Butcher's Graffiti

With 15 years pa.s.sed, there was now only rumors about the warrior"s ident.i.ty. Few knew of his past endeavors, and to them the man followed the path of infamy.

The issue easily made it to the headlines. With the fall of the Hovarin Kingdom, a number of inquiries arose against its allies. The Ellenoir Republic, The Higher Realm of Yggdrasil, and the United Northern Coalitions were in a hot seat.

The Orophrus Empire had neutral relationships with these three but had been at friendly terms with the humans of the Hovarin Kingdom, even allowing trade to flow from either sides. It was a well-known fact that the Empire monopolized the eastern ports ever since its founding 60 years ago, forcing the other nations to initiate trade and follow along the Empire"s favor.

This, of course, brought great prosperity to Oroprhus"s lands and boosted their already abnormal growth rate as a nation. It launched them to top of the food chain and eventually reached the status of "Empire" after a.s.similating the surrounding lands.

All this was possible with the help of three main factors.

The ingenuity of technological advancements in military weapons and strategies that was solely led by the "Undead Cardinal", the High General Phillis D. Vladimir.

The iron grip keeping everything under control in the chain of command with overflowing charismatic influence. She manages this ma.s.sive empire with flawless leadership and wit. "The Blind Terror", Empress Amirabeth Elle Von Masquirada Orophrus.

And lastly, the trump card. He bears many other names and aliases such as The Monster Lapdog, The Empire"s Phantom Soldier, Orophrus"s Boogeyman, Ignitia"s Wielder, Regenerator, etc.

But only one truly described his brutal nature, "The Devil"s Butcher". One man was able to keep at bay 6 nations and prevent invasions with his presence alone. "Catastrophe Cla.s.s Elite Knight", Nikolai Elliot.

With these three, the Orophrus Empire was dubbed "Monster Country".

Furthermore. With the previously mentioned countries missing in action and the Empire stealing their thunder, they"ve unintentionally brought suspicions on the allegiance"s legitimacy and damaged the reputation of the other sovereigns.

The Church of Totheph, a theocratic monarchy that has religious influence from all over the continent, had a different take on the matter. They accused the Empire to begin with, stating that they manipulated the situation to eliminate a compet.i.tor in the eastern resources and gain credit for it at the same time.

Yet no matter what allegations were spat out, no movement occured. News of the Butcher"s return had caught everyone"s attention.

Some rejoiced and some despaired because after 15 years of temporary tranquility, the wheels of power have decided to move once again.

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Officer Rovan Quill couldn"t thank his lucky stars enough. Five days had pa.s.sed since the Ghoul Swarm Incident and he was currently attending the funeral that"s being held for the 225 soldiers who lost their lives in battle.

There was so much guilt that lingered in his heart and it made him hate himself. He felt disgusted at his cowardice and his incapability in the field. Though it was his first time in legitimate combat, Rovan knew he could"ve done better if only he wasn"t such a wimp.

Yet he also thought that if he had been a slightest bit braver, he would be in one of those caskets right now.

The ceremony was being held at the flowery Fields of Audrin. It didn"t look like a cemetery at all if it weren"t for the tombstones, with radiant yellow flowers all over whisked away with a pleasant wind.

Races of all kinds mourned their dead. Orophrus was a country that cared little to none about racial distinction, thus attracting settlers from all over Verochka.

"Us humans lucked out at this one." said Rodrick as stood beside Rovan. They both wore army trenchcoats but the Major had a black one instead of royal blue, which is for officers.

"Sir!"

"At ease...you were the guy who suddenly went ballistic when we were defending the castle, no?"

"Ah, please excuse my actions. That was really embarra.s.sing."

"Oh, don"t get me wrong. It was a dire opportunity to raise morale and your warcry gave everyone the will to go on."

"I-Is that so." Rovan took note of the unexpected reactions his yelling led to, thinking to be more careful next time.

"Like I said, the elven squadron together with the shades of the Alchemical Division were sent ahead."

"Well I have seen them in action, sir. I was there at Askal sent as the Crown"s conduit and I was able to witness their battle prowess at firsthand. Sad to say, but we humans could never compare."

Both men had a tinge self-pity.

"Elves with first-cla.s.s marksmanship and high affinity in all kinds of Mystic Arts, Shades boasting fine-tuned abilities in close-quarters and that phenomenal skills in alchemic engineering and weaponry.

Where does that leave us? Farming? Pack mule? maybe footsoldiers? " Rodrick"s words stabbed at Rovan, unintentionally inducing an even more despondent atmosphere.

"...then there"s that monster of a man."

Their eyes fell on the three-meter giant carrying a little girl on his shoulder. Unlike everybody else, he wore a sleeveless leather vest with linings of fur and inside he wore simple cotton black shirt that barely hid his monstrous build.

"Is that his child?" Rovan thought out loud.

"Beats me. The size doesn"t match exactly. Haha."

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Seffa noticed these two men in the distance with their mocking thoughts. Her telepathic abilities to hear thoughts and read minds was an inborn gift, but that"s not all.

"Hmph!" she pouted.

An invisible force seemed to knock the hats of both men off and had the wind carry it away, leaving the two gents to their wits as they chased along.

"Seffa." Nikolai was aware of his daughter"s Psychic abilities, and he didn"t fail to notice how she used it to subtly mess with the soldiers from afar.

"They weren"t nice! They were making fun of you! Even though you saved them!"

"Yes, but...not a...reason. Mustn"t... abuse... powers." he whispered as much as he could to keep his big voice from disturbing the ceremony.

"Okay~... I"m sorry, Papà." she mumbled, burying her face on Nikolai"s hair.

u003c"Silly child."u003e he thought, feeling flowery.

It was nice windy day and with the venue being close to the sea, the breeze kept them cool. Seffa was wearing a brown little dress with silk frills, a pair of black dollshoes with knee high socks, and yellow ribbons that kept her curly locks in a pigtail.

It was the many gifts that Bastian had given her after finding out that all she had were rough coats made of beast fur and unrefined cotton garments. The old man was devasted, stating about how such the young lady had terribly suffered from her lack of girly clothings.

So he emptied about three boutiques.

"Papà! The pretty elf chick is looking for us."

Nikolai flinched at those words.

"C-Chick?...where did...you learn...that word?" he asked as his mind raced, thinking about what other new vulgar words his little cherub had learned.

"Uncle Phiris did! He also showed me around the castle, including the dark underground dungeon! It was really fun. There"s so many hidden places and contraptions!!" she said gleefuly as she braided her father"s hair.

u003c"Tsk! That G.o.dd.a.m.n bat and his profanities! And teaching it to my dear daughter nonetheless?! He even took her to that accursed sewer dungeon! The gall!"...Ohh I"m gonna crush his b.a.l.l.s when we get back."u003e Nikolai sighed, pinching his nose.

Seffa just giggled as she finished braiding yet another strand.

u003c"Wait, were about 2 cities away from the castle. How did she...?"u003e the thought crossed his mind, to which Seffa answered.

"Mr. Bastian is here. I heard him."

"...hmph. Good." he felt content at the growth his daughter was showing.

.

Evening had settled in by the time they reached the Inner City of Fritz. Unlike what they had previously witnessed, the streets were now bustling with people and multiple stalls were selling all kinds of treats. There was celebration and festivities all over.

"Perhaps you weren"t informed, but the citizens, specially those in the inner citties, have quite the nightlife. Well, I have to admit that it"s a tad bit more blithesome than the usual." Bastian remarked as they pa.s.sed through the wide road.

Seffa"s eyes were glued to the stalls as they pa.s.sed by, shining with interest. She had never seen such things in her life and all of it seemed like so much fun.

Bastian and Nikolai exchanged a few facial gestures and came to an agreement.

"Should we...stop by?"

"CAN WE?! PLEASE PAPÀ EVERYTHING IS SO BRIGHT AND COLORFUL AND FUN AND AMAZING!!! PLEASE PAPÀ! EVEN FOR JUST A QUICK LOOK—"

"Of course!...of course." she was getting wild inside the coach, running around in glee as she tried to come up with any reason to go, until Nikolai picked her up and carried her on his arms.

"Thank youuu!! Thank you! Thank you! THANK YOU PAPÀÀÀÀ!!!" she hugged him, trying to grasp at his frame and jumping up to give him kisses.

The stalls were situated on the sidewalks of the main road and as a result, the traffic had gotten quite slow and most transports took another route. Everyone was free to walk around and see the sights.

Candied fruits, fried goods, jello, whitebread, wafers, etc. There were even diffirent games for children and adults alike. Toys were everywhere, from wooden swords and wands to bouncey springs and balloons.

Seffa was in heaven.

She dragged the two men around the place and by the time they"ve visited every stall, Nikolai and Bastian had to balance food cups on their heads while Seffa was having the time of her life.

Nikolai was the center of attention for a while as everyone cleared the path wherever he stepped foot as they had to chase the little miss around. He also tried his best to lighten the steps he"d made as to not further disturb the neighborhood.

But like the child she was, Seffa couldn"t finish eating everything they"ve bought and ended up just tasting each of it before falling asleep.

Bastian heartily laughed and Nikolai sighed in defeat as they were forced to eat the leftovers.

Despite the noisy and lively crowd, Nikolai didn"t miss that split-second ooze of killing intent. He didn"t react immediately and stayed put, acting like he didn"t notice whilst finishing a tub of mint ice-cream. His eyes scanned the surroundings as his senses enveloped the place.

"Bastian...take Seffa. Go ahead...bathroom." he said as an excuse.

"Certainly, sir. Should I procure you"re weapons?" it seems the butler noticed as well.

"...no need. Matros!" he whispered. Nikolai"s shadow moved at an unnatural angle as two red eyes observed from it, a low rumble sounding.

GRRRR

They stood up at the same time, walking in different directions. Nikolai walked away after disposing of their trash while Bastian disappeared with the young miss in tow, blurring out of sight after casting a protective enchantment called the Cradle Spell on Seffa while carrying her like a baby.

.

The sudden split movement had disoriented them for a second with the butler"s vanishing act, their target however was still in sight. Multiple shadowy figures lurked in rooftops, trailing closely behind. The crowd was unaware of the present danger and the pursuers meant for it to stay that way as they moved as nimbly as possible.

Nikolai had walked quite the distance, far enough that the festival"s noise was but a whisper. After confirming that he was alone with his pursuers, he made a sharp turn in a dark alleyway.

The moon was bright that night, creating a lot of opportunities to escape. They barely missed an unnatural shadow a.s.similating into the building"s own shadow. In their perspective, it was baffling for such a large man to just suddenly disappear.

Signals were made to spread out and blanket the surrounding area to see where the target had gone. Their leader was awaiting responses when suddenly three different locations sent affirmations of sighting at the same time, confusing them as to how he could appear in multiple places.

They decided to regroup and gather to discuss what to do when the leader noticed 5 of his men missing. He"d brought 24 a.s.sa.s.sins with him to follow the target but now he was left with less.

"He knows! Arm yourselves!" He calmly commanded, instigating the remaining men to instantly move into formation. All sides were guarded as they prepared to intercept at any possible moment.

The chilly night air p.r.i.c.kled the back of their necks as the situation grew tenser.

A minute felt like an hour, their eyes darting left and right following the subtle lines that seemed to play about in their peripherals.

The a.s.sa.s.sins have become hunted.

"Don"t move...or...he dies." the deep guttural voice left their souls frozen in place.

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