A blue haired figure happily strolled through the streets and alleys of the Crimson Quarter. After having to conceal himself for the whole day, he was left wanting for some fun. The last couple of days had been quite interesting, but he still had much to discover about Hosenka. Ever since he arrived to the Joyan styled city, he’d heard rumors about the Crimson Quarter. Apparently, it was the place where the underground and illegal met and offered peerless entertainment to its patrons. Kenzo was not someone to shy away from these things. After all, he was a mercenary; he’d definitely done his share of illegal. However, the reason he decided to visit this part of this city was that he felt safer somehow. After the bounty over his head had considerably grown over the past months, there were fewer and fewer places where he could walk without being bothered by stares and security patrols. People in the Crimson Quarter knew it was best to keep themselves to their own business, lest they desired to get into trouble. Furthermore, the lack of security in the quarter meant the warrior had something less to worry about.

Either way, he didn’t come unprepared. A couple of nights ago the male had attended one of the many summer festivals that took place in Hosenka. It was definitely a trip down the memory lane for him, reminiscent to his teenage years at Joya. Luckily for the Bellan, he quickly found a festival mask vendor. It was a perfect way to blend with the city and not bring much attention to himself. As he made his way through the main street of the Crimson Quarter, he secured the mask on top of his face. Hosenka was really the best. Tilting it slightly over his forehead so he had his mouth free, the male took a final sip from the gourd of sake he was carrying around. ”Buah.” Kenzo blurted out in disappointment. He was only getting in the mood and his booze was already done.

Shrugging, the slightly tipsy man decided to enter the closest bar he found and sit in a stool at the counter. Looking around for someone to take his order, the male accidentally bumped at the person next to him with his mask. The ribbon knot instantly undid itself as the white colored thing fell to the ground, exposing Kenzo’s face completely. Alarmed by it, the male hurriedly tried to cover his face with a hand while the other reached to the ground for the mask. At the same time, he awkwardly tried to apologize to the person next to him, hoping they wouldn’t recognize him and/or made a fuzz about it. ”Oh- Ehrm… Sorry about that”

Mask:

She felt like giving Masami a break from mother's attention. Truthfully, she felt like she was suffocating him with attention. Maybe a night out was the answer as he went on to do something for himself. His theater needed attention apparently due to some thievery. Hopefully, he was okay and didn't need her help. She brushed her hair with a coral brush that had plant-based created bristles. It made her blonde-brown hair shine like the shining blaze of the sun. Her brown and blue eyes looked at herself in the mirror one last time before slipping on her satin red dress. The straps were rested on the end of her shoulders, the dress had a slit to reveal some thigh on the left side and the chest part was a V-line. The dress showed off her voluptuous body and every curve that surfaced.

She left a note for her son and went to the bar. She knew Judith will take care of her other children since they weren't young enough to take care of themselves. She needed time to herself without the fear of something bad happening. As she entered the bar of a starry night she saw only a few people, but most of them were playing their own games or just simply meeting old friends. It was nice to have that. Some of them had dates, some of them single and trying to hook up with some waitress. While she scanned around she felt a nudge from someone. Her eyes cornered to get a look at their face before they put their mask back on.  

What did a man have to hide? His eyes were blue as his hair. It reminded her of blue hydrangeas as they were shined by the sun, moistured by the dew in the morning and it was beautiful. As their eyes only met a few seconds, she cleared her throat. "O-oh, it's alright. I spaced off anyways." She chuckled anxiously, itching the back of her hair. She pretended to not have seen his face and tilted her head. "I've never seen you around here. You new?" Her eyes gazed at him surprised. She felt nervous about bothering someone, but she has been here for a few months. Never has she seen him nor this mask. Maybe he won't mind talking with some drinks?

Luckily for Kenzo, it seemed that the person he had just bumped with was someone nice. The male had no idea what he’d do if he turned around just to find one of those huge bar buffs that tried to compensate for something with the amount of big macho tattoos and general bravado that accompanied them. He was truly not in the mood for a fight at the moment, so he was thankful his night could go on peacefully. At least for the moment.

Even if for just a single second, the eyes between the two strangers interlocked. As Kenzo secured the mask back on his face, he couldn’t help but notice her anxious response. On his end, the male remained silent for a second, lost in her beautiful multicolored eyes. It was the first time that the warrior had met someone with heterochromia, so he unexpectedly spoke without thinking.

”Woah…”

Finally shaking off his spacing out, the male answered her following question in an equally anxious manner. ”Erm.. Y-yeah. I just got here yesterday.” Kenzo wasn’t sure why he was acting that way. Perhaps it was the stress about someone actually recognizing him, or maybe the surprise over meeting a person such as the woman in front of him. Shortly after, his mind settled for the former one. After all, his face was splattered all over the wanted posters in Hosenka. He’d seen them before.

Either way, the Bellan warrior finally cleared his throat as he tried to make small talk with his new acquaintance. ”I’m sorry, but why do I feel like I’ve seen your face before?” The male asked with the best charming smile he could flash at her. He felt the most comfortable when he was able to lighten the mood of a conversation after all, wanting to speak with her even more. However, his question had perhaps not been the smartest of them considering he was trying to hide his own face. Still, Kenzo couldn’t shake the feeling that he had seen her somewhere. The fact that didn’t look like someone looking for trouble also helped. Even if she were, he was sure he could deal with whatever was thrown at him.

Raising his hand, the blue haired male signaled at the waitress to bring him something to drink. She was a young girl. No older than 9 years. It was a sad true, but the most probable thing was that she had been sold into slavery by her parents or something, given the dangerous job she held at a shady bar in the Crimson Quarter. A look of worry instantly crossed his face before letting it go. He had enough with handling his own business, he certainly had no time to get into other peoples.

For now, he concentrated his full attention at the stranger sitting besides him.

The milliseconds of eye contact was all she needed to realize who he was. His hair, his eyes of those blue hydrangeas, it made her instantly feel as if she was resting in an open field of those flowers. All she could hear instantly was 'whoa'. What was he working to exactly? She tilted her head as she looked at him confused. Not only because of what he said, but he said he felt like he knew her from somewhere. Was it her reputation? It couldn't be since it was not that great yet. Unlike his, Kenzo Valen's reputation was wild indeed. With that mask on, she felt like he wanted to hide it though.

They sat down next to each other as he signaled some waitress. Her eyes opened up more, mouth gasping silently as she saw a young child working here. It made her wonder if it was just her needing money or was it slavery? Something in her was boiling, but she tried to cool off while letting her expression seem positive and calm. It bothered her a lot since she had children of her own without a father and if they were caught... Kurisa didn't want to imagine what she would do to the people of this Country. Her eyes gazed back at Kenzo who probably assumed she knew who he was. "So curiously, what was the 'whoa' about?~" She questioned after she ordered her drink. Kurisa was a non-believer in thinking it could be a compliment about her. Because if she was all those positive things. Why was her luck so bad? She shook those thoughts out of her head and waited for her answer and the drink she ordered after his.

As the young child left Kenzo’s drink, the mercenary couldn’t help but slip a little extra as he paid for what he’d just ordered. Winking at her through the mask, the Bellan warrior wished he could do more. She reminded him of his childhood days. Orphaned in the streets of Bellum, struggling to survive doing odd and sometimes dangerous jobs. The girl’s eyes widened at the generous tip before she took the woman’s order next to him. ”Thank you mister!” The little waitress bowed with a grin on her face as she left the counter to deliver the order to the keeper. A bitter smile was left in Kenzo’s lips, quickly erased as he heard a playful question from the beauty by his side.

The male lightly chuckled at her question. She had definitely caught him in his spacing off. Taking a sip from his drink, the mercenary decided to answer the truth. ”Well… Truth be told. I’ve never seen someone with eyes as unique as yours.” The male let the compliment in the air for a second before he took another sip from his drink, placing it in the counter. ”People in my country believe that the goddess Fortuna herself had eyes of different colors and that those born with it would be blessed by her” A half smile formed in the mercenary’s mouth as he arched his lip ever so slightly. ”I was just surprised thinking that fortune had decided to pay me a visit… that’s all” Kenzo’s words were spoken playfully, yet the man didn’t linger long in them. Instead, he once again turned to his glass while he downed the remaining alcohol, smirking at the woman sitting next to him. The look of the fox mask and the protruding jawbone on his cheek giving off a devilish grin.

The man was quick to compliment her duel colored eyes as her brown and blue eyes watched him. She chuckled at what he was saying, believing that he could perhaps have a goddess like that, but her being blessed was a lie. She had nothing but a curse to herself and those she surrounds herself with. All he said, she takes as a joke more than a compliment. Could it be due to the fact that she has been lied to enough? Compliments that people make up to make someone feel better about themselves could be a negative thing and sometimes a positive thing.

"Oh? What type of fortune am I then? I'm sure you've been visited by other types of fortune." She flung his comment back and wondered how he will answer this. Some could see this as a trick question since one can judge a character by it. He called her some type of fortune, but which? Her right hand ringed the stem of her large margarita glass to take a sip. The taste of fruit with her booze made everything so much sweeter. Her right hand moved any piece of a strand in her eyes behind her ear so her eyes had a clearer look at him.

Kenzo chuckled at the answer he got from the woman. She was seemingly reluctant to receive the compliment, but the male knew she was actively looking for one. The fact that she asked him what the “woah” had been about made it obvious to him. Kenzo wondered what type of experience she’d had in the past to make her feel so hesitant. As he gazed into her beautiful eyes, the male could notice a trace of sadness, or perhaps resentment. He wasn’t sure.

Either way, Kenzo remained silent after laughing, looking at her intently with still a smile on his face before answering. [color=#33cccc]”Hoh? Who knows?”[color] Kenzo signaled the little girl to bring him another glass of his drink. ”It’s still to early to tell…” Whether their meeting had been a stroke of fortune or misfortune was still to be seen. The man wanted to know more about the stranger before him but decided to keep more personal questions until later. Until he was sure he could trust her. ”I’m wondering what other types of fortune you’re talking about?” Kenzo continued as he feigned ignorance at her last comment. A playful smile followed his words. ”As far as I’m concerned, this only fortune following kitsunes is misfortune” The man motioned at the mask he was wearing at the moment, making a nod at the folklore surrounding the mythical beasts.

She made a sweet smirk as her head lowered enough to take her drink. This guy was trying to be funny to the point of being cute. It was remarkable she kept running into different types of people. She hoped that maybe her misfortune will end here, but who knows. A small hint of doubt was in her heart that was broken, yet still mainly out of gold. Her eyes looked back at him from behind that mask of his as she sat back up. "Different Fortunes as there are misfortunes or even curses. There are; Becoming rich/poor, Finding love and be loved for life/Never find love or find it only to always lose it, everyone that surrounds themselves around you die/receive good health..." The list could go on. "There a many, but I feel like those are the main ones." She thought of her own curse and chuckled.

"Oh... Right. First basis; name's Kurisa from Daeva Eye.~" She was quiet enough for only him to hear. "I've also been known as Arisa." She wanted to make a hint that she could be trusted enough for at least the name and guild. They're already sitting at a table drinking together. Knowing herself while drinking, she'll get more comfortable and chat anyways. Kurisa slowly moved her long hair behind her as she flipped it. She was going to ask a question, but perhaps she will keep it to herself till the end. For now, simple ones.

As he waited for the woman to answer, Kenzo received his refilled drink from the girl. She now happily served the mercenary, given the nice tip he had given her a couple of minutes back. Even if part of his was still worried about her, he could at least find peace in the fact that she was enjoying herself. Kenzo was not someone to care much about others around to be honest, treating most of his social interactions with a layer of sarcasm, indifference, and a superficial level of charm. It was quite hard for him to trust people and decide to open up for real. The reason/s were surprisingly laid bare at him by the woman.

As she enlisted the kind of fortunes that one could have been visited with, Kenzo listened attentively before answering. ”Well, let’s see. I guess I had the fortune to have lived a poor childhood and a bountiful adulthood. Love has always been something that eludes me, Cupid has always hated me from what I can tell. The fact that I arrived at Fiore with nothing but my soul might answer the last one.” Hitting him like a truck, the male simply decided to chuckle as he answered her questions as to make them slide off from him. It was the method he’d survived so far with, ignoring his emotions to the point of turning them into a joke. Why change it now? ”As per curses. I guess these speak by their own.” Kenzo grinned as he traced the sharp teeth of the jawbone coming out of his cheek. Taking another sip, the male quickly shook all those thoughts from his mind. Before he could ask her to answer the question, the woman would finally introduce herself. To his surprise, he finally remembered why she seemed to familiar. Kenzo’s eyes widened as he finally understood who he was talking with.

”My my… I apologize for my manners then. Nice to meet you Kurisa. I’ve heard your name before from Nuala” Kenzo was close friends with the Daeva Eye thief; enough to at least have heard of a couple of her guildmates. Not like he wouldn’t have heard from them regardless. The women of Daeva Eye were quite possibly the strongest in the whole country. Each of them possessing enough reputation to be outstanding on their own. Feeling at ease over learning her identity, the male decided to take his chances. Unstrapping the silly mask, the Bellan warrior finally introduced himself. ”The name is Kenzo Valens. Ex guild master of Advent World and current Blue Pegasus Member and tragic fugitive of the law” His words came out in his usual carefree tone. Even if it was imprudent to present himself like that, he simply blamed it on the alcohol.

He seemed to have a similar curse, but it was honestly just bad luck. Her curse lasted for eternity as every lifetime she lived, it happened all over again. She was not going to be super detailed of course while telling him her bad luck, but might as well be as honest as she could. Before that happened she let him talk and ask anything he wished to at the moment. They enjoyed their drinks while never really losing contact with each other's eyes besides a few seconds. That was what she could tell. She cleared her throat as she was going to speak towards his confession of who he was and what guild he was apart of.

"Heh, bad luck on love too?" She chuckled and hid her frown under her hair as she tilted her head. Her eyes left his as she had to avoid contact. It was harmful to think about and feel. "I came here and fell in love. After a few years of developing, it went down the drain as he went to prison and moved on to another woman. I assume so anyway since most men do." She lifted up her head and gave off a smile with some tears. Oh god, here she goes. It always stung thinking about how the woman was probably younger and prettier. "I forgive him of course, but... does that mean I'm not worth love?" She questioned as if wanting an answer from him. He was a man, he should know, right?

"Do all strong well-known men go after only young women?" She looked straight into his eyes as she then suddenly became red as she realized she was talking about her love problems with a man. "Oh uh, I'm sorry..." She faced away embarrassed. "Forget I said anything.". She swiped her drink and brought it to her lips to drink the whole damn thing. She realized he talked about being in Blue pegasus, eyes going wide. Quickly, she turned her head to look back at him with a surprised expression.

"D-do you know my sister then?! Her name's Alisa. I haven't seen her in a while and miss her a lot. Hopefully, she has been treating you well." She giggled, ignoring the leftover tears she had. "Oh and don't worry about being a fugitive. No one is innocent you know? Even angels themselves aren't innocent all the time." She gave a teasing smirk and giggled afterward. He did not know, but she was one of them.

”Especially the worst luck in love” Kenzo said as he chuckled at her question, downing his drink as means to keep his mind away from those memories. He had sealed that part of him in the past and decided not to delve on it again for the future. It had left a bitter scar on him, and the fact he had only buried it deep inside him meant he had yet to give it closure. For that reason, Kenzo had become more oblivious to those things than what corresponded his normally witty personality. In a sense, it made the mercenary look silly for letting hints from others fly over his head. Still, he unconsciously decided to avoid them.

As tears started flowing down Kurisa’s cheek, it only made it worse for the warrior. ”E-erm.. I- Uhm..” The mix of booze and change of mood caught Kenzo off guard; the gaze piercing through his eyes and into his soul making it even more difficult for him to answer. Noticing the tension building up, Kurisa apologized with a reddened face. Instead of calming the man though, it only worsened the situation. ”D-Don’t worry, I’m sure there’s a legion of people out there that are way better than your ex. Uhm.. Definitely waiting for a chance to be with you.” As he heard himself trying to cheer her up, Kenzo was once again reminded about his lack of skills when it came to the topic. ”Woah.. What sort of crap was that? Might as well ask a teenager for advice” He scolded himself internally while he hypothetically cringed at his attempt. Even if he didn’t feel uncomfortable around women, seeing one cry was one of his greatest weaknesses. He didn’t remember where it came from, but he felt completely defenseless against the tears of a woman.

Luckily for him, Kurisa quickly changed the topic. ”Hoh? You’re Alisa’s sister?!” Kenzo’s eyes widened in disbelief at this new piece of information. ”Wait.. like YOUR actual sister sister?” It was quite a big surprise for him indeed. What were the odds of finding his new guildmaster’s sister at a bar in Hosenka out of all people? Regardless, that explained her beauty at least. ”She’s been nothing but a charm.” Kenzo laughed as he answered her question. ”Heh.. You don’t need to tell me that” Kenzo smirked as he replied to her playful giggle. Even if the mood had definitely changed once again, the male couldn’t help but laugh at the truth of her words. Better than most, he knew that angels were no saints. As deceitful and untrustworthy as the rest of other creatures, even more than humans. However, his words or demeanor didn’t leak any of his distaste for other races. There was no need for it either way.

The subject of love was gone just like that, or at least in public. It'll always be a subject that is on her mind. She was a sucker for romance, even with no luck. It'll just make her more insane without trying. She gave a weak smile as he tried to make her feel better. The fact that he was trying - no matter how weak it was, it was the fact that he at least tried. Some people changed the subject or yeeted off to some other person or place. He was being truly genuine when her problems just threw up in his face.

He seemed surprised about Alisa which to be fair, Kurisa hasn't been around her a lot recently. Her sister was more than blood, they were soul sisters. Even if Alisa never knew, she knew her past lives as they too were related back then. "We're Soul Sisters to be precise. I've known her even before she was a guild master. Quite proud of her. I'm glad her luck is better than my time as a Guild Master." She chuckled at that. Her time in Lamia Scale was a strange one. Right after she had to give it up to the Former Guild Master's 'friend' it went into ruins. Such is life as everything she had gone into ruins. Her house, her business cafe, her love life. All she had left were her children from him. Thankfully, her sister Judith was taking good care of them.

A few drinks later she looked into his eyes, not gazing away as if she was searching for something. "So tell me about yourself, Kenzo. That or we can play the question game back and forth. I'm up for either.~" She nodded and smiled. Hopefully, he won't just up and leave. Some people didn't care to get to know someone, but she felt like they could at least be good friends if not more in the future. Truthfully in character though, she wasn't even thinking about it since all she wants right now were people to be close to. Will he get bored quickly or will their conversation last an eternity yet feel short? Only time can tell.

Once Kurisa explained that Alisa and herself were something called Soul Sisters instead of real sisters he made a mental note to look it up later. It was something he’d never heard before, or at least not that he recalled. It was one of those instances when the warrior was reminded that he had just been in Fiore barely for over a year. There were still many things about Fiore that were still foreign to him, so he liked to spend some time in the library now and then to catch up with things. Even if he were curious about the term, he decided it would be best to simply nod and find more about it later. Instead, there was something else that piqued his interest way more at the moment.

”She’s become quite a successfully guild master. I’ll make sure to tell her about it next time I see her” Kenzo was glad his new boss was a person like Alisa. The proud man couldn’t quite imagine himself entering a guild under any other guild master in Fiore aside from her. ”You and me both. Tell me about bad time as a guild master.” Kenzo chuckled at yet another coincidence piling up. Advent World had recently disbanded, yet here was someone else that could understand him. ”What happened with your guild?” Even if Kurisa had fierce reputation as a mage, the man would be lying if he said he’d heard anything from her past.

As the conversation moved along and the drinks started piling up, Kenzo locked eye contact with the woman too. Her alluring gaze had something special about it. Something that told him he shouldn’t blink or he’ll miss it. ”Heh. Let’s go with the question game then.. Sounds like fun” Kenzo found her proposition interesting. It was the first time he’d heard about such a thing. Hoping the name was self-explanatory of the way that it was played, he pumped up for it. ”Ladies first?”

Her eyes gazed at her drink that was piling onto the several cups after. The taste of sex on the beach always hit the right spot. Just the name itself made her feel funny in a rather good way. She chuckled at it and felt shy to say it every time so writing the name made her feel better. She listened to him talk about Alisa and how successful she was. She truly was, even got married, and has a successful relationship. She was always the success that she-herself never was. Soul sisters... sisters within every life she has ever gone through - no one will ever understand. A mad scientist's true dream was a true nightmare in reality.

Her eyes gazed back at him as she noticed he has never gazed away from her. Her face turned a little pink but continued to talk. No point in stopping now was there. "Lamia Scale was given or you could say voted for me the be the guild master after our last one died. I had it for a bit, we were fine, but not as successful as the others. We had a few strong people; Me, Noel, Daiko --" she blinked as she realized she was talking about other people now. "Sorry, well anyways... A man showed up and took over the guild saying that our guild master was his master or friend. Ever since then it really went downhill and we disbanded going on our own way." She explained as she felt like gazing at him too long will make him uncomfortable, but she couldn't help it most of the time.

His eyes were like a field of those flowers flowing in the clear ocean waters as she could just float peacefully in them forever. With certain lighting, they looked more icy as if the waters became frozen. Her explanation was done unless he had other questions, but for now, it was her turn to ask. "Well... If you could know more about any one thing, what would it be? Doesn't have to be about me nor anyone we know. Just anything in general." She reassured him that it wasn't about her, but more about what was on his mind a lot. After her question, it was now his.

As Kenzo listened to Kurisa’s story as a guildmaster, he had to say he was quite surprised. He had heard about Lamia Scale before, having taken a couple of quests at Orchidia City. However, most of what he’d heard from the populace was something relating to debt, a couple of troubles piling up after one of the recent guild masters was assassinated and other rumors that lead to the downfall of the once proud guild. In a way, it reminded Kenzo of Advent World’s fate. They first and final achievement they had was getting first place in the Grand Magic Games, so one could say that they went out in a blazing glory.

Either way, this was not what surprised the warrior. Rather, it was the previous members of the guild that she listed. Kenzo had forgotten Noel was a mage at Lamia Scale before, only making the connection once the beautiful woman talked about it. ”Oooh you know Noel then? I’ll tell him I met you when I see him again” Kenzo made the comment with a smile on his face. The gravity wizard and he were basically best pals, and both of them had now recently joined Blue Pegasus. Not wanting to delve deeper into the topic, Kurisa shifted the attention to the two of them again.

If he was being honest, the Bellan swordsman was starting to feel a little weird. He couldn’t help but notice her skin getting a little flustered as time went by. Not knowing whether it was due to the fact that alcohol was getting to her head or the prolonged, uninterrupted look he gave her, he started to feel anxious. He didn’t want to be seen as a creep, but for some reason there was no escaping her gaze. Not when her captivating eyes looked back at him. For now, he’d just concentrate on the question at hand. ”What would I want to know more about huh?” Kenzo was surprised a little by the question. She even specified it didn’t have to be about her. His mind flashed through a thousand ways to compliment her again or make a cool statement. However, he already had the answer to this question deep in his heart, for a dozen of years.

Sighing, the male pressed his lips into a thin line before telling her his answer as if he was asking for a wish. ”I guess what exactly this thing is” As he spoke, he pointed at the ominous looking jawbone by his cheek. He had it for as long time, but he still remembered a time where it was not there. The hole in his abdomen was more alarming for him too, but he decided to leave that part out for now. Shrugging, he then proceeded to take his shot. ”Then, if I gave you one wish that allowed you to ask for anything. What would it be?”

They kept eye contact that could move as if they were having some eye contest, but it was more than that. Something made her want to look away though as he brought up how he knew Noel. How does he know him? He most likely never brought her up in the past, but that was typical. Softly, she chuckled with a small smile. Slowly, her hand motioned left and right, "No need, I'm sure he's busy as always." she joked before putting her hands back down against the table. Her head tilted to get a better look at him as he answered.

Her eyes scanned the bone against his face which she just noticed. Maybe she was so into the eye contact that the rest of his face was blank to her. It did not bother her one bit, but she wondered how it felt. She remembered when her fingers went through and all over Odin's skull when he first turned Lich. Her eyes gazed back and forth towards his eyes and the piece against his face. As a scientist prodigy, she loved this sort of thing. The body of someone was a curious thing, including her own.

He asked her a question soon after about wishes. It was a question she never thought about due to wishes never coming true. What will she want if she could truly wish for anything? Eternity in paradise? What was paradise to her anyways? Was she to listen deeply into her heart or her mind of insanity?

"True Happiness with a family of my own till the end of time, I suppose." She blushed in embarrassment. It was ridiculous to use that for her answer, but her heart spoke it. All her fails within every life that was all she wanted, but the men or maybe it was actually her that made them run for it. She could wish for power, immortality, or even destroy the gods that cursed her, but she just wanted a simple thing yet for it to last a time that was unreal. She bit her lower right lip as she finally gazed away.

"I-I... it's stupid, isn't it? To wish for something so simple, but so difficult for one to develop.". She had her children, but their father left that life to live his own. Her eyes turned to look at the little girl who had no parents. Kurisa didn't want that for her children. She wanted to become strong and find someone who will not only love her but them as well - as much as they would if they were theirs. Difficult times. Suddenly, her eyes slowly looked back into his to most likely meet his gaze again. Chuckling softly she thought of her own question, "Alright, what are your goals right now if you don't mind me asking.". Truly, this was a good question for her. It was how she'll know more about his morals which some are good to have.

Midway through their conversation, Kenzo started to notice Kurisa’s attention drift towards the jawbone coming out of his cheek. The mercenary found this curious. The first thing that most people noticed was of course the ominous looking thing, but for some reason the woman in front of him had just started paying attention to it. Maybe it had been out of a sense of politeness or something, one that had just ran out and made way to curiosity. Contrary to the past, the male didn’t mind. He had come to terms with the curse in his body after a long time. After arriving at Fiore, he had noticed that stranger things happened to people. He could definitely look worse. In a sense, he was relieved it at least made him look cooler. He wouldn’t have made it so far if it was some sort of lame deformity.

Amused by her reactions, the male traced the bone teeth playfully as he asked her a question out of the game. ”Curious?” Kenzo got closer to her so she could take a look. She could even touch it with her fingers if she so desired.

Soon enough, her time to answer his question came. ”Hoh?” Kenzo found her answer quite amusing. Here she was. One of the strongest women in the whole country and her one true wish was a happy family. Kurisa blushed as soon as she answered, something that told Kenzo that she was quite serious and even herself found amusing. This on the other hand, didn’t raise any suspicion from him. Rather, he sort of understood where she came from. ”Heh. It’s not stupid…” The male answered with a weak smile. ”Perhaps that’s a wish worth wishing” Her words weighed heavily on the mercenary. He’d lost his family as a kid, but his ambitions and objectives were never to create one of his own. Now that he heard Kurisa talking about it, he reconsidered whether he’d been foolish and naïve before. Wealth, power, prestige, and recognition… All of those empty things were stuff that one could attain with sufficient talent. Yet, family and a happy life seemed way more out of reach. Kenzo huffed in amusement. Yes. That was what a wish should be used for.

”Hmph. That’s an easy answer..” Kenzo answered with a hearty smile, full of excitement. It had been long since the male felt that way, and for some reason the opportunity of sharing it with Kurisa put him in a good mood. ”You see. Right now I-“

*CRRAAASH!!!* ”ARE YOU STUPID OR WHAT YOU IDIOTIC BRAT!?! LOOK AT WHAT YOU’VE DONE!!!” The blue haired man was suddenly interrupted by the loud sound of china crashing with the ground. Instantly shifting his head, Kenzo noticed a large figure standing up from his seat abruptly, grabbing the little waitress kid by the hair and lifting her. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she grabbed his hand, trying to make him stop. Cups of sake had been shattered into a thousand pieces, littering the ground. The angry male was the biggest person Kenzo had seen in his life. He was fat beyond measure, wearing a tacky pink kimono and an old-fashioned top knot. For all intents and purposes, the furious male looked like an oversized pig. As he lifted the girl even higher, the poor waitress screamed in pain.

”I-I’m sOoOowWyyy! I-Iit waAaAss a missStaAakeEe.” The poor kid bawled begging for forgiveness. Instead of helping, this only angered the man even more. From where they were seated, it was evident that she had spilled a glass over his clothes. Hardly something to make such a fuzz about. ”SHUT UP! YOUR LIFE WON’T BE NEARLY ENOUGH TO SATISFY I – THE GREAT YOKOZUNA BUTASHIRO”

Kenzo was someone that had grown distant from strangers. He believed in the law of the jungle. Whoever that was weak enough to be unable to protect themselves from whatever trouble they got into should be left on their own. However, this time it was different. She simply reminded him so much of his days as an orphan. Kenzo felt a searing anger grow from inside, overflowing his own body. The mercenary grit his teeth, clenching his grip over the glass of sake in his hand. He was barely able to turn his head back at Kurisa, trying to ignore the scene.

The man didn't think her wish was dumb, but truly she felt like he was being kind. People enjoyed being kind to give the other person satisfaction of speaking to them. She chuckled at the thought with a small smile. Before so she was offered to touch the piece of bone against his cheek. Slowly, as he talked she was going to reach for his cheek to feel it. Kurisa's soft fingers feeling his skin and the bone with the tips and soothing parts of the bottom part of each finger. It didn't last long as soon she heard a crash of glass breaking on the floor.

Quickly, her hand went back to her own lap and tilted her head to see what exactly happened. The little girl from earlier dropped somethings or something, but the owner seemed rather pissed off. She watched carefully what the man did and then looked back at Kenzo who she could tell was feeling tense. After a few seconds of watching the blue-haired man she sat next to she switched over to watch the girl and larger guy. He picked her up by the hair and treated her like a rag doll. By the corner of her eye, she could see Kenzo trying to face away from this horrible crime.

Kuri's eyes closed and shifted off her chair to walk towards the man and the little girl until she was about five feet. "What the hell do you want?! Don't you see I'm busy?!" He snarled and then looked to see who it was. Now, she has been here for quite a while, conquering this area and even defeating The one-eyed panther, allianced with The Silent Serpents, and now this fool is doing this crap? She has never heard of "Yokozuna Butt-A-She-row?" She smirked as she teased his name. He was about to speak until she interrupted. "Now, my dear. If I were you.." She smiled happily with her eyes shining. "I'd let her go before you start real problems.". She spoke sweetly and angelic. "Now now, let her go." Her eye became slowly solid as he slowly let her go.

The fear went across anyone who could see her eyes alone as Kenzo for example could not. Those who were innocent were not harmed such as the little girl. "That little bit-" He was about to re-grab her but then her eyes glowed as she then glared at him. "I said, enough or do I need to send for the other bosses of this area?" The man looked at the little girl who was scared and then back at Kurisa. "F-... Not even worth my life. Get out of here!" He swapped his hand towards the girl only to barely hit her. She cried and hid behind Kurisa. "Look, here's some money and go to the hotel. Here's the address." She turned to grab a pen and paper. She wrote on it and then gave it to her. "Give the desk guy this and he'll give you a place to stay in the suites." The little girl felt like crying, but there was nothing else for her to do. At least she'll be safe since all the mob bosses have their meetings there. It was the hotel for elitists with the top suites. Her own suite had five rooms with its own garden.

It mattered not in the end. "Just go, darling.~" She shoo'd her away. She hurried and ran off. All she wanted to do now was get back to talking. Softly sighing, her eyes went back to normal as she went to face Kenzo and sat by him. "Well...now that was taken care of." She chuckled nervously and gazed away as her hair covers her eyes. She felt awkward, ashamed a little bit, but she couldn't just let the girl get handled like that. She knew what it was like to be caged, trapped in a place one did not wish nor ask to be. She was after all an experiment which made her the way she was with Kuri, Arisa, and Ana. "Uh. Y-you were saying?" She wondered nervously.

Had it passed a second later, Kenzo would have jumped to intervene. The only thing stopping him was the inner monologue he was having at the moment. ”How unlike me….” That bit was the complete truth. It was rather unlike the mercenary to butt his head in some else’s business. However, just as he was about to get up, Kurisa sprang into action. Her intervention was swift. Even if he couldn’t see her directly, the experienced swordsman could see that there was something that terrified the large man. The only logic explanation that he could find was that the Daeva Eye wizard shot at him a glare of bloodlust. However, even this was strange. He had heard great deeds about Kurisa, but never about her being such a skilled fighter. Being able to control Bloodlust to a point of directing it specifically at someone was not something easy to do. The woman certainly hid more than she appeared, but this only made her more appealing to Kenzo.

Relaxing in his seat, the Bellan asked for a refill of his drink to the barman. He knew everything was going to be fine. Keeping his eye at the whole scene, he was impressed by how swiftly she was able to make the man desist, even giving the little girl a place to stay for the night where she could be safe. If he was being honest, the warrior learned that Kurisa was a badass. Once she made her way back to the seat next to him, the merc rose his glass to offer a toast for the display. He’d seen countless bar brawls and drunken fights. He really liked going to bars after all. From the looks of the situation, he thought this was going to turn into yet another one in the list. Yet, here he was. Able to enjoy his night in peace.

”That was really cool.” He said with a chuckle once she covered her eyes. Kurisa seemed to be embarrassed by what she’d just done, but she had no need to be. ”I wish I was able to defuse fights with drunk people as easily as you… It would have saved me more than a dozen times.” Kenzo chuckled at the thought. ”Are you secretly one of the bosses of Hosenka or what?” The male was curious. Curious enough to ignore the previous question he’d been interrupted at. He would still answer it of course, but he wanted to fill his curiosity a bit first.

She felt unsure about his reaction. He believed it was cool yet she did not. Her mind was over-thinking that maybe Ana was right a few days ago with her mind and heart. She gave in a smile to Kenzo and gazed upward enough for her eyes to meet his. Pieces of her bangs overshadowed her eyes a little bit, but she wanted to still look into the eyes of blue water and flowers. Her ears listened carefully and his curiosity was cute. The girl will surely be alright once she gets to the hotel. Safe from the bad and the slavers that come around, like Caius.

"It was nothing but something that any good person would do. Children do not deserve that kind of life. I always think of my own. I rather not have them go through it nor anything like it." She softly and angelically spoke while putting her hand against her own heart and the other on the table in-between them. She remembered her life as a child throughout all her lives and none of them were good. She could type an essay about them all, but that'd take too much time. She wondered if perhaps they should now go somewhere else with a bottle of booze. It was beautiful outside and according to the windows, it was night. The night was beautiful and always made things seem even more beautiful than during the day. "Yea, I am. At least one of them. I'm mainly known for loaning people and taking care of business when it's needed." She softly spoke while her eyes still gazed out the window.

After a few moments of silence.

"Hey..." She softly spoke as her eyes drifted towards the sky she barely got to see from where she sat. Her head turned to face him and without thinking, she touched his hand to grab ahold of it. "Let's go outside and enjoy the night. The weather seems pretty calm with soft winds.~" She made a happy smile and then let go of it all of a sudden. She gulped and giggled nervously, "Sorry, didn't realize it.". Quickly, she turned towards the bartender and order a few bottoms and came back to him with three bottles against her chest as she bear-hugged the bottles against it. Her eyes brightened with excitement as she wanted to see the night sky with someone for once. She didn't want to outright say that so hopefully he goes with her.  "I'll tell you more.~" . She enjoyed questions and truthfully, he still owes her an answer.

For a second, Kenzo worried he’d said something out of place. He didn’t get why though, but maybe Kurisa didn’t feel comfortable with he’d told her. Maybe it was her shy-ish demeanor or perhaps something different, but for it seemed like the girl was actively avoiding the man’s gaze. Yet, Kenzo couldn’t help but smile at this. Contrary to her previous display of character and general mature look, the mercenary couldn’t help but feel she looked cute when she did that. She was after all, quite a good-looking woman.

Smiling at her, Kenzo wondered about her past. There was something about her that seemed so distant, so unique. Maybe it was the look in her eyes or the pose she made as she spoke of these topics, but there was nothing else the man could do but feel intrigued about it. A bit loss on what she’d just said, Kenzo simply nod his head. He didn’t quite hear her words, but he felt that they were something he would agree upon. Either way, the woman answered Kenzo’s question. She was in some way in charge of the leadership of the city. Not wanting to seem nosey, he decided to delve deeper into it at a later stage. As the two of them sat to each other, a moment of silence fell upon them. Not the type that makes one uncomfortable, but rather the type where the two parts are perfectly fine with it.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Kurisa broke the silence with a proposal that caught the man off guard. As she asked him if he’d agree to outside with her, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes in surprise. Unknown to most, the merc was not someone that mingled with strangers, but the surging feeling of restlessness in his gut told him to agree. ”U-uhm.. sure” He sheepishly answered, feeling his face getting a bit brighter. Attributing it to the alcohol, the warrior didn’t expect to feel embarrassed about it. However, the smile in Kurisa’s smile was mesmerizing. So entranced was him that he never noticed she’d taken his hand into her own, only until she let it go and apologized for it. Glad to know he was not the only one, he simply replied at her apology with a smirk.

Soon enough, Kurisa came back holding three bottles of alcohol with her. Kenzo chuckled with excitement at the idea. He was a seasoned drinker, so he still had some space left on him. 3 bottles though? Maybe that was too much. Excited by the idea nonetheless, the etches of his lips arched upwards in a mischievous manner. ”Let me help you with that” Extending his hand, the three bottles were suddenly disappeared as they were transported safely into his pocket dimension ring. Flashing his finger at her, he explained what just happened. ”This is quite a nifty trinket. This way they’ll be easier to carry around and we’ll avoid some stares from people”

Throwing a bag of jewels at the barkeeper, Kenzo thanked him for the service. The night was still quite young, and from the looks of it, it was going to be quite an enjoyable one. Once everything was taken care of, the Bellan swung his arm towards the door. ”After you?”

Kurisa leads him towards the door, but before she could get there he opened the door for her. With a goofy grin, she twirled out the door and gazed towards him as she stopped. The item he had gave her the freedom to move around. She knew exactly where she wanted to go, but first the walk. It was one of her favorite places, but perhaps she will walk with him and do other things while leading to it. She was sure he was fine with it. Once he was outside she walked beside him about a foot apart. Her brown and blue eyes gazed forward and wondered where that stream was.

The sound of silence as they walked the cobblestone sidewalk was perfectly fine to her. She did not know why, but it let her collect her thoughts and think about what to do next. Kurisa knew what she wanted to do next, but what does she say now? Perhaps they should continue on their question game, but she felt like they should do that once she gets to the destination. "I hope you don't mind me leading. I just feel like going about to some of my favorite things here." She started and twirled to walk backward while gazing up at him. Her hands were behind her back as she giggled, "I didn't think you'd mind." Slowly, she turned towards the way they were walking to walk straight. Her eyes spied the bridge where there was a path to the right to go downstairs. "C'mon, this way.~" She skipped on ahead and waited by the stairs.

As soon as he was close enough, he could see a long rowboat waiting at the bottom of the stairs. She had her own magic so the bow will row itself. The boat was about five meters long and wide enough for two to three people to sit down. The patterns on it were blue with gold linings around it. "The boat will take us where we're going to next, but while it does..." She made an innocent smile while putting strands of her hair behind her ear to get a good look at him. "We could finish our questioning game with another bottle.~". It was just the two outside with random couples or people alone here and there. The streamway was lit up by balls of light and on the sides of each were sakura trees blossomed up as petals fell randomly. It was truly peaceful and beautiful.

Securing the mask once again in his face, the two new-met duo went out of the bar. Kenzo was excited to see where the night would take them. Kurisa had quite a fresh personality, contrasting with the dominant demeanor she displayed towards the Yokozuna. Kenzo wondered if the woman actually knew Joyan culture enough to notice that Yokozuna was not his name but rather his title. Among sumo wrestlers, Yokozuna was granted to the number one ranked champion amongst them. Becoming one was equal to becoming a celebrity and most of them were backed by big criminal syndicates. However, since she told him that she was kind of one of the people that run the place he decided to let it go. For now, he was just going to enjoy the night.

They walked silently through the neat street, not a single word interrupting the night’s silence. Playfully walking before him and twirling around, Kurisa finally told him to follow her. Nodding with a smile, Kenzo didn’t mind. ”Lead on. Sounds like a fun trip” She was rather playful, something that made her quite interesting in his eyes. Wondering where she was taking him, he rose a brow with intrigue as she signaled the stairs next to a bridge.

Waiting for them, a long rowboat rested in the calm waters of one of Hosenka’s many channels. Kenzo smiled at the surprise as soon as he saw it. Out of all things that he expected, a boat ride was far away on his list of possible things. However, he had to say the idea was quite interesting. Sitting atop it, Kenzo couldn’t help but notice that it was quite a high-end boat. Luxurious even. Once it started to traverse the steamy water, she told him it was supposed to take them to their destination. ”Hoh.. Wonder where you’re taking me?” Kenzo smiled at her first remark. The two of them barely knew each other, so Kenzo was unsure whether he was walking straight into the wolf’s mouth by accepting this boat trip. However, even if he was slightly suspicious about her still, he decided to trust his gut for once. ”Alright then. What are your goals right now if you don’t mind asking?” Kenzo replied as he prepared to fill two glasses for them. Booze had gotten to his head already, making him forget his previous answer was cut short.

She got him to follow her to the boat trail as if she charmed his soul with her sweet words and appearances. If she was the holy god of one such as aphrodite then he would be in bad luck, but truly she just wanted his company. Something about him made her happy, perhaps it was the willingness of adventure, or perhaps there was something within him that she did not know about, but her heart felt it. Once he got inside and she did as well, she sat in front of them within arms reach of distance. Her eyes locked with his as he wondered where they were going.

Teasingly, she put her right pointing finger against her own plump beautiful lips in a hush motion. "It's a surprise.~" She gave a cheesy grin and giggled. She was excited since she wanted to show someone one of her favorite spots to go. The area was quiet, the sounds of crickets, swans, and frogs could be heard every so often for that extra natural noise. She settled her hand down against the seat of hers as she tilted her head to gaze at him through those eyes of his. "My Goals?" She gave a straightened face and gazed at the stars, but quickly turned into a rather wistful smile. "Other than a full-fledged family? Well... I wish to overthrow the gods. I use to believe in them... I was given something by them due to an incident four-five years ago and out of nowhere they decided to take it away, making me a lesser." She sighed and gazed back at him, but her original smile turned more genuinely happy to see him there. "Now.~ You forgot to answer the same thing." Kurisa giggled, but deep inside she felt hurt to be reminded of those harsh times. Someday she will find those people too... The ones that ruined her first, the first ones that did all those things to her.

Her gaze went back into Kenzo's eyes as she hid that pain with her precious smile. "Do you think wrongly of me now?" She kept her facial expression strong with her warm smile as she wondered what her question will be now that he owes her two answers. "Now...for my second question, I wondered, wha-" she was about to speak up till the boat bumped against the docks. Her head turned, "Oh I guess we're here.~" She turned towards him and nodded, "Do you trust me? Close your eyes.~" She will hope that he does by now. If so then they got off the boat and their fingers would entwine as Kurisa lead him to a surprise.

Once Kurisa started answering, he couldn’t help but look at her with a surprised look. Out of all the things he imagined the woman to say, he didn’t quite expect her to bring up a quarrel with the gods. Even if he didn’t quite understand what she meant by being given something by them and the rest of it, it didn’t make it less exciting in the eyes of the mercenary. It was not the kind of thing that one spoke of in public. As he saw her giggle, he couldn’t help but chuckle. ”Well… definitely seems like I was not the only one with a grudge against them.” Kenzo threw his head back as he rested both arms on the edge of the boat. The night breeze blew through his face, making him enjoy the cool air. ”Ah! You’re right” Kenzo shook his head as he remembered he was cut short by the incident at the bar earlier. Even making her answer it instead.

“Sorry about that. Heh” The male thought about his answer for a second before speaking. ”Hmm… I’d say my biggest goal at the moment is become the strongest person in the country… While getting rid of this pesky bounty over my head too” The warrior’s answer came in a matter-of-fact-y way. He didn’t think it was impossible at all, considering after he’d learned of the title of Fiore’s God of War. There was a reason why he wanted to become that strong, but he figured he’d keep that bit for himself for now. Furthermore, a slight bump beneath the boat signaled their arrival at the place where Kurisa wanted to take Kenzo. As he asked him to close his eyes, he remained thoughtful for a second. Her question was suspicious no matter which way one looked at it. Given his past, the mercenary had become someone that trusted no one but himself, so her expression kind of rubbed him off. However, he decided to give the girl a chance to prove her trustworthiness. ”Sure” Nodding with a smile, Kenzo extended his hand to intertwine fingers with her. Closing both eyes, he let Kurisa guide him as if he were unaware of his surroundings. However, Kenzo cheated a bit.

Unknown to Kurisa, the mercenary was fully capable of seeing everything around them, even better than what any normal human could with both eyes open. As he let her lead him with his eyes closed, Kenzo made use to scan his surroundings with his right eye’s special ability. If he was falling straight into an ambush or a trap, the mercenary would be ready to react to it. Even if he felt bad about lying to Kurisa, who’d only been nice to him through the night – (Suspiciously nice) – he decided it was best for him not to do something foolish.