Sun Yunso knelt to one knee, he panted as he tried to catch his breath. His whole body ached and his wounds were beginning to take their toll.
"Did we….actually do it?"
Had they really taken Saikichi Yoshe down?
Slowly, he looked up at the fallen patriarch and checked on his friends. Mischa was close by, trying to recover from her injuries. Lokei was also looking worse for wear from the exhausting fight. Neither of them were looking too good.
Sun Yunso let out a breath.
'That sword…'
He knew it was dangerous but he never thought it would be that strong. Three people against one, using that sword, and they still struggled to take Saikichi down.
How powerful must the Heavenly Demoness have been to have such a weapon?
Sun Yunso couldn't even comprehend how powerful she must have been. If she ever came back from the dead, this world would likely end within minutes. He took a few moments to catch his breath before pushing himself to his feet. He walked over to Elsa and knelt down to pick up the white hilted sword. He looked it over.
"You're okay."
Satisfied, he took the blade and walked over to Lokei.
"You okay?"
Lokei instantly began coughing. Sun Yunso wondered if he needed medical help but Lokei pushed himself up and grinned weakly.
"I just said the coldest line ever. Reward me."
There was a short pause.
Sun Yunso chuckled.
Of course, despite everything, Lokei Yoshe was still Lokei Yoshe. The charming idiot had returned.
After checking on Lokei, Sun Yunso turned his attention to Mischa. They may not know each other very well but they had temporarily partnered up and since their partnership was coming to an end after leaving the auction hall it would be the least he could do to ensure she was okay.
He walked over to her.
"Are you alright?"
She didn't answer so he waited. He looked a little more concerned. Considering what they had been through he wouldn't be surprised if she had over stretched herself.
"Mischa?"
She emitted a small groan.
He exhaled.
'She's still conscious.'
They were all in a bad way so that was a good start.
Just as Sun Yunso began to loosen up, there came a sound of footsteps. It was slow, uneven. As if someone was getting up off the ground. Sun Yunso turned his head and his eyes widened.
Saikichi Yoshe was alive.
The Yoshe clan head had somehow risen despite the devastating blow. He was slightly swaying but his hand was still tightly wrapped around the hilt of Nishizi.
"You're joking right?"
Saikichi raised his weapon.
"Fall!"
Sun Yunso readied himself for battle, even with all his muscles screaming in complaint and laboured breathing he forced himself into a fighting stance. He couldn't be careless, not with this guy.
"What kind of demon are you?"
He began to bring Nishizi down.
However, his body went limp as the one minute was now up. A cross appeared behind him. Saikcihi's grip loosened and Nishizi dropped from his hands. It landed softly onto the floor. He made no attempt to fight back because he couldn't. The cross pulled him back and his body was held in place. Saikichi Yoshe, patriarch of the Yoshe Clan, hung in mid-air with his head bowed.
This time there would be no getting back up. Saikichi was dead. Sun Yunso stood there for several seconds. Even though he was preparing to fight despite his body being on the brink of collapse, Saikichi's own weapon had won the fight. Slowly he lowered his sword.
Saikichi raised his head.
"Sun Yunso..."
He looked up, his expression had changed. The confident and aggressive look that had been present throughout the fight was gone.
"I'm sorry for taking your fathers weapon. I was just thinking about money."
Sun Yunso's expression grew serious.
"My fathers weapon?"
Before he could question what he meant the light faded from Saikichi's eyes. He took his last breath and silence filled the auction hall.
A rumbling shook the entire auction hall.
Sun Yunso looked around, cracks formed on the walls, and soon spread across the pillars and ceiling. Dust began to fall from the ceiling as the whole hall shook and more of the ceiling collapsed.
"Shit!"
The auction hall was collapsing.
Sun Yunso turned around and ran for the nearest exit. However, only after taking a couple of steps did he stop.
Lokei, Mischa. Sa Wayong and Chu Runar. All of them were injured. Some were barely able to stand. He turned to look at the exit. How the hell was he going to get everyone out?
A strong tremor hit the hall and the ceiling above him cracked. Sun Yunso looked up just as a large portion of the ceiling came crashing down. However, his tired body was too slow to respond. As the debris fell towards him, golden structures burst from the ground, creating a shield above Sun Yunso. The roof crashed down onto the shield, causing dust and bits of the roof to scatter.
Sun Yunso stared at the shield.He knew what Seijinism was and only one person he knew could do this.
"...Mr Zi."
Golden steps formed underneath him.
He rushed.
As he ran towards Sun Yunso, he reached Lokei first, then lifted the injured boy.
"Get that girl and move!"
Sun Yunso did not argue, he sheathed his blade, grabbed Elsa with his right hand and rushed towards Mischa. He crouched down and lifted Mischa onto his shoulder.
Large chunks of stone fell behind them. Pillars bent and walls broke apart. The corridors they had just run through filled up with dust.
Sun Yunso clenched his teeth.
Not much further until he finally arrived and as soon as they got outside, they heard a loud bang. The whole auction hall collapsed, causing a large amount of dust to fill the air. Sun Yunso stopped running and looked on in awe. He was still carrying Mischa on his back and his chest was moving quickly up and down.
"We made it..."
He felt relieved. However, a sharp pain shot through his eyes.
"....!"
His face distorted as he moved his hand to his face. He hadn't used his pain relief drops for quite some time so the pain was beginning to kick in.
'Why now?!'
He frantically rummaged through his things. He found the small bottle. He quickly opened it and sprayed his eyes, the pain slowly faded but only by a little.
He lowered the bottle and blinked rapidly. He sighed tiredly. He knew that the pain would not fully go away. He did not really need anything else to happen right now. After taking a few more deep breaths, he began to calm down, though his eyes still hurt, at least they were better.
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for his body. He was still injured and everything ached. Zi Zan noticed this and approached him.
"Put her down."
Sun Yunso looked up at him then carefully set Mischa down and he took a deep breath, he suddenly thought.
"Wait. Chu Runar and Sa Wayong!"
They had been fighting together against Saikichi! Last time he saw them they were not in great condition And they were still inside the building!
Sun Yunso suddenly ran towards the wreckage.
"They're still in there!"
"Calm down."
"How am I supposed to calm down?! They were injured and then the whole building collapsed!"
"They're fine."
"...How?"
Before Zi Zan could answer, a new voice called out from behind.
"Wow, I've never heard you sound like this before. You really are a sweet person."
Sun Yunso looked over his shoulder. Anyu Feng was approaching them carrying both Chu Runar and Sa Wayong. They looked tired and injured but they were alive.
"Who would have thought you'd care so much."
Sun Yunso gave Anyu Feng an incredulous look.
"What are you talking about?"
Anyu raised an eyebrow.
"Come on, seriously? Since you decided to become a hermit and become the most emotionally distant human being on the planet, you've been different. But now you seem to be returning to your old self. The lovely little brat that Su Qing raised."
Zi Zan, who was standing nearby, nodded.
"Yeah, you've changed. Or maybe you are really starting to return to your old self."
Sun Yunso fell into silence.
"Master Su Qing"
Just saying his master's name made something stir within him. He looked down and for a brief second he thought back to his younger self. A boy with a love for cooking, caring and training under Su Qing's watchful eye. He was easily able to find joy in simple things like cooking or listening to his master talk about swords.
He was nothing like the cold and distant person he was now.
He was kind, caring and happy but somewhere along the line that boy was lost or maybe he had just hidden him away. When he had chosen his revenge route, nothing else mattered. His happiness, relationships and even the person he once was.
The only thing that mattered was getting stronger, finding those responsible, punishing them. He had convinced himself that he needed to become distant from everyone but now he was surrounded by those who knew him before everything went wrong, he couldn't help but wonder when he had become so different to that boy Su Qing raised.
He said nothing and for once he didn't have a snarky comment or try to brush off what they were saying. He just stood there, thinking about the man who raised him and how different he was to the person he was before revenge took over his life.
Suddenly, Sun Yunso clutched his side.
"Ugh..."
As he moved, realisation on just how badly he was hurt hit him, being caught up in fighting with Anzo, and then trying to run away from the collapsing auction hall.
"Oh crap, I nearly forgot I need to heal you guys. But for real though, what happened to you a lot, you look like you ran through hell."
"Long story."
"Well, we'll chat later about it."
Anyu joined his hands together. A soft glow radiated from his hands. Suddenly a healing barrier covered all five of them - Yunso, Lokei, Mischa, Sa Wayong, and Chu Runar. A warm feeling spread throughout the barrier. As it radiated off of him and onto their wounded bodies the medical light helped begin to close wounds that they had. And the pain was slowly fading. The fatigue was also lessening and they were recovering.
Sun Yunso looked relieved as the pain in his body faded. He was finally able to breathe properly without every movement reminding him of his injuries.
Once Anyu let his hands down and the barrier disappeared.
"Okay! You should all be fine to move around now. Although, do try not to do anything stupid. Just because you have been healed does not mean you can jump straight into another fight."
Lokei stretched out his arms.
"I feel brand new."
"But you're still an idiot."Mischa said.
"Who the hell are you calling an idiot, I'm a fresh and healthy type of guy."Lokei fired back
Sun Yunso sighed, they already seemed to be back to normal somehow despite almost dying.
The two figures from earlier who were at the auction before everything transpired suddenly emerged from the dust surrounding the collapsed auction hall.
The moment they spotted her, the young man raised his voice.
"Captain!"
Mischa, who had been dusting herself off, turned toward them, the two immediately hurried over and bowed their heads respectfully.
Mischa's eyebrow twitched.
"How many times do I have to tell you two to stop calling me that? I'm only a lieutenant. I'm nowhere near that level yet."
"Understood, Captain!"
"That's not what I—"
She stopped herself and sighed, there was no point arguing with them. As she looked at the two more carefully, however, something caught her attention.
The young woman was carrying a sword wrapped entirely in bandages. Mischa's expression changed. She knew exactly what it was and for a brief moment, she simply stared at the weapon before a satisfied smile appeared on her face.
"Good work."
She reached out and patted both of them on the head. The two exchanged glances, clearly pleased with her praise. Mischa withdrew her hand and looked at the bandaged sword again.
"That's not the only thing we found, captain."
The young man reached behind himself and brought out the Abberant Katana Of Peace. Mischa stared at it.
"...What's that? Two heads? That's weird."
Before either of her subordinates could respond, another voice interrupted them.
"That belongs to me."
Mischa turned her head. Sun Yunso had approached them, his gaze fixed on the double-headed sword. Mischa's expression immediately sharpened.
"Are you lying?"
"What?"
"Are you claiming it's yours just because you want to steal it?"
"I'm not. That sword belonged to my master. It's the reason I came to this auction in the first place."
Mischa studied him for several seconds.
She didn't know him well enough to trust him blindly, and considering the circumstances, she had every reason to be suspicious. Still, something about the way he spoke made her hesitate.
After a moment, she turned toward the young man.
"Give it to him."
"Captain, but—"
Mischa slowly turned her head toward him, her expression darkened.
The young man felt a sudden chill run down his spine.
"R-Right!"
He immediately held out the Abberant Katana of Peace to Yunso. Yunso accepted the weapon, his fingers closing around its hilt and for a moment, he simply stared at it. He had finally recovered his master's sword.
Suddenly something clicked into place in Sun Yunso's mind.
"Wait."
"Wait what?" Mischa asked.
"You're acting confused about this sword but we were literally fighting against it a few minutes ago. Saikichi was welding it alongside that other sword you said belonged to the Heavenly Demoness."
At the mention of the Heavenly Demoness, Zi Zan and Anyu Feng exchanged quick looks but they didn't say anything and simply listened.
Mischa just shrugged.
"I wasn't really paying attention."
"So you're blind."
Mischa's expression turned sour.
"Pardon?"
Sun Yunso just shrugged.
"You heard me."
"Who the hell are you calling blind?!"
She took a step forward. Her eyes were practically stabbing through him.
"Answer my question politely or I will make you regret opening your big mouth!"
Yet all Sun Yunso did was laugh.
"What's so funny?!"
He wiped the corner of his eye but still had that annoying grin.
"Nothing. I'm not laughing."
"You're clearly laughing!"
Sun Yunso just laughed even louder.
Mischa looked like she was going to pull out her sword. Zi Zan sighed and Anyu Feng looked like he was having fun. They survived a near deadly fight and now they had to stop them from killing each other. As the fuss died down between Sun Yunso and Mischa, Zi Zan stepped up to her.
"I want to ask you something."
Mischa looked up.
"What?"
Zi Zan looked briefly at the sword before looking back.
"Judging from what Yunso said, this sword belongs to the Heavenly Demoness? So where are you taking it?"
"That's personal information so I cannot tell you."
Zi Zan sighed.
"You got this info from the Armada didn't you?"
Mischa stiffened.
"How... how do you know that?"
Zi Zan looked at her for a moment, with slight disappointment on his face.
"...Don't you recognise me?"
Mischa blinked, her eyes widened as she looked at the man before her. She studied his face properly and gasped.
'Wait a second…'
She stood straighter and respectfully bowed.
"I'm truly sorry Captain Zi Zan. I didn't realise it was you. I couldn't recognise you because of your clothes!"
Zi Zan waved his hand.
"Don't worry about it."
Sun Yunso, having listened in, slowly turned his head.
"...Captain?"
He looked between the two.
'Captain Zi Zan.'
That's when realisation dawned. Zi Zan wasn't just affiliated with the Armada but was also one of their captains.