The Sword of The Past: 5 (Patreon)

Chapter 5

The bounty of the dead

In the past month, Guts has grown some. Still, he was just a puppy right now, and I could pick him up with just one hand. He went everywhere with me, and I didn’t want to let him wander alone either, so I let him be.

Even if Guts was just a puppy, he was still Iron wolf. He causes one problem, and I would have to put him down.

I came to like the Iron wolf pup as days came to and go. At first, it was quite hard to find milk for him, but once he grew a little and could eat meat and bones, it wasn’t hard to take care of him. The pup hasn’t cost any problems even on the jobs, so I really have no problem with him.

Guts happily followed me to a general store, as I was going to prepare for another job. I thought of taking a bounty. A necromancer was causing trouble, and he became wanted with ten thousand orens to bring him down dead or alive.

After I had taken the job, I thought of buying some holy water. Holy water was very effective against the dead. Even a little touch from it would weaken the undead. The problem was that, as always, I was unlucky, and there was no holy water left to buy.

“It can’t be. This the first time I heard of holy water being sold out.”

“What can I tell you, kid? There was an unusual increase in the undead in the past weeks. Every hunter now buys a bottle before leaving the town. I would suggest that you go to the church.”

I didn’t like what I heard from the manager. I just couldn’t believe that I was so unlucky and went to every other shop. The answer was the same, go to the church if you want any holy water. Of course, I wouldn’t go to the church no matter what.

They charge you at least ten times more, and with its shortage, I would have to give all my savings to them to buy just one bottle.

After scouring the entire town and not finding even one bottle of holy water, I bought some flammable liquid. The fire was good against almost anything, especially the undead. And after I bought and learned Sparks skill book, I thought I was set up and left the town.

The information I was given suggested that the necromancer was in a nearby abandoned cemetery. It was just only a day on foot journey to there. To me, it was fast money that I didn’t have much of. Still, I didn’t trust my luck and didn’t rush.

By nightfall, I was a few hours away from the cemetery. I decided to rest for the night and attack on the morning of the next day. I set up a camp and prepared a dinner for myself. Guts was quietly waiting to eat too. As I roasted some chicken drumsticks on a campfire, the Heavenly Deamon made a suggestion.

‘Hey, kid. Want to learn a skill?’

“What the catch?”

‘No catch at all, I just got tired of the Saint training you, that all.’

“Go on, what kind of skill would you teach me?”

‘So, I saw you learn that skill, sparks or something. That one where you can make a spark from your hand.’

“What about it?”

‘You see, you could make a fireball by igniting the condensed air. I know how to gather air in one bubble.’

“Oh, how do you do it?”

‘Hold one of your hands in front of you, and with origin energy, try to suck the air into it. With another hand, push the air and try to make a ball. Once you feel a ball of air gathered on your hand, use sparks to ignite it.’

I did as the Heavenly Demon has told me. I gathered the air with my right palm, and with my left hand, I pushed it around, making a ball. Feeling the ball of air on my right palm increase to the biggest ball I could create, I used spark on my fingertips.

The ball of air ignited and exploded, knocking me to the ground. Guts yipped, surprised, and I quickly tried to put down the fire from my hand.

‘Hahahahah, I can’t believe you listened to me. Hahaha.’

The Heavenly asshole laughed as I poured water on my burned hand, but it will still hurt for some time. Why I have listened to that asshole? Maybe because he was quite docile for some time. Now I knew to never listen to his words ever again.

…

The abandoned cemetery had an eerie feeling about it. It felt dark in here even though the sun had already risen. Something was amiss in there, and I didn’t like it much. Maybe it was a good thing as I was certain that this place was used by somebody, probably the necromancer.

As I walked around, I saw dug-up graves but no dead bodies. The weed was overgrown and reached to my ankles, but it was trampled. I stepped forward carefully and prepared my sword. I could feel the dread settling in me. After the incident with that Lich, I became very careful with everything involved in the undead.

In the end, nothing happened, and I couldn’t find anything. Just as I was about to turn and leave, I heard a creaking sound. Going to investigate, I found an entrance to a crypt. I really didn’t want to go inside, but I had to do my job.

Still, I poured flammable liquid on the stone sword, and with sparks, I ignited it. Now having a source of light and weapon against anything, I was ready to go. Of course, before I went in, I told Guts to stay outside. He listened. Sometimes I think the pup is smarter than he lets on.

Inside the staircase leading down, I moved slowly. It was a damp place, and if I tripped, let’s just say it was a long way down. I didn’t like how similar this place is to the cave where I found this stone sword. I really hoped it wasn’t another Lich down there.

One stair at the time, I climbed to the bottom. There I was greeted by a long hallway. It seemed to be empty, but at the same time, I felt like someone was watching me. I swear this was the last time I hunted anything related to the undead. The Lich incident put me on edge.

‘Something not right, son.’

Saint warned me, and I got even more on edge. I pointed the burning stone sword in front of me and braved into the end of the hallway. I stepped on dirt as I walked inside a room at the end of the long hallway. There I saw a disturbing number of dead bodies. All scattered around the room.

I realized that something indeed was not right when I smelled the rotting meat from the corpses. This place should have been abandoned for years. There only should be skeletons and nothing else.

“Have you come for my head?”

A man in dark robes appeared from the darkness. He didn’t look surprised seeing me, and I was relieved that he had flesh and skin. But I didn’t let go of my guard just yet and took a bottle of flammable liquid in preparation.

“I have. I would offer you to surrender, but you wouldn’t be so kind, would you?”

“There are few who understand the meaning of death. Would you like to learn it?”

With his words, the dead started to rise. Skinny humanoid-like creatures started to crawl toward me. Those creatures had decaying skin stretched over their bones. Sharp fingernails that resembled claws scratched the stone floor of the crypt. Their teeth were rotten but pointy with saliva running down them.

“Ghouls, are fucking kidding me.”

With sparks, I ignited the top of the bottle of flammable liquid and threw it at the robed man before it exploded in my hand. The man waved his hand, and a dark shield appeared in front of him. The shield blocked the explosion from reaching him, but the nearby ghouls caught on fire.

“You not a necromancer.”

“Are you surprised?”

Indeed I was. I didn’t know who the dark-robed man was, and at this point, I was too to find out. So I did was any sensible man would do when he encounters something unknown and dangerous. I ran, I turned and ran through the long hallway and climbed the stairs.

After I burst out of the crypt, I was greeted by two robed figures. Can my day be any unluckier? Guts, who was waiting for me, growled at the figures. Too bad he didn’t look threatening in the slightest. Without thinking too much, I rushed at the figures and swung my sword at them. The burning stone sword was blocked by another sword.

‘Stop it, son. You can’t defeat them.’

“It doesn’t matter if I can win or lose. I have no other choice but to fight.”

“I comment on your dedication, but we are not there to fight you.”

One of the figures removed his robe, revealing this silky silver hair, an oval face, with dark eyes. He showed me a golden name tag, which indicated that he was a Gold rank hunter. Still, I didn’t put down my sword. Only one man or group can take a job from the association. Only when the hunter failed would another be able to take the same job. So them being hunters put me on an even higher alert.

“Lex, be quiet. I am Lux, and we came because our investigation brought us there. Why are you there?”

“I am there to hunt the necromancer. Only to find someone who could use dark magic and control ghouls.”

The woman named Lux exchanged looks with the man named Lex, and then both of them looked at me. Without any word, I stepped from the crypt entrance and moved away. Still, I kept my sword pointing at them. There was no way I could win against Gold rank, but I could give them some burns before I died.

“We take care of them but don’t go anywhere. We have some questions for you.”

Lux spoke just before ghouls burst out of the crypt. Lex moved in front and, with graceful and fluid movements, decapitated them one by one. The sword didn’t move fast, but it moved where it needed and never stopped. It was the most beautiful swordplay I had ever seen.

Lux took her staff, and a bright light swept away the rest of the ghouls disintegrating them to dust. Just as the light was going inside the crypt, it was stopped by a dark shield. Lux’s dark eyes shook for a moment, but in the next, she swept her silver hair and stepped forward.

“Are you so desperate to use a weak boy to lure me out? Are silver moon twins too afraid of someone like me?”

The man didn’t show any emotion standing next to two Gold rank hunters. Was it a bluff, or did he have something under his sleeve? Just in case, I stepped back. Guts followed me and stayed by my side as I surveyed the surrounding area.

“Give up, Dark Magician, Lucius.”

“Is there a reason I should do so?”

I really didn’t like that they used nicknames to call each other. It felt like I shouldn’t be there, but I had to trust the Gold rank hunters. If they can’t take care of this, who could? A Mithril rank hunter was rare as a dragon. So I don’t believe one will just show up and save me. The Dark Magician took a crystal skull from his robes as I thought of how this situation could get worse.

“You know what this is, don’t you?”

“If you use it, you won’t be able to control it.”

“No, but I don’t need to control it, do I?”

I didn’t like the dialogue of Lex and Lucius in one bit. What was that skull, and what would happen if he used it? Why do they have to speak so cryptic and ominous? No matter what would happen next, I knew it was nothing good for me. I prepared to bolt out of there. Damn my luck.