Chapter 27 "Foul Blessings"

Ioki tried to let go of his wrist from Sister Elia's hand. The more he tried, the more futile he realized it would be...

Suddenly, his HP bar could be slowly chipped away, the more pain his wrist suffered as Sister Elia squeezed it tighter.

Sister Elia slowly walked toward Ioki and stared him right into his eyes. Even the sadistic leather mask could not hide his fear as her stormy eyes stared into Ioki's soul.

The radiating smile on her face is now gone. Her face became stiff as she stared at Ioki directly in his eyes.

"Tell me, Ioki. I could feel the blessing of Gods coming from you, but why do I feel the essence of another entity lingering around you?" Sister Elia asked.

"Wh---what do you mean?" Ioki asked while he tried to remove Sister Elia's hand from his wrist.

"I could see it... How some Gods have blessed you with an opportunity to their divine power, yet there is a foul smell coming from you as well," Sister Elia explained while still staring at Ioki.

"Ah.. umm, perhaps it's because I haven't bathed yet? I've been in the forest for the whole day yesterday. Umm, can you please let go? It hurts!" Ioki begged with an awkward smile as he started to see his HP slowly drop.

"Ah, Sister Elia... Could you please, maybe let go of his hand first?" Priest Albert asked as he looked at Ioki's uncomfortable expression.

"Brother Mario, close the Church's door and lock it!" Sister Elia shouted at the Priest accompanying her.

"R---right away, Sister!" Priest Mario then rushed to the wooden door and locked it.

Some Guided Souls could be seen trying to enter the Church, but he pushed them away.

"Answer me child, are you working for the Old Empire? Are you from the Church of Dark? Are you the one that killed the unfortunate soul in the 2nd district near the entertainment district?" Sister Elia asked Ioki as her eyes opened wide.

"Pl---please let go of my hand. It hurts!" Ioki begged again.

"Sister Elia! Enough! Which follower of the Dark would dare to step foot into the home of our Goddess?" Priest Albert interrupted her as he removed her hand from Ioki, "And you, child! Explain yourself, as Sister Elia here could discern lies easily with the help of our Goddess!"

Sister Elia suddenly had a sudden change in her expression, as if something that had possessed her was finally gone.

"I... I am sorry..." Sister Elia said while putting her palm in her face, "Lately, I've been on the edge... Especially because of that prophecy..."

Ioki stepped back after Sister Elia let go of his hand. He massaged his wrist gently as he saw the mark left by the unexpectedly strong grip coming from what seemed a gentle and weak Nun.

"What do you want from me?" Ioki asked as he glared at them.

Priest Albert slowly approached Ioki and put a stool before him, "Sit, child... I'm sorry for what just happened. All of us been on the edge lately, especially with the trouble you Guided Souls have been causing left and right."

"We simply want to hear your explanation on why there is an influence of dark presence on you even though you were blessed by some Goddess," Priest Albert looked at Ioki with a sorry expression.

Ioki cautiously stepped back even further, "I believe I owe nothing sort of an explanation to you people! I simply wanted to get my Identification done, yet you harmed me in this place you called your Holy Ground itself!"

He then ran to the door where Priest Mario was standing, "Please return and explain everything. I can't le---"

"Open the door, Brother Mario..." Sister Elia said.

"B---but Sister!" Priest Mario argued.

"Are you defying my order? Do you want to be sent back to the Holy Capital?" Sister Elia asked him with a loud voice.

"N---no, sister..." Priest Mario then opened the wooden door.

Ioki tried to get out of the Church before Sister Elia called to him again, "I know there is nothing I can do to excuse what just happened, but please, if you have time... Come back here and talk with me."

Ioki stopped after hearing her sorry voice before replying, "Nuh-uh, not a chance!"

He ran out of the Church after that. Priest Mario could only stare at him as he made his way through past the wooden door.

A crowd was outside the Church as Ioki passed the wooden door.

"Why is there a Player coming out of the Church? I thought you said it was closed?"

"Well, yeah, I can't open the door."

"She is right. I've knocked on the door, but no response from them..."

Ioki paid no attention to the crowd and ran past them.

The image of Sister Elia's terrifying expression and strength burned through Ioki's mind.

"Why am I cursed with these kinds of encounters inside this game?" Ioki muttered under his breath as he ran.

Soon, the Western gate of Ruina is seen, and a few guards are standing there with some players forming parties.

"-1 Party member! Looking for an experienced Mage!"

"Looking for great tanks! The party consists of Marksman and Tri-Mage!"

"Will pay for carry train in either the Kobold's Cave or Troll's Camp!"

The area near the gate could be seen as an assembly point for people looking to party. Ioki paid no attention to them and ran past them.

Some Players were confused about seeing Ioki running with all his might. There was nothing behind him... Nor anything in front of him to chase, so why is the boy running? Isn't that a waste of stamina?

Even Ioki needs to find the answer to why he is running... Yet he put all his might with each stride as if a disaster was happening behind him.

After running for a while, Ioki found himself on a branched path.

A wooden sign in the middle of it said, "Left: Troll's Camp | Right: Kobold's Cave."

He stopped while catching his breath and read the sign.

There is a small wooden board with something written on it right under the sign with red paint, "Warning! Both of these areas aren't recommended for starting Adventurers! Please return from wh---"

Ioki didn't read the sign fully and continued walking through the right path.

"Fuck... Her eyes... The way she stares at me... It's the same as how mom punishes me for skipping lessons..." Ioki muttered with a gloomy expression.

The poor boy apparently had just relived his trauma... One that he would never get past no matter what.

"Even though it's all in the past, but... Ah fuck... I don't know anymore... Should I just log out? What if she finds out that I skipped school? Doesn't that mean she will resort back to punishing me again? I...I---" Before Ioki could finish his sentence, someone shouted at him.

"Hey boy!" a rough voice shouted.

Ioki searched for the source of the voice. He looked back, sideways, forward, back again, but no one was there...

"Don't bother searching for me!" The voice shouted again, "Be a good boy and listen to older brother, okay? Drop all your equipment and go away. If not, my friends and I will kill you and get your pieces of stuff. Not to count, you are probably a student as well. You must be skipping school and went on a net capsule, right?"

The more Ioki listened to this voice, the more he felt irritated. As if a surge of anger is slowly creeping up inside his heart.

His expression suddenly changed from someone who was riddled with anxiety before. He now has a fiery expression with visible veins popping on his temple.

"Try me..." Ioki said in a low voice.

"What?" The man asked, "Are you an idiot? You must be getting cocky about that equipment of yours, right? Just you know---"

"Bastard! Look at his name! He is Ioki!" Another voice shouted.

"Wait?! For real?!" Another voice replied.

"Who is he? I never heard of his name..."

"THAT'S WHY I TOLD YOU TO STOP PK-ING FOR A MOMENT AND WATCH SOME LIVE YOU IDIOT!" The man yelled angrily.

"So what if he is a LIVEr? Do you think it would be eno---"

"Stop talking, come out and try taking these equipment from me. I even have chests inside my inventory. All of those gonna be yours if you beat the shit out of me," Ioki asked once again with a clear anger in his voice.

He raised his fists and got into his usual stance.

"Are you a monk? You should follow those bald, good-for-nothing idiots and copy their stance instead of raising your fists like that, you idiot!"

Another taunt pierced into his ear, a clear sign of it affecting his psyche could be seen as his usual cheery expression slowly turned into an expression one would see on a cruel executioner.

"I'm sorry, Ioki! Please just drop your equipment and go away!"

"No use talking! Backstab!" A man in an article of light clothing revealed himself out of thin air behind Ioki, "That's why you should listen to people older than you!"

The knife in his hand pierced through Ioki's cloak, but no sign of damage could be seen... The man tried to stab him again, but not before long, Ioki's hook had already made its way to his neck.

*BAM!*

*Critical Hit!"

A loud crack could be heard as the man spurted blood from his mouth, and his eyes rolled back.

The man got thrown to the side of the road, and the knife in his hand flew away from his grip.

"Fuck! That's why I told you his name! You should listen more to your junior next time, you good-for-nothing senior!"

"What should we do?"

"What else? Even if he is Ioki, there are two of us!"

Smoke slowly surrounded Ioki after the voice disappeared. Ioki, only having visibility of one meter ahead of him, simply raised his fists again and covered his face.

"You idiot! That's your weakness!" A voice came out behind Ioki's back not long after a slice was made.

After the first slice was made, another followed, another, another, and another. Barrages of slices from knives were made inside the smoke. Ioki tried to block the attacks, but they were attacking alternately using smoke as their cover.

Ioki's health was only reduced by a small chunk after the barrage of their attacks...

Strangely, the one that lost energy was not Ioki. It was the attackers themselves...

"Shouldn't he go down by now? What the?"

"JUST KEEP ATTACKING HIM!"

*BAM!*

A loud voice could be heard, and Ioki's right leg was stopped in the air.

"Fuck! That scared me! How did you know I was here?" The voice asked with a surprised tone.

With his right leg still in the air, Ioki sprang his left foot and spun his waist to the right with his hanging right foot as the pivoting point.

*BAM*

Another loud voice could be heard from inside the smoke. This time? Ioki's foot went through it, followed by the sudden gust of wind disrupting the smoke, ultimately clearing part of it.

A man with a chainmail and a knife could be seen on the floor, touching his head and rubbing it while trying to figure out what just happened.

"What? Hey, are you alright?" The voice asked.

"What just hit me?" The man on the ground replied while still having a clueless expression.

Wasting no time, Ioki jumped and delivered a jump kick straight to the man's face. As the man could not react before Ioki's feet reached his face, his head was banged against the ground hard enough for the place where his head had just landed to leave a mark on the ground.

Blood started to drip from his head. He tried to raise his hand-equipped knife, but Ioki locked his right arm with an armbar.

"Wait! Wait! I give up! Even though it's not 100% like yours, it still hurts like a bitch! Stop, ple--- AAAAAAGGGGHHH!" The man screamed in agony.

His dominant hand holding the knife is now broken in two. Not stopping there, Ioki twisted his broken arm again and again.

"AAAAGGGGHHH, STOP, STOP, IT HURTS!" The man screamed again as tears were slowly coming from his eyes.

If one were to see what kind of horror unfold before them... They would lose their mind...

The small executioner in red living up to his appearance. He twisted and twisted the man's broken arm as he screamed; the sound of bones and flesh broken and getting torn could be heard.

Before he tried to yank the deformed arm as he put his leg on the man's torso, his comrade screamed.

"L---LET GO OF HIM YOU PSYCHO! Venomous Stab! Disarm!" The man appeared out of thin air. 2 knives in both hands were approaching Ioki.

"Got you!" Ioki grumbled with an unusual tone if his usual viewers heard his tone... They would feel a chill on their spine. Where did the usual cheery boy go?

As the knives made their way through the smoke, Ioki punched his right arm to parry it away. After his right arm was hit, he lost his balance, and Ioki simply ducked to the side, evading the purple glowing knife approaching his throat.

*BAM*

*Critical Hit!*

A loud voice of bone cracking could be heard. Strangely, no one was thrown away out of the smoke this time.

Slowly, the smoke disappears, revealing a man with his arm broken without traces left of bones inside... As if his whole arm was simply made of skin.

The other one? His pants were wet, and his hips were dislocated...

 The man lies there while having his arms on his crotch...

Ioki stared at them without moving an ounce of his facial muscle. Soullessly, like a doll... His pupils widened as he stared at them.

"Please! Let us go! I beg of you, Ioki!" The man with a broken arm begged as blood and tears ran down his face.

Seeing this, Ioki approached the man again and asked him, "Do you have Stamina Potion and Healing Potion?"

The man nodded while he stared at Ioki.

"Take that out," Ioki commanded with a frightening tone.

Wasting no time, he opened his inventory with a shaky hand he took out an Advanced-Grade Healing Potion.

"Drink it," Ioki commanded again.

"Th---thank you!" The man replied with a shaky voice.

As the injuries around his body slowly healed, Ioki grabbed his head.

"Wh---what are---"

Before finishing his sentence, Ioki repeatedly yanked the man's face to his knee.

One...

Two...

Three...

Four...

*BAM*

*CRITICAL HIT*

A loud bang could be heard as Ioki let go of the man's head. A critical hit to the neck is enough to send someone flying. Imagine a critical hit straight to someone's face...

The healed face of the man turned into more of a mess than it was. The man collapsed on the floor, lifeless... Grotesque would be the only word to describe it.

Seeing all this happen, the one left stared at Ioki with a frightened expression...

"Pl---please just kill me instead! I don't want to--- Agh!" The man screamed as Ioki approached him.

"Drop all your items in your inventory. Explain as well how PK works in Ashen Fantasy," Ioki asked.

The man slowly explained as he took the items, "I---I don't have much! I only have Potions and Coins on me!"

Ioki stared at him without a change in his expression.

"I---I---"

"PK, explain..." Ioki glared at him.

"If you PK, Items will drop randomly--- If you, ple---" The man tried to form a coherent sentence, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't.

"Drop your items," Ioki said sternly.

The man then dropped all of his items and coins before Ioki while trembling and whimpering like an injured animal.

Each breath he took was halted by the pain. He could only have short breaths because his body not functioning like it was supposed to be due to fear and pain.

"Th---" His voice stopped as he saw Ioki stand before him with his knife.

*STAB*

*Critical Hit!*