I am facing these three figures who give me a chill down the spine just by being face to face with them.
One had a girl's voice, it was a sweet voice to hear, but at the same time it brought a certain fear. And his stature in size was very short.
The other, bigger and even more mysterious than all the other two, had a jovial boyish voice. It wasn't a child's voice, it was a soldier's voice.
I will call them "shorty" and "mysterious", and for the boy who saved me, I will keep "my savior". At least for now, since I don't know their names.
"Shorty": So, is that what you said we would have to train? Look at her, man. Weak, small and thin. Able to drop dead halfway.
"Hooded": you just described yourself indirectly, you know?
She turns to him with closed fists.
"Shorty": WHAT?!
She kicks him in the shin, he feels the pain and starts to limp.
"Mysterious": Aaaaahhhrrrrg!!! […]
The girl's voice thickens.
"Shorty": REPEAT!
Jumping with only one leg around the area, the "mysterious" complains:
"Mysterious": ah […] Tich! Tich! […] Right, but that she is bigger than you, that's obvious.
"My savior": just a little. While she is only 1, 53m, the girl I brought must be more or less 1, 60m more or less […]
The girl's hand on the hilt of her sword at her waist and a strong wind makes her hair stand up.
"Mysterious": hey […] what do you think you're doing?
The girl takes the sword out of its sheath and swings it over the face of the "mysterious". At that moment, a strong current of wind passed over him.
He didn't even react, because he knew she wasn't going to hurt him. She kept the sword in its sheath, clenches her fist and shouts:
"Shorty": hi […] WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE CALLING BACKPACK TURTLE?!!!
"Mysterious": what? […]
"My savior": what? […]
In the meantime, I was watching them, trying to process what they were talking about.
After so much bullshit.
"Mysterious": let's calm down, let's hear what he has to say about this young woman.
"My savior": well, how can I start? […] I felt potential in her, I'm sure she will succeed.
"Shorty": huh [...] that's what you say, but I'm sure she will give up before the "test" starts.
I meddle in the conversation.
Emilia: Uh [...] Excuse me, but what is this test that I will have to do?
I finally took courage and said something.
The girl crosses her arms and says:
"Baixinha": fufufu […] Climb the mountain.
It was short and thick.
In fact, when I was at the entrance to the forest, I was able to see a mountain covered with more trees far from the forest.
So I disperse from them and go out to find the trail to climb the mountain leaving those three behind.
Time goes by.
Walking through the forest, I realize that this place is really beautiful, the flora was more than present in the place.
The trees were very old, slime covered a lot of trees, the trees are so big that they seem to have no end. Flowers of diverse colors surround them.
The place was like a movie set.
It reminded me of my childhood.
Always on the way to the center, my mother and I would pass by, it was almost a tradition even though it had no purpose.
I've been walking for a while.
Finally on the mountain trail, I climbed for about 30 minutes, and nothing from the top, my feet are starting to hurt, touching the trees will not completely relieve fatigue.
I continued to climb the mountain.
1 hour later:
He fell to the floor from tiredness and exhaustion.
Emilia: I'm very tired [...] How much more (coughing) [...] will I have to go up? […] I can't do it anymore (cough) [...] More [...]
I close my hand and punch the floor.
Emilia: no, I have to continue, otherwise I will not be able to fulfill my role (cough) [...]
I get up more determined than before and continue to climb the mountain.
It was getting dark and I hadn't reached the top.
Emilia: BUT THIS MOUNTAIN HAS NO END?!!
Even at night, I refused to give up.
Even though my feet hurt like never before, I will not stop.
My lung was starting to hurt, it was like someone was squeezing it from the inside.
As if it would explode at any moment.
I fall flat on my face.
I was about to die of exhaustion right there, raising my effort right there left me extremely exhausted.
I couldn't die, at most I would sleep for two days in a row, but that will make me look ridiculous, it will.
When it looked like I was going to pass out, something came up in the shade of the trees. A magical entity, something unique.
A small entity, fit in the palm of the hand. It left a trail of magical lights where it flew.
A fairy, she touched my forehead and said:
"Fairy": It will be okay, you just need to get rid of this Gensō.
Initially, I had no reaction to seeing her.
I heard a voice in my ear, like a breath, I couldn't make out what I said. When I looked back, I was literally at the top of the mountain and it was morning, as if the whole day I spent in that illusion had been in vain.
The three hunters were also there, staring at me with their arms crossed.
When I stopped to think about everything, the mountain was not so high, it was very likely that, at one point on the mountain, one of the hunters had used magic to put me in a kind of illusion.
The question is when and how did they do it and how long have I been stuck in this magic?
I also don't know and I want to find out.
"Shorty": hey, hey! Okay, let's start the test.
Emilia: What? No, you're not serious, right? I almost die climbing this mountain! […]
As soon as I ignored that girl's words my body became heavy, as if an elephant was on my back.
Or as if a strong wind - like a hurricane - was centering only on my body, throwing me against the ground.
"Shorty": Don't you dare to repeat the same mistake again. When I give an order, your duty is to obey!
Was that her work?!
Emilia: how do you-?! […]
The heavy wind in mine dissipates the moment the "mysterious" touches the shoulder of the "little girl".
The "mysterious" give two clap of palm.
"mysterious": let's start with […] well, as you may have noticed, we all wield a sword each, but depending on the person, it can be any other weapon, but generally all of us - hunters in general - use swords.
Really, I had already noticed this, first with that guy years ago, yesterday with "My savior" and today with these two more.
"Mysterious": And for you to acquire your own equipment, you will have to pass some "strength tests", understand?
When he said "test of strength", I already thought: "I'm screwed...".
Emília: And what are the tests?
Just thinking about what kind of test I would have to pass, a chill in my belly came at that moment. Even so, I got to the point.
The "short" uncross her arms, pulls her sword from its sheath and puts herself in an attack position.
"Shorty": Run.
The instant she bent down, leaves on the ground around her dissipated with the wind.
Emilia: hi hi hi! What does she think she's doing?!
I looked straight at "my savior".
He raised a finger to the top, closed his eyes and said:
"My savior": Remember that this test can take weeks, months or even years.
Emilia - but […] But I need to be a hunter today!
He opened his eyes and, even wearing a mask that covered his entire face - apart from his eyes - I could see a serious look.
"My savior": so I think you better run.
The girl opens her eyes, so I could feel a pressure on my back, a frightening pressure that made me want to run from there.
Her eyes showed Fury, she was definitely determined to kill me.
And with a swing of the sword, without even leaving the place it was or touching something - it cuts the trees beside me and behind me.
Emilia - But what?! […] Hey, wait, is she going to kill me ?!
"Mysterious": go, if you don't start running.
Emília - ah- […] aaaaaarrrrgg!!! […]
So I started going down the mountain to make things easier for me and, by the way, the break for her attack is very...
KABAMM!!!
Emilia: KYAAAA!!!
A huge tree falls right in front of me.
When I look back to know the origin of this feat, I see that girl.
She was coming towards me with short steps, descending the mountain with a carefree look.
She is clearly provoking me.
Then I start running aimlessly through the forest.
I spent the whole day running away and without my even realizing it, a day passed. It was already morning and I hadn't eaten yet.
I'm surprised at myself for having managed to lose that girl.
I'm starving.
It was then that I remembered that I put some snacks from my Mother's refrigerator in my backpack before I left.
Emilia: what did my mother do?
I didn't really know what it was. Because I looked in her refrigerator and saw a bowl, took it and put it in the backpack, without even checking to see what it was.
Hoping to be edible.
I open my backpack and see the bowl. I open it and see a bowl with Udon in it.
Emilia: Udon? […] I should have taken supplies for at least a week.
I took the bowl, pulled a spoon out of the backpack, took a deep breath and thanked me.
Emília: alright […] thanks for the food-!! guh-!!! […]
I feel a brief weight on my back, but before I can process what it was, I'm thrown away and hit a tree.
At that moment I could hear the sound of bones breaking.
The crash echoes and the birds on the tree dissipate.
I fell against the floor and almost passed out.
My head is bleeding, my body is not responding to me, what do I do?!!!
My vision is blurred, I hear voices, children crying.
"Unknown": it looks like it's time, dear.
A voice in my head?
"Unknown": everything will be fine as long as I'm here with you.
Whose voice is this?
"Unknown": Now just rest.
The voice disappears.
My heart stops.
My lungs stop beating.
My body starts to tingle.
That was when my body instinctively got up, on tiptoe I got up.
But there was something wrong, my body still didn't respond to me, it's like I'm possessed.
I'm literally staring at the person who gave me that kick that could have killed me. Herself, that damn little girl was in front of me looking me in the eye with her hand on the sword, ready to attack me again.
For some reason, I felt so good that it made me want to never return to my body.
As soon as I noticed, my body was face to face with that little one, my body still didn't answer me, what's going on?! Who or What is controlling my body?!
The girl gave me another kick, only this time in the face. It was an even stronger and more intense kick than the previous one.
However, I didn't even move, the only thing that shook my hair was the impact of the kick on my face causing a strong wind current to pass.
She rages.
She squeezes the hilt of the sword and swings over the area of my face to make a tremendous cut. But on impulse I stopped the sword with my hand.
I was back in control of my body.
Anyway, he could fight back, but she seemed frustrated and at the same time afraid.
She took a step back, raised her sword, and with just the balance and the weight of the wind, I was hurled away from there.
I was found the next morning.
I was passed out in an old, abandoned chicken coop. I look at the ceiling and it was shattered, it seems that this is where I fell at last.
When I got up, I noticed that those three were outside the chicken coop, and that little girl was laughing at me saying stupid things, like:
"It's the matriarch hen! Ahahahaha […]"
I didn't understand the test until now, was it to survive? Hit her? Awaken something? Maybe I'll find out in the future, I hope so.
That afternoon, I was taken to a certain part of the forest.
There were ancient ruins, ancient monuments, and the entire floor was of gray brick, partly covered with slime.
Not to mention that the place was really quiet, the sound that came from the trees. The birds will sing.
The place was really beautiful and peaceful, but the subject was different, all three were there, lined up. "My savior" carried a kind of parchment in his hands, I approached them and the "little girl" stole the parchment from the hands of "my savior" and handed me the parchment.
"Mysterious": open the scroll, it is blank at the moment, but when you open it you will find out what your weapon is.
"My savior": for the scroll to reveal your equipment, you will need to give a drop of blood in return.
"Shorty": take.
She takes a needle out of her pocket.
"Shorty": Take this needle, just so as not to dirty the place with your chicken blood.
I take the needle.
Emília - eh […] right!
I stuck the needle in my finger and spilled the blood on the paper, and something formed.
The drawing of two Katanas crossing each other was forming on paper. The drawing ends and the parchment shines.
The crossed swords resembled the letter of the alphabet of countries outside, an "X".
"Shorty": wow, I can't believe I'm seeing the mark of a Deburosōdo being formed!
"Salvador": Well observed, not everyone obtains this type of weaponry.
"Mysterious: I am impressed, Emilia. You will receive double swords.
Emília - this is good, right? […]
Was it confusing, for various reasons, are double swords good for handling for a girl who has already been very weak? How did he know my name?! What happened to me in that forest?
So much to process at once, I think I will break.
Later that day, the "mysterious" said he wanted to speak to me alone and took me to a ruined house without one of the walls.
"Mysterious": I'm very happy that you made it this far.
Emilia: Thank you... Listen, how do you know my name?
"Hooded": ah- Yes! that [...] good [...]
He finally takes off his hood, removes the panda mask and reveals his face to me.
Emília - I don't believe... is it you?
A face of someone familiar and dear...
Could be?
To be continued...