DAKU
A cacophony of destructive explosions deafened our ears as the magic persisted to deliver successive arsenals. The ground shook as the thundering sound of destruction roared the plane. Miss Hanaka embraced her daughter as tight as she could while weeping out of extreme fear and immeasurable worry. Kenshi and I flanked the two, with me guarding the back and Kenshi on the front.
Brows furrowing and clenched fists, I watched the scene turn into a one-sided battle. Kenshi couldn't deliver his offensive for a few reasons: the culprits were nowhere to be seen, and his class as a swordsman was useless against these long-ranged attacks. If it weren't for the doe who shielded us, we'd probably be dead by now.
"We have to do something. I don't think it will last any longer," Kenshi announced, referring to the doe, and he was right. The doe had shown signs of fatigue. It was just a matter of time before her magic collapsed.
"But what can we do? I can't even fight; even if you can, you are nothing to these attacks! Once you leave the barrier, you will be bombarded by magic!" I disclosed.
He'd find my words slightly stingy, but it was the truth. An experienced swordsman knew damn well that long-ranged mages always had the upper hand unless one could outrun the magic.
Kenshi hissed, and I watched his fist clenched even more and his right hand gripped the sword tighter. He was frustrated, that was certain, and I was too. This was the very reason I wanted a class meant for battle so that I could do something in circumstances such as this. What can a Healer do? Nothing. That was why Healers were meant to be placed at the rear.
The dreading moment had finally come. The doe's barrier started to deteriorate, and the assault remained unchanged. It still sent destructive power one after another. All four of us were helpless.
"I'm going out! You know what to do!" Kenshi declared.
"Kenshi, no—"
Kenshi's body glowed yellow, a sign of a defensive magic being activated. He jumped out of the barrier without hesitation and was swallowed by the clouds of dust and smoke that the explosions had created.
"That idiot!" I cursed as I searched for him through the smoke. I looked for him, squinting my eyes, but even his shadows were unseen. "Where the freak are you? How am I supposed to heal you if I can't see you, dumbass!"
The barrier fluctuated once again, and the doe's signs of tiredness were evident. I felt pity not just for her but for Miss Hanaka and Kana as well.
"Come on, Kenshi, make it fast," I prayed, returning my gaze to the blocked horizon. I looked at the doe again, but it could collapse anytime. Suddenly, she raised her head, followed by the expansion of her barrier. The barrier spread throughout the plane disabling the magic and clearing the smoke and dust it hit along the way. In just a blink of an eye, everything went silent and vivid.
"Huh? What happened?" Miss Hanaka inquired as she wandered her eyes around her.
Strangely, the doe vanished. She was no longer on her spot, only her hoofprints. What happened to it? Did she drain herself to death?
"Mister Daku! It's Mister Kenshi!" Kana screamed as she pointed her finger somewhere.
I followed the direction and was wide-eyed, shocked to see Kenshi knelt on one knee with his sword as his support. His breaths were deep and heavy, and I could see countless burns and wounds on the exposed parts of his body.
"Shit!" I cussed and pointed my hand at him. His body glowed green, and his injuries gradually healed. A while after, Kenshi was back on his two feet.
"You're still alive even after those magics?" a voice said.
Human figures came out of the woods one by one, flanking us four. The count was more than twenty; that estimate alone could tell we were outnumbered. Kenshi swiftly returned close to us while I spread my hands as a gesture telling that I would protect these two.
"I don't know how you survived the ambush, but we'll make sure this time that no one, except us, will be left alive," a bald man with an axe stated. "But, of course, let's have some fun first."
Two swordsmen walked in front, wearing sinister grins and bloodlust intent. The way they looked at us told me that they would not hesitate to kill us.
"Stand back, Daku, and protect the two. I'll handle the fight myself," Kenshi whispered, to which I totally agreed. Between us two, only he knew how to fight. I may have had the guts to fight, but I was not dumb. I knew pretty well that engaging myself in a fight with less-to-none battle experience was stupid.
"And I'll handle the Healing for you," I offered. If there was one thing I could do at this moment, that was to heal him if he got injured. That was the least I could do to secure ourselves a victorious win and survival.
"To make this battle fair and square, you are prohibited from using your magic," the bald man declared. Out of nowhere, a string of white light suddenly appeared on both of my wrists, resembling bracelets. But these were not just ordinary bracelets. If I were not mistaken and based on what the bald man said, this magic would nullify all magic I would conjure.
"This isn't fair at all!" I protested and was about to charge when Kenshi held out his hand and stopped me from my action.
"Don't worry, I got this," Kenshi reassured, thinking parts of me were shouting that this would not end well for him. I could see trickery and mischief in that man. All of them knew that win was already on their side in the first place.
Kenshi attacked first, and it happened in just a blink of an eye. He was so fast that my eyes failed to see how he got himself behind the two bandits who presented themselves. This astonished his opponents, even the bald man. A look that said they didn't expect Kenshi to be this good.
Kenshi decapitated the two in just one swift movement of his sword, and I couldn't help but feel disgusted with the scene. This was my first time witnessing such a gruesome scenario, and I was not prepared for it as if my stomach had turned upside down and wanted me to throw up every content of it.
Miss Hanaka covered Kana's eyes while she closed hers. I, on the other hand, could not do the same because I had to watch over Kenshi. I needed to keep my eyes on him and ensure he remained unscathed.
"Kill that man!" the bald man commanded, and three more people came to fight: a swordsman and two mages.
The swordsman briefly glowed yellow as support magic was conjured upon him. Support magic enhances the target attributes depending on the magic used. Yellow was for speed; thus, this swordsman had boosted swiftness, which was a strategy to match Kenshi's quickness.
The man launched itself toward Kenshi just to get stabbed right through his abdomen. He left his body wide open giving Kenshi the opportunity to deliver an attack without sweating. The two mages were on high alert after watching their comrade fall into eternal slumber until one of them was so frustrated that he conjured several fireballs to fire at Kenshi. The other one followed suit and sent crackling lighting magic.
Kenshi vanished into thin air and transported himself just below the front of the two. Kenshi swiftly pulled two daggers out of nowhere and pierced them under the heads of his opponents into their skulls. Only the handles of the dagger were left visible as the blade rested within their heads.
"Weaklings! Let me show you how to do it right." The leader held his giant axe with both hands and confidently approached the battleground. His complacent sneer was evident, as if he knew he would win. "Any last words?"
"Rest in peace," Kenshi mocked, earning a scowl from his opponent.
"Likewise."
Kenshi engaged first using his swiftness. In terms of speed, swordsmen were much faster than axe-weilders. The weight of their weapon played a significant role in speed and endurance as it would affect the delivery output. Heavier weapons compromised the speed; thus, Kenshi would do just fi—
"Too slow," the man stated, orienting his axe to block Kenshi's attack. Kenshi was caught off guard while the man grinned mischievously. Kenshi quickly retreated a few paces back and stood in a fighting stance. Looked like my conclusion was a mistake. "I may have the heaviest weapon among us two, but this is not just a weapon. A fighter knows that a weapon is an extension of himself."
"Enough with the talking, and let's get this over wit—"
In just a flash, the bald man was now behind Kenshi, who was in a state of shock at what had just happened. Even I didn't know how it happened. He did the same thing Kenshi did earlier. He was fast.
"If you say so," the man whispered, swinging his weapon toward Kenshi.
"Kenshi!"
The axe's blade made contact with Kenshi's back armor, releasing fiery sparks and bloodshots. Kenshi gasped upon impact and fell flat to the ground. My eyes gaped as I witnessed the scene before me. The cut the axe made went through the armor and opened a wound. I stared at Kenshi's unconscious body, unable to move.
But then, an inner voice telling me to go to Kenshi broke me out of the trance. I quickly ran towards Kenshi, ignoring the threat and the risk I was putting myself in.
"See! That's how you do it, you incompetent bastards!" the bald man announced. "That's right. Hold him close so I can kill both at the same time. Hitting two birds with one stone."
Those words were meaningless to me right now. I didn't care what he just said. I was too focused on Kenshi's wound, which was bleeding nonstop. It was long and slightly deep, and leaving it untreated would drain him out of blood, killing him.
"Mages! Aim for the mother and the child!" commanded by the bald man.
This time, I looked at him with pure rage while he showed a face of satisfaction and malevolence. He lifted his axe above him, about to deliver a blow when suddenly, a sharp object made of glass, no, it was ice, shot through his head.
I was in wide eye as I watched his weapon drop and rattled on the ground, followed by his body. Then, a succession of thudding noises ricocheted throughout the plane as the bandits fell lifelessly one by one. Confused about what happened, I looked at Miss Hanaka's direction to see if she was the one doing it but discovered something else.
A hooded figure in robes stood close to Miss Hanaka and Kana. An opened grimoire glowing in a tint of blue levitated before them as if announcing that they were behind the bandits' demise. Although I felt relief that our former enemies were no longer a threat, my fear lingered with this stranger before us. They might be a friend since they saved us, but he might also be a foe who just wanted the killing for himself.
The hooded stranger faced my direction, intensifying my anxiety. I could only see the lower half of his face, and based on the white beard surrounding his mouth, I could tell he was a man, probably in his 50s or 60s. I flinched, closing my eyes as the stranger moved his hand, waiting for the next thing to happen. I readied myself for the most painful death.
"Sage!" Miss Hanaka uttered, bolting my eyes back open.
I looked back at the stranger and found out he had removed the hood he had on earlier. I was right. He was a man in his 50s with deep blue sea-colored hair tied in a messy bun.
"You're safe now, Miss Hanaka," the stranger said. Or should I call him Sage as well?