ã€ŠGloria Infidelis -Glory Beyond the Madness-ã€‹


 Chapter 0 - Prologue

    *KHRTAK KHRTAK KHRTAK KHRTAK

    The sounds of iron shoes keep hitting the earth frugally, as it covering the breathing sounds of the horse and the man above it. The horse keeps running fast, even faster beyond what every normal horse could even do. By this point, the horse¡¯s face already turned pale, almost unable to run beyond what ¡°he¡± could even achieve. But the rider won¡¯t even let ¡°him¡± rest, as also the horse itself would never allow itself to slow down or falling down even if it means its life.

    [¡­ Sorry¡­ for being so selfish¡­.!]

    As if ¡°he¡¯s¡± talking to ¡°his¡± partner, ¡°he¡± whispered these words while lowering ¡°his¡± head near the horse¡¯s head. As if responding to ¡°him¡±, the horse jumped far while releasing ¡°his¡± cry, as if it was shouting against its master.

    *HIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!

    [Let¡¯s go!]

    As the master keep ¡°his¡± posture steady, the horse steadily increasing its running speed, with speed comparable to the speed of sound itself, both of them dashed through the field, while preparing for something inevitable that will happened.

    ***

    Here lies one peaceful village. It doesn¡¯t have any distinctive feature, so there almost no royalties whom even considered coming here, while at the same time; this village never had to pay so many taxes considering the royal securities around it were too thin. Nevertheless, it doesn¡¯t mean that this village was in a lot of danger, many which caused by their strong instinct to survive that the people of this villages often being sent to the capital in order to become a knight. While they do possess such instinct, they also prioritized harmony over other people, which make them being so friendly against each other. And here exist such village.

    At least, it ¡°was¡±.

    [Impossible¡­.]

    The sight of destruction recorded clearly on ¡°his¡± eyes. The destroyed house, the burning hut, blood splattered everywhere, left nothing but a fragment of what once made of such mineral and meat, either man or animal.

    [WHY¡­ WHY DID THIS¡­!?!?!]

    But what frightens ¡°him¡± the most was the figure in front of ¡°him¡±. No, ¡°it¡± was not appropriate to call it a figure; ¡°it¡± wasn¡¯t even on the same league as what you would call ¡°something¡±. It breathes, it walks, it sees, it hears. It is truly a ¡°creature¡±, but no such normal ¡°creature¡± exists, at least for it to appear right in front of ¡°him¡± is utterly beyond ¡°his¡± imagination.

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAR

    The ¡°creature¡± keeps squashing down and burning away everything around it, with its 20 meter tall feet, the shape resembling that of a turtle with shell made of spikes and scales. This by no means something that even the whole army had the capabilities to do something.

    [Survivor¡­ are there any survivor here¡­?!?!?!]

    Trying to keep ¡°his¡± cool, ¡°he¡± scanned everywhere around ¡°him¡± to see whether there are any survivor, since it doesn¡¯t seem that the monster realize that ¡°he¡± was around yet.

    [¡­ U¡­ *hic¡­!]

    Hearing some noises around, the man frantically searched for where the source of that voice was, but afraid of raising ¡°his¡± voice in front of such ¡°creature¡±.

    [Mama¡­. Papa¡­ *hic¡­.]

    Suddenly the monster¡¯s movement changed, as if being jerked around while noticing something strange. ¡°he¡± suddenly flustered as to consider how to get that monster¡¯s attention away.

    [¡­ It¡¯s do or die¡­.!!]

    As ¡°he¡± pulled the spear on the back, ¡°he¡± positioned himself, with right leg pulled straight to the back and bended ¡°his¡± left leg to the front, while raising the right hand to the back, and stretched the left hand to the front, ¡°he¡± aimed the spear right at that ¡°creature¡¯s¡± face, or rather, aiming for its eyes.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    *FWOOOOOOSH!!!!!!!!!

    With heavy scream that could split even ¡°his¡± own ears, ¡°he¡± throw the spear right onto the ¡°creature¡¯s¡± face. As if surprised by the sudden scream, the ¡°creature¡¯s¡± face suddenly turned right at ¡°his¡± location. The sudden turn cause the spear to fly right beside it and scratched its face.

    *GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!

    [Alright¡­ I¡¯m dead now¡­. SCHNEIDER!!!!]

    As ¡°he¡± screamed the name, the horse, the one who have been hiding this whole time, suddenly rushing out. But it doesn¡¯t head toward ¡°him¡±; rather, it was aiming at the place ¡°he¡± pointed at, right after ¡°he¡± throw the spear. As ¡°he¡± quickly rushed there, ¡°he¡± went forward against the ¡°creature¡± by readying ¡°his¡± bow and arrow.

    *GRAOOOOOOOOOOOOR

    The ¡°creature¡± furiously charging at ¡°him¡±, with ¡°its¡± size, it doesn¡¯t take long for ¡°it¡± to reach where ¡°he¡± is located at. But as much as it wanted to quickly stomp ¡°him¡±, its weight didn¡¯t say so, as ¡°he¡± keep evading its stomping attack with such small margin around ¡°him¡±. And as ¡°he¡± tried to evade the monster¡¯s stomping and charge, ¡°he¡± run away from it as ¡°he¡± keep aiming at that ¡°creature¡¯s¡± face and started to showering it with arrows, though to no avail, it only served to anger the ¡°creature¡± so.

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR

    As ¡°it¡¯s¡± finally getting tired of chasing ¡°him¡±, the ¡°creature¡± preparing its stance for its new attack. It was seen to charge some energy inside its mouth, as the heat around it were getting tense. But at that moment, ¡°he¡± takes a quick peek at where ¡°his¡±partner, Schneider, was. As ¡°he¡± had hoped so, Schneider was seen, carrying a small, frail girl with ¡°his¡± mouth and starting to run away from the scene.

    [Good boy¡­ hope that my friend will treat you to something good¡­.]

    As ¡°he¡± turns toward the ¡°creature¡± again, ¡°it¡± already finished charging its special attack and started to throw them. Readied to take those full-blown attacks, ¡°he¡± readied ¡°his¡± shield.

    [OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!]

    *GROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR

    ***

    The wind stopped blowing. The heat keeps rising from the ground. The ash spread far beyond the once was a mountain. The rubble keeps falling. But ¡°he¡¯s¡± standing beyond such destruction, while the perpetrator still stands perplexed in front of ¡°him¡±. ¡°He¡± almost lost consciousness, ¡°he¡± almost can¡¯t hear anything, ¡°he¡± almost lost an arm, ¡°he¡± almost lost ¡°his¡± sight, and ultimately, ¡°he¡± barely survived. Such strong intent was made in order to keep such ¡°creature¡± occupied in one place. One could barely count for how long did this ¡°creature¡±, whom were able to abolished one village in no time, were being keep busy by a single man. Such is no ordinary feat even if all ¡°he¡± could do is to scratch its face before.

    {It¡¯s the limit, eh¡­ my leg could barely move, my arrow and bow were burned, my shield¡¯s bended and charred, all I have right now¡­.}

    Using ¡°his¡± barely-moveable right hand, ¡°he¡± pulled ¡°his¡± sword from its sheath and pointed it toward the ¡°creature¡±.

    {My voice¡­ I can¡¯t hear them¡­ no, I probably could barely even talk¡­ I can almost feel nothing; my sense of touch is dead too¡­ then again¡­}

    ¡°He¡± closed ¡°his¡± eyes and started to smile, while the ¡°creature¡± were already raised its front leg, trying to squash ¡°him¡± dry.

    {Why am I-}

    *BAM!

    ¡­.

    ¡­.

    ¡­

 Chapter 1 - Naked Witch Arc 1

    A dark, gloomy room, entirely were covered by a thick fog. The fog was unnatural, but it was expected to happen inside this room, as it was seen to have so many distinctive ash-like patterns covering the room. It was quite a spacious room, decorated with much gloomy equipment as one would¡¯ve seen from something occult-themed. Such as lantern with dark gold ornament, a wall contained many animal-head, a rune, or some magical text covering the whole room, a dusty reddish curtain covering some part of the room, and last but not least, a huge magical circle right in the center of the floor. Some sort of ritual had happened here before, thus the reason why the room was filled with so many fogs.

    [¡­ Eh?]

    There lies a figure of woman, wearing nothing against her body. No, to be blunt, she¡¯s butt-naked inside the room. It wasn¡¯t clear of her reason for doing so, but at the very least, it doesn¡¯t seem to be the necessity of doing the ritual. While she does looked a tad bit  weird, she does have quite a nice figure, with the size of her ¡°milk¡± being proportioned with the curve around her hip and below, and her thick, long drawn beautiful brown hair complemented her reddish cheek around her face, with her brown-reddish eyed opened up nicely. One could spend many times looking at her, even if she were to wore clothes.

    And to ask her reason of being the center of this foggy room was apparently to do the ritual that was supposed to happen here. But while she was the one who initiated the ritual. Her complex expression, which caused her eyes to be widen out, as she gaped her mouth inelegantly whilst trying to cover it up with both her hands in front of her face, the twitched eyebrows that keeps moving over and over again, something that happened in front of her eyes was anything but ordinary.

    Another figure, seems human enough, appeared in front of her. With his giant, tall body covered in full-clad armor, black. Its white hair tailing around the back of its helmet, a shoulder pad with an insignia of some country from far away yet drowned in blue color. The presence it releases was quite on par with something that people would call a monster, but the appearance was indeed human.

    As if she couldn¡¯t believe what had happened in front of her eyes, she accidentally blurted a question.

    [Are you¡­ human?]

    As she ask him that, she tried to sneak her way closer to the person, afraid of being attacked by the person in front of her. But as she tried to observe a little more of what he was, he replied her with quite an unexpected answer.

    [¡­ I don¡¯t think I am¡­ what do you think?]

    [What do I think¡­ EH! NO! A MONSTER SHOULDN¡¯T BE ABLE TO SPEAK AT ALL!!]

    [Is that so? My bad then, I¡¯ll stop talking.]

    [¡­.]

    [¡­.]

    Both of them went silent, even after the fog finally clears up. The answers given by him left the woman dumbfounded she lost her chance to retort.

    [No no no no no no no! even if you do that, your appearance all over was that of a human! Who are you trying to fool?!?]

    [¡­.]

    While she tried to initiate another conversation, the man in full armor keeps quiet as if he doesn¡¯t understand what she¡¯s doing.

    [LIKE! I! SAID! HEY~! DON¡¯T IGNORE ME~~!]

    *PLAKK

    She finally snapped and slaps him right in the head. Just a little reminder, he¡¯s still wearing his full armor from head to toe, so slapping him at his current situation is a no go. But as the saying goes, ¡°a man goes blind when fueled with rage¡± seems fitting her situation right now.

    [Ouch¡­! That armor of yours sure is hard¡­.]

    [¡­ Excuse me¡­.]

    [Hmm? Oh, you finally decided to talk?]

    [Why are you not wearing any clothes?]

    [Oh? Because I don¡¯t need one.]

    Another silent moment enveloped the room. It seems like another unexpected question was answered with another unexpected answer. And from here on out, a quick Q&A are going in order.

    [Why you didn¡¯t need one?]

    [Because it¡¯s obstructing.]

    [What kind of obstruction compels you for not wearing them?]

    [A magical experiment.]

    [What kind?]

    [Just some simple incantation and projection]

    [Does it really necessary to not wear clothes?]

    [It isn¡¯t actually, but it¡¯s far more effective that way.]

    [You aren¡¯t embarrassed?]

    [Why would I?]

    [Are you a human?]

    [No.]

    The sudden answer paused their quick Q&A at the moment.

    [I see, that makes you the same as me then.]

    [Hmm? No no no, I think you misunderstanding something.]

    [What is?]

    [Hmm¡­ have you ever heard about ¡°Witch¡±?]

    ¡°Witch¡±. This term was used about some years ago when the magic age was still at growing phase at that time. At that time, people were only able to use a magic spell by spelling the incantation of the magic itself, which was quite long to spoken. Another way to shorten the spelling speed is to use something akin to catalyst. But there are people whom were able to use magic spell without either using catalyst or spelling the incantation itself. Those people at that time were being isolated from other people, also often being discriminated against, as if they were looking at monsters. Those people were called the ¡°Witch¡±.

    [I did hear some story along those lines, up to that they were finally being exiled into somewhere else.]

    [And that¡¯s me! I¡¯m a witch~!]

    [I see, so were you witches were supposed to never liked wearing clothes?]

    [Umm~... nope, it¡¯s just me whom never liked those things in the first place.]

    [I see.]

    [More importantly, what¡¯s with you?] [The ways you¡¯ve been talking all this time were pretty much more human than I thought.]

    [And what were you expecting from me?]

    [Well I do expecting a monster to come out, but¡­.]

    [Then I¡¯m a Monster.]

    [Umm¡­.]

    [By the way, it is an urgent matter for me.]

    [What is it?]

    [Please, wear your clothes already.]

    [¡­.]

    The man just keep looking menacingly at the girl while the girl just innocently keep circling her body while sometimes rubbing either her thigh, hips, or sometimes her breasts.

    [Don¡¯t wanna.]

    [I beg of you, please wear at least a piece of clothes. One piece that¡¯s covering your whole body is good enough.]

    [No!]

    [Then at least wear some underwear or bikini. Even if sometimes it¡¯s unacceptable, at least it¡¯s better than wearing nothing.]

    [I don¡¯t even have those.]

    At this point, the man clad in his full-black armor started to slap his hand hard onto his helmet-covered face while looking up at the ceiling. The girl shocked to see his reaction as she jumped a bit to the back while widening her eyes more.

    But as the situation calmed down a little bit, she tried to get closer to the man in full armor and started to speak to him.

    [Anyway, have you realized about our current¡­ situation right now?] [Right now, I was actually in the middle of summoning a familiar for me.] [But since it was you whom appeared, I figured that maybe¡­ you¡¯re the familiar I¡¯ve been summoned.]

    [¡­ Can I refuse?]

    [No~pe~?]As she says that with her eyes blinked and bended her body toward him.[Well but that doesn¡¯t mean I have full control over you, though.] [Summoning a familiar was, in actual situation, is very dangerous.] [They can get ferocious and attacking us out of the blue, so when we were unable to control our own familiar, we were told to cancel the spell.]

    [Then cancel it now.]

    [¡­ Why are you so against being my familiar?] Now hugging his hand around her breasts while putting up her teary eyes. [I promise that I treat you gently.] [Or if you have some complaint, I¡¯ll hear it for now] [So, please~??]

    [Then please wear some clothes.]

    [I refuse.] As she waved his hand refusing him flatly.

    [¡­ Hey¡­.]

    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    [Yes? What is it~??] Still hugging him around her breasts, she look up to where Vram¡¯s head is.

    [By controlling¡­ are you saying that you¡¯re going to make me submit to you using force?]

    [I actually disliked that method, but if it¡¯s necessary, then I¡¯m fine with that.]

    The moment she said that, she let go of her hug right away and started to gain some distance from him. At the same time, she waved her right hand upward and downward, while concentrated her power right in the palm of her hand. Then a bright, crimson flame was created right away, without any incantation or catalyst.

    [This will hurt a little bit, but I hope you can take it~?]

    *FWOOOSH!!!

    As she said that, she throws the crimson Fireball straight onto the knight. But the knight didn¡¯t flinch out at all; rather, he went straight into the oncoming Fireball.

    [He...-!!!!]

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAR

    The fireball went and exploded right away after hitting the knight straight onto the head. The size of the explosion itself was quite comparable that you could easily roasted an 100kg beef in a matter of second, considering it won¡¯t taste good later on though.

    [A¡­ Am I overdoing it¡­? I thought he¡¯s going to evade it either way, so I put more power into it than usual¡­..] She said that as she bit her own finger, afraid of what have become of the Knight.

    [¡­ Nhah, even if you¡¯re going full-force, I think I¡¯m still survived.]

    [Wha¡­?!?!?!]

    A sight of a black knight tearing through the explosion that big were quite a scare, as  it makes her jumped back a lot seeing such dread situation in front of her. Whilst at the same time, the Black Knight keep charging at her fast enough that, combined with her surprised reaction, were unable to evade such simple attack at all. Then he finally grabbed her face, covering it whole inside his palm.

    [A¡­ are you going to kill me¡­?]

    [No. I¡¯m just going to ask you one thing in return.]

    [Wh¡­ what is it¡­?]

    [Wear some clothes on.]

    [No!]

    All of a sudden, killing intent surging out strongly from the black knight, as it sends the witch shivering in fear.

    [I ask once more, or the next thing that¡¯ll happen to you will be the worst situation you¡¯ve ever experienced.]

    [Y¡­ yes¡­???]

    [Would you please put some clothes on¡­?]

    [N¡­ No¡­?]

    At that moment, the knight¡¯s vacant left hand was already aimed at the woman¡¯s stomach as his right hand, which was formerly grabbing her head. Without her realizing it, her body already in his mercy and turned around without her consent.

    [Eh¡­ Ehh?!?!?!]

    At the end, her current position is¡­.

    The black knight¡¯s left hand were circling around her stomach, leaving her airborne unable to touch the floor. Her ass was pointed toward where the black knight was facing, and his vacant right hand were facing upward with opened palm.

    [Eh¡­ wait¡­ surely you don¡¯t¡­.]

    The moment the witch girl hesitated, the black knight already swung his right hand as fast and as hard as possible¡­.

    *SMACK!!!!

    [KYAH!!!!!]

    Toward her ass.

    [It¡­ IT HURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRTSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!! IT STINGS!!! IT BURNS!!! IT HURTS!!! WHAT IS THAT?!?! WHAT ARE YOU USING!?!?! NO! IS IT BLEEDING!?!?! DOES IT BLEEDS?!?!? HEY!!!!!!!]

    [Don¡¯t worry; I make sure to use a soft glove so that your butt won¡¯t get any scratch that way.]

    [WHICH PART OF IT IS SOFT!?!?!? IT FEELS LIKE I WAS BEING SLAPPED BY AN IRON PAPER!!]

    [I ask again once more, please, wear some clothes on.]

    As he finished his plea, the witch¡¯s body suddenly turn bright as crimson.

    [HUMH!!!!]

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    It may seems simple, but what she just do was covering her whole external body with an explosion spell magic, while she uses a barrier to protect herself against those explosions internally. It was meant for her to break free of her captors in case she was being captured just like today.

    [¡­ I¡¯m quite impressed, to think such way of using magic exist.]

    [EH?!?!?]

    But as it turns out, the black knight didn¡¯t even flinch at all. Even there are no traces of burn mark around the armor. It was still as clean as if it was never being damaged in the first place.

    [So? Your answer is?]

    [U¡­. NO! I WILL NEVER WEAR THEM!]

    *SMACK!!!!

    [NGHYIIIIIIII!!!!!!]

    The sound of his palm smacking her ass was getting harder, as the red mark around her round ass keeps getting redder.

    [Uh¡­ u¡­ uguuuuuu¡­.!!!!]

    [I ask again once more, wear some clothes.]

    [I¡­ I¡­]

    Her eyes become teary trying to hold the pain that keeps attacking her butt. Her teeth keeps gritting against each other as if she¡¯s trying to hold onto something.

    [Don¡¯t wanna¡­. I don¡¯t wanna¡­.]

    [¡­ Alright, I just keep slapping you up until you agreed to it.]

    [EEEH?!?! WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!]

    [Even a monster¡¯s patience had its limit.] [No, to be exact, a monster shouldn¡¯t even have had patience in the first place.]

    [WAIT! NO! PLEASE!! ANYTHING BUT THAT! IT¡¯LL GET SWOLLEN IF YOU KEEP HITTING IT THAT HARD!!!!]

    [Then wear some clothes on.]

    [NO!]

    *SMACK!!!!!!!!

    It already happened. The moment [No] came out from her mouth; the black knight¡¯s right hand already swept the witch¡¯s frail butt.

    [HIYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!]

    *SMACK!!!!

    [AHN!!!]

    *SMACK!!!!!

    [NHAAAAAAAA!?!?!?!]

    *SMACK!!!!!!

    [NHOOOO!!! STOPH!!! STHOP!!! I¡­ I CAN¡¯TH¡­. TAKE-¡­!!!!]

    *SMACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    [NHYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!]

    ***

    [Ugh¡­ Ugu¡­. Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu *hic¡­..]

    [¡­.]

    A miraculous turn had happened. As the black knight went ahead to clean up all the mess they had made in this room, the witch finally decided to put on some clothes given by the black knight, a white one-piece dress that at least cover her breasts until her thighs. And after that, she started to sulk at the corner of the room.

    [Uuuu¡­ Hic¡­ you¡­ you¡¯re cruel¡­ against a young lady¡¯s ass¡­ to me¡­ to my ass¡­.. *hic]

    [You reap what you sow.]

    *thonk!

    A fragment of stone hit the knight¡¯s head. It was thrown away by the witch from the corner of the room, aimed at his head.

    [YOU SADIST! RAPIST! ENEMY!]

    [¡­ *sigh¡­.]

    After finished cleaning up some of the rubble around the room, he started to get closer to the witch.

    [Wh¡­ what?!? Even if you slapped me more, I won¡¯t wear more clothes than this! Rather, I can¡¯t bear it to wear these! It¡¯s disturbing!!!]

    As the knight just scratched his helmet, he plainly asks the witch [So, are you going to cancel the summoning?]

    [¡­ No¡­.]

    [Figured.] As he sighed once again while rubbing his helmet again.

    [... You don¡¯t like it¡­? Being my familiar?]

    [As long as you keep wearing decent clothes around, I don¡¯t have any complain becoming your familiar.]

    [¡­ Really? You¡¯ll become my familiar?] Her eyes become teary yet again, not caused by the itching pain from her butt.

    [¡­ I will, Master.]

    The moment she says that, the black knight¡¯s chest suddenly starts glowing bright with some insignia, marked with something. The moment the witch saw that insignia, she widen her eyes and mouth, smiling happily as she hugged the knight tightly.

    [THANK YOU¡­.!!!!!]

    [¡­ The name¡¯s ¡°Vram¡±, my beloved Master.]

    [It¡¯s ¡°Josephine¡±, Vram. My name is¡­.] [Thank you¡­. Thank you¡­.!]

    Unsure of what to do, Vram can only hug her back while scrubbing her head and hair with his right hand gently. As both of them enjoying their own world together at these hall, where everything begin.

 Chapter 2 - Naked Witch Arc 2

    [This may be inconvenient, but I want you to stop talking.] [Who knows what the others will do to you if they realized that I¡¯ve summoned a talking familiar with human-like appearance.]

    Without saying anything, Vram just tilt his head downward as he agreeing to Josephine¡¯s condition. The two of them walked together away from the Hall that was used to summon Vram before.

    [¡­ You¡¯re quite docile actually, despite what you¡¯ve done to me.] [If by any chance I were going to undre-]

    [Then I¡¯m going to slap you again.]

    His sudden remark makes Josephine shivering all over again while rubbing her ass again. It was truly an experience she would rather never experience all over again, as she keeps rubbing her ass while tugging her dress up and down.

    [¡­ What should I say to Yohana if she sees me like this¡­.]

    ***

    [GYAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAH! I CAN¡¯T BELIEVE MY EYES!! OH GIRLS~! THE ELDER WILL BE SO HAPPY TO SEE THIS!!]

    [Muu¡­!! Will you stop laughing at people¡¯s misfortune like that?!]

    The girl whom have been waiting outside of the building where the summoning was set, with her striking gradient green-blue hair, and a pair of framed two-transparent mirror on her face, combined with her gaudy appearance of green-white combination, Yohana, seen laughing out loud in front of the building as Josephine¡¯s face went red listening to Yohana¡¯s tease, as Vram¡¯s just standing beside Josephine, being silent.

    [Ahah¡­ ahahahah! Well in the first place, you weren¡¯t someone who would yield to anyone no matter how much you were tortured, but¡­ Ahahahahaahh!!!]

    As she tried to holding off her laughing whilst wiping off her tears, she tried to observe Vram a little bit longer.

    [Well, as usual, quite an unusual Familiar you have there.] [It surprised me the most of its striking resemblance to that of a human male.]

    [You¡¯ve seen a human male before, Yohana?]

    [Well, not as fierce as this one, okay~?] [Most of male human whom trying to invade us were both stupid and full of greed.] [This one somehow seems¡­ I don¡¯t know how to describe it; it feels like he was the perfect familiar you could¡¯ve ever had.] [Despite its tremendous strength and high resistance against magic, just like how you described him, I feel no malice from it.] [But this guy definitely a monster.]

    [I¡­ I see....]

    [No kidding, what kind of material have you collected that you ended up summoning ¡°it¡±???] [It was most likely the kind of monster that appeared outside the continent, considering its size.]

    As she keep explaining and asking Josephine at the same time with her finding, Yohana keep rubbing, stroking, and pinching Vram¡¯s body all over starting from its head until toe.

    [O¡­ outer Continent?]

    [Yeah, you see here? This insignia? It was never recorded from our ancient history.] [Whilst I¡¯m unsure whether the Elder had met one, but I was once heard from the elder that there are many humanoid-like monsters lingering out of this continent.] [But all of them have never been able to speak to each other though, so they still consider them Monsters.]

    [I¡­ I see¡­.] As Josephine¡¯s face turns sour after hearing Yohana¡¯s explanation, Yohana¡¯s letting go of Vram and started to hug Josephine from the back while pinching Josephine¡¯s cheek.

    [I suggest that you take great care of it, my little juniors~?]

    [Of course I¡¯d do that without you reminding me!!] With her expression suddenly getting serious whilst a little bit angry.

    [I understand, I understand~] [Then I shall report this back to elder, then returning home.] [Is that okay with you, or do you want me to stay behind for a while?]

    As Yohana¡¯s offering her support, Josephine¡¯s face turn sour again as she looked like she¡¯s holding back something, she tried to force herself to smile.

    [Mm~¡­ I¡¯m fine. Besides, I wanted to visit that places together with Vram¡­.]

    [Oho? Already a name for your familiar~?? Nice name you have there~?] [Then, I should go right now.]

    Before she finally go, Yohana hugged Josephine¡¯s tightly as Josephine¡¯s also leaning on her breasts as she looked like she needed some support from Yohana as her senior.

    [I hope this¡¯ll be the last time for you to visit this place.]

    Josephine¡¯s just tilting her head downward as she keeps hugging Yohana as if she doesn¡¯t want to let her go at all.

    ***

    [Can you keep up with me, Vram?]

    Vram just nodding to responds to Josephine¡¯s answer. Seeing such bland response from her own familiar, Josephine went a little bit annoyed.

    [Why aren¡¯t you responding me back with another talk?!] [It¡¯s a rare occasion for me to have a talking Familiar, so I want to hear more of your story!!!]

    Vram just scratching his helmet again with his palm looked confused to Josephine¡¯s remark [But you¡¯re the one who told me not to talk.] As he replied Josephine.

    [Well I think it¡¯s already safe to consider us safe without somebody¡¯s overheard us.] [Also, you seem quite sharp, so I think you¡¯ll know the time when you could talk or not, right?]

    It looked like Josephine¡¯s was quite expecting something from Vram, as she looked up to Vram with her blinking eyes piercing straight right at him.

    [¡­ I did able to sense Miss Yohana¡¯s presence right when we¡¯re about to get out from that place, but I don¡¯t think you should expect much since I¡¯m still having a hard time sensing a creature whom were able to hide its presence.]

    [OHO~?! As expected~?!] [Then shall we have a little chat before we¡¯re reaching the place? Since it doesn¡¯t seems like we¡¯re going to reach it quickly~?] As she said that, she began to hug Vram¡¯s arm and rubbing her face against it.

    [Is it really that far? I have confidence in my stamina, though I can¡¯t say the same for you, Master¡­.]

    [I¡¯m fine~?] [I¡¯ve always been coming here at least once a week, so this much is nothing~?]

    [¡­ You¡¯re tougher than you look.]

    As they continued on their journey, Vram did ask a lot of things regarding his own situation. The first thing he¡¯s going to clarify is the witch¡¯s existence. As mentioned before, witches are people whom were able to use magic without the uses of any catalyst. Josephine¡¯s actually didn¡¯t understand the concept of using catalyst as medium, mainly because she¡¯s a native. So Vram had to elaborate some of the current magic system he knows.

    Magic mainly operates from a formula which was made in order to bend, force, or even create a natural phenomenon by writing them with Rune Words. After the formula is written, it will processed itself using the energy gained from somewhere and started to unleash the formula result, which was referred as magic.

    With that said, there was a need for a human to use mediums as means of writing those formulas in order to unleash magic. It can be said that these medium can be of anything, as long as it can withstand the flowing energy inputted from writing the rune formula.

    Josephine¡¯s actually surprised since the process of normal magic spelling was almost the same as the humans, by the exception that their magic didn¡¯t need to use any medium at all.

    [Rather, we wrote them right inside our head, after that we just unleashed them by converting an amount of these said energy to compliment the formula we¡¯ve created inside our head.]

    By that logic, it was safe to assume that these witches actually using their own body as a medium in order to unleash the magic. It¡¯ll completely cut the processing time of magic whilst being able to use multiple magic at the same time. Vram deduced that the reason these witches are being exiled was due to the reason that how efficient their magical ability was.

    The second thing he wanted to clarify was about how the witches operate. What surprised Vram the most is that witches never had a male descendant since long times after their exile. It was also mentioned that actually, every witches can get pregnant no matter what kind of creature inseminated them. It was deduced that since the way they use magic had a different nature than the other humans, it changes the way their body operates biologically. As a result, not only do the children they bear will ended up having the same nature as their parents, the child also had the potential of turning into a witch.

    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    [That¡¯s why we didn¡¯t have any male human at our places.] [If we ever need to copulate, we can always use our own familiar to inseminate us.] [Since it¡¯s also served as a way to restore a familiar¡¯s energy, it¡¯s quite convenient for us.]

    As he heard Josephine¡¯s explanation, Vram can only let out a long sigh as he scratched his head confused. [Does that mean that one day I have to do that with you, Master?]

    [Of course~?] As she said that cheerfully, this left Vram being awkward all by himself.

    But he wasn¡¯t stopping at that, as there are various questions linger like how they procured resources, culminating food, their lifestyle, common occurrence, protection around the populace, their hierarchy, and so on. While sometimes Josephine¡¯s quite taken aback by how much information demanded from her whilst left her confused, she was quite happily chatted with Vram as it was the happiest moment of her life.

    But as they almost reached their destination, Vram begin to ask one question that somehow left a bitter taste on Josephine.

    [Then¡­ how are we familiar being treated?] [If I¡¯m not mistaken, familiars were supposed to be the same as a slave, as their sole mission was to tend to their masters.]

    Hearing such statements, Josephine put on such a complex facial expression in her face. It was a face devoid of her cheerfulness as her frowns keeps getting darker with her eyes keeps getting darker and tears almost collected in her void brown eyes, but still trying her best to keep smiling all the time.

    [... Is that so¡­?] [If that¡¯s the case¡­ I guess it would be easier for us witches should we¡¯ve thought like that from the very beginning.]

    Her last sentences left Vram confuses as he ponder to why would his master put on such grim expression on her face. Before long, they¡¯ve finally reached their destination.

    ***

    A gentle, breezing wind can be felt through the entrance of the place. A solemn feeling can be felt through his armor onto his inner side. A little bit of shiver can be seen covering up Josephine¡¯s body as they entered the place. Many stone tablet can be seen popping out from the ground, as there are many kind of flower and grass growing out of them, but with so little weed to be seen.

    [¡­ A graveyard¡­?]

    Vram tried to ask Josephine her reason of coming here, but after seeing her devastated expression lingering on her face, Vram decided to hold back.

    [This here is a resting place for the familiar whom are dying before its master¡¯s demise.]

    It was explained that familiar is akin to monsters that have been summoned in order to fulfill their master needs. As such, they need to be constantly received their master¡¯s energy or they¡¯ll be disintegrated right away. That said, the moment that a master had finally meet their end, their Familiar will be also disintegrated right away as a part of their contract. But a familiar that ended up dying before its master will ended up leaving some parts of its previous body.

    [To think that this place would treat their own familiar this way¡­ I guess I should be impressed.]

    [¡­ Is it such a rare occasion for a familiar to be treated this way outside?]

    [More like they don¡¯t even care what would¡¯ve happened to their own familiar.]

    [¡­ Is that so¡­?]

    The moment Josephine¡¯s stopped talking; she went deeper and started to sit down while at the same time, she started to clean up the weed and moss that¡¯s covering the graveyard.

    [¡­ Is it possible that¡­ I¡¯m not the first familiar you¡¯ve ever summoned?]

    Josephine¡¯s just nodding lightly as she keeps pinching and pulling out the weed and moss on the grave. As Vram finally decided to stay silent and helped her to clean up the grave.

    [¡­ Thank you¡­.]

    As both of them helped each other in cleaning up the grave, Vram somehow quite good with pulling out the weed, so the job went by without a cinch. But as soon as they finished weeding one grave, Josephine started to move onto the next grave. This left Vram with confused and perplexed expression shown on his gesture.

    [¡­ You know Vram?] [I did explain to you that when we need to copulate, we¡¯re doing it with our familiar, right?] [It¡¯s actually become our primal needs that we need to do one, in order to further increasing our ability as witches.] [I don¡¯t know about the details, but as long as we¡¯re being hunted by the humans, there¡¯s no way for us to be loved by them, to be hugged by them.] [That¡¯s why; we turned our love into our familiar.] [Most witches here always ended up having their one and only familiar they ever summoned, no matter how weak they are.]

    As Vram tried to get himself together, he immediately went and helped Josephine cleaned the other grave as soon as possible. Whilst trying to suppress his emotion while listening to her.

    [Before long, it has become something normal to summon familiar in order to become your family, not as someone whom always fulfill the need of their masters.] [We summoned them, because we wanted to, and we needed to be loved.]

    Thus that explains Josephine¡¯s insistence of not wanting to cancel the summoning and decided to keep him in this world. Her clingy attitude was also caused by how much losing one familiar devastated her so much. And that also explain why would Yohana reminding her of taking care of him.

    [But then again¡­.] [Losing a Familiar¡­ is not something that I can get used to, no matter how many times it had happened to me.]

    [What?]

    As if he was being attacked by a wild beast all of a sudden, Vram just jumped back surprised and letting out such remark.

    [Since a familiar was meant to love and to be loved by us, we would always use everything we¡¯ve had in order to protect them.] [But somehow, my familiars¡­.]

    She tried to hide it by keep lowering her head to the ground, but it can be seen that her tears had already reached the ground. Vram tried to observe the situation around the graveyard a little bit longer. It can be seen that some grave still had many weeds covering them by an odd amount. By total, there are at least around 20 to 30 graves lingering here, but the graves that looked like it had been maintained well are about 2/3 of the total graves in here.

    {By any chances¡­ could it be¡­ that most of these familiar were belongs to¡­.}

    He could hear Josephine¡¯s sobbing as she tried so hard to pull one weed while shivering a lot, unable to pull it. Her dirty left hand keep rubbing of her eyes, wiping out the tears collected in her face.

    Seeing such pitiful state, Vram couldn¡¯t hold back and started to pull Josephine¡¯s arm. [Eh?] As he turns her body right at Vram and hugged her tightly inside his chest. As if he¡¯s trying to calm her down, he also stroked Josephine¡¯s hair gently.

    [I¡¯m sorry, Master¡­. That my armor was dead cold.]

    [I¡­ I... *hic¡­ U¡­. UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!]

    A wail finally released off her throat throughout the place as she let out all of her building-up tears that she¡¯s been holding back all these time. For many years she had to endure the pain of losing someone she would¡¯ve loved and loved her back, over and over again. In Vram head, comes out an image of a little girl keep sobbing as she cleaned up a grave of a familiar. It was weird for him to be able to imagine such thing, but as he looking up to those images he keeps hugging Josephine tightly in order to ease her trouble.

    The wailing keep on going for a long time, as Vram decided to renew his oath of loyalty for his own master.

    [This I will promise you, Master.] [That I shall be together with you from now on, and forever.]

 Chapter 3 - Naked Witch Arc 3

    It is almost evening, as Vram and Josephine finally finished with their assignment and finally returning, or in Vram¡¯s case, visiting Josephine¡¯s home.

    [Thanks to you, the cleaning went faster than usual~?]

    Josephine smiled happily as usual it completely erased her tears. Most people won¡¯t even realize that Josephine had cried her heart all out. Seeing such smile, Vram looked like he wanted to reply in a good manner, but at the end, he ended up only nodding.

    [Eeee~??? Why are you being quiet again???] [¡­ Ah?]

    As Josephine¡¯s finally realized, a bunch of people was seen coming to where both Josephine¡¯s and Vram came from. Without long, both Josephine and Vram had been surrounded by a massive crowd of female witches. And as usual, the girls were using such minimum clothes as well as all of them looked very young in Vram¡¯s eyes that he had trouble controlling himself.

    [Hey hey, Josephine, who¡¯s he??] [Is it a familiar? It somehow resembles us a lot!!!] [Is it strong as usual?] [What kind of ability does he have right now?] [Does he eat and sleep just like us?] [Does it have quite a good stamina?] [Does it have a big *rod*?] [Does it even procreate?] [¡­.] [¡­.] [¡­.]

    The content of the curious younger witches left Josephine and Vram both confused, as Vram tried to cover his confusing gesture. But it was as what Josephine had deduced; there was never a case where a Familiar can speak, let alone interact with each other. Somehow, if words got out that Josephine had called a talking familiar, she afraid that Vram would be used for something he didn¡¯t like.

    There¡¯s also a case where a familiar took their own independent action without having been ordered by their master, but it can only be achieved by a familiar whom have been bonded with their master for a long time, or it¡¯s quite an irregular monster. Though considering Vram himself was quite an irregular, he would be able to do those things by himself.

    As Vram tried to ascertain his situation, he was surrounded, rubbed, pinched, and groped by most of the witches out there. This leaves Josephine with jealousy over him [HEY! WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU¡¯RE TOUCHING!?!] As she shouted seeing one girl had trying to aim for Vram¡¯s nether region.

    While pretending to act as a familiar whilst remain stout from the junior witches¡¯ attack, Vram tried to listen to their conversation in order to know better about this place. It seems that this place, which was called Witch Village, was segregated into many areas, while mainly split their rank based on how strong their magic as well as how far their knowledge developed.

    It seems that this place was an intermediate class area, which specialized in Familiar Summoning. With that said, it¡¯s quite simple to say that in order to move onto the higher rank, one should¡¯ve had a familiar strong enough to move onto the next rank.

    {Despite her personality, her magic actually quite good.} {Must be because of her recent losing familiar that ended up having her stuck in this class.}

    As Vram tried to pry more onto this business, he found out quite a shocking truth regarding the Familiar Summoning. It seems that, in order to summon one, a witch must prepare many sacrifices to use as a material. Heard that some of the junior witches had used many things from animal, plant, resources, and monster alike.

    [So, what kind of material you¡¯re using right now, Senior?] [Is it the usual rare monster thing?]

    [Umm¡­ yeah.] [Also, I added some compound made from a purified magic crystal and the ones which had a thick miasma.]

    [Eeeh?] [What for????]

    [It seems that when these two contradictive energy sources counteract each other, the force it would gather will be bigger than usual.] [And with these force, a massive amount of energy will gather around the summoning altar.] [But to balance the force between these two energy source would need quite high concentration, so one must took great care of it when trying to do these~?]

    [[[[[[[[[[OK~~!!!]]]]]]]]]]

    Vram was quite surprised seeing her knowledge had grown that far. Even if he didn¡¯t use magic, such feat was unheard of, so it seems that Vram¡¯s admiration to her grow even larger. And also, that explain the reason how could Josephine even be able to summon something like ¡°him¡±.

    [Hmm¡­] [As usual, quite an exquisite Familiar you have there, Naked Princess~]

    Suddenly the surrounding went tense, as one girl accompanied by the two girls behind her had come visiting Josephine. The girl with red, brownish wavy hair accompanied with a violet blue haired girl and a sharp bright blonde haired girl visited Josephine.

    [Senior Hildegarde~?]

    From what the other junior girls whispered to each other, it seems that these people were Josephine¡¯s Senior-by-age even though all of them actually had the same rank. The trio girls were quite known for their boastful attitude among the junior, as the same were also the case with Josephine.

    Vram also recognize their name as Hildegarde, the seemed-to-be leader of the group, also her companion Christine & Rosalinda. With attire that could also be comparable to Josephine¡¯s nakedness, a black-laced frill underwear that was almost see-through, combined with her frilly yet transparent robe, she¡¯s almost practically naked, though not much worse than Vram¡¯s master herself. By the way, Naked Princess was a title bestowed upon Josephine because she herself never wore a piece of clothes since she was small.

    [But then again, what¡¯s with that?] [Just because you¡¯ve had a new familiar that looked like that, you started to wear some clothes?]

    Those statements made everyone almost opened wide their eyes, realizing that Josephine started to wore some clothes. This surprises everyone as much because not everyone realizes it because they were too much focused on Vram, which was quite unique himself in these village.

    [Th¡­ this is circumstances!!] [If I don¡¯t wear one, he¡¯ll start rampaging here and there, and I¡¯m powerless to stop him!!]

    {Well, that¡¯s quite true, though I don¡¯t really think you could even call it ¡°rampaging¡±¡­.} is what Vram¡¯s thinking at the moment. But it¡¯s true that those clothes are what you would call ¡°circumstances¡± regarding her ownership of Vram.

    [Humh!] [Your current familiar looked smaller and weaker than what you¡¯ve called before, and you¡¯re having trouble with it?] [Guess in the end you wouldn¡¯t advance that much in this class as usual~!]

    [YAY~?!] [Weak! Weak! Naked Princess is Weak!] [Guess it¡¯s finally your time to shine on the stage, Lady Hilda~?!] Rosalinda giving Josephine her mocking words as she praised Hildegarde over and over again.

    [Umm¡­ but her current familiar looked a lot like human, isn¡¯t that weird no matter how you saw it?]

    As one of the junior spoke on behalf of everyone¡¯s curiosity, Hildegarde just clicked her tongue and replied to them with spiteful face.

    [HA!] [Looked like human?!] [Have you guys ever seen what human was like even once?!] [Besides, if it¡¯s a human, can it even talk!?] [Can it understand what we¡¯ve been saying all this time?!] [If it could do at least those things, then I¡¯ll start to acknowledge it as a human!]

    Though her words have silenced everyone, Josephine could only smile awkwardly mainly because she already knows that Vram could talk.

    [Now with this, I guess you understand that you should never underestimate your senior.] [Understand, Naked Princess~?]

    [I understand, Senior Hildegarde.]

    Though it may seem to be forced, Hildegarde was preferred to be called a senior in front of Josephine, as Josephine just gladly called her that way. Josephine¡¯s face keep looking downward as she shows her dry smile, while Hildegarde looked unsatisfied with her answer.

    [Rosa, Chris, we¡¯re out.]  As Hildegarde turned her back and leaving away the location

    [Yes.] Christine, the girl with the violet blue haired girl answered with calm demeanor as she follows Hildegarde in the back.

    [Aye, ma¡¯am!] Rosalinda, the blonde ones also happily tailed both of them from behind.

    As the three girls finally leaves the scene, the girls whispered to each other and badmouthing them while some of the girls tried to console Josephine. Josephine, on the other hands, were just smiling thorough it.

    As if Vram¡¯s feeling uneasy, he started to stay closer to Josephine, much to other girls¡¯ shriek of jealousy. But in the end Josephine just looked calm after Vram went closer to her.

    ***

    The two of them finally reached what was seemed to be a ¡°house¡± for witches. At first glance it may have seemed to be just a simple 2-floor tent, but the insides of the tent were something like a exquisite 3-4 floor condominium. With size comparable on its own, they could even fit family-size furniture inside. The ornaments inside the tent were quite exquisite as it was filled with many kind of embroidery and sculptures of many shapes.  But what surprises Vram the most was¡­.

    [¡­ Quite an extraordinary magical barrier you have here.]

    [Ehehe, thanks~?] [Though at first I¡¯m a little bit worried whether it could hold on if your magic resistance were in effect.]

    It seems that Josephine realized from the time they first met, Vram had something that could resist a force of magic within certain degree. This explains the reason why at the very beginning Vram was able to survive from Josephine¡¯s attack unscathed.

    [By the way, you sure you should be talking right now?] [Not worried whether someone would overhear you?]

    [When you put up these strong soundproof around your room?] As Vram said that while knocking on the tent¡¯s wall.

    [Oh, you realize that?] [Some people say that whenever I¡¯m too focused in my training, I ended up raising my voice higher than usual.] [Also, I don¡¯t really like the noise that¡¯s happening outside.]

    [So it blocked both outside and inside¡¯s noise each other.]

    Vram continued to inspect the surrounding of Josephine¡¯s house, as Josephine just blankly stares at Vram confused.

    [What are you doing?]

    [Inspecting the place, what else?]

    [What for?]

    [In case of burglar or something along those lines]

    [¡­.] As Vram replied her, Josephine just stand there dumbfounded at his reply to her question, and finally, [Pfft¡­!] [AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH~?!!!]

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    As if Vram is doing something illogical, Josephine just went laughing out loud that, if not for the soundproof covering the whole room, it could be heard throughout the whole village.

    [What?] [Am I doing something weird?]

    [B¡­ but¡­] [It somehow feels weird for a familiar to care that much about things like that.] [Ahah¡­. AHAHAHAHAHAH~?!!]

    Vram just scratched his helmet confused at her reaction as he just keep inspecting and sometimes cleaning up the places, which cracked Josephine even more as Vram just keep doing his things while look confused.

    After Vram finished rounding up the whole room, both of them finally sit down on what you could call it a living room. With Josephine sitting apart from him in a seiza-style, where both of her legs were being closed tight and being kept under her as she puts her hands on both of her thighs. While Vram just slovenly sitting, with his right knee pointing upward, putting his right hand on top of it as his left hand supporting his whole body, while he put his left leg forward.

    [You¡¯re¡­ surprisingly carefree¡­.]

    [Hmm?]

    [Well it¡¯s just¡­ seeing how you tidy up the whole room this whole time, I thought of you as someone whom always put things orderly.]

    [Well, above all I¡¯m a paladin, so¡­.]

    [Hmm?]

    [We never sit when we¡¯re in front of our lord.]

    Josephine can¡¯t count just how much she¡¯s been taken aback by how different their culture against his own, as she just keeps widening her eyes against him.

    [But¡­ you¡¯re sitting beside me right now¡­.]

    [Because you practically begged for it.]

    [We¡­ well¡­ It feels weird for my own family to just standing there all days when I¡¯m just sitting here nicely¡­.]

    [Come to think of it¡­.] [You surprisingly had a neat way of sitting considering the way you dressed up.]

    [It was the Elder¡¯s teaching.] [A proper way of sitting will train your posture and breathing control, which in return give a proper feedback when releasing a magic.]

    [That¡¯s amusing.] [But you¡¯re also quite stunning for also able to follow it through.]

    [Ehehe~?] [Anyway, should we continue where we left of before~?]

    [You seem to be enjoying yourself.]

    [Ehehehe~?] [How could I not?] [A talking familiar is something everyone looked forward to.]

    They progressed together with their chat, mainly Josephine asking and telling about something private which only both of them who knew. At first, Josephine tried to tell Vram about herself. It seems that every witch never had a mother. I can¡¯t deduce the cause, but it may be caused by the strange ability they had, since it put a lot of strain on their body themselves. Not to mention the chance for getting pregnant by any kind of creature is quite high.

    [Witches are like the total opposite of the elves.]

    [Elves?]

    [Another races from another region.] [I only met few of them, so I can¡¯t really say that I knew about them.] [I¡¯ll fill the details about it later.]

    [Hmm¡­] [It¡¯s just getting mysterious all of a sudden, the outer world.]

    [You never ever went outside?]

    [Ah yeah, I may have forgot to tell you this.] [You do know that we¡¯re an exiled race right?]

    [Yeah, so?]

    [And where would you think is it?] [An exiled place where witches could expand its territory and lived secluded?]

    [... Don¡¯t tell me....]

    [Yup~?] [We¡¯re in the very same places that most human would prefer to evade than to crashed here.]

    The Forbidden Continent, Helven

    This world, which one usually call ¡°Infinus¡±, consists of many island encircled together creating 4 continents altogether. Among those continents, exist one continent that makes it so dangerous that people ended up banned the continent from the map, hence the name. The cause of such danger was that the continent itself somehow filled with many kind of high-class monster that could endanger even one whole kingdom with its presence. It is also said that when there exist a creature that could endanger a whole kingdom, that said creature could be coming from the said continent.

    [That¡¯s why, unless we have some other way to survive on the outer side, there¡¯s no way elder would¡¯ve let us went outside.]

    [I see, and to support their survival capabilities, a familiar is needed.] [It¡¯s understandable now why such extremes measures were needed here.]

    [Ehehe~?] [Actually even if you¡¯re actually a human, I¡¯m kinda glad that you¡¯re an understanding person.]

    [Meaning?]

    [Truth is, the Elder always told us that most humans cannot be reasoned with.] [When they met one of us, either they started to kill or capture us.]

    [¡­.]

    [But you didn¡¯t do something wrong.] [In fact, I¡¯m happy when you said that you would become my familiar, considering your capabilities.]

    [It¡¯s not that there¡¯s a harm in it, so why not?]

    [¡­ I hope that¡¯s really the case¡­.]

    As Josephine tilted her head a bit downward, she went closer to Vram¡¯s location while trying to lean toward him together with her endearing smile.

    [Hmm?]

    [Vram¡­] [¡­. Will you¡­ always stay right by my side¡­?]

    [¡­ Aren¡¯t you tired asking the same question over and over again?] [¡­ But I shall do so, Master.]

    [¡­ Thanks¡­.]

    ***

    The stars have lifted up brightly. The ¡°moon¡±, though it may be a little different than the moon we all know very much of, shines brightly. Such view was a sight for Vram even as a monster.

    {It¡¯s kinda soothing. Wonder if it¡¯s because of the moon.} {It¡¯s full now, so since I was a monster, guess it¡¯s kinda affecting me too.} {But I guess every monster in this city also experienced the same thing.}

    Vram was standing outside of the ¡°tent¡±, guarding the front guard. Josephine actually never ordered such things, but since he couldn¡¯t sleep at all, he decided to stand outside gazing at the light.

    Just then, a little thread of light suddenly comes out of the front door where Vram stand besides. As Vram¡¯s instinct were quite keen, he realized that the thread of light were anything but normal. As he tried to follow it while observing it, he found out that the light had carrying something from inside. He hurried and chasing the light as the light suddenly picked up its speed.

    ***

    Vram reached somewhere faraway from civilization, but as he tried to observe the area, he deduced that he was still inside the Witch¡¯s Village. As the thread of light suddenly vanished and dropped the thing, he quickly picked the thing that was seemed to be a frame. The picture inside was of an adult female together with a little girl that he knows all too well.

    {Josephine¡­?} {That means the woman¡¯s¡­ her mother?} {But how this picture could even existed¡­ I mean, doesn¡¯t she lost her mother right after she¡¯s born?}

    *SWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!

    As he still fixated over the picture¡¯s meaning, a swirl of fireball flying straight ahead against Vram.

    *BAM!!!!

    With his quick reflexes, Vram repelled the fireball with his palm while trying to protect the picture by hiding it inside his body.

    [Hmm¡­ I thought this one¡¯s weaker than before, but it somehow had greater speed and resistance better than the last one.]

    As the voice follows, a group of witches coming out from their hiding places together with their familiar. The group consisted of more than 20 witches, mainly the ones from the villages where Josephine lives. They are all witches that had coming and talking to Josephine right after she finished cleaning up the graveyard.

    {What¡¯s the meaning of this?}

    [Hey look!] [It confused!!] [Ahahahahah!] [Guess that naked idiot gave it another weird order again!] [It looked weak!] [Can it even be useful to us?!?]

    Many kinds of insults, creepy laugh, and spiteful remark happened right in front of Vram. Though it may be because none of them knew that Vram were able to understood and spoke their words.

    [Well since I¡¯m the one whom started all of this, I shall gladly tell you what¡¯s happening, Josephine¡¯s Familiar~?] [What¡¯s happening to you right now is what had been happened to Josephine¡¯s former familiar the whole time.]

    As she spoke the words, she lets out something that looked a lot like a fragment, a fragment of what seemed to be a Mana Source.

    [This will be what¡¯s left of you as a familiar.] [You familiar called by her somehow always come out as the most unique and strong familiar ever.] [I don¡¯t like it, and I killed her very first familiar, and took away what¡¯s left of it, which, this stone essence.] [And now, look!] [A very beautiful mana sources from it!] [So pure, so thick, so MAGNIFICENT!] [And as every familiar she called goes by, the quality of these sources keeps increasing!]

    While she started to shouting and explaining, she licked the fragment over and over again until she was bored.

    [And sometimes, these stones are too much to handle to me, so I asked the others to help me and we shall share the loot together.] [Neatly, these stones always been able to fill the need of our familiars!] [She makes a good farming stone, you hear~~?!]

    [And what¡¯s the funniest part of it?] [You can¡¯t speak~!] [So even if you were able to survive our first attack, we¡¯ll just keep coming right at you to seal the deal~!] [Whoops, but you don¡¯t even understand what we¡¯ve been saying all along~?!] [Poor things, to be called by such incompetence of all people~]

    The witches around him laughed hard like a madman. What was seemed to be a monsters and a man seems to be flipped through.

    [For now, you shall be our NEXT prey!] [Consider it an honor to be slain by my familiar, whom have reached the height of greater ones thanks to something like you!!]

    [GET HER, GIRLS!!!!!!!]

    All of the witches and the familiar started ganging up on Vram, as he readied his posture in order to engage against his opponent. It¡¯ll be quite a long night for Vram, whom have just been summoned at the very first day.

 Chapter 4 - Naked Witch Arc 4

    [Vram?!]

    As if being shocked by something, she suddenly woke up and jerked around her bed. Afraid of losing something, she quickly searched around her house.

    [Vram¡­? Where are you¡­?]

    She keeps searching here and there, but to no avail. All she ever recognizes are the dark surrounding and the silence that went on. If Vram was there the whole time, he would take no time to replied back to her. But he didn¡¯t, no such answer came out from him.

    [No¡­ please don¡¯t leave me alone¡­.]

    Although she still forgot to wear anything, at least she still brings a sheet of blanket from her bed. With her teary eyes and reddish cheek, she started to go outside of her tent to find Vram.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!

    A sound of explosion can be heard from afar, as if it was anything but ordinary followed by a flash of light and smoke coming out.

    [No¡­!]

    Keep sensing such danger and bad feeling. Josephine started to run toward the source of lights as fast as possible.

    ***

    [What is this¡­!?!?]

    A pale face combined with their widened up eyes and gaped mouth, such is the expression of those whom have saw such terrible event that had happened right in front of their eyes.

    *GROAAAAAAAAA

    A three-headed beast with yellow reddish hair around its head and giant fang on its mouth are charging onto the black-armored familiar whom also charged toward the beast. As the beast waving its hand right at Vram, Vram used his metal gloves to block its claw as he pushed his palm toward the beast¡¯s stomach.

    *BAM!!

    With force supported from below, Vram blown the chimera sky-high as he quickly turned his body toward his back. A slender scaled creature with its poison fang, added with some feet and claw quickly thrust its neck forward aiming at Vram¡¯s neck. But Vram just quickly turned around its neck and whipped the neck with his right hand.

    *THWACK!

    Many other familiars also charged onto him. A Flame-like beast with long canine and gums. A yellow-ish feather-winged creature with beak and fangs at its feet. A beast with also long canine and gums, but not with flame, only wings on its back. A 6-legged scaled creature with sharp eyes and poisoned fang. Many of these creatures keep charging up at Vram. But Vram just keep blowing them up or whipped them using his bare-hand equipped with his metallic black gauntlet only. This has been going on for a while, yet there are no sign of him getting tired even after getting flanked here and there.

    [WAIT!] [WHY ARE YOU ALL JUST STANDING RIGHT THERE!?!?!?!?] [ATTACK HIM!] [ATTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    The one whom have seemed to be their leader keep ordering her companion to attack Vram with magic. As many magic circle have appeared either from their hand, on the air, on the ground below Vram, or in the air around Vram, the witches finally chant the spell

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAR!!!

    *DUAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!

    *BLAAAAR!!!!

    *BYAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!

    Many kinds of spell continuously attacked Vram here and there, and only smoke could be seen from there. The girls can only looked smilingly worried as their leader puffed up her chest seemingly satisfied.

    But what comes next completely froze them all up. As the smoke finally cleared up, a man, which they hope should¡¯ve been grounded completely, stood there silently while not having that much damage even after that much magic had been shoot.

    [Wh¡­ what is he?] [He just keeps repelling our attacks!!] [No! Our magic had no effect at all from the very beginning!!!!] [It¡¯s scary!!!]

    The terrifying scene made the other girls frozen in place, afraid of what has becoming of Vram. As the girl looked terrified, the Familiar also had such pale expression on their face, but still trying to protect their master regardless.

    {¡­ Guess no matter what, they still ended up loyal toward their masters.}

    And as if he already knows the obvious, all this time Vram never ever took the fight seriously since the beginning, and only guarding and blowing them up all the time. That what caused him to be still so composed regardless of how many those monsters tried to attack him. Also, it never crossed his mind whether to kill them or not.

    [YOU ALL ARE SO USELESS!!!] [DO YOU REALLY NEED ME TO GO EVERY TIMES WE¡¯RE DEFEATING HER FAMILIAR!!!] [Then you all shall see what I, Mariabelle, shall show you people again how to appropriately hunt this one!!]

    As she flailed her hands upward and whip it back towards Vram, a creature appear all of a sudden behind Vram, surprising him.

    [Gh!!!]

    Vram quickly jerked backward, trying to evade what was seemed to be a slashing attack towards him.

    *SCHRAAAAAAAAAK!!!

    But Vram couldn¡¯t completely evade it. No, Vram should¡¯ve been completely evading it, at least he think he is. But the scratch in his torso is completely real. And it¡¯s not just scratching; the smokes around it were quite thick. The attack comes completely deep that, if not for his absolute defensive ability, he would¡¯ve been split in two.

    {Air Blade? Wind Slash? Either way, what caught me off guard the most is its ability to completely hide its presence, despite its size.}

    The creature, a primate with overall shape looked almost human-like, but much white fur covering its whole body together with its tail, and it¡¯s slender yet tall featured body that about more than 2 meter. But what makes it more terrifying was that its whole body was covered in golden, glittering armor. Though not as thick as Vram¡¯s armor, the gold things covering its whole body makes it as hard as his. Its claw also equipped in the same manner as its body. The tail was also equipped with something like a golden Axe. And lastly, its face mostly covered in gold, only had viewed its visor. And the other striking feature is its golden-clad wings, spread through the whole area.

    [Hum hum hum!] [Looks like you¡¯re quite surprised.] [This is my familiar, Hanna, nurtured from having killed too many of her familiar.] [And you¡¯re also going to be a part of it~!]

    *SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH

    The familiar, named Hanna, letting out quite terrifying screams, incompatible with its cute name. Its gum can be seen from behind its helmet that uncovered the moment it let out such screams.

    [KILL IT!!!!]

    Hanna quickly jumped towards Vram while waving its right hand, slashing right at him. As Vram clicked his tongue, he jumped toward the monsters and moved his right hand at Hanna¡¯s arm.

    *BHAK

    Vram linked his arm with Hanna¡¯s arm, completely blocking Hanna¡¯s air claw.

    *SCREEEEEEEEECH

    Furious after seeing its move cancelled like that, Hanna furiously whipped both of its hand toward Vram, as Vram just continuously blocked each and every hit Hanna lets out. More furious, Hanna just keeps screaming like a mad primate all over as it keeps attacking Vram relentlessly.

    [HANNA!!!]

    *Kii!!!

    As if being pulled by something, Hanna suddenly stopped moving and jumped back, responding to Mariabelle¡¯s order. Before Vram could even realize it, a flash of light suddenly went right at Vram¡¯s head.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR

    It was Mariabelle. As she ordered Hanna to pull back, she quickly shot out a giant ball of light straight onto Vram. It was quite an explosion, with a range Vram wouldn¡¯t be able to dodge with those size as well as the timing combined with the sudden attack. It¡¯s not an exaggeration that it¡¯s already over the moment such magic hits him.

    But as usual, Vram just standing there without even flinching, though surprised a little bit. The girls around just shivering seeing such magnificent stand.

    [I see.] [It was magic resistance ability.] [It may have been the usual business, but to be able to summon such a things as a familiar, I wouldn¡¯t say it¡¯s as expected from her¡­.] [¡­ That b**ch really gets on my nerves¡­!!!]

    *SCREEEEEEEEECH

    Just when the smoke almost cleared, whip-like things suddenly went toward Vram¡¯s head. Surprised, Vram quickly rolled sideway to evade it. It was Hanna¡¯s tail, the golden-axed one. The sharpness of those axe were a class on its own, to be able to unleash another air blade cutting through the tree behind him.

    [But somehow you still looked weaker compared to what she¡¯s been summoning all this time~!]

    *SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH

    Hanna just keeps charging at Vram with both of his claw, combined with its tail-axe, whipping and slashing through Vram. Though Vram was able to fend most of its attack, the attack was too fierce that Vram¡¯s having a hard time blocking and blowing most of its attack.

    [HAVING A HARD TIME, AREN¡¯T WE?!?] [HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!]

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.As Mariabelle laughing madly seeing Vram struggled against Hanna¡¯s attack, Hanna just keeps increasing its speed, cornered Vram at its feet.

    *SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH

    *PRAKK!!!!

    It stopped. It suddenly stopped. The barrage of attack that had been released by Hanna abruptly stop. The mad laughing also stopped, or at the very least, it changed into something of awe. The surrounding witches whom have seeing this, though not laughing, are changing their expression from scared, into surprise.

    *ssssssssssssh¡­¡­..

    A shield. A black, silverfish shield was raised in Vram¡¯s left hand. It repelled both the tail axe and the claw, and at the same time, Vram¡¯s right hand had been facing forward the whole time, while clenching his fist hard. It can be seen that Hanna¡¯s already thrown off far away from Vram, and in its torso, a fist-shaped mark had been carved onto Hanna¡¯s armor.

    [HANNA!!!!]

    Mariabelle screamed unconsciously. No matter who she is, it seems that every witch will always care for their own familiar no matter what. But the same case also available for the familiar.

    *kieeee

    Though having its body blown away, and being punched, penetrated the armor, Hanna tried to stand. And once again it prepares its claw and tail, trying to outmatch Vram again. Vram just readied its shield in front of him and take his stance.

    *KIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

    As Hanna takes its step towards Vram and almost clashed on¡­.

    *CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!

    ***

    {Vram¡­} {Vram¡­!} {Vram¡­!!!}

    As if being possessed, Josephine frantically runs through the forest with her bare legs. It can be seen of such scratch and blood coming out from her feet. But she couldn¡¯t care less, in her mind, she could only think of her new family member that disappear all of a sudden right in front of her again.

    *CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!

    The explosion is near. The impact can be felt through the wind force. She already reached the place where she intended to be. As the worries keep increasing, she keeps increasing her running speed.

    [VRAAAAAAAAAAM!!]

    The moment she got out of the wood, she saw a figure. A figure seems human enough, appeared in front of her. With his body covered in full-clad armor, black. With its white hair tailing around the back of its helmet, a shoulder pad with an insignia of some country from far away yet drowned in blue color. It was a figure she¡¯s been dying to see, hoped to see, and wished to see.

    [Vram!!!]

    Hearing her voice, the figure looked back. What he saw was also a figure, a person whom has been dying to see, hoped to see, and wished to see her.

    {Master¡­}

    But he couldn¡¯t spoke the words, as it was banned by his master herself. But all of it doesn¡¯t matter, as Josephine jumped out and start to hug Vram tightly.

    [Idiot!!] [Why are you leaving me all alone by yourself!!] [You¡¯re my family, so please, stay by my side!!!!!]

    Angry, yet happy tears are flowing after having to hold it off for so long while searching for Vram. But as she didn¡¯t even care of her attire currently, she paid no mind to what had happened to her body, her feet, or even her face.

    [¡­.]

    Though Vram wanted to point out her attire, he wouldn¡¯t. He already knows better than anyone else, which she¡¯s been panicking, trying to search for him. Feeling guilty, Vram returns to hug her back, as Josephine¡¯s just smiling and keep hugging him tightly.

    [Now, would you care to explain what had been happened here, Maria?]

    From the smoke, arise two figure that quite hard to distinct. But the voice can be clearly heard, it was a voice of someone whom are so important in the city. With her striking gradient green-blue hair, and a pair of framed two-transparent mirror on her face, combined with her gaudy appearance of green-white combination, appears. Yohana, facing towards Maria with Yohana, facing towards Maria, glared at her with her sharp eyes.

    [What¡¯s the meaning of this, Maria¡­?]

    [What?]

    [Have I done something wrong at all?]

    [Don¡¯t play dumb with me.] [Every time Josephine¡¯s familiar were involved, you¡¯re always there first.] [What are you trying to pull all this time?]

    [Hey, just because I always the first one at the scene, it doesn¡¯t give you any right to judge me!] [Besides, look!] [The one whom are hurt badly are Hanna! Not hers!!!]

    It was quite a sound judgment. Seeing most of the familiar around were somehow quivering in fear and the strongest familiar between them were Hanna, almost unconscious after being hit once by Vram.

    [It was that GUY whom after me this whole time!] [You do realize it right?] [All of her summoned familiar, each and every one of them were quite a brutal ones!] [Not to mention, that thing were also looked a lot like humans!] [The ones whom drive us away to these dangerous continent!!!]

    [But that doesn¡¯t mean her familiar were all brutal!]

    [Then can you give me some proof?!] [You can¡¯t, can you~!?!?] [Unless her familiar could talk like us and understand what we¡¯ve been saying all this time, then you don¡¯t have any right to say that~!]

    Although it was quite an accurate reasoning, Josephine twitched a little since there¡¯s a flaw. Vram¡¯s ability to communicate. If, by sheer of luck, Vram decided to speak and reveal everything to Yohana, then it¡¯s checkmate. But from the very beginning, Vram decided to abide by his master¡¯s words to a fault.

    The same could be said for Josephine. She sensed that something¡¯s wrong with her familiar and the other witches. But afraid of something irreplaceable would be happened, she decided to not talk about it.

    [Then are you prepared for what happened next, Josephine?]

    Suddenly another woman though looked as young as the other witches, her facial expression, as well as their gesture were that of an older woman, appear. With her white, thick hair flowing out here and there, her purple, deep eyes shine brightly together with the pale bright moon on the sky. Also donned a transparent white-purplish color covering her whole body, yet her figure can be seen through thanks to the piercing light of the moonlight.

    {Does every witch here loves to show off their body figure?} Was what Vram had thought the moment he saw such figure appear before him.

    [Elder Endrossa....]

    {Oh yep, this sure one raunchy population here, Witches Village.} As Vram finally confirmed the situation.

    The Elder, named Endrossa, just went closer toward Josephine, whom have been hugging Vram tightly all this time, and Vram, whom have just been standing there silently.

    [Josephine, stay away.]

    [No¡­!]

    [¡­ You¡¯re as stubborn as ever¡­.] [Then, bind him with your absolute obedience.] [If you do, I¡¯ll try to decrease its punishment.]

    [Wait!] [What has Vram done to be punished?!?!]

    [You can see it for yourself, the damage he had inflicted to the other familiar¡­.]

    [N¡­ no¡­ Vram, you would never do something like that, aren¡¯t you?]

    Though reluctant to answer, Vram cannot deny that he¡¯s the one whom have hurt the other familiar, so he just stays there silently.

    [Vram¡­?]

    [¡­ Josephine, unleash the absolute obedience right now¡­!]

    [¡­ I¡­.]

    [I don¡¯t think she could, Elder~¡­] Suddenly Maria interrupted as she tried to tell her something.

    [What do you mean?]

    [That man had a strong magic resistance on its body.] [My strongest magic couldn¡¯t even do things to it.]

    [¡­ Is that true, Josephine¡­?]

    [¡­ Yes¡­.]

    [¡­ Though it is regrettable, I decided that he¡¯ll be kept inside the magic barrier and won¡¯t be given any resources, food, or energy, starting right now.] [We need to at least weaken it before we¡¯re able to control it.] [Yohana, escort it.]

    [No¡­ that¡¯s¡­.!!!!]

    [It¡¯s mainly your fault, both for summoning a familiar out of your league without cancelling it, and for unable to keep it under your supervision.]

    [¡­.]

    Yohana started to come near Vram and asked her familiar, to escort Vram, a creature that had a very human-like face, with a feathered wing on its arms and some feather on her heads, with an exoskeleton legs and a claw equipped on its feet. As Yohana escorting Vram, she whispered to Vram.

    [¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­.]

    Josephine tried to follow Vram, but Endrossa forbid her from even getting near it. Josephine just screaming and shouting Vram¡¯s name over and over again. A mad smile can be seen on Maria¡¯s face, as Yohana keep sulking, unable to help her junior. And Vram just silently following Yohana¡¯s trail as he was escorted onto the place he was not supposed to be.

 Chapter 5 - Naked Witch Arc 5

    {¡­.} {How long has it been¡­?}

    A dark, damp ceiling. A black, concrete wall, written together with something magical-like. At some parts of the wall, there are transparent wall that¡¯s as hard as the wall surrounding the whole room.

    Vram was locked here for almost a week without food. Though the place¡¯s quite spacious, there¡¯s almost nothing inside. It was a cell intended to weaken a monster with quite monstrous strength and size, and since Vram¡¯s strength, despite being as small as a normal human, was quite extraordinary, such place was decided as his cell because of those reasons.

    {They were planning to lock me up here for at least a month, right?} {I wonder if Josephine could handle it herself¡­.}

    For almost every day, Vram spent his whole time doing basic training inside the room. Circling around the whole room for at least ten laps (the room size was about 70m x 45m long as the ceiling was quite high that Vram won¡¯t even bother guessing it. It means Vram was running around 1km per laps), push up, sit up, and squat jump for about 100 times.

    [¡­ Aren¡¯t you tired doing the same things over and over again?]

    Yohana, whom somehow have been keeping watch since the very beginning, can only watch in both confusion and awe. Seeing a freshly summoned familiar to do some basic training for a whole week was not something she would¡¯ve expected.

    [Though I must say, you do look a lot like humans.] [No wonder Josephine gets attached to you in no time.] [If only you¡¯re able to talk, it¡¯ll be perfect as a companion.]

    All this time, Vram actually had become Yohana¡¯s talk buddy. Though she was supposed to jail watching him, she was actually trying to comfort Josephine by make sure that Vram¡¯s fine, by initiating conversation with him.

    [¡­ It¡¯ll be great if you really could talk, you know?] [But what I mean is¡­ It¡¯ll help me to caught Maria red-handed.] [It¡¯s not that I was accusing her without proof, but I can¡¯t help it since this is already the 57th time it happened.] [To find her at the same crime scene that much is by no means a coincidence.] [But Elder just won¡¯t accept my reasoning¡­.] [Does she not care at all about what has happened to Josephine all this time?]

    As Yohana was blabbering, letting out all of her pent up stress, Vram was just listening to all of it.

    {I don¡¯t think that was the case with the elder, not when Josephine admires her greatly.} {Then again, I¡¯m surprised that she was able to roaming free that long.} {Guess that explain her high-and-mighty behavior for being able to keep killing a high-familiar summoned by Josephine all by herself.}

    [¡­ Really now, what¡¯s the deal with Maria and the Elder¡­.]

    ***

    2 weeks has gone by, and unexpectedly, Maria hasn¡¯t doing something strange at all.

    {Though I could deduce the reason of why¡­.}

    While Vram was contemplating inside the cell after doing his basic training as usual, he could hear an unusual footsteps coming through the door. About 4-5 people are coming inside the cell. As Vram was wondering who¡¯s coming in, he surprised to see someone he haven¡¯t seen in a long time, as well as she is.

    [VRAM!!!] [Are you okay?] [Aren¡¯t you cold?] [Are you lonely???]

    Like water bursting out from its vessel after being used to contain too much water, Josephine just went ahead onto the transparent wall, holding against it, and started to spoke out everything she wanted to talk.

    [Whoa whoa slow down, Junior~] [He won¡¯t go anywhere, just take it easy~!]

    [How could I, Yohana?!] [It¡¯s been too long! Even my previous familiars never have endured such a long treatment like this!] [And how can you expect him to be fine when he almost had nothing to eat all this time?!]

    [Well, seeing as how he was able to train despite such hunger and exhaustion, it seems he was fine and well.]

    [Isn¡¯t that because he doesn¡¯t want you to worry, that he does something like that?]

    From the back, another figure could be seen coming inside. It was the trio senior whom Josephine talked to before, Hildegarde, Christina, and Rosalinda.

    [Wait what? You¡¯re saying he¡¯s doing all those things and keep listening intently to my story because he cares for me?]

    [Well Vram is a good guy after all!] As Josephine puffed up her chest, proud of her familiar.

    [That¡¯s just your delusion, Naked Princess.] But Hilda just scowled and giving Josephine a mean look, making Josephine a little bit depressed.

    [He¡­ hey, c¡¯mon, Hilda.]

    [Why should I?] As she said so while stroking and waving her hair in the air.

    [Uwah¡­. you¡¯re as annoying as ever¡­.]

    [Huh~! You just don¡¯t understand Lady Hilda¡¯s greatness at all~!] Rosalinda tried to support Hildegarde from behind.

    But though there are 2 people bickering on the back, Josephine doesn¡¯t seem to be interested at all, as she just keep trying to talk to Vram in front of her.

    [Vram¡­] [I¡¯m sorry¡­.]

    [Wait, why are you apologizing?] Hilda just suddenly cut her out as though she just heard something that¡¯s unacceptable.

    [But¡­ it¡¯s¡­.]

    [It is true that some of this is your fault.] [But not everything, so it isn¡¯t like you have to feel sorry for him.]

    [But¡­.]

    [Rather than feeling sorry, you need to find out how to solve these troubles.] [Anything you summon just keeps bringing trouble after all.]

    [Hilda! That¡¯s just¡­!!!!] Yohana was about to protest, but failed to do so.

    [And you just stand here, lowering your head without trying to figure it out why such things happened.] [How is that going to help your own familiar after all this time!?]

    [I¡­.] Josephine was feeling conflicted hearing Hilda¡¯s statement.

    [At least, decide.] [Are you going to hurt your familiar, or are you going to hurt everyone else.]

    [Everyone else?] [Are you implying that he will slaughter every single person in this village if he were to be let roamed free, Lady Hilda?] Rosalinda let out a careless remark on behalf of Hilda¡¯s sentence

    [What?] [No! I won¡¯t let Vram do that!!!]

    [But it would still hurt people.] [Even just by him existing, he¡¯ll bring harm to other people] [Even if he didn¡¯t do anything, just the fact that she was summoned by you, was enough to hurt other people.]

    [Why would that¡­.]

    [Because fundamentally, we aren¡¯t that much different than humans after all¡­.]

    [¡­.]

    [Lady Josephine.] Somehow, Christine, the girl whom has been standing silently besides her this whole time has stood up to talk to Josephine. [What Lady Hilda is trying to say is, that you must takes priority to what most important to you.]

    [Well yeah!] Rosalinda also butt into the conversation [It¡¯s impossible to make everybody happy after all~!]

    [¡­ I¡­.]

    [Come to think of it¡­.] As if just realizing something, Yohana pointing something awkwardly [What are you all doing here?]

    The awkward question put everyone¡¯s lips closed silently. Even Josephine started to put on a blank face as if didn¡¯t understand the reason of Yohana asking something like that.

    {This girl sure had some guts¡­.}

    [W¡­ well, we just following Lady Hilda here, right Chris~???]

    [Yes, Lady Hilda actually decided to visit Vram here on her own whim.]

    [Wh¡­ WHY ARE YOU PUTTING ALL THE BLAME ON ME?!?!]

    [So¡­ Hilda, what are you plotting?] [Are you by any chance trying to do something to Vram when he¡¯s weakened?]

    Somehow or another, Yohana was asking such a stupid question that Hilda, Chris, and Rosa ended up sighing, whether it was a relief sigh or an expression of disappointed.

    [What are you talking about?] [¡­ Then again, I do have something to tell him, though I¡¯m not sure whether he would understand or not.]

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Hilda takes a step closer onto the transparent wall, facing Vram with all his might.

    [If you really are Josephine¡¯s Familiar, I only have one advice for you.] [Do everything you have to do in order to survive.] [Even if by doing it, it¡¯ll sadden your own master, you just have to do it.]

    Vram was quite taken aback at what Hilda has told Vram to. Josephine, Yohana, and the two other confused at what Hilda was trying to say. But what makes them surprised the most was that Vram responded to Hilda¡¯s advice by nodding his head.

    [¡­.] [You¡¯ve summoned a good familiar, Josephine.]

    [¡­ Thank you, Senior Hildegarde¡­.]

    [H¡­ hey, Josephine, did he somehow understand our language?] Yohana asking curiously.

    [Hmm¡­ is that how it is, I wonder~??]

    ***

    The promised days have arrived. There are only one day left for Vram to left the jail, as Yohana finally relieved of her assignment.

    [Well, guess this is it.] [Somehow being told to guard you here all by myself wasn¡¯t as boring as what I would¡¯ve expected.] [You sure are a good company to talk to.]

    Yohana then smiled and waving at Vram as she finally went ahead to report back to Elder about his freedom. As Vram just sitting here waiting for Endrossa to come back there and open the lock for him.

    {Though this is weird¡­.} {Even if that Maria really has been killing her familiars, Hanna¡¯s ability just won¡¯t suffice.} {Even if Maria had some stronger magic to kill them, that¡¯s still won¡¯t affect the fight that much.} {If my guess is right, then this had happened many times before, which means¡­.}

    Vram tried to observe his surrounding, as if trying to ensure his bad feelings all over the room. After observing the situation a little bit, Vram tried to relax a little bit.

    {¡­ Wonder if I¡¯m overthinking things¡­.}

    Just the moment Vram tried to think that way, he felt that someone has entered the jail. A single footstep.

    [Hello there~] [Enjoying your last moment here~?]

    It was Mariabelle. It is as Vram had presumed, she finally took action.

    [It¡¯s the usual moment I¡¯ve been waiting for, you know~] [Ever since Josephine started calling out a higher-class familiar, me and Hanna had a trouble to kill them~] [Then I was thinking, what if they were weakened then I went straight for the killing.]

    As she went closer onto the transparent shield, she keep her bewitching mad smiles all over her face as she keeps looking down on Vram.

    [As such, this place will be your end now~]

    *SRRRRRT

    [KHK!!]

    It¡¯s the 2nd time. Vram weren¡¯t able to evade Hanna¡¯s attack the 2nd time, as Hanna¡¯s main ability seems to be able to hide its own presence. As Hanna slowly appearing from the shadow, it can be seen that its tail had already choking Vram¡¯s neck so tight that it seems that Hanna¡¯s going to chop¡¯em off. No, he really is going to chop them off.

    [Your awareness of your surrounding is magnificent, as if you have an eye on the back of your head.] [But, Hanna¡¯s ability will render those ability of yours useless~] [Because that ability was the sole ability Hanna had when he was just born~!] [Though useless in a straight battle, at least I can use it to obtain a greater material~!] [THROUGH YOU, THAT IS!!!]

    Hanna just keep tightens the choking as the sound of metal clashing together can be heard. Vram, though seemed calm enough, were struggling in order to get away from the grapple. His hands were grabbing the tail that choking him, trying to release himself.

    {It¡¯s¡­ no use¡­ unless I go for the killing, I¡­.}

    [If you really are Josephine¡¯s Familiar, I only have one advice for you.] [Do everything you have to do in order to survive.] [Even if by doing it, it¡¯ll sadden your own master, you just have to do it.]

    Suddenly Vram was reminded of what Hilda has told him before. What actually happened to him right now, is threatening his own life. Though he was a familiar, he was once a glorious paladin whom always known to put priorities of other people than their own life. Vram never had any chance to consider of his own life, nor does he feel the needs to survive.

    But this time, it¡¯s different. He has a reason. A reason to keep on living. Something that would put his life on the priorities.

    [... You don¡¯t like it¡­? Being my familiar?]

    [Why aren¡¯t you responding me back with another talk?!] [It¡¯s a rare occasion for me to have a talking Familiar, so I want to hear more of your story!!!]

    [But then again¡­.] [Losing a Familiar¡­ is not something that I can get used to, no matter how many times it had happened to me.]

    [Eeee~??? Why are you being quiet again???]

    [Vram¡­] [¡­. Will you¡­ always stay right by my side¡­?]

    [Why are you leaving me all alone by yourself!!] [You¡¯re my family, so please, stay by my side!!!!!]

    {Master¡­ Josephine¡­!}

    Vram somehow let go both of his hands from Hanna¡¯s tail, as the choking keeps getting tighter. This somehow amuses Maria even more.

    [Eheheheh!] [AHAHAHAHAHAH!] [With this, you¡¯re mine!!!!]

    Thinking that she¡¯s already won, she let out such unsightly laughter that¡¯s not even fit for a lady like her. But Vram, whom have just lowered his hands, suddenly take stance.

    {I¡¯m not a human.} {I¡¯m not a Paladin anymore.} {I¡¯m just a monster.}

    Somehow Vram¡¯s body showing a bright red line covering his whole body, centered on the chest area. The line started to gets brighter, which makes Maria stay on her toes.

    {But even if I¡¯m a monster, I still have a reason to fight!} {For the one whom I love!} {My Master!} {Master Josephine!!!}

    [OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    *CRASS!!!

    It split. A red-yellowish liquid splattered here and there. A fragment of what seemed to be a tail thrown off everywhere. A golden axe dropped on the floor.

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    It was Hanna¡¯s tail. Hanna¡¯s tail suddenly split up in pieces. No, it was slashed. The tail has been slashed onto pieces. The excessive amount of blood comes from having put too much strength on the tail.

    [HANNA!!!!]

    While Hanna¡¯s jumping back after having its tail gets chopped off, it finally took a stance. A stance of trying to run away from the dread in front of it.

    It was Vram. With a single red vector line covering his whole body, the deadly aura he emitted becomes thicker. It was almost nauseous for Maria, whom has been watching from afar of Vram¡¯s deadliness. In both of his hands was no longer a bare hand. A sword, with Silver-ornamented color on the sharp side. It was a double-edged sword with a short range, hence named the Short Sword. Yet such sharpness was too deadly it could even cut through a gold-coated armor on Hanna¡¯s tail. In the other hands, a shield, the same Black-silverish one he used to repel Hanna¡¯s attack before.

    [What¡­ what is that¡­?] [What are you¡­!] [WHAT ARE YOU¡­!!!!!!]

    Seeing her familiar getting cut out as well as Vram¡¯s dreadfulness made Maria shivering in fear, losing her cool in the process. She keeps hitting the transparent wall as if trying to break through the jail.

    *KIIIIIIIIIII!!

    Surprisingly so, Hanna¡¯s started to get back on its two feet. Though losing its tail, it is still ready to engage against Vram.

    {You¡¯re surprisingly tough.} {But I need to teach you and your master a lesson¡­!} {For messing around with my master!!!}

 Chapter 6 - Naked Witch Arc 6

    *KIIIIIIIIIIN!

    [Huh?!]

    A weird voice is heard from an orb right below Endrossa¡¯s head, or to be exact, on the necklace Endrossa had been wearing this whole time.

    [Elder¡­ is that¡­?!]

    [Somebody¡¯s trying to forcefully break onto the jail!] [Is it¡­.]

    It was something akin to defense mechanism that ensures that warns the locker, in this case, Elder Endrossa, in case there¡¯s a person whom trying to broke Vram out of the jail.

    [Wait, look!]

    A figure of someone¡¯s running hurriedly, though not frantic, more like a jump of happiness can be seen getting nearer. It was Josephine. She has been counting on the day Vram¡¯ll be released, which was pretty much her reason for visiting Elder right now.

    But¡­.

    [Elder!] [So today Vram¡¯ll be released right!? Right!?!?!]

    [Y¡­ yeah¡­ but¡­.] Endrossa confused as to what happened currently.

    [Elder! We must move fast!] [If it isn¡¯t Josephine whom is trying to break through the Jail, then Vram¡¯s in danger!!!]

    [Eh?]

    Josephine can only expressed her confusion with a blank face as the two other, especially Yohana, are having such troubled face.

    ***

    [QUICK! BREAK IT! HURRY!!!!!!!]

    [We¡¯re trying!!] [This barrier was too strong!!] [It was a high class barrier meant to seal a Titan Class Monster! We couldn¡¯t break it with our flimsy magic!] [Rather, your magic was stronger than us! Why don¡¯t you break it yourself!!]

    [My mana¡¯s already dried out for trying to slip him inside!!!!]

    All of the girls outside of the barrier were panicking up. They¡¯re trying to break through the jail where a strong monster had been sealed, which in this case, is the one they¡¯ve been trying to kill all this time. But it was not a case of capable or not, but rather, a case of urgency.

    [Hanna?!] [How¡¯s his condition?!?!?!?]

    When Mariabelle observing the situation inside the jail, her face frozen up. It was truly a nightmare she hadn¡¯t seen in such a long time. A sight that¡¯s unbearable even for the girls around her.

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

    Hanna¡¯s still standing, though one of its legs was already broken and bleeding, which makes him unable to jump anymore. It was stripped off of its golden armor, showing a glistening red fur, though some of the fur was white. The red fur was caused by blood flowing out of its body. Its gauntlet was already cracked, the helmet¡¯s bended, and last but not least, is his already-chopped off tail before.

    In front of such disgracing figure, a man, donning a black armor, with its basic guarding stance, standing gallantly without ever having a single bit of its armor scratched. The shield, though letting out some smoke, the surface looked clean enough as if it hadn¡¯t been hit by anything. The sword, which had lost its brilliant silvery shine, had been buried in red color, a thick, deep color of blood.

    [HANNA!!!] [STOP! PLEASE STOP IT!!] [HE CAN¡¯T FIGHT ANYMORE!!!!] [PLEASE FORGIVE HIM!] [PLEASE FORGIVE US!!!!!]

    Vram, looking at Mariabelle whom have been crushed by the despair of seeing her familiar in such a sorry state, can only offer his apologetic nod to her.

    {I did want to stop.} {But he wouldn¡¯t.}

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Hanna jumped once again charging at Vram, flailing both of its hand as he clawed on the air.

    *SLASH¡¯D!!!!

    As he clawed onto the air, a sharp, waving air blade went forward against Vram.

    *CRAAAAAAAAAASH!!!

    It was stopped, however. Vram¡¯s shield, which he had been readied in front of him, had repelled the air blade easily as the smoke¡¯s coming out from the surface.

    But¡­.

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!

    The monkey didn¡¯t stop jumping. With its only capable leg, he jumped with all his might and started to aim at Vram¡¯s head with its air claw.

    {IT¡¯S USELESS TO REPEAT THE SAME STRATEGY OVER AND OVER AGAIN, YOU MONKEY!!!!!}

    *BHAK!!!!!!!!!

    Vram quickly jumped toward Hanna and bashed the claw that¡¯s almost finished flailing, losing his balance. As Hanna¡¯s went toward Vram defensless¡­.

    *CHRAAAAAAAAK!!!!

    [NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    Blood was splattered and surged through Hanna¡¯s only capable leg that¡¯s been supporting it the whole time. It was as if the golden armor that¡¯s covering Hanna¡¯s whole body had of no use this whole time, as Vram¡¯s thrusting silver sword could easily penetrated that golden armor of his. As Vram finally pulled out his sword from Hanna¡¯s leg, both of them finally landed on the floor, with Hanna¡¯s landing on its body.

    [HANNA!! HANNAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!]

    It was a one-sided slaughter, though the other person never intended to. As Hanna finally lost both of its leg, it crawled his way to move away. But it doesn¡¯t move away from Vram, rather, he gets closer as his claw pointing toward Vram.

    *KIIII!!!!!

    It screaming. Though it has been wounded that far, it still let out such scary scream as if to provoke Vram. Though Vram, whom somehow still had his sanity, wasn¡¯t affected, he still felt guilty toward his action.

    [No¡­!] [What are you doing, Hanna!?!]

    Teary eyed, Mariabelle hoped, or rather, wished for someone to come and put everything here to an end. As finally¡­.

    [WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE!!!]

    Screaming her lungs out, Endrossa pulled out everyone¡¯s attention back at her. On her back follows Yohana and Josephine tailing her. But as long as they entered the jail, Josephine hurried and quickly went to the place Vram is.

    [Vram!] [Are you al-¡­.]

    The moment she saw what was happening inside the jail, Josephine can only went silent, unable to express her surprise. But soon after, she took a hold of herself and quickly faced toward Endrossa

    [Elder, hurry!!] [Hanna¡¯s dying there!!!!!]

    [What?!] Hearing Josephine statement, Endrossa can only hurried and quickly went inside.

    [Eh¡­?] And left Maria with a blank expression on her face as if she wouldn¡¯t believe what Josephine is trying to say.

    As Endrossa gets closer to the jail, she did saw the same scene Josephine and the others had seen. But rather than fearing the scene beyond her, all she ever does is sighing at the current situation, and finally decided to open up the jail.

    The transparent wall opened. The bound had opened up. As the wall finally opened up, Maria quickly running to Hanna¡¯s side.

    [Hannaaaaaaaaaaa!!]

    [Stop right there, Mariabelle.]

    Suddenly Endrossa stopped Mariabelle from getting near Hanna, and Maria just abruptly stopped. No, she actually didn¡¯t wanted to stop, but somehow, a giant tail in front of her quickly made her realizes that she couldn¡¯t get near her. The tail was coming from a creature, with scale covering its whole body, a sharp eye just like how a cold-blooded creature should¡¯ve been. Combined with a pair of giant wing on its back as its four legs supporting it, equipped with a claw comparable to, or stronger than Hanna¡¯s claw.  These things usually referred as a Dragon.

    [Elder, what happened?!] [Maria familiar¡¯s dying there!] Josephine somehow started to question Elder¡¯s action, though every other girl around her had already known the obvious.

    [Maria¡­.] [I¡¯m going to ask a question¡­.] [What¡¯s your familiar doing here, inside this jail, that Josephine¡¯s familiar currently being punished for?]

    Mariabelle went silent. She didn¡¯t know how to answer that question, as she knew something irrecoverable will happens if she does.

    [Speak now¡­!]

    Maria just keeping her lips tight, as she saw Hanna¡¯s figure in front of her, already dying after losing much of his blood. Until suddenly¡­.

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    [She¡­ was trying to kill him¡­.]

    [Eh¡­!?]

    It was another girl. Another girl which was also one of Maria¡¯s members somehow spoke up, as much to Maria¡¯s surprise. Because of that, the other girls finally decided to sacrifice their own comrade. [She has been killing Josephine¡¯s familiar all this time!] [She used her familiar¡¯s remain to reinforce her own familiar!] [She threatens us to not telling this to the elder!] And all the other accuse, whether they¡¯re right or not, only them and Maria knew.

    [Maria¡­.] Josephine expressed her own disbelief as she saw Maria¡¯s face keep looking down.

    [I knew it¡­ it was you¡­!] [All this time! How much pain have you caused to Josephine because of your doing!!!!!] [Do you understand what am I saying, Maria!?!?!]

    As Yohana becomes enraged with Maria, Elder Endrossa suddenly stopped her as she faced toward Maria.

    [You do understand, right?] [That it¡¯s a taboo to kill each other¡¯s familiar.]

    [I¡­.]

    [I guess it¡¯s time for your punishment, Maria.] [Starting with your familiar!]

    [No!]

    [Craud!]

    *ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!

    The Dragon, Craud, letting out its great roar as sparks of lights collected in its mouth. With great strength, it flailed out its head backward and finally, throwing out the energy out front.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    The blazing thunder, which composed of many light and fire, bursted and went straight onto where Hanna¡¯s lying. The explosion caused by Craud¡¯s Thunder Breath made the other girls, including Josephine and Yohana speechless.

    [No¡­ Hanna¡­!!!]

    Despair was the right word to express Maria¡¯s feeling right now. There¡¯s no way a dying familiar would be able to survive the attack. Tears running down from her eyes to her cheek as she finally down to her knees

    *Fffffffffffshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh¡­¡­¡­¡­

    As the smoke clearing out, no one would¡¯ve expecting something to come out from it, except its remain. At the very least, that¡¯s how it should¡¯ve been.

    [¡­.] [¡­ What are you doing, Josephine?]

    [It wasn¡¯t me, Elder¡­.] [It was by his own will¡­.]

    [You¡¯re saying he does that all by himself?]

    Hanna¡¯s still alive. Hanna hasn¡¯t died. Hanna survived. As some of the smoke¡¯s starting to cleared out, it¡¯s not that hard to distinguish Hanna behind all those blurry smokes. But everyone realized it the moment another shadow of someone appeared behind the smokes.

    It was Vram. Vram had protected Hanna using his own body. Though what he used to protect Hanna right now is something different than before.

    It looked like a shield, only bigger than usual. The size was almost as big as Vram, or even bigger. With blue-purplish ornament and an insignia looked the same as the insignia on his shoulder and the black-silverish plate, the same as his sword. The Great Shield was somehow able to able to absorb most of the damage caused by the Thunder Breaths.

    [Hanna¡­!!!]

    [¡­ Josephine.] [Tell your familiar to move¡­ NOW!!!]

    Endrossa, already feeling annoyed, are readying her own familiar to attack Hanna once more again. But Josephine somehow just went silent, and walked right in front of Endrossa, right between the Dragon and Vram.

    [Can we¡­ talk about it a little bit more¡­?] [I know she may have done something unforgivable¡­ but, can¡¯t we just talk about it a little bit more?]

    [What are you saying, Josephine!?!?!] Yohana suddenly enraged at what Josephine had to say. [You¡¯re the victim!] [You¡¯re the one whom experienced these, and you¡¯re still thinking to forgive her?!?!]

    [I CAN¡¯T FORGIVE HER OF COURSE!!] Josephine¡¯s sudden outburst surprised everyone including Maria herself. [Of course it¡¯s unacceptable¡­ Why is she doing this¡­ why she targeted my familiar¡­] [But¡­ does killing her familiar also is the right thing to do?] [Does it satisfy me to see another familiar died in front of me again though it isn¡¯t mine¡­?]

    Everyone went silent after hearing Josephine¡¯s word at hearts. Though Yohana was enraged, hearing Josephine words somehow cooled down her heads a little bit. But it seems that it doesn¡¯t have that much effect towards Endrossa.

    [¡­ It has nothing to do with that.] [When you stay in this village, you must follow the rule that had been passed down by the older generations!] [And the one, whom didn¡¯t follow it, must be punished!!!]

    [But¡­!]

    [No more talks!] [She needs to learn her mistakes!] [CRAUD!!!]

    *ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!

    The dragon letting out a huge roar as it prepares its next move. Its mouth was already shining brightly as it¡¯s going to charge its thunder breath again.

    *FWUUUSH!!!

    *BLAARRRRRR!!!!

    Something flew. All of a sudden, something sharp, heavy, and long thing has flown through the Dragon. Though it misses the dragon by a meter, it was surely aimed right there, as if to threaten the Dragon to not shooting something like that again.

    What was flown was something like a lance, though the handle was a little bit different than the usual lance. The handle seemed to be hold on to, not being wielded. The edges were also in spiral shape, not fit to be used as a thrusting weapon, but an excellent weapon to be thrown¡­.

    Or be used, as an arrow.

    In his hand is a weapon, a pair of giant curved elastic limbs, joined by a riser, while having both ends of the limbs connected by a thick string. Though it is a weapon, it is not used to hit people. Rather, the way it was used was to have something stuck between the strings, draw it backward, and then flex it towards the enemy. It is commonly known as a bow, but what Vram wielded this time was something way bigger than a normal bow, or even a normal longbow. It was classified as a Great Bow, a bow with greater firepower than a normal bow, and uses a lance for an arrow.

    The destructive power can be seen by the speed of the lance itself and the impact that happened on the back of the dragon¡¯s head. The ceiling was pierced through and the rubble had fallen after being destroyed by the lance.

    [¡­ Josephine, what kind of creature have you summoned here¡­?] As even Endrossa at a loss of word of Vram¡¯s versatility.

    [I¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­ I haven¡¯t even had any chance to talk more with him yet¡­.]

    [Talk¡­?] Yohana sudden reply caused Josephine to get nervous all of a sudden because of her slip-up.

    While the other witches had been on guard and started to stare at each other, Vram, somehow erasing his previous weapon suddenly walked toward Endrossa and face toward her.

    [¡­ What now¡­?]

    [¡­ Vram¡­?] Josephine somehow realizes what Vram was trying to do, and trying to stop him, but unable to do it.

    {¡­.} [Would you spare some time for others to listen to what other people had to say?] As Vram lower his head toward the Elder.

    [[[[[[[[[[¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­.]]]]]]]]]]

    The whole room went silence. The dragon¡¯s roar could no longer be heard. The whisper of the witches stopped. The tears that Maria had been letting out also abruptly halted. Yohana somehow opened both her mouth and eyes wide opened, and Josephine, whom have already realized it since the very beginning, can only smile worried, as she hold onto her cheeks, afraid of something that¡¯ll happens later.

    [You¡¯re¡­ a human?] Endrossa finally let out the very first straight question which was meant for Vram, her very first chat towards a familiar. As the question had been raised, Vram does the reply with¡­.

    [¡­ I don¡¯t think I am, what do you think?]

 Chapter 7 - Naked Witch Arc 7

    Silent enveloped the whole room. A room not that far from where the group formerly was. A neither room where usually a meeting is being held, though neither chairs nor table exists. Inside, many people resides with their heads looked down, except for Josephine, Endrossa, Yohana, and Vram. All of those people, whom have been doing something unacceptable, lead by Maria herself.

    [I shall ascertain the situation one more time¡­.] As Yohana started the conversation first. [From what Vram had told us, all of you have been conspiring to, no, already killed Josephine¡¯s entire familiar all this time.] [Was that true?]

    All of the girl cannot answer honestly to such question. The silent just went on as finally Endrossa decided to spoke towards Vram first.

    [And?] [Why are you decided to reveal your secrets right now?] [Had you been talking from the very beginning, you wouldn¡¯t have to be objected to such punishment.]

    [Well, I was trying to fulfill the wishes of my master.] [But had I not spoke much more later, another lives may have been lost while this problem gets unsolved.] [I mean, it¡¯s tiring to have a backstabbers lie behind our backs the whole time.]

    Though the other girls convinced with Vram¡¯s reasoning, Endrossa just won¡¯t accept that so easily.

    [And what does that have anything to do with protecting the ones whom have trying to kill you?]

    [I may be a monster right now.] [But I still have some ethic code to follow.] [And it¡¯s against my policy to kill a defenseless monster.]

    [Ethic codes?] [It¡¯s like you¡¯re a human.] [No, not even humans have those] As Endrossa retorting to Vram¡¯s sentence.

    [But I¡¯m not even human.]

    [Alright, stop both of you.] Yohana abruptly stop the conversation between Vram and Endrossa as both of their talks almost getting derailed. [What we¡¯re discussing right now is how to deal with these people whom have been threatening Josephine all along.]

    [¡­] Josephine, whom has been dead silent since the very beginning, is trying to raise her opinion. [Maria¡­ everyone¡­ There¡¯s something that I¡¯d like to ask of you¡­.]

    [¡­ What?] Maria answering Josephine¡¯s call nonchalantly, as if trying to be a prick.

    [Why are you doing this?]

    Though it¡¯s quite a simple question, the meaning of these words hold heavy meaning towards Josephine, as she may have already realized such reasons.

    [¡­ What, you say¡­?] [I really can¡¯t stand someone like you, whom always act like you know nothing of the sort!!] [If you couldn¡¯t even understand our reasons of doing all these then don¡¯t even bother to ask!!!]

    [But¡­.] [I really didn¡¯t understand¡­!!!] [What do you even hate from me?!] [Have I done something wrong to you all?!] [Have I done something to anger you so?!?]

    [I don¡¯t think you have.] as Vram suddenly cut their conversation. [In this case, the root of these trouble actually quite simple.]

    [And?] [You¡¯re saying that you¡¯ve actually recognize it?] Yohana, asking curiously.

    [It¡¯s Jealousy.]

    Vram¡¯s simple answer gave everyone quite a shock. Josephine, who looked as surprised as everyone else, suddenly enraged.

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    [What¡­ ¡­?] [What are you saying, Vram?!?!] [You¡¯re saying that, just because of those reasons, she would do something like that?!?!?!]

    [It is precisely because of that, Master.] [It is not uncommon for other people to hunt each other because of such reason.] [In fact, wasn¡¯t that very same reason was the cause of all of you getting exiled here?]

    Again, the whole room went silent as they were unable to defy Vram¡¯s reasoning. But then, Yohana started to hold her ground.

    [Are you saying that¡­ we¡¯re the same as those humans?] [The same ones whom could never think rationally as they keep harassing us?]

    [If not, then how can you explain all these things that happened here?] [Though your predecessor may differ, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that you are indeed the same.] [That¡¯s just how it is.]

    [Then, if by any chance there are those among humans whom harbors these feelings toward other human, would that human be also harassed, exiled, or even be killed just like us?]

    [The possibility is quite high.] [¡­ No, in fact, those kinds of humans were the one whom I¡¯ve been facing off.]

    [¡­ Josephine Familiar, let me ask you once again.] Endrossa was trying to ensure something of Vram. [Are you¡­ human?]

    [I don¡¯t think I am... currently.] [I indeed was once a human, but then after, I wasn¡¯t¡­.]

    [I see¡­.] [Maria, what do you have to say?]

    Maria can only bite her lips as if she¡¯s trying to hold something. It was true. Everything Vram had said was the truth of every single action she has done. But she refuses to believe it. She refuses that such ugly things was the reasons of her action all this time.

    [Then if Maria had also done so, it can be said of the same reason for all of you whom also doing such things to Josephine¡¯s familiar.] [Is that right?]

    As it was the same with Maria, everyone else whom have been plotted to harm Josephine Familiar were also share the same guilt of such things, thus they do also harbors such ugly things inside their hearts. It was so impure that they had even thought of hating themselves.

    [As such, Elder Endrossa.] Vram finally begin to speak his own mind. [For such case, it would be unwise to kill her familiar.]

    [The reason?]

    [In human case, this charade would only end up to deepen further their jealousy and thus resulting in hatred.] [Once that happens, the only way to stop this was for either of the involved party, or both of them, to die.]

    [Wait!] [I¡­ I may have killed her familiar over and over¡­] [But I never intended to kill her, I swear!!!!] as Maria suddenly panicked at the accusation aimed toward her.

    [I do believe it for now.] [But in the far future, I¡¯m not convinced.]

    The whole room went silent as they were thinking of what to do next. As the time goes on, the conversation finally entered the phase of Maria¡¯s trial, punishment, and responsibilities.

 Chapter 8 - Naked Witch Arc 8

    Vram, Josephine, and Yohana both are on their way from the elder hall, the previous place where they talked about what to do with Maria. Though the problem may have seemed to be solved thoroughly, Yohana didn¡¯t look satisfied at all.

    [This is unacceptable¡­]

    [I don¡¯t think you have any right to protest, Miss Yohana.] [Since their sanction was finally left to Josephine to choose, I think that¡¯s quite a satisfying result.]

    [BY TELLING THEM TO KEEP CLEANING THE WHOLE GRAVEYARD FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS TO COME?!?] [Too soft, ¡°Fina¡±! You¡¯re just too soft!!]

    [Fina?] Vram pointed out such unfamiliar name that Yohana call all of a sudden.

    [Oh, I usually called her either ¡°Junior¡± or ¡°Fina¡±.] [To call her full name is tiring, so I shorten it.] [At any rate, you should¡¯ve given her a more grave punishment!]

    [Umm¡­ but¡­.]

    [What kind of punishment are you talking about?]

    [What else?] [A capital punishment! Whipped hundred times! Being hanged on the central area! And other else!!!]

    [Wha¡­ Senior, that¡¯s a bit too much!!!]

    [She deserved that!!!] [After what she has done to you this whole time, it is not an exaggeration to do the same to her.]

    [But I don¡¯t like it!] [I know, maybe she really deserves it¡­!] [But¡­ even if I do that¡­ they would never return¡­.] [Even if I used the same material used to call them, it would still call a different monster¡­.]

    [Wait¡­] [Don¡¯t tell me, the reason you used your own familiar¡¯s remnant to summon a new familiar was¡­.!]

    Josephine just went silent as she slowly nods her heads.

    [¡­ And instead of the ones you¡¯ve lost returned, you¡¯ve gained a new one, stronger than your last ones¡­.] [I don¡¯t know what to say about that¡­.]

    Suddenly the conversation abruptly stopped, either did because of such awkward answer that comes from Josephine¡¯s mouth, or the sensitive-question which Yohana had thrown first.

    [So, are you done?]

    As they keep walking, Hildegarde suddenly showed up from behind the tree she was hiding all this time. Together with Christine and Rosalinda, they approached Josephine, Yohana, and Vram altogether.

    [I see that you¡¯ve made up your mind, Josephine¡¯s familiar.]

    [It¡¯s all thanks to you, Lady Hilda.] As Vram bowed his head toward Hildegarde. Though she may have already known, she still looks quite shocked as she took a half-step backward.

    [¡­ Quite a creature you are.] [Yet your master still haven¡¯t grown as much.]

    [I¡­ I can¡¯t kill her¡­] [I just can¡¯t¡­.]

    [Who told you to kill her?] [What I¡¯m going to ask of you is what you are going to do after this.]

    [Eh?] [What do you mean?]

    Hilda somehow put off a gesture of disbelief, shaking her head left and right while putting her hands on her forehead.

    [You think just because your familiar had busted the entire people whom were trying to aim you, everything would end?] [That surely isn¡¯t the case at all.]

    [But why!?] [I haven¡¯t done anything wrong to them!!]

    Vram suddenly interrupted the conversation [I already said it before, Master.] [It was not a case of someone hurting each other.] [Rather, it was them who pricked with us first.]

    [It¡¯s just as your familiar said.] [Ever since you were young, you¡¯ve always blamed yourself, sacrificed yourself, put everyone else¡¯s need before you¡­.] [But above all else, you never tried to question people!] [Are you trying to say that every people is a good girl?!]

    [But they¡­.]

    [NO BUT¡­!] [Even if it¡¯s a mistake they did make, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that they were attacked you!] [And you¡¯re saying that they were blameless just because there were ¡°circumstances¡±!?!] [This is why I can¡¯t stand you!!!]

    [Then what should I do?!] [I¡­ I just can¡¯t stand to hurts them¡­.]

    [Then your familiar¡¯s going to die at this rate, even with you besides him.]

    [Eh¡­!?]

    [I¡¯ve observed your familiar quite a bit.] [He¡¯s what you call a ¡°perfect familiar¡±¡­] [Fierce Loyalty, Absolute Strength, and wide understanding.] [Yet, no matter how perfect the familiar is, if the master was an idiot, you¡¯re only sending him to death.]

    [No way¡­!]

    [It¡¯s not exactly wrong to say that everything¡¯s your fault.] [But then again, are you just going to blame yourself without even thinking what you have done wrong? What should you do to not repeat the same mistake again? What you should¡¯ve done to not make any more mistakes.] [Have you tried to learn so?]

    [Learn¡­?] Josephine somehow responded strongly towards this word.

    [Yeah, you¡¯re smart, but you still need to learn how to interact with other people, how to treat people, how to talk with them, and for the most part, how to protect yourself from harm.] [You think just because you didn¡¯t make other people sad, everything¡¯s going to be alright?]

    [I¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­.]

    Vram then suddenly come closer toward Josephine, and rubbed her shoulder.

    [Vram¡­?]

    [Let¡¯s think about it this way, Master.] [You are hurt when I am being hurt, right?]

    [¡­ Though it¡¯s not a physical damage, but you¡¯re right¡­.] [I do feel hurt seeing you getting hurts¡­.]

    [Then, if I am feeling sad, would you going to feel sad too?]

    [O¡­ of course I will!!!]

    [Then, if master is sad, what about us?]

    [Eh?]

    [What about me, whom have sworn to protect you, and Yohana, whom have been teaching you, protecting you, and helping you?] [When you were sad, overwhelmed, hurt¡­.] [What would you think would¡¯ve happen to us?]

    [¡­.]

    Josephine went quiet after hearing what Vram had to say. She¡¯s thinking hard. Real hard that somehow, the light in her eyes somehow changing. It turned bright. Though it wasn¡¯t clear, she was definitely changed. Something inside her mind had changed.

    [¡­ Senior¡­.] [I¡­ I am very sorry; I still think that punishing them that way would do me no good.] [But¡­ I won¡¯t hold back any longer¡­.]

    [Hee¡­.] [So¡­ if there are people whom were trying to aim for your familiar again, what would you do?]

    [I¡¯ll confront them!] [Though I don¡¯t know what kind of result it¡¯ll bring, I still have to protect my own life¡­ my own family!]

    *BWOOSH

    All of a sudden, Hildegarde raised her hands as she casted some magic towards Josephine.  A fireball flying fast toward Josephine.

    [Fina!!!]

    *BLAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!

    The smoke raised, everything went blurry, Christine, whom just keep her eyes downwards while Rosalinda, acting indifferent, and Hildegarde, whom put of her haughty smile after shooting Josephine with Fireball. Only Yohana who seemed to be panic with what happened.

    [HILDA?!?!] [WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!?!]

    [Just shut up, you overprotective senior.] [Look.]

    When the smoke cleared up, Yohana looked quite surprised seeing what has been happened in front of her eyes. Both of them were unscathed. By both, it means that Vram, whom have been protecting Josephine, and Josephine, whom have been protected by Vram, just standing there motionless as the fierce glare on her eyes lit brightly.

    [¡­ Though I really can¡¯t stand you, guess that part of yours is your special trait, to be able to execute such feat in no time.]

    [Senior Hildegarde¡­.]

    [You should be grateful to her, Master.] [All this time, she has been teaching you all kind of things with her own ways.]

    [Eh?]

    [Wh¡­ what are you talking about?!] Suddenly Hildegarde looked a little bit flustered.

    [Well Yohana told me so much about you.] [About how you¡¯ve been forcefully took Master book, and then changed it with something different yet valuable.] [Or when you were browsing some item, then she took Master¡¯s entire item and trade it with something more helpful and useable.] [And even now, she was trying to reform your personality.]

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    [Wait!] [What are you blabbing about!!!]

    [Eh?] [That wasn¡¯t harassment towards Josephine?]

    [¡­ Senior¡­.] Josephine somehow changed the way she looked at Hilda, from the eyes of contempt, into something of admiration.

    [Wait!] [What¡¯s with those eyes?!] [Stop it!] [I never intended for things to go that way!] As Hilda blushed her face red seeing how Josephine changes her way of looking.

    [It¡¯s useless, Lady Hilda.] Somehow Christine, the girl whom have been standing silent behind, put up a faint smile as she speak toward Hilda. [That man already saw through you the whole time.]

    [Chris?!?!?]

    [I guess some people do think precisely together~.] [You guys both love Josephine that much that you can guess that far~] Though smiled wryly, Rosalinda teased Hilda with her light tone.

    [ROSA!!] [SPEAK ONCE MORE, AND I¡¯LL INCINERATE YOU!!!!!]

    [IYAA~~N, SCARY~~~~] As Rosa jumped towards Christine¡¯s back.

    [So~ Mister black armor over there~~~?]

    [The name¡¯s Vram.]

    [I guess Lady Hilda took a liking toward you since you¡¯re the one whom were able to interpret and execute her advice perfectly~!] [Be nice to her alright~~~]

    [ROSAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!]

    As if being possessed, Hilda charged ahead toward Rosa as both of them running round and around circling Chris, as Chris can only smiling. Josephine suddenly burst out a laugh while Yohana shake her heads while holding her forehead, smiling.

    ***

    After many things had happened, considering Rosa¡¯s situation that gets omitted, Chris finally excuse herself while dragging both Hilda and Rosa out of the way. And finally, Yohana, Josephine, and Vram reached the house.

    [I guess I should head back for now.]

    [Thanks for the company, Senior!!]

    Somehow, Yohana didn¡¯t reply back to Josephine at all, she was rather looked a little bit gloomy after what had happened.

    [I guess¡­ I wasn¡¯t that much of a help to you¡­.]

    [Huh?]

    [Hilda¡­ though her method may be unthinkable all this time, she has been taking care of you¡­.] [While me here¡­] [Even the ones whom have stopped Maria were Vram singlehandedly¡­.] [I feel kinda useless as a senior¡­.]

    [No¡­ that¡¯s¡­!]

    [I think I have to disagree, Lady Yohana.]

    [Vram?]

    [It was thanks to you that no serious harm has been done to Josephine.] [Though losing a familiar may have been disheartening, but at least the damage were only limited to that.] [You also volunteered to guard me, in order to ensure my safety when I was being imprisoned, right?]

    [¡­ Though you¡¯re too strong that you don¡¯t even need those¡­.] [But thanks a lot.] [You really are quite reliable.]

    [I appreciate the compliment.]

    [Well then, I shall take my leave.] [Don¡¯t get to crazy inside there, Fina~]

    [Wh¡­ Who would!!!] [Muu~!! Senior~!!!]

    After teasing Josephine, Yohana finally leaves Vram and Josephine alone. Though it¡¯s been a while, the gap made the relationship between them grows awkward.

    [So¡­ shall we go inside, Master?]

    [Eh?!] [Ah, yes! It¡¯s cold outside, so let¡¯s get inside!!]

    Awkwardly and nervous, Josephine stepped inside the house. And following her on the back was Vram, walking indifferently.

    [Umm¡­ Vram¡­.]

    [Yes?]

    [Can you¡­ wait here for a while?] [I need to prepare something¡­.]

    Though it was sudden, Vram just agreed with her and decided to stargaze outside again while waiting.

    ***

    [¡­.]

    Continuing to stargaze, he raised his hands toward the sky, where two moons had met each other. No, there is literally a two piece of moon on the sky. Though what does these things entails no people in the world even care. All things were considered natural, even for Vram, whom somehow had experienced something unnatural.

    {I should¡¯ve died back then¡­.} {No, maybe I¡¯ve truly died¡­.} {If so, then why am I revived again?} {Does familiar summoning entails to revival magic?} {But has such things be made possible?}

    Vram keep moon-gazing as he played around with his two fingers upward and downward, as if counting for something.

    [Though I do wonder how she¡¯s been.] [Does she angry that I¡¯ve done that before¡­] [And more importantly¡­.] [Were that little girl safe, I do wonder¡­.]

    [Vram~!]

    Just when Vram was doing a monologue by himself, finally Josephine called her out.

    [It¡¯s okay now, please enter inside.]

    Vram returns back to the room inside, then started to go ahead, onto the inner side of the room, where another room exist. It was Josephine¡¯s bedroom. Though right now he was her familiar, Vram can¡¯t helped but feeling a little bit nervous of entering her room all by himself.

    [¡­ I¡¯m entering, Master.]

    Slowly he entered the room; the room had been lit bright with the light of the moon entering through the giant loophole on the center of the room. And inside, Josephine had been waiting, only covered half of her legs with a sheet on top of the bed. She returns to wearing nothing again, which almost angered Vram again.

    [W¡­ wait!] [I have a reason for this¡­!!!]

    [¡­ Speak.] Suddenly Vram¡¯s tones have turned cold toward Josephine. Though it hurts her much, she keeps ensuring Vram that everything¡¯s fine.

    [Umm¡­ look here.] [You¡¯ve been imprisoned for a whole month, without food to eat even.] [Though maybe you were able to endure such, but fighting a whole group of familiar, against Maria¡¯s familiar, defending against Elder¡¯s familiar attack, it must¡¯ve drained your energy so.]

    [¡­ I can¡¯t disagree with that.]

    [And¡­ though you may be able to regain those energy by digesting some special meat, the process of turning the material into mana actually quite long, and I doubt that it¡¯ll be able to fill your mana in short time.] [That¡¯s why¡­ I prepare this¡­.]

    Vram traced and observed the whole room for a while. Though it was pretty rough, a thorough clean-up can be seen and decorated to fill the mood. The lights shone through the sky were also accounted. It was quite obvious what she was trying to do.

    [¡­ You want me to sleep together with you?]

    [DON¡¯T JUST SAY THAT NONCHALANTLY!!!!]

    Awkward silence began to envelopes the whole room. Josephine¡¯s face somehow turned red after Vram mentioned it.

    [You sure there aren¡¯t other method of restoring my mana capacity to normal again?]

    [¡­ Well, there are various¡­ troublesome method¡­ and confusing ritual to do so, and it¡¯s not like you were unable to do so on your own, but¡­.]

    [But?]

    [I¡­.] [I want to do it with you¡­.] [¡­ Can¡¯t I¡­?]

    After saying those words, Josephine became meek as her face was flushed red. Deep red color covering her whole face until her ears. Such expression was deadly even for Vram. To think that her master, whom never even bothered to cover her own body, could even produce some expression of that level.

    Finally he takes a deep breath, and letting it out. As he tried to calm himself down, he approached Josephine slowly.

    [Well, my colleague do told me to never reject a girl¡¯s advance, even more so when you¡¯re actually fallen for her.]

    [¡­ Then~?¡­!?!]

    Then somehow, Vram started to release his gloves, his shoulder pads, his boots, and his armor out of the way.

    [It¡¯s actually my first time though, so I don¡¯t think I can hold anything back.] [Are you fine with that, Master?]

    [Eh? Eh? I¡­ I am fine?] Somehow Josephine was flustered at the way Vram released every inch of armor that has been covering him, and finally his hand went straight for his head.

    [Then do forgive me if I hurt you midway.]

    [Eh¡­] [Vram¡­.] [You¡¯re¡­] [Eh¡­??? EH¡­.????] [EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH!?!?!?!?!?]

 Chapter 9 - Naked Witch Arc 9

    [She hasn¡¯t waked up yet????]

    Morning had come, two lovebirds chirped and fly together under the sunny sky. On such a bright and clear sky, there can be only a smile gathered upon these peaceful village, and all the more so for Yohana¡¯s Junior, Josephine, whom was known to never even slack off in the very morning.

    [Yeah, when I was trying to wake her, she somehow holding her blanket tightly and never even tries to look at me.] As Vram confusedly trying to explain the situation.

    [This is unacceptable¡­!]

    Yohana, both confused and enraged seeing her junior slacked off, rushed off inside and quickly headed toward Josephine¡¯s room.

    [FINA~!] [I don¡¯t know what had happened to you, but on such a bright sky of today, and together with a new familiar, are you trying to slack off from your study!?] [Well I can¡¯t let that-¡­.]

    Just before Yohana finished her speech, she realized something were different. Josephine was curled up on her bed, her ears somehow flushed red, and it¡¯s as if she can¡¯t hear what was happening around her.

    [¡­ Fina¡­?]

    She tried to remove the blanket, but as she tried to tug it, somehow Josephine just keep holding the blanket tightly. As the blanket keeps scuffled, Yohana saw something strange on the bed. It was a stain, though it surely wasn¡¯t an ordinary stain. As she tried to observe it more, she saw a red, deep red stain coloring the bed combined with some strange smell covering it.

    [Is this¡­ blood?]

    Hearing the words, somehow Josephine jumped up and quickly covered the bed.

    [DON¡¯T SEE IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!!!!!!!]

    That sudden action puts both of them on an awkward situation. But though that was the case, somehow Yohana was able to predict what had happened that night.

    [You¡­ were you and Vram-¡­.]

    [Don¡¯t say it, please!!!!] [I beg of you! I¡¯ll die!!!]

    [Nononono, you won¡¯t die from such embarrassment¡­]

    [¡­ Embarrassment?]

    [Ah yeah, I guess this is a first for you.]

    It was unknown who have taught her so, but it seems that Josephine was never liked to wear clothes since kid, hence never grows inside of her the feelings of embarrassment. The reasons were also the lack of men in this village. Though not as worse as Josephine, everyone in the village were also wearing quite revealing clothes, which what makes Vram awkward in the first places. But only Josephine would go so far as to not wearing anything.

    [But how did this happens anyway?] [Were you seducing him?]

    [I¡­ I did say that I wanted to sleep with him¡­.]

    [So in the end it was your own fault¡­.]

    [B¡­ but I never thought that he would do something like that!] [L-like, he j-j-j-jammed his *omitted* onto my *omitted*, then h-he does *omitted* and *omitted*!!!!]

    [¡­.] [My junior~]

    [Y¡­ yes??]

    [That, is how you are created, and being born into.]

    [!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    As if being hung dry, Josephine¡¯s face went flushed red covering her whole head as if a smoke almost comes out from her head caused by the heat from her face.

    [I guess that is one fastest way to recover his mana.] [That¡¯s your actual intention, is it not?]

    [¡­ I thought we only need to be sleep naked together¡­.]

    [Well, it was partially my fault for never teach you about these things.] [Then again, so many things happened that I don¡¯t think I have a time to teach you that.]

    Josephine can only go silent as she played with her hair while rubbing her thighs against each other.

    [So, what are you going to do with him?]

    [¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­.] [It¡¯s the first time I¡¯m feeling this, whenever he saw me naked, my chest beats harder than before, that I thought it¡¯s going to burst out from my chest.]

    [That¡¯s not it.] [Were you regretting your action?]

    [¡­ At first it was hurts¡­.] [It¡¯s¡­ indescribable¡­ it does feel like I was being stabbed from below through the head.] [But it feels special.] [It¡¯s as if¡­ I have entrusted everything I have through him.] [And he does replies back.] [It¡­ made me feel so happy that my chest hurts.] [And cried~.]

    [I see¡­] [That¡¯s good to hear.] [Well then, shall we solve your problems regarding how to face him normally?]

    [Eh?]

    ***

    [¡­ Why should I listen to what you have to say, though?]

    [Guh¡­!] [Though at times you¡¯re pretty docile, you¡¯re quite prickly aren¡¯t you, Vram?]

    Within the border of Josephine¡¯s house, two person were in the middle of conversation, or rather, in a debate whether what to do of Vram himself. The gist of the situation currently right now, is that Yohana were trying to lure him away from Josephine for a while. Yet somehow Vram was against the idea, thus argument happens.

    [Like. I. Said!] [We need a bit more time to prepare something, so in a while; we need you to step away for a bit!]

    [Can¡¯t I just help with this ¡°preparation¡± you were talking about?]

    [And I said that you can¡¯t!!]

    [¡­ What¡¯s with the ruckus in the morning¡­?] Suddenly Hildegarde came and butted in into the conversation.

    [Hilda?] [What are you doing here?] [And where¡¯s your companion?]

    [I¡¯m here to drag her back onto the class.] [Since you haven¡¯t appeared back, I was told to oversee what was going on.] As she somehow looked annoyed at the fact that she was here.

    [Ah¡­ that¡¯s¡­.]

    [So, where¡¯s that naked lady?]

    Yohana frantically went by Hilda¡¯s side and quickly informed her of what has been going on.

    [¡­.] [Alright, I understand.] [Vram!]

    [Yes?]

    [Come with me!]

    [What for?]

    [Your master¡¯s conditions were actually quite severe right now, so it¡¯s best to leave it to someone experienced like Yohana!]

    [What?!] [What happened to her?!?]

    [It¡¯s something that only woman would ever experienced!] [So you best to shut your trap and follow me!]

    [Uh¡­ Where to¡­?]

    [No more question!]

    [Yes, Ma¡¯am!]

    And just like that, Hildegarde was able to convince Vram to stay away for a while and Yohana feels relieved after what Hilda has done.

    [¡­ Wow¡­.]

    [Um¡­ Yohana¡­ did he gone¡­?]

    Josephine slowly sneaked out from the house while looking left and right.

    [Don¡¯t worry, Hilda were already took care of him.] [I¡¯m surprised though, never thought that she would be that reliable.]

    [Uuu¡­..]

    Josephine started to gets teary on her eyes, and somehow cried a lot.

    [E?!?] [Wh¡­ what¡¯s wrong, Fina?!?!?]

    [It¡¯s¡­ It¡¯s been a while since I have a familiar¡­ and it¡¯s been a while since I was able to spoke with him again, yet¡­.] [I CAN¡¯T EVEN LOOK AT HIM~!] [HUAAAAAAA~!!]

    Somehow Josephine was throwing a tantrum like a little kid that lost her balloon because they wouldn¡¯t grab them properly. Yohana panicked and tried to calm her down with many ways she could think of.

    [Anyway, for now should we get going so we would be able to cure your embarrassment toward Vram?]

    [Umm¡­.] [I¡¯ve been thinking about it for a while¡­.] [But how are we going to do that?]

    [Well of course, the only think that you usually would never think of.] [To wear clothes~!]

    [Huh????]

    ***

    Hilda, now together with Vram, were walking toward an empty space where there was almost nothing in front of it.

    [Umm¡­ Lady Hildegarde¡­.]

    [Hilda is fine.] [If you¡¯re going to ask about your stupid master, forget about it.]

    [Well, it is something related to her, but not directly.]

    [What is it, then?]

    [Umm¡­ Do Lady Hilda and Master¡­ had a special relationship?] [From what I see, both Lady Hilda and Lady Yohana do care a lot for Master¡­.]

    [¡­ How much do you knew about a Witches¡­.?]

    [Hmm¡­ Only as far as the general knowledge of them.]

    [Then, do you know that Witches basically doesn¡¯t ages?]

    [What?]

    [Let me went through it a little bit.]

    As both of them walked through the forest, Hilda does a thorough explanation of witches. It was when Vram knew that Josephine¡¯s age were actually still very young, about 15-16. It is said that every witches will reach adulthood at most 12 year, or even less for those with more talent. For Josephine, since her magic quality was very high, she reached adulthood at mere 8 years. Thus the reason why she was being shunned by everyone else.

    [¡­ Guess that¡¯s the side effect of being able to use magic without having to enchant them again.]

    [¡­ And you¡¯ve also already knew about how we were unable to have a mother, right?]

    [Umm¡­ yeah?]

    [For us, Josephine was our very own dear mother.]

    [¡­ Umm¡­ sorry?] [I didn¡¯t quite get what you¡¯re saying.]

    [Ah, I¡¯m sorry, I guess she didn¡¯t told you that much.] [Josephine¡¯s name¡­ were actually her mother¡¯s name]

    [What???]

    [When she¡¯s giving birth to that naked idiot, she says this to us.] [That she wanted to be reborn again, as a ¡°normal witches¡±.]

    [¡°Normal¡±?]

    [I don¡¯t know what she meant by that, but her wishes was so that naked idiot would never forget of herself as a witches.] [For that reason, I myself and Yohana have always vowed to protect her, and to teach her the way of living, and the way of witches.] [Though maybe our way differs, and that she forgot the very vow she made herself when she was still a kid.]

    [Uh¡­ does that mean Yohana was actually younger than you?]

    [Yes.]

    [¡­.]

    [What¡¯s wrong?]

    [No, it¡¯s just that¡­ Lady Hilda was very honest with me, that it¡¯s quite surprising.]

    [It¡¯s because you were too perceptive that it¡¯s almost useless to hide anything from you.] [And that¡¯s why¡­.]

    Suddenly Hilda slammed her hand pretty hard against Vram¡¯s armor, that her hands looked beet red.

    [If you went blabbing on just like yesterday, I won¡¯t forgive you!!]

    [Yes Ma¡¯am!] As he suddenly feel nervous toward Hilda¡¯s exclamation.

    [Anyway, we¡¯re almost arrived.] [Let¡¯s go.]

    ***

    [WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?]

    A scream of a young, tall girl echoed throughout the whole room it surprises everybody inside.

    [Ssssh!!!] [Not too loud, Mera!]

    [But¡­ but¡­!!!] [But finally, Josephine, you finally decided to wear a dress I¡¯ve designed myself~?!!!]

    Somehow, the girl named Esmeralda, in short, Mera, whom height can be compared together with Vram, sobbing and crying while smiling happily, after hearing that Josephine finally wanted to wear some clothes.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    [Umm¡­ about that¡­.]

    [Yes, my dear~??] [Were you by any chance have some request to be added, do told me~~?]

    [Umm¡­ If you¡¯d like, I wanted something that doesn¡¯t feel too restricting, but also doesn¡¯t reveal much, especially around the waist and chest.]

    [Humm~?] [I see~~?] [Were you in love, Josephine-dear~~~??]

    [WHA¡­!?!?!]

    [Ju~st kidding~~~?] [Well sit tight, my dear, I¡¯ll sew your very own request as I compared it with a color that suited you best~?!]

    While leaving the red-beet Josephine out of her sight, Esmeralda started to use her magic to swiftly sew the dress.

    [¡­ She saw you pretty good, eh?]

    [Muu~!! Yohana!!!]

    [But still, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s kinda weird?] [No matter how you think about it, I think Vram is a good, courteous human, though he may deny it.] [Would he go so far as raping an under-aged girl like you even if your body looked like this?]

    [Umm¡­.]

    [What?]

    [I actually never told him about it....] [¡­ my real age, that is¡­.]

    [¡­.]

    *PLAKK!!!!

    Taking some paper on the table besides her, Yohana smacked Josephine¡¯s head hard it makes a loud voice inside the room.

    [It hurts~!!!]

    [And why~ you never told him about your real age, hmm~~~?]

    [Be¡­ because he seems strong, scary, and quite mature despite being my familiar!!] [I don¡¯t wanted to be looked down at by my own familiar, so¡­!!!!]

    [Yet, this happens.]

    [Uuu¡­.] Josephine curled up besides the room with her face turns redder than ever again.

    [ALRIGHT, DEA~R~~~?!] [Your clothes¡¯ ready~~?!!]

    [SO FAST?!] Josephine surprised so much that her red-beet face quickly turned normal as she suddenly stands up seeing Esmeralda comes to her.

    [Here, try it~ try it~~?!]

    [Umm¡­ alright.]

    ***

    [Humm¡­.]

    Vram, while still walking together with Hilda, was quietly thinking of something.

    [What¡¯s wrong?]

    [I was thinking of what you had said before.] [You say that Master reached adulthood when she reaches 8, right?]

    [Yeah, and this year she¡¯s turning 16.]

    [Ugh.]

    [Hmm?]

    [How immoral I may have been¡­ to *forced* an under-aged girl under the same bed with me¡­ I have failed myself as a familiar, as a guardian¡­.]

    [Nonono, that¡¯s kinda extreme perquisites you put on yourself.] [Besides, I think she herself was at fault, since she never told you her actual age, right?]

    [Well that¡¯s true¡­.]

    [*sigh~¡­¡­] [Alright, we¡¯re here.]

    Both Hilda and Vram finally arrived at another graveyard. Though the amount of the grave is incomparable than the familiar¡¯s grave, it still gives off such solemn feeling.

    [Here.]

    Hilda led Vram toward one spot where a weird tablet lies above the grave. Though at first glance it may have seemed to be another gravestone, the shape was a little bit too boxy and wide to be called a gravestone.

    [An altar?]

    [¡­ You¡¯re quick on the uptake.] [There was something that I had to give Josephine whenever she succeeded in summoning a familiar.] [But¡­ there are circumstances¡­.]

    [Well you were too shy to just straightforwardly give these to her, so you¡¯re having a hard time dealing with those emotions, right?] [Don¡¯t worry, I understand.]

    [¡­ It¡¯s best if you shut your mouth a little, black~!]

    Though Hilda may have had no chance of hurting Vram, just the cold stare, the insult, and the threat itself hurt Vram to the heart.

    After a while, Hilda was sitting besides the tablet, and started to enchant many words. It was quite weird for Vram, since Witches were usually never having the need to chant when they were planning to use magic. It was quite a long chant, that a trail of sweat can be seen flowing from Hilda¡¯s cheek.

    {What kind of magic that needed such chanting for so long even for a witch¡­.?}

    After some times, the reaction came from the tablet keeps getting stronger and stronger, as Hilda¡¯s chant keep went faster that it¡¯s not just a trail, but a whole lot of sweat dripping altogether as if she¡¯s just finished taking a bath. Vram couldn¡¯t help but keep quiet in order to ensure that Hilda can keep her concentration toward the magic.

    *SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

    Finally the tablet broke, and within it, a book appears. A book, covered with many layer of transparent paper covering the whole book. The cover looked like it has been buried for years, but the book inside doesn¡¯t seem to get broken.

    [Fuu¡­ Thank you¡­.]

    [For what?]

    [Just wanted to say that.] [Anyway, here.]

    Hilda then gave the book towards Vram. When Vram double checked the book, he felt something strange as he keeps investigating the outer book a little bit longer.

    [¡­ You seem to be interested in that book.] [Anyway, it was something mother gave us before her death.] [She also said to give it to that naked idiot when she matured a bit.] [¡­ Well maybe it was a little bit fast, but it seems that she finally grow thanks to your presence here.] [¡­ Hey, have you been listening to me?]

    [¡­ How did this book even exist here¡­?]

    [Huh?] [What in the world are you talking about?]

    [This book is-¡­.]

    ***

    [They sure take their time.]

    Yohana and Josephine, both were already prepared in front of their house, though currently Josephine only wears a cloth, covering her whole body. Yohana already clicked her tongue for a whole time while stepping her feet over and over again, and Josephine can only fidgeting, feeling nervous whenever what to say to Vram.

    [Ah, they finally arrived.]

    As if it was a normal thing, Vram and Hilda finally went back together to Josephine¡¯s house together, and Yohana, whom were already restless, started to shout.

    [GET YOUR ASS TOGETHER HERE AND HURRY UP, PIG!!!!]

    [Wha¡­! Senior Yohana, that¡¯s too vulgar!!!]

    [*sigh¡­. We both had the same mother figure, yet how comes she turned out that way¡­.] As Hilda slam her hand onto her forehead hard, and Vram can only chuckle besides her. [So, what are you going to do?]

    [¡­ Can I¡­ keep a hold of this a little bit longer?] [I¡¯ve seen many hell caused by these books, and I don¡¯t want my own master to get involved in one of those.]

    [It¡¯s your call.] [It was originally my mistake for not being able to ascertain this book¡¯s potential.]

    [Thanks.]

    As they finished their conversation, they were approached by both Yohana, whom were unable to wait any longer, and Josephine, whom were dragged by Yohana.

    [Ah¡­ We-welcome home, Vram~~!]

    [I¡¯m home.] [Why are you wearing such clothes?]

    [U¡­ umm¡­.] Somehow Josephine¡¯s faces turned red when faced with Vram.

    [?]

    [Umm¡­ Can you please not laughing?]

    [¡­ I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re hiding under those clothes, but I¡¯ll try my best not to.]

    [Th-then¡­.] [EEEEEEY!!!!]

    *ZASSAAAAAA

    As Josephine prepared her heart, she throws out the clothes far away from her place. And within those clothes, lies something that Vram and Hilda, the two who would never guess will happens, happened in front of their eyes. A pair of sleeve disconnected from the dress waving from both of her hands, a white robe that fluttered from her neck until her thighs, the underwear she wore were not as indecent as the other girls, as it was only consisted of black tube top while the lower parts was a black laced panties combined with black lace stocking and a garter belt, while also covering the middle part with a corset. Though it still reveals some skin, it doesn¡¯t strike Vram as hard as when she was naked.

    [¡­ Vram¡­?] [Does¡­ does this suit me?] [Or¡­ am I look-¡­.]

    Vram was being silent for a while, then quickly answered Josephine¡¯s question.

    [I guess women could change much just by changing their dress and makeup.] [You¡¯re absolutely stunning, Master.] [No, you could even consider this downright beautiful.] [Though the way you reveal your skin is pretty weird, I¡¯d say it¡¯s quite perfect on you, master.] [Also-¡­.]

    Just before Vram started to talk more, Josephine hurried and retrieved the clothes she had thrown, and then shove it back at Vram¡¯s head.

    [STOP!!] [DON¡¯T SPEAK ANYMORE!!!] [You¡¯re practically killing me softly~!!]

    [¡­ M¡¯kay then.]

    Suddenly the awkward silence enveloping the whole places, making Josephine even more nervous than before.

    [Wh¡­ Why are you getting so silent?!?!]

    [Because you ordered me to.]

    [But not that quiet!!!] [It makes me more nervous than usual!!!!]

    Suddenly Vram went closer toward Josephine while removing both of his gloves. A dull, dark smooth hand went toward Josephine¡¯s cheek and rubbed them softly.

    [What are you feeling nervous for?] [Didn¡¯t you tell me that we''re a family?]

    [But¡­.]

    [¡­ I¡¯m sorry.] [Had I known you better, that would never happen.]

    [N-no no!] [I¡¯m fine with that, actually.] [In fact¡­ I was happy.] [Such happiness¡­ somehow feels like it¡¯s going to crush my chest¡­.] [But I was happy.] [So, please don¡¯t be too hard on yourself, Vram.]

    [¡­ I¡¯ll be sure to remember that.]

    After watching each other together, Josephine finally gets used to it and started to hug each other tightly. Josephine¡¯s face somehow looked relieved, calm, and serene, that somehow looked so childish despite having such figure.

    [*sigh*¡­ really, such a troublesome child.] As Yohana makes a comment toward Josephine¡¯s act.

    [You¡¯re one to talk.] As Hilda suddenly pricked back on Yohana.

    [By the way, where are you taking him before?]

    [¡­ I have no obligation to tell a forgetful person like you.]

    [Hey! That was uncalled for!!!]

    [Though I can tell you one thing.]

    [Hmm?]

    [I¡¯ve given ¡®that¡¯ to Vram¡­]

    [¡­ Why Vram?]

    [Originally I¡¯ve planned to give it straight to her, but Vram said it was dangerous¡­.]

    [Eh?]

    [I don¡¯t know about the exact detail of how dangerous ¡®that¡¯ is¡­.] [But can I ensure you to never speak about this again¡­?]

    [¡­ I¡¯ll try.]

    [Good.] [Then I shall return.]

    As she leaving the stages, two lovebirds start flirting against each other. Such situation caused Yohana to hit her forehead pretty hard. It was quite a show to see both of them becomes like that. As of now, Josephine finally leveled onto a real witch, as now many obstacles stand in front of her and many challenges shall come toward her.

 Chapter 10 - Prologue 02 + Unlucky Human Arc 1

    <blockquote><cite>Quote:</cite>Sorry for the delay, my connection died out and my schedule''s were unreasonable these past days. Will keep things posted, but I dunno whether I''ll be able to do it as fast as usual.</blockquote>

    A footstep. A sound of sizzling wind and the bush, touched by a figure of red haired person wandering around here and there. Though the figure never looked gallant at all, his whole dress were dirty and smelly, most of the clothes¡¯ were already beat-up and full of holes here and there. It¡¯s almost like they were stranded for at least a years or more.

    [AND WHERE IS THIS RUMORED WITCHES VILLAGE, EEEEEEEEEH!?!?!] [I CAN¡¯T EVEN REMEMBER HOW LONG I¡¯VE BEEN HERE WITHOUT EVEN EATING A SINGLE THING!!!!]

    [Calm down, partner!!] [It¡¯s not like screaming here and there would do you good!] [In fact, it¡¯s going to annoy you even more!]

    [What do you mean by-¡­.]

    *GRMMMBBBBLLLLLLLLL

    A sound of empty stomach howling around the forest, as the red haired person finally fall on his knee while rubbing his own stomach.

    [Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo¡­¡­¡­]

    [I told you so, right?] [So far you¡¯ve barely been able to survive thanks to those weird-tasted fruit you eat before, but it¡¯s all run out now.] [Besides, all we ever heard is just a rumor, it can¡¯t be trusted.]

    In any case one would wonder, what was a man, alone in this forest, were talking, bickering, and even discussing all by himself. The answer is that he is not alone. Another creature was already in front of him. Not human, not even looked like an intelligent creature. It was just a primate with two long front teeth which was used to chew something. It often called a mouse. Though it may be a little different than the other mouse, since it can talk and have some weird hair model on it.

    [Then, can you at least find some food for me?] [If this goes on, I might¡¯ve died before being able to do what we need to do.]

    [Hurmm¡­ It¡¯ll be troublesome if you died on me¡­.] [Then wait here, I shall find some great food to eat with this great nose of mine~!]

    [Thanks a lot, partner.]

    After saying that, the mice started to run as fast as he can while somehow, the red-haired man returned back to his deep sleep.

    ***

    [zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­..]

    The red-haired man just keeps on sleeping below the tree while hiding himself from the sun. In the middle of enjoying it, another creature comes up through him.

    [PARTNEEEEEEEEEER!!]

    The dandy-haired mouse keeps running as fast as possible while carrying something, bundled with a cloth. But as if without a care in the world, the red-haired man just keeps sleeping.

    [¡®TILL WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO SLEEP LIKE A LOG!!!] As he gets angry, he pulled something from the bundled cloth, a food with yellow-ish to orange color with its round-oval shape. And he just jammed the food onto his mouth.

    [HMNGGH!!!] [HA HA HU HOI?!? (WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?)] [¡­. HMM!?!]

    As the red-haired man realized that the thing that being jammed onto his mouth was a food, a genuine one, he quickly munched and gobbled the whole things straight onto his throat, then to his stomach.

    [*GULP¡­ PHUAAAH!!!] [FEELS ALIVE AGAIN~!] [Hey, where did you find it?]

    [Just find it along those ways.] [The shape of the tree somehow feels like they were being nurtured by someone.] [So I stole some that¡¯s already no good to be eaten by normal humans.]

    [Wait, did you just said that you gave me the worst taste of all the other fruit?!?] [That¡¯s unacceptable! For you to be able to eat delicious food alone while you gave me these rotten foul of a food?!?]

    [No, nope. I never eaten one actually.] [Because it¡¯s just the same as me stealing.]

    [Who cares!?] [My, no, our life is on the line here!] [We can¡¯t expect to survive without stealing one or two foods!!]

    [Your mind¡­ is wrecked up, partner¡­.] [More so than me, whom have been turned into ¡®this¡¯.]

    [Shut up!] [For now, lead me to where that fruit¡¯s located at.]

    [Alright, alright¡­.] [Don¡¯t blame me whether something do happens.]

    Thus, the two people whom have been bickering over and over again, started to went straight onto the place which they¡¯ve been searching all over again, yet unknown to them. Aiming for something they have to find no matter what, the two sets their feet onto the most forbidden and secret place people have been trying to find all by themselves. Such place had a name.

    They have entered the area where the Witches live, the Witch Village.

    *** ***

    Hell¡¯s on earth. Or at least, that¡¯s how we should express their current situation. Such situation can also be considered abnormal, no matter how you¡¯d look at it. A giant, 6-winged insect with poisonous fang on its tail were flying and flocking around each other, aiming toward the same places. At the same time, the places the insects were going to, was a figure of at least 5 persons, desperately trying to outrun the insects.

    [SERIOUSLY, WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU THINKING OF, YOU NAKED IDIOT!?!?] [I TOLD YOU OVER AND OVER AGAIN TO NEVER TOUCH THAT ¡°THING¡± NO MATTER WHAT!!!]

    [I¡­ I AM SO SORRY¡­!!] [H¡­ HOWEVER, THIS THING SEEMS TO HOARDS PURE QUALITY OF MANA¡­!]

    [JUST BECAUSE IT IS IT DOESN¡¯T MEAN YOU CAN JUST NONCHALANTLY TAKE IT OFF!] [THAT ¡°MANA COCOON¡± WAS SUPPOSED TO BE WHERE THOSE ¡°VASP¡± COLLECT THEIR FOOD!] [IMAGINE WHEN YOU¡¯RE IN THE MIDDLE OF PREPARING YOUR FOOD, SOMEONE COME AND STEALING YOUR FOOD!!]

    [I¡¯M SORRY!!!]

    [I¡¯m surprised both of you still bickering even while we¡¯re chased by these Vasp¡­.]

    [Vram!!] [Can you do something about those?!?!?!]

    [My apologies, master.] [My armament¡¯s not quite versatile enough to fought against those things while trying to protect all of you.]

    It was Josephine, Hildegarde, Christine, Rosalinda, and Vram. All of them looked like they have something to do outside the town, though it is clearly seen that somehow they were being sidetracked mainly because of Josephine.

    [By the way, what are we supposed to do actually, Lady Hilda?] Though while running from the grasp of the Vasp, Christine still looked as calm as usual.

    [WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE AIDED BY THIS NAKED IDIOT IN OUR QUEST!]

    [IYAHAHAHAHA~! THEN ARE WE SUPPOSED TO SAY THAT THING¡¯S WEREN¡¯T GOING AS PLANNED~?]

    [THE SITUATION IS MORE DEADLY THAN WHAT YOU THOUGHT, ROSAAA!!]

    [I¡­ I¡¯M SORRY~~~~!]

    Despite the danger behind their back, the group seemed to bickering happily as usual, though it may seems weird to people who watched this. Then again, such group was quite unexpected, even among the other girls. As it seems that the girl was bickering against each other.

    ***

    [A job??]

    A sudden question lingers inside Josephine¡¯s head, which were in the middle of eating something that looked like a snack, with a combination of meat, a variation of vegetable, combined and placed inside a sliced bun. Around her mouth was a stain of sauce coming from the food, covering her face. Then again, the food itself was not of much importance as what Yohana had suggested.

    [Try to wipe your face before talking, if you please¡­.] [¡­ Are you even forgetting the reason why we were told to summon our own familiar?]

    [Hmm¡­.] [So that we won¡¯t be alone?] [Or in order to wake us up in the morning?] [or¡­]

    [Not even close¡­.] [A familiar can be considered as a way to indicate a witches¡¯ grown up phase and ready to contribute for this village.] [It¡¯s the thing that you¡¯ve always been yearning for, haven¡¯t you?]

    [OH YEAH!] [Then, then¡­. What kind of job will I do right now~?]

    [Usually it was decided depends on your familiar type, but¡­.]

    [She will be assigned as a ¡°Frontier¡± unit.] [It was a decision made by the Elder and the circle itself.]

    Suddenly Hilda, accompanied with her attendant, Rosa and Chris, appearing out of nowhere and started to mingle herself with them.

    [Hilda~!]

    [¡­ Do you even know anything about manners, Naked Idiot¡­?] [Start wiping those stains on your face this instant!!] As she suddenly throw a handkerchief toward Josephine¡¯s face, which was full of sauce stain from the food.

    [¡­ ¡°Frontier¡± unit¡­.] [But she hasn¡¯t even received proper training even as a ¡°Scavage¡±, and they want her to be on the ¡°Frontier¡± already??]

    [Apparently it was decided by the fact of how skillful her familiar is.] [Thus, I shall be the one to guide her for the job.]

    [¡­ If it was decided by the circle¡­.]

    While Josephine was wiping her face, she¡¯s just blankly stare at both of the two girls whom have been discussing about her and Vram.

    [By the way¡­.] [What¡¯s a Frontier?]

    *PLAKKK!!!

    The sudden, empty remark created by Josephine quickly snapped both of her senior while somehow and quickly pulled a giant paper fan-like out of nowhere and slapped Josephine both ways, causing her cheek to turn red.

    [IT HUUUURTSSSS!!!]

    [What are you saying?!?!] [How long have you been living with us, and how long did we study together?!?!?]

    [This idiot¡­ is hopeless¡­.]

    [Vra~m! Why you haven¡¯t protect me!?!?] [It hurts as much as when you slapped me when we first met~!!!]

    [You¡¯re kinda deserves it.] [I thought that kind of thing was supposed to be a common knowledge in this village.]

    [Oh, so you¡¯re saying you understand what we have been discussed about, black kid~?] As Rose suddenly butted in while hugged Hilda that looked like she¡¯ll went rampage if she doesn¡¯t do so.

    [Only the gist of it.]

    In Witches¡¯ Village, the way they operates were split into two faction, excluding the circle, which regulating the village¡¯s segregation. The two factions consist of ¡°The Vanguard Unit¡± and ¡°The Relief Unit¡±, which indicates each of their own function and abilities.

    [Vanguard unit works as a force to maintain the power balance inside the village. They can both works either as a guard for when any incident happens at the village, or as a counter-measure for outside threat.] [Thus, Vanguard unit also has their own specialization of themselves.] [¡°Gallant¡±, units that concentrates on safety inside the village, and have a special connection with the circle.] [¡°Rising¡±, a unit concentrated for countering the outside threat.] [And lastly, the ¡°Frontier¡±, which specialized on travelling and doing expedition around this island in order to find some resources needed for the villages.] [And the ¡°Scavages¡± was a special unit meant to let the witch whom has just received their Combat-type familiar to experience each of these occupations, mainly for evaluation which job she was the most appropriate.]

    [Well done, Vram. You really do outlive my expectation each days count.] As Hilda, Chris, Rosa, Yohana, and Josephine clapped in harmony listening to Vram¡¯s explanation.

    [As expected from my familiar~!] as she put out her ¡°good job¡± hand out in the air, which angered every girls there.

    [More like¡­ he was too good to become your familiar.]

    [You think so too, Chris?] [I was actually thinking the same thing.]

    [¡­ Enough of that, for now, as long as Vram understand, we can just leave this Naked Idiot in the dark.]

    [HEY!] [WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT!!] [And why you already called him by his name, but not me!?!?]

    As Josephine protests about it, Hilda somehow staring at Josephine with cold eyes, as if she was seeing a lesser being.

    [¡­ Enough of this charade.] [Yohana, you understand what you should be explaining to her, right?]

    [Fina, your situation right now is not quite safe.] [A Frontier, as what Vram had explain, requires you to go out of this village in order to procure something, depends on how much quota they¡¯ve placed upon you.] [And before you were able to fulfill the quota, you are forbidden to go back inside the village for a while.]

    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    [Eee???] [But I was just about to enjoy these new menu they had, called ¡°Hamburger¡±~!!!] As she said that while pointing toward a bundle of the food called hamburger right in front of her.

    [¡­ No, we won¡¯t be departing right now.] [Since your placement was quite a sudden thing, they gave you about 1 month to prepare for your expedition.] [That¡¯s why from here on out, I¡¯ll be keeping a close eye to you, in order to make sure you¡¯d well prepared against what¡¯s about to come.]

    [Having Vram besides me were not enough?]

    [¡­ You¡¯re taking this too lightly, Fina¡­.]

    [The outside world is filled with many unexpected things, Master.] [There are times when even my own shield was unable to protect people.] [Thus, it¡¯d be wise to prepare to, at least, protect yourself against such predicament.]

    [Thus, I won¡¯t be as forgiving as Yohana when it comes to your study.] [I hope you prepared for what¡¯s coming next!]

    [Yes! Senior Hilda!!]

    [¡­ Is she going to be okay, I wonder¡­.] As Yohana ponders about whether Josephine would be safe in Hilda¡¯s hand.

    [What?] [You still free to be her senior if you wanted to, Yohana.] [The Elder did ask me to become her mentor, but she didn¡¯t mention anything about you stopped being one.]

    [But my main occupation is a ¡°Gallant¡± Unit, you know.] [And here I was hoping to have another ¡°Gallant¡± as my junior¡­.]

    [But I think it would be good to learn such wide variety of occupation at once, right Vram?]

    [I do agree.]

    [Wait!] [He¡¯s my familiar, why you didn¡¯t ask about what I should be thinking?!?!?]

    [Shut up, you naked idiot.] [What you need to do now is to learn how to survive.] [Thus, I¡¯ll be taking some of these hamburgers.]

    [WAIT! THAT¡¯S MINE¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­!!!]

    ***

    [I really wanted some hamburger right now¡­.]

    [I guess I should remind you that what we need to do right now is to COLLECT THESE MANA STONES THAT HAD BEEN SCATTERED ALL OVER RIGHT NOW THAN DOING NOTHING!]

    [YES MA¡¯AM!!!]

    Hilda was in outburst, as she collected each and every Mana stones that had been scattered here and there. Those Mana stones came from when they were finally able to, somehow, killed all the Vasp that had chasing them.

    [Then again, you sure do come up with interesting strategy, Lady Hilda.] [I never expected that your fire golem would be able to crush that many enemies in one blow.] [Not to mention that you have him ready to ambush the enemy while standing by above the cliff while you pulled the enemy.]

    [It¡¯s what I could do to compensate for its lack of speed.] [He may not look like it, but he has an amazing resilience, thus what made me came up with this kind of strategy.] [By the way, his name is Hougo.]

    [Then again, you¡¯re also amazing yourself, Josephine¡¯s Familiar.] [Realizing Lady Hilda Familiar¡¯s going down to crush the Vasp, you quickly turn back and protecting everyone with your shield, so that everyone wouldn¡¯t get caught by his blast.]

    [That¡¯s why me, Chris, Lady Hilda, and Josephine were able to quickly cast a large magic to quickly finish them all off!]

    [But¡­ Where are your familiar, Chris, Rosa?] As Josephine¡¯s wondering while still collecting the scattered mana stone.

    [Ah¡­ they¡­.]

    [Both of them were still in rehabilitation.]

    [Eh?]

    [Senior Hilda, did something happen?]

    Hilda went silent for a while. As Chris and Rosa put out their saddening face, they still trying to put out a smile.

    [Nhah, don¡¯t worry about us, Josephine.] [They¡¯re fine; it¡¯s just that they were gravely wounded in their recent battle.]

    [Guess that¡¯s why Elder asked Lady Hilda to took care of you for a while~] [So that you may be able to fill the force we lacked of~]

    [I¡­ I see¡­.]

    [Then that just mean that we need to improve our teamwork more, Master.] [You can¡¯t just recklessly do something like that again, especially when we only have Hougo and me on the frontlines.]

    [¡­ I understand.] [I¡¯m sorry for being too reckless.]

    [Hmph¡­.] [As long as you understand, then it¡¯s fine.] [Besides, this is quite a haul, to be able to fill half of the quota needed in just a day.] [Let¡¯s take a break for now, and we¡¯ll continue tomorrow.]

    [Alright~!] As the girls answering together, they put together all of the mana stone they¡¯ve gathered and sets up a camp around there.

    ***

    As they finished eating, chatting, and joking together, both Hilda¡¯s party and Josephine¡¯s party went inside their own respective tent.

    [Hmm¡­.]

    [Something¡¯s troubling you, Master?]

    [No, it¡¯s¡­] [¡­ Hey, I told you that when we¡¯re alone, I prefer it if you just call me with my name.]

    [When I¡¯ll feel like it.]

    [Geez, you¡¯re just being shy¡­.] [At any rate, I was actually thinking about what Senior Hilda said this afternoon¡­.]

    [Which one?]

    [About how she covers for her familiar¡¯s lack of speed with her strategy¡­.]

    [¡­ So out of all things Lady Hilda had said, the only thing that got stuck in your head was something unrelated, huh?]

    [GEEZ! OFF MY CASE!!!] [At any rate, there is something that just occurred to me¡­.] [¡­ I haven¡¯t had a clue regarding your fighting abilities.]

    [And?] [What of it?]

    [What do you mean ¡°what¡±?!] [We¡¯re talking about what you¡¯re capable of here, you know?] [Rather, isn¡¯t that what we need the most right now?] [Considering that we need to take precaution against many things.]

    [Wait¡­ are you telling me that you¡¯re going repeat this kind of incident over and over again?]

    [Well¡­.] [There weren¡¯t any prohibition about how we do things, right?] [As long as we fill the quota, it¡¯s fine right?]

    [*sigh¡­ Well it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand.]

    Vram take another deep breath and started to explain things regarding Vram¡¯s ability.

    [For starters, let me tell you about my basic abilities.] [From where I was come from, my class was referred as a Paladin.] [It is a class that allows us to take more damage than normal person, with the way our armor were heavily equipped and our special stance.]  [Thus, it can be saying that I was meant to be put on the frontline, protecting my comrade behind me.]

    [Hoee~¡­.!] [I never knew humans were capable of such feats.]

    [But taking some damage doesn¡¯t mean that we¡¯re just standing there, taking damage.] [Since our class¡¯ original mission was to protect our comrade behind, we are also equipped with some equipment needed to repel back the enemies.] [In most cases, people uses spear because you can both wield and attack them while defending against their attack with these shield.]

    [Spear?]

    [It¡¯s something like this.]

    While saying that, Vram pulled out a long pole with something like a sharp metal at its head ends. Josephine, whom were asking to check it by herself, slowly examining the thing they called spear.

    [Wow, I knew about shield and sword, but this kind of weapon is quite new for me¡­.]

    [It¡¯s easy to use as a thrust attack and can be done while holding your shield up, that¡¯s why most paladin used that.]

    [Then why are you using a sword?] [A short ones too.]

    [Before I explain that, there¡¯s something that I need to review a bit.] [It was something only I was capable of doing.]

    As Vram takes another deep breath, Josephine was also trying to hide her anxiousness by gulping her own saliva.

    [It¡¯s this.]

    Suddenly Vram pulled another spear coming out of nowhere. It didn¡¯t occurred to her before, but Josephine suddenly realized that what Vram¡¯s been doing is something so outrageous and so surprising that she ended up opening her mouth as wide as possible.

    [Wh¡­ what have you done¡­?] [Is that¡­ by any chance¡­ a magic?]

    [I can¡¯t use magic, but I have a magic item that lets me do a specific magic by chance.] [And the magic item I have currently allows me to store an unlimited amount of item inside what was seemed-to-be storage.] [The one who gave me this called it ¡°Dimensional Pocket¡±.]

    [Wait.] [So you''re saying that... you can literally store as much item as you''d like without even breaking a sweat?]

    [Right.]

    [THEN WHY YOU DIDN''T TELL ME THAT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING?!?!?] [WHY DO I HAVE TO BOUGHT ALL THESE CAMPING AND MAGIC TOOLS ALL BY MYSELF WHEN WE COULD JUST STORE IT ALL AWAY INSIDE YOUR ¡°POCKET¡±!?!?!?] [EVEN BETTER, I COULD JUST HIDE MYSELF INSIDE THAT STORAGE WHILE YOU''RE OUT THERE HUNTING SOME MANA STONE!!!]

    [That''s kinda sly of you to think that way, Master.] [Though I must disappoint you, that this pocket cannot store a ¡°living being¡±.]

    [Still, that''s one convenient tool to have!] [No, it can''t even be called a tool anymore, it''s an artifact!!]

    [Oh, so you also knew about these kinds of things, Master?]

    An artifact is, one could say, a one-of-a-kind item that people believed to have a strong, unimaginable power. While it was sometimes were considered to be a magic item, the actual magic it emits were nothing like the usual magic, thus it has always been a wonder item that everyone hunts for. It can be anything, like a sword to split the sea, a pole that can pierce anything, or, just like what Vram currently had right now.

    [But still, you pulled these weapons so fast that I wouldn''t even realize that you were using magic.]

    [At first it was quite a hurdle, since I can''t use magic.] [But an alchemist gave me a hand to recreate this thing so that I wouldn''t even need to chant nor to focus on it.] [I just need to pose a gesture, and then I can access it whenever I want.]

    [Hmm....] [Wait, so that means... you were able to freely change your weapons depend on the situation, right?]

    [Though it is only limited to what I could hold with these hand, that''s possible.]

    [So that''s why you could freely change your shield when we were attacked before, or when Elder''s Dragon attacked you.]

    After a while, Josephine started to think deeply while leaving Vram in silence.

    [Wait, so how were you able to withstand my magic without even defending yourself?]

    [Pardon me?]

    [When we first met, you remember?] [I was using everything I had to attack you, yet you seemed-to-be unaffected, let alone hurt.]

    Vram went silence for a bit before starting to answer her.

    [You didn''t hold back at all, Master?]

    [Considering I saw you to be quite dreadful, I did went all out.]

    [But... that didn''t hurt me at all.] [It even barely stings me.]

    Hearing that, Josephine''s hand suddenly touched the floor together with her knees, while having her head looked downward, like a pose before one prostrating before others, a symbol of a man having their pride broke down. In this case, it was a woman.

    [THEN HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO FEND OFF AGAINST IT?!] [I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THAT MY MAGIC IS WEAK!!!!]

    [That... I do not know of....] [As far as when I''m alive, that was the only things I was capable of.]

    [Then... do you think it has something to do with the way you becoming a monster... a familiar?]

    [Maybe.] [I haven''t had a chance to test just how far I''ve changed.]

    [Hmm....]

    After thinking for a while, suddenly something flashed inside Josephine''s head, like a fire that has been lit, something¡¯s inspired her.

    [Vram, tomorrow we''re going to hunt for the Vasp again~!]

    [Uh... You sure?]

    [Considering what you''re capable off, I think we could.]

    Vram then getting silent for a while then started to tilt his head downward.

    [I understand, but make sure to speak up with Lady Hilda in advance.]

    [Sure~?]

 Chapter 11 - Unlucky Human Arc 2

    Josephine, Maria, and the others were already quite deep inside a cave, where the ones she was trying to find was hidden deep inside, the nest of Vasp.

    [Being a paladin is one thing, but to be able to possess something like that¡­.] [Though I¡¯m still not sure whether it would work or not¡­.]

    [Don¡¯t worry, Senior Hilda~!] [Vram also agreed with my plans, and even improved them much more than what I could¡¯ve thought by myself.] [Besides, if we succeed, we could¡¯ve gone home earlier than usual, right?]

    [Well¡­ that¡¯s right¡­.]

    It¡¯s happening right in the morning, when Hilda, Chris, and Rosa just have woken up while suddenly Josephine hurried to their presence and told everything about what they¡¯ve been talking about the whole night, about Vram¡¯s ability, their choice to attack the Vasp, and their strategy against them, of course not without Hilda having a fiery anger run through both of their skins. But after hours of convincing and discussion, Hilda finally agreed on their plan.

    [Still¡­ Lady Hilda, do you really think it¡¯s okay?] as Chris were there confirming Hilda¡¯s intention

    [¡­ It¡¯s not like that I¡¯m totally fine with it¡­.] [But still, we need to confirm that Naked Idiot Familiar¡¯s strength.] [For now, I¡¯ll just have to make sure that we have another option.]

    [For running away?]

    [Though I hate the way you called it, yes.] [But, somehow I feel like I can rely on them.]

    [On Vram?] [No matter how much of an irregular he is, that doesn¡¯t mean you should¡¯ve take any chances!]

    [I believe in her.] [On that Naked Idiot¡¯s instinct.]

    [¡­ Eh?]

    [All of us have always been doing things faithful to the books, that somehow our way of doing things was always stagnant.] [But she¡¯s different.] [She always tried to think the best way out of this kind of situation.] [Though sadly she¡¯s a reject when it comes down to human relationships.] [That¡¯s why¡­ I believe in them.] [Both from Vram¡¯s experiences, and from her instincts.]

    [¡­ I see¡­.]

    Though Hilda didn¡¯t realize, there was a change shown from Chris¡¯ expression, together with Rosa whom have been feeling uneasy this whole times.

    ***

    *NGIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING

    The shrieking sound of something flapping at sonic speed goes ringing through the whole room. Though the inner side of the room should¡¯ve been as dark as the deepest part of the sea, the whole room lit so brightly you can see everything so clearly. The light source comes from the things attached to the wall, also called the Vasp¡¯s Cocoon.

    There can be seen many Vasps, circling and flying around here and there, sometimes bringing in a pieces of Mana towards every cocoon existed there, feeding them. Some cocoon can also be seen giving birth to another larva here and there. For many witches, this place was quite a gold mine for them, because of their ability to reproduce easily as well as the quality the cocoon holds. Yet though that may have been the case, the Vasp¡¯s defense mechanism were quite a hurdle for them to overcome.

    Though at the first sight the Vasps was just a regular giant bug, there¡¯s more to them than just a simple bug. The things that they feed on was a Mana, or to be exact, a flow of Mana that comes from either the livings, or from the plant around it. As such, they can easily detect from where a good quality of Mana can be found. This made them quite deadly for Witches whom far heavily relies on magic. Also as to make them much more deadly, they always comes in a pack, coordinating with each other, making them quite a pain to deal with.

    *SCHIIII~!

    *CRAKKK!!!

    [*KIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    Suddenly, a flash strike one Vasp that were flying, down beyond with an arrow piercing its head, killing it in one strike. All the Vasps looked confused as to scan where that arrow did come from. Though they may have been an expert in scanning a long-range projectile, but since it wasn¡¯t a magic ability, the Vasps cannot predict where the attack came from since it wasn¡¯t even a magical attack.

    *CRAKK! *CKRAKK!!! *CHKRAKK!!

    One by one the Vasps was shot right in the head, falling toward the ground by no small amount, as the corpses keep piling up; eventually one of the Vasp realized the source of the projectile itself. As one Vasp pointing toward the source of those arrows, all of them started running toward the place where the arrow originated, where the one, whom have been shooting all this time, Vram, was located.

    [Finally¡­.] [It took about thirty to forty arrowhead of mine just to pull them all here.]

    As Vram retreating himself to the distance, he quickly discard his bow onto the ¡°storage¡± and quickly pulled a shield so big it literally covered all of him, with its size around 2 meters. As the Vasps keeps getting closers, Vram quickly jumped toward the small hole in front of him and covered the hole with his giant shield.

    *DHUK!! *THACK!! *THACK!! *THRACKK!!! *THRACK!!!!

    All of the Vasps started to gather around there and headbutting, poking, and even shooting its poisonous needle toward Vram¡¯s shield. But as it turns out, Vram¡¯s shield were quite sturdy as one would¡¯ve imagined with a shield that big. Though none of the Vasps attempt to pierce Vram¡¯s shield succeed, all of the Vasps still gathered around there.

    [NOW, EVERYONE!!!!!]

    As a scream can be heard from afar, but not too far from where the Vasps gathering around, Josephine, Hilda, Chris, and Rosa quickly rushed out from each of their hiding places, and quickly enchant the magic.

    [SHOOT THEM!!!]

    *FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!

    *BLAAAARRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!

    A surge of fireball, firewall, fire pillar, and meteor clashed together toward one area where the Vasps were gathering, completely covering the whole area as the Vasps gathering inside were being incinerated. A total annihilation, one could even say. And as if that wasn¡¯t enough, Hilda¡¯s Flame Golem, Hougo, completely decimated the Vasps that were somehow survived from the annihilation, totally left the Vasps with nothing but Mana Stone needed for their quota.

    ***

    [YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!] [It¡¯s a huge success!!!] Josephine jumped here and there celebrating their victory

    [No it¡¯s not!!!] [You¡¯re forgetting about your own familiar!!!!] As Hilda correcting Josephine¡¯s lack of awareness.

    [But I think he¡¯s going to be fine, right Vram~??]

    Silence ensues; no answer comes from the hole where Vram was supposed to be hiding.

    [Vram¡­?] [You¡¯re not dead yet, right?] [Vram?!?!?!]

    As Josephine¡¯s somehow becomes worried about Vram¡¯s condition, he keeps getting closer toward the Vasps¡¯ pile of corpses. Then suddenly, something moved below the corpses.

    *BRUAKKK!!

    [GHUHAH!!!]

    Vram was finally able to crawl outside from the ash of the Vasp¡¯s Corpses.

    [Vram!!!] [Thank god you¡¯re okay~¡­.!] [If you¡¯re still alive, couldn¡¯t you just respond back to me!?!?]

    [Ah?] [You were calling, Master?] [Sorry about that, the ash coming from the Vasps¡¯ body were just too much I¡¯m having a hard time moving and hearing things.]

    [Wow¡­.] [It¡¯s just as what that Naked Idiot saying was.] [You really do have a high resilience against magic.]

    [¡­ I think I am.] [That spell just now totally ruined my shield.] [How else could I survive if not thanks to those abilities I suppose?]

    [Wait¡­.] [Mister Vram, your shield was destroyed?] As Chris trying to reconfirm the situation once more.]

    [More like it was completely melted.] [Thanks to that, the effect of Hougo¡¯s attack completely affects me.] [Thus, I wasn¡¯t completely unharmed.]

    [Still~!] [That was totally daring of you both to plan something like this~?] [If Yohana heard about this, she¡¯ll be mincing us day and night without rest~.]

    [Well, I did agreeing on their plan, so it¡¯s not like she¡¯s in any position to get angry, wouldn¡¯t she.]

    [Right.]

    Josephine and Vram¡¯s strategy comes both from Vram¡¯s storage ability and his resilience against magic. At first, Vram was supposed to pull all of the Vasps around them by killing at least one of them. But since it turns out that the Vasps couldn¡¯t quickly detect Vram¡¯s location, he had to shoot a few more Vasps to finally be noticed.

    Then, as the Vasps started to chase after Vram, he tried to quickly find a spot where he could completely hide against Vasps charges. Then, once the Vasps have completely gathered and focused on attacking Vram whom have been hiding, the whole group launches a surprise obliteration magic that completely incinerated the whole bugs.

    [Sure is quite a haul here, and we haven¡¯t even looted the cocoon there yet~?!]

    [Right.] [And since we have quite a convenient ¡°bag¡± here, we could take as many as we want without having to worry about many monsters outside noticing us carrying these.]

    [Though I must say it is quite convenient, I kinda feel bad hearing how you mentioned them.]

    [Ihihihihi~?!]

    As the girls and 2 familiar were having fun each others, they started to collect the Mana stones that have been scattered.

    [¡­ Hey, Naked Idiot.]

    [Eh?] [What¡¯s wrong, Senior Hilda?]

    [... Do you know why, despite the danger, I still agreeing to your plan?]

    [Uh¡­ not really?]

    [Lady Hilda¡­. Are you¡­?]

    [Can I tell her, Chris? Rosa?]

    Chris and Rosa went silent for a while after then they smile for a bit while nodding toward Hilda.

    [Actually¡­] [Chris and Rosa¡¯s familiars were in quite a bad shape right now¡­.]

    [Eh?]

    [Though we somehow were able to make it back to the facility, both of their familiar were unable to be regenerated right away.]

    [Why?]

    [¡­ I see, because we lack the Mana needed to recover them all.] Vram was easily able to deduce the cause of Hilda¡¯s cause, which still surprises the girls.

    [You¡¯re right.] [And at that time, we were failed to fulfill the quota needed to revive them.]

    [That¡¯s why, the Elders somehow told us to bring you together, to compensate for the lack of manpower needed.]

    Josephine went silent after hearing their explanation.

    [Truth is, the Elder told us not to tell you about our condition.] [But I kinda feel bad about using you for our own sake.] [I¡¯m sorry, Josephine.]

    Hilda, Chris, and Rosa lowered their head toward Josephine, whom stared at them weirdly.

    [But¡­.] [If that¡¯s the case, I was supposed to take this more seriously than usual!!!]

    [Huh?]

    [I only thought that the reasons for me being here was only to fill the quota needed, not for helping your familiar!] [If that was the case, I would¡¯ve thought harder of how to obtain more!!!!]

    [You¡¯re¡­ not angry?]

    [I¡¯m angrier of the fact that your familiar was in more dire state than what I¡¯ve thought!!] [You think I¡¯m fond of the fact that another familiar was dying again right in front of me!?!?!?]

    [Josephine¡­.]

    [I don¡¯t care if I¡¯m being used or what¡­] [Just¡­ please¡­ don¡¯t let any more familiar dying without me being unable to do anything at all.]

    Hilda, Chris, and Rosa can only went silent hearing Josephine¡¯s word. As Hilda finally relieved and smiled.

    [I¡¯m thankful for that, Josephine.]

    As she saying that, Hilda went toward where the cocoon was. But as soon as she started stepping forward, Hougo, was somehow running frantically towards Hilda, looking so panicked.

    [Hougo?]

    [LADY HILDA!] [BEHIND YOU!!!!]

    [Eh?]

    ***

    As she turned her back, a Vasp was already flying right in front of her. No, it looked so much like a normal Vasp, but it was bigger than the usual Vasp. If the normal Vasp had around 1 meter size, this thing was about 3 meters tall compared to the normal ones. Its poisonous fang on its stomach looked more deadly than usual, seeing that the liquid flowing through the fang melted the ground it touches. And though it was flying, there¡¯s no sound appearing at all. Or rather, there¡¯s something covering the sound of its wing, completely left us fooled. And it was quite sharper than the normal Vasps when it comes down to detecting Mana Flow.

    *SCHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING

    As the monster released its silencer wings, the sound it produced ringing so hard in everyone¡¯s ear, left them stunned for a while, especially Hilda, whom have been standing nearest by herself.

    [Kuuu!!]

    Vram, whom were trying to move, cannot seem to gets closer to them at all. Josephine, Chris, and Rosa were already having their ears hurting from the noise created by the monsters.

    The only thing that were managed to move toward Hilda was her familiar, Hougo. Though it started slow, he finally managed to get near Hilda, and pushed her sideways toward Vram.

    [No¡­!]

    At the same time, the monster uses its fang, quickly pierced the now standing Hougo in front of it.

    *JHRAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!

    [Ho-¡­!]

    A total defeat.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    Though it was only one strike, the blow caused all of the body pieces Hougo had falling apart. The poisonous substance its fang had completely melted their pieces. All that was left was a body with its crystal shining brightly in the middle of the day.

    [HOUGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!]

    As Vram finally succeed in grabbing the screaming Hilda, he held her on her left arm while pulling a spear from his ¡°storage¡± with his right arm, and quickly throws it as fast as possible toward the monsters¡¯ head.

    *SVWOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!

    *JRAKKKK!!!

    [*SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!!!!]

    The monster screamed so hard it almost hurting the ears. But Hilda completely disregarding it as she moved quickly toward the pieces Hougo once had.

    [No¡­!] [Please¡­ please don¡¯t die on me, please¡­.!!! [Hougo¡­.!!!!!]

    As Hilda keep hugging and wishing for Hougo¡¯s life, Vram already pulled his shield, longer than his usual small shield, and a trident, equipped on both hands. He furiously charges toward what was seemed to be a Vasp, only larger.

    [WOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

    [*SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!!!]

    The two monsters clashed against each other. Though the monster used its poisonous fang to attack Vram, he didn¡¯t take the attack head on as he only uses it to brush the fang to the sides as he was trying to either slash the Vasp, or to stab it as fast as possible, though its hard carcass made it hard to defeat.

    [Hougo¡­?] [Please¡­ respond me¡­!] [Hougo¡­!!!]

    [It¡¯s okay, Senior!!!] [He¡¯s still alive!!!]

    Josephine, Chris, and Rosa, whom finally have been freed from the pain, quickly rushed toward Hougo and Hilda, whom have been crying besides him.

    [Really?]

    [I¡¯ve once had a Golem Familiar like him.] [They usually died when their Mana storage were being emptied or crushed.] [Look at this crystal; it¡¯s still shining so brightly, though his body was in tater.] [As long as we could take him back to the facility, we could recover him.]

    [U¡­ *hic¡­. Uugh¡­!!]

    [But still, what is that monster¡­.?]

    [I¡­] Rosa was hestitated, but finally decided to talk. [I think it was¡­ a Vasp Queen.]

    [Queen?]

    [Yes.] [I¡¯ve heard it from a senior that a Vasp Queen only appears when the cocoon she gave birth herself was in an actual danger.] [Though at times she may be out hunting some Mana, if there are signs, she¡¯ll come back to protect the cocoon from being harmed.]

    [Signs¡­?]

    [It¡¯s the same way as how Vasp gather together against an enemy.]

    [I see.] [You¡¯re saying that, the Vasp whom were killed but not burned called the Queen the same they called their own companion.]

    [There are about thirty or more corpses of the Vasps lying there, I guess it was easy for her to receive the signs.]

    [Do you know a way to defeat it, Senior Rosa?!?!]

    [I¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­.] [Up to this day, no one who tried to challenge the Vasp Queens returns alive.] [Even my senior also¡­.]

    [No¡­ no way.]

    *BLAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

    [Huh?!]

    ***

    [RRARGH!!!!]

    An overwhelming existence lies in front of the black paladin. As Vram keeps standing no matter how much damage he received from being slammed by the Vasp Queen. All of the shield he has letting out, even the ones he currently wield, were already melted. No matter how much shield he has in store, if all of them were to be melted, all is for naught. There¡¯s also the weapon he used, sword, two-handed sword, spear, and each of his sharpest weapon. None of them could even scratch the queen¡¯s body, nor do it even able to chop the queen¡¯s wing. Combined with its inhuman speed, no mere monsters would be able to fight against it one-on-one.

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!]

    Regardless of the situation, Vram just keep charging toward the Vasp Queen as the monster itself evading Vram¡¯s attack by just flying higher, spewing some poisonous droplet on him, and slamming him onto the ground.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR!!!

    Though while the monster blasted him, Vram was already readied his weapon¡¯s pointy blade onto the monsters, though it does naught on it. The carcass was as hard as sea shell it broke the weapon one by one. Nevertheless, Vram keeps standing up over and over again.

    [WOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!]

    A black, thick aura covering Vram¡¯s as he lets out a menacing war cry covering the whole cave. The visor on his helmet started to turns red and a red line appears on its body, connecting to each of his armor.

    *BVASH!!!

    He jumped, Vram jumped as high and as fast as he possibly could, and without delay, attacking the Queen Vasp with his bare hands. The Queen Vasp also replied by charging toward Vram.

    *BLAAAARRRRR!!!!

    The two clashed mid-air, as both of them repelled each other with their attacks, the Queen Vasp looked staggered as Vram was free-falling toward the ground.

    *BLAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR!!!!

    [Khu¡­!]

    [VRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!!!]

    Josephine was screaming on the other side of the cave. Reacting to the voice, the Queen Vasp suddenly turns its prey onto the Witch, Josephine.

    [*SCREEEEEEECH!!!]

    [Eh?]

    [MASTER!!!]

    Panicked, Vram quickly pulled a spike flail with its long chains, and quickly flail it toward the Queen Vasp¡¯s wing and bind it.

    [*SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!!]

    The monster was struggling to escape, but Vram doesn¡¯t even letting it do so.

    [WHAT ARE YOU DOING THERE!?] [THIS GUY COULD EASILY DETECT YOUR MANA FLOW, SO JUST HURRY UP AND HIDE SOMEWHERE!!!!]

    Josephine were surprised to see her own familiar shouted back at her so intensely, yet she stand firm on her own two feet.

    [I! JUST! HAVE! TO! TELL! YOU! THIS!!!] [Hougo is fine! He¡¯s alive!!!]

    [¡­ Eh¡­?]

    [I¡¯m going to help Hilda and Hougo for now!!] [That¡¯s why!! You also have to return safely, okay!?!?!?] [I¡¯ll be hiding right now with the others!!! SO! PLEASE!! RETURN BACK TO ME!!!!] [THAT¡¯S! AN! ORDER!!] [Okay¡­!?]

    [Master¡­.]

    Though he¡¯s still struggling to hold the monsters back, he¡¯s still mesmerized by his own master¡¯s word.

    [Vram!!!] [YOUR ANSWER!!?!?!?]

    [YES, MA¡¯AM!!!!]

    As he answering Josephine¡¯s call, Vram put out a lot more power toward his hand and pulled the Vasp Queen away from Josephine.

    [NUWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!]

    [*SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!]

    As he keeps pulling the monster, the Queen finally lost its balance as it was thrown away by Vram far from Josephine.

    *BLAAAAARRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!

    {A sword doesn¡¯t work, a spear doesn¡¯t work, an axe doesn¡¯t work¡­} {Then, the only choice available for me is¡­}

    As the monster¡¯s still staggering, trying so hard to stand since its wing was hindered by the chain.

    [DRAGONTOOTH!!!!]

    As he mentioned the name, he pulled the hilt of something big from inside the space of the storage. Though he usually pulled it faster, this time he pulled it slower than usual, indicating it was stronger and heavier than any other weapon he had.

    [NUWAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!]

    As he keeps pulling the hilts, he¡¯s running toward the monster as the weapon finally shows itself. It was a hammer, but no ordinary hammer it is. It has about 3 meters in length size overall, the shape of the tip wasn¡¯t even sharp, as it shaped just like the base of a beast¡¯s canine. With such size, it wasn¡¯t even an overestimation to call it a DragonTooth, as it size and shape completely looked like that of a Dragon¡¯s Canine.

    His steps become heavier, his breathing becomes rougher. But even so, he keeps charging furiously and relentlessly against the fallen Bug.

    *BLARRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

    [*KIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    The impact caused by the hammer created a crack on the monster¡¯s head. As the monster squirming, trying to bear the pain, it screamed so hard it could literally broke everyone¡¯s ear.

    *BAM!

    At the same time, Vram, whom have been wielding the hammer, having hard time breathing, thus dropped the hammer on the ground.

    [Are you for real?] [My strongest and sturdiest weapon, only leave a crack on its head, which was the least strong part of its body?] [Even when I¡¯ve been transformed into a monster, the monsters around this place were in a class of their own, eh¡­.]

    While Vram was still tired after swinging such heavy weapons, the Vasp Queens finally regained its balance and started flying, higher than ever before.

    [Oh?] [Is she going to run?]

    Just when Vram was about to feel relieved after seeing it flying higher, something nasty happened to its stomach that had its fang on the tip. It looked like it was pumping something.

    [¡­ Don¡¯t tell me¡­.]

    *PSTHEEWWW!!!!

    Just in time, Vram was able to jump to the sideline. What he¡¯s evading was something he surprised also. A fang. The monster¡¯s fang that had been attached on its stomach was somehow flown toward where Vram was standing. Though the trace of its fangs were nowhere to be found, a hole so deep no one can see the end of it were somehow filling in there.

    [It¡­ completely melted the whole floor with its fang.] [Shield would be useless in this case.]

    After he observed the floor, he decided to check what the Vasp Queens had been planning again. But it looks like she was doing the same thing again, since it looked like another fang was appeared at its stomach.

    [She can¡¯t shot it repeatedly, eh?] [Then the only option I have¡­ is this.]

    As Vram organizing his final attack plan, he pulled out a lance, though the base hilt was quite bigger while the pole wasn¡¯t that long. He started running, trying to find a higher level to reach, though somehow the higher platform he could reach was somewhere much farther than where the Vasp Queen is.

    *BLAAAM!! BLAAAAAAR!!! DHUAARR!!!

    But as it is, the Vasp Queen weren¡¯t also going to stop there, as when Vram was trying to reach the higher level platform, it shoots out its poisonous fang when she finished recharging them.

    As Vram finally able to reach the highest platform, as well as the Vasp Queen were trying to recharge its poisonous fang again, Vram pulled out what was looked like a bow, only bigger than your usual bow. With its length around 2 meters, and the string was completely change to a rope, a thick and elastic ones. It was the Great Bow he used to provoke Craud and Endrossa before.

    Using the lance he had brought before, he put it in between the space of where the hilt of the GreatBow is. And put the back-hilt of the lance on the ropes, thus pulling it backward, just like how one uses a bow, only bigger.

    {The range¡­ damn it, it¡¯s too far.} {I need more strength to compensate for the lack of range and height, or I¡¯ll be dead before I could even pierce that thick skull of it.}

    Then Vram was trying to remember, the power he had when he throws the spear back when Hougo was being obliterated, when the Vasp Queen relentlessly charging back and forth at him, and when it noticed Josephine¡¯s presence.

    {Is that how it feels to become a monster¡­?} {To feel nothing except rage and hatred toward the ones right in front of you¡­?} {That¡¯s¡­ the worst things one would¡¯ve experienced.}

    Though the ropes looked like it¡¯s already reaching it limits, Vram keep pulling it in order to gain more force on its strength.

    {But even so¡­!} {I¡¯ve already dead¡­!} {And yet, I was given another chance¡­!} {To protect something that I¡¯ve failed to do so before!} {In order to do that¡­} {I¡­!}

    Another black aura covered Vram¡¯s whole body once again, as the red lines also showing up covering his whole body, and the visor on his helmet, was once again turned red. With somehow inhuman strength, he keeps pulling the rope on the Bow until it really reached its limit, and the Vasp Queens had ready to shoot another poisonous fang.

    {¡­ will gladly become a monster!!!!}

    *PSTHEEWWW!!!!

    *BYAAAAAAAZZZZZZHHHHHH!!!!!

    The two projectile had been launched each others, as both of them can only stand in silent after unleashing their attack on one another.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRR!!!!!!!!!!!

    A sound of impact can be heard on both sides, as the places Vram was standing was destroyed, it can be seen that Vram was already free-falling toward the lower ground because not only he lost the platform he was standing on, he already tired from unleashing such force from the bow. The same can be said for the Vasp Queen, whom somehow, Vram¡¯s lance were able to pierce the cracked head, all the way into the insides of its head, as it was free-falling toward the ground together with Vram.

    *BLAAAMMMMMMMM!

    A silent ensues as both of them hit the ground altogether. As the ground around the Queen Vasp was flowing with green blood they melted the whole floor, Vram just keeps lying over there, unmoving.

 Chapter 11.5 - Unlucky Human Arc 2.5

    An image.

    Image of a crying woman.

    Image of many crying woman in front of him.

    Sadness, hatred, rage, despise.

    Each and every emotion lingers in the air.

    Among the many women crying there, one walked toward the one in front of him. And she screams.

    [WHY ARE YOU ALIVE!!?!?!?]

    ***

    [Ugh!]

    As Vram was jerked around in his dream, all he could see is a bright ceiling that filled with a cocoon, a mana cocoon from the Vasps.

    [A¡­ are you okay¡­?]

    As Vram still confused with what had happened to him, Hilda was by her side, hugging Hougo¡¯s remain while timidly approaching the conscious Vram.

    [Somehow¡­. I barely managed to survive.]

    [Hmm¡­] [Yet, here I am, worrying myself to the death¡­.]

    [Ah, sorry about that.]

    [Nhah, It¡¯s okay.] [I should¡¯ve known better that a Familiar with its body still intact means that they still alive.] [Josephine already realized that, thus left you here with some mana stone to recover your stamina.]

    [Unggh¡­.] [I¡¯m thankful for that.] [So, where¡¯s she?]

    [She¡¯s there, collecting the Mana Cocoon together with Maria and Chris.]

    [I see¡­.]

    Vram was struggling to stand once again, while Hilda was trying to stop him.

    [Rest again for a while.] [You look so exhausted.]

    [That¡¯s exactly why, Lady Hilda.] [If we don¡¯t start moving as soon as possible, their reinforcements will come.]

    [Eh?]

    [MASTEEEEEEER!!!]

    As Vram took a deep breath, then unleash it with such a voice that could be heard throughout the whole cave. Hearing that, there are sounds of footsteps quickly reaching closer toward them.

    [VRAAAM?!?!] [Thank god you¡¯re fine!!!]

    [I¡¯m grateful for your worries, but we need to move out from here as fast as possible.]

    [Why?]

    [The reinforcements are coming.]

    [Who?]

    [That giant Vasps.]

    [Wait!] [What do you mean by that?!?!] As Chris suddenly went in outburst hearing Vram¡¯s statement.

    [I¡¯ll explain it midway, but for now, we need to get moving as fast as possible.]

    [I agree with Vram.] [I feels something weird will happens if we¡¯re just staying here doing nothing.]

    As Hilda agreed together with Vram, they finally started to move out from the Cave.

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ***

    [That¡¯s¡­ impossible¡­.]

    As the girls keeps walking further and further from the cave, though they already quite far from the forest, an expression of disbelief and despair runs through their face.

    What they have seen before was something not even the locals in the island would¡¯ve seen, or survived to even see one. Hordes of Vasp Queens, flocking and gathering around like a normal Vasps, went toward the cave they previously raided. About 20 to 40 Vasp Queens gathering there for the obvious reasons.

    [I¡­ if not for the cloak Vram gave us and his ¡°storage¡± that allow us to hide the cocoon, we would never survive that¡­.]

    [How did you realize that, Vram?]

    [When I was in the middle of face-off against it, it somehow releasing some kind of waves similar to what the Vasp¡¯s corpse had been releasing this whole time, only the frequencies were larger than the normal Vasp, letting me able to sense it easily.] [Considering it was those Vasp that called that monster, it¡¯s safe to assume that there are more of those kinds.]

    [I guess it means that there are still so many things we don¡¯t know yet regarding this island, considering we¡¯ve been living in this island for more than decade.] As Hilda''s worries somehow grow larger with it.

    [And venturing it would be dangerous, as this place had so many places that completely robs us of our mana and drain our energy completely, leaving us with nothing¡­.]

    [So this island also had another ¡°Forbidden Spot¡±?]

    A ¡°Forbidden Spot¡± was an area notified as unreachable mainly because of the nature of its area. Some places were too deadly, some places were too poisonous and others are just plainly dangerous without reasons, or ¡°beyond¡± reasons.

    [Still, we¡¯re managed to obtain a huge amount of Mana, completely way beyond what the quota had expected from us~!] [With this, we could easily fixed the seniors¡¯ familiar in no time~!] [AND I COULD EAT AS MUCH HAMBURGER AS I WANTED~!] As Josephine skipping and jumping here and there with her droll spreading here and there.

    [Urgh¡­] [You really need to learn some manners, Naked Idiot¡­!]

    As Hilda letting out a long deep breath, she smiles a little behind her backs.

    [Thank you, Josephine.] [I¡¯m really grateful.]

    Thus, leaving Josephine so oblivious with Hilda¡¯s gratitude, the party went back home in smile and laugh.

 Chapter 12 - Unlucky Human Arc 3

    [THIS IS UNNACEPTABLE!!!]

    Josephine was sulking inside her own room, or to be exact, was throwing a tantrum, while Vram can only looked at the sidelines, seeing how childish she could be.

    [WE WERE JUST COME BACK FROM OUR TIRING EXPEDITION, YET HOW COULD THEY TREAT US LIKE THIS!?!?] [WAAAA! I WANNA GO OUT! I WANNA EAT!! I WANNA PLAY~!!!]

    Though it was his own master, Vram could only express his disbelief of how selfish his master could get.

    [Aren¡¯t there more pressing situations at hands, Master?]

    [What is?!] [What kind of situation that would let us being home-arrested like this?!?!]

    [Were you even listening to what they have said¡­?]

    ***

    [YOU THIEF!!!]

    [Huh?]

    As the group just went back from their expedition, Josephine and Vram split themselves from Hilda and her team. Hilda was going to the circle in order to submit their quota as well towards the facility where they need to restore their familiar into full health. As it turns out, on the way back to their own home in order to clean up their own mess, a girl, or many girls, was pointing out towards Vram, and accusing him for something.

    [WHERE ARE THE THINGS YOU¡¯VE STOLEN!?] [RETURN IT BACK!!!]

    Seeing this, Josephine panicked and trying to calmed and ascertain the situation.

    [Wawawawawah! Wait a moment!] [What¡¯s happening?]

    [Don¡¯t act stupid!] [We¡¯ve been watching you!] [There¡¯s only 1 person in here that looked like a human yet having such tremendous speed to be able to get past our barrier and stole every food we¡¯ve been grown this whole times!]

    The girls, whom have been accusing Vram of many things, comes from the ¡°Relief Unit¡±, mainly in charges of trading and/or consumable stock such as food, clothing, medicine, and many others. As such, the girls themselves were protesting of someone keeps stealing their food stocks.

    [Wait! We haven¡¯t done anything!] [In fact, we¡¯ve just returning from our expedition outside the village!]

    [HA?!] [We¡¯ve never heard of such things, even from the circle!!]

    [Eh?]

    Vram and Josephine, oblivious to this, were quite in a shock hearing what they¡¯ve saying. Thus, the girls and Josephine were having quite a debate, or to be exact, a war of words, insults, and many more. The ruckus caused one of the members of the circles to step inside, and having a words with Josephine and Vram.

    [And you wouldn¡¯t accept the fact that you¡¯re the one who stole their commodity?]

    [I¡¯ve already said it before!] [We¡¯re innocent!] [Vram didn¡¯t do anything, even stealing!!] [How did it come to this I don¡¯t even know!!]

    [Then where are you when all of this is happening?]

    [We¡¯re on an expedition!] [With senior Hilda, Chris, and Rosa!!] [Yohana¡¯s also heard about it herself!!]

    [We haven¡¯t heard of such reports regarding you went on an expedition.] [Could you please don¡¯t make such an obvious lie?] [In fact, where¡¯s the proof that you all went on such expedition.]

    [I already gave you the proof, right!?!] [The Cocoon from the Vasp¡¯s Cave!!!]

    [It¡¯s already deprived of its life, so it could be that you¡¯ve bought them from another person, thus using it for your alibi.]

    [NGGGGH!]

    Though Josephine had said it over and over again, the others still wouldn¡¯t even believe what Josephine had to say. Josephine is no liar, and almost everyone knew that. But somehow the circles keep trying to shift the blames back at her.

    [If I may have a word¡­.] As finally Vram decided to interfere with their talks.

    [Speak.]

    [I was the one you¡¯ve suspected as a thief, right?] [Then, should we do this?] [I shall remain in one spot, where you guys could easily observed me, and then we¡¯ll see whether the stealing still happened.] [That way, it¡¯ll be easier to prove whether we¡¯re lying or not.]

    [Humh!] [Are you trying to reduce your punishment by doing something confusing like this?]

    [I just dislike the way you address my masters, even if you¡¯re a woman.] As Vram unleashing his deadly aura, full of killing intent towards one of the circle.

    [Gh¡­!!] As the woman intimidated by Vram¡¯s killing intent, she took a step backward, but quickly regained her own feet as if trying to disregard it.

    [Alright then!] [With the rights of the circle gave me, both of you shall undergo a house arrest until the matter is resolved!]

    ***

    [So?] [Which of the point are you trying to say, Vram?]

    [As far as I¡¯ve concerned, there are three things that¡¯s quite bothering me for a while.] [First, about how the circles and the elder operate.] [I don¡¯t accuse them for being a liar or something, but it seems that a miscommunication was happening inside their own circles.]

    [Umm¡­] [Why is that, I wonder¡­?]

    Josephine can only express a dumb face on her face, unable to grasp the situation that Vram had expressed this whole time.

    [¡­ *sigh*¡­ I guess I¡¯ll ask either Yohana or Hilda about that, who¡¯ll be coming here eventually.] [Then, onto the 2nd case.] [Though I¡¯ve already had a hunch from the very beginning, it seems that there are many of those people whom dislike your existence here, Master.] [Maria¡¯s case was quite bad, but the others seem to share the common cause.]

    Reminiscing of what had happened to Vram times ago, Josephine put quite a sour expression on her faces. Unable to hide it, she just went ahead and hugged Vram.

    [That¡­ cannot be helped, right?] [I never wanted to go against them, but¡­.]

    [I do understand.] [I just wondering how do these kind of things happens.] As Vram stroked Josephine¡¯s hair softly, trying to calm her down.

    [Then, about this last case.] [If the ones who stole the commodities looked like a human, then¡­.]

    [It was most likely that a human, or a monster that looked like a humans, have invaded our territory.] As someone suddenly intruding toward Josephine¡¯s home, a white, thick hair flowing out here and there. Someone they knew so well, yet surprisingly appeared in front of them, letting them of their guard.

    [Elder?!?!]

    {Elder Endrossa?}

    [Were you expecting someone else?] [Like Yohana, perhaps?]

    [Umm¡­ yes?]

    [Unfortunately, she¡¯s in the middle of another assignment.] [An assignment that linked quite much with your current situation.]

    [Is it about the thief?]

    [Though looked much like humans at the first sight, his speeds are of no jokes.] [Even Yohana¡¯s familiar, whom were known for her speed, are having quite a hard time chasing off the thief.] [And knowing full well that you both will get involved, she decided to tried her best to capture it as soon as possible.] [¡­ Though it is already quite too late.]

    As Endrossa explain things, she slowly bowed down her heads a little bit lower toward both Vram and Josephine.

    [E¡­ Elder?!?!?]

    [I can only offer you with nothing but apologies.] [Because of the way I¡¯ve done things, you both have experienced such things.]

    Though the way she talks still in a monotone, cold voice as if not caring of anything in the world, her action somehow letting them understood Endrossa¡¯s intention.

    [Then, Elder Endrossa¡­.] [May I ask you of one things?]

    [Go ahead, Josephine¡¯s Familiar.]

    [From what I¡¯ve heard myself from Yohana and Hilda, we were being appointed by Elder for going on an expedition to help Hilda achieving her quota.] [But somehow, the circles didn¡¯t know, or from what I¡¯ve inferred, refuses to accept the fact that Josephine went on an expedition.] [This left me confused as in how do the circles, and Elder, do things in this village.]

    As Vram expressed his question, Endrossa took a deep breath while closing her eyes, then releases them as if she¡¯s trying to calm herself down.

    [The main rules of this village, was that the circle is the one who¡¯ll took care about almost everything that happens in this village.] [The commodities, security, segregation, expedition, education, development.] [All these had to be planned, compromised, and executed mostly by the Circles.] [And my position, as an Elder, was meant to decide the program itselfs.]

    After talking for a while, Endrossa took another deep breath, then continued to talk.

    [But then, after ¡°that¡± incidents, the circles started to question my authority regarding the development of this village for the case in the future.]

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    [¡°That¡±?]

    [Are you talking about the ¡°Familiar Killing¡±?]

    Endrossa just silently nods while Josephine could only be taken aback by the surprise of what their action had led into.

    [As it is, the Circles suggesting a change regarding the authorities and the decision-making of this village.] [With the way it is, the circles decided to hold onto their own authorities regarding the things they do.]

    [Umm¡­ so?] As Josephine having a hard time to keep up with what Endrossa had saying the whole time.

    [¡­ Does it mean that you¡¯ve lost your authority regarding everything?]

    [No.] [I still have some leisure of choosing persons for my own programs.] [But the consensus of the program could only be reported once every week.]

    [Ah¡­ that means¡­.]

    [Yes.] [Because it took you less than a week to fulfill the quota, hence, this happens.] [Though I did apologies for the trouble, do you have anything to say, Josephine?]

    [I beg of you apologies for everything I¡¯ve done, Elder.] As Josephine understood that she was at fault for everything that went awry, she started to prostate in front of the Elder.

    [*sigh*¡­.] [Though I must be thankful for your resourceful familiar, for being able to keep up at what was happening.]

    [I¡¯m grateful for your compliment.] [By the way, Elder Endrossa¡­.]

    [Yes?]

    [I was wondering¡­ could you fill in the detail which area that was attacked by the thief?]

    Endrossa went silent for a bit, and then started to look straight into Vram.

    [Even if I told you, what then?] [It¡¯s not like you could went outside for now.]

    [For now, that is.]

    Endrossa stays silent until finally she gets up and already went outside.

    [Then again, I don¡¯t know much about the detail itself.] [Ask Yohana if you¡¯re interested.]

    As it is, Endrossa finally went out from Josephine¡¯s house. The situation becomes quite awkward as both of them seeing each others.

    [By the way, how are you going to eat, Master?]

    [Oh, the guard outside says that she¡¯ll bring me some food when I asked them, so everything¡¯s fine.] [We just have to wait for a bit here.]

    [... Aren¡¯t you somehow become calmer than usual?]

    [I guess¡­ because I was told off that this is also because of me.] [I guess being to hasty isn¡¯t good no matter what, eh?]

    [*chuckle* You were right, Master.]

    ***

    The next morning, a sudden invasion from Hilda and Yohana, barging in and walking up toward Josephine¡¯s room, surprised both Vram and Josephine, whom are sleeping next to each other.

    [Get up, naked idiot.]

    [Hoe~?]

    [No but. You need to get dressed and come out of here, real quick.]

    As it seems, the two girls were somehow shows quite a displeased face, or rather, they¡¯re outrightfully angry. This scares Josephine out of her sleeps that she just quickly dressed whatever she could use to dressed up, thus using the very first clothes that Vram gave when they first met.

    [[Come with us!]]

    Josephine just nodded while being frightened as to what was going to become of her, though Vram was just calmly walking following Josephine from behind.

    What awaits them outsides was Endrossa, the members of the Circles, and the other girls form the ¡°Relief Units¡±, looking kinda disheartened, or even afraid.

    [Eh?] [What¡¯s wrong, everyone?] [Right in the morning when I was enjoying myself with Vram¡­.]

    [You should¡¯ve learned to read the mood, Josephine.]

    [So it happens again?] As Vram just asking straight to the point.

    [You¡¯re reading into it too much, Vram.] [And yes, it happened again, quite easily to tell the truth.] [We practically lost almost 10% of our commodities right now.]

    [For real?] [Was that thief really good or what?]

    [Nope, these stupid buffoons just went ahead and lowering their guard, thinking that just by house-arresting you, everything was solved.]

    [I see¡­.]

    As Hilda, Endrossa, Yohana, and Vram discussing about the event that occurred recently, Josephine just blankly stares at them, unknown to what they¡¯ve been talking about.

    [So¡­ What happened?]

    *PLAKK!!!!

    And as usual, Josephine was hurt both sides by Yohana and Hilda, thus surprise Elder Endrossa.

    [[Try to read in-between, will you!?!]]

    [The theft, it¡¯s happening again Master.]

    [Eh?] [How is that possible?!]

    [[[*sigh*¡­.]]]

    [They¡¯ve already explained everything.] [Anyways¡­.] [How are you planning to take responsibility for this, ladies?]

    Endrossa was now trying to pressure the member of the circles, now that troubles happen because of their reckless decision-making. The member of the circles just staring at each others unknown of what to do.

    [Umm¡­] Josephine started to interrupt. [From what I¡¯ve inferred, the thief was still not found yet, right?]

    [Thought that was the most obvious question you¡¯ve ever asked, yes.]

    [Then should we start to patrol around this area yet?] [If the thief already went outside the barrier, it would take him a long time to reach this place again without help.] [That¡¯s why, he must be still around here somewhere, or at the very least, still hiding behind the barrier.]

    All of the people around there could only express their disbelief and quite shocked hearing Josephine¡¯s idea. To think she could think of such feat on the spot.

    [That¡¯s still quite inefficient, Master.] [If we take consideration of the places he attacks, we could easily discern its pattern, its reason, and how he would do that.]

    [I see, so that¡¯s the reason why you were asking about that yesterday.]

    [Lady Yohana, you¡¯ve been on its trail all this time, so I guess you¡¯re more knowledgeable about its pattern.]

    [Uhm¡­ sure!] [I¡¯ll try find some spare map first, it¡¯ll let us easily tracked that thief¡¯s whereabouts.]

    [Just don¡¯t get too worked up.] [If he realized that we¡¯ve been searching for him, he¡¯ll try to go outside the barrier.] As Hilda gave her supports towards Vram, Yohana, and Josephine.

    [Umm¡­!!]

    Suddenly one of the girls from the ¡°Relief Units¡± was trying to say something toward the team, completely put in the awkward moods.

    [Uh¡­ I¡­ we¡­ we¡¯re very sorry about this¡­.] [Actually, we¡¯re not even sure that Senior Josephine would do something like that, but¡­.]

    [It¡¯s fine~?! It¡¯s fine~?!] [It¡¯s not like any harm was done to me and Vram, so everything was good~?!] [But make sure you all protect the food know, m¡¯kay~??]

    As she said that, Josephine, along with Hilda, Yohana, and Vram, starting to left the scene in order to find out the truth regarding the thief. Yet, the Relief Units, the Circles, and Elder Endrossa, still standing there as if they have some unfinished business

    [So¡­] [Trying to expel another person out of this village again, birdheads?] As somehow Endrossa went all-out with her insults toward the Circles.

    [You¡­!]

    [Can¡¯t you even feel it!?] [She¡¯s going to turn our village upside-down, just like what the ¡°others¡± doing!!]

    [If you¡¯re not showing off such malice intention towards her, all of this would never ever happen.] [Is it really that hard to accept ¡°them¡±? To accept her, at the very least?]

    [She¡¯s different than the rest of us!] [She¡¯s a monster!!]

    [And yet, the humans whom have been exiled us here also called us the same way.]

    [So what?!] [Isn¡¯t it normal to purge the abnormality before they took down our very own existence?!?]

    [Are you saying that you¡¯ll even went so far as to do what those humans do to us?! To become the same as them!?!?] Endrossa suddenly enraged at the very words the other member of the Circles had saying.

    [Ugh¡­!]

    [Then how about you yourself, Elder?!?] [Always trying to force your own decision toward us with your own power!] [Isn¡¯t that unfair by itself?!?!]

    [You just don¡¯t know when to quit, don¡¯t you?] As Endrossa calmed her intimidation off, the others just put up a deep breath.

    [We¡¯ll talk about this later at the consensus.] [For now, re-organizing the current food stock is more important.]

    Leaving the circles in doubt and the Relief Units confused, Endrossa leaving the scene.

 Chapter 13 - Unlucky Human Arc 4

    [Senior~~~!]

    [What¡¯s wrong, Fina?]

    [Does being a ¡°Gallant¡± unit including doing this all the time?]

    [It is.] [Why?]

    [I think I¡¯m going to become a Valiant.] [This job is too boring.]

    [What are you saying?!?] [As fellow witches, it is within our responsibilities of the strong to protect and care for those whose familiar weren¡¯t that good for battle!] [Even your familiar is also that of a protector!] [Be more serious!!]

    [But all we do is circling around the same places over and over again~!] [It¡¯s starting to tire me out~!] [Don¡¯t you think so, Vram~?]

    [I¡¯m used to it.]

    [EEEeeeeeeeeeeeeee????]

    As time goes by, Vram, Josephine, Yohana, and her familiar, Sear, a creature that had a very human-like face, with a feathered wing on its arms and some feather on her heads, with an exoskeleton legs and a claw equipped on its feet, was in the middle of patrolling around the villages, mainly the places where the act of robbery is happening.

    [But usually once a patrol was done, in no time, they¡¯ll be able to capture the criminals in no time!] [At least, that¡¯s what I¡¯ve known from the literature!]

    [You¡¯ve been reading too much Detective Story.]

    [*KUUUU!!!]

    Sear was returning from her flight back from observing the forest from the sky.

    [She said there¡¯s nothing strange around here either.] [Also, it seems that the culprit have been doing this at a random pace.]

    [What do you mean by that, Lady Yohana?]

    [We¡¯ve been seeing the places he¡¯s attacking, right?] [Most of the area he attacked was between the border of the barrier and the places where the food stock was stored at.] [There¡¯s no case of breaking in, so either this guy¡¯s quite good at stealing, or they have an accomplice.]

    [Why is that?]

    [Because the lock was made physically.] [For us magic users¡¯, unlocking the physical lock was quite a pain in the ass.] [And if we tried to force open it with magic, the Mana detector would¡¯ve caught her instantly.]

    [And a monster wouldn¡¯t be quite smart to do that, I presume.]

    [Exactly.]

    [Huh?] [But wasn¡¯t Elder Endrossa said that there was an invasion?]

    [I don¡¯t know the reasons why Elder would says that, but that¡¯s highly impossible.] [The barrier around this village will trap the invader inside a labyrinth without an exit.] [And the way out, or to be exact, the door toward the village can only be opened around many spans of years.]

    [That means¡­.]

    [Yes, only a weakened monster, a mana-user, or an immortal monster could ever went through.]

    [And a mana-user wouldn¡¯t have quite a speed to shake off your familiar, eh?]

    [Still, I couldn¡¯t believe that there was an invasion from the outer sides.] [Not to mention, recently a hordes of Vasp Queens were in quite a rage right now, so there¡¯s no way a normal human would be able to shook them off.]

    [[Ah¡­.]]

    Both Vram and Josephine froze up when they heard Vasp Queens name.

    [Anyway, we shouldn¡¯t be loitering around here for much longer.] [Let¡¯s search another places.]

    [Right¡­] with disheartened tone, Josephine responded to Yohana¡¯s suggestion.

    ***

    [THANKS FOR THE FOOD~!]

    Munching the Hamburger greedily, Yohana could only sighed seeing such inelegantly and unsightly posture of her junior Josephine.

    [You really hate these kinds of work, aren¡¯t you?] [Still, were you able to found some clues regarding this thief, Vram?]

    [That¡¯s hard to say.] [If the thief was a human, I have a bunch of ways to capture him.]

    [Hmm¡­ This is troubling¡­.]

    As the group was resting after patrolling for a bit longer, the group discussing about the next possible places where they may be attacked.

    [For now, I¡¯ve already warned the other food storages to reinforce their guard around their storage.] [Thanks to the recent blunder, it¡¯s easier to convince them now.]

    [Then I guess we just have to wait them to attacks once again eh¡­]

    [That¡¯s right.]

    As if ignoring the one whom should¡¯ve been following the discussion, Josephine just keep munching out the Hamburger she¡¯s been eating this whole time while Vram and Yohana just keeps discussing their next action.

    [By the way, Vram.] [What have you been doing all this time?] As Yohana were having a hard time wondering what Vram had been doing this whole time, scratching his weapon against some kind of mineral.

    [Hmm?] [Ah, this?] [I was sharpening my weapon.] [Thanks to my recent battle against the Vasp Queens, most of my armaments were in tatters.] [That¡¯s why; at least I need to do some maintenance to most of my unused weaponry.]

    [Wait a sec, what did you say?] [YOU FOUGHT AGAINST A VASP QUEENS!?!?!]

    The surprised Yohana made Josephine choke on her hamburger, which made Vram quite panicked.

    [*cough* *cough*!!] [Wha~t?! Don¡¯s surprise me like that, Senior~!]

    [I¡¯M THE ONE WHO SHOULD¡¯VE SAID THAT?!?!] [ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL YOUR FAMILIAR OFF?!?!?]

    [But that monster¡¯s the one whom attacked us first!!] [We¡¯re only trying to defend ourselves here!!]

    [Umm¡­ Lady Yohana, I shall explain what was actually happened.]

    After a brief moment, Vram started to explain the situation regarding Hilda and company¡¯s familiars, the Vasp¡¯s ability, as well as the situation that enveloped them.

    [Are you kidding me¡­?!] [For such a thing to happens¡­.]

    [I don¡¯t know much about the monsters, though¡­.] [Vram¡¯s the one whom fought against it.]

    [OF COURSE YOU SHOULD!] [Vasp Queen¡¯s ability to track down magical ability is much superior to its children!] [If you ever face one, your life will be lost in an instant!!] [*sigh*¡­ no wonder you were able to fulfill the quota in less than a week.]

    [Tehee~?!] As Josephine put out her tongue out while blinking her left eye.

    [DON''T "TEHEE~?!" ME, YOU IDIOT JUNIOR!!]

    [By the way, Master.] [I kinda forgot to ask this, but what are you going to do with the rest of the cocoon you¡¯ve collected?]

    [Ah, I need those for our later experiment regarding how to power you up, so we can¡¯t let it out yet.]

    [Hey, your familiar¡¯s strong enough as it is, so why are you even needed to power him up more?]

    [Though he may be strong, I admit, there are still so much dangerous monsters out there.] [That¡¯s why I need him to get stronger, in order to not let such things happen to Hilda¡¯s familiar anymore¡­.]

    Listening to her serious tone, Yohana felt kinda glad seeing her junior had grown up in some way, though that cannot be said with her attitude that keeps munching down her hamburger while speak such things.

    ***

    Another day has passed since the last incident regarding Vram¡¯s innocence of thievery, and the thief still shows no signs of appearing.

    [This is driving me crazy¡­!] [This kind of works really bore me out more than being a Valiant~!]

    [Bear with it.] [You¡¯re the one who volunteered to capture him yourself.]

    [I kno~w~~¡­] [Still, why hasn¡¯t the thief come out yet~!?]

    As Josephine can only whining as well as Yohana, whom started to get tired of lecturing her over and over again, Vram was dead silent, trying to think about something.

    {This is strange¡­.} {All it ever does is stealing some raw food.} {Even if it¡¯s a monster, there¡¯s a limit of how much of a glutton it is.} {Also, the food he stole weren¡¯t only one kind of a food.} {No matter how desperate such monster is, it¡¯s weird.} {Also, the interval between when he stole them and when he¡¯s not¡­.} {It doesn¡¯t even have a pattern on its own.} {Either it act on impulsively, or rather, there¡¯s something else behind this case¡­.}

    [Still no clues about the thief¡¯s whereabouts?]

    And somehow, Endrossa just suddenly appear right besides them, completely surprised everyone there.

    [Umm¡­ Elder¡­] [I¡¯ve been wondering about this, but how can you easily travels between places so fast like that?] [I never realized you were here¡­.]

    [Save the details for later.] [So, how was it?]

    [I¡¯m sorry.] [It¡¯s just that, somehow we¡¯re unable to link every clue we have here and there.]

    [Have you considered every possible thing that happened here?]

    [Well¡­ We do¡­ but it¡¯s just¡­.]

    [I see someone were still in a bind.] [So, how was it¡­?] As Elder Endrossa went a little closer toward Vram.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    [I¡¯m still unable to figure it out.] [The clues were all too ambiguous.]

    [Have you ever considered a raid from the outside?]

    [I did.] [And yet, it¡¯s still confusing enough.]

    [Wait, what you mean by that, Elder?!?] Yohana suddenly went outburst toward Elder Endrossa, unable to hide her surprise.

    [It is exactly what I¡¯ve been saying.] [The trails of his steps were coming from unknown region.] [Thus, it can be simplified that it was not from our places.]

    [Yet it is still unclear about its purposes.] [It does seem to be human, but the way it does things was too irrational.]

    [And that¡¯s what turns you into this state, I assume?]

    As Elder Endrossa pointing toward what Vram had been doing all this time, he was in the middle of grinding his sword. Though it supposed to be a sword, Vram had been grinding it for too long, causing it to be unnecessarily sparkly.

    [Damn.] [I grind it too much, it becomes fragile.] As he just casually hid it inside the ¡°Storage¡±.

    [So what do we do!?] [If even Vram were unable to figure out the thief¡¯s existence, then who could?!?]

    Josephine somehow went panicked all by herself, unable to help. This cause even Elder Endrossa to be annoyed as much as she had to grab her own forehead.

    [I guess not even an irregular will be able to solve such irregular case easily.]

    [Well it¡¯s not like we¡¯re completely clueless.] [It seems to be quite a wary opponent, considering he hasn¡¯t attacked us since we¡¯ve reinforced the guards.]

    [Then all we have to do now is waiting for his moves once again, eh?]

    [Quite right.]

    Just as they were in the middle of discussing the thief, suddenly another girl had been running frantically toward Elder and the others.

    [ELDER!!] [It¡¯s happening again!]

    [[[WHAT?!?!]]]

    ***

    A little girl was sobbing in the middle of the settlement, around the market area. A bruise can be seen around her arms while she¡¯s wiping her tears. The other witches are trying to calm her down as Vram and the others were trying to observe around the area.

    [This is doesn¡¯t make any sense.] As Yohana just makes a clueless remark right there.

    [What¡¯s happening?] As the Elder tried to approach the victim.

    [*hic¡­] [Th¡­ there was someone.] [It suddenly jumped right in front of me, and before I knew it, it hit me with that branch over there, and steals everything I¡¯ve had.] [I was so surprised and afraid, that I forgot to call my familiar.]

    [What was stolen?]

    [A hamburger¡­.]

    The moment she mentioned the stolen item, everyone around her went dead silent, unable to accept the reality that happens in front of them.

    [Really?] [I haven¡¯t tried it yet, is it really that tasty?]

    [WHAT ARE YOU SAYING YOHANA?!?!] Suddenly Josephine made a surprise remark from her behind, as it surprises Yohana so. [IT WAS A GODLY RECIPE, I TELL YOU!!] [The smoothness yet the crisp of the bun, a fresh-taste feeling coming from the combined salad, as well as the thick slice of bacon take over the half of the food itself.] [Combined with many condiments and cream, it was such a revolution to be able to create one!] [Not to mention, it was quite cheap and easy to make, so everyone can easily have a taste~!]

    [Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.] [Still, it doesn¡¯t even make any sense.] [All this time, he was attacking any unsafe region all around the farm, but now he brashly attacked the market area.] [Not to mention, he steal these hamburgers!!]

    [Maybe he¡¯s hungry?] As Josephine suddenly commented toward Yohana¡¯s remark.

    [WHAT KIND OF A MONSTER IS IT TO ATE SO MUCH OF OUR VILLAGE¡¯S STOCK, YET STILL ]

    [Yohana!] [We¡¯re in public, don¡¯t just carelessly spread information!!] As the Elder suddenly enraged seeing Yohana being panicked.

    [But¡­!!]

    [Also, from the information we¡¯ve been received, though most of them says that they can hardly sees the thieves, it can be said that it was definitely a human-shaped ones, because they said that it resembles us.]

    [You mean¡­.] [We were attacked by a human-type monster now?]

    [No.] [I think it was definitely a human.] [Now I understand.]

    The moment Vram mention what he had been thinking, everyone went silent.

    [I see¡­.] [So my guess weren¡¯t that far off.]

    [Wait a sec, that¡¯s impossible!] [There has been no sign of barrier breaking here and there?!] Yohana, expressed her disbelief, starting to shout at Vram.

    [It just means that we hadn¡¯t known a way to break the barrier without having to trigger the signals yet.] [Because we¡¯ve been too much focused on that fact, we just overlooked the fact how we human acts.]

    [And how do you come to this conclusion?]

    [By how we act.] [I may have been trained for these kinds of things, but most humans whom were being stranded in an unexplored continent such as this place would do anything to satiate themselves.] [This case is of no exception.]

    [How you act¡­ what do you mean by that?] Josephine start to be intrigued by what Vram had to say.

    [He¡¯s being desperate.] [I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s not that easy for him to reach this place, and since it wasn¡¯t easy to survive on the outer world either, it¡¯ll be easier for him to stay here.] [And once he couldn¡¯t hold his hunger, he starts doing these.]

    [Yet, why hamburger?]

    [I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s the easiest yet the most delicious food to be stolen.]

    [It IS delicious!!] As Josephine trying to reconfirm one useless fact.

    [Alright¡­.] As Yohana somehow forcefully trying to accept the fact while rubbing her heads. [Supposedly all this were the truth, how are we supposed to catch that man?]

    [I have an idea.]

    ***

    *SSSSZZZZZZSSSSSSSS

    A sizzling sound in the middle of the forest, a thin smoke spreading around it as Josephine fanned it all day long. Within the thin wire and above the fire, there lies a barbecue meat, big enough to feed more than a whole family counted.

    [Haa¡­¡­] Josephine starts drooling.

    [Wha¡­.] Yohana was left speechless seeing what kind of plan did Vram planned through. [What are you trying to pull here?!]

    [Well, we just have to wait a little bit longer.] As Vram tried to focus his vision toward the barbecue. [Guess it¡¯s time.]

    Vram was giving signal toward Josephine, that the plan was in motion, and that she needs to pull back.

    *GROOOOOOOOOOWL

    Suddenly a sound of something howling can be heard within Josephine¡¯s stomach as she started to get away from the fire.

    [Hungry¡­.]

    [You¡¯ve already ate so much before, and you still want more?!]

    [Tehee~?]

    [Don¡¯t make a noise.] [We need to be as silent as possible in order to ensure that he¡¯ll come to take the bait.]

    Hearing Vram¡¯s conviction, Yohana can only stay silent as she just trusted his instinct as well ordering her familiar to watch from the sky.

    As they keep waiting, the sizzling sound becomes louder as the Barbecue¡¯s began to be done. The reddish, charred meat unleashing such a smell that makes Josephine drooled so much Yohana had to uses her robes to wipe it all off.

    *KRSHK

    A sound of unnatural moving bush was heard near the fire, as Yohana was surprised to see it by herself. A figure, though not as big as Vram, was starting to get near the barbecue place, with black, ragged robe covering his whole body as he¡¯s reaching the barbecue.

    [Now¡­.!]

    Yohana was trying to order the familiar to quickly capture it, but Vram¡¯s hand gesture told her to hold it off for a bit. As Vram still trying to hold it off, the man¡¯s already had the meat in his hand. It can be seen that he¡¯s panicked because it was still so hot. As they keep waiting, waiting and waiting, the meat finally started to cool down and was ready to be eaten.

    [Until when are we going to¡­.!]

    Just before Yohana was almost being impatient, the man started to open its mouth and already going to munch the meat. In that split second, Yohana was both surprised and perplexed.

    *SWOOOOOOOOOSH!!

    Vram started to dash out, or to be exact, flew toward the man.

    [Huh?!]

    [Die!!]

 Chapter 14 - Unlucky Human Arc 5

    Deep inside the forest, there was a settlement where many gorgeous, busty half-naked women live inside. But though it was supposed to be a settlement, there were still too many mysteries linger on that place. Such is the cave where one person, in the middle of being chased by the mentioned women, was lying there.

    [Hey, Yohn¡­.]

    [Yes?]

    [I think we were supposed to look for something else entirely¡­.]

    [What are you talking about?]

    [WHY EVERY PLACE WE ATTACKED DOES WAS FOOD STORAGE?!?!] [WE¡¯RE NOT SOME LOST MAN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WOOD WHO COULDN¡¯T EVEN FIND ONE PIECE OF FOOD!!]

    [We are, Rud.]

    [Guh¡­!]

    [That aside, I was sure that the places we raided was a places with many treasures lying inside.] [Well we could also call these foods a ¡°treasure¡± though.]

    [I have to admit, these taste good.] [But all of them were raw!]

    [Except for that food you¡¯re currently munching in your hand.]

    [Yeah.] [It was supposed to be only a combination of bread, vegetables, and meat.] [Yet such deliciousness was out of this world.] [But still¡­!!]

    [Don¡¯t rush, brother.] [We still have a chance.]

    [Rrrgh¡­!]

    Inside the cave, a person with his wild red head and clothes that¡¯s already ragged that it could even count as a wardrobe anymore, named Rud, was in the middle of talking with some creature, that looked like a mouse, but with weird hairstyle on it, named Yohn.

    [*sigh¡­ if only I could have my way with the girls here¡­.]

    [Shut it.] [They¡¯re not a human, they¡¯re dangerous.]

    [But we¡¯re also not a human, aren¡¯t we?]

    The moment the mouse had said that, the red-haired man just went dead silent and started to go toward the entrance of the cave. Once he do, he smelled something good. It is a smell of something being burned. But it doesn¡¯t smell bad; rather, it was quite an enticing smell for those whom either was hungry till dead or just a mere glutton.

    [Hey, something smelled good.]

    [Goes off to food-hunting again?] [You sure are a greedy bastard.]

    [Nay!] [I just wanted to go and check what smell is this.]

    [*sigh¡­ I¡¯ll go too.] [Can¡¯t let our guard down just yet.]

    [You worry too much.]

    ***

    Leading in by their lust, or in this case, their glutton sense, the man and the primate reached the places where the smell originated from.

    [Look.]

    [A girl¡­ Hey, she¡¯s barely wearing anything!] The mouse suddenly commented toward the girl¡¯s cloth.

    [Weren¡¯t all of the girls here does that?]

    [What are you saying, you blind!?] [Most of the girl we saw there, though they wearing something see-through, it¡¯s still covered!] [Yet this girl, she boldly only wearing those underwear-like clothes!] [It¡¯s beautiful, I admit, but it¡¯s not sexy at all!!!]

    [Whatever you say¡­.]

    [Also, look at her expression!!] [It was an expression of glutton, not lust!] [Girls like her exist just only to wring out our wallet!!] [It¡¯s the most dangerous type of woman in this world!!]

    [It does seem like you¡¯ve had your fair share of trouble regarding them.]

    [And I won¡¯t ever get tricked anymore!]

    [Wait, why are we even discussing this?] [She¡¯s not even listening.]

    When both of them stop discussed the girl, suddenly she started to went somewhere. It piqued their interest.

    [Where¡¯s she going?]

    [To the toilet, I presume?]

    [Dude, that¡¯s rude.]

    [Don¡¯t play with your own name.] [And girls like her don¡¯t even need manners.]

    [Still, that¡¯s quite a smell the meat gave is.]

    [Sure is.] [Even I started to get tempted here.]

    [Should we look a little closer?] [Maybe that food had something with what we¡¯ve been searching for.]

    [I agree, brother.] [Let¡¯s take a look at it.]

    As they keep getting closer toward the fire, they didn¡¯t realize that they¡¯ve been making small voices, but their surrounding itself were also very quiet.

    [Dang, that¡¯s some fine meat they¡¯ve cooked.] [The last place we¡¯ve raided was mostly vegetables storage, so we¡¯ve been lacking in some meat.]

    [Hold your horses, brother.] [We need to ensure that nobody¡¯s looking at us.]

    As they keep talking to each other while Yohn was resting on Rud¡¯s shoulder, they just unconsciously were walking toward where the meat is.

    [And here we are, right in front of it.]

    [Dang, the closer we look, the more it looked delicious.]

    [Should we grab a bite?]

    [Are you trying to become a thief, brother?]

    [We already are, Yohn.] [It wouldn¡¯t hurt to steal one more.]

    [Do agree.]

    Just like a bug that keeps flying toward the lights, Rud slowly pulled over toward the fire and reaching out to grab the now was quite well done meat. As he grabbed the meat, it was so hot that he thrown it back and forth between his hand.

    [HOT HOT! AUCH OUCH!! HOT!]

    [Slow down!] [The meat won¡¯t go anywhere!!]

    [I know!]

    As he just grabs a hold of the meat, he blows it up bit by bit. And finally, as the meat had cooled down, he was ready to munch it down.

    [*slurp¡­ Alright then here I go.]

    As Rud was opened his mouth and moved the meat toward his head.

    *SWOOOOOOOOOSH!!

    Something started to dash out, or to be exact, flew toward Rud.

    [Huh?!]

    ***

    *JYASHHHHHH!!!

    As the armored man jumped out from the place, he quickly pulled a slender, metal spear and flew it right toward the man¡¯s head.

    [Igh!!]

    Rud, whom finally realized what was being aimed at him, quickly thrown the meat and evade it by a hair¡¯s width.

    *JRAAAK!!!!

    The Spear hit and pierced the meat, and both of it flew toward the nearest tree possible.

    [[THE MEAAAAAAAAAAT!!]] Both Rud and the woman who cooked the meat before started to scream together.

    [[IT¡¯S NOT THE TIME TO THINK ABOUT MEAT!!]] As both Yohn and other girl reminded both of them.

    [Let¡¯s get out of here!] [It¡¯s a trap!!!]

    [Cih!] [How dare they use such lowly method!]

    [Shut up, you lowly thief!]

    [You¡¯re the same as me, aren¡¯t you!?!?]

    While bickering, Rud and Yohn quickly retreating from the places as the armored man and the humanoid-bird from the sky were going after him.

    As they keep on running, Both black armored man and Rud were running at the same pace, that their distance hadn¡¯t change at all. Though the humanoid-bird was actually faster than the armored man, the obstacle around the forest slowed it down.

    [What the hell is that monster!?] [It¡¯s as fast as I am??]

    [Hey, it looked like a human to me!]

    [Really?!] [Then, I guess we could talk to him for a bit!]

    Just when Rud was thinking of slowing down, another spear was flying toward where Rud was supposed to run.

    *JYASHHHHHH!!!

    *JRAAAK!!!!

    As Rud was still running while Yohn was just sitting on Rud¡¯s shoulder, both of them can only went silent after seeing that.

    [A HUMAN YOUR ASS!!!] [NO HUMAN COULD EVEN THROW A SILVER SPEAR SO HARD LIKE THAT IT PIERCES THE TREE ITSELFS!!]

    [No! He may be stopped for a bit to collect more strength, and throw it with all his might!] [That means, he stopped chasing you!]

    [Really!?]

    Just as Rud was running while trying to turn his head on his back, the dread of seeing his chaser, a man donned in black armor while holding another silver spear on his hand, chilled Rud¡¯s body that he started to frantically running as hard possible to get away from that man.

    [HE¡¯S STILL CHASING, YOU BASTARD!!!]

    [IS IT POSSIBLE THAT HE¡¯S FASTER THAN US!!]

    *JYASHHHHHH!!!

    Just when Yohn was commenting about his speed, a spear flew right above Rud¡¯s shoulder, in other words, almost hitting Yohn¡¯s head.

    *JRAAAK!!!!

    [GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!]

    Yohn quickly turned and hiding inside Rud¡¯s neck.

    [Don¡¯t hide there!] [It¡¯s tickling!!] [BESIDES, I¡¯m the one he¡¯s aimed for!]

    [If I keep staying there, who knows when a stray shot will end up skewering me!!!]

    [It¡¯s a spear throw, not a shot!!] [Besides, it won¡¯t skewer you, it¡¯ll squash you like a mice you are!!]

    As the two still keep running and evading the endless flying spear, Rud can see a light shone from the between of the trees.

    [What?!] [Damn it, Rud!] [Turn back!]

    [WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!?] [ARE YOU SAYING THAT I SHOULD DO A SUICIDE RUN TOWARD THAT MONSTER?!?!]

    [No! If you keep running toward this way, you¡¯ll¡­!!!]

    As Rud keep on running toward the searing light, Rud was finally bathed in a sunlight as they reached what may have becoming Yohn¡¯s fear.

    [It¡¯s an open field¡­!] [That spear he¡¯s been throwing all this time was for that purpose!] [No wonder it was so well-aimed while we could easily evade them.]

    [Crap!] [If we stay here for too long, that bird will catch up on us!!!]

    [Don¡¯t panic, Rud!] [It¡¯s not that wide of a field, if we could run as fast as possible toward the other woods, we¡¯re safe!]

    At that moment, as Rud keeps frantically running toward the other woods, the armored man was also out of the woods. But suddenly he slowed his pace as he¡¯s stopped his own step, and the humanoid-bird was only flying around in the sky.

    [What¡¯s this?] [They stopped chasing?] [Are they tired???]

    [That¡¯s not possible.] [If that¡¯s the case¡­.]

    *THONCK!!!!

    ***

    Just when Rud was finally reached the other woods, he was bumped against something.

    [Guoooh!]

    [You hit the trees?]

    [What?] [But I was sure I was walking through the right way¡­!]

    As Rud was rubbing his own head while trying to walk toward the woods again, he felt something weird as he just keeps getting near the woods.

    *Thunck!

    [Gah!]

    [Again, brother?]

    [No!] [I was bumped into something entirely different!!]

    It was a wall. An invisible wall was standing right between Rud and the Woods. Yohn finally went out from Rud¡¯s neck as he checked whether he¡¯s right or not.

    [Damn, you¡¯re right.] [It¡¯s a barrier, we¡¯ve been trapped inside!] [That monster wasn¡¯t just all dread and scare!!]

    The black armored man, whom may have been thinking that he already succeed in trapping the thief, started to standing there motionlessly as he keeps staring toward Rud.

    [Dang it, acting all high and mighty here¡­!] [Hey Yohn, tell me what should I do!]

    Rud was keep asking Yohn for support, however, Yohn sound couldn¡¯t even be heard anymore.

    [Yohn¡­?] [Ah¡­?]

    As he trying to find out where he is, Rud found a small hole right besides his feet as he tried to gaze out of the barrier. Yohn was out there, out of the barrier through the small hole.

    [THIS BASTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARD!!!] [COME BACK HERE RIGHT AWAY, YOU IMBECILE OF A MICE!!!]

    Yohn was trying to say something to Rud, however, maybe it¡¯s because of the effect of the barrier, but he can¡¯t hear anything Yohn had said.

    [I CAN¡¯T HEAR WHAT YOU¡¯VE SAYING, YOU BASTARD!!!]

    After a while, Yohn showing a gesture of trying to dig something, as if trying to send a message toward Rud.

    [Oh I see¡­ You want me to DIG the ground to run away?] [Sure, if HE¡¯S NOT THERE TRYING TO STOP ME HERE!] As Rud pointing toward the black armored man.

    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    After saying that, the black armored man start coming closer toward Rud, as Rud were being alert of the armored man¡¯s movement.

    [This bastard just casually walking toward me¡­.] [Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s cheating, fighting against an unarmed man with so much armament on your back?!?!]

    What Rud had been saying doesn¡¯t make any sense, since he was supposed to be the vigilante, not the victim. It can be said that Rud had already lost his mind ever since he entered the Village. But yet¡­.

    *JRAK!

    Suddenly in front of Rud, a single broadsword was lying right in front of him as the armored man unsheathed his own sword. Rud was still on alert, thinking that it was another trap laying in front of him. But seeing that black armored man just took on an empty pose while wielding the sword, Rud started to get a hold of himself and also took the sword.

    *SHCRAAK!

    Now both Rud and black armored man had wield sword on each arms, as Rud circling around black armored man, trying to find an opening in black armored man¡¯s pose, though it can be said that Rud was not even capable of such feat.

    [YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!]

    Rud swings his sword vertically downward toward the armored man. Though it took most of his strength only to swing it away, black armored man was just casually circled back and swung his sword vertically upward.

    *CRAAAAAAANG

    It is as everyone expected, the sword that was once on Rud¡¯s hand was repelled far high from his sight, and stabbed the ground in his back. It was just a moment, but Rud was unable to comprehend what the armored man had done to it, as he wields a sword no more.

    {What in the¡­.} Rud was left speechless of things that are happening right in front of him.

    The black armored man came closer toward him, but suddenly Rud, whom started to panicked, stopped him with his arm raised in front of him.

    [WAIT!] [IF WE THINK ABOUT THIS CALMLY, AREN¡¯T YOU BEING UNFAIR?!?] [I MEAN, THAT SWORD LOOKED SO STURDY AND SHARP, WHILE MINE WERE BEING SHABBY!] [WE SHOULD TRADE IT!]

    It was nothing but an empty reasoning. Yet the black armored man stood still for a while,  throw the sword on his hands toward Rud,, then steps toward Rud¡¯s back to took back the sword that was once in Rud¡¯s hand.

    [HA! YOU STUPID!] [NOW THAT I HAVE YOUR BEST SWORD, YOU¡¯RE NO MATCH FOR ME, YOU BLACK MONSTER!!]

    A vain confidence. Such ego had totally permeated into Rud¡¯s mind as he mindlessly swings his sword again toward the black armored man vertically downward again, yet¡­

    *PRAAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!!

    It happened in an instant. From the last posture the black armored man shows, he only swung his sword horizontally. But somehow, he bleeds. Rud started to bleed, though not that deep. The cut was shown on his cheek, his neck, and his arms. The cause of such wounds was coming from the shards of the swords. The sword, which was supposed to be thicker and longer than what the black armored man currently holding, was destroyed in an instant and its fragments was hurting Rud.

    [Wa¡­ what the¡­.]

    He finally sees it. No, he did see it, he just unable to realize it. Having his sense dulled from many things that happened when he first arrived here, and with his recent crime, he was unable to realize the truth within this place, this village, this forest, this island. What stands before him, is now becomes what he was once feared before he set foot onto this island.

    {He¡¯s really serious¡­!} {It¡¯s going to slaughter me¡­!!!}

    Sensing that his life was somehow in danger, Rud changed his posture. Though it is not polished yet, one can see that Rud had prepared to have a faceoff with such monsters right in front of him. The black armored man had realized the changes, and somehow, started to raises his arms toward the back.

    [What¡­?]

    *SWOOOOOOOOSH!!!

    As he swings it forward into the air, he unleashed an infinite amount of weapons, sword, axe, club, spear, anything that can be used to kill people, were being flung toward the air. Rud was left speechless as he saw one of the weapons had already flown toward him.

    [UWAAAA!!!]

    ***

    [What in the world is that thing¡­!?]

    Yohn was outside of the barrier, so he couldn¡¯t do anything but watch. But even if he could, he would prefer to not get near them. What currently happened inside the barrier was not something people would like to interfere.

    [*pant¡­ *pant¡­.!]

    Inside was his partner, Rud, in the middle of trying hard to survive the waves of attacks coming from the black armored man. The moment the weapons were flying from his hands, Rud was frantically running while evading each and every weapon that came flying toward him, but as Yohn had suspected, Rud was unable to evade most of the attacks, leaving him in tatters. Before they knew it, the whole field inside the barrier becomes a forest, with weapons growing out from it.

    The black armored man started to charge in while pulling the sword on his right. Seeing that, Rud also quickly pulled an axe on his right hand.

    *CHRAAASH!!!!

    The two weapons clashed each other hard enough that the sound itself penetrated the barrier. Though they clash against each other, it was just Rud trying to defend himself from waves of attacks unleashed by the black armored man. As the black armored man swiftfully played the sword on his hand, he keeps sweeping Rud straight toward the back as Rud was frantically defending by just depending on the length of the axe alone.

    *PRAAAAAAAAAK!!

    Though it was to be expected, eventually the axe started to broke after defending against torrent of attacks from the black armored man. Nevertheless, Rud weren¡¯t as panicked as before and started to run away from him as he trying to find a good equipment for him to use. As he keeps running, he finally found one.

    *JRAAAAANG!!

    Though Rud still gets pushed back by a bit, he finally able to stop the black armored man¡¯s charge with a big shield he held in his hands.

    [Weapons¡­!!]

    But before he was able to grab a weapon on his right hand....

    *JBRAAAAAAAAAAAAAANGK!!!

    [GAH!!]

    He¡¯s already thrown far away. Rud was having a hard time seeing his front because the shield is too big that it blocks his view, so he didn¡¯t realize that the black armored man had already changed his weapon to that of a hammer. A big, round hammer wielded with two hands on his possession blows Rud away together with his shield.

    [Damn you¡­!!!]

    Not stopping, he¡¯s standing as fast as possible and quickly took a spear and a small shield on both hands and started to charge towards the black armored man as he also throws away his hammer and changed it into one pole spear and swiftly dashed toward him.

    The clash of weapons, which wasn¡¯t what Rud possess, keeps happening though it was clearly a one sided battle as the black armored man slowly chipped away Rud¡¯s stamina. Yohn started to worry as he already knew how the battle will go on.

    [If this goes on, Rud will die¡­!!] [Is there something I could do¡­!]

    After saying that, Yohn started to frantically run encircling the whole barrier as he tried to find some clue.

    [GHAHK!!!]

    While inside the barrier, Rud already lost yet another weapons, but still pull some more weapons, mainly shield and spear, as he quickly stepped back again and again. Though it looked like Rud was clearly planning something, the black armored man keeps gaining and charging onto him.

    *JRAAAAASH!

    [URGH!!!]

    Using sword on both of his hands, the black armored man slashed through Rud¡¯s defensive stance and sliced through his chest, as blood started to pour out from his body. The pain was so massive that Rud ended up dropping back the weapon he had frantically took. But nonetheless, he¡¯s still standing, while keeping his eyes open and glaring toward the black armored man.

    [Almost¡­!]

    *BLAAAAAAAR!!!!

    While struggling just to run away, he took another giant shield and started to back away as he tried to take another weapon. But the black armored man just quickly changed his weapon back to hammer and start to slam it up toward where Rud was standing, trying to flatten him.

    [Damnit¡­ Being strong had it limits, bastard!!!]

    Even in his critical condition, it seems that Rud still had enough energy to comment back as he finally being cornered on the barrier.

    [*pant¡­. *pant¡­.]

    Rud and the black armored man stand still for a while. They observe each others, as they planned on their next move while already seeing that the next move shall be the deciding match, for Rud at least. Took one more hit, and he¡¯s already gone, while the black armored man still had enough stamina to last much longer than him.

    {Still¡­ I have a chance¡­!}

    Though fear still lingers within his mind, mental, and body, despair never took him away. Or to be exact, he already experienced the same condition that he may have a moment of reminiscing.

    {This much is nothing compared to what I¡¯ve been through before I¡¯ve reached this place¡­!} {I will¡­!!!}

    Readying the short spear that he already took hold before and hid inside his cloths, he took it out quickly that the black armored man seems shocked seeing that. Using that chance, Rud raises his arm and aiming toward the black armored man.

    [EAT THIS!!!!!!!]

    *FWOOOSSH!!!!

    He threw it straight toward Vram. But it was as expected of the black armored man to evade the spear as well charging straight toward Rud, that now had already hiding inside his huge shield.

    *JSHHRAAAAAAAAAAAAK!!!

    As the black armored man swings his hammer toward the shield, he suddenly felt something amiss and stopped his charges as well stopped his swing.

    *BRAKKH!!

    There was no one behind the giant shield as it was left fallen on the ground just like that. The black armored man left in awe seeing such feat in such condition.

    [IF ONLY YOU KEEP CHARGING TOWARD, YOU COULD AT LEAST BROKE THE BARRIER WITH IT!!!] [BUT I SHALL HAVE MY OWN FIRST STRIKE NOOOOOOWWWWW!!!!]

    Charging from the side, Rud had already wielded a lance on his hands, charging straight toward the black armored man. Since he was already stopping before, it will be hard for him to swing his hammer back at Rud whom have already had him in his range.

    [WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!]

    Yet, the black armored man let go of his hammer, dropped it there, and also went straight toward where Rud is unarmed. Though Rud was still in the middle of his war cry, his expression already changed from that of a brave soldier into that of a losing dog. The black armored man parry Rud¡¯s lance by sliding his metal gauntlet onto the lance¡¯s side, grazing the armor whilst raises his other arms, clenched it, and swing it straight and fast toward Rud¡¯s face.

    *BUAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!

    Coincided with the sounds of falling hammer, Rud was already thrown far away from where he originally is. But as if one bump is not enough, he keeps bumping the ground twice, thrice, and so on until he finally reached the end of the field.

    *BRAAKKKK!!

    And slammed onto the trees.

    [Y¡­ou¡­. Bastard¡­ so yo..u¡­ can als¡­o use¡­. Bare¡­ hands¡­!!]

    Uttering his last, farewell words of a loser, Rud¡¯s finally lost consciousness as the black armored man approaching him.

    [¡­ Though ignorant, he fought well¡­.]

    And started to drag him elsewhere.

 Chapter 15 - Unlucky Human Arc 6

    Pitch black. It is what the man whom has just recently lost against such a monster has seen. Nothing to be seen, nothing to be sought.

    [*groan¡­ where¡­ is this¡­.]

    A spark of light returned a bit into his vision. The black that has been covering his sights started to lit bright as he tried to pry open his eyes bit by bit.

    [Urk¡­!!]

    [*Shwawa Shwawa Shwawa Shwawa!]

    [Eh?]

    Some noises can be heard the moment he opened up his eyes. As his sight finally went back to normal, a surprising scene can be seen. A cage. Or to be exact, a round, wooden cage with some words inscribed on it can be seen circling around him at some ranges. And beyond the cage, many girls with skimpy clothes can be seen here and there. These girls are what both of them knew as a Witch.

    [What the¡­ this place is¡­?]

    [Probably an execution place, partner.]

    The moment Rud heard his own partner¡¯s voice; he struggled, trying to find out the source of the voices. And then Rud finally realized that he was being bound into something akin to a metal coffin, unable to moves away. His hands were bound straight and his legs were tightly stretched downward. Like someone whom was going to be baptized.

    As he finally saw where the voice was coming from, Yohn was already besides him, being trapped inside of something that looked a lot like aquarium.

    [¡­ Are you being made as an aquarium pet?]

    [Huck! NO!!] [When I was trying to find the one whom made these kinds of barrier, she¡­!]

    [*Shwawa? Shwawa wawa? Shwawawa~!]

    In her back, a girl, with long brown hair flowing through her back with clothes that¡¯s almost similar to a swimsuit, started to poke and tickle Yohn.

    [JYAHA!! JYAHAHAHAHAHAH!! STOPH! STOPH!!!!!]

    [¡­ Must be nice being treated so nicely, eh¡­?]

    [You think¡­ AHAH! I¡¯m enjoy- AHAHAH! THIS?!?! AHAHAHAAHH!?!?]

    [*Shwa~~?]

    [SHE¡¯S TOTALLY ENJOYING PLAYING WITH ME!]

    [Well weren¡¯t that supposed to be your long lost dream? To be played by a beauty such as her?]

    [I can¡¯t enjoy it if all she ever speak of was ¡°*Shwawawa¡±!!!]

    [Ah¡­!]

    Though from their own ears it may have been heard that way, the girls were actually speaking something. The words were somehow akin to that of a magic spell. But since Rud cannot even use magic, all he ever heard of was *Shwawawa.

    [Uh¡­ Can somebody understand what I¡¯m saying?] [I¡¯m not trying to do something funny here¡­.] [I just wanted to find something¡­!]

    [Says that after you stole a few of their food stock, you shameless thief!]

    [DON¡¯T ACT LIKE YOU¡¯VE NEVER INVOLVED, BASTARD!]

    *BLAARR!

    Suddenly a surge of flame exploded right besides Rud¡¯s head. It was a girl, though a little bit short compared to the other girls, her gaudy yet sparkly clothes shows that she somehow had a position higher than everyone else in this village.

    [*Shwa! Shwawawa! Shwawawawa!?]

    [What the hell are you saying?!] [*Shwawa?]

    *BUAKH!!

    [OHOKH!!!!]

    Suddenly a red-haired girl right beside him launched a roundhouse kick toward Rud¡¯s stomach, and since Rud can¡¯t even lift a finger, he took the full-brunt of such damage that the pain was unbearable.

    {Wha¡­ What was that??!} {I thought they were supposed to be the same as magician, but this kind of power¡­ not even a knight had this much strength!!}

    Rud was in pain. Much more pain compared to anything he had been through that he was unable to raise his voice at all. Moreover, somehow the red haired girl never uttered a single word at all, as it also make the other girls silent.

    [*Shwawa.] [*Shwawawawa Shwa.]

    Though he still unable to understand anything, the gestures seemed like she ordered everyone else to clear out of the place. Since he doesn¡¯t understand anything, he thought that the girl was just being kind to not threat or do anything to him. However it was a mistake.

    [HEY PARTNER! SHE¡¯S GOING TO INCINERATE YOU!!!]

    [WHAT!?!?]

    [*SHWA!?] [*SHWAWAAWAWAWA!!]

    Suddenly another girl, the long brown haired girl that has been playing with Yon, interrupted while prolonging Rud¡¯s fate a little bit longer. Chaos ensues as one girl was trying to roast Rud alive while one girl was trying to preserve his life.

    [I CAN¡¯T EVEN UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ALL ARE FIGHTING ABOUT!!] [I¡¯M HERE BECAUSE I NEED TO FIND A GRIMOIRE!!!!]

    Though Rud had screamed his lungs out it makes his throat sore, the girls never even looked back at him. Just then, suddenly the black armored man whom have been standing on the sides were stepping forward and stopped the girls. After that, he went closer toward Rud.

    [What?]

    *BWAGH!!!

    [*OHOAHK!!!]

    Another punch was flying toward Rud¡¯s stomach. As if the red haired girl¡¯s kick weren¡¯t enough, he had to receive a much stronger punch from him, which Rud¡¯s stomach was unable to endure anymore and start letting out what was inside of it straight toward the mouth. He was vomiting.

    [That¡¯s not good for your stomach, partner.]

    [*cough¡­ *cough¡­!!] [Wh¡­ what the hell is your problem!?]

    [I¡¯m the one who should be asking that.] [What is your problem?]

    [Huh?!]

    ***

    {What?} {What in the world is he saying!?!}

    Seeing both Josephine and Hilda are bickering is one thing. But what causes him to finally act was that the man started to shout and mentioned something that should¡¯ve never been said.  Vram suddenly stepped up inside and started to stopped Josephine and Hilda. Actually Hilda didn¡¯t want to stop, but she¡¯s feeling it, feeling that something serious had been happened that Hilda had to stop. After that, Vram gets closer toward the red-haired man, and ¡®that¡¯ happened.

    [*cough¡­ *cough¡­!!] [Wh¡­ what the hell is your problem!?]

    [I¡¯m the one who should be asking that.] [What is your problem?]

    [Huh?!]

    [Wait!?] [You understand our languages?!?!]

    Yohn was quite surprised hearing that Vram was able to understand their language. The girl behind them, whom have been bickering, suddenly stopped as they saw him conversed with the humans.

    [I have been able to hear what both of you had been saying ever since the beginning.]

    [Then why are you chasing us and doing such violent things?!?]

    [Should you ask that after what have you done to this village?]

    [Ugh¡­.]

    Yohn was at loss for words. He had nothing on his defense after what he has done.

    [Then why are you doing that before?!?]

    [Doing what?]

    [That fight before!!] [You were clearly harassing and toying with me as you¡¯re trying to kidnap me here, aren¡¯t you!?!]

    [Ah, that.] [It was your punishment, I suppose.]

    [Harassing people is your idea of punishment?!]

    [I suppose it is.]

    [Then what¡¯s the deal with these treatment and those woman?!?!] [Were your punishment is not enough?!]

    [That¡¯s not it.] [At first, both I and my master were thinking of sending you out of this continent after dealing with you.] [But unfortunately, you were unlucky that your talking mouse partner was kidnapped by others.] [Thanks to that, they realized your existence, and decided to place some capital punishment toward you.]

    [AND WHY IS THAT?!?]

    [Because you¡¯re a human.]

    [Eh?]

    Rud¡¯s head suddenly went blank. The reasoning was too absurd that he couldn¡¯t find the right words to rebuke Vram¡¯s word.

    [I knew to some extent that the witches held a deep grudge toward the humans, whom exiled them here.] [But I¡¯ve never given it much thought of how deep it was.] [To think that some of them would prefer you be roasted alive.]

    [Wait a second!] [That¡¯s not something to joke about!!]

    [But weren¡¯t you yourself a human?] Yohn asking confusingly toward Vram.

    [I don¡¯t think I am.] [What do you think?]

    Yohn and Rud just went silent. If they had just met casually, one can only think that the man in front of him were indeed humans, but after seeing what he¡¯s actually capable of, that thought just flew away.

    [So¡­ can we ask of you a little favor?] Yohn was trying to bargain with Vram with desperate look. [You see, maybe we were wrong for what we¡¯ve done before, but our reason to come here weren¡¯t as hostile as you¡¯d think.]

    [Now that¡¯s the part I¡¯m having a hard time to understand.]

    [We¡¯re here not to harass the people living here!] [We¡¯re here to find the Grimoire!!]

    [And what are you going to use it for?]

    Though Vram asked in a calm voice, it can be felt that Vram was already raged, just by seeing his gesture. This somehow made Rud and Yohn tremble in fear, seeing the human-like monster in front of them.

    [*Shwa?!] [Shwawawawawa?]

    [Hmm?] [Well they seem to come from the same continent as I do.] [Our way of talking is a bit different though.]

    Though Vram could easily understood what the girl had been saying, Rud and Yohn still having a hard time deciphering what they¡¯ve said.

    [Shwawa.] [Shwawawawawa.]

    [¡­.]

    The moment the girls asking him to do something, Vram just went silent as the girl in front of him were glaring toward him. Or maybe begging him.

    [You.]

    [What?]

    [What is your reason for searching a Grimoire?]

    Rud fell silent at the sudden question lingers before him.

    [I¡­] [I wanted to restore my body¡­!]

    [What?]

    [I need it to return back to become a human!!]

    [Hey, partner!] [You can¡¯t just reveal such things toward other people that easily.]

    [Either way I will die here!!] [At least¡­ I want to die as a human¡­!]

    [What do you mean by that?]

    Rud was just getting silent for a bit, then starting to explain things to Vram. He was originally a guardsman at some small village, when suddenly some mysterious people were doing some weird experiment on that village. Rud was somehow survived thanks to Yohn, but when they were able to escape, Rud started to feel something strange from his body.

    [My body doesn¡¯t ages no matter how many years have passed.] [Also, no matter how much I¡¯m wounded, the next moment, my body just starting to heal itself.] [But as time goes by, I have caused great pain toward other people thanks to my body!] [That¡¯s when I have heard rumors that a Grimoire could restore my body!] [I beg of you!] [I don¡¯t care if I was dying or even made as your slave, but at the very least, please let me restore my body to normal!!!]

    Vram was silent for a bit after hearing Rud¡¯s desperate plea. He finally understood why he was able to go through the ¡°labyrinth barrier¡±. It¡¯s not that he pierced through the barrier. It was him, travelling inside the labyrinth for god knows how many years had gone by, and finally reaching this place. The girls around him, though unable to understand his word, were somehow influenced by his desperate tone. Also, small tears can be seen on Rud¡¯s eyes. After a bit, Vram started to take something from his ¡°storage¡±.

    [Bear with me for a bit.]

    [Huh?]

    *JRAKK!!!

    [GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!]

    [Partner!?!?!?]

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Vram stabbed Rud¡¯s left arm with a knife. But though the length of it was a lot like a knife, the shape is too weird. It was a wavy blade that doesn¡¯t look sharp enough to cut something, yet it was filled with malice aura that seemed to be able to cut anything in one slash. And yet, Rud was stabbed using that malice dagger.

    [YOU BASTARD!?] [HE¡¯S SPEAKING THE TRUTH, YET YOU STILL WON¡¯T BELIEVE HIM!?!] Yohn enraged at the way Vram¡¯s suddenly act.

    [I believe him.]

    [Then¡­!]

    [It¡¯s a demonstration.]

    [Huh?]

    After a bit, Vram pulled the dagger and started to observe Rud¡¯s hand.

    [*hah¡­ *hah¡­ *cough¡­!!]

    After waiting for a while, there are some reactions on Rud¡¯s skin. The part that was cut was somehow filled with reddish light as the inner sides of Rud¡¯s body were regenerating at fixed pace. In a while, the wound was completely healed.

    [*Sh¡­ Shwa¡­?!?]

    [Master, Lady Endrossa, Lady Yohana, Lady Hilda, member of the circles, I suggest to release him and just punish him appropriately for his crime, not for his existence.] [He is not a human.]

    [*Shwa?!?!?!]

    ***

    [An experimental monster?!?]

    The ladies in front of Vram were unable to hide their surprise after hearing Vram explanation. While in the back, Rud was already released as Josephine and Christine were treating him, while Yohana and Rosalinda were playing around with Yohn.

    [That¡¯s right.] [It may have been something unprecedented for you all.] [But since humanity was quite abundant in numbers, some people justified that to start human experiments toward themselves.] [Some of you realize that there are monsters that resemble a human in the outer continent, right?] [That¡¯s how they are originated from.] [Though maybe that guy¡¯s case was a bit different, but it can be safely deduced that he was a survivor from the experiments.]

    The girls, including Endrossa and Hilda, were unable to grasp the meaning of experimenting toward their own kin. It was plausible, considering that even if the witches¡¯ population was quite large in this village, it is still small compared to the amount the humans have. Still one fact can be inferred that that man, Rud, was not a human. Therefore capital punishment was unnecessary.

    {Still, I was surprised to hear that humans were directly subjected to capital punishments when they invaded this village.} {I guess that¡¯s the main reason why Josephine originally didn¡¯t want me to talk despite me being her familiar.}

    [Can we really trust that guy and your words?] [He still looked a lot like a humans to me.]

    [I¡¯ve already demonstrated it before right?]

    [Weren¡¯t human can also uses magic?] [He maybe uses some kind of tools to hide his voice when casting the healing magic.]

    [I know, that¡¯s why I stabbed him with this.]

    Vram then showed the knife that he used to stab Rud before. The knife was so deadly that Rud was already having a hard time breathing, or even talking. He was barely conscious the moment the girls releases her.

    [This knife was called a ¡®Kris¡¯.] [It¡¯s a trash if the one wielding it doesn¡¯t have much experience, but if one were successful to stab someone with this, it¡¯ll completely cut their nerves and render it unable to be regenerated, that some people rather have their whole arms cut.] [Yet he barely conscious as well as the wound on his arm were completely healed, though he maybe in a state where he would be unable to move it for a while.]

    The others shivered hearing Vram¡¯s quick explanation of his knife. Rud¡¯s condition already explaining the deadliness of such weapon that no one dares to ask more question.

    [Vram?]

    Suddenly Josephine approached Vram from behind. It seems that, while Josephine had been treating Rud, somewhere in the middle, she was doing some kind of experiment, as Rud can see a glass-like pendant with an accessories slot for earrings in her hands.

    [I¡¯m sorry, but can I ask to share some of your blood?]

    [Sure, how much?]

    Without even flinching or questioning her, Vram quickly dropped his Kris on the ¡°Storage¡± while pulling out another type of knife as well as quickly removed his armguards.

    [Well, not that much though, at least to fill this much.]

    As Josephine showed the glass-like pendant container on her hand, Vram started to aim the knife toward his hand, then slowly cutting through his nerves, as it spurts some blood. Some girls were curious to see what kind of blood Vram had. To their surprise or not, Vram¡¯s blood were beet red, just like humans and themselves. As Josephine obtained her fill of Vram¡¯s blood, she quickly put the pendant toward the Earrings and started to chant a little.

    [Join, Attach, and Blend.]

    A small vortex swirling around the earrings as it finally becomes a magic item. Josephine was doing a small jump showing her being excited after seeing her successfully creating something. Then she quickly went toward Rud and starts to place the earring onto Rud¡¯s left ear.

    [Umm¡­ Lady Josephine¡­ what in the world are you doing?]

    [We¡¯ll just see~?] [Excuse me~?] [Can you hear me~??]

    [Urgh¡­ yes?]

    {WHAT?!}

    All the girls are astonished seeing that they were somehow able to understand what Rud had been saying.

    [YA~Y~!!!] [Alright then, shall we burn you, mister thief~??]

    [Wait, what have I done wrong?!?]

    All of the girls¡¯ mouth were opening as wide as possible, seeing that Josephine excitedly conversing and teasing with the ones whose language was incomprehensible before.

    [What has she done?!?] [How in the world she was able to do that?!?!]

    The girls whispering toward each other as Josephine still enjoying herself teasing and conversing with the thief.

    [HOI!] [PARTNER!!]

    [Uh¡­?]

    [How can you understand what that weird girl had been saying?!?]

    [What are you talking about; she¡¯s just speaking like everybody else¡­ eh?]

    Rud finally woke up. Just before, all he could ever hear was *shwa *shwa. But now he was able to comprehend what the girls had been saying. Though all Yohn hear toward his ears were still the same foreign words.

    [What have you done?!?!] Rud panicked and asked the girl who have been in front of her, excitedly teasing him.

    [Oh?] [I was just thinking that actually your language and Vram were quite similar.] [But somehow Vram¡¯s word were understandable to us as well as our word were being understood by him, even though it was actually a completely different language.] [So I was thinking that maybe Vram had special perception ability to understand our languages, so I tried to make an earring to give you the same perception ability as what Vram had.]

    Rud was stupid, so he only understood a half of what Josephine had been saying. But he understood that he was actually hearing what Vram was hearing. Thanks to that, Josephine and the girls can have a proper interrogation now.

    [Now, let¡¯s see¡­.] [Elder, does his punishment have been decided~?]

    [Sadly not yet.] [The moment we saw the figure of the culprit, we quickly decided a capital punishment for him.] [But now that it was known that he¡¯s simply a monster, we¡¯re having a hard time deciding his punishment.] [Though since it was you who captured him, you¡¯re free to offer something.]

    [Then¡­!] [Make him my slave!]

    [[[[[[[Hah?]]]]]]]

    Almost everybody was surprised at Josephine¡¯s answer, and then while a little bit panicked, Josephine tried to explain.

    [Well, here¡¯s the thing.] [Although I may already have Vram and I just know how great he is when it comes to supporting me when I was in the middle of experimenting something, it¡¯s not that he was completely free.] [Since I was asking him to do something a lot, he ended up losing some of his free time.] [That¡¯s why, when it¡¯s possible, I want him to do something he¡¯d like to do once in a while, while there are another person who would helped me for free.]

    [In other words¡­ a forced labor, eh?]

    [That¡¯s certainly is interesting.]

    [WHAT!?] [WAIT! WAIT A MINUTE!!] [I DID SAY THAT I WAS FINE WITH BEING AS A SLAVE, BUT¡­!]

    Before Rud had something to say, Vram quickly interrupt him.

    [Just shut up for a bit.]

    [But¡­!]

    [She¡¯s trying to help you.]

    [Huh?]

    [I¡¯ve already explained your circumstance to her, which is why she comes to this conclusion.] [She wanted your help to resolve the things that¡¯s happening inside your body.] [But experimenting on a public criminal like you was actually forbidden since your fate was to be subjected by them collectively.] [That¡¯s why she does this.]

    [What¡­ why would she goes that far¡­?]

    [Because she¡¯s an idiot.] Suddenly a red-haired girl, whom was kicking her before, interrupted their talk.

    [She¡¯s a na?ve girl whom always trying her best to help people when in bind.] [So much that she ended up hurting herself sometimes.]

    [Hmm¡­ I thought she¡¯s just an experimental maniac and a glutton on top of that.]

    *WHACK!!!

    Suddenly a flying kick was thrown at such speed toward Rud¡¯s head that his head was quickly buried under the ground.

    [Listen here, you ungrateful uneducated unclean unscrupulous insensitive disgusting bastard.] [You have no right to badmouth the one whom were going to be your master from now on.] [And Vram, sheath your sword.]

    [¡­ Alright.] Vram, whom also enraged hearing such insults from Rud, almost strikes Rud with his sword only to have it sheathed again.

    [So, what¡¯s your answer?]

    [O¡­ okay¡­!]

    *BHAHK!!

    [HNGH!!!!!!!!]

    It was being stepped on. Rud¡¯s ¡°nether region¡± in between his legs was being stepped on hard with her metallic shoes that it makes a strong sounds. Most females weren¡¯t understood it, but Yohn and Vram understood such pain and started to shiver.

    [That¡¯s the wrong answer.]

    [U¡­ Understood, ma¡¯am.]

    [I¡¯ll let it go for now.] [Vram, teach him manners.]

    [As you wish, lady Hildegarde.]

    After seeing such scene, Vram quickly retreated and referred Hilda with a dignified and straight manner. After finished discussing about Rud¡¯s condition, Josephine finally returned.

    [Sorry about that¡­ What¡¯s happening?]

    [I taught him how to show proper manners toward his master and his master¡¯s colleague.]

    [Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t really understand but okay~?]

    Josephine started to go toward Rud and pulled him out from the ground.

    [Hey, so¡­.]

    [Yes, master?]

    Rud was quickly being submissive toward Josephine. The lesson was quite paid off.

    [Ehehe~?] [You actually don¡¯t have to call me that when it¡¯s just you, me, and Vram.]

    [But¡­!]

    [Then shall I introduce myself?] [My name is Josephine, what¡¯s your name?]

    [I¡­.]

    Though it was normal for Josephine, it has been a long time since Rud received such hospitality after being turned into the way he was. Tears flowed from one of his eyes as Josephine sees and tried to wipe it off.

    [My name¡­ is Ruido, but most people call me Rud.]

    [Alright~?] [Shall we go now, Rud~?]

    [¡­ Alright.]

 Chapter 16 - Unlucky Human Arc 7

    <blockquote><cite>Quote:</cite>Sorry for the prolonged delay, some kind of trouble happened around my neighborhood,

    Will try to keep this story going, so please enjoy~</blockquote>

    *Screeech~! *Screeech~!

    Outside of the tent where a witch usually lives, two men were sitting beside it, while grinding their sword over and over again.

    [True descendant?]

    [Are you familiar with it?]

    Rud was asking Vram something regarding what had happened to him in the past. Since it does looked like Vram was also coming from the same region as him.

    [I knew some general knowledge about occult terrorism, but I rarely heard about the True Descendants.] [But judging through its name, I think it relates from the legends of our true descendant.]

    There was a legend that says that the Land Dwellers, or in this case, people whom reside in this world were actually a fake. It is said that their ascendant was once coming from the sky in order to linger in this place. As day goes by, their ascendant had to return to the sky for some reasons. Before they leave the Land, they have created many populations in order to ensure the stability in the land. That is the Land Dwellers.

    But one day, when the divines have returned from the sky, the Land Dwellers rebelled. This angered the residents of the sky and great calamity fall upon them. Many giant rocks splits the sky and torn the lands. The impacts from those rocks render the land unstable and become dangerous to be inhabited by normal persons. This land was known to be the Forbidden Spot.

    From this day on, many people believed that the Land Dwellers, the one whom rebelled against the sky, were inferior and ungrateful fellow toward those who came from the sky, and their descendants. Thus those people were referred as the True Descendants.

    [But no matter how much of the truth does apply, I often having trouble believing that they have rights to do many things toward people.] As Vram commented on the legends itself while still grinding all of his weapons.

    [I don¡¯t really care of their origin or their rights.] [I only wanted to know why they did this and how to restore me back.]

    [All I could infer from your story is one thing.] [They were creating something, and you were the results of it.]

    [Me? The Results?] Rud confused hearing Vram¡¯s explanation.

    [There are so many people whom wished for immortality.] [And often, the people in question never did dare to sacrifice themselves toward this one wishes.] [That¡¯s why they need a living lab rat.] [And you¡¯re one of the successful candidates out of it.] [Isn¡¯t that normal?]

    [That¡¯s¡­ true¡­] [But for what purpose?]

    [To preserve ones position above the others.] [They demanded for themselves to be special, to be treated like that of a god, or something similar.] [A simple sentence for an idiot like you would be ¡°world domination¡± I suppose.]

    [Who are you calling an idiot!?] [I already knew that they were up to no good!]

    Rud was having a fit while still helping grind the swords as Vram just letting out a sigh hearing Rud¡¯s reaction.

    [But that¡¯s just my own theory though.] [There may be another reason why they did something like that.] [Though it doesn¡¯t change the fact that you¡¯re the results of those things.]

    Both of them suddenly went silent as they keep grinding the weapons over and over again. Nobody knows how many swords and spear and axe and many weapons had they been grind. Eventually Rud snaps.

    [Hey!]

    [Hmm?]

    [Just why do I have to grind all of these?!?] [You¡¯re not even my master!] [In fact, you¡¯re her familiar, the same as me!!]

    [Well, you know, surprisingly, a familiar¡¯s positions here was the same as that of a lover.] [It means, I have more than enough authority than you, a slave.] [Besides, she did tell you to help me while she¡¯s doing something with your mouse.]

    [Wait what?] [Are you saying that they having a ¡°rendezvous¡± with their own familiar?!?] [You may be fine, but the other witches¡¯ familiar weren¡¯t even a human, let alone a male!]

    [Though some familiars here have a look of a female, they do have them, you know.] [A breeding genital.]

    Hearing Vram¡¯s calm explanation, Rud went silent as he dropped the knife he was currently grinds, and just his luck, the knife pierces straight toward Rud¡¯s foot.

    [NGUOOOOOOOO!!!]

    [Do take care when you¡¯re in the middle of works.] [You may be immortal, but those weapons were still deadly.]

    As Rud was squirming on the ground trying to hold the pain while Vram still calmly grinds his weapons, Josephine and Yohn finally out from the tent. In Yohn¡¯s head now there¡¯s a crystal, though small, that has the same texture and function as Rud¡¯s earring, which was used for them to understand each other.

    [It¡¯s finished~!]

    [For Yohn too?!?]

    [Well I heard that this mouse can talk, so how do you feel, Yohn?]

    [Never been better, Miss Josephine~!]

    [Glad to hear that~!]

    Just as Yohn, Josephine, and Rud were in the middle of having fun, Vram noticing something different.

    [Hey.]

    [Hmm?] [What¡¯s wrong, Vram?] Josephine realizing Vram¡¯s reaction though oblivious why.

    [That mouse¡­ is it just me or he look paler than before?]

    [Huh?] [Have you ever looked a pale mouse before?] [Before even turn pale, they¡¯ll be dead when confronting you!]

    Said Rud with a smug face, trying to tease Vram. But Vram wasn¡¯t even responding, no, before he even had time to respond, Yohn was already lost its consciousness.

    *thud

    [Eh?] [Yohn, hey what¡¯s wrong!?] [There are naked girls in front of you, and you¡¯re just here sleeping?!?]

    Rud was shaking Yohn over and over again, but there¡¯s no reaction coming out from Yohn.

    [Eh?] [Why?] [What¡¯s happening?] Even Josephine start to panic, being faced against an unknown situation.

    {Don¡¯t tell me¡­} [Rud, remove the crystal on his head now!]

    [Eh?] [But¡­]

    [HURRY!] [DO YOU WANT HIM TO DIE JUST LIKE THAT?!]

    Josephine flinched hearing Vram¡¯s voice as Rud just swallowed his saliva and quickly pulled the crystal out from his head.

    [*groan¡­.]

    Color returns from Yohn¡¯s face as he was able to squirming again though still unconscious. But after that, Rud and Josephine were confused as to what had happened.

    [Master Josephine¡­!] [Though I may be quite rude right now, but please explain to me what was happening before?]

    Though he still speaks in manners, Rud was somehow looked angered seeing his partner was in a dire situation, though it¡¯s a mouse.

    [I¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­] [I made sure that it has the same ability as what Rud currently uses¡­] [So why¡­.]

    As Josephine pondered of the reasons, Vram started to raises his hands.

    [Master.] [That Earring, how does it work actually?]

    [Huh?] [Well, the simple explanation is that it translates the languages that you understand.] [But elaborately, it synchronizes the wearer¡¯s brainwaves with the source of the crystal itself.] [In this case, it was synchronized with Vram¡¯s brainwaves.] [That¡¯s why you can perceive what Vram could hear and what Vram said.]

    [And how much mana would be used to uses such things?]

    [Well¡­ It is still a high-tier magic, so the cost is quite a bit¡­ high~?] [But for us Witches, it¡¯s not that deadly because we have a huge container and we could easily refill that much mana in the meantime¡­.] [¡­ EH!?]

    As if lightning had struck down Josephine¡¯s head, he looked back and forth between Yohn, whom were still unconscious and Rud, whom just looked blanked this whole time.

    [For Witches, such amount might be nothing.] [But for unknown creature such as that mouse, it is almost enough to kill him.] [Yet the question is¡­.]

    Vram glared straight toward Rud.

    [Why are you still fine?]

    [What?] [What do you mean by that???]

    ***

    [You¡¯re the same as us?]

    A girl with wavy red hair while in the middle of hugging a stone doll was Hildegarde, on her way toward Josephine¡¯s house was together with another red-haired person, a male human monster in question namely Rud.

    [I don¡¯t really understand, but she said that my blood had the same condiments as witches¡¯ blood.]

    [And how in the world she does know her own blood condiments?]

    [She said she often experimenting with her own blood before she had Vram.]

    [That naked idiot¡­!!] [Still, can you elaborate what did she says regarding your condition?]

    [I thought you never cared about me.]

    [If I never cared for you, I wouldn¡¯t go as far as kicking you in the ¡°nuts¡±.]

    Hearing Hilda¡¯s exclamation, Rud quickly grab a hold of his ¡°nuts¡±, traumatized of him being subjected toward Hilda¡¯s torture again.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    [You¡¯re a sadist.] As Rud deliberately protested toward Hilda.

    [Thanks for the compliments~?] [Anyway, are you going to told me how Josephine was able to reach that kind of conclusions?]

    After being nagged by Hilda, Rud start to speak the way he interpreted Josephine¡¯s explanation. It seems that inside Rud¡¯s body, exist some kind of phenomenal reaction that potentially increases his mana capacity, the same way the witches operates. About which kind of phenomenal reaction which made him to become such a thing was still unknown to Josephine. But thanks to that, it made Rud¡¯s mana quality unusually high and his capacity exceeded those of normal humans. To be exact, it is quite comparable with the Witches¡¯ capabilities.

    [Such a thing¡­.]

    [But I¡¯m more confused about what she explained later on.]

    The difference between Rud and the Witches¡¯ was how his body later developed on. Though he had such a high capacity of mana, Rud¡¯s body was somehow halting the development of the container itself. That¡¯s why Rud were unable to feel the change within his body, nor even able to use magic. It was a complete dead-lock situation which renders his potential being useless.

    [Wait a minute.] Hilda suddenly putting out quite a serious air around her. [By any chance, despite you were being unable to grow, have you ever experience fatigue, prolonged pain, or the inability to move your body?]

    [Uh¡­ No, not really.]

    [That means¡­] [You were supposed to be dead.]

    [Huh?!?] Rud can only stare blankly toward Hilda. He thought Hilda¡¯s simply teasing him, but her serious stare implied that it was a serious condition.

    [At first I thought you were simply having a body that can regenerate easier.] [But after hearing that....] Hilda paused for a moment, taking some breath out of her lungs then continue to explain. [There is some kind of happening in your body and it keeps repeating the process, making your body unable to either grow nor regressed.] [Your body growth was being stunned, that¡¯s why you can restore your own body under any kind of circumstances.]

    [Then, I was¡­.]

    [You are one lucky man.] [But such luck is useless if the core of it was destroyed.] [And from what Josephine had explained to you¡­.] [It means that inside your body, exist two different spell that let you survive up until now.]

    Rud was confused from hearing Hilda¡¯s information back and forth. Noticing Rud¡¯s confusion, Hilda started to quicken her walking speed.

    [Let¡¯s go to that idiot¡¯s house.] [If I¡¯m right, she should stop experimenting on your body, or you¡¯ll die.]

    [What?!?]

    Still left without definite answers regarding his body, Rud just silently following Hilda¡¯s back.

    ***

    [Nope.]

    [Oh, come on, Vram~!] [I just need a little bit of it~!]

    [Still no.] [I just let aside what had already happened, but I won¡¯t allow anymore of it.]

    [But I¡¯m your master!]

    [And I¡¯m your familiar.]

    [Then...!]

    [And my priority is to keep you from any kind of harm that¡¯s coming toward you.]

    [JEEZ!] [YOU¡¯RE SO HARD-HEADED!!!]

    At the time Rud was away, the two witch and familiar was in the middle of arguing each other of something, while Yohn can only astonished watching their relationship.

    [We... well you two don¡¯t really have to shout at each other like that.]

    [I¡¯ll stop if he¡¯ll let me do what I want!]

    [I won¡¯t.]

    [But I have to do this!!]

    [There should be other way than doing that.]

    [But there¡¯s no harm in trying now, right?!?!!]

    [Still I won¡¯t let you.]

    [GEEEZ!!!]

    As the two still bickering about here and there, suddenly Hilda comes barging in together with Rud.

    [I¡¯m coming in, Naked Idiot.]

    [Wha?!] [Lady Hilda?] [Why are you here?!?] Josephine was shocked seeing Rud and Hilda come together.

    [What are you two doing, if I may ask?]

    A sudden straight question from Hilda made Josephine flinched a little.

    [Uh... well... that is....]

    [She was trying to experiment on Rud¡¯s blood sample by using her own blood.]

    [T... that¡¯s fine, right?!] [It¡¯s not like I was harming other people!]

    [Of course it¡¯s not fi-....]

    Just before Vram finished his own sentence, Hilda rushed toward her own junior furiously.

    [Clench your teeth, naked idiot.]

    [Eh?]

    Before Josephine could even react, she already saw an arm flew toward her face.

    *BRAGHK!!!!!

    As Hilda rushes past Josephine, her arm strikes right below her jaw and above her neck, making it feels like she was trying to dislocate her own junior¡¯s neck. With quite a ferocious speed and strength, she sent Josephine flying while sticking her head out of her neck.

    [M... MASTER?!?!]

    Surprised, Vram quickly went running toward her already unconcious master, supporting her head and body altogether.

    [Wha...?!] Rud and Yohn can only be taken aback seeing such scene happened right in front of their eyes.

    [YOU... YOU¡¯RE A WITCH YET YOU CAN USE A LARIAT?!?!?]

    In shock, Rud¡¯s first comment was regarding a skill that was quite famiiar with him. Such a move usually called Lariat and quite famous among other people who do a bare-handed battle, yet Hildegarde, being a witch, a magic-caster she is, somehow seemingly familiar enough with that move.

    [Hmm?] [Is it really that weird of a move?]

    [IT¡¯S NOT JUST WEIRD!] [YOU¡¯RE A WITCH RIGHT!?] [HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO MUSTER SUCH MOVES!?!]

    [Well it actually does wonder to any enemy that was trying to ambush me from the front.]

    [Wait a minute, Lady Hilda!] [Master¡¯s not breathing here!]

    Vram was totally panicked and started to raise his voice toward Hilda out of desperation.

    [Umm... well you don¡¯t have to worry about that.] [We won¡¯t die as long as our mana container is still safe. [So given time, she should wake up later.]

    Hilda somehow quite unsure how to react toward Vram¡¯s situation, thus can only speak softly.

    [I¡¯d say, it¡¯s actually quite a nice feeling seeing you panicked like that.] [Maybe I should tease your master more~]

    [You¡¯re not seriously thinking about that right, Lady Hilda?]

    [*sigh*... Yea I know, I know.] [Well then, out of the way.] [She may not die, but I need her to wake up as fast as possible.]

    Before long, as Vram moves himself out of the way, something unimaginable happened to his master under the pretense of ¡°waking her up¡±.

    ***

    [Uuu....]

    Josephine can only sitting with both of her legs were being closed tight and being kept under her as she puts her hands on both of her thighs. While Hilda was sitting on a table, with both her legs crossing each other while putting her right hand on her thigs while her other hand supporting her body. While Vram, Rud, and Yohn can only standing on the back awaiting for the imminent to happen.

    [I guess she¡¯s honest when she said she did care for me.] As Rud whispering toward Vram and Yohn while the room silent still.

    [What do you mean?] Yohn asked curiously.

    [I mean, if even her junior being treated that way, doesn¡¯t that mean that I still has a bit leeway toward it?]

    [I¡¯d have to agree with you on that.] [Lady Hilda somehow tends to treat her student and junior so roughly in a kind of unimaginable way.] Vram start to respond toward Rud¡¯s critique regarding Hilda. [As a matter of fact, even both Lady Rosa and Lady Chris experienced the same.]

    [Kicking in the nut is already worse enough, but Lariating a girl?] [That¡¯s some tough love there.]

    As the other three whispering to each other on the back, Josephine was already on the verge of tears, unable to imagine what had happened when she passed out nor what would happen to her now.

    [Naked Idiot.]

    [Yes, Senior...?]

    [Do you know what are you trying to do?]

    [I... I just want to help Rud restoring his own body, that¡¯s all...!]

    [I know.]

    Somehow her expression become fiercer and Josephine cannot talk back at all, sensing a menace aura on her back.

    [So, what are you trying to do?]

    [I... I was trying to get a sample of my own blood.]

    [Then?]

    [I... was trying to mix it with Rud¡¯s blood sample, since maybe-....]

    *DHACK!!!!!

    Hilda¡¯s slammed her own leg on the floor, making quite a noise that made Josephine flinched. It also surprise the men behind the back. Not too long after seemingly Hilda trying to supress her own anger, she then start to cross her leg again together while taking a deep breath.

    [So?] [Realizing your mistake yet?]

    [Umm....] [But it¡¯s not like it¡¯s forbidden to use our own blood as a catalyst for doing a magic ritual, right...?] [So....]

    [You stupid, idiot, dense to the core of a naked junior of mine?] Somehow Hilda ending her mocking sentence with a question tone.

    [Y... yes...?]

    [If it¡¯s just that, I won¡¯t make a fuss over anything like that.] [But rather, the experiment itself is what I¡¯m concerned about.]

    [Eh?] [Is it wrong?] [I mean, Rud and us Witches has the same trait to our body, so....]

    [IS IT REALLY THE SAME?!]

    [Eh...?]

    Josephine somehow put on a blank face hearing Hilda¡¯s shout. Not because of her voice, but the meaning behind her words.

    [So you didn¡¯t realize....] [Do you really sure that Rud is the same at us?]

    Hilda then start to change her sitting posture from crossing her leg, to a normal sitting while swinging her hands and making gestures as if she¡¯s about to giving a lecture.

    [Listen now.] [We witches have a huge container mana that allow us to do many kinds of magic that human can.] [That¡¯s a fact.] [Now, this stupid redhead also has it, so theoretically he should be able to do what we can do, right?]

    [Umm... yes.]

    [But since inside his body something is halting the progress of his own mana circuit, he can¡¯t.] [That much is clear enough, right?]

    [Right, that¡¯s why-....]

    [It¡¯s the opposite.]

    Suddenly everyone on that room went silent. They were unable to understand a single bit of the words Hilda had said.

    [It¡¯s not that something is halting his mana circuit.] [But something is attacking his mana circuit.] [And the thing that halting its progress?] [It¡¯s actually what¡¯s keeping him alive.]

    [What....] [That doesn¡¯t make any sense!]

    [Remember one fact, Josephine.] [He was formerly a human.] [A human can¡¯t have a mana container as big as us, or we wouldn¡¯t be called a ¡°witch¡± at all.]

    Josephine was completely taken aback, shocked at the truth Hilda pointed on.

    [Mixing a blood that contain something so unnatural like that with a pure blood of a witch.] [You can at least imagine what kind of disaster awaits if something were to happen, right?]

    Josephine lowered her head in shame, unable to realize her own mistakes by himself.

    [Though you¡¯re stopping her for a different reason altogether, just for that, I¡¯m thankful to you Vram.] [You¡¯ve done your job well.]

    Hilda then tilt her had gazing toward Vram, smiling solemnly.

    [No... I... I never realized that such experiment was so grave.]

    [Well, now that¡¯s one problem taken care of.] [The next problem is you, redhead idiot.]

    Rud suddenly tensed himself after being pointed by Hilda.

    [Y... yes, ma¡¯am?] [What is it...?]

    [Now, based on my own theory....] [It¡¯s already clear that your body cannot be restored at all.]

    [EH?] [Why?!?!]

    [Because of those regeneration magic inside of your body.] [It takes its source of mana from the thing that invaded your body.] [... No, that¡¯s not even a regeneration magic.] [A healing-type magic cannot preserve your body condition that enable you to live for long.] [In any case, there seems to be many kind of variable inside of your body, that somehow supporting each other.] [And removing one of them would destroy the balance.]

    [Wha... but...!]

    [It¡¯s not impossible!]

    Suddenly Josephine stands up and looking straight at Hilda.

    [Sure, I may have made a mistake....] [But... I can¡¯t just give up like that....] [I want to keep finding way to do it....] [I....]

    With somehow her eyes looked teary, she glared back toward Hilda. Hilda then takes a deep breath, standing and start walking Josephine. Then she put her hands on top of her head.

    [I never told you to give up on him, you idiot junior.] She start to stroke her head softly as she started to smile.

    [Eh...?]

    [I only said that reversing his body condition is not an option anymore.] [But it doesn¡¯t mean that there isn¡¯t a way around it.] Then she start to put on a serious tone and expression in her face. [That¡¯s why I need you both to stop doing experiment toward each other unless you have enough knowledge on your hand.]

    [Mm... Okay....] Josephine then smiles back as if she was relieved to have one reliable senior by her side.

    [Okay, so....] Vram then start to ask question toward Hilda. [About this problem that you mentioned, I don¡¯t see anything with that, though?]

    [Nope, there is a problem now.] [And for this problem, I need your help regarding this one, Vram.]

    [Eh?]

    ***

    [GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!]

    [Stop running away.]

    [HOW CAN¡¯T I RUN AWAY IF YOU¡¯RE GOING TO SWING SUCH AN AXE TOWARD ME!?!?!?]

    [Don¡¯t worry; I¡¯ll just slash you enough that you¡¯ll regenerate in no time.]

    [YOU THINK I¡¯M SOME KIND OF EXPENDABLE TOOL!?]

    Both Vram and Rud were somehow trapped inside a barrier and Vram was wielding his giant, black axe, swinging back and forth while running toward Rud. It looked so deadly and scary that Rud had been running away all this time.

    [Why are you run away, idiot!?] [This training was meant for you to control your new body until we found a way to remove it!!]

    [AND HOW IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE HELPING MY OWN BODY!!?] [GYAAAAAAA!!!]

    *SHWOOOOK!

    A horizontal slash was aimed at Rud¡¯s neck, and Rud, as panicked as it is, were frantically evading it by jumping and rolling on the ground.

    [Because your body¡¯s condition was more complex than I thought.] [There are various side effects inside your body, and you were unable to control it because you just treated them as a foreign object.] [And there were also a case where your body becomes unstable because you haven¡¯t used them properly!] [At least be thankful that we haven¡¯t abandoned you yet!]

    [But I still not understand!] [Why do I have to do this?!] [Even if my body¡¯s like this, then weren¡¯t I supposed to stay low and not fight anymore?!]

    Just when Rud was protesting a lot toward Hilda, Vram¡¯s already reached Rud and started to swing his axe horizontally as hard as possible.

    [UGH!!!]

    *PRAAAAAAAK!!!

    Just his luck, Rud was able to guard against the attack with the shield on his hands. But no matter, the shield quickly broke from the forces coming from Vram¡¯s attack.

    [Because we couldn¡¯t protect you.]

    [What?]

    [It¡¯s just a guess, but if words come out that you were hoarding some kind of disastrous thing inside your body, a chance you being exiled from here may happen.] [And if by any chance you were being recaptured or died in the middle, there¡¯s no telling what kind of damage you would¡¯ve cause to your surroundings.] [All this time, you¡¯ve been ignorant, but now, since many lives are at stake here, I have to make sure you stop whining and improve your survival instinct and skills.]

    [But I can¡¯t even improve my ability anymore, just like you said!]

    [Who said that we¡¯re going to improve your ability?] [Your ability may be fixed, but your skills and instinct were still your own.] [And you can also learn how to control your ability.] [That¡¯s why, from now on, Hilda will taught you about how to use magic, Josephine will loosen the bind that control your Mana flow, and I shall do my very best to improve your instinct.] [At least, until we manage to find a clue about how to restore your body safely.] [¡­ That¡¯s what Master would want to.]

    Rud was silent for a while, and then started to wield his spear back.

    [¡­ I¡¯ve been thinking for a while¡­.] [You really dislike me, don¡¯t you?]

    [Took you a while to realize it, red monkey.]

    [Shut up, you black monster!]

    The two clashed though it was already clear whom was more superior. But nobody would¡¯ve realized that Rud¡¯s arrival in the Witch Village would bring forth an incident no one would ever dreamed of, and to unravel the dark, forgotten truth inside the village.

 Announcement

    Well this is quite embarassing actually

    First of all, I''m really sorry for the sudden halt of the progress for this story

    My current situation is a little bit disastrous back here trying to finishing college as well as finishing most of my sidejobs and dealing around my social life that I won''t explain further regarding it

    So, long story short, I''m still writing and continuing this story

    the problem is, I don''t really think I can update it regularly as I did beforeIf you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    so this time, I''m going to change the publication method

    I''m not going to post them regularly like before, but I''m going to post a bulk of them in a single day

    as for when will I post them, I don''t really know when

    Still I wish and want to keep continuing this story no matter what it takes

    so for those who are willing to wait and wanting to keep reading my story, I sincerely thank you and sorry for the inconvenience

    And sorry if by any chance I offended people with this announcement, I''m not really that good at writing an official apology

    so I hope you keep reading and enjoy my story

    thank you very much

    *PS: I also made some change to Chapter 16 since somehow it doesn''t fit well for the next chapter

 Chapter 16.5 - Unlucky Human Arc Special

    [*sigh¡­ so it¡¯s come to this¡­.]

    There are about 20 to 30 girls on spacious fields. And among those girls, there are two familiar figures among them, standing in front of the crowds. The violet blue haired girl with a straight hair flowing down her neck into her hips, with clothes that quite modest and cover most of her body figure, yet it still shows her exquisite body figure, was Christine, and often called Chris. While accompanying her, a light blonde haired girl that had her hair barely reached her neck and clothes that completely exposed her skin and barely covers her private parts with a bikini-like string clothes, though not having a body as exquisite as her partner, was Rosalinda, often called Rosa.

    [Where¡¯s Lady Hilda anyway?] [Usually she¡¯s the one whom were chosen to train the girls with her magic and familiar training?!] As Rosa complained as she spoke softly so that the others won¡¯t heard.

    [Rosa, our familiar may have been healed since they only received moderate damage, but Hougo¡¯s body were already critical when he¡¯s being healed, so Lady Hilda has to remodel every inch of his body.] [I also don¡¯t have to mention how much help we received from her when our familiar¡¯s were in bind, right?]

    [Ugh, that¡¯s right.] [In fact, it¡¯s because she helped us a lot that we start following her¡­.]

    They looked nervous as the other that seemed younger than them were looking at them with curious looks. Both of them were being appointed to teach the Witches whom have just matured enough to learn magic, and now they were in the middle of a lesson.

    [Alright then, here goes!]

    As Chris slapped both her cheek, she started to turns her body and faced her junior.

    [Sorry for the wait, everyone.] [My name is Chris and this useless person besides me was called Rosa.] [Though we were being appointed as your new instructor, if you have any difficult question, do please tell me~?]

    [CHO-¡­!] [What do you mean by that, Chris!?] [Even if I¡¯m like this, I¡¯m still a 5th Tier proper Witch, with Gallant as my main occupation!] [Rather, we¡¯re on a same tier, so why are you treating me like a bug I am?!?]

    The girls were somehow surprised by the way they introduced each others. Usually an instructor was quite stern and serious, or at least that¡¯s what they think. But somehow, seeing the way Chris and Rosa bickering against each other put everyone¡¯s mind at ease and start laughing at them.

    [So you¡¯re saying that you¡¯re actually smarter than your looks, eh~?] [Then do tell me how we Witches were split into rank and define their function.]

    [Eh¡­?] [Err¡­.]

    Her silent voice makes the other junior giggles as Rosa was flustered and confused to think of an answer.

    [Can anybody here answer my question?]

    Everybody was starting to raise their hands and Chris just quickly aimed at one person that she saw raised it first.

    [Yes!] [We Witches have a rank start from the 1st tier to 7th tier, while the highest tiers were only consisting of the member of the circles and the elder herself.] [The tier was split based on how much knowledge she knew and how much abilities she could execute.] [But when we reach the 3rd tier, the evaluation becomes slightly different.]

    [Alright, stop.] Chris was somehow stopping the girls explaining, and starts to aim at someone else. [Should another person start to continue explaining?] As she smiled toward the other girls whom almost dozed off.

    [Ah, yes!] [The evaluation progress from the 3rd tier and so on changes after they successfully summoned a Familiar.] [Also, the quality of the familiar also decided how they will grow later in ranks.] [The quality of the familiar was based on how we rank the monster around here.]

    As the lesson goes by, the other girls start to explain the monsters¡¯ rank that available within their own territory. The ranks of these monsters were being split into 6 kinds of monsters based on their size and their lethality. These ranks were compromised of Lesser Class, Dread Class, Titan Class, Magna Class, Divine Class, and God Class.

    [Senior, I have a question!]

    [Yes, go ahead.]

    [Why are we classifying the monster not based on their type, but from their size and abilities?] [Even if there are a variant of one type of a monster, isn¡¯t it easier for us to identify their actual abilities?]

    [Good question.] [Actually, it is also a way that being used by our predecessor.] [But as time goes by as we travelled around this continent, our predecessor realized one thing.] [All of the monsters around here were abnormal.] [Even a monster of a same type and race could unleash a different and deadlier type of an attack to his liking.] [That¡¯s why we classify the monster by their size and deadliness, noting that their abilities had a potential of such names.]

    The girls are nodding in harmony after hearing Christine¡¯s explanation, leaving Rosalinda in the dark.

    [So, have you understood now, Rosa?]

    [Huh?] [Uh yes yes, I understand!!]

    Chris can only sighed while the other junior just giggled behind Rosa¡¯s back.

    [Alright, for now, since all of you were qualified to summon your own familiar, shall we go ahead and prepares you with the knowledge of how to summons one?]

    As Christine started on her explanation regarding the familiar summoning, all the girls¡¯ face started to get serious as they intently listening to her.

    In brief, a familiar summoning was commonly known as a ritual to make a moving object who would obey anything their master had to say. But in Witches¡¯ case, the summoned familiar had a soul, completely different than a normal familiar. The kinds of familiar summoned varied; it can be living things, or a normal object that could moves.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    Usually, to summon a familiar, one first must have a material comparable to what one creature would¡¯ve consisted of, like bones, heart, water, and anything else. There is also another prescription for one desired familiar, but it only increases the chance of summoning one¡¯s desired familiar. Thus summoning a familiar was mostly consisted of luck. Then again, it doesn¡¯t mean that it was purely chance that one had summoned a strong familiar. The quality of the sacrifice used was also necessary to summon it, though it only increase the chance altogether.

    {In that sense, Josephine had the greatest luck ever considering her being able to summon such familiar.} was what Chris had been thinking in that spur of a moment as she taught her junior regarding the familiar summoning and its detail.

    ***

    [*sigh¡­.]

    [So, how is it, Chris?] [Your first experience as an instructor?] As Hilda was coming from her side, offering her a cup of transparent liquid that doesn¡¯t seems like normal water.

    [¡­ It¡¯s surprisingly tiring.] [I guess I just don¡¯t have a knack to teach the juniors.] As Chris take a sip of what Hilda offered to her.

    [Oh, but weren¡¯t you love to explain many things to other people?]

    [I am¡­.] [But taking care of them was different.] [I never thought that they would dare to manipulate the magic circle itself.] [Teaching them was one thing, and I need to clean up the whole mess.] [And Rosa¡¯s was of no help after all.]

    [HEY, I WAS ALSO DOING MY BEST, YOU KNOW~?!] As Rosa was still far from where Hilda and Chris were, in the middle of scrubbing herself.

    It was actually just a moment after Chris and Rosa finished their lesson and went straight for the public bath, wanting to relieve their fatigue. And just in the nick of time, they met their senior, Lady Hilda, accompanied by Josephine, whom somehow looked as lifeless as Chris and Rosa, almost as if she¡¯s been sucked dry by something. As all of them entered the public bath, Josephine was just left floating around the bath while the three of them have a nice, private chat.

    [Huhuhu.] [Kinda reminded me of the past, when you were also fiddling with your sacrificial item in order to cut back the amount of it, causing the summoned familiar to went berserk and died shortly after before wrecking everything in sight.]

    [Wha-¡­!] [Lady Hilda...!!]

    [Eh?!] [Is it true that this stern lady was once made such a mistake?!] As Rosa, who finished scrubbing quickly went toward both Hilda and Chris with such excited face.

    [Oh yes, she is.] [It was a time when her body wasn¡¯t as ¡°big¡± as these.] As Hilda poked toward her ¡°chest¡±, causing it to bounce in the hot water.

    [So she wasn¡¯t as ¡°big¡± as these before, Lady Hilda?] Rosa just went toward Chris back as she just casually groped her chests.

    [YOU TWO!] [I¡¯LL GET ANGRY!!!]

    [Iya~ iya~~?] [Sorry~?]

    [Sorry about that~?] [It¡¯s been a while since that time that I see you changed a lot from before~?]

    Chris¡¯s face just went red after being teased by both of her colleagues.

    [¡­ I haven¡¯t changed at all¡­.]

    [Well, that¡¯s quite true¡­.] [Still, I was quite surprised when you volunteered to instruct those junior.]

    [That¡¯s¡­.] Chris just flinch her eyes toward the sides, avoiding eye contact with Hilda.

    [Isn¡¯t it already obvious?!] [She¡¯s doing it for you, Lady Hilda!]

    Hilda could only express her confusion as Chris just keeps looking away from Hilda. At that moment Hilda could only smiled widely as she goes toward Chris, hugging her while stroking her head softly.

    [You really haven¡¯t changed at all¡­.] [We¡¯re already a fellow 5th tier Witches, and yet you still revere me as your senior.] [If I hadn¡¯t forced you to change the way you call me, you¡¯d still going to call me ¡°Senior¡±, right?]

    [¡­ Senior¡­.] As Chris turned her back toward Hilda and started to hug her tightly.

    [Wow¡­.] [I rarely see Chris being this meek.]

    [Well she¡¯s drunk.]

    [Huh?] Rosa confused after hearing Hilda¡¯s explanation.

    [I forgot about it while drinking, but Christine was actually weak against alcohol.] As Hilda shows Rosa a small wooden bottle in a shape of curvy tube. It was some kind of fermented drink made from a carbonated food being pressured and contained for a long time. They usually called it ¡°sake¡±.

    [Wait, Lady Hilda, why are you drinking sake in a place like this!?!] [You¡¯ll drunk!!!]

    [It¡¯s fine~?] [It¡¯s just occasional time so let me drink this a little bit more~?]

    [Wuaa¡­.] [I guess it¡¯s true that an alcohol could change one person¡¯s personality.] [Thank god I¡¯m still underage just like Josephine.]

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIK!!!

    [Huh?!?]

    As she still saw a scene where to women were hugging each other, one seemingly drunk while crying and one were just purely drunk and just keep on drinking, she heard a shrieking scream, not humane, coming from the entrance as one person appear while holding something.

    [Yo¡­.] [I caught this mouse in the middle of stalking us.] [It¡¯s that red-haired man¡¯s pet, wasn¡¯t it?]

    Yohana was coming inside while holding an eccentric mouse that was Rud¡¯s companion, Yohn.

    [Ah, you¡¯re right.]

    [What is this guy planning¡­!?] [Is he by any chance seeking revenge after what we had done to him before at the field?!]

    [*KIIK!!] [*KIKIKIKIIIIIIK!!!]

    It was quite obvious, but after Josephine¡¯s experiment on Yohn failed, Yohn weren¡¯t equipped with any kind of translator or the likes, so the girls ended up unable to understand what Yohn had to say and vice versa.

    [Hey, Yohana.]

    [Yes, Rosa?]

    While Rosa was calling Yohana, she already went near Josephine and Hilda and pulled their earrings that had the same pattern as Rud. It was the earring that was needed for them to communicate with other humans.

    [Before, I saw that red-haired man having a conversation with that mouse.] [I¡¯m guessing that that mouse must be able to speak human word.] As Rosa quickly put on the earrings. [Here, can you understand me, mouse~?]

    [I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry!!!] [I wasn¡¯t trying to peek, really!!] [I was¡­ I was¡­ yes! I was just taking a stroll here!!!!]

    Yohn was just uttering many excuses as he panicked and tried to run away, but unable to do so because she was being gripped hard by Yohana.

    [Peeking?] [What do you mean?]

    [Eh?] Yohn confused. He was confused not only because the girls could understand what he¡¯s saying, but also because the reaction Rosa gave her.

    [No¡­ I¡­.] [I was actually just watching you girls took a bath¡­.] [And it looked enjoyable so¡­.] Somehow Yohn was just blabbering all his true intention while still minding his word.

    [Is that really all~?] [Then why won¡¯t you jump here together with us~??]

    [EH!?!] [REALLY!?!?!] Seeing how Rosa gladly inviting Yohn to bathe together, Yohn¡¯s excitement was already maximized that he¡¯s trying to slip through Yohana¡¯s strong grip.

    [Sure, come here~?] Rosa was opening her hand as if inviting him to jump over.

    [I¡¯ll be gladly too~~~~~~~~~?!!] As to Yohana¡¯s surprises, Yohn were able to break free from Yohana¡¯s grip and flew toward Rosa¡¯s bosom as Rosa¡¯s just cuddling him.

    [Geez, Rosa!] [You need to be wary!] [Even if it¡¯s not a human, it¡¯s still coming from another world!]

    [It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine~?] [I was often taking a bath together with a familiar, it¡¯s the same~?]

    [¡­ Somehow I don¡¯t really think that¡¯s the case¡­.]

    Yohana feels something wrong, but she decided to brush it off, as she saw her junior, Josephine, was still sleeping like a log while floating around the bath, Chris and Hilda whom were drunk and off in their own world, and Rosa whom looked enjoying played together with a mouse that somehow stuck in her bosom has been smirking in a weird face.

    [Really, it¡¯s just one weird thing after another¡­.] [Makes me wonder how she is doing, that girl¡­.] [Haven¡¯t seen her doing anything weird anymore, but I somehow had a bad feeling¡­.]

    As she just casually brushed off her worries and entered the bath, another person had been standing on the front door, holding on her towel, but unable to go in. No, to be exact, she does wanted to go in, but somehow don¡¯t want to.

    [¡­ Josephine¡­.!!!]

    It was Maria.

 Chapter 17 - Unlucky Human Arc 8

    [Eheheheheh~]

    Yohn was seeing giggled to himself on the sides, as Rud was in the middle of doing something toward a stone while Vram, not that far from them both, was in the middle of carving something in his sword.

    [Stop that, it¡¯s creepy.] Rud¡¯s pricking as he was being disgusted at Yohn expression

    [Hey, can¡¯t we just live here, like, forever?]

    [Don¡¯t even get there¡­!] [I mean, did you forget what had happened to me about months ago?]

    [But all the girls here were so cute and kind, ya know~?] [They all even let me took a bath with them, playing with them, and¡­ ehehehehe~]

    [SO THAT¡¯S YOUR INTENTION, BASTARD!?] [We can¡¯t really play around here, Yohn!?]

    [And mind telling me what are you doing right now?]

    [I don¡¯t know¡­.]

    [Hey, mister black knight over there.] [Isn¡¯t it kinda too much for him to learn how to use magic now?] Yohn was trying to call Vram, but even if Vram was still focused on his own weapon, he¡¯s still responding to Yohn just fine.

    [I do realize it¡¯s asking too much.] [But since removing the thing that¡¯s happening on your body is practically impossible, you just need to control it yourself.]

    [Wait, what do you mean impossible!?] [Your master said that I could be healed!!]

    [It¡¯s just her opinion.] [Lady Hilda does agree with her plan also, but she never said that she could saw the success either.] [In fact, it¡¯s because of the fact that there¡¯s almost no hope for you, that she pushed herself harder than usual this time, like learning from morning until evening, doing another experiment over and over again.] [Even Lady Hilda started to slacked off from her works to help Master.]

    [Wait¡­.] [By any chance¡­ are we being a bother to you, mister Vram?]

    [You just realized that now, mouse?] Suddenly a crack was shown on a sword Vram had been making this whole time, as it crumbles apart. [Ugh, another failure¡­.]

    Rud, whom have been listening and training on the side, was putting out a guilty face as he tilted his head downward.

    [But¡­ there¡¯s no one else I could ask help to¡­.]

    [Then at the very least, try to protect yourself by controlling your newfound ability.] [The chance is small, but having you dying in front of my master would be terrible enough.] [And at least, you could help Master Josephine in some way or another.]

    Rud was just nodding after hearing Vram¡¯s confirmation.

    [But then, what about you yourself, mister Vram?] [I mean, sure, you¡¯re doing this for your master, but were you not expecting us to do something for you?]

    [Not really.] [And even if you could, what would you offer me to?]

    [A knowledge.] [For someone like you, mister Vram, knowledge could be a tool of trade for many things, right?]

    [That¡¯s true, but¡­.] Vram seeing Rud over and over again, observing him while Rud was trying to train his magic by imagining something to the stone. [I don¡¯t think he had that much knowledge regarding something I need.]

    [Ah, he¡¯s useless.] [You can¡¯t expect him to do anything other than something for himself.] [But I¡¯m different.] [I may not look like it, but I was once a great scientist on the outer continent.]

    [Hoo¡­.] [And, do you really have something to tell me regarding something that I need?]

    [Mister Vram.] [Were you, by any chance, knew a thing regarding Blackhemist?]

    [Black¡­ what?]

    ***

    [A magic chemistry and smithery?] Josephine tilted her head left and right after hearing an unfamiliar technique.

    [Yes, it is quite a rage in outer continent to be able to pull of such a feat.] [A weapon that could emit ability a monster had.] [Like, let¡¯s say that we have a part of salamander¡¯s scale, that could breathe fire.] [And with the parts coming off from the monster and the Blackhemist technique, you could easily create a sword that could emit fire all by itself.]

    [Such a thing exists in outer world?!?] Josephine¡¯s eyes blinked hearing Yohn¡¯s explanation. [Vram?!] [Why you never told me about something this amusing!?!]

    [I¡¯m sorry master, it¡¯s also the first time I¡¯ve heard of such feat.] [I¡¯ve learn the way of smithery back when I was still young, but never once I have came across a document mentioning such things.]

    [I¡¯m also surprised to hear that you never knew such things existed.] [It¡¯s been founded about two decades though.] [Anyway, though you may really need to cure Rud now, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re in a rush, you know?]

    [Wait, Yohn?!] [What are you thinking?!?] [I want to be healed as fast as possible!!!]

    [Weren¡¯t Vram already you that it¡¯s impossible?] [No matter how much Lady Josephine tried to learn, it would still put a long time for her to finish.] [Besides, what if we endanger her health so much that she messed up when she¡¯s finally able to heal you?]

    [Guh¡­!] Rud¡¯s can¡¯t argue much about how he¡¯s been treating Josephine all this time. He¡¯s been rushing things that ended up putting Josephine in a predicament, but never says anything. That¡¯s also the reason why Vram despised Rud so much.

    [I know you¡¯re ignorant to other people, but at least try to think a bit about people helping you, brother!]

    [¡­ I never knew you¡¯re the type to care about other, Yohn.] Vram was suddenly letting out a weird comment out of his respect toward Yohn.

    [Well at first I was indifferent¡­.] [But if I could take a bath with those girls every day, well~¡­.] [ehehehehehehe~]

    [You sick bastard.]

    [We¡­ well, it¡¯s not like I was really strained to help you both¡­!]

    [Anyway, back to the point.] [Lady Josephine, you once told me that you want to find a way to improve Vram¡¯s ability to its fullest, weren¡¯t you?]

    [Yes¡­ that¡¯s right¡­.]

    [If you could utilize the Blackhemist to its fullest, you can see that this already monstrous black knight could even more monstrous than ever, you know?] [There are many monsters out there that have quite outstanding abilities, like walking in the air, split the ground, controlling water, and many more.] [Imagine if Vram were able to do all of the abilities above, he¡¯ll be more than a monster!] [Even a Phenomenon Breaker Class creature would kneel in front of him!]

    [E¡­ Phenomenon? Class? Breaker??] Josephine was confused at many foreign words Yohn had blabbering.

    [Hmm¡­.] [That¡¯s certainly interesting idea though, to wield a shield that could protect me from all direction¡­.]

    [But I never once make a sword, Vram¡­.] [Let alone learning smithery¡­.]

    [And there¡¯s no way that I could learn magic and alchemy altogether.]

    [And that¡¯s why!] [Both of you should make it together!!]

    [[Huh?]] Vram and Josephine both could only blurted such words hearing Yohn¡¯s talk.

    [I never said that this process could only be done by 1 person!] [Mister Vram, you were quite skillful with your smithing ability, and Lady Josephine¡¯s chemistry ability was a class on their own, and I don¡¯t have to mention your magical ability more, right?]

    [Wait, such a thing is possible?!?] [I never heard of a witch worked together to create a magic item together?!?]

    [That¡¯s¡­.] [Maybe because as a witch yourself, your mana were already self-sufficient for all kind of grand-scale magic, so the thought of gain help from another Magic-Caster was not even goes through your mind.]

    [But still¡­ can we even do it, Master?] [For this kind of magic experiment, weren¡¯t there any risk in doing so?]

    [Well as far as I remember, it has the same risk as how people would doing a chemistry and smithery altogether.]Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    [Which mean, if one of us weren¡¯t focused, hell would arise, eh?]

    [But that¡¯s sounds fun!] [Let¡¯s try it, Vram!!]

    [Ugh¡­ really, Master?]

    [What is the purpose of knowledge if you wouldn¡¯t use it!?] Josephine goes excited hearing a new kind of magic exist beyond her reach.

    [Well¡­ I do agree with you¡­.]

    [Then we should do it right away~!!]

    [Wait!] [To do that, you need many kinds of thing, and the most important thing is, that you need a part of a monster needed!]

    [About that, you don¡¯t have to worry, Yohn~?]

    ***

    [Uh¡­ Just when you said you¡¯re putting off that human experiment for a bit to have fun, now you¡¯re trying something weird¡­.] [Are you really sure you both can do this, Junior? Vram?]

    Yohana was there, escorting Vram, Josephine, and Yohn toward a pedestal on the deeper parts of the village. After Josephine, Vram, and Yohn finished preparing the things that they need, they went and asked one of her senior, Yohana, to give her a right to use the pedestal which usually used to summon a familiar, for her own experiment.

    [There¡¯s always a first time for everything, Senior~?]

    [Well, that¡¯s true¡­.] [And what about you, Vram?] [Aren¡¯t you worried something would happen to your master?]

    [Well, it was different than when doing that experiment which almost had no result at all, this is worth trying.] [And to think I was able to help my master in another way, honestly, I¡¯m actually looking forward to it.]

    [Oh Vram~?!] Hearing her own familiar response, Josephine started to get near Vram and hugged his arm.

    [You two really are inseparable, eh?] [Guess I couldn¡¯t take a bath with her anymore¡­.]

    [Still, would you go as far as to tell us, Witches, about the magic in an outer continent, Yohn?] [I mean, sure, it¡¯s helpful to us, but would it be like betraying those humans?]

    [Maybe it was, if you were as hostile as we¡¯ve thought before.] [But seeing you girls after months, I realized you weren¡¯t as bad as what our people told.] [And you did trying to help that hopeless man of his predicament, for at least giving him some hope.] [That¡¯s why I need to repay you at least this much.]

    [Hmm¡­.] [Oh, where¡¯s that red haired man, by the way?]

    [Ah, he was taken by Hilda.] [She¡¯s kinda angry since he hasn¡¯t had much progress since the beginning.]

    [Ahahaha¡­ I see¡­.]

    ***

    [Well then, let¡¯s get started, Vram.]

    [Yes, Master.]

    Hearing her familiar¡¯s response, Josephine starts to chant out some magical words as the magic pedestal reacting to her chant. The magical circle starts to assemble on the ceiling and the wall of light covering both the pedestal and the person inside. After that, Josephine still controlled the magic and the pedestal while Vram letting out the things that was prepared for the experiment.

    [Now, put the mixed liquid into the center of the pedestal, Vram.] Yohn was on the sidelines, instructing how the experiment should go on.

    [Right.]

    Vram slowly and carefully pouring some of the liquid into the pedestals cup enough so that it won¡¯t overflow.

    [Next, Josephine should create a liquid ball that concentrates its substance on the center of it.]

    [Okay~!]

    As she swings her arms, the liquid start to flow out of the cup and concentrating itself on the sky, right in the middle of between the magic circle on the ceiling and the pedestal, creating a mass of liquid ball.

    [Now Vram just need to hold the sword inside the ball, and then try to mix all of the ingredients inside the ball.]

    Vram then took out one of his best-made short sword and plunged the blade slowly into the liquid ball. Then he took out the other translucent liquids to mix with the liquid ball, and finally he took out the most important material, the monster parts. They were using what they¡¯ve been holding this whole time, the Mana Cocoon from the Vasp. As Vram put the Mana Cocoon inside the liquid with his bare hand, the Cocoon melted and started to become a layer of fiber material. Then Vram uses his bare-hand to try to cover his sword with those fiber layers evenly on the blade.

    [I see, it¡¯s just like coating the sword with magic powder to give it a temporary magic attack.]

    [Yup.] [Guess you both already get the hang of it.] [Now we just need to wait until the weapon mixes itself completely.]

    [Ah.]

    Vram realized that a little bit of the fragment layer were being peeled off from the sword, as he quickly turned his hand to cover the opened parts.

    [Ah, I read that that happens quite a lot.] [Usually some people swirl the peeled part back to its place with magic.] [But that won¡¯t completely restore the part that was peeled though.]

    [Hmm?] [Why won¡¯t they use their own hands?] [I mean, it¡¯s not like it¡¯s impossible to maintain the mana being transferred while moving your hand to do some simple movement like that, right?]

    [Uh¡­ well¡­.] Yohn looked hesitated to answer Josephine.

    [Because the liquid itself were poisonous, Master.] [I¡¯m fine somehow, but if this liquid were to touch you or other people, either you¡¯ll be melted right away, or something bad happened to your body.]

    [WAIT, YOU MOUSE!!] [WHY YOU HAVEN¡¯T TOLD ME ABOUT IT!?!?] Yohana was enraged and start gripping Yohn hard.

    [I¡­ I already told Vram¡­!!]

    [And I¡¯ve tested it that I¡¯m fine.] [You don¡¯t have to worry that much, Lady Yohana.]

    [Urgh¡­.] [Then, for how long are they going to keep doing this.]

    [I don¡¯t know¡­.]

    [Huh??]

    [I did read the maximum time limit of making such an item was about a week, so¡­.]

    [SO YOU¡¯RE TELLING ME THAT THEY¡¯LL STAY LIKE THAT FOR ANOTHER WEEK!?!]

    [It¡¯s fine, senior~!] Josephine was smiling while she was still focused on concentrating her magic on the pedestal. [It¡¯s not like there¡¯s nothing to gain out of this.]

    [But there¡¯s no chance that it¡¯ll succeed!] [Vram! You usually against something like this!!]

    [I apologize, Lady Yohana.] [But I do realize that I still weak in comparison to the monsters existing around these areas.] [That¡¯s why I needed this, and Master also complies, though I do feel bad for using her.] [And, also, it¡¯s not like it doesn¡¯t had a chance of succeeding unlike what she¡¯s previously doing.]

    [Really¡­?]

    [And the strain of having to manage the weapon itself falls upon me, while Master just need to maintain the mana transferred onto the pedestal.] [I¡¯m sure she could do it while sleeping also.]

    [Ehehe~] [You knew me so well~]

    [Uhm¡­ that¡¯s right.] [I already explained that most of the strain of creating these weapon lies in the maintenance process, of having to make sure the fiber weren¡¯t peeled off while it absorbs the liquid.] [But I forgot to tell the duration.]

    [*sigh¡­ you two are really¡­.] Yohana just express her disbelief of her junior and its familiar, to strain themselves this far. [Well I guess I just have to make sure that you both went undisturbed.] After saying that, Yohana started to went out of the room.

    [Thanks a lot, Senior~!] Josephine expresses her gratitude to Yohana while still focused on maintaining the magic.

    ***

    [She hadn¡¯t finished yet?]

    [Guess it¡¯ll take about a week or so.]

    [What in the world¡­?!] [I¡¯m kinda happy that she decided to let things about restoring this ¡®trash¡¯ go for a bit, but did it went around for the extreme way again!?] As she dragged the red haired man who were somehow looked so ragged that most people barely recognizes him, Rud.

    [¡­ What did you do to him, Hilda?]

    [What?] [Just a little bit of mana control training.]

    [I never heard a magic training that makes people looked like a used rag like that.]

    [Because I kicked him everytime he made a mistake.]

    [I guess he¡¯s been messing up over and over again?]

    [After one success, we finally had enough time to rest.]

    Hilda was already finished with training Rud, as she dragged her into the place where Josephine and the rest were. Along the way, Rud had already fainted from intense training by Hilda, thus, reason why Hilda dragged her all the way.

    [Then¡­ how long they¡¯ve been at it¡­?]

    [They¡¯ve been at it for about¡­ I don¡¯t know, 3 days?]

    [That¡¯s¡­ quite long, eh¡­.]

    [You¡¯re not angry?!?] [That she pushed herself that far?!?]

    [I¡¯ll get angry if she does it for other people she doesn¡¯t even knew whether to trust them or not.] [But if she does it for herself, who am I to complain?]

    [Urgh¡­.] [You¡­ really know how to deal with your junior, eh?]

    [Well me being an instructor wasn¡¯t just for show, you know~?]

    Suddenly a sounds of footsteps can be heard from inside.

    [Eh?]

    From inside, two figures can be seen walking sluggishly outside. It was Vram and Josephine, with Yohn on Josephine¡¯s shoulder. After enclosed herself for three days straight, the elegant smiles she usually wore was no more, as if she was being weighed by something.

    [Wha¡­ what happened?] [You looked worse than usual, did something happens?] Hilda, being worried, disgusted, and wondered, asks Josephine of her current situation.

    [Uuu¡­ It¡¯s failed¡­.]

    [EH?!] [After three days of shutting yourself inside and it was a failure?!?!]

    [Uu¡­ Yohn said¡­ that when it¡¯s completed, the liquid will turn light blue.] [But I forgot about the finishing process, and just quickly terminated the process.]

    [No, it¡¯s also my mistake, since I was sleeping so soundly.] As Yohn can also be seen sulking in despair after their failure.

    [And¡­ where¡¯s the sword in question itself?]

    As Hilda somehow interested in the results itself, she tried to ask Josephine about it. Josephine hesitantly pointing toward Vram, whom has been twirl and poked the blade of the sword. Though it looked like a sword, it¡¯s already broken. Or to be exact, it¡¯s already rusted enough that it couldn¡¯t be used anymore.

    [Wuah¡­.] [It¡¯s a total mess.] Somehow Hilda just showed an expression of awe seeing the results itself in front of her.

    [This is weird, though.]

    [Why?]

    [I¡¯ve been holding sword since I was a kid, thus I was able to discern the weight of a rusted sword and a normal sword.] [Yet this sword¡¯s weight, it does change, but it doesn¡¯t feel so fragile that it¡¯ll break with just a tap of the sword.]

    [Hmm¡­.] [Then why don¡¯t you just tap it?] [If your hand doesn¡¯t works, try something heavier?]

    [I¡¯ll try to hammer it, then.]

    As he tried to listen to Hilda¡¯s suggestion, Vram pulled his smith hammer from the ¡°storage¡± and readied himself to hammer it.

    [WAIT!] [If you want to destroy it, then let me do it!] [It was mainly my fault that it failed.] Josephine was seen with her face tearing up from blaming herself.

    [Uh, I wasn¡¯t planning on destroying it though¡­.] [But if you¡¯d like to, Master, go on.]

    Vram then gives the hammer to Josephine. With the sound of her gulping her own saliva, Josephine steeled herself to hammer the broken sword right in front of her eyes.

    [Here we go¡­.] [HIYAH!!!]

    *PRAAAANG!

    It was halted. No, Josephine did hit the sword with her hammer. But somehow the hammer was stopped by the sword itself, as the place the hammer dropped was cracked. But below the hammer itself, a shimmering light was shone brightly that it blinded Josephine.

    [As expected, this is¡­!!] [Master, let me handle it!] Vram, whom have been surprised by the results itself, asked Josephine to return the hammer.

    [Eh? Eh?? Fue??]

    Without a clue and still in a daze, Josephine just willingly returned the hammer. Then Vram hastily yet gently tapped the sword with his hammer. Though he did it gently, it still had some strength that it totally broke the outer shell of the sword, showing another sword that is hidden this whole time.

    [Th¡­ This is¡­?!?!?]

    The sword, after being pulled from its shell, just like a butterfly that¡¯s just born from its cocoon, was shining more brightly than any kind of magic spell that came out from Josephine¡¯s spell. The blade had totally changed shape. Though it was smaller and lighter than the previous sword, the hardness of the sword itself was quite tough. The center of the blade was empty, yet it was filled with some kind of fiber material that as strong as the blade itself.

    [Such a thing¡­!] Josephine was in awe that she couldn¡¯t speak anything.

    [To think that it could also be born that way¡­.] Yohn was unable to hide his surprised expression.

    [I guess I knew it would turn out like that.] As Hilda commented on the sideline while getting closer toward Vram. [I heard that you use a Mana Cocoon to create this, right?] [Though it was classified as a monster, it¡¯s actually a monster with a fragile shell on the outside.] [That¡¯s why, when the sword was created, it completely replicated the characteristic of the sword.] [Isn¡¯t that how the experiment works, Yohn~??]

    [Eh!?] [Uh¡­ uhm¡­ yeah¡­!] Suddenly Yohn felt a chill runs toward his back after being shot with Hilda¡¯s preying eyes.

    [But this sword¡­.] [It couldn¡¯t cut anything¡­.]

    [[[[Eh????]]]]

 Chapter 18 - Unlucky Human Arc 9

    [Hurgh¡­!]

    [Ah, finally woke up, blockhead?]

    Rud was finally waked up from his slumber from the neverland.

    [Ah¡­ GAAAAAAAAAH!!!]

    Suddenly Rud stands up and take a stance against a red-haired woman right in front of him. And before he realized it, he bumped into someone behind him.

    [Eh?]

    *PLAAKKKK!

    And suddenly his head was being thrown away into his right. His left cheek was beet red, not from being embarrassed or anything the likes. He was slapped by a green-haired woman whom he bumped just now.

    [This man¡­ he¡¯s really a trash, or even worse, totally different than Vram.]

    [Well that can¡¯t be helped, there¡¯s a difference in how they lived their own life.]

    Hilda and Yohana somehow were able to agree on one thing, that is which to refer Rud as nothing else than a lowlife form, that even lower than a trash. As Rud was struggling to stand up again, he rubbed off his left cheek, trying to ease the pain.

    [Wait, what¡¯s with this difference in treatment¡­!] [Ugh¡­ and your slap hurts¡­ though Hilda¡¯s punch was more deadly.]

    [WHA¡­?!?!]

    [Eh?] [I hit you with a magic wind though?] [You think we witches are barbaric enough to use physical strength to deal against someone like you?!]

    [Eh¡­?] [But Hilda¡¯s¡­.]

    [Ah, Senior Hilda¡¯s a special case.]

    [¡­ Chih¡­.] Hilda somehow disliked the way Yohana mentioned about her, and that confused Rud even more.

    [By the way, where are we?]

    As Rud starting to aware of his surrounding, he realized that he wasn¡¯t in empty grassland again, but in the middle of a forest where it¡¯s almost hard to find a spot with a lot of light.

    [Took you long enough to realize, eh?] [We¡¯re in a hunting field.] [We usually used this place either to train our familiar in battle here, or to hunt some material needed.]

    [Wait; don¡¯t tell me I¡¯m going to be thrown in here?] Rud¡¯s suddenly having a cold sweat imagining him being thrown off

    [Not now, at the very least.] [Well, for now, you can see it for yourself there.]

    Rud was trying to focus himself on and tried to take a look at where Hilda was pointing at. It was a familiar figure, of a black knight wielding his shield and sword, in a face-off against a monster, a feline-type monster, but with a giant fang on its teeth, a claw on the back of its palm just like a avian-type¡¯s claw, and somehow it also had a long ears, just like a rabbit.

    [What the heck is that of an abomination monster?] Rud unnecessarily commented on how the monster shaped.

    [It¡¯s not about the monster you should care about.] [He¡¯s going to start again, so make sure you watch him carefully.]

    [Huh?]

    *ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!

    As the beast jumped out and starts closing its distance toward Vram, he quickly lowered his posture and dashed into the monster¡¯s lower body. He quickly stomped hard onto the floor and rotating his body as he swings his sword on the left side of the beast.

    *BHRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!!

    The beast was thrown off far from where he was. There was some kind of sparkly marks on its body, but somehow it quickly dispersed. And yet, the monster somehow standing quickly, like it hadn¡¯t received some kind of damage.

    [What¡­ what kind of monster is that!?!?] [It was able to withstand such deadly blow from that black monster?!?!]

    [No, it¡¯s not about the monster.] [It was thanks to that sword¡­.]

    [Huh?!?!]

    After Hilda pointing out the sword, Rud finally realized something¡¯s off with that sword. The sword was totally different from what Vram usually uses, it has weird ornament on the blade and it was so sparkly, a complete opposite of what Vram wear.

    [That sword¡­ Vram said that it couldn¡¯t cut anything, even though it took him such a long time to make.] [We thought it wasn¡¯t supposed to be a weapon, but Vram and Josephine think differently.]

    [And now they were testing it against that kind of abomination?!] [Does he not fear death, that black monster?!?!?]

    [Well I¡¯d say he¡¯ll be fine against it even if he¡¯s not using any weapon at all¡­.] [But even I had no clue regarding that sword¡¯s ability.] [Maybe you know something about it, blockhead?]

    [Whatever are you talking about?] Rud can only put on a blank, confused face, which somehow Hilda¡¯s already expected, yet still feeling conflicted.

    [*sigh*¡­.]

    When she finally gets tired of converse with the red blockhead, Hilda turned her head, looking back at Vram¡¯s desperate struggle.

    [This is it!] [Now I finally understand this weapon¡¯s true worth, master!!!]

    [Huh??]

    ***

    [What is it, Vram?!?!] [Did you finally find it?!?!]

    [Not exactly, but I think I finally have a clue regarding this weapon¡¯s special ability!]

    After Vram had said that, he fixed his battle posture, as if he¡¯s finally ready to end the battle itself.

    [COME!!!]

    Vram dashed toward the beast. Responding to it, the beast also instinctively jumped toward Vram. The beast somehow sensed that the last changes of strike shall decide the moment.

    *KRAAAAAKKKKK!!!

    But little did the beast know that the enemy in front of it was someone that the beast could never hope to defeat. As the beast thrust its claw onto Vram¡¯s torso and its deadly fang aimed toward Vram¡¯s head, they somehow just keep scratching against his armor.

    [Vram!!!!]

    [What¡¯s that black monster doing!?!]

    [No, he¡¯s doing it voluntarily¡­.] [What is he¡­.]

    As the monster struggled to pierce through Vram¡¯s armor, his left hand was already placed in the back hilt of the sword as he aimed toward the monster¡¯s chest, or to be exact, its heart.

    [PIERCE THROUGH!]

    *JRUAAAAAAAAAKKKK!!

    The sword, with great force, had pierced through its chest. But strangely, the beast doesn¡¯t felt any pain or even reacting at all. The beast just brushed it off as if Vram¡¯s already failed its attack. But in truth, the sword ¡°did¡± pierced the beast¡¯s chest, yet no blood was shed from it. The others were somehow either amazed with it, or even confused.

    [Now this is the real deal!] [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]

    As it was in his first time against the Queen Vasp, Vram¡¯s body was covered in red lines again. His over-powered strength pushed the sword even deeper into the beast¡¯s body.

    *GRAOOOOOWR!!!!

    The beast finally realized what was wrong with its body and struggled to get away from Vram. But it was too late, Vram had already plunged all of the blades inside of its body that the beast somehow were unable to move.

    *CRAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

    Something just exploded. Though there are no external wounds nor any kinds of magic were deployed, certainly there are something exploded, or destroyed. The beast, though somehow still breathing, somehow looked so lifeless that it barely moved. Vram slowly pulled the sword from its body, the shining parts that covering the parts where its body pierced suddenly disappeared. After Vram released his sword from the beast¡¯s body, the beast just dropped, lying there, unmoving.

    [H¡­ hey¡­ it¡¯s still alive, you know.] Rud, started to walk closer toward the beast, realized that it¡¯s still breathing. Yet somehow the beast¡¯s eyes, though opened, doesn¡¯t even reacted at all.

    [Vram¡­.] [Does that weapon¡­.] Hilda looked panicked, as if she finally realized the true worth of the weapon itself.

    [Yeah, it¡¯s a weapon that directly harms a creature¡¯s soul.] [I realize it the moment its movement were become even more sluggish than usual, as I deduced that this sword maybe had cut its strengths bit by bit when I slashed it.]

    [Wait, does this means that you could defeat the monster without having to wreck the body itself?!?!?] Josephine somehow grasped the idea of the weapon¡¯s capability.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    [Correct, Master.] [But at that time, I used too much force into it, that its soul were somehow being dispersed and exploded like before.] [I think I still need to control my own strength before mastering this.]

    [Eh? You¡¯re still planning to use it?] Yohn asked Vram with confused looks.

    [Why wouldn¡¯t I?] [This is a perfect weapon that I needed right now.]

    [Why?]

    [Because¡­.]

    [BECAUSE WE COULD EASILY MAKE ANOTHER BLACKHEMIST WEAPON WITHOUT HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ITS QUALITY SINCE WE WERE ABLE TO CAUGHT A MONSTER ALIVE NOW!!] [THIS IS BRILLIANT, VRAM!] [IT¡¯S A HUGE SUCCESS!!!!]

    Josephine jumped out here and there and started to hug Vram tightly after seeing that their newly made sword was actually worth of something. Hilda and Yohana just sighed seeing the excited Josephine jumped out here and there.

    [So you¡¯re still planning to do this, Naked Idiot?]

    [Of course I am, Senior Hilda!!]

    [Completely forgetting about him?] As Hilda pointed her thumbs toward Rud.

    [Ah¡­!]

    Rud somehow looked in a bit of despair. He was afraid, afraid that he will be abandoned anymore by his only savior.

    [That¡¯s¡­ I¡­.]

    Josephine somehow was at a loss for words. He doesn¡¯t know how to answer Hilda¡¯s question. Even if she says that she will recover him, in fact, she hadn¡¯t progressed much far that she doubts herself. At that moment, Vram was getting closer toward Rud.

    [We will recover him.] [My master had already said so, and I plan to stick to it until the very end.]

    [Eh?]

    [What¡­ Mister Vram, I thought you hate him¡­?] Yohn somehow asked something that should¡¯ve been obvious to other people, yet such answer was unexpected coming from him.

    [Because I hate him, in which I can easily say that I will make sure that Master and I find a way to recover you.] [The only thing I asked of you is to not rush her too far.] [We need time, and for that reason also, we need to improve ourselves.] [Still having doubts of it, you red monkey?]

    Rud was silent, yet he shivers. Vram doesn¡¯t even look back at him, but the others could be seen empathizing with him. He was about to cry, unknown of reasons.

    [S¡­ shut up, you black monster!] [What are you even talking about at this time?!] [I¡¯ve been waiting and walking for many years, I¡¯m fine with waiting for more years!]

    [Good then.]

    Josephine smiled. She jumped cheerfully and started to grab Vram¡¯s arm as both of them walked out of the forest.

    [Oh.] Vram stopped midway as he suddenly reminded of something. [Should we change our training regiment to hunt a monster together, red monkey?] [I think it¡¯ll be a good improvement for your survival training.]

    [ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?!?!?]

    ***

    [FINISHED!!]

    Josephine shouted. As she sits down in front of the pedestal, she relaxed her own shoulder as it went slump, while Vram was in the middle of cleaning up the mess after using the pedestal. They¡¯ve just finished doing a Blackhemist again to create another weapon.

    [Damn, its endurance is worrying.] [Somehow I can¡¯t really bring myself to test it out, afraid of it¡¯ll break in the middle¡­.]

    After finished cleaning and wiping the newly made weapon, Vram double-checked the sword once again to ensure its ability. It was a two-handed long sword, while it had a thick blade; the core of the blade was somehow so thin and empty. But Vram could easily tell that there¡¯s something hidden beneath such fragile things.

    [So¡­ which weapon was it again? The 10th?]

    [We¡¯ve already made more than 20th months ago.] [This is the 23rd ones.]

    [Whoa, we¡¯ve already comes a long way, then~?]

    [And our stock of Mana Cocoon had already dried out just now.] [Since it¡¯s come to this, I think it¡¯s about time we¡¯re going out to hunt again.] [As a formal Frontier Unit, of course.]

    In actuality, though Josephine had been long appointed as a Frontier Unit, she had almost never been going out of the village, mainly thanks for her keeping a lot of Mana Cocoon to fill the quota. Though the truth enrages Yohana so, somehow Hilda just brushed it off.

    [But hunting the Vasp becomes a lot more dangerous now.] [If we took our time for too long, we¡¯ll end up going to have a face-off against that Vasp Queen.] [And if that¡¯s not enough, there are more than a few handles of those Vasp Queens.]

    [Weren¡¯t hunting normally is enough?]

    [I don¡¯t really want to go out that long if I could help it, you know.] [Even with everything I¡¯ve done, I still hadn¡¯t had a clue of how to restore Rud¡¯s body.] [I feel like there¡¯s something lacked in our knowledge, but I don¡¯t know what it is¡­.]

    Josephine and Vram started to sit down and leaning their forehead toward each others. Somehow it has become a normal thing for them to sit down together, discussing things while having their forehead touched each other, though one was wearing helmet.

    [Then¡­.] [Aside of the lack of knowledge regarding what had happened to Rud¡­.] [Should we try to hunt a stronger monster on the outside?] As Vram tried to suggest something to his Master.

    [Hmm?] [I have no objection regarding us having to improve more of ourselves, but¡­.] [Why?]

    [Well there are two reasons.] [First, for a monster strong enough to destroy a whole village, they usually stayed in places that contain a massive amount of mana, right?]

    [OH?!] [So you¡¯re saying, that by having us to defeat the monster, we¡¯ll be able to obtain a fortune for many years later?!]

    [That, and the second part is¡­.] [We need to move your rank into something higher, Master.]

    [Eh?] [I¡¯ve already ascended into the 4th tier long ago, though?]

    [I get a feeling that there are some information that could only be reached once we reach a 5th tier and more.] [I mean, Lady Hilda does know a lot about those kind of magic here and there since she¡¯s a 5th tier, but that doesn¡¯t mean that she had researched everything that we need.]

    [Umm¡­ you do have a point there.] [I actually never considered of having to ascend into the upper tier¡­.]

    [So we have an agreement, then?]

    [Eheheh~] [It sure is weird to have a discussion against a familiar.]

    [What are you saying at this point, Master?] [It¡¯s already more than half a year since we¡¯ve last met.]

    [*giggle* true~!]

    ***

    [Luminous Cave?] Rud had this confused look as he¡¯s in the middle of cleaning a magic tool that was given by Hilda.

    [Yes.] [I had asked Yohana regarding a nearest place that had a wave of mana surging at one location, and it was there.]

    [And you both have to go there in order to procure the Mana necessary for the village¡­.] [I¡¯d say good luck then.]

    [You¡¯re coming too, red monkey.]

    [WHAT?!] [WHY!?!] [I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO RELAX A BIT SINCE HILDA SUDDENLY SAYING SHE HAD SOMETHING TO DO!!] [WHY DO I HAVE TO FOLLOW YOU TO FIGHT SOMETHING SO DANGEROUS LIKE THAT?!?!?]

    [Shut up, you red monkey.] [You¡¯re our slave, so you¡¯d best do as what we say.]

    [IT¡¯S THE FIRST TIME THAT YOU RECONFIRMED MY STATUS HERE, THOUGH!?!?!]

    [Wa¡­ wait, let¡¯s calm down for a bit, okay Vram?] [Well, it¡¯s just that we really need some kind of reinforcement, so I was thinking of bringing you along as well.] Josephine was trying to convince Rud that she needed some help regarding her current quest.

    [But weren¡¯t Vram¡¯s ability are more than enough?] [I mean, you already able to create a weapon strong enough to destroy a whole village.] [I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be of much use¡­.]

    [Another helping hand would be useful, even if their only purpose is only as a meat shield.]

    [ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?!?]

    [We wouldn¡¯t, red monkey.] [I¡¯ll grant you some of my best equipment, and I want you to protect Master Josephine in my stead while I¡¯m fighting.]

    [Eh?]

    [Umm¡­ though I don¡¯t really demand it, it is reassuring if we had more people to fight.] [At least, that¡¯s what Vram was trying to say, Rud.] [Will you?]

    [Ugh¡­.] After contemplating himself for a bit, Rud¡¯s expression finally shows that he had decided on something. [Alright, I¡¯ll do it.] [Just make sure that you give me your REAL best equipment, black monster!!]

    [Considering whether you¡¯ll be able to use it or not, though.]

    ***

    A three figure. All of them were walking along the coastline, strolling around the forest on the island, trying to reach what was seemed to lies at the end of the coast. One was equipping his usual full-clad black armor with some kind of white hair plunging out of the back of its helmet. The other man was also wearing almost the same black, robed light armor with jet-black metal covering his torso, shoulder, hands, and feet. The other figure was a woman, though had wearing a thick, white robes on her shoulder, her clothes itself were only consists of a black lingerie and a corset.

    [Hey¡­ just what kind of enemies are we going to fought?]

    [I don¡¯t know¡­.]

    Vram was just nonchalantly answering Rud¡¯s question that Rud ended up making a weird face caused of confusion.

    [HEH?!?]

    [Well actually the place we¡¯re going to went ahead to is a forbidden spot that which somehow showing a sign of mana surging in one places, but most of our girls who went there never be able to return.]

    [Hey, isn¡¯t that supposed to be dangerous?]

    [That¡¯s why I need you to keep an eye of your master.] [Makes sure to stay vigilant, we¡¯re almost there.]

    [*gulp*¡­ I shouldn¡¯t have agreed¡­.]

    [I intend to drag you out still if you were going to refuse, though.]

    [*groan*¡­ But still, this is quite equipment you gave me.] [It¡¯s light, but also hard.] [Wonder if this armor actually is really inferior to yours.]

    [What are you talking about?] [It also has the same attribute with my armor.] [It¡¯s just that, that equipment you wore was mostly used for either a cavalry battle or when charging against an opponent with lance.]

    The moment Vram explained the true worth of the armor itself, Rud double-checked his equipment. Though it was mostly consisted of robe, he was wielding a shield with length about 1 to 1.5 meters. It was enough to cover his whole body inside the shield. And Rud was seeing his weapon, the black trident, that can be used either for slashing when charging against opponent, or to thrust it while defending against enemy attack.

    [This¡­ is really one of your best equipment then?!]

    [I did tell you, right?] [It¡¯s just a matter of preferences, as I prefer to use this armor in order to gain versatility when using many weapons at once.] [That¡¯s why I want you to make sure that you fulfill your role.]

    [Alright!]

    [But Rud¡­.] [I haven¡¯t seen Yohn for a long time, where he is??] Josephine was looking elsewhere as if she was trying to find a mouse.

    [I don¡¯t know, somehow it¡¯s also been a while since the last time we talked together.] [He maybe still enjoys playing around with the girls¡­.]

    [*giggle* You¡¯re right.]

    As the three of them keeps on walking, they somehow reached a crevice where a hole, or to be exact, a cave, huge enough to even fit a whole village inside.

    [Is it inside this cave?] [They did say that the reaction came from here¡­.]

    [Uh¡­ Josephine, Vram¡­.] Rud was observing the cave while looked frightened. [This place¡­ it looked like a bad news¡­ we shouldn¡¯t have entered this place¡­.]

    [What are you saying Rud?] [We still have Vram here, so everything will be alright!] [Besides, we¡¯ve already come this far, returning would be kind of stupid, aren¡¯t we, Vram¡­?]

    Vram was silent. It¡¯s not that he couldn¡¯t hear Josephine¡¯s word, but he was too fixated onto something. He was observing, though what he observed wasn¡¯t the cave or something inside, but he was fixated onto a rock that¡¯s quite far from their own position.

    [Vram¡­?]

    [Master, we should get away from this place at once.]

    [EH!? WHY?!?!]

    [Ugh¡­ are you seeing something that we shouldn¡¯t have¡­?]

    [I hope that thing was just my imagination¡­.] [But if it¡¯s something that I feared to be, our location would be too disadvantageous¡­.]

    [Alright, then we should move away from¡­ eh?]

    As Josephine turned her back trying to retreat from that place, she sensed something amiss. Or to be exact, she did saw something weird.

    [Was this stone wall was always here?] [Or more like¡­ where¡¯s the way to return??]

    [DAMN! WE WERE TOO LATE!!!]

    Vram quickly pulled out his great bow and its spear as he quickly aimed toward a far away rock where he felt something weird.

    *BVVWAAAASHHH!!!!

    The spear was flying fast toward a stone right in the middle of the shallow water that¡¯s somehow unnaturally sitting there.

    *JRAAAAKKKK!!!!

    The Spear hit. It hit the rocks, but the sound it makes when it hit was somehow weird. The sound of the impact wasn¡¯t as hard as what they expected, and the spear were also repelled in a weird way.

    [The¡­ the rock¡­ it¡¯s moving¡­?!?!?]

    As the rock somehow looked like it¡¯s squirming, the earth begins to rumble. A tremor was happened right inside the crevice where there¡¯s no way out.

    [WHAT IS THIS! WHAT IS HAPPENING, VRAM?!?!] Rud went panicked after seeing things that happened right in front of his eyes.

    [Rud! You and Josephine need to distance yourself from me! I will deliver the first strike!!]

    As Vram quickly ordering Rud, he runs toward the giant rock is and pulled out a lance and a big shield right from his storage.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!

    At the same time, an explosion was happening right at the center of the crevice, at the center of the shallow water that¡¯s covering the whole crevice entrance, and right in the middle of the giant rock itself. After the water had cleared up, something was standing right in the middle of it.

    [Wha¡­ A¡­.]

    Rud was too surprised that he had lost his ability to talk. Josephine was also in awe after seeing such a scene right before her eyes. She knew about it, or to be exact, the general knowledge of such things. But what¡¯s appearing before her was something no one could¡¯ve predicted.

    A monster.

    A monster was hidden inside the ground, a bit lower than the shallow water. It hid itself as a normal rock in order to fool its prey as they gets closer and started to rise up when it realized the timing to hunt was perfect. But right now, it was different, the monster¡¯s ambush were found by Vram, that¡¯s why it¡¯s quickly arise from its place as if it was indicating itself that it was ready to battle.

    [A¡­ a Wyvern?!!?!]

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!]

 Chapter 19 - Unlucky Human Arc 10

    [Now where is she, I wonder¡­.]

    Endrossa was wandering here and there, looking for someone. But somehow she wasn¡¯t able to find out who she was looking for.

    [She wasn¡¯t in the pedestal either.] [Where she could have roamed, I wonder¡­.]

    [Are you looking for someone, Elder?] One of the senior witches asked Elder who had been wandering aimlessly.

    [I was looking for Josephine.] [Do you know about her whereabouts?]

    [Josephine?] [Last time, I saw her went toward the Valiant office.] [Maybe she¡¯s already out of this village, doing some work, I suppose?]

    [Eh?] Somehow Endrossa looked so shocked hearing the information, but trying to keep her cool. [I understand, thank you.]

    Endrossa started to quicken her path toward the Valiant office.

    ***

    [WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!?!]

    *BRAKK!

    Endrossa jumped suddenly from her chair as she screamed toward the receptionist.

    [P¡­ please calm down for a bit, Elder¡­.]

    [HOW COULD YOU JUST ALLOW HER TO GO TO THAT FORBIDDEN SPOT JUST BECAUSE SHE WANTED TO PROCURE SOME SUPPLIES!?!] [HAVE YOU GONE MAD!?!?]

    [I¡­ I actually wanted to forbid it also, but¡­.]

    [I allowed her to do so.] As one of the circle member of the Valiant Unit goes out into Endrossa¡¯s presence.

    [And what have you been planning here¡­?!]

    [I was just thinking, with a Familiar that strong, wouldn¡¯t it be possible that Josephine will be able to do it?] [Since we do heard some news that that familiar was able to stand toe-to-toe with a Vasp Queen.]

    [And what will you do if she failed to do so¡­?]

    [It just means that we¡¯ve been overestimating her.] [It¡¯ll be a good lesson for other people too.]

    [HER LIFE IS ON THE LINE, YOU KNOW?!?] [HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN THAT WE STILL UNABLE TO CONFIRM WHAT KIND OF DANGER LIES IN THERE?!?!]

    [That¡¯s why, Elder.] [If, by any chance, she survived, whether she managed to remove the danger or not, we can confirm what had actually happened in there.] [Besides, it¡¯s not just her, all Valiant outside were always risking their own life.] [Isn¡¯t that kinda unfair to favor her life only?]

    [Don¡¯t belittle things with your logic!] Endrossa quickly turned her back as she tried to go outside, as then¡­.

    [Are you going to save her yourself, Elder?] [Forsaking the whole village, just to save one girl?]

    [You¡­!]

    Endrossa, who reluctantly stopped, clicked her tongue and glared at the council members. Just then, another person had stepped inside the office.

    [Then it¡¯s fine if I¡¯m the one who go, right?]

    [Huh¡­?] [You¡­.]

    ***

    *BVWAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!!!!

    A surge of light beam went straight toward where one man, a fully armored black person, wielding a great shield, was standing. As he quickly predicted the direction of the light beam, he quickly abandoned his shield and starts to roll sideways. The beam easily pierced the shield and blows it away as there¡¯s only an ash of it left.

    [BLOODY HELL!] [THAT¡¯S ONE SCARY ATTACK IT UNLEASHED!!!] Rud, whom were either too afraid to join in the fray, or was doing as what Vram told him to, to protect Josephine, was commented on the sideline while hiding together with Josephine.

    [But that¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve ever seen a wyvern that big!] [Not to mention that light projectile, it is on a different scale compared to any wyvern in the recording!!]

    Josephine observed the wyvern carefully. With some kind of stone scale on its thick meat was something akin to a mineral that usually used to create a weapon. As such, it is almost impossible to pierce such skin, as it can be seen on the ground, that Vram had already unleashed many weapon, only to end up being broken so easily by its skin. Though thanks to that, the monster¡¯s movement was way to slow that it took forever for that monster to chase its prey.

    [But its ability to control other mineral around him is a real trouble¡­!] [If not thanks to that, we were already able to get away from that monster easily.]

    [How could such a monster exist in this world anyway?!?] [Damn it, if I know this was going to happen, I would¡¯ve bought Yohn also¡­!]

    [For now, we can only observe and find its weakness while Vram distracted it!] [I don¡¯t know whether magic would¡¯ve worked against it too.]

    [But how about that sword?] [The sword that he used once when he was capturing those monsters to create your new weapon.]

    [Rud¡­.] [Are you already forgotten about that¡­?]

    As Josephine was aiming toward one place, there lies a fragment of a broken sword. Though the shape was already known to be a short sword, the ornament on its fragment wasn¡¯t natural. It was a fragment of the sword that was able to directly damage the victim¡¯s soul. But yet, it was broken now.

    [Since when¡­?!]

    [Ah, I guess it happened when you were freezing in place.] [My guess is that the stone scale itself wasn¡¯t connected to his skin.] [Since it was akin to Vram¡¯s armor, an exterior skin, it won¡¯t be able to penetrate the soul.]

    [Then how are we going to defeat it?!?]

    [That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been thinking, okay!?!?] [Well, for now I think Vram¡¯ll be fine, since that monster were unable to fly, it¡¯s easy for Vram to keep his range away while he focused to defend himself¡­.]

    *BWUSH!!

    Suddenly a weird sound was coming from where the Wyvern is. Sounds of raging wind was blowing right below the monster, as the monster¡¯s feet slowly leaving the ground and keep going higher.

    [¡­ Eh¡­?]

    [¡­ Are we¡­ screwed or something now¡­?]

    ***

    [What the¡­!?]

    Vram was seeing something unbelievable. A monster, though it does have wings, the thickness of its skin should¡¯ve left it unable to fly. But what happened in front of him right now defy all common sense. It flew. It flies out of the place where they were trapped by the same monster that are flying and circling around.

    {What kind of strength does that monster have to be able to flap its wing like that and fly?} {No, I guess that¡¯s to be expected, but I never thought that it would really fly that well, though.} {But for now¡­!}

    Vram started to pull his great bow from his ¡°storage¡± as well as the lance he usually used to either throw it or be used as an arrow. He aimed his arrow toward its wing as he was planning to shot it down.

    *BVWAAAAAASH!!!

    Without even flinched or having doubt a little bit, Vram releases his grip on the arrow as it flew straight toward what Vram had been aiming this whole time, its wing.

    But something unbelievable also happens. The moment the arrow had almost reached the wyvern, it furiously flapped its wing harshly that it stopped right in the middle of its flight, and thus having Vram¡¯s arrow completely missed its target.

    [Seriously!? It was that flexible?!?!]

    Even Vram couldn¡¯t hold its surprise as he keeps seeing the wyvern circling around and around. And finally after making a big, sharp turn, it bend its body down toward where Vram located at and started to flap its wing once.

    [That posture¡­ can it be?!?!?]

    *BVWOOOOSH!!!

    Vram quickly ran to the sideline, but as the wyvern had started to charge itself from the air against Vram, noticing it were trying to run away, the wyvern shifted his body a little bit to change its falling direction toward where Vram was running.

    [THAT GUY WASN¡¯T SUPPOSED TO BE AERODYNAMIC!!]

    Rud whom have been watching on the sidelines screaming as he protested against what that wyvern was capable of, as the wyvern completely noticed its presence. But there¡¯s no way that that wyvern was capable of changing its falling direction as it keeps closing its distance toward Vram.

    [VRAM!!! RUN AWAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!]

    Josephine frantically screaming, hoping that Vram was able to shook it off. But it was all for naught, as it doesn¡¯t seem like Vram was able to evade the tackle.

    [GHRK!!]

    Vram quickly pulled a giant shield that¡¯s over than 2 meters, completely hid Vram¡¯s body from the monster¡¯s sight. But the wyvern doesn¡¯t even care about it and just went straight for the killing.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    The impact was so great that it created a blast of water towering over the cliff itself. The sight of both of the monster and Vram was being hidden by the water blast that Josephine have a hard time confirming Vram¡¯s condition.

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!

    The wyvern¡¯s roar was so loud that the water that¡¯s been raining on it completely disappears. The roar was also heard by both Rud and Josephine that they ended up covering their ears, since the sound was too loud it may have split their ears.

    [Vram¡­?!] [Where¡¯s Vram?!?!?]

    Josephine was walking a little bit closer toward the place where the wyvern was. But not only couldn¡¯t she find Vram¡¯s whereabouts, all she could confirm was that the shield, that was around 2 meter in height itself, was completely flattened despite its sturdiness.

    [Don¡¯t tell me¡­ he¡¯s dead?!]

    [NO!] [HE¡¯S STILL ALIVE, I CAN FEEL IT!!]

    [Then where is he?!] [If he really is still alive, he needs to help us quickly or that monster will be making a mince meat out of us.]

    Josephine and Rud were on guard, or to be exact, almost losing hope. The moment the monster confirmed Vram¡¯s whereabouts was unknown; it shifted its target toward Josephine and Rud.

    [¡­ Vram¡­!]

    *GHRK!!!

    Suddenly the monster jerked. The wyvern was flinching its head while letting out some moan as its tail, though short, were somehow stretched out, as if reacting to something. Not long after, the monster itself starts to run amok all by itself, unclear of reason so.

    [That¡¯s¡­!!]

    Rud was pointing toward the monster¡¯s head, or to be exact, right behind the back of the monster¡¯s head, around its neck. From it was hanging a figure of a person, while grabbing the parts on its neck as his left hand was thrusting through the skin of its neck.

    [Vram!!!]

    [Impossible!] [How could he survived that?!?!?]

    [What?! You want him dead, huh?!]

    [No, but¡­ even if he did receive the damage head on, there¡¯s no way he¡¯ll be able to stand up and fight just like that!]

    Rud was somehow makes a good point. No matter how sturdy Vram is, to be able to stand up after being tackled that hard against such a monster was an impossible feat, or that¡¯s what Josephine at least thought. But as of now, Josephine can only focused on how Vram was struggling on the back of its head and start to chips away its thick skin by using his entire available short and sturdy hammer.

    *THWACK!! *CHRACK!! *KTHRAK!!! *JHRACK!!!

    {This bastard¡­ just how much weapon do I have to sacrifice just to pierce the skin on the back of its head!?}

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!

    The monster keeps struggling, but Vram was stubbornly hanging onto the neck as he keeps thrusting and chipping away the rock-like skin.

    *PRAKKKKK!!!

    As he started to pull a lance that was a bit thicker than the usual lance, it finally made a crack on its neck as Vram quickly strike the lance toward where the crack is.

    *JRAAAAAASHH!!!!!!!!!!

    *GRAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!!!!!

    The monster screamed as hard as it could as Vram was finally able to pierce through its thick, rock-like skin. But as soon as it screamed, the monster jumped as high as it could and rolled backward, trying to flatten Vram while doing a backdrop.

    [DAMN!]

    Sensing what would happen, Vram quickly jumped from his position, start pulling another spear from his storage, pierced the ground, and using it as a pivot to swing his body away from the wyvern.

    *BAM!!!!

    *GROOOOAAAA!!!

    The monster¡¯s groaned. Not only it was failed to flatten Vram, the impact of his backdrop gravely injured its-already-wounded inner skin, it squirming itself on the ground. As Josephine and Rud sees this as a chance to regroup.

    [YOU DID IT, VRAM!] [You finally found its weakness!!]

    [Nhah, that¡¯s just pure luck.] [That monster¡¯s quite cunning than I thought, that I don¡¯t think the same trick will work twice.]This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    [Trick?]

    [I wasn¡¯t actually shielding at that time. I used that to hide myself while I jumped to the sides to evade its tackle at the very last minute.]

    It was a moment that Vram thought of that way. What Vram used to guard himself was a 2 meter shield in height that it was able to completely covered Vram¡¯s body. As the monster was about to reach the ground, Vram quickly jumped toward its blind spot, above his head. And since the monster were also received quite a bit damage from slamming right onto the shield, it just completely unconcerned about its neck.

    [Rud.]

    [Yes?]

    [Change of plan.] [I¡¯m going to guard Josephine, while you should try your best to survive on your own.] As he said that while casually lift Josephine with both of his arms. To be exact, Vram was doing a princess carry for Josephine, with his left arm on her body while his right arm was lifting her legs.

    [Uwaaah???] Josephine¡¯s face somehow went red after being carried by Vram.

    [WHAT!? WHY?!?!] [You were able to fend off its attack just fine before!!!]

    [Right, and now, I don¡¯t think I would stand a chance while protecting both of you at the same time.]

    Vram turned his head toward the wyvern as he was concerned about what to do. Rud was somehow still confused at what Vram was worried about, until he also tried to look at the now struggling-to-stand wyvern. Josephine somehow sensed something weird was happening to it, as she quickly put her hands toward her ears.

    [Rud, close your ear.]

    [Eh?]

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!

    It screamed. But the way it screamed just now wasn¡¯t an ordinary scream. It was enraged. A scream of rage that could even split the hardest diamond ever was echoed through the whole place. Rud, whom was a little bit late covering his ear, had his ears bleed a little bit.

    [It¡¯s coming!] [Rud, quickly move away from us!!]

    Vram was trying to warn Rud, but sadly Rud was unable to hear anything thanks to his ears being paralyzed.

    [Vram! He couldn¡¯t hear!!]

    [Dang it!!!]

    *GROAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!

    The monster charged toward the place where Rud, Vram, and Josephine were. The speed of its charge tackle were somehow faster, if not, twice as fast from its usual speed. Though it¡¯s still slow, Rud¡¯s unpreparedness left him standing like a log.

    [RRGH!!!]

    *THWACK!!

    Vram swing his right leg right toward its side and kicked Rud out of the range of the wyvern¡¯s path. As he finished the kick, Vram letting go of his left hand and quickly pulled another giant shield to cover him while Josephine, instinctively knew what would happen, gripping tightly against Vram.

    *BHWAACK!!!!

    The recoil from the impact by the wyvern hitting the shield causes Josephine and Vram to be thrown off far from the wyvern.

    *BRAAKKK!!!

    Though he was hit, Vram was able to make sure that his master, Josephine, was safe from any attack. Though the impact caused by its raged tackle does damage on its body.

    [Vram! You okay¡­?!?!] Josephine, thought surprised a little, was somehow able to survive the tackle uninjured. She quickly checked what had happened to Vram.

    [I¡­ I¡¯m fine¡­!] Vram¡¯s struggling, trying to stand up while still carrying Josephine on his arms.

    [Vram, y-¡­ your left hand¡­!] Vram was unable to hide it, but his left hand was trembling. Not because of fear, but because it had taken its toll after being hit.

    [I¡¯m sorry, Josephine¡­.] [Just give me a minute, and my left arm¡¯ll heal in no time.]

    [No it¡¯s not!] [Let me down!!!]

    [I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t do that¡­!]

    Vram was about to get ready to evade another attack, but the wyvern didn¡¯t attack. Or to be exact, it was looking at an entirely different place.

    [DAMN!] [SO IT¡¯S STILL AIMING FOR RUD!!]

    [RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD!!!!]

    Rud was already standing after being kicked by Vram, but his hearing was still at its worst and it seems also that his vision becomes so blurry that he couldn¡¯t even tell what was happening here and there. The wyvern, seeing the chance, charged toward Rud while slowly opening its jaw.

    [Uh¡­?] Rud was still half-awake and blurry when he realized that something is closing toward him.

    *CJHRAAAAAAAAACKK!!!!

    [AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!!!!!!!]

    He was crushed. Its mouth that¡¯s wider than Rud¡¯s slender body was completely covered Rud¡¯s upper body. Its fang was already buried deep inside Rud¡¯s body, though thanks to Vram¡¯s armor, the wyvern had a hard time chewing it. But it does Rud more torture since it wasn¡¯t able to completely crush him.

    [RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD!]

    *BLAM! *BLAM! *BLAM! *BLAM! *BLAM! *BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!

    Josephine panicked and started to cast all of her magic and shoot it toward the wyvern. The repeated magic just keeps hitting off the wyvern body. But its already enraged state wasn¡¯t feeling anything out of it.

    [JOSEPHINE! STOP IT!!!]

    [LET ME GO!!] [RUD¡­ RUD IS DYING! I HAVE TO SAVE HIM!!!]

    Josephine was squirming and struggling while still casting off all of its magic attack toward the wyvern.

    [WHAT IF YOUR ATTACK ACCIDENTALLY HIT HIM!?!?!]

    [Ah¡­!?]

    It¡¯s abruptly stopped. The magic bombardment that¡¯s been unleashed stops abruptly after hearing Vram¡¯s reasoning.

    [Then¡­ then what should we do¡­!?]

    [Aim for the back of its neck with your magic!] [If you just calmed down, you¡¯ll be able to aim precisely at that spot, right??]

    [Ah¡­!] As if she was being knocked by a hammer in the head, she quickly realized her mistakes and started to focus herself toward where she has to shoot.

    ***

    [ARGH!!] [AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!]

    While Rud was still struggling against the pain and the torture, his eyesight and hearing somehow were able to return. After seeing what had happened to him, Rud panicked even more.

    [Eh?!] [Wh¡­ why¡­ ARGH!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!]

    It was hell. A hell of pain and regeneration of its body struggling to survive. Though Vram¡¯s armor did helped a lot in him to not being chewed thoroughly, the main reason why Rud was able to survive was thanks to its ability to regenerate and to make its body condition at its usual form as before. But the pain caused by the wyvern¡¯s bite was enough for one to wish for ¡®death¡¯. As Rud¡¯s keep going back and forth between conscious and unconscious state, Rud was almost gave up on his own life.

    {Why¡­ why do I have to go through this¡­!} {I¡­ I only wanted to get myself healed¡­!}

    [¡°It¡¯s impossible¡±]

    {Wha¡­!?}

    Another sound was played inside Rud¡¯s head. It somehow feels familiar; yet such sound has never been appearing before him.

    [¡°There¡¯s no way for you to return back to normal.¡±]

    {Th-¡­ THAT¡¯S NOT TRUE!} {SHE SAID THAT SHE WILL HEAL ME!!}

    [¡°And how is it exactly?¡±]

    {What¡­?}

    [¡°You¡¯re stupid, so you haven¡¯t realized.¡±] [¡°From the very beginning, they never see of any chance to restore your body¡±]

    {NO!} {I BELIEVED IN THEM!!} {THERE¡¯S NO WAY THAT MY BODY WILL NOT BE RESTORED!!!}

    [¡°But you¡¯re going to die here¡­.¡±]

    {What?}

    [¡°You¡¯re going to die before you even had a chance to recover what you¡¯ve lost.¡±]

    {No¡­!} {NO! I DON¡¯T WANNA DIE!! I DON¡¯T WANNA DIE!!!!!}

    [¡°Then embrace me.¡±] [¡°For I shall grant you the things that you desire the most.¡±]

    {I¡­!} {I¡¯M NOT GONNA DIE IN A PLACE LIKE THIS!!!!!!!!!!}

    [WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!]

    *BYAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

    Rud¡¯s body was shining in a crimson colored line as he screamed his lungs out. The wyvern, realizing that something had happened, started to put out all of its strength inside his jaw and aim to completely crush him.

    [OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    ***

    [Vram, look!] [Rud¡¯s body¡­!!]

    [That¡¯s¡­.]

    Vram was familiar with that scene. It is also happening to him when he was fighting against the Queen Vasp. It is the moment where an instinct of a monster surfaced and overtaken what was left of his human senses. The only difference is that, when it happened, only Vram¡¯s eyes was turned red and a red line was covering his body in an orderly manner, while in Rud¡¯s case, though his eyes were also turned red, it¡¯s shining and the red line covering his body was somehow jumbled up and overlapping each others.

    [Josephine, you just keep focused on targeting the place I¡¯ve told you!] [I shall go to the frontline and confirm his situation!]

    [Alright!!!]

    Vram quickly dropped Josephine and started to sprint toward where Rud was. It was quite a sight, as he was seeing a wyvern, struggling to crunch a slender man, though it is hard to call him a human anymore.

    [WAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORGH!!!]

    Rud¡¯s face had contorted into more of a skull-face than human ones, that even Vram could even feel the dread out of it. He just glad that Josephine hasn¡¯t had a chance to see his face, or something bad might happen.

    [Now¡¯s the chance!]

    Vram pulled out another pole arm with a trident on the tip as he jumped and aimed toward the monster¡¯s back head, where a part of its skin was already exposed. Thankfully, the monster was too focused on chewing Rud that it completely forgot about Vram¡¯s existence.

    *JRAAAAAASH!!!!!!!

    *GRAAWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    The monster screamed hard that it finally let go of Rud and started squirming on the ground.

    [JOSEPHINE! NOW!!!!]

    [HUMH!!!]

    Josephine doesn¡¯t have to chant any kind of magic, since she¡¯s a witch. She just has to concentrate her mana in one position, creating a formula on her head, and apply it on any kinds of medium. As she finished the formula quickly, her hands moved toward the air and start to draw some kind of magic circle. The finished magic circle then gets enlarged and started to cover the whole roof where all of them was.

    [Fleeting thunder of the blue sky, VRONT FUROGA!!!]

    *JRUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

    *GRAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!!!!!

    The center of the magic circle creating a spark and within it a 4-headed flaming thunder was streaming toward where Vram stabbed his pole arm before. The 4-headed thunder magic was attracted toward it and started to strike the pole arm, which was positioned behind the back of the wyvern¡¯s neck. It is as expected; the wyvern was fallen after receiving such damage from a concentrated attack.

    [I DID IT!!!]

    [No, Josephine, stay vigilant and move away from there!] [It¡¯s still breathing!!]

    [EH? IMPOSSIBLE!!!]

    It is as Vram said, the monster¡¯s still breathing, and started to gather its strength to quickly stand up once again.

    [In that situation, there¡¯s no way he¡¯ll be able to avoid my attack even if I used DragonTooth¡­!] And just before Vram was able to pull out his weapon. [¡­ Eh?!?]

    *BRAKKKH!!!!

    He was kicked. He was being thrown off a bit, though thanks to his quick reflexes, he wasn¡¯t thrown far off and still not having his posture gets broken.

    [What are you doing, you red monkey!?!?]

    It was Rud. He attacked Vram right before he was about to deal the finishing blow toward the monster. Since he was about to pull a DragonTooth, Vram was unable to pull out any other weapon and can only faces him bare-handed.

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

    Rud started to dash toward Vram and launched a barrage of punch and kick. Though it was to be expected, Vram was either able to block, parry, and evade most of its attack.

    [He¡­ He¡¯s unconscious!?!] [Moreover, this strength¡­ wasn¡¯t he unable to freely changes his strength?!?]

    *BRAK!!!

    Vram started to swing his arm to moves him away from Rud. As there are ranges between them, the two had started to stand still and gets wary of each other.

    [To think that useless, ignorant fool would exert such strength¡­.] [Now I kinda understand that True Descendant¡¯s intention¡­.]

    [VRAAAAAAAAAAAAM!!!!]

    As Vram was about to pull out another weapon from his storage, Josephine was starting to scream from afar.

    [THE WYVERN!!! IT¡¯S CLOSING ONTO YOU!!!]

    [Eh?]

    Vram was surprised. No matter how much attention he paid off to Rud, there¡¯s no way that Vram weren¡¯t able to notice the wyvern¡¯s charge tackle or its fire beam. But what had happened now was something beyond his logic even more. A moving rock. A rock was moving and swimming toward Vram and Rud¡¯s position at an insanely crazy speed.

    [DAMN!!!!!]

    *BKRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARKH!!!!!

    Vram and Rud, sensing something off, start to jumped out from the place as the wyvern finally ascended from the ground it was swimming from. The ground was split as its feet finally touched the ground once again. It seems like it was more enraged than usual, and more powerful.

    *GRAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!!!!

    It shifted its sight toward Rud as Rud was quickly charging toward the wyvern. As Rud¡¯s was about to flew its punch to its head, a strange spark was happening inside the wyvern¡¯s mouth.

    [It¡¯s going to fire!!!!] [Rud, dodge it!!!!!]

    As Josephine screamed out her lungs to warn Rud, the wyvern had finished charging up its blast and aimed straight toward Rud as Rud just blindly charged toward the wyvern.

    *BWVAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSH!!!!!!!!!!!!

    [OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]

    *JRAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

    He took it directly. Rud has taken the blast head on, and yet there¡¯s no sign of him being disintegrated. To be exact, his regenerative ability keeps replaying at full speed that it could easily taken the full brunt of the flame. Josephine can only open her mouth in awe of what has becoming of him.

    [A¡­ amazing¡­ To think there are people outside of this island that could rival the might of the monsters around here¡­.]

    The monster finished throwing off its fire beam, and in front of him, Rud was standing there motionlessly. But no matter how much Rud has changed, there is no way he¡¯ll come out unharmed from that kind of attack. His face that was once looked so dreadful started to return to become human-like again as he finally falls on his knees together with his body. The wyvern was also started to exhaust itself and was struggling to even breathing.

    [You deserved some praise, red monkey.]

    Suddenly the wyvern jerked. It was too preoccupied with annihilating Rud that it forgot about another existence that was more frightening that the one he¡¯s been trying to remove first. Such is the instinct of a monster, to annihilate someone weaker first.

    [I guess no matter how cunning a monster is, they¡¯re still monster after all.] [With your condition, you couldn¡¯t even react to me.] [Now, I shall deliver the final blow!!]

    Vram was already pulled his biggest and strongest weapon from his storage, the DragonTooth, a club that shaped just like a fang of a dragon, with its base used to blow the enemy away.

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

    *JWEBHLAAAAAARRRRRRR!!!!!

    *GRAOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

    Though it tried to evade it by leaping, Vram¡¯s swing was faster that he already aimed straight at its chest area. Vram already knew that the chest was also a weak part of it, but after lost his precious sword, he gave up aiming for that place, until after Rud was managed to distract it.

    *GROOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

    The monster was frantically trying to bite him, but Vram just quickly ducked and went closer toward the area of its chest where its neck won¡¯t even reach. As he throws away his DragonTooth on the ground, he pulled another sword. It was a long sword with a wavy blade that looked like a flame with the hilt that had a crimson crystal as an ornament. It was a weapon he build together with Josephine, a special weapon made from monster material.

    {Master named this ¡°Vlamridge¡±, since it was made from a flame monster ¡°Lava Ridger¡±.} [This sword shall end you!]

    Vram positioned his right hand right besides his head while his left hand was grabbing the lower hilt of the blade and positioning the sword horizontally while aiming right at the exposed skin parts of the monsters.

    [UWOOOOOOOOOOO!!]

    *JCHRAAAAAAAK!!!

    *GROOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

    Vram¡¯s body was covered with red lines once again as he thrust and pierced the exposed skin part of the wyvern. As the red line flows and covering his whole body, the sword that¡¯s inside the wyvern¡¯s body start to react.

    [EXPLOSION!!!!!]

    *BTDHUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    *BGHOGHK!!!!!

    The monster¡¯s body was expanded. Or to be exact, it was exploding inside that it expanded its skin. Normally Vram¡¯s sword was to burn and completely explodes the monster into tiny pieces. But since the wyvern¡¯s skins were too tough, it only expand and contract at a small interval and completely demolished its insides, leaving its outer skin left.

    *GRWOOOOOOOoooooooooooooo¡­¡­.!!!

    *BUM!!!!

    The monster finally fallen. With its whole inner body being roasted, the monster finally falls down and stopped breathing. A smoke can be seen rising from the wound came from the crack of its body.

    [*hahh¡­ *hahh¡­.!] [Finally¡­.]

    *thud

    Vram finally down on his knees, though he¡¯s still trying hard to not lose consciousness. Josephine quickly running toward Vram after knowing that the battle is over.

    [Vram?!?] [Are you okay¡­?!] [I¡¯m sorry¡­ for pushing you this far yet again¡­!]

    [Don¡¯t worry about that, Master¡­.] [More importantly, you need to tend to Rud¡¯s wound.] [He may be immortal, but that doesn¡¯t mean he was immune to those kinds of attacks.]

    [But Vram, your body is¡­!]

    [I¡¯m fine¡­.] [Just need a bit more rest¡­!] [More importantly, Josephine¡­.]

    [Yes¡­?]

    [We did manage to defeat this bastard¡­.] Vram looked back at the monster while lightly hitting it. [But how do we escapes from here?] [Can you break the wall?]

    [That¡¯s¡­.] [Maybe I could, but I need to collect some more mana to do that.]

    As they were discussing about how to get out of place while trying to recover themselves, suddenly¡­.

    *BLAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!!!

    [Huh!?]

    A sound of explosion was heard a bit far from their current position. The wall was somehow broken and creating quite a wide hole leading outsides. As the fog cleared up a bit, something that looked like a round, hard creature came inside rolling. Just like a ball.

    [Wha¡­ another monster!?!]

    Vram quickly ignored his fatigue and start to pull out his weapon while Josephine stands behind him, readying her magic.

    [NAKED IDIOOOOOOT?!?!] [ARE YOU STILL ALIVE?!?!?]

    [Eh?]

    [This voice, Senior Hilda?!??]

    [Oh, so you did survive.]

    ***

    [Wow¡­ to think that this stupid buffoon could contribute that much.] Hilda was sitting right behind Rud, whom had been lying down and having his head right on Hilda¡¯s lap, and Vram besides her, trying to recover most of his lost stamina together with Josephine.

    [But to think¡­ that you would encounter that Bastrios right on the first day of your expedition¡­.] [You sure are a trouble magnet, aren¡¯t you, junior¡­?]

    [Bastrios?]

    [You don¡¯t know about it?] [It¡¯s a subspecies of a wyvern that specializes in camouflage and explosive ability.] [I once heard that it could even control the terrain of the earth, spewing some fire breath, and even swimming on the ground.] [But that¡¯s ridiculous, right?]

    [It did, Lady Hilda.] [And for a reminder, it¡¯s not just a simple breath, it¡¯s a beam fire.] [All of my shields were easily penetrated by it.]

    Hilda was just dead silent as she was looking at the sky hearing Vram¡¯s explanation.

    [*sigh¡­ anyway, I¡¯m kinda glad that you both were safe.] [If not thanks to Yohn¡¯s keen nose, I wouldn¡¯t even realize that you were trapped here.]

    In truth, the reason why Hilda was able to find Josephine and the others was thanks to Yohn whom have been scouting all over the places together with Hilda. And now since Rud, Vram, and Josephine was too tired after the battle, Hilda was tending their wound as well as guarding them with Hougo.

    [That mouse was worth more than how it looked.]

    [Ehehehe~!] [I do agree, if not thanks to him, we would never been able to defeat that monster~!] Josephine was giggling while showing the mouse some gratitude.

    [HEEEEEEEY!!] [YOU WERE RIGHT, THERE ARE SO MANY CRYSTALS INSIDE THIS CAVE THAT IT DOESN¡¯T EVEN LOOK LIKE WE¡¯RE GOING TO RUN OUT IN 10 YEARS!!!]

    Yohn was running outside after scouting what was inside the cave. It was Hilda¡¯s idea, considering that they must be wary of another trap set by monsters.

    [And the trap?]

    [There are none, Lady Hilda~!] [I tried to inspect every crevice that was inside this cave, and there¡¯s almost none.] [Though it does seemed like that wyvern made this place to be its nest.] [The eggs were still around.]

    [Humhumhum~] [Good job, Yohn.] Hilda¡¯s hand went closer toward Yohn and started to rub his face and hair.

    [Ehehehe~] [It was nothing, Lady Hilda~~]

    Josephine and Vram can only watch in silence seeing how close Yohn and Hilda was, that they have nothing to comment about.

    [You two, are you fine now?]

    [Ye¡­ yes!] [I think I can run already.]

    [I¡¯m fine now, thank you.]

    [Good, now while I¡¯m still tending this idiot monkey here, you guys can go ahead and secure the things that you needed.] [We do need them, but we shouldn¡¯t destroy their ecosystem.]

    [Alright!]

    Josephine just hurriedly moves toward the cave while dragging Vram away from Hilda.

    [¡°Hey, Vram!¡±] Josephine was trying to whisper to Vram while still walking toward the cave. [Senior Hilda¡­ seems different now, wasn¡¯t she¡­?]

    [Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t know about that¡­.] [One thing I do know is¡­ Hougo was a lot more different than the last time I saw him.]

    [Eh?]

    Josephine was looking back at Hougo. It is as Vram had said; Hougo had a different aura coming from it. At first glance, it looked just like a boulder with a crystal on the center of the crack. But a magic line was visible through those crack as well as the way the boulder connected wasn¡¯t natural.

    [You were right¡­.] [I guess she¡¯s now in a good mood thanks to that.]

    [By the way, I¡¯m going to take this monster back for our experiment.] [Is that okay, Master?]

    [Sure~?]

    Another day has ended with Vram and Josephine finally started to move onto the next stage. But unknown to them all, a dread was approaching the village of the witches. The day where Josephine shall make the hardest decision in her life was drawing near. A moment to decide what she shall let go and what shall remains besides her.

 Chapter 20 - Prologue 03 + Twelve Apostles Arc 1

    It was a damp place. It¡¯s surrounding was quite dark. Yet the place was dried even if they were in a place far from any sunlight. And within such a dried place, a sound of dripping liquid can be heard.

    The liquid¡¯s sound was heavy. Quite an amount of liquid was dripping off, and it certainly wasn¡¯t pure water. The weight of the liquid makes stain everywhere, and the color itself was nauseating.

    It was blood. A blood was dripping out of what was seemed to be a primate with white fur, and in front of it was someone whom looked so ragged that it was hard to not notice what kinds of trouble she had been through. With all her clothes tattered, her weary legs, her bruised arms, and her messy hair.

    [DAMN IT!] [Of all people, to think that that monster just goes ahead and went straight toward me!!] [And all of them didn¡¯t even do their job properly!] [After all I do for them¡­!!!]

    [*Kikii¡­.]

    [SHUT UP!] [I DON¡¯T NEED FOR YOUR CONCERN, AND I CAN¡¯T EVEN UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU¡¯RE TRYING TO SAY!!!]

    [*KII¡­.!]

    [Ah¡­.] [I¡­ I¡¯m sorry, Hanna¡­!] [It¡¯s not your fault, I know¡­.] [I mean, you¡¯ve been protecting me from all of those monsters¡­.] [How could I even blame you¡­?]

    [*Kii~~~¡­.]

    [*giggle*¡­.] [You really are kind.]

    It was Mariabelle together with Hanna. They were also a member of the frontier unit, and were assigned to fill some quota to hunt. But one way or another, her days weren¡¯t that fruitful. Such situation leads her to this condition, where she was trapped inside some kind of a cave, already ragged together with Hanna, and was also separated from her companions.

    [*sigh*¡­ I guess I have no choice¡­.] Maria then pulled something from her already-torn sleeves and chanted a magic on it. The mentioned item then turned into some kinds of fairy and starts to fly away from that place.

    [*Kii??]

    [I actually dislike asking help from others, but I can¡¯t take any more risks.] [Your condition is deteriorating, Hanna.] [Your safety is my first priority.]

    Maria was softly stroking Hanna¡¯s fur on its head while Hanna was just clinging closely toward Maria. Though its head was already dirty and sticky with its blood, Maria just keeps stroking them softly like a mother whom was trying to pamper her child. She also starts to sing lullaby to calm Hanna down.

    [*KII¡­!?]

    Suddenly Hanna wakes up after sensing something.

    [Hanna?] [¡­ Is something¡¯s coming?]

    Maria was just about to prepare for another battle and readied her magic. But Hanna had different reaction. Without even trying to reconfirm its intention, Hanna just grabbed Maria, hugged her tightly on its chest, and starts to run with its hand and feet at full speed.

    [Hanna?!] [Why are you running?!] [If it¡¯s a monster, we couldn¡¯t just turn our back against them!!]

    [*KII KII!!!!]

    Maria then tried to look behind Hanna¡¯s back, and what she saw was something so dreadful that Maria regret almost choosing to fight back. It was a monster. But there¡¯s no shape of it. Or rather, the monster was shaped like a shadow hands that were crawling on the walls. The shadow hands were too many that it¡¯s almost infinite. Maria realized that, if by any chance one of those shadow hands touching them, it¡¯ll be the end of their lives. That¡¯s why Hanna quickly runs from those places.

    [HUGH!!!]

    *BLAAAAARRRRRRRR

    Maria then throws her fireball onto the ceiling, hoping that the rubble that falls from it were able to halt their movements.

    But it was a fleeting hope.

    [Wha...?!?!?]

    Forget about the rubble, the ceiling wasn¡¯t even scratched from her attacks. She then realized that this whole cave was actually covered in some kinds of mineral that nullify the effect of magic and absorbed it onto the mineral. It can also be seen that some of the shadow hands were already absorbed onto the mineral, but it still wasn¡¯t enough to halt its movement.

    [Hanna, find the places where these mineral originated from!]

    [*KIII!!!!!!!]

    Hanna then swiftly moves between the caves and crevices, using its nose and sharp eyes to identify the mineral and find its original location. As both of them keeps running and searching, they haven¡¯t realized that they¡¯ve dwelled far inside the cave.

    {The amount of the shadow hands looked thinner¡­ that means¡­!} [Just a little bit more, Hanna!!]

    [*KIIII!!!]

    Hearing Maria¡¯s voice, Hanna¡¯s forcefully running forward, using every inch of strength it had. As they finally reached a place where the majority of the wall was covered in that same mineral.

    [THERE¡¯S THE EXIT!!!!!!]

    With all of its strength, Hanna jumped toward the hole where the mineral was originated.

    ***

    [Unggh¡­.] [Hanna¡­ are you¡­ okay?]

    [*Ki¡­ Kikii~~¡­.]

    [*giggle*¡­.] [Don¡¯t lie.] [With your wound, there¡¯s no way you¡¯re fine after taking such fall.] [Thank you¡­.]

    Maria then moves her body away from Hanna, whom tensed a bit after falling from the hole where they came from. The hole which they came from was too far away from their current location that they couldn¡¯t even see the ceiling.

    [Oh no¡­.] [How are we supposed to get out of here then¡­?] [If we¡¯re moving carelessly, those shadow hands will undoubtedly swarming us¡­.]

    Maria started to observe her current location while tending Hanna¡¯s wound with her magic.

    [Still, this place¡¯s somehow has an abundant amount of mana.] [If we¡¯re managed to secure the roadway, we may be able to uses this place to farm more mana for our villages.] [But those shadow hands were quite a nuisance¡­.]

    [Ki ki?]

    After finished tending to its wound, Hanna was able to move again, though not as energetic as before. The two then started to walk around the area as they finally reached a giant room with some kind of altar in the middle of it.

    [What¡¯s that¡­?]

    [Ki! ki ki ki!]

    Hanna somehow sensed something dangerous from the altar, and trying to warn Maria for its danger.

    [Hmm¡­.] [But if we don¡¯t investigate it, we wouldn¡¯t be able to come out¡­.] [I think we should walk closely toward it¡­.]

    Maria and Hanna, completely tensing their muscle and instinct, started to gets closer toward the altar. And in the center of it, there are a pedestal which holding something. A book.

    [Hmm?] [What¡¯s a magic book doing in a place like this¡­?] [And it was protected with many layers of magic barrier no less.] [It¡¯ll be hard to decipher it by myself¡­.]

    Just when Maria was starting to gets closer toward it¡­.

    [¡°Pray.¡±]

    [Huh?]

    [¡°Pray thy wish.¡±]

    [Something¡¯s talking¡­?] [Who is it!?!]

    Maria was trying to question the voice¡¯s origin, but it hadn¡¯t replied much, and only repeating the same words over and over again.

    [¡°Pray thy wish.¡±]

    [Wish¡­.] [What do you mean by that¡­?]

    [¡°I see it.¡±]

    [¡°An Image of a woman.¡±]

    [¡°Stronger than many, different than others¡±]

    [¡°The wish, to overcome.¡±]

    [¡°The female, the brown haired girl.¡±]

    [Huh?!?]

    Maria surprised hearing such words. It was what was being hidden deep inside her hearts. A feeling of wanting to prove herself better than others, to be acknowledged by others, and to be looked up to by others.

    But it has all been for naught, as the one whom received such treatment was standing before her.

    [I¡­!]

    In fact, she was hoping that she could contribute better for others. But one way or another, her contribution hadn¡¯t been acknowledged properly by others. It¡¯s all because one woman had a better contribution more than her. Thus born a feeling of jealousy inside of her, of wanting to overcome her, and even as far as to harm those around her.

    [I WAS BETTER THAN HER!!] [I HAVE STUDIED MORE THAN HER!] [I HAVE BEEN HELPING MORE PEOPLE THAN HER!!!] [YET, WHY NOBODY PRAISES ME!?] [WHY NOBODY CARES ABOUT ME!?!] [Why¡­.]

    [¡°But you lost against her.¡±]

    [Huh¡­?!]

    [¡°Yeah, you did better than her.¡±] [¡°Yet, how come you¡¯re still losing to her.¡±]

    [¡°You cannot defeat her, even if you do better than her.¡±]

    [Wha¡­ what are you saying¡­?] Despair starts to fill her eyes. She couldn¡¯t even fathom the truth behind the words leaving behind by the mysterious words.

    [¡°Pray thy Wish.¡±]

    [¡°Wish for your happiness, for your sake.¡±]

    [¡°Then you shall find salvation there.¡±]

    [I¡­ I¡­!!!]

    [*KII!!!!]

    [SHUT UP, HANNA!!] [I¡­ I don¡¯t want to lose to her anymore!] [Grant me power!] [A power to completely show her who¡¯s superior!!!]

    *KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!!!!

    The book start to glow so bright that it blinded the whole room. Without her realizing it, she was already engulfed in a bright light from the book.

    [¡°Very well, the Grimoire shall grant thy wish.¡±] [¡°Thy shall obtain salvation.¡±]

    [*KIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!]

    Hanna quickly jumped toward Maria as it senses something dangerous. Before long, the two was finally engulfed in a bright, green light.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    *** ***

    It was a dark. Though the sun has been shining so bright, the dark cloud interfere the light, making the whole land becomes dark. Below the darkened sky, there exists a town, full and bustling with people. But the town was silent. Even if the road were filled with people, the people¡¯s mood was devastating. In the center of the town, many people were weeping in front of a coffin. A mourning priest can be seen near the coffin as many families are crying besides it. All of it was seen from a person¡¯s eye far from there.

    The people passing through that person were somehow glaring. Many negative eyes were being shot toward the person. But the person didn¡¯t say anything. And even if he did say anything, nothing can be understood from it.

    As the mourning goes on, another person went toward the person. She was different. She sees the person with eyes of sadness, as if empathizing with the person. ¡°This is not your fault¡± was what she¡¯s trying to tell the person. But the person just brushed it off lightly and started to see the sky, and begun to murmur to itself.

    [¡°Then why am I alive?¡±]

    ***

    [*groan*¡­.]

    Josephine wakes up from her sleep abruptly. Her expression is telling that she doesn¡¯t feel too well even after some sleep. With here half-opened eyes and grumbled mouth that doesn¡¯t even fit her tight, smooth skins.

    [That dream again¡­.] [Just what was that dream actually¡­.]

    Though looked depressed and feeling sick, Josephine just got up from her bed and walked toward the living room half-nakedly, where she sees Rud and Yohn, still away on the dreamlands.

    [Is he outside?]

    Josephine then started to walk out of her home, as she was trying to look for someone. Someone she could rely on and someone whom always be there when she needs him.

    [Oh, already wake up, Master?] [I was in the middle of my daily exercise, do you need something.]

    Vram hurriedly goes toward Josephine. Though he¡¯s breathing roughly, he still calmly greets his master. But weirdly, Josephine didn¡¯t answer his greetings and just went closer toward Vram.

    [Master?] [¡­ Are you feeling unwell, Josephine?]

    The moment Vram said his master¡¯s name; Josephine started to hug Vram tightly as possible. She looked afraid. Her whole body starts to tremble. But she refuses to talk. Realizing that, Vram just goes to tap her back lightly while stroking her head.

    [You don¡¯t have to be so scared.] [I¡¯m here.]

    [Mmm¡­.]

    After a while they hugged each others, Josephine moves herself away from Vram and started to scratch her cheek lightly with her finger, as she¡¯s feeling a little bit embarrassed after tried to remember what was happened to her.

    [I¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­ guess I was too tired, and¡­.]

    [It¡¯s fine.] [I¡¯m just glad that you¡¯re feeling well enough now.]

    [Uh¡­ umm¡­.] Josephine¡¯s face somehow started to turns red. [I¡­ I guess I¡¯ll go back to sleep now, I think I¡¯m not feeling well enough now.]

    [Well considering what had happened these days, that¡¯s a given.] [I should tell Hilda and the others regarding your condition, so just rest easy, Master.]

    [Mm¡­.] [Thank you, Vram¡­.]

    After saying that, Josephine returns to her room while Vram was just standing there motionlessly, looking at the sky.

    [¡­ I need to get myself together. Shouldn¡¯t let my past haunted me.] [Still, somehow I started to dream about that time over and over again.] [Why is it¡­?]

    As Vram avert his eyes from the sky toward his hands as he clenched his fist. It¡¯s as if he was lamenting something, though nobody knew what he¡¯s been lamenting off.

    [What are you doing over there?] [Standing there while not taking notice of your surrounding is not like you at all.]

    Vram was a little bit surprised after a voice called him out of nowhere like that. It was Hildegarde, together with her newly revived familiar, Hougo.

    [I¡¯m sorry¡­.] [I wasn¡¯t pay attention¡­.]

    [No, it¡¯s not something you need to apologize though¡­.] [Did something happen?] [I know that last week was quite hectic, but it¡¯s not like you to be so out of it.]

    [Last week, huh¡­?] [Come to think of it, I started seeing that dream again from last week¡­.]

    ***

    [WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?!?!]

    Endrossa was having a fit. Or to be exact, she was out-rightfully angry. As she shouted her voice out, Josephine and Hilda can only cower in front of her as both of them were sitting with their feet below their hips and arms on their thighs. A formal sitting style to respect their elder.

    [HAVE YOU REALIZED WHAT KIND OF ANOMALY YOU¡¯VE JUST FACES?!?!] [HOW COULD YOU NOT TRYING TO THINK WHY WOULD I DECLARE THAT PLACE FORBIDDEN?!?!?]

    [But¡­ I thought I could do it, since I have Vram and Rud¡­!]

    [SILENCE!!!!]

    [U¡­.] Josephine can only bite her lips when Endrossa shouted.

    [And Hilda, Why didn¡¯t you stopped her?!] [I told you to take care of her because of this!!!]

    [I¡¯m sorry¡­.] [I was preoccupied with my own experiments that¡­.]

    [THAT¡¯S NO REASON!] [I LET YOU TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HER BECAUSE YOU ASKED FOR IT!] [BUT IF YOU COULDN¡¯T EVEN DO THAT, THEN FOR WHAT REASON I ASSIGN YOU TO SUPERVISE HER?!?!]

    As Endrossa letting out all her rage, Hilda can only lowered her head while biting her lips, as if she was trying to say something but decided to hold back.

    [Wait, Elder¡­!] [It¡­ it wasn¡¯t Senior Hilda¡¯s fault¡­.]

    [So what?!] [Just because I was blaming Hilda, it doesn¡¯t mean that you¡¯re blameless also!] [The moment you decided to fought against Bastrios, it was your mistake!]

    [But¡­!]

    [Enough of this!] [Hildegarde, I¡¯m going to revoke your class ascensions to 6th tier, together with your Instructor License.]

    [WAIT, ELDER?!] Josephine suddenly screams in desperation after hearing her decision regarding Hilda¡¯s punishments.

    [And Josephine, I also revoked your Frontier License, and from today onward, you will be placed as a Gallant Unit under Yohana¡¯s supervision.] [That is all, no further discussion is needed!]

    As Endrossa said that, she just furiously flipped her back and disappear somewhere, left Josephine and Hildegarde at loss, unable to say anything in her defense.

    [¡­ Guess it can¡¯t be helped.]

    [Senior¡­.] [I¡­ I¡¯m so sorry!!] [I¡­ I never thought this would¡¯ve happen¡­ I¡­!!!]

    Josephine lowered her head as she keeps apologizing over and over again toward Hilda. But Hilda just smiled lightly and stroked her heads.

    [It¡¯s fine.] [Not being able to teach you about anything else is kinda lonely, but it¡¯s not like I was helpless.]

    [Senior¡­.]

    [Yohana.] Hilda tilted her head as she sees where Yohana is. [It¡¯s your turn now; make sure you take great care of her, alright?]

    With pained face, Yohana started to gets near Josephine and hugged her, while looking at Hilda.

    [What are you going to do now, Hilda?]

    [What are you talking about?] [Since my license has been revoked, the only thing I could do now is to do my job as a proper ¡°Frontier¡± unit, aren¡¯t I?]

    [But your¡­!]

    [Let me get this straight, Yohana.] [Hougo¡¯s more than capable of protecting me now.] [Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s gotten stronger since last time he destroyed.]

    Striking a bewitching smiles to both of her junior, she quietly walking away from there and start to wave her hands, calling Hougo, whom now looked like a clump of rolling big rock.

    [Josephine.] [Stay strong, okay~?]

    ***

    [So how¡¯s your condition, Lady Hilda?]

    [Never been better~?!] [I actually grown quite fond of my newly revived Hougo, to think that I could easily filled my quota in less than a week.] [Also, I don¡¯t really have to instruct the other kids anymore, which left me with so many free times.]

    [You looked lonely, though.]

    [Vram.] With dreadful face, she started to get closer to Vram. [I¡¯ve been thinking about this all the time.] [Even if you¡¯re trying to be polite, the way you use your words feels like you¡¯re humiliating me all this time.]

    [Then I should apologize for that, for it was not my own intention.]

    [Urgh¡­!] Hilda started to gets a little bit pissed each time she listening to Vram¡¯s talk. [You¡¯re really¡­ alright fine, I¡¯m going to get straight to my point.]

    After taking long breath for a bit, Hilda started to stare at Vram seriously.

    [Vram, please have a mock battle against Hougo.]

    [What?!] Even Vram shocked after hearing Hilda¡¯s exclamation. A request that no one, even Vram, would even imagine.

    [*sigh*¡­ I know you¡¯re quite confused¡­.] [It¡¯s just that, you see, I¡¯ve been bonding a lot with Hougo now, and I kind of able to tell everything that he desires.] [Though he rarely desires many thing, but somehow¡­ He wants to have a match with you now.]

    [Why?]

    [That¡­ I don¡¯t know¡­.]

    The moment Hilda said that as she dropped her shoulder while looking at the ground, Hougo starts to roll toward Vram.

    [Hmm?]

    As if he¡¯s trying to understand something, Vram tried to puts his hand on Hougo¡¯s body. He started to went silent while still touching Hougo¡¯s body for a long time.

    [I see¡­.] [If you¡¯re prepared, then I shall accept your challenge, Hougo.]

    [Wait, you understand what Hougo¡¯s saying, Vram?]

    [I kinda understand it a bit.] [Guess it was because we¡¯re both a Familiar.] [Then should I wake up Josephine now?]

    [Ah, you don¡¯t have to.] [I won¡¯t disturb the battle; you¡¯re going to fought Hougo himself.]

    [I see.] [Then I just write her some notes that I¡¯ll be away for a bit.] [Where are we going to fight anyway?]

    [The Outfield far from this village.] [I don¡¯t really want to attract some attention, so I prefer doing this in secrecy.]

    [Understood.]

    ***

    [Hurrmm¡­.]

    While munching some hamburger while stroking her head roughly, Yohana was deep in her own thoughts, uncaring of how she looked like right now.

    [Hrmm¡­¡­ *munch* *munch*¡­.]

    [Uh¡­ ] [Yohana, your face¡¯s a mess there.]

    [*Muguh*!!] as she let a weird voice that almost choked her, she was surprised of someone she familiar of calling out her name.

    [Chris!] [What are you two doing here?] [And Hilda¡¯s not with you??]

    [Well we¡¯re having a break, since we finished our quota faster than usual.]

    [Wha¡­?] [Faster than usual?] [But you¡¯re literally clearing the quota at the same speed as Josephine!!]

    [Well, it¡¯s just show that our Lady Hilda¡¯s really gotten stronger than before~?]

    Hearing such facts from Christine herself makes Yohana¡¯s expression turned funny, as in she¡¯s raising her left eyebrow, but twisting her right eyebrow while making a surprised yet confused face.

    [Umm¡­ Just how much stronger Hougo gets, actually?]

    [Let¡¯s see¡­ I think he¡¯s currently stronger than Vram without his weapon, I guess?]

    [Wha¡­?!]

    [In fact, she was in the middle of challenging him and Hougo into a duel right now~?]

    [FOR WHAT PURPOSE??]

    [I don¡¯t really know about that.] [She just said that Hougo wanted to test his abilities against Vram it seems.] [You know that Hilda and Hougo has the closest bond between us witches and familiars, right?] [It seems that Hougo himself that asked Hilda to challenge Vram himself.]

    [Wow¡­.] [Coming from that Familiar whom I remember quite a humble and timid guy, he¡¯s quite brave to challenge Vram.]

    [Power and Love can change people.] [The saying that has been passed down since generation before.]

    As the two has been exchanging pleasantries with each other, Yohn somehow popped out from Chris¡¯ valley, or to put it simply, her cleavage. The sight of such image puts Yohana silent as she unable to express her reaction.

    [What is that mouse doing over there¡­?] by stroke of luck, Yohana had already equipped the translating earrings that was used to translate Yohn¡¯s language.

    [Ahahahah~] [Well long story short, it is our way to pay Lady Hilda back.]

    [Meaning?]

    [These last weeks were pretty hectic for me, you know~] [Forget about what had happened to Josephine and Vram, I have been worked to the death by Hilda that my hair started to get bald.] As Yohn tried to complain about everything that happened to him.

    [While actually for the compensation for him helping Lady Hilda was that this mouse can do everything he wants to her¡­.] [I volunteer myself to satisfying him with his demands.]

    [You rotten mouse.] As Yohana start to glare at Yohn for his lecherous personality.

    [AH!] [YOHN, WHY ARE YOU HIDING UNDER CHRIS¡¯ VALLEY AGAIN!?]

    And just like that, Rosa starting to appear to while bringing Chris and Yohn some food.

    [Sorry, but¡­.] [This place is really the best~.]

    [What, so you don¡¯t need to eat?] [Then let me eat all of these by myself~]

    [Noooo, feed me hereeeee!]

    [No~pe~] [Here, if you want to eat, come here~] Chris waving out the food right in front of Yohn, yet not letting him take a single bite.

    [Uuuu.] Yohn started to take his stance while trying to get out of Chris¡¯ valley. [TOOOOOOOH!!] And jumped toward the food Rosa had held.

    [Ehehe~ Good boy~ good boy~] as Rosa said while gently grabbing him and patting his head while rubbing her cheek, as Yohn blissfully enjoying his meal.

    [Uh¡­ Is she also volunteer to¡­.] As Yohana worriedly pointing toward both Rosa and Yohn.

    [Nhah, not her.] [She already took a liking to Yohn somehow that she only wants to play together with him.]

    [¡­ Sometimes I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on inside her head¡­.]

    [I agree with that.]

    After contemplating for a bit, Yohana starts to ask another question.

    [By the way¡­.] [What can this mouse even do that Hilda dare to propose such a thing, like compensate it with her own body¡­?]

    [Well the thing is¡­.] [It¡¯s because of that mouse itself that Hougo become so strong¡­.]

    [Eh?]

    [I was surprised myself, but he has quite vast knowledge regarding magic.] [No, I think he might be once a magician himself.] [As for how he ended up in that state, nobody knew¡­.]

    [I¡­ I see¡­.] [So their journey was to one day to return to their body.]

    [In a sense, that might be right.] [And thanks to that knowledge he shares to Hilda, Hougo started to become something entirely different.] [Also us too.]

    [Hmm¡­.] [Now I¡¯m interested¡­.]

    [What?] [You want to offer your body to him also, Yohana?]

    [I¡¯ll pass on that, thank you.]

    [*giggle* You¡¯re welcome~?]

    ***

    [*huft*¡­ *huft*¡­*huft*¡­] [That¡¯s quite a pleasant surprise there, Hougo.] [To think that you¡¯re ¡°that¡± strong now¡­.]

    *GRK

    As if it¡¯s happy and agreed with Vram, Hougo¡¯s jumping back and forth while still in his boulder rock form.

    [HMPH~!]

    And Hilda was sitting besides Hougo, pouting and looked dissatisfied.

    [Why are you so angry, Lady Hilda?]

    [I¡¯m not.] [I already knew that Hougo would lose in the end, that¡¯s why I¡¯m not feeling anything about it.]

    [Guess you¡¯re upset that I¡¯m still a bit stronger than Hougo, I presume.]

    [I AM NOT!!]

    Hilda¡¯s face started to redden as she glared back at Vram. A bit of tears can be seen on her eyes, feeling depressed that her newly revived familiar still lost against her junior¡¯s.

    [But I¡¯d say that in terms of firepower, we¡¯re evenly matched.] [What makes the difference is in our skills and experience.] [I mean, before this, Hougo¡¯s only mean to attack was to throw some stone and crushing enemies with his jumping power, right?] [Suddenly having ¡°that¡± kind of attack would need him a lot of time to get used to.]

    [Is that so¡­?] [I just equipping him any kind of technique I could fitted on to him, but I guess it strained him a lot¡­.]

    As she depresses over the fact that what she does making Hougo uncomfortable, Hougo then started to roll itself near Hilda and bumped into her a few times.

    [Sigh¡­ you¡¯re really¡­.] As she smiled warmly while stroking Hougo¡¯s body for trying to cheer her up.

    [Vraaaaa~m.] [Where are you~~???]

    A familiar sound was heard a bit close to where Vram and Hilda¡¯s rested.

    [Master~!] [Over here~!!]

    [Ah, so there you are¡­ UWAH!?!?!]

    As she went closer toward both Hilda and Vram, she was surprised. The reason was being of the scenery that appears in front of her. A burning field, with many holes that completely spreading through the whole field. Massive amounts of sword and shield that had been broken here and there. Vram¡¯s body that had been scratched and burned, also Hougo¡¯s crippled body. One could say that a massive war had just happening there.

    [YOU SAID THAT YOU WERE ONLY GOING TO HAVE A LIGHT PRACTICE WITH HILDA?!?!]

    [Well, somewhat or another, both of us gets so excited that we forgot to hold back a little bit.]

    [SENIOR!] [EVEN IF YOU¡¯RE STILL THE SENIOR THAT I LOVE AND RESPECT, AREN¡¯T YOU BEING A LITTLE BIT OVERKILL HERE?!?]

    [Uh¡­ I know you¡¯re upset, but hear me out first¡­.] [I didn¡¯t participate in this fight.]

    [Huh? Then who¡­?]

    [It¡¯s Hougo and Vram.]

    Josephine suddenly went silent while seeing Hougo¡¯s crippled body.

    [¡­ Why¡­?]

    [Master?]

    [WHY YOU DIDN¡¯T WAKE ME UP?!?!] [I WANNA SEE THAT FIGHT!!!!] With teary eyes and pouting face, Josephine was throwing a tantrum at both Vram and Hilda.

    [Uh¡­ Why would you want to see it, Master?]

    [IF HOUGO BECOME SO STRONG, THEN I¡¯D LIKE TO SEE IT!]

    [No way~?!] [I¡¯ve finally able to caught up on you, there¡¯s no way I¡¯d ever tell you the secret of Hougo¡¯s power.]

    [MU!!] [SENIOR, YOU CHEAPSKATE!!]

    [Mufufufu~?] [I kinda like seeing Vram struggling so much when fighting against Hougo.]

    [To tell the truth, that was quite an entertaining fight.]

    [DON¡¯T TEASE ME YOU TWO!!] [GO AND FIGHT AGAIN!!!!]

    [No way, Master.] [I¡¯m kinda tired, and my shield¡¯s mostly wrecked, I need to repair them first.]

    [IIIIIGH!!!]

 Chapter 21 - Twelve Apostles Arc 2

    [Don¡¯t you think he¡¯s becoming less of what he¡¯s originally was?]

    A sudden remarks made by Yohana as he¡¯s pointing out toward Rud, while in the middle of munching a hamburger together with Hilda, Chris, and Josephine while Vram was standing at the back, in the middle of conversing together with Yohn and Rosa.

    [Uh¡­ what do you mean by ¡°originally¡±?]

    Rud, somehow looked worried, asking the most obvious question while averting his eyes.

    [You¡­ got a point there.] [It feels like we¡¯ve been played around by him without noticing the difference in our position.] Hilda was completely agreeing with Yohana on that subject somehow

    [I guess it¡¯s all thanks to his peculiarity and his trustworthy partner that we forget it all.] And Chris just calmly affirming the situation while she¡¯s munching out her hamburger.

    [Umm¡­ What are you all talking about?] And Josephine, as usual, just munching her hamburger happily while letting out pure expression of not understanding anything.

    [[THAT GUY IS YOUR SLAVE, RIGHT?!?!]]

    In unison, both Hilda and Yohana shouted straight while pointing at Josephine now.

    [Hoe¡­?] And Josephine can only react as she herself confused with their statements

    [Master¡­ don¡¯t tell me you forgot what was he originally...?] Vram, whom somehow overheard their shout from the back, started to look at Josephine.

    [Well if he¡¯s as cute as Yohn, then maybe he could be a pet, right Yohn~?] As Rosa commenting on the back

    [I don¡¯t even wanted to become one.] As Rud expressed his own opinion against Rosa¡¯s, suddenly¡­.

    [Don¡¯t get cocky, you slave.] Hilda just scorned Rud while looking sharp to him.

    [Yes ma¡¯am.]

    [But still¡­.] as Yohn was trying to talk his way for his partner. [I know that sometimes he¡¯s an no-brain idiot, irresponsible, dense, and all talk, but that doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s just doing as he please.]

    [Thanks for the compliment, partner.] as Rud sitting there annoyed hearing Yohn¡¯s banter.

    [At any rate.] [I¡¯ve always doing everything I can to help finding what was he capable of, what he could contribute to Josephine for all her helps, and to train him to become something better.] [Heck, even Vram helped us so much regarding this.]

    [And¡­?] Yohana frowns her eyebrows as she looks sharply toward Rud.

    [He¡¯s useless.] As Vram take a deep breath before answering. [His fighting skill¡¯s only as good as a foot soldier, making him a free meal in this island. He¡¯s unable to focus at something in front of him, easily distracted. Also, I don¡¯t really have to mention the chaotic thing inside his body, do I?] [To be honest, if not because of Yohn, I¡¯d be forced to kick him out of my master¡¯s eyes.]

    All the people there can only sighing deeply as they saw the most useless person in the whole island, or maybe even the whole world.

    [Ugh... then at least let me do something that doesn¡¯t have anything to do with labor works!] As Rud was trying to reject their dissapointment

    [Sadly none of us know what kind of works would be suitable for you]

    As they all having quite a trouble thanks to the idiotic red-haired man, suddenly Rosa steps into the group as she observes Josephine.

    [Umm... Lady Hilda.] [A slave is... someone who would serve their master and would fulfill every needs of their master, is that right?]

    [That¡¯s right.] [Why are you asking that?]

    [You see....] [Does she ever have the needs to be fulfilled?] [I mean, all she ever does is eating, studying, playing with Vram or us, and experimenting.] [Does she ever need a slave to begin with?]

    And suddenly the staring gaze shifted toward Josephine, whom somehow feeling the pressure and guilt of that stare.

    [Wait, why is it my fault now?!?!?]

    [Nonono.] Hilda¡¯s starting to feel disheartened after listening the fact from Rosa. [In the end you¡¯re not fit to have a slave under your wings.]

    [Then if he was unable to fulfill his role as a slave, there¡¯s only execution awaits in front of him.] As Yohana tried to ascertain his fate.

    [[Ugh...!]] Both Rud and Josephine reacted at the harsh words thrown by Yohana.

    [Eat, sleep, study....] And just then, Vram was muttering all by himself on the back.

    [What, you have some problem with my daily life, Vram?] As Josephine pouted and depressed by herself after being pointed that out by Rosa.

    [Why I didn¡¯t think of that before!?]

    [Yes?]

    ***

    *JYASH!!

    *GYAAAAAAAAAKH!!!!!!

    As a sword still hanging on its body, the creature that looked human-like, though having a reddish, brown skin as well as pointy ears, and wielding something like an axe on its hand, was already dead. As its eyes somehow lost its color, the creature just lost its balance and fall into the ground. It¡¯s still breathing, but it¡¯s pretty much dead at this rate. The place where the sword piercing it were also being slowly closed, with no wound to spare.

    [*Phew*... I guess that¡¯s the last one of them, Master.] Vram was calling out to her master while dragging the monster with his one arm. For the record, its height was as big as Vram.

    [Thanks a lot, Vram~!]

    [Umm... Senior Josephine....] a junior on a Gallant unit was tagging along with Josephine, together with her familiar, a creature with its long head, though having a small mouth and a horn attached in it as well as a long body with 4 legs attached on it, with fur-like tail, it often referred as Unicorn. [We were ordered to kill each and every last one of the monster whom somehow were trying to force through here, right?] [But....]

    [Ah, no worries~] [They were pretty much dead already, only leaving its body intact.]

    [But... They¡¯re still breathing.]

    [Yeah....] [I need their body, still active at least, so that I can do some experiment on them....] [It feels wrong to do this, though.]

    [Experiment?] [But most of the monster you caught was a humanoid-type.] [Even that familiar you had itself keeps switching its equipment all the time.] [What kind of experiment are you trying to do, Senior?]

    [Hmm... I can¡¯t really say for sure, since it was rarely performed by our ancestors....] [To explain it in a better words, it would be....] [Assembling and Destroying, then Re-Assembling, I guess?]

    [He?]

    The Junior suddenly confused with what Josephine was trying to say, as suddenly Yohana came back from her area of patrol.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    [You¡¯re almost making no sense at all, Fina.]

    [Ah, Senior Yohana.] The Junior suddenly making a gesture of respect at the presence of Yohana.

    [Well that¡¯s why I¡¯m experimenting it!] [I have the gist of an idea of what I¡¯m going to do, but I don¡¯t even know whether it¡¯d work or not, that¡¯s why I can¡¯t explain it very well.]

    [Hmm...] [Is it related to what your slave is experiencing now?]

    [Um... Yes....] Josephine hestitately answering Yohana¡¯s question.

    [*sigh*... well I guess you do need to do it for him, though I still don¡¯t like that idea.]

    [Senior Josephine... why do have to go that far just for that human?] The junior asks Josephine in a curious manner, considering the Witch was taught to despise humans since birth.

    [Uhm... well....] Josephine was trying to ponder at something before starting to open her mouth [At first I wasn¡¯t really interested in him at all....] [But hearing about how he was becoming something different than the rest of his race, I just....] [I kinda emphatizing with him....]

    [Just for the record, Master.] [At the very least, you¡¯re not causing other people trouble like that guy.] Vram suddenly interject from behind as he¡¯s collecting the monster¡¯s corpse.

    [G... GEEZ! I know!!] [W... well, we¡¯re supposed to be done with our assignment today, so shall we get home now?] [I¡¯m wondering how he¡¯s faring now with his new assignment~!]

    [Well Lady Hilda and Chris are overseeing him, so I guess nothing¡¯s going to go wrong, right?]

    ***

    [YOU¡¯RE SLOW!!]

    [I¡¯m sorry...!]

    Inside Josephine¡¯s camp, chaos ensues. Rud was frantically turning left and right while Hilda and Chris was behind him, observing what Rud has been doing all the while Josephine and Vram was away on their new assignment.

    [WAIT A MOMENT, REDHEAD!!] [ARE YOU TRYING TO JUST POUR IT ALL IN A SINGLE SWING LIKE THAT?!?!] [YOU CAN¡¯T!] [THE TASTE WILL MIXED UP AND TURNING WEIRD!!] [PUT THEM UP SEPARATELY!]

    [Y... YES MA¡¯AM!]

    Somehow, even Rosalinda, whom was always cheerful and seemed to be having fun all the time, becomes a spartan at trying to fix what Rud was doing.

    [WHAT ARE YOU DOING, TAKING THINGS SLOWLY LIKE THAT!] [THE SOUP WILL OVERHEAT!!!]

    [YES MA¡¯AM!] [I¡¯M SORRY!!!]

    [WAIT! DON¡¯T JUST PLUNGE THEM UP LIKE THAT!] [THE SOUP WILL SPLATTERED EVERYWHERE!] [YOU¡¯RE ALSO DAMAGING THE INGREDIENTS LIKE THAT!!!]

    [I¡¯M SORRYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!]

    This is what Vram had in mind, to put Rud in charge of cooking. Considering all he need to do is to exactly follow the recipe given to him, it shouldn¡¯t pose much of a trouble.

    [Still though, I don¡¯t really think he was that useless, don¡¯t you think so?] Suddenly Chris brings up a weird conversation out of the blue toward Hilda.

    [What are you trying to say, Chris?]

    [Well... I mean, look at him.] [His hand maybe not that dexterous, but it doesn¡¯t mean that he was incapable.] [It was just a case of getting used to it.] [Given enough time, he should be someone better, don¡¯t you think?]

    [The problem wasn¡¯t lies in his skill.] As if she¡¯s feeling remorsed, Hilda was pouting for a bit.

    [Then...?]

    [It was Josephine¡¯s Familiar.] [He was too capable despite being a former human.] [He does sometime shows his arrogant side, but all of that was supported by his ability.]

    [Umm....] Chris suddenly become confused.

    [Hrmm....] scratching her head for a bit, Hilda immerses herself trying to explain it better to Chris. [Well, you see....] [Since we¡¯re both a Frontier unit, I¡¯ll give you some example.]

    [O... okay....]

    [Imagine if two witches, whom had the same class as well as their magic proficiency the same altogether.] [Then there¡¯s their familiar, in which both of them had combat ability as their main point.] [Now, what if one of the familiar was weaker than the other?]

    [Obviously we would asks the strong ones to keep maintaining their works and fill their quota and....] [... wait a minute...!] Chris suddenly realized something amiss among it.

    [Right, the weak ones would be redeemed incapable of completing their works and often being a subject to a transfer of her delegated work.] [Even if she herself still manages to complete a set number of quota within the delegated time, when comparing it to the other ones, it was disregarded easily like that.]

    Suddenly Chris feels like she was having opened up an ol wound that was closed for a long time, as her face contort to that of a regret.

    [I... I¡¯m sorry, I....]

    [Don¡¯t be....] [I do feel the same way as that Naked Idiot do toward him.] [He may be annoying, but his situation resembles the way both of us living right now.] [And Maria was also the same, that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t do anything when she does that.] [She was feeling insecure of what would happen to her....] [The same as me back then....]

    [Lady Hilda....]

    When she finished talking, she turned her head back to Rud when suddenly she caught Rosa in the middle of scolding Rud.

    [THIS IS UNNACEPTABLE!] [HOW CAN YOU WORK SO SLOPPILY LIKE THAT!?] [LOOK! THE SOUP¡¯S STARTED TO GET TOO THICK BECAUSE YOU TOOK A LONG TIME MIXING IT!!]

    [I¡¯m really sorry...!!!]

    [IF YOU REALLY FEELING SORRY THEN START TO MAKE THE NEXT DISH RIGHT AWAY!]

    [YES MA¡¯AM!!]

    [[....]] Chris and Hilda can only show their face in disbelief seeing how Rosa act when it comes to cooking.

    [Well, in a way, I¡¯m also thankful to her.] Says Hilda while looking at how Rosa act toward Rud.

    [I agree.] [She maybe a simpleton and not really good at understanding complicated stuff.] [But she has a good heart.]

    And with that, Hilda return back to where Rosa and Rud is to continue their lecture of cooking while Christine can only looked at their back.

    [....] [If only I can also cook....]

    ***

    [Wow... it¡¯s good!] Yohana was having a hard time trying to hide her expression upon the surprise that lies before her.

    [I really underestimade it....] [This really taste better than I thought.] Even Vram was astonished by itself.

    [Umm....] Josephine also taste it out and it does satisfy her, but somehow she couldn¡¯t utter a single word of it.

    [What¡¯s wrong, Fina?] [Eat up, you¡¯ve worked hard today after all!]

    [I agree with Lady Yohana.] Chris suddenly speak up toward Josephine. [You wouldn¡¯t want these delicious food to go to waste, right?]

    [W... well it¡¯s true that I¡¯m hungry and it does taste superb...!] [But....]

    [Well it is quite surprising, but I kinda expected it though.] [That Rosa and Lady Hilda would be able to produce such high quality of food in such a short amount of time.]

    While the others were enjoying the warmth of the freshly made food, Josephine take another glance at the other table where Rosa, Hilda, and Rud are sitting together, and Rud can only lower his head, somehow looked ashamed.

    [He¡¯s experiencing living hell right now, that¡¯s for sure.] Yohn can only commented on the other tables while also enjoying the food that both Hilda and Rosa made.

    [I¡¯m kinda curious, what exactly happened when we¡¯re away, Yohn?]

    [It was chaos.] [Making a meat soup, he accidentally slipped too much water inside.] [Frying a fish, he ended up over-heating the fire, making the inside still totally raw.] [When he tried to roast it, the place where it roasted wasn¡¯t even.]

    [... I wonder how is it that you guys did manage to survive all this time.]

    [Well you already know that Rud is immortal as long as he isn¡¯t killed, and me being a random small primate can eat anything as long as it is edible.]

    [By the way, Vram.] Suddenly Chris was looking toward Vram with a worried look.

    [What is it, Lady Chris?]

    [Why are you still wearing your upper helmet and only opened the lower part of it?] [We¡¯re just eating leisurely here, so....]

    [NO!]

    Suddenly Josephine cut out both of their conversation which makes Chris and Yohana confused.

    [Um... but....] [Your familiar looked a bit uncomfortable there, so....]

    [NO!] [I don¡¯t want to!!]

    [Ummm....] Chris looked back to Vram before looking at Josephine again.

    [But... you see, even if he looked hideous or scary, it doesn¡¯t mean you should hide it or what, right...?]

    *BRAKK!!!

    [ARE YOU SAYING THAT MY FAMILIAR IS UGLY?!?!?]

    [Eh?] [He¡¯s not?]

    [He¡¯s...!] [He... he is....] [....]

    Suddenly Josephine¡¯s head reddened so much that it looked like her head was fuming out.

    [... Vram, can I ask you to come with me for a minute?] Yohn asked that as he come down and went somewhere secluded.

    [What?] Vram, sensing something serious, trying to follow Yohn.

    [Hmm....]

    While Chris was still concerned about Josephine¡¯s reaction, Yohana being dumbfounded in the sudden situation in front of her eyes, the two of them spend quite a long time on a secluded place where almost nobody can see them. After a while, the two finally came back while Yohn was hurriedly running toward Chris.

    [Lady Chris...!]

    [Yes, Yohn?] Chris suddenly preplexed upon hearing Yohn¡¯s serious tone.

    [Let¡¯s not talk about his face any longer.]

    [E?] [Why??]

    [It was deadly!] [SO DEADLY THAT IT¡¯S ALMOST UNFAIR!!!]

    [Wait wait.] [Was his face supposed to be his ultimate ability or what?]

    [It may be!] [At any rate, you can¡¯t!!] [For us men, it¡¯ll cause us to shrivel down beyond words, and for you girls, you won¡¯t be able to think straight any longer!!]

    [Wait, are you saying that Josephine had fallen to such scary ability!?!?] Said Yohana surprised while pointing toward Vram.

    [Wait a minute, I don¡¯t remember having that kind of ability....] Vram was somehow flustered by the way Yohana react.

    [NO! YOU HAVE!] [IN FACT, THAT¡¯S THE ONLY THING THAT EXPLAIN YOUR MASTER¡¯S CONDITION NOW!!] [I REMEMBER YOU SAID SHE DOESN¡¯T LIKE TO WEAR CLOTHES UNTIL YOU APPEAR, AND IT¡¯S BECAUSE OF YOUR FACE!!!]

    [That doesn¡¯t make sense, though?!?] [Master, are you sure that was the case?!?]

    [That...!] [That is...!] [That....]

    Before being able to confirm it herself, she ended up sitting back on the chair and lowered her head, blushing all the way to her ears.

    [See!?] [She already confirmed it!!] [Your face is dangerous, Vram!!]

    [That... was it...?] Vram can only baffled at the truth coming out suddenly.

    Somehow or another the two tables turned awkward for the better or for the worse. Not too long after that, Rosalinda start to ease up her own expression.

    [*sigh* Let¡¯s stop this.] [It¡¯s really uncomfortable after all, having to scold you over and over again.]

    Seeing somehow Rosa just easily let him off, Hilda also ended up letting go of her own feeling.

    [I... I¡¯m sorry....] Rud ended up only lowering his head in Rosa¡¯s confession.

    [Oh well....] [At least one thing is clear to us now.]

    As Hilda said that, she suddenly went toward Josephine¡¯s table, leaving Rud confused by himself.

    [Naked Idiot.]

    [Umm... yes?] Still in a daze after Chris¡¯ question, Josephine can only reply empty headed toward Hilda.

    [Your slave.] [Give him to me.]

    The sudden exclamation Hilda made out of nowhere turns everyone¡¯s face there as white as a paper. Unable to react against it, Josephine can only open wide her mouth.

 Chapter 21.5 - Twelve Apostles Special Arc

    [That¡¯s all, you two.] [Are there any question?]

    One time, in some room, a red-headed woman was trying to teach two girls that somehow looks still very young.

    [Umm... Lady Hilda...?]

    [Yes?] [Do you have something in your mind, Chris?]

    It was Hildegarde, back when she was still barely managed to summon her own familiar, as well as the two new witches whom was still learning things, Christine and Rosalinda.

    [I was wondering ever since the start....] [Lady Hilda was supposed to be a Frontier Unit, right?] [But why aren¡¯t you doing any Frontier-related things like what you¡¯ve teach us?]

    Such question that came out easily from her innocent mouth somehow puts them in an awkward situation.

    [YA! CHRIS YOU IDIOT!!] [THAT¡¯S NOT SOMETHING YOU SHOULD¡¯VE SAID LIGHTLY!!]

    [Oho~?] [So you¡¯re saying that I¡¯m so pitiful that you can¡¯t ask me that kind of question, Rosa~?] Hilda suddenly feels pricked by Rosa¡¯s claim.

    [Ah, no no!] [That wasn¡¯t my intention, but...!]

    [Well it¡¯s not that surprising actually....]

    Hilda was somehow signalling something with her eye toward somewhere. Then suddenly something was rolling from the side of the room into Hilda¡¯s side. It then transformed into some kind of stone doll.

    [[Ah...!]]

    [Well, when you have a familiar like him, you¡¯re bound to get looked down a lot by other people.]

    [Wait, that doesn¡¯t make sense!] Chris somehow getting worked up upon the fact that the Familiar Hildegarde has was only a golem. [Lady Hilda, you were supposed to be one of the very few witches whom are capable of completing their quota in such a short amount of time, right?!] [There¡¯s no way that it¡¯s your familiar!] [Your mana quality are also considered the highest purity among others!!]

    [Just believe it, Chris.] [I had my own strategy to be able to finish my own quota quickly, but not to obtain more than the needed ones.]

    Hildegarde then start explaining her own strategy to the two witches¡¯ apprentice, of how she didn¡¯t use her own familiar to defend herself, by using herself as a bait to pull some monster toward some location, then let her own familiar, Hougo, to finish everything all by itself.

    [But the cost of such strategy is quite dangerous considering it¡¯s me and this kid¡¯s body that were at stake, so everytime I gain some profit, I quickly spend it for his maintenance.] [That¡¯s why I decided to do this, becoming an instructor.] [Elder Endrossa also saw it fitting for me to become one, starting to teach you two as my own very first apprentice.]

    The two apprentices can only stay silent in her answer as the instructor can only show her bitter smile for letting her newly appointed apprentices seeing another side of her.

    [Lady Hilda....] [YOU¡¯RE SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!]

    [Huh?] Hilda confused at her own apprentice¡¯s reaction.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    [Rosa?] [What are you saying?]

    [YOU¡¯RE THE BEST WITCHES I¡¯VE EVER MET!!] [I MEAN, EVERY OTHER WITCH I¡¯VE EVER MET ALWAYS SAYING THAT ¡°MANA QUALITY IS IMPORTANT¡± OR ¡°YOUR FAMILIAR IS THE ONE THAT DECIDE YOUR RANK¡± OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT!] [I REALLY HATE THAT!!] [BUT LADY HILDA! YOU¡¯RE THE ONLY ONE WHO DIDN¡¯T RELY ON THOSE THINGS AND INSTEAD TRYING YOUR BEST TO BECOME THE BEST WITHOUT IT!] [I... I THINK I LOVE YOU, LADY HILDA!!!]

    *PLAKK!!!

    [Ow~!] Rosa was suddenly being hit by a paper fan out of nowhere in the head by Hilda.

    [Don¡¯t get too worked up there, girl.] [Some of the things those people saying aren¡¯t far from the truth either.] [I only wishes to be useful after all.]

    [But...!]

    [I also agree with Rosalinda here, Lady Hilda.] [To achieve something that no other witches could do, I¡¯d rather following your footsteps and working hard to achieve my dream than to leave everything up to fate... to let my own familiar decide my future...!]

    [*sigh*....] [You two sure are something....] [Listen, I¡¯m teaching you here not to become someone that comes behind me.] [I want you to be something better than me and contribute more for our village, our home.]

    [Still, for me... no, for us, you¡¯re the only true witch we¡¯ll ever approve!]

    [I ALSO AGREED!]

    *PLAKK! *PLAKK!!!

    [[Ouch!]]

    [I¡¯m grateful for your concern.] [But still, you can¡¯t just hope to learn everything from me.] [Even I have some mistakes here and there, and it¡¯s the job of the other instructor to fill it up in my place.] [So don¡¯t just learn from me, try to learn everything else from other.]

    [O... okay!] The two answer simultaneously.

    [... Wait a minute, you two.] [Don¡¯t make it look like you two are my subordinate or something.]

    [We would be delighted if you make us into one, Lady Hilda!]

    *PLAKK!!

    Hilda slap Chris again with the paper fan in her reaction of Chris¡¯ declaration.

    [Don¡¯t joke on me like that!]

    [We¡¯re not, Lady Hilda!]

    [You... both are really...!]

    ***

    [So that¡¯s how you got both of such obedient subordinate like that....]

    [Like I¡¯m telling you, they¡¯re not my subordinate!]

    At some point, Hilda was in the middle of retelling Yohn the story of her past, regarding of how at some point, Rosalinda and Christine keeps tailing her from the back.

    [So that¡¯s why you¡¯ve been desperate to find a way to improve yourself.]

    [Yeah....] [I¡¯m not really into the concept of becoming the best witches nor becoming one of the Apostles.] [But I can¡¯t really betray the expectation of those two.]

    [I see.]

    But the two of them actually wasn¡¯t just leisurely conversating. Somehow Hilda was in the middle of tinkering with some kind of device while Yohn observe everything.

    [Still, I¡¯m kinda surprised that humans were able to create these kind of things.]

    [I¡¯m far more surprised that that Black Knight possesed such equipment all by himself.]

    [I kinda agreed with that.] [Not to mention he can actually use it to any kind of situation at a perfect time.] [But for now, that¡¯s less of my concern now.]

    Hilda start to focus her entire concentration onto the device in front of her.

    [You really sure that with this, Hougo can actually use magic?]

    [Well technically yes.] [But the formula needed to unleash the magic itself must be engraved perfectly as well as including where does this device going to absorb the mana needed.] [In Vram¡¯s case, I¡¯m guessing each time he opened the ¡®pocket¡¯, at that time, the mana consumption had already begin.]

    [So not only it enables him to use magic, but to control when and how to unleash it, right?]

    [Yup.]

    [Hmm....]

    Hildegarde pondering for a moment then start to have quite a sinister smile on her face.

    [Can I equip more than 2 of this device onto Hougo?]

    [Wha?!?] [Well... It¡¯s not impossible....] [But the strain of equipping so many of these is quite risky....]

    [Well I think Hougo can handle it just fine, right~?]

    As if answering his master¡¯s hope, Hougo somehow jumping up and down lightly.

    [But are you sure about it...?] [You not trying to play with my body and instead asking me about my past as a price for your knowledge....]

    [For someone like you, I kinda prefer to know more about you than just to play around.]

    [*sigh* You¡¯re one sly mouse.]

    [Eheheheh~]

    [I guess I should kick up a notch and quickly finish this Rune Core so that me and Hougo can return back to the frontline!]

    And with that, she was deep focused into creating the device to make Hougo stronger than before, while without realizing it yet herself later, she would create a strongest familiar that nobody could predict, something that even the Elder Witch found its strength unfathomable.

 Chapter 22 - Twelve Apostles Arc 3

    [Eh?]

    Rud was somehow preplexed all by himself, in a huge field, standing while equipping some kind of device in his hand. The device was a bit designed like a glove with a crystal on the backhand, but with some kind of trigger on its palm.

    [YOU READY, BLOCKHEAD!?] Hildegarde was far away from him, trying to observe the experiment with Rud as her lab rat.

    [Wait a minute, Lady Hilda...!] [I don¡¯t really understand what are we trying to do!!]

    [You really are a blockhead after all.] Yohn was coming up toward his collar and start to speak to him near his ear. [We need you to test the Rune Core that we¡¯ve recently made here.]

    [Wait, this is a Rune Core?!?] [She made one?!?!]

    [This is already her 10th one.] [So hurry up and be done with it.] [You¡¯re whining too much for a slave.]

    [AREN¡¯T YOU ON THE SAME SIDE AS I AM?!?!]

    After yesterday¡¯s confirmation regarding Hilda borrowing Rud¡¯s slave, Hilda quickly decides that he¡¯ll be assisting her regarding the creation of the Rune Core and for testing it out.

    [If you forgot the reason we¡¯re doing this, I¡¯ll tell you again.] [Since Hilda pretty much a seasoned Witch and capable of doing a close-combat magic chanting in a short time, there¡¯s a difference between her using it and when she equipped it to her familiar.] [To be able to test this tool effectively, someone who has a big amount of mana container as well as being unable to use magic at the same time is needed.] [Thus, we decided that you¡¯d be a perfect fit for it.]

    [And without my consent?!?]

    [We already get our permission from your master, after all.]

    [YA!] [HOW LONG ARE YOU TWO GOING TO LEISURELY TALKING LIKE THAT?!?!?] [WANT TO HAVE SOMETHING JAMMED ON YOUR BACK?!!?]

    Hilda, growing impatient, start to threaten Rud that he ended up closing his mouth immediately and start to focus on using the tool, the Rune Core.

    [Alright, listen up.] [All you need to do is to Aim toward the center of the field and press the trigger on your hand.] [You may feel a bit weird having your mana consumed for a bit, but overall there should be no problem.]

    [Grrgh... okay....]

    Doing as instructed, Rud slowly helding his hand on the trigger of the tool and....

    *CLICK!

    *ZWAAAAAAAAAASH!!!

    Almost at the same time as the trigger were pressed, a fireball suddenly forming in front of his hand. As Rud keeps holding the trigger, the fireball keeps getting bigger, but still staying in front of the trigger.

    [Wha...?!] [Is this the feeling of being able to use magic?!?!]

    [Alright, I guess there¡¯s no error on the device itself.] Hilda was self-boasting after he make sure that the tool do works properly.

    [This is really cool though!] [Whoaa...!] Mesmerized, Rud start to waving his arm left and right, up and down, while the fireball keeps following his arm.

    [ALRIGHT! THAT¡¯S ENOUGH, YOU CAN RELEASE IT TO THE FIELD!!]

    [Eh?]

    Just at the same time as he¡¯s releasing the trigger, he didn¡¯t realize that he¡¯s aiming the fireball toward his own head.

    *CLACK!!

    [WHA...!] [YOU FOOL!!!!!!]

    [Eh?]

    *BLAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!

    The ball exploded right in front of Rud¡¯s head.

    [IDIOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!!]

    [DON¡¯T WORRY!] [WE¡¯RE SAFE!!!]

    Somehow Yohn and Rud barely saved. The ball did explode right in front of them, but right before then, a wall of stone stand between them and the explosion. And with that said, Hilda furiously run toward them.

    [YOU FRICKIN¡¯ IDIOT!!!]

    *PLAKKK!!!!

    With a paper fan in her left arm, Hilda strike Rud¡¯s head as hard as he can, paining him somehow.

    [I... I¡¯m sorry...!!] [I wasn¡¯t focused...!!!]

    [YEA YOU SHOULD BE SORRY!] [THIS IS JUST THE FIRST TEST, AND YOU ALREADY RUINED IT!!!!]

    [B... but, Lady Hilda....] Somehow Yohn was trying to calm her down by climbing up toward Hougo¡¯s head. [At least he¡¯s safe, so we can....]

    [OF COURSE HE WAS SAFE!] [I¡¯VE ASKED HOUGO TO ALWAYS KEEP WATCH ON HIM IN CASE SOMETHING DID GOES WRONG!!!] [NOW LOOK! HE LOST ANOTHER SHIELD ON TOP OF THAT!!!] [IF EACH TIME WE¡¯RE DOING A TEST AND SOMETHING KEEP HAPPENING, EVEN HE WOULDN¡¯T LAST!!]

    [I¡¯m sorry....] Rud can only keeps his head lower and lower than usual, realizing that he really was at fault.

    [*sigh*... make sure to stay focused, alright?] [All you need to do is to aim at the central field and press the trigger.] [In case something did happen, Hougo will be there to help you, so you shouldn¡¯t worry too much, okay?]

    [Right....]

    Then suddenly, Rud notices something is amiss.

    [Wait a minute, Lady Hilda.] [How come Hougo can actually moves that fast toward me?] [If I remember correctly, he was supposed to be right beside you, and yet he reach all the way here in no time at all.]

    Yohn and Hilda was totally shocked hearing Rud¡¯s exclamation and can only stand silently.

    [... You still haven¡¯t realized it yet?] [For who do you think this Rune Core is made for?]

    [It wasn¡¯t for me?]

    [....] [Clear your head up on the stream over there, and we¡¯ll be restarting later.]

    [Wait whaaaa?!?!?]

    ***

    At other place, a sight of something unfathomable happens so suddenly.

    [HOW ARE YOU GOING TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS!?!?!?]

    [I... I¡¯m sorry.] [I promise I¡¯ll make it up to you by the end of the day!]

    Yohana was in the middle of apologizing toward some other girls from the Relief Unit, the one that mainly does things regarding the development of the inner village, like agriculture and the likes. And somehow Yohana, one of the representative from Gallant unit in which its purpose was to maintain safety within its own town, had to beg for forgiveness for the mistake of one of her junior.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    [AND HOW IS IT GOING TO HELP US AROUND HERE?!?] [YOU KNOW THAT THIS IS ALREADY THE 9th TIME THIS HAPPENED!] [FURTHERMORE, IT¡¯S HER OVER AND OVER AGAIN!!]

    She¡¯s angrily pointed toward one of the girls whom have been lowering her head in regret. A girl with light brownish hair together with her familiar which¡¯s clad in full black armor.

    [I have no excuses regarding that.] [But I¡¯ll promise you that I¡¯ll recompensate for the damage that¡¯s already happened....]

    [YOU¡¯D BETTER BE!] [AND WHILE YOU¡¯RE AT IT, YOU SHOULD DO SOMETHING WITH THAT GIRL!!] [EVERYTHING¡¯S A MESS THANKS TO HER!]

    Yohana can only stay silent until the girl from the relief unit finally stops shouting and start to leave the place after Yohana had promised to compensate her. As they finally manage to leave the place, this time it was Yohana¡¯s turn to interrogate Josephine.

    [Fina.]

    [Y... yes, senior?] Though Josephine was already expecting that she¡¯ll get scolded, her heart somehow still unprepared.

    [Normally I won¡¯t ask this out of consideration....] [What happened actually?]

    [Eh?] Josephine can only stand shocked being suddenly asked something like that out of the blue.

    [Besides your ability to recreate magic items, lately your concentration has been off.] [At first I thought it¡¯s because you¡¯ve been keep creating some kind of weird tool over and over again.] [But there¡¯s also something wrong with your daily life.] [You¡¯re unusally late at waking up, and sometimes you¡¯re so out of it that you can barely hear us talking.] [Tell me honestly, what¡¯s wrong with you?]

    [Eh?] [Uhmm... Well, I do have some worries on my mind, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that straining for me.] [Right, Vram?]

    [I agree.] [More like, I¡¯ve always observing Master to ensure that she doesn¡¯t overwork herself when she¡¯s working with something.] [Though it does makes me wonder, her being always late at waking up, her aimless magic, and her tendency to space out sometime.] [It wasn¡¯t like that from the beginning?]

    Yohana feels like something wrong about the situation that unfold before her. She somehow sensing that there¡¯s some kind of happening right in front of her.

    [Wait a minute.] [Fina, from the time after you summoned Vram, do you feel anything strange?]

    [Strange?] Josephine pondered for a bit from those question. [Hmm... aside from the time I¡¯m feeling light-headed when I tried to cast a complex magic, I¡¯ve been perfectly fine.] [Though lately I¡¯m feeling hungry more often than usual....]

    [What...?] Hearing the case Josephine is having, Yohana somehow shows a dreadful face which surprise Josephine and Vram even more.

    [Fina!] [Come with me now!!!!]

    [EH?!] [But I still have to write some report regarding....]

    [THAT CAN BE DONE LATER!] [OR RATHER, I¡¯LL BE THE ONE DOING IT!] [For now you should come with me quickly!!!]

    [Eh? Eh? Eeeh?]

    ***

    At some places, Chris was in the middle of playing together with something. It looked the most like a human, with the difference in size having only as big as between the elbow and the arm, also with a transparent bug wings on its back and weird eyes. It was often referred as a fairy.

    *SHIIING~!

    [Thank goodness....] [You¡¯ve finally restored.] [I really was worried you know, when you¡¯ve been swallowed by that shadow hands....]

    [It was scary, I tell you!] [Seing half of our familiar¡¯s body getting swallowed like that.] [Thankfully somehow Hougo wasn¡¯t affected by that.] Rosa from the other rooms also start to comment something while in the middle of treating her own familiar.

    Suddenly then, Chris¡¯ familiar was flying toward the entrance, surprise Chris as it was too sudden.

    [Wait, Alsha.] [Where are you going!?]

    Flying so fast toward the entrance, one of the witches whom were in charge of taking care of the wounded familiar were also surprised seeing the familiar energetically flying toward the exit. But the moment it reached the door, it wasn¡¯t trying to goes out, instead was opening the door and let it just like that.

    [Umm... is someone going to come, Alsha?]

    Alsha just flying toward Chris¡¯ face and nodding her head. Not too long after that, Yohana was coming in forcefully while dragging Josephine, while Vram and Sear, Yohana¡¯s familiar, are following from behind.

    [Yohana?] [What are you doing here?] [Was Sear getting hurt or something?]

    [Sorry, I¡¯ll explain later!] [For now, I need you to check Josephine¡¯s condition!!]

    [[Eh?]] Almost everyone including Chris and the other Witches there can only stand there confused. But since it seems to be quite urgent, the witches quickly drag Josephine into their Examination Room.

    [Lady Yohana.] Vram somehow started to feel the tension there.

    [Vram.] [No matter how the result turned out, I don¡¯t want you to blame yourself over this.] [In fact, I sincerely hoped that I was mistaken....]

    [Did something happen?] Chris quickly stand beside Vram, curious about what was about to happen.

    [Chris....] [I... I can¡¯t really bring myself to mention it in front of her and Vram....] [Since... she was finally had his own familiar...!]

    [Wait, I don¡¯t get what you¡¯re talking about...!]

    Yohana start to went silent, which somehow put an awkward situation right in front of them. After waiting for quite a long time, Josephine finally came out, looking a little depressed.

    [Josephine?!] [What¡¯s wrong? Did something happen?!?!]

    Chris, somehow noticing that something went wrong with Josephine, start to hurriedly goes to her aid.

    [Senior Chris...!] [Wh... what do I do...!]

    Josephine start to teared up while almost bawling her heart out. Just then, the girl whom was in charge of examining Josephine, steps out from the room, and Yohana quickly went toward her.

    [How is it...?!]

    The girl can only stay silent before finally decided to talk.

    [She... experiences a short-circuited mana link.] [And apparently, it has been going on for long....]

    A case where a magician or spellcaster had one of their Mana Circuit, which was mainly used for transforming a mana into a magic. For a Witch, usually they had more than 2-digit numbers of Mana Circuit than normal human has, which is why they could complete many kinds of complicated magic with ease.

    [What?!] Chris whom have been listening from the side suddenly went into a big shock hearing the news.

    [So it¡¯s really true....]

    [Wait a minute!] [We¡¯re a witch, so there¡¯s no way we¡¯ll experience that kind of situation!] [Besides, Josephine barely ever use a grand-scale magic, so....]

    Before she finished her reasoning, she stopped herself. Not because there was something caught on her throat, but she suddenly comes to a realization, as she shifts her gaze toward one anomaly that has been with her this whole time.

    [Don¡¯t tell me... the demerit?]

    [It seems so....] [The way her mana regulate irregularly isn¡¯t endanger her own life, but it does her quite a lot burden.]

    Somehow when the situation become gloomy, Vram was the only one left clueless there. Then step out toward them.

    [Demerit?]

    [Ah, I forgot that you can¡¯t use magic, so you don¡¯t understand.] [You see, we witches always have a familiar that¡¯s close to us right?] [Usually regarding the summoning of those familiar, not every strong witch can obtain a powerful Familiar right out of the blue like that.]

    [Yes, and why is that?]

    [It¡¯s because you, and the rest of a familiar, had a merit and demerit effect that directly affect us Witches.]

    [What?!?]

    [And guessing for the symptoms....] [I guess it is the demerit of your existence....]

    [Wait, then Master is...!]

    As Vram suddenly panicked and shifted his sight toward Josephine, suddenly she stopped crying and can only looked confused.

    [Eh?] [Demerit?] [Not because of me overworking my mana circuit???]

    Her sudden claim also confuses the other that they ended up staring toward the girl whom examined her.

    [Well there are also some place where the circuit line were being worked to the maximum, but somehow the strain quickly heals itself.] [While somehow, the short-circuited ones has been there for quite long and doesn¡¯t seems to be used much.]

    Everyone there can only stay silent as they¡¯re trying to understand the whole situation.

    [Wait a minute.] Suddenly, Rosalinda come out of nowhere after listening to most of their story. [So basically, Josephine cannot utilize some kind of magic anymore?]

    [Err... to be precise, she cannot utilize any kind of grand-scale magic that demands her to create something out of her own mana container anymore.] [For any medium-scale and lower, she might be able to, but higher ones may need some time to be perfectly cast.] [But she still can do any kind of ritual magic that needs a lot of preparation and resources to be fulfilled.]

    [Wait...!] Josephine suddenly raised her arm as she was concerned of something. [Then that means my life nor Vram was in any kind of danger?!]

    [Umm... I never said that, though.] [I¡¯m just saying that your familiar somehow is related of your condition.] [As Lady Yohana says, it is the Demerit of having a familiar after all.]

    [GEEZ! DON¡¯T MAKE IT SOUND SO COMPLICATED!] [I THOUGHT ME HAVING A SHORT-CIRCUITED MANA LINK WAS GOING TO CAUSE SOME PROBLEM TO VRAM!]

    [But Master....] Vram reaching out to Josephine in worry.

    [Yes?]

    [Aren¡¯t you concerned about it at all?] [I mean, me being the reason of your condition right now....]

    [Umm... Nope, none at all.]

    [Eh?]

    [I already knew about there being a demerit once you¡¯ve made a pact with a Familiar after all.] [More like, if a Witch were afraid of the demerit it has, none of us would be brave enough to summon one, after all~!]

    [Yup~!] [That Naked Idiot over there got it right~!] [That¡¯s not something us should fret about, right?]

    As Rosa freely expressed her content, somehow Yohana looked more worried than before.

    [No, I need to fret about it.]

    [Yohana?] [What¡¯s wrong actually?] Chris somehow confused as what kind of problem Yohana had to face.

    [You see....] [Since the demerit was actually that fatal....] [Josephine had lost any qualification needed to become a Gallant.]

    [[[Eh?]]]

    ***

    [WHAT DID YOU SAY?!?!?!?]

    Endrossa, suddenly went into a rage and shock, shout her lungs out toward the girl whom have delivered some report to her.

    [I... I¡¯m afraid so....] [I already had the testimony of the other group of girls whom were also together with Maria.] [It seems that they split up when they were being chased by a Vasp Queen.]

    It was a report of a missing Witch, in this case, Maria¡¯s dissapearance. The Relief unit was finally received her distress signal, in the form of a faerie light. But what enrages her the most wasn¡¯t for the fact of her went missing and in trouble, but....

    [For her to go to the Forbidden Spot...!] [What in the world is she thinking...!!!]

    [Elder....] [I¡¯m sorry for being rude, but....] [We... I don¡¯t think there are any unit from either the Relief nor Rising Unit would dare to set foot in there....]

    [Still, we can¡¯t let her alone just like that.]

    As she says that, she moves away from the room she has been staying.

    [Inform all of the 12 Apostles to assamble.] [Make them know that this is an emergency.]

    [A... alright!!!]

    The girl quickly rushed out to inform each and every Apostles as a new conflict creeping out into their lives.

 Chapter 23 - Twelve Apostles Arc 4

    The Circles.

    A term of a sub-organization where they regulate everything that¡¯s happening around the Witches¡¯ Village. The circles itself was managed by the 12 people that had the highest qualification among the other witches based on their own spesification. These people were also goes under another name, which is The Twelve Apostles.

    Its origin regarding the number was unknown, but the title for those 12 Apostles was the main foundation of how Witches Village works. Originally, the main framework regarding how the village worked was split into two main function.

    Vanguard Unit, in early times, reffered to witches whom possess a familiar partner specialized in combat, with Scavage as its subclass; its primary role is to support its more capable superior.

    Relief Unit, it was referred to those whom specialized in securing resources and living needs for the witches, requiring a witch and a familiar specialized in procurement works.

    This formation was usually enough for Witches, whom were known to be able to use magic as they pleased without having to worry about their mana consumption.

    However, it was if the place they stayed in is normal.

    In Helven, especially the main island, there is no such things as convenience or the likes. The appearance of a monster that can detect creature with mana like Vasp, a monster that can swim through the ground, or another kind of monster like that is enough to instill fear into anyone that stepped into that continent.

    Furthermore, the plant and fruit on that island can¡¯t be considered as ¡°safe¡±. At the first or second bites, it seems safe. But on the long term, it somehow impedes the mana flow insides each of their body that is needed to unleash their magic, mainly because most of the natural thing in that island had its mana deprived and stored elsewhere.

    Because of that, a single witch, together with her 12 comrade, decided to recreate a new framework system for their settlement in order to ensure their survivability better. And now the 12 representatives of the Apostles and one elder has each accepting their responsibilities of each unit.

    Hidden deep inside a valley in the innermost part of the village, there lies a room so spacious with a ritual table, in which it has a magic circle on top of a cloth and a crystal-like orb set on top of it was being set for 13 people, 12 of it had the same kind of ritual table while the one in the northern-most position somehow looked more grand than the other ritual table, with the ornament being flashy decorated with some kind of glowing metal and mineral.

    [Oh, am I the first one to arrive?]

    Looking left and right nervously, someone entered the room. As the light strikes her, it shows a figure of a reserved person with reserved body, a slim line from above toward below while wearing something quite ¡°reserved¡± for a witch, something that covers almost her whole skin while still showing her figure, making her already transparent clothes looked like a mere accessories. A green-haired glasses person with her twin pigtails twirling left and right as she swing her head left and right.

    [Oho!] [Now isn¡¯t that Phillia~!] [It¡¯s a rare case for you to come here first~!] Another person then came right after the green-haired girl called Phillia. A cheery, brightful and blonde-wavy haired person with sparkly clothes that blinked everytime it flutters, while wearing some kind of bodysuit, though strangely the color of the bodysuit was the same as her skin.

    [Ah, Senior Tamara.] [Umm... Senior... those clothes...?]

    [Ehehe~] [Cute, isn¡¯t it~!?] [Most people who sees me ended up surprised, thinking that I wasn¡¯t wearing anything.] [Don¡¯t worry though, I¡¯m not like a certain person whom naked since her birth.]

    [B... but recently that person has wearing some clothes, though.]

    [Yea, I heard.] [And somehow it causes more ruckus than usual.] [It¡¯s irritating me that she still manages to draw more attention to herself than me~!]

    [Ahahaha...~] Phillia can only laugh in monotone while listening to her senior¡¯s crazy idea.

    [*EHM!*]

    As the other two keeps bickering about each of their own interest, two more person already entered the room. One person was a girl with a string dress corset and high-heels black string boots, with her fluttery wavy blonde hair almost touching the floor. The other person was a girl with bare shoulder one-piece black dress with her straight thick brown hair flowing by the wind. Surprisingly, both of them didn¡¯t wear any kind of transparent clothes.

    [Excuse me, you two.] [Would you mind to going straight toward your seat right away?]

    [Geez, cut me some slack will you, Pierre~?] [The Elder isn¡¯t here yet so we can just take it easy, right?] [And it¡¯s quite rare for you to be together with Zilla.]

    Not responding to any reaction Tamara gives, Zilla can only smile worriedly as Pierre looked like she was about to get angry.

    [Don¡¯t forget that we¡¯re currently in the middle of attending an emergency meeting here.] [I suggest that you both should do the same.]

    [Ye~s~] Tamara answers Pierre¡¯s reasoning playfully.

    [Pierre, Tamara.] Zilla then poking on Pierre as if trying to say something. [The others are coming now.]

    Just when both Pierre and Tamara are glaring toward each other, the other 9 member of the Circles are coming in together except for one.

    [So the double-titled two-goody shoes aren¡¯t here yet?]

    [Weirdly enough, she¡¯s supposed to be the one that usually arrives here first.]

    Just a moment after they speak of it, another girl arrived with the ones they¡¯ve been waiting for.

    [I¡¯m sorry for being late.] [I was in the middle of writing some important documents.]

    A girl in glasses with her striking gradient green-blue hair, combined with her gaudy appearance of green-white combination, finally stepping up inside the very same room.

    [You¡¯re quite late, Senior Yohana.] [Or should I say, the current Gallant Chief Unit as well as the Temporary Rising Chief Unit?]

    [Spare me your sarcasm.] [So should we started already?]

    [But the Elder isn¡¯t....]

    [I¡¯m here.]

    Suddenly right in the center of the room, Elder Endrossa has been standing there like she¡¯s been there the whole time. This situation surprises everyone on the room.

    [It is time.] [Each of you please sit down accordingly.] [An emergency situation has arisen.]

    <h2>***</h2>

    Inside the room where a giant magic circle with 12-point star encircled by the 12 tables on each star point. Each seat except for one was occupied by a person of their own title and function as well as their importance regarding that matter.

    Pierre, a Producer Chief Unit. A gaudy-looking girl with her fluttery wavy blonde hair almost touching the floor.

    Adriane, an Architect Chief Unit. A bright girl wearing wool material clothes with long straight hair flowing downward.

    Yamus, a Moduler Chief Unit. With her skimpy leather clothing while having a shiny, black pigtail hairs.

    Yohana, a Gallant Chief Unit. A girl in glasses with her striking gradient green-blue hair, combined with her gaudy appearance of green-white combination

    Phillia, a Medic Chief Unit. Another girl in glasses with dark green pigtails hair. With her clothes completely covered unlike other witches.

    Nathalia, an Instructor Chief Unit. A stern, expresionless girl with full robe covering her body, while having her blue ponytailed hair hanged on the air.

    Tamara, a Tailor Chief Unit. A cheery, brightful and blonde-wavy haired person with sparkly clothes.

    Mythia, a Frontier Chief Unit. A mysterious and silent girl with her light blue hair flowing downward her shoulders.

    Yanus, Structurer Chief Unit. A short-brown haired girl wearing a bare-shoulder white-black dress.

    Judy, an Appraiser Chief Unit. A masculine-haired girl colored white with skimpy bare-shoulder tightsuits.

    Zilla, a Stocker Chief Unit. A seemingly reserved girl with her light blond hair flutters over her shoulders.

    And the last, which should¡¯ve been a Rising Chief Unit, yet remain empty and currently being taken care of by Yohana.

    And right behind one of the star point, an altar with grand sitting is in there as well as the one whom were supposed to sit in there. It was the throne in which the Elder should reside on, as Elder Endrossa proudfully sitting in there.

    [I will start the emergency meeting now.]

    As Elder Endrossa was about to raise the topic, Pierre suddenly raises her hand.

    [Elder, if I may speak.] [Regarding this emergency, it¡¯s about something that happened to the Frontier Unit, right?] [Shouldn¡¯t it be Mythia¡¯s case to solve this all and doesn¡¯t really involve us?]

    [What are you saying, Pierre?!] Yohana somehow felt annoyed at Pierre¡¯s question to Elder. [The reason Elder called us is precisely because they need all of our opinion here.]

    [What opinion of a Producer Unit like me matter to a bunch of suicidal maniac like Mythia and her goons?]

    [Wha... you...!!!]

    [Enough, Pierre, Yohana!] Elder raises her voice to stop both of their bickering. [I want to start discussing the current situation immediately, so stop your childish fight now!]

    As the two finally start to shut their mouth for a bit, Elder then start to take a deep breath before mentioned their current situation.

    [I just got news from the Frontier¡¯s subunit reinforcement request.] [Apparently, it was requested by Mariabelle.]

    A name that is quite familiar around the village. It was the real perpetrator of the recent familiar killing case, in which Josephine was the victim.

    [From the report itself....] Endrossa start to take a deep, long breath before continuing her report. [... She was missing on the Forbidden Spot beyond the Red Line.]

    The whole room started to went silent all of a sudden. Not even a sound of someone breathing can be heard. Some looked surprised, some looked worried.

    [Wait a minute....] Judy, the chief of Appraiser Unit was the one to snap out of it and start asking question. [Why would she be there?!] [Even being reckless had its limits!]Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    [That¡¯s right!] Tamara then also offering her own opinion. [No matter how reckless she is, she would never put herself nor her own familiar in some kind of dangerous situation like that!] [I¡¯ve know her for so long since I¡¯m her senior, there must be some kind of mistake here!]

    [I have a report regarding that.] Mythia, the Frontier Chief Unit then pull up some report paper on her hand and start to read it thoroughly. [Roughly 3 weeks ago, Maria and some of her companion had going outside to complete their assignment as a Frontier Unit.] [Yet when they returned, Maria wasn¡¯t with them.] [I interrogated them for a while before coming here, but they all feigning ignorance.]

    [They all abandoned her.] Said Adriane, the Architect Chief Unit. [Considering the recent outbreak of many monsters around these parts, it¡¯s all plausible.] [Even Josephine and Hilda once met a Queen Vasp and almost ended up getting killed.]

    [Do we really have time to discuss about the reason though?] Nathalia then raised her hands and spoke calmly. [Considering all the 12 apostles... well except for one, are currently present here, does that mean we¡¯re going to advance our venture into the Red Line and help her?]

    All the girls are suddenly went silent again for a while after Pierre then raised her hand.

    [Seems like you have an Idea of how to cross the Red Line.]

    [Me and Elder have always been looking for a way to improve our village.] [Venturing into the RedLine is also another option.] [But more importantly, there is one fatal problem that we need to make sure of before then.]

    [What is it?] The Elder then start to be intrigued about what Pierre was about to say.

    [We need to decide the best person to do that.] [A witches with the highest rating of survival, combined with the most adaptable and durable familiar to go with.] [And to send them alone is not reccomended.] [We need at least 2 witches with 2 familiar that can fulfill the requirements.]

    Elder can only stay silent, but then Mythia start to speak up.

    [About that 2 witches and familiars....] [Didn¡¯t we already have them?]

    [[[[[Eh?]]]]]

    Almost everyone speaks up their mind in unison, as they didn¡¯t really know about the existence of such.

    [Wait a minute, Mythia.] Pierre then start to speak up. [I do know a single person that fits all that.] [Or more like, everyone in this place knew that.] [But I don¡¯t know about any other witches that has the same capability.]

    [At this point it¡¯s no use to hide it anymore right?] [The first one was that weird naked idiot, isn¡¯t it?]

    Elder twitched for a bit after hearing that nickname, but then Mythia just went ahead and explained it more.

    [That¡¯s right, Josephine¡¯s by far is the most suitable person for this kind of mission, mostly thanks to her irregular familiar.]

    [Then who¡¯s the second one?] [At this point, she should have at least the same record as Josephine.]

    Mythia then took a deep breath as she was about to mention the name.

    [Hildegarde.]

    Everyone can only went silent. They just can¡¯t believe that Hildegarde somehow are a better candidate for venturing out into the RedLine.

    [Don¡¯t joke with me, Mythia.] Pierre then slammed her desk and glared toward Mythia. [She was an obsolete, good for nothing witches whom never learned her lesson and keeps insisting to become a Frontier despite her familiar¡¯s under-performance!] [And you¡¯re saying that she¡¯s as good as Josephine now!?]

    [In the recent weeks, something has changed.] As if disregarding Pierre¡¯s protests, Mythia just continued to explain. [I wasn¡¯t able to confirm the details yet, but now she can collect as much mana stone as much as Josephine¡¯s in around the same duration, or even less.]

    [What are you trying to say...?] Somehow Pierre¡¯s glare becoming more hateful than before.

    [The result states the obvious.] [She has become a fine Frontier Unit there.] [Who knows, maybe one day she¡¯ll surpass me and took away my current position as a chief, considering her talent regarding-....]

    *BAM!!

    [Enough of this!] [If you¡¯re saying that she¡¯s better than you, then...!] [Then I¡¯m...!!!!]

    [Stop.] Elder then interject their conversation, but somehow the tone in her own voice feels weird to everyone around there. [Mythia, I appreciate your suggestion and all, but....] As Elder take a deep breath herself, she start to looked straight onto Mythia. [Josephine is not a Frontier member anymore.] [She was exempted from this expedition, so....]

    [Umm... Elder.] Yohana then start to raise her hand and tried to speak up. [It¡¯s about Josephine.] [There are some trouble regarding her current Unit.]

    [Ah, the troublemaker whom always causing havoc at our field?] With her spiteful comment, Adriane from Architect unit made a scowl at Yohana.

    [I believe it¡¯s just a matter of her adjusting to her new work as a Gallant Unit.] [It¡¯s not worth to talk over this-....]

    [I¡¯m sorry to say this, but she wasn¡¯t qualified to become either a Gallant or Rising Unit.]

    The Elder somehow shows a mix of anger and dissapointment on her face as she faces straight toward Yohana.

    [U... umm...] Phillia then timidly raises her hand as well as standing there. [I can explain it in detail why Josephine isn¡¯t fit to become either a Gallant or Rising.]

    Phillia then took a bundle amount of paper and start to read them closely for a while before facing back toward Endrossa.

    [There are two major reasons of why Josephine is unfit to become either a Gallant or Rising.] [The first one, her Mana Circuit was being eaten by the demerit of her familiar.] [This situation makes her unable to project any direct conversion of exhanging mana into a medium sized protection spell or above, thanks to its complicated equation.]

    The others can only gasp in awe after hearing such worrysome demerit as a trail of sweat can be seen on Endrossa¡¯s cheek.

    [The second reason is....] [... This is mostly our mistake for not being able to confirm Vram¡¯s identity beforehand, but....] [His elemental alignment is Chaos.]

    <h2>***</h2>

    [For real?!?]

    With a beet-red sauce dripping on her cheek, Hildegarde was confused as well as surprised over something. It was related to what her comrade, Chris, had say regarding someone they all know very well.

    [Yeah, both me and Rosa was completely caught off guard.] [To think despite his docility his alignment was that of Chaos Element.] [Though Lady Phillia still unsure of it¡¯s true nature.]

    [But then again~] Rosa whom already took some tissue before giving it to Hildegarde to wipe her cheek start to comment out. [It doesn¡¯t really bother Josephine or Vram, right?] [So I don¡¯t think we need to worry about it too much.]

    [No, for Yohana and the rest, they have to worry.] Hilda continue to explain the situation as well as wiping off the sauce from her cheek. [Him being a Chaos element alone is trouble for any unit besides Frontier.] [And without knowing that, Elder just blatantly decided to put her on any unit besides Frontier.]

    [Smells like trouble~]

    [It is a trouble.]

    [Some trouble is going to surface.]

    As the three girls are busy confirming the situation, 1 small primate and 1 slave can only looking at the girls with blank looks, unable to understand anything.

    [Umm, Miss Hilda.] Yohn then speaks up toward Hildegarde. [Can you explain it to us what is happening in this village?] [About Vram has Chaos elemental and whatsnot.]

    [You¡¯re curious about it?]

    [Well I¡¯d say so.] [I mean, the element that you¡¯re talking about is a bit different than the term we use, so....]

    [Hmm...] Hilda then crossed her arms and thinking for a bit before she start to speak. [It¡¯s not like I have to tell you everything, but I do still indebted to you for various thing.] [I guess I can tell some things regarding how our organization works.]

    Then Hilda started her lecture. Within the structure inside of how the witch village works, mostly everything relies a lot on Familiar. The origin behind this culture was unknown, but as far as they can remember, all of their daily lives were taken care of by the familiar while the witch makes sure that they will sustain the lives of said familiar. This is the reason why most witches treat their own familiar as theirprecious.

    [For now I just have to explain what you needed to hear, which is the requirement for a familiar to be included as a battle type, and their classification in each unit.] [To put it simple, A familiar can be considered as a battle type unit as long as it has the instinct needed to fend off its enemy.] [Usually the method was for the familiar to be pitted against some of the captured monster we have here, but Vram¡¯s case is a bit special considering what had happened when he was first summoned.]

    [Ah, you mean the Familiar Killing Incident?] [It really shocks me when I first heard that story.] [To think that a Familiar would really be treated specially like that.]

    Hearing Rud¡¯s careless comment made the girls scowls at her, but Hildegarde just shrug it off as she continued with her lecture.

    [After we managed to decide its capability as a battle-type unit, the next step is to determine its role on the battlefield.] [Briefly, there are three types of battle unit to be specified.]

    Assault Forces, specialized in offensive, tactical and scout type familiar

    Guardian Forces, specialized in defensive, protectiveand strategical type familiar

    Patron Forces, specialized in supportive, healing, and reinforcement type familiar

    [Wait.] [That means, the unit placement is based on which type that familiar is leaning to, isn¡¯t it?]

    [That¡¯s not entirely true.] [Since for some cases, using that type alone still put a familiar in an ambiguous position.]

    [Why¡¯s that?]

    [Because some familiar¡¯s ability is still required for another position.] [For example, let¡¯s say that a familiar has an ability that can defeat its enemy in a single strike, but that familiar must charge it before it can unleash it.] [For that situation, you need another comrade that can take a hit for your familiar, right?]

    [Hmm....] Yohn then start to think deeply for a while. [Then doesn¡¯t that mean an Assault-Type Familiar can only be put on a Frontier Unit?]

    [You guessed that right.] [Most Assault-Type will have a high reccomendation for an immediate Frontier-placement.] [Not to mention, as long as you can fulfill the quota needed for the village, you can literally spend your life everyday in luxury.] [Though the assignment was far more dangerous than the other Unit.]

    [So....] [What¡¯s this got to do with Vram as a Chaos Elements?]

    Hilda then starting to get silent for a bit before she took a drink on her hand and literally chugging it until she can barely take it.

    [*Phew*....] [Now, about this element.] [Yohn, how many elements exist on your magical alignment?]

    [Umm... around 6 if I¡¯m not mistaken.]

    [We witches only have 4 in it.] [Heat, Cold, Light, and Chaos.]

    [What?] Yohn somehow looked surprised at the mention of such difference in their elemental diagram.

    [I won¡¯t explain it too deeply regarding that.]

    [Hey now.] [Isn¡¯t that kinda half-assed way to explain things?] Rud protested for the way Hilda explaining things.

    [I too feel kinda dissatisfied, you know.] As Hilda somehow looked at other place, clearly dissatisfied of something. [At any rate, about those 4 elements....] [As it should be with the other 4 elements, there are other characteristics for Familiar that comes with those 4 element.] [For example, Heat, Hougo¡¯s Element.] [What do you usually think about things that related to heat?]

    [[Hmm....]] Yohn and Rud was thinking hard though it already seemed that Rud was about to explode from the abnormal amount of thinking.

    [Heat....] [Like fire? Explosion? Hot water?]

    Hilda then closed her eyes, crossed her arms while having a wide smile on her face.

    [It¡¯s Life.]

    [[[[Huh?]]]]

    With a smug look on her face, Hilda puffed her chest as her breast was supported with her arms crossed under it.

    [Yup, Heat is the wonder of life!] [All live in the world contain heat, and relies on heat to survive!] [Such is the wonder of Heat elemental, that-!]

    Seeing Hilda suddenly turned weird, Chris quickly pulled Rud and dragged him elsewhere and Rosa quickly took Yohn away and move away together with Chris.

    [*sigh* If only Lady Hildegarde didn¡¯t have that ¡°kind¡± of personality....]

    [E... what happen to her?]

    [Well normally she always looked indifferently toward other things.] [But when it¡¯s about Hougo or something related to him, she turned all proud or something along those lines.]

    [Wow....] [Like a doting mother.]

    [Like a doting mother she is.] Then Chris started to clear her throat before she tried to speak up. [Anyway, Continuing on that matter, what Hilda says regarding the characteristic of Heat Element isn¡¯t that far fetched.] [Heat was generally has the special characteristics of ¡°growth¡± and ¡°strength¡±.] [For Hougo¡¯s case, he can build up as much strength inside his body as possible to make him vulnerable against any attack.] [That¡¯s the kind of characteristics that appear on a familiar with Heat Element.]

    [I see.] Yohn starts to nod his head in agreement. [That means, the reason Vram cannot become anything else other than a Frontier was caused by his elemental alignment, right?] [What was it again? Chaos?] [Then... the characteristic of that element would be....]

    [Right.] [¡°Absolute Destruction¡±, ¡°Void¡±, ¡°Erasure¡±, or something along those line.]

    <h2>***</h2>

    [A Chaos elements....] [I don¡¯t know how to react regarding that....]

    [You¡¯re not happy having me as a Chaos Familiar?]

    [OF COURSE NOT!!!] [I EXTREMELY HAPPY THAT YOU¡¯RE HERE!!] [It¡¯s just that....] [I was wondering what Elder and Yohana thought about this.]

    As Josephine was pondering about something, she grips the grass on the ground while pulling it out. Both Vram and Josephine was in the middle of cleaning the graveyard even though there are barely something to be cleaned.

    [Even if this is to be expected, I didn¡¯t really think that we would keep coming back here even after that problem regarding the familiar killing was solved.]

    [Well... can I?] [Even if it¡¯s only for a while, they¡¯re still my familiar, my family.] [I don¡¯t want to forget them all, and I can¡¯t forget them too.]

    [Well, that¡¯s what makes you my master, right?]

    [It is~]

    After finished cleaning up some of the graveyard, Vram stands up while looking up to the sky.

    [Vram?]

    Feeling something amiss, Josephine called out to him. But Vram was only standing there motionlessly unmoving no matter how hard the wind breezed.

    [Something has been bugging me.]

    [Yes?]

    [When I heard about your job before, I thought that this place has quite lax procedure regarding how to classify people in their own specialities.] [But after what happened today, I was wrong to think like that.]

    [Emm... I don¡¯t really get it.]

    Hearing his own master¡¯s answer, Vram can only take a long, deep breath while letting it out for quite long, as if he was feeling unfortunate of something.

    [Oh well, it¡¯s not like you need to understand everything.] [Still though, I have to ask you this, Master.]

    Josephine sensing that Vram was about to ask something serious, thus tensed her body prepared to answer his question.

    [Do you believe in Elder Endrossa?]

    [E?] [Of course I believe in her.] [I mean, she¡¯s our elder, right?]

    [Even after what happened to you for these whole years?] [And even now, after you have me?]

    Josephine was confused by Vram¡¯s question as she can only tilted her head to the right.

    [I... don¡¯t really get it....] [But Vram....]

    Josephine then start to stand up and went closer toward him.

    [No matter what Elder might do to me, no... to us, I believe that all of it is for our own good.] [That¡¯s why I believe in her.] [I want to believe in her.]

    Vram went silent as she saw her eyes trying hard to convict herself.

    [*Sigh*....] [Guess I¡¯ll just leave it at that.] [It¡¯s just doesn¡¯t strike me right considering how at first she told us to become a frontier first, then go to other job like rising or something and then get told that we''re not suited for it.]

    [Oh!] [About that first placement.] [Yohana told me that it wasn¡¯t her decision, that she¡¯s just accepting some suggestion from the circle.]

    [Huh?] [Then who¡¯s the one that suggest us to become a frontier?]

    [It was Senior Mythia.] [The Frontier Chief unit herself.]

 Chapter 24 - Twelve Apostles Arc 5

    <h1></h1>

    [I cannot agree with your proposal, Mythia.]

    [And why is that, Elder?] [I need an acceptable reason to believe your judgement regarding my proposal.]

    [You dare to question my decision?]

    [I am, considering another people lives are at stake here.] [Isn¡¯t it an unspoken rule that all witches are to care of each other¡¯s lives and that they should take responsibility for it?]

    [And that is why we should pick carefully the best people for such situation!] [Just because Josephine¡¯s a little special doesn¡¯t mean she was the best for this situation!]

    The intensity of their conversation grew fiercer. Both Elder and Mythia, the girl that was in charge of the Frontier Unit, while discussing a certain person.

    [I wasn¡¯t talking about her.] [To be blunt, she lacks the experience needed as a Frontier.]

    [Then why?] As Elder glared toward Mythia.

    [It¡¯s her familiar.] [His fighting ability aside, that infinite storage ability of his is something valuable for expedition.] [We Frontier Unit were actually made for this reasons after all.] [That¡¯s why Josephine is needed to become Frontier, in order to find a better land for better resources.]

    [Just because of that reason...!]

    [And it is because that¡¯s the only reason that she should stay in Frontier Unit, Elder.] [Unless you can provide me a plausible reason that she should not become a Frontier.]

    Elder and the other witches can only stay quiet. While most of the witches aren¡¯t particularly involved in this case, they do think that Mythia has a point.

    [Before we decided that.] Someone then raises her hand as well as speaking softly among the silent people. It was Nathalia of the Instructor Chief Unit. [We need to call the person directly involved with this situation, doesn¡¯t it?]

    Everyone then nodded toward Nathalia¡¯s suggestion as they looked toward each other.

    [We may make any kind of suggestion, but please remember that, by the rule, we shouldn¡¯t force any decision toward themselves regarding any situation that endanger their lives.] As Nathalia reminded the whole round table about their own rule.

    [Then, shouldn¡¯t we hurry up and decide as fast as possible?] [Considering our existence as Relief Unit were here also, this must be something that you need us to prepare as quickly as possible, right?]

    [So what¡¯s your decision, Elder?]

    All 11 chief stared toward their Elder, waiting for an immediate answer. Clicking her tongue, she then start to stand.

    [Send a messenger toward both Hildegarde and Josephine to come here together with their familiar.] [Then we shall continue the matter regarding it once they both arrived.]

    <h2>***</h2>

    [He?]

    [Eh??]

    The two girls express their disbelief when both of them was seeing each other being escorted toward the same places. Before long, the two girls, Josephine and Hildegarde, finally stand toward each other as both of them are confused at the same time.

    [What have you done right now, Naked Idiot?]

    [Wh-! I HAVEN¡¯T DONE ANYTHING YET!]

    [Yet, huh...?]

    [Ghh...! BESIDE, AREN¡¯T YOU ALSO DOING SOMETHING?!?!] [Since you¡¯re being called by the circle!]

    [Well, probably because I¡¯ve become stronger so suddenly that they want me to share the secret~?] [Not that I¡¯d want to.]

    [Geez...!!!]

    Though the two girls were cracking a joke, the ones who escorting them somehow looked tense, not even responding toward the girl.

    [Did something happen?] Hilda then glared toward one of the girl escorting them as she flinches upon hearing her question.

    [I... I don¡¯t know anything.] [The circles just want you to hurry and come as fast as possible.]

    [Hmm....]

    As Hilda keeps glaring and pressuring the girl, Josephine still looked so confuses that she turned toward Vram.

    [I wonder...?] [Did something really happen?]

    [Probably.] [If it¡¯s just you girls causing trouble, they won''t need to summon us.] Vram tried to explain some things as he pointed toward himself and Hougo, whom have been rolling besides Hilda.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    [That¡¯s right.] [When both the witches and the familiar were summoned, it usually means that something big is happening that needs full concern of both of them.] [Though I¡¯m not really sure what happens, considering it is the first time I was called like this.]

    [That¡¯s surprising.] [I thought senior have experienced something like this.] Josephine somehow letting out a surprise expression as Hilda¡¯s somehow become a little bit annoyed.

    [Well they usually calling in the very best of all witches in certain area to do something.] [So....]

    [I guess this means that the circles acknowledged your capabilities now, Lady Hilda.]

    [Yeah~] [Though I feel worried what¡¯s about to happen, I still feel happy that I can finally contribute for this town.]

    As Hildegarde smiling widely, Josephine was mesmerized by how satisfying it is for her senior to finally being acknowledged by their elder.

    <h2>***</h2>

    [Y... you¡¯re kidding right?]

    Upon hearing the news, Josephine can only fall on her knees while being supported by Vram. Not even Hilda, whom usually stay sharp can¡¯t hide her own disbelief and shock from her face as Hougo changed form to its primal golem form and hugged Hilda from behind.

    [Th... Then what are we waiting for?!?] [We need to quickly dispatch the relief unit there right away and retrieve her right away!!!] [I can help you out as a bodyguard, that¡¯s why...!!!]

    [Calm down, my junior.] [You don¡¯t really want to overheat your heat golem familiar like that, aren¡¯t you?] Nathalia then speak calmly as if it¡¯s not her business.

    [But then... what happened?!] [Maria is not the kind of person who would risks her life like that!]

    [I can explain it to you.] Mythia¡¯s letting out a bundle of report paper in front of her. [But I believe it isn¡¯t as important as to why we¡¯re calling you here.]

    Mythia then take a deep breath before she was about to explain more.

    [As what you have heard before, Mariabelle is currently went missing on an area beyond the Red Line deep inside the Forbidden Spot.] [Are you familiar with it?]

    Red Line was a name for a border that split between the southern area of the mainland and the center area of Helven Continent. The area itself has a very different environment than the normal region, while mostly consisted of a very high mountains or steep cliff.

    [Well I do know quite a bit about it, but why?]

    [Here¡¯s the problem.] [Crossing the Red Line means that you¡¯re going into a separately different world where something that would happen there would be beyond our imagination.] [Harsh environment, cruel monster, and many else.] [There¡¯s no way we can send any Relief Unit nor our Frontier Subunit, the reinforcement, to explore such place all by themselves.]

    [Th... that¡¯s right.]

    [B... but we shouldn¡¯t left her alone like that!] Josephine then start to protest.

    [Let me continue, Josephine.] Mythia stopped Josephine before she continue speaking. [As I was saying, we can¡¯t send any relief nor subunit there.] [But thankfully we only need to save a single person and her familiar.] [Thus, a couple of Frontier Unit member would suffice.]

    [A couple...?] Hilda notices something as she put her index finger on her lower mouth. [So you¡¯re requesting me to go on an expedition beyond the red line to save Mariabelle?]

    Mythia then smiled softly as she nodded toward Hilda. [You noticed quick.]

    [But then what about her?] [I understand the reason why you called me here, but Josephine is not a Frontier Unit anymore.]

    [That will depend on both her and Elder¡¯s decision.] Mythia then sitting back as if she¡¯s signalling the others that she¡¯s done with her role.

    [Eh?] Josephine confused as she looked all over the place seeing the other girls¡¯ reaction.

    [Josephine.] Elder then stood up and spoke. [Do you realize the reason why am I revoking you from your position as Frontier?]

    [Umm....]

    Josephine act confused as she doesn¡¯t really understand what Elder was talking about. Elder Endrossa then took a long, deep breath as she somehow letting go of something.

    [Because you¡¯re being irresponsible.]

    [[[Ah...!]]] As if everyone just realized it, they then turned their sight toward Josephine.

    [It may be because we¡¯ve been treating you different than the other.] [There¡¯s also that familiar killing case.] [Still, with the way you¡¯re doing things, I¡¯m forced to revoke your Frontier license.]

    The other then starts nodding while some other whispering something. But somehow Josephine still unable to comprehend her own situation as she stared at Elder Endrossa with a blank face.

    [Seriously, this naked idiot...!] [That¡¯s why everything else seems weird for me!] Hilda somehow slammed her own head after finally understood something.

    [Eh? Eh??] [Am I doing something wrong again?!?]

    Mythia then start to think for a while before start to speak. [Josephine.] [Did you remember what you do before you start to went toward the Forbidden Spot near here?]

    [Huh?] Josephine try to remember what happened back then. [Umm, I reported to your office and tell the person in charge that I¡¯m about to go out to collect some resources.]

    [And did you specify the destination?]

    [Eh?] [Should I?]

    Everyone then took a long sigh hearing Josephine¡¯s reaction.

    [ARE YOU AN IDIOT!] Pierre, unable to hold back her anger anymore, start to stand and pointing furiously toward Josephine. [Listen!] [The act of visiting a Forbidden Spot is not exactly forbidden.] [But a certain permission must be made before you visiting that place!]

    [But....] Josephine then averted her eyes to the side as she tried to complain. [If I mentioned that I¡¯d go to the Forbidden Spot, there¡¯s no way you would approve of it, right?]

    [Of course.] Mythia speak up on the side suddenly.

    [See...?] Josephine¡¯s face look dejected as she heard a straight answer right from Mythia¡¯s mouth.

    [Of course we would reject it if you don¡¯t provide us with any information at all.] [If you¡¯re telling me how you¡¯re going to invade that place as well as giving me the rundown of the place, I wouldn¡¯t mind having some time to reconsider things.] [I can also prepare some reinforcement party in case something did happen to you.]

    Josephine can only nodded listening toward her senior¡¯s lecture even if she can barely understand it.

    [Do you understand now, Josephine?] Lowering her tone as well as her emotions, Endrossa looked straight toward Josephine with hopeful looks.

    [... Yes.] [I¡¯m sorry.]

    [As long as you understand, then it¡¯s fine.] Letting out a small breath, she smiles a bit toward Josephine. [Josephine, I hereby reassign you once again as a Frontier unit.]

    [Thank you very much, Elder!!!]

    [Then....] Pierre looking back toward Elder Endrossa. [I guess the expedition team is now complete, right?]

    [Yes.] [Josephine, Hildegarde.] [I ask of you once again.] [Currently one of our comrade has been missing beyond the red line.] [And in order to rescue her, we need both of your cooperation as a fellow member of Frontier unit.] [Will you accept it?]

    Both Josephine and Hildegarde sneak a peek to each other and nodding, then looking straight toward Endrossa.

    [[We will!]]

 Chapter 25 - Twelve Apostles Arc 6

    [Are we there ye~t?]

    [Not yet, master.]

    [Just how far is it again....?] [I¡¯m tired~!]

    [How can you be tired when you¡¯ve been carried by Vram for a week?]

    [Well I¡¯m tired of being carried piggyback like this!]

    [Then walk.]

    [No way!] [I¡¯m tired!!]

    As the two girls keep bickering against each other, the group are in the middle of traversing inside a cave. A pitch-black cave that sized over 2 meters in diameter, covered with many shiny reddish stone that¡¯s covering the whole cave. It was so sturdy that no amount of fighting there would cause damage to it.

    [Even if our village¡¯s location is near the redline, the border that cover between the safe region in this continent is actually more huge than what you¡¯d expect.] [That¡¯s why I told you to secure some kind of transportation device.]

    As she was in the middle of speaking, Hildegarde currently enjoy lying down on some kind of platform with some cushion on top of it, while having Hougo below her lifting her gently while moving inside the cave like some kind of vehicle.

    [... I don¡¯t really want to treat Vram that way, though.]

    [Geez, you should really use them as you see fit.] [You may see your own familiar as your lover, but when it comes down to it, they really are someone who will fulfill our every need.]

    [No thank you.]

    [Though well....] Hilda then shifted her gaze somewhere else. [Someone else do need another help right now.]

    As Hilda says that, both Josephine and Vram also looked back seeing another person whom looked like he was about to die at any minute.

    [*Zeh...! *Zehh...!!!]

    With an unsteady walk, Rud can barely keeps his eye open as he walk toward the other group as Yohn can only walk beside him wondering.

    [With you being like this, people might mistaken you as a zombie.]

    [Sh... shut... up...!] Feeling remorsed, Rud can only retord half-heartedly.

    [Still though....] Yohn then start to leave Rud all by himself and catch up toward Hilda and Josephine. [Why are we the only group that has to go?] [I mean, the area beyond this cave was supposed to be deadly right?] [Shouldn¡¯t we bring more people?]

    [A hastily group made of too many people will end up worse.] [For starters, we Frontier Unit rarely work in a group, and usually only rely on our familiar.] [And considering surviving is the 1<sup>st</sup> priority, having less people means that we don¡¯t have to take special care toward our companion.]

    [E... eeeh?!?!] Josephine suddenly reacted in surprise hearing Hilda¡¯s explanation. [But what about when I went together with Senior Hilda, Chris, as well as Rosa??]

    [It was to train you.] [You think the circles can just letting you roam free like that?] [Though in your case, it somehow become a special private training.]

    [I... is that so...?]

    Josephine can only scratch her hair slowly while Hilda can only slam her head with her palm.

    <h2>***</h2>

    [AN EXIT!!!]

    Screaming with excitement, Josephine jumped from Vram¡¯s back.

    [Wait, you idiot!]

    As Jospehine was about to run straight toward the exit, her neck was roughly grabbed by Hilda. Or to be exact, she was being strangled.

    [*GHUHEH!]

    [What are you thinking, charging straight ahead by yourself?!] [That place is different than the place we usually hunt as Frontier, you know!!!]

    [I¡¯m sorry.]

    [*sigh*....] [For now, can you and Yohn wake up that red haired undead over there ?] [I¡¯m going to reorganize our equipment.]

    [Sure~!]

    As Josephine and Yohn quickly went straight toward Rud whom have been unconscious for long, Hilda and Vram start to reorganize their preparation.

    [Lady Hilda.]

    [Yes?]

    [This may be a little bit late for me to ask.] [But why do we have more than a month¡¯s worth of food provision?] [We have a fairy to tell us her rough location, right?] [I don¡¯t think It¡¯d take a month or so....]

    [Considering we don¡¯t know what would happen, overdoing it for a bit won¡¯t hurt that much.] [At any rate....] Hilda then glare straight toward Vram. [No matter what, never let your guard down, make sure Josephine¡¯s unharmed, and if by any chance things were too dangerous, we¡¯ll retreat even if your master refuses to.]

    [Alright.] Vram just nodded convincingly toward Hildegarde.

    [Good.] [Alright then, time to change our equipment.]

    [He...?]

    <h2>***</h2>

    *BLAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

    [GYAAAAA!!!]

    [DON¡¯T SCREAM RIGHT AT MY EAR, YOU DAMNED MICE!]

    [THEN START RUNNING FASTER!!!]

    [I¡¯M ALREADY RUNNING FAST!!!]

    [GET DOWN!!!]

    Just as Vram screamed, he was ready to aim toward one of the monsters that has been chasing rud restlessly with his giant bow and spear arrow.

    *BVVWASHHHHH!!!!!

    *JCHRACK!!!!!

    [*KHIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKK!!!!!]

    And hitting it straight at its head. A flying creature with long beak and small horn on its forehead, and a kite-like exoskeleton wing with a long body but short legs.

    [*SCREEEEEEEEEEECH!!!]

    [Vram!] [Another one¡¯s coming! Above!!!!]

    As Josephine screamed the monster¡¯s location, another monster jump and was about to pounce Vram. As it does so....

    *JRASSSSSH!!!!

    Vram already released the bow from his hand and pierce it with a lance from his storage. He then kicked the monster that¡¯s still hanging on the lance down toward the ground, then start to aim his throw toward his own master.

    [He?]

    *BWASSSSSH!!!

    And He throw it.

    *JRAAASH!!!!!

    [*KHIEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAK!!]

    Or to be exact, right behind Josephine.

    [Master, I suggest that you put out some kind of barrier to protect yourself and Rud.] [That way, you don¡¯t have to risk yourself being taken down by these monsters.]

    Rud and Josephine can only stay silent, unable to express their feeling.

    [I¡¯m confused now, which ones are the monster. You or them.] Yohn suddenly retorting to their current situation right now.

    [Technically and literally, I¡¯m also a monster.]

    Not long after a 5 minutes walk from the cave that lies on the redline, the group was ambushed by some kind of flying monster, presumably a dragon. Unable to react and land a proper counterattack, Hildegarde suggesting us to separate ourselves for a bit and meeting up later with the help of the fairies.

    [But still....] [Even with all these equipment and robes, this place feels too cold...!] [What¡¯s with these water particles and wind....] [The amount is too much... I can barely control my own mana...!] Josephine protests as she was trying her best to maintain a barrier while shivering all over.

    [Can¡¯t... move....!] Rud then collapsed on the floor while shivering a lot.

    [YO YOU RUDE IDIOT!!] [IF YOU SLEEP HERE, YOU¡¯RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO MOVE AN INCH!!] [YOU CAN¡¯T EVEN DIE, SO DON¡¯T SLEEP!!!!]If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    [Vram!] [We need to regroup with Hilda!] [She should know a way to restore Rud¡¯s condition!!]

    Vram didn¡¯t respond toward Josephine. Not because he doesn¡¯t want to, but he was sensing something weird.

    [The monster¡¯s stopped being hostile.] [What does this mean...?]

    Then suddenly....

    *BAM!!!

    *BAM!!!!

    *BAMM!!!!

    Following some strange noise, the ground have been trembling this whole time.

    [Something¡¯s coming!]

    As Josephine and Vram still staying inside the snowy praire, some kind of creature are shaking the trees that was about 4-5 meters tall.

    [*GRROOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!]

    A monster. With a feet big enough to stomp Vram flat, a thick, burly body full of scales and spikes covering it as well as its mouth are somehow quite long. Some kind of Lizard.

    [Whoa...!!] Yohn can only gasps in awe seeing such monsters standing before them. [That monster looked strong...!]

    [B... but usually a monster as big as that move slow, so I think Vram would be okay, right?]

    Just as Josephine¡¯s saying that....

    [*GHRIEEEEEEE!!!!]

    The monster charged while roaring at an unimaginable speed.

    [Guh!]

    As the monster was about to bite Vram, he was barely able to dodge the attack by rolling sideways. But then as soon as Vram finishes rolling, Vram notices something¡¯s weird.

    *VWOOSSSH!!

    The monster tried to brake its movement while moving its tail as if to strike Vram with its tail.

    [Hrgh!!!]

    *BHANK!!!

    Vram quickly pulled a small shield from his storage and parried the tail swing, forces him to see face to face again with the monster.

    [WHAT IN THE...!?!?!?] [How can he move that fast despite being so huge!?!] [That¡¯s unfair!!!!]

    [So this is why they said that an area beyond the RedLine are something that one should never cross....]

    As Josephine and Yohn can only stay silent while being protected by the barrier Josephine made, Vram tried to be cautious toward the monster. But just then....

    *BDHAMM!!!!!

    Something is falling from the sky. A woman with a giant stone was suddenly flew right behind Vram.

    [*cough* *cough*...!!] [I can¡¯t believe that I can barely unleash most of my fire magic here...!] [The environment was harsher than I thought.]

    [Senior Hilda?!?!] [Are you okay?!?!]

    It was Hilda and Hougo, whom were falling together somehow in a praire in the middle of snowy forest.

    [Don¡¯t worry, naked idiot!] [In term of experience, these kinds of injury is nothing!] [Though I can¡¯t really say the same regarding the environment....]

    Not long after the two finally met....

    [*SGGHRRRRAAOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

    *BDHAM!!!!!

    Another creature came from the sky. It has a crystal wings with crystal horn quite longer on its face, and a scale covering its whole body. A wyvern-kind.

    [Ugh... persistent bastard...!!]

    [Wait, Lady Hilda.] [That dragon seems different than the ones whom ambushed us.]

    [It called its comrade right before dying.] [I barely remember how many of those flying lizard that I¡¯ve defeated before I decided to blow myself up to flew here.]

    [That¡¯s one extreme method you choose for running away....] [Still though, if you experience the same kind of symptomps, I suggest that you hide inside that barrier together with Master Josephine.]

    [You¡¯re saying that I¡¯m going to slow you down?]

    [At the very least, you¡¯ll worry Hougo and make him unable to unleash his true power.]

    [Nggh...!]

    Hilda¡¯s face redden as he saw Hougo, feeling weird.

    [... You¡¯ll win right, Hougo?]

    As Hilda asks her own familiar, Hougo suddenly turns bright. So bright that not even a snowstorm can hide the lights.

    [[*GHRRR!!!!!]]

    The two giant monsters that was about to charge somehow backed down, sensing something¡¯s weird about Hougo.

    [Naked Idiot!]

    [Y... yes?!?!]

    [FEAST YOUR EYES ON THIS!!!] [MY NEWLY REBORN FAMILIAR, HOUGO¡¯S NEW FORM!!!!]

    *GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

    The light shine even brighter and at the same time....

    *JYAAAASH!!!!!

    The rock that¡¯s made up Hougo¡¯s body splits. Or to be exact, it seems exploded and spreaded. But the fragment was stopped midway as each fragment start to collecting itselfs on a separate light orb. The fragment then started to shape differently into 12 parts.

    [REBOUND AND REJOIN!] [REPEL AND ATTRACT!] [BURN EACH PARTS AS IF EACH FRAGMENTS OF YOURS ARE A LIVING BEING!]

    Then 11 of the 12 parts joined into each other differently into 6 parts.

    [Ah...?!?!]

    Josephine realized, the 6 parts was made of head, torso, hands, and legs.

    [COMBINE INTO ONE LIVING BEING!] [THE ULTIMATE GOLEM OF HEAT!]

    *JYAAAAAAASH!!!

    The 6 parts then finally joined together, creating another kind of golem that has different shape than a normal Golem. The appearance is pretty much taking a human shape, with the difference being the face completely covered with some kind of glass visor. In each parts of its body, 12 orbs, with the core orbs lies in its head, shine brightly.

    [Guess it¡¯s time for me to get serious too!]

    And Vram also readied himself as another redline marks appearing on his whole body.

    <h2>***</h2>

    [Wh....]

    Josephine can only stand silently. Seeing some kind of absurd situation right in front of her.

    [*GHRROOOOOO!!!]

    The Lizard monster was charging something in its mouth. It was about to release some kind of breath attack toward Vram.

    [WOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

    Following his warcry, Vram throwing his spear toward the Lizard monster in front of him as he charges straight toward it. As the lizard monster was about to unleash its breath attack....

    *JRASSSH!!!

    [*GHYOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]

    It screamed in pain from having the spear pierced the inside of its mouth. At the same time, Vram whom have already went closer to the monster then taking out another spear that had some kind of weird black ornament on its tip. Without pausing for a bit, he pierces the lizard monster¡¯s leg.

    *JYASSH!!!

    *BGHLARRRRRR!!!!!

    Following the piercing sound, the tip of Vram¡¯s spear somehow explode and causes the monster¡¯s leg to flail and start to fall on its side.

    *BDHAM!!!!

    Not wasting anymore time, Vram releases his spear and pulled his greatsword, a sword with red, flaming ornament on it. As the red line in his body touches the sword, the sword then emits a strong fire aura as Vram start to slice through the monster¡¯s thick scales with it.

    [*SCGHREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!]

    On another side, the crystal wyvern start unleashing its crystal fragment on its wing and scale toward the air, raining fast toward Hougo. But....

    *JYAAAASSH!!!

    The moment the crystal fragment was about to hit Hougo, some kind of protection magic was protecting it from hitting Hougo directly. Thousand of those crystal fragment raining down toward Hougo, yet Hougo hasn¡¯t even scratched as he keeps hovering fast toward crystal wyvern.

    [*KHAAAAAAA!!!]

    Then the Crystal Wyvern prepares its breath attack as well, raising its head upward, then flailing it toward Hougo

    *JYASSH!!!!

    A giant crystal spear was moving straight toward Hougo. But Hougo still keeps hovering forward as his right hand shining bright, preparing some kind of strike. Then....

    *BVWASSH!!!!!!

    Hougo strike the crystal spear with his fiery heat fist, melting the crystal spear altogether and keeps hovering fast without slowing down at all. As he finally gets closer, Hougo¡¯s left hand shines brightly as he flail it toward the Crystal Wyvern¡¯s head.

    *BLHARRRRR!!!!

    The impact causes some kind of explosion that it flinches the Crystal Wyvern. And yet, Hougo didn¡¯t stop. He keeps striking the Crystal Wyvern back and forth with its two hands alternatively.

    [WHAT IS THIS I DON¡¯T EVEN...?!?!?!!] Josephine ended up retorting for her lack of word to express the situation that happens before her eyes.

    [What now, naked idiot?] [Just because Hougo does better in a fight doesn¡¯t allow you to scream so loud like that.] [It¡¯s unsightly.]

    [NO!] [I MEAN, WHAT IS THAT?!?!] [I NEVER HEARD A MAGIC THAT LETS YOU REPEL AND ATTRACT ONE OBJECTS TOWARD ANOTHER LIKE THAT!!!!!] [THE PRINCIPLES ARE UNHEARD OF!!!] [BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, HOUGO USES MAGIC?!?!!?] [HOW COME?!?! HOW COME HOUGO CAN USE MAGIC AS MUCH AS HE PLEASES LIKE THAT?!?!?]

    [Calm down, hey.]

    [I CAN¡¯T CALM DOWN!!] [HOW SLY OF YOU SENIOR TO HIDE THIS KIND OF MAGIC FROM EVERYONE ELSE!!!] [SENIOR, YOU CHEAP!!!!]

    [Wh....] [Don¡¯t call me cheap!!!] [Besides, your blackhemy was also unheard of in terms of what our knowledge has!] [You¡¯re the cheap one!!!!!]

    [NO I¡¯M NOT!!] [BESIDES, ONLY VRAM CAN USES BLACKHEMY SO IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU OR HOUGO!]

    [And that mechanism of magic only works with Hougo too!] [I once tried to do it myself and failed hard, so it also has nothing to do with you!!!!]

    [[Grrrrrrrrr!!!]]

    The two girls of each familiars that was in the middle of dueling to the death somehow bickering each other in a barrier that was managed with some kind of magic tool.

    [Umm... you two....] Yohn somehow worried seeing those two that he feels that he must stop them. [Your familiar are in the middle of fight, so can you two....]

    [[YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!!!!]]

    Upon being rejected by the two girls, Yohn looked down as he moved toward where Rud collapsed and curled under him. Just then, the two monster somehow started to retaliate.

    [*SCHREEEEEEEEEEE!!!!]

    The wyvern somehow jumped backward while flapping its wing once. Though the force of its wind is quite strong, it isn¡¯t strong enough to knock Hougo back. But just then....

    *FWAP!

    *BRHACK!!!!!

    The monster does a backflip and strikes Hougo back with its tail. The attack was coming too fast that Hougo can barely hold the attack completely and ended up thrown back.

    [*GHROOOOOOOO!!!]

    *BDHAM!!!

    On the other hand, the monster that was lying on the ground while receiving Vram¡¯s attack somehow jumped with its stomach and flipping its body to stand back. And without pausing, it started to swing its front mouth closed, with its jaw full of spikes.

    [Urgh!!!]

    Realizing its attack, Vram readied its Giant Shield to confront it, but....

    *BRDHAK!!!!

    The shield was crushed to bits as Vram also thrown back far, collided with Hougo.

    [Grrh...!] [These monsters is not something both of us can deal each.] [Should we retreat...?]

    Vram tried to ask Hougo for his opinion, but Hougo somehow rotate his head left and right, disagreeing with Vram.

    [As expected....] [Even if we tried to retreat, these guys will keep chasing us.] [And Master Josephine would hate the idea of us running away.]

    Vram then tried to stand up and reaching for something in his storage as Hougo charges another of his attack in his left hand. Just then, the two monster at each side are starting to charge its breath attack.

    [I guess we have to use our strongest trump card for it, then...!?]

    Vram pulled out his favorite giant bow as well as its lance, shaped spirally with some kind of rotating gimmick on its base while equipped with some kind of crystal, then arching the bow and placed the spear on its center. Hougo then transfered his charged mana toward the light orb on its left hand, and gestured his left hand toward its enemy, while spreading its leg widely.

    [*GHROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!]

    [*SCGREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!]

    *BVWAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!!

    The two monster unleashed their breath attack together while both of the two witch whom were supposed to looking out to them are still bickering.

    [[OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]]

    *BVVWAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

    Letting out their strongest warcry. Vram and Hougo both unleashed their attack together. Vram¡¯s spear flew fast toward the lizard monster¡¯s mouth as he releases his hand from the bow string, recoiled the spear fast. Though somehow, Vram¡¯s spear has its tip rotating fast while flying toward its target. While Hougo shoot its gauntlet, or to be exact, his whole left arm with some kind of explosion magic and causes its arm to flew fast toward its enemy. Weirdly enough, the flying gauntlet keeps flying straight and quite fast despite its weird rock-like shape.

    The two attack somehow pierces through the center of each monsters¡¯ breath attack. The rotation that Vram¡¯s spear has completely erasing the lizard monster¡¯s breath attack while dispersing it. And Hougo¡¯s arm completely blocked the wyvern monster¡¯s breath attack with its barrier that completely covered its arm. Not long after, the weapon pierces both monsters¡¯ mouth.

    [[Eh?]]

    Noticing something amiss, the two then turned their head back toward Vram and Hougo, but just then.

    *BHLAAAARRRRRRRRR!!!!!

    The inside of both monster exploded. The explosion wasn¡¯t small either, it was big enough to fry the monster¡¯s inside.

    [Yosh!]

    Both Vram and Hougo clenches their fist, declaring their victory over the two great monster.

    [[DON¡¯T ¡®YOSH¡¯ ME!!!!]] [[WHAT HAVE YOU TWO DONE?!?!?!?]]

    Hilda and Josephine somehow erasing their barrier and started to run toward Hougo and Vram, looking furious and confused.

    [Huh...!?]

    Just then, Vram and Hougo realizes something. Many monsters are starting to move and aim for the two witch that has become careless and the collapsed human in front of them.

    [Dang it!] [Hougo, take your master away!] [I¡¯ll take Master Josephine and Rud!!]

    Nodding, Hougo started to dash and grab Hilda in a blink of an eye while Vram still trying to grab both Josephine and Rud with his arms.

    *GHRAOOOOO!!!

    Some kind of monsters roared and jumped toward the immobile Vram that¡¯s trying to grab Yohn and Rud, but then....

    *BSHAAAA!!

    Hougo released some kind of laser from his head, hit the monster in mid-air. Feeling relieved, Vram quickly grab Yohn and Rud while quickly moving away from the place. The two witches was unable to process what was happening to them and can only surrendering themselves to their reliable partner.

 Chapter 26 - Twelve Apostles Arc 7

    [*ngrgh....]

    Feeling light-headed, a certain red-haired man struggled just to open his eyes.

    [Yo, partner.] [Finally woke up?]

    [Wh... what...?] [A talking mouse???]

    [You half sleepin¡¯ or what, mate?] [Here, drink this, at least it¡¯ll warm your half-frozen body.]

    Mustering every strength he has, he tried to sit up while trying to get ahold of the cup the talking mouse pushed. As he slowly picked it up, he noticed that his hands were trembling.

    [That¡¯s right....] [The dragon... what happened to it...?]

    [Dragon?] [Ah, you mean the one that attacked us this afternoon?] [Vram and Hougo had taken care of it, so there¡¯s nothing for us to worry about.]

    Still feeling light-headed, the red-haired man take a sip from the cup he¡¯s holding.

    [Hrk...!?!?!] Feeling surprised, he quickly moved away the cup from his mouth. [What... is this?!?!] [It¡¯s hot... and spicy!!]

    [Dunno.] [Lady Hilda told me that that soup can quickly restore your body temperature and allow you to withstand through the piercing cold of this environment.]

    Having his head cleared so suddenly, he tried to recall everything he can remember.

    [That¡¯s right.] [The moment we¡¯re out of the cave, we¡¯re showered by some kind of water particle and storm.] [I can barely stay conscious the whole time.]

    [Yup.] [I¡¯m kinda thankful this body can withstand the cold.] [At any rate, right before we¡¯re thinking of returning back to the cave to prepare things better, then some dragon ambushed us out of nowhere.] [In fact, the moment we set out toward that place, we¡¯ve been ambushed by many monsters that Vram and Hougo decided to retreat back to the cave.]

    [I see... wait, you¡¯re right!] [We¡¯re back into the cave again.]

    [I¡¯ve always heard that the area beyond the redline is harsh, but never thought it¡¯s that harsh....]

    The red haired man then pondering for a bit before then standing up.

    [Then where¡¯s everyone else?]

    [They¡¯re outside, discussing their strategy of how to break throught it.] [We should go out too, partner.]

    [Alright....]

    <h2>***</h2>

    Inside the cave, a bonfire was lit inside. Encircling it was three tent, with 3 person and 1 boulder that somehow moved by itself. Just then, someone come out from one of the tent, a red haired person.

    [Oh, Rud!] [You¡¯re okay now?]

    Josephine was the first one to greet Rud with a relief on her face.

    [I... I¡¯m okay now....] [Am I... making trouble again...?]

    [Nhah, you¡¯re innocent, don¡¯t worry.] Vram replied to Rud¡¯s worry while he¡¯s in the middle of sheathing his weapon. [In fact, all of us are responsible for our blunder.]

    [Hmm?] [What do you mean by that, Mister Vram?] Yohn came out from the tent together with Rud.

    [We¡¯re underestimading the area beyond the redline.] [The severe climate, savage monsters, and the fact that there¡¯s almost no resting place around there.] [It was quite a struggle for me and Hougo to pull these hot-headed girls to retreat back to the cave.]

    [But while we¡¯re just sitting here doing nothing, Maria will...!!!]

    [And Hougo can easily deal with those monsters with ease!] [What is there to worried about?!]

    *BDHAM!!

    Vram slammed his glaive on the ground furiously, creating dull, loud noise thanks to the hardness of the cave¡¯s surrounding.

    [This place is different than your usual hunting ground!] [Thankfully it only cost us Hougo¡¯s sub-core and my Blackhemy weapons to deal with them!!] [If not, forget about saving Maria, we can barely return home from this place alive!!!] [Also, Lady Hilda!] [You¡¯re the one who said that we need to stay on guard, but you¡¯re the one who ended up lowering your guard when you should be keeping Hougo in check!]

    Hilda can only stay silent, shocked seeing Vram being so serious all of a sudden.

    [But... but we still have to save Maria quickly!!]

    [And you think charging through all those monsters without preparing a single plan to move is a wise choice?!] [We¡¯re going to run out of resources if that kind of battle keep up!!]

    The cave suddenly went silent. The girls can¡¯t say anything in defense of what Vram had said.

    [Umm... I think you should tone it down a bit, mister Vram....] Yohn then tried to reconcile Vram with the others. [The girls are just desperate when their friends are in danger, right?] [Also, this blockhead can barely get a hold of his consciousness, maybe the coldness also getting into the girls there.] [So....]The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    [It¡¯s because of that that I need to remind them of the casualty!] [A careless decision in the middle of battlefield would only cause further suffering!]

    Rud somehow confused hearing Vram said all that.

    [You speak as if you¡¯ve experienced that kind of situation....]

    Hearing Rud¡¯s remark, Vram can only releasing a long breath, trying to control his own emotion.

    [I did.] [That¡¯s why I need to make sure that such thing won¡¯t happen again.]

    [Vram....] Josephine can only sees Vram with a melancholic eyes, as if emphatizing what had happened to Vram when he¡¯s still a human.

    [... Alright, I¡¯m sorry.] [I¡¯m just too excited everytime I do battle, especially when Hougo¡¯s at its top condition.] [But considering all that, Do we really have a way to went past through it?]

    [I can¡¯t really think of such things in a short amount of time.] [That¡¯s why I dragged you all back here to discuss some things.]

    The group went silent all of a sudden, pondering whether what to decide and how to progress through it.

    [By the way....] Yohn then tried to ask something. [For starter, how are we supposed to know that Mariabelle is okay?] [Considering the situation at hand, I doubt she could even survive going through this place after all.]

    [Ah, that¡¯s fine.] Hilda then shows a crystal ball with some kind of light fairy inside. [This Fairy has two purpose, to let us know her condition as well as a way to track her down.]

    [I see....]

    [Wait a sec, Lady Hilda.] Then Rud also started to raise a few question. [If that¡¯s the case, then how come she even survive in there?] [I don¡¯t really remember the details, but her familiar are actually weaker than Vram, right?]

    [It was her familiar¡¯s natural ability.] Josephine then interject and start to explain things. [Hanna has its own innate ability to adapt and hiding anywhere, even at the plain field.] [So far, no one was able to rival Hanna¡¯s stealth ability.]

    [Wait, master.] [Can it even hide his own master¡¯s presence too?]

    [Not just presence, actually.] [Hanna¡¯s innate ability alone was able to completely erasing its existence as a whole as long as he stay calm and supress its violent nature.] [It was some kind of half-phantom monster]

    [That¡¯s quite a scary familiar there.] [Given the right training, even I would have a hard time going against it.]

    Hilda and Josephine was surprised at Vram¡¯s mention toward Hanna.

    [Wait, he¡¯s scary??] [Our circles decided that Hanna isn¡¯t actually a strong monster, but....] [Were we wrong?]

    [Since when did Hanna¡¯s a weak monster?] [I was able to fend off its attack because once he went into battle, his personality becomes so violent that I can easily read its attack.] [But when he ambushed me, I can barely hold off its attack and was about to die strangled if I didn¡¯t have my weapon at that time.]

    [I... I see....]

    Hilda then somehow feeling remorsed, like she was making a huge mistake. But then Josephine started to hit her left palm with her right fist.

    [I see!] [Then that means we just need to hide ourselves between these cold lands!] [That way the monster won¡¯t notice our presence at all!!]

    [How, exactly?]

    [We can just use the monsters¡¯ skin that lives around here and hide our body covered in it!!]

    Hilda, Yohn, Rud, and Vram can only gape their mouth in awe for Josephine¡¯s idea.

    [How¡¯s that?] [Quite a perfect idea, isn¡¯t it?!]

    [Th... that... yeah, quite good....]

    [That is a plausible method indeed....]

    [Well, despite it being that way, I agree with master idea, though....]

    The three men can only mumble to themselves before Hilda started to glare straight toward Josephine.

    [You¡¯re... quite a cruel girl, aren¡¯t you?] [Dissecting a monster''s skin only to be used as a cloth lying around to hide yourself like that....]

    [EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHH!??!?!?!?]

    <h2>***</h2>

    [Senior Hilda.]

    Lying down on a carpet with some bedding on top of it, Josephine observes Hilda was in the middle of working. She was in the middle of creating another sub-core for Hougo since he lost one when fighting the crystal wyvern. Both of them were inside one of the tent they had prepared, while Vram and the others sleep in another tent.

    [Yes?]

    [Do you think... we can rescue Maria?]

    [What are you talking about?] [Your idea is quite excelent despite it being that way.] [Vram also helping us finalizing the plan.] [It should work.]

    [But....] [Did she want to be saved...?] [I mean, I¡¯m the one who was sent to help her....]

    Hilda then closed her eyes while letting out a small sigh from her mouth.

    [Then why are you here in the first place?]

    [I... I really want to help her....] [I dislike her, of course.] [But considering that she does all that for her familiar....] [I....]

    [Then that should be the same with her, right?] [She loves her familiar as much as you do.] [That¡¯s why she asks for reinforcement in the first place.]

    [Uuu....]

    Hilda then continuing her work. Just then, Josephine¡¯s curiousity lights up.

    [By the way, about that magic Hougo used....] [Where did you learn to control your magic like that?]

    [The same way you used your Blackhemy, idiot.]

    [Ah!]

    [When I heard and saw the potential of the blackhemy itself, I realized that human has a weird principle of magic.] [So I tried to ask Yohn about it and he¡¯s happily sharing his knowledge.]

    [And...?]

    [Surprisingly, they have a way to store a calculation method of reproducing magic using some kind of mineral.] [Using that mineral, they can use that magic over and over as long as you know howto set the trigger needed to activate the magic.]

    [Wait a second.] [Doesn¡¯t that means that you can only use one kind of magic?]

    [That¡¯s right.]

    [But repelling is a single magic right?!] [Then how can he also activate the attract magic, as well as the explosion that¡¯s coming out of his hands?!?!]

    [Repelling was Hougo¡¯s innate ability.] [He can repel any kind of physical damage aimed toward him.] [Using that theory, that means he¡¯s free to repel any kind of object that was within a certain range of his main core, his own life.]

    [Ah...!]

    [The problem was attract magic.] [Yohn also helped me with the experiment, but since he can only offer the basic idea that comes out of it, I need to formulate the whole magic reproduction myself.]

    [Idea?]

    [Basically, the principle was used when we¡¯re absorbing the mana.] [This concept completely flipping every concept we¡¯ve learned since all we do as a witch is either sustain the mana, or to unleash it.] [Us witches can do it instinctively, but humans can¡¯t.] [That¡¯s why they learned a way to attract mana for themselves.]

    Josephine can only nodded furiously upon hearing the theory that came from her senior.

    [Now that you understand most of the principle behind the magic, you should¡¯ve understand how Hougo¡¯s new body works, right?]

    [Ah!] [I see, that¡¯s why there are 12 cores inside his body!!]

    [Correct.] [The core on his head is without a doubt, his main core, his life.] [Six of its sub core is the magic that control the attract, three of them for hovering and propulsion, and the rest arefor offensive purpose.]

    Josephine start to gape her mouth in awe hearing such complex attribute and component can increase hougo¡¯s battle output far beyond what he originally was, and even almost as strong as Vram.

    [... Senior Hilda....]

    [Yes?]

    [You should¡¯ve return and become an instructor once again.]

    [Ahahah~] [Well I was planning to once we¡¯ve returned alive with Maria back home.] [I also want to teach her a way to strengthen her familiar without resorting to killing each other¡¯s familiar.] [Vram already told me the idea, so I can think of a way or two for it~]

    Time went on as Vram and the others rest in the tent while the two girls are enjoying themselves talking about many things they want to do after they finished their mission.