"You're that guy!" Tione shouted.
Tiona also stood up while dusting herself, "What do you mean?"
"That's the guy who threw me into a stall when I was about to accidentally hit him! I'll never forget that sensation!" Tione explained.
Tiona and Ais looked at Kisuke with a dumbfounded expression.
In reaction to that, Kisuke just grinned, "I wonder what you're talking about?"
"No shit! I'm sure it was you!" Tione stomped her feet and resumed attacking Kisuke.
"Now this changes everything... He even has a way to deal with us in close combat aside from his strange magic. I refuse to believe that he's just a Level 2." Tiona muttered as she rejoined the fight.
Ais only kept silent but was fascinated by Kisuke's techniques. It gave her even more motivation to learn from him. She knew that she was just going to annoy him with this or that he would even outright hate her for it. But regardless of that, she wanted power and there was an answer right in front of her. Ais rejoined the fight with a renewed resolution.
Tione reached Kisuke first and sent out another punch. Now, that she became wary of Kisuke's 'touch', Tione immediately pulled back her fist when she saw Kisuke reaching out for it.
However, Tione saw Kisuke's grin growing wider, so she became even warier of his next movements and decided to retreat for now. But at the very moment when she took a step back, she tripped, "!?"
Tione hurriedly looked below her and saw a folded white fan sticking out of the ground, 'What!? When did he...!?' She then recalled the moment when Kisuke reached out for her fist, it blocked a portion of her view and she didn't see him throwing the fan into the ground earlier.
And thanks to that his grin which grew wider, Tione became hesitant and retreated. She knew that it was at this moment that she fell for his trap. 'Damn it! I messed up!' She thought as she tried to regain her balance, but the moment she looked back up, Tione saw a foot wearing wooden sandals coming after her face.
Crossing her arms, she blocked Kisuke's kick. Although it wasn't that strong, it was enough to force her back due to her earlier parry in midair, "Kuh!"
The clash between Tione and Kisuke happened in an instant, so it was only now that Tiona reached Kisuke. Seeing that Kisuke was in a kicking posture, Tiona immediately sent a kick towards Kisuke's supporting leg. After witnessing what happened to her sister earlier, Tiona decided to make a safe move.
But even without looking at her, Kisuke used his supporting leg, to flip himself and dodging Tiona's attack. And due to the weird angle he used to flip himself, he arrived on top of her.
Kisuke then thrust his finger towards Tiona's left eye without any hesitation which made Tiona panic a bit. Although her defense was strong, due to her basic parameters, her eyes were still sensitive parts that could be destroyed without too much effort. So in response, Tiona tilted her head to the side.
But using that gap in her consciousness, Kisuke grabbed her foot with his free hand and threw her towards the now standing Tione, "Wahh!!!"
Thanks to the momentum of throwing Tiona, Kisuke was able to align himself parallel to gravity to meet the charging Ais.
Kisuke immediately put his right hand in his left sleeve and pulled out a large white cloth, spreading it in front of him and blocking Ais' view of him.
Ais slowed down a bit and focused on her surroundings. She was able to hear a bit of noise to her left side but considering Kisuke's antics he was probably on the right side and the noise she heard was just bait.
Adjusting her magic, Ais turned to her right but at that moment, she only met some soil and Ais heard the warning calls from Tiona and Tione, "Ais!!!"
Due to the soil distracting her for a split second, she wasn't able to react as fast as she normally could. She felt a tug on her collar before she flew towards the Amazoness sisters and crashed into them.
While dusting off his hands, Kisuke said with a grin, "Too bad~. You've guessed wrong~. I'm truly on your left side~."
While Ais and Tione gritted their teeth, Tiona only laughed out loud, "You've got us! But don't think it'll always be like this!"
Standing up, the three resumed attacking Kisuke.
However, a few minutes later, the three of them could only stare with dumbfounded expressions at the grinning Kisuke as they laid on the ground, recalling what just happened. Instead of evading, like he did until Tiona and Tione joined the fight, Kisuke confronted them head-on and despite being obviously weaker in basic parameters by far compared to them, they actually lost.
Although they didn't actually have any injuries, their minds were shaken and that harmless grin turned into a sinister one in their minds. Even Tiona couldn't laugh anymore.
"You might be proficient at fighting monsters, but against another person that uses skills, technique, and mind games? Not so much. This is getting tiresome. Cool your heads first before coming after me." Kisuke suddenly said before jumping backward, hiding himself among the trees and disappearing entirely.
"Riveria... Did you expect any of this?", asked Finn, as he came out while looking at the three girls which were still on the ground.
Behind him, Riveria answered while shaking her head, "I didn't think that he'll be proficient in hand-to-hand combat too."
" 'Too', huh..." Finn muttered.
"C-Captain! Were you watching!?" Tione immediately stood up and asked.
Finn nodded his head.
"What do you think?" Tiona asked.
Finn rubbed his chin while looking towards the direction where Kisuke disappeared, "What he said is right. Although you girls are strong against monsters, you don't have much experience in fighting another person."
The three of them looked down on contemplation.
Ignoring this, Finn continued with a wry smile, "But you don't have to be so down. That guy is just abnormal. If I were to guess, even if we have the same physical abilities, I have no way of winning against him."
While Riveria only nodded, Tione and Tiona's eyes opened wide in shock. After all, they knew for sure that Finn didn't neglect his ability to fight against another person and he was already a veteran. For him to say something like this, it could only mean, that Kisuke was indeed the better fighter.
Ais, on the other hand, wasn't as shocked as the two because she already knew Kisuke's real capabilities and was just wondering what he had to go through to achieve such strength, "In hindsight... I'm trampling over his efforts in my request for him to teach me. However... I can't stop now. Not now, when there's finally a clear path ahead."
It was then, that she recalled that Kisuke was the one teaching Sona, Aika, and Koneko and a dangerous idea came through her mind, 'Do I have to become his lover for him to teach me?'
But before she could delve deeper into that flawed logic, Riveria's voice suddenly resounded, "What are you going to do now?"
Ais was roused from her deep thoughts and remembered what they were doing and answered while standing up, "I'm not giving up yet."
Also bothered by this enthusiasm, Finn asked, "What do you want to know or request?"
However, Ais only kept silent.
Hearing no answer from her, Finn could only sigh, "Fine... Just keep things in moderation. It would also be nice if you really could catch him." He then turned to the other girls, "What about you two?"
"Of course! We'll be helping Ais!" Tiona answered with a big smile.
"Alright. Then good luck." Finn nodded at her before turning around and leaving.
Before Riveria followed Finn, she gave them some advice, "You really have to think carefully before you can catch that bastard. But once you do, give him a whack or two on the head for me."
The three girls could only remain speechless until Riveria and Finn disappeared from their view, "U-uhmm... It looks like Riveria has some dissatisfaction with Kisuke. After all, you almost never hear her cursing at someone.", Tiona muttered.
Ais could only nod and wonder what happened between her and Kisuke.
"Either way, we have to plan out our next move before we could catch him." Tione scratched her head.
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Editors:
28th00: DANGEROUS THOUGHTS THERE AIS! Riveria still holds a grudge for her poor ears being absolutely molested to climax, multiple times… Kisuke has a couple centuries of mastery/training/battle experience against both monsters and people on the deity level, this is his literal specialisation (combat wise) after all.
Alexander: It would bring forth a nice scene of tea, dancing in the air, if she brings this up to Kisuke & Co.
After successfully getting away, Kisuke wanted to check the eastern side of the 18th floor to make sure things won't get too dangerous for the girls. On the way, however, while leaving his trail for the girls to follow, Kisuke came across another pond where someone was bathing.
Normally, Kisuke would have ignored this, but the one bathing seems to be very aware of her surroundings and immediately found Kisuke who was leaving a trail, and threw a knife towards him.
Kisuke didn't dodge as it wasn't really aimed at him and only served as a threat, "Who's there!?" The blonde elf immediately covered her body with her arm and turned towards him with a glare, "Urahara-san?"
With a smile, Kisuke greeted her, "Oh, if it isn't Lion-san~. Good day and I'm sorry for disturbing you. But before anything else, please dress up." He then went behind one of the trees as a sign of respect.
Ryuu Lion, who now had blonde hair color, instead of the green which she always had when she was serving in the Hostess of Fertility, glared at Kisuke for a moment before he disappeared. She then started dressing as fast as possible, so that she could ask him what he was doing here.
"I'm done," Ryuu muttered in her Adventurer attire which included a green flower-shaped hood and a white sleeveless top underneath. She also wore a pair of long, brown gloves and boots and a white sash around her waist where she kept her wooden sword and a pair of short swords.
Kisuke went out and showed himself soon after, "I won't pretend that I didn't see anything, but I'm really sorry about that." He knew how overly sensitive Elves could be about others' touch or being seen by others from a different race or opposite gender, so he apologized first.
Ryuu saw his sincerity which she hadn't seen before due to how he always acted around others in the pub. Ryuu's strict atmosphere died down, as this could not be purposely peeping after recalling his reaction when he first saw her naked body, 'Now that I think about it again... There was no lust in his eyes.'
"Ehem..." Feigning a cough, Ryuu tried to dispel the awkward atmosphere and asked, "What are you doing here?" She also liked the fact that he apologized first before citing any excuses.
"Ah, about that, I peeped on the girls of Loki Familia and they are now after my ass," Kisuke answered with a bright smile.
"Huh...?" Ryuu became dumbfounded. Who wouldn't be? After asking him for a reason why he 'peeped' on her only to get an answer that he peeped on others and who were now after him, anyone wouldn't be able to react quickly.
"I peeped on the girls of Loki Familia and they are now after my ass," Kisuke repeated his words as if Ryuu didn't understand it the first time.
Ryuu, of course, was understandably furious as she thought that he had a proper excuse and was planning to forgive him. Pulling out one of her short swords, Ryuu pointed it towards him, "Do you want me to hand you over to them?"
Kisuke's casualness didn't change as he replied, "Don't worry about it. I already proposed a solution~."
Ryuu didn't put her sword down and asked with a fed-up expression, "Yet they're still after you?"
After getting enough of the changes in her expression, Kisuke finally explained what was going on, "And there you have it~. I was able to escape their pursuit for a moment and just strolled around before they could find me again when I found you taking a bath here~."
With her mouth agape, Ryuu put down her sword and asked, "...Are you stupid?"
"Ahahaha~. I always get that a lot~."
After putting her palm on her face and sighing, Ryuu continued, "So Hermes-sama started this? And you put your body on the line as an apology? I'm surprised that they haven't captured you yet."
"When it's about escaping, I can't say I'm one of the best, but I'm pretty proficient in it." Kisuke proudly declared.
"Hahh... Whatever... Where are you heading now?" Ryuu had already given up on understanding the man in front of her.
"Thank you for sparing me~. You're such a good person~. For now, I intended to go towards the eastern part of the floor where the forest is the thickest. There are still more than two hours of chase remaining, so I'm also pretty free."
Hearing Kisuke's words, Ryuu could only smile wryly, "A good person, is it? You don't know me."
Kisuke knew that he had touched something and recalled her history. Due to the weirdly strong waitresses, Yoruichi decided to investigate the place and she was able to uncover everyone's identity from the Hostess of Fertility after a week or two of investigation.
"I'm a pretty good judge of character and there was only one person which I mistook in my past. I judged you to be a good person from our interactions until now." Kisuke replied.
Ryuu looked at him and said, "Only one person? That's amazing... But for all you know, I could be the second person."
Chuckling, Kisuke replied again while recalling Aizen, "There's no way that you could be like that person. And after meeting him, I became even more careful against his type." Aizen was the man who fooled everyone in Soul Society, thanks to his intelligence and abilities. Kisuke refused to believe that there were more people out there like him or else it'd be a really scary world to live in.
Ryuu looked at him with a blank expression and finally decided on something, "Do you still have time? Mind if you come with me?"
"Sure~. It'll take some time for those girls to track me down." Kisuke immediately agreed, curious about what she wanted to show him.
The two of them walked through the forest silently. Along the way, Ryuu picked up some fresh white flowers and Kisuke had an idea where they were going so he also picked some flowers for himself.
Ryuu was a bit shocked at his actions but she smiled slightly at his gesture while thinking, 'Maybe he's really a good judge of things.'
A few minutes later, they reached a clearing with a small hill in the middle and on this hill were weapons of various types sticking out.
"You won't ask why I'm not staying in the Loki Familia's camp?" Ryuu suddenly asked.
"You have your reasons," Kisuke replied simply.
"Well, I don't want others to see my face." Ryuu gave an answer regardless of his reply, "Even if Cranel-san and his party have not gone missing in the Dungeon... I still planned to come to this place." She then laid the flowers she picked up in front of the swords.
Kisuke did the same and he heard Ryuu from his side, "Thank you."
"You're welcome." Kisuke took a step back. And while watching the grave, he asked, "Who are they?"
Ryuu silently stared at the grave for a while before she answered, "My allies. I occasionally receive time off from Mama Mia to bring my fallen ladies in arms some flowers... Once someone knows who I am, it would be only a matter of time before they learn the truth."
"Well, hate to break it to you, but I already know who you are." Kisuke suddenly said.
Ryuu looked at him with a shocked expression and saw him keeping a straight face while looking at the grave, "...How? And why?"
Kisuke then faced Ryuu with a smile, "I already told you, right? I already became more careful so that a second person couldn't fool me big time."
Ryuu finally realized, "So you've already investigated us... Just how much do you know?"
"Just enough for my girls' protection. Gotta be careful of people around us."
"Haah... I see." Ryuu sighed, "For your girls, huh. That's indeed a very valid motivation." She then looked back towards the grave, "So there's no need for you to hear my story. What do you think? Do you really still think that I'm a good person?"
"Before I say my answer, I would really love it to hear from the person directly. After all, there could be some discrepancies from the data we gathered."
"I see... That makes sense." Ryuu smiled wryly, "Then please listen."
"My name is on the Guild's blacklist. I have been stripped of the title of Adventurer and there was a bounty on my head for a short time."
Ryuu first looked towards Kisuke but he didn't have any changes in expression so she continued, "My Familia devoted itself to protect peace both inside and outside the Dungeon. It meant to often fight those who threatened that. For that reason, we had many enemies."
"One day, we fell into an enemy Familia's trap." At this point, the atmosphere around Ryuu became cold as she spoke, "I was the only one to survive. Unable to recover their bodies, I collected what articles I could and entombed them here."
Clenching her fist and teeth, fury was visible in Ryuu's face, "I swore to avenge them. In a rage, I ambushed, ensnared, and murdered our attackers in cold blood. I employed any means necessary to fulfill my mission..."
"Any person with the faintest connection to that Familia... I sought out all of them. There was no trace of justice in my actions any longer..."
Kisuke only kept silent while looking at her.
"Once my last target had been eliminated, I collapsed... Bleeding and dirty... A fitting end for a vile creature like myself. However..." Ryuu then recalled the time when someone reached out to her, "After rescuing me, Syr convinced Mama Mia to employ me as a waitress at the Hostess of Fertility. I also keep my hair dyed..."
Ryuu then faced Kisuke, "I apologize for soiling your ears. In short, the Elf you see before you was a shameless, violent criminal. Do you still think I'm a good person?"
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Editors:
28th00: So, my opinion still remains the same for Ryuu as it did in canon. She's far too negative in her own world view of herself. Honestly? She didn't really do anything wrong. Compared to these guys though? "Oh, you killed a bunch of criminals and their allies? Cool. That's like, an average Tuesday for us." or something like that. I'll never get the "Thou shalt not kill" mindset.
Alexander: Well, it's actually a paradox for me. On one hand, I am Christian, so I've been raised to judge the act of killing as evil. On the other hand, let those fu#$ers die and be done with it. At least they won't go after you anymore if you do it in the right/smart way. Yeah, I am looking at you, you outright dumb Chinese protagonists.
Goyya: Though really, the point of Ryuu's agony is the fact that she might have wrongfully killed some people. Good people who have nothing to do with the demise of her Familia and good people who're living earnestly for their loved ones. As someone who worked for justice, she knew how wrong a 'justice' can be.
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