" Go home and get some rest! Come back tomorrow and we can begin. "
Sent out of the shop with those words, I closed the shop's door behind me before turning back around. And right there waiting for me had been that same vendor from before—again calling out to me.
" Hey, kiddo! I see you're done with your business! "
Before he could get another word out, I made a sharp turn, wanting to head home already.
" Oh come on, Oni-boy. I've got something that'll interest you. "
His words were laced with a certain kind of venom that gripped you. Curiosity began to take hold of my actions and I turned slightly in his direction. As I did, I felt a rattle at my back, right where Utanna had been hilted.
" Be careful. "
That was all it said before I turned around a bit more, looking toward him.
" What is it? Make it quick. "
" Now I've got your attention—I've got something you Oni seem to love. "
" And tell me...what would that happen to be, huh? "
If I played it all off as if I already knew what he had been talking about, I could get him to reveal whatever it was easily. Of course, I didn't have a clue what he could be referring to. After all, I had only just learned of my heritage as an Oni to begin with.
" Nothing too special...Just an 'Evolution Core' "
'Evolution core...?'
My thoughts began to pick up speed. What was that? However, before I could waste any more time on it—Utanna was quick to speak up.
" Listen, kid, if he's telling the truth...it may be in your best interest to get that core. "
" What is it? "
I had to speak under my breath, speaking so low it wasn't even a whisper. Just barely intelligible mumbling.
" It's taken from monster-beasts. Creatures that are born from residual negative emotions, things you really wouldn't want to get caught weaponless by. "
" Right... "
It seems Utanna hears me just fine.
" The Evolution Cores inside of them, when exposed to enough of whatever emotion birthed them...be it fear, anger, or even sadness from whoever they're fighting or surrounded by, cause them to evolve, become far stronger, and much meaner. Those cores allow Demonic beings to severely strengthen their Vitality. "
I had begun to understand. If an Oni like myself, someone who would one day thrive from Vitality usage, was to get an early start...
" What do you want for it? I can't imagine it's free. "
After processing that information, I inquired.
" I knew you'd bite. It's simple, I need you to kill something for me. I saw you coming out of that blacksmith's and I see you've got yourself a little knife. You aren't too old...but you're still an Oni. "
" Little knife... "
Utanna grumbled but I placed my hand over the sheath as if trying to silence it.
" Kill what, exactly? I won't do anything with half-assed details. "
" A monster-beast. It's been a real pain in my backside constantly destroying my supplies. It's just off the main road leading into the city. Kill it and bring back some proof...and the core...is yours. "
I didn't know how rare a core was...Nor did I have any way of measuring just how strong this monster-beast could be. However, almost as if just upon hearing the mention of a battle, a smile crept up on my face. I could feel the edges of my mouth tilting upward, a gnarly grin probably resting upon my visage.
I looked at the vendor and nodded slightly.
" I'll do it. But if you try to weasel out of giving me the core... "
I gripped the hilt of Utanna, slowly pulling the blade out.
" Woah woah woah! Cool your jets, kiddo! Wouldn't dream of it! "
He backed up, sweating profusely as he reached into his back pocket, pulling out an orb that began to glow when the sun hit it. That must've been the core. Good to know.
I turned away from him and continued my walk, pulling my hood more. I kept my eyes lower, now knowing the true meaning of them. Just like before, I moved through the crowd with ease and finesse, easily popping right out the other end and dipping into the alleyway that led to the tavern.
It wasn't that long of a day...but...I was beginning to feel quite winded after all that information being dumped onto my head. Not to mention the sudden request for a monster-beast subjugation.
Opening the door to the tavern and walking in felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I could relax a bit more. However, right as I walked in, I was greeted with the chest of my doting mother, latching onto my face as she used all her might to squeeze me as close as possible, beginning to suffocate me.
" Oh, where have you been?! "
" M-mother...Get...off me! "
I struggled to push her back, her strength was overwhelming at times like these. Though, once she latched onto me I realized why.
" Aura...? "
Suddenly she stopped gripping onto me. She stepped back for a moment, her hands now holding onto my shoulders as she looked at me. Her eyes were a bit wide, looking into my dark pupils.
" What did you say...? "
" I said alright! Like—enough grabbing! "
I immediately could tell something was up. My mother had never told me anything about myself and I had never heard the word before at all. It must've been a shock to her that I knew what it was. I didn't want to worry her or have her stick her nose in anything so I quickly broke free from her hold by ducking under her and dashing toward the stairs in the back.
" I-I'm tired, mother! Gonna get some rest! "
She looked at me with some concern but I couldn't see her anymore once I bolted up the stairs. Though, I stopped just out of sight and listened for a moment. A few people in the tavern teased my mother, suggesting it was time to let her "little boy" grow up a bit.
I didn't feel like listening to them anymore so I went and retreated to my room, making sure to duck below Ragnor's view in case he had been in his office. Once I made it to my room, I swiftly shut and locked the door, letting a sigh of relief drop from my mouth.
" What a hassle... "
" Your mother sure is doting. "
" Tell me about it. "
After exchanging a few words with Utanna, I grabbed it from my holster, set it down on the bed, and sat in front of it, thinking now.
" Hey, kid, about that monster-beast..."
" Yeah? "
" I should let you know it's illegal to hunt them without a permit. "
What?!
" Now you tell me?! "
How did Utanna even know something like that?
" I knew if I told you before you'd react like that. "
" Well, too late to say sike now... "
" Exactly. You'll just have to sneak out tonight and get it over with. "
" Yeah...tonight. "
'Yeah...tonight. Wait. Tonight?!'
Utanna wanted me to sneak out of the tavern, head outside the city, kill a monster, and be back before anyone catches on in one night.
" Impossible. Even if I made it out of the tavern, how would I get out of the city? I've never even been more than 20 minutes away from the tavern—let alone outside the entire city! "
For a moment there was silence between us both. At first, I thought it was Utanna realizing just how foolish its plan was.
" I didn't want to go ahead and further your training since we just started...but you need that core. "
" What're you talking about? "
It seems I was far too optimistic. Damn.
" There's a skill you could learn. Luckily you have a high affinity for Vitality. Otherwise, I wouldn't dream of teaching you this so soon. Doing this wrong could have adverse effects…"
" Enough with drawing it out! Out with it already—what's the skill do? "
" I'll have to explain from the beginning how Vitality works to explain the skill itself. I expect you to clean out your ears and listen, kid. "
I hated having this sort of exposition dumped on me. But...there wasn't any helping it if I didn't know a thing.
" Vitality has a sort of universal system: Emotion equates to Power. When a Demonic being unleashes their Vitality, a specific emotion they feel most often is brought to the surface and their Vitality will engulf them. Now, there are those with the ability to produce an elemental or mystical effect from their Vitality with enough training. "
" So...what is it you want me to do with mine? "
" You're going to not only draw out your Vitality in one go, but you're also going to use a special stealth skill known as: 'Void Step'. "
" …'Void Step'...? What's that? "
It sounded like some sort of movement skill, the context clues coming from the step in the name told me that. But I still couldn't get a grasp on what it did.
" It's a skill made to erase your emotions. And by erasing your emotions while still enveloping yourself in Vitality, your presence will be extremely hard to perceive for anyone not familiar with it. Even your footsteps will lose their sound. "
That sort of ability sounded like something straight out of some sort of fantasy novel. Though, I would suppose my whole new life is something right out of a novel. I thought about the logistics of how it worked or how it was developed and for a moment, I felt like I was getting somewhere.
" There's no point in reading too much into it. There are all sorts of mystical effects Vitality can bring about. It's a power of the 'Underworld'. Not even I know the full extent of it. "
Underworld? I was a bit agitated that it wouldn't let me think on it for any longer but it made sense. Especially considering…But I had no time to waste. I grumbled as I thought about the fact that I'd have to forcefully use Vitality, the same thing that caused raging pain to fill my entire body at times.
I grabbed at the cuff on my left wrist and immediately unhooked it. It wasn't long before I did it with the right wrist and both ankles.
" Hey! Let me finish! "
" No point. I have to do it either way to use the skill, don't I? "
Utanna stopped talking, letting me continue.
I had done it so fast with the intention of not giving myself time to begin to feel the pain. Though, it was unusual that I didn't feel it right away anyway.
" Usually I'd feel it right about no- "
In the middle of my sentence, a surge of pain went through me. It caused me to hunch over, almost falling to the ground. I clutched at my chest, the pain welling up in my heart. I looked up toward Utanna, feeling my brain seemingly split in two. My hand inched forward toward the dagger, wanting to hold it to alleviate the pain. However, I halted.
" That's right, Raksha. If you want to use this skill—you'll have to endure. Think only about one emotion. One you resonate with strongly. "
But that was easier said than done, was all I could think. Flashes of instances from my previous life came about in an attempt to hone in on any emotions I've felt before. And almost immediately, I was assaulted with the frustration I felt when I grew to be much bigger than my classmates in grade school. The anger I bottled up when I was kicked off my middle school basketball team for fighting even though it wasn't even my fault. And the rage I couldn't help but harbor toward teachers who looked at me like some sort of delinquent...
And this horrific pain...welling up inside of me showing no signs of stopping...
All this anger...
It created a reaction within me that reflected out onto my surroundings. A flaming aura of red came bursting from within, sending shockwaves out toward everything in my room. A shelf had been knocked over, my desk slammed into the wall, and my bed's blanket would have flown right off if not for Utanna sitting atop it, weighing it down.
My fists clenched. I was still in so much pain. And now I was pissed. Angrier than I had ever been in my entire life. I wanted to take it out on anyone, it didn't matter who!
I stepped forward, a crack appearing in the floorboards beneath me. I reached for the window I was facing, grabbing at it, threatening to open it. I looked out, staring at people who walked the streets as the sun began to set.
Something deep and primal within me wanted to rip them apart. Spread their innards across the ground and stomp in it.
I wanted someone else to feel the same pain I felt!
" This kid...he's... "
I could faintly hear Utanna's voice behind me. But a stupid dagger wouldn't help me get rid of this anger. The hatred I felt toward the world and everyone in it could only be expelled by tearing them all to shreds.
" Kid- no, Raksha! The only way you'll get rid of that pain—that anger...is if you look inside yourself! Think about only what allowed you to look past that anger! If you don't, you'll destroy everything around you! And you'll never learn Void Step! "
Inside myself? What was there about me to look at? I was a rough bastard—a delinquent who got into fights and squandered his only passion.
But...Even so...There were some times I wasn't so mad...right? And there were people around me who...looked at me fondly. Even though I had been such a bastard sometimes...Yeah...
Those guys...
Suddenly, as I thought about each of their faces, a shining glow took over my right arm. A pattern appeared on my arm, shining golden. They were...my old tattoos. Back when I was Ryota Kurogane. As I thought about them and my old name, I suddenly found I wasn't so angry anymore.
I had gotten those tattoos because of them. My friends. They were a reminder that even though I was a bastard...I still had people on my side.
" You're talented, kid. Way too talented. "
I heard Utanna now, unlike before when the voice was muffled by the rage. Turning away from the window, I looked at the destruction of my room. It wasn't ravaged but...certainly a mess. Walking in Utanna's direction, I immediately noticed something.
" My footsteps— "
" That's right. They're gone. You already learned how to use Void Step, Raksha. "
My footsteps being inaudible weren't the only thing I noticed. My arms felt light, my body felt nimble. And...I wasn't in pain anymore.
" By letting out all your Vitality in one violent burst, you reigning in your anger that much allowed you to reach some sort of complete null state. Suffice to say, I've never seen anything like it. Whatever you thought of...must've been quite calming. "
I raised my right arm, looking at it. The shining glow began to fade and the markings left once more. And now instead of a red aura surrounding me, it was more of a gray and muted color, almost like a mist surrounding my body.
" Just some friends of mine. That's all. "
" You're telling me you have friends? "
" ... "
It seemed as though Utanna hadn't seen that glow from before. But even I wasn't sure what it was in truth...So I didn't bring it up. After Utanna's surprisingly sharp comment, I was surprised to find I felt not much of anything. Not even a lick of agitation with the dagger. Was this Void Step? Utanna did say that Vitality brought the emotions to the surface...Void Step must be subduing them. That was my thought process on it.
" I'm surprised...you're holding it for that long. "
I looked toward Utanna, confused.
" Oh. I guess you wouldn't know. Vitality skills drain quite a lot of energy. And if you couldn't tell from the name, Vitality's like your life energy. Drain too much of it and you'll begin to feel winded and eventually knock right out. But you? Seems like you've got way more than normal. "
" So what you're saying is...I'm special? "
" Yeah. But we already knew that, didn't we? "
" Right. "
I reached toward Utanna, grabbing onto its hilt. I closed my eyes, slowly letting the Aura in Utanna flow into me, causing my Vitality to balance out with Aura once more. This caused the Void Step I had been using to cancel out, the misty aura dissipating.
" I've got until sunset to get a hang of it. Then we head out. "
" Exactly. And this time I don't think you'll have to draw your Vitality out in such a violent way again. Simply think about reaching that same calm state you were in before. "
Now, having learned how to use Vitality that caused me so much pain, I'd finally be able to take some more control of my life. Utanna spoke about helping me out...but I didn't expect it to be so soon.
Nonetheless, the next goal was set: Kill that monster-beast.
CHAPTER 6 END