Chapter 9: Chapter 8: Bloodstained Utopia

Back to the present, Hokori perplexed and frightened the Minagawas. Yukino panted louder behind Tokino, hearing him chuckle. Her father sweated bullets all over, recalling another face.

“Boy…” he pointed at Haruto. “You’re what I thought you’d be and then some. Now don’t get me wrong. I would’ve sliced melons off if I were you. Still, dontcha think the guy at the end of the stick can break it off?”

He squinted. “W-What are you talking about? What’s going on here!? Who and what are you!”

Hokori chuckled more. “What’s goin’ on is that I just fucked with all y’all. Boy, ya tellin’ me I got raw acting skills there? I mean, who the fuck goes bare-fisted against someone armed?

“And who and what am I, you ask? First off, sorry for messin’ your shit.” He placed a palm on his shirt.

Haruto saw red runes all across him. His clothes dried, and even the pungent smell of alcohol vanished. He sweated more, realizing the blood used. Looking up, he saw a smile.

“Hokori Udemaeno,” he lent a handshake. “I got my fam here, too: Kakunō and Kenkō. No relation.” The latter sleeptalked loudly of a sixer heartthrob. “As for your other question, it’s complicated. You’ll understand later, boy.”

Haruto’s perplexion faded, but the situation narrowed his eyes. Teeth clenched, he swiped the hand away. “You think this is funny!? Trying to hit my wife and my daughter? Who do you think you are!”

He cleaned his ear with a pinky. “In a prank video sense, yeah. Y’all fell for my act.” Within seconds, a gold blade neared his neck. But he stood from behind and laughed, his afterimage fading. “I knew you’d swing again for ’nother bait.” He stretched and yawned, “Boy, you bore me. For real.”

Haruto grunted and swung his left next. Yet eyes down, he went unarmed. What the? He turned, eyes still narrow.

Hokori yawned again. “Please… stop. I got somethin’ to say to y’all.” He stabbed the stabs on the floorboards.

“Hey!” shouted Don. “I told you not to ruin my floor, monsieur!”

Hokori bobbed to and fro, casual against Haruto’s assault. “Can’t ya fix this shit with runes?” his brow raised.

“I’m not a mage, imbécile!”

“Well, learn how to fix it if you worship it. Sucks to suck, old man.”

Haruto now punched the air fifty times. He couldn’t even think of getting his swords back. Their flippant talks had his teeth grit more. He shouted, and his right hook grazed Hokori’s cheek. It shouldn’t have, so the latter grinned and grabbed his back. Pinned down, hands tied behind, he failed to move an inch.

“Papa!” shouted Yukino, but her legs couldn’t run, sweating.

Sakusei carressed his chin. Damn, this kid ain’t half bad. No wonder he was Vetus’ archmage.

“Get off me!” Haruto struggled all the same.

Hokori sighed. “Boy, stop, or I swear you’ll kiss your fingers goodbye.” As noted, his wound cut deeper than expected: the bone. Pretty strong. He held down harder every second and cleared his throat. “Anyway, I got somethin’ to tell y’all. So ya better fucking listen—” More red dripped behind his neck.

“Let… him… go,” Tokino drove her rapier’s tip a fourth time. His buddies fell to their knees, her pressure growing. But Kakunō stood tall, and Kenkō’s sleeptalk went louder.

Still, Hokori had eyes unmoved. “Nice to see ya again, kid.”

Tokino had another prediction, ready to counter his grip. Yet all in slowed time, her stomach felt a million backhand slaps in one. He grabbed her freed rapier, and she vomited red onto a wall. Yukino yelled for her aid. Haruto gasped, eyes wide. “Tokino!” He broke free of the hold, pushing Hokori on his back. He grabbed both their swords and flash-stepped.

“Ow…” Hokori looked at his palm, slit open from the rapier taken.

She couldn’t respond to the ‘are you alright’ for a minute, her wind knocked out. Seconds in, she gasped and coughed. “Yeah. I’m fine.” She got up, legs shaky.

Alas, a head pat couldn’t stop Yukino’s hyperventilation. “Papa… I’m scared…” she sweated before Hokori. “That man’s heart. It’s very chaotic!”

Haruto had more beads roll down, eyes wide. The words only meant horror, but he had no time to wonder. Tall against the culprit, he pointed his silver blade high. “We’re not finished yet!” he exerted pressure.

Hokori cleaned an ear once more, unfazed. “Too bad, boy. Cuz I am.”

Before, the returned gesture felt like a beast looming in the shrubs. Now Haruto saw its fanged maw toward him in a roar. But he alone kneeled in sweat. What masterful control, he thought. Either way, he told his family to sit. Yukino obliged fast.

***

The archmage pocketed his hands. Aight. Now they can listen. He walked closer. “Again, I’m Hokori Udemaeno. Coelestis delegate. So is my fam right here.” He pointed with a thumb. “Like it or not, we’re a team now. Clover told ya nill, but I understand.”

Haruto waved back at Kakunō, no ill thought, nothing wrong. But the daggers in his eyes returned, looking back. “I want to vomit. Your name sounded familiar. Peerless Champion, this gorgeous city’s strongest mage. Prideful yet a heart of gold.” Eyes narrowed further, he stood. “But you have none of that! You’re more savage than anything!”

He chuckled. “Well, duh. PR management 101.”

Haruto sighed, eyes closed. “No use crying over spilled milk, but whatever. Is everything in life a joke to you? I can’t imagine anyone respecting you! Even thugs.” He poked his chest hard, “You hear that!? You piss me off as you breathe!”

“Hey, hey. Calm down, boy,” he spoke Japanese, hands raised. “Do I look like I throw bottles at kids for fun?”

“Yes!”

He scratched his head. “Aight, fair enough. But hear me out.” He pointed at Yukino, huddled behind her mother. “When I did that, it swayed far from her face, even at point-blank. A remarkable Child of Athena, I tell ya. In fact, it’s why I messed with y’all.

“I knew you three were the newcomers when I saw your fancy carriage outside.” He cleared his throat. “Now… even if I’m legit sorry… you won’t accept, right? It’s the truth, either way.”

The inferno still didn’t leave Haruto’s heart. If anything, he seethed louder, fists clenched. “Yes, indeed. True or lie, I won’t forgive. Everything about you disgusts me. Your face, voice, how you look down on me as a child. I can’t forgive.” He drew and pointed his gold sword, glaring more.

“Hokori Udemaeno… you don’t deserve your title. And so, I’ll fight against that. Let’s take it outside.”

Even when feeling his pressure again, Hokori snickered. “Hahahahaha! Sick monologue, right there. Who do you think you are? A light novel hero?”

Haruto blinked from a whirling gust and lost sight of him. His eyes darted, but he grunted and dropped his sword, held at the wrong end. Red wouldn’t stop staining the floor. The palladium alloy went close to severing tendons. Yet more red came as runes, healing every cell.

Hokori reappeared before him, returning his glare tenfold. “You dunno jack shit ’bout me, boy. None of your bull makes my hair stand. And you’re sayin’ as if my man Harald was a jackass for handin’ me the title. Now ain’t that a red line?

He cracked his knuckles, neck, and spine and breathed deep. “But… if ya wanna fight, it ain’t be here. It’d be up there.” He pointed at the ceiling, then at the bartender. “Don! A cold serve of 1v1, please!”

Nodding with a hum, Don opened an app unavailable on the Every Hub. Red exclamation points popped up on any unopened screen. The digital fliers also triggered every billboard, brighter than ever. “Dear Coelestians!” shouted the masculine voice within. “Get ready for the next battle!”

Runic cages entrapped Hokori and Haruto within seconds. “W-What’s happening?” the latter tried prying open.

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Hokori’s eyes rolled. “Boy, I told ya we gon’ fight up there. Gotta keep our streets clean, y’know?”

“Mama, what is this?” Yukino saw the red mark in front of her.

He turned. “Oh, yeah. I suggest you two answer yes. That is if ya wanna see us in person. Cuz my fam’s gonna.”

Sakusei and his team chose in a heartbeat. Kakunō did the same for his knocked-out comrade. Circled arrays glowed beneath them. Tokino wished for any doubt, but to follow her husband anywhere, she did Yukino a favor. More runes appeared: twenty-second countdown timers for all but two.

“You ain’t comin’, Don!?” Hokori raised a brow.

“I’d rather not,” he waved his hand. “Hearing maniacs scream will dull my ears faster than my age.” He sat on his chair, waiting for the live stream.

“Aight, suit yourself!” he smiled, thumbs up.

The rest had their bodies glow alongside the runes, gone in a flash. “W-What!?” Haruto squinted around. “Where are they going? My family?” He saw his and Hokori’s forty-second timer.

The latter sighed. “Didn’t ya hear what I just said? Never ask too many questions, boy. But we go up late to excite the audience. They’ll watch us duel, that’s that.” He cracked his toes, untouched. “Keep your swords sharp. Cuz when we’re there…” he pointed up again, then at Haruto.

“Imma give ya the wake-up call of a lifetime.”

Another flash of light gleamed before them. Empty mugs shook and rolled. Now alone, Don thanked the Gods. Bar and casino fights would be hell across the city if not for the exclusive app.

***

The Fools’ Theater: the truest pride of every Coelestian. Two-thirds of the populace flashed toward the floating island, high above the city’s heart. They’d indeed reached the Gods, but they showed only grins in all teeth. Even children, jumping aloud at the entrances, went louder.

Seventy, eighty, ninety, and a hundred more spilled through the doors of the six-arched marble colosseum. It wouldn’t be enough for two hundred, but many clamored atop others’ heads. Yet those still outside had the same joy, mesmerized by the ornate artistry above.

Athena: the earthly deity. Solid gold between red and blue banners draped around the arches. None had complaints for no usage of their pantheon, ever so tall with her spear and shield. Children screamed the most reaction, as always. A hundred more went inside fast, parents failing to catch up.

Many pointed at the same banners in the waiting hall: their emblem at the red and two loinclothed men grappling at the blue. Half had imitated the latter, and the other tried to open platinum doors far away. Many a parent caught up, holding their hands. “Easy there, son,” told a father. “VIPs only.”

All stood confused and even complained. But luck struck with a chime, and the spectator doors opened. Twenty Geld each, one could pay eighty more for second-row seats. Those who did had leaned at the railings, just twenty feet above the floor arena. Yet none saw any front row. Beneath their feet, the fifteen rooms of the utmost elite instead. But it meant one thing, racing their hearts.

“Dude!” a teenager grinned. “You think Kakunō and Sakusei would sneak down and spar again?”

“Who cares? Let’s do it ourselves!” The four delinquents yelled and leaped beyond the boundary. Guards became overwhelmed by the others piling up to see an appetizer. All needed to quell their hunger before the main event. Lo and behold, the four granted their wishes: ten hooks and five turning kicks.

Despite the chest-pounding screams, a daughter gasped, meek and soft-spoken. So the father, unlike his son, held her close. “Sorry about your first time, sweety. But this is how it is.” He looked around, seeing even their sixteenth row in a frenzy. “Back in Mheán Domhain, many said our city’s motto should be:

“The taste of blood sweetens as you enthrall our clear skies.”

She gasped more. The proud culture of orcs and rangers couldn’t hope to stomach a quarter of this lust. But the colosseum, a marvel truer than its name, made her crack a smile. Soft cheers for the last delinquents standing, then she jumped aloud with everyone. Back in her recliner, she pressed the button for a floating vending machine.

***

In a doorless room, Haruto wobbled from the runic teleportation. He covered his mouth, never to stain the floor. Looking up, he saw a straw target dummy in the middle, eyes crossed. Hit me × ∞, it said on its belly. Upon touching, minuscule runes glowed across its head. A chuckle from behind jerked his whole being.

“Those runes gave fighters more assurance.” The man walked closer. “Harald wasn’t sure they’d believe the words. Now that I mention it, every rune here is his making. Unmatched work, right?”

“Who are you?” he squinted.

The man chuckled again. “Think of me as your ‘spiritual healer,’ kid. Not only will I heal you up out there, but I’ll also strengthen your willpower. It can even mean encouraging you to throw the towel if you want.”

His senile, wrinkled look exuded a long dedicated profession. Maybe even more by his coughing fit. Yet beyond his brown skin, hazel eyes, and buzz-cut hair, he still spoke of younger days. Dark green uniform: a paramedic, Haruto realized.

The man lent him a handshake. “Dominique Larry. You can call me by the latter. Turning eighty-three next week, but my son’s willing for the job.” His arms crossed, smiling. “Honest pleasure to meet you, Haruto Minagawa. Harald’s got nothing but sheer respect for all of you.

“I’m usually Hokori’s healer, always telling me to save that for his foes. But I encourage him to stop once they’re at death’s door.” He chuckled.

Haruto raised a brow and cleared his throat. “Larry… can you please tell me why I’m here?”

“Well, you’re in one of the training chambers. We’re waiting for McLagan’s speech. He loves a grand good one before every duel. I saw your nape, by the way.” He turned, showing the United States tattoo from his own. “You, me, and Hokori ain’t that different. Don’t you think?

“Speaking of which, I should warn you, kid. He’s got a way of playing with food. So I can’t heal you all the time. Please be careful.” He patted his shoulder.

In another room at the opposite end, Hokori squinted. “Ey, you ain’t my guy. Who the hell are you?”

The woman kneeled. “My apologies, sir Hokori (誇利様). I-It’s my first day on the job. Umm….” She walked toward him in sweat. “Engo Ōkyū (応急 援護). Age twenty-three. Pleased to meet you.” She had bowed in Japanese.

Her look befitted a former fledgling ready to take on any duty, albeit in a naive streak. With her black eyes, ponytail, and 162 cm stature, Hokori stood surprised. He had no reason to doubt her roots. “Wait a minute,” he said in his native tongue. “Are you really—”

Her cheeks reddened. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I-I don’t know what you’re saying. I shouldn’t have talked like that. How rude of me. It was just a rehearsal once we met.

“I’m not a reborn human or from Mikazukihantō (三日月半島). Only my great-great-grandma was. There’s nothing special about me.” She sighed. “I owe Larry plenty, but either way,” she held a peace sign, eyes closed, “I’ll help you whenever I can!” Her smile told a million convictions.

He caressed his chin and smirked. A head pat didn’t hurt, recalling a face from Earth.

“Hm? What are you doing?” her cheeks reddened again.

He let go and chuckled. “Engo… need ya to do me a solid out there. It’ll help both fighters. Larry, too.”

“W-What would that be, sir?”

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