I touch the blood seeping from my abdomen and stain my clothes. "Wh- what?" I gasp, turning to see who had attacked me.
The store clerk who sold me my robe stands before me, flanked by two tall men in green cloaks. I collapse onto the ground, my vision blurring as I lie in a pool of my own blood.
The store clerk, still laughing cruelly, struts away in the opposite direction. Followed by the two men in green cloaks, their faces hidden except for their cold, emotionless eyes. The hyena symbol emblazoned on their cloaks marks them as a different faction from the Masked Oni.
Horrified screams erupt as the few citizens remaining at sunset witness the scene and flee in terror.
I clutch my abdomen, rage and desperation fueling my will to survive. No way am I dying here, not before seeing my mother, Aimi, and Kajiwara again. As memories flood my mind, I struggle to rise despite the searing pain from the dagger still lodged in me.
I close my eyes and channel Reaper's Magic through my body. Looking down, I see the dagger being consumed by shadows, the darkness healing my wounds.
After a minute, I'm on my feet, feeling renewed. The clerk and his bodyguards continue walking, assuming me dead.
"Finish what you started!" I growl, despite their inability to understand me.
The three turn in unison. The clerk looks shocked, and while his expression is unreadable due to their hoods, I can tell they're surprised.
One of the cloaked men lunges at me, sword gleaming in the dim light. I summon a dark sword with Reaper's Magic, gripping it firmly with both hands. Its edge shimmers with an ominous glow. Our blades meet with a sharp metallic screech, sparks flying from the violent clash.
"I wont let myself die in the middle of nowhere!" I snarl, parrying his strikes with precision.
The cloaked man grunts, his attacks fierce and relentless. I sidestep and block, our swords ringing through the sunset with every clash. His strikes come faster, each one meant to overwhelm.
He tries a vicious overhead swing. I twist to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow. I counter with a quick slash to his midsection, but he raises his sword just in time. Sweat drips from his face as he narrows his eyes.
He murmurs something, but I don't understand it.
With a roar, he launches a series of rapid thrusts. I weave and dodge, narrowly avoiding each deadly lunge. My movements are fluid, evading with precision. I spot an opening and thrust my dark sword forward. He pivots to block, but the force of my attack pushes him back.
I press the attack, launching a flurry of precise strikes. His defenses weaken. With a final powerful swing, I drive my dark sword into his side. He gasps, eyes wide in shock as the blade pierces him. He collapses, blood pouring from the wound, his sword clattering to the ground.
The remaining hooded man, seeing his ally fall, quickly draws a bow. He begins firing arrows with speed. I move with agility, dodging each arrow . Rolling and weaving, I narrowly escape their deadly tips.
Just as I finish off the sword-wielding attacker, an arrow shoots into my thigh. Pain flares up, but I grit my teeth and keep moving. I spot the bowman, drawing another arrow. With a burst of energy, I conjure my dark sword once more and hurl it with precision.
The blade spins through the air, gracefully slicing an arrow in half as it heads towards me, before lodging itself in the bowman's chest. He staggers back, eyes widening in disbelief, and falls to the ground, blood seeping from his wound.
The store clerk, seeing his allies defeated, turns and flees. I consider chasing him, but my injuries and the effort of the fight weigh heavily on me. He's already too far ahead.
Breathing heavily, I look down at the two fallen men, their blood staining the ground. My gaze shifts to my bleeding thigh. I need to get this patched up as quickly as possible.
I limp away, using one hand to clutch my injured leg, the arrow still lodged in it. I don't get far from the scene, but it's enough that no one will associate me with the killings. Suddenly, I start to feel drowsy—the arrows must be coated with some kind of sleep drug.
I can't fight the sleepiness any longer. I collapse, feeling the warmth of my blood before everything fades to black.
-Aimi's Perspective-
"Kajiwara!! Turn it down a notch! You're going to kill all of us with this earthquake!" Sora shouts, struggling to stay upright as the ground shakes violently.
Kajiwara lets out a heavy exhale, and the earthquake subsides, the trembling of the ground finally coming to a halt.
The Masked Oni react quickly. One of them, the nunchuck-wielding Oni, snarls and lunges at Kajiwara with terrifying speed. Kajiwara barely has time to dodge, the nunchucks grazing his arm and drawing blood.
"Sora, Aimi, watch my back!" Kajiwara shouts, gritting his teeth against the pain.
Sora nods, his eyes narrowing in determination. He raises his hands, summoning a powerful gust of wind that knocks the nunchuck Oni off balance. "Air Magic: Gale Burst!"
An accomplice of the Masked Oni, wielding a massive club, charges at me with deadly intent. I dodge to the side, narrowly evading a crushing blow that would have shattered my ribs. Feeling the surge of magic within me, I focus and call out, "Water Magic: Aqua Torrent!" A powerful jet of water bursts forth, forcing the club-wielding Oni to stumble back and retreat.
Kajiwara uses the distraction to cast another spell. "Earth Magic: Seismic Wave!" He slams his foot down, sending a shockwave through the ground that knocks the Oni off their feet.
"Nice one, Kajiwara!" I shout, but my celebration is cut short as the third cult member, wielding dual swords, leaps at me. I barely manage to parry his attack with a hastily summoned water shield. The force of his blows pushes me back, my arms straining to hold the shield.
"Sora, a little help here!" I call out.
Sora whirls around, his hands glowing with a pale blue light. "Air Magic: Razor Wind!" Sharp blades of wind slice through the air, striking the dual-sword cult member and forcing him to back off.
"Thanks," I pant, lowering my shield. "We need to finish this quickly."
Kajiwara, his eyes ablaze with fury, raises his wand high. "Earth Magic: Stone Spikes!" Jagged spikes erupt from the ground, creating a deadly forest of stone that ensnares the nunchuck-wielding Oni's niece.
The girl Oni struggles, but the stone spikes hold her fast. Kajiwara advances, his expression a cold mask of resolve. "This is for Masa," he declares, his voice low and steely.
He begins to chant, his tone menacing and relentless. "Earth Magic: Terra Collapse!" The ground beneath the girl Oni begins to shatter and crumble. The stone spikes sink back into the earth, dragging her down with them.
Just as we think we've won, the nunchuck-wielding Oni yells, "Retreat!" The Girl Oni suddenly break free from the collapsing ground using some hidden reserve of strength. They dash towards the back of the warehouse, disappearing into a hidden passage.
"Damn it, they're getting away!" Sora shouts, starting to chase after them.
"No, wait!" I grab his arm. "We need to capture at least one of them for information."
Kajiwara, already ahead of us, lunges at a cult member associated with the Masked Oni who's trying to slip away in the chaos. "Earth Magic: Terra Bind!" He slams his wand down, and thick, earthen vines shoot up from the ground, wrapping around the cult member and trapping him in place.
"We got one!" Kajiwara says triumphantly, his eyes flashing with determination.
The cult member struggles, but the earthen vines hold him tightly. "You won't get anything out of me!" he spits defiantly.
"We'll see about that," I say, stepping forward. "You have a lot to answer for."