15 Blood Is Love--Love Is Blood

"Nee-chan, what do you mean about this?" I practically held back my frustration, my hand was twitching in anticipation of firing gandr to the trembling witch in front of me. She was on the verge of tears, sitting in what you called as seiza position.

"But…but I was panicked that time! And…it's not like I can freely check my status" she had a point. People in this world need what you called as appraisal magic or stone, if you can't afford it you can use the dragon hourglass in a major city to check your status, BUT!

"Is that so…I understand nee-chan, as the reliable and bright person you are…aren't you just a whimsical and ditzy witch?" I stated as it was a fact.

"NO!! I have been branded just like in my old life, anything but that!!" ah she broke…first charlotte now her too are women in this world always had a dark past? and here I thought I was merely scratched her surface, looks like I brought her old memories. If you were asking me, yes I knew about her supposed reincarnation and as fair trade, I gave her mine story too.

"It's not a stretch to call you like that! I mean who was this so idiot for basically have an endgame bullshit skill like [spell creation] or [break spell] and never knew it for their whole 300 hundred years life!" yeah, after she told me her story, we went to proceed to test her skill and capabilities before she said that she didn't know what her ability or stats was.

"I just want to enjoy my second life…so stats and skills were negligible to me at the time…" she muttered with a pout.

Argh! Now I was wondering why am I angry at her, is it Jealousy? Granted her skill would make every magus watering their own mouth. I mean [spell creation] a skill that brought upon wielder imagination based on its description could create any kind of spell as long as the wielder had a solid imagination and complete understanding of the spell that will be created.

Technically, the skill was not that powerful but it acts as some kind of permit to bypass normal spell creation and requirements whereas normal spell creation would require for example numerous ritual and sacrifice the skill would bypass those requirements.

Similarly, with [break spell], it could break spell and phenomenon as long as the wielder had a form of understanding behind it. A perfect fit for my craft elucidation skill, okay I'm just jealous. You need to stop that behavior, Will!

Until Altria ran behind us. Breaking me out of my stupor, her face marred in distraught "Will! The girl she's…she's…"

"Calm down Altria, explain slowly" I never seen Altria this agitated before.

"The girl…her life force is weakening" without a heartbeat I ran into the room where the girl has been treated.

As soon as I entered the room, I grasped structural analysis at the girl. How this could happen, I'm sure I have checked every inch of her body so this is not supposed to happen. Is this my negligence, shit! Her life-no her soul is corroding due to some curse or magic.

I grasped at her once again, I found nothing out of the ordinary that could be the source of her corroding. "Calm down Will, you not helping either" Azusa voice came out of behind me. "But nee-chan…"

"Sshhh….." placing her finger at my lips as she tried to soothe me "let think calmly will, you have a spell that you called as structural grasping right?" I nodded at her.

"Then maybe you should grasp not at her body and soul but the entirety of it"

"what do you mea…crap!" a thought dawned at me as I cast grasping at the girl once again but with more energy and force inside it, "a foreign object is inside her stomach near the magical organ located…did she swallow it then how.." the object was circular in fashion with a small chain around it. And It emits magical energy around it. The energy was blending and pouring over the magical organ thus makes it unnoticeable to my grasping and it corroded her soul.

What a blunder, I should have noted this. No used to cry over spilled milk, as I asked Azusa help to perform another surgery.

4 hours passed as I plucked out the foreign object out of her stomach, it's a locket. My guess at best this was her precious item and she swallowed it somehow since she didn't want to lose it prior or after her enslavement.

Still, it was too late, Her soul was damaged beyond repair despite that the situation can still be salvaged.

"She will be fine right will," Altria asked with a clear hint of agitation in her voice, sometimes her bland face twitch into a frown or sadness.

"yes, she will be fine, still she won't be wake up until I find a way to fix her soul" I attached a phantasmal beast core inside her body as temporary od sustenance to her soul. Still, It will only slow down her soul from death.

"I…see" I looked away at Altria, disappointment well-up inside me. I didn't want to see Altria to make face like that ever again!

Some way I think to fix her soul is to open her magic circuit though this was too risky and at best It will only prolong her life, another method was to patch her soul by integrating it with another soul still this method was without risk if the soul I integrated is incompatible or ended up as the dominant one over the girl soul.

And to add that it's not like I have a method to "capture" a soul, the only way was through a ritual and that was already like a gacha game where I draw a slim chance of compatible soul. I can use the locket as a catalyst to draw more compatible soul.

And to not discouraged me further was it need enormous energy, and furthermore, the girl needs to have a more enormous mana capacity to withstand the ritual. This can be fixed with transplanting a magic core inside her even so any core will not do. The only core that viable was at least a nasuverse dragon or the reward that I will get if I completed the mission: photon crystal.

The conclusion, this just becomes an RPG quest to procure material deep inside a dungeon.

I explained all of my thought to Azusa and Altria who listened attentively in particular Altria. I still can't erase my guilt to her.

I and Altria will go out of 'my room' and continued the journey to the eastern village where the dungeon located and Azusa will monitor the girl condition.

We came out of the Inn we rented in a small trading town, as a side note we were here to procure the material, food, and potion for the dungeon expedition. As soon as we reached the town square, we were greeted with hmm…who is he again? Ah, the spear hero and his entourage I presume.

I could sense some knight standing by all around the town square, encircling us.

"Oi will! I heard you have a carriage that runs with itself, and I'm sure it must be a vehicle tell me where you got it!" oh c' mon can you at least greet properly and have some manner, will you!

When did they noticed it, is it when we make our way here? Provided I didn't turn on the active camouflage—okay that's the reason, f'ck.

I decided to shelf my thought when I saw that woman who deceived Naofumi-san standing beside him, no doubt making her way to poison the mind of the spear hero.

"Move" Altria make her own way in front of me, hostility spread out of her voice, no doubt restless to complete the dungeon and get the reward. As I tried to place my hand over her shoulder to soothe her down, the spear hero beat me down into it.

"Oh! I can't believe this, an angel makes her way and fall in front of me!" disgusting—wait, Altria did you turn off the mob concealment again!? "Girl, may you tell this humble hero with a graced of your name" he offered a smile that I found disgusting and as soon as he tried to grab Altria hand a boiling emotion rising inside of me.

"don't touch her, filth" a cold killing intent washed over the air, perplexed by the boy behavior the spear hero with a condescending tone said to him "and who were you standing between my angel will!" not realizing the doom loomed over the town, the spear hero tried to shove away the boy only to found his arm has fallen from the socket.

"aghGGHHHGHH!!!!!!!" fountain of blood smeared the town square and every person red near him save the boy and the girl. Bystander run in panic, while the town guards and knights were….well they seemed in a daze looking at the spectacle they never witnessed before, a hero disgraced even wounded inside the kingdom, not from a monster, or aberration but a pair of children—a certain shield hero didn't count, okay.

"Motoyasu!" clutching his arm in pain the spear hero turned to his companion who began cast healing magic and reattaches his arm, though he will need a very long vacation to fix it.

"Even if you said that I won't let him touch me will" the girl brandishing a red beam of sword in her one hand as she squeezes her master arm, her pupil turned to gold while the iris turned darker than that.

Shit! What am I doing, Altria! As soon I break out of my stupor I found the spear hero who has just lost his arm, blood splattered all over the town square.

"Catch them!" myne shouted at the knight.

Kicking out every thought in my mind, I grabbed Altria hand as we make a run to the gate, but not before I pulled a modified mongoose with a twin rocket launcher on its hood and built-in machine gun on its both side.

"Altria you drive" nodding her head, I plop myself at the passenger seat facing the back side of the vehicle.

"Hurry up, mount your horse, man!" one of the flabby men barked at the knight, it's very comical to see his belly flop around with his armor.

As soon as we blaze our way through the town, a battle rifle snuggly came out of my hand. Aiming at the galloping horse in front of me, I shoot its leg.

With its leg turned to mush, it flaps around and hit another galloping knight behind it. Then I just realized we have just become the enemy of the kingdom if there's some kind of crime gauge here I'm sure it will already star five at the moment. I wonder if there's any garage somewhere.

Then to add the fuel into the fire I unhesitantly tried various maneuver from shooting a fruit stand, market ceiling we passed into, even I throw a grenade at one of the houses to prevent the knight from passing. Alas, there's another roadblock behind me or specifically in front of Altria, I wonder how many knights stationed in this small town.

Twin machine gun roared to life as it shredded the knight that tried to block us into a bloodied pile of mush. Some adventurers by the look of their attire I presume were casting some spell but not before their skull burst into a fountain of blood as I aim down my sight to every person I deemed hostile.

The city gate dawned upon us. But they have closed the gate, still, it was nothing before the raging twin rocket that making their way home into it. The first rocket hit some kind of barrier before it reaches the gate and exploding but soon the second rocket found its mark at the middle and obliterating it into pieces. Nice observation Altria.

We blazed our way through what was left of the gate. Losing our pursuer I relax my grip and sigh in relief, the adrenaline started to wear out as I contemplated what I have done before.

Huh, stay positive will stay positive, no need to cried over spilled milk. Even I said that it's not like I hate the spear hero or anything though my emotion would always reach boiling state whenever someone makes an attempt to Altria. Huh, looks like I'm a bit of possessive person, another thing to note before myself.

"Altria, do you feel better? No need to rush to the dungeon you will only endanger yourself, and we will fix her no matter what"

"Uhm…I'm sorry will…"

"About what happened at the town? No need to apologized, I would do the same if I were you"

Hmm…is that smoke I'm seeing? A shadow of a smoke trail came out of Altria head as I can't easily turn my head and see Altria who was behind me.