Kuro's fingers tightened around Goliath's handlebar as he scanned the empty road ahead. The wind lashed against his face, snowflakes melting against the cold metal of the vehicle. Beside him, Rhanes's knuckles whitened on the controls. He muttered something under his breath, shaking his head.

  "They were here. Recently." His voice was almost inaudible over the engine's growl. "You were right, Kuro." He pointed ahead. "Those are aether wagon tracks—Daro's."

  Kuro looked at Rhanes. Their eyes met and held for a moment.

  As Goliath's Beard roared down the pathway, Daro and Parmad noticed the approaching beast. They pressed themselves deeper into their hiding spot, watching with held breath as it drew closer.

  Come on, come on. Just drive straight. We reached Euneim long ago—just go straight, idiots, Daro prayed silently, his heart hammering against his ribs.

  Inside the vehicle, Kuro watched the path carefully, his trained eyes catching every detail. Then he saw it—something off about the tracks.

  "STOP!" he commanded.

  Goliath lurched to a sudden halt, skidding on the path before coming to rest in a cloud of steam and smoke.

  "Is something wrong?" Rhanes spoke.

  "What happened?" Fenric added.

  They spoke simultaneously, their words blending into an incomprehensible jumble in Kuro's ears.

  Kuro looked at them—both eyeing him with concerned expressions. "Um, I just need to take a... piss."

  Both their faces fell. "Oh. Okay, of course." Rhanes signaled his approval.

  Seeing Goliath's Beard stop so suddenly, Daro and Parmad nearly soiled themselves.

  "What? Why? Why did they stop?" Daro hissed. "Did they spot us? No way. There's no way! Parmad, can you see what's going on? Are they coming? Uh, bastard, do you hear me?"

  He looked over at Parmad, who had frozen completely with fear.

  "Shit. I can't believe I brought you of all people for this." Daro forced himself to calm down, taking several deep breaths before watching carefully, calculating his next move.

  Kuro stepped out. Daro watched his every movement with predatory focus.

  Kuro relieved himself and climbed back into the vehicle.

  "That bastard takes a piss right now? Here of all places?" Daro shouted before realizing his mistake. He slapped his hand over his mouth.

  Inside Goliath, Fenric's right ear twitched. He glanced out the window.

  The vehicle's engine rumbled back to life.

  Noticing Fenric's reaction, Kuro asked, "Is something wrong?"

  "Huh? No, it's just... I thought I heard something. Weird."

  "STOP!" Kuro commanded again.

  Goliath halted once more. Rhanes and Fenric turned to him in unison. "What now?"

  Kuro stepped out, his expression tense. "Something's wrong."

  "Shit! Did he hear us?" Daro's nervousness spiked. "No way—we're too fucking far!" Behind him, Parmad was preparing to bolt.

  "Where do you think you're going?" Daro questioned sharply.

  Parmad was sweating despite the cold weather. "Come on, boss! It's not worth it. Let's leave the Horn and run. We can't fight the Master—he's scary! You know what happened to Rafbir. You know the story—"

  "Shut the fuck up!" Daro snapped. "You think I don't know? Even if we run, he'll find us. There's no use. If we're caught, we're dead—but we have a chance if we catch them by surprise."

  "Boss, are you serious?"

  "Yes. It's do or die."

  I can't believe this. I'm tearing up. Since when did boss become brave? He who used to piss his pants in front of mid-tier beasts... Parmad thought, genuinely moved.

  "What was that look?" Daro demanded.

  "It's nothing." Parmad sniffed.

  "Kuro, what happened? Did something catch your eye?" Rhanes asked, approaching.

  "Yes. The tracks—they're odd."

  "Odd? What about them? I don't see anything unusual. It's clear to see."

  "That's the odd part."

  "Hm?"

  "Senior, do you remember a merchant wagon passing us a short while ago?"

  "Yes. Why?"

  "That wagon's tracks—they're gone, and midway through. It's like someone erased the original tracks and made new ones. Clear tracks designed to make us keep moving forward."

  "Meaning they're hiding here..." Rhanes concluded, his expression darkening. "Probably watching us at this very moment."

  "Wait, I told you I heard something, right?" Fenric interjected. "I think it was Daro's voice. My nose can't smell him through that damned ash, but my ears are keen as ever. I'm pretty sure."

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  "Which way?" Kuro asked.

  "To my right. I'm sure of it."

  Kuro and Rhanes scanned the area to Fenric's right, their eyes sweeping across the clearing until they stopped at one particular point.

  "That huge rock and those trees—it's perfect to hide a wagon," Rhanes observed.

  "Then what are we waiting for?" Kuro responded.

  Rhanes reached into Goliath and withdrew his weapon—a massive hammer that seemed to hum with latent power. He rotated the handle, and it extended with mechanical precision. The hammer was enormous, with two gears connecting in the middle and extending outward. A hole sat at the center with pipes running from the middle to the back.

  "What's with that... weapon?" Kuro asked, taking a moment to finish his question.

  "Oh yeah, that," Fenric explained. "I don't know much about it either, except that it's his trusted weapon. I think he calls it Emberstrike—used it in his adventuring days. Unlike weapons these days that use magical contraptions, that weapon there is old school. It uses mechanical power to increase damage."

  "Magical contraptions?"

  "You know, like magical artifacts or weapons that... oh." Fenric paused, realizing. "Sorry. It's basically weapons that use magic to produce fire or water, things like that."

  "And that's not taboo?"

  "Nope. In the end, magic weapons can't exceed inborn magical capabilities."

  "Hmm..." Kuro walked toward the massive rock, his thoughts twisted with questions.

  Rhanes pulled out a spherical, tube-like object from his coat and inserted it into the hole in the hammer. It made an exhaust sound, and the gears began to spin—slowly at first, then escalating until they became a blur. The front part of the hammer started to glow with intense heat, radiating warmth that even Fenric and Kuro could feel from several paces back.

  "That thing boss man inserted is called Blazevein—or fuel cluster—which is the main power source for most machines and wagons in these lands," Fenric explained.

  Rhanes lifted the heated hammer above his head with effortless ease. He paused, releasing a long breath—"Puhhhhh"—and then—

  BAAAAAM!

  The massive rock, the trees, Daro's wagon—everything was destroyed in seconds. The trees turned to ash. The rock crumbled to dust. The wagon flew several meters before crashing and obliterating everything in its path.

  Kuro and Fenric stood in silence, not moving a muscle. No reaction showed on their faces, but their eyes—wide and empty—told everything.

  Rhanes searched the smoking crater nonchalantly. "Dammit. They're not here. Probably ran, leaving the wagon behind."

  Are you sure you didn't just incinerate them? Kuro thought.

  Kuro joined Rhanes in the search while Fenric stayed back, keeping watch over Goliath's Beard.

  Snow began to fall more heavily. They couldn't see any nearby places large enough for hiding, and then—crunch—Kuro noticed his leg had sunk quite deep into the snow.

  "Fenric!" Kuro shouted in warning.

  But by the time Fenric jerked back to look, something sharp plunged into his leg.

  "Ahhhhhhh!" Fenric screamed. "Fuuuuck!"

  A long knife had pierced his thigh, followed by a hand emerging from beneath the snow. The attacker pulled the blade back—blood spilling crimson across white powder.

  Fenric collapsed to one knee, his wounded leg buckling beneath him. A figure erupted from the snow and pressed the bloody knife against Fenric's throat. It was Parmad, wearing a crazed smile.

  "I got you! I got you good! Hahaha!"

  "Shit... fucker..." Fenric gasped.

  "Hahaha!" Parmad's laughter echoed across the snowfield.

  Rhanes looked tense, his jaw tight. "Dammit. They got us." He raised his voice. "Parmad! What do you think you're doing—threatening a fellow member of the guild? What happened to you?"

  "Shut up, Master! No—Rhanes, you muscle-headed fool! Haha! You think you're better than us, huh? Letting a lowlife like this dog enter the guild and humiliate us? You know, if I just kill him, it's not even a crime, right? Haha! That's how low he is—just a stray dog in the road!"

  Rhanes's veins began to bulge. He was genuinely angry—so much so that he seemed to radiate heat like fire. But Emberstrike had already cooled down.

  Kuro's instincts screamed at him to run, but he remembered Rhanes was on his side.

  Parmad began to shake, fear creeping into his bravado. "A-and you, Kuro! Y-your weapon... n-now belongs to us! You d-dare embarrass my boss, Daro? This is our r-revenge! And you... you two b-better not move a m-muscle! If you do, I'll slit his th-throat!" The blade trembled wildly against Fenric's neck.

  Kuro didn't pay attention to Parmad's ranting. Instead, he was searching for Dora (as he calls him), thinking: He'll surely go for the Goliath. That's the only way they can escape. But...

  "You b-bastard! Are you l-listening to me?!"

  Pffft.

  Right next to Kuro's feet, Daro burst from the buried snow, catching Kuro off guard. Daro had some kind of red stone clutched between his teeth. He bit down hard—

  Phuuuuuush!

  He breathed out a stream of flame. Rhanes rushed toward Kuro, but he wasn't fast enough. The flame struck Kuro directly in the face and body—

  Or so it appeared.

  At the last possible instant, Kuro bent backward, impossibly fast, dodging the flames by a hair's breadth.

  As the fire vanished, Daro stood in shock. How? There was literally no time to react. I'm sure he doesn't know about fire crystals. How? Fucking HOW? He should be crisped! But look at him—standing there... grinning.

  Daro ground his teeth in frustration.

  Kuro drew his newly bought knife from his boot in a single fluid motion and slashed at Daro. There was no chance to dodge. The blade carved across Daro's face from left cheek to right, crossing through and cutting his right eye. Blood gushed as Daro fell backward, covering his ruined eye, blood streaming between his fingers.

  Kuro moved in for the kill—

  "STOOOOOOOPPPP!" A voice screeched across the clearing.

  Kuro halted.

  "Don't you s-see what's g-going on here?! Do you w-want me to slit his th-throat?! Huh?! Isn't he your d-dear friend?!"

  "Kuro, you alright?" Rhanes asked, now beside him.

  "Yes, senior."

  Daro began crawling toward Parmad, leaving a trail of blood in the snow.

  Kuro jerked forward to finish him, but Rhanes caught his arm. "Wait. Don't be rash. Fenric might get killed."

  Fenric looked tense, blood still seeping from his leg wound. His face was growing pale.

  Puhhh. Kuro released a breath. "You—with the ugly teeth. What's your name?" He whispered to Rhanes: "Get ready."

  "Wh-what are you g-going to do with my n-name? But you want to kn-know so bad? The one who o-outsmarted the great Rhanes N-Nordell and his m-measly companion Kuro... it's Parmad! Parmad W-Wafrell the F-Fearless! But I c-can see you're sc-scared!"

  "So, Waffle, right?"

  "It's Wafrell, you idiot!" Parmad's annoyance made him let his guard down slightly.

  "Tell me, Parmachiem Waffle..." Kuro removed his hat, showing his face clearly in the pale winter light. "Look at my eyes. Can you see FEAR? Do you see any sentiment? Do I look like I give a fuck about that dog with you? Huh?!"

  He raised his voice sharply, and Parmad squeaked, flinching back—

  Creating an opening.

  Rhanes used it wisely. Within moments, he closed the gap and swung Emberstrike, hitting Parmad square in the face. The impact sent him flying through the air, landing half-buried in the snow several meters away.

  "Fenric, are you alright?" Rhanes asked worriedly.

  "Yes... thanks."

  Rhanes tore a piece of cloth from his coat and tied it tightly around Fenric's wounded leg, stopping the bleeding.

  Fenric looked worried, still pale, struggled to his feet with Rhanes's help, his wounded leg barely able to support his weight. He called out to Kuro, but Kuro didn't respond—his attention was fixed entirely on Daro.

  Shit!

  Using the distraction, Daro had run quite far despite his bleeding eye—nearly reaching Goliath's Beard.

  He smiled through the pain. I won! I won, you suckers! And you, Kuro—this is not the end! I will come for you! He swore it silently.

  "Dammit, he's too far! We can't catch him!" Rhanes turned to Kuro apologetically. "Sorry, Kuro. I disappointed you—"

  He stopped.

  Kuro was readying his knife at a throwing angle.

  "Kuro, I don't think that knife can reach that far. That's a heavy knife."

  "We won't know until we try, senior." Kuro angled the blade, aiming directly at Daro's back.

  As Daro reached for the handle of Goliath's Beard, Kuro threw his knife with his full strength.

  It flew like a dart, tearing through the air with a whistle, reaching its target with impossible ease and impaling Daro in the back.

  Daro screamed and collapsed beside Goliath.

  Rhanes and Fenric's faces filled with surprise. They looked at Daro's crumpled form, then back at Kuro—who stood there as if he'd known all along the knife would reach.