XXVI ||| A River of Uneasiness

["Hel, are you really okay with doing this?"]

Sighing, I turned to Jack and nodded, "Shay's weapons were not made to be hidden, Jack. They were meant to be wielded. It would be selfish of me to keep them away just because I can. Just because of the emotional value they have for me. There's a lot of weapons, as even though I know how to use all of them, I only use my twin daggers and my katana." I turned to River, "Our initial animosity aside, I know it's hard to believe my words, and my intentions, but I'm not playing a trick in this, River."

His eyes shone with something I couldn't name it and he nodded, pressing his lips together, his eyes going to the weapons, "Any suggestion?"

Oh? Leaning closer I looked at the weapons, "Held up your palm open, then feel the magic in each blade. The one that is meant to you, will call you. You will feel a pull deep into your magical core. That is an effect Shay's weapons have."

Nodding, he did as I said, and after minute, the sapphire long sword with a wave-like blade vibrated under his hand. Magic blooming.

Smiling, I made the others disappear, "That's your blade. Name it!"

He blinked, "Can I name it?"

I scoffed, "Of course, you can. These weapons should be named by their bonded owner," I exclaimed matter-of-factly. "When you name and call for them, they will get sharper and more effective in a fight."

"For real?" Yumi gasped in awe.

This time I couldn't help laughing, "Crone's above, you kids know nothing. Just name the weapon, bat boy. You will see how more efficient it will feel." I turned to the seraphim, "Do not mistake my intentions, do not think I'm trying to befriend you, because I am not. Nevertheless, my mother taught that I should be thankful for those who help me, even if unwillingly."

She blinked, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"You, Priya, Dorothy, and Danielle, accepted me as your roommate when I arrived. Unwillingly, of course, but still. I'll give you one chance, and you better not question if I'm being serious or I will never offer again," sigh. "What weapons do you use?"

Understanding took over their features and this time, only this time, they were quick on getting the meaning of my words. At least, Priya was, as she came closer with a wide smile, "I use a hook mid-sized sword, Yumi uses a katana nichirin, Danielle uses a trident, and Dorothy uses a double bladed scythe!"

Then they are lucky because I only have one of each.

["Maybe your mom made it purposely for these girls!"]

That would mean they are part of the 26 people I have to gather, and I hope that's not the case, because there's already too much animosity in these waters. "Good," in a second I summoned all the four weapons, each in front of the girls it belong to. "You got lucky. They all match your eyes. I hope you shut about this shite now, seraphim."

She gulped, holding the katana nichirin with diamond blades and bismuth handles in her hands, her eyes watering, "Fuck. I never thought I would get my hands in a weapon made by Shay Miralanthor!"

"You really gave them?" Savannah gasped in shock.

"I keep my word," I rolled my shoulders.

"But," Priya tilted her head, hook sword in hand, "where do you keep all of these? You keep popping weapons out of nowhere."

That got me laughing and I sat up straight, "Do any of you have a phobia for scars or something?"

Felix's eyes widened, "Are you sure, Hel?"

"I told you, I'm not embarrassed, Lix." I turned to the others who were all looking confused. "So, do any of you have any phobia or anything against scars?"

"Why would we?" The blonde lion girl asked confused.

I shrugged, "That's why I asked. But since you said you don't, then don't act shocked, please," I don't know if it was my last word or the calm in my voice, but they were all staring at me as if I had grown a second head. Then, I slowly rolled up the long-sleeves of my arms, until near my shoulder to reveal the tattoos to them.

"Goddess above," even Felix gasped in agony.

"Fucking hell. Who did this?" Savannah gasped horrified.

Sigh, "They are old scars, no need to care about them, and they are also not the point. I'm full of them, it's part of me. The tattoos are still kind of healing, but do you see them? They are also everywhere."

"Bro, your arm is ripped," the kraken girl with the tattoo on her face gasped, coming closer. "Can I touch your arm?"

I frowned, "Yes, but why?"

"Your muscles? Girl, I taught you were just a joke, but damn, this muscles are toned. They are sculpted in you," she passed her cold hand over my skin softly. "Amazing. I can't imagine how hard it must have been to get to this. How long it took."

"Cosmos is a tough teacher but a good one. They made me use my time magic to constantly freeze time, so the ten years of my training with him, turned into a thousand," I looked down at my scarred skin. "As they didn't accept any less than perfection, I had no other choice but to become perfect. At least in skill, power, control, magic, intelligence, and anything else not related to my physical appearance. Scars aren't a synonym of any thing that is supposed to be perfect."

["I'm sorry you had to go through this, Hel."]

"Jack," I glared at him, "if you say you're sorry for me, one more time, I'll let you know how terrible it feel to have all the bones in your body broken so badly, that your healing will get fucked up, and you will be in pain for a month."

"Maden above," the lion girl gasped, "why are you so menacing?"

That made me laugh. Really laugh. "What's your name, lion girl?"

She pressed her lips together, "Elsa Kayan."

"This is the only way I know how to act, Elsa. When you spend centuries having to learn how to survive in the hard way, you lose any kind of soft side you have in you. Besides, the whole having-all-your-bones-broken aren't so bad as it seems. I mean, when you go through that monthly you get used to it, you know? It hurts a bit, but nothing unbearable!"

Her eyes widened in horror, "Did someone did that to you?"

"What? You thought I didn't heal those scars because I wanted to have my skin marked?" I grinned. "With an overwhelming healing ability like mine, plus the regeneration, I can only have a scar if I want you, or if I was wounded so badly that my body couldn't even chose what to heal first. If I have all of my bones broken, and then my skin wounded to the flesh, what wound to you think it'll heal first? Internal or external?"

"Fucking monster," Felix cursed under his breath, hand on mine.

"Like I said, those wounds are old. And they were definitely not the ones that hurt the most," I chuckled. "Actually, I think getting all the tattoos potentially hurt even more. Or maybe it was because I got all of them at once. And this what I want to show you," I pointed to the tattoos. "These are magical tattoos embed with spatial magic. Each one of them is not just a drawing, it's actually a weapon. They took long because they're the image of the weapon they guard."

River's eyes widened, "The weapons are in your body?"

"Yes. Everywhere. More than a hundred," I grinned. "All kinds. Even guns. Though the guns are the only ones not made by Shay." But when I realized who I was surrounded by, I clenched my jaw and stiffened up, "You asked me where I kept them, I told you. Now," I looked around and only the I noticed we were in Felix's lair. "When did we get in your lair?"

"You fainted, I told them to bring you here. They didn't want to, but I said you were already going to spend the night here, so, we are here. All because they insisted in see you wake up, probably because they don't trust me," he scoffed.

"Oh. Why did I faint again?"

Sigh, "It happens on the first time I use my nullification magic on someone. It's like switching off their magic, and when they depend too much on it this happens. I'm sorry, Hel. You fell because of me, I should have told you the consequences. But you're okay now."

I punched his shoulder softly, "Don't apologize to me, idiot. I only fainted because I indeed use my magic all the time. And because there's too much magic in my body," shrug. "I got used to using it even when my body is unconscious. It just felt fucking weird because my mind has been awake for centuries."

He frowned. They all did. "You don't sleep?"

"I'm unable to shut my mind down, no matter how hard I try. My body my sleep, but my mind is awake, feeling all my surroundings. I've been like this since I lost my mom. But when you switched my magic off I blacked out for the first time in a very, very, very long time. You shouldn't apologize, I should thank you. I didn't feel anything, anything at all. It felt good to just be out for a bit," sigh. "How long was I out?"

"Half an hour," he mumbled.

"Oh? Felt longer. I guess my mind is messed up when it comes to time, after I go used to slowing it down for years," I turned to River and the others. "What are you still doing here, again? You saw that I'm awake. You got your weapon. There's no need to stay in Lix's lair when you treat him like shite, when you despise both me and him. We are not friends!"

"No, we are not," Noah mumbled and I could tell not only him but all of them were uncomfortable.

"So, leave if you don't want to fight. You know where the door is!"