"Let's GOOO!" Maruti shouts turning on the wheels. She burst the superbike right through the glass walls that led to the balcony.
SMASH!...
The glass shatters into a million tiny pieces as the bike flies directly out of the headquarters building.
Before it could fall straight down, Maruti immediately leans forward, changing their path. With quick fingers, she clicked more buttons on the small hologram screen hovering above her bike's handle, and the tires of the bike magically stuck to the building's wall.
Although it clung to the walls, it didn't completely defy gravity. They made their way down the side of the building at a breathtaking speed.
With Esdeath sitting behind her, somehow keeping a blank face with narrowed eyes, her long black hair whipped back because of the heavy winds as they descends. It felt like they were on the wildest roller coaster or in the middle of an action movie.
Maruti couldn't help but cheer out loud even more, her heart pounding with excitement.
Just as they were about to crash into the ground, she quickly clicks another button. The jet engine on the back of the bike roars to life like a real jet, producing a burst of fire that made the bike float for a few seconds before it gently touches the ground, stopping their crash.
The moment she got her balance, Maruti grips the handle again, boosting her bike on the ground and drifting away toward their destination.
"You're quite good for a first-timer," Esdeath praises in her usual flat voice, even though she knew it wasn't Maruti's first time riding a bike. It was, however, definitely her first time riding a futuristic superbike like this one.
"To be honest, I wasn't so sure either. But who cares? I did it!" Maruti answeres casually, a proud smile on her face as she sped up her bike.
The speed and control were absolutely amazing. Whether it was going so fast that the world around them turned into a colorful blur, or using the brakes at that speed and still not getting thrown off because of the sudden stop, Maruti handled it perfectly.
Or more like, The bike was too optimised.
Of course, their previous way of traveling by flying was much faster, but this felt so much more comfortable and relaxing. Not to mention, riding a superbike like this had its own special kind of thrill and satisfaction.
The bike had an option to run on both mana crystals and even electricity. This meant that even a person who wasn't an Awakened could ride it if they wanted to.
As they made their way back to the Kingdom of the Awakened, they couldn't help but notice that the number of monsters in 3S's territory had greatly increased.
Many robots were fighting and trying to control the monsters and beasts. It seemed that with no dwarves around, the monsters and beasts had a free hand to come deeper into the territory.
Some of the monsters even tried to chase after them, but they were no match for the superbike's incredible speed.
Maruti enjoyed every single moment they were on the bike. When they left 3S's headquarters, it was already night. Yet, even though she was usually very picky about her sleep, Maruti rode the bike the whole night without once asking Esdeath if they could stop somewhere to rest.
Nor did Esdeath say anything about it. In fact, she felt secretly happy, since it only made her journey back to Anastasia faster.
By the time morning arrives, they were already inside the Awakened Kingdom. Riding through alleyways and main roads, Maruti made sure to show off her amazing bike for everyone to see.
Of course, the people of the Awakened Kingdom were much more used to electronic things. Since the Awakened Kingdom had been partners with the Dwarf Kingdom for a long time, they got exclusive technology way before any other kingdoms could.
So instead of being genuinely shocked by seeing something so alien, the expressions on the pedestrians' faces were more like confusion, as if they were thinking that some new advanced model had recently come from the Dwarf Kingdom.
While many looked on with appreciation, knowing that to own something like that, you had to be some kind of noble or royal family member.
Whatever their reactions were, it definitely satisfied Maruti. Her wide grin wasn't going away at all.
But then, her grin finally turns downwards as the bike suddenly began to slow down, the engine sputtering before it slowly stops working.
Esdeath, who had been sleeping peacefully with her head resting on Maruti's back, was jolted awake by the sudden jerks and bumps as the bike sputters to a stop. The unexpected movement made her eyes flutter open, a little dazed.
She gently rubs the sleep from her eyes, her voice still soft with slumber. "Did something happen? Why did you stop?" she ask, trying to shake off the last remnants of her nap.
Maruti let out a sigh of frustration, her shoulders slumping as she looks down at the now-silent bike. "It seems there's no more fuel. I used up all the mana crystals I had," she explains her disappointment clear in her voice.
The superbike was amazing—incredibly fast with so many cool features—but it gobbled up mana crystals like they were candy. "Do you have any?" she ask, turning her head to look back at Esdeath, a hint of hope in her eyes.
Esdeath shook her head slowly, a small, unbothered look on her face. "Why would I have any? They're no use to me anyway," she replies simply.
A deep sigh escapes Maruti's lips, and she felt a pang of sadness. "No way! I really wanted to ride back to Anastasia on my bike. Flying just sucks," she complaints, her voice full of frustration. Flying might look cool and exciting from a distance, but after just a few minutes, it becomes so monotonous. All you had to do was keep your body perfectly still and pour all your focus into flying straight.
Sure, you could do flips, twists, and turns for a bit of fun, but that would only slow you down and require even more concentration just to keep your balance. To her, traveling by flying was just plain boring.
"I guess you're in luck. We're in the capital," Esdeath replies, pointing a finger at a nearby sign with official-looking writing on it. "It's a no-fly zone here. We need a special permit to fly."
"What the—" Maruti caught midwords She wasn't sure whether to feel happy or sad about that.
"What now?" she ask, feeling a little stuck.
"We're in the capital anyway. Let's just meet Meldia and ask her to give us enough mana crystals to go back to Anastasia, and until then—" Esdeath say, taking a step forward. With a soft glow, she uses her storage-type essence stone, and in a flash of light, the bike disappears into thin air.
"We'll go on foot," she adds, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
And yep! Going by feet is one of the most natural thing in the world.
"Let's hurry up then," Maruti agrees but her face showed her disappointment. She kicks at a small stone on the ground, her fun ride coming to an end.
With that, they continue their journey on foot. In the distance, they could see the tall, impressive building where Meldia usually lives.
As they walks through the busy morning crowd on the street, Esdeath, not really paying attention, accidentally bumps into someone.
"Oops," Esdeath says lazily, not even bothering to look at the person she had bumped into.
Maruti didn't think anything of it either and just continues walking, but then a familiar, slightly shaky voice calls out from behind them.
"Y-you! What are you doing here, Esdeath?" the voice calls out, clearly belonging to a girl.
Both Maruti and Esdeath stops and turns around to see who it was. They saw two people standing there, and both of them were someone they knew very well.
The girl with the beautiful blonde hair was Clous Clandestine. She had been by Esdeath's side for a very, very long time. She was also one of the very first people Fable saw after waking up as Esdeath—the supposed villainess of the FLF game.
And standing next to her was someone even more familiar: the boy with bright orange hair that once had a nerdy appearance, Valen Vandris.
Although, as they look closer, they notices there were some subtle changes in his appearance.
Valen was never what you'd call an attractive guy, but that didn't mean he was ugly.
It was just that he never seemed to care about his looks at all. Being a total nerd, he was always buried in his books, which left him with heavy dark circles under his eyes. He was also so thin that he looked like he malnourished.
All of this was topped off with his nerdy round glasses. But now, he looked more like a young, carefree boy.
Maybe it was because the academy had shut down, so he didn't have to spend all his time drowning in assignments and theoretical work.
With his workload much lighter, he definitely looked like he was eating well. He had even changed his hairstyle and glasses to look more casual and relaxed.
He still wasn't handsome, but he wasn't someone that everyone would want to avoid at first glance anymore.
Valen looks at Esdeath and Maruti, his eyes widening slightly in surprise.
"Lady boss, is that you? Ms. Maruti as well, I didn't realize it at all, I'm so sorry," he exclaims loudly, bowing his head slightly.
"It's been a while. What are you two doing here?" Maruti was the first to ask, her curiosity piqued.
"Are you seriously asking us that? Most of the nobles had to flee the kingdom. We too took whatever we could and ran here," Claus spoke, her voice dripping with frustration, as if she were reliving all the hardship she had endured over the past few months.
"Not everyone is as lucky as you two," she sighs, the weight of her words hanging in the air.
"Ms. Claus, speak more politely. We're not even nobles anymore. Ms. Maruti is a princess now. She could have your head for talking like this," Valen whispers urgently in Claus's ear, trying to warn her.
"Like hell I care," she shot back, roughly shaking off Valen's hand from her arm.
"Valen, it's a good thing I met you here. I have a job for you. Of course, you'll be rewarded equally," Esdeath spoke, her voice calm and direct.
"Y-yes, of course! I'll do whatever I can—" Valen was saying, but Claus immediately cut him off.
"Stop it! First, you'll have to duel me!" Claus shouts, drawing her sword right there in the middle of the street, the metal glinting in the morning sun.
Valen couldn't help but panic even more, his face turning pale. "Ms. Claus, what are you—"
But Claus interrupts him again mid-sentence. "Shut up," she snaps before turning to face Esdeath, pointing her sword directly at her.
"Duel me, right here and now!"