The sword lashed out in a matter of seconds and he only saw the ending tail of the attack miss Fu Hua by inches. Darn, he was still too soft on the other but it was concerning too.
The other had not dodged his attack at all, not even made an attempt to do so.
"So you are back, kid. What brings you here? After all, are you not too late to save this place and me? And now you are not even paying any attention to me which I find insulting" Xiao Lan felt himself being pushed behind.
In the end, Fu Hua had not blocked his attack because the Hinoe uma did that for him. Xiao Lan felt his blood boil at the scene but he had to control himself.
He could not prove the other right by behaving roughly. He had to tell her straight that he valued his kingdom and she could kill Fu Hua if she helped Xiao Lan by taking his place. However, it did not look like the other really wanted to kill him either.
"Sorry, it was not my idea but I was also powerless to stop her. The only thing I could do was to follow her and try to talk her out of it all" The other's words painted the picture of a free person in Xiao Man's mind. The other could have walked away anytime but he chose not to.
"Your highness, please don't shift your priorities right now. We are here to take down Hinoe uma right now. Fu Hua can wait" Commander Yuhan was the first to see the situation change and he also knew what Xiao Lan had been thinking.
As such, it fell on him to diffuse any bomb that may arise as a result of all this. He was a failsafe raised to accompany Xiao Lan since birth and he might have been late in letting the other than Fu Hua but he was no less loyal than the other.
He had seen his friend fall and he had seen him rise up as well. He did not know Fu Hua's reasons (because there had to be one there) but he would not allow his friend to fall apart again. He had to be the only to lead him down the right path.
His words doused the fire inside Xiao Lan's eyes and they cleared right away.
"I want you to give me another chance. I swear on my honour that I will prove myself this time. If you still feel unsatisfied then please take me instead of my kingdom. I need you to spare this place" Since things had arrived at this situation, Xiao Lan could feel the bitter truth of this situation.
He would be neither able to win, nor kill Hinoe uma without divine water and they had none. They were doomed if she decided to attack and nothing less than another heavy being would be able to stop her rampage. This was all but just a taste of things that would come later in the year.
"Oh, you are willing to bend yourself beneath me now? Why should I believe your sincerity child? What has the human race given me except to condemn and hate for me to spare you now?" Although the female did not sound angry, she surely was angry with them now.
Her words were clear and sharp.
"Please give us a chance. I beg of you as well to allow us to prove ourselves. Even we deserve a chance to make amendments" Fu Hua joined his pleading which Xiao Lan noted with faint humour but this time the female actually paid attention. There was a small hint of disbelief in her eyes which did not match up with any reason in Xiao Lan's mind.
"Even you, huh. I should have expected it of you but skill-. Alright since, one last chance. I will give you one last chance to price yourself and even allow your companion to join you but if you fail you will fortify your companions' life to me" Hinoe uma bargained and Xiao Lan agreed this time.
He could see Fu Hua walking closer to him and the frown on Hinoe uma's face darken just a little bit before she schooled into a more neutral expression.
"One week to find the thing my first owner left behind. I will be generous enough to give you a hint as well, he lived in the 'unforsaken lands'. As for me? I'll wait around here for a week before I leave so if the villages divide to come back then you understand what will happen to the right?" The fiery female asked as her hands sparkled with fire.
"Thank you for this chance. We will be sure not to disappoint you this time" But the woman had already turned around before Xiao Lan could finish his apology.
Somehow, things turned out to be alright in the end. They had a week now, a week to search and prepare for the incoming doom that was the weather of Hinoe uma. But right now Fu Hua was back on his side and no one had died. The property damage was something they could have a look at later when they had time to do so.
"Let's go and tell the villagers that this place is no longer safe and that they should look for a new place to live in the meantime" With that, Xiao Lan and the company decided to head back to the temple complex where the town people were being held.
… … … … … … …
Detective Song had decided to stay with the villagers but for him, it had been easy to make decisions that secured him his life. He would not have to fight the fire horse nor would he be expected to perform in any way.
This time when he arrived at the temple complex he was ready. His magic was jot strong but it was technical enough to dispel the magic barrier around the space in front of him.
The scenery tore itself to rearrange into the real form of the space and Detective Song felt lucky that he had avoided the fate this place had befallen.
The whole landscape seemed to have been destroyed by fire and lightning, no doubt a handiwork of Hinoe uma. Detective Song did not need to be anyone great to see the power difference between mortals and the divine when they were unleashed and he somehow understood the decision of the one trying to gather their power.
Had detective Song had the courage, he would have tried to gather the power for himself as well but he was too scared to act.
So he could only take these small tasks that kept him out of danger but we're still significant enough to land him in the ruling party's company. It has been a carefully calculated place he had ended up being in and it had taken tremendous effort on his part.
"Alright, now drop the spell. How did you go about it again?" A single snap of his finger and the spell around those villagers fell like a curtain after the final show.
Their conscience came around slowly and most of them had the same expression they made, of confusion and less awareness.
"Holy, what happened to this place? Are the priests alright?" The inn owner of his stay asked the question as he came about. The burned landscape scared him and also brought forth a lot of questions in his mind.
And he wasn't the only one who was confused. Everyone looked equally confused and torn at the space around them. They had not expected this outcome and most of them could only. Remember laughing at a joke someone had made about fire and burning.
"A demon burned this place down and then decided to head toward your village next. The Royal family interfered and now they are dealing with it. However, we cannot allow you to go back to the village till it is not safe" Detective Song's words were met with a look of disbelief by everyone because the fire was something they no longer feared.
But the wise among them also realised that the talisman that protected them was issued by the temple and if the temple had not even survived then there was no hope for their homes to survive either.
They all seemed to break down around Detective Song and he could do nothing but watch them go through this. They would overcome this, he had no doubt in this fact but it would take time and care which he could not provide till this situation continued.
Once again, he could not help but curse his lack of strength and the situation.
Then he looked up all of a sudden because the detective was sure he had eyes on his person. Someone had been observing him, he felt those eyes on him like a sharp knife but no one met his gaze when he looked across for it.