9 The Power - Part 2

「Year 950, day 197, Elfen territory, Bee Forest, 7 am.」

...

"Are you awake, kid!? I thought you'd never wake up!" - said Roldi while laughing.

"I think I've been sleeping a lot…"

"Well, thanks to your deep sleep, I was able to think hard about what to do. I think you are more than rested now, so we will go to a village near the border."

He hugged the child tightly while saying:

"Ready to leave? Ah, we will continue our training while we travel. Do not think you are out of this."

'I have already accepted that I will train until I die. At least we will keep traveling. I hate to be stuck in one place.'

Again, Roldi packed his things and the two set off on another long journey.

"I forgot to tell you. The village is about two months away."

To Roldi's surprise, the boy was excited about the length of the trip.

'Two months traveling. It seems like a dream! I wonder how many new places I will see.'

"So, shall we? We will travel every morning until lunchtime and train every afternoon until dinnertime. Are you ready?"

'Of course not!' - Kalui thought while affirming with his head.

.

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「Year 950, day 220, Elfen territory, Village on the border with Mercy, 1 pm.」

.

"We arrived earlier than expected. Is your leg better, kid?"

These weeks were peaceful and hard work. Roldi worked hard on the boy, teaching him maximum combat skills and training him to exhaustion every day.

A week ago, Kalui frustrated with his training - for not having landed a single blow on Roldi yet - used a spinning kick by putting his hand on the ground as a support and obviously, Roldi deflected without problems. However, this time the cheeky boy picked up a piece of dirt while leaning on the ground and, during the spinning motion to get up, threw the piece of dirt into his trainer's eye.

He could have dodged it, but it was hit on purpose, as a way of teaching the boy that every tactic is valid and being unpredictable is worthy of reward. With dirt in his eyes, the gray-haired man stopped to scratch them. Kalui took advantage of the low guard and kicked him in the leg with all his strength. The child's scream after hitting the kick, unfortunately, was not one of joy...

"Yes... Still can't run, but its better."

Even with an injured leg, Roldi still forced the boy to do training sessions that did not require much movement.

The sound of merchants shouting their wares began to reach Kalui's ears. Arriving in the village, they went straight to the market. Roldi attracted some attention, for it is not every day that one sees someone so tall and muscular, especially laughing with a child on his shoulder.

After finishing buying some tools, Roldi said:

"So kid, I know you must be excited and want to see the village soon, but we have to build our house somewhere around here soon. Not too far away, not too close."

'I have already confirmed with an old man that my brother's troops passed through here a long time ago. On their way back from Elfen, they must have followed the coast, passing very far from here. Well, I hope so.'

"Let's go! I'll explore the village later."

After finding a spot far from any trails, about an hour's walk from the village, Roldi built his house in a few hours. Stacking the logs of wood one by one, he tied them together with thick rope and large well-placed nails. After making sure that the house was secure, he put the things from his gigantic bundle inside the house.

The trees in this area were long and with leaves only on the tops. Their trunks were whitish and the wood was peeling.

"Vamos voltar para cidade e comprar uma mesa, uma cama de verdade, talheres e algumas comidas. ******

'Now that I am taking care of a child, I can't live the way I used to. It might even be good for him to grow strong, but my training will already take care of that part hahaha...'

"Don't you want to go there alone while I wait here?"

"Weren't you the explorer who would see every corner of the world and who was all excited to explore the whole village? Where is your determination, kid?"

"I can explore tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, the day after the after tomorrow, the da-"

"I get it! You can stay here as long as you do not leave the house. In addition, do not try to run! Wait until your leg is completely healed."

Kalui agreed, nodding frantically.

After a while, the child was already bored inside the house.

'It's been a while since Roldi left... He must be long gone by now. But who am I kidding? I am not crazy to take a chance with a bad leg. Imagine if another bug shows up? I would not even be able to run... I'll just relax while Roldi doesn't come and make me suffer with that training.'

The boy went outside and threw himself on the grass, stretching and yawning leisurely.

"It's time for bed!"

A short time later, while Kalui was sleeping, a pair of brothers were chatting a few meters away. A boy and a girl. Both of them had light brown hair, her sister's was curly, down to her shoulder, and her brother's was straight, down to his waist. The sister was tall for her age and had blue eyes. His younger brother was even taller and had dark green eyes. They wore very humble green robes, similar to Kalui's, and a pair of gray, dirt-soiled cloth pants.

"Sister, isn't it time to give up already? It's going to get dark..."

"Brother, isn't it about time you stood still? I said I'll find something soon."

"You'll never get a boyfriend by being so annoying!"

Screaming, the girl replied:

"How dare you little... I will kill you!"

The boy ran through the forest as fast as he could to get away from his sister.

"We live together. Even if you run away now, you will not get away at home!"

After a few seconds of running, the boy found Roldi's house. The house was like a square box, made of stacked tree trunks, very simple and with a window on the opposite side of the door.

"I think it's good that you stopped. I might even be nice since you gave up running! Hi hi hi..."

"Shhhhh! There is a house here now! Last week there was nothing." - said the boy, behind a bush, pointing to the house

The girl continued walking and talking loudly. She still did not have a view of the house from where she was.

"You think you can fool me with- Ah, there really is a house here!"

"Now that you've seen it, keep your voice down. Maybe it's someone evil..."

"Don't be silly. Let's go over there and see if there's anyone!"

"No, no, no, no! Bad idea! Mom will kill you if I tell her..."

While punching his own hands and staring at him with her sky-blue eye, his sister answers him:

"I want to see if you would have the courage to say something."

The boy swallowed his saliva and said:

"Do what you want, but it's your problem! I am going to stay here safe and hidden while I watch you are torn apart by an evil man."

The girl started to sweat a little, but refused to contradict herself.

"Stay there mister baby. Your big sister is going alone!"

"Make yourself at home! Large adult lady."

The girl's mind was in full swing and her body was in a cold sweat.

'I am not afraid... I am brave! I am strong! Even if there is someone bad, they will not be able to do anything against me. WhyBecause I am strong and brave! That is right, do not be afraid Kahyu, you are not a coward like your brother!'

With all the talk in the forest, Kalui wakes up and runs into the house, scared. He sat down in the back of the house and a few seconds later heard the intruder's footsteps walking very slowly through the grass.

'It is behind the house.... What do I do? If I really have powers, now is the time to get to use them. I hope you are a nice person! I should have gone with Roldi; I'll never let him leave me behind again!'

The girl stopped by the door, still hiding, because she was also afraid.

"Anyone home? I live in the village, anyone home?"

'Ah, a girl? She looks young... I have never talked to someone my own age, what do I do?'

"Hello! Who's there?"