CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: The Waltz

KENSHI

How did this happened?

Why is this happening?

What are their motives?

I had been asking those questions over and over again while I slayed every bandit I saw. I was certain that these outlaws were in the same group as those who ambushed us a month ago—those who made the path to this village inaccessible

But if they were the same group, why only attack now? They could have attacked this village then? Why now? Does our arrival threaten them? Are they waiting to attack at the right time? But why here? Among all the remote villages, why Geiya Village?

Bombarded by unending inquiries, I lost my focus on the battle at hand, making me almost fall out of balance. Luckily, I managed to return my senses back to the present, blocking the attack of the last bandit right on time. The sound of a clashing weapon stirred my head away from those distracting queries, fully clearing my mind of diversions.

I leaned back to gain some force before using my body's momentum to push back the enemy. As he tried to regain his balance, I swiftly launched at him and positioned my sword parallel to the ground beneath us. With the Swift magic in effect, I closed the gap between us in an instant, piercing the sword through his chest—to where his heart was. His hands dropped along with his weapon. His body followed suit as I pulled the sword off his body.

"Shit. I forgot to interrogate him," I mumbled as I stared down at his corpse.

"Kenshi!" a voice roared, grabbing my attention. I turned to see it and was relieved to watch Daku running towards me. I only see a figure's silhouette because of the smoke but I was more than certain that it was Daku. And my assumptions were confirmed when his face was finally clear to see. Thank the gods he was safe.

But my forehead creased and brows met when I saw scratches and shallow cuts on his face and arms. There were burn marks as well as grazes. My entire system was flooded with immeasurable worry and fear upon seeing Daku in his current condition.

I sheathed my sword and held both of his shoulders when he approached. I asked him, "What happened to you?"

Daku's face showed confusion and concern, probably because of how I suddenly acted. I only realized that my grasp was a little bit too hard. I loosened the grip and hid the perturbation plastered on my face to the best of my abilities.

"Uhh... a mage attacked me while I saved a little girl. We had a little fight." My hands tightened again when I heard the last statement. "But don't worry! I won and I'm fine...as you can see," Daku convinced and he was right, if I were to ignore these minor injuries invading his body.

I finally released him from my grip and pretended to inspect the surroundings. "Heal yourself."

"Hmm," he agreed and a faint green light illuminated from his position, a hint of his healing magic. A moment after, the light diminished and disappeared but something was glowing again. "You need healing, too. Stand still," Daku commanded and that was when I noticed it was my body that was glowing in green.

This wasn't the first time Daku healed me. But this relaxing and comforting sensation, whenever his magic coursed through me, felt like it was my first time. This was exactly what I felt back then—when I barged into their shop fatally injured. I was only half awake at that time but the feelings I felt those times were still clear to me up to this moment.

Ever since I found out about my curse, I had already abandoned the thought of becoming the greatest adventurer in the kingdom. I thought it would be impossible. To be recognized and hailed as the most skilled adventurer meant to throw yourself towards danger and get out of it alive. To normal adventurers—those who could heal themselves and consume healing potions—their chances were greater compared to mine.

That was why I was grateful to find Daku. A Healer who could negate the effect of the curse and heal my wounds. It may looked like I was using him like a tool but we both knew we were helping each other out. I needed his healing magic and he needed my curse to realize his purpose as a Healer. It was a win-win situation.

"You're good," Daku informed me, bringing me back to the present.

"Thanks. You better start healing the others now. I'll go patrol the area once more," I suggested and was about to take a step when a voice of a child screamed the word "mama".

"That's Kana."

I searched the vicinity for any signs of movements or silhouettes but the smoke was too thick. It cloaked the whole area, obstructing our vision and sense of smell.

"Kana!" Daku shouted and suddenly ran. I tried to stop him but I knew it would be useless. I had no choice but to trail behind him while keeping my eyes open for any possible assaults. My hands were already gripping the swords, ready to unsheath at any moment.

We got out of the smoke and reached the clearing at the entrance of the village. The arc was still standing in between the scorching heat of the burning houses and the blinding shadows of the darkness beyond it. But what caught our eyes was the group of people underneath it. And they reeked of the stench of murder.

The guy in the middle was undoubtedly the leader of this group. His distinguishable physique and enormous claymore supported my assumption. Only his right shoulder was protected by armor but the arms were naked. Filthy bandages covered his hand to have a better grip on the weapon. There were four men behind him—

"KANA!" Daku called out for her when the fifth person revealed himself from behind the leader. He was holding Kana by the shoulder while his other hand pointed a knife at the girl's throat.

"Mister Daku!" Kana cried. The man threatened her by bringing the knife close to her throat after her attempt to call for us. Even from this distance, I could see her tears while her face showed terror and fear.

"DON'T YOU DARE!—"

"Don't," I stopped Daku when he tried to go after Kana. I knew he was itching right now to save the little girl but we both knew that recklessly engaging and launching ourselves towards them could advance Kana's death.

"That's right. You better control your temper, young man," the leader spoke in mockery. A grin curved his lips.

"Where's her mother?" Daku asked, now in a calmer and more composed voice. His forehead created folds while his eyes shot daggers at the.

"Her mother?" the leader repeated. "They're having fun with my men! They better not tire the women too much! I want my turn, too."

Hearing those words released the hidden and locked rage within me. But the man beside me was even more furious than me. I could feel his brimming anger threatening to overflow from him. His head was down, his muscles tensed, and his fingers clenched into a fist. His aura screamed tension and pressure. I was scared—scared that I might not be able to stop him now.

"Don't do anything rec—"

"I'll back you up," Daku interjected. I failed to comprehend his statement at first but when he looked at the enemies, I finally had the idea of what he was talking about. He wanted us to fight together.

"What a scary look you got there, young man!" The leader stepped a few paces forward and held his weapon in front of him, ready to attack. "Let's get this over with because I can't wait to taste that girl's mother."

Disgusted by his remark, I launched at him at full speed. Expectedly, he blocked my attack with ease. This reminded me of the fight I had with a leader like him a month ago. But I would not going to make the same mistake twice.

The man swung his claymore at me at an unusual speed but I managed to dodge it. The first assumption was confirmed: he was fast despite the size of his weapon. He continued to swing his weapon and each time his attack failed, the weapon would slam on the ground creating craters and clouds of dust.

Using the dust to mask my presence, I surprised him from back but he predicted it and, once again, blocked my sword. The second assumption was confirmed: his reflexes were fast even the vision was compromised.

"Got 'ya!" the man said while sneering at me. He probably thought he was way better than me but little did he know I was just diverting his attention.

"And he is, too," I replied.

Daku suddenly appeared to his left, pulling a fist bathed with healing magic: the same technique he used to defeat the corrupted lizard before. For a moment, I saw Daku's face and I almost didn't recognize him. His expression was stoic but his eyes were full of killing intent. And the way he clenched his fist told me that it would be his strongest punch yet.

Daku's knuckles came into contact with the enemy's face, distorting it upon impact before catapulting to the nearest burning house. The impact was so strong that it cleared off the cloud of dust that once cloaked the area.

Daku and I gazed at the house where the man landed and watched our enemy make his way out of the ruined residence. Blood lined his chin originating from his mouth down to the end of it. His cheek was inflamed and his face was soiled by both soot and dirt. The man used his weapon as a support while he tried to stand.

"This would be fun," he commented and vanished. He was faster than earlier.

I searched for him and found him in front of Daku. Daku didn't expect the enemy's speed like I do. It was too late for him to avoid the attack. With the Swift Magic, I dashed in between them and blocked the claymore. Daku tried to land a hit again but the man already predicted it and successfully evaded it. He hopped a few times away from us and repositioned himself.

We wasted no time and engaged together. Daku and I alternately attacked the enemy. With our coordinated attacks, the enemy had no chance to attack. All he could do was block our offensives. His determined and confident look earlier was replaced by irritation and annoyance. He knew for himself that he stood no chance against us both.

This was the first time Daku and I coordinated on the battlefield. This was also the second time I saw Daku use the technique he unexpectedly discovered. This brought back the questions regarding the technique. But among all these, what really surprised me was his fighting. I never knew he knew how to fight. Was he training in secret? Did Thelah train him to fight as well? Now was not the time to answer those.

"Mama!" Kana suddenly shouted, grabbing the attention of both Daku and me.

It was a terrible idea to divert our focus. The man found an opening and took the opportunity to attack. He swung his weapon toward us both. Luckily, I positioned my sword to deflect his attack but the force was too much that Daku and I were sent flying.

I immediately went to Daku and helped him stand. While he was trying to stand, he directed healing magic to both of us. My body felt light and relieved when his magic was completed. We both faced the man who was now back to his original spot and behind him was Miss Hanaka in a bad state: clothes were torn, hair was a mess, and a red bruise on her right cheek.

"Time to use the orb," the man muttered and pulled out a black sphere from his pocket. "But before anything else..."

The man raised his weapon and swung it. A sound of torn flesh echoed followed by an high-pitched scream of a child. Her eyes widen in pure shock and immeasurable pain. She coughed out blood, filthying the claymore that was still inside her. But it was not long enough before the weapon was pulled out from her, sending another pang of pain that gaped her eyes even more.

Daku screamed, "MISS HANAKA!"