Enjoy the latest chapter! ^.^
A beeping alarm sets off in a dark bedroom. Rays of sunlight peeks through the shuttles. A soft grunt comes from under the blanket and movements are made. A slender arm reaches out to the other side of the large bed. "Honey, please get the alarm." Akeno's head pops out of the sheets and she slowly open her eyes to be met with an empty space. Finally, the realization hits her, that her lover is currently away.
"Huh," Akeno plops back down on the bed, pouting ever slightly before rolling over to shut the alarm off. Taking a minute to just stare out the window, Akeno slowly get off the bed. The sheet falls to reveal her naked, voluptuous body to the world. Akeno stretch her arms up and let out a soft yawn. After doing a bit more stretching around, something she has been making a habit off after seeing her lover doing his stretches before exercising. She found it being a good way to ready her body for the day, also she just enjoys the flustered look on her lover's face each morning when he wakes up and sees her naked form in various of posture.
Akeno sigh pleasantly and moves her sight to the bracelet on her right wrist. She smiles in relief when seeing the diamond remain in black color, signaling that her beloved is safe and sound. Akeno turns around and heads to the bathroom "Might as well spend the day with Lucy and Asia" she states and shuts the door when entering the room.
Time Skip
After done showering, Akeno start heading down the stairs. Dressed in a long-sleeve black blouse with a v-cut that stop just above her breast and a long dark blue jean. Entering the kitchen, she smiles when seeing all the family members are present. Asia and Lucy chattering with each other, Yao preparing breakfast, Jonathan reading the daily newspaper. Seeing this makes the Himejima's heart blooms in warmth. Seeing this view, the view of her family.
"Morning, everyone" Akeno greets the Makasha's and takes a seat across the sisters. "Morning!" both blonde greet back while Jonathan lowers the papers to offer a smile "Good morning to you, Akeno. Slept well?" "Yeah, though a bit cold" she embarrassingly admits "It's always weird not having Nawin-kun next to me" "Always warms my heart hearing just the amount of love you have for him, Akeno" Yao place a plate of American style breakfast down in front of Akeno and gives her a quick kiss on the head, like a mother would give to her children, before bringing the rest of the plates to her family.
"I'm sure Big bro will be back soon, so you shouldn't worry" Lucy assert with a grin before picking up the fork and knife to begin eating the food on the plate. Akeno sighs, digging into the plate "I hope so. Hopefully Azazel won't keep him for long" she replies. The family take a quick and sneaky glance at each other, remembering the lie they had to made up yesterday when the Himejima returned last night from shopping with Rias. Even though they rather not lie, Hana said it is important to keep the truth from Akeno about Nawin's true reason of departing.
"Where is Hana?" Akeno ask, looking around to see the Hydra is currently missing "Is she still asleep?" "No," Lucy shakes her head "She head out earlier to Misako's place... Told me that she had some stuff planned with her" "Ah, I see."
"You got any plans today?" Yao asks Akeno, taking a seat between her and Jonathan "Not really" the girl admits, cutting a piece of egg and brings it to her mouth. "Well," Jonathan place the newspaper down to begin eating "There's a new movie coming out... I saw it in a trailer the other day and it looks good" he picks up the knife and fork then begin cutting the sausage "We could go watch it today."
Lucy takes two bacons down her mouth and chews it in delight. "Sounds good to me! I have nothing really to do today" "I'm in the agreement, but" Akeno turns to Asia "Will you be ok going to the cinema, Asia?" "It's fine" the young girl gives a reassure smile "I can still enjoy it by just listening. I and Lucy-nee-chan has watched a dozen of movies and I still enjoy them even without my eyesight" "I see, I'm glad to hear that."
Yao chews on the food then takes a drink of orange juice. She places the glass down and turn to her children "Then that's our plan for today. After done with breakfast you two go shower and get dress... Can't exactly go out looking like that" she states, looking at the blondes still in their green and blue pajamas. "Hey!" Lucy points the fork at her mother "I'm rocking this pajama! I look damn adorable!" she exclaims in defense that cause the rest of the family to burst out laughing.
Underworld
In a deserted dirt roadway that goes on a complete straight line. Tall dark trees with black leaves covered the sides of the road to give off an eerie and chilling atmosphere. The only sound being made in this isolated place is a clicking noise of horse's heel walking on the ground.
"Aaaahh!" Issei let out a long yawn "How far away are we from Clayborg? It's been like six hours!" he questions, looking forward to Erza and Jellal, who are both riding in front of them. Jellal turns back and chuckle "Yeah, sorry about that. The path we wanted to take is currently filled with bandits, so we'll have to take the longer rout" "I know that," Issei rubs his eye "Why didn't we just beat them?" "We want this journey to be a clean one, Issei" Erza speaks up "Fighting bandits will just bring unwanted attention to us and no doubt we'll be followed through the whole journey by them" "I guess you're right... Just feels like forever now" Issei reply and sighs. "Hmm," he turns his head to the right to see Nawin quietly sited on his horse, eyes close and his expression shows compose and calmness. "Is he asleep?" Erza asks, glancing back "Don't know..." Issei reach his right arm out, extending the index finger to the Makasha's cheek.
Inches away from being poke in the cheek, Nawin snap his eyes open and look at Issei, spooking him. "Gah!" the Hyoudou shouts and shoot back. "Whao, whoa, whao!" he tries the grip the rein but slip and about to fall off when a hand speed forward and grabs him by the shirt, pulling him back on the saddle. Issei snaps his eyes open to see Nawin is the one that caught him while giving him a stoic that's looking at him like he's an idiot.
"Try and keep your balance" Nawin advise, releasing the shirt and bring his hand back on the rein of his horse. Issei flusters and glare at his friend "Why are you meditating?" "To past time" he replies simply and Issei just turn back forward, grunting. "Hey, Jellal" he calls out, gaining the attention of the bounty hunter "Yeah?" "Is there gold in the pouch hanging on your belt" Issei points at the specific one considering there is two more pouches tied on the blue-haired man's belt "The one you dropped on the tavern's table."
Jellal nod, tapping the pouch "This is the gold we got from our previous contracts" "Contracts?" Issei questions "We tend to complete multiples contracts before presenting them" Erza assert "It makes the process less of a pain and by the end, we earn much more gold in one sitting." "Quite smart," Nawin insert "I'm guessing you store the carcass in a dimension pocket?" "Exactly, we also sprinkle some magic to keep the carcasses fresh as it can be a long while until we present it. Some of our contracts can take months to complete if we are dealing with let's say a leader of a gang or someone that's just very thorough on covering their tracks."
"Have you two ever failed a contract?" Nawin question "Not yet," Jellal answers with a proud smile while Erza smirk "Jellal and I have been doing this ever since we turned twelve... We know what we are doing, and we are considered one of the best bounty hunters the underworld has to offer" she states. "You must be expensive then" Issei assert "We make it fair unlike others who ask for way more than they ever should either because of the arrogance of their own skills and reputation or they are beggars, wanting gold like its water." "But we do have an ironclad rule to follow... That every bounty hunter must go by" Jellal state, catching attention from both boys "That would be?" Nawin asks "We never ever accept any contract for free" Erza answers. Issei is surprised by this while Nawin wasn't surprise, thinking of that reason being the case. "Really? Even if someone is in desperate need?" Issei question with hesitant, unsure how to feel about this "Trust me, Issei" Erza speak, softly "We've run into that situation more times than I can remember, but it's a rule that we have to follow" "We've sworn to it" Jellal state "I see..."
Erza spot the tunnel of light in the distance, and smile. "Alright, we are almost there" she states, making the three turns forward "When exiting this forest, Claybord should be at the right, build just by the side of a long stream." "What's the village like?" Issei asks "Nothing fancy, just a normal and simple village made of rocks and woods. A simple place but the people living there are happy with what they have" Jellal reply.
"You don't need to be rich and live in a luxurious place to be happy" Nawin states and Erza smile when hearing this, along with Jellal "Very true" she replies. The four continues riding on the path until they pass through the tunnel to reveal a whole, spacious land cover in vibrant grass and trees. On the left, a large portion of land is dug up for plantation. Wheat, radishes, carrots, potatoes, kales, lettuces, leeks, broccolis, many more are planted on the field. Farmers can be seen marching around the field to either water the plants or picking out the ready ones.
On the right side shows a medium-size village with small wood fences hammered to the ground, spreading around the village and stops in front for an entrance and exit. These fence act as protection for the village. Sizable houses can be seen in there, build in wood with wheat for roofs. Some of the empty spaces acts as either a living place for the cows, sheep, and other animals, or it is a space for clothes to be hanged and dried, which gives a feel of this whole community working as one, like a family.
A smile tugged on Nawin's face when seeing the happy people in the village working together on their daily activities. Kids running around playing with each other or with the dogs. Some decides to help their parents with work by either advertising their products or help bring materials to the smiting store. 'This is a kind of sight I enjoy seeing.' "Here it is, boys," Erza speaks with a smile on her face "The village Clayborg" "Looks great" Issei state.
The four moves their horses toward the village's entrance and stop by the horse stands. They drop to the ground and tie the reins around the poles to keep the horses in place. Nawin and Issei look around and see the villagers staring at them, offering a welcoming smile before returning to their activities. "Alright," Erza turns to them "Gado lives nearby the main harbor" she states, pointing forward which cause Nawin and Issei to look and spot a large harbor built outside the village fences, about a couple of dozen meters away.
"They had to build the second harbor because the first one in the village was too small as the population rises" Jellal state, cocking his head to the left side to show a smaller harbor under the slope of the village. Small wooden boats are parked there. Some fishers have arrived back and held nets that hold plenty of fishes in it. "Let's head there then" Nawin speaks "After getting the information we can return here and have a drink" "Yeah," Issei nod in agreement "My mouth is dry after the trip" "I'm with you on that too," Erza chuckles "Anyway, let's move."
The four moderately make their way to the harbor while greeting other villagers along the way. When they arrive, something quickly comes apparent is that the main harbor is oddly very quiet. "Must be an off day" Jellal state, looking down at the harbor and see no one there, all the boats tied on the poles to stay in place. "Umm, guys" Issei calls out that makes the three turns to where he is looking. They are surprised to see four men dressed like bandits standing in front of a house, harshly knocking the door "Hey! Open the door, you old geezer!" the leader of the group shouts, his other hand tightly gripping the longsword's handle that's stick on his belt, clearly showing he isn't here for a simple conversation.
"That's Gado's house" Erza state "Then we better stop them before they get to him!" Issei exclaims and the rest nod in agreement, start making way to the bandits. "What it this?" a deep and gravel voice comes from nowhere follow by a thudding footstep that catches everyone's attention. Both the group and bandits turn and is surprise to see a troll. The creature stood up to seven and a half feet tall. Its body is wide and quite built. The troll has sturdy and rough gray skin, short messy black hair. Its arms and legs are huge and muscular. Its face is not a pretty one with a large nose, two yellow color teeth protrude up from the rough lip, yellow eyes with red hue color on the white sclera, its ear is quite pointy and sticks out more than normal ears. The only thing the troll wears is a long brown loincloth. Judging by the style of clothes it wears and the voice, the troll is a male.
"What the hell?" the bandits utter, caught off-guard by the troll's appearance. The leader walks down the stairs and hits the ground, scowling at the creature. "What are you doing here, Troll?" he questions and sees the troll bring his right hand up to scratch his head "Me visit Gado often. Gado is friend of Bork" he answers, tapping his chest a couple of time.
"Well, visiting hour is over so scram, you stupid troll!" the man shouts, gesturing the creature away "Stupid? Me, Bork is not stupid" the Troll shakes his head "Bork is always welcome said Gado." "Alright, I'm sick of this dead brain creature" the leader of the bandits turns to his men "Kill him while I knock that door down." The men nod and unsheathe their short swords then start marching toward the Troll.
"Bork! Run away!" Gado's voice comes from the house to warn the Troll. Bork blinks and watches the bandits menacingly make their way towards him, grinning darkly. Seeing that the Troll isn't planning on defending himself, Jellal steps in between them. "What the? Who are you?!" one of the men demands, pointing his sword at the bounty hunter while the leader turns around to scout the newcomer. "I am Jellal. I and my friends are here to meet with Gado" "Well, our boss came here first, so wait in line!" the guy snarls out "If he remains alive" the other adds in sinisterly.
Seeing now that the bandits are here to kill Gado, Jellal drops the act to persuade them and turns serious. "I'll ask only once that you all leave here and forget whatever goal it is that has brought you here... I can guarantee you'll walk away alive if you do this" he states, and the bandits just look at each other before bursting out laughing, then resume advancing.
Jellal sighs when seeing the bandit decided to ignore his warning. He slowly starts charging up his mana, causing gold aura to emit around his body. In a swift movement, Jellal swipes his right arm to the side and fires three gold projectiles made of pure mana. The projectiles fly toward the bandits in rapid speed and strike all of them in the center of the chests then protrudes through their body before vanishing, leaving a large size hole behind.
The bandits stand still like a rock for a few seconds, their expression shows utter shock before they all collapse to the ground simultaneously, dead. The gold aura around Jellal disappear and he looks up at the leader, seeing him staring back with a stern eye, not at all bothered by seeing his men slaughtered.
The leader slowly moves his eyes to the right to examine the rest of the group. His stern eyes quickly change into shock when seeing who is among the group. 'B-black Flash?!' he utters seeing Nawin looking back at him with stoic eyes. Unable to keep the staring against the Makasha, he then turns to only see Erza 'And Scarlet Slayer!'
Finally realizing he is horrendously outmatched, the man quickly reaches back to a pouch and pulls out a smoke bomb. As he was about to throw it down, a hand snatches his wrist to halt his movement. The man gasps and turn to meet eyes with Nawin. Erza lets out a chuckle that causes the man to turn to her "Did you honestly think you could hightail out of here when the Black Flash is present?" she asks in amusement. "Anyway," her expression instantly changes to stone cold serious that intimidate the man and cause him to start sweating "What is your business with Gado?" "... He has a valuable information we need" the man answers, begrudgingly.
"And what is this information?" Nawin asks, tightening the grip on the man's wrist to a dangerous degree that could snap his bones any second. The man grunts in discomfort and pain. "They want the Lightning Gemstone!" the door of the house slams open and walks out is Gado. A short and lean built man with brown hair tied to a short single ponytail. The man has brown eyes, light black complexion, and a short beard. He is dress in sleeveless brown shirt, baggy gray pants, and a simple sandal.
"Gado," Erza calls to gain the man's attention "Ah, Erza! I thought I heard your voice" he replies with a smile before turning to the bandit. "Now, listen here" he goes face to face with the man "Go back and tell your bloody boss that I ain't giving you guys a gold of information about the gemstone's whereabouts! And if you guys come back!" he points at Erza, Jellal, Issei, then finally to Nawin "I'll make sure these guys will kick all your sorry arses!"
With a satisfied smirk on his face, Gado turns to Nawin "You can let him go now, laddie" he asserts, "You sure about that?" Nawin glance at him "Aye, don't worry about!" Gado wave it off and watch the bandit is release and instantly disappears away in speed to leave only a soft breeze behind. Gado moves to the Troll and scowl "Bork! What did I tell you about visiting here this early in the morning" he shouts in a scolding tone "Bork got bored" the Troll reply, shaking his head "Bork not see Gado for a week" "Well, you picked a bad timing because if it wasn't for these four people you would have been killed by those bandits" "Bandit hurt Bork?" "Of course, you buffoon! Bandits are bad news" "They look small" Bork shakes his head in disagreement "They can't hurt, Bork."
Nawin and the rest just stare at the interacting that Gado and the Troll have with immense amusement. "This is certainly not a sight you'd see every day" Jellal comment, crossing his arms over his chest and release a chuckle "Aren't trolls like bad?" Issei question "Some are wild and hostile, but there are some like in Bork's case being more peaceful and harmonious" Erza informs, looking at the Troll scratching his head while trying to understand what Gado is saying about Bandits being evil.
"Gado," Erza calls, stopping near the man "Yeah?" he turns to face her "We are here for a reason" she informs "I expect as much" he sighs, stroking his beard before looking up at the Scarlet-haired woman "What is it that you want?" "Information about the same thing that those bandits were after" she answers, then points at Nawin "This guy wants to get the Lightning Gemstone."
Gado's eyes squint and turn to look at the Makasha, scanning his face. The man tries hard to read to see if the boy will use the gemstone for good cause or for destructive and evil cause. He blinks when unable to read anything from the stoic eyes of the Makasha, it's like a dense barrier blocking him from looking into it. "And why do you want the gemstone, Lad?" Gado question "Because I plan on making it into a gift for someone I care dearly" Nawin answers, truthfully.
"Hmm," Gado hums, staring at the Makasha, stroking his beard in a thoughtful manner. Erza's eyebrow twitches after hearing for a minute straight of the man's humming "Hey! Will you help or not!" she bellows of suddenly, scaring everyone. Gado squeak and quickly nod "Alright, I'll help!" he answers "You guys saved my life and the boy over there seem like a good fella" "He's the Black Flash" Issei points at Nawin "He won't plan on using that gemstone for evil purposes. That I can guarantee with my life" "Black Flash, aye? Heard that name before and there was never a bad word talk against him" Gado notes then nod in more confident "Alright, that gives me a room for relief."
"Color people want stone?" Bork speaks, staring the group "Color?" Issei repeat, confuse "Probably because of our hair colors" Jellal points out. Erza turns to the Troll "Yes, we are after the stone" "Bork know where stone is!" he replies, tapping his chest "... Right," Erza looks skeptical by that claim along with Nawin. "Actually, he isn't wrong" Gado speaks up "Bork was the one that found the stone and recently told me a few weeks back. He hasn't told me of its location, but he does know where it is" Gado reply, though in a grumpy manner because of not knowing the location of the gemstone.
"Well, Bork" Issei stop in front of the Troll and smile in a friendly manner "Can you tell us where the gemstone is?" "No," the Troll shakes his head "Bork found stone, stone precious" "We saved you from the bandits, Bork" Issei reasons "Doesn't that grant us something?" "Hmm," the Troll thinks for a minute, then brings his right arm out to touch Issei's head "Petting is what Bork give you" he replies, petting the Hyoudou.
Gado and Jellal chuckle while Erza and Nawin shake their head at this. Issei grunts and begrudgingly allows the troll to pet his head, not wanting to risk upsetting it and have that large hand grab him. "Any suggestion?" Erza turns to Gado "Well... Bork likes to make friends, so why don't you ask him what he wants? Gain his trust then there's a good chance he'll share the secret of the gemstone's location" "What is this... An RPG side quest?" Nawin whispers under his breath, shaking his head.
Jellal walks to the Troll and stop in front of it "So, Bork... Is there anything you need?" he asks in a kind tone, offering a smile. The Troll moves his eyes to Jellal while removing his hand from Issei's head, showing the messy state of the Hyoudou's hair. "Something Bork needs?" he asks, blinking "Yeah," Nawin stop beside Jellal "Is there anything you like to possess? If you do, then we can help you get them and in exchange, you tell us where the location of the lightning gemstone is."
Issei quickly combs his hair back to normal with his hands before moving next to the Jellal and Nawin, watching the Troll think of an answer. Suddenly, Bork stumps forward and stop right in front of Nawin. He leans his head down to look at the Makasha right in the face. Issei clench his right hand, ready to summons the boosted gear to protect his friend while Erza and Jellal have their guard fully up, willing to strike if need be.
The Troll opens his mouth "You want stone?" he asks "Yes, it's an item I want to give to a person I love" Nawin answers. Bork slowly moves away and lean back up, nodding to himself "Bork will show you the way to the stone! If you stop the bad, bad guy!" he exclaims with a goofy grin. Nawin along with the rest blinks, surprise the answer is something noble instead of personal request.
Erza turn to Gado "What bad guy is he exactly talking about?" "It involves these groups" the old man replies, pointing at the bandit corpses laid on the ground "These guys are in a group and I'm pretty sure Bork is referring to their boss." The Troll nods "Yesh! Leader sent men to hurt Bork before... Bork no like Leader" he informs, shaking his head "Why would they be targeting him?" Issei question "This is the first I've heard of this. But probably because they saw him visited me often and thought they might learn something about the stone from Bork. That's why I told him to not visit for a week" Gado answers, sighing.
"Well, with finding out that Bork really does know where the stone is and is the only one here that knows, they were kind of on the right track" Jellal state. Nawin turns to the Troll "Fine, but we don't know where to find this Boss of the bandits, but I have a plan to kill two birds with one stone" he informs "Two birds and a stone?" Bork slowly repeats, tilting his head in confusion by the expression "A way to get both jobs done by one plan, Bork" Gado informs "Oh! Bork sees."
Nawin nod and continue along "You guide us to the gemstone and I have no doubt that the bandits and their boss will follow. So, you lead us to the gemstone and the boss will follow. When we do find the gemstone, I have no doubt the boss will reveal himself and after that, we can beat him together" he explains and offers his right hand forward "Do we have a deal, Bork?"
The trolls scratch his head, looking at the Makasha, tilting his head to the sides. Then, a grin breaks out from his face "Bork like you! Yes, deal" he said and grabs Nawin's whole arm to shakes. Due to the size difference, the Troll ends up lifting the Makasha up and down with the handshake which creates a hilarious sight that causes Jellal, Issei, and Gado to laugh while Erza hides a quiet giggle behind her hand.
After being put down on his feet, Nawin chuckle and retract his arm "Alright then, we have a deal, Bork" he said "Deal, yesh!" the Troll exclaims, nodding vigorously. "Well," Erza claps her hands "With that clear let us go find a tavern to have a drink and something to eat after that long journey," she said and whole-heartily the other three nods in agreement "I'm starving!" Issei informs, rubbing his stomach.
"You guys go do that while I and Bork catch up" Gado state and turn to his friend "Bork, is the journey to the gemstone far?" "Yesh, quite far." "We'll have to stock up with supplies then" Erza state, making a mental note on what to get "Clayborg has a handful of stores for us to fetch what we need for the journey ahead, so no worries" Jellal informs.
"See you in a couple of hours, Bork!" Issei said with a grin, waving at the Troll, who responded with his own smile and waves back "Yesh, see you all again." The group turns around and head back to the village to find a place to eat and relax after the long and stressful journey.
Kuoh
Standing in the center of a busy mall is the Princess of the Gremory clan, Rias. Dressed in a beautiful white sundress with red pedals scatter as a design, matching perfectly with the color white and along with the Gremory's famous crimson lock. She also wears a white high-heels that go perfectly with the dress. Dressing like this, of course, garners lots of attention for the young lady, especially from the males.
Currently, Rias is on her phone waiting for a notification to pop up. Then, a minute passes her phone rings and she smiles when seeing it's from Lucy. She clinks it and read the message 'Everything is going according to plan! We got Akeno to go to the cinema with us, so you guys are clear to get the presents. Just watch out for us since the cinema we are going to is in the same mall you guys will be shopping.' Rias quickly response with 'Good job. We will be discreet and keep a distance from the cinema area. Have fun!' with that she hit the sent and drops the phone back in the black glossy purse she carries.
Rias pause as she was about to pull her hand back out of the purse until it touches something. She grabs the item and pulls it out to see it's the letter Issei left before he suddenly departs. Rias smile and reads it once more 'Hi Rias! Sorry that I won't be greeting you back home tonight. Because I saw Nawin will be heading to the underworld to get Akeno's birthday present... It sounds like he won't be getting anything normal, so I thought I should join him to give a hand. I don't know how long I'll be gone, probably the whole weekend. I'll see you soon, Rias. Love you!' she reads and giggles fondly at the last part.
Rias place the note back in the purse and zip it close. A sound of footsteps coming from behind cause her to turn and smile when seeing Misako, Hana, and Wendy walking towards here. "Morning, Hana, Misako, Wendy" she greets them with a bright smile "Morning!" the Hydra reply with great enthusiasm, waving her hand wildly while Misako and Wendy smile "Morning, Rias" they both reply.
"Are you waiting for all of us?" Misako questions, looking around at the bustling mall that can only happen during the weekend. Rias nod "Yes, the rest should be arriving soon. After that we'll spread out into groups to fetch Akeno's gift and return to Issei's home to wrap it up" "Y-you planned everything well" Wendy compliments "Hehe, thanks, Wendy" Rias give the young girl a toothy grin "I want the best birthday possible for my best friend."
Hana's ears perk and she turns to see Xenovia and Yuuto making their way here. "Morning," Yuuto greets the girls with his ever warm and charming smile while beside him, Xenovia yawns and semi waves at them. "Someone didn't get enough sleep" Rias comments, looking at her blue-haired Knight "Waking up this early on the weekend isn't my thing, Rias" Xenovia grumpily replies, rubbing her eyes "She tends to wake up late in the weekends" Yuuto informs, chuckling. Misako tilt her head "How do you know that?" "We live in the same apartment building, so we are pretty much neighbors" "Ah, I see."
Not long after Kokoro and Elise join the group, followed by Koneko and Gasper. Now they are waiting for the last member to arrive. After ten minutes have passed. "... Where's Akame?" Kokoro asks, impatiently tapping her index finger on her arm, annoy with the stares they are getting from the crowd. "Could she have forgotten?" Senna assert "Doubtful, Akeno isn't the kind of person to forget stuff" Xenovia insert. The group waits for a few more minutes until they spot a girl dress in all black walking forward them, they smile when seeing it's Akame. Dressed in a sleeveless black shirt, knee-length black skirt, and black combat boots with a signature red soles just like her king.
"About time, Akame!" Hana grins "What's the holdup?" she asks as the Knight stops in front of them. Raising an eyebrow by the question "My house is the furthest away from the center of Kuoh, so my lateness was to be expected" she simply replies "I see, that makes sense" Momo nods. Rias claps her hands to gain attention "Alright, now that everyone is here let's get started with today's plan."
"I just got word from Lucy that her family and Akeno will be heading to this mall's cinema, so we'll have to split into groups to be discreet... Because right now we are gaining lots of attention" Rias state, seeing many civilians eyeing them as they walk past. "Sounds good," Senna nod "So who's going with who?" "Please don't bring out that box" Xenovia quickly insert, causing the Gremory to sweatdrop and pouts "Fine."
Rias scan the group and think for a minute "Hmm, Senna and Momo, you two can go with Misako and Wendy," she said and watch Senna jogging towards her friend with a big grin while Momo moderately follows. "Akame and Hana, you two can go with Kokoro and Elise," she said, a choice that confuse the Hydra, but she shrugs and walks toward Issei's peerage member while Akame slowly follows. Rias grins and turns "Koneko-chan and Gasper-kun, you two are with me! Yuuto-kun and Xenovia, you two are together" she said with a teasing smirk, which Yuuto catch and blush a bit while Xenovia remain oblivious to the intention.
Rias looks up at the large clock that hangs at the center of the mall. "We should all meet back here in three hours with the gift then we can head back to Issei's home. For lunch we can just order something like a pizza, sounds good?" she asks, turning to the group "Perfect," Xenovia nod "Yeah, three hours gives us plenty of time to find just the right gift" Momo state "Just don't go overworking on what to get her, alright? Akeno isn't a person who wants a specific thing, so just get what you think is nice" Rias informs.
After that everyone splits up to their groups and start scouring through the mall in different directions from the rests.
Clayborg Village: Jackies Bar
"Gaahm!" Issei takes a large bite down on the cheeseburger and moans in delight by the taste. Nawin moderately cuts a piece of steak and dip it in a bowl of pepper sauce before bringing it to his mouth. Jellal ordered some chicken wings that comes with blue cheese sauce while Erza simply got herself a large strawberry cake from a bakery store and brought it here to eat.
Nawin opens his eyes to only see Erza taking a huge chump of a slice of cake. "How are you going to be full by simply eating cake?" he asks, eyebrow twitching slightly when seeing the crumbs from the cake lands on his steak. "Sweet gives me strength" Erza nonchalantly reply and takes a sip of hot chocolate from a mug "Wonder how you maintain that body if you eat this much sweet" Issei points out "Her exercise regimen is quite intense" Jellal informs while Erza place the mug down and smirk "I made it extra intense, so I can eat as much sweets as I want."
Nawin takes another cut of steak to his mouth and chews it before looking at the Scarlet-haired woman "While you were out getting the cake, did you fetch our supplies?" "Of course," Erza said, looking slightly offended "I've done this before, Nawin" "Good, then I have nothing to worry about." "Do you have any ideas on who this boss could be?" Issei question before stuffing a few fries to his mouth "I've been thinking about that" Jellal admits "But without an ounce of information about him or her, we can't really decipher much" "Jellal's right," Erza nod "Best we can do is just go on this journey with Bork and capture one of the bandits for questioning" "That would be wise" Nawin insert in agreement "I would rather stop this boss before we reach the gemstone. But, if it comes to the case we arrive to our destination and the boss isn't dealt with yet then we'll have to be extra vigilant and not allow them to steal the gemstone right under our noses."
Jellal drops the meatless wing to the basket, nodding "Yeah if they take that gemstone and we lose them then it's honestly over for this quest. This is the only lead we got to find the lightning gemstone" "Indeed, that's why I won't allow them to steal it no matter what" Nawin replies and take a sip of water from a large glass cup. "Don't worry," Erza speaks up "We will do our best to get that gemstone into your hands, Nawin" she said, giving a reassure smile to the Makasha "Yeah! That's why I'm here too" Issei grins, "I'm gonna help you get that lightning gemstone no matter what, Nawin" he promises.
Nawin looks at all the three people smiling at him. A small genuine smile of his own form on his face "Thanks, you guys." Afterward, the four continues to finish up their early lunch in peace. Done paying for their meal, the group head back to Gado's place on their horses. When arriving, they see Bork standing by the house. He waves at them, wearing a big goofy grin on his face, clearly showing that he is excited for the journey ahead.
"Why are you so happy?" Issei questions the Troll "Bork happy to finally travel with friends" he answers, surprising them. The group can't help but feel a bit of sympathy when hearing how genuine the sentence was. "Make sense," Gado walks out of the house "Even though Bork is more of a pacifist troll, it still doesn't change people's view on trolls. They treat him like any other violent trolls... Screaming and running away from him" he states in a tone that shows his pity toward Bork.
"Well, we are different" Erza state and turns to Bork "You ready?" "Yesh, Bork is very ready." "I wish you all luck on this journey" Gado utters, waving at the group "You take care, Gado" Jellal reply "There's a good chance those bandits won't bother you anymore "Yeah, they are going to be busy chasing you laddies now and if they do come visit my house then I'll just spill the bean." Issei sweatdrops "Seriously, dude?" "That's good," Nawin interject "It will bring them to us, Issei... Which means there's a chance their boss will be coming for us" "Oh, I guess you can look at it that way."
"Shall we go?" Bork ask, moving his sight to the west to show the direction of their destination "Yeah, lead the way" Nawin utters, holding the reins tightly while his eyes sharpen for the journey ahead. The Troll stump forward and slowly, the group ushers their horses to follow him. With that, the group and their new ally, Bork the troll shall lead them to the destination that lies one of the most powerful and rarest gemstones in all the lands. The lightning gemstone.
Elsewhere: Unknown
A warehouse built in a middle of nowhere, surrounded by a dense forest that makes it almost impossible to find. A perfect place for a hideout. "Graah!" an enraged voice explodes from inside followed by a sickening loud thud. The bandits cower in fear when seeing one of their comrade's corpse sliding down the wall, painting it in blood along the way before it hits the ground. They all shakily move their sight forward to see their boss.
A shady and creepy man stands there. He has short dark green hair with sharp, piercing yellow eyes that could strike fear at any lowly men's heart. He is quite tall and a lanky individual with a pale complexion. He is dress in a brown vest with a white shirt underneath, short brown gloves, and brown shoes. He wears a pair of brown trousers held up by a black belt. He completes the outfit with a brown long-sleeve coat.
"Why is it so fucking hard to find that blasted gemstone!" he snaps to the men and bellows out, glaring at all of them, striking fear at everyone that looks upon his eyes. Before he could continue, the warehouse door slides open to reveal the man that had visited Gado's house. "Hoka," the boss speaks, watching his second in command walking toward him "Where are your men?" "They were slaughtered, Daido."
The green-haired man looks very unpleased with the news and watches Hoka stop in front of him with the look of regret on his face. "So, this is what you give me? Dead men and nothing about the stone?!" he shouts, causing everyone in the room to wince "Not exactly" Hoka quickly answers, knowing waiting any longer could result in his death. Daigo raise an eyebrow "What have you found? And it better be fucking good" "I may have a lead to the lightning gemstone" Hoka informs.
A big grin form on Daigo's face "That so? Continue" he orders "There's a group that is also searching for the stone. I believe if we follow them, they will lead us to the stone... Before I returned here I saw them being guided toward the west by a troll" "A troll?" "Yes, the one that is friends with Gado" "Ah, that one... I thought he'd knew something" "You were right about that."
"Perfect," the grin on Daigo's face widens more in menace "We'll quietly follow them and when they lead us to the gemstone. We will kill them, and I will take it for myself!" he exclaims and laughs. "There is a slight problem..." Hako hesitantly inserts and cause Daigo to halt, his expression darkens "What problem?" "... The group that are searching for the gemstone aren't someone normal. The group of four consists of the Scarlet Slayer and the Black Flash" Hoka reveals, shocking everyone in the room.
The look of fear strikes the bandits when hearing those two names while the look of shock on Daigo's face quickly replace by fury. "WHAT?!" he howls and sudden explosive sound arupt in the warehouse. The bandits shakily turn to the right to see a massive hole in the dense metal wall. "What the fuck does those two want with the gemstone?!" he questions "I-I don't know" Hado replies, bowing his head to look away from his boss's eyes.
Daigo grit his teeth and clench his hands so tightly that blood starts leaking out. "Well, isn't this an entertaining sight" a silky and powerful voice comes from outside. Everyone turns to see the door snap open and walk in is Schnyzel with Ren by his side. "Who the hell are you?!" the bandits stand up and start walking toward the two, trying to circle around them.
Schnyzel's cold green eyes snap at them "Peasants such as yourselves should kneel" he states in an icy tone. Green aura emits around Schnyzel and the gravity around the room goes dense and heavy, causing all the bandits to drop to their knees. Sweat starts profusely dripping down their face, their eyes widen in fear and shock, their bodies shaking uncontrollably, and they are unable to even utter a word out.
Hoka is struggling to stand on his feet until he couldn't take it anymore and drops down. Daigo is able to remain on his feet though with great difficulty. Gritting his teeth, he glares at the blonde man, but instantly flinches when going eye to eye with Schnyzel's menacing green eyes. "Don't even try to intimidate me" Schynzel comments and slowly start making a way forward with Ren following closely with her right hand firmly gripping the handle of her sword "It shall only prove fruitless."
"W-what d-do you w-want?" Daigo manages to utter out through gritted teeth, finding it hard to talk with the dense pressure pushing down on his whole bring. Schnyzel stop in front, smirking in enjoyment at seeing every man in the room suffering from him just releasing his mana. "I am here to help you" he states, surprising Daigo "W-what?" "You are after the lightning gemstone, correct? But, that's not what I'm interested in... What I am interested in is the Black Flash."
Schnyzel sees that Daigo isn't saying anything, meaning he is intrigued by the proposition "I can offer you the power that will give you a chance to fight against him and the rest that is in his group and if you succeed then, of course, that gemstone falls on your hand... Do we have a deal?" Daigo looks at the man and starting to feel his feet about to give up on him. He slowly nods and instantly, the pressure in the room disperse. The green aura around Schynzel disappears. He smirks in satisfaction "Very good, then we have a deal" he states, extending his right arm forward for a handshake. Daigo looks at the hand, knowing deep down if he doesn't accept this deal he would die here. "Deal" he said, grasping Schynzel's hand and shakes to seal the deal.
Next Chapter: Treacherous Journey, The Swamp Of Wraith