It''s often quite used for pranks among teens and used to hold prisoners as well.

    Thankfully, the spell was fairly difficult to learn if you aren¡¯t well versed in magic so kids didn¡¯t have the magic skill to cast such things.

    That was a relief since if kids could learn such a spell things would be utter chaos.

    Domino groaned in frustration as Risa and Quinta looked at the two of them confused. Neither had experienced this before, so they didn''t fully grasp how it worked.

    Domino turned his head to look around.

    ¡°So, got any idea where the castor might be hiding?¡±

    ¡°More than likely outside the spell. I could probably handle him easily if I was out, but since the last time I wielded a teleportation scroll was ten years ago, I don''t exactly have one on me right now.¡±

    The two looked around for a few more minutes before Domino spotted something.

    ¡°I see the tie!¡±

    The tie is the location where the whole loop is kept together.

    It''s difficult to destroy, but if you manage to do it, you have a one-way ticket out of the loop.

    Rorio pulled out Rolphin and ran over to the direction Domino was pointing.

    Giving no time for the caster to react, Rorio slammed his sword straight into the spot and it began to crack like glass.

    Then, with an astounding CRASH! the loop tumbled down.

    The caster who created the loop stepped back in surprise as Domino dashed forward and tackled him to the ground.

    He tried to escape Domino''s grasp, but couldn''t as his arms were completely pinned.

    As Domino kept him locked to the ground, Rorio and Risa looked at the caster and they both let out a sigh of frustration.

    ¡°Unhand me brute! SpellsWorth the lord of the slave trade will not submit to this horrible treatment! Unhand me right now!¡±

    SpellsWorth struggled in Domino''s arms as he attempted to escape. But he couldn''t find any way out of this situation.

    ¡°Sooo....can I just kill this guy already?¡± Rorio asked in a bored tone.

    Risa nodded in agreement.

    SpellsWorth squealed in fear as he realized that he needed to get out of there fast.

    ¡°Smoke Explosion!¡± he shouted at the top of his lungs.

    A smoky gas filled the air as Quinta, Risa, and Domino were all blinded by the smoke. It also caused Domino to lose his grip on SpellsWorth who dashed off into the woods. But when he looked back...

    ¡°Don''t think you''re getting away this time!¡± Rorio shouted as he charged after him.

    SpellsWorth squealed in terror as he continued to run as fast as he could.

    As the two ran even deeper into the woods, the trees grew more and more dense.

    If it wasn''t for Rorio''s sharp instincts, he would''ve been hit and caught on the branches almost immediately.

    The two finally came out into a clearing and they found themselves at the top of a hill that led down to a huge drop.

    SpellsWorth stepped up to the edge.

    He didn''t know any flight or gliding spells which only made this all the more terrifying.

    Rorio came out of the clearing with Rolphin in hand. SpellsWorth had nowhere to run.

    Seeing as he had no choice, SpellsWorth stared at Rorio for a moment.

    ¡°Trust me when I tell you this! I will reclaim my prize!¡± he shouted and then jumped off the cliff.

    Rorio was ready to dive after him, only to look over the side and his eyes widened.

    SpellsWorth fell into what seemed to be a pitch-black rectangle and vanished from sight with the rectangle vanishing soon after.

    Rorio was stunned at what he¡¯d just seen.

    ¡°Was that...teleportation magic?¡±

    Teleportation magic was extremely rare. It was only usable by someone who used purely dark magic that needed to be honed to absolute perfection over the course of fifty years.

    By that point, most people would''ve already given up. So finding someone with such an ability was close to impossible. It was why teleportation scrolls were in such high demand for the last decade.

    But moving past that for now, Rorio was certain it wasn''t SpellsWorth who cast the spell, but whoever did, was extremely well-versed in dark magic.

    Rorio made his way back to the others and lied that SpellsWorth managed to hit him with another smoke bomb explosion before running off and he lost sight of him.

    He didn''t want to concern the others with the idea that an enemy had teleportation. And he figured it''d be best to handle whoever said person was himself if it came to having to face a teleportation user.

    With that, the group ended up stopping earlier then expected and groaning in frustration at their failure for not being able to handle the smoke bomb. Meanwhile, Rorio thought of the day''s events while they finally managed to settle for the night.

    The next day, they traveled through grassy lands, windy plains, and other types of locations before finally starting to see several new locations they hadn''t seen before.

    With that minor problem behind them, they started to draw closer to the castle of the next Creator Knight.

 Chapter 18: The Goddess of Dreams

    The Demon Slayer team had just finished setting up camp for the night.

    Domino was talking about one of his adventures to Quinta who seemed to be most interested in the Rorio parts.

    Meanwhile, Rorio sat down on the ground with Risa next to him.

    ¡°Do you really have to do this?¡± groaned Rorio as Risa petted his ears.

    The embarrassment was clear on his face.

    ¡°I can''t help it! Your ears and tail are just too fluffy!¡± Risa replied happily as she continued stroking Rorio¡¯s head.

    Normally, Rorio could keep himself together when just a single person petted him.

    However, Risa wasn''t the only one petting him.

    ¡°If I want to win over your affection, I figure this is the best method!¡± Quinta said as she petted his tail lightly.

    She had been petting him the entire time Domino had been telling her the duo''s stories.

    The girls may have been having fun, but Rorio felt like he was about to cry.

    Now if you''re wondering, it did feel good.

    But since Rorio was a proud adventurer, he found things like his ears and tail a weakness.

    Even if they did help him hear and detect stuff better than most people.

    Feeling like he couldn¡¯t take it anymore, Rorio jumped up, surprising the two girls who both let out a light yelp.

    ¡°I''m...going out on night patrol!¡± Rorio shouted as he dashed off into the woods.

    Seeing his friend''s face, Domino let out a chuckle before looking at the two girls.

    ¡°I know you both really wanna pet him, but could you maybe tone it down a bit? He''s pretty sensitive about the Demi-human thing.

    Hearing this, Risa looked down at the ground.

    ¡°It''s just that..well...I just feel the urge to pet him every time I see those ears and tail.¡±

    Domino nodded.

    ¡°I know. But those kinds of reactions are what make Rorio hide them away. He hates being treated like an animal. And since things such as petting are stuff you normally do with pets, he doesn¡¯t like how giddy it makes him feel when people treat him like that.¡±

    It was just the pure truth. Rorio may try to act like a cool-headed guy, but he disliked the fact that he was part of a race that found so much enjoyment from simply being petted and played with.

    That''s why, when he learned about a spell that could hide that side of him, he took it without hesitation.

    Risa understood Domino''s words and nodded.

    ¡°Right. I Guess I should apologize when he gets back.¡±

    Domino smiled, satisfied with Risa''s understanding.

    However, that smile instantly vanished when a chill rolled down his spine.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Grabbing his sword, Domino got onto his feet and looked around.

    There didn''t seem to be anything wrong, but the chill he felt wouldn''t go away.

    Suddenly, he heard a crash behind him.

    He turned to see Quinta and Risa had both fallen unconscious.

    ¡°What is this? Some kinda sleeping magic?¡±

    Domino had seen such magic on occasion, but it wasn¡¯t something used very often.

    It was then that Domino started to feel himself beginning to pass out.

    ¡°No! Gotta..stay..awake,¡± he mumbled to himself before he too fell asleep.

    The three laid on the ground. Having no idea when they would wake up.

    The sound of a phone ringing entered Domino''s ear.

    He responded by groaning in exhaustion.

    ¡°Huh? Where ...am I?¡± he muttered as he looked around.

    There were computers on both sides of him and he heard the voices of people enter his ears.

    After he felt his vision clear, he found he was sitting in a mysterious workplace.

    Computers could be heard as the clicking of a mouse was followed by the ringing of phones.

    PLOP!

    ¡°Gah!¡±

    Suddenly, a giant stack of papers flopped in front of Domino.

    He looked at them confused before turning his head to find a woman there. She seemed to be on the shorter side.

    She came up to Domino''s waist in terms of height, had flowing golden blonde hair, and wore what looked like a business outfit that made her look professional.

    She wasn¡¯t short on just the height either as her barely visible chest puffed out and her brow furrowed in frustration.

    ¡°Domino! I need you to fill out these papers and get them sent to the mailroom pronto!¡± she shouted.

    ¡°...Huh?¡±

    Domino didn''t understand what she was talking about. This seemed to only annoy her more.

    ¡°Don''t huh!? me! Get these done now!¡±

    After saying that, she stormed off and left Domino even more confused.

    Near Domino, a man who looked vaguely similar to SpellsWorth rolled his chair over and stopped in front of Domino¡¯s desk.

    ¡°It''s best to do what the boss says. We don''t want to get her even more mad. Otherwise, she might just fire you on the spot,¡± he whispered.

    Domino wasn''t sure what he meant by fire but decided to take his warning with a nod.

    ¡°Uh...Okay?¡±

    After the man went back to his desk, Domino looked at himself.

    He had a similar business attire to the rest of the people in the room.

    He moved his hands and felt his surroundings.

    ¡°What is this? Another Illusion?¡± he wondered.

    He looked around to find anything off, but nothing seemed to hint at such a conclusion.

    ¡°I don''t sense anything. What could it be?¡±

    He continued to look around before finally deciding to play along and started writing through the papers in front of him despite needing to ask for help constantly.

    As he continued to work, he learned more about where he was and what was going on from the people around him telling him about himself.

    Apparently, he was someone who helped solve issues that other people had by reaching out through a thing called a phone and explaining things to them, as well as sending letters and other such items to people.

    He was a man who never married, but he had an adopted son who went by the name of Rorio which nearly made him slap himself in disbelief. Also, apparently, there were these two girls who had huge crushes on Rorio and constantly tried to win him over to no avail.

    The girl''s names were Risa and Quinta which caused Domino to nearly let out a laugh when he learned about it.

    Quinta had made her interest in Rorio clear as day, but Risa didn''t really have any reaction to Rorio.

    The two hung out a lot sure, but neither really made any move to gain the other''s romantic interest.

    The final major thing he learned was that apparently, Rorio was part of a club that would be competing in some grand tournament today.

    Domino ended up leaving work after about another hour or two and was running to make it to the supposed school Rorio was competing at.

    Psychological stuff was more up Rorio''s alley, so he figured that if he could get in contact with Rorio, then they could find a way out of whatever this was.

    So, with no idea what to do, Domino dashed towards the school.

    The sun was slowly beginning to float down from the sky as an orange hue filled the classroom.

    Risa felt her consciousness returning to her as she groggily woke up.

    She groaned in exhaustion before yawning and stretching out her arms.

    After that, She looked around confused.

    ¡°Where...am I?¡± she asked aloud.

    She got up from her seat and looked out the window.

    She wondered if this was similar to the experience she had in that cave a while back, but nothing helped signify that.

    The classroom was void of anyone other than her. It looked fairly similar to a Japanese school classroom you''d see in anime. From the sliding doors leading in and out to the seats lined up in front of a giant green chalkboard.

    Suddenly, Risa heard footsteps running through the halls and turned her head to find Domino slightly out of breath looking into the classroom.

    ¡°Sir Demon Slayer?¡±

    ¡°Come on Risa! We don''t wanna be late to Rorio''s game!¡± Domino shouted urgently.

    ¡°Huh? Wah!¡±

    Domino grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the room. Her confused expression never faded from her face.

    Before long, the two of them had made it to some bleachers that were filled with people.

    It looked fairly similar to the way things would look at a kid''s baseball game.

    However, one thing that stood out was the strange wrestling ring in the middle of the field.

    Looking down at the strange area in front of them, Domino and Risa reached a spot where they found Quinta waving over to them.

    ¡°Hurry! It''s about to start!¡± she shouted.

    The two quickly took their seats.

    ¡°Sorry, we''re a bit late!¡± Domino said as he and Risa sat down.

    ¡°Wait! What''s going on!?¡± Risa shouted still completely lost.

    Domino turned to her.

    ¡°Don''t worry. Rorio explained things to me. He said he knows how to handle this.¡±

    ¡°Rorio?¡±

    Risa didn''t understand what Domino meant by that, but she nodded and turned her attention to the ring.

    Cheers started to erupt from the crowd.

    Another person who looked similar to SpellsWorth walked up on the stage with a microphone.

    They looked so similar that it almost caused Risa to jump out of her seat, but Domino held her back.

    The person who looked like SpellsWorth tapped the microphone to make sure it was working before talking into it.

    ¡°Welcome sports fans! Today we got a great lineup of contenders at today''s Ability Tournament! We even have returning champion Astra and the runner-up Rorio joining us today!¡± shouted the SpellsWorth look-alike.

    The club Rorio had apparently joined was one that let you practice your physical abilities in battle. This tournament was a way of showing off said abilities.

    ¡°First up! Sashat vs Qaros!¡± SpellsWorths Look-Alike shouted as two people who looked like Domino and Rorio''s enemies from a long time ago took the stage.

    The crowds once again cheered loudly which caused Risa to flinch and cover her ears.

    Grinning, the SpellsWorth look-alike held his hand up in the air before swinging it toward the ground.

    ¡°And begin!¡± he shouted and the two started to brawl it out.

    These fights continued for almost an hour as people who relied heavily on their own physical prowess all fought one another.

    While not all of them, a lot of the contenders were people Domino recognized immediately. After a little bit longer, the final battle was about to begin.

    Rorio and the one they called Astra both stepped out into view.

    Rorio wore what seemed like a black skin-tight bodysuit that covered him from head to toe along with a pitch-black coat as he clenched his fists.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    Risa looked at him concerned as she didn''t fully understand what was going on. However, she felt a hand on her shoulder and she found Domino looking at her. She knew he was trying to reassure her everything was fine, but Risa was still unsure.

    Even so, she nodded and tried to relax herself.

    Domino took his hand off her and went back to watching before noticing Quinta fidgeting.

    ¡°Quinta?¡±

    He didn''t understand why she was shaking so much.

    Suddenly, she tried jumping out of her seat.

    ¡°I need to go up onto that stage and support him!¡±

    With incredible speed, Domino managed to grab hold of Quinta''s waist and hold her back.

    ¡°Hold your horses, Quinta! We need to see what Rorio¡¯s planning in order to help!¡±

    ¡°But Rorio needs-!¡±

    ¡°Not right now! He can do this himself!¡±

    After about another ten to twenty seconds of holding her back, Domino finally managed to get Quinta back in her seat and used some rope he found earlier to tie her down.

    Once that was done, he turned back to the fight which the SpellsWorths look-alike was still explaining.

    The way the game worked was each fighter had to use their own physical strength to knock the other player out of the ring. The first one out loses and there were no second or third rounds.

    After Rorio and Astra agreed to these terms, they both made their way into the ring.

    Domino looked at Astra and immediately recognized her as the woman who was his Boss back at work thanks to her hair, face, and size being a dead giveaway.

    ¡°You got this dear Rorio! I believe in you!¡± screamed Quinta from the stands despite the competition not starting yet.

    Hearing her racket, Rorio rolled his eyes and focused on the situation in front of him.

    After another minute, everything was set to start.

    ¡°Let the final competition begin!¡± shouted SpellsWorth''s look-alike.

    Cheers once again erupted from the stands.

    And as he and Astra walked into the ring, Rorio let out a sigh and faced Astra who was smiling confidently.

    ¡°I expect a good fight from you,¡± she said as she put herself in a fighting stance.

    Rorio just looked at her bored.

    ¡°Can we just get this over with? I''m sick of this place you stuffed us into.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Astra glared at Rorio and clenched her fists tightly.

    ¡°First one to drop out of the ring loses! Begin!¡±

    The bell that started the fight rang and Astra charged at Rorio with incredible speed.

    She let out a shout as she brought her fist down on Rorio.

    However, just as it was about to make contact, Rorio vanished and an expression of confusion appeared on Astra¡¯s face.

    Suddenly, she felt pressure coursing through her stomach as Rorio''s fist drove into her chest.

    She was sent flying across the ring before crashing into the borders.

    Astra shook off the pain throbbing in her chest as she glared at Rorio.

    However, he only responded with a yawn.

    ¡°That the best you got?¡±

    Astra growled in frustration as she ran at him once again and brought her fist down only to be met with air once more. This time, however, she managed to dodge out of the way as Rorio''s punch barely grazed her hair.

    Risa watched the fight in both amazement and curiosity.

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Is Rorio using a teleportation spell?¡±

    Domino shook his head.

    ¡°Nope. He''s using his slow-motion magic to slow time and move away from her. A pretty good technique. Still, I hope he doesn''t use it carelessly.¡±

    Risa didn¡¯t seem to understand.

    ¡°Slow motion magic? Didn''t he mention he can only use that once every three to six months?¡±

    Domino put his hand to his chin.

    ¡°True. But I think I''m starting to understand our situation. And if it''s what I think it is, he should be able to do it with no problem. All he needs to do in order for it to work is to keep her from catching on.¡±

    Quinta watched amazed.

    ¡°Rorio can beat anyone down! He''s amazing! After all, he managed to defeat my boss without any issues and faced one of the four Creator Knights while also fighting her minion!¡±

    Risa glared at Quinta annoyed.

    Quinta was already told the story of how they defeated the first Creator Knight, but apparently, she wanted it to fit her fantasy more so she twisted the story around.

    That¡¯s why, even though Rorio acted as more of a supporting role for Risa throughout the fight, Quinta imagined a different fight than what actually occurred. Putting Rorio in the spotlight.

    Risa had only noticed it recently, but for some reason, Quinta seemed to be way more assertive about her feelings than she was a few weeks ago. Making Risa wonder what happened.

    Of course, if she¡¯d managed to stick around for the entirety of Rorio and Quinta¡¯s date, she would¡¯ve known exactly why. But that sadly wasn''t how things played out.

    Ignoring Quinta¡¯s cheers, Rorio focused on the fight as he managed to avoid another punch from Astra, only for her to dodge him just as easily.

    ¡°Amazing! It''s clear Rorio has grown since their last encounter!¡± shouted the SpellsWorth look-alike.

    Astra looked like she was starting to run out of stamina as she tried to launch another attack at Rorio who once again vanished from sight before finally landing a solid blow to her face as she was sent rolling down to the end of the ring.

    It was almost amazing how few bruises were on Astra¡¯s body after all the attacks she endured.

    Preparing to strike once more, Astra clenched her fist when she heard Rorio let out a laugh.

    ¡°What''s so funny?¡± she asked, annoyed.

    ¡°I gotta say. It''s pretty hilarious.¡±

    ¡°Huh? What''s Hilarious?¡±

    ¡°Last time, I beat you to the ground with ease. And yet you altered the whole thing to make it look like you were the victor. The fact that you still can''t beat me in your own dream, despite it being your home turf, is absolutely hilarious!¡±

    Rorio let out another laugh which only seemed to anger Astra as a red aura surrounded her body before she dived straight at Rorio.

    As she closed in, Astra turned around in preparation to intercept Rorio''s next attack. However, rather than vanishing, Rorio brought his leg up and sent it flying forward.

    It rammed right into Astra''s ribs and she groaned in pain before flying off and crashing outside the ring.

    ¡°Domino!¡± Rorio shouted.

    Domino nodded and ran off. Leaving the two girls sitting on the bleachers.

    Cheers came from all the stands as Rorio was the only one left standing in the ring.

    Rorio looked around before turning to Risa and Quinta. He waved at them with a smile. Risa waved back with her own smile.

    However Quinta-

    ¡°WOOO...RORIO! YOUR AMAZING! YOU JUST MADE ME FALL FOR YOU EVEN MORE!¡±

    -was freaking out a bit too much.

    Meanwhile, SpellsWorth''s look-alike looked at Astra before tapping his microphone again.

    ¡°And the winner is Rorio, The Demon Slayer''s Sidekick!¡±

    Cheers erupted throughout the stadium.

    Suddenly a voice screamed into the air. Silencing the cheers.

    ¡°Why isn''t this working!?¡±

    Hearing that, Rorio turned to find Astra sitting on the ground with her hands glowing yellow.

    ¡°Why can''t I alter this dream!¡± she shouted, frustrated.

    Rorio jumped from the ring and turned to find Domino walking up to them and handing Rorio a sword.

    ¡°Thanks for holding onto this for me.¡±

    Domino grinned.

    ¡°Happy to help!¡±

    Looking up at the two boys, Astra tilted her head in confusion.

    ¡°Huh...What¡¯s that!?¡±

    Astra didn''t understand what was going on at all. Ignoring Astra, Domino smiled and left Rorio to take care of business.

    After a moment, Astra¡¯s attention focused on the sword in Rorio¡¯s hand.

    It was coated orange and emitted a powerful aura.

    ¡°The dream disruption sword Distoris,¡± Rorio announced as he held the sword.

    ¡°Distoris?¡±

    Astra didn''t understand.

    Distoris was a blade forged about a hundred years ago by a blacksmith that wanted to gain control of his dreams.

    And that¡¯s exactly what the blade could do.

    When held in the hands of its wielder, the weapon gave them the power to control their dreams as they willed.

    However, it took time to prepare the alterations, so Rorio had Domino hold onto it when they met up to talk about a plan and made sure to keep the weapon out long enough for it to gain power.

    Rorio walked over to Astra, Distoris in hand.

    She looked up at him terrified.

    ¡°This dream ends here.¡±

    Those were Rorio¡¯s last words to Astra before he separated her head from her body.

    ¡°Gah!¡± Domino shouted as he shot awake.

    He felt a cold wind against his face as he looked around.

    The fire they set up earlier had gone out, and the sun was beginning to rise.

    He looked over to Risa and Quinta who were both still fast asleep, their heads almost touching before they began to wake up as well.

    They both groaned as they stretched their arms. Domino sighed in relief.

    Suddenly, he heard the sound of someone screaming nearby.

    ¡°Why are you pulling my hair!? Ow! That hurts! Let go you mongrel! Stop this right now! I''m the god of dreams! Unhand me right now!¡±

    Rorio stepped out of the woods and tossed someone onto the ground.

    The person he brought back was a girl who had long golden blonde hair, an angelic dress and was around the size of Domino''s waist.

    ¡°Ow!¡±

    Rorio pulled her up by her hair, annoyed.

    ¡°Mind explaining yourself Astra?¡± Rorio asked in a threatening tone.

    The girl whose name was Astra shivered in fear as she looked into Rorio''s eyes.

    Realizing her position, she sighed and explained herself.

    ¡°Well...You see...I may or may not be the one behind you suddenly passing out and giving you that weird dream...maybe.¡± she said timidly.

    She looked down shaking as she felt two gazes piercing into her. She looked up to find Risa and Quinta glaring at her which caused her to shoot her head back down.

    Meanwhile, Domino just looked at her curiously.

    ¡°I..I had a good reason! I promise I did!¡± Astra shouted nervously.

    It seemed the annoying woman Astra had been earlier was nowhere to be seen. What remained in her place was a nervous wreck that struggled to hold eye contact.

    ¡°And that reason is?¡±

    Rorio was growing impatient by the second. Astra let out a light yelp before she continued.

    ¡°It''s because..because...I wanted to get in contact with Rorio and I needed to use you guys as bait!¡± she shouted before curling up into a tiny ball. Risa and Quinta seemed to still hold some anger as they both continued to glare at her.

    However, Rorio just sighed and shook his head.

    ¡°Why do you keep doing this? I''ve already clarified I''m not interested in fighting you unless it''s necessary.¡±

    Domino looked at Rorio curiously.

    ¡°You know this lady Rorio?¡±

    Rorio nodded with a frown.

    ¡°Back during our adventure in the God Lands, while you were off doing what you needed to, this lady showed up and brought me to her dream world and tried to fight me. Several times at that. Now she claims we''re rivals and every time she sees me she tries to put me into her dream world. At this point, I¡¯ve become completely immune and only enter if I want to.¡±

    The God Lands. A place where Gods that decided to come to the human realm usually resided.

    Unlike the Gods in the world we know, the Gods in this world are different varieties and contain different names entirely. Names such as ¡°Zeus¡± or ¡°Poseidon ¡± don''t exist and never have existed. That''s why Gods such as Astra ¡°The God of Dreams¡± existed.

    However, the God Lands didn¡¯t always exist.

    The way the God Lands came to be was from an incident in the heavens when their realm was destroyed by a strange magic used during a battle to save the world.

    And while heaven¡¯s already been rebuilt, many gods have stuck on earth for the fun of it.

    Of course, the powers of the gods were shrunken down in order to fit more with mortal society.

    And while the gods could stay on the surface as long as they wished, if they died, they would get sent back to heaven and were no longer permitted in the human realm.

    Moving past that for now, Astra seemed upset at Rorio''s comment about being a self-proclaimed rival.

    ¡°We are rivals! And I know one day I''ll beat you fair and square!¡±

    Quinta seemed to have calmed down a bit and looked at Astra confused before turning to look at Rorio.

    ¡°Wait, So this little girl is both your rival and a God?¡±

    A vein popped onto Astra''s head.

    ¡°I''m not a little girl!¡±

    Rorio sighed again as he turned to Quinta.

    ¡°While she''s actually a little over a hundred years old, it''s true she still acts like a child. At least I can at least confirm that she is a god. However, she is definitely not my rival.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡±

    Astra pouted at Rorio who just ignored her and got back on topic.

    ¡°Now then, Why the hell are you out here in the Outbursts? You told me how much you hated this place.¡±

    Finally settling down a bit, Astra faced everyone.

    ¡°It''s because of King Melodis and Princess Filora.¡±

    Domino immediately tensed up as Rorio¡¯s eyes went wide.

    ¡°They waged war on the God Lands and have been going across the world with their army trying to control several other nations. I managed to escape with a human friend, but a lot of the Gods didn''t make it.¡±

    ¡°Human friend?¡±

    Risa looked at her curiously.

    She hadn''t really met any humans other than Domino here in the Outbursts, so she didn''t really remember much about interacting with normal humans.

    Astra''s eyes lit up.

    ¡°Yes! A really nice person showed up to the God Lands and offered support so that we could keep living here in the human realm.¡±

    After those words, Astra¡¯s expression darkened.

    ¡°But now...¡±

    Astra looked off into the woods with a helpless look on her face.

    ¡°He disappeared and I''ve been tracking him down ever since. But after growing tired, I decided to rest near here and that''s when I found all of you.¡±

    Risa, Quinta, and Domino all looked at each other.

    They felt concerned for Astra and didn''t know what to do.

    It was then that Domino thought of something. But before he could say it...

    ¡°Yeah, that still doesn''t explain why you decided to put us in that dream world.¡±

    Astra gawked at Rorio in surprise.

    ¡°Are you kidding!? Did my tale of sorrow not persuade you to feel sympathy and forget all about that incident!?¡±

    Rorio sighed.

    ¡°Look, It''s a sad tale and all, but fighting me out of the blue doesn''t just get forgotten because of a sob story. All I asked was why you did it.¡±

    Astra just stared blankly at Rorio before finally letting out a sigh of resignation.

    ¡°Okay fine. It''s because I saw you and thought a fight with my rival would clear my head,¡± Astra admitted.

    Rorio nodded as if to say ¡°thought so¡± and turned to look at the others.

    They seemed to be giving mixed messages. He could guess what Risa and Domino were thinking, but the gaze Quinta gave him just creeped him out.

    After a few minutes of silence...

    ¡°So, how long ago was it since you saw this friend?¡± asked Rorio.

    Astra turned to Rorio with hope in her eyes.

    ¡°I can tell by the looks on my companion¡¯s faces that they feel sympathy for you. And while I personally don''t care, I know that they do. So spit out where you last saw him and we¡¯ll work things out from there.¡±

    Tears started to well up in Astra''s eyes before she jumped at Rorio and hugged his chest tight.

    ¡°Thank you!¡±

    ¡°Hey! Get off me!¡±

    ¡°No fair! I wanna hug him too!¡±

    Risa and Domino watched the exchange as Quinta and Astra clung onto Rorio.

    Risa looked at it with mixed feelings, while Domino just laughed heartily.

    With that, the group''s journey continued onward.

    The group looked down from the top of the path they were on and saw a city off in the distance.

    ¡°Okay. So the place your friend vanished to is just beyond the castle of the next Creator Knight?¡± asked Rorio to which Astra nodded.

    ¡°That''s where I last saw him. We were going down to find shelter when he vanished and I ran into you guys.¡±

    Rorio turned to face the direction past the next Creator Knight''s castle which looked to be another three to four-day journey.

    ¡°All right. I guess we''ll go find him after we face the next Creator Knight in the town up ahead.¡±

    Astra looked at Rorio in surprise and frowned.

    ¡°Wait! What if he¡¯s gone by the time we get there!?¡±

    Rorio glared at her, annoyed.

    ¡°Because we can''t pass up defeating another enemy! So we''re fighting the Creator Knight and that''s final!¡±

    Rorio never clarified in what order he was gonna do things. Plus, he already discussed it with Domino who agreed that taking care of the Creator Knight was the biggest problem right now.

    If the person who vanished was snatched up by something like goblins or ogres, then they would probably still have plenty of time due to how long it takes to haul humans around.

    And so, the group began their journey to the city of the next Creator Knight.

    And little by little, danger began to creep ever closer.

 Chapter 19: The Bathhouse Visit

    It had been two days since Astra had joined the party.

    And having been through quite a bit up to this point, Domino decided it was a good time to take a break and the group stopped at a bathhouse not too far from their next battle.

    Arriving at said bathhouse, Quinta noticed it was run by an elf and demi-human couple. Making her think about her own situation with Rorio which caused her to smile while looking at said companion with hearts in her eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s gonna be us one of these days Rorio!¡±.

    Those words resulted in a straight knock to the noggin as she crashed to the ground rubbing her head in withering pain.

    ¡°Can you stop with your delusions already!? It¡¯s really starting to piss me off.¡± Rorio grumbled angrily.

    Quinta just continued to rub her head. Not bothering to respond to Rorio.

    Once the group set up and checked into the bathhouse they went their separate ways.

    Quinta, Astra, and Risa walked over to their rooms and found odd looking things called Yukatas inside that somehow fit all of them perfectly. The elf woman at the counter said they made those for after the baths and the girls were welcome to wear them after they were done.

    After relaxing for a bit, the girls decided it was time for them to take a bath.

    They stepped out into the room labeled as ¡°Outdoor Baths¡± and went into the women¡¯s section.

    Quinta looked around confused for a moment.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong Quinta?¡± Risa asked.

    Quinta turned to her with a disappointed look.

    ¡°I keep looking around, but I can¡¯t seem to locate the mixed bath section. Dang it! And here I was hoping to win over Rorio with my womanly charm!¡±

    Risa just chuckled awkwardly having no idea how to respond to that statement.

    The three entered the bath to find steamy warm water awaiting them.

    The bath looked similar to the kind of outdoor baths you see in Japan, with a floor that was textured to look like rocks and smooth stones that surrounded the bath.

    The three slipped into the bath and relaxed.

    After that, there was silence between them for a bit before Risa decided to speak up.

    ¡°So....what do girls talk about in the bath?¡±

    Astra looked at her in surprise.

    ¡°Wait! You don¡¯t know what they talk about either!?¡±

    ¡°Nope. I¡¯ve been trained as a knight since I was a child. I never really had the chance to do stuff like this.¡±

    ¡°Dang. I¡¯m kinda in a similar boat. The other goddesses never invited me so I never got to experience it myself.¡±

    Both Risa and Astra tried chuckling off this awkward situation before sinking into the water. Quinta just laughed confidently.

    Risa turned to her.

    ¡°Do you know what girls talk about in the bath?¡± She asked.

    Quinta smirked.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. We talk about peeping into the boy''s bath of course!¡±

    ¡°......¡±

    There was silence between the three girls until both Risa and Astra gawked in surprise.

    ¡°HUH!?!¡± both girls shouted in unison.

    ¡°Heh. You guys just don¡¯t get it. We¡¯re currently at the peak of our youth right now! While you might be older than us Astra, we all have urges that need to be quenched. And the way to satisfy those urges is by getting to see a glimpse of the nude male body!¡± Quinta shouted proudly as her chest bounced with every hearty laugh.

    Astra didn¡¯t seem to catch Quina¡¯s words as she was too busy staring at each girl and comparing sizes.

    Risa, however, looked at Quinta as she blushed a deep red.

    ¡°Uh...I may not know much about bath talk etiquette, b-but even I¡¯m sure that¡¯s not something that people would normally talk about in the bath!¡± she stuttered nervously.

    Quinta just zoomed over to the wall as her wet purple hair flowed in the wind and her ears perked up as two voices could be heard from the other side.

    ¡°Huh...this place is kinda spacious. That¡¯s a relief.¡±

    ¡°Why do you make it sound like it¡¯s such a big deal?¡±

    ¡°Because it means I can stay a good distance away from you and still enjoy the bath.¡±

    ¡°Wha-! I¡¯ll have you know Rorio that my physique is actually quite nice!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t care.¡±

    The two voices continued to argue as Quinta listened in.

    Domino and Rorio were right behind the wall next to them.

    Watching what Quinta was doing, Risa started to feel her own curiosity grow.

    Finally giving in, Risa walked over to the wall next to Quinta and listened to the ongoing conversation.

    While she didn¡¯t agree with anything Quinta had said, she was curious about what the boys were saying.

    Rorio and Domino didn¡¯t know if there was a specific topic that needed to be brought up in the bath, so the two just talked about normal stuff for a little while.

    But then, Domino decided to make things interesting.

    ¡°Hey, Rorio. What are your thoughts on our traveling partners?¡±

    ¡°Hm? What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well, we''re traveling with three pretty cute girls. We may even meet more on the way. I just wanted to know your thoughts on them.¡±

    Rorio pondered the question for a moment. Even Astra found herself leaning against the wall as all three listened as best they could.

    ¡°While I don¡¯t really like talking about this stuff, I think Astra¡¯s kinda annoying.¡±

    Astra froze in place, not sure whether to be angry or sad.

    ¡°I see. Well, I guess I can kinda get where you''re coming from.¡±

    Astra tensed up. Not ready to hear Domino say that.

    But then, Rorio continued.

    ¡°However, she did cheer me up after my sister''s death. So while she is annoying, I think she¡¯s a good person.¡±

    Hearing that, Astra beamed confidently before sitting back down in the bath and sinking her head into the water with a stupid grin on her face.

    ¡°As for Quinta, I find her kind of cute-¡±

    Quinta¡¯s eyes started to sparkle.

    ¡°-but she¡¯s also kind of weird.¡±

    Quinta felt like an anvil rammed her in the head when he said that.

    ¡°Well, the chick¡¯s crazy for you man. She¡¯s probably the first girl who¡¯s ever shown any interest. Maybe you should give her a chance.¡±

    ¡°Hm...maybe..¡±

    Hearing she might have a shot, Quinta¡¯s spirit was immediately lifted and she jumped over the wall and tried to tackle Rorio.

    ¡°Rorio!¡±

    She was immediately met with a punch that sent her flying back with a crash!

    ¡°...not!¡±

    Apparently, Rorio knew they were listening now. This made Risa nervous as to how to approach the situation.

    But then, Rorio kept talking as if nothing had happened.

    ¡°As for Risa, I think she¡¯s a good person. She¡¯s a good cook, she listens to me when we train, she¡¯s someone I can trust to handle herself, and she¡¯s really cute. I think she has a lot of potential as an adventurer, and I don¡¯t regret saving her even a little bit from that stupid slave trader. I truly think that she¡¯s one of the few people I can call a friend.¡±

    Risa could feel her face flush red.

    Quinta later described how she looked red as a tomato which embarrassed Risa even more.

    After a few minutes of steam rising out of Risa¡¯s head, she could hear Rorio getting out.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m gonna head back to my room now. I recommend not staying too long though. Those girls are probably still listening.¡±

    Domino chuckled.

    ¡°You got it. Talk to you later.¡±This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Rorio left the baths and Risa finally managed to calm herself.

    She sat back down in the bath with the other girls while an awkward silence hung over them.

    In the end, Astra suggested they go back to their room and the other two agreed.

    They went back and put on the yukatas they had been waiting to change into and made it back to their room.

    Unlike Rorio and Domino who had separate rooms, the girls all shared one room.

    The only reason Domino and Rorio had separate rooms was because Rorio didn¡¯t like the idea of having to share a room with another guy.

    Thus, this compromise was created.

    The girls all sat in their square room that was designed to look like an inn you¡¯d find in a normal Japanese bathhouse hotel with paper-thin walls, along with what felt like a cardboard wood floor.

    The girls were sitting in the middle of the empty room with only sleeping mats taking up any space when Astra pulled out something with a mischievous smile on her face.

    ¡°So...You girls wanna play a game?¡±

    Rorio has just finished his bath and finished changing back into his normal clothes.

    The bathhouse offered yukatas to all the guests, but he just felt the best in his adventure outfit so he ended up washing it and putting it back on.

    Now he was just walking through the hall as he let out a yawn.

    Suddenly, he heard whispers from a room not too far from him.

    He remembered it being the girl''s room, so he walked over to it and knocked.

    The whispers immediately grew silent and Rorio took that as a sign to leave.

    But just as he was about to step away, he felt himself being yanked back by multiple hands which made it impossible to regain his footing as he was dragged in with the door closing behind him.

    Rorio groaned and rubbed his head as his vision started to clear.

    He looked up to find two people standing in front of him.

    He didn¡¯t know why, but he felt a chill run down his spine.

    ¡°Risa?....Quinta?....You okay?¡± He asks nervously.

    Risa and Quinta just stared at him which didn¡¯t help to calm his nerves.

    ¡°Rorio...¡± Risa suddenly spoke up in an odd tone.

    ¡°Y...Yeah?¡±

    ¡°I need you to kiss me.¡±

    ¡°.....Huh?

    Rorio felt the chill vanish as he looked up to see Risa and Quinta were wobbly and unstable.

    ¡°Risa...are you drunk?¡±

    Risa hiccuped.

    ¡°That¡¯s not important right now! Astra said I¡¯m not a big girl unless I¡¯ve kissed a guy! I need to kiss one to prove I¡¯m a big girl!¡± Risa mumbled on the verge of tears.

    Rorio just watched, confused.

    ¡°Hey, Risa! No stealing my love! How dare you even consider doing that! Why would you be so cruel?!¡± Quinta started crying next to her as she muttered nonsense about her and Rorio¡¯s future.

    A vein started to pulse on Rorio¡¯s head.

    ¡°The hell?¡± He muttered, annoyed.

    He turned to find Astra sitting nearby with a bottle of high-quality whisky in her hand.

    ¡°Eh heh heh. Now this is a party!¡±

    Rorio felt another vein pulse on his head as he stood up.

    Risa and Quinta grabbed onto his feet.

    ¡°No! Don¡¯t leave me, my love!¡±

    ¡°Waah! Hold me Rorio!¡±

    After many heavy steps, Rorio finally reached Astra who was still laughing to herself.

    ¡°Dammit Astra! What were you thinking giving these girls alcohol!? They clearly weren¡¯t ready for such a thing!!¡±

    Astra hiccuped.

    ¡°Oh lighten up Rorio! Here, have some good booze.¡±

    Astra extended the bottle up to Rorio who growled in frustration.

    He then picked up a cup that one of the girls had drunk out of. Pouring a little alcohol into the cup, Rorio gulped it down.

    Astra smiled.

    ¡°Do you feel better now Rorio?¡± She asked happily.

    Rorio was silent for a moment....then sent the booze flying out the room''s open window.

    ¡°MY BOOZE!¡±

    Astra tried running after the bottle but Rorio grabbed hold of her.

    ¡°Will you just act your freaking age for once!? You''re acting like a deadbeat without a job!¡±

    Astra continued to sob at the lost bottle of alcohol.

    Rorio let out a sigh before being yanked down by Quinta who hugged his arm to her chest.

    ¡°Hey! Don¡¯t ignore me! I need to show you how much I love you Rorio!¡±

    Rorio didn¡¯t know what he was expecting, but of course, he knew the effects of the alcohol wouldn¡¯t go away immediately.

    However, he really didn¡¯t want to be here while the effects were still in play.

    He kept trying to get up, but Quinta was serious and continued to cling to him tightly.

    ¡°No fair Quinta! Why are you basically forcing him into your boobs!¡± Risa shouted aloud.

    Rorio tried to keep his composure as Risa clung to him as well.

    ¡°At least I have boobs! Unlike you Miss Flat Chest!¡±

    Risa pouted at Quinta¡¯s comment.

    ¡°Shut up!¡± she shouted back.

    Rorio was feeling extremely uncomfortable at this point.

    However, a moment later, he heard a door slide open and the girl''s shouts of surprise could be heard as he was suddenly yanked away and the door closed up behind him before Domino plopped Rorio on the ground.

    ¡°Phew. Looked like you were in quite the pickle there.¡±

    Rorio looked at Domino before sighing.

    ¡°I¡¯d like to make an excuse, but I''m too tired. Let¡¯s just get back to our rooms.¡±

    Rorio got up and started walking back to his room as Domino stood in the hallway before letting out a chuckle.

    ¡°You''re one lucky guy Rorio. Never in a million years did I think you¡¯d actually have women fighting for your attention. Even if it was due to drinks. You''re almost making me jealous.¡±

    After that, Domino made his way back to his own room. Grinning over what he had just witnessed

    The next morning, Risa stood off to the side, embarrassed at what she¡¯d said last night. Meanwhile, Rorio shouted at Astra for letting the girls try alcohol and Domino was trying to help Quinta who had an aching headache and was trying not to puke.

    After a little bit longer, the group left the strange bathhouse location and continued their journey. One thing was sure, no one would be forgetting that experience any time soon.

    Returning to their adventure, Domino and Rorio talked about different strategies to defeat the next Creator Knight.

    Nearby, Risa and Quinta were just talking about random topics and Astra just stood behind all of them.

    She pouted at being left out and tried to join in on Risa and Quinta¡¯s conversation.

    She started to speed walk next to Risa and Quinta and spoke up.

    ¡°Heya guys! Watcha talking about?¡± Astra asked using slang-like words to try and give herself attention.

    Risa turned to Astra and it took everything Astra had in her to not let out a yelp.

    Risa looked ready to pass out.

    She apparently had been listening to Quinta obsess over Rorio for almost two hours now.

    It almost astounded her how openly obsessed Quinta was with him at this point.

    ¡°Uh...Are you okay?¡± Astra asked, concerned.

    ¡°Yeah...I''m fine. Just tired.¡±

    Astra could tell Risa was lying as her eyes continued to droop over and over again.

    ¡°Hang on for a moment.¡±

    Thinking of something, Astra lifted her hands up towards Risa and shut her eyes. Her hands started to glow green as small lime particles emanated from her hands onto Risa.

    Risa wasn''t too sure what she was doing until she noticed something changed.

    It seemed her exhaustion from before was beginning to wash away.

    Risa looked at Astra surprised as said girl smiled brightly.

    ¡°I may be the God of Dreams, but I''m pretty skilled in healing magic. Especially when it comes to dealing with exhaustion!¡± she exclaimed proudly.

    She patted her chest with pride before realizing the group was moving ahead without her.

    She grew slightly irritated but kept quiet as she followed behind them.

    However, Risa seemed to recognize she felt left out, so she walked over to her.

    ¡°Wanna chat for a bit?¡±

    ¡°Can I?!¡±

    "Yeah. After all the yammer Quinta''s done, it''d be nice to have a normal conversation.

    Astra''s eyes started to sparkle with excitement as Risa began talking with her.

    Things went on like this for about another two to three hours before their destination was in view.

    ¡°There it is!¡± Domino shouted excitedly as he pointed at the town in front of them.

    What they saw was an extremely similar town to the last Creator Knight location.

    This one, however, had one major difference. That being that all the buildings were coated in different forms of blue paint and materials.

    Water seemed to flow through every street, and a giant fountain in the shape of an armored knight spewed water from its sword''s edge.

    After about another half hour of walking, the group found themselves within the city.

    They eventually found what seemed like a church that was built from sturdy lapis bricks. Rorio looked to the opposite side of the building before making his way back to the others.

    ¡°The place seems to be almost identical to the location where we fought the last Creator Knight.¡±

    Domino looked at the doors before taking a deep breath.

    ¡°Well then, shall we do this?¡± he asked with excitement in his voice.

    Everyone but Rorio who was staring at the doors in front of them nodded.

    With that, Domino pushed the doors open and the group went inside.

    Upon entry, the place really did look just like a church. The only thing that seemed to be missing was the painted windows. There were even pews all around them that had the same blue color as the rest of the city.

    Astra looked around curiously as this was her first time entering a place like this.

    Suddenly, chains shot out of the walls.

    Risa turned to one of them and attempted to block, but was met by almost ten others as they all grabbed hold of her arms and legs and pulled her away.

    ¡°Risa!¡± Rorio shouted as he dashed after her.

    Just then, Rorio felt something coming and jumped out of the way just in time to dodge an attack from a sword that lodged into the floor in front of him. Risa was dragged over to a wall and chained to it.

    Suddenly, the pews all vanished and turned into chains. They grabbed Astra who was still trying to understand what was going on.

    ¡°Wah? Ahhh! Oof!¡± Astra crashed into the wall as she was tied up similarly to Risa.

    Rorio groaned in frustration.

    ¡°Dammit,¡± he muttered.

    He pulled out Rolphin and prepared for the next attack.

    It was then that a man wearing what seemed to be knight armor, with slick bright blue hair, and a dark blue sword stepped in and stood before them.

    ¡°I see. So you three shall be my opponents! Very well!¡±

    Rorio didn''t fully get what he meant, but then looked over and found both Quinta and Domino had managed to evade the chains as well.

    Rorio glared at the strange man in the knight outfit as soldiers of water formed on both sides of him.

    Feeling his grip tighten on his blade, Rorio began to walk forward.

    It was then that Domino stepped in front of him.

    ¡°I didn''t get to do any fighting last time. Just leave this guy to me.¡±

    Looking at the serious expression on Domino¡¯s face, Rorio nodded.

    ¡°Got it.¡±

    He then stepped to the side to face one of the water knights that was created by the strange man in armor.

    Quinta moved over to face the other water knight and kept her weapon, her throwing knives in her hands.

    Raising his sword, Domino pointed at the man in armor.

    ¡°Let''s do this guys! Don¡¯t let me down!¡± he shouted.

    ¡°Right!¡± both Rorio and Quinta shouted in unison as they charged at their enemies.

    The battle against the second Creator Knight had officially begun.

 Chapter 20: Demon Slayer Vs Creator Knight

    With the battle against the Creator Knight officially underway, Domino kept his eyes on the man in armor.

    Smiling, the man bowed politely.

    ¡°Greetings Demon Slayer. My name is Dante Finthern. I am the Creator Knight of Water. It''s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.¡±

    Domino got into a fighting stance as he held his fists in front of himself.

    ¡°The pleasure''s mine, Sir Dante.¡±

    Dante chuckled as a blade made of water appeared in one of his hands, and a shield made of water appeared in the other.

    He stared at Domino for a moment before grabbing a nearby sword and tossing it to the ground in front of Domino.

    ¡°I notice you lack a sword. Please take this one. I got it off the last man foolish enough to challenge me.¡±

    Domino didn¡¯t say anything and simply just picked up the weapon.

    Having accidentally forgotten his normal weapon back at the bathhouse, he indeed lacked a weapon. So he was perfectly fine with taking this substitute.

    The two stared at each other in silence for several moments. And then charged at one another at full force.

    Domino was the first to attack.

    He brought his blade down in an attempt to get an instant kill, but Dante anticipated this and brought his shield up to block Domino just in time.

    He then brought his sword down onto Domino who brought up his own to block it.

    But to Domino''s surprise, the blade of water went right through his sword and straight toward his face.

    Upon instinct, Domino moved out of the way just in time to avoid the attack.

    He glared at Dante annoyed.

    ¡°Ha! Nice reflexes. Not everyone can dodge my water weaponry so easily. I commend you for that! But my whole body can easily turn to water, so don''t think for a second you can win!¡± stated Dante as he gripped his blade.

    "Geez, don''t surprise me like that," Domino grumbled frustrated as he tried to charge at Dante once again.

    This time, Dante brought his sword up and swung it down straight at Domino who dodged it with ease.

    However, the blade wasn''t aimed at Domino.

    "Rorio! Look out!" Domino shouted.

    Rorio dodged the attack as he blocked another attack from the knight made of water that he was dealing with.

    Dante chuckled as he looked at Rorio.

    ¡°I see. Your Demi-Human speed truly is no joke. I won''t interrupt your battle any further.¡±

    This caused Rorio to glare at Dante for a moment before being brought back to his own fight.

    He dodged the water knight as it attempted another swing.

    ¡°Damn. Talk about annoying.¡± Rorio grumbled as he attempted to use his blade to cut through the water knight.

    However, it easily fazed right through the weapon without any issue.

    ¡°Grr. If these things didn''t have a resistance to heat, this would be a lot easier,¡± Rorio mumbled.

    How right he was.

    Normally, water-based creations could easily be turned to nothing but steam by the heat of a weapon similar to the blade Char that Rorio had in his inventory bag.

    Char was a sword that gave off heat whenever fire magic was applied to it. Making it easy to fight against water-based creatures.

    However, the form of heat resistance the water knight produced was too much even for Char and made fighting with it pointless.

    Rorio swung Rolphin once more in an attempt to slice through the knight and was pushed right through it.

    In truth, Rorio had already come up with an idea on how to defeat the knight.

    However, he couldn''t do it unless he was one hundred percent sure nothing would happen afterward.

    As these things were created through water magic, if one chose to set them up as a bomb using water with high pressure, the fighter could be none the wiser and risk losing even after victory.

    It was because of this, that Rorio knew he had to wait for Dante to be defeated. If his theory was correct, it all relied on Domino''s success.

    Placing his faith in Domino, Rorio continued stalling the enemy as long as he could.

    Having her own struggles to deal with, Quinta ducked under the swing of the knight''s sword as she attempted to throw some of her special daggers with heat magic attached to them. Unlike Rorio, she didn''t know much about how magic worked, so she didn''t know about fire resistance at all.

    But as her blades seemed to have no effect, she was starting to catch on that something was amiss.

    She had only ever been taught stealth and love magic, so stuff like this was new to her.

    She attempted a few more daggers while dodging the enemy''s weapon.

    As Quinta fought her opponent, Dante glanced over at her.

    ¡°I see. So you''re not struggling very much. Let''s see if we can fix that.¡±

    Holding his hand out, he began to move them in a strange manner before clenching his fist tightly.

    The water knight in front of Quinta froze and she looked at it, confused.

    Suddenly, the knight exploded from its armor and started to transform.

    Quinta''s eyes widened as it started to grow multiple legs out from its bottom half and its top half started to expand.

    Before Quinta knew it, she now stood before a giant water octopus.

    It looked down at her and shot out its tentacles in an attempt to entrap her.

    Sensing the danger, she jumped away at the last moment. But she wasn''t as fast as she hoped and one of the tentacles grabbed hold of her leg.

    She tried to aim a dagger in order to slice off the tentacle holding her.

    However, another grabbed her arm and tied her down. Her body was starting to get entangled by tentacles.

    ¡°No! What am I supposed to do if Rorio sees me like this!?¡± she thought.

    This thought helped her keep her focus long enough for her to put as much strength into her arm as possible and managed to cut through the tentacle keeping her arm in place.

    The octopus let out a roar of frustration before releasing its grip on Quinta and throwing her at the wall. Quinta dropped to the ground and rubbed her head.

    ¡°I..really hope...Rorio didn''t see that,'''' she muttered, embarrassed.

    Another tentacle tried to tackle her, only for Rorio to jump in front of it and slice it up.

    ¡°Get your head in the game you damn idiot!¡± he shouted as he blocked an attack from his own opponent''s blade.

    Quinta immediately perked up at the sight of Rorio.

    ¡°Of course darling!¡±

    ¡°Don''t call me darling!¡±

    Rorio ran away from Quinta with the water knight on his tail as Quinta got up and brought out more daggers from what seemed like nowhere.

    ¡°All right, you tentacle thing! Bring it on!¡± she shouted as she charged at the monster which complied with its tentacles shooting at her full force.

    Risa and Astra both watched from the side, restrained.

    At least, Astra watched. Risa was still attempting to break out. But no matter how hard she tried, the chains wouldn''t break.

    Astra watched Quinta dodge more of the tentacles as she sliced through them one after the other.

    Then her attention was drawn to Rorio as he evaded the water knight attacks several times still handling himself quite well.

    Domino, however, was just trying his best to keep up with Dante as his enemy only seemed to be getting faster.

    Dante dodged another attack from Domino who tried bringing his own weapon up in order to slam it into Dante¡¯s chest.

    However, Dante managed to dodge as he smirked at Domino.

    ¡°I see you have the skills of a knight! While your strength in brains seems to be lacking, your brawn makes up for that!¡±

    Domino glared at him.

    ¡°I''m not sure what you mean by that, but I''m pretty sure you were mocking me!¡±

    Domino aimed his blade at Dante once more only to be blocked again.

    This caused Dante to chuckle as the battle continued.

    ¡°Such determination! The perfect nature of a knight!¡±

    Domino didn''t understand this man''s strange obsession with knight stuff.

    All he knew was that this was one of the Creator Knights that had to be put down.

    The two continued to try and exchange blows on one another as Domino attempted time and time again to bring down a powerful blow only for his attacks to be fazed through.

    Meanwhile, Dante''s swings never made an impact as Domino''s instincts made it pretty much impossible to land a blow in a one-on-one fight.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    They truly were evenly matched.

    Quinta slashed away at another tentacle as she groaned in frustration.

    ¡°Dang! These things just keep coming!¡± she shouted annoyed as she jumped over a tentacle that attempted to go for her feet.

    She slashed through another as she looked at the ones she had previously cut.

    They had been regenerating since the start of the battle and made this feel truly endless. No matter how many times she dodged, they just wouldn''t stop.

    Rorio wasn''t faring that much better.

    He may not have been feeling physically exhausted, but he was reaching his mental limit.

    Domino ducked under Dante''s blade and was about to move again when he noticed something next to him.

    Before he had time to react, a water chain whipped at his chest and sent him flying into the wall.

    It cracked upon impact as Domino coughed heavily in pain before landing on the ground.

    ¡°Talk about a dirty trick,¡± he muttered as he looked at Dante who had a water chain at his side.

    ¡°A knight takes use of all his abilities to protect himself and those he serves.¡±

    Domino growled at him, annoyed.

    ¡°Knight this and knight that. Can you stop talking about that knight stuff already?¡± Domino groaned.

    Dante just frowned as he prepared his next attack.

    He shot his chain at Domino who dodged and slashed through it.

    It broke in two for a moment before reconnecting itself.

    Dante flung it back at Domino who ducked under it and turned to Dante and charged straight at him.

    Dante prepared his sword and shield for an attack from Domino who continued to charge at him. Dante didn''t know this, but in the time Domino was fighting, he was also thinking through the situation.

    And it was when he hit the wall that Domino began to realize a way to beat Dante.

    Noticing the look on Domino¡¯s face, Rorio turned over to Quinta and shouted out to her.

    ¡°Quinta! When I give the signal, aim one of your daggers at the spot between that tentacle thing''s eyes!¡± he shouted.

    Quinta raised an eyebrow in confusion before nodding as she slashed away another tentacle.

    Rorio turned back to Domino who was still attempting to get past the water chain.

    Dante just glared at Domino as he drew closer.

    ¡°You may have skill, but only a true knight can defeat me!¡± Dante shouted as Domino drew close.

    But as he watched Domino, Dante felt fear begin to rise up from within him for some reason.

    He prepared his sword for an attack and let it become solid in his hand.

    Domino appeared before him at that moment and brought his sword down.

    Dante brought up his own ready to block the attack when he took notice of something.

    While Domino''s sword was being brought down, something was coming in from the right.

    In that instant, he felt pain in his side as Domino''s leg smashed into his ribs.

    Dante was sent flying before crashing into the ground below.

    As he got up, a bit of blood was leaking from his mouth and he growled in pain.

    Domino landed on the ground and looked at Dante.

    ¡°Just as I thought. You can¡¯t make just a part of yourself solid or liquid, so you have to turn your whole body into one or the other. It¡¯s pretty easy to counter once you figure it out.¡±

    Domino gave a smug smile as Dante clenched his teeth in frustration.

    He was hoping they wouldn''t notice that one flaw in his power.

    It may have seemed ridiculous, but no power comes without restrictions. Not even his ability with water.

    Domino''s smile grew wider as he took notice of the anger in Dante''s eyes.

    ¡°What? Not confident anymore?¡± Domino teased.

    Dante shouted in anger and charged at Domino.

    Now that Domino had learned his flaw, he had no problem keeping up.

    Little by little, Domino dodged attack after attack as he managed to knock Dante around.

    In Dante''s terms, it would''ve looked ¡°less than knightly¡± as the battle continued.

    However, Dante wasn''t ready to go down without a fight.

    He quickly recomposed himself after another blow from Domino and jumped back to rethink his plan.

    Domino gave him a smile as Dante felt himself growing irritated.

    Surprisingly, however, Dante also found himself smiling at the thrill this was giving him.

    He didn''t understand why such conflicting feelings were inside him, but he liked fighting this guy. Despite how much he frustrated Dante.

    Dante prepared his sword again as he and Domino charged at one another.

    Domino tried to slice at his side, but Dante managed to block it in an instant as he swapped between his sword and shield as fast as possible.

    It was clear both of them were loving every second of this fight.

    The two continued their barrage of attacks before jumping back at the same time.

    Dante looked at Domino and shouted out to him.

    ¡°No matter how hard you try, only a true knight has the skills to defeat me!¡±

    This time, his tone was less condescending and more excited.

    Domino chuckled as he dashed forward at an incredible speed catching Dante by complete surprise.

    Both were on the verge of defeat.

    Dante was bleeding from the mouth bit by bit, and Domino''s head was bleeding from the amount of hits he endured.

    Neither was in a good position.

    As Domino brought his blade toward Dante''s chest, Dante tried to liquify his body. However, Domino kicked him in the side one last time, causing him to lose focus, ensuring Domino''s victory.

    ¡°I see. So you do have the spirit of a true knight,¡± he muttered before the sound of a sword-piercing flesh could be heard echoing throughout the room.

    Standing there, Domino had his blade lodged in Dante''s chest as blood leaked from the enemy''s wound.

    The two were silent for a moment before Domino looked at Dante.

    ¡°I''m not a knight. I never want to be a knight. There''s only one thing I am.¡±

    Dante looked at him curiously as he felt his soul beginning to slip away.

    ¡°The only thing I am is the Demon Slayer.¡±

    Dante just stared at Domino.

    And then, with a light chuckle,

    ¡°Words...only someone like you...could say.¡±

    Those were Dante¡¯s final words as the light faded from his eyes and his soul left his body.

    Dante had been defeated.

    ¡°Now!¡± Rorio shouted.

    Quinta acted upon his words as she pulled out a dagger and aimed it directly at the point Rorio mentioned before.

    The dagger slammed into the middle of the eyes of the octopus.

    Rorio, at the same time, pulled out Char and it began to hiss as Rorio poured what little fire magic he had into it and swung it at the water knight''s side. It seemed not only were any explosions removed, but whatever spell that was making the enemies waterproof was removed as well meaning now that Dante had been defeated, there was nothing left that protected the water creations. The water knight was the first to drop as Rorio sliced through its top half and brought it to the ground.

    The water knight evaporated into the air as Rorio looked over to find the octopus starting to boil and disappear.

    He had noticed its weak spot during the fighting and knew that as long as Dante was alive, defeating it would be an impossibility.

    Rorio sighed as he realized it was finally over.

    ¡°Yay! I did it! I beat that tentacle thing! I''m amazing! Yay!¡± shouted Quinta with glee.

    ¡°Someone seems happy,¡± thought Rorio as he watched Quinta jump up and down.

    He had planned to leave her be, however, in her excitement, Quinta tried to jump onto Rorio and he dodged her immediately.

    As she groaned on the ground, Rorio walked over to Risa and Astra whose chains vanished and they began falling to the floor.

    To her relief, Risa fell and landed in Rorio''s arms.

    ¡°You okay?¡± Rorio asked.

    Risa didn''t respond at first, but her red face made things seem a bit more clear.

    ¡°Oh. Sorry.¡± Rorio said as put her back on her feet.

    ¡°Uh..thanks,¡± Risa said, still a bit red.

    The two stood there awkwardly for a few moments until...

    CRASH!

    A sound was heard near them and Rorio turned to see Astra lying on the ground twitching.

    ¡°You..could''ve helped me too you know,¡± she said as she groaned in pain.

    ¡°Eh, you''ll walk it off,¡± said Rorio before walking over to Domino.

    Domino chuckled and brought his hand up for a high five.

    ¡°Did you really have to say that at the end?¡± Rorio asked as he let out a sigh.

    Domino put his hand down feeling a little disappointed.

    ¡°What''s wrong with saying my title out loud?¡±

    ¡°It just sounds a bit weird when you say it.¡±

    ¡°Huh!? You mean it¡¯s not cool!?¡±

    Instead of responding, Rorio just shook his head and walked away. Leaving Domino speechless.

    Having finished speaking with Domino, Rorio walked over to Quinta.

    ¡°Hey, Quinta?¡±

    Quinta stopped celebrating for a moment and looked at Rorio.

    ¡°Thanks for listening to me. You did good out there.¡±

    For the first time, Rorio smiled at Quinta.

    As she wasn''t expecting this, her face suddenly went completely red.

    ¡°It... It was nothing! Just glad to be here!¡± she shouted, embarrassed.

    Even she wasn''t expecting praise from Rorio. She tried her best to contain her excitement.

    However-

    ¡°My future husband just complimented me! Oh, what a joyous day!¡±

    -she couldn''t keep it in.

    ¡°And just like that, I take it all back!¡±

    Quinta immediately froze right there on the spot.

    Rorio turned back to Risa and Astra as they walked up to him.

    ¡°Are you sure you''re okay? You looked like you were hurting when you tried to escape those chains.¡±

    Risa shook her head.

    ¡°Don''t worry. I''m fine.¡±

    Getting reassurance, Rorio looked her over once then turned away.

    ¡°Well if you¡¯re sure.¡±

    As Rorio was about to walk off, Astra interjected.

    ¡°Excuse me, but I tried to help too! I may have been caught, but I still tried to fight.¡±

    Rorio looked at her with an expression as if to say ¡°You gotta be kidding me¡± which seemed to infuriate Astra even more.

    ¡°I could''ve been useful! I swear!¡±

    Rorio just shook his head.

    ¡°I would say you would be as useful as a stick, but that would be an offense to sticks everywhere.¡±

    Astra just gawked in disbelief.

    ¡°It''s not like I''m weak! I''m just at my best with healing and mental magic!¡±

    Rorio just rolled his eyes.

    ¡°This type of attitude is why I never let you join our party when you asked. You''re too much of a pest.¡±

    This caused Astra to go silent.

    Domino walked over and raised his eyebrow curiously.

    ¡°Astra asked to be a part of the group before?¡±

    ¡°Not recently. But on several occasions, she would ask for me to let her join our party so she could fight her rival consistently. I turned her down every time.¡±

    As he mentioned this, Rorio thought back to the multiple occasions where Astra would demand him to let her join the party and why she would want to.

    No matter how many times she asked, she would always sound high and mighty while doing so which only made things more frustrating for Rorio.

    ¡°So why didn''t you ask me about it?¡± Domino inquired.

    ¡°Because there was a risk you¡¯d agree and having her on the team which would be a pain in the ass.¡±

    Astra fell to her knees as Rorio''s words continued to jab into her.

    Domino seemed curious.

    ¡°Really? I thought having a God on your team would be one of the best advantages any adventuring party could have.¡±

    ¡°This God isn''t someone you''d want in your party.¡±

    Astra was no longer on her knees and now laid flat on the ground completely depressed.

    Rorio shrugged her off and started to walk to the door.

    ¡°If we¡¯re done chatting here, let''s get moving. We need to save Astra''s friend so we can get rid of her as soon as possible.¡±

    Domino still found himself standing there confused while Risa and Quinta followed after Rorio.

    ¡°Coming!¡±

    ¡°Wait for me, darling!¡±

    ¡°I''m not your damn darling!¡±

    Domino let out a chuckle before turning his attention to Astra.

    He held a hand out to her.

    ¡°Come on. Let''s go,¡± he said with a smile.

    Tears still flowed from her eyes, but Astra nodded and grabbed hold of Domino''s hand and they made their way out the door.