Working Together

Roi arrives in front of a rundown village and checks his piece of paper he got from Nox. "Is this the place?"

His skeptical expression while looking at the village creates a grimace on his face. His eyebrows twitch and his mouth deforms. He almost bled from scratching his head for too long, trying to translate the doodle Nox gave him. "Well, there are some houses on this thing!"

"Wait! Are these really houses?"

His nerves hit red as he sees the doodles again. While trying to contain his rage, someone standing on a roof of the said village redirects his attention. "Why...?"

He barely finished his sentence and Nox falls along with the house. "What's happening over there...?"

Roi grabs the hilt of his dagger and runs into the cloud of dust that enveloped the area.

Upon entering the village, he sees the group of people surrounding Nox. He sneaks around and goes behind them. The bloody mess Nox is in enrages him. He reaffirms his grip and is about to launch an attack when he sees the smiling face of the young man in front of him.

He knows that something is about to happen. Cold sweat drips down his face and onto his clothes. A chilly feeling takes over him when it reaches his spine, making him shiver. "Cough! What took you so long?"

Shocked, Roi looks over. "Did he just…?!"

The group of people surrounding Nox, turn back and see young Roi with a dagger at hand. Nox chuckles and coughs. Roi's veins pop. "Why did you give away my position? Are you stupid?"

"Haha! It's more interesting this way!"

Roi continues his ranting. "How is it more interesting?"

"I'm injured… I can do what I want!"

Roi can't handle it and snaps. "What kind of messed up logic is that?"

The group is looking at one another, having a discussion among themselves. "Are they together?"

"Did he give away the position of his friend on purpose?"

Another one sneered. "Didn't he run away and hide all this time as well?"

Their leader is getting more furious by the second. He bangs his sword on the ground. The steel vibrates, echoing in his people's ears. They soon become silent and raise their weapons.

As if they are from two camps, half of them are facing Nox, and the other half Roi. The young man with the purple eyes smiles and focuses, whereas Roi still goes on about Nox's behavior. Though, he remains focused with his guard up.

The leader of the group stands in the middle of the two camps, with his sword plunged into the ground. "My name is Rago! I'm the leader of this band! Together we grab what we want and kill whatever gets in our way!"

Nox chuckles and shrugs his shoulders. He lets out a sigh. "I'm Nox, and that's Roi!"

A howling from the distance reminds them of the beast with the black fur.

"Oh, and that's Umbra!"

Leader Rago looks at him, confused. "The beast's with you?"

Nox doesn't reply, which enrages Rago. He picks up his sword and points it at Nox. Before taking that first step towards him, he feels a pressure unlike anything he felt before. The intensity forces him to kneel. He struggles to look up and all he can see is a fast approaching Nox.

He throws a kick in his face, which sends him flying a few meters back and crashing into a house nearby.

His band of thieves was at a loss. They cannot reach out and help him, because Roi already launched his attack. Unprepared for his speed, the fall one after the other. Some are able to make contact with his dagger by guarding themselves with their swords, only to lose the next time he attacks them.

Nox slips in and out of shadows while attacking and knocking them unconscious. When he surfaces again, he feels an oppressive force behind him. He doesn't evade in time and a kick lands on his ribs, sending him flying.

{Loading…}

[Umbra out of commission! Consult the Beastiary for further information!]

With this, he understands they need to buy time.

He gets up and sees a sneering Rago, mocking him, urging Nox to face him. The young man takes out his tongue to annoy Rago, which it succeeds, and then raises his palm to aim.

The leader, along with his group, scatter in all directions as soon as they see him to avoid the attack, and Nox simply lowers his hand and dives into the shadows.

He finds a place where there will be no interruptions and ponders over what to do.

Nox says nothing to Roi, but the notice that appeared in front of him got him worried. He takes out the Beastiary book and reads the page, which contains the information on Mana Hounds.

It says that Umbra will be out of commission for a few minutes because beasts that level up need to digest the mana they consume.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, all of them, including Roi, shout. "Coward!"

Nox emerges behind Roi and startles him. "Hey!"

"Don't hey me!"

Nox shakes his head. "For someone who's supposed to be stealthy, you are too loud. Keep it down! A house fell on me earlier. I have a headache!"

Roi notices the movements of their enemies. "Later on that…!"

Nox nods and gets into position. The duo stands back to back as they are getting surrounded by Rago and his band. Swords and spears aimed at them, leaves them unaffected.

The leader, Rago, swings his sword, trying to behead them. They evade in a timely manner and spread out in opposite directions, attacking the first person they find in front of them, knocking them out.

Roi continues to block and counter, whereas Nox evades and tackles them. At some point, he pushes them in Roi's direction, something which he doesn't take very well. "Don't add more!"

Rago charges at Nox, swinging his sword. That thing is heavy, and the young man can tell. Every time it cuts through the air, a forceful gust follows a whistling sound. It raises dust and makes the houses shake.

While they are at it, Nox looks over at Roi and makes sure he's handling it. From time to time, he uses gravity to slow them down and give his partner more time to do his thing.

At some point, their bodies show signs of fatigue. After all, they are two against many. Nox retreats to Roi's side. He pants heavily and sweat drenches his clothes. "If this goes into a battle of attrition, it's over for us…"

Roi nods. It's not that noticeable, but the prolonged fight has even Roi panting. Whenever they find an opportunity, they try to catch their breath, but the more experienced bandits don't make it easy for them.

Once again, they stand back to back. This time, they are out of breath and heavily injured. Red steamy blood pools and mixes with cold sweat. Nox, who's been fighting for a while now, finds it hard to breathe. "It's almost time!"

Roi turns his head slightly. "What are you talking about…?"

"Don't tell me you forgot about my cute, little Mana Hound?"

"How's that thing cute? Or little?"

Roi takes a deep breath and wipes the sweat off his face. "Now that you mention it… Where is he?"

Nox wipes the blood and sweat off and adds a smile to his face. "Haha! He had a feast earlier and needed some time to digest it!"

Rago lets out a battle cry to boost the morale of his men. Even though they are larger in numbers, fighting a dragged on period takes its toll on all of them.

They ready their weapons and are about to charge when a loud growl puts fear in their hearts.

Umbra's heavy footsteps echo around the village. His growling draws closer. Nox and Roi rejoice and sigh in relief.

Silky black fur coats the beast who appears in front of them. Rago swings his sword in full force at Umbra, which he catches with his sharp teeth and snaps it in half. The resounding metal that clangs on the ground leaves them all in shock as it paints fear on their faces.

Nox and Roi stare at the beast in disbelief. The second turns to the young man with purple eyes. "What did he eat?"

Nox chuckles and shrugs his shoulders. 'A single level made such a difference to this guy!'

Umbra howls and jumps around, taking out one after the other. He whips with his tail those who stand behind him and sends those in front of him, flying with a swift motion of his paw. Those who point their swords at him, he fights them off with his claws.

The duo backs him until they eventually take them all out.

The last man standing is their leader, Rago. He picks up two swords from his fallen comrades and charges.

The duo pants heavily and sweat runs down their faces. Nox lets out a scream. "This is it!"