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Masaru was carrying two sacks of bags in his hands. It was apparent that they held emergency supplies. 

“Ephert had really thrown everything he had to stop all of you here, there’s too many of them! And they are too strong!” Masaru panicked “You need to get away from here, head over to the evacuation point to the east of the town!

Hana hesitated. 

K’xug remained composed. 

Neither of them moved. 

“We’ll hold them back as much as we can, so hurry, run away! And here, take these! There is someone in that part of the town called Tsuki, and she will help you!” 

“But if we leave…” Hana spoke out, concerned. “What about all of you?” 

Masaru couldn’t find any proper words to respond to Hana. 

The answer was obvious. 

K’xug frowned. 

Our circumstances are unfortunate. 

Kai was still searching frantically for any clues of Cecil. Furthermore, with the people evacuating and being thrown off course by Rugi, it did not help him. 

Haru and Kiyae were running towards the opposite end, providing reinforcement for Yun and Ryo. The warning from Rugi was not to be taken lightly. 

Yun and Ryo were fighting against a group of seasoned mercenaries while defending the ship at the same time. One careless mistake from them, and the ship would be burnt down or they themselves would be cut down.

Meanwhile, Xue was completely unconscious and Cecil was injured fatally, nowhere to be found. 

The least we could do right now…

K’xug summoned out his twin swords. 

Hana flipped her bow, gripping it tightly in her hand. 

“I won’t...I won’t let people shield me again!” Hana exclaimed, looking up at K’xug standing beside her. “This time, I’ll fight back properly! The two of us!” 

K’xug smiled down at Hana, nodding in agreement. 

The least we can do right now is fight back, and await their return. The point of rendezvous will remain the same. 

Masaru was in disbelief at their confidence. 

He had heard personally from Rugi that this group of people were not to be underestimated, and they were strong. 

Hana huffed, looking back at Masaru. “Bring us there to fight! No need to hold them back!” 

“...bu-but--” 

Hana dashed off. 

Masaru gasped in alarm, running after her. “Miss Hana, no-not that way!” 

K’xug ran after the two of them, watching the frustrated look on Hana’s face as he shook his head with a smile. It seemed like Hana had truly changed in many ways. 

***

Yun stood in front of the ship. 

The crewmates they brought along with them were fighting against the mercenaries. Just like Yun had expected, they brought along reinforcements as well. Instead of fighting against a dozen mercenaries, there were now almost twice of them here. 

If it weren't for Ryo disrupting their formation in the distance, there would be more of them here. 

“Fifty of them it seems,” Yun whispered to himself. “Ephert spared no effort in gathering the mercenaries to bring down our ship and delay our trip.” 

Moreover…

Yun observed the messy fight between everyone, his eyes scanning his surroundings swiftly. 

It seems that more proficient ones were assigned to this mission. 

A mercenary managed to win over Yun’s crewmate, slipping past them. Yun immediately gathered his elemental energy within him, generating several sharp wind blades and sending it their way. 

The mercenary was exhausted from his fight and the wind blades left multiple gashes on him. He cried out in pain, collapsing onto the ground. 

Yun was the last line of defence for the ship. 

Boom! 

Another low, crashing noise was heard in the distance and it made Yun lift his head up. 

He realised it was closer this time. 

A small frown creased his forehead. 

Is it Ryo? I had expected him to run back earlier. 

It was as if the jet black-haired man himself heard Yun’s thoughts, he revealed himself as he dashed out from the dense forest. Behind him, there were a dozen mercenaries chasing him down. 

Yun wasn't surprised to know that some of the reinforcements had joined in fighting Ryo. However, he expected Ryo to succumb to the pressure earlier. 

He had repeatedly reminded the man to run back to the ship, if he couldn't handle his opponents. 

However, this was Ryo he was talking to here...

Just then, Yun noticed that Ryo's face was smeared with dirt and covered with small scratches. 

Injuries littered his body, despite that, the man only wore a charming grin on his lips. 

“Come on, my friends!”

Yun was speechless. 

As expected of the top officials of our crew, the battle maniac. 

“Hit me! Hahaha!”

“...” 

At Ryo's blatant provocation, the mercenaries that were equally injured became irked. One of them launched Ryo into the air with their earth elemental powers. 

“Wooooooohoo!”

Ryo flipped in the air, his silver eyes looking ahead and spotting Yun in the distance. He grinned, forming a small ice wall in the air to change his direction as he kicked against it. Propelling himself forward to Yun, the elegant-looking man with glasses widened his eyes in horror. 

“You battle-crazed addict! Don’t just land like--” 

Boom! 

Ryo landed on the ground with his halberd plunging into the hard soil. It sent out a large shockwave, causing those nearby him to be tossed away, be it ally or foe. 

“Wah!” 

“Argh!” 

“Master Ryo! Why!” 

Yun shielded himself from the dust, the fierce gusts of wind making his ponytail dance wildly. A few of their crewmates were flung towards the ship and Yun reacted quickly, he gathered his air elemental energy, sending it towards them. Their momentum slowed down considerably and they landed on the ground, some of them kissing the soil. 

Yun sighed.

“Whoa!” Ryo cried out, ducking down to avoid a sword covered in flames. “You wanna fight with me as well? Great!” 

The mercenaries that were chasing after Ryo had joined in the fray. 

Meanwhile, Ryo focused on his own opponent and managed to overpower him a few seconds into the fight. His opponent grunted in pain, his eyes wide in disbelief. 

What a strong bastard! 

He is injured all over yet he is still fighting as if it didn’t matter! 

Soon enough, Ryo won the battle and knocked his opponent out. 

“Don’t let them near the ship! Don’t give them the opportunity to use their elemental powers on it either!” Yun hollered out. 

One of the mercenaries wanted to cast a fireball onto the ship and someone lunged at him, preventing him from doing so. 

“Yun Yun!” Ryo panted, running to him. 

“Couldn’t you at least take care of a few of them?” Yun sighed again. “Before leading them all here?” 

“My bad! My bad!” Ryo let out a short laugh.

Yun nodded. 

They are finally coming back with news. I was getting worried. 

Yun observed Ryo who was riddled with wounds. Ryo winced in pain as he looked down at a deep gash on his arm, and this made Yun frown as well. 

“I told you before, get rid of this bad habit.” 

“Huh? What?”

“You always give it your all in fights and push your body to the limits. This is why you end up being the most exhausted among all of us, and the one that requires the most rest.” 

Ryo waved it off. “I’m fine, I’m fine!” 

“Die!” A mercenary barked out, leaping towards Ryo with an aggressive attack. 

Ryo defended himself with his halberd but alas, his other arm was in excruciating pain that he could not hold up his halberd properly anymore. Yun noticed this instantly, sending a gust blade to the mercenary. 

The mercenary was forced back and almost immediately, two crewmates surrounded him. They were already accustomed to seeing Ryo in this state and knowing this was the time he required help. 

“We won’t let you near them!” 

Ryo felt the adrenaline slowly wearing off, the pain and fatigue gradually overwhelming him. His knees buckled and he knelt on the ground with one knee. 

“Damnit…” 

Yun knelt down next to him. “Stay out of the fight from here onwards.” 

“No way, Yun!” Ryo widened his eyes. “How are all of you going to fight them off and protect the ship? There are more of them than us!” 

“We’ll manage.” Yun adjusted his glasses.

Ryo tried to push himself up but he felt his legs wobbling. Yun sighed, shaking his head and he wore a troubled expression. 

“If only Cecil was here to examine you.” 

Just then, the group of mercenaries combined their attacks of different elements. They blast away the crewmates, sending them flying as they landed right beside Yun and Ryo. Some of them were instantly rendered unconscious. 

The remaining crewmates pushed themselves up as they brandished their weapons. Yun did the same and he gave Ryo a warning look. 

Ryo was still trying to gather up his strength to fight on, blood dripping down from his numerous wounds. 

The mercenaries amounted to fifty or less and their opposing force was less than half of them, clearly at a disadvantage. 

If I can’t save the ship entirely…

Yun nodded.

Saving it barely should do. 

Their lives took priority rather than the ship. 

“Get them!”

“Defend yourselves! Forget about the ship, your life takes priority!” 

An explosion of elemental powers and adept fighting was seen. There was no clear victor between the two sides for a minute or so...until one side faltered. 

Three mercenaries pushed past, aiming their attacks on the ship. 

Yun gasped, ignoring his opponent that he knocked back. He turned around, preparing to create a wall of wind to stop those attacks from hitting the ship. 

Just then, his opponent recovered and lunged at him with his sword. The other mercenaries noticed this, slipping away from their opponents to join in. 

After all, another one of their unspoken missions was to get rid of one of the top officials in Kiba’s crew. 

“Yun! Watch out!” Ryo yelled out, gritting his teeth as he tried to gather his remaining elemental energy in his hands. 

He could not even lift his halberd anymore, his face pale. 

The crewmates wanted to jump in the way to shield Yun as well. 

All of a sudden, in the distance, Ryo spotted a glint of light. He paused and the glint of light suddenly enlarged, charging towards their direction. 

It was a pillar of fiery, hot flames. 

The mercenaries that were planning to attack Yun were engulfed by the flames and flung away. A man with orange-blonde hair sprinted out from the trees, panting heavily with his eyes wide. 

“Captain!” 

“Haru!” 

“Just...just in time!” Haru sighed out in relief. “That was close!” 

Without hesitating, Haru launched himself into the battle. His presence caught the mercenaries by surprise. 

“You bastards! Don’t think about attacking my stolen ship!” 

“Captain...you could have excluded the stolen part…” 

Yun managed to stop the attacks from the three mercenaries, and they continued to mercilessly throw out any kind of attacks. Unfortunately, the wall of wind he made eventually broke apart. Yun stumbled back and cursed softly to himself, his composure cracking. 

Someone supported him by the shoulder, stepping in beside him. 

“Ryo, I told you to rest!” 

“...he really needs to rest.” 

Yun felt something hitting his ponytail and he swivelled his head to look at the culprit. 

“Kiyae!” 

“Master Kiyae!” 

“Hiya.” Kiyae winked. “Did you miss me?” 

“Wah!” 

“Argh!” 

Since everyone was distracted by the sudden appearance of Haru, they did not notice two stone golems stomping out through the trees. They let out a low roar and began to hurl the mercenaries away with their stone arms, like they were a gorilla. 

Yun closed his eyes, smiling in relief. 

Ryo grinned at the presence of his friends. 

“I...I did it!” 

Someone cried out, running out of the ship. Everyone turned their heads and noticed a mercenary on the ship. 

“I burned it down!” 

It was then everyone started to notice black fumes drifting out from the ship on the inside. They widened their eyes in horror. 

A mercenary had managed to slip past in the chaos and make his way into the ship. He started to burn it from the inside. 

“My stolen ship!” 

“What the--!” 

Yun placed his palm on his forehead. 

His mind was wracking through the ideas he had to extinguish the flames inside of the ship. However, if the flames had already spread to the hull...Yun had a headache just thinking about it. 

“Well,” Kiyae looked at the sight. “Looks like the captain will have to lose another ship.”

“In the first place, this ship actually belongs to Lord Kiba.” Yun muttered out. 

Ryo shrugged.  

***

Cecil pushed herself up against the door of the hidden room. She could hear some commotion on the outside. She had no doubt that Tsuki was handling the mercenaries that were inspecting the place. 

“Miss Tsuki, please do not lie.” 

“Lying? There is no point in lying to all of you.” 

“Please do not force us either, Miss Tsuki.” 

“Force you? You barge into my place, be rude to my staff and my customers. Tarnish my reputation and beat my guards black and blue. If this isn’t force, what is?” 

“...” 

“Just because Ephert has taken over the mercenary market in Tul, all of you decided to obey his orders and not fight back? Are the mercenaries that weak here?” 

“Miss Tsuki!” 

“What? I’ve gone too far? All of you should be shameful of yourselves for helping that evil man! And not fighting back! Threatening you and your family? You know that man isn’t going to spare any of us anyway!” 

“I know there is a hidden room in this place--” 

Cecil backed away from the door after those words. It was only a matter of time before they found this place, and Cecil could not afford to let herself be exposed. 

What can I do…

What can I do right now? 

What can I do? 

Cecil scanned her surroundings, seeing nothing in the room that could help her. She could simply fight her way out, however, there was no telling how many of them were out there. Moreover, if Cecil knocked this mercenary out here, the others would know something had happened. 

She had to find a way to send the mercenary away. 

Cecil looked down at her outfit. 

It was the dancing outfit that her mother gave to her. The outfit consisted of a dark blue long skirt that reached down almost to her ankles, and the long-sleeved shirt, which was a lighter shade of blue, only reached down to her chest, exposing her belly. The designs of the dancing outfits differed from this continent with its cursive patterns and drawings. 

[ This dancing outfit originated from the next continent in the mortal realm, Sen. ]

“...” 

“How do you know something like that?” 

[ I just do~ ]

“...”

All of a sudden, an idea struck her mind. She procured the bandage from her storage ring and decided to wear it as a makeshift face veil. 

The voices outside were growing louder and louder. 

“They told us the trick to entering the room is this vase.” 

“Do not touch that!” 

Cecil undressed herself, exposing her bare shoulders to the door, especially the shoulder where her ghastly wound was at. She bit on her lower lip, the trepidation gnawing at her heart. 

It just all depends on my acting skills now. 

A drop of sweat rolled down her face. 

The next second, Cecil felt the hidden door behind her trembling and moving. She inhaled deeply as she gripped onto her shirt tightly. 

“They were right! There was a secret room.” 

“How dare you…!” 

The mercenary spotted a figure from the corner of his eyes, hunching as their back facing him. It was a raven-haired woman, she was slightly undressed, exposing her bare shoulders to them.  There was a ghastly wound on her shoulder, like a black spiderweb spreading throughout her body. 

“What is--” 

Just then, Cecil released the scream that was lodged in her throat.

***

An ash blonde-haired man found himself floating endlessly in the abyss, his eyes closed. He was dressed in his grey-coloured kimono. 

“...ue…” 

“...Xue…” 

“Xue.” 

The man slowly lifted his eyelids and all of a sudden, light flooded into the abyss and he found himself laying down on something soft and comfortable. He was inside a room, and a room that had strange furniture and equipment that he had never seen before. 

“You silly man. Even if you are the world’s best doctor, would it kill you to take a break?” 

Xue saw a familiar raven-haired woman standing beside him. She placed her hand on his forehead, smiling down at him. 

“Rest well, my dearest.” 

The warm and gentle hand moved down to cover his eyes.

When the hand moved away, Xue found himself in another place. This time, he wasn’t lying down on a bed but seeing himself sitting on a bed in the darkness. 

“I completed it.” 

“I destroyed this heavenly and demon realm.” 

“I killed Veau and Zeau.” 

“Those that betrayed me have either died or disappeared.” 

“But why…” 

He saw himself clutching at his head, his eyes wide as tears slid down his face. 

“Why do I feel worse than ever? What am I exactly missing? Why won’t those inside of me shut up and combine with me?” 

Xue found his eyes involuntarily closing and the scene disappeared. The next second, he gasped awake, his eyes bursting open. He bolted up from the couch he was laying on, scanning his surroundings.

“Xu-Xue, you are awake!” 

“Finally.” 

“Took your sweet time, huh.” 

“...slow.” 

“Hmph. Pathetic vermin.” 

“My saviour!” 

Xue clutched his head, blinking rapidly in confusion. 

***


Pt. 1

《 start 》

If you won’t tell me...hmph. 

I’ll run and find them on my own! 

I don’t want people to shield me anymore! 

No more! 

Not Cecil, Not Xue or even K’xug! 

Not anyone!

《 stop 》

***

Pt. 2

《 start 》

What were those dreams? 

No…

Were they even dreams? 

If they aren’t dreams, then what are they? 

...memories? 

《 stop 》

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