Strongest Among the Heavens
Chapter 286: Saving the Village

Chapter 286: Saving the Village

Jackson and Kibiwott were fighting with their backs pressed together. Four Booas circled them like the hyenas they were.

Sarah and Emma were further away, launching Fire Balls at another two Booas. ’They look fine,’ Kazi thought.

He shifted his attention to Jackson and Kibiwott. In two breaths, Kazi swooped in and killed them all. He didn’t bother to suppress himself. His rapid speed carried him around the hyenas. He dragged his blade across their flesh and head and instantly ended them. Momentum needed to be maintained. The more momentum he had, the greater his overall speed.

’Five are left...!’ Swiftly, he counted the Booas attacking the village. Swiftly, he conjured the path to victory.

"Ultra Aqua Bolt!" He aimed and fired. "Super Spark Strike!"

He slowed down by a fraction as he activated those spells. The momentum carried him to blitz the Booas and slash them apart. It was over before the players and the Yumboes knew it.

Jackson and Kibiwott were flabbergasted.

"Couma!" Kazi jogged up to the braided elf, kneeling down to her level. Her left arm was torn apart and her eyes were fading. "Divine Miracle Water." Casting it once caused her to stir. "Divine Miracle Water."

Focus, focus, focus. Bring her arm back. Her constitution was thick with magic. This should work, he thought. Closing his eyes, his mana dropping substantially, he muttered, "Divine Miracle Water."

The process wasn’t remotely immediate. As he burned through his mana to heal Couma, the clouds came together. The divine water fell by tiny droplets. In the first twenty seconds, it was light and gradually grew in every aspect. Everyone was healing. The Yumboes and the players, Kazi healed everyone in the vicinity of the village.

Her tiny arm slowly manifested and Couma opened her eyes. Kazi wanted to gasp and clutch his heart. Three thousand MP ripped from his body.

[ Warning! Mana in critical zone! ]

’Healing is damn hard. I really pushed myself there...’

Rather than show weakness, Kazi smiled down at Couma.

"Foreigner...?"

"I’m here. You’ll be fine." The more of the rain that fell, the more that everyone healed. The more comfort he saw. "Hear that? Everyone is getting up."

The Yumboes that had been fighting and injured were healing. They found solace and hugged each other. Another night had ended. Another night where they protected their village.

"Wooh! Nice going there, pal!" From a shattered table, Sylvia popped out. She limped her way toward Kazi, flashing him a smile. "One of those little shits got on my leg and threw me aside."

Jackson and Kibiwott came by as did Sarah and Emma.

"Where did this come from...?" Head up, Jackson turned and tried to catch some of the water droplets. Some of it bounced on his cap while the rest fused with his flesh. He was feeling better by the second.

"Where’s Pauline?" Kazi thought his question was valid, albeit too direct. A thick wave of tension took hold of the two men. Jackson adjusted his cap, still looking at the dark skies. Sarah and Emma were puzzled.

"She ran," Kibiwott answered. "She ran and left me alone to fight them."

Kazi blinked twice. "What? She did?"

"She would never," said Emma. "Pauline is shy but she would never run—" Her knees buckled. Sarah cried for her. "Tch. One of those beasts caught my shoulder."

Caught her? What an understatement. The Booa had taken a big ass bite, causing a deep tearing of the flesh. The rain, luckily, was healing her and Emma waved off Sarah’s concern.

"Anyway," Emma’s green eyes became eerily sharp, "Pauline didn’t run."

"She most certainly did."

"It must be a confusion," Sarah offered. "Maybe she saw a Booa there."

The rain continued to fall, continued to heal and continued to offer solace. Kibiwott didn’t believe the girls at all. The amateur swordsman looked up at the dark clouds, then back to Kazi. "Is this a bonus from the mission, I wonder?"

"Haha, if that’s the case, then call me Ms. Luck. This kind of lucky shit always happens to me," Sylvia remarked.

After gesturing at Sarah to take Emma to safety, Kazi ventured into the woodlands. If she ran, this was where she ran to. He found her footsteps and tracked her down. She was not as far as one might expect a fleeing fighter to be.

Knees huddled to her face, the core of her existence downcast, Pauline shuddered and waited with her back to a tree. Kazi purposely put an emphasis in his step to get her to notice his presence.

"K-Kazi?" It was hard to see in the dark. Pauline got up, dusting her white dress off. "I...is everyone okay?"

"They are." Kazi politely smiled. "Why are you here?"

"I...I thought I could lead them away," Pauline explained. "But I guess I was so weak that they ignored me. Ha. Hahahaha." Her laughter sharply increased for a second. "Haa...I’m useless."

Kazi shook his head but before he could offer advice, Pauline began walking on her own.

"I’ll have to apologize to everyone," the skinny, messy woman said. "It was my fault. The poor strategy, the village getting invaded, it was all me." She stopped and looked over at Kazi. "Kazi, you are a very smart man. I’m sure you could have come up with a better plan. You probably didn’t because you wanted to spare my feelings, right?"

Kazi pursed his lips, smiling thinly.

"It’s okay," Pauline said. "I know. A lot of people do that for me so I can tell when it happens. And for once, I want to apologize and take responsibility."