The look on Hasya's face shows that he is not happy with the way Cakara responds to him. He keeps quiet watching the leader's back with an irritated gaze until someone hits his head from behind.
He is Agra, the oldest member in the group, two years older than the leader. And he doesn't like Hasya that much.
"What are you waiting for?" The man rebukes condescendingly. "Go and prepare hot water as the boss ordered!"
"He didn't mention my name when he gave the order. What makes you think I was the one who should do it?" Hasya refutes.
The man simply slaps Hasya's head again. "Just because the boss treats you well, doesn't mean you can act like his right hand man. You should be grateful we let you stay."
"Cih!" Without erasing his contempt, Hasya walks away and goes to a small hut.
He prepares water in a clay pot, and puts the pot on the stove which is also made of clay. Without setting a fire, he just sits there waiting for the water to boil.
His mind is now being preoccupied with the presence of Adanu Raksa, who seems to be the same age as him. From what he had observed, Adanu Raksa's smooth face and also the look on his clothes, he is sure that Adanu Raksa is a kid from a noble family.
Envy slowly shrouds his heart, until suddenly a big man comes in and jolts his reverie. Aghast, Hasya instinctively picks a machete and swings it as he turns around.
To his surprise, it's actually the man who has been treating him well this whole time. Fortunately, the man is quite good, and simply catches the machete with the tip of his fingers.
"Yodha? It's just you!" Hasya mutters, looking out of breath with a pale face. "How many times have I told you? Stop approaching me from behind like that?"
"Like what?" The big man named Yodha refutes composedly. "What's wrong? Don't tell me you haven't gotten over your trauma! Look! No one in The Band of the Enchanted Dagger is interested in raping you."
"Shut up! How can you say that with that bandit face of yours?" Hasya rebukes before he sits back in front of the stove.
Yodha pats his shoulder from behind. "Don't be so uptight! We may be a bunch of mountain bandits. But we still have our pride."
"A bandit talks about pride? Give me a break!"
"What about the water?"
"It's not ready yet!"
Yodha turns silent. And this silence persists for a few moments as the big man joins Hasya waiting for the water to be boiled.
Until then…
"Hold on!"
"What?"
"Something seems wrong!" Yodha mutters while rubbing his chin. "Maan! How are you going to boil the water while you haven't set the fire?"
Hasya is gawking with a stupid face. He begins to look panicked and rushes to burn the pile of wood under the stove. But after trying several times, he doesn't manage to set the fire.
A moment later, he hears Agra shouting from outside. Of course, that makes Hasya even more panicked.
"Move aside," Yodha exclaims. "These woods aren't completely dry yet. You won't be able to burn them without kerosene."
"But we don't have any kerosene here," Hasya deplores.
Yodha keeps quiet while holding a block of those woods. His both eyes are closed, and sweat start flowing down his forehead.
A moment later, the wood in his hand is slightly vibrating with thin smoke coming out of it. Soon, the wood is gradually drying out.
"Hey, Yodha! What the hell are you doing?" Hasya looks so surprised.
"I just channel a little of my inner energy to evaporate the water inside this piece of wood," Yodha explains.
"You can do something like that?"
"Of course!"
"Then, why don't you just heat the water the same way? Wouldn't it be easier?"
"My kanuragan isn't that great. Even if I use all my strength to the point of fainting, I wouldn't be able to boil the water."
After all the wooden blocks are dry, Hasya is then able to burn them with ease. After waiting for a while, a thin haze occurs even though the water has not completely boiled yet.
"I think it's hot enough to treat that child's fever," says Yodha.
Hasya rushes to bring the water to Cakara, with Yodha still accompanying her from behind. But then, as they enter Cakara's room, they are surprised by the presence of something ugly.
There are three spirit creatures attached to the left leg of Adanu Raksa who is currently lying on a bamboo bed.
Due to the surprise, Hasya drops the clay pot, and immediately screams in terror. Unlike him, Yodya simply draws his word and jumps in by swinging the weapon.
Too bad, his sword just goes through as if he was cutting empty air. He stumbles because of his own momentum and falls on the floor.
"Oh, God! What are these things?"
The three spirit creatures don't seem to care at all about Yodha's interference. They keep sticking to Adanu Raksa's left leg, with faces looking so pleasurable like junkies on high.
"Uuurgh! It's so great!"
"When was the last time I tasted something like this? A hundred years? Two hundred years?"
"His soul! It's so corrupted yet delicious!"
Yodha shakes his head, trying to regain his composure. He swings his sword again toward those spirit creatures, but still to no avail.
"Hasya! Get Cakara here!"
Hasya doesn't respond to his call. The kid is now kneeling on the ground, looking so terrified because of the ghosts' ugly faces.
"Hasya!!!" Yodha scolds in anger. "Snap out of it and get Cakara here. We need…"
Suddenly, more malevolent spirits seep through the small gaps on the wooden wall. They look so hectic, with faces looking so mad like they are tempted by Adanu Raksa's present.
"A feast!"
"It's a feast!"
"It's the first after hundreds of years!"