Chapter 9

Chapter 9: New Face
November 28, 2032.

Diesmas, Fiefa.

"I can't believe it," I sigh as Mia and I walk around the streets of the city of Diesmas. "I can't believe I haven't been placed under a Class yet."

It's been a month since I went through the Initiation Ceremony. I would've assumed that after the first week or two, I would've already been classified as a Knight, a Bowman or under the field of Magic. Yet, as I open my Soul DP to check any updates on my Identity Card, all that changed was the Frequent Party category.

Name: Gabriel Delfin Sex: Male Age: 18 Nationality: Fiefan Classification: Target Sponsorship: Mia Rias Class: Processing... Title: Processing... Guild Group: None Frequent Party: Mia Rias Current Family: N/A

The fact that my Class and Title were still 'processing' didn't bother me a lot, but it definitely was frustrating to see. I wanted it to at least show an indication of my progress, of whatever path or career I was headed in.

But it didn't. I stared at the transparent blue window panel with the words 'Processing...' starting to make me grow impatient.

"Relax," Mia coined in, patting my back while I closed my Soul Database Processor. "Some people take longer to receive their class, especially if you take the natural approach that you're doing. Sooner or later, you'll get it! Just wait and see."

"Well, the sooner the better" I told her. "I just want to see what I get into so that I can focus on what I'm specialized in."

She clung her arm around my neck and pulled me towards her, messing with my hair with her other hand.

"You're so cute Gabe," she giggled. "Lighten up will you? As long as you continue to train and improve your technique, you aren't falling behind or wasting time; all of that effort will definitely make you a better magic-user, or knight, or bowman, whatever it is you'll be."

She let go of my neck and smiled at me. "Remember, it isn't all about what you see. It's all about what you feel."

After a month working on my skill with probably the most high-profiled Royal Target on Fiefa, there was no doubt that I felt stronger than I did when I started. I've worked on my footing, my positioning, my placement and balance. Most of all, I've learned to react faster and perform quicker all thanks to what I believe was due to Mia's dazzling speed.

We departed from Town Central Palace 10 days ago, heading west to travel to the nearest city. In Cedar Forest Path III, we trailed off from the path and headed South where we were met by a river. Mia and I decided to follow the stream, leading us to numerous small villages and neighborhoods located along the river. The Commons that resided there were nice enough to accommodate for us, and we repaid them with materials and food that we gathered as we trained around the surrounding area.

I grew stronger and smarter, now being able to not only take on one wild leopard, but two. Even three.

Mia was impressed and extremely proud of my progression. I was simply amazed by what I was now capable of.

Eventually, the stream led us to Diesmas: a south-eastern city located by the lakeshore, where the river joined Lake Reir. We arrived in the city just this morning, touring the streets and architectural design of the beautiful city by the lake.

"Have you been here before?" I asked.

"With my family, at one point, I've been everywhere. But that was probably when I was 10, or 11. By myself, to just come and explore, I haven't." She answered. "Unless I have business somewhere outside of my kingdom, I often don't have the freedom to travel wherever I want. Especially alone just for fun; I usually have a group of 4 other guards tagging along."

"Sounds fun" I said sarcastically.

"Shuttup," she fired back. "Well, right now, I actually am though" she smiled at me. "Come on! Let's see what's interesting in Diesmas!"

Mia grabbed my hand and began to lightly jog excitingly around the city. She was like a little girl who loved to run around and have fun. As we started our exploration and tour around Diesmas, I noticed a distinct person stare at us from the corner of my eye.

We sat together by the lakeshore, the sun beginning to set just above the horizon of the water. It was magnificent; the reflection of the sunset glimmering in the ripples of waves in front of us. We sat on top of the ledge that provided as a barrier between the lake and the city, just admiring the view in front of us.

"If you push me, I'll kill you" Mia warned.

I began to laugh. "I swear it isn't even that deep," I remarked.

"Yeah but, who likes getting wet unexpectedly?" She said. "Unless, you're the type of person who enjoys that," Mia winked, starting to reach for me with her arms.

"I swear! If I fall--"

"Hehe, the water's nice and cold for you!" She giggled.

"Mia stop this!! I'll pull you in with--"

"Don't! Oh my gosh Gabe let go!"

We both laughed and tussled, scaring and threatening each other about being pushed into the water until we finally fell backwards onto the sidewalk of the lake-front. I got up and dusted myself off, then reached out for Mia's hand. I pulled her up to her feet and dusted the dirt off of her as well.

"Awe, you're such an angel" she teased.

"You already know," I rolled my eyes in sarcasm. "Thanks by the way, for the small knife."

"It's a dagger silly, but you're welcome!" Mia said happily, pinching my cheek as she said this. "I noticed that you might benefit from a secondary weapon. Your reaction speed has way improved since and you need a quick weapon that you can easily switch to, in order to stay in stride and continue building speed during battle."

While taking an adventure around Diesmas, we sold most of our materials at the marketplace earlier this afternoon for good value. There was an excess amount of animal hyde and meat that sold for over 500 gold coins, thanks to the rarity of obtaining the materials we had.

All the hard work and training did pay off in sales at least. Our sales were an indication of the difficulty of our training, the materials showing how successful we were in our hunting and fighting sessions.

Afterwards, she brought me to a weapons shop where Mia purchased the stunningly light, steel dagger. I fit it into one of the buckles on my hip belt, along with the basic wand that was already attached. In return, I tried to give Mia the amount of gold coins that the dagger had cost, which she proudly rejected.

Towards the end of the day, we finally reached the lakeshore to watch the sunset, leading us to the point in time where we stood right now.

"You know, I could've really paid for it myself," I told her.

"I know, but I wanted to get it for you," Mia said as we both moved our attention to the slowly setting sun. "It's like a gift, or a reward for all the hard work you did during training. Congratulations!"

She began to swing her arms in the air in celebration as I watched her jubilant, child-like personality. I loved the fact that she was always so happy-go-lucky. Seeing her happy somehow made me feel a little happier too.

"Now, to celebrate, jump in the water!" She joked, trying to push me towards the ledge with her arms.

"I think YOU'RE the one who really wants to get in there," I teased as I tried to resist her from pushing me over.

She laughed and giggled like a child who loved to play their favourite games. The moment I started nearing the edge, I wrapped Mia's body and carried her in my arms.

"Oh no! Gabe put me down! Hehe, let me go and put me down!" She yelled as she playfully tried to escape.

"Put you down?" I winked. "If you say so!"

We laughed and struggled trying to maintain position of power as I tried to keep her in my arms for me to pretend to throw her in the water while she tried to squirm and wiggle out.

"Gabe! Oh my gosh!" She laughed and screamed, losing her breath at the same time.

"I didn't know you had a boyfriend," a voice from behind us had said. "So this is where you've been all this time."

We stopped in our tracks, Mia tip-toeing to the ground as I gently let go of her from my arms. From the look on Mia's face, not wanting to turn around to face the person, she looked defeated. I assumed it was one of her guards that searched for her to return home, and it was probably what Mia assumed as well.

"Well, aren't you going to face me?" The evident voice of a woman asked. She walked towards us, the sound of her footsteps growing closer and closer. "Don't I at least deserve an introduction and a hello?"

At once, Mia shot her downward head back up and slowly turned around to face her.

"Clarisse?!" Mia shouted.

I then turned around to face her, to see the person that Mia was so surprised to see.

"Yup," the beautiful girl answered with a smile. "Oh Mia Rias - it's been a while, cousin."

Clarisse brought us to her home: a nice 2 story town house situated near the Diesmas lakeshore. She invited us inside and had a talk in her gracefully adorned living room.

"So you two are cousins?" I asked politely.

"Yeah," Mia answered. "Gabe, that's Clarisse Vena, from Vena Royalty. Claire, this is Gabriel Delfin, uhh..."

"From... Central," I finished. "Nice to meet you Clarisse."

"Nice to meet you too Gabriel," Clarisse replied as she sat down in a chair around the coffee table. She was a gorgeous girl who really had similar features to Mia. She too had brunette hair, only in a different style as Mia's. However, for a girl of Royalty, she wore a very simple top and a short-skirt as her bottom that would've made you think she was part of the Commons. Regardless of it, she was still naturally stunning. I guess I should've expected that from a relative of Mia.

"You're such a cute boy, where did you find him Mia?" Claire then asked.

Mia and I both hesitatingly smiled at each other, trying to figure out what we should tell her.

"Well, you see..." Mia started. "Once upon a time, in a land far far away--"

I slapped my face with my palm.

"Nice try, cous!" Claire laughed. "Fine, if you don't want to tell me how you and your boyfriend met, you don't have to" she said, doing some hand motion to go along with it.

"Wait, we aren't exactly dating" Mia interrupted.

I simply nodded, trying to agree to everything she said as to not cause any mix-ups or confusion.

"But he is my angel!" She said happily to Clarisse.

I slapped my face with my palm.

Again.

"Really?" Claire asked. "Well, you two sure would make a cute couple though; I've been watching the two of you for the whole afternoon and you guys get a long really well."

"You were watching us?" Mia and I questioned. "Why?"

"Earlier today, I was in the street heading to the front gates of Diesmas." She said, leaning back on her chair. "I noticed two people who were running, and I swore I saw a quick glimpse of Mia's face."

"So that was the person who was staring at us earlier," I thought.

"Unsure if it was or wasn't you, I decided to track them down and watch from a distance."

"But you should've known it was me right from the beginning, at the marketplace" inquired Mia. "Why didn't you confront us there?"

"I thought you two were on a date!" She teased. "Besides, it was too cute to not watch."

I noticed Mia begin to blush, which made me start to feel a bit embarrassed myself.

"But," Clarisse moved her attention towards me and began to turn pink as well. "If you're not interested in him...."

"HE'S MINE!" Mia interrupted, jumping out of her seat and pointing directly towards me. "He's my angel and he's not aloud to date cousins or friends or other girls or--"

"Does that include you?" Claire winked.

I watched at the sight of the two royal relatives talking amongst themselves. It was awkward, yet enjoyable at the same time.

Mia stopped and turned a more obvious shade of red. "Of course it doesn't include me because he's my guardian angel--"

"Then doesn't that mean--"

"SHUTTUP!"

"Hehe, okay okay," Clarisse finally gave in. "See? You two are so adorable."

As Mia began to calm down, I asked "Clarisse, if you're Royalty... why do you live in a simple town house in your city?"

"Oh, Diesmas isn't my city," she explained. "My kingdom is farther to the west, around the west-end of Fiefa."

I sat there confused. "Then why aren't you there right now? Why do you have your own home in Diesmas if your city is on the other end of the continent?"

"I'm exploring!" She answered proudly. "I've been wandering around Fiefa, learning about the different wildlife and towns and landmarks. I decided to buy a house in Diesmas because it's such a beautiful location. I've been living here for a while now."

"But-"

"Clarisse was granted the freedom to travel and explore the continent" Mia explained. "Her father, Marcus Vena, has a different point of view in terms of how he rule his kingdom."

"My dad is an MSE developer," Claire said. "Instead on focusing on maintaining the kingdom's territory, he works with other Magic Systems Engineers to forge new weapons and gizmos as well as to update the capabilities of the Soul Database Processor."

"He's the top person in that field, obviously being Royalty, but also because of the advancements he offers to the entire continent. Other people from Cloud 9 visit Fiefa just to obtain these technologically advanced weapons or upgrades to the Soul. Because of his importance to society, no one has dared to take over his kingdom with the fear that they will get banned from the vital upgrades that the Vena Family offers." Mia added.

"Right now, from what I heard, my father is currently out of the continent to work collaboratively in another place."

"Wow," I remarked. "Your father must love what he does."

"I'm so jealous of you cous," Mia pouted. "I wish I had the freedom to do what I wanted, just like you."

"Oh, that reminds me," Clarisse started. "Your father's been searching for you everywhere. You've been away for an entire month and from the rumors that have been going around, he's really upset."

"Yeah, well..."

"Wait," I interrupted. "If you knew you were going to get into deep trouble, why didn't you just go back?"

"I wanted to help you train!" She backfired.

"You could've just brought me to your city, and we could've trained there." I explained.

"But I don't want to go back... I just wanted to keep travelling... And to keep being with you..." Mia sadly said. "Once I go back to my kingdom, I know I'll be forced to resume my role as the vice commander. I won't have anymore free time to do whatever I want. On top of that, I wouldn't be allowed to bring you into my kingdom if you have absolutely no business being there..."

I looked at her in sympathy. Knowing the true Mia, the childish, cute, young lady who wanted to have fun and be herself...

I suddenly realized just how hard her job must've been for her. I suddenly understood just how oppressed she must've felt.

"Awe, great..." Clarisse randomly sputtered out.

"What is it?" I asked calmly.

"I just got to meet you and my cousin after about 9 months of not seeing Mia. I thought I could spend a couple of days catching up with her while getting to know you as well."

"Why can't we?" I asked suspiciously.

"While spying on you two, I overheard from the citizens of Diesmas that Royal Rias Guards have reached the gates and made temporary posts at the entrance of the city. They plan to search the entire city extensively, keeping their posts until Mia is finally found on Fiefa. They've set posts in other cities as well."

A look of grim and displeasure blanketed Mia's face.

"It looks like the chase is over by tomorrow." Clarisse insisted. "I'm sorry to be the one to break the bad news, I know how much you dislike working back at your kingdom, cousso."

Mia looked at Claire and tried to crack a smile. She then looked at me, and I noticed how hard she was trying to hold back her tears.

Clarisse offered us her guest room for the night. There was one bed placed by the wall. Mia sat on top of the mattress and leaned against the wall. She sat there silently, in contemplation.

She looked stressed, as if something horrible was about to come her way. I could only imagine the type of pain that she felt at that moment. She's been gone for a month, with her strict father desperately looking for her. I didn't know what I should do or say, but I knew that I had to comfort her.

I knew that if there was something I could do, it would be to just be there for her, during her time of stress.

I got up from the floor, where I placed a blanket for me to sleep on, and sat beside her. I held her hand, and she squeezed on to mine tightly. Although she never said anything, I could somehow feel the gloom and sorrow that she felt in the atmosphere.

I continued to stay beside her, for an hour - and then another. No matter what, I was determined to stay up all night just to be there for her.

Sometime during the night, she slowly leaned her head on my shoulder; her tears drenching my shirt as she began to silently cry.