Vesta Celestia

Vesta didn't seem impressed with his answer one bit. Giving one's name was a rather simple act and she was getting sick of this blatant disrepect being shown towards her. Her eyes narrowed as both Kyle and Ease started calling her 'Vest'. At least Ease had the manners to add Ms to the front, however she had not given them any permission to call her a nickname. Only two people were allowed to call her Vest; neither were here. Zin responding to her was the only thing which stopped her from cleaning up the both of them with a boulder or two.
"W-what? You don't know the Celestial name?! What kind of rock did you have you been living under?!" All previous feelings of anger were wiped out and replaced by shock. Ok so Kyle seemed to be from another country, that explains why he didn't know or so Vesta reasoned. Blanc was an elf so once again she could understand.
But this woman was clearly human! (Vesta has assumed she is from around here) How the hell didn't she know?! Out of all the people in this country she could interact with, she seemed to only be able to find the few who didn't know who she was? Was this some kind of strange fate?
"W-w-w-what do you think you're doing?!" Vesta stammered, clearly bewildered as her face flushed a bright red as she felt Zin's finger brush her face to collect a small amount of the blood and flour which covered Vesta before...putting it in her mouth?!?
She was however snapped out of this by one person. The newest arrival; Aleph Banton.
"So we meet at last... Henry Ford!"
For the love of multiple gods. Vesta had had enough now! She was beyond sick and tired of all this complete and utter bullshit which kept happening! She was close...oh so close to just snapping and beating the shit out of everyone. Well perhaps maybe not Blanc, she hadn't done anything to irritate her. But Kyle just seemed to keep attracting weirdos and annoying people wherever he went....
"And whom might these three be? Worthless underlings of yours? If they're at your side, then maybe they're your generals? I see. Then I won't have to worry about the cleanup later."
Wait.
What did that piece of trash just call her? Did he just even remotely suggest that she, a Celestia, was an underling to someone? Let alone someone of the same position of that of Kyle?
That was it. It was time for her to vent some of this anger which had been building the entire day. However before she could do anything Kyle now spoke up....oh god he made it worse.
Kyle sighed, then put on his best evil face. He pretended to hide his face with his arm, Dracula style.

"So you have found me, brave warrior? Yessss....yessss.....clearly you are someone that is worthy of facing me THE ALMIGHTY DEMON KING MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA.:

Kyle laughed evily, and started to walk around the new guy in a circle.

"Tell me though, how do you believe you will kill us all? My beautiful General,"He pointed at Vesta,"Has the strength of 1000 men and is more than your superior."

Kyle then motioned towards Blanc. "Blanc here, she is my mightiest caster of black magic. She commands magic than any witch, and could blast you to smitherians."

Kyle walked over next to the new first new guy.

"This here.....well ok you might be able to beat him. I actually dont know him. Just kinda....showed up wanting to join my demon army. But he said to prove himself he was willing to kill someone."

Kyle stepped forward in front of the second new guy.

"So what do I say? You ask what I say? Foolish human...I say come meet your doom!"

Had Kyle just suggested he was above her?!? The only thing which saved Kyle from the wrath to follow now was Blanc grabbing his wrist and reprimanding him. In Vesta's eyes Kyle was Blanc's servant now, so if the master was taking care of it then Vesta really had no place to add to his punishment. However this self declared hero? Oh he was in for a world of pain now.
"Stay back Ms Niege, Mr Hishamie and Mr...Gentleman. I'll take care of this." Vesta seemed to trail off as she glance towards Ease. She didn't know his so wasn't sure what to call him, so decided to call him what he had called himself. And on the topic of Zin, she was going to deal with her later she supposed.
"If it's a fight you want you piece of worthless garbage I'll gladly partake. It'll serve as an example of what happens when one disrespects those of a higher standing in both power and social status." Vesta hissed as the ground shook violently for just the briefest of moments. A foreshadowing of what was to follow?

She now stood between the Aleph and the rest as she watched Ease go forth and try to reason with this obviously delusional man. After Kyle's performance it was probably more than pointless, but she gave the man points for trying. So far this man seemed mostly respectable, besides a tad of blatant disrepect at the begining. Perhaps he too was a noble? With this thought in her mind she was letting it slide, barely.
A ring of earth now erupted out of the ground without warning to cut off this group from the crowd around of them as Aleph might work out quite quickly how foolish a mistake thinking that Kyle was the only meaningful threat, which ironically was the furthest from the truth. Kyle was probably the least meaningful threat. Vesta however was now exerting an air of strength which could only accompany that of someone with complete and utter faith and confidence in their own powers and strength.
The ring also pushed back the crowd as the ground beneath Aleph cracked open and disappeared beneath his very feet.
"I'll take out this trash in no time Ms Niege and then we can get back to looking for Avery."

@Lunarlors34@dabombjk@ZekariVoblis@FamishedPants@Seirei No Hai

In only a matter of moments did this situation go from zero to one hundred, Zin felt as if she opened the floodgates for these people to be annoyed by other newcomers. She kept herself calm as everything began to get stranger and stranger, she could somewhat ignore the first guy's attempts to defuse the situation while also befriending Kyle, but the second man that arrived, whatever his name was, not only pressed Zin's berserk button but managed to somehow slam and jam it into its socket the second he called her a useless underling." I am the dragon better known as Zin Parallex, the word useless is the last thing you should use to describe me unless you want me to scorch you alive."

Zin looked to the others as this hero wanted to engage in combat with them, she didn't know if the guy was what she was asking for or if he was an annoyance that would be better off as a roasted corpse, she could see on Ease's face that this guy seemed crazy, she silently agreed thinking the same. Zin's thoughts about Kyle soon went from timid and meek to stupid and instigative. She knew from just looking at Kyle that he didn't look like much of a warrior or even a fighter.

Suddenly the cute elf girl that seemed scared began proposing that they leave because of the "lunatics" that kept appearing." I agree, but I think this "Hero" Won't just let all of us leave, I believe we may have to fight him, all at the thanks of your meat shield here." She told the elf girl. The look plastered on Vesta's face when she heard that Zin never heard of her family's name was priceless, to Zin it also looked cute." I don't live under rocks I'm not a bug, but I use to live in a cave." She told the silver-haired woman when she questioned where she use to live. The moment when Vesta asked why Zin chose to taste the flour and blood she was covered in, Zin calmly answered with." I wanted to know what it tasted like."

The moment Vesta was considered an underling, like Zin, she became livid and wanted to rip this hero down the middle a small quake shook the ground around the group, soon a small ring of earth rose out of the dirt around them cutting them off from the rest of the people around them. Zin soon noticed that Vesta was the cause of this, as the silver-haired woman caused the ground to open under the hero. Zin wanted to help Vesta with giving Aleph a beating, but she stood back to watch her." Your friend is very strong I admire that." She told the elf girl.

@liferusher@Lunarlors34@Soragoku@Kitsune





Dante couldn't help but tilt his head and right ear when the maid girl called Avery a...Otaku. He looked confused. "Otaku? what the hell is that suppose to mean?" Dante asked her. Dante may not know the word cause it was Japanese slang, That word probably wouldn't even exist here. "Is that a insulted?" he asked them thought he seem confusion and not the least bit angry at the maid girl. Never the less he smile when the girl said she forgive him. He then bows in a Japanese like fashion "Thank you...I will see to it that i don't make the same mistake twice." He told her calmly before getting Avery off his back and sitting down and turn to Yoshinobu who was stir a pot. "I would like a bowl...and do you have any meats miss?" He asked the tavern worker he still had some money left over from the Bounty money he got earlier.

@Heckno12
@ADamnFiddle

“From this day forward, I shall instruct the two of you on how to wield the blade. But know the blade is something that isn’t something to wield for yourself. The blade is something used to protect the people, not to point towards others as a weapon."

Chieko couldn't help but to feel somewhat excited. As much as she had questions about the way Maria operated and believe the sword should be used, she couldn't argue that at least she looked the part. The sword was kinda pretty, and it seemed to be a good strong one. A very stereotypical knight weapon, and one she would very much like to have in her hands with as soon as possible. Maria went on to explain exactly what the Orc had informed them of. Magic, Academics, the arts. While she had no real interest in something as frivolous as art, the other two were something she was very much inclined towards.

She took a look around the area, once again taking note of the books. She would like to get reading them as soon as possible, they were certainly filled with information about this land, and she wanted to get started immediately. That said, the Tea Maria was offering probably was a good idea. She was tired, and maybe a break would be good...and she doubted they had any soda here.

...it was then, Chieko realized, that for a shut-in otaku gamer, she had just lost one of her most precious items.

Junk food.

She practically lived on the stuff along, with an ungodly amount of caffeine. As much as she tried to get her little sister to eat healthily, she admittedly did not. A look of pure dread replaced the normally neutral expression she wore, body slumping in the chair and eyes staring off into the distance as if there was no more reason to live. There was a very low chance a world such as this would ever have such items. Granted, 'junk food' might be somewhat easy to come by, but caffeine? There was no hope left in this cruel world.

Chieko quickly righted herself, however, clearing her throat quietly in a bit of embarrassment hoping no one saw that little episode. She suddenly felt a lot more drained, now though...maybe Tea would be good, though.

"Tea sounds good." Chieko replied to the Knight. That said, she wasn't one to not multitask whens he was able. Despite her sudden weariness at a possible world-ending revelation, she wanted to get started sooner rather than later. "Uhm...how would someone start learning to read?"



@Heckno12
@Liferusher

Once inside, Tsuiho did the first thing any good assassin or thief did. She moved somewhere she wouldn't be out int the opened, and listened. Her ears swiveled back and forth, listening for any sounds that might indicate someone approaching and taking a quick look around for any immediate threats. She could hear a few servants moving about, but with skillful timing and swift, silent steps, she could move past them. More importantly...she could hear soft music coming from a piano? Was that her target? Possible. She needed to get to the lower floor. Her eyes narrowed, poking her head around a doorway.

...a servant was in the other room. Looked like he was cleaning or something. Whatever it was, Tsu didn't care. That was the quickest route she had chosen, and at the moment, he was in her way. Granted, she shouldn't leave too many bodies. That'd defeat the whole purpose of framing someone else...couldn't make a mess here, either. If someone stumbled...well. She'd have more opportunities to have a bit more fun later. For now though, the noble was her target.

She moved swiftly in the other direction, finding another doorway and a small staircase leading to the first floor. She had to question where her 'partner' was, but that was irrelevant. She'd do her part, and if he got caught, then that was on him. she descended the stairs swiftly, following the piano music making sure to avoid any of the servants, having to hide or take another route in order to not be seen.

It irked her that she couldn't easily kill them without raising suspicion, but as soon as he was dead...well, she'd get out, and she'd get more than a few of them in the process. Eventually, she found her way to the room with the Piano, standing near the door and listening to see if anyone was inside other than her target.

When the thugs walked away Addison quickly came from her cover and jumped in between Hamaguchi and the thugs. Hamaguchi looked a little worried at the sight from the ground but flashed Addison a sorry smile as she was helped up. She awkwardly laughed like nothing happened and poked her eyes out when she spoke up to these people. She shouldn't have done that. Hamaguchi poke out her hand to get Addison to stay close to her but she miss gripped as Addison walked forward a little. She still lightly reached out to her as Addison spoke.



Addison spoke back to Hamaguchi and said that she probably shouldn't look. Hamaguchi trembled, her voice was shaking. This was gonna end bad. If she just keeps paying they all can live peacefully. Hamaguchi looked at her siblings under the bridge and called out to them.



Hamaguchi gave them a kind smile to show them some comfort and that it was gonna be alright. The children hurriedly dashed away with an occasional stumble but they would help each other. She couldn't let them see Addison like this or any hurted people. They were still too young for that. Hamaguchi stood about 5 feet behind Addison with her arms close to her belly and her ears low to her head. She looked a little shy and didn't want this to go all wild.



Hamaguchi her legs were trembling like crazy as she talked. She was close to shouting to her. Hamaguchi took a step towards her and looked really sad at the girl.



Nick and his gang walked away as one of the bystanders suddenly called out to him. He turned his head slightly watching the woman from the corner of his eye. It was a weirdly dressed woman, looked like she had been rolling in the mud with her clothes or something.



Nick completely turned around and have her a wide grin, she was a fierce one, he liked that. Not a moment later Addison had drawn both her knives. Nick grinned and stepped closer to her. So someone was planning to take on Nick ha? This was bound to be a show.

His eyes were focused on the knives, they looked really sharp and sturdy. He needed those for his collection. They would do nicely.



He gave out a snicker and grinned like Addison was nothing for him. He could easily take her. She was even trying to bait them to fight her. Like a lonely girl could take on 6 man on her own.



Nick let out a bursting laugh and pulled out a short sword for his own while the rest of his gang took out their weapons too. It was time for the showdown.





The blonde girl let out a soft confused voice. It didn't appear that she had been here before in her life before. A cake that she had gotten from the supermarket was hanging from her mouth held by one of her thin hands. She was eating the crust around the cake slowly and gently as her eyes darted around the busy market street. It didn't look like the neighbourhood she always has lived in. Does this mean that she took the wrong train home!? No wait she didn't take the train. She walked this far?! The local supermarket was just around the corner it couldn't be. In confusion she wandered down the street. Her eyes darted from left to right to take the new scene all in.

Old market boots, strange creatures that looked like sort of demi human. She was really lost. Oh wait she knew! She took out her phone out one of her skirt pockets and tried calling. Her feet had stopped as she silently stared forwards while eating the cake with the phone on her ear. No service. She tried up to three times more but there was nothing. She patiently placed the phone back where it belonged and walked further to places she didn't know.

After a short nap under a nearby tree she went on. Not thinking she left both her shoes at the tree and only noticed way later she lost them. Shiina patiently pulled off her socks to not make them any dirtier than they were and ventured on. Eventually her feet grew tired and her cakes were gone, vanished into her stomach. What was she even doing. Just walking till she found something familiar but there wasn't any. Helplessly she waited for a while on a nearby fountain and went on walking. Her socks in her hand and her feet brown as dirt.

It wasn't till later that she found a nice looking building where there were lots of books. She liked books, opening one of them immediately struck her hard. It was unreadable, well she was good in deciphering. Shiina sat down on a nearby chair and readed away. Patiently reading each page untill eventually she fell asleep.

To be continued...



Ryan seemed a little overwhelmed by becoming a knight and was perhaps a little forced by Chieko or felt forced. It must have been quite harsh on the boy to come to such a strange country without any knowledge about it. She was a little bit curious to his backstory now. He didn't just end up here out of nowhere. She wanted to give him a hand but Malakaus was already onto it. Tani quietly listened to the orc talk.

Chieko was already eager to start. It was good to know there were still people like this out there. People that were hyped from their first day onward. She would like to see how far Chieko could keep that attitude.

Maria spoke to Tani once more. Tani looked up with a deadpan expression at the knight. She gave a short nod as she began listening to the knight. Tani was invited to drink tea with Maria and Malakaus. This would give her an ideal situation to get up to date with the iron bells. Tani gave another short nod.



Tani waited for Maria to lead the way and casually stood by her side.

---

---

A few moments ago, Aleph was so unbelievably happy that he had found his purpose in life that he might not have thought things through to their fullest extent. It was because of this that the momentary high he had soon died out and was replaced by a very cold chill that ran down his spine. It was now clear that something very, very wrong was about to happen to him.

"So you have found me, brave warrior? Yessss....yessss.....clearly you are someone that is worthy of facing me THE ALMIGHTY DEMON KING MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA." Henry Ford said while the kanji for "menacing" floated around him, also holding his arm in front of his face as only a Demon Lord would dare do, and finishing with a demonic laugh.

T-this is wrong...! What am I supposed to do...?!

Aleph Banton was currently losing the fight against the Demon Lord before it had even begun. How could this be, you wonder? In truth, it is very simple. It is because up until this point, when he had designated somebody as the Demon Lord Henry Ford, they had all painted him as some lunatic or something similar. Never until now had somebody played along!

So essentially, he didn't know what to do because he never got this far.

I will not falter!

As Henry Ford had set to introduce his minions, Aleph begun to steel himself for the upcoming battle. His generals sounded fairly mighty, but he did notice they did not seem to like being introduced this way. Perhaps there had been plans for usurping Henry Ford's position? Fights between demons did happen quite a lot. They were a vicious and unfriendly bunch, after all. It would be perfect if something had set them off between each other right now, but that didn't really happen as Henry Ford continued.

"So what do I say? You ask what I say? Foolish human...I say come meet your doom!"

"H-ha! Your overconfidence will be your downfall, Demon Lord." Aleph's execution was a bit sloppy, but he pulled it off. It had been so long since he rehearsed what he would say afterwards that he forgot. At least this would be a nice test of his improvisation skills.

It was then that the new recruit to the Demon Lord's army attempted to reason with him. Perhaps if he wasn't introduced as an aspiring minion, this might have caused Aleph to pause for a mere moment or so. Or at least thought about doing so. But, because he was obviously evil along with the rest of Henry Ford's group, such attempts were only seen as trickery! Aleph Banton had been on this quest for years, no way some wannabe minions was going to throw him off the trail this time!

"Begone with your wicked attempts at misdirection, lest I whet my blade on you first!" Aleph threatened, clearly not going to listen to anything out of this man's mouth. This of course was a empty threat because it was not as though Aleph had intended on actually murdering anybody here, that would be crazy, wouldn't it? He simply liked talking big, that was always fun. Not that he would let anybody know this.

But it did appear that somebody else in the group did not share such sentiments. But just how much trouble could a damn general give him, right?

"If it's a fight you want you piece of worthless garbage I'll gladly partake. It'll serve as an example of what happens when one disrespects those of a higher standing in both power and social status."

With the rumbling of the ground and the subsequent ring this woman had made, it was not difficult to tell what her mastery was, which did mean that this wasn't going to be a particularly easy battle. Aleph also had to assume this wasn't going to be a friendly spar or the sort, but rather a serious fight due to her cutting his escape off. She either intended to kill him or seriously injure him, which was more than enough reason to get serious.

Aleph drew his blade and took his stance, something people might not have actually expected him to be able to do, what with him seeming so crazy. His stance was quite similar to a knight's.

"Hiding behind the standing you were given merely because you were born? At least take pride in something you earned, huh? Well, since you're like that I guess I could let you go---" Aleph tried to say but stopped because it did not look like she was going to listen to him. It was a good thing he never claimed he was good at defusing situations, but he never really feared he would end up fighting somebody who might require him to actually use his sword. Before when he had done this, everybody had been normal people with minimal affinity with any form of magic or spirits. So even when things did get out of hand, it was relatively easy to stop, and he had never had to kill someone because of it! In a serious fight, it was hard NOT to kill somebody when your primary weapon was your sword. Well, as long as she didn't do something that looked fatal, he wouldn't either!

Except that very next moment, the floor tried to eat him. But if anything, that was the signal that the real fight was beginning. With nothing occupying his attention, him actually having pretty good reflexes due to being a close-range fighter and it being pretty obvious what kind of element she would be using, the floor opening up was not very surprising to him. Before he lost his footing, the green-clad man dashed forwards, towards the unarmored woman as quick as he could. If she was confident in her skill with rocks, well, he was more than confident about his swordsmanship having a great teacher and more than enough experience over the years, which necessitated being close to someone. It wasn't like he could keep his distance from her, anyways.

His follow-up attack was that of a diagonal, but lacking swing towards her, perhaps betraying that he was not yet keen on the idea of a really serious battle and was holding back. That being said, it wasn't something she should ignore since she had no form of armor.

Gulped down his stew like it was water, the small chunks easily moving down his wide throat with each mighty ladle full that he scooped into his mouth. Having such a filling meal was rare for him and so he was making it worth his while to say the least, enjoying each tasty mouthful while listening to the people around him. The two new people caught his interest the most, well new people normally did but they were not from elsewhere like the the other two. Nodding in greeting to Dante he watched as the girl was dragged away by Yoshinobu, it was as if they were giving some kind of sacrifice to the women for all her kindness to them...

"Mmm - Ah~ So, Dante was it? You have a fine mate, you are very lucky."

Complimenting the couple he then took his bowl up to gulp the rest down to finish it off. However when the women known as Avery came out with Yoshinobu the giant almost jumped at the point and raised voice that Aya gave about the dress. One would think that he would have gotten use to it already but the gentle man was not use to people being brave enough to shout around him unless something was the matter.

"Hmmm? So this is what Otaku's wear? I do not see anything wrong with it but.. Fake ears? You do not have their kind where you come from? Those are not fake grahahah~"

The giant teased but smiled kindly to try and defuse any anger the young women may have had towards him for such wommens, but still it looked like she was a little annoyed by the scene. Though Dante wondered if it was a insult, Kyojin shook his head in defiance to such a claim. After all from what he had seen it was not a bad thing after all, and since Aya was distracted by someone kneeling..

"Well this word Otaku I think I am coming to like. It seems this word means to do what you like, and to wear nice things hahaha."

Once Yoshinobu commented to the room if they would like anything else to eat the giant shook his head, as he did not want to deplete their stocks! Still he felt like he could go for something right about now, but not for something filling but instead something sweet but he wondered if they had such a treat in stock right now. Still it did not hurt to ask since he was willing to pay, and he was half wondering if he paid for a normal he may have got a size up from the kind women!

"Do you have anything sweet Yoshinobu? I would very much like something for my sweet tooth~"

Despite the situation and how it would soon worsen, there was something rather comforting about seeing another generally be rational during it. It would seem as though Vesta, like Ease, was trying to avoid conflict and be reasonable. It felt nice having someone else who simply wanted to get through the day like him. Her apparent shock at the horned woman's obliviousness at her name and who she was. Hmm...Perhaps she was a politician? A noble? It wouldn't surprise him much if she was a politician considering how young some of the officials here were. And then seemed to be further put into shock as the horned woman put a finger to her blood and flour caked cheek, licking it off her finger. He chuckled a bit at the sight. Even if was disgusting, he couldn't lie that he found her reaction funny and sorta calming considering how tense everything was a bit ago, adding with her rational. Who knows? Maybe she might actually be someone he could befriend in all of this? Or maybe she could really help defuse this entire unfortunate situation?

Both of those thoughts would be thrown away quickly after that madman apparently named Aleph showed up, ironically like the boulders probably about to be chucked.

He felt an outright chill run down his back the literal moment Vesta caught wind of what Aleph had said. She told the lot of them to stand by, glancing specifically at Ease. It didn't seem like an annoyed look at him so thankfully it still seemed they were alright or neutral. Great...Now even she was involved. He looked around. The crowd was nervously stepping back from the lot of them, obviously in fear of the apparent fight. Thank God they were taking note...Whatever was gonna happen, no one would want unnecessary casualties.

On top of that, even the crazed woman seemed just as annoyed by Aleph's presence. Her pissed actually worried Ease more than anything considering she was more than willing to fight." I am the dragon better known as Zin Parallex, the word useless is the last thing you should use to describe me unless you want me to scorch you alive." The crazy horned woman, who was apparently named Zin uttered. Considering that she was seemingly crazed, this couldn't-Did she say dragon? He made a silent gulp as he realized the implications of how out of hand this situation might get in the next few minutes. Telling the truth or not, this wasn't good. Please tell him she was joking. I've been able to avoid painful deaths for the most part...Please don't let that change today. Plus I can't have this kid die. That'd be way too problematic. He still needed info after all.

"Begone with your wicked attempts at misdirection, lest I whet my blade on you first!" Instead of saying anything to that, he glared annoyingly over at the black haired boy before he let out a sigh. There was a chance that whatever Ease said might've worked, but it was obvious the kid just set an idea of what this group was inside Aleph's head. Well this is just fantastic ain't it? He wished there was a way to reason with him, but it seemed far too gone now unless he got the perfect opportunity. A quake was felt beneath his feet. Quakes in Lugunica? That's weird. Wait...Uh oh.

"If it's a fight you want you piece of worthless garbage I'll gladly partake. It'll serve as an example of what happens when one disrespects those of a higher standing in both power and social status." Vesta soon stood between Aleph and the rest of the group. Realizing that attention was now on those two, he decided it was the best time to confront the kid(Kyle). Good idea to at least give him an idea of who he was and hopefully educate him a bit, and more so to make sure his attention was on him so he doesn't make the situation worse. Ease walked over to where he was, held by the elf, and sat down with a knee in the air. He tilted his over to him before whispering him "Look, this situation will hopefully resolve itself but this isn't something we can enter without making it worse. So stay out of it for now. More importantly, I can see your new. I can tell because..I've been in a similar situation as you."

After saying that, a ring of earth surrounded the group and Aleph, cutting the crowd off. Good because the crowd was running off after seeing this display of power. Well, a few ran away. Some seemed to stay in place, anticipating the fight. So she was responsible for that quake...Aleph went into a stance with his sword drawn, similar to a knight. From what Ease could see, this man at least had some practice. He made a claim of calling out her social status comment, which would be respectable if he didn't also try to use that to "let her go" by that logic. Which he quickly made out to be him trying to exist this fight. Within seconds after that thought, the ground below Aleph opened up, causing him to dash forward at Vesta in reaction. He made a slash at her with his sword but it seemed to lack the actual power and drive you'd expect from a slash from him. The hell? Was he just that confident or foolish to throw away a decent reaction slash?

@lunarlors34 @seirei no hai @famishedpants @spriggs27 @dabombjk

Kyle Hishamie

Kyle was more ashamed than he would ever admit. All he had to do was tell the strange man the truth, then keep his stupid mouth shut. He just not had to be energetic, not stupid, and not try to make a huge joke out of everything. Kyle watched as Vesta had to save him from himself, and stood there quietly as events unfolded. One of the new men that seemed to understand him a bit walked over to him and spoke to him.

"Look, this situation will hopefully resolve itself but this isn't something we can enter without making it worse. So stay out of it for now. More importantly, I can see your new. I can tell because..I've been in a similar situation as you."

Kyle smiled at this slightly. He had no idea what Kyle was going through, at least thats what Kyle thought. Although something in his voice......

Kyle shook his head clear of those thoughts. He was from another world, one with no magic or sword fights. Kyle knew exactly what he needed to do. He had a gift it seemed, and while he did not know what the limits of his gift were, he knew he had to do something. Kyle looked at the man that spoke to him.

"See listen here man. I hear, I understand you, communication is not a problem. But you see.....I am not the smartest guy around and you see.......later!"

Kyle gave him a wink and a two finger salute, then ran forward. He knew what he needed to do, and it was gonna hurt hella bad. But what the fuck right? Kyle leaped over the ring of earth that surrounded the two fighters, with more agility than anyone in his group would have expected, and jumped again right in front, and was hit by the attack meant for her.

@lunarlors34 @seirei no hai @famishedpants @spriggs27 @zekarivoblis

The kid smiled at his words to which Ease smiled back. He admits that the nice guy thing is a bit corny but hey? It felt good seeing the kid smile despite everything that was happening. Hell, it actually cheered him up a bit. The kid proceeded to shake his head a bit, probably to get rid of any guilt he had for his little joke. He chuckled a bit at it, mostly in a bid to help ease him in a bit more and relax him. Then this happened.

"See listen here man. I hear, I understand you, communication is not a problem. But you see.....I am not the smartest guy around and you see.......later!"

What did he mean communication wasn't a prob-Wait what's he doing?! In the second that followed, he saw the kid charge over between Vesta and Aleph.

The next few seconds Ease's mind stopped functioning. It was functioning for sure since he was cursing in his mind the entire time, but his body was operated purely by instinct. As the kid dived in to take the slash Aleph was making, so too did Ease. He barred his fist back as he did and began to draw his sword. Due to his more defined training and body in comparison to his, he was barely able to catch up to him. He made a punch towards the kid in a desperate attempt to get him out of the way. Ease turned his body so his faced towards Aleph just as his fist was going forth. His sword attempted to block the slash in a last minute deflect, but it was all in vain. The slash connected. Ease bit down on his tongue as he prepared for the impact.

He hit the concrete hard afterwards, even bouncing in the air from impact. His sword flew to his left side. Ratatosk jumped out of his shirt as not to get crushed by his falling body. Ease lied down for those few seconds and could already feel that familiar wet feeling. Quick flashes of memory came forth as he remembered the werewolf that gutted him the first day he was here. In response to them he peered his head up to see his wound. Were they serious? They had to be. From what he could barely see, it seemed like a flesh wound to the chest primarily. Deep flesh, though. They hurt like the dickens that's for sure, but it didn't seem to get further than just muscle. So it seemed "Thank God...my clothes are pretty thick. In actuality, his clothes barely softened that blow, but he needed something to think on. His head hit concrete again. He could still tell he was losing blood though.

Shit...Was he gonna die again? He was doing so good on preventing that. No...Maybe "SOMEONE! Quit fighting and get a...medic! Please..." He said, his voice straining after his yell. He needed to save his energy. He needed to last. He wanted to shout at the kid but...he just couldn't. Why...Do people...have to play hero?

@dabombjk @lunarlors34 @spriggs27 @famishedpants @seirei no hai

Malakaus lead Atisha to the armory. It was there that the two finally got out of their armor after their long journey, switching to their casual clothing. While they obviously don't wear their armor all the time, taking it off during rests, it was more or less their day clothes. Malakaus gave his armor and weapons to the castle smith and paid him some money to do repairs on them. "If you can, maybe some improvements as well. I hope this will cover it." Malakaus gave the smith a bag of coins, nearly three times the amount his armor costed in the first place. And Malakaus's armor was not cheap. The smith seemed both perplexed and excited, and Malakaus was just happy to get this out of the way. Good thing Atisha wasn't here or else she'd yell at him for wasting his money so frivolously.

Speaking of Atisha he needed to make sure she didn't get into any more trouble while she was here. She was far too hotheaded and strong-willed for her own good. Normally good traits to have but she didn't know how to temper them. She'd just get into trouble if she didn't control herself. Fortunately Malakaus had something that could at least clear out any misunderstandings about who she was. So Malakaus went to find Atisha, who was browsing the armory. There he went up to her and handed her a medallion from his pocket. He hadn't needed to use this in ages, as his armor and voice was often good enough to prove his identity. But this medallion was more or less Malakaus's knightly emblem, and those who bare it are his followers. Not that Atisha would ever admit to being one of Malakaus' followers, but so long as she carried it, people would know that she is with him.

"Take this and hold onto it. As long as you have it people in the castle won't mistake you as some random elf. It won't get you everywhere of course, and if you get into trouble it won't save you, but at least the guards shouldn't bother you. And if they do for ulterior reasons go ahead and give them a good thumping. Castle guards aught to have better discipline then to sass a castle guest. Now then, I'll need to be heading back to talk to Maria or at least arrange a meeting with her. Find whatever you need and take this time to rest. We got a long journey tomorrow and we won't have this luxury for quite some time."

With that said, Malakaus left the armory to head back to the Iron Bell HQ. Outside of his armor, Malakaus had changed to humble trousers made of rough cotton, tough and warm, though not particularly comfortable. Didn't bother Malakaus though as this was his everyday pants. And his only one... Malakaus made it a note that he needed to buy more clothes. At least his boots were still sturdy; they were a nice pair of brown leather boots with fur on the inside, a present from his mother. They were very comfy and good for traveling though he never wore them often as he usually had his armored boots on. When the slavers took these from him Malakaus made sure to get it back before leaving. Malakaus also had a fairly tribal looking necklace with him that too coming from his people. A leather cord with various teeth and tusks made from wild animals and an amulet carved from the horn of the first demon beast Malakaus ever slew in single combat. It was said to protect him from maligned influences, though that was mostly just belief. Without his armor Malakaus's orcish features were much more notable, and he himself did not dress like a knight. Instead he looked more like a thug, possibly even a lowly beggar since he distinctively lacked a shirt, but this was simple Malakaus's dress of choice.

By the time he reached the Iron Bell HQ Malakaus had just caught the tail end of Maria's statement, wishing that she could have invited Malakaus before he left. "Tis not too late. I could always make time for the Knight Commander if she so desires." Malakaus walked back into the room with a smile on his face. While he generally tries not to spoil himself with the luxuries of the castle, he wasn't going to decline the offer if it was available to him. That would be rude.

@ADamnFiddle@liferusher

---

Atisha followed Malakaus into the castle, where they eventually arrived to an armory of sorts. This place was fill with smoke and soot and made her hold her nose. The smell of molten metals and other chemicals wafted through the air. It wasn't anything Atisha hadn't smelled before, but it was never pleasant to begin with. Malakaus stripped off his armor and Atisha did the same. She was aware of the protective needs of her armor, but it was far from comfortable to wear. She was thankful to finally wear her casual dress and more importantly, no shoes. She let her legs stretch out now that she didn't have to wear that hot leather armor anymore, and the cold stones beneath her feet felt quiet pleasant.

Atisha left her armor and weapons with one of the smiths that Malakaus was speaking to. She left to look at their selection of weapons like an excitable young boy. For the longest time she's been mostly relying on a spear she picked up from a mercenary soldier, but she wanted something more flexible and suiting her style. Though to get a weapon that worked exactly like the polearm she grew up with, Atisha knew she'd have to have that specially made for her. She doubts that even the royalty would have access to the type of high tensile ironwood trees native to her home. Most of them back there had already been cut down nearly thirty years ago, and without any of the elves there who knew how to grow them, Ironwood had effectively gone extinct. Atisha sighed at these sad memories and simply picked out a staff of wood from a barrel. They were suppose to be used for various polearms but Atisha wanted to see how well their wood was.

Before she left to test, Malakaus walked up to her and handed her a medallion. "What's this for?" He then proceeded to explain the purpose of the medallion. Essentially it would allow Atisha to walk about the castle unharnessed as long as she had it. She supposed she should be grateful, but Atisha did think that she wouldn't have any problems if these guards didn't bother her for frivolous reasons. Though considering that they did nearly get robbed by what could presumably have just been a regular street rat, Atisha supposed their paranoia was not misplaced. Though regardless the castle guards and their knights still seem incompetent. She was almost certain that the knights wouldn't be able to stop it from happening a second time. "Fine. I won't be too far from here, though I might head for a bath later. I'll find you whenever."

Now with Malakaus gone Atisha went out to an open area with a few staves. Each one was made of a different wood and used a different design. She wanted to test them out for their strength and flexibility. But first, she needed to limber up with some stenches, and once she was done with that, Atisha did a few weapon forms using the staves. Most of them were thrusts and swipes, though she had a few swings as well. Once her body was ready Atisha began to train, putting aside all else to stimulate her body and sharpen her skill.

Jiru

---

"Oh, wow you work fast." Jiru mumbled from behind Tsu. On one hand he hoped that he had gotten the drop on her as a childish bit of revenge for startling him before. On the other, he knew just how dangerous that would probably be. Just for safety's sake, he kept hidden behind a box. He kept his voice just low enough that only demi-humans would probably be able to hear, and even then it wouldn't be easy. "The box is in there with the guy. Once you take care of everyone inside I'll get it open and dealt with." He continued.

"If you'd like I can put on a show and keep their attention." He whispered, showing his pouch of flash powder. If he had to, the flash would likely disorient everyone within the room long enough for Tsu to do her stabby stabby thing.

This job was going way way smoother than the last one. If things kept up like this he could probably use his earnings to buy a few drinks...and chicken of course. Hehehe. Drawing his dagger and a pick, he prepared for Tsu's orders. If anyone was in charger here, it'd be the trained killer. Jiru would never even consider ordering her around given how easily she could probably kill him.

Ryan Dreane

---

So that was it, now he was committed to the Iron Bell Knights. Perhaps he wouldn't actually be a knight for quite a while, but at the very least this would guarantee a place to sleep and probably a source of food. Speaking of, he still had about a third of those Fruit Loops from before. While Maria had decimated most of what he had brought with him, it would still be a decent snack at some point. The other stuff he had brought though...the milk was most definitely warm by now. The sweeteners and red bull would still be fine on the other hand. Then there was the cart itself, maybe he could pawn it off? I mean there obviously wasn't anything exactly like it in this world and he could probably find a buyer somewhere.

"Err...tea sounds good." He said, snapping back to attention. "I have some fruit loops if anyone wants some. It's a special occasion after all." He offered with a smirk. While it was the only thing he had to celebrate their new 'jobs', it definitely wasn't something one from earth would use to celebrate anything. Maria really seemed to like them before though, so maybe the others from this world would like them too? He wouldn't dare offer them a red bull, between the taste and the energy someone might think it was poison.

Vesta Celestia

"I hide behind nothing 'Hero'. I'm merely showing what happens if you wish to mess with the status quo." vesta responded calmly despite her obvious irritation.
Vesta gave no fucks about Zin
Vesta didn't seem too surprised by the fact Aleph had dodged her attack. She would've been disappointed if the fight was over in the first move, which was why she didn't go with anything overly flashy or big. That and she didn't want to kill anyone, not even this annoyance of a man. But she REALLY wanted to vent some frustration and this man had given what she deemed a perfectly reasonable excuse to do so.
As he dashed forward she seemed to narrow her eyes into almost cat like slits. Was this man mocking her? He dared come rushing at her, sword drawn in combat and have absolutely no drive or anything beside his swing? Did he really think she was THAT far below him?
She was already halfway through raising a pillar of earth to come between Aleph and herself when Kyle now flung himself in front of the pathetic excuse of a attack Aleph was unleashing. What the hell was this idiot playing at?!
Oh god it didn't even stop there. Vesta rubbed her temples in annoyance now as Ease had lunged in front of Kyle...who had lunged in front of her...to stop an attack which was never going to hit it's mark.
She was surrounded by nothing but idiots wasn't she? And to top it off Ease was whinging and whining on the ground about dying? If he died it was his own damned fault and she doubted such a wound would kill him so easily anyway....just in case she would take him to Avery later.
While Avery wasn't a fantastic healer, he still had some skill in the art and would be able to heal a wound of such a low calibre.
"...Idiots." Vesta sighed loudly. They had completely ruined the mood of the fight and she was quickly losing interest. Why was she fighting this man again? Oh right....that was why. Never mind her interest was back.
Ignoring the two Vesta threw her hands upwards. As if on cue two spheres of earth now erupted out of the ground and flung themselves towards Aleph at ludicrously high speeds.
Blocking was out of the question with the momentum of such heavy objects but if he was quick enough he should be able to dodge them. If the hit it would hurt. Quite a bit.
But they were made from dirt rather than rock...so it shouldn't kill him. Maybe. Not that Vesta really cared anyway.

Avery Ackbar Celestia

"O...taku?" Avery tilted his head to the side slightly as Aya yelled and pointed at Avery. So it would seem the giant's name was Kyojin? At least Avery thinks she was talking to the giant.
However he wasn't confused by the term. He was confused by how he KNEW the term already...where had he heard it before? Wait...he was sure it was a term he heard once or twice at home. Not really a huge term back where he was from, anime and the like was only starting to get popular when he was brought here back home.
Wait. Did that mean maid girl was also possibly from his world? Suppose it would explain why he had never seen the girl around before...and he didn't pick Khondo to be the type to go around hiring people willy nilly.
His thought process was broken however when he heard Dante talking. Giving him a questioning look, he barely stopped himself from bursting into laughter as Dante now yelled at him to get off of him.
"But I don't wannya. You're comfy." Avery whined, sounding much like a small child. Of course this didn't deter Dante from simply removing Avery from his back. This resulted in Avery folding his arms across his chest and pouting, his tail and ears pointed downwards to add to the act.
"Meanie."
Avery now stood up and dusted off the skirt before casting a glance towards the giant as he talked. Mate? Oh right...Dante was under the impression he was a girl and that they were dating. Although Avery had been joking and teasing the inumimi at the time. And it would seem that Daisuke didn't get his hint?
Well ok then. Only one thing to do...but first things first.
"Oh these? They are fake, a handy little metia my mistress managed to acquire for me." Avery said bluntly as he now carefully removed the ears and tail before holding them up for Kyojin to see clearly. With that said and done he proceeded to put them back on and now clasped his hands together, almost as if he was hiding something within them.
"Nyaw time for a little show. Like Houdini." Avery knew he didn't really pick a great magician to suit what he was about to do here, since Houdini was a master of escape, but it was the only one he could remember. Cut him some slack after all, he had yet to be home in 8 years.
He closed his eyes in concentration before smirking in his mind. Something small...yes that would do. Avery now opened his eyes and moved his hands away from each other. A small kookabura now seemed to have materialised in one of his hands as he held it up for Daisuke and Aya to see.
It was a bird native to his homeland so he was wondering if they would recognise it. He didn't know if they were from the some country as he was, but he wanted to try and confirm whether or not they were from earth. And how had he made it appear? He had simply made it himself using his blessing.

They were still confused about the whole otaku thing. Aya gave a deep sigh and sat back down again. She was better off not trying to explain or try to use this word. Kyojin didn't seem at all bothered by that she called the other girl an otaku. Well what was she to expect. He didn't think anything of the word and just sort of ignored it. Dante thought that she offended his girlfriend. Aya gave another sigh with her arms folded over each other and her eyes pointed forwards.



Avery was showing off his fake ears and tail at Kyojin, Uggh, just act normal god damnit. Now the stew had cooled down quite a bit she started eating. She didn't have to blow anymore and it taste just right. Back in the day it would probably have tasted gross and cold now but it wasn't any other way. The ingredients in the stew tasted fresh and it was a whole different flavor than in her own world. It was kind of refreshing. Still, she didn't like these kind of foods but what else did she have to eat. With a bit of a grumpy face she filled her hunger.

Meanwhile Avery thought it was fun to give a small magic show. She probably didn't think that Aya and Daisuke had seen far better shows that were a whole lote more intresting but it was the thought. Wait did she just say Houdini? Aya looked up at the girl. Houdini probably didn't live in this world she presumed. Was she...?



Yoshinobu her offer had gathered a lot of request, Daisuke wanted a glass of water which she easily could do. Dante wanted some stew but also wanted meat. Now that wasn't really an all to big problem but she didn't sell much variety in meat. Well it was probably gonna be fine. Kyojin wanted something sweet, alright. Kondo asked for another bowl of stew too and some booze which was to arrange in the next 10 seconds.



Yoshinobu grabbed a pan and let it heat for a moment as she got water and booze for the two men. She also grabbed a bowl and filled it with strawberries for Kyojin. She hurriedly got over towards the table and placed all the things down.



Yoshinobu waited for a moment and walked back again starting to prepare the pork to go into the pan. Only minutes after she came back at the table with two stews. Which she also placed down. She flashed a sweet smile at dante as she got over towards the pan again to finish the remaining work for the meat.

---

---

To be entirely honestly, Aleph was very surprised that the blow had struck at all. But to be even more honest, to ascend to a higher plane of "honest", Aleph was more surprised to see that the blow had struck... somebody else? He wasn't entirely sure what just happened, to be even more honest than he was just moments prior, which was pretty fucking honest. There was not one new person in front of his blade, but two? Seriously, what was going on!?

Both Henry Ford and his aspiring underling had both decided to block the attempted slash on the female Aleph was currently fighting. Though he originally reasoned she was somebody who was angry due to an ineptitude for most things, she was actually proving to be quite threatening and she'd only done two things with her magics! So... why did she need "saving" from a blow he was sure was too weak to connect? Perhaps female demons weren't in abundance? If that was the case, then even the Demon Lord would have to protect any female he could. And... then this would be the perfect chance for an aspiring demon to make himself noticed! Yes, that must be it! The second guy had obviously taken the blow for his Demon Lord so that he could prove his loyalty or something along those lines. Quite honestly, despite it being VERY hard to do so, Aleph also tried for a more rational reasoning for them both jumping out like this.

It actually made a lot more sense when he thought like a chuuni, oddly enough.

"Even I must admire such loyalty...!" he muttered under his breath. Demons too had things they cared about? That got him to thinking: did they even have to fight? Maybe it was possible to coexist toget---

"Woah!"

Coexistence seemed like such a foolish thought when the female general he was fighting before continued, with him just barely noticing in time to avoid that which would have probably put him down for the count. This was not the most beautiful of evasions either, as he had to put a bit distance between the two of them so as not to get hit. That wasn't ideal for Aleph because it added a few more steps between the two. "I must admit, those rocks would likely do a number on even a hero like myself. You're pretty good." He confessed as he planted his sword in the ground for a moment, watching for any signs of an immediate follow-up attack. "But it'll take much more than basic spellcasts such as that to defeat me!" Aleph needed to get closer if he wanted to end the fight as the victor. His option were fairly limited here, but he had come to realize that taking it easy would result in a very bad situation for him. In truth, Aleph was probably lucky that those two demons had briefly interrupted their fight like that, there was no telling what kind of counterattack he could have suffered from this woman.

The thought finally crossed his mind to use his hilt instead of his blade for the attack. It was a bit odd to use against someone who wasn't armored like herself, but if he did not want to murder her in the event of a connecting attack, this seemed the most ideal way. Plus it looks friggin awesome. With speed fitting of a fighter who worked in close range, Aleph once more dashed towards the woman, ignoring the pathetic demons and going on the offensive again. This time, his attack consisted of a feigned frontal attack very similar to his first, but he hurriedly darted to the side at the last second and attempted to strike her in the stomach with the hilt of the blade.

@ADamnFiddle
@6slyboy6
@Heckno12
@Lucius Cypher

It appeared that Malakaus wished to join up with Maria and the rest of the gang. That was fine. Maria was willing to give more out. After all, she did honestly believe it was more interesting to have fun with more people, and one more was.

She was actually glad that Malakaus had chose to join the group. After all, Maria did respect the indivudal as a knight, and being a rather rare individual within the capital. Like the elusive giants, Orcs were a race of demihuman that were rare to see “civilized”.

Leading the group back to her room, there was a section that appeared to be a hard-wood table that after a moment of shifting the two seats, Maria was able to provide the others with a suitable sitting area.

Of course, her room was still the heavily decorated with various books, both fictional and nonfictional, various paintings, and stained glass depicting something likely of value to the Iron Bell Knights.

“If you can understand speech, then I would assume that it wouldn’t take long for you to understand how to read and write. Though I might not be the best teacher when it comes to this subject, or any subject for that matter, I will say that I am well versed on the subject matter and hope to be able to pass my knowledge on smoothly. If there is an issue, I am sure I could consult an educator on the subject..”

A simple response to Cheiko’s inquiry. Straight to the point, as Maria tends to prefer to most regards. Maria’s straightforward methodism tend to go over well in regards to general understanding of her personality. There was hardly any sort of finesse when it came to her display of actions. She simply acted as she believed she should act at a given situation.

“And though I must say that your Fruit Loops were rather great, Ryan. I did not know that there were such a tasty treat in such an unusual shape. I do have other simple cookies I had gotten in town earlier if you’d like those as well,” Maria stated, genuinely impressed by Ryan’s “fruit loops” were. Perhaps the superficial sugar did sync well with Maria, as she was someone who enjoyed a lot of sweet products like cakes and tea and cookies.

Malakaus had something to discuss earlier, so Maria hoped to be able to discuss that with him during this time. At the very least, she hoped that the others being here did not disrupt his current position on the matter. After all, there was some information that definitely doesn’t allow those outside a certain circle to know.

The tea didn’t take too long to brew and Maria presented her 4 guests, Cheiko, Ryan, Malakaus, and Tani with their own matching porcelain cups. At the very least, anything that Maria had seemed to be of high quality. Her father had given her a lot of her room’s current decoration and furniture out of his own pocket. After all, the Hohenzollerns were rich, affluent nobles at their core with favor within many realms of politics.

“As for your question earlier Tani, I will say I have heard several people had recently come to this land all at the same time. Though I am not sure what is occurring, I can presume that there must be someone or something dragging these people into this city, and that does worry me.”

Some say this was how Maria obtained her position, at least those who opposed her, but Maria was a skilled knight regardless of the opposition.

“Now, I would like to discuss the matter you wished to discuss earlier. It is unfortunate that your aide could not make it. It would have gladly given her a sit at the table if she wished to join up, but perhaps that would be for another time,” Maria started, shortly after taking a sip of her tea. It definitely tasted better than she expected. Smooth and relaxing, but with a bit of an energetic kick. It was an oddly soothing mix of feeling. Definitely worth the purchase in Maria’s opinion.

“Though I do not know what you wished to talk about, I am sure there could be a discussion on the matter. Though if you wish not to speak your mind on the matter, I will not force you. I merely figured it would be best to speak on this matter in conjunction with the tea.”

Daisuke giggled at the playfulness between Avery and Dante, he sees them to be a pretty cute couple. It's still weird for Daisuke to see humans with cat's features, the only time he would see something of the like at home would be otakus wearing them, kind of weird to think about. Avery was confused about the word otaku, almost sounding a little offended by the word, but Aya brushed it off like it wasn't a big deal. He's confused why she keeps using the word, no one ever understands what she means and she has to explain it every time, it must be annoying.

"It's just a word she likes to use a lot. If I were you I would try not to be offended by it."

He finds the cat's voice Avery is trying to pull off slightly weird and annoying. Dante has these same features but you don't notice an accent in his voice. It seems a lot like she really badly wants to be one of these cat-human creatures.

Yoshinobu had brought Daisuke's cup of water over to him, as well as seconds and booze for Kondo, and a bowl of strawberries for Kyojin, giving him the sweets he asked for. Kondo sure likes to drink a lot, and he barely seems fazed about it. Even if he had a strong tolerance to alcohol, the amount he had drank so far should have gotten him intoxicated, but he's not showing any signs of such a thing. Maybe he has some sort of super power that makes him never get drunk? Of course not, that's absurd.

"Thank you, Yoshi. Hey, have you thought of something I could do to pay off the food and drink? I feel horrible about taking these things without paying."

Daisuke was raised to work for everything he receives. He feels horrible about receiving gifts on occasions, but he knows its tradition, and he should accept it. Just accepting things for free all the time makes you into an ungrateful, lazy person. Receiving things feels a lot better when you had to work for it as well.

Avery announced she was going to show a magic trick. Daisuke does't necessarily believe in pure magic, but he knows about the art of distractions and escapists. Having amazing skills to do such things like that can make someone appear to be magic, but it's very likely not actual magic, it's more of a deception. But what Avery had done was pretty amazing. Daisuke had seen plenty of magicians 'create doves from air', though that's most definitely not what actually happend. This time though, he observed as the bird formed in her hands, out of completely nowhere. She wasn't hiding it in her sleeve or anything, it just materialized right in front of them.

"Sugoi! That's amazing! How is that even possible?!"

Amazed by what he had just seen, Daisuke thought about what she had said before. She mentioned Houdini, who is a world famous escapist magician from his own world. Though Houdini probably wasn't the best magician to example, it was still questionable how she knew about him. Had Houdini come to this world before? Maybe after he died, he woke up in this world. Maybe she is from his world. But she just performed real magic right in front of him, there's no way that's possible for people from his world to do. Someone from this world being able to use magic wasn't completely far fetched though, with all the thing's hes seen this far, but its still amazing.

"Wait, you mentioned Houdini? Houdini is from earth! Are you from there too?! How can you use magic if you're from earth?! Does that mean I can use magic too?!"

So many questions were running through his mind, he blurted them all out at once in excitement.

Vesta Celestia

Vesta had already begun to put some more distance between herself and Aleph. It would be foolish for her to allow Aleph enough space to close in and attack in close quarters. She wore no armor nor used weapons of any kind; not that she couldn't but rather she chose not to. They were crude and got in the way of her magic casting, plus she never really had any kind of ground breaking talent with such things so decided to focus on her magic.
She stared down Aleph as he stabbed his sword into the ground, despite this he did still keep a fairly on guard stance. Vesta was certainly contemplating an attack but decided to listen to whatever rabble this fool was going to let out.
A confession to her skills? About time he showed some damn respect to her. Her family had a long history of churning out some of the most powerful casters of magic in their generation, and in fact to most people Vesta was using intermediate level magic. However Aleph was correct, these were basic spells to Vesta. She had yet to be forced into a situation where she has needed to use an incantation of any level for a long time now, as her mind was already so used to them.
Her reflexes however were sharpened by her ruthless training regime as Aleph was soon about to find out as he charged, much faster than Vesta had thought the 'hero' of being capable of.
Feint or not, it didn't matter to Vesta. As Aleph closed in a wall of earth now stood between her and him, meaning his hilt would slam straight into it. At that same moment the wall of earth now fell down towards him. Or rather it seemed to more crumble then fall his way, but minor details.
"I use basic spells because you're not worthy of ones which actually require effort Mr 'Hero'." Vesta responded bluntly as the earth beneath her very feet rippled outwards towards Aleph much like a wave. While she did say that she was also not too keen on wasting time on casting her stronger spells due to Aleph's speed. She would have to stick to her weaker spells and just wear him down. He was also pretty damn lucky she didn't want to kill him, it would be a smear to the Celestia name if she did.
The same ripple also took her further back as she looked to keep her advantage. As long as she kept him out of her personal bubble, she was more than confident of beating him.

Avery Ackbar Celestia

Avery laughed triumphantly at Daisuke's reaction. He knew it, he was from his world. No one in Lugnica would be so shocked to see him summon a spirit like so. Of course if one knew how he summoned it, they would be pretty shocked. His Blessing was a rather unique one which he had never seen anyone else have.
Although he was disappointed that Daisuke didn't seem to recognise the bird. So he wasn't from Avery's home country then? Damn. Oh well....
Oh it seemed like maid girl also seemed to register the name houdini, just moments before Daisuke seemed to burst with excitement and ask a bucket load of questions at once. His reaction shocked Avery actually, making the trap blink a few times in almost disbelief.
He wasn't too sure how to react now that he knew Daisuke was from his world, and possibly Aya as well. Should he just try and brush it off as a coincidence? Or should he go ahead and tell them the truth? He could find answers...he doubted it, but he might.
He had given up on answers years ago....
"Ah...umm....well." Avery now quickly cleared his throat as he shook his hand. The bird seemed to shatter in his hand before grabbing hold of his tail in an almost nervous manner. He was nervous, but most of all he just found the tail so fluffy!
"Ah earth?...Was that what is was called? I don't quite recall." Avery responded cryptically as he seemed to be in deep thought. To be honest he couldn't remember what his world was called, but he could remember the name of his home country....
"Is there a place called Australia there? If so then the answer is yes." Avery seemed unsure of even his own answer. He was a young boy when he had come to this world after all....he couldn't quite remember everything about his old world. That and the fact that he was 11 at the time meant he hadn't learnt a whole great deal anyway. He just remembered things his father and mother liked mostly....
"Magic? Oh I lied. That wasn't magic. I'm not very good at magic unlike Lady Vesta. Something about my gate being weird, so I'm a user of the spiritual arts instead. Similar but no dice." Avery hadn't decided to mention his blessing. It was something he had discovered a year or so into his time here, after he had forged his contract with Shiro. In fact it was Shiro who had told him about his blessing. Mentioned something about her finding it strange how he seemed like a natural with spirits and that explained it or something.
The reason why he didn't mention his blessing? Vesta had ordered him not to go around telling every Tom, Dick and Harry was why. It was something which he needed to keep hidden because it was a rare and powerful gift, and some people might look to exploit it for their own gain. A reason why he wasn't meant to leave her side as well.

Nodding his head, Malakaus would follow Maria for tea and snacks. She was speaking to Ryan about something called "Fruit Loops", which Malakaus could only assume was some sort of food native to Ryan's lands. Possibly this America? Malakaus chose not to interrupt, figuring that it really didn't concern him. Though he did imagine what Fruit Loops were, and imagined various ringas and mikas sliced into nearly perfect circular rings. It seemed tasty.

Soon tea was being served, and Malakaus finished his cup in one sip. Force of habit back in the old days; one always had to eat quickly, because life came rushing at you. As he waited for a refill maria wanted to discuss something, though Malakaus was slightly confused as to whom she was speaking towards. She mentioned something about someone's aide, but Malakaus wasn't sure if he was talking to Tani or himself, considering that Atisha isn't really his helper, and he's never sent out a message that she was even with him at the time. But perhaps news simply traveled fast; Malakaus did earn a bit of a reputation for himself and Atisha helping the countryside, including villagers off to market, merchants looking to trade, and simply travelers who run into some bad luck. And no doubt that the Iron Bell Knights were more resourceful then outsiders would realize.

Figuring that Maria was talking to him, Malakaus cleared his throat and organized his thoughts. "Ahem. Yes, well firstly on the matter of my... Aide. Her name is Atisha Eluvian. She is an elf I met while I was captured by slavers. During one of my quests I had received a desperate missive that one of the village elders had their daughter kidnapped by slavers raiding in the country side. I sought them out and confronted them, doing battle with them until I realized that their own guards were slaves forced to fight against me. Not wanting to slay them I surrendered to them and endured many days of torture and hard labor at their hands. It was then that I met Atisha, who due to her elven features, was going to be used as a sex slave. We had collaborated an escape plan and she helped me get my armor back. With my armor I was able to attack the slavers without harming their slave warriors, and together we liberated the camp after killing all the slavers."

Malakaus let the story sink in for those sitting at the table. Malakaus tried his best to be honest, though he did skip over a few details like how he initially didn't care about killing slave warriors (Anyone who held a weapon against him was his enemy, regardless of circumstances) and how he was ultimately taken out by being swarmed and disarmed. That, and there were some more interesting things that happened, such was various explosions, fires, and a rather epic fight he had against the slaver master (Turns out he was also a knight who once fought against the Sword Saint and lived, though he had to run away to survive), but these things were fluff. Once his tea was refilled and subsequently drained, Malakaus continued.

"Since that day, Atisha has been quite helpful. She shows a noble spirit hidden beneath her cynical armor. While her mannerisms and attitude could use some work I believe that she has the makings of a worthy knight, and I wish to make her my squire. I have already spoken to Atisha about this and she has accepted, and thus I am here to inform you and the rest of the guards that she shall be under my watch and protection. She can be a handful, but I know that this is merely due to the circumstances of her upbringing and being unfamiliar with the noble courts. I understand that typically, taking on a squire requires no real ceremonies and that Atisha herself comes from no noble family, but I feel that it is important that I inform you nonetheless, as I intend to take her as my squire regardless of her station."

Being that Malakaus himself was a orc, born from lowly swamp nomads, who only became a knight through distinction in battle, taking an elven warrior who at least was the daughter of a village elder was slightly above his own origins. Sure she didn't have nearly as many battles underneath Malakaus's belt but that would come in due time. As his tea was refilled for a third time Malakaus also went onto more immediate business. The main reason he came to the capital in the first place, after reporting himself still among the living.

"After we had escorted the villager elder's daughter back to her home, Atisha and I had also received word of various raids on neighboring villages. We had thought that this was the work of bandits, but when we arrived we discovered that it was in fact the work of demon beasts." Malakaus looked at Ryan and Chieko at that moment, realizing that they might not know what a demon beast is. "Demon beasts are animistic monstrosities that feed on mana found in our world. Unnatural and demonic, as their name implies, they are a constant threat to our civilization. Usually each village has a great crystal that protects them from demon beasts, however we found these village had their crystals stolen. I believe that this was an intentional theft to destroy the villages and weaken Lugnica infrastructure by bleeding out their resources. So far only one village has been completely wiped out, but we know of a few more villages under threat. Thus, I and sorry to say but I shall not be here at the capital for much longer. Though I will stay the night, tomorrow morning myself and my squire shall leave for these villages and investigate the stolen crystals and the demon beast attacks."

Taking his fourth cup of tea, Malakaus stayed quiet and let everyone mull over what he said. He spoke somewhat slowly since he had quite a lot to say, and frankly had no interest in repeating himself. But there was still more to say, now that there were two new squires added to the Iron Bell Knights. "As they are under your guidance, I would also like to ask if you would be interested in having your new squires, Cheiko and Ryan, accompany myself and Atisha to these villages. I have no doubts of the dangers we will face, but if they are to become proper knights of Lugnica, they should see first hand how a knight help the people."

@ADamnFiddle@liferusher@Heckno12@Rune_Alchemist

Kyojin waited for his something sweet that he had asked for, of course he smiled away gleefully as he was damn happy they had something like a sweet treat for him! Though for the time being he would turn and look towards the others that were still talking about their world and the like, how strange that they would speak that way... they all lived in the same world did they not? With a small shrug he then drew his attention towards Avery where they removed the tail and ears that they had been wearing up to this point. Causing the giants eyes to go wide and he leaned up to take a closer look at them, wondering how they worked to make them so realistic!

"Amazing~ Metia sure work in wonderful ways now a days don't they? Haaah, once I buy this place I will have to get myself one of these... I mean not tail and ears but a metia... yeah..."

Chuckling deeply he watched as the tail and ears were placed back onto Avery's person, humming softly and then slowly looking over towards Aya where he wondered how she would look with them... However thankfully for her, and likely for him as well, his treat had been placed onto the table making him look to Yoshinobu and bowing thankfully!

"Thank you so much~! This is perfect I assure you."

Having a sweet tooth as big as a giants was normally hard on the coin purse, though fresh sweet fruit was more than good enough. Picking one of the tiny fruits between his fingers he tossed one into his mouth as if he was munching popcorn, all the while watching the magic show going on at his side. Though the excitment suddenly burst forth as they started talking about their world again, and about this houdini person, though he personally did not know him. However what he was shocked to hear is that Avery may have also been from their nation, what luck this was but something felt off about that...

"Hmmm? You are from their country? When was this? I had thought you had been around for a while? More so if you can use spiritual arts like you say. Impressive to say the least! Though.. You talk as if you do not remember much?"