["Survive" in the Gifnora Forest inhabited by Danger Beasts]...[Completed]
[Bonus: Make at least 1 friend that will actually survive without your help]...[Completed]
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[Strength: 20 -> 22
Agility: 24 -> 26
Intelligence: 22 -> 24
Constitution: 18 -> 20
Charisma: 15 -> 17
Free Stat points: 24 -> 26
Health: 320/320
Energy: 695/695]
---
Hm? Looks like the bonus also counted. I wonder if it was due to Kurome...
I thought while walking out of the camp together with Kurome. Each step she took further away from her sister, she started to tremble even more.
"Kurome, you really like your sister, don't you?" I said with a smile, trying to erase the awkward silence.
"Ah?! Y-yes, I love her!" She almost jumped in surprise but she still answered with a strong voice and wide smile before her smile disappeared once again.
"I am sorry it has to be this way, Kurome. But you would definitely not like what the Empire would do to you." I said with a forced smile.
"Wha-? What about my big sis?!" She immediately snapped her head at me with a horrified expression, her grip on my hand tightened.
"You don't have to worry about her. She is strong and talented, they won't treat her badly, however, ...if it was you, it might have been a different story." I said with a darkened expression.
---
'Is that the reason why he chose me? ...To protect me? Why else would he choose me when he was aware that big sis is stronger than me?' Kurome's thoughts were in disarray while she was staring with a confused expression at Akashi's face.
---
"Young lord!" Ichika appeared in front of us and handed me my sword. She also threw a curious glance at Kurome who was watching her with a curious and fascinated expression.
"Thank you. Ichika, this is Kurome. Kurome, this is Ichika, my guardian." I thanked Ichika for keeping my sword safe and then introduced them.
"Hello, little Kurome, I hope you will work hard for the young lord. Although at first, he might appear to be extremely cold, once you prove yourself to him he will even burn the entire world for you!" Ichika crouched down with a serious expression to match Kurome's height and brought her face closer. Once she was close enough, she said with a teasing smile.
"Stop it, this is embarrassing. Don't listen to her Kurome, okay?" I rolled my eyes and then directed my attention at Kurome once again.
"...Young lord?" She muttered while looking at me with a confused expression.
"Just call me Akashi, Ichika is already too accustomed to calling me young lord so leave her to it." I said with a helpless smile and she just nodded. She still looked like a lost kitten but it was expected.
"I will be completely honest with you, Kurome. You probably won't see your sister for more than 5 years..." I dropped the bomb and she widened her eyes in surprise but didn't say anything. Maybe she was already expecting something like that.
"It's not like I don't want you to meet her but it will be difficult to meet her due to the Empire. She will be trained by them and they probably won't let her see anyone." I told her and she nodded her head with a defeated expression.
"Young lord, where are we headed now? Are we going back?" Ichika asked me with a curious expression.
"I wanted to head back immediately due to Kurome here but...I also want to make a quick stop at Oarburgh clan's hideout." I said with a grin.
"Wha-?! Young lord, do you even know where their hideout is located?! We can't take too long to return or Lord Phoenix will get suspicious." Ichika exclaimed and Kurome just kept listening to our conversation while looking at both of us with a puzzled expression.
"Youn- I mean...Akashi. What is Oarburgh clan?" Kurome asked with a shaky voice as if she was afraid to speak aloud.
"Hm? There is no need to think hard about it, Kurome. I will explain everything on our way. And you don't need to be so afraid to speak up, if it will help you, you can treat me as a big brother." I said with a friendly smile.
"As for where is their hideout located...I don't know the exact location but there is a way how to get in contact with them. There is no way they would completely hide from the world, after all, they are a group of assassins" I told Ichika with a smirk.
We continued walking towards the east for a few more minutes before we met some wandering Danger beasts.
Kurome who was walking the entire time next to me while holding my hand, tightened her grip when she saw them.
"Calm down, Kurome. Remember to always keep a cool head whenever you find yourself in a danger. Ichika, take care of her." I said to Kurome and told Ichika to protect her.
I wiggled out of Kurome's tight grip and went forward to approach the Danger beasts that looked slightly similar to panthers.
"Watch carefully, Kurome!" I shouted and draw my sword.
3 panther-like Danger beasts heard my shout and turned in my direction. When they spotted me, they immediately roared at me and started running towards me.
----
Kurome had an uneasy expression when she saw the sight before her.
"There is no need to worry, little Kurome. They won't be able to even touch him so just observe carefully." Ichika put her hand on Kurome's shoulder to comfort her.
"Mm" Kurome gulped and nodded with strong eyes while attentively watching the fight.
----
The 3 panthers were pretty fast and when the first one arrived before me, he immediately jumped at me without waiting for its friends.
"First thing first, evading at the right time!" I shouted and sidestepped right before its claws were about to bury themselves into my body. Making the panther miss me entirely, ultimately falling down behind me.
While I was looking at the first panther that has fallen on the ground, the second one jumped on me from behind.
"Dropping your guard intentionally to make your own enemy drop their guard down!" I shouted once again and performed a spin to the side, making the second panther miss and as he was falling down, I beheaded him with one quick and precise slash.
"Also don't forget to use that to your advantage or it will be completely useless." I said aloud so Kurome could hear me.
The third one also jumped on me from behind and the first one already recovered from its fall so it also pounced on me from the front.
"If you are fighting numerous opponents who have bad teamwork, use it to your advantage. Instead of being in a disadvantage from being outnumbered you will be in advantage BECAUSE you will be outnumbered." I ducked while saying this, the 2 panthers collide with each other and I quickly moved out of the way while slashing the neck of one of the 2 panthers.
The last remaining panther alive shook its head due to the earlier collision and then his eyes turned red when it saw its dead kin. It ponced at me once again but this time at a much higher speed.
"When your opponent shows symptoms of going into a frenzy, be careful not to underestimate him just because he can't think straight anymore. His attacks will most likely become more ferocious, stronger and faster. If you need to block his attack, don't block it head-on. Just try to change its trajectory." I said and blocked panther's wide-open jaw with my sword and then quickly used my elbow to hit its cheekbone before I could even feel the entire impact of its attack on my sword, ultimately redirecting his attack to the side and making it fall down on the ground next to me.
While it was still on the ground I slashed its stomach and then turned around to look at Kurome who was watching all of this carefully.
"Were you able to catch at least something from this fight?" I asked with a smile.
"...I thin- look out!" Kurome wanted to say something but then her expression changed to the horrified one.
I thrust my sword behind me without even turning around and felt an impact.
*Thud* The panther's lifeless body dropped on the ground after having its head pierced by my sword.
"Also, don't forget to never drop your guard down, no matter what~! Hehe" I said with a small laugh while looking at Kurome's surprised expression.
"So...Were you able to catch anything from this fight? Don't be afraid to say no, I will teach you everything from the bottom even if you really understood everything anyway." I said with a small smile while burning their bodies.
Class: Assassin (Lv. 9; +13 Agi, +7 Int, +4 Str, + 2 Cha) 959/2560 XP
Special Class: Fire Monarch (Lv. 6; +12 Cha, +10 Int, +9 Const) 204/320 BXP
"...Just a bit, I-I understood most of it, I think. But I am not sure if I would be able to apply it in practice." Kurome hesitated for a bit before answering me and judging from her expression and words, I could tell that she was being honest with me.
"Good! You have even more talent than I anticipated" I walked up to her and she closed her eyes in fear when she noticed my hand nearing her head but I only ruffled her hair, completely surprising her.
"Huh?" When she noticed this, she looked up at me with a confused expression.
"Sorry about that, I will stop if it makes you uncomfortable." I said with an awkward smile.
My main goal should be to gain her trust and loyalty before training her. But...I have no idea how to treat kids. I should have gathered some experience by taking care of my own kid in my old world...Now that I think about her, I hope she is doing well.
"A-Akashi? Can I ask you something?" She asked with a hesitant expression.
"Sure, go ahead" I replied.
"How is it possible for you to produce flames out of nothing?" She asked me with a curious look.
"Hmm...good question. I was simply born this way, born with the fire's protection and favor. Come on, let's move on, we need to get to the next nearest village before the sun will go completely down." I said and started to move forward.
"? Wait, young lord, what about your father?!" Ichika stood still in her place with a shocked expression.
"I will make up an excuse. Don't worry, I won't let him punish you." I said with a decisive tone.
----
Both Kurome and Ichika watched Akashi's slowly distancing back with absent-minded expressions for a few seconds before they finally woke up and decided to quickly follow after him.
"*Little Kurome, we are both girls...tell me, what do you think about Akashi?*" Ichika whispered to Kurome, slightly surprising her.
"*Um, what do I think? I-I don't know...*" Kurome replied with a completely confused expression.
"*For example...Do you think he is kind?*" Ichika asked with a teasing smile.
"*Hm...He seems...too reserved? But I think that he is truly kind to the people close to him...It's just regrettable that my big sis couldn't come with us...maybe we would be able to find a new family.*" Kurome looked at the back of Akashi's black uniform with a small smile before the smile turned to tears when she started to think about Akame.
"*Shh, maybe I can't replace your big sister but you can depend on me the same way. And once the young lord will fully trust you, he will do anything to keep you happy so you can ask him to let you meet up with your sister later.*" Ichika tried to comfort her.
"*Really?*" Kurome asked with a shocked expression, she was having a hard time believing Ichika's words
"*Of course, take a look at me. I am just a lowly bodyguard for the young lord, ready to trade my life for his at any moment yet he treats me as part of his family! Look at this gift I have gotten from the young lord, hehe!" Ichika said with a wide smile while showing off her new necklace.
Kurome was shocked by how brilliantly the gem was shining and even though she didn't know the price of such thing, she was sure that it cost much more than her parents could ever earn in their entire life.
'...He gifted this to his bodyguard...?' Kurome thought with an absent-minded expression while looking at the necklace.
"*You know, I really envy your age!*" Ichika said with an envious look, she patted Kurome's shoulder before starting to walk faster to catch up to Akashi.
Kurome was confused from Ichika's words but when she noticed that she was left alone at the back, she immediately quickened her pace to catch up to Akashi and Ichika. She, herself, wasn't aware of this fact but while she was busy catching up to them, a small genuine smile appeared on her face.
----END----
[Name: Akashi Phoenix (Age: 9)
Title: King of Sloth
Class: Assassin (Lv. 9; +13 Agi, +7 Int, +4 Str, + 2 Cha) 959/2560 XP
Special Class: Fire Monarch (Lv. 6; +12 Cha, +10 Int, +9 Const) 204/320 BXP
Health: 320/320
Energy: 695/695
Strength: 22 (26)
Agility: 26 (39)
Intelligence: 24 (41)
Constitution: 20 (29)
Charisma: 17 (31)
Free Stat points: 26
Classes: Young Noble (Lv. 4; +5 Cha) 12/80 XP, Warrior (Lv. 4, +7 Str, +3 Const) 3/80 XP
Special Classes:
ACTIVE SKILLS:
[Absolute Dominance - When facing the formidable foe, show no fear, instead show your arrogance. + 40% to every stat, fire intensity, and explosiveness]
[Phantom Strike - Blink towards your enemy, the maximum distance is decided by your Agility (10 energy)]
PASSIVE SKILLS:
[Child of Fire - Flames love you as its own child. You are protected by the fire itself, whenever someone uses long-ranged attacks, flames will protect your body from projectiles even without your consciousness but you can still stop them if you want. This isn't ultimate defense!]
GOLD: 2315
SILVER: 125