Chapter 1: The Fated Encounter
"Faster! Or else that old man would catch up to us!" Said a man of small stature.
It was a stormy night and there 3 mysterious people in hoods, they were drenched in the rain and were running around the town as if they were being chased.
"Boss, what do we do? It looks like we're just going in circles and it seems that the old man is soon to catch up to us." Said a man of a bulky stature.
"Tch! You blockhead, what do you think we should do! You think we should just stop running because we're going in circles?!"
"Aya, sorry boss!"
"Haha, You're correct boss, instead of just running around in circles we should stop to not waste any more energy." Remarked by a womanly voice.
After thinking for a bit. The small man replies.
"You're right. Alright, we'll stop at that statue over there."
"Boss, that seems to be the middle of the town. Are you sure that's okay? Won't we be found easier?"
"You Simpleton! Sometimes the most obvious spots to hide are the best place to hide. I used to be the champion in hide and seek in my village!"
"Amazing! Boss, you're probably the smartest man in the world!"
"Of course I am! Now, run faster to the statue."
The 3 of them head to a narrow path that leads directly to the statue in the middle of the town. They raised their heads a bit but not so high as to be able to see their faces to view the statue, the statue looked big and majestic from afar as if the town was solely built for this statue.
"What a marvelous statue, I wonder who's it built for?"
After a couple of seconds of observing the statue, they continued to focus on running toward the statue but the woman looked below and noticed that the water was lessening and lessening as they continued forward.
"Hey boss, Isn't the water becoming smaller as we head forward? Do you think this path is leaning?" Remarked the woman.
"Leaning, huh?"
The small man looked below.
"You're right, the water was at my knee earlier and I had to hop. Now It's only at my ankles and it is getting harder to walk straight. It must be leaning upward towards where we're going, either way just focus on heading towards the statue." Said the small man.
The woman nods.
Upon getting out of the narrow path, the 3 of them halts and see that there were only 2 other paths leading to the statue and that the statue was surrounded by a field of grass and benches around it as if it was like a park.
"What's this? A park?" The small man questions.
They walk toward the center and view the statue, upon a closer look, the statue was not in great condition. It had a lot of cracks and crumbled parts, it looked as if one punch was able to destroy the whole statue. After finishing taking a look at the statue, the small man walks up to a bench and jumps on top of it to sit down. The other 2 sat down on the wet grass, making a triangle.
The small man, says "We'll rest here till we can come up with a plan to leave this darn town or until 'Eilda' feels that old man's presence." The small man looks at the woman.
The woman nods.
"Does anybody have any idea on how to escape this town?"
The bulky man raises his hands as if he were to be called by a teacher.
"What are you doing? Why are you raising your hands?"
"I was asking for permission to speak."
"You idiot, just speak."
"Boss! Boss! what if we just destroy the walls of these houses till we get out?"
The small man slaps his head in disapproval.
"You dimwit, if we did that, we'll literally just expose ourselves to that old man."
"Aya, sorry boss."
"Eilda, how about you? Any Idea?"
"What if I jump on the rooftop and I guide you till we get out?"
"We could do that since there seems to only be 3 paths, Left, right, and the front where we came from. We should either take right or left to shake that old man off but whi-"
The woman flinches and stood up.
The woman interrupts the small man. "Boss, he's coming."
The other 2 stood up as well.
"Already?!" The small guy remark
At the distance in the path they took to get to the statue, a flickering light was slowly approaching them. Behind the light walks an old man with white hair, in a suit. He was gently striding across the rain without getting wet once, holding a lamp and an umbrella on the other.
"B-Boss what the do we do!?" The bulky man nervously asks.
"Like hell, I know! We should run but where the hell would we run off to?!"
The small man looks around the area and checks to see which path between the 2 they can take to escape, it was hard to see because the rain was blocking his view. He looks left to see nothing but darkness and rain then right just to see the same thing but then his nervousness soon turned to confusion as he suddenly spots a person on the other side of the statue, sleeping on the bench with a newspaper as a blanket, drenched in the rain.
"Is that... a kid?"
"Huh? What do you mean a kid, boss?" The bulky man asks.
The small man points at the bench on the other side of where they're located.
"A kid is sleeping in this heavy rain?" The woman remarks.
The small man shakes his head to rid of his confusion.
"Agh! Who cares!? We'll die if we're caught by that old man! What else can we do? I couldn't see which path was the better one because of all this rain!" The small guy angrily remarks.
The rain getting heavier and stronger resulting in a rise in the water, It was already at the height of a shoe's knot but there, the old man swiftly walked towards them as if he was walking atop the water.
"Boss what should we dooo?! The old man is getting closer and closer!" The bulky man nervously asks.
The small man clenches his teeth in anger.
"Tch! We don't have any choice! We'll have to use 'That'!"
The other 2 in disbelief at what he said, as they turn around to look at the small man, their nervousness was not visible at all as it all turned to shock.
"Boss, Are you serious?!" asked strongly by The woman.
"Do you think we have a choice right now?! Either we die right now or take the gamble!" The small man angrily replied.
The woman scornfully backs out.
"Now that nobody has anything to say, behold!"
The small man reaches inside his hood and takes out a crown, a golden one without any jewels or gems in it, he held it up high above his head and he was mesmerized by it.
The old man sees this and stops walking, he was standing atop the water and decides to watch the events unfold.
"This- is a mythical treasure that you can only get by clearing one of those towers, it is said that it is a priceless treasure that grants you the power of gods! But it only chooses who is worthy to use it!"
"But boss, wouldn't that mean that you'll still need to be worthy to use it?" questioned the bulky man.
"Exactly! And who is the most worthy in this world?!" Proclaimed the small man while puffing his chest out.
"OH!! It's none other than you boss!" Excitedly replied the bulky man.
"Heh, let's start my new life!" shouted the small man while he slowly descends the crown down on his head till finally, he places the crown atop his head.
...
...
There was a suffocating silence in the air except for the rain. There was no change to anything at all.
Nothing Happened.
"N-Nothing happened!?!?" said shockingly by the small man.
The small man in a state of absolute disbelief did not budge a bit. At the back, the woman breathes a sigh of relief.
"B-Boss calm down! What if it's because you just had your hood on!"
The small man hears this and thinks to himself "Am I really worthy? Did I really just have my hood on? What if I didn't have the hood on? Would something have happened? But wait, Am I forgetting something?"
Upon realization, The small man collects his thoughts and shakes his head to rid himself of his disbelief.
"Agh! What is there to think about! If nothing is done, we'll die to that old man!" said the small man.
The small man takes the crown off of his head and reaches for his hood and takes it off, unveiling his bald head and face. He had a seemingly normal face for someone of his stature. After removing his hood, he quickly puts the crown down his head again. Nothing happened, He was still... not chosen.
The old man sighs and remarks, "Disappointing..." while shaking his head.
His face fills up with dread, he realized that He was not worthy. He was not chosen. Until he remembers that if nothing is done, the 3 of them will die or suffer a fate worse than death. His expression changed from dread to looking like he thought of something.
"These 2..."
He looks at the 2 as they looked like his hope.
"There is still a possibility for these 2 to get chosen by the crown!" The small man thinks to himself
Upon realization of this, he quickly makes his move.
"Fylo!" the small man shouted while tossing the crown at the bulky man.
The bulky man catches it and looks at the small man. "Boss why'd you give the crown to me!?" asked the bulky man.
"Because there's still a possibility for you to get chosen by the crown! Now, remove your hood and put it on your head already!" said the small man.
The bulky man hastily removes his hood revealing a masculine face and a bald head, after the hood was removed, he quickly puts on the crown. The crown fitted his bald head quite perfectly but alas, nothing changed, nothing at all.
He was not chosen.
"Boss! Nothing happened too!" remarked the bulky man.
"Then hand over the crown to Eilda! She's our only chance now to live!" shouted the small man.
The bulky man tries to hand the crown over to the woman but the woman strongly shoves his hands away.
!!!
The crown flew out of the bulky man's hands and towards the other side of the statue. The small man, The bulky man, and even The old man were surprised by the unexpected action of the woman.
"E-Eilda... what the hell are you doing!?" Asked angrily by the small man.
"Oww!" A faint voice on the other side of the statue could be heard.
All of them hear this and immediately look toward the other side of the statue.
There, the 4 of them sees the kid, was getting up and caressing his head.
"Ow Ow Ow, What just hit my head?" asked the kid.
As he was still pondering what hit his head, he noticed something shiny on the ground but couldn't see clearly what it is with all the rain. He stood up and takes a closer look and sees that it was a crown. He picked it up.
"A crown? Is this the thing that hit my head? But Is a crown supposed to be that hard?" questioned the kid.
The small man immediately takes action and ran towards the kid while shouting to the 2.
"Quickly take back the crown from the kid!"
The other 2 follow behind but sooner take the front as they were faster than him.
The old man also makes a move and walks toward them.
"Boss! What should we do? The kid is holding the crown! Should we take it from him by force?" Shouted the bulky man to the small man.
"Do whatever! Just take back the crown!"
The 3 of them surround the kid in a triangle, giving the kid no direction to escape, they saw that he looked around 16-17 and had violet hair but they couldn't see his face with the rain blocking it, and upon a closer look, they saw that he had a sword on his hip and took caution in approaching him.
The kid sees the 3 and looks straight at the woman in the middle. The kid places his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"Mister, who are you?" asked the kid.
The thunder roared across the skies as this encounter happened.
"Kid, hand over the crown." Said the small man in a demanding arrogant tone.
The kid looks at the one who spoke on his left and sees the small man.
"Huh? This crown? This crown that I picked up on the ground?" asked the kid.
"Yes! The crown you're holding right now! You don't know the power or significance it holds!" remarked the small man.
"Ehh, I don't wanna! More importantly, who are you and these 2 mister?" The kid looks at the woman again and looks right at the bulky man. "Why do you want this crown?" asked the kid.
"We don't have time for your questions kid! Hand over the crown or we'll take it forcefully!" Angrily demanded the small man.
The kid smirks " Heh, come and take it then mister!"
The small man angry at his remark, reaches inside his cloak and takes out a gun and points it at the kid.
"Don't move kid! I see you move a single time, I'll pull the trigger!" Shouted the small man
The woman was taken aback by this "Boss, are you serious!?" Asked the woman.
"He chose this Eilda, He could've given the crown without any struggle. Now go take the crown from the kid, Fylo!" Said the small man.
The bulky man walks toward the kid and stops in front of him.
"Kid, hand over the crown." Said the bulky man to the kid with a deeper tone as if trying to intimidate the kid.
The kid faces the bulky man without fear and looks him up at the eye. The kid grins "Didn't I say it already? Come and take it!" Said the kid to the bulky man as the kid reaches out his hand holding the crown as if his giving it to him.
"Then."
The bulky man grabs the crown while the kid is holding it and pulls. It didn't budge. The bulky man surprised, tries to forcefully take it again, he pulls using all his strength. it still did not budge.
The small man notices this.
"Fylo, what the hell are doing to be taking so long!?" Asked the small man.
"B-Boss, it won't budge!" Replied the bulky man.
"What won't budge?" Asked the small man.
"The crown, boss! The crown won't budge at all from this kid's hands!" Replied the bulky man.
"Whaaaaaaat?!?!" Shouted the small man.
The small man ran towards them to see what was going on, lowering his gun. After reaching them, he was surprised to see a big man struggling to take something from a kid. He compared it to a grown man struggling to take candy from a baby.
The small man thinks to himself. "This kid! What kind of strength does this kid have?!"
But while he was thinking to himself, he saw something in the corner of his eye. He immediately turns his head to look and sees the old man right behind the woman.
"Eilda, behind you!" Frantically shouted by the small man
The woman flinches and sensed something behind her and immediately jumps forward. She quickly reached the small man with one leap.
"My, what fast reflex you have." The old man remarks.
The small man quickly takes action and points his gun at the kid.
"Old man! Don't move or else I'll else this kid gets it!"
The old man unfazed starts walking towards them.
"I'm not joking, Old man!" Said the small man, starting to get nervous.
The old man still walking towards them.
The small man gets nervous and backs off slowly but all of a sudden he slips. With the sudden slip, he unintentionally fired rapidly crazy in all directions before hitting the ground.
1st shot went to the sky.
2nd shot went to a window.
3rd shot headed straight to the old man but the old man tilts his head and dodges.
4th shot went to a wall.
5th shot went to the sky, this was when the bulky man got surprised by the shots and let go of the crown.
6th shot headed straight to the boy but he turns around towards the small man and the bullet hits the crown instead but the kid withstood the force of the bullet. It did not damage the kid nor the crown.
As soon as the 6th shot was fired, the small man hit the ground and the old man rushed toward the small man and kicks the gun from his hand. The old man steps on the small man's chest.
"Augh!" The small man spits out saliva.
The small man thinks "This crazy old man! One step and I feel like my inside are being crushed!"
"B-Boss!" Shouted the bulky man while trying to get closer to help, along with the woman.
"Don't get any closer, you two. I have this person's life at my feet." remarked the old man.
The 2 of them halt.
"Kgh! B-Boss! What should we do, Eilda!?" Asked the bulky man while clenching his teeth in anger.
"I... Don't know either..." The woman replied.
The old man turns his head against them and towards the kid as if he knew they wouldn't do anything risky.
"Kid, hand over the crown." Said the old man in a calm demanding tone.
"He He He, all of you seem to want this crown. I wonder why?" Said the kid in an intrigued tone.
The old man gently smiles.
"it's nothing that important, It's more of a family heirloom for my family. Now would you be so kind as to give it back to us?" Said the old man in a gentle tone.
The kid smirks.
"Hehe, Don't wanna!"
The kid holding the crown with both hands raises it above his head and slowly lowers it as if to taunt the old man. As it slowly descends atop his head, the old man noticed a glimmer in the crown as he sees this he immediately takes off his foot against the small man, quickly turns away from the kid, opens his umbrella facing towards the kids and covers his eyes with both of his hands.
The old man shouts. "COVER YOUR EYES!!"
The small man, The bulky man, and The woman all in confusion hear this and immediately take action to cover their eyes. Luckily they were all fast enough to take action before the crown reached the kid's head.
Because as soon as the crown touched the kid's head, a sudden burst of light filled the entirety of the town. A light so bright one could think that it was daytime.
Then the woman realized what was happening.
The woman with a big grin says
"The Quiss has chosen someone!"