Mark chuckled. "That's one hell of emotional damage. Anyway, what brought you here?" he asked in a serious tone, his eyes locked on hers.
"They sent bounty hunters to take us down," she replied, her face showing fear.
"The guy you killed when you saved me is the reason for the war between the clans."
"Wait, am I the cause of this?" he asked, in disbelief.
"Partly, yeah, but you were only a pawn," she said.
"Your dad—" he started to say, but something clicked in his mind. He remembered Mr. Komi's words:
"You're right, I want you to marry my grandchild so she can give birth to an heir. What you don't know is that I have more ways than one to make you accept or make you my slave."
He recalled how Mr. Komi had pulled back the sword he aimed at him and dropped it, transforming it back into a katana:
"That's what we call 'sas'... I've had a blast talking to you, it's about time I leave."
Mark felt a surge of anger and realization:
"I was played, I held a sword, I've gone against my own words," he muttered, feeling enraged. He clearly remembered Mr. Komi's trickery, but he had fallen for it anyway.
Asami approached him, concern etched on her face:
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'll be back, I need to take care of something," he said, getting up. He paused before leaving and asked:
"Where did you come from before arriving here?"
"A third-level village in the east," she replied.
"Okay, that's where I'll start," he said, determination in his voice. With that, he walked out of the chief's house.
[ Third level village east ]
A man clad in all black appeared before two men inside the village, the sun casting a golden glow at 5 pm. The two men gazed at the black clad figure without flinching, their faces stern.
"Makes two of you," the man said in a husky tone, his voice low and menacing.
"Boy, we're not what you should be messing with. What's your name?" one of the men asked, his hand resting on the hilt of his weapon.
"Call me Aknaili," he replied, his hands suddenly producing two black pistols.
"There will be no peace I take it?" one of the men asked, pulling out a katana from its sheath. The other man unsheathed a massive blade from his back, its size intimidating.
"No," Aknaili replied, his voice firm, before lunging at the two men.
The two men engaged in the fight, they were relentless with there attacks but the black clad man, Aknaili, dodged and weaved with grace, his pistols still clutched in his hands. The two men, their faces twisted with ferocity, unleashed a flurry of attacks, their blades slicing through the air. Aknaili danced around them, his feet moving swiftly as he dodged and sidestepped their strikes. He kicked out with his left foot, catching one of the men in the chest, sending him stumbling back. The other man lunged forward, his katana flashed in the fading light, but Aknaili was too quick, he dodged to the right and punched the man in the jaw. The two men recovered quickly, their attacks coming in rapid succession. Aknaili leapt into the air, and avoided slashing blows from the man with the massive blade, and landed a kick on the other man's shoulder, sending him crashing to the ground. The fight raged on, the three men moving at very quick motion. Aknaili dodged, as the two men continued to press their attacks. He kicked both the men back, but immediately they launched themselves at him.
The air was filled with the sound of clashing steel, the scent of sweat and blood hanging heavy over the village square. The two men were relentless.
He dodged a slashing blow from the man with the katana, and countered with a swift punch to the man's face. The other man lunged forward, his massive blade raised high, but Aknaili being too quick, dodged to the side and landed a jet kick on the man's chest, sending him stumbling back.
The fight continued. Aknaili's pistols remained clutched in his hands. He round house kicked both men away, the too men were tired, their chests heaving with exhaustion. Aknaili stood tall.
"You're a worthy opponent, kid," the man with the long sword said, holding his sword up and parting his legs slightly.
"Yeah, but worthy doesn't mean strong," the man with the katana added.
Aknaili pointed his guns at the two men. "Is that so?" he asked, and narrowed his eyes a bit.
"Your guns won't help you," the man with the long sword sneered:
"They can't even scratch my skin. Now, brother, let's do it!"
"Armorment!" the men shouted simultaneously, and a massive surge of light beam down from the sky, enveloping them.
Immediately the light appeared, Aknaili thought:
'Goodbye,' and fired his guns at the two men. The light and the bullets hit them at the same time. The bullets were so intense that they shattered both men's swords, and the light beam from the sky trailed behind the bullets before disappearing.
"You're the one who's not worthy," Aknaili said, looking at where the two men had been. They had been completely disintegrated, leaving no trace behind.
"Off to the next" he disappeared into the darkness.
"Mark, wake up! Wake up!" Emily urged, shaking him awake. Mark opened his eyes, but the morning light was too intense, forcing him to look away.
"What's going on? Why are you here so early?" Mark asked, still groggy with sleep.
"Someone's been killing people in the level three villages," Emily replied, her voice urgent:
"Get up quickly, we need to discuss this in the meeting."
With that, she rushed out of his room, closing the door behind her. Mark yawned and got out of bed, stretching his limbs.
"What's been killing what?" he muttered to himself, not fully awake yet:
"Whatever, as long as it doesn't interfere with my goal, it's okay."
He walked towards the bathroom, still trying to shake off the sleep.