"AGHHHH!"
A man screamed in pain as he was cut down. Followed by many other screams shortly after. The person attacking them wore an attire of black and orange, they wore a hood and an orange skull mask to add more to the intimidation.
As if his terrifying skill with the sword wasn't enough.
"K-Kill that bastard! Cut him down!"
The remaining men in the area could charge forward in hopes of cutting down this terrifying figure, as he stood there wielding duel kukri blades made of shadows.
The figured sighed.
"It's no use...you'll be cut down just like the rest of your group. After what you did to those people, I will not allow scum like you to ever wield a blade."
The figure said calmly as slowly walked towards the group of men that charged towards him, swords in hand. And with only one word, he uttered...
"Kuro(Black)..."
With that one word his blades and arms were covered in a black aura, and with one simple swing from his blades, everyone in that room were cut in half and even the walls had deep cuts as well.
Surrounding this figure were severed body parts and dead bodies. It was a complete bloodbath. A massacre. These men...were truly cut down, like animals.
Of course...one was left alive as he sat there. Trembling in fear as he witnessed the sheer amount of carnage that was displayed. What made it more terrifying however was the fact that this person shower little effort in cutting down every single person in this room.
As he the figure walked towards the trembling gang member, it spoke.
"Your boss is currently being dealt with at the moment, so while I'm here...you're going to tell me everything you know...about the Hishaku."
"T-The Hishaku?! A-Are you crazy?! You wanna pick a fight with them?! They're complete monsters!"
The man stated as he looked at the figure who slowly took off his mask and emotionlessly glared down at him. From there he was able to see his face clearly. This man...no this monster...was none other Natsuki Subaru.
"Do I look sane to you? I don't care if they're monsters...I need to cut them down."
Right as he was going to cut the man down, his vision was getting blurry as he heard a voice in his head, but he also felt a pretty big amount of spirit energy...it felt almost...ominous.
"I love you..."
"What...?"
"I love you..."
"!!!"
Subaru's vision kept getting more blurry by the second, he closed his eyes for one second and as soon as he opened his eyes...he wasn't in the Korogumi base anymore.
Instead, he was surrounded by people and individuals with animal features, walking around in clothing similar to the Japanese traditional style of clothing. As he checked his surroundings, the area resembled Japan, or to be more specific, the early modern period feudal society of Japan.
"Where the hell am I...?"
Subaru uttered out in shock.
As he looked around, he noticed the weird stares he was getting, some people looked at him with wonder, some with fear. Seeing this, he quickly left the area and made his blade go back to normal, allowing him to put it back in its sheath.
"Ok...I'm in a completely unknown area, it's best to not use my enchanted blade out in the open unless I have to. Although knowing me, I'm still going to go through with it anyway."
Subaru uttered to himself.
"But then again, what kind of sorcery brought me here? I mean, I heard of being summoned or reincarnated in another world and all from all those novels I used to read, but this...I never expected it to be real."
Subaru sat there for a few minutes trying to process what had occurred. The best course of action would have to be gathering information on where he was. He just needed to go somewhere that had the info, or find someone that had the info.
"That nearby bar may have someone in there that can tell me where I am. After all, I won't be going anywhere else anytime soon, might as well explore."
As he made his way inside, he instantly received weird looks from the people, it made him uncomfortable but he didn't really have time to stand there and focus on that, he had other matters to attend to. So he walked up to a seat as the bartender went up to him.
"Hey there stranger, I haven't seen ya around here before. You a foreigner or something?"
". . .Yeah. I was wondering if you could tell me where I am. I'm not here for any drinks, I'm here for info."
Subaru replied with zero emotion once so ever, sending slight chills down the bartender's back. But he proceeded to answer his questions.
"W-Well you're in Kararagi sir."
"Hm? Kararagi?"
"Y-Yes, one of the four great nations. The city you reside in however is known as Banan."
Subaru processed this.
"Go on..."
He listened as the bartender continued.
"The country is almost anarchist-capitalist to its core, morality can be thrown out of the window. The lack of centralized governance certainly lends its hand however rather than some fundamental ideological nature of extreme greediness. The economy is driven by normal trades such as agriculture and craftwork, but also hosts very unpleasant though profitable trades such as prostitution, slavery, contract killings, trafficking, and mercenary work. Slavery is legal in most parts of Kararagi."
Hearing this made Subaru freeze.
Did he just say slavery was legal in this place? Like, no bullshit?
"What did you just say about slavery...?"
Subaru asked.
"Slavery is legal in most parts of Kararagi sir. However, it is illegal to enslave someone in the town of Banan whose existence is secured. Conversely, it's legal to enslave street children as long as you're not seen doing so."
'That's just...fucked up...on so many levels. Slavery is one thing but enslaving children on the street is completely ok? If you aren't seen doing it nonetheless.'
Subaru thought to himself in anger, but he held himself back.
"What else do I need to know? Like...any military I should know about?"
"Actually yes! There's the Iron Fang!"
"The...Iron-what?"
Subaru asked in confusion.
"The Iron Fang! Which is currently owned by Anastasia Hoshin and led by captain Ricardo Welkin. They are in charge of both trading supplies to other cities and countries, and service in the front lines of battle."
Subaru didn't know why, but the name "Anastasia Hoshin" stuck to him. The did sound pretty yes, but this Anastasia person sounded like a pretty big deal.
"This Anastasia person, is she that much of a big deal around here?"
"Oh yes, she very much is. Miss Hoshin is a commercial genius who serves as chairwoman of the Hoshin Company, the most influential company in Kararagi."
"Hmm...interesting. Can you tell me more?"
"Well-!"
The doors to the bar suddenly opened as a demihuman child walked in. From the looks of it, the child looked like a little girl around the age of five to nine years of age. The child had white hair with black streaks, and her tail was that of a white tiger.
But what Subaru noticed was the fact that she looked wounded, as if she just got attacked by something or rather...someone.
"H-He...lp...me...p-please..."
The small demihuman girl fell over as she went unconscious, she would have made contact with the ground if it weren't for Subaru catching her.
As he looked around, he noticed no one even bothering to lend aid to the poor demihuman.
"Why aren't you all doing anything?! She's hurt and needs help!"
Subaru demanded as he narrowed his eyes.
"We don't help demihumans!"
One person said.
"Yeah! demihumans aren't allowed to be in a bar like this anyway!"
Another one said.
"Tch! Little piece of shit, she might as well roll over and die."
Another one muttered as Subaru stared in anger and shock.
'W-What the hell is wrong with these people...she's only a child...!'
Subaru thought to himself as he ultimately decided what he was going to do.
"Fine, you all don't have to help her. I'll do it, seeing how everyone here is just a bunch of racist. And if any of you try to stop me..."
He noticed how some were getting ready to draw their weapons.
"Then I'll just cut you down myself. Don't test me."
He said this very ominously, making sure they all felt his bloodlust as they backed away in fear.
Subaru then turned to the bartender.
"Hey! Get her a drink of water, and make sure she's ok. I'll handle everything else."
"Y-Yes sir...right away sir."
The bartender quickly did what Subaru told him to do. Getting the little girl a bottle of water, while Subaru laid her down on a couch in the break room.
From there on, he waited for the little girl to wake up. Hours went by before the small child woke up, at first she was scared as all hell, but Subaru made sure to reassure her that she wasn't in any danger, and that he wasn't going to hurt her.
"Y...You aren't going to hurt me...?"
"No. Of course not. I don't know what you were running from but right now, you're safe."
It took a few seconds of silence until the girl nodded.
"So...what exactly happened to you? You were covered in wounds."
Subaru asked.
"I..."
The girl hesitated. So far Subaru had been kind to her, she didn't want to get him caught up in her mess.
"I...fell."
The child tried to lie but that didn't really persuade the swordsman.
"Kid look, something or rather someone attacked you. Those aren't normal wounds you'd get from simply falling or tripping."
"B-But if I tell you then-!"
*BAM!!*
The door to the entrance of the bar slammed opened, followed by a few voices.
"Where is she?! Where is that damn demihuman brat?!"
The little girl hearing this paled, shaking like a leaf, as if she had seen something so horrific that she'd have nightmares for weeks.
It didn't take that much for Subaru to figure out that the girl was obviously afraid of these individuals.
He sighed.
"Stay and hide here. I'll deal with them."
The girl looked on in alarm as Subaru said this. She quickly grabbed onto the back of his coat as he turned around to see her pleading expression.
"D-Don't...those guys...they'll-!"
"They'll what? Kill me? Hurt me?"
Subaru interrupted.
"Those guys are slave traders right? You don't have to worry about me. I'll cut them down. By getting rid of them, I'd be freeing the other slaves they own correct?"
The girl silently nodded as she watched the swordsman walk towards the door and silently open it. And slowly closing it as he walked out.
What greeted Subaru, was a sight that made him more angry then he already was.
Everyone in that bar was held hostage, and there were at least 10-15 men that held chains. Those very chains were wrapped around a whole bunch of other demihumans, and they looked as if they lost all hope.
The sight infuriated him.
". . ."
He hid behind the corner to avoid being seen.
"I'm only going to ask you this one last time, where is the demihuman? I know she ran in here!"
The boss asked the bartender that Subaru was talking to earlier, a sword being pressed against his neck.
"If you don't answer my question, then we'll kill every other person in this god damn place! So hurry up and answer the damn question!"
The leader demanded, his voice and demeanor getting more and more aggressive by the second.
"I-I already told you...I haven't seen a demihuman child walk in here. M-Maybe you guys are mistaken-!"
The bartender was interrupted as the man backhanded him. A look of clear disgust and anger on his face.
"You're hiding that little shit somewhere, and we will destroy everything and everyone in here until we find her!"
The leader exclaimed as he turned around, getting ready to give the order to the other slave traders.
But right when he was about to say it.
A blade flew right past him and towards one of the slave traders at it lodged into the wall. I everyone stared in silence and confusion.
Shocked faces all around.
Until one of the slave traders suddenly fell over dead.
"H-Hey!"
"What the-?!"
"He's dead!"
The slaves and slave traders as well as the hostages were in shock. Such speed and precision, who could be capable of such a thing?
The leader then shouted.
"W-Who's there?! Show yourself!!"
"Sure. I will."
Subaru walked out from the corner he was hiding in, a cold look on his face.
He stood there while everyone else was in shock.
"Sorry to say, but you won't be hurting anyone here. Instead, you guys are going to free those slaves, leave this place, and no one will get hurt."
Subaru was giving them an option.
And he meant business.
They could easily tell just by looking at him that he wasn't playing around. They could either do what he says and live to see another day, or...deal with the sorcerer.
Under normal circumstances, anyone would choose the first option, but seeing how it was all of them against one person. They honestly thought he was bluffing.
"Tch! Like hell we'll listen to you! All of you, kill that bastard!"
The leader exclaimed towards the other slave traders. Prompting them to charge towards the boy.
'These idiots...'
Subaru began walking towards the group as he slowly began unsheathing his enchanted blade.
"Yoru..."
With that one word, the blade became a dark shade of black and purple. But what was more surprising was the fact that there were four different colored tigers that appeared around him, growling as they approached the group of charging slave traders with the boy.
"?!?!" Everyone in the bar stared at the boy in complete shock, they have never seen magic like that before.
But what they weren't prepared for was what happened next.
"Black."
As the tigers dissolved, his arm and sword was covered in a black aura. Evidence that the black one was currently being used. In a split second, he disappeared and quickly reappeared in front of the stunned group as he swung his sword in a horizontal motion. As a result, he cut up most of the slave traders into pieces.
"W-What kind of magic is that?!"
One slave trader exclaimed.
"Shit man! I didn't sign up for this!"
Another one said as he sweated buckets.
"This kid is a monster!"
As they looked on, all they could see was a straight demon looking at them while the severed parts of the other slave traders began to fall.
It was if they were facing a reaper. As if he was the hunter...
AND THEY WERE THE PREY.
"Tch! You son of a-AGHHH!"
Another one was cut down across the chest.
And without wasting any time, Subaru quickly noticed that two more slave traders were charging from behind him. In seconds, Subaru jumped over them to where his wakizashi was and pulled it out of the wall.
He sheathed Yoru back in it's sheath and charged forward towards the two remaining slave traders, cutting them in half effectively.
The only one standing was the leader.
It was just him...and a monster.
"You...YOU DAMN BRAT!!!"
The leader charged forward as he tried landing an overhead slash, but Subaru easily sidestepped it. The leader tried to follow up with a horizontal one but Subaru simply cut off the leader's arm that was holding the sword with little effort.
"AGHHHH!!! SHIT!!!"
"Do you give up now? Your followers are dead and you only have one arm, if you wanna live your life, then give up on this pointless fight already."
Subaru looked down at the kneeling man that was clutching the spot where his arm once was.
"You...you really think I'm just going to give everything up? Just like that?!
The man quickly used his remaining arm and pointed it towards Subaru.
". . .What're you-?!"
Fire was circling around the man's hand.
"!!!!"
"Goa!"
"Tch!"
Subaru quickly rolled out of the way of the charging fire ball. But as a result, it blew up the entrance of the bar.
'What the hell?! Magic exist here-?!'
Subaru saw another fire ball charging towards him. The sorcerer quickly pushed himself up and sprinted for the gaping hole that was made from the last attack and ducked in order to dodge the second ball of fire as it nearly hit some nearby civilians.
Seeing this, Subaru got pissed off.
"Are you crazy?! You could have killed someone!"
"That's the point jackass! I'm not dying without taking you with me! Goa!"
"Oh for the love of-!"
Subaru dodged.
"Goa! Goa! GOOOOOOAAAAAA!!!!"
Every single ball of fire, Subaru had to dodge or get a random bystander out of the way before it hit.
'Damn...this guy is outright trying to kill me...I'll need to use a technique that won't get any other bystanders caught in the crossfire but will be effective enough to cut this guy down...!'
Subaru quickly sheathed his wakizashi and began unsheathing his enchanted blade.
"Yoru!"
"Oh?! You're using that sword again?! Well let's see how you handle this you little shit! AL GOA!"
The slave trader leader pointed his remaining hand towards Subaru, scorching away everything in its path. Or it would have if Subaru didn't use this one technique.
He took a deep breath and uttered one word.
"Ao(Blue)."
Subaru's right arm was covered in a blue aura this time. His body movement stopped and all around him was complete silence. As the attack got closer and closer to the boy, close enough to burn him on the spot, the swordsman's eyes shot open and in a complete second, he speed blitzed the leader as he was behind the man, still kneeling with his hand on the blade. But what made it even more effective was that when he charged forward, he also deflected the attack as well.
Successfully knocking the attack back at the caster, the leader of the slave traders was not only cut in half but burning to a crisp.
He couldn't even scream in pain, the attack was just that effective that death was instant.
The battle was over...
...Natsuki Subaru...cut down the slave traders.
...TO BE CONTINUED