The Village Disciples

Inside of the Montgomery Church, Father Laurence could be seen pacing back and forth, his hands still folded into his multicolored robe's long sleeves. A look of contemplation stained the minister's features.

*CREAK*

The sound of a door opening could be heard, prompting Father Laurence to turn his head and look at the source of the sound, immediately spotting a group of guests. "There you are, my children."

At the door, the three munchkins known as Mizuki, Sona, and Toshiro could be seen with their heads tilted downward in cowardice. Gabriel, who was still sporting his familiar smile, was also standing behind the three, his arms extended to wall off the children from potentially running away. Gabriel chuckled, "They sure can be a hassle, Father."

Father Laurence slowly nodded. "Yes, they are, my son. Now come in." Father Laurence then turned around, walking in a different direction. Gabriel and the three kids followed shortly after. The group continued to walk throughout the Montgomery Church, seemingly going to a room far away. Throughout the walk, the three kids never gained the strength to lift their heads.

The further they walked, the more narrow the hallways seemed, the darker the area looked, and the colder the air felt. The walls transitioned from their original limestone walls to mossy bricks that were heavily cracked, seemingly with age. Suddenly, Father Laurence halted, stopping before a wooden, brown door. The elder man removed his right hand from his robe's sleeve, moving to grip the doorknob attached to the door and twisting it open. A cold breeze swept through the halls upon opening the wooden door, but it wasn't enough to prevent Father Laurence from advancing into the room slowly, being followed by Gabriel and the kids.

"Sit down, my children. Mizuki, you come with me." Father Laurence spoke abruptly, lightly tapping Mizuki on the shoulder as he guided him over to a different area of the room.

Mizuki then decided to sit down on an elongated examination table, which was covered by a thin white sheet, doing next to nothing when shielding him from the cold it contained. As Mizuki was situating himself, Father Laurence huffed lightly. "What did I tell you children about running about like that? I need to keep a keen eye on you. Especially you."

Mizuki, with his head still down, attempted to nod. "Y-yes, Father." A tear threatened to fall down his cheek.

Father Laurence noticed that. "Don't cry, my child. What I'm doing can advance our world for the better! Don't you understand? I'm making you a Child of Prophecy! You'll be thanked all throughout our nations! Think about it, child. You wanted to be a warrior, yes? Well, I got one better; how about a National Hero?"

Mizuki's lip quivered with fear. "B-but, Father. It's scary… And it hurts." The dark, curly-haired kid clenched his right arm nervously. "...I think I'm beginning to see ghosts."

Father Laurence froze at those words. A small smile slowly made its way to his lips. 'It's almost working then. Naturally, something such as this would make anyone become mentally unfit.' The elder suddenly scowled at a new thought. 'If only I had another chance at that pathetic king Kangae. My body wouldn't have been so permanently damaged otherwise… Him and that damn village. I lost so many creations during that battle.'

"Father." Gabriel suddenly called out, breaking Father Laurence out of his thoughts. Father Laurence turned to look at Gabriel, nodding in gratification.

"Thank you, my son. I got a little sidetracked." The elder Father thanked, turning back to face Mizuki. "Now, you said that you're seeing ghosts? Do the ghosts talk, have distinguishable features, traits of any kind?"

Mizuki took a quick intake of breath. "I-I don't know, Father… Sorry."

'Damn it!' Father Laurence mentally cursed, gritting his teeth. He then breathed in and out slowly, gently placing a hand on Mizuki's shoulder. "...It's fine, my son. Just keep updating either me or Gabriel on the matter. Ok?"

Without any words, Mizuki nodded, his tight grip on his right arm still intact.

Father Laurence heaved a heavy, exasperating sigh. "Just remember; what I gave you is a blessing. Not a curse of any sort. Don't tell anyone you have it. Bad things will happen if you do."

XXX

'Too many damn flags.'

Haishi, the leading warrior from before, could be seen navigating his way through Ryakudatsu.

Throughout the entirety of his stay so far, he has been on edge. The unexpected death of two of his comrades during the trip, having the chance to observe the rouges' strength against instructor Oshieru and be shockingly informed about Jinshu's formidable strength against Kaminari Nozomu. And talking about Kaminari Nozomu; he seems to be on edge the most. The moment they arrived at the entrance of the Montgomery Church, his eyes held nothing but hate. Haishi sighed restlessly. 'He's just a mid-class rookie. Probably just unnerved from the journey.'

Haishi then spotted something. 'There it is.'

It was a bar.

'I'm shocked that the minister allowed one to be built. I'm not sure if they're any rules in religion for alcohol consumption.' Haishi mentally inquired, walking towards the small bar.

XXX

Inside the bar, Haishi strolled towards a seat at the counter, getting spotted by the bartender instantly. "What can I get you today, sir?"

The bartender was a seemingly middle-aged man with rectangular glass that hung low on his face. His hair was slicked back, and his eyes were a dark mix of brown and black. Haishi cleared his throat after his quick examination. "Just a quick drink of sake."

The bartender nodded. Haishi could easily notice the bartender's eyes glancing at his armor. "What village does that armor belong to?"

"Buraun, sir," Haishi answered quickly, knocking at his chest plate a few times.

The bartender nodded in acknowledgment, proceeding to stand straight up and raise his left hand. "Ayaka! Get a bottle of sake for this warrior!" He then called out behind the racks of assorted bottles. Confusingly, on the racks, sake was already there.

"Sir, isn't that sake on the rack?" Haishi questioned, pointing at the bottles behind the bartender.

The bartender turned and glanced at what Haishi was speaking about. "Yeah, but I'm willing to give you our freshest bottle. A new shipment just came in today. We usually save them for the minister's men, but you seem kind enough."

Haishi only blinked. How generous. "Oh. Well, I very much appreciate it then, sir."

The bartender raised his hands and shook his head. "No problem. And call me Mitsuru."

Haishi smiled mirthfully. At least the people are kind here. "Haishi." The warrior in command greeted.

Suddenly, a woman with short but straight dark hair walked out with three bottles of alcohol, holding all of them by the top with one hand. She grabbed one of the bottles and placed it in front of Haishi. "There you go, Mr. Warrior." She said sweetly.

"Thanks." Haishi acknowledged, grabbing the bottle gingerly and taking the cap off.

As Haishi lifted the bottle of sake to his lips, he glanced over to his right, spotting someone familiar. Swallowing the liquid, he slowly stood up and walked over to one of the booths within the bar. Once he made it to one of the booths, he sat down across from the person he recognized. "Hey, Nozomu. What's with the long face?"

Kaminari Nozomu, who was staring placidly at the table in front of him, looked up and spotted the warrior in command. Haishi. "Nothing, "I'm just here for a drink. I've been dying for one even before we left Buraun."

Haishi hummed. It's not hard to tell that emotions aren't his strong suit. Haishi could also tell that the bottle in Nozomu's hand wasn't his first. "So, why did the principal of Buraunmajikku suddenly request that you, and you alone, tag along on our journey here? It filled in our missing spot, but it was still totally out of the blue with the suggestion."

"She probably just thought that I was a good choice for the trip here," Nozomu said nonchalantly, swirling around the bottle of alcohol in his hand and placing it up to his lips.

Haishi only sighed. "You know, we probably should be watching the students."

Nozomu removed the rim of his bottle away from his lips. "Maybe."

XXX

Hey! I hope you enjoyed today's chapter! Who really is Father Laurence? Why is Kaminari Nozomu on edge, sitting in a bar drinking alone? AND WHEN IS YUSO GOING TO APPEAR!? Stay tuned for more.

Have a Good Day!

Peace - Cr1ticalz_