Trash: Chapter 100 Vindication (Patreon)

<<<Author's Note: Happy Valentine's day everyone. I hope you take a moment to tell a loved one you care about them. That is why I wanted to take a moment and say how much I appreciate each and everyone of you! Thank you for giving me the motivation to continue writing. You are the main reason why I push myself to wake up early, and strive to become better at writing. So thank you, and Happy Valentine's Day! >>>Chapter 100

Vindication

“All right, I’m back—” the lead guardsman said, though he stopped immediately upon entering as if he was instantly stopped by the building tension in the room. Pausing to look at the glowering guard Jinx, the guardsman paused then looked at her, then back to me and paused.

I was still in my non-threatening but defiant pose with my arms crossing my chest and a relaxed defiant lean that would allow me to slide out of the chair easily, should Jinx proceed to do anything stupid. My eyes scanned the older and likely more powerful guardsman for a second, before dismissing him as not being a true threat, despite him clearly being the more powerful of the two. No, the threat in this case was the one who stood there, muscles corded like snakes ready to strike, with a hand over their baton.

Logic dictates that I should try to deescalate, be less defiant, look away. But that will only serve to allow Jinx to think this sort of act is acceptable, making it so every time we meet in the future, I will both prove her biases correct, and that she can bully me due to her position. While I was still young, still learning, I had come to the conclusion that I had worth. A lot of worth if someone like Madame Bloom was willing to invest in my future, which meant that I didn’t have to take the submissive path. And I spent far too many years fending for survival in the DiVoratore family to feel like being subservient is anything other than living a slow agonizing death. A death that ultimately comes from exhaustion and no longer having the will to continue. That is why I stare back.

“Ah-hem,” the guardsman coughs loudly, in the way that demands attention. “I just wanted to go over your—”

The Guardsman began, by holding up the cylindrical case that held my golden light x-ray, I’m sure there is likely a better name for it, but that is what my mind is calling it for now. However, after a second, the guardsman pauses after shaking the casing and proceeds to go back to the door, giving a quick look out both sides to see who was nearby, then after nodding to himself he takes a step back, and closes the door. Then proceeds to turn the deadbolt latch in place, locking him and Jinx in here with me.

At that sight, I feel a slight tension forming in me, as I realize my only real escape is the short window behind me. One that I would have to break through, and crawl through to get out. Or defeat two guards to open a dead bolted door and then escape. Regardless of my options, it seemed that for now my only way out of here intact was by working with these two officers.

The head guardsman takes the moment to pull out my rolled-up scroll with a slightly trembling hand.

“Sorry, I just needed to see this once more,” the head guardsman declared. Then as he did, he held up one end and gestured for Jinx to grab it and place it at the far end of the horizontal table that separated us. At first Jinx looked confused but then seemed to shrug to herself as she realized this was likely needed to convict me in some way.

At first, Jinx seemed to have nothing more than an annoyed look, it wasn’t until the scroll started unraveling thanks to the guardsman slowly unrolling it and pulling it tight at the other end of the table that her face switched to shock. For a second they both looked at the scroll with awe and reverence. It wasn’t until the lead guardsman reached for his baton that I panicked for a second. Only to relax the next moment, when he gently placed the baton at the edge of the scroll to hold it in place. It took a moment, but Jinx soon copied the guardsman’s actions, removing her own baton and using it to hold the parchment in place. Then proceeded to back up half a step. She was still standing tall, but a lot of the fire and tension that had been in her body was removed as her eyes kept drifting over the parchment.

“You have been Sealed?” The lead guardsman asked, his question coming out as more of a statement than a question. But I still nodded.

“Can I ask when?” The guardsman asked.

“It was—” I was about to say yesterday, but there was an entire weekend in between. “Friday.”

The guardsman nodded, but then seemed to put together some thoughts, or facts in his mind. “You were at the arena on Friday, with the Royal Seal Master?”

I again nodded.

“That explains why your seals are professionally done but are empty. Well mostly empty,” the guardsman said as he looked closely again at the glowing sword over my heart. There was a pause as the guardsman seemed to be looking over everything. Finally, he asked the next question.

“Can you tell me the name of this seal?”

“It is called the Holy Sword of Slaying seal*” I respond.

“Holy Sword of Slaying?” The guardsman repeated. Then seemed to come to a determination. “Not that I don’t believe you, but can you show me that name?”

“Chief—” Jinx cut in, seeming to think that the guardsman, a Chief apparently, was about to overstep his bounds. Hearing the rebuke the Chief immediately paused and seemed to backtrack a bit with his enthusiasm.

“Right, you are still a minor and protected by a noble house. Right now, you are not suspected of having committed any crimes, and this is not a way to exonerate you from any looming punishments. The fact that you have seals means that you cannot now, nor ever have your soul used to transport Death Eaters. For that is another bonus to having seals placed upon your soul, you seal it off from evil. Also, seals can only be placed on pure souls, that is souls that have never harbored Death Eaters in the past. No, this is just my own curiosity about a seal I have never seen before.” The Chief replied.

As he spoke, I felt like I gained a lot of insight into this world. Seals did more than apparently apply tracking locations and minor improvements. Apparently just having them was enough to prove I had never transported a Death Eater and that I never would. Having this revelation thrown at me, it explains why Jinx’s personality had a complete 180 turn after seeing my soul imprint on the parchment before us.

This was huge, well not monumental, but it did help me to relax a bit. Knowing that these seals meant that I was free and clear of any thoughts of being a Death Eater smuggler, now or forever were gone. Also, the fact that he wanted me to show him the name of my seal gave me leverage. Not much leverage, I was still technically a captive, but it seemed this was more for the Chief’s own edification than to identify any potential problems. Pausing for a moment, I realized this was likely why Jinx spoke up. Had I found this information out later, I could have gotten Madame Bloom and the Bloom estate involved; by playing their hand now, they mitigated any real risk of overreach or claims of opportunism. It also makes it so, I might look at this interaction more favorably, as the Chief seems to want more than just this detail. I could be wrong but seeing that burning emblem of a flaming shield on his shoulder might make him part of one of the Holy special forces units. Though what his unit does I’m not entirely sure but seeing as they are the ones assigned to screening kids entering a school, I assume it is some sort of investigation branch.

“I can, but I want to know why?” I begin, opening the door for bartering. They aren’t going to gain much from the name, but I feel this is a good time to understand more about this world.

“Why we want to know about a previously unknow seal? Well, the answer is simple, if we can recreate the triggering mechanisms, and mirror the form, a Seal Master can begin replicating this seal for others.” The Chief began.

Hearing the explanation, I understood that it made sense. These seals had to come from somewhere, and I assume the best way to do that was share new and unique seals that might help win the war against the undead. A war that seems like humanity is slowly losing.

“Okay,” I reply, and with that I project a local share of my first box. Allegedly there is a way I can release an individual line to others, but I don’t have nearly that much control at this point.

Name: Catarine Bloom

Age: 16

Class: (Unique) Culmen Vitae* (5/5) (Maximum Potential 7)

Magic: Life (5/7) – Class Linked Only, Holy (2/7)

Seals: (1 / 7) – Holy Sword of Slaying seal*

“Gasps,” there is a sharp intake of breath from both guardsmen as they see that I not only have a Class, but a high affinity in Life and Holy magic, along with my Seal.

Looking back, I realize that this is probably more than I should share, but the effect is even greater than I expected as both seem to have even more awe in their eyes. Realizing my mistake, I quickly end my shared vision, but the damage was done, they had seen my class and my Magic Skills being used. Not that the names gave away too much, but it was clear that I had some type of Life attuned healing Class, if they were paying attention.

Mentally, I kicked myself and vowed never to do this again. While the Madame hadn’t expressly forbidden me sharing my information with others, I knew that it was no doubt a bad thing. Then again, it did strike me as odd that of the guards sent here to root out evil, none of them had an intrusive scanning Skill like the Madame and others I had witnessed at the arena. In fact, it was the fact that I was scanned so brazenly by so many other people that I thought this was the norm, that sharing information was almost expected. Then again, this might just be way my mind justifies messing up so badly.

“I see,” the Chief was the first to recover, and wrote down the name of the seal on a separate document. “That was the Holy Sword of Slaying seal*, a wild seal gained by not having had all, or any of your seal slots filled in on the night of the initial ritual.”

As the Chief spoke, I could feel more details coming out, while he was just writing down the words he was speaking out loud, I realized this was a goldmine of information for me.

“Wait, you mean I unlocked this seal on my own?” I press.

“Yes, the great system even informed us of this by highlighting it with the golden ray of light for a new beginning.” The Chief spoke a note of reverence in his voice. As he spoke, my mind glitched for a moment as I tried to understand what he meant by the golden ray of light. It wasn’t until after a second of thought that I realized he had noted the asterisk (*) or what I instinctively knew of as wild card markers for coding in my past life, were being called golden rays of light here. As I was coming to this understanding, the Chief finished his initial note and proceeded to ask another question.

“Can I ask how you earned this seal?” The Chief asked. As he spoke, my eyes went wide as I tried to understand when or where I got the seal. Honestly, I was not certain. I assume it was over the weekend, likely sometime while fighting and being impaled by exploding Death Eater core fragments. Seeing my hesitation, the Chief paused and then came with a softer approach.

“I can understand if this is a secret you wish to keep for your future family, but this could go a long way in aiding us in being able to provide similar seals to others,” the Chief commented. With that, I hesitated for only a moment, and decided to answer truthfully, as I figured this was likely the nice questioning. If the Chief took this finding up to his superiors, then I might be forced to answer under different circumstances in the future. Also, I didn’t mind as I didn’t think that many people could replicate my process, so I decided to tell them, only making sure to provide an edited version of events.

 “I guess I got it sometime after I slew the Death Eater on Saturday,” I responded.

At that comment Jinx and the Chief’s mouths both dropped, though Jinx was the first one to recover and seem to tighten up her posture.

“Lying will not benefit anyone,” Jinx hissed. Fortunately, a strange golden light glowed in the Chief’s eye as his mouth that had still been dangling after my revelation snapped up and came to my defense.

“She’s not lying,” the Chief stammered out. There was a pause, before Jinx looked at the Chief and saw that he was now serious. As if summoned by the revelation, the Chief rose to his feet and braced himself against the table, a position that seemed natural for interrogations, but this time it was different. This time, it seemed like the Chief was only able to balance himself by using both hands to keep his quivering body up. “You? You were the one who killed the third?”

As the Chief asked, it was clear that he was aware of the details of Saturday night. Where three Death Eaters were released and killed.

I nod, momentarily flustered by the sudden intensity of the Chief barreling over me.

“Then I—I,” the Chief began, but words seemed to escape him as his mind seemed to have a hard time catching up to his thoughts. Finally, he managed to regain traction in his mind, as his posture changed and again, as the pace of the meeting changed yet again.

“I apologize, on behalf of the Royal Order of Watchers, I apologize if we have offended you in any way,” the Chief spoke, making sure to offer a regal bow. Jinx for her part looked confused and only seemed to move after a stern glance from the Chief that caused her to also bow, not as much as the Chief, but it was clear that she was at least attempting to be professional with her bow.

“No, you are fine,” I replied, getting to my own feet as I realized the tension in the room suddenly got super awkward. Going from a full interrogation feel, where I would be forced to confess to a crime I didn’t commit, to seeming awe and reverence. “But I think I need to go.”

“Wait,” The Chief cried out, though he did move out of my way, letting his words stop my movement rather than his body and size. Seeing him, I paused and just looked. “If you want, we can help you get the proper seals. While the Royal Seal Master is injured, at the Order, we also have our own Seal experts that can assist.”

Hearing the sort of desperation in his voice, I felt that there might be more to this request than I want to deal with, that is why I cordially declined. “No thanks, that is fine.”

“Really?” He asked, but I kept walking forward, feeling the desperation all but oozing off of him, causing the small room to be cramped and clustered. Fortunately, the Chief made no means to stop me, and instead continued to speak. “You must be careful though, for this is when you are more susceptible to wild seals forming. If you are not careful, then the protection seals of the Empire might not be able to be placed upon you.”

As he spoke, I remember the tracking seals that were spoken about. While they were not as frightening as I originally thought, as this world clearly seemed to have a need for such seals, I felt that there was more to his words.

“Wait, you mean I can create my own seals?” I ask.

“Yes, the fact that you have already done so is already alarming, but it is okay, that is a Seal location that not many can unlock. The fact that it is filled with an untested seal is not too big of a problem. But you are at risk of ruining yourself for future seals if you continue as you have been.”

Hearing him, I realized that this might be what we need. No wonder we are losing, even with seals, if no one is willing to try for something new, something greater. Going for known commodities is fine, so long as those commodities are enough, but clearly that isn’t the case here.

“I will give your words some consideration, but I need to confirm with my Master before I make any true commitments,” I reply, and like that I use the get out of jail free card that my Master all but handed me. By invoking her name for consultation, it was clear that any words of argument or to the contrary that the Chief might have been ready to use died on his tongue as he visibly deflated.

Taking a few steps closer to the door, I paused and just stared at the deadbolt and then back to the Chief. Seeing my pause, the Chief looked confused for half a second, before surging into movement and immediately going over, unlocking the door and gesturing for me to leave while he held the door open.

As I left the room, I could see and feel the eyes of dozens of students and teachers staring at me. All seeming to have a judging glare on me.

Perhaps seeing the animosity directed at me, the Chief came from behind me and with a clear and powerful voice that seemed to echo in the hallways, he declared. “Thank you for our assistance in our investigation. Let us know if you will give our offer of officially joining the Royal Order of Watchers seriously!”

There he said it, a firm and undeniable offer to join his order. A declaration that both declared that he would be willing to help me in the future, while also completely clearing my name of being linked to any malicious activities, for there would be no way I could be associated with Death Eater smuggling and be personally recruited towards the order designed specifically to stop such people.

As the meaning of his words and offer echoed through the hallway, I could see the judging faces of everyone present drop and be replaced by a more inquisitive look.

“Thank you, I shall give your offer some consideration,” I reply back bowing slightly, not a firm no, but clearly giving him face.

With that I left and watched as everyone seemed to follow my movement. Only once I was down the hallway and passing the open center area. A slight refuge with trees, a few potted plants and seats for seniors to rest in did I see something that I knew shouldn’t be there.

Knock, knock, knock.

Then as if feeling that I was there and was aware of its presence, it proceeded to knock on the bolted metal door. A door that sealed it outside and away from us. Tentatively, I moved closer. . .