Twelve: The Second Duke

Sokan struggled violently, forcing the golden blades out of his body. With a sharp roar, he suddenly broke free.

"Not bad," the Duke of the Sword and Shield Society said. It was a woman's voice. She pointed her longsword forward, looking every bit the commander of a vast army. Golden light coalesced into the shape of blades, raining down upon her enemy like a torrential storm.

Sokan swung his corpse-warhammer like a cyclone, parrying the blows while closing the distance to the Duchess. "An unusual weapon," the Duchess remarked. She took a step forward, bringing her sword down once more. The hundreds of golden blades merged into a single beam of light. I heard a sound like clashing metal; the corpse-warhammer was cleaved in two. Sokan was struck, and blood erupted like a fountain from his horrific wound.

Unable to stand, he collapsed onto the lower level.

I was stunned by the sheer power of this psionic blade.

At that moment, a small demon appeared, gesturing frantically to surround Sokan with corpses. The Duchess, unaware of the trick, merely watched the scene unfold. In the blink of an eye, Sokan, the corpses, the worms, and the demon vanished before our eyes.

The Duchess gasped, "They can hide in an alternate dimension?"

"We can't let him get away!" I shouted. I cloaked myself in shadow once more and plunged into the void. The moment I moved, I regretted it—was I enough on my own? Would I end up humiliated?

But there was no turning back; retreating would be even more disgraceful. I could only pray that Sokan was already half-dead and lacked the strength to fight back.

I had bet correctly.

I landed right beside Sokan. With both swords in hand, I aimed the fish-bone spear at his heart and Mjolnir at his throat. Sokan’s astonishing speed was gone; he was paralyzed, barely able to maintain consciousness. The little demon shrieked and lunged at me, but I unleashed a shepherd’s psionic blade, sending it flying far away.

Sokan gave a stubborn smile. His eyes were filled with such desolate hatred that I felt a chill. "You can kill me," he said, "but our vengeance will never end. I swear to kill every man in Weeping Village! Young or old, they must die! Even if I perish, the Purple Ladies will inherit my will."

I sheathed my weapons. Sokan looked slightly surprised. He couldn't stop coughing, which agitated his wounds, and blood continued to flow unabated.

He was a demon; this was demon blood. He was weak now.

I severed my own finger, my left eye withered, and blood streamed down my cheek, dripping onto the ground and mixing with his. He looked panicked. "A soul contract?" he cried.

I drove the fish-bone spear into his heart. He let out a dying wail, but he did not die, nor would he. He grabbed my palm, trying to push me away, but he lacked the strength.

He struggled to ask, "What... is this?"

"A Poké Ball," I replied.

He looked blank, not understanding, and to be honest, neither did I. But the contract was sealed; as long as I lived, he would be bound by it forever.

I released him. "My contract is simple: from this day forward, leave Weeping Village alone. Neither you nor your subordinates are permitted to attack that village again."

"This is unfair!" he shouted.

It was perfectly fair; you have already killed dozens, which is enough to settle the blood debt.

Sokan shivered as if stricken by a fever. After a long silence, he said, "As you wish."

I said nothing and walked past him, through the wall of corpses. Sokan rose to follow me. I remained calm and composed, showing no fear. I strode forward with the gait of a tiger and the spirit of a dragon, maintaining the demeanor of a great general even in this land of peril.

This was the peerless courage of one who would march even against a thousand thousand foes. How many in this world could claim the same?

"Why are your legs shaking?" he asked.

A gust of wind hit me, and the cold sweat soaking my clothes made me shiver. "Shaking? I'm not shaking. This is just how we humans walk."

Sokan replied, "You need not fear. You know well that a soul contract is the ultimate law, rendering me forever unable to harm you."

"Yes," I said. "I know that well." In truth, I didn't. I didn't even understand what I had just done. The memories Saint Longinus had given me were like pocket money from a miser to his son—less than squeezing toothpaste from a tube.

I walked to the Child-Bearing Tree wall. The men there were delirious, all of them haggard and weak.

"Which one of you is Veline's lover?" I asked loudly.

I asked three times before five of them managed to open their eyes and say, "I am."

God damn it, that girl Veline was certainly promiscuous.

I chose the most handsome one and said, "You can do what you like with these people, but remember our agreement."

When Sokan looked at them, there was a joy of revenge in his eyes. He knew, as I did, that most of them were likely not the original culprits who killed his mother. Thirty years ago, the oldest of them would have been nothing more than an ignorant child, and I estimated that the average life expectancy in Weeping Village wasn't long; his true enemies were likely long dead.

He only wanted catharsis, so let him have it. I was no judge presiding over justice; I could only strive to satisfy both sides at the lowest cost.

I returned to the real world. Scrap and Solace greeted me. "Your eye..." Scrap asked.

"It will recover soon, don't worry," I said.

"Did that Sokan die?" he asked.

"No," I replied proudly. "The ending is better. I subdued him, and he has promised to spare the village."

Solace sighed. "You trust him?"

My pride stung. I shook my head and sighed, "My dear Solace, your words truly disappoint me. I am a legend of the Black Coffin. When have I ever failed to get the job done?"

Solace laughed. "I only know that following you has brought me plenty of trouble."

I felt as if Michael had suddenly possessed me, and just as I was about to argue with her, I noticed the Duchess of the Sword and Shield Society sitting nearby.

We walked toward her. She rose politely, and we bowed to one another. "Your Grace," I said, "we are Rangers of the Black Coffin. I am Fishbone Longinus, this is Broken Bell, and that is Solace. Thank you for your intervention."

The Duchess removed her helmet. I was astonished; I had never expected her to be a girl even more beautiful than Lamia. Her smile was confident and pure, her gaze clear yet sorrowful. Her face was a perfect fusion of classical art and modern style. Had she not displayed such fierce and lethal psionic blades, I would have thought her unable to survive even a second in this treacherous wasteland.

"I am the Duke of the Sword and Shield Society, one of the Nine Hermits," she said. "Nana Christian. You may call me Christina."

"The Nine Hermits, indeed," I exclaimed. "Your swordsmanship is marvelous, no less impressive than the monstrous strength of Duchess Vasilisa! It is truly an eye-opening experience, and I am filled with admiration."

Christina smiled. "You are the hero who defeated Abel? Vasilisa speaks very highly of you."

I felt like a hot-air balloon, ready to float away, but I suppressed my smile and said in a low voice, "Please, do not tell more than a thousand people about this. I am a recluse who prefers to keep things low-key."

"It's too late," Christina said. "Vasilisa has already spread the news throughout the entire Sword and Shield Society."

I burst into laughter but immediately stuffed my fist into my mouth. A moment later, I sighed, "Alas, how could she? This is... this is truly against my intentions."

"I am on my way to the Black Coffin," Christina said. "I have received orders to take up the post of special envoy. I have been looking forward to this journey for a long time."

I noticed her exquisite, protruding canine teeth. Instead of making her look terrifying, they made her look as adorable as a feline.

"Are you also... like Her Grace Vasilisa..." I began.

"Indeed," Christina replied. "Day is breaking. I must take my leave and shall meet you all again this evening."

"We can guard your resting place," I offered.

"No need," she said. "It is not that I do not trust you, but I am accustomed to being alone." She thought for a moment and added, "When Vasilisa introduced the important figures of the Black Coffin, I learned that Typhon is also there. Did you know she was once the sister closest to me?"

I stared at her shoes, wondering if I should polish them, but would such flattery be too obvious?

After much thought, I decided it was better to be cautious. The highest level of sycophancy lies in being as subtle as rain moistening the earth.

I took out my handkerchief and wiped away a fake tear. "I am also deeply loyal to Duchess Typhon. Seeing you sisters reunited is truly moving; there is nothing better."

"Over a hundred years ago, we had a dispute and parted on bad terms," Christina said. "But after this catastrophe, meeting again, we should be able to let go of our grievances."

"If I may ask, what was the nature of your dispute?"

Christina seemed very uncertain. "I did not agree with... some of her methods. She seemed to have killed someone very important to me, and she opposed my searching for..."

"Searching for what?"

"Searching for a certain hermit," she said. "She claimed that person was a figment of my imagination and never existed." She smiled. "Never mind. It was just my own delusion; don't trouble yourselves with it. Goodbye."

"Yes," I said. "Easter eggs and such are unorthodox paths; no need to dwell on them."

"What?" she asked. "I am an Easter egg?"

"Your Grace, pay no mind to the Commander," Broken Bell said. "Sometimes he doesn't even know what he's talking about."

After putting on her helmet, Christina wobbled away clumsily. We respected her wishes and did not follow.

I let out a sigh of relief. "Good thing she didn't fight us for this place."

"I don't think she would have," Broken Bell said.

"Is she a vampire?" Solace asked. "I've never seen such a naive vampire."

We still had work to do. I approached the reactor. Vaja ran the test program and said, "It is fully functional, and the output is on par with the Black Coffin. We have found a second oasis."

Excellent. Now, we just needed to secure ownership. Only Vaja could start the reactor, and Weeping Village had no idea they were sitting on an infinite mountain of treasure. That was our greatest advantage.

We pounded on the iron gate. It took twenty minutes before it finally opened.

When Veline saw the boy on my shoulder, she wept with joy. "Jason! You... you are really alive."

It seemed I had saved the right person.

"He's fine," I said. "He just has a few plump, white sons now. Both father and sons are healthy. Congratulations."

"What?" Veline asked. "What sons did he have?"

The reality was so cruel that I couldn't bear to tell this poor, innocent girl... In the end, it took a lot of effort to explain the tragedy that had befallen Jason in vivid, meticulous detail.