13 Giant Dungeon

Azuka awakens inside a dark, cold, large cell. "Is this my home," Azuka asks aloud with a huge smile on his face. Suddenly a massive sword comes down into the cell almost slicing Azuka in half. "If you say another word, I will kill you," the user of the sword was Ju'anna. "You are a lucky God. If it wasn't for the King's forgiveness, you would be dead. Also you happened to save Princess Ichina." Azuka looks up to discover that the cell he was in, was deep underground.

They think I saved that Ichina girl? Wait, did she just say princess, Azuka thought trying to keep his mouth shut. "The King may have forgave you, but I don't in the slightest. You killed Junbar! You are no God to me, you're a demon!" Azuka froze, "What do you mean I killed Junbar," he asks. "That Knight you fought, his name is Junbar! You-you killed him." Azuka freezes again and his thoughts go wild.

I killed him?

I didn't mean to kill him.

How could I kill him.

He seemed strong and I just used my strongest technique.

I should have held back.

I could have held back.

I didn't have to kill him.

I killed him.

I killed someone.

He would have killed me if I didn't kill him.

Tears streamed down Azuka's cheeks as he comes to his senses, "I'm sorry," he says to Ju'anna. "Don't be," Ju'anna leaves Azuka in the deep cell and exits the dungeon. "Hey, I thought you were on watch duty." Jubarai tells Ju'anna with a worried look on his face. Ju'anna walks past Jubarai who was guarding the dungeon. "He sheds tears for him, this must be his first kill. There is no reason to watch a broken man. He won't bother trying to escape." Ju'anna exits the dungeon leaving Jubarai to guard the dungeon by himself.

After crying for a couple of minutes, Azuka tries to meditate, but fails to focus. "Junbar, I am sorry." Azuka tries to once again meditate, "I can't believe you killed me." Azuka jumps, as he sees a ghost like figure of Junbar when he tried to meditate. He breathes deeply as though he himself almost died. He curls up into a ball, he thinks of Emily, but quickly stops when he thinks about what Emily would say about him killing. "How could you kill him Azu, I-I don't now what to say."

She would hate me wouldn't she.

I can't face her any more.

She will hate me.

She hates me already.

I didn't mean to.

But I did mean to.

It was self defense.

How could I know how strong he was.

Master never taught me this.

Azuka gasps, "Has master ever taught me this or not? Come on, remember Azuka, remember." He tries to remember, but only flashes of Junbar's lifeless body show up. "Stop! I didn't mean to kill him!" Azuka yells out, startling even Jubarai. "Aye, shuddup fool," another giant from the other cells demands. "Yeah, shuddup, I'm trying to sleep here," another giant demands in agreement. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to..." Azuka responds surprised anyone else was here. "All you have been doing is apologizing ever since you got here!" another giant yells. The same giant after a moment passes says,

"Was sorry your first words," all the giants present start laughing, except for Jubarai who was holding it in. "Did you apologize to your mother after being born?" Everyone stays silent for the joke, "Oh come on its funny. I swear its funny." Every one stays silent. "Ah, whatever, one day they will laugh at my second joke," the giant says as he shifts his body into a sleeping position.

"He sounds like a rookie, what are you in here for rookie," another Giant asks. "Are you talking about me?" Azuka replies. The Giant laughs, "Yeah, I'm talking about you." Azuka is generally surprised, I never knew criminals were so nice, but then again, I am nice myself so, he thought. "I k-" he freezes, flashes of Junbar's body appear in his mind. The same Giant starts tapping his cell 3 times in intervals of 4. It could be heard through out the whole dungeon. The Giant then says, "I'll start first, I was put in here awhile back, I don't even remember. Anyway, I killed a group of Giants while I was drunk. I've regretted it since I was put in here."

Another Giant then says, "I was put in here for accidentally killing a Knight's Wanboo." Another says, "I was put in here for killing someone trying to sell me 5 cel apples, the prices were outrageous, I was not having it at the Kingdom." One after another, Giants, who were awake, told about their crimes, they were all crimes involving killing, but were all forgiven by the King.

It was finally Azuka's turn and he felt a bit more calm, he thought back to something his Master had said once. "I formed the thieves guild for one reason, boy. When you are a thief surrounded by normal citizens, you become more and more anxious, anyone could snitch, anyone would betray you. It would make anyone feel like an outsider. But, what if you were surrounded by other thieves? Surrounded by more people like you, naturally makes you feel mellow."

"I killed Junbar.. a Knight," a breeze of relief seemed to have entered Azuka's body as he accepts that he killed Junbar. Azuka expected everyone to clap to congratulate him on telling his crime, but... "You killed a Knight," everyone says simultaneously, even the ones asleep had waken up to the news. One of the Giants ask Jubarai, "Did this rookie really kill a Knight?"

Jubarai stays silent, "Tell us Knight," Jubarai dodges the question, "it's about bedtime now. Everyone, please go to sleep." Jubarai press a button near him that closes off the tops of the cells and turns off the lights. All the Giants are still in disbelief as they quickly fall asleep. One of the Giants however yells out to Azuka, "Try not to snap, rookie!"

Azuka is confused by what snap might have meant but he shrugs it off. Struggling to fall asleep, but eventually he does.