Chapter 21: Chapter 9: The Talk

Chapter 9: The Talk

“Run Mella run!”

“I-. ArH! -Am!” Mella was sweating profusely as I forced her to keep running. 

After the first day, Mella felt a little confident. Which smashed into pieces once the second day began.

The gym had a 1km oval and an obstacle course, both were part of the excise required. Currently, she was doing the easy part of today’s training, just doing laps for two hours. 

“Another Stella doing the [Quick Step] training makes a grown man cry,” wiping away the single falling tear.

“Shut it Brigade,” I sent a low-power fireball into his stomach, which he easily dodged. “Hey! What’s that big idea attack your uncle!”

Brigade Maxim was the current owner of Big Block Gym and a low-time friend to anyone who frequently visited. Including my father. He wasn’t biologically my uncle but he treated the kids of any of his friends as family.

“It wouldn’t even have hurt.” My eyes dart back to Mella as she slows down while I was being distracted, “KEEP IT UP! Trust me you won’t like it if I have to come down to help!”

“EPP!” She pushed on even harder. Mostly due to fear… I should buy her ice cream later.

“Haaaaa… It’s going to take a month at this rate.” Brigade examined.

“Probably longer, we won’t be doing this every day.” 

“My estimates are if you two train at least four times a week,” he replied. Our talk quickly turned serious.

“Sadly it will only be two times a week, I do want to also live her life and train her other skills.” I glance back at Brigade who had nodded in agreement, “How have you not found another person with a similar skill yet?”

He briefly froze, “Too many reasons Miss Stella.”

“Don’t call me, sounds weird coming from your mouth.” I declared.

“Haha, got it!” we both dryly laughed.

The ‘similar skill’  I referred to… belonged to my dad–[Brutal Instructor]. He had three jobs due to him just enjoying doing different things, one of those was working at this gym. Good ‘Teaching’ and ‘Instructor’ skills were rare, and if someone did have you could easily bet they wouldn’t be working in an average popularity gym. 

Using this skill, he created his ‘hell week’ training routine. 

Mella's muffled scream barely reached me, “Come on sis! Please give me a break!” She had collapsed face-first into the ground.

“What will you be doing?” I asked as Mella rolled over and sat up.

“R-resting for ummm….” not expecting me to actually give her a chance, she stumbled over her own words. “Five minutes, while I watch you use the skill!”

“Yeah fine, okay then,” I didn’t show, but it hurt whenever I was asked to show off the skill. But I agreed and decided to race around the track using it repeatedly.

[Quiet Step] was around the same level of power as [Quick Step]. But obviously, it focuses on stealth and movement instead of just mobility. I wish I still had the skill…

This course was created by Brigade’s great granddad along with multiple others designed to train people to unlock specific skills. But it was designed to be used by people who were level 50 or below–the range could differ greatly based on the Vocation.

Holding onto some semblance of the past I tried faking it–using more mana and my naturally stronger physique. Which was fine when demonstrating to Mella but was instantly noticed by Brigade.

He didn’t question why I didn't have the skill anymore and just look concerned. Brigade was an old fart who's been around the block a few noticed my new level of strength after I returned. Even offering to spar if I ever got rusty from sitting around.

“Okay, Mella time to go home!”

“Y…a..y…!” Mella celebrated but was too tired to move. I walked over and dragged her corpse to the exit. Before we left the building–saying goodbye to Brigade in the process–I realised it would probably be weird to drag Mella all the way home. So I placed her on my back. 

“Weeeeee!” Sounding drunk, Mella seemly enjoyed being thrown about like a child.

One of her dangly arms ended up resting on my right arm. Then a warmth permeated through my entire limb. Confused but I didn’t react negatively to healing I could feel it wasn’t hostile.

Was that one of her skills?

“Hey, Mella?”

“Zeee Zoooooy.” She was sleeping like there was no tomorrow.

“Hehe, what type of sleeping noise is that?” I laughed, wishing I could have recorded it for later.

 

---

“A…aa.a moRING!” Mella finally awoke from her slumber. Jumping off the couch she happened to catch me walking out of the bathroom midway through putting my shirt on.

“Good to see you’re awake,” I said.

“...” Her eyes were dark and she was silent for a few seconds.

“Melly?” I asked in concern.

“Oh, sorry.” She scratched her head, “Still out of it…”

“Okay, just be careful,” I replied.

I went to the fridge where I took out a bottle, which I brought over to Mella.

“Here you go,” I tossed into her hand.

“Thanks sis.” She began chugging it down. “Today was shit.”

“You just needed to work out more.” I poked at her arm muscles

“But I’m a Maagggeeeeeeee–” She rolled back and whined like a child.

“So what? Being punched is still being punched in the face unless you can dodge.”

“Whose going to punc–”

“Want me to?” I gestured.

“NOOO!” She ran off straight into her room. 

“Make sure you stretch more you idiot!” I called out knowing she could still clearly hear me.

Time passed and night fell, me and Mella stayed in the loungeroom watching the TV. Initially, we watched some movies but we switched to the news after a couple of hours. Kind of boring but learning the current state of affairs was necessary.

Mother came home and fell asleep after cooking dinner… she didn’t use to do that. I remembered she loved staying up until the end of the midnight hour 

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Then I heard the door open, “Tyell must be home.”

“Yeah.” Tyell's hours were weird, sometimes he worked early in the morning to midday and other times she worked past midnight. 

Tyell walked into the house and I prepared to welcome him. But when he entered the kitchen– the kitchen and lounge were connected–I saw his injured appearance.

“What happen to you?” I calmly asked.

Mella looked over after I asked Tyell, and screamed “Are you okay!” She gave me a look back asking ‘how are you unfazed by this?’.

“Just some drunk bastard,” Tyell placed his backpack on the table “Punched me right in the face when I was cleaning a glass.”

Mella whispered on the couch, “It actually happens!?”

“What does?” Tyell asked. Hearing Mella's comment.

“Umm.. nothing.” She sat back down and turned away.

Now Mella had gotten that out of her system, I asked “Can you give me his description and name?”

“...I don’t think I should,” he replied. 

“Legal reasons?”

“There is a law about that, so yes.” he said, “Now if you excuse me, I’m going to get some dinner.” Tyell did as he said, then joined us on the couch and we continued to watch the news.

“The band Blazers will be performing in the Helious Mall on 90th of Bluepple, two weeks from now.”

“How does one perform in a mall?” I asked.

“Cause Helious Mall a ‘Mall’ is a massive understatement.” Mella answered, “It has two optional soundproof theatres, a movie theatre, so many different stores and about ten houses… Oh yeah, it was also built two years ago on top of the old history museum.”

“They demolished the museum??” I thought you weren’t supposed to do cause of historic value or something.

“Yeah they did. Loads of people were pissed but the building was unstable thanks to some of the items stored there. And they spent thirty years trying to fix it before concluding it was a lost cause.”

I feel someone with the rights skills would have fixed it. I assumed it exactly had to do with money troubles or something.

“So either of you going to that?”

“Nope,” Mella replied.
“Not my thing,” Tyell answered.

The news continued to roll by; The prime minister of forty years got married; Averon won the blitzball planet league; A dog, cat, and donkey being saved from a cave-in; and then.

“Holiday Inc’s storage facilities were raided this morning current the culprits are unknown and the authorit–”

“Oh it was probably the Hood again!” Mella yelled.

“I wonder what they recovered this time.” While Tyell failed to hide his indifference.

Meanwhile, my expression darkened.

“Oh, sis you probably don’t kn–” The moment she look she became stiff.

I stood up and walked to the kitchen side of the room wanting to create some distance.

Tyell stood up after me, “Sister?” I turned around and noticed he started sweating. The only thing scary about me right should be my expression? He must have a skill then.

I was going to this soon rather than later, and the perfect opportunity to start the conversation appeared. “Sorry to scare you, Mella.” I apologised first, “However, to answer if I know them? Then yes I do.”

“...Are you upset we found them cool?” Mella asked. While Tyell frowned.

“Yes, extremely.” My eyes brightened with mana, “They are the reason why I went missing.” I didn’t give them a chance to respond. “They attacked the ship I was on, caused the deaths of my crewmates, and sent to wreckage straight into a planet to never be found.”

Mella was stunned silent.

“They must’ve had a good reason–” Tyell tried speaking up.

“Oh, they had a reason. To steal some cargo the crew knew nothing about. Which caused the deaths of my friends.”

He bit his tongue, and getting desperate he spoke “They don’t try to harm anybod–”

“Try to harm anybody?”

“Yes!” He yelled, at this point I was concerned that he was somehow brainwashed “Accidents happen but they only try and retrieve dangerous illegal items and dig up company wrongdoings.”

I didn’t yell, as all emotion left my voice and focused on my eyes, “I was stabbed in the chest with a goddamn arrow.” I grabbed my shirt and pulled it down, just to show the area where the scar lay. “Right here,” I taped it three times. “Was where they got me. After I had already been beaten down into the ground.”

“...” He stood in silence.

Multiple wounds were visible but the scar in the centre was the most prominent. No matter how many times my body got healed it never faded. An arrow that damages the soul is truly a frightening weapon after all.

“... there must’ve been a mistake…” looking down he mumbled.

“A mistake?!” For the first time tonight, I yelled. “What part about my friends were murdered, I was stabbed, I couldn't come home for five years because of them do you not understand.”

“...sorr-” He couldn’t finish his sentence as he started to cry.

The noise awoke the attention of someone it didn’t need to. Clamouring out of her room, her footsteps were easy enough for me to hear, “W-what is happening?!” 

With teared-filled eyes, Mother screamed. “Why are you fighting?!” Looking over the three of us. Seeing Tyell state, Mella’s still body and my insanity-filled eyes.

“There's nothing to worry about.” I calmly responded, going back to my neutral state.

“Bu–” I interrupted.

“Tyell’s injury was from a customer at work.” I pointed at his cheek, “Our current argument has been nothing but verbal.” Then I turned around ready to go outside for the night, “Speaking of which, we just finished.”

“Ceella..–” Tyell tried to say something.

“No, you will rest on what I’ve told you, and you will have learned your lesson.” I sternly replied. “Sorry about waking you, mother.” I apologised.

She saw me walking to the door, “Wait where are you going!” probably worried I was going missing again… 

“Just sleeping outside…” I remembered the date, “But I’ll be out all day tomorrow. Finally meeting up with some friends.”

I left the building and jumped onto the roof. Still, it hurt yelling at them… Maybe I could have handled that… so much better…

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