Martial Arts Worlds

"Haa! Haa! Haa!"

Heavy, ragged breathing sounded inside a bag.

A man, headbagged, looked around, his hands tied behind his back and his vision completely blocked by the bag.

All he could feel was the rough fabric pressing against his skin and the occasional wind whipping through the holes in his clothes.

"Take this fucking bag off!"

Sabbath screamed, but no one was seemingly around him to hear him, and thus, he started shaking his head, trying to shake the bag off.

Eventually, the bag came off, and the wind carried it off the railing into the beautiful blue ocean.

The bright light of the yellow wheel of fire in the sky attacked his eyes like daggers and made him shut his eyes before he could open them again.

"Ah…"

Sabbath looked around, looking ragged and malnourished, and saw that he was standing on the deck of an empty ship.

An endless expanse of water was around him, and there was seemingly no one else in sight.

"The hell?"

Sabbath looked over his shoulder at his tied hands and then mustered all of his strength—creak—he broke the rope.

"Just ordinary rope. It wasn't made to keep me tied up…"

He frowned and wondered why he was being let go.

'Bulwarkians aren't the type of people that take prisoners and then just let them go. I expected to rot there for decades until Kiernan was strong enough to free me.

'After all, I told him my location just for the sake that he might remember me and rescue me when he is ready.

'However, I don't know what happened, but…'

Sabbath frowned and searched his pockets, then found some hard object in his back pocket and took it out.

It was a small phone.

"It isn't my phone."

Sabbath said and opened it—it only had one number, and he recognized it.

"That's my number… I know Sacrael took my phone from me."

He dialed the number and pressed the phone against his ear.

…

In a silent house.

Armed to the teeth, Bulwarkians stood awkwardly in the living room, just finding any place to stand.

It looked very awkward that they, tall as hell, easily reaching the ceiling with their height, were forced to hunch over to avoid hitting their heads on the chandelier.

"…"

Kiernan sat on the chair, his legs crossed, and had his fingers laced together as he waited for the phone call.

"Can you stop staring at me?"

He suddenly said and looked across the knee-high table at another chair, where Sacrael was sitting, his gaze locked on him.

"…Who are you, Kiernan Hunter, I wonder? An ordinary person wouldn't have contact with Pirate Immortal.

"I know Imperius Rex is a very solitary man, and despite being a pirate, he doesn't even have his own pirate crew. A lonely pirate, he is. Yet, he alone is the strongest pirate crew."

Sacrael leaned forward and tapped his fingers on the table—tap, tap, tap, tap.

In the kitchen, Imperius finished brewing coffee, poured some into two cups, and then walked to the living room.

When he entered the room, Bulwarkians tensed up, and Sacrael's expression turned heavy with worry.

"Here~"

Imperius handed one cup to Kiernan, who accepted it awkwardly, and then went to the window to look out at the streets outside.

"Hmm…"

He sipped on the coffee and let out a small sigh of relief.

"You know how you can still enjoy the small things of life as an immortal? You need to sparsely enjoy them to keep from becoming jaded.

"I only drink coffee once a year. Which is why the taste is still fresh to me. Consider it as a word of advice to your tribal chief."

Imperius said with a chuckle and continued sipping on the coffee.

"I am sure my tribal chief appreciates the advice. I'll deliver it to him."

Sacrael said, but he kept his hatred towards Imperius hidden deep inside him to make sure that he would leave this house alive.

'Sooner or later, our beloved tribal chief will surpass you, Imperius Rex, and when he does, we will no longer need to fear you.

'In due time, we don't need to fear anyone, as sooner or later, our tribal chief will stand at the top of the martial arts world!'

Sacrael turned slightly heated, but at that moment, his phone started buzzing—it wasn't his phone per se, but Sabbath's.

Everyone looked over.

"…"

Kiernan narrowed his eyes and then said.

"Put it on speaker."

"You dare to order me around?"

Sacrael asked with a spiteful tone and wanted to rip Kiernan's head off—but it would also mean the end of his life.

"Put it on speaker."

Imperius said, walked to behind Kiernan, and firmly patted him on the shoulder with a fatherly hand.

"Kiernan's words are my words. I'd suggest you listen to him."

Imperius said with a chilling smile.

"…Tch."

Sacrael answered the phone and put it on the speaker.

"…Hello?"

A voice came from the phone—it was clearly Sabbath's.

"Master, are you alright?"

Kiernan asked.

"…Kiernan? Why do you… have my phone? Is Sacrael with you?"

Sabbath asked hurriedly.

Kiernan looked at Sacrael, nodded to him, and motioned for him to answer.

"I made a deal with this disciple of yours. You're free now. Do not come back to Bulwark, or next time you won't leave."

Sacrael said coldly.

"Sacrael… Kiernan, what have you gotten yourself into? Are you alright?"

Sabbath expected the worst, but at that moment, Imperius' voice sounded all the way to the phone.

"Your disciple is alright, Mr. Rockstar."

A teasing voice.

Imperius grinned to himself.

"…"

Hearing the word 'Rockstar' made Sabbath's brain run in overdrive—he realized that his disciple had asked for help from the Martial Order.

However, he still wondered how Kiernan learned about his predicament.

"…Who are you?"

Sabbath asked.

"Imperius Rex, but my friends call me… Imperio, even though I really don't have too many friends, haha!"

Imperius burst into laughter.

"…"

The other end of the call turned quiet as Sabbath realized that Martial Order's grandmaster, Imperio, was with his disciple right now.

However, it also relaxed him, as he knew that with Grandmaster on Kiernan's side, he was very safe.

"…What happens now?"

He asked.

"You're free to go wherever. I have unfinished business with your disciple over here. Goodbye, Sabbath, and you better hope we don't see each other again."

Sacrael closed the phone, crushed it in his hand, and tossed it away.

"Now… my promise has been fulfilled."

He said.

"Indeed it has~"

Imperius said with a smile, but there was something scary about his smile—very ominous.