[Weapon Selection] [2]

"What can I do for you, sir?"

As I arrived in front of a table, the male staff handling the weapons asked with a slight bow.

"Give me the best hammer you have here," I replied as I looked at the weapons on display.

"Sir, but we only have axes here," he responded with an awkward smile.

".... There is no hammer then?" I asked after a brief pause.

".... We do have a war hammer," he replied.

"And what do you want me to do with that? Swing it around my head?" I questioned, glaring at him.

"Bro, they don't have small hammers. Why are you trying to find them?"

Oliver grumbled as he looked at the swords displayed on another table.

"Can't you do anything about this?" I asked, turning back to the staff member..

"I want a hammer. It suits me perfectly."

".... We do have something, but nobody uses it ," he replied after thinking for a while.

"Why?" I asked, frowning.

"Well, because it's hard to use, sir," he replied again with an awkward smile.

"Show me," I ordered, and he nodded before moving backwards.

"You found anything?" I asked, looking at Oliver.

"I will go with a sword for now," he mumbled as he picked up a medium-sized sword.

"Az, Professor Lauryn will be our weapon class teacher, right?"

"Yeah," I nodded before I looked around the place.

The entire hall was filled with students as they moved from one table to another to look at different weapons.

'Poor souls. They will die a dog's death.'

[Stop being so negative.]

'Yeah, yeah.'

As I looked around the place, my gaze fell on a group that stood out the most.

"Oliy."

"What?" Oliver asked, and I gestured towards the group.

There, the main cast stood together.

Ethan, Miley, Ashlyn, Shyamal, Arianell, Keegan, Lucas, Tristan, Aimar, and Aaliyah.

From the looks of it, Miley was introducing both Ethan and Ashlyn to the rest of the group.

"The whole bunch has assembled in one place, huh?" Oliver mumbled, rubbing his chin.

"Don't you want to go and meet them?" I asked, my gaze still on the group.

"Will you?"

".... I don't deserve to be there."

"You were the one who bonded all of us, Azariah. Without you, it's just the empty shell of the past," he replied as he swung his sword.

"It was Christina, not me," I replied, shaking my head.

"I apologize, but bro, Christina was crazy back then....

remember how she tried to throw your little brother-in-law off the roof?"

he asked, and the memories of that day became clear in my mind.

".... It wasn't her fault."

"And you are still defending her," he mocked, looking at me.

"Her mother died while giving birth...

her father was grieving, ignoring her, and... .

all she knows is it all happened because of her brother,"

I explained, my voice just audible enough for him to hear.

"And that's why I am saying....

if you were not present, if you didn't helped her, she would have broken down...

No, they would have broken down,"

he replied, his gaze on Shyamal and Arianell who were talking with Ethan.

"....You were a kid back then and you don't remember much; you are overthinking,"

I replied as I looked at the staff who came with a box.

"And Christina loves her brother now, so don't say anything bad about her."

"....What about Ashlyn...when are you going to tell her," he asked, making me freeze in place.

".....you remember?" I asked softly.

"You almost died that day....I won't forget that even if I want to," he replied, looking deeply into my eyes.

"..."

"When are you going to tell her?" he asked again.

".....Never."

"..."

We both remained silent for a while, not saying anything.

"...You deserve happiness, Az," he whispered, messing with my hair before walking away.

"No, I don't," I mumbled to myself with a sigh.

"This is the weapon, sir."

Opening the box, he said with a wide smile,

"A weapon made from the softest metal in the world."

Curiously, I looked at the weapon, which was pitch black with a small handle, on one side having a hammer head and on the other side, an axe head.

It was light and very comfortable to touch, with the axe side as sharp as a weapon could possibly be.

"So... What's its specialty?" I asked as I picked up the hammer that felt like a part of my body.

"It bounces, sir," he replied smiling.

"What?"

"When you throw it and it touches a hard object, it will bounce back to you."

"It... bounces... like a ball?" I asked with an absurd look on my face.

"Yes, sir."

"Are you an idiot?"

I growled at him, grabbing his collar,

"How the will I use it? How the fuck will I cut or hit anything if it just bounces back?"

"I-it does cut, sir. You just need to exert proper force, and I already told you, sir, it's a hard weapon to use,"

he stammered, his eyes carrying a hint of fear.

I pushed him back as I picked up the hammer and changed its face towards the axe side.

"W-what are you doing?"

I didn't reply; instead, without any hesitation, I swung it at the table.

Cre—ak.

And like butter, it cleaved through the table without any problem.

"So, it does cut," I mumbled with a smile.

"Ahh, my table!"

Ignoring the staff's cry, I walked a little further.

"Huff..."

I exhaled softly before I threw the weapon on the ground with little force.

Swish!!!

"Woah."

And just like the staff told me, it bounced back from the ground, reaching half the distance I threw it from.

[Careful, you might cut a finger or two.]

'I know.'

And Like the staff said, it's a hard weapon to use.

If I throw it with little force, it won't bounce back the needed height, or if I throw it with more force, it will bounce too much.

I need to think about the exerting force, angle, distance and many more just so I can land a hit.

But if I could use it properly, it will be an unpredictable weapon.

'It's a fun weapon.'

"Azariah." I looked back as I heard a familiar voice.

"Yes, Lauryn?" I asked, looking at her.

"Professor Lauryn." She glared at me, but I shrugged my shoulders.

"Come to the Katana section after you are done with that," still glaring at me, she said while glancing at my new weapon.

"Okay," I replied, nodding my head as she walked away.

'Hmm, I should be able to use this weapon if I have a few months of training.'

"The emperor has decided about your engagement, Azariah." I halted my movement as I heard a disgusting voice.

I looked back only to find a dark-skinned boy with dark blonde hair looking at me while grinning.