4
Fight like Hell II
Arnum stopped training to take a drink of some juice and breakfast which was provided for him. After a while he realized he hadn't taken a shower, so after eating his food he went into the bath house and got himself clean. After all the training, he noticed some muscle definition had developed on his chest and arms. He was a pretty skinny guy but seeing himself bulk up a little bit was a welcome surprise. He washed himself off and dried his body. A fresh set of clothes was given to him and he walked out. He decided to discard the armor since he only had it out of fear that he would be mortally injured. With the training he got, he shed it and gained a level of confidence. He didn't see Clara waiting for him and asked where she was. He was told that she was in the bath house. Since he only recently left he assumed she couldn't have gotten undressed already. He opened the door.
"Clara? Iー"
"What the hell are you doing, idiot!"
Something hit him square in the face, and he was sent flying back. Clara held a towel over her body and she walked out with her hand held outward. She had just shot out a ball of mana. Her cheeks were as red as a tomato and she had the face that radiated ceaseless hatred. Her brow furrowed, her eyes shooting daggersーno, swords into the heart of Arnum. The boy slowly got up and shielded himself in case another attack was ready for him. He looked over and saw that she was already back in the shower. A sigh of relief escaped him and he scratched the back of his head.
"Should have knocked." Kristopher spoke up, looking over at Arnum. Another sigh escaped him and he walked over to Kristopher, who he just decided to call him Kris to make it easier for himself. He knew someone with the name Christopher who called himself Chris so he applied that same thing to his own teacher, who did not mind it as a matter of fact.
After waiting for Clara to come out, the three finally resumed their training, but the heavy steps getting louder stopped them. The guard yelled for the three, "After today you must stop training! Multiple casualties have been reported in the forest. We assume that the Black Beasts have plans to attack! Tomorrow we shall think of a plan! After that, you may have time to rest!" The guard then ran off. Arnum looked back at Kristopher and Clara in shock.
"Damn! I thought a week would be enough time to train. Okay then… Kris, please teach me all you can before midnight." Said Arnum.
"Me too!" Clara added. The two stared at her master and he sighed. Kristopher complied and the three began to train harder than even before. An exasperated breath was released from Arnum. It finally struck midnight. Their training, although cut short, was completed. The two bowed their heads at their master and went inside the house. Clara and Arnum sat down on the couch and looked down at the ground in deep thought. Arnum couldn't help but think that he still wasn't ready. Only half of his locks were removed. Clara had removed all of hers. He could not understand the reason why. He put his heart into getting them all undone, but the sixth one did not budge. Arnum looked over at Clara.
"You think you're ready?" He asked.
"No. I don't. Even after everything I don't feel ready. Not one bit." She answered.
He did not want to hear that. That was not the answer he expected.
"Dammit. I guess we have to roll with what we have."
Arnum stood up and went to bed, and so did Clara. The next day, although it was not the day to set out, was still something they had trouble coping with while trying to sleep. The new dawn had arrived, and the two prepared for it. They took showers, put on new clothes, and walked out into the living room. Guards surrounded it, Kristopher, along with Camille and Karl, sat down and discussed the plan of attack. The two made their way to the couch and sat down. Arnum stood in silence while the four continued to talk. Their voices had been drowned out as he went into some intense thinking.
"I can't believe this. I didn't expect to be doing this already. Maybe I should have started training when I first got here? No, I still wouldn't have had enough time." He thought to himself. His train of thought finally focused on the matter at hand. As he listened to them, he thought of plans of his own. None of them seemed to work. He stood up.
"Whatever plans you have, we have to strike at night. That's the only way of giving us a small chance of success. I have no idea what else should follow, but I am open to ideas. I can only give that bit of advice in this situation." He sat back down. In war, going out at night was usually the most common way of attacking the enemy. Fighting while your enemy is asleep and cannot see properly as most advantageous. Considering the details given to him before, the Black Beast Clan consisted of a band of humans that took control of the monsters that inhabited the caves and the surrounding forest.
If they had gotten used to the darkness, then that would not be good, and their chances of winning would have become nonexistent. They could only ride on this fact the best they could. It was easy to figure that the caves were lit with torches if they couldn't see in the dark. That meant that they had another factor to consider. If they could douse the torches then the odds could stack in their favor. Everything amounted to stealth. That's the best thing they had. "The element of surprise…" He said.
The four had decided to elaborate on Arnum's idea. At the end of the day they decided to attack tomorrow night. There, Arnum would be given the sword that Karl had promised him, and he would be given a task force to assist him. Clara would be with him and Kristopher had decided to assist them. Everyone had dinner together and prepared themselves for the next day. Karl and Arnum had left after eating and returned to the chamber that held the sword he was shown a few days ago. Karl opened the case. He took out the sword, and revealed that under the red, silk cushion, a scabbard was hidden. Arnum slid the sword into the scabbard and held it firmly in his hands. "Does it have a name?" He asked.
"No? Why? Who names their weapons?" Karl responded.
"In my world, the most legendary and renowned weapons had names…" Arnum closed his eyes, and smiled. He opened them, and drew the sword, showing the black blade once again.
"Susano'o no Mikoto." Said Arnum. Karl tilted his head. "What kind of name is that?" He asked.
"He was a god. Japanese mythology described him as the god of the sea. The sword doesn't really remind me of anything like that, the name just sounds cool." He said, letting out a small chuckle. Karl sighed and the two left the chamber. Everyone went to their beds and rested as much as they could.
The next morning was one of dedicated preparation. The guards suited themselves up with their best armor, their best weapons, and even some mages who got word of the possible attack in the village came by to assist them. Most of them were mages who used support magic like healing magic and magic that helped enhance the defensive and offensive capabilities of an individual. Some did have weapons of their own to help with fighting those that got too close to them, but they showed signs that they had no idea what they were doing with them. Arnum walked out to the back of the house, Karl still next to him as he had something else to show Arnum that was of importance. There was a watchtower that overlooked the forest behind them. He went up the stairs and stood at the very top. Karl told him to look out for something, but it was Arnum's job to find that specific thing.
It wasn't that hard to spot it. It only took a little while before he found the cave in the mountains. The boy looked down and nodded in confirmation that there was something there. Like Karl, he felt something stare back at him. It wasn't some beast, it felt like something completely different. This made him more uneasy about going out at night. Arnum gulped down his saliva and walked down the tower. He went back inside and sat on the couch in the living room. Kristopher sat there as well.
"I'm sorry to say this, but I doubt that I'll be able to go through this without using my magic. I'm only saying this because whatever is in there… might be too much for even you, Kris."
Kristopher darted his attention to Arnum. "What? Are you completely certain?" He asked.
Arnum nodded. He did not want to let him down easy. This was the harsh reality of things. He did not want it to be this way, but he had no idea if just his skills would be enough. Arnum wanted to train a bit more with it but considering Kristopher asked for him not to, he did not have the time. If he was backed against a wall, he knew he had no choice but to use it. Something about it felt powerful. Arnum would meditate in the backyard to see if he could do something about his locks. He decided to put everything he could into this to at least get read of one more lock. A sweat bead ran down his forehead, his eyes seemed to have been welded shut with a furrowed brow. "I… I need to get this done. Without getting rid of them all… I can't fight whatever is in there. It felt like something that came from the deepest layers of hell. Something demonic resides in there."
He could feel it. He did not know how he could tell, but it was his gut telling him. Arnum would trust this feeling. The boy continued to put as much concentration as he could into this, feeling like something was about to pop as he went further into this.
Something inside of him was reacting… it too stared back at him. It was like a novice thief trying to break into a vault guarded by trained soldiers. One wrong move and he felt that something would go horribly wrong. Something more sinister than whatever he felt in that cave was looking back at him. Without a single moment of hesitation, he stopped trying to remove the locks. He was sweating bullets, and his breathing became heavy. He stood up and sat down in a chair. A cup of water was given to him and he chugged it down. He still was not entirely sure of what he saw, but he grew worried of himself. He waited until nightfall, and he would walk out into the main hall with the guards, the mages, and Clara who stood next to Kristopher. Arnum was given a sash, which he wrapped out his waist and slipped his scabbard in to hold it in place. He was given a set of light armor that fit his form quite well. It was a standard breastplate equipped with greaves and gauntlets. After a bit of last minute planning, the group set out for the forest, with the cave as their real target. They figured that the forest was littered with monsters, so they wished to dispatch those as quickly as possible, thinning the herd as best they could.
A team of five guards took lead of the group. As they moved further into the forest...
The presence in that cave got stronger and stronger. Arnum could feel it, and so did Clara and Kristopher. Karl walked up to the window and looked out to the cave. Somehow, at the same time both Arnum and Karl thought the same thing...
"They know we're coming."