A Side Villain…

It was a new day looking outside the window of my bedroom, a serene scenery greets me. The sun and the clouds are so clearly visible that it makes me wonder just what in God’s name did we do to our precious planet Earth? Well your planet as I am not the one living on it anymore. Hmm, something has changed.

 

My inner feelings that were like a tsunami waiting to be unleashed are nowhere to be found and the memories of the old guy were finally synchronised with mine, meaning I knew everything he did and what is going to happen in the future. It has a nice ring to it when you know the future and stuff but then again the future is always changing and because of my existence Murphy's law or some butterfly effect might take place so I have to clear as many death flags as possible and leave the main cast on their own.

 

All things aside, today is the last day before all the youngsters join the Origin Academy and prepare themselves as the next force of peace. The protagonist surprisingly was not an orphaned kid but one of the royalty, yeah even I was surprised at first thinking ‘don’t the developers want him to have some tragic background where he suffers and the players are supposed to bond with him?’ Well the makers made him one of the royalty, the prince of human nations oh and don’t worry as the rest of main characters are predominantly females waiting to be added into his harem.

 

This is no place to think about that, the first job today is the annulment process. I got up from my bed and freshened up which due to my habit took only around 10 minutes. Coming down, I found the breakfast lined up and my mom and dad already eating. After seeing me they smiled and gestured to join the table.

 

The food again was simple yet delicious, I couldn’t keep my hands off from eating extra again. Mom looked super happy due to that and giggled a little while father only shook his head and gave a wry smile. Previous Akira always ate less and mostly disregarded food made by his mother due to his attention on Lily and how to win her.

 

Completing the meal my father asked it,

 

“Are you ready for it?” He looked into my eyes and asked with a serious tone.

 

“Aye, Sir.” I decided to play a joke and it worked as the atmosphere was again jovial.

 

“Sweety, we are always behind you so if something happens or you need our help just tell us.” Mom was very caring and a bit anxious.

 

“Don’t worry I will be fine.” As if something could happen with this little job.

 

“Here this was the gift that we prepared to congratulate her for getting into the academy, a rare artefact ‘oliver’s bracelet’ this will help her in sword practice and also provide her additional speed.” My father stopped me and gave me this unique looking blue bracelet.

 

“A gift?” I asked.

“Well we have known her since childhood and despite her attitude towards you, we have regarded her as a member of the family so it’s only natural.” Mother explained and yes something like this happened but not today.

 

“I will give it to her.” 

 

“Oh by the way here’s something for you too, a strength increasing ring. Congratulations my child, you have made us proud by getting into the academy.” He handed me a ring which was your average artefact.

 

“Thank you father.”

 

I replied and then stood up from my place, looked at them once and headed towards her home whose path was etched in my memory. The love that the previous Akira had was naive and childish and the things that he did for her attention were even more laughable. 

 

Accidentally ‘planned’ meetings, running into each other almost every other day and forming a plan with her parents to pressurise her, were a few of the things he used to do.

 

The outside was just the same you would encounter in the game, bustling streets, people from different races living in harmony and city guards patrolling, nothing suspicious. Wait, these are not your average city guards, they are the elite ones, how do I know that? The maroon symbol engraved on their helmets and the very same colour brooch adorned their breastplate and these two were their go to identity.

 

Did something like this happen in the original story? No the player starts directly from the Academy Arc and the first major fight is with me so what are these guards doing here? Only one way to find out.

 

“Uncle Adam, what are these elite guards doing here?” Adam was one of the shopkeepers in the main market district, he was from demon race, a minotaur to be exact and did stone powder business.

 

“Hmm, oh it’s you Akira. Kid don’t you about the Bretton Woods incident?” Adam replied, looking at him.

 

“The Bretton Woods incident?” I asked in confusion.

 

“Well it looks like you were holed up inside your home yesterday. Someone from the royalty was hunting in the woods and was somehow killed by a rogue mana beast, not only him but his entire platoon of 25 Elite Guards were wiped out.” Adam explained with a sigh and deflated tone.

 

“Your academy is starting tomorrow so you don’t need to think about that, but I would advise you to stay sharp and stay safe.” Adam gave his last words and retired back to his shop.

 

I also decided to not stay there any longer and made my way towards Lily’s house. Bretton woods is the name of the forest adjoining Origin city, to reach there you have to take a couple of detours from the main road and then cross the Aztec river. But the forest should be devoid of any mana beast because it was stated in the folklore of game that during settling of Origin city all the major powerhouses of world cleared the 1000 km radius so as to ensure that people here would be free of fear and continue to flourish so how did a mana beast appear out of nowhere?

 

Bretton woods, Bretton woods, there was no major arc with the mention of it, wait could it be that? It has to be as no other thing would make sense and also it perfectly explains how that thing took place. My thoughts were cut off as I had reached the place.

 

Her place from outside looked almost the same as mine, instead of a two storey building it was a single storey but the area was much larger than ours, and the surroundings were covered by flowers of all sort, it is due to the fact that her mother Jasmine, is a dryad. Yep even I don’t understand why would a dryad marry a human and how would she give birth to a normal human? 

 

Well it was not exactly true as Lily would later go on and  unlock her dryad bloodline giving her a power boost. Those are the things that would happen in the future, a future where originally Akira was not a part of.

 

Calming myself for the things that were going to happen, I knocked at the wooden door three times and an angelic voice same as my mother responds,

“Coming.”

 

She opens the door and I get to look at her, green hair check, wooden horns protruding out of head check, a natural skin that would make anyone go crazy on earth check, green emerald eyes check and a cute face bearing similarities with Lily check. Yupp she was Jasmine, Lily’s mother and a dryad.

 

“It’s you Akira-kun, come inside, come inside.” She drags me by my hands and soon we come into her house which has shades of green everywhere.

 

“Lily is still sleeping, I will go and wake her up in the meantime please have some cookies that I just baked.” Her bubbly attitude was infectious but I had to stop this.

“Aunt Lily, please let her sleep, it's only 8 o’ clock.” I told her and she took a seat opposite mine.

 

“Then something wrong Akira-kun?” She asked me while giving me those ‘shining’ cookies, this was not a food anime right? Then how the hell is that food shining? Oh yes, mana induced ingredients they have the ability to make food taste better, make it resistant to pesticides and even add points to its nutritional values.

 

“Nothing wrong aunt Jasmine, it’s just that the thing I am going to say might be a little rude to you and I don’t want to say rude things to you.” I said with a sigh and she seems to get the mood as the atmosphere turns serious.

 

“No need to be formal Akira-kun, I have known you since childhood.” Though there was a smile on her face, it looked serious enough and I didn’t wanted to delay any longer.

 

“It is about my engagement with Lily, you know how you and my parents made a promise to marry their heirs if they were compatible.” She nodded and replied, “Yes I still remember that night when all of us were lying in the mystical forest, gazing at the stars and your uncle Lucas had this thought to which all of us agreed.”

 

Uncle Lucas, one of the best spear users at his time, was a very jovial and upright man and maybe that attracted aunt Jasmine to her because dryads are supposed to live in nature and yet she followed him to this city. Uncle Lucas died when me and Lily were 12 years old and the reason was poisoning from Lambda snakes. 

 

They are the most vicious snakes you would find in the wild and one of them sneaked into our city, a subjugation squad was formed and uncle Lucas was the head of it. They successfully killed the snake but also lost 12 men, he being one of them.

 

“You know recently I had some thoughts about it and I came to the conclusion that annulling it is the right thing.” She was shocked and she had every reason for it. This much change in a person would surprise anyone.

 

“Annulling the engagement?” She asked, still in daze.

 

“Yeah, Lily she doesn’t like me and it looks like I am some bad guy forcing her in this so breaking this is the only way. I have already consulted with my parents and they are ready, so if you could also agree to it.” I softened my voice and looked at her.

 

At first she didn’t reply and stared at my face looking for something but when I didn’t show anything she stopped staring and just reclined on the sofa.

 

“You know I was praying that this never happens.” Aunt Jasmine said and now it’s my turn to be shocked.

“Sorry, what?” I blurted out.

 

“I knew that this would happen but not this soon.” She was sighing too much and it was getting contagious.

 

“So is that a yes?” I needed to clear this death flag and be on my way.

 

“Hmm, it is but are you sure that there is no other way?” Why was she asking things like this? Your daughter hates me and I am freeing her so what’s wrong with you?

“There is not, but why are you saying stuff like this? Lily would be much happier without me in her life and she is one who wants it to happen.” She nodded and replied,

 

“She is young and youngsters make mistakes, I have seen how much you love her and that your love is genuine not mere attraction otherwise why would have I helped you in chasing her?” Jasmine said in a heavy tone.

 

That love had nothing to do with me, it was the previous guy and guess what your daughter gets him killed, it was his fault too but whatever.

 

“I would not trouble you any longer, oh this is the gift that my parents gave to Lily, please congratulate her on getting into the academy.” I pushed the bracelet in her hands.

 

“Why don’t you give it to yourself? She would be happy.” She requested.

 

“She would be more happy if I was not the one giving it.” And with that I stormed out of her voice, this morning those underlying feelings were finally gone but still at this moment they chose to rise and create problems for me.

 

It was only after reaching the market district that breathing was normal again and my mind calmed. Previous Akira’s feeling’s are very much present inside of me and the trigger is Lily, everytime someone mentions her or she talks with me I get anxious and disturbed.

 

“A side effect of transmigration?” I muttered to myself.

 

Well whatever, I should plan for the night as something in the woods is waiting for me.