Chapter 11
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When Beta said that, he signaled Brian with a look and they both started rushing at the hunters. Both hunters were good at using the bow, so they didn't have the time to get their weapons first before fighting. But that didn't mean that they were completely helpless. They both trained their bodies diligently, going to their limits every day. As they both rushed in on them, Valsa and his plump friend began nocking their bows, aiming at the two. When they saw that, Brian started to zigzag around, trying to dodge the incoming arrow. Beta on the other hand, used his Soul River Steps. When Beta came back from the world of darkness, he didn't forget about the skills he learned. He even named them. It may not be the fanciest of names, but Beta liked it simple. They both got closer to the hunters when suddenly.
"Thud!"
Brian got hit. His right shoulder had now an arrow embedded into it. After all, Brian just started training under Beta, so he's not that adept at evading yet. The only reason why he can still handle being hit was because of his strong willpower to survive, which he learned ever since he became an orphan. He can't possibly be a burden to Beta and fall down right away. Even if he has to risk his life, he still wanted to fight with everything he got. The bleeding and the pain slowed his movements, but then he suddenly shot out with even more speed than before. The plump man was shocked. After he had hit Brian he thought that the kid would surely give up. But as it turned out, the kid was too tenacious to live and even picked up on speed!
"Don't come any closer or next time I'll shoot your head!"
Brian didn't care about what the man said at all. What kind of pain hasn't he gone through in his life before? The pain wasn't much different from the stones the villagers sometimes threw at him. It only managed to ignite his fury!
By then, Beta already arrived next to Valsa. Even though Valsa was astonished, as an experienced hunter, he calmed down quickly and attacked Beta with a knife he had on his belt. Beta didn't mind the knife at all. He easily dodged it by shifting sideways to the right and didn't forget to hit the hunter's side with a punch using his right fist. After which he made sure to follow up with a punch to his chin using his left fist. But then it dawned on him. Fighting an adult is way different from fighting someone of his age. Valsa's chin was too high for him to reach. Although he managed to quickly pull back his arm when he realized his mistake, it was enough for him to get cut.
"You're bleeding already, kid. Don't you think it's time to give up now? Aren't you afraid of dying?", said Valsa with a big smirk on his smug face, confident of winning.
"Heh… Afraid of dying? Me? What a joke!"
When Valsa saw the change in Beta's eyes at that moment, he suddenly felt like he was doused in cold water, sweating profusely on his back, scared. Beta's smile when he talked about dying was frightening. It was almost as if he was welcoming Death like a good old friend. Beta didn't care about what was going through his enemy's head. He just wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible. If he continued dragging this fight out, Brian might be in danger. Although Brian's pain tolerance is quite good, and his body is well trained by now, his fighting experience can't be compared to a hunter's. Beta then thought about something and started whistling a certain tune. When Brian heard that, he first looked at Beta for a moment and then started running. Beta confirmed that Brian had not forgotten their beforehand arranged signal, he started running too. But they didn't run aimlessly, they jumped into bushes and places covered with vines. The hunters were confused at first, but they quickly readied their bows and tried aiming at them.
Beta decided to run, not because he was scared, but because he wouldn't be able to finish off Valsa in time. Even if Beta had lots of experience, it was still hard to fight an adult. Especially when he had the advantage of weapons. Beta and Brian left for a certain nearby spot and picked something up. Weapons. In case something happens and he's not armed, or his weapon broke, he has weapons stashed all over the forest. Beta picked up a spear and Brian a hammer. Of course, both were self-made, but that didn't mean that their attack power was bad. Beta's spear is just like the other one he has, but Brian's hammer consists of a thick branch and a stone he had found in the debris on top of a pile of stones in the ruins.
When they finally got their weapons, they didn't just walk up to their enemy. They chose to climb a tree and wait for them. Just as expected, Valsa and his friend arrived after 10 minutes. When they came to the spot where Beta and Brian picked up their weapons, they heard a rustling noise from above. Valsa was fast enough to dodge the duo's attack, his friend though, wasn't so lucky. He was hit by Brian's hammer. The plump man's face changed greatly when he heard the cracking sound. His left shoulder broke. Beta left Brian to handle the plump man and he himself followed Valsa. When an arrow flew at him, he used his Soul River Steps again to dodge it swiftly and followed up even faster. He aimed his spear at Valsa, who discarded his bow and instead took out his knife again, anticipating a close combat fight. When the spear was about to hit him, Valsa dodged it by deflecting its attack power and closed in on Beta. Beta changed the grip he had on his spear and hit Valsa with the handle. Valsa was thrown back, but not without cutting Beta's wrist. Beta didn't hesitate because of that though. He pushed the spear-tip in Valsa's direction and hit him critically. As he looked at Valsa's wound, he knew that the hunter would die soon. Beta had hit his stomach. He slowly pulled out his spear while looking at the hunter with a calm and collective gaze. Valsa looked like he couldn't accept that he was beaten by a kid. Just when Beta turned around to leave, a knife suddenly flashed, targeting him. But before it even got near, Beta nimbly rolled away as soon as that happened.
"How?! Do you have eyes on the back of your head?!" stunned, Valsa couldn't help but cry out his sentiment due to his failed attempt of bringing the enemy down with him.
"It's not the first time someone tried that method on me. So, of course, I wouldn't stop paying attention to you just because you're about to die.", Beta said with a smile on his face. That smile was so bright and natural, yet it gives people the feeling of death looming over them, waiting to reap their souls.
When Valsa saw the same smile as before again, he couldn't help but shiver. In the end, he only let out a sigh, feeling defeated, and finally died. Beta couldn't care less and rushed to look at his friend's situation. When he arrived, he saw someone standing above a mutilated corpse. It was Brian, sobbing while still hunched at the corpse before him. It looked as if the corpse suffered many hits, looking smushed in many parts of the body.
"It's the first time you've killed someone, huh?"
"Yes."
"Do you regret it?"
"No. If he hadn't died, I would have."
"That's right. Don't blame yourself. This world is ruled by the strong. If you're not strong enough, people will steal your precious things, kill you, or someone you're close to. That's just how it is."
"We need to become stronger! I don't want to end up as a mutilated corpse!", said Brian with a determined face, swiftly shifting gears and collecting his emotions. Beta liked that part of Brian, able to adapt fast, and the most important thing is his will to live.
"That's the spirit! After we're done here, we will go to a city and visit a school. If we had more power, we wouldn't have been in that situation just now!"
"I really hope that we can get what we want there..."
"Of course, we will! If humanity didn't have a way to protect themselves how would we still be here with all those beasts roaming around? What you've heard isn't just a rumor. There definitely must be schools that make you stronger!"
"What if we don't have the talent necessary to go there?"
"We'll just take someone else's!"
Although Brian didn't know what Beta meant when he said that, he was nonetheless relieved. If Beta said so, then it must be true. He already promised in his heart that he will follow him wherever Beta goes, so he won't back out now. More like, he looks forward to this new adventure they're about to experience.
"Alright, we should loot them now and heal our wounds. If we just continue standing here, we'll eventually bleed out!", Beta said while looking at their injuries. Especially Brian, who has a deep stab wound on his shoulder.
They first washed their wounds to clean it, put on an herb-mixture that Beta made, before finally bandaging their wounds. After that, only then did they proceeded to loot the hunters. They didn't have much, but at least they got two bows and knives. Since the armor was damaged and way too big for them, they can't use it. When they almost had given up, they finally found some money in the plump man's shoes. They found one silver and six bronze coins. Beta didn't know if it was a good find, so he was still calm, but Brian's eyes shined as he saw that money.
"A normal family can live for two weeks with that!"
"Then this should be enough to enter a city", Beta said while grinning widely.
Now that they had killed two of the village's men, he wanted to leave that place as soon as possible. But he didn't do so right away. He still had things to do for preparation. After burying the hunters properly at a secluded and hard to find place, they finally brought the capsule into the workshop. Beta didn't waste any time as he then started the forge. He already had the blueprints in his mind because it's a weapon he used to use a lot when he was still with his parents. As soon as the metal was thrown into the forge, it started deforming. Beta used that semi-melted metal to mold it just how he wanted it to be, using the hammer that was still left there. He also didn't forget to improvise and used the idea about stealth weaponry. He was very fond of it and wanted to recreate that again by applying it to his would-be weapon.
He continued forging for two days, barely taking any breaks to eat and relieve himself, before he was finally able to finish most of the parts he needed. Beta then used the leftovers and let the hot iron flow into the molds he found there before, finishing the last few pieces he required. He then started assembling the pieces one by one. When he was done, there were two weapons in front of him. Proud of his workmanship, he took them and left the workshop. Right after he left it though, water started flowing in, filling the whole place. "Looks like I used up all the energy that was left...", he thought while looking at the scene. As soon as he was on the surface again Brian started sprinting towards him.
"Wooooow! Did you really craft those?! They look awesome!"
Beta just nodded and gave Brian his new weapon - a saber. Brian only used a hammer before because he didn't have the materials to get something better. Now that he held the saber in his hand, he was delighted.
"Isn't it a bit light? Can it even take a few hits? And what's with this size?! It's huge!"
"It's so light because the material is just that light. You don't have to worry about its sturdiness, it definitely won't break anytime soon. I intentionally made them bigger because we won't be able to make better weapons in the near future or adjust these ones."
"Ah, I see...", Brian said with an understanding look and then took a look at the weapon Beta was still holding in his hands.
"So, you like fighting with staffs? I expected you to make a spear or a sword. Also, why is the upper part thicker than the lower one?"
"It's because this is not a staff.", Beta said with a bright wicked smile.
He then pressed the small indention on the staff and suddenly, Brian heard a soft swishing noise and when he looked at the upper part of the staff, a barely noticeable line popped out. Only, it was a strange line, but then he realized that it was a blade that came out of the staff. Brian was stunned speechless. It wasn't just a normal blade too. It was a glass blade, barely visible, and retractable. If he hadn't focused to the fullest and expected some changes to the weapon, he may not even have noticed it. Now, before him, was a boy with two-meter long scythe in his hands. The blade was another 80 centimeters long, scaring him just by looking at it.
"How did you do that?! This is so amazing and unexpected! No one would ever expect a staff to suddenly turn into a scythe! And it didn't even make a loud sound when it changed!"
"It's my own creation, of course it'd be good!", Beta said proudly while laughing a maniacal laughter.
As Brian looked at his friend, laughing strangely with a deadly weapon on his hands, he swore to himself secretly to never offend him. "He certainly gives the vibe of being the Grim Reaper!". What Brian didn't know is that, Beta wasn't too far off from that.
After the fight against Valsa, the orb Beta had received from the old man in the world of darkness, gave him a new discovery. His eyes gleamed from this unexpected gift.
"I knew that I got something good, but I never expected it to be this good!", Beta muttered in a voice only he could hear.
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When Beta said that, he signaled Brian with a look and they both started rushing at the hunters. Both hunters were good at using the bow, so they didn't have the time to get their weapons first before fighting. But that didn't mean that they were completely helpless. They both trained their bodies diligently, going to their limits every day. As they both rushed in on them, Valsa and his plump friend began nocking their bows, aiming at the two. When they saw that, Brian started to zigzag around, trying to dodge the incoming arrow. Beta on the other hand, used his Soul River Steps. When Beta came back from the world of darkness, he didn't forget about the skills he learned. He even named them. It may not be the fanciest of names, but Beta liked it simple. They both got closer to the hunters when suddenly.
"Thud!"
Brian got hit. His right shoulder had now an arrow embedded into it. After all, Brian just started training under Beta, so he's not that adept at evading yet. The only reason why he can still handle being hit was because of his strong willpower to survive, which he learned ever since he became an orphan. He can't possibly be a burden to Beta and fall down right away. Even if he has to risk his life, he still wanted to fight with everything he got. The bleeding and the pain slowed his movements, but then he suddenly shot out with even more speed than before. The plump man was shocked. After he had hit Brian he thought that the kid would surely give up. But as it turned out, the kid was too tenacious to live and even picked up on speed!
"Don't come any closer or next time I'll shoot your head!"
Brian didn't care about what the man said at all. What kind of pain hasn't he gone through in his life before? The pain wasn't much different from the stones the villagers sometimes threw at him. It only managed to ignite his fury!
By then, Beta already arrived next to Valsa. Even though Valsa was astonished, as an experienced hunter, he calmed down quickly and attacked Beta with a knife he had on his belt. Beta didn't mind the knife at all. He easily dodged it by shifting sideways to the right and didn't forget to hit the hunter's side with a punch using his right fist. After which he made sure to follow up with a punch to his chin using his left fist. But then it dawned on him. Fighting an adult is way different from fighting someone of his age. Valsa's chin was too high for him to reach. Although he managed to quickly pull back his arm when he realized his mistake, it was enough for him to get cut.
"You're bleeding already, kid. Don't you think it's time to give up now? Aren't you afraid of dying?", said Valsa with a big smirk on his smug face, confident of winning.
"Heh… Afraid of dying? Me? What a joke!"
When Valsa saw the change in Beta's eyes at that moment, he suddenly felt like he was doused in cold water, sweating profusely on his back, scared. Beta's smile when he talked about dying was frightening. It was almost as if he was welcoming Death like a good old friend. Beta didn't care about what was going through his enemy's head. He just wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible. If he continued dragging this fight out, Brian might be in danger. Although Brian's pain tolerance is quite good, and his body is well trained by now, his fighting experience can't be compared to a hunter's. Beta then thought about something and started whistling a certain tune. When Brian heard that, he first looked at Beta for a moment and then started running. Beta confirmed that Brian had not forgotten their beforehand arranged signal, he started running too. But they didn't run aimlessly, they jumped into bushes and places covered with vines. The hunters were confused at first, but they quickly readied their bows and tried aiming at them.
Beta decided to run, not because he was scared, but because he wouldn't be able to finish off Valsa in time. Even if Beta had lots of experience, it was still hard to fight an adult. Especially when he had the advantage of weapons. Beta and Brian left for a certain nearby spot and picked something up. Weapons. In case something happens and he's not armed, or his weapon broke, he has weapons stashed all over the forest. Beta picked up a spear and Brian a hammer. Of course, both were self-made, but that didn't mean that their attack power was bad. Beta's spear is just like the other one he has, but Brian's hammer consists of a thick branch and a stone he had found in the debris on top of a pile of stones in the ruins.
When they finally got their weapons, they didn't just walk up to their enemy. They chose to climb a tree and wait for them. Just as expected, Valsa and his friend arrived after 10 minutes. When they came to the spot where Beta and Brian picked up their weapons, they heard a rustling noise from above. Valsa was fast enough to dodge the duo's attack, his friend though, wasn't so lucky. He was hit by Brian's hammer. The plump man's face changed greatly when he heard the cracking sound. His left shoulder broke. Beta left Brian to handle the plump man and he himself followed Valsa. When an arrow flew at him, he used his Soul River Steps again to dodge it swiftly and followed up even faster. He aimed his spear at Valsa, who discarded his bow and instead took out his knife again, anticipating a close combat fight. When the spear was about to hit him, Valsa dodged it by deflecting its attack power and closed in on Beta. Beta changed the grip he had on his spear and hit Valsa with the handle. Valsa was thrown back, but not without cutting Beta's wrist. Beta didn't hesitate because of that though. He pushed the spear-tip in Valsa's direction and hit him critically. As he looked at Valsa's wound, he knew that the hunter would die soon. Beta had hit his stomach. He slowly pulled out his spear while looking at the hunter with a calm and collective gaze. Valsa looked like he couldn't accept that he was beaten by a kid. Just when Beta turned around to leave, a knife suddenly flashed, targeting him. But before it even got near, Beta nimbly rolled away as soon as that happened.
"How?! Do you have eyes on the back of your head?!" stunned, Valsa couldn't help but cry out his sentiment due to his failed attempt of bringing the enemy down with him.
"It's not the first time someone tried that method on me. So, of course, I wouldn't stop paying attention to you just because you're about to die.", Beta said with a smile on his face. That smile was so bright and natural, yet it gives people the feeling of death looming over them, waiting to reap their souls.
When Valsa saw the same smile as before again, he couldn't help but shiver. In the end, he only let out a sigh, feeling defeated, and finally died. Beta couldn't care less and rushed to look at his friend's situation. When he arrived, he saw someone standing above a mutilated corpse. It was Brian, sobbing while still hunched at the corpse before him. It looked as if the corpse suffered many hits, looking smushed in many parts of the body.
"It's the first time you've killed someone, huh?"
"Yes."
"Do you regret it?"
"No. If he hadn't died, I would have."
"That's right. Don't blame yourself. This world is ruled by the strong. If you're not strong enough, people will steal your precious things, kill you, or someone you're close to. That's just how it is."
"We need to become stronger! I don't want to end up as a mutilated corpse!", said Brian with a determined face, swiftly shifting gears and collecting his emotions. Beta liked that part of Brian, able to adapt fast, and the most important thing is his will to live.
"That's the spirit! After we're done here, we will go to a city and visit a school. If we had more power, we wouldn't have been in that situation just now!"
"I really hope that we can get what we want there..."
"Of course, we will! If humanity didn't have a way to protect themselves how would we still be here with all those beasts roaming around? What you've heard isn't just a rumor. There definitely must be schools that make you stronger!"
"What if we don't have the talent necessary to go there?"
"We'll just take someone else's!"
Although Brian didn't know what Beta meant when he said that, he was nonetheless relieved. If Beta said so, then it must be true. He already promised in his heart that he will follow him wherever Beta goes, so he won't back out now. More like, he looks forward to this new adventure they're about to experience.
"Alright, we should loot them now and heal our wounds. If we just continue standing here, we'll eventually bleed out!", Beta said while looking at their injuries. Especially Brian, who has a deep stab wound on his shoulder.
They first washed their wounds to clean it, put on an herb-mixture that Beta made, before finally bandaging their wounds. After that, only then did they proceeded to loot the hunters. They didn't have much, but at least they got two bows and knives. Since the armor was damaged and way too big for them, they can't use it. When they almost had given up, they finally found some money in the plump man's shoes. They found one silver and six bronze coins. Beta didn't know if it was a good find, so he was still calm, but Brian's eyes shined as he saw that money.
"A normal family can live for two weeks with that!"
"Then this should be enough to enter a city", Beta said while grinning widely.
Now that they had killed two of the village's men, he wanted to leave that place as soon as possible. But he didn't do so right away. He still had things to do for preparation. After burying the hunters properly at a secluded and hard to find place, they finally brought the capsule into the workshop. Beta didn't waste any time as he then started the forge. He already had the blueprints in his mind because it's a weapon he used to use a lot when he was still with his parents. As soon as the metal was thrown into the forge, it started deforming. Beta used that semi-melted metal to mold it just how he wanted it to be, using the hammer that was still left there. He also didn't forget to improvise and used the idea about stealth weaponry. He was very fond of it and wanted to recreate that again by applying it to his would-be weapon.
He continued forging for two days, barely taking any breaks to eat and relieve himself, before he was finally able to finish most of the parts he needed. Beta then used the leftovers and let the hot iron flow into the molds he found there before, finishing the last few pieces he required. He then started assembling the pieces one by one. When he was done, there were two weapons in front of him. Proud of his workmanship, he took them and left the workshop. Right after he left it though, water started flowing in, filling the whole place. "Looks like I used up all the energy that was left...", he thought while looking at the scene. As soon as he was on the surface again Brian started sprinting towards him.
"Wooooow! Did you really craft those?! They look awesome!"
Beta just nodded and gave Brian his new weapon - a saber. Brian only used a hammer before because he didn't have the materials to get something better. Now that he held the saber in his hand, he was delighted.
"Isn't it a bit light? Can it even take a few hits? And what's with this size?! It's huge!"
"It's so light because the material is just that light. You don't have to worry about its sturdiness, it definitely won't break anytime soon. I intentionally made them bigger because we won't be able to make better weapons in the near future or adjust these ones."
"Ah, I see...", Brian said with an understanding look and then took a look at the weapon Beta was still holding in his hands.
"So, you like fighting with staffs? I expected you to make a spear or a sword. Also, why is the upper part thicker than the lower one?"
"It's because this is not a staff.", Beta said with a bright wicked smile.
He then pressed the small indention on the staff and suddenly, Brian heard a soft swishing noise and when he looked at the upper part of the staff, a barely noticeable line popped out. Only, it was a strange line, but then he realized that it was a blade that came out of the staff. Brian was stunned speechless. It wasn't just a normal blade too. It was a glass blade, barely visible, and retractable. If he hadn't focused to the fullest and expected some changes to the weapon, he may not even have noticed it. Now, before him, was a boy with two-meter long scythe in his hands. The blade was another 80 centimeters long, scaring him just by looking at it.
"How did you do that?! This is so amazing and unexpected! No one would ever expect a staff to suddenly turn into a scythe! And it didn't even make a loud sound when it changed!"
"It's my own creation, of course it'd be good!", Beta said proudly while laughing a maniacal laughter.
As Brian looked at his friend, laughing strangely with a deadly weapon on his hands, he swore to himself secretly to never offend him. "He certainly gives the vibe of being the Grim Reaper!". What Brian didn't know is that, Beta wasn't too far off from that.
After the fight against Valsa, the orb Beta had received from the old man in the world of darkness, gave him a new discovery. His eyes gleamed from this unexpected gift.
"I knew that I got something good, but I never expected it to be this good!", Beta muttered in a voice only he could hear.
When Beta said that, he signaled Brian with a look and they both started rushing at the hunters. Both hunters were good at using the bow, so they didn't have the time to get their weapons first before fighting. But that didn't mean that they were completely helpless. They both trained their bodies diligently, going to their limits every day. As they both rushed in on them, Valsa and his plump friend began nocking their bows, aiming at the two. When they saw that, Brian started to zigzag around, trying to dodge the incoming arrow. Beta on the other hand, used his Soul River Steps. When Beta came back from the world of darkness, he didn't forget about the skills he learned. He even named them. It may not be the fanciest of names, but Beta liked it simple. They both got closer to the hunters when suddenly."Thud!"Brian got hit. His right shoulder had now an arrow embedded into it. After all, Brian just started training under Beta, so he's not that adept at evading yet. The only reason why he can still handle being hit was because of his strong willpower to survive, which he learned ever since he became an orphan. He can't possibly be a burden to Beta and fall down right away. Even if he has to risk his life, he still wanted to fight with everything he got. The bleeding and the pain slowed his movements, but then he suddenly shot out with even more speed than before. The plump man was shocked. After he had hit Brian he thought that the kid would surely give up. But as it turned out, the kid was too tenacious to live and even picked up on speed!"Don't come any closer or next time I'll shoot your head!"Brian didn't care about what the man said at all. What kind of pain hasn't he gone through in his life before? The pain wasn't much different from the stones the villagers sometimes threw at him. It only managed to ignite his fury!By then, Beta already arrived next to Valsa. Even though Valsa was astonished, as an experienced hunter, he calmed down quickly and attacked Beta with a knife he had on his belt. Beta didn't mind the knife at all. He easily dodged it by shifting sideways to the right and didn't forget to hit the hunter's side with a punch using his right fist. After which he made sure to follow up with a punch to his chin using his left fist. But then it dawned on him. Fighting an adult is way different from fighting someone of his age. Valsa's chin was too high for him to reach. Although he managed to quickly pull back his arm when he realized his mistake, it was enough for him to get cut."You're bleeding already, kid. Don't you think it's time to give up now? Aren't you afraid of dying?", said Valsa with a big smirk on his smug face, confident of winning."Heh Afraid of dying? Me? What a joke!"When Valsa saw the change in Beta's eyes at that moment, he suddenly felt like he was doused in cold water, sweating profusely on his back, scared. Beta's smile when he talked about dying was frightening. It was almost as if he was welcoming Death like a good old friend. Beta didn't care about what was going through his enemy's head. He just wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible. If he continued dragging this fight out, Brian might be in danger. Although Brian's pain tolerance is quite good, and his body is well trained by now, his fighting experience can't be compared to a hunter's. Beta then thought about something and started whistling a certain tune. When Brian heard that, he first looked at Beta for a moment and then started running. Beta confirmed that Brian had not forgotten their beforehand arranged signal, he started running too. But they didn't run aimlessly, they jumped into bushes and places covered with vines. The hunters were confused at first, but they quickly readied their bows and tried aiming at them.Beta decided to run, not because he was scared, but because he wouldn't be able to finish off Valsa in time. Even if Beta had lots of experience, it was still hard to fight an adult. Especially when he had the advantage of weapons. Beta and Brian left for a certain nearby spot and picked something up. Weapons. In case something happens and he's not armed, or his weapon broke, he has weapons stashed all over the forest. Beta picked up a spear and Brian a hammer. Of course, both were self-made, but that didn't mean that their attack power was bad. Beta's spear is just like the other one he has, but Brian's hammer consists of a thick branch and a stone he had found in the debris on top of a pile of stones in the ruins.When they finally got their weapons, they didn't just walk up to their enemy. They chose to climb a tree and wait for them. Just as expected, Valsa and his friend arrived after 10 minutes. When they came to the spot where Beta and Brian picked up their weapons, they heard a rustling noise from above. Valsa was fast enough to dodge the duo's attack, his friend though, wasn't so lucky. He was hit by Brian's hammer. The plump man's face changed greatly when he heard the cracking sound. His left shoulder broke. Beta left Brian to handle the plump man and he himself followed Valsa. When an arrow flew at him, he used his Soul River Steps again to dodge it swiftly and followed up even faster. He aimed his spear at Valsa, who discarded his bow and instead took out his knife again, anticipating a close combat fight. When the spear was about to hit him, Valsa dodged it by deflecting its attack power and closed in on Beta. Beta changed the grip he had on his spear and hit Valsa with the handle. Valsa was thrown back, but not without cutting Beta's wrist. Beta didn't hesitate because of that though. He pushed the spear-tip in Valsa's direction and hit him critically. As he looked at Valsa's wound, he knew that the hunter would die soon. Beta had hit his stomach. He slowly pulled out his spear while looking at the hunter with a calm and collective gaze. Valsa looked like he couldn't accept that he was beaten by a kid. Just when Beta turned around to leave, a knife suddenly flashed, targeting him. But before it even got near, Beta nimbly rolled away as soon as that happened."How?! Do you have eyes on the back of your head?!" stunned, Valsa couldn't help but cry out his sentiment due to his failed attempt of bringing the enemy down with him."It's not the first time someone tried that method on me. So, of course, I wouldn't stop paying attention to you just because you're about to die.", Beta said with a smile on his face. That smile was so bright and natural, yet it gives people the feeling of death looming over them, waiting to reap their souls.When Valsa saw the same smile as before again, he couldn't help but shiver. In the end, he only let out a sigh, feeling defeated, and finally died. Beta couldn't care less and rushed to look at his friend's situation. When he arrived, he saw someone standing above a mutilated corpse. It was Brian, sobbing while still hunched at the corpse before him. It looked as if the corpse suffered many hits, looking smushed in many parts of the body."It's the first time you've killed someone, huh?""Yes.""Do you regret it?""No. If he hadn't died, I would have.""That's right. Don't blame yourself. This world is ruled by the strong. If you're not strong enough, people will steal your precious things, kill you, or someone you're close to. That's just how it is.""We need to become stronger! I don't want to end up as a mutilated corpse!", said Brian with a determined face, swiftly shifting gears and collecting his emotions. Beta liked that part of Brian, able to adapt fast, and the most important thing is his will to live."That's the spirit! After we're done here, we will go to a city and visit a school. If we had more power, we wouldn't have been in that situation just now!""I really hope that we can get what we want there...""Of course, we will! If humanity didn't have a way to protect themselves how would we still be here with all those beasts roaming around? What you've heard isn't just a rumor. There definitely must be schools that make you stronger!""What if we don't have the talent necessary to go there?""We'll just take someone else's!"Although Brian didn't know what Beta meant when he said that, he was nonetheless relieved. If Beta said so, then it must be true. He already promised in his heart that he will follow him wherever Beta goes, so he won't back out now. More like, he looks forward to this new adventure they're about to experience."Alright, we should loot them now and heal our wounds. If we just continue standing here, we'll eventually bleed out!", Beta said while looking at their injuries. Especially Brian, who has a deep stab wound on his shoulder.They first washed their wounds to clean it, put on an herb-mixture that Beta made, before finally bandaging their wounds. After that, only then did they proceeded to loot the hunters. They didn't have much, but at least they got two bows and knives. Since the armor was damaged and way too big for them, they can't use it. When they almost had given up, they finally found some money in the plump man's shoes. They found one silver and six bronze coins. Beta didn't know if it was a good find, so he was still calm, but Brian's eyes shined as he saw that money."A normal family can live for two weeks with that!""Then this should be enough to enter a city", Beta said while grinning widely.Now that they had killed two of the village's men, he wanted to leave that place as soon as possible. But he didn't do so right away. He still had things to do for preparation. After burying the hunters properly at a secluded and hard to find place, they finally brought the capsule into the workshop. Beta didn't waste any time as he then started the forge. He already had the blueprints in his mind because it's a weapon he used to use a lot when he was still with his parents. As soon as the metal was thrown into the forge, it started deforming. Beta used that semi-melted metal to mold it just how he wanted it to be, using the hammer that was still left there. He also didn't forget to improvise and used the idea about stealth weaponry. He was very fond of it and wanted to recreate that again by applying it to his would-be weapon.He continued forging for two days, barely taking any breaks to eat and relieve himself, before he was finally able to finish most of the parts he needed. Beta then used the leftovers and let the hot iron flow into the molds he found there before, finishing the last few pieces he required. He then started assembling the pieces one by one. When he was done, there were two weapons in front of him. Proud of his workmanship, he took them and left the workshop. Right after he left it though, water started flowing in, filling the whole place. "Looks like I used up all the energy that was left...", he thought while looking at the scene. As soon as he was on the surface again Brian started sprinting towards him."Wooooow! Did you really craft those?! They look awesome!"Beta just nodded and gave Brian his new weapon - a saber. Brian only used a hammer before because he didn't have the materials to get something better. Now that he held the saber in his hand, he was delighted."Isn't it a bit light? Can it even take a few hits? And what's with this size?! It's huge!""It's so light because the material is just that light. You don't have to worry about its sturdiness, it definitely won't break anytime soon. I intentionally made them bigger because we won't be able to make better weapons in the near future or adjust these ones.""Ah, I see...", Brian said with an understanding look and then took a look at the weapon Beta was still holding in his hands."So, you like fighting with staffs? I expected you to make a spear or a sword. Also, why is the upper part thicker than the lower one?""It's because this is not a staff.", Beta said with a bright wicked smile.He then pressed the small indention on the staff and suddenly, Brian heard a soft swishing noise and when he looked at the upper part of the staff, a barely noticeable line popped out. Only, it was a strange line, but then he realized that it was a blade that came out of the staff. Brian was stunned speechless. It wasn't just a normal blade too. It was a glass blade, barely visible, and retractable. If he hadn't focused to the fullest and expected some changes to the weapon, he may not even have noticed it. Now, before him, was a boy with two-meter long scythe in his hands. The blade was another 80 centimeters long, scaring him just by looking at it."How did you do that?! This is so amazing and unexpected! No one would ever expect a staff to suddenly turn into a scythe! And it didn't even make a loud sound when it changed!""It's my own creation, of course it'd be good!", Beta said proudly while laughing a maniacal laughter.As Brian looked at his friend, laughing strangely with a deadly weapon on his hands, he swore to himself secretly to never offend him. "He certainly gives the vibe of being the Grim Reaper!". What Brian didn't know is that, Beta wasn't too far off from that.After the fight against Valsa, the orb Beta had received from the old man in the world of darkness, gave him a new discovery. His eyes gleamed from this unexpected gift."I knew that I got something good, but I never expected it to be this good!", Beta muttered in a voice only he could hear.
