Bramblebinds Master Blacksmith

Kento: “Hmm, I have to use my head for once or I won’t be able to fight anyone anymore if I don’t get out of here.”

Kouki: “Brother, connect with the mother and daughter. See if there is a way to connect our powers without mana…Agatha, while he’s doing this, see if you can connect with Kazuki to tell him to piss off and free us from this place.”

Agatha: “I-I don’t understand.”

Kento: “You don’t have to understand. All you gotta know is this place wants to kill all of us. Swordsmen are the only race that aren’t allowed to enter this place. It’s designed to target us. If you hate someone that fights with a sword, then just throw them in here.”

Kouki: “Nobody really knows what this place is or how it got here. In fact, we’ve only seen it once a little while ago when Aamon brought us all to talk to the elves before the Titan War. I didn’t know that it switched places, unless your stupid master is really that strong to replicate it.”

Yasuhiro: “Brother, even with their strength, they cannot. She cut me off, but she said something interesting.”

Kouki: “What did she say?”

Yasuhiro: “I don’t think it was intentional, but I heard her say, “Maybe he can…” but then my mind got sent back here.”

Kouki: “He? Maybe she’s referring to Kazuki Alcion. Okay, we are going to have to move forward. Huh? Where’s Kento?”

Agatha: “He went on ahead already.”

Kouki: “Agh. Damn idiot. Let’s move. Agatha, make sure you–”

Kouki turned around to not see Yasuhiro or Agatha. He panicked, turning around multiple times and yelling their names. He got too nervous and accidentally activated a small portion of mana not even for a second before putting it away.

When he looked around again, he saw his brother appear not too far from him. “Ah, there you are. Where the hell did you g–”

He looked down to see a sword right through his stomach. Blood splurged from his wound and then his mouth, coughing up endless amounts, more than his body could even hold. Dropping to his knees, he felt like he was going to pass out, but then his eyesight was completely fine and the pain went away.

His body contained no wound and when he looked up again, Agatha and Yasuhiro were questioning what he was doing.

Yasuhiro: “Brother, don’t get all weird on me. You just looked like you were having a heart attack and then dropped to the ground. Let’s go, you idiot.”

Kouki: “Huh? Oh, yeah. Okay.”

He thought back to that moment. ‘What the hell was that? Was that real?’ He couldn’t stop questioning it as they went, but followed behind them to make sure that he was paying attention.

Blinking once, they disappeared again, but he blinked again and they reappeared in front of them instantly. He felt like he was losing his mind, but blamed it on the Tombs, not knowing what they were capable of.

Bright lights flashed in the distance.

They paused, grabbing their swords.

Although these three were some of the top powers in the world at the moment, they could not use mana, meaning that they had to rely on their swordsmanship, which would prove difficult depending on what approached them.

No enemies approached from the light, but it continued to expand in multiple colors towards them, quicker than they could outrun. Standing there, they awaited something to happen, but the bright lights just continued past them as if there was a different destination that awaited them.

Yasuhiro: “This place is freaking damn weird. Kento! Where the hell are you?”

Kento: “What the hell do you want? I’m busy!”

He was battling hundreds of small rats that continued to emerge from the ground, chasing after him, carrying Poison Chaplets in their mouths.

Kento: “This is stupid. Here, you all take some.”

He kicked a bunch towards them, forcing them to slice them in half quickly while Kento handled the rest. However, when he was done, a gigantic rat emerged with a Poison Chaplet the size of its body.

Kento: “Hey, hey, hey. Poison Chaplets are not supposed to be that big.”

Kouki: “Everyone! Run!”

Even Kento listened to him as they all ran the opposite direction back towards the island that they were teleported to, but there was no barrier. It just kept extending and extending into different areas. They found a random door and opened it, which prevented the rat from entering as they panted to get their breath back.

In front of them was a blue room with various doors that looked the exact same. Without thinking, Kento opened all of them as they yelled at him. He randomly entered the door on the right, which closed as he entered. The rest decided to all go to the door on the left.

They were surprised when they ended up in the same room as Kento. “Hey!” he screamed out. “Don’t come in my door!”

Yasuhiro: “We didn't, you stupid idiot. Your door closed!”

Kento: “Oh yeah?! Then how are you here right now?! Stop coming into my doors. I’m doing this by myself! You all can die here!”

The room they were in only had 2 doors this time directly next to each other. Kento went right again and the rest went left, which led them to the same room again. Kento and Yasuhiro bickered once more while they continued to every room, picking different doors, but ending up in the same spot every time.

Without thinking, Kento used mana and busted open the area. In doing so, millions of spiders crawled all over them, injecting them with poison. Kento tried to yell something at the brothers, but his words were all scrambled and all of them fell to the floor…

When they awoke, they were all chained to the ground, watching two random people fighting with their swords until the woman killed the man in front of her. She turned towards them, and bowed down.

Kento screamed, trying to break out of the chains, but they were extremely strong. Then, out of nowhere, the chains released from him and Agathas, and it was as if they teleported in front to face each other, this time with two plain silver swords.

Kento laughed and charged at her, but Agatha was much stronger. She avoided and continued to run away from Kento. “Stop it, Kento! We don’t have to do this!”

He responded, “Oh, but I want to!”

The chains then released from the brothers, but everyone started to float as if gravity didn’t exist. Kento tried to swim in mid air to get to Agatha, but he could barely move before they were then slammed into the ground now as if there was too much gravity weighing them down.

They didn’t have time to think.

The ceiling suddenly started to shift from daylight to nighttime and then back to daytime in a repeated cycle so fast. Their bodies started to age rapidly and they became old–so old that they couldn’t even hold a sword anymore.

They then dropped below them into the ground, phasing through it like ghosts. Kento tried to activate a Smile Chaplet as they became their normal selves again, but it dispersed just seconds after it was activated. It worked, however Kento realized that this place was so strong that it attacked the boundary right away.

Kento: “I’m sick of this! Hey you stupid brothers! Do something about this!’

Yasuhiro: “It’s your fault you activated your mana you idiot!”

Kouki didn’t say a word, but he had activated his as well. He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t tell the difference between illusions and reality in this place. ‘It’s like multiple Fool’s Judgement Chaplets activated at the same time,’ he thought. He then blinked again and everyone was missing.

“Hey!” he screamed out, but Yasuhiro was right next to him and questioned what was going on. “Where is Agatha and Kento?” Kouki asked.

He pointed to the same spots they were in before, looking confused and then went back to screaming at Kento. Agatha began to worry as well. She didn’t say anything, but in her eyes, the three of them looked like scary wolves with blood dripping from their fangs. She knew it wasn’t real, but it was very strange looking for her, so she didn’t say a word.

While they were arguing, Kento was suddenly grabbed by large white hands on his shoulders and dragged away. He tried punching them, but they wouldn’t release. It was like a robot that wouldn’t break.

Kento: “Get off of me you stupid arms!”

The three of them rushed over to Kento, trying to pull him, but as they pulled, it just made the white arms pull harder and faster, jolting them with Kento into a different space. This time they were in front of a pixelated creature that sat in a chair surrounded by black moss that rotted all over the place. His square body was evident with glowing square eyes that marked on his body.

It looked as if he was smiling, but the way his mouth was aligned, he showed no emotion. His arms were huge, almost like gigantic dumbbells and his legs were as thick as tree trunks. The rest of his body glimmered with glowing pink material that also emerged from his legs.

Kento, as always, charged head on without mana, relying mainly on his sword to attack the monster before them. As he got closer, he squealed in pain as blood began to cover his eyes and run down his face.

Holes appeared in his body, then healed, then appeared, then healed over and over again as he screamed out. Eventually, his eyes regenerated, which were the two glass chaplets that he contained. “You’re messing with the wrong person!” he said, about to activate both chaplets in anger, but then he suddenly lost consciousness before he could use them.

The creature spoke just like he looked.

He sounded tired.

In a very robotic tone, but not too staticky he said, “Do you know why I pulled you all here?”

They all shook their heads in sync knowing that they could not do a thing right now, nor did they know what this thing was. The Sacred Tree would not give them strength right now, but it also relied on mana, which is what these tombs specifically targeted. You had to rely on physical strength, but more importantly, mental strength.

???: “Had I not, you would have been stuck in this endless loop for eternity. I sense something. I sense a danger that may be unavoidable.”

Kouki: “What does that mean? What are you?”

???: “What? I think I deserve more respect, no? I am a person just like you, but I have taken a form that is…unjustified.”

Yasuhiro: “What do you mean? Get to the point. We got places to be and it seems like you’re the one in charge here. Making us suffer for no reason and then trying to help us? How about I kill you right here?”

???: “Kill me? Why would you kill me? Did I say that I am in charge of this place? That was an assumption by you was it not? Regardless, if I hurt you, why would you kill me?”

Yasuhiro: “Huh? What kind of stupid question is that?”

???: “If you are a man of morals, you would try to reason with me. I see you are not worthy. And you–”

He pointed at Kouki as if asking what he would’ve done.

Kouki: “I am a man of my own morals. My opinions don’t align with yours. I would kill you too. Touch me or anyone I love and I wouldn’t hesitate. What of it?”

???: “Not many people have had the chance to see me. You wouldn’t know who I am, I guess. After all, I’ve had maybe 10 guests in my entire existence including you 4. It has been a quiet life. I’ve never known solitude until I came here. I do miss the connection with a sword. Ah, even though there are 3 of us, the other 2 get a lot more guests. I wonder if I’d change my mind if I had more guests. Maybe I should take Rugz's advice and move around more.”

Kouki thought, ‘3 of us? What is he referring to? Wait, he doesn’t mean–’

Kouki: “You…You’re a master blacksmith, aren’t you?”

???: “Ah, I see I gave it away I guess.”

Yasuhiro: “This thing? This is a master blacksmith?”

He pointed at Agatha who hadn’t spoken a word this entire time saying, “You there. You have similar mana to a man that was the first ever to find me.”

Agatha: “The master? You know the master?”

???: “Actually, it seems his mana is attached to you. I shall help you. Please, surrender your sword to me. If you choose to, I will make you a better one.”

Yasuhiro: “Hey! Take my sword too you idiot! Make mine better!”

???: “You wish to surrender a covenant? I see that you are not loyal to your sword. This woman here is strong. Take notes. Her sword formed a covenant with her. It forced it onto her without choice. Therefore, even though it grants her immense strength, it drains her lifeforce. Please, allow me to take it.”

Agatha believed the monster and gave her sword willingly. He walked back to the black moss that grew like a gigantic seawall behind him as the sword lifted in the air, going into the moss, then coming out anew, but completely different.

A grey blade that extended with red lines down the entire shaft appeared. It didn’t look like a standard sword with its curved nature, but the horned symbol that was there before had disappeared.

???: “Your sword was connected to a source of evil from hundreds of years ago taken and harnessed by the Flaen Family. The being that is connected with that symbol is a dangerous creature that I sense on the surface. You were to be the final sacrifice for it, but I have taken it away. Despite its power, nobody compares to me when it comes to swords. There is a reason I have this title. Please, take this sword. It will grant you immense strength.”

Agatha: “Th-Thank you.”

Kento finally awoke with blood still running down his body. He slowly made his way over to the creature, standing face to face with it and spitting in his face.

Kento: “I-I don’t know what you are, but nobody does that to me. I don’t care if I bury us all alive here, you won’t be able to stop this.”

He opened his eyes, activating the chaplets as his hair flapped wildly and wind rushed at all of them. It was like a hurricane that was about to wipe them off the face of the world.

???: “Agatha Rekka, please do not lose. I still wish to see who can find me in this place. Out of 10 people, 1 has done it. The rest, I have pulled here. As for the rest of you, do try your best not to die.”

He lifted his black pixelated hand at Kento and then the entire area went dark, lifting them upwards in pink swirling mana before emerging to the surface.