Ep.32: Punishment, Part 1

“Who’s hungry?!” I ask, looking around for a decent restaurant in the gourmet district that could satisfy my hunger. “I’ m starving! I could go for anything,” I declare as I turn to Maka before asking, “How about you?!”

“Ummm… I could go for some… curry?" Maka proffers, hesitantly.

“That sounds delicious! Let’s go!” I begin to dash straight for the first restaurant I can see.

“If you guys want something to eat you better hurry,” Gwyn peers behind us with concern, “I fear your dinner plans may be cut short.”

“Onward! To some delicious curry!” I announce as I stride into the restaurant with Maka and Anaea by my side. “Four curry dishes, please.” Seeing Gwyn enter the restaurant behind us, I decide to confirm something. “You paying, right?”

“Of course.” Gwyn answers simply while looking around. ”Let’s find a place to sit.”

“Fuuukaaaiiiiiiiii!” I hear someone yelling at me.

The four of us take a seat. “Alright! Some curry, please!” I say with a smile, actively choosing to ignore whoever is addressing me, instead focusing on the all-important task of filling my belly.

“Fukai!” The yell comes again; I continue to ignore it.

“Oh dear.” Gwyn looks over his shoulder.

“Ummm… Fukai, I think someone’s calling for you,” Maka comments.

“I’m sorry, Maka, but I’m sure you’re just hearing things,” I rationalize. Realizing my time is limited, I desperately search for some food as quickly as I can.

“Hmmm… that looks good!” I approach someone from behind without him noticing. A waiter sets a plate of curry on the table in front of the oblivious man. “Is that chicken curry?” I abscond scot-free with the plate of chicken curry, quickly making my way to the back doors as quietly as possible. “Thanks for the food! Money’s on the counter!”

As I make my way towards the back doors, a female Koa Warrior comes bursting in through the front doors. Anger radiating off of her in waves. “Dammit Fukai!” She looks around while trying to sniff me out.

“Oh dear.” Gwyn looks at the woman and smiles. “Nice meeting you here, Lukai.”

“Cut the crap, Gwyn! Where is he?!” Lukai shouts as her enraged glare scours the room. “I can smell him.”

“Shit.” I exclaim under my breath.

My mother, Lukai, is the well-known, fierce Koa Warrior, the Red Wolf. Even though she no longer goes out on missions, her reputation remains. From what I’ve been told, once Lukai catches the scent of her prey, there’s no escaping her. Young warriors aspire to be her, everyone else fears her.

A customer who is rather husky shouts, “It’s the Red Wolf!”

An elf woman, who is on a date with her human boyfriend, screams, “Oh god! She’s going on a rampage again!”

A terrified young warrior who has heard the rumors shouts, “Run! Oh God, Help Me!”

The teacher, who was grading her students’ papers, pleads as she scatters them everywhere, “Please don’t kill me!”

“Shut the hell up, you worms! Fuuu…” Lukai inhales, then exhales, “kaaaiii! You have some nerve ignoring me!” she roars.

“Well. Look at the time.” I say quietly and quickly turn around, continuing to make my way towards the door while taking a bite of the delicious curry. “It’s always good to know when to leave,” I mutter to myself before accelerating into a dash and slide under a table towards the back doors as quietly as possible. “Sorry, I am not getting caught. Not today!”

“Lady! Please, stop this!” The owner begs while walking up to Lukai.

Without hesitation, Lukai flicks him on the forehead, sending him flying into a nearby wall. “Don’t get in my way.” Lukai’s demeanor changes as she coolly looks around and is able to spot me in the midst of the chaos. “You’re not getting away, you little brat!” Lukai calmly presses her palms together, then separates her hands and connects the thumb and ring finger of her right hand together. “Gen. Grab and crush! StormGuard! Warfist!” Upon saying those words, Lukai summons a pair of ornate gauntlets from the soil under the floor.

“Wow! What is that?” I ask of noone with excitement, seeing this for the first time.

“Oh, this doesn’t look good,” Gwyn comments with a grimace.

Maka looks over his shoulder, “Isn’t that Fukai’s mother?”

Anaea tries to avoid eye contact, “This is what I was trying to warn you about.”