Quest of Automata King

Silver Spoon Breeding Cocky Kid

Mui takes a deep breath and step inside one of the train’s carriage. Suddenly, a lud whistling sound can be heard on where he is standing now.

“Berry 507 to the Magusica town, ready to depart!” said the train officer that standing on the platform. After that, the train’s door suddenly stopped at the same time, and Mui can feel the floor beneath him started to move.

“If i hesitate even one second, I’ll lost my chance to go to the school...” mutter Mui. He looked to the door’s window, as the train is slowly leaving station, Mui started to imagine what would happened if he choose different path.

It does not take long for the scenery to change into green meadow, with blue lake on the horizon, filling Mui’s chest with tingling feeling to his mind. “Duh! It’s too lake to back off in the first place! Journey back to the orphanage will cost me an arm and leg!” said Mui.

He moved his belonging, and head to the passenger seats. “Better get a place to sit first, the journey may take hours.”

But when Mui going to reach the handle of carriage door, he started to notice something that bugging him.

As he peeks to the passenger carriage, Mui realize that almost everyone on the seats are children around fifteen to eighteen years old. In other words, people around his age. Mui got freeze, his hand is stuck in the handle where he found no strength to open it.

When he lived at the orphanage, Mui almost have no kids that around his age. The village near his home only inhabited by old people, not to mention that his brother and sisters are two or three years below his age.

His mind suddenly filled with anxiety as they see those kids are chatting to each other. They seems enjoying themselves, which make Mui worried what would happen if he open the door. After all, there are no other Devil as far as he see.

“Ticket, sir?” suddenly, a hoarse voice making Mui awake from his thought. He turn his body, and see an old Devil with white beard and face that is full with wrinkle.

“Do you have a ticket?” said him again. He lift one of his eyebrow, looks like, he is suspicious to Mui’s behaviour.

Slowly, Mui reaches his pocket, and then giving him the ripped ticket he got from the counter officer. That old Devil taking it with satisfied face, and then clip it with a device on his other hand.

“In ten years of my job, i have never seen a Devil kid riding aboard the student carriage,” Said the officer, he looked to the Mui’s belonging, and then back to him. “What is your business in Magusica? Looking for a job? Then you must be pretty crazy to use the train in the first place.”

The old Devil is pointing to the carriage door. “Let me tell you, those kids can be pretty savage, especially toward our races,” he said.

Mui looked at the direction that he pointed. Across the carriage, one of the human kid is grappling his friend around his shoulder, they are standing and spinning around, and everyone is laughing, as if they just looked at the funniest show in the century.

“Challender! Challender! Challender!” everyone is southing that big guy’s name, and then he end his attaction by throwing that poor kid to the floor.

“Here comes the future king of Foumoda!” shout him while flexing his muscle.

Back to the Mui, he gulping his saliva, looking at those barbaric people.

“The situation may be even worse for now, therefore, it’s my turn to step in, and stop this ruckus,” mumble the old Devil. But before he is opening the door, Mui confess his secret.

“Actually, I was invited to the academy,” he said. At that moment, the old Devil stop walking. The frown on his head clearly shown that he did not believe that, but Mui’s terrifed expression feel like strengthening that claim.

In the end, the old Devil just said two words:

“Good luck.”

***

He opened the carriage door, and stepped into the car that full of teenager. The old devil is coughing, and then speak politely to the kid who is still flexing their body.

“Pardon me young sir, but standing on a moving train could be dangerous. If that isn’t necesarry, please take a seat,” he said.

Everyone is starring at him with judging eyes. Including the kid that previous kid. Suddenly, atmosphere is starting to rise around that place.

“I’m sorry?” asked that kid, finally looking at the direction that speaking to him. “I don’t remember, since when did they let the hornheads work at that public transportation?” he swept his short blond hair, while smiling mockingly at him. “As far as I know, these people are better suited as a farmer, housemaids, and anything else that not involving the safety of good people like us!”

The old Devil didn’t say anything, he just bowed his head a little and then apologize. “Pardon me young master, I didn’t mean to interfene, I just feel bad for the groaning gentlemen over here,” he said, looking at the boy that previously been bullied by the arrogant kid.

He is grunting, as he trying to get up from his position. The blondie smirk, as if boasting the strength that he have shown to these people. “Next time you trying to sit at my favourite spot, you better know what is going to hit you,” said the blondie, almost forgetting the person he previously talked to.

“Oh, and one more, horn-head,” he looking at the old Devil before returned to his seat. “I’ll let it slide this time, but you should learn where your place belong to. Don’t let me see your face ever again.”

The old Devil answer with another bow, and he started doing his job to check that everyone get their tickets. Meanwhile, Mui looking at what happened behind the door. Everything that happened make it clear. If he is going to stepped inside the car, it would not end well for him.

In the end, Mui stayed at his place right now. A connector between one car to another, hoping that he will not get anyone’s attention.

Almost a hour have past after that, the conversations are starting to decrease, and some student are even starting to asleep. Mui on the other hand, trying his best to fight against the feeling drowsy. He leaning back at the wall as he yawn for from time to time, sometimes he will glance at the window behind him, watching the train is running through the landscape. But in the end, those are all that he seen, meadow.

Another hour passed, and his eyes grow even heavier. Finally, Mui slide down to the floor and end up sleeping. Unknown to him, the whistle from the locomotive is signing that the train have entered their destination.

Train started to slowing down, until they are completely stopped at the nearest station to the academy. The kids are starting to unpacked their belongings, and going to disengage from the train. Some of their eyes, realize the existence of a stranger. A Devil, with suitcases is sitting at the small gaps between the cars.

Some of them looking at Mui with confused face, while other are just chuckling at the stranger. It manage to catch Challender’s attention, the blond arrogant kid that previously flexing his strength by bullying another kid.

When Challender looked at Mui, he remembered about the old Devil who stopped him at the beginning of the trip. He don’t know if this sleeping kid have some kind of relation with him or not, but what Challender need right now, is someone to vent his anger.

Challender kicked Mui’s feet, suddenly surprising the tired kid from his slumber.

“Hey, wake up hornhead!” shout him. Mui gasp, as their eyes meet, quickly realize that he failed to prevent the situation he avoid at all cost. “This vehicle is not a free ride! You have to pay, especially for Devils like you!”

Challender reached Mui’s collar and drag him out of the car. With a little push, Mui’s thin body fall to the platform’s stone floor. Not enough with only pushing him down, Challender’s crooks are also pushed Mui’s suitcases to the direction where he is now. Luckily, the content of his bag did not get messed up whatsoever.

“You must be one of those street rats that always sneaking into people’s belonging aren’t you? You should be ashamed of yourself!” shout Challender again as he kicked another of Mui’s stuff.

“I’m not! I have the ticket, just like any of you!” Said Mui while grunting. He doesn’t realize that his voice is big enough to be called a shout, all of sudden, the crowd that surrounding him goes silent, so does Challender and his bullies.

“What did you say?” The blondie brawny stepped out of the train, toward Mui who is still laying on the floor.

Mui held his breath, his body automatically crawling backward and looking for a way out. Challender notice it, and command his crooks to held Mui, so he does not escape. Two humans, one is fatter than the other, grabbing Mui’s shoulder, and then lifting him up so Mui could see Challender face-to-face.

“You have a big mouth for a race that lose their war against the mighty human race! Don’t you know how much people have suffered because your selfish Automata King!?” shouted him. Challender reach into his pocket, and taking off a metal baton that can be extended.

Mui grit his teeth, anger is starting to fill up toward his head, and he glared toward the boy who looks so cocky with his new toy.

“I don’t like your face, horn-head,” said Challender. “You know? My grandparent used to be a soldier in the war ten years ago. He told me a story of how to make enemy officer talk, now i wonder how true his story was.”

At last, Challender lift his right hand, which is still grabbing the baton. He swing it toward Mui’s head, and loud can be heard from there.

Mui himself could feel pain is gnawing his face, not once, but three time instead. One of the Challender’s strike hit his forehead, and blood started dripping from Mui’s wound.

“How do you like that, horn-head!?” shout Challender, haven’t been satisfied, he swings toward Mui three times again, making the poor Devil groaning as he suffer the pain.

“With this, you might learn to know your place!” shout Challender. He progress to continue the torture, but suddenly, a bright light appeared in front of Mui and Challender.

“What the hell!?” Challender groan as he cover his eyes, so does Mui and everyone around him. When they opened their eyes, a round sigil sign of magic, appeared between Mui and Challender. It emit bright blue light, and have the shape of a snowflake.

“I thought a noble could done much better than to commit barbaric activities such as this?” said a girl voice, that sound cold as a snow.