Ryuma slowly let go of his hold. He didn't realize how close he was getting to the young girl. Sure he played with her whenever her mom was out. But she captured his heart as much as he did hers.
Be that as it may, he couldn't stay here and frolic like he previously was doing. He needed to learn the ways of the surface world, and he felt like he got enough of it to traverse by himself. Staying here would be a betrayal of his promises.
"Maruna. I want you to be a good girl now. I can't come back to crying children. You promise me you won't cry anymore after I leave?" Ryuma asked.
Maruna sniffed and wiped her tears. She tried her best to hold it back. "You promise you'll come back?"
"You promise me you'll stop crying?" Ryuma asked.
She nodded her head, though her eyes were still red, and the stains were still on her cheeks, she struggled to keep her mouth from quivering.
Ryuma smiled. "There we go. When I get back, tell me what you want to do and I'll do everything in my power to make it happen,"
It was a deliberate attempt at making the girl not think about him leaving now, and to get her to start thinking about him coming back.
"I want Ruma to play with me and the fairies again," Maruna said.
Ryuma stood, held her hand, and started walking down the road. "Play with the fairies? Is that all you can think about? C'mon. You gotta think more creative than that. How about something else?"
Maruna put her tiny fingers up at her mouth. Hard as she thought, she couldn't think of something that Ryuma could do with her. With her mom making enough money to sustain them, she never had the opportunity to think about things that she could do.
"I want to eat a Cinna stick," She said.
"A Cinna stick!" Ryuma thought on that. He's had some of them before at prior festivals in the Rebble Sky island. He just didn't know if they made any commonly down here. "Is that all!? You supposed to go even bigger than that," He encouraged.
Maruna's mouth was left slightly open in wonder. She then began smiling when she realized that he was allowing her to do anything. "I want to ride a real pony!" She said.
"Now we're talking! I will find you a pony," Ryuma said. Though he was sure the girl would be satisfied if she rode with him on horseback. Probably even more ecstatic.
"I want you to take me to a festival!" She said again. This time her face was shining brighter than it ever shone.
"Ha-ha! Definitely. The Sky's the limit," Ryuma said.
This was him simply boasting for now, but one day, he'll accomplish all of that. He'll change how this world is operated and they can enjoy all the pleasures in life this world had to offer. With Maruna, he wanted to change the entire foundation of her mindset. She can dream of things other than the bare minimum down here as something more than a luxury.
If children have the ability to enjoy life up there, then it should also be happening down here as well. Their standard of living will have to upgrade in order for them to see it. Maruna's will just happen a littler earlier than everybody else.
The girl began ranting off everything she wanted like a kid who can pick out as much candy as she wanted.
Ryuma smiled with his cheesy smile and looked forward. His face paled at the sight before him.
There were two people coming down the road that they themselves walked. Not just two random people he's never met. It was the two in the inn he worked at. The ronin with the tied here and the scar on his face. A young man accompanied him right around his own age.
Both of them looked rugged in their own particular way.
The older one looked more battle warn and mature. His hair was still black and he wore it in a spiky ponytail.
The younger one had a wilder look about him. His hair was sharp and stopped at his shoulders. The smile of his teeth looked as sharp as piranhas.
He sensed absolutely no spirit force from either of them, but even so, he felt like the two were dangerous opponents. Not to mention, he had Maruna with him. Taking them on would be unfavorable even in the case if he were by himself. He couldn't allow anything to happen to her.
{That's right. Maruna!}
Thoughts of the girl immediately calmed his nerves and forced him to fix his face. He didn't want to scare her.
He turned towards her giving her a warming smile. She was still rambling about the things that she wanted without a care in the world.
"Maruna!" Ryuma called out.
Maruna stopped talking for a few seconds and looked up at his smiling face.
Ryuma realized that she was walking on the inside of the road, closest to his two opponents "My hands are getting a bit sweaty. Come and grab my other hand," Ryuma said.
"Oh… Ok…" Maruna said. Though she didn't get it, she followed Ryuma's orders without question. He guided her in front of him and crossed him towards his other side so that he was closest to the two.
Maruna looked up at him as if something were off.
{She might not understand but she's perceptive for her age.}
Whatever the case, this wasn't the time for that. He was tense as he had to have his guard up just in case. Both warriors had two scabbards on them. Were they both duel wielders?
He was now put on high alert. Sure enough, these weapons needed a scabbard, a weakness the spirit users never needed. He can just summon his weapons out of nowhere so he didn't have that encumbrance. This time was different. If they truly meant him harm, then they have the advantage of a sneak attack as they crossed. They could probably draw before he could react.
No matter what, there's no way he could summon his katana's just to safeguard himself. That'll put him in even more danger. He'll have to take a chance with fate and hope they don't attack.
Maruna stared up at his expression again. "Ruma. What's wrong?" She asked.
"Nothing princess. I just have to check for the big bad monsters from time to time," At least it wasn't a total lie.
Both duos were nearing each other. With every passing second Ryuma felt more in danger and exposed. The tension was high and it became more quiet.
This was it… the moment they passed each other on the road
It felt like time slowed as his heart raced a mile a minute. With every step, it felt like they could attack at any time. Ryuma has never felt such pressure from just passing somebody up. It was almost soul crushing. Were these really just mere surface dwellers?
They finally passed each other without incident. However, as long as their presence was felt, Ryuma could not relax. Even with Maruna looking at him anxiously he couldn't just fix his face. He didn't want to drop his guard for even a moment with his back turned to them.
"Halt Kosha!" The older one demanded.
Ryuma stopped walking when he heard, though he still refused to look back.
"Something wrong master Taishu?" The young man known as Kosha asked.
There was a slight pause. "Draw your blade," He ordered. Without question, Kosha popped his blade out with his thumb and pulled the rest out by his other hand.
It was at this point Ryuma knew he was screwed. He was going to have to fight these two. He slightly turned to look at his new opponents.
He knelt towards the young girl with him. "Maruna… Do as I say. I want you to go home without me right now. Listen to the fairies. They'll protect you. Don't tell anybody that you've seen me. Remember, it's our little secret,"
Maruna looked between him and the other swordsman. It'd seem, she picked something up. She hesitated but ultimately let go of his hand. She turned to leave but stopped to check back.
"Now Maruna!" Ryuma said with a little more force.
"Ok…"
The meek little girl didn't want Ryuma to raise his voice at her, so she left without any further complaint. Ryuma didn't mean to scare her in any capacity, but he was in front of dangerous opponents.
"You telling me this guy right here?" Kosha asked. He raised an eyebrow. "He's not much older than I am. He doesn't even have a weapon with him master,"
"Looks can be deceiving. This one right here is from the Skylands," The Ronin said.
Ryuma inwardly cursed. He saw Maruna disappear in the direction of the town. She should be safe if she came back and forth on her own all this time. However, it looks like hostiles had detected him for whatever reason.
"Kosha. Today, you're going to learn how to kill a basic Skylander with your sword skills alone,"