The Manipulated Fate

Somewhere near the Elf Region—at the cave that wouldn't be discover for at least the next 10 years from now on.

"HAHAHA! I finally managed to absorb that power and make it mines!" The woman who laughed all mighty, created an mirror to reflect her appearance.

"What is this disgusting looks? This is unbefitting for someone as supreme as me." The looks reflected on her water mirror was those of an old woman's. Lacking of nutrients, her bone was visible to normal eyes, the wrinkles in her face was everywhere. The healthy jet-black hair has long since turned white due to aging.

With a flick of her hand, the water twisted around her body, slowly but surely, it changed her body, from it's core. The dying cells, the ruined muscle, her weak bone, and the color of her hairs.

Everything has changed to healthy ones. The cells was as active, or even more active than normal human's. Her blood now circulated in healthy forms. Her flesh was now well-toned, and her bone was durable now.

The wrinkles in her face has long since gone and her lips was now looking healthy red. While her hairs has returned back to being black.

From an dying old-woman to the appearances that rivalled Maou's expected Kuro's future looks.

The water she emitted was that omniscient.

-----

The voice of a little girl sounded out, and echoed the entire room

"Mooom! Aqua's shaking uncontrollably!"

In the Treasure Vantage, Aqua who was working at Houshou's family's house as a maid, shook her body uncontrollably. This time, or rather, for the first time, she broke the plate not because she playing around.

"Don't worry, and don't watch it, my cute Marine. She must have undergone an important process for her to get closer to become a woma-… AQUA-CHAN!?"

Marine's mother, Houshou Femina joked around while going to where Aqua was mid-way, but when she saw Aqua's body shaking uncontrollably, it wasn't the time to joke around.

As Aqua's body continued to shakes, her face began reddening and tears uncontrollably flowed out.

Femina got closer to Aqua and embraced her whole body, gently stroking her head. "Aqua-chan, there… there… don't cry anymore."

Although somewhat faint, Aqua heard it. Despite the sobbing and shaking, she tried her best to nodd her head and tried to controls her body.

It took some time for her to calm down.

-----

*halt!?*

Kuro woke up from his deep (light) slumber, uncaring the Maou looking at him inside the room. His wound has mysteriously healed up, and right now, his body was shaking for some reason.

It's been a while for him to feel this emotion… fear. Kuro thought that now that he experienced death thrice so that he doesn't have anything to fears about, but he was wrong.

Moreover, he don't even know the source of this fear.

'My hand is shivering…' Kuro thought to himself while trying his best to take the cup of glasses for water.

"That's right! Maou, how's Matsuri-chan's mother?" Kuro asked Maou who was still quietly looking at him.

"She's alright but, I recommend you to go see her. Their gps is in this iVhone." Maou three the seemingly new iVhone to Kuro.

Kuro who took the iVhone, without sparing an effort, he rushed out of the building and ran toward the mark inside this iVhone of him.

Somewhat, Kuro had this unknown trust toward Maou—that if he recommended him something that feels serious (to him), he'd spare no effort to do it.

As the traveling speed was slow if Kuro followed the path, Kuro decided to jump on the roof and parkour while running toward them.

Run, slides, dodges to sideway, roll to diverse the forces, dodging the crowds.

After 5 minute of full forces running, Kuro arrived to the place, MakDonald.

"Kuu-chan!! Here! Here!" Cheerful voices sounded loudly aiming toward Kuro.

Kuro who was sweaty for running with all his might, felt dumb for no reason. Seeing their smiling face relieved Kuro, also loosening his tension.

Kuro slowly walked toward them while smiling like dumbass. He felt somewhat proud for being able to protect that smile on Matsuri's face. After all, the current matsuri's smile was his ideal that he couldn't attain.

He? Not me?

Kuro waved his hand over there when he arrived, he saw Nagisa, Matsuri, and Hanabi looking at him. Specially, Hanabi's eyes was filled with gratitude…

But what is this bad feeling? Maou's words was stuck inside Kuro's brain even till this moment.

"By the way, where is that red-haired brat go?" Kuro said rather rudely, he still had this mysterious grudge toward him, for almost ruining someone's life.

"Oh, if it was Aera-kun, he went back home alone, maybe because he is feeling responsible… please don't blame him, Kuu-chan…" Mamatsuri said rather apologetic.

"It's not that I am blaming him…" since children getting in car accident is rather common, at least in my past life.

The four had a conversation afterward.

Kuro asked Nagisa how he managed to blow that big truck with just his hand alone and was surprised at Nagisa's answer. Apparently he was from an assassin family, and a fairly famous one. He was trained since he was young.

"Teach me your technique someday, won't you? Please?" Kuro asked just in case, so he can act cool in future.

"I'll ask my father." Nagisa gently smiled and showed his feminine charm.

"Stop that, I might fall in love with you, you know?" Kuro joked around with him.

Suddenly, Matsuri and Hanabi's ear twitched and Nagisa's face reddened up.

"Congratulation Nagisa-chan! I'll be the first person to support you!" Matsuri clapped her hand as if to congratulate the newly-made couples.

"Say, Kuu-chan, which part did you fall for Nagisa-chan? Is it, the gap between his cool mode and usual girly form?" Hanabi began analysing the two. Her face clearly said 'This is seishun!'

"…Just to remind you, I was joking, okay? Besides, I am a man, incase you guys didn't know…" Kuro said with suspicious eyes.

Then, the three 's body bounced upward. """WHAT!?!?"""

Because of their voice volume, and the sounds of slamming the table, the three of them easily caught the attention of the crowds and the heads was turned to their side.

The three looked around first, then sit down calmly.

"Bu-but… you're clearly cuter than my daughter and Nagisa-chan!" The first arrow stabbed Kuro's heart, it was from Hanabi's mouth.

"Ye-yes. Kuu-chan's voice is also cute!" The second arrow was launched by Matsuri. Without exception, it accurately stabbed Kuro's heart.

"Like Hanabi-san and Matsuri-san said, as I boy, I also thought that Kuu-san was cute!" Although somewhat embarrassed. Nagisa managed to say it because he knew that his opponent was a boy.

All the three arrows accurately stabbed Kuro's heart as if an aimbot was installed in it.

"Le-le-let's calm down…" said Hanabi whose hand was shaking while she hold the cheeseburgers and take a bite of it.

While biting the burgers, with food in her mouth she spoke. "Du Kuu-chwan habe a gwirl he is intwerhstwed? (Do Kuu-chan have a girl he is interested?)"

Betraying their expectation, Kuro nodded. "Yes… she is a cute girl, gentle, and have the looking eyes except for her…"

"Looking eyes?" In this term, Matsuri was somewhat specially interested in it.

Looking at Matsuri's interested gaze, Kuro continued. "Yes. She may be a person who don't often listen to other person, sometimes likes to play prank, she is adorable. Despite her lacks of attention to others, she values the other person's opinion greatly and is rather passive with herself."

The three quietly listened to Kuro's story. "This is just an analysis but; she lacks confidence in herself and maybe feels some inferiority to something I don't know. So she was able to easily says that I will forget her in the future."

"She said that in the future when I found the girl I like, I'll forget about her. I don't know if it's her trust to me or lack of confidence to herself, but something angered me and we had an conflict, so here I am…" Hanabi widened her eyes from the discussion she never expected from a children.

As for Matsuri and Nagisa, they didn't understand the most if it, but still listened.

"To be honest, I don't know what to do now. If I returned, I don't know what kind of face I should make, and I am afraid of what she'll say to me." Kuro darkened his face.

"Baka (stupid)." Hanabi lightly chopped Kuro's head.

"You like her, right? Then, why don't you return to her side? Besides, you are just a children. There's no need to think about things complicatedly… If you don't return to her you will regret it, you know?" Hanabi gently patted the head she just chopped, as if to ease the pain.

This warmth was covering Kuro, as if he found what he was unconsciously seeking for. "Tha-that's right… thank you."

0.0%

Kuro faced backward, and as if to tease him, the mother and daughter worked together. "Why are you facing backward, Kuu-chan?"

"That's right, Kuu-chan look at us, we won't say anything." Matsuri was like doubling the problem as she inherited her personality from her mother.

Surprisingly, Kuro didn't notice this sarcastic, and decided to look at them.

His face was red, and droplets formed around his eyes, his final efforts trying to cover his face with left hand successfully hid his mouth and nose but it was bad in different way.

'''Ah… cute…''' The three thought at the same time.