The two guards froze. Shocked. Shivering.
They felt the voice. Felt the fucking hands on their shoulders. Instant panic.
They stumbled back, screaming like little girls before even checking if it was a threat.
Ahrie just laughed.
"Fufu… didn't know you had this side, huh?"
"This bastard!" one guard growled, yanking up their sword.
Ke… ke… ke…
Ahrie launched like a madman, attacking first.
Inside the house, Amariel and Daiki watched, tense.
"Are you sure he can handle them?" Amariel asked.
"Why?" Daiki replied.
"They're both level 2," she continued.
"Meh… who cares about one level difference? That lunatic's one of a kind," Daiki muttered.
Amariel stared.
"First day at the facility…" Daiki started.
"Our previous instructor… Prof. Devon… total son of a bitch."
"Did shady stuff with some batchmates," he muttered.
"Then he targeted Ahrie… tripled his drills, punished him as much as possible…"
"As soon as Ahrie learned mixed martial arts, he beat the living hell out of Prof. Devon.
Hero of the class… didn't give a shit about praise or glory… just charged cash from everyone for what he did."
"He's the type of guy who bows to no one," Daiki finished.
Amariel said, "You guys seemed super close…"
"Yeea… I used to bail his ass out of trouble every damn time," Daiki replied.
"That piece of shit… attitude was crap. But he was a good friend."
Daiki's brain flashed a blurry mess of memories—three of them as kids… chased by dogs… chased by chickens when they tried to snatch the chicks… even a turkey once…
Me… Ahrie… and… huh…
He blinked, confused.
"Everything okay?" Amariel asked.
"Yeah… fine… just feel like I forgot something…"
Back outside…
The two guards braced themselves, heavy stance, muscles tensed.
Ahrie skidded to a stop, hand scraping the ground. Sand flew from his palm, curling into a messy smoke screen.
The guards raised their hands, trying to block it.
"Arg… you imbecile…"
When sight returned, they scanned left and right.
"Where the fu—" one guard started, cut off by Ahrie's voice from behind.
"I'm here," Ahrie said, calm as hell.
Both guards whipped around. Ahrie grinned, blew sand from his hands straight into their eyes.
"Argh!" The guards stumbled, clutching their eyes, blinded.
Ahrie laughed, clapping. "Hehehe… this is fun!"
"Wait here. I'mma grab my rapier."
He darted back to the house.
Inside…
Ahrie scratched his head. Where the hell did I leave my rapier?
Then he spotted it in a corner of the living room.
"Ohh… there you are."
He strolled over, grabbed the rapier.
And… ohhh no. Daiki was inching closer to Amariel.
Blurrp! Ahrie pretended to vomit.
Daiki waved him off. Cut it out!
Ahrie slammed his hands in front of his face, blocking the view.
Then he headed back out.
The two guards were squinting, rubbing their eyes, trying to adjust.
"You good now?" Ahrie asked, casual as hell.
"You'll pay for this humiliation… with your life!" one guard growled.
"We don't like you a single bit!" the other added.
"Urgh… who gives a fuck what you feel," Ahrie muttered, sleepy-eyed, picking at his ears like he didn't have a care in the world.
"This bastard…"
The two guards lunged like hunters on some big prey.
Guard 1 swung at Ahrie's shoulder.
Yawn. Ahrie lazily leaned back. "Really? That's your best swing?"
Guard 1's eyes bulged. Rage. Pure rage.
He thrust again, sword aimed dead at Ahrie.
Ahrie crouched low, then bumped straight into him.
BOMP!
"Oops… sorry, was that your shoulder?" Ahrie tapped it lightly, flicking off imaginary dust. "You might want to stretch first, buddy."
Guard 2 jumped in, slashing in a flurry, trying to trap him.
"Cute moves… but no dice!" Ahrie parried each attack effortlessly, smirking.
Guard 1 gathered strength for a huge downward slash.
Ahrie jumped back, then—after the sword hit the ground—Guard… your neck, he muttered.
He lunged, delivering a perfect kick to Guard 1's neck.
THUD!
Guard 1 flew. Guard 2 caught him mid-fall.
Cough.
Cough.
Guard 1 held his neck.
Guard 2's face twisted in growing fear. Ahrie's just… too casual. Too strong. Too insane.
"S-snap out of it!" Guard 1 barked.
"We'll have to use it…" he muttered.
"You sure?" Guard 2 asked nervously.
Guard 1 nodded.
Ahrie yawned again, resting on one leg. Bored out of his mind.
The guards exhaled slowly, trying to steady themselves.
Mana started swirling in the flowers atop their heads…
Ahrie's eyes flicked toward it, interest finally piqued. "Ohh… that's new."
[Enfluer!]
Both guards roared.
A violent wave of air burst out between them. Dust whipped up. The ground shook.
Ahrie planted his feet, arms raised, body straining against the blast.
From inside the house, Amariel and Daiki felt the pressure crash against their chests.
Even the elder on the far edge of the village turned from his window, brows furrowed.
The door banged open—Amariel and Daiki staggered outside.
What they saw froze them:
the flowers blooming from the guards' heads jittered violently, petals shaking as if about to shred apart. Their eyes were gone—just raw rage swirling inside.
Daiki swallowed hard. "What's wrong with them…?"
Amariel's voice was steady but grim. "Enfluer. A Floriae skill… it sacrifices thought for pure energy—stats, speed, strength. A mindless frenzy."
Ahrie tilted his head, lips curling into a grin.
"Berserk mode, huh? … Heh. Sounds fun."
Before he could blink, Guard 1 blurred across the gap—blade slicing straight at Ahrie's stomach.
"—Tch!" Ahrie twisted, reflexes snapping into place. His feet barely left the ground as the slash ripped air where he'd stood.
Then a crack of impact—Guard 2 had appeared behind him.
WHAM! A kick hammered Ahrie's back, launching him forward like a ragdoll.
"Brooo!" Daiki shouted, stumbling a step toward him.
Ahrie groaned, hand pressed to his spine as he rolled up to his knees. "Sheesh… ouch. My back, man."
Daiki called out, worry breaking his voice. "You good?!"
Ahrie spat dust, still smiling through the ache. "Yea… yea… I'm having fun."
Amariel snapped her fingers—threads of shimmering string burst out, streaking toward the guards.
But in a blur, Ahrie cut across her line, his rapier intercepting. The threads quivered inches from their mark.
He turned—head low, eyes swallowed in shadow.
When he spoke, it was quiet, but Amariel felt the weight in her chest.
"…oii… they're my prey."