Act

The six clans are uniting against the invaders. The capital of Burijji will be evacuated and turned into the first major point of defense—hopefully the last.

The enemy island has pulled back again to avoid being invaded in return. They must have a way to command the god, which isn't surprising given the kind of magic they've already shown. It also means that once they begin closing in again, it will take them at least an hour to prepare for the next assault.

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"So that means the bad guys won't take us by surprise a second time, right?" Gurumi asks, her voice bright with enthusiasm.

"Exactly."

"Oki, thanks for telling me, Mr. Guard."

"No problem, young lady. Are you going home now?"

"Yeah, I have to bring Ma the groceries because Nii has training to do."

"Your brother is aiming to join our ranks? Such a brave boy. You must be proud to be his sister."

Her smile falters, and she has to force herself to hold it in place.

"That's right, he's the best. See you, Mr. Guard." She waves as she walks away.

"Take care."

Once alone, Gurumi pushes the dark thoughts aside and moves on to the next task. It's still too soon to go home.

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"Nah, can't answer that one, kiddo," says another guard, taking a sip from his mug.

"But I'm so curious. I promise I won't tell anyone, not even Ma." She gives him the eyes. "Pleeeaseee?"

"Aww, just look at how cute you are. Fine—but keep this between us."

The guard glances around, then leans in closer to Gurumi. His breath is nauseating. "This is what we'll use."

He pulls out one of the so-called magic weapons—identical to the one her brother carried.

"Woah… what is this?" Better play dumb for now.

"A magic weapon, also known as a wand. This one can shoot a powerful stream of water."

"And why is it a secret?"

"Cause a long time ago wars were fought over these. The leaders eventually decided to seal them away to end the bloodshed. But now they've been brought back so we can use them against the invaders."

"Wow. And how many uses do they have?"

"Uses?"

"Yeah, doesn't it run out of water or something like that?"

"No, it works with a magic stone thing." He unscrews the back of the weapon and pulls out a small sphere. "These recharge by being exposed to the sun for a few hours."

She should've gone for a drunkard from the start. After a few more questions, Gurumi learns everything she needs to know. By the end, the guard is so wasted he won't remember who he spoke to or what happened to his weapon.

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Gasping for breath, sweat trickling down his chin, Kaji pushes himself for a final burst of speed, crossing the finish line just ahead of the average recruit in the running course.

He expected to ace all the exercises with ease…

But the training turned out to be harsher than he anticipated.

Fortunately, when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, he beats everyone except those bigger than him.

Everything goes smoothly until he faces a light-haired woman. From the moment he's pitted against her, Kaji can't stop thinking about the insane maniac who almost killed him, only to start crying and run away.

That crazy woman, that… that tearful monster.

He starts seeing the faces of the two men he killed during that battle, both locking eyes with him before he shot.

His thoughts spiral. By the time he snaps out of it, the girl is on the ground, her face twisted in pain.

Godsdamnit!

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"Young Kaji, you know you can't go around hurting your fellow recruits…" The drill instructor kept blabbering on long after Kaji stopped paying attention.

It's so annoying. Everyone is even more irritating than before this stupid war.

Once freed from the reprimand, Kaji takes a walk around the capital. At least few people here recognize him.

For a while, he forgets his troubles and enjoys himself, watching the crowds pass by as he sits on a bench, eating a sweet roll.

"Hey, Kaji, how are ya?" I can never catch a break, can I?

"What do you want?" Kaji doesn't look at him. For once, he wishes it were Tokei pestering him. Instead, it's that damned Raba.

"Just to chat a bit, ya know? I saw you during the training, you were doin' pretty good." This shithead was there as well? Good thing Kaji hadn't seen him; otherwise, he might've hurt his sparring partners even more.

"No sheep licking your hands this time?"

"Sheep? What do ya mean?"

"Forget it. Get to the point and leave before I break your nose again."

"Listen man, I'm not trying to start anything this time, ya know? I actually want us to get along for once, since we now have a common enemy an'all that."

"Well I don't want to get along with your stupid face. Now fuck off."

"Please, let's just… y'know, make peace n'stuff. You kinda helped me back there in the attack, and thanks to ya our side got two of those magic weapons."

Wait...

Kaji gets up and grabs him by the collar. "Did you tell that dirty bribe collector about my weapon!?"

"Eh? W-what's gotten into ya?"

"Answer me!"

"If you mean Fuhai, t-then yeah, I told him but—" Kaji punches him so hard his knuckles ache. Raba stays on the ground for a few seconds, holding his face. He eventually gets up and glares at Kaji. "You brain-dead gorilla! Now you've done it!"

Raba tackles him, and the soreness from training causes Kaji's legs to give out, sending them both to the ground. They struggle and exchange blows until the guards arrive to break them apart.

"Screw you, gingerfuck! I'm not forgetting this!"

"There's no way to have a normal talk with ya dumbass brute! Next time I'm bringin' back my pals and we're gonna fuck you up!" He spits onto the ground.

"Fine by me, I'll send you all home limping again."