Friends

Back on Mortem, the commanders of the Golden Circle were staring at the screen with surprise. The man they had been watching just killed almost half of the contestants! Effortlessly on top of that. It was still a mystery as to what element his mana had taken after. The entire fight, he hadn't used any mana. All of that was his pure physical strength and swordsmanship.

The battalion leaders turned to Aiden. How did he know that a merciless killer was hidden under that harmless disposition? The leader of Silent Night rolled his eyes.

"Did you forget what my battalion is about? It isn't hard to spot a kindred spirit." He proclaimed.

Rin couldn't help but watch Shu's screen diligently. At this point, it was the only reason she was still here. The dark ronin's arms were crossed as she watched. The tassel on her metal kasa flowed in the wind.

'...As expected of someone who survived my blade. Mn. Mn.' She thought while nodding to herself.

"Let's not focus on one person. We already knew he would be a wild card." Vance suggested. The elite group nodded.

Everyone went back to their own screens. There were geniuses and prodigies everywhere. This test would allow them to shine. Whether they fought magic beasts or not, the tactics and methods of the contestants would be revealed.

Blaine scratched his head near one of his horns. After watching the screen for a while, he nudged Glyn who was doing sit ups beside him. He then pointed to his screen. The exercising commander stopped.

"Ah…A new favorite?" Glyn joked. The other captains rushed over to take a look at the screen.

"I wanna see!" Vance exclaimed.

The floating screen showed a man with spiky brown hair. There were a few bandages on his face, and his expression seemed to be of constant anger. The surroundings implied that he was in the barren wasteland. The man could be seen battling a massive muscular beast that walked on all fours. Sometimes it stood on two feet like an ape or monkey.

The angry man was smacking around the beast with a…baseball bat? There were cartridges in the bat that changed the element of the next attack. One moment he'd be using fire, and the next he'd be using earth spikes. Blaine seemed to be intrigued.

Idun was the only captain who didn't go over with them. She was focused on her own screen. A white haired girl in an all white dress robe could be seen with her arms outstretched. There was a massive light forming in front of her, which eventually formed a rainbow colored spear.

In front of her was a horde of rhino-like beasts. They were charging in her direction. With a wave of her hand, the glowing spear was let loose. The ground was torn open as it traveled. The pure energy was destroying the surroundings! Once the spear reached the horde, a gargantuan pillar of light burst into the sky, and reached the clouds.

"Hmph." Idun scoffed happily. She'd made her choice.

Rin had already moved away from the captains and sat alone on the golden ring. Shu's screen played in front of her as she munched on sweets. She resembled a squirrel eating an acorn.

…

…

…

BOOOM

Shu looked to the sky upon hearing the massive blast. There was a pillar of light that left a hole in the sky. It was quite powerful.

The young samurai was still traveling through the jungle. He would reach the mountain range in a few hours if he kept his pace. As he dashed through the area, he reached a clearing.

The rotten stench of corpses was the first thing he noticed. Next came the blood littering the grass. A large humanoid giant with glowing red eyes could be seen. It was covered in darkness and had two horns protruding from its head. It didn't seem tangible. The beast towered over a single girl with a magic staff. She was the last survivor. It could be assumed that the dead bodies were her temporary teammates.

"Goddess Satva, please protect me!" She chanted while on the verge of tears.

Her gaze scanned the area looking for anything of use. When her bright emerald eyes landed on Shu, she immediately ran over. A massive dark hand reached down toward her. Right before it caught her, the samurai's katana sliced the hand.

This only paused the giant for a moment. The young man didn't feel like he cut anything. The girl hid behind Shu's back and chanted. Her staff glowed with energy.

"Blessing of Satva: Victus!" She exclaimed.

A holy aura washed over the sleepy swordsman. He could feel a protective shield materialize around him. Shu turned to face her, ignoring the giant of darkness who's hand slowly reattached.

"Not bad. A cleric?" He asked.

The girl shook her head. Freckles on her cheeks and her silky brown hair added to her innocence. The girl's head barely reached his stomach. She had to look directly upwards to see his face.

"I'm actually a healer. I don't know too many supportive spells, and I'm not a fighter…please help me!" She pleaded.

Shu gently patted her head. He couldn't help but remember some things from his past as he gazed down at her. A slight smile adorned his face. The girl's eyes widened at the gesture. A bit of red appeared on her cheeks. Who was this handsome big brother?

"...I'll help you. Don't betray my trust, okay? It would really hurt my feelings." He joked. Little did she know, he was serious. He'd kill her if she tried anything. The girl nodded her head.

The samurai finally turned back toward the giant. It had just finished reattaching its hand. With only a step, he teleported in front of it. He then took an iai stance.

SLASH

In only a second, multiple cuts appeared on its body. The inside of it could be seen, but it was just more darkness. Shu frowned.

'There has to be a core somewhere. There's no way that it gathered so much mana otherwise.' He thought.

"Rrrrrrrr!" The giant being roared.

The darkness spread across the ground. It quickly traveled, swallowing anything in its path. Shu quickly dashed toward the girl. He grabbed her and set her down on a tree branch. Her life had almost ended in only a second.

"Thank-"

Before she could finish her words, the young samurai was already in the air. His body was on a straight path to the giant. He entered the iaido stance once again, and hundreds of cuts appeared on the giant. This time, a red sphere was revealed in its foot.

'...Child's play.' He thought.

His arm blurred for less than a second. One would miss it, even if they didn't blink. The core was sliced into three pieces, and the dark energy vanished. Shu couldn't help but think of the beast as weak. If the other contestants knew what he was thinking, they would spit blood in anger.

Shu prepared to leave after sheathing his katana. He'd done his part. The girl on the tree panicked when she saw him walking away.

"Wait! Where are you going?" She called out.

"...Somewhere else." He answered without turning around. His generosity had ended with the monster.

"Let me come with you!" She pleaded.

"No."

"Why?! Please let me come with you! I'll wash your clothes…I'll cook your food. I'll even…I'll even-"

"There is a target on my back. You would only be in more danger." He said.

The innocent girl shook her head. To her, this man was the safest place in the world. She wouldn't give it up so easily. There were things she wanted to do in the future, and she'd have to live for that to happen.

The girl jumped off the tree and landed on her stomach. Her staff bonked her on the head. Fighting the pain, she caught up to Shu. Her free hand grasped the back of his kimono.

"Big Brother, I don't want to die…" She exclaimed. The lazy swordsman heaved a sigh before speaking.

"...Your name?"

"Faye."

"Faye. That is where I am headed. Do you still wish to come?" He questioned again.

His finger was pointed at the mountain range, where the powerful beasts were howling earlier. Faye gulped nervously. After taking a deep breath, she nodded.

"I'm going with Big Brother!"

"It's Shu. Call me Shu."

"Big Brother Shu!"

The image of a young girl with sky blue hair entered his mind when she called him big brother. Her lifeless body laid in his embrace. Blood covered his arms. Snapping out of his daze, he continued walking.