The Search #4

The sound of steel grating against metal armor was ear-scratching and entirely unpleasant, but compared to the satisfaction of felling down a monster in one swift strike managed to compensate for it. However, despite that, using a lot of energy and power for one killing strike will take a toll, and even a master can swing a killing blow so many times– albeit more than a novice, that’s for sure, but they’re still human nonetheless– before they tire.

“E-Eighty-nine!” Bianca heaved, her shoulders slightly sagging as the tip of her sword touched the ground to rest.

“My turn,” Arthur then exchanged her position, with him in the front and her in the back recuperating and ready to assist. “We’ve been at this for about thirty-one minutes, and my calculations were correct. We’ve felled a total of 183 possessed suits of armor so far, not to mention, Gabriel’s fiance is still here to back us up if we fuck up.”

Whissshhaaa!

Another suit of hollow armor charged from the portal, his standard-issue sword in both his hands for a horizontal cut from the right; and Arthur charged to meet him. The sword came in swiftly, but he was one step ahead.

Swish!

The knight’s sword swished through the air, cutting nothing as Arthur dodged the blow by sliding underneath it with a hair’s width and delivering a killing blow from behind, piercing the heart and brain of the hollow suit.

“Ninety,” Arthur huffed, “Grinding used to be fun when the most physically extraneous task was staying awake– this is exhausting, not to mention the risk to my life. I should stop doing that.” he chuckled in thought, his free hand ruffling his hair, just where it was slightly snipped.

“Behind you!”

Arthur’s senses heightened to the maximum, with instinct guiding the block that would’ve ultimately killed him.

Clang!

“uh–”

Arthur’s knees, originally stiff and rigid with strength, were overpowered as the strike connected with his sword, unfortunately shattering it with sheer force as he was thrown toward’s Bianca.

“A-Arthur!” Bianca cried in a surprised panic, causing Stephanie, who was watching with boredom to jump straight up, her hand on her rapier. The suit of armor before them was different from the others, with his set of armor lacking a significant amount of protection around his arms and upper chest, with only leather to contrast his metal pair of trousers.

Arthur reacts to his weightless plight and using his right hand as an anchor, straightening his body and twisting it to reorientate himself, his two feet landed with relative ease. “I’m alright, but that shit hurt– so watch out,” he said, after a quick check of his bones. There was bruising, but none were broken or fractured

“Why does their armor look so familiar? It’s like a samurai’s armored skirt but smaller, and he has shin pads too. The others were more basic, but they're making me uneasy. Something isn’t right here.”

Bianca returned her gaze to the new monster that managed to throw Arthur off his solid foundation with hostility. “It’s a spearman.” The swordswoman deduced, “And a fairly skilled one at that, I suppose.”

Arthur looked forward, frowning with unease, “Based on his halberd, yeah, no ordinary trooper would carry a grandiose weapon like that.”

“An officer then,” Bianca added, making Arthur nod in agreement.

“That would make sense,” He huffed, “So, want to take him?”

“That would be foolish, it’s logical for a halberd to trump a longsword in terms of the force capable of being exerted, reach, and lethality,” Bianca brandished her weapon, “it would be wise for us to combine our strengths.”

“I don’t mind the sound of that, so I’ll try to keep it from reaching you. Try your best to kill him before I kick the bucket.”

“How chivalrous of you to volunteer to be the vanguard.”

“Just make it quick, we still have the portal to deal with.”

“Affirmative.”

The spearman before them firmly planted his feet, kicking up a small cluster of gravel dust, and he gripped his halberd strongly, despite not having tangible hands. Arthur and Bianca advanced, sprinting across the gravel, but Bianca lagged one step behind intentionally as Arthur reached for a sword on the ground.

“Pleased–” Arthur grit, the sword in his right hand but still pointed at the ground behind him. His shoulder and arms flexed for an underhand swing, with his left hand meeting the handle midway through the movement for more power, “-- to meet you!”

Pang!

The tip of the spearman’s halberd clashed against the longsword, stopping it dead in its movement by catching the sword in between the speartip and the ax, just by its socket.

“S-so fucking– strong!” Arthur gasped, loosening his grip to avoid damaging his wrists, “B-Bianca! Be careful!” He warned, “She was not joking, this guy was an officer!”

The knight jumped from the ground, her right foot landing somehow lightly on Arthur’s shoulder to propel her forward over the spear. “Understood!”

At her response, Arthur tightened his arms, and using the guard of the sword, he planted the spear on the ground, “You’re not going anywhere– you monstrous bastard!”

The spearman looked up at Bianca, whose longsword was drawn and coming from over her head for a downward cut; and he reacted accordingly, without hesitation. Realization struck Arthur when he witnessed the spear lose its strength, and the armored man took a small step back with his left foot.

“Shit! He’s a Wuxia soldier!” Arthur gasped, picturing a scene from the fourth year of the game, “Block it!” He desperately warned, but to no avail as he was too late.

Bianca registered the plea of her friendly acquaintance, but she could not react to the attack. The spearman’s move was swift, his weight transferred instantly to his left foot while his right leg kicked off the ground.

Pow!

Bianca’s consciousness blacked out, perhaps in mercy, as the pain, she experienced in that instant was incredible. The soldier’s leg came with great speed, and with the power behind it, he crushed her left side entirely, throwing her aside like a cotton doll.

“Bianca!” Stephanie cried out, her rapier finally drawn, “How dare you harm my subordinate! You body-less abomination cursed to fight even after death!”

Arthur turned to Stephanie for a brief second before turning back to the spearman, “A Cursed soldier? Cursed to fight without a body, even after death?! He’s not possessed but imprisoned?”

Despite not being able to physically reply, the spearman turned to Stephanie, his nonexistent eyes glaring at her like swords. Arthur did not hear words perhaps, but the shaking of the armor’s shoulders and arms was enough to explain everything.

“I see,” Arthur sighed, feeling pity for the soldier, “The pieces are falling into place. In the reign of the Third Empress of the Magic Empire, she married a Dark-Element Specialist; and in their reign, the Two Score War erupted between the Magic Empire and the Wuxia Alliance– who are now known just as Wuxia today— and it was a bloody war, with two and a half million killed on both sides over fifty years. Because of that margin, a ceasefire agreement was drafted, effectively ending the war in a tie.” Arthur remembered, “If that’s a soldier from that period, then he’s been effectively imprisoned for centuries, unable to speak, only to hate within the confines of the magic circle underneath this stadium. How cruel,” He muttered, feeling pity for the soldiers.

“How impudent!--” Stephanie sneered, marching hastily towards the soldier, but Arthur motioned her to stop, “You commoner, you dare–”

“I understand your anger,” Arthur tried to reason, “Not really because their situation is understandable in a way,” he thought, but spoke differently, “We need to prioritize Bianca’s safety first, I’ll distract him for you to get her.”

Stephanie's anger cooled, but she still glared at Arthur, “Do you think you have any authority to demand such a request?”

“No, but if you do the math, a commoner’s life is worth less than hers,” Arthur retorted, “She is still your subordinate after all.”

“Hmph,” Stephanie sneered, “Whatever, now, how do you suggest we save her?”

“Leave it to me.”

Arthur tossed the sword away, including the spear, and straightened himself, catching the spearman and Stephanie off-guard. Arthur’s feet came together, his right fist punching his left palm, and he bowed perfectly. But his unusual position was not the most mysterious, it was what came next.

“친애하는 전사! 전사 지망생으로서 일대일 결투를 부탁한다! (Dear warrior! As an aspiring warrior, I ask for a one-on-one duel!)” Arthur exclaimed, intentionally butchering the pronunciation, but only until it was understandable.

The spearman’s body language changed, turning from one of uncontrollable anger to serious and tempered anger instead. He assumed another stance, much more relaxed than before, but still ready to fight. Arthur watched as the spearman assumed the same stance as him, putting together both his hands as he did, and bowing too.

“Good,” Arthur nodded, “It’s safe for you to go get Bianca, but still be careful.”

Stephanie glared at Arthur with confusion, but she still silently agreed anyway, “H-How do you know their filthy language?”

“Shut the fuck up and go get Bianca before she dies,” Arthur spat, not even looking at her, “I’m not 100% sure if this will work but Wuxia Alliance soldiers were taught to value honor above their own lives– something this country desperately needs good god– so a warrior’s honor must be upheld and even with personal bias, they’ll honor it. And thanks to this game being Korean-made, their language is Korean, with Mandarin and Japanese as the next most popular ones.”

“Don’t die before the royal guards arrive, the academy with face incredible losses otherwise. This incident is much more serious than I originally thought, but dying after they arrive works too” Stephanie retrieved Bianca and left without turning back, leaving Arthur and the spearman alone.

“Gee thanks,” Arthur mocked, “I know that too, you punk. I have to somehow put enough time without dying or else we’re all fucked.”

The spearman lunges forward, not waiting for Arthru to make the first more. He came running forward with his fists closed and elbows closed to his body. The stance was familiar, but it was not exactly like Arthur’s memory.

“S-shit! That stance!” Arthur cursed, raising his arms to block, “He’s a fuckin’--”

The empty suit of armor stomped the ground with this left foot, halting himself but not his momentum. His right arm stretched forward with an open palm, fluidly channeling his power in tandem with his body’s entire momentum. At the finished moment, a strong gush of air was generated from the man’s palm, sending a column of air barreling at Arthur.

Whoosh!

“ –An elemental Warrior!” Arthur exclaimed, his entire body being pushed back but not toppled. “An elemental Warrior– he’s an officer of some kind. An Aerokinetic at that– this is going to be hard.”

Arthur recovered quickly, just as the attack lost power, and his eyes gleamed with hope. “But now that I know what you are, you’re no longer an unknown–”

The spearman continued his power gathering in his powerful legs, allowing him to jump up in the air to cross the distance. Arthur watched as the spearman leaped in the air, a cloud of dust where he once was. The armor’s arms were outstretched, palms open, and he rained down a powerful combined pillar of air.

Whoosh!

“--And with the basic elemental cycle–” Arthur sprinted forward, dodging a powerful downward gust. He skids across the ground, reaching just underneath the suspended armor, and magic power gathered in his right arm– a ball of fire forming. “[ Fireball ]!”

Boom!

The ball of flames flew upwards, successfully hitting the airborne enemy, and exploding him with ease.

“Phew! Fire trumps wind, prick.” He cheered, but despite the victory, Arthur couldn’t help but feel stupid as the armor pieces fall like rain, clanking as they fell lifelessly.

“I should’ve just blasted them at a distance,” He facepalmed himself, “I’m a mage.”

Whishhaa!

“Damn it, not even a chance to rest!”