I told Zano before the fight began that the weak point of the Kojo is their forehead and that he should aim his strikes there. Despite informing him of this, I had a feeling it wouldn't be that easy. The fight started, and as I expected, the Kojo was significantly superior to Zano. Their strikes were powerful and fast, and Zano struggled to dodge them, starting to lose his breath. Zano landed several punches on the leader's forehead, but it seemed too solid. During the battle, the Kojo crushed Zano's hand, which was terrifying. Zano's scream silenced everyone, and he fell to the ground. At that moment, I knew everything was over. Thoughts raced through my mind, imagining everyone standing before me with disappointment on their faces. My thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Loki, who had lost his hand, standing on his feet in front of the Kojo. The latter seemed surprised, not expecting him to get up after that blow. Zano stood firm in his place, rushed toward the leader, jumped, and struck the leader's forehead with his knee, causing the leader to lose balance. But this blow wasn't enough, so Zano delivered consecutive elbow strikes to the leader's forehead until it cracked. Here, I saw a glimmer of hope in our plan and goal. As I smiled, the leader grabbed Zano's leg and, in a split second, hurled him away, leaving everyone in shock. It was a decisive blow. I knew it was over and descended to the battlefield, heading toward the unconscious Zano. I gave him a mana pill, and he started to regain consciousness. I lifted him and began to carry him out of the place when I heard the leader calling me, standing before me. I couldn't discern his features or understand what he wanted. The leader said to Zano, "You have earned my respect. You have the spirit of a warrior and seem to believe in your cause. We will be on your side despite your defeat in the duel." Hearing this was like seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. It seemed Zano's efforts were not in vain. After agreeing with the leader on a meeting time, I took Zano to one of my hideouts. There, I pulled out the queen's crown that I had taken from her corpse. I broke a small piece of the crown, ground it into fine powder, mixed it with mana pills, and gave it to Zano to consume. It wasn't long before Zano's severed hand regenerated, and he recovered from all his injuries. We then returned to my room.
It seems that Zano will be beneficial to our group. It was tough on him, but something is driving him to this extent; he must have a goal or someone to protect. In the past, he seemed to me like a purposeless person who only wanted to have fun. Now, my perspective on him has changed drastically. Loki came and took Zano home to rest and told me that she had found two potential new members for our group, but there was a problem. I told her that we would discuss it tomorrow at school and find a solution.
I closed my eyes and entered the world of dreams, where I had a strange dream. I saw a large army of humans, and I was at the forefront. Suddenly, a gigantic creature appeared before us and started causing destruction and killing. I woke up startled from this terrifying dream and quickly got out of bed, realizing it was already morning. I had breakfast and tried to forget about the nightmare before heading to school after bidding my mother goodbye. It seems that doing household chores and taking care of the shop has exhausted her; the signs of fatigue are clear on her face.
I arrived at school and found Loki waiting for me in front of the entrance. We went inside, but she was sad, which was not a good sign. I asked her why she was upset, and she told me that she had found two members with all the necessary qualities to join us. However, when she was on her way to tell me about them yesterday, they called and informed her that they were moving to the North Pole. They are siblings, and their father decided to move to the North Pole. This rumor is spreading more every day, and I don't know who benefits from it. I told Loki that we could find others, but she interrupted me, saying, "Follow me so I can show you why I chose them."
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