Seiya stared at Kaeliyus in silence, studying him, while Kaeliyus’ heart was pounding to a crescendo, nervous for what Seiya’s response might be. His eyes were wide open and unblinking, studying Seiya’s every reaction.
After a few moments, Seiya’s lips parted to speak, and Kaeliyus’ heart jolted in his chest.
"Okay," Seiya blurted flatly.
Kaeliyus was so nervously anticipating the answer that when it came, he remained numb for some moment before blooming with joy.
"Come to me then," Seiya said and Kaeliyus instantly morphed into a striking black sword—the same one Seiya and Hayne had seen in the cavern.
The sword plummeted toward the ground, its tip angled downward, but before it could touch the ground, Seiya seized it by the handle. With a swift motion, he tossed it upward, readjusting his grip as it fell back into his hand.
"Since you’re a sword of severance as you claim to be, I’m sure you can sever the villagers’ life force from the barrier," Seiya reasoned, getting ready to strike but Kaeliyus’ frantic voice echoed through.
"No wait! Please, my Lord," he called out and a shudder immediately ran through Seiya, stiffening him up.
Kaeliyus’ voice had come directly in his mind and since he hadn’t yet gotten used to a voice other than Ibyu’s inside him, he stiffened.
"Since I’m in my sword form, we can only communicate through telepathy," Kaeliyus informed. "I’m sorry for startling you, my Lord."
"Although I did say I am a sword of severance," he continued. "I didn’t explicitly say I could separate the life force from the barrier, my Lord. I’d cut them all down," Kaeliyus clarified.
"I’m sorry but I have no faith in myself that I will be able to separate them and not cut them down should you try, so please, find another way."
"Alright then," Seiya replied. He stepped backward, raising the sword only to pause the next minute.
"You," he called. "Where’s your sheath?" He asked.
"Oh, it’s with me my Lord. I’ll take it out right away, so please unhand me, I have to change back into my human form," Kaeliyus said.
"No," Seiya interjected. "I was merely asking."
He dug the tip of the sword into the ground beside him, raising up his staff. Seiya rested the blunt tip of his staff on his open palm, the chain-attached end facing upward. With a swift, powerful motion, he thrust the staff into the air, propelling it upward with such speed and force that it shot toward the sky.
The staff came to a sudden halt mid-air, motionless yet suspended. What was most surprising, however, wasn’t that it remained aloft, but that the chain attached to it had straightened, holding a perfect line upward, equally still as the staff—seemingly frozen in place.
The staff hung in the air, perfectly aligned, with the chain standing rigid atop it. Unlike its usual repose or swaying motion, the chain remained upright, as if held in time itself.
Seiya cast his gaze upward, looking at his suspended staff in the sky. "Separate them," he commanded in a whisper.
Instantly, the cloudy smoke smeared all over the barrier started elevating, separating from the barrier and gathering up into Seiya’s staff—precisely into the chain.
It was as if the chain was magnetising the life forces, separating them from the barrier.
How does he already know how to do that?! Kaeliyus blurted within him though it didn’t escape Seiya’s hearing. Seiya, however, paid it no mind.
Seiya watched as the life forces were being pulled away into his staff’s chain, monitoring and tracking the process with his eyes.
"That’s a lot," he commented, watching the countless life forces being pulled by his staff.
The process took several moments before it stopped. Seiya used his eyes to scan all around the barrier, making sure there was not a single one left.
He turned back to the sword he had driven into the ground, reached for it, and pulled it free.
Stepping back, Seiya raised the sword horizontally, running his index and middle fingers along the blade, as if feeling its edge.
Then, in a single, swift motion, Seiya struck. The sword sliced through the barrier fiercely, cutting it as if it were nothing more than a delicate onion.
The cut was clean and precise, parting the barrier horizontally before it gradually dissolved into nothing, revealing the village beyond.
It was a narrow, winding street lined with traditional wooden houses, their tiled roofs slightly weathered by time but still standing firm.
Tucked between several homes were family-run shops, already worn down.
Peering farther into the village, Seiya could see a shrine nestled deep in the village.
As the barrier dissipated and the village was revealed, the villagers who had been going about their daily tasks froze in place, their eyes locked on the visitor who had entered their village after so long.
They scanned Seiya, their gazes sweeping past him to the street beyond—a sight they hadn’t seen in months. Whispers began to stir among them, their expressions puzzled as they observed Seiya with growing curiosity.
Among the villagers were a few elderly figures, the majority middle-aged, with some teens and children scattered throughout. They appeared gaunt, as if weakened by lack of nourishment.
As they stared at him, Seiya met their gaze, wondering why none of them made a move to flee at the sight of the barrier’s destruction. But then, a realization struck him—he hadn’t yet returned their life forces. Was that why they stayed? Or was something else at play? Perhaps the demons had instilled such deep fear within them that they no longer dared defy them.
Turning his gaze away from the villagers, Seiya resumed his scan of the entire village, eyes sharp as he took in the details.
"The demons," he murmured softly, his voice steady, "they have multiple hearts."
Yes, Kaeliyus replied. Demons are graded by the amount of hearts they have. The more, the stronger, Kaeliyus explained. Them having multiple hearts mean they’re high ranking demons just like Hayne had said.
"I see," Seiya murmured. "Five of them have seven hearts, while the rest have hearts ranging from three to five."
"The lowest has two," Seiya continued, his gaze shifting. "That one over there," he said, tilting his head to the left, pointing toward a demon perched atop a distant roof.
Though it appeared almost human, with no obvious features to distinguish it, its sharp fangs were visible.
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The moment Seiya’s head tilted toward it, the demon’s breath hitched briefly, but it quickly regained composure, reassured by the sight of Seiya’s blindfold—and surely, there was no way Seiya could see from such a distance.
But as the demon blinked, his eyes that were locked on Seiya from afar met an empty space where Seiya had been. Panic set in as he frantically scanned the area, searching for the young boy when all of a sudden, he felt a chilling touch from behind.
He flinched, jerking his head back to find Seiya standing behind him.
Standing firm and composed, Seiya asked. "Nice view?"