Blood Of Platinum
Chapters 19. Gems in the Night World bag. 4
The night was not over yet and so was their unfinished fight. Kaito refused to give up even though he knew his body was full of wounds. His speed in fending off attacks also slowed down even more, making him more and more hit by attacks from mantis. Ryou helps him when he has a gap to fend off the mantis attack aimed directly at Kaito.
“Kaito!! I'll take care of this! You better get going now!” Ryou kills the mantis again while yelling at Kaito
Kaito glanced at Ryou and immediately left while saying, “please take care of the rest for me”
Kaito started running again and was actually close to the tree. Suddenly the herd of mantis swerved after him again. This time they seemed to ignore Ryou completely and targeted Kaito as the main target.
“What?! They didn't attack me and go after Kaito?”
Ryou was startled for a moment and immediately chased after him back. From the back, a mantis almost drew its sword into Kaito's body but it failed. From behind an arrow about the mantis. The organ that hit it was not vital, but it managed to stop its attack and made the mantis fall to the ground.
“Kaito-san, run! Let me take care of it. Don't stop!!”
Kino who managed to reduce the distance between himself and the two people in front of him stopped running for a moment and prepared again with his arrow bow. Again, he managed to hit the mantis. One by one they fell but still he could not kill them.
Mantis who was hit by arrows on her wings and back was instantly killed by Ryou using her sword. This way despite not having managed to kill a single one, Kino manages to help Ryou kill them.
‘I still can't control my shot with this arrow. But, it could at least hinder that monster with this. Besides, the night really didn't leave us alone. If the herd of monsters were killed entirely but Kaito-san still hasn't managed to retrieve the gem, as long as we are still in ‘world night’, other creatures will reappear as Kaito-san said. I have to do something to kill all those locust monsters’
Kino continued firing her arrows until she realized there were fewer and fewer. The number of arrows left was only seven. And to take back the arrows that have been fired takes time.
He took out a small bottle of poison in his cloth bag. The amount of poison that was there was only two bottles left and of course it was not enough to kill the group of mantis that was left fifteen to twenty more there.
“This is the only way. At least I should help them get to the tree as much as possible, especially Kaito-san”
Kino dripped a little poison into every arrow he had. The effect probably wouldn't be as fast as when he used it to kill the goblins before, either, the quantity used back then was also different to the one he was now wearing but it was enough to create damage until finally the mantis died slowly.
All the poison in the bottle was used up. Kino started firing his arrows one after another. Accuracy is still not good but all the arrows remain hit the body part of seven mantis that became the target of his attack.
The mantis fell to the ground and could not move and died slowly. Ryou looked behind him and saw his brother running towards him. He reduced his speed and ended up level with Kino.
“You?” Ryou glanced while looking at Kino's previously injured body
“I've been better even though it doesn't seem to be fully healed yet. But, there is currently no time to think about my injuries, Ryou. It seems that the monsters are starting to target Kaito-san and ignore us completely. It's a good opportunity. I only have these two daggers with me. There is no other way but to fight from close range”
“It won't help at all. Besides, Kaito doesn't look at me even though he still responds when I talk to him”
“I have an idea, but the idea will probably make it as if Kaito-san is bait”
“If it can help him, I think it's worth trying. Tell me now and I'll do whatever it takes to make your plan work, Kino”
Kino tells Ryou the idea while running towards Kaito who is in front of them without being able to escape from the siege of the mantis.
Kaito is still struggling between life and death with the mantis. Their total number is less than ten since Kino managed to cripple seven tails with his poisoned arrows from a considerable distance to make them die slowly.
Kaito did not think that they were after him because the distance to the place of the jewel was only a few steps away.
‘It's like they protected the gem and didn't let me get close to it. He started ignoring everything behind me and was only after me even though they were attacked by the two brothers’
The theory is not wrong. They were after Kaito for that reason. They did not let anyone seen by them approach the jewel and took it.
At first, when their numbers were high, they targeted the most open-ended of their defenses because they believed all their enemies would die. But with their numbers dwindling because they were killed made them prioritize people who are close to the object they guard is the front enemy.
From behind, Ryou catches up with Kaito and once again gives him support. When the opportunity arises, Ryou gives the medicine bottle he is holding and says something to Kaito.
“……!!!’
Kaito fell silent and looked at Ryou with a surprised look as if he could not believe what he heard, but Ryou's eyes were very sharp and his face also looked so upset.
“Don't ask me why! I'm just telling you. What is clear is if you want to succeed, do as I tell you or everything will be in vain!”
“……”
Kaito just shut up and took the medicine Ryou gave him. As it is known that the drug can not immediately react quickly. But after taking it, Kaito did not need time to wait for the effects of the drug and counterattacked. Ryou also adapts faster to their attacks and takes down another mantis.
Suddenly the attacks of the two people against the group of mantis came to a halt. Kaito who from the beginning kept running near the tree suddenly stopped running and started running a little away from him. Of course the mantis followed Kaito because they thought he was an enemy who was still very close to the jewel.
Ryou who initially acted as if he was about to attack, used the opportunity to turn back to follow Kaito as if they were pulling him away.
The jewel in the tree was so small. Only the size of a pebble but so shining. The shape is similar to the precious stone [Amethyst] or [Purple Sapphire] if it is taken closer attention. The stone is seen attached to the middle of the big tree. But apparently, there was a root of the tree that became the place where the gemstone was attached. The root was not so visible from far away and the jewel was placed there.
All of those things were described according to what Kino saw when he was near the tree and managed to retrieve the jewel. He picked it up and put it in his pocket and ran away from there past the back side of the tree.
**
Before this was done, Kino, who was running with Ryou, thought of a plan and told his sister what to do.
“I want Ryou to give this wound medicine to Kaito-san. I only have two bottles left. With you giving this to him then there is only one more bottle we have. This knife will also be given back to Ryou”
Ryou stopped running and received the dagger.
“How about the plan?”
“For the plan, I want Ryou and Kaito-san to take their eyes off. Whatever happens, divert all the locust monsters so as not to look at the tree. I'll rotate from the side of the harness
big root around this place to go behind the tree and I'll secretly try to take it”
Ryou looked at Kino with an annoyed look and was eager to say rudely to his brother, but did not do so. Before she opened her mouth, Kino had already opened her mouth back to say something.
“I already know what Ryou has to say. This plan was indeed very forced, just like when fighting goblins. But, you may not know that the time we have is only less than two hours”
“Less than two hours you said?!” hearing that Ryou was surprised
He realized that there was less time for them. Their purpose is in sight. It would be sad and futile if you had to desperately fight without getting the object that was the goal all along.
“If the jewel disappears along with this ‘world tonight’, I cannot imagine how much longer Kaito-san will wait until the gem is found again. And I also can't imagine how much more ‘world night’ we have to enter to find clues on how we go home”
“……”
Ryou fell silent and started running a little faster while shouting.
“No matter this will work or fail, after that let me scold you all out!”
“I understand. Once this works, run back into the city. If it is lucky, we will not be trapped in the illusion of this place again and can meet somewhere in the city. And back then, Ryou could scold me as you like”
Ryou raised his sword a sign he understood.
Kino slowed down his run and went to the side. Making use of the large roots around the place, he crawled up and occasionally looked at the mantis.
‘Looks like those mantis didn't see around here’
Ryou and Kaito really made them all turn their backs to the big tree. The tree escaped the supervision of the mantis group. But, Kino's plan has a lot of loopholes that make it could not survive. The first reason was because he did not have any weapons except his shield. The more reason, the closer to that big tree, the fewer large roots there are. So, Kino's safety now depended on those in charge of turning the enemy's gaze away.
As the two of them fought, Ryou had a glance at the side. She made sure that her brother could actually do the full plan of the risk. In addition, he also felt he had to make up for the huge mistake he had made for making Kino hurt earlier.
Although originally their intention was to take the monster's eyes off, either since when did they actually further reduce the number. Wounds are something that cannot be avoided. They also could not always dodge because the fight they were doing now was two opponents six remaining mantis troops. From the comparison of numbers, it was obvious that the two of them were heavily outmatched, but for their opponent's killing ability it could be said to be quite domineering.
The number of mantis continues to decrease. Initially fighting a flying enemy was not an easy matter and there were too many gaps for them to attack his opponent. But if remembered the flashback, the mantis always attacked and never wanted to avoid when attacked. They continued to attack blindly by making use of their large number of friends. So that after the number decreases, their movements become easier to read.
At least that was how Ryou and Kaito felt, until finally they had two left.
The end result of Kino's plan was that he managed to get to the big tree and managed to pocket the jewel. All that, because both of his confidants had really not only turned their eyes away from the monster, but also tried to earth-burning their existence from that place.
Kino who did not want to buy time immediately left the place quickly. He passed by the side of the tree where he had come earlier and went to enter the road beside him. The street was formed from the ruins of the altar building that was beside the fountain pond where the highest tree appeared in that place.
“I've got it!! Now get out of that place and get into the city!!”
Kino ran while shouting, telling them to follow his instructions. Kaito's movements stopped and saw the big tree.
“There are no more gems... The jewel is no longer there. The jewel was not there” Kaito's face could not express anything and his movements stopped at that time
“Kaito, plan done! We kill them all and meet in the city! Whatever happens, don't die!!” Ryou shouted and started to seriously attack his opponent
It didn't take long, with one slash Kaito killed both of them at once. His eyes became sharp like wild animals but a thin smile adorned as if the feeling of pleasure he wanted to evoke was held for a while.
“Ryou, we go from here!”
Following Kino, the two of them put their weapons in and rushed away from there. The direction that the two men chose was opposite to the direction of Kino. But, still they went into the city through the roads and buildings that had become forests. Despite being scattered back with her sister, Ryou smiles happily because all her efforts and all the risks taken by her brother are paying off.
‘I know my sister is the best in the world’
******
With the defeat of all herds of mantis, it means that already three terrible creatures they met in ‘world malam’. Kino looked at his pocket watch while running fast. The pocket watch shows at 04.50, only 1 hour 10 minutes left until six in the morning.
Now things have really changed.
It could be said that this change towards the better since they managed to obtain Kaito's purple gem. But as long as they are still in ‘world malam’, the city and the forest will never make them escape death.
All Kino could do was continue to run and run aimlessly. His strength had already drained a lot but if it stopped he would die. Moreover, he realized that the monsters before this and before again were there to protect this purple gem. It meant that the chances of him being targeted by another ferocious creature that appeared reached 100%
‘I don't know what will come up after this. But I know how dangerous my situation is. At least I didn't involve Ryou and Kaito-san. Anyway my job is to keep this gem up to Kaito-san's hands and congratulations until ‘the night’ world is over. Whatever happens I just need to keep running’
Roots and vines on all sides can be clearly seen by Kino but there are changes. Kino began to realize that the color of the vines and the leaves was no longer green, but rather a slightly brown color with withered leaves.
“Like the source of their life has been lost bit by bit”
Kino thought, ‘maybe that big tree will also wither and die since this gem was taken from him?’
But it doesn't matter anymore. The night world was still an hour away and only the last one hour's stay would all be completely finished.
“Not time to think of something strange. Now how do I meet the two of them and give this to Kaito-san”
Kino continued to run, tracing the turn of each turn to get to a fairly large place. It was likely that it was a large street in the city before it was destroyed due to the roots and vines. Just a few minutes after coming out of the alley to the right turn and get to the big street, Kino was greeted with a welcome ‘hangat’ from the direction of his right side, from inside a building covered with roots.
-BAAA
******
Ryou and Kaito continue to run into the city that is turned into a wilderness with almost all the roads damaged and buildings shapeless. They ran away from the front and immediately saw many vines full of flowers. The more they ran, the more the flowers withered and fell and the vines turned brown as if they were about to wither.
“I saw vines with this flower when I came looking for you with Kino. Now they became withered” Ryou spoke as he glanced towards Kaito
“Perhaps because the gem was taken”
“Kurasa. But it's not a problem. Since that gem is the thing you seek by risking your life”
“……”
Kaito stopped suddenly. Ryou who found out came to a stop and called out to him.
“What's up? We don't have much time. If not fast, Kino will..”.
“Thank you so much” Kaito bent his body and thanked Ryou
“.....!” Ryou was surprised to the point of not being able to say anything
“Thank you for helping me, thank you for risking your lives for the gem. Thank you very much”
Kaito's voice sounded hoarse as if holding back a happy cry. Ryou wanted to repay her with pleasure but that still could not be done now.
“It's too soon to thank me. The jewel is not in your hands yet so this success is only 80% of what was planned. In addition..I want you to say it to my brother too, since he is the one who did it with full risk”
Kaito lifted his head and looked at Ryou seriously as he said, “you're right”. After that they ran back to look for Kino's whereabouts. With the signs of the vines withering around them, they were quite certain that the illusion from the forest would not put them into a random place like before. Then, when they found the road turning left at the end of the road, they heard a loud sound like a bump.
-BAAA
“……!!!”
They were shocked and instantly turned pale. As they turned, they saw the most feared thing. Their faces were pale and quickly ran over and took out the weapons they had.
“Kino!!” Ryou and Kaito shouted as loud as possible
The warm surprise that approached Kino when he was about to turn right from the direction of running was a hard kick that made him thrown to make his body hit the wall of one of the buildings opposite him. The clash he received from that powerful kick made him instantly lose his consciousness with quite serious injuries. In fact, the shield used to withstand the kick was dented with the crushed stone part left.
“Kino!!” Ryou runs towards Kino
Before getting to Kino's place, Ryou sees something coming from inside the building with a shattered wall to his left.
“Must be!! Follow [Satyr]?!! How can?!”
Kaito did not look happy to see the appearance of the monster. The half-human half-goat creature with two legs, ears and a tandung goat has the size of an adult human male. The satyr walked over and had stood before the fainted Kino, looking at her with red eyes and preparing to step on her body.
Ryou who ran away with anger drew his sword to slash the creature, but Kaito's speed was superior. Kaito ran straight towards the satyr before him quickly and without the slightest pause, he immediately jumped up and kicked the creature's body to make it pushed for trying to hold Kaito's kick using both hands.
“Ryou, Kino is still alive, so quickly take her away from this place! Satyr in front of us looks abnormal, whatever happens protect your brother!!” Kaito yells out to Ryou
Ryou puts his sword back in and approaches Kino's body. He saw that his head and lips were full of blood, besides that his right hand was also broken. Ryou restrains his emotions by biting his lip until it bleeds and holds his brother away from there.
Now, the creature faces Kaito as an opponent. Kaito began to advance attacking the satyrs who were running towards him and another great fight ensued. The satyr only used his bare hands and the legs of his goat to attack Kaito. Kaito held it down with a sword but unexpectedly with only his bare hands, his attack was so powerful.
“What does this mean? In my memory, satyrs do not have a fist strike as hard as this. But, this attack feels heavy and difficult to withstand”
It's bad at the wrong time. Kaito's wounds from the scyther mantis attack are still felt, now having to withstand the power many times that of a satyr. Besides, it's like there's something strange about the creature. This creature seemed to be in a hurry and wanted to finish the fight with him immediately.
“Whatever happens I won't let you through. If ‘world night’ is very happy with entertainment at night, let me cheer him”
******
