Before I... rather, we progress to the continuation of my journey, we head over to the first town I find along my journey. The extensive walking that I did yesterday seemed to have hit my initial stock of supplies too much, so while we're still here, we'd stock up for another walk we don't know how long will take. One thing's for sure though: I can count on this town to be my initial 'base' of sorts; I think I can keep coming back here when I need to. Walking all the way back to Shimizu or Kasu Village just isn't worth the re-visit, plus I don't think I can get that much supplies there anyway... they're just villages.

Hm... what if I do make this place my actual base instead? Just for sleeping quarters.

"Hey Kiluna." I turned to her while we were walking toward the town.

"What?"

"No one's living in that house that you let me sleep in yesterday, right?"

"I thought you would have figured that out by now."

"I was just wondering whether I can just make it temporarily mine for a while?"

"Make it yours?! Uhm, uh..."

Hm, is there something I overlooked? Considering the fact that she already let me sleep yesterday, I figured that she doesn't care that much about that house. Looks like she's still reluctant to give it to me. What I think is that she may have been taking care of that house for too long, she may have grown attached to it. Many people find that trait of being attached to inanimate objects weird, but as one who has encountered quite a number of people (even with my kinda silent personality...), I won't find anything new as weird. Heck, I've grown attached to my own cape. However, if she was truly attached to the house, she would have said "no" outright. I wonder what's keeping her...

"Uh, I'll think about it, ok?"

She can't even spew out an answer right now. Well, guess we should keep moving toward the town then.

We eventually arrive at Ugoshi Town. As this is actually the first time I've been to a town (remember that I'm a village boy), I'm amazed by the sheer number of buildings there are here. More than that, I'm surprised how modernized things can get around these places. Electricity in our village is just used mainly for basic appliances, like lights. If this is what a town looks like, what more if I see an actual fully modernized city? It would probably be very astounding in my eyes.

"Here we are! Ugoshi Town. Man, why don't I feel excited anymore when I come here...?"

"If these are your origins, I think I won't wonder; your teamma... no, the bandits might actually be around here, according to what you describe."

"True, but it's not that... I'm pretty sure I can handle them on my own."

"Yet you were pretty much helplessly cornered yesterday night..."

"...can we drop that event for a while, please?"

"Actually, I'm under the impression that you're just excited to go out on the journey."

"...you know what, that's actually kind of true! I'm not 'not' excited to come here, in fact I can't forget my origins; bottomline here is I can finally go places and solve that big myster of mine!"

"So before we get to that, could you please show me now to the markets or whatever you call them around here?"

"Markets... hahaha, an evident village boy right here. You may have to get used to calling them shops, as they're kinda defined differently."

"Moreover, I do not have any monetary item with me right now, so uh..."

"Well, if we're going to stock on much, I don't have that much with me right now. So let's go visit my 'office' first..."

"Office...?"

Kiluna dragged me over to some building in the middle of the town. It appears empty, and assuming from the name of the office "Don't Cut", it's probably hers.

"Okay, wait here."

So I was just outside her 'office', waiting for her to come out. Eventually she did, and she was carrying a subtly sized bag. Of course I had to ask:

"What's in that?"

"All the office stuff I leave inside it. Since I figured I wouldn't be going back here for a while, I took everything as it might help us on the trip.
And since I don't actually do this job anymore..."

She pulled some almost invisible lever near the grass that was surrounding her office. And as soon as she triggered that lever, the building suddenly collapsed. Of course that startled me so much, seeing as how such a well-structured building would just break down into pieces. This also made all the townsfolk suddenly look at us, what with all the racket that caused.

"..." was my only reaction.

"Nothing to see here, guys! Go on!" Kiluna commented, which actually made some of the people move along, despite the building just destroyed. Then someone approached Kiluna.

"Yep, I'm shutting the place down for now, so you can take that off the town map. However, I still claim reservation of this lot, so no touching it." Kiluna said to that other guy.

"Alright, we'll cover the lot in a few.
Alright guys, we got another one here!"

I assumed that this person was somehow the one managing the land around these parts. You have to wonder if it's actually just a town, or it has the potential to be a full blown city.

We left that lot alone shortly after that, and proceeded with these places she called 'shops'. And my first impression? It's just like a market, only way better... The environment of one will actually enable you to think clearly, and the stuff here are actually organized. It makes looking for things easier, and the shopkeepers actually seem approachable. Well, the market owners back at Kasu and Shimizu are too, but still... Must be nice, living in a place where the environment is peaceful like this. I proceeded to get a good stock of necessities for the journey, which I was actually able to quantify nicely this time. As I was paying up on the counter (I've actually kinda learned already, heh), Kiluna picked up an antique-looking piece of folded paper from some container located on top of the counter. She gave the paper to me.

"We will definitely find this handy."

"What is this?"

"Open it. Oh and by the way, you're holding my cash."

Hm, for some odd reason, her bag of money somehow ended up in my hand, so I gave it back to her. I then open up the paper she just gave me.

"It's a copy of an old map that depicts the area for a good how many miles around the town. We could use it to get an idea where we'd want to go first."

Very helpful indeed. I took out my own map and started to draw on it, adding locations based on this new map that we got. The map, like any other good map, also has the NESW symbol, so it was pretty easy redrawing everything onto my own map. After I was done, the transaction of the items we ordered were also done, so we head out. I think we're ready to get out of the town.

"So, we should probably get going now..." I recommended Kiluna.

"Not so fast! You're going to leave so soon, but you've forgotten something that wandering travellers always do!"

I'm no wandering traveller... well, at least I don't call myself one. "And that is...?"

"Info gathering! Walking aimlessly usually gets you nowhere, causing you to walk for at least six hours straight..."

Hm, it's true... I didn't have any sort of information prior to leaving Kasu Village, leading me straight here, when I probably would have encountered a nearer town or something...

"Alright, information gathering. However, I'm not really sure if which of these people could give us the information we need...?"

"The only pub around here is usually brimming with tons of info, even those that seem so unreal. You might be able to eavesdrop on some people on what you need, or just read the articles around there. In Ugoshi, almost everything within knowledge come across the pub, so it's worth a shot."

"Guess we don't really have much of a choice for that, so let's go."

We head over to the place. For some reason, it doesn't look as different as the organized drinking stations (...alcohol drinking stations), so it felt pretty comfortable here. Hell, there were actually some bottles over here that had familiar labels. Is drinking really that popular? Well I must say, it's kind of a great hobby, though it hasn't been that much of a good entertainment source lately in the village...

And what's the best way to eavesdrop than to sit in a place where you can pretty much hear everyone and pretend that you're spacing out? Kiluna prompted the... bartender, I think what they were called, to get a drink for me. Seems like Kiluna is actually kinda popular around the town and usually get these things for free, or whatever...

"He's just a newcomer, so we probably should go easy on him for now." I heard Kiluna comment. I just had to reply.

"Hey. I may be a foreigner here, but that doesn't mean I'm a weakling with these kinds of stuff."

I'm quite the drinker back in Kasu, actually. And I don't regret it at all: this stuff is good, real good. It also, believe it or not, helped me to develop stabilization of my mind; as the alcohol tries to mess around with your nervous system, you'd want to condition your body to be ready for it. I've developed various techniques to keep myself sane for the most part, and those techniques also help in normal life, allowing me to think deeply even in the most chaotic situations. Drinking is kind of my meditation supplement, if you can put it that way.

"At least hit me up with something original here." I said to the bartender. The selection over at the village kind of gets repetitive after a while of being there, so I'm not letting this opportunity of having something new pass up. Of course, I couldn't just forget what I came here for; as soon as I got my bottle, I proceeded to sit down just there in front of the bar. It should be a good enough spot to hear the entire place. Oh, and before I forget to mention (author's note: yes I forgot to actually mention this earlier), the other people over at Kasu Village said that the size of my ears contribute to my ability to hear. Now unless I entered someone else's brain, I wouldn't really know if it's actually true. Anyway, time to concentrate on a spot to eavesdrop on.

"Just curious, what topics mainly interest you anyway, Ryougen?" Kiluna asked me.

"...new places. Faraway lands. Basically anything that I haven't heard of. I'm pretty sure these people wouldn't know anything about this mystical objective of mine, so I'll start with the most basic concept of 'heaven is right there'." I replied.

"Fine by me, I'll eavesdrop on my own concerns as well."

So here I am, sitting in front of the bar, trying to overhear conversations from within the entire place. Let's see which conversations I can whip up...

"But that was totally not my intention! I seriously didn't think it would be too much!"
"You got one of the more classic sounds, THEN put in something that doesn't even resemble it's tune! What do you think you're doing?!"
"Well, I was trying to soar... soar high..."
"...you seriously have to stop drinking, BHM."

Ooookay so I don't think that's actually that interesting. Let's try another spot...

"So that dude, he was... *jumbled up words* and I was like YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO... And and and... that girl saw them and then she was like *jumbled words* and then I was like YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

Uh, I don't think that's even of any sense... Moving on...

"Man, what... what the hell do you think this is?
"It's... IT'S...
IS NAHMKOW BABY!"
"Central *jumbled word* Coast, yeah baby!"
*some noises coming from some device...*
"Oops! That *jumbled words* say, DENIED."

...OK these conversations make me totally feel like an outsider now. Isn't there any serious conversation I'll hear here...?

"Hey, uh... question, if I may ask."
"What is it?"
"You know that girl across the street along *jumbled words* corner?"
"That weird girl that *jumbled words* potions and stuff? What about her?"
"I think she somehow stole something precious..."
"Something precious, you say...?"
"My precious thing..."

I don't even want to know what the hell they're talking about. To think I actually thought it was something of value this time...

"There's however, this one place on this stinking map I still don't know what's in it."
"What place? This sort of cave over here?"
"Yeah, this one over here. It's said to be filled with ca*jumbled sounds* , and I actually saw them just outside! The fog was kind of thick, and after a while I couldn't see anything... that's why I turned back before the ca*jumbled sound* were going to eat me, and just ran away... no way am I ever going back to that cave again!"
"Sometimes you actually have to wonder if it's all worth it... going to that cave and finding that special treasure, if it's actually even there..."
"I've had numerous scary moments in my exploring, but this one is kinda bit too much! I'm not going back there!"

Cave? I wonder what cave they're talking about. Is it somehow this unnamed cave in the Ugoshi Map I just got? Definitely looks like a place of interest...

"Hey, you heard of that guy? You know, the one that uses his giant bow-sword-whatever hell that thing is as a toothpick?"

What?

"Actually, all you have to do is count the number of *jumbles* and divide it by 4. By the time you get to *jumble* 100, it should equivalent to the amount of increase in that *jumble*."
"I actually kind of know that already. However, I still do not understand why different *jumble jumble* end up with different *jumble* even at *jumble* 100..."

Math? Not my thing, let's move on to somewhere else...

"Have you been to AC City? The one on *jumble*"
"No, actually. What's there?"
"Only the most improved technology to ever exist on the face of this world! It's unbelievably modernized so much, you'd think they'd be able to spy us talking about the city right about now!"
"What? How is that possible?"
"It's either that 'GPS' thing or the highly advanced 'satellite-driven' cameras or something... I have no idea how these newfangled things work, don't ask me! But basically saying, this place is AMAZING in terms of modernization."
"If you describe it to be that well, it actually seems like a place I'd go to."
"Oh, very. And if you get the chance, go look for the popular genius there named Aco*jumble* when he puts up a seminar... it sometimes actually looks more like a show rather than a *jumble*, and *jumble*"

Hm, interesting. Let's see...

"Hey you! Yeah, you there, moving your ears around with that drink rotting around in the 3 hours that it's been there!"

Uh, I think someone was actually calling me this time. I turned a few angles around to see that it was just someone sitting also at the bar. He had blue skin, blue cat-like ears that are smaller than Tenyou's, and... actually, I couldn't help but notice how weird he is clothed. He wore a miniature crown on his head, with what I believe to be some clothing that royalties wear that makes them look fatter than they are with some ruffles; rather than look like a prince, I'd say he looks stupid, in all senses of the word.

"Are you actually going to drink that or are you going to continue making an idiot of yourself there?" he shouted a bit.

"Excuse me? Who's the idiot?" I replied.

"I'm looking at him."

"Oh, is that so? I thought I was looking at him..."

"You're one to talk, outsider boy!"

"Whatever, my reason for being here is none of your business, so could you please just un-stick your nose out of what I'm doing, please?"

"Well, I'd normally let you continue being an idiot, but after calling me one, I think I can't let that slip away now, can we?"

I actually thought of replying "You mad?" (I got to do it again some time. “Ya mad, brah? YA MAD?!” Thanks, Zek.) to him, but I figured that would taint my outsider personality a bit, so I waited for the next thing he'd do. I didn't see what he actually did, but suddenly there were 2 bottles of the same drink in his hands. He slammed both on the table, one near me and one in front of him.

"Think you're up to it?!"

Is he seriously thinking of challenging me into what I think he's going to? Maybe those times slacking off in Kasu may just pay off today. I held the glass I had, and literally threw the liquid in it all the way into my mouth, splashing inside my oral orifice (author's note: ?). Since I was pretty much challenged to something, I didn't get a taste of what that drink tasted like.

"We drink in bottles." I said confidently.

"Fine by me!" the other guy shouted, though there was this slight tremble in the one of his voice somewhere... I think it was on the 'fine' part. He kind of has the advantage here since he knows about the brands here while I don't, so after making sure that he's giving me the same bottle, I'll just chug it down.

Quite a number of bottles emptied out already, and my body was starting to feel different. It seems like his is also becoming unstable too.

"Alright, I think... this is where it all gets exciting." I got cocky enough to say that.

"You *hic* are not going to win this." was all he replied.

Time to fully use the techniques I learned myself back then. The next two bottles came on. Holding both of them up, gulping them like there was no tomorrow, I closed my eyes as I fully 'seal my sane self on my entire body system' so that my actual soul will never leave. This usually has me end up thinking of other stuff quickly, so that I don't re-enact them in the real world. Not being able to see helps a lot since it actually renders your imagination wilder.
For these bottles, for some odd reason, the image that formed in my head was Kiluna... and she was... never mind. (Thank God that was SFW, otherwise I would have cried…and I usually cry myself to sleep every night anyway.) I had to open my eyes all of a sudden and drop one bottle down on the table because of the sudden image that formed in my head. I saw that the other guy wasn't doing that much better either. I just hope that... those kinds of images don't form again the next time I try to do this. Finishing up the current bottles, a few more were handed to us. The other guy still seemed strong, but I can feel that imbalance of his starting to kick in. However, this was also kind of a bad situation for me as I was feeling my nervous system dulling over earlier than usual... has it been that long ever since I 'practiced'? This will probably be the final bottle (author's note: wow, unintentional pun right there), and whoever keels over last will probably win it.

This next bottle however, was much different. As I gulped it down and closed my eyes, a pulse suddenly started inside my body... or how can I describe it? It's like this bottle worked like a magic potion, as I feel rejuvenised a few seconds after drinking some of this... is this really an alcoholic beverage or something? It's probably obvious that I had no problems gulping this one down, but it seems like I was starting again from my first bottle; it was that magical.

When I dropped the empty bottle down, I looked to see the other guy with his face on the table, quite literally here. Seeing as how it seemed to be over (without regards to whoever was watching us), I looked at the label of the bottle, only to find out that the label has faded so much that it's not readable anymore. And I was looking forward to getting me one of these for some other time...

While Kiluna was staring at me intently, with an "Wow, I'm impressed" face, I figured it was time to leave. Leaving the stranger behind, I walk out of the pub along with Kiluna without saying a word. Before I was able to leave the door however, I felt something pounced on my cape, but it was weak enough for me to just ignore and step straight out of the door.

"That was... some immense 'skill' there. Especially for a village boy." Kiluna commented immediately just after the door closed.

"I've got quite an experience. Anyway, he was really getting annoying anyway... I'm just glad that it didn't turn into something too drastic and it ended quickly."

"Wow, it's like you're not even dazed one bit! I could totally hang out with a drinker such as you."

"Why, you're not that proficient yourself?"

"Not really. I only drink for the taste."

"You and I the same, really. To be honest that was the first time I even attempted at a challenge like that."

"You've got to be joking me!"

"Well, the guy was pretty weak anyway... it was probably just a waste of time.
Anyway, what did you hear?"

"Nothing too interesting, except for some mysteries going around the town lately about the sudden influx of cats..."

"Influx of cats, huh. Didn't really hear that one... wait. I did hear one conversation that may have mentioned something about cats, but I couldn't make out their words exactly... Something related to that cave a few distances to the east of Ugoshi (facing North)."

"Cave? You mean this unnamed cave? Well, I haven't actually been to that place... and I don't think anybody has; it doesn't even have a name yet."

"Well, all the more reason to start moving."

"Wait, you plan on going there?! You're not scared from what you heard?"

"Well, how bad can the fog get? Exploring on things you can't see all just makes it more exciting."

"Yeah, but... well, okay, your call."

"Well, it'll probably be always like that.
So, let's 'officially' begin this adventure now, once and for all."

We proceed to walk toward the town's outskirts, but I have a feeling I probably might have forgotten something...

I didn't think I could actually endure that much drinking from that crazy event that happened yesterday. That guy in those stupid clothes... what the hell was he thinking? It must have been unfair for him, I guess... In my opinion, there wouldn't be a person who would be that outright rude to just make those remarks at me. (Word order, Zekira. However, now that I changed it, I don’t think it even makes sense… It’s the word ‘that’ that bothers me. Might just be me.) We don't even know each other, so it's probably that he because he was minutely drunk already before the bottles started coming. Probably. (I think those corrections are right…)

We eventually arrived at the border of the town, and proceeded to completely leave the area.

"So now that we're outside, care to tell me now of this objective you say?" I asked Kiluna. I'll tell my own story to her later after she's done.

"Alright then. The main item of interest here would be this brooch."

She flashed the brooch that was hidden beneath her clothing (why do I have a feeling I saw her do that somewhere else...?). (Goddamnit, Ryougen. T_T) Before taking it out completely, she looked around for a while, probably to check if there was no one else around. From that time Judging from yesterday, it seems like she really has to protect this brooch with all her life. I'm pretty sure she'll proceed to telling me what's behind all this.

"I kept it as hidden as possible from the world. Some fanatics call this the "Hidden brooch of the Full Moon", but from what I read before, this brooch is called the "Moon's Tears", said to have been dropped onto the world during the moon's Lunar Cry which happened in ancient times."

The Lunar Cry? I've never heard of such an event from happening, even if I've read that much on the world's history.

"The Lunar Cry? Is it some phenomena where a large amount of water comes down from the moon and drops it here?"

"Well, it's correct only up to the point where a large amount of something dropped. What actually dropped still remains a mystery, though this brooch is definitely a genuine item itself. From the full moon yesterday, you may have noticed this brooch somehow shining a bit. It actually only does that on full moon nights, and I didn't even tweak it in anyway, so there's got to be a magical power behind it."

"Where did you get this thing anyway?"

"I found it in the stash of my ancestors. I forgot exactly what prompted me to go and look through it, but I found this wrapped along a piece of old writing medium."

She brought out some sort of paper that looks like it's been there for a million years or something... it's just really old. She opened it, and there I found some sort of ancient alphabet that I don't understand. It seems as if she can read bits of it, however.

"I don't memorize exactly how this is read, but this definitely defines the brooch as the Moon's Tears. Keywords from this scripture include: moon, lunar cry, mystical power, another dimension, finding one's self... that's basically the only things I can read from here.
My actual objective can go in two ways: I find what this brooch really is, or I learn the entire alphabet from which this text is written, and try to decrypt whatever it is saying. From my travels as a mercenary, I've only received very, very minimal hints as to what this text says."

"What's in it for you, anyway? After you find out what this brooch actually is, what will you do with it?"

"That's exactly the thrill in it! So much unknown knowledge in (I think, it depends what you are trying to say though… Kinda confused here.) that you'd always be looking forward to something unexpected. It's that feeling of being able to discover unknown horizons that keeps me going on motivated into trying to unlock this."

"What if you indeed 'unlock' this? What will you do after?"

"I'm pretty sure my answer to that question will not differ if I ask the same question to you."

...wow, it's true. After I find Senpuu, what will I do after that? Wait, I do have an answer for that...

"Oh, but I actually do have an answer to that, mind you."

"You... do?"

"I actually have something to look forward to after I'm done with my 'quest' here. Actually, it would help if I describe first what I've set out to do."

"Please do. I'm really interested to hear something different... actually, I'm just interested in what people do for their lives, heh."

From my bag of supplies, I took out the family picture of the Mai siblings.

"Is this a childhood picture? You're cu~ why are you wearing your underwear on the outside..."

"N-never mind that! A-anyway!
Ryougen Mai, Senpuu Mai, Tenyou Mai. 3 siblings of the clan from the Shimizu Village. Bottomline here: I don't remember anything about Senpuu. Neither does Tenyou."

"Don't remember anything?! She out of the village or something?"

"For more than an amount of time I couldn't even remember. The whole village was hiding the fact that we had another sister."

I described more of the situation to her; how my life was in Shimizu and Kasu Village, my 'occupation' as the dancer of strength for Kasu, and how the entire Shimizu Village has been keeping a secret from me until now.

"...I still have something to look forward to after this. Once I've found my lost sister, I'll continue to be the pinnacle of strength for our villages. And it's possible that I may also find something interesting on our journey that will keep me occupied for after I find Senpuu. (Now that I realize it, you use WAY too much commas. As much as I like to use them as well, there has to be some limit. Try not using commas before ‘and’ because 99% of the time you don’t need to use it.) I've been living such an isolated life inside those villages, as you may have noticed from my very limited knowledge about a town, questioning terms such as 'shops'..."

"It must be a blast for you then, to be able to get out and walk to such far places. I haven't actually been to those villages that you described... I'll be sure to visit there when I'm not occupied."

"Well, OK... good luck walking for 6 hours, heh."

"Hey, by that time I think we have a reliable way of transportation... I guess? I'll probably learn about the vehicles or something..."

"Vehicles...?
Wait wait WAIT. You kind of haven't answered my question yet..."

"You might have noticed by now that I'm trying to drive the question away... goes to show that I don't have an answer yet..."

"...well, good luck finding something... Thinking about the future is something that everyone should have."

Then some other foreign voice suddenly echoed from a short distance from us.

"Oh yeah? Then tell me why you're just walking unwarily forward?"

I could swear this voice was familiar, though I just can't remember exactly where I heard it before. Of course, this foreign voice alerted me so I looked away from Kiluna and forward to the path I was walking. And what did I find? We were surrounded. By bandits.

"You guys again...?! I thought you learned your lesson for good!" Kiluna reacted. Turns out this was the same group that attacked Kiluna yesterday. If memory serves me right, they still want the Moon's Tears. What are they going to do with it anyway? Sell it?

"I'll gladly burn you this time around, if you still choose to interfere." I said to them. I have to make them remember what made them scurrying away yesterday night, so with a few efforts, I lit a fire on my hands.

"Well, that's not what we're here for now, anyway..." the bandit reacted. I was wondering why that was so, when I just noticed now that we were already chained to the ground. What kind of a trap was that?! And how come I didn't notice something so restraining? (Wait, they’re chained now? Since when? T_T)

"Alright, good." another voice came from beneath the circle of bandits. Some of the bandits stepped beside to allow entrance for another entity. Blue skin, funny attire, with a crown on his head... Wait a minute! This... this was...

"You?! That fool from the pub in Ugoshi..."

"'Fool'? You should realize how absent-minded you are for being caught so easily, to the point that I was able to walk ahead of you while you were babbling about stuff that I'm probably not concerned about."

Yes, it was indeed that same guy. Were we too preoccupied in talking in that we walked so slow? And to think, I thought he was already on the verge of vomiting his guts out when I left the place! It's either he was bluffing it, which I highly doubt, or his powers of regeneration are very strong... Now, what does he want from us and that we're chained to the ground? How is he related to Kiluna's former group of bandits?

I saw that same guy hand over an envelope to the bandit leader.

"Alright, this is the only thing I wanted you guys to do. You may leave..." said the blue guy.

"Wait, we're kind of not done here... we wanna hurt that girl over there a bi~" the bandit leader said, but was interrupted.

"I. Said. LEAVE. Or do you want me to take that money back from you and make you fugitives instead?" the blue one said. It appears he has some sort of power or something, though it doesn't seem like it... he probably just has the money to manipulate people, like these mercenary-bandits. Without further delay, the group walked away from us, and scurried out to some direction. I couldn't really see that well because there was a bit of fog in this area already.

So it was just me and Kiluna tied to the ground, in front of that blue drunkard. We can't really do much in this position, but he's going to have to explain himself as to why he has us bound here. Is he that much of a sore loser?

"Firstly, I'd just like to say I'm impressed of your drinking powers, draggy boy."

'Draggy Boy'? What the hell? Also, why is he complimenting me?

"But that's not really what I'm here for. I'm here for one thing: that girl."

He's here for Kiluna? What for?

"Me?! What... I don't even know you! What business do I have with you?!" Kiluna shouted.

"That's none of your business! I'll have to take you to the place I have to take you to!" the blue guy said. From that statement, it actually sounds like he doesn't know why he's doing this, which is kind of odd. Even if he does say that it's none of our business, the tone of his voice hints at the fact that he's doing this with no real objective. Of course I can't just stand here...

"You can't just take her with you, for no one owns her. She went with me by her own will. Why does she have to go with you?" I said.

"Why don't you just get straight to the point: you wanna fight, right?" he said. A fight? I didn't really imply that, but it seems like it will eventually lead to it...

Then I noticed that he suddenly unlocked the chains binding our feet. Surprised, me and Kiluna didn't even try to run away. If he really wanted something to do with us, why would he just let go of us like this? Surely there must be a reason, so I asked.

"...huh? You are doing this... why?"

"Yeah... and I thought you had a great sign of strength underneath those stupid clothes..." Kiluna reacted.

"S-stop talking about my clothing! God damn it! I did not unlock this just so you could walk away!
I just want one simple thing: I want a battle... a physical kind of battle. Whoever wins gets to take the girl."

What is this?! It's not like I own Kiluna or anything! What is he implying?!

"To be honest, I couldn't really bring myself to resort to sneaky unfair tricks just to get what I want. However, that's because I'm the strongest! (author's note: Is it a coincidence that Shito's skin color is light blue, just like a certain ice fairy? I swear this was unintentional!) And I don't need to make any effort to get what I want... I can just beat anyone down for it! Now, face me! Or is drinking your only capability?!"

The strongest? He wears stupid clothing; does he expect me to believe him? I am not accepting a stupid challenge like this!

"...very well, I shall put myself on the line." Kiluna suddenly retorted. Of course, this got a surprised reaction from me.

"Kiluna...?! You can't just do that! Whatever happened to go~" I replied, when Kiluna cut me off.

"Ryougen! I am not owned by anyone, that includes you! Without my job, all my actions are mine alone! And I say... may the man with the most honor win." she replied.

Honor...? I never really expected her to be talking of such; I didn't think she actually cared. But since she's the one who wants it, I guess we have no choice...

"...very well, you heard the girl. I shall battle you, here and now. Any 'rules'?" I said to the blue guy.

"Well, it's a good thing you're stepping up to it! I am Shito, the strongest being in this entire world! You are just an example of all the lowlives that surround the environment! And I'll prove it to you!"

"Answer my question! By the way, I am Ryougen Mai of Kasu Village."

He suddenly flinched a bit when he heard "Kasu Village", but then regained his composure quite a bit.

"Rules, huh... doesn't really matter, first to be taken down loses!"

After that statement he suddenly charged at me, attempting to connect a simple punch to my face. He was fast, but not fast enough to render my reflexes amock. (Do you mean, ‘amok’?) Again, using the only moves I know, the dances of strength, I quickly get out of the range of his attack by hopping to the right and getting my balance quickly. I tried to lunge at him with my own choice of hand 'martial arts' in the form of palm strikes, finger strikes, and hand slashes, so I started out with a swift palm strike while he was still recovering from the whiff'd punch. It hit him, but not as much as I expected it to, for he just flinched and got his balance quickly. He almost grabbed my hand, but I quickly drew it away to attempt to jump and kick (Silly spelling mistake, Zek. XD) at him. He tried to grasp my foot as it was coming at him, but his reactions were too late and I was able to hit him straight to the face. He almost fell over, quickly stood up as I was still getting my balance on the ground. He quickly recovered, and brought out which looked like effective projectiles that might actually wound me. With much accuracy he threw those projectiles at me. The distance was quite at my disadvantage, so I had to keep moving sidewards until such time I can close in, that is, when he stops throwing stuff at me. But seeing from how quick he's throwing these at me, it doesn't seem like he'll run out anytime soon... I think my stamina wouldn't last this long. Eventually I noticed that I was dancing slower and slower, and that my body was reacting slower than my reflexes could recognize. Eventually one of these was coming straight at me, and I was in a bad position; I knew I couldn't dodge this one, so the only option I could think of is to try and block it with my own body. With some burst of fear from my inner self, I placed my palms forward in attempts to block the projectile. My mind blanked out a bit. Then suddenly the surrounding became a bit hotter than usual, and I think it's actually coming out from my hand. I slowly looked forward again to see what was happening... and I was doing it again! The Ryougen Beam! Red Fire coming out of my left hand, blue flame coming out from my right hand... and at their crossing point, the projectile was there suspended. I tried to calm down in order to shut the fire off; it did, and the projectile just fell on the ground, with a few burnmarks on it. I then looked at Shito, to see his face with some fear. Figuring that my powers of fire could come in handy now, I lunged at him to take advantage of his shock and with my hands still ignited, I tried to see if touching him with it will finally take him down. I was able to connect a palm strike yet again, but the power seemed to be increased with the fire in my hands even though I used less effort. Seeing as he still has composure, I tried to do a standard mystical technique that people that can control fire do: throw a ball of fire at him. Clearing my mind of much things, I tried to concentrate on that spiritual power inside me the same way I have access to the Ryougen Beam, throwing 'air' just in front of me... and it worked! Fire came out of my hands as a projectile and it effectively hit him. I can't believe I'm not dreaming... I actually really do have 'powers'! I'm not sure how exactly they're called, but from fantasy books that I've read (which doesn't seem to be as fantastic now!), that's how they commonly refer to mystical powers.

It seemed to be really effective, as he was now lying there. The strongest, he says. What a laugh. I turned away now to face Kiluna who was just sitting down watching the fight, and proceeded to walk away, when I heard Shito's voice again.

"...it's good... this is all good...
I did say there weren't much rules now, is there? We don't have the right to kill each other, yeah... However..."

I faced him again to see him still trying to stand up. Looks like fight's not yet over, it seems.

"Since I now know that you have something inside you... I have no reason to hold back!"

To hold back? I don't think he's faking this; he barely has the energy to keep himself bala~

What is that thing coming out of his back...?!

"Yeah, you felt it right, someone worth crushing this time, and he's all ours!
Ryougen, Kiluna! I'd like to introduce to you Blackrose!"

Is that a dragon much bigger than him coming out of his body?! Usually only spirits can do that, which its form seemed to have formed into as it was missing limbs (permanently attached to Shito), but he really seemed like a part of the existing world... That black figure, permanently frowning eyes and a smile that resembles that of a killer... Is this Shito's power?!

Then I heard the dragon speak.

"It's been a while since I've been out... I was waiting for a moment like this!" the creature named Blackrose commented.

"Alright Blackrose, let's take him down!" Shito complied. Looks like the fight indeed isn't over, as I now have to figure out a way to take down this spiritual partner of his...

And it's as if the previous events didn't happen; Shito was lunging at me faster than he was moving before, bringing Blackrose closer, and and the dragon proceeded to try and swipe at me. Getting myself out of the shock, I barely was able to get out of the way. That huge black serpentine was whipping like crazy though, and after all of those intense movements you would've guessed that a few of them hit me. Blackrose, although technically just a spirit, still seems to be physically present in this realm, evidenced by the fact that it was hitting me with its body. I could hear Kiluna shouting with a worrying tone, but I couldn't make out her words since I was too concentrated on figuring out what to do. Eventually after much more dodging, I noticed something peculiar: Shito's legs are still trembling. It's evident that the only thing that's allowing him to stand is a second wind. And since he needed to move in order for Blackrose to actually approach me, I knew exactly what I had to do. So Blackrose proceeded to whip me again with his body... but this time I tried something else: I placed both of my hands forward, palms facing the dragon, and with my remaining strength, tried to hold the dragon in place. My idea was to put him in place so I could somehow either get past him while he's still trying to shake me off, or the better option... jump on his body and walk towards Shito. I just need to deliver a fierce kick to Shito's legs, and...

Holy what?! Blackrose is...

"Burn, burn, BURN weak creature!"

He opened his gaping mouth and from out of it came an enormous blue fire, directed at me. I had no choice but to put my arms in a blocking position just to shield myself from this attack. It burns, it really does... it's hot... does it really feel like this? Is he just taking revenge of the fact that I burned Shito down first...?

Wait... but it's just fire... Let me try lunging with this blocking position and hitting his head... It doesn't feel so hot anymore... it's more of warm, actually!

...right on spot! With my arms, I was able to hit Blackrose's snout and knocked him over a bit, stopping the blue fire from his mouth. Taking advantage of his raised body, I quickly dashed forward to get to where Shito was. Shito, noticing this, tried to move away a bit, but Blackrose was still flinching, thus hindering even Shito's movement itself. Trying to control Blackrose to hit me instead (by using him as a weapon, which was a real laugh for a moment), he grasped the heavy spiritual figure and tried to swing it to me. But he was too late; I was already in a sliding position (firing up the ground as I was sliding... don't know why), making Blackrose's body whiff me, and my foot already positioned to kick his legs.

Then it hit him.

He finally got completely off balanced, and fell down flat on his back a second time. Now sufficiently weakened, Blackrose seemed to have been forced back into his body, leaving only the immobile Shito lying on the ground. I guess NOW the fight is over.

Kiluna rushes over to me as I stand up, knowing that everything is now done.

"Ryougen! I knew you could do it! However, I haven't seen this much mystical power in action ever in my life...!" she just had to exclaim. As she said, she gets excited when seeing new things, so although this is a surprise to her, she seems to have that smile on her face despite the fact that I'm a bit hurt.

"Yeah... glad I pulled that one over. I'd want to practice this newly found fire powers of mine though... I didn't know I could actually do this."

"How lucky I am, to be accompanied by a being with spiritual power... it makes this journey even more to look forward to!"

"Heh... if that's a compliment for me, thanks anyway. We have to get going now, though I don't remember which direction we were walking to originally..."

The fog was already quite evident in this area, for some reason. Tracking Kiluna's footsteps, we eventually were able to tell the direction we were going and moved forward. Then I heard Shito still speak again, though this time he's significantly weakened. It's a surprise to see him be able to stand on his knees though, even after all that he's gone through...

"Wait... wait! This battle... it was all a fluke, I swear!" he said. He's still that cocky after losing that bad?! What kind of a person is this?! "But... I have to tell you one last thing!" he continues, then there was this slight sign of fear from the tone of his voice. Because of that particular tone, I had to listen to what was up, so I faced him. "I came for the girl because another being blackmailed me to do so... If she finds out that I'm lying down here, she'll kill me for sure...! I couldn't really refuse even when I realize her evil motive because she 'caught' me..."

OK this is weird. First, the bandits were paid by Shito to capture us, and now we find that Shito is being manipulated by some other being? Whoever that is, he or she wanted Kiluna, or something from her. It's probably the brooch...

"Where is this particular person you speak of?" I asked Shito.

"You're... already facing in the direction of Nihyaku Cave, right...? She's there. I don't care how you get there, or if the fog will blind you, just... if you don't want to see the strongest person in the world get killed, go there and reason with her! I can't really move yet... and she'll be looking for me soon!" he replies. So we have another suspect at hand that wants Kiluna, or probably her brooch rather. And we were right on track as we were going to Nihyaku Cave anyway.

"...well, if you insist, we'll take care of that for you. Kiluna, whoever that person is, he or she will probably keep on aiming you, so keep your guard up."

"I'm not really the type that spaces out, so you can count on me in protecting myself." she replies.

Shito then makes one last remark before we disappeared in the dark.

"The next time we meet... the next time we meet is where I crush you down to a crisp! Ryougen Mai! Do not forget my words! This battle... was... all... a fluke...!" was what I could make out, then a loud thud afterwards... seems like he actually fell face flat on the ground this time. He'll be unconscious there for a while, and after what he did to us, I couldn't really bother helping him. Kiluna and I then proceed forward on to Nihyaku Cave.

The fog is getting thicker and thicker...