Chapter 4 - An Apprentice?!

High in the mountains, the prattling of two individuals rang brazenly across the endless peaks.

“Hey, are you going to get off me or what? You’ve been clinging to me since I got out of the damn adventurer’s guild!” Vanya yelled. Glued to her leg as she hopped forward was a reluctant young boy.

“Not until you accept me. Or at the very least, just let me watch your marvellous battles! That’s all I ask, Vanya,” he whined, clinging harder.

She expected negative reactions to her outlandish announcement yesterday; however, she hadn't expected this. Vanya’s father always advised her to make friends, and it wasn’t as though she didn’t want to; it was her appearance and, quite frankly, even her now prideful personality that got in the way of that. But this child… couldn’t take no for an answer.

Her hand pushed against his ferocious head. It wove and bobbed, ultimately swinging straight back to her knee.

“Alright, I get it, just get off me.”

“I knew you’d understand! Right. Since I’ve joined your party, my name is Kallan. I’m sixteen and ready to learn under you, Master Vanya!”

“I told you no. And I mean it.”

Upon reaching the peak of a mountain, she peered down into the giant plain surrounded by mountains. Cattle frolicked about, eating grass lackadaisically and wagging their tails every so often. People wandered, cutting crops and laughing freely with one another.

“There’s a village in this secluded area? Why are we here?”

“Protecting the people.”

“Ah, that makes sense! From what?”

“Supposedly a den of dragons. Though I haven’t seen any real ones aside from those ‘dragon-kin.’”

“Dragons?! Like actual four-legged, two-winged dragons?” Kallan ruffled his black curly hair, glistening in awe. Vanya surveyed the edges of the mountains and the cattle, zipping back and forth.

“What other behemoth would I be referring to? Now keep quiet and stay here. I don’t want to protect a hundred cattle, the people and you at the same time.”

“Yes, yes, Master~ I’ll stay right here.”

A deep and cavernous quake emerged on the other side of where they were. Lizards tens of meters larger than the people slithered down in unison. They wore scales of emerald green, and many canines protruded from their maws.

“Just lizards…” Vanya muttered. “Okay, you better stay here and stop calling me master.”

A surge of wind left in Vanya’s wake. She jumped, landing and sprinting faster. Her cloak fluttered, flapping jaggedly. She arrived in front of the disturbed people; they dropped their baggage and ran off—some, however, bumped into gates, tripped, then ran again.

They were far too slow, and it was clear the lizards would catch up. Vanya stared the lizards down. A golden spear slowly manifested out of a sort of ethereal portal.

Heat filled the cold metal, warming it with Vanya’s touch. The lizards flailed their heads and tails, and a few tried to devour her. Nonetheless, a mere jump allowed her to float and land gently onto the snout of a lizard. The essence of speed engulfed her spear. The force crushed through its skull before she backflipped and slammed another lizard’s head straight into the ground.

Six more.

Vanya ploughed through another’s stomach, blood splashing over her cloak. The screams pulled her attention, allowing a lizard to nab her from the side. She dropped her spear, letting it fly freely. It pierced through its teeth, diving for the screams. Fingers dug deep from within the maw of the lizard. It grasped and tugged ferociously, tearing the upper half of its maw clean off.

She boosted off the lizard’s tongue, throwing herself as the spear returned, carrying her faster. Vanya landed onto the lizard, tossing it off of the helpless man.

“Thank you—demon? Demon! Don’t come any closer!” Disgust and fear beamed from the man’s eyes.

That sole word repulsed her very being. It was the same routine for her. No matter if she saved them all, or if she didn’t, the results were the same. She wouldn’t be acknowledged for her heroism and instead, insulted for her gender or demonic form.

She darted away, piercing and lopping the heads of the remaining ginormous lizards. Coming down the hill, Kallan’s voice echoed, gradually growing in size.

“Master! That was awesome!”

Vanya sighed, rubbing her forehead. “Didn’t I tell you to stay put? What’s going to happen if they demonise you too, huh?”

Kallan raised his brow, then, holding his stomach, laughed. “Demonise? Don’t worry, everyone thinks you’re a hero! And if I had to say, your horn and eyes make you look way cooler than if you didn’t have them. It makes me admire you even more, Master!”

“I said drop that name. It’s Vanya.” Kallan yelped as Vanya’s fist drilled into his hair.

“Thank you, Miss!” A small girl came up, smiling widely. She grabbed from within her pocket a red daisy. Vanya crouched down.

She… doesn’t care about what I look like?

The small girl giggled, putting the flower through her hair. “You look pretty, Miss. Thank you for saving my older brother from that big lizard.”

Vanya blinked rapidly; blurred vision overcame her as she smiled crookedly.

“Oh, come here Lila… Away from the ‘thing.’” He said. It was the same man from before. He cleared his throat. “Thank… you…”

He trembled, offering his hand, which Vanya shook. His eyes looked to every corner, averting Vanya’s gaze. Disgust oozed from the mouths of those behind, climbing into her delicate ears.

“You know I can hear you all right?”

Fear took hold of their voices, making them turn away.

“Does my appearance really irk you that much? Because I’m a woman? A demon?” Vanya scoffed, reeling her hand away from the man’s sweaty hand. “All I’ve ever done to any of you… is protect you. I saved all of you, and instead of genuine gratitude, you all threw insults at me.”

“You’re not like us! A woman who could slay all those lizards? Preposterous! It’s because you’re one of those evil beasts… That’s right…you’re a disgusting purity!” They rioted, throwing their fists up in the air.

The older brother frowned. He froze in place, blocking Lila’s ears. She stepped toward them, gripping tightly onto her spear. Something visceral stirred in her heart, mixing and thumping into rage. A fiery glare engulfed their eyes. She quickly stopped at Lila’s watchful stare and Kallan’s hand holding her back.

“She just saved you all from death! Couldn’t you all at least pretend to be grateful?” Kallan retorted.

“Why should we? Didn’t you see how she looked at us? She was going to kill us just because of some words!”

“You told her she was a purity, who wouldn’t get mad?”

“Yeah, and who wouldn’t get scared of a demon who could kill us at any moment, huh?! You’re probably a demon too, with your sinister red eyes…”

Veins slightly appeared on her head, and nails drove into her skin, drawing blood.

Kallan pulled her arm, retreating. “Let’s go, Vanya; don’t listen to these idiots.”

A rock flew over, hitting the back of Vanya’s head; yet she looked straight ahead, ignoring them and following behind Kallan.

“You made the right choice, Master.”

“Am I… really a hero if the people I save hate me?”

Kallan cocked his head, showing a dumbfounded look.

“The hell you talking about? Of course you are! To that girl and to me. Sure, many may hate you, but eventually, one by one, they’ll come to accept you. As they say, even the tiniest of steps forward is considered progress!” He smiled warmly.

Vanya gave a small smile back. “Thanks.”

“Now that I look at you, you’re much taller than the village people. I’m young, so I thought it was natural to be shorter, but…”

“I’m 178 centimetres tall. If you encounter beastmen or those dragon-kin, then you’ll really see who the giants are.”

“Tell me more!”

Loud, irritating chatter persisted within the adventurer guild’s main lobby. The door swung wide open, and Vanya and Kallan walked in; everyone quickly turned their voices down beside a few ignorant fools who had their backs facing the door.

“How may I… help you?” the receptionist stuttered.

“It wasn’t dragons, it was lizards. I killed eight of them.”

“Oh yes… Please wait a moment, we're busy with all the reports coming in.”

A bald man with a stubble chugged beer till he slammed his jug down.

“Apparently two elves are resisting a kidnapping as we speak in the desert of Naraka’s outer realm. Think it was ‘them?’”

“What’s going on?” Kallan asked.

“Haah…?” Although the man turned and glared, he quickly adjusted himself, shrinking and curling from Vanya’s narrowed gaze. He laughed nervously. “We were just talking about something that was reported not long ago. It’s been a while since the adventurer’s guild reported a kidnapping. Well, there’s been other reports lately; I think it’s the third one they’ve had today? Probably by the same people, right guys?”

The other two on the table nodded frantically, merely uttering nonsensical baby noises.

“It’s probably not true, but it’s in the desert if you want to check it out. Though if there was a kidnapping, they’re probably long gone by now.”

Vanya power-walked out. The sun was at its peak, brimming with an intense vitality.

“Don’t tell me you’re going to go over there when you don’t even know where they are exactly? You just got done with those lizards too!”

“Shut it, I’m not about to let some kidnappers ruin the peace I made.”

“You need to rest, or at the very least, get more information. Are you even listening, Master?” he shouted, grabbing at her arm.

“Don’t go telling me what to do; you think I don’t know what I’m doing?”

“You don’t know what you’re doing! You’re strong, Master. Stronger than anything I’ve ever seen… But—”

“It’s always worked out, and I’m not your master.” She bolted into the sky, a red thin line being left in her place.

It wasn’t long till she arrived at the desert; in spite of that, the wait felt much longer to her. Perhaps it was Kallan’s words that rang incessantly through her mind. She shook her head, trying to slap it out of her ears.

Sand exploded outward, catching her landing. She didn’t rest, scanning the area with absolute focus until the decay of a beast caught her attention. Notwithstanding the cunning breeze, she spotted a faint trail straight ahead from the beast’s decapitated head.

Her spear floated into her hand from the portal and took off in the direction of the trail. Vanya of course, held tightly onto the spear as it flew.

In the distance, an azure dragonkin quickly tossed two bodies onto his cart. Her spear altered its direction slightly, aiming directly at the tall man.

Just before her spear could pierce through him, the man turned, barely manifesting a liquid barrier between the two.

“Damn, I must be a lucky man,” a deep chortle resounded from his body.

He flicked his finger and the barrier followed his command; the liquid barrier flailed, tossing Vanya and her spear away.

“Are you the kidnapper?”

The man raised a brow and then hit his palm with a fist.

“Ah yes, yes I am.”

“And those elves are still alive, right?”

“That is correct, yes.”

“Let them go, and I’ll spare your life.”

The azure-scaled man tapped the walls of the cart, a small chuckle climbing from his mouth.

“Being a celebrity doesn’t make things that easy, ya know.” he paused, watching the serious Vanya ready her spear. “I expected a more—how do I put it—’imposing aura’ around you.”

Vanya gritted her teeth; an insatiable bloodlust encompassed the desert. The blue-scaled man’s face grew stern, swallowing his saliva. An oppressive thought skittered around his skin.

A spear zipped across the air, halting in place from the liquid barrier. On the side, Vanya charged, twisting and spinning until she supposedly met her target with a kick.

The man smirked deviously. Trapped in the barrier was not only her spear but also her foot.

His doubtful half-laughs intermingled with his incoming proclamation.

“You can emit bloodlust all you want, but it’s the skills that do the talking. Unlike you with your spear, I’ve been bestowed a gift. Key arts. A power that far surpasses that shiny spear of yours.”

He moved through his own barrier as if it were never there. His fist reeled back, incandescent red glowing strings wrapping around it as steam rose. With a mighty blow augmented by the rushing blood in his body, it ploughed into Vanya’s stomach. Sand shot hundreds of meters up into the air, and rained down just as quickly.

It wasn’t just one blow; he released tens and hundreds. Walls of sand built on all sides of the pit, becoming a small fortress that locked the two away from the outside. Storms quickly approached, and clouds engulfed the orange sky in a hazy grey fog.

“Whoa, don’t tell me I managed to defeat the Vanya—”

“Are you done?” Beneath the sand, only a small scratch lay upon Vanya’s arm. She spat sand out, looking at her still trapped foot. The man grabbed her shirt, dragging her across the desert hundreds of meters before throwing her away. Something changed in the man, but doubt overshadowed it.

Vanya returned, landing just a few meters in front of him.

From his hand, a spherical shape of blood exploded. It warped, unsteadily moving around. He swung his arm, and blood sprayed like bullets across the entire front area. Her spear spun, deflecting such bullets.

“How exciting, you’re better than I expected!” he remarked. “But… you can’t hurt me at this rate. Big muscles and strong legs aren’t enough. You need a remarkable key art to take me on. Though from what I’ve observed, you don’t have one.”

“When did I say I never had one?”

“What?” He raised a brow, then nervously laughed. “Ah. I see how it is. It’s that weak spear—”

Vanya pointed at the sky. In the dark, dull atmosphere, the clouds parted for her heavenly creation. Light shone down, mesmerising the dumbstruck man. Momentarily, all he could do was let out a baffled guffaw.

“How fancy. So this is what killed the great titan... Come then!”

A large gold spear glistened in the light. It prepared itself, descending slowly as if to bask in the sun’s radiant light.

“This isn’t what killed the great titan. This spear is a smaller version. A much smaller version.”

It struck down with lightning speed, ploughing through everything in its sight. A small explosion boomed, shockwaves cascading again and again through the desert as a large crater—hundreds of meters wide—formed.

In the centre lay a man bisected in two. His eyes struggled to stay open, and his breathing grew shallow and hoarse.

Vanya slid down, standing over the man.

“I should thank you for running far from your cart. If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to use such a big attack.”

“I’m… envious of your power,” he stuttered, coughing up blood.

“Where are the other people you’ve taken hold of?”

“S-smart one, ey?” he scoffed, closing his eyes and smiling. “Near… the sea.”

Alas, everything ended well. There were no casualties, and the two elves were brought back safely in the arms of the adventurer’s guild. In spite of that, Vanya didn’t stop to rest. She had already sought her next target.

I don’t have time to rest… I must save the other captives.