One Eyed Ghoul Rebirth

The smell of blood filled his nostrils from every angle, originating from the figurative 'floor' of corpses around him. These corpses were once a large group of monsters that had been terrorising a nearby village, constantly raiding it for its supplies, killing any who stood in their way. Sometimes they would capture the female villagers there and bring them here… for purposes he'd rather not explain.

His eyes narrowed when there was a faint sound of breathing nearby. It was so quiet that if he were 'normal' then he wouldn't have heard it, as another monster crept up from below a corpse. However, a quick SCULUCK from one of his weapons put an end to the monster's life before it could even come out of hiding. "Fool…" he whispered under his breath, shaking his head at the stupidity of his most recent prey while he turned on his heels as he proceeded to head out. "You couldn't ever have surprised someone like me. The true monster of this world, the apex predator of man."

By now you're wondering who I am, right? Well let me enlighten you.

My name is Nico, no last name. As a 16-year, old male in the world known as Gamindustri, I lead an interesting life, hunting down monsters, ripping them apart with my weapons and generally being a freaking badass. I get to hunt monsters because I'm with the Guild, or to be more specific a 'Spec Ops' Agent. The Guild is an organisation that is spread across the 4 Nations of Gamindustri, Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee, and Leanbox. It receives and gives quests to those that are either partially registered or fully registered as Guild Agents.

Those who are partially registered are the adventurers that you see around every so often. Depending on their skill level and resume, they can hunt a variety of different monsters and take on different quests. There wasn't much out this that was note-worthy though, the real juicy details reside with becoming full-fledged agents of the Guild. Now if one is a Guild Agent they have more responsibility to the Guild than just taking quests, they must take part in specific quests when called for, and have special passes that allow them to travel freely throughout the other nations. In a sense, they're just like extra-glorified mercenaries, and come in a variety of forms. Seriously there was one agent who looked like a kid but was in her thirties. Yeesh, never assume a girl's age right off the bat unless you want to be kicked where the sun doesn't shine.

Finally, there's the 'Spec-Ops' agents of the Guild, and boy are they cool. If you wanna be a badass, fulfil the criteria, take the exams, and join these guys. They are the definition of badassery, not only can they do the same things as regular agents, but they can potentially access the weapons development department, who have them test out the prototype versions of the weapons they supply to the military. Usually they're grade A material, and those that are faulty don't impact the Agen't performance, unlike regular agents. Regular Guild Agents, adventurers, the like, anyone can take the exam so long as they meet the criteria to becoming a Spec Ops. Spec Ops Agents are significantly more skilled than regular agents, have better weapons, better armour, and can deal a whole load of pain to the enemies while taking on the phone. Seriously, this one guy in a red and black spandex fought off 100 of the fastest monsters around… while talking on the phone. That's the DEFINITION of badass.

And I am one of them.

Most Agents, normal or Spec Ops, have either weird titles or codenames, and I am no exception. My Codename is DEATHSTROKE, and I got it from this special deployable armour I have, given to me by the Weapons Development Department (WDD). This armour is made of a metal called 'Nth Metal' and underneath this armour there is an extra form of protection called chainlink mail, with extra armour plates over the body made of Promethium. Aside from my weapons, this armour is a favourite of mine, aside from a special Mask I can use, and it even has regenerative properties! How cool was that?

When I haven't got my badass armour on, I merely look like a lean built male of 5 foot 8, with gravity defying red hair like a certain copy ninja from a certain village, and light blue coloured eyes. My attire is a black trench coat with a high collar and a red pulsating interior, a pair of black fingerless gloves on my hands, a grey polo shirt, a pair of grey coloured camp pants and black military boots. Strapped to my hips are a pair of black leather holsters, another one just below the back of my waist, and one last holster strapped diagonally across my back. On my forearms are a pair of grey wrist bracers which have their own functions, though when my Armour is deployed they merge with the forearm parts, so it looks like I have a pair of interfaces on my forearms.

… Huh? What, you wanna know more? Haven't I told you enough? Let's just read the story.

Nico arrived at Planeptune, the Nation that he had been his home for the last 4 years. The city was just as breath-taking as it usually was, and even now he could never get used to seeing it on the horizon every time he returned from a job. The buildings were tall and futuristic looking, with various pieces of tech floating about. Some of them had solar panels installed on the roofs, while the government buildings had holographic screens with adverts for various products on their sides. There was a mostly white with a little purple colour scheme going about, but Nico didn't mind.

The male Spec Ops Agent went to the Guild where he proceeded to hand in the quests he had taken for the day. Judging by the sun's position he had guessed that it was 5PM, he had only an hour left until he had to meet a friend of his. While he navigated the Guild, Nico scanned the surroundings, watching all the other agents, both normal and Spec-Ops, along with the Adventurers, mingling about talking with each other or doing their jobs like he was. An environment like this was something that Nico felt at home in, even if Planeptune wasn't his original nation, although he would get to that later readers.

Glancing to the clock, Nico saw that he had about 20 minutes before he had to head out to meet his friend. 'Man, I can't wait, that girl definitely knows how to cook. If someone ends up marrying her then breaking her heart I'll skin them alive to hell with the consequences…' he thought to himself about to leave the building. But before he could get to the door…

"Ugh, can you let me through please? I got stuff to do, so beat it!"

"Why rush about, little lady? Come with us and we'll show you how to really have fun."

Turning to the source, Nico was greeted by the sight of 2 Guild Agents standing before a young fair skinned girl. He couldn't get a good look at them because their backs were turned, but it was evident that these guys were harassing her, evident from their posture and the irritation rolling off the girl in waves. Nico groaned in disappointment as he saw this, "ugh, people like them give Guild Agents a bad name. I'll go in and see what's up, step in if necessary…" he muttered under his breath while walking to the commotion.

"I said no already, assholes, I'm just doing my job!"

"Whoa, this one is feisty! My favourite type of gal!"

"C'mon, come with us, I'll be a blast. You'll enjoy it way more than your boring old job."

Now he was sensing the urge to kill in the air, and it came from the girl. Her hands were twitching, and Nico could tell that she was seconds away from taking out whatever weapons she had on her at this moment in time and showing these idiots just what they were dealing with. Nico would have liked to see that those two now that he was close enough to get a good look were 2 of the 'troublesome' Agents that cause a ruckus with the female agents and adventurers. They're the kind of males that gave his gender a bad name, it made him feel like it was his duty to rein those idiots in and give them a much-needed reality check.

"Hey, degenerates!" Nico's loud voice boomed, catching the attention of the two male agents and the girl. He didn't bother getting a description of her as his attention were on her harassers. Said men, whom wore all black getups, turned and glared at him like gangsters as they marched up to him, "huh? Who the hell are you, punk?" one of them sneered, their hands in their pockets. They were at least 6 feet, a little taller than him, but Nico wasn't intimidated, not in the slightest as he stared them dead in the eye.

With a blank, emotionless voice, Nico spoke, "leave the girl alone, she doesn't have time to be babysitting a pair of frail apes like yourselves." His insult made both men angry as evident by their reddening faces, while the girl behind them just let out a small smirk. She was clearly amused by this, and that made him feel glad. Happy to help. Meanwhile, one of the men went to draw one of his weapons which happened to be a knife. "Wha?! What you say ya punk?! Say that again, I dare-!"

Whatever gibberish he was going to say next was cut off when, faster than a bullet, both of Nico's arms shot froth and grabbed them by their faces, slamming them into each other with enough force to knock them unconscious. The two men fell to the flop like sacks of trash, pained groans escaping their lips while swirl markings replaced their eyes signalling that they were out cold.

"Phew, that's over with…" Nico remarked, purging his gloved hands by wiping them on his open Trench Coat. Dealing with idiots like them wasn't always so simple, some of them were skilled Spec Ops agents who required effort to take down a peg, which went to show how there were always idiots everywhere. It's what made Nico so careful of who he associated with. 'Now to check on the girl…'

As Nico faced the girl he had helped, the male waved a single hand while the other was put in one of his Trench Coat's pockets, "yo, you alright Mrs…" he began, before his eyes settled on the girl and he took in her appearance. Her skin was, as previously stated, fair in skin tone, with brown hair that reached her waist in length. Her hair had many bangs that covered her forehead, and there was a green leafy bow within it. Her eyes matched the colour of her leaf bow, and she wore a blue Trench Coat with brown fur on the trims of the sleeves, as well as along the bottom. There was a ring of phones around the waistline, each a different colour and make. Several areas had white highlights, just like her matching dark blue tank top and shorts. On her feet, she wore a pair of boots that matched her Trench Coat.

"IF. And yeah, I'm fine. It's nice to meet you." She replied as the two shook hands. Casting a glance at the unconscious males, the girl, IF, spoke in a grateful tone, "thanks for the assist, but I could have taken them by myself." She told him. Nico nodded his head in agreement, his other hand going into his other pocket. "I know. By that KI I sensed before stepping in, I bet your pretty skilled." He remarked, before he recognised this girl before him. Her name, appearance and demeanour reminded him of a file he had once read, "IF, IF… could you by any chance be the 'Wind walker of Gamindustri?'"

At the mention of that title, IF nodded, practically beaming at being recognised, "yep, the one. I'm just a simple wind blowing through Gamindustri like a breeze." She replied, pride in her tone at her nickname. Nico smirked at this, he could tell she found her nickname to be a great source of accomplishment in, "heh, figured. I read a file a while back saying how you were on the top rankings for number of quests completed. Your record matches that of the Spec Ops, despite not being one." he complimented.

His compliment, much to his confusion, had caused the brunette to flush slightly in embarrassment. The girl chuckled while rubbing the back of her head nervously, "hehehe, feels kinda cool knowing the word's going around." She commented, her eyes filled with a sheepish gleam in them. Then, her eyes blinked as her arm fell to the side, her mind registering what he had said completely which resulted in her jaw becoming slack. "Huh? Is there something wrong?" Nico questioned, a sudden concern filling him as he saw what had happened to the brunette. Did she have a sudden surge of illness that he wasn't aware of? Was she reminded about something traumatic that happened in her past or on a previous guild Quest maybe?

The answer was revealed to be neither of those things when IF shot out of her stupor and looked at him like he was something she'd only seen for the first time, "hey your one of them aren't you? The infamous DEATHSTROKE, right?" she queried, a notable trait of curiosity in her words. The male found himself taken aback by this sudden change in demeanour, and it showed on his face. "Uh… yeah?"

His answer served to send her into a state of shock as she stumbled back, as if in disbelief over something as she put her hand over her forehead. "Oh geez, just what I needed. I get harassed after a difficult quest and now I meet DEATHSTROKE? Seriously? I mean, sure you guys are tough and all, but um…" she stammered, soon losing the ability to form words as she lost herself in her own little world.

Her eyes went into an expression of realisation as she quickly cleared her throat, regaining her composure with an embarrassed look on her face. "u-uh sorry ab-about that. Just had a hard day is all…" she stuttered, smirking embarrassingly. She could hear several Guild Agents chuckle quietly behind them, which only made her feel worse. She couldn't believe she had lost it like that, she should have been more composed than this. But what was worse was that she couldn't help it, this guy had caught her with her figurative pants down. She'd just finished a Quest that revolved slaying a ton of hard monsters and just now had to deal with several of the scum of the Guild. Why they still worked here was beyond her. Plus, with the things she had heard about this Spec Ops Agent, IF was inclined to feel a little embarrassed, although it didn't decrease her gratitude towards him for the moment.

"No need, I get it…" he replied, and really, he did. After all, being a Spec Ops meant more than just taking difficult quests, they had to take those quests daily, more often than a regular agent. Plus, with the way things were going with the monsters and how they were getting increasingly bolder with their actions, it would only be a matter of time before the Guild Agents would be called in more often than their contracts tell them too. Worse is, that the Contracts they sign state that in such cases of emergency they were obliged to work overtime, without extra pay of course. "It doesn't help that those guys are used to having Fangirls #shudder# around them like they're some sort of gods. One I can think of as worse is FLASH."

IF remembered that Spec Ops agent, and the fangirls he had all over the four nations. She had to repress a shiver as memories surfaced in her mind of when she had seen some of them in action. "Yeah, well most guys are idiots like that, but those fangirls don't exactly help matters any." Both shivered as horrible memories formed in their minds of their past experiences with the horror known as fangirls.

Idly, Nico's instincts made him glance at the clock, and boy was he glad he did because the time told him he didn't have much time to spare if he wanted to get to his appointment. "Shoot!" the male frowned as he turned to head out, "I have to go, I got an appointment with an old friend of mine." He told her, rushing to the entrance to the Guild Hall. But just before he could reach for the handle, the male stopped, and looked down for a second.

Turning to IF, the male gave her a small smile as he saluted with 2 fingers, "maybe we'll meet again someday, IF. I have a feeling you'll be going far in life, and I always trust my gut. Cheerio's for now!" he called out, before heading out to go meet his friend. He didn't wanna be late for his meeting with his friend, no sir not when he hadn't seen his friend for so long.

Back with IF, the brunette blinked to herself, momentarily surprised by the sudden exit, "Man, that was a hasty exit…" she commented to herself, "though through that conversation, he didn't once let down his guard. He was always ready to react the first sign of danger. I guess that's understandable considering who he is, assassins must like to target him, along with… fangirls. Seriously, why do they always have to be the bane of everyone's existence?" the girl wondered to herself, an irritated growl coming out of her throat.

IF didn't like how there were so many who would grovel at the feet of those who were popular, it looked so demeaning and insulative to both them and the fangirls themselves. She hoped that when her reputation as Gamindustri's wind walker finally caught on she wouldn't have to deal with that crap.

"But maybe he's right, maybe we will meet again someday…" she mused, pondering that thought for a single, brief, moment before she dismissed those thoughts and walked away, intending to just continue her day.

Nico travelled the streets of Planeptune, heading towards the outskirts which were also a residential are. His friend lived in that area last time he had checked, and according to his research Nico hadn't seen his friend move from that spot in the records. He doubted she would though even if there was a mass monster attack, considering how she had lived in that house since she was a little girl with her grandfather. Ever since her grandfather was put in a home, his friend had fought tooth and nail to remain here. She may be shy and timid, but she could be just as stubborn when she had something she wanted to do.

Compared to deeper within the City of Planeptune, the outskirts were much more urban, a lacking shop that sold the more sought-after items meaning that those who live here must go into the city itself. The outskirts, in comparison, were more of a residential area, disturbing of the nature around them. Some people preferred this kind of lifestyle, and Nico knew that his friend would be the same. After all, she had lived this kind of life since she was little, plus it reminded her of her childhood memories with her grandfather.

Walking down the dirt path, Nico glanced at the houses which had a more urban design than the futuristic buildings within Planeptune's centre. They retained the same colour scheme save for a select few, which were customised to fit the specifications of their tenants. His eyes shifted along each one till they landed on one house that sparked lots of memories in his mind.

It was a 2-story house, with light cream coloured walls, and a dark brown rooftop. The windows were a matching colour, with a nice garden filled with well-maintained flowers. There was a chimney on top that was releasing smoke, not too much like Lastation's factories did, and this smoke had a certain smell to it. The smell whiffed into his nostrils, and the male had to cringe to himself. The sudden urge to throw up rose in his chest, threatening to overwhelm his senses.

'Ugh! Looks like someone's been cooking…' he thought to himself. Barely he fought the urge down, regaining his composure enough to mask the inner disgust that the smell of food brought him. It was a sad fact, but a 'condition'; he had made him unable to eat human food. He didn't remember how it had happened, but one day he woke up, and when he tried to get a sandwich the moment it touched his lips he felt like he was ingesting someone else's vomit.

Fortunately, nobody knew about it, not even his closest friend whom he was visiting right now. He didn't have parents, though he did used to. His parents disappeared when he was young, and their will decreed that he be left with his friend's Grandfather since he was an old friend of theirs. The male had met the man's granddaughter when they were kids, and at first, she was too shy to get near him. But that all changed with a certain incident…

Before he could finish the thought, Nico found himself at the front door of the house. It was coloured a brilliant maroon, well maintained as if it had been made only yesterday. It accompanied the sensation of homeliness and family that no other house could do much more. A small smile crossed onto his face, a sense of joy and happiness to finally be here once again outweighing the mounting disgust in his stomach. 'Ahhh, it feels like it never changed at all since I last saw it…' he thought to himself, a sigh of content being released from his lips.

Slowly he reached for the handle at the top of the door, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves. He hadn't seen his friend in a long time, and was wondering what had changed for her. He hoped that she hadn't changed too much, Nico had always liked his friend for how cheerful and kind she had been when she was a kid. Although, he didn't miss the times she would try to give him his… #shudder# shots. It wasn't he shots themselves that scared him but the syringe that she used. I was both her medical appliance and her tool for fighting, fortunately she kept it well cleaned throughout her time using it otherwise she wouldn't have been so well-off as she had hoped to be.

Once he had gathered his courage, Nico muttered to himself, "be a man, Nico, be a man. Your DEATHSTROKE, its below you to be afraid to see the friend that you haven't seen in 4 years. You can do this…" he told himself, but still the nervousness didn't go away. He guessed that was to be expected honestly, considering how long it had been since they had seen each other. While he had kept in contact with her, boy would he ever drop the contact he had with her, Nico never directly saw her for those 4 years.

Finally, Nico grasped the handle and rattled it for a few seconds. He knew that SHE was home, considering the disgusting aroma that normal people would find delicious, so he wasn't worried about not seeing her. Shortly after, a bright smile formed on his face when he remembered a high pitched, yet still girly tone from a voice that had yelled out "coming!" before footsteps were heard.

'this is it boy, time to meet your childhood friend…'

The door's knob turned from the other side as the door itself opened. When he saw, who was on the other side, his breath was literally stolen away from him. There, standing in front of him was a fair skinned girl with cream coloured hair and eyes, a black headband with a C logo on top of her head holding back her hair from getting into her face. She wore a woolly sweater with detached sleeves that were rolled backwards at the wrists, exposing her shoulders to the world. She wore a red checkered skirt around her waist with a hip purse that had the same logo as her headband, black stockings with a pink love heart trim and woolly low-heeled boots that matched her sweater in colour.

'holy shit, she looks fucking gorgeous!' Nico thought to himself in awe. The girl took one look at him and gave a gasp, holding her hand over her mouth in her shock. There was a short silence between them, one that Nico found awkward, especially with how the girl was. "u-uh… he-hey Compa, it's me, Nico. How are you doing?" he asked with an awkward smile, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

His comment seemed to snap the girl he called Compa out of her funk, as her body language suggested, before her eyes began to glisten. "N-Ni-Ni… is that you?" she stuttered with shock and disbelief. She looked like she wasn't even believing that he was here, which Nico sort of understood but it did hurt a little inside. At least she remembered his old nickname she had given him when they were kids. 'Though how she came up with that name I'll never know. Compa wasn't ever good with names that had more than a few syllables, especially names. Though this has been a debate between me and her grandfather…' he thought to himself.

"NI-NI!"

Nico almost fell onto his back when the full weight of Compa's body fell onto him when she rammed him. Her arms flew around his back as she pressed her face into the base of his neck, squealing happily while repeatedly jumping up and down girlishly. His arms had instinctively wrapped around her back, one going to the back of her neck while the other was firmly attached to her waist. Fortunately for Nico he was strong enough to remain stable and not fall over. "It's you, you're really here! I thought you would no-show like a mean guy would breaking a poor maiden's heart!" she said through her squeals.

Hearing this, the male sweat dropped as he looked down at the girl in his arms. "you've been watching too many romantic dramas haven't you…?" he remarked with an unamused expression on his face, only to be rewarded with no response as the girl squealed some more. When she had calmed down which took a few seconds, Nico smiled warmly at her, a smile that he reserved only for those he was truly close to. "It's good to see you again, though Compa."

Looking up at him, Compa's face practically beamed as bright as the sun. it was almost blinding how much happiness she was radiating right now, he almost had to look away as if he were being blinded by her happiness, "yes, it's so good to see you too, Ni-Ni!" she replied cheerily. Then, her face became stern as her grip on him tightened, and for a girl of her size she was damn strong, Nico noticed. "Your late, mister!" she pointed out to him. Bringing one of her arms back around, she poked him in the chest with a finger, "it's important to keep on top of your appointments! That's what I learned first thing when I entered nursing school!"

'yeah, sorta figure, though things rarely go to plan…' Nico thought as he winced, remembering several times some of his Quests turned sour. Compa merely mistook it for something else though, so she didn't catch on. Quickly changing his expression so she wouldn't wise up, Nico chuckled nervously as he patted the back of his head, "yeah well, I would have gotten here sooner if I didn't have to do some things." He told her, remembering IF and how he had helped her out with those punks.

"What kind of things?" now curious, Compa tilted her head while asking that question with such a face that made it hard for Nico to resist her. She always had that 'Moe' factor down pat ever since she was a little girl. Hell, that was how she was able to get away with taking one extra cookie from her grandfather's cookie jar, her puppy dog eyes and pleading expressions mixed together was something that could cause 'death by cuteness'.

Barely though, Nico managed to regain control of his vocal faculties as he went to formulate a response, soon though he noticed that it was getting a little chilly. Not enough to warrant a shiver, but enough to allow his sensitive senses to notice it. He decided to use that in his response, "things that held me up, ya know like getting lost on the road of life, helping old women across the street…" alright now he could see the pouty face Compa was having, so Nico quickly salvaged what remained of his confidence, and spoke "so um, it's getting kinda chilly so can I come in?"

His question took a few seconds to register in Compa's mind, her brain working overtime to process what he was asking. When it was done, she quickly nodded with her cheery attitude returning to her face, "sure, come on in! I was just finishing off dinner, it's your childhood favourite: baked potatoes with veggies and gravy." She told him while turning on her heels and walking back inside the house. If she had remained a second longer she would have seen his grimace at the thought of his old time favourite meal. 'If I didn't have my condition, then that would have made my heart soar with joy…' he thought to himself with a bitter smile. Shaking his head to clear it of those thoughts, Nico went inside, closing the door behind him.

After entering, taking off his shoes and coat before hanging them on the rack beside the door, Nico and Compa were eating at the table in her Kitchen. Well, only Compa was eating while Nico himself struggled to keep himself from throwing up at how disgusting the food tasted to him. 'If I was normal than I'd have to admit that Compa was a wiz at cooking now. It only makes sense considering that she lives alone now… okay, that's slightly sadder than I intended, so I'll stop there.' He thought to himself.

Looking to Compa. Nico saw how happy his childhood friend was, and couldn't help but smile as well. In his mind, Nico felt glad that he could bring some measure of happiness to Compa's life tonight. Throughout the last 4 years the only time they had heard each other's voice was through phone calls, which wasn't as good as live conversation. They may have texted each other a lot to make up for the times where he couldn't call because of a Quest, but the best type of conversation was face-to-face.

On the off chance, Compa looked up and noticed that he was smiling at her. She sheepishly smiled back, 'Ni-Ni always has a nice smile…' she thought while starting a conversation, "something on your mind, Ni-Ni?" she asked him, taking a piece of a chopped potato from her plate with her fork and sending it into her mouth. Compa chewed several times and then swallowed the food, marvelling at how good it tasted. Food tasted better with good company in her opinion, and nothing beat eating with cherished friends especially ones she hadn't seen for a long time.

The male blinked when he registered his friend's question, before regaining his mental focus as he replied, "u-ugh, yes, well um, it's good to see you again, Compa. Work's been a real chore these last few weeks." He remarked with a frown.

Compa's face became troubled as she looked down at her food, remembering the recent crisis that was threatening Gamindustri not just Planeptune. "You mean the increased monster attacks, right? Because of them, school had to be closed down because the students kept getting taken during monster raids and eaten." She asked him, memories surfacing in her mind.

It was a source of concern for everyone, the recent rise in Monster activity. Gamindustri always had monsters, ever since the world first started, which was a time that nobody remembered due to it being trillions of years ago. However, it was only recently, as in the last few years, that Monster activity spiked drastically and they began to adopt a dangerously aggressive behaviour. They now attacked trade routes, convoys, minor settlements even the major city of Planeptune was sometimes targeted by the more dangerous of monsters. Because of the danger they posed, many things had to change to ensure public safety like the closing of schools and the promotion of indoor entertainment so kids didn't leave their houses to visit their friends, only to get munched on by a visiting monster.

The same events flashed through Nico's mind too, prompting him to clench his fists and grit his teeth in frustration and anger, "yeah, that about sums it up. The Guild's running the Spec-Ops Agents ragged with dangerous quests, at least B Rank and above Quests, sometimes we must hunt monsters which SERIOUSLY deviate from the norms. Some of them Compa give even the strongest of us nightmares." He explained, sending Compa into stunned silence as he remembered fighting such monsters. Even now just thinking of them sent chills down his spine.

"I see…" the cream haired girl mused, taking a cup of tea, she had poured and bringing it to her lips. "That's why you stopped calling and messaging me for 2 weeks. I was worried you had forgotten about me…" she muttered before sipping her tea with an expression of relief, worry and dejection all mixed into one heart wrenching package.

Hearing that Compa had thought that sent Nico's mind into overdrive, as he slammed his hands down onto the table with a furious expression on his face, "don't ever think that!" he yelled, shocking the girl as she let out an "eek!" in surprise, almost jumping out of her seat. "I would NEVER forget about you Compa, your one of the few good damn things I have, I could never do that to you, ever!"

After saying his piece, Nico was reduced to some heavy breathing, his body slightly fatigued from all that shouting. He didn't know why he had snapped like that, but it didn't change the fact that he was insulted that she would even think that he would forget about her. Though, Nico guessed he couldn't blame her, after all she didn't know just how much seeing her face, reading her texts, even hearing her voice brought a smile to his face every time he was out in the field. She was one of the few reasons why he fought as a Guild member at all.

Then, he came to the realisation that he had just yelled at his childhood friend, and his eyes became horror-struck as he quickly bent low into a bow, "I'm s-sorry, Compa, forgive me for yelling at you like that!" he stuttered in a panic. He didn't want one of the few reasons he fights hating him over something he had done by accident. It would have destroyed him otherwise.

Fortunately, Compa didn't seem to take offense to his actions, as she just waved her hands in a placating manner, "I-it's okay, really Ni-Ni. I shouldn't have doubted you for a moment. In any case, it's actually relieving that you yelled like that." She told him. This made Nico look up at her in curiosity, what did she mean by him yelling at her was relieving?

It seemed that she knew what he was wanting to ask, because she continued, "I mean, ever since we were kids you were always passionate in what you did, what you believed in. you protected me from bullies when they'd make fun of me for my timidness…" she looked down, blushing at the memories in her mind. "So, its relieving to see that you're still the same as you were back then."

Hearing her compliments caused a tinge of pink to form on Nico's cheeks, as he quickly turned his head to the side to avoid looking at the beaming Compa. 'goddamnit, that smile, that innocence! She's so bright, Compa's too bright!' he screamed in his mind, embarrassment flooding through his system like a flood. But what made it even worse was that her statements rang true, when they had met Compa had always been a shy, timid little girl who was scared to open her heart to others. At first, she wouldn't go near him when their parents were together, and he couldn't figure out why.

But then, when he discovered one day how she was always picked on because of her timid nature, that was when he flipped his lid. Nico had put a stop to those bullies, and kept doing so throughout their time together, always being there for Compa either as a shoulder to lean on for comfort, or to help her when she needed it. He supported her like a good friend would, though remembering it now made him feel so embarrassed, like any typical boy would. Though, Compa remained oblivious to his thoughts and dramatic reaction.

When Dinner was finally over, Nico excused himself from the table and left the kitchen. Once he was out of Compa's sight however, his movements made a complete 180, Nico quickly rushing up the stairs with a hand over his mouth, careful not to make a sound as to worry Compa, and went to the bathroom. Once there, like an animal in a panic, Nico swiftly dashed towards the toilet which was located on the opposite wall when one came into the bathroom, and fell onto its thankfully raised lid. The urge no longer could be contained, and as a result, Nico threw up the food she had cooked for him. it came out of him like a flood, making splattering sounds as it impacted the water and would likely leave a sickly smell when it was over. Though, Nico would make sure to clean up after himself so nobody would notice. It didn't take long, but it was a rather discomforting process that left him completely drained afterwards.

'Ugh, gross! I'm glad I held it in there, who knows what would have happened if I couldn't keep it together…' Nico thought, heaving heavily while his hands gripped the sides of the toilet. His eyes were wide, with his pupils shrunken to the size of dots as he struggled to recover from that nasty experience. Eventually, he weakly raised his arm to flush the toilet, not being able to stomach the sight of the vomit anymore.

Once it was gone, Nico slowly shifted till he was sitting on the ground with his back touching the tip of the Toilet, his breathing was ragged, coming in and out through drawn out gasps of air that his lungs clawed desperately for. the residue feeling of vomit burned at the back of his throat, yet he didn't feel like getting up from his position to get a drink of water to relieve the feeling. Honestly, with the things he'd seen and done, Nico felt that this feeling was oddly fitting for someone like him.

His head was looking down with his hair shadowing his eyes. Slowly, his breathing became even as he endured the feeling at the back of his throat. Nico then saw a brief image of Compa's happy, smiling face on the ground, before it vanished, a hallucination, he realised, making an empty chuckle escape his lips.

'it's okay… Compa… you don't need to know… THIS side of me… and I hope… you never do.'