Wait! I'm not a Demigod, I'm a Gamer!

Chapter 40: Tower

The next morning, Yuuya wakes up to a blinding light behind his eyelids, making him groan in annoyance. "Mmmph five more minutes..." He attempts to roll on his side to escape the light from hell, but is stopped by an unseen force, mainly because his eyes are still shut. This forces the grumpy beast-man to begrudgingly open his eyes and see the culprit. Sam has a death grip on his arm as he snores peacefully, making Yuuya sigh in defeat, his earlier annoyance disappear at the familiar sight. He looks over to his other side and sees Damian sleeping comfortably as well...holding onto his tail like a teddy bear. The beast-man's face blushes brightly while steam erupts from his ears at the scene as he finally registers the man's fingers through his extra appendage. "Wha-when did he-" His thoughts are cut off when the ombré haired man snuggles further into his fluffy tail, eliciting a yelp from the embarrassed man at the slight tingle of electricity the human caused. Unable to handle the feeling anymore, Yuuya teleports off the bed and into the stable, surprising the Sacred Beast from her slumber. "Star? What's wrong? I can sense your heart racing? Are we in danger?" Fearing her master and her group's safety, she tries to use her keen senses to pick up on any danger nearby, but Yuuya waves her off as he tries to will the blush to disappear. "N-no! We-we're fine! I ju-just...had an accident this morning..." Yuuya explains as his voices fades towards the end. A few clicks of silence goes by before Aurora answers, "Do not worry, Star. It happens to all of us, no matter how old we get." Yuuya's face blazes in full glory once more as he recalls what he just said and waves his arms in front, "Wa-wait! That's not what I mean!" Aurora simply nods her head in understanding as the misunderstanding continues, "No need to feel any shame Star, you are still growing." A quarter of the capital wakes to the sound of a beast-man shrieking in utter embarrassment.
Sam and Damian have just finished getting ready by the time Yuuya comes back to the room, after finally clearing up the misunderstanding with his familiar, and sighs tiredly while going to the closet to get fresh clothes for the day. The pair stare at him in confusion. "Hey, where were you? When we woke up you were gone." Damian questions in an annoyed tone, but if you listened closely you could hear the worry underneath. Yuuya flicks his ears and slightly glares at him, making him flinch, not expecting the look. "Why is he looking at me like that? He looks pissed! D-did he not sleep well last night?" Sam could see the glare and tries to intervene, "Hey Yuuya, you hungry? I think Miss Grace is making pancakes and sausages this morning for breakfast. We can talk while we eat." Yuuya's glare lessens at the mentions of food, but doesn't disappear altogether. "Sure." Was his only answer and goes into the other room and shuts the door loudly, making the two jump in surprise. The humans share a look, wondering what could've made the usually chipper beast-man so sour. The trio eat in awkward silence, the captain still sour as he grumpily eats his pancakes. Sam and Damian warily eat their own food, waiting for the ball to drop. After two plates, the ombré haired man finally couldn't take it anymore. "Okay, what's wrong? You have been eating in silence, you're obviously pissed off about something. Did something happen last night?" Yuuya's narrow slightly as his tail swipe in slight irritation, this morning embarrassing memory still burned into his mind. "I'm fine. Nothing happened last night, slept fine. Just had an ac-bad morning." Not wanting a repeat of the stable, Yuuya changes the wording of his explanation as he rips a piece of sausage off of his fork. The pair sweatdrops nervously at the clear irritation on their friend's face. "Oookay. Do you...wanna talk about it?" Sam asks carefully. Yuuya stabs his fork at another sausage so aggressively it cracked the plate, making the pair jump, including the poor innkeeper that has been standing off the side watching the entire discussion curiously. No one says a word for a couple of minutes as they stare at the plate, waiting to see what happens next. Finally, Yuuya lifts up the fork and shoves the sausage into his mouth. Once he swallows, he answers back, "No thanks." Sam, Damian, and Grace continue to watch the beast-man eat with pale looks, wondering even more what could've happened to anger the beast-man to such a degree in such a short amount of time.
After breakfast, and Yuuya fixing the plate, the trio head over to the stable to meet up with the fourth member. Aurora shakes off the hay and affectionately rubs her snout against Yuuya's ears trying, and successfully, lifting Yuuya's dark mood, "Hello Star, Samuel, Damian. Did you three enjoy a good meal?" The humans nod as Yuuya enjoys the nuzzle, "Yeah, Grace prepared you an extra plate for you." Damian holds out two plates for her as he carefully puts them down. While she eats, the trio go over the day's plans. "Sooo...what should we do today?" Sam asks hesitantly. After the whole ordeal, wandering around the capital seems unsafe for the two beastly type members. Yuuya looks up from watching Aurora eat contently, his anger a low simmer at this point, "I need to go to the Magic Tower to pick up magic items. The court never gave them back to me." Sam and Damian pale at the thought of their captain just simply strolling in the one place that openly experiment on strange phenomenon, like him! "Wait! That's-not such a good idea." Sam warns worriedly. "Yeah! The Magic Tower is no joke, they do all kinds of weird shit to things and people!" He still remembers the time his father took him there as to familiarize the place in case of future investigations as he was growing up, how horrified he was when he saw what the mages were doing to the monsters locked up in there...not to mention the weird potions they had the knights drink in order to 'boost' their capabilities. Damian didn't want to imagine what they would do to Yuuya should they get their hands on him. Yuuya narrows his eyes and crosses his arms, figuratively putting his foot down. "I don't care, I'm getting my stuff back. You guys can hang back and wait for me, but I'm going in there and getting back what is rightfully mine. I'm not waiting for them to return it all in a broken state. I worked hard and nearly died for some of those, they mean a lot to me. I'm going and that's final." Sam and Damian share a look and sigh, already dreading what's to come. Aurora joins in the conversation. "Perhaps we should invite an expert on the matter. Someone who is familiar with the establishment." The trio look at each other, considering the idea, then suddenly Damian snaps his fingers, "I know someone."
It's a long, awkward, and hazardous walk to the Adventurer's Guild. Many people ran from the group, some even threw rocks at them, but quickly regretted it when Aurora growled menacingly at them only to be soothed by the beast-man by her side. Eventually, they make it in one piece, but the atmosphere in the guild is still as dark as when they were outside. Many of the parties turned away from them, some sneering at them and reaching for their weapons. Yuuya quietly gulps down his fear as he pushes forward, his friends following right behind him. They make their way to the desk, seeing Amanda organizing some documents as the other receptionists quietly walked away once they see them coming over. Only when she puts the papers away does she finally notice them, her smile quickly disappears and fear instantly fills her eyes, breaking Yuuya's heart. "O-oh! O-Or-Orion's P-P-Pax! Wh-What can I-I d-d-do for y-you?" She stutters terribly, her fear clearly obvious. Yuuya frowns at her uneasy behavior and decides to step back, not wanting to frighten her even more, and gently nudges Sam and Damian forward. Sam and Damian look at him questioningly, Yuuya doesn't meet their eyes as his ears fold down. The pair look at him in concern, but look back at the nervous receptionist. "We need to speak to the Solarclouds, are they here?" Amanda quickly rifles through the papers under the desk, accidentally scattering the documents all over the floor. "Oh! Uh I'm um I'm so sorry! Please-um-just give me-oh dear Goddess..." The poor woman tries to organize the mess as she tries to help them at the same time. The group watches her worriedly, wondering if they should give her a hand. Yuuya, unable to watch the stressful situation anymore, he summons his dark magic and takes hold of all the documents on the floor, the papers turning a purplish hue. Amanda lets out a squeak of surprise as the documents slowly float up in the air, the adventurers all stand up from their seats, reading their weapons. Aurora stands in between the adventurers and Yuuya, growling as if daring anyone to attack as Yuuya carefully stacks the documents neatly until they are all off the floor and in a neat pile on the desk. Amanda stares in wonder at the tidy stack, marveling over how such a spell was performed by a beast-man without any chanting. "Uh um th-thank you." She bows politely. Yuuya nods, smiling at her reassuringly. "Of course, please take your time. We're not in a rush." There was a touch of sadness ebbed in his tone of voice that contradict his smile. Not wanting to fluster the poor woman anymore, Yuuya decides to sit away from the desk at an empty table, his smile disappearing as the adventurers move away from him. Aurora sits by him, laying her head on his lap, allowing him to pet the scales on her head. Amanda looks down in shame, having let fear taking over the fact that she knew this man over several months. Someone clearing their throat catches her attention, she looks up, seeing the other two members of Orion's Pax staring at her, one with a glare, one with a sad look. "Miss Amanda? The Solarclouds? We just need to talk to them." Her eyes widen as she remembers her main objective. "Ah yes! Right! One sec." She quickly skims through the documents until she finds the one. "Okay! Looks like they accepted a simple monster hunt, they should be back soon." Lo and behold, just as she says this the doors swing open, the light blinding everyone. Callian, in his golden armor once more, walks in with a bright smile as he loudly exclaims, "Hello everyone, we're back! Check out what we brought back!" He waves his arms back as he gestures behind him to show Brutus and Matthew dragging a giant block of ice wrapped in rope containing what seems to be a giant purple slime. Diana and Ivory stare at their captain unimpressively as the other two continue to drag the block of ice further into the guild. "Captain, please stop shouting, it's still early in the morning. Some people are still waking up." Ivory states in a monotone voice. Brutus relaxes his grip on one of the ropes making Matthew heave the block of ice on his own as his face turn red, Diana laughs at his predicament. "Captain, it's only polite to speak in a calm and respectful tone indoors. We just got out of prison, let's not go back for disturbing the peace." Callian pouts at his party before his eyes widen at the figure behind Brutus, the figure having tall, red, furry ears. Callian gasps loudly and races past his party member, "Yuuya!" He screams happily. Yuuya jumps at the loud scream, too lost in thought to have notice their arrival. Aurora moves just in time for the shiny armored man to pull the beast-man into a bone-crushing hug. Yuuya chuckles as he hugs him back, resting his cheek on his shoulder, while Callian swings him a little. "Oh my little fox! It's so good to see you!" He pulls back a little, getting a good look into those vibrant purple eyes that seem far too intelligent and yet so innocent. Callian smiles happily again, "You look so much better all healed up and in new clothes. Glad you're well taken care of, I wanted to go over to you and see you after we all went our separate ways, but these guys said no." He glares at his party as he continues to hold Yuuya, idly petting his hair and ears, while his party, Sam, and Damian join them. "Captain, we've been over this. They needed rest, you needed rest, we needed rest. Let it go already." Matthew states in an exhausted tone, finally giving up on trying to drag the block of ice by himself. As the Solarclouds argue, Yuuya's smile widens at the comforting feeling of being held, knowing more people had his back. Sam catches Yuuya's smile and can't help, but share the same feeling, "See Yuuya, you're not alone. There are many people who accept you." Damian shouts at the group, interrupting Sam's thoughts, "Shaddup already will ya! Jeez." They all look at the ombré haired man, giving him their attention. Damian looks at Callian with a slight glare with his arms crossed, "Listen Callian, you and your party occasionally go to the Magic Tower right?" Ivory's form stiffens at the mention of the name as Callian looks at Damian curiously. "Well yes, we do go there sometimes. There are a few quests involving an A-rank party such as us that come from the Magic Tower. In fact, this monster here is to be transported to the Magic Tower for further testing, apparently the fluid it secretes could be used to enhance potion brewing to extreme levels. We just came here to have the guild sign the quest form and verfiy this is the monster in question before bringing it over. Why do you want to go to the Magic Tower?" Callian questions suspiciously at the end, not liking where this was going. Yuuya answers before Damian has a chance to, "I want my stuff back, I hear they have them. I'm going over to get them back." The Solarclouds' eyes widen in shock, dreading in the same manner as Sam and Damian have when the first heard his proclamation. "Yuuya that is not a good idea, the Magic Tower specializes in researching the unknown and you my friend are a mystery." Diana tries to explain with no success. Matthew tries next, "I heard they tried to examine you when we were first arrested, but thankfully the queen stopped them. She only allowed them to inspect the magical items that you carried and handed out. That still sparked an interest to them. It's only a matter of time before they try to drag you into their lab and dissect you." Yuuya didn't like the idea of being dissected like a frog back in his high school days as Sakura, but he couldn't let go of this matter. He needed those items back, they're the only things connecting him back to his old life, back to his gaming days. He may have many other items on him, but there were a couple that the Magic Tower has that meant the world to him, ones he worked very hard on to earn. The beast-man stepped out of Callian's grasp and crossed his arms, standing tall while his tail flicked behind him as a sign he wasn't afraid. Ivory speaks up in a dark tone, "We're saying this to protect you Yuuya. The Magic Tower is no joke, they won't hold back to get every piece of information out of you by any means necessary." Ivory looks up, her hat no longer hiding the scary glint in her dark brown eyes that makes Yuuya flinch slightly. "Those assholes attempted several times just to get a blood sample from you while we were in that cell, if it weren't for the second and third princes you'd be dead. They were watching you, observing you, during the whole trial. That's how relentless they are for their 'research'." She spits out the word 'research' with so much venom that Yuuya can't help but shiver nervously. Nevertheless, Yuuya stands his ground and steps closer to the mage. "I understand and I know what I'm walking into, but I'm not backing down. Those magic items mean everything to me, that sword was the last thing I ever earned in my past life...The last thing I ever told my brother about...Please, I need your help." He gingerly takes her hands as his ears fold on his head while his eyes become glossy with unshed tears. Despite her stoic character, even she was no match for the famous puppy eyed look nor the sadden past of the beast-man, Ivory sighs, "Fine, but don't say we didn't warn you. I suppose we could use some help carrying this block of ice to the Magic Tower anyway." Yuuya smiles wide and picks her up in a hug, surprising the normally calm woman as he cheers happily, "Ooo thank you thank you thank you! I won't let you down! I promise to help you no matter what!" Ivory could only groan as her party snickers at her predicament, except for her captain as he watches with slight jealousy and sadness at not being held in the same manner, and grunts out, "Well, could you put me down now please?" Yuuya immediately stops and chuckles nervously and gently sets her down. He gives his own party a thumbs up. "What are we waiting for, let's go!" Matthew holds out his hand to stop the beast-man, "Hold it, we still have to address one more issue." Yuuya gives him a quizzical look as he turns towards Aurora's direction. The Sacred Beast tilts her head, waiting for an explanation. "If we're going to the Magic Tower, we should only take one source of mystery. We can't keep an eye on two." Yuuya ears folded at the thought of leaving his new friend behind, but the fear of putting her in danger outweighs the thought of discomfort. Aurora senses this and comes over to her master and nuzzles his cheek, "I will be alright Star. I shall stay here until you return." Now that definitely did not sit well with the beast-man, leaving her alone at the Adventurer's Guild surrounded by dozens of adventurers. Yuuya could only imagine things not ending well. Yuuya's tail wagged nervously has he bit his lip as he tried to come up with a plan, not wanting to leave her alone, but seeing no other way. "Maybe she should wait back the inn instead. I'm not sure the adventurers would feel comfortable having her here..." Sam and Damian watch the beast-man struggle and share a look. They nod to each other and raise a fist, bringing it down three times before Sam has his palm open while Damian has fist clenched. Damian groans as Sam smirks and points to the beastly pair. Damian grumbles as he walks over, the entire exchange being watched by the Solarclouds in mild interest and amusement. Damian puts his hand on Yuuya's shoulder, startling him from his thoughts, and says, "I'll stay here and keep an eye on Aurora, make sure no one touches her. You go and get your stuff back already." Yuuya's tail wags happily while his face shift with uncertainty, "Are you sure? We could walk back to the inn and you two could wait there." Damian sighs as he nods, "I got it I got it. Just go already. I'm not going back to the inn unless we're done for the day, the walk here was annoying. We'll be fine, just go." Yuuya finally smiles and hugs him tightly, making the ombré haired man blush brightly, "Thank you Damian! We'll try to be as quick as possible." He pulls back and gives him an even wider smile, "You're the best Damian!" Damian can't help but think, "I don't mind losing if it means I get to see him smile at me like that..." Sam can't help but feel a bit jealous at the whole conversation, wondering maybe if he should've been the one to stay behind. Damian is still daydreaming while Yuuya looks back Aurora, "Please watch out for each other while we're gone. Let me know if something happens, okay? I'll come to you two as soon as possible." Aurora nods, "Understood, Star. I shall watch over Damian until you return." Satisfied with her answer, the group decides to head off.
After the Solarclouds got the signature from the Adventurer's Guild, Yuuya stuffs the block of ice in his black space, shocking the entire guild, his party scolding him like no tomorrow. Once again, it takes another long, awkward, and hazardous walk to the Magic Tower for the beast-man. When they finally arrive, Yuuya could only gasp at the sheer size of the structure. True to its name, the Magic Tower was a tower, the tallest and largest tower in the capital in purple bricks. Unlike the Royal castle flags, blue flags decorated along the walls that only had the butterfly emblem in black stitching. There was a single large metal gate in front decorated in magic circle locks with a couple of mages in yellow robes out front. They hold out their hands when they approach, Yuuya hides behind the group. "Halt! State your business." Callian steps forward. "Good morning gentlemen. We're Solarclouds. We've come concerning your quest of a purple slime capture." One of the mages looks around, sharing a glance with his fellow mage before looking back at Callian, "Well? Where's the package?" Callian simply smiles and turns around, everyone does as well until all eyes are on Yuuya. Yuuya sweatdrops as he finally pieces together what they were waiting for. "Oh! Right, one sec." He summons his black space, startling the mages, and bringing out the block of ice containing the purple slime. Yuuya holds out his hands as he smiles shyly. "Tadah! One purple slime delivered." The mages' mouths are still left hanging, only to be closed by Matthew's and Diana's help. Ivory steps in front with an irritated look, "If you wouldn't mind getting the Head Mage so we could speed things along, that would be great." The mages quickly unlock the gate, allowing Yuuya to see how the locks are removed, his eyes glistening in curiosity and awe. A few minutes go by before a man in a purple robe comes out, his long cyan hair tied into a braid while his dark blue eyes stare in interest at the block of ice, more at the beast-man next to it. "My, you certainly don't keep us waiting. We just posted this request yesterday, and here you are the very next day." He walks up to the block of ice, gently touching the cool mass as he inspects the slime. "And in mint condition. Yes, this will do. We'll have to make sure the specimen remains in this state while we extract the fluid. Well done. The Magic Tower will compensate you handsomely for this." The man steps away from the block of ice and finally gets a look at his true goal: Yuuya. He steps closer, his smile looking innocent but radiating doom, the smell of disinfect and bleach fills Yuuya's nose which provides no comfort to the beast-man, his earlier confidence having leapt out the window. "We finally get to meet, little one." His hand slowly comes up to Yuuya's face, the beast-man can't help but shake a little in the man's presence, his mind going back to when he was Sakura when she was only a little girl. She was only six when Ren took her to the doctors, it was only supposed to be a simple checkup. The doctor had instructed that he needed to speak to her alone, saying some things needed to be said between doctor and patient. Ren had agreed and told her he would wait outside, Sakura was terrified not wanting to be on her own as tears started to form in her eyes, the poor girl still shy around strangers, but could say nothing as she watched him leave. When it was only the two of them, the doctor gave her an innocent smile that was anything but sweet. "Now then, let's examine you. Could you please roll up your sleeve." He slyly demands as he takes out a syringe filled with a mysterious clear liquid. Sakura shook her head rapidly, not liking his malicious tone one bit nor the petrifying syringe in his hand, the doctor frowned at his request being denied and stood up, his height casting a shadow over her little form. "Little girl, I'm a doctor. I know what's best." She sees his hand coming towards her, making her shake in uncontainable terror as tears began to fall, his glasses the only thing she sees on his face glinting in the fluorescent light. "Don't resist." That day she screamed so loud as more tears fell more rapidly, her brother practically broke down the door in one second, leaving no misunderstanding between the two. He tore his sister away just before the doctor could even grasped the little girl's form and threatened to sue should he ever come near his beloved sister ever again. However, the damage was done, both Sakura and Yuuya would and could never forget what nearly happened in that office, the trauma leaving a deep scar. Yuuya gulps as he shuts his eyes, willing the memory to disappear. A few seconds go by, allowing Yuuya to register that he doesn't feel anything. Yuuya looks up and sees Sam in front along with the rest of his friends, Ivory holding onto the Head Mage's wrist with a death grip, her eyes glaring darkly at him. Sam gently takes his hand, making him realize that he was shaking, "You okay Yuuya?" The beast-man nods and leans closer to his human friend, drinking in the scent of honey and lilacs, sighing softly in relief. "Thank you." Sam smiles back until Ivory's commanding voice cuts in, "Enough. We've come for business, nothing more. Do anything else and I'll kill you, got it?" Yuuya's jaw drops at her threat. "Can she-Is she allowed to talk to the Head Mage of the Magic Tower like that!?" The Head Mage simply smirks and rips his arm back, "Now is that anyway to talk to your favorite cousin, Ive?" Yuuya and Sam whips their heads towards Ivory, their eyes as big as bowling bowls. "You two are cousins!?" Yelled the beast-man, unable to contain his curiosity.
The yellow mages from before return, each holding a magic rod. They go on each side of the block of ice and point at it, generating a magic circle on each side making the block glow lightly. Once it is glowing, the block of ice begins to hover a feet off the ground. They begin to guide the ice block inside the Magic Tower, everyone else watches in mild interest. The Head Mage turns to the group, "Why don't you join me for a cup of tea. We could go over your payment." He looks over at Yuuya. "And you must be here for a reason, yes?" Yuuya takes a deep breath to calm his nerves, trying to push back his fears, "Yes. I know you have my magic items. I want them back, please." He meant to sound more assertive, but his tone came out softer. The Head Mage brings his hand to his chin as he thinks for a second before he snaps his fingers, "Ah yes! Those tricky contracted type magic items. I was hoping a moment of your time, Mr. Yuuya. Come, let's have some tea first." The Head Mage walks in, not bothering to wait for the group. Yuuya eyes the door warily as everyone else looks at him. Sam is still holding on to his hand so he gives it a tight squeeze, "You can still back out Yuuya. You have a choice." Callian rests his hand on his shoulder, "He's right, we could always go get your magic items for you instead. There's no need to push yourself." Yuuya wants to, wants to leave it to his friends, to run away, but...seeing his past self crying loudly in her brother's arms as he carries her away still haunts him. How helpless she felt at doing nothing, but crying and relying on her big brother to take care of everything, putting even more burden on his shoulders. He shakes his head and straightens his back, "No, I got this. Let's go." Yuuya held onto Sam's hand and looks up at Callian with a brave smile, "I'll be okay, I'm not alone." Callian smiles back and nods, gently releasing his hold on the beast-man and leads the group with Yuuya and Sam in the back. The Head Mage was a good distance from the group, but his pace slowed considerably. "It's been a while since your last visit Ive. Every time I put in a request, you always dropped it off and leave. It's so heartbreaking, we're family." He speaks in a faking crying tone. Ivory scoffs as she continues to walk, "We may share blood, but we are not family." The Head Mage turns slightly towards her without stopping, "Aww how could you say that? I babysat you many times in the past. All the fun we had together." Ivory grips her staff tightly as icy footprints are left in her wake, catching Yuuya off guard. "Fun? You call feeding a child experimental potions fun? Or leaving a child in a room full of dangerous, sentient magical items fun? Or what about the time you tested a so called 'safe' magic circle on me? Huh?" The Head Mage simply chuckles, "Oh please, that magic circle would've worked if you had stayed still. Plus, those potions weren't all that bad, that spicy green one made you invincible for a while. So what if you lost all your hair?" The groups gulps the longer Ivory yells at the Head Mage as the man calmly retaliates back in a dismissive tone. During the whole walk, Yuuya looks around and notices several doors lining the halls. Some were open so the beast-man was able to see several rooms filled to the brim with books, a few mages in a variety of colored robes within reading and writing. A few mages in blue robes were in another room standing over a cauldron, talking amongst themselves as the liquid within was glowing a bright green color, giving Yuuya witchy vibes. In another room, Yuuya sees a couple of large rats in cages as more mages in green robes are taking notes as one tries to get closer to the rat only to run away in fear when the rat tries to bite at them. Yuuya can't help but marvel over the wizardly feel of the place and stops himself from crashing into Brutus's back as the group stops on top of a giant magic circle. The Head Mage looks back at them. "This will take us to the top. Hang tight." Yuuya brings Sam closer to his side as the magic circle glows. Yuuya and Sam gasps as they feel themselves begin to fly off from the ground. They watch as each floor pass by them, many mages watch them go, whispering about the beast-man's arrival. Yuuya ignores the whispers as he watches the elevator type magic circle work, whispering to Sam, "This is so cool!" Sam nods and looks at him, "Yeah, but can't you do this too?" Yuuya giggles and nods, "Yeah, but it's so cool when someone else does it. Plus, this is so much bigger!" The group finally reaches the top and continue to walk, the whole time the Head Mage and Ivory still haven't let up in their 'reunion.' Ivory looked ready to explode by the time they reached their destination. A large pair of dark strong looking wooden doors decorated in symbols of various magic circles that looked to be ancient stood before them, no handles to be seen. As soon as the Head Mage stepped close, the doors opened inward as if automatic doors in a grocery store. The Head Mage turns to the group with a grin, "Shall we?"
The group enters and sees both walls lined with bookcases covered head to toe with books in a disorganized state with several documents sticking out. A sky light in the ceiling showing the beautiful blue sky with a few clouds. A chalkboard off to the side with a few notes and data scribbled on it that reminded Yuuya of the time he visited his brother Ryu at his university back when he was Sakura. At the end was a huge window with a lay a very large desk in front that was cluttered with even more books and papers filled with more research and who knows what to the baffled beast-man. The Head Mage ignores his desk and goes off to the left where there is a large glass table filled with more books. The Head Mage pulls a dark wand out his robe, making Yuuya snicker a little at the wizardly look, making everyone look at him with confused looks. The Head Mage shakes it off and waves the wand, making everything on the table glow purple and levitate off, leaving the table bare. "Allow me to introduce myself to our newcomers. My name is Jefaris Ulrudius, I have been the Head Mage of the Magic Tower for seven years now." Yuuya thinks back to Sam's lessons during his walk around the capital, learning more about the other organizations, more precisely which ones to avoid, the Magic Tower being one of them. He learned that the current head mage was the youngest man to ever be appointed in history due to his incredible intelligence and his miraculous research that helped strengthened the human kingdom during a dungeon collapse, were it not for his innovative designs many people would have lost their lives to the flood of monsters. Still, Yuuya can't help but admire his achievements. A few mages in gray robes come in carrying a tea set along with some food to go with. A sudden wind shift picks up that has Yuuya on alert, unsure where the source was as they were indoors and none of the windows were open. Yuuya eyes the room carefully, never moving his head as his keen sense skill activated. Once the table is set up, everyone sits down. Jefaris lifts up the wand and has the kettle levitate, gently pouring tea in each cup. No one takes their cup except for Yuuya, Sam, and Jefaris himself. "Please, help yourself." He insists with an innocent looking smile. Yuuya is about to take a sip when he sniffs of the tea, making him freeze. "This-this isn't tea!" He instantly slams the cup down, nearly breaking the delicate porcelain, and covers Sam's cup just before he takes a sip. "Don't! It's been dosed with sleeping potion." Sam's eyes widened in shock and drops the cup, the tea spilling all over the glass table. Jefaris says nothing as he sips his tea calmly. "You have a keen sense of smell Mr. Yuuya. Impressive. Not even trained dogs can detect this type of potion." Yuuya's eyes narrow as he pulls out a couple of daggers from his black space, startling everyone at the table except for the Head Mage as he still holds his tea in a composed manner. "Enough! I am not a test subject!" He throws one dagger behind the Head Mage, just barely missing his cheek, and one behind himself. The daggers dig deep in the wood of the bookcases, but the most surprising thing is the startled screams that come out of nowhere. Yuuya is fully standing up now, his eyes glowing in anger. "All of you, get out now!" A few seconds go by, before a couple of red mages appear, having used invisibility magic items, shaking terribly as they hold onto their clipboards tightly while scrambling to the door. Once the doors have shut, Yuuya looks back at the Head Mage, his eyes never losing their glow. "I know you want to know what I am, but as I told everyone: I. Am. A. Beast-man! Okay!? There's nothing special about me. I don't need you going through all this trouble and potentially harming my friends just to run some tests on me. I know what I am. And if you're not gonna give me what I want, then I'll just get them myself." Yuuya pushes his seat back all the way as Sam tries to take his arm. "Yuuya, wait!" Jefaris simply chuckles at Yuuya's outbursts, "My oh my. I must say, your senses are even sharper than that of an average beast-man." The Head Mage carefully puts his cup down as Yuuya is about half way across the room while Sam is right behind him while the rest of the group watch worriedly. "Are you sure you can consider yourself a beast-man Mr. Yuuya, when you have displayed no normal beast-man behavior?" Yuuya's hand stops right before touching the wooden doors, his ears twitching at the man's words. The beast-man pauses as he thinks over his question before he glances at him slightly, "What do you mean?" Seeing him ponder over his words, the mage continues, "Haven't you interacted with other beast-men before?" Yuuya turns around all the way to face him, briefly looking at Sam before looking forward and shaking his head. Jefaris hums in interest, "No wonder..." Jefaris stands up from his seat and walks over to the beast-man, his every step being watched closely by the Solarclouds. "A beast-man, especially in a new environment, will act aggressive. They will try to bite, claw, even kill whatever, whoever, is in their way to protect what is theirs. Whether it may be prey, mates, babies, territory, whatever belongs to them. Beast-men prioritize themselves, they view other races as threats." Jefaris is standing right in front of Yuuya now, just a foot taller than the beast-man. The man smiling curiously at him, "They have even challenged each other as way to show dominance. They have their own hierarchy just by strength. Yet, you only attack when provoked or when your friends are in danger. You never once initiate a challenge." Jefaris leans down as he pulls out a red leather book with no title from a shelf right by Yuuya's head. He skims a few pages until he stops on a certain page and turns the book around, showing Yuuya a detailed drawing of a wolf beast-man that had some sort of barrier around it. "Even their power was different. While most species, excluding the demigods, relied heavily on mana to create magic, beast-men don't need to. They use something called 'aura.' It's why they are restricted to one magic type and can't use light or dark magic." Question marks pop up above the beast-man as he listens, wondering what this aura power was. Jefaris snaps the book shut, startling both Yuuya and Sam. The Head Mage narrows his eyes at him, "I've faced many beast-men before...and I have seen you in action, I was there that day of the trial, and I didn't see any sign of you using aura. You just have a large quantity of mana, the largest I have ever seen or felt." Yuuya gulps as his ears fold back as Jefaris continues to lean down, "You can't honestly tell me that you really believe you are a normal beast-man." Yuuya can't help stare into those dark blue eyes as his mind races to find some way to retaliate, his mouth going dry.
Suddenly, his view is blocked as Sam stands in between. "Sir, as Yuuya said earlier, he's not a test subject for you to study! Please respect that. He may be different and unusual, but he's special and kind hearted." The cyan haired man looks at the young man with bored eyes, "All the more reason to study him, Mr. O'Connell. This man is a special case. He could be the answer to all our problems." Ivory slams her hands on the table, "Damnit Jef, just leave him alone and give him his stuff back already! You only held onto all of it so you could have the chance to see him anyway. You got your wish, now give them back!" A few seconds of silence go back, only the sounds of Ivory panting as she tries to calm her rage, Diana rubbing her back as she comforts her, is the only sound in the room. Jefaris finally clears his throat and steps away from the pair. "Those special magic items were thoroughly examined and yet we could extract only a few pieces of data." The man picks up a small light blue crystal bell from his desk and rings it a couple of times. A few seconds go by before the doors open and several mages in orange robes come in, pushing carts with Yuuya's magic items. "My stuff!" The beast-man whispers excitedly. Once all the carts have all lined up, the mages take their leave. Yuuya quickly goes up to the carts and reaches for his sword, only to be roughly pushed back by an invisible force. "Ahh! What the?" Sam rushes to his side as the Solarclouds all stand from their seats, worried for their friend. Only the Head Mage was unfazed by the beast-man's reaction. "Ah yes, those items are protected by a powerful magic circle that not even you could break. Yes, I read the report about how you broke a door enchanted with several magic circles just to get into a vault filled with magical items. This magic circle is different from those." Callian steps forward with a rare angered look, "Head Mage, are you holding these items as sort of ransom? I would advise treading carefully, I know you are aware what Yuuya is capable of, but you have no idea what we are when we're provoked." Just to back up his words, the rest of his party stand by his side, all with angered looks and tightly holding onto their weapons. The Head Mage simply smiles. "You are mistaken, I merely brought them out because I was filled with joy when Ive finally called me by my nickname. It's been so long since she's done that. It's always been 'Head Mage this' or 'Sir that.' I miss those days when you were little Ive." He sighs longing at the end, making the young mage groan in disgust. Jefaris shakes off the nostalgic memories and walks over to one of the carts, reaching towards one of the items, his Amulet of Enigmas. "I was just informing Mr. Yuuya that his magic items were well protected that's all." To the beast-man's surprise, the same force that stopped him didn't block the Head Mage as he easily picked up the amulet. "But if he were to show or even explain to me how some of these works, then I would be more than happy to show how to deactivate the magic circle." Yuuya's ears twitched at his words as he thinks. "Show him how my items work? That doesn't make sense, he was there at the trial he said so himself. I explained and displayed everything there, why does he want to see it all again? No, this is a test. He wants to see if these things have some sort of hidden feature and try to copy it in his research. Sam said most of these items don't exist in this world, now that's good and bad...Oh man, what should I do?" The beast-man thinks for a couple more minutes longer as everyone stares at him, waiting for his response. "Even if I tell him about the magic items again, I doubt he'll tell me how to undo the magic circle on the carts, can't break it like last time too. He's already heard everything he needed, no, he's after something else..." Suddenly, Yuuya remembers back to when the Solarclouds tried to convince to stay clear of Magic Tower. "Those assholes attempted several times just to get a blood sample...blood sample...blood sample...blood." Ivory voice echoes in his mind as he snaps his head at the Head Mage, the man still holding the amulet close to him. Yuuya eyes the man closely, not seeing anything out of the ordinary. Not taking a chance, Yuuya storms up to him and roughly grabs his wrist, catching him off guard, and feels something in his sleeve. "I knew it." Yuuya growls lowly as he talks, "Cut the bullshit, you said it yourself, you were there at the trial when I explained each of these magic items. I doubt you want to listen to me explain again." Using his claws, Yuuya rips the man's sleeve and reveals an empty syringe, making everyone in the room gasp, Jefaris narrows his eyes at being caught. Yuuya steps on the syringe, the fragile item breaking instantly under his weight. "I don't appreciate being lied to or playing your games Head Mage. Give me back my stuff or so help me, I will make your life a living hell!" He stomps his foot at the end, causing several cracks in the ground that reaches the Head Mage, making him take several steps back, the man finally looking worried.
Yuuya looked at one of the carts and was ready to grab it when Sam takes his hand, "Yuuya, calm down! It's okay." Yuuya hasn't noticed that he was still growling until Sam took his hand, the growling ceased immediately. Yuuya takes a deep breath, counts to ten, and exhales slowly. He does this a few times until he could no longer hear his heart rushing in his ears. He opens his eyes and looks over at the blue haired man, giving him a warm smile, "I'm okay, I'm calm." Sam smiles back. Callian joins them, and puts his hand on his back. "You alright? You need a moment?" Yuuya continues to smile, "I'm good, lost my cool a bit there, but I'm alright now." Callian rubs his back, making Yuuya wag his tail happily. A slap brings everyone's attention. Yuuya's jaw drops when he sees Ivory had slapped Jefaris across the face and was cursing the man for pulling such a stunt. "You fuckin asshole! How dare you! You think you can do this kind of shit just cause you're the boss, huh!? I'm reporting this, I'm reporting you!" Diana and Matthew had to pull her away before she could assault the man any further, the man looking dazed. Yuuya sighs as he thinks of a middle ground. "I want my stuff back, but he wants my blood. I don't want him to stick me with a needle, just thinking about it makes me queasy..." Yuuya thinks over his items before he snaps his fingers. "Oh!" He summons his black space and pulls out a dart with a vial in the middle. "Can't believe I still have this during the monster hunt challenge. That was a fun event! Hope this works, never used it on myself or even on people!" Yuuya holds the dart up to his shoulder, his hands shaking as he tries to work up the courage to push the needle into his skin. Sam watches worriedly as Yuuya whimpers quietly as he struggles. Unable to watch anymore, Sam covers Yuuya's shaking hand with his own, making him jump and snap his head towards him. "Hey Yuuya, do you want me to do it?" Yuuya darts his eyes back and forth, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Brutus joins in, having watched the nervous scene as well. "Allow me, Samuel you keep his attention on you. Captain, keep comforting him." Brutus gently takes the dart as Sam and Callian keep Yuuya eyes on the left. Yuuya can feel Brutus on the right, making him shake. "S-s-sorry, I'm not good with n-needles." Callian continues with rubbing his back as Sam takes his right hand to massage. "Then why are you doing this? You don't have to follow this maniac's demands, you know that right?" Yuuya nods, and feels the prick of the needle, making him yip in surprise. Callian shushes the distressed beast-man as he carefully pets his head, never stopping his back rubs. Sam tries to smile to keep his friend distracted, "Hey, after this we can get some meat sticks and maybe some raspberry cake at that shop we like. What do you think?" Yuuya nods tearfully as he feels the needle pulled out. Yuuya looks over and sees Brutus holding the dart full of his blood. "It's done." Yuuya sighs as he takes the dart, rubbing his shoulder as if to remove the memory of the needle ever being there. The three all look at it. "Now what was the purpose of this?" Callian asks curiously. Yuuya gives him a wicked smile. "You'll see." He wipes off the smiles and goes up to the Head Mage, full of annoyance at the man. "Alright, I know this what you want." He shows the man the dart full of his blood. The Head Mage stares at in interest. "How peculiar, you're still giving me your blood despite my recent attempt just now?" Yuuya can see off to the side Ivory ready to pounce the both of them. He gulps as he tries to choose his words carefully, "I didn't appreciate you trying to stick me in secret nor lying to me, I'll admit. If you had been honest, I would be open to sharing. However, I don't trust you or the other mages to handle a needle, so I would need one of my friends instead, as Brutus here just did, to draw my blood." Yuuya holds out the dart to the man. Jefaris is just about to take it when he pulls back at the last second. "Ah! I'll only give this to you when you give me my magic items. Trust is very important, Head Mage." Jefaris thinks for a moment before he shows his wrist that still has a sleeve, revealing a magic circle drawn in black ink. "If you draw the same magic circle as the one the magic items are sitting on onto your wrist, you will be able to pass the barrier." Yuuya absorbs the information and looks for a pen, only for being thrown to him thanks to a certain young mage. He nods to her in thanks and draws the magic circle on his wrist, he takes a deep breath and tries to reach for his sword again. He continues to reach and finally grasps the hilt, smiling happily as he picks up his treasured item. He looks at blade, the fond memories flooding his mind before someone clears his throat, drawing him back to reality. "I believe we had a deal, Mr. Yuuya." Yuuya sighs and hands him the dart, the man sloshes the blood within carefully. Yuuya collects all his magic items one by one, handing Sam his Amulet of Healing back. Once all of his stuff is stored safely in his black space, he cheers with his friends, "Yes! I got it all back! Thanks you guys! I really appreciate you all being here." Callian smiles as he hugs him tightly, "Oh you! You're just too adorable!" Diana smacks her captain as he lets Yuuya go in pain. "Have some dignity captain." Brutus pats his back, "We've got your back son, no matter what." Matthew nods quietly. Ivory sighs, "Great, glad we got what we all came here. Let's get going." Yuuya looks at her in question, "What about your payment?" She holds up a navy blue pouch, "It was sitting on the table when we arrived." Just then Yuuya hears Aurora's voice in his head, "Star." Yuuya's ears straighten up, her voice sounding urgent. "Aurora? What's wrong?" She replies back quickly, "You must return quickly, Damian is in trouble. Hurry!" Yuuya's eyes widen, the air around him darken that stuns everyone. His eyes glow as he barks out, "We have to go back to the Adventurer's Guild now!"