Around 3 days had passed since we arrived, and it seemed like the newspaper with our interviews and all had finally been printed throughoutly. It's not like I was particularly waiting or anything like that, if anything I was surprised it took a whole 3 days, but as we all sat at the table eating breakfast- well, all besides Luna, since she doesn't always stay overnight here, we scrolled through it, each of us having a copy, or at least the ones that were interested enough.
As expected, we were obviously the front cover, and main discussion. For that matter, it almost seemed like the whole thing was about us… but the last 10 pages or so were actually about an unrelated topic so I guess that's fine, right? Anyway. Ranging from "the Ashford family's race against time until their judgement day!" To "the Ashford family may actually be doubtful about their innocence?!" Or "the Ashford family subtly admitted they're guilty?!" You could definitely see the very obvious propaganda.
Honestly, it was actually a lot better than I thought though. Not as in "good job, you made some believable propaganda!" But as in "you guys have potential… as scummy and corrupt journalists. Stand proud, you are fake." Type of thing. To make it worse, or I guess better? Some of those articles unironically tried to twist our words to match whatever they were trying to make it seem to be.
Of course, they're all pretty iffy and borderline uncannily bad, since they do still have to give out our real answers word for word, but you'd be surprised by how good some of these people are at gaslighting. Luckily though, there were also some genuine and pleasant articles to read there. Like for instance the one I was currently looking at, which was about me, as Maia read it out loud coincidentally.
"The eldest Son of the Ashford family declares his intention of following his parents footsteps and becoming an adventurer! It seems like a certain amount of guilds have already shown their interest in his future, and insights are saying that there are even some discussions, if not borderline fights spreading like wide fire, towards who will get to own his adventural rights in the near future!"
"He is also a swordsman just like his father, and although his preferred sword type is different from his, he displays unmatched confidence regarding his skill. Is he really just stating a fact? Is he just a cocky brat? I guess we'll just have to wait 2 more years to find out after all."
Unlike what I initially thought, Adventurers are actually a lot more appreciated and important publicly. Given the fact that recruits act more like guards, or even like this world's version of a police officer, it seems like they're more seen as an authorial entity than anything. They do fight of course… but mainly just monsters that are vastly stronger than S ranks, so chances are that most of them never actually even get to show off.
Unlike them though, Adventurers take care of a solid 90% of all monsters around the kingdom, since the recruits+ level of threats only amount to the remaining 10% of the total monster "population" among different types and all. Heck, if we're being realistic, even among those 10%, probably only up to 3% are actually weak enough for a single recruit to manage them, while the rest would require multiple recruits, if not a lieutenant or higher personnel. So to make it short, Adventurers are seen in a great light, and more like "the people's fighters" than your average recruit. Granted that someone like a captain or a lieutenant is a different story, but that's besides the point.
"They sure made you look good, huh? Little one."
"What can I say, dad? It seems like I'm already making guilds fight over me. It may just be a sign."
"Or they're just after your indisputable fame that you'll have regardless of your skill level, which would make even the smallest of guilds into a top tier one overnight in terms of popularity."
"Ugh…"
"Just be happy for your son, Bartholomew… you really are rotten."
"What was that? I'm just keeping his head grounded, and preventing him from getting cocky. Isn't that what the article also said- ouch!"
"Dear…"
"But-"
"Dear."
"…never mind. Good for ya, Cael."
"Thanks, dad…"
Sometimes I forget that the real man of the house is mom…
"Well, changing topic. Nala, they also have an article about you, you know?"
"Really?! Is it about-"
"Yep, it is. In fact, it's actually longer than Cael's article too for that matter. It seems like everyone is more than impressed with your designs."
Her eyes lit up as Maia gave her the news, and she even jumped from her seat, slamming both hands on the table.
"Really?! Like, really, really?!"
"Really, really. Though there's nothing about designers wanting to scout you like guild masters are with Cael, you will probably slowly but surely become a topic of discussion among the fashion industry. Should I buy you some tailoring and sewing equipment? I have plenty of free rooms you could use as well for that, and Iris knows the gist of how all of them work, so you shouldn't have trouble if you want to give it a try."
"I do, I do, I do! I want to try it! Are you sure about it?!"
"Of course. I have to go to work soon, but I'll have someone deliver and install everything before today's evening. The only issue would probably be the cloth which isn't as widely sold in retail… It's a really fruitful business after all, so most farmers and manufacturers prefer to make contracts and directly sell them to specific stores or brands. It wouldn't be impossible for me to get my hands on some of course, but I think I have a better idea."
"A better idea? What is it? Does it still allow me to do my own clothes today?!"
"It sure does. To put it short, many stores that sell already done clothes also do have cloth itself on sale. It's the same type that they use for their own products, so the only rule on buying from any of them is just that you can only use said cloth for personal projects. They wouldn't want their raw materials to get in the hands of competitors after all. But they allow orders of any size of cloth as long as it's not for commercial use. There's a fairly good quality store around half an hour on foot from here actually, so why don't you have Cael take you there?"
"Huh? Why me?"
"Why not you? Are you planning on letting our dear younger sister go alone or something? It's pretty dangerous for her right now, you know?"
"That's obviously not what I'm saying… and for that matter, wouldn't it also be dangerous for me? I'm still not even at the level of a C rank adventurer, you strawberry freak gorilla."
"That's not an issue. Besides the fact that you'll find recruits close to anywhere, you're more than strong enough to protect her from on a half an hour trip."
"Again, why me tho…"
"Why not you?"
"…fine."
"Neither one of you has gone outside the mansion yet, no? Take this as a chance. Feel free to take any detours or whatever when you're out too, as long as you're home before 5 or so."
"Yeah, I don't know if I can turn a half an hour trip into 10 hours out, you know? For that matter, as far as I'm aware, I don't really have any money…"
"I'm honestly surprised you're genuinely trying to use money as an excuse in this context…"
She sighed, then took out something from her pocket, and threw it on the table, where it stopped right in front of me. It was a seal. Of course, this didn't need any explanation, it was her own seal after all.
"Fine, fine. I'll take her… but what about you guys?"
"Me and Lysanna are going out to check out some bows, and do some shopping for Lara. We prefer choosing our own daughter's clothes after all."
"Me and your dad are also busy today. I'd feel bad leaving the cooking to the maids, so I'm taking him out for a large grocery haul and also any other utensils I may need."
"That, and I'd also just like to use the little free time we have before the trial to enjoy some peaceful time with my lovely wife. So sorry little one, but we can't tag along this time."
"Yeah, yeah. Have fun you lovebirds. But that only leaves…"
I turned towards Rune, who was eating next to mom.
"Im… I'm also busy today…"
"That so? Are you also going out?"
He nodded.
"Ivy said we can go to a library today…"
"That's nice and all, but wouldn't they also need protection?"
"You don't have to worry about that, my dear younger brother. Both Ivy and Iris are retired adventurers after all. Though Iris will be staying home today since she's technically the head maid, Ivy alone can protect Rune just fine."
The twin maids are actually fairly strong retired adventurers, huh? I should've probably seen that trope coming.
"Well, I guess that's good. Enjoy your time at the library, Rune."
"Thanks…"
And with that, Nala stood up completely this time.
"I'll go get dressed then! You too, hurry up, Cael!"
And ran off. Coincidentally though I was also done eating my breakfast, so I also got up. But when I reached for my sword which was resting on the side of my chair, Maia spoke up.
"Sorry to break it to you, but you can't take that with you."
"What? Why?"
"You're not a registered adventurer, nor a recruit, nor have any special license… why would a regular civilian, and a kid at that be allowed to keep a sword with him?"
"It wasn't an issue when we came here though? They even asked me about it."
"It counted as simply a personal object you were carrying on you, while moving to a different house. But you don't have a reason to keep it with you while you're out with your sister, do you?"
"I get that, but aren't you the one who said I need to protect her? How am I supposed to do that without my sword?"
She tilted her head in confusion first, then replied as she crossed her arms.
"You out of all people are the person that needs a physical weapon the least, aren't you?"
"… Alright."
It's true after all. I'm the only person in the world besides the Commander herself that can manipulate and reshape already materialized mana after all. Making a blade out of nothing but my mana is easy work, not to mention that my mana control in general is apparently at the very top of the list. I guess I don't really need to carry it with me, but I do feel a little sad without it.
Or rather, maybe not sad but uneasy? But being uneasy without my sword kinda makes me sound like a psychopath so that may not be the best choice of words either. How do I put it? To me, my sword is the same as an extension of my arm. I know it's a cliché thing to say, especially since it's probably the top tier metaphor your average 70 year old samurai Sensei tells you when you ask him how you can get stronger with a sword.
But that was genuinely how I felt about my own blade. I don't think it's a secret to anyone that I'm particularly confident with my swordsmanship skill either, so that should account for it too. But either way, it's not like I was going to start weeping without it or anything like that, so I just sighed and accepted it.
"I'll go get changed then."
And with that I went to my room, and within 5 minutes I was already ready to go. I honestly thought my time was really good too, but it turns out that Nala had already been waiting for me when I came back, somehow. Weren't girls supposed to take a long ass time to get ready? Granted, her room was closer to the exit than mine, but still.
Maia gave me a brief instruction on how to get there before we left, which I of course remembered- well, at least for the most of it. Honestly, it actually took us way less than I expected to get there, factoring the fact that we were basically lost- I mean, we were taking a longer route, and because I expected Nala to wanna drop by a lot of other places we passed by, but that wasn't the case.
For instance, we walked past like 5 other clothing stores on our way alone, not even including other alleys and all, but she was pretty focused on getting to the one that Maia recommended to us. How convenient, right ? But since we're on the topic of the unexpected, I also honestly thought she'd be a lot more bothered by the gaze of others.
Maybe I also had a little too much negative expectations though? Since most of the people that we passed by were either straight up ignoring us, or looking at us with indifference. Though the amount of genuine hatred we got from the rest was a lot larger than in the town near our village, this was still tolerable.
And clearly I'm not the only one who thought it was. But either way, after around an hour or so of walking, a lot of asking for directions to strangers and lots of luck, we got there without any real issues arising. It was around 8 or so when we left? Maybe a little more, or a little less, so it was around 9 and a half Maybe, or around that. Though still early, the shop was actually already surprisingly full.
The moment you entered, you were hit with large rafts of already folded clothes, but also enough fully wardrobe displayed dresses and suits or other costumes on both the left and right to lose count before you'd even try. After walking a little inside, the store then expanded itself in both directions, but right in front of the entrance a little further ahead there was the main cash register, which is where we headed to for starters.
His expression when seeing us was… fairly tame honestly? He was pretty good at barely hiding his disgust at least. And his tone as he spoke in his best attempt at sounding neutral and polite was only showing what I guess to be around 60% of his loath for us to leave, so all in all? Pretty good as far as I'm concerned.
"…welcome. How may I be of help to you today?"
"Do you guys have raw cloth on display? We'd like to buy some, but it would be helpful if we could take a look at the available options first."
Of course, I did the speaking, as the little gremlin stood next to me with a big grin on her face, while looking around the store.
"Raw cloth you say…? We are indeed displaying it for any customers to see, however I must warn you about a certain requirement-"
"No, it's fine. We know already. It has to be for a personal project, right? That's exactly what we need it for."
"I see. It was a requirement for me to make sure, as usually only tailors themselves commissioned with personal projects come to buy raw material."
At that moment, I realized. This gentleman either didn't see the article on the news or didn't believe that Nala was genuinely the one who designed and contributed to the creation of our clothes from our arrival. It's not really an issue, but I guess it may be my older brotherly love or something like that, which made me take a different approach than what would've been necessary.
"Hm? How exactly is this different from the usual then?"
After all, I could've just said "alright, so anyway, where is it?" But why not play with it a little?
"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand. Perhaps you misheard what I said? Usually it's the tailors that-"
"I heard that very well, and it's exactly why I'm asking."
I spoke in a casual tone, not trying to sound cocky or intimidating. I wasn't looking for trouble after all. He looked at both of us, clearly confused. Nala wasn't even paying attention to the conversation still, but as he looked at me first and I nodded in denial, I nodded in confirmation when he looked at Nala, then glanced back at me for an instant.
"We're buying raw cloth so my dear younger sister, who by the way, is the one who designed the clothes we were wearing when we arrived, can practice at home."
He blinked widely a few times. I stood there, looking at him with a smug expression. I could almost read his mind too. I bet you my entire life savings (aka nothing) that his thoughts were probably along the lines of "why the hell are you the one looking so smug, if she really is the tailor…" but guess what fucker, my younger sister is family, and family shared everything, including their glory! So her glory is my glory, which directly means I have all the rights in the world to feel proud right now!
But anyway, back to the point. After a short scoff to clear his throat, he decided to directly take us to where the raw cloth was displayed. What a nice gentleman.
As we arrived at the entire aisle that was dedicated to nothing but cloth, I genuinely couldn't help but be surprised.
"Woah…"
And rightfully so, Nala didn't even bother trying to hold it back. Sprinting forward towards each scaffold, each raft, while whining in excitement as her eyes glowed. She was pretty much going berserker mode, but instead of killing and destroying everything around her, she was touching every single piece of cloth she saw, and checking them all out.
I couldn't blame her though, after all as I myself looked around, I couldn't hide my amazement. For starters, colors. There were so many different colors that I couldn't even name all of them if I tried. Not that I don't recognize basic colors or anything like that, but because each color had so many variations of shades.
Not only that, as I touched a few of them, the difference in texture was so well defined among each of them, that you could easily tell what material they were made out of- well, granted, if you know any different materials that cloth are made out of to begin with, that is. I can't say I'm an expert in the field, but my fingers can definitely tell that the material is different. Not that I know what they are specifically though.
That being said…
"I'll have to buy this, and this, and also that! But hmmmm, I can also use this…. But then I could also use this? Or that? What about these? Or those? Hmmm, what do I do… ah, I can get them all! Yeah!"
"Say… aren't you going a little overboard?"
I get that she was excited, but she was taking so much in her hands that the stack was tall enough to cover her whole head. I don't even know how she held that with just one arm.
"No? If I'm going to practice, I need lots and lots of different materials, so I can make different type of clothes-"
"I get that, but at this rate, you're faster off just buying the whole store…"
But it seems like the little genius here couldn't tell that I was being sarcastic. The next instant, she completely dropped everything she was holding on the floor, then walked towards me, took Maia's seal from my pocket, and turned towards the old man.
"Old man, old man! I'm buying the whole store! Here!-"
"Hold it!"
But I interrupted her as she was about to give him the seal, by lifting her by her collar.
"What the hell are you doing…"
"You said that it's faster to buy the whole store… So what's the problem?"
"I was being sarcastic, you idiot… we can't go around abusing Maia's money before our name gets redeemed. 'The Young Ashford were seen buying entire stores a few days after their arrival. Are they perhaps trying to conquer the capital?!' I can already see the headlines…"
"…so we can't buy it?"
"No, we can't. It would be really troublesome if we did…"
The disappointment on her face was obvious. But unfortunately or not, as much as I'd like to make her happy and just let her buy it, we simply can't afford to do tyrant work 3 days after our arrival… buying a whole store because you couldn't decide on what to buy pretty much screams "I'm rich and spoiled!"
However, before the tears that had swelled up inside her eyes could burst out, an unfamiliar voice spoke from behind us.
"Then… There should be no issue if we buy this store, right?"
Still holding Nala, I turned around towards the voice. Standing there with her arms crossed and a smug smile was a blonde woman, with green eyes. Besides her, with one hand on her hip, but the same smile was another blonde woman, however she had blue eyes.
Are they twins…?
But as I looked at their faces, I felt a sense of familiarity. Where have I seen them before?
"C-captain and lieutenant— V-Valentis?!"
The old man was the first one to speak after her, and his reaction is what finally made me remember. I've seen these 2 women before, in Maia's livestream. I put Nala down, as the 2 of them approached us.
"You don't seem all that impressed to see us?"
"No… if anything I'm just wondering why you're here trying to buy a store for us."
"Haha, you really are Maia's younger brother."
"Thanks… I guess."
"My name is Evelyn Valentis, and I'm the Captain of the Pelthion Kingdom."
"And I'm the Lieutenant, Rosalie Valentis."
"Ah, yeah, nice to meet you. Our names are-"
"Cael and Nala, right?"
I nodded. Nala was pretty silent, holding on to my shirt. Maybe even she was shy once in a while?
"Maia is the one that sent us here. She thought things may end up like this."
"And it seems like she was right after all, huh? Though we would've gotten here earlier if Mom didn't take forever to get ready."
"Haha, what are you talking about, Rosalie? It was you who couldn't decide which pendant to take with her today, and slowed us down."
"Oh but you're quite wrong, mother. In fact, didn't you slow us down noticeably because you couldn't find your favorite bra?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Oh but I bet you do…"
And before I knew it, the 2 of them started going at each other's throats.
Do the Sentinels accept any weirdos as long as they're strong…
Even the old man was shocked to see them argue like that, over quite literally nothing. I wasn't particularly bothered or fond of it though, so I decided to try and interfere. At the very least, if we sort this thing out sooner, we can go back home faster.
"Uhm… I'm sorry to interrupt your little discussion? But what was that about buying the store again?"
Luckily though, they abruptly stopped as they heard me speak. Evelyne was grabbing Rosalie by her ear and mouth, while Rosalie was grabbing Evelyne by her collar. Are we sure that these 2 are Mother and Daughter? Well, I guess I can't deny it since they look like twins if not for their eyes, but still… They're more like middle school friends that can't stop arguing than anything.
Dropping each other, and slightly readjusting their composure, it was Evelyne who replied.
"That's right. We're going to buy this store, and have someone send as much cloth as you need directly to Maia's house. It'll probably take a while until we can get someone and load some carriages with them, but it should all be done by this evening. So you two can just go ahead and have fun until then."
"Are you sure about it? Buying a store just because Maia told you to…"
"Don't get it wrong, Cael. Me and Mom were thinking of buying this store for a while now, so this is just an opportunity to finally get it done. They have pretty decent products here after all."
"I see. Well, I can't really say much other than thank you then?"
Which reminded me, hasn't she been a little too quiet? I glanced at Nala to check on her, but she was just staring at the 2 of them.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Hm?"
"You've been pretty silent, holding on to me and staring at them. Since when are you shy?"
"That's not it…"
"Then?"
"These 2… have really beautiful clothes."
Not only I, but both of them were also taken aback by her reply. The little spark in her eye indicating her endorsement in how they were dressed, and her devotion for fashion as a whole was almost blinding. It seems like by now, Nala was completely engulfed by her newly born passion for fashion, huh?
I let out a chuckle, as I ruffled her hair a little.
"I guess they do, don't they?"
"Haha, we should still have some old clothes from when Rosalie was a kid at home. If you want, I can send those as well to Maia's house. Though it will take a few days."
"Are you sure about it?!"
She lit up the instant the offer was made. Letting go of me, she approached the 2 of them, grabbing one of each of their hands.
"Yep. I don't mind it either. I was around the same size as you as a kid either way, and it's not like we have any use for them."
"Thank you so much, you two! What kind of clothes are they? Are they dresses? Are they short? Long? Do you also have shirts? Skirts? Pants? Or maybe heavy clothes for winter?? Or light ones for summer?! Or maybe-"
Well, I'll spare you the rest. You can imagine how that went.
Nala kept bombarding them with questions for around 2 hours straight or so. In the meanwhile, me and the old man kinda just hit it off back at the counter, where we talked about life and stuff, while serving customers. Turns out he wasn't all that bad after all. By the time we left, he had even paid me for my 2 hours of work, so I had no complaints. I may just come back here to chat with him once in a while.
We were now on our way to grab a bite. It was close to midday, which I guess was still a little early for lunch, but as far as I'm concerned, traditional eating times are a nuisance, and you should eat whenever you're hungry. Which is why, with the recommendation of the fake twins, we directed ourselves towards what they described as a "really upstanding cafe". I'm not really sure what upstanding means for someone that's as rich as them, but I guess there's only one way to find out.
And for the record, I did find out from the old man that the Pelthion kingdom was the richest on the continent, but I assumed these 2 were filthy rich from the second we laid our eyes on them. Well, besides the fact that the first thing one of them said was that she'd buy the store we were in, they also just radiated dangerous amounts of "yep, we're filthy rich" aura.
But regardless, if I remembered the instructions correctly, we should've been pretty close by now… hopefully. I was holding hands with the gremlin, to make sure that she wouldn't get lost, since compared to when we left there were a lot more people on the street.
"Are we there yet?"
"Nope, it shouldn't be too long though."
"Didn't you say that in the morning too…"
"And we only got a little lost, no? We got there pretty early in the end, so don't complain."
"I'm hungry tho…"
"And who's the one that stopped eating to get ready to leave?"
"…"
"See? So bare with it for a little longer. We have Maia's seal too anyway, so we can order as much food as we want. It's not on our dime after all."
"Ah, you're right! We can spend as much as we want from Maia's money!"
"Thats right! In contrast, don't you think that we'll be more satisfied when we order the whole menu, if we had to wait a little longer for it?!"
"Ah! I think I understand what you mean!"
"I knew you would! That's my adorable little sister-"
Whether we had lost track of our surroundings, or it was on purpose… someone had interrupted us in an unconventional way. A large and fairly tall man had bumped into Nala. She had fallen to the ground, so I instantly turned around and got on my knee to assist her.
"Are you alright, Nala?"
"…y-yeah…"
I then turned to look at the man, who was glaring down at us. I didn't even need to think about whether it was the case or not. His hatred for us was leaking like a broken pipe. He had bumped into her on purpose.
Ah…I really want to hit you.
But unfortunately, our position simply didn't allow me. 'Eldest Ashford son, spotted assaulting a civilian for no apparent reason. Perhaps the confidence in his skill was in fact just an act of cockiness?' I can smell the front page article. So with that in mind, I put on my best fake smile and polite tone, as I spoke first.
"We're sorry about that. We'll be more careful next time."
He spat on the ground next to us, clicked his tongue and only then he replied. I had already turned back to face Nala though, to make sure she didn't get hurt.
"Tsk. You better be more careful, you stupid brats. That little bitch almost made me fall. What would've you done if I got hurt-"
I froze.
Did he just say…?
The next instant, I had already turned around, and gotten up on my feet. I bet I must've been glaring at him pretty hard, huh? Though I can't say for sure, since it's not like I can see myself or anything.
"Say… what the fuck did you just say?"
He seemed to have gotten pissed by it. Sizing me up, he locked eyes with me, and replied.
"What, you didn't hear me? I told you that, that little bitch almost made me fall."
Yeah… forget our circumstances. You're dead.
I enhanced my speed in a fraction of a second, and stretched my arm backwards, beginning to create a blade out of my mana. However…
"'Eldest Ashford son, spotted assaulting a civilian for no apparent reason. Perhaps the confidence in his skill was in fact just an act of cockiness?' I can already smell the front page headline, you know?"
Grabbing my arm before I could swing it forward somehow, I heard a familiar voice from behind me. The dude in front of me had fallen, probably got scared or something, but in the meanwhile I glanced back with the side of my right eye, and saw her standing there with a casual smile on her face.
"Luna…"
She let go of my arm, as I also gave up on attacking the piece of shit on the ground. After that, she helped Nala get up, who clung to her without wasting a second, and started crying.
"Your aura was leaking everywhere, you know? No wonder even little Nala got scared from seeing her brother that mad."
"…"
"I get how you felt, but you have to remember your position, Cael. I'm sure you're aware of it as well."
"I know that."
"Then you shouldn't try to assault people on the street, regardless of what they called your little sister. There's no point in getting so worked up over someone you'll never see again, is there?"
"…my bad."
By then, the piece of shit had gotten up and ran away. I watched silently until he disappeared from sight in an alley a little further ahead, then turned towards Luna and Nala.
"I happened to be free today so I wanted to check on the situation at the shop after Maia told me she sent the fake twins, and I heard they sent you off with a recommendation for a cafe."
"Yeah, they did… is that how you found us?"
"Ah, well… kinda? I figured you'd probably get lost, and it turns out I was right."
"What? Then how did you get here?"
"I went in the opposite direction of where you should've gone."
"Ah."
"Should I lead the way?"
"…yes mam."
And so we ended up spending the rest of the day together, until we got home at around 5 pm or so. Luna stayed over that night as well, while Nala spent the whole rest of the day closed in her new workspace.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Maia's Pov)
"Aaah, ah. Can he not stay away from trouble at all without us?"
"What can you do about it? He is cursed after all. For that matter, I'd say that I stopped him quite in time, before the curse's goal was achieved this time as well."
"I guess I can't argue against that."
It was around midnight, and me and Mio, who was still in her Luna form, were in a random cell of one of the many Sentinel prisons. Of course though, we weren't alone. Tied to a chair, with tape on his mouth, there was a single man.
"You can take it off now, Maia."
"Eye, eye, sir."
Then as soon as I freed his mouth, he began shouting.
"W-who are you?!"
"Well, I'm assuming you're not talking about me, since it's pretty easy to tell who I am based on my eyes. Which means you're talking about…"
I turned my gaze towards her as well, who seemed to have forgotten she was still Luna. She looked at her body for a few seconds, before letting out an "ah" sound of understanding. And with the usual purple and black aura engulfing her then dispersing, she had changed back into Mio.
His eyes widened in terror, while Mio walked until she stopped right in front of him.
"Me? I'm just Cael Ashford's soulmate?"
She smirked cunnily, while he started shaking uncontrollably.
"Ah, but if you want a more specific answer, I also happen to be The Commander of The Sentinels, Mio."
"Aaaah….aaaaahhhh!!! AAAAAAHHHH! AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
Fear. The most primal instinct of any living being. In this case, it had pretty clearly ascended past that though. It was already nothing but crude terror. Honestly, if you asked most people they would probably tell you that fear and terror are the same feeling.
I can't really blame them, since they are synonymous, but I can't see them as the same. I have observed the difference between the 2 of them up close for a while after all. Let's take this man for example, shall we?
When he was dragged in here, and until Mio revealed herself, he was simply scared. Fear is the instinct that alarms you when you're in a potentially dangerous situation, but it can also be influenced by your own bias, and paranoia, so it's not an objective warning, or anything like that.
However, once Mio revealed herself, his fear developed into pure terror. Complete loss of composure, constant struggle to free himself in a futile attempt at escaping. The main difference between the 2, is that when he was afraid, deep down there was still a part of him that hoped he'd get out of here alive. However, once he realized who he messed with, and who was actually in front of him, he was faced with the objective truth, that his death would soon come.
Fear isn't an objective warning, and it doesn't necessarily indicate the end of your life. Terror on the other hand, is the realization of the inevitable doom, which is about to unfold. It's an objective warning from your most primal instincts, that you're about to die.
"Do you think that screaming will save you?"
"OAAAAAUAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
He couldn't even reply anymore. Of course, Mio expected that much, but she still continued with her usual calmness.
"To think that this is the man who called my little sister a "little bitch", huh? I get that you probably didn't think of the consequences that it may have caused, but can't you at least grow a pair?"
He continued to scream.
"I'm sure that beneath those pitiful screams, you're probably thinking something along the lines of 'why's this happening?!' Or 'why me?! All I did was insult a kid!' Or 'this is unfair!' Right?"
Still no answer, or signs of calming down yet.
"But if you still haven't reached the answer even after I told you who I am, then you're really just a hopeless idiot. So instead of wasting any of our time with having faith in your intelligence, I'll tell you right ahead, why you're about to die."
He still hasn't stopped screaming.
"You may have simply 'insulted a child', and death for something that shallow may seem a little excessive. But you're forgetting that the kid you insulted was The Commander's Little sister. I will never let any disrespect towards my family slide. So that is why you're going to die."
Only then, after she had put the whole image upfront for him to understand, he had finally stopped screaming. Though no words came out, he had a plain look of understanding on his face now. Probably something like "ah… I really fucked up." I guess?
"Just to let you know though before I kill you. Your hatred for them was actually a complete waste of time, and the direct cause of your death. After all, they're innocent. You could've just waited 2 weeks until the trial to find out for yourself, but I guess you couldn't hold back, huh? In that case, you should probably blame the kings that framed them as treasoners instead. That may make your death easier."
His eyes widened for a moment, then went back to normal as he looked at the ground. Mio wasn't lying. Perhaps he felt the sincerity in her words, but he clearly believed everything she said.
"It seems like you've accepted your fate."
"…"
"Putting aside the disrespect towards my family, I do acknowledge that you're a victim of the lies spread by the kings. And for that, I pity you. However, I promise that no one will ever die like you, after the trial is over. I'll clear their name forever, so rest assured."
A brittle smile appeared on his lips, and surprisingly to not just me, but also Mio…
"…thank you."
He had managed to deliver his final words. Then the next moment, his head had already fallen to the ground.
I felt the same way as Mio. Regardless of the disrespect, he was a victim deep down. Perhaps killing him was even unjust to some extent in this context. But I also understand better than anyone why she'll never allow anyone to disrespect us. For that matter, it wasn't even just what he called Nala that got him here, it was mostly the fact that he physically bumped into her intentionally, making her fall.
But as morally gray as his end may have seemed, at least he didn't die while suffering, or while scared. I'm not really an expert in philosophy or anything like that, but if I had to guess why he thanked Mio, it's probably something along the lines of "I'm glad that no one will make the same mistake as me after the trial. Thank you for promising to prevent it, by clearing their name." As he understood that what he did was out of line as well respectively.
"…wanna go grab a bite?"
"Let me guess, that new spicy fish restaurant that opened yesterday?"
"I didn't have time to try it after all."
"…got it."
We both clearly had a bittersweet aftertaste because of this time's execution, so perhaps burning it down with some spice isn't that bad of an idea after all.