Chapter 613 Ice Bandits

Manny stopped walking and turned to look at Keng. He gave Keng a strange look like this was coming out of nowhere. Keng observed Manny as he shook his head no.

"I would never betray you." Manny replied. There wasn't anything different about his inflections, his body language, nothing. Keng slowly nodded and moved a couple steps forward as the snow crunched beneath his shoes. "W-where's this coming from all of a sudden? A-are you having s-second thoughts about me? About the team?"

Keng didn't answer for awhile. He scanned the horizon around them. The snow landscape grew somewhat hillier and lone sets of winter trees sprawled across the landscape.

'I still don't believe him after he said that…' Keng thought to himself. 'Why would they betray Lee Seng like that? Those runes… They're far too powerful and it couldn't have had come from Number 2, either… What's the Creator's plan here…?'

"Ah!" Keng shook his head. "No use in thinking about it. Let's just continue." He looked at Manny, pointing forward. Keng ran off, Manny following after.

'Why would he ask that question out of the blue…?' Manny wondered. 'Is it because he knows? Does he really know that everyone's memories were wiped in the city except for a few people…? Ever since the accident in November, things have been different. The Creator said he would live a more normal life, but it hasn't been like that, ever… Did I make the right choice? What if I tell—'

A deep growl grew in Manny's head. The runes glowed as a subtle, familiar pain grew over him. He gritted his teeth and shook it off.

'I can't.' Manny told himself. 'It won't let me… If he finds out, I might actually die…' A cruel curse, if anything, for someone to keep him from doing what he wanted. Manny sighed looking at Keng.

Keng kept his mind from wandering from the mission. It was personal feelings that would get him in trouble. He needed more time to figure things out and just because he Possessed and infiltrated Sara didn't mean all of the puzzle pieces were together. They moved for quite some time before Keng felt something off.

Keng threw an arm up as as he came to a stop. Manny stopped, taking a look around. There was nothing in sight. Keng's eyes were fixed ahead as Manny fixed his eyes on Keng. Keng slowly moved his arm, pointing a finger straight ahead.

"There. There. There." Keng pointed at three different spots.

"Three?" Manny whispered.

"At least three."

"They should be easy since it's a D-rank mission. Nothing too hard." Manny told him. Keng nodded. Keng unraveled his fingers and pointed his palm straight ahead. The cosmic aura wrapped around him as Manny watched stars and black space flutter past him. Keng rushed forward without notice. The ground rumbled loudly as a blast of energy flew outwards in a cone thirty feet.

Manny watched as three humanoids flew upwards. They screamed as Keng summoned a dagger, tossing it straight at the middle humanoid. The humanoids screamed in a familiar language Manny had come across before.

"Why are there bandits so far out here?" Manny whispered. Screaming grew all around him as pale-skinned humanoids popped up around him. Three rushed at him as Manny cursed. He stepped backwards, dodging two sword strikes that sparked against each other as the third one leaped over the swords and went for the kill.

Manny twisted his body as the blade landed a blow onto the back of his armor. A chilling frost bit at him as he rolled and swung at the nearest pale bandit, landing a right hook straight at their face. Manny quickly dodged and roll as the bandits flew at him.

Hit after hit, the armor would negate some of the damage, but the chilling frost would bite at him. Manny could feel the slow effect growing on him.

"Lee!" Manny shouted in Keng's ear. Keng blasted the other two pale bandits as he turned around. "A little help here!" Keng rushed forward as some of the pale bandits broke off to block Keng's arrival.

'How did they get past my detection?' Keng wondered. Hydrosphere grew in his hands, growing into two shortswords as the first pale bandit raised its hand up at Keng. It spoke something and a bolt of frost flew at him. Keng released a sword, watching it spin as a cosmic barrier flew up. 'Don't use your other abilities. It's all cosmic from here on out!'

The frostbolt shattered as Keng pushed the spinning sword forwards. It spun in the air, slashing at the right Bandit as it raised its shield to block. The sword sparked against the sword as the left Bandit flew forwards. It used the snow to propel itself forward.

'Ice bandits?' Keng aptly named them. His eyes went to Manny, who was healing the blows as best as he could while dodging and getting some punches into the monsters. Keng gritted his teeth. 'I'll use things that are harder to see.'

[Marked for Death has been afflicted onto the three Ice Bandits.]

Keng swung his blade, connecting with the left Bandit as he summoned the other sword. He pushed the Ice Bandit's sword and arm upwards as he went in for the kill. Hydrosphere glowed as Keng slashed diagonally at the Ice Bandit. An explosion of cosmic energy rippled out, blowing it to pieces as Frostbolts flew at him.

Keng's eyes flashed as he disappeared. The bolts flew wide as Keng grabbed the caster Bandit and spun him around.

"Sorry, this is just how it works now!" Keng apologized as he kissed the Ice Bandit. The bandit cursed at him as Keng watched the Ice Bandit explode into bits. The snow turned red as the third Bandit rushed at him.

"You'll pay for that, human!" The bandit screamed. He swung at Keng, forcing him to duck as he lifted his shield and rushed him. Keng flew backwards, rolling in the snow as Manny landed next to him.

"I could use some help here!" Manny told Keng. "These Bandits are making it hard for me to take a weapon from them!"

"Take the one at my side then." Keng dismissed a sword and pulled this one out. Manny registered what was happening but took the katana. It felt light in his hands as a smile grew.

"Will you be okay?" Manny asked. "I know you literally destroyed like four of them, but these guys are scary together."

"I can kill these guys with my eyes closed." Keng replied, standing up. The single Hydrosphere shortsword grew into a katana as he wiped the blood from his face. The Ice Bandits were circling the two high schoolers. "I'll go wide."

"I'll go forward." Manny replied. Keng pointed his sword downwards and raised his right index and middle fingers upwards. The katana shimmered with a mixture of energy as he plunged it downwards. The ground rippled as a ring of cosmic energy pushed all of the bandits upwards.

Manny flew forwards, slashing the legs off of the Bandit in front of him as Keng shot at the Bandits with his finger guns.

[10 Ice Bandits have been Slain! A reduced 320 souls have been added! 8,941/10,000 Souls collected!]

Manny and Keng huffed as they looked at the dead Ice Bandits. They were pale humanoids with slightly pointed ears.

"Elven kind?" Keng asked, habitually studying the dead creature.

"Mmm, that's what I figured it was… So I guess Elves are in District 97?" Manny replied.

"You don't know?" Keng asked, looking at Manny. He shook his head and stood up from the corpse of one of the Bandits. Manny turned his attention to Keng, who was still accessing the body. He wrapped his hands around the strange metallic sword. Keng stood up and turned towards Manny.

"Runes." Keng lifted the sword up.

"That's probably what inflicted the frost onto me." Manny pointed. Keng offered the sword over to Manny.

"You should have one on you just in case you can't get to mines." Keng told him. Manny traded the sword for Lee Seng's katana.

"Why do you have three weapons? Did you get those two somewhere?" Manny asked, turning to pull one of the sheaths from the dead bodies. Keng released Hydrosphere and slipped the katana back to his side. "A lot must've happened in those two months I last saw you. You really did get better at fighting."

"Our first fight together and you're already complimenting me?" Keng asked, ignoring the question about Hydrosphere.

"I'm impressed, but a bit worried you're built on fighting for your life. I don't want anything more traumatic to happen to you. You deserve to rest and not do much." Manny expressed his concern for "Lee Seng." Keng nodded. It was true. Even if he wasn't the real Lee Seng, Keng needed to rest. He had done nothing but train and fight for the last couple of months.

"I don't think I'll get to rest until something does happen." Keng replied. He flexed his arms and watched the blood hover in the air around him. Keng moved the blood into a single ball and tossed it to the side.

"Can ya clean me?" Manny asked. Keng nodded and moved over and pulled the blood off of him and tossed it. "We should report."

"You do it." Keng nodded, turning his attention to watch.