Floating in the air, the Sword Saint raised a hand as he swept it in front of him, forming a swirling plane of water that met all the attacks coming for him. Everything passed through it and was misdirected to fly by him as he had already taken note of what he was dealing with, and it was all very… odd.
The army below was large, but it was not powerful. From the power of the attacks, he felt nearly only D-grades in the crowd, and after using some Identifies, he confirmed that these armies were made up nearly entirely of D-grades with a few C-grade commanders in the mix, save for one small squad.
Having dealt with the first barrage of attacks, the army below wasn’t showing any reaction besides releasing another attempt at his life. Miyamoto sighed as he quickly scanned the battlefield and noticed it had a rather classical setup, but not one actually made for warfare. It was purely a marching formation, and seeing as the immediate area all around the Prima Vessel was clean, much of the dirt showing signs of prior marches, he quickly reached a conclusion.
An army for show.
Misdirecting the next set of attacks, the Sword Saint saw no need to take a third as he dove down toward the army. Only now did they seem to realize they were dealing with a problematic opponent, and in an instant, panic set in.
The armies scrambled as the C-grade commanders yelled words of order, but none of them listened besides two companies, including one that Miyamoto had noticed from the beginning as they stood out due to their far worse equipment and the fact they were all beastfolk of the same variant.
Beastfolk, or beastkin as they were also called, were a rather diverse race, much like scalekin. Their only common trait was their bestial ancestry, but that ancestry could vary widely and would affect their variant races significantly. This particular army with shabby equipment was all of the same kind of beastkin and, from the looks of it, had their ancestry in a bull or other similar bovine of some fashion.
A slave army? Internal discord between variants?
Hopefully, he would soon have his answer as Miyamoto successfully located the leader of this entire group. The second company that retained order, besides this one he suspected to be made up of slaves, also had the best equipment and was definitely some kind of elite squad going by how they were all C-grades. Low-tier C-grades, but C-grades still, with their leader a large bear-like beastkin standing in the middle with a two-handed axe. This wasn’t necessarily the commander in charge of the army, but he was certainly the strongest based on how many of the panicking soldiers threw glances at him. Miyamoto knew that beastkin tended to structure their societies strictly around power… something that wasn’t exactly unique to them, true, but he believed it a safe bet in this case to approach the strongest.
A few attacks were still thrown his way, but the Sword Saint ignored them as he appeared in front of the elite army with the bearkin towering above the other soldiers staring straight at him.”I do not come as an enemy,” Miyamoto spoke in a calm tone. ”And I apologize if that was your interpretation of my presence.”
The beastkin, who had looked ready to attack, stared at him suspiciously as he answered in a tone that made it clear she was a female, making the Sword Saint get a pang of embarrassment that he masterfully hid.
”Who are you? Who are you with?” the female bearkin asked with an almost accusatory tone.
”I am with no one; I just arrived on this planet,” the Sword Saint answered, deciding to limit the information he would give away until he knew more.
”Lies, the Fourth King did not enter the Prima Guardian Alliance,” the bearkin answered, now with their guard even more up than before, yet having also disclosed some valuable information.
”I never made such claims,” Miyamoto said with a light smile as he looked up toward the sky where he came from as he purposefully radiated his aura and power. ”I am from a world that defeated our Prima Guardian shortly after the event began, and taking advantage of what lies within the Prima Vessel, we became able to travel elsewhere in the galaxy… even to the worlds not part of the alliance.”
His words weren’t lies. The scientist had taken inspiration from and made use of what was within the Prima Vessel to make his own horrendous teleportation device.
The bearkin looked conflicted as the Sword Saint decided to retain the initiative of the conversation. ”I shall inform you now that I came alone. My sole intent is to slay the Prima Guardian, but should good reason be given, I can offer assistance with other urgent matters to help stabilize the planet.”
It was clear this C-grade who was in charge of a for-show march to guard the Prima Vessel wasn’t someone who could actually make decisions, but she could direct him to someone who could. This entire conversation had also been conducted openly surrounded by others, and through the whispers and doubtful talk of the soldiers all around him, the Sword Saint quickly got a basic idea of what he was dealing with on this planet.
Three Beast Kings, all in conflict. Yes, only three, as it appeared the First King was already dead, killed by the three others who were now fighting to claim the throne. Apparently, this Prima Vessel was important to claim victory, and right now, the Fourth King had won dominion over it, though from the sounds of it, the giant metal egg had already changed hands many times.
Certainly a mess. Especially with Primas everywhere causing trouble and making everything far more complicated. Some kind of power struggle had somehow ended up taking precedence over what Miyamoto believed was far more important.
The Sword Saint had just presented himself as a potential solution to the problems of these seemingly equally matched factions. An ace that would allow any King who successfully recruited him to claim victory, and he had purposefully shown off his power for just that. Miyamoto also knew the ambitions of a soldier, even if they had a relatively high rank, and he saw the light of ambition in the eyes of the bearkin.
”It… it’s maybe possible to get a meeting with the Third King if you are telling the truth,” the beastkin said hesitantly.
”Such an arrangement would be wonderful,” the Sword Saint said with a comforting smile.
”I will contact high command,” the bearkin said as she threw a glance to a soldier who was thrown out of his stupor as he used some kind of skill. The Sword Saint nodded in approval and remained calm, only floating down to stand on the ground to appear less intimidating.
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A few minutes passed before the female beastkin focused on the Sword Saint again.
”We are to meet in another location not far from there. It will only take a single teleportation to get there,” the beastkin said, the Sword Saint nodding.
A trap it is… yet to tell if they are simply being cautious or overly foolish. Let us hope it’s the former.
He joined the bearkin and a few other soldiers as they made their way to a small forward camp that looked like it was used mainly for supplies for all the marching soldiers. It also had two teleportation circles, with one of them recently deactivated and both rigged to blow. The escort clearly wasn’t very comfortable around him, something that was perhaps for the best.
When they reached the circle, the soldiers stopped, and the bearkin took a moment to gather herself. ”Let me go through first and check everything is ready. I will send a signal when it’s fine to go through.”
”Naturally,” the Sword Saint smiled, keeping up his friendly demeanor despite having a very good idea of what was waiting for him on the other end of the teleporter.
A few minutes later, one of the soldiers had a small token he was carrying light up, and he threw a look at the Sword Saint as he spoke. ”That’s the signal.”
”So it is,” Miyamoto kept smiling as he stepped onto the teleporter. One could argue what he was doing currently was risky, but in truth, he felt no fear. The idle chatter of an army revealed much, including that his level was higher than any of them had ever seen before when it came to enlightened. While that didn’t mean he had to be the highest-level person on the planet, it did make him confident in stating he was the strongest.
He could be entirely mistaken, but he believed he wasn’t, and besides, Jake couldn’t be the only one who took big risks.
Teleporting, the Sword Saint immediately had his suspicions confirmed, as rather than a meeting room or anything like that, he appeared within what looked like an underground chamber, with magic circles covering the floors, walls, and ceiling, as well as around fifty C-grades spread out around the area behind cover, all pointing what looked like old muskets at him.
”I find this welcome rather rude,” the Sword Saint said as thick tension filled the air.
From the far end of the room, the only person who wasn’t hidden behind cover walked toward him. It was one of the bull-like beastkin who carried a small disc that projected a beastkin figure. Using a slave to communicate like this… truly the cautious sort.
”There have not been any humans on this planet since ancient times, and yet now one appears and claims to be here to save us,” the projection said as the bullkin walked over. ”To call your presence suspicious would be an understatement.”
”I fail to see how the history of your world is related to the ongoing system event,” the Sword Saint said in his usual calm voice. ”And I believe you have already been informed of my purpose for being here: to kill the Prima Guardian.”
”So you claim,” the projected beastfolk said, clearly not convinced. ”And quite a bold claim at that. I understand you believe yourself powerful, and my warrior also seemed confident you do hold some power… but let me not waste your time or mine: we don’t need you.”
The Sword Saint raised an eyebrow. ”Oh? That is odd because from what I saw, you have not slain the Prima Guardian, which makes your words rather confusing, wouldn’t you agree?”
”The Fourth King took the spot as World Leader and is the only one who can unlock the Prima Vessel… I would think someone claiming to be a Prima Guardian Slayer would know that you need the World Leader to release the Guardian before time,” the beastkin that the Sword Saint was now convinced was the Third King said.
”Once more, I fail to understand how you connect the dots between my two statements,” Miyamoto smiled confidently. ”I would merely assume one who is capable of slaying the Guardian is also capable of assuring its release. Or are you incapable of convincing this World Leader of yours to release the Guardian? Perhaps you are too weak to bring him here forcefully? Either way, it serves as a weak excuse for your lack of action.”
”You are far from understanding our history… and you never will,” the projection said in a cold voice. ”I have already claimed the Vessel, and my victory is inevitable. I don’t need some interloper from beyond the stars, and if you truly are capable, I can’t risk you helping the other Kings. So, let me apologize, traveler… your journey ends here.”
”Please, save your apologies,” the Sword Saint smiled amicably. ”You planned on doing this from the very beginning.”
The projection just smirked before it disappeared, and Miyamoto saw the look of abject horror in the eyes of the slave holding the disc. Yet, despite this fear, the D-grade slave tried to tackle Miyamoto as the entire room lit up, and the sound of dozens of gunshots sounded out at once.
Unfortunate but not unexpected.
Drawing his blade, the area all around the Sword Saint was filled with slashes, as the many bullets flying for him were cut in two, and infusing his sword with energy, he created a defensive zone around him. The explosions came just then, but a bubble of water met it, the concept of time draining the powers of the magic circles rapidly.
A few seconds later, the excitement died down as the Sword Saint began walking forward, leaving the beastkin slave behind, not a single injury on their body. Another barrage of shots came just then, but he teleported forward, avoiding them all as the bullets instead hit the walls, making them explode.
The room he had been teleported to had only a single exit – unless he wanted to make his own- at the far end of a spacious hallway. This exit quickly opened as the Sword Saint saw a whole squad of C-grades rush in, the bearkin who had brought him there among them. Out of everyone, she certainly looked the most nervous and like she didn’t want to be there.
Good, she will do if it comes down to me needing a guide.
Behind him, the gunmen who had been hiding also came out to surround him in the hallway leading to the exit, trapping him between the two groups. There were a few hundred C-grades at least, only a few of them mid-tier C-grade, with most low-tiers. A fight would simply be a needless endeavor. Bloodshed that would benefit no one.
”I know the Third King, as he calls himself, is listening, so allow me to offer a warning. I have come to kill the Prima Guardian, and I will not leave before that is done. I genuinely wish to do this under peaceful circumstances without unnecessary bloodshed, but should you continually impede my goal, know that forcing my hand will only give victory to the other Kings,” Miyamoto spoke, looking at all the clearly nervous C-grades confronting him.
A few moments of silence followed as the Sword Saint addressed the C-grades directly as he didn’t want to stand there wasting any more time or allowing them to prepare some other useless method to try and deal with him. ”Even if your leader does not allow you to stand down, do not throw away your lives meaninglessly. From this moment onwards, I shall retaliate against any attacks. Please, I implore you, do not end your own Paths out of misguided loyalty toward someone not caring enough about your lives to have a proper conversation with me… and Third King, do not let those loyal to you die for nothing. Prove my words wrong and that these loyal comrades of yours are not mere expendables.”
With those words, he began walking forward with steady steps, not holding back his aura at all while holding his sword in hand. With each step, the tension rose, but no one made the first move. As Miyamoto got closer to the group blocking the exit to the underground chamber, they slowly parted, allowing the Sword Saint to continue.
Despite the enemies on all sides, he was calm as could be on the inside, not showing a single hint outwardly either. When he reached the end of the hallway, something finally happened. But it wasn’t someone attacking. A figure, flanked by two others, walked down the stairs leading out of the underground chamber, and Miyamoto recognized him as the same person who had been projected before, though with a far more conflicted look on his face now.
”Finally, we meet in person,” Miyamoto said as he nodded in greeting. ”It gladdens me to see a leader who knows loyalty goes both ways.”
The beastfolk man, who looked like he had descended from a lion or tiger, clenched his claw-filled fist as he clearly wasn’t comfortable with the situation he had been put in, but at least he understood his own circumstances.
”I… apologize for the rude welcome…” he said, nodding back.
”I do not believe unfortunate circumstances and misunderstanding from a first meeting shall dictate an entire relationship,” the Sword Saint said in response. ”Let us define what our shared future shall be from this moment forward and put the past to rest.”
The Third King nodded slowly as the Sword Saint smiled, sheathing his blade once more, having not drawn a single drop of blood yet that day.