Return of the Fallen Volume 3 Chapter 31
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Author: Blue_Rat
ch 31
After everything was said and done three villagers had died, six were injured and fourteen buildings were left in ruin. Even Kazuki’s group wasn’t left off the hook. Asuna was still out completely, Sam had lost a massive amount of blood, Kimi had fainted from Mana sickness but because she was on a roof when it happened, she fell off.
Thankfully the roof wasn’t high and she landed on fresh snow, somewhat softening the impact she received. The damage was minimal but she did have a slight concussion. Shin as well suffered from mana sickness and was battered a bit but besides that he was fine.
Nunully was exhausted but she was doing ok, Kazuki was only a bit tired and Mei was in tip-top shape.
After the villagers buried their neighbors and prayed to the heavens above, they held back their tears of grief and once more gathered at the large Dining hall. The villagers didn’t hold back their tears due to disrespect rather if they continued to cry even now, they would exhaust themselves for all those that have been taken or died and they would have no energy left to fight.
Later t was discovered that they had made a promise to one another that they would resist the urge to cry and only do so after this whole event was over and done with. Only when they ad their children back and they knew for sure they were safe would they unleash their tears and cry rivers for all those that had gone or sacrificed themselves for the village.
Thanks to the villager’s quick retreat to the edge of the village, most of them avoided injury completely but for the ones who did get hurt during the monsters attack, it was lucky that Nunully was there. Nunully tirelessly helped all those who were hurt. Since this wasn’t the first time the monster attacked, there were even more injured from the previous days of fighting.
Seeing Nunully was capable of healing, more villagers gathered until the entire Dining hall was nearly bursting. Now everyone in the village was there but Nunully didn’t complain a single time and helped any and all.
Kazuki admired this but his thoughts were interrupted as Hina’s uncle Geil and a few other villagers bowed in front of Kazuki and his group.
“What is this, why are you all bowing to us?”
Geil’s voice was filled with a mix of gratefulness and hope.
“We’re thankful of you all, no we’re more than that. The words to describe what I’m feeling, what we’re all feeling.”
Geil shook his head.
“I don’t know how to say it nor how to express my thoughts properly. We were all desperate and scared. There wasn’t much hope beforehand. No matter what we did or tried to do, no matter how much we fought or bled defending ourselves from thousand leg Zetsu, everything we did was in vain. Especially when we witnessed your fight. Up til now, Zetsu never moved like that and never fought with such anger. It seemed he was playing with us weak villagers this whole time but then you all showed up. You all fought like madmen and were incredible. You even managed to injure thousand arm Zetsu, something we had never done. What I’m trying to say is thank you, may the many gods shine one million blessings down upon you all.”
Shin heard the villagers thanks and scoffed at it before turning his face away in disgust.
(Blessing, what fucking blessings? All we managed to do is get our ass handed to us and barely survive. Had that Zetsu whatever fought with us even a minute more, half of us would definitely be dead. These villagers really know nothing about fighting, tch.)
Shin didn’t mind a compliment or two but the way Geil talked, it was like they did something big but in reality, Shin felt like they barely made it out alive and were lucky. Hearing Geil praise him and the others only felt like a slap in the face to Shin. Shin was already upset with the way Kazuki had acted and was suppressing his anger. If Shin didn’t turn away at this moment, Shin might have snapped at this innocent man.
Geil and the other villagers around him were confused by Shin’s attitude but they weren’t going to pry. Then Kazuki spoke up, causing Geil to sigh in relief as the quickly forming awkward atmosphere was dissipated.
“Geil, you called that thing Zetsu?”
Geil nodded.
“Yes, like a storm that appears and causes destruction. Here one moment and then gone the next. A thousand legs to destroy with, a thousand legs that can be used to snatch away anyone who stands in its way. Thousand leg Zetsu, the human-faced monster.”
“I don’t understand. You say we are the only ones who have ever injured it but I’ve seen a few of its legs lying around and even witnessed some of the villagers hacking its legs off. So you all have injured it just as we had.”
Geil shook his head.
“Those legs we cut off arent a true injury. No matter how many we cut away after Zetsu disappears when he returns, all of his legs are back, grown anew. But you and your friends, not only have you pierced his eye but even his back and side were cut open. We even saw the dark purple blood spill out. No one besides you and your friends has ever done that. You even managed to make Zetsu flee without taking anyone away. This…this is also a first.”
Kazuki looked at all the thankful villagers and saw the destruction out the window.
“But your homes, so many of them have collapsed, so many are now gone.”
“They don’t matter, at least not anymore. After the children were taken and adults as well, the building made from wood and stone are unimportant. We all could care less. Right now, the only thing that matters is how quickly you all can recuperate and go after Zetsu, so we can rescue the children and the others.”
(Nothing else matters huh?)
Kazuki observed these people and could see a newfound determination in their eye but the fact of the matter was, who knew if the people taken were still alive. He knew about the 30 some odd children that remained with Danny and Tsura but after this whole time manipulation mishap, Kazuki wasn’t so sure about the other adults. If they really are trapped inside the cave with Zetsu and time is different in there, truth be told they could have been in there far longer then anyone here knew. The fact was, these people had started to get taken from at least a month ago.
If time moved how it should then that would mean that the first people to be taken would have been imprisoned in that cave for a month. Without food, they may just barely still be alive but just 6-7 days without water and they are guaranteed to be dead. Kazuki had a hard time believing that this Zetsu creature would be a kind host and give his captured food and water. Once again, this was only relative to time passing at a normal rate.
If in fact time was sped up by only four or five times, then those people should all be dead. Plus there was no way that some if not all had already been eaten. A creature as big as Zetsu would require an incredible amount of food to sustain itself. Kazuki was actually surprised that Zetsu hadn’t already eaten every single villager here.
Kazuki’s mind was starting to fill with dark thoughts thinking about the fate of the villagers that were already taken. He looked at the determination on the villager’s faces. They wanted to know when he and his friends could go after that Zetsu creature but Kazuki didn’t want to give them false hope, no, he didn’t want that kind of pressure and so harsh words escaped his lips.
“If we manage to actually kill thousand legs, arms whatever Zetsu, do you really believe that your people are alive? Do you think that they’ve survived so long without food and water? Don’t get me wrong, I will fight Zetsu but you all should not…”
Kazuki’s words got stuck in his throat as Geil glared at him.
*Haa*
“Nevermind, I shouldn’t have said what I said.”
Geil gnashed his teeth.
“They’re alive…Every single one of them is alive, they have to be.”
Kazuki furrowed his brow.
(This man, he can’t be this naive. No, its something else but what?)
“Why do you…”
Before Kazuki could finish his sentence, Geil cut him off.
“I believe…Its because I believe they are still alive and no matter what I will believe in that. Until I see their bones…I will continue to believe.”
Geil bowed once more to Kazuki and the others before turning and pushing his way past the villagers. Grabbing his ax, he left the Dining hall to patrol the village. Not once did he waver.
Kazuki said nothing, no, there was nothing left to say. The man who left couldn’t be swayed from his beliefs and there was no reason to pursue it.
(Sometimes you just have to let people sit in their ignorance and leave them be.)
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