Part II Mythbreaker

Gatewood is a border area between the sea and the forest. This area is filled with beasts; it's like a food haven for humans. At one point in the forest, four tents were visible, each with a flag symbolizing a white icicle. Lazuro, Tristan, and Aicelia were standing in the largest tent, facing a man with blond hair who was holding a shield and a man with blue hair who was brandishing a bow.

"What are you doing, idiot!" The shield-bearing man slammed the table.

"That is ... I just wanted to see the underworld." Tristan lowered his head.

"You don't even have a Mythbreaker, and you dared to sneak into the underworld. If we hadn't come, you would have died!" the shield-bearing man added.

"Come on, James, he's still a child. Does his courage remind you of someone you admire?" A blue-haired man placed an arrow on the table, trying to calm the shield-bearing man.

"Paul, you're too soft on this child. As clan leader, you should be stricter with this stupid child." James put his hands on his hips.

“Stop bossing me around! You’re not an elder. You’re just a coward bound by stupid rules.”

James stood up and approached Tristan. Their eyes met. Tristan showed no remorse or concern. Instead, he gripped his hand tightly as if he were about to hit James.

“Say that again, you shameless brat.”

“Yes, my father is still alive, and I’m sure he’s already in the world of trees. You’re just a coward who came back and said that my father—”

James landed a slap on Tristan, knocking him to the ground.

“Your father was just a reckless man. After your mother died, he went crazy and said that he was going to the center of the world to bring your mom back. He even took your mom's body away and refused to cremate it. You saw the power of burning T-rex, did you? If the beasts on the edge are this strong, what about the beast in the center? Do you think there are humans alive and capable of going there?”

“Of course, I’m sure there are strong people who have explored. Just look at this kid,” Tristan pointed at Lazuro. "He's from the underworld. Just because a coward like you says it's not possible or impossible doesn't mean it's true."

James, losing his patience, lifted Tristan high. Seeing that, Lazuro could only swallow his saliva.

"Calm … Calm down; let's not drag this out any longer. More importantly, who is this kid?" Paul asked curiously.

"I found him while exploring. He said he was from another world," Aicelia replied.

"Another world."

James and Paul examined Lazuro carefully from head to toe. Lazuro's blazer, black pants, shoes, and white shirt made James and Paul narrow their eyes suspiciously.

"From your strange attire, it's quite convincing. But that's the otherworldly bit …." James stroked his beard.

Lazuro took out his smartphone and showed it to everyone.

"What is that?" James took the shield from his back and stood ready.

"No, it's not dangerous. In my world, we use this to communicate. Am I really not in Japan?" Lazuro asked to confirm.

"Unfortunately, you're in Gatewood, and we don't know where Japan is," Paul replied, checking Lazuro's phone.

Suddenly, Lazuro's stomach growled, making everyone stare at him.

“Aicelia, take the child to eat, but get him a change of clothes first.” Paul covered his nose. “You can go too; we’ll return to the village tomorrow.”

“But uncle—”

“No ifs and buts. This is a dangerous place, and I don’t want to risk you messing up again. Besides, we don’t want to encounter the Burning Tyrano again. It takes five people in a party to defeat that thing.”

Lazuro walked out of the tent and into another to change. Looking around, he noticed many extraordinary things he had missed. Besides the five-meter-tall tent, the horses are three times the size of normal, and a large iron box is connected to the enormous horses.

“This place is amazing.” Lazuro’s eyes widened.

“Isn’t it true, hunting is the best?” Tristan added suddenly. “If only I had Mythbreaker.”

“So only the chosen one can have what was that… myth… myth…”

“Mythbreaker,” Tristan continued. “Of course only the chosen ones are able to use it.”

They stopped talking once they reached the front of the tent. Lazuro changed into a traditional Middle Eastern outfit.

"This is truly amazing. If only the material of this shirt were softer and less itchy."

After changing, Lazuro followed Tristan and Aicelia, looking around. Several young men and men were carrying various prey. From a shelled pig to a tiger with crocodile-like skin. These strange creatures reminded Lazuro of a game he often played.

"Could this world be Monster Slayer, and I've been transported into it? If so, that would be incredible."

Lazuro suddenly fell after colliding with a burly figure.

"I-I'm sorry."

Lazuro was intimidated by the man he had collided with, his muscles and his menacing face, which bore a single slash across his cheek. The man spat on the ground before grabbing Lazuro by the collar and lifting him up.

“Do you think an apology is enough?”

Lazuro swallowed, his legs shaking with fear. The burly blond man smiled, seemingly enjoying Lazuro’s terrified expression.

“I’ve never seen you before; are you a new villager or hunter from another land?”

“That’s me…”

“He’s the man I found in the forest. Don’t scare him, Aaron. He doesn’t have a Mythbreaker.”

“Another piece of trash to deal with.” Aaron stared at Tristan with a disgusted expression.

“What did you say!” Tristan grabbed Aaron’s shirt.

With a push, Tristan fell to the ground. Aaron grabbed a large sword adorned with twin Kabuto beetle horns on its crossguard and pointed the tip at Tristan.

“Tristan, stop that! It’s our duty as Mythbreaker holders to protect the villagers. Don’t use your power to intimidate others.” Aicelia put her hands on her hips.

“I apologize for being presumptuous. You should be more selective about who you associate with. Seeing you hang out with a loser who can’t even kill beasts is truly ridiculous. Now you’ve brought another loser with you.”

“It’s none of your business who I’m friends with. Hurry up and let him go, or I’ll report your rude behavior to my father.” Aicelia crossed her arms.

Aaron withdrew his sword, clicked his tongue, and left.

“Are you okay?” Aicelia asked.

“That uncle is really strong and scary.” Lazuro held his sore hip and tried to stand.

“Yes… he is indeed a scary and stupid uncle. His entire body is filled with idiot muscle.” Tristan laughed out loud.

“Stop making fun of other people, Tristan. He’s our age. We should get something to eat.” Aicelia shook her head.

The three of them finally went to the large stove filled with food, each taking a plate full of soup and a piece of bread, and sat down under a tree.

“Isn’t there any rice here?” Lazuro asked, stirring his soup.

“Rice,” Aicelia and Tristan said in unison.

“Ah, so there really isn’t any?”

Lazuro's eyes widened as he put a piece of meat and soup into his mouth. He murmured happily, then cut the bread with his hands, dipped it into the soup, and ate it. The savory sensation on his tongue and the bread, which was hard but softened when mixed with the soup, made him eat with gusto.

"This is amazing." Lazuro wiped away the tears that had fallen down his cheeks.

"Deersnake soup really does taste amazing. You see, that's what we're eating." Tristan pointed to a deer with a snake's head and its scaly skin hanging down.

Lazuro immediately dropped his spoon onto his plate, his mouth agape in disbelief that the delicious meat he was eating came from such a strange creature. Lazuro immediately put down his plate and ate only the bread in his hand.

"By the way, what's a Mythbreaker?" Lazuro asked.

"A Mythbreaker is a weapon humans use to fight beasts. By using a Mythbreaker, humans can hunt for food and defend themselves against beasts. Take the staff Aicelia holds, for example. It's made from the spine of a Yuki Onna." Tristan stared at the ten-foot-long staff Aicelia was carrying.

“By Yuki Onna, you mean that female snow ghost.” Lazuro stared at Aicelia’s shortened staff. “But… it feels like your staff is different in size than the first time I saw it.”

“That’s because I didn’t activate this mythbreaker,” Aicelia said.

“Activating it, so there’s some way you can activate it. Come to think of it, when we first met, you were able to shoot an ice prism to defeat the rabbit monster that tried to attack me. So how did you activate your mythbreaker?” Lazuro asked curiously.

Aicelia stood up, bit her index finger until it bled, and smeared the blood on her mythbreaker’s small skull. Aicelia’s staff extended, and a small tendril shaped like a spine—lined and held together by muscle and about three centimeters in diameter—slipped out, extending and stabbing Aicelia’s neck.

“Doesn’t that hurt?” Lazuro swallowed.

“No, it’s actually very reassuring. When I joined Mythbreaker, I felt like there was nothing I couldn’t do.” Aicelia smiled as she twirled her Mythbreaker.

“That’s amazing. I wish I had one too.” Lazuro looked up at the sky covered by trees.