"Grimblaze, we'll be leaving after the head gives us the reward," Emperal said, glancing sideways at his companion, who was busy licking his chops as though lost in thought—or hunger.
"But boss, where are we going next?" Grimblaze asked, his snout glistening with drool. The sight earned him a swift kick from Emperal.
"Can you not embarrass me for one second?" Emperal muttered under his breath. Then, after a brief pause, he added, "We'll ask the village head about that."
Grimblaze nodded enthusiastically, apparently satisfied. "Boss! What do you think the reward will be? I won't settle for less than three carts of food!" He grinned, looking far too pleased with himself.
Emperal's eye twitched. Before he could deliver another smack to the shameless creature, the village chief returned, carrying a wooden box and a cauldron. The sight of the items made Emperal's brow arch slightly in surprise. The cauldron was finely crafted, with delicate branch-like patterns etched across its surface. The hues of red and pale pink gave it an almost ethereal glow, hinting at its craftsmanship.
"Lord Xynos," Rahuel began, his voice reverent, "This is the best our humble village can offer." He handed over the box and the cauldron with both hands, bowing slightly.
"Well then, we'll be on our way," Emperal said, inspecting the cauldron briefly before nodding in approval.
The chief hesitated before speaking again. "Lord, you mentioned you had come here to complete some task. Did you manage to finish it?" he asked curiously.
"Hmm?" Emperal frowned slightly, racking his brain for a moment. The fragmented memories of waking up amidst a pile of bodies flickered briefly in his mind. He dismissed the thought with a shake of his head. "Ah, let's think about that when the time comes," he murmured to himself before flashing the village head smile.
The chief seemed to sense that further questioning would yield no answers and let it drop. However, his gaze lingered on Emperal, and after a moment, he blurted out, "B-but, Lord… what happened to your hair?"
Emperal paused mid-step, running a hand through his unruly locks, which were a far cry from the neatly combed style he usually maintained. "Stuff happens," he said, his tone as dismissive as his wave.
Deciding not to press further, the chief nodded, stepping back respectfully. "Oh, also," Emperal added, turning slightly, "What's the nearest town to here?"
"That would be Lasand, my lord," Rahuel replied promptly. "It's about 9,000 kilometers north of here, give or take."
Emperal let out a low whistle. "That far, huh? Alright, let's get moving, Grimblaze," he said, hoisting the cauldron and box effortlessly.
Grimblaze waddled along behind him, his stubby legs moving with surprising speed. "Boss, do you think Lasand has better food? This village was seriously lacking in variety," he said, his voice filled with indignation.
"Shut up and move, or I'm leaving you here to starve," Emperal shot back, rolling his eyes as they walked away from the bewildered villagers.
The journey ahead was long, but Emperal couldn't help but smirk. Something about Grimblaze's shameless antics and the strange gifts they'd received made him suspect the days to come wouldn't be dull.
…
"You idiot! Who the fu*k told you to provoke that thing?!" Emperal shouted, his voice dripping with frustration as he sprinted through the forest.
Behind them, a massive tortoise-like beast was tearing through trees like they were twigs, moving way too fast for something that big. The ground shook with every step it took, and its guttural roars sounded like the forest itself was angry.
"B-but, Boss! I thought that thing was a giant banana!" Grimblaze yelled back, glancing over his shoulder at the enraged beast. His gaze lingered a little too long on the tortoise's swollen 'thing,' and he winced. "O-okay, maybe not a banana, but it looked kinda tasty from the angle I saw it!"
Emperal nearly tripped, whipping his head around to glare at Grimblaze mid-run. "You're telling me you tried to eat THAT THING'S…" His words caught in his throat as his brain struggled to comprehend just how stupid this situation was. "What is WRONG with you?!"
"Hey, don't look at me like that! Who puts something like that on a tortoise?! It's false advertisement!" Grimblaze huffed, his stubby legs pumping hard as he tried to keep up.
…
A few moments earlier...
"Boss, check it out," Grimblaze whispered, his voice dripping with excitement. He pointed to a massive tortoise sprawled out in the clearing, snoozing peacefully under the shade of a giant tree.
Emperal barely glanced at it, unimpressed. "Yeah, it's a tortoise. So what?"
"But look!" Grimblaze's eyes were practically sparkling as he pointed to the creature's underbelly. Dangling there was something plump, yellowish, and, to Grimblaze's questionable logic, delicious-looking.
"What the hell am I supposed to be looking at?" Emperal asked, narrowing his eyes. Then it clicked, and his jaw dropped. "Grimblaze, no. Absolutely not."
Grimblaze wasn't listening. "Boss, it's a banana! A big, juicy, perfectly ripe—"
"It's NOT a banana, you idiot! Don't you dare—"
With zero hesitation, Grimblaze opened his mouth wide and bit down.
The tortoise let out a deafening roar, its eyes snapping open as its entire body trembled with rage. Grimblaze froze, his teeth barely grazing the 'banana.' Slowly, he looked up into the tortoise's murderous glare.
"Uh… Boss? I think that was not a….b-banana," Grimblaze said nervously, taking steps back slowly.
But when he glanced at Emperal, Who was already running "BOSS!?"
And thus, the chase began.
…
Present,
"Boss, this is all just one big misunderstanding!" Grimblaze huffed, dodging a boulder-sized chunk of earth the tortoise had stomped loose.
"Oh, it's a misunderstanding, alright! You misunderstood a giant tortoise's junk for a snack!" Emperal snapped, leaping over a fallen log.
"How was I supposed to know it wasn't food?!" Grimblaze barked back, looking genuinely hurt. "It looked …edible"
"EDIBLE?! Bananas don't grow out of tortoises, you moronic hippol..!"
Grimblaze grunted, still clinging to his defense. "That's not entirely obvious if you think about it—"
"Shut up, or I'll feed you to it myself!" Emperal growled, pushing himself to run faster as the tortoise let out another earth-shaking roar.
"Fu*k I'm tired right can't use Solustasis" He thought frustratingly.
Emperal and Grimblaze kept running, panting like madmen as the tortoise bulldozed through the forest behind them.
"Boss! This thing's gonna turn us into pancakes!" Grimblaze screamed, his stubby legs barely keeping up.
"No sh*t, Sherlock!" Emperal snapped, dodging a falling tree. He was racking his brain for a solution, but Grimblaze's nonstop whining wasn't helping.
Grimblaze's eyes darted around frantically. "Wait! Boss, let's reason with it! Maybe it just wants an apology!"
Emperal threw him a glare mid-sprint. "Oh yeah, what will you say?. 'Hey, sorry my idiot friend tried to bite your junk. Want to grab lunch?'"
"Well, when you say it like that…" Grimblaze muttered, offended.
Then Emperal saw it—the river up ahead, fast-moving and wide. He skidded to a halt, yanking Grimblaze by the ear.
"OW! What now?!" Grimblaze whined, rubbing his ear.
"New plan," Emperal said, grabbing a thick vine hanging from a nearby tree. Without warning, he started tying it around Grimblaze's chunky middle.
"Boss, what are you doing?!" Grimblaze flailed, trying to escape.
"Just shut up!" Emperal grunted, ignoring Grimblaze's protests.
"THIS! BOSS YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY EVIL!" Grimblaze shrieked as Emperal hoisted him up, spinning him in a wide arc like some deranged slingshot.
"Take that you dumb Bitch!" Emperal yelled before letting go, sending Grimblaze hurtling straight toward the tortoise's eye.
Time seemed to slow down as Grimblaze's eyes widened in sheer terror. "THIS IS NOT A GOOD PLAN!"
Grimblaze smashed into the tortoise's eye like an oversized, screaming cannonball. The beast reared back in confusion, roaring as it stumbled.
"YES!" Emperal whooped, grabbing the vine and yanking Grimblaze back toward him like a yo-yo. But instead of gracefully landing, Grimblaze overshot and crashed straight into Emperal, sending them both tumbling into the river.
"YOU'RE THE WORST, BOSS!" Grimblaze spluttered as they hit the icy water.
"Shut up and float, dumbass!" Emperal snapped, grabbing onto a log.
The tortoise stomped to the riverbank, glaring at them furiously. It dipped a toe into the rushing water, hesitated, and then let out a final, defeated roar before retreating back into the forest.
Grimblaze perked up, his chest puffing with pride. "See, Boss? My heroic body scared it off!"
"Heroic body, my ass," Emperal grumbled, shoving Grimblaze off the log. "Next time, I'm leaving you to be turtle chow."
"Ha! You'd miss me!" Grimblaze said, paddling back to the log like nothing happened.