CHAPTER 64 - THREE GOLD
It's been four days since the group I'd gathered started to train here at the facility that Director Goodsky had lended me for this project.
If I were to be honest, it felt like I was doing a super soldier serum project the way they trained when I got here. Claire and Curtis always tried to go one-on-one or even two-on-one but I would win because their teamwork was off by seconds and if not moments.
Still, both of them made me realize the old feeling of what the Fire affinity was to have. I had missed such an element that had vanished from my arsenal with no way of returning.
But that didn't mean I did not have other elements that combined with others only to complete a better combination.
Kathyln was the next to ask me for a duel. Of course I'd accept but our fight would only take about thirty minutes to an hour. I didn't have an affinity to counter ice or something stronger than my own mastery of Ice.
I fought Ice with Ice, using different methods and tactics. I tried to widen my field of vision but I only managed to achieve quick reaction time. Kathyln would quickly ignite her pillar of ice as soon as I landed from an aerial attack, and thanks to that, I obtained quick reactions and actions all in one.
Last and final, the professor who taught combat was the very eager one to battle me in open terrain. At first I was opposed to this idea, an open terrain isn't my strong suit but after a couple of duels in a single day I was able to keep up with her twin sword techniques. Not only that but I was able to adapt those sword movements into my own techniques.
Professor Glory may have been the only person where I had unsheathed both swords to keep up.
During our time sparing, I wondered why she didn't use her Beast's Will. Her face had gotten a little dark before confirming with me the reason why she didn't use it.
I didn't try to pry more into her past and only told her that she was an admiring person for fighting without a Beast's Will.
Professor Glory only gave me a smile before swinging her sword at me in pure anger.
When I couldn't train with Kathyln, she would train with Freyrith, he was the best contender for her.
After the training with the group of "Future Guardians", I would go with Emily and work on a couple of machines I was capable of working on. Spending around seven to twelve hours on the sole darkened room, the only source of light being the solder merging metal with metal.
Then, our project had been completed by the eighth day, five more before my time was up. I introduced Emily to Gideon, and asked him to look after her since she was a great promising artificer like him. At first he thought I was basing my words on complete bullshit but when he put her to the test, he was amazed, for the first time, that it wasn't an artifact.
Another day went by, doing the usual but only this time involving training as a group, also making teams for them to get used to each other.
Kathyln and Freyrith both seemed to work well with each other, reading each other's movements and actions, intention was the biggest of them all. Curtis and Claire were getting better at long range attacks. Curtis this time learned how to condense mana easier than normally, making it easier for him to release. Time efficient. Claire on the other hand learned how to control her mana usage in between battles, whether they were long battles or short duels, her management was superb.
Vanesy Glory was the main star of this team, she handled the leadership she would need in the future with such ease. It was a piece of cake for someone like her, yet she needed to have more experience in this matter when the war came, if we were to fail.
Then, before I knew it, I only had two days left.
I woke up.
Nothing else.
I just stared at the ceiling with no emotions or intentions of doing something today. I just wanted to lay in my bed for the two remaining days I had. For some reason, I just didn't want to leave this room.
It felt weird and familiar as well.
It was scary.
I thought that my mind would be in chaos with what to do but in reality, I wanted to do nothing more than to just stare at the ceiling, thinking of nothing else.
"But if I stayed here for too long, who would do the patrolling today?"
Yeah…
"The DC members patrol tonight and the next night as well, like I had planned…?"
SIgh.
The blanket was pulled out of the bed and slammed into the wall next to the bed. I didn't react about the blanket and just continued to do my everyday things. However, this time I didn't wear my Guardian uniform and instead used normal clothes.
Below the Guardian clothes, laid a perfectly white lab coat that I had planted on the bed yesterday.
***
I took a deep breath in as I walked towards the outside of the academy. The multiple students that stood back away from me like I was some monster or Midas himself, and if you got too close to me, you would lose your humanity.
It wasn't bad that they decided to do this, matter of fact, I was okay with that. I now had the time I needed to be alone. To refresh the mindless thoughts that occurred in my mind like some tornado.
The human mind…
It was an interesting thing to learn but the more I dug back into my old life, the more stressed and confused I became.
Hence, sometimes I would go to conventions where my favorite shows were.
But here, there was no such thing. And I indeed had to relieve some steam and anger, frustration from all the events popping in and out like moles on the ground.
I guess from the thinking I've had, I didn't realize where I stood at this moment. The sounds that overpowered my mental instincts got a hold of my attention more than the Alacryan army could.
My eyes rolled from one side to the other, watching as the merchants sold their products to the citizens of Dicathen with smiles and greats.
I was relieved that this was something happening right now, even though they know nothing about the upcoming war. That is another reason why I have to go, to make sure these people don't die and lose this happiness with useless bloodshed.
And yet, this uneasy feeling is pushing through me right now. Something feels wrong, like something might happen the moment I leave Dicathen and into Alacrya. It bothers me that I don't have a comeback date either.
Whatever Indrath is thinking about is out of my hands.
Maybe it is just my hopeful thinking but I hope to reach Dicathen before anything major happens.
I continued to walk brainlessly around the market area in hopes of finding something for myself or for those here.
But I was taken aback, someone with white long hair, perhaps half my height, was walking around alone. Perhaps she was lost or maybe looking for someone? Yet her blue eyes didn't quite tell me when she would turn her head, seeing if anything was familiar to her.
I stepped forward and bumped into her. Damn it! Luke, concentrate on walking forward! I mentally scolded myself.
"Sorry little miss, are you hurt by any chance…"
My eyes widened. I had met this girl before. At the Helstea manor.
"T-Thank you."
I held back my hand but stopped. I once more extended my arm as a sense of apology towards bumping into her. "Are you lost?"
"W-What makes you think that?"
I turned everywhere like I was looking for someone or something. "Well you just did that and almost walked to the weapons section of the merchant area."
Her face turned into embarrassment when I mentioned that to her.
I let out a small laugh, my finger pointing towards her outfit. "Also, you are dressed like a noble princess. Walking here like that would make you a target for kidnapping."
The girl with white hair backed off instantly. Her face showed concern and intensity.
I held my hands up like I had given up the white flag, "Whoa whoa, I am not one of those who wish to do that, on the contrary, you seemed lost and I'm trying to help you."
It was the truth. And of course there isn't a reason why she should be believing me in the first place.
"It is fine if you don't believe me–"
"N-No…I believe you are not one of those bad people."
In some way, her voice had a gentle ring to it. That bothered me. Why would this affect me in some way?
I shook my head left to right, pushing these thoughts out of the way.
"So, where are you headed towards?" I asked, my eyes taking a turn on every merchant's stall.
"I'm currently looking for a birthday gift for my mother." She bluntly spoke, her blue eyes searching for something good to be called a present. "But I don't know what to get her."
I suggested that we should continue to walk around the merchants area for some idea that might come to her mind. In the meantime we walked, I noticed how similar she was to my mother.
Yet her eyes were different colors from my mother's, from Mia but she had James's eyes, my father. Maybe it was just a coincidence, or maybe not…
A couple of stalls down the road, we were able to witness a beautiful pendant, it was the same amber with dark crimson outlines on the jewel itself, the holdings of the pendant were silver clear along with small little diamonds that reacted towards the amber/crimson jewel.
In the corner of my eye, I was able to notice the girl's eyes lit up like the blue flames I was once able to conjure.
"You think she would like it?" I asked, my eyes not peeling from the pendant.
It took her a moment to answer me, she, like me, was embraced by how astonishing the pendant was. "Y-Yeah, it is perfect for her."
"You siblings have a perfect eye. This pendant is something of an one-of-one item. Crafted by the one and only Dinzel Brook!" The merchant runted about the same blacksmith I had commissioned for work for at least three years.
Well he didn't seem to be lying, this actually looked like Dinzel's work and it was a masterpiece if I do say so myself. At that moment, the two swords I had used for three years popped into my mind, they too are masterpieces.
"How much are you asking for?" I bluntly asked, trying to get it in the girl's hand, seeing as she too was eager to get it in her hands herself.
The bald merchant started to stroke his long mustache like it was giving him wisdom. "Hmm. Three gold." Three fingers covered by thick gloves stuck up.
"Th-Three Gold? I only have o-one."
"Isn't that a little too expensive? Even for something that Dinzel crafted himself."
The merchant's eyes, once full of hope, turned to anger and disgust. His brows went forward as if going to anger mode. "BLEH. If you guys are just broke and here just to patronize me then leave before I call the guards!" His voice had gotten louder and attracted a couple of people.
"Then how about this? I give you the three pathetic gold coins you are so desperately asking for, however, throw in those three bracelets for the poor customer service."
The guy was dumbfounded by the words that had left my mouth. His jaw was slightly opened by his eyes and that was the thing that brought a smile to my face. "So what do you say? Deal or not? Just throwing this out there but I know the real Dinzel Brook." I called forth for the two blades and placed them on the table where there was enough room for both. "These are the two masterpieces he made, his signature is in the hilt if you wish to see them." I calmly said.
At first the merchant was quite skeptical but bit the bait.
"Alright Alright! It's a deal, however, I will add onto this condition that you must supply me with his product so that I can sell it here. Better yet, arrange a meeting with him and I will personally talk to him."
I nodded. "It's a deal then."
We then shaked hands, revealing what was best for both parties.
"Are you glad that we managed to come to an agreement?" I said, walking with the white haired girl who held the items.
"W-Why did you do that?" She mumbled but it was loud enough for me to hear.
"Did what?"
I took her a moment to answer, "I'm just a stranger and you used three gold coins just for my benefit, why?"
Ahh, I see now.
"Look, I know that you may find it uncomfortable for me to do this but I genuinely just wanted to help you. For some reason, deep inside I just wanted you to be safe. It felt like you were reaching for a hand when no one gave it to you."
That was true. In my eyes, when I first saw her wandering around the merchant area, she looked lost. Almost like it was her first time here but instead she was just confused on what to get her mother. It is understandable but most people think she might be a princess or a noble with enough money to get well off of it.
Kidnapping.
That had to go. But I had no influence yet, I was still just a Guardian for the Academy and I didn't have contacts or friends that were powerful enough to change…
Right… I already knew someone with that type of status.
Then again, I just wanted to do this myself.
It's like the saying, "If you want something done well, do it yourself".
Yeah, I need to get rid of the Slave Traders outside the kingdom, in Ashber, that stupid court magician. I would need to travel now if I were to kill him right now, but that would catch the attention of the Lances and the council, and that is something I am not okay with right now.
Only certain people know about my power and I rather keep it like that until the war starts and ends.
"E-E-Excuse me but I am okay here I see a friend. And thank you for your time." She tried not to mumble her words but even when she did, I managed to hear all of it. At some point, I was sure that she bit her tongue but I wasn't completely sure.
I just smiled, "No worries, hopefully your mother enjoys your gift."
The girl with white hair seemed to struggle in searching for something. When she found what she was looking for, her pale hand extended towards me. In her palm was sitting gently a single setting of a color bracelet.
This was when I had a deal with the merchant.
"T-This is p-part of my t-thanks." She finally said it without mumbling.
My eyes relaxed after what felt like years and I took the thank you she prepared.
"I appreciate it."
Instantly, in front of her, I placed it on my left arm and showed it off with pride. "I look cool with it don't I?"
The blue eyed girl nodded in agreement.
"Well then I will leave you to your friend, don't get lost next time okay?" I waved back, walking towards the academy again. My mind was set towards something.
***
I opened the doors that set free the odor of burned metal and crispy sounds of the solder going off and on.
"Emily! It is time."