Chapter 25: It is safe now

“23… 24… 25… whew… 27…”

The sun has earnestly arose, but I was already long up before it did. The morning light, weak though it was, pierce my eyes like a stiletto. Pitching my body up and down as my hands grip on a tree branch, vigorously lifting my body weight half a meter off the ground. The bright sun beamed over my chiseled body, revealing the results of my faithful compliance to my daily training manual. My sweat damped body exuded steam and my panting left a moisture that showed the humidity in the wind.

“Damn,” dropping myself on our trimmed lawn, I reach for my shirt hanging on the clothesline. I walk back inside the smithy as I put my shirt overhead, damp patches blossoming on my chest and beneath my armpits too.

“Morning Master,” I wave a hand at this topless old man hacking away in front of the forge. Beads of sweat trail from his bald head down to his brow, and his bear-like muscles swelled even larger whenever he raises his hammer to shape the heated metal. With his concentration at its peak, my voice is as minuscule as a grain of salt in the sea. To start a conversation with the old man at such times would be nigh impossible.

I trudge past the smithy burning with intensity, locating my Gladius on top of the table in our dining room. I strap it around my waist, right beside my hammer, and start doing some light stretches. Running around town while building a habit to bring a sword is tough, especially the added weight, but it helps out a great deal in the end.

Once I’m done with some light stretches, I head out to jog. The space in front of our door is surprisingly empty. I wonder about the fate of my eggs. Did someone steal them while I was busy stretching? It’s impossible for that little girl to be late after all. Damn, I’m worried all of a sudden.

Taking that sudden concern in my chest, I race through the streets. Some merchants greeted when I pass them by, others continue on what they are doing—everybody is working hard.

Like usual, as I run, my thoughts redirect me from those happy times six months ago. That time when I died. It takes strength to make your way through grief, to grab a hold of something important and let it pull you forward from the ashes of your former self. Only then would one realize how important it is to learn through your mistakes. It hit me at that point that if you love, you will grieve, and that’s just a given on this twisted nature of ours.

I know it’s about time I let go of these feelings, but I still care for her even now. Even though half a year had passed and she still chose not to return. How long would a woman need to reassess her feelings? This can only mean that she dumped me, I guess. Nevertheless I will fix her sword, and then I will find her—to have a good talk. Yes, that’s what I ought to do. That is my oath, and this necklace adorning my neck is the proof of that.

I kiss this small bottle of perfume and doubled my pace. For some reason, some sort of noise reverberated at the back of my mind that made me steer ahead.

“Help!”

Okay, there’s something going on here, and it’s none of my business. I look around me; the area’s still pretty deserted. Should I step up and do it after all? But it’s too troublesome to get involved. Last time I tried to help, it cost me dearly. Surely there’s no benefit into volunteering myself into danger, but this is who I am.

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In my nosiness I trace the origin of this wailing voice. I suspect that whoever has the gall to do something immoral so early in the morning will be downright despicable, but this guy is on a different level. Casting aside the innocent girl he’s trying to drag into the darker part of the town, there it was… The remnants of my poor eggs. There goes my breakfast for this morning I guess.

“My eggs… What did you do to my eggs?”

Walking in silent anger toward them, I unstrap my Gladius and carry the sheathed sword on my shoulder. When the man realizes my advance, he speaks urgently, but his mouth produced no sounds. Do I look that scary? It seems like my violent tendencies has been increasing as of late. Perhaps that’s the indication that the original owner of this body will want it back soon. But if it comes, it comes. There’s really nothing I can do about it.

Denied of speech, the man quickens into an even more frantic state of desperation. He takes out a knife and graze the blade at the little girl’s neck. Perhaps that act gave him confidence, as the man started shouting threatening words at my direction. Words that I didn’t bother listening to.

I sigh and shake my head. It’s useless. The moment you enter the range of my Kill-Zone, there can only be absolute obedience. For the past six months, I spent my time working and familiarizing myself with this evil energy.

Like a chant, my skills are activated by mentioning the skill’s name. In a skill that manipulates my inner hatred and turn it into spiritual energy, one needs a lot of control. And for a heartbroken man like myself, every morning renews my grief. One would be damned at what I could do.

I close my eyes for a moment and take a deep breath.

“Kill Zone,” murmuring my skill’s name as I open my eyes, a dark mist spews out around me as the epicenter. Oh, the eternal quest of this guy is to shatter his loneliness. Singing those words in my mind, I redirect this mist toward this half-crazed man.

Wide eyed, he seeks a place to escape, but with my dark mist entering his nostrils, his attempts are futile. His face writhes into a series of expressions, each more despairing and more anguished than the one from before. Bubbling sticky fluids uncontrollably vomits from his mouth. Yuck. I deactivate my skill that very instant and take the still-bewildered girl in my arms.

Even now she’s still silent, so I give her a very comfortable piggyback ride and stroll away from that place.

“……uuuu… uguuu…”

Confused at the mysterious noise, I tilt my head to look.

“……uwaaaa!!”

Dammit, she starts crying. I understand that you just went through some scary experience, but at least wait till I get us out of here. Furthermore my backside feels eerily warm. This warm sensation flooding my backside, what is it? Oh my God… Someone tell me it’s not what I think it is.

“………uwaaaaa!!”

And so, I ended up having an early morning shower.