The scorching sun was blistering. The heat of the desert returned after a day they both had left it. There were almost no signs of life in the wilderness. Only lizards and a flock of tutamits walking home.
Whoosh!
A shadow shaped like a turtle swiftly passed over the tutamit flock. The flock alternately looked up at the source of the shadow. But because of the sun's glare, they could only catch a brief glimpse of the flying figure.
In the sky, a flying turtle called a Perung flew rapidly, carrying two young men on its shell. The destination of this perung was very far, so much so that it had to pass by the school they had left the day before.
"I didn't expect us to move this fast! Good thing I didn't bring my hat!" said Micah. His hand gripped tightly the reins tied to the perung's shell. He couldn't bear the wind they continuously faced, distorting their faces. Fortunately, he was bald; he couldn't imagine what would happen if he had long hair.
"Yeah~ when I asked the remaining soldiers, they said this perung was the fastest. So I just chose it!" replied Rudi. His position was the same as Micah's.
Unlike Micah, Rudi had to endure his shoulder-length curly hair being whipped around by the strong wind, making it look like nine cat tails constantly flapping.
"Sounds crazy! But I like it!"
"Focus on riding this turtle! Don't let us fall!"
Micah was the one driving the perung they were riding. The main reason he did it was that he was the only one who could withstand the sun's glare thanks to his sunglasses.
"Okay! Okay! Okay! Boss!"
"We left Lydia alone in the city! Do you think she'll be alright?!"
"Relax! I trust her! If there's any trouble, Elia is with that girl! Not to mention that mercenary organization will also join!"
Currently, Lydia was in the city. Her presence there was to make the people believe in the new leadership of their makeshift country. The girl's mission was to convince the inhabitants that they were better than the feuding siblings at present.
"You know?! I'm still not fully convinced by those mercenaries! They could use this moment to attack Lydia while she's alone!"
"Are you underestimating Lydia?! She made the count and the 'eye' fled in rage!"
"Arghh~! I'm just worried!"
Micah's response was interpreted differently by Rudi. Unconsciously, he raised one side of his lip. There must be some romantic feelings in his mind. "Worried? Could it be that you...?"
"Hey! That's not what I meant! We're friends. We've sworn to escape from here together. That's our promise!" Micah evaded. His eyes turned forward again, staring at everything below like ants. "Moreover, I've sworn to myself since the first time I got here. I vowed not to let any of you die!" he added.
"That's why I won't let you guys take reckless steps like killing someone like an animal."
"Don't dirty your hands too much. We don't know how many people will want your lives if you keep killing."
"Your heads will become very valuable indeed."
Micah stopped talking. That was all he wanted to say.
It was the first time Rudi saw Micah so desperate. Micah, who was usually known to be brutal, now looked full of guilt. He bore the burden and responsibility alone.
"And you ask us to stay quiet while you kill?! Are you stupid?!"
Micah raised one hand to signal to stop. "I'm doing this for you."
"Th-then... we're having fun at the expense of your suffering-"
"That's what I want, you only need to kill those who are worthless (the soldiers and bandits), but don't kill those who are valuable (the generals, marshals, country leaders)."
"If that's the case..."
"Let me be the executioner in this bizarre world! Don't let you guys be the ones doing it. If you are forced to kill valuable people, then mention my name as the mastermind."
"..." Rudi fell silent. His mouth seemed sewn shut. His eyes could only look pitifully at the land that seemed small from up there.
***
A few minutes of silence enveloped them. They were in an awkward stillness.
But it only lasted a moment. Because right in their view, "Hey! Hey! What the heck?!" said Micah. In front of them was a village surrounded by soldiers in full armor with the emblem of a 'two-winged eruplion head' on their chest plates. The village was none other than the one Doris and her family lived in. And the soldiers raiding the village were undoubtedly Count Ingro an Thor's men.
"(Gripping Micah's shoulder) Fly low!"
Micah instantly knew what Rudi was about to do. He smiled broadly at his crazy friend's determination or recklessness. "Go ahead, Rudi! Make your entrance feared!"
Micah remembered well that these rebels did not use Sense Satusus to evaluate their enemies but directly from the information they gathered.
"Arghhh!" Rudi jumped off the perung and immediately tried to stab one of the soldiers trying to knock down a house.
The soldiers were instantly astonished, their heads looked up, seeing a shadow rapidly descending towards them.
"What is that?" The soldier about to become a victim couldn't clearly see the sharpness of the object carried by the black figure.
When he realized it, his eyes widened. He tried to dodge but was too late.
Slit!
The blade pierced his body, causing him to collapse to the ground.
Slash!
Rudi pulled out his sword and shook off the blood of the unfortunate soldier.
His blood stained the building wall. The soldiers' scenario was drastically altered by Rudi. The soldiers' mood instantly changed. They knew who was standing before them. Those who were once predators would become prey.
Rudi put on a human-faced helmet he had taken from the marshal. He showed how tough he was just by that stolen item.
"Th-that...."
"No mistake (using Sense Satusus)!"
Level 1, commoner, and no criminal records. The person in front of them was the one Bonta (Camel) said to beware back then.
"Rudi...?"
"Don't be afraid... He's only with his friend. Let's get him!"
"Are-are you crazy?! He could even slaughter soldiers in Sayejij City and the royal troops who came to this village!"
"That's if they're all three together! Now it's just the two of them! I'm sure the one who killed the most was the mage (Lydia)!"
"You're right ju- Ughhh!"
Just as they were talking, Rudi advanced with his sword and stabbed the soldier who was speaking.
"Damn! You think you're strong?!"
The soldiers started attacking one by one.
*Swing! *Slash! *Whoosh!
Their swords swung like they were dancing.
However many times they attacked, Rudi quickly dodged. He kept moving his body like he was in a boxing workout.
"Attack!"
"Alright, if that's what you want!"
*Whoosh!
As the stubborn soldier thrust his sword, Rudi grabbed the soldier's arm. The soldier's body was lifted and slammed hard.
*Bam!
"Arghhh!" the soldier screamed in pain.
*Slit!
Before the pain was over, Rudi immediately stabbed his sword into the stubborn soldier's chest.
"Get him!" Five soldiers attacked Rudi, who was still kneeling after the killing.
Rudi didn't feel scared of their arrival. He stayed focused and evaluated every soldier there.
'Which one should I take out?' the dark-skinned man thought without considering the five soldiers coming at him.
*Bang! *Bang! *Bang! *Bang! *Bang!
Just as the five soldiers were about to slash at Rudi, shots were fired from the air, hitting them all though not precisely. As a result, only two of them fell.
"Up there (looking up)!" a soldier shouted.
***
In the air, a perung was flying low, circling Rudi. On top of the creature was a man riding it, holding a pistol in his hand.
"Shooting from a perung is harder than shooting from a motorbike," said Micah.
***
Back to the ground.
Rudi quickly turned and slashed the three wounded soldiers with a single stroke. His slash was like a samurai in the movies, except he didn't need to wait to sheath his sword for them to fall. The three soldiers fell immediately.
Now ten soldiers approached him.
One soldier immediately jumped at him and locked both of his arms.
Soon, two other soldiers approached. They tried to slash Rudi, who was unable to do anything.
But, as they slashed.
*Crash! *Slash! *Slash!
Rudi reversed the situation, making the soldier locking his arms the one being slashed. As a result, the first soldier was the one who died.
"Argh?!"
"Damn! You're strong!" the soldiers exclaimed.
Nine soldiers left.
Five soldiers instantly changed their target to Micah flying in the air.
"We'll handle that fly! His presence is quite disturbing!"
Five soldiers left, leaving four who were confused by the actions of their five comrades. They knew they were actually fleeing from Rudi.
"Tch! Cowards! Sttt (whispering) You two...! This time lock both his arms... One person per arm!"
The two soldiers nodded.
Unfortunately, the same strategy wouldn't work again. Rudi knew where their attack was coming from.
When two soldiers tried to leap at him, he dodged and slammed one soldier to the dirty ground.
*Bam! *Slit!
In an instant, Rudi stabbed the fallen soldier.
However, it turned out to be the actual plan. As he knelt down after executing the soldier, another soldier jumped at him.
"Arghhh! Body Wall!"
*Thud!
Rudi's body was pinned down by the soldier's armor and fat.
"Arghh! Rock Body!" The previous soldier also helped, now two soldiers had successfully pinned Rudi completely.
Both soldiers used their skills to pin Rudi down. As an ordinary human, he wouldn't be able to fight against their heavy bodies.
"Now sleep!" The last soldier swung his sword.
*Smash!
Luck was on his side.
A giant perung swooped toward the three soldiers and crashed into them. The perung continued to plummet and hit the ground like an unmanned aircraft.
As a result, dust flew everywhere. Their vision was obscured by the dust from the perung's impact.
"Huh?! Micah?!" Rudi was anxious.
Micah was supposed to be the one riding that flying turtle, but why wasn't he there?
"No worry! No worry! No worry! No drama, I'm here!"
Micah stood behind Rudi. Their shoulders met as they stood back-to-back.
"Why you?"
"Three soldiers almost killed you and you ask~ why~?!"
The soldiers were returning. There was no time for them to chat.
*Someone grabbed the fabric of Rudi's pants on the thigh!
"Agh?!" Rudi turned quickly. He found a little girl clutching his right thigh in fear.
She was Floria. The fear in her trembling eyes was evident. She didn't know who to ask for help. The presence of Micah and Rudi became the only safe haven for her at that moment.
"Hey, Bloria!" greeted Micah, mispronouncing her name.
"Stay home, kid! I'll tell you when it's safe!" Rudi tried to get Floria out of the battle. It wouldn't be good if the fight was disrupted by the presence of the little girl.
Nodding once, Flora obeyed Rudi's words. She seemed to have more respect for him than the person behind him. The girl didn't even look at him at all.
"We need to find Doris and Sherry immediately!" Micah shouted loudly in Rudi's ear.
"I know that! But first...(looking at the approaching soldiers)..."
"I know...(loading bullets for round two)"
This time they were the ones advancing.