Volume 1 : Chapter 3

On the outskirts of Divrik, far from the bustling city center, Beatrix and Sherly walked leisurely down a quiet street lined with a few houses and old shops.

This place was indeed far from the clamor of daily life.

Among the small shops with few visitors, the two of them seemed like two girls lost in their own world.

Beatrix, with her long blonde hair and attire like a soldier, radiated warmth with every step she took. Her sweet smile always made people feel comfortable.

Meanwhile, Sherly, with her reddish-orange hair and slightly shorter stature, wore a Gothic Lolita dress that contrasted with the surroundings.

Although her cold and somewhat cool appearance, Sherly was actually quite clumsy, and sometimes her impulsive actions left Beatrix surprised.

At this moment, they were on a journey to find someone who could sell them a rare book about King Arthur, a quest that had begun after their encounter some time ago.

Sherly, who had discovered a clue from the last person she met, was now trying to make sure they didn't get lost.

"As I thought, the food here is really good,"

Sherly said, chewing on a skewer of meat she bought from a small shop they passed by.

"It's so delicious, Beatrix, you have to try it!"

Beatrix smiled faintly and nodded.

"Glad you like it," she replied with relief, though she knew Sherly's habit of always being hungry.

"You really can eat like there's no end to it."

"Of course!" Sherly answered enthusiastically, biting into another piece of meat.

"I've been starving since last night. This is really filling."

Beatrix just sighed.

"You know, it really shocked me earlier. You just fainted out of nowhere,"

Beatrix said, her voice full of concern.

Sherly glanced at Beatrix for a moment, then shrugged.

"Oh, it was just exhaustion. I hadn't eaten in too long, so my body just needed a little 'rest.'"

Sherly smiled, but Beatrix could sense that Sherly actually felt a little guilty.

Beatrix furrowed her brow.

"It wasn't just exhaustion, Sher. I panicked, you know? I even had to carry you to find a place to heal you."

"Sorry, Beatrix,"

Sherly said in a light tone, though a bit embarrassed.

"I don't know why my body did that, but I'm fine now. Eating this meat is enough to make me feel alive again."

Seeing Sherly eat eagerly again, Beatrix shook her head slightly.

"But you know, you have to eat regularly, Sher. You can't keep going without food for days."

Sherly glanced at Beatrix with an unreadable expression.

"You know, not eating for two days won't kill me," she replied seriously.

Hearing this, Beatrix remembered something.

"I think Lily once told me that you can survive without food for a week, and even a month without eating wouldn't be a problem," Beatrix said, surprised.

Sherly, hearing this, just made an indifferent face and said.

"Yeah, that's true, so you don't need to worry too much about earlier," Sherly answered casually.

Beatrix fell silent for a moment, unsure of how to respond to that.

"But hunger... it can be really painful, right?"

Beatrix said softly, recalling Sherly's slightly tired expression earlier.

Sherly looked at Beatrix with a deep gaze.

"True, hunger is painful,"

Sherly replied, and there was a hint of sadness behind her words.

"But I can't avoid it. Sometimes I don't realize how important it is to eat."

Upon hearing that, Beatrix felt a pang of sympathy. She knew that Sherly didn't really care for herself, often careless and not thinking about the little important things.

"Well then," Beatrix said gently, "eat a lot, Sher. Don't let yourself go hungry again."

Sherly laughed softly. "I prefer you calling me Lily," she said with a mischievous smile.

Beatrix furrowed her brow. "Lily? But if I call you Lily, what about the other Lily?"

Sherly, hearing that, just fell silent, confused, and then said.

"That might cause confusion," Sherly said with a difficult expression.

Beatrix, seeing that, thought for a moment and then said.

"How about Lily no. 2?" Beatrix asked with a teasing smile.

Hearing that, Sherly snorted.

"That just makes the name longer. Don't call me Lily no. 2!"

Beatrix shook her head, feeling confused.

"So, how should I call you then? Lily, I guess?"

"I don't know, call me whatever. Just don't call me that,"

Sherly answered, continuing to eat.

Beatrix could only smile, though still a bit confused by Sherly's way of thinking.

Sometimes, Sherly was hard to understand, but that was what made her unique.

A few minutes later, Sherly finished her last skewer of meat.

Carelessly, she tossed the empty skewer aside onto the street.

Beatrix, seeing this, felt a little disturbed.

"Sher, throw your trash in the trash bin,"

she said gently, though already somewhat tired of Sherly's habit of often neglecting small things like that.

Sherly glanced at Beatrix for a moment, then shrugged and continued walking.

"Don't worry, no one passes by here. Anyway, it doesn't matter."

Beatrix sighed deeply.

"Sherly, we need to learn to care more about the environment, even if this place is quiet,"

Beatrix said, trying to remain patient.

Sherly glanced at Beatrix with an indifferent look, then suddenly said,

"A few meters ahead, there's a café. I remember it being around here."

"A café?" Beatrix looked confused.

"In a quiet place like this, there's a café? I'd find it odd if anyone came here just to enjoy a cup of coffee."

Sherly grinned. "The café is indeed quiet, but there are a few regulars, one of them is me."

Sherly continued, "Even though it's quiet, sometimes I go there just to enjoy the atmosphere."

Beatrix was even more confused. "So this café can survive in a place like this? Are there really people who go there?"

"I don't know," Sherly replied indifferently.

"It might close soon. There are only two regulars left. Me and a mysterious man who always comes in his black cloak."

Beatrix furrowed her brows, more puzzled.

"How can a café survive with just two regular customers?" she asked skeptically.

"The important thing is that the place is still open,"

Sherly replied, unconcerned, and continued walking.

Beatrix could only sigh and follow Sherly.

Not long after, they arrived at an old café that looked very quiet.

The café was tightly closed, and the surroundings appeared extremely deserted.

"It's really quiet," Beatrix said uncertainly. "Are you sure this place is still open?"

Sherly looked at the café with some doubt.

"I don't know. It might have closed starting today," Sherly replied, though she remained confident that this was the place they were looking for.

Beatrix stared at the café with concern.

"Are you sure this is the right place?"

Sherly nodded firmly.

"There's no mistake. This café is the one. There are only two regulars here, me and that mysterious man."

Beatrix sighed deeply.

"I hope you're right," she said.

They stood for a moment in front of the tightly closed café door.

Sherly then stepped forward and tried to turn the door handle.

"The door isn't locked, so maybe the café is still open," she said with hope.

With a loud creak, the door slowly opened.

Inside the café, there was only an old man sitting while smoking.

The café looked quiet, but the warmth from the old man gave a different impression.

The old man looked at them confusedly, then stood up and put out his cigarette.

"You're lucky to come today," he said with a voice full of regret.

"Because tomorrow is the last day this café will be open. Please come in for the last time."

Beatrix and Sherly looked at each other, then spoke politely to the old man.

"Thank you for serving us," Sherly said with a friendly smile.

With a slightly melancholic atmosphere, they stepped into the café, which now felt much warmer.

***

On top of a building in the northern area of Divrik city where the trade center was. There was a man in a black robe with sky-blue eyes standing still while looking around.

He now stands on top of a building in a remote, slum area in the northern part of Divrik city.

The area is a place where various illegal transactions take place, a nest for mafia and a place where illegal drugs are sold.

The place that is said to be the dark side of the Northern part of Divrik, not the dark side of Divrik city.

The man dressed all in black just stood silently in silence on top of an old building.

"A place full of abominations," said the young man as he continued to observe his surroundings with sharp eyes.

He saw someone being robbed in the middle of the street but no one cared.

He saw a skinny, malnourished child crying but people kept quiet as they passed by the child.

He saw a group of people taking drugs then fighting and killing one of them.

He saw the various atrocities in the slums in the North of the divrik clearly from the top of the building.

But he didn't move an inch, just silently watching everything go by.

It didn't bear any fruit and only seriously observed its surroundings with its sharp eyes that were as blue as the sky.

But then his sky-like eyes suddenly trembled slightly. He turned his head slightly and saw a group of cutely dressed children carrying flower baskets.

They then approached people walking on the streets in the slum area.

They distributed flowers to everyone who was there.

One of the children then approached a man who looked like a thug with a face full of wounds.

"A surprise gift for you, sir," said the cutely dressed child as he handed a flower to the man.

But the scarred man just looked at him sarcastically and then moved his hand.

The child smiled happily thinking that the hand would take the flower he was given, but...

SLAM!!!...

A loud voice was heard.

The child was hit by the man and fell to the ground.

"Get away, you bastards!!... I feel angry just seeing your behavior," said the thug-like man.

The thug-like man then immediately walked away, leaving the child still lying on the ground.

The child who had fallen down tried to stand up.

The boy then looked at the man who hit him earlier.

The expression on his face was still smiling and then he stood up looking at the person who hit him earlier.

He then ran towards the thug-like man and then hugged him tightly.

"What the hell are you doing!?" The man shouted angrily.

The man tried to forcefully release the child's hug, but the child's hug grew tighter.

" Bastard!!" The man said angrily.

He started hitting the child hoping to get the child to let go, but it still wouldn't let go.

"What the hell are you doing huh?!..."

The man's blows became stronger and stronger.

People started to notice them and other kids noticed them too.

But still smiling without worrying about their friends who kept getting beaten.

The thug-looking man kept hitting the child, but no matter how long he hit him, the child didn't let go of his embrace.

The child then raised his head and smiled at the man.

But it was no longer the cute smile like before.

It was a smile that looked very scary.

" !! "

The man was scared and couldn't react to the child's smile, and just stood there stiffly.

The child then began to move his lips.

"This...is...a gift of cheese...sir...sir."

The child said in a creepy, unclear voice.

The child's body then began to glow very brightly and sparks of electricity began to come out of his body.

The man and the people around him didn't have time to react.

And..

BOOM!!!

A loud, thunderous sound was heard.

A fairly strong explosion occurred.

In place of the man and child there was only a small crater and debris left.

Witnessing this, the residents remained silent.

The cute children carrying flower baskets began to glance at the local residents and smile.

The same smile as the kid who just exploded.

"Surprise gift for you"

Hearing this, the residents immediately left the place in panic.

But the kids started chasing them.

The sound of explosions then everywhere.

The man in the black robe who had been standing on top of the building near the slum area.

He still kept watching without moving from his place.

But suddenly he slowly turned towards a dark alley nearby.

He saw something standing there, a shadow with red eyes.

The shadow was busy watching the chaos of the dark alley.

Suddenly their eyes met

Even though they were far away, it was as if they were looking at each other.

A black-robed man with blue eyes on top of a building and a shadow in a dark alley below. They watched each other.

But the red-eyed shadow was the first to retreat and disappear into the darkness.

The black-robed man who saw that then turned around slowly, looking behind him.

There was a little girl standing not far from him.

"This is a surprise gift, sir," said the little girl with a grin.

There was a cute little girl dressed behind him smiling creepily.

In no time at all, the little girl began to emit light and emit electricity from her body.

A bright light was seen reflecting from his sky-blue eyes, but the black-robed man did not move from his spot at all.

And..

A bigger explosion than before finally occurred on top of the building.

An explosion that could be seen from afar by everyone in the city.

Cheerful little children, with flower baskets in their hands, began to glance at the people around them and give them the same smile—the same smile as the child who had just surprised them.

"A surprise gift for you," they said, their voices cheerful and without worry.

Hearing that sentence, the residents who were passing by suddenly panicked and immediately ran away.

Fear was clearly visible on their faces, but the children did not stop chasing.

They ran fast, their small steps full of enthusiasm, with smiles that never faded.

The sound of explosions could be heard almost from every corner, shaking the originally quiet streets.

On top of a tall building overlooking the slums, a man in a black robe still stood tall, looking down with sharp blue eyes.

He didn't move, just watching the chaos happening down there.

However, slowly, his eyes shifted.

He turned to a dark alley not far away.

There, behind the dark shadows, a figure was seen standing. A dark figure with glowing red eyes.

The figure seemed to be watching the chaos closely.

but accidentally their eyes met, as if there was something connecting them even though they were so far apart.

They stared at each other in tense silence.

However, the red-eyed shadow eventually retreated and disappeared back into the darkness of the alley, as if swallowed by the increasingly dense night.

The black-robed man on top of the building was still watching, but he soon turned around slowly.

Something caught his eye behind him.

There, stood a little girl, not far from him.

The girl smiled with a terrifying grin.

"It's a surprise gift, sir," he said softly, but there was something dark in his tone.

The little girl began to emit a bright light, her body filled with surging electrical energy.

The light reflected brightly, as if piercing the darkness of the night.

Her sky-blue eyes stared at him calmly, without the slightest reaction, as if what was happening around her didn't affect her at all.

And then...

BOOOM!!....

A huge explosion occurred on top of the building.

The explosion was so powerful, so terrifying, that it could be seen clearly from all over the city.

A blinding light, shaking the air, and signaling that something big had happened, something no one could ignore.

***