DAKU
We'd been walking nonstop ever since we entered the black market. The atmosphere didn't change, and the feeling of being watched by the bystanders and vendors still lingered. Oanya seemed unbothered by it as he happily skipped in front of us as if he were just taking a stroll. I envied how carefree he was.
On the contrary, Kenshi was more tense than before. His eyes wandered from here to there, trying to spot any potential ambush or assault. I couldn't see his hands because of the robe, but I was pretty sure one of them was already holding the hilt of the sword.
As for me, I only had my mind on Kana, and I would do everything just to get to her. I'd fight the strongest criminal here if it meant Kana's salvation. I once fought a skilled mage before, and I wouldn't hesitate to fight another one here.
"We're here!" Oanya declared, halting me and Kenshi from our path.
A lone door stood before us with no guards or ushers. It was as if the door was telling us that anyone could enter and that we were free to pass through. Kenshi and I shared a look, and it seemed like we were thinking the same thing after seeing how perplexed his face was.
"Should we just come in?" I asked.
"Yup!" Oanya replied. "The slave auction welcomes everyone. Bidder or not, you are free to enter. This is one of the black market's entertainments. Watching the slavemasters fight over a slave through their riches is fun to watch."
"Do you think she's here?" I wondered.
"There's only one way to find out," Kenshi uttered, and was the first one to approach the door. I followed behind him while Oanya decided to wait outside. He said that his sensitive tiger ears couldn't withstand the noise inside.
Kenshi pushed the door inwards, revealing a clamorous room full of people. The first thing that registered in my eyes was the stage ahead, where five chained children were lined up for bidding. An auctioneer was on the stage, too, hosting the event.
Before the stage, there was a cordoned space filled with distinguished and lavish individuals; there was no doubt that they were the bidders as one of them waved a bagful of doquis in the air to signal the host of his bidding.
"Fifty thousand from bidder No.23!" the host acknowledged him. Surrounding the bidders were the spectators who came just to watch the auction. There were more of them on the second floor, watching over the railings.
I returned my eyes to the children on the stage and couldn't help but feel pity for them. They were scared and traumatized. They didn't deserve this kind of life. They deserved to be happy.
"Excuse me," Kenshi pardoned one of the servers carrying a tray of liquor and food. The server furrowed his brows at Kenshi's sudden approach. He was pretty annoyed.
"These are not for you, gentlemen," the server pointed out. This ticked me off as well, but I contained myself. Making a ruckus in such a place was not a good idea.
"We don't want those," Kenshi corrected, referring to the drinks and food. "We just want to ask about those children."
The server gazed at the stage and looked back at Kenshi. He batted an eye at me, curious about my presence, but proceeded to deliver his words to Kenshi.
"Those are our new batches of slaves. That's just half of them. The other half is being transported to the Aste City as of the moment." Aste City?
It was I who asked this time. "What will happen to them once they reach the city?"
"What else? Of course, they'll be sold to the slavemasters."
Kenshi and I shared a determined look. I knew he was thinking the same thought as I.
"Thanks," I gratified and exited the building without wasting a second. I immediately looked for Oanya and found him busy playing with the stray cats. Oanya noticed our presence and walked over to us.
"So, how was it? Is your friend there?"
"Not anymore," I replied. "Do you happen to know how they transport goods in and out of the kingdom?"
"As far as I know, there's a hidden passageway that leads outside the walls of the kingdom."
"Can you show us the way?" I favored.
"Think of this as an extended-extended tour commission," Kenshi baited, earning a grin from the beastly.
"Can't say no to money!" Oanya exclaimed and started running toward somewhere. Kenshi and I trailed behind him. There was no doubt that Jihar raised this kid. All he could think of was money.
"So I assume your friend is being transported right now?" Oanya guessed.
"That's right!"
"Where to?"
"Aste City," I briefly answered.
"If that's the case, it would take them a week to reach the city," Oanya explained. He said that the only path that connected the black market to the surface was a longer route. They still had to go around the Amber Forest before they could get to the original route.
We ran nonstop until we reached the end of the tunnel, which I didn't notice that we had entered earlier. My mind was so occupied by Kana's whereabouts that I was losing my sense of awareness of my surroundings.
"This is the rear of the kingdom," Kenshi blurted out, and he was right. Above us was the castle with its towers soaring in the sky.
"Follow this path, and if you are fast enough, maybe you'll be able to catch up to them," Oanya instructed while pointing to the road ahead of us.
"Thank you so much, Oanya. We owe this one to you. Tell Jihar that we will pay you once we get our friend."
"The payment can wait, Mister. Go save your friend." Oanya smiled.
Kenshi and I bid our farewell to Oanya and continued to run along the path. We decided to use Haste to boost our speed while being vigilant. This was still the Amber Forest, and all sorts of wild beasts roamed and resided here. Let's just hope that this will go smoothly.
"I could see hoofprints and wheel tracks. They're new. We must be getting close," Kenshi announced.
Hearing those last words from Kenshi reignited the almost burned-out flame of hope within me. The thought of getting Kana back made me more excited and restless. But there were still parts of me thinking negatively. I didn't want to overthink, but I must prepare myself for the worst.
"I could see something up ahead!" Kenshi declared, bringing me back to my senses. I focused my eyes ahead of us, and Kenshi was right. There was something there, but what?
When we finally got close to the said object, we realized that it was a carriage, and by the looks of it, it was not in good condition. This intensified my negative thoughts earlier.
"The horses are dead, along with these two men. One of them died because of the huge bite mark on his neck, while the other was killed by this," Kenshi told me and showed me a single arrow. "The horses have claw marks and bite marks as well. A beast must've attacked them."
"But where are the children?" I asked as I peeked inside the carriage. No signs of the children, not even their bodies. "Do you think they've escaped?"
"We can worry about that later. Let's deal with this one first."
Confused by Kenshi's words, I looked at him only to find him drawing out his sword. His face was stern and serious, and he was facing something behind me. I pivoted myself revealing the monstrosity standing hungrily.
It was a corrupted black bear. I could tell from its crimson orbs of vision that it was under the influence of the Evil Remnant. And based on how it looked at us, it wanted to eat us, just like what it did to the horses and to one of the men.
The beast let out a threatening growl, alerting Kenshi and me. The only option now was to kill this thing because I doubted that it would leave peacefully without a fight. Its intention was made clear to us the moment it laid its eyes on us.
Kenshi activated Vigor while I supported with Haste. In the blink of an eye, Kenshi was now behind the beast, ready to swing his sword. But Kenshi got caught off guard by the beast's agility, rendering his attack useless.
Kenshi jumped a few hops back before sending fireballs to the beast. But the beast's thick fur deflected all of the fireballs as if they were nothing. The bear ran toward Kenshi and then delivered its long, sharp claws. Kenshi evaded it but failed to see the next attack. Kenshi was thrown a few feet before hitting his back into one of the nearby trees.
"Kenshi!"
I was about to run after him when suddenly something slithered at my feet, and my whole body was wrapped by something, disabling my mobility. That was when I realized that I giant evolved snake wrapped its whole body around me. And as time passed by, the tighter it became.
Where did it come from? Under the carriage?
The snake looked at me directly. Its reptilian eyes glared at me, trying to hypnotize me. Grosi told me that evolved snakes have the ability to hypnotize their target if they stare at them. And it seemed like Grosi was telling the truth because the longer I stared at those mesmerizing and shimmering eyes, the more relaxed I was.
I wanted to break free from it, but my mind was partially being drawn by it like a moth being drawn to the flame. I could hear a faint call of my name from someone, but I ignored it. I'd rather listen to the hissing of this gorgeous, cold-blooded reptile. It calmed me.
"I'm here to save you, Mister Daku!" screamed a familiar voice, and the next was chaos. Something just struck one of the snake's eyes. I observed the object and realized it was an arrow.
Surprised by the intense pain brought by the projectile, the snake loosened its grip on me until I could move again. I watched the snake wriggle in pain like a worm being sprinkled with salt.
I followed the trajectory of the arrow earlier until my eyes caught a familiar figure in the tree. Crouching with a bow in her hand was the person that we'd been looking for. It was Kana who saved me.
"Watch out, Mister Daku!" Kana warned.
I returned my eyes to the snake and found it slithering aggressively toward me. It launched itself at me, but I managed to evade it using Haste. It sent its tail at me, but just like its previous attack, it didn't hit me.
I covered my entire body with healing magic, and this time, it was I who attacked. I delivered a punch on its flank, sending it to the nearby trees where its body hit. Reinforced with the same magic, I stretch my feet for a jump. It sent me a few meters in the air and toward the snake.
I pulled my right arm back for a punch with its head as my target. The impact created a loud explosion, sending clouds of dust. I could feel a gooey and mushy texture where my fist was, but couldn't figure out what it was. When the dust subsided, I discovered that my fist had dug itself into the snake's head, which I thought killed it.
A loud thud caught my ears and my attention, and I found out that Kenshi also managed to kill the corrupted bear. The large icicle that pierced through the head of the bear made sure that it wouldn't stand again. He was getting pretty good at using his magic while fighting with his sword.
"Mister Daku!"
I shifted my body to face the source of the sound and saw Kana running towards me. When she was a foot away, I knelt to match her height before shoving myself toward me for a hug. I hugged her back and I hugged her as tightly as her body could endure.
"You came to save me," Kana cried.
"Of course. Didn't I promise your mother that I would protect you?" I replied.
"I was scared, Mister Daku! I thought I'd never see you again."
"I won't let that happen...ever. You're safe now. Mister Kenshi and I got you now."
"I want to go home. Shiro must've been worried sick about me."
"He'd be glad to see you. I know he will."