P: It's been close to a week now, have you thought of coming home yet?

I haven't opened my companion-i-chat since I entered the forest because it's never worked once while I was out here. Well... it won't be the most shocking thing I'll witness in this luxurious fortress.

"Are you done?"

A stern voice booms around the corner and I turn to glance at him. "Yeah..."

"Let's go."

I mumble an okay and proceed to send a message back to Peyton.

C: Sorry I haven't replied you, I've been... busy. Anyway, I'll be back soon, don't worry.

The first few minutes we spend hiding away from hunter bears, ironic that Keanu would choose to stay away from those hideous creatures instead of killing them like I imagined in my head.

"It takes up a bit of my health when I do that." He explains, maybe because I keep giving him suspicious glances from time to time. "If you're wondering why I'm staying at a safe distance, it's because they are also high level animals and they are mostly owned by bandits. The ones trying to sniff me out and claim my head." He shakes his head. "That would be a full on animal massacre, who would want that?"

Yeah... who would want that?

We make it to the training field in ten cycles instead of the usual fifteen due to our superspeed. Guess it has uses other than running away from a crazy muderous pissed-off mob.

"Take your stance."

I plant my boots firm on the ground and place my folded fists in front of me, protecting my liver and my left boob. Hey... I got punched in the boob before, I guarantee you it was not a pleasant experience.

Keanu dashes at me, ready to knock my head off my body but I block his kick with both my arms. Even though I get sent plummeting down a good few feet, the only serious injury I obtain is blood dripping out of my nostrils.

That's nothing.

Nothing compared to how stronger I've gotten in this hellhole, training with this lunatic.

Me from a few months ago wouldn't have been able to take that hit without having both a physical and mental breakdown. This is a lot easier compared to day one of training with a fugitive. This is day fourteen if you are wondering, which is saying a lot because that's a lot of progress within a two week span.

Even while training, I can manage to multitask instead of constantly worrying about bashing my head into the ground or a tree. Like right now while I'm having this inner monologue, he's trying to damage my skull... and I'm preventing that from happening... successfully.

But one thing I do find suspicious (and I do find a lot of things suspicious when it comes to the unregistered) is that he refuses to train with me when I use my nunchuks. If I could probe into his mind and read his thoughts I would even dare to say that he's actually scared. But not like a physical type of fear... its more of a mental phobia. Maybe he's fought someone with nunchuks and lost before?

Must be his ego he's afraid of bruising.

He was willing to fight me back in the Rock-paper-scissors quest, even though it seemed a bit forced. I wonder what kind of history he has with my weapon. It wouldn't be absurd to guess he has history with an irregular... just which irregular is it? It could be me, but we've never met in the real world before and I can't find any connecting dots so... who is it?

A foot shoves me backwards and just when I think I've dodged the attack, his leg kicks my stomach causing me to fall on the ground. My hand comes over my side protectively, the thought of getting hit there again makes my heart thump faster and the pain aggravates.

But the second attack doesn't come.

Instead a hand comes up to my face, seeming to help me get back on my feet. I take the hand, standing up and gaining stability, it only hurts for a cycle and afterwards the pain dissipates.

"Your reflexes are getting better." He says, wounding the stained bandages around his hands. "That's one thing you're doing well."

"One thing?" I scoff. "You don't think being able to withstand a kick from the almighty black hood is worth an achievement?"

"That was just fifteen percent of my power." He shakes his head. "Don't get cocky."

"Whatever," I flip my hair around. "I'm allowed to celebrate my victory."

He doesn't say anything but stare.

And stare.

And stare.

And stare.

Finally he breaks the awkward silence and asks me for something I'd never expect him to say. "Let me see your nunchuks."

"What?"

"Let me see them." The tension in his voice alone is enough to make my skin crawl. I can tell he's not asking out of the desire to admire my nunchuks, maybe he wants to break them? Well he can try... that stuff is made out of quite some indestructible material.

I summon them as they come slicing through the air and right into my hands. I study the disgusted look on his face as his eyes take up the weapon in my hand. Then he approaches me wearily as if I would slash his head in half with it. I gotta admit... it's sort of unnerving watching him have this type of reaction to my nunchucks. Almost as if he knows what they are truly capable of doing and I don't.

"100 kilograms?" He muses, squinting at the kontei of the weapon. His eyes shift to me, and they scan me intensely, a mixture of amusement and bewilderment schools his features. "I'm surprised you can even carry them."

"I'm a lot stronger than you think." I smile, my hands instinctively moving closer to feel my arms and slap my non-existent muscles in his face. But of course that would be embarrassing as they are... well, non-existent.

"Apparently." His eyes narrow on the weapon in my hand, and not in a worthy-opponent typa way, more of an avengers-level-threat way. (Thorn-in-my-flesh)

If I have to admit, either one coming from black hood would truly be honorable, regardless.

"Training's over today." He deadpans. "Feel free to knock yourself out whatever way you see fit. Just try not to bleed all over the place."

Well if you're not around, I don't see why that should be a problem.

"Be at the shed by sunset."

Then he disappears with the wind.

My sense of danger has been heightened ever since my entrance in this game. And Keanu is a walking red flag of course, but something about his sentence screams danger. Not in the way that something bad would happen if I don't get there by sunset but in the way that something would happen if I get there by sunset.

It sounds like a warning.

A warning that I'd obviously ignore and cost me my life, had I not been interrupted by a Saber-tooth wolf.

What in the glitch...

°°°°

There are things that are funny, and then there are things that are far from funny. This whole situation is the opposite of funny. What the f*ck are those things doing here? How do I even know it's just one? No no no. This is bad. Like really bad.

I thought they were locked in the abyss of the Dungeon, much much deeper in the Dungeon. Who let the demon loose?

I need back-up, or rather saving.

I try to send a message with the companion-i-chat but there is no reception. It seems like there is only reception present in the shed. Great! When you need help, it suddenly becomes unavailable.

Just great!

The monster snarls at me and shows off its prominent canines and I flinch. "Well it seems like someone's not too happy to seeing me." There are a lot that fall in that category. "I know, I know buddy, this is your first time out of that horrible cage and the first thing you see is a tasteless disgusting irregular. I wouldn't want to eat me either." Wait.. what? "Unfortunately I can't let you eat me. If we can come to an agreement, I promise to give you someone much tastier." Like the unregistered. "We just have to wait for him to get here."

The animal tilts its head to the side, seemingly confused by my rant. So am I. But I'm buying time and that's all that matters. Or so I think.

Heavy feral breathes pounce off my neck and before I can turn, four powerful claws dig into my back and I let out a loud wail. If that wasn't enough to wake the damn inhabitants of this forsaken forest, I don't know what will.

Health: 30

Talk about a monster. This wolf's destructive ability is twice of that bear! Note to self again: Wolves make worse pets than Bears. And that's saying a lot!

I move out of the way to avoid another fatal blow, but with my super speed reduced by half, it only takes me so far. This whole thing gives me deja vu. This has definitely happened before. How did I get out of it the last time?

Keanu.

Well that's not happening anytime soon so I guess I can rule that off my Prince charming list. Now the only thing left for the maiden to do is save herself and hold out till the Prince arrives (or rather villain).

My nunchuks come flying into my hands as I slam the chukon-bu right into the animal's guts, sending it staggering. It shakes its head, seemingly unable to comprehend that a human, so puny could land a hit on it. Well think again, dumbass, of all humans to exist, irregulars are the worst to belittle.

Its claws aim right at my torso and I yield away from the attack. My back is healing so it makes sense that my strength is being regained. All of a sudden the wolf doesn't seem that big of a threat anymore. As long as I have my nunchuks, I can take this beast down.

And I do so, with the last ounce of breath in me, I fight like my life depends on it because it does.

I dive my nunchuks right through the torso, cutting the animal in half.

The only mistake I make is forget to calculate how much backlash I would receive from the nunchuks and how little strength I have left.

So when I see more Saber-tooth wolves arrive, I try to plant my feet on the ground but fail miserably, my head hitting the ground first, and my vision goes blank.

°°°°

"You're late."

A distant voice says.

My head turns to the side, Keanu. What do you know? Sometimes the villain arrives instead of the Prince charming. "Hello to you too." I glance around, I'm in Evie's room. At least I'm safe from those monsters. But..? "Can't those things track my scent here?" 

"That would be impossible, don't bother yourself with that."

"I vaguely remember telling you not to bleed all over the field."  He groans, as if the thought of orange blood splattered around is the ugliest color on a painter's canvas. Who needs boring old red blood anyway? "No, that's all wrong. I clearly remember telling you not to bleed everywhere."

Oh please... it's not as if I almost didn't just die.

"You know, I wonder if you just take pure delight in watching me die." I chuckle. "Isn't that how we met? You wanting me dead?"

"I'm aware. I don't intend on giving that up anytime soon." He sounds serious, borderline threatening, then his tone shifts back to normal. "I wonder as well, when you'll stop causing situations where you need saving."

"When bad things stop happening to me of course."

He sighs, crossing his arms, finally looking at me and as usual his eyes are cold and distant. "Your luck as an irregular isn't exactly the type that prevents bad omen."

"Well there's nothing that can be done about that then." I laugh bitterly. "Even if I don't incite mayhem, it always follow wherever I lead."

There is a long pause before he starts to trail around my bed and stops right opposite me, his features brushed by slight grief and solemnity. "If there was not one, but multiple Saber-tooth wolves sent to kill you, do you know what that makes you?"

No.

And I have a feeling I don't want to.

"It makes you a threat."

I don't like where this is going. "How bad of a threat?"

"The villagers already see you as one but not the City people. It makes you a threat to them as well." He doesn't bother to look at me. His voice, void of emotion. "It makes you a fugitive."

A fugitive???

"A what?"

"You heard me." He squints his eyes at me. "If your dead body isn't reported within forty-eight hourglass turns, a bounty will be placed on you..." His voice drawls out, so it is just a whisper, but hits me hard in the face like ice. "As an S-RATED."

What??

No no no.

I can't be labelled as a fugitive.

I'm supposed to be the heroine, the one who swoops in and saves everybody. I'm supposed to be praised and celebrated. An S-RATED? That's not even close to being the heroine!