Chapter 14: Pigs of Glory

The next day, Saiba wakes up and heads to the Western Gate. He gets lost at first and somehow finds every other gate first. Finally, he spots the Western Gate and three other things standing there in the distance. He walks over while trying to imagine what the pigs will look like.

He imagines two short pigs that are very chubby as he chuckles a little. As he gets closer, the three things become easily recognizable. They are revealed as Lily and two pigs.

Saiba's jaw drops as he notices the pigs are nothing like he imagined. Standing before him are two majestic creatures that can simply be defined as gifts from God. The pigs are well-built and their legs are overflowing with their muscular presence. Every part of their bodies are gleaming with perfection. Even their faces are chiseled like a marble statue. Lily shouts,

"You're too slow, Hero!"

Saiba quickly regains composure as he asks,

"A-Are we riding on those things?"

Lily replies,

"Of course we are! Now get on so we don't waste any more time!"

Lily quickly gets on one of the pigs. Saiba nervously does the same. The pigs start marching on their own, seeming like they already know the destination. Lily explains,

"Apparently Geoffried is friends with an expert hog trainer. He taught the pigs how to travel to exact coordinates. The trainer already set it to the coordinates for Axium City, so the pigs will just go there if we're on them. Once they reach their destination, they'll automatically go back home too, so we don't have to worry about them."

Saiba looks amazed as he pats the pig on head and says,

"You're a smart one aren't you!"

The pig lets out a low and manly,

"Oink."

They begin their voyage as they travel through different landscapes like forests, riversides, and valleys. As day turns to night, they decide to take a rest and set up camp. They find a nearby cave and choose that as their temporary base. Lily makes a fire while Saiba goes to get firewood. Saiba returns with some fuel as Lily is cooking some sort of stew in a pot. Saiba says,

"Oh wow! I didn't know you could cook!"

Lily replies,

"I just learned a bit when I was little. I'm not very good at it..."

She finishes cooking and serves them to Saiba and the pigs. As expected, the pigs start eating like pigs and Saiba takes a spoonful too. He shouts,

"Mm! You're pretty good at cooking Lily!"

Lily, blushing, answers,

"T-Thanks..."

They finish their food and fall fast asleep. It is completely quiet except for some ambient cricket noises. Suddenly the fire goes out as the noise wakes up Lily. She quickly grabs her sword and says,

"Luminosity."

The tip of the blade lights up to replace the put-out fire. The cave lights up, revealing three armed men standing near the entrance. Lily starts tapping Saiba and shouts,

"Wake up! We're being attacked!"

Saiba slowly opens his eyes and a ball of water starts hurling towards him. Lily blocks the attack as the water stops and gets the floor wet. Saiba frantically gets up with his weapon and asks,

"What's happening!?"

Lily answers,

"I told you, we're being attacked! They're probably some bandits who wanted make some quick money by selling our stuff!"

One of the bandits speaks up and says,

"You're exactly right, little girl! So if you just give us everything you have, we'll just leave you alone!"

Saiba shouts back,

"No way we're doing that!"

He rushes and tries to slash one of the bandits, but the bandit steps back in time and dodges. In retaliation, he grabs an axe and lights it on fire while shouting,

"Burning Attack!"

The bandit brings the axe down, but Saiba blocks it with his sword.

Lily tries to rush in to help Saiba, but she is stopped by an incoming water arrow. Another bandit is holding a longbow that is loaded with water arrows instead of the usual arrows. He shoots another one out while shouting,

"Liquid Shot!"

Lily gracefully dodges out of the way. Saiba pushes the axe back as he retreats back to where Lily is.

A standoff is beginning in the cave between the three bandits and Saiba and Lily. The bandits are all smiling confidently, thinking it's going to be an easy win. Lily and Saiba both get into their battle stances as Lily shouts,

"It's time to go all out!"

Saiba nods in agreement as they rush in, ready to take down some bandits.