Solo Cultivation in The Apocalypse

Hitori was inside his room, he asked for some time to think and reflect on the events. The curtains were closed and the lamps were off, he clasped his hands together, pulled them under his chin, and sat on his bed with boiling anger and tension inside his heart.

Tears had formed, but the gritting teeth neutralized them. His nails were digging in his knuckles, but the pain and the heavy feeling in his heart neutralized the action.

He heard a knock on the door, he jumped and thought Tengoku had made his way to his house.

"How much time do you need, boy? Make it quick, they will be here anytime." It was Kakashi, Hitori could only possibly forget that voice.

"Calm it, Kakashi, let him take his time," Eya said.

"We do not have time, we need an army, which we do not have. So we need to run before Tengoku comes."

He was waiting for Eya's reply, but she had agreed with her brother. He took a deep breath and opened the door.

He saw Kakashi standing in front of the sofa, talking to Eya sitting on the sofa. She was so short Hitori could see only the top of her pony, the rest was hidden on the sofa.

"Should we inform Atama-sensei?" Eya asked.

Kakashi looked at Hitori, Eya turned, grabbed the sofa's shoulders, and looked at Hitori.

"Hitori-san, how are you feeling?" He nodded and took a seat beside Eya.

Kakashi continued, "No, we can not," he said. "It would not remain a personal fight anymore if the head of Mahoutokoro interferes with a weapon engineer. It will turn into a war-- Mages Vs. Scientists, so no."

"Then? What do we do?"

Kakashi pushed his sleeve back and took a look at his forearm. "If Kakashi comes alone like before, he will kill him. But if he brings a freaking army with him, we are done for."

"Did not he have only one person with him? There is no way he could bring an army to the prefecture," Eya said.

Kakashi momentarily agreed with her when Hitori said, "But what if he had already brought an army with him?"

Kakashi and Eya turned to him. "What do you mean?" Kakashi asked.

"Christmas and New Year. Those were two festivals where he could bring an entire army into the prefecture. Half on Christmas, another half, including himself, on New Year."

Eya gulped. For some reason, she thought Hitori's theory was realistic. If anyone was planning an attack, he would plan it at least a month before.

"If we are thinking about the most possible and the worst case, then we need to find a place to flee," Kakashi declared.

With no men on their side, the Siblings duo can not face an army of around a hundred men.

They fell into deep thought. The outside was silent with no sign of Tengoku, which assured them they had some time to think patiently.

Eya and Kakashi were trying to find a safe place for them to flee to before Tengoku's arrival. But Hitori's mind was stuck somewhere else.

He saw some flashes of when Kiku used to teleport him near the academy, he recalled how the Vr-cade workers teleported him by touching hands. Not once, but thrice.

He lifted his head and asked, "Who are you two?"

They both paused thinking and looked at Hitori. "I am Kakashi and she is my elder sister Eya-nee." They went back to their thinking process.

"Who are you? Why are you trying to protect me? Why do you know so much about Kamiya and me? Why two Vr-cade workers are trying to save my life from a few crazy scientists?"

They sprung their heads and stared at Hitori, he felt he had offended them, so he continued:

"I am just an average mage, or the top in school, not the best gamer either, and of course, not a bigshot with top family background. Then why?"

"We are not Vr-cade workers, idiot." Eya stretched her hand, and Kakashi shut his mouth.

"We own the Vr-cade, Hitori-san. We are former students, if we apply for any dungeon conquest, we would be ranked in the top ten warlocks. We are protecting you because your father ordered us to."

Hitori lifted his eyes in surprise. "Dad? D-do you know where he is?" he asked, he saw their faces drop.

Eya shook her head. "We do not. We are not even sure whether they are dead."

Hitori dropped himself on the sofa. "How can you say he told you to protect me then?"

"They have been gone for more than three months now, have not they?"

Hitori nodded. "They never come back."

"They have gone to a dangerous place to stop a dangerous man. Any further details and you will piss yourself. I did when I was around your age," Kakashi said, "not when your father introduced me to this 'dangerous man' but when I saw him cut hundreds of monsters and men with bare hands."

That sure sent chills down Hitori's spine.

He looked at the carpet and said, "We teleported, did not we?"

"Yeah, we did, though, why?" Eya asked, tilting her head at Hitori.

"H-how do you do that?" He looked at her. "How do you teleport?"

"Why, boy, where do you want to teleport?"

But Eya told him. "You need to know the spell."

"Just that?"

"It comes from within, it is not a choice whether you want to teleport right now, the act of moving our soul with our body to other places you have been to is a matter of your need, it comes from your heart, you can not force yourself to teleport."

"Is that why it is hard to teleport ourselves but easy to teleport someone else?"

"Either if they are willing to or if their mana affinity is weaker than you, yes," she said, "why?"

Hitori dropped his head and nodded. "What is the spell called?"

Kakashi was watching the whole time. "Alright." He interrupted them. "Do not say a single word---"

"you say 'Teleport me (and the name of the place)' then you need to visualize the place in your head. It might cost lots of mana for a beginner."

"Do not tell him that! Aks his motive first!"

Hitori closed his eyes. 'Teleport me to room 303, Kamiya Akemi's room.' He visualized the white room, a bed in the middle, Kamiya on the side, curtains covering the windows, and the table, chairs, and wires around her.

He opened his find, hoping to find himself in the hospital, but he found himself on the sofa.

"Hitori-san, what are you doing?" she asked, but he ignored her.

He closed his eyes again and imagined the solid wooden door, the pattern pad, and the white walls. 'Teleport me to the City Hospital.' He tried the city hospital, but with no success.

Hitori woke up when Kakashi slapped his head.

"Kakashi!" Eya jumped and shouted.

"What are you, a fucking retard?" he shouted, standing behind Hitori, glaring at him. "Ah, fuck, you annoy me to the core, boy! I can not believe we are subjected to protect a brat who does not even know he can not teleport inside or to an anti-teleportation enchantment. With his mana affinity, he never can!"

"That is okay, calm down, you!" Eya jumped over the sofa and grabbed Kakashi.

Hitori was still staring at the carpet, he had figured something thanks to the slap. He got up.

"Look at his father, and then look at the unaware piece of a shit brat he has raised. He does not know the basics about magic, is this how he will become the strongest warlock in history and defeat that man?!"

Eya had no reply for him. He was right in a way.

Hitori strode, grabbed his jacket, and raced out of the house. Kakashi and Eya exchanged glances.

"See? He is reckless. Even after telling him and showing him the dangers that long out, he walked out of the house as if it was no big deal."

"Yeah, thanks to your annoyance." Eya took her cloak and chased behind Hitori. "Come on, now!" she shouted.

Kakashi threw his arms. "Come on," he groaned.

She opened the door, the path in front of them was empty. "Oh my god." She wore her cloak.

Kakashi joined her from behind. "He disappeared? Did he just teleport?"

He ran down the stairs, grabbed Eya's hand, and teleported to Hitori.

He was running towards the bridge, across the barren lands. After sliding down the bridge, he jumped in a sled.

"Where to?"

"The City Hospital, it is an emergency, quick please." His pleading fooled the driver. He rode the sled full-fledged down the roads to the City Hospital.

Eya and Kakashi had to teleport frequently to keep up with him. Hitori got off the sled, paid the driver, and thanked him. They appeared behind Hitori and grabbed him by his shoulders.

"Where are you going?" Eya was panting, Kakashi was alright.

Hitori knew they would chase him. "To figure things out."

Kakashi lifted his head, he saw a big building in front of him, five floors, guards on the entrance, and night clouds over the City Hospital. "In the city hospital?"

Hitori strode to the entrance. His heart was beating, he wondered if he will be able to pass with his school ID this time, or will he have to kill two people again.

Eya and Kakashi frowned. They followed Hitori. When they approached the guards, they both took out their citizenship cards.

Hitori was allowed to pass this time. He glanced at the reception, it was empty. Eya and Kakashi showed their cards and got permission to advance.

Hitori climbed to the third floor, stood in front of room 303, and drew the pattern. It was wrong, he chuckled. Of course, he changed it.

Kakashi and Eya reached the third floor and spotted Hitori knocking on the door. "No wonder he could not teleport to his desired place." Eya glanced at Kakashi.

The door opened, and Kamiya stood in the doorway, and Hitori barged inside without waiting for Kamiya to say something.

Kakashi reached the room but Kamiya closed the door on them. He asked, "Do you think we can teleport here?"

"It is enchanted by the minister and his men, we are not that strong," she said. "But..." she pulled two purple flaskes out of the ring. "Maybe we can with a mana booster?"

Akemi's mouth dropped when she saw Hitori, he stopped and walked back to the door.

"How is your neck?"

"Good."

"I heard you are working for Onogi?"

His face twisted in every angle possible. "Fuck, Hitori! You believe them?"

"Why did you come to my bed at night then?"

"Not on anyone's orders, I assure you that."

Hitori remembered: 'Maybe he is not working for anyone, but he wants you dead.'

"So you wanted to kill me?"

Akemi could not move till Hitori made a move on her little brother. He used his forearm to choke Kamiya when he stayed quiet.

"Kamiya, answer me. This is not the best time for a fight."

"Stop right there, Hitori!" He heard.

Hitori turned around and saw Akemi pointing a wand at him.

"Enough of you, bastard!" She jerked her wand. "Kekkan no Noroi!" She fired a reddish-blue beam at Hitori.

Suddenly, a man flashed in front of his eyes. Kakashi slashed his wand and deflected the spell.

Eya appeared behind Akemi and grabbed her by her hands, later pinning her with the Neru spell.

"You do not use curses so easily," she told her.

"He was killing my brother!" Akemi protested.

"There are spells like Petrify for such occasions. Curses are for even serious matters!"

Hitori released Kamiya, he reached for his wand, but Kakashi was already pointing his wand at Kamiya. "Stay put, Kamiya boy."

Kamiya looked at Hitori. "So you bought a whole squad to my room, eh? What do you want?"

"To hear the truth," Hitori said. "Are you working with or for anyone?"

"I am not, god! You know it better than anyone, Hitori! Think, will I be ever willing to work for them?"

Hitori was left speechless. "Do not be swayed away by his words, he can puzzle and play with your emotions."

Kamiya looked at Eya with his blood-shot eyes and his glasses hanging on his nose's temple.

"Fuck you, too. Look at my sister. Do you know what happened to her? Do you?!"

"Jigo, no!"

"She was raped!"

Hitori's mouth dropped and the frown faded in an instant.

"She was raped, Onogi did that to her!"

Akemi dropped her head.

"Can you still imagine me working for Onogi? I would do anything to kill him."

Silence. No one said anything, rather, they did not want to touch such a sensitive topic. They all held their heads down.