"Wow~! Hey, look at this kiddo! It's a piece of paper!"
(The area has been completely leveled...is this how you have fun? Master looks happy, sosososo!)
Surveying the wreckage with sweeping glances, Teret was unable to witness Walker form a large boulder faster than a human could blink.
Regarding Walker's statement...the assassin sure talked in a very austere manner. He would say what he wanted to say, only rarely taking the time to elaborate on the meaning of his words. As such, he often said things that were seemingly completely barren of rational logic.
Who refers to a ground as a "piece of paper" just because it's been flattened? Walker did. And since Teret was...impressionable, Teret's mind was slowly taking on these bizarre traits.
Still, there was some charm to be had in the way Walker spoke. Sometimes it was like a riddle or a puzzle, and there were times when the assassin was just making references he had seen on internet media. However, no matter how he spoke, his feelings would be conveyed by the upbeat way he spoke despite having a stoic face.
Put plainly, this man was a goofball in his own world. Yet he was uniquely him, no matter how eccentric this him may be. Walker was always true to himself if no one else, a gesture he shared in large concentrations with his cherished ones.
Teret made these connections after two solid months of interaction with the sovereign man. He admired the way Walker was able to pursue his dreams and peruse his desires as casually as deciding what to eat today. There was no stopping Walker from marching to the beat of his own drum.
"Whatcha thinking 'bout, apprentice kiddo? Are you thinking of what gifts this master prefers? That's easy. Sit!"
With fluttering steps slowed down to what felt like a snail crawl to Walker, he once again demonstrated a flawless expression of the Whisper Steps. Then, quickly blowing off the steep top of the boulder, he crossed his legs atop a level floor.
His digits waved towards his face, bidding the skeleton to follow in his footsteps precisely. Although he almost fell over several times, he eventually made it in a comparatively expeditious manner.
Walker was actively juxtaposing his earlier progress with now. Yeah, it was a lot faster than earlier.
(Kinda.)
"Look."
Walter spread a hand from one side to the other, taking his time to stand and make a full rotation. A smile blossomed on his reddish lips, the sky staining the once pearlescent luster in its hue.
"Are you proud? You should...not be. You can do better."
Walker settled in his movements, the sun barely peeking through the thick clouds. Yet the round outline perfectly eclipsed Walker's head, raining down separated reddened glares down on the skeleton in thinned lines.
"Never forget that."
The assassin proclaimed while his luminous mane tussled about in the breeze.
The tip of Teret's fingertips drew on the surface of the boulder for a couple of seconds, and Walker could swear he saw a scrunched-up, concentrated face. Then he finished, standing up and bowing his torso to his master.
"Kekeke. Do you want to be knighted or something? Wrong profession, my lovely apprentice. But...hey, maybe one day you can sub-class~! So in that event, I guess it ain't a bad idea to be ahead of the curb."
Walker's Deadman's Stigma glowed as the bottle of pink-looking liquor materialized in his hands again. Then, fixing his grasp around the neck, he tapped the end of the bottle against Teret's collarbones.
Right to left, respectively.
"If you get a new teacher, just know that I'm the Grandmaster. Or I'll kill whoever wants to test my position instead? I have limited patience, you know."
"And now...let's see it pop! Here we go, get ready...!"
Shaking it rapidly again for good measure, his hands seemingly disappeared due to the sheer speed he was exerting...and Teret's perception simply couldn't keep up!
Before he even knew it, a loud pop resounded! All the grime on his bones was washed away in a torrent of ethanol-infused liquid, a sticky pink liquid dripping down and staining his bones.
Then, something changed! Although it should be impossible, Teret felt a wooziness creep over him. Then, stumbling about crazily, a stinging sensation blared around his rear as he fell over!
A spur emerged before a line of bones slowly formed. They were a rougish pink, the bones extending until they constructed a skeletal tail.
It looked...like a cat's?
As Walker's brows propped up as far as they could go, he gingerly turned the bottle. His bulging stare was gleaning over the ingredients portion of the label.
"What the fuck is in this shit?"
Walker wasn't a chemist; he had no idea what any of these weird and made-up-looking words meant...
[The Scorned Tatters glances about, seeming unapproving of the current events.]
[The Black Gigantomonarch looks confused at The Scorned Tatter's actions. Isn't this a crime? You should be overjoyed, buddy. He says.]
[The Scorned Tatters glares fiercely. He claims that even he has standards...and a bottom line.]
"And common decency," Kiva added.
[Yeah, that too.]
--These fuckers...get off the tree and save my baby from that psycho right fucking now!
Mara hollered and practically howled with a clenched fist, beating against the screens of light in front of her! Hexagons slipped from the amber-tinted luminescence, scattering and dissolving into the void.
--Huh. That shouldn't be possible...should I bother her less?
......
Walker read over the words Teret had etched into the stone, his eyes roaming over it repeatedly as a fuzzy smile crawled up his cold face.
Crash!
The bubblegum vodka bottle was ruthlessly crushed before becoming minced into glass fibers by Walker. The assassin then retrieved the coat and mask of the skeleton he had hidden away.
Ignoring the gaze of the Reapers, he batted away their perceptive gazes as if they were mere pests. Then he reappeared at the skeleton's side, cloak and simple mask in hand.
...He had an idea.
Before he would clothe his apprentice, he would give him one more gift before their extended absence from each other. Shadows engulfed his fingertips.
With pristine precision, he carved various Vessel Runes in Teret's bones. These were unique Runes that served as a "vessel" for Runes with other uses, blending them all together and allowing them to move about the body without causing any harm.
Walker couldn't remember the last time he had done anything nice for anybody. His relationship with his little brother was strained at best, his side caring for the little runt in his eyes tremendously, yet his actions were withdrawn and distant.
Free? There are consequences to choices, and nothing is ever truly free.
All of his actions came at the expense of others, and there were many things he would never be able to enjoy or feel comfortable enjoying. He felt numb consistently, stifling his own growth at a young age in order to adapt.
He didn't regret his actions, not once. Willing to bear the weight of his sins with open arms, he didn't expect the brief reprieve he had received. Instead of chasing his capricious desires, he was grounded and imparted something to another.
It was...fun. And it will be fun in the future.
"Thank you too, my apprentice. Is it sad if you're technically my first friend as well? Probably."
Walker blushed a bit at this, his feet impatiently tapping along the rocky surface. He postured, straightening his back as he stared straight at the sun.
"I will see you later. Don't worry, this hell training isn't over, hehe. But you need experience, and I need to think of ways that are even more fun--I mean conducive--to your growth."
Walker leaped into the sky, quickly descending. Violet light unfolded into multiple slashes at the same time he hit the ground, running off into nowhere the Reapers could see.
A voice that was softer than a whisper, mellow yet cheerful, and delicately tender tentatively sounded. It was a voice that was quite pleasant to listen to, one that could even melt hearts that had frozen over a couple of decades ago.
"You're welcome too, 'Grandmaster.' You left too soon though, ahehehe."
Teret inwardly smiled...and then inwardly cackled. That demon of a master had finally slipped up...the skeleton had pulled one over that cocky assassin today!
Pumping his fist into the air, he couldn't hear the mix of awws and shivering.
"That kid is gonna be worse than his master, geez. Look at how despicable his soul's face is right now...wow..."
Seeing an androgynous face that shared more similarities with feminine than masculine traits, the ethereality of his appearance was besmirched by the cruel grin and subtle snicker.
[The Scorned Tatters nods approvingly. He suggests that the kid is more of a villain than a hero?]
"Oh, shut up! Don't give him ideas...well. It seems I'll have to improve that skill after all."
Kiva nodded with pursed lips as streams of tears fell in rivulets. More work...why...
These words seemed to be drifting in the air around him, causing sympathy and derision to be aimed at his slumped shoulders.
......
Teret took his time to induce sleep, as he was taught by Walker. Activating
(...)
Unrest and curiosity bade Teret to spring up from his supine position, instead peeking over the boulder. There, bold text was neatly carved into it.
Though it was a form of writing Teret didn't recognize, the confusion wouldn't last long. Words drifted from the carvings, directly entering his brain as the meanings of the symbols were decrypted after some amount of time.
>Naughty kid. Don't bring up what you heard! Anyways, be good to your mom cuz' she's annoying. Oh, and here's my next task for you before I can start your 'Worldwide Tour De Hell.'
Mother...? Teret didn't really know if he had such a thing. He's no skin, all bones. So how could he have possibly been conceived...?
>Lol. You're gonna make your momma cry. Look at the system panels more, and stop swiping them away when you're irritated.
>Anyways.
>Go to Swillberg and wipe out those bastards. They dare give my apprentice a time limitation? Stupid kids, I almost feel bad. So...I choose you, Teret! Go kick their ass. Also, I heard there's something in that Foeglaze Cradle that would fit you quite a bit. Go get it within a month, alright? I have faith in you~
>P.S: I'm watching. Go do it. I'm not responsible for my actions if you don't.
"...Does that mean he heard me speak already? No, maybe he's just kidding?"
Teret tilted his skull this way and that, visibly expressing his confusion for a bit. Then, he fixed the misshapen tie around his chest and donned the simple mask after a long time.
"A plan, huh? I guess I hafta think about it on the way back. I wonder how Mark and Winnie are...? Mm, come to think of it...I don't know how many people are in there...!"
Then Teret had a flash of realization, the bottom of his balled-up fist clacking against his flattened palm.
"I can use the Random Jackpot Algorithm now, right? He never said I couldn't use it after we stopped sparring, right? And..."
Teret's bony tail swayed along, the linked system actually completely prehensile due to the strange force that united his bones. Dipping over the side of the boulder once again, he checked just to make sure there weren't any other addendums to the message his master had left.
>P.S P.S: You looked. I know you looked. Looker~!
--...Who's the child, again?
--That's literally what I've been saying, Loki.
--Rub it in, and I will shut down the Redemption Point Service for a month. A mob of systems, all lodging complaints because of you. Think about it.
--I literally don't care.
Mara shrugged as she watched her child run across the plains. She wondered when exactly Teret would find a Historia Cache, which could be used to upgrade the system capabilities.
Wait, why didn't that lousy ass assassin give Teret one? He literally had active high-tier system permissions...
Somewhere beneath an undulating mane of orange sandstone-colored hair, teeth were gritted into a shark-like grin as snickering sounds seeped through pearly teeth.