Kai looked at the maid and tried his best to not show any emotions.
Her face was pale and she looked to be straddling the line between lean and malnourished. It was different from the body he was in which looked to be well fed.
Her lips were wide open without moving for a few long seconds as she tried to gather the words.
The silence seemed to stretch before she remarked, "Lord Arzan, there's… there's blood on your clothes." Her eyes lingered on his chest where the blood was clotted.
She spoke in Manakrit, he took note of the name she called him with. The language was familiar, but the accent was different than he remembered. Though, it seemed like he was really in a noble's body.
Arzan. I guess that's what I'm called now.
He didn't have time to ponder about it as he needed to deal with the situation at hand.
How was he going to handle the maid that had popped up out of nowhere? If he was even a 1st Circle mage, a sleeping spell might have done the job, but he didn't have that option right now.
"I'm not hurt," he said with a commanding tone. "You don't have to worry about it."
The maid's eyes went towards the ritual circles and the mess that was on the floor and Kai felt a headache creeping up. There were better ways to deal with it, but he was used to spells doing all the hard work.
Now, he was without them.
"Still, let me go find Cleric Jo—"
"No need to."
He cut her off. He wasn't sure if the body owner was open about his "hobbies", but either way, he wasn't about to expose himself to any Clerics who might think of him as a dark sorcerer and try to get the church after him.
From the maid's shocked reaction, it didn't seem like she was privy to his hobbies.
Before she could ask any questions, he shot a question at her, "What are you here for? You didn't even knock on the door."
Kai hadn't been a noble, but he knew they didn't like to be disturbed and had sets of etiquette.
The maid's eyes went wide the moment he asked the question, "Lord Arzan, I'm sorry, I should have told you this beforehand, but there's been a situation in the estate."
"What kind of a situation?"
"A mana… mana weaver has appeared! Guards are trying to fight it, but I thought I should inform you."
The urgency in her voice was all he needed to know.
Mana weaver. That can be bad if it's highly corrupted.
"There's no mage around to deal with it?" he asked in a questioning tone.
"We knocked on the doors of Mage Actra, but he kicked the maids out, telling them not to disturb him. A few guards set off immediately to get Knight Killian, but we don't know if he would be able to get here fast enough."
He frowned and considered his options. Even in his current state, he could think of a few tricks against a mana weaver and he doubted whether the guards would be able to handle one, especially without an Enforcer or a Mage helping them.
"How corrupt is it?" he asked and the maid stared back in silence.
"Uh, I—I don't know."
He sighed as the maid cowered in front of him. Not wanting to waste any more time, he made a decision.
"Okay, give me a minute. Stand outside the door."
The maid obeyed his words. He opened the drawers and saw fresh clothes that were neatly folded inside.
He rummaged through the stack. There was a wide range of tidy tunics—tunics made of wool, and linen, all richly embroidered, and several tunics that were made of silk.
It was obvious that the garments were made for a wealthy man. He grabbed a tunic from the stack and a pair of pants along with it.
Kai wished to wash away the blood from his body and take a bath, but there wasn't any time for that.
As he walked outside, he saw that the maid was waiting for him. She bowed to him as he exited his room and came into her field of vision.
"Take me there," he said and let the maid guide him.
Kai wasn't familiar with the estate, therefore he let the maid lead.
Without waiting further, she started to walk briskly. Every step was hurried as she turned to walk through the corridor opening that was outside his room.
Kai silently followed her, taking quick steps one after another. He looked around as he walked, trying to observe the place. Since the corridors were quite narrow with only dim lighting that came from the torches, his sensitivity heightened.
She took a turn to the left that led down to a staircase. His eyes wandered around.
It looks to be a household with a history.
The walls beneath the stairs were filled with pictures and weapons. The weapons were, in fact, quite the sight. From different sizes of swords, staffs, bows and arrows, and javelins to small throwing knives and boomerangs, the collection was massive.
The paintings and weaponry assemblage expanded for two more floors, and they finally halted in front of a narrow path. It had a similar setting to the corridor they had encountered previously.
The path was quite dark, even though it had a few lamps here and there.
The maid turned to her side, allowing Kai to move ahead without her. Fear was prominent in her face as she looked at the passage.
Kai heard shrieks and cries through the trail. He stopped in his tracks as he realised that the attack was taking place just around the corner. The screeches got louder along with the noises of metal clashing.
"Stay right here," Kai said and walked ahead. It was only a few steps inside when he reached toward the metal handle of the wooden door. Light suddenly blinded his eyes as he pushed it open.
It was the courtyard.
As his eyes slowly adjusted to the light, he noticed that there were some workers and a few other maids, trembling with fear watching the scenario in front of them. They were backed to the corner beside the door.
Kai moved past them to observe the guards in front of a massive water fountain.
They were trying their best to control the Mana Weaver, but without the help of a Mage or an Enforcer, their attempt wasn't going to lead to success. There were already a few guards on the ground, injured and bleeding.
Strangely, the maids hadn't run away but were too scared to interfere in the battle.
Soon, the maids who were hiding behind the fountain noticed him.
"Lord Arzan, please don't get close to that monster. He's corrupted!" A maid who was among them yelled across the courtyard from behind the fountain.
"Stay back!"
"Please don't go in there!"
Murmurs and mumbles spread from everyone as their attention turned towards Kai.
He ignored them as his focus was stolen by a specific man who seemed to be the centre of the fight. The man wore a torn guard uniform and had his hand tightened around the throat of another guard. With his other hand, he aggressively pulled a guard towards himself. That was when Kai saw his hands.
The fingers had turned to claws, but the arms were still human. Dark lines scaled up on the arms, showing the extent of corruption that had taken place.
It was a mutant— a mana weaver.
It lifted the guard off the floor and continued to press the claws to the sides of his arm. In return, the guard could only bash the shield against Its head, desperately, in the hopes that It would let go of him.
The noise of the metal banging filled the air.
The guard yelled in pain. The blows from his shields only got weaker and he dropped it on the ground.
The mana weaver threw the two guards rolling on the ground. Its moves were swift and unpredictable, as It quickly rushed towards two more men and threw them across the floor.
"Argh!" A few more guards advanced, covering themselves with shields. As the mana weaver turned around to face the guards, Kai got a better view of how It looked.
The weaver's face was gruesomely disfigured, half morphed into a corpse and the other half, human, engraved with fresh scars. Its face itself was enough to make little children and grown men cry.
The scars went beyond Its face, extending to Its hands.
The entire thing looked like It was straight out of a nightmare.
It looks to be at the first stage. I might just be able to do something.
Kai observed the mana weaver and weighed his options. If It was already fully transformed, then he doubted anyone would be able to save them. Maybe, the Mage that the maid had talked about, but he didn't know how strong he was. For all he knew, they could be a Novice Mage.
For now, he had to deal with it and although there was risk involved, he knew he could pull it off. Otherwise, people were going to die.
He ran towards an injured guard. Blood was oozing from his sides. Kai carefully sneaked past him and picked up the shield that was lying on the floor.
The shield didn't seem like it would protect him from a lot of blows, but he just had to get close to it. Controlling his breathing, he calmed his rapidly beating heart.
This body doesn't seem athletic or it would have been easier, Kai thought to himself while trying to manoeuvre around.
He closely observed the weaver's movements and looked for any opportunities to attack.
Taking calculated steps ahead, he patiently waited until he was just close enough. When the mana weaver tried to slash at a guard, Kai ran forward.
The mana weaver didn't see him coming, and as footsteps echoed behind it, the monster turned back only for Kai's shield to come into contact with its head.
With a yelp, the mana weaver was on its knees. Kai's hands tightened around the shield as he once again landed a blow on its head, hitting the same spot, again and again.
He attacked the side that still looked human-like and blood started dripping out of it.
A dual-toned cry pervaded the air, as the mana weaver emitted a raw, visceral painful scream and an otherworldly lament at the same time.
It leapt forward, slashing at his face and Kai protected it with his shield just in time before kicking it away.
It cried, staring with a vicious glare at him, but Kai didn't give it any time. With the adrenaline rush powering his movements, he charged forward.
He hit the weaver once again, putting all his strength into that blow.
The mutant fell on the floor, holding its head.
"Hold It!" Kai yelled loudly as three guards came running. They held the monster by its shoulders, and their legs strapped to the sides of its abdomen, keeping it in place.
It wouldn't stay still for long.
He saw the corruption inside its body spreading. The weaver struggled on the floor and Kai could see through a small gap in its eyelids that the eyes were starting to turn black.
A newly transformed mana weaver's strength was almost double that of a normal human, and the guards barely managed to contain it.
He knew he couldn't use his usual magic, therefore, he had to try something else. A technique that had long lost its meaning with the rise in strength of mana weavers, but here, it might just work out.
After all, the transformation didn't look to be older than a day.
Kai walked around and grabbed the mana weaver by its throat. His thumb searched the back of its neck to find the exact nerve.
There it is. With sturdy fingers, he pointed his index and middle finger and pressed right on the nerve, in an attempt to put it to a slight slumber.
The mana weaver tried to pull its hands out of the guards' grip—the claws opened and closed. It tried to grab the guard to its left.
Kai pressed until it hurt, but soon, the mana weaver stopped struggling.
He took a step backwards, a bit drained out of energy and looked down. This body wasn't used to moving much and it was going to be a problem.
The weaver's hands fell to Its sides as it slowly lost its strength and fell into a slumber. Kai's attempt was successful.
A few more guards broke through the door at that moment. They seemed to have run to the courtyard, but seeing the mana weaver on the ground, they stood confused.
"Lock it inside a room. I'll take a look at It later. It won't wake up for a while but use chains to bind It. It will try to break free again," Kai's authoritative voice came out loud as he turned towards the guards.
He didn't know his relationship with them and how he was perceived, but there was no time to figure that out.
A few of the guards nodded, and one bowed, his eyes looking at Kai in a strange light. The others had similar reactions, especially the maids who were whispering something among themselves.
The guard in front seemed to hesitate before opening his mouth, "Why don't we kill It, Lord Arzan?"
Kai shook his head, a bit surprised by the question. The transformation hadn't increased enough that there was no remedy. Killing It would be unnecessary.
"No, killing it won't solve the problem."
"But it's how we usually deal with these beings. If we let it live, then it will contaminate the surroundings further."
"It's just in the first stage. There's no need—" he stopped speaking, realising the strange look the guard was giving him.
It seemed like there had been something he was missing. If he had any memories of Arzan, it might have been easy, but right now, he had to try to not come off as too strange to these people.
"No, just put it inside a cell. It's an order." He refused to explain anything just yet. "Get these guards to get the help they need. They're losing too much blood."
He commanded and looked over at the guards who were still scattered around the greenery, dealing with injuries.
"Okay, sir," the guard nodded towards his fellow men. "Take it inside!" He yelled and joined the other guards to help them carry the mana weaver inside.
Four guards held the weaver by the sides, all the while its legs were dragging through the floor. It had completely lost consciousness, and by how the guards struggled slightly, Kai knew it must be heavy.
He walked past all the men and women who were now discussing the incident among themselves.
They threw stares at him and continued to talk about him. The words "Lord Arzan" were heard more than five times as Kai got around to the corner of the courtyard.
Kai saw to it that even the injured guards that were on the floor were being lifted and taken inside the infirmary for treatment.
He knew he needed some time to think. A headache had crept in and he knew nothing about the place and the body he had occupied.
He turned and walked the same way he came in.
He went around the people who were walking here and there with heavy tasks in their hands after the attack. Some were carrying water buckets to clean the blood that was spilt during the attack in the courtyard, and some carried the shields of the injured to the armoury.
As he got through the door, he found out the maid was still hiding in the same spot as per his instructions. But as soon as she saw Kai, she walked forward towards him.
"I'm tired," he said, to avoid any questions the maid might have. "Come with me."
The maid nodded in return and followed Kai as he walked to his room. She closed the door behind her, and her eyes trailed Kai who sat on the bed immediately.
She looked around the room, taking note of the bloody ritual once again. The fear and the panic had subsided, though she still saw him with strange eyes.
As he sat on the bed, he looked down at his body.
After the rush of adrenaline that passed away, he felt drained. He also hadn't eaten in a while, but before that, he had to do something so that the words of whatever ritual he was conducting didn't spread to anyone else.
He looked up to see the maid's eyes roaming around the place. She looked concerned but curious.
"Don't let anyone know about this," He commanded, gesturing around the room. The woman immediately nodded, startled by his voice.
"Yes!"
"What is your name?" He asked, wondering if he should push her more. Threatening innocents wasn't his thing and once he recovered his magic, a spell could easily solve his problems.
Till then he needed the maid to be on his side.
"Claire, Lord Arzan." She said and Kai took a good look at her. She had an ordinary round face with brown hair. She resembled a scared bunny as she lowered her face, refusing to look him in the eyes.
Just by seeing how she behaved, he knew the former soul didn't have the best of the reputation.
It was just the perfect scenario for him.
"Claire, if you keep your mouth shut and do as I say, there will be rewards for you."
"Rewards?" She looked curiously at him.
"Yes," he said, grabbing into one of his pockets to take out a gold coin. It seemed like Arzan had a habit of forgetting money in his pockets.
Claire's eyes shone as she looked at the gold coin, clearly finding it valuable. In most eras, a gold coin was valuable and akin to the monthly salary of individuals. That was all the response he needed as he pushed the coin towards her and she grabbed it.
"Work hard and there will be more of these."
"Y-yes!!"
"Bring me some tea, please, Claire. And some food, preferably some bread."
"Yes, Lord Arzan." She turned to walk out of the room as Kai asked another question.
"Do you know who's the current king?"
The maid halted on her steps and replied.
"King Thorian," she responded quickly. "Why are you asking?"
"No, nothing. You can go."
Kai frowned immediately as she left, taking a few minutes to remember the name from his history lessons before his frown deepened. His ritual had gone terribly wrong.