Life Hunter

In the end, Arima returned to Center City and what happened afterward was as he expected.

"I'm bored," Arima complained while eating. His eyes were so unfocused it seemed like he would fall on the table at any moment.

Of course, the three others were accompanying him, "Well, it's true that there's nothing really interesting to do in this world for you when there's no conflict," Lilis remarked.

"I think it's a good thing to have some days of rest though," Lanya added and served some food to Night who was beside her, "When you do nothing except fighting you can never really relax."

Night saw how naturally Lanya gave him food as if she was feeding a pet and stiffened. His eyes became blank and he totally ignored what they were talking about and just ate the food he had in front of him with a deadpan expression.

Lilis clapped her hands, "Then let's try to find something to do."

Arima slowly turned his head toward her, "If it was that easy, I wouldn't be so troubled."

"Why don't you train?" Lanya asked and Arima shook his head.

"Because I don't want right now," He said and started eating some sweets. "You know, it's like writing a book. You can enjoy doing it but you're fucking lazy and never do it. Ultimately, you finish the book in more time than you should have taken. And, right now, I'm basically lazy and bored at the same time. Which is a very distressing predicament. So, I need something interesting enough to motivate me to move."

"What a simple way of thinking…" Lilis retorted and then mused for a few seconds. At one point she smirked and stared at Arima.

"What?"

"Why don't you just go sightseeing with Lanya. It could expend your boredom," Lilis suggested and Lanya froze.

"Sightseeing?" Arima frowned, "I already know every detail about this place to the millimeter. Why would I do that?"

Lilis grunted, "The point here is not about the sightseeing but the time you spend with a gentle and pretty girl. Get it?" She stated while pointing at Lanya, putting the latter in an even more awkward situation.

Arima glared at Lilis then glanced a Lanya with a helpless expression, "Sure, why not," He sighed and Lanya smiled while Lilis started laughing for some reason.

"Then, I will leave you two alone. I'll take this little guy with me too," Lilis grabbed the still blank Night and held him.

"Eh? What?" He snapped out of his daze when he felt Lilis hugging him. He looked around and then saw that he was slowly getting farther away from Arima and Lanya. That also meant that the one who was carrying him wasn't one of them. He looked at who was carrying him and started panicking a bit.

"Wait! Arima, don't let her take me!" He shouted, "Shit! Why can't I release my form?" Night cursed after trying to turn back into a dragon and failing. He instantly assumed that Lilis had blocked his magic somehow.

Lilis took him away and even as they were getting far Arima could still hear Night howling like a wolf. Arima and Lanya looked at each other and smiled. "Let's go then," The former said and walked out of the Inn with Lanya.

"Well, where to go?" Arima mused as they were walking on the streets, "Is there somewhere you want to go?"

Lanya trembled a bit and then started thinking, "…Is there something entertaining in this city?" She asked hesitatingly, not even actually answering the question.

In fact, she was actually too embarrassed to speak normally. Generally, if you had to describe Lanya, she would definitely not be shy. But the obvious intent Lilis had shown earlier only managed to make her awkward about this whole thing.

"Entertaining, huh?" Arima snickered, "Now that I think about it, there's something which seems to be fairly interesting. It's should in this direction," He pointed at a street on the left and went there with Lanya.

Lanya then felt weird and stared at Arima with a strange face. He noticed that and raised an eyebrow, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, but…" Lanya shook her head, "Usually, you teleport to everyplace you want to go."

Arima smiled, "What? Do you prefer that I transfer us there directly?"

Lanya shook her head and smiled sweetly, "No, I was just surprised."

On their walk, they visited several shops. Lanya would stop to observe clothes, jewelry, but also sometimes it was for weapons. Although she knew that the rapier Arima had given her was most likely the best sword she could ever find, even more, if it was a soul weapon, she still was attracted to it. It was a bit like how a pro musician would still be interested in trying new instruments.

On the other side, Arima observed her and followed her calmly, without being impatient at all. He also bought every kind of sweet that caught his attention and offered some to her.

Lanya seemed to enjoy the moment a lot. Although she wasn't that talkative, she still expressed her joy easily.

When the two passed by a precious-stone showcase, Arima abruptly thought of something. He took out a huge boulder from his storage and made it appear on the streets. The sudden appearance of the rock surprised everyone around.

Arima quickly pulled Karma and cut the boulder into a lot of different pieces which he then stored away.

Lanya curiously watched the entire process, "That was the trinite, right?"

"Yeah," Arima nodded and a pocket-sized piece of trinite appeared in his hand. "[Verto] (Change)," He chanted and Karma in his right hand started changing form. It became smaller and smaller before ultimately becoming a dark red carving knife.

At the same time, Arima's sigil revolved and a black flame ignited the trinite. It became a sort of soft substance in an instant. Arima used the knife to shape it to a new form. He slowly turned it into an ellipsoid while paying attention to not roughen the edges. Then, he carved an exquisite sort of magic circle and the stone glittered.

Lanya observed fixedly. Arima then continued by refining it with engravings of all sorts such as roses. It was an utterly stunning piece of art that attracted the eyes of many people walking by.

After that, Arima took out some mithril and mixed it with the stone. It gained a metallic allure and a silver frame along with a thin and elegant chain. It was a stunning necklace. Arima then took out some orichalcum and this time, the necklace started shining and the silver parts became beautiful blue jewels and the stone itself gained a diamond-like luster.

Finally, for the last touch, Arima returned Karma to its original form, and on the blade, you could see something like a red liquid drop forming on the edge. The drop slowly slid all the way down to the tip of the blade and fell down on the necklace, making it 'evolve' as two identical stones emerged on the chain along with a new purple glow.

When this was terminated, Arima took the magnificent ornament in his hand and closed his eyes. The necklace transformed into a ray of light that flew toward Lanya's chest and entered her soul.

She widened her eyes and then lifted her hand. A purple and silver light flashed and the necklet reappeared in her hand. She gawked at Arima who was smiling.

He lightly laughed, "That's the greatest necklace you'll ever find. I'm sure of that."

Arima used the strongest natural stone, a magic alloy, orichalcum that even gods had actual use for, and more importantly, a 'drop' of Karma. On top of that, it was bounded to Lanya's soul by Arima himself.

Lanya looked dumbfounded at the necklace in her hand. It was indeed gorgeous but at the same time, she could feel the tremendous power it contained, "…Is this really for me?"

"Of course, I wouldn't make a necklace like that for myself. Let me help you," Arima grabbed the necklace again and went behind Lanya to put it around her neck. The latter didn't move at all. It wasn't that she was calm, but more likely because she was so flustered that she couldn't even move.

"It's done, let's go now," When Arima finished, Lanya exhaled then admired the necklace around her neck. She beamed a smile and followed Arima who went a bit ahead.

******************************************

Meanwhile, Night was being dragged by Lilis like some pet. In the end, he gave up and just clung to her shoulder. He didn't actually think she was a malicious person, but in his head, this woman was too 'mischievous' to be left alone with.

"By the way, Night," She called him while they were lunching at some restaurant.

"What is it?"

"Are you ready to follow Arima everywhere?"

"Huh?" Night was confused, "What stupid question is that? Of course, I would follow him. Even if I have to die," He replied with utmost sincerity.

Lilis smiled wryly, "Well, that's the problem. Night, your existence is really important, you represent the biggest strength of Arima. But you are a living being, and you can die, if it happens, Arima will lose at least half of his full power."

"What do you mean?" Night frowned; he wasn't liking where this conversation was going.

Lilis lifted Night from her shoulder and put him on the table right in front of her, "If Heaven really attacks Arima at some point, then the first one they'll try to eliminate is you. Because they know that a soul beast represents at least fifty percent of a human's power, if they can get rid of that threat, then they would be more at ease when confronting a Life Hunter."

Night fell silent, "…Why are you telling me that now? It's not like it will help me survive."

Lilis sighed and put up a smile carrying more than simple empathy, "The reason I'm telling you this is just to make you aware a little bit. I honestly don't think Arima would ever let you be harmed in his stead. But that's not the only thing I want to tell you. In a sense, I'd like to prepare you."

"Prepare me?" Night questioned with a dubious expression.

"Listen, I will tell you what is the most terrifying thing about Life Hunters and why they are so feared by Gods. That concerns his racial ability. Even if I can't disclose it to Arima, at least it wouldn't be a bad idea to inform you. I temporarily severed every telepathic connection you have with him. After that, it's up to you to keep it secret," Lilis sternly explained.

Night didn't say anything for a while before nodding, "Tell me. "

********************************************

Meanwhile, the dating duo had arrived in a completely new area of the city. The streets and habitations were not in sight anymore. It was just a giant plaza filled to the brim with people. There was human activity bustling everywhere.

Arima made his way through the crowd by scaring a bit the people with his aura. Those who dared to have some thoughts about Lanya instantly fainted. Ultimately, everyone passed the word: 'Don't approach that couple!'.

"Apparently, this place is a kind of public sharing zone. You come, buy, and sell anything you want. Some people come here to spectate some shows as well," Arima said to Lanya when they had found some peace.

Lanya's eyes brightened and she started to wander around the place. She glanced at some stalls, then stopped at one of them. She picked a small pendant which depicted some really pretty dragon wings.

"Can I get this for master?" She turned toward Arima and asked.

Arima smiled and shrugged, "Do as you wish. I'm sure he'll be happy."

Lanya nodded and bought the pendant from the seller. It apparently cost a white silver which almost made Arima choke. He even contemplated if they were being scammed but he didn't want to raise a commotion and Lanya seemed to be happy nonetheless. He didn't want to spoil the mood and additionally, she seemed to be completely uncaring of the price tag.

Well, after all, Arima had plundered the treasuries of two countries. He was freaking rich and had already given her a bit of it before.

A few minutes later, while Arima and Lanya were walking and discussing together, they heard a loud noise spreading through the whole plaza. When they looked over at the source, they spotted a big and fancy carriage that was surrounded by a large mob.

That carriage was around a kilometer away from Arima, but the latter inspected it as if it was right in front of his nose. He distinguished a family crest on the carriage and his eyes widened.

"(That emblem… if I'm not wrong, it's this city's…)" Arima's thoughts were interrupted by a sudden burst of auras in the crowd. Killing intent was mixed in them and appeared to be directed at the carriage.

Watching this scene, Arima grinned, "Well, well… isn't this a very~ interesting thing?"