by Nikita Thorn
Seiki readied himself again, his sword gripped firmly in his hands.
None of them got up. Umezawa was lying still on the floor, groaning, his sword lying haplessly beside him.
Master Tsujihara took a step forward and the rest of Umezawa’s standing men drew back in fear.
“My students are not for you to pick on, Umezawa,” said the Master. “Now leave.”
Umezawa [Level 7 - Elite] HP 1/250 glared at them, and quickly gathered his men and left without another word. The men scurried after him, helping along their injured. Seiki could hear them clattering through the door and down the hallway.
“Don’t you dare show your face here again,” cried Sato after them. Maeda was starting to wake up and he moaned. After the Master decided that Maeda’s injury was nothing too serious, the two students took their leave.
Master Tsujihara finally turned to Seiki. “That was… not bad,” he said, in a kind of half-approval that Seiki was used to.
Seiki sighed. He knew the Master was right. He had believed having a sword would make things easier, and although the fight was relatively simple compared to everything he had been through so far, he could tell it was very sloppy. Umezawa’s level had been tuned to match his, but Seiki had far out-leveled all his other opponents. He was so used to things being hard now that this ultimately felt a little unsatisfying.
“You are not used to weapons, are you?” asked Master Tsujihara.
Seiki was surprised he knew.
“You were treating it as if it was a wrestling match,” said the Master.
Seiki stared at him.
“Your stances are all bare-handed fighting stances,” the old man went on. “A bit risky against armed opponents. You would do well learning a few sword stances.”
If Seiki had had doubts about Master Tsujihara, he was now completely sold, and a childlike sense of excitement filled his heart. “Master Tsujihara, please teach me.”
The Master sounded pleased. “Come back tomorrow or when you are ready.” He bent down to pick up his sword, which was still on the floor, and thrust it through his obi. “Keep the bamboo sword.”
You have received: Bamboo Sword. +17 attack. Damage 1.3. Speed 1.1. Range 0.5.
Quest accepted: No Pain No Gain [Level 4].
“Can I start immediately?” asked Seiki with a kind of giddy enthusiasm he had not felt for a long time.
He heard someone clear his throat.
Yamura was sitting at the edge of the practice hall, leaning against a pillar. There was a messy pile of wood shavings in front of him. Seiki had no idea how long he had been there.
“How did you find me?”
“No Pain No Gain?” Yamura asked, ignoring the question.
“Yeah.”
“Just look at it. You can’t finish it today.”
No Pain No Gain [Level 4 Quest Information]: get started on the path of the sword. Practice at the dojo until you gain the approval of the master swordsman! You will receive: 60 XP.
“It’s rather vague,” said Seiki, not sure what Yamura meant.
“Go ahead, try it,” said Yamura.
“Try that move again,” said Master Tsujihara, taking no notice of Yamura. Seiki did as he was told and swung out his bamboo sword with his newly-acquired Sweeping Blade.
The Master used a bamboo sword to poke at Seiki’s right foot. “Wider,” he said. “Now try again.”
Seiki did it again, this time a bit steadier.
“Better,” said Master Tsujihara. “Again.”
The third Sweeping Blade pretty much used up all his energy.
Quest progress: gain the approval of the master swordsman 1% complete.
Yamura laughed at Seiki’s surprised expression. “See what I mean? You’ll be doing this for hours. They really make you work for your abilities. Talk about realistic. Then for the next one, you’d better have two hundred gold lying around, so you’re practically forced to pick up a crafting skill.”
Seiki looked at the pile of wood in front of Yamura. “Is that what you’re doing?”
“Nah,” said Yamura. “We’ve got the longest range in the game, but we’ve got to keep making our own friggin’ arrows. Talk about realistic again. I mean, you can buy them, but it’s not like I have extra gold to spend. And with Rapid Shots, you waste a bunch of arrows that don’t even hit anything, so they’re gone quick. And instead of being able to pick them up, no, they fade. So much for realism.”
Seiki just realized he did not know what class Yamura was. “So you’re a...”
“Ryoushi,” said Yamura. “Hunter, archer, ranger, something like that. But anyway, time to go, man. You’ve got your second move. Let’s get to the Shogun.”
“I still have another free ability slot,” said Seiki, wistfully. It had unlocked at Level 6. And he had just found a dojo he wanted to spend a bit more time in.
“Like I said, if you don’t have two hundred gold to spare, you can forget it. Come on. I’ve only managed to negotiate two more hours tonight because I’ve got to wake up early tomorrow.”
Seiki just now realized something about Yamura.
“If we’re lucky, we can make about twenty gold,” Yamura was saying. “Come on, man, one quest. One quest!” He seemed a little desperate.
Seiki threw his hands up. “All right. You lead the way.”
They took leave of Master Tsujihara, who told Seiki to come back the next day.
Yamura knew where he was going and, once Seiki agreed, he seemed in high spirits. The sun was now sinking in the sky and the nameless citizens of South City were out on the streets with lanterns. The road lamps along the canal banks reflected brightly in the shimmering water, giving a peaceful orange glow to the whole area.
Seiki learned that the East and West Cities were PVP zones. The North was where the Shogun’s Palace was, and it had different combat rules. “Unlike South City, where you can’t even attack people even if you want to, in the Palace you can actually draw your sword, but the guards immediately throw you in prison. Not sure why they would do that,” Yamura said.
There turned out to be many ways in and out of South City, and soon they found themselves in a dense sea of buildings. Yamura stopped at one small intersection and looked out warily both ways, before stepping through. Seiki followed him.
Welcome to East City. City combat rules apply. PVP status: enabled.
East City seemed a bit more crowded with building than people, and rather dark and grim compared to the picturesque South. Shops and stalls were sparse, as well as street lamps, and a lot of the alleys were completely unlit.
“Shortcut,” said Yamura, as he turned down one dark alley.
They came across one old man in tattered clothes sitting in front of a building offering a quest called Tanaka’s Belongings [Level 6], but Yamura convinced Seiki it was not worth it.
“I’ve done it. You go pick up stuff from around the city. It’s tedious,” he said.
The area turned out to be quite dense with quest starting points, and many of the buildings where you could go in featured a few citizens who talked about the good old days when the Emperor was in power. Seiki soon started to have an uncanny feeling that, behind the still walls, East City was actually heavily populated. The citizens were somehow afraid to come out and were only peeping through cracks to look at them.
He was not sure why he had that feeling that they were being watched by a thousand hidden eyes. Yamura seemed completely unaffected and was confidently making a turn into another very dark alley.
All of a sudden, Yamura squinted. “What’s that?”
Seiki followed his gaze but could see nothing. Yamura had already started running ahead in pursuit of whatever he had spotted.
Seiki ran after him and caught up with him at a narrow fork in the road. “What is it?”
“I’m not sure,” said Yamura, looking around again. Then he shouted. “There!”
As he dashed off
, Seiki started to realize they were going further and further into the maze that was East City, and that the streets were incredibly empty. The buildings on both sides of the alley loomed high and gray.
Yamura had stopped again, his brows knitted.
“What does it look like?”
“Like a piece of red cloth,” said Yamura.
Seiki looked at him uneasily. Mysterious pieces of cloth were always bad news.
Yamura added, “And it has no level.”
Whatever that was, it could not be good. “What about the Shogun?” Seiki asked.
Yamura breathed. “Screw the Shogun. This one is better. There it is again!”
He raced off and Seiki had no choice but to follow him. Seiki had not caught the slightest glimpse of what Yamura was chasing. They soon ran into a dead end in a small alley.
“I swear it came this way,” said Yamura.
The two-storied buildings around them seemed completely abandoned, lit by only the pale white light of the moon high in the sky.
Seiki could feel the hair at the back of his neck stand up as something appeared behind them, from the corner of his eyes. It was red.
“Red cape or blue cape?” a cold, raspy voice asked.
Yamura let out a startled yelp as they both spun around to face it.
Aka Manto [Level Unknown] said again, “Red cape or blue cape?”
It looked like a tall man behind a grotesque white mask. Its whole body was hidden in a long red cloak that ran to the ground.
They glanced at each other. “What’s this?” Yamura asked.
“Red cape or blue cape?” That was when Seiki felt a chill descending around him and starting to eat away at his health. He realized that you needed to answer it.
“Red,” said Seiki. At the same time Yamura burst out, “Blue!”
The thing let out a screech and its right hand shot forward. Seiki ducked in time to avoid what appeared to be a razor-sharp blade. But before he could react again, the blade swiped down and left a shallow gash across his side. “I will make you red!” cried the thing.
As Seiki threw himself to the left to avoid another strike, the Aka Manto burst forward and fell on top of Yamura, its left hand on his throat, strangling him. “I will make you blue!”
Seiki grabbed his bamboo sword and aimed a Focused Strike at the Aka Manto’s shoulder, knocking it off Yamura, who gasped for breath as he scrambled to his feet.
The Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare], HP 772/840, flipped over unnaturally on the ground and bolted up. Seiki rushed in and struck it across the face before it could lunge at Yamura again. It did not react to the blow but stabbed out with its blade.
Yamura had already grabbed his bow and he let loose an arrow, which struck the Aka Manto in the torso.
Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare]. HP 692/840.
“What the heck with that kind of health?” cried Yamura as he noticed the numbers. The Aka Manto turned toward him and leapt from the floor, aiming for Yamura’s throat. Seiki brought the bamboo sword downward on its back, and could feel the impact reverberating up his arm. The mob crashed down on the ground, slightly short of Yamura. Yet, it managed to grab hold of his legs and bring him to the ground. The blade in its right hand suddenly stabbed backward at Seiki, who was trying to hit it again with a Focused Strike, forcing him to jump back.
Yamura yelled in horror as the Aka Manto dragged itself up his body. He struck it across the face with his bow, but the monster hardly flinched. Again, its left hand shot out to wrap around his throat. Yamura’s health was dropping fast.
Seiki landed another Focused Strike on its shoulder, flipping it off Yamura. The creature raised its bladed right hand, and left a cut on Seiki’s leg. Thankfully, it was another shallow cut, but the level difference was still significant. Even if it was not an elite, Seiki’s health still dropped by a quarter. “Red!” it hissed.
Seiki knew that being trapped at the end of the alley limited their movement and put them at a severe disadvantage. He tried to run past the mob to gain better grounds for the fight, but the Aka Manto’s movements defied laws of physics. The bastard could propel itself from impossible positions, slashing out with its long blade and blocking him.
Yamura had backed himself into a corner and had fired two more arrows. His health was only at half now.
“We can’t get trapped here,” cried Seiki. Then he thought of something. He dashed forward and made use of his Sweeping Blade. The impact threw the Aka Manto to the right, leaving a slight opening. Seiki knew now that, based on their answers to its question, the creature would only try to cut him and strangle Yamura. So, for a time being, his companion was safe from its left arm. “Run!” he yelled.
Yamura dashed forward past the Aka Manto, which had jerked its bladed right arm up toward Seiki’s chest. Three of Yamura’s arrows flew in rapid succession and hit it on the arm, slowing the attack by a split second which allowed Seiki to twist himself in midair and avoid the blade. Seiki landed in a roll and leapt to his feet.
Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare], HP 332/840, gave them no rest and it came screeching at them. Yamura was out of energy, and Seiki only had enough for one Focused Strike.
“Run!” cried Yamura as he turned around.
“No, you can’t run!” cried Seiki. The thing was faster than them, and getting caught from behind would be the end of them. The creature had reached him and was slicing at him again with its blade. He managed to block with his bamboo sword and, as it slashed at him again, he aimed and kicked the blade away with his foot.
Seiki took his stance and his Focused Strike hit the Aka Manto in the middle of its body, sending it staggering backward. As it fell, its blade lifted at an impossible angle and slashed him on his forearm. It was a direct cut and Seiki gasped at the chill, almost dropping his sword. “Red!” it hissed again.
Immediately, the Aka Manto came flying back. With his health lingering at half, Seiki did not know if he could afford to take another direct hit. He turned and ran, trying to get into a better position.
Out of the blue, the Aka Manto stopped short, as if it had run into an invisible wall. Seiki then noticed that the bottom of its cape was caught in something on the ground that looked like a spiked trap. The Aka Manto reached out with its blade but could not quite reach him.
“We’re not in a group so don’t step on that,” cried Yamura, tossing out yet another trap.
After a short instant, the trap unraveled and the Aka Manto flew forward again, before quickly getting ensnared in another.
Seiki took this chance to catch his breath. He was now out of energy.
Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare]. HP 262/840.
“It only lasts for four seconds each and I can’t keep this up,” cried Yamura. He was using all his energy to toss out each of the traps. “And I’m not anywhere near to being able to use my Focused Shot.”
He had to act fast before Yamura was completely out. Seiki ran in with a calculated move. As the Aka Manto swung its blade at him, he parried as hard as he could, with both hands clutching tight at his bamboo sword, pushing the blade back. At the same time, he jumped and landed a roundhouse kick in the middle of its torso.
The creature’s blade twisted and started sliding off his bamboo sword. Seiki’s right hand let go of the hilt and struck the monster on the shoulder. His fist hit bone. Under the cloak, it was all bone.
Not having time to be horrified, Seiki grabbed its bone shoulder and jerked it forward. With the bamboo sword still pushing against the blade, this move would have forced any opponent to drop the weapon. But this thing was not human, and its arm bent back at an awkward angle. Suddenly, it spun around in almost a full circle, with its feet still locked in the trap, tossing Seiki off to one side.
The trap expired and the creature went straight after Yamura, whose energy had recharged just enough for him to throw another trap. Backing away, the ryoushi shot two more arrows at the Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare], HP 167/840.
Seiki ran at it from behind, hitting it on the head with the sword, then again on the body. His energy was still not enough for a special move. The creature’s sword arm swung backward and grazed Seiki’s shoulder. The trap expired once more and the Aka Manto lunged forward at Yamura with unexpected force, landing itself on him. Its bony left hand, still hidden under the red cloak, pushed down on Yamura’s throat. “Blue!” it hissed.
Yamura struggled as his health dipped dangerously. With luck, Seiki’s energy had just reached the minimum threshold. He ran in and swiped the creature on its head with his Sweeping Blade, knocking it off the ryoushi.
It was still not enough.
Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare], HP 98/840 quickly recovered and turned around, its sword arm ready to strike out again. Seiki jumped, landed with both feet on its outstretched arm, bringing his bamboo sword down on its face. He rained blows on its head, again and again. A chilly cut ran up his leg and he lost his balance, falling onto his knees. But it was all over. They had won.
Aka Manto [Level 12 Rare]. HP 0/840. Lootable.
Aka Manto slain. 136 XP gained.
Seiki was panting heavily, his hands still holding on tight to the bamboo sword, which he just realized had become slippery from his own blood. He pushed himself away from the creature, now a pile of rags on the ground, and turned to look at Yamura.
The ryoushi was pale, his health a sliver of the total. But he was alive. He had sat up and, for a moment, was too shaken to say anything. His bow was on the ground and he seemed completely spent.
Seiki examined his wounds and was rather surprised to find his clothes all soaked with blood. His health was only at a little better percentage than Yamura’s. It was all quiet now, and the wind had picked up.
The buildings around were still and silent, and the moon was still high up. Seiki figured the fight must have not lasted a very long time, though it had felt like forever. With more practice with the bamboo sword, he was starting to understand the nuances of his two special abilities better. Sweeping Blade was slightly weaker, but in practice it was faster to use and required less time to get into the starting stance. It also had a decent knock-back effect.
