Fate/Inheritance

After waking up with a strange refreshing feeling amidst those beating and getting the rundown from the awaiting Yamada I remembered the clash of ideals my instructor and Lancer did. Much to my charging it seems no. 1 took a beating from that 'thing' also and because the kids know it already they started to look at me with a different sight alongside Surtr(sandbag) freely talking with a fellow 'European' being. Thinking about our weakness and such I reflected on some things that happened to me also.

And two months later… In a darkness that made me of all people alongside my fellow trainees can't sense a thing I murmured quietly.

"Three trials left."

In this set of 12 trials akin to a certain Greek hero's labors three trials are still not completed. I let the flood of unforgiving memories swim in my head for that moment and remembered those times fighting through the 9 trials we faced…

============================================================

"Damn it!!!"

I screamed in terror when a silent arrow suddenly and nearly grazed my cheek.

[Bozu duck!!] Hearing Lancer's words I dodged another volley of arrows that silently targeted my head. To fire arrows just in time I raised my body…

It had been a few days since we entered a new training room the instructor brought us. Lancer already got over his fight with the instructor and had been assisting more than before especially in this trial called trial of arrows. I was shocked for such a hidden place was put in the facility which I thought to have combed perfectly. Ignoring those aside I learned in our fainted stupor (me and no. 1) that no. 1000 already tried this trial the day we are out cold and merely reached ten meters before retreating.

After learning the evil combination of silent and noisy arrows that came from all directions even above and below, I started to use my Protection from Arrows at its limits. Aside from No. 17 who has the burning giant of Musphelheim as a meat shield, no. 1000's survival instincts akin to an EX ranked one and Yamada's free styled martial arts, no. 1 practically strained himself to the very limits he can do.

Aside from the silent-type and noisy arrows we practically learned the hard way what it shows as a trial made by that twisted instructor. The arrows are laced with different kinds of poisons. Ignoring the lethality of the arrows that flies in the speed I can barely register the thing that frightens and makes me want to cry but practically deals -1 damage.

"Uweeeeek!!!!!" No. 17's voice resonated in the room while we patted her back who is crouching in a corner vomiting.

You see the poisons are not the lethal types that induces deadly and efficient poison's that guarantee's death, nor the non-lethal types like paralyses the body but the horrifying and diverse types that will make you question the very humanity of the manufacturers of this concoction's. Like diarrhea and induced vomiting for example!

Ignoring No. 1000 who would surely have an EX Rank for Poison Immunity who kept on dodging complacently me and the other's kept on feeling our dignity as human's slowly wilt in a corner. Alas such complacently gave her a satisfying retribution.

Just before nearing the door that will led us to the second trial an arrow nicked on no. 1000's skin silently then had a sudden change of expression and turned pale then she started to vomit. Looking at such sight that practically thrown her silent kuudere demeanor makes you just affirm who created this trial.

After a groveling month in that room that makes you question if there are an army of elves shooting at you in the shadows, alongside the showing off due to the heavy mana-concentrated environment that shows the money used in it. We who practically surpassed the limits of humanity easily finished the trial of steel, earth, traps and magic.

Difficulty aside, the trial of arrows was merely the thing that we feared and the trial of magic which should had not been implemented due to our baptism from the Empire-style bombardment we were stopped finally by the 6th trial.

"I can't condense mana well…" No. 17 said with an irritated voice and the sound of grinding. A stream of blood was trickling down noticeably from her lips. Since the first trial, she started the habit of biting her lips whenever she is stressed out.

"And… I can't see." No. 1 said while staring at the air. But with him sensing the surroundings through mana he finally looked at us with 'clarity'.

No. 1000 and me are looking around excessively. I also can't strangely smell anything with my strong sense of smell.

The sixth trial took out one of our senses randomly, with a strange black fog that bans a certain range of mana usage and the one jamming our senses we can only 'see' my fellow trainee's through our other senses. Aside from those mine and no. 1000's sixth sense is practically tingling from a strange danger somewhere and if our sp*dey senses is tingling it's equal to traps (for me it also detects the human kind).

Worst of all we are running low of mana and this place restricts both our mana/qi regeneration and manipulation due to that weird black fog that is around. The black fog aside which is made of artificially with magic, we are running low of mana due to the trial before needed a lot of mana expedition.

With my brain going full throttle of solving this problem I heard the voice of salvation coming out of no. 17's mouth.

"Can't we just go out and recover our mana?"

"""Ah…"""

"You're right?" – No. 1000

That day, ten minutes later.

The trial of fog was cleared.

============================================================

Extra:

Rising of the Calligraphy Hero(Part II)

After eating my dear wife's food, I returned to my room and prepared to thoroughly clean the place and I finally noticed an anomaly. The calligraphy I wrote was suddenly gone. Not the canvas but the very thing I wrote. In panic, I rummaged around in fear that I misplaced it till I heard two screams.

'That was in William's room!' In panic I rushed leaving my room and rushed into the other end of the second floor where my two children's room is located. Looking inside through the open door I saw a strange situation.

"…" I silently and stoically stared.

For my dear wife is clutching the neck of a strange man with Oriental features wearing an omyoji's robes who is slapping my wife's hand weakly with his right hand I noticed a staff he dropped in the ground. To those who noticed… yes he is off the floor and being lifted by a beautiful blond woman.

"Who are you and why are you inside my son's room!" My wife aggressively said. For the record when we fight sometimes, she majorly wins by relying of her physical might and it always end to 'that' event one-sidedly that makes our neighbors complain before (It was also one that signed our marriage before).

"The women of this age are still violent? Ahhh the world is totally hopeless from the start…" The strange man said weakly, I finally got a clear look at his features he is one of the most beautiful men I saw that even me who is part of the Mikado family whose males in all generation is proud(?) of our slightly effeminate look bearing the airs of scholar's pale in comparison.

I also noticed that his eyes which holds a beautiful pair of black pupils had a strange make up of golden orange that accentuates the shape of his eyes similar to those white fox masks you see in Japan making his look have that strange beauty only seen in movies that depicts fox spirits.

"…So what did he did mom?" My dear daughter who just arrived coldly said. I know that my dear daughter has that bubbly personality but she tends to be like her mother if there is something bad happening to the people she cherishes especially and strangely specific his brother.

"This pervert was looking at your brother's computer and somehow accessed 'that' folder…" With my wife's words my daughter suddenly changed her demeanor. With the coldest look befitting her name I had given Yukihime, she approached the man with empty eyes who is still being grabbed by my wife and in a strangely practiced and coordinated manner, my wife dropped her hold in him making him show a grateful look but in the next second… his body dropping due to gravity a leg suddenly and was swiftly kicked 'that' area and then…

Crack… Thud.

"Uhhhh..." Came the weak and feeble cry of the man whose jewels broke in such a poor manner. Offering my silent prayer's to the man, my daughter grabbed him by the collar and lifted his face who was dropped like trash by my wife.

"Tell me what are you doing in our house especially how you opened 'that' folder…" She said in a low voice.

*a few not so moments later*

"*sigh* How lamenting… to experience that again makes me remember that incident…" The man now sitting in our dining table said with a tired look.

A few moments before, after he was kicked there he quickly regained focus and grabbed his staff and with a hand sign he made some archaic incantations that sounds Japanese but I did not recognize it. Then a strange phenomenon happened, Motes of light with different colors suddenly appeared around the room much to our shock and rushed in that area and somehow… disgustingly made a prismatic light in that place akin to that strange anime song my son watched before. (A/N: Guess what anime it was referring >:3)

"So what brought you here trespassing in our house dear guest~." My smiling wife said placing a cup of tea in front of him. She is now a bit of good mood alongside my daughter beside me due to the information the man 'voluntarily' gave away. That information to be exact is how to access a strange folder in my son's computer that can't be accessed even when the two females of this house hired a skilled hacker making them strangely frustrated much of my own confusion.

"Ahh… thank you for the tea." He said graciously but with hesitant hands I heard him murmur secretly "is it poisoned…" but I ignored that and looked at him with pressing eyes. When my wife took a seat finally he took a sip and praised it for a bit and put his cup in the table and remembered something.

Standing up and with a smile befitting his face he made a Japanese salutation that is mostly not used in our current times and said…

"Ah~ I forgot the introductions…I am…"

To be continued