Bounty Hunter

News of the former prince being alive soon reached Lord Xīn's ears, lord of the Zhèng Yì Fiefdom. He threw the letter into the fire and said, "I thought for sure I'll be rid of them, but that family doesn't seem to like to die easily."

"What shall I do then for you, my lord?" asked a bounty hunter close to Lord Xīn's side.

"See to it that the former prince won't be able to scream for another five years." ordered Lord Xīn as the letter burned away in a fire.

Zhōng was up before the sun even peeked over the horizon five years later. When it did, he was putting on his watch on his right arm and then the Ninja Sword on his back before he headed out of his room. His wolf pup followed him out as they walked the halls of the school. He wore a white coat and black pants with brown mid-calf boots. Under his coat was a white shirt with red and an orange trim tie. His cuffs on his arm matched his tie and his belt carried his knife on his left hip. His hair was kept down and neat covering his tattoo. To anyone, he looked like a normal schoolboy. He opened the door to the principal office and said, "Good morning aunt."

"Ah, good morning Zhōng," replied Principal Jiào as Zhōng and his wolf entered the room. She was handling some paperwork but stopped as his wolf got on her two hind legs and the front two on his aunt, demanding attention. "Of course good morning to you too, Marathon." she said as she was licked by the wolf who whimpered.

"Thank you aunt, she can be with uncle this afternoon if she's troubled." said Zhōng.

"Oh, she won't be, see you later." assured Principal Jiào as Zhōng left the office and headed to do his duties.

At lunchtime, girls were huddling around him as he taught them the history lesson from the class before. Although half the girls were there to hear him talk. "Hey Zhōng, can you come by and help us with sword fighting when you're done?" asked one of the girls when he finished.

"Depends when I get back." replied Zhōng.

"Have these girls forgotten who he is?" asked Lady Mona, she, Lady Klee, and Princess Zhen were sitting at a table across the galley from where the Fallen Prince was.

"Girls shouldn't be over him, he's done nothing to get their gratitude." said Lady Klee.

"As long as he does what he agrees to do, I don't care how the girls act." said Princess Zhen, she got up and left her group. What Lady Klee said made her feel guilty for taking so long.

The bell rang ten minutes later, "Well I guess school is over for me, see you girls tomorrow." stated Zhōng as he closed his textbooks and took his tray to throw it away. The girls groaned wishing he wouldn't go. However, he was smiling because he was free to work in the rebuilding black market.

Lord Tyron hammered a blade to shape, he was working on the blacksmith at the school grounds. When he was there, the girls were allowed to come and work on their swords. He wiped his brow, a lot was on his mind. He then looked up and said, "Well you don't waste time."

"Good to see you too, uncle." said Zhōng, he was wearing his normal attire. A black long sleeve shirt and pants. His boots were brown and went just above his ankle. His cloak was ripped and mended as patterns made him look invisible. Underneath his cloak was his Ninja sword on his left hip with his knife just in front of it. There were gadgets as well, such as his medical kit, smoke bombs, and his grappling hook. His hair was combed back revealing his tattoo as parts of it started to fade away. "What did I get for today?" he asked as he grabbed some papers left on a counter nearby, they were black market jobs.

"Before you take them, we need to talk." demanded Uncle Tyron as he put the sword he was working on away.

"Oh, what did I do now?" asked Zhōng sarcastically.

"The market will elect a new leader hopefully soon, meaning both you and I will be out of business." stated Uncle Tyron.

"Well we still have the blacksmith." replied Zhōng, he skimmed through the missions and all seemed very easy.

"Well thanks to the stunt we tried to pull, getting our reputation back is hard." explained Uncle Tyron.

"Well, we knew about that before we even did it. If we ever regain business, it will be tricky to get back up to par." said Zhōng.

"Even then, we were expecting only one to be in school, not two." replied Uncle Tyron.

Zhōng sighed and said, "Clearly there was something else you wanted to talk to me about."

"There is, your loyalty." stated Uncle Tyron.

"How many times do I need to show that?" asked Zhōng as he stared at his uncle.

"You say one thing but act the other, I haven't forgotten your little plan five years ago."

"And my past actions define my present ones."

Uncle Tyron sighed and shook his head, his nephew wasn't giving in. "You promise you'll serve a high noble but not the royal family or be sent to the front lines. Two ways to die, by blade or years of protection."

"And you think I should be allowed more." concluded Zhōng.

"I'm saying you shouldn't sell yourself short and let the demons in your mind be put to rest." suggested Uncle Tyron.

"You know I won't do that." stated Zhōng as they stared at each other awkwardly.

Princess Zhen coughed, interrupting their contest. "Your majesty," said Lord Tyron as he bowed. Zhōng gave a nod, his eyes lit his pale face but showed no emotions.

"If I may, can I talk to the Fallen Prince before he leaves in private?" asked Princess Zhen.

"Of course, your majesty." replied Lord Tyron. Zhōng shot a glare of objection but his uncle smirked and left the shop.

"Would you come with me?" asked Princess Zhen when they were alone.

"Of course, princess." replied Zhōng, he followed her around the corner she came out of. On the other side was a mech with a sword sticking into an activation device. The mech was blue and silver, it looked thin yet powerful to land some hits. "Is this?" he asked as he marveled at his old blade.

"It is, I did some custom work to it, giving you more speed to land the first, however in exchange, the second option might be slower and more tricky." said Princess Zhen.

"Well it looks like I need to do more training to get my stamina up where I like it to be also my defense." stated Zhōng. He pulled the sword out and the mech flowed back into the rebuilt blade, it was lighter than before and words were inscribed 'the blade that showed loyalty'. He found his old sheath to the blade and slid it back in, then he adjusted his belt so the Ninja Sword was on his back hip and his brand new blade was on his left with his knife on top of it as well.

"There was something else I wanted to show you." said Princess Zhen as Zhōng finished adjusting. She took deep breaths as she looked down at herself, a hidden truth she hid from her mother, she was going to show him to see if he truly knew. As her thumbs went into the waistband of her skirt, she took a couple more deep breaths and prepared to pull down. Before she could, two hands of a man grabbed her arms and held them there. She looked up to see two demoned, fiery, dark blue eyes staring right back at her.

"That means nothing to me," stated Zhōng, his eyes weren't lying as Princess Zhen felt his anger towards it through his hands. "What he did was wrong and I'm no longer the prince of the empire." he said as he let go of her.

"Promise me again, you'll protect me." asked Princess Zhen.

"I promise, princess, my empress." promised Zhōng, he took a kneel and bowed his head. There was no doubt that what he said to her in the past wasn't a lie. He got up and threw his cowl up and ran to the main gate of the school where he disappeared into the crowd.

Zhōng jumped and weaved his way through the crowds. Not having anyone chase him, made him feel lonely yet free. Places he always ran by either waved at him or cursed him. It was just how the empire came to be. "Where is he?" asked Marco, a friend of Zhōng's. They were waiting in an alleyway

"He's perhaps skipping again," assumed Po, one of two of Zhōng's oldest friends around. He was leaning on the wall as the others waited around.

"It's not like what we have to tell has been confirmed." stated Klein, the other of Zhōng's oldest friends.

"I'll be the judge of that, Klein." stated Zhōng as he marched into the meeting place. His cowl was down as his hair flew in the breeze.

"Well you finally showed up," stated Dae.

"What took you, you're no longer being chased anymore." assumed Aiguo who shook Zhōng's hand.

"Had to have a meeting with my uncle." explained Zhōng. "While I was away though, it appears we have new eyes and ears." he noticed three more joined them.

"Well we figure you needed some more help." reasoned Marco as they formed a circle to begin the meeting.

"Well, what do we have?" asked Zhōng.

"Bandits' loyalty has been influenced by money. Where it comes from is unknown." begins Dae.

"That's been an influence as well as fear," said Zhōng.

"There are still men going missing from towns, soldiers are supposed to report but appear missing as well." said one of the new three members.

"Well that's been a problem with no end in sight." sighed Zhōng.

"A bandit party attacked a campsite nearby about three days ago," said Dae.

Zhōng put one of his hands on his head and shook it. "And I was there for it, I was the one that fought in it." he groaned.

"Oh, right," remembered Dae.

"Anything else that's perhaps good news?" asked Zhōng looking around to see defeated faces.

"There is one that is odd." commented another one.

"What is that?" asked Zhōng curiously.

The second nodded to the third who said, "Guards have spotted strange animals entering the ruins of the capital. They weren't any type of animals they know of and tracks left by them don't help."

"Where do they go exactly?" asked Zhōng.

"Well, when they hit stones from the broken roads, they just vanished nowhere to be seen again." stated the second.

"I know the tracks and animals they're talking about." commented Po. "I knew what they looked like."

"How would you describe them?" asked Zhōng.

Po stood up and walked in front of Zhōng. "They aren't animals I know off, but after taking a very close study, they look more like," he began. Suddenly, his eyes widened before he collapsed. Sticking out of his back was a paralyzing dart.

"Scatter," ordered Zhōng. He threw a smoke grenade and the eight of them ran out of the alley. The bounty hunter came out of the shadows and into the smoke. He saw that Po was still alive, he drew his Fafnir and killed Po as the last thing he saw was the legendary bounty hunter.

During the night at the school dorms, a window opened and a wolf pup was lower to the ground. A boy followed, putting the crate that brought the wolf down away before climbing down. When he hit the ground, the boy and the wolf ran to the stables where he took his horse and rode off out of the town.

Zhōng was on a ridge overlooking a valley, there was a couple of wildlife to hunt but his focus was on something else. He got down from his horse, Marathon whimpered as she looked around and Yáo didn't like the idea either as he neighed. Zhōng activated an arm of his new sword and set it to a one-shot bullet. He laid down on the ground and set his aim for one of the wildlife and waited, the intruder was near. When close enough, Zhōng turned around quickly as stood up, and pointed his weapon at the intruder. "Whatever you're aiming at, I'm sure you can't hit it from here." stated Captain Howin on the other end of Zhōng's weapon. Zhōng continued to look at the captain as he pointed the weapon the other way and fired. "That's impressive," Captain Howin stated later as the rabbit Zhōng killed cooked over a fire.

"Impressive but could be improved." critic Zhōng.

"Do you mind answering why you're up so late?" asked Captain Howin as he tended the rabbit.

"Couldn't sleep,"

"We both know you don't sleep."

"I do close my eyes," defended Zhōng.

Captain Howin looked up at him, the person he defended before the princess, had something bothering him recently. "Something's troubling you, can I ask what it is?" he asked.

"Why does everyone want to know about my business?" groaned Zhōng.

"If you don't want to share all the details, I'm fine with that. Although you look like you've seen a ghost." noted Captain Howin going back to tending the rabbit.

Zhōng sighed, they sat there in silence for a while before he answered, "Three days ago, your men found a body in the alley."

"Yes, you know him?"

"Yeah, his name was Po." stated Zhōng, Captain Howin looked right back at him as the name was familiar. "He was delivering information I requested before he was shot."

"But the cause of death was a stab through the heart."

"He was paralyzed before that although the dart was aimed at me." stated Zhōng.

"So you think this killer is still after you." concluded Captain Howin.

"I know that, but that's not the only reason why I'm out here." stated Zhōng. He pondered if he should before saying, "There are more I request information from, they were there when he died. Tonight we meet again, what has me worried is if my murderer might be there as well."

"You know for sure?"

"It depends how long he's been eavesdropping waiting for the right opportunity. Our next spot was discussed two meetings prior and our emergency was six."

"I take it you have a meeting every one to three weeks."

"Every two weeks at least." replied Zhōng.

"So he's been waiting for at least a month."

"Correct," confirmed Zhōng, they stare at the fire in silence. Although Captain Howin couldn't see it, Zhōng had perhaps met someone with equal skills.

"Do you think it's an assassin?"

"Even what my father did, I don't think so. They use hidden blades, this one that tried to kill me used a ninja sword configuration." replied Zhōng.

They continued to stare at the fire in silence. The rabbit was finished cooking and they ate it. "I'm coming with you." stated Captain Howin.

"You have responsibilities, I'm no longer worthy of your protection."

"Then consider it as a favor you owe me."

Zhōng looked up at the captain, his cold fiery stare would send a demon running. Everyone knows if they run into him, they'll either surrender or die. "When did I owe you a favor?"

"When you let me cook the meal." replied Captain Howin as Zhōng sighed.

"It might be something you might not want to hear." commented Zhōng.

"Then if I'm questioned, I would deny any of it and you'll back me up." replied Captain Howin.

Zhōng sighed again and got up as he led them away. They rode back into town and stopped by a bar, the same one where Zhōng organized the group years ago. "This could be the last chance to turn back." warned Zhōng as they walked up.

"If you're worried about them, then I pretend I didn't see their faces." assured Captain Howin. Zhōng nodded and turned to the door only to see it open just a crack. Seeing this as well, Captain Howin readied his spear and kicked the door open. Blood was smeared everywhere with six dead bodies lying everywhere. Clearly, it was a struggle as tables and chairs were destroyed and scattered. On one of the walls, it said, 'I'm coming for you next' written in blood. "I assume these were your friends?" asked Captain Howin, analyzing one body.

"There's only one that isn't here." stated Zhōng as he double-counted the bodies. For the first time in forever, he felt fear. "Captain, I must leave here tonight."

"I know, but I don't think the empress would approve."

"So you much rather have someone you swore to protect a long time ago die to a person, not in line with the throne?"

"I didn't say I wasn't going to help." defended Captain Howin. "I'm going to put in a lot of paperwork that could make you disappear like you're undercover."

"Don't make it too hard, I need it to follow." stated Zhōng. But he wasn't talking about the bounty hunter.

Three weeks later, the girls were struggling for a test. They groan and complain and wish Zhōng didn't disappear. "Just look at them, all hopeless." noted Lady Mona.

"Since that boy took off, it shook their morale and the cheat guide." stated Lady Klee. They were sitting at a table for lunch with Princess Zhen.

"I wonder what mission he had to do, 'cause he's been gone for a while now." said Lady Mona.

"Why not just ask someone that knows him." groaned Princess Zhen as she got up with her tray and moved tables to sit with Xing and her group. "Hey, guys."

"Hi, your majesty," said Xing as she and her friends were shocked that the princess moved to their table.

"How have you guys been?" asked Princess Zhen.

"Well, your majesty," said Cortana, still unsure.

"If I may ask, why are you sitting with us, your majesty?" asked Kotori.

"I thought I should see how you guys were doing." replied Princess Zhen.

"You want to know where my brother is as well," said Xing.

Princess Zhen turned to Xing, her face was worriedly, clearly, she didn't know either. "Have you asked your aunt?" she asked.

"We did, she said nothing." replied Pina.

"We asked Lord Tyron as well but he said he's on a job and that's it." commented Silica.

"It's probably something important and they don't want anyone to know," said Xing.

"Well sooner or later, we're going to hear about it." stated Princess Zhen.

The girls finished eating and followed Princess Zhen to the principal's office. Inside, Lord Tyron and Principal Jiào were discussing something before they entered as Princess Zhen demanded an answer. "Zhōng all we know is still on it." answered Principal Jiào.

"What's he after?" asked Princess Zhen.

"That even I don't know," replied Lord Tyron, he was staring out of the window when they entered. "He left a note saying that he'll be gone for how ever long it might be. He never mentioned what he's after."

"That doesn't sound like a way to take a vacation." commented Xing ruling out one of Princess Zhen's hunches.

"Who signed off on this? You have the client sign usually." asked Princess Zhen.

"Well, your majesty," sighed Lord Tyron as he looked at his sister. They were thinking of the same thing.

Captain Howin was in his office on school grounds handling paperwork of transfers. With the loss of men at the front lines due to them disappearing, he had to find spots where they were weak and strengthen them. Princess Zhen burst into his room, he looked up to see her angry. "Your majesty," he said as he stood up and bowed.

"Where is he?" demanded the princess.

"As a matter of fact your majesty, I'm almost finished with the official report." stated Captain Howin.

"What about the unofficial?" asked Xing, they came with the princess after the meeting.

Captain Howin sighed, clearly she was Zhōng's little sister. "You know something's up." he said.

"Why did you send him to do something without my consent?" asked Princess Zhen.

"Because, your majesty, it would have been too late." claimed Captain Howin.

The girls looked at the captain confused. "What do you mean?" asked Cortana.

"Girls, may I speak with the princess and Xing alone." requested Captain Howin. Cortana, Silica, Pina, and Kotori left the room and closed the door behind them. "It's bad enough I'm having you listen to this, Xing." he said in a lower voice.

"Is he in danger?" asked Xing.

"Yes, but not by us, by another party." replied Captain Howin, still keeping his voice low.

"They should know they won't get away if he dies." stated Princess Zhen.

"Unless they hired someone as skillful as Zhōng." stated Captain Howin and the girls' faces went pale.

"It scares him," stated Xing.

"How do you know he's going after him?" asked Princess Zhen.

"Last month, a boy was found dead in an alley, three nights later, six more in a bar and words 'I'm coming for you next' spelled on a wall with blood. They were Zhōng's, what he called, his eyes and ears of everything." explained Captain Howin.

"Zhōng's group was what uncle wanted to know about." commented Xing.

"And this bounty hunter, Zhōng thinks that the bounty hunter is coming after him?" asked Princess Zhen.

Captain Howin shot a warning look before answering, "The last time I saw him look the way he did that night, was when he discovered a dark truth of a best friend of his."

"It's rare to see that from him." noted Xing.

"So you send him to hide." concluded Princess Zhen.

"I've sent him back where he belongs temporarily, his mission instead of intel on the report is intel on his assassinator. To do that, the shadows hide things from the light but not from other shadows. When Zhōng finds who, he'll come back." assured Captain Howin.

"Except we both know he knows and yet hasn't returned." stated Princess Zhen, she turned around and exited with Xing following.

"Someone with the same skills?" asked Pina, the girls received a recap from the princess and Xing. They were in the suite of the princess, it was like a house with a table and couches, stairs leading up to her room and study room, and bookshelves containing copies of books in the library.

"Is that possible?" asked Silica.

"My brother's talent is rare, seeing someone using something similar is also." stated Xing.

"How come?" asked Kotori.

"Well his sword was trained by our uncle and mech by our aunt, his parkour was trained by someone else." said Xing, her voice becoming worried as she said the last part.

"Could it be the one who taught him?" asked Cortana but Xing shook her head.

"I thought bounty hunters are part of the black market." claimed Princess Zhen, she thought Zhōng might have run into him on a mission.

"We work with them and so do they, but the bounty hunters request pay before and are very skillful. The fact my brother isn't one of them nor he's a typical black marketer could be why you thought that way, your majesty." explained Xing.

"So are they somehow loyal to the throne?" asked Pina.

"That's the major difference, while the black market is, the bounty hunters are loyal to whoever pays them more." said Xing.

"Going back to this bounty hunter then, we know he is assigned to kill Zhōng but he is not paid by the throne." summarized Cortana.

"Yes, the only question is who." said Xing. They went silent as they pondered possible suspects.

"Does Zhōng have any enemies?" asked Kotori after a while.

"That barely narrows it down." claimed Xing.

"Here's my thinking," began the princess. "Zhōng won't disobey his punishment unless he no longer cares about you."

"What do you mean, your majesty?" asked Silica.

"Zhōng still has to learn even if he is away." realized Xing.

"If he isn't at school here, and he's being tracked." followed Cortana.

"Then he could be at a boys' school." finished Pina.

"And there's only one." stated Princess Zhen, "The journey however will be a long one."

"I know how to make it go faster." claimed Xing. Later that night, the girls ran out of the school and the town to a farm with stables. They carried supplies and cloaks to hide their weapons. When they entered the stable, dozens of horses awoke to their presence. Xing reached into her pack and pulled out an apple. "These horses are fast, smart, and loyal to their rider." she said as her horse ate the apple from her.

"Are these the same ones as Zhōng's?" asked Kotori, following Xing's lead.

"More like they are brothers and sisters of his." explained Xing as her horse accepted her.

When all of them had one, they saddled them up and led them outside. Once they were outside, a man with a horse was waiting for them. He carried a spear and looked like he was going to prevent them. "I got this, guys," stated Princess Zhen as she went ahead of them. "You're not stopping us, we know where he is."

Captain Howin shook his head and said, "I was hoping he'll be wrong."

"You mean he wants us to find him?" asked Xing.

"More like to see if his disappearance could be tracked." stated Captain Howin. "Now you know and would like to see him, it'll be a two and a half weeks ride on them." he said as he brought his horse closer to them.

"Then we better get going." stated Princess Zhen and the girls and the captain rode off into the night to find Zhōng.

"Don't stop screaming, you!" screamed a drill sergeant.

"Sir! Yes, sir!" replied a boy, he was holding a log over his head as he screamed with nineteen other boys.

"I'm not a sir!" screamed the sergeant back. "Since we can't figure out who I am! We're going to continue! Sergeant Gunin is not a sir! Go!"

"Yes, Sergeant Gunin!" replied the boys and they started chanting, "Sergeant Gunin is not a sir".

The girls were watching the evolution in horror. "Is this seriously a school?" asked Cortana.

"More like a torture to rebuild into mindless beings camp." noted Kotori.

"Zì Yóu is the only city with a school where boys are trained to become warriors. Most of them won't perhaps live long after graduation." stated Captain Howin.

"Why is that, captain?" asked Kotori.

"Because boys who come here often go to the front lines, they'll be lucky to live for a week." stated Captain Howin.

"There are exceptions, you out of people should know." a person said behind them. They turned around and saw an old man, he smiled but his scars made him look menacing.

"Lord Heishi," exclaimed Princess Zhen as she recognized him.

"I'm glad you recognized me, your majesty, but it's Former Lord Heishi now." replied Lord Heishi.

"Is he here, father?" groaned Captain Howin.

"Father?!" cried the girls.

Later they were in Lord Heishi's office, it overlooked the grounds as boys trained and sweated as sergeants and other higher-ups yelled at the students. "Forgive my secrecy, your majesty. Zhōng and my son wanted to keep him hidden as long as possible." explained Lord Heishi.

"You still call me your son after all these years." pouted Captain Howin.

"You should be grateful that I sent you somewhere that made you become so powerful." reasoned Lord Heishi as he drank some tea he had on his desk.

"While my older brothers die by the surrounding empires or during the war." stated Captain Howin.

"You still won't let that go?" sighed Lord Heishi.

"Hey, Xing, what's with them?" whispered Pina, sitting on one side of Xing and the princess on the other.

"Lord Heishi was the lord of the Border Fiefdom, they were the only fiefdom changing as more lands we were gaining from other empires. When the captain came to become my brother's primary bodyguard, one of his older brothers died while defending a post and the other joined the civil war and was ambushed." explained Xing.

"Lord Heishi, we know the Fallen Prince is hiding from a killer." stated Princess Zhen.

"Yes, your majesty, and we know which one." claimed Lord Heishi.

"Who?" asked Xing.

"The Muffler," stated Zhōng, the girls turned around to see him standing in the doorway. Besides his boots and combed hair, he was wearing his school uniform. His blades were on his back parallel with each other. He entered the room and unrolled a plan and said, "Why didn't my father use this?"

Lord Heishi examined the plans before answering, "It'll take up too many men from the front. To prevent a surprise attack, you're going to need a lot more men."

"I see, sir." replied Zhōng, he rolled the plan back up and went to leave.

"Take the rest of the day off, these girls are here to see you for a few hours instead of thirty seconds." ordered Lord Heishi.

Zhōng turned around and said, "Sir, yes sir." and left.

"Aren't you supposed to be not a sir?" asked Silica.

Lord Heishi laughed and said, "Not all of us are sergeants."

That afternoon, Zhōng, the girls, and the captain were at a place to eat outside. "I'll have this," requested Captain Howin pointing to a meal.

"You know your father gets that as well, right." said Zhōng. Captain Howin re-looked at the meal and chose a different one.

"Doesn't look like you two get along." noticed Cortana.

"There's a history." explained Zhōng.

"He told you, didn't he?" said Captain Howin.

"Nothing in detail," stated Zhōng. He looked over his shoulder and saw no one looking at them.

"I see you've stayed the same, brother." teased Xing.

"Do you honestly think I haven't changed?" asked Zhōng, looking at her. He gave her his cold stare.

"You've seemed the same to me." stated Cortana before the glare snapped to her direction.

"Only people that just met me don't see it." stated Zhōng.

"You're talking about years ago," said Princess Zhen.

Zhōng turned to her, and they stared hard at each other. "For years I've buried my emotions and now the Muffler has come and dug them up. Emotions that made me weak." he began. "Captain does the same thing to his father, only seeing him when demons of his past come back to haunt him."

"And what triggers yours?" asked Captain Howin.

"The past," began Zhōng. "Everywhere I touched, I left something behind. A scratch from my blade, my blood, the impact on people. Even as a prince, I left something behind and now the past of me is coming."

"But you're making sure it doesn't happen, right?" said Xing.

Zhōng shook his head and answered, "I don't know what I want, after fleeing my home, I wanted revenge but these past years I don't know. It's a battle between the Dual Bladed Ninja and the prince, the Old versus the New. One will die while the other lives with regret."

"Is that what you regret then? The decision to choose?" asked Princess Zhen.

Zhōng turned to her, his face was stern but innocent. A single tear rolled down his cheek perhaps the first in years. "I've wished I'd found an easier way past this," he said. Suddenly, he ducked and a dart struck the table, missing him. Captain Howin looked where it came from to see the bounty hunter standing with a crossbow. He turned his attention towards Zhōng and saw him disappearing in the crowd as the bounty hunter chased him.

"Let's go," said Xing, drawing her blade only to be stopped by the captain. "What are you doing?"

"Even as soldiers in training, your primary duty is to protect the royal family members." ordered Captain Howin. He then took off after Zhōng as the girls stayed to guard the princess.

Zhōng weaved his way through the crowds, darts flew past his head as the bounty hunter chased him down. His white coat made him easy to spot in a field of dull colors. He turned down an alley and sprinted harder. A whip wrapped his leg bringing him down. As he was going to cut it, the whip wrapped tightly before retreating back to its owner. Zhōng grunted as the whip left a deep cut to his left leg, he looked up to see the Muffler winding his whip back. "We meet at last Dual Bladed Ninja, or is it Fallen Prince." he said.

Zhōng stood up, the pain from his leg had him readjust his balance. "So we have," he grunted as he pulled out his blades.

"You think you can still beat me in your current condition? There's a reason why I go for the legs, corners my prey more." stated the Muffler as he drew his Fafnir. The two clashed swords, even with an injured leg, Zhōng's skills were almost not good enough. The Muffler's whip came out like a serpent's tongue, flickering at his feet again and forcing him to shift his weight on his left leg. To counter, Zhōng used a backhand strike to plant his blade in front of the whip as it came hissing towards the legs while his sword deflected the Muffler's attacks. "Impressive, looks like your Longus is repaired." said the Muffler, noticing the silver and blue blade in Zhōng's right hand.

"How about you focus on what my left was doing." stated Zhōng. The Muffler looked down to see Zhōng pulling a pin to a smoke grenade. As smoke filled the alley, Zhōng quickly climbed up onto one of the buildings and tried to limp away.

Suddenly the whip came for his right leg, tripping him. But as Zhōng fell, he took his knife and cut the whip before it could retract. The Muffler rose from the smoke in his Fafnir mech form. "You can't escape me when I zoned in on you." he stated.

Zhōng stood up and activated his silver and blue sword into mech form. "Then I guess I'll have to fight my way free," he said. They clashed again this time in a mech, Zhōng's Longus mode gave some critical blows, but the Muffler's Fafnir deflected them and drew closer to land one of his hits.

"Your Longus may be remade, but you're still a long way away from what it was." stated the Muffler when their blades lock in place. Zhōng lunge back as the Muffler launches a couple of rounds at Zhōng. He looked at his mech status and realized it hadn't been unlocked to its new potential. He was trying moves from his old that his new couldn't adapt to, thus slowing him down. "What's wrong? What happened to the fearless Dual Bladed Ninja? Has he met his match and is scared? Or have you become afraid of death?" mocked the Muffler.

Zhōng's eyes widened, behind the Muffler the girls were watching them. A memory of his past hit him, he heard the princess cry after she hurt her knee and Xing's cries as he was beaten. Another one entered his ear, a voice he hadn't heard in a long time. "If you fear death, then you shouldn't live, if you fear death to another close to you, then fight to protect even if it means giving your own life." he said.

"Thanks, old friend," whispered Zhōng to himself. He stood up and reached behind his collar to pull out a hidden cowl. His eyes glowed under the shadows as he activated his true side of his mech then said, "You're right, I've lost my touch, my reason to live. Which is why I'm going to show you that reason is, try to catch me." he then took off.

"Oh no, you don't" stated the Muffler and took off after him. The girls watched as they climbed higher and higher up to the sky. Something didn't seem right to the Muffler, he couldn't catch up to what he thought was a Longus. "You're not getting away." he stated.

"That's not my reason." said Zhōng. Suddenly, he turned around and dove on top of the bounty hunter pushing them both back down to the ground. "I'm going to say three things." he began to say as they fell. "The first is never corner me again if you want to live. The second is this, I'm only afraid of losing more people I care about. And third," he stated as they crashed and the whole ground shook. When the girls finally made it along with the captain, Zhōng had him pinned with his mech sword pointing at the Muffler's throat in a crater. Captain Howin and two guards climb down and begin to arrest the bounty hunter. "Captain Howin, before you do anything, I want to know his true name." requested Zhōng.

"You noticed, didn't you?" said the Muffler as snickered. "My real Kettei, Former Prince Zhōng."

With a nod to release him, the guards obey after Zhōng gave them his cold stare. "Then I have a message for Lord Xīn I need you to deliver." began Zhōng. "You tell him if he wants me dead, to do the deed himself, you also tell him my reason why I live and that my time will be up when I join the front lines as requested by the princess." He turned his attention to the princess then pain from his leg returned as a guard helped him out of the crater. But he wasn't the only one feeling pain as something inside of the princess hurt her too.

As for Kettei, Captain Howin let him go on Zhōng's request. He never found an opponent so honorable and true in shadows than Zhōng. Although he lost, he had to deliver the Fallen Prince's message.