The morning passed, Kimiko and Frenchie paid with some sign language and French tutelage. Butcher paid me by giving me his flask, now I can sell whiskey. The rest paid in cash, apparently I needed something called a card reader, which spawned after I thought about it.
[ASL lv1]
[French lv1]
The morning rush cleared up, letting me get some more CQC practice in with a dummy and some more with the sword. Showering off, I went back to the front and started fermenting a rowa fruit mead along with a rimed one.
Just as I stored it away for fermentation, I heard the door barge open. Some guy in a green body fit suit came in looking like he's about to murder someone.
[Kevin Moscowitz - The Deep
An aquatic based superhero part of the team known as The 7.
Currently hostile.]
I come around the corner, towering above him. "What do you want?" He stepped back a moment, surprised by my size.
"Uh Homelander sent me in to clear this room, you shouldn't have come here man!" He swung at me, so I just caught it.
"You got some decent force behind that I'll give you that, but you could've at least knocked first." I twisted his arm behind his back, and started slamming his face into every corner I could find. It took a surprising amount of time but he finally got knocked out, or died, I didn't check. I used [Wipe] to make him bald and threw him back out of the door.
[CQC lv17]
"Assholes honestly, could've at least started with 'hey what are you doing here?'. If that was me a few months back I'd be dead on the spot." I wiped up the blood and reorganised everything, it's about time for Malenia and Miquella to come in for afternoon tea.
The bell rung and a blue blur shot at me, pinning me to the wall, his eyes glowing red as he held my windpipe tightly.
"Let me tell you what's going to happen big guy, I'm going to throw you out there, you'll apologise and grovel to The Deep and then I'll cut you in half. You got that? Don't make me do anything unnecessary now." He threw me to the ground, floating slightly above me. Coughing and wheezing as I caught my breath, panic seeped in, only to be immediately mitigated by the bell ringing once more.
"Oh you're done now, never screw with the barkeep."
(Homelander POV)
He hurt Deep! That's already more than enough reason to have him hung draw and fucking quartered! But no, he has to learn before he dies. So that if he comes back as some snivelling worm he won't cross the line again.
Throwing him to the ground, I wanted him to crawl to the door begging The Deep for mercy, before I cut off his head in front of the world.
The bell rings, before me stand some more giants, one dressed in weird gold armour and the other in a white silken dress. This is what's wrong with the country, guys in-
The wind get knocked out of me as the other one in armour impales me with her sword, lifting me in the air and throwing me down. "Shit shit shit shit shit!" I try to fly to the exit but she grabs my leg and starts treating me like a fucking pincushion!
Oh god, I can feel my leg snapping off, one more stab and I'm free. Out the door, out the door now please!
"Hear me, I am Malenia, Blade of Miquella. You have hereby forfeited your life by targeting one of his subjects, hear me for these shall be the last words you hear." No No No NO NO! I drive forwards ripping my leg off as I do so, charging through the door into the room of The 7.
(Oliverick POV)
[Pain Resistance lv9]
"You two, free everything for life." I stand back up, rubbing my throat painfully. I grab the leg and immediately put it into the freezer, from what I've heard Butcher might spend a small fortune for that leg.
"'Tis a disgrace I allowed him to leave, let it be known that he shall forever fear the wrath of Malenia." Already I got drinks out for them, and one for myself, god knows I need it.
"Malenia, I know I'm in your debt, but could you please spend even 10 minutes just looking at my form. I know I'm close to the waterfowl dance but I just can't get past that last hurdle." I level with her, if it wasn't for that training manual she gave, my body might not have even been able to handle The Deep, never mind Homelander.
"That is agreeable, close the bar, we shall not stop until you can defend yourself against the man in blue." She immediately walked off into the training room waiting for me. I had to make a quick 'closed' sign so people didn't wander in.
[Time Skip]
[Malenia's teachings lv19]
The training was harsh but fair, I think it was more difficult due to the adrenaline in my veins. I wasn't loose enough for the movements, but she soon worked that out of me. Every step I took could've been 1 inch better, every breath 1 second too slow, that is until.
[Malenia's teachings lv20]
[The teachings of the demigod known as Malenia have now reached the peak of what is attainable. Would you like to evolve?]
I'm curious, what would happen if I didn't evolve it? Would I just be capped at my skill level or would it level further?
[Refusing to evolve will force you to add onto a skill, allowing further levels attainable. The higher level a skill is, the better the evolved reward is.]
I know for a fact I cannot add anything onto Malenia's teachings, so I will prestige.
[Malenia's skills lv1 -evolved-]
"Remain focused, the man in blue would have killed you for that."
I nod and perform the Waterfowl Dance, this time I was suspended in the air as a phantom of me performed a small attack first.
"Remarkable, my role is now finished. The bar may reopen at your will, take heed of my warning should you misuse the teachings of the blind swordsman, you will die. I swear on the blade of Miquella."
And she walked away content with her lessons, seemingly unbothered by my sudden skill gain or how it mirrors her own.
I kept the store closed, I needed to know what I can do now with this new skill. Leaping into the air I dove down to create a small orange bulb around me, as soon as it burst I received notifications.
[Scarlet Rot resistance lv1]
[Scarlet Rot resistance lv2]
[Scarlet Rot resistance lv3]
I started coughing and wheezing as a red rash quickly covered my body, I stumbled into the kitchen scrambling to find the bolus I need.
[Scarlet Rot resistance lv4]
It was slowly killing me and I felt it, slowly and painfully. I felt my organs flaking away inside, but after a single bolus bite the pain dissipated. I fear I know what I need to do.
[Time skip]
[Scarlet rot resistance lv19]
[Malenia's skills lv2 -evolved-]
The same day came to an end as I kept practicing the same bulb move over and over, I noticed at level 2 it grew and I gained another phantom during the waterfowl dance.
If I didn't have an unlimited supply of boluses I would be long dead by now, but on the bright side.
[Scarlet rot resistance lv20]
It got harder to build as I went along, as it got harder to actually get afflicted.
[Your resistance to the Scarlet Rot has now reached the peak of what is attainable. Would you like to evolve?]
I have no way to build upon this so I selected yes.
[Scarlet Rot Immunity lvMAX -evolved-]
And now the bar is finally open, I'm capable now of fighting and not getting killed by my own attacks. I need to request a katana now, since all of Malenia's teachings are built upon that foundation.
A sign on my wall, now states a katana specific trade. 'Best Katana Wins!'