FROM: Miss Panlilio Karly
TO: HALL OF THE NIGHTJAR
DATE: 12th Opaline, 1902
SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR SERVICES
To the Master of the Nightjar,
I require the immediate and permanent removal of the individual known as Xiaoyou.
He is currently operating within the lower boundaries of the province and is nursing internal injuries from a recent confrontation. While his martial foundation is resilient, his defenses are presently compromised.
An advance draft drawn from the Bank of Yuèliáng is attached to this letter. Full compensation will be released immediately upon confirmation of disposal.
Ensure there are no lingering loose ends or witnesses linking this contract to my lineage.
— P. Karly
"It's a good thing it hasn't rained yet," I said as we finally made our way out of the forest.
The trees thinned behind us, their branches still dripping with moisture from the earlier weather. I glanced back once.
"Hmm."
Mantri nodded in agreement.
There had been signs of a fire, just as the intelligence had indicated. The traces were difficult to miss once we knew where to look: scorched ground, blackened patches between the trees, and the lingering smell of smoke that clung faintly to the damp air.
So those slippery cultists had a function here?
I turned back toward the forest.
Whatever they had been doing, they had certainly left enough behind to suggest that the place had not been abandoned for very long.
We continued down the path.
After a while, Ratha spoke from behind us.
"Ashva, are you certain the man is still here?"
"There is a building ahead."
I stopped briefly, focusing on the flow of qi around us.
There.
Something stood farther ahead, concealed beyond the uneven terrain.
"Get ready. The Raja might just be up ahead."
I turned toward Mantri.
He nodded immediately, his hand settling around the hilt of his sword.
"Gajah, secure the area. Ratha, take the lead."
Everyone moved.
We followed the path for a little longer before the trees finally gave way to an old building.
It looked abandoned.
The walls were weathered, portions of the structure worn down by time and neglect. Yet despite its dilapidated appearance, the building remained strangely upright. It had not collapsed. Whatever had happened here, the place was still standing.
The sky above us was heavy with clouds.
Rain was coming.
At least we had found what we needed before it did.
Ratha approached the entrance and pushed the door open.
He stepped inside.
Then stopped.
Mantri followed him through the doorway.
Padati remained outside while I moved around the side of the building and climbed up to the first floor. From there, I could see more of the interior.
Then I noticed it.
What is that?
A large circle had been drawn into the floor in the middle of the building.
There was an odd contraption positioned within it, surrounded by a thin layer of fog that drifted lazily across the floor.
And sitting in the middle of it was Xiǎoyōu.
"What is that circle?"
Ratha's voice carried through the room.
I continued looking around.
The mission details had mentioned a woman.
She had to be somewhere nearby.
"Can I help you with something?"
Xiǎoyōu finally spoke.
He looked toward the others below.
"Your life would do just fine."
Ratha's answer was immediate.
Xiǎoyōu gave no response.
He simply looked at them.
That was all.
My attention returned to him.
Then I noticed something beneath his sleeve.
His arm?
I narrowed my eyes.
He cut it off?
There was a stump where his arm should have been.
The fog around him had become more noticeable now that I knew what I was looking at. Dew clung to his body, collecting across his clothing and skin.
"We'll just have the needle finish what it began," Padati said.
Xiǎoyōu raised an eyebrow.
Ratha charged.
His sword came down in a clean strike.
Xiǎoyōu blocked it.
The moment their weapons met, Xiǎoyōu shifted his footing and rose fully to his feet.
"Gajah!"
Gajah moved in.
Four strikes came in rapid succession.
Xiǎoyōu parried every one.
I raised my hand.
A needle of qi shot toward him.
He swatted it aside.
Slash.
Ratha seized the opening.
His sword cut across Xiǎoyōu's chest.
Blood appeared.
He bleeds.
For some reason, the sight surprised me.
Then something changed.
For a brief moment, I was Ratha.
I could see through his eyes.
But I didn't understand what I was seeing.
He was looking around.
Confused.
"What are you doing?"
Mantri's voice cut through the room.
Gajah stepped back.
Then—
Stab.
His body jerked.
A blade had found him while he was looking around.
Why was he looking around?
Xiǎoyōu was right there.
I shifted my position.
"Mantri! Something is wrong with—"
I stopped.
Xiǎoyōu changed his stance.
My breath caught.
Then I exhaled.
Somehow, I felt less tense.
His posture had changed completely.
He picked up Ratha's sword.
Then he stood exactly as Ratha had.
The same stance.
The same positioning.
The same familiar shape.
And somehow...
That makes sense.
"Mantri. There's something—"
I stopped again.
A presence.
Behind me.
I couldn't turn.
The sensation was immediate and instinctive.
It reminded me of the moment I had been chased by a dog when I was little. That same helpless awareness of something behind me, something close enough that moving felt like the wrong choice.
"Logan, I found two of them."
The voice came from behind.
Then I felt cold metal against my neck.
A knife.
Move.
Move!
My body refused to obey the command.
"I wouldn't try anything, princess. Just watch."
The woman's voice was calm.
Her other hand moved.
My weapon was taken from me before I could react.
"Padati, you need to report back. Go!"
Mantri drew his sword.
He didn't look toward me.
His eyes remained fixed on Xiǎoyōu.
"It's not invisibility, but it's close."
He lowered his stance.
"Regardless, I just need to be faster."
His body dropped lower.
Then he launched forward.
Xiǎoyōu dropped Ratha's sword.
His backup weapon came into his hand.
His stance changed.
This time, he led with his right leg.
In the next instant, Mantri disappeared.
Not literally.
He moved so quickly that my eyes struggled to follow him.
The ground where he had been standing erupted beneath his feet.
A small crater formed.
Xiǎoyōu moved to the left.
Mantri stopped there.
"Watch out!"
I gathered qi into my palm.
"No."
The woman's voice came from behind me.
A sharp prick touched my neck.
My body went limp.
My fingers loosened.
The qi gathered in my palm dispersed.
At the same time, Mantri was moving again.
Xiǎoyōu met him.
The exchange began.
Strike.
Parry.
Movement.
Impact.
Mantri kept attacking, but something was wrong.
He fought as though he were blind.
I could see Xiǎoyōu.
I could track him.
Mantri couldn't.
He moved according to where he thought Xiǎoyōu was, sometimes striking empty space, sometimes turning just a fraction too late.
It has a range.
My eyes widened.
It has a range!
"I see him!" I shouted. "But I tend to lose perception of him."
Mantri jumped backward.
Xiǎoyōu followed, though the distance between them had finally begun to increase.
"Ashva, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. But his partner has me."
I turned my eyes toward the woman behind me.
She merely shrugged.
Mantri kept his attention on Xiǎoyōu.
"I see him, but I tend to lose perception of him."
He was feeding me his information as quickly as he could.
"I see him just fine, though."
I watched Xiǎoyōu carefully.
"See? It might have a range."
For a moment, neither Xiǎoyōu nor Hǎishēng said anything.
The room was filled only with the sound of movement and breathing.
Then Xiǎoyōu finally spoke.
"Are you done?"
"Yes."
Mantri's qi flared.
The pressure in the room changed.
He took a running stance.
His sword rose.
Heat spread along the blade until it glowed a deep, hot red.
Then—
Mantri disappeared again.
The force of his movement tore into the ground.
A crater remained where he had stood.
Smoke rose from it.
Xiǎoyōu began moving much more now.
Mantri stopped less often.
The attacks came faster.
Again.
Again.
Again.
But I could see the cost.
His movements were becoming less precise.
His body was struggling to keep up with the technique.
If this keeps up, it'll damage his body.
The thought settled heavily in my mind.
Still, Mantri continued.
For a while, the exchange remained a blur of movement and impact.
Then his speed began to fall.
He appeared more often.
His feet struck the ground instead of carrying him past it.
His breathing became heavier.
Finally, he stopped.
He stood there, trying to regulate his breathing.
His sword trembled in his hands.
Then—
"Bang!"
The sound cracked through the building.
Mantri fell to the ground.
"What happened to him—"
I didn't finish.
Xiǎoyōu collapsed too.
His body dropped heavily onto the floor.
"Oh."
Hǎishēng's voice came from behind me.
"It seems he is still weakened."
Her hand covered my face.
I felt the pressure of her palm.
My limbs lay uselessly at my sides.
I couldn't move.
I could only watch.