Martial Online.



"Argh..." Jesse held a garbage bag in his other hand and used his other hand to push his wheelchair's wheel, heading towards the garbage disposal outside his apartment.

The morning weather was quite chilly, with wind blowing from the north. Jesse was in a hurry to get rid of the trash before it got too cold.

Today, was also quite special day. He would join up with Alice in Martial Online, then start their journey to Yatagarasu.

Jesse received reply from her quite late at night while he was trying to level up in Crow Forest. Unfortunately, he didn't't reach his goal, but he managed to get close. Since it was getting too late, he decided to quit for the night.

But, moments before logging out, he received the message, and from the context, it seemed that Alice was quite excited about something.

After reaching the garbage disposal, Jesse tossed the bag inside and turned around to head back to his apartment.

At that moment, a figure walked from the direction of the apartments and crossed the road towards the garbage bin. She looked quite exotic and strange with her long-sleeved fishnet blouse and black ripped jeans.

She was very beautiful with her pale complexion and black eyeliners, along with long earrings that speared right through her earlobe. Her lips had black lipstick, and her hair was jet-black.

'A goth?' Jesse thought with a strange expression. He hadn't met someone like that before and since he wasn't a good people person, he wanted to get out of her way as soon as possible.

As soon as he began pushing the wheels of the wheelchair to cross the road, several cars drove the same road, stopping him from crossing the road.

The goth girl glanced sideways at the wheelchair-ridden person and tossed her garbage bag inside the garbage disposal. She then turned around, stood beside Jesse as she waited for moment to cross the road.

Jesse kept his mouth shut, trying to minimalize his presence so the goth girl wouldn't try to strike up a conversation with him.

"Hey, are you a cripple?"

Unfortunately, she found him amusing and looked straight at his pale face with a smile on her lips.

"No." Jesse replied and cursed at his luck. The amount of cars wasn't lessening even though this street was supposed to be peaceful kind with not much traffic. However, it seemed like all the cars from nearby area decided to use this one road.

"Your legs broken?"

"No."

"Hmm..." She tapped on her cheek and tilted her head slightly in a cute manner. "You are faking?"

"No." Jesse sighed and looked at her bright blue eyes, which didn't match her dark outfit. "My disease is called Humanoid Imperfecta. It makes my—"

"Your body weak to injuries. It makes the body very fragile, even a single cut on your finger can be lethal." She said with a dreamy voice. "It is another version of Osteogenesis Imperfecta, but in Nocklund, the severest type is called as Humanoid Imperfecta which can only be inherited."

"Oh, so you have heard of it." Jesse turned back to the cars moving down the road. Soon, the last car moved past and he immediately pushed the wheels forward and crossed the road.

Once he thought he had gotten rid of her, a person appeared beside him, walking in a carefree pace.

"Huh?" Jesse lifted his gaze and saw the smiling goth girl. "What do you..."

"We are going on same direction it seems." She smiled and looked at his dull blue eyes. "I have a question about your disease."

"What is it?"

"Can you have sex?" She asked with a smile. "Since your body is very fragile, I was wondering whether it would snap in half if you inserted it in you-know-what."

"What the fuck?" Jesse blurted out. "I don't fucking know. I know people with Humanoid Imperfecta had children because otherwise that disease would have died out long time ago."

"You are right, but there are different severities." She said and moved her hair over her ear, revealing her delicate neckline. Then, looked back at Jesse and smiled. "Want to try it out? As testing purpose."

"Huh?" Jesse looked stunned as he looked at the beautiful, pale-faced girl. However, seeing the smile made him certain that she was only teasing him.

He scoffed and turned away. "Won't I lose... it if I can't?"

She immediately giggled. "Perhaps, but wouldn't it be worth it?"

"Goodbye." Jesse hurried to the door of his apartment after they subconsciously already reached his destination. He opened the door, glanced back at the smiling goth girl and returned to his apartment before shutting his door.

"Mm." The goth girl turned around and crossed the street. She left the apartment complex and approached the five-story building of the landlady.

Without ringing the doorbell, she opened the door and entered the apartment. She soon reached the kitchen, where wrinkled, fragile-looking old woman was baking. The table was messy with different baking equipment and flour.

"Nyx, did you take out the trash?" Matilda asked and turned to look at the goth girl.

"I did, auntie." Nyx replied and took a seat on the table. She crossed her legs and leaned on the table while looking at Matilda baking.

"It's grandaunt. I am not that young anymore." Matilda said with a chuckle.

"Well, I wish I had your looks when I am at your age." Nyx giggled and made a smiling face on the flour found on the table. She then absently remembed the face of the stranger she just met and opened her mouth. "I met the new tenant."

"Oh?" Matilda opened the oven and took out new batch of cookies. "What about him?"

"Did you know about his disease?" Nyx asked curiously and raised her gaze from the flour.

"Disease, what?" Matilda placed the cookies down on the table and looked at her grandniece. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, you didn't." Nyx hummed and said. "He also has Humanoid Imperfecta. Just like your husband and..."

Before she could finish her words, a loud noise came from the kitchen. The cookies and bowl filled with flour spilled to the ground, making mess everywhere.

"Oh dear!" Matilda exclaimed as she looked at the mess.

"That much of a shock, huh?" Nyx giggled.

"Are you sure that he also... has that?" Matilda asked.

"He said it himself. He could be faking, I don't know." Nyx said and stood up from the ground. She crouched on the ground and began cleaning the mess.

Matilda walked to the window and looked over the road, towards the apartment complex. She saw her aged reflection on the window and remembered times from long ago.

"Nyx, go ask him whether he wants to have breakfast with us."

"Huh, are you serious?" Nyx turned back to her grandaunt with face full of flour and cookie on mouth.

"Yes, I should introduce myself to the new tenant better, tell him about the rules."

"Have you invited any other tenant before?" Nyx said while munching on the cookie. She wryly smiled. "Don't tell me that you now feel pity at him. I know granduncle and uncle has the same disease, but still..."

"Nyx." Matilda interrupted her as she continued looking out of the window. "You were extremely lucky that you also didn't have it. Humanoid Imperfecta can only be inherited and your mother had it."

Nyx pursed her lips and weakly nodded. She cleaned the flour off her face and left the house once again.

After the door closed shut, Matilda let out a deep sigh.