Chapter 106: Effort
"You will not be able to find him."
Kazuka still tried to remain calm; in his head, the words of the old wolf still echoed through the battles: "Don't let emotions dominate, you fool, you make me so annoyed."
Kazuka growled; he was feeling impatient:
"Say it quickly? Where is the place you sold him? I will not let you escape."
He spread his two legs like two firm pillars and entered a stance. His right hand lifted the sword level with his head and pointed the tip to the right in a horizontal style. His left hand reached forward; at his wrist appeared a ring with large black beads. They spun very fast around his wrist and emitted a metallic glint. His body was immediately surrounded by energy and ready for battle.
"As if I would die."
From behind, Elyssia launched an energy spear; it flew very fast and directed straight at Droven.
Droven had noticed; a large black bead on his hand turned to golden-gold.
—"Damn it, must kill them. I don't want to use the Reincarnation Bead."
When the energy spear launched forward, it was immediately blocked by an invisible barrier. Immediately, as if something reflected back, large pressure made the wind blow strongly and dust fly up.
Kazuka, standing in the distance, also jumped back a few steps because that pressure pushed him out.
Elyssia frowned, looking straight at the ring on Droven's hand, her voice firm:
"Kazuka, it seems the ring on his hand has the ability to reflect."
Kazuka nodded, looking straight at Droven.
"Fine, I will probe."
Kazuka radiated his blue energy and surrounded his entire body. Kicking off hard, causing the ground to crack and shatter, Kazuka launched with very fast speed; when closing in near, new energy surrounded the sword. He swung a somewhat diagonal slash.
Droven entered a stance, his legs like two pillars driven into the ground. He responded with a diagonal slash.
There was no sound of collision, only two energy sources neutralizing each other.
Kazuka and Droven locked eyes at close range. Kazuka still tried to ask:
"Where is Aoto?"
Whoosh!
From behind, Elyssia launched very fast, creating strong wind that kicked up dust. Her hand summoned her sword. The sword was silver-white, the blade large and gleaming with sharpness. The guard between the hilt and blade was two angel wings creating a highlight. The end of the hilt was pointed like a spearhead. Elyssia's whole body erupted with a large source of energy that was milky white but quite transparent.
Droven, who was struggling with Kazuka, immediately felt a terrifying source of energy behind him, making him break into a sweat.
—"What is this feeling? Her energy is too large."
Boom!!!
A large explosion created by Droven made a large pit in the ground. Kazuka jumped out of the smoke with energy surrounding him very thickly; it seemed he was fine.
—"Fortunately, my reflexes are better now."
Droven had taken advantage of the moment the explosion occurred and created a large puff of smoke.
Landing on the ground, both his hands gripped the sword hilt; large energy covered the sword.
—"This guy is annoying with this smoke layer, I will blow it away."
The sword swung back to take large momentum; he gritted his teeth, unleashing a very large energy slash with an extremely wide range and horizontally.
—"That weakening smoke, don't dream of trapping me."
Droven stood inside the smoke layer; he was thinking of a way. Suddenly he felt something lunging forward as Kazuka's slash touched his smoke.
Bewildered and immediately ducking down, Kazuka's slash cut through the smoke layer and blew it away to Droven's daze, leaving only a bit of smoke at low level.
—"So strong."
From another direction, Elyssia was lunging right behind a vertical energy slash of hers; that slash blew away a section of the smoke layer.
She closed in right behind Droven's back; a diagonal slash was unleashed, running vertically from the top down to the end of his back, blood sprayed out wildly, his body arched forward from the force.
Elyssia seemed to realize:
—"So blocking a strike needs activation or needs time?"
Droven spat out red blood, but he still gritted his teeth.
Suddenly, from the void, at the level of his back. A gray energy slash lunged out.
Elyssia's eyes widened from surprise; she twisted her hips and tilted her body trying to avoid it, but wasn't in time.
Elyssia's left arm was immediately cut off to her astonishment.
—"What? That slash was that strong?"
But she swung her leg, delivering a very strong kick to the back and hitting Droven's wound. He went airborne and was thrown away.
Droven gritted his teeth; he sensed Kazuka's energy lunging forward.
—"Damn it, letting them coordinate will not be good."
Kazuka lunged and closed in on Droven while in the air. He swung his sword, but suddenly the barrier appeared and knocked Kazuka far away to his bewilderment.
—"I see, he can only use it when prepared."
Kazuka was thrown very far, but he landed and kicked off with a very strong leap causing the ground to crack and launched back.
Droven, while in the air, immediately activated the ring on his hand. Three black beads turned to golden-gold and glowed more intensely with faster spinning.
—"Must quickly end it while at this level, using much I will lose all my lifespan."
The wound on his back was immediately restored, the energy parts lost were immediately recovered, his body overflowing with energy.
He landed and lunged forward to directly confront Kazuka.
On Elyssia's side, her arm was severed; after a short moment, a new arm immediately grew out. But the lost sleeve was no longer there.
On Kazuka and Droven's side, both sides continuously unleashed slashes intended as energy to make the ground and surrounding areas look as if plowed up. Along with that were slashes unleashed to neutralize and destroy the opponent, such as: aiming at the arms, aiming at the legs, aiming at the wrists, aiming at the head.
They continuously blocked and counterattacked. But Kazuka was still holding the advantage.
Droven swung his sword lunging at Kazuka's neck to finish him, but Kazuka had brought his sword to block and responded with a kick with a lot of energy into the ribs, making him grit his teeth in endurance.
He threw a punch toward Kazuka but he tilted his head and dodged. Then he responded with a punch straight to the face.
He was extremely annoyed because he could only defend, and attacking was reflected back, anger erupted. Three black beads on his ring immediately glowed. He seemed to lose his mind because of his anger, facial veins bulged, bloodshot eyes were tangled.
He seemed to become much stronger, immediately wanting to respond with a slash with extremely high energy.
Kazuka, though angry at this person, was gradually becoming calm. His left hand moved to the right and pushed out a large energy source, causing his body to be immediately pushed to the left and avoid Droven's slash.
The extremely strong slash split the ground in half and created a large trench.
Kazuka launched the energy spear toward Droven; the barrier appeared again, but little did he know this was Kazuka's plan to take away that move of his.
A large push caused dust to fly everywhere; Kazuka tilted his body forward and radiated energy like a shield to block that pushing force, his two legs like two pillars driven into the ground.
—"If I let him use that bracelet further, he will surely get stronger; must end this very quickly."
Kazuka erupted with stronger energy and lunged forward. He threw his sword to one side, making Droven frown in confusion.
—"Why did he do that? Is his specialty hand-to-hand combat?"
Kazuka lunged, his palm spreading out as if wanting to grab his face.
Droven immediately activated the ring's ability; an energy slash immediately launched out. But he had activated it from quite far away, allowing Kazuka to sense it; he tilted his body to one side and successfully dodged that slash.
But right after dodging, Droven immediately closed in before Kazuka with a triumphant look. The sword in his hand swung horizontally wanting to take Kazuka's head.
"Die."
But Kazuka's sword immediately lunged forward; the end of the hilt was actually an energy thread connected to Kazuka's hand.
Stab!!!
The sword pierced through Droven's body to his horror; wide-open eyes still didn't understand what happened. His mouth spat blood, the wound bleeding soaking his clothes.
Kazuka added a punch with his left hand carrying chaotic energy.
Droven directed his gaze to the ring and prepared to use it more. He was unwilling and didn't want to lose or die yet.
—"I cannot die."
Whoosh!!!!
A white energy slash from afar lunged forward and cut off Droven's wrist. The blade had no eyes; that slash still went and cut off Kazuka's right arm which was retracting to unleash the left-hand punch.
Blood from Droven's wrist flowed out; he seemed blocked from everything. Kazuka had stopped the bleeding very fast without a single drop of blood flowing out.
But the slash was also quite unexpected, making the left-hand punch fail and have to be pulled back. He turned to Elyssia who was lunging forward.
Elyssia spoke with a worried and apologetic voice; in truth, she knew it would cut Kazuka's arm, but if she didn't unleash that slash to cut Droven's arm, things would get more troublesome:
"Sorry, Kazuka. Please recover, I will take care of the rest."
Kazuka stepped back a few paces. Droven was thrown far away by the force of the stab from Kazuka's sword. He fell to the ground, energy surrounding the wound trying to recover.
But Elyssia stepped forward; she lifted her foot and stepped straight onto Droven's stomach, making him suffer and spit blood from his mouth then cry out:
"Aaaaaaaa..."
Elyssia's stomp pushed into his body a large amount of disruptive energy, making him unable to recover the wound.
Elyssia growled during interrogation:
"Say it quickly, where did you sell Aoto?"
Droven, with weak eyes, energy being disrupted made it difficult for him to control energy and unable to stop the bleeding anymore; blood was flowing out a lot and making him even weaker. He gritted his teeth both with anger and unwillingness, his voice weak:
"D-Damn...I...I already have money...just a little more...only..."
"Cough...cough..."
He coughed weakly as if having asthma.
Elyssia frowned; she couldn't even hear what he was saying. Kazuka walked over; his right arm had recovered after he picked it up and attached it then used energy to connect and link it:
"Did you ask anything?"
Elyssia shook her head.
"No, his mouth moved as if speaking but I heard nothing at all."
Droven was as if at his last gasp, tears flowing out and along his cheeks flowing down.
An image appeared in his mind... it was because the Reincarnation Bead made that memory spill out when his energy was weak and gradually fading.
Droven at age 13 was sitting in a corner of the house and clutching his head trembling; he suffered large stick blows from his father.
His father's person reeked of alcohol. His father with the drowsy eyes of a drunkard, long messy black hair, dirty and tattered clothes, a bushy beard as if never shaved. He was gritting his teeth with anger and continuously cursing Droven, his hand hitting with a large wooden stick:
"Die... die... you useless thing..."
"Stealing again? You must be beaten to death. I have no face left with anyone."
Droven trembled in endurance, but hearing his father speak like that made him even angrier that he gritted his teeth. He stood up, determined not to fear his damn father anymore and spoke straight to his face, making him stop:
"Why is it my fault? You do nothing but drink all day; you are my father but have you ever raised me a single day?"
"I have to steal to survive."
Saying this, his tears flowed out from anger and resentment, his body trembled and his hands clenched weakly; he didn't want to accept him as his father anymore.
But Droven's father became even angrier. He gripped the wooden stick and swung it hard toward his head, making him lose balance and fall sitting down and creating an opportunity for him to hit him further.
He gritted his teeth cursing him even more foully:
"You stray dog scavenging trash, you still dare speak like that to me? Today I must kill you."
"If I don't raise you, would a dog raise you?"
Inside the house, Droven's grandmother gritted her teeth from anger but could do nothing. She was already too old and frail and had to use a staff. But she loved Droven very much.
She was very old, yet still had to earn money to raise her grandsons; she could only knit wool to earn a little money and occasionally go into the forest to pick some vegetables and weeds.
Droven's two younger brothers stood hiding behind her legs and hugged tightly in fear; the two little boys' tears flowed in streams seeing their brother being beaten.
Droven's grandmother couldn't bear it anymore witnessing this scene, weakly calling out with all her might and trying to stop it:
"Don't hit him anymore, he will die."
She raised three children with hardship while her son didn't do a single thing. She gritted her teeth and shouted:
"Stop it, you guy, is that how you hit your child?"
The words of her son kept echoing in her head: "If I don't raise you, would a dog raise you?". She tried to move her staff faster and walked over.
Droven's father hit and cursed even more:
"Die."
Droven's grandmother tried to reach out her hand and stop him but was shoved away by Droven's father, making her fall to the ground.
Seeing that, he only then temporarily stopped and breathed continuously from exhaustion and looked down at his mother falling on the ground with a cold gaze. She was trying to crawl up and Droven's two younger brothers supported her. That man then threw the stick hard onto the ground and turned around to leave outside.
Droven saw that, hurried over and supported his grandmother up with worry:
"Grandma, are you okay?"
Droven's grandmother was extremely hating herself.
—"If only I had listened to my mother and father back then. A mercenary's child is never decent. Now even my grandsons are suffering."
Not long after that, Droven heard shocking news that made him not know whether to be happy or sad. No, he wasn't happy, nor was he sad. But he was set free.
Droven ran to a large lake with mixed emotions and squeezed into the line of people surrounding the lake's mouth. He successfully squeezed through.
On a boat, there was his father's corpse lying there with a pale face. Around were many voices:
"He drowned?"
"Serves him right, a useless thing deserves to die."
A strange man said:
"It seems he is Droven's father, should we take him back to him?"
A man with a quite gentle face but was currently extremely scowling.
"Take him back for what? That kid was beaten all the time; taking him back, he'd just throw him away. We'll dump him in a corner waiting for wild beasts to clean him up."
Droven was as if set free; he turned around and squeezed through the crowd and ran away. Emotions though chaotic, he was feeling very comfortable.
But he thought everything would be easy. Droven went everywhere and wanted to find a place to work. But no one accepted him; everyone knew his past of stealing and didn't want to get involved.
Droven wandered, worked in a casino and was taught how to use energy by someone there. But then the casino was destroyed, he again had no place to go.
Returning, Droven was whispering with a weak voice that Kazuka and Elyssia could not hear:
"You two, Grandma. I cannot be with everyone anymore."
His black hair showed a few white strands; the skin layer also had a bit of wrinkling.
The images of his two younger brothers and his grandmother smiling happily were clear in his head. But it was also the moment Droven lost too much blood. In the final moment, he smiled weakly, as if returning to his grandmother and two brothers, then his breath stopped completely.
Kazuka was still trying to call and ask for a while now:
"Hey, answer me quickly? Where is my friend?"
Then Elyssia and Kazuka realized his presence had vanished. Elyssia hurried to sit down and shook his face and called:
"Hey? Hey?..."
Kazuka bit his lip with difficulty.
"He is dead."
"Now we have no clues at all."
Elyssia sighed.
"Still have to go search."
Kazuka prepared to leave, but he was silent for a moment, turned back to look at him one last time. He swung his hand, a small energy slash created a hole right next to Droven's corpse, walked over and pushed him to roll down. He was silent and didn't speak, slashed a light energy slash into the wall of the hole causing soil to fall down and cover him.
Elyssia was a bit surprised, then she smiled lightly.
…
Moving to a farm. Aoto was wearing a handcuff with energy-disrupting ability; he still lay unconscious on the ground in an iron prison cage.
Outside, the sky was gradually darkening.
Many soldiers were surrounding a somewhat large house in a vast area, surrounding green rice fields stretching far out of sight.
This was Wafta, 26 years old. Deputy commander of the Tharros city army. Face younger than his age with blond hair. He didn't wear armor, wearing on his hip a sword with silver-white mixed with a bit of glossy black.
A resonant voice:
"Break the door."
Immediately, four soldiers at the front line immediately ran forward. They drew swords from their hips; two leading soldiers kicked hard at the door making the door collapse inward. Two soldiers standing behind acted as support if they encountered trouble.
Inside, light from glowing stones made them see very clearly. A man about 50 years old, muscular build, wearing blue pants and a tank top, body with much sweat, seemed to have just returned from work. That was the farm owner; he stood frozen in bewilderment not understanding why soldiers came to his house and broke the door to rush in.
"What are you doing?"
Immediately, soldiers rushed in. Four soldiers in the lead gripped swords and closed in to suppress the farm owner.
A soldier lunged straight forward and delivered a strong kick straight into the farm owner's stomach, making him fly far back. They immediately lunged and restrained him, pinning him hard to the ground and twisting both arms behind.
The farm owner, bewildered, tried to speak while pinned to the ground:
"What are you doing?"
A soldier stood up and spoke loudly:
"Deputy commander, he has been captured."
Wafta stepped forward, his face cold as he went straight to the point.
"You bought an Elf, right? Where is that person?"
The farm owner tried to speak with difficulty while pinned to the ground:
"T-That is... correct... But I didn't violate anything, why are there so many soldiers like this?"
Wafta remained calm.
"Not much talk, tell us where that Elf is?"
The farm owner was still very annoyed being threatened, but had no other way.
"Behind the house... The last building."
Wafta turned around and ordered:
"Escort him along."
Walking toward the back. Standing at the edge were the farm owner's wife, along with two sons, two daughters-in-law, and four grandchildren—three boys, one girl.
The farm owner's wife was bewildered seeing her husband being escorted away toward the back.
A son called out loudly with worry:
"Father, what is going on?"
The farm owner turned over; he tried to reassure:
"Don't worry, it's just an investigation and hasn't been verified yet."
Walking to the end, past chicken coops, pig pens, goat pens. A small and old house as if abandoned for a long time.
Wafta ordered:
"Open the door."
Two soldiers ran up and pushed the door. Inside was nothing, only a prison cage; inside was Aoto still lying unconscious.
Wafta frowned and looked down at the black handcuff with red stripes, realizing this was an energy-disrupting handcuff. Turned back and ordered:
"Bring the handcuff key out here."
The farm owner was still very bewildered, but he could only obey.
"In my chest."
Then he lowered his voice slightly in caution:
"May I ask, is me buying this slave wrong? If wrong, I truly didn't know; I hope you consider carefully."
The soldier took from the farm owner's chest two keys hooked together and walked over to give them to Wafta.
Wafta took them and looked at the two keys in his hand. He seemed to know which was the handcuff key and which was the cage key.
Click…
Opening the cage door, he stood observing Aoto lying on the ground at a small distance.
—"Is this the person the young lady wants to find? Even Lady Mythyr ordered urgently, what is so special about this Elf?"
Suddenly, Aoto gradually opened his eyes. Wafta remained silent and wanted to see.
Aoto opened his eyes fully; he was bewildered looking at the handcuff on his hand and clearly knew the energy inside him was being disrupted. He propped his hands and sat up. Bewildered looking around with many soldiers and someone standing before him making him look up.
—"Where is this?"
Wafta saw Aoto looking at him; only now did he speak:
"Are you Aoto?"
Aoto was still quite bewildered, but also nodded.
—"Is it possible I was sold? It was that guy."
He nodded when hearing the question.
"Yes."
Wafta smiled slightly and friendly, then leaned down to remove the handcuffs for Aoto.
"Don't worry, we are here to rescue you."