"How dare you touch my Lord!." The Blonde shouted. "Who are you!? Where did you come from! Which organization do you belong to!?"
"I know your mouth moved, but all I heard was screeching." I replied.
"How dare you! I'll teach you some manners." She held her hand up and I could feel the Magical Energy gather in large quantities. A large, red, Magic Circle appeared in the air.
It was obvious to tell she was about to do something, so I simply took out a Talisman and threw it at her. She looked surprised as the piece of paper smacked her in the face and she fell to the ground, her magic dissipating and her body unmoving.
"Rude." I said pointedly, wagging my finger.
Why did she just stand there and let me do that? Did she think I'd wait for her to do whatever it was she was doing? Well.....I guess I do in fact do that sometimes....
"W-what just happened!?" Godou raised his voice.
"Just a paralysis Talisman. It'll wear out in about.....20 minutes based on how her Magical Energy is fighting against the effect." I hummed, eyeing her over. "Though if she were more skilled in her control, it would only last a few minutes at most."
To be honest, a true expert would have been able to brush it off without any effort. But this girl seemed rather inexperienced with the admittedly impressive amount of Magical Energy she could call upon. I guess I could just chalk it up to lack of certain experience. She's probably used to blow through obstacles with strength.
"Magic." Godou said lightly.
"Well, I would like to point out, she tried something first and I just defended myself."
Godou sighed again. "So I just have to take off this piece of paper?" He questioned, pointing towards it.
"Yup." I shrugged.
Godou paused turning back towards me. Despite being dropped into the deep end here, he seemed rather…..unafraid about the whole ordeal. "What do you want from me? I hope you aren't here to fight me like Doni….."
"Doni." I tilted my head trying to recall where I heard that name. "Oh, another Campione?" I vaguely remember reading about him. Some idiot who runs around picking fights with people. I glanced down at the blonde who was giving me a very angry look even if she couldn't move or speak. I of course just smiled brightly at her.
"Why does this keep happening to me?" I heard him mutter under his breath and it made me feel bad.
I let out a commiserating sigh of my own. "It must be hard. Suddenly going from a normal high school student to suddenly being called a 'Lord' by people you just met." I could guess that his relationship with this blonde girl was shallow and probably due to his new status.
He turned towards me, a weary look on his face.
"I remember when I first discovered the supernatural." I unconsciously ran a hand through my hair. "I was just a normal highschooler like you. I walked up on an Exorcist killing a stray….monster. He was a bit unhinged and decided to run me through with his sword."
"He just tried to kill you?" Godou looked aghast as I now grabbed his full attention.
"Yup, he didn't even blink an eye as he tried to kill me. I was lucky, a few latent magical abilities of mine were brought to the surface and I managed to survive." Actually….when was the last time I even talked about this? "I wasn't in a good place at the time, so I was pretty eager to throw away everything I was before the incident and embrace this new path." I shook my head remember how I was so quick to discard my previous life. "Never did finish high school either." I let out a small laugh. "I'm perhaps one of the most brilliant Mages in the world, and I'm also a high school drop out."
"I was just delivering a package for my Grandfather to Lucretia Zola." Godou said quietly. "I didn't know it was magical and next thing I know, I'm being threatened by Erica because I was carrying it. Then a God attacked and I got caught up in everything."
"Small world." I chuckled. "Lucretia Zola is something like a Grandmother to me." Well, that's a guess, but I'm pretty sure it'll be made into a reality soon.
His eyes widened a little. "You're related to her?"
"Not by blood, but there is a relationship there." It's rather complicated, new, and tenuous and I didn't' want to get into it. "Honestly, I came here because I was annoyed that you destroyed the Colosseum."
"Haaah." He let out a long breath. "I didn't mean to. Erica and some old guys wanted to test me but they wouldn't listen and I just got caught up in it."
"Is that so." I said evenly as I stared down at the blonde. "Well, the target of my ire has certainly changed." I locked eyes with the blonde. "And I expect that such a tragedy will be rectified regardless of the cost to the perpetrators." I didn't think my 'subtle' threat needed to be more spelt out than that.
I turned back towards Godou. "Hey, wanna skip for the rest of the day?"
"What?"
"School. Want to skip it and come hang out with me for a bit? You seem like you need some time to cope with everything and maybe an ear to listen?"
"I just want a normal life." He repeated, almost like a mantra.
"What's more normal than a kid skipping school? I did it more than a handful of times when I still attended." I let out a laugh.
He looked at me then back at Erica on the ground. It was a bit telling that he still hadn't helped her out yet. I don't think he was particularly enthused by her behavior. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was considering it.
"She'll be fine?" He questioned again, obviously referring to Erica.
"Yup. I promise that she'll be up and about in no time." I nodded.
"Fine." He sighed again. "I guess I could use a day off."
***
"This the place?" I asked Godou as we walked down the street.
"Yeah, I usually come here when I had some spare money." We walked up to a little ramen stall on the corner of a street.
"Well, it's been awhile since I've had proper ramen." I would admit to being a glutton, and I always looked forward to food.
I had already sent Raikou a message through our mental link telling her of what I was up to. As much as I wanted to introduce the girls to him, he clearly needed someone to talk to.
Ducking under the hanging curtains we slid into the stools seated at the counter.
"Hey Kenta." Godou greeted rather familiarly.
It was funny how I still perceived language in English undertones due to my heritage. I could see his lips move to include proper honorifics, but it just came out as 'Kenta'.
"Godou." The man behind the counter exclaimed. "You skipping school, brat? You know that's not good. You don't want to end up like me."
"It's just one day." Godou gave a small smile.
"Alright, alright. I know you're a good kid." The cook smiled right back. "Whadda want, the usual?"
"Two, please." He replied.
"Oh, can I get mine a little spicy? I'm in the mood for some kick." I spoke up.
"No problem." Kenta gave a thumbs up, setting down glasses of water infront of us before turning back towards his cooking.
I dipped my finger into my water. I shared a look with Gudou as I began to draw a few Runes on the counter. "Just a little cantrip I picked up."
Godou looked at me. "What did you do?"
"To put it simply, it's a perception filter. Basically, the spell filters out anything we say and do so it sounds like we're just having a mundane conversation."
"Huh." Godou didn't seem too displeased with that. "That's sorta neat."
"Magic is pretty neat." I grinned. "Wanna see a little trick?"
"Sure."
I turned my hand over, taking out my hat. I had his full attention, so I reached inside and pulled out Sir Wiggles for a brief moment.
He stared before letting out a laugh and I couldn't help but smile at his reaction.
"Magic isn't so bad, yeah?"
"No, that's great. I didn't expect that. Is that real magic or a trick?"
I let Sir Wiggles go back inside, he didn't seem to want to come out and play for the moment. I think Godou's presence was a bit intimidating to him. "It's actual Magic." I admitted. "I'm not very good at stage magic yet,I'm sorta trying to learn how to do it. I saw a few shows with my mom when I was a kid. I wanted to learn how to do it and I had the free time so I thought 'why not'." I put my hat on my head. "Ever think about picking up some Magic yourself?"
"Learning Magic?" He repeated as if the idea was completely foreign to him. "I don't really wanna mess with any of that stuff."
"I sympathize, I really do. But you're just burying your head in the sand and hoping everyone leave you alone." I honestly felt bad about his circumstances, but he was going to get hurt or get others hurt if he keeps this up.
"Why can't everyone just leave me alone?!" He threw his hands up. "I didn't want any of this, why are people so focused on me!?"
"Kid, you killed a God and usurped its power. That isn't something that can be ignored." I pointed out. "Let me put it this way. Would the government ignore someone who walked around with a Nuke?"
"That's…..not the same." He said quietly.
"Isn't it?" I questioned. "You are pretty much inviolable to mundane means. A gun won't do anything to you, a regular person most likely can't subdue you unless you let them. Even most Magic is completely worthless against your resistances. And to top that off, you can command Divine Power to lay waste to cities." He was about to speak up, but I wanted to push home my point. "Now, I'm not accusing you of anything. I've known you for all of a half hour at this point, and I know you aren't that kind of person. But you have to understand, it's the implication of what you can do."
I saw him bite his lip and look down. "Is there a way to get rid of it?" He asked hopefully.
"Not that I know of. You're changed on a conceptual level, that isn't something that can simply be undone without something of equal power behind it."
"So I'm going to have to deal with people like Erica and you coming into my life and there's nothing I can do about it?" He sighed again.
"It's unfortunate, but you are elevated to one of the highest political spots in the world. Your words carry weight now. They aren't just blowing smoke up your butt, kid. They are legitimately in awe of your existence." I tapped the counter absentmindedly. "Did you know you have an aura about you that practically forces people to acknowledge your superiority? Granted, I don't believe normal people can feel it. But anyone with any sort of magical sense will unconsciously defer to you even if they don't want to."
"Really?" He blinked in surprise. "Is there a way to turn it off? I don't want people tripping over themselves to worship me." He smiled bitterly.
"You just gotta work on reining in that presence of yours. Which means you can't keep denying your new status."
"Wait." He perked up. "Why aren't you…..you know?"
"Falling over myself around you?"
"Yeah, that."
"Eh, I should have clarified. If someone's strong enough, they can shrug that kind of thing off." I grinned. "Another lesson, so you don't get a swollen head." I pointed out. "You're not invincible. I'm not a Campione, and I'll tell you this right now, you're not my match."
He had a very impressive amount of power contained in his body, an absurd amount of It if I were to be honest. But I had complete confidence in beating him if it came to blows. I doubt I'd have to even be serious except avoiding his Authorities.
He blinked again at that, but didn't seem offended. "Erica said that Campione can only be defeated by other Campione or Gods."
"I would say that's the general rule. But there are always exceptions." I leaned my head into my hand. "I told you before, I came over here because I was annoyed at what happened in Rome. Do you think someone who couldn't handle themselves would come to voice their discontent around someone like you?"
"Atleast you aren't making me fight like Doni." Godou grumbled. "He wouldn't take 'no' for an answer."
"That's gonna keep happening, kid." I again felt a little bad for him. "Power begets power, it's a universal truth. Others of similar strength are going to look for you. Hell, Heretic Gods are going to come after you just for existing."
"Can't I just convince them to leave me alone? I mean….you said I'm someone important, why won't they listen to me?"
"You are basically a King without an actual crown. The normal people below you will bow to your whims. But the other 'kings' won't recognize your commands." I shook my head. "I'm sorry, but you're not going to be able to live a normal life anymore."
"Really? I can't just…..deal with all this when I'm not busy with other stuff?" He looked like he was grasping at straws here.
"And what? Get a 9-5 job somewhere and play Godslayer at night? Reality isn't going to conform to your wants. I'm not telling you this to be mean, but you're going to get yourself or others hurt if you keep this up. You got a family?"
"Yeah." He said quietly. "I don't want them mixed up in all this stuff."
"I can't claim to see the future. But as cliché as it sounds, if you want to protect them, you're going to have to get stronger."
"So troublesome." His head fell down into his hands. "Why did this happen to me? I'm not anyone special."
"Who knows." I shrugged. "But it isn't all bad, Y'know."
"How isn't this bad? You said people are going to come after me." He looked at me with a sour expression.
"Reach out to the local supernatural organizations. It's a bit normal for the local ones to serve their resident Campione. And you won't ever have to want for anything again. People will literally fall over themselves catering to your wants and needs. Who do you think they'll turn to when an Angry God descends on Japan? You won't have to worry about a office job anymore." I didn't quite catch him yet so I continued. "And that girl – Erica was her name? She was cute, not my type, but I can't deny her beauty. What do you think about her?"
"W-what do you mean?"
"Well, you're a healthy young man, I don't want to assume anything. But….she's willing to serve you. And I doubt she'll be the last to try and come under your banner."
Godou turned red and I couldn't help but laugh. "T-that's not true, we're nothing like that!"
"Well, it's up to you." I grinned at his reactions. "Godou." I punctuated. "You can literally choose which path you want to take and no mortal on the planet can stop you. I'm not here to pressure you into anything. I felt bad because of your circumstances so I wanted you to understand the position you were in. Yes, it's pretty shitty that you'll have to probably fight for your life, but you also have many opportunities that people will literally kill for."
"I know." He grumbled. "I had dreams and stuff like this when I was a kid. Playing with Magic, who wouldn't want that?" He looked at his hands. "But after almost dying...I just wanted it to all go back to normal."
Ah, the clinging to normalcy was his way of coping with what happened. It must have been rather traumatizing to face down a literal God.
I put a hand on his shoulder. "It gets better. You'll find people to help you out and you won't have to shoulder everything yourself." The corners of my lips curled up. "Maybe a few beautiful women, eh?"
Watching him turn red again would be something I always found amusement in. "I-is that how you dealt with it?"
"Well, having a Harem certainly helps." I nodded.
"N-no!" He squeaked out. "I mean, having other people?" He paused for a moment. "Wait, you have a harem?"
"Yes, yes I do." I wouldn't deny that I took a bit of pride in the women in my life. "But yes, it certainly helped me come to terms with everything in my life. I honestly don't know where I'd be right now without the support I've had along the way."
"That doesn't sound so bad….."
"Right?" I nodded with a smile. "Now, for my next lesson. I'll teach you all about managing a Harem."
"What!? Why would I need to know that!?"
"Don't worry, Godou. Let your big brother do his duty and teach you all about women."
"I need an adult."
"Ah, already wanting to move onto the advance stuff. Don't worry I'm well versed in how to handle older women."
***
Wilhelm gives Godou a much needed talk about his new status in the world without trying to fight him, worship him, or manipulate him. And oddly enough, he's more receptive to that, who'da thunk it?
Anyways, if you want to read 7 chapters ahead or support me, visit my pat.reon.com/astoryforone
We have a Dis cord -- JbwkdNDt7F