At the cliff, I realized that how he is still holding that box with care. I don’t know what’s so special to that box but I know that it’s very precious to him. It really made me feel how he is capable at being sweet to. 

He closed the box and said he was heading back to the inn. I said that I would follow him too and I too was going to the inn. It is near midnight after all. 

The thought that I was getting closer to Riku is like I was gay. I have no intention of coming out to Riku and hopes that he will do the same. No way. I’ll never do that. Like I said, I’m not gay.

Riku stood up and there was a black circle growing beneath him the circle grow straight and had engulfed Riku up. The shadow, is what I called it, had light flashing inside it with Riku. The shadow finally disappeared and Riku have changed his clothes. He was wearing like a blue viscount outfit with a face mask on like a ninja’s.

I was amazed that I think, every outfit he wore, it looks good on him. I think he looks handsome. No homo though.

On our way to the inn, we stopped for a second. 

“You still have the sword I gave you?”

Shit. I thought he saw that sword breaking in front of him. It was back then when we fought that two adventurers back at the capital. 

“No, it broke, back at the capital.”

“Hmmm. I wouldn’t mind if I lend you my sword.”

“Really? Which one?

“How about...... This.”

He opened one of his portal out of nowhere again. He put his hand through the portal and pulled out a mysterious sword again. The sword is red with a green handle. The blade had spikes on the edge of the sword and had a rose on the centre of the Chappe. The Quillon had thorns on it resembling those of a rose. The pommel also resembles a rose. 

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I got another weapon.”

“Can I see?”

He gave the sword to me and he pulled out another weapon. It was stranger than the ones that I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t look like a weapon. It had a small grip and a small body. It looked like a crossbow’s handle with it’s trigger but the body is replaced with a barrel made out of metal, in fact, the whole weapon is made out of weapon.

“What is that? I’ve never seen one of those before.”

“This is called a handgun.”

“What’s that? Wait, don’t answer that. I’ll probably don’t understand what you’re going to say again like before.”

“Hmmm. This world really don’t give free education, huh.”

“Why don’t you just show it to me how that bizarre thing works. It probably does the kind of stuff a crossbow does.”

He nodded. He points it to a tree with both hands holding the handle. He pulled the trigger thus firing some kind of metal chunk with perfect shape of an oval while it’s behind is flat. It was so loud that it’s most likely as loud as a thunderbolt. The tree was shot with that metal chunk. It went through the tree with immense power. I was so shock. To think that it had more power than a crossbow and can hold six metal chunks. It was more portable and easier to use.

“How was it?”

“It’s amazing!”

While he was firing his shots, a strange noise came from the bushes. We are currently in the forest still and are not that far from Vortire. The noise was like some strange lion, roaring with some hissing and growling. 

“Wait, do you here that?”

We stopped for a while and tried to hear what was that noise. There was an intense moment of silence inside the forest. 

I was standing still with my weapons ready and prepared. Except for Riku. He was standing still but not doing anything. He was so calm, it was cool to look at.

Riku shouted, Come out, now!

“What are you doing?” 

After he shouted, there was some rustling in the bushes. It was something rising from it. There were red eyes in that shadow. It was big, it was enormous.

“Step back.”

It jumped across us and to the back. We turned around and it was the chimera. It was huge. It’s probably ten meters big. Never before had I seen a chimera before. It had three heads, the middle one looks like it’s from a lion, the left one looks like a wolf and the right one looks like a goat. It had a tail with a head, looks like a snake and it had wings that looks like from a bat. 

“It’s here.”

“What do we do?”

“Stay clam, this is still a weak chimera. It’s as weak as a black viper.”

“That’s not weak at all!”

It roared at us and it was so loud, the towns folk heard it loud and clear. The adventurers rushed here with all their weapons with them. They’re about ten of them. 

The towns folk had been evacuated by the guild master. Some merchant are still in Vortire cause they’re waiting for some rare resources from the chimera.

The chimera is growling at us as if it’s speaking at us directly. Riku was standing still with his guns in his pocket. He was listening to the chimera’s growl. He’s understanding the chimera.

“Really? Let me he......” Riku was interrupted.

The adventurers had already come before Riku finish his sentence.

Most of them are the ones assigned to the quest and two of them are just random adventurers who coincidentally also heard it’s roar.

After they got here, they surrounded the chimera. The chimera roared and roared at the adventurers but they didn’t even got scared. The adventurers are all well prepared and are ready for it’s attack.

“Don’t let it scare you. Attack!”  yelled by one of the adventurers.

The other adventurers had thrown their spears at the beast and the others use their magic. Air strike!, Glass shards!, Metal spikes!, The adventurers scream their skills and had targeted the chimera. The chimera was being injured by the attacks that means that their attacks are working on it.

The chimera fought back by using it’s claws to slice the adventurers. The adventurer who has protection magic had fully blocked the chimera’s attack. The chimera attacked again but with a different skill called venom squirt. 

The adventurers are even well prepared for it’s venom that they had brought a potion of poison resistance against it. The venom was scattered around the adventurers but the one who had the potion had thrown it along with the attack. The potion had dispel the venom and was still lingering for about a few hours more.

The chimera looked scared. With the number of adventurers and their advantages with it’s attack with their elixirs and potions for resilience, the chimera is cornered.

The chimera tried to fly away but that one adventurer who use metal magic casted a skill called, metal bind and had captured the chimera while it’s in the air. It was above six feet in the air when it had been bounded. The chimera fell and had been injured.

The chimera has nowhere to go and the adventurers are all still injuring it it. I kinda pity it. They were celebrating at the chimera. One of the adventurers is climbing the chimera to it’s back.

“What should we do to it?”

“Hmmm, maybe it’s better to kill it.”

“What?? No way. Lets bring it back to the town and enslave it.”

They were all wondering if it’s going to be ok if it were to bring it to Vortire. They all begun to vote on it and had the most voted is bringing it back to the town where they would torture it more and celebrate for it’s end of havoc.

“Is it going to be okay for it to bring it to the town?” I said it to Riku.

“No, it’s a bad Idea to bring that to town. If you guys just give it to me now, it wouldn’t be any trouble for both of us.” He shouted it.

“What? No way we’re giving it to someone as sketchy as you.” One of the adventurers blunted.

“...”

I can’t believe someone just insulted Riku like that. I hope that doesn’t trigger Riku’s “decapitating” instinct.

Anyway, after what he said, Riku just went along with their idea. I know it’s a bad idea too but I kinda want to see what’s going to happen when we brought it back to Vortire. If it’s going to be a disaster for us or it’s going to benefit us in some way.

They were all carrying the chimera like it’s about to be cooked in a bonfire. They were all chanting “yay hey horray! We captured a living prey! Yay hey horray! We captured a very strong prey”. They we’re like singing some sea chanty.

They made it back to Vortire while still singing their song. Some adventurers that didn’t go and help already had set up a big camp fire in outside of town. They were all confident that the adventurers that had go are all very powerful and are vey capable of defeating a chimera.

An adventurer named Cyrus mecain had made a huge cage for the chimera with his steel magic. He looked like a Demi-human. He has white hair and beard with wolf ears and tail. He is a B rank adventurer who was at the town that time coincidentally.

They had put the chimera on the cage. Cried the chimera while they poke it with their spears and pointy stuffs made of magic. 

Riku came closer to the chimera while they’re setting the bonfire for a huge cook out. It was like a festival. Whole they’re doing that, the guild master had came back with the rest of the townsfolk ready to dine in with the adventurers.

Riku said to the chimera: “You ok?”

The chimera had growl quietly at Riku while he listen. Riku was talking to the chimera. He was communicating. He understands what the beast is speaking. Cyrus, who was guarding the cage, came closer to Riku.

“You sure that you should be that close to that filthy monster?”

“I’m speaking to it.”

“You! Hahahahaha! You can speak to monsters? Haha! That’s hilarious! Hey! Everyone! This guy is speaking to that monster.”

They all heard what Cyrus had shouted. They all laughed at Riku. They are all laughing loudly on the top of their lungs. Riku looked pissed. He was clutching his fist and the look on his eyes have a murderous vibe in it.

“You really think you can communicate with that.... Thing?!”

“Hahahahaha!”

“Riku, come here with me. Ignore them. I don’t want you massacring all this people with the guild master on the watch.” Lion-san said.

Riku had come with Lion-san and his murderous was fading away. I came closer to him too to ease him up a bit. He had turn his back against Cyrus but he was not satisfied with just making fun of him. 

He had hold Riku’s shoulder and forced him to looked back. Cyrus had pointed a knife at him and said: “No one, turns their back, at, me, got it punk?”. Riku quickly sliced the knife in half in the blade using his bare hands. The half of the knife flew up and back down again, only to land on Cyrus’s shoulder.

Riku took out the knife and pointed it at Cyrus. Everyone was shocked at what Riku’s capability can reach. I can understand that.  The first time I met him was that he had shown me his powers too.

“Don’t slice me! I have two kids.” Cyrus yelled.

“Oh really? What are their names?”

“Umm, it’s Lilianna and glenn.”

“Is that do? Then I can kill them too if you don’t mind your own business.”

“Yes, sir.”

Riku puts down the knife and looked at everyone. Everyone was again shocked by his murderous look and aura. They thought that they would get killed too. Cyrus was pissed and was going away from Riku further. He was in the middle of the crowd, Riku I mean, and had everyone’s attention. 

But, some stupid bastard, jumped at Riku screaming, “You’re not that strong.” He was holding a knife with a magic imprinted on it.

Riku took the knife and broke it in a matter of seconds and the guy who jumped was pounded to the floor by Riku with just a flick of his fingers.

“This is why I don’t want to be part of something like this. You guys think that you’re that powerful and can take anyone who may ruin your day. All of this adventurers who accepted the subjugation only craves title. Any one who didn’t accepted it but also became part of it, then you’re one of the worst. Trying to steal the spotlight from the ones who wanted to kill it to protect something.”

They were all silent after Riku’s speech. They’re speechless.

Riku stood up from the cage. He pointed at everyone and shouted, “I will not help you if this thing’s mother came for you.”

“Wait, mother!” Someone screamed. 

“This thing has a mother? How big is it to be able to birth something like this? Everyone was shocked about the information that that thing is still a child. Riku was still standing there, waiting for everyone to be quiet.

“How do you know that this thing is still a child? And how do you know that this has a mother?” someone ask.

“First, it told me. Second, you’re very stupid.” Riku said.

This thing is still a baby if I’m not mistaken. It has three heads and it has a snake for a tail. It has two sets of legs that looks like chickens. It had a set of wings that looked like it’s from a bat. It’s ten metres big. I wonder how big and mutated it’s mother is.

“You can really understand that thing?”

“Yes, it told me that their mothers can detect their child’s injury from five kilometres away. And, it’s coming.”

“Oh no! What are we going to do?” 

“Well, It’s not like I will help you defeat it. That thing is a greater chimera. Smiles creepily and murderously* Guess you just have to kill it yourself to.”

The town was in a panic. The celebration was ruined. The guild master was stomped. Everyone adventurers was scared and worried that that thing might be stronger than what they’ve faced before. Riku was still standing there with a creepy smile on his face. 

“Hahaha, just look at you guys, panicking like this. I love it!” Riku yelled.

The guild master came closer to the cage and shouted to Riku that why don’t he just help us with the chimera. They’re goal was to avoid disaster by releasing the chimera. 

Riku’s smile was ruined and now he has a disappointed face looking at us.

“Why would I?”

“I would pay you with alot of riches.”

“Hmmmm..... I would have disagreed with your statement but, I do want to help this guys over here.” 

Riku pointed at us and said it. The guild master was pleased with his agreement and also went back to his office.

Riku jumped down from the top of the cage. He goes near us and said, “how’s that for a show?”

He was back to his sarcastic, sadistic self again. He was frightening the adventurers along with us. He really wants to protect us. I was relieved at what he just said that he would help us defeat the greater chimera.

The guild master came back with a sword. He was holding it preciously like it’s his child. It’s made out of some kind of spirit ingot with it’s magic being intensified. It looked like a pirates broad sword. The Quillon has a bone like look and has a skull shape orb on it’s chappe.

“Here Riku. I humbly give you this sword of mine.”

Riku took the sword and examines it. He was checking every parts and even judging the looks and texture.

“Sorry, you can have it.”

“Why?”

“I got loads of better swords than this one. Some has it’s own skills and magic.”

“Oh really? Ok then, I’ll just put this back to it.”

Riku really didn’t think twice to say that line. It might’ve hurt his feelings. I can tell by the way he speaks and move. Riku is “despicable”.