"He killed them."
Fels words echoed within the torchlit chamber. Ouranos did not immediately respond.
"Seven individuals. I arrived too late to witness the act, only the aftermath. A black veil spread from beneath his feet, contracted, and there was nothing left behind. No bodies, blood, or any trace of them." Fels recounted the incident towards Ouranos.
"Were they adventurers?" Ouranos spoke out after a brief moment of contemplation.
"Low level, unregistered with any notable Familia. Based on their positioning and equipment, they were operating as bandits within Daedalus Street."
Ouranos leaned back in his seat and kept silent. Killing was forbidden under Guild law. It was a rule that applied to all registered adventurers within Orario's walls. Violations of said rule would carry severe penalties, up to and including exile. It was one of the only ways to maintain order in a city where every other person carried a weapon and had the strength to level a building.
However, Yuji Itadori was not a registered adventurer. He had no Falna, belonged to no Familia, and had no formal standing within the Guild. The rules that governed adventurers wouldn't apply to him.
That did not make the act legal by any other measure, as Orario still had civil law. Taking a life within the city walls was a crime regardless of status.
Yet, the victims were criminals operating in a district where Guild patrols were effectively nonexistent. No one would report them missing and he doubted any one would be willing to investigate. Daedalus Street dealt with its own problems. To put it more accurately, Daedalus Street didn't deal with its problems at all.
Ouranos recognized it as an uncomfortable gray area, but that was how things currently stood.
"Continue."
Fels nodded at the old God's words and continued on. They recounted the aftermath and the actions Yuji displayed shortly after, standing in the clearing for about 10 seconds before continuing on. Including the pulse Fels subtly felt that extended deep below.
Ouranos creased his brows. "He detected the labyrinth."
Fels merely nodded. As for what Itadori actually sensed within the structure, and whether he mapped its full extent or not, Fels could not say. All he sensed was the pulse reaching down before coming back up.
"Did he attempt to breach it?"
"No. He continued walking on as though nothing had occurred."
"Continue observing. Change nothing."
Fels bowed their head and departed promptly. Their conversations was also short and to the point.
Ouranos sat alone in the silence that followed, his thoughts settling on a single point. Of the man who had been in the city for two days detecting what the Loki Familia had yet to discover.
Whether Yuji Itadori understood the significance of what he'd found was another question entirely.
---------------------------------
The next morning arrived without incident.
Yuji came downstairs to once again find Edel behind the kitchen counter, sliding a plate of bread and small bowl of porridge towards him without a word.
"Morning." He said, taking a seat and beginning to eat.
Edel responded with a nod and returned to whatever she was doing. The two never spent any idle time making small talk with one another, rather getting on with their own business or barely acknowledging each others existence.
He ate in silence as the sounds of the city coming to life filtered through the window. Few of the early risers were already making their way to the Dungeons once again.
Finishing his food, he leaned back and looked down at his clothes. He had failed to find a proper tailor with the time remaining yesterday.
He needed something to help him blend in more, and he couldn't just keep on wearing the same piece of fabric every single day.
He stood up and slid the empty plate and bowl back to Edel who took them without a word.
"Back for dinner."
"Don't track mud in."
"Sure."
He lifted his hood over his head and left the boarding house, stepping into the fresh morning air.
He retracted his steps back towards a tailoring shop he passed on his way back from Daedalus Street, but it was closed since it was already getting late.
Sure enough, the shop was fully open once more, situated next to the other workshops off the Northwest Main Street. It was a small shop with several wooden mannequins lining the window to display clothes.
Yuji walked in and the tailor, a middle aged human wearing a clean suit, turned to him. He had a stylized mustache and glancing at Yuji, his eyes lit up.
"Dear customer, may I ask where you have acquired such garments from?" The man stepped forward, a hand behind his back with the other twirling his mustache.
Yuji raised a brow, looking down at his clothes before answering, "It was a custom order. I want something that won't make me standout, but durable enough that it won't rip easily."
The man's eyes were still studying Yuji's clothes but he nodded. He took out a measuring tape and Yuji followed his instructions, taking off his jacket leaving him with a plain black shirt beneath. The tailor carefully took Yujis jacket and folded them neatly, before stepping forward and mapping out Yuji's dimensions. He ignored the scars on his neck and forearms, including the two missing fingers on Yujis hand. Adventuring was a tough ordeal.
"I want two sets of clothing, but nothing too fancy that would make me stick out more than I currently am."
The tailor merely nodded, and Yuji swore he saw his mustache twitch.
Fifteen minutes later, the orders were placed and a deposit left behind as Yuji stepped back out into the street.
Standing back on the street, Yuji looked up and saw that it was still early morning, but he didn't have a plan to go about his day. That was when a voice called out from behind him.
"Well, well! If it ain't my favourite fossil!"
Yuji turned and glanced over his head.
Loki was strolling up the street towards him with a carefree gait in her steps. Her short red hair reflected the morning sun, and her ever present squinted eyes were fixed on him. He had a feeling this wasn't just mere coincidence.
She wore her usual outfit with her hands on her hips as she came to a stop in front of him, the top of her head barely reaching his chest.
"Loki. If I'm a fossil, what does that make you?"
"Well, Yuji Itadori, that makes me a sexy lady killer, of course!" Loki replied with a proud smirk and Yuji could only let out a wry smile.
"So, how's civilian life treatin ya? Found a place to stay yet, or are ya sleeping on a park bench?" Loki asked him.
"Finn directed me to a boarding house, just three blocks from your place." Yuji replied, knowing for a fact Finn would've already told her about this.
"Oh? That close? That's Finn for ya!" Her eyebrows rose with theatrical surprise that fooled neither of them. "Still, what a coincidence! Here I was, just taking a morning stroll, and I happen to run into ya."
"You don't strike me as the morning stroll type."
"Oh? And what type do I strike ya as?"
"The 'I have a reason for being here' type."
Loki's grin widened as she puffed her chest(?), "Can't a gal be a bit whimsical sometimes?"
Yuji tilted his head, deadpanning at her words and Loki merely laughed.
"Guilty as charged! Can't get anythin' past ya, huh?" She rocked back on her heels and stepped forward, falling into stride beside him as though they were planning to walk together all along.
"Alright, I'll level with ya. I came out here cause I wanted to check in. You left pretty quick after the dinner."
"I told Finn i'd be finding my own place."
"Yeah yeah, he told me. Very independent. Very manly." She waved her hand dismissively. "I ain't talking about that. I'm talking about how you're doin'. New city, new life, no Familia, and no connections outside of the ones ya just made. That's a lot, even for someone your age."
Yuji glanced down at her. Beneath the playful tone, there was something genuine in her tone. He'd seen it the first time he and the Loki Familia expedition had returned, with the way she interacted with her Familia.
"I'm fine. Bought some rice, found a tailor and haven't gotten lost yet."
"Rice?" She blinked. "Where'd ya rice in Orario?"
"The East District, nearer to the walls."
"Hah! You really are from the Far East, ain't ya?" She replied with a sort of 'Gotcha!' tone, amusement lacing her words. "Or wherever it is you're actually from. Them Far East folks can't go a day without that stuff."
Yuji merely shrugged and the two continued walking in comfortable silence for a few paces.
"So, what's the real question?" Yuji finally asked her.
Loki's expression never changed, but there was a subtle shift in her posture. The playfulness ws still there, but there was something sharper behind it now.
"Aiz has been off sinc ethe dinner. Hasn't gone to the Dungeon in two days. For her, that's like a fish refusing to swim." She kept her eyes forward as she spoke. "She won't tell me what's eatin' at her, and Mama Riveria's been doin' her best but even she can only get so much out of that girl."
Yuji ignored the 'Mama Riveria' implications. "And you think it has something to do with me."
"I think it has something to do with what you said to her. Back in the Dungeon, and again on the streets." Loki looked up at him. "I ain't accusin' you of anything. Aiz thinking hard about stuff is actually a good thing, even if it's giving me a headache. But I wanted to hear it from you."
Yuji was quiet for a moment, taking in what she told him and considering his next words.
"I told her that strength isn't just about killing things, and that the reason she started getting stronger might not be enough to carry her the rest of the way." Yuji said, keeping it as simple as possible. "She asked me how to get stronger, and I gave her an honest answer."
Loki chewed on his words for a moment. "An honest answer, huh?" She let out a breath through her nose. "Yeah, that'd do it. That girl's been running on the same fuel since she was a kid. Tellin' her the tank might be running empty would definitely knock her off balance."
She scratched the back of her head, a gesture that made her look less like a respected deity and more of a tired parent. After a moment she spoke up.
"She's been asking about you, y'know. Wants you to train her."
"So she mentioned."
"And?"
"And nothing." Yuji shrugged, his tone having no sense of commitment in his words, "I gave her advice because she asked. That doesn't mean I signed up to be her teacher."
Loki studied him from below. There wasn't annoyance in her expression, except for a quiet assessing gaze.
"Not interested?" She probed him one more time.
"Not particularly. I don't have a reason to." He spoke on, keeping his tone neutral, so as not to sound outright dismissive but not apologetic either. "I'm not part of your Familia. I'm not responsible for her growth, and I'm not looking to take on students. I just got here. I haven't even figured out what I'm doing with my own time yet, and that's a luxury to me."
The honesty in Yuji's words threw Loki off guard slightly. It didn't stem from the refusal itself, but it was rather the lack of pretense in his words. Most people would be ecstatic when approached with the offer to train the Sword Princess and being owed a debt.
But now she knew, Yuji genuinely did not care.
"Fair enough." Loki said after a beat, a grin returning to her face. "Can't force a horse to drink, right?"
"So they say." Yuji responded, merely shrugging.
"I won't push it. That's between you and her." Loki paushed before adding on with a more pointed tone. "But if she does come to you directly, at least hear her out. That's all I'm askin'."
Yuji glanced at her for a moment, then nodded, "I can do that much."
"Good. That's all I wanted." The tension, or whatever little there was, instantly evaporated as Loki clapped her hands together and shifted gears entirely.
"Now, changin' the subject. You got plans for the next few days?"
Yuji raised a brow at her words, "None in particular. Why?"
"Ganesha's throwin' a banquet tomorrow night. God's only thing, sorta like a pre festival party before the big Monster Feria event. You know about Monster Feria, right?"
"The monster taming festival. Your Familia explained a bit to me, and I've seen the cages being brought towards the East District." Yuji responded, looking at the decorations for the Monster Feria adoring the street.
"That's the one. Big colosseum event, food stalls, the whole deal. Monster Feria itself is open to everyone." She nudged Yuji's side with an elbow. "You should check it out, might be fun for a fossil who hasn't had any in a few centuries. Who knows, someone might catch your eye~"
Yuji shook his head before speaking, "Not like I have much going on, but I'll think about it."
"Don't think too hard." She gave him a sideways look. "Sometimes ya just gotta go somewhere and see what happens. Take it as advice from a senior."
She patted Yuji's back before peeling away from his side, turning down a side street with a wave over her shoulder.
"Don't be a stranger, yeah? Twilight Manor's always open."
She disappeared around the corner after those last words, leaving with the same casual ease she'd arrived with.
Yuji watched where she had disappeared to for a moment, before shaking his head and continuing on aimlessly.
Monster Feria was in two days, and his new clothes would be ready tomorrow night. But beyond that, his schedule was empty.
He'd spent centuries with a schedule dictated by obligation, duty and the expectations of others. With this new world offering the luxury of having nothing to do, he wasn't going to waste it by filling the empty gaps out of habit.
He rounded a corner and soon disappepared into the flow of the city.
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Authors Note:
Loki jumpscare? I know for a fact more than a few of you are hungry for her
Late chapter today than usual, god busy whoops