The Lord’s Raids

Akumu's POV

"What am I supposed to do? I was the one who called him here, and now I can't even help him. Because of me… my second is going to die!!" I growled, grinding my teeth in frustration as I watched Renald being brutalized. Anger burned inside me.

As the leader of the clan, my weapon was of the highest quality—but against this beast's claws, even my blade felt dull and useless. I couldn't even scratch the damn rat.

Maybe if I had enough mana left, I could've injured it or severed a limb? Could that have slowed it down?

I struck my saber against its thick hide over and over again, knowing the blows were too weak to do any real damage. But I still dared to hope. Maybe one lucky hit, one strong enough, would be enough to distract the monster.

"Lord Akumu, what are you doing? Help me!!" Renald's desperate voice cut through the chaos, his eyes wide with terror as the creature slammed him into the ground over and over again.

"Be cursed!" I spat, furious at my own helplessness.

I tried to reach him, but these damned creatures blocked my path. I swung my Odashi with brutal precision, cutting down everything in my way, pushing forward through the sea of abominations. My blade's reach allowed me to slice through several at once, but it still wasn't enough to get to Renald quickly.

The notification buzzed incessantly in my head as I killed them.

[You killed a devouring rat.]

[You killed a devouring rat.]

[You killed a devouring rat.]

Suddenly, a deafening roar shook the ground behind me. I whipped around, fear creeping into my chest. What now? What could possibly be worse?

To my horror, I saw a massive black bear charging toward us. Its fur was as dark as the night, and its sheer size made everything around it seem small. Three sharp horns jutted from its head, dripping with the remains of smaller creatures that had been impaled in its path.

But the bear wasn't interested in me or my clan. It was charging straight toward the beast that held Renald, ignoring the scattered bodies of my kin.

I didn't know what to feel. Relief, that it wasn't attacking us? Or dread, knowing that this terror of the forest had shown up when we were at our weakest?

"Hey, Akumu! Get it together, asshole!" A voice called out, familiar and crude, the only person who dared speak to me like that. Rakahn.

My lips curled into a smirk. I reached out, grabbing something shaped like a sphere that had been tossed my way.

"You're almost late, idiot," I called back, slashing a path toward him. Behind me, the monstrous bear was locked in battle with the other creature, a scene so horrifying that part of me knew we'd have to fight whichever one emerged victorious.

But with Rakahn here, maybe we stood a chance.

I slapped him on the back as he joined me. "What took you so long?"

He scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. He pointed over to where his cousin was chatting with an elf.

I raised an eyebrow. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Wait, don't tell me you didn't check what I sent you?" He shot me a doubtful look.

I glanced at the sphere in my hand, still trying to figure it out. "How would I know? You just sent it to me," I muttered. Honestly, sometimes I wondered how this guy could be so careless.

I focused harder on the sphere, feeling something strange. It was familiar, almost too familiar. My curiosity spiked, and I sharpened my concentration.

My eyes widened in shock.

"Is this… purified mana!?" I shouted, looking at Rakahn in disbelief. "Where the hell did you get this?"

Rakahn gave me that smug, infuriating smile of his.

"Our master concocted it," he said, as if it was the most casual thing in the world.

"Master…? Wait, you swore allegiance to someone?!" I exclaimed, completely taken aback.

"Yeah, yeah, it's a long story. Now go restore your mana. Leave the rest to us," he replied, grinning innocently.

A smile tugged at my lips as I turned my attention back to the battlefield, where the two monstrous creatures clashed in a terrifying display of power. Whatever happened next, at least now we had a chance.