Chapter 55 - Days CXCVIII - CXCIX

I slept thru the day and the night. I woke up a few times, but just went straight to sleeping again. I needed to be prepared. Well rested, and full of energy.

The following day knocking on the door woke me up.

- It's Hatta. Can we talk?

I rolled on my back and sat on the bed.

- Yeah. Come.

He entered, and closed the door carefully behind.

- I wanted to talk, but somewhere else... Not here.

I just answered with a nod and quickly got out of the bed.

- I needed to eat anyway. So let's grab something, and then we can talk.

We got outside but had to wait, cause there was a line to the device. Just like every morning. He clearly didn't want to talk with people around, so we just remained silent. After finally, our turn came, we bought a few simple snacks and headed in a random direction. Hatta seemed quite jumpy to me. He was watching his back like he was expecting somebody to follow him.

Soon I noticed a guy behind us. He was one of the Blood Brothers guys I saw before with Nacho, so I picked a stone and threw it at him. He almost got hit straight to the head.

- Fuck of! Go lick Nacho's ass! I'm not going outside the city anyway, you motherfucker!

He was not amused, and Hatta simply shocked. But it ended with our tail leaving us.

- You have some problems.

- Yeah. But what did you wanted to talk about?

He took a deep breath. I could clearly see how nervous he was. It had to be pretty hard for him to say.

- I think something is going wrong in Wuxia - he finally let it out.

Now I could understand his nervousness. He was making a gamble, and he bet that I'm on his side.

- What's wrong?

- Blue... I think he lied to us. In the beginning, he... He was talking about the continuation of Zhang Yong's plans, but I actually think he wants to fulfill his own ones. We used to be very disciplined. Now people are doink whatever they want. We are still hunting a lot, but Blue is taking care of it all personally. Zhang Yong used to keep the crystals until we had enough of them, and then sell them and but what was the next thing on his list. Upgrades of the device, buildings, materials... Now everything is on Blue. He sells the crystals and accumulates the points. It's supposedly safer, but I think he is spending those points on himself. There are weird rumors... I had no idea with whom I should talk.

There was so much passion in his words. I clearly could see how invested he was in all of this mess. He wanted to protect Wuxia.

- What rumors?

- People say he wants to fight Blood Brothers. Some say his goal is to take revenge on that guy, Mark. I doubt it. There is no reason to keep this a secret. The whole Wuxia would gladly support him. To be honest I don't know why we haven't got rid of them all after Zhang Yong's death.

- He wouldn't want you to fight. He wanted to prevent bloodshed among us.

- I know. He shouldn't take it on all by himself. We would help. All of us.

- I didn't know him that well, but I believe he thought of you like of his own family. He wouldn't allow anybody to use his precious family. And I also believe he was willing to die for you.

- I know that. I wasn't for very long here, but I was able to witness it all. He was a great man. He inspired me. Peter... Do you think we could bring him back? You know... with The device?

- Maybe. To be honest we have no idea what that thing can do. Maybe if we upgrade it more...

- I believe it is possible.

- Listen Hatta... I want to tell you something, but before I do, you need to tell me how much did you know about Zhang Yong's grand plan? I mean the details.

- I knew we were collecting the crystals to build greenhouses. Zhang Yong was searching for better ways to earn them faster. That's all.

- He wanted to hunt orcs, and I was among few people helping him with finding a way.

- You was the one, who helped him previously, with the rats, wasn't you?

- Yeah. But that's not important now. I and Zhang Yong made a deal. He was helping me rescue my friend from Blood Brothers, and I was in exchange helping him with orcs. He only agreed because he already wanted to fix the problem with Blood Brothers. Originally he had a different strategy in mind, but because of me, the whole 'duel' idea came up. I want you to know, that I'm partially responsible for his death.

He didn't answer immediately and took his time. Few moments passed.

- I'm glad you told me that. How about we make a deal now? I'll help you with your friend, and you will help me with Wuxia?

- No.

He was not expecting that answer and looked ad me in disbelief. I continued before he was able to say anything.

- I will save my friend alone, and with Wuxia... I need to make sure of few things before I'll start to do anything. I believe Zhang Yong was poisoned. Just I'm not sure by who...

- What?!

- Be quiet Hatta. Don yell... We need to be fucking careful. You saw the duel, didn't you? Zhang Yong's moves at the very end were very... awkward. Like he was losing control of his body. My friend also told me he saw his face, and half of it went limp. Like he was losing control over his own muscles.

- Who did that? Tell me everything!

- I'll tell you what I know. But for fuck sake, don't do anything stupid. Right now I'm suspecting either Mark or Blue. Mark could find a way to do it during the fight. He was only defending. Maybe that was because he needed to give one of his men a clear shot to poison Zhang Yong with... I don't know, a needle? Blue also has Zhang Yong a bottle of water before the duel. Now he, as you said, is doing strange things with Wuxia. We need to figure out what really happened. We can't act rashly.

- So you will help me?

- No Hatta. You will help me. Observe what's going on from the inside. Meanwhile, I will help my friend. Then we will start thinking about what to do next. But please... Just observe, ok?

- I don't like that plan.

- Please Hatta. I need to help Aisha as soon as possible. I promise I won't abandon you.

- Fine. But please, be quick. I... We... We need to avenge Zhang Yong.

- Let's go back.

- Yeah... But the way, what was that before? I'm talking about the guy you almost killed with a stone.

- Ah, that... There are some assholes after me. Zhang Yong kept them away, but now he is gone. I'll deal with them. Don't worry.

We kept talking a bit about Nacho and his guys. I told Hatta the whole story, and then we parted ways. I went to get my cart and prepare for a very, very stupid move. As the first thing, I got rid of the bottles, by leaving them in the Wuxia's room. Then I Went to buys some things. I forgot about changes in the tax system and had to ask if I can pay it after returning from the hunt. Fortunately, they knew me, and since I was also part of Wuxia, they agreed. I bought a sharpening stone and sharpened both of my weapons. The blade on one of them was in a pretty bad condition, so I left it whit Wuxia's craftsmen, and instead bought a new one. I Got also some provision. Mainly sweet fruits like oranges, two watermelons, and other juicy stuff.

That was all I needed. Will was still probably resting because I couldn't see him anywhere. I didn't want to take him with me anyway, because he could die.

Are you curious about what I was gonna do? Well, you are about to find out.

With everything prepared, I headed to the goblin forest. Some people tailed me and kept doing so even in the forest. After my destination became clear to them, one split and probably returned to the city with information. I was heading straight to the goblin cave.

Yes, my plan was to fight with the entire horde by myself. To overtake people supported by many, I had to at least earn the same amounts of crystals. Was it a dumb idea? Yes. Was it dangerous? Obviously. Was I confident? Not at all. Trying to fix things in rational ways didn't work. So I had to resolve to take dumb risks.

Few groups of goblins showed up on my path during the march, but I dealt with them quickly and picked up their crystals. My pursuers were slowing down with my every step. Clearly not wanting to go where I was heading. Distance between us was growing slowly. I was wondering what was going on in their heads. It made me smile.

There were a few guards by the entrance to the cave, but I dealt with them parked the cart next to the lair, and shouted on top of my lungs.

- Hey!

Echo took my voice to the depths of the cavern. Slowly, like a start of an avalanche, the rumble could be heard from the inside. It kept growing, and growing, and quickly became a noise. The noise made of hundreds of feet slapping on the cold stone, screams, grunts, and battle cries. The horde was coming.

I stood at the entrance to the cave. Deep enough, so they wouldn't be able to surround me immediately. With my Pudao I had a pretty long reach and was able to cover most of the space between the left and right walls.

And then they came. First singular goblins rushed at me straight out of the darkness. They were slain just as quickly, but behind them, there was more. And more. And more...

I started slowly, with precise swings, but very soon was forced to just swing blindly with full power. Some of them got slain without even trying to block. Others stopped and tried to protect themselves with whatever they had, but instead were pushed by incoming numbers, or just cut down, because the force behind the blade was just too strong for them. Crystals rolled on the ground under their feet and mine. Unlike them, I didn't have to move and just could hold my ground as long as it was possible. They were slipping and falling over because of the stones unable to stop the rush because the rest of the horde would push them anyway.

My way of slashes made their blood splash into the air, and vanish, turning to smoke. Just as their bodies did. I could feel it temporarily on my hands, forearms, and face. It could look spectacular from afar, but in the middle of the battle, there was no time to admire such views.

The fight went on, and on, and on. To the point, I started to feel the pain in the muscles of my hands. Like somebody was tearing them apart. That was a feeling I almost forgot because after upgrading my constitution, I never actually felt like that. I could be exhausted, but my muscles were never giving out. Now they did. Even though, I kept swinging.

More and more goblins were falling under my blade, and soon the crystals made a wall kinda protecting me from them. Thye had to wade in them, like in the water. The fight became easier, and easier the more stones there were. The pain in my hands slowly disappeared the less I had to swing. And finally, the last goblin was dead, and the cave remained open for exploration. I just dropped on my ass, panting heavily. Sweat was pouring into my eyes. I felt exhausted but happy.

I did it. I killed the entire horde. After few more minutes of rest, I started to pick up the crystals and put them on the cart. During the work, I peeked at the guys tailing me, but they either hid well or were gone. It was a big problem.

Packing took me around an hour, but during that time, I kinda rested a bit. I felt somewhat more confident about my hands. After a short food break journey back to the city started.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to go far. Nacho with his gang, and those assholes who were tailing me, showed up. Armed. Nacho had a sword fixed to his belt and others mix of spears, swords, and axes.

- Peter, my friend. It's nice to see you again.

I just kept walking without response. They were still around 20 meters from me.

- Hey, asshole. I'm talking to you!

I just ignored him again. But this time he took out his blade.

- You think you can just ignore me? We are taking that cart, so hand it over nicely, and we will maybe not beat you up.

I stopped, and let go of the handles. Instead, I grabbed pudao.

- Oho ho. He thinks he can fight us! Wow, how delusional you are Peter. Maybe if you wouldn't fight a horde of goblins before, maybe... But there are many of us, and you are alone, exhausted, and stupid. Just leave that weapon, and start walking.

He was making fun of me, looking at the smiles of his friends, who were laughing.

- What a looser - added Luca.

- Just hand it over idiot - said one of the guys from Blood Brothers.

- Yeah idiot - followed Maurício.

But I was not letting them have my score. Instead of channeling the whole strength in my legs I rushed forward at Nacho and swung at him. He tried to block with his sword, but his arms were too weak compared to mine. Sword was pushed out of the way, and my blade bit into his neck. I saw clearly how his face was changing from shock, to the grimace of pain. I did cut off his head, which rolled under the feet of his friends.

They were originally shocked. Blood Brothers guys just bolted, but Pierre with a battle cry attacked. He was physically at least as strong as an orc. His swing has similar speed, but I was now used to such blows and dodged easily by stepping backward. He was clearly enraged and from one swing instantaneously went to the next one. The rest grabbed their weapons to help him. But they were too slow. I dodged another hit and swung at him myself. His head also rolled on the ground.

Rest dropped their weapons.

- W-we... please... - mumbled Luca.

Antonio just straight pissed himself.

- Fuck off - that was all I said to them.

They bolted without a word. After a few minutes of observation, I continued my march back.

It was starting to get grey when I reached the city. I was a bit worried that some of the Blood Brothers might show up, and want to pick a fight with me, but they didn't. I was kinda curious why.

The road to the device was clean. I just had to pay the three crystals tax and could sell my score. 64 800 points worth of crystals. It meant that I killed 561 goblins. Quite a number for one day. Combined with my balance it gave me 117 705 points. I immediately just bought 40 upgrades of the constitution for 104 100 points. Cleaned myself up a bit in Wuxia's baths, and headed back home pulling the cart behind me.

I blocked the door with a big piece of rubble from outside and was about to go to bed when I heard knocking.

- Who's there?

- They call me Blitzkrieg. I'm a member of Blood Brothers.

I quickly grabbed pudao, and rested it behind the wall in arm's reach. Then I pushed rubble aside and opened the door.

- Hello.

This guy had blonde hair and was more or less my height. Sharp features on a squared face and white skin. The accent was pointing at the german background.

- Hi. What the heck do you want?

- Some birds told me you just offed two guys in the woods. Apparently, you are pretty skilled. We at Blood Brothers appreciate such skills.

- You want to recruit me?

- Yes. I know you are a member of Wuxia, but we will treat you way better than them.

- I'm tired. I will think about it tomorrow.

- Just don't take too long.

He smiled at me, turned around, and started marching back. I just closed the door, blocked it, and went straight to bed.

Day ended with 13 605 points on my account.