But when we returned to the monastery, we found that the large wooden entrance doors had been ominously broken into splinters. In the distance, I could hear the familiar sound of steel against steel, but there was a new sound in the mix—bloodcurdling screams.
I looked at Soreya, and she nodded in agreement. Something’s terribly wrong.
We both picked up the pace and ran into the monastery. From the sound of things, whatever was happening was taking place in the back courtyard, which meant that we could cut through the training room to get there.
As we did, we both grabbed our favored blades and immediately continued forward. When we arrived, an unexpected sight awaited us: Master Crayne lay in a corner, immobilized by heavy wounds. Some students were scrambling to treat him, but, in a panic, they were only moderately successful. In the meantime, some other students lay lifeless on the ground, and more tried to combat the intruder.
A wave of nausea immediately surged over me as the gruesome sight we’d come back to mercilessly seared itself into my eyes. The screams of a fellow student impaled under the intruder’s ominous blade harrowed my ears, and I began to shiver as an even more acute fear flared within.
“H-Help...” he pleaded, but the intruder gleefully jolted the blade upward, silencing him once and for all.
This weapon that the intruder was wielding was anything but ordinary. Almost as tall as the muscular man, who stood about twice our height, the double-edged blade was lined with razor-sharp fangs, each separated from the other by a small hole.
The blade worked to accentuate its owner, an unknown man with long jet-black hair and eyes the color of blood. His ragged tan pants were splashed with red, and a worn-out sash around the waist kept them fastened in place.
Perhaps I might be imagining it, but I swore that I saw the blade sucking in the blood, its fangs dancing with excitement. Before we knew it, our fellow student’s body withered into a dry husk.
“S-Soreya!” Master Crayne shouted as soon as he saw us. “Run!”
“Oh?” The intruder looked at us as he casually cut another student in half. The other students attacking him shrieked in fear and began quivering. “Are you the Blade Saint?” he asked, a smile creeping across his face.
A chill ran across my body. Every fiber of my being was telling me to get as far away from here as we could. “Dangerous” didn’t even begin to explain who or what he was. This isn’t someone we can beat.
“Run!” Master Crayne urged.
I went to grab her hand, but she’d already placed it on the hilt of her blade.
“What if I am the Blade Saint?” she asked.
The man began sizing up Soreya, scanning her from head to toe before finally releasing a booming laugh. “I came because I heard that this is a secret training ground for Blade Saint candidates. Now that I see you, I feel relieved.”
“Why’s that?” Soreya growled.
“All this time, I’ve been doubting whether I’m the true Blade Saint or not, and now I have my answer.”
“Is that right? Then leave unless you want to be killed by the true Blade Saint.”
“By that, do you mean you’re the true Blade Saint?” Then he began laughing, clutching his stomach as if he was in pain. “I can tell you’re relatively skilled, but you’re not anything I need to be worried about. The only difference between you and these weaklings is that your death will be slightly prolonged.”
“Wanna test that theory?” Soreya began lowering herself into a stance.
The intruder smirked. “With pleasure.”
“We should run!” I urged. My instincts were screaming at me, telling me that there was no way that we could win. I couldn’t tell exactly who or what he was, but it was obvious that he could kill us all before we even saw the first light of dawn.
But Soreya didn’t falter. “I’m not running, and neither are you. We’re taking him down. This monster wants to kill everyone here. They’re our family. We’re not running away!”
“But—” Can I really back her up? Am I strong enough to not hold her back? Maybe... Maybe she can beat him on her own, but will my being there really help her win?
“Don’t get in your own head, Ca’al!” she barked, snapping me out of my thoughts. “We’re partners, right?” she asked calmly.
“I...”
“Sure, you can both attack me at the same time. I don’t mind.” The intruder grinned, slowly walking toward us as the other students scattered. “Hasn’t worked out too well for these guys, though,” he said, jerking his head at the corpses of our fellow students. “In my eyes, the both of you look like more of the same—complete and utter weaklings.”
“Ca’al, get her out of here!” Master Crayne pleaded. “She’s not ready!”
“Ca’al, do you trust me? Do you believe I’m the Blade Saint?” Soreya asked seriously.
I do. With all my heart.
“If you do, then draw your blade. Let’s show him just how strong the Blade Saint and her partner are.”
That’s right. She’s the Blade Saint, and I’m her partner. She chose me. As the Blade Saint, there’s no chance she’ll lose to anyone wielding a blade. It’ll be okay. We’re not going to lose. Stop hesitating and finally step up for once in your life!
“I’ll back you up,” I said resolutely, assuming a stance.
She nodded, her eyes completely focused on the intruder. “We’re gonna take him down. Our legend starts here, Ca’al. Remember: no hesitation. There’s no room for any doubts in your movements against someone like this. But we can do this. Don’t ever doubt that. You ready?”
I took a deep breath to steady myself, and then I nodded. Having dueled with her enough times, I could tell how she was going to attack. She was going to start with a quick leap forward to get into his range, bait him into an attack, dodge it, and aim for the wrist holding his sword.
In that case, I should go for another weak point of his. If she’s going for his wrist, I’ll go for his ankles. Though neither of us had signaled to each other the timing of our attacks, it was as if our brains were linked.
We moved at the exact same moment.
As expected, she got into his range and dodged a swing from his blade. In the meantime, I, too, dashed into his range and circled behind him, my eyes fixed on his legs. With an unwieldy blade and a bulky body like that, there was no way he could keep up with this speed. Though we’d lose if we entered into a competition of strength with him, we’d always come out on top if it was a battle of speed.
We simultaneously swung our blades at his wrist and ankle respectively, creating two clean cuts and producing a stream of fresh blood from both of them. The grip on his sword weakened, and his knee began to give in.
He immediately grabbed his blade with his other hand before it could drop to the ground and swung it backward toward me. I dashed around his body, removing myself from his range, and went for his other ankle. In the meantime, Soreya vaulted over his arm and aimed for his other wrist.
In the next moment, there was a loud clang from his blade falling to the stone ground beneath him.
The two of us exchanged looks and nodded. Our next attack was decided. I jumped into the air, and she swung her blade horizontally. My blade met the back of his neck while hers went for the front.
Our attacks had been quick, methodical, and perfectly coordinated, and for that, we’d been rewarded. His head fell to the ground as our blades sliced through his neck.
“Th-They did it!” the other students cheered.