I feel heavy. No, it is not me. I feel something heavy on my body, something that is sinking me. I feel a warmth on my forehead and a gentle touch on my hair.
I open my eyes and there's a guy on top of me, with his face glued to mine, our foreheads were glued together, he looked me in the eye with no expression of a reaction. I was still confused, because I had just woken up and had a man on top of me, but as soon as I realized it, I got red with embarrassment and slapped him, throwing him out of bed. With the guy's impact on the floor, all the girls wake up in the same instant.
Sanae - oh my goddess!
Rika - but what... heh? Kyaaaaah !!
Hana - huh… disgusting.
The guy quickly gets to his feet and puts his hands up like he's been through a 'magazine'.
Juzō - calm down, I can explain! My name is Juzō, I went…!!!
Without letting him finish talking, we hit him all at once with a punch making him pass out right there.
When he wakes up, he realizes he is chained to a chair and the four of us were in front of him with swords in hand. He raises his hands and puts them in a position as if he is redeeming himself.
Rika - how did he untie the ties...?
Sanae - Hana, are you sure you arrested him?
Hana - why am I...?
Sanae - you are the strongest.
Hana - what?!
I go to him myself and tie him up again with three sailor ties. I finish and go in front of you and fold my arms while looking into your eyes.
Emilia - who are you? And what do you want with us?
He frees himself from the bonds and gets to his feet, on top of that, dusting off his shoulder, like a mockery.
Juzō - uhum!… Well, my name is Juzō and it's not really about you, it's about you, Baldric.
Sanae - "Baldric"? Who is "baldric"? You broke into the wrong room, boy. Come back another day.
Emilia - he's talking about me, sanae. And what do you want with me?
Juzō - the subject itself is private. But a friend of the hunter's elite wants to see you.
Those words reminded me of my real goal to become a hunter, I longed to be the strongest, for this to become a reality, I would have to learn from the best how to be the best of all. I aim to become the strongest to protect the weak, this is my real goal from the beginning, to find this man of the elite of hunters must take me to another level, I will have to do that.
Emília - right... Girls stay here. Take care of the house.
Rika - do you think we're a dog or what?
Emília - eh… Don't mess up, see you later! Come on, perverted sir!
Juzō - I'm not a "lord" or a "pervert".
We leave the room and start to follow him. Meanwhile:
Sanae - so... Emilia's last name is "baldric"... wow.
Rika - are you her best friend and didn't know her name? You suck.
Sanae - it was an accident!!
Returning to me, I continued to follow that boy who took me to a place that I had no idea where it was, on his back there was a wooden staff hanging.
Emilia - why... Why did you have your face pressed to mine...?
Juzō - I already said that you are not "sir", I am only 25 years old. And I just wanted to know who the person my friend wanted to see so much and why he was interested in you. And to be honest, you have nothing special for me, you seem to be weaker than anyone here on this basis.
Emília - I know that that punch I gave you must have hurt, but I didn't need to say that.
Juzō - I am a man who believes in "everything that goes, comes back" at one time or another you would have to pay, or I would have to cut my wrist.
Emilia - yuck...!
And when I least realize it, we arrive. The place was still within the hunters' base, but far from everything, in a place that I had not yet visited at the base. There was a large wall almost three meters high made of bricks, with a large wooden gate. Above the gate there was a plaque, on that plaque it was written: "Akiyoshi Academy". As soon as I enter, I notice that everything there, the wooden floors and walls, the garden right in the center of the house. Everything in itself was in the style of ancient Japan, it was as if it were a kind of temple here or the home of an important family from ancient times. In the center of the garden there was someone, a big, big man and a big gray beard, this man was supported by a huge dark shield with blue details, behind him was a cherry tree a little bigger than that man. The closer I got to that man, the more I could see that in the pupils of his eyes there was nothing, nothing but a huge void.
Aoba - so are you "Emilia"...? He expected more than one newcomer who defeated a shadow wizard. I'm Akiyoshi Aoba, it's a pleasure to meet you… Baldric.
Face to face with that man, I was almost speechless. That gentleman transmitted a look from someone who has witnessed countless deaths and suffered countless pains, those eyes were cold, they were full of bravery and made everyone afraid to look.
Emília - I am… It's me!
Aoba - um... Juzō, thank you very much for bringing her here, you can leave.
Juzō says goodbye and leaves the house through the front door. I was nervous and didn't even know why. He lifts his shield and drives it hard.
Aoba - first beat a professional hunter in less than 1 day...
He starts walking through the garden, putting his shield aside as he speaks.
Aoba - later won by a user of 'Moon Light'.
He begins to look closely at the cherry leaves, a leaf falls and lands in his hand.
Aoba - then killed a shadow wizard who had enough capacity to summon a demon.
He turns his face and looks directly at me with a scary look.
Aoba - but after all, who are you?
Every word that came out of his mouth sounded like a sharp spear going through me, everything he said about me was a fact, most of my deeds were questionable. "Who are you?" how will I answer that question, I am what I am, I am a girl who was born with a bone disease, but over time I overcame this barrier, falls several times, got up several times, there were moments in my life that I felt it was the end, and even in those moments I stayed alive, what I can answer for him is that I am a normal girl, with normal problems, with a somewhat cliché objective.
Emília - Mister Aoba, maybe that is not the answer you are looking for or the one you want to hear right now, but all I am is a normal girl, with the same goal as any hunter on that base.
He hands the cherry leaf in his hands like an act of fury, with long, heavy steps he pulls his shield from the ground and walks angrily towards me.
Aoba - you know very well that I'm not talking about that! You're hiding something, and you're going to tell me what it is or I'll have to...!
Before he could complete the sentence, a huge one could be heard coming from a place not so far away.
Aoba - but what was that?
A great ray of light falls over the temple of Lord Aoba, but before that light consumes me, Aoba appears right in front of me and points his shield upwards, defending us. In moments that ray of light consumed the whole place, leaving only a vast field and destruction, the small place we were in was the only thing left of grass in your garden, that shield was really strong, and could withstand such an attack. But, after all, what was this sudden attack?
He removes the shield from both of us, when he removes it he realizes the state of his whole house that was destroyed by the explosion and collapses in fury. Furious, he faces the sky, in the same direction that I also looked with a certain fear. In the sky there was someone who emerged from the skies, someone with white robes and light blue hair that highlights the wind, his eyes are golden and his white skin highlights him, his appearance reminded me constantly of the story of Sun and Moon, and about the tale of the Moon and its fight against the twelve sons of the Sun, just remembering that, soon concluded that that being was nothing more than one of the Twelve who was watching us attentively, it was as if it were the look of an eagle staring at the poor mice.
To be continued…