Story Simulation - Chapter II

Rael does his first quest from Aurielle, along with Jean—to clear out the bandits at the Bronze Grassland. While dealing with the presumed leader—Hifumi, a mysterious enemy—Kat approaches the two with a question!

Chapter II, Cleanup: Written on June 27, 2022. 217 words from the Storyteller. 1199 words from the story itself.

Chapter II, Question: Written on July 6, 2021. 90 words from the Storyteller. 986 words from the story itself.

Chapter II, Answer: Written on July 10, 2021. 84 words from the Storyteller. 1408 words from the story itself.

Word count total: 391 words from the Storytellers. 3593 words from the story itself.

The morning of New Alalea had risen once again, as people woke up and got out of their houses and inns. Or at least, enjoy their breakfast — such as Rael accompanying Jean for this breakfast inside the inn.

It was the first day they actually ate breakfast outside their own rooms. Jean might not like the idea of eating with people too much. But after three days of sticking around and training together, she trusted Rael stick around even after he had finished the meal.

Being the guy who looked after their bags while Jean was eating, Rael asked. “Are you sure Aurielle will return around this time?” “Yeah. She almost always travels during the morning, and we better prepare our stuff before she returns,” Jean replied as she stopped eating for a bit, before finishing the breakfast.

After Jean returned the dish and was about to return to their table, she noticed a familiar blonde — Aurielle herself — talking with Rael at the table.

With Aurielle’s sight on their packed bags, she smiled. “Remember when I told you to prepare yourselves? We’re having a short trip at the Bronze Grasslands today.”

Knowing Aurielle, Jean knew it wouldn’t be a simple trip. “What’s up in that place?”

“Hmm…” Aurielle glanced around the room filled with people. “I’ll explain the details later. Grab your bags and we’re getting there together.”

. . .

During the trio’s walk from New Alalea, following the plains, Aurielle explained, “We’re going to the Bronze Grasslands to tackle down a trail of bandits. And from what I’ve heard during the meeting, they’re getting supplies and materials for Dark Arts Society guild.”

Rael glanced at Aurielle. “So… Like one of those bounty hunter quests?”

“Kind of, I think. This might sound like an odd choice for the magic training, but with the weather and the bandit’s recent reports. I think this will serve as good training for both of you.”

“Wait, what reports?” Jean asked.

“They’re mostly the weapons stuff. Like swords, magic weapons, and even guns. It’s all the things you don’t expect from the bandits in that area.”

After hearing the weapon examples, even Rael had to question that information. “Huh? Where did they even get those weapons from?”

“There were reports of criminals from far north-west regions, like Shangdao and New Mount Olympus. I’m sure those ones are involved with this weapon change. And this means you have to be prepared for the unexpected.”

With Aurielle’s warnings, both Rael and Jean glanced at each other with a concerned look. Before Jean asked one another thing. “What’s the end goal here for this quest? Knock them out?”

“Yeah, that. And possibly halting whatever operation they’re up to. I’m sure the Magic Council members are trying to stop the other bandit regions too.”

After hearing the quest’s information and noticing the high grounds from afar, Rael affirmed. “Alright, I’m down for this one.” “Me too,” Jean added.

“I trust both of you on this one. You know where to go next, right?” Aurielle asked as her eyes noticed the savanna grasses from afar, and halted.

Both students nodded as a response. And Aurielle let the two head towards their own task in the grasslands, as she bid them a farewell.

“Best wishes to both of you, I’m going to check on someone in Summer Hold. I’ll return soon!”

. . .

The sun shined bright upon the highlands in this savanna. Rael didn’t seem to be fazed by the heat despite his vision almost being blinded by the sunlight, while Jean finally had some use for her cloak’s hood.

Rael glanced away from the sun to check on the ruins of bandit camps they’d wrecked, and his bloodied spiked club. It was supposed to be magic training, but he ended up making some of the nastiest destructions with his club instead. But hey, he got to thank Jean for reminding him to grab their route plan and move on to other camps.

On the other hand, as Jean was the one who can actually see things from the plateau without getting the rays in the way, she looked around the grasslands to check the bandit camps. The grasses, the plateaus, and the cliffs — a few, yet decent amount of the wooden bandit camps were still there.

“Hey, I think I saw some people at the arena over there.” Jean looked towards the pillars and ruins on the distant highland. Over there, some structures of wood were built on the ruins, along with some people running around.

Just as Jean noticed the people and vice versa, both Jean and Rael were already targetted by the arrows. They then ducked and rushed towards the arena.

With a high jump spell, Rael flung himself towards the bandits. And he summoned his wood magic’s shockwave upon the arrow shooters. While Jean cast her magic circle and blinded the arena with her moonlight orbs. She then kicked Rael away from an incoming gunshot upon noticing one towards him.

Rael continued taking down the archers with his wood blasts after getting back from the kick. As Jean dashed and knocked out the gunslinger with the light blasts, before helping Rael beating the other bandits.

After a while of knocking everyone down, and really made sure that no one would wake up and continue attacking, Jean grabbed some papers from the crates they destroyed during the fight. Most of the papers were mostly map locations, blueprints, and sketches.

“We should head over there.” Jean looked towards another sizable plateau. From what she could see, combined with what she saw in the map — that area would contain some interesting plans, she assumed.

But as the two were left the arena, a small boy with an eyepatch stood on the pillar, glaring at the two as the shadow laid in front of him.

“Dance.”

A fire magic circle flung the boy high into the air. And as he headed above the two, he swung his arms into a rhythm.

“Swing!”

Both Jean and Rael turned back to the boy’s cry. Before being greeted by rains of beams, along with the boy falling down with an enlarging magic circle on his palm.

Jean zipped a moonlight blast at him as she ducked away from the beams, unlike Rael. And the boy cast out a magic circle on the ground.

“And sway!”

Both Rael and Jean were caught in the boy’s burning shockwave, and they rushed to crash the falling boy back with their own attacks.

With the two’s attacks, the boy ducked down from them. And flung himself towards Rael with a charging attack.

Jean reacted to the boy with light blasts from her, and the boy grabbed Rael’s clothes, swung in another direction to let Rael shield Jean’s attack.

But with the boy releasing his grip on Rael’s clothes, Rael grabbed the boy’s arm and slammed him on the ground.

As Rael pinned the boy on the ground, some armed bandits with blades surrounded the three — Rael, Jean, and the boy.

The armed ones started to attack Jean. As the boy blasted Rael’s grip away with the burning blast with a grin.

“Everyone’s here, huh?”

The readers voted on the option where Rael helps Jean take care of the bandits.

Well, we were stuck at the part where Rael and Jean fought with some boy and the bandits, right?

I have a piece of good news — this fight will end soon.

What’s left after this fight? Well, that’s approaching anytime.

Sit back to your damn seats, and I’ll tell ya more about what goes down here.

The sun was still scorching this grassland of bronze. And it’s worse with the boy blasting Rael’s fist away with his fire magic, and searing his arm.

But Rael’s burning arm didn’t matter to his thick skin. Instead, he blasted some bandits away from Jean. And continued knocking them off with his brute. Rael’s brute against bandit’s blades didn’t do too well though, as he got cuts here and there, upon taking one down.

Rael might be scratched by the blades on his side, but Jean’s attention was still on avoiding the attacks and knocked the remaining bandits out — one by one with her magic’s nimble lights, until the boy decided to attack her next with his flames. He knocked her off from the dodging motions. But as Jean had been trying to dodge away as swiftly as possible, she pulled herself up and engaged in this game of chase, away from the boy’s attacks.

During the run, the boy stopped the chase for a bit to give the armed bandits a hand signal. With that, the bandits had given up on pursuing Jean and trying to take Rael down, then scattered away to their own camps.

With this moment of the boy being seemingly off guard, Jean fired her light discs before sending out light blasts, and Rael fired out his wood chunks towards the boy.

Jean’s light discs tapped the boy’s back, prompting him to fling himself above with flames, avoiding the next attacks. And he cast the “Swing!” spell — the one that fired off rains of fiery beams — towards the two on the ground. The rains of flames showered on the two, and Jean hurled herself away from those.

And there’s Rael who hadn’t regretted being scorched and slashed — he cast out a wood pillar to reach the boy above and grabbed his leg. He then pulled the boy down with earth’s gravity, slamming both down onto the ground. Jean then headed towards the two, and pressed the boy down into the grass with her skin-close light blasts, while Rael continued locking the boy’s leg with his force.

The attempt to bury the boy into the grasses had ended short, as a fire magic circle surrounding the three was drawn on the ground, followed by a muffled voice.

And everything there exploded into blazes, with all three being flung away along with the rising flame pillar.

The boy landed first nearby the explosion’s vicinity, as he coughed out some dirt and particles. Jean and Rael landed in the opposite directions away from the boy. As the flame pillar faded, Rael and Jean rushed to attack the boy, who’s still trying to get a breath. But both had to stop, as powerful magic energy — like the volcano’s heat — had waltzed towards the boy.

A hefty figure who’s as large as Rael crouched down, and patted the small boy on his shoulder.

“You’re doing great, Hifumi. Now take a rest, you’ve been traveling and fighting. I’ll deal with these two… myself.”

The figure’s gentle voice and expression comforted the boy, who’s now called Hifumi. Before glancing towards Jean as an observation, and towards Rael as an intriguing sight. Then she let Hifumi head off.

“And you, over there! This isn’t about him anymore!”

The figure commanded Jean who’s trying to go after Hifumi, while gesturing for Jean to pay attention to her. Jean stopped, as her eyes’ expression became uneasy by the sudden takeover, and more specifically, the vibes this figure gave off. She resembled Rael’s appearance with few exceptions — eye color’s placement, a scar on her face, her ponytail, and this uncomfortably confident aura coming from someone who only adorned a simple outfit.

“I’m Kat, full name Katrina. Everything else about me is on the Magius news. And you two — Jeanelle Arbor and Rael Mills — did the good ol’ council order you to destroy the bandit’s camps here?”

The figure — Katrina — glanced at the two once again as they were left in a skeptical look towards her.

“You know, I knew where did you two come from already. But I do wonder though, would you two continue being quiet like that, if…”

Kat grabbed out a torn purple piece from her pocket and showed it in front of the two. Upon the two’s attention on the piece, Jean recognized the purple.

“Wait, where the hell did you get that from?!”

Concerned about the piece and someone she remembered, Jean rose up and attempted to snatch the piece away with her magic. Although it’s later prevented by Kat gripping Jean’s wrist, pressuring Jean to not cast any magic. As Kat’s putting the piece away from Jean, she looked at Rael who seemed to be confused.

“I’m sure both of you have met this knight I took this piece from — have you heard of a person who goes by ‘The Exiled’?”

After Kat’s hint, Rael’s realization finally kicked in. The knight who led him to Aurielle and the man whose Jean seemed to have an attachment towards — according to what he once heard from Jean… And then here’s this Kat, who came out of nowhere with a piece of that knight.

“Well, I might as well explain myself. I’m here to stop the ‘violence’ coming from the self-proclaimed heroes. That’s why I need to stop the exiled and people like you two.”

Kat sighed as she looked down onto the two, who were looking at her with a rising suspicion.

“Well, tell me then. What does peacekeeping mean to you two?”

“And if you answer with something like ‘defeating villains who cause destruction’, you’re no different than the Dark Arts people you considered evil. We’re trying to defeat the ‘evils’ like you two too.”

“Would you like to answer with your hypocrisy, or would you like to answer with your own dog-like obedience?”

The readers voted on the option where Rael catches Kat off guard by punching her.

I’m being extra kind today, and I’m letting y’all reply with two answers. They might affect Rael’s viewpoint in the future, but who knows?

– Ursula

I do wonder if all of you intend to make him witlessly violent.

But oh well. If you intend to build Rael that way, then I shall play along.

And remember, no choices may be reverted. There’s no time to rewind, only moving forward. As long as Rael lives, your decisions will live with him. If Rael dies, this story simulation will be continued with someone else.

Now I do wonder again — If he actually dies, who would you control next?

“Well, tell me then. What does peacekeeping mean to you two?”

Jean thought of what to answer and so did Rael, as Kat pressured them a little more. But before Jean could say anything, Rael dropped his everything, headed towards Kat, and punched her in the face. Nothing came out of Rael’s mouth nor expression, as if that punch was his only answer.

“Stupid-”

After insulting herself for not seeing that coming, Kat grabbed Rael’s wrist before landing a punch and magma magic blast at Rael’s gut.

“And this is why I have to end people like you.”

She then dropped Rael to the ground, as he flinched by an attack in the gut. Seeing his reaction to being attacked in the gut again for a second, Kat decided to kick in his guts as he tried to get up. There’s no scream to cry out from Rael, but that’s fine for her. Kat already knew where she can continue abusing his pain. And without any moment’s waste, she fired out a magma blast at Jean.

Jean lept away from the blast, as a magma puddle landed in front of her. And she had two thoughts — one, this fight’s going to be hotter than Hifumi’s fight — and two, Kat had a New Greek blood for sure, considering how there’s no visible magic circle from her. Jean set aside her questions about Kat for now, as she cast a circle, and fired a blast at her before Kat could hit Rael any further.

Kat fired another magma blast against Jean’s, destroying the light blast. Then she stepped on Rael’s gut, trying to observe him. For a quick few seconds, she knew he felt familiar.

“Eh, he’s supposed to be dead anyway. And I’m already a disgrace to the Leos family.”

As Rael tried to get Kat’s leg away from him, she put more weight into stepping on Rael while continuing the talk with herself. She fired some other blasts at Jean to make sure she wouldn’t ruin this moment, and continued checking on him.

“Just which family did you come from?”

“…”

Rael didn’t answer, as he placed a wood magic explosion on Kat’s leg. Kat lost her balance from the explosion, before Rael got up and swept her away with his leg. But before Rael could continue attacking Kat, she grabbed Rael’s leg, pulling him down again. And this time, Kat reached for Rael’s throat and grabbed it.

As Rael used his remaining arm to continue attacking Kat who’s suffocating him, Jean looked for Rael’s club he left. She then dragged it towards the two.

Kat continued mentioning how ‘Rael’ was supposed to be dead, as she suffocated him further, weakening Rael. But as Kat continued weakening Rael, she sensed light magic energy from behind her, and released Rael as she turned to Jean who’s struggling to drag Rael’s club.

Jean, on the other hand, dropped the club as Kat noticed her. She then zipped towards Kat and struck her face with a light blast, trying to get her away from Rael.

But as Jean’s attack didn’t hurt much, Kat grabbed Jean’s wrist and twisted it, and sent her to the ground. But then Jean rose up and continued attacking with her magic. Kat knew she had to deal with this tiny girl first since Rael’s already weakened by being choked briefly.

Seeing how Jean can evade most of Kat’s attacks, she decided to unleash out a magma explosion spell, flinging the other two away with the melting shockwave. Kat then continued chasing Jean down, avoiding her incoming light attacks, before she carefully aimed her next attack.

“Ultimate Art: Perfected Arrow.”

Kat whispered the spell name, before firing a larger magma blast at where she predicted Jean’s location. With Jean’s location predicted, she was knocked by that perfected blast. Following the blast, a magma pillar was fired off at where Jean was attacked, followed by the explosions.

Rael tried to pull himself up, feeling the familiar scent of his own blood, before witnessing Jean being stuck in the continuous magma explosions. Five explosions in a row, to be exact.

Kat simply enjoyed the sight of Jean being caught in her explosions, before heading towards her once the explosion died down. But instead of being unconscious on the grass and letting herself be melted away, Jean dashed towards Kat in a flaming, yet a desperate state. Out of almost every single grudges residing in Jean’s memories — even Kat can see in Jean’s cold glare — Jean punched Kat in the guts, before releasing a large blast with lights shooting out everywhere, even up high where this light would blind Rael along with the sun.

After being hit by this blinding attack, Kat sent herself up with a high jump spell, before she aimed an attack towards the seemingly weakened Jean — anguished and drained.

“Storm.”

Numbers of magma blasts rained down towards Jean, who’s still standing there on the ground. On the other side, Rael had already started running towards Jean, to at least get her out of this storm.

Beneath the magma storm, Jean stood against some of the blasts without being crashed down, before unleashing out another attack.

“Perfect finale.”

A large pillar had fired out, with Kat almost being caught by it while falling down, before that pillar exploded into a shining wave of explosion. Kat sent herself away from being caught in this bright finale with her spell, as Rael held his damaged self against it — trying to reach towards Jean as she seemingly disappeared along with that bright light.

The light had finally died down, leaving Jean looking at the sky blankly.

“Jean!”

Rael approached her, as she continued being silent and frozen in this state. But now, something about her magic energy felt colder. He wasn’t supposed to feel the tiniest bit of coldness in this heating grassland, yet he felt the chills from Jean.

Jean slowly breathed, as she tried to make sense of what happened inside her head. Something inside her head cried out when she was stuck in the explosions, and now, it broke. As she tried to bring her senses back again, a concentrated cold aura surrounded her and Rael.

“I… I’m not afraid anymore.”

The aura faded away, as she headed towards Kat who’s been watching the two.

The readers voted on the option where Rael continues to fight with Jean.

Waiting for Aurielle at the Silent Tower and being knocked out by a fight in the wilderness — those two were the first two things the Exiled remembered upon waking up on this bed. Even without wearing a helmet, his head felt heavy as he looked around the room, wondering whose house did he end up in and who brought him here. Was it Aurielle? He wasn’t sure of it but that sounded plausible to him. Was it some other wizards?

While wondering about how did he end up in this place, he recognized the room’s stone wall and had another realization. He wasn’t supposed to be inside this Castlian-style house, considering how he was exiled from his Castlian hometown for more than a year now.

As he got more questions about ending up inside this room, he looked at himself in the mirror. His usual set of armor was replaced into loose robes, and the sight of his loose black hair being at shoulder length was something he didn’t expect to see. By this point, he’s just looking at himself with his tired purple eyes, thinking about his past.

Jericho Marshall. That was his name before he’s remembered as the Exiled. As he’s in this armorless state, he started to wonder if anyone would recognize him as Jericho. But before he could start thinking of names of people who would know him, he heard a knock on the door.

At this point, he only hoped the one knocking on the door would be Aurielle or some Castlian who won’t mind him. With that tiny hope, he opened the door.

The figure with the iconic orange cloak — adorn with silver hair and a crown — stood before the Exiled, who looked just as surprised as him.

It was King David Silver, the sun of this Castlian town — Summer Hold.