Rupture: Rise of the Demon King by Milo Woods Read Free Book Online Page B

into Seeko, judging. He paced around his study before approaching the table. A long breath escaped his mouth as he stopped before Seeko.
    “Our hero, and yet you fail to meet my expectations. And from what I hear, you refuse help from Tenumi. I should have known that you were a false hope.”
    “It’s not my fault. I didn’t want to get into a fight with Yoshino. I just wanted answers.”
    “You need more training,” the emperor said, not listening to Seeko’s words, it seemed. “That’s the only way to make you into a hero.”
    Seeko slumped in his chair and crossed his arms. “What good will that do me? It doesn’t seem to help when it comes to fighting for real.”
    Physis paused for a moment. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea. You need real experience … a sort of field training.” He seemed pleased at the thought.
    “Uh … What do you mean by ‘field training’?”
    Physis sat down and wrote on a piece of paper. “Until you learn magic, you will go around, doing errands for the castle or fixing problems for the townspeople. You will still go through training, but we will free some time for this.”
    Seeko’s eyes lit up. He would be able to leave the castle again. He grinned and nodded. “Okay, anything to make me into the hero you expect.”
    The emperor looked up at Seeko when he said that and gave him a sly look. “This is your first assignment,” he said as he slid the paper over to Seeko.
    Seeko pulled the paper over and read it aloud. “‘Dispatch a group of bandits that have been stealing supplies from nearby caravans.’” He looked up, no longer happy. “This isn’t what I was hoping for.”
    “It’s not the punishment you deserve; it’s the one you need,” a pleased Physis said. “You will leave tomorrow. Once you’ve either completed or failed this task, we will see if another task is necessary.”
    Seeko got up, clutching paper in hand. “Fine, have it your way.” He moved to the door and opened it.
    “Oh, and I think I’m going to have Mori help you with this. She seems to get along with you and is skilled with a blade,” Physis said as he stood up. “This way, I can make sure that you don’t run off and get yourself killed.”
    Seeko frowned and left. Of course Mori had to be involved.
    The emperor called after him. “I’ll have Mori brief on your mission tomorrow before you leave!”
    / / / / /
    The soft noise of knocking awoke Seeko. He opened one eye and saw that the sun was not even up yet. It’s too early … He closed his eyes and rolled over.
    A voice came from the other side of the door. “Seeko? Are you ready?” The handle creaked and the door came open. “I was sent to get you …”
    Seeko groaned. “Go away, Mori.”
    He felt a pressure on his bed. “Come on, we need to leave.”
    He reopened his eyes, and saw Mori sitting way too close to him.
    “Get away …” he mumbled.
    His protests went ignored. Mori smiled and touched him. She laughed, a soft, sweet harmony. “Wake up, grumpy.”
    Seeko rose slowly. After a moment, he became aware that he wasn’t wearing a shirt and that Mori was staring at him.
    “Get out!” Seeko said. “I’m not going to change with you in here.”
    “Why?”
    Seeko flushed a little. “What? Get out! You’re not supposed to be here! I would do the same for you!”
    Mori looked crestfallen. “You would?” She gave him a soft stare, reminiscent of a puppy dog.
    He rolled his eyes. “Leave! It’s embarrassing!”
    She sighed. “Fine.”
    With that, she got up and soon Seeko was alone. However, she still floated in his mind, a crazy invader watching, judging .
    Before long, Seeko was dressed in his Irenic white and blue and was ready to go. He strapped on the short-sword that Kazuma had given him and then slung his training bow over his shoulder. He placed a small quiver of about ten arrows around his right thigh. Seeko stopped and looked at the weapons he carried. No more training. This was real.
    He exited