Delgor

"Bella…. I didn't mean it like that." My mother seemed to think she had caused me to think of painful memories. I smiled and took her hand, and rubbed it against my cheek.

"I know. I was just saying. If not for my skills, I could never make such good use out of my new abilities. If I did not have these skills, I might not be able to keep going like I am. I would end up as a tool to those with greater powers than our own. Mother, if I truly turn into a demon one day, would you still love me? If I were, let's say, kill many people in order to gain power just so I can kill the bastards who wish to use me as a tool?" I asked this question out of nowhere, but when I looked up at my mother, instead of seeing a shocked face, she was still warmly smiling at me.

"To me, the daughter before me would never kill innocents. So if you were to kill thousands or even millions of people, I am sure there was a good reason. So if you must do such a thing, Mother will stand by your side and support you no matter what." My mother hugged me and lifted me up, and carried me in her arms. I was five, yet she was lifting me up so easily, just like before. I felt warmth beyond anything I could have ever felt in my past lives.

"Mmm… If there was a mother of the year award, I would kill the person hosting the event if they did not give it to you." I said flatly, causing my mother to let out a laugh.

"I have such a naughty daughter!" She answered teasingly.

"I take it after my naughty mother," I replied with a smile before nuzzling into her chest.

We chatted like this for the entire trip. No one else dared come near us. It seemed that word spread quickly in the slums. After almost an hour of walking, we finally came to a run down building. While I say it was run down, it was in much better condition than the places around it. But it still looked like a dilapidated building. The only thing it had really going for it was that the walls were still semi-intact, and the roof was still there. Whether it had holes in it or not was another story.

My mother did not even knock as she barged right into the shop and stood there in a room filled with weapons of all kinds. But I could feel each one was covered in a kind of magic. "Delgor, get the hell out here now!"

"Who the hell is yelling!? Don't you know it is almost my drinking tim….. Geh… What are you doing here, Fire Maiden?" A tall green skinned man walked out from the back with a blackened tan apron on. His big green muscles were thicker than my body by almost two times. He had tusks protruding from his lower jaw and had a tribal style haircut with long black braids dangling down to his chest. If I was not wrong, then this man was what is called an Orc.

But his words did interest me since I have never heard anyone call my mother a fire maiden. I looked up at her with curious eyes causing her to quickly look away. "Ignore him. He just calls me that."

"Just me!? The whole damn city calls you the Fire Maiden! Who else was it during the last monster wave that destroyed thousands of monsters with a wave of her hand and said: 'My daughter needs me to make her lunch, so I couldn't let this go on any longer!?' That was you! And only you!" Delgor yelled out as he walked over to us. For all his yelling, he was still smiling. "So this is the brat of the widely known Fire Maiden. I heard from my sources that she killed five traffickers on her own. She is already so little and is this strong."

"Humph! My Bella is the strongest. She is even stronger than you!" My mother boasted, causing Delgor's eyes to light up.

"Oh, she is stronger than me? Then…. Let's arm wrestle!" Delgor shouted with a laugh. "I want to see if this brat is truly as strong as you say!"

"You! Do you really want to arm wrestle a five year old!? Just the arm length alone is enough to make it impossible. What is wrong with your head? Did all that alcohol damage your brain!?" My mother yelled back.

But for all her yelling, Delgor paid her no mind as he set up a table and chairs and sat down. "Quick, brat, come over here."

I really did not know if I should laugh or cry at this man, but it seemed amusing, so I looked up at my mother and mouthed one word. She snickered and nodded her head. I then suddenly transformed into my demon form and flew over to where the table was, and hovered in the air in front of the now speechless Delgor. He looked me up and down and then at my mother as he yelled out: "Does your husband know you cheated on him!?"

"Why the hell did you come to that conclusion!?" My mother stomped her feet which got a laugh out of Delgor. It seemed the two were quite good friends. "She is my and my darling's pure blood. It's just a bit of a complication with higher powers." My mother explained lightly.

"Then I don't want to know. Anyway, brat, let's do this since you can hover there without issue." It seemed Delgor knew when to push for information and when not to.

"Alright, but if I win, I want you to look into something for me," I said. If this man was as good as a blacksmith as my mother says, then I wanted to see if he was willing to look into making a rifle for me. If I could get a sniper rifle, I would feel more in my comfort zone.

"Oh? You want to make a bet with me!? Haha fine! If you lose, you will come work for me and man the front desk for me." Delgor replied with a sly smile. I did hate to break it to him, but my current strength was not as weak as he thinks.

"Alright, deal," I said, giving a sly smile of my own.

Delgor did not seem bothered in the slightest as he placed his elbow on the table. I grabbed his hand and looked him straight in the eye. It was a strange sight. My hand could not be seen at all in his big green hand. So if people were to see this right now, they would think that Delgor was bullying a little girl.

My mother came over and placed her hand on top of ours. "Alright. Get ready! Go!"

And with that, a loud bang was heard as Delgor let out a cry of pain as he hit the floor. I think I went a little too hard. I thought since he was an orc, he would be much stronger than this! "Damnit, Martha, what the hell do you feed this kid!?"

"Sorry! Is your hand okay!?" I asked. I was genuinely concerned. I mean, if he can't make weapons anymore, who would I ask to make my sniper rifle!?

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just never expected a little brat like you to hold that much power." Delgor replied as he climbed up from the floor. "So, brat, what was it you wanted me to look into."

"I am not really ready to explain it fully, but it is a weapon that I need made that has probably never been seen in this world. If you get some paper, I can draw out a rough blueprint, and you can tell me what you think." I knew sniper rifles like I knew how to drink and eat. They were like a living extension of my body in my second life.