“Was all that necessary?” Hudson said, frowning.

Mr. Swordsman withdrew his blade from the mercenary’s back. “Indeed, they had a chance to flee, but they did not,” Hudson eyed him. “You chased them.” “No, I didn’t.”

Hudson sighed as they stood in the woods, a few miles away from the city gate. Five mercenaries lay sprawled on the ground, either dead or unconscious—Hudson preferred not to know which. He watched as Mr. Swordsman rummaged through the bodies.

“They have some nice stuff,” he said, throwing out the watches, ornaments, and purses of coins.

Hudson arched his eyebrow. “Hey. Are you stealing from the dead guards?”

Mr. Swordsman stopped his search. “No. They are still alive. See, this one is breathing,” he said, pointing at a random mercenary.

“I never knew you were always like this”

“Always like what?” Mr. Swordsman asked in a strict tone.

Hudson turned away. “Pay it no mind. Apologies Mr. Swordsman”

The mercenaries were still breathing, and they were carrying some valuable items. It might not be enough to make a church rat filthy rich overnight, but it could at least buy a decent meal. Mr. Swordsman used most of his money to treat Hudson to a satisfying feast.

“We need to hurry,” Mr. Swordsman said, as he carefully placed some items into a small pouch strapped to his waist. “If these gentlemen are correct, we have a problem.”

Hudson remained silent.

Mr. Swordsman wiped the dust off his palms. “Your boss and his comrades are still here, and to make matters worse, he’s on his way to the volcano right now.”

Emilia and Pasta were also in the city. Who knows what will happen to them? What was he doing here in the woods? His mission was to protect those two, not some boy he met half-dead by the riverside. Going back and getting them was a bad idea. Tony would have activated the eruption by then, and he wouldn’t be able to stop it. Lost in thought, Mr. Swordsman sorted through the bodies for valuables. To him, stopping Tony was a necessary move for his own survival, as well as for Emilia and Pasta. The town and the realm held no importance to him.

“So, do you think it’s a good idea to scavenge the people you killed for their goods?” Hudson whispered, folding his arms.

“I told you. They are alive. Also, I was thinking about our situation”

“What is it?”

“This is a good idea. An excellent one, in fact. There’s a whole camp up ahead. Fighting them head-on may be suicidal since we don’t know their strengths. So ideally, it’s better to strike while their forces are divided.”

“You are just looking for an excuse to kill more”

“What do you take me for and I told you they are not dead?”

Mr. Swordsman gazed out at the highlands, where faint sounds of battle reached his ears.

“What is it?” Hudson asked.

“There’s a fight. Let’s go, Hudson”

*

The lovely forest sounds pleased the ears and soothed the soul with the harmonious chirping of beautiful azure birds revelling in their late morning bath. Gentle leaves fluttered, carrying along the earthy aroma of wood and loam, not discomforting, but rather leaving behind a sense of belonging, or of hope. It was a beautiful day for a stroll. Yet, a force within the forest sheltered itself from the captivating beauty of the forest, also letting out its unsettling chill, scaring away the woodland creatures. She held her scythe tightly. A path forked in front of her.

“Which way was it?” Tori muttered, her breath uneven. She had spent the entire day lost in the labyrinthine forest, and now for the third time, she found herself at the same fork in the path, near the same shimmering lake. Tori felt like she had been in a similar situation before but could not remember exactly when. Time was of the essence; she had to reach the volcano to thwart the mercenaries and, afterwards, claim the treasured gift from her grandpappy. This lone thought was the only thing preventing her from demolishing the entire forest.

Tori heard voices coming from the bushes. Peering in, she saw a camp below filled with armed men. These had to be the mercenaries. She felt foolish for not noticing them earlier. She had passed this route three times without realizing that the people she was intending to confront were right under her nose.

“They are a lot of them though,” she commented, converting her scythe back into its baton shape. “Fighting them solo is a bad idea”

Voices echoed behind her, pulling her attention away from the camp. As she turned, she withdrew her head from the bush, only to witness a bizarre sight—her old man, her Grandpappy, burst from the undergrowth, stark naked and astride a crying bull.

“Let’s go, men!” Andy screamed.

Tori stood in silence. All life drained from her when she saw that unsightly human. She didn’t even pay attention to the other naked men running past. The first one had already done so much damage to her soul that the others couldn’t compare.

“Aren’t you Andy’s kid?” Cumbleton, the only dressed man asked, waving his hand across her face. He sighed. “I’m sorry. I’ll make sure he put on some clothes.”

Tori’s face was now out of colour. “O……K”

Cumbleton patted her on the head. “Look, your grandpappy is pretty something. Beating up those mercenaries at the resort is no small feat”

Tori glared at him. “What did you just call him?”

“Grandpappy. He said we should call him that”

“We?”

The women emerged from the bushes, clutching their weapons as they ran, their ample bosoms heaving with every step. “Grandpappy, wait for us!”

Tori, feeling embarrassed, stepped aside to let them pass and activated her scythe, giving Cumbleton a stern look.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

“He’s my grandpappy. Not any other. I’ll show those girls,” she said, jumping off into the camp, and leaving Cumbleton behind.

“There’s no need for that,” Cumbleton said, still in shock. “What a strange family”

*

Matthew cleaned up his wounds, paying no mind to the hot steam wafting from the nearby bath. His stomach had been battered. He wrapped a bandage over it, reminiscing about the old days at the bar back in Kanto. Life was peaceful then. Fame, money, and women; Matthew was about to have it all. With Ragnar’s strength and influence, their ambitions seemed within reach. But everything crumbled in a single night. Matthew was both glad and annoyed that the swordsman didn’t die back at the meat shack; he did want to kill him with his own hands, after all.

Matthew examined his gloves, making a few precise adjustments. Though not particularly adept with technology. He had studied abroad for this kind of thing, which was rare given the fact he came from a closed nation. According to the other mercenaries, this was also the reason Lord Tony had given him the weapon in the first place.

The force generated, like a strong gust of wind, was now three times stronger than before, though at the cost of a longer reload time. To counter this, Matthew grabbed a sword to make up for the additional time, even though his sword skills were amateurish.

“Matthew!! We’re under attack”

A voice from outside yelled.

Matthew wore his brown jacket, revealing his bandaged stomach. He stepped outside and witnessed a group of naked men, both young and old, accompanied by women in indecent clothing, assaulting the mercenaries.

“What th-. Get all the manor workers to safety quick,” Matthew commanded. A great first move on his part. Lord Tony would murder him and his comrades if anything happened to his precious workers.

The battle was clearly one-sided. Despite the mercenaries having a variety of weapons, they found it challenging to deal with the sight of naked attackers, particularly the women. Some of them, unable to hold in their thoughts, rushed toward the women, ultimately leading to their own downfall for a brief, yet inappropriate, gaze.

Matthew snarled. “What sort of men did Lester leave me with?”

“Looks like you got your hands full, young man,” Gordon said, Mary hiding behind him.

“Oh, You’re the guy from the carriage. You should join the others. It’s too dangerous out here”

Gordon smirked, twirling his pan. “Yes, this is a dangerous situation so let me help,” he said, pointing at Andy. “That appears to be their leader. I’ll take care of him.”

Matthew glared at Gordon. “What about the lady?”

“She’s with me. Mary is not that fond of this, also she won’t just let me go”

Mari pouted. “I’m not going there without you. Matthew’s right, it’s too dangerous”

“So let go of me then”

“No”

Matthew sighed and walked away, waving. “Knock yourselves out, love birds”

*

“Hey it’s the guy who stole our bull”

“Yeah that’s our bull old man”

The mercenaries charged in, and Andy swiftly smacked the bull’s rear, controlling it to kick them.

“He’s my bull. No one’s getting him off my hands,” Andy declared.

The bull’s tears didn’t stop running down.

Andy watched two people walked to him. A dark muscular guy holding a pan. Must be a chief. Is he the one preparing the food here? Andy wondered, hoping to have a bite or two before beating up these youngsters.

“I see you are a seasoned warrior, one unyielding to notions of shame and indecency,” Gordon said.

Andy smiled, getting off his ride, and smacking it to sit on the floor. Mary covered her eyes from seeing something on the heights of improper.

“I feel the same. You look like nothing I’ve seen so far. Are you perhaps their boss?”

“Can’t say. How about you? Are you perhaps the one leading this assault?”

Andy chuckled. “Can’t say”

Gordon released Mary’s hold from his shirt. “Interesting. I thought you were”

Mary eyed Gordon. He was talking differently. He sometimes spoke in an odd manner, but now somewhat reasonable.

Andy stared, asking. “What made you think that kind sir?”

“Just a feeling,” Gordon said, taking off his shirt. His well-toned abs. “You are of age, well ironed in battle”

“I thank you for the compliment. Now shall we begin our little duel?”

“A duel you say. May I have the honour of knowing your name?”

“Call me Andy”

“Gordon”

They eyed each other while the battle between mercenaries and degenerates occurred in the background.

They clashed - hands to pan. Andy and Gordon tried to push the other back but instead released a tremendous force, the air crackling with power.

Matthew watched as Lord Tony’s remarkable cook skillfully held his ground against a formidable opponent. Gordon was no ordinary chef; he was once a warrior who had fought on the front lines defending the Ninth Realm. but now he had turned to his passion for cooking and gained fame, eventually being hired by Lord Tony. After being relieved of his duties, he pursued his newfound passion for cooking, earning fame that eventually led to his being hired by Lord Tony.

“You’re strong,” Andy complimented.

“I try not to show off too much but you’re handling it well”

Andy shattered the floor beneath his feet and grabbed Gordon’s hands, using the force Gordon exerted to propel him forward. Andy threw him, demolishing multiple tents in his path.

Mary screamed, running towards Gordon. She searched the demolished tents, but he wasn’t found.

Gordon rose from the rubble.

“You’re alright Gordon. Let’s go, it’s too dangerous”

“I knew it. You’re strong,” Gordon said smiling, “Now it’s my turn. Potbelly”

“Who are you calling pot belly-“

Gordon dashed to Andy at a great speed and smacked his face with a frying pan. But he was stopped. Cumbleton held the pan, his eyes furrowed into slits.

“Cumbleton? What are you doing here?”

Cumbleton tossed the pan, “Are you alright, Andy”

“I’m fine. Thanks for the help,” Andy gave a warm smile.

Cumbleton sighed and leaned into Andy’s ear, whispering to him.

“Oh dear,” Andy ran towards the demolished tents, rummaging through them.

Gordon grabbed Cumbleton. “What is going on here, Cumbleton? Why are you helping that old pervert?”

“Long story. He’s a friend of mine,” Cumbleton said, watching Andy. “Have you found any?”

“No, no, no. This is so bad!!” Andy exclaimed.

Cumbleton shook his head and sat on the floor. “I see you are doing well, Miss Mary”

Mary nodded. The battle was still ongoing. Cumbleton had searched for Tori, but she was nowhere to be found. After she dashed to the camp, she disappeared.

Matthew sprinted through the camp, using a small amount of force to knock out the invaders. He didn’t find it a pleasant task since it was too easy, and killing them would bring nothing but the disgust of killing a nude person.

“Finally found some. What do you think, Cumbleton?” Andy asked, wearing a chest plate and shorts.

“Well, anything is better than nothing, so I guess it’s fine”

Gordon sat on the floor next to Cumbleton.

“Why are you friends with such an odd man?”

Mary sighed. Both are equally odd. If this wasn’t a battleground, they would have become close friends.

“I was asked to look after him,” Cumbleton responded.

“By whom?”

Before Cumbleton could respond, a strange, familiar energy surged through the air. Matthew clenched his fist and sprinted toward the source. The workers also became concerned as they peeked through their tent to observe the battle.

“Hey, Hudson, you’re on your own,” Mr. Swordsman said, throwing Hudson in the air and cutting through Matthew’s force blast, creating a sandy smoke screen. Matthew dashed into the smoke, aiming for a swift cut through the swordsman’s neck, but was stopped by another blade.

“Oh, it’s you from the bar. What brings you here?” Mr. Swordsman said, blocking Matthew’s strike.

Matthew grinned. “Yes, you are the same fucker”

Hudson landed on the floor. He could hear the sound of battle through the sandstorm.

“Hudson?”

He heard his name, the voice gentle and familiar. He removed his hoodie and strolled out of the mist.

“Master Hudson!”

All the workers rushed to Hudson. Gordon gazed for a moment and tossed his pan aside. Tears streamed down his face as he exclaimed, “Master Hudson!!”

They all clustered around him, their tears falling on him. Hudson attempted to hold himself together, but he was already susceptible to this.

“I miss you all,” he cried out.

Occupants on the battlefield were confused about what was going on and ignored it. The resort customers continued to smack the mercenaries with sticks. It was no longer a battle, but a fun activity.

“Master Hudson, where have you been? You got us worried”

“What happened to your prestige suit? I’ll have Unma make you another”

“Hey Master, you promised to play some cards. Let’s play”

“I thought you died”

They all kept talking, and Hudson couldn’t recognize which voice belonged to whom. Suddenly, they all got up from him. What had happened? Were they mad? Hudson saw the smiles on their faces and realized that he did recognize a familiar voice.

“Hey Hudson,” Mary said, waving.

Hudson’s eyes widened. He rushed towards her and gave her a tight hug.

Mary pushed him aside, flushed. “I miss you too,” she said, giving him a playful punch to the chest. “Welcome back Master Hudson”