«These trainings are killing ... we've only been at it for three days and I can't even stand anymore... and I'm still just as bad as before!» Yuzu grumbles with a weak, resigned voice.
She's walking through the streets of Ro's city center with Hakuto, Rika, Chantal, Lucrezia, and Elisabeth, right after school.
Tony Caspada has tagged along too—not that he enjoys being seen with them, but Hakuto promised he'd get training from Chantal, so for now he's sticking with the group.
«You haven't improved because you don't put in any effort! Even that idiot Tony has already surpassed you!» Chantal snaps back, holding Elisabeth's hand.
Their embarrassnt about being seen as a couple is long gone.
Now they walk proudly, ignoring the occasional nasty remarks from older Romans who catch sight of them.
Hakuto, surprised and pleased, has noticed how much Chantal has matured since she started dating Elisabeth.
«Watch your mouth, you stupid bitch,» Tony hisses, glancing around to make sure no one heard Chantal's insult.
For soone like him, being publicly offended and leaving it unpunished would be unbearable.
«Who are you calling a stupid bitch?!» Chantal snaps. «Say that again and I'll rip that tiny head of yours off your neck and kill you!»
«Why don't you try? Touch once and you'll have half of Italy against you! I'll lt you and your whole family tree in acid!»
«Please, stop it...» Hakuto mutters, turning back to Yuzu. «You and Rika are under the sa training—hers is even harsher—yet she isn't complaining. And she's making huge progress. If you moved your hands more and ran your mouth less, you'd improve too!»
«Run my mouth less and move my hands more... yeah, I know you prefer when I lick you instead of when I jerk you off, but you didn't have to say it out loud,» Yuzu murmurs with a mocking smile.
~Ah, the patience I need...~
«Ugh... you have no idea how jealous I am!» Lucrezia whines. «You're all talking about getting stronger, using incredible powers to beat bad guys and all that, while I'm just a normal girl whose only skill is being insanely sexy... life is so unfair!»
«Lucrezia, I've told you a thousand tis. Without the Sacred Fla, a human from Earth has no chance of gaining the kind of superpowers you dream about. At most, I can teach you,» Chantal mutters, clearly annoyed.
«But Hakuto told you know everything, so surely you'd find a way to make a superhero too!»
~That's not what I said... Still, it's not entirely wrong. Chantal did tell that even a human from Earth might learn magic—by becoming a noble vampire's familiar, the soulmate of an incubus or succubus, taming a magical beast, or wielding a mystical artifact. There are other paths too, but most require being on N'Raeth in the first place. And both Chantal and I agree: soone like Lucrezia is better off staying far away from anything tied to N'Raeth and magic. It would be far too dangerous~
«Hmph... one day I'll learn to fight like you guys, you'll see! I'll get so strong you'll regret not teaching earlier!»
«Yeah, yeah, whatever you say...» Chantal murmurs, in that tone adults use when indulging a spoiled child just to shut them up.
«Anyway, did you hear what the hell happened in Iceland?» Tony asks. «Do you think it could be the sa guys who attacked us at the Old General Markets?»
«It's very likely, though there's no proof,» Hakuto replies.
«Could it be, I don't know... a vampire?» Tony presses.
«It could...»
Yet Hakuto's answer doesn't spark fear or worry in Tony—only a surge of wild excitent.
«So a vampire could be strong enough to sink an island that huge... this is amazing!» Tony blurts out. Chantal glares at him like she wants to set him on fire.
«Don't get cocky. There's no way you'll ever reach that kind of power. If a vampire really was behind it, it had to be soone way out of the ordinary. A regular vampire, even at their peak, could barely destroy a city ten tis smaller than Ro. And you don't look like a gifted one—at best, you might blow up a shack.»
«I'd pay all the money in the world just to blow up a shack...» Lucrezia whines.
«I don't care about blowing up a shack, I just want to blow up your head—»
Tony suddenly stops mid-sentence, bumped by a passerby coming from the opposite direction.
It's a huge man, wearing a long brown coat and a hat pulled low enough to hide his eyes.
«Watch where you're going, idiot!» Tony snaps, grabbing the man's arm.
«I-I'm sorry...» the man whispers.
The voice isn't strange in itself, but it's oddly high-pitched, almost childish—an unsettling contrast to his towering fra.
«You think an apology will cut it? Do you even know who I am?! Obviously not, or you'd be on your knees begging for forgiveness! Guess I'll fix that right now!» Tony clenches his fist and pulls back, ready to strike.
The man only raises his arms to shield his face, pleading for help in that sa childish voice, filled with fear.
His behavior leaves everyone unsettled.
~That man is twice Tony's size... so why doesn't he even try to fight back?~
Before Tony can throw the punch, Hakuto grabs his wrist, stopping him.
He says nothing, but one stern, intimidating look is enough to make Tony back off.
From the man's childlike voice despite his size, and his cowering stance, Hakuto guesses he must suffer from so serious ntal condition—and there's no way he'll allow Tony to lay a finger on him.
«Get out of my sight, you stupid cripple! Don't ever show up in front of again!» Tony snaps, releasing the man's arm.
Without waiting another second, the man bolts off, vanishing into the crowded streets. Hakuto just sighs in resignation—he doesn't even bother scolding Tony anymore.
It would be useless.
After sprinting through the streets for several minutes, the man in the brown coat finally stops in a quieter area, gasping for breath.
«I've found them... I've finally found them...» he murmurs, as if speaking to soone unseen.
He adjusts his hat, which had shifted during the frantic escape, pulling the brim low again to hide the large, expressionless yellow orbs he has instead of eyes.
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