A/N: Y'know, this took a few tries to write—and though I hated it at first, it's now decent after a few edits. Sorry for the later chapter, you guys will be getting two chapters this week and two next week as an apology! Been busy with family because... holidays. But I'm more free now! But enough about me...
TIME FOR FAN ART!
AHHH, I LOVE THIS PART OF THE CHAPTER! TODAY IS A SHOUTOUT FOR ALL THE FAILED CHAPTERS OF TCP WITH GOREGOUS FAN ART THAT I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO RECEIVE!
I made this fan art of Ophelia and Ru... because I CAN! YEAH! BEST SHIP IN THE BOOK YEAH! / hj
That's not all... we HAVE GOREGOUS FAN ART FROM THE ONE AND ONLY 1_Ayato_5 WHO MADE THIS GOREGOUS FAN ART OF BALL OPHELIA! Maybe in the future, I'll actually make a ball chapter—but not anytime soon! I DEFINITELY LOVE THIS ART PIECE REGARDLESS! LOOK AT HER! THANK YOU AYI!
YOU GET A THIRD AS AN APOLOGY FOR THE LATE CHAPTER! I COMISSIONED SOMEONE TO DRAW THE OLD RU AND LOOK AT IT! IT LOOKS UGHHH I REALLY DO LOVE THIS KIND OF RETRO 90'S STYLE OF ANIME! GOREGOUS! Not sure if it's retro, but you guys get the point!
I SHALL STOP TYPING! READ!
——
"Ugh... please... I can't feel my legs anymore..." I groaned as I collapsed on the grass, feeling aching pain through every part of my body. For the past two hours, I've been running around, deflecting, attacking, dodging—everything Geo told me to do. And yet...
"Again." Geo's indifferent voice snapped me out of my trance and I gritted my teeth as I forced my muscles to tense and tried to stand up. Though I nearly fell over, I caught myself in time and took another deep breath. I bit my lip, trying to do another burpee.
I managed to get through two more before I face-planted mid-through the push-up. I raised my head, glaring at Geo. "...at this rate, I'll die..."
Geo tilted his head, smiling as he raised his hands. "It won't be the first time you've done it. Now do it again." He clapped his hands together and I braced myself for what was about to happen.
This training was hell, to put it lightly. No, not even hell would be this bad. Though Geo's typical lessons were bad on their own, they usually had a goal for me to reach. When I reached the goal, I was finished for the day.
But today... there was no goal.
——
I stared at Geo, curious as to why he'd dragged me out of the cafeteria in the middle of eating. Thankfully, I'd mastered the art of eating while walking, but he'd refused to answer any of my questions. He just kept walking, forcing me to follow after him.
When he finally stopped, we were on the far right side of Lore, where a lovely grass plain was—usually occupied by other classes or students, but today it was empty. However, that had to do with today being the second day since school began again.
He turned and stared at me, his dark eyes narrowing at my posture. "Sloppy. You... have you been practicing at all since last time?" I stiffened and immediately straightened my back.
"Uh, yeah! I mean, I was a patient for a while due to my injuries, and I also had to attend a funeral, so I got a bit busy in all of that..." I began to ramble, trying to explain to him why I hadn't been training as much. I mean, that's a lot of things to happen in just a week, right?
Geo stared at me and then shook his head. "Do you remember... no, wait. Do you know why I'm doing all of this?"
"...because you're bored?" I guessed and he glowered at me. I flinched before guessing again. "B-because you want to help me?"
"...I guess you could say that." He put a hand to his face and sighed. "Oh gods, I'm too old for this..." I eyed him, wondering how being 15 years old was 'too old'.
"To be frank, you're really weak, Rael." I flinched again, not realizing he was going to be that blunt. I opened my mouth to try to defend myself or give a reason, but he raised a hand. "Don't cut me off, I'm not finished. You're weak, but that's not such a bad thing. It means you've got room for improvement. But when you're weak enough to die from simply slipping on a banana peel like you... you need something more to grow stronger. Do you know what that answer is?"
I was still bothered by the fact that he said I could get killed by a banana peel, but I pondered and then it clicked. "A rival? You mentioned that before, but even though I've found a few... I haven't grown much stronger..." Q was a good rival, but he was also a really sore loser. Simply winning once or being tied wasn't good enough, he wanted to crush his opponents. Though, it never worked well with me, which left him very frustrated after training.
Geo nodded and then shook his head. "Yes, and no. I only mentioned one to not overwhelm you. But the simplest way was to find a rival. And because that didn't work... I guess I'll have to use the other methods so you'll grow stronger."
I began to feel a bit scared as I took a step back. "What... other methods are there?"
Geo's lips curved as he narrowed his eyes at me. "You'll just have to find out for yourself today. From here on out, follow all of my orders, okay?"
"Sir, yes sir!" I saluted and watched as his smile dropped. Ah... I guess he didn't find my joke that amusing... I dropped my hand and saw him raise his hands, a bright light emerging from them.
It was soft, like the light from a candlelight, and it lit up the usually aloof face of Geo. He raised one of his hands and threw the strange light at me.
"Shield." I blinked, a bit confused at his one-worded sentence but it only took me a second to conjure a shield. I was more than capable of going against something as puny and weak as this light!
The strange spell, which was supposed to either disappear or implode as it collided with the shield, suddenly began to spread around the shield, as if it'd come alive.
I recoiled at the abnormal sight—encountering something I'd never seen before. I knew shaking off this spell wouldn't work, and the longer it stayed on the shield, the more it spread as if it was trying to reach me.
Like hell you are...! I withdrew the shield, watching with relief that the slime-like light disappeared when it touched the grass. Thankfully, it was a lot simpler to deal with than expected. Haha, is this the so-called 'other methods' that Geo had planned for me? If this was all, it's going to be a field day.
I turned to see—nothing. Geo wasn't there anymore. I grew confused, wondering where he'd gone. But the sound of footsteps made me turn, and I saw him standing just a few meters away from me. He had a look of disappointment as he pointed his hands towards me.
"Again!"
I didn't even have time to conjure a shield before the spell hit me in the face, and I fell to the ground with a shriek.
"Ugh! Why did you aim for my face?! Get this off of me! Why is it so slimy and wiggly—! This damn thing, I won't let you get away with dirtying my face!" I was practically wrestling with the slime, trying to claw it off my face, as it held on with an almost impressive willpower.
Our intense tussle continued as both the slime and I were tied, and neither of us wanted to give up. But the sad battle was cut off short when Geo slapped the slime off my face, and it flew to the other side of the grass field—the remains of its form looking quite pitiful before it disappeared.
I shivered, making a mental note to never piss off Geo. Wait, haven't I already made one before...? I paused and made another mental note with two exclamation marks to never piss Geo off.
But he didn't seem to care as he continued with this odd lesson.
"...not even strong enough to defeat a slime..." He mumbled before taking a few steps back.
"Hey!" I said, but he ignored me, his attention focused on the ground. He sighed and then glanced at me.
"This should be a bit easier since you won't have to defend." He raised his foot, his eyes growing brighter.
"Attack."
My heart skipped a beat as he stomped the ground. Such a simple action caused the ground to shake beneath us, nearly making me lose my balance. I noticed vines and roots begin to emerge, intertwining and forming into humanoid shapes. I observed the three vine creations and began to think of what spells to use against them—
Only for one of them to run up to me, swinging one of their elongated arms around. I ducked, and pointed my wand at it—only to be interrupted by a second one that lunged at me. I jumped back, clicking my tongue with annoyance. Damn, can't I get a single moment of peace? As if my thoughts were heard, the third closed in from behind me, raising their foot to try and kick me.
I evaded by throwing myself to the side. I silently cursed, realizing this might be a bit more difficult than expected. They might not look that strong... but they were fast. Just as fast, if not faster than me...
Huh... they reminded me of someone. I eyed the one closest to me before realizing who they reminded me of. It was... me? Was Geo trying to make me fight versions of myself that were better at combat than me?
That was oddly twisted... but definitely something Geo would do... my lips twitched as I dodged another punch, and jumped back.
I somehow had to fight all three of them and win. But I don't know what's faster, my chanting or them? I took a deep breath and tried to create distance.
Well, there's only one way to find out. I watched the three separate and rush at me from different sides. I aimed my wand at the one facing me and began to chant.
"[Firebal—]" My spell was cut off when I felt something hard slam into my sides, causing me to buckle over from the pain. I glanced to the side and saw that one of my vine lookalikes had made their arm longer to hit me before I finished chanting...
I gritted my teeth from the pain. Ugh, that's definitely going to leave a bruise... I groaned as I tried to kick my opponent away. I had to escape before they trapped me and began to beat me up...
But all of my thoughts went out of the window when the vine Rael caught my kick, and grabbed my leg tightly. My eyes widened with horror.
"Uh OHHH—" I shouted as it threw me across the grass field, and the other Raels eagerly chased after, raising their arms to catch me and properly pound me into the ground.
Too bad I'm not falling for it twice though...!
"[Float!]" I chanted and floated above the head of the second vine Rael, before planting my weight down on its head, hearing the satisfying sound of the vines snapping.
Ha! I got you—!
My victory was short-lived as the 'supposed dead' vine Rael suddenly wrapped its arms around me, trapping me in an embrace. From an outsider's perspective, this might've resembled a lovely hug. But it was anything but that...! My heart sank as it began to tilt backward.
No... don't tell me it's about to...?! I screamed as it tried to perform a German duplex, tightening its grip on me as it bent backward in hopes of bringing me down.
I'm not going down without a fight...! I stretched my arms back, grabbing a hold of its caved-in head, before ripping it off right before my head collided with the grass.
I sighed with relief as I landed softly on the ground and kicked away the remains of the second vine Rael.
"Again." Geo's voice reminded me that I still had two opponents left. I turned and saw both of them running at me. Though now that I'd nearly experienced a dangerous situation, the adrenaline pumping through me made their previously fast actions seem... a bit slow.
I think it's time for payback for all the hurt they'd done to me!
"[Fireball] to you! And [Fireball] to you too!" I cheerfully chanted as I evaded their obvious attacks. The moment the fireball touched them, it spread, killing vine Rael number one and three in seconds.
I caught my breath as I saw Geo's lips curve. "Not bad progress. But it could be better." He raised his hand and I felt an ominous feeling in my stomach.
"Deflect."
His voice caused me to tense up as I immediately conjured a shield—barely deflecting a strange glowing ball that had appeared all of a sudden. The ball bounced back and landed on the grass—but instead of disappearing, it began to melt the ground, until there was a hole about the size of a football there.
I stared at the hole and then at Geo.
"That... could've killed me."
He snorted. "Many things in this world can. Again." I gritted my teeth, knowing it would only get worse from here on out. But... I was already seeing a bit of progress—at least with my reaction speed and chanting.
I just had to bear through with this a little longer... it couldn't be that difficult.
——
"Ugh..." I grunted as I collapsed by the door of the apartment. I heard footsteps and raised my head, seeing one of my roommates peeking their head out of the kitchen with concern.
"Is everything alright, Rael? Why are you lying on the ground?" I could barely stand, let alone explain to him the hours of torture-like training I'd just gone through. Though there were results—they weren't worth the amount of blood, sweat, and tears I'd given!
"...training," I mumbled, as I got up like a zombie, feeling my jelly-like body begin to sway.
"Ah, right. I keep forgetting you're so hard-working." He commented as he walked back towards the kitchen. I frowned, trying to decipher if he was insulting me or complimenting me.
I put my shoes away and dragged myself to the kitchen, curious about what he was cooking this time.
Trey had given himself the role of head chef and ruled this apartment with an iron fist. Though, as long as you didn't create too much of a mess or piss him off, he was a relatively decent roommate to have.
At least better than the other two... I smiled wryly before glancing at the minced meat, tomatoes, herbs, and most obvious of all—spaghetti displayed on the kitchen counter.
"Ah, you're making spaghetti?"
Trey adjusted his frilly apron and nodded, his face turning serious. "Yes. I haven't made it that much so I'm a bit worried but..." he reached and grabbed one of the largest knives I'd ever seen. "I won't get defeated so easily...!" I watched in awe as he spoke the most shounen protagonist phrase I'd ever heard, before grabbing the onions.
Trey was fairly average, with no exceptional traits when it came to academics. But if there was one thing unusual with him...
He softly hummed a tune, spinning the sharp knife in his hand and cutting the onions into several pieces in seconds, before putting the diced onions into one of the pots. He barely blinked, continuing to masterfully cut the rest of the vegetables and herbs into evenly sized pieces or chunks.
You'd think his food would taste amazing with such skillful knife skills but it was surprisingly average... I turned away, having seen enough. I should probably head back to my room before dinner was ready, I still had a few things to do.
"Oh right, Rael." I turned back to Trey, only to freeze as he stood uncomfortably close to me, still holding the sharp knife. The knife was dripping red from the tomatoes, and he gave me a small innocent smile that sent chills down my spine.
"Y-yes?" I stuttered, trying to create distance between us, just in case he wanted to try and use me as the mystery ingredient.
"Have you recovered yet? You wouldn't mind checking up on Kai for me, would you?" The tension from my shoulders disappeared as I exhaled a breath I didn't know I was holding.
I raised my thumb and began my short walk to the room farthest from the kitchen. Those in kitchen duty were tasked with two things. The first one was to obviously cook. But the second...
I grabbed a hold of the door handle, mentally preparing myself for what I might see. I wouldn't be surprised if I stumbled upon a demon or something in his room...
The second task was to check up on the most troublesome roommate we had—the one who'd nearly burned down the apartment a few days prior.
I opened the door, preparing to grab my wand just in case I needed to battle a demon or two.
"Hey, you better drop that ritual knife of yours—!" I shouted, raising my wand threateningly around. But my words faltered as I saw that Kai was not secretly chanting spells or summoning demons—but in the middle of changing his shirt.
We both froze at the awkward situation. I lowered my wand and tried to give him an apologetic smile. "Uh, sorry about that. I thought you were—never mind. Keep... changing."
I saw his face turn red right before closing the door and running back to the kitchen. Trey was stirring one of the pots when he noticed me running back with a pale expression. He straightened, reaching for the kitchen knife.
"Is that idiot—?"
I raised my hands, furiously shaking my head. "No! He's not doing anything! He's just... he's just changing clothes." Trey relaxed, seeming almost disappointed.
"Oh. Well, that's good." I almost preferred having walked in on him summoning a demon than changing his clothes...
I put a hand to my face, knowing it was going to be pretty awkward for the both of us for a while. But I'd just have to live with it. During the few days I'd lived here, I knew he was hot-headed and reckless. But we could co-exist if I ignored him as much as possible.
Besides Trey and Kai... my last roommate, Cole, was rarely in the apartment. Perhaps it was due to the traumatic experience he had here, but I'd only caught glimpses of him before he either went to his room or left the apartment.
I didn't care much as we weren't friends, so I just minded my own business. I walked into my room and closed the door behind me.
This was only the second day back from school, and my third day since I moved out of Heath's house. It was just the beginning but I already felt exhausted...
However... My eyes landed on the books on my desk that I'd gotten from the library. I plopped down on the chair, grabbing one of the books.
I still had a lot to learn and prepare. I need to use this time to find more clues about the world of DKQ—and what better way than the books from the game itself?
I want to know what else happens behind the scenes. The mystery behind mein, Ophelia's past, and most of all, what was up with the real Rael Vandergarden. There was a list of unexplainable things that the game either didn't mention or vaguely explained.
With such plot holes, was it really a happy ever after, once the screen turned black—with the words 'Good Ending' displayed on it? Or was it hiding something much darker than that...?
I flipped through the pages, knowing I was still clueless about a lot of things. Not to mention the fact that I couldn't (or more like not allowed to) fight in the frontlines—but that didn't render me completely useless. I could just be of use in a different kind of way.
My lips curved into a smile as I began to write in my notebook.
No longer will I be in the dark, only to get stabbed at the end. This time I'll be the one stabbing—ah, wait, that's a crime. I furrowed my eyebrows, trying to think of a better catchphrase. This time... I'll be the one pulling the strings. I nodded, satisfied, before pausing.
Oh right, I promised Heath not to do too much... If he found out what I'm about to do... I shivered from that thought and decided to try and hide any traces of my involvement.
Who knows, maybe the next person fighting me to the death would be Heath? My expression grew grim as I smacked the wooden desk in hopes of undoing that thought. Hopefully I won't be fighting anyone to the death—ever.
I finished writing, finishing it off with a name that was vague enough not to be traced back to me.
'Sincerely, Red.'
I ripped the page and placed it inside of a letter. This was a necessary development for the future... even if it might come to bite me in the back later.
I grabbed the letter and prepared to leave. I had a few errands to run before dinner, and still a few more things to prepare after that. I sighed as I walked out of my room.
This was going to be a long day.
——
A/N: Hope you guys liked reading about Geo again. Still don't know how he's so popular, but I do like reading the simping comments regardless.
I'll be sort of speeding up the pacing of the story for the main arcs. This isn't really filler, more like a build up for the first major arcs! So, um, bear with me? I hope you liked the chapter regardless! Hopefully I'll be done with the next by the end of the week!
Thanks for reading!