《Contract from the Abyss》 Prologue/Introduction *CLINK* "Finally I got the first one" You may ask ''What am I doing?'' Or ''Who am I?''. Well first of that''s rude to ask without introducing yourselves beforehand so let''s back up for a moment while I get through this finicky thing. First off you could say I am your typical thief. After all there is evidence in my records that ''suggest''....well my records does state it in plain text but o well. BUT HEY don''t judge me just yet. Just like anyone else I have been through a lot. This is just what life took me. "That''ll be my second one, god this thing is annoying" Yeah sorry but you know I''m just trying to get this storage unit in order to find some documents. After all I gotta hold my end of the bargain. Besides i got a reputation to hold. What ''s so important about reputation? Well it''s basically a ladder the better your record the better your chance is to be hired by someone who is quite...generous. UGH This thing is a bit too secure i might be here a couple of hours. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. In the meantime since I am introducing myself, let''s start with my story... Chapter 1 My Condition I have always enjoyed the wonders of nature. In fact I have always hunted my entire life and practically lived with nature, but never for profit. I only hunt for what I need. If I''m hungry I fish. If I''m cold I hunt buffaloes and skin it. Nature was always kind to me and in return I was kind to it. If I ever take something I do something in return such as feed the wildlife or plant a couple of seeds for other people who happen to cross by, which was never. As of now I am relaxing by a stream. I love the sound of the trickling water. The sound almost puts me into a trance. When you touch it, the water almost a feels like it embraces around your fingers. Despite the speed of the water, it somehow remains calm and elegant. "Rave sholto Silvester!!!" ...I think I may be screwed. "I''M COMIN'' MUM" "What did I say about your clothes?!?!" "Nothing?" I said curiously "Quit running a mock dirtying your clothes; it''s a hassle to wash these clothes every week. FURTHERMORE you keep getting dirt all the floor!!!" "ALRIGHT ALRIGHT, I''ll stop wearing clothes, jeez" "RAVE SHOLTO SILVESTER, you are twelve years old now for crying out loud and I also expect you to pull your weight and do some of your chores." "Ok, ok I''m sorry, ma, but hey I got Tuna" hoping to get off this topic. Usually I don''t bring fish home since I usually eat it on the go, but this one is quite large. I always loved my mom, well actually she isn''t really my mom. ''Why isn''t she my mom'' you ask? Well biologically we aren''t related and well basically I always called her mom cause apparently one syllable words is easier than a three syllable word when you are a baby....and well it stuck since then. How did fate combine us together? Well apparently I was left onto her doorstep and abandoned. Don''t fret it was always common in a town where nobody had much money much less take care of another mouth. I guess...that''s why I always feel indebted to her and it makes me feel guilty. However I am grateful I have someone to call ''mom'' cause she was always there to comfort me at my worst and I always tried to comfort her with the best of my ability at her worst. But reality is taking a toll on both of us. When I take a good look around, I can barely see the wooden planks on the floor because it is covered in soot and dirt-I guess the dirt part was largely my fault...woops- the walls have cracks in it and the ceiling seems to collapse at any givin'' moment. The truth is we aren''t rich nor are we even considered middle class. In fact we have little to no money at all. We lived on the bad side of town where people barely made a living. But the good thing is that there was no violence but that is largely contributed by the fact it was small so everyone knew each other and everyone was struggling so there really wasn''t a point in fighting with others. Anyways my ma, Rebecca Silvester, started cooking the Tuna up with what little supplies we had. The Tuna wasn''t going to be done soon so I decided to go the bar. I know what you are thinking, but no I don''t drink. It just so happens that the bar is the only place that has a ''vision teleportation device''(or VTD). Besides even if I tried to get some drinks everybody knew me anyways and know that I can''t get past them. As I watch the VTD it was airing the arena. "THE ''BLACK KNIGHT'' DOES A UPPERCUT JUST AS THE ''EAGLE'' GETS CLOSE OOH BUT THE EAGLE STRIFES TO THE SIDE. I DON''T KNOW FOLKS THIS IS GOING TO BE A CLOSE ONE"- Spokesperson. -camera pans to two reporters- "So Drake how do you think the duel is going so far? From what I can tell both sides so far is getting heated and an amazing battle between these to adventurers is starting to ignite a fire" "Well Jill, with a million dollars at stake here, I can only expect a explosion to happen anytime soon. The ''Black Knight'' is regarded one of the most dangerous as he has won the last twenty-four battles so far, which makes him undefeated with 110 points" I look at the battles. I look at them with envy as I sit in my stool drinking dirty water. While watching, I noticed the stands seated by people throwing a unmentionable amount money upon the arena. Why do these Noblemen throw their money to the arena? Why exactly do adventurers get so much money on top of their already gigantic wealth? Do they really sit on so much wealth they they have the capability to throw their money away while we struggle to even make a decent living? These thoughts filled me with rage as I look at the state of the bar with people covered in rags. I leave after I finish my cup of dirty water and I thanked the bartender, Jack. "Hey Ravey, give this to your mom will ya?" Jack handed me a couple of papers which looks to be from his child. "Will do, cy....HEY STOP CALLING ME RAVEY!!" "PFFT HEHEHE" Jack pat me on the back and nudged me to the exit. "Jerk..." I whispered I ran back to the house and handed my mom the papers. She''s looks at it approvingly, "looks likes Jill is improving in his math skills." Then she ponders and looks out into space. As you probably may have noticed my mom is a teacher and also the towns well known caretaker. She worries about other people and is willing to suffer for her students and the people she knows. Because of her stress her dark brown slowly oozes out grey hair, nevertheless I still see the wonderful person in my life as if she was ten years younger. However it pains me to see her sacrifice herself as I watch with tears in my eyes. I wish I could help solve all her problems, but there is only so much I could do with my little hands. She is so compassionate that she even cooks for some of her students that barely have nothing to eat. In fact I have fished and hunted to help out, but a twelve year old could only do so much. In reality I was probably the only one who was able to muster up enough courage to face the wilderness, thanks to my uncle. My Uncle Fredrick used to train me when I was younger, but he left aiming to be the best warrior in the capital; however what returned was the news of his death. I have never seen my mom cried so much than any other days that I have lived upon this world. Ever since then she sacrificed herself in hopes of helping other students and myself have a better life than she ever had. That reminds me. There was this one man that had moved from an unknown origin, possibly poorer than we were at that time, who has collapsed on the ground. Everybody in town was scared to go near him, let alone touch him, mostly cause of his gigantic beard and his frightening appearance. But my mom did not care for his outward physical appearance and instead helped him with all she could. She brought him in into her home and fed him, wrapped him in bandages wherever it was needed, and let him sleep with the only actually bed in town. It was only after a couple of days that he finally regained his full conscious. "Yo you finally awake already?" I yelled at the man. "Thank you!" He said in a foreign accent."I must reach the capital!!!" "Woah calm down old man, you barely survived, even I''m surprised you''re alive" I calmly say , after all I didn''t want to scare him."my mother has noticed many wounds on your legs and back, she recommends you recuperate for a couple of weeks" as I said that I put boiling hot water onto his legs. "AHHHH WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!?" He screams in agony. "Doctors recommendation....are you not that desperate to go to the capital after all?"I mockingly asked. He remains silent. "Anyways just rest easy my mom is two buildings down so call her if you need anything. I need to go fishing down in the woods for some food." I quickly grab my tools and went towards the door. "Wait...let me go with you..." With the intentions to regret his offer, I see him get up with determination. Pfft looks like I can''t stop him. I''ll pack another fishing pole for him. We reached my favorite fishing spot which was a little more than a mile away. It''s probably the best fishing place and is in fact my favorite. I don''t have to worry about others cause nobody even comes out here anyways. Anyways we set up our gear and started fishing. "I''d like to apologize for suddenly coming to the village unannounced and I would like to thank your mother for all the trouble I have caused. I surely hope I can pay her back," he looks down in guilt. Surprised by the long sudden outburst. I became startled to speak. However I quickly regained my composure. "Listen you don''t have to worry so much. My mom is a strong women and can handle anything. So don''t think much of it." I calmly replied. We continued fishing for a couple of minutes silently. Man this is getting awkward. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "Sooo...how ''bout we introduce ourselves? My name is Rave Solto Silvester, but just call me Rave; it saves time." "My name is Derecko syte, but most call me Derek." He said in a foreign accent. " I gotta ask ya, where are you from? Cause it seems that you came from a far away land maybe overseas. Sorry if I''m intruding too much, I guess a man gotta keep his secrets" He chuckles "nah it''s quite alright, not much of a secret anyways. But yes I am from overseas. I am a business man and quite successful at that, but I have traveled in hopes to find my brothers and sisters who were taken from my homeland" "Oi so you left behind all your riches for the slight chance you''ll be able to find your brothers and sisters?, That''s a dumb proposition" I laughed wheezingly. "Some day you''ll realize that family is more important than anything else in the world and will sacrifice everything to be together with them." He smiled at the surface of the water with his old man gaze. "I highly dou-WOAHH" as I was about to reply to him, my line caught something. It must have been huge cause without realizing both of us were struggling to reel it in. We were both focused on getting that we were both lost our train of thought. Little did I know that I was going to engrave what he said to both my mind, spirit, and body...and especially my heart. "HEY MA, WE GOT FISH!!!"Derek and I walked inside...well Derek still has a noticeable limp but that was beyond the point. "OK hun...OH MY ARE YOU OK?!?!" She runs past me and tries to nudge Derek back to bed. "I am quite fine miss...I only went out to take in some fresh air."he quickly replied. "Really? Oh god I hope so, so what is your name? I don''t think we have been properly introduced, my name is Rebecca Silvester" "My name Derecko Syte, madam." He bows down elegantly "Well pleasure to meet you Mr.Syte." Blushes "Oh please call my Derek, everyone else calls me that." "Alright Derek, would you like some fish? If so, please come down in a couple of hours. For now just rest." she hastily leaves the room. "Yeah sorry Derek, my mom is a bit overprotective and it''s pretty much for the whole town"I chuckle a bit. "It''s fine my boy, she is probably the most compassionate women I have met."he looks up into the ceiling. "If I may ask, boy, why is your hair silver? In my country it was found to be a bad omen" "Jeez old man, that''s a bit personal, but it ain''t no secret. To be honest I should point out that My mom isn''t really my mom; however it is easier to accept that. So my hair is what distincts me from the rest of town. So basically I was a boy abandoned and this silver hair is the reminder of that" "I''m sorry boy, didn''t know you had a rough infant hood" he quickly replied. "Nah no worries. This hair doesn''t leave much significance other than that. In fact it''s pretty common case for kids in this town to be orphan. I''m just glad I found my way towards mom. Well I should probably let you rest. Well cya later" He chuckles and quickly falls into a deep slumber. Quietly I walked out and close the door behind me. When I turn I see my mom still cooking and she cut the fish. Two-thirds of the fish is put into a plastic bag that is probably intended to be sent to her students. Not wishing to disturb I walk outside. NO I forgot to get our tools from when we were fishing!!! I quickly turned to the woods and aimed towards the fishing spot we were at. I quickly run because it is almost midnight and the wrong kind of creatures are up and ready to eat. I never ran so fast in my place cause right now that fishing pole is expensive to get and is probably accounts for our source of food. I finally manage to find my way there. As I turn to it I quickly find a tree to hide behind. "Grrrrr" Damn it!!! It''s a Giant Ocelot. It looks to be about 800lbs. It must have been attracted by the fish scent. Suddenly, it aims it''s head up and smells something looking at the direction I came from. Oh no, it can smell the fish my mother is cooking. I can''t...I just can''t. I look all around looking for any way to divert its attention. Man why does it gotta be so large?!?! Think-THINK-THINK DAMN IT!!! I got it! I quickly grab a rock and a few pebbles then I climb the tree. "YO UP HERE." grabbing its attention. He quickly noticed me and starts climbing up the tree. I quickly walk down the branch that hovers over the river. Luckily this tree is huge and it''s branches are long. So I kept walking keeping my balance until I get to the portion that barely takes my weight. I turn around "OH DAMN" the ocelot moved faster than I though now it''s about four to five meters away. "GRRRR" Man I can almost smell his breathe. I grab the rock hope to god that my aim is as accurate as I pull the line out of the water. With a forceful throw I aimed at its left front limb. Suddenly it slipped! Now it''s hanging on to the branch in hopes of hanging cause once it falls it will drown with it''s massive body. I quickly crawled closer and I punch the paw. Finally it slipped but once it lets go the branch all the potential energy in the branch released and it threw me a couple of meters up in the air. NO-NO-NO I quickly flail my arms in hopes of grabbing ahold of the branch. "AHHHH." Well...the good thing is that I caught it...bad part is that I won''t be using this hand anytime soon. I quickly crawled to the tree and climbed down. I grab the tools and I carefully tread back home. After all it will be bad news if I encounter another Ocelot. "Welcome back Ra...OH MY GOD WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR ARM!?!?!" "I tripped over a tree root." "HOW?!?" She immediately replied. "Well...I forgot my tools and all I could think about was getting there and getting back cause it was getting dark...so I was not careful and it was hard too see." Eh I think that was a reasonable story. I hope she bought that. She looks at my face looking for any evidence of lying. Crap she is an expert at this, I try to put a hurtful face. As I do that I notice her eyes were red that seems like she has been weeping all day. Not wanting to add work and worry to her day. I put on the best realistic face I could. "Fine I believe go to bed and I''ll wrap your arm in a bit. I got to get the fish out of the pot." After that I quickly went to my room across from Derecko. Finding my sack I quietly lay down and think what it would be like to be wealthy. Soon enough I passed out exhausted from today. "Ugghhhhh....noooo" I forgot to close the shutters and now the light is burning my eyes. I quickly shuffle and bury my face into the sack. " FINE FINE I GET IT." I went across my room to where Derecko was resting. As I knocked the door budged a bit. I notice and curiously I look inside. Where the hell is he?!?! I look further and I see a note on the bed. Note: To Rave I would like to thank you for spending time with me. As you know I am a weak man and most young ones generally watch VTD or playing with other kids, so when you agreed to let me go with you fishing; I was honestly happy. When we were fishing together it almost felt like I had a son. However it was also that same moment it struck me that I must find my own family instead of intruding another''s. So please forgive me on my selfish wishes and by no means did I leave cause of distrust or negative emotions. So thank you and please forgive me. Slowly my memories of the fishing day surface. And I muttered "you didn''t catch a fish yet, old man" I look down and I noticed a note for my mother also. I quietly pick up the note and placed down onto the dinner table where mom would easily find it. However as i do this I notice what seems to be a official document for taxes. I slowly pull out the papers. *drip* *drip* one by one my tears fell on their own. I slowly put it back trying to hold back my tears. Then I sprung into a sprint mode. I ran- I ran into the woods until my legs were burning-until my tears blocks my sight-until the moon shown up halfway across the sky-until i get enough scratches to cover my body and mind. I ran until i could run now more. "WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!! DAMN IT, TELL ME WHYYYYY!!!" I fall to my knees and I weep. I wept for my mom. I wept for my town. I wept for my friends. And more importantly I wept at myself for being so powerless to stop this foe that stands before me.. NEXT CHAPTER--> Chapters 1-3= Serve as the background of MC. (Sorry if it seems slow xD, but hold on tight) Chapter 2 The Awakening 500 gold coins in unpaid taxes. GOD DAMNS IT!!!! "AGHHHHHHHHH" I scream in anguish. The king will eventually imprison my mother if she doesn''t pay. I CAN''T LET THAT HAPPEN. "DAMN YOU TYRANT, DAMN YOU!!! WHERE DO YOU EXPECT US TO GET THIS MONEY, WE DON''T HAVE SUCH WEALTH!!!" *rustle* "Hmm?" *rustle* *rustle* Suddenly a ''Wolf'' jumps out of the bush growling with the face of hunger. Crap. As I walk back I tripped over a tree root. As I turn back I see the wolf is looking at me with a mocking face. Quickly I look for any outs of this situation. Behind me I see a stone a few meters behind me. *Growls* at this point the wolf inches closer and closer. If I run for the stone now it will notice and pounce at me. If I don''t run for it, I will definitely be chewed out. Man this is a huge predicament. I can''t die now, at least not yet. *wind blows snapping a branch* the wolf takes notice of the sudden noise from the branch. NOWS MY CHANCE!! I pounce towards the stone and grabbed it with my right hand. The wolf quickly notices and pounce at me. As it was about to snap its jaws together at my neck. I swung my right arm-that had the rock-across the face of the wolf. I quickly get up and I kept pounding the rock at him until I see his jaw get dislocated, or a better word, torn from the rest of the body. "Ughhh man" *chuckle* "that was a close one." I look down to see that I was covered in blood. "AAAOOOOOOOO"*sound of howls* "SHOOT" Wolfs can smell the blood reeking from my body. In attempt to get rid of the scent I jump into the river. Because it was so dark, I wasn''t able to see how fast it was going. Man one predicament after another. I quickly find my fate in the hands of the river "UGguGug" I can''t...I can''t...breathe...water...too...fast... Suddenly I see a couple of rocks ahead....SHit the river is too fast...no...Not now...nooo.... *bonk*............................... "Ughhh" where am I?!? I notice the sun in the middle of the sky. AH IT¡¯S BRIGHT. Man I still haven''t gotten used to the morning sun. I slowly pushed my body against the dirt. AH NO USE. I collapse back onto the dirt. I look at my surroundings. I noticed a giant wall...it could be the city. I look back at the river...so in order to get I need to travel upstream...what a pain. After a couple of minutes have passed, I began to feel my legs and I quickly get up. Curious, I climb over the wall of the city. This was no problem since I climb all the time in the woods. I peered to both my sides making sure no knights were on this shift. I climb over. Luckily there is a building next to the wall so I ran and jumped across the gap and manage grab the roof. Man this city is beautiful. I see kids running around. Mothers shopping for groceries. Men traveling and shouldering their fishing poles or pickaxes. This kind of scene relaxes me...however I feel my mind churn in jealousy. "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, I paid 30 silver for 10 loaves of bread, this is 9, I''m not an idiot I can count." I quickly take notice a mother and a shop keeper. The mother seems quite angry. "Mr. Bellows, give me back the money" The shop keeper gives an immediate wry smile and immediately puts on a straight face. "Madam, I hear you clear and loud, but I only see 27 silver coins not 30" I notice 3 silver coins in his left hand. That bastard. "UGH WHATEVER" the women begins to stomp and walks away. The shopkeeper puts on a smile that''s reeks of greed. No I''m not going to take this. I quickly jumped roof tops until I reached the shop. I peered through the shutters and I see a pouch of gold & silver coins along with a few copper. I carefully open the shutters not wanting to create any noise. I quickly took the pouch and silently walked closing the shutters behind me. "Man that was easy" shocked at my own capability. These were probably all the money he cheated out of his customers. It seems to contain 4 gold, 50 silver, and a couple of coppers. Anyways I climbed up back to the roof and I look for the women. I follow her. Man I need to get closer. I climbed down from the roof and instead follow her. I tapped the women in the shoulder. "Yes dear?" The women asked politely. "Uhh I...here is the 3 silver the shopkeeper stole from you" she looks down at the coins. I quickly ran away not wanting to see the response, climbing up back the walls. "Wait hey!!! Where have you gone to?!?!...anyways...thank you...you don''t know how much this means to my family." With that she quietly walks away. Once I hit the roof I jumped from roof to roof and jumped over the wall. Need to make sure I''m in a safe place, after all I did commit thievery. I quickly spot the river and traveled up stream back home. "MAAN, that *huff* was one *huff* long walk *kehuu-kehuu*" I finally manage to get back in one piece. As I run through town I spot my mom teaching morning class through the windows. In haste I run for our home and grabbed a pencil and paper and wrote "Use this to pay off your debt" on top of the pouch full of money containing 4 gold/47 silver. Of course I had to write it really professionally because I knew my mom knew exactly how I write knowing every nook and cranny of my penmanship. I wish my mum wasn''t so observant; it would make my life ton easier. Man I am exhausted. After applying myself some rags I go to the woods and go to my favorite fishing spot too lay down. I look up to see the sun smiling, the river looks so calm, and the gentle breeze blows through the sky. Without noticing I fall into a deep sleep. "...rave...raveyyyy...rave..." I snap awake. Did I hear my mother¡¯s voice or am I delusional? Maybe that rock hit my head a bit too hard...there''s no way I can hear my mom all the way from here. I''m like a mile away...it''s impossible...right? *The wind blows harder* "Did mom call me?" I think to myself. *the wind blows even harder* It''s a coincidence right? I better get back before it gets dark anyways. I gently walk home and take in the flow of the wind...MAAAAN it feels good. By the time I got home the sun already set over the horizon. Before I even took a step inside... "RAVEY, WHERE WERE YOU?!?!" She frantically looks for any sign of harm over my body "AND WHY ARE YOU COVERED IN BRUISES AND SCRATCHES!!?" "Sorry I was running through the woods and I kind of tripped and fell...I think I passed out-but I''m fine mom really" I frantically say. "...really?...well don''t worry me so much...anyways go wash yourself you smell terrible. After that I want you to go to bed and rest your body alright?" "Ok" and with I was gone. I thought about telling my mum what had happened at the capital...however I don''t thinks my mother will respond well. "HOO HOOO" Damn it...I can''t sleep. I look out the window. I see that little Bastard making that sound. I quickly grabbed my bow & arrow in hopes I can hunt it down...I just hope my lack of hunting with the bow hasn''t diminished yet. It''s been quite the long time. Anyways I quickly went after him. Besides owls are a delicacy. Once I got close to him. "HOOHOO" it turns around and started to flap its wings NOO. With that it flew away. ''OH HELL NAW, I woke up with my bow and arrow because you ruined my sleep. You think I''m a let you leave??'' I tirelessly chase after him. Man it''s getting further and further. Suddenly the owl takes a right turn to and open field. I SEE AN OPPORTUNITY. I ready my bow while I chase it. I quickly aim it and I wait for the most opportune time. And *FLINK* and flies go the arrow. "HUUUAWK." Realizing its fate, the owl tries to glide over to the ocean. However nature has other plans, a sudden breeze suddenly rushes in form affront falling towards Rave. "This will fetch some coins." I said greedily. I quickly put it in my bag I brought with me. Nature decides to blow a heavy wall of wind. For the sake of my eyes I face away from the direction of the wind, and as I do this I notice a wall of light... It''s the capital. I finally reach the wall of the capital. I tied the bag to a branch of a tree so that scavengers like wolves aren''t able to get it. I climb back up the walls and I retook the steps that lead to the center of the trading market. I take a look around and see many lights and a couple of bonfires apparently there''s a festival going on. Knowing this I climbed down. I look around the stands and I notice many stalls with various good. Its sucks that I only have some owl feathers. Suddenly an older women called out to me with a voice that drags me to her stands. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "Hello dear would you like some soup, or perhaps a hat, maybe you will like this mask" "No than-" "How about some candles, would you like some candles" interrupting me. "No thank y-" "I have a black candle" I see how it is. "OK-BYE" I quickly run away... "HEY WAIIT YOU HAVENT SEEN MY WARES YET..." Oh thank god I escape. Anyways this continues on for various occasions and sometimes I was interest but was rejected once they knew I had nothing to offer. Although it wasn''t a complete loss I stole some coins from some of the greedy merchants. However the coins I gathered quickly dissipated when I gave them to a few children and all they wore were rags. Knowing their position I couldn''t say no. Suddenly across the crowd I sport something irregular. It looks like a really older women and in front of her were a lot of masks. As I come closer I feel the area around me becomes dense. "Hello dear, do you like anything on display?" She said in a hoarse voice. "Sorry I don''t have anything to offer but the masks you have looked interesting. Sorry for bothering you" I was about to leave when... "Wait up- are those owl feathers?" I look down on my right pocket. Huh...didn''t realize. I slowly pick it up. When I take a closer look at the feather it had quite the coloring. It was black on one side and brown on the other. "Would you like it? I don''t have any uses for it." "Yes I would love it. You see I am quite interested in the coloring specifically. This feather tells a story and I would love to take it home and hear it" "Sure" I gave her the feather as I was finally going to take my leave. "Wait...before you go would you like a mask?" "Sorry I don''t hav..." "It''s fine when you are old like me, you''ll realize that money becomes less important the closer to death you are so go ahead and take one" she gives off a warm smile. "Uh thank madam" I search through her mouth mask collection. I held each one...this is too heavy...too hard... To sparkly...too rough...too big...too colorful. Once I got to the end I see a pure black and simple mouth mask. I picked it up to be surprise to be made out of some kind of skin. It was durable, it was breathable, and the atmosphere grabbed me. Looking astonished."ahh that is made out of the last flying dragon. And I had it for many years but nobody seems to buy and most of my customers say tag it was REALLY heavy. How are you able to lift it so easily?" "I don''t know it seems pretty light...so¡­made from last dragon... is it really alright I take it?" Not wanting to bring her into poverty. "Ha-ha it''s fine; it was always a waste of space. I''m just glad I found someone to buy it. So please take it, I''m glad" she''s says smiling. "Thank you, sorry for not having money" I replied with sincerity. With that I take my leave with the mouth mask. There was a dance around the bonfire, everybody washing the pain from yesterday and here to rejoice together. The more I listen, the more I realize that this celebration is for the kings triumphs against the Ottomans. During the whole night I was pick pocketing left and right and found a few coins on the coin. My pouch is filling up nicely I might add. Everybody had a smile on the faces...even the merchants. That''s a bit suspicious. "4 silver for bread!!! 4 silver for bread!!!" Isn''t that...the same merchant? Wait a minute isn¡¯t that a bit expensive? I quickly open a window to the store. I see a bigger pouch than yesterday. Maybe I should knock him down a notch. Besides I''ve been stealing things throughout the whole festival, most people leave their house unlocked for thieves anyways so might as well. No worries though I''ve been mostly stealing from people who took advantage of others, I don¡¯t want anyone to suffer poverty as I have. Once I slipped in, I grabbed a few gold coins as quickly as I can. As I turn around. *clunk**bang* A stove fell to the floor Oh SHET!!! I look back at the entrance to look for any sign of the merchant. "HEY WHOS GOES THERE!! GUARDS IM BEING ROBBED" I quickly aim for the window. I walk down the alley and when I got far enough I quickly aim up for the roof as a safe haven. This is bad, this wall isn''t suitable for climbing-I turn around-looks like I don''t have a choice. "Alright hands we spent many years climbing in the woods- don''t fail me now." "HALT THIEF!!!". Oh crap the guards are coming. I grab the stones sticking out if the walls. I kept climbing and climbing. I chose the wrong building to climb... Once I reached the top I collapse onto the roof too finally catch my breathe. Well to be honest I¡¯m not worried if I was seen, mostly due to my new mask but it''s obsolete if I get caught. Time passed, but it seemed like it hasn''t. Everybody is still enjoying the banquet... "Hey man...don''t make a single scratch on her. If boss found out that she has been scratched just by a tiny bit. Boss will have your head" "Dude we''ve been at this for like five hours and just one kid out of like THOUSANDS won''t matter besides I''m exhausted. And that''s not the worst part I wanna try some grub from the festival" he followed with a drool. He grabs the women by the waist and heaves it over his shoulder. "AHHHH LET ME GO! ILL HAVE YOU KNOW MY FATHER WILL HAVE YOU ARRESTED. YOU¡¯LL REGRET THIS!!!" "Yeah-yeah whatever just shut your mouth before I shut it for ya." Exhaustedly he carries her onto the back of a horse. "AHHHHHHHH...NO LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"She screams and kicks hoping to be released. I finally decide to poke my head out from the rooftop. She''s about to get kidnapped...that''s a shame. As I say that a huge gust of wind comes over and it almost blew me over the edge. "Fine fine I get it" Knowing they will have a hard time navigating through the crowd and the fact they need somewhere to be secretive, I kind of got the idea of where they may be heading. Either way they had trouble navigating through the crowd and the girl unconscious inside the bags is struggling to hang on to the horse thus made it a LOT easier for me to pursue besides...I can imagine all the riches behind the doors this man will lead me too. *couple hours later* *kuhee-kuhee*, "my GOD, how far do I have to follow this maniac!!!" we just now entered the ''bad side of town'' where criminals and beggars tend to be. As I jump from roof to roof I notice a few people in shackled to a man...it seems slavery is present in this side. All the slaves were naked and exhausted. I better come in and get out...just being here is getting me depressed. There seems to be many mansions throughout this place but they seem to have decayed over time. I look back at the kidnapper; he stopped and grabbed the unconscious girl. Now that I get a good look at it...I can see that she seems to be a couple of years older than me so that''d make her 14-15. She also wore a dress that looks as pretty as 5-10 gold coins worth. He got of his horse and went into the mansion "HEY BOSS!!! IM BACK AND I BROUGHT WHAT YOU ASKED ME TOO" "Very well and bring the boy that''s been following you" "YES SIR" he turns around and aims his arm towards me. "OH SHIT" I quickly turn around, but I feel something stab my left leg. "AGHHHHHHHHH" damn it I need to hurry, I got to get back oh no¡­I¡¯m I think I¡¯m starting to feel...woozy...no...I can''t...fall now...I need...to..pay... the...debt...I can''t ...sorry....mother... <--PREVIOUS CHAPTER: :NEXT CHAPTER--> Chapter 3 The Hand "Hey...HEY...HEEYYYYYY- MASKED BOY, WAKE UP" "Ugghh" what is...this pain. I look down on my leg. It''s covered...in so much blood, as I attempt to move "AHHHH" holding onto my left leg I release I retract my muscles in my leg. Looks like I''m not moving anytime soon. "HEY STOP IGNORING ME!!!" "Who are you?" Proudly announcing "Only the daughter of Duke Sytesque, Rosetta Sytesque-so what''s your name?" "I''m a nobody but if you insist on a name just call me ''R''..."-not like you''ll remember it anyways. As I take a good look around "so tell me where are we?" Cause as far as i can tell it was a damp dark chamber with bars on all sides and as i observed further i notice other kids of various age groups. "I don''t know to be honest because I just woke up here all of the sudden...However I did notice an auction downstairs though" Man its sucks there aren''t any windows or openings. To check it out..."NO" I quickly check my pockets "DAMN THOSE BASTARDS" THEY TOOK MY HARD EARNED GOLD. "What''s wrong?" "Nothing, but can I ask you a favor? Just pull me to the entrance of the cell so I can get a better view of our situation" "WHY WOULD I TOUCH YOU AND YOUR FILTH?!" "Really..." I think I''m gonna get a headache "are you seriously worried about such things in our current situation" this girl....is hopeless. "It doesn''t matter!!- I, daughter of Duke Sytesque, shall not be tainted in fact you should be working a way to get me out of here." "Why exactly ''Daughter of Duke Sytesque'' shall I do that for? Does it look like I care about you? As far as I''m concern you are just one of those ''wealthy merchants'' that are spoiled so you can just find yourself out of here." I quickly crawl my way to the door and relax there...I''m hoping to look for some information. "You did NOT just ignore me like that. I''ll have you know my father will behead you at my command!!! So if I were you, you better do as I say!" "I''ll take my chances" man this mouth of this girl just keeps moving. I turn my focus to outside our cell. The pain in my leg still lingers...focus-focus-focus Rave just think about fishing "HEY listen to me I''ll have you know I am the most popular perso~"(Rosetta) Ahh fishing it''s a nice day. I look back at the girl...all I see is a moving set of teeth....so glad I''m able to tune it out. While I was observing the outside I notice guards pulling kids probably for the auction. Judging the interval we''ll be sold half a day from now. "HEY ARE YOU LISTENING!!" "Sorry, you say something?" "UGH I HOPE YOU SUFFER MUCH PAIN WHEN WE GET BACK TO THE CAPITAL" "Well if you are going to torture me then shouldn''t you prioritize escaping?" "Pfft why would I need to escape when my father can just get me out of here?" "Yeah sure count on someone else for your problems....you know you are so childish for your age." "EXCUSE ME HOW OLD DO YOU TAKE ME FOR, I''m only 11 and a half¡± "Really? Nahhh you can''t be 11-" "AND A HALF" "HAHAHA!!!!!! My bad your makeup makes you pale as a ghost I mistook you to be a lot older" "Excuse me, gentlemen unlike you find me mature for my age, hmph" "Yeah sure" I really can''t afford to waste my time. I need to think of a plan and soon. I started crawling my way to shackles and started to look for any rusted parts so I could pull at. After I got a chain I wrap it around my hands-luckily the kidnappers are so cheap they don''t do maintenance around here. "Hey R, what''re you doing? That''s an ugly accessory HAHAHAHA" "Well this ''accessory'' is my ticket out of here and unlike you rich folk I have to work for it" man I hope my leg recovers soon. I crawl back and was about to concentrate until the guards arrive in my cell. Suddenly a guard arrives and starts scribbling down something..."so the boy looks strong, strange hair. The girl..." "HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING??, MY FATHER WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD" "...is young but obnoxious" I snickered. "IF I WERE YOU, YOU WILL LET ME GO THIS INSTANT OR YOU BE KILLED BY FATHERS HANDS" "HAHAAAAH Do you really believe your father will come for you? Guess what young lady your father doesn''t know where you are so as you are now you are a sitting duck until we sell you to some slave owner, guess what, they can do anything they want to you so keep hoping lady~" at that he left with a face I an animal *Rosetta shivers* she holds her body in attempt to protect herself. Well she''s mentally unstable; I better not intrude her- not that I would anyways. "....hey ''R'' could...could you...help me?" "Sorry what did you say?" I clear my ears "HELP ME PLEASSEEEE" she starts crying an extraordinary amount. "Why should I help someone who doesn''t help me? Seems unfair doesn''t it?" "I''ll pay any amount!! Name your price!!" Oi she sounds desperate "fine 500 gold then" Reluctantly "...fine, deal IF you can get me to the capital and ONLY if that" "Alright then we got ourselves a deal" "So do you have a plan to get out of here?" "Nope not a clue, I''m waiting a couple more hours to let the sunlight flow through" at least I still have the chain *CLUNK* a soldier walks in dragging a little bald boy and puts him in a cell next to ours. That''s strange...he has a blindfold around his face. He looks about less than 5, but can''t tell he''s covered in so much dirt. "Boss, what do we do with the kid?" I look to see the guard with the strange arm device that got me here in the first place. As I take a look closer a fat person replies "He''s a waste of space and he''s blind to do anything *bites bacon* just dispose of the kid by tomorrow morning *bites* it''s an eyesore." *shouts below the floor* ¡°HAHAAHAA *bites* looks like I need to attend to my guests. I shall take my leave" "Yes sir" the guard goes to another cell and brings a couple more kids to the auction. Damn I didn''t get a good look at the arm. Anyways nows not the time for that, I look back at the boy. He is crouching holding onto his legs. "Hey kid you alright?" He nods and looks up. That was the first time I felt sympathy-Rosetta was sobbing watching the scene in front of her-...I can''t believe he was blind. "Hey kid...I''ll help you get back to your parents." He shakes his head no. "Why not?" "They''re...up there" he points up into the sky. "WAHHHH" Rosetta starts crying as if there was no tomorrow. To be honest I was also on the verge of crying. I grab the bars separating us and the kid. I raised my hand through the bar "hey kid...we''ll take you to our home and we''ll support you. And I said I will support you not help you and if you desire to live then grab my hand" "And mine too" she gives her hand through the bars. Following our voice the kid slowly walks to us moving his tiny hands in search for our hand. As he finally touches a hand Rosetta immediately pulls him into her arms and starts crying. Luckily the kid was able to fit the cells that originally held us, unfortunately not the exit. Owe to ahead and leave them alone. I NEED to find a way out for us. DAMN IT think rave -think-think. So the guard with the arm device has the keys. Once he opens our cell I will punch him I the temple with my chain, but then what. We can''t go down-that''s where all the auctioneers and the boss are. So the only way to go it the roof. I look back at Rosetta and the kid...looks like I have to jump roofs with them. Ok that''s the plan and hopes everything goes smoothly. I tell everyone else the plan. "ARE YOU CRAZY WE''LL DIE IF WE DO THAT" she hugs the kid closer. "Listen we don''t got a choice, in about half an hour the guard will come and we must take the opportunity. Won''t you trust me?" After much thought "...fine, I will trust you this once" "Ok both of you get in the corner and I''ll be behind the wall" Hmph "another day another set of work" *clunk* "ALRIGHT where are the two of y..." Before he finished I knocked him out with the chains. "Alright let''s go both you get to the roof I''ll be there in a minute" as they go, I grab the arm device off the guard. Now that I have it, on closer inspection it seems to be a sling shot mounted on an arm bracelet. "I''ll bring it anyways." As I run up the stairs I notice rope and grabbed it. "I might be able to use this device" as I get to the roof I put the slingshot to action. I attach one end of the rope and attach it to a nearby knife. "Rosetta go ahead and grab a couple of cloth" "Why?" "Just do it I''ll explain later" "Alright here it goes I release the trigger" the knife hits the roof two buildings down. I quickly attach the other rope to a nearby pole. "Rosetta Hurry!!!" "I''m coming!!!" She hands me the clothe "so what are we doing?" "We''re going to hang and slide down the rope" I put the clothe over the rope. "Here grab it and don''t let go" "Are you sure this is safe?!?!?" I push her. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhh~~~" I Pick up the kid and told him to grab onto me. "Alright my turn now" I grab the clothe and I started gliding. Hehe oh man the scene was fantastic. We could feel the wind envelope us. Man I wish we could''ve be like this forever..."hey you smiled" The kid blushes. Anyways once we got down... "BLLEEGGHHH" "Oi Rosetta you just ruined the scene" anyways while we were gliding down I decided to exit the southern city walls and walk all the way around back to the capital. This should avoid running in with any of the henchmen and any other kidnappers. "C''mon Rosetta the day is still young- kid is already ready to move ou-" Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Pulling on my shirt "my name is Airi..." "My bad Airi, grab my hand and let''s go" All three of us were able to reach the city exit by going through alley ways. Luckily we didn''t run into anything serious so I was glad. Rosetta on the other has had a lot of mental stress just from traveling. I''m not surprised that she never saw poverty first hand, slavery, prostitution, murder, orphans running about, etc.. I admit it was terrible but not far from the norm for me. One thing I WAS grateful for was Airi''s blindness after all this isn¡¯t a perfect world. It was almost night..."hey Rosetta, can you grab some dead branches while watching Airi? I''m going to go fishing for food" "Okay~" we both split up. "Ahhhahhaha MAN the feeling of the gentle breeze, the gentle flow of the river-I was able to grab a few fish on line and just as I was going to put back the line.., "AHHHHHHHHHH" Shit I instinctively run for it, it didn''t take long to get there but... "GRRRRRRRR RAAAAAGCHHH" A ''Panther'' stares down at Rosetta hugging Airi close. *whistle*"HEY BIG CAT OVA HERE" I grab the biggest stone and get ready to act. The ''Panther'' lounges at me with great speed ready to take a bite-this was the opportunity, I grab the stone and I shove it down the throat of the ''Panther''. "AHHHHH" my side it BURNS. "RAKKKKAAKAKAAAA" it was gasping for air. I silently crawl back to the Panther and close the rest of its wind pipe. It took a while but it was a silent death. "Hey you two alright..." I tap onto Rosetta shoulders to snap her back to reality. "UGGHHHUH" Rosetta pounces at me and cries in my chest. I try to comfort her but I''m not that sentimental so "Rosetta chin up" "But your woun-" "Don''t worry about, wounds heal-I¡¯ll be fine okay" "NO WE HAVE TO TREAT IT IMMEDIATLEY, I KNOW!!! WE..." "Rosetta..." "CAN GO BACK TO..." "Rosetta" "THE CITY, IM SURE THERE...." "ROSETTA!!!" I slap her across the face. "Look at Airi, you absolutely can NOT go back to somewhere so dangerous, Airi is counting on you" "But..." "NO BUTS we can only look at the future, like I said wounds heal so don''t worry about me so grab the wood and we will eat fish tonight, alright? I''ll be fine till tomorrow." I leave Rosetta and Airi crying and I go back to the fishing spot and grabbed all the fish back to camp. We all ate in silence. I never seen Rosetta so depressed-although my first impressions was absolutely still present I sat next to her and hugged her gently and patted her back. "WAAAAAGGHHHHH" an outburst of emotion fell out. I let her cry spilling out her anger on the world onto my chest. To be forced out of life of comfort only to see the cruel reality must took a toll. Airi on the other hand falls asleep on my lap holding my right hand. I try to pry my hand out but to no avail. Eventually Rosetta fell asleep with all her crying. In fact I was surprised she didn''t pass out earlier, man she is stubborn in everyday...At some point I passed out without knowing... "Ughhh" damn you morning sun...always ruining my sleep. I see that Rosetta is drooling all over my stomach...probably dreaming about food. Airi on the other hand..."hey kid you alright? You must''ve woke up early" His face was so close it seems like he was smelling me. He smelled everywhere from top to bottom. I have never felt so molested than today. "Hey Rosetta get up...we got a long walk ahead of us" "Mhmm ughh hehe good piggy hehe" "ROSETTA!" "AHHHH WHERE AM I WHO ARE YOU?" *BUNK* "WHY DID YOU PUNCH ME?!?!" "Hmph your fault or waking me!" "Well if I didn''t how else would you get home" whatever "anyways that''s not the main issue... Its morning we need to move out" "But-but I just wok-" "No buts let''s go and remember the deal Rosetta-500 gold" "I remember I remember jeez I can see you aren''t a morning person" "Just grab Airi and let''s go- from what I remember we need to cross a river in order to get to the west entrance to the city" "How do you suppose we do that?" "I don''t know...I''ll guess we will ''cross that bridge when we get there''(this is a saying)" During our travels we came across many panthers, even though they are dangerous, once you learn their patterns they''re easy to deal with. After a long walk we finally manage to reach the river...now what. "So uh ''R'' what do we do?" "There are a few hollow bamboo sticks so might tie them together to make a raft; but we can only ride it on a calm day so we could potentially be here up to a month, so we might have to camp here" "A MONTH I CAN''T DO THAT" "Well can you swim?" With that she went mute. The next couple days were quite treacherous. We first had to build a little tent while I had to make a raft since Rosetta was clueless in using materials she has at hand. As for food we had to fish, it was plentiful don''t get me wrong, but many ''Wild Bicorn Bobcats'' were able to sniff outrun fish so I also had to defend everyone. At first I was using the ol ''choke-them-with-something-hard-tactic'' but I eventually created a device based on the arm device from the henchman. The henchmen device was basically and unfortunately a small bow with a tube to put your projectiles. I was hoping it was more sophisticated but you know...''beggars can''t be choosers''. I created my own type of weapon based of the henchman¡¯s. Basically I used saliva from cats and when mixed with a bit of blood from any source it starts to expand. I used the tube and when I load a projectile into the tube on top of saliva, I just add some blood and it just flies. Problem was it was really slow to reload and almost impractical due to constant supply of saliva and blood. But by far the best weapon we got. "Hey ''R'' I got a lot of fish tonight" oh yeah I recently taught Rosetta and Airi how to fish. Basically Rosetta holds the fishing like and Airi touches the line and senses any movement. Although they don''t catch as much as me it was still enough to eat and besides, I got my hands full with building the raft and defending the group itself. Any fish leftover we had, I usually toss em back to the river. Rosetta at first reluctantly toss the fish back but I told her it''s a waste if a life to keep it so let it go back and reproduce. The problem with the rich nowadays is that they will have a surplus amount of items and end up throwing it away the next day. This angers me as it could be used for something valuable. I do not like wasting such as the saliva or blood because everything has a purpose, I also pray after I kill anything despite their nature. "DONE" after two weeks I was able to finish it. It was 5x5 meters and could reliably float to the other side. As we took it... "AIRI NO KEEP YOUR HANDS IN" Rosetta grabs onto Airi like a mother. Airi has gotten closer and closer to us, in fact he has been smiling a lot more...as for talking he goes straight to Rosetta. Every morning I always see Airi sleeping and drooling on some part of me like my arm. I swear Airi is able to find my body with the ability to see. It''s quite frightening. "Just a few more meters" all of us was awaiting the time we hit the other side. Rosetta has never felt so over joyed in her life " Oi Rosetta we still got hours of walking distance left, don''t celebrate now" I kind of chuckled because since the first time we met there has been a lot of progress. Anyways as we walk, we each held one of Airi''s arm and we just swung her up and down. I promise you the smile was the best thing I have seen in my entire maligned life. However the thought of what to do with Airi is an unanswerable question. Just as we see the city''s west entrance "Airi how do you feel living with Rosetta..." To tell the truth Rosetta and I had this conversation before. We both agreed that she would take responsibility. I knew I wouldn''t be able to take care of him cause I lived a hard life of poverty and I no longer wish for him to live the life of pain and suffering as he has suffered enough with his blindness. Airi opinion on the matter on the other hand... "NO NO NO" he grabs onto my shirt. To say the least both of us were startled at the reaction. The sun was soon enough about to set "listen Airi" still holding onto my shirt "it¡¯s better that you live with Rosetta, ok? And I am not giving you a choice." "NO!" The sun is coming down..."listen Airi...if you ever find me then I promise to give you a gift-" "NO!!" "And a promise..." Man this kid is stubborn as Rosetta; if he had red hair just like Rosetta I wouldn''t be surprised if they were long lost siblings. "..." I lift my hand ready as if I was shaking hands to confirm a deal. "Want to shake on it?" Reluctantly he took my after many attempts to find it unexpectedly he lift my hand to her nose. As soon as he lets go he runs back to Rosetta. With that I take my leave. "As for the gold Rosetta...leave it with Airi" "Will you ever come back, ''R''?"(Rosetta) "By the way my name is Rave and to answers your question... ~Maybe" <--PREVIOUS CHAPTER: :NEXT CHAPTER--> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author''s Note: Finally this is the last chapter in the ''Reminiscence Arc''- hopefully things would pick up so sit tight my friends xD.(I highly emphasis that you guys list any grammar mistakes and if you guys see a word that better replaces any of the words above feel free- After all i''m desiring to become a better writer. Chapter 4 Pact with the Devil -----end of flashback(read intro if you got confused xD)-------- *CLINK* "finally this safe is open" anyways it''s been a couple years since then. I guess NOW is the time to start judging me.Do you blame me? If you do- It''s alright, I can sense you¡¯re a good person but let me ask you: If a person steals food from the rich and gives it to the poor, is he a criminal? Tough question huh even I don''t know the answer. It is quite the ethical dilemma. Just like you I know what I do is wrong, but in this world survival is key and you are correct I don¡¯t have an excuse. But I will say this: ''Humans by instinct are greedy!'' People can be greedy for power, money, or even superiority, but either way whoever is the last one standing- wins. "What is this thing?" Recently I found many unique items among the gold I stole. I once found a but I instantly sold it. I don''t need these things since they are only resourceful for adventurers. When I first came across adventurer items I was shocked. Because of this I had to study and learn more about the world of adventurers. Here is the information I gathered so far: 1. All adventurers went through school or was taught by someone renowned, obviously school is expensive and finding a teacher is hard since most of them came from a family of wealth thus most are ignorant of younger generation. So basically if you are rich, you get to become an adventurer. The poor like me remain peasants. ~the strong get stronger as they say. 2: There are three main classes: Warrior and mages. 3: Subclasses that split from main. Warriors= bezerker/ tank Mage= cleric/wizard There are a lot more subclasses that are specialized but I didn''t bother reading further cause as far as I know it does not concern me. What I DID read in depth about was items in relation because if I can snag an item adventurers will pay high price due to their wealth. Anyways-continuing on, 1: Some Items can only be worn by adventurers. (By some I mean A LOT). 2: they are divided into ranks: Common Magic Rare Unique As it climbs up the ladder it has more bonuses. For example, normal has 1 bonus (bonus= additional stat type like health, defense, intellect), magic items has 2bonus. And both rare and unique have 3 bonuses. Whats the difference between rare and unique? As I read further on uniques and Rares, Rare''s potentially have more power than Uniques because they have flexible stats meaning two same rings may have different stats. As for Uniques, its stats are fixed but they usually give a passive such as breathing under water or temporary invisibility, thus are sought more by adventurers. Anyways that''s as far as I know. Too bad I''m not an adventurer to equip things. As I was about to leave the mansion, I notice a glimmer emitting from the next room. Looking through a keyhole, I noticed it looks like some kind of diamond pink in color and careful created; it looks quite extravagant. "Hey could the owners really leave something so expensive unguarded" I ready my arm device. Since that prison escape a few years back I made many adjustment to what I now call first I replace the saliva/blood with a spring (back to basics huh) and fixed to where I was able to shoot and it will automatically switch to another barrel with a needle ready to launch. Reloading still unfortunately takes long and it could hold 6 needles cause I could only fit 6 barrels so it¡¯s almost impractical when facing large groups of enemies. Still objectively it was an improvement. Anyways after I ready I set up two escape routes in case it was going to get ugly. Usually guards will come in about 5-10 minutes due to their heavy armor, so I usually escape before anyone sees me. This became a routine to me: find a mansion, plan escape routes, and steal. It was fairly basic but it got the job done so I was content with it. Besides If it ain''t broken don''t fix it as they say. With an open window in the other room and a open route to the back door. I swipe the red gem and as soon as I take I I heard an alarm. Shit. I hear footsteps coming from both exits and entrance. I quickly scurry off to the other room that has the window open. "HALT THIEF" "What in the..." They are usually slow when it comes to criminals but when I noticed they were the king¡¯s private guards. ...this is bad I run to the next room and jump out of the window. "OH SHIT" two arrows fly toward me from below. One went penetrate through my shoulder. As I climbed onto the building next to the mansion I decided to run home skipping my usual routine of studying at the library. "This is bad..." I take out the red diamond. "Isn¡¯t it just a regular gem?." In due time I was able to reach the city walls and eventually found the river. It looks like I need to lay low for a while. "Agghhh" it seems I need to wait for my shoulder to close up the wound. When staring down my wound, I noticed a flow of blood rushing out. I quickly wrap it in a temporary bandage till I can find a proper way to fix it. Up the river I follow back to my home. Usually every day I help out my mother at the schoolyard and keep a steady food supply and at night I would go to the capital and pick pocket. I suffered much on this track but I earned even more. I also seem to have gain a reputation as the ''Demon Eyed Vigilante'' since they could only see my eyes thanks to my mouth mask. I still wore the mask but only at the capital to rob. Luckily in about 4 months I was able to pay off my mother debt to her tax collectors (without her knowing) ; however, we are far from rich. Right now my current goal is to raise this old town to a thriving city one day---or at least a livable one. "Hey Jack" I walked into the back of bar. "How''s it going Ravey boy? I haven''t seen ya around here in ages ahahah" we both shook hands as if we were longtime friends. "Nothing much, I''m still hitting the books." "AHAHA THATS MY BOY so you hit 14 yet Ravey boy?" he hands me a cup of water. He smiles but his old age also begins to show. His wrinkles near his eyes and on his forehead. "Oi I hope you run that name out soon enough, Jack" refuting the nickname "So Rav---" "HEEEEIRER JACK ''VER HERE ANOTHER BEER" the drunkard waves his bottle back and forth in a chant. "Sorry Ravey, that''s my cue but feel free to turn the VTD on to whateva" he pats me on the back. "HEY DRUNKARD OFF THE TABLE YOU!!!" He dashes to the drunkard. ...well anyways- "let''s see what''s on" I flipped through all the channels "reports", "arena match", blah-blah, blah... Man there is nothing on....might as well turn to the news report" "...been 3 months since Duke Sytesque has begun the operation to shutdown illegal auctions all over the city. From rumors spreading around, apparently someone close to him has been kidna-" Well I see Rosetta is doing well. Recently I have found a new way to fish using my by shooting it so it freed up a lot of my time. I learned how to knit-sad I know; I can''t believe it came to this, I also learned to cook, and do many household chores....man I am losing my dignity as a man. I really wish my body can close the wound quicker. Unlike my other wounds, this one was EXCRUCIATING quite slow. Well even though it hinders me I won''t let it stop me. I started playing guitar (usually only poor people play instruments since that''s the only way they can make money) but it relieves the stress of poverty-and reading at the library in the capital learning how the world works. (I usually leave my mask at home to avoid suspicion) "What in the...." *shudder* is the ground shaking. Or is it just me? No, everybody in the bar is also looking down. The ground below us shakes. ¡°IS THERE AN EARTHQUAKE?¡±The drunkard dives under the table ¡°That idiot¡­¡± I decide to go outside to see what all the commotion is about. From afar I see a wagon...a rather large one at that. Wait¡­I noticed more than one metal wagon. Everybody was outside; some were inside because they were scared..honestly I can''t blame them. ¡°I need to get a closer look¡± I climb the trees on the side of the road to get a bird¡¯s eye view of the situation. Suddenly from the crowd a red haired women walks onto the road. "Who is this crazy..." Upon further realization-"MOTHER!" She was standing in the middle of the road attempting to signal the wagon to stop. WHAT IS SHE DOING?!?! However only after a few seconds later the wagon stops moving. All the villagers were scared to approach because of the sheer monstrosity of this vehicle. *BUNK* one of the doors plop open. Out of it came a business like man with an over maintenance mustache...I must say, I¡¯m jealous. Wait he looks familier¡­ "REBECCA?!?!?" "DERECKO?!?!?" As soon as their realization hit .The both run to each other arms. It was a wonderful moment. Am I watching a romance unfolding here or what? Everyone on the other hand was still startled of the abundant amount of armored knights. Well no reason for me to hide now. I calmly walk up to the joyous couple "YO hey Derecko, we missed you." "Hey Rave, how you holding up so far?" he smiles back at me. "Eh swell, so...you wanna kindly offer us the situation going on? I think it will surely help the people around here." I see everyone peeking in windows, hiding behind barrels, and staring at the many wagons on the road. "Oh right my bad." he turns his back to his caravan."OK BOYS START THE PLAN."with an order-like command, 10-20 men start hauling crates of..what seems to be food. At first people were scared of the large group of men but as the men do this everyone started to get closer as they realize there was no immediate danger. "Mother?" My mom was gushing out tears. As I take a closer look at her reaction and honestly I have never seen her smile with such a beautiful trance in my entire life. "Thank you Derecko, I am forever in your debt." She gracefully bows her head. She worked head to toe that everyone in the village gets fed and receives some form of education. Having this burder finally lifted from her shoulder she looks like she will cry in joy everyday. "Rebecca...please raise your head. This is for paying you back. When I first arrived here, you and Rave were the first to show me compassion to me when nobody would even come near me. You weren''t even bothered by my foreign atmosphere. And soon enough everyone else started supporting me. So this is my thanks to you and everyone else in this village. So I should be the one thanking you because without you ...I''m not sure I would''ve been alive hehe. So please raise your head. In fact, I have an important question to ask." He gets down on his knees and pulls out a small box. Aww crap I think I''m in a romance novel. So let''s skip the mushy ushy and I''ll summarize what''s going on. -Mother supported and helped Derecko when no one else did. -Derecko fell in love. -in order to pay her back he wanted to do something huge and will try anything to woo her. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.-now that he is back, he proposed to my mother. -mother=currently fainted at her house. *half a day later* all the villagers were given food, clothes, medicine, any necessities of keeping this city functional for the next year. I was also helping out distributing all the crates along with all the soldiers. Mother is still currently passed out and is supported by what is ,...and apparently my new father...honestly I don''t know how I feel, but if my mother is happy then I will welcome himwith open arms. "HEY RAVE OVER HERE" Jack yelled from the back of his bar. I dart over to the yelling bartender ¡°any problems, Jack?" "Nah it¡¯s just a slight mistake, it''s this crate" he points at the crate marked with a red plus sign. "Those are medical supplies, could you carry them over to your mother¡¯s house, I''m a bit busy organizing the current supplies I have at hand." He gestures towards the 20-50 crates behind him. "Eh no problem Jack, have fun. Let me know when you need assistance" "Yeah...sure" Jack looks back at the 20 crates behind awaiting to be put away. "...huh...this gonna be a loooong day" I quickly run to my house. After putting the crate on our yard, I slowly walked inside in case mother is still out. I see Derecko sitting on the edge of the bed where my mom was resting.. Once he noticed me, hey signaled to come over to him. "Shhh....you know Rave, I gotta admit your mother''s beauty shines even greater when she''s asleep." "I''m sure she will be glad what you said...and that you watched her sleep."....we both chuckled a bit. "Yeah, don¡¯t tell her. Anyways¡­You know Rave; I hope this isn''t awkward for you as your soon-to-be father, but..." Derecko looks down in awkwardness "It''s alright Derecko, I don¡¯t find it TOO awkward but I will say I am glad, All my life I have always endeavored to make her smile just once because even since I was born she was dealt problem after problem so im glad you are here. So there is no other man but you that''s fits the bill.¡± I look back at my mother¡¯s somber face. To be honest I was reluctant to accept Derecko...however my yearn for my mother to negate the damage from this world was greater, I was even willing to sacrifice my life for her to smile. ¡°UGH¡± Out of the blue I find myself in the arms of Derecko "Oi old man don''t get emotional now, my mother needs you. After all it would be troublesome if you pass out crying here" I pat the old man¡¯s back. "Hey Rave, what is your current education?" " I finished the basics and I think so I¡¯m probably done for now, in fact" currently children are taught basic math and English skills up to the age of 15. To go to these schools require money so most aren''t educated in this kingdom. I on the other hand was lucky cause my mother was a teacher, so I learned quite a lot. Usually after the basic education children are sent to specialized schools ranging from politics related academy to the more popular choice, ''adventure schools''. Again nothing is ever free in this world so I doubt I could ever get in one. "Have you ever thought about the future? Like have you ever desired to become something like a merchant, teacher, guardsmen or infantry for the king?." "I often don''t think about my future even if at all...we are so much in poverty we don''t have the luxury to even think about it" Hmm I start thinking about what I will do... "If you want. I would like to give you an education...¡± he pauses into silence ¡°but¡­ we must move to the mansion at the capital...away from this home. I hope you don''t mind, I really want us to live together" his eyes focus on me like a snake for any signs of movement Errr I honestly don¡¯t know...education...home...I look out the window. Can I really exist in the land of the wealthy? "I find it funny, when you first came here you looked like some lowly foreign tribesmen and we were helping you....now you came back with a sudden proposition. People at the capital are quite scary." Man the rich has much versatile of getting what they want. "Relax, remember when I said I had family? Well they had a teleportation orbs so I could connect this place to my company. I even went as far as to make a portal. It was quite the hassle I might add." He rubs his forehead achingly as if it was the most stressful moment of his life. . "Anyways...will you accept¡­to live in the capital?" I stare at his hand that was ready to finalize the deal. Man I will sorely miss this place. But this place won¡¯t get better if I continue this daily chore of hunting and sleeping. Just thinking about it gives me headaches. Reluctantly "I guess I will"....I shook his hand. A few months later... "Well we arrived" Derecko and My mother exit the horse drawn wagon. Just as I walked out I noticed the mansion...I don''t like it of course I would never say it out loud. We were a couple kilometer away from the woods...I can''t stand being so far away from it. My mother on the other hand.."It¡¯s so big...do you think we can fit more than one class?".....Derecko and I chuckled a bit. Even with this much change mother will always find a way to support others... "Well this is our home" Derecko proceeded with the introduction. We started walking around "that''s the kitchen"...."bedroom"...."office". I''d say...there is way too many rooms for one building. There was so much to take I decided to go into the backyard...for some fresh air. CMON THE HOUSE WAS A MAZE TO START WITH, NOW WE HAVE A REAL MAZE IN THE BACKYARD!!! I can''t believe this. Derecko, you are one crazy bastard, as I was about to head inside¡­ "AHHHHHHHH" a scream scratching the air came from inside the maze. Instinctively I run inside the maze. From what I could listen it seems the person in danger is running. I kept running for the sound but at every turn there is a dead end. Damn it, next time I''m going to bring a knife and cut some holes open. "AHHHHHHH SOMEBODY HELP" a cry for help had hits of fear. Thankfully I mapped the maze as I go. I also figured out a choke point to where most people would eventually be. "Alright let''s do this" I run towards the choke point and soon enough I see a girl being chased by a . I picked up a rock and with enough strength let it go to let it fly at the in hopes of taunting it and sure enough it works. "C''mon piece of pork, let''s battle" the charges at me recklessly. Pulling out my I began shooting the needles, yet to no avail. ¡°Damn it why is this hog so hard to defeat?¡± I find it abnormal because these needles were made with the sharpest point thus could pierce through anything. I dodge the and it ran passed me I spin around and immediately see the already charging me. With the open chance I slide below the hog. Grabbed the horns and sure enough the flipped over its head. During this with no other weapon I tried to choke it till it couldn''t breathe, but the would not let it happen so it began to turn and attempt to rock me off....finally after a minute the sign of life from the hog began to dwindle. "Well that should do it" I lift the hog over my shoulder and walked back. "I wonder if the girl ran home safely?" Well no use tr..."aggh" someone push my from behind. It was a girl wearing a maids outfit. "Don''t leave me!" She grabs onto me like she is grabbing on to dear life. "Hey can you-" "NO!" "But uhh I need to-" This is bad, this hog is heavy and along with that the girl isn¡¯t even bothering trying to walk. "NO!" I see that negotiating won''t be possible. I lead us through the maze and thanks to my memory now know this place inside and out. Once we exited the hedge maze... "Hey open your eyes, your safe" the blonde haired girl opens her eyes. Once she did she ran into the house in lightning speed. "Well that was quick," Not wanting to go back inside my new home I decided to cook the in the backyard. I set a fire and grabbed a few berries from around. Setting the hog over the fire I began thinking. Looking onto my it was only used for knocking out opponents from afar so it was utterly useless during the fight. Well I didn¡¯t receive a scratch so no use troubling myself, but I couldn¡¯t help myself but wonder. ¡°If I¡¯m up close what will I do?¡± , will become useless at that time and I don¡¯t carry anything else.. I ponder while looking at my arm device. Maybe I should add a blade. Looking at the hog to see if it was ready, I remember that the skin hanging on the ground. Walking up to it I wonder"How did this deflect my needles" hmmm. Then I decided on something. TODAY: I will recreate my arm device using the hog skin after all it seems to be REALLY sturdy, keep the ''shooting mechanism¡¯, and add a blade in case my opposers gets close. While the hog is being cooked I brought a knife from the kitchen and started making improvement onto my older weapon. The hog skin...is quite impenetrable. As for the blade, I might need to go to a black smith to make my own. As for the needle shooter I kept the original and mount it on the skin. I was able to mend it together with some of its skin by sewing it onto it. I look back at the hog, I can see the fire is doing well on it, quite well. "I CANT WAIT to try it" I could barely hold in my drool. I grab the berries and mashed it up into a sauce. I slice a piece of meat off of the . I gently bring the pork slowly onto the sauce. I smother it all over making sure every private part is exposed and covered with the sweet aroma of the berry sauce. I look at the dripping meat as if it was ready to be devoured in its wholesome. The meat struggles to slip free but I slowly grip the tip of it and make sure it will not slip my hand. As I bring it to my mouth, I remind myself to savor every moment. With that the tender disappears into the abyss of my stomach. ¡°BLEECH WHAT IS THIS FOUL TASTE!!!¡± Despite its look, It tasted like a piece of wood that took a deep dive into a dragons excrement. ¡°KUHUE, KUHUE¡± I can¡¯t handle it. I hold my mouth as if trying to hold back my stomach content that is slowly climbing up by esophagus. However something feels off, I can feel excruciating pain, emanating from my body I can feel that my body all over began to attack my brain with torture. ¡±Whats¡­going on¡±I question in agony. I look down and noticed a pool of blood. ¡°OH NO RAVE!!!¡± I couldn¡¯t tell who it was, but soon enough everything went pitch black as I fall into the depths of my unconsciousness.
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Chapter 5 Social Contract -----------------------------------Skip this box if you are not interested in his dream---------------- Uhhh...i can''t move...I can''t open my eyes... I don''t feel-anything. All I see is blackness-a void. ".........hello....." A subtle voice originated from behind me. I turn around to see a white light. Suddenly my body shifts towards the light. ''What am I doing?'' ''AHHHH'' a bright light covers the black void.... "Uhh where am I?" I open my eyes. "Ugghh" I move my hand to run my eyes. Wait... I CAN MOVE. I quickly got up. "Thank god" I check to see any wounds on my body, I have everything. Then I look around me....this is weird. Why am I in the middle of a field? All I see was grassland stretching from all directions. "Where...am I?" There was nothing. "Hmm hmmmmmhmm. Mmmmhmmm" a enchanting tone appears. In response I quickly turn around hoping I found someone to answer my questions. What I saw was beautiful. A slender female dressed in a sun dress that touches the ground, she was dancing while humming with the most elegant voice I have ever heard. Even though I wanted to continue listening but...."excuse me miss, can you tell me where we are?" She turn her body towards me and have me the most wonderful smile that will infatuate in mere seconds. "Why hello, I missed you my little bird" Huh? What is she talking about? "Uhm I''m not a bird." Is she crazy? "Your my little bird, now I must go" she dances away. "HEY WAIT!!" I run towards her to grab her but suddenly I was sent further and further away back into the void. Then...I stopped moving... ----------------------------------------------end of dream-------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE HIM AS MY BROTHER. I ABSOLUTELY REFUSE. HE IS A IDIOT FOR EATING A DEMON. I WILL NOT HAVE ANY RELATION NOR WILL I ACKNOWLEDGE HIM HE WILL TAINT MY REPUTATION" a girl that yells in authoritative anger. "HMPH" a set of stomping sounds soon followed. I hear something...I have yet gained my eyesight. I want to get up but my body isn''t obeying. After about 30 minutes I regained control back over my body. At least most of it. "Man my head hurts..." I rub my eyes to get some debris out of the way. I pushed myself into a seating position. "So its night time huh" "Just hand him the tray at least. I won''t push you enough to talk to him, Eris¡± What sounded like Derecko replied. "Fine but I will NOT speak to him. Just looking at him lowers my Intelligence BY THE SECOND" Bursting through a door a girl in soft red hair swifts win and bluntly places the tray onto the desk. I see an eye of disgust in her eyes. She hastily runs out the room. "He looks dirty and inhuman" "DONT SAY THAT" "HMPH" Suddenly A person I recognize, Derecko takes a seat in front of me. "I''m sorry you had to see that...my daughter doesn''t like my sudden¡­ family choices as you would say, I hope you forgive my daughters disrespect" "It''s fine, I understand, I would feel the same way if someone barges into our family as a foreigner" I stare at Derecko directly in the eyes. "Hey Rave I wouldn''t say ''barge in'' I would say I swooned your mother like a eagle." We both laughed. " well I should let you rest...and try not to eat demons again" "My bad I couldn''t tell the difference" I sincerely apologize "It''s fine, since your alive. I don''t want to cause your mother any complications. I think your mother is still teaching at a school so she doesn''t know yet, but she will be here in a couple of hours" "Thanks Derecko" he seems disappointed and he then puts a small smile on his face. "Well I should go and continue my work." And he walks out. "And DONT leave" Man he knows me too well. My legs are still paralyzed. Too pass the time I picked up my guitar and played a few stokes. ¡°let the wind guide me Blow away the pain I carry To the forest I live To then my worries leave I¡¯m dreaming of the outside I¡¯m dreaming of the outside ...,., (I had a catchy tune, but I doubt I can simulate that soo uhhh enjoy the poem with some guitar music) I stop there. I look around the room then the realization hit me "oh yeah, I''m going to school". I completely forgot looking at the books on the shelf. I crawl to the shelf and grabbed a few books off the shelf. "Basics of Magic", "Sword techniques", and "Types of magic". ¡°Books for beginners huh¡± Well beggars can¡¯t be choosers. ''Magic is the force that moves this world; it''s what causes us to move. Keeps use alive and well. Source of magic mainly comes from nature which originally came from the sun'' (Author: Magic= manipulated energy)''By focusing you are capable of using the magic in you and transfer it upon the outer world'' I look at my guitar "ok let''s do this" I focus on using my magic to push the string. After a little while, *strumm* after my third try I did it. "Man that was...a lot of *yawn* energy" from there I passed out.I remind myself, I have school... "Uuggghh, no not again" I see the sunlight coming through the window "curse you." Man I still haven''t gotten used to the morning sun. I pull myself using the shelf. I hate the morning sun but FINALLY, my leg at least recovered last night. "Raveyy, are you awake?" "Yes mother I''m up" grateful that I finally get to see my mom. She walks in observing my body "are you alright? Nothing bleeding out? Maybe a bruise, cut, wou-" "MOM I''m fine jeez. No need to freak out. I promise" I assured her. "*sigh* if you insist, anyways I believe today is your big day" she gives me a warm smile. "Yep today is the day schools are accepting applications for students" replied proudly "Good and remember everything I taught, oh look at the time- I must go teach the next generation" she exclaims proudly and scurries off. Few minutes later I rushed to the guild center where applications are behind held. As I walk to the front desk- "Please fill the paper and sign below and bestow 50 gold if you wish to attend this year" I quickly fill it up and sign everything and hand the stressed lady the gold. "Please go to the next room to take your physical and magical exam." The lady says in a rude manner When I walked inside I was immediately place into a chair. From a far a doctor comes to me in a exhausted pace. I feel sorry for him¡­ "Lift your arm and hold still" he grabs a needle and took a sample of blood. After finishing the procedure, he left and came back soon after. Without a glance he tosses a card and writes a few things in his pad. As I grab it, it becomes absorbed to my skin. "Huh?" I was wondering where the card was. Doctor noticed my confusion he rolls his eyes and says "Listen kid, focus your hand an your card will appear, it will tell you your strength and magic capability in terms of ranks. Ranks range from 1 to 10, 10 being the strongest, got it? Go back to the receptionist to choose your classes" He left angrily to attend another student and to do the same procedure. Following doctors¡¯ orders I go back to the receptionist, "Excuse me which building is for beginners?" "This is your first year, correct? you must register into the school and choose your sub classes-and remember each class has a rank requirement" she hands me a list of all classes and hands me a feather pen. Scrolling through I decided on a few. "I''d like to choose Human Anatomy(R.1), Origin of Magic(R.1 MQ), Sword techniques(R.2 Strength), and Body Flow(R.3)" "Alright here''s your schedule."
CLASSES
Origin Theory of MagicRank 1 Magic Q.
Human AnatomyAny Rank
Sword TechniquesRank 2 Strength
Body FlowRank 3 Strength
[center] My Card: Spoiler :
[quart=Character name,Age]Rave,15[/quart][quart=Strength Rank,Class]1,Undecided[/quart]
Identity Card
¡°Well, I should go.¡± My first class is...Magic Origin. After a few minutes I manage to find it in a dark corridor. "Your late, take a seat in the front" a Middle Ages women points to the front. "Yes Ms.Theades" I quickly followed. And so my horrid day begins mostly because it was a waste of time. Usually on the first day you get introduced to all your teachers. So we didn''t get to learn much, after lunch I went to the library to study a bit more. "Magic Derivatives...Magic Transfer...History of mages and warriors" I quickly just grab ''Magic Transfer'' mostly because of the colorful cover. The method Magic Transfer requires the user to move magic power into an object. Due to the magic it will start to heat up, if you take away magic power it will turn to ice. I grabbed a pencil and started putting magic into it "WOAH" a fire breaks up. I then started to take away magic. The pencil freezes instantly. "This is awesome..." Then I thought of something..."is air an object?" I started manipulating magic around my arm. Focus....focus....I learn in Body Flow to relax, so I started putting magic in the air that surrounds my arm. "Did it work?" I open my eyes. I quickly got up, because around my arm were rings of fire around my arm. In my other arm I decided to do the same thing, this time icicles formed around. I made sure it was icicles because a ring of ice would be practically useless. I looked at my gauntlet , man it depressed me knowing this type of magic made my obsolete. Suddenly I hear scurrying across the library. In an attempt to find out who it was I started chasing. "WHO ARE YOU?!?!" DAMN IT that person is too fast. Eventually she led me to the entrance of the library, damn she escaped...I hope this won''t put a damper in things. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. This routine between classes and reading in the library got me to learn a lot of things. I also travel to the Coliseum where students settle bets by dueling. I noticed people with flame throwers and big ball of ice mostly. I envy their MQ. Even though I manage to use magic it was terribly weak compared to others. Man I feel weak; at least I have average strength. "MAN classes are getting tough" a kid naturally sleeps on the bench. "How are you doing so far, mate?" "I guess I''m doing all right, I''m not doing so hot in my magic studies." I turn around in response to notice a kid carrying a lasso. "Really? What''s your school rank so far?" "4950/5000" I regret telling since mine is REALLY bad compared to most people" "OI that''s so low even I''m 3215/5000 rank and its bad, by the way aren''t you in my ''Body Flow'' class? Why do you have magic classes if you are in a warrior class? It¡¯s a waste of time to take both if you are only gonna end up being one anyways." He sits next to me on the same row. "Well you could say I am interested in Magic in general, but I am hoping to raise my MQ." I talk a bit lower knowing I revealed how weak I am to someone. Noticing this ¡°dude don''t worry about it so much. Everybody is weak from the start¡­.your name iiiiis..." He ponders "Rave Sholto Silvester" I quickly replied "Do you mind if I just call you Raven? You remind me of those because you are silent, especially in class" he nudges me and chuckles bit "Hehe yeah I am a bit quiet, but that''s just because I''m trying to focus on my studies" "Well since we have the same class you. An always ask me. I''m pretty good at the nature of the body. And by the my name is Harrison Forge and I hope we get along, anyways I got to get to class" "Likewise" I pick up my belongings and went to Ms Theades class again. This time we were learning about how we are able to manipulate magic in the first place. To be honest this was the only class I was able to learn anything magic related. Otherwise my other teachers involved in strength and body is taught by coaches, just thinking about it made my arms drop. Man I am glad Ms. Theades teaches Human Anatomy and Magic Origin so I don''t have to move much around the school. I noticed Eris Sytes talking to what is possible her friends. She stares at me and looks away in ignorance. Man she definitely hates my guts, but I can see why. I quickly walk to class. ¡°Today class I will teach you where and how magic leaves and enters our body-¡± she writes all the information on the board and in the other hand she holds a book open. ¡°Teacher we don¡¯t care, just teach us your ability alreadyyyyy¡± A student in the back is begging. In response the whole class replied the same way ¡°Yeah teacher, just teach us your ability we don¡¯t care about the basics, we already know. Just teach us the ability that will make us invincible¡± I just stay silent and write down everything word for word on the board. Knowing the spoiled rich kids, they just want to learn the teachers ability rather than actually tending to their studies. ¡°You brats¡­.I will NOT teach that ability, It is DANGEROUS so I will not teach any of you.¡± However in response the kids still will not budge from their statement of learning her ability. She storms out of the room furiously. All the students moan in despair ¡°I¡¯m gonna change class if she won¡¯t teach us that ablity¡± ¡°yeah I agree I heard it¡¯s so dangerous it killed a dragon, but if she won¡¯t teach us I don¡¯t see a reason staying here¡± ¡°Well it looks like it¡¯s not happening soon so what classes you guys signing up next time¡± with that all the students left. I was still writing everything on the board, trying to get everything down in my notebook. Huh so there our blood flow moves magic from one place to another. I grab the book she was originally holding and started reading it. ¡°Blood flow¡­pressure points?¡± I started reading further ¡°So pressure points are parts of the bodies where if constrained can be lethal as it blocks the flow of the magic. There are pressure points on the wrist and back of the neck. If constricted could lead to unconscious of the person¡±. MAAAN I stretched my body in every single possible bend¡­.I should get back to the receptionist and register for a dorm. ¡°Uhhh miss¡­¡± ¡°Room 123, 3rd floor¡± replied instantaneously ¡°Ok¡­¡± She is a bit rude although I can see why due to all the new students. I find my room and walked inside¡­.¡±Harrison?¡± ¡°HEY RAVEN, HOWS IT GOING? I sure didn¡¯t expect you to be my roommate.¡± He makes a sincere smile. ¡°Same here , this is quite the coincidence.¡± Man at least I have a friendly roommate. I¡¯m quite glad. ¡°Anyways I noticed you got a guitar, you should play a tune for me. Like definitely should, like positively, like now¡± He stares at me with eyes of a beggar. ¡°¡­Fine, I will play a few¡± I was reluctant but I picked up my guitar and play a few tunes. After a while of me playing- ¡°That¡¯s a relaxing tune¡± he lazily says A long silence continue while I play. ¡°Tell me Raven, do you have dream or something?¡± ¡°No I don¡¯t think I have the freedom of such things, but if I do..... It would be great to see my old hometown become a prosperous city.¡± ¡°That¡¯s quite a noble,,,*yawn*¡­dream ¡° Soon enough he closes his eyes and sleeps on the floor. I continue to play a few strums... ¡°I walk in the morning light Just to make my mind-seem clear I¡¯m dreaming of the outside Down the ground and up the sky Dreaming of the outside¡­¡± I look outside, ¡°I should get working.¡± From my guitar, I bring out the . I have yet found a use for this and no merchant was willing to buy it and probably is the item that I ever had in my life. I carefully put it back in my guitar as it serves no uses to my current knowledge. I grab my mask from inside the guitar, my , and jumped out of the window. ¡°So where should I go¡­¡± As of now most of the greedy nobles added a few guards ever since my presence was known, so there¡¯s a bit more risk involved. Maybe today I should visit the central bank. ¡°Let¡¯s do it¡­¡± After a couple of minutes I managed to find the back exit of the bank¡­underground. I guess it makes sense in a way. ¡°Man it smells¡± I quickly put my mask on my nose in hopes of dispelling the scent. ¡°Get in-take-get out-get in-take-get out¡±. Alright after I find the entrance to the bank I slowly open a slit of it to find it really dark. I spot for any object at may look like it contains money, as well as for any people that may be lurking around. After a couple of minutes I noticed a safe behind a portrait. I grab out a few needles from my and started pick pocketing. Hopefully I won¡¯t have to use Derecko¡¯s family money. ¡°One¡­.two¡­.three¡­almost th-¡° *Bonk* ¡­Where¡­am i? ¡°Good evening there ¡®Demon Eyes¡¯, How do you do?¡± A voice of authority is sounded throughout the room. I stay silent, I also realized to magicians off to the side that are continually freezing my legs in place. ¡°Silent are you now? It¡¯s fine. Right now I am quite furious with you because you have caused quite the commotion among the nobles and I, Duke Sytesque, am the leader of the national guards, so not only are you forcing me to sell my guards to protect nobles, but you are also filling my schedule.¡± He stares me in my eyes. ¡­ ¡°Still not speaking huh¡­fine have it your way TAKE OFF HIS MASK!!! Let¡¯s see what is behind this mask of yours¡± With his aggressive authority the two mages on the side start pulling my mask off. ¡­ It took a while but when they finally took my mask off. A wry smile appears on his face ¡°All of you leave me alone with this man.¡± Once his servants leave, he brings a chair and sits right in front of me. ¡°So you are Raven correct? My brothers new addition to his family.¡± I immediately send magic around my arms and fire circles and ice shards appear. ¡°GUARDS¡± he immediately reacts. ¡°KUUH¡± I see spears running through my legs. I still manage to maintain the fire rings and icicles around my arms. ¡°Interesting¡­Alright guards you may leave, I can take it from here.¡± Once all the guards leave he goes back into his seat. ¡°I see you have quite the control of your magic, I have seen many people do similar, but yours is quite high.¡± He stares at me. ¡°still not going to say anything? Fine, I¡¯ll have you know that I am currently sending supplies and money to your old hometown. So if you don¡¯t talk then I may not tend to your home anymore. Do you understand?¡± Reluctantly ¡°Fine¡­¡± ¡°Good I have your attention. Now although you are family, I still need to do my job against those of the condemned. Then again since you are family I will make a deal¡± His voice goes soft. I look up to him and ask ¡°What is the deal?¡± ¡°Hmm you are quite straightforward huh? *Sigh* Alright here is the deal, you work for me and I will fund you and continue funding your town BUT you must follow my EVERY order with no hesitation. Do you agree? If you don¡¯t agree I must send you to prison so¡­¡± He awaits my answer. Without speaking, I dispel my magic but before I shake his hand, ¡°I agree to your deal, but in return my masked identity shall never be disclosed to anyone, especially my mother.¡± ¡°Agreed¡± Both of us shook hands on it. [center]
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Chapter 5.5 Current Facts on Rave Relations: Rebecca Silvester=Mother Derecko Syte=Soon-to-be-stepfather Eris Syte=Step-sister(daughter of Derecko) Harrison Forge=Friend/close classmate/roommate Ms.Theades=Theory of magic/Human Anatomy teacher ¡®Coach¡¯=Sword Technique/Body Flow teacher Duke Sytesque=Bounded by a contract Map of the World(Huge picture 2500x2500) Note: Brushes used is thanks to starraven Spoiler : Aires=Hometown Tera(aka ¡®capital¡¯)=City currently living
I.D. CardRave Sholto Silvester
Magic QuotientRank 1
Strength ValueRank 3
CLASSES
Origin Theory of MagicRank 1 Magic Q.
Human AnatomyAny Rank
Sword TechniquesRank 2 Strength
Body FlowRank 3 Strength
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Skills/Spells
Fire ringsRings of fire are created around the caster¡¯s armRank 1 Magic Spell
IcycleSharp shards of IceRank 1 Magic Spell
Blood FlowControlling one¡¯s own flow of blood to increase body strength and Magic flowRank 3 Strength Skill
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Author''s Note: I will be posting a chapter every 1-2 days since my schedule has cleared a lot so look forward to it :P
By the way Chapter 6 will come out in a few minutes, just need to make sure there aren''t any grammar mistakes Chapter 6 Theory *RING**RING* HUH? "Raven, wake up mate. Class is about to start." Harrison was next to me attempting to shove me out of my chair. Rubbing my eyes, "alright alright my bad...." "Where did you go last night? When I woke up, you were nowhere to be seen." "Yeah I just took a stroll but I fell and broke my leg" it wasn''t all true since I was stabbed, "Well alright, but we got to hurry or Coach will be furious" we both got up and run to the gym. ¡°ALRIGHT YOU LITTLE RUNTS, IT¡¯S TIME TO STRENGTHEN OUR MUSCLES, EVERYBODY 3 LAPS AROUND THE SCHOOL!!!¡± A bald man in a jumpsuit screams from his chair with a cupcake in one hand. "Awwww" all of his students refute. But we all manage to get up and started running. After a a lap of running around the school "Maaaan Raven, carry me!!" He began breathing heavily. "I am NOT your assistant. You have legs don¡¯t you?, just use them." Refuting his request. Man this lazy guy¡­. "Jeez Raven you are so harsh¡­¡± We continue running side by side I noticed a couple of classes outside and out of the corner of my eye I noticed the whole class summoning black balls that turn into fire balls. Some of them didn''t struggle doing it yet most of them were disappointed. "Hey Harrison, what are they doing over there?" "Usually in duels every ability is crucial and every single drop of magic is important. Right now they use magic to create illusions to distract opponent to create an opening, although most of the time it¡¯s easy to see through. ¡± ¡°So what I¡¯m understanding is it is a low cost illusion. Why is it so easy to see through?¡± I look back at Harrison ¡°Hoph-Hoph¡± Looking already worn Harrison carefully replied ¡°Well if you look at that black ball that turned into fire-you can see it¡¯s fake cause usually flames flicker and it¡¯s really hard to miss that and to the caster it¡¯s hard to emulate any real thing-HUumph. So in general it is hard to copy an object using magic. Although it could be done, it will take a long time to to get every detail of an object. Kuhue kuhue Oh no I can¡¯t feel my legs¡± Harrison trips over. ¡°Cmon man just 2 more laps¡± Urging him to get up. I punt his legs ¡°I¡­KOH¡­can¡¯t¡­to¡­much¡­.RUNNING!!!¡± He collapses. Turning his body with curiosity ¡°How are you totally fine Raven? It¡¯s like you do this everyday¡­I envy you¡± ¡°Well I do run every night unlike you, you lazy bum¡± I kick his leg again. ¡°Cmon, we got to finish this. Just use ¡®Blood Flow¡¯ or something.¡± In about a minute he gets up again, ¡°I admit Raven, that skill coach taught us is pretty useful¡± looking surprised. ¡°Although I feel he should learn from his own lessons, he¡¯s getting fatter by the minute. We both chuckled a bit. ¡°Aren¡¯t you always sleeping Harrison? if you actually pay attention in his class you might actually pass your physical test for once.¡± ¡°Hey let¡¯s not mention the little details but¡­Yeah¡­.you got a point¡± says the one who is guilty of sleeping everyday in class. We continue to run for the next couple of hours-by the end of the day¡­ ¡°GOOD JOB RUNTS, WE WILL BE DOING THIS EVERYDAY SO GET USED TO THIS, YOU LITTLE BRATS!!! Mmmmm¡± Coach munches his cupcakes. ¡°Everyday!?!?¡± Everybody replies in regret of signing up for this class. Someone in the crowd yells¡°HEY GUYS LOOK ITS ARIANA THE PRODIGY & ROSETTA SYTESQUE¡±. In response all the guys move their attention on two women in elegant dresses one of which is wearing a Columbina masked engraved in diamonds. They appear to be headed to their magic class. I look back at Harrison to see him blush. ¡°Hey Raven, Do you think someday those women will fall for me¡± Harrison expresses his dream with stars in his eyes. ¡°Sh-sh-Should I talk to them?¡± He shakes in excitement like a dog. ¡°Calm down boy, First of all¡­you are sweating more than a waterfall, I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll appreciate you as is, but if you feel you want to then I can¡¯t stop you¡± I try to stop my friend from embarrassing himself not just because he was sweating but covered in dirt. I take a good look around my classmates to see every one of them are eyes the two ladies. Usually only guys go for the warrior path and women go through the magic courses. This is because females have a higher Magic Quotient than men. This is usually why I am sometimes ridiculed for taking a course in magic. ¡°HEY LOOK THERE COMING THIS WAY!!!¡± A person yells out. Just as he said it every whistled and waved at them hoping to grab their attention. I just stand there while coach utterly fails to regrab the attention of the class. Harrison looks at me- ¡°Dude Raven, Aren¡¯t you excited?¡± he fans himself in hopes of making being more presentable. I stay subtle besides I doubt she remember who I am so I won¡¯t cause any trouble for her. I don¡¯t want to bring her bad memories of that terrible event. Well I see Rosetta is doing fine for herself¡­ I wonder who her friend is. Looking around and smelling my surroundings all the guys were emitting testosterone that was exponentially filling the air. Rosetta¡­I wish you good luck. I see one of my classmates walk up to Rosetta, ¡°Miss. Sytesque, I Gerald the IX would be blessed to have your hand for the next dance?¡± He bows elegantly. ¡°No¡± A blunt answer came out of the mouth of Rosetta. In response, everybody but me got nervous to even come closer as they see Gerald collapse onto the ground. Rosetta and Ariana passed us towards their next class. All the testosterone that filled in the air suddenly seeped into the ground. ¡°Rosetta still seems spoiled¡­¡± I look back at my friend suddenly I was filled with fear ¡°HARRISON, HARRISON YOU ALRIGHT¡± because what I saw with my eyes was a man with his dreams crushed by the hammer of Aphrodite and frozen by the head of Medusa. I honestly felt sorry for him for the first time. I look back at the girls¡­I was then creeped out as ¡®Ariana¡¯ was staring right at me. I quickly turn around, grabbed Harrison, and carried him to the nurse¡¯s office. ¡°Hold on Harrison, I¡¯ll get you to the nurses office so don¡¯t lose hope¡± I attempt to snap him back to reality¡­. Harrison was still frozen so I went ahead and head to the classes. How do illusions work. Throughout the day the thought of illusions was stuck ever since I saw that black ball imitate a fire. ¡°Illusions¡­.illusions¡­.illusions¡± I walk through the aisle going through every book even remotely related to illusions. ¡°Found it!¡± It was a leather covered book that looked like it has been collecting dust since the dawn of time. ¡°I guess illusions aren¡¯t that great¡± I should¡¯ve noticed this since the students in the class performing illusions all had faces of disappointment on them. Despite that I gave it a read. ¡®Illusions at its basis is a form of magic that moving magic into a small area to create a shape. Magic can reflect light allowing changes of colors by reflecting one color and absorbing others. In order for the illusion to stay maintained and allow a imitation of movements of the object, it must stay connected to the user by magic that strings from the illusions to the caster. While connected the user must constantly supply magic to apply changes of shape or color¡¯ ¡°Man that is a lot of work just for an illusion¡­¡± I guess I¡¯ll try it. I collect magic in my hands from my blood stream and created a regular ball of magic. Easy enough¡­I then try to reflect a few colors, what came out was purple. From what I remember from my mother about colors, that means I reflected both red and blue. Next, lets see If I can change the shape. I attempt to move the magic in the air into a regular sword. As a result a rusty sword formed. Couldn¡¯t I just create a sword by taking energy from the air and creating ice? This seems to be a waste. At least the illusion sword works like a regular sword. I quickly destroy the sword as I began to feel my body weaken. *Bonk* I quickly turn around and I see a pile of books collapsed on someone-wait isn¡¯t that the person that ran away from me before?. I instinctively rushed over and move all the books away to make sure the person wasn¡¯t injured. Upon closer inspection¡­.¡±Mrs. Theades?¡± Casually she replies ¡°uh-uh I¡¯m not Theades¡± with a fake smile. I ignored her response ¡°Mrs. Theades¡­What exactly are you doing here?¡± Honestly this women is weird. I grab her by the arm and pull her up off the floor. ¡°Uh thank you and to get to the point, well nevermind-I¡¯ll just leave-¡° ¡°Tell me¡± I rejected her exit ¡°What are you looking for?¡± I was getting annoyed since she keeps creeping on me and running away. It¡¯s been happening for a couple years and it is starting to get on my nerves. ¡°Well to be blunt, I am actually quite curious about your capability to manipulate magic at a high level¡± ¡°My magic isn¡¯t that strong, I¡¯m not good with magic. Other people can make huge balls of fir-¡° ¡°I¡¯m not talking about the power of your magic, but your ability to control every aspect of your magic such as creating shapes. Just yesterday I saw you creating rings of fire. Admittedly they were weak, but you were easily able to manipulate magic like a high class wizard. Even now I saw you create a sword in an instant, usually it would take a couple of minutes to make a sword that sharp. HOW¡¯D YOU DO IT?!?!?¡± She stares at me questionably in intent. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Frightened I quickly replied ¡°I don¡¯t know, honestly. It just sort of happened. Besides I see other adventurers do the same thing all the time.¡± I look out the window to find it dark outside ¡°listen Mrs. Theades, I gotta catch some sleep¡± I find an excuse to escape her grasp. She grabs my arm, ¡°Before you go¡­will you be my apprentice?¡± Professors at the schools usually have some students be apprentices. For the professors, this gains them reputation of how well of a teacher he is while at the same time they can pass down their skills of to their apprentices and eventually be recorded in history. Professors are usually adventures that have discovered new skills and if they spread their skills they can be remembered cause of it. For the students they are able to learn these unique skills that only their professors know about. This was a mutual agreement between both parties so usually students will first find a professor to become an apprentice to and learn their skills. But the catch is once they pair up they cannot switch to another teacher, but they can quit their membership. It was a school rule to be exact. I thought about Mrs. Theades request. Man she is not letting go of my arm without an answer ¡°Listen Mrs. Theades¡­¡± She looks up at me with eyes of evil intent ¡°I¡¯ll sleep on it, but I won¡¯t promise you anything¡± With that she finally let¡¯s go of my arm. ¡°fine¡­¡± She looks down in disappointment. At that point I finally walk to my dorm. Waved hello and goodbye to the receptionist this and that. When I finally got to open my door¡­. ¡°Hey Raven how¡¯s it going?¡± Harrison was watching VTD on some magic item show. ¡°I¡¯m doing fine¡­just tired.¡± I fell onto my bed. ¡°What are you watching?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a new show, it¡¯s basically a show where they review rare items founded by adventurers all over the world.¡± He continues staring at the VTD(this is a television delivered by magic) and I started watching the show myself out of boredom. ¡®Today will be a special episode as we will be reviewing the really rare ¡®Philosopher Stone¡¯ ¡® A red gem appears onto the image. I got up quickly. Isn¡¯t that what I have? I look back at my guitar which contained the red gem inside. I pay attention back to the VTD. ¡®What is it you ask? Well first off it is a really rare piece of stone and is really fragile if handled improperly thus it is used only for decorations in a glass case to symbolize the wealth of an individual. But despite the aesthetic, it does have a powerful function. It is capable of storing sequences of magic and repeatedly forever use that magic for all of eternity until it is broken. The stone itself is has almost infinite magic built in it and is in fact made of magic as it was created deep inside the core of this land.¡¯ ¡°Hey Harri-¡° As I was about to talk to him I notice he fell asleep. Man I was hoping to learn more on what else he learned about it¡­oh well. I turn off the VTD and went to bed myself. ¡°So it can store magic sequences huh¡­that¡¯s interesting¡± I close my eyes and dream¡­today was a long day. ¡­ ¡°Aaagggh noooo¡­¡± I see the sun through the window. After 3 years in the capital Tera I still haven¡¯t gotten used to waking up in a bed or rather the sunshine itself either. I slowly got up and grabbed my guitar pulling out the red gem. ¡°A philosopher stone¡­¡± What should I use it for¡­ Man this is a tough question I better choose wisely because I might only see one of these my entire life. After a few stressful minutes of pondering I decided to put it away for emergencies. I quietly leave the room. Thankfully it¡¯s the weekends. Every weekend I escape to the Rainforest of the Astray just to relax. ¡°WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHH¡± I let out my frustrations. My GOD how I missed you nature. I settled down near a river deep inside the forest. Pulling out my fishing pole I started fishing just for fun. Not wanting to think about what to do with the philosopher stone since it will cause me stress, I start thinking about the illusion skill. I started copying things around me like sticks, stones, trees and so on. I try to capture every detail. Man it is hard to emulate every detail. ¡°BUKAAH-BUKAAH¡± A dives into the river and plucks a few fish and flutters off into a nearby tree. ¡°Cool¡± Most people are frightened of them but my many years of knowing them I have realized that as long as you don¡¯t bother them they don¡¯t bother you. Something people tend to ignore and usually people will react violently by attacking them. I wonder if....just like everything else I emulated I try to emulate a . In a few seconds a appears although not moving but just floating in the air. I poured a few of my magic into it and I focused on moving its limbs. My started flapping its wings and opening its mouth, of course without sound. Hey this is awesome, I started touching my illusion. Weirdly enough it felt weird and the skin felt rough. I began to making it move naturally towards the other in the air. ¡°BUKAK-BUKAH-BUKAK¡± The takes notice and starts attacking my illusion with it¡¯s tail. In response, I try make seem like a real battle by making my illusion seem hurt, attack, and even taunt the real one. I even swung the tail which actually affected the real one, but I had to pour a lot more magic in order to physically hurt the real one. This kept going and going. Man I am tried, after a while I made my illusion die after the real swung its tail and after seeing my illusion die it quickly fly off. ¡°HUFF Oh¡­MAN¡­ that was awesome, but tiring¡± I collapse onto the ground. That was kind of cool messing with illusions¡­but to constantly pour magic into it just to maintain the shape is tough. Even tougher to make it move. I wonder¡­can I emulate myself? I focus some magic into my hand and started drawing my body. I made sure I had the same hair and skin color and even the same clothes. I started getting weary, but my sense of discovery triumph that. Finally after a few dozen minutes I stepped back to see a mirror of myself ¡°Hell yeah, I can get used to this¡± There were a few things I didn¡¯t get such as the mouth or eyes since they were a bit hard, but I will get it later. I started messing around with the movement. My illusion started to take a few steps sideways¡­awkwardly. I made my body move around, hold my fishing pole, jump, swim, everything I could think of. At first it felt weird seeing my own body moving around. Thanks to my Human Anatomy class I was able to get my illusion to move more¡­naturally. The movement had to suffice afterall just a couple of hours ago it had his foot stuck in his head so I at least made progress. I grab my notebook on Human Anatomy hoping to learn what else I can do. I started thinking about the VTD¡­If I can simulate how the eyes work I could visualize what my illusion sees. I look up at the sun to see it has almost set. ¡°Not yet. Just a couple more hours¡± I was starting to have fun. As of now my body is quite¡­frightening(Author: Imagine Slenderman¡¯s head if that helps your imagination). I cover the lower half of its head with a mask and started working on the eyes. It¡¯s not a simple task because I am basically using magic to grabs light that go through the string of magic that connects us that then enters my body and eventually leads up to my brain where it is then converted into a image. After a while I finished making the eye, made two copies, and inserted them into my other body. With that I tested it out. I focus on the string between us and when I close my eyes I see images although they are black and white it is clear I could add color but drawing in ALL of the colors is a rather daunting task as it needs to capture more lights and I need to add more receptors to detect more colors in the first place which was a bit too much work. I was weird seeing my own real body with my eyes closed. This is getting freaky, I cut the vision. *Snap* I turn around and see a bush moving. I was about to summon my icicles before I realized it was a student. It was the girl that I saw during practice, I think her name was ¡®Ariana¡¯. Huh? That¡¯s¡­strange I see her walking towards me ignoring the fact she is going through every bush. Is she dumb? She could just go around. After a while, she finally was able to reach me. She looks at me but her glare seems like it is going through me. She grabs my hand and brings it to her face. ¡°Hey what are you doin-¡°Before I got the chance she began to sniff my hand. This is¡­awkward. A split second later she pushed me over. WHATS GOING ON?!?! IS HE GOING TO KILL ME!!! ¡°HEY LET ME GO!!!¡± In response she mumbles ¡°Rave¡­I missed you¡­¡±
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Chapter 7 The Duel A saw a flash fly before my eyes and the next thing I know was that I was laying on the cold hard ground being inhibited from moving by a girl with a Columbina mask. ¡°Hey let go!!!¡± The level of her grip is strong in this one!!! I try moving any of my limbs, but none of them even budge. She is gonna help-she is gonna kill me-she is gonna kill me. I forgot about my clone for a minute and realized that I could get him to take her off of me. I drowned my clone with my magic. ¡°NOOOO-¡®R¡¯EEEEE-NOOOOO¡± Her arms encircles my body tighter. Despite pouring so much she would not let go of me-wait¡­¡¯R¡¯eee? That sounds familiar¡­From afar I heard a voice from even further in the forest. ¡°ARIIIIIAAAAAAAANNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, WHEEEEEREE AAAARE YOUUUUU??!?!¡± Shoot I am being surrounded. Clenching my teeth I growled ¡°LET ME GOOO!!!!¡±. *Bonk* I was startled. ¡°WHAT WAS THAT FOR???!!!¡± I felt rage building up in me¡­What I realized? She hit my head with a stick as if she was punishing a child. ¡°Bad ¡®R¡¯eeee¡± She looks down on me. Awww kill me. ¡°CLONE¡± I sent my clone to grab her off of me¡­.That¡¯s weird¡­I am getting tired all of the sudden. My clone who was carrying the girl disappeared. Did I use too much today?.... ¡­ ¡°nnnnn¡± Am I alright? AHHH A HEADACHE¡­painful. Taking a good look around I see I am surrounded by extravagantly covered walls and next to me is a girl that shoved me down¡­.I NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE¡­Across the room I see a window-NOWS MY CHANCE. I climbed off the bed and slowly crept near the window and slooooooooo- ¡°HALT, Rave!!! ¡± Next thing I know the window froze over. I turn around to see a shadow of someone in the door. I quickly ready a few fire rings around my arm. ¡°What do you want?¡± I put up a fighting stance. ¡°Calm down, Rave¡­ It¡¯s me Rosetta¡­Jeez you sure do value your freedom¡± A rumptious beauty walks in with a tray of food and places down on a desk. ¡°Will you release your magic? After all you feinted after exhausting all of your magic power already.¡± She walks up to me and grabs my hand with both of her hands. ¡°please¡± with an endearing face no person in the world can withstand. Reluctantly¡­I released my fire rings. I still remain silent. I was quite surprised she still remembers¡­ ¡°Thank you¡± she still holds on to my hand. ¡°So now that you calm dow-RAVE!!¡± For some reason I felt dizzy and the power in my legs seemed like it never existed. A second later I end up seeing the ceiling. ¡°Jeez Rave what exactly did you do to deprive your body of most of your magic power? Anyways just drink this tea it should help your body heal a bit¡± She brings my head up to the rim of the cup. ¡°So what exactly were you doing in the forest? Isn¡¯t that where the thrive in? I¡¯m surprised you were even alive when we found you¡­.¡± She looked depressed into deep thought for some reason. ¡°heh Just relax, I will have you know aren¡¯t that threatening. In a way they are like us. If we are threatened we respond with violence. It¡¯s the same with them. So just don¡¯t mess with them. To answer your question, I was fishing¡± I relax a tiny bit, but I was still wary. Snapping back into reality ¡°Really? You weren¡¯t hurt?¡± she looks at me intently. ¡°Yes I¡¯m fine¡­what exactly were YOU doing in the forest?¡± ¡°I was looking for Ariana¡± she points towards the bed. ¡°Is she your sister or something?¡± She gave me a confused look ¡°You don¡¯t remember? She was the kid we saved from the kidnappers¡­.Rave? Rave are you alright?¡± What in the¡­I thought she was a boy¡­and I pretty sure I remember¡­ ¡°Rave!!!¡± ¡­that kid was pretty young¡­why is he¡­or she in a high school? AAHHH my head is starting to hurt!!! Suddenly I felt pain on my waist ¡°AHHHHH WHY¡¯D YOU KICK ME!!¡± ¡°CAUSE YOU DIDN¡¯T REPLY.¡± Her cheeks puff up. ¡°alright, alright I¡¯m sorry So he-I mean she was the little blind kid we saved from the kidnappers, why is in the same grade as we are?¡± ¡°Well apparently she has a very high amount of potential magic ability once we got her results. So we basically taught her everything we could and well¡­became a prodigy¡± Her face shows a slight case of jealousy and a bit of pride. I stumble while I got up from the floor¡°¡­.Listen I¡¯m gonna go, and tell Airi I said ¡®Hi¡¯ alright? It was nice seeing you, Rosetta.¡± with that I open the window that I was stealthily melted the ice from beforehand. I thought I heard Rosetta say something, but I was moving too far to hear a word. I was jumping roof to roof for a while still reminiscing today. ¡°Man this is a strange start to a weekend.¡± Furthermore I am under a contract with her father¡­ Out of the corner of my eye I noticed Elsa dueling someone in the courtyard surrounded by a crowd. ¡°Hmmm what is this about?...¡± Noticing Harrison in the crowd I walked up next to him. ¡°Hey Harrison, wanna catch me up on whats going on?¡± ¡°I think Elsa is dueling Mildred, nephew of the king, who is currently rank 431/5000, its an obvious win¡± Harrison was sure Mildred had won before the duel even started. I nudged at him for more information. ¡°apparently Mildred insulted Elsa¡¯s lineage for being descendants of demons. Apparently Mildred thinks Elsa relative are supplying the poor with weapons that will revolt against the king. Elsa responded by¡­well that¡± he points at the duel. A conspiracy theory huh¡­ I rub my forehead at the low temper of Elsa. I swear she gets mad at every little thing. This morning her servants served her soup with bread and she spot a little burnt part and she threw a tantrum. Just as the duel began a teacher appears as a witness to the duel. ¡°Today¡¯s duel if filed by Else Syte against the nephew of the king MILDRED¡± the teacher puts and emphasis on on the name Mildred and the crowds ¡®oohed¡¯. ¡°The duel will determine which will become the servant of the other and the loser must follow every direction without complaint. The winner is determined by whoever¡¯s body hits the ground first.¡± So this battle was a result of Elsa¡¯s desire to protect her dignity and honor. My forehead was getting rub burns just by thinking about it. I look at Mildred who has a suspicious grin and his eyes wanders intently at Elsa. The announcer continues ¡°LET THE BATTLE COMMENCE.¡± Elsa starts protruding ice from the ground under Mildred, she smiles in pride. Mildred was now completely surrounded by ice. As Elsa begins to spawn an huge block of ice on top of him, Mildred punches the ice wall and starts charging forward. Suddenly Before Elsa even got a chance to react, Mildred disappeared and reappeared in front of Elsa and had his sword right next to her neck and acted as is he was going to kill right then and there. Elsa who was left speechless tripped over a pebble. The battle was over before it even started. Many people were disappointed there weren''t anything spectacular, but they stayed for the bet, otherwise known as drama. ¡°THAT¡¯S THE END OF THE MATCH, THE WINNER OF THE 12 SECOND MATCH IS MILDRED¡± Elsa was still on the ground. I couldn''t hear anything but Mildred appeared in front of Elsa, smiled, and told her something. In response Elsa''s eyes bulged out on the verge of tears. Mildred then walks up to the announcer and whispers him something. The announcer still continues ¡°DOES ANYONE WISH TO TAKE PART OF THE BET AND FACE THE WINNER?!?!? RESPOND NOW IF YOU WISH OR ELSA WILL BE PLACED INTO THE STOCKS.¡± Everyone gasped I don¡¯t know how to respond to a sister who was about to be placed into the stock. As I was thinking this someone bumped into me and handed me a paper. I looked around for the person who bumped into me but he was nowhere to be found. I opened the folded paper and it said ¡°¡¯Duel against Mildred¡¯ signed by ¡®your contract¡¯? Damn these nobles and their so called honor. As I reluctantly started to raise my hand ¡°Hey Raven, what¡¯re you doing?!?! You can¡¯t win!!!¡± Harrison tried to bring my arm down. I closed my eyes and ears ¡°AYE I WILL STAND FOR ELSA¡± . All I was thinking was how I will exact my revenge against Duke Sytesque. Announcer was surprised ¡°I BE-BELIEVE WE HAVE SOMEONE TO STAND FOR ELSA¡­APPARENTLY¡± The whole crowd was at first speechless then everybody laughed some commented. ¡°The freshman?¡± ¡°it¡¯s the last thousand ranker¡± ¡°Who is he? I never heard of him¡± Elsa on the other hand ran away crying. Announcer continues ¡°THE NEXT DUEL WILL COMENCE 168 HOURS FROM NOW, 150 HOURS FROM NOW WE WILL ADD NEW CONDITIONS THAT WILL BE DISCUSSED BETWEEN THE TWO DUELERS or you know the champion and the victim¡± with that everybody laughs and leaves the battlefield. Mildred from afar starts walking towards me. ¡°OI OI OI, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING LITTLE BOY¡±. By the time he finished talking his face was centimeters away from my face. The only thing that went across my mind was¡­how smelly his breathe was. ¡° SAY SOMETHING KID¡± He starts shoving me over and over, but my balance learned from jumping roof to roof allowed me to still stand. His friend yelled from afar yelled out ¡°OI Don¡¯t break him now, he¡¯s gonna lose anyways¡± all his friends responded in snickers. Mildred turned back to me ¡°Be prepared you little scum, get ready for the pain of a lifetime.¡± He turns back to his friends and they all leave. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. From the alleyways Harrison appears ¡°Dude you alright? My bad Raven I chickened out¡± Well being confronted by someone who is in the top 500, I don¡¯t blame him. ¡°Yeah¡­I¡¯m fine. I just hope I come out alive next week¡± before I turned around and I see Harrison grab my shoulders. ¡°Are you crazy, Raven?¡± he looks at me with a worried face. ¡°I am honestly considering that I probably am¡± I joked to try and calm my friend down ¡°Cmon let¡¯s go home, alright? And don¡¯t worry about it¡± Once we got home I told him that I forgot my fishing gear in the forest and I need to grab it-it was an excuse to leave to be honest. I was actually headed to the office of Duke Sytesque¡­Damn you Duke, You better have a good reason I put on my mask and I landed on the border of his window ¡°Why exactly did you make me fight someone that I had no chance against?¡± I was at that point clenching my teeth. He slowly responds slowly ¡°As a noble I do not want-no, I cannot allow any of my family be shamed in public. If we are publicly shamed, do you know what the king will do to me? He will strip me of my duties as the Secretary of Defense as a unworthy noble who can¡¯t keep my family under control. If I can¡¯t keep control of my family¡¯s action then I will be unfit to rule the national guards. I can not allow that to happen. Do you understand now, Rave? Now you will either do as I say or I will cut the contract we made in concerns to your old town ¡®Aries¡¯. Now leave and win under any circumstance. And under no circumstance you defile my reputation, understood?¡± Hesitantly I replied ¡°Un-derstood¡± I left to the forest. To release my frustrations I started punching the trees in the forest. I am forced into a fight I can¡¯t even win in. I kept punching the tree until I was exhausted. I saw my marks all over the bark of the tree. I kept going at it until..i passed out¡­ ¡­ ¡°uhhhh¡± I get up to the morning sun¡­I slowly got up and dragged my feet to the library. I need to do some research on Mildred. I kept replaying the duel between Mildred and Eris in my head over and over in my head¡­questions appeared like ¡°How did he disappear?¡± ¡°How did he teleport or was he that fast?¡± ¡°How was he easily able to destroy the ice of wall casted by Eris so easily?¡± These questions taunted me. Damn you Duke, this is a tough task you are asking of me. I chuckled a bit. Once I got to the library, I noticed Ms. Theades sitting on the table. I decided to stay away from her cause I was not in the mood. As I turn around- ¡°Oh Rave, is that you?¡± Damn it she found me. ¡°It is indeed so, do you need anything?¡± ¡°Yes become my apprentice!!!¡± She looks at me with a glare of a tiger. Man this women is persistent. ¡°Sorry I¡¯m still deciding.¡± She looked disappointed¡°I see¡­ are you looking for something?¡± ¡°Just looking for some videos of old duels on Mildred.¡± I started rummaging through the shelf of recordings. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you are looking for a way to counter Mildred, I suppose?¡± she read my mind. ¡°If you are I can just tell you a few things about him.¡± ¡°Why exactly would you help me?¡± She is NOT the type of person to help anyone. Something suspicious going on here¡­. ¡°Not for many reasons¡± she gave a innocent face suddenly it turned into a devil in a split second ¡°although¡­he did choose to be a coach¡¯s apprentice instead of mine when I asked him.¡± Suddenly a illusion of a winged demon appeared behind her¡­Frightening. Man looking at the shelf of recordings¡­it¡¯s gonna take me the whole month to go through all of these. Looks like I have no choice. I sat across from her on the table. ¡°Alright tell me what you know!¡± ¡°¡­Has anyone ever tell you, you are quite rash? Well anyways that¡¯s not the point¡± She pauses. ¡°The point is you can¡¯t beat him¡­like no chance¡­.nada.¡± ¡°Has anyone told you, you are blunt with your words?¡± Man she could¡¯ve at least sugarcoated it. ¡°So I have no chance, Doesn¡¯t Mildred have some kind of weakness? Or exploits? Anything at all!?!?!¡± I just realized my voice escalated a lot higher¡­Man I am surprisingly desperate. ¡°No although now that I think about it he does lack in magic abilities, however he has already found many ways to cover that up with his own strength and agility alone. Besides it seems you never have dueled before, Mildred on the other hand has already have years of experience, I highly doubt you can surpass him in just a week.¡± Damn she¡¯s got a point. What exactly can I do? Even Elsa wasn¡¯t able to put a dent in him. I¡¯m on my wits end. Then I remember the day I first took Ms. Theades class. ¡°Ms. Theades, I remember some of you students talk about some skill you had that made a guaranteed win, what exactly is it?¡± I was waiting in anticipation for an answer to this conundrum. The atmosphere suddenly becomes heavy. Shoot did I cross the line? ¡°Why exactly should I tell you my skill? I will not teach to anyone who just wants to use it merely for power and dominance. And what exactly would I get out of this whole¡­ordeal.¡± Unlike the time she threw a tantrum in the middle of the class, she was¡­a bit more calm. Man I knew she wouldn¡¯t hand it over just like that. I guess I have to negotiate with her. ¡°How about this, if I can utilize your skill to my advantage-you don¡¯t even have to teach me- to beat Mildred, I¡­will be your apprentice and I promise that I will not cancel my apprenticeship no matter any circumstance.¡± This is a hard part for me cause I heard bad rumours about how Ms. Theades has worked her apprentices to the edge of life. She ponders for a minute and looks up at me ¡°You say I don¡¯t need to teach you, correct? How desperate are you to win against Mildred?¡± ¡°Every drop of my blood, but ONLY if I am able to utilize your skill to my advantage in the duel.¡± I quickly reply. ¡°Hmmm that is quite the offer you bestow to me¡± She probably starts weighing the pros and cons. ¡°Fine I shall accept your generous offer¡± She looks at me with-what I could tell- a devilish grin. She sits right next to me and started whispering in my right ear what her ability was. Damn¡­wish I knew that before I entered this contract. What have I gotten myself into¡­ ¡°Alright I realized that the ¡®big cost¡¯ is ¡­quite huge, but..¡±I have never thought I would be this desperate just to beat someone and keep my contract intact ¡±at this moment I am willing to break every bone and lose every ounce of my blood to succeed¡±¡­unfortunately. She smiles ¡°I guess I¡¯ll take my leave, we shall see each other when you and Mildred work out the details ta-ta~¡± she waves goodbye with her back turn towards me. I started working out all the detail and circumstance for the next duel. The meeting is in¡­5 days from now. Alright time to prepare¡­ ¡­ ¡°OI OI OI your death is near scum, start digging your grave¡± Mildred bumps his fist together. I stay silent. Me, Mildred, and the announcer who will be watching over the duel were all sitting on the table. Ms. Theades is standing behind me. Of course Elsa was there sitting on the table looking down on her table feeling depressed. The announcer speaks ¡°Alright the right to choose either ¡®what the winner gets and loser gets¡¯ or ¡®the conditions of the battle¡¯ goes to the person who was asked to a duel, which would be Mildred, the nephew of the King himself¡± Mildred beams a smile ¡°What the winner and loser gets.¡± The announcer gets out a notepad and Mildred continues speaking ¡°I believe the winner shall have his way with Elsa of the ¡®Demon lineage¡¯ in bed.¡± A wicked grin stays firm upon his face. (Author: Before I continue I should let you know, do NOT expect anything ¡®Mature¡¯ out of this Fanfic). I look at Elsa to see her hug her own body in a attempt to protect herself. ¡°o-ok¡± The announcer seemed he was about to object, but it seems his fear of Mildred outweights his job. Without even looking at me in the eye ¡°Rave, do you accept these terms? If so, you may continue to place conditions for this duel¡± Elsa stares at me ¡°I accept the terms¡± Elsa¡¯s eyes began to bulge and begun to cry-soon after she runs away¡­probably to her dorm room. I predicted such reaction. ¡°The conditions I set is whoever can outlast the other consciously by 10 seconds is the winner -and one more things¡­ I will also allow each of us to bring another person into the duel that will not take part in the be.¡± Announcer writes everything down ¡° That should do it. Both of you please sign this paper in acknowledgment of the duel, the regulations, and the conditions set. And both of you shake hands on it.¡± Following the instructions of the announcer Mildred and I signed the paper and both of us shook our hands. When I shook his hands, the pressure he put on my hands by squeezing suddenly felt like my hand was crushed by a huge boulder and I look up to see his face that I read as ¡®You are dead meat, scrub¡¯