Chapter 27: Into the Woods

After hours of training, the sun finally slept and the moon awoke from above, hitting us with its soft light that never gave us painful heat.

The cool breeze became colder than before, cold enough to freeze my hands. I breathed on my palms with my warm breath, trying to prevent the cold from going further.

We already finished the second lesson in the training. There are times that I won, but most of it was just Cainne defeating me or some close calls.

I never thought that swordsmanship will be this difficult and the right blow to the enemy will be hard to achieve.

"Sorry, but…" Cainne said, in which I turned around to see him. His silver hair and pale skin glowed more under the moon. "I can't teach you everything with a short amount of time. So this will be my last combat training."

"It's fine," I said with a smile. "You've done well enough."

When he heard that from me, he couldn't help but smile too, which made his golden eyes sparkled as darkness surrounds him.

"Okay, so let's get started." He uttered with his hands on his waist.

"The last thing you have to learn…" He added, starting the final lesson that I'll be having regarding the combat skills. "… was to find your enemy."

"Find… my enemy…?" I muttered. That broad statement that he just said earlier made me both understand what he was trying to tell and confuse with it at the same time.

"There's a portion of the forest that belongs to Zentra, which means there will be no predators lurking in it, so it will be safe." He explained, staring at the forest in front of us. I also stared at it, and there's nothing about its presence that it's safe. "Try to find me in the forest, while I'll sneak an attack on you. If you find me, then you win."

He started running away from me and towards the woods after giving me the instructions.

"See ya!" He yelled at me with a wave of his hand, and disappeared into the dark forest, leaving me behind with no one other than the grass field.

"W-Wait!!" I shouted, but I know that it was already too late. There is no sign of him from afar, making the tall trees into deep eerie silence.

"Ughh…" Complaining, I don't have a choice but to follow. Despite Cainne's intelligence, he really doesn't use it all the time.

Well, they're just the creatures of loyalty and majesty after all. Humans are known to be the intelligent one among all the races.

I gave the air a deep sigh and started walking towards the forest that always gives me chills. Even though it belongs to the town Zentra, the Undead Woods trees were never shouting safety in my ears.

Their height demands power over birds, and the mist surrounding the place gives me chills.

I don't think I can even stay here for a while.

***

The moon should give the whole world calm and harmony with its light that never does harm. But that doesn't what this town received.

Every house was engulfed by flames, trying to invade the place with the unstoppable fire. It's not just the buildings, even the trees surrounding them started to become ashes and charcoals.

Puddles of black blood scattered in every corner of the town, along with bodies beside them, lifeless and cold.

Meanwhile, the others stayed alive, running from the threats and screaming for help from anyone present.

Their faces might not be seen because of the silk surrounding their whole bodies, but their voices shouted their fear and despair in their situation. There's no one to save them, all they can do was run.

Unfortunately, the town became silent, all the people living peacefully in the place were no longer alive. They were all being killed with just one night, and the children and women were being taken hostage, locking them to their cages.

But… except for one.

"Please!" He shouted with his cracking voice that no one dares to listen. Black blood started rushing on parts of his body because of the wounds, but he still stood up. His hazel brown hair became a mess.

Scarnets, their race, are known to have fast regeneration, but once you hit their heart, just like any creature, they'll just die.

It doesn't matter if he's injured, once they stab his chest, he'll be gone in this world.

In front of him was his fellow kind. Compared to him, his blue hair was never messy and still clean, after all that happens in their town.

He just stood in front of the former, giving him the presence of power. He was holding a long sword with the sharpest blade that curves in the end, stained with black blood in every part of it.

"Tasan, stop this!" The weak scarnet yelled, begging for mercy."This isn't what your family wants you to do!"

He was scared, scared at what the man in front had done to the whole town. He was once the respected person in the place, which is the reason why he admired him the most, but now, everything changed.

He wasn't the man he knew anymore. Him, calling his name was now weighed a hundred whales, unable for him to breathe.

"I thought you understand me, but I guess not," Tasan said in his calm soft voice, like everything that is happening around him was just nothing but an art. "It's a shame that I have to do this to you as well, Kandani."

Then, he raised his hand in the smoky air, still holding the sword, ready to bathe in blood. Kandani doesn't have a choice but to stare at the blade that will be coming for his life.

"Farewell."

The blade started to drop in front of him, as he tried to pull himself backward, but fear wrapped around him. All he can do was wait for the sword to stab him.

"Ahh!"

***

"Ahh!"

He yelled as loud as possible, as he raised from his bed, begging for someone to help him. He took short hard breaths while he grabbed his chest tightly.

Then, he finally breathed deep and long, calming himself down and remembering the nightmare.

"Tasan…"

After realizing that he couldn't be able to sleep because of his dream, he stood up from his wooden bed with cotton pillows and blankets and started walking outside the roofless house.

He tried to find a quiet place where he can think properly, but everywhere he goes were just mere noise of laughter and music.

He never hated them to be honest, but he doesn't want to stay any longer with the noise. Uninterested, he turned his head around and started walking away from the tendrins' houses, leading him into the deep forest.

It's been minutes since he started strolling in the middle of the night, never been bothered by the freezing wind. At last, he found a perfect spot to be alone by himself. In front of him was a large waterfall that sparkled under the moonlight, like gems had been staying under it.

"Who's there?" As he was about to take a seat in the grass, a familiar female voice can be heard nearby. He jumped as he recognized it, turning his head around his surroundings to search for it.

He walked for a while and finally found a female tendrin standing beside the waterfall. And he knew that it's not just any tendrin.

Her blonde hair that was now filled with leaves and twigs glowed under the light, but her hollow eyes with the blue light were fierce, removing her impression of a kind beautiful woman.

Standing in front of him was Dalary, who was now in a bad mood.

"I-I'm sorry!" He apologized immediately as he bowed at her, embarrassed that he was interrupting her alone time.

It took a while before the tendrin recognized his presence until she widened his eyes.

"Kandini?" She said his name with a raised eyebrow, confused about the reason he's here.

"I-It's Kandani…" He corrected, still frightened at Dalary's attitude towards him. He still remembered her yelling at him.

"Yeah, whatever." She closed her eyes, didn't want to argue with unnecessary topics, and just went back on her sitting position. She hugged her knees and buried half of her face on there, staring at the crystal falls.

Kandani just sighed deeply as his cold sweat dropped from his head, passing through the silk in his face. He was faceless, but that doesn't mean he didn't know how to be stressed out. Giving up, he also sat down beside Dalary, but made sure to keep his distance from her.

"Why are you here?" She asked, but never turned his head around to see him. She kept staring at the water flowing, still remembering what happened the other night with her sister.

"U-Umm… I can't sleep." He answered, still uncomfortable to talk to her after their unfriendly first encounter with each other. "And found this waterfall."

"Is that so?" She said, and the whole place fell into a deep silence.