Chereads / Myth of the Forest / Chapter 23 - Greed? (Bagani.)

Chapter 23 - Greed? (Bagani.)

The room echoed as the mummies splattered into pieces. Hunks of gold and jewelry came bursting out of the monsters and rained upon the two. Bagani raised his hand and wondered. "Jewelry?" His head swindled as he looked around his surroundings. "Hey before your friend was captured, what was your main goal in exploring this forsaken place?" He asked in suspicion.

Santos pulled the cloth sack out of her pocket. A whoop hits the wind as the bag ascends from her side. She crouched down and started to gather all the valuables on the floor. "Loot of course." She mumbled, a jade necklace inside her mouth. "Isn't that the point of dungeon hunting?"

A mist clouded the air. Bagani gritted his teeth and started to breathe heavily. He looked at the girl with utter despise soothing out of his eyes. "You filthy bastard..."

Santos looked back at the Asulhero and squinted her eyes. "You best shut the hell up, recruit..."

Bagani clenched his fist. Using his full force he slammed his hand against the wall. "I don't know who Nogerto, or Noeltro, or whoever the hell is, but let me tell you one thing, you greedy tramp! You don't sacrifice anyone for gold..."

Santos's eyes widened up. She briskly walks towards Bagani with killing intent, stiffly holding her dagger as she steps foot just an inch from Bagani's face. Santos held up her dagger towards the Asulhero's neck, just in a point in between grazing and stabbing. "I would stop talking now if I were you."

A soft glow of blood-red light shines at the back of Santos as she makes her speech. Bagani activated Dugo without the lady noticing, only activating its power to an extent where he is still able to carry it. He aimed the blade at the back of the opponent's neck. "Or what?!" He groaned at her with complete irritation rumbling down his throat. Staring at her intensely with a gaze as of that of a reaper.

The young lady took her dagger away from the vital point of the Asulhero. She bit her lip in the annoyance of the young man. "Tsk." Her vision whitens as she remembered the hardships shes gone.

[15 years ago]

The cruel sun shines upon the small village of 'Bagundiwa'. The dry fields of the village made it almost nigh impossible to farm on the said terrain. On that harsh deserted place lived the unrelenting soul named Santos. Swimming in sweat, she planted okras, eggplants, basils, and other plant life in the desert to help provide for her family. Along with her was her father, Capistrano. A man with dark black hair, amber eyes, and rich brown skin. He is a cold man who does what he has to do for his family's wellbeing. Her mother, Osorio, is a sweet middle-aged woman with a lightened brown hair, a pair of ink-black eyes, and a rich brown skin as well. Pregnant of a son soon to be born, she was unable to work alongside her family on the field.

Capistrano looked at Santos with fatigue in his eyes. He let out a menacing look, but with no intent whatsoever. "Santos that's enough." He huffed as dehydration slowly got the best of him. "Take the camel and sell all of these at Magbato. Trade it all for wood and most importantly water." He carried a basket filled with goods to the transportation animal.

"Yes, Itay." Santos politely answered and followed her father's order.

Through the dusted desert, she rode a camel whilst carrying a basket full of vegetables and fruits to sell at Village Magbato. The scorching heat of the sun darkened her skin day by day as she traveled. Santos kept a smile on her face even though harsh conditions. The innocent brain of a child made her tougher than any other merchant who traveled the vast land of the desert. She reached Magbato in no time. Setting up her little shop in the middle of the village, she was loved by the villagers and the kinnaras' that lived within.

"Four bundles of Okra for two pennies! A juicy eggplant for one!" The kid advertised the villagers with her cheap prices and large quantities of food.

The townspeople amazed by the child and her offer, couldn't help but to purchase from her.

"Hello sweetie..." A grandma approaches her and bought a couple of goods.

"I'm going to take five of those."

"How much was it again?"

"Here have an extra little buddy."

The villagers acted very nice towards the little girl. At the end of the day, her entire stock was sold. Money overflows from her hand. She decided to keep it inside a pouch and buy necessities, along with food water from a nearby store.

"Are you sure you want these much water?" The storeowner asked.

Santos nodded.

"Okay then." He gave her buckets of water.

The flimsy arms of the little girl made it impossible for her to carry a single bucket. With a deep sigh, the storeowner decided to help her put it on the camel's back for easy travel. "Are you all set?"

"Yeah." The little girl replied. She quickly rode off the city while the sun was still up. As the cloud darkens, Santos reached her home unscathed.

Capistrano rushed out of the door along with his wife to welcome back his daughter and help with the gallons of water she brought back. "Did I do good dad?" She huffs.

Osorio smacked Capistrano on the arms, signaling him to let his daughter rest. "You buffoon! Let her lay on the bed!"

The middle aged man carried her one and only daughter back to his bed, letting her sleep early after a hard day's worth of work. "I promise one day I'm going to make it up to you..." He whispered to the ears of his slept child.

"Santos run!"

A clouded up trauma disorientated Santos's memory.

"Get the hell away." A vision of a complete bloodbath boils down to her memory. Her hands were covered to dirt. A short vision of Capistrano fighting for his life.

"I-Itay..." She groaned.

Capistrano grabbed her shirt pulling her towards him. In his hand was the dagger. He stabbed Santos's arm, with a spell he cast ancient magic into the the thing and Santos for them to become one. "Take care of your mother for me..." Capistrano closed his eyes.

[Present]

Snapping back to reality, Santos looked around in dismay. The sword of the Asulhero was still behind her neck as she huffs continuously in trauma. Bagani then looked down on her, he sheates both his swords and walked forward once again. "You can take all the loot you want. It's not my job to do this but I will prioritize this Bernorto guy first."

As the Asulhero strolled through the dungeon, he felt a presence following him, watching his every movement as he walked by. "You can come out now." He stated with a frown on his face. Slower than speed of light, but that did not matter. Darkness enveloped the room, Bagani went to a state of panic as the suffocating air filled his lungs. He screamed in pain echoing all over the tomb.

Santos turned her head. "Idiot!" She threw her dagger forward, speeding up her travel as she ran. "This is why we train newbies first Isiah..." She grunted.

The entire tomb shook. Boulders of rocks fell from the ceiling, shutting the exit and other path ways within the dungeon. Unlucky for Santos, she teleported towards her dagger which was blocked form the other side. She breathed heavily in fear of the situation, sweat started to drip from her back as she tries her best to clam herself down. Her heartbeat pumped more than she could think with every second passing by.

"Guess it's up to only me again."