(One hour ago, in The Royal Guild…
The elegant silhouette of Yuki Haidara was present, as she leaned on a handrail from a balcony at the end of a corridor in the upper stories of the Living Quarters.
From where she was standing, she could see the entrance to the middle of the compound, the walkway into the various settlements, and the Duel Arena in the far view.
Not a bad view....
She was confident that she would easily pass the Selection, in fact, she had no doubts that she would succeed. Part of that was mainly due to her overwhelming Affinity.
[Water Hydra]. The ability to form wingless dragons with teeth as solid as rock. They were composed of solidified water that merged as layers one on top of the other, at least seven times over. It was a very complicated, yet incredible Affinity.
She pulled out her necklace that contained the small, transparent bottle from within the brooding of her shirt and grasped it within her right hand as she stared forward. Her eyes flickered in the light wind that brushed past her face, her gaze staring at the people who walked by below.
"I made it...nii-chan."
The sound of footsteps alerted her as she spun around and quickly rested the necklace back in place. From where she stood, she could see that a staircase was close to her, and the footsteps seems to be coming from there. A figure emerged from the stairs as he met her gaze.
"Ah-"
He blinked and stared as a slight blush formed around his cheeks. He had completely froze as their eyes met. Haidara seemed a bit surprised as she called out to him.
"Shizaki."
"Hai…Haidara-san?!"
The person was none other than Daizen Shizaki.
She turned and faced the balcony view, speaking with a sarcastic tone.
"What a coincidence."
"....I....was just checking out the upper floors since I was too tired to check them out yesterday...."
"I see."
She did not bother to ask any questions. With a bit of silence between them, Shizaki averted his eyes.
"Um....since you are here....I wanted to say....thank you for the mana-infused mint. I think that helped a lot. I appreciate it."
Haidara, taken aback, spied him through the corner of her eyes.
…I honestly forgot that I had given that to him....
"No problem, I guess. Ya did well in the Selection test. Ya should be proud."
"O-Oh, thanks! You....did pretty good too. I mean, it was pretty one-sided, but yeah."
"Heh, yeah. Thanks."
She had gotten used to praises and congratulatory statements directed to her all her life. Yet, this one felt a little different.
Shizaki got closer and stood right next to where she also stood. They both looked on at the view in front of them.
"S-So....um, if you don't mind....where are you originally from?"
"Where I'm from, you ask....?"
"Sorry, it's just that your accent reminds me of a place that I knew, but your appearance seems to clash with the location off what I had in mind, if that makes sense."
She paused a bit before she could answer and displayed a bitter smile.
"It's....a long story. Sorry. I just can't tell you."
"Oh....sorry."
You keep apologizing for nothing, dammit."
"Oh-ri-right."
"Ya keep reminding me of my brother when you do that. It's annoying."
"Eh? You have a brother?"
"...Yeah."
Another long silence followed.
"Where are you from, though?"
"The region named Sekoto, specifically, Sekoto Town."
"I see. I aint know much about that place."
"No need to. I....kinda dislike that place."
She looked at him in surprise, and he responded with a forced smile.
She smiled a bit and sighed.
"Guess we're kinda similar in some things."
"Similar....?"
"It's nothing."
A long silence persisted once more.
"U-Um, I guess I'll have to keep checking out the rest of the upper floors."
"Right....okay. See you."
Shizaki began to briskly walk away, but then he stopped.
"And....thanks again."
He exited, and Haidara leaned forward with a sigh.
She pictured a conversation with a blonde-haired boy with royal attire.
{ "You missed this line in the book, Demetri-nii-chan."
"O-Oh. Sorry about that. Guess I really messed up, huh?" }
Smiling, she raised her head and looked at the starry night sky.
"Yep. He's just like that good-for-nothing brat."
)
***
Daizen Shizaki had woken up from his sleep.
Morning had arrived as he lay in his bed.
Wincing from the daylight that had crept through the corners of the window sill on the opposite end of where he lay, he slowly sat up and yawned, before his body jerked up suddenly.
"Oh! Today's....!"
Recruitment day. The day where adventuring parties would be formed.
He instantly jumped off of the bed and stood up with excitement and determination.
"I have to get to the recruitment area early! Yukino-kun, Alexandriya and Neo-kun are most likely the people I must get for the party! I hope that they are all there by now.....I couldn't find them anywhere last night."
He threw on his outer attire and headed straight for the door.
***
Daizen Shizaki walked onto the pathway to the cafeteria. At the back of that place, the area was stationed where many people would want to gather to create a party, and he could not be late.
As he got closer to the building, however, he noticed the anxious face of a person with a dark brown complexion, standing by the entrance.
Satou Yukino.
As he advanced closer, their eyes finally met, and Yukino walked briskly towards him. When they were close enough, Shizaki called out to him.
"Yukino-kun! You made it-"
"Come here for a second, please."
Yukino grabbed his arm with no hesitation and immediately started heading in a completely different direction. Shizaki was all but perplexed.
"H-Hey, Yukino-kun! Don't you know, the Recruitment Area is that way! You're heading in the opposite direction!"
"I know that. Just follow me for a bit, this is important."
Shizaki noticed the low and serious tone in Yukino's voice, and his smile slowly faded as he became worried.
"I-Is something...wrong....?"
However, Yukino declined to answer. His eyes displayed a slight fear and he frowned. After about a minute of walking, the duo had entered a dark alley close to the Living Quarters.
Shizaki tried to peer into the darkness, and there, a figure was waiting for him.
"King....that's you, right?"
"Yeah."
He came forward into the limelight with a sullen look as Yukino stayed behind Shizaki, his eyes failing to exchange a glance with his.
"What's going on? Is there-"
King had advanced close enough.
He sent a low driving strike of his fist into Shizaki's abdomen, causing him to nearly topple over due to the power. He bent over in pain as he tried to catch his breath, trying to make sense of what was happening.
Before he could react, King grabbed his collar, and with a swing, he slammed him into the stone wall of the alley. He leaned close to his face, his eyes simmering with fear and anger, while the half-elf rushed towards them both in a loud and scared tone.
"No-wait!!! This isn't what we talked about! King, please...!!! Don't hurt him!"
"Answer me, Shizaki! Who the hell are you, and who do you work for?!"
Ignoring Yukino, he remained focused on the person who he had just slammed into the wall.
Still enduring simmering pain from his stomach and his back, Shizaki blinked and stared at King in bewilderment.
"What....the hell are you...."
"Don't you dare lie to me, you hear me?!?! You damn...!!!"
He slammed Shizaki once more, inducing a cry from the latter. Yukino's legs trembled as he began to shout.
"That's enough!!! Please!!"
"Ahhhggrr!!! Stop!!! Stop it!! Let me go, King! I have no idea....!!!!"
With his fear converting into split-second instinct, Shizaki pushed King back with a surge of [Turbulence] at the lowest form, emanating from his chest and the palms of his hands, and then instantly stooped down and made a sliding swoop of a tackle on his legs, causing King to tumble back and fall with a crippling blow.
Instinctively balling his right fist to retaliate against his opponent, Shizaki prepared to counter. Instead, Yukino rushed between the two fighters and flailed his arms.
"Stop, I said!!! Let's...just calm down!"
"Tell that to that guy! The hell's wrong with you!!"
"Me?! We were being confronted by a random psychopath who apparently knows you....and you're saying that something's wrong with me?!?!"
Shizaki still looked on in surprise and a perplexing stare, but he stayed silent, so Yukino continued from where King had stopped.
"Yesterday....we were confronted by a serial killer who said that we should tell of her presence and her companions to you. The only reason we survived as two out of seventeen innocent people who were slashed open....was because she knew you and wanted us to warn you about her! So why?!?! Why are more than one person out to get you and putting us in danger, Shizaki-kun?!"
Visibly shaken, Yukino ranted, and King interjected with more accusations.
"Ever since getting on that carriage, you were acting strange....no....even in Sekoto Forest. Those Timberwolves, which were supposed to be completely friendly....I bet they were after you too, huh? Answer the damn question. Who the hell are you? Who do you work for? Why are you here in the Royal Guild?!"
Shizaki was bombarded with questions and angry emotions, and the raging figure of the person in front of him made him miserable, as he was unable to say anything in return.
Ever since that encounter on the fourth of February, nothing made sense anymore.
He tried to open his mouth, but only cracks of his terrified voice leaked out, and his breaths became shallow while he felt a lump in his throat.
What…the hell is going on here…?
-----------------------------------------
(Chapter 37: Uprising Conflict.)