"Hera Delta."
Yukino had called out that name to the young man dressed similar to royal attire.
With piercing eyes of grey, and white hair, the young man responded while wearing a serious expression.
"What's it to you, elf scum?"
"Elf scu-!?"
Yukino fearlessly took a step forward in defiance, and King whispered to Shizaki.
"You said that you don't know him although he seems to know you, right?"
"Exactly."
Despite Yukino waiting for an aggressive reaction from the person known as Delta, the latter kept his eyes on Shizaki, clearly with intent.
That was not the look of an angry person, or a serious person, or someone that wanted revenge.
That was the mixed look of a fear-stricken man.....and someone who wanted to kill.
Why....
That thought lingered within Daizen Shizaki once more, and his thoughts began to overwhelm him inside.
I seriously don't know this guy…what does he want from me? Just who is he? Why does he clearly want to hurt me? Is he a possible threat to the outcome of the future?
Yukino also began to remember the night when he had eavesdropped on the man known as Hera Delta. If Shizaki's attacker wanted to harm him once again, now would be a good time to do so, even with two defenders at his side.
Deciding to press him for answers, Yukino bellowed.
"Why did you attack Shizaki-kun that day? And how do you know his name when he has no memory of knowing you?!"
"Hey, pointy ears."
"H-Huh?!"
"Is this your party? Just three of you?"
A very unexpected question was posed to Yukino, and he answered while still comprehending why he would ask that.
"Um....y-yeah? But, why would you-"
"Good. I'm joining. That makes it four and a full party."
The trio all blinked in unison.
"..........Eh?"
They all stared at him as if he was a madman.
Here was this person who tried to kill Daizen Shizaki one day, and then asked to be part of his party the next.
Not buying into his request, no, his order, King gnarled at him and replied harshly.
"No fucking way in hell is that happening. You're kidding, right? What makes you think that we would ever want to join forces with a random nobody that tried to harm our companion? Have you lost even more brain cells during the time that we haven't seen you?"
"Be grateful that I haven't decided to finish the job yet on that Daizen Shizaki of yours by now."
"You..what?!"
Taken aback by that statement, King stepped back in disbelief, and Yukino tried to advance, but Shizaki managed to grab his arm and stop him just in time before joining in the discussion.
"Why....do you want....to join us?"
"Shizaki-kun..."
Seeing that Shizaki took on a path of trying to reason with Delta, the duo tried to object, but Shizaki raised his left arm for silence.
Snickering, Delta narrowed his left eye and widened his right while tilting his head before replying with a mocking tone.
"Who knows? Maybe I need to keep you under my watch for a bit."
"Are you even listening to yourself!?"
"I'm not talking to you, elf, or half-elf. Don't piss me off."
"Tch!"
Delta's eyes never wavered, and his expression did not change when it came to facing Shizaki. His deep-lying mixed emotions made this man an even bigger mystery, and it needed to be studied under Shizaki's watchful gaze.
"Okay. You can join."
"Hmph."
"Sh-Shizaki-kun!!!"
King tried to pull Shizaki aside as Yukino looked on in shock.
"Shizaki-kun, we just can't accept this guy, what are you thinking!? He's a walking time-bomb! We cannot be so close to a person that will always be on your back, looking to kill you! Why....wait, why did you even accept, anyway?!?!"
"I think that he's the biggest and only lead that we have right now in our future. It's a double-edged sword, yeah, I know, but if we can always manage to keep an eye on him and find out why everything is happening the way it is right now, then....!"
"You really think that we can get something from this guy? And besides, the risk is still way too high. We should reconsider this, Shizaki-kun."
"Didn't you hear him, King? If he wanted to, he would have killed me by now, he says. Maybe something is really preventing him from doing that for now, and we need to figure out why and also what is the reason behind his killing intent. There's just too much info that we can't afford to lose here!"
King paused and occasionally looked to ensure that Delta was still standing in place and not making any sudden moves. The former attacker simply looked bored as he looked on at the trio, and King began to sniff very quietly.
He even smells funny, you can't make this shit up!
"F-Fine! But, still, I hate this idea, so he's your damn responsibility, Shizaki-kun...."
"Sure, but I'll need you to be an extra cover for me just in case, King. This isn't how I'm supposed to die, after all."
"You're somehow getting a positive outlook out of this, and I detest that!"
"Just taking a bit of advice from Kamazaki-san, is all."
He did not forget what she had mentioned to him that night in Sekoto Forest.
{ "You don't seriously believe that, do you…?"
"Huh? Believe what?"
"You know, that everything will be okay no matter what. There will be some sort of predicament sooner or later that could really hurt you, you know."
"It's called being hopeful. Maybe you should try it out once in a while, Babyface." }
"We're....really doing this, huh...?"
"Hey, you're the one who agreed to this suicide plan, not me. And what about Kamazaki and Aya-san?"
"It really sucks, but they will have to find their own parties, sorry."
"Goodness, this is even going against my idea of staying close and keeping a watchful eye on that over-excited brat…then again… fine, dammit!!"
After coming to a half-hearted agreement with King at the side, they both faced Delta while King became Shizaki's spokesperson.
"Alright. The party is now formed with the four of us, but only on one condition, that you do not try to attack or harm either Shizaki, Yukino or myself. Is that clear?"
"Are you that afraid of me?"
"D-Damn straight, the fuck!?"
"Hmmm....fair enough."
"Good, any breach in agreement and the party will be formally disbanded, or, I'll just take matters into my own hands as an act of self-defence. Now, let's go and register ourselves, for fucks sake."
And so Daizen Shizaki, Yukikama Kawarasuri, Satou Yukino...and Hera Delta had joined to form a very unlikely party of four, completely destroying Shizaki and King's hopes of taking Alexandriya Aya and Bella Kamazaki along with them.
***
"Alright, it's confirmed. You all are now officially an adventuring party, congratulations! You can feel free to give yourselves a name whenever you feel like it! The quests attached to the board are in the room on your left! Safe travels!"
After thanking the mistress at the counter, the group of four entered the room, with Delta just barely following the rest.
Staying close to each other, the trio of Shizaki, King and Yukino began to converse with whispers.
"Still, I'm impressed that Kamazaki took our statement of already being in a group with no problems whatsoever. Thankfully, she did not ask who the fourth member was, but it was almost like she was happy that she wasn't in a party with you, King."
"Well, duh. She hates my overprotective attitude. She never wanted to be in a party with me in the first place. Ugh, what the hell am I going to say to her mom if she gets injured or hurt without my aid?"
"Don't worry, she'll be alright. Cheer up, King."
"Easier said than done. Hey, Shizaki-kun, I saw that it was a bit harder for Aya-san to accept what we said though."
"Yeah, she really did not like it when she pressed for details on the members of our party and the inclusion of Delta. I'm impressed that we somehow managed to make her let it slide."
The trio now peered into the large board before them. Lists of various quests were plastered all over.
This is it, Shizaki thought.
A quest difficult yet doable, in order to ensure that he became stronger. That quest was needed right now.
"Well....our first mission comes from here. If anyone sees a mission that sounds like a good find, shout it out. It should be easy enough for a first mission, but challenging for...."
He turned to find Delta in a corner, so far away that he couldn't listen into the conversation.
"Let's find a challenging quest that will test our strength for what is coming."
"Right!"
They skimmed through various paperwork displayed on the board, and Yukino shouted one out.
" 'Mission: Find Hazel Flowers in the Hidden Valley of the Northern Province', no. Too light and boring."
"Nothing much in sharpening fighting skills. The Hidden Valley is pretty peaceful too, so that will just be a borefest."
Finding another, Shizaki declared loudly:
" 'Mission: Find Exclusive Treasures in the Crystal Mine Dungeon in Jero. That doesn't sound too bad, but the color of this paper is black and the writings are in white, unlike the many other quest that are the complete opposite colors."
"Oh, that must be exclusive quests for the higher tiers of adventurers. That dungeon is actually where the top adventurers go to, after all. We'll be killed if we go in there."
"I heard that even the most talented people struggle there...."
With those remarks from King and Yukino, Shizaki, sighed a bit disappointed in what he thought was a good find.
"Ugh...."
It seemed hard to find something that was easy, yet challenging.
Then, something caught his eye. At the bottom corner, he silently read the quest and then thought for a bit.
{ "....Not my words, but there has been talk about the village just not 'seeming right' nowadays. The people, the feeling of being watched in there….and then…."
"And then….?"
"A mysterious figure in the backdoor of Komaia Village, leading into Sekoto Forest. Then again….they're just rumors…" }
Having a feeling that this was a step in the right direction, Shizaki read out the mission aloud.
" 'Mission: Eliminate Wild Beasts of any sort and Capture Beast Blood enough for ten Artifacts'."
"Woah....that sounds...tough. Kill Wild Beasts to make Mythical Beast Artifacts? Really tough."
"But...we can handle it, right?"
King nodded slightly, with a hint of doubt, but Yukino excitedly replied with determination:
"Most likely! With my [Premonition], Shizaki-kun's [Turbulence], and King's incredible power along with his [Earth Manipulation], and....that other guy's power as well, I think that we can stand a chance."
Pulling the paper from the board, Shizaki looked at it along with Yukino and King.
"Komaia Village."
"Shizaki-kun, do you perhaps have a hunch that you might find hints toward who the enemy is in Komaia Village?"
"Yeah, it's extremely close to Sekoto Forest, where we were attacked, and with the rumors of that place still in my mind, we can check out this place while taking down these so-called Wild Beasts that roam there."
"Alright."
In the journey towards the future with Daizen Shizaki's rise of redemption in mind, he prayed that this would be the beginning of a successful road.
Smiling with a bit of nervousness looming in his heart, he clenched his left fist tightly while holding the quest sheet with his right.
This was it, the end of the beginning.
And now, he had two others who decided to fight alongside him.
In his mind, he prayed that he had saved them one year from now, and his resolve remained strengthened as he was now determined to fulfill that obligation
To my future self, save us all.
….Just wait for me, fate!
-----------------------------------------
(Chapter 39: The End of the Beginning.)