CHAPTER 3 - KYOJI AITO

After running for almost ten minutes, my mana reserve is less than half and my breathing is also disordered but I can't stop.

I calmed down a little when I could finally see the wall, it was about a few minutes away from me.

I'm completely exhausted as I stopped and hid in the alley to recover and plan my next move.

"Huuu..." I exhaled, trying to stabilise my breathing while observing my body condition.

My Mana is continuously being restored at an amazing rate, it's just like last time when I fought Ryan and nearly died… except I didn't feel anything break inside me this time.

Is it like my own form of adrenaline, the same can be said about my injuries although it's not healed completely I can actually feel it healing and I estimate it would take at most a day for me to be completely healed.

I just hope not all demons have such healing factors, if not someone as strong as Oliver would be completely healed by now.

After catching my breath I casted <physical enhancement> magic and dashed towards the street again.

I hadn't even gone that far when I noticed a girl with dark orange hair standing in the middle of the street wearing shorts and a t-shirt.

My first impression of her was that she was really cute plus the way she was glaring at me made her look super cute[3] but that thought only lasted for a second and the next moment I halted my steps and stared at her in fear.

I felt like this girl was dangerous, too dangerous, like if all the danger I faced today was a ten, then the level of danger she alone is giving off is a twenty.

"Ohh…h shit I'm in deeep trouble now" I said while shaking in fear after checking her mana-flow and it is by far the largest I've ever seen.

I doubt she's the strongest expert in the city, so I should find a way to fight her off and leave the city.

"You've got a lot of balls waltzing into this city alone despite your Identity of a saint and even had the leisure to play such a humiliating prank at the city gate"

"Based on your strength, you're not a high level spy so I doubt you have any valuable information on you, clearly your kind was looking down on us when they sent you here!"

"This is the demon world and not a place saints can take a stroll carefree, killing you would send a message that we are not to be trifled with!!"

She started talking in a carefree manner and said the last part visibly angry.

Jeez she's mistaking my Identity as well and it looks like she has no thought of letting me live.

"Um what makes you so sure that I'm a saint? I mean… How can you tell the difference between me and demons?" I said while trying to get some information out of her before we start fighting.

"How can I tell? You let that holy aura leak out of you like your so damn proud of it, every demon would find you repulsive if they ever came near you"

"Just by using <mana sense> I can see that irritating aura coming out of you" she shouted in anger with a look of disgust on her face.

Holy aura?, jeez I have no Idea what that is and it seems all demons have some kind of sensitivity towards it because I can actually remember some unusual reactions from demons whenever I came near them when I was exploring the city.

Well I have no idea what all that means but I suddenly feel depressed that such a cute girl finds me irritating and repulsive.

Also, I wonder what <mana sense> is.

The girl growls a little and stomps her feet on the ground as she prepares to dash towards me.

My instincts tell me to dodge but she's twenty feet away from me and I hesitate for only a moment before I see her disappear from her spot.

"Bruuuuup" I spit out a mouthful of blood

She uses <physical enhancement> magic and goes for a one hit kill as her hand passes through my stomach.

I managed to jump at the last second, if not her hand would have gone through my chest.

C'mon she's really heartless, I won't have known how I died just then, that was too freaking close.

Shit everywhere is getting dizzy, I have to take her out now or I won't have another chance.

"Ahhhhhh" I screamed as I forced my body to the limit and forced whatever was left of the mana in my body to create multiple fire explosions, explosions that would not have minimal effect on my body.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

"BOOM!!"

Multiple explosions sounded as the girl was pushed away from the explosion.

"Ahhhh!" she screamed as she was forced out of the smoke.

"Shit" I muttered as I created twelve <fire ball> and launched them towards the girl before she even touched the ground.

"Boom, Booom…."

After another round of explosions I finally calmed down.

Because I couldn't really concentrate to make those <Flame explosions> completely ineffective on me, I got burned a little.

That was a very close one and I need to recover before someone else gets here.

I looked down on my body and there is a gaping hole in my stomach, blood everywhere and it hurts like hell and I mean it really hurts, I'm in severe pains[4].

While enduring the pain and dizziness I'm feeling after losing so much blood, I crouched down and was thinking to myself if I can ever "recover" from this before I heard something move.

"You have got to be kidding me" I said as I looked forward with my blurry vision and saw the girl standing in front of me.

After taking all those attacks head-on she was still able to stand up easily and although I can't see her condition too well she must have taken a lot of damage.

I'm happy she isn't immune to my attacks at least, but those explosions would have killed Oliver twice already.

She's looking at me and doesn't seem angry that much, she just looks mostly shocked.

"I didn't underestimate you at all and that attack was meant to kill you in one hit but you managed to avoid getting hit in a fatal spot and launched a counterattack while disregarding the pain"

"From the power you've shown to me, you could have easily defeated those who were chasing you before but you must have made the logical choice of escaping to avoid the possibility of reinforcement"

"From all this, I can tell that your battle instinct is top notch and that your decision making is flawless, so your Identity can't be simple"

"Who exactly are you?" the girl says while staring at me suspiciously.

"Please take a closer look at my mana flow, you'll see that I'm not a saint" I said while trying to talk my way out of this now that she looks less hostile.

She frowns at first before looking at me completely shocked.

I guess she noticed something but why can't I see what makes me different from demons?

"What kind of abomination are you?" she shouts towards me.

"Shit" I muttered as my instincts told me she's about to attack again.

I pumped my body with excess mana and prepared to dodge when I suddenly started feeling dizzy and lost control of my body.

In my moment of weakness she disappeared from my sight and I heard her voice from behind me saying.

"Don't be afraid I won't kill you, but just so you know something like you isn't supposed to exist and I have no idea if you would bring harm to this world's balance"

Before I could react, I was struck at the back of my head and my consciousness began to slip away.

****************************************************

I have a few months before I turn 18 and then I can get my drivers licence, maybe try alcohol or do something I've always wanted to do like proudly buy a R-18/hentai manga.

But no matter how much I try, I can never find the joy of celebrating birthdays again, which isn't surprising because it was a few days before my 8th birthday that I became an orphan.

My parents as far as I can remember were the best of the best.

My dad worked as a surgeon in a hospital in Tokyo, but he somehow manages to be home for dinner most of the time and was also able to spend most holidays with me and mum.

My mum was just like every housewife, she was loving, caring, sometimes overprotective and she always cooked the most delicious meals. She was beautiful and had the look of a foreign woman, even though I don't look like her and more Japanese like my dad I still inherited her red irises.

I could tell that my mum and dad really loved each other as they would sometimes forget to hide their impassioned and erotic behaviour when I'm around.

My birthday is on the first of July and I remember it was about two weeks before 'it' happened.

It was in the middle of summer vacation and what I usually do during the holidays include mostly playing video games and watching anime with my mum and dad.

But that day was different, mum was about to go to the grocery store to get some things and although our house wasn't too far from the grocery store, it was still a one hour journey.

So I suggested that she take me with her since dad wasn't home and I didn't want to be stuck in the house alone for an hour.

Mum wasn't too insistent on bringing me with her at first but she later agreed.

On the way to the grocery store, mum was anxious most of the time and she kept on holding onto my hand tightly and when we reached the grocery store she said to me seriously as she let go of my hand.

"Don't go too far away from me and stay where I can see you"

I don't know what got into mum, I had never seen her this anxious before but I obeyed her strictly.

When we were finally through shopping, mum was less anxious and seemed more relaxed and when I smiled at her she even smiled back.

When we got back home I noticed a few men standing in front of our house, as if waiting for us.

All of a sudden, I noticed the atmosphere around mum changed and when I turned to look at her, I instinctively looked away.

"Mum looks.... scary" I muttered as I turned to look at the men in front and they all seemed visibly scared as well.

My mum hands me the grocery bags and points towards our home without saying a single word.

I immediately understood as I took the grocery bags from her and ran into the house.

After dropping off the grocery bags in the kitchen, I came to the front door and leaned in to hear their conversation.

"Where is my husband!!" My mum says impatiently.

"The saint you eloped with has been surrounded and possibly captured by his own kind" one of the men says hurriedly, clearly afraid but trying to put on a brave front.

"We apologise for being blunt but we are messengers sent directly by his majesty the Devil king" a voice says politely but with a hint of disdain.

There was a brief silence before mum spoke.

"Didn't I make my stance clear when I deserted ten years ago, I said I would be resigning from my position as a knight and would no longer have anything to do with the wars from the demon realm" mum said flaring up in anger.

"I honestly apologise for any discomfort we may have caused you, but a great war is coming and his majesty is looking to remove all unpredictable variables and he demands that you return to the demon realm" the second voice said.

Mum says nothing but I hear her footsteps.

"You can't do anything to us, we are the messengers of the devil king" the first voice from before said in a hurried tone.

"HeHe… You think I wouldn't dare!" Mum chuckles before shouting.

"You lot can't lay a single finger on me and I'm sure the saints won't be stupid enough to allow for the devil king or any of his ten knights for that matter to be sent to the human realm, just to deal with me"

"Now get out of here before I lose my patience!" Mum says as she tries to control her anger.

"Now let's not get too hasty, just because his majesty can't do anything about you while you are in the human realm doesn't mean the ten holy knights would ignore your presence here, and that's leaving out the abomination you've spawned" the second voice said calmly.

"You mean the true demons are willing to work with the saints in order to get rid of one of their own" mum shouts in disbelief.

"We are not only willing to do so in your case but this cooperation would go on for some time because as you know the saints and we true demons have a common enemy that would soon be eradicated" the second voice said calmly and slowly.

"You can't mean!!... but…" mum exclaimed before keeping quiet for a whole minute.

"Alright I'll come with you" mum says, clearly conflicted by her choice.

I opened the front door and walked out slowly while gazing at mum who was standing on the porch with her back facing me.

She turned around to face me with sadness in her eyes before turning back to the people who were standing in front of the gate, not stepping any closer.

"Are you four the only ones that know of the existence of my son" mum says.

"Yes, for now and once his majesty finds out you may negotiate the terms of his safety, but I doubt the saints would let him cross over to the demon realm" a man who owns the first voice from before said, clearly less restless.

"Good, now you all can die" mum says calmly as the air around her begins to change.

"But do not be disheartened, I am only killing you because you discovered what you shouldn't have" mum says as the atmosphere grows hotter and hotter.

"No, you can't kill us, we are messengers of the devil king, even though you were once a knight you wouldn't be spared from punishment and you may be killed by the Devil king's" the second man says while panicking, which is in contrast his cool and collected voice from before.

"Yes, and if you let us live we can promise to keep your son's existence a secret" the first man says.

"Haha… *sigh*" mum chuckles, then sighs.

"Who says I fear death and there are just some secrets that can only be kept by taking them to the grave" mum says resolutely.

Then what happened next created a memory that I could attribute as the root that triggered my 8th-grader syndrome.

Flames surrounded mum, covering her whole body as they increased in temperature and became searing red before detaching from her hand which was directed at the group of men.

Four translucent dome-like shields emerged covering the four men.

The flame landed on the shield, stopping its approach but the flame began to spread around their dome as if having a life of their own.

Then mom raised her hand and a dark sphere emerged from her hand which caused strange distortions in my vision.

The black sphere shot towards the men and when it made contact with the shield immediately created a hole through them.

"Space magic!!!" One of the men shouted as the dark sphere created a hole in his shield allowing for the red flame to invade.

The same thing happened to the rest of the men as the dark sphere created a hole in each of their shields as they were too close to one another before it dispersed.

"AHHH..." the screams didn't even last for a second before it became quiet as all four men had turned to ashes.

"*sigh*"

Mum sighed before she started walking towards me. Her eyes were watery as if she were about to cry.

Even with my inability to completely understand the previous conversations and the disbelief I felt from the shocking display of what could be described as "witchcraft", all I needed was one look at my mother's face and I understood what was going to happen.

Mum reached where I was before she crouched and embraced me, giving me a tight hug in which I retaliated with a hug of my own.

"Mum, are you leaving?" I said as tears started to well up in my eyes.

"*snif* Mmm I don't know when I'll be back, but I promise you that I will do whatever it takes to make sure we meet again, do you understand?" Mum says as I could feel her tears as they rolled down her cheek onto my neck as she embraced my back.

"Y..yes" I responded in a shaky voice trying not to break out in tears.

"Good boy," mum says.

We hug in silence for a few minutes.

"What about dad?" I ask, sensing that mum was about to release me from her caress.

"Don't worry about him, he's stronger than me and there's no way harm could befall him, but even he would not be able to stay with you for your own safety … I wish I could say goodbye to him as well" mum says as she gets up.

She takes off her necklace before she places it in my palm and says.

"Here, keep this with you at all times, treat this as your 8th birthday present, if we're lucky we may be reunited before your next birthday" mum says with a pleading look in her eyes that were red from all the crying.

The necklace was a silver chain with a small silver rose pendant.

I nodded my head as I looked at her with a forced smile and she smiled back at me in return.

Mum faces another direction and stretches her hand outward.

The space ahead of her starts to distort and wobble for about five minutes before a round dark purple portal is formed.

Now that I remember, this is the first time I got that comfortable feeling from being surrounded by mana.

When the portal finally stabilised, mum turned towards me with a pale face.

"Goodbye" she said as she stepped into the portal without hesitating.

Everything that happened after that was just a blur, I remember being questioned by the police that same day, weeks passed and I was approached by child protection services, because of my missing parents.

A month went by and I didn't even know when my birthday had passed.

When I went home to collect my belongings to move into my new home, I found a note from dad under a weird looking silver like bracelet.

"My dear son, I'm sorry our goodbyes could not be said face to face but just know that everything me and your mother have done is for your own safety and we only have one wish and it is that you live a normal life as a human for as long as possible. I left a bracelet for you, it may be too big for your hands now but I hope you keep it well and cherish it." I read the note outloud and stared at the bracelet in confusion before I took it.

A few years passed and I couldn't really understand the events that transpired during that period and I slowly started to forget it.

Reality as an orphan hadn't really struck me yet because my situation was quite odd.

I didn't grieve for my parents because I know they aren't dead and I didn't hate them because I know they didn't abandon me.

The mind works mysteriously. Even though I had almost entirely forgotten what happened then, some things never escaped my mind. Like the last gifts my parents gave to me that I always cherished and a sentence from my mum that gave me hope.

"If we're lucky we may be reunited before your next birthday"

That sentence always resounded in my head every time my birthday approached, filling me with hope, but even after ten years we still haven't been reunited.

This repeated cycle of hope and disappointment is the reason why I never really enjoy my birthdays.

****************************************************

*splash!*

I wake up to the feeling of water being splashed on me and when I try to move my body, I realise that my hand and legs are bound to a chair.

I look forward and manage to catch a blurred view of a man and the girl I fought before I passed out.

"He is going to ask you a few questions and you get to live depending on your answers to the questions" the girl said without giving me enough time to recover.

"What is your name?" The man said.

I glared at the girl for a few seconds because thanks to her I got to relive some unpleasant memories.

I redirected my gaze from her and looked towards the man that asked me the question before I replied coldly.

"Aito, my name is Kyoji Aito"

[Author's Notes]

1. Word count - 3642 words

2. This chapter is over 3500 and like I said before, this won't happen a lot.

3. Isn't it just amazing to be glared at by a cute girl.

4. Thumbs up for those of you who know the meme.

5. So I finally introduced the MC. It took longer than I thought but I finally did it.

6. To make things easier for me and you, everyone would call the main character by his first name, Aito. So just forget about the Japanese culture of never calling anyone by their first name without permission (No offence to any Japanese readers (If I have any)).

7. Or you could just assume that Japan in this world has no such culture, this is a fantasy novel after all (I'm joking, don't take this too seriously).