Chapter 101 Results and Rests

A few days after Azi awoke from his long sleep, he felt a familiar, but overly warm sensation encapsulating him. His eyes flickered open as his usual habit of waking at the crack of dawn kicked in. As he moved his head to survey his surroundings, he felt a soft sensation brush against his cheek and believing that it was a pillow Azi proceeded to bury his face into.

Unexpectedly, what caught his attention was that he felt as if the pillow was pushing him closer. It took him a couple seconds to realize that there were a pair of arms around his head, and that he was firmly locked in place by a pair of legs that were wrapped around his lower waist.

Waking up a bit more, Azi then realized that he was in the somewhat clingy, but unsurprising position of being hugged like a pillow by Shizu.

For the past few days, Azi noticed that Shizu had become more clingy since the day he woke up. She would usually hug him from behind whenever they slept in bed but it seemed to Azi that Shizu had gotten into the habit of clinging to him by his front like she does with Rulu.

Shizu had gripped him firmly against her body and was so close that their cheeks were touching, Azi was somewhat annoyed by the excessive amount of affection that Shizu was giving him as he felt as if he was being toyed with and that Shizu was likely trying to tease him in retaliation for how long he was asleep for.

Azi, wanting to get some work done today, attempted to worm his way out of Shizu's grip. He moved his head away and began looking for a way out.

"Where are you going?"

Tensing up at the familiar voice he heard so close to his ear, Azi mechanically turned his head to his front and saw Shizu's piercing red eyes looking at him. For a second, Azi thought that her eyes glowed a faint red but believed that it might have been his imagination.

Her tone was somewhat frightening and icy which caused Azi to slightly shiver.

Shizu, concerned that he might be cold, nuzzled closer and made sure that he would not get out of bed.

Shizu was not only more clingy towards Azi for the past few days but was trying to get him to relax through somewhat forceful means. Azi, of course, protested as he wanted help in the relief efforts and to possibly get back to work in his forge as he had another upcoming order for blood steel from Manu.

But Shizu was not having any of it, as was indicated by the glare she gave him whenever he mentioned the topic about working in the forge or going outside. Azi felt somewhat trapped and felt even more confined when Shizu her tightening grip around him. Feeling as if there was no escape that he could take through physical means, he attempted to reason his way out the situation.

"I'm fine Shizu. I've gotten enough sleep and I'm not sick. Also!? Don't you need to get out of bed to go to work? You've been staying in the house ever since I woke up."

"Not really." Said a nonchalant Shizu who then befuddled. "I've asked my brother to take over my position while I tend to you. So for now,you are staying in bed."

As confident as Shizu sounded, Azi could tell that Shizu was hiding something from him.

So with squinted eyes he asked in a suspicious tone.

"You didn't just throw your work onto him, right?"

Shizu turned her head away as her cheeks blushed a bit red. Azi attempted to further probe into the situation but was summarily subjected to a full body bearhug.

Azi soon surrendered by patting her on her back in a gesture of submission but unfortunately Shizu was not taking any chances and decided to "persuade" and "coax" him to bed through magical means.

Bringing her lips close to the top of his head and emitting an aura around her body that was fueled by her magic energy, she kissed him on his forehead. In the next moment, Azi found that he was soon falling into a sleepy state of mind while unaware of the orange red glow that emanated from his heart.

After a few strokes of her hand on the side of his head, Azi fell asleep as fast as a candle being blown out.

"Phew, I'm glad I learned how to do this. It seems that Elder Sung was right about resonance." Said Shizu as she thought back to when she was discussing about Azi's prolonged sleep with Elder Sung.

Apparently, Elder Sung explained that Azi was in a state of mental fatigue and that he should get as much rest as possible to recover quickly. Sung then suggested that Shizu should try to learn how to cause her resonances with him. Her first attempt when Azi was being operated on was a fluke, but she found out how to recreate the resonance when he was having a nightmare.

It seemed that Shizu magic energy had a somewhat soothing effect on Azi, which was strange as all other resonance cases never documented such effects. This was limited to Sung's and Touma's knowledge which were quite substantial, so they decided to keep this detail a secret until there was an opportunity to research the phenomenon.

Shizu on the other hand, could use this method of resonance in private. While possible to use in public, it involved kissing Azi's forehead and she felt that she could not do such a passionate act of affection in public. But for now, she thought that it was a good tool for her to use when she needed to get Azi to bed on time.

Seeing the now peacefully sleeping Azi, Shizu smiled but under it was a layer of anxiety concerning his future.

Shizu recalled what Azi and Shizu discussed the day after he woke up.

"So what happened? Were you having a nightmare and if so, what was it about?" Asked Shizu.

Across the table was Azi who was eating a bowl full of what looked like porridge. After gulping down a spoonful, Azi answered with a somewhat troubled expression.

"I was having a "dream"? I'm not really sure what to call it. But it was about my past, where I came from. I…. remembered my grandfather. How he taught me to be kind and compassionate to others." Azi's eyes began to become downcast as he continued to talk about his grandfather, but he hesitated to continue.

After a slight pause he opted to not talk about the experience he had with the unknown figure and the horrific sight of his arm regrowing.

"He sounds like a kind old man." Said Shizu, she then hesitantly asked. "If you remember his face, then that means you can find your family. Any ideas on where you want to search?"

Azi shook his head side to side. "I remembered his funeral. He died and I think it was the first time I experienced….. Loss."

"I see." Shizu sighed lightly in relief but quickly composed herself before Azi noticed. She didn't want Azi to leave Kujyuri, but felt a bit guilty for being somewhat glad that Azi didn't remember any of his family.

On the other hand, Azi was also feeling somewhat guilty as he was hiding something from Shizu. While the last words that the unknown figure said were blurred, Azi could tell what it meant to say and he was in denial of what he was or could be.

Changing topics, Shizu got up to ask Azi to take off his shirt so that she could change his bandages. It had already been a few days since Elder Sung first applied them, so Shizu wanted to get him out of those old ones.

Azi did so but to their surprise, there was only a scar left on Azi's lower back. It was in the shape of a 4 pointed star that was colored white as his skin seemed to have changed for reasons that were unknown to either of them.

"I am amazed by how fast you seem to heal Azi. I heard from Elder Sung that people with high magic energy can seemingly heal quicker than those with less magic energy." Said Shizu.

"I guess that means I have more magic energy than you Shizu." Teased Azi with a grinning smile on his face.

Annoyed by his attempt to make a joke out of the situation, Shizu pinched at Azi's side which caused him to wince in pain as he was quite sensitive there.

"Ouch, it was just a joke Shizu."

"Well it wasn't a good one." Said Shizu, her eyes somewhat teary. "You almost died! AGAIN! Just how many times are you going to make me worry?"

Feeling responsible for making her cry, Azi attempted to give Shizu a kiss on her forehead to cheer her up but was quickly stopped by a hand that covered his mouth.

"Not this time….. Until our trip to Kujyuri, you are not allowed to leave the house. AM I UNDERSTOOD!"

Stiffening up in his seat, Azi rapidly nodded his head like a puppy obeying its master.

To this Shizu gave him a pat on his head, redressed him, and sent him off to bed. Begrudgingly, Azi had to comply as he knew that Shizu would force him to bed if he tried to resist. If he tried to sneak out he also feared that he would be subjected to a punishment.

While Azi went to bed, Shizu started to write a letter to Ozen concerning Azi's blood steel, the current situation of Shisayama, and the gathered evidence concerning Jerome and the festival incident.

*****

-Capital of Kujyuri Royal Castle-

Ozen sat at his desk in his private quarters. A large bed and other pieces of ornate furniture decorated the room. Looking over at the large bed to the left of his desk, Ozen felt as if the room was half empty but quickly buried the thought under his kingly mask of calm.

Turning his attention to the numerous letters on his desk he began to sort them by date. The first one to be opened was from the hororon stable master who he had contacted after receiving Shizu and Yashimu's coded letter that came weeks prior from today.

The stable master was an undercover spy of Ozen's information network. While not extensive enough to keep tabs on all of Kujyuri, as it was still in its trial stage, it was able to catch a few interesting pieces of information.

One such piece was about the manipulation of records concerning supplies that were being transported in preparation for war with Uzuru. In the letter were also documents showing that these manipulations were done by numerous associations and businesses that were funded by Jerome.

There was also a report about a few blue stones going missing from the thaumaturge's storehouses, which Ozen believed to be just poor management as the thaumaturgy department of his army was also still a work in progress.

Ozen planned to use this to put Jerome in his place when he returned as he had an indirect connection to this issue. Sighing after reading such terrible news that implicated a council member, he moved onto the next letter. This was from Nosuri and Ougi, who Ozen ordered to secretly send him their reports without Shizu's notice.

He wanted to keep an eye on Jerome from the third party perspective and add a bit of security for Rulu during her time out of the capital. Ozen's eyes widened as he read about a criminal report concerning the men who tried to sabotage the construction of Azi's workshop.

The bags the men had attempted to plant were filled with animal guts and the missing blue stones that Yashimu had recently discovered. Markings on the bags were from, again, businesses that were backed by Jerome.

This irritated Ozen as he was starting to be annoyed by the constant meddling and failures of Jerome's associates. He gave Jerome the benefit of the doubt as he had no concrete evidence that Jerome was solely responsible for every action his associates made but the added detail that the blue stones were involved made his suspicion rise as these were supposed to be kept confidential.

Ozen heaved another long sigh and continued to the last letter which was from Shizu. As he read through the letter he was glad to finally hear some good news.

"So Azi plans to ask me to fund his patent for blood steel? Interesting. This might be of use during the upcoming war and maybe we can stop relying on Jerome's network of refined steel production."

Ozen mumbled his musings to no one in particular and continued reading the last half of the letter.

Outside of Ozen's room was one of his personal guards that protected the entrance to his sleeping quarters. The man, assigned to the dreaded night shift, gave a long yawn as he tried to brush off the encroaching cold and boredom he felt.

He wished that something interesting would happen and he soon got it as he heard his King scream out in a volume that seemingly shook the castle. With haste the guard entered the room to protect his king but was met with the furrowed brows and glaring eyes of his king looking down upon him.

Like an angry god, Ozen glared down at the guard to tell him to leave, which he did so with great haste. In Ozen's mind he thought to himself.

'THAT DAMN INGRATE DARES TO TRY MY PATIENCE. IT'S TIME I PUT HIM IN HIS PLACE!'

The last half of Shizu's report told of Jerome's failure and meddling in the blacksmith's meeting. It also detailed how there were more bags filled with animal guts and blue stones were found in the nearby forests. It seemed that while the bags were hidden, they attracted too much attention to the patrolling guards as there was always a swarm of monsters huddled around what looked like patches of earth that were recently dug up and filled.

With this, Ozen's suspicions about Jerome's treachery was confirmed as the blue stones were only known to those in his council and by the higher ups in the thaumaturgic group of his army. To find that some of them were missing, then showing up in not one but two events that implicated Jerome's involvement made it more than suspicious.

As thoughts of the kinds of punishments he could use began to writhe in Ozen's mind, he paused for a moment as he gazed again at the large bed in his room. Reminded of how short temper he could be by a special someone, he coughed to steady himself.

Sighing for the umptheenth time this night, Ozen laid in bed as he tried to calm himself by thinking about his children. Shizu came to mind and he wished that her relationship with Azi was going better than his own situation with his council.

He was concerned that Shizu might be treating him roughly as the reports Shizu gave seemed to only give broad details about their relationship. One such example was a professional explanation of Azi's training schedule. With that thought, he prayed that Azi would survive Shizu's antics and future lessons as he knew that Shizu did not hold back when it came to combat training.

*****

Meanwhile in Shisayama.

*Scrub Scrub Scrub*

"Ummm, Shizu?"

"Yes Azi?"

"I think I can wash my own hair and also, this is somewhat embarrassing."

"Oh? And why would you say that?"

"Because I feel as if I'm being treated like a child again."

"Oh, nonsense, it's just your imagination."

Continuing to scrub Azi's hair as he was naked and sitting in her lap, an also naked Shizu sat on the tiled floor of the bath. She leaned forward to get a better look at Azi's hair which made him blush when he felt two soft mounds press into the back of his head.

He attempted to stand up to get away but was promptly locked in place by Shizu's left arm that was wrapped around his lower torso.

"Hold still, I'm almost done. Just be patient." Said Shizu in a nonchalant tone.

Sighing in defeat, Azi thought to himself.

'Was she always this clingy. Sure, we would bath together but she would at least let me clean myself. I feel like I'm being treated like Rulu, maybe I should ask her about Shizu's childhood and get some pointers on how to avoid Shizu's clinginess?'

After a good scrubbing, Shizu poured water onto Azi's head and summarily threw herself and Azi into the bath. Surprised by the rapid change in environment, Azi wanted to protest but was then one sidedly cuddled until Shizu said she was satisfied.