Kaiser surveyed the chaotic warzone from the rooftop and then descended. "We'll enter from the right side," he instructed Adriel and Hella. "The fight is thin there."
"Hmph, going for easy, huh?" Adriel scoffed.
"Okay, let's go," Hella agreed.
Adriel immediately broke into a high-speed sprint, weaving into the thick of the crowd, dispatching enemies as he moved with incredible agility. "Hella, you go ahead," Kaiser called out. "I'll watch your back." Hella charged forward, effortlessly killing a masked man directly in front of her. Another enemy, attempting to ambush Hella from behind, was swiftly cut down by Kaiser.
As Hella and Kaiser fought back-to-back, a masked enemy's head suddenly rolled, severed before Hella's blade could even reach him. Vanfred, Kaiser's master, appeared through the chaos. "Master, what are you doing here?" Kaiser asked, surprised.
Vanfred killed nearby enemies with practiced ease. "That's what I want to ask," he replied. "I thought you'd be in the safe zone. After all, you just came from fighting."
"Sentry told us," Kaiser began to explain, but Vanfred cut him off.
"Yeah, yeah, I made a plan where Sentry's master would inform Sentry about it, and you wouldn't need to participate in the fight. So, why are you here?"
"Just to help," Kaiser stated simply.
Vanfred sighed. "Fine, but I can't help much. I need to fight at the forefront."
"Don't worry about me, Master," Kaiser said, his voice filled with newfound determination. "I will show you what I'm made of." Vanfred nodded and moved deeper into the battle.
Kaiser resumed his fight, cutting down enemies with efficiency. Hella, similarly engaged, remarked, "Never thought your master would be so protective of yourself. Most masters just abandon their disciples after coming, just like mine." As more enemies rushed towards them, their heads rolled even before Hella's sword touched them. Hella's eyes widened slightly. "Master?" she thought, a fleeting smile touching her lips before she returned to the brutal dance of combat.
Suddenly, a blinding beam of light shot out and struck Kaiser before he could react. "Kaiser!!" Hella screamed, her voice filled with alarm. An enemy lunged to finish Kaiser off, but his head was severed by a swift slash from Adriel, who appeared out of nowhere. Kaiser slowly got to his feet, grimacing. "Someone's trying to kill me," he muttered.
Kaiser, determined, headed towards the direction the beam of light had come from, cutting down enemies in his path. Hella and Adriel followed, protecting his rear. "There's no need for you guys to come," Kaiser insisted.
"You can't keep me from a good fight!" Adriel declared, a wild grin on his face.
"I'm coming because I want to. You can't stop me," Hella stated, her voice firm. Kaiser, unable to argue, simply said, "Fine, whatever."
Another beam of light suddenly struck Kaiser, forcing him to block it with his sword. The blade shattered instantly. Kaiser took out another sword from his waist. They continued pushing forward, eventually finding themselves outside the main war area. Another beam of light came, and Kaiser blocked it again. He then charged towards its source. By now, they were near a cliff, far from the battle.
Standing before them was Hanz, his face twisted in a sneer. "I should have expected this," Kaiser said, recognizing Clara's master.
Hanz chuckled. "Coming here, you have signed your death."
"Don't be so sure," Kaiser retorted. "We are three, and you are one."
"But I am an elder of Nandaka," Hanz replied with chilling confidence. In a flash, he closed the distance between them. Before Kaiser could react, Hanz slashed at him, but Adriel pushed Kaiser, so only a small cut appeared on Kaiser's chest.
Adriel and Hella, who were on Kaiser's left and right, attacked simultaneously with their swords. But Hanz leaped, causing their swords to clash harmlessly against each other. He landed on their two blades, pushing them down and making Hella and Adriel lose their grip on their swords.
Adriel, his face contorted in a maniacal grin, attacked with his fist. Hanz calmly used his sword to slash, but Kaiser, despite his injury, blocked it. Hanz dodged Adriel's punch while simultaneously getting into a piercing stance to strike Kaiser. But before he could, Hella's punch came flying towards him. Hanz gripped Hella's hand, changed her direction, and her punch, instead of hitting Hanz, landed on Kaiser's cut. Hanz felt another punch coming from behind and simply stepped to the side, causing Adriel's punch to land on Hella.
"I have been fighting before you were even born," Hanz taunted, "what do you think you can do?"
Kaiser, a defiant look on his face and with blood dripping from his chest, slowly stood up, dragging himself towards Hanz. "That might be so," he said, his voice strained, "but you still have much to learn." Kaiser then uttered, "Break Earth!"
Suddenly, the ground beneath Hanz and Kaiser fractured and gave way. They both went tumbling down into the chasm below. Hanz was utterly surprised. "What are you doing?!" he screamed. "We both will die!"
"Not both," Kaiser rasped, "only you." Hanz quickly began to reach for his magic weapon, but Kaiser had already taken his sorcery sword position. "Verse 1, Sword Saint technique: Wind Slices the Sword!" Kaiser roared. Hanz's eyes widened in terror as Kaiser slashed with his sword. A powerful wind slice shot out, cleanly cutting Hanz in two pieces.
"Yes," Kaiser whispered weakly, looking down at the fallen elder, "only you will die." With his last bit of strength, Kaiser used his sorcery to create a small whirlwind just above the crumbling ground, allowing him to gently descend to safety.
"What happened then?" Rei asked, listening intently to Kaiser's story.
"I went to a nearby town," Kaiser explained, "so that the next day I would go back to Nandaka. But I saw that our village was in danger, so I came here, not before sending a letter, of course. And while coming, I met you."
"I see," Rei nodded. "Must have been a tough battle for you. Well, I hope after you return to Nandaka, you would learn all the other 80 verses of the Sword Saint technique too."
"Sure," Kaiser replied, a confident glint in his eye. "Just wait and see."