I glanced back at Fay, who was on the verge of tears. Moisture gathered in her eyes but didn’t fall. Seeing that caused another shudder to race through my heart, making me realize that I needed to leave.
“I am sorry,” I murmured to Fay before turning around and swiftly exiting the door.
As I journeyed back home, I couldn’t forget the look on Fay’s face as I admitted to having feelings for someone else. I didn’t want to admit it. However, my heart had been shaken by the expression she wore and the tears she refused to shed in my presence.
Chapter 7
What the Heart Wants
After we killed those people from the Red Scorpions, Kari and I were treated with a lot more respect and familiarity by the members of Zane’s caravan. I guess it was because we knew how to fight. No, maybe it was because they had discovered that we were Spiritualists. This desert was a harsh and unforgiving place. Those who lacked strength quickly died.
Zane decided to hire us on as bodyguards. We agreed to work for him, at least for now. Neither of us planned on sticking around for too long. We didn’t want to remain in this desert forever, but at the moment, we didn’t know how to survive in this place on our own, nor did we know how to leave. This desert was vast. A person could travel for hundreds of kilometers and never reach the end of it. In fact, Zane had expressed surprise that the two of us had traveled so far into the desert without dying.
The sunlight bore down on the land like a harsh mistress, but me and Kari had already worked out a way to avoid being scalded: Spiritual Power. By circulating Spiritual Power through our bodies and using it to cover ourselves with a thin, film-like layer, we were able to protect our skin from the sun. At the same time, our Spiritual Power steadily increased as we exercised it. We were killing two Demon Beasts with one Spiritual Technique.
Kari’s Spiritual Power was different from how I used it.
“I’m channeling Spiritual Power by using the swinging motion of my arms,” she confided in me. “It’s sort of like the Pregnancy Protection technique my mother taught me when I was younger, which uses the movements used during sex to create an impenetrable barrier around my womb.”
“I had no idea there was a Spiritual Technique like that,” I admitted.
“This one is only taught to noble women, so I’m not surprised you don’t know of it,” Kari said. “It’s passed down from mother to daughter among nobles because only women can use it.”
I thought about what she told me and nodded. It sounded like a useful technique, and now I understood why Kari hadn’t gotten pregnant despite how much sex we had before we were forced into this desert.
“There is an oasis up ahead,” Zane said as we walked alongside the caravan. The sands shifted under our feet, but we were wearing boots with tracts on the bottom to help give us firmer footing. “We’ll allow our Struts to rest and drink up. We will also resupply our stocks of water.”
I nodded noncommittally when I heard that.
Struts were the strange, bird-like creatures that were pulling the caravans. They were a type of nonviolent D-Rank Demon Beast that lived in the desert. I didn’t know much about them, but according to Zane, there were a number of people who made their living in the Endless Desert by raising them. The ones this caravan possessed had been bought by one of those Strut Trainers several years back.
“We will have to be careful, though, right?” asked Kari.
We had discarded our armor not long after entering the desert. This place was scorching hot, so anything made of steel became unbearable. One of our fellow Spiritualists had actually died because her armor had cooked her from the inside out.
Kari was still wearing her old clothes, which were torn in a few places but still usable. Mine weren’t much better. When we arrived in Alab, she and I would need to get a new set of clothing. I wondered what fashion was like in the Endless Desert…
“Yes.” Zane nodded, his expression grave. “While it is rare, there is a good chance that we will run into Lamia at this oasis. They are incredibly fierce and all of them can use powerful Spiritual Techniques. Even the two of you will have to be careful should we run afoul of them.”
We agreed with his words and proceeded slowly. It didn’t take long for the oasis to appear. It was a little blurry at first, with heat waves distorting the area around it, but my gaze sharpened into focus eventually, and I realized why it was called an oasis.
There was a small pool of water about ten meters across and twenty meters wide, bigger than I had expected. Situated around the pool was a large patch of grass, shrubs, and trees with compound green leaves. I believe they were called fronds. We didn’t have anything like that in Nevaria.
“Everyone, gather the water barrels and resupply while our Struts rest,” Zane ordered.
The people worked in an efficient manner, gathering up the barrels on their carts and carrying them to the pool. They undid the corks and dunked the barrels underneath the water, filling them up. Then they would cork them again and carry them back. There were sixteen barrels and each one could hold eighteen liters worth of water. It would take several hours for them to load up all of those barrels, especially since they were heavy once full.
Kari and I acted as their guards. After drinking our fill of water straight from the oasis, we patrolled the area in case anyone decided to attack. However, it looked like we were the only ones there—
“Ouch!”
My leg jerked back as a sharp pain stabbed into me. I looked down and found two puncture marks on my skin around the ankle and blood leaking from them. A little ways off, I heard a hissing sound, which caused me to seek out the source, but all I found was the end of a tail slithering into the bushes.
“Are you okay?” asked Kari. “What’s wrong?”
“Something just bit me,” I muttered. “Might have been a snake.”
“We need to have you checked for poison,” she said. “I’ve heard all the snakes in the Endless Desert are poisonous.”
There were many poisonous creatures in the desert, so I was well aware of her valid point. We were just about to head back to the caravan, which had antidotes to many types of poisonous creatures, when a loud cry suddenly shook the two of us.
We looked up and found several figures cresting the sand dunes. Their upper bodies resembled men and women, but the lower half of their bodies were those of snakes. Skin shifted into scales around their hips, which extended into an eight- or nine-meter-long tail. All of them had dark skin, dark hair, and wore no clothing. Their naked bodies were covered in either hard muscles or soft curves. However, while they didn’t have any clothes, they did carry spears and khopesh—a type of sickle-sword that was around sixty centimeters in length with a hook at the end.
“Those are Lamia!” one of the caravan members shouted. “They’re attacking!”
The Lamia were indeed rushing forward to attack the caravan, but Kari and I intercepted them. We appeared before the half a dozen Lamia within the blink of an eye. Their progression halted as they stared at us with wide eyes, but we were already attacking.
Kari leapt forward, thrusting her ranseur at the nearest Lamia. He dodged the attack by bending his body in a strange manner. Kari wasn’t deterred, and she quickly spun on the balls of her feet, turning her thrusting motion into a swift slashing attack. Her ranseur met the male Lamia’s khopesh with a loud clanging noise. Sparks flew as metal scraped against metal.
“Heh heh.” The male Lamia grinned as his tongue flicked out of his lips. “Now you’re a cute one. I’ve never seen a woman with such light skin before. I think I’ll take you home with me and make you my pet.”
“Sorry,” Kari apologized in a cold voice, “but you’re not my type.”
Before the Lamia could retort, Kari stomped on the ground, took two steps forward, and channeled her Spiritual Power. A small light appeared on the tip of her ranseur. Kari danced. As she moved her spear, the light turned into six orbs that hovered in the air. She made another swing of
her ranseur, and then the six orbs flashed forward, slamming into the Lamia before he could get away. Six holes appeared on his chest, arms, shoulders, and head. His body swayed, and then he crumbled to the ground, never to get up again.
The death of one of their own seemed to have angered them. Several of the female Lamia slithered over to Kari, but I blocked their path. I had no weapon. However, as I channeled Spiritual Power through my body, I swung my fist and unleashed a bolt of lightning that slammed into one of the snake people. A loud scream tore from the woman’s throat as my lightning fried the inside of her body. Arcs of pale blue energy crackled all over her, skittering along her flesh.
Now that she was paralyzed, I created a spear and prepared to throw it, but another Lamia blocked my path before I could do anything. She thrust her spear, forcing me to dodge. By that point, the spear in my hand was already formed, so I threw it at her. This one must have been smart. She avoided my spear instead of letting herself get attacked by it. However, those precious seconds it took her to dodge were precious seconds I used for my next move.
I gently touched my foot on the ground. Spiritual Power flowed to my feet as I was launched forward. I narrowed my eyes as I moved swiftly, trying to control the flow of my power and not push myself too far. My goal was to attack the Lamia who’d attacked me. That said, I ended up overshooting my goal.
Despite not meeting my goal, I did appear before one of the other Lamia. I thrust my lightning spear forward before he could realize I was there. My spear pierced the creature’s chest, causing him to shriek in agony. Lightning burst around him, smoke and blood poured from his ears as his insides were destroyed. When the lightning spear vanished, the energy used to create it spent, the Lamia I’d killed had a large hole in the center of his chest. He fell back with a thud.
There were only four Lamia left. Two men and two women. All of them appeared quite surprised by how Kari and I had been able to kill two of their numbers so easily.
“Do not go easy on them!” one of the Lamia hissed, a young man with a well-built upper body. “They are Spiritualists!”
The words had a great effect on the remaining Lamia. All of them opened their mouth and shot out some strange liquid that sizzled when it touched the ground. We knew not to let their attacks hit. That stuff could obviously melt through our flesh and probably even our bones.
They attacked in twos now, double-teaming Kari and I while the caravan was hurriedly getting ready to leave. I wove around numerous sword and spear attacks. However, it seemed that wasn’t the only thing I needed to worry about.
“Whoa!”
I released a shocked cry as an ethereal green serpent shot from the hand of the Lamia I was facing. It struck out with its mouth wide open, but I dodged by sidestepping it, and then I aimed a punch at its body. My fist was covered in lightning as I swung. The straight jab struck the ethereal snake and caused it to burst apart. However, that was not the only Spiritual Technique I needed to worry about.
Several more ethereal snakes leapt out from the surrounding desert. They must have been made when I wasn’t looking. Each one attacked with zeal, but I continuously danced around their attacks, destroying the ethereal snakes with accurate and powerful punches. The lightning coating my fists helped me demolish them.
A glance at Kari showed me that she was also doing well. In fact, she was doing even better than I was. She swung her ranseur around her body, twisting it around like she was dancing. Wherever her ranseur passed, afterimages appeared, causing the world around her to blur. The ethereal snakes and other attacks were cut apart underneath her onslaught.
I decided to take the fight to my opponents. Doing what I did before, I placed my foot on the ground and channeled Spiritual Power into it—or I tried to. For some reason, my Spiritual Power had become sluggish and unresponsive. I took a step forward as though to attack, but then my limbs suddenly became heavy. I blinked several times as my vision blurred out of focus. I thought I saw one of the snake women smiling.
“It looks like the poison is taking effect,” one of them said. “Since we have lost two of our numbers, we cannot leave empty-handed. Let’s take the male and go.”
The two snake women appeared before me and lashed out with their powerful tails. With my sluggish body and Spiritual Power, I was unable to avoid their attacks and was struck in the chest. A brief but sharp pain slammed into me. I thought I heard someone screaming. Then I struck the desert sand and everything descended into darkness.
Sweat ran down my body in thick rivulets, soaking into my weighted clothes. My breathing was heavy. Each breath that left my mouth was a ragged gasp as my shoulders heaved up and down. Despite the exhaustion I felt—the intense ache of my muscles as I threw a series of punches and kicks at a blistering pace—I did not stop for anything.
It was the day after the successful auction. I didn’t work at the library until late afternoon. I had the closing shift. The sun was high in the sky, showing that it was still the middle of the afternoon, which meant I had plenty of time.
I’d been at this clearing all day, the same clearing that Fay and I used to train. Sweat flew off my fists as I threw a series of punches, expelling the air in my lungs at the same time as I rotated my torso, putting all my weight into each strike.
I shuffled forward two steps, threw a punch, and then a kick, pretending my shadow was my opponent. Shadow sparring was how I’d heard it referred to, though I couldn’t remember who called it that. My feet scuffed against the ground, shifting gravel, drawing patterns in the dirt. I raised my left leg, spun around, and launched a heel kick at my make-believe foe.
Stomping my foot back on the ground, I took two steps forward, tucked my arms into my torso, and then thrust them forward. Air burst from my palms, scattering dust and leaves that were kicked up from the ground. It wasn’t Spiritual Power that did it. It was simply a combination of the incredible weight on my arms and my own strength.
Breathing in deeply, I straightened my body and lowered my hands to my sides. With my shoulders heaving, I looked up at the sun and realized it was much further down than the last time I checked.
“Ugh… I spent longer sparring than I should have. I’ll just barely make it to the library after washing up.”
There was a small pool of water a few minutes walk from this area. It wasn’t large, but I could at least use it to clean my body before getting changed into my regular clothes. I took one look at the empty clearing and hurried over to the pool.
Fay hadn’t come today.
I wasn’t surprised by her absence after what happened the other day, and in fact, I was expecting it. Despite how I’d only spoken the truth, I still felt awful. It was very possible that I had ruined our friendship with my callous words.
After washing off and getting dressed, I walked to the library and wondered to myself if I could have somehow avoided the situation yesterday. I couldn’t think of anything. The moment Stelys had opened his mouth to talk about me and Fay getting married, the choice was taken out of my hands. I had to let them know the truth. Leading Fay on would have been undeniably cruel. It was better to hurt her now than to keep her hope alive and let her suffer an even greater pain later.
I sighed and rubbed my chest. The pain I felt wasn’t physical, but it felt like it was.
Upon reaching the library and relieving Ms. Nadine, I began working to keep myself from remembering the desolate expression on Fay’s face when I admitted to being in love with someone else. I put away books, helped people find books, and cleaned everything even when my help wasn’t needed. So long as I was keeping busy, I wouldn’t have to think about it.
“Eryk?” a voice came from behind me.
I stiffened only for a moment before turning around.
Kari was wearing a pale pink dress with off-the-shoulder sleeves, though she had thrown a cloak over the top to cover her shoulders. The dress was a bit short, stopping at around the middle of her thighs, but she was also wearing white stockings. A small g
ap of space between the stockings and dress revealed her porcelain skin. Her outfit was finished with boots that were laced up at the front.
“Kari…”
“What’s wrong?” asked Kari as she stared at me, tilting her head.
“It’s—”
“Not nothing.” I stopped talking when Kari interrupted me, a smile curling her lips. “I think I’ve known you long enough by now to know when something is bothering you. I called out to you for six whole minutes and you didn’t respond. Whatever is upsetting you isn’t nothing.” Her eyes softened as she looked at me. “Will you tell me about it?”
I hesitated to tell her about what was bothering me, which would likely involve her discovering my feelings. The two of us were getting along great. We were definitely friends. That said, I didn’t know how she would take to learning about my love for her. When did Kari fall in love with me the first time around? I didn’t know. Once she told me about her marriage, I had broken down and kissed her, and I knew she loved me then, but that was after six months of us getting to know each other. Barely a month and a half had passed this time. Did she have feelings for me now, or should I wait until I was certain she loved me back?
“I…”
“If it’s too hard, I don’t mind waiting for you to feel comfortable enough to tell me,” Kari said when she saw me struggling. “But… I do hope you will tell me sometime. You’ve done so much for me. I would like it if I could do something for you.”
WIEDERGEBURT: Legend of the Reincarnated Warrior: Volume 2 Page 13