Hunter of The Red Plains

In The Middle of Nowhere: Chapter III

Archer kept walking through the depths of forest with the little girl who sat on his shoulder. She was laughing with joy, and commenting like "High! So high!" Oftenly, with a cute giggle. 

"This is why they all say that it is important to drink milk before sleep, I guess." Alice giggled. "Mister, may I get as tall as you if I drink my milk regularly?" 

"Well, who knows what future holds, right?" Archer replied with a grin. "You might even grow taller than me!" 

"Yay! I will reach even the highest of the secret cookie-hiding spots!" She rejoiced and moved forward and back again and again, and could have fallen if Archer did not make such effort to keep her on his shoulder.

"Can you just move less, Alice? We are losing our balance down here." 

"Sooooorrryyyyy." She giggled and said so childishly. Archer made a sigh an kept walking until they reached an open-space place, completely freed from the height trees. It took a few seconds for Archer's eyes to get adapted to the glitter, and he saw a man after he became able to see. 

He was sitting on a bulge of rock, under the heat of the sun. His blonde hair was waving by the blows of the wind, and his shirtless body had a skin which one's colour was unique, as well as golden tattooes on his arms. His skin had the colour of an interesting brown/red, with a great scar on his chest. After Archer did see him, so did he. He raised his head and once their gazes met, a grin appeared on his face before he stood up. 

"I've been waitin' for you, y'know?" He shouted. Archer did not say anything, and just eyed this man. An awkward silence filled the space for a little time, before the shirtless man made a sigh. "Well, I guess you and I do know only one way to chit-chat." He quickly ran to a tree, which was one of third of those 30-meters-long ones, and hugged it with his arms, lifting it by ripping it from the soil by its roots completely. Then, he put it on his shoulder, as if he was to launch it. "By our fists, I say!" Then, just as predicted, he launched it towards Archer and Alice. Archer did not move an inch, neither did Alice. Before the impact, a giant sword materialized out of thin air, slicing the tree in half. As the two halves of the tree fell down next to them, Archer lifted Alice and placed her on the ground. 

"Stay here, okay?" Archer said. Alice gave a smile to him and nodded. 

"Alright! Alice-chan will watch you as you play, then. But, do not forget to play with me afterwards, or I might get angry, okay?" She cheered. Archer patted her head and began to walk towards the man. 

"That's how to do it!" The man said, as a pair of weapons materialized within his hands. With his eyes, Archer instantly understood who his enemy was. Those dual weapons, Hrunting and Naegling, was of a man, a king, a Berserker named Beowulf. "HERE I COME!!" He yelled and closed the distance of thirty meters within seconds. Archer quickly projected the married twin swords, Bakuya and Kanshou, to parry the first swing of his. Even though he managed to parry the strike, its strength was felt. Archer had to have a step back in order to regain his ballance. 

"Hora hora hora horahorahorahora..!" Beowulf said for each time he striked, as if he was reflecting the musclehead, burning with fightlust personality of his. Due to being summoned from his golden age, he surely was just for to fight. 

Archer got a bit shaked at first three or four hits, but once he managed to catch up with his rythm, he became able to parry or avoid every single hit of his without a problem. He also became capable of seeing through his moves, finding lots of openings. Beowulf surely was great when it came down to the force and strength, but what he lacked was a bit of technique. While he was to swing Hrunting, which was in his right hand, Archer stabbed his wrist and turned the blade, breaking Beowulf's wrist. As the Hrunting fell from his hand and got stuck in the ground, Archer prepared to move his blade to Beowulf's head, but got sent flying by his fist. Both Hrunting and Naegling dissappeared after Archer got sliding on the ground, and stopped at the below of Alice's gaze. 

"Mister, are you alive?" Alice asked, while looking down at Archer from the half of the tree she was sitting on. She put her hand on the cheek of Archer, squeezing it while rubbing it as well. "That man surely is rude, isn't he?" 

"We need to teach him what to do and what not to do within the verges of Alice's playing area, don't we?" Archer said as he stood up. Beowulf was staring at his broken wrist, and began to laugh out of nothing. 

"You surely have guts, man! Come, let's have our fight with how men do that." He raised his fists after he had grabbed his right wrist with his left hand, and then turned it to connect the bones together. His hand had began to heal slowly, and the grin on his face was still remaining. Archer took a few steps while walking, before he began to rush at his opponent, just like his opponent did. After they closed the distance, Beowulf's fists were coresponded by Archer's dual blades. Archer dodged a fist to his face, and turned around Beowulf while swinging his blade again and again. For each time he did so, Beowulf parried them with his fists, with those undamaged fists of his. 

So, this is where your true power lies, Archer thought. Archer jumped back, and threw his blades at Beowulf. He thought that those blades was going to hit his torso, so he prepared to block them, but since they were spinning, they made a faux and nailed him by stabbing his feet. 

"Now this is playing dirty!" He shouted while trying to free his feet. That would not delay him for a few seconds, though, but such time would be enough for Archer to execute his plan. 

Trace, on. He said internally, as the magic circuits began to appear on his arms, legs, and the rest of the body, even though they were not that noticible when compared to the arms. He applied the reinforcement magic to his own body. He knew that he would not be able to keep this up for long, but for the few minutes ahead, all his physical parameters were raised by one. He dashed at his opponent after he projected a pair of swords. He thrusted both of them at Beowulf, but he managed to parry them. The moment Beowulf parried them, Archer let them go and projected another duo. He thrusted and thrusted with dual wielding again and again, but Beowulf seemed like he was able to keep up with him. But that did not mean anything. All the circumstances were complete, for his plan to be done. Archer grinned and coresponded Beowulf's fist with his, shocking Beowulf for an instant. Then, Archer straight-kicked his torso, to rather than flying him away, to use the force to make a backflip in midair. Beowulf raised his head to give Archer a grin, but this grin did not last long. As he looked at Archer, he realised that all the blades he used before were immobilized in air, aimed at him. Beowulf could not count how many of them were there, but he was sure that it was not bellow seventy. With a final grin given, Archer lowered the arm he had raised, and all the blades were launched towards Beowulf. He managed to parry a few, and even managed to avoid from a few more, but it was not quite possible for him to avoid a rain of certain death. 

Archer turned his back and began to walk towards Alice, after he gave a final look at the impaled body of Beowulf. "Hey, jackass..." Beowulf called out, causing Archer to turn at him. "I'm.. not quite... finished here..." He tried to move, and managed to move within all these weapons a little. "C'mere and fight properly, you idiot!" But Archer was not listening to him. He was just walking away, without saying anything. "Our fight has not ended, hear me!?" 

"No," Archer said, without stopping walking. As he lifted Alice and made her sit on his shoulder, he gave a final glance at him. "it already had ended." Then, Beowulf felt heat. The heat coming from the weapons, the weapons which were glowing of red. As beowulf realised what was coming aftermath, he began to laugh. He laughed until the very end, until all these blades got blasted, and until the force of it shreddering him till his bones.