“It’s about time, don’t you think?” Ronin said, sitting on the hill, his eyes to the horizon.
“Hmm?” Shio replied lazily as he lied down. “Time for what?”
Ronin sighed. “Shio, you know what. This place grows smaller with every passing day.”
Shio chuckled slightly. “You’re right, it’s about that time. But we have to see what Theo and Elaine intend to do first. If it isn’t as we hope, we’ll just have leave without them.”
“Okay. I too, don’t intend to wait any longer.” Ronin said decisively, a fire in his eyes. He was very eager to enter the world of cultivators. He felt that with Shio leading them, they could conquer the world. I wonder how far I’ll come, Ronin wondered.
Shio suddenly looked towards the town where Elaine’s distant figure was getting closer.
Ronin sighed again. “That girl…” Ronin said, watching Elaine’s approaching figure. “As this town gets smaller, she gets more beautiful.”
Shio let out a bitter smile. It was indeed true, Elaine was getting more beautiful every day. Perhaps she’ll soon be recognized by the heavens, Shio thought with a heavy sigh as he worried for Theo.
“Hey, hey.” Elaine called out in a familiar manner as she gracefully neared the two on the hill. “What should we do today, guys? I’ve been wanting to test out a new enchantment on my bow so I was hoping we could go to the forest today.” Elaine conversed in a light hearted manner.
“Elaine, have you talked to your father?” Shio suddenly asked, ignoring her question.
Elaine’s face then turned somewhat serious, as she nodded her head. “He agreed. But he tested me first. The Body Essence Art he practices is truly ruthless. He’s like Theo when he’s mad, except worse. Luckily, I passed, with minimal results.”
Shio couldn’t help but smile. “Good.”
Ronin smiled also. Let’s hope Theo comes back with good news, he thought.
Several minutes later Theo was quickly running towards them, a huge backpack on his back.
As Elaine saw his tall, muscular physique, her cheeks blushed slightly.
“Hey, guys. Elaine.” Theo said, nodding to Elaine. Elaine simply turned her head away, which caused a frown to appear on Theo’s face.
“Have you told your parents?” Ronin asked.
Theo chuckled. “I’m not going to tell them. Although they’d probably allow it, my mother would cry at the sight of me leaving. So I just left a note. But that means we have to leave today.”
“Ah! Theo, why are you always so frustrating. I haven’t even started packing yet!” Elaine exclaimed.
“That’s fine. Just stop by your house and gather all your things. We’ll store it in my Space Pendant. It won’t take long if we don’t have to sort through it.” Shio replied calmly. When he told his father he was leaving soon, his father gave him a mid-grade Space Pendant as a going away gift. It was Rio’s most valuable possession. To Shio, it gave him an excuse whenever he stored items. No one would think anything strange if he had a space pendant, though it would also attract some jealousy if the right people were to notice.
It took about two hours to prepare, before finally, they were on the road out of town. They were all wearing outfits made of beasts’ remains. Ronin was wearing the skin of a Skinsearing Python, Theo’s outfit was made from a Stonearmored Bear, and Elaine’s stylish outfit was made out of the silk from a Poisonspear Spider. Shio naturally wore the leather of the beast he first killed as it carried some sentimental value to him. These outfits were made by Shio, so they too, were decorated in mandala inscriptions.
They also bought basic weapons to use, but since the others didn’t have storage equipment, Shio used his knowledge of mandala inscriptions and Transfiguration to allow their basic weapons to simply transform as unassuming string bracelets when they were not in use.
As they walked onwards silently, breathing in the idea that they would be leaving the comfort and protection of their town, Theo suddenly let out a wide grin.
“Hey, guys. We should give our group a name, so that one day, when we’re world famous, the people will know what to call us.” Theo said as he thought of the future ahead of him with high expectations.
“Yeah!” Elaine responded, nodding her head in approval. “But what should we call ourselves?”
“I have a name.” Ronin responded as the others looked to him. “The Band of the Night Star.”
Elaine once again nodded her head. “I like it.”
Shio simply blushed slightly in embarrassment.
Theo’s brows furrowed. “Wait. Wouldn’t that mean Shio is our leader? Who decided that?” Theo said in disapproval. They all knew the name was in reference to Shio and the sort of energy he cultivated. “How about we call ourselves the Band of the Golden Hammer?” Theo continued in a hopeful voice, changing the name a little to refer to himself in an obvious manner.
“Nope. We’re using Ronin’s name. And if wasn’t for Shio, could you even call yourself Golden Hammer? Wouldn’t you just be called Tall and Skinny?” Elaine said decisively before mocking Theo.
Ronin burst out laughing, while Shio tried to hide a smile. Theo could only frown helplessly under Elaine’s triumphant grin.
Following Theo’s utter defeat, they continued walking away from the mountains to the East. Within this heavily forested area were many villages and towns like Newleaf, and the territories of some powerful beasts. Past this was a wide plain leading to rolling hills and the Eastern Coast of the country of Reyah. On a very large hill near the coast was the capital of the Rising Tide province, Lookout City. This was Shio and his friends’ destination. As Lookout City overlooked the ocean to the East and had the purpose of being the first line of defense if the country was ever invaded by forces from the Chaos Continent, it was named thus.
Along the road away from Newleaf, night slowly began to creep in.
“We’ll stop here for now.” Shio suddenly said.
“We’re making camp? We should still have an hour or two of light.” Ronin said with a raised eyebrow.
“No. It’s just that there are highwaymen up ahead. The scout should be making the report now. They’re probably near the crossroads ahead of us, robbing the other roads as well. Should we go around?” Shio asked.
“We should kill them if we can.” Ronin said decisively. Ronin hated bandits with a passion. To Ronin, getting rid of them would be a favor to the world.
“Go around, around.” Theo said, waving his hands in a dismissive manner. “I don’t want to be bothered with bandits.”
“How many and how strong?” Elaine asked.
“Most of them should be weaker than us, but the leader could be as strong me. Also, there should be quite a lot of them. Maybe 30-40. But this is just my guess based on just where they’ve set up their operation. We’re quite far from the main roads, so these bandits must only be on the level of robbing weaker townspeople who were forced to take these roads. Do you want me to scout it out?” Shio replied, deferring to Elaine’s leadership.
“No need. I trust your judgement. We’ll go around. Although we could wipe them all out if we did it carefully, we could also lose one of our own. There’s no need to take the risk.” Elaine decided. Ronin looked to Shio, hoping he could decide against it.
“Don’t look at me like that, Ronin. Elaine’s right. I don’t want to risk anyone either.” Shio responded.
“But isn’t it the path of the cultivator to challenge one’s self? Do we not want to get stronger?” Ronin retorted.
Shio sighed. “He has a point.” He said as he looked to Elaine.
Elaine’s brows furrowed.
“Ah,” Shio suddenly cried out. “It’s too late, they’re here. Eight are coming this way. Prepare yourselves.”
“They underestimate us.” Ronin said with a grin. This is what he wanted all along.
Theo laughed. “We are kids after all.”
Soon after a group of 8 men dressed in leather approached. “Ho ho ho, look what we have here. Hello little brothers and little sister.” One of the men said. “We’re travelers from a far away land who have encountered some bad luck. Could we trouble you with all your money?” The man said with an evil grin.
Theo couldn’t help but smile. These guys are quite funny.
“We feel for you elder brother. We too have encountered some bad luck.” Ronin replied, looking quite sincere. “Since you have no money, could we trouble you with the clothes on your back so we may have something to sell to fill our bellies?”
This time Theo couldn’t help but burst out laughing. “Hahaha!”
The other man’s face suddenly turned ugly. “What a tongue this child has. Since he’s suggested so, kill them and strip their clothes. Leave the girl. Though she’s young, there’s no way I could resist this little angel.” He said licking his lips as he eyed Elaine’s body.
Theo’s eyes suddenly turned serious, and the bandits suddenly felt a strong pressure appear out of nowhere, causing them to pause. “Leave that one to me.” He said.
Elaine’s cheeks blushed slightly. This guy’s feeling are too overbearing.
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Two tusk-like weapons suddenly appeared in Shio’s hands. “Careful,” He said. “That one should be the bandit leader. He must have personally came for Elaine.”
Theo’s face twitched, and the two bracelets on his hands suddenly transformed into two war hammers. “I’ll be fine.” He said, his war hammers glowing with a golden light.
“Calm down,” the bandit leader said as he saw the worried looks of his subordinates. “They might be cultivators but they’re still just kids.”
The bandits suddenly calmed down as they heard this. How long could they have cultivated? They thought. How could inexperienced kids compare to them?
A cold look suddenly appeared in their eyes as they prepared to attack, but Theo couldn’t wait and immediately charged.
The bandits saw this and responded by charging out as well, brandishing their weapons. “ATTACK!” They yelled.
Elaine drew an arrow onto her bow, the tip glowing with a bright white light. She pulled back and released. The arrow flew by the charging Theo and just as it was about to reach the bandits the light on the arrow suddenly expanded outwards enveloping and blinding the charging bandits. When the light disappeared soon after a bandit had already collapsed, an arrow in his head, and Theo, who knew to close his eyes against the blinding light, had already ran past the bandits, heading towards the bandit leader standing at the back.
At this time Elaine took out her rapier as Shio and Ronin also brandished their weapons and charged out.
The bandit leader grew a little worried at these kids’ tactics as he eyed the charging Theo, but he put his worries aside. If this kid thinks he can take me on by himself he’s dreaming. The bandit leader thought with a smirk as he raised his battle-axe and charged.
“Aarghh!” Theo yelled as he approached and engaged the bandit leader. Theo’s left hand swiped, his war hammer clashing against the bandit leader’s battle-axe, Theo’s overwhelming strength sending it swinging to the side. Immediately afterwards, Theo’s right war hammer swung out towards the bandit leader’s left shoulder.
Shit! The bandit leader thought as he jumped backwards, narrowly evading the war hammer. This kid’s pretty strong! He thought, his eyes turning serious.
“Oh?” Theo exclaimed. “Has the bandit leader lost his nerve? Can he not face off against a kid head on?” Theo taunted with a smirk. He knew the fight would go much smoother if it was a head on confrontation. Theo feared this guy might have some long-range magic.
The bandit leader suddenly smiled. “Head on, you say? Don’t regret those words kid.” He said as he took in a deep breath.
Theo’s brows furrowed as he watched for any changes on the bandit leader. Damn, Theo thought as he looked at the bandit leader’s face which suddenly became much more reflective, as if it was metallic. It’s actually a defensive skill. “Hmph!” Theo exclaimed. You’re going to have to do better than that.
The bandit leader continued to smirk as he charged once again. Suddenly, the bandit leader’s arms and legs enlarged a size mid-charge.
Although the change was subtle, it did not escape Theo’s attention as his eyes widened. He’s countering my twin hammers with speed. Let’s see how this plays out. He thought as he grimaced and went to welcome the charge. Theo still had confidence in winning, but he knew he was going to suffer for it. Theo wasn’t too worried though, unless this bandit leader had more tricks up his sleeve, the fight was pretty casual for Theo.
“Aaghh!!” Theo let out a battle cry as he deflected the bandit leader’s battle-axe with his war hammer as another war hammer strike followed, sweeping in from the right.
The bandit leader used the momentum from the deflection to let his battle-axe swing him around as he bent downwards to dodge the sweeping hammer.
Theo watched the battle-axe coming back around and planned to strike out at the bandit leader’s undefended spinning back, but as he was about to act he was suddenly hit in the stomach by the haft of the battle-axe.
“Urghh!” Theo grunted, resisting the blow as he swung his left hammer, hitting the bandit leader’s left thigh.
KLAANGG! The glowing hammer sounded out as it struck the bandit leader. Theo’s eyes widened in shock at how strong this defensive skill was, becoming momentarily distracted. By the time he noticed the bandit leader’s body twist and the incoming battle-axe, it was already somewhat late to dodge. Theo leapt backwards and twisted his body slightly, using his right shoulder to accept the strike that was meant for his neck. The axe dug halfway into the Stonearmored Bear’s skin before stopping.
Theo used the momentum of the axe swing to put some distance in between the two. As he landed he took a deep breath, preparing for round two.
The bandit leader laughed. “Kid, can’t you see that you can’t beat me? Though you are pretty good, you’re far too inexperienced. How ‘bout we stop fighting? If you join me, I promise I won’t kill you.” The bandit leader suggested, taking an interest in Theo’s talent. Though, he was confident in winning, getting through Theo’s armor would be a bit tough and Theo surely knew how to protect his head.
“Hmph! Screw off! Don’t get cocky, just because you’ve cultivated longer than me.” Theo replied arrogantly.
The bandit leader sighed. “Suit yourself, kid.” He said, rushing out to clash once again.
They clashed several times which Theo always seemed to lose out on, but Theo gritted his teeth and continued. His armor already had several gashes on it from being struck.
A couple minutes into the fight, Theo began to smile, and his blows landed much more often.
As this happened, the bandit leader became increasingly worried. Did this kid get faster? He thought as he wondered what was happening. But then he suddenly realized. It’s not him; shit, I’ve gotten slower. He leapt back a distance and tested his body out. The bandit leader felt that his body has gotten many times heavier and he started to sweat as he realized his situation. The rate he slowed down was quite slow, so he didn’t notice for quite some time. It’s that golden glow on his hammers! This kid fucking practices magic!
Normal people wouldn’t be able to practice both magic and body art cultivation, most people seemed to have no talent for magic. But for Shio and his friends, these problems were solved by analyzing their souls, and Shio’s ever-increasing knowledge.
The bandit leader was wary of that golden glow at first, but as battle went on it didn’t seem to do anything, so he ignored it. Only now did he realize that Theo has been targeting his limbs from the beginning, intending to weigh him down. “Fuck.” The bandit leader couldn’t help but exclaim.
“Something wrong, bandit leader?” Theo asked with a wicked grin as he slowly approached.
Now that the situation has escalated to this point, the bandit leader had no thoughts of winning and immediately threw the heavy axe aside and turned to run. But as he turned he saw that kid with the white hair standing in his way. The bandit leader then looked around and realized he was surrounded by those kids. Finally in the distance he saw several bodies lying on the ground, and he started sweating even more profusely. Who the fuck are these kids? He thought.
The bandit leader immediately put on a subservient smile and attempted to persuade these kids to let him go. “Little brother,” he said towards Theo. “This was all a misunderstanding. I truly am an unlucky traveler that was forced to steal to survive. But you have to know that it was out of my hands and I had no choice. But I promise to turn my life around! If little brother spares me, I’ll be sure to repay little brother over many times in the future!” The bandit leader said in a pleading manner.
“Hmmm,” Theo said, pretending to think it over. “I’m sorry. Though you’re shameless, there’s no way I can resist killing a little devil like you.” Theo mocked with an evil grin as he rushed out.
A wild look suddenly appeared in the bandit leader’s eyes. Kid, I’ll make sure to take you down with me! He thought resolutely as he reached for his battle-axe. But just as he bent down he was suddenly hit in the back of the head with an arrow. It didn’t pierce his steel-like skin but the strong impact caused him to fall to the ground face first.
The bandit leader quickly tried to lift his heavy body up, but just as he raised his head, it was already too late. Theo’s hammer was already on its way to the bandit leader’s head. The golden glow grew stronger and Theo looked to be struggling to control the hammer as it thrusted down, its weight seemingly becoming many times heavier.
“Mountain Hammer Crash!” Theo yelled as his hammer crashed down on the bandit leader’s head, leaving the bandit leader no time to say anything before his life abruptly ended.