It was tranquil in the vast forest. From squirrels collecting nuts to put in their dreys, to birds flying high and circling their territory; everything was how it should have been. Not a single thing was out of the ordinary… except for a puddle. Just a single puddle.
Without anything touching it, the surface distorted like a veil being lifted. As the ripples intensified; to the point it seemed it would explode; a head poked out from it. Then, that head continued to rise until the person's full body was in view.
It was Rox. He had a slightly perturbed expression on his face, "Still can't get used to that feeling. The sensation of exiting that dimension of hers…"
After his entrance, two others emerged as well. First it was Simon and then Tot followed. They had similar looks of discomfort; being of a more intense degree than Rox as they'd never experienced Seme's ability before.
However, even through trying to become acclimated to the sensation; they were focused, noticing Rox standing a few feet away, waiting on them. They quickly made their way over to him.
Simon was the first to speak, "Seme wasn't coming, right?"
"I don't think so." Rox responded.
"Well how are we supposed to find the base?"
"That's a great question… I have no answer for you."
A sigh of disappointment spilled from Simon's lips at his senior's reply. Tot didn't seem to be bothered however. His face was as straight-laced as ever.
"Either way, I need you two to listen to me very carefully." As Rox spoke, his two partners were looking at him intently. Their complete focus was on him.
"Buld has a deadly blessing. The more he's feared, the more powerful he becomes. Meaning, he intrinsically feeds off of it. I have no doubt his subordinates fear him, as he's a terrifying and unpredictable individual. Also, those who pledge their loyalty to him are given a brand. It ties them to him. If he were to get severely wounded, because of the brand he could transfer the wound to one of his followers instead."
"He sounds like a problem boss." Simon said as he rubbed his chin slowly.
"Yeah but that isn't all. As you know, Claire has a blessing that nullifies the abilities of others. She fought Buld a couple years ago. Even after deactivating his blessing, the man was still a force to be reckoned with. Her reports likened him to a demon, how he would just keep pushing forward even with broken bones and damaged organs."
"I see. And can he use chi?" Simon asked, his face expectant for whatever answer he'd receive.
"No, he can't. That might be the only advantage we have over him. At most I could see him using it subconsciously but a couple years ago he didn't have knowledge of it. Also, he wouldn't have had time to learn about it in the holding cells of purgatory."
Tot had been quiet during the discussion so far, letting Simon and Rox carry it on themselves; but now he spoke, "I see. Well what's the plan, Boss?"
"Simple. It's not going to be easy though."
The two men, simultaneously said, "Fine by us."
Rox released a small exhale, "I need you to hold off the rest of his men. It would be better if you could kill a good amount as well."
"Because of the damage transferring right?" Simon questioned.
"Precisely. It would take some work off of my plate but I can't guarantee Buld's followers would be weak. It won't be easy. "
Tot chuckled lightly, "When have we ever wanted things to be easy?"
A smirk formed on Rox's face, being out of his control. He nodded, "Fair enough. Well, you know the drill. Fight until you can't any longer!"
"Right!" The two shouted in unison.
"Are you all done yet?" The sudden light-toned voice caught all three adventurers off guard. They raised their guards before turning to the source.
A couple feet from them, in a wet puddle was a woman's face. It was one all had seen recently; Seme. Her head was poking out from it, a somewhat devious smirk on her face. She must have been pleased to have startled the group.
"Oh, it's you… What do you want?" Rox asked, his tone flat and almost cold.
"I just had something to tell you," Seme said as she stepped out of the puddle; her full body was now visible. "I did recon and there are about thirteen no names following Buld. The direction of their base is ahead, I can show you if you'd like."
"Well at this rate you might as well pitch in and fight with us."
Hearing Simon's quip, Seme swiped her nose somewhat bashfully, "No can do. Orders from the top lady forbid that." She paused, before widening her eyes and tilting her head down slightly, "Also, you wouldn't want a cute girl like me to get hurt would you?"
It seemed Seme was trying to be…cute? No… convincing? Either way, it didn't have an effect on any of the three adventurer's. Simon's face scrunched up in disgust at her fickle attempt at avoiding duty. Tot simply squinted at her, unable to mask his confusion at the sudden personality shift.
Rox just released an indignant sigh at her response, "Fine. Show us the way, also you should be addressing Larouge as The Height."
Seme skipped forward, having a bright expression on her face as if she hadn't heard his words. "Follow me, creeew!" She shouted enthusiastically.
Much to their aversion, they obliged. The path to Buld's camp wasn't super complex, but it was possible Seme having already scouted made it somewhat quicker to reach it. They were a meter or so away, crouching behind some bushes to see the outside of it.
The appearance looked like that of a town or common village, with a single dirt road leading into it. From their current distance, several buildings could be seen.
Rox soon realized this may have been one of the places that Buld and his group had cleared out. Previously, when first being given the mission Claire had told him that Buld had been killing several innocent people.
Buld's group must have wiped out the residents completely or at least those who didn't want to serve him; before taking over the town for themselves.
Rox felt a slight prickle on the back of his neck. He turned to his left, Simon was there, his face bristling with anger. He must have had the same conclusion Rox did, but unlike Rox who was neutral and calm; he was clearly furious.
Just as he started to say something, Tot placed a hand on Simon's shoulder. The man perked up, locking eyes with his fellow party member. Without having to trade words he understood what the man was trying to convey.
"I know…" Simon grumbled, "Don't let my emotions get the best of me."
Tot, being satisfied, lifted his hand from his shoulder. Rox spoke, "So, as we don't know Buld's precise location the best course of action is to run in blind."
"Sounds good." Simon retorted. Tot nodded silently in agreement.
Seme suddenly spoke, "Weeeeell, it seems like you guys have it handled so imma leave now." She then slowly started to walk in the opposite direction.
"Seme."
Hearing Rox call her name, the girl froze in her tracks. She turned around, her bright pink irises carrying an eerie glow due to the shade granted by the many trees planted around the group. "Yes?"
"Make sure you're ready for when we come back. It shouldn't take longer than a few hours."
"Sir, yes, sir." And with Seme's last words, she gave the man a sharp salute. Then, as if she was never there, she dashed off.
"She's really fast…" Simon said under his breath. It felt like he blinked and she just up and vanished.
Rox rose to his feet, pulling his spear from his back satchel. He whipped his head around toward the front entrance, "Let's head in."
"Right." Simon replied, pulling twin daggers from his belt. Tot raised his hands, pulling the straps on his gloves tightly.
The group started walking down the main dirt road that led into the town. All three had their guard raised, being mentally prepared for everything. As they entered, it didn't even take a moment before someone called out to them.
"Ah, look who it is." Further up ahead, someone was walking toward the group. Simon tensed up, holding his twin dagger tighter. He could sense danger from the aura of the individual in sight. Rox and Tot both sensed it as well, however they maintained their stoic composure.
It didn't take long for the person to be visible. A man, dressed in what could only be described as dirty rags was approaching. From head to-toe, he was wearing worn and torn clothing. The only thing that appeared to be decent quality were two diamond earrings that were clearly stolen; given his background.
The man's appearance; in contrast to his dirty exterior, was very clean however. He had deep gray hair; thick eyebrows and black eyes. He had a twisted smirk on his face; a quirk he couldn't have stopped if he wanted to.
He had his hands in his pockets, his stride a mixture of confidence and laxity. His eyes darted over all three of the adventurers as he drew closer and closer to them.
The man, not getting a response yet continued to speak, "Rox. One of the seven A-Rank adventurers! What a pleasure."
"I can't say the same for you."
"Fair enough. To be honest, I was hoping Larouge would have sent that girly after me. Or better yet, come to capture me herself."
Rox clicked his tongue. He whispered, "Tot, make sure you're looking out for other men." And then he stepped forward; being set to intercept the ragged man's path. "I think there's something you're missing here. I'm not capturing you. I was sent to kill you, Buld.."
The man paused for a moment, his foot in the middle of a step and reaching the ground. His eyebrows were raised. If it weren't for his lips which were curled into a smirk; he would have looked surprised. "Interesting." Buld said, "and you're going to do that with… just you and two no name adventurer's?"
"Exactly." Rox responded sharply.
"Hmm. Well, if you think you can give it a try." The man leaned his head forward antagonistically. He was practically begging for Rox to lunge at him.
Rox knew this, but he had no reason to hold off. If anything; it was advantageous to strike now; even if he had some kind of strategy or trap lined up. The instant he'd been assigned this mission; he had steeled his resolve.
Rox, without another word charged forward. He outstretched his spear; aiming for the man's neck but at that exact moment, he felt a chill run up his spine. In a sporadic manner, he withdrew his spear before leaping backward.
Now, Rox stood back where his fellow party members were. A second later; a chuckle fell from Buld's lips. "Guess you have pretty good instincts." Following the man's words came something no one would have expected. Buld's image started to become distorted; inconsistent. It only took a second later for him to completely fizzle out; like that of a candle flame.
"A blessing…" Simon muttered to himself.
"Where are you hiding?!" Rox shouted, his voice echoing throughout the otherwise silent town.
"You'll have to find me!" The voice of Buld rang out; however it wasn't clear where it came from. "Also, no grouping up. It's not fair! If you stay together then I'll have no choice but to run away."
"This is insanity!" Simon hissed.
"So we just have to wander around and hope we find you?"
""Fine, so you'll stop complaining, I'll give you a hint. I'm either at the North, West, or East positioning inside this beaautiful town. Have fun!" With that, Buld's voice which flooded the ears of the three adventures ended. It seemed, that was all he wanted to tell them.
Rox scoffed, "Ridiculous."
Simon stepped closer to him, "Boss, are we really taking this guy at his word? He's insane you know!!"
"At this point, there's not much of a choice for us unfortunately. It's better to be led by the nose or stepping into a trap than risk him actually leaving; wreaking havoc on another town."
Simon looked as if he wanted to protest more, but Tot voiced his thoughts first, "Fair enough. We'll handle business, like always."
"Thank you. Just make sure that if you happen to run into Buld you call out to me. I'll be there in under a minute. I'm sure with your strength you could hold him off for at least that long."
"Understood," they said in unison. Rox reached his hand out, closing it into a fist. Tot and Simon followed suit, and the three of them bumped fists.
There was much more he wanted to say. While, at the end of the day, the three of them were warriors and saw many battlefields, combat scared him. The fear didn't come from the possibility of his own losing, however. It was the risk of his party members' deaths.
He had known them for years, scouting each one of them. Tot had been with him the longest, as they grew up in the same mountain tribe village. Over the course of many years, several missions, and even more battles of life and death, he had grown to see them as his family.
A family he never truly had, growing up. Even through his worry, beyond that feeling that clawed at his stomach; concern, there was nothing he could do. He had to trust and believe in them, just as they had believed in him countless times before.
At the end of the day, he knew there was only one word he could say to them.
"Win." He meant it from the bottom of his heart.
"YES BOSS!"