Rikyou’s Hunt

After Prince Lianghong and the others returned, Rikyou headed to Elder Tsuen’s room in the Main Hall. Once inside, he gave a report on what had happened while guiding the prince and his party. That included the matter of Kou defeating the Gōrō.

“So that brat insolently carries a White Wolf Warhammer, does he? And if he used that to defeat a Gōrō, then it was the Demonic Horn Warhammer Art, hm. …Very well. The prince was not injured, correct?”

“Yes. General Shigou was scratched by the Gōrō, but it seems his leather armor protected him.”

“Hm, then that is fine. But why was it that you did not defeat the Gōrō yourself and left it to an outer disciple?”

“We were only going to the outer edge of the demon realm, so I did not bring my treasured sword.”

“Was that not carelessness?”

Having been told that by the elder, Rikyou could do nothing but apologize.

“To be unable to defeat it yourself, and to be saved by the outer disciple Kou… how pathetic.”

When Elder Tsuen said that, Rikyou bit down on his lip in frustration. The corners of his eyes lifted, and he shot a glance in the direction of the Wallside Hall. Elder Tsuen noticed that and let a faint smile appear.

That day Rikyou returned to his own room without doing anything, but on the next day he headed to the Wallside Hall. When he arrived, he called Kou out.

Realizing that my name had been called, I went to the entrance, where Rikyou was standing.

“Rikyou-shixiong, is there something you need?”

“By the elder’s request, I’m going to hunt a Sword-Leg Spider. You will come with me.”

“Huh, but…”

Rikyou glared sharply at me.

“Are you planning to refuse an inner disciple’s order?”

“That’s not it. I just think I’m not strong enough.”

At my current level, I did not want to fight a Sword-Leg Spider said to rival a Thunder Bear. Rikyou gave a mocking laugh when he heard my words.

“There’s no need to worry. I will kill the Sword-Leg Spider. You only need to help with the butchering.”

As he said that, Rikyou smiled with a nasty look on his face. I had grown used to faces like that in my previous life. It was the kind of face criminals made when they tried to deceive detectives during questioning. I grew uneasy, but as an outer disciple, I was in no position to oppose him.

“Understood. I’ll go get ready.”

After preparing to go into the demon realm, I went outside, and together with Rikyou headed there. Rikyou had a sword on his back that seemed to be his treasured sword. Since the target was a Sword-Leg Spider, that probably meant he needed the treasured sword.

Rikyou advanced from the outer edge of the demon realm toward the interior, heading for the great river, the Crystal Calamity River. On the way, we encountered an Iron-Claw Bear. The claws of this yōma were said to be able to tear through even iron. It was inferior to a Thunder Bear, but still a dangerous opponent.

“You should be able to handle something like this, right?”

Rikyou told me to kill it. Even though he had said I only needed to help with the butchering. Well, whatever. I gripped the White Wolf Warhammer tightly and stepped forward.

The Iron-Claw Bear was about one hundred eighty centimeters in length and covered in jet-black fur. Its claws were around fifteen centimeters long, and they were black.

“What are you hesitating for? Kill it.”

Rikyou urged me on. There was an unpleasant expression on his face. He was probably trying to test my strength. The Iron-Claw Bear broke into a run on all fours and attacked me.

I stepped sideways to evade the downward slash of its claws and slammed the White Wolf Warhammer into the Iron-Claw Bear’s flank. The Qi Claw Strike activated, and the flesh and blood at its side burst apart. The Iron-Claw Bear roared in pain and swung its vicious claws wildly.

I dodged the claw attacks, circled behind it, and drove the White Wolf Warhammer into the Iron-Claw Bear’s back. In the next instant, blood spurted from its back, but the wound was not as deep as I had expected. The Iron-Claw Bear’s back seemed to be sturdy. As I thought, I needed to strike the White Wolf Warhammer into a vital point.

I observed the Iron-Claw Bear’s movements. Just before it attacked with its claws, I noticed that the opposite shoulder gave a tiny twitch. Once I understood that, the fight became easier. In the next instant, the Iron-Claw Bear’s right shoulder twitched, and the claws of its left foreleg came swinging down. Since it was an attack I had anticipated, I avoided it with ease.

“No doubt about it.”

I grinned and muttered to myself. Hearing that, Rikyou made a face that said, “What is this guy talking about?”

The next time the Iron-Claw Bear’s left shoulder twitched, I sprang in and struck the White Wolf Warhammer into the area where its heart was. The moment I leaped back, blood burst from the Iron-Claw Bear’s chest as though it had exploded. Its heart had probably been destroyed.

When Rikyou saw that, he clicked his tongue. What was that supposed to mean? Could it be that he had been hoping I would get killed? He was scheming something.

After giving Rikyou a quick glance, I removed the Iron-Claw Bear’s claws.

“What are you going to do with claws like those?”

Iron-Claw Bear claws were different from White Wolf claws. Since they did not have much of an effect, apparently no one bothered to collect them. Instead, Iron-Claw Bear meat, organs, and hide could be sold.

“Is that so?”

When I tried to skin the Iron-Claw Bear, Rikyou stopped me.

“There’s no time. Give that up.”

“…Understood.”

My dissatisfaction nearly slipped out of my mouth, but I held it back and obeyed.

“It’s only a little time, so what’s the big deal?”

As I started walking while muttering, Rikyou turned narrowed eyes toward me. Since it looked like he would get angry if I said anything more, I fell silent and began walking behind him.

Then we arrived at the habitat of the Sword-Leg Spider. It was terrain of grassland with low shrubs growing throughout it, and the Taoist practitioners called it the Demon Riot Grassland. I had heard that this Demon Riot Grassland was a breeding ground for Fang Rabbits, and that various yōma that fed on them appeared there.

Among them was the Sword-Leg Spider that Rikyou was targeting.

“This way.”

Rikyou seemed to know the place the Sword-Leg Spider used as its lair. In the middle of the vast Demon Riot Grassland was a small grove, and that was where he was heading.

When we reached the front of the grove, Rikyou took in hand the gourd hanging from his waist and drank a mouthful of the alcohol inside. Then he tossed that gourd toward me.

“Catch.”

The stopper had been removed from the gourd, and some of its contents were spilling out. When I caught it, the alcohol inside splashed onto my clothes.

“What is this?”

“It’ll only get in the way in a fight against a Sword-Leg Spider. You hold onto it.”

At that moment, I became suspicious of Rikyou’s actions. Why was he drinking alcohol right before a fight? And it looked like he had removed the stopper from the gourd on purpose, but what was the point?

Apparently the Sword-Leg Spider was inside the grove, and Rikyou told me to wait here before going into the grove alone. Then, about five minutes later, the Sword-Leg Spider came out of the grove.