Azimuth: The Elden Throne (New Version)



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/A bit before, upstairs…/

/Chatter.../

"... Well then… I'll be leaving now miss Yumi…" Fray said with a thin smile as he turned around

Fray was a handsome man, to say the least, his short blond hair coupled with his exotic green eyes and roll of white teeth made him the picture-perfect prince charming...

Adding his casual yet elegant clothes, a white t-shirt and a pair of brown pants, together with his shortsword strapped to his waist and his chiseled muscles under all of that made for quite the eye candy for most...

There was a reason why he won so many ladies' hearts, all of this would already make many fall, but with his confident disposition brewed over many years of mental training under a Veteran Mercenary, and his refined tongue, few girls would resist him.

Much less, Village girls...

Those were his favorite, the easiest of targets, he could approach them, spend some good time with them after softening them up, leaving the next day while making them remember him forever, longing for him...

He liked to say he was every Village lady's, first love... He was like Spring... No, he wanted to be Spring.

"..."

But Yumi wasn't smiling in the slightest, not even saying Goodbye.

In fact, she seemed fed up with this situation, as if she couldn't stand his presence anymore.

"If I'm not mistaken, I told you to call me Miss Dudencell, at most Miss Alchemist, so quit it with the nickname."

'It irks me every time I hear him saying that... I've heard some of the newcomers call me that, and albeit it bothers me greatly, for some reason, I feel 10 times worse when he says it...'

'10 times is too little, for the newcomers, I just feel they're being impolite, with him, I feel it's a straight-out insult.'

'I think I've asked myself this question 10 times by now… But where did this idiot come from?'

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"Miss Duden... Yumi." Fray said as he tried to get her attention, only to fail as she started to grab a few alchemical tolls from a few shelves

'I can't falter here, she'll frown at first, but over time... She's tough on that's for sure, but I've seen worse.'

While Fray thought of the past, Yumi did the same, thinking about what happened a few minutes earlier as she closed her eyes, completely ignoring the man behind her…

…

/Flashback.../

Close to an hour ago, Dale appeared in front of her pharmacy following all of the trembling and chaos outside, dragging a massive man behind him while a small bloody trail stained the roads as he walked silently…

The people looked at him with confused gazes with some of the Villagers asking him if he was alright, but he always replied with a carefree smile, he was okay, but the being he was dragging around wasn't.

Even if his body felt numb and pain flared from time to time on his skin, Dale had to maintain his front and walk proudly with heavy steps...

At least until he was back in the Pharmacy, once he was there, he would be able to receive the treatment he deserved.

If by then his regeneration hasn't taken care of the job that is.

Eventually, Yumi opened the door, taking a look at the bizarre scene of the knight holding a giant creature, a small crowd gathering behind them.

Not believing what she was seeing, and feeling extremely concerned as she saw the blood-stains on his clothes and armor, Yumi couldn't do much apart from telling him to come inside the Pharmacy as she let her brain process the situation.

At least, that was easier said than done as he had quite the trouble shoving Muddan through the front door, so they were forced to use the still-locked back door.

Yumi took quite some time to find the keys to it, and even then, cleaning the way took a few minutes, even with Dale just shoving everything into his inventory for the sake of convenience.

Midway through that, Dale explained to her what had happened, putting Muddan's body on top of a large cloth on the ground since there wasn't a bed or table large or strong enough for this guy.

Dale apologized a few times during his explanation, he felt he was giving her too much work, so he helped her as much as he could, from applying simple first aid to helping her clean the wounds since Muddan's back was quite full of dirt...

He didn't only do it for that either, he was also protecting her, he couldn't let her be when this... Man's reasons were unknown.

So at least until she finished applying first aid, he would stay by her side, listening to her talk on and on…

She was thankful for that as she knew that deeming how busy he was, he could've just left this giant guy and left, but instead, he helped her settle the trouble with a smile.

His curiosity about alchemy and his willingness to listen also made him a great partner, turning this awkward procedure into a rather fun experience as they laughed and chuckled at each other.

Much to Muddan's displeasure... But he wasn't up so no one would know.

Due to the nature of her work, few would be willing to listen to her, as the innuendos and complexities of her work made it all too hard for most to understand…

So this made her glad and happy.

After they finished treating the giant warrior and putting on a bandage around his terrific chest, they decided to take a few minutes to rest.

"I'm sorry to give you more trouble…" Dale said apologetically once again as he looked at Yumi

/Shake.../

She shook her head, she even looked at him with a small frown, displeased.

"I told you several times already, I'm okay with this, it's my job after all! So no more sorry, if I hear it one more time I'll punish you!"

Smiling, Dale nodded, saying, "I know, you're the best." as he got up from his seat.

Fondling her hair, she said in a low tone:

"That isn't true, there is still much to learn… I'm just doing the minimum... What I can."

Dale made sure to re-affirm his will:

"Bare minimum is an understatement, your work has improved everyone's condition ten-fold, and for that, I'm sure everyone would be more than glad to say the same."

He looked at her and said once more, "You're the best." making her blush a bit more.

"Although I do agree with you… There is a lot to learn, but we'll get there eventually, together, aren't we?"

Yumi turned her face to the side, slightly embarrassed.

"Hm?"

Seeing her like this made Dale a bit weird, he wanted to say something, but he was interrupted:

"A-Alright... Thank you..."

"But I'll also say that there's no need for you to say sorry… You just followed his wishes, you shouldn't be let down for hurting him."

Dale was quick to retort.

"That isn't the problem, I'm saying that because I…"

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'Feel a bit guilty for giving you so much trouble all the time I come to visit…'

But Yumi raised her finger, telling him to make silence.

"Just like you, I'm acting according to the situation, it's just some superficial wounds and a few broken bones, and taking his sturdy body, he'll recover in no time…"

"I'm thankful you came to me first, because had you gone to someone else they would've simply directed you here regardless, and by that time, his injuries might've worsened, and my job would, in consequence, worsen."

Albeit she knew that wasn't the truth, Muddan was incredibly resilient, the chances of him worsening were pretty low, but that would weaken her argument, so she kept silent.

She looked at Muddan, a pensive expression forming in her eyes.

"He's merely sleeping right now, I must give it to him, we moved his body so much and his injuries are surely painful, but he barely even twitched. He's like a still log in the forest…"

Turning her face to Dale, she asked:

"I wonder if all Karkavans are like this."

"... Then we're two, hopefully, we'll find that out soon enough." He replied as he washed off his awkwardness 

Or at least tried to.

"Yes..."

'Uhh... What do I say now?!'

"Before I leave though... There have been a few things on my mind..."

Just when it seemed everything was going to end suddenly, Dale smiled, asking her a few more things, such as her take on the newcomers and what she thought of the players in order to break the ice.

And after a few minutes of talking, Dale left, or better put, he was dragged out of the Pharmacy by a very angry Tina, and from there, you know the rest, Dale went to the Mercenary Guild to meet with Misgurd since the others were busy, and this led with him meeting Zaw and their crusade to find Fray, the Pimp.

…

/End of Flashback.../

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