Embrace the essence of IV

Two wise witches, soaring above the sky, cast their gaze downwards. As they observed, one of them began to whisper, "What is this peculiar sensation emanating from below?" The other witch interjected, "It feels as though something overwhelmingly powerful resides there!" Both of them experienced an unsettling and peculiar feeling. They exchanged knowing glances, a subtle smirk gracing their faces, and declared, "Let us thoroughly investigate and resolve this foreboding sensation. As they... disappeared in the blink of an eye, descending to witness the ongoing predicament on Earth... they perceived a dark aura enveloping their surroundings.

As four adventurers left the city gates, one of them glanced ahead and noticed a visibly cracked barrier. The girl, a skilled swordsman named Hana, stepped outside the gate, causing one of her companions to scream, "Hana!!" Hana approached and discovered one of the knights lying unconscious. Shocked, she turned around and addressed her fellow comrade who had witnessed the scene, saying, "There must be an intruder in this vicinity..." Upon hearing Hana's words, the others nodded in agreement and hurriedly ran back to the city.

As they came to a halt, Takeru Takahashi, a member of their group, spoke up, "Wait, we don't know who could have done this... we should go and ask them." Hana touched her head, realizing her oversight, and exclaimed, "Damn, I forgot about that!" Takeru and the rest of the group swiftly turned back to approach the gate and inquire about the situation. Upon reaching the gate, they attempted to interact with the unconscious knight lying on the ground. It appeared that the knight had been knocked out by a powerful blow, at least according to Hana's keen perception. Another comrade stepped forward and remarked, "I will heal him so that he can tell us what happened and identify the individuals who attacked." Hana, Takeru, and their comrade named Violet nodded in agreement. Just then, Ryutaro Suzuki emerged, raising his hand, and said, "Alright, let's quickly revive him and find out what happened.

As Arlo and Isshinna walked across the street, they noticed a bustling crowd of adventurers. Arlo felt satisfied, his mind pondering the idea of recruiting more people as friends or allies to help him assassinate his enemy in the capital. Isshinna, looking at Arlo with a serious expression, asked, "Anyway, why did you choose to become friends with me, Mr. Arlo?" This question caught Arlo off guard, and he turned his head towards Isshinna, wearing a slight smirk as he replied, "I sensed a strange, ominous aura around you, and I thought we could be friends and take down that enemy of mine." Isshinna, sounding confused, responded, "Enemy?" Suddenly, Isshinna's stomach growled loudly, indicating hunger, which surprised him. He exclaimed, "Oh wow, my stomach just reminded me that I'm hungry." Arlo, with a somewhat annoyed expression, retorted in his thoughts, "You're just noticing that now?" Meanwhile, five tough adventurers, appearing formidable and imposing, walked by, casting terrifying glances at those around them. This sight shocked some adventurers and citizens in the capital. However, Isshinna and Arlo paid them no attention, walking past without fear or even acknowledging their presence. One of the adventurers whispered to themselves in disbelief, "They didn't even flinch at my terrifying death stare?!" This bothered one of the group members. Two of the adventurers attempted to approach Isshinna and Arlo, but their comrade grabbed their shoulders, questioning their actions. He said, "Hey, where are you guys going? I thought we were supposed to slay more malevolent rats and complete our underground eradication quest." One of them pushed the comrade's hand away and turned to face him. The other comrade, standing in front of Isshinna and Arlo, asked, "What's going on?" The two adventurers who were stopped by their comrade exclaimed, "I won't let that slide. They didn't fear us!" Another comrade overheard the conversation and chimed in, "Okay, who cares? All we need to do is complete this quest and earn a fortune. I don't care about scaring people like you guys always do, like, uh, seven months ago." This angered the two adventurers, and they started fighting each other without involving Isshinna and Arlo. Arlo turned to Isshinna and asked, "Hey, do you have any money to buy something to eat?" Isshinna turned his head towards Arlo and replied, "Nope, sadly I'm very poor." Arlo smirked and said, "Good grief. You came all the way to the capital with no money. But don't worry, my friend. I have money, and I would gladly treat you to a meal." Isshinna's stomach growled even louder, and he exclaimed, "For real?" Arlo responded with a cheerful smile, "Yep, for real.

As Arlo lifted up two dollars with a smirk, he said, "What's your favorite food to eat, my good friend Isshinna?" Isshinna's mind started thinking, and he realized, "How about Catfish Kabayaki? I mean, it's my favorite food that I really want to eat." Arlo replied, "Well alright, but I hope they have it somewhere around this street." They started walking and asked other people, "What kind of restaurant has Catfish Kabayaki?" Isshinna lifted up his hoodie and felt the warm air, saying in his own thoughts, "The temperature in this place feels quite warm." Arlo said, "Hey good friend Isshinna, we know where this Catfish Kabayaki food is being served. It's at Sakura Breeze." Isshinna nodded and said, "Thank you very much, Mr. Arlo." Arlo replied, "No problem, but let's go to it," as they ran off to find Sakura Breeze and figure out its location. Arlo gazed at Isshinna and thought, "I've never seen good friend Isshinna crack a smile or a smirk. He seems so serene." While running, Isshinna bumped into a man carrying a huge load of weapons, and they both crashed and landed on the ground. Arlo stopped, and Isshinna lifted his head and asked, "What was that for?" The man, known as Baiken, started to lift his head and his comrade woman whispered, "Sir Baiken!" Arlo whispered, "Baiken?" Isshinna quickly got up and tried to run, but Baiken grabbed Isshinna's leg and said, "You aren't getting anywhere after what you just did." Isshinna responded with a straight face, "Could you just let me go? My stomach is feeling very hungry right now." Baiken shouted angrily, "I don't care about your stomach, shitface!" Arlo thought, "What's with this fool?" Baiken stood up and lifted his weapon, a green katana, with an evil smirk on his face. He said, "Hey, since you didn't watched where you we're going, I guess I want to challenge you to a fight." Isshinna turned around and said to Baiken, "Over a weapon?" Baiken replied, "I don't care what you say, but I care about what you just did to me." Isshinna retorted, "Over yourself." Baiken whispered with a bothered face, "What does that even mean?" Arlo felt a little satisfaction in wanting to watch Isshinna's capabilities. Isshinna said to Baiken, "Is it a beatdown or a battle to the death?" Baiken smirked even more and said, "To the death?" Isshinna became serious and said, "Why choose that?" Baiken kicked Isshinna in the leg, almost making him trip. Arlo felt a bit worried and whispered to himself, "A battle to the death? Don't you see how much intense magical energy good friend Isshinna is holding? He might eradicate you in seconds, and I can certify that." Baiken asked Isshinna, "What is your name, kid?" Isshinna replied, "My name... is Isshinna Vacantborne." Baiken attempted an attack, but Isshinna noticed and said, "Die." Word spread about Baiken as he collapsed onto the ground, letting the sword fall with him. The comrade woman was in shock and started running away. One of the nearby adventurers said, "What just happened?" Some people were not surprised and thought that Baiken had fainted or was tired. Arlo thought, "Woah, did he just kill him with a word? He didn't lift a hand or even blink his eyes. He just killed him with one word. This has to be done by his death magic." Isshinna gave a prayer and said, "Rest in peace. I didn't choose to fight in a battle to the death, but you forced me when you tried to get me off guard. Now disappear." As Isshinna said the word "disappear," Baiken's corpse vanished into thin air. This shocked the people around them, including Arlo, who exclaimed, "What?!" Isshinna looked up and asked, "Where did Baiken's body go?" The nearby adventurers exclaimed loudly in their own thoughts, "You didn't even notice what you just did!" Arlo smirked and grabbed Isshinna's shoulder. Isshinna turned, and Arlo said, "You won the fight." Isshinna clenched his fist and replied, "Yeah." Isshinna's stomach growled even louder, and Arlo smirked, saying, "Alright, we should hurry to Sakura Breeze as we speak." Isshinna nodded and said, "Yep," and they began to run off, even though Baiken had been erased by just one word.