"Thanks, here."
"You're welcome."
Shiro paid the store owner and left for the streets. Secretly, he tossed the street burgers into his inventory.
'I don't know why she wants this..'
Shiro lowered his hood and sighed.
If there was one food Linzy loved, it was this burger from this particular store. She had been begging him for it since last week.
It certainly wasn't the tastiest thing on the menu, but Shiro thought the reason behind why Linzy wanted it was because of the emotional attachment to the taste. After she was rescued, the first thing Shiro bought for the starving her was this burger.
"I wonder how she'll react when she sees this," like a father bringing home a gift for a daughter, Shiro smiled wryly at himself.
Alarm bells rang in his head.
Shiro turned and crossed his hands. A gust of wind swirled, he felt no impact. When he opened his eyes, he found himself standing in some dark alley.
'Wait.. what? I thought I was on the streets..'
"Not bad."
Shiro quickly pulled out a sword and faced the man behind him.
'A demon?'
Two large horns protruding from the side of his temples, sharp fang peeking from his lips. Silver-white hair basking in the glow of the moonlight, a pair of sparkling eyes red as rubies.
"It's an honor to meet you, hero," he grabbed his horns and.. took it off.
"Eh.." Shiro's jaw fell.
He smiled secretly inside, knowing that he had lowered the hero's guard.
"I don't mean any harm, just a passing vampire," the vampire waved the fake horn accessory in his hands.
"What do you want exactly.." Shiro narrowed his eyes.
"I want information you see."
"Information?"
"Are you interested to learn more about what the demons are up to?"
Shiro blinked, confused.
"It seems you're unaware. Let me explain. The demons have set up various plans to disrupt the tournament, however, none of them have completed their duty, which is a relief. However, I have a feeling this will not last any longer," the vampire expressed his frustration. "Hence why I need your help."
"I don't get it. What do you mean by the demons trying to disrupt the competition..?" Shiro was dismayed. He didn't know something this alarming was happening in Rika Nation.
"I understand your confusion. Which is why I am here to exchange information. Will that be alright?" he stretched out his hands.
'A handshake?'
"This is the beginning of our cooperation, I hope. While prejudices continue to exist, while some demons will continue to rebel, I will not miss this chance to correct our past mistakes. Will you help me end the war between the demons and humans, together?"
Shiro used [Blessing: Appraisal] on the demon.
/
{Name: Ingus Rak;
Race: True Vampire;
Age: 383
/
Attributes:
[S+] Vitality
[A+] Strength
[S-] Dexterity
[S] Agility
[S+] Mana
[A+] Intelligence
/
Gifts:
[Passive Trait: Eternal Night's Embrace]^;
[Unique Magic: Blood Work]^^^^;
[Unique Skill: Group Warp]^^^;
[Passive Trait: Kinetic ESP]^}
/
Shiro shuddered.
'What the.. hell...'
===
There hung an air of disquiet throughout breakfast. Schwii peeked at Sequencee who was acting outside his usual self, then at Iona who carefully averted her gaze.
"Sequencee. Is anything the matter?"
"I have something to ask you," he said as he rolled the vegetable dumplings in soy sauce.
"What would that be?"
"I really don't mean to doubt you, just.. I heard."
Schwii tilted her head, her growing brown hair scattered across her shoulders.
"Can you tell me why your mother was imprisoned?" Sequencee asked, caution in his voice.
"Why was my mother imprisoned?"
"Why was she imprisoned? I never clarified this point with you. There must be a big reason why, after all, it makes no sense to put a ruler into house arrest. The resulting effect of such an action would be detrimental to the country."
Schwii pinched her fingers to stop herself from trembling. She wasn't sure if she understood his intent properly but..
"That's.. because her orders were misunderstood.."
"So ultimately, it was your mother who ordered my mother to die, isn't it?"
"N-No. I-It's not like that!"
"Then? What order did she give?"
"..."
This wasn't what she expected. She wasn't prepared for this–
"Ah, so that's what it is. Your mother gave the wrong order, so my mother died. Does this mean she had close relations to the black knight?" Sequencee's voice trembled.
"She and the black knight aren't even close.. to begin with it was that knight who killed your mother! My mother had nothing to do with it!"
"Your mother was the one who ordered my mother to be killed, otherwise, why would the black knight target her of all people? Was she such an eyesore to your family? What did she ever do to the demon empire?"
"I said it was a misunderstanding!"
Sequencee gritted his teeth.
"I-I'm sorry. If you want to blame someone, blame me for being so naive, blame me for being the one who didn't raise my voice even though I felt that something bad was going to happen.. I never intended for things to get this way.."
'What else do I not know about the truth? Is what Schwii saying actually the truth or was she concocting another superficial story?'
Sequence shifted his attention to Iona.
The maid remained silent.
Turmoil and confusion gripping his heart, Sequencee tousled his hair as he leaned back against the splat of the cushioned chair.
"So this is what you've been trying to hide all along? Why you were so hesitant to tell me what exactly you need my help for, why it is that you wanted me to stop revenge–" Sequencee's voice, "I really don't get it.. why would an order be given to destroy an entire barony be a mistake? Does that sound logical to you?"
"It's.. the knight.."
"Didn't you say before that you didn't know anything about him? "
The conversation was being skewered, Schwii had to regain control. It was no longer a discussion about facts, things were becoming emotionally driven. She took in a few deep shaky breaths.
"Sequencee, where did you hear this from? And, Iona, why are you acting this way?" Schwii called out to both of them.
"..." Iona remained wordless.
"Your ex-fiance," so Sequencee replied.
"How did you two meet?"
"Through a human medium."
"When?"
"Last night."
Schwii clenched her teeth. "Why did you two meet? By coincidence? On purpose?"
"Coincidence," Sequencee got up and brought his plate with him to the kitchen.
Schwii wanted to say something, but she couldn't bring herself to. She had reminded herself to mentally prepare for the day he learns of the truth– but it seemed that things have come off guard.
With so many variables at play, Schwii convinced herself that Sequencee's current reaction wasn't too bad. It could've been much morse.
While it would cause a crack in their relationship now, it was a necessary sacrifice for the long term.
She needed to give him some time.
"Better now than never.." biting her lips. Schwii muttered to herself.
"Schwii, be clear here. Your mother was the one who gave the order to kill my mother, correct?"
"It was a misunderstanding, hadn't I said it before?" Schwii's heart ached.
"She was still the one who gave the wrong order, correct?"
His voice was like a cold knife held to her throat. On the tightrope between blowing up or shrinking, Schwii's mind fell into chaos.
Under normal circumstances, she would do her best to remain composed. But somehow, because her disputer here was Sequencee, she couldn't think straight.
Did their relationship really only amount to this much? All it took were a few critical words from some stranger to cause a crack like this?
Did Schwii do anything wrong? Hadn't she warned Sequencee not to go out? Why did he not listen? He himself caused this mess yet she was to blame for everything?
The dark voices in her head– insufferable, just as she felt in the past; crippling.
"I told you to not go.. didn't I?"
"Because you're trying to hide this from me."
"Then you're no different from that damned knight," Schwii's voice seethed. "Just like him, you didn't listen. The instructions were clear, yet you were the one who violated it! Now you brought us this trouble of breaking trust between us. So why do you think you deserve to be mad? Shouldn't I be the one that's mad?"
Sequencee turned around and glared at Schwii.
"What did you say?"
"You trust the words of a stranger more than you do your own fiance? Just because you went ahead and discovered something that you weren't ready to accept that it's my fault you feel this way?!"
Sequencee threw the plates onto the rack. He wiped his hands and made his way to Schwii.
"You were the one who kept hiding things from me," Sequencee's cold voice echoed.
"Was I wrong for hiding the truth? Hadn't I told you the truth, just sugarcoated? If I had told you the real situation would you have accepted it? Just look at yourself now, the kind of mess you're making," tears condensed at the edge of Schwii's eyes.
"You shouldn't have sugar coated it."
"You're an idiot."
Sequencee grabbed his bag and stormed out the apartment.
Watching him leave, a pang spread through every nook of her heart. She lowered her head, tears drippings.
"Your Highness.. I.." Iona hesitated.
"You violated my orders."
"..."
Schwii raised her head, a cold pair of crimson eyes stared back.
===
Sequencee slammed his fist into a pillar.
"I'm the victim? She's the victim? A misunderstanding? Why can't I think?"
'How much of what she said is a lie, how much of it was truth? And, how could I possibly go trusting a random stranger's words? Am I an idiot?'
The queasiness on his chest just wouldn't go away.
'Schwii's mother gave the wrong order, both of them paid the price. In the end, Schwii became a victim despite having done nothing wrong.'
He struggled to hold back his tears.
'What's the issue here? Me? Her? Her mother? Schwii's ex-fiance? The black knight?'
He thought hard, running various chains of thoughts.
'No one to take accountability for the matter..'
"Someone has to take the blame here.."
'I was weak. Emotionally, physically. Even now, I can barely stand on my own, having Schwii support me all this while yet what did I do to her?'
"I'm an idiot.. I'm really an idiot.."
Either the world was to blame, or he was to blame.
"What do I do know.."
"S-Sequencee? Are you alright?"
Standing there at the lobby was Leticia and Nynim. He didn't have the courage to look at them, not after what he just did.
"Did something happen?" Nynim asked.
"..."
"If you don't mind, could we lend you an ear, or hand?" Leticia offered.
Sequencee shook his head and walked away.
Leticia grabbed his wrist tightly. He tried to shake it off with force, she didn't budge.
"Let go."
"Tell me what happened."
"Leticia, this isn't your problem."
"It is my problem!"
"..."
It was the first time Leticia raised her voice in this way. The attention gathered on them was hard to bear.
"Tell me," she glared at him.
"This is between me and Schwii. You wouldn't be able to help me with anything anyways."
"What happened between you and Schwii? Did you have an argument?"
"Like I said, not your problem."
"About what?"
Sequencee paused, realizing that Leticia probably knew nothing about anything.
And if she knew, things would become incredibly complex. Leticia herself was a victim of the calamity, and she knew herself how much she suffered thanks to the mishap of a single demon lord.
Leticia narrowed her eyes.
"Forget it."
"No. You tell me here and now."
"What has gotten into you?"
"What has gotten into 'you'?" Leticia challenged back.
"..."
"When it comes to relationship troubles like these, it is important to have some support. I'll see if I can talk to Schwii," Nynim said, signaling to Leticia. The two of them nodded, Nynim teleported away.
"You'll be late for class," Sequencee said.
"So what? Let's go."
Leticia dragged Sequencee with her.
"Tell me what happened between the two of you."
"We fought. I was the idiot."
"Fought about?" Leticia turned around and looked at him straight.
"..."
"Are you not going to say anything?"
"You're different from usual."
Leticia rolled her eyes. "Tell me already."
"Sorry. If I told you, you'd be dragged into the problem, so no."
"I've been your problem to begin with, so what's the issue with that?"
"Leticia, you're better off not knowing."
Her grip around his wrist tightened.
"You win for now."
Leticia frowned.
"But be sure to tell me about it once you feel comfortable."
Sequencee nodded.
'Absolutely, no way.'