Chapter 8: Improvements and Small Adventure

Nothing interesting took place after the Holy Sword Trial. I just kept taking missions and hanging out with Asia more. The main plot was getting even closer, and I was becoming more and more conscious of it. I think over the past few years I have built up a good amount of base strength, strong enough to easily beat multiple high-class opponents without breaking a sweat. On top of that, if I were to use my eyes, my strength and versatility would skyrocket even more.

I spent a lot of time this year experimenting with runes and magecraft. On a mission to kill a vampire, I found a half-burned book about basic runes, so I secretly snuck it into the Vatican to practice since it wasn't really allowed in there.

As for my progress in magecraft I practiced everything I could. I scarcely replicated the sacraments and baptism rites used by the church in Fate. I combined the holy magic I learned from other exorcists with the sacraments and learned how to make holy barriers and things like that.

Another magecraft that I spent a lot of time practicing was flame magecraft. The only stand out flame magecraft I remembered was the Sea of Flames that Cornelius Alba used. I remembered the specifics of it so it was not too hard recreate the magecraft because of my enormous elemental affinity to fire. With constant practice using it during missions, I reduced the amount of prana I needed to use it, but it still took me 5 seconds to charge it up to use it every time. Obviously, my magecraft wasn't something I could openly experiment on in the Vatican, so the only time I could do that was during missions.

Some might be wondering if I had forgotten about my eyes, but that is completely incorrect. Ever since I was allowed to take missions alone, I have been using my eyes during almost every job. As a result of my perseverance, I've gained a better understanding of my mystic eyes. All I can say is that even though the eye itself is an overpowered ability, it is still limited by my brain. With my thinking still restrained by human standards, I realized I wouldn't be able to use my abilities to their fullest potential. The only reason the other users of these Mystic Eyes were strong was that they weren't limited to a certain standard, which allowed them to kill things that most thought couldn't be killed. That's why I tried to expand my knowledge and not let myself be bound by what most would call common sense. If I believed that something could be killed, then my eyes would certainly let me kill it.

With this whole new plethora of abilities and experiences I've gained, I can confidently say I'm much stronger than I used to be. Still, I'd keep most of my abilities under wraps since I didn't want too many people poking their noses into my business.

I'm the kind of guy who has never really wanted too much spotlight on me because I wasn't exactly comfortable being judged by a huge number of people. That's probably why I didn't have too many friends in my previous life. But that didn't mean I wanted no friends or anything edgy like that, I still had the desire to at least make a few acquaintances. After all, it's human nature to want companionship.

I have been getting too into training, and I keep forgetting about the things going on around me. So, that's why today I decided to check on Asia. Over the years I've known her, she's become much more well-known in the Vatican and even earned the title of "Holy Maiden." Even with a grand title like that, she didn't have any real friends or anyone to talk to except me. All that her Sacred Gear did was isolate her, and because of that, I could clearly feel how stuck she felt in the church.

For that reason, this morning, after I finished my everyday training, I went to the main church to go see her. As I walked to the church, I saw her standing in the garden, staring at the plants with her back facing me. Seeing that my mischievous side acted up

I slowly snuck up behind her and grabbed her shoulders.

"Hwaah!" She yelled in surprise as she stumbled forward.

"Woah, you good?" I pulled her back to stop her from falling forward.

"Ah, it was you, Tristan," she sighed in relief.

"Yes, hello, and good morning, Asia," I saluted with a grin on my face.

"Yes, good morning," she smiled back.

"So, how's your day been?"

"Me? It's been normal, I think," she replied in confusion.

"Is that so…?"

"Why are you around here?" She asked this time.

"To meet you, of course. I just wanted to see how my friend was doing."

"Hmm...I see, I'm really grateful. " She thanked me in slight embarrassment.

"Nah, no need to thank me; we're buddies after all." I patted her head to reassure her.

Feeling me pat her head, she blushed, and her face turned red. She was completely embarrassed by my treating her like a child, even though I was the same age as her.

"Say... do you want to sneak out?" I suddenly posed a question.

"H-huh? What?" She panicked a bit at the sudden question.

"Wanna sneak out of the Vatican with me? Just for a couple of hours in the afternoon." I put on a mischievous smile.

"B-but the Sister told me to stay here though."

"Hah! Don't worry about it. If there's a problem, I'll take care of it."

That's how I ended up dragging Asia outside the Vatican. I knew that she's never been outside of the Church too much, so I thought it would be a nice thing to do.

In the afternoon, after it had turned dark, I got Asia, and we snuck out. She still seemed a bit reluctant, but eventually caved in to peer pressure. After sneaking out, we just wandered the streets.

"See, isn't the city amazing?"

"Woahh!" She exclaimed while looking at the huge crowd of tourists.

The city of Rome was a popular and well-known city. With the huge amount of amazing artwork and architecture, it is something that attracts a lot of people. Even the food and culture are very rich and well received by many.

Even though Asia has lived in the Vatican for so many years, she has nearly left the compounds. She literally had no idea about the city other than the rumors and gossip she had heard around the Vatican.

"It seems like there's a football game going on. Wanna go watch?" I suggested.

I didn't even need a response because the expression on her face told me everything. I took her to the stadium to get a ticket, but it was too crowded, and I got a bit annoyed. So, I just secretly hypnotized some staff to give me a ticket to go in. I definitely would have felt like scum before, but now I have zero regrets. If I have the power, I'm definitely going to use it to my advantage.

"Here are the tickets sir" The staff handed them to me.

"Thank you; let's head in Asia."

"Umm…is that okay?" Asia looked worried.

"Don't worry about it. It's fine"

Both of us got to our seats right as the game started. The game was pretty exciting, with many people around us being overly hyped, like every stereotypical football fan we see on the internet. Asia looked quite happy throughout the game, and she even got swept up by the mood sometimes.

The game lasted about 100 minutes, and I, who wasn't really much of a sports fan, was in a daze the entire time.

Right after the game ended, I decided to take her to a restaurant. I remembered that she once said she wanted to go to one, so I took her to one of my favorite places.

"This here is my favorite pizza place," I said, pointing at a restaurant.

"Wow, it looks so fancy."

"Right? The pizza here is literally the best ever."

It was a pretty fancy-looking store that sold different foods like pasta, lasagna, pizza, and many other dishes. I hadn't been here in a while, so I was pretty much as excited as Asia was.

We entered the store and got a seat when we saw a waiter come over and give us a menu. I ordered the pasta I wanted, but I saw that she had a hard time picking what she wanted. So, I just ordered some nice, simple veggie pizza that she can try out.

It only took about 25 minutes for the food to arrive, and when it came, it looked scrumptious. I unconsciously gulped at the mere sight of the food.

"O-oh, this is really good." Asia's eyes sparkled in amazement as she took a bite of the pizza.

"Yeah, here, have some of this," I said as I handed over my plate of pasta.

"This is amazing as well!" she exclaimed in surprise.

*Kaff* *Kaff*

She choked on the food from eating it too fast. I handed her a glass of water, which she gulped down quickly.

"It's okay to be excited, but just make sure to eat slowly. We've got plenty of time."

"R-right,"

We finished dinner and headed out back into the city again. I let her walk around the city and look at all the different sights while I just escorted her from the side the entire time.

I checked my watch and noticed that it was close to midnight, so I suggested that we head back. We followed the route we had taken and slowly walked back towards the Vatican.

It was still crowded on the streets with people still walking by, and the street lights brightly illuminated the entire city, making it somewhat safe to walk this late at night.

I had my hands in my pockets as I walked beside Asia, matching her pace, when she suddenly stopped. I turned and looked back at her in confusion. But when I saw her, I instantly figured out why she had stopped.

*Hic*

Asia had her head down, tears on the corner of her eyes, and was almost about to start sobbing. The sobbing wasn't because she was sad but rather because she was quite happy.

"Umm… T-Tristan, I just want to thank you…" She looked up at me with a slight smile.

"Hmm... no need to thank me, it's fine." I interrupted her.

"No, no, it would be wrong if I didn't thank you." She exclaimed.

"No need to thank me; friends don't need to thank each other for everything." I awkwardly smiled.

"Y-yes"

She looked at me in happiness, but she quickly got embarrassed and started to walk forward in a hurry.

"Hahh..how troublesome" Sighing in resignation, and I sped up and started to walk after her.

It took us nearly 30 minutes to return and sneak back into the Vatican. Unfortunately, we ran into someone, but I distracted them and allowed her to flee. As for me, I got caught, but I was an exorcist, so I didn't really get into trouble.

Asia didn't get caught, and I wasn't in trouble, so everything went quite well. Just the day after I was assigned a mission, my monotonous life started once again.

Even though I said I didn't want to get close to the main cast multiple times, I somehow kept contradicting myself. Even today's incident probably ended up influencing her character even more, on top of the little differences she already had.

From now on, all I have to do is watch how everything unfolds and try to keep at least some of the main plot as similar as possible. I have no intention of getting involved with those troublemakers and fighting for no reason. If things have changed abruptly already, then I'd be completely clueless about everything, and that is quite scary when you're in the world of the supernatural.

So, that's how mine and Asia's little adventure ended.