(Part 2)
Epic Beast Nutrition (2) and Failed Plot.
14: Chapter 0005
(Part 2)
Epic Beast Nutrition (2) and Failed Plot.
10 YEARS AGO, 10450, SUMMER MONTH 2, DAY 3, YEAR 10,450 SAMURAI COUNTRY NAGASUKE
An hour after their usual afternoon regimen, they brought Epic Beast Rabbits they had caught and cooked it over the fire.
When he smelled it and woke up from his sleep, he began training and by the time he was done, they were done harvesting too.
Eyeing the food with wariness only a woman’s intuition could tell, Karin voiced a question.
“Are you scared?
Oh, you haven’t yet tried Epic Beast meat.
Well,” she went on “unlike the organ broth that go straight into your systems and the core that goes into your core, liver, pancreas and heart, this one directly goes into our muscles.
Are you ready?”
Mildly surprised that the Mistress wasn’t the one asking him the question, he glanced in her direction only to see that her eyes never left him.
She waved at him with a smile and he looked back to the group.
“Um,” He felt embarrassed because he could not shame his buddy, then straightened up his spine “I can, I’ll just meditate then have it.”
“Think about it, bro.” Gejiro chipped in.
“Yeah, she doesn’t want to push you too hard.” Jin added.
Skrylla Yokuta wanted to acquiesce and even procrastinate this but then he remembered why he was here in the first place.
If he was a cultivator, from what the Mistress had told him, a lot of things would be easier for his family.
He had to return as someone reliable.
Not just that.
He had to be someone reliable to his Buddy.
The young Samurai-to-be reached for the meat and Gejiro pulled it away, about to caution again.
“Give it to him.” With the anger in her voice, the cooked flesh was cut into pieces under five blinks.
Skrylla Yokuta didn’t know that just the early stages of cultivation granted that amount of speed, but then, maybe Gejiro’s own breathing technique trained his spirit for speed.
“Wait.” Drisnyl Hashna Tsuyo-ya said and Skrylla Yokuta paused right when the meat in his hands was about to reach his tongue and he hid the emotion of disappointment with a plain face that failed his honest intention of masking his impatience.
“Your Sword Technique, how far have you gone in it?”
“Um,” he swallowed, wondering why she chose to ask now.
His stomach almost rumbled.
“Now it is easier to cut and pierce stuff.”
“What kind of stuff?”
“Trees, rock; hard stuff.”
“That is building of intent.
From what you just said, I can assume that you are about the Preliminary stages of Sword Wind.
When it is fully realized, you would be able to instantly have a coating of the ‘Sword Wind’ about your blade.”
“Yea, it seems to be quite the process.”
Gejiro frowned at him, “When did you start?” Karin stopped chewing whatever that she was and Jin turned his full body to face him.
“Yes, I have only reached the early stages of Sword Wind according to the notes that I have.” He answered her first, then turned to his friends.
“About three months ago.”
Gejiro, Karin and Jin fell on their backs in shock.
“Okay,” the Mistress instead looked at him with eyes full of pity and waved at the waiting food in his hands.
“Go on.”
The boy had the thigh in his hand and ate it as fast as possible, forgetting to breathe as he anticipated pain this time as well.
It felt comparably better.
At least, at first;
Skrylla felt full, like he had eaten for days in 1 sitting.
Then, he felt an itch which started like a light forgettable one.
Eventually it became unbearable, and wanting to be a Samurai held him from scratching like a mad dog with flees.
“Buddy… this is….
For… you.”
Now, he started jumping repeatedly; hopping, on the spot and his self-forced silence only made it funnier, although they didn’t laugh because they knew that her reaction to that would be unfriendly so right now everyone had a funnily serious expression on their faces as they were now intrigued to see the further development this would take.
“Adriel Yokuta… this… is… for… you.”
Skrylla Yokuta’s skin began emitting shoddy mists, his complexion turning fair before becoming red and a light fog began coming from him.
“Go find an Unawakened animal, all of you!
I’ll watch him myself.”
They jumped at her command as they were expecting rest, but Karin and Jin couldn’t complain because Gejiro had done the most work today.
So, with a grumbling heart that almost had justifiable reasons, they stepped out leaving the camp area.
“Eiko… Shandiry… Yokuta… this is… for you.”
Drisnyl Hashna Tsuyo-ya paced about him as he writhed on the floor like a worm that had salt over it, his body now emitting steam like a train, his entire body bright red.
Why did he think that being a Samurai meant suppressing his feelings; there was a difference between discipline and denial?
But that thought was not why her heart was racing.
What if his heart stopped?
What if he couldn’t make it?
What if this crippled him?
Just as she was having her thoughts, she hadn’t noticed that the steam was still coming out but he had stopped moving.
And when she did notice that, she jumped into the steam, only to see him standing up.
She heard him muttering something under his breath, his body shaking at intervals like the coldest winter breeze was cutting through his agony at intermittent breaths, his body caked in black pus-like filth and his eyes in different positions, twitching as if he hadn’t slept in ages.
“Buddy, did you see that?”
Drisnyl Hashna Tsuyo-ya let out a breath of relief and ran to hug him.
“What would a Samurai do?
Buddy what did you think?
What would…”
He did not let her go even when she had reduced the intensity of her embrace.
He looked at her with almost lifeless eyes, “the cauldron bath.”
When Skrylla Yokuta woke up in the morning from the ordeal he did not dare to remember, he was told by the Mistress to meditate since talking was too hard and he had been staring at the tree as if he was in a vegetative state.
It took about an hour before he could move his body at all.
In 3, he could talk clearly and in 6 he could now walk, although pains were all over his body.
“Don’t train, yet.
You lost all your body fat; hence you need to eat food now.”
“Nothing wrong with being skinny.”
“Nothing wrong with being fat too.”
“I don’t care about your body type; I’m telling you what to do for your safety.”
“Let me train.”
She sighed before he suddenly found himself on the ground, Karin and Jin each taking an arm while Gejiro fed him a grass-cutter.
And when they done, he was held that way so that he would rest.
He woke up again – and it was night this time – the breeze slowly passing over him even before he picked himself up, walked up to his box of wooden weapons and techniques that now had various antlers and bones in addition.
He then picked up a wooden sword and continued his practice after a half hour of meditation.
The Mistress wanted to kick him back to sleep but her subordinates unanimously placed their hands on her so she only watched him with a frown.
They all observed him till he crawled back to sleep when he was bone tired.
Drisnyl Hashna Tsuyo-sa couldn’t help but shove a foot at him as he lay and Jin and Gejiro followed suit, they all made it look like they were deep into their sleep.
Plus, he was too tired to retaliate, anyway.
He wasn’t sure if he should laugh or cry.
They had acquired a bag so full of loot during the past few days that Skrylla left hanging from his neck which had been quite another regimen he had added which had been successful for his neck muscles for the last few months.
it was like they had some good fortune for finding Beasts, both awakened and Unawakened.
Towards the beginning of the next week, they had a trade hub in their sights which was a landmark for the right direction they should be going.
It was west from where they had caught their last prey and they had been trekking for quite a while, like every other day. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
Except, over the months since his journey began, he had been tired of doing scout and sending signals, maybe he would get his hands into the fight this time; a real fight.
However, the Mistress would know if he was gone… meaning he would have to find a way to slip out of their midst without them noticing.
Or not.
***
His 1st attempt was slowly reducing his speed until they were over ten meters ahead of him before he began veering off.
They had chosen the plains instead of the grass so that they won’t be ambushed by wild animals overhead, or undergrowth, or between the stretch of trees.
“What are you doing?”
Skrylla Yokuta had reached the tree, with only a few more steps left.
So, when he heard the question, he immediately crouched and began squinting.
“Just admiring this tree, Mistress.”
“Why are you so far away?”
“Would I have noticed it from that far away?
I have not begun cultivation, you know.” He feigned anger and began inspecting the tree with his hands.
“This tree is… special.
Come take a look.”
The Mistress allowed her Citizens to ahead before joining him, but frowned when she did.
“Hmmm….
I don’t see anything.” She realized that he did not answer her question to her satisfaction but she eyed him for only a moment.
***
“Hey, look at those fruits.” Jin abounded cheery.
“Are those Blood Berries?”
“Blood berries?” Karin asked in curiosity.
“What are those?”
“They help to improve circulation in the body, by not only burning the fat around blood vessels and the heart but supplying blood to the body and leaving it robust.”
“That means it will be in high demand in hospitals.”
“True,” Gejiro agreed.
“If that is the case, then we ca…”
“Let me get it, let me get it.” When Skrylla Yokuta snapped out of his anger of his previous failed attempt and caught on to the conversation, he grabbed at the chance like a drowning man to a slow life guard.
Thus, he ran with haste.
“Wait!” Karin had shouted but it was the hooked blades of the Mistress that was crossed before him.
And on one blade was black sizzling liquid that burned itself out, while the other had the dissected head of a snake beneath it.
“These Blood Berries usually attract animals too, especially cold-blooded ones that need its heat to balance their systems or warm-blooded ones that enjoy its benefits.” She panted more out of the situation that physical exhaustion.
“I told you that these are one of the ways that Epic Beasts can begin cultivation, right?”
“Right.”
Skrylla Yokuta had not known that there was even a snake there, the Mistress had truly saved him.
He would have been on the floor while they tied parts of his arm and bleed out the poisoned area.
But that brought him back to the current situation; he had failed and he shook in part fear, part anger.
He had more to think about than failure and being protected.
If he could not protect, then he was just a weight, not even to just to himself but his loved ones.
“Let’s go back.”
“Sorry, buddy next time.”
His deep frown caught her off guard and she paused for a moment before picking fruits for them all.
***
“Hey, is that not a Komodo Dragon Epic Beast?”
“The correct version is Epic Komodo Dragon Beast.”
“Whatever,” Karin rolled her eyes.
“It’s not like we get points if we say it right or wrong, either way.”
True to Skrylla Yokuta’s announcement, they snapped their eyes to something at the crest of the bland horizon.
It was late in the evening and the red sky was above grassy plains which had forests in clusters or patches.
He had memorized the Epic Beasts in a book that Drisnyl Hashna Tsuyo-ya had on here, as since he could not get involved because of their obstruction, he might as well fantasize about it.
Jin nodded, “good eyesight, you might join us soon.”
“Animals like these do not usually travel in packs.” The Mistress stood in front of Skrylla Yokuta before he could take a step anywhere.
“But you never know what becoming an Epic Beast might mutate in them.”
She noticed his attempt and added with both her eyes, tone and gesture.
“Stay behind me.”
He smiled as though he wanted to cry, so he sat down on the ground in fuming anger.
Skrylla Yokuta would wait for another chance.
He would definitely take the next one.