Chapter 282 - Vol. 4 - 81

Keiko

"Guess what's on the menu?" Metsumi asked as the group gathered in a circle the next morning, in the middle of nowhere. "Raptor meat!" 

Opah was practically cheering as she ran over to where her mother was. Everyone else was almost too tired to move. 

No one had gotten much sleep last night. Keiko was one of them, as she spent the last couple of seconds yawning and trying to blink herself awake. Least of all, though, was Ash. 

The half-demon was laid down by her lonesome, away from the group, looking up at the sky. 

As far as Keiko knew, Ash hadn't slept a single second yet. 

... Hm. I should speak with her,  Keiko thought, and she'd been about to stand before Metsumi walked in front of her and handed her some water. 

"O-Oh, thank you," Keiko said. 

"No problem," Metsumi replied. "So," she turned toward Satsuhiro, "did you send the letter to the Council already?" 

"Yes," he replied. 

"And, how exactly do we know that they aren't just gonna come to arrest Ash as we arrive at Jade?" 

"Because," Satsuhiro added, "I made sure to tell them all about Zafir's plan. Chances are, if he really convinced the entirety of the senate, they're still going to go through with it. Besides, people still aren't going to be allowed to exit Amber, and the senate likely hasn't communicated with the Council in a long time, so, it probably won't be too hard for them to verify my story." 

"Hm, I guess that makes sense," Metsumi shrugged, as Keiko's eyes went back to Ash. 

... Okay, now, I should- 

"Hey, Keiko," Yumi walked up to her. 

"Y-Yes?" 

"Would you like to train in a little while?" Yumi asked. "I'm feeling fairly tired, I think it would be a good way to give myself some energy." 

"Um, sure," Keiko nodded. "In a moment." 

"Great." 

Well, good, now-

"... Hey," Luvine walked up to her, and it took everything Keiko had not to let out a frustrated groan. 

"Yeah?" She asked the little girl. 

Then, Luvine's eyes went to Ash.

"I don't think she's okay," Luvine whispered, as though she was telling Keiko a grave secret. Keiko smiled at that. 

Never mind, I guess we were on the same page.

"I think so too," Keiko whispered back. 

"... What..." Luvine looked down. "What do we do?" 

"Don't you worry," Keiko stood up from where she'd been sitting on the ground. "I'll go speak with her right now. She'll be okay." 

Hearing that, Luvine nodded hesitantly, and Keiko patted her head before she walked over to where Ash was. 

The half-demon looked over at her as she approached, before turning her eyes back to the sky. 

"Do I look that shitty?" Ash asked. 

"What?" Keiko asked, confused. 

"You were making a face like I'd just spent the last hour showering in crap. So, do I?" 

"... A little," Keiko chuckled, sitting down next to her. "How's it going?" 

"I'm fine," Ash quickly stated. "I'm just... tired." 

Keiko tilted her head. 

Is that all? 

After a brief moment of silence between them, Keiko laid down next to her. Again, Ash turned to look at her, confused, before turning her eyes back up to the sky. 

The group's discussions, just a bit of distance away, served as a bit of background noise as neither of them said anything. Until, however, Ash fully turned to face Keiko. 

"I'm alright, seriously," Ash told her. "I just wanna relax for a bit." 

"Great," Keiko replied, staying exactly as she was. "Maybe I want to relax a little alongside you." 

"..." At that, Ash's face became a little softer. "Sorry." 

"For what?" 

"I don't know, being annoying sometimes, I guess." 

"You are very rarely annoying," Keiko was quick to say. 

"Really?" Ash asked. 

"Yes, really. I would use a lot of words to describe you, but annoying has never really been one of them." 

"..." At that, Ash looked away. 

Then, Satsuhiro called them. 

"Ash." 

"Yeah?" Ash asked, sitting up. 

"We haven't gotten to take a look at those spells yet, wanna show them off?"

Hearing that, the look that had been on Ash's face just before Keiko had arrived momentarily came back. One of contemplation. It faded away again, though, as she stood up. 

"Sure." 

Wanting to see them herself, Keiko stood up and followed her over to where the rest of the group was. 

Here, Ash pulled out a bunch of folded-up paper from her pockets and separated it into five different sheets. 

"Wind, Fire, Dark, Light, and Illusion," Ash stated. "Those were the categories of the spells she gave me. She didn't manage to get to the Ice, Water, and Earth ones before... Yeah." 

Satsuhiro nodded. 

"Hm. So, what do they do?" He asked. 

"I haven't checked. Give me a second," Ash replied, as Keiko joined her. The half-demon then began to read out the contents of each page, one by one. 

First up was the Fire spell. 

Spell: Blaze of Divinity

Unleash a stream of fire that becomes far more powerful than other Fire abilities as the user's INT attribute becomes higher.

Int Required: 0

Mana Cost: 100

Incantation: Flame of truth, gift of Magia, unleash ambition upon this plane.

Then, the Dark spell. 

Spell: The Cost of Power

Sacrifice your own lifespan directly to momentarily boost all abilities. The amount of physical health taken away depends on the boost the user desires. 

Int Requied: 0

Mana Cost: 100

Incantation: If I am to be cursed, then allow for my enemy to perish with me, so that we may both see oblivion together. 

The Wind spell came next, and this one, in particular, interested Keiko, as the Zayamas back at the testing grounds she'd visited used Wind-based magic. 

Spell: Stage of Finality

Create a circle of impenetrable wind around yourself and an enemy, for one minute. While in this field, all of your attributes are increased by 5. 

Int Required: 0

Mana Cost: 100

Incantation: Insae. 

As short as the incantation was, Keiko had no doubt that this spell likely was some sort of ancestor of the magic that she'd encountered on her own. 

Then, there was the Illusion spell. 

Spell: Blanket of Fear

Trap a target in a mental realm with their worst fears. The amount of time depends on the disparity between levels, and Intelligence of the user and the target. 

Int Required: 0

Mana Cost: 100

Incantation: Facing fears is a necessary step. For this one, it is time.

Finally, there was the Light spell. 

Spell: Total Healing

Place your hands upon a target, and heal them completely. All of their diseases and poisons will be cured, and any missing limbs will be restored. After being healed, the person will receive a short buff, that amplifies future healing on them. 

Int Required: 0

Mana Cost: 100

"Incantation," Ash read out, as a silence passed over the group. "Lumina's caress, for those in need, let them feel the touch of pure kindness." 

When she finished, she looked up, and her eyes fell on Satsuhiro, who was standing right in front of her. 

Everyone else's eyes went to the older Savior as well, and Satsuhiro himself looked like he was in shock. 

"... It can restore limbs?" He asked. 

At that, Ash stood up and promptly walked over to him. Satsuhiro just watched as Ash stretched out a hand and placed it on his shoulder. 

"Lumina's caress, for those in need, let them feel the touch of pure kindness." 

As Ash said those words, her entire body glowed, as did Satsuhiro's. 

When it happened, Keiko outright gasped. 

As Satsuhiro was wearing shorts, everyone watched as his leg, appearing like a mold of light, stretched out and took shape. As Satsuhiro saw it form, he dropped his cane and stood on it, and when the light faded away, Satsuhiro stood there, on his own two legs, with no assistance. 

"I..." Satsuhiro took a deep breath, as no other words escaped him. Even Sinneah looked absolutely stunned. 

"Well," Ash said. "There you go. Congrats." 

Metsumi nearly tackled Satsuhiro with a hug, but using that newly acquired leg, he was able to keep himself standing. 

---

Several Hours Later

Keiko had a lot of sleep to catch up on, but just like last night, even though they were all far away from the city, her sleep was interrupted once again. 

"Hm?" As she heard some metal clanking, Keiko stirred, and she sat up. 

What she saw was strange. Sinneah had been designated as tonight's lookout, but Ash was also standing. Even stranger, she was covered in her armor. 

What?  Keiko asked herself, as she heard Ash say something to Sinneah before the half-demon began to walk somewhere, holding a map in her hand, and her Lust at her belt. 

Instinctively, Keiko stood up and walked after her. 

She didn't get too many steps in before Ash noticed. The Savior turned around and raised a brow at her. 

"Keiko?" 

"Ash," the girl stopped in front of her. "What's going on?" 

"N-Nothing," Ash told her. "I wanted to get some extra training in. Before tomorrow." 

That wasn't too far-fetched an excuse, Keiko figured. Though, it seemed weird that she wanted to do it so suddenly. 

Because of that, Keiko walked up and held her by the hand. 

"Uh... Okay," Keiko replied. "Be careful, though." 

"Definitely," Ash smiled at her. "I'll be back in no time." 

At that, Keiko nodded. 

Hm. Alright,  she turned away, as Ash kept walking.  Still... Is she okay? 

A part of her wanted to run after the girl. However, as sad as it was that Ash had failed to protect Arianna, she couldn't imagine her being too upset over it. So, she guessed that Ash was going to be alright. 

She just needed to cool off. Maybe this was how she wanted to do that. If that was the case, Keiko would give her the space she wanted.

Even though it did make her worry a little.

So, Keiko went back to sleep soon after. She had a dreamless night, and the next time she woke up, the sun was in her eyes. 

"Mm?" As soon as she awoke, with the last night's conversation fresh in her mind, she sat up and looked for Ash. 

She didn't have to look far, though, as the half-demon was sitting right next to her. 

As Keiko stretched her arms, Ash smiled down at her. 

"Morning," Ash said. 

"Good morning." 

As Keiko looked back at her, Ash ate from some bread she had in her hands. She looked alright, finally. Genuinely, as Keiko looked at her, Ash's face wasn't quite as bothered as it had been. 

I guess she worked it off,  Keiko thought with a smile. 

Though, she did notice something strange. 

She sniffed the air, and, with her heightened senses, she detected some blood. As she searched though, she saw that it was coming from Ash's armor. The half-demon had thrown it off and dropped it just a bit away. 

Keiko could see some stains of red blood on her breastplate, and her gauntlets. 

Raising a brow, she turned toward Ash. 

"So, did everything go well? Last night, I mean." 

"Yeah," Ash quickly replied. "I'm good. Sorry for worrying you." 

"No, no," Keiko shook her head. "As long as you're alright." 

With that, the day continued on normally, as the group waited for the Royal Council to send someone to them. 

And, that would be how their time at Amber would come to a close.