John took point as he is the tank of the group. All of us knew our role in a group battle. I will be one attacking while providing de-buffs, Rose will provide buffs while looking for an opportunity to attack the opponent’s weak-point while Pietro will support John by blocking attacks with his spear and attacking with range. The four of us covers each other’s weak-point which is one of the main reason why guilds agreed to work together in a group of four. If only the Elemental guild was willing to join in too.
Rose hung back while the three of us took point. Her Accelerate spell should be ready by now but her Light Blessing spell might still be on cooldown. I doubt my Fear spell would have any effect on this greater demon which was why I did not bother. I should focus all my energy sorely into attacking instead.
John used ‘Fortify Combat’ spell which increases his attack power. It does not affect nearby allies sadly. He rushed in towards the demon head-on with Pietro following behind. I followed along heading closer to the demon but waited for a better opportunity to support the both. John swung his giant axe in a downward strike. He must be aiming straight for the demon’s head. The demon dodged backwards only to find Pietro’s spear going straight for the demon’s eye. The demon tried to lunged into the air and fly to dodge the attack but it was too late. Before it managed to fly high enough, I jumped behind its back and swung Inazuma in an attempt to take off both of its wings. In my mid-swing, the demon spun its body. It used its wing to try and stop my attack. It succeeded by injuring my right arm but I still managed to take off its left wing before that. It must have been softer bones that connects the wings for me to be able to slice off one so easily.
The demon fell to the ground and immediately rushed towards John with a shoulder charge. John took the attack head-on but flew some distance away. It then slashed its claws towards Pietro to which it sliced through his spear and injured his torso. That attack did not even connect yet the wind pressure alone was enough to cut through the metal spear. It then instantly rushed at me with both hands with claws extended. This demon is reacting so much faster than before without the katana. I focused all my utmost attention on the demon to try and predict its move while ignoring the stinging pain on my right arm.
Before it even reaches me, it took a swipe at me with its claws. I dodged as I know the wind pressure alone is definitely strong enough to slice me apart. Four straight marks dug into the ground. It then took another swipe at me sideways to which I had to leap up into the air using a tree trunk as foothold. Another four straight marks sliced through many tree trunks and made it collapsed.
The demon leaped towards me now at an attempt to sink its claws into me. Not to mention it even said “Play time is over, human,” to me. Too bad for you, I already predicted what you wanted to do when you could not touch me.
I shouted “Rose!” to which she casted Light Blessing. A short spear and a small axe flew and hit the demon from the back. Pietro did not miss his opportunity with the blessing’s buff. Having drank a strength potion earlier, I swung Inazuma towards the demon’s claw that was heading towards me. I sliced in-between the demon’s fingers and through the arm’s bones. I held Inazuma two-handed and swung it sideways towards the demon’s head. I put all my powers into that swing hoping that I can slice off its thick skull along with the brain.
Whoosh
Did I do it? Did I manage to slice through? Huh? The demon lifted its head in the last moment which cause me to decapitate it instead.
“Shit,” I grunted. The demon knew it won’t die by decapitation.
I fell back to the ground ready for its next attack. The demon had already reattached its head before touching the ground. What ridiculous healing factor even with my wax coating. How did we even win the war with such demons on the battlefield.
It turned to look at me. I can hear Pietro and John coming in close from behind me. Rose should not be far behind. If we continue to push the attack, we might be able to win. I took a quick opportunity to glance at John and Pietro. John had bruises all over from the shoulder charge. Pietro was bleeding from the wound he received earlier. He is only holding the sharp end of the spear which means that he can no longer support as effectively as before. We need to strike with more precision now before we receives anymore injuries.
The demon turned its body to look at us. Steam was coming out of its mouth while its eyes are bloodshot. What is it trying to do?
Thump thump, thump thump
Huh? What was that?? I held my head. All the others followed suit. I can hear whisperings in my head. I tried my best to focus on the demon but dark thoughts were filling my mind. It is telling me to kill, to hunt for blood. Blood is the only thing that I need. We are all losing our consciousness now. Cold breaths were appearing whenever I exhaled.
Pietro rushed towards John with his broken spear and stabbed John on the arm. John retaliated and swung his axe. Pietro tried to dodge but still received a cut on his torso. The both of them are going to kill each other from the frenzied state! Even Rose is starting to look real juicy with blood now. No, snap out of it! I need to help those two but I am losing consciousness myself. This must be the bloodlust state that Kronk was talking about.
Shit, Rose is charging at me now with her rapier held straight. I quickly tossed away Inazuma and leaped towards her before I succumb to the frenzied state. The last thing I recalled before losing consciousness was hugging Rose.
“Using bloodlust on these humansss? You certainly have gone weak sss” said Kronk.
The four of us regained our consciousness. The first thing I saw was a white shoulder on my left vision. I’m glad I did not attack Rose and hugged her instead. Ouch! My left flank hurts. I moved back and found that Rose had stabbed me. It wasn’t serious and more of a glancing blow. Perhaps Rose avoided hitting one of my vitals before she lost consciousness.
I looked at Rose and she was shivering. It was as though she could not believe herself attacking me. I quickly assured her that it was not her fault and we should focus on the battle. I held my wound with my left hand to try and lessen the bleeding. After a quick glance, I can see that the demon was blocking Kronk’s staff with its arm. Kronk seemed to have saved us from killing each other but he is risking his life to help us. We need to support him as best as we can. What happened to the other two?
The both of them were bleeding in several places but was still standing. Did they really fight due to the frenzied state or were they just mad at each other? At least they stopped fighting now readied themselves to help Kronk. Can they still fight like this?
What came next surprised all of us.
“W.. what are you doing here? Why are you here?!” shouted the demon.
“Why would I not be sss? I AM originally from this continent sss,” said Kronk.
“Aren’t you supposed to be in another realm by now?! Why is the second great power doing here?!” the demon shouted.
W.. what? Second great power? Kronk is.. Sladar Slitherman? For real?!
“I am just a lowly reptilian sss. Your small eyes must be mistaken sss,” said Kronk? Sladar? I don’t know.
The demon leaped back. I can see that it is still using bloodlust as steams were still coming out of its mouth along with its bloodshot eyes. Sladar’s eyes were glowing. He told us to stay back as this is his fight now. We certainly cannot beat it in this form.
“And here I thought all the Demon King’sss army was hunted down to the last sss. I am surprised you were able to evade our detectionsss for ssso long. You must have cowered in hiding like the insect sss you are,” said Sladar.
The demon roared to regenerate its wings and all its wounds. Even the left arm I sliced off was regenerated back some time ago. Sladar readied himself with his staff. Will that flimsy looking staff be able to withstand the demon’s attack? The demon lunged at Sladar in an attempt to slash with its claws. Sladar parried the slash and struck back at the demon’s head immediately. The demon continued to attack with a flurry of slashes. All of them are either dodged or countered by Sladar’s staff. The demon is being cornered now.
The demon then used wind pressure from its claws. Sladar dodged them skilfully like an acrobat. The demon seems to be panicking now and swung its claws in every direction. The terrains and landscapes was being destroyed everywhere. Claw marks were appearing everywhere too. We need to stay way, WAY back! Thankfully, none of it hit us!
Among the attacks, Sladar found an opportunity and leaped in with a Falcon Kick to the demon’s torso. He then struck his staff on the ground and used it as a pole to deliver another kick to the demon’s face. Is it me, or is Sladar enjoying himself?
The demon is definitely getting overwhelmed. It decided to take flight and escape.
“Hey, get back here sss!” shouted Sladar.
Is Sladar going to fight the demon mid-air? How is he going to do that?
Sladar leaped from the ground to chase after the demon with his tail wrapping around the staff. He then used his staff as a foothold to propel himself further mid-air. How is that even possible?! The strength of his tail must be insane to pull that off. The demon was not expecting that Sladar was able to give chase and took a punch from Sladar unexpectedly. Shockwaves appeared from where Sladar struck the demon. Why does it look like I am watching Superman fighting with Zod now?
The demon struck back with its claws and wind pressure. Sladar tried to avoid as much as he can but his mobility is limited while in the air. One of the wind pressure sliced of Sladar’s left arm below the bicep.
“Ah, I must be getting rusty sss,” said Sladar to which he instantly regrow back the arm.
So this is the ridiculous regeneration that made him number two. If only all reptilians had this capability. No, wait, scratch that idea. That would make them the strongest demon then. Might be worst than fighting demons if they went arrogant and decided to rule this realm.
Sladar leaped in towards the demon while nimbly dodging the wind pressures. He then readied his staff and struck at the collar bone of the demon. Shockwaves appeared again which rumbled the surrounding landscapes or what’s left of it. The demon started to fall but Sladar did not miss his opportunity. He started using “Fury Strikes” on the demon which is a technique by the Dragon Guild. It starts with two strikes, followed by four, eight, sixteen all the way up to a hundred and twenty eight strikes.
The demon fell to the ground with Sladar’s foot on its face. No mercy by the second great power. Hard to believe a reptilian having such regeneration power that even demons could not rival. Sladar was about to deliver the killing blow on the demon when it decided to plead for mercy. I can see majority of the demon’s bone was shattered. It can barely even move now.
“P… please.. let me go.. I’ll ask the demons to stop the attack.. The town won’t be harmed..” said the demon.
“Really? You do that then sss,” said Sladar.
I can hear sarcasm in his tone.
“Done! The demons won’t be attacking the town anymore.. please let me go,” the demon said.
“Ah.. you see, I would like to sss. But I just don’t trust sss a demon from the Demon King’sss army. You made it personal by attacking my town sss,” said Sladar with a firm voice.
“Screw your inferior race! You were never one of us! Your kind does not fit in this worl….” the demon did not manage to finish its sentence.
Sladar slammed his staff onto the demon’s skull which shattered like an egg. Sladar stood there for quite some time before looking at us. Was he checking to see whether it would regenerate or something?
“Well, now that’sss done. Let us return sss,” said Sladar.
All of us lifted our hands up. No way any of us are going to beat a member of the four great powers. Not to mention he is number two. Is Tom this powerful as well? Sladar made me realised how weak I am right now to seek my revenge on him. Sladar waved his hands to us calm ourselves. He has no interest in fighting us when he was the one who asked us to come here in the first place.
The four of us sat down to mend our wounds. Rose was tending to mine when I saw that her leg’s flesh had melted a little. Was it due to the giant sundew’s tentacle coil? It can melt flesh that quickly?
I told Rose to tend to her own wounds while I tended to mine. She rejected and said that this injury was caused by her and it was only due fit that she was the one that tended to it. Hm, okay then. Upon finishing, she stood up to tend to her wound elsewhere but I quickly carried her princess style towards a tree trunk. She was caught off guard and started screaming “Put me down!” but I ignored her with a dull expression. I leaned her against the tree trunk and inspected her wounds. Yikes, even her boots have melted. Thankfully her wounds were not that serious. Nothing a little healing cream cannot cure.
As soon we were done tending to our wounds, we prepared for our long journey back. Something made Sladar looked back at the demon’s corpse. Hmm? There was.. a small aura or spirit floating above the body. Sladar walked closer to inspect. The spirit suddenly started to speak.
“Sllaadddaarrr.. sttiill tthhee peerrssiittanntt iinnsseecctt yoouuu aarreee,” said the spirit.
“And you still clinging on to life sss. When will you finally die sss?” said Sladar.
“Yyoouu.. Hhaawwtthhoorrnn.. I’ll bbee bbaacckk,” said the spirit before dissipating away.
What was that? How did it even know my last name?
“Um, what was that?” I asked Sladar.
“Hm? Oh, just some remnants of the Demon King’s influence sss. Think nothing of it sss,” said Sladar.
“Should we be worried that the Demon King might return?” I asked.
“I can’t say sss. It’s been yearsss but there is no evidence sss of his return,” said Sladar.
“Y.. you’re a Hawthorn?” asked Pietro.
Shoot. I completely forgotten that Pietro was the only one here who did not know about this. I’m going to need to do something to keep his mouth shut or I will probably have to migrate elsewhere.
“Um, yes. Not many people knows about this. Please, please keep it a secret,” I bowed to Pietro.
“I.. see. I’ll certainly keep it a secret. I promise,” said Pietro.
“You better. Or I will come for your head,” said John while grabbing Pietro’s collar.
“Woah woah hey hey, no need to fight anymore is there?” I said while trying to disperse the fight.
John finally released Pietro’s collar after some time. But Pietro somehow did the unthinkable. He sat down on the ground seiza style and bowed to us for forgiveness. He told us about his reason on why he made that decision. On one of his previous quest, he was an indecisive leader and caused the death of many of the party members. He vowed to be decisive in all of his future quests whenever he became the leader. To him, making a decision is always better than making none.
Sladar gave praise to Pietro. He said that if he did not attract the demon with the firework, he would have rushed towards the demon to kill it instead. John on the other hand was still in a sulky mood. Wished Lily was here to help out. Their dynamic compatibility always brought up each other’s mood instantly.
We decided to head back after making sure that the demon did not revive itself for good. I suddenly recalled about the demon’s katana which prompted me to look for it. Rose found it first and tried to lift the katana. It barely moved a budge. John took over and tried to lift it but even he could not do it. No luck for Pietro either. But strangely, I was able to lift up the katana with ease to which I looked at all of them while squinting my eyes. Are they trolling with me? The three of them shook their heads while waving their hands in front of their face.
Sladar tried to hold the katana but even he had trouble lifting it up. I can see his muscles straining to lift the katana. He technically could lift the katana but he said it was pointless for him to wield it. Not only will it be ineffective in combat, it was draining his powers constantly. He told me that the legendary weapon chose me to be the next wielder which was why I was able to lift it. Why did the demon even bothered to wield this weapon then?
But how is that possible? I already have my own legendary weapon AND gauntlet. Now I have to carry another legendary katana? What is going on?
I slotted the katana in my left hips along with Inazuma. Please get along and don’t fight. I hope these two weapons don’t randomly start making explosions on my hips.
I asked Sladar on what he meant when he said that he was the one who asked us to come. He told us his side of the story as we were heading back to the Western town. Firstly, we are to continue to address him as Kronk instead of Sladar. Secondly, he was in undercover for many years here as a guide. His purpose was to keep an eye on this continent just in case there was any signs of the Demon King’s return. He volunteered himself among the other two great powers as this was his homeland to which they agreed. Being undercover meant that the demons are less wary and it will be much easier for him to search for signs. No demon will be willing to flaunt around or resummon the Demon King out in the open if they ever found out that the second great power was in this continent.
At first, he assumed that it was just some random demon that was causing commotion hence he requested the guild for help. However, when he saw a great demon appearing in town, he knew something was not right. Only a greater demon is capable of ordering a great demon into attacking the town. They always steered clear of the town as there is nothing of interest for them. He went to collect his staff upon seeing the great demon but we ended up defeating it to which he commended us for it. He was surprised that we even knew how to defeat the demon by destroying the brain. Only great demon or high ranking demons can be killed by this method. The Demon King on the other hand would require the absolute destruction of its entire body in order to kill but sadly, no one was capable of doing. Even the strongest great power was not able to defeat the Demon King during the previous war.
“Well, I wish I can continue sss with the story but we really need to run now sss. A death-storm is approaching us all!!” shouted Kronk.
All of us ran with our mights towards a shelter. Good thing we managed to find a vacant cave nearby. It was actually drizzling before we even made it to the cave. I can see Rose’s cloak starting to sizzle whenever the droplets made contact. We checked our wearables and a couple of them had holes in them. Even my chained cloak had holes now exposing the chains hidden beneath. Guess I will need to change them in the near future.
Although death-storms occur on this continent, it is usually a rare occurrence according to Kronk. If it happens often, everything would have melted down by now. Surprisingly, many flora or fauna have built resistance to the rain so majority of the landscape remains even after pouring acids over them. Otherwise, this entire continent would had been a barren inhospitable wasteland.
After settling down with a small campfire, I continued to make conversation with Kronk. Good thing he was not arrogant or snobbish despite being one of the great power. In fact, he was actually very friendly. I joked with him on saying that with his regeneration, he should be able to survive the death-storm. He said he had tried it before when he was caught off guard. While he technically can survive for a couple of minutes, his body will eventually give in due to exhausting all of his energy for regenerating his wound. He certainly would not want to experienced that again.
I asked him on whether he knew about my father or mother. He said he only knew about Jack Hawthorn during the war. To him, he was just a common adventurer when they first met. Little did he know that Jack would become the hero along with my mother. Surprisingly, Jack was the first one to injure the Demon King with his weapon when even the other three great powers could not. I showed Kronk whether Inazuma was the weapon to which he nodded while requesting to take a peek. I unsheathed the weapon to show him as he refused to hold Inazuma. He said that any legendary weapon that is chosen by the weapon should not be held by another. Legendary weapons are picky objects.
After inspecting with his eyes, he knew that this was the very weapon that injured the Demon King. He remembered very well how the green weapon glimmered brightly as it stabbed through the Demon King’s torso. Even the Demon King was caught off guard by it.
“Truth be told sss…” he stopped suddenly.
He asked me to unsheathe the katana that was wielded by the demon. I obeyed and tried to show him but.. huh? I can’t lift the weapon? What is going on?
I tried my best to lift the weapon to which I failed. That’s odd, I can lift it earlier so what is going on now? I slotted Inazuma back at my hips. Huh? I can lift it now?
I looked at Kronk to which he chuckled. He seemed to understand what was going on which I did not. I unsheathed the katana which glowed a dark purple. The scabbard was of a darker purple. It certainly had some weight to it but not ridiculous heavy like earlier. After showing to Kronk, he said that this is possibly the weapon that my mother wielded previously. He sort of remember the unique purple blade that my mother wielded.
Is that why the greater demon forced itself to use this katana? To exert dominance over the other demons? By proving itself that it is capable of wielding a weapon that can injure the Demon King, no wonder it refuses to let go of the weapon even though it was weakening itself.
Strange though, is this really what my mother used last time? I thought Vikings preferred to use axes over anything else? I wonder if I can find out about this but Kronk shrugged as he remembered very little about my mother.
I changed topic and asked Kronk on whether he knew about Tom Snapdragon. He said he don’t know much about that human as he did not participate in the war. Tom was actually not the fourth great power during the war. He came into power of being the fourth after defeating the previous fourth human. Whether it was using assassination or outright challenge, no one knew.
I clenched my fist. And here I thought I can finally get some information on him. Kronk seems to notice my frustration and decided to call everyone in to join the conversation. He decided to tutor us on what occurred to us when we fought the greater demon. Should we wish to face stronger opponents in the future, then we will need to understand about the type of powers in this world.
Firstly, is the body which is explained by stats. We need to build our stats according to our needs. No one is capable in majoring all stats throughout their lives. At some point, stats will cease to increase no matter how much we train. Kronk is around a thousand years old now and his stats no longer increased no matter what he did.
Next is our equipment. There is a special spell that is only taught in the Eastern continent which helps in fortifying our equipment. Not only would it strengthen our equipment, it can make it resummonable. Kronk forgot what it was called as he had not used it for many years now. He said he will only glance through this portion as his staff did not require such spell. His staff was also a legendary weapon to which all of us looked at it questionably. It looked more like some flimsy walking stick more than anything. He said that this was why the weapon remained unused for so long until he came along. It would make for an easy concealable weapon as no one would even expect it as anything more than a walking stick.
And lastly, is the mind. What we experienced earlier was called Bloodlust which was a considered as a Higher State Of Mind. He broke down the types of ‘State Of Mind’ as best as he could. Firstly, is the Basic State Of Mind which is called ‘random thoughts’. This is how everyone’s mind function everyday.
Then, we move on to the Focused State Of Mind which the East calls it Ekāgratā or Concentration as I call it. Adventurers that have plenty of combat experience might end up learning this on their own. It is safe to say that almost everyone is capable of learning this if they are disciplined with their mind.
Next up, is the Higher State Of Mind which branches into two categories, passive or aggressive. Every living being is only capable of using a single path. Very rarely do adventurers able to achieve this state of mind. Only selected few beings are able to achieve through either experience, training or just sheer luck. Apparently both of my parents were capable of using this state. My father favoured the passive path while my mother followed the aggressive path. Huh, perhaps I took after my mother seeing as I somehow used Bloodlust unknowingly the last time.
Even selected demons are capable of using this state. Demons always favours the aggressive state which is Bloodlust. Kronk can also use Bloodlust after figuring out that he favoured the aggressive state. The elven on the other hand have discovered the opposite of Bloodlust which is Dhāraṇā or also known as Focused Meditation. In this state, the elves were capable of fighting toe to toe with the demons.
My father was also able to learn and used Focused Meditation during the war. His close relationship with the elves might had given him the opportunity to learn it from them.
Wait, hold on. Was my father close with the elves because he wanted to learn from them or did he just fancied female elves in general? Kronk shrugged at my remarks. It was not like he knew about my father’s fetish.
Last but not least, is the highest state of mind which is the Absolute State Of Mind. To date, only two living beings were capable of achieving this state. The strongest elf which is also known as the strongest of the four great powers, Ivy Moonshine. She is the only one capable of achieving what they call as Dhyāna which some referred to it as Effortless Meditation. All of her accumulative battle experience made her capable of using this state subconsciously. The other living being was the Demon King. His Blood Rage was a fearsome state that even Ivy had difficulty fighting the Demon King alone. At his peak, the Demon King was certainly the strongest in this realm.
I asked Kronk that during the battle with the greater demon, the four of us was affected by Bloodlust. But after Kronk came, the affect dissipated. He said that the demon was caught off guard by his appearance which affected the Bloodlust partly. Kronk was also using Concentration which helped nullify the affect for us. So does this mean that a lower state of mind can help in preventing the effects of a stronger one? That is not really the case. Even if one does not know how to use Concentration, as long as the mind is disciplined and strong, the effects can be countered.
Silence filled the cave when Kronk finished his story. We all knew that the four of us do not have a strong mind. I was even more depressed after hearing about the type of states. And here I thought I was close to being strong enough to have my revenge but I was naive. I should assume that Tom is at least capable on using Bloodlust judging by his personality. I certainly need to be much stronger now. The destination just seems so far away no matter how hard I tried.
We decided to camp the night as the storm went on. I rolled out the sleeping bag next to Rose and lay down. I asked her about her strange terrified state after we fell down from the cliff. Was she afraid of heights? She said it was more likely the fear of falling that terrified her. She felt helpless, panicked and did not know what to do. She hugged me and said thanks to which I petted her head. I certainly need to be stronger now. The thought of losing Rose never occurred to me until today. I should have brought my gauntlets with me which may have helped out in this battle. No more fooling around in the future, I will make sure I prepare myself for any foreseeable battle with utmost certainty.
***
“So.. what are the odds that you decided to crawl to MY host, eh? How does it feel to be dragged around by a demon? Heh heh,” said Kirin.
Once again I am in a dream world with Kirin. Who was he talking to? Oh hey, a white tiger! Aww, so fluffy~ Wait, is it going to attack me? It is looking real feral right now.
“Grr.. You don’t even know what it is like being forcefully dragged around. You were lucky that the humans found you after the war while I, was dragged away by that idiotic demon. I had been draining its strength for decades and still it is strong enough to swing me around like a damn fool. You should be lucky boy, if I had not weaken the demon tremendously, the four of you would be dead where you stood,” said the white tiger.
“Come now, you think I would let the boy die? I keep my chosen alive as much as possible. Unlike a certain being,” Kirin said while insinuating something. He seems to be having fun with this white tiger.
“Jane fought heroically at the side of Jack! Your host perished in the war too! Don’t act all cocky about keeping your host alive when he died as well!” shouted the white tiger.
“Hah! Jack was the one who dealt the first damage to the Demon King while you all barely even scratched him. I remember Jack saving your sorry ass a few times while fighting,” said Kirin. He even made a fu fu at the end.
“Just because you dealt the first damage does not mean anything. Jane took off the Demon King’s arm which was something you could not do. Your horn can never be as strong as my fangs,” said the white tiger.
“I’ll rip off those bloody fangs right here right now!!” shouted Kirin.
“Bring it on, you damn unicorn!!” shouted the white tiger.
Oh lord, stop shaking and destroying this dream world!!
“Ano… what is going on?” I lifted my right hand while sitting on the ground seiza style.
“Hmm, almost forgot you were even here. I am Byakko and the blade you will be wielding is called Tengu-kaze. It was your mother’s and now it is officially yours. Wield it with pride,” said Byakko.
“HAR?! Over my dead body he will be wielding you! This is my chosen host! Go find your own!” shouted Kirin.
“What better host to wield me than the son of Jane Gladiolus. He had already shown his potential in using the aggressive path,” said Byakko.
“No, his potential is using the calm path just like his father. He will not be using the aggression path while wielding me,” said Kirin.
“Wait, time out! My mom was a Gladiolus? Is John my cousin then?!” I shouted in surprise.
“On that, we do not know. Such trivial matters is not within our concerns. You, on the other hand, is not,” said Byakko.
“You are certainly different, boy. I do not know any living being that is capable of using both paths. Tread carefully,” said Kirin.
Silence engulfed the world. Huh? I can use both paths? Didn’t Sladar just mentioned that each person can only use a single path? How did I ended up with two? Gasp, am I the chosen one? Heh heh. In my dreams, alright. Oh wait, I am in one.
"Soo.. I can decide which path I should follow or something? How does this even work?" I asked both of them.
"That is for you to discover. In the meantime, focus on the path of aggression. You had already used it once before and I sense that you can use it much easier than the other path," said Byakko.
"No way! He has been trained to use the calm path since young. That is certainly the right path for him," Kirin complained.
"Alright, stop the both of you. I don't even know how to use any of the path yet. How about I just hold on to Tengu-kaze in the meantime? No complains about this right?" I tried compromising with these two.
"Fine," said both of them simultaneously.
"Are the both of you rivals or something? Why do you two keep fighting with each other?" I asked both of them.
"We came to this lands together. You can say we are sort of like rivals but we mean no ill intention with one another," said Kirin.
Really? What was it about ripping each other’s fangs or horn earlier then?
"You can say we are like water and oil hence we are always at odds with one another," said Byakko.
"What is your affinity element then, Byakko? Kirin uses lightning, right?" I asked them.
"My element is in using wind. Hence the reason why the demon uses wind pressure when he wielded me. Wind is stronger than lightning I assure you," said Byakko.
Lightning and wind. Ah, no wonder they are at odds with one another. This reminded me of a certain ramen topping show.
"I beg your pardon but lightning can literally obliterate the opponent instantly. Wind usually take their time to even reach their opponent. So much for being stronger," said Kirin.
Please.. kill me now. These two never stops bickering with one another. Thankfully I can see the world fading before me. This is the first time that I cannot wait to wake up from this dream.
After waking up, I tested the weight of Tengu-kaze. I can finally lift it up without Inazuma at my hip. Was it because the both of them were at odds or Byakko had not accepted me then, I do not know. But I might have to maybe start learning to dual-wield if I were to use both of them together. Perhaps someday but not today.
***
It took us five days to finally reached the town which was perfectly intact. Ah, finally we can travel home. Two weeks in this continent felt like two years for me. Upon reaching the town, John caved and tried to make amends with Pietro. He told his side of the story that there was a party leader that always made rash decisions which cause almost the entire party killed. John was the only survivor for one of the quest and he was thankful that he even managed to make it back alive. To him, life matters and should not be thrown away on a whim. Especially when he was given a second chance by my grandfather.
Both John and Pietro shook hands. Or more like an epic handshake. They had their misunderstandings but there was no right or wrong in that situation. Both options had flaws yet none was the perfect choice.
In the end, the three of us were suspicious with Pietro over nothing. We were in the wrong to even be suspicious of him in the first place. I guess our instincts was wrong.
We stayed a night at Sliddy’s bar before heading back to the Western continent the following day. Kronk certainly told his version of the story about how we were able to defeat the greater demon to Sliddy. Seems like even the citizen of this town does not know about him being undercover.
Kronk guided us back the following day. Once again we took a boat and then a carriage back to the City Of Pines. Ah, I would like to stay in the city for at least a year before thinking of going anywhere else for an adventure. How wrong was I.
John took point as he is the tank of the group. All of us knew our role in a group battle. I will be one attacking while providing de-buffs, Rose will provide buffs while looking for an opportunity to attack the opponent’s weak-point while Pietro will support John by blocking attacks with his spear and attacking with range. The four of us covers each other’s weak-point which is one of the main reason why guilds agreed to work together in a group of four. If only the Elemental guild was willing to join in too.
Rose hung back while the three of us took point. Her Accelerate spell should be ready by now but her Light Blessing spell might still be on cooldown. I doubt my Fear spell would have any effect on this greater demon which was why I did not bother. I should focus all my energy sorely into attacking instead.
John used ‘Fortify Combat’ spell which increases his attack power. It does not affect nearby allies sadly. He rushed in towards the demon head-on with Pietro following behind. I followed along heading closer to the demon but waited for a better opportunity to support the both. John swung his giant axe in a downward strike. He must be aiming straight for the demon’s head. The demon dodged backwards only to find Pietro’s spear going straight for the demon’s eye. The demon tried to lunged into the air and fly to dodge the attack but it was too late. Before it managed to fly high enough, I jumped behind its back and swung Inazuma in an attempt to take off both of its wings. In my mid-swing, the demon spun its body. It used its wing to try and stop my attack. It succeeded by injuring my right arm but I still managed to take off its left wing before that. It must have been softer bones that connects the wings for me to be able to slice off one so easily.
The demon fell to the ground and immediately rushed towards John with a shoulder charge. John took the attack head-on but flew some distance away. It then slashed its claws towards Pietro to which it sliced through his spear and injured his torso. That attack did not even connect yet the wind pressure alone was enough to cut through the metal spear. It then instantly rushed at me with both hands with claws extended. This demon is reacting so much faster than before without the katana. I focused all my utmost attention on the demon to try and predict its move while ignoring the stinging pain on my right arm.
Before it even reaches me, it took a swipe at me with its claws. I dodged as I know the wind pressure alone is definitely strong enough to slice me apart. Four straight marks dug into the ground. It then took another swipe at me sideways to which I had to leap up into the air using a tree trunk as foothold. Another four straight marks sliced through many tree trunks and made it collapsed.
The demon leaped towards me now at an attempt to sink its claws into me. Not to mention it even said “Play time is over, human,” to me. Too bad for you, I already predicted what you wanted to do when you could not touch me.
I shouted “Rose!” to which she casted Light Blessing. A short spear and a small axe flew and hit the demon from the back. Pietro did not miss his opportunity with the blessing’s buff. Having drank a strength potion earlier, I swung Inazuma towards the demon’s claw that was heading towards me. I sliced in-between the demon’s fingers and through the arm’s bones. I held Inazuma two-handed and swung it sideways towards the demon’s head. I put all my powers into that swing hoping that I can slice off its thick skull along with the brain.
Whoosh
Did I do it? Did I manage to slice through? Huh? The demon lifted its head in the last moment which cause me to decapitate it instead.
“Shit,” I grunted. The demon knew it won’t die by decapitation.
I fell back to the ground ready for its next attack. The demon had already reattached its head before touching the ground. What ridiculous healing factor even with my wax coating. How did we even win the war with such demons on the battlefield.
It turned to look at me. I can hear Pietro and John coming in close from behind me. Rose should not be far behind. If we continue to push the attack, we might be able to win. I took a quick opportunity to glance at John and Pietro. John had bruises all over from the shoulder charge. Pietro was bleeding from the wound he received earlier. He is only holding the sharp end of the spear which means that he can no longer support as effectively as before. We need to strike with more precision now before we receives anymore injuries.
The demon turned its body to look at us. Steam was coming out of its mouth while its eyes are bloodshot. What is it trying to do?
Thump thump, thump thump
Huh? What was that?? I held my head. All the others followed suit. I can hear whisperings in my head. I tried my best to focus on the demon but dark thoughts were filling my mind. It is telling me to kill, to hunt for blood. Blood is the only thing that I need. We are all losing our consciousness now. Cold breaths were appearing whenever I exhaled.
Pietro rushed towards John with his broken spear and stabbed John on the arm. John retaliated and swung his axe. Pietro tried to dodge but still received a cut on his torso. The both of them are going to kill each other from the frenzied state! Even Rose is starting to look real juicy with blood now. No, snap out of it! I need to help those two but I am losing consciousness myself. This must be the bloodlust state that Kronk was talking about.
Shit, Rose is charging at me now with her rapier held straight. I quickly tossed away Inazuma and leaped towards her before I succumb to the frenzied state. The last thing I recalled before losing consciousness was hugging Rose.
“Using bloodlust on these humansss? You certainly have gone weak sss” said Kronk.
The four of us regained our consciousness. The first thing I saw was a white shoulder on my left vision. I’m glad I did not attack Rose and hugged her instead. Ouch! My left flank hurts. I moved back and found that Rose had stabbed me. It wasn’t serious and more of a glancing blow. Perhaps Rose avoided hitting one of my vitals before she lost consciousness.
I looked at Rose and she was shivering. It was as though she could not believe herself attacking me. I quickly assured her that it was not her fault and we should focus on the battle. I held my wound with my left hand to try and lessen the bleeding. After a quick glance, I can see that the demon was blocking Kronk’s staff with its arm. Kronk seemed to have saved us from killing each other but he is risking his life to help us. We need to support him as best as we can. What happened to the other two?
The both of them were bleeding in several places but was still standing. Did they really fight due to the frenzied state or were they just mad at each other? At least they stopped fighting now readied themselves to help Kronk. Can they still fight like this?
What came next surprised all of us.
“W.. what are you doing here? Why are you here?!” shouted the demon.
“Why would I not be sss? I AM originally from this continent sss,” said Kronk.
“Aren’t you supposed to be in another realm by now?! Why is the second great power doing here?!” the demon shouted.
W.. what? Second great power? Kronk is.. Sladar Slitherman? For real?!
“I am just a lowly reptilian sss. Your small eyes must be mistaken sss,” said Kronk? Sladar? I don’t know.
The demon leaped back. I can see that it is still using bloodlust as steams were still coming out of its mouth along with its bloodshot eyes. Sladar’s eyes were glowing. He told us to stay back as this is his fight now. We certainly cannot beat it in this form.
“And here I thought all the Demon King’sss army was hunted down to the last sss. I am surprised you were able to evade our detectionsss for ssso long. You must have cowered in hiding like the insect sss you are,” said Sladar.
The demon roared to regenerate its wings and all its wounds. Even the left arm I sliced off was regenerated back some time ago. Sladar readied himself with his staff. Will that flimsy looking staff be able to withstand the demon’s attack? The demon lunged at Sladar in an attempt to slash with its claws. Sladar parried the slash and struck back at the demon’s head immediately. The demon continued to attack with a flurry of slashes. All of them are either dodged or countered by Sladar’s staff. The demon is being cornered now.
The demon then used wind pressure from its claws. Sladar dodged them skilfully like an acrobat. The demon seems to be panicking now and swung its claws in every direction. The terrains and landscapes was being destroyed everywhere. Claw marks were appearing everywhere too. We need to stay way, WAY back! Thankfully, none of it hit us!
Among the attacks, Sladar found an opportunity and leaped in with a Falcon Kick to the demon’s torso. He then struck his staff on the ground and used it as a pole to deliver another kick to the demon’s face. Is it me, or is Sladar enjoying himself?
The demon is definitely getting overwhelmed. It decided to take flight and escape.
“Hey, get back here sss!” shouted Sladar.
Is Sladar going to fight the demon mid-air? How is he going to do that?
Sladar leaped from the ground to chase after the demon with his tail wrapping around the staff. He then used his staff as a foothold to propel himself further mid-air. How is that even possible?! The strength of his tail must be insane to pull that off. The demon was not expecting that Sladar was able to give chase and took a punch from Sladar unexpectedly. Shockwaves appeared from where Sladar struck the demon. Why does it look like I am watching Superman fighting with Zod now?
The demon struck back with its claws and wind pressure. Sladar tried to avoid as much as he can but his mobility is limited while in the air. One of the wind pressure sliced of Sladar’s left arm below the bicep.
“Ah, I must be getting rusty sss,” said Sladar to which he instantly regrow back the arm.
So this is the ridiculous regeneration that made him number two. If only all reptilians had this capability. No, wait, scratch that idea. That would make them the strongest demon then. Might be worst than fighting demons if they went arrogant and decided to rule this realm.
Sladar leaped in towards the demon while nimbly dodging the wind pressures. He then readied his staff and struck at the collar bone of the demon. Shockwaves appeared again which rumbled the surrounding landscapes or what’s left of it. The demon started to fall but Sladar did not miss his opportunity. He started using “Fury Strikes” on the demon which is a technique by the Dragon Guild. It starts with two strikes, followed by four, eight, sixteen all the way up to a hundred and twenty eight strikes.
The demon fell to the ground with Sladar’s foot on its face. No mercy by the second great power. Hard to believe a reptilian having such regeneration power that even demons could not rival. Sladar was about to deliver the killing blow on the demon when it decided to plead for mercy. I can see majority of the demon’s bone was shattered. It can barely even move now.
“P… please.. let me go.. I’ll ask the demons to stop the attack.. The town won’t be harmed..” said the demon.
“Really? You do that then sss,” said Sladar.
I can hear sarcasm in his tone.
“Done! The demons won’t be attacking the town anymore.. please let me go,” the demon said.
“Ah.. you see, I would like to sss. But I just don’t trust sss a demon from the Demon King’sss army. You made it personal by attacking my town sss,” said Sladar with a firm voice.
“Screw your inferior race! You were never one of us! Your kind does not fit in this worl….” the demon did not manage to finish its sentence.
Sladar slammed his staff onto the demon’s skull which shattered like an egg. Sladar stood there for quite some time before looking at us. Was he checking to see whether it would regenerate or something?
“Well, now that’sss done. Let us return sss,” said Sladar.
All of us lifted our hands up. No way any of us are going to beat a member of the four great powers. Not to mention he is number two. Is Tom this powerful as well? Sladar made me realised how weak I am right now to seek my revenge on him. Sladar waved his hands to us calm ourselves. He has no interest in fighting us when he was the one who asked us to come here in the first place.
The four of us sat down to mend our wounds. Rose was tending to mine when I saw that her leg’s flesh had melted a little. Was it due to the giant sundew’s tentacle coil? It can melt flesh that quickly?
I told Rose to tend to her own wounds while I tended to mine. She rejected and said that this injury was caused by her and it was only due fit that she was the one that tended to it. Hm, okay then. Upon finishing, she stood up to tend to her wound elsewhere but I quickly carried her princess style towards a tree trunk. She was caught off guard and started screaming “Put me down!” but I ignored her with a dull expression. I leaned her against the tree trunk and inspected her wounds. Yikes, even her boots have melted. Thankfully her wounds were not that serious. Nothing a little healing cream cannot cure.
As soon we were done tending to our wounds, we prepared for our long journey back. Something made Sladar looked back at the demon’s corpse. Hmm? There was.. a small aura or spirit floating above the body. Sladar walked closer to inspect. The spirit suddenly started to speak.
“Sllaadddaarrr.. sttiill tthhee peerrssiittanntt iinnsseecctt yoouuu aarreee,” said the spirit.
“And you still clinging on to life sss. When will you finally die sss?” said Sladar.
“Yyoouu.. Hhaawwtthhoorrnn.. I’ll bbee bbaacckk,” said the spirit before dissipating away.
What was that? How did it even know my last name?
“Um, what was that?” I asked Sladar.
“Hm? Oh, just some remnants of the Demon King’s influence sss. Think nothing of it sss,” said Sladar.
“Should we be worried that the Demon King might return?” I asked.
“I can’t say sss. It’s been yearsss but there is no evidence sss of his return,” said Sladar.
“Y.. you’re a Hawthorn?” asked Pietro.
Shoot. I completely forgotten that Pietro was the only one here who did not know about this. I’m going to need to do something to keep his mouth shut or I will probably have to migrate elsewhere.
“Um, yes. Not many people knows about this. Please, please keep it a secret,” I bowed to Pietro.
“I.. see. I’ll certainly keep it a secret. I promise,” said Pietro.
“You better. Or I will come for your head,” said John while grabbing Pietro’s collar.
“Woah woah hey hey, no need to fight anymore is there?” I said while trying to disperse the fight.
John finally released Pietro’s collar after some time. But Pietro somehow did the unthinkable. He sat down on the ground seiza style and bowed to us for forgiveness. He told us about his reason on why he made that decision. On one of his previous quest, he was an indecisive leader and caused the death of many of the party members. He vowed to be decisive in all of his future quests whenever he became the leader. To him, making a decision is always better than making none.
Sladar gave praise to Pietro. He said that if he did not attract the demon with the firework, he would have rushed towards the demon to kill it instead. John on the other hand was still in a sulky mood. Wished Lily was here to help out. Their dynamic compatibility always brought up each other’s mood instantly.
We decided to head back after making sure that the demon did not revive itself for good. I suddenly recalled about the demon’s katana which prompted me to look for it. Rose found it first and tried to lift the katana. It barely moved a budge. John took over and tried to lift it but even he could not do it. No luck for Pietro either. But strangely, I was able to lift up the katana with ease to which I looked at all of them while squinting my eyes. Are they trolling with me? The three of them shook their heads while waving their hands in front of their face.
Sladar tried to hold the katana but even he had trouble lifting it up. I can see his muscles straining to lift the katana. He technically could lift the katana but he said it was pointless for him to wield it. Not only will it be ineffective in combat, it was draining his powers constantly. He told me that the legendary weapon chose me to be the next wielder which was why I was able to lift it. Why did the demon even bothered to wield this weapon then?
But how is that possible? I already have my own legendary weapon AND gauntlet. Now I have to carry another legendary katana? What is going on?
I slotted the katana in my left hips along with Inazuma. Please get along and don’t fight. I hope these two weapons don’t randomly start making explosions on my hips.
I asked Sladar on what he meant when he said that he was the one who asked us to come. He told us his side of the story as we were heading back to the Western town. Firstly, we are to continue to address him as Kronk instead of Sladar. Secondly, he was in undercover for many years here as a guide. His purpose was to keep an eye on this continent just in case there was any signs of the Demon King’s return. He volunteered himself among the other two great powers as this was his homeland to which they agreed. Being undercover meant that the demons are less wary and it will be much easier for him to search for signs. No demon will be willing to flaunt around or resummon the Demon King out in the open if they ever found out that the second great power was in this continent.
At first, he assumed that it was just some random demon that was causing commotion hence he requested the guild for help. However, when he saw a great demon appearing in town, he knew something was not right. Only a greater demon is capable of ordering a great demon into attacking the town. They always steered clear of the town as there is nothing of interest for them. He went to collect his staff upon seeing the great demon but we ended up defeating it to which he commended us for it. He was surprised that we even knew how to defeat the demon by destroying the brain. Only great demon or high ranking demons can be killed by this method. The Demon King on the other hand would require the absolute destruction of its entire body in order to kill but sadly, no one was capable of doing. Even the strongest great power was not able to defeat the Demon King during the previous war.
“Well, I wish I can continue sss with the story but we really need to run now sss. A death-storm is approaching us all!!” shouted Kronk.
All of us ran with our mights towards a shelter. Good thing we managed to find a vacant cave nearby. It was actually drizzling before we even made it to the cave. I can see Rose’s cloak starting to sizzle whenever the droplets made contact. We checked our wearables and a couple of them had holes in them. Even my chained cloak had holes now exposing the chains hidden beneath. Guess I will need to change them in the near future.
Although death-storms occur on this continent, it is usually a rare occurrence according to Kronk. If it happens often, everything would have melted down by now. Surprisingly, many flora or fauna have built resistance to the rain so majority of the landscape remains even after pouring acids over them. Otherwise, this entire continent would had been a barren inhospitable wasteland.
After settling down with a small campfire, I continued to make conversation with Kronk. Good thing he was not arrogant or snobbish despite being one of the great power. In fact, he was actually very friendly. I joked with him on saying that with his regeneration, he should be able to survive the death-storm. He said he had tried it before when he was caught off guard. While he technically can survive for a couple of minutes, his body will eventually give in due to exhausting all of his energy for regenerating his wound. He certainly would not want to experienced that again.
I asked him on whether he knew about my father or mother. He said he only knew about Jack Hawthorn during the war. To him, he was just a common adventurer when they first met. Little did he know that Jack would become the hero along with my mother. Surprisingly, Jack was the first one to injure the Demon King with his weapon when even the other three great powers could not. I showed Kronk whether Inazuma was the weapon to which he nodded while requesting to take a peek. I unsheathed the weapon to show him as he refused to hold Inazuma. He said that any legendary weapon that is chosen by the weapon should not be held by another. Legendary weapons are picky objects.
After inspecting with his eyes, he knew that this was the very weapon that injured the Demon King. He remembered very well how the green weapon glimmered brightly as it stabbed through the Demon King’s torso. Even the Demon King was caught off guard by it.
“Truth be told sss…” he stopped suddenly.
He asked me to unsheathe the katana that was wielded by the demon. I obeyed and tried to show him but.. huh? I can’t lift the weapon? What is going on?
I tried my best to lift the weapon to which I failed. That’s odd, I can lift it earlier so what is going on now? I slotted Inazuma back at my hips. Huh? I can lift it now?
I looked at Kronk to which he chuckled. He seemed to understand what was going on which I did not. I unsheathed the katana which glowed a dark purple. The scabbard was of a darker purple. It certainly had some weight to it but not ridiculous heavy like earlier. After showing to Kronk, he said that this is possibly the weapon that my mother wielded previously. He sort of remember the unique purple blade that my mother wielded.
Is that why the greater demon forced itself to use this katana? To exert dominance over the other demons? By proving itself that it is capable of wielding a weapon that can injure the Demon King, no wonder it refuses to let go of the weapon even though it was weakening itself.
Strange though, is this really what my mother used last time? I thought Vikings preferred to use axes over anything else? I wonder if I can find out about this but Kronk shrugged as he remembered very little about my mother.
I changed topic and asked Kronk on whether he knew about Tom Snapdragon. He said he don’t know much about that human as he did not participate in the war. Tom was actually not the fourth great power during the war. He came into power of being the fourth after defeating the previous fourth human. Whether it was using assassination or outright challenge, no one knew.
I clenched my fist. And here I thought I can finally get some information on him. Kronk seems to notice my frustration and decided to call everyone in to join the conversation. He decided to tutor us on what occurred to us when we fought the greater demon. Should we wish to face stronger opponents in the future, then we will need to understand about the type of powers in this world.
Firstly, is the body which is explained by stats. We need to build our stats according to our needs. No one is capable in majoring all stats throughout their lives. At some point, stats will cease to increase no matter how much we train. Kronk is around a thousand years old now and his stats no longer increased no matter what he did.
Next is our equipment. There is a special spell that is only taught in the Eastern continent which helps in fortifying our equipment. Not only would it strengthen our equipment, it can make it resummonable. Kronk forgot what it was called as he had not used it for many years now. He said he will only glance through this portion as his staff did not require such spell. His staff was also a legendary weapon to which all of us looked at it questionably. It looked more like some flimsy walking stick more than anything. He said that this was why the weapon remained unused for so long until he came along. It would make for an easy concealable weapon as no one would even expect it as anything more than a walking stick.
And lastly, is the mind. What we experienced earlier was called Bloodlust which was a considered as a Higher State Of Mind. He broke down the types of ‘State Of Mind’ as best as he could. Firstly, is the Basic State Of Mind which is called ‘random thoughts’. This is how everyone’s mind function everyday.
Then, we move on to the Focused State Of Mind which the East calls it Ekāgratā or Concentration as I call it. Adventurers that have plenty of combat experience might end up learning this on their own. It is safe to say that almost everyone is capable of learning this if they are disciplined with their mind.
Next up, is the Higher State Of Mind which branches into two categories, passive or aggressive. Every living being is only capable of using a single path. Very rarely do adventurers able to achieve this state of mind. Only selected few beings are able to achieve through either experience, training or just sheer luck. Apparently both of my parents were capable of using this state. My father favoured the passive path while my mother followed the aggressive path. Huh, perhaps I took after my mother seeing as I somehow used Bloodlust unknowingly the last time.
Even selected demons are capable of using this state. Demons always favours the aggressive state which is Bloodlust. Kronk can also use Bloodlust after figuring out that he favoured the aggressive state. The elven on the other hand have discovered the opposite of Bloodlust which is Dhāraṇā or also known as Focused Meditation. In this state, the elves were capable of fighting toe to toe with the demons.
My father was also able to learn and used Focused Meditation during the war. His close relationship with the elves might had given him the opportunity to learn it from them.
Wait, hold on. Was my father close with the elves because he wanted to learn from them or did he just fancied female elves in general? Kronk shrugged at my remarks. It was not like he knew about my father’s fetish.
Last but not least, is the highest state of mind which is the Absolute State Of Mind. To date, only two living beings were capable of achieving this state. The strongest elf which is also known as the strongest of the four great powers, Ivy Moonshine. She is the only one capable of achieving what they call as Dhyāna which some referred to it as Effortless Meditation. All of her accumulative battle experience made her capable of using this state subconsciously. The other living being was the Demon King. His Blood Rage was a fearsome state that even Ivy had difficulty fighting the Demon King alone. At his peak, the Demon King was certainly the strongest in this realm.
I asked Kronk that during the battle with the greater demon, the four of us was affected by Bloodlust. But after Kronk came, the affect dissipated. He said that the demon was caught off guard by his appearance which affected the Bloodlust partly. Kronk was also using Concentration which helped nullify the affect for us. So does this mean that a lower state of mind can help in preventing the effects of a stronger one? That is not really the case. Even if one does not know how to use Concentration, as long as the mind is disciplined and strong, the effects can be countered.
Silence filled the cave when Kronk finished his story. We all knew that the four of us do not have a strong mind. I was even more depressed after hearing about the type of states. And here I thought I was close to being strong enough to have my revenge but I was naive. I should assume that Tom is at least capable on using Bloodlust judging by his personality. I certainly need to be much stronger now. The destination just seems so far away no matter how hard I tried.
We decided to camp the night as the storm went on. I rolled out the sleeping bag next to Rose and lay down. I asked her about her strange terrified state after we fell down from the cliff. Was she afraid of heights? She said it was more likely the fear of falling that terrified her. She felt helpless, panicked and did not know what to do. She hugged me and said thanks to which I petted her head. I certainly need to be stronger now. The thought of losing Rose never occurred to me until today. I should have brought my gauntlets with me which may have helped out in this battle. No more fooling around in the future, I will make sure I prepare myself for any foreseeable battle with utmost certainty.
***
“So.. what are the odds that you decided to crawl to MY host, eh? How does it feel to be dragged around by a demon? Heh heh,” said Kirin.
Once again I am in a dream world with Kirin. Who was he talking to? Oh hey, a white tiger! Aww, so fluffy~ Wait, is it going to attack me? It is looking real feral right now.
“Grr.. You don’t even know what it is like being forcefully dragged around. You were lucky that the humans found you after the war while I, was dragged away by that idiotic demon. I had been draining its strength for decades and still it is strong enough to swing me around like a damn fool. You should be lucky boy, if I had not weaken the demon tremendously, the four of you would be dead where you stood,” said the white tiger.
“Come now, you think I would let the boy die? I keep my chosen alive as much as possible. Unlike a certain being,” Kirin said while insinuating something. He seems to be having fun with this white tiger.
“Jane fought heroically at the side of Jack! Your host perished in the war too! Don’t act all cocky about keeping your host alive when he died as well!” shouted the white tiger.
“Hah! Jack was the one who dealt the first damage to the Demon King while you all barely even scratched him. I remember Jack saving your sorry ass a few times while fighting,” said Kirin. He even made a fu fu at the end.
“Just because you dealt the first damage does not mean anything. Jane took off the Demon King’s arm which was something you could not do. Your horn can never be as strong as my fangs,” said the white tiger.
“I’ll rip off those bloody fangs right here right now!!” shouted Kirin.
“Bring it on, you damn unicorn!!” shouted the white tiger.
Oh lord, stop shaking and destroying this dream world!!
“Ano… what is going on?” I lifted my right hand while sitting on the ground seiza style.
“Hmm, almost forgot you were even here. I am Byakko and the blade you will be wielding is called Tengu-kaze. It was your mother’s and now it is officially yours. Wield it with pride,” said Byakko.
“HAR?! Over my dead body he will be wielding you! This is my chosen host! Go find your own!” shouted Kirin.
“What better host to wield me than the son of Jane Gladiolus. He had already shown his potential in using the aggressive path,” said Byakko.
“No, his potential is using the calm path just like his father. He will not be using the aggression path while wielding me,” said Kirin.
“Wait, time out! My mom was a Gladiolus? Is John my cousin then?!” I shouted in surprise.
“On that, we do not know. Such trivial matters is not within our concerns. You, on the other hand, is not,” said Byakko.
“You are certainly different, boy. I do not know any living being that is capable of using both paths. Tread carefully,” said Kirin.
Silence engulfed the world. Huh? I can use both paths? Didn’t Sladar just mentioned that each person can only use a single path? How did I ended up with two? Gasp, am I the chosen one? Heh heh. In my dreams, alright. Oh wait, I am in one.
"Soo.. I can decide which path I should follow or something? How does this even work?" I asked both of them.
"That is for you to discover. In the meantime, focus on the path of aggression. You had already used it once before and I sense that you can use it much easier than the other path," said Byakko.
"No way! He has been trained to use the calm path since young. That is certainly the right path for him," Kirin complained.
"Alright, stop the both of you. I don't even know how to use any of the path yet. How about I just hold on to Tengu-kaze in the meantime? No complains about this right?" I tried compromising with these two.
"Fine," said both of them simultaneously.
"Are the both of you rivals or something? Why do you two keep fighting with each other?" I asked both of them.
"We came to this lands together. You can say we are sort of like rivals but we mean no ill intention with one another," said Kirin.
Really? What was it about ripping each other’s fangs or horn earlier then?
"You can say we are like water and oil hence we are always at odds with one another," said Byakko.
"What is your affinity element then, Byakko? Kirin uses lightning, right?" I asked them.
"My element is in using wind. Hence the reason why the demon uses wind pressure when he wielded me. Wind is stronger than lightning I assure you," said Byakko.
Lightning and wind. Ah, no wonder they are at odds with one another. This reminded me of a certain ramen topping show.
"I beg your pardon but lightning can literally obliterate the opponent instantly. Wind usually take their time to even reach their opponent. So much for being stronger," said Kirin.
Please.. kill me now. These two never stops bickering with one another. Thankfully I can see the world fading before me. This is the first time that I cannot wait to wake up from this dream.
After waking up, I tested the weight of Tengu-kaze. I can finally lift it up without Inazuma at my hip. Was it because the both of them were at odds or Byakko had not accepted me then, I do not know. But I might have to maybe start learning to dual-wield if I were to use both of them together. Perhaps someday but not today.
***
It took us five days to finally reached the town which was perfectly intact. Ah, finally we can travel home. Two weeks in this continent felt like two years for me. Upon reaching the town, John caved and tried to make amends with Pietro. He told his side of the story that there was a party leader that always made rash decisions which cause almost the entire party killed. John was the only survivor for one of the quest and he was thankful that he even managed to make it back alive. To him, life matters and should not be thrown away on a whim. Especially when he was given a second chance by my grandfather.
Both John and Pietro shook hands. Or more like an epic handshake. They had their misunderstandings but there was no right or wrong in that situation. Both options had flaws yet none was the perfect choice.
In the end, the three of us were suspicious with Pietro over nothing. We were in the wrong to even be suspicious of him in the first place. I guess our instincts was wrong.
We stayed a night at Sliddy’s bar before heading back to the Western continent the following day. Kronk certainly told his version of the story about how we were able to defeat the greater demon to Sliddy. Seems like even the citizen of this town does not know about him being undercover.
Kronk guided us back the following day. Once again we took a boat and then a carriage back to the City Of Pines. Ah, I would like to stay in the city for at least a year before thinking of going anywhere else for an adventure. How wrong was I.
