“How about a deal, first deal of your life, 15% discount with full customer services and other benefits.” A new voice enters Erhart’s head, as he opens his eye he sees Zotoady ducks down in front of him.

“Go away.” Erhart is slightly calmer than before, yet He currently still do not wish to see this annoying bastard.

“Come on little Erhart, you may love the deal.”

“I said GO! AWAY!” Erhart shouts.

“Just a deal, dood. One Deal, maybe two or three. Or four, or…”

“Fxxk OFF!” Erhart is now fully enraged, he focuses all his anger, rage and fury onto this obnoxious failure of a being claim to be his master’s best friend’s master or whatever. Pushing himself up, sending his fist across the air and smashed it deep into Zotoady’s face. Zotoady did not bother to dodge. He takes the hit literally head on. But not even flinching in the slightest possible way.

“Is this how you perceive life? How you control your negative emotion? Using violence and a punch or a stab to solve everything? Putting all the blame on another person. Who is not relevant to your problem at all.” Not seems to be bothered by the red swollen mark on his face made by Erhart’s punch, he says, his words prick deep into Erhart’s heart like a sharp dagger.

“I am already dead.” On the surface Erhart’s voice is emotionless, but deep down he feels slightly guilty for his action just now.

“So be it, if that is how you thinks about then so be it. How about that we make a deal?”

“I already said, I am not interested.”

“I think you are, Well, How about this, what if I say that I can give you what you desire the most.” Zotoady says.

‘Yuna?!’

“What is the deal?” Erhart asks.

“Here. A prepay.” Zotoady says, taking out a black coloured, leaf shaped gem out of one of his pockets and throws it straight at Erhart. He explains, “After eleven years of continuous charging. This gem can grant you one wish, any wish is all fine, you can even ask for your universe to be explode if you want.” Zotoady explains, as he is doing so, the lab background, the gas, Erhart and Yuna all explodes into countless shards of green crystal, gradually dematerialise in the air. The old white room that they were previously in reappears back into Erhart’s fields of sight.

“What is my end of the bargain?” Erhart questions Zotoady, knowing that ‘There is no such thing as a free lunch even in this world.’

“Here.” Zotoady say, flicking his finger, an approximately A3 sized blue screen constructs on the back of Erhart’s left hand a pixel after another. Erhart shoots back a bit, shaking his left hand consecutively as if he has caught fire, attempts to get the screen off.

“What the hell is this?”

“Look before you ask any questions.”

[ ]

Things to do Before you pointlessly kill yourself

Make a country for [Human] Find Amelia

Your List

…….

[ ]

“Eight more ‘things to do’ will be added onto this list as the gem is charging.”

“And I meant to complete them?”

“Aye! If you don’t the gem will not work even when fully charged. I have already set up two quests for you. Within in the 11 years, other quests will appear sooner or later.” Zotoady says.

“Not a very fair deal is it?.”

“What?!”

“First, I don’t know that if this, well, rock is able to fulfil my wish! And second, you are only giving me one thing and I am supposed to do ten things for you! You think that’s fair?! No.” Erhart begins to bargain with Zotoady.

“Nine things….”

“That’s not important.”

“1 reward for each task, then” Zotoady says.

“No! For the difficulty of your quests at least three rewards for 1 task, come on! If you have eyes, you will see that I am just a normal [Human] kid, and you are expecting me to build a bloody country. Isn’t that a bit too much?”

“My rewards are really, really precious, two for one. No more.”

“Fine.” Erhart says, extending his right arm outwards. Palm out, flat facing upward.

“What do you want NOW?”

“Prepay me another reward.” Erhart says, shamelessly putting up a greedy smile. He did not go argue with or attempt to scam this black haired young looking man any further. He knows if he is to enrage Zotoady, the slightest chance he has of possibly able to redeem himself to Yuna and save her is over.

“Ahhh…You knows no shame” Zotoady sighs, with a green flash, a sword emerges into his hand. The blade looks very similar to the one that Erhart have. The body of the sword is relative thin and a bit shorter compare to a standard bastard sword, is approximately half a metre-long infixes inside of a wooden, metal edged scabbard with a dark green hilt sticking out of it. The hilt consists of a relatively small trapezoid guard, a bit wider than the blade itself, styled into the shape of two clouds, with a dark green jade crystal embedded in the middle. The handle of the sword is made with some kind of green wood foreign to Erhart’s knowledge with a piece of rough fabric ropes around it neatly, at the end of the handle is a sword knot made with some kind of dark green metal.

“You should probably start raising your ‘qi’.” Zotoady suggests, while realising that his Qi is no longer frozen, Erhart begins to cultivate and manoeuvre his qi across his body, in just moments, he feels that body has become much more lighter and stronger than before.

“Ready?! See if you can sustain!” Laying his hand light on the handle of the sword.

“Yahh?.” Erhart says without further consideration of the consequence. He is still confused about why he is asked to raise his Qi.

In a fraction of a second, Zotoady pulls, with the slightest part of the blade leaving the scabbard, a sudden and vigorous pulse of energy radiates outwards from the sword towards Erhart. So powerful it knocks Erhart back to the other side of the room. But due to the years of practicing horse stance, Erhart manages to remain standing, but just barely. Soon with more and more parts of the blade’s body is leaving the scabbard, the energy pulse changes into crimson auras, filled with unrivalled killing intents. Erhart summons up his Sword Aura to try to counter it. He first believes that he is doing quite well but soon he realises how wrong he is, when the blade is half pulled out. The remaining Sword’s mind left on the sword by its previous owner begins to attack Erhart’s ‘Spirit Domain’.

‘Crap, I can’t block it.’ Biting his teeth Erhart thinks, as he senses that his ‘Spiritual Domain’ is being taken over bit by bit. He curses at that how the sword’s old owner is careless enough to left his or her “Rubbish” on the blade untreated, but at the same time he is also amazed at how powerful this sword’s previous owner must be. Just the slightest remains of his or her power is able to invade his ‘Spirit Domain’ with such ease.

“It’s all or nothing.” Erhart, take a deep breath in and begins to focus.

“Interesting.” Zotoady comments, while seeing the way Erhart uses to defend himself. Erhart did not simply go head to head with the invading Sword’s mind. Instead he let them run unrestraint, using his own spirit energy as passage to direct them into the outside, reshape them and then absorb them back into his soul realm, making their power his own. Of cause, for most of the cases, if one is to try such, they are most likely going to fail and ultimately meet their end with their death being a more preferable option. But, for Erhart it is a bit different, as the owner of this sword is……

To Erhart’s surprise the invading Sword’s mind has been neutralised rather smoothly. He is able to moves his body into sitting cross legged. And starts meditating. Erhart breaths in and breaths out steadily, calming his mind and entering a state of extreme focus. By doing so he is able to send his conscious into his ‘Spirit Domain’, shifting his spirit power into countless small bridges, medium uses to directs the invading Sword’s Mind out of his domain, and then he with the help of his Sword Aura begins to shape them into countless thin strings. Circling around him, gradually entering his forehead one by one.

As he is absorbing the sword minds, Erhart feels as if he is sitting in front of a television screen, he is able to see the scenes of memories and flashbacks left behind in the Sword’s mind by the sword’s previous owner.

A woman, Erhart sees, a young woman with dark violet hair, almost black. She is not beautiful, but she has extraordinary presence and an almost artistic temperament that leaves behind an intense cast of mind in all the memories of all those who puts eyes on her. The sword lays gently on the back of her left arm.

With just a blink of Erhart’s eye, the woman jumps into motion, dancing in the air and swinging the blade, leaving behind trails of concentrated purple coloured Sword Aura with each movement. All of her strikes and swings are fluid like, not in the slightest way are they seem to be forced or mechanical. The sword looks as if it is a part of her, or a better way to put it as if she is the blade. And her enemies are not men and women, nor are they demons and monsters. She is fighting against the nature itself, crushing the clouds, shifting the earth, separating the seemingly unstoppable building highs ocean tides into two pieces. Erhart cannot help but gasps, thinking, ‘is she even human anymore? Maybe she’s not. I would not be surprised at all if she is not.’ After all the events that have happened around and to Erhart, he no longer cares about his sanity, as he knows he no longer has any.

Finally, the blade is out of its scabbard, Erhart’s eyes gradually opens. The blade itself is plain looking with the colour of its body being dark green, presumably made from the same metal as the sword’s knot. On the blade, there isn’t a single pattern to decorate it nor is there any crystals embedded inside. Without any Sword Aura left on the sword. The sword does not look special in any way possible. Erhart lets out a faint smile and snatches the sword along with the scabbard from Zotoady’s hand. Zotoady sighs and shakes his head seemingly in disappointment after seeing Erhart is able to endure. But when Erhart turns back and begins to praise the sword, Zotoady lets out a big smile and another sigh of relief.

……..

“WHAT DID YOU SAY!? AMELIA IS KIDNAPPED.” Erhart does not bother to hold his composure and shouts angrily at Zotoady, as if he is responsible for Amelia’s kidnapping. Well, in some way Erhart’s action may seem logical. As Zotoady, in some way or another knows such event is occurring, but he did not bother to lend a hand or try to help Amelia in anyway. Other than indirectly noticing Erhart afterwards.

“I think that event has been on your screen for the past five minutes, did you just notice it now?”

“But, But, But, I thought that ‘find Amelia’ means to just return to the village or something.” Erhart quibbles.

“Where is she?”

“No idea.” Zotoady says, while shrugging his shoulder.

“Tell me where she is.”

“No idea.”

“I will cut you, literally.”

“Do please try not to do so.”

“Who took her away?”

“Some group.”

“Do the leader of that group wears a gold helmet.”

“Do I look like Wikipedia to you or something, as I said before I have no idea.”

“Why didn’t you help her?”

“Why should I? I don’t even know her.”

“But you are a [Human] aren’t you? And shouldn’t we [Humans] be helping each other.”

“NO? what do makes you think that I am a human.”

“How you look.”

“Many different races have similar looks, but possess entirely different body systems. Some [Mix Bloods] in your world also have [Human] looks but the proceed themselves as being another race entirely, just like the girl you pushed over back then.”

A silence fall after Zotoady’s sentence comes out from his mouth.

Erhart bites his lips in frustration, saying “I am too weak, I can’t even protect the one person in this world I care the most.”

Zotoady breakout a light laughter after hearing that statement, he comments “That sounds so cringy. And you are wrong, really wrong about that.”

“What do you mean.”

“You are not to blame for the girl’s kidnapping.”

“Who is? The kidnappers?”

“Possibly, but they are also not the main culprits.” Zotoady pauses, he adds “Your race’s own weakness is what to blame.”

Before Erhart can reply, Zotoady speaks on, “If you race is as strong as the Taveilians in Taveila or even similar to what the humans are like on your homeland, Earth. I doubt anyone would dare to even think of kidnapping one of your own. Now here is my question for you, Why is [Human] race so weak here?”

“Because we do not have [Blood Awakening Abilities]?” Erhart answers unsurely, as he knows the answer is not that straight forward.

“Yes, that’s a part of it, but there is more.”

Erhart closes his eye and begins to dig up all the pieces of information he can think of. He soon is locked in his contemplation, buried by countless ideas and thoughts emerging out of his brain. He thinks and thinks. ‘Our technology?’, ‘Our weapons?’, ‘Our governing system.’ But these are not the answers he wishes for. These factors are only correlations, they are not the causation. Erhart felt as if he is trapped in somewhere, stuck in something.

And suddenly, just like a beam of light entering a dark room. The most important piece of the puzzle is finally found that ultimately connects everything together. Erhart realises something, something lays deep within the [Human] civilisation. Something that looks as if it is a beautiful flower, yet has a poisionous serpent under it. Something that seems to be the saviour and the anchor of the [Human] race, yet is also responsible for its downfall.

Erhart’s eye suddenly shines, he raises his head and answers the question, “[Heroes].” Seeing Zotoady letting out a commending smile. Erhart adds on, “We, [Humans] relies too much on the power of [Heroes] to protect us, leading to us not putting too much effort on exploring the hidden potentials within our own [Bloodline] or any new and more advance technologies. In which, result in a situation of we, only have a few strong individuals within our race and if those strong ones are to die out on us, [Humans] race are basically doomed. Just like the situation we are facing now.

[Heroes] are [Human]’s examples, they are never out saviours.”

“Text book answer, but pretty good. And do you know what to do?”

“No.”

“Ahh… Errrr, you will figure it out.” Zotoady says awkwardly. With a flick of his finger, the white room around them begins to fade away chunk by chunk.

“Oh, you guys are back.” The red haired girl, Yadina shouts waving her arm and running towards them, followed by a group of silver furry, wolf like [beasts].