Guardian Angel Z357 returned.
He had been missing for a full day and a half— ever since I had stopped him from killing Arthur. I thought he was mad at . In fact, I was pretty sure he would have already killed if he could. But since he couldn’t, he ran away… or more accurately, he flew off on his own.
I didn’t really think I would see him again. Not after our tense confrontation. But now, he was back. And it seed like he was back with a vengeance.
I stared at Z as he looked back at with all twelve of his eyes. He held his lance to his side— it was stained with blood and dirt. Like he had just returned from a slaughter. He took a step forward as the crowd of passersby watched on.
And a blonde girl made her way to the restaurant, panting as she raised both of her swords.
“Alia!” Noeled called out, and I glanced towards her. “What’s going on? Why is he…?”
She stared at Guardian Angel Z357 warily. Understandably so— after he had betrayed her, before willingly leaving her for dead. Now, she no longer looked at him with awe and wonder. The reverence she bore was gone. Instead, she beheld him with distrust.
In response, he fractionally craned his neck to face her. He took another step forward, walking past , before I raised a hand.
“That’s enough,” I said as I caught him.
Guardian Angel Z357 ca to a halt. One of his twelve eyes darted my way, and I shook my head.
“I’m not letting you pass until you tell why you’re here.” I narrowed my eyes as I reached for the hilt of my blade. “You’re not here for Arthur, are you?”
There was a mont’s pause. Z didn’t give an imdiate response. He tilted his head back, before speaking with his mind.
Negative. I am not here for Arthur.
I frowned. I didn’t lower my hand. I didn’t let Guardian Angel Z357 pass. He stared at his bloodied lance, then I looked up at his unchanging face.
“If you’re lying—” I started.
And he interrupted . I am not lying.
“Then why are you here?” I studied his gaze. He refused to look back at — not directly. He lowered his head as I pressed the question. “If you are not lying, tell what you’re doing.”
Guardian Angel Z357 closed his twelve eyes. He took a step back as the lance in his hand vanished with a flash of light. Noele gritted her teeth as the onlooking crowd gasped. A susurration swept over the sea of faces, and I waited.
I am—
Z pivoted to face . I listened, but he trailed off. He held my gaze, replying slowly. And my eyes grew wide.
I am late for work, Guardian Angel Z357 said.
“What?” I blinked.
“What?” Noele paused.
“What?” The crowd exchanged a confused glance.
But Z just strode past as he produced an apron out of thin air. I apologize for my late showing, but I must get to work now.
I hesitated. I watched him step into the restaurant, before looking back towards Noele. I exchanged a glance with my apprentice, and she just shrugged. I scratched the back fo my head.
“Well, uh, that’s then, I guess.”
—--
“What’s he doing?” Noele asked with a frown.
She eyed the angel as he swept over the room, serving dozens of dishes to the hungry custors gathered in the room. I turned away from my apprentice and crossed my arms.
“He’s working,” I stated the obvious. “And he’s doing a pretty damn good job at that.”
Before Z had returned to the restaurant, we had maybe just about two dozen custors gathered inside. There were still a handful of empty chairs too, and we didn’t even need to set out the tables outside to increase our maximum serving capacity. However, since he caused that little scene, we have attracted a rather large crowd.
We now had over a hundred custors at a ti, and I had to work overti with Xakor to prepare all the orders. The sun was starting to set now. The evening rush was going to co in soon. So I was taking a brief break to chat with Noele for a few minutes before that happened.
The Noble Spellsword narrowed her eyes as she stared at Guardian Angel Z357. “But what is he planning? Is he seriously just here to work?”
“I an, I guess?” I shook my head as I turned to face the blonde girl. “What are you worried about, anyways?”
“He tried to get us killed, Alia.” Noele glared at .
I nodded. “Fair— and I get that. But he’s… like a machine. Or a golem. So I highly doubt it was anything personal. Plus, you’re fine now, right?”
I tried to reassure her. But that only aggravated her even further. She harrumphed as she crossed her arms, sinking back into her seat.
“Only because you saved us,” she retorted. “But we don’t even know what he did while he was gone. Did you not see the blood on his lance? What did he do?”
“True.” I placed a hand on my chin. I looked towards Guardian Angel Z357 as he glided in and out of the kitchen. “We could always ask him what he did.”
“What?” Noele paused.
And I called out. “Hey, Z!”
He paused as he heard . He was carrying a stack of empty, dirty plates, but he still marched up to anyways. He held my gaze, waiting expectantly.
“What were you doing while you were gone?” I asked simply.
It was my day off, he replied without missing a beat. As such, I did as I was instructed by the World System.
“And what is that?” I tilted my head at him.
Guardian Angel Z357 didn’t look away from . I interrogated a mber of the Sect of Abyssal Thorns. They resisted, so I killed them.
I shrugged, turning back to Noele. “There you have it.”
She pursed her lips. And Z began to draw back. But she rose to her feet and called out to him.
“And that’s it? Is life that trivial to you? Are we all just tools for you to use and discard when we’re no longer useful?”
Noele posed the question to him. He cocked his head back at her, before he replied.
If the World System wills it, it shall be done.
And with that, he returned to the kitchen. Noele just looked on as she narrowed her eyes.
—--
He should have died.
Or at least, that was what Arthur told himself as he lay there in his bed. His eyes were closed, and he could hear the ruckus of the restaurant outside. The muffled noise only grew louder as the day passed. But he tuned it out.
Instead, he recalled the words of the World System— he still saw the red box telling him how he had lost his Class and his Skills. Now, he couldn’t even beco a [Bartender] if he wanted. To And what was worse was—
He raised a hand as he opened his eyes. He took in a deep breath, reaching for a power that wasn’t there.
“[Frost Lightning],” he whispered.
But nothing happened. There was no flake of frost wisping off his fingertips. There was no flash of blue light as a blast of lightning struck his target. Because there was nothing left. Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t save a fly.
He couldn’t protect anyone even if he tried his hardest. He wasn’t capable of… anything. So how could he make up for all the terrible things he had done as Ar’elith the Lich King? What was he…
“What am I even doing?” Arthur asked himself as his eyes fluttered close once again.
And the door to his room swung open as he blinked. He sat up, blinking as he faced Harlan. The younger man strode in with a sigh, massaging his shoulders.
“Sorry for just barging in,” Harlan said as he shook his head. “Alia told you were resting, but I need a break too. It’s so busy out there. I am exhausted.”
He chuckled as he glanced back towards the kitchen. Arthur heard the clamor outside— the banging pots and the sizzling flas. Harlan closed the door, before taking a seat.
“Anyway, how have you been holding up?” he asked as he peered at Arthur.
The forr Lich King hesitated. He looked back down at himself, before sighing. “I… I don’t know. I thought I could do this— I thought I could… but I can’t.”
He trailed off as he closed his eyes. It was more than just being a [Bartender]. It was about making things right— atoning for his past sins. But, of course, Harlan didn’t know any of that.
“It’s a tough job at first,” Harlan said reassuringly as he shook his head. “I can see where you’re coming from— I was fortunate in that I had so ti to acclimate to things. We really didn’t have any custors at first.”
“R-right,” Arthur agreed, even if that wasn’t his main concern. It was certainly an issue. But the realization that he was helpless was far more pressing to him.
Harlan sighed, closing his eyes. “Actually, I was Alia’s first custor. And I was completely lost when I first t her. I didn’t know what I was doing anymore at that point. I had hit rock bottom. But even though I was completely unqualified for the job— even though I didn’t feel like I was ready for it— she still gave a chance.”
Arthur stared at the younger man. He had heard this before. He knew that Harlan was a forr guardsman. But it was different from what the forr Lich King was going through. After all, Harlan could learn and improve, while Arthur could not.
“Well, at least you’ve gotten the hang of it. What level are you now?” Arthur said as he shook his head.
“Actually, I’m still a Level 17 [Spearman].” Harlan grinned. “I don’t even have a Class as a [Waiter] or a [Server].”
And that made Arthur blink. “What?”
“That’s right— that’s what I realized ever since I t Alia. You don’t need a Class to be able to do sothing.” The forr guardsman waved a hand dismissively.
“But you need a Class to do it well,” Arthur corrected him.
“Not really. I’d say I’m pretty good at my job now.” Harlan shrugged as he got to his feet. “And I’m pretty sure that Alia isn’t a [Chef] either. If I had to guess, she’s probably a [Warrior].”
“That’s—”
Arthur paused. He had tried so of Alia’s cooking just yesterday, and he had to admit, she was a good cook. But was she better than Xakor who was a high-leveled [Chef]? No— she was not.
That was why Classes mattered. That was why the World System was important. Because it was what gave the people of Vacuos the power to fend for themselves. Without its influence, Arthur was nothing. Even Alia, without her [Warrior] Class, was nothing… right?
Wrong. Arthur’s eyes widened as he recalled a faint mory. He rembered when he first encountered the brown-haired woman— back in that forest as he stared into her soul with his [Eyes of True Appraisal]. It had been a very brief eting, and his recollection of the events that happened were vague at best. But one thing he knew was true… one thing he rembered for certain…
Alia had no Class.
She had no levels either. Without the World System’s blessing, she had defeated him with a single swing of her blade. It was incomprehensible. Ar’elith didn’t understand it back then, and Arthur didn’t understand it even now.
He just stared blankly at Harlan as he processed this fact. And the forr guardsman started back towards the doorway with a chuckle.
“I’m just saying, I know how you feel, Arthur,” Harlan said as he pulled the door open. “You may feel like you’re trapped— like you’re incapable of doing anything right. But when you’re at the bottom, you can only go up. So don’t be too hard on yourself.”
“I…” Arthur hesitated. He watched as the younger man left the room as he tried to work his jaw. He raised a hand, before balling it into a fist.
He was no longer Ar’elith the Lich King. He was no longer the Lord of All undeath. But that didn’t an he couldn’t beco sothing else— sothing more. He just had to take the first step.
“I must do this,” he said as he rose to his feet.
And with that resolve in mind, Arthur exited his room to get back to work.
Reviews
All reviews (0)