"Holy shit…. What the hell happened here?" the Captain muttered, eyes wide as he took in the scene.
"Seth! Get over here!" Seth jogged up from behind, coming to a stop beside him. His breath caught.
"Damn….. there's blood and ice everywhere."
The Captain exhaled sharply running his hand through his hair. "Thank goodness the fight ended before we showed up….." he said under his breath. He straightened up.
"Alright. We're heading back to HQ. Time to report this to the Guild Master."
"But Captain," one of the men spoke up, "What about the investigation?"
"Reporting is part of it," the Captain replied, tone clipped. "Besides, whoever did this? Long gone. We're chasing the Ice Longinus user. Let's bring the Guild Master what we've got – he'll tell us what comes next."
He glanced at the distant skyline, worry flashing in his eyes for just a second. "I just hope the advance squad made it out in one piece…. Anyways – Let's move out."
"Yes, Captain!" the squad responded in unison, boots crunching on the ground as they turned to leave the ruined battlefield behind.
As the men jogged along behind the Captain, Seth kept looking back – eyes locked on the beheaded man still kneeling at the center of the battlefield.
........
"A gauntlet, huh?" Boros said scratching the side of his neck as he eyed the black glove on display.
"I mean... sure, it looks badass. But how the hell is that thing supposed to fit me?!" he added pointing to the oversized gauntlets with a raised brow.
The merchant chuckled awkwardly. "Yeah, about that... I've had this relic for years. Tried to sell it a dozen times – no one ever bit. So I brought it in the back and left it here."
Boros gave him a deadpan look. "So lemme get this straight. You're offering me something useless that nobody else wanted?"
The merchant shrugged with a sheepish grin.
Boros sighed. "Whatever. Put 'em up – I'll give it a shot."
The merchant placed the gauntlets carefully on a nearby shelf. Boros stepped up, muttering, "Alright... here goes nothing." He slid his hands into the gauntlets.
Nothing.
Boros turned his head slightly, smirking. "See? Told you these things were just –"
The gauntlets pulsed. A deep black aura bled from their surface, shadows curling and flickering like smoke. The oversized metal began to shift, contracting, morphing – until the gauntlets shrank down, molding perfectly to Boros' arms like they were made for him.
Then he heard it.
A whisper – low, ancient, and close. "At last... a worthy vessel."
Boros froze."…..The hell?" he muttered, eyes narrowing as the whisper faded like smoke on the wind.
The merchant took a slow step back, eyes wide. "Well..... that's new."
"Whoa, that's so cool!" Akeno said eyes practically sparkling.
"Back up," Boros grunted, nudging her away with his elbow. "You're in my space."
"Akeno," he said after a beat, "did you just say something?"
"Huh?" she blinked. "I've been talking. You wanna narrow that down?"
He gave her a look and waved her off, pushing her head to the side."Nah, never mind. It couldn't have been you."
"Wow. That's what I get for answering your dumb question? Seriously? Dumbass!" she snapped.
"Huh? Who are you calling a dumbass?!" Boros shot back.
Kinuko leaned in slightly, watching them. "Why'd you ask, Shiro?"
He paused."….what?" he said, caught off guard."You asked if she said something," Kinuko clarified. "Why?"
Boros looked off a second brows tight. "I dunno…. Thought I heard something, that's all."
"Now that I think about it…." Boros muttered, staring down at the gauntlet on his arm. "I did hear something. But where the hell did that voice come from? It couldn't have been…"
His thoughts trailed off as his eyes narrowed on the black metal. "Was it the –"
"Aha!" the merchant suddenly shouted, snapping Boros out of his head.
"I knew it!" he laughed, practically bouncing with excitement. "It's an Awakened Weapon after all!"
Boros squinted at him. "Okay….?"
"Yes, yes – look at it! Truly a rare specimen!" the merchant said, circling Boros like a vulture, inspecting the gauntlet like it was treasure. "Do you even realize how much that thing could've been worth? Absolute top-tier gear!" he wiped a bit of drool off his chin.
"Hey – stop dripping all over the floor. If you want it that bad, take it back," Boros snapped.
"No, no! it's yours! A gift from me to you!" the merchant said quickly, grinning as he wiped his sleeve across his mouth.
"Right…." Boros muttered, scratching his neck. "You mentioned something – Awakened Weapons? That guy I fought brought it up too, but didn't really explain. What are they?"
"Wait a sec," the merchant said suddenly. He shuffled over a tap, grabbed a cup, filled it while whistling, then took a big slip in front of Boros – and immediately spit it out.
"Hold up. The guy you fought was wielding an Awakened Weapon?!"
"What the hell man?!" Boros wiped his face, annoyed. He turned and walked over to Akeno.
"Hey, can I clean my face?"
"Uh…..sure?" she replied.Boros grabbed the edge of her shirt and wiped his face off casually, then headed back toward the merchant.
"What sorcery is this?" Akeno yelled, yanking on his sleeve.
"Hey – you said yes," Boros replied without looking back.
"Old man, why'd you spray me in the first place?" He grabbed the merchant by the collar.
"S-sorry!" the merchant stammered, "I just wasn't expecting that. You defeated someone using an Awakened Weapon….. and you didn't even have one yourself?"
Boros raised a brow. "Okay? Is that supposed to mean something?"
The merchant blinked. "That's not just rare. That's impossible."
"Awakened weapons…. They're not just gear. Each one holds the sealed soul of a powerful beast. That's where the comes from – the soul fuels the weapons, and in return, it boosts the wielder beyond normal limits."
Boros crossed his arms. "So what – you just find one lying around?"
The merchant shook his head. "Not that easy. There are only two known ways to get one. First: you find it. But they're ridiculously rare – scattered across the world, hidden, lost, sometimes even guarded."
"That's why most of the people who have them are adventurers."
He paused.
"So yeah, you can imagine why I shocked when you said the guy fought had one."
Boros frowned. "What's the second way?"
"Forge it yourself," the merchant said, lowering his voice. "But to do that you'll need more than just a blacksmith. You need magic. Real magic"
"You have to trap the soul of a powerful beast inside of a weapon made of Nexa crystals. No ordinary metal could handle that kind of force."
"Wait, Wait," Boros interrupted, waving his hand. "Magic? Seriously? That's a myth. Doesn't exist."
"I get it," the merchant nodded. "Magic hasn't been recorded in history for over a thousand years. Most people think it's just a legend. But if Magic did exist…. then that means these weapons – these Awakened ones – they're over a thousand years old."
Kinuko leaned in, eyes narrowing. "Is there…. another way to get one?"
The merchant hesitated, then nodded slowly. "Yeah. When the wielder of an Awakened Weapon dies, the weapon withers….. then reappears somewhere else in the world."
Akeno blinked. "So?"
Boros cut in, voice low. "It means people kill Awakened users….. to claim the weapon."
"Exactly," the merchant said grimly. Kinuko frowned. "But why not just steal it? Take it while they're asleep or something?"
"You can't," the merchant replied. "The weapon chooses it's master. It won't activate for anyone else. You can hold it, sure – but without the bond, it's just dead weight."
Akeno sighed. "So it always circles back to killing, huh?"
"Yeah," Boros said quietly.The merchant stepped closer, eyes fixed on the gauntlet wrapped around Boros' arm.
"Each Awakened Weapon is alive in its own way. Some whisper. Some scream. Some…. Just wait for a reason to awaken. And I think yours waited. For you."
Boros looked down at the gauntlet. The merchant nodded.
"Without a doubt."
"And if I don't want it?" Boros asked, half-joking. The merchant's expression darkened.
"Then you're out of luck. Once they wake up, they don't go back to sleep. They stay bonded….. until the masters life runs out."
He gave a slight, knowing smile."They're like leeches. Loyal ones, sure – but they only let go when their master dies."