{Familia Inn}
It had been a few days since Davine staying here. Danzel had thought he would only be spending a night here and then leave in the next morning. However, he was surprised when Davine had said he wanted to spend his holiday here.
Clarissa met Davine in the the next morning, however she hadn't been very happy with his visit. She had been there at her brother's funeral. She had seen how those friends of her brother's left her father at the exact same day. She despised them.
Unlike her father who had somehow quickly gotten close with Davine, she had always kept her distance from him. She would only interact with him as much as it was necessary. She felt the need to do so. There was something off about him that made her uneasy.
The other people seemed to not notice it as Davine quickly became the favorite person of the inn. Maybe because his easygoing nature, he could get close to any people he met. But still, she didn't like him.
He had been flirting with all the female lodgers here and there. Unexpectedly, or rather as expected they were thrilled about it. They all believed he was the one in the rumour that had been running around the inn.
Surely, they were wrong. Some people who had met Basil felt quite flabbergasted at that, however they didn't care really much. They stayed in the inn not because of the rumour, but the comfort.
People like them were the only one who treated him the same as the other people. They could see there was nothing special about him. They had seen the one who was way better than him after all!
"Do you want the lettuce, Clarissa?"
"I'll take it by myself."
"Do you want some salt to add more flavor to your food?"
"I like it mild."
"Do you want to try the sauce I made? It's good."
"..."
Currently, they were having dinner for the fifth time. Clarissa felt like strangling Davine to death. She was annoyed! He couldn't seem to leave her alone. Maybe her disinterest toward him had wounded his pride, however she couldn't care less.
There really was nothing special about him. He was good-looking, however still incomparable to Basil. She didn't know whether it was his nature or not, however him pestering her irritated her to no end.
"You should try to have a taste of Davine's sauce, Dear. It is fairly good."
"'Fairly good' isn't enough for me, Father."
"Clarissa, that's rude."
Danzel was quite taken aback by her response. His daughter had never been that snarky for as long as he remembered. She was always well-mannered and polite. Although she was bit blunt sometimes, she knew how to hold back.
"I'm sorry, Davine. Maybe, she just had a bad day."
"Hahaha! Don't worry, Uncle! I'm not offended in the slightest."
Danzel looked at Davine with an apologetic face, however Davine just brushed it off. He didn't give any particular reaction at Clarissa's snarky comment. He merely smiled as usual like nothing happened.
Clarissa didn't feel any guilt or whatsoever. Her behavior had showed clearly she didn't want to associate herself with Davine. Unfortunately, the latter was so adamant that she couldn't help but stating it in front of his face.
"Seriously, Dear... You should give it a try. Maybe as an experienced cook, you might be able to point out the mistakes he made?"
"That is... A good point! I have never thought about that!"
Davine looked at Clarissa with an expectant gaze. He had a smile that seemed quite off on his face. Clarissa felt a little bit uneasy at that, however she couldn't make her father lose his face anymore than that.
At last, she sighed and decided to give a taste.
"Huuh... Fine."
She spooned Davine's sauce into her mouth and let it washed her palates. She tasted it briefly, and could tell it was fairly good. Surely, it was fairly good for a beginner. She was about to make a comment when she felt her vision darkened as she lost her consciousness.
Thud!
Clank!
"Clarissa!"
The utensils on the table clanking against each other as her head hit it squarely. Danzel was panicked as he quickly ran toward her side.
"Hey, baby! Baby, can you hear me? Oh, Dear! Davine, notify some doctor to..."
Danzel looked at Davine in silent disbelief. Davine was sitting there quietly while having a huge grin on his face.
"Ku-ku-ku. It took a longer time than I had thought. This bitch is really tough but to crack. Well, at least I got to 'taste' some of the lodgers."
Danzel's heart sank. He looked at Davine in utter bafflement. He couldn't believe the kid he had gotten close with was that kind of person. He had misjudged his character. No, Davine's mask was too perfect for him to notice it.
"Now, now.. don't look at me like that, old man. I'm just here for taking back my things."
"What are you talking about?"
Danzel looked at Davine coldly. There was fire in his eyes as he was enraged at the audacity at the kid in front of him who dared to trick him.
"Woah, woah. Chill out, old man. I know what you're planning, but it will never work. I have isolated this place completely. No help will come even if you run. That is, even if you can run in the first place."
Davine ended his words with a cold smirk on his face. Danzel tightened his clenched fist. He wanted to punch Davine's face badly.
"Now, let's get to the point. She, your daughter, has a poison inside her body. I have the antidote with me, so you have to answer me honestly."
"You, bastard! Give me the antidote!"
"Calm down, you won't get anything through shouting. Just answer my question calmly."
"... Fine. Let me hear that question."
Danzel answered Davine with a clenched teeth. His tone held his true feeling as rage was barely concealed from it.
"Where is the armour?"
"What armour?"
"The one James got from Excluso Expedition."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Tch!"
Davine clicked his tongue in annoyance. He looked at Danzel in silent contemplation. He thought the old man was playing hard to get. He sighed and stood from his seat. Then —
Bam!
— he punched him right in the face.
Although he didn't imbue his punch with his Qi, due to Body Forging his strength was abnormal.
"Ugh! You, bastard. Is this how you treat an elder?!"
"Hmph! I don't give a crap about it. Talk to my foot!"
With a snort, Davine stomped Danzel's face.
Crack!
The wall Danzel was leaning on cracked due to the force Davine applied to stomp his head.
"Kuugghh... You..! You!"
"Woah, you don't even bleed. You are a very resilient old man it seems."
Davine was quite take aback by Danzel's durability. He had punched and stomped him, however Danzel hadn't even bled. There was only one explanation to it. Danzel was a Knight, however for some reason he couldn't use his Qi.
"I've had my share of beating, this is nothing to me!"
Danzel tried to stand up as he grabbed on Davine's foot. However, Davine looked at that in disinterest as he applied more force to his foot.
Bam!
"Gah!"
"Tch. Just answer me, where is the armour?!"
"I don't know what you are talking about!"
"Playing hard, huh? Fine by me."
Davine looked at Danzel in ridicule and faint anger. He removed his foot and decided to punch him with his fists instead.
Bam!
"Excluso Expedition should have been a turning point in my life."
Bam!
"But, your idiot son took it away from me!"
Bam!
"Effortlessly, he made the noble I was trying to impress fond of him."
Bam!
"I was searching for an opportunity to get a favor from him, yet your son took it away from me!"
Bam!
"But, hold on! It wasn't only that. At the end of the expedition, due to his fondness, the noble gave your son a Green Rank Armour!"
Bam!
"I want that so badly, but he had never worn it once!"
Bam!
"It was only when we had Lone Peak Expedition did he wear the armour, I killed him for that and covered it as an accident."
Davine stopped his barrage of punches. He looked at Danzel's bloody face and sighed lightly. He was too carried away with his emotion that he didn't notice he was breathing heavily.
"You killed my son.. kuhuk! Only for an armour?!
Davine ignored the enraged Danzel and opened his mouth.
"Imagine my surprise when I discovered the armour he wore was only Orange Rank in quality."
Bam! Bam! Bam!
"That prick! Even after his death, he still gave me a hard time. Now, you say you don't know anything about it? Like father like son, you all irate me to no end!"
Davine kicked Danzel's stomach until he clutched his stomach in pain. The floor was smeared with his blood. His face turned unrecognizable as Davine had pounded him too heavily. He had even internal injuries as he spewed blood from time to time.
"Crap! Crap! Crap!"
Davine kicked his tongue and looked at the sleeping Clarissa. He had tricked Danzel to believe he had poisoned her, however it seemed his trick was useless. He had beaten Danzel, however he couldn't get anything out of him.
He had even searched through the whole place, and he couldn't even find anything. He was frustrated!
Tap. Tap. Tap.
He turned his back as he heard footsteps behind. There was someone coming from the doorway. The person wore an entirely black attire and gave off a mysterious feeling. At this, he merely smiled.
"Took you long enough to come."
Both sides merely smirked as they looked at each other.
...
"Hmm..."
Basil groaned as he opened his heavily closed eyes. It seemed a day had passed since the battle. It was close to noon when he opened his eyes. The sun was very bright as it directly shone on his face.
He quickly spread his meager Mana Sense to the surrounding to check for any danger. He found none. Deacon was lying on his side, sleeping peacefully. He could feel it through their [Link], Deacon was having his best sleep.
Truly, the best sleep was the sleep you had after tiring yourself out. He sat himself uprightly and looked at Kusanagi on his hand.
Rustle.
"Oh, you are awake?"
Suddenly, someone came out from behind the bush. He held a Unihorn Rabbit in his hand, while holding his sword on his shoulder. Basil looked at the man, and kept his mouth silent.
"But, really. You are crazy, Dude. You held that sword tightly even when you were unconscious!"
The man was easygoing and liked to smile very much. Anyone in his vicinity would smile because of his smile only. He was a fun person.
"Alright! Because you seem so hungry that you can't even answer me, let me cook first! It won't take long, believe me!"
Basil nodded his head faintly, and calmly observed the man. The man couldn't do any cooking, and it could be seen easily. He was too clumsy. If not for the fact he was a Knight, the man could have burnt himself many times already!
"Kuhahaha! Look at that! I finally made one right cook! Look at that, Sis! Your Bro can do it!"
He was simply elated that he could make one cook right. Basil looked at that and smiled faintly. The man scratched his head awkwardly and presented Basil the food. While the man ate his portion vigorously, Basil didn't touch his food in the slightest.
"Darn! It's so good! Kuuhhh... Haven't eaten for a long time."
Basil waited until the man finished his food. When the man finished his food, he looked at Basil awkwardly.
"Umm..you don't like it?"
Basil shook his head faintly and looked at the man with a small smile.
"Jade of Soul Memoir," muttered Basil softly. The man turned rigid for a while, before relaxing his body and smiled in defeat. "Huh.. I know you are awesome. But! Aren't you too awesome?!"
His solemn expression was quickly replaced by his playful face. He returned to his usual self very quickly.
"I won't ask how you know, my time is limited. But.. I'll leave my family to you. I might sound impudent, but.. I beg you to take care of my Sis and Pops."
The man bowed his head deeply with the most sincere feeling Basil had ever felt from someone. When the man raised his head, Basil extended his hand.
"We haven't known each other yet. I'm Basil Pacifer."
"Aha! I knew you were a noble. And, I knew you knew me already! But, whatever..." The man shook his head and smiled widely. He opened his mouth and said brightly, "Nice to meet you Basil, I am James, your older Bro!"
Basil shook his hand with a grin. Both of them were grinning. They only let go of each other's hands after some time had passed. James sighed and looked straightly at Basil's eyes.
"I don't know much about you, but I believe you are a good person. Please, take care of my family. Peace!"
James made a peace hand sign and grinned brightly at Basil. His body was turning translucent by the second. He kept that pose until his entire self turned invisible.
Jade of Soul Memoir. A High Grade Relic that could keep a part of the owner's soul. When they died, their family could spend a little more time with them. It recorded the owner's Mana, and made a temporary construct resembling the deceased owner.
Basil hadn't expected James would have that kind of useless luxury on him. Still, he could appreciate its function now.
"Leave them to me, Bro."
Finally, Basil muttered his response tenderly.