The smell of the ocean filled Martel’s nostrils as he viewed its splendor contrasted by thick rain clouds. Along the coast was a Fort surrounded on three sides by approximately 10,000 men. In the week it took them to arrive, Roxburghshire had made no movements. They had opted for a siege and waited for the Demihumans supplies to run out. Duran and Shiro joined Martel as a captain approached.

“What do you have to report?” Martel asked him.

“Our orders are to stay as we have been.”

“How many are in the Fort?”

“Reports from those previously captured men state half a dozen of them and ten of our own. Although, I have a hard time believing half a dozen of them managed to pacify 50 trained soldiers.”

“No, it is possible. The average demihuman is superior to humans in almost every way. They also have a technique to quickly and easily pacify those who are not well trained in the usage of Ki.”

The captain looked at Martel with surprise. “Forgive me for my skepticism, but I understand that you have not seen any military action. How could you know this?”

“I have not been on the field as I’ve been training both my body and mind. Men fight wars, but minds win them.”

“Aye, that is true.”

“Has the Demon King appeared?”

“He has. He appears around this time every day with a different prisoner to show that they are still alive. In fact… I believe he is up there now.”

Martel looked out saw two figures, one who stood and one on his knees. With a spyglass, Martel saw the one on his knees appeared had his hands tied behind his back and mouth gagged. Otherwise, he seemed to be in excellent health. It appeared they had neither starved them nor beat them. The appearance of the man who stood surprised Martel. Though Demihumans are physically stronger, the man himself is quite well-built. However, it was a bit difficult to tell as he wore clothes which seemed to be made to hide his more prominent features. He also wore a mask with a helmet to conceal any identifiable facial characteristics. For the first time since Martel had arrived, he felt a hint of dread at the possibility of a fight.

“Can I have a look?” Shiro asked.

“Of course,” Martel replied as he handed her the spyglass. 

Shiro had acted strangely when they had arrived in the area. Martel couldn’t put his finger on what had bothered her, but it seemed that she is troubled. When she put the spyglass down, she had a complicated expression on her face. 

“Shiro? Are you okay?” Martel asked.

“Hm? Yes, I’m okay.” She replied absentmindedly.

Martel turned and replied to the captain. “Unless something occurs, we will be staying in the area that you designated us for at least the next two weeks though it may be more than a month. I have sent our scholar to browse your libraries. Depending on the information within, I may have to take my leave.”

“I understand. I will inform you if anything of significance happens.”

“Please do.” The captain bows and walks away. After he was out of earshot, Shiro tugged at his clothing.

“Martel… Are you going to fight the Demihumans?”

“I do not want to. I would be happy if we could settle this without any bloodshed. As such, I approve of the cease-fire. Should the king not attempt any peace talks with the next two weeks, I shall go see him myself.”

“Good,” Shiro said with a soft smile.

“Now then, let us go back to the camp.”

...

Late that night, under cover of darkness, Shiro stealthily made her way through Roxburghshire’s camp. She didn’t think Martel could sense that she had left because of all the various people around. Her goal was simple, to infiltrate the Fort and speak with their leader. 

The infantry in the camp was very lax. Ten thousand men against a half-dozen is overkill. 

After a while, she found a sufficient area to cross no man’s land. The darkness of the night and cloud cover made it difficult for either side to spot her. She didn’t want to be attacked, which was possible if she was mistaken to be human, so she approached very cautiously. Fortunately, she made her way to the Fort without any problems. Even in the darkness, she could see enough thanks to the moonlight that broke through the clouds. 

After she had observed the wall of the Fort, she found a part that had sufficient footholds for her accent. She quickly made her way up the wall as she had used the technique that Martel taught her to focus Ki to her fingers to help her grip. 

Cautiously, Shiro hid her Ki the best she could while she searched for other Ki sources. Continually training with Martel had heightened her already sensitive senses. She slowly made her way to the Fort as she tried to find the leader. Along the way, she realized someone had begun to make their way down the hall towards her. She quickly hid in the darkness. A couple of seconds later, someone Shiro instantly recognized appeared.

The young lady who appeared still opted for the extremely tight battle clothes and her breasts were as large as ever, even bigger than Freyja’s. Her face was sharp and beautiful, but youthful enough to easily mistake her to be younger than her almost 18 years of age. She wore her dark crimson hair fashioned into looped angel wings at the side of her head. Her hair was also worn that way in a small attempt to hide her slightly tipped ears, her only non-human feature and the feature that was different from the species of demihuman she stemmed from.

Shiro stepped out of the darkness. “Caelia,” She said with a voice that slightly trembled.

“Who goes there?” Caelia asked with her guard up as she was surprised.

Shiro took off her hat. “It’s me, Big Sis.”

Caelia’s eyes grow wide as her mind began to reel. “No way.” Tears started to form. “It can’t be.” She ran and hugged Shiro as they both began to cry. “I’m so glad. I’m so glad that you’re alive Little Sis.”

Shiro hugged her back. “I missed you, Big Sis.”

“What happened?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Let’s go to Father so you can tell us both,” Caelia said with a smile as she led Shiro to a nearby room as the two of them started to recover from their tears. “Father, you’ll never guess who I found,” She said as she entered the room

The man, whom Shiro saw when she looked through the spyglass, looked over at the two of them. He still had all of his clothes on except for his mask, so the only part of himself exposed was his face. “Little One? I don’t believe it. You are alive? What are you doing here? Where have you been?”

“It’s going to be a long story, will you listen?”

“Of course.”

Over the next couple of hours, Shiro told them everything.

End of Day -186

 

Martel had looked for Shiro until midnight and was a little worried. Given the way she had acted, she seemed to be conflicted with the current situation. He figured she had most likely returned to the Demihumans. Even though her parents were dead, she could still have family and friends. He sighed as he was a bit dispirited if she genuinely had left, but it was for the better, so long as she was happy.

A couple of hours after midnight, Shiro returned to the camp and made her way into Martel’s tent. He awoke to her approach, but he continued to feign sleep. She stood above him with a complicated expression before she laid down next to him. Martel pretend to move in his sleep as he allowed his hand to fall into hers gently. She gripped it tightly and fell asleep as a smile finally appeared on her lips.

Martel was pleased she had returned. Shiro was already family to him, and he considered her and the time he spent with her to be precious. He didn’t overthink about where she had been or what she had done. He knew she was a simple, sweet, and innocent girl who could easily be trusted. So, he didn’t question her about where she had been. Nor did he ask why she wanted to go into the nearby forest together in the early morning.

The two of them traveled some distance under the rumbling thunder that emanated from dark clouds. Martel noticed Shiro’s body language got continually more tense as they continued. A short time later, Martel saw two sources of Ki ahead. Instinctively, he lowered his output of Ki but did not completely negate it. If they had already detected him, suddenly disappearing would put them on edge. If they had yet to sense him, then they might be disillusioned about his actual strength.

The forest then opened up into a small area where no trees exist. There, Martel saws a girl with crimson hair who sat on a bolder to the side of the clearing. Next to her stood the man that Martel recognized from the Fort as the Demon King.

Shiro looked at Martel with a nervous expression. “I’m sorry,” She softly said as she looked down.

Martel bent down to her eye level and patted her on the head. “Don’t say something so misleading. It sounds like you’re betraying me.”

“But… But I brought you to the enemy leader without telling you. Even I know that isn’t something I should do.” She said as tears started to form in her eyes.

“It’s okay, I trust you,” Martel began as he stood up and continued with an enlarged voice. “Besides, he isn’t my enemy... Yet.”

“Haha.” The man laughed.

“Stop touching Little Sis!” The crimson-haired girl yelled.

“Little Sis? Shiro, who she to you?” Martel asked.

“She was my friend from home. There aren’t many children where we were, so she often played with me.”

“That’s right.” The crimson-haired girl said. “She’s like a sister to me. I let her go back because she begged me. Now release her!”

“Release her? You make it sound like I’m holding her against her will. Shiro, no matter what the outcome of this is, you are free to go with them or stay with me.”

Shiro looked at me with tears in her eyes. “I want to stay with you.”

The crimson-haired girl’s mouth dropped open. “What are you saying? Are you abandoning me?”

Shiro shook her head. “No. We will always be sisters, and I want to help Martel. He wants to end this without bloodshed. I’m his apprentice and I… I want to have his baby.”

“Wha?” The crimson-haired girl froze from shock as it was one of the few things Shiro had omitted from last night.

“Hahaha,” the man started to laugh louder.

Martel cleared his throat and began to speak. “Now then,” I begin. “I will be operating under the assumption that you came here to talk with me. As such, I shall introduce myself. I am Martel. As I believe you are aware, I am the so-called Hero. May I inquire to the name of the beautiful young lady over there?”

“Eh? Beautiful...” At his words, the crimson-haired girl’s face started to match the color of her hair.” M-m-my n-name is Caelia.”

“Oh? What a unique name. And the name of the man whose pseudonym is Demon King?”

“You may call me Thomas.”

“Very well, Thomas. I’m sure we have much to discuss and talk about, but first, the young lady intrigues me. I was unaware that there were any elves among the Demihumans.”

His eyes, the only visible part of his mask, revealed supprise. “Oh? I was under the impression that the existence of elves was not known. Where did you learn of this?”

“I am from a different world, one where such creatures exist in myth and legend. I could not help but observe such a beautiful lady when I noticed her ears. The way that they are slightly pointed hints at having some blood of an elf.”

“Interesting. She does indeed have elvish blood flowing through her veins. Specifically, a dark elf.”

“Oh? There is more than one type of elf.”

“Dark elves and elves, but enough of this idle chatter. Let us talk like men,” Thomas said as he rose from his seat and took a stance.

“You mean to say ‘talk with our fists?’” 

“I do,” He replied with a smile.

Shiro started to panic. “Wait, you said you wouldn’t fight him, that you would talk to him.”

“And this is how men talk to each other,” Thomas said with a laugh.

“But-”

“It’s okay Shiro,” Martel said. “He wishes to judge my character. If I had any malicious intent, I doubt I would be able to hide it if he pushed me into a corner.”

“How insightful,” Thomas said

“I still don’t want you two to fight!” Shiro replied.

“It’s okay Shiro. Now then Thomas, seeing as there are two ladies present I suggest we keep this civilized. I propose that we set rules. The first being that it not be to the death.”

“As I wish to duel, it is only right. The loser is whoever is unable to continue or surrenders. It is an automatic loss for the one who ends up striking a killing blow.”

“Oh? And what is to the both of us enforce that?”

“Let us say our integrity and as a mutual sign of trust and our honor.”

“Very well,” Martel said as they both took their stances. He wasn’t too thrilled about the outcome. From the look of it, Thomas was a bit of a battle freak. However, he seemed to be honest and straightforward. Though he wasn’t thrilled, Martel couldn’t help but feel a little excited. For the first time, he would fight against someone, and he wanted to see just how much stronger he had become.

The tension rose as both of the men started to approach each other. The amount of Ki similarly did. Thomas’s Ki flame rose to five times an average human’s and Martel matched. Neither permeated any malice nor evil intent in their Ki. There was only constant pressure. The two of them do not move for several long seconds. Then, at an unknown signal, the two of them immediately dashed towards each other. 

Thomas attempted to end the match quickly as he immediately utilized Gentle Touch to seal Martel’s body. However, Martel did the same. The two of them are exchanged finger thrusts while they either dodged or deflected the blows which rendered them ineffective. After a short exchange of blows, Martel revealed his left side. Thomas jumped at the chance and landed an attack on Martel’s shoulder to seal it. In that instant, Martel focused an enormous amount of Ki into his left arm which blocked Thomas’s attack while he simultaneously struck Thomas below the elbow at a speed which surpassed their previous exchange. 

Caelia looked at her father as he backed up slightly dumbfounded. Though he wasn’t the strongest in their village, he was one of the top fighters. On top of this, while he could use most weapons, he was best when he was unarmed, and he was serious in that exchange. However, he wasn’t able to get any advantage over Martel. It seemed as though Martel had the entire exchange in his control. From what Shiro had told her, Caelia knew that Martel had only been in Albion for a short four months. Of those four months, he had focused on weapon and magic training and only fought unarmed when he sparred against Shiro, so he had a little unarmed training in his world, but she would have never expected that he would appear to at least be an even match with her father. Disbelief was on her face as her eyes landed on Martel.

Thomas looked over to Martel as he clutched his sealed arm. “To have learned Gentle Touch and how to defend against it in such a short amount of time. You must truly be a quick study.” He pressed near his elbow and unsealed it. “Well then, I shall do no more of that,” He said as his hand became fists.

They lunged at each other again. This time, they used Reinforcer Ki in their blows, which were now fists. Their speed and power were higher than before. They both threw punches and kicks with enough force to make the air shake on impact. As they fought, neither seemed to get the upper hand. Thomas’s battle experience and Martel’s foreign martial arts seemed to come out even. Then, Thomas landed a punch on Martel’s stomach, though Martel jumped back at the last second which lessened the blow and put some distance between them.

“Excellent. I who have been training my skills must get serious against one who has been fighting for a mere four months if Little One is telling the truth. If I did not trust her word, I would think her a liar. Now then, your attacks are all-powerful, but I feel as though you’re holding back. Come at me as though you wish to kill me. I shall accept whatever you wish to throw at me.” Thomas said with a laugh. Caelia could hear the excitement in his voice.

Martel stood upright some distance away and looked up at the cloudy sky. “Are you sure about that, old man?”

“Of course, I would not say so otherwise.”

As he looked up at the clouds, Martel took a deep breath. “Shiro, cover your ears.” 

Shiro looked confused as to why, but she did so anyway. Then, Martel’s next action dumbfounded everyone. Martel’s Ki Flame became six times that of an average person as he gathered it around his body as Reinforcer Ki. It wrapped around him and became so thick even those without Ki training would be able to catch a glimpse of it. His body was under incredible pressure as his muscles began to strain visibly. 

Thomas didn’t move out of surprise and interest as to what Martel had planned as he raised his Ki though he couldn’t match Martel. For several seconds, Martel didn’t move and just stood there as he looked to the sky. Then, he raised his right hand and faced his palm to the sky. *BOOM!* Lightning struck Martel’s palm though his Ki prevented it as it began to wrap around his body. 

*BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!* *BOOM!*

Four more strikes landed in the same spot. No one could move. They couldn’t even breathe from the immense pressure from the lightning and Ki. The lightning seemed to have fused with his Ki as it arced around his body and occasionally shot into the ground. Everyone could feel it on their skin as their hair began to rise. Incredibly, Martel appeared not to have taken any damage even though five bolts of lightning struck him. With a solemn expression, Martel’s voice echoed as if he was a harbinger of death. “Here I come, old man.”

With an inhuman speed, Martel shot to the side. Thomas barely managed to face him as Martel lifted his right hand. With his thumb in the air and his middle and index finger pointed towards Thomas, h.e smiled “Bang.”

*BOOM!!!*

With the sound and size even greater than what struck Martel, a bolt of lightning flew from Martel’s hand and shot past the side of Thomas’s head. Thomas bent his head to the side to dodge, though it was far too slow. His clothes were torn on his shoulder, and there were signs of burns. Similarly, the left side of his mask was heavily damaged, and blood trickled down the side of his face. He seemed to be in a large amount of pain as he knelt to the ground. 

After a couple of seconds, Caelia finally recovered from her shock. “Are you insane?!?!” She can’t help but shout out at Martel. “If my father didn’t dodge that he could’ve died! How dare-”

“Silence, Caelia!” Thomas shouted. He didn’t shout on purpose as his hearing was damaged. “I have lost five times over.” He continued in a loud voice with a laugh.

“What do you mean?” Caelia asked.

“Firstly, I asked him to come at me seriously. Secondly, I probably would’ve lost from a single punch with that amount of Ki. Thirdly, he took his time to warn me and moved to ensure that you would not be in the line of fire. Fourthly, I did not dodge that attack. He purposefully sent it beyond my head. By the time I could register what was going on, the attack would’ve landed. Finally,” he pointed behind him towards a bolder, or rather what was left of it, as it was blown into several slightly melted pieces. “That destructive power would have obliterated me. There is no question in my mind that, if he had wanted to kill me, I would be dead. For one who preaches never to underestimate your opponent, I have seemingly done just that.”

*BOOM!* Martel fired a lightning bolt into the sky as he discharged the rest of the lightning.

“Don’t take it too hard, old man,” Martel said as he released and relaxed his Ki. “I realized some time ago that my abilities go beyond extraordinary in this world. I do not believe anyone would look down on you.”

*crackle* *crackle* The side of Thomas’s mask finally broke down and revealed his crimson hair.

“Now then,” Martel continued. “Let me heal you so we can converse in a manner befitting the status of Your Highness Tom a Lincoln, King of the Demihumans, Prince of Roxburghshire, brother to its King.”