Chapter 100 - Vol. 2 - 65

Ash

"We heard that the portal disappeared," Anders said. "So, the mission was a success?" 

"Mhm," Ash nodded, with crossed arms. 

"Good!" Anders chuckled, "that's one less thing to worry about, at least. Our original plan should be good once again. Thank you for your efforts, Savior. Here, I trust this is enough compensation for such dangerous work?" 

The Lord of Sapphire walked up to her and placed a coin pouch in Ash's hands. She opened it and spotted, at the very least, 5 white crowns. He smiled at her as her eyes remained fixed on the coins. 

"Rest, Savior. We may yet need your assistance." 

Ash turned around and walked out of the room. 

It was strange. This entire journey started because she wanted as much money as she could get before inevitably falling to a demon. Now though, the coin pouch in her hands made her feel no different. 

Instead, her mind went to the broken body of Kasumi that she saw after running up to her when she broke the pyramids down. 

---

"HEY, ASSHOLE!" Kasumi shouted. 

Okay,  Ash told herself,  that's my cue. 

Ash understood that, even without the buff, Kasumi stood no chance. Adding Niven's Blessing on top of that made it so that a single hit from the Nightmare would certainly kill Kasumi. So, she had to move as fast as she could, because there was a very real possibility that she only had a few seconds to work with. 

So, as she heard whips cracking behind her, Ash sprinted for the pyramid closest to her. She stabbed a sword through it, and the structure crumbled, releasing demonic energy that had no effect on her. It was why she was here, after all. 

She went to the next one and heard stone crumbling. She didn't dare look back at Kasumi, just in case that simple act wasted valuable milliseconds. So, she raised her sword and stabbed through the second.

She heard a cracking sound and ran to the third. Finally, she raised her sword and stabbed through this one as well. The world faded and transformed back into the snowy field that she and Kasumi had been in before entering the portal. 

Then, Ash turned towards the sound and saw Kasumi's body, mangled, blood all around her. 

"Shit." 

---

A Few Minutes Later

Ash walked into Sapphire, carrying Kasumi's unconscious body on her shoulders. Citizens, of course, stared at her, as she was covered in the woman's blood, but she didn't stop for anyone. Not the gawking civilians, not the guards raising a hand and asking if she was okay. 

Instead, she went into the first place she saw that looked like an inn.

She kicked the door open, nearly breaking it down. A few of the customers and workers inside were startled. Ash moved in and placed Kasumi on a table, right in front of someone who had been having breakfast. 

That man puked dangerously close to Kasumi. Ash turned to the others in the establishment. 

"Hey," she quickly called out, "I healed her but she's still unconscious, uh, what's happening?" 

Everyone froze up. 

"Well!?" 

One of them, the youngest of the workers, a girl with pigtails and a black and white outfit, jogged up to Kasumi. 

"O-Oh, don't worry, this is normal," she said. 

"What do you mean?" Ash asked. "Her wounds are gone but..." 

"She's just in shock," she replied. "I have a friend who's a healer, she told me about this. Sometimes this happens. She just needs to lie down for a while." 

---

Shaking her head, Ash sighed and walked back towards the bathhouse. 

Once there, she opened the door and walked in. 

As soon as she did so, the loud noises of a party came into her ears.

Ren was here, and he'd brought some strange, drum-like instrument. He and Metsumi were singing a song (terribly, but with a lot of effort) while Satsuhiro and Opah clapped along to the beat. Kaori was cheering them on, waving her hand back and forth. 

The blast of sound was so harsh, Ash almost felt a headache appear. 

Uh... What? 

"Ha! Ash! Join us!" Ren called out. 

Ash held her arms up, showing them covered in blood. Metsumi stood between Ash and Opah, trying to subtly shield her daughter's eyes from the sight. Ash walked straight past everyone and went to the restroom in the hall. Here, the first thing she did was remove everything she was wearing, throwing her Savior's Weapon and her bag aside as well, before quickly setting up a bath. 

It wouldn't be until an hour later that Ash was finally fresh, her hair humid as she walked back out into the main room wearing just a white shirt and black shorts. By then, the party had stopped and now, everyone was just talking. Metsumi and Satsuhiro were sitting together, with the woman basically draped over him. On the other end of the couch they occupied, Opah was reading a small book. Opposite them, Kaori and Ren were on a bench. 

Ren saw her and once again, grinned. 

"Ah, are you finished washing away the stains of battle?" 

"That's one way to put it," Ash replied, scoffing. "Yeah. I closed the damned thing." Ash sat at a chair, between everyone. 

"And Kasumi?" Satsuhiro asked. 

"She... Nearly didn't make it," Ash replied. "But, she got through it too." 

"Good work," Satsuhiro nodded. "Training wise?" 

"I leveled up a couple of times, haven't assigned any points yet though," she replied, showing her status above her head. 

Level 26

MP: 140/140

Attribute Points: 4

STR: 27

DEX: 14

CON: 10

INT: 16

WIS: 14

L: 100

EXP: 0/260

"That portal being up would have ruined virtually any chance we had at victory," Ren said, turning slightly more serious. "It is a great blessing that the gods have bestowed upon us by bringing you into our ranks. I for one, am thankful." 

Ash wondered what Kasumi would say if she were here, listening to that. Now that Ash knew just a little more about her, she just seemed sad in Ash's eyes. 

And, at that moment, something happened that Ash hadn't been expecting. At least, not yet. 

Status Effect Gained: Niven's Blessing

While in Niven's site of power, all of a demon's attributes are increased

Taking a deep breath, Ash said:

"The portal's effect just reached this place." 

"What?" Satsuhiro asked. 

"I just got the buff," Ash explained. "And we're, what, a little past the center of the city? So, that means..." 

"It's probably going to cover the city a little sooner than expected," Satsuhiro nodded. "Still, I believe we're preparing well. Tomorrow," Satsuhiro announced, "we'll go ahead and practice what we're picking up. Maybe after that, we can focus on individual attributes again, and rinse and repeat for the next few days. Until the fight starts." 

"Sounds good!" Kaori said. 

Ash looked down and sighed. 

I really hope Anders has some tricks up his sleeve that he hasn't shown us. Because if he doesn't, I don't see how this will be any different from what happened at Pearl. Ash thought. 

At that moment, a woman clothed in black feathers walked out of the building. She passed by Ash and the half-demon saw everyone's eyes in front of her trailing along with the woman. 

Ash looked to her left and saw Vermia about to leave. 

She walked after her. 

Vermia stopped outside, snow falling just in front of her as she half-turned towards Ash. 

"So, uh, not gonna teach me anything tonight?" Ash asked. 

Vermia shook her head. 

"I'm afraid not. Duty calls tonight." 

"What do you have to do?" 

"... You will see once the invasion begins," Vermia replied. "Enjoy your night, Ash." 

With those words, the slender woman turned away and walked off, Ash's view of her slightly obscured by the snow falling between them. Ash remained standing there for a few moments before heading back into the building. 

Ren recommended that they have a feast to celebrate Ash's victory and so, Satsuhiro went out and ordered some dinner to be brought to the bathhouse from a nearby restaurant. 

It culminated with everyone eating in the main room. 

"AH! IS THIS NOT THE MOST DELICIOUS-LOOKING THING YOU'VE SEEN!?" Ren asked the group, pointing a fork at a plate full of meat belonging to some animal Ash had never heard of, called a 'silverwing'. Apparently, they were native to Amber's territory. How this ended up here was beyond Ash. 

Next to her, Kaori was basically drooling, a sight that made Ash chuckle. On her plate was a pastry of some sort with salads on the side. Ash had some basic chicken and bread, while the others had strange combinations of potatoes, eggs, and that silverwing meat. The scent in the air reminded Ash of whenever she'd walk past establishments that she could only dream of entering. Sometimes, it felt like there were places where she'd start burning if she only set foot in them. 

However, now, she was eating the products of such a place. 

Indeed, as she took a bite, she sighed with satisfaction. Whoever those cooks were, they knew what they were doing. 

She saw Kaori struggling to tear off a piece of the meat on her plate with a fork, and Ash lightly grabbed the plate and used her own knife to cut the meat for her. 

"Thanks!" Kaori said. 

"No problem," Ash replied. 

"Enjoy yourselves!" Ren said. "And let's keep working hard!" 

Shit, why couldn't I get rewards like these for working hard from the start?

In her life, Ash couldn't remember anything like this. This kind of dinner, surrounded by people who didn't hate her, was unimaginable to her a month ago. It left her looking around at the people at the table, Ren, who seemed like an alright enough guy, Satsuhiro, who had guided her along this path, Metsumi, who provided a strong pillar to fall back on, Opah, who was just adorable and, of course, Kaori, who just the sight of made her heart feel warmer. 

What the hell is happening to me?  Ash thought with a slight smile.  This is just too weird. 

Still, she did her best to set aside the disbelieving thoughts as the feast continued and eventually ended.