Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Kyou Kara Maou Fan Fiction ❯ Justice! ❯ Maou ( Chapter 4 )

Following his escape from the fortified house, Wufei's plan to summon help from Yuuri's Lord Weller ran into a serious obstacle.

Put simply, Wufei realized that he had not the faintest idea where this Blood Pledge Castle might be, and possessed no GPS unit or even an old-fashioned paper map to assist with the search.

He spent the first half-day after his escape from captivity riding through a very pretty but utterly inhabited forest after he directed his recalcitrant mount off the heavily rutted dirt road that passed for a highway, trying to shake off any pursuers.

When he finally reached cultivated fields, he encountered a pair of farmers, husband and wife by the looks of it.

They bowed to him with obvious deference, and offered his mount a drink of water from their well. They also insisted on sharing their humble midday meal with Wufei--a jug of beer, chewy chunks of plain but freshly-baked bread, hard-boiled eggs, and pickled vegetables.

To his relief, not only had they heard of Blood Pledge Castle, they could give him directions.

"So, you're you going to see His Majesty the Maou, then, my lord?" the man asked, after he finished sketching out a quick map of major landmarks in the soft dirt.

"I have business in the castle, yes," Wufei answered with polite wariness, looking up from his efforts to memorize the map. If he was reading the signs correctly, it looked like he had been riding in entirely the wrong direction for most of the day. Damn it! "But I've never met this Maou of yours--what's he like?"

"His Majesty, the Great Demon King, is very powerful. He even defeated Shoushu," said the farmwife, putting her hands on her hips, as if daring Wufei to contradict her. "But he's a fair and just ruler, not like some of the Mazoku in these parts...begging your pardon, my lord," she added.

"You look like a Mazoku, but I don't recognize your accent...where are you from?" said the farmer, with hesitant inquiry.

Wufei blinked in surprise. "What makes you think I'm Mazoku?" Walther and his co-conspirators had been awfully sure of that as well.

"Why, you've got black hair and black eyes, my lord, and you're wearing a uniform," answered the woman, with the patient tone of someone pointing out the obvious. "Though I don't recognize the crest on your badge."

Wufei glanced down at himself. His Preventers dress uniform was much the worse for wear, the trousers wrinkled and stained, formerly spit-polished shoes now sadly scuffed and muddied, but the organization's logo was still prominent on the right breast of his jacket.

"I'm on an important mission," he said, shortly. "And I need to get to the castle as quickly as possible. Thank you for your help, and for the refreshments." He gave them both a curt bow, then wearily climbed back on his mount.

ooOoo

Wufei finally arrived at Blood Pledge Castle the following day, starving and sore in every muscle from bouncing around on the back of the horse he had stolen, but having achieved, at last, a truce with the beast.

The castle towered high on a hill, its round stone towers visible for miles. It was surrounded by a town comprised of charming half-timbered houses in a traditional European style, separated by cobbled streets and neat squares with stone fountains that apparently served as the town's water supply.

His dusty and disheveled appearance drew discreet stares, but no one challenged him until he and the horse had staggered up the last incline to the castle's gates.

There were two guards stationed just outside the gates. They drew to attention as Wufei approached. "Your business in the castle?" barked one of them, a balding man.

"Sir Konrad Weller," Wufei replied curtly, "Is he here?"

He was too fatigued--and hungry-- to try to dredge up politenesses in German from the recesses of his brain.

The balding guard blinked. "What's your business with him, boy?"

Boy? True, he was only seventeen, but...boy? Wufei glared at him. "I have an important message for him."

The two guards stepped back briefly to confer. Wufei caught only snatches of their debate.

"–a courier? Hell, he doesn't even have a saddlebag–" The balding guard jerked a thumb in Wufei's direction.

"But he's just a kid–" said his companion, who was scarcely five years Wufei's senior, tall and extremely skinny.

"–he's wearing a sword. And that's quality horseflesh he's riding, and the saddle looks expensive, too–"

While they continued to discuss whether to admit him to the castle, Wufei decided to dismount. He'd been on top of the beast far longer than any civilized human being ought to be.

He slid down from the saddle with a suppressed groan. His legs felt as wobbly as a newborn fawn's, and he clung to the stirrup, swaying a little as he fought for his balance.

"All right," said the balding guard, finally, coming back over to Wufei, and scrutinizing him. "We'll send someone to inquire whether Lord Weller is available to receive visitors. May we ask what this is concerning?" he asked, in a tone so polite as to be condescending.

"I have a message from a guy named Yuuri. Shibuya Yuuri. He asked me to tell Sir K–"

Wufei didn't even manage to finish his sentence before the guards' tolerant, slightly insolent demeanor changed dramatically, and Wufei found himself being hustled through the gates with deep bows.

Once inside, things happened rapidly. The guards shouted for grooms to take Wufei's horse. (After their long ordeal together, the horse looked quite relieved to be parted from Wufei. The feeling was entirely mutual.)

Wufei himself was politely but firmly escorted inside one of the many buildings crowding the space inside the castle's walls.

To Wufei's fatigued-fogged senses, it seemed that no more than five minutes passed between the time he arrived at the castle, and the time he found himself seated in a comfortable reception room, with pretty young serving maid pouring hot tea, and a generous assortment of sandwiches, slices of cake, and cookies spread out on the little table at his elbow.

"Please, help yourself, m'lord!" she said with a warm smile, handing him the cup of tea. Then she was gone in a light whiff of rose perfume and a flounce of ruffled skirts.

Wufei's stomach growled noisily, and he made short work of most of the sandwiches. It was the best food he'd seen–and eaten--in days.

Feeling considerably restored, he had munched his way through two of the excellent cookies, and was contemplating a third, a pretty piped round with a jewel-colored jam center, when the door to the reception chamber flew open.

A young man with curling golden hair and a neat blue uniform entered.

"You know where Yuuri is?" demanded the boy, pinning Wufei with an intense green gaze.

The room suddenly hummed with suppressed power, and Wufei found his senses tingling in same way that they had just before Walther von Christ had done...that thing...with the water.

Wufei met the boy's eyes as coolly as he could. "Are you Sir Konrad Weller?"

"What? No?" the boy said, impatiently. "Konrad's my...brother."

Wufei noted the slight pause, and wondered.

"I'm Wolfram–Wolfram von Bielefeld. Yuuri's fiancé," the boy continued, with a proud lift of his chin. "Is he okay? What happened to him?"

Fiance? Wufei blinked. Yuuri certainly was a boy of many surprises, he thought, then pushed aside the distraction. "We were fellow prisoners–" he began, but stopped when the door opened again.

The new arrival was a tall, broad-shouldered man in his late thirties, with stern features and long gray-streaked brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. "Mr. Wufei Chang?" asked the man, with deep-voiced courtesy, as he strode in. "I am Gwendal von Voltaire, the Regent of Shin Makoku. I was told that you bear a message from Yuuri Shibuya. When did you last see him? Is he well?"

Yuuri was acquainted with the Regent of this kingdom? Stranger and stranger. "I believe he is, but he was in considerable danger when I–" Wufei was interrupted by yet more arrivals, a pair of them this time.

One was a tall, lithe man in a tan-and-red uniform, with short brown hair and a kind expression. He radiated a calm energy, in contrast to his companion, a very pretty man dressed in flowing white clothes, with long, pale hair, expressive violet eyes, and a flustered air.

"Sir Konrad Weller and Sir Günther von Christ, this is Wufei Chang. And now, that we are all here," Gwendal von Voltaire said, dryly, "Our guest can tell his tale without interruption." He looked at Wufei. "Pray continue–you said that you felt Yuuri is in danger?"

"Von Christ?" Wufei said, startled. He gave the long-haired man a hard stare, which was returned with violet-eyed innocence and a flutter of lashes. He said to Gwendal: "Are you sure you can trust him?"

Gwendal looked startled. "Of course-- Sir Günther is the Maou's personal tutor, and one of my most trusted advisors. Why do you ask?

"Because a man who called himself Walther von Christ told me that they were just waiting for a few others to arrive, before they held an execution for me and Yuuri," Wufei answered, bluntly.

The tall, silver-haired man fumbled his tea cup. "I don't believe it," he muttered. "That fool...he's taken Yuuri captive?"

"Perhaps you'd better start from the beginning," Konrad said, and Wufei nodded.

As briefly as he could, he related the events that had occurred from the time he was taken from the Preventer's restroom.

"...in any case," finished Wufei. "There's no time to lose. Those rebels snatched Yuuri from his homeworld, as they snatched me from mine. I think they were planning to use him to overthrow this Maou of yours."

He became aware that all four of his listeners were wearing incredulous expressions that ranged in intensity from amazement to anger. Irritated, he snapped, "What? You don't believe me?"

"Did Yuuri actually tell you all this?" demanded Wolfram.

"Not in so many words," admitted Wufei, "but it seems a reasonable surmise, based on what I learned from the rebels. Your Maou needs to be alerted that he's got an armed insurrection brewing in his kingdom, and we need to go back for Yuuri before Von Christ and his cronies decide to...take action."

An awkward silence descended as Konrad, Wolfram, and Günther all looked at Gwendal.

Gwendal cleared his throat. "Mr. Chang," he said quietly. "Yuuri is the Maou."

"What?" Wufei gaped at him foolishly for a long moment. Then anger took over. That puppy-eyed boy had played him for a fool!

"You mean to tell me?" he asked, just to be certain, his voice icy and precise with rage, "that Yuuri–Shibuya Yuuri, Japanese high school student, looks about sixteen years old--is really the Great Demon King? That he could have freed himself any time he wanted? That I rode cross-country for two days on the back of that jolting, ill-tempered beast for nothing?"

Even as he spoke, Wufei found himself thinking that as an undercover operative, Yuuri was a natural. Not even Trowa, with his infiltration skills, could have come close to this. Never in a million years would Wufei have pegged Yuuri as the great reformer and awe-inspiring ruler that others spoke of.

"That wimp always needs rescuing–" began Wolfram, with affectionate exasperation.

Konrad cut Wolfram off. "Mr. Chang, we have never known Yuuri to use his magic for his own benefit. As Maou, his powers are the strongest of our race, but he seems to be able to invoke them only when he needs to protect others," the tall, brown-haired man said quietly.

"And from the description of your captivity," added Günther. "It's clear that your cells were indeed lined with houseki crystals, to prevent either of you from using your maryoku. You were able to escape because you had other skills to fall back on, and were willing to kill those who opposed you. Yuuri...His Majesty has a gentle soul." He clasped his hands to his breast with a rapturous sigh.

Is this guy for real? thought Wufei in disgust.

"He's a wimp." Wolfram snorted, earning him a violet-eyed glare from the womanish-looking Sir Günter.

Wufei found himself agreeing with Wolfram–Yuuri was about as far from appearing a powerful head of state as he could imagine. He was just a boy, and a pretty average-seeming one at that.

Wufei wondered what it was about Yuuri that seemed to inspire such loyalty in his retainers. The boy had seemed naïve and hopelessly inexperienced to him–how could someone like that capture and hold the respect of seasoned warriors and politicians?

Then again, he'd never understood the charisma exerted by Relena Peacecraft, who had also been a hopelessly-naïve, sheltered miss in the beginning.

"Yuuri is strong in his own way, but his way is not the way of the soldier," Konrad continued. "Rather, his strength lies in his unique ability to gain the love and trust of not only his people, but also Shin Makoku's enemies. In the brief period of his reign so far, he has done more to ensure the safety of this land than any of his recent predecessors."

"And he has us to fight for him when there's fighting to be done," added Wolfram, puffing out his chest.

"We'll get a rescue party together straightaway," said the stern-looking Gwendal, then put a hand out to restrain Wolfram, who had half-turned, as if preparing to dash out the door. "But a discreet one, if you please. No sense in advertising Yuuri's present circumstances to our kingdom's enemies."

"I agree it should be done quietly," Konrad said. "I'll go, of course."

"You're not leaving me behind!" declared Wolfram.

"And we should probably bring Josak," Konrad continued. He looked consideringly at Günther. "Will you come?"

"Anything to help His Beloved Majesty the Maou!" exclaimed Günther, theatrically. "And if Walther is really involved with this plot, then I am duty-bound to stop him."

Wufei considered Günther skeptically, but then gave an internal shrug. The man looked unreliable with his effeminate airs and affected speech, but it wasn't his call.

"Where, exactly, did you say you were held captive?" Konrad was asking.

"To the east of here, one or two days by horse, I'm not exactly certain since I, um, got lost coming here," Wufei repeated, as he had stated earlier when he was relating his adventures. "It's a big, fortified house surrounded by a forest."

"That describes a lot of places in this kingdom," Gwendal said, looking weary.

"I'm sure I'll be able to retrace my steps," Wufei assured them.

All of the men in the room looked at him as if trying to formulate a protest. Before they could articulate any objection, Wufei added, firmly, "Of course I'm coming with you to rescue Yuuri–I mean, the Maou."

"You've done enough, Mr. Chang, just by bringing us word of his whereabouts," Konrad said, gently.

Wufei flushed under his assessing gaze, all-too-aware of the picture he must present with his dirty and torn clothing, his youth, and his wiry, rather...short frame. Especially when contrasted by how tall and well-built Konrad, Günther, and Gwendal all were.

As least Wolfram wasn't built along those strapping lines. And if Wolfram was allowed to go, then Wufei was not going to be left behind.

"I have to go," he insisted, and in the face of Konrad's continued skepticism, added bitterly, "I was forced to leave without Yuuri–he was my responsibility, and I left him behind." He all but shouted that last, and calmed himself with an effort. His failure had eaten away at him like acid over the past few days, eroding his pride and his sense of self-worth.

"We can't afford to babysit a civilian–" Wolfram began, with a contemptuous curl of his lip.

"I am a trained and experienced soldier," Wufei cut him off. "You can test me, if you like. My horsemanship isn't much to write home about," he smiled wryly, "but I'm equally comfortable with a sword or unarmed combat. I'm also skilled in the use of guns and explosives, but I haven't noticed either of those types of weapons in common use around here."

"We have large pieces of artillery and gunpowder, but not the small personal sidearms found in your world," Konrad agreed. He looked at Gwendal. "What do you think? Shall we test him?"

"It can't hurt," Gwendal said, slowly.

Wufei rose to his feet, eager to prove himself despite his weariness.

Gwendal quirked a tiny smile, more a straightening of the lips in that grim visage than anything else. "Let our visitor have a bath, a meal, and a good night's sleep, first though," he amended. "It's nearly sunset, and we'll need until tomorrow morning to provision and arm a rescue party. Meet us in the main courtyard at dawn, Mr. Chang."

Wufei gave him a slight bow. "Thank you, sir. You won't be disappointed."

Gwendal's gaze rested on him for a long moment. "No," he said finally, "I don't think I will be."

ooOoo

After a hearty supper to supplement the sandwiches and cake, a long soak in a hot bath to relieve his abused muscles, and a good night's sleep in a luxurious guest room that was larger than Wufei's entire apartment, followed by a generous breakfast served in his room in the gray darkness before dawn, Wufei felt ready to get back in the saddle.

If only his ass didn't still hurt as if bruises had formed on top of bruises from sitting on the damned beast for two straight days. And he had just volunteered to do it again. Because it was the only honorable course of action.

Wincing, he got dressed by candlelight (his uniform had been laundered overnight, and delivered with his breakfast) and moved through his morning Tai Chi Chuan training forms, letting his muscles loosen up in preparation for having to prove his martial skills to Yuuri's friends.

He finished just before a young guardsman came to fetch him, lantern in hand, with the polite request that Wufei bring his sword along.

Wufei followed his guide down gloomy corridors before emerging into the castle's main courtyard. It was still early enough that the courtyard lay in deep shadow. and the castle buildings were still only dark silhouettes against a still-black sky. There, he found Konrad was waiting for him.

After exchanging greetings and answering courteous inquiries as to his rest and comfort, Konrad got down to business. He eyed Wufei's sword doubtfully. "Is that yours?"

"No. I took it from the one of the guards in that dungeon," Wufei answered, hefting the weapon. "It has lousy balance."

"Ah." Konrad's calm expression did not alter, but somehow Wufei felt he had passed a test. "Perhaps we should first visit the armory and find you a more suitable weapon."

"I would appreciate that," Wufei said, inclining his head in Konrad's direction.

The armory proved to be a large set of storerooms just off the courtyard, crowded with racks holding many different sorts of weapons: pole-axes, lances, maces, bows, and, of course, swords of all kinds, from a huge gilt-engraved broadsword that had to be parade weapon, for it looked too unwieldy for actual battle, down to slender rapiers.

One sword in particular caught his eye. It hung in a space apart from the others, crowned with an elaborate hilt that had an odd, skull-like face set into it. Wufei went over to take a look at it, and the sword gave a despairing moan.

He jumped a little, then glanced around to make sure no one had seen his breach of dignity.

"That's Morgif, the legendary demon sword," Konrad said, approaching Wufei, a bundle of swords cradled in his arms. "It's Yuuri's personal weapon."

Morgif gave another yowling moan, and this time, Wufei saw the skull-face contort. "It's...sentient?" he asked, in disbelief.

Konrad nodded. "I don't advise touching it. Only a Maou can wield it." His brow furrowed. "I can't help think that if Yuuri had had Morgif when he was captured--but, never mind that… Here," He extended the bundle of swords, "I've taken the liberty of selecting a few possible weapons for you, based on your height and reach. Will you test them out, and let me know what you think? If none of them suit, there are plenty more."

Wufei turned away from Morgif, his curiosity unsatisfied. He had many questions, but they would have to wait.

Konrad certainly knew a lot about swords, Wufei soon concluded. All of the selected weapons were a pleasure to handle, and it was difficult to select just one. Finally, having settled on a well-balanced saber similar to his own Liuyedao, Wufei allowed Konrad to wrap the blade with rags in preparation for their duel.

Then they went back outside to the courtyard, where Wufei was dismayed to discover that a small crowd had gathered to witness the test. Wolfram was there, as were Günther, Gwendal, and a muscular man with red hair and bright blue eyes, who was introduced as Josak. A number of the castle's servants and men-at-arms had also joined the onlookers.

Regretting the lack of his usual loose workout clothing, Wufei shed the heavy jacket of his Preventers dress uniform, and rolled up his shirtsleeves.

Konrad did not bother, looking as neat and trim in his red-trimmed tan uniform tunic and trousers as if he were still the reception room.

With a brief salute, Konrad made his first sally, and Wufei deftly parried. Some of the onlookers oohed and aaahed, and Wufei frowned briefly in irritation, then pushed aside the distraction to concentrate on his opponent.

The two of them sparred cautiously for a few minutes, the blow of blade against blade muffled by the protective layers of cloth, each feeling out the other's strengths and style.

Konrad was good…very good, Wufei realized quickly. And he was still holding back…was it because of Wufei's perceived youth and inexperience?

If so, they were wasting valuable time. He had to show them what he was capable of, Wufei decided. In the next pass, he launched a more aggressive attack, which combined a sweep of his sword immediately followed by a scything kick.

To his astonishment, Konrad smoothly parried, then evaded the follow-up strike, leaning just far enough away so that Wufei's foot only brushed the shoulder of his uniform.

A little off-balance, Wufei was hard-pressed to counter Konrad's next move, a thrusting lunge. He spun away, feinted, and leaped into the air, somersaulting over Konrad's head in an attempt to catch his undefended back.

It didn't work, and again, Konrad's counter-attack was lightning-fast.

In fact, the pace of the duel had picked up considerably from its cautious start. Wufei forgot about the onlookers, forgot about Yuuri, and focused all of his attention on Konrad, centering himself and letting his qi direct and power his moves.

This was fun, Wufei realized, being matched evenly against an opponent good enough that he didn't have to dial back any of his abilities.

Among the Preventers, only Heero Yuy could match Wufei's martial ability, but Heero's specialties were sniper shooting and piloting, not wushu or the archaic art of the sword.

How long had it been, since Wufei had fought such a worthy opponent?

Not since Treize, surely…

The memory of Treize, his strange but admirable enemy, made Wufei falter for a second. He paid for his brief moment of distraction as Konrad's sword landed a stinging blow against his left bicep, hard enough to bruise.

Wufei sprang back, gave Konrad a wolfish grin to acknowledge the blow, and lunged, hoping the speed of his thrust would allow him to slip under Konrad's guard.

With a jarring impact that vibrated clear up his right arm and into his chest, Wufei felt his sword fly out of his numbed hand. In the next instant, he found himself sitting on the packed earth of the courtyard, winded and gasping for the breath that had been knocked out of him.

The tip of Konrad's swathed sword pressed against Wufei's neck. Panting, he looked up at his opponent.

Konrad was breathing a little harder now, but otherwise, looked almost as unruffled as he had at the beginning of the duel, damn him!

"I yield," Wufei said grudgingly.

Konrad lowered his sword, and extended a hand to help Wufei up.

Once back on his feet, Wufei bowed deeply. "Thank you for the match. It was an honor to duel with you."

Konrad smiled, and returned the bow. "The honor was mine," he replied, with equal sincerity. "You're an excellent swordsman. Your teacher must be very proud of you."

"I could say the same of you," Wufei said.

Konrad's smile turned to a grin, and he bowed in Günther's direction. "Did you hear that, o esteemed instructor?"

"What--him?" Wufei was startled enough to actually speak out loud. That violet-haired, excitable…fop…was Konrad's master in the art of the sword?

"Don't let his mannerisms fool you," Konrad murmured. "Günther is one of the finest swordsmen in Shin Makoku, and he was a respected instructor at the Royal Military Academy for many years. He would rather be liked than feared, though, and tries very hard to appear…harmless."

"I…see," Wufei said, though he still couldn't reconcile his initial impression of Günther with the description that he'd just been given.

"I'm sure you will soon grow to respect Günther, as we all do," Konrad assured him. "Now, may I hold your sword for this next assessment?"

Wufei handed him the saber, and Konrad stepped back.

"Okay, my turn, kiddo," Josak said, stepping forward and cracking his knuckles with a wide grin. "I'll try not to hurt you. Unless you'd like a few minutes to rest up, first?"

Hah! Wufei sneered at the suggestion. If he found a few minutes of enjoyable swordplay exhausting, then he didn't deserve to accompany these men on their mission!

Josak had barely finished speaking when Wufei struck with a first, probing blow. Josak parried with his forearm, and countered with a hard punch that whooshed past Wufei's cheek as he turned to avoid it.

Within a couple of minutes, he had ascertained that while Josak was good, he relied too much on his superior reach and his predictions as what Wufei was going to do next.

Winning this match was going to be easy, thought Wufei. All he had to do was mislead Josak with his body language.

He feinted with a blow to Josak's head, and when Josak took the bait and raised his arms to shield, Wufei landed a hard kick in Josak's midsection.

The tall, red-haired man crumpled to the ground with an explosive 'oof!' and lay there.

The match was over.

Wufei gave the red-haired man a curt bow. "Thank you for the match," he said formally, though in reality, Josak hadn't proved to be much of an opponent. Not like Konrad Weller...

Wufei glanced up at the rapidly-lightening sky to ascertain the time, then looked over at assembled onlookers. "If you have no more tests for me," he said curtly, Yuuri's impending execution pressing heavily upon his ingrained sense of responsibility, "I suggest we get going. It's a long ride."

"Agreed." Konrad inclined his head. "The horses have been saddled, and their bags packed with supplies. Is there anything you'd like bring along?"

Wufei considered a moment. "Gunpowder, if you have any," he said, and smiled tightly. "I can think of a few uses for it."

When they rode out of the castle a short while later, the pack-horse bore a small barrel of black powder, carefully wrapped in oilcloth to protect it from any rain showers.

Wufei only hoped that they would reach Yuuri in time.