Vol. 2 - Chapter 1
Kasumi
Pearl's streets were far too busy. Beyond Kasumi's bedroom window, she could hear the excited chattering of many citizens, people with lives far better than her own. Ugh, she thought. What time is it? Last night, she'd gone to sleep at 2 in the morning. How do these fools have this kind of energy already? She wondered, assuming it was still early.
Someone knocked at her house's front door and her eyes opened. Her crimson irises looked up at the ceiling with disgust. You've got to be kidding me.
The brown-skinned woman sat up, her blood-red hair falling over her shoulders. She took a deep breath and stood.
They knocked again.
Kasumi straightened out her nightgown and put on a pair of fuzzy slippers. She grabbed a hairband, exiting the room while she tied her hair into a ponytail.
They knocked a third time.
"I'm coming!" She yelled. Thankfully, the knocking stopped. Because her bedroom was located on her home's second floor, Kasumi had to walk past a series of painfully expensive portraits, some decorative silver tableware, and walk down a set of carpeted stairs to reach the source of the annoying sound.
When she reached the front door, she opened it and found a tall, level 30 man in golden armor with a chiseled jaw and a strong build.
Of course. She thought, rolling her eyes.
"What do you want, Kuro?" She asked, crossing her arms.
The Savior quickly handed her a letter, scowling at her. She returned the glare, pushing his hand back and rejecting the paper.
"I thought I told you people that I was done." She indicated. "I'm not doing any missions. I don't care how much you'd pay me."
"This isn't for a mission." He replied. "There's a meeting. You have to attend it."
"I have to?" Kasumi asked with a raised brow. "Since when do Saviors have to do anything?"
"Since the demons created a spire of hell just outside the city. Since then, I'd say." He responded, giving her the letter again.
Hearing that, Kasumi was taken aback. Not nearly enough to make her don the golden armor again and come back, but enough to be curious.
"What?"
"I'll explain at the meeting. Come, or we'll drag you there."
Hearing that, Kasumi furrowed her brows. Then, she smiled. Putting a hand behind her back, she closed her eyes and conjured an image in her mind of a small mound of horse crap. Then, flicking her wrist, she cast a subtle spell and waited.
"Got it?" He asked.
"Yes, of course, dear. I do so intensely miss all you self-righteous brats."
He scoffed, turning around without another word. Then, there was a squishing sound and the man raised a foot, looking down.
"Ugh, what the fuck!?"
"Have fun with that," Kasumi told him, closing the door.
The crap the man had just stepped in wasn't real. He probably knew that considering who he was talking to, but it looked and smelled real enough to serve its purpose. No, the horse shit was a product of Kasumi's illusion magic. Just a slight hint of the skill that had made her famous when she'd first started out as a Savior, almost 8 years ago. Today, she was 29, and that kind of prank was the only thing she used her magic for nowadays.
Laughing, Kasumi walked back up the stairs and back to her room. Here, she quickly opened the envelope and scanned through it.
--
Greetings, Saviors.
Recently, rangers have reported a strange object appearing southwest of Pearl. Demons have been spotted in the area as well, lately. If these strange manifestations are connected to the demonic army, then a plan of action must be made. Do not forget to...
--
"Blah, blah, blah." Kasumi balled the paper up as she finished reading it and threw it to her floor. "Why the hell do they want me in on this?" She asked herself. "It's not like my magic is even that useful."
She was still tired. Looking up at the ceiling, her eyelids felt heavy. Sighing, her eyes closed and she soon found herself asleep once more.
---
"No worries," Kasumi told a young boy walking behind her. "Your village is just up ahead. We'll get you back home in no time, kid."
"T-Thank you!" He cried as she guided him through the forest. He had been the sole survivor of a demon attack carried out at his family home, a cabin in the woods.
He's holding it together better than I thought he would, she thought. Imagine if something were to happen to Nozomi. She shook her head. No, no sense thinking about that. Focus, Kasumi. You're on a mission.
The 22-year-old Kasumi walked past a few trees. A sound made her stop. She put her right hand in front of the boy.
"Stay here," Kasumi told him as she searched ahead. Confirming her suspicions, there was a demon up ahead, walking around aimlessly.
"T-T-That..." The kid pointed and she put a hand on his shoulder.
"I've got this." She tried to reassure him. He looked up at her and, with clear panic in his eyes, he nodded.
She nodded back and walked forward.
Putting her hands together, she whispered:
"Displace, migrate the senses and transform reality," using her Sense Distortion spell.
Her fingertips glowed slightly, confirming the spell's activation. Kasumi took a deep breath and screamed at the top of her lungs.
Only, the sound of her scream didn't come from her mouth. Instead, it came from a spot to the west that she'd chosen. The demon snarled as it heard the noise and quickly ran off in that direction.
"See?" Kasumi looked back at the kid. "Easy."
But as her eyes landed on him, she found them bleeding. Slowly, the image of the boy transformed into that of a little girl.
"Mom?" She asked, blood dripping out the corner of her lips.
"... Nozomi?" Kasumi asked.
And Kasumi woke up, whipping up to a sitting position and breathing heavily.
She put a hand up to her forehead and felt sweat building up. There were tears at the corners of her eyes.
"Ugh." She flopped back onto her bed. "Fuck my life."
Finally, as if to make her mood even worse, someone knocked on the door again.
Clicking her tongue, Kasumi stood and stomped through her hallway. This time, her eyes lingered for a moment on a room beside hers that had remained untouched for years. Walking the same path though, she got to her front door and opened it.
This time, it wasn't a Savior standing at the other side. It was her brother.
"What do you want?" She asked.
"Good to see you too," he said. "Come on." He held up some wrapped food as if that was supposed to explain things.
"What?"
"I know you haven't eaten today."
"Lyo, I don't want to have breakfast yet. Go away."
"This is lunch." He unwrapped the meal and Kasumi saw that it was some sort of meat with lettuce and cheese on the side. "Because, you know, the day's almost halfway done."
Kasumi crossed her arms.
"Now, stop being a bitch and let's go," Lyo said. "It's getting cold."
Her stomach grumbled and Kasumi sighed.
"And why can't we just eat here?" She asked.
"That would defeat the point, that being getting you out of there."
Successfully bribed, Kasumi told him to wait for her to put on some proper clothes. When she deemed herself presentable enough, she reemerged wearing an oversized leather robe, black pants, and black boots. Reluctantly, she walked alongside her brother as they emerged onto the streets of Pearl.
Banners were up in the air proudly depicting different fruits and vegetables, as it was harvesting season in the agriculturally-focused city. A few merchants had carts filled with different produce were on the sides of the street, waiting for customers.
They got to a small plaza and sat down at a wooden table.
Lyo unwrapped the food and handed Kasumi a plate.
"So," he asked between bites of the meat, "what have you been doing lately?"
"Same as always." Kasumi sighed.
Then, she saw her own stats appear above her head because Lyo decided to check them out. She had nothing to hide, so she let him see them fully.
Level 25
MP: 300
---
Attributes:
Strength: 9
Dexterity: 13
Constitution: 10
Intelligence: 30
Widsom: 30
Luck: 100
---
Traits:
Quick Cast
(Spells activate faster)
Chosen
(Selected as a representative of Alkoth)
Quick Learner
(Due to the Chosen trait, you now gain proficiency, attribute, and attunement EXP 100% faster.)
?
"You haven't been training. Are you just watching the clock tick all day?" Lyo asked. "Haven't the demon attacks been picking up? Why don't you help out?"
"Why should I?" Kasumi asked. "It doesn't matter what I do. Other, more naive, more motivated, Saviors will take my spot, and everything will be fine."
"So what are you going to do then?" Lyo asked. "Just keep sleeping the days away until you watch yourself decompose?"
"Lyo, please." Kasumi sighed. "I appreciate the food, dear brother, but I don't need the lecture."
"I disagree. Your house is a mess, there's more dirt on your floors than there is in the woods, you've gained weight and half your old friends have come to my house asking if you've died." Lyo replied. "But, sure. Just enjoy the meal then."
"Whatever." Kasumi rolled her eyes, slicing off another piece and putting it into her mouth.
When the lunch was done, both siblings stood up and Lyo took the plates, wrapping them up as he gave Kasumi a quick "goodbye."
"Yeah, see you," Kasumi muttered as Lyo turned and walked away.
She was about to walk back to her home, but when she turned around, she saw Kuro standing there.
"Ugh," she grumbled as the man raised a brow.
"Come on. The meeting's going to start soon."
"Do you really need me there?" She asked.
"Yes. Even if you don't plan on doing anything your input would be appreciated. You are, after all, a talented mage. Even if you're quite lazy."
"Fuck off." She said. "Well? Doesn't seem like I have a choice. Lead the way, then."
Kuro nodded, and Kasumi followed him as he walked away. The idea of using an invisibility spell to walk back home did pass through her mind, but she figured the Saviors would actually come to her house and pull her out, which would be too much of a hassle to deal with. So, she decided to just get this over with.
They made their way through the streets and to the northern part of Pearl, to the Spring Palace, named as such because of the decorative flowers covering the bridge that led to it. Here, Kasumi saw multiple guards turn towards her and Kuro, and then bowed with respect.
They entered the great castle and Kasumi found that her surroundings were so colorful it made her dizzy. Statues of Alkoth lined the halls, each one depicting a man with a giant hammer on his back and a shield in front of him, with a thick beard and a crown on his head.
They passed by the empty throne room of the palace and walked into a room at the back. Here, multiple men and women dressed in that annoyingly bright golden armor were standing around.
"Ah, Kasumi! We can finally start now." The oldest of them said.
Hm. Kasumi raised a brow as she looked around. Not as many as I remember there being. She counted 8 Saviors in the room, including herself and Kuro. From the one sitting with his feet up on the wooden table to the left, to the slim man stoically waiting for the meeting to start on the right, she identified them.
Akiven, a level 39 boy with long white hair and a wolfish grin, holding two swords on his back nodded at her.
"Well, at least we have tits to look at now," he said, earning a smack on the back of his head.
"Can't you keep that tongue on a leash? At least, until the serious talks are over." The woman who had just hit him was Magnolia, an older level 41 Savior. She had very short hair and multiple scars on her body, which she showed proudly, all while carrying a mace and an iron shield at her sides.
"OHHH! It's been such a long time since I saw you, Kasumi!" Mizaki was a short dark-skinned level 27 battlemage with large eyes and a comically large hammer at her back, probably the youngest Savior there.
At the center of the table, the man who had spoken first was Takomaro, a famous level 43 healer who Kasumi knew to usually spend more time in Alkoth's church in Pearl rather than on missions. To her right were Alkoram, a young level 34 man carrying strange, sickle-shaped blades who simply nodded at her when she entered, and finally, almost hiding behind everyone, was Satsuhiro. The talented Fire mage, who was level 35.
None of the real heavy-hitters showed up. Kasumi noted. Maybe they're busy.
The reason all of them had their weapons out, transformed from their cube shapes, was simple, they liked to show off.
"So, let's get this over with." She said, sitting down, hoping this wouldn't take too long.