Chapter 465 (Patreon)

I was in all honesty, unsure of how to react.

“Salem?” I turned to look at her after receiving the message that she clearly heard as well. “Any idea what this is about?”

Salem’s expression shifted slightly. “Where do you think Cinder got her magic from?”

“Wait…you just ripped out another girls soul just to give Cinder Magic?” I was left speechless.

“I did nothing of the sort, it was Cinder’s prerogative, I merely gave her the tools.” Salem replied.

“And that makes it okay!?” I forced myself to calm down. “Salem, this is not something I’m okay with.” The frustration immediately set in. “How am I supposed to react to this? This is exactly something I’d willingly kill people for without batting an eye.”

Salem crossed her arms and scowled. “It was before.”

“What?”

“It was before, you fool” She huffed.

“Salem….”

“What do you think I did before we met? You know about my past from the Spirit, you are well aware of what I’ve done.” She turned away. “This is the kind of person I’ve been throughout the years. Does it disgust you? Seeing what I’ve had a hand in with your own eyes?”

“I never made it a secret that I don’t like what you used to do.” I admitted.

“….I have held to the promise I made.” She said softly. “I have not engaged in such activities.”

I let out a breath calming myself down. “I shouldn’t have started with an accusatory tone, I’m sorry.” At the very least, that was wrong of me.

“Hmph.” She scowled deeper, refusing to look my way with a clear hint of displeasure on her face. “Your assumption was not without merit.”

“Maybe we both could have handled that better.”

“Perhaps.” She accepted. “However, that does not negate what has occurred. Does it fill you with hatred for me? Due to my actions some random person had parts of their soul ripped away.”

“Do you want me to hate you?” I questioned.

“It’s the default reaction to witnessing the acts of a monster.” She snorted. “This is merely one act among an uncountable that I have had a hand in throughout my existence.”

“I can’t do anything about what’s happened before. I can’t say that you suddenly ‘turning good’ –“ I added air quotation marks around that last bit. “ – somehow makes it okay. I won’t lie and say that your past hasn’t weighed on me. But if you really are intent on this, then I’ll do everything I can to support you. If you caused some harm previously, then I’ll do what I can to right it.”

“Many would call you a hypocrite.”

“I never said anything to the contrary.” I admitted fully. “I’ll fix this.”

“….what do you need from me?”

The fact that she was willing to help, it was enough for me for now. This was a shitty situation to navigate that cropped up between us, but I would do what I could.

“Is cinder around? I need to get an idea of what I’m looking at.”

“One of my Grimm calls for her.” Salem stated.

Now, there was just an awkward silence between us. I think this is the first time I’ve ever had a fight with one of my girls.

I did not like this feeling.

Slowly, without even looking at me, Salem reached over and grabbed my hand. Without saying another word we simply waited until there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.” Salem stated, slipping back to her previous cold demeanor and crossed her arms.

Cinder walked in. “You asked for me, Mistress.”

Salem looked at me, then I stepped forward. “I asked for you, Cinder.”

“Y-yes?” Cinder looked confused but quickly centered herself. “If I can be of assistance..”

“There’s no easy or simply way to ask this, but I want your permission to look at your soul. I’ll promise payment, and I’ll make a promise not to harm you in any way.”

“Ah?” Confusion was clear on her face.

“He desires to see how the Magic from the Maiden became yours.” Salem explained it briefly. “You will experience no harm, and he offered you proper recompose.”

“I….accept?” She seemed to reluctantly accept my probing.

I guess I couldn’t fault her, she was somewhat pressganged into it. And despite the sourness of how she received her Magic, well…..I was trying my best to work with Salem to be better, as this technically came before, it wasn’t something I wanted to be overly aggressive on.

I put my hand on Cinder’s Shoulder and let my perception push inward. She shook as she felt my probe, but she didn’t hinder me.

I got a good look at her soul and I nearly scoffed at what I saw. “Did you really just graft a piece of someone else’s soul onto hers?”

I looked at Salem and she merely shrugged. “It was the most simplistic solution.”

God if she wasn’t right, this would have looked even worse.

“And why is there a Grimm in her arm?”

“That is how it was achieved.” Salem replied.

“It’s decaying her flesh slowly, her Magic is slowing it down, but the more she uses her Magic it’s going to accelerate the rate the Grimm consumes her.” I pointed out and Cinder seemed to unconsciously push me out from her startlement.

Cinder looked up at her wanting an answer.

“I intended to remove it once she got her Magic under control.” Salem frowned. “It makes it difficult when her Magic is so disorderly.”

“I wasn’t accusing you.” I made sure to iterate.

Her expression softened slightly. “I am aware.”

I looked down at Cinder. “Don’t panic about what I said, it’s within the realm of manageable. That’s more long term consequences. You’d probably be fine for months without any intervention before any real damage occurred.”

“….thank you.” Cinder forced out still kind of…out of it from a few sudden revelations.

“She will master her control within the week at the rate she is going. She is surprising talented for only have just received Magic.” Salem stated.

Cinder seemed to straighten up slightly and her mood lifted. “Thank you, mistress.”

I let out a sigh, thinking about what I was going to do next. “The girl you stole it from, she’s still alive, correct?”

Cinder’s lips thinned, but she quickly shifted back to something resembling politeness. “The Maiden was saved before I could fully take her Magic. One of Ozpin’s pawns interfered at a crucial moment.”

I couldn’t help but rub my temples. “I’m going to be healing the ‘Maiden’.”

Cinder blinked, her confusion reappeared quickly.

I searched through my ring and found a plethora of things that would be valuable to her. Beginner items, magic books, reagents, practice items, that sort of thing and I placed them all on the ground next to her. “It seems like you and Salem need to have a talk.”

Salem didn’t look too happy, but there was a sort of understanding there. I don’t think she’s been entirely upfront about her new…. perspective. “It seems that we do. Come along Cinder, collect your rewards and we will have a discussion while we tend to your lessons today.”

Salem ushered the hands-full Cinder out of the room. She paused at the threshold of the door, turning around to look at me before giving me a faint smile and leaving.

This is not what I expected to be doing today.

Honestly, I really just wanted to hit something until it stopped breathing at this point.

With a thought, I opened a portal and walked through.

@***@

Beacon Academy was always a magnificent sight to see. Honestly, I wish I  went to a school that looked this incredible.

But aesthetics aside, I was  here on a particular mission. I even forwent seeking out Pyrrha because I wanted to quickly get this done and out of the way.

Also, I didn’t want to just….walk into a school in the middle of the day, even if I was technically trespassing on campus at the moment.

It was one thing for me to be on the periphery, it was another for me to be wandering a hall with the students. Especially when I didn’t have the most stellar reputation among the population of Remnant

God, what a fucking mess this was.

Was it worth it? I would say yes without a shadow of a doubt. I cared about Salem, I wanted her to be better, I wanted us to work out. But God fucking damn it, this was some horrendous shit that I would honestly kill thousands for doing and have a clear conscious at the end.

She was being better though.

I wasn’t…..blinded by my own emotions. As much as it would hurt, I would cut it off if she didn’t change her ways.

I could justify it every which way. I could point out how others in my Harem had done pretty horrific shit in their lives. How many of them have rivers of blood left in their wake, but at the end of the day, I’m just a hypocrite.

It didn’t take long for my presence to get noticed, and the Deputy Head Mistress came pushed out the doors with a haste in her step. “Mr. Schweinorg, we were not expecting you.”

She not so subtly hinted that my appearance was certainly not appreciate in this way “I’m sorry, but it’s sort of a pressing matter.”

She pushed her glasses up. “And what matter presses you so, Mr. Schweinorg.”

“I believe it involves a certain Maiden of yours missing a chunk of her soul.”

She twitched slightly and settled on a frown. “I believe the Headmaster is more appropriate to continue this matter, follow along.”

And she didn’t sound too happy either.

She didn’t say another work before turning on her heels and heading back inside. And I knew a que to follow when I saw it. Just the way her heels hit the tiles of the school, anyone nearby made way.

Some curious glances were thrown my way, ones that obviously recognized me, but again, no one wanted to get in her way.

She took me straight to the Elevator leading up to the Headmaster’s tower.

“Mr. Schweinorg, what an unexpected surprise.” The Headmaster had a steaming mug of coffee or tea in his hand as he greeted me upon leaving the elevator.

“Headmaster Ozpin.” I greeted up.

The Deputy Headmistress walked up to Ozpin and whispered some things into his ear. His expression changed a few times before she finished and proceeded to silently stand at his side.

Ozpin put his mug down and interlocked his fingers, letting his elbows rest on his desk. “You seemed to have some desire to meet this supposed ‘Maiden’ yes?”

I let out a sigh I was forcing back previously. “Qrow left me a message about ‘returning the soul of Amber’ some weeks ago, I just got it recently.”

Ozpin twitched slightly, and Miss Goodwitch slapped her palm against her face.

“Presumedly speaking – “

“I heard the details from the ones involved.” I cut him off.

Ozpin frowned. “And you believe we would let you around a person who was almost murdered by people you admit are associates?”

“I’ll heal her.” I said bluntly.

Ozpin blinked. “Forgive me if I’m skeptical, Mr. Schweinorg. Why would someone associates with my sworn enemy wish to heal the person they wished to kill and desire her death still? If you are aware of what transpired, I need not explain the full details of how the Maiden’s powers transfer.”

“You’re worried I’m going to finish the job?”

“Would you be in my shoes?”

“That’s….fair.” I could see it from his perspective. “What if I said I could find her myself and do it anyways?”

“Is that supposed to endear you to me, Mr. Schweinorg? Giving me a blatant threat?”

I winced and let out another sigh. “You’re right, I’m being combative when I don’t need to be. Would it help if I said please?” I tried to give my most charming and disarming smile.

“No.” He took a sip out of his mug. “Perhaps I might be inclined if you could give me a proper reason.”

“Goodness for the sake of goodness?”

“You are associated with the women who controls the black tide of Remnant.” He pointed out.

“Would you believe me if I said that Salem isn’t going to be evil anymore?” God it sounded fucking childish to even say that out loud in this sort of context.

‘Well, she promised she wouldn’t be evil!’

“No.” He didn’t even bat an eyelid. Right, I didn’t expect me. “However, I will believe you believe that. But I will never believe that Salem can turn over a new leaf.” He got up from his seat. “Glynda, please hold any of my calls while I go down to the basement with Mr. Schweinorg.”

“You can’t be serious…” Her eyes widened. “You’re going to take her to see Amber after that?”

“I’m actually with her on this.” I found myself agreeing with her despite it counter to my own interests.

Ozpin just took another sip, smiling lightly. “I am very old, Mr. Schweinorg. One thing you discover when you reach my age is how to read people. For selfish reasons or not, I feel you are being genuine. I can’t claim to read your mind, but if you can heal Amber without any negative consequences, then I am inclined to allow it.”

“Oh…..”

“Come, I’ll show you where we’re keeping Amber while we tried to figure out what to do.” Ozpin beckoned me towards the Elevator with an annoyed Deputy Headmistress seething behind.

What I didn’t expect was for him to press a bunch of buttons in presumed intentional sequences,  because they lit up and the Elevator began to drop much further than the ground floor I came up in.

Secret Elevator Entrance, neat.

“So….uh, it’s not awkward that I’m dating your Ex, is it?”

“It was not until you just mentioned it.”

“….my bad.”

“Personally, I’m more concerned that she is the embodiment of all Evil on this planet.” He hummed almost nonchalantly despite the topic. “Here we are.” The elevator dinged and it opened up into a dark area.

Ozpin walked a few steps and flipped a switch, the lights around us coming on to reveal a rather intricate and high scale system on full display.

Front and foremost, there was a woman in a pod full of liquid with many different medical devices plugged in to monitor her.

She was not looking good and appeared to be on her last legs. Damage to the soul can have quick adverse effects to the physical body.

“Just like this?” I looked at Ozpin.

“Did you expect some sort of test?” Ozpin raised an eyebrow. “Well, this is a school. I suppose I can whip something up.”

“No I meant…You’re being very trusting even after what you said.”

“I am very old, Mr. Schweinorg –-“

“I got that part.” I interrupted him. “Sorry, just been a crappy day as of about an hour ago when I learned this happened.”

Ozpin looked me over for a moment before turning to the women in the capsule. “I am to assume you need direct access?”

“That would be preferable, yes.” I nodded.

“The time she can spend outside is limited, these machines are keeping her soul from collapsing onto itself.” Ozpins tated.

“Normally, I would love to talk shop with you on how you rigged up these machines to facilitate the life support system of her soul, but priorities.” I stood infront of the capsule as Ozpin hit a few buttons and with a waft of smoke, it drained then began to open. I quickly put my hand on her shoulder to get a better look at what was going on. “Fucking hell, she’s barely hanging on.”

“Indeed.” Ozpin just calmly sipped his drink he took from upstairs. “And you are sure you can heal her?”

“Nope, this is outside my pay grade.” I denied without a second thought. I was confident in certain manipulations of the soul. Like removing a Sacred Gear without problems, that’s not too difficult. Healing a soul that was nearly collapsed? That was outside my area of expertise. “But thankfully, I know an expert in the area.”

“You wish to bring someone else here?” Ozpin didn’t outright deny me, even sounding curious. “Very well, if you have confidence in this ‘expert’, by all means.”

“I’ll…..be right back.” I held up a finger and quickly opened a portal to a third world I was visiting today.

This was making me mentally exhausted from constantly running around.

Thankfully, I was on good terms with someone who was an expert in soul-based healing. The person who originally taught me Kidō and the basics of Kaido in the first place.

Tessai seemed amicable enough to lend a hand, and I could pay properly for his services.

The rich air filled with Reishi hit me immediately and I couldn’t help but take a large and filling breath. The Hogyoku refilled my Reiatsu reserves, but there was just a difference between taking it in the ‘normal’ way that was somewhat refreshing.

However, my brief respite in this shit day was cut short because an explosion rocked the surroundings, filled with a burst of Reiatsu and a red light that covered the city line.

Why were there humanoid Hollows flying in the sky above Karakura town?

You know what, I didn’t care for the reason. Because my day took another unexpected turn, but atleast this time, I had something I could punch.

@***@

A/N

Wilhelm has his first sorta fight and it’s with Salem. I’ll be releasing the next part of the Looking Glass Omake tomorrow and try to get caught up on everything else.