* BANG! *
Yet another pebble, which will definitely never be relevant to the story ever again, was kicked into the atmosphere, breaking the sound barrier after a day full of disaster. Jiro woke up at the crack of dawn to become the baker's apprentice at the Crispy Hoof Bakery, hoping to find a new home, only to accidentally destroy the entire place with his all-mighty destructive hero-power.
He spent the whole day casting Mending spells on every single brick, piece of wood, and stone to restore the building to its original state, which, even for a hero with nearly demi-god level power, was exhausting. Jiro might have accidentally broken the record for most spells cast in a single day.
"Screw this stupid, dumb, idiotic power. On God, I hope I get to use it for real someday because so far, it's only giving me a headache," Jiro muttered to himself while walking down the street, forgetting to use his inside voice again. "What kind of idiot decided to have a hero, give him the most overpowered battle skills ever and dump him in a world with no wars, no deadly monsters? Stupid idea, only a dumb little baby could have thought of"
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"Mr Narrator?"
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(Mr Narrator?)
What?
(You forgot to narrate.)
Oh, really?
(Yeah…)
Oh, I thought it would be better that way. I wouldn't want to say any dumb baby ideas. It's not like I'm sweating my arse off making this story only for my protagonist to shit all over it.
(What? No! I didn't mean it like that!)
Oh, really, Jiro?! Then let's see how your life goes if that stupid idiot who gave you those powers just stops. How would you like that, huh?
(Come on!)
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(Mr Narrator?)
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(I'm sorry…)
For what?
(For lashing out at you. I was just mad about what happened and took it out on you. My bad.)
Oh, it's okay. I'm just a dumb baby anyway.
(Oh, come on. You know I didn't mean it. What can I do to make it better?)
Hmph!
(Mr Narrator. I'm sorry…)
You're getting a desk chapter.
(Wait, what?)
DESK CHAPTER! I'm going to sit your butt down for a whole chapter and make you face some shithousery.
(NO! PLEASE! PEOPLE WILL STOP READING)
SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT SOONER THEN!
You're getting a whole desk-- NAY!!! TWO DESK CHAPTERS!!!
(NOOOOOOOOOO!!!)
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*clears throat*
Jiro walked along the cobblestone street. It was the same path he took this morning, and once again he was walking towards his shadow. In the morning, the sunrise cast its bright yellow light from behind, and now the setting sun was paving the way, following him behind. The young man was exhausted, barely keeping one foot in front of the other. As the day wound down to its inevitable end, all he could dream of was some cheap food for the few gold coins he had left and a chance to sleep-
Last few gold coins-
Coins-
*pat*
*pat*
*pat*
"Where the hell are my coins?!" Jiro exclaimed loudly, patting his lower body to check for the leather pouch at his belt. He frantically searched for his belongings, desperate to find everything he owned in the world. It wasn't just seven gold coins. It was seven gold coins AND one silver coin that Fiona had basically forced Jiro to take, as she felt pity for him, and her heart broke seeing him leave with nothing. Despite her husband's protests, she paid him his daily wage he would receive for the work at the bakery.
"I had it on me just a moment ago. Where the hell did it go?" he asked, looking around and noticing a small shadow slipping into a side alley. Jiro summoned all his strength and lunged towards it.
The cobblestones cracked beneath his feet as he darted across the street with sharp wind whistling past him. The hero landed right at the entrance of a side alley where the shadow had vanished into, but all he saw was emptiness. A tall wall connecting two buildings, with a few strings of laundry hanging between windows, holding up freshly washed clothes.
Dead end.
Jiro immediately leapt onto the nearest rooftop. His physically enchanted body executed these feats effortlessly. From above, he surveyed the neighbourhood only to find nothing.
"Mr Jiro? What are you doing up there?" a familiar voice called from below. Paulina looked up at the hero with a raised eyebrow, half-surprise, half-judgement. She was dressed in a light green summer dress, with a tiny ribbon tied into her short chestnut hair, and carried a wicker basket in the crook of her arm like a designer bag.
Jiro looked down and smiled at the friendly face. Without hesitation, he took a step towards her – off the edge of the building. He began free-falling.
"JIRO!" yelled Paulina, terrified, dropping the basket full of fresh produce from the market.
Despite the receptionist's panic, the almost-would-be apprentice-baker landed on the street with the grace of a cat, gazing at the pretty girl with slight confusion.
"What's up with you? Forgot I have plot armour?"
"Oh, right. I'm sorry. It's just easy to forget you're a hero, haha"
"Is it because I'm helpless?"
"A little bit," Paulina giggled, "I'm just joking. It's because you're not like the hero of legends. You're more…"
"Useless?"
"Human. You're more human," she replied with a kind smile.
Jiro's heart did a little flip at those words. Paulina has been his steady anchor in a world full of unpredictability, so hearing her say something unexpected was a big surprise. A light blush crept onto his pale cheek.
But before the situation could develop any further, Jiro shook his head, snapping back into reality. His money was still missing.
"Did you see something strange, Paulina?"
"Strange like what?"
"Strange, like out of place."
Paulina scratched her chin.
"There was something. On the street behind the corner, there's a small crater on the ground, like something was pushed in. Something like this?"
Jiro's lip twitched nervously, and he shook his head.
"Emm… that's actually really normal."
"Oh, really? Then maybe… Mrs Peterson's house has a massive hole in the wall. Apparently, someone kicked a pebble into her home, and she had a double mortgage on it."
"N-n-no. S-s-something else…."
"Then what about Malika? She told me the bakery got destroyed this morning, but when I went there to check on Cassie, the bakery was as good as new."
One bead of sweat trickled down his back, all the way between his buttocks. Nerves started to kick in.
"Paulina, please. Let me live"
"???" Paulina tilted her head slightly.
"Ok, maybe it's my fault for not specifying. Have you seen anyone suspicious who might have stolen something?"
"Sure thing!"
"Wait, really?"
"Absolutely! I just saw a half-demon bragging about stealing some money from some dumb baby manchild, while throwing up and down a little leather pouch that sounded like it had eight coins inside. She definitely said she stole it from a dumb baby manchild."
(Ouch! Now I see how much it hurts to be called a dumb baby. Double Sorry.)
See?
Jiro reached out and held Paulina's shoulders with desperation in his eyes.
"Please, can you show me where you saw them?"
"Sure… It's over there," she pointed at the little bench where someone was wearing a dark brown leather hooded cloak.
"Thanks! I'll see you later!"
"Oh, ok! Have fun, Mr Jiro!"
He stepped closer to the mysterious person. The nearer he got, the clearer her bragging became. Despite her slightly raspy voice, like it had been dehydrated for days, it was delicate and feminine. Maybe even a little childish.
"Hahahaha! You should have seen it! I totally got that loser baby of a man and took all his money!" she said, to nobody in particular. It was as if she was bragging to anyone listening. She did so with a bright, proud smile.
Suddenly, her vision darkened a little. A large shadow was cast over her as a tall figure stood before her. 'Finally!' she thought, looking up with a smug smirk, only to see it was Jiro who was looking down at her.
He had an annoyed expression, ready to confront this obnoxious woman.
"Tch!' she clicked her teeth and spat on the ground. "Go away. I'm out here telling my magnificent stories of plunders."
"Excuse me? Who do you think you stole from?"
"You, obviously. Now scram it"
"You little brat."
Jiro reached out to grab her collar.
*zing*
The suspicious woman suddenly vanished from her seat. In complete surprise, Jiro looked around frantically after losing sight of her, only to find her yawning right behind him. She appeared bored and unimpressed, checking her nails obnoxiously. Now she stood in the sun, and Jiro finally got a good look at her. She was a short woman with the figure of a number one on a calculator - slim and flat. A perfect candidate for the tsundere role in the story after Cassie was written off. Her skin was cold, not just in temperature but also in its purple-grey tone. Her elven ears barely peeked out from under her hood, while tiny devil horns stood proudly from beneath her silver hair. Despite this otherworldly appearance, the biggest surprise was her eyes. The white of her eyes was like a perfect January snow—flawless and free of blood vessels. Pupils slowly constricted as she assessed Jiro in case of a sudden attack, staring at him with her bright red eyes. It was like two polished rubies tracking every move.
"Ok, very cool trick, but I'm going to need that back," he said, moving closer.
"HA! As if I will give up what's mine!"
"IT'S MINE!"
"Then it looks like a challenge! Ha Ha Ha! This will be a perfect moment to see our strength! Here are the rules: we'll do a slapping contest. This will be a proper strength check. We will both hold the pouch, and the first one whose hand leaves it under the power of a slap loses. What do you think about tha-"
*SLAP!*
The girl suddenly flew across the street, leaving the money pouch behind, after being struck with the might of a hero's slap. Her body completely sank into a stone building under the sheer impact of the crash. Debris filled the little street as Jiro picked up his money. He petted it like a cat.
"I'm so sorry, little one, I promise to take better care of you!" he said as his cheek squished against the rough leather.
As the dust fell lower, the mysterious woman peeled herself off the wall. Despite being covered in dirt and tiny rocks, she seemed unharmed. Her head lowered as she made a few steps towards Jiro. Her posture menacing, she suddenly dropped her stance and lunged at him with incredible speed.
She jumped.
Landed.
Perfect dogeza.
"PLEASE, MISTER! I NEED IT SUPER HARD! PLEASE SPARE A COIN!" she begged shamelessly.
"Why would I give you anything? You stole my money! Go ask some demon friends"
"I'm NOT a demon! I'm a tiefling!" she yelled, anger in her voice, but quickly remembered her position and lowered her head again into a deep bow. "I'm sorry." Just… don't call me that…"
Jiro sighed, looking at her. He was ready to walk away when her cloak rode up over her head, revealing her slim back. The scars on her small body didn't feel unusual given her speed and endurance. He already deduced she used to be a warrior. What bothered him was how visible her spine was. How loose her shirt must have become in the past weeks. How easy it was for him to count each visible rib.
"It's easy to judge people's actions without asking why"
These words of Jiro's older brother suddenly echoed inside his head. A few years ago, when Kenji was going back home from prep school, he was mugged. He refused to talk about it to anyone; he even refused to go to the police.
One day, when Jiro and Kenji were sitting on the swings at the local playground, he confessed that the person who mugged him wasn't some scary criminal, but an older woman who looked like she was on her last legs. If he tried, he could probably take the knife away from her, pin her down, and call the police. Instead, he reached into his pocket, took out his wallet, and handed it to her. When Jiro asked him why he just let her take his money without consequences, he said:
"It's easy to judge people's actions without asking why. But sometimes people need a break more than they need their wallets. Maybe it's naïve to think so, but maybe we shouldn't judge people by their lowest, but instead allow them to stand up"
This memory really brought back something Jiro almost forgot. This young girl, despite being so fast and strong, looked like she hadn't eaten in days. She could have stolen much more much sooner. But she didn't. There must have been a reason why she decided to break the law now, out of all times.
He hesitated for a moment, but a sudden flash memory of a wolf in a cage crossed his mind.
Jiro walked up to the young girl and sighed. He crouched next to her.
"Go to the city hall. Ask for Carmen Evergreen. She'll help you find a job"
As he said it, a gentle metallic click sounded on the cobblestone street. The girl lifted her head slightly only to see a single silver coin glistening in the afternoon sun. The shimmering disc was an opportunity for a safe place to spend the night and some food. More than she has had in weeks. Her eyes welled up as she clutched the coin to her chest. She lifted her head to thank the stranger.
Nothing.
She turned her head around in search of the man, but she couldn't find him.
Like he was just a memory..
Like he was just a memory.