Maiden Snatcher

It was fairly early in the morning when Johann woke from his sleep, as usual. The Vice President had always been more or less one for a disciplined lifestyle and a structured day and he wouldn't show any lack thereof in his routine, standing up and getting ready after a short moment to collect his thoughts. A somewhat calm peace had settled in over Divide Island and its inhabitants, including the guild, over the last couple of weeks. Repairs had been completed after the disastrous attacks on the docks and the surrounding residential area and, much to Johann's appreciation, the seemingly unending stream of paper flooding his way had started to become less and less intense and finally returned to its original state, last but not least due to the fact that their administration had gotten a new member, and Johann a new colleague. Some would say that it was too early for the other to rise up in rank, and malicious, envious voices would even go as far as question the CEO's decision. Such dissent would, naturally, not be tolerated, and Johann paid it no mind, he trusted Cirven's decision and saw nothing wrong with it, and had thus quickly come to terms with it.

These thoughts floating through his head he was putting on a formal white shirt, the white fabric covering the small, black runes that were scattered all over the left half of his body with the occasional one on the right, buttoning it up before turning a little to each side, his eyes wandering over it in the mirror. He had gotten used to the unusual markings, and actually learned to appreciate them where they were not just granting him strong and unique powers but also served as a reminder to him. A reminder to his past, his blood, his family and his legacy. His eyes shifted up, looking into their reflection as Johann focussed for just a moment, his left eye filling with black colour, turning the pupil red as the darkness reached it. He closed his eyes, opening them again to reveal two perfectly normal ones, aside from the heterochromia that came with the rune hidden in his left eye. The Vice President sighed. It truly was something peculiar.

Johann, for this day, decided to go with something rather simplistic, at least in contrast with his other official company outfits, a white suit, grey tie and the West Fiore Trading Company pin over his heart. The suit would fulfill the requirements, representing his allegiance to the Company while at the same time allowing for enough freedom to carry his equipment and move quickly, not hindering his reflexes and speed in any way. Upon putting the belt with his weapons around his waist and closing it, the two amulets around his neck and his gloves over his hands he turned, leaving his living quarters and locking the door behind him to head to the mess hall for breakfast, sitting down in the sparsely populated and barely alive early morning mess hall, before him a portion of scrambled eggs with bacon, fresh toast, beans, sausage and sauce. A hearty breakfast, especially for this time of the day, yes, but there was something that was keeping him busy. One of the newest additions to the West Fiore Trading Company had asked him directly for help, and, as the Vice President, he felt obligated to offer a hand. Of course he would help the other, and, as it turned out, it was for a good cause as well. He had no issues with it, and he was confident that he would deal with any threat quickly and efficiently, as always, or at least try to ... .

He finished up his meal and moved on to the next part of his routine. Normally, he would make his way to either the magic training hall and the gym or the nature of Divide Island's jungles for extensive physical training, but he figured that that wouldn't be necessary. He had informed himself about the job, hearing of the supposedly dangerous demons and vicious Vulcans, and it admittedly excited him a little. Life on the island could devolve into boredom quickly, and the newcomer presented him with an opportunity to hunt and an excuse to abandon his duties as Vice President for just a little while ... .

"Thinking of duty" he reminded himself quickly as he took a left turn in the entrance hall, shortly raising his hands to greet Alisha behind the counter before he headed to his office to do the administrative work for the day. It took him a good hour of signing, stamping and writing to finish the paperwork, still, he was rather glad. It was nothing compared to the flood of work of the past weeks, and he welcomed the newly found peace with more than open arms, the stack of finished papers sitting on his desk ready to be picked up as he sat in his chair, a glass of wine on his right hand. He figured he deserved a break, but he also had a word to keep and so, with a large sweep, emptied the glass and stood up, heading to the big mahogany front doors of the HQ after notifying Alisha about the paperwork. The fresh air hit Johann like a burst of life, and it felt good after being inside, even if it was just for a short while.

But it was about time. The other must've already travelled ahead to reach the place they had agreed on, and he decided to take the fastest and most efficient way of transportation, turning into wind in an instant as a chalk white magic circle appeared beneath his feet, reappearing mere moments later just outside of Magnolia, near where they'd meet, wandering over to see that his fellow West Fiore Trading Company mage had already arrived. "Good morning, Haraka. I do hope you had a pleasant day so far" he gave the newcomer a respectful bow "I see you are well prepared, since you are the one who accepted the job ... do you know where to start ? Please, lead the way and I will follow" he smiled to the other, a friendly grin stretching from cheek to cheek.

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Word Count: 1.050
Word Count Total: 1.050 / 2.500

"Very much so" the Vice President gave back briefly, still maintaining his friendly smile while waiting for an answer that followed promptly. He had, despite his outward appearance giving a contradictory impression, prepared himself for combat extensively. On his belt he carried his two weapons, he had brought with him his runed gloves and the black cross-shaped amulet, dangling from side to side as a breeze hit the two, his grey hair bending, following the wind slightly. "Very well then. Indeed, we will have to be ... careful. I suppose, let us begin then" Johann gave back before he brought his hands around that he had held crossed behind his back, following his partner who, seemingly with confidence, turned and made his way to their presumed destination.

Johann wasn't really paying attention to any clues or details, only scanning the area for sudden movement and listening for anything unusual, passively following the newcomer. As far as he could tell, he wasn't here for any precision work or even the things he could do with his more ... unusual side, but rather for the muscle since, apparently, Haraka had the tendency do despise violence where it occurred, a, in Johann's cynical eyes noble, yet naive attitude. He had seen enough of the nature of man to distrust where he could, always ready to unsheathe one or even both of his blades to defend what he thought was his, and that included the demon before him. He has come to view the West Fiore Trading Company as an extended family, his only family after those days of his past, and anyone coming even remotely close to hurting it would be dealt with, without hesitation and mercy.

Lost in thoughts he stopped briefly as the one before him did, his attention shifting back to the task he had taken up as he did like his job partner, his senses calming as he scanned the surrounding area. Haraka seemed familiar, and even confident with what he was doing, moving to the ground as he seemed to find a trace hinting to the solution of this little hunt, Johann slowly following Haraka as the demon followed the tracks until they suddenly took a sharp turn. Johann, his profession being that of a hunter, knew the implication and he mentally prepared for the worst. Yet, at the same time, the thought of a hunt started to slightly excite him. It had been a while since the last one, and an opportunity to use his powers the man would always take, stopping once more as his job partner seemed to have found another detail, Johann getting closer to spot the small tuft of fur.

So it really were Vulcans, that much was clear now, yet Haraka didn't seem too happy with that fact, Johann's answer following the others comment after a short pause. "You don't have to fight if you don't want. Sometimes, though, everyone has to fight. Be it a Vulcan or something e-" His sentence was cut short by the motion he felt as an object caused ripples in the air behind him, a good 50m back, the projectile rushing towards the two at high speeds, obviously aimed at Haraka. To Johann, it was almost laughably slow, and his hand rushed upwards, his fingers closing around the arrow, stopping it mid-flight before he turned, sighing noticeably. It was as he had expected, the group had followed them for a short while, Johann had the felt the pressure pattern of the air shift as they walked, had waited for them to stop before they attacked, from the bushes now emerging a group of 9, no, 10. To Johann's surprise, though, they weren't dealing with regular bandits though, before him a bunch that seemed to be more lizard than human, beings on two legs that had reptilian features and were dressed in cloth, 2 wielding bows, 6 wielding clubs and another 2 bearing no weapons at all, one of them, bigger than the others, the leader apparently, opened his mouth, a set of large, white teeth showing as he did so. The equipment of a carnivore.

"Okay geezer, you know the drill. Give us everything you have and we might let you live", the small group erupting into cackling and howling as he finished. Johann, however, had other plans, breaking the arrow into two with his left hand, the two pieces falling to the ground as his hands went to the hilts of his weapons, the Vice President unsheathing both with a distinct, metallic sound. "Will you be able to handle yourself ?" he asked the other man behind his back as another arrow ripped through the air, the old man knocking the projectile away with a strike of a rapier, awaiting the answer he needed. What the group didn't know was that they, too, had stumbled upon a carnivore. A wolf, to be exact.

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Word Count: 818
Word Count Total: 1.868 / 2.500

"Oho, is that so ?" Johann turned his head slightly, peeking over his shoulder and back to Haraka, listening to what the other had to say. He had no reason to doubt his assessment of the situation, he figured it was something the other had dealt with before, and Johann, not knowing another explanation for the small group of lizard demons following them, didn't care too much either. He wasn't here to solve mysteries or investigate motives, but for his more or less strong arm. "So you think these brutes are here for you ? ... I can't let that go unpunished, then. You're family, after all" With that, he turned his attention back to the small group before them, the demons still howling and cackling like savages. "Us or them, it is" he mumbled under his breath before he hurled his body forward, an enormous explosion of air propelling him forward at a speed so great he cracked the sound barrier with its distinct sound instantly, sending an echo through the forest, causing an eruption of dirt, leaves and grass where he had stood just a moment ago.

A mere blink of an eye later he appeared behind the 2 with the bows. Taking out the rangers would ensure that the others had to come into melee range where the Vice President was certain he wouldn't lose a duel, forcing them into defense. Within the fraction of a second, he had separated the head from one of the lizards from his body with a single, sinisterly powerful slash, it hitting the ground with a loud thump as his body collapsed forward. These demons were slow, soft and clumsy in their movement, a walk in the park for the experienced Vice President. He coated his hand in a layer of wind magic as a chalk white magic circle appeared around it, the other ranger still trying to fathom what had just happened, drawing a dagger and dropping the bow to try and defend himself from Johann who, with superior agility and speed, simply ducked down as the insecure sweep went over his head, storming forward as his right hand, which was still grasping the hilt of his rapier firmly, struck the demons chest, launching him off his feet and into a tree as behind him infernal noises whipped through the air, sounds that could make even the strongest knights take a few steps back, voices singing lonely tales of torment.

Johann was, admittedly, taken by surprise, turning around on the spot towards the source of the shrieking, seeing Haraka wield hues of blue winds against his adversaries before he yelled over to Johann. What was that ? Right, they were here for the girl, he couldn't lose his focus now. "Let's get this over with as quickly as possible then", the speed mage replied, sheathing his blades to free his hands. Unsurprisingly, people assumed he carried the weapons because they were more effective than his magic, and that while that had been true when he had first learned how to control and wield the powers of magic, this was not the case anymore. The man, now the Vice President to the most prestigious Trading Company in all of Fiore and, what most didn't know, a Keeper to the infamous mercenary group Black Sails, had grown strong, and, confident in his magical abilities, he raised his hands, another chalk white magic circle appearing beneath his feet. "Pressure Choke", as the words left his mouth a bubble started forming about the remaining 6 before him, quickly removing all oxygen from the area. Johann kept his hands up, the lizard demons slowly breaking down, unable to move before finally losing consciousness. Johann could've kept the spell up and finished the job, but he left it at that. It'd teach them a lesson not to follow him or Haraka anymore.

Letting out a small sigh the Vice President turned to Haraka to see how he was doing with the two remaining ones, ready to step in and help out if needed.

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Word Count: 678
Word Count Total: 2.546 / 2.500

"Hm, your ... face ?" Johann responded to the other, stepping over the unconscious and lifeless bodies of lizard demons to make his way over to Haraka. "Trust me, you don't need to put on an act for me or whatever it is that you're concerned with" He gave back to his job partner, nodding at what the other followed up with "which is precisely why we will rescue her, right ?", the Vice President asking the newcomer with confidence. He wasn't worried in the slightest and placed great trust in his abilities, certain that the two West Fiore Trading Company mages would have no trouble with successfully bringing the poor girl back to safety. For someone on the outside the scene would've looked like the elder man letting his experience speak for him while in reality, it was the complete opposite and Johann was the naive one out of the two. He had witnessed firsthand that there were moments when you couldn't save people, still, he refused to accept that fact. He had to accept it once before, but the Vice President was determined to never let that happen again, and so, he grew strong, to protect those he considered family.

"So, there's evil after you, but you can't tell, and people will be hurt over that ?" he asked Haraka with a slightly sarcastic tone in his voice, yet free of condescension, to underline his position on the matter "I think that is one more reason to protect you, Haraka. You wear the uniform of the West Fiore Trading Company, you wear its guild pin and its guild mark. I have sworn to someone I hold dear that I will protect the guild, my family, from harm, come what may, with all the power I have. That includes everyone in the West Fiore Trading Company. I have seen enough horrors happen to loved ones, and I will not. NOT. let it happen again." he concluded vigorously, maybe a little too vigorously. He had gotten loud towards the end, and he didn't mean to be rude or angry about any of this, quickly following up "I apologize, this is a very emotional topic for me, but I'm afraid my mindset on the matter won't change." he sighed out loud a little "Sorry for starting this, let's get back to the task at ha-"

The Vice President was, surprisingly and involuntarily interrupted, his sentence ending abruptly as an enormous fist erupted from the darkness of the thick shrubbery behind, simply launching him aside in a destructive sweep, sending him flying into a nearby tree as the impact splattered the massive trunk. "You have GOT to be kidding me" was what rushed through Johann's head as he was there, his broken body stuck in this plight, a small stream of blood running down his forehead as he spit out another small puddle of red liquid. Johann's healing factor kicked in instantly, broken bones shifting back into place, wounds closing in a matter of moments, still, the Vice President was in rage. His left eye erupted into an unnatural black colour, a deeply red and glowing pupil resting in its middle as crimson runes were digging their way across Johann's skin, spreading all over his body as it surged with raw strength, the wave of energy ripping apart the trunk as the VP got back onto his feet and raised his head, his anger-filled eyes fixed on the Vulcan that had now stepped out of the bushes, a sinister grin on its ape-like face.

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Word Count: 592
Word Count Total: 3.138 / 2.500

"No, I don't, but it will be even more upset when I'm done with it" the Vice President responded as he got back up on his feet, a bit of red liquid from the now closed wound still on his forehead, coughing a little as he raised himself up and drew one of his rapiers, Azure SIlver, with his right hand, the blade lighting up with scorching flame as he did so, responding to Harakas comment he had heard over the pain filled cries of the Vulcan only thanks to his heightened senses. "Pain is merely the proof that we are still alive" the man said to himself more than anyone else, not knowing if his job partner had even heard his response. But indeed, while Johann's healing factor was busy restoring his broken and mangled body as he pulled himself out of the tree trunk Haraka had succeeded in blinding their opponent with improvised use of the effects of magic, providing the perfect opportunity for the angered Vice President to strike.

The air around was, as so many times before, compressed explosively with ease before being released with the characteristic, loud sonic boom with Johann rushing through the air at unimaginable speeds, the flaming rapier in his right hand producing a trail of flame as it rushed through the space between him and the vulcan before finally striking the beasts body, the blade piercing it before producing a jet of flame that engulfed it entirely, collapsing a mere moment later as the flames retreated back to the sword, Johann following up by sheathing it and thus dispelling the fire before letting out a noticeable sigh, mumbling "What a pain ..." before his full attention shifted back to the other. "Are you okay ? That admittedly took me by surprise ... we should be cautious, his cries might have alerted other Vulcans to our position" the man spoke out before stretching a bit, his uniform torn or bloody in some, dirty in other places, the crimson red runes shining through the spots in the outfit that now revealed his skin. The Vice President hated it, having to replace uniforms after each and every job. "I swear, if this keeps happening I'll only wear jogging pants and tank tops from now on, white, of course"

"Now, where were we ? Do you think you can still make out the trail ?" Johann asked Haraka, looking around the area that, now more than ever, resembled a small battlefield, lifeless bodies scattered around, broken trees everywhere and even small fires that slowly got smaller and smaller before disappearing entirely. It wouldn't matter too much, if they ran into problem he still had his senses heightened to the point where they surpassed the ones of slayer mages. He could still use them try and locate other Vulcans, hoping to find the one that had napped the girl they were looking for should it come to that.

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Word Count: 492
Word Count Total: 3.630 / 2.500

"Huh" Johann nodded with interest as the demon revealed a piece of his past that Johann was, admittedly and to his own dismay, very much unaware of. Now that he was thinking about it, there wasn't much that he knew about his partner at all, really. He, of course, was the Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company, and as one of the more ... enthusiastic people when it came to administrative duties, he dealt with applications here and there and caught a bit of info every time, but never things that went beyond the simplistic information of a personal description. Naturally, some people had things in their past they didn't necessarily want to talk about or would prompt them to suppress memories, Johann out of all could understand as the words "home country" reminded him of his own, his past that he had tried to hide so many years until he met Ruvel while he followed Haraka away from the little ... mess they had created back to the urgent task at hand, the trail, as the shrimp demon had, just like he said, no trouble with finding it again, hurrying after the man when he started following it once more with surprising vigor.

Sadly, it was that vigor that would turn out to cause the demon more than a little discomfort "Uhm, Haraka I think we should sto- ... too late" Johann stopped in his tracks as he watched what came unfurl before him, unable to stop the demon from running headfirst into what looked like another, very much unaware Vulcan, until Haraka "poked" it, that was, only this one was considerably larger than the one from before, easily towering over both Haraka and Johann. He instinctively and without delay drew a rapier, unsheathing one of his two blades with his right hand, but the Vulcan seemed to do something similar, reacting to the stimulus with instinct as Haraka was launched by an enormous punch thrown by the beast. "Well ... shit" Johann had to stop himself from speaking that out loud or sigh in frustration, as they had literally ran into the enemy after enemy while he even failed to do something about the Vulcan that attacked Haraka, a fault that he'd blame himself for. He just hoped that the demon was okay, if it was serious he'd do his best to use the extreme healing properties of his wind magic on the other. The demons brief flight and periodical skimming over the dirty forest ground had looked painful, to say the least, but he had to focus on the threat before them to prevent the beast, that slammed it's fists into the ground while groaning loudly before storming off towards himself, from doing any more damage. Johann reacted quickly, aiming the tip of his rapier at the beast as he was surrounded by a deeply dark and unholy aura, the red rune in his pitch black left eye bursting with bright, red light as he opened his mouth to speak, yet the booming voice that came from him wasn't Johann's as the Vice President's consciousness faded away for a few moments, speaking in a strange, ancient foreign tongue "Sceleratis lux, obscurum quod noctem, desiderium quia sanguinem, ero conceda velle tuam ... emittae furoram tuem iram !"

The dark aura reacted instantaneously, dark black and purple hues twitching around Johann aggressively as they shifted from his body to the tip of his blade, compressing momentarily before a thick, laser like beam of darkness exploded forcefully from the weapon, rushing at the Vulcan before unleashing its enormous power, drilling a hole through the beasts shoulder as Johann awoke from his brief tránce and the monster collapsed to the ground, its screams of tremendous pain filling the air all around. He had aimed for the heart, but obviously missed, cursing a little as the Vulcan raised itself back up on its feet, evidently more than angry as blood dripped from the gaping hole in it's right shoulder.

Translation:

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Word Count: 670
Word Count Total: 4.300 / 2.500

"Are you okay ?" Johann called out to the demon behind him who, more than obviously, had received a rough treatment by the angry Vulcan, but his job partner didn't seem to listen to him, instead talking to himself ? There was no time for this, before them still the wounded and raging Vulcan that started a forceful sprint towards the two. Johann braced himself for a high speed dodge, jumping to the side and rolling as the thing got closer but it proved to be completely redundant. Haraka had already started a counter charge ... jumping onto the Vulcan ? Johann kneeled there, the hand with the hilt of his rapier placed on his leg as he watched, motionless and his mouth wide open, as the other had climbed the beast, and now started to summon an array of blue crystals before, with a morbid enthusiasm and under screams of hate, the demon shoved them into the Vulcans gaping wound. With trembling furor and immense pain the Vulcan grabbed Haraka who was quick to react, blinding this Vulcan like the one before by throwing salt into its face before sinking back to the ground. Johann admittedly was in awe. He had never expected such a violent reaction from the mostly very calm, collected and thoughtful individual, and figured that the Vulcan must've made a terrible mistake.

The beast was now blinded and in absolute agony, slamming it's oversized fists into the ground around itself, and while Johann was sure that Haraka wanted to claim the kill for himself for a reason he did not understand at this point the monster posed a threat to the demon while they also couldn't keep wasting time with it, and thus the Vice President reacted quickly. He was up in the beasts face in less than a second, and now that he was presented with a window of opportunity he wouldn't let it pass, the shining metal of Azure Silver digging through its flesh, the blade leaving behind a deep cut across the Vulcans chest which tumbled for a second before collapsing forward, Johann sheathing his blade as the opponents lifeless body impacted the ground with a loud "thump". He rushed over to Haraka who was still on the ground, and for all he knew the other could be heavily injured, Johann ready for medical assistance. "Haraka, do you need any help ?" he asked, kneeling down to check on the other "I have healing magic, if necessary, we gotta get you back up and stay mobile. We still haven't found the girl".

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Word Count: 430
Word Count Total: 4.730 / 2.500

"Oh, I see" Johann gave back simply, it was true, the Vice President didn't understand entirely, but he could empathize with the demon on some level. He knew that if what he held close to him were to be destroyed ... his hands moved to the silver amulet with the amber inside that was dangling around his neck. "I'm sorry", and he really was, but there was nothing he could do. Ailments of the body were no issue for the miraculous effects of the winds enhanced healing properties, but a broken hair tie ... it was unfortunate, to say the least.

Still, he knew that Haraka would push that aside for the girl's sake, the other promptly getting back up and back to following the trail, Johann closeby, now even more cautious than before. He wouldn't let them be jumped by another threat, but that proved to be unnecessary. After a short bit of walk and following trail, he could see that the demon had trouble while doing so but decided not to intervene since Haraka had rejected medical assistance, they stumbled upon something that could only be described as a brute mountain of flesh, fur and muscle, the enormous Vulcan groaning happily and clapping his oversized hands as he was bowed over a blond haired, unconscious girl. FInally, they had encountered what they had come for. But, naturally, this would be a problem.

Even Johann didn't possess the raw strength to single handedly fight a beast like this, in melee combat at least. The two WFTC members would have to rely on their magic if they wanted to take down this threat, and Johann bit his lip as he crouched behind this bush beside his job partner. He had used the power already, and it would be a while before he could do so again, but they couldn't possibly wait that long. Quietly, the Vice President thought, turning to Haraka to see if the other had a plan.

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Word Count: 330
Word Count Total: 5.060 / 2.500

Johann still crouched, watching as Haraka created an environment that would make it hard for the beast to move. Yes ! that would work. Haraka could immobilize their foe while Johann would ... that might just work out for them. But they would have to be quick and efficient about it, making sure that they would use the advantage they would create to its fullest. While the demon was busy creating his way of trying to stop the enormous Vulcan the Vice President went ahead with his own, the runes on his body flaring up in a violent and sudden change of colour simultaneously to Haraka creating flashes of lightning, the scripture now shining in bright white instead of the crimson red.

"We only get one chance at this. On 3, I'll rush out, when I do, close your eyes" he whispered over to the other as quietly as he could before starting to count down using 3 fingers, lowering one after the other until his hand made a fist, bursting out of the shrubbery the two were hiding behind. He hadn't checked if his job partner had closed his eyes, but he had to do it, right now, the vulcan had noticed him, turned, and with booming steps started to approach menacingly. This was the moment. The pupil in his still black left eye turned from the deeply red glow to a bright white as he raised his blade, pointing his weapon at the sky before, once more, a voice that wasn't his and spoke in a strange, ancient foreign tongue came from his lips. "O lumen radians, ilustram fluvium, qui vos operculus terram, ero liberabit vos, incendio !"

Without delay, his weapon reacted, the blade itself now covered in an aura of bright white before a blinding light exploded from the sword, so a light so bright it bathed everything in pure white for a few moments before retreating back into the rapier, Johann once more snapping out of his trance, breathing heavily. Controlling it wasn't easy, but he had accomplished what he wanted: The Vulcan was screaming in pain, his hands over his eyes as he stumbled back, the beast had been blinded. "Perfect" he whispered to himself, this was their chance. Their chance to finally finish their mission.

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Word Count: 383
Word Count Total: 5.443 / 2.500

Translation: