『Mana Bond』

His chest was warm, his shoulders were broad. His hold was light and his scent was a mild mixture of sweat and dirt. Megumin kept her eyes partially open as he trekked back to the Town. She didn't mind being held like this, in a way it kept her secure from being attacked from behind. Her skirt wasn't long, but it was tucked against his arm, so her panties weren't showing to the world.

It was hard to believe he was just helping her like this even before he was offered her firsts. Strange was only one way out of a thousand ways to put it. Raising her head, from his shoulder, she looked over at Jack.

Emerald eyes, a callous expression, and a cool exterior. Jack wasn't even looking at her as she was gazing at the side of his face. To her, it looked like he was entirely focused on heading for the town.

"Am I the only one that is in your party? Now that I've noticed, you're alone." Megumin went back to being straightforward and direct since she was allowed time to calm down.

That was when those glowing hues flickered on over to her face which really wasn't all that far away from his. "I arrived recently, I have no party, and I doubt a preestablished party would accept me as its leader." Jack didn't like it when other people gave the orders, especially if he didn't trust them. In his previous lives, he was always cautious of others, observant, awaiting a hint of betrayal. What scared him most in both of his previous life though, was that he could read people naturally on a subconscious level.

"That makes me your first party member?" She grinned as she wiggled upon in his arm, "Hehe... That means I am your second in command, your adjutant, right?"

For a split moment, his eyes remained on her before drifting forward. "We'll see about that. For the time being there is no need for an expanded command structure."

About fifteen minutes or so later, they were walking towards the front gates to the Town of Axel. He was still carrying her and she was just regaining her strength to move, but extremely stiffly. It was unlikely Jack could actually let her down to walk on her own, she'd just fall over.

However, as they were approaching the gate, there was a group of three people waiting. The moment they saw Jack and Megumin, their eyes widened greatly and they tried looking past them.

Jack narrowed his eyes on them and quickly recognized them as the group that he had flown over prior. He was just hoping he could pass through the gate without having to bother with them.

Just as they were about to pass through the gates, one of them shouted to get his attention. Their voice was filled with worry but also blame. It was clear he wasn't getting the peace he wanted.

"Where's Burton!? He was with her before we left... Why isn't he behind you?"

"I think you didn't want to be involved in anything that happened," Jack uttered as he looked over towards the group of three which were standing over by the wall.

They immediately went silent as they found he already knew of their duplicity. Those eyes, the glare he was giving them, labeled them as accomplices to what Burton had tried to do.

Megumin though didn't look at them. She just went back to resting the side of her head on Jack's shoulder as her stomach grumbled. She felt weaker than before since she still hadn't eaten.

"W-we have no idea what you're talking about!" The three of them then suddenly ran off together, though along the path away from the town rather than going into it.

It was clear they wouldn't risk him exposing them for what they were letting Burton do. And if he had eliminated Burton, one of their strongest members, they weren't going to stick around.

Jack just let out a light huff before turning his eyes forward once more and waltzing into town. "We're going to stop by my room at the Inn and drop off my things. Then we'll go down to the Guild's mess hall, get you something to eat."

Gripping the rim over her hat, her eyes glaring red in excitement, Megumin was readying a speech. "I like that plan! You're really getting me something to eat? Eheh. It's like your stats went up with your level so that your job changed from 'ArchMage' to 'ArchTease'! To think such a man like you would help an explosion artist such as myself." The last people she depended on was the Axis Order, a crazy cult that appeared to be the fanatic following of the Goddess Aqua. Ultimately though, they kept her fed, but she didn't have the money to leave them.

It was one of the reasons she wanted to come to Axel, to be an adventurer and make money.

"ArchTease...?" Jack just looked over at her for a good minute, "If I'm teasing you, I could stop."

"NO! P-please don't stop! I'll starve to death!" She immediately grasped tightly onto his shoulders, her face getting all close and up into his again as she pressed her lips tightly together.

"Is that priest going to stave that little girl!?" It seemed the exaggeration of Megumin's had been overheard by a bunch of bystanders. Three women in dresses to be exact.

"How cruel! Starving a young girl like that!" A second one exclaimed with her arms crossed over her chest, her head shaking side to side in an ambient motion.

"Should be ashamed of himself. How could he even be a priest if he treats a young woman like that?" Huffed the third and final one. It seemed all the women were boring holes into the back of is skull as they glared at him from a distance, completely misunderstanding the situation at hand.

Jack's eyes had darted on over to them before his gaze then returned to Megumin's, a grin had cracked across her lips. "I never said that I would, I only said I could, should you behave."

"Then I shall allow thee to peer into mine resolve! So I shall behave only as I must." She spoke confidently, though at first sporadically, with a combination of childish defiance and obedience.

"Apology accepted," sighing under his breath he felt her arms wrapping around his neck as she clung to him, though her legs still seemed to remain limp compared to other parts of her body.

Some of the women were smiling slightly at this, watching as the Megumin hugged onto him. It was as if they had mystifyingly dismissed their previous understandings.

Jack didn't really feel like correcting them, so it was obviously a bonus. Though he was somewhat peeved by the fact that these women had assumed he was a priest due to his robes. Did this mean he needed a new set of attire? "Hmm..."

On the other hand, all he could do was stare at her for a few more seconds before he zoned out. It didn't bother him all if anything it felt nice to have someone clinging to him for once.

His death was still fresh in his mind, being hit by the truck, the pain that followed. The girl who was crying over the incident, covered in his blood. His eyes fell to the rugged cobble street beneath his feet before looking back up to the Inn as he stopped several feet away from it.

It didn't take long for Jack to go wandering in through the front door, Megumin still held in his grasp. Jack made his way through the lobby, the dining room where the current customers were seemingly enjoying their early day meals. most of the people not even noticing he was there. His footsteps being so quiet, he couldn't even be confused with a mouse.

Having gone up the steps and into this room shortly thereafter. Once inside, he closed the door behind him. Jack didn't waste any time as he lightly pried her hands off of him and plopped her down onto the straw-stuffed mattress, causing her to give a light squeak.

Chuckling down at her, Jack tossed the bag aside with her staff inside to the ground.

Letting out a soft groan, she let her legs remain hanging off the bed while she watched him take off his jacket and inner vest along with the other extra layers. It wasn't long before he was just in the inner and outer layers of his kimono, wearing just boots and his pair of tabi-styled boots.

Jack then returned to her and sat beside her on the bed, looking her over as he placed the hat down beside himself. "Your registration card?"

"Within the abysmal hat, I wear upon my head, do you dare take it to enlighten yourself with my explosion magic? The greatest magic of all existence!?" Megumin seemed to gleam excitedly.

Staring at her again for a few seconds, he just reached over and took her hat and reached inside. It was clear she had been using it to store items, finding her registration card and an empty coin purse stuffed within.

The moment his eyes rested upon the card, his eyes narrowed on her only apparent active skill which was Explosion Magic. His eyes slowly shifted to look at her, his lips parted.

"Has my magnificence drawn you to silence?" She was still grinning up at him pridefully.

"Shouldn't you be using your levels on Magic Power in order to increase your Mana intake?" Jack asked as he let out a sigh, tossing her card over towards the pillow. "That way you don't collapse every time you use explosion from overexertion of your constitution."

"All of my stat points must be dumped into Explosion Magic! That is the only way---" She was cut off as he placed a hand over her mouth, though she did still try to muffledly speak against his palm. Her eyes were still glowing a deep crimson as they locked with his, her brows furrowing.

"Mana Bond," suddenly when he recited his active skill, a blue glow overtook his hand.

From furrow to raising in surprise, Megumin felt a sudden surge of mana filling her almost endlessly and then after thirty seconds it stopped. She was completely refreshed!

Jack removed his hand from her mouth with a slight grin across his lips, "Your constitution should be regained after a short nap, along with your mobility." His hand moved down and touched her thigh, causing her to tense up and shiver. "Perhaps I'll get you some leggings."

Springing up from the bed, Megumin landed flat on her feet and whirled around to face him, pointing a finger in his face. "This ArchWizard is not a doll for you to...!" In mid-sentence, she collapsed to the side, still unable to hold her own weight. "...Dress up..." Her eyes narrowed up at him from the floor.

"Do you need help?"

"P-please!"

"Alright," Jack couldn't help but simper at her as he was just returning the gaze, before reaching down and pulling her back up, but this time into his lap. "It's going to be winter soon, keeping your legs warm is a priority," he informed with a snicker of his own. She surely was childish that was for sure, letting his eyes drift over to her card on the pillow.

Megumin was enjoying the fact that he was worried about her, in that capacity, even though he didn't need to. On the plus side, she was able to just lay in his lap like this without any problems too. His arm kept her head supported, and her legs hung off of his and onto the bed.

His clothes were soft and silky to the touch, obviously of high quality. Her stomach, however, growled, distracting her from the warm felt thoughts that were accumulating in her mind.

The door to the bedroom swung open, bouncing off the wall as it would shutter from the force. Standing in the doorway was none other than Chris,

"Hey-o!" The lustrous silverhaired girl waltzed into the room wearing the gifted cloak upon her back, smirking slightly to herself before she narrowed her purple eyes upon the two on the bed. "Oh?" Playfully, she padded on over to the bed, "Who is this, a friend of yours?"

"My name is Megumin!" The ArchWizard exploded into excitement once more, her arms flailing outward flamboyantly, though remaining in the man's lap. "My calling is that of an Archwizard, one who controls explosion magic, the strongest of all offensive magics!"

Chris just stared down at the Chuunibyou, seeing as she now had two fingers over her right eye. "Ah... Crimson Demon Clan," she didn't stop smiling as she crossed her arms. "I'm Chris," she held out a hand towards Meugmin politely, "Nice to meet you."

"Umu! Nice to meet you as well, Chris-san," Megumin grasped the gal's hand in a shake.

Jack just watched the two for a few seconds before raising a brow. "So, I assume since you've tracked me down to my room, you're ready to show me some of your skills?"

"What skills are more powerful than explosion Magic!?" Megumin was butting in, but it was clear she wanted to make some sort of competition out of it.

"The skills of a thief, the ability to unlock doors, detect traps and steal effortlessly..." His eyes rested on Chris as she was looking over the two of them. A brow of his raised at her as she was appearing to be rather interested in the pair.

"You give me too much credit!" Laughed Chris, shaking her head as she placed her hands on her hips. She looked rather snug in that cloak he had given her, as it perfectly traced over her elbows.

"Or you don't give yourself enough, a modest thief is a good thief, especially should one appear as a semblance to divinity... Such as yourself." Jack waved a hand, not having hesitated to flirt, with as a sign of dismissal of the subject.

Chris nearly sputtered, "D-divinity? I don't know what you're talking about," she couldn't help but continue giggling albeit a tad more nervously this time around.

"Uh-huh, sure," Jack rolled his eyes at the fact that she was denying this, even though it was more of an innocent claim on his side with no real truth to it. It was more so a truth for her, as she was more than what she seemed. "So... Shall we try out some skills in here, or shall we go outside?"

"Here should be fine," Chris kept her cheery demeanor, smiling with her eyes mostly closed.

Megumin pursed her lips slightly, her eyes trailing from person to person. He was most definitely a flirt, a philanderer maybe, but overall he seemed to have a nice character. After all, he hadn't tried taking too much advantage over her, that was something she could respect considering what had almost happened to her out in the fields outside of Axel.

She wasn't going to be able to trust other adventurers again because of that. So she was happy just to have someone that would look after her. It was different as there had been no one to do so prior, at least for a long while after leaving home. The Axis Order was a group of fanatics, they didn't count. If anything she saw them as people to be avoided, they were creepy.

Maneuvering her off his lap, Jack propped her up against the wall, so she was seated upright.

Blinking up at him, she watched as the man who had saved her stood up from the bed.

"Now, pick up something that you would like me to steal," Chris grinned big this time, gesturing towards the room with her left hand, one of her brows raised high.

"Hm..." Jack looked around the room, there wasn't really all that much here. Reaching over he would pluck his hat up into his hands and then returned his attention to Chris.

"Ready?"

"Whenever your ready, Chris-san." Jack waved the hat around in one hand.

Reaching forward, Chris shouted, reciting a spell or a skill of some sort. "STEAL!" The moment she said this singular word, a flash of bluish-white light appeared out of nowhere, and his hat was gone. Not only that, but it was now in her hand, a flashy grin across her lips.

"Interesting, it's similar to an item teleportation spell that brings an object to one's hand, like aport." His eyes drifted to his hand, he had hardly even noticed the hat having left his hand. It was strange, how she had stolen it without him sensing all that much.

"Steal is a luck-based ability, as are most Thief skills. This particular skill, Steal, targets the user's desire or the victim's most preferred item on their person." Chris explained the mechanics and it definitely seemed directly based on the luck stat, especially with efficiency coming into thought.

"Well, I know how to pick a lock..." Jack pursed his lips slightly as he reached out a hand for his hat as Chris placed it upon her head. "So a spell shouldn't be too hard to develop."

As the sound of a stomach growling filled the room, they glanced over towards Megumin who suddenly slumped onto her side upon the bed.

"I think its time to get her something to eat..." Jack chuckled lightly as she was making this empty-eyed expression while gripping at her stomach. When he turned to look towards Chris, he felt the hat being placed on his head.

"Thanks again for the cloak," Chris winked at the man before going over to the window and shoving the shutters open. "I'll see you later! For now, take care of yourself, may luck be with you."

The two then watched as the thief went out the window, the shutters flinging themselves closed after a few seconds went by.