The perfect | TBATE X COTE

Chapter 07: Ambush - part 1

The journey continued as usual, and the landscapes I had begun to appreciate engulfed the surroundings. I didn't realize how peaceful nature was until I arrived in this world. Nature had never been particularly appealing to me. Simply another biome in which I could survive if necessary, nothing more, nothing less.

The slightly rattling carriage was moving steadily as we approached a road winding over a rocky mountain.

I remembered the days after the battle with Adam while staring boredly at the trees around us. Jasmine, the girl with the daggers, always sat next to me when it was time to eat, where we peacefully enjoyed the silence around us.

Our interactions were brief, with only a few greetings and nods. We could tell the rest just by looking at each other.

Angela, on the other hand, took pleasure in grooming or smothering me on her prominent chest, from which Durden or Helen would rescue me, eliciting a pout from the girl.

"You never let me hug them!" Angela always grumbled.

In addition, Arthur and I just turned four years old. Alice's charred cake was proof that we had matured. Jasmine, looking more stoic than usual, presented a knife to Arthur and me, saying only "present" and walking away quickly.

Arthur was clearly amused as he watched this girl flee after giving us the present.

Everything was going swimmingly. The only thing that irritated me was how Arthur would always ask me to spar whenever he had the opportunity. He seemed to enjoy fighting me, despite the fact that I couldn't keep up with him most of the time with his sword. But, while Arthur was a better swordsman, when we practiced hand-to-hand combat...

"Kiyo! I give up!" Arthur begged. I had his arm in an armlock that hurt but did not cause long-term damage. Arthur patted my leg. "Kiyo!"

I let go, and he shot up, moving his arm to make sure he had no wounds. His sulky expression for not being able to beat me was etched on his face. We were now practicing unarmed combat because Arthur's pride would not allow him to accept defeat, so we continued fighting.

However, all of the fights ended in the first few moves, with Arthur attempting to punch me while I grabbed his wrist and threw him to the ground.

"I give up..." He sighed.

We parted ways after that, but I lingered in the area where we practiced while lunch was being prepared. I examined the dagger that Jasmine had given me. I wanted to do some practice.

I felt at ease with the familiarity of a short-range weapon in my hand. I just do a few basic combinations, reinforcing it with mana, and it vibrated slightly and turned a whitish color. The knife left a slight white trail that seemed to follow my cut and made a slight hissing sound due to its speed as I cut through the air.

Despite having the body of a four-year-old, my attacks were faster than when I had my previous body. Mana was a useful resource; even inexperienced fighters could be effective.

The creak of the seat next to me jolted me out of my reverie. Alice sat down in her seat, turned around, and smiled lovingly at me. Her face, partially illuminated by the rising sun, emphasized her brown eyes even more. Her brown hair was blown by the wind. She reached out her hand and gently stroked my hair.

"Enjoying the view?" In a sweet voice, she inquired.

"I guess."

A comfortable silence fell. Alice crawled out of her seat to curl up next to me. She took me in her warm hands and drew me to her chest, combing my hair gently. This was... surprisingly soothing. The warmth of another human being is quite curious. But I was struck by something else. Her heartbeat was slightly accelerated, as if she was a little preoccupied.

"Kiyo?" Alice called, and after receiving only a brief nod from me, she continued. "What would you think if you had a little sibling?"

'So that was it.'

"I never considered it." I replied honestly, but in a way that would assuage her concerns. "But it wouldn't be bad."

Alice breathed a sigh of relief as her slightly racing heartbeat slowed. She gently kissed the top of my head. "I love you."

I squirmed in her embrace until my gaze shifted to the other side of the carriage, where Arthur was conversing with Angela, or rather, she was squeezing him to the point of almost choking him and he was just waving his hands for help.

My mother laughed softly and spoke in a slightly stern tone. "Angela, let him go."

Alice and Angela began a verbal exchange in which Arthur was the hostage. I did some thinking while they were distracted. Alice was pregnant, which was not surprising, and while I attributed her dizziness to her difficulty with this shaky mode of transportation, I had my suspicions. I didn't have any strong feelings about being a big brother, but I needed to read some parenting books to be sure. In any case, it was good news.

The day went by quietly, the sun moved across the sky, and it appeared that the cloudless sky could not be marred by anything, until.

"Bandits! Prepare to counterattack!" Helen's alarmed voice was heard.

The whistling of arrows as they flew through the air was heard immediately after her warning. My pupils constricted, determined to find a way out of this one.

But Angela jumped up, drew a wand from her waist, and extended it upward before I could act. "Wind, gather and protect us. Wind wall!" She spoke quickly.

The carriage's white canvas roof was ripped as the wind swirled and shook it. The sound was similar to that of a hurricane, and the arrows were deflected as they approached the barrier.

After the initial ambush, the felcha barrage subsided. Only a few arrows fell from time to time as a warning that the enemies remained.

Alice, who had moved to protect us when everything began, spoke to us in a slightly worried tone. "Arthur, Kiyo, are you both okay?"

Arthur and I both nodded, and she exhaled with relief.

I shifted my gaze to better assess the situation. The carriage's roof was mostly shattered, and despite the wind barrier obscuring and slightly blurring the view, I could still see the hooded figures moved on the mountainside.

We were in a terrible situation. Many people with bad intentions were to our right, and a cliff to our left would mean certain death if we fell. How inconvenient.

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Well, short chapter because my exams are just around the corner and I'm quite busy. I wanted to cover the whole altercation with the bandits in one chapter, but I realized that if I wanted to detail the fights well or at least decently, it would take me quite some time, so I'll upload the second part when I can. If I don't have time, it won't be until next week. I'm sorry for that! But I didn't want to give you something of bad quality by rushing.

Even I think I could have done better this chapter, but my mind is all over the place today haha.