AbadomWriter
patreon
I'm afraid you are...
🕑 Added 2022-12-23 14:07:19 +0000 UTC.
.
.
------------
/A few minutes after Philip's fight in the hall…/
'In a dark dead end, two people fought viciously.'
/Clang!/
"HA!"
/CLANG!/
"UR…!
"HAAA!"
/Splat!/
'With a heavy swing, Palimo crushed the head of the warrior in front of her, making the man fall onto the ground like a puppet that lost his strings.'
"Haa… Haa…"
I did it...
'Breathing heavily, Palimo tried to recover her energy as much as she could, there was no guarantee things would be safe even when she had dealt with everyone around her.'
'Looking around, she searched for someone, but as expected, there was no one.'
'All either died or fled back deeper into the base... Not that inside would be any safer.'
"Phew…"
I can have a breather for now.
'Palimo was currently at the dead end of a hallway with a few doors around her.'
'Many sections of this hallway were broken, and the lights were completely shattered, casting a shadow onto this section of the base.'
'A long corridor that led to deeper parts of the base, this was a dormitory at the edges of the base in the underground.'
'As for how she got here in the first place...'
'Due to some circumstances, after fleeing from the cell with the help of Philip, she made her way to a secluded hall where she found her Husband and Son.'
'Like she heard from the guards, they were here to get her out, and it made her smile, though she was ready to reprimand them later…'
'Though right now, after fighting so much, the first thing she wanted to do upon getting home was sleep… Who cares about what they did? They were together now, and that was all that mattered…'
'Upon seeing them, her first thought was reuniting, to make sure they were safe.'
'Her husband was strong, but combat wasn't his forte, he got strong so he could hammer the toughest of alloys, to resist the highest temperatures and conditions inside a forge.'
'While her son was neither good at fighting, nor was he a proper smith yet, but good enough to do both without being called a newbie.'
'But of course, things wouldn't be that simple.'
'Because the moment she arrived, sirens echoed in the base, and people started to move, and it didn't take long for some of the goons to find her and realize she was an escapee given the bodies of the guards around her.'
'After fighting and some more, she started to realize that her situation wasn't that bad and as the mysterious man that saved her had said, she only needed to take care of some weaker guards, he would take care of the rest...'
'Her senseless slaughter of anything on her path to bring her family to safety eventually dragged her here, far from the chaos.'
'Although trouble still followed her.'
'One last enemy, someone just as strong as her… Someone well equipped, that knew the environment, and wasn't tired.'
'The result was obvious...'
'Her arm was bleeding, her palms were torn, her body slashed all over, her mind was in tatters, and she felt really awful, but her heart and mind were much lighter now that she could actually see her family.'
'She turned back, moving to one of the side rooms.'
/Knock!/
"It's done…"
/Clank!/
'The door was opened hastily, and a grumpy dwarf with a long beard appeared.'
"Are you okay?!"
'Just as the door was opened, the man looked her all over, trying to see if she had any injuries, and of course, he saw them.'
'And his expression twisted in many emotions.'
"Dammit!"
/RIP!/
'He ripped his clothes apart without much effort, using them as improvised bandages.'
"W-Wait… I'm not that badly injured… Most importantly, we need to move now." She said with a concerned smile
'Seeing her husband like this made her remember the past, but this wasn't time for such emotions.'
'While the other prisoners were laying chaos all around the base, she had to find an opportunity to escape.'
'She already did more than she was supposed to, taking down dozens of goons on her way.'
'No matter how big this base is, their supply of personnel is just so much…'
'Yet this didn't mean it was their all.'
'As they spoke and rested, more were likely coming, reinforcements, and she had to find a way to flee and hide, wait for an opportunity to leave their territory for good.'
'As for the rest… She would have to believe 'that man' would take care of it.'
/Tremble.../
'Given the tremors, and the fact the siren changed intensity several times, it looked like he was doing his job well… Perhaps too well.'
'She feared that her lifeline, the man fighting somewhere she didn't know would fall.'
'Because once that became reality, and they still happened to be inside the base, it would truly be their end.'
'Regardless, no matter what, the Conjunction wouldn't pay that much attention to them once this was over.'
'Why would they care for a small-time family when they had so much trouble pilling up in their hands?'
'Lastly, to end with a golden key, as long as the Manager Director kicked the bucket, then they would be fine.'
'Because at the end of the day, they didn't have a problem with the Conjunction gang itself, but with the son of the Manager Director.'
'So if they were to vanish, everything would be fine… For the most part.'
'The Conjunction is a very brutal and vengeful organization, so they may come back for them eventually… Just like they would for the other escapees…'
'That is, if they manage to survive.'
'Losing this base would certainly be quite the hit for them, one it would be difficult to recover from.'
'And considering the Conjunction is in an open conflict with the Street Palace, despite how Neutral they often pose themselves as, they wouldn't lose the opportunity to show their power.'
'So such a thing didn't happen again.'
'The Street Palace will be the final nail in their coffin, though it would be too much to assume they would actually fall that low.'
'They likely have a few aces to play here and there...'
"Mother…"
This is...
It was all because I lacked the means to protect myself...
"Shh… Don't speak child, we can talk more later." She said slowly with a small smile
'Patting her head of her child, she took this moment to rest, trying to keep herself composed, ignoring the pain of her injuries.'
'It was true though, she was very hurt, bleeding considerably, she needed medical attention, no matter how resilient a Dwarf was, her blood supply would eventually end.'
...
/A minute or two later.../
/Step step…/
"!"
'The sound of footsteps echoed from the hall outside, making everyone tense.'
/Grip.../
'Palimo raised her mace silently, ready to strike.'
/Stop/
'But then, the footsteps stopped.'
"I can hear you in there, don't worry, it's me."
"!"
'Palimo's hands trembled for a moment, she immediately recognized that voice…'
'Moving outside under the worried eyes of her kin, she turned to the hallway, using the walls as her cover.'
'In there, a man clad in dark, his leathery clothes stained with a few bloody red marks…'
'His blue eyes shinning faintly in dark.'
'Holding a bloody sac in one hand, and a sword on his back.'
"You…"
'She was stunned, she didn't image him to come back so soon.'
"It seems you got what you wanted… And I'm aware you have many questions…"
"But those injuries aren't light, so let me help you with that." Philip said as he raised his left hand, gesturing for her to hold it
"We can talk more on the way, just come closer for now."
"..."
/Inhale/
/Exhale/
'She didn't know what to expect now, but she had to follow through with it.'
'So she breathed in and out, before calling her family from the room on the side.'
'There would be no point in hiding them, much less when her cheeky child just peeked from the corner...'
…
'Now on the corridor, a family of 3 dwarves stared at Philip from a few meters away.'
"You can rest easy for now, they won't be coming our way anytime soon."
"I… I don't think I ever properly introduced myself." Palimo said awkwardly as she approached Philip
"My name is Palimo Zu, I'm nothing but a humble housewife..."
"A housewife that can smash an Orc's Skull with ease..." Her husband added, making her eyelids twitch
"You COULD add the Zas at the end had my husband ever gone through with the marital rituals…"
'Her voice became a bit scrumped as she said 'rituals'...'
"W-What?! Don't come with that story again!"
"I've tried to get it done so many times but the procedures were always so complicated and they changed so many times that you yourself got angry once!"
/Chuckles/
"I'm just joking dear, I need no certificate to prove my bonds with you."
"Dear…"
'The two looked at each fondly, though while the atmosphere became a bit light, Philip and Junior just stared at each other in silence and awkwardness.'
...
"Cough… In any case…"
'Feeling a bit embarrassed, Palimo continued with her introductions.'
"To my right is my son, Gert Junior Jas Zu… He's currently working as an apprentice at his father's workshop, if you can even call it that."
"..."
'He remained silent, like a rock...'
"Introduce yourself." She said in a heavy tone, unpleased
"A-Ah?! I-I'm Gert SIR!"
'The boy stood like a log, and he even saluted in a weird way.'
"..."
"..."
/Chuckle/
'It was now Philip's turn to chuckle.'
"You're not in the army kid."
Though he is technically older than me... He is still a kid by Dwarven standards, so I'll take him as one.
"S-Sorry…"
"There's no need to say sorry either."
He looks like one of those meek people...
Someone that can be pushed around rather easily.
"A… I understand."
/Clears throat…/
'Finally, it was time for the heavyweight to speak…'
"Thank you very much for saving my wife… She already gave me a small debrief of what happened… And I would like to voice my appreciation... Whatever little it is."
"I'm her husband, Tredis Jas Alquor, I am a lead researcher in an Artifact Laboratory."
"You're humbling yourself father..."
"Haha... I'm not really that great... If I were, I would receive my damn materials and not be in the middle of this mess."
'He took a step forward, raising his hand to shake Philips.'
'Although he was still a bit afraid of the man in front of him, he didn't hesitate to show his appreciation.'
'Even when Philip's hands were bloody…'
"Nice to meet you too."
'Beneath his mask, Philip smiled.'
'He used his powers to clean his hands before shaking the dwarf's hand.'
"Allow me to introduce myself as well, my name's Philip… Let's leave the Family name as of now."
"As for my work... You could say I'm an agent? Though not as formal."
'Philip pulled his pocket watch from his pants, reading the time on it.'
'He then looked at Palimo.'
"The more I would like to continue speaking leisurely like this, as I've said before, let's move, this place won't last long."
'While Philip turned to the side, Palimo approached him, grabbing his hand as she questioned:'
"What do you mean?"
'While she asked that, Philip's hand glowed golden, healing her wounds slightly over time.'
"In 3 minutes, everything here will blow up."
""?!""
'As if hit with a sudden injection of caffeine, the dwarves' feet started moving on their own as they went after Philip.'
"H-How?! W-Why didn't you say that from the start?!" Palimo asked, confused
"You all needed some time to rest, we would get nowhere with you all tense like that."
"As for the how?... Well, initially, I came here to gather some information on the Conjunction, such as the people behind them and their intentions."
"But midway, I changed my plans."
'This made her pensive.'
"May I ask why?..."
'Philip's eyes glimmered.'
"Because they were weaker than I expected." Philip replied as his eyes flashed red for a moment
And because I had found what I was looking for in the first place.
"..."
'Philip soon noticed their silence, prompting him to quickly reply:'
"Sorry for the tone of my voice, I don't want to sound like some psycho."
"I don't take pleasure in senseless murder, but oftentimes, it's unavoidable."
I need to take a position... While sounding powerful in the midst of it.
"By... Blowing this place up, the people up above will be forced to intervene, and this might lead to the end of the Conjunction."
Then...
"They'll be between the Upper forces and the Street palace, between a rock and a hard place, so they'll either survive by grasping at straws, or die while bringing someone with them."
Finally...
"Either way, they were a very destructive gang that doesn't really need to exist, someone will take their place, yes, and everything will return to normal."
"But they'll likely be more tolerable for the people that live here."
Like this, my intentions become noble...
'Philip turned his face sideways, looking at Palimo.'
"This may also be beneficial to you all."
"How so?"
'Philip used his other hand to grab a sheet of papers from inside his jacket.'
My ace in the hole.
"Here, something I got midway through this mess."
"These are…"
/Flip flip.../
'Tredis read the papers as he made his way along the corridor, his expression becoming paler by the second.'
"Even this?..."
How did a gang manage to perform such conclusive research on me?
Just for how long were they actually observing us?
'The more he read, the more he understood something was wrong, and he eventually arrived at the shocking conclusion… One of his initial suspicions...'
'That they had been, indeed, targeted from the start.'
"Father?..."
'The boy looked tired, even a bit prickly, even the slightest movement in the dark made him recoil.'
'Everything so far had taken its toll on Junior, this was too serious for a young Dwarf that didn't know the world outside the walls of this city to take.'
'He needed some help... Or simply to sleep and eat his mothers' breakfast, let time heal these wounds...'
"Don't speak… Let me think for now."
'Though his father was more focused on something else now...'
This was the worst scenario…
"Tsk!..."
Someone is after us, and they are using the Conjunction as an intermediate.
There is no reason for them to come after us though... Rather, what happened before was merely an excuse for the public eye.
Is it the Pyke Family?... Shit!
Those useless crumbles!
The worst of this situation is that despite being the ones attacked, the Pyke Family is doing nothing to those affected by their own war... Us.
They have abandoned us like were are pieces in a board game…
And it makes me wonder... Are there others affected by this as well?... Damn Humans!
'He almost crushed the papers in frustration.'
So be it.
We are in the middle of a fight between two powers.
I have no intention of falling down this easily… To be the crushed weed between these tall horses.
'Slowly, determination grew in this old man's heart.'
...
"..."
'Philip observed the Dwarf as he walked, reading his expressions like a book.'
'And he was pleased with how things were going.'
The truth, my lies, and my objectives… Everything is starting to fall neatly into place.
What started as an unfortunate coincidence on their part evolved into a planned attack.
Now, they can't rely on the people that previously backed them… They are alone.
'He smiled.'
That's where I enter… To become their pillar.
But not yet.
For them, who am I?... A dangerous man.
I have to change that.
They understand that I came here for information… But I changed midway.
I ended up exterminating a base alone... If they don't take precautions with me, I would say they are stupid.
Though I indeed came here for information, I just didn't expect things to end like this.
They likely think I'm part of some other gang or force, perhaps even an agent of the Street Palace...
Someone that came here to get information, but ended up just blasting everything once I realized they weren't ready.
There is no need to fix their misunderstanding now, and perhaps, I never will.
What I need to do now is tie everything nicely…
Progress this lie, make them rely on me… It may be dirty, but it's a good way to start a sincere relationship.
To make this work, some people will have to fall.
The sacrifices… The Conjunction, and the Pyke Family.
And… The people behind these thugs.
Speaking of them... Who are they?
Now that is an interesting thing…
A force that seems interested in disrupting the Pyke Familie's secret work, but how did they find that out?
A traitor on their side?... Sigh.
This keeps getting messier and messier.
"Hm..."
If I play my cards right, it may be possible to slip right in the middle of this conflict, let the two forces fight each other while I take the biggest prize… This Dwarf family.
Though… I need to be careful.
As far as I know, this entire conflict could very well be centered on them… Despite how absurd this sounds.
I have no idea how much the Pyke Family values their researchers, but it doesn't seem to be much, while I have no idea how much the backers of the Conunction value this "piece" of theirs.
Regardless, this situation is starting to make sense to me, the story of the Dwarf Scientist...
And the Dwarves have nothing to do with it.
Just how did this story get so distorted to the point the Dwarves caused the extinction of their own race?
Unless… Could it be that the group behind the Conjunction is actually…
"E-Excuse me… I'm feeling better now." Palimo said slowly as she looked at Philip
"Hm? My apologies."
'After walking so much, he was still holding her hand, unconsciously healing her.'
'It was indeed a bit awkward to have a married woman hold another man's hand in front of her husband…'
'Even if he felt nothing for her at all.'
"We're here." Philip said as he looked at a flight of stairs
And right on time.
"These stairs will lead you outside, from there, you all can flee…"
"What about you... Sir?" Junior asked in a low tone, looking around warily
"Me? I'll go with you all of course."
"You will?"
"Of course, I've already finished what I came here to do."
"Though I technically failed in my mission, this isn't a bad start."
Like this, they'll understand a little bit of what I'm insinuating.
'Without saying much more, Philip climbed the stairs.'
"We have about a minute, you better hurry."
"!"
"W-Wait for me sir! Come on dad!" Junior exclaimed as he pulled his father
"You don't need to remind me!..."
"Dear, can you do it?"
'He grabbed his wife's hand gently.'
"I'm not hurt anymore, so you better hurry… Old man."
"Humph!"
'He puffed, turning around, though he still grabbed onto her hand.'
…
'The trio quickly made it outside, running behind a building on the other side of the street as fast as they could...'
'And then...'
/BOOOOOM!/
'A mushroom cloud rose to the skies as all windows shattered at the same time.'
'Junior covered his pained eardrums while his parents dropped their heads slightly, not nearly as affected.'
"..."
'Philip gazed at this scene silently.'
They say Explosions are a form of art…
With this, most of the evidence should've cleared.
I don't know how resourceful the people that'll research this place are, but hopefully, they won't be able to trace this back to me.
Time to move home and start my 4 months in this city.
But before that...
'He went back to the city under the gazes of the Dwarves, evading the falling debris as he threw his bloodied sac on the ground.'
'Junior tried to have a better look at what was inside, but his senses told him it was better not to...'
"We better move before the authorities arrive."
'Philip dashed to the shadows of an alley nearby, and it didn't take long for the others to follow him.'
'Soon enough, people pushed the rubble aside, fleeing from the base, but they all ignored the inconspicuous sac on the ground.'
'They had other things to worry about right now...'
'Mission accomplished?'
…
/Later that day…/
'A man stood in front of the rubble that was now the collapsed Conjunction base…'
'He held a paper in his hand, looking at it and at the rubble.'
"What is this dumpster?"
'Frowning, he took another gaze at the paper.'
Is this the right address, or did those fuckers give me the wrong numbers?
Took me hours to arrive here, this place is so confusing...
Yet you now tell me I arrived too late? Are you kidding me?
'The man raised his hand towards his head, scratching his head and ears…'
'Thus revealing them, a pair of pointy ears… It was an Elf.'
"Well… Guess that's that." He said with a shrug
They can't complain now.
On the contrary, I should be the one to complain.
While they played around, I moved, and even if I arrived late, I can use this as an excuse to point fingers at them...
Like, were they with me or something, we would've arrived on time or something...
"Hm, but that would make me sound incompetent and stupid, unable to read a map..."
Yeah, scratch that.
'He looked around, and he noticed many tracks all around, some old, some recent… They were probably from the people that managed to survive whatever happened here.'
"Should I follow?..."
If I don't, they won't leave me be…
But if I do, who will suffer but me?...
They say I'm lazy and all, but look, I'm here.
And what about them?
Playing and partying around without me!
"Aha! Another hit for my collection…" He said with some satisfaction
'The Elf looked around for a moment before turning around, moving his jacket around as he cracked his neck.'
There's nothing left in this place…
I'll look for some survivors and ask what happened, at least like this, they won't complain.
"What a bore… I was very eager in seeing for myself..."
Now it's all over.
"Sigh."
So far this trip has been very unsatisfactory...
"Huh?"
'He suddenly noticed something in the middle of the road, it wasn't rubble but something else…'
'It was very pungent, he hadn't noticed its smell at first due to the smoke…'
"What is this little thing…?..."
/Open.../
"HA!"
'He approached the sac, opening it.'
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
/Roll.../
'Inside the sac were several heads, some he could somewhat recognize…'
'He laughed maniacally as they rolled on the ground.'
"SO THIS IS HOW IT IS!"
Such blatant provocation.
'He smiled.'
I was wrong, this isn't a bore…
"This is fun!"
I'm eager to find out who did this.
Do not disappoint me…
/Fwoosh…/
'And thus, the Elf vanished.'
…
'Let's go back into the past…'
/Half an hour after the explosion…/
"This should be far enough." Philip said as he stopped
'In front of him was a laboratory, the place the Dwarf worked at.'
We've arrived, but what to do now?
'Noticing his silence, Tredis said with a bow:'
"Thank you Mr.Philip for helping us… I don't even know how to repay you."
"... I didn't do much, you could more of say it was a small activity I did on the side."
That is true, though I can't admit that was why I went through all the trouble...
"Even so, this small activity saved my family, and that's all that matters."
"..."
'Philip was silent, but he came up with an idea.'
"Don't worry too much about it."
'He turned around, ready to leave.'
"Are you leaving already?!"
"Technically, I long finished what I came here to do, I only followed you all here because I'm someone who commits to their promises."
"Though… Instead of rewarding me, you should think about what to do now."
"... I'll just continue my research."
"Dear!"
"I know… After everything that happened… But not doing anything isn't going to help us in any way."
"If we abandon this side as well… Things won't get pretty for us."
"For now, continuing our work while waiting for things to settle down…"
'Philip smiled.'
"It seems you have it figured out already."
Great, they distrust their investors as well.
I'm unaware of how strong the Pyke Family actually is, but I wouldn't mind becoming their enemies if it means getting my objective done.
Though it would be for the best to not make more enemies than I need... Regardless, my interactions with them so far weren't exactly smooth...
Pushing them away would be too hard, but perhaps there may be some room for negotiation.
"Please… I don't really have much… But I am, at the end of the day, a smith, even if a very specialized one."
"If you ever need anything done, I'll do it, you have my word."
'His words were genuine, a Dwarf's promise was Rock-Solid!'
"... I see, I'll hold on to that offer."
Now I have a reason to come back, just what I wanted.
I'll investigate a bit more on my own, and once things have settled down, it might be a good idea to visit them and show my other sides.
Now... What would impress a Dwarf...?
"Take care old man, miss, and you too." He said as he looked at Junior
"But before I go… Would you mind?"
Can't leave that behind.
"Hm?... AH!"
'Palimo was flustered as she forgot that the mace and shield she had on her belt and back wasn't hers…'
'So she awkwardly gave it back to him.'
'Philip nodded before saying one last time:'
"I'm sure that we'll meet again, especially with your offer…"
"I'm very interested in seeing how skillful you are…"
"Lastly, Miss, you should really rest now, and see a doctor if possible, just in case there are any hidden injuries that didn't fully heal..."
"And also... I have the suspicion you may be, in fact..."
"Pregnant."
/Shaa…/
'He then vanished into smoke, dramatically leaving a story behind…'
'The family watched as the smoke dispersed, it would take a while for them to process everything that happened here today…'
"Wait... WHAT?!?!?!"
/THUD.../
'The wife screamed, junior fell flat on the ground, and the father seemed to lose a few strands of his precious beard...'
"Ahh..."
'Massaging his head, he turned around, entering the facility.'
'But for now, they had some things to prepare, people to call.'
'And the more he thought about the last words his benefactor left behind, the redder his face became.'
'He almost lost one... No, two members of his Family.'
'Today marked the day his neutral position towards his employers changed to outright distaste and defiance.'
'To confirm what happened, he would contact them first, but depending on their reply…'
'He wouldn't let this slide.'
…
/Slurp!/
"Ahh... This is good."
'Sitting on a bench under the faint light of the artificial magical lights in the park, Philip drank his green juice with a carefree expression.'
"I nailed it."
Now... I just need to wait.
It's perfect, the best outcome.
Like this, I won't need to waste my time looking.
I'll be able to spend most of my time doing what I should be doing from the start.
Understanding my new Class and its Skills.
Improving them and the ones I already have, so that I can pave the way for the next one.
Improving my body's condition.
Memorizing more books to improve the mental library.
Enhancing my control over mental power.
Training... I need to train as much as I can.
Not because I'm obliged, but because I like to, I'm itching to go back to my training room and get some action going.
Making sure Viera is growing fast as a Wizard, the faster she becomes Tier 7, the easier my life will get.
And much, much more.
"For the wicked, there's always work to be done."
/Slurp.../
'His face cringed.'
"This is so bitter, just what is a Kof Dux fruit?!"
/Slurp.../
It's so refreshing though...
/Slurp.../
"Hm?"
'The atmosphere grew a bit dark.'
Someone's watching me.
This presence is... A tad strange.
It feels... Nostalgic.
/Grin/
'Smiling, Philip continued to drink his juice, before raising from his seat, and throwing the cup at the trash bin.'
'In some senses, this city was very reminiscent of one on Earth, his cup, his juice, the lights... The feel...'
'But it wasn't it in the end.'
/Sha!/
'Philip vanished.'
.
.
.
Notes
