12. Sigils

Vi's explanation about the Sigils made everyone anxious and not just because there were no refunds. If you couldn't choose the Sigil for yourself, who says that you will get what you want?

She explained that the three most common Sigils were the "Warrior", "Marksman" and "Mage". These Sigils could be upgraded up to level 10, where they would evolve into another Sigil. In theory, there were an infinite number of possibilities for what a Sigil could evolve into, as the whole change was based on the bearer's personality and soul.

"Let's say, if you're really into killing people, you'll probably become a Brute. You can't level up as a Warrior anymore, but your Sigil will evolve and now you can put ten levels into being a Brute. You can evolve your Sigil as many times as your soul allows. That's like, one-hundred at max, but most people can't go above seventy."

This sounded much friendlier than being locked into one path. Even if you get a Sigil you don't like, you can make it evolve into something that's a better fit for you.

Naomi didn't want to waste any more time. He hopped into the tattoo bed with enthusiasm, the complete opposite of whatever Vi was feeling.

"I want to be first!" He smiled like a little boy on Christmas eve.

"Alright. Where do you want your Sigil?"

"On the back of my hand! I know I was destined to get a special Sigil and I want everyone to see my uniqueness!"

He had a smug smile on his cheeks, which made Pepon incredibly angry.

Vi didn't care about any of that. She took her tattoo gun, closed her eyes and began painting the boy's hand.

Naomi's excitement quickly disappeared as the needle touched his skin. He wiggled around in his chair, groaning in pain.

"Done."

It took Vi less than a minute to finish painting Naomi's sigil. It appeared as a simple circle on the back of his left hand.

"Woah! It's a circle! What do circles mean? Is it something unique?"

"No. You're a common Mage. Next!"

Stevie sat onto the bed. He was anxious about the needle and the pain it might bring. After seeing Naomi struggle so much, his fears grew to an even greater extent.

"Where do you want it?" Vi asked, devoid of any emotions.

"W-Where does it hurt the least?"

"Forearm and legs."

"I don't want others to see my tattoo and think I'm a delinquent so… Please put it on my leg!"

Vi pulled up his pants and tattooed onto the back of his lower legs. She finished in a few seconds and pulled away.

Stevie was confused.

"W-When do we begin?"

"It's already over."

"Huh? I didn't feel anything at all…"

This surprise was followed by another when he realized that his Sigil was unique. It was a simple, horizontal line.

"Congratulations, kid. Yours is a Scout Sigil. It's not too uncommon, but it's still unique."

Stevie left the chair feeling enthusiastic, much to Naomi's displeasure.

While this was happening, Gabriel had his back against the wall and his eyes on Suzuki. Every little gesture he made, every little breath, Gabriel took note of all of them.

Suzuki was the next who went for a tattoo. Vi reloaded her ink gun and approached the man.

"Where do you want it?"

"On the back of my neck, if you may."

Suzuki leaned forward and pulled aside his medium-length hair. Vi stood behind him, closed her eyes and began drawing with her gun.

As the needle descended onto Suzuki's skin, Gabriel began counting the time. He couldn't see what Vi drew on his back, so instead he tried to figure it out by measuring the time.

"Eight seconds… It can't be a simple line… Twelve seconds… It's not a circle… Then what is it?"

After reaching the thirty-second mark, it became apparent that Suzuki's Sigil was different than the two from before. This was something exciting for everyone else, but not for Gabriel. His frustration grew with every second that passed.

"Suzuki's Sigil must be pretty unique if it takes so long!"

"What were you expecting? After all, he is Suzuki!"

When they were finally done, Gabriel counted a hundred and twenty-eight seconds. That was far beyond anything he could figure out.

As soon as they were done, Suzuki stood up from the bed and walked next to the door. Vi was visibly confused by that.

"Don't you want me to tell what Sigil you got?"

Suzuki shook his head with a determined smile.

"Nah. Whatever my Sigil may be, it won't determine my approach to a battle. I will fight for justice so long my empty corpse doesn't hit the ground. After all, that is what being a hero is all about."

The boys were moved by his heroism. There were tears in their eyes as they admired the boy.

"Mister Suzuki…"

"We got so much to learn from you!"

Vi wasn't so excited about it. She shrugged it off with a simple "Alright" and turned towards the two remaining clients.

Pepon poked Gabriel's side.

"You can go first if you want."

"W-What?" Gabriel snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, no. You can go ahead."

"Are you sure?"

"Ladies first."

"That's some loser mentality, but okay…"

Pepon jumped up into the bed. She didn't wait to be asked and pointed at her chest.

"That will hurt." Vi looked her in the eye.

"I don't care, just draw me a circle."

She couldn't decide what Vi would tattoo on her. Yet, her wishes came true, as she finished with a circle on her chest.

"Congratulations, you're a––"

"I know, thanks."

Pepon was meaner than usual. This left a bitter taste in everyone's mouth, including Vi's.

Gabriel noticed her unusual meanness too, though he had no idea why she would act like that.

"Even more strange, why would she ask to have it on her chest?"

Now that it was over, her clothes hid the circle. If she would have wanted it to be seen by everyone, much like Naomi's tattoo, she would have asked to have it on her arm. On the contrary, if she wanted it to be hidden like Suzuki's, choosing her chest still didn't make any sense, as that just revealed her Sigil to everyone in the room.

As Gabriel thought about it, something began to form in his mind. Maybe this logical error wasn't just a mistake on Pepon's part, but it was to deliver a message.

"Wait, could it be…"

Gabriel's eyes widened. As he glanced over to Pepon, she calmly refused to look him in the eye. It wasn't because she was mad, but because that would have given away her message.

"But what does that mean? And why did she choose me?"