Ramone's grip on her hand was gentle; he frequently looked down at her, smiling ever so often to comfort her. Yet his kindness only assured her of what was soon to become.
As they walked hand in hand towards her doom, Anura couldn't help but let her final thoughts consume her. Though Anura knew her thoughts were negative, she listened to what the despair in her heart had to say. She no longer had any hope in her, and if she did, then her hope must have been overthrown by the darkness in her broken soul.
Each step they took in the bustling town felt like another weight added to her shoulders. The faces of the townspeople turned at her, smiling with their sharp teeth and impish faces.
"Weak. Useless. Disgusting," the devil whispered. Each word ripped a piece of her hope away.
Previously she had also felt despair when she learned about her inability to use magic. However, back then, her family had been there for her, but now she was left with no one. She had no one at all, at least no one that she could trust.
What should she do?
"Die," it whispered in her head. "Then, it will all be over."
But, she didn't want to die.
"Yes, you do."
Anura wanted to die. She wants to die? Does she? The question echoed in her head.
"The End," concluded the voice in her head.
Yes, she wanted to die. She was powerless, and there was no point left for her to fight.
"Wow, is that Kelvin Fraus the Blade of Earth?!" shouts a voice in the crowd of people in the town.
Anura flinches to the name, Kelvin Fraus. She looks up at Ramone and the rest of Aislinn. They had all turned around, looking towards the front of the children's orphanage.
"Wow, it's Kelvin Fraus! He's as handsome as rumors say!" squeals the lady dressed in a black maid dress. She was holding a basket of fruits in the middle of the outdoor market.
Following everyone else, Anura looked towards the man in front of the orphanage. He was speaking to a lady that seemed to be the owner.
He was Kelvin Fraus. Anura had seen him at gatherings and parties, but he never even spared her a glance. His body was covered in an intricate golden-red armor. He held a sharp face with an aura of dominance.
Most knights were stationed in the capital. But there must be a problem for him to be here.
"I heard he was a part of Soma's joint extermination with the House of Gwyneria," exclaims a lady by the stand selling oranges.
"Tch...The Somas, they were never admirable. Living high up on top of Mount. Ephesus and acting all high and mighty!" the maid with the fruit basket adds.
"Weren't they commoners at first?" asks a brunette woman with a child, stopping as she heard the conversation.
A plump lady near the basket of bananas scowls. "So what?! They were still nobles in the end!" she shouts, rolling her eyes. "Even their servants were cocky! One lecher kept making passes at me when he came down to collect supplies on his servant airship!"
"How stupid were they?" chuckles a lady to her husband as they leave the market.
"They shouldn't have been promoted, to begin with," Anura hears the man mutter to his wife as they walk by.
The gossip continued, and Anura just itched to get away from all the slander. They were supposed to be moving yet Ramone still held her hand tightly, without walking.
Were they waiting for someone? Why had they stopped?
Anura didn't know since she had been too deep in her thoughts before, blocking out the conversation of the Aislinn team.
She looked up towards Ramone. His eyes were still watching Kelvin. Then for a moment, he glanced down at Anura, and their eyes met.
Team Aislinn turned towards each other, exchanging a series of glances at Anura then shifting to look at Kelvin.
What were they thinking? We're they gonna give her in here? To Kelvin?
Then with a hesitant nod from Yue, Ramone kneels onto one knee. He gazes up towards Anura with a saddened smile.
"Anura, I think it's best if we part here," he whispers.
Anura's golden eyes widen. "W-hwha- what?" she stutters.
Of course, Anura knew they'd have to part, but she wasn't ready. She wasn't ready to go back to the place where the evil glances ridiculed her from afar. This time she knew it wouldn't just be their piercing eyes. This time she'd die.
Did she want to die, though? Before she had said yes. But did she?
Ramone's grip loosens, caressing her hand gently. "We've decided it's best to simply hand you over to Kelvin. It'll hurt us less on the travel cost."
Tears well up in her eyes. "No! Not yet!" she protests, shaking her head frantically.
More people were now gathered around Kelvin. Glancing at him from where team Aislinn stood was now impossible.
Team Aislinn looked pitifully down at Anura, who stood sniffing against the brick wall.
Ramone sighs, standing back on his feet. "Come on, let's go."
"No!"
There was a strong will to live somewhere inside of her. She didn't understand it. She couldn't describe it, but she felt she didn't want to give up.
Twisting her wrist free from the hold of Ramone, Anura broke into a sprint. She ran in the opposite direction from Kelvin Fraus and the crowd that surrounded him.
"An-!" Ramone began to shout, but for an unknown reason, he stopped himself. If he had continued, Kelvin obviously would have heard Anura's name.
Weaving through the crowd of people, Anura felt the world blur before her. For the first time, she couldn't feel the hate of those around her. When she ran, she didn't feel powerless but the will of life.
She was going to survive! Maybe she was weak, useless, and disgusting but she was also Anura Soma, the last surviving member of the Soma family. She was gonna make their legacy live on! She will live for the lost lives of her family.
Anura heard the clonk of cans tumbling from behind as she ran.
"Hey!" yelled the voice of a cranky man.
Were the knights following her?
Anura turned her head to glance at the ones tailing her from behind. It was team Aislinn! They must have knocked over that man's stack of bean cans as they were running. Those greedy freaks! They won't leave her alone.
"Come back!" She recognized Jacob's voice shouting.
"Stop running, please!" cried Yue.
Like hell, she will. They're going to give her in for the bounty price. She'll never hand herself over to them for that. She would rather hand herself in then be used for money.
Ignoring the calls of Team Aislinn, Anura pushed aside a boy hawking baskets and ran into an alleyway. The alleyway was deserted and dirty, yet it felt safe.
On the side of the wall, a worn bundle of blankets sat, under a balcony that extruded the alleyway. The balcony was dilapidated. Seemingly abandoned due to the construction of a building that blocked the view from the balcony. But the balcony's floor stood firm and extended across nearly all of the tiny alley squished between the two buildings.
Anura, tired and breathing heavily, walked shakily over to the corner of the blanket bundle and collapsed. Sitting in the alleyway, she began to weep. After all, she was just a young girl, just six.
Why did she have to be so sensitive? Why was she crying anyways?! Stop crying! From now on, she'll be strong!
Tears still slowly found themselves sliding down Anura's baby cheeks. Gosh, she was helpless.
"Stop crying!" she yelled, shoving her face into the blanket.
Suddenly, a brassy yawn made its unsettling way into Anura's ear, and the blankets next to her shifted.
Uh oh.
Anura lifted her face from the blanket and slowly inched her head around. She felt a hot breath against her ear as she moved. Finally, when she saw what creature was next to her, she dared not make a sound. Holding her breath tightly, she managed a slight smile.
The dirty man grinned back at her with missing yellow teeth. "Hey, little girl, it isn't nice of you to intrude into my home!"
Gulping, Anura stared at the figure that was rising from the blankets. He wore a thick coat, patched up in multiple places, and patchy pants. It let him blend in near perfectly with the mound of blankets.
The man had a blemished face, with a scar that stretched across his jaw to his forehead. The rest of his face was covered with a thick gray bristly beard. Worst of all, his breath was horrendous.
Staring at him, Anura started to feel nauseous.
With her last breath of air, she shouted, "I'M, SORRY! I'LL LEAVE NOW!"
Trying to stand up, Anura tried her best to distance herself from the man. But her knees gave out, and she fell.
Anura had just been healed from a substantial injury, yet she had overexerted herself again. Climbing back up, Anura watched the man near her.
Suddenly, the man burst out laughing, and a fly flew out of his mouth.
"You should've seen the look in your eyes! Haha!"
Grinning down at Anura, he noticed her heavy breathing and worn-out body.
"Ah, you seem to have tired yourself! Let me fix that real quick," he said, putting his palm on Anura's forehead.
Anura panicked. "Ah! Don't touch me! What are you doing!" she screamed.
Anura suddenly felt a rush of Mana wash over her body. The Mana swept over her, refreshing her body and giving her energy. Then inevitably, the Mana left her body, diverted by her non-existent Mana channels.
"Hmm seems like the effect ain't as great as I'd hoped! You must've been born with some pretty bad mana channels! Make sure to marry a good magically talented fellow to please your children, ey?"
Slapping his arm away from her, Anura grimaced. Even a peasant could point out her non- existent mana channels. How could this man have such powerful magic? And why is the rusty man giving her marriage advice?
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Sir, I'm six. I'm not getting married soon."
The man, mimicking her, narrows his eyes as well. "I guess so, but it's never too early to prepare for the future!"
Anura rolls her eyes. This man must have a mental disease. "Yeah, yeah. Who are you, and what right do you have to give me advice? You're living on the streets!"
"So, what?"
Anura pinched her nose. "You smell."
"No, I smell quite nice," he frowns, as a fly buzzes around his head.
"Yeah, right," she scoffs. Anura hugged her knees to her chest, covering her face to avoid the smell.
He ignores her. Standing up, he begins to search for something in his pile of blankets. After a few moments, he pulls out what looked to be a chicken leg and begins eating.
How can he keep the food fresh in his blankets! Ew! Disgusted, Anura glares at him.
Looking up at her, he grins. "Want some?"
"No," she replies bluntly.
"Why are ya still here? Don't ya have someplace ya need to be?" he asks, chewing.
Anura doesn't respond. Of course, she wouldn't tell him. She's running away from people who want her for money! Right now, it's best if no one knew who she was.
The man nods, accepting her silence and continues to eat. They sit in silence together, without a word. Anura watches the man eat, not because she was hungry, but because he was strange. After finishing the meat, he goes on to eat the bone. Swallowing it whole after licking it clean.
Then he smiles, leaning in towards Anura. "Ma magic is weakened, so ya better leave soon. I can't hide ya long at this old age."
Anura's eyes widen in shock. Hiding her? How does he know? She looks around and realizes that there was an illusion shell surrounding the area. Anura didn't know how, but there was a strange translucent brick wall at the end of the ally way.
This man… he must have blocked the ally way with an illusion! To those who pass by, they don't see the ally, but a brick wall!
"How do you-"
The man cuts her off. "It was obvious you were running away from something by the way you acted. Don't mind my magic, I'm an old adventurer. So, ya leavin' now or what?"
His magic, it's so powerful. He has hidden her for a while now, and illusion magic is quite rare. If his magic is really that powerful, how come he's living on the streets?
Anura raises her brow. Maybe he wasn't so bad. "Your magic is amazing, you'd be a great magic knight. Why are you here?"
"Well… that's a long story. Not for the likes of children like ya."
"Are you a criminal? Dear heavens!" Anura gasps, sarcastically.
"Child, the world is a cruel place, and Apotheosis, the so-called God of Mana, is a cruel ruler. Ya don't gotta be a criminal take a break! Or a 7-year break as a matter of fact!"
Anura pouts. "That seems like a waste of time. You're just lazy, just admit it," pausing for a moment, she adds, "and weird."
The man let out a booming laugh. "NaH! I move around, you seE! Always new alleyways to sleep in! Being weird is my specialty!"
Ah, Anura was jealous. This man had magic, yet he refused to use it. If she had his magic, she'd become the greatest magic knight there was!
"Why alleyways when you can live in a mansion?" Anura asks.
He shrugs. "Life choice. The alleyways are always more interesting! I used to be a decent adventurer once, but that's in the past. However, my adventuring spirit still remains, so I travel! It's much better than settling down somewhere boring."
"Why not become a magic knight? They would take someone like you!"
"Pfft magic knight? The last thing I wanna be is a pesky noble's slave."
Anura was taken back by his response. "But they aren't slaves? They're glorified knights!"
He grumbled, annoyed. "The commanders of the knights are all bloody nobles. It's the same in any kingdom. We commoners ain't have a single chance. When we join the knights, we have to listen to them snobbish fools. We're nothing but over trampled servants with a fancy title!"
She frowned. That's not at all what her mother and father had told her. They said that knights were special and protected the kingdom—each of them, special to the mana god of the kingdom, Apotheosis.
"Enough with the nonsense speak girl, ya lost or something?" he asks, scratching his hairy neck.
"No, and it's none of your business," Anura says flatly.
A fly lands on the man's nose. "Then why ya here? Where were ya before?"
"Some Inn with a lot of magic people," she replies, shrugging.
"Oh, the inn next to the guild branch in this town! I lived there once pretty nice. Most adventurers live in inns or taverns next to the guild when traveling to places the guild operates in!" he says, matter of factly. "Well, the inn's that way to the left!"
Anura shakes her head." But I don-"
"Shoo shoo! Let old Hac get some beauty, sleep!" he groans. Going back to the blanket bundle, Hac lays down. "Toodles!"
Anura stared at the man who called himself Hac until she soon heard gentle snores.
Unsure what to do, Anura looked around. The weird transparent brick wall that Hac made vanished. She was exposed now. With nowhere to hide, she decided to head back to the adventurers' tavern in hopes of starting a new life by herself.
As she walked, she watched the townspeople, chattering. The kids around her age ran in joy as they played on the streets. One boy fell, but his mother came and picked him up in her arms. Anura heard her scold him for running.
She missed her mother, who always protected her. How could she survive by herself? She might as well turn herself in. There was a chance they'd give her a home.
Anura paused. Looking around her, Anura felt out of place. The people around her kept living, even if she would give up. The streets were a dull cycle that played before her eyes. As her heart beats loudly in her ears, she realizes she was just a passerby, watching. There was no place for her.
Suddenly, a hand grasped Anura's shoulder. Who was it?
She hoped to find someone that would take her away and destroy the waste that she was. But when she looked up, she found herself face to face with Ramone.
"Anura," he said, breathing heavily, and out of breath. "We found you."
In front of Anura stood Ramone with the rest of the team behind him.
She smiled. This is what she wanted. They'd come.
Hac had been up to something with his beliefs, yet Anura believed he had just given up. Anura decided she wouldn't. She had to believe in herself and the hope within her.
"Take me with you."
They embraced Anura, and she cried.