Chapter 9: Chapter 8 – Blame Game

RING! RING! RING!

I turned off the alarm clock and lifted myself up.

My bed was stationed right beside the window of my room, so I could take a peek outside the city. Whether it be morning or evening, it’s dark as always. Nothing changes in Subtramuros, so you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference without looking at the clock.

“Haaaaaaah…..” I let out a yawn and started fixing my bed.

Since this wasn’t really my house, I took some extra time to make sure everything was orderly. The room was rather small, composed only of a bookshelf, a desk and an empty closet, but it was more than enough for me. 

After finishing the bed, I began my usual daily morning routine. First, I stretched my body to warm myself up. Then I performed some push-ups, sit-ups, squats and sword swings, 100 each. To finish my routine, I sat down on the floor to meditate for a few minutes.

"1…..2….3…..Breathe…."

A knock on the door interrupted my session.

"Lars? Are you awake? Breakfast is ready," Alessia said. 

"Yep, I'll be there in a while."

As soon as I finished meditating, I left my room and climbed downstairs to eat breakfast. Notably enough, only Alessia and her mother were seated on the table.

“Good morning, Lars. Let’s eat,” Miss Felicia smiled warmly.

“Where’s Sir Alvarro?” I said as I sat down.

“Oh, he’s already run off to work. Such a busy man, I wish he could spend more time with us!” 

“It’s fine, mom. Father just loves working hard as an Enforcer to keep everyone safe, that’s all,” Alessia said.

“Well, he could at least spend some time off, he’s served his duty for so long anyway!”

Are Enforcers really supposed to be that busy? Or is he just that dedicated to his work? I guess a  person of high rank would have more responsibilities to take care of.

“Lars, you’re a growing boy, feel free to eat as much as you can!” 

“Um, I’ll just eat what I can.” 

“You better eat a good amount. If you’re going to be my daughter’s boyfriend, then your body must be healthy and strong to protect her!”

Boyfriend?

“M-Mom!” Alessia blushed. “He’s not my boyfriend!”

“Really, now? You seem to be a good fit together though.”

“We’ve only met yesterday, it’s too early for that sort of thing,” I chuckled awkwardly. “I’m alright with staying as her bodyguard, that’s all.”

“A bummer….” Miss Felicia muttered. “Anyways, why don’t you take Lars around Sector 1? I assume he isn’t familiar with the place yet.”

“I still have to get my luggage back though…” I said.

“Speaking of that, I already called the Academy to bring your stuff here! So you don’t have to worry about it,” Miss Felicia put her hands together.

I could have gotten it back myself though, but oh well.

“Thank you, Miss Felicia.”

“No problem!” She placed her hands on my cheeks and stared at me with a wide grin. “You’re like a son to me now, just consider it my way of caring for you!”

Why do I get this feeling that she’s getting really affectionate with me? 

“I was already planning on taking him around town,” Alessia said. “Also, I haven’t apologized to everyone yet…”

“If you’re going to go search for them, I suggest you head over to Tanker’s Inn. I’ve heard that it’s a popular spot for people who took the entrance exams.”

“I see, then we’ll head there after breakfast. Is that ok with you, Lars?” Alessia said.

“Of course, it’s my job to accompany you. I’m happy to oblige,” I said.

After we finished our meals and prepared ourselves, we left the house to head for the inn.

“Um, I have a question.”

“What is it, Lars?”

“Don’t you think your mom treats me too intimately?”

“Oh, that’s just how she is to everyone. My mother has always been the pampering type of woman, so I guess she lacks a sense of personal boundaries sometimes.”

“Is that so?”

“And also, you made such a great impression on her yesterday. I’m not surprised she’s so sweet to you already.”

“Like mother, like daughter, huh…..”

“H-Hey! I’m not that sweet!” Alessia looked away and pouted. “I just have a conscience that bothers me, that’s all!”

“Even so, it shows that you care for others.”

“I guess, maybe. But still, if we’re going to talk about similarities, I got my ice magic from her.”

“Wait, your mother was a mage too?”

“Yep. A B-Rank Enforcer too at that! That’s how she met my father anyway. But she retired from her service to take care of me.

“I can’t imagine it…..”

“Believe it or not, she’s tougher than she looks. Beneath that sweet smile lies a strong woman capable of freezing her opponents to the core.”

Woah, the fact that both of her parents were talented Enforcers explains why Alessia is so strong.

After a couple of conversations, we arrived at our first destination. For something called an inn, the place was wider and taller than I imagined. The stony complex’s size seemed big enough to fit 4 of Alessia’s houses, with its pointed roofs reaching up to 3 floors. Placed on top of the entrance was a neon sign that said “Tanker’s Inn.”

“After you.”

I opened the door for Alessia and let her pass before entering myself.

“Thanks.”

One step inside and my ears were greeted with the sounds of loud chatter. Chairs and tables were scattered everywhere, with people eating and drinking happily like there was some sort of celebration. At the back of the inn was a huge bar area and some stairs leading to the upper floors. Actually, now that I think about it, these people looked familiar. Many of them were at the exams yesterday. 

"Looks like Mother was right on the money," Alessia said.

"Who exactly are you looking for?" I asked.

"Let me check-"

"This is so annoying! The noise is pissing me off!" a voice said. 

It was coming from a group of guys who were about to leave the inn. Their leader had the all too familiar orange undercut and smoky temper on his head.

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" he said as he kicked a person down the floor.

"Aghh! Hey! What's your problem?!" 

"Don't talk to Marko that way, punk! You're going to regret it," a boy with glasses said. 

It was Ryan, his partner in crime. I also noticed that the white-haired Fenris was with them as well, but was simply staring off into space in his own little world.

"Heh, as I would….c-care…" the person on the floor muttered, realizing that he was surrounded by the bigger men of Marko's gang.

"Did you say something?" Marko glared at him.

"N-no…."

I can't stand by and watch this….

Before I could step in and interfere, another voice yelled from the bar.

"Hey! Cut it out and leave if you're only going to cause trouble here!" The bartender said.

"Tsk, let's just go…."

Marko's gang left the premises and slammed the door behind them.

Alessia quivered her lips, with a drop of sweat leaking down her brow. She grasped her fist and slapped her cheeks.

"I can do this!"

She turned towards the door and started to leave as well, but I grabbed her by the hand to stop her.

"Hey…are you telling me they're the last people you have to apologize to?"

"Yeah. Marko, Ryan, Fenris and Cyrus."

"That's all the members of my squad…" I was starting to feel butterflies on my stomach. "They're not exactly the friendliest teammates, as you've observed just now. I wouldn't recommend following them."

"Even so, I'm just doing this to alleviate my conscience. It's hard to be at peace knowing I never apologized to them."

I nodded my head.

"If that's what you want, then I won't stop you."

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We left the inn and chased after the gang. It hadn't been too long since they left, so we were able to catch up to them easily.

"Wait!" Alessia called out to them.

"Huh?! What do you want?!" Marko and his gang turned around.

"I'd like to apologize to the people I killed during the exams! Marko, Ryan, Fenris, I'm sorry!" Alessia bowed. "It's just that-"

"Wait,” Marko’s eyes bulged. “It's the sword sucker and the Ice Princess! You bastards, how dare you show up to my face after ruining my performance!"

"B-but that's why we wanted to apologize-"

"Shut up!" Marko cut her off. "It's all your fault. You've ruined everything! How am I supposed to be an Enforcer now?!"

"You can always take the exam next year…." Alessia muttered.

Wait a minute, you can actually retake the exam? I don’t remember this being written in the GEP series!

Marko stomped his foot on the ground like a kid having a tantrum.

"You don't get it, do you? Most of us here have already taken the exams two times. The academy doesn’t accept any more than that. That means it’s completely over for us. All our chances were ruined by stupid teammates like Sword Sucker and overpowered cheaters like you! It's not fair!" 

"I didn't cheat…."

"Shut up! I know you did! There's no way you're that powerful! How can a puny girl like you be so strong?! This is ridiculous!"

Alessia was starting to get overwhelmed, with her face squirming to muster up a response, so I stepped in front of her and spread my arms.

"Stop it, you guys! I was an incompetent teammate, there's no denying that. So you can go ahead and blame me all you want, but leave Alessia out of this! She was only doing what was asked of her during the exams!"

I really screamed at them……

"Hey….l-look!" Ryan pointed at my hand."He has the Enforcer mark, that means he passed the exams!"

“Huh?”

Marko focused his eyes towards my hand, then turned to look at me with his mouth shifting into a bitter smile.

"No way. Unbelievable. You? The sword sucker?! The one with zero kills? An Enforcer? Don’t make me laugh! There’s no way, right? Why would they accept someone like you?!”

“I-It’s not my decision. It was the King’s.”

“Lies! Lies! Lies! How are you worthy when I’m not? What makes you so better than us, huh?!”

I glanced towards every member of the gang. All their eyes were on me, all with a fire of hatred burning through my skin. Feelings of jealousy and contemptment leaked out from their expressions like black miasma surrounding the atmosphere. 

What’s going on? Why is this happening to me? Why are they looking at me this way?

“You can’t even use guns or magic. Just a puny little sword. Someone as useless as you, doesn’t deserve to be an Enforcer!”

The air around me grew toxic and I was starting to lose my sense of breathing. A tight feeling squeezed down my throat, as if I was being choked by an invisible spirit.

“I fail to see anything good about you! This is all your fault! If you didn’t act like such an incompetent piece of trash, then this would have never happened. You ruined our dreams, sword sucker!”

Please stop……

This is just a hallucination. Calm down, Lars. You can’t let the words get to your head!

I shook my head, closed my eyes and covered my ears.

“1….2….3…..Breathe.”

When I opened my eyes, the miasma that once surrounded the area had completely disappeared. Everything was the same as it was before. Me and Alessia confronting Marko’s gang in the middle of the street.

“Lars…are you okay?” Alessia muttered. 

“Y-Yeah, just felt a little hurt that’s all.”

“Aw, such a sensitive boy!” Marko chuckled. “I guess even the Academy accepts wimps nowadays, huh?! Have they grown weak? Since when did they choose little boys over talented warriors?!”

“I’m not going to let your words affect me this time,” I said, quivering my lips.

“Oh, really? Well, I don’t care. It doesn’t change the fact that I absolutely despise you with all my heart!” Marko said. “Let’s just do this the old fashioned way.”

Marko charged forward and lifted his fists towards me.

“I’ll just show everyone who the worthy one is supposed to be!”

Guns are hard to deal with. It’s something a swordsman can’t fight head-on. It may not even be something that can ever possibly be beaten.  But a simple attack like that is easily predictable.

I evaded the attack and grabbed on to his arm, then twisted it behind his back and pinned him to the ground.

“Ow-Ow-Ow-Ow-Ouch! Let go of me!”

“I thought you wanted to prove who the worthy one is supposed to be,” I said.

“That’s impossible! How can you be that strong?!”

“Don’t be surprised. I’ve mentioned it before. Since I’m incapable of using guns and magic, I’ll make up for it by working hard with what I can use!”

Stop worrying about what you can’t do and think about what you can do. Another line from my Master.

I let go of Marko, but he pushed me aside and ran away to his gang.

“Screw this! Get him!” Marko pointed towards me.

His two big companions approached towards my direction, so I readied my fists and let out a breath of air. This is definitely not going to be easy…..

“That includes you, emo boy!” he gestured at his white-haired companion.

“It’s Fenris…”

Fenris, despite being unenthusiastic, undoubtedly had a grudge against me. He looked at me with a gaze similar to that of a predator hunting down its prey.

“I’ve failed my mission because of you….what am I going to do now?” he tilted his head. “My family will disown me for my failure…..I have nowhere to go. You’ll pay for this. I’ll kill you.”

Kill is a strong word…..

He pulled out something shiny from his pocket…..wait, that’s a knife! Is he seriously going to pull out a weapon in public?!

Fenris tried to throw it towards me, but a shield of ice manifested to block the projectile.

“Alessia…”

When I turned towards her, I noticed that her eyes had turned into the same cold blue glare that I saw during the exams. She stomped her foot and a trail of ice spikes surged around Marko’s gang, nearly piercing right through their skin and causing them to back away in fear.

“Shut up, all of you. You have no right to be talking to my companion like that. He is an Enforcer, there is no doubt about that. You are all disgusting vermin compared to him. Instigating violence in a public area and disturbing the peace for such petty reasons, how shameless. How about all of you pests just scram or drop dead on the floor? Get out of my sight before I choose the latter for you,” Alessia glared at them with bloodlust on her eyes.

“Tsk, s-screw you!” Marko yelled and ran away along with his group.

Ah……..it’s that easy for her…..

“Thanks, Alessia. You really saved me there.”

She stared at me coldly for a second, then her apathetic eyes transitioned to a warmer and more empathetic gaze .

“I did it again, didn’t I? I scared them off completely,” Alessia scratched her head and looked down. “Guess that’s another apology rejected.”

“It’s fine. You protected me from them. I’m ashamed to call myself your protector to be honest, hehe.”

“Really? I still don’t believe I need any protection. Having a companion is good enough for me.”

“Then I’ll gladly be your companion.”

She smiled at my response, then her face turned grim.

“Lars….you were shaking with fear, right? Also, that time during the exams, you were panicking too when we fought.”

I looked away with a shameful smile and placed my hand on my forehead.

“It’s fine. I…just have big issues with anxiety sometimes. I can handle it, don’t worry.”

Alessia patted my head.

“Well, if it bothers you too much, please feel free to talk to me. I want to help you get through it completely!” she smiled.

“Thanks, Alessia.”

“Hmm….”

Alessia leaned her face closer to me, with her pretty blue eyes having a strangely enchanting allure that seemed to draw my vision deep inside.

“W-What are you doing?” I step back instinctively.

“You still look a little pale…..I know just the place to cheer you up!”

(GEP Fact: The Enforcer Exam can be taken by those ages 17 to 20 years old. They are given 2 chances to take the exam, because King Cier believes people deserve second chances.) 

(GEP stands for General Enforcer Protocols)

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