Strongest Among the Heavens

"W-will they move—"

At the sound of Elena's voice, they dashed. Sun-young committed to seven diagonal slashes which John parried. He kept at a distance, never letting her blade come too close. John seemed to struggle with the speed or rather the weight of his sword. He was going slower than he wanted.

But his reflexes were top-notch. Despite his white hairs, his face wasn't too wrinkled nor were his bones creaking from the strain. He was elegant and warm. His attire was something straight out of a movie, like a butler serving a wealthy family.

Sun-young lunged at him. John dropped low, smoothly parried it, and thrusted forward. Sun-young blinked and jerked her shoulder back.

"Close one!" William commented.

John concurred, his breath slightly winded, "Indeed. You have excellent instincts, Ms. Sun-young. Were you perhaps a champion in your region?"

Sun-young did not answer his question. "I would say your skill far surpasses mine."

"Ah, you humble me."

"I did kumdo when I was young. I know the basics."

"Basics, hm? So it seems."

Two feet apart, their stances were firm and ready once again. Aiko, informally trained, adjusted from form to form, while these two stuck to their guns. John's smile gained a curve and he went on the offensive. One, two, three flicks of the wrist and Sun-young was utterly pressed. Her footwork was doing most of the job as she gently deflected his pokes.

Pokes. That was John's method of attack. Effective, really, given that a single magic-amplified poke could do significant damage in a real battle. Kazi understood the practicality of it. He also tried to understand what they were doing.

Sun-young grunted. She couldn't let this go on. His agility was inhuman and she couldn't rely on her skill. She decided to take a leap and trust her instincts. With a heavy swing, she deflected and blew his shoulder away. Both blades now at the far extremes of distance, it was a matter of speed—of instincts and recovery.

John's blade arrived at her neck first.

Sun-young's sword was two-thirds of the way to slashing his arm.

"Magnificent," John praised. "Excellent hand-eye coordination, excellent intuition, and most of all, excellent adaptability." He removed the bamboo sword from her neck. "Are you honest when you say you only practiced when you were younger?"

"Yes."

"Why? It's clear you have a talent for it."

Sun-young didn't reply for a second. "Back then I didn't, so I stopped."

"I suppose talent can bloom later in life." John's remarks and voice were courteous. He wasn't belittling her, he was honest.

"And you?" Sun-young asked. "If my skills aren't normal, then what are yours?"

"I was London's fencing champion forty years ago. I'm retired now."

"A champion? Seriously?" William was in awe. "Yep, no wonder you lost, Sun-young."

Sun-young sighed.

"I hope our urges are sated for the day?" Elena said. Aiko popped from her spot and jogged to John.

"I wish to spar with you, Sensei!" Aiko bowed her head.

John put a wrist to his mouth, eyes crinkling. "Hoho, maybe when you're champion too, little one."

Kazi blinked. While everybody else seemed to take his words as truth, he didn't. John lied right there. He wasn't retired. Staring at his back, hearing his voice, there was an inflection. 'But why would he lie about being retired?'

[ Name: John Smith

Level: ?

Class: Amateur Swordsman ]

'I wonder what else Mr. John Smith is hiding.'

"Food is ready!"

Inside, Aisha Al-Mansoori called for them. Kazi let the small lie go. It was better to think on a full stomach.

***

The table was a low, wooden structure. Upon it sat a bowl of steaming miso soup, slices of fresh sashimi, pickled vegetables, and a dish of white rice. Nearby, a black teapot promised a soothing cup of green tea. Cushions encircled the table and were occupied by the nine players.

"Let us say Grace." Elena gestured at John and Marta to join hands. The two followed suit, but as for everyone else? An uncomfortable tension fell over them.

"No offence…" Noor pursed her lips. "More power to you but I'm not Christian."

"Me neither," William added.

David and Aisha concurred too. The Polish housewife's expression fell.

"Well, it's still good to say grace," Elena replied. "It's polite."

"And it's polite to include us." Noor folded her arms. "Look, just get on with it. We'll be quiet."

"I know it might not be necessary for you, Ms. Noor, but it's a tradition for me. I like to give thanks before I eat. It's a way of expressing my gratitude."

Noor scowled. "But it's not mine."

"I get that, I really do, but I just wish you'd consider giving it a try, even if it's just this once. It doesn't have to be a religious thing for you, just a sign of gratitude for the meal."

Fujiwara had no clue what was going on. His eyes darted between the two women. The remaining players also kept their mouths shut. John and Marta also kept their hands linked with Elena. Noor opened her mouth and that was when Kazi decided to step in.

"Okay, okay, I'm sensing a little tension from everyone. Mrs. Elena, we'd love for you to give thanks, just make it quick. Everybody's hungry and we don't want to waste too much time."

There were glances and uncertainty. In the end, Noor listened to him and Elena limited her thanks to, "Dear Lord, thank you for this meal and the wonderful company of good friends. Amen."

Dinner went smoothly. Elena fostered a one-sided conversation with Marta. It was amusing to listen to. While both Marta and Elena were from Poland, the generational gap pushed the dynamic to Elena's side.

"You poor thing," Elena said, brows knitted in genuine concern, "you never got to fix your hair? There was an amazing place down at the mall."

Marta's face was full of question marks. "A mall? There's a mall?"

"It's like a galaxy of its own. Have you ever gone to Westfield Arkadia, dear?"

Marta Kowalska. Crooked glasses, messy medium-length blonde hair, terrible acne, and a terrible sense of fashion. She did not look the type to go to malls. She looked like a nerd, through and through. Kazi knew that, despite nodding, Marta had never stepped foot at that mall.

"Hermea Mall is better than that, trust me. It's massive!"

"I-I see."

"There's a wonderful dress I saw. It would look phenomenal on you!"

Kazi listened in on their conversation. Sun-young did too. They hadn't explored the Recreation Sector much. 'Maybe we should.'

Fujiwara was also amongst the players. He was quiet for the most part and prepared green tea.

"I don't drink tea so don't make a cup for me," William said.

"Understood," Fujiwara replied.

Kazi wasn't much of a tea guy either but he didn't want to cause trouble for the poor man. While the students were actual students of Muramasa, Fujiwara was the owner of the school. He apparently built the structure out of a desire to build a home in a secluded home. Questions of why he wanted to be alone were brushed aside and vaguely answered.

Kazi theorized he was a former farmer. Somebody who either lost his family or left them. The marks were there. The dedication to his craft, to simple sweeping, was there too, a tendency of former labour workers. They put their whole back into everything they were given. Kazi respected it.

Now, Fujiwara was serving green to people whom he perceived as warriors. In two days, the bandits would come to demand weapons, food, and shelter. In two days, the players would fight.

The students of Muramasa ate in their room. Kazi took the effort to memorize each of their names and faces beforehand. Two students were still injured since Elena didn't possess enough potions. While players had crafted healing tonics, most drank them when they went back to farming slimes. Everyone admitted as much.

Therefore, this would be a battle solely on the shoulders of the nine players.

'Well, maybe not nine.' Kazi eyed Elena, Marta, and David as he sipped on his tea.

"By the way, may I ask something?" William's voice was a little nervous as he called for attention. "Why didn't we just, I don't know, ambush the bandits? Why are we waiting?"

"Why?" Noor repeated, irritated.

"S-sorry I didn't ask before, I just thought it'd be better to clear the air now."

Noor sighed, shook her head, and dangled her wrist. "Fujiwara, can you tell us where the bandits are?"

The Japanese fellow showed shame. "Pardon me, but I do not know. Their return is marked a week after the full moon rises."

"See? So either we go into the icky, sticky, and dangerous forest to aimlessly find their hideout or…we wait and attack them on our own terms." Noor pointed at Marta and Elena. "What do you think these two have been doing? Charging their cellphones? Hell no, I've been making them create traps. They're shit at it but tomorrow we'll have the rest of us chip in to improve it."

John coolly raised a cup. "I volunteer."

"Me too!" Kazi added.

"Er, I thought Kazi told them to make food," William said.

"They can't be making food all day, idiot," Noor shot back.

Off to the side, Aisha finished her food. She was quiet, like Marta, except she had no one to talk to. She was pretty though, garbed in a neat purple scarf that wonderfully outlined her heart-shaped head. Kazi discerned an anomaly with her: she walked, talked, and ate slowly. He had struck up a conversation with her in the morning to get a grasp on her personality. She was just gentle. Gentle to the point she tightly wrapped her heart in layers.

"PLEASE, for the love of god, get that out of here."

A terrified voice suddenly moved and leapt to their feet. A small smile shaped Kazi's face.

"Come on, Ms. Sun-young," Kazi teased. "It's just a bug."

Partly because it was rural Japan and partly because they were surrounded by forest and therefore critters, cockroaches and bugs often came by. In this case, it was a big fat cockroach sitting in the corner of the room.

John, ever the gentleman, offered to kill it.

"Yes, please. Kill it and take it outside."

An excitable glint was summoned in Noor's hazel eyes. "Oh, but what if it makes babies when it dies?"

Sun-young ran out of the room, her mutters following her.

"Nope, nope, nope—"

Close and shut. Sun-young was out. Kazi gave William a look and the two of them burst into laughter.

"Is that why you had her stay here and watch over us?" Elena asked.

William replied, cackling, "Yep. She HATES mother nature."

While laughing, Kazi noticed some trepidation in Aisha. Like Sun-young, she did not like the cockroach. Kazi enjoyed a good laugh but once someone got uncomfortable then it was time to stop. He went over, summoned the Touch of Thunder, and promptly killed the cockroach. At the corner of his eye, Aisha visibly relaxed.

Good. That was good.

Everything Kazi did was to bring the group together—to build chemistry, and encourage friendship. Otherwise, he foresaw their chances of completing this gate to be slim.