21 Black Sword

'Why is the entire blade pitch black? It's even consuming the lightning that falls on it. There is just a slight reflection but even that is almost nonexistent.' Ink thought while observing the sword, still hesitating to take its handle into his hand.

This unknown sword was somehow attracting him which was the sole reason why he was hesitating. It could be said that it was a similar type of attracting man felt towards a beautiful and seductive woman. It wasn't love or anything similar...it was more similar to lust or greed. Which was why Ink was still keeping his hands away from its handle.

He was aware of what lust and greed can cause.

'It's just a sword...maybe slightly special but what can it do? It's not like it is alive' Ink thought and after a minute of staring at the sword, he decided to grasp its handle and take it out of the box.

Nothing happened after he took the sword, he even swung a few times with it to feel the weight and he couldn't be happier with the result. The sword was light as a feather and its handle made the wielder feel as if it could never slip from the wielder's hands.

'The previous strange feeling completely disappeared...?!' Ink thought with a suspicious expression but his eyes widened when he felt a shadow over both corners of his eyes. Ink narrowed his eyes and decisively swung his sword behind him, he was confident in stopping it in case it wasn't anyone hostile, however, the sword produced a beautiful sound of tearing through the air but Ink noticed that no one was behind him yet the shadow was still covering larger and larger parts of his sight.

"What the hell is this?" At first, Ink thought that someone sneaked into his room when he was focused on the sword but even now he couldn't feel anyone's presence. He tried to rub his eyes but whenever he opened them again, the shadow was slowly covering his entire sight until he no longer saw anything.

'...Did this sword cause me to become blind?' This was the only thing Ink could think of as of the moment. He could feel that whether he had closed or opened eyes, it didn't matter. He couldn't see anything.

When he thought of dropping the sword from his right hand, he finally felt something different. When he focused on the sword itself, he suddenly heard maids talking.

"*Have you heard about the matter that Mera-sama prepared something for Ink-sama?*"

"*Yes, it's quite bizarre if you ask me but we certainly can't doubt Ink-sama's loyalty and diligence. He has never complained about anything despite not being treated the best by us all.*"

*"Yeah. right?! That's what I like about him! I still remember how a few years ago, I went to bring his meal but I brought only one-fourth portion of what I should have...I got pretty hard scolding from Gil-sama later. I was forced by her to even apologize to Ink-sama but he just cooly looked at me and said it's fine. There was no resentment in his eyes.*"

"*Alright, be careful with those words...If someone were to hear that you like him, it might create some trouble for you. I admit that if I had to do it with a man, he is the most ideal however you are aware of Mera-sama's ideology...*"

Ink could almost clearly hear their entire conversation however he hasn't shown any kind of reaction to their words since he was more concerned about why he could hear them.

'Those voices...I know both of those maids but it doesn't sound like they are right behind my door. Not to mention, they wouldn't dare to utter those words if they weren't at the private place...which is the room next to mine behind a few meters thick stone wall...'

*Sniff* *sniff* 'Are we having fish again? But the kitchen should one floor below...' Ink thought with a confused expression.

'Is this sword enhancing my other senses for the price of my sight?' When Ink thought about finally dropping the sword on the ground, he heard quite a loud footsteps right outside of his room before...

*BANG* The door flew open

"YO! I have heard that you are finally back. Want to go down with me and grab- What the hell...Ink?"

"Gil?" Ink turned towards the source of the voice and he could easily recognize that it belongs to Gil. He already wanted to get rid of the sword due to not being accustomed to this feeling but her reaction made him curious.

"Are you alright?" Gil asked and to Ink, it felt as if she was slightly scared.

"That depends...I feel good but I can't actually see, can you describe what you see in front of yourself?" Ink asked.

"Um...the sclera of your eyes are pitch black and your pupils completely disappeared leaving only cold glowing green irises. There is also a large circle of something that looks like a regular shadow right under your legs. There is also literally black air flowing around your shoulders and elbows. The blade is also leaking the same black air." Gil replied and tried to describe it as detailed as possible.

"I see..." Ink muttered and threw the sword on the ground next to him, when the sword left his hand, he felt a jolt of pain inside his head but his sight slowly returned the same way it was taken.

*sigh* "Finally back...Is this what Mera-sama meant by "gift"?" Gil sighed in relief before asking while looking at the sword lying on the ground.

"Quite possibly, I will have to ask her for more details. Let's go..." Ink replied while taking the sword by its blade and with the help of a blanket, placing it back in the box.

"Huh? Where to?" Gil asked with a confused expression, making space for Ink to exit his room.

"You wanted to go eat and ask me about details regarding the mission, right?" Ink replied with a small smile before making his way towards the dining room and Gil quickly followed after him.

Once they started eating, Ink described what happened and though he left a few details to himself, his words didn't leave too much to the imagination.

"Hehe~ I didn't expect you to have it inside you, ya know." Gil said with a wide teasing smile while poking Ink's side with her elbow.

"It was just for the mission. I didn't feel anything during it." Ink replied but even himself knew that such an answer wouldn't satisfy curious Gil.

"Nothing...huh? Are you sure? Nothing at all?" Gil placed her hand on Ink's inner thigh and asked with a slightly crazy yet seductive smile while looking straight into his eyes.

"...Nothing similar to the affection. Don't worry, even I can feel lust. Now, use those hands to eat food instead of fooling around." Ink grabbed her hand and put it back on the table.

'I will have to ask Mera for details where she found that sword...it's too weird. I am not sure if I will be able to use it. But something tells me that she is already expecting me...' Ink thought while quietly eating his meal with Gil by his side.

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