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Rise Of The Maou

Chapter

003

"W...what do you mean debt?" <This cant be happening, he's going to say that I do owe him for fixing up my wound> The worry on his face must have been to obvious as the stag watching him curiously "You are aware of the life debt my granddaughter is now bound to you by no?" Kael blinks as he does a double take on what he just heard "Life debt? Wha.. why!? Why would you do something so... degrading, that's basically the same as saying she's to be my slave, I want nothing of the sort!" His sudden anger at the prospect left the stag stunned, wide eyed and jaw dropped for several seconds at least as well as some gasps from the villagers that were watching the talk between the two. The stag though soon composed himself a smile cracking across his lips before he started to let out a boisterous laugh that filled the room "And here I was still worried that I'd let one of our frightful enemies into our home." He chuckles "Oh my boy, you are something different all together aren't you, are you sure you're one of those dreaded humans?" Kael let out a slight scoff "I wish I wasn't..." the words were more muttered then spoken out to the stag, but the flick of his ears towards Kael seemed to note that he'd caught them, and the grin on his lips "I see... we are graced with a true rarity today it seems, in truth it gladdens my heart that you are rejecting the life debt, but I do feel you should receive something as a token of our gratitude, think on it as you rest here, you are our honored guest until you see fit to leave." With a nod it seemed to kael that today's conversation was over, bowing his head lightly he turns and starts to make his way back out of the building, letting out a grunt and a wince as he takes a miss step, pain shooting through his body from the area of his wound, the stag now behind him calls out "Sheila stop hiding in the shadows, you can at least help the poor boy back to his bed."

From the shade of a corner the girl he saved steps forward and moves towards him slowly albeit a bit slowly and shyly. He was able to get his first good look at her now, she wore new clothes still in the same two piece design woven from leaves and vines, her top was almost like a tank top though more loose though her obviously ample mounds caused the bottom of the top to jut out leaving a couple inches gap between the top and her lower chest, she wore also a loin cloth like skirt that covered her hips and crotch to then dangle down between her legs, all up it was a rather alluring get up. Taking his attention from the clothes though he could see properly in the light now that her fur was a lovely soft brown shade though it seemed covering most of the front of her torso was a strip of soft white fur, as she slipped up next to his side she offered a shy smile and took his arm lightly in hers to offer her support "uh... thank you.. Sheila." Her eyes brightened for a moment at his words but then under the light fur covering her face she could see her turning pink before she turned her face away from him and started to lead him back into the village. "I should be the one thanking you, you saved my life... no... you saved me from a life of torture from those men." Her voice was so soft and calm though a little shaky from nerves getting to her but it seemed to suit her appearance perfectly. During the slow walk back to the hut it looked as though she wanted to ask something but would always look away whenever she turned to him and caught his gaze.

Back at the tent he sat back down on the soft moss bed and laid down, his walking stick quickly snapping back into the shape of the black slime, this startled Sheila a bit but then she just smiled and gave the little slime a pat "Look after him ok?" The slime nodded and squeaked in affirmation. She then looked back to Kael who was still watching her intently, causing her to get nervous again "Ah.. uh... k..Kael.. why did you reject the life debt?" Kael tilted his head slightly "Why? You heard my reply to the elder didn't you? That would mean you'd be no better then a slave, I hate the thought of such things, ...no one deserves to be locked away...." He let out a sigh as he shuffled back into the bed to get comfortable "All my life I was treated like I've was just a piece of trash, they drilled it into me that I deserved everything I got... and for a time I believed it, I believed that for some reason something I had done had led me into a life of nothing but torment but... eventually I learned other wise, that it wasn't my fault, that it was them not me that was wrong... I'd like to think I became stronger... I worked hard and I got away from them I clawed and scraped to get my freedom, so in knowing already what its like to wear a leash for most of your life, how could I possibly put one around another persons neck?" As his words came to an end he was already falling asleep fast and didn't notice as a soft woven blanket was pulled over him or when a light kiss was planted on his cheek "Thank you Kael.... You really are a different kind of human..."

Over the course of the next few days Kael for the most part rested in the hut that was lent to him, Sheila would bring him his meals consisting of various fruits and vegetables that were grown in the village, while he would have liked some meat at some point he figured given their race that asking for some might offend them, they still didn't talk much though, both of them being to shy to really take any initiative despite the obvious mutual attraction between the two. He came to learn that his newly found slime friend was quite the shape changer, able to change its shape and density at will, the size of what it could change to of course was limited by its mass still but it could stretch out pretty thin like a cross between chewing gum and a rubber band. Laying on his bed as he idly rubbed his finger over the slimes head causing it to give little squeaks of joy at the attention "You know... I should probably think of a name for you shouldn't I hmm?" The little slime blinks and looks at him curiously "Pikuu?" Searching his memory for names he thinks them over one at a time as he watches the little slime looking at him. "Hmm... how about Dee? Its welsh for black and sounds like a cute name for a cute little slime guy no?" he tickles the slime causing it to giggle and jump up to nuzzle into his neck "Piku!" Kael chuckles softly "Ok, Dee it is." He smiles and lifts Dee up to look at him "It's nice to meet you Dee." Dee grins at this "Piku!" With that Kael stands up and heads out to make his way to the elder's house, he had an idea of what he'd like as his 'token of gratitude'. Stepping into the hall he could see the elder sitting in his chair speaking to some villagers about something, as he approached though the conversation came to an end and the villages headed back outside "Good to see you've healed nicely Kael, what can I do for you?" The old stag smiles warmly to him.

"I've thought about what you said before, and I've come up with something that I would like if its within your power to give." The stag smiles and nods to his words "Of course, speak your mind Kael."

"In truth I'm from a place very far away, I've never seen or even heard of a race such as yours before I ended up here, I would like to learn as much as I can about your people and your history, if you have a library of sorts I was hoping you would allow me to glean the knowledge of your people." The stag quietly scratched his beard as his contemplated Kael's words. "We do indeed have a library, what you ask though under normal circumstances would of course be rejected." He smiles "But you are truly a unique human, out of everything you could have asked for you seek knowledge." He waves over a nearby guard "Please take out friend to the library, give him full accesses to all the scrolls." The guard blinked at this "A..all of them elder?" The stag just smiled and nods "Yes, all of them." He looks back to Kael. "One thing though if you would Kael, I want your promise that you will keep any sensitive information you learn to yourself." Kael blinks at this <Sensitive information?> He bows his head to the stag though "Of course elder, I have no wish to do anything that might cause trouble for you or your people." With that the elder nodded with a smile and waved them off lightly, leaning back in his chair to rest as the guard led Kael down into an underground section of the building.

The underground was lit up by strange bulbous plants that glowed brightly in the dark, illuminating the rooms almost as good as a modern day light bulb <Wow, I'll have to see if I can find out what those are> There seemed to be various colors of them as well, mostly various hues of greens and blues though. Inside the library were rows of shelves with pigeon holes, sitting in each one was a large rolled up leaf, he assumed these were what they used to write on. "Well... guess ill just start from the top shelf and work my way down." The guard stayed by the entrance to the library, Kael guessed it was to make sure he didn't damage or steal any of the scrolls.

For the next two weeks Kael became no better then a hermit, spending every waking hour inside the library, pouring over every scroll in order, making sure not to miss a single one as he imprinted every word into his mind, when he'd first started though he was dumbstruck at the fact that there written language was different from his own, he knew it shouldn't have been that surprising but thanks to great memory he was able to analyze the scrolls and decode the language in a matter of days, now two weeks later he barely registered that it was even another language he was reading. He'd read everything in the library about the race of deer people, their culture, their heritage, even just folk lore and children's stories, he committed every one to his memory. The guard that was assigned to watch over him was stunned by this human that treated every scroll so gently, making sure not to make a single rip or tear to the leafs as he unrolled and read through them. Sheila still brought him his meals throughout the day for which he was most grateful, even the old stag came down now and then to see how his progress was going and was quiet stunned once he learned of Kael's 'perfect memory' not believing him at first though he tested him with several quotes from various scrolls, not only could Kael finish the sentence he could go back and pick out the very scroll it came from. "That boy's a genius that could very well change the world one day... that's what I feel." The old stag muttered one day as he left the library with a grin.

By the end of the third week Kael had finished reading every scroll in the library except for five, these five seemed a lot older then the others and were kept in a more secure back room from the rest of the library, inside these scrolls was the teachings of the plant magic the elder stag used to create the building. While Kael was able to memorize the words he didn't fully understand it all, perhaps this is why the old stag didn't seem to worried about him reading these ones <If I can learn to use magic I'm sure it would help a lot... but I'm not sure if I can even do such since I'm from another world, something to look into another time I think> With every scroll now read he stands up from the small desk made of wrapped vines and heads for the exit, stopping at the guard and offering his hand with a smile "It's probably been hard on you having to watch over me all this time, but I bet the elder will be proud you've been so diligent." Surprised by his words the guard just shook his hand somewhat dumbly without realizing what he was doing, shaking his head then and standing back at attention "In truth I wasn't asked to stand guard here, the elder seems to trust you completely, but that doesn't mean all the village does... so by doing this I can quell some fears at least by keeping an eye on you." Kael nodded at the guards words "That's understandable, and I have no doubt I've worn out my welcome by now so I should be leaving in a few days once I get some traveling equipment sorted." The guard seemed relived by the news and nods "Then I shall wish you safe travels... and know that while some may not completely trust you I can assure you that everyone is grateful for your aiding sheila." Kael smiles at that "Thanks." He heads back up and outside the building, eyes squinting as they readjust to the sunlight and stretches out his body "Mmmph.. all stiff from sitting so much, I should get into some exorcise routines or something shouldn't I Dee?" he looks to Dee who was now sitting comfortably on his shoulder, his attention though was suddenly drawn to the entrance to the village as a sudden cry went out.

"THE HUMANS ARE ATTACKING!!!!"

His heart lept into his throat at the cry, and with little thought about the matter he raced towards the village entrance, stumbling as he was buffeted by the influx of villager running for shelter at the elders building, other guards though were also following suit and heading towards the entrance to the village. <What the hell am I doing? What am I going to do once I get there? I'm not a fighter, I don't even have a weapon..> He pausing for a moment then as an idea pops into his head and he looks to Dee once more "Hey Dee, this might be asking a bit much, but can you morph into a weapon?" Dee just gives a big grin and hops down off his shoulder, his shape stretching, becoming longer, thinner, sharper as he fell to the ground, but what landed point down in the ground before him as a sleek shining black sword, Kael was at a loss for words at the sight of the almost art like sword, the blade was about an inch wide and three feet long, the hilt was basic the cross guard reaching out about two and a half inches out from the sides of the blade, at the hilt of the grip he could see a tiny pair of eyes peering up at him "... your amazing Dee." Picking up the blade, the hilt seeming to mold to the shape of his hand as he gripped it firmly and quickly continued his way to the entrance where he could already now hear the sounds of battle.

At the village entrance a group of a dozen guards were doing the best to push back a group of what could only be called adventures, a group of six humans wearing various clothes and armor, the front man was large, wearing a suit of metal armor and wielding a large two handed hammer, beside him was a slightly smaller man with a sword and shield, two others wield single swords and another seemed to hold a pair of daggers and behind them a few meters was an archer "Dammit... they look like some group plucked out of an old school rpg...." Despite the guards having numbers they were being pushed back by the onslaught of the humans "Come on! Take em down! We'll skin em and get the best pay day ever!" The leader in heavy armor shouted out to encourage his companions and demoralize the guards, though the words only caused Kaels rage to burn. The slim man with daggers was the first to slip past the guards and head down the street towards where Kael stood, coming to a sudden halt "Woah! Wow, hey kid what you doing here? You get captured or something? Don't worry we'll finish off these vermin and get you home in time for breakfa.." His words were cut off as black blade pieced through his chest and out his back "Wha..." Wide eyed the man looked to Kael in shock as he collapsed to the ground "Why.... we can save you..." Kael only glowered at the man, pulling the black blade out of his chest and flicking the blood off it onto the ground "You're the only vermin here." His rage fueling him he headed towards the entrance <You've come here for blood then you'll get it you bastards, I don't care if it kills me in the process> The other humans were still to occupied with the group of guards to notice Kael though one of the swords man had managed to slip through and was now attacking the guards from behind, Kael moved up casually behind him, pressing the tip of his black blade between the mans shoulder blades and pushed forward <... it's a strange feeling... it sinks into the flesh so easily> Contemplating this as he pulled the blade back out and gives a nod to the guard who was being attacked by the swordsman who nodded back and turned back around to the entrance <four to go...> An arrow suddenly took down one of the nearby guards "Ku!.." Glaring past the guards at the archer he quickly moved around to the side of the entrance, pushing his way past the guards and managing to squeeze past the other humans who though now seemed to notice him but he quickly put on an act of trying to escape from the village "Let me out!" The man with the sword and shield flashed Kael a grin "Out this way kid hurry!" He pushed back the guards with his shield to make room for Kael who quickly slipped out the space and retreated back to where the archer was, panting and collapsing next to him.

"I...I'm out..." The archer looked down at him for a moment "Take it easy kid, your safe now but you should retreat to the forest for now, hide yourself behind some of the trees, well come get you when were done." Kael nodded as he stood up "R..Right." Stepping past the archer he couldn't help but smirk as he turned and once again slid his blade through the back of the archer. Panting now as his body was starting to tire <I cant stop here... I have to help them..> By now the other adventures were noticing the lack of arrow fire and glanced back to see Kael standing before the fallen archer, his bloody black blade in hand.

"SHIT! THAT KID IS ONE OF THEM!!" The swords man turned around in surprise of the announcement only to then receive a spear through his back from one of the guards leaving just the heavy armored man and the shield warrior.

The heavy armored man enraged by the deception now let out a cry of anger, swigging his heavy hammer in a wide arc that knocked back several guards easily and then brought it down onto one, crushing the guard to a pulp in one blow, the bloody scene stunned Kael causing him to finally shout out "WHY!? WHY ARE YOU ATTACKING THEM!?" The large man now approached Kael slowly.

"You little shit of a brat, how dare you kill my friends!" He swung the hammer down at him like he didn't with the guard just before, and he could have sworn he was dead but before he knew it Dee while in his sword form somehow pulled Kael out of the way and gave a loud cry "PIKU!!" to break Kael from his stupor and back step quickly from the large man.

"And your killing mine! And for what!? A few coins!?" The man was charging at him now, barreling into Kael with a shoulder slam, sending him cart wheeling backwards several meters till he was stopped by a tree, coughing and spiting up blood as he lay crumpled at the base of the tree as the man slowly approached him now.

"What's wrong with you brat, there monsters and were adventurers, we protect all human kind from them." He gives Kael a boot to the ribs, his metal boot causing the damage to be even greater, he could have sworn he even heard some ribs crack. "ughk.." he coughed up more blood, wincing in pain now, his mind was going fuzzy as he tried to look up at the man <What's going on? Am I going to die here? After I just found a place that actually accepted me and people that were nice to me?... no... I don't want to die yet...> Dee who had been flung from his grip when Kael was charged had now managed to bounce his way back to Kael and land in his hand.

"Ah... Dee...." Kael looked at the little slime, his first friend in this new world then looks back up at the giant of a man as he raised his hammer slowly for the final blow "Dee.... Spear..." Dee lept to action shifting into a long spear that instantly grew straight up at the man as he was about to bring the hammer down, caught off guard by weapon suddenly appearing, the hammer already falling, its weight to much for him to be able to shift out of the way of the incoming spear as it stretched towards him and pierced through his neck his surprise evident as blood began to pour from his neck, his hammer landing just a few inches away from Kael as he tries to speak, his words gurgled "a..morph?... why... with them?...." His words made little sense to Kael as he started to black out, but not before seeing Dee hop down in front of him, his shape changing to something similar to a modern day touch screen tablet, and written in large bold lettering before his drooping eyes were two words.

LEVEL UP!