Chapter 13 - 10

At Jade

Varcon

In the Church of Magia, Varcon stood in the middle of the main room, just in front of the altar. On her knees, a few steps in front of him, was Kaori, bowing her head as Varcon walked up with a large container of blessed water. Kaori nodded and dunked her head in. When she emerged, the crowd in attendance applauded.

The water didn't actually do anything, but Varcon understood that the imagery was powerful. He smiled, raised his hands, and announced to those at the church:

"Here is our true Savior! Now, Kaori, bind your Savior's Weapon."

"Right."

She went through the process. Varcon was curious.

So, what will Kaori's defining characteristic be?

When it appeared on her cube, it read Love.

Of course. He smiled. Magia sends her love to me through Kaori.

He gave her the instruction to transform her cube into a weapon and when she did, covering everything nearby in a golden glow, the crowd cheered once more. It was the reaction he predicted. Ever since that dreadful hybrid had been selected, Varcon spent many nights pondering the issue, wondering how it could be that Magia chose someone corrupted, someone so tainted, someone so infuriating, to become her representative. But, now, with the bright, kind, and brave Kaori standing in front of her, he understood.

She looked incredible in her golden armor, with even a crown of thornless white flowers on her head. As soon as Varcon understood what Magia intended for him to do, he said to his deacons that they were to bring out a full set of Savior's Armor for her. A golden suit made of a divine material that only other Saviors had the right to wear.

A deacon had asked him at the time:

"Sir, why did we give her a set of Savior's Armor, but we only gave the hybrid basic iron?"

And he had replied:

"Because that girl is a pretender. No, she is, or will be, a reminder. She is what Magia wishes to use for the people of Jade to learn from. She will not need Savior's Armor where she is going. Kaori, on the other hand, is our hero. With my guidance, she will save the world and ensure that Magia's church leads it to a better future."

Despite that, there were still a few concerns that they were dropping too much onto Kaori at once. He didn't care. He understood what needed to be done, and that was all that mattered.

Now, as the event was unfolding, Kaori turned back and knelt once again.

"What should I do, your holiness?" She asked.

Varcon smiled. Finally, Magia sends me the means to exert her will over Nova. With Kaori as my sword, I will make my lady proud!

He placed a hand on her cheek, grinning.

My beautiful weapon.

"Come with me. Everyone must know of this."

"Lead the way," Kaori replied.

With her behind him, Varcon walked all the way to the Public Square. Walking here, instead of taking a carriage, was important as it allowed every citizen to gaze upon Kaori's glory. When they finally got to the spot Varcon wanted, he walked atop an old wooden stage and had Kaori follow him up. There, he raised his hands and did what a priest did best. He preached to the masses.

"Citizens of Jade!" He called out and many of those who were walking around stopped. It was unheard of to see the archpriest out of the church like this, addressing a crowd. "Now, I know that confusion has been prevalent lately. The fact that a half-demon had been selected as a Savior recently was strange, yes?"

"Well, yes. Magia selected a hybrid as a Savior. I did not understand it myself, at first, I shared your confusion." He told them and they calmed down, listening intently. "However, now I know. Now I see what Magia wants. She wishes to show us all that virtuous humans will always surpass tainted corruption. And what better way, than to pick a person like the one I have next to me here. KAORI OKADA, THE TRUE SAVIOR!"

With faces full of awe and praise, the crowd drew closer. Kaori stood in front of them, brilliantly adorned as Varcon made sure she was. Their eyes roamed her body with praise.

"And to prove it," Varcon elaborated, "you will see them come face to face! We will see who emerges as the victor!" He finally got to the meat of what he wanted them to hear. "Both Saviors will fight, right in front of your eyes, and I promise you, Kaori will prove her superiority over the hybrid then. SUCH IS MAGIA'S WILL!"

And with that, the crowd erupted and Varcon turned to Kaori.

"How are you feeling, Savior?" He asked.

"I see... I understand." Kaori nodded. "But, I don't know... is this hybrid really as evil as you said? I-I mean, why would Magia choose someone who isn't good to be a Savior?"

"Ah," Varcon replied. "You did not see her, so, you do not know. When we found her, she was a snarling, growling mess." He explained. "Barely even human. She could barely speak, she could not reason. Luckily, she followed orders, but she was a truly pathetic creature."

"I... I see." Kaori replied. "So, what happens now?"

"Now," Varcon grinned. "We will need to train you for a time. You will not progress as the peasants do though. I will get the very best warriors, the best mages to help you reach your potential. We will show the world what you can do, and the difference between both of you. Come."

"Yes, your holiness."

---

Ash

After Keiko and Ash did some more sword training, Ash walked into the forest. She wanted to fight a little before the day was over, apply some of what she'd learned. The sun was threatening to disappear beyond the horizon as the hours grew late. Ash checked her stats, to know what she was working with.

Level 2

MP: 10/10

Strength: 4

Dexterity: 2

Constitution: 5

Intelligence: 1

Wisdom: 1

Luck: 100

Proficiency: Sword

3 of 10

Traits:

Iron Stomach

Moonlight Nature

Chosen

Quick Learner

Demon Inside

?

Definitely don't want to be out here without any light. Now, where the fuck are these things?

As she walked through the trees, she heard a snarling coming from her right. It was a goblin, dressed the same way as the last one Ash had fought, only instead of a club, it was wielding a rusty thin sword. Ash narrowed her eyes at it.

Sword.

Lust transformed, and Ash took up the Sugeto stance. Okay, motherfucker. When I fought your friend, I was just a rookie. Now I'm... like, a little better.

The goblin screeched and aimed its sword at her. Ash checked its stats.

Level 3

MP: 20/20

Good a time as any to try out my defense. I'll let it charge in, maybe go for a parry.

Instead of charging in, it muttered something in a strange language and aimed a hand at Ash.

"Wait, what?" Ash said aloud and suddenly, a ball of flames was launched her way. It hit her in the chest.

AGH! MY FUCKING TITS!

She fell back, dropping Lust. It was like someone had poured hot coffee over her body.

She heard the goblin laughing and running up to her. While she was on the ground, she reached for Lust. Turning face-up after grabbing it, she found the goblin about to try to impale her. She rolled out of the way and kicked the goblin back.

The difference in the impact was noticeable. Whereas before, her physical hits hadn't even slightly affected the other goblin, with her Strength at 4, this kick sent the goblin back, almost crashing into a tree.

It wasn't explosive power or anything. The goblin was still fine, but there was a difference.

Ash stood up.

Okay, you got me. She rubbed her chest, flinching when it stung. You fucking got me. Won't happen again though.

The goblin tried another spell and Ash dodged out of the way of this one. The goblin gave a frustrated growl and finally ran in like Ash had wanted it to. It went for a vertical attack.

Ash mentally prepared herself to parry, but then had second thoughts.

I could try to parry for some more proficiency, but if I fail, it could be bad. She thought. No, I should go with the safe option, probably.

So, she did a standard momentum block. Allowing her blade to be pushed back by the goblin's own, she took a step back as the creature tried a few attacks in a row. At first, blocking felt fairly worrying. Every time her blade clashed against the goblin's, she felt like she was far too close for comfort. However, she kept at it.

Eventually, the goblin stopped and seemed to stare at Ash, almost as if it was confused as to how she was still unhurt. It shrieked and ran up. It raised its blade up and leaped into the air.

Wait, what? Ash watched as it flipped, using the momentum built up from its incredible acrobatics to gather strength. Ash stepped back.

The goblin fell in front of her, face first.

Ash blinked.

It was on the ground, wide open.

Uh...

Ash casually raised her blade and brought it down on its back.

"AJAGH!" The goblin squealed, spasmed for a few seconds, and stopped moving.

Is... is it dead?

Indeed, it was.

What the fuck just happened? Ash wondered.

EXP GAINED: 22

Because she still had 15 EXP left from the first goblin, she leveled up.

EXP: 25/25

The amount I need went up by 10. Ash noted. And, I'm guessing since our levels were closer, I got less bonus EXP for this kill. Alright. Let's keep going.

Before the day was over, Ash was able to eliminate one more goblin who was at the same level as her, though it didn't attempt anything as flashy as what the first one did, almost earning another level.

Level Up!

Level 3

EXP: 27/35

2 Attribute Points Gained

Allocate now?

Yes     No

Sure. I may as well go with the same strategy as before, at least, until I can actually start using spells.

With that being said, Ash placed a point into her Strength, bringing it up to 5, and one point into her Dex, bringing it up to 3.

She managed to win all three fights without triggering Demon Form again, which she was thankful for. It wasn't something she wanted to experience too often.

She walked back to the house with her head held high. All in all, it had been a productive second day at work. She walked in through the open screen door at the back. Her boots left mud wherever she stepped. She made a beeline for the bathroom, finding a towel and some clothes already placed there. Thank you Metsumi, I guess.

After her bath, Ash emerged from the bathroom with her white hair wet and wearing a white shirt that said "Nova's Best Wife" on it. She yawned, feeling a little tired as someone bumped into her.

Keiko tripped and before she could fall, Ash caught her by the elbows.

"O-Oh. Huh?" Ash's weapon's trainer was alone, pacing through the dark halls. Ash could hear Metsumi talking to her daughter in the living room, while something cooked in the kitchen.

At this distance, Ash had to look down at her to meet her blindfolded eyes.

Her black and gold hair was tied into a ponytail and Keiko was wearing a pink shirt and furry white pants that were clearly too big for her.

Ash breathed in. She gulped when she inhaled Keiko's flowery scent. Her eyes trailed down to where her trainer's shirt, which at this angle, almost let her see-

"Ash?" Keiko said. Ash blinked.

"What? Y-Yeah, it's me." Ash looked at her hands and saw that she was still holding onto her. "Oh, sorry."

"Uh, no, thank you," Keiko replied. "I was just trying to memorize the layout of the house."

"Oh... Okay." Ash took a deep breath. She felt like something had been happening to her lately, but didn't really understand it.

"Have you been enjoying our training?" Keiko asked. Ash took a step back.

"Well, it's not really about whether I like it or not, right?" Ash asked, looking away. She had to because whenever her eyes fell on the shorter girl they wouldn't stop at her face.

"I suppose that's true. I... I just hope I'm doing a good job."

She took the opportunity to bring up the goblin.

"So, ah, the weirdest thing happened."

"What?" Keiko asked.

"I fought a goblin that jumped up into the air and faceplanted. Do you know why?"

"Oh. My guess would be that it attempted some sort of aerial technique and failed."

"I mean, I could have guessed that much," Ash replied.

"... That's all I can really say." Keiko shrugged. "Its dexterity was probably fairly low. The higher that statistic is, the better you are at that sort of thing."

"Uh, alright."

When Ash felt like she couldn't handle Keiko's presence anymore, she turned and walked to the kitchen. It was weird, when they were training, Ash could focus better, but in little casual moments like these, it felt impossible to do so.

Satsuhiro was there, with Metsumi and their daughter, who was asleep on her lap. He had a piece of paper in his hands.

"Ah, there you are," Setsuhiro said, sighing. "Here, take this."

"What is it?" She took the paper.

"A letter. Just got here."

"Huh? From who?"

"Varcon," Satsuhiro replied and Ash glared.

"What the hell does he want?"

"Apparently," Satsuhiro said, "he wants you to come back to Jade."

"What?"

Ash couldn't quite believe what she'd just heard.