Beta read by n1ch, Shigiya, Solitary heart and 8kagi
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-Grünes Bergdorf-
"By the gods… what the fuck happened here?" Maia said as she surveyed her surroundings.
After galloping on her horse for the last hour, the Queen of Mercenaries made haste towards the village of Grünes Bergdorf, where before she could even reach it, traces of the destroyed land came to be seen.
The dirt path that led through a forest before reaching the village was gone and reduced to ashes. The ground itself turned darker the closer she got till it became blackened, scorched from the intense heat. The forest itself was nowhere to be seen, the stench of burnt wood, soot, and flesh filling her nose and watering her eyes. Maia had to stop for a while, to let the dense smoke disperse so that she could move forward and not just run blindly.
She coughed repeatedly, even her horse could not take the smoke and retreated from the area.
"Woah there! Calm down boy, Shh, Shh." She brought her water flask and dumped some water on her face and the horses before deciding to take a separate route. "Just where are those bastards?" A weird point she noticed as she searched for any signs of Orcs or demons—there were none. "Claudia's stationed Knights sent a report about there being hundreds of demons spotted near the area, yet I can't even find a single trace of those green-skinned fuckers." Those monsters had as much stealth capabilities as her when she got drunk… so hiding was impossible.
After a few minutes, Maia finally saw the village in front and to her immense relief, the place didn't look destroyed. At least partially. The main gates were completely obliterated, with black smoke coming off the ground near the entrance where an enormous crater could be seen. Her eyes widened as she caught a glance of what looked like a partially destroyed Knight's armor. "Shit!" Concluding that the enemy was most likely still present, Maia readied her twin blades and rushed forward inside.
"Maia-sama!" She heard the voice of someone calling for her, looking around, making sure that there were no demons nearby, the Princess Knight saw a group of lightly scraped naked girls calling for her from inside a stable.
"Just… just what exactly happened here?" She asked, jumping off her horse to speak with them, "And what are you all doing inside without clothes?" Her first thought was that she had reached too late, but one of the girls who presented herself as Brynn Deliha, captain of the Knight's squad came to kneel in front of her.
"It-it is an honour to be in your presence, Maia-sama!" Being in the presence of a high-ranking commander or a member of the clergy was an honour, let alone being in the presence of a Princess Knight! Brynn was trying her best to contain her excitement. Even though she and her Knights were nearly defiled by the Orcs if it weren't for the timely save from the archer in red.
"We salute you, Queen of Mercenaries!"
The remainder of her squad joined her kneeling while still naked in front of a fed-up Maia.
If she wasn't so stressed and confused with the whole situation, she might have just ended up bursting into a fit of laughter at their appearance.
Too bad she wasn't in a good mood.
"Oh, for the love of—will you knock that off and tell me what the heck happened here!?" She screamed in frustration. To this day, she still wonders if it was worth taking the title of Shield Princess.
…
After confirming that there weren't any Orcs or any other sort of danger near the area, Maia and her group, who joined them during the middle of the explanation, gathered around with Knights assigned to the village; she helped them patch up their injuries while bringing them somewhere where they could talk.
From her initial observation, Maia couldn't imagine how a band of local guards and a handful of Claudia's stationed soldiers were able to defeat Olga's forces on their own. Not that she didn't trust their combat abilities, cause she did. As someone who came from the slums of the cities, Maia learned to never underestimate anyone from the average man to the Knights themselves. But there was only so much that talent, coordination, and miracle itself could do to hold off a demon army, let alone eviscerate them entirely.
Her cavalry with the Kuroinu boys soon arrived at the scene, both experiencing the same amount of shock and horror as they witnessed the destruction done to parts of the forest and the land.
The citizens were free to return to their abode with some of the nuns offering aid for the wounded and some even helped in reconstructing the gates. In a matter of minutes, the village was once again bustling with noise as many people joined the Kuroinu mercenaries to scout the aftereffects of the battle.
Many large tents were built just outside where Maia and her group decided to stay the night and remain ready just in case another surprise raid was to happen. The Queen of Mercenaries sat on a chair inside the mayor's office. "Alright, let me hear it, your report." She asked, looking at the knights with a calculated gaze.
The girls looked at each other unsure of how to start. Everything until now felt like a fever dream, not to mention the one responsible for saving the village disappeared before they could get a hold of him. Fortunately, they didn't have to say much as the role to deliver the reports went to the person with the highest authority in their group—which meant that this was Brynn's duty. The equally flustered and scared Knight began recounting everything that happened since this morning, from the sudden appearance of the army to the appearance of the red-clothed man. What was even more embarrassing was the fact that she had forgotten to demand that man his name when she first met him! He used his tricks and deceits to fool her and pass through, how infuriating!
Meanwhile, Maia felt a spark of interest in her heart as she continued to hear the story. After all, who wouldn't be interested to know more about a self-proclaimed traveller of land beyond Eostia, wielding magic that she never heard of, a trove of information and mystery that she couldn't help but want to uncover? She didn't care if his magic was dark or not, those prissy members of the church always found ways to ruin the fun for her. Unlike the rest of the Shields, she didn't respect them one bit and was only tolerating them. Though she didn't show any indication of her inner thoughts to anyone inside the room, deciding to remain stone-cold and calculating.
"So let me get this straight." Maia wanted to laugh at Brynn's distressed state, the girl was probably thinking that she was mad at her or something. "A stranger you met at the entrance of the village a week prior, shot an arrow through the leader's face and killed it instantly. This same guy, using magic you believe to be dark, created a wall of Ice from SWORDS, which was followed by bringing you all to safety, right?"
"Y-y-yes…" Brynn refused to meet Maia's gaze as even to her the story sounded nonsensical.
"He then conjured a… spiral sword which turned into an ARROW, which later destroyed the entire army?" Maia was rubbing her temples as she felt a migraine begin to form. Granted she served a literal Goddess who could perform miracles and could even have visions of the future and past, and had even heard stories of Celestine and Olga reshaping the lands during their battles… but this was just absurd on so many levels.
"..."
The room descended into a silent atmosphere that lasted a few minutes, the stationed guards felt their knees shake from the tension while the Knights had sweat running down their faces. Even the mayor who was standing in the corner made himself as small and still as possible as if trying to become one with the wall.
"Brynn."
"Yes…"
"Did you injure your head by any chance?"
"No, I only suffered minor injuries and poisoning."
"Did that poison affect your brain? It may have been a hallucination for all we know."
Brynn shook her head, "Please, believe me, Maia-sama. I know that all of this sounds absurd, but I swear on my oath as a Knight and Celestine-sama herself that my words bear no falsehood." A sight she could never forget, a form of magic she could not comprehend, and a man she could not read through—there was just so much she wanted to know about the red archer.
"Alright, alright, just a simple confirmation would have sufficed. You didn't need to use that old-fashioned Knightly talk. I guess that's what you get when Claudia is your superior." Despite what she was showing outwards, Maia was very interested in this sword mage. For as unbelievable and absurd Brynn's claim was, what else could explain the sheer destruction that occurred outside. And for the life of her, she will go to great lengths to find out his identity.
"If you don't know his name then you must surely remember his facial features. Describe them to me, we'll send a search party all over Ken and the remaining Kingdoms if we have to. I want this man found and brought straight to me!" Even if a tenth of what Brynn said turned out to be true, then he would be an excellent addition to the Kuroinu group; he would like Vault, that man was a natural leader. The Church and nobles could go fuck themselves if they opposed her just because he was a foreigner or wielded unknown magic. All mercenaries and adventurers didn't believe half of the church's bullshit, for them, magic was a tool and nothing else. Of course, Maia did have a certain line she didn't want to cross when it came to magic. Things like necromancy and demon summoning were unanimously prohibited and anyone attempting those things was to be killed immediately.
The last thing anyone wanted was for an amateur mage to lose control of their summoning spells and unleash thousands of hungry Orcs and other demons in the middle of the city. At least that was her point of view, others had different reasons tied to their fate and beliefs.
After getting the details of his face, one of Maia's followers drew an accurate portrait of Archer. "Is this him?"
"Yes, that's him!"
The Princess Knight called someone from her main entourage and handed him the portrait. "Alright, Dan, bring this portrait back to the main capital and have someone distribute flyers all around Ken. Be sure to mention that any information on his whereabouts or his detainment will be heavily rewarded by the Shields themselves. And be sure to pass the message to Vault as well. Oh, and don't forget to supply these flyers to the border guards first, this man may try to escape, and we don't want tha—"
"—Wait!" The cowardly mayor who previously tried to escape everyone's notice suddenly shouted out. "I recognize him!" How could he forget about the commotion that occurred recently? Many of his close friends came to his office and 'borrowed' his chairs without his permission. And he soon found out that the source of this chaos came from the local inn. Suffice to say that he wasn't pleased with this and went to close down whatever was going on.
But just like everyone, he was entranced by the scrumptious aroma of food which smothered away all of his anger and made him curious about who could produce such divine cooking. It was then that he caught a glimpse of the chef, having the same haircut, the name face, and those sharp eyes; it was him!
"Hoho~" Maia laughed with a smirk forming on her face after the mayor explained about the person. "Well, I don't mind paying a visit, the long journey did build up an appetite."
{Break}
"Alice is missing?" Arched repeated Jint's words as looked at the blacksmith incredulously.
After making sure the Knights weren't dead from the blast, he made his way back to where everyone was kept safe. He was going to leave the village soon; those girls saw him performing his brand of magecraft. Archer didn't know much about this world's magic system, but he didn't want to wait and find out what would happen when he revealed his own.
"Yes, Archer-sama! I tried to find her in the main hall, but I didn't even catch a glimpse of the girl anywhere, yet we definitely came here together. Neither the nuns nor the guards noticed her leaving the building in the first place! We must find her!" The man was going hysterical. In many ways, Jint saw the girl as his own blood. The incident with his daughter was still very fresh in his mind, and he dreaded that something unspeakable would happen to her.
'Just where did that girl run off to…' Archer thought, he remembered shouting at her to join the others. "Don't worry, I'll find her." He assured the man.
"Please do so, Archer-sama! I beg of you, please don't let anything happen to that young girl, she's still just a child." Jint said, crying tears while on his knees, already praying to Celestine for her safety. This scene was both bitter and familiar to Archer, he remembered thousands of people from the time he was alive doing the exact same gestures while uttering the same exact words. These people he helped save their families and lives turned on him in the end and threw rocks at his head during his execution.
Emiya was never bitter about that fact, he didn't blame any one of them, even to this day, he didn't bear a grudge or any sort of hate. 'Why am I remembering these pointless memories right now? After all this time?' He couldn't even remember the face of his sister at one point, yet now such small unimportant memories began resurfacing in his mind, becoming clear and clear with each action he normally never undertook.
"I'll be off." Not wanting to waste any more time on his thoughts, Archer made haste towards the Emerald Inn.
Alice was a shy girl, from the time spent with her this last week, Archer knew her better than most people in this village. Aside from spending all her time in the inn, she also made stops at the church to pray for her parents' spirit, or she would make a quick stop at the market to buy groceries for the inn. She never ventured anywhere else due to her shy nature. "Meaning there was only one place she could be right now."
Making sure to avoid the recently arrived troops, Archer made his way towards the Emerald Inn. Granted, he didn't have skills like [Presence Concealment] like the assassin class Servants, and he was also no longer able to use his Astral form, but that didn't mean he wasn't proficient in avoiding other people's notice. Stealth wasn't his strongest suit, but he was above most average Magus.
Another detail he noticed with these newcomers. From the murmuring passerby, the distinct black dog-shaped tags around their necks and their general equipment made Archer realize who arrived in the village. "Well, this is a pleasant surprise. My target came to me instead." Though they were just a small group, Archer could probably pry some information out of them on any of Vault's recent plans. Of course, he would dispose of them quietly without anyone noticing.
As he reached the Inn, a particular scent caught his attention. "Blood?"
Not good.
Bam!
He didn't bother holding back and broke the door, rushing inside, tracing both his iconic swords; Kanshou and Byakuya. Reinforcing his eyes so that he could see better in the dark, he saw a few drops of blood on the floor—red human blood.
"Alice!"
Crash!
He instantly heard a loud crashing sound coming from one of the rooms. Archer would never admit it, his stay in the Emerald Inn was a short one when he would have acquired all of the required information about the Kuroinu and their leader's general location. But the idea of something bad happening to Alice and the Inn didn't sit well with him.
After bursting through the wooden door, he found one of those Imps that were chucking those poison smoke bombs.
"Hehehehe!" The monster laughed with a disgusting sound, its eyes scanning around as if trying to find someone. When the Imp turned around and noticed his arrival, it snarled in anger and lunged at him. To anyone's eyes, the demon's movement would have been like a blur, but to Archer's reinforced eyes and countless years of experience fighting against beings both faster and stronger than the creature—it might as well be moving in slow motion.
With a quick swipe of Kanshou, Archer sliced its eyes. "REEEERGH!!" It screamed in agony as both green blood and part of its eyes flowed down its face. In an act of desperation, the Imp started to swing around wildly with its razor-sharp claws, destroying the surrounding furniture and walls. Archer kept lazily dodging each attack and just continued to observe and study it.
Shrk!
This time with Byakuya, he attacked once again and cut through both the middle joints of his arms' muscles, rendering the creature unable to move its forearms. "Geeergh!" At this point, it no longer tried to attack but just tried to get away, to escape his soon-to-be killer's blades. The wooden floor was coated with the green blood and began releasing a foul stench.
"No regeneration or recovery ability whatsoever. Muscle density is slightly weaker than that of an average man with the only danger being the claws." Archer spoke calmly as if he was doing a casual observation. What better opportunity was there than this to test out this world's phantasmic creatures. He didn't forget to cut off the wings so that they wouldn't fly away. "Bones are hollow, probably to reduce weight for flying, making them extremely easy to break. Again, weaker than that of a human."
Step
Step
Step
His steps echoed in the empty building, creating an ominous atmosphere for anyone who could hear it.
Not wanting the creature to get away, he traces a few Black Keys and stabbed the Imp's shadow, immobilising it completely.
It wriggled around, trying to free itself from the sword's effect. The more it tried to resist the more it bled. Soon, a small puddle formed on the ground, and the monster now lay tiredly, twitching every so often from the pain. The putrid smell intensified but Archer didn't pay it any heed.
"So, they can even get weakened from excessive blood loss, but remain alive." It kicked its head and probed it to see if it would still attack him. "Hn, how pathetic, even regular dogs are more dangerous than you. Heck, I know an Irish dog that could wield a spear."
Having gotten the answers he needed, Archer plunged his blade through its head and put the Imp out of its misery.
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"You can come out, Alice."
At the corner of his eyes, the door to the room he just came out of opened up slowly, and with the air shimmering and bending before it revealed a dishevelled Alice. She was clutching the same dagger he gave her. Archer saw her arm bleeding, possibly from the Imp's claw. She was shaking like a leaf, her gaze transfixed on the now-dead creature on the floor.
"Why did you not join the others?" He asked calmly, dismissing his swords to not further frightened the girl. "I remember explicitly telling you to leave this place without me."
"..." Alice remained silent, not able to look him in the eyes.
"These creatures are dangerous, many places from simple villages like ours and entire kingdoms have fallen to them. Not to mention the countless women these… monsters have defiled, raped, and killed."
"..."
"Were you trying to kill yourself? I agree that having lost both of your parents couldn't have been an easy thing to accept. Or were you trying to be a hero? Humph, then you would have been a bigger idiot than someone trying to kill themselves. Tell me, why did you come back here?"
Why did she risk her life? What possible reason could she give him for this irrational decision? None in Archer's opinion.
"I… wanted to save you." She whispered, finally speaking up.
"What did you say?" Arche did a double-take, believing that he heard wrong.
"Wh-when I joined Jint and the others, I-I couldn't find you anywhere. B-b-b-but when that large explosion happened, I got scared that something may have happened to you. S-so I used the dagger to escape and went out to find and save you if you were in any danger. But along the way, I-I ran into that demon who chased me all the way here. I used the dagger to hide in the closet."
Save him?
Save him!?
Just what was going on with his life? First Rin and now her!? "You risked your precious life for a stranger." He stated. Her actions angered him the more he thought about it. "Are you stupid!?" He lashed out. "Save me!? What kind of idiotic reasoning is that!? We barely know each other, I've only been nothing but a temporary cook that only helped so I didn't have to pay for rent and you decided that it was a good decision to endanger your own life for someone like me. Are you even aware of what that Imp could have done to you if I wasn't here?" The sheer idea of someone willing to do that for him made his blood boil in rage. He wasn't deserving of such a gesture; he was already dead. This idea of being given a vacation by Alaya was a lie, after everything was done, he would be chained once again with the role of a Counter Guardian and the cycle will repeat once again. "I am not worth saving."
But it would seem that Alice didn't agree with his words. "Yes, you are! It's thanks to you that I was able to keep my parents' dream alive. You helped a no-good girl like me in learning all of the steps to manage the Inn without asking for anything in return!"
"I did ask for that room for free…"
"That doesn't count!" Alice was getting increasingly rowdier. "Maybe I got something wrong, but it doesn't matter because the act of wanting to help others isn't wrong"
"—!?" Archer's soul nearly left his body when he heard Alice, of all people, speak those words. He hated them, he hated those words so much. Only someone as foolish and stubborn as a certain redhead would say them without hesitation and mean them. "You… You…" He started but Alice had left him completely speechless.
He had so much he wanted to tell the girl, of how wrong and erroneous her words were. This seed of belief she planted in her head would only bring her misery in the future.
Yet, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
'I give up.' If one thing Archer learned in his long life was to never get confrontational against stubborn women, they'll never give up 'Who cares, I'll stay here for a day or two and leave. I've already wasted enough time in this town.' His initial plan was to gather information from the local customers but with some of the Kuroinu gangs now present here—it made his work much easier.
Hopefully, nothing unexpected happens tomorrow.
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The next 5 chapters of Snafu and Fate are already available on my P@treon. With 4 more Broly chapters at /NimtheWriter.