ACE OF FATE-Chapter 33: Cute Brute

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Number 1 stumbled into a nearby water fountain, landing with a splash. The flames were extinguished, but his dignity was not. He emerged from the fountain, dripping wet.

The juggler approached him cautiously, still holding the stick. "Uh, are you okay?"

Number 1 glared at him, his face red with embarrassment and anger. "You think?"

The juggler shrugged. "Well, at least your butt isn't on fire anymore."

Number 1 just shook his head and muttered, "This is going to be a long day."

Meanwhile, the Boss lay flat on his belly on the floor, groaning from the impact, his limbs tangled in the remains of the fortune teller's table. The fortune teller, still clutching her hat and glaring at him, seemed unbothered by the destruction he'd caused.

"Ah! You better pay for this, you clumsy walrus!" she exclaimed, eyes narrowing with sharp disapproval.

The Boss stood, brushing himself off with exaggerated care, trying to look dignified despite his unexpected entrance.

"You've altered the cosmic balance!" she continued, her voice rising. "But I suppose it's too late now."

The Boss gave her an incredulous look, still winded from the crash. "Cosmic balance, huh? What kind of nonsense—"

But before he could finish, the fortune teller suddenly reached under her hat and produced a small, polished charm hanging on a thread of black cord.

"Here," she said, her voice softening slightly as she held out the charm to him. "This will bring you luck in your... endeavors. Keep it close. It'll protect you."

The Boss raised an eyebrow, skeptical but desperate for anything that might help him escape his current mess. "Lucky charm? Do you think this little thing will help me get out of—"

"Of course," the fortune teller interrupted, her smile turning sly. "It's a powerful talisman."

The Boss narrowed his eyes, starting to sense where this was going.

"Yes, you heard me right, but it works with a technique only I know," she nodded enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling with a bit too much excitement.

"Then hand it over," the Boss snatched the charm, "and now tell me the technique to use this, quickly!" he barked, looking at the charm closely.

The old fortune teller suddenly opened her hand to the Boss with a smile.

"What is it?" the Boss asked.

"Everything has a price, you know," said the old Fortune teller.

The Boss scowled, but the desperation in his eyes told a different story. He reached into his pocket, grumbling. "Fine. How much?"

The fortune teller's smile widened. "Oh, just—" She held up her hands in an innocent gesture. "Let's say... five hundred silver coins."

"It's only a modest amount, really. Just a few coins to align the cosmic energy properly. A fair price for a charm of such power, wouldn't you agree?"

The Boss started moving his hand towards his money pouch with an understanding expression. "Okay, five hundred—"

Suddenly, his eyes widened as the amount sunk in. The Boss's jaw dropped. "Five hundred?! You're out of your mind!"

"Five hundred," she repeated, unflinching. "Pay up, and I'll seal the luck. Refuse, and... well, good luck with your impending demise."

The Boss stared at the charm in her hand, then back at the wreckage he'd caused. He also thought about the danger of the Samurai and Cactus. With a huff, he reluctantly pulled out his pouch and handed over a few coins.

He didn't give the exact amount, but it was all he had.

"This is not what I wanted, but it will work," she said, counting the coins.

"This better work, lady," he said, grumbling under his breath.

The fortune teller tied the charm around his waist and gave him one last, knowing look. "Oh, it will. It always works..."

"But you must be careful, for it only works if you do this dance," she explained.

"What dance?"

The old lady stepped back from the Boss and performed a weird dance, moving her hands and legs.

"See? That's the dance."

"No way I'm doing that weird thing you call a dance!" the Boss shouted.

"Well, if you want this charm to work, then you will have to do it," the lady replied.

"No WAY! Give back my money!"

"No can do," the old lady made an X with her arms. "Look there," she pointed to a small white wooden board that had written on it 'No refunds.'

"Fine, but if something goes wrong, you're dead, old hag," the Boss said and left the tent.

"Guess it's time to relocate," whispered the fortune teller.

"By the way, where did that young man go?" she looked around.

She heard a sound from where the Boss had been lying. "B..i..g..b..o...o...b...s," said the man who was in the tent just before the Boss crashed.

"If you want big boobs, go see the current clan leaders of Yotsuba clan and Yoshida clan," said the old lady.

"It's the duo of 115 and 118, I think, or maybe even bigger than that. I only saw them from afar, so I couldn't say," the Fortune teller continued, rubbing her hands together with an evil smile on her face.

"Do you want a perfume for attracting women, you lusty, lewd, perverted, sexual objectifier, adulterer, fornicator boy?" said the old lady.

"Why did you have to say all that, lady?" replied the man.

"Anyway, how much for the perfume?"

"It's free, here."

[Puff - Puff]

"That's so awesome!" the man said with excitement.

"What? What is happening? Why is the world spinning and going dark?" The man's eyes shrank as he put his hand to his head.

He saw two figures standing in the hallucination he was having.

"Mom? Sister? What are you doing here?"

"My son, I can't believe what you have become. I thought you left home to find a job and bring money to our poor family. Are you really my son?"

"No, mom, I can expl—"

"Brother, sob...Is this who you are now? Someone I don't even recognize...sob..."

"No, little sis... I just—"

Then his mother put her hand on her son's shoulder. "Son, you still have time to do the right thing and change your ways," she said with a smile.

"Yes, brother, I still believe in you!" the sister said.

"My son, you have been viewing women as objects for your own gratification. This objectification leads to destruction - it is like a living hell.

"But there is hope. Turn from these lustful ways. Take drastic measures to root out this sin from your life.

"Cut off anything that causes you to stumble. Seek to honor women's dignity and worth."

"Next time, don't ask me for the future; make one, you brat," said the old lady, hands behind her back as she saw the man sleeping soundly with a smile on the ground.

[Tap-Tap]

Back at the Boss's inn, the door was still being knocked. "Tea service, please open the door," a man with short black hair wearing a green nagagi that worked at the inn said outside the Boss's room, holding a tea cup on a tray. "Guess they're not here."

Nearby the inn's entrance, Felix and Yotsuba continued looking for the candy pouch.

"You haven't told me why you want that pouch," Felix asked.

"I will tell you once we find it," Yoshito replied.

"Find what?" a cute but serious voice came from behind the two.

They both quickly turned their faces to see who was standing behind them.

"There's no one here," Yoshito and Felix thought.

"Ahem..." someone signaled them from below.

They both looked down and saw a little girl wearing a simple kosode, its fabric a soft shade of pale lavender. The kosode was basic and unadorned, with no intricate patterns or rich embroidery, just the elegant simplicity of smooth silk.

The narrow sleeves of the kosode fell gracefully at her elbows, their edges delicately trimmed. The hemline of the garment reached just above her ankles, and it flowed with a quiet ease, allowing for movement without excess.

Her waist was cinched by a simple obi, a muted fabric that blended with the understated elegance of her outfit. It was tied securely in a bow at her back.

However, it was her face that captured Felix and Yoshito's gaze. Resting upon her face was a Neko Mask, shaped like the soft, pointed features of a cat. The mask was white, with delicate black lines framing the eyes and accentuating the feline features.

"Awww, are you lost, kid?" Yoshito asked in his female voice, lowering his head to meet the girl's height.

Without notice, the girl put her hand on Yoshito's cheek.

"What is it, little girl? Do you like my fac—"

[SQUEEESH-TWIIIIST!]

"OOWWW! You little!" Yoshito screamed and backed off as the little girl twisted his cheek very strongly. If Yoshito hadn't freed himself, she might have ripped his skin.

"Chiharu! Wha... are... you... doin... here?" Yoshito asked, shocked, recognizing that strength, his face in complete terror.

"Just looking for you," Chiharu replied. "You were the one who stole my candy pouch, right?" she inquired.

"A... wha... Pouchy?" Yoshito said trepidatiously, holding his puffed red cheek.

Chiharu looked at Yoshito with scornful eyes, "I know exactly what you did, Yoshito. Don't play coy with me. You took my good candy, the sugary one, and swapped it with that... salty garbage. Spare me your pathetic act and hand it over now."

"That wasn't just any candy, you dullard. It was a delicacy, a rare treasure. A thousand times sweeter than anything you could possibly comprehend. So, unless you want to face consequences you truly won't enjoy, you'll return it. Immediately."

"Ah, Chiharu-chan, I'm sorry. It was just a harmless prank. I'll return your candy right away," Yoshito pleaded.

[BAMM!]

"Ugh!" Yoshito was brought to his knees by Chiharu's punch.

"Who told you you could call me Chan?" she snarled.

Turning to Felix, Chiharu asked in a threatening tone, "You, Samurai. Do you happen to know where that pouch is?"

"It got stolen, and instead we got this," Felix replied, showing the package of herbs he had received from the minions.

Chiharu peered inside the pouch of herbs, her voice laced with curiosity and suspicion. "What is this... This is... who gave this to you?"

"Two strange-looking men," Felix explained, "Yoshito and I were just looking for them."

Felix thought to himself, "Now I understand why Yoshito was so scared and eager to find that pouch."

"This must be the work of the Cactus Gang," she said, her voice tight with anger. "I won't forgive them for stealing my candy!"

She then removed the mask she was wearing, placing it on the side of her head.

"But first, let me eat some candy." A cute smile spread across her face as she pulled out a pouch from her kosode sleeve. "A duel on an empty stomach is just bad manners."

"What candy?" Felix asked, confusion evident in his voice.

"That's her secret weapon," Yoshito replied, getting up from the floor and wincing slightly from the lingering pain of Chiharu's punch.

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Felix's brow furrowed. "Candy? How does that help?"

"You'd be surprised how many foes surrender when they see her adorable face and sweet tooth,"

Yoshito answered, an almost scared expression crossing his face as he anticipated what was to come.

Suddenly, people from the surrounding area started looking at the cute girl eating candies in the middle of the street. A crowd quickly surrounded Chiharu.

"Aww, such a cutie!" exclaimed a lady with a kind smile. "Can I pull your cheeks?"

Chiharu turned her face towards the woman with a menacing look. "Say that again..."

"AWWW!" The lady clasped her hands to her cheeks, her body swaying with excitement. "You're even cuter than before!"

Ignoring her, Chiharu looked around at the faces of the crowd, her eyes beginning to glow.

"Here it comes," Yoshito muttered under his breath.

[Whhhsss]

The people in the crowd, once eager to admire the little girl with the sweet smile, began to shift uncomfortably. What had been a simple gathering now felt oppressive—unnerving. The smiles of the onlookers slowly faltered, replaced by unease.

"How was your day today?" Chiharu asked, her words soft and sweet, yet carrying an edge that sent a ripple of unease through the crowd. People instinctively took a step back, though they didn't know why.

"W-Wait... what's going on?" The lady who had been smiling brightly earlier said, her voice trembling. She looked around, her gaze flicking nervously. Her hand shook as she tried to steady herself, her smile disappearing.

"Why those faces? Come on, smile for me a little," Chiharu said, her lips curled in a honeyed grin, but her voice carried a dark undertone.

The crowd, just by hearing her voice, grew increasingly tense. Some tried to force a smile, but their fear was palpable. The air was thick with discomfort, and people started shifting nervously on their feet, eyes darting around, avoiding Chiharu's gaze.

"What is this?" Felix asked.

Yoshito explained, "She's using her First Nexus, which lets her control the emotions of other people. Normally, she'd be able to do it from any range, but because of ZEP, she can only do it within a few meters now."

"Now... Who will be kind enough to tell me which of you work for the Cactus Gang?" Chiharu asked, her voice deceptively sweet.

"I... I don't know anything about any gang..." said an old woman.

"I-I've never heard of them!" a man in the back shouted, shaking his head.

"Oh, really?" Chiharu said, munching on candy.

The pressure of her voice, soft yet unyielding, caused several people to flinch, stepping further back.

They couldn't stop it—it was like her voice pulled the fear from their very souls.

In an instant, her radiant smile morphed into a frosty countenance. "Cease wasting my time. I will ask just one final time: who is with Cactus?"

Two men came from the crowd, quavering noticeably. "W-We work for the—"

His voice broke as he fell to his knees, gasping for air, unable to bear the intensity of Chiharu's presence. The fear was suffocating him.

"Please... please don't hurt us!" said the other man. He dropped to his knees as well, hands clasped together in desperation. His entire body was shaking.

"Good... Good... That wasn't so hard, was it? Now, where are my sweets?" Chiharu said in a low voice, but every word landed with weight.

The men didn't respond; they just looked at the ground, their eyes shaking.

[Pssssssss-Tssssss]

A sudden sound broke through the tense silence—one of the men had wet himself out of sheer terror.

"You're lucky I can't use my full power because of ZEP interference," Chiharu whispered under her breath her eyes narrowing to slits. "Otherwise... you'd already be dead from fear."

Then she raised her voice sharply: "ALL OF YOU—GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!"

[Rumble-Rumble]

The crowd scattered instantly like leaves caught in a gale, desperate to escape the suffocating aura emanating from the small girl standing in their midst.

"Why is she like that?" Felix whispered to Yoshito.

"Because she hates being outside. This is the first time in 5 years she's come out of the Adventurer's Guild."

"Yoshito!" Chiharu shouted.

"I want you to call every adventurer available and seize this whole area! Now!" She ordered.

"But we need permissio—"

[Glare]

Chiharu turned her head slightly, her eyes glowing, showing that if he didn't listen, he would end up under her powers' effect or worse.

"Yes, ma'am," Yoshito bowed and vanished.