"W-What in the world…"
"Hmmmm…"
"Eh? Is your sword broken or something, smitha?"
Various voices bubbled in my ears that were expressed in a confused and baffled manner as I stared at the contents of my own sword.
It stated the following:
Classification: Saripiere
Core: Unknown
Core type: Burst type Enhance type ---
Affinity: Water and ???
Essence: High
Previous User: Unknown
Huh?
That is concerning…
"Um, Granny, are you sure that this stone is working properly?" I stared at the Grandseer and asked her with utmost concern.
"This stone has been used by the swordsfolk for generations and yes, it does not fail regarding its delivery of accurate information." she replied while still staring at the contents of the Balãni stone.
Are you certain about that? Since you pointed out that this stone is rather old, are we sure that it can still function properly?
To make context about everything that produces my confusion in these accounts, I stared at the contents one-by-one. Well indeed, the sword is correct about its sword classification because the blade of my sword is rather narrow and slim with a one-sided edge- a description that befits the kind of Saripiere.
What makes me curious and confused at the same time are the other two entries…
Specifically, the core and its previous user.
To make my confusion improve even further, Chief blabbed an interesting comment:
"Huh, this is the first time in my life where I saw that 'unknown' entry in the Balãni stone! I worked a lot in this League for decades and for every sword-unveiling of the swordsmen around here regarding their information, most of the entries are complete!"
"Oh? Maybe your sword is not working properly, smitha!!!" Malthur scoffed a bit in the side.
"You shut up!"
"Regardless, now that you have known the specific information concerning your individual swords, we hope that these values can shed some light regarding some of the confusions that you have about them. Furthermore, with these data, you can adjust and perfect your own sword style in combat when assuming your roles as Myrmidons." Pops uttered seriously.
But Pops! The information that showed up in front of me did the exact opposite of what you've just said! It made me confused and baffled even further!
Argh. Am I really going to work with this specific sword from now on?
"Well! That is all for our meeting for tonight! You have your big duties for tomorrow so get tuckered up in your bed and get a good night's sleep! Now then, dismissed!!!"
I guess I have no choice now, huh?
I will embrace these uncertain feelings and confusions about this sword and my fate as a Myrmidon, in order to work with all of my might to get what I want!
"Yes!!!"
The three of us- the newly appointed Myrmidons, shot up from our postures and shouted in unison and walked away to get our well-deserved rest.
Before we exit to the entrance though, a huge volume of crowd blocked our pathway and looked at us, their smiles are increasing ever-so slowly.
Oh no, what is it this time?
In front of the crowd, old-man Anakin led the swordsfolk and shouted with joy:
"Welcome oh, Myrmidons!!!"
In response to that loud beckon, everybody in the entrance once again unsheathed their own swords and raised them aloft the dark sky of the night while shouting the same message in a loud manner.
Oh, you guys!!! Ah… this is heartwarming.
Also, you are forgiven, old-man Anakin.
The three of us parted ways with a stupid smile plastered on our faces.
***
…
*mumble* *sneeze*
…How long have I been asleep for?
I slowly opened my eyes when I felt the tender heat coming from the sunlight that is reflected by our glass mirrors. The chirping of the birds tweeted in my ears as I leaned my vision on the outside window…
I stood up in a sluggish manner and while scratching my belly, I sensed a specific feeling in my gut that is increasingly ascending in my consciousness.
*Yawn* hmmmm. That was a good nap! I do not specifically know why my body craved for a good nap in this day. It felt odd for me that, it is as though, my body became foreign in a good sleeping regimen like this for a while.
While stretching my body, I felt the intense calmness and tranquility in it, brought by my divine nap. That is one of the reason why I think that the bed, at least for me, is the most important part of the
house!
Hmmm…
What is this poking memory that is ringing in the other lobe of my brain?
Did something happen yesterday?
As a person who loves and is enthusiastic about sleeping, I have this weird tendency to forget minimal things that happened from the events prior to my sleep. The greater the feeling from the rest that I had, the better the memory-loss that I will experience.
Ever had an experience that when you wake up, everything feels woozy and all of the things that you see are irrelevant and insignificant? That's how I feel to encounter this odd tendency of mine.
I really feel it… something big and troublesome happened yesterday. But I cannot put my smithy fingers on it!!!
While contemplating hardly in this first hour of my morning, I walked around my room when a refraction of a blue light peeked my sense of sight.
Ah… why is there a sword in room?
The moment I stared at the azure-tinged sword that is hanged in my mirror, everything came back to me.
"POOOOOOOPSSSSS!!!"
When my traumatic fears of the past days inevitably returned to my consciousness, I let out an anguish cry to my Pops.
…
"Hey kid, it is almost time for your Myrmidon duties! Hurry up and eat your breakfast here." when I waited for a reply, I heard Pops' voice below my room.
I hurriedly took a bath, changed to my adventurer's attire that I specifically tailored, and retrieved my trauma-inducing blade.
I swiftly made my way in the main room where I saw Pops in the table: helping himself in a light breakfast.
"Oh Pops, why didn't you wake me up? I almost forgot what happened to the festival yesterday! For a moment there in my awakening, I felt an ethereal bliss, you know? But everything exploded in oblivion when I stared at this sword, it is rather a scary experience! Pops… hey, are you listening?!"
I quickly joined Pops in his meal and with a steaming face, I annoyingly protested in him while chewing my favorite honeycomb bread.
"Right… I apologize. I was about to wake you up but when I saw your sleeping face, I couldn't muster a single noise and force to disturb your well-deserved rest." Pops explained while sipping his Barrako.
"Oh…"
I uh… thank you, Pops-
Wait… a second.
Something is off...
"Hey Pops…" realizing something in his quirk, I asked Pops.
"Hm?"
We've been living together for a lot of years now. So long for a fact that I already knew Pops' quirk in his own social interactions to others. I know the exact time when he is about to commit a lie or tell a truth when judging from his extremely clandestine cues.
Right now, he is lying.
"You just lied to me, didn't you?"
"Yes, I did."
T-this guy!
"To tell you the truth, I did not wake you up because I want you to learn the value of punctuality in every person here in the city… even much more for a Myrmidon."
Augh. I hate it when he becomes right in something, although he's being obnoxious about it!
"Seriously..." I just said half-heartedly from his fatherly reason. Truly, I cannot argue in his reasoning.
"Say, Pops…"
"Hm?"
"Would you be alright even if I am not around in the smithy due to these incoming duties that I'll perform?"
Indeed. We are living with each other for as long as I can remember and now, thinking that I cannot be around in the smithy from time-to-time scares me. I guess you could say that this is an entirely new box that I have to work with starting now.
Pops stopped sipping in his abnormally-sized cup and looked at me with serious expression. In these past months, I just grew numb from him staring at me with his reluctant gazes when I am about to say something but now, after everything that happened in the festival and inside the League, his gazes changed.
He raised his left eyebrow and kept looking at me in a confused manner with a face that flat-out says: 'HA?' on it.
It followed with him bumping my head with his left hand and with a faint thud that I felt, he said:
"Do not be ridiculous kid, it's not like we won't be seeing each other for a year. You will come when the night breaks, right? So there's no need to be concerning yourself regarding that."
He reassured with his default seriousness- his usual treatment to me and others.
That's my Pops alright.
"B-But what about the smithy? Who will work with you without me and Nada around?" I asked with outmost concern.
"Eh, I think I'll be fine. I guess I will not be seeing the both of your messes from now own." he said while withdrawing his hand in my head and continued his slurping in his coffee.
Wow, is that what you normally say before you send off your own child?
"Just come back when you feel the silly urge to visit the smithy. Since the festival is over, I can finally focus on the recent sword requests that I had queued in a while. Hey also, if I request something for you, your group should hear me out and accept, okay? The three of you are Myrmidons, after all."
Right. This guy is hopeless.
I stood up, got everything that I need, including my baggage, and stood in front of our door.
"Alright, alright. I guess I could do that. You are my Pops, after all!" with a fleeting smile on my face, I set-off on my brand-new role as a Myrmidon!
"Whoa. It is Tori!"
"Wahhhh. She looks beautiful in her azure attire!"
"Seeing this girl with a sword… it's as if, I just saw a flying piglet aloft the skies!!!"
Stepping out from our house, I immediately heard some various voices when I faced them.
Look at them, aren't they being too noisy and pushy this early in the morning?
To be respectful to their warm welcome, I smiled awkwardly in front of them and made an equally-warm greeting:
"Good morning, my fellow swordsfolk! It is a fine morning, is it not?"
There's no way in myself that I can tell the reason on why am I being dutiful in front of them now… Specifically, regarding my own actions not wanting to give them any further annoyance or insult so that I can avoid another blood-hunt in my head.
"Say, can you help me to find my kittens? I noticed that they were missing first thing in the morning!"
"Hoi, Tori. Can you ask your Pops to give me a discount on his extremely expensive sword? I just do not have the right amount of Evees to afford it!"
"Hey, miss Myrmidon! C-Can I interest you to have a drink with me? Well, with the Da-Moo milk, of course! Hehe…"
When I sent off my cheery greeting in the morning, these shameless people just spat out their individual wishes in front of me- a girl with a sword.
Hey, I am not a pixie or some fat genie! I am just a simple lady!
While being stunned and dazed from all of these cockamamie requests made by my people, I just heard someone laugh shadily in my back. To be precise, at the back of the door in our house.
Right… you will never see me for a couple of days, Pops.
"OH… One-by-one p-please…" overwhelmed on their increasing requests, I stuttered on my words to keep their ever-increasing requests at bay.
Oh, this is bad. I already steeled myself last night for all of the absurd things that I might encounter for this day's events, but even I did not imagine that things will play out like this!
Oh, Lady Luck! If you truly exist, please help me!
"Good morning everyone! It is a fine weather we are having, is it not?"
I turned in the astonishing and energetic voice that made everyone stop their pestering at me.
He wore his ever-favorite golden-yellow tunic that is somehow sleeveless. The tunic is coupled with his traditional Leaguesman uniform that is made up of a long trench coat tinged in a glossy black. Situated in the center of his tunic lies a family crest that he never showed to everyone up until now. The crest is foreign and difficult to read at first glance but after further inspection, you will see that the given crest depicts an image of a majestic bird that is colored in a dark, crimson red. Below of his upward apparel are black trousers that looks well with his aforementioned coat.
…didn't you just repeated my line there, Hoi?
He was sweating in his forehead and with the droplets of fluids in his crimson hair, Roy announced in both of us that we are moving.
"Pardon my intrusion for your requests, but the daughter of the finest smithy of the city has a request in the League! So, if you still have unsolved concerns, may I implore to your hearts to let us finish this soon-to-be-announced quest in the League first!" he bowed while talking in the people in a diligent manner.
"W-well, I guess…" said by one of the requesters and left. After that, most of the others left too.
Ah, I was saved. Thank you, Lady Luck! I owe you one.
"Ahhh… you saved me there Roy-"
I was about to give my thanks to my childhood friend when he pounced at me out of nowhere.
"Tori, you idiot! Where were you this late in the morning, huh? Do you have any idea what kind of troublesome excuses I had to weave just to cover you up to the Grandseer? What do you have to say for yourself, huh? HAH?!"
Roy swayed my shoulders back and forth in an irate manner while asking me some bullet-fire of questions.
"S-Stop it, you idiot! I feel dizzy!"
Oh, that feeling takes me back. He did this to me too yesterday.
"To tell you the truth, I woke up in a late manner hence, I was just about to locate you… I am in the wrong… I apologize." I said when his violent shaking went into a halt.
"Argh. Seriously, it is your first day! Tori, you ought to be responsible in your role as a Myrmidon! Father said that he entrusted the city to us, so we should definitely play the role as one!" Roy puffed as he let go of my arms.
"Well, no matter! As long as you understand. Well? What are we waiting for? Let us move!" he then said courageously as he retrieved a set of boxes and carried them.
Aren't you too lively in the morning?
Also-
"Hey Roy, what are those boxes for?" I suddenly inquired.
"Oh, these? I had an urgent request for our city Herald that he is not in shape to carry these deliveries, so I helped him out! Well, it is not that I am complaining but, they sure are a lot! Ha-ha…"
*GULP*
I suddenly panicked in his words.
"R-Roy, since when did you delivered those boxes? Are you trying to tell me that you ran around the city to deliver them?"
Do not tell me… you cannot be serious.
"Since dawn!"
-ACK!
"Yeah, I basically ran around to deliver each of them. They are around thirty in total so I have to be fast in my footing or else, I'd be late. I never want to disappoint our city Herald, of course!"
ARE YOU THIS SERIOUS???
Are you trying to tell me that… in order to be considered as Myrmidons, we have to exert a lot of effort alike to the performance that this guy presents?!
Oh, sharps…
The both of us ran towards the League with an unpleasant feeling in my gut.
Back to the League, again.
Unlike yesterday, the place seemed to be in its normal and rowdy atmosphere as a lot of Leaguesmen and staffs are running around while talking about their own businesses. A lot of them are casually conversing, some of them are sleeping, while the others are talking about their strategies in patrolling.
"You can sit in the empty table of the bar section for the meantime. I just have to deliver this few boxes to the Staff-head so do not go around without me, okay? I'll make this quick!" Roy instructed me when we entered the entrance of the League.
I nodded to his sound words and decided to head into the bar section of the League. It is a place, as the name imply, specifically catered for Leaguesmen who are hungry and wanted to drink some sophisticated liquor or refreshments. It is a large place located at the right-end corner after the main hall of the establishment.
Located in the foremost boundary of the bar, I decided to sit and wait patiently for Roy when I heard a collection of specific and rowdy voices in my far-side. Some of the tables are covered with wooden walls in order to give a sense privacy to each customers and this time, the voices where I am hearing them are from that blocked table on my right.
Look, I am a person who respects personal space and privacy and it is not in my nature to eavesdrop to a conversation from unknown people.
But… this specific conversation, although uninteresting for me, was heard by my unsuspecting ears anyway due to their loudness.
"Hehh? What an interesting man! Are you sure that you are capable of those incredible feats?" a soft voice rang in the conversation. A voice that definitely belongs to a woman.
In fact, most of the voices are coming from women.
"HO-HO! Of course, oh fair lady! After all, I have my legendary sword with me and every villain that might pose a threat at me won't even stand a chance!" as a reply, a deep and obnoxious sound followed in that soft voice. This one, without a mistake, belongs to a man.
Or at least, a boy mimicking the voice of a fully-grown man.
"EHHH??? That's wonderful, oh! You are so dashing! Just do not forget to tip us from all of your adventures now, alright?"
"FUFU… Do not worry, oh fair lady! I will definitely come and visit for each and every one of you in these coming of days! After all, these duties of mine aren't oh-so troublesome! HO-HO! For a guy like me? Not a chance!"
"KYAH! You are my hero! Say, can we move further in our relationship???"
"What??? I visited him first! So he has to advance his relationship with me!!!
"What are the two you blabbing about?! I am literally the cutest among of us, so I am the one worthy of this situation!!!"
The loudness further ensued.
"Come now, oh fair ladies! Let us not jump the guns here! The days that we have are slow and wonderful, after all! Let me have the pleasure first to enjoy our honey-laced friendship amidst this sugary atmosphere that we have, alright? After all, they say that a love that is forced and conceived from attraction is not love at all!!! So, let us take it slow, okay? The four of us!!!"
"KYAAA!!! How can we say 'no' to that pleading face of yours!!!" x3
Huh, I did not know that the exercise of polygamy and adultery is allowed here.
"Say, I did not expect that you were a noble! Well, you do have that aura of nobility around you but I did not fully expect that you are a real one!"
"Well, they do say that I do not have that feel of being a noble at first glance, yet indeed! I am one! HAHAHAHA!"
"If you don't mind me asking, what part of the noble house do you belong to?"
"HO? You do not know, lady? I hail from the land of Silvos!"
ACK-!!!
Wait. Did you just say-
"WAHHHH!!! So cool! Of what family?"
"Well, I came from the family of Aldendrites!!!"
Wait, wait, wait! It is far too early to jump into conclusions here.
Being scared of finding out the right answer to my suspicion, I sneakily moved my place beside the table where the rowdy voices are located.
Now, let us see who is this annoying little git-
!!!
Sitting beside pretty women (most likely being adventurers), is an obnoxious-looking man clad in an unusual attire that is tinged in emerald-green. It is a kind of clothing that is foreign to me as it is ornamented with weird design in its buttons, while having its long sleeve for both of its arms. He wore a black-colored pants for his lower attire and collectively based on his way of clothing, he is an important-looking person. He held his wooden sword in his side as he passionately converses with not one, not two, but three women.
T-This idiot!
"Hey, Tori! I apologize for the wait, let us now look for-"
While watching this ludicrous farce unfolding in my sight, Roy finally approached me while handling two pieces of thick documental papers.
"Hey, Roy…" I said to him.
"Hmm? What is it? Why are your eyes twitching like that?"
I did not bother to answer the question of Roy and instead, I used my index finger to point at the lustful man in my far side.
"Yeah! I am a newly-appointed Myrmidon and I also have two cohorts! One of them is also a noble, while the other one is a daughter of the famous smith in this city! Ha-ha! Our duties as Myrmidons are easy now since I have two important people in my side! Furthermore, they do seem responsible so I will just let them do the work! With that, I can focus with important things in this city just like the three of you!"
"KYAAAA!!! How wonderful!" x3
"Do not worry! I got them under my control as a noble so they are bound to follow my commands!"
Oh, that does it! It is time to end this farce.
Tapping his left side, I asked Roy:
"Hey, can I borrow that paper?"
He gave it to me without a second thought and when I moved forward, he followed beside me.
"HOI…" with a cold sound uttered by my deep-wrenching annoyance, I uttered lowly to the man who was sitting with his three chicks-
…And then proceeded to hit him with everything we got!