Chapter 18: A Lightning In A Teacup
Even though Stains and Sullens were not the kind of impures that could vividly express emotions, they could still respond to bizarre stimulation.
A prey with a sweet soul tapping them, for example, was of course bound to leave them slightly disheveled. Their response would come a little later than it probably should in usual circumstances.
That was why the Rootgnarl had a momentary lapse in action. Kage had calculated that as well, and it was his main reason for the heart-gratifying gesture of that gentle tap—to give him time to pick up the stinger since he had used up all the ones he had on him.
The place was chaotic. Murkstingers buzzed all over, diving down to sting the Barrowspikes who struggled to jump, while the Rootgnarls’ watchers slashed at the Murkstingers whirling through the air. This chaos was why Kage had to venture all the way to this area to grab a stinger.
For the king of cautions, the sword clenched in his fist drained his entire Qi essence and what little he was replenishing. He was absolutely non-existent to the Vulture that perceived things by Qi essence first, then by sight.
Kage examined the stinger in his hands. Because of the Rootgnarls’ wooden bodies, the stingers were weak against them. But Kage felt like lightning in a teacup. Since he had decided to be so petty about something like this, why not do it to his satisfaction?
"It’s called being petty all the way."
He grinned as he observed the Rootgnarl Watcher. The Impure let out a loud roar—raw and fleshy, nothing one would expect from a pile of wood. It sounded like a beast that had hungered for so long.
Kage tilted his head with a slight chuckle as the Impure galloped toward him. He sidestepped it, guiding it aside gently with the tip of his blade, then tapped the creature’s butt with its flat, just before it passed him.
Kage turned fully, clicking his tongue with a pitiful expression on his face.
The Impure grew disheveled again, causing another momentary lapse. That pause helped Kage close the distance. He was upon the creature in a leap—they weren’t far apart from each other.
He landed on the creature’s shoulders, each boot on one shoulder. It was like landing on the branches of a tree—one foot to the right, one to the left, his groin facing the actual stem.
Kage peered down into the creature’s eyes.
"You shouldn’t lose focus so easily. Say ahhh."
ROAAAAHHHH
The Impure unleashed a loud roar, leaving its mouth wide open. Kage shifted his nose away—the breath of a tree was apparently horrible—but he did not miss the opportunity to stab the poisoned stinger through the Impure’s throat.
The moment his head turned away, his hand swung forth. He stabbed the stinger into the Rootgnarl’s mouth, then immediately performed a backflip away from the Impure and landed on the ground.
He staggered slightly and felt a little dizzy, but stood straight and fixed his gaze on the leader of the tree trunks.
The tree staggered backward, its mouth frozen open and unable to close.
Kage wiped a small tear from his face. His heart felt truly heavy for the creature. Even though it was an Impure, it wouldn’t be easy for anyone or anything to be unable to close their mouth.
’Damn, who did this to you?’
Kage glared forward.
"I swear to avenge you."
His gaze darkened as he turned toward the leader of the Murkstingers.
The leader of the Murkstingers was easy to spot. It was much larger than the rest and was the reason their flight remained coordinated despite the chaos erupting in the forest. The leader was also locked in battle with the Vulture, flying circles around it.
"I know it was probably another Murkstinger’s stinger that did the job, but a leader should be responsible for all their subjects. Don’t you think?"
Kage turned back to the leader of the Rootgnarls Watchers. The creature had fallen to the ground, gagging. The wood of its body changed color from the brownish hue of regular wood, becoming pale and ashen. The body also dried and thinned until the creature collapsed to the ground.
Kage sniffed slightly, feigning concern.
He moved toward the suffering and slowly dying Rootgnarl, slicing off its hand while it was still alive.
"I hope you don’t mind—I’m gonna need this to kill your killer."
He chuckled at the Rootgnarl.
"I know I’m probably the perpetrator, but think about whose stinger is in your mouth right now. Mine? Nah, buddy, it’s the damn Murkstingers. They’re the root of the problem. Learn to deal with the root of the problem, not the bud, okay?"
He finished and stood up.
"Well, I don’t think you’d understand that... I mean, it’s not like you can relate... What does a Rootgnarl know about dealing with roots?"
Kage took the piercing hand of the Rootgnarl and walked toward the center of the chaos. He was going to avenge the leader of the Rootgnarls Watchers’ death.
The leader of the Murkstingers whizzed past him, circling the Vulture. Kage positioned himself toward the back, which was the Vulture’s blind side.
The insect knew to parade that area, but the Vulture followed vividly with its sharp talons.
There was something strange that Kage noticed, though.
He didn’t know much about the Vulture because it was a dangerous Impure—a Wretch Impure. But he knew that this kind of Impure could destroy all these Stains and Sullens with ease. Blights could prove difficult, but Wretches would still tear out their skin and bones.
This particular Wretch Impure might have been weakened because of its torn wings, but it possessed enormous years of experience. And yet, the Impure was struggling with the numbers that surrounded and lunged at it—especially the Murkstingers.
After noting this, Kage stayed to observe more. The Wretch shoved its talons in all directions, chasing after the large insect. But every time the insect flew toward the blind side, the Vulture didn’t turn—almost as if it had lost track of it.
’Had it really?’
Kage had to ask himself to be sure.
The Vultures he had read about were vicious hunters that understood the game of the hunt down to their young. They were the kind that didn’t hunt or emerge under situations that didn’t favor their hunt. It was why the bird had never shown its face, and why Kage was confident—it was around this nature that he had built his plan to take down this giant bird, the king of the forest.
But the fact that it was struggling now meant the huge bird was at a significant disadvantage.
The way it couldn’t move freely, how it kept sticking to one point in the forest—that meant something had placed the creature at a great disadvantage.
’I may have to rethink this whole thing.’
He had thought someone had disturbed the Impure bird, but now Kage was thinking that might not be the case.
’...Its hand was forced. The Vulture had no choice but to come out.’
Suddenly a small smile began climbing Kage’s face, growing larger.
’If a monstrous entity known throughout all of history to be a magnificent hunter—one that never reveals itself until the puzzles of the hunt are complete—is suddenly revealing itself when the puzzles are scattered, and on top of all that, looking restricted...’
Kage looked down at the ground where the Vulture stood, his eyes radiating happy light.
Kage walked freely toward the back of the Vulture, so close that he could grab a feather from it. Yet the creature did not perceive him. It was unable to turn, and Kage had no Qi essence in him.
The Murkstinger, however, spotted him and shot down immediately.
Kage grinned and waved at the large insect as it fluttered its translucent wings at ultra speed and dove down for its prey.
He shifted slightly at the last minute.
His shift was not ordinary. Kage casually turned away and raised his sword. At the moment the Sullen Impure struck the Vulture’s butt, Kage, using the same rhythm, struck the ground—masking his attack with that of the Murkstinger’s leader.
As his sword struck the ground, all the Qi essence it had been absorbing was released as a loud and terrifying shockwave that exploded through the entire ground.