"Ah, she ran off," Rebecca said, blinking.
"Uh... Rebecca? Where is Kitsu?"
"Oh, Kitsuna~ How cute," Rebecca teased with a cheeky grin.
"Ugh... where is she, Rebecca?" Kayda asked again, fuming.
"I don't know where she went-she just disappeared," Rebecca said, twirling a lock of her hair.
And so began the next chase.
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Chapter 155
"So you can at least move," Mom said, stepping into the dining hall with her usual elegance, her eyes locking onto me as I ate like a starved beast at the table.
"Yeah, it hurts like a bitch, though," I replied between mouthfuls of food, shoveling eggs and toast like my survival depended on it.
"That's excellent. Seems you're quite resilient to wrath," Mom said, walking over with a faint nod and joining Kayda and me at the long oak table.
"Are you also going to eat?" I asked, glancing sideways at her while chewing.
"Yes, I haven't had lunch yet," Mom said, already grabbing a plate and methodically arranging her food like it was a ritual.
"Looks like you've been busy, busy," I mumbled, eyes drifting back to my own plate as I slathered more butter onto a piece of toast.
"Yeah, sadly," she said, her tone more worn out than usual. "With the Kuni head being utterly useless, I had to take over to find out how the devil cult managed to kill thirty thousand people without anyone noticing."
"...Thirty... thirty thousand people!?" Kayda and I yelped in unison, both of us freezing mid-bite, distressed and more than a little horrified.
"Well, that's a bit more than the actual number, but sadly, we haven't found all of their hideouts yet, so... yeah. It'll be a miracle if it's only that amount," Mom explained, her sigh heavy, her brows pinching together as if the weight of it was pressing down on her bones.
"Ugh... Is that how they created that monstrous thing?" I asked, poking at my now less appetizing food.
"Yeah, sadly. It seems there are at least two methods to create them. We still don't know exactly how he-or they-was made," she said, rubbing her temples.
"Them? There are more?" My voice dipped a little, my stomach twisting for an entirely different reason.
"Thirty thousand people died, Kitsu. We have to presume more than one was created," Mom said, shaking her head slowly, expression grim.
"Aaah, I didn't think I'd wake up to something like this," I groaned, letting my head fall forward dramatically, nose almost hitting my plate.
"Sorry to tell you everything now," Mom said, her voice softer. "But you both need to know before I leave again anyway."
"Are you going back to the Kuni?" I asked, lifting my head, surprised.
"Yeah. As I said, they're useless, so I've taken over for now," she said, her tone clipped with irritation.
"Ugh, those shitty fucking dwarves," I muttered, slumping back into my seat with an annoyed glare at nothing in particular.
"Haha, get fucked," Kayda said, laughing and trying to lift the heavy air.
"I wouldn't laugh if I were you," Mom shot back with a sly grin. "You're going to need to train the dumb kiddos and the squad you took over, Kayda. Additionally, there will be admin work waiting for you when I leave.
"Ugh, fuck," Kayda groaned, letting her forehead hit the table with a solid thump.
"Sigh... What should I do?" I asked, glancing over at Mom.
"You're free until I get back. That'll be in a month or two. Do whatever you want. I already spoke with Steve-he knows you'll be heading to him in the next few days. He'll help you as much as he can, though he did say he's not very confident he'll be of much use," Mom explained, finally starting to eat between sentences.
"Ah, thank you. I'll also help if needed," I said, reaching over to give Kayda's back a few supportive pats.
"Thank you," Kayda mumbled, face still buried in her arms.
"Hmm, you seem calmer?" Mom asked, looking at me curiously, like I was a new puzzle.
"Well, they did cut my head off, so..." I said casually, grabbing my neck.
"But wasn't that your clone?" Kayda asked, sitting up and staring at me with growing concern.
"No, not originally. I swapped myself with a clone when he got surprised. Wait-how do you know that? Ah... Nekro, right?" I said those words while shrugging to indicate my uncertainty.
"Yeah. She watched the whole thing from a safe distance," Mom said, nodding.
"Ah, I see. Well, back to the topic-my head was cut off, but I regenerated so fast it felt like a bullet going through me. No pain, just... an overwhelming blur. I can't really explain it." I rubbed my ears, still unsure how I even survived that moment.
"Don't worry. We don't want to know how it feels getting decapitated," Mom said, waving it off like it was just another Tuesday.
"That's not good," Kayda said, eyeing me with concern.
"Yeah, but at that moment, I had already been using Wrath for a few minutes. Probably wrath made me invulnerable to decapitation," I said, another shrug escaping me.
"So you think it's only because you were in wrath that you survived?" Kayda asked thoughtfully, then sighed.
"Yeah. But I think getting stronger will eventually make it a normal thing. It's just a matter of when."
"I see... Sigh. Well, at least you were humbled somewhat," Mom said, her voice laced with something that wasn't quite amusement. She didn't sound happy about it, but she wasn't mad either.
"I guess you could see it like that," I said, nodding slowly.
"Hayo, What's with the atmosphere in here?" Lily's bright voice cut through the fog of seriousness like a ray of sunshine. She bounced into the dining hall with an exaggerated tiptoe, already grinning.
"Ah, hey, Lily. "It's been a long time since we last saw each other," I said, waving lazily.
"Hello, Kitsuna. What's going on here? You guys need more food, or is the food not to your liking?" Lily asked, glancing at our plates.
"Nah, we were just talking about some heavy stuff for a while," I replied, gesturing vaguely.
"Ah, so that's why no one was in here but you three. Should I...?" Lily half-turned toward the door, pointing at it like she might bolt.
"No need. We're done talking anyway, and I need to get back to work before I leave," Mom said, standing up and grabbing a sandwich.
"Well, good luck. Do tell us when you leave, though," I said, waving at her as she headed out.
"Will do-if you guys are still here," she called back over her shoulder.
"I don't think we'll be that long with Steve today," Kayda said, glancing at me for confirmation.
"Yeah, I'll just talk about what I want to do with him. Nothing too complicated."
"Hmm. If you think that's going to be quick," Mom added before disappearing out the door.
"Well, now what?" Kayda asked, stretching.
"Let's go to Steve. I do want to see my mom off before she disappears again," I said, pushing myself up from my chair.
"Right."
"Thanks, Lily. You can have them clean up what's left," I said, sweeping a few extra sandwiches into my storage.
"Oh, go on, go on. The more you take, the easier the cleanup will be," Lily muttered, practically glaring at the table.
"Sigh, you didn't even try to hide it," Kayda said, laughing.
"Oops. Sorry," Lily said, covering her mouth but clearly not sorry.
"Well, I'll have Rebecca know about this," I said, narrowing my eyes in faux threat.
"Ugh, that's not going to be fun," Lily replied, but she didn't seem all that concerned.
"Huh?" Kayda hummed, tilting her head.
"What? You don't know about them?"
"No, but looking at you... I don't want to know."
"Good choice."
"Well, let's go."
"We're going to need a vehicle. I'm not walking there," I said, casting a hopeful glance at Lily.
"Yes, yes. I'll get one ready for you," Lily said, bowing slightly before skipping away.
"Thank you," I called after her.
[30 minutes later]
"Thank you. Good work," Kayda said, climbing out of the car with a polite smile.
"That took longer than it should've," I grumbled, glaring at the workshop's sign.
"I agree. But it's not Lily's fault our ride took so long."
"Yeah, it's our driver's fault," I said, glancing at the poor guy, who was now drenched in sweat and staring at the steering wheel like it had betrayed him.
"Let's just get this over with. We might not have much time," Kayda said, grabbing my hand and dragging me toward Steve's place.
Tring Tring
"Oh, we have a customer," a voice echoed as the doorbell jingled above us.
"Hmm... this place changed a lot," I said, scanning the shop.
"Not really. They just don't have stock," Kayda said, tilting her head at the empty shelves.
"Last time I was here, I could barely walk without tripping over some blade or bow," I said, eyeing the clean floor with suspicion.
"With the monsters getting more active, the number of adventurers in the city doubled. More adventurers mean more gear, which means we sell more... until we're sold out," the receptionist explained.
"So you guys must be happy?"
"With more sales, more people die... and then blame us for their weak weapons," the clerk muttered, sighing.
"The Dead Forest? What happened there?" I asked, curious.
"Hmm. It started a few weeks ago, apparently. That's why Chinada and their team came back-they're emergency backup," Kayda explained, inspecting a blade on display.
"I see. Well, not my problem," I said, smirking at her.
"Ugh. Don't remind me," Kayda said, sighing.
"Now this is someone I would rather not see," a deep voice called out from the back.
"Oh, hello, Steve. Not the welcome I expected," I said, raising an eyebrow.
"Not you, little Stacy. I'm talking about the dragon next to you," Steve said, glaring at Kayda.
"Old man, are you still not over that?" Kayda said, smiling mischievously.
"Hmm? What's this about?" the clerk asked, eyes lighting up with curiosity.
And just like that, chaos was already brewing.
avataravatar
Chapter 156
"Mind explaining why he hates you?" I asked with a raised eyebrow, watching the tension practically crackle in the air between Kayda and Steve like lightning ready to strike.
"Well..." Kayda started, scratching the back of her neck with a sheepish look.
"That's nothing for your ears, young Stacy," Steve interrupted sharply, his gruff voice rising above hers as he continued to glare at Kayda like she was some kind of persistent roach he couldn't squash.
"Hmm," Kayda hummed nonchalantly, clearly not affected, and shrugged at me as if to say, "We'll talk later."
"Now come, young Stacy. Tell me a little about why you are here. Let's go to my office. And you-go away." Steve added, flicking his hand at Kayda like she was a fly in his forge.
"Alright, alright. See you later, Kitsu," Kayda said, walking over and planting a soft kiss on my lips before heading out. Her steps were light, but I could tell by the little twitch in her tail that she wasn't thrilled.
"I know you two have bad blood, but is it really necessary to throw her out like that?" I said as I turned back to Steve, frowning slightly.
"That is between the two of us, not you, little Stacy," the dwarf replied firmly, leaving no room for further discussion. His stance was final, like a boulder blocking the road.
"Sigh, whatever. Having you help me is better than trying to fix some ancient grudge," I muttered in defeat, shaking my head.
"Now come. Let's go talk in my workshop," Steve said, turning on his heel and walking into the back of his shop without waiting.
"Not the office?" I asked, confused but already following him.
"No," was all he said, his voice dry.
"Right," I hummed, glancing back at the disappointed clerk who had been eavesdropping with open curiosity but now shuffled away back to the counter.
"Come in. We don't have that much time," Steve called from ahead, already half-hidden in the dim lighting of his cluttered workshop.
"So, how much did my mother say about all this?" I asked as I stepped in, looking around. The place was chaotic in an organized way-tools hung on every wall, scraps of metal and raw ores littered worktables, and everything smelled of smoke and steel.
"You want to make powerful weapons with ice. That was about it," Steve replied with a shrug, moving toward a table where a few familiar items were laid out.
"Well, I do want to make useful, proper weapons with my ice. Like actual, reliable gear. Not that temporary nonsense."
"Hmm. Your mom brought me this," Steve said, picking up the mangled remains of my ice staff-the same one I'd used to beat the crap out of a devil child not too long ago.
"Oh, that thing? Mom brought it with her? I thought it shattered ages ago."
"She told me you were able to throw a level 700 devil child around like it was a ragdoll with this," Steve said, squinting at the object as if it offended him on a molecular level.
"Uh, well... yes," I admitted, awkwardly scratching my cheek.
"But you were pouring mana into it the entire time to keep it from breaking, weren't you?" Steve asked, narrowing one eye and glaring at me like a teacher who already knew you failed the test.
"Yes. If I hadn't, it would've crumbled in one hit," I confessed, rubbing the back of my hand with mild shame.
"Yeah, no shit," he said before abruptly pressing down on the staff with one hand. It disintegrated instantly-shattered into billions of glittering pieces.
"That looked far too easy," I said, slightly annoyed by how casually he destroyed it.
"It was easy," he said with a scoff.
"Haha... great."
"Make a sword," Steve ordered, folding his arms across his chest with a frown.
"Okay," I said, nodding and forming a broadsword in my hand out of ice and raw mana. The blade gleamed with an unnatural cold glow, its edges sharp and symmetrical.
"Sigh... you want to learn how to make weapons from me, right?" Steve asked with a long, worn breath.
"Yes, I believed that was clear," I said, tilting my head slightly.
"It is obvious. I'm just confused why you want to learn from a blacksmith specifically," he said, rubbing his face in clear frustration.
"Why is that confusing? You're a Smith King," I said, a little irritated now.
"You're making it out of magic, girl. Not metal," Steve said, pointing at my ice sword like it was a failed science experiment.
"Can't I just replace the metal with ice? I don't really see the difference," I replied, tapping the blade with my knuckle-it made a solid metallic ting.
"There is a big difference, and there also isn't," Steve said cryptically, his gaze still fixed on the blade.
"Can we not do riddles, please?"
"Sigh. There's a big difference between solid mana and metal, girl," Steve said, now looking genuinely serious.
