The Sword Saint's Second Life As a Fox Girl

“They didn’t go far,” Erin said as she absorbed the information relayed to her by the Spirits. Fortunately, Katya was a Fae, an Elf, to be precise, and she was in distress. When a Fae was in distress, the Spirits would react to it. Knowing this, Erin called upon the Spirits and had them lead the way. “They have stopped. They’re just ahead.”

“Good to know. In that case, shouldn’t we stop and get some rest first?”

Erin was sprinting. When she heard Aedan’s proposal, she skidded to a stop. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am serious, Erin. You need some rest, even if it’s only for a minute or two.”

“...Fine,” she sighed. She walked towards a boulder and sat down on it. Her tails fluttered and rested on her lap. She took this opportunity to groom her tails as she recovered some of her strength.

Aedan blinked. “Hmm? Fine?”

“Is there a problem?”

“I thought you were going to argue with me.”

“...I was going to but… I realised I’m being rash. I was not thinking clearly. They aren’t moving. Time is on our side for now. It would do us no good to rush in like that without any preparation or rest.”

Aedan smiled wryly. “Looks like someone is maturing.”

“You should try it sometime,” Erin retorted.

Aedan chuckled and sat down beside Erin. “We do not know what Marsh is capable of. We do not know what or whose else is by his side.”

“Doesn’t matter. If we waited for reinforcements, Marsh would have made good on his escape. Speaking of which, where is he heading? I have looked at the maps. There’s nothing in this direction, no highway or river. It’s just an endless forest ahead.”

“Marsh’s status as a noble should be condemned by now. He cannot take the open roads or any blatant paths. He could only travel in the shadows. Since this forest spans further than the territory of the kingdom, it is the only way he can take without being exposed.”

“If this is the only way, wouldn’t it make it even more… predictable?”

“It is, but the size of the forest is not the only factor here. The beasts and monsters residing within can also be a huge deterrent against his pursuers. It won’t be too far-fetched to say he may have a way to cross this forest without the beasts and monsters becoming too huge a hurdle for him. He didn’t bring his lover back to life in the body of an Elf. Making the forest bend to his will won’t be an unlikely possibility.”

“That doesn’t sound reassuring.”

“I wasn’t trying to be reassuring.”

Erin sighed and stood up from the boulder. “Come on, let’s go catch that son of a bitch.”

“Alright.” Aedan hopped off the boulder.

Together, they continued their pursue for Marsh. Since Marsh was travelling in a group, they left obvious trails behind, and the path was already paved by them, making it tremendously easier for the two to traverse across the forest. In no time at all, they soon reached a clearing where a cottage stood lonely in the open. There was a chimney and smoke was coming out of it.

“Looks like we found his hidey hole,” Aedan mused as they both hid behind trees while observing the area ahead.

“Strange.”

“What is?”

“Katya isn’t in the cottage. She’s still further ahead.”

“Maybe the cottage has a dungeon underneath that covers a huge area?”

“No, that’s not it. If she’s underground, I would know. She’s not.”

“Hmm… maybe she ran away?” Aedan guessed.

Before Erin could respond, the answer came. She saw Katya on the other side of the clearing, emerging from the trees. She was being carried on the shoulders of an old, burly man, followed by two thuggish-looking men behind. It would seem that Aedan was right. She had tried to run away and evidently, she was caught and brought back.

“And lookie there. What do you know? I was right, after all. Now, what to do?”

“Stay here. I’ll be quick. Just be prepared to run once I come back with her.” As Erin was about to make a dash to Katya’s side, she saw a black figure creeping up on the four. They noticed the black figure and turned around. They looked shocked and horrified. They were talking. She couldn’t hear what they were saying. They were way out of her range of hearing. Judging by their body gestures, the three thugs only looked more and more distressed. Finally, the black figure did something. The black figure decapitated the heads of the three thugs. He picked up Katya and proceeded to saunter to the cottage without glancing back at the three headless corpses.

“That’s Marsh,” said Aedan.

Erin raised an eyebrow and glanced behind, only to see Aedan looking ahead with a spyglass. She wasn’t the least bit surprised. He was a resourceful and thorough person, and utterly reliable when push came to shove. How could she not fall in love with a person like him? “That’s Marsh, you say?”

“No doubt about it,” Aedan answered, stowing away the spyglass. “It seems that he had experimented on himself and gave himself some nasty augmentation and infusion.”

“What’s his level?”

“Sixty-two. Not many skills or spells. Just the basic and ordinary ones. However, he does have a Unique Talent.”

“What is it?”

“Dark Well. There’s not much information given. Only that it appears it allows the user to draw magic from the dark realm.”

“And what is the dark realm?”

“Just another fancy word for hell.”

“He can draw power from hell? Won’t that make him a Demoid?”

Aedan shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. There has never been a case like this before. Anyone who uses magic of demonic origins would eventually fall prey to its nature. However, I don’t sense any sort of demonic corruption on his body or soul. Whatever that ability is, it may have allowed him to use demonic powers with minimal risk to himself. But of course, that is all merely my speculation.”

“Okay… anything to prepare before we launch our assault?”

“Nothing. Just be ready for anything. Since Marsh is using demonic powers, I suspect his tenacity would be just like that of a demon’s.”

“I concur. Demon-slaying is my speciality,” Erin said and left her hiding spot.

Aedan followed behind as he took out his pistol.

Erin noticed this firearm was different from the previous one. “Another firearm?”

“Yes.”

“What’s different about this one?”

“It packs significantly less punch per shot, but it holds more rounds per magazine.”

“The common tongue, please.”

“Imagine a sword with a duller edge, but it can cut more before it needs to be stoned again.”

“Is that a good trade-off?”

“I’m not trading it for anything. If it comes to it, I will use the other one. But for now, this would do.” Aedan smiled, loading the chamber fully with nine rounds.

****

“What did you think was going to happen, Katya?” asked Marsh.

Katya, in her bound state, kneeling inside a cage, cast a bloodshot glare at her former lover. “I was thinking that death is so much better than being your captive.” She was back in the cellar.

“You are not my captive, Katya. I’m holding you here for your own sake. You are sick, and I can help.”

“I don’t want to be helped, especially not by you of all people.”

“If you truly wish to die, you can just bite your tongue and be done with it. You didn’t need to run away to do so.”

“I have no intention of dying in your grasp. I want my death to be peaceful and unsullied by your presence.”

Marsh smiled wryly. “You wound me greatly with your words, my dear.”

“Then, please drop dead and die if my words wounded you so greatly.”

“I’m not going to stop trying. You’re the reason that I lived this long. I won’t have survived the first culling if it wasn’t for your… warmth and kindness. I lived for your sake, Katya. I will do anything to make us whole once more.”

Katya tutted. “What makes you think you can make us whole? I despise you, Ivan. We will never be whole again. If you do somehow manage to cure me of this… sickness that yourself caused, I will kill you with my own hands.”

“...Perhaps you will, but let us cross that bridge once I manage to c—”

Suddenly, loud noises reverberated from above. Something exploded, something wooden and frail. The floor creaked loudly and rapidly. Someone was moving quite swiftly. This was followed by a swift, consecutive sound of heavy loads hitting the floorboards. Then, a shrill of pleading echoed.

“Wait! Wait! William’s in the cellar! He’s in the cellar! Don’t hurt me!”

Marsh narrowed his gaze. That was Baloc. He knew the man well. Baloc was a scientist and a researcher. He was no fighter. Cracking under only slight pressure was very expected of him. Still, it left a sour taste in Marsh’s mouth.

“More friends coming?” Katya asked. Although she was worried, she was also slightly hopeful. If this new intruder caused enough chaos, she could slip out once more. This cage was just a cage, yet to be infused with any spell. She still has her hairpin, which she used to escape the first time. She had hidden it underneath her hair before she was captured again.

“Friends of ours, I would say.”

“Friends of ours? You mean Argon? He’s here?” Katya’s face broke into a smile, chuckling. “You'd best surrender now. You can’t hope to defeat him.”

“We are not the same men we once were. We are different now. For Argon, he’s not even a man now.”

“He’s still more of a man than you ever will be.”

“We’ll see about that,” Marsh said and stood patiently in front of the stairs, the only way in and out of the cellar besides the hatch on the other side of the room. However, the stairs remained empty long after silence had ensued above. “What is the waiting for?” he mused.

At that moment, the floorboards above him exploded, and Erin came dropping down through the hole she just created. She was dropping down directly on Marsh.

“This son of a—” Marsh couldn’t even finish his curse. He dove out of the way to prevent a sword from stabbing him in the head and into his guts.

Erin clicked her tongue when her sword struck the ground. “You have certainly grown, Ivan. I remember when we were kids, you only ever looked at what’s in front of you, and never behind or above you.”

“You’re a fool if you think I’m still the same as I was.”

“Argon!” Katya exclaimed cheerfully.

“Katya,” Erin greeted back with a smile.

“You stay away from her!” Marsh snarled and lunged at Erin.

She didn’t even need to lift a finger. Her tail moved and smacked Marsh away, sending him crashing into the empty barrels in the corner. “I don’t which aspect of you have grown, but certainly not the reckless part.”

Marsh was quick to recover. He rose from the pile of broken wood and strode towards Erin unsteadily. “...I see your vicious tongue has not changed a bit.”

“Stop this, Ivan. What is it that you’re trying to accomplish here?”

Marsh sniggered. “Are you that blinded by your inexperience with love that you can’t see the obvious?”

“I have seen the obvious, and I don’t see it happening the way you want it to.”

“That’s because you still have no idea what I’m capable of.”

Erin narrowed her eyes. “You mean to brainwash her, is that it?”

Katya widened her eyes. “What? Brainwash me? Ivan, you… Have you truly fallen so low?”

“My dear, I have fallen to the lowest depths on the day that I lost you. And we will be whole again, no matter the cost.”

“Then, so this is goodbye. I have expended all my patience for you as we were once friends. No more,” Erin said and gave the signal with her hand.

The loud, deafening sound of a gunshot rang out, and the shot pierced Marsh’s head from the hole in the floorboards.