"I've been dying to face you, Conan! We still haven't settled the score from the first day we met."
"I remember it was Ghislaine who hit you, so why do you have a problem with me?"
"Shut up, don't play dumb!"
Hearing Goon-woo's angry words made me chuckle. We both got into position, ready to begin.
Since I didn't see Goon-woo take out a weapon at any point, I thought he would fight with his bare hands. But before the fight began, he took out a small, thick stick which, when he pressed a button, extended vertically, forming a spear.
"Begin!"
Anna shouted, clapping loudly.
Without waiting a second, I lunged at Goon-woo, throwing one of my axes at him. Just as I thought, it was easily deflected by his weapon, and he then stretched out and lunged directly at my body. I had to jump to the side to avoid it, breaking my balance. Goon-woo then jumped and began to spin in the air, hitting me with the stick of his spear, which threw me several meters backwards.
"Did Adhel teach you how to do that, or was it the elders?"
I asked with a smile, holding the spot where I had been hit. Answering my question, I saw Adhel give Goon-woo a thumbs up.
"Don't look away!"
he shouted, lunging at me and making several quick lunges. All of them were aimed at my limbs. Fortunately, I moved much faster than his weapon, jumping back in small steps. His hasty attack had caused him to lose his concentration on his surroundings, so I grabbed the axe that had fallen to the ground and slashed his shoulder.
"How far can that thing stretch!?"
He shouted, clutching his shoulder. A large amount of blood was pouring from his wound.
Now that he had lost his concentration, I took the opportunity to lunge again, giving myself a little boost with a jump to connect a direct knee to his stomach.
Hearing his groan of pain was enough to know that the blow had been effective. I successively dropped both axes, only to grab his face and give him a strong headbutt.
Unfortunately, the blow affected us both, so we fell to the ground together.
"Agh... this hurts..."
Hearing my complaint, Anna came over to me and patted me on the head. It felt like a hammer blow because of the pain.
"Where does your urge to headbutt come from? You did it many years ago and suffered just the same."
"I've only done it twice in my entire life..."
I said, standing up and walking over to Goon-woo to help him up.
"Wasn't it Cedric who took that hit?"
Goon-woo asked, pointing his finger at where Cedric and the others were.
"Huh? Was it Cedric?"
"Yeah, my head still shakes from time to time."
Well, I don't remember much about that day. Maybe it's a side effect of the headbutt... I should stop doing that.
"Hey, anyone else want a turn?"
I asked, hoping that Ghislaine and Adhel would be encouraged to participate in these little duels.
"No, I'm too tired. Let's go get something to eat quickly. Anna and I have to sign up for this guild, and the paperwork will take a while,"
Ghislaine said, shaking her head. She then turned around and walked toward the guild, followed by Anna.
"I, on the other hand, have no desire to lose to you again,"
said Adhel, turning around and following Cedric, who was leading the way.
"You're such a killjoy. Anyway, we have to plan where we're going to go, Conan."
Goon-woo said, putting his hand on my shoulder, before moving ahead and following the others.
"That's true."
Changing the subject... I have no idea what the others think, but since this day arrived, I've had a bad feeling. I didn't want to say anything for fear of worrying the others.
I didn't want to dwell on it, so I just shook my head and pushed those thoughts away, while trying not to let my face reflect my thoughts.
<<<---Pov ******--->>>
"My lady, here is the report you requested."
So you brought it already. It's good that your speed at work is incredible.
"What information did the mercenaries gather?"
"Not much. The magical creatures were mostly eradicated, which allowed for easier access to the mines."
Magic crystal mines don't usually attract the attention of magical creatures since they haven't been exposed for very long. It's extremely rare for magical creatures to have gathered in the mines only a week after they were exposed.
"Only recently have the mines begun to attract the attention of magical creatures, after more than 10 years..."
My servant nodded in agreement with my words, before adding.
"Everything seems to indicate that the destruction of that small village on the border with the kingdom of Kaldren was not a natural event."
That's obvious, after verifying all the information that has been gathered so far. The problem arises when we verify that the town was a major trading hub for adventurers; the guilds should not have ignored something like this.
"...I hope you'll excuse my rudeness, but don't you think it's excessive to have spent more than 10 years trying to find the culprit, just for a friend?"
Before the servant could react, several tentacles emerged from under the table that separated him from me, lifting him into the air and gripping his neck tightly.
"I don't want to hear another word from you. Get lost,"
I ordered, before releasing him and letting him fall to the floor, visibly shaken and struggling to breathe.
"Y-yes, my lady,"
he said, clutching his neck. He turned and left the office, leaving me alone again.
"How dare you call him 'friend'? That person who made my broken soul feel for the first time..."
His face is still reflected wherever I look. Even after more than a decade has passed, I still vividly remember his dirty cheeks, his tousled hair, and his smile... How much longer will it be without seeing you, Conan...
**********
That day I was sitting in the carriage, looking out the window at the town where we had recently settled in search of an inn. Originally, it was just a normal stop to buy some things like food, but encountering a Trent had completely destroyed our original route after killing one of our horses.
"Hey! What are you doing there?"
Suddenly, a dark blond-haired boy knocked on the carriage window, giving me a big surprise. This caused the cloth covering my face to flutter. I had to hurry to hold it down so it wouldn't slip off, hoping that my face hadn't been seen. The guards who were guarding me had the task of not letting anyone pass. It seems they can't even complete such an easy task.
I ignored the boy who kept knocking on the window, turning my back on him in an attempt to make him understand my intention to ignore him. But contrary to that, he remained outside, knocking on the window as if he wanted to break it.
With no other option, I kicked the door open, surprising the boy and causing him to fall from where he was holding on.
"Stop bothering me,"
I said, looking at him sternly.
"Hey, let's play. It's really boring to stay there alone, isn't it? Besides, what's on your face? I can't see anything."
"The point is that you can't see anything,"
I replied, stretching to grab the door handle and close it.
Again, annoyingly, the boy stopped the door and stood in front of me.
"Don't lock yourself in, come on, let's play!"
I was already preparing my fist, ready to hit him. But doing something even more irresponsible, he took my hand and pushed me out of the carriage, causing us both to fall to the ground with a thud.
"Ouch, that hurt..."
"This is your fault,"
I said, looking up at him. I quickly noticed that his gaze was fixed on my face, which indicated that something was wrong. When I touched my face, I noticed that the fabric covering it had been lifted, revealing my face.
Oh great... another child will cry when they see me.
My face had been born with a noticeable malformation in my mouth. The corners of my lips stretched to my molars, the opposite of what you usually see, closed at the front teeth.
But against all odds, the boy just stared at me before reaching out and touching my mouth. Obviously, I hit him, preventing him from touching me.
"Wow... your mouth is much bigger than mine."
"It's not big,"
I said, returning the cloth to its previous place.
"Really? But mine isn't like that. Does that mean you can eat more? Or maybe you're like one of the plants the mayor grows?"
The boy didn't stop talking, so I decided to shut him up by putting my hand over his mouth.
"Shut up,"
I ordered him, before letting go and walking toward the carriage.
Before I could set foot inside, something hard hit my head. When I turned around, I saw that a stone had been thrown by the blond boy, who looked away as if he were innocent.
I decided to ignore him, turning around and continuing on my way. But the boy didn't give up, throwing another small stone at the carriage.
"You're tiring me,"
I said, picking up the stones that had been on the ground before throwing them back at him.
Against all odds, the boy moved quickly, dodging each of the stones with a mocking smile.
"Wow... You have terrible aim."
His words provoked something in me for the first time, making me feel angry. So, seeing a small mound of dirt out of the corner of my eye, I decided to pick up some and throw it at him.
Again, it was useless, as he easily dodged it. Only to stick his tongue out at me and laugh in my face.
"How useless..."
Those few words made my anger reach its peak, causing me to lunge at the boy. But he moved like a worm, dodging every attempt to catch him.
"Stay still!"
"Come on, come on, catch me!"
My teeth gnashed for the first time as I lunged at the boy in an attempt to catch him.
**********
The memory of my first emotion, along with the first time we met, brought a small smile to my face. It was interrupted by the entrance of a woman with purple, wavy hair, extremely beautiful and delicate.
"Mother,"
I said, standing up to greet her.
"You smiled again. Did you remember your friend?"
I nodded at her words before guiding her to another room next to the office. Inside was a table full of beauty products, with a mirror set up so you could see yourself clearly.
"You have no idea how happy I am that you felt that, daughter."
Although my mother's words might seem tender and loving, her tone was devoid of any emotion. There was a reason for all this.
"Sit down, mother."
I guided her to the chair in front of the table. From there, I picked up a comb and began to run it gently through her hair, trying to remove any tangles.
My love for my mother was awakened only after my love for Conan, she being the second person for whom I felt an emotion.
This was in stark contrast to her, who never felt anything like that. All because she is nothing more than a homunculus created to give birth to a bargaining chip.