The Sword Made For A Griffin

The Sword Made For A Griffin

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Disclaimer - (Cause fanfiction is tricky ground and I hope not to offend the creator of the original story and get sued)

I do not own "The Beginning After The End", it belongs to its original creator TurtleMe. This is only a fanfiction that I was inspired to write by the original work. Please support the official release. Most of the media - such as the art and illustrations, gifs, video's, etc. used in this fanfiction - are from the web. Thus, most of them aren't mine (because I really, really can't draw) unless mentioned. To fit the story, images are also edited by various apps and websites. So they aren't mine, just edited. I get much of the text, especially the fight scenes and thought, aside from my oc's, from the original novel, which can be found on Library Novel. Please support the official release.

Also if you own a picture or Video that I found online, and you either want your name added, or me to take it down. Please contact me and we can talk it out. P.s. I also ask that you do not copy my work and publish it onto any other website.

If you're gonna use my idea, please ask me (If you ask nicely, I for sure, will agree). If I don't contact you within a week, then just assume I'm giving you the all clear and go for it. Just remember to credit me.

I will be writing out scenes even if my Oc isn't in them. As long as she's mentioned, or influencing the characters in some way. This may seem a bit annoying. But that's just how I write. I like to embed my characters into the story line. Because of this, most of the dialogue/scenes will come from the original work.

Playlist

For the playlist you can go to my YouTube channel, which is under "Anime-lover-forever-1127" and click on the playlist titled "A Woman With Vision {Arthur Laywin}". Or you can use this link watch?v=GYlAaNM7WS8&list=PLVKYkztH1Zd8bdl2_a1C8F6u8gPPwfa6D&ab_channel=7clouds

Warnings: Spoilers for Chapter 26 and 27 of the Novel and 45 and 46 of the Manga

*****

Today's Special

Damn you.

I will not be ignored!

Get back here and love me!

~ Stewie Griffin

*****

{Third P.O.V.}

"So... who's it going to be?" Rey asks, taking a sip of his coffee and then setting it down on the round wooden table that they all were seated around.

Morgana and Arthur, as well as his parents and little sister, had just finished eating breakfast with the Twin Horns party. The group had chosen a rather modest inn full of lively chatter.

As the group conversed while eating breakfast, Alice was currently busy wiping off the remains of food chunks and bits of food that had managed to escape Eleanor's mouth off of the little girl.

"Kuu!" Sylvie hopped up onto the table, with her head held high. Even without her mentally transmitting, everyone was able to make out that, 'I'm enough to protect Papa!', everyone was able to tell that that's what she was thinking.

Morgana laughed, "I think you may need to get a little bit bigger before you can do that."

The dragon pouted, until her attention was caught by the youngest Leywin. "Sylviee! Come here~!" She began waving a piece of meat in front of the dragon's face, tempting my legendary dragon bond, who instantly began to drool like a starving puppy, right before she leapt into Eleanor's arms.

When Arthur saw this, he couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of Sylvie wagging her tail at a bandit smart enough to simply lure her away with a piece of meat.

The Twin Horns had just finished exploring a dungeon with several other pirates and had some free time before their next mission of quest. So it truly wasn't a matter of if they had the time to, but rather if any of them wanted to.

Adam, who was spoke up first while polishing the tip of his spear, was the first to speak up. "Babysitting doesn't really fit my style, so I'll pass on this. Besides, I feel like, with my personality, Arthur might kill me in my sleep one day."

Despite the joke, my father responded with a solemn nod. He knew what kind of temperament Adam had, and in-turn knew that they weren't likely to get along with each other.

"I'm sure I'll be able to reign him in." Morgana offered, taking a sip of her coffee.

"I was hoping that Durden or Helen would accompany Arthur and Morgana. I'd prefer Helen, seeing as she's a woman. Honestly, although I can't offer much, but Alice and I are more than willing to compensate you guys in whatever way we can if you do this."

"I know I was a last minute addition. But my family offered to cover all expenses and anything else we may need. We're willing to pay by the month as well." Morgana informed theme.

"Don't talk like that, Rey, or you either Morgana. We're all family here. I, for one. would love to accompany the two of them and watch them grow, anyhow," the gentle giant responded, his narrow eyes becoming even smaller as he smiled.

"Durden is right. You, of all people, should know that we aren't doing this for the money. Besides, we managed to get quite a bit of treasure off of our last dungeon raid." Helen said, shaking her head.

Suddenly, a silent hand shot up, making everyone at the table turn to look.

"I would like to volunteer."

"J-Jasmine? You want to go with Arthur and Morgana?" Angela sputtered, looking at her brusque companion in shock.

{Arthur P.O.V.}

Angela had made it clear about how eager she was to accompany us, but I felt like Angela would be a greater source of danger than any of the possible threats of an adventurer.

I felt a shiver run down my spine as I remembered Morgana's reaction to seeing my last interaction with Angela.

I loved Angela, she was a great friend, but I still wanna try to reproduce in this life. And if Angela came along, my chances of them being cut off or 'accidentally' eating something that may cause it to fall right off, grew exponentially.

So I tried my best to lightly hint that she might not be the most suitable but even I was surprised that Jasmine would take the initiative to accompany me.

"Hmm... Logically speaking, Jasmine is the most suitable person to protect Arthur and Morgana. Durden only specialises in offensive area of effect spells. Although I do want to go with them too, but I feel that maybe I'm probably not the most suitable person since protecting someone isn't really my strong suit. There's also an added bonus of Morgana and Jasmine sharing the same element, which should help in her training." Helen just scratches her head.

"Jasmine, are you really okay with going along with Arthur and Morgana?" my mother asked, concerned.

Giving my mother a determined look, she looked at my mother with a determined gaze as she nodded firmly in response.

"Pfft! The lady says she wants to go, let her go. She's the only Augmenter among us that has an elemental affinity! She just reached the dark yellow stage last year, and coupled with her wind attribute, I think she'd be the best suited." Adam said after letting out a chuckle as he leaned back on his chair.

"Hmm... For the children's safety, I guess I'll just have to step down from this. It's a pity though." Durden just scratched his head, clearly disappointed.

"Sorry, Durden, I know how much you care about Arthur." My father put an arm on the large mage's shoulder.

"Maybe you can come with us on the next trip." Morgana offered with a smile.

"That's right, maybe we'll join the Twin Horns on a dungeon raid in the future!" I exclaimed. Durden just smiled at this, giving me a nod as he tousled my hair. The rest of the Twin Horns chuckled merrily as we finished up our conversation.

It was decided that, in a week's time, we would go with Jasmine to the Adventurer's Guild and register ourselves, or our alter ego's anyway, as Morgana pointed out. We would automatically start off as E class adventurers after passing a simple test and could, depending on how well we do on any missions or on quests we take, raise our class accordingly.

Morgana also reminded everyone that keeping a low profile might be a good idea. The point of this adventure was for us to get stronger and see the world, not make enemies.

My eyebrows twitched as I held in the urge to remind her I wasn't the one who got offended by the slightest of things and declared blood feuds left and right!

{Morgana P.O.V.}

Getting back home, the first thing I spotted was Lilia downstairs —meditating. We arrived in time to see a maid gently place a cup of water by her side.

"Uu... Lily no fair! Training without me!" Ellie rushed past our side and plopped down into a comfortable sitting position to start her mana manipulation training as well.

As far as I could tell, it would take the both of them a few more years to actually form a mana core, but at the pace that Lilia was going, it was easy to imagine that she would awaken around the average time most children did.

I smiled fondly, knowing with this, a rift was prevented from forming between us.

I wrapped my arms around Arthur, resting my head on his shoulder, I whispered, "Thank you."

I then turned my gaze to Ellie. The young girl only practiced an hour or two a day. Not having the patience to hold out as long as the older girl. Which was only natural. It wasn't nearly a bad thing either. It would just mean she would be awakening at the time any normal child would. Which would be best for her on a mental and social level. I need to keep reminding myself that she's still a child, not like us who were literally old souls placed into the bodies of unborn children.

Arthur gently took my jacket off my shoulders and put it away with his. He then turned to face his father, who was making his way up the stairs. "Dad, can we go to the Auction House again? I'd like to pick out a sword. We never had the chance to go after the incident, and I've wanted to start practicing."

"That's a great idea", I nodded, backing my partner up. "My father did say we could come by any time we were free. If now's a good time for you, can we do it now?"

"Yeah, I have a few things I need to tell my team there anyway. We'll ask the carriage driver to stay for a little bit, so go wash up."

*****

Both my mother and father were already waiting for us at their auction house. It was Arthur's first time seeing either of them after the incident so he was faced with another long string of questions from the two of them regarding his health. After much coaxing and reassuring them that he was fine, we finally went inside. I could tell that my father had been less than thrilled by the treatment the King had shown regarding this incident.

"How are you feeling about the incident?" I asked as we trailed behind the adults.

"Honestly, at this point, just like how the King feels towards me, I only felt apathy towards the man. It was clear that he had not put me into any sort of consideration besides that of a less-than-insignificant child, which suited me just fine for now." He then smiled at me, "You on the other hand? You definitely left an impression. And I for one, can't blame him. From what I hear, you did threaten to burn the kingdom down."

I chuckled, "You say it like it's the first kingdom I've threatened to burn down."

"And knowing you, it most definitely won't be the last."

The King's representative had told us that night that both the augmenter that had attacked me and Sebastian had been stripped of their nobility. My mother had merely huffed at this.

Rolling his eyes, the auction house matriarch spat out that their sentencing was nothing but comforting lies. "Bah! Men like them... as soon as they get their wrists slapped, and they just take a relaxing break for a bit. It won't be long before they'll have their positions back."

I noticed my father tightly clenching his fists, but this sort of politics was all too familiar to me.

I smiled comfortingly, "Relax mom. Did you truly believe I was just going to let him get away from attacking us like that. Trust me, I've made sure he won't have any future with the knights again."

Father went off with Uncle Ray to meet the guards, while mother took our carriage back to take care of Lilia, leaving me with Arthur and Sylvie to search for a sword.

Perched on Arthur's head, the dragon bond curiously looked around the cluttered storage hall, littered with vaguely sorted crates and shelves of miscellaneous goods. The Helstea Auction House stored a lot of goods, most from different merchants and adventurers, and others from remote places, including the Dwarf Kingdom.

There had been almost no business transactions done with elves ever since the war over a neutral territory had reached a stalemate. Over the years, relations between the two races were said to have gotten better, to the point of even having a friendly tournament, but it would be a slow process before the enmity is actually ceased. This was a pity since elf weapons, which were comparatively lighter and thinner, would've been perfect for someone of my physique.

Most of the enchanted weapons were bid during the event yesterday, so the only things left were regular weapons that would eventually be sold in stalls, which was fine for us; we just needed to find Arthur something he would use. The rest was up to his skill.

Peering through the endless rows of shelves and racks, Arthur picked out a few to test. It didn't take long before he stuffed it back on the shelf it came from, malcontent by the crude workmanship of the swords. The balance between the blade and the grip had all been off and were shaped sloppily with no mind for executing all but simple swings or thrusts.

I tried to pick one up, only for me to nearly fall on my face. Luckily Arthur caught me before my face could actually kiss the floor.

"How heavy is this thing?" I gasped, letting it go and clang on the ground without a care. "I remember my sword being a lot lighter... and prettier." I added.

Arthur smirked, "Of course it was lighter. I had it custom made with falling star dust grains that only formed in the windy regions of the temple of the sky. And then when I realised you were like a griffin, I figured embedding some gems into the handle couldn't hurt."

A blush crept up my cheeks, "I hate how you had me figured out so quickly. I can't believe I was that-"

"You weren't vain." Arthur cut me off, "Like I said, you were a bloody griffin." He chuckled.

We continued for three hours, with my finding swords for Arthur to try, and him testing them out. Yet no luck.

Sylvie, growing bored of the repeated actions of removing a sword, swinging it a few times, and unhappily putting it back in place, hopped off Arthur's head and began having her own little adventure.

I traded deeper into the large storage hall, passing the shelves and racks of the more appealing blades on display and arriving at a section where sheathed swords were simply crammed in barrels.

One thing I noticed about the swords in this world was that they fell into a couple of categories:

There were the large swords, either the wide heavy swords, or the long claymores. Many warriors and offensive augmenters preferred these behemoths because of the raw power that could be generated through a single swing, but others considered the weapons savage and unrefined.

The more balanced swords, seen most commonly used by knights and adventurers alike, were the broadswords. These were generally wielded with one hand, coupled with a shield in the other, but there are two-handed varieties. These swords provided the most balanced and versatile performances and were the standard swords to begin learning swordsmanship.

The last category of swords were the lighter and thinner blades. Weapons like sabers, curved single-edged swords—which my world called katanas— and rapiers as well as daggers all fell into this category. Sabers, katanas, and rapiers were focused on speed and precision while daggers were often used as a concealed weapon or dual-wielded for more versatile and acrobatic styles of fighting.

I glanced out the corner of my eye at Arthur's shining face. It's nice to see there are still some things he's passionate about.

However, it didn't take long for that bubble to pop. Letting out a defeated sigh from his fruitless search for a sword, Arthur mindlessly swung the plain short sword he had picked out earlier and barely deemed acceptable. He would have to settle for this sword if he couldn't find anything else.

Giving up on the search for a better sword, we made our way into the miscellaneous section where they held different types of weapons. I could see various unique, albeit inefficient, weapons that looked like they were designed by a child.

Navigating through the aisles, I couldn't help but laugh aloud as I came across something very similar to what my world called nunchucks. There was even a morning star that was so heavy that, even after augmenting myself with mana, I struggled to lift it off the ground.

"Whew! Looks like a dead end Sylv." Arthur said and sat down on the ground, leaning against a gigantic shield as Sylvie continued to trot about.

I was about to sit down until Sylvie suddenly let out an eager chirp.

Instead, I pulsed Arthur up and we made our way towards my bond, I spotted Sylv digging through a pile of weapons. A cloud of dust soon encompassed us as Sylvie continued searching for something.

Making another excited squeak, she used her front paw to point at an unremarkable black rod.

It was less than a meter in length and just looked like some sort of walking cane.

"This wasn't what I was looking for Sylv," I sighed, but she hopped to me, nudging me toward the black stick.

Relenting, Arthur walked over and picked it up, surprised by the weight of the rod that looked much thinner now that it was in my hand.

While it seemed to be made of some kind of polished wood, it weighed a lot more than just a simple walking stick.

Holding it up, he took a closer look, inspecting the rod more carefully.

The stick had a matte coat to it, not reflecting any light at all, while the whole rod was smooth to the touch.

{Arthur P.O.V.}

While unnoticeable at first, I could see intricate indentations that formed a design throughout the pole, but other than that, I couldn't find anything special about it.

Sylvie continued gazing at the rod in my hands, her golden eyes twinkling as if she had found a national treasure.

Morgana shrugged, "Couldn't hurt to try."

Finding nothing remarkable about it, I tried swinging it.

It felt good.

The weight was distributed in a way where it was balanced like a sword, even more so than the short sword I picked out as a backup. Taking another swing made me confident that this rod's balance was too purposeful for it to be just used as a walking stick or a staff.

Excitement growing inside me once more, I willed mana into my eyes. I had hoped to notice something with enhanced vision and my hopes came to light. t was so faint that I only noticed it after reinforcing mana into my eyes; even then, I was only able to spot it because I was looking for it.

Even more faint than the indentation markings over the pole, was a small line that seemed to separate two parts of the stick.

"..."

This was a sword!

I immediately tried to pry the sword out of its scabbard, but it wouldn't budge. Even with my body reinforced with mana, I wasn't able to muster the strength to pull it out.

Don't tell me this was some sort of Excalibur that I had to be worthy of...

Morgana followed my line of thought, "Technically you were a king."

Pushing away the silly thought, I infused fire attribute mana into the sword, but still, no use.

After half an hour had passed, I realised that elemental attribute mana was not the answer.

...No way... what if...

I activated Dragon Will. I didn't use its power but simply infused the Will into the sword. And, despite all of the previous struggle to pry the sword out, a light tug was all it took for the sword to glide out of its sheath.

The sword slid soundlessly from its sheath to reveal the flat blade.

I couldn't help but swallow back a lump of air as I fell into a trance, staring at the weapon much too beautiful to be considered an ordinary weapon.

The narrow blade was straight and thin like a rapier's but had a double edge, making it fit for slashing as well as thrusting. As the keen edge of the blade curved smoothly into a sharp tip, I couldn't help but notice that there were no markings—that the blade had been sharpened. The weight and balance of the sword was a bit off in my opinion but it was still much better than the crude tools I had picked up before. However, even this flaw was overshadowed by the breathtaking quality and color of the blade.

The translucent teal hue of the blade seemed to almost generate a lustre of its own, even inside the dim storage room. There was a stark contrast to the matte-black scabbard and handle, making the colour of the blade all the more radiant. Despite the fact that the blade was so narrow and thin, a few tests on a nearby iron container confirmed its durability and strength.

I could say with confidence that, even in my old world, there wasn't a blade as well-forged as this. Was this sword truly meant for beast tamers or was its criteria even more particular? I thought as I looked down at Sylvie.

Morgana let out a whistle, "I don't know much about a sword, but even I can tell it's a great one."

Titling her tiny head, Sylvie let out a happy chirp in response.

"Hey, what's that?" Morgana asked, pointing at something on the blade.

I followed her gaze looking at the blade more closely, I spotted a small engraving inscribed on the blade near the grip.

"Dawn's Ballad W.K. IV"

As soon as those words left my lips, a searing pain abruptly shot out from where I was gripping the sword, making me drop the weapon.

Morgan instantly rushed to my side, and cradled my hand in her own.

There was a gash that had already been cauterized across my palm. I was hesitant to pick the sword back up again, but when I did, I could see the faint remains of my blood getting absorbed into the handle of the blade.

"Kuu!" Are you okay, Papa? Sylvie trotted next to me, pawing my leg, concerned.

After examining the wood more closely, trying to find anything odd about it, Morgana nodded reassuringly at the small dragon. "He's fine Sylv."

scratching the underside of my bond's chin, I gave the sword another swing. This time, the point of balance of the sword aligned perfectly to match with my undeveloped body. Even the handle of the blade seemed to have grown smaller to fit in my hand, as if it was made for me.

There were some extraordinarily valuable staffs and wands that had the ability to bond with a single user, allowing better manipulation of mana between the weapon and master, but I'd never heard of a sword doing something like this.

Picking up the sword, I pondered over the man, whose initials was "W.K. IV." Who was this person and how was he capable of forging such a sword?"

"That would take quite an amount of skill." Morgana nodded, "Just wish it would have at least given us a warning. Would it kill the guy to leave a note saying, 'P.S. it'll cut you, but don't worry, there are perks', I swear if I see the guy, he's getting a punch straight to the face."

{Morgana P.O.V.}

As we were about to walk away, I paused, my eyes widened and I took a step back, and tripped over my own feet, causing me to fall backwards.

Arthur turned around and rushed to my side, "You ok?"

But I couldn't find my voice, so I instead pointed a shaky finger to a sword held up on a display.

Arthur followed my gaze, "Is that?"

I nodded, "It's my sword." I got up and slowly grabbed the handle of the sword. It was mine all right. I recognized the smooth leather of the sheet, if I unshet it, I was willing to bet anything that it was the same icy cool blade I used to fight with. My eyes went to the handle which had a large blue sapphire embedded into the handle.

"What do you want to do?" Arthur asked, walking up behind me.

"We'll keep it." I decided. "We'll call this a coincidence for now." I took the blade out of its sheath and swung it around. "It is mine all right. It's light enough for my body even at this age. I obviously won't be as fast as I was when I was fully grown. But it's good enough for this body."

I felt my left eyebrow twitch, as I thought crossed my head, "Hey, Arthur?" I asked. "Did you get me a kid's sword?"

"What?!" He exclaimed, "Of course not." He denied.

"Then what's with that guilty tone!"

"Three seconds." I hissed.

The instant he heard that, Arthur bolted. Just as I promised, I was on his heels within the third second.

I realised how much time had passed as my father's faint voice snapped me out of our game of cat and mouse. Quickly sheathing my sword, I made my way back to where my father was, Sylvie hitching a ride on my shoulder. On the way back, Arthur made sure to pick up the short sword he chose for back up.

"Well? Did you see anything you liked?" My father, who had been talking with Rey, asked.

Arthur nodded, holding up the short sword to him, "I found this sword and, after a few swings, I've grown to like it. Is it okay for me to take this one?"

My father took the weapon from my hand, drawing the sword from its scabbard. "Hmmm, not the best quality sword but it is solid and won't break easily. Rey, what do you think?"

My father accepted the sword, studying its blade, grip and guard before taking several swings and thrusts. "The balance isn't the best but I think it'll be good as a first sword."

"What's that Morgana?" Uncle Ray asked, only for my father's eyes to widen.

"That's the sword of the Ice Queen!" My father exclaimed.

"Sword of the Ice Queen?" Arthur and I repeated in confusion.

"Legend has it, anyone who unsheathes the sword and is not accepted by it will be turned to ice. It's been documented to be true. That's why I couldn't place it in the auction. Please tell me you didn't open it. Morgana?!"

I felt a sweat drop roll down the side of my neck, "Well I can give you an answer you wanna hear, or I can tell you the truth. Take your pick."

"MORGANA!"

"Well I'm fine. So I guess I was accepted."

"But-"

I cut my fathers protests of my grabbing his hands, "Daddy, I'm fine. So can I keep it?"

My father shot a look at the sword in my hand, and then at my determined face. "Fine. If you've been accepted by it. I see no reason why you can't."

"What's that stick you're holding onto, though?" Rey asks, noticing the hidden sword in Arthur's other hand.

Trying not to make a big deal out of it, he gave a casual shrug. "I tripped over this really sturdy stick on my way back here. Do you mind if I take this back home to practice with Uncle Vincent?"

"Ah that old thing! I remember one of my merchants telling me how some senile old man just handed it to him, mumbling something about finding a worthy master. We had a few of our inspectors check if there was anything special about it, but for all they were able to find out, it was just a sturdy, hard cane. It's been gathering dust here so if you think it'll do you some good, go ahead and take it," Vincent answered, lightly squeezing my shoulder.

Success.

*****

Hey guys, I'm thinking of creating a new Beginning After The End fanfic, that doesn't mean I'm gonna ignore this one, it'll just mean there will be another fanfic to give Arthur some love. So I figured I'd give you guys a heads up.

It is going to be a Arthur x Oc.

The oc in this will be Sylvia's little sister, so Sylvie's aunt. She was born way after Sylvia and a year younger than Arthur. She's a half-blooded Asura.

There are many plans I have for this, but two aspects that I feel like will get your interist are: The Arthur love story (obviously) and an Overprotective Dad!

So, what do you guys think?