Ouka’s POV
“I want to go and join a familia,” I said firmly after dinner one night. The resounding silence from Dad and Grampa was suffocating, but I didn’t bow my head.
It had been a month since Leon left. A month of me flip-flopping back and forth about whether I should go and join a familia or not. A month of me gathering my courage, only to back down at the last second.
Well, not anymore.
“No, absolutely not,” Dad said after a few moments, shooting me the look. The one that he always used, which somehow showed just how angry, disappointed, and firm he was.
In any other circumstances, I would back down. But I had decided to see this through. I can’t let my resolve waver here.
“I want to join a familia,” I said again, not quite being able to meet his eye. My voice was just as firm as the last time.
“I refuse to let you. Why go and risk your life in the absolute shitshow that is court politics when you can stay here and be safe?” Dad asked, and I clenched my fist.
“Because I don’t want to stay here and be safe. It isn’t safe here! Who knows when the next monster attack will come and hit us? I want to be strong enough to prevent that from happening,” I said, which made Dad snort.
“So that’s what this is about. Power. Leon comes and fills your head with delusions about what it means to be strong, and now you’re not satisfied living here anymore,” Dad said with dismissal.
“I was never satisfied with just living here. I want to do more with my life than just make potions all day! All Leon did was show me that I could do it,” I shouted, letting the anger I had spill out.
Leon had come and showed me just how big the world was beyond my little village walls. I had never seen someone with that hair and eye color or someone that strong before.
He fought monsters barehanded and won. That’s unheard of and considered suicidal, yet he did it. He wanted to save me, so he did. He wanted to go to the Orario, and he just did it. He was free, and I was just stuck here.
“You can’t do it! You have no idea how dangerous this country is! How dangerous the world is! Leon is probably dead or dying. I will not let you follow in his footsteps,” Dad shouted back.
“I know the world is dangerous! That’s why I want to get stronger! So I can protect myself and you from it!” I shouted back, frustrated that he just didn’t get it.
I wanted freedom, but more importantly, I wanted to make sure everyone was safe. I couldn’t let another Hobgoblin come and put that to the test. I didn’t want to be that helpless again.
“You are not going! You will get yourself killed, and then I will be left here not knowing what happened to you!” Dad responded and slammed his hand on the table.
The bang that resounded put a stop to the shouting. Both of us stood there, trying to catch our breath before the silence was broken.
“Let him go, Kenji. It is a boy’s nature to fly from home and explore the world one day. You know how he feels, let him go,” Grandpa said after taking a sip of his tea.
“You too?! How can you say that, after what happened?!” Dad rounded on Grandpa and exclaimed.
Grandpa didn’t rise to it, calmly sipping his tea before responding, “I can say that because you came back. I can say that because Ichigo died doing what he wanted and defending what he loved. I can say that because I was young once and had the same feelings. And I know you did too.”
“I–” Dad started to say something, but was cut off by Grandpa again.
“You are hurt and scared, I know. But Ouka is an adult now. He has been for a while now. It is time for him to fly the nest and explore the world. Our job is to give him a safe place to return to when he has had his fill,” Grandpa said firmly, which made Dad pause and think about it.
“Please, Dad. I’ll make you proud, I promise,” I said after a few moments, my tone pleading.
I didn’t want to do this without my family’s blessing. It just didn’t feel right to run away without telling them. They would be too worried.
Dad was quiet for a few minutes, his face contorting through a mix of fear, anger, sadness, and happiness, before finally he sighed and looked at me.
“You already make me proud, Ouka. You don’t need to run off and become an adventurer to do that,” Dad said quietly, and I felt warmth flood my chest.
“But, if that’s what you want to do, then I will see you off,” Dad continued to say.
“Really!? Can I go?” I said happily, and he nodded.
“Yes, but only if you promise to write home once a month. And if you promise to come back if you can’t find a familia to join,” He said quickly, to which I nodded.
“Of course. Thank you. Dad. Thank you, Grandpa,” I said and gave them a nod to which they returned.
“Of course. Now, go and get ready for bed. The merchant should be here in a few days. I’m sure they can take you with them,” Grandpa said with a smile.
I smiled and went upstairs to do just that. And as I fell asleep, I dreamt about going to fight monsters with my future familia and going on adventures with them.
The next few days went by quickly. I packed my things, gathered my sword, and finished training my replacements for gathering herbs. I also made sure there was a sizable stockpile for Grandpa before I left.
Soon, I set off when the merchant arrived and had an unremarkable journey to the capital. It took a few days of enduring a shaky cart, but the view was worth it.
The capital itself blew me away. The buildings were grand and taller than anything I had seen before, while there were enough people that it made my head spin.
It was a cacophony of sounds and movement that made me dizzy. Still, I tried to get my bearings and ask where the Guild building was.
I had to ask a few times since some people were being rude and ignoring me, but I did get someone nice enough to point me in the right direction.
The guide building was a wooden building that had sloping eaves and shingles on the roof. It was in the style of the surrounding buildings, but it had a certain polish that was missing in the surrounding ones.
I entered and was overwhelmed with noise. There was a bunch of people dressed in armor with all kinds of weapons milling about, though the biggest gathering was around a wooden board that had some paper tacked to it.
A glance told me that it was a job request board. The jobs ranged from finding a cat to helping clear out some monsters. The rewards varied just as much as the jobs did.
Interesting, but not why I'm here. So, I turned and went to wait in line to talk to one of the guild staff. It moved relatively quickly, so eventually I got there and was greeted with a very tired-looking lady.
“Hello, I am looking to join a familia,” I said as soon as I got up there. The lady gave a tired sigh and reached down before handing me a piece of paper.
“Here is a list of all recruiting familias in the city and where they are located. Go and try your luck at your own leisure,” The tired lady responded before waving me off.
I gave a quick bow in thanks before looking at the list and being disappointed at how few there were. At the top were the major familias: the Amaterasu familia, the Tsukuyomi, and the Susanoo familia.
They were always recruiting, but it was also nearly impossible to get in if you didn’t have a reputation already or some inherent magic. I was a nobody from a small village, and as far as I knew, there weren’t any elves in my bloodline, so magic was out too.
Hence, I didn’t expect much of anything when I went and tried out for those three familias. I did it only to say I tried before moving on to the rest of the list.
What followed for the next few days was me going to try out for a few familias before going to get some food and return to the inn for the night. At first, I was hopeful, but as the days went on, that hope diminished more and more.
I was met with rejection after rejection, not because my skills were subpar. I was beating the majority of people in the spar when I tried out. No, I was rejected because I didn’t have any political backing.
I didn’t realize it at first, but the familias only accepted people who had some political weight.
They were either from noble houses that had prearranged the acceptance with agreements, merchants who had paid off the familias to accept them, or people with some measure of fame from monster hunting already.
Each of these enriched the familia in prestige, wealth, and strength. Nobles were able to pass local laws that benefited the familia and let the familia have a greater say in the imperial court. Merchants bankrolled them and were able to find rare weapons, armor, or luxury items that served as status symbols. And those who had gotten famous before they joined brought considerable combat power while also bringing the adoration of the public, letting the familia get more jobs and donations.
I had none of these qualities. I wasn’t of a noble house, my family wasn’t wealthy, and I definitely didn’t have the fame or combat prowess that the folk heroes brought. They were the ones that I lost the spars to, making it hard to stand out.
My best bet was the fame route. But that wasn’t guaranteed to work, nor was it quick either. I could maybe be well known if I beat an established folk hero in a spar, but that was a big if.
So, I slowly made my way down the list until I got to one that might work. The Takemikazuchi familia was unlike any other familia I had encountered.
For one, they operated from a shrine, whereas everyone else preferred a grand house or complex. Secondly, they operated the shrine as an orphanage. Meaning that a lot of their members were orphans themselves.
They had few noble connections, used all their wealth to help the orphans, and weren’t all that well known. To the others trying to be adventurous, they were not worth mentioning.
To me, they were perfect. I wasn’t here to try and gain money, fame, or political power. I was here to get stronger, find friends, and protect what I care about.
Hence, I got up in the morning, had a quick breakfast, and set off. If I got in, I would go back and get my things from the inn. If not, then I was going to have to go back home.
With the stakes high and my nerves on fire, I arrived at their shrine. I passed underneath the stone tori gate and slowly climbed up the stairs.
The shrine that came into view had a certain age to it. It was old, with the wood and stone being weathered, but well taken care of nonetheless. I could tell someone lived here and took care of everything.
As I approached, I saw children running and playing in between the buildings. Their clothes were rough, but they were clean and well-fed. Good, looks like they do take care of the kids.
I turned my attention from the kids to the ones in front of the offering box. One was a girl around my age, and the other was a man. No, he was a god.
I had heard about it before, how you could just tell someone was a god when you first met them, but it was still a surprise to me at just how quickly I recognized him. There wasn’t really a reason I could point to that I knew. I just knew he was a god just as I knew the sky was blue. It was a fact.
“Ah, welcome. What brings you here, young man? It is not often we get visitors,” The god, whom I assume to be Lord Takemikazuchi, called out to me as I approached.
I stopped a little distance away, far enough to be respectful but not too far so that they couldn’t hear me. I bowed in greeting and started speaking.
“I offer you my humble greetings, god. I have come in hopes of joining the Takemikazuchi familia,” I said, my voice steady and polite.
“Oh, is that so? We rarely get someone of age joining the shrine. Tell me, why us? Surely one of the other familias would serve you better,” Lord Takemikazuchi said curiously.
“I want a familia that accepts me as their own. I want one to help me grow strong to protect the ones I care for, and I want to be cared for in return. I do not desire fame, money, or political power. I only care about seeing the world and having a home. Your familia fits with that perfectly,” I explained after a few moments of thought.
This may have been my last stop, but this was far from my last choice. While they were listed on the paper as recruiting, I had to find out about them from conversing with those at the bar where I got dinner every night. Had I known about them and how they operate sooner, they would have been my first stop.
“I see. Then come, let’s test you,” Lord Takemikazuchi said before waving me to follow and walking behind the building.
I quickly followed behind and found myself in a courtyard. Lord Takemikazuchi got a polearm from the woman who was with him at the front and stepped forward.
“We will spar until one can not fight anymore or one yields. You may use your sword, but no potions, magic, or hidden weapons. I want to see your skill with a blade and only a blade,” He said, which made me frown.
“Are you sure? This is live steel, and I would hate to injure you accidentally,” I said hesitantly, but only got a laugh in response.
“Yes, I am quite sure. Now, come!” He shouted before taking a stance and making a come-hither motion with his hand.
I delayed for a moment before nodding and stepping forward. I drew my sword and took a stance. He is a god, I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.
Turns out, he did know what he was doing. He knew what he was doing very well. For I could not even graze his clothes the entire spar.
He never dodged, either. He would use his staff and redirect my sword before pummeling me into the dirt.
How his staff was holding up against live steel, I had no idea, but I was glad that he didn’t have live steel. I would be dead a few dozen times over.
Still, it was frustrating. I was under no illusions that I was the best when it came to swordsmanship, but I had decent confidence in it. This spar showed me that I was nothing, and I had a long way to go before I could even consider myself decent.
I never gave up, though. I got up and kept charging at him. Any notion of holding back to not kill him was completely lost as I acknowledged just how far out of my league he was. And with that, my goal changed from winning to scratching him to breaking his staff to making him move his feet.
I tried for half an hour before finally, my body gave out, and I was left on the ground wheezing and groaning in pain. Lord Takemikazuchi had not been gentle in hitting me, and now my body felt like one big bruise.
“It seems we are done now. You fought well, young man. May I know your name?” He asked as he stood over me and rested his staff over his shoulder.
“K-Kashima Ouka,” I huffed out, trying and failing to get my breath under control. Damn, everything hurts.
“Kashima Ouka, I, Takemikazuchi, would like to offer you a place in my familia. Do you accept?” Lord Takemikazuchi asked loudly.
I slowly rolled over and dragged myself ot my feet. My legs were shaking as I stood, but I was able to stand tall and say, “Yes! I would be honored!”
After that, I was given a small room, and Lord Takemikazuchi gave me his blessing. I felt his divine blood strike my back and felt something incredible.
A warm blanket seemed to settle over my whole body as the aches that I had disappeared. My senses sharpened, my breathing and heartbeat became stronger and deeper, and it became easier to move.
“Welcome to my familia, Ouka. I look forward to our future together,” Lord Takemikazuchi said with a gentle smile.
“Yes, thank you for having me,” I responded before bowing.
From there, I was introduced to the other familia members. They were all around my age and had grown up in the shrine.
Yamato Mikoto was the current captain of the familia and was the oldest one here. She was a serious and honorable individual and was mostly concerned about where the shrine was going to get its money from.
Hitachi Chigusa was a quiet and timid girl, to the point that I was surprised she could fight. She looked like a stiff breeze would blow her over, and would cry if Mikoto slightly raised her voice at her. Still, she was very nurturing toward the kids and seemed to be the main one that they interacted with.
Yoshino Taki was the only other boy my age and was surprisingly cheerful despite what life had thrown at him. He was bright and cheerful, constantly trying to get me to tag along on some job or chore. At first, I thought he was trying to pawn them off on me, but far from escaping work, he would be the one who took on the most. He served as a good role model to the kids and was the life of the party.
I also met Sanjouno Haruhime, the daughter of the Sanjouno clan. They were pretty much the only noble family that Lord Takemikazuchi had relations with.
She was sheltered beyond belief, but always enjoyed it when we would sneak in and take her out of her family home. It had been going on long before I joined, but so far, her father didn’t seem to know about it.
I felt for her. She had the same longing for freedom that I had in the village, but she was far more restricted in her movement. Kind, gentle, and educated, she was the picture-perfect image of what a noble lady should be.
I was concerned that I wouldn’t be welcomed at first. They all had long-established dynamics and a history of friendship that I was almost envious of. I wasn’t sure how they would feel about some nobody deciding to join them out of the blue.
Luckily, my fears proved unfounded. It had been three months since I joined the Takemikazuchi familia, and I felt like it was my home away from home. They had welcomed me, and I was determined to make sure they knew I appreciated that.
I threw myself at the tasks they assigned me. Whether that be cleaning the floors or going for a monster hunt, I made sure to do everything with the utmost effort. Mostly, I spent my days getting trained by Lord Takemikazuchi, but I did go and make sure to contribute to the shrine funds.
I had recently made the change to axes instead of swords and was surprised by how much of a difference it was making. Things flowed smoothly in combat, and I felt more comfortable with an axe in my hand than a sword, despite training the latter all my life.
I also didn’t forget to write back to Grandpa and Dad. They were happy that I had found a familia to welcome me and were thankful for the little money I sent their way.
The three months were fruitful and happy. The fall turned away, and soon winter was nipping at our noses. And it was then, when the days were getting short, the cold wind blew, and the trees were almost completely bare, that something happened.
The day started like any other. I had woken up, done my exercises, and was eating breakfast with everyone when Lord Takemikazuchi was called away to meet with the Sanjouno family.
We didn’t think much about it at first, but when he returned a few hours later with a grim face, we knew something was wrong.
“Lady Haruhime has been kidnapped,” Lord Takemikazuchi announced, and a stunned silence fell over us.
I was shocked that someone had the guts to do such a thing. The Sanjouno family was one of the great noble families. Going against them was madness.
“Sometime a few days ago, she disappeared from her room. They investigated and found evidence of a struggle. The prevailing theory is that someone broke in and took her. The Sanjouno family has put a quest out for her safe return,” Lord Takemikazuchi stated.
“We have to look for her. Tell me you accepted the request, Lord Takemikazuchi,” Mikoto begged.
“Of course, I told them we will do our utmost in finding her. But we must remember something. There are only a few people powerful enough or stupid enough to kidnap the daughter of a great noble family,” Lord Takemikazuchi stated, and I felt something click in my head.
“You think another noble family took her,” I said calmly, to which I got a nod in return.
“But why? That would be an act of rebellion against the imperial court. Not to mention, there is no benefit in it. The Sanjouno family is powerful enough to call in favors from the ruling familias. As soon as you try to leverage her, you would be dead,” Mikoto questioned.
“I agree. Which is why I don’t think the other family did it for political gain. I believe they did it to settle a grudge,” Lord Takemikazuchi said, which made everyone take a cold breath in.
“Y-Your not saying s-she’s…dead, are you?” Chigusa stuttered out, horrified. Lord Takemikazuchi grimaced but stayed silent.
“That’s all the more reason why we need not delay then. It’s already been a few days; who knows how far they could have gotten by now? Still, why did it take so long?” Taki asked, puzzled.
Lord Takemikazuchi let out a bitter smile and simply said, “They wanted to save face. Once it became clear that they couldn’t find her, they sent out the quest.”
“Grr, stupid politics,” Mikoto growled and clenched her fist, “We need to get going if we want to find her then. Do they have any leads?”
“None,” Lord Takemikazuchi shook his head before he said, “I do have an idea, though. If she was taken to settle a grudge, it is possible she was sold to a slave trader.”
The room went silent at that thought. Slavery would be the ultimate humiliation for a noble daughter. If you wanted your enemy to suffer, giving their child a fate worse than death was certainly the best way to do it.
“Then we start there,” Mikoto gritted her teeth and spat out before going and getting ready.
The rest of us quickly followed, though I was stopped by Lord Takemikazuchi.
“Ouka, are you sure you want to go along? It will be dangerous, and you don’t have as strong a connection to Haruhime as the others. It is perfectly reasonable for you to stay at the shrine,” He said, concerned.
“I appreciate the concern, but I have made up my mind. Lady Haruhime is a friend to the Takemikazuchi familia, and thus, she is a friend to me. I will not stay back and let my friend be in danger,” I said firmly and gripped my sword.
Is this how Leon felt when he saved me, I wonder? The feeling of duty, of being able to help and wanting to, but not being sure if you could.
“I see, then I wish you all the best of luck. Please, go get ready and prepare yourself.”
I nodded and went to do just that. And in a few moments, we left the shrine, not knowing it was going to be quite a while until we returned.
First, we went to the Sanjouno family estate and asked to investigate the room. They let us in, but assured us that there was nothing to find. Frustratingly, they were right. We didn’t have any skills or magic between us that could help with tracking, so there was no point.
Next, we decided to try what Lord Takemikazuchi suggested. Investigating the slave traders.
This proved to be far more challenging. From the time it took to locate them, to finding out how to question them without tipping them off, and to turning them in to the authorities once they had outlived their usefulness.
It took us over two weeks of meeting with shady people and attending slave auctions to find our first clue.
We were… interrogating a slave trader when he said he had seen someone matching Haruhime’s description. It had been over a week ago at a slave auction, and he saw a pallum buy her.
When pressed, we learned the pallum’s name was Mangus Acradi, and he regularly ran slaves from here to the mainland.
Panic quickly ensued as we rushed to find Mangus Arcadia and hopefully Haruhime. We tore through the slave rings that we knew about and went to the ship captains to see if we could find a trace of them.
The good news, we did find the ship captain who ferried them across to the mainland. It took some persuasion to get him to confess, but he was singing like a bird after Chigusa was done with him.
The bad news was that he dropped them off at the port a few days ago, as he had just returned from said voyage.
A quick letter to Lord Takemikazuchi telling him about the current state of affairs, and a letter back to Grandpa and Dad to let them know I won’t be able to write them for a while, we quickly boarded a ship and headed over to the mainland.
It was there that the trail went cold for two weeks as we tired and failed to find them. The weather had gotten cold and dreary outside as if to match our mood. We were debating whether we should give up when we overheard the answer to our prayers.
“What do you mean you can’t fulfill the request, Mangus?” The bartender said in a low voice, but not low enough for us to miss with our enhanced hearing.
“I already sold all my product this run. I don’t have–What do you people want?” The pallum stopped talking and glared at us.
We had already moved to circle him and block any getaways he could try. Now it was time to get some answers.
“You recently bought a renard slave with blond hair and green eyes about yay tall. Where is she?” Mikoto growled out, only to get a laugh in response.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. So why don’t you run along, girly, and–Gah,” He was cut off when Taki grabbed him by the throat and lifted him.
“Seems we do this the hard way, then. Come on, you. Let’s have a chat,” He grunted before we dragged the pallum up to our room.
Once Chigusa got her hands on him for a couple of minutes, we quickly learned what had happened to Haruhime.
“I-I sold her to some familia in Orario. I don’t know their name, I swear. They buy from me sometimes, but that was their last purchase until next year. Please don’t kill me!” He cried very loudy which me grimace in disgust.
He ruined how many lives and he has the gall to beg. What a disgusting being. Still, we knew Haruhime’s fate. Unfortunately, that was all we knew.
We turned him in to the authroites, and contacted Lord Takemikazuchi. We told him the situation and what we found out. We concluded the letter by asking what we should do before sending it through the Guild.
It was the middle of winter, so that limited our options but it was decided that we would wait for Lord Takemikazuchi to come meet us since. We all agreed that we needed to find the familia that bought Haruhime, but we also all agreed that we had no means to do that currently.
Still, we did know where they were going. Orario, the dungeon city. I wonder if Leon made it there yet. He did have a five month head start, so hopfully he did.
If he did, then maybe I could ask him for his help. I’m sure he’s joined a familia by now, and knowing him, it was probably a strong one.
I’ll have to aks him if I run into him. But, for now, we were stuck waiting until Lord Takemikazuchi caught up with us before we could head out to Orario.
Just wait, Haruhime. We will find you, definitely.
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I have writers block, so this chapter was born to try and get the juices flowing again. I’m not sure if it worked to be honest.
The cure might be me working on one of my other stories. To be clear, none of them are posted anywhere, but I might post one just to have one to switch to if this happens again.
Dungeon would always be my main focus though if I did that. And I am never dropping this. I know authors say that and I know it’s empty words, but I’m not dropping this.
Fun fact, the orginal draft of the first part of the seris was Leon and Ouka trying to join a familia only for shenagians to ensure and Leon getting hunted down by the Amaterasu familia as he started a civil war.
I cut it since that was before I made Falna and Qi different power systems. Now, if Leon gets a Falna, problems would occur. For everyone involved. It also just didn’t flow right, power scaling got completely fucked, characters were not great, and I found myself getting bogged down in the politics of the far east. Somewhere that was never going to appear in the story again. Trust me, it sounds interesting in theory, but I did a terrible job with it.
Hopefully the timeline will match up, but Ouka and his familia will arrive in Orario in maybe three months or so. It only took Leon as long as it did since he stopped to hole up in a cave for a bit. Which is where he is currently in this Omake by the way,
Also, I’ve been mispronouncing Omake for my entire life, apparently. It is not Oh make like I’ll make a cake. Nope, it is oh mak e, close to the name Maki. Mind equals blown.
Anyway, let me know what you think. I wrote this today just to force myself to write in an effort to get through the writer's block. Give me some tips for that, please. I would like to hear them.
That’s all, until next time friends.