Month And Ogres
A month has passed since Akuma has arrived in this world.
Since then, Akuma has already progressed to a rank A adventurer, due to his prowess, and completion of missions above his rank. He was already making a name to himself within Blumund, and even gained a nickname: The Red Demon. The first time Akuma heard it, he couldn't help but burst into laughter at the irony of this nickname.
He was getting offers every day to join numerous parties of adventurers who want to make a profit off him, to get a boost in both their earnings and their own reputations, yet Akuma refused them all. The only party he teamed up with was Eren's party, and that also only happened from time to time, as the three wanted to advance in the ranks on their own, and they were already C-ranked.
And of course, he didn't forget about the kiss Lorelei owed him and made sure to kiss her in the middle of the guild, in the busiest hour in the guild, so everyone could see, including Eren and her friends, which caused Eren to ignore him for a few days, calling him a pervert.
His relationship with both Lorelei and Eren became closer too, but as much as he flirted with both of them, he didn't take the next step with them, preferring to take his time, to make him look more desirable in their eyes, and to make them take the first step.
It's not that Akuma was a virgin, neither he shied away from sexual activities. It's the fact that both women were no normal women. He could tell that Lorelei and Fuze had a deep connection with each other, almost familial, so if he takes the long way, it'll appear that he cherished her more, gaining the favor of Fuze, who as the Guild Master, had a big influence on the king of Blumund himself.
Eren's case on the other side is a little bit different. The more missions he took with their party, the more he started to see the signs that suggested that Eren is no mere adventurer. The way Kaval and Gido carried themselves around Eren, although well hidden behind the comical behavior the group had, was not a way friends carrying themselves around each other, but more of bodyguards, and the fact that Eren hid her ears only strengthen his theory, that Eren might be a part of one of the 13 royal families of The Sorcerer's Dynasty Sarion. For this reason, he can't take the next step with her, or else he'll maybe be at odds with whoever her family is, for entering a relationship with her without their permission.
The Sorcerer's Dynasty Sarion is a nation founded and managed by Elves, and one of the strongest nations in the west. Just like the name "Dynasty" implied, it is a federation formed by 13 royal families. The history of Sarion was known to go back at least 2000 years, considering Elves' long lifespans. Apparently, its Emperor claims to be a descendant of a god and forbids all other religions.
In reality, he's not afraid of neither Fuze nor Eren's family, but initiating a relationship with both without caution, will contradict his plans of subtly taking over Blumund, so he waits for them to initiate the relationship so he won't be blamed for it in the future.
Today he was going to the Jura forest, to see which monsters he'll encounter and sell their parts, instead of taking a mission for a specific monster.
~~~ Scene Change ~~~
"Today was a great day. I had a good harvest today" Akuma said, a magic sword lays on his shoulder, as he stood in front of the body of a dead Armorsaurus.
'Now only to skin it and I'll go back. There is a drinking contest in the bar today, and I can't have anyone saying he's a better drinker than me' Akuma thought as he took a special skinning knife that he bought, which is able to penetrate the Armorsaurus' tough skin, but as he was about to start skinning, he heard a scream and turned his head in the direction the scream came from, his eyes narrowing as he used his enhanced eyesight to zoom in, only to see two little girls, one had pink hair and one purple hair, facing a smaller Armorsaurus than the one he just defeated.
'It's probably the one that got away. Probably its spawn. Seeing that it's my fault, it'll leave a bad taste in my mouth to just leave them be, and besides, it means more Armorsaurus' skin, which means more coins...' Akuma thought and moved at an overwhelming speed, and just when the Armorsaurus was about to stomp on the girls, Akuma appeared over him, beheading it with one strike, and landed in front of the girls.
"Amazing..." the pink-haired said in awe
"Are you two okay?" Akuma said, and as he looked at them again, he noticed something that he didn't pay attention to before, and that was the horns adorning the girls' heads. Two on the head of the pink-haired, and one on the purple-haired head. Both also wore pink and purple kimonos respectively.
'These two are... Ogres, I think?' Akuma thought as he inspected the girls
"T-Thank you for-" the pink-haired started to say but was cut off by the purple-haired girl saying:
"Who are you? What are your intentions for the princess?" she said with suspicion, narrowing her eyes.
"Nothing actually. I was fighting its parent, and it escaped, so I just finished it off. I'm an adventurer, so I can sell its skin, so I can't let it escape-" Akuma said but stopped midway, as he had to perform a backflip, in order to dodge the sword that was about to cut him in half, landing behind his attacker, and as he landed, his attacker already turned in his direction, allowing Akuma to inspect him.
His attacker was a short old ogre with aged silver hair and two horns on his forehead. His hair was wavy and has two bangs dropping from the far side of his horns, and a ponytail tied with a string. His attire consisted of an off-white robe with thick black outlines, fastened by a pale brown ribbon on his waist. This whole was also covered another similar robe which was kept unfastened. He also wore a thick pale brown scarf that covered his mouth, a pair of loose white pants, wooden sandals, and black fingerless gloves, and had a plane looking thin sword.
"I won't let you lay a finger on the Princess!" the old ogre exclaimed
"Listen-" Akuma started to say but had to sidestep in order to dodge a vertical slash from his attacker, and in a great show of speed, while sidestepping, he spun on one leg, raising his other leg to send a kick to his attacker's chest, and his attacker who was still in the momentum of his own attack, couldn't dodge the kick fully, and only managed to put his sword in the way of the kick, but it didn't stop him from getting sent flying, and crash into a big rock, from the sheer power behind the kick.
"Now would you listen?" Akuma said and approached the old ogre, who was struggling to stand up, as he received great damage to his back
"I didn't do anything to your little princess, I-" Akuma said, but once again was interrupted as he was engulfed by flames.
"Are you okay?" another ogre that walked out of the trees asked the old ogre. He had red hair and two horns. He had a muscular body, which he wore light armor over, and also had a thin sword in a black sheath.
"Yes your highness..." the old ogre said as he slowly stood
"Sister!!" called a child voice from the trees, and a red-haired boy, who had a striking resemblance to the red-haired ogre, run over to the two girls.
"Brother!" said the pink-haired in surprise, as the boy checked her over for injuries
"Who was that?" asked the red-haired ogre
"I don't know, but he was powerful"
"Well, it doesn't matter anymore"
"You're talking as if I'm dead, but I'm actually not. Attacking from behind isn't nice, you know?" said a voice from the flames, and to the shock of the ogres, Akuma walked out of the flames completely harmless, except for his clothes, that he only had remains of, that covered only his crotch area, down to his knees.
The red-haired ogre narrowed his eyes as he laid his hand on his sword's handle.
"I don't know how you survived, but I won't let you lay hands on my children"
"Again, why would I want to lay hands on your-" Akuma started to say, but was interrupted by the red-haired ogre
"Prepare yourself, human! I, the king of the ogres, will take you on!!" the red-haired ogre exclaimed and unsheathed his sword and dashed at Akuma. Seeing this, Akuma sighed and lifted his sword above his head, and then black flames engulfed the sword, and Akuma slashed vertically, sending an arc of black flames at the ogre, sending him flying and crashing into the old ogre.
"You're really testing my patience here. Just stay down and let me explain" Akuma said as he slowly approached the two
"I won't stand down! I won't let you hurt my children!" the red-haired ogre said, struggling to stand up
"But I keep telling you that I have no interest in hurting your children..."
"And why would I believe a human???" the red-haired ogre said, narrowing his eyes at Akuma
"Father, stop it already!!!" the pink-haired girl shouted, shifting the attention of everyone to her, as she ran, and stood between Akuma and her father.
"This mister saved me from the Armorsaurus, and yet you keep accusing him of attacking me and you attack him without letting him explain the situation!" the pink-haired said, shocking her father, and he said:
"B-But, he's a human! There's no way a human will help you!" said the red-haired ogre, causing his daughter to sigh, and then she turned to Akuma, bowed, and said:
"I'm sorry for my father's behavior. Humans tend to hunt us for money, so he grew to despise humans" she said
"You're quite the polite little princess, aren't you? and smart too. However, princesses shouldn't bow to anyone, so raise your head. I didn't actually mind your father and his subordinate attacks. In fact, it was a refreshing change, comparing to the mindless monsters I often fight" Akuma said, amused by a little girl lecturing her father, as he patted the girl's head.
"It looks like my short temper led me to mistake again. I wish for your forgiveness, young man" the red-haired ogre said as he stood up
"As I already told your daughter, I didn't mind it. If that's all, then I need to go. I have a drinking contest to attend" Akuma said and turned around
"Wait! I still need to thank you for saving my daughter and her friend!" exclaimed the red-haired ogre, but in a blink, Akuma disappeared, without knowing the impact he left on the three young ogres...