On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

Clank!

"I-Impossible!"

"You got flying castles in your world and you think that blocking a weapon with your neck is impossible?"

OFB immediately retracts his glaive after recovering from his shock. I let him do that because I am not stupid enough to hold it in place with my hand; doing it will only let him destroy my hand. He can still let his stored-up Mana burst forth and destroy my hand with it.

"Are you okay?" asks AFB when OFB is by his side.

"Yes…we need to be careful, though," replies OFB.

Summoning Rexorem from our Bond Seal, I swing it lightly when it is in my hand. I use Wind Magic, obstructing the duo's visions with the sand the wind lifts. The wind is also injecting my Mana into the sand, so it will confuse the duo. Now, they are completely blind since they can't see and sense me.

I still can see them clearly from behind my mask. I can see their Mana, which they circulate throughout their bodies, so the vision impairment doesn't affect me. They are also not that hard to sense. They are panicking as they scan their surroundings with their Mana, clueless about how to do it while concealing their presence.

Although I can just make a direct dash at them, given their distraught state, I prefer circling them first. If I directly dash at them, even though I manage to hit one of them, the other will be ready to counterattack, which will take my attention away from the other.

To prevent such from happening, if I still insist on dashing directly at them, I need to use a Skill that can take them out at once. It consumes a significant amount of Mana, though, so they will be able to detect it, dodge it or, possibly, counter it.

Due to those reasons, the sure way to take them out both at once is to mingle with the wind and gradually approach them while circling them. Judging from their reaction, it works pretty well.

"Can you sense him?"

"No…. His Mana is all over the place. It is hard to tell which is the main body."

"Damn it! Beware of every movement you hear."

Another reason for me to circle them is to prevent them from hearing my footsteps. People who can use Magic have heightened senses. They have Mana to even empower their senses. Discerning someone's footstep among an absolute cacophony is not that hard for them.

By circling them, just like what I do with my Mana, I confuse them by making them hear my footsteps in every direction. They know, for sure, I am surrounding them but they still can't tell where I am going to pop up since they neither can see me nor sense me.

When I just have to do another lap before striking the two, I coat Rexorem with fire. This is not [Ignia Ferrum]; this is just me using Fire Magic on it. It has no special effect whatsoever. It is just a sword on fire. Simple and direct.

I do want to try something, though. Using pure Fire Magic on Rexorem doesn't allow me to cut through objects with heat like what [Ignia Ferrum] allows me to but I wonder how much power it will produce if I blast it.

"Well, let's put it to the test, shall we?"

By the time I finished my thought, I am already a few feet away from the duo. Still unsuspecting, the duo is not looking in my direction. They only turn to me when I increase my Mana input. By this point, the fire enveloping Rexorem has already grown to the same height as me.

Clank!

After swinging Rexorem, I am surprised by the fact that the duo's Barrier is strong enough to hold my full-powered swing. The Barrier cracks slightly and the swing was, indeed, without Mana; still, it shows how prepared they are for my sneak attack.

Without a doubt, it is yet another futile attempt on their side. OFB seems to understand it well since his body shows signs of someone on a fight-or-flight response. He is about to warn AFB but I am faster in blasting my Mana. The fire grows dramatically bigger and hotter, meanwhile, the air explodes.

"Gah!"

"Fuck!"

A brief yelp comes out of the duo's mouth as they are blasted away. Fire covers my vision but it doesn't hurt me. I try to sense their presence but my Mana pollutes the air so much that I can't. When the fire disappears, the sand that has been kicked into the air slowly falls, yet obstructing my vision.

Of course, that doesn't matter since I can already sense the duo. They are, indeed, inseparable; despite the explosion, I still find them sprawled in the same spot.

Walking toward them, I put out the fire enveloping Rexorem. Now that I know I can make a mini atomic bomb by simply overcharging Rexorem with Mana that has Fire attribute, I will officially categorize it as a new Skill.

I will call it [Blowing Shock]. I know it is not a fancy name but who cares with a fancy name? It kills. That is all that matters.

"These two…I viewed them too highly," I comment as I look at the two. "A blow is already enough to knock them unconscious."

Planting Rexorem in the ground between the unconscious duo, I crouch and clench my fist. I thrust my fist into OFB's stomach but stop it when it is only an inch from punching a hole in his stomach.

I am randomly reminded about the price of the information regarding my location that Black Merchants sell. I am serious about splitting the profit they make, so I figure I will ask about the headquarters of the Black Merchant to OFB.

Crystal already considers me as his esteemed patron but he is tight-lipped about the location of the headquarters since I am still a new patron. Senior Bounty Hunters have worked together with Black Merchants for a long time, so they must know where the headquarters is.

I am not entirely sure if OFB is a Senior Bounty Hunter given how he fought but there is still merit in trying. He is not bad, anyway; he just didn't meet my expectation.

"Let's see how you look…" clutching the helmet covering his face—a very cheap one, I say—I take it off his head. "A woman?"

OFB being a woman doesn't surprise me much; however, the fact that she has a familiar face does. Looking at the face in bewilderment, I crush the helmet in my hand.

"What is…she doing here?"

As I drop the crushed helmet, I turn to AFB. My mood turns solemn as I hope things are not what I think they are. I approach AFB and then take his helmet off. A woman's face is revealed and, again, I crush the helmet because I find the woman's face familiar.

"What is…happening?"

"Uh…that was wild…."

My train of thought is broken when OFB regains her consciousness. I drop the crushed helmet in my hand, turn to her, and wait until she completely regains consciousness. When she does, she widens her eyes and quickly gets up. She has injuries, though, so she immediately keels over.

"Careful," I say as I catch her before falling. Sensing her immense fear as she falls into my embrace, I whisper, "It is all right. I am not going to do anything to you." At the same time, I let my body secrete my special pheromone—just enough to make her feel comfortable with me.

When I sit her down, she looks at me in bemusement. She then realized that her helmet has gone, so she immediately covers her face with her hands, which is, of course, a vain attempt.

"Guh…! Bastard…leave her alone!"

AFB regains her consciousness and immediately tries to attack me. She immediately keels over like OFB did but I am quick enough to catch her before she falls. I bring her to OFB's side and then sit her on the ground. Sitting before them, I stare at them silently as I receive their strange gaze.

"Well…what is—"

"Abigail Myers," I cut AFB as I point at OFB. As OFB widens her eyes, I point at AFB. "Gabriela Chavez."

Both of them look at me in bewilderment, indirectly proving that I am right. I chuckle humorlessly at the revelation and then shake my head faintly. I take off my mask and show them my face. I stare at them silently and they stare at me back with confusion and slight fluster.

Pointing to my face, I ask, "Don't you recognize this face?"

"Uh…we are sure we have never…oh, wait…" Abigail squints her eyes as she looks into my eyes intensely. "No way…. Are you—"

"Layland!?" Gabriela is the first one to figure out my identity. "Holy fuck, dude, you look hot right now!"

I scoff softly in amusement at her remark. Her straightforwardness is the same as it was back on Earth.

"What happened to you, Layland? You look like someone who has gone through hell."

I feel a hand on my cheek and find Abigail rubbing it as she stares at me empathetically. "I have gone through a lot but, first, let me ask you…why are you here?"

Abigail Myers and Gabriela Chavez. They were the only people I could call my friends back on Earth—who looked at me as Layland Kleinhaus. They were the only people whom I told not to come on judgment day; alas, even though they didn't receive my bullets, they are still here.

Was my effort to keep them alive nothing but a vain attempt?