The Establishments of Lemon

"The guards say that they heard the prisoner talk about some of the skills that slimes may obtain as they live.

The prisoner talked about how they started this because of the fear from the upper echelon of their leaders. The prisoner had supposedly mentioned that the leaders have secret information about some of the skills that slimes may be born with and by eliminating the population of slimes starting from this continent, they will avoid a future calamity, a future disaster."

Mitsuna finished her drink and placed the small glass on the counter, still holding it in her hand.

"Did any of the rumours include what skills he was talking about?"

"Yes, but those skills have never been proven to exist. He supposedly called them by many different names to get the message across. Gluttony, Predator, Devourer, Skill Consumer and so on. Though, skills with these names or similar names have only ever appeared in ancient literature."

"So skills that steal the skills of the enemies they kill?"

Mitsuna asked as she played with the empty glass in her hand.

"Yes. That was the main 'danger' that the prisoner was talking about. The birth of an existence that has unlimited growth and no humanity to keep that power in check. Supposedly he also threw around terms like adaptability, complete resistance and so on but those haven't been confirmed by the guards who were there at the time."

"Yikes. That does seem like a dangerous existence."

"Surely. But the slime populace on this continent is different. They view regular slimes like mindless cousins and monsters and definitely not the same race. They are intelligent and no skill or ability of the sort has ever been recorded for near millennia by the humanoid slimes."

"Well, that would explain the war. They don't have enough information about the specifics that make the skill appear so they decide to destroy every possible instance or chance of it ever appearing before it does."

"Correct. That does sum up the rumours that are flying around."

"But how trustworthy are those rumours anyway?"

"Well, some annoying nobles sometimes wash up drunk in bars around the city and talk as much as they are asked. Besides that and some guards specifically recounting the things they have heard, it definitely makes a compelling theory."

"That it does."

'Well, they started from the wrong continent. Honestly, this is a fascinating coincidence, considering that I was the existence they hold fear towards.'

"Well, on another note, does the army work with regular bullets or do they enchant them with magic?"

"Quite the change in topic."

"To something less depressing. I'd say it's quite welcome."

"Fair. Fair statement. Common soldiers usually use regular bullets since enchanting each one would consume a lot of time, materials, mana and effort. Though as someone aiming to join the army, should you not already know that?"

"Not trying to be suspicious here. Considering that I can make my own, I was wondering if I could even use them on a battlefield."

"Make your own?"

Mitsuna placed her glass back on the counter and gently pushed it towards Majo.

Picking up the glass, he started to clean it without taking his eyes off Mitsuna, awaiting her answer.

"Just shoving mana in it or etching a spell on the cartridge, or case, does the trick for me. Sufficient power and stable enough for constant use. The wear on the weapon is minimal as well. Just so you know."

"If that is true then another Bullet Maestro would definitely be welcomed by the army no matter where you are from. Though, I suggest a more 'humble' form of bragging about your abilities in the field. Most Maestros would not take kindly to an overabundance of pride considering the lives that are at stake when crafting bullets."

"Noted. But Bullet Maestros? Do they practice instruments too?"

Placing the now clean glass under the counter, Majo spoke.

"Magical bullet crafters as in Maestros, yes. Highly sought after here in the West, very rare. Individuals that are close to them speak as if they can make any deadly weapon into an instrument for pure war and a battalion into an orchestra of death. A rather strange way to speak of them but it is, to some extent, accurate."

"So they don't know how to play an actual instrument?"

"That would depend on the individual, dear customer."

"Thought as much. Anyway, is there any good place to stay around here? Any recommendations? I would like to tinker a bit more with the bullets I have."

"Though I don't recommend tinkering with explosive or destructive ammunition in any rented apartment or room, I can recommend our sister company across the street, Lemon's Mace. It's quiet, secure and descreet for all customers from all professions. Right across the street in fact."

"Sounds lovely and the origin of the name is definitely interesting too. What's the price range and how strict are the rules there?"

"It is not exactly cheap, neither is it expensive. A Rank C adventurer should easily be able to acquire the needed funds for a week's stay in an afternoon or two of taking jobs from the guild."

"Yay. More overtime work~."

Mitsuna responded with a tired voice.

"There exists no free ceiling in this world."

"And no free alcohol either. Yeah, yeah. Were you going to mention the rules as well?"

"In fact I was. Conducting any business that includes assassination, murder or attempts of the sort on the premises will get you banned from all inns on the continent.

If a problem arises that might escalate, informing the staff is mandatory. If no staff member is notified of a problem that you know might occur on the premises it will result in a fine and temporary ban.

So all in all, nothing major. Almost all types of deals, trades and secretive talks are monitored just in case you bring trouble though. It is a place that has ties to national security on some level."

"Not strict you say."

"I am not certain if you are aware, but murder and destruction of owned property are, in most cities and towns, illegal and punishable."

Majo the barkeep mentioned with a small smirk, joking.

"News to me."

Mitsuna shrugged and stood up.

"I'll be on my way. See you some other time barkeep."

Mitsuna lightly waved as she walked out of the building where loud gambling and piano music filled the area in and around it.

Mitsuna crossed the rather big street by weaving between moving humans, slimes and animal folk and soon arrived at the place she was instructed to go to. A sign with a mace and a smashed lemon hung above the large doorframe, squeaking in the silent wind and hustle of the city, barely audible.

Entering the establishment, Mitsuna was surprised to see, or rather hear music in the small lobby area. It was quiet and didn't reach outside of the building in the slightest.

'Very nice melody.'

She thought as she looked at the source of the song, at the slightly dishevelled-looking man playing a violin in the corner of the lobby, sitting on a wooden plank that protruded out of the wall, 2 metres above the ground.

'Are all musicians this poor looking? Not the most profitable venture I guess.'

Walking up to reception, where a man with a blank expression was standing while staring at her as if she were just another passerby.

"Hello."

"Greetings customer. How may I be of service?"

"Are there any rooms available?"

"There are few that are unoccupied."

"How much would a day be?"

"16 silver for one day."

Before Mitsuna could comment on the price, the man continued.

"But thanks to the special deal going on because of the war and our less than ideal economic state, every 2 days now cost only 24 silver and every week is at an all-time low of 60 silver."

The man spoke blankly as if he was preprogrammed to say what he did, with absolutely no change in his facial expression.

What did change with the man however was his posture, he spoke while moving his hands dramatically as he got to the key points about the sale of rooms. In contrast to his emotionless state, he had quite an irradic and complex way of interpreting himself.

Mitsuna could tell that he was honest in his movements and not acting just because the job forced him to because of the light sparkle in his eyes.

'Has the world always been full of interesting people or am I just now starting to notice them and meet them?'

Mitsuna asked herself before a light smile appeared on her face and she talked to the receptionist.

"So if I took 2 weeks that would be 120 silver, yes?"

"If you use the sale that is currently going on then yes."

The man spoke with sparkles in his eyes.

"Do the rooms vary in price?"

"No. Each and every room is equal in terms of quality."

"Well, can I order a room that can be held on to until I return with the money needed?"

"Indeed you can. The boss has set up a new type of sale last year that allows customers such as yourself to book a room but be unable to use it until the money needed is delivered to the receptionist on duty. We will hold onto the room for one week when the booking process is chosen. If the money is not delivered during that time, we will give it to another customer that wishes to stay with us.

Also, a booking can be done if and only if you plan to stay for an amount of time longer than 10 days. Otherwise, the booking option will not be readily available."

The man said neutrally, with his overdramatic use of hand signs.

"Right. Then I'd like to book for 28 days then, I'll be bringing the money when I have it, shouldn't take long."

"Understood, customer. I must also inform you that if you do not pay in accordance with your booking and do not show up before the week's end to cancel it, you must pay half of the amount you booked for."

"Fancy. I'll be able to pay no problem though."

"Under what name will I place the room?"

"Mitsuna."

"Transaction completed. I wish you luck with your debt."

Mitsuna raised an eyebrow as the receptionist raised his thumb.

"Debt?"

The receptionist gave a double thumbs up as he said with a blank face, slightly tilting his head.

"Payment."

"Payment. Sure, thanks."

"Goodbye, customer."

The receptionist waved in a monotonous motion as Mitsuna exited the establishment and started walking around the city.

'Well, the best place to earn money should still be the guild. I hope I don't have to pull another all-nighter. 240 silver shouldn't be too difficult to get.'

She thought as she wandered the streets for a while, enjoying the scenery of a desert kingdom filled with slimes and guns of all types.

'I wonder what the war is like right now. It shouldn't be too difficult.'

...

In the territory of the New West, a certain girl with short violet hair sat alongside a girl with scarlet eyes and short blond hair. Looking at the dark sky and barren wasteland around them, the cold breeze of the night blew sand around them, yet not a single speck touched their bodies.

"For some reason, I feel a sense of dread about the upcoming battles."

"You shouldn't, our allies are strong, enemies weak and we have you."

"...Thanks, I'm happy you found me."

"And helped you."

"And helped me."

"And basically saved your life."

"Yeah. Thanks."

"We'll fully fix you soon too. Those people should give us what we need after we win this stupid war."

"It's not stupid."

"Why? Fear of another Mizuki being born IS stupid. That was an occurrence that is rarer than the visible explosion of a star in the night sky."

"..."

"No thing like her will be born again. No one will stop our goal. We will fix your condition, purge that man from this world and hopefully find that person you spoke about again and make amends."

"What if someone like her has already been born again."

"The person you spoke of."

"Mhm."

"Sounds improbable you don't have to worry, you're the strongest and kindest person I know."

"I'm not kind. I've killed."

"So has everyone else who is strong. Happiness does not follow strength.

But acceptance does follow it."

"I don't think I can accept what I've done. Nor do I think that... I can make 'amends'."

"I believe you can. If you just explain your situation-"

"No. I don't deserve to be forgiven for that sin."

"Even if you don't. You have me. And I will accept both you and your sin. Natash."

"Thanks. Alle."

[[General Status Update From Author Down Below Along With Some Ramblings.]]

[So, what's up? Yeah. Mr Shitty Upload Time Author here. Haven't talked in a while, dear readers. Definitely my fault no cap. Been busy, exams coming and all that, though I bet that's not an easy excuse to accept, sorry.

Hey, at least I've now completely mapped out the lore and future of WoR. That's not bad, ey? Writing half a paragraph for a single weapon description or three pages dedicated to lore before the start of the main story really enraptured me from uploading, you know, the Actual Story and Lore that people want. Looking back I'm not the best author around considering my upload schedule, focus on deep lore that probably won't appear for another 300 or so chapters rather than the actual story and my unholy mental laziness when I have time to actually upload. I am truly sorry for that. Again, it is my first book and a hobby.

And yes, I know I've taken up the mission to spread the story I've meticulously created page after page in my head during my daily bus rides and I don't want to abandon that mission, even if it isn't super original or complex, it is a story I've created and that I want to share with people who like such stories. I truly do thank the crazy insane people who, almost daily, give this book power stones that I don't believe it deserves that much (let's be honest new readers are rare and the starting chapters looking back on them aren't great lol). I have no clue how you guys manage that, truly. Even if I didn't get the daily notifications of some of these awesome ahh readers I would still wish to complete this novel. I thank you for your constant support and I will definitely not drop this novel even if I get some deadly disease (no foreshadowing included).

Ps note here: if I haven't uploaded for a while comment on the latest chapter with a harsh insult, that'll probably get my blood boilin' and writing fingers crackin'.

Happy Saturday Guys, hope you have a good one.

-Author <3]< p>