Hours. For hours, Yuuki was being dragged along the dirt. The only protection he had was the clothes he had on, but they were being worn away by the dirt, rocks, and other debris present. He closed his eyes and mouth to stop dirt and other things from getting in them.
But he couldn't do that for long before his body was suddenly submerged in water. They were crossing a river, and Yuuki was constantly being submerged over and over again. The rocks at the bottom of the river would hit different parts of his body, and anything being carried by the river would also hit him.
When he was finally out of the river, he was wet, which caused the dirt and other grime to stick to him more easily and turn into mud as he kept getting dragged along.
The sun finally showed its face, lighting up the scene around them.
"Right on time," Artoria said as she led the group back to Tempest. "We'll speed up. I have to get back to help Rimuru with something." Artoria made Dun Stallion go faster. Everyone else was able to keep up.
/\\//\\//\
(A few hours later)
Artoria was at the gates of Tempest. She was home. She looked at the sign as they entered and let out a small chuckle. "You should've read that sign, Yuuki. Those four words are more than just a catchy anti-littering greeting."
Yuuki didn't say anything. He had never been more miserable in his life. He was covered in dirt, mud, dried mud, grime, and more from behind, dragged for hours upon hours.
"Artoria, I felt like the return was longer than the time we spent traveling there." Hinata said. It was true, the return should've been faster now that they didn't have to worry about prematurely provoking some kind of target.
"It did? Hmm, we must have accidentally taken a detour and not noticed." Artoria said nonchalantly as she got off Dun Stallion and walked into Tempest, Dun Stallion walking behind her, still dragging Yuki, but this time on stone and concrete.
Hinata didn't believe her for the smallest moment. This was Artoria. Someone with her abilities and skills would be impossible to get lost "accidently".
"Souei, take Yuuki and place him in maximum security containment for enhanced interrogation later. Nothing that involves magic or skills, though. I'm not risking anything." Artoria commanded, and the rope that tied Yuuki disappeared. Souei immediately took Yuuki and, in a blur, disappeared with him.
Artoria turned to everyone. "Well, this was an astounding success. Good job, everyone. You came back alive. I would give medals, but we don't have things like that yet." Artoria turned to address Hinata and her saints. "Anyway, y'all can go home now or stay here for a while longer." Artoria turned to Suphia. "And you, Suphia, you can go back to 'working' as Carrion's attaché. Oh, and back to Gabiru."
Suphia let out a small noise in surprise. Gobta, who was standing next to her, was a little confused, but when he looked at the light blush on Suphia's face, his eyes and mouth widened in surprise.
"What! You and Gabiru are-" Gobta was interrupted when a tiger paw hit his face.
"Shut up!" Suphia yelled. But Gobta wasn't deterred.
"How did Gabiru get some-" Another hit, but more ferocious this time, hit Gobta again.
"Say one more thing and I'll tear you apart!" Suphia said, and it finally shut him up.
While they were bickering, Artoria spread her senses throughout the entire town. She was relieved when she didn't sense Diablo or any other Primordial Demons. "Alright, now that that's done, we can leave. Dun Stallion, you can go back to the field. I'll head home." With that, Artoria unsummoned her armor, being replaced by a casual fit.
/\\//\\//\
"Shuna, I'm home!" Finally, I'm back here. Now that Cerberus was taken care of, the eventual fight with the Eastern Empire will be easier. Not easy, but at least not as hard. And it was also one less thing to worry about. It's true what they say, there's no price on a piece of mind.
I saw Shuna appear, and I have to say, this is what life is about. Coming home to a loved one waiting for you, and seeing a smile on their face from the joy and love of seeing you. Now that is what makes a house, a home.
I know we live in a big and fancy house, but that doesn't mean anything. That doesn't make a house. It's the love of a family that makes a house. Even better when it's filled with the laughs and joy of a child.
Soon, very soon. I'm very close to a breakthrough. Life finds a way, and Merlin is damn good at one thing. Merlin's legacy is one thing, and only one thing.
"Hey, dear, how did everything go?"
"It went very well."
"That's good. I made you some food. It's one of your favorites. Chicken and waffles."
"Yes, please." And that's another thing that makes a house. Food. A lot of it. Chicken and waffles are so good. It has to be a top 5 food ever, in my opinion. Which is why I don't understand why some people see it as weird. Fried chicken and waffles drizzled with syrup? Oh man, don't get me salivating. People who are put off by the combinations or see it as weird have no idea what they are missing out on. I'm so happy I got Shuna to give it a try. She ended up liking it.
"You're so perfect, Shuna."
"I just made one of your favorite foods. I don't think it deserves that much praise." Shuna said in a slightly shy tone with a tiny blush on her face.
"Of course it does. It's little things like this that matter the most." I said while taking a seat at the table and immediately digging into the food. So good. Shuna also took a seat next to me. She had that look that she wanted to tell me something.
"What is it, Shuna?"
"It's about some things that my mom has said to me. About us." Oh. I know where this is going. I remember her mom bringing this up even from way back then.
"You don't need to tell me, Shuna. I have a good feeling about what it is. And let's just say that I'm working on a magic spell, and I'm close to completing it. Normally, it would be simple, but since you're a Mystic Oni now, things get very complicated. I have to try to figure out how to overcome problems that come with that."
"And what problems? Evolving into Mystic Oni should be good. What problems are you talking about?"
"Do you want me to be frank with you?"
"Yes."
"Your fertility. Beings of your level are almost impossible, or just impossible to have children with."
"Oh." Shuna had a big blush. Yeah, talking about topics like this can cause that, but it's something that should be talked about.
"But it's okay, magic can solve anything. And we're pretty good at that, especially you. If you want, you can try to come up with something to help us in the future when the time comes."
"Uh, is that something you want?"
"Only if you're okay with it. Your permission is the most important thing in all of this. If you say yes, then we can, you know, 'get to it'. But if you say no, then that is also perfectly okay."
"What would a child between us look like?"
"Hmm, let's see. Maybe light pink, or a pinkish-blonde hair. Perhaps my face. And though it's not really genetic, a mix of us in a personal sense. Maybe they'd use a katana-" As I was describing the hypothetical, a sudden realization dawned on me. Light pink hair, my face, a katana.
.
.
.
No, there's no way. I'm thinking too hard about that. Like that would ever happen.
"Is something wrong?" Shuna said as she got me out of my monetary lapse.
"It's fine. Anyway, I think that's how they would look." It's just a coincidence. If Shuna were to agree, the only one I think would "come out exactly" is Mordred. It's just a gut feeling I have. We'll see.
/\\//\\//\
Yuuki was tied to a chair, with physical restraints on him. The only thing he could do was move his head and wiggle his fingers and toes. He was stripped down to only his undergarments. No shirt, no pants, no shoes.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but then something happened. He heard footsteps, many of them. The heavy, reinforced steel door opened, revealing Artoria and Soeui.
"Alright, Yuuki, listen up. I'll give you one, and only one, chance to start singing like a canary." Artoria said in a cold voice as Soeui went off to the side, preparing some simple items.
Yuuki stayed silent.
"Okay. That chance is gone, but don't worry, we'll start light and simple, and then ramp things up," Artoria said before Yuuki's vision was suddenly taken away as Soeui placed a cloth over his face and inclined the chair at an angle so that Yuuki was forced to look up.
Artoria looked at Soeui to see if he wanted to stay for something like this. Soeui just nodded. Artoria then went and got a jerrycan filled with 5 gallons, or about 19 liters, of water.
Artoria carried the jerrycan, and Yuuki heard the water. He immediately knew what she was about to do.
"Hold on! Wait! You can't do something like this! It's a crime!"
Artoria stopped for a brief second, just before she was about to pour water on his face. "Is it? You're in the jurisdiction of Tempest. And it isn't a crime."
"What about international law?"
"Oh, international law? Tell me, what courts or institutions have something to say about this?"
"The United Nations!"
"Interesting. Tell me. Where is the United Nations in this world?"
"You know that's not what-"
"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter. Now, since you're talking already, how 'bout you just start confessing? Confess to what you've done, and give up all the information and connections you have to the Eastern Empire. I promise things can get a lot worse than just some waterboarding. It's better to just give things up than try to be tough. Would you rather die or voluntarily give up some things and then spend your life in jail? Your choice. There's nothing that will set you free."
Artoria was cold, and even through the cloth, Yuuki could feel her intense glare that could've probably bored holes in him. But her words, she wanted him to give things up, but the way she said it implied there was more than just information about the Eastern Empire.
"You don't just want me to say things about the Eastern Empire, do you? You want something else."
"Well, not me. More like, Rimuru. He's made some…not-so-wise decisions regarding potential power-ups, and while I would've brought him Vega and Damrada's body for him to eat, I wasn't taking any chances. Souls can be fickle things."
"You want my Anti-Skill."
"Rimuru, specifically. Not me. I'm sure you figured it out, but he also can't just consume you. You're Anti-Skill will stop that, but with time, he'll figure out a way, or more like the other one in him will. And you don't want to die in that way."
Yuuki stayed silent. It seems the only reason he was alive was for his Anti-Skill. But if what Artoria said is to be believed, then his only bargaining chip was on borrowed time.
"So what will it be?"
He needed time to try to think of something. He can't just say some fake information when her main goal is his Anti-Skill. And if she saw through his lies, who knows how much worse it could get.
"Not saying anything? Well, I was being nice."
Yuuki braced himself as best as he could as Artoria started pouring the water on his face.
(A/N: Ok, that was a little dark. I did not intend that.)