Tara and I teleported to the fast travel point in the overworld. We used the rickshaw to ride to the road about a mile away from the hot spring. Then we waited behind a small hill until a carriage covered in golden leaf patterns approached. I’d seen it outside the hot spring before, so good chance it was Saran’s.
I simply stood in front of the road. The carriage slowed, and out poured five guards in blue vests, as well as Saran and his friend, Leric.
And one other person I didn’t expect to see: a woman with straight, jet black hair that reached down to her waist. Like Esme, she had an athletic body, though she was a bit taller. I could already tell she was a curseborn.
Saran and Leric approached me, each wearing such regal robes.
“You fool,” Saran said. “Do you realize what you’ve done?”
“Fuck you,” I replied. “I couldn’t care less about you and your laws. Remember what I said? I’m going to rule this island.”
“You really are delusional,” Leric said.
I ignored him. “Saran, I sentence you to die.”
Saran chuckled, though he was obviously nervous. “D-die? Surely you’re jesting. You have no authority over me. And it’s you who are about to die.”
Saran backed away as Leric conjured a spear. It was so dark, it looked to be formed from obsidian. I knew it was the power of the void itself, coming from the curseborn woman with long black hair.
“I don’t see a ring on your finger,” I said. “You soulbonded with a curseborn?”
“You barely understand how things work,” Leric replied. “Who do you think I am?”
I shrugged. “Some cunt?”
“I am a curseborn.”
Shit. That wasn’t what I expected to hear. “I thought no men were born the day the Shadowsoul descended.”
“That’s what they may teach,” Leric said. “But it isn’t true.”
“Either way, it means you’re a slave.” I crossed my arms.
“Technically, you could say I’m a slave. But I’ve been honored above my station by the prince himself.”
“Why?”
“I’ve no reason to tell you.”
So he was a curseborn soulbonded to another curseborn. That must’ve meant he had two elements: his own and the void element of the woman with long black hair.
“I don’t want to fight curseborns, I want to free them,” I said. “Instead of making me kill you, I’m giving you the choice to join me.”
“Join you? Hah! You think you’re some righteous hero? What makes you so noble? What gives you the right? Have you ever actually held power? Do you really think you’d be a better ruler than the prince?”
“I would be better. I’ve no doubt.”
“You’re a haughty fool. You don’t know how heavy the crown is. You don’t know how it’ll change you. How it’ll corrupt you.”
“Except I’m not a cunt.” I conjured my whip, ready to lash Leric. I feared what his void spear could do, so preferred to let him make the first move.
“Enough talk,” he said. “You’re about to learn you’re not as special as you think!”
He lunged at me, spear forward. As he thrust the spear, it elongated, doubling, tripling, quadrupling in length. I rolled out of the way, then lashed my whip at Leric’s legs.
He jumped backward, barely avoiding it. Then he raised his fist. A ball of black light formed above it, and that light immersed him entirely. Now, his whole body glowed with a dark luminance.
“You only use void abilities,” I said. “Let me guess, you’re void element too, aren’t you? Void soulbonded to void.”
“Indeed. And I just augmented myself. I just doubled all my attributes. Get fucked, you piece of shit.”
He thrust his void spear at me again. This time, it came at blinding speed. I back dashed, but it still hit me, piercing my thigh and almost going straight through.
Immediately, my body disappeared and water filled my wound. The water tingled, numbing the pain, and because of it, I didn’t even fall. I kept my balance, as if the water itself replaced the flesh and blood I’d just lost.
Tara, who was standing several paces back, had obviously cast that healing spell as soon as I’d been hit. I hoped the effect would last long enough.
My invisibility wore off, but I’d used it to reposition myself just enough to catch Leric off guard.
As Leric thrust his spear forward, I whirled my water whip and lashed in his direction. It caught onto his arm, and his spear disappeared.
He conjured a ball of darkness in his other hand and palmed it my way. I used my enhanced agility to sidestep, though I had to release my whip’s grip on Leric’s arm.
Strange how much of a fight he was able to put up, despite the fact that I could draw five times the power from my soulbond than he could from his. Leric was working for a rich man. And the rich can afford better gear than the rest of us.
Gear I’d have to loot once I killed him and Saran.
While we continued to fight, Saran was obviously starting to get worried. He took his guards, returned to his carriage, and rode away, leaving me with Leric and the woman with jet black hair.
“Your master just left you!” I said while breathing fast after rolling out of the way of a spear attack.
“He’s not my master.”
“Oh? Then why does he have you doing his dirty work?”
“I do it out of gratefulness.”
I chuckled. “Guzzling that Kool Aid, aren’t you?”
“Kool Aid?”
I slashed my water whip at his legs. He slid out of the way. Leric was too damned fast while augmented. But how long would that last? And if it ran out, would he just cast it again?
“I think we’re at a stalemate,” I said. “I’ll allow you to live. Think on your place in this society, and think on my offer to be truly free under my rule.”
Leric spat on the ground. “There’s your offer.”
He tossed his void spear in the air. It shot upward and disappeared somewhere in the clouds.
“What the fuck did you just do?” I asked.
The void spear he’d just thrown was probably going to home down on me. Or even worse, on Tara.
I turned and dashed toward Tara. I grabbed her and we dove, just as the void spear impacted the ground with an explosion of darkness and smoke.
Tara screamed, but thankfully, we’d narrowly avoided taking damage.
I got to my feet and helped her up. Gave her cheek a caress. Then I turned to Leric, more furious than I’d ever been.
“You piece of shit,” I said. “Hurting me is one thing. But don’t you touch my soulbonds!”
I charged at him as he thrust his spear at me. I jumped, floated over him, and lashed my whip at his neck. Once it caught, I pulled him up, into me. In midair, I gripped Leric’s head and then smashed it into the dirt as we landed.
I got on top of him and pounded on his face with my fists. A good old fashion beating. Once he was red and whimpering, I stood, conjured my water whip, and tightened it on his neck, suffocating him.
The woman with jet black hair ran over.
“Please don’t kill him, sir,” she said. “Have mercy.”
“He tried to kill Tara!”
“Then please kill me instead.”
I shook my head. “I’d never hurt a woman.”
“You’re hurting me if you kill him. He’s my husband! Without him, I have nothing. I’ll be enslaved.”
Leric went silent as his eyes shut. He was still breathing.
“Do you love him?”
She nodded. “Since the day we met. Since we were children.”
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Tara and I teleported to the fast travel point in the overworld. We used the rickshaw to ride to the road about a mile away from the hot spring. Then we waited behind a small hill until a carriage covered in golden leaf patterns approached. I’d seen it outside the hot spring before, so good chance it was Saran’s.
I simply stood in front of the road. The carriage slowed, and out poured five guards in blue vests, as well as Saran and his friend, Leric.
And one other person I didn’t expect to see: a woman with straight, jet black hair that reached down to her waist. Like Esme, she had an athletic body, though she was a bit taller. I could already tell she was a curseborn.
Saran and Leric approached me, each wearing such regal robes.
“You fool,” Saran said. “Do you realize what you’ve done?”
“Fuck you,” I replied. “I couldn’t care less about you and your laws. Remember what I said? I’m going to rule this island.”
“You really are delusional,” Leric said.
I ignored him. “Saran, I sentence you to die.”
Saran chuckled, though he was obviously nervous. “D-die? Surely you’re jesting. You have no authority over me. And it’s you who are about to die.”
Saran backed away as Leric conjured a spear. It was so dark, it looked to be formed from obsidian. I knew it was the power of the void itself, coming from the curseborn woman with long black hair.
“I don’t see a ring on your finger,” I said. “You soulbonded with a curseborn?”
“You barely understand how things work,” Leric replied. “Who do you think I am?”
I shrugged. “Some cunt?”
“I am a curseborn.”
Shit. That wasn’t what I expected to hear. “I thought no men were born the day the Shadowsoul descended.”
“That’s what they may teach,” Leric said. “But it isn’t true.”
“Either way, it means you’re a slave.” I crossed my arms.
“Technically, you could say I’m a slave. But I’ve been honored above my station by the prince himself.”
“Why?”
“I’ve no reason to tell you.”
So he was a curseborn soulbonded to another curseborn. That must’ve meant he had two elements: his own and the void element of the woman with long black hair.
“I don’t want to fight curseborns, I want to free them,” I said. “Instead of making me kill you, I’m giving you the choice to join me.”
“Join you? Hah! You think you’re some righteous hero? What makes you so noble? What gives you the right? Have you ever actually held power? Do you really think you’d be a better ruler than the prince?”
“I would be better. I’ve no doubt.”
“You’re a haughty fool. You don’t know how heavy the crown is. You don’t know how it’ll change you. How it’ll corrupt you.”
“Except I’m not a cunt.” I conjured my whip, ready to lash Leric. I feared what his void spear could do, so preferred to let him make the first move.
“Enough talk,” he said. “You’re about to learn you’re not as special as you think!”
He lunged at me, spear forward. As he thrust the spear, it elongated, doubling, tripling, quadrupling in length. I rolled out of the way, then lashed my whip at Leric’s legs.
He jumped backward, barely avoiding it. Then he raised his fist. A ball of black light formed above it, and that light immersed him entirely. Now, his whole body glowed with a dark luminance.
“You only use void abilities,” I said. “Let me guess, you’re void element too, aren’t you? Void soulbonded to void.”
“Indeed. And I just augmented myself. I just doubled all my attributes. Get fucked, you piece of shit.”
He thrust his void spear at me again. This time, it came at blinding speed. I back dashed, but it still hit me, piercing my thigh and almost going straight through.
Immediately, my body disappeared and water filled my wound. The water tingled, numbing the pain, and because of it, I didn’t even fall. I kept my balance, as if the water itself replaced the flesh and blood I’d just lost.
Tara, who was standing several paces back, had obviously cast that healing spell as soon as I’d been hit. I hoped the effect would last long enough.
My invisibility wore off, but I’d used it to reposition myself just enough to catch Leric off guard.
As Leric thrust his spear forward, I whirled my water whip and lashed in his direction. It caught onto his arm, and his spear disappeared.
He conjured a ball of darkness in his other hand and palmed it my way. I used my enhanced agility to sidestep, though I had to release my whip’s grip on Leric’s arm.
Strange how much of a fight he was able to put up, despite the fact that I could draw five times the power from my soulbond than he could from his. Leric was working for a rich man. And the rich can afford better gear than the rest of us.
Gear I’d have to loot once I killed him and Saran.
While we continued to fight, Saran was obviously starting to get worried. He took his guards, returned to his carriage, and rode away, leaving me with Leric and the woman with jet black hair.
“Your master just left you!” I said while breathing fast after rolling out of the way of a spear attack.
“He’s not my master.”
“Oh? Then why does he have you doing his dirty work?”
“I do it out of gratefulness.”
I chuckled. “Guzzling that Kool Aid, aren’t you?”
“Kool Aid?”
I slashed my water whip at his legs. He slid out of the way. Leric was too damned fast while augmented. But how long would that last? And if it ran out, would he just cast it again?
“I think we’re at a stalemate,” I said. “I’ll allow you to live. Think on your place in this society, and think on my offer to be truly free under my rule.”
Leric spat on the ground. “There’s your offer.”
He tossed his void spear in the air. It shot upward and disappeared somewhere in the clouds.
“What the fuck did you just do?” I asked.
The void spear he’d just thrown was probably going to home down on me. Or even worse, on Tara.
I turned and dashed toward Tara. I grabbed her and we dove, just as the void spear impacted the ground with an explosion of darkness and smoke.
Tara screamed, but thankfully, we’d narrowly avoided taking damage.
I got to my feet and helped her up. Gave her cheek a caress. Then I turned to Leric, more furious than I’d ever been.
“You piece of shit,” I said. “Hurting me is one thing. But don’t you touch my soulbonds!”
I charged at him as he thrust his spear at me. I jumped, floated over him, and lashed my whip at his neck. Once it caught, I pulled him up, into me. In midair, I gripped Leric’s head and then smashed it into the dirt as we landed.
I got on top of him and pounded on his face with my fists. A good old fashion beating. Once he was red and whimpering, I stood, conjured my water whip, and tightened it on his neck, suffocating him.
The woman with jet black hair ran over.
“Please don’t kill him, sir,” she said. “Have mercy.”
“He tried to kill Tara!”
“Then please kill me instead.”
I shook my head. “I’d never hurt a woman.”
“You’re hurting me if you kill him. He’s my husband! Without him, I have nothing. I’ll be enslaved.”
Leric went silent as his eyes shut. He was still breathing.
“Do you love him?”
She nodded. “Since the day we met. Since we were children.”
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