“The Western continent? What can I say about Mesai? They don’t even have sake! That’s all you need to know.”
- Sekiro, famous traveler and map maker, year 500
They shoved Aki from behind. His feet stumbled, propelling him toward another man. His arms flailed as he tried to regain his balance. The man he was shoved into laughed and gracefully moved out of the way, sticking out a foot for Aki to trip over. Trip he did, of course, but he also extended the cane he used for walking.
Aki's cane reached about his midsection in height and was not a mere cane. It was crafted from plain polished wood, finished with black polish. Few people knew that the cane was a wooden scabbard for a short, flat, straight sword. Aki hadn't had a reason to use the sword in the few months he'd been in Mesai.
Feeling the cane connect with the man's ankle, Aki pushed. He channeled mana to his arm, using it to trip the man. Aki tumbled into the dirt, and the man he tripped landed beside him. Aki rolled, springing back to his feet, a feat his intended target struggled to replicate. Mid-air, Aki turned to face the three other men who had been harassing him.
These men were typical for this region, sporting long black coats that locals called dusters and rough denim pants. Their shirts were the only piece of loose clothing they wore. In contrast, Aki wore traditional cultivator robes, a point of contention among the natives. His black outer robe resembled a softer version of their dusters.
The men all wore peculiar hats, wide-brimmed with high crowns, and they encircled their heads like the conical hats worn by farmers and The Elder. Made from a softer material, these were known as stetsons.
Aki, with his scraggly black beard and matching hair pulled back into a ponytail, watched the three men behind his dark sunglasses with a smug smirk. They were all clean-shaven, a common practice in this area where beards were frowned upon.
"Your stick won't protect you, you blind fool," the one who had pushed Aki taunted, drawing a saber from its metal scabbard on his hip. Another man, still standing, helped the third to his feet.
The man whom Aki had tripped offhandedly dusted off his coat and jeans, grumbling. Aki noticed the familiar red scarves wrapped around their necks. He had seen other men that were often up to no good wearing similar scarves in town.. They had been seen running away from various robberies in town, even from the local bank. They were the local gang, and the members seemed to relish harassing Aki. Of course, none of them ever admitted to being defeated by a blind beggar, but these three would soon discover the truth.
All of them had drawn sabers, their boots digging into the dirt of the road. Aki stared at the three of them for a moment before they made their move. They charged at Aki, yelling. Instead of engaging, Aki turned and ran. He didn't push himself to run much faster than the trio. He just wanted to move fast enough to stay ahead of them. Aki didn’t need to expend much mana. He never set out to hurt these people, just play with them enough so they’d leave him alone for a while.
Aki led them through the small town, expertly dodging and weaving around people and horses that roamed the dirt roads. Towns here on this continent differed exceedingly from those in the Sasaki Empire. The buildings were smaller, more boxy, and lacked the multi-tiered structures with elaborate tile roofs Aki was accustomed to.
There were only three buildings that had more than one story. The local tavern, possibly the largest building in the town, stood two stories high and was bustling with patrons drinking and waitresses serving. Aki avoided it unless he needed to gather information. Then there was the hotel, the town's tallest building, though narrower, and the church.
The church was an intriguing structure, it was plain and painted white, in contrast to the other natural wood-colored buildings. People lined up to enter, sitting in long benches called pews, as they listened to a man in black robes speak. Most of the locals, including those wearing the red scarves, believed in a vengeful god. Aki couldn't help but notice the resemblance between their god and Rei, the father of the Kami. He often wondered if they were the same.
Aki pivoted down an alley, the three men in scarves wielding sabers in pursuit. When he reached the end of the building, he found a large wall that blocked the church's rear garden from the alley.
Taking a deep breath, Aki focused his mana. He ran up the wall using a pulse of wind to boost him. Mana flowed through his channels. This allowed him to climb up the wall and employ his Blossom Steps technique to leap into the air. The name "Blossom Steps" was derived from the path he followed. He had got the technique manual from The Elder, the man who had taken him in and helped train him all those years ago. The creator of the path seemed to have an affinity for cherry blossoms, given the names of the techniques. They all had Cherry or Blossom somewhere in the name.
He somersaulted over the three men, using the wind to help glide over them. Aki landed, poised, and watched as the trio crashed into the wall and into each other.
Aki laughed and leaned on his cane, addressing the disoriented trio. "You three should watch where you're going. There's a wall there. The church doesn't appreciate people running through and damaging their gardens."
"I've had enough of you in our town, begging for spare change and preaching about inner power and these kami people," the gang's leader said. "I also know you've been giving my men a hard time."
Aki raised an eyebrow from behind his sunglasses. "Your men? Are you the leader of these red-scarfed individuals who've been bothering me?"
Calvera nodded, and tipped his hat at Aki. "That's right, I'm Calvera. These are my gang, The Old Ginger Gang." He grinned, revealing a set of rotting teeth.
Aki frowned and pulled back slightly in disgust at the sight of Calvera's teeth. Meanwhile, the two men who weren't Calvera attempted to rush Aki with their sabers. Aki jumped to his left and extended a leg to jump off the wall of the church. He swung his cane down, knocking one assailant on the head and sending him sprawling to the ground. The other man swung his saber wildly, but Aki gracefully evaded every swipe while airborne.
After striking the first man, Aki threw his cane into the air and landed behind the second attacker. With precise and rapid motions, he jabbed at the man’s pressure points using two fingers. Aki manipulated the pressure points, targeting one on the neck, another under the man's armpit, and one further down his side.
The man's eyes widened as he gasped and gurgled, looking back at Calvera. Aki grinned at the man, prodding his forehead with a finger to push him backward and onto the ground. The two men lay next to each other, neither dead but both unable to move. The blow to the head knocked the first man unconscious.
Aki now faced Calvera, who was staring in horror. The two men Aki had temporarily incapacitated earlier were regaining their composure and mobility. Calvera yelled and charged at Aki with his saber. "Take down my men and talk down to me?!"
Aki sighed and shook his head. He thought for a moment about pulling the sword from the cane. He decided against this, however. Killing or injuring this man wouldn’t be fair, wouldn’t be proper. He was a simple, misguided mortal. He lifted the cane up, holding it in a reverse grip. The wood thudded against the metal of the saber as Aki deflected and drifted to the side of Calvera.
Calvera turned to face Aki, keeping his sword at the ready. "Blind beggar, huh?"
Aki smirked, bowing to Calvera and making an exaggerated gesture with the cane. When he straightened, he realized Calvera had been joined by reinforcements. Four or five other men with red scarves rushed over, each brandishing their own sabers. They hesitated to attack Aki as he crouched over one of their paralyzed comrades. Aki took the opportunity to release the paralyzed man, who gasped for breath.
Aki reached the man he had knocked out with the blow to the head from the cane. He had already grumbled when he woke. Aki pulled a small pack of smelling salts from one of his sleeves and ripped the paper package open. He moved it over the man’s nose, which brought him from his stupor. He groaned and rolled over on his belly and fought to climb to his feet.
Once Aki was satisfied the man was fine, he looked up and looked at the rest of the gang that was there. Since their comrade was alive, and woke up, they decided it was time to advance on the cultivator. They moved slower this time. They took their time and advanced towards Aki cautiously and felt him out. Seeing how he would respond to their movements and advancement. Aki rolled his eyes from behind his sunglasses.
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At least they’re trying this time, he thought to himself.
Aki jumped up to the roof, landing smoothly. He grinned and saluted the gang from the rooftop, then made a run for it. When Aki had disappeared from their sight, the men rushed to help their fallen comrades. They helped get them to their feet and collect their fallen weapons. They left the man who could practically fly alone.
Aki continued running across the rooftops, he lept from one to the next, until he found himself on the other side of town. One perk of cultivation was his ability to run quicker than normal people and for long distances without tiring. He could channel mana through his legs, reinforcing them to run faster and further. If he had stayed on the ground, he could have outrun the men chasing him, but he chose to be a little flashy sometimes. He liked to play with the gang, who always bothered him.
Aki ended up on the red roof of the local tavern before he stopped running. He had the feeling that it might not be wise for him to stay in this town much longer. Now that he had confronted and fought the head of the gang that had been tormenting him since his arrival, he had escalated the situation. Aki frowned but jumped down and entered the tavern, moving his cane around slightly.
"Get out of here, beggar. We have nothing for you," the bartender immediately shouted at Aki.
Ignoring the gruff bartender, Aki approached the bar counter. The bartender was a short, frail man with salt-and-pepper hair and a matching handlebar mustache. He wore a rounded hat called a bowler, which was black, along with a black leather vest and denim jeans, similar to the standard attire in the region.
Aki overlooked the bartender's rudeness and approached the bar counter. He glanced at the bartender, a man known for his gruff demeanor. "Just one drink, sir. I even have a few coins for it." Aki took a few gold coins from his pocket, which he had stolen from the man he had paralyzed. Placing the coins on the counter, he looked up at the bartender with a hopeful smile.
The bartender eyed Aki before he waved off his nephew, a renowned brawler in the area who oversaw the bar along with his brothers and cousins.. The bartender, though gruff, wasn't the one to fear here. His nephews and sons, being considerably larger, often took care of the unwanted customers. Mana or not, Aki wouldn't want to test the strength of the imposing men.
Aki turned his attention back to the bartender and offered him a confident smile. "Just one drink, please."
The bartender harrumphed but then reached and grabbed a small glass, filling it with the rice wine he got from the traders from the east. He knew it was what Aki liked from the other times Aki had been in here in the previous couple of months when he could scrounge up some coins.
The bartender placed a glass in front of Aki, and Aki took a small sip. He frowned and sighed. These people never got good drinks, even their local drinks tasted like acid. Heaven forbid these people get something decent from the Empire. The tradespeople always kept the good stuff on their own shores. Aki mulled it over and figured he might just have to switch to tea, at least the ships brought over crates of tea all the time. He supposed, however, the tea might be awful too.
He stayed and drank his wine sip by sip and scanned the bar. Aki felt the presence of a man step up next to him. He felt the hostile intent coming from the newcomer before he turned his head and looked at him. Aki smiled and nodded, noticing the red bandana.
"Here for a toss with one of the working girls?" Aki asked him.
The man just leaned in and whispered into Aki's ear. "Come out back with me, and we won't have to make a scene. I know you took that money when you had me knocked out."
Aki eyed the man and was surprised he didn’t recognize him, but he was focusing on the leader more than on the henchmen. “Come, friend, let me buy you a drink. They have delicious rice wine here that comes from my homeland.”
Then Aki turned and yelled for the bartender when he felt a knife push into his side. “We aren’t having a drink, and you aren’t buying me any of that shit with my money. Now come out the back with me, or I will spill your guts all over the bar.”
Aki turned and looked at him and smiled behind his beard, giving a soft nod.
"And you can drop this blind man bullshit. I know you aren’t," the man said when Aki looked at him. "The entire gang knows you aren’t, so just stop."
Aki frowned. He had been rather sloppy about it, especially since he just got into a street fight with these ruffians. Aki had been in this town too long to keep the cover up for anyone who was paying attention. He felt the dagger push further into his side and even pierce the skin as he reached for the sunglasses and took them off. He ignored the feeling and went back to smiling. “Easy, friend, easy. I’ll come with you.”
He reached down to the man’s hand, the one that he was pushing the dagger into his side with. Aki looked the man in the eyes, and his smile widened. He squeezed the man’s wrist, cycling his mana through his channels to his hands. He didn’t go so far as to outright crush the man’s hand, but the gang member’s eyes widened, and he looked at Aki in shock.
He groaned out in pain. Everyone around them was ignoring the beggar and the gang member. There was a small band playing off in the corner, and there were people dancing around and being loud. On top of all of that, the working girls were keeping most of the men’s attention. No one thought twice about looking at one of the Old Ginger’s, giving the town beggar a hard time.
The man’s mouth was wide open, and he was trying not to scream. Aki squeezed his hand as hard as he could without crushing the bones in his hand. Aki still smiled calmly, looking at him. Aki reached up and poked at the man’s neck with his free hand. He poked a couple of pressure points on his neck, and the man passed out. The henchman’s body went limp, and he fell, crashing his head off the bar counter before he did so. The knife made a dull thud on the wooden floor, and Aki let go of his wrist as he fell.
Aki then turned and looked around at the people who suddenly were paying attention and started laughing loudly. “The Old Ginger boy couldn’t handle his liquor!” Then gave another exaggerated laugh and banged on the counter. The crowd laughed with him. They didn’t know the gang member wasn’t drinking anything, and they turned back to whatever they were doing.
The owner waved over one of his nephews, and the large man Aki could never remember the name of lumbered over. Aki was fairly sure it was Fred or Bill, something simple like that. Much like they were simple. Maybe one of them was Fred, and the other was Bill. Aki shook off the thoughts of what the twins’ names were when the one approached and threw the henchman over his back.
He ignored the knife, which Aki picked up and tucked into the belt of his robe. Then the twin lumbered out the back door carrying the man. He would just throw him in a dirt pile out back to sleep off the drunkenness everyone thought he had. Aki would have to push those pressure points once more to wake the man up. Eventually. Maybe. Perhaps.
He looked back around at the bar patrons and smiled and finished up his rice wine with a frown. Yeah, he should just switch to drinking tea. Then took another coin and set it on the bar counter as a tip for the bartender. Once Fred or Bill or whoever came back inside, Aki took his leave, exiting out the back door.
When he went out back, he looked around, and the bare area was empty aside from the limp body. A woman was washing herself in a large wooden structure meant for the horses to drink from. The area was just a plain fenced area with a little brown grass here and there. It had a small wooden structure that the owner and his nephews put their horses in while they were working. The woman was standing next to this structure, bathing herself.
Aki frowned and looked towards the sky. The sun was well past its zenith, it’d be dark soon. He shook his head and figured he might spring for a bed in the hotel tonight with the few coins he had left. They used these funny little hard coins as their currency here. All of them had distinct faces of different important politicians on the continent. There was a bronze one, one made from nickel, and then a silver and gold coin. They were all about the same size, and Aki had even heard there was some kind of paper money, but he hadn’t seen it. Only the very rich dealt with it.
He walked over to where the limp body had been dumped, at the opposite corner of where the woman was bathing herself. He held the cane in his hand, not bothering to use it since his cover was blown. Kneeling over him first, Aki checked to see if the man was even still alive. Checking the pulse at his neck, he saw he was and smiled. That was good. After the knock on the head the man took on his way down, Aki wasn’t entirely sure he’d still be breathing.
Aki held out his forefinger and middle fingers, holding them together, then struck at the same pressure points he had before. Hitting them with opposite timing he had before the man’s eyes fluttered open. He looked at Aki, who smiled and gave a little finger wave. The man scowled, but groaned at the pain in his head from hitting the bar counter.
"Yes, you must be in some considerable pain. I am sorry to have to add to it once more." Then Aki balled the same hand he used to relieve the pressure points in his neck and gave a swift punch to the man’s head. He was blown back with the punch, and his eyes shut once more as he drifted off into unconsciousness. "Sleep a little longer so you won't chase after me, though."
Aki sighed and stood up and rested the cane on his shoulder before looking around the back area of the tavern. The woman had gone back inside talking to more potential customers.
Aki left the back area of the tavern, out into the road. The back area had a small gap between a wall and the building itself to exit and come into. They used it for the working girls and the owner and his family. No one else needed to come back here for any reason. If someone came on a horse, there was a spot to tie the horse up out on the street.