I panted as I leaned against the wall in an alleyway. I looked up at the sky and sighed softly. I looked at my hand and grunted as I noticed it was shaking. "Reset...Saying that word reset reality completely. I said it before and it worked, but saying it now didn't have any effect. Reset!"
I held my hand out and nothing happened. I looked at my hand then grunted softly.
"It seems that power only works if I die, but it could just be a coincidence. I have no idea what could be going on but if I am back in time then-"
"Stop her! She stole a precious artifact!" The man yelled.
A woman laughed as she ran down the street. "Oh yeah baby! I scored hella big this time!"
I watched as the woman ran by the crowd of people. She had orange hair, fox ears, and a fluffy orange fox tail with a white tip. She wore a white and orange shrine maiden outfit and had a belt around her waist with her weapon attacked to it. I grunted and ran after her.
The woman looked back and noticed me chasing her. She smirked and threw down a smoke bomb then I stopped and watched the smoke cloud clear. The woman was gone and I grunted softly.
"Tch! Dammit...she got away." The man said.
I looked back at the man and held out my hand. "Hand me your katana! I'm going to persue her!"
The man looked at me. He grumbled a bit then gave in. "I don't know who you are, but I need that artifact back no matter what. Here."
He handed me his katana and I took it. I hurried off to the slums in hopes of finding that woman before night time. I kept a mental image in my head of what the woman looked like.
The black haired woman walked towards the crowd and noticed me running off. She smiled and dispersed into multiple red butterflies then they all fluttered off.
I panted as I ran down the street and looked around, noticing people looking at me from their windows and porches. I slowed down and walked down the street. Everything looked so gloomy and the air was chilly like my body was basically warning me to turn back. I held onto the katana even tighter and kept pushing forward.
"You should've stayed in the main city." A voice said from behind me.
I grunted and wanted to look behind myself, but I stopped walking then unsheathed the blade of my katana then grunted as I blocked a swift attack and slid backwards. The fox woman appeared in front of me and was a bit surprised. She jumped backwards and twirled her dagger in a circle. She smirked at me and pointed her dagger at me.
"Interesting. Very...very interesting." The fox woman smirked and got into her battle stance. "Seems like you were prepared for my attack. I can only imagine why you came here. You came to retrieve the artifact. The Orb of Truth."
"Orb of Truth?" I asked.
"A special artifact that awakens the wielder's inner true power and grants then their deepest, truest desires! I earned this artifact and I'm not letting you take it away!" The woman dashed to me and slashed at me.
I grunted and dodged her attack. "Wait! Wait wait!" I blocked her next slash then stumbled backwards. I tripped over a rock and fell on my butt.
The fox woman smirked and slashed at me. I held out my hand then a shattering effect happened and time stopped. Time began to rewind and I noticed the events happening in real time. Time stopped rewinding and time began to resume. I grunted and blocked her attack then dodged her next attack. I grunted and spun around then kicked her cheek. She looked surprised and grunted as I sent her rolling on her side.
'I just rewinded time by a few seconds up to a minute. What the hell was that..? It felt so strange. Not only do I have Reset, but I also have...Rewind.' I thought to myself as I looked at my hand. 'I have...Time Powers it seems..'
"Nngh..! That...was a good attack...I ain't gonna lie.." The fox woman said as she stood up and wiped her lip. She glared at me and sheathed her dagger then vanished.
"Wha-" I started then looked surprised as my neck was sliced open.
"But it isn't good enough to keep me down.." The fox woman said and appeared behind me with her bloody claws exposed. She laughed as she looked down at me.
I fell to my knees and held my neck. I couldn't rewind time. No matter how much I tried, I just couldn't. I fell to my side and slowly closed my eyes. I noticed the red butterflies fluttering around me.
"Just say it...Reset." The black haired woman smirked at me.
"Re...set.." I said then everything went black.
I opened my eyes a bit once again and noticed the store clerk woman snapping her fingers at me.
"Hellooo? Vetus to Human! Are you awake in there?" The store clerk snapped her fingers at me.
I looked at her and chuckled lightly. I looked at my hands. I rubbed my neck and my wound was gone. I looked back up at the store clerk and she rose an eyebrow at me. I heard the door opening and turned around, noticing the black haired woman. My eyes widened and she looked at me then rose an eyebrow.
"You..." I said then grabbed her shoulders. "Tell me your name right now and how you keep finding me at the slums!"
"Uhm...what?" The woman said.
"Hm? Fleur, do you know him?" The store clerk asked.
"Not a clue." Fleur smiled and closed her eyes. She opened her eyes and looked at me. She watched as I let her go. She bowed at me. "My name is Beatrix Fleur Le Sephiran."
Red butterflies began fluttering around me and she walked by me then whispered something in my ear that sent chills down my spine.
"If you don't want to repeat this same process...get to the fox girl before she gets to that man...unless you want to say 'Reset' again." Beatrix whispered then walked to the counter.
My soul sunk deep into an abyss like place after she said that. She knows exactly what's going on. I dashed out of the store and my two deaths flashed in my head. 'Why am I trying to get back something I have no part in..? I can just stop this loop just by not going to the market place..!' I thought to myself.
I panted as I made it to the man's shop then hurried inside. The man looked at me and watched me walk forward. "The Orb of Truth...Hide it." I started.
"Orb of Truth..? Who told you I had such an artifact? Even if someone did tell you, why should I even listen to you?" The man said, stroking his mustache and beard.
"Please just trust me! It's going to be stolen!" I said.
"Hm? On what grounds do you think you have to make a bold assumption like that? Nothing from this shop has ever been stolen." The man scoffed.
The door of the shop opened and the bell chimed. I looked back and noticed the fox woman walking in. My eyes widened and she looked at me. Her ears twitched and she just ignored my presence then walked to the counter.
"Hide it right now! She's gonna ste-" I groaned as she kicked me across the room and I crashed into the wall. I coughed and fell to my knees.
The fox woman looked at me and shot a piercing glare at me. "Tch..." She looked at the man then threw a smoke bomb down.
The man gave a surprise exclamation then coughed as the smoke filled the room. The fox woman swiped the Orb of Truth and ran off. I noticed it and held my hand out.
'I won't...let you win..!' I thought to myself and a shattering effect happened then time began to rewind.
Time stopped rewinding before I even said anything about the woman planning to steal the Orb. Time resumed and I looked at the woman then swiped the Orb of Truth and the katana off the counter.
"Wha- GET BACK HERE!" The man yelled.
"You'll thank me later!" I yelled and ran off.
The fox woman looked surprised then chased after me. I ran through the crowd of people and looked at the Orb of Truth. The orb shined and glistened. I looked ahead and noticed the fox woman appear in front of me.
"That Orb is MINE!" She yelled and tried to swipe the orb from my hands.
"Stop!" I yelled and reality began to ripple and time completely stopped. I looked around and noticed everyone was frozen in time. I was amazed then noticing reality rippling again and the effect ended and time resumed. I looked surprised and dodged the fox woman and tried to stop time again, but I couldn't. A clock made from magic energy appeared in front of me and was ticking backwards. I was in a 30 second cooldown period for my time stop ability.
"Stop there!" The man yelled as he ran towards me.
"That orb is mine give it here!" The fox woman yelled.
I panicked and looked at the two then closed my eyes tightly. "Reload!" I yelled then everything went dark.
I opened my eyes a bit once again and noticed the store clerk woman snapping her fingers at me.
"Vetus to Human! Hey quit spacing out! You're holding up Fleur in the back!" The store clerk said.
I looked behind me and noticed Beatrix behind me. She smiled at me and walked by me. I watched her then looked in my hands. The Orb and the Katana was gone, I am back to where I started. I chuckled and the two women looked at me. I could control time.
"What wrong with him? He's kinda creepy. First he spaces out and now he's chuckling to himself and looking at his hands." The store clerk said then grunted and covered her chest. "Y-You don't think he's gonna.."
"He's not." Beatrix smirked as she looked at me and watched me run out of the store.
"Hey! Get back here!" The man yelled. "Stop her! She stole an artifact!"
A woman laughed as she ran down the street. "Oh yeah baby! I scored hella big this time!"
"Now knowing this...I can change fate and hopefully get some answers on what's going on." I said then held my hand out. "Stop!"
Reality began rippling and time stopped. I grabbed a crate and placed it in front of the fox woman then stood a few feet in front of her. I looked at my watch and noticed it was counting backwards as well. The time hit zero and reality began rippling then time resumed.
The fox girl groaned as she tripped over the crate and fell on the ground, dropping the Orb of Truth. I watched it as it rolled forward to me. I picked up the artifact and looked down at the fox woman.
"I win." I said.
"Win..?" She asked as she looked up at me and glared. She stood up and tried to grab the orb but the man grabbed the collar of her kimono and she groaned as her kimono began choking her.
"You're not going anywhere..." The man glared at the fox woman.
Beatrix watched from a distance and licked her lips, smirking. "Hmm..~"
I walked to the man and handed him the orb and looked at the fox woman. "Who is she?"
"This bastard here is named Ichina. One of nine fox sisters who's been causing trouble in the capital." The man glared at Ichina.
"Ichina?" I asked then grunted. I looked down and heard some people scream. A blade stuck out of my chest and I looked back. It was another fox woman with two tails behind me.
"Nii!" Ichina said.
I fell to my knees and my vision began to grow blurry. 'One event after the next...Is there no winning in this life..? I complete one task just for another to pop up...why did I have to sleep behind the wheel..? Why is this...'
"Re..set..." I mumbled before closing my eyes and everything went black.
I opened my eyes slightly and noticed I was in a building then sat up quickly. I touched my chest and felt bandages around my chest. I looked surprised and my heart began beating quickly. 'My reset didn't work..? I didn't die..?'
I heard a crash beside the bed I was in and a woman whining. I looked to my left and noticed a woman on the ground.
"Not again.." The woman whined and got up to sit on her knees. The woman had long pink hair, blue eyes, and donned a maid outfit. Her outfit was dirtied by the tea and her knees were scrapped.
"Is everything okay in here, meow?" Another woman asked as she walked in the the room. She had long silver hair, cat ears and tail, blue eyes, and also wore a maid outfit. "E-Ehh?! Rosemary! Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah.." The pink haired girl giggled softly and stood up then sighed softly. She looked at me and gave me an embarrassed smile. "It seems my clumsiness caused you to wake up. Good morning~"
I stared at her. "What is going on..?"