The Next Mission

“Ahhh!” Kizou yelled as he got up. “Wait, where am I?”

He looked around and realized that he was brought into his room. He saw a table near him and saw that Ty had left him a letter.

Everyone is safe and no one was harmed. Unfortunately, the little girl was nowhere to be found. The contents of the letter read. Griselda managed to save us in time, and I heard that the announcer and his group are scheduled to be executed tomorrow. Geet has been feeling down as well since that day, I don’t know what the issue might have been.

Kizou read the contents of the letter and slammed his hand on the desk.  He put his hand over his eye and didn’t feel any significant side effects or any issues. He also couldn’t figure out who that girl must have been. Griselda even had to come and save him which made him even more annoyed. He got angrier after realizing how weak he was.

He ran straight towards the magic book under his bed and started reading more and more. Even though he wanted to get stronger himself, it didn’t mean that the magic book wouldn’t be useful. Besides, he wanted to learn a bit more about the magic the girl used. He named it “Realm Magic.”

Knock! Knock! The sound of someone banging on the door could be heard from Kizou’s bedroom.

“Get up! It’s time to go get dressed.”

Kizou got up out of bed and let out a huge yawn. It felt like he was getting further from learning magic which frustrated him. He thought that just having knowledge would be beneficial enough and put him near the level of Hell’s Group, but he couldn't even get the hang of magic. He ran towards the bathroom and started to put on his clothes for his upcoming mission. He wore a black robe with a white shirt underneath. He put on black pants along with black shoes. He strapped his sword at his waist and put on the Royal Crest on his right shoulder. He detested wearing the Crest.

As he walked towards the throne room, he saw two individuals already kneeling down by the King.

“Where have you been!?” yelled the King with pure anger in his eyes. “20 minutes have already passed, since you were supposed to be here.”

“I’m sorry, my King. I was woken up late,” announced Kizou after realizing that the maid woke him up late on purpose.

“There’s no room for excuses out here,” said the Queen with a look of disgust at her own son. “Besides, we had to clean up your little mess yesterday.”

Kizou didn’t dare reply to the comment made by the Queen.

“Next time you’re late, it won’t be just a warning,” said the King towards Kizou.

Kizou went next to the two individuals who didn’t seem to move an inch from their position. Kizou got on one knee and awaited the request by the King.

“There have been more human infiltrators within the Kingdom, so I want you three to go out and kill them,” said the King. “The previous scouts have not returned, so it’s safe to assume that they’re decent.”

“My King, why do we have to go out with this powerless demon?” asked one of the individuals with his head now tilted up towards the King. 

He had short brown hair and wore a white robe along with black pants. He was a few inches taller than Kizou. He wore a white mask that had holes etched for his eyes with the face of the mask showing someone who was angry. He wore an armband with the number 6 on it.

“Please excuse Naota’s comment, my King,” said the other individual as she put Naota’s head down. “We would be glad to take him along with us.” 

She had long brown hair and wore a white robe with black shorts. Her robe seemed small, but that might have been due to how her breasts were too small. She was probably twice the size of Kizou. She wore a white mask with holes etched for her eyes with the face of the mask showing someone who was laughing. She wore an armband with the number 5 on it.

“It’s okay Luna, I know how your little brother acts sometimes,” said the King as he let out a sigh. “Well now gather your things and embark on the journey to find these humans. Same rules apply, no survivors.”

“Yes, my King,” said all three of the individuals as they got up and left the throne.

As they exited out of the throne room, Naota rushed towards Kizou and grabbed him by his collar. He lifted Kizou up until they were face to face.

“I don’t care what the King says, you’re only going to be excess baggage for us on this journey,” said Naota.

“Don’t act all high and mighty with me, you do know that I’m in line of succession for the throne, right,” Kizou replied. 

He knew this was a lie, but he didn’t want to waver against one of the Hell’s Group members ever again. Naota’s mask was no joke either, it sent chills down Kizou’s body.

“In line of the throne? What a joke!” said Naota as he started to laugh. He pushed Kizou against the wall. “Now listen here, you’re going to listen to whatever I say when I say it. I’ll try to pay no mind to you going on this mission, but if you do anything that I don’t like, I’ll kill you on the spot.”

“Okay, Mr. Tough Guy, let’s relax for a bit,” said Luna with a calm tone as she separated Naota from Kizou. “A mission is a mission, so let’s just complete what we need to complete.” 

Luna seemed to finally calm Naota down as he ended up throwing Kizou to the floor and walking away.

“Thanks for the help, Luna,” said Kizou with a smile as he dusted off his clothes.

“That’s Number 5 to you,” said Luna without a change in her previous tone as she looked at Kizou.

“Yes, I’m sorry. Thank you, Number 5,” Kizou replied. The laughing face on her mask made it hard to tell if she was being kind or mocking hum.

Luna turned around and walked away leaving Kizou by himself.

Kizou watched her as she continued to walk down the hallway. He still made the mistake of trying to be friends with the Hell’s Group when there was no possible way of that happening. There was only one person besides Geet and Ty that made him feel welcomed in this Kingdom. He ran towards Mya’s room and knocked on her door.

“Stop knocking so loud!” yelled Mya as she walked towards the door. 

She opened up the door to find Kizou standing in front of her. She wore a pink gown and wore a pink hat that visibly displayed her young age.

“What’s up Kizou?” she asked while rubbing her eye with one hand.

“Oh nothing, I just wanted to see how you were doing,” said Kizou with a smile. 

He always loved how Mya was the only girl to ever say his name from everyone within the Kingdom. Geet and Ty didn’t count, because they were guys.

“Well, you kind of woke me up from my nap, so I could be better,” said Mya with a yawn. “So, are you prepared for your mission?”

“Yeah, more or less. I’m teaming up with Naota and Luna,” replied Kizou with a sigh.

“Ahh, the brother and sister duo. Sounds like you’ll be in for a treat,” Mya said with a small chuckle.

“What? What’s so funny?” Kizou asked.

“It’s a rumor, but I’m pretty sure Naota is a Siscon,” said Mya as she couldn’t contain her laughter anymore.

“No way! You’re lying,” said Kizou with his mouth wide open.

“You didn’t hear it from me!” said Mya as she continued to laugh.

“That’s a surprise though, she has a flat chest just like you,” replied Kizou without realizing what he just said.

“You’re so funny,” Mya said as she hit Kizou over the head with an angry expression.

“I was joking, you know I find you to be the most beautiful girl in all the Kingdom,” said Kizou trying to recover from his mistake.

“Yeah, yeah. I hear that everyday,” said Mya with a sigh.

“Most beautiful girl in the world actually! Even though I haven’t been to the Human Kingdom,” replied Kizou.

“You’d definitely find prettier girls out there,” said Mya.

“You’ve been out there?!” exclaimed Kizou with his eyes wide open.

“Yeah, I went out there for a mission before I joined the Hell’s Group. It was a scouting mission,” replied Mya.

“Is it true that the place is similar to ours? Are the people nice there? Are there inventions over there that aren’t like the ones here?” Kizou asked. He never knew that Mya actually went out to the Human Kingdom, so his fascination with her stories arose.

Mya invited him inside, and she started telling him all the stories. She told him stories of the buildings and shops there, and she even told him of some of her interactions within the Human Kingdom. From her stories, it seemed like humans were nicer than what the Demon Kingdom put them out to be.

“But why do we have to continue fighting if they’re like that?” asked Kizou with full curiosity.

“That’s just how the world works Kizou, but even I wonder about that sometimes,” replied Mya.

“Well I’m going to change it! I’m going to become King and build relationships with everyone. It doesn’t matter whether they’re strong or weak, I want everyone to be able to enjoy their time together,” announced Kizou. “And you’re going to help me!”

“And how am I going to do that?” asked Mya to entertain him some more.

“You’re going to become the Queen,” said Kizou with a smirk.

Mya bursted out laughing and punched Kizou. Kizou regained his breath and started laughing as well. Mya was the only one that he enjoyed talking to about almost anything. He could talk to her about the Demon Kingdom as well as the Human Kingdom alike. That’s when Kizou realized this dream should actually happen.

“I’m gonna ask you something right now,” said Kizou with full determination.

“Oh?” replied Mya as she finally recovered from her laughing.

“After I come back from this mission, will you go on a date with me?” asked Kizou.

“Go on a date with you?” Mya started to laugh hard again until she saw Kizou with a face of pure red. “Oh, you’re serious?”

Kizou nodded his head down rapidly.

“Kizou, I told you that I’m 8 years old and you're 5 years old. We’re teacher and student,” said Mya with a stern look.

“Then what about when I come back, we hold a graduation ceremony for me. This will move us on from teacher and student! If I beat you, you have to go out with me and give me a kiss,” said Kizou with his eyes wide open. He knew it was a gamble, but it was a gamble he was willing to take.

“Whoa, whoa! You went from saying that we’re going on a date to officially going out, and then giving a kiss,” said Mya. She continued to look at Kizou whose face was still red but full of determination.

“Fine then, it was kind of dumb anyways-”

“It’s a deal then,” replied Mya with her face down.

“Wait, are you serious?” Kizou hopped out of his chair and started celebrating. He ran towards the door and turned around. “I’ll see you after this mission then!”

Kizou ran down the halls celebrating. His depressive state changed in an instant after realizing the reward he was going to receive after coming back from this mission. On the other hand, Mya finally lifted her face up which was red from the embarrassment that just occurred.

Kizou started heading out to the castle gates to meet up with Naota and Luna. As he started walking, he could hear sounds coming from the barracks. He knew it must’ve been the younger generation training.

Whenever a demon is born with horns, they’re automatically subjugated to training from their 3rd year until their 6th year to bring out the extent of their powers at the barracks. Afterwards, they participate in a graduation ceremony where they will be able to participate in missions to glorify the Kingdom. The results of the mission determine whether they’re fit to graduate or not. If they don’t graduate, they would go to the only school within the Kingdom where they take classes as well as train. This was created by Number 1 of the Hell’s Group when he was still in the Kingdom.

However, Kizou had special privileges due to being royalty, but there were also rumors that he might’ve been allowed to go on missions for a different reason. There were rumors stating that it would be an embarrassment to allow a demon without a horn to attend the academy, but there were even darker rumors that the Royal Family wouldn't mind if he died out on missions.

“I can’t hear you!” yelled the instructor to the students. 

He had short black hair, and wore a white robe and black pants. He wore a white mask that had holes etched for his eyes with the face of the mask showing someone who was scared. Even with the mask on, it was easy to see that he was older as his beard could be seen. He wore an armband with a number 4 on it.  He was no longer number 4, but he kept it there.

“One, two, one, two!” said the students in unison as they started punching the wooden dummies placed in front of them.

One of the boys who was at least 4 year olds fell on the floor and was breathing heavily. The instructor walked up to him.

“Ryuga, you better get up now. How is someone who can’t even keep up with wooden dummies supposed to help the Kingdom?!” yelled the instructor.

“I’m sorry, Instructor Hiro! I’m just too tired and don’t have the ability to keep up.”

“So you think you have the privilege to relax compared to everyone else?” asked Hiro calmly. He placed his hand on Ryuga’s head and patted it.

“No, you’re right. I’ll try harder,” said Ryuga as he got up and brushed the dirt off his pants.

“Good boy, now get back to sparring,” said Hiro.

Kizou looked over at them and started reminiscing about how his old training days were even though it was just last year. It just consisted of him either knowing what was being taught, or the instructors not caring about how he was learning. He was also used as the punching bag during sparring which made him hate his training days more. 

However, things started to change once Mya became his instructor which is another reason why he believes she was his savior. In his class, there were 4 other students who graduated along with him and have already been on more missions than Kizou. He never built a relationship with them even though they were the same age as him. This made it even more embarrassing for Kizou, since Griselda had to rescue them.

Kizou continued to walk by the barracks, and Hiro looked towards Kizou. Kizou flinched without knowing how to react and looked away in an instant.

“Trash.”

Kizou looked towards Hiro, but he wasn’t there anymore. He let out a deep sigh and continued on his way to the main gates where the sounds of the students grunting started to fade away. As he continued walking, he saw Geet sulking right outside of the barracks. He thought it was as good of a time as any to have a talk with him.

“Yo Geet, what are you doing over here?” Kizou said as he waved towards him.

“Oh, hey Kizou,” Geet replied as he seemed to fidget with his fingers.

“What’s wrong, Geet? Why do you look like they just gave you vegetables instead of a boar to eat?” Kizou said to hopefully calm Geet down.

“Imagine if it was a carrot!” Geet exclaimed as he grabbed Kizou by the shoulders.

“Orange body and green stem on the top, just the way I like it,” Kizou said with a chuckle.

“You’re so gross!” Geet replied as he let go of Kizou and started laughing.

Kizou laughed as well until quietness filled the atmosphere between the two. Geet continued fidgeting with his finger before he let out a loud sigh.

“Ughhhh,” Geet groaned out. “I’m not as strong as you and Ty.”

Kizou looked at Geet and let him vent out his frustrations.

“I managed to get my hands on the blue liquid from one of the merchants within the Kingdom, and I was told that it would get me stronger,” Geet said as tears started formulating from his eyes.

Wait, a merchant? Kizou thought to himself. Wasn’t it the humans who had the blue liquid?

“I don’t want to be a burden. It seems that you and Ty are always moving ahead, while I’m moving backwards,” Geet said as tears fell down his eyes.

Kizou stood still without saying a word at all as he knew Geet must’ve been holding in all this pressure placed on him.

“I took the drink, because it was the only way for me to catch up to both of you. In the end, it worked against us, Ty got injured, and you had to be carried back,” Geet said as he fell on both knees and put his hands to his teary face.

Kizou walked over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder.  Moments like these is where words aren't the best choice.

“I won’t take the liquid again, I promise,” Geet replied as he continued crying.

“It’s okay,” Kizou answered. “It’s okay.”

Geet continued to press his hands to his face.

“Ty and I don’t mind how you are,” Kizou replied. “You’re our precious comrade, and we wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.”

Geet sniffled in the snot that drizzled down his nose and looked up at Kizou.

“If you ever need our help, you can call on us! I hope it’s the same when I need help, because I’ll be relying on you too,” Kizou said with a smile as he looked at Geet.

“You know, you’re too mature for a 5 year old,” Geet said with a chuckle.

“You’re so funny, aren’t you?” Kizou replied as he hit him over the head.

“Thank Kizou, you know that I’ll be there in a flash if there’s trouble,” Geet replied.

“That’s more like it,” Kizou answered as he stuck out his fist. Geet pounded his fist and gave Kizou a big hug.

Is the blue liquid in the Kingdom?  Kizou worriedly thought to himself.  I better find the source when I come back from my mission.

“Okay, enough of that,” Kizou said as he pushed Geet off. As they stood laughing with one another, footsteps could be heard running towards them.

“Kizou!” Ty yelled as he ran as fast as he could.

“Geez, what now?” Kizou answered as he turned around.

“Good luck on your mission!” Ty yelled out as he gave Kizou a big hug as well.

“Enough! Why are you both giving me hugs like that?” Kizou groaned as he pushed them off. “Well, I gotta go now, so I don’t get in trouble.”

“We’ll see you later!” Ty and Geet yelled out as Kizou walked away from them. As he was fully out of their sights, the atmosphere changed drastically.

“You heard that this mission was supposed to be the one, right?” Ty asked Geet with a serious tone.

“Yeah,” Geet replied.

“Well, you know what we have to do then?” Ty asked.

“Yeah,” Geet answered.

With the quietness between the two of them, even the sounds of the leaves could be heard falling from the trees.