Bushido Online: the Battle Begins: A LitRPG Saga Read online

  Kentaro was shooting white sparks out of his hand at Mairin, who was dodging the Ittan-Momen’s attacks and countering the monster with something that looked like a bout of faint misty smoke. Seiki raced toward them. His energy was not enough to allow another Focused Strike yet, so he ran in and did what he learned from the last one: he grabbed it from mid-air and traded a bit of life drain for a kick in the middle.

  The cloth twisted around and slapped his hand. Mairin recovered in time and another bout of smoke burst from her palm and tore the writhing cloth in half.

  Ittan-Momen slain. 21 XP gained.

  Seiki stood there and tried to gather his wits. What had just happened seemed surreal. Then, he realized what it was that was bothering him. In his career as a fighter, he was used to the hard, solid impact that came with every blow—even to the stomach or the thighs. He had never experienced hitting a piece of cloth that folded away with his attacks then curled backward toward his face in an attempt to smother him. He wondered if he would ever feel the same way about bed sheets again.

  His two companions made their way to him. A few more white sparks flashed from Kentaro, and Seiki felt a sensation both warm and cold envelop his body. His health immediately filled up.

  “You look as if you’ve seen a ghost,” Mairin giggled.

  She was probably right. Seiki was still staring at the two halves of white cloth on the grass, which seemed rather harmless now that they did not have a mind of their own. He let out a long exhale.

  “That was… sinister,” he said. At that moment, he decided he did not like fighting sentient pieces of cloth.

  “Oh, there are weirder things, like umbrellas, and chairs,” Kentaro said. “Basically, anything can turn out to be a monster and try to kill you out of the blue.”

  Seiki rubbed his temple. “Give me a giant pig any day,” he muttered under his breath.

  “Well, that’s a bit unfortunate,” said Mairin, in a surprisingly good mood. “Where we’re going, there are loads more of these things.”

  Chapter 04

  It was deep in the night, with the moon over half way down in the west sky, and Seiki was feeling rather troubled.

  After walking through the field and defeating a few more Ittan-Momen, Seiki was now Level 6, but even the joy of that accomplishment could not overshadow the uneasiness that he was experiencing about the whole thing. The title of the quest that the houshi and kitsune wanted him to help with was Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. Group recommended. Not sure exactly what it entailed, he still had a strong feeling that it was going to be something straight out of a horror movie.

  His suspicion was confirmed when they finally arrived at the clearing where the quest was supposed to start. The grass here was low, making an almost circular field like a large golf green. In the middle stood a single abandoned wooden loom, which was casting ghastly shadows on the ground in the moonlight.

  “Creepy, isn’t it?” said Kentaro, speaking Seiki’s thought out loud.

  Cloth seemed to be the theme here, thought Seiki, as he noticed several Ittan-Momen floating high in the air in a circle around the loom. With more practice, Seiki was now more confident in dealing with them as he could better predict their movements. The trick was never to let them wrap themselves around any of your body parts. The bewitched fabric yielded no loot except for Cotton Ball (x2), which Kentaro seemed to be collecting, so Seiki let him have all of them.

  “You can’t really reach the Ittan-Momen flying above,” explained Mairin. “So when you approach the loom and the old lady appears, they will all attack at once. Kentaro and I have died here twice already.”

  “Not a pleasant death,” said the houshi.

  Seiki made a mental note to later ask them about how in-game death worked, but he had a bad feeling that he would experience it first-hand very soon.

  “So, you’ve got a plan?” he asked.

  Mairin nodded. “Yeah. You get the old lady. She will appear when you get in range and throw needles at you. I’ll run around and try to distract all the ittans, and Kentaro will stay back as far as possible and try to keep both of us alive.”

  Seiki hesitated.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Kentaro.

  Seiki sighed. “Uh, I don’t know about hitting an old lady.” Regardless of how silly it sounded, the code of honor had been so drilled into him that it had become part of who he was.

  A gentle expression swept across Mairin’s face. She then laughed softly and clapped him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. She’s more of a vengeful seamstress spirit who looks nothing like a real old lady.”

  “Oh, not at all,” confirmed Kentaro. “You’ll see for yourself.”

  Seiki studied the scene in front of him again. There were five Ittan-Momen. He knew how to deal with one, and perhaps even two at once, but against five he stood no chance. But then, with the help of Mairin and Kentaro, it should not be totally impossible. The problem would most certainly be the old lady spirit.

  No one was saying anything. Seiki looked at his two group members and realized they were waiting for him to make the first move.

  Taking deep breaths, his senses on high alert, Seiki walked apprehensively toward the loom. He had never been afraid of ghosts, but then he had never encountered one before in such a realistic way, and he could not help but wonder whether his attacks would actually go straight through them.

  The loom drew nearer and nearer. He could make out the details now. The top frame was partially broken and loose threads hung from it, swaying gently in the breeze like ghostly fingers. The foot pedal also gave a soft wailing creak whenever the wind hit it.

  He was starting to wonder what Mairin meant by “in range.”

  To his dark amusement, it turned out that “in range” was literally right beside the loom, close enough that he did not even have to reach to touch it. With something that sounded like a hiss, the loom suddenly started shaking violently and Seiki jumped backward as a piercing shriek filled his ears.

  In front of him, something slowly appeared, accompanied by a fair bit of faint blue smoke. At first, it did look like an old lady. But as it materialized a bit more, Seiki could see that her bony face was wider than a person’s could be and locked in a permanent expression of delirious joy, her lidless eyes wide and bulging as if about to pop out of her head, her wide mouth gaping, showing jagged teeth.

  Seiki took a step back in horror.

  “Who dares touch my loom?” she screeched, as she turned slowly to Seiki. Despite telling himself it was not real, Seiki had trouble suppressing the chills that ran down his spine.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 180/180.

  She cackled. “You, boy? Do you know what happens to people who lay their hands on my belongings?”

  Fast as lightning, her hand shot forward and something flew at him. Seiki dodged aside and the projectile ended up lodged diagonally on the ground. It turned out to be a spindle as large as his arm.

  “They die!” she screamed, throwing another spindle at him, then another. Seiki dodged again. With her relentless throws, he knew he had to keep moving. Suddenly, he heard flutters above him and realized the Ittan-Momen had joined in the battle.

  He blocked one with a quick jab from his left fist, fast enough to avoid being caught when the cloth looped around. Sounds of flapping clothes filled his ears and he felt another Ittan-Momen closing in from behind. He threw himself to one side, avoiding its lengthy noose in time. A spindle from the Old Lady swished past.

  A third Ittan-Momen swooped in, and Seiki managed to hit it with a Focused Strike. At Level 6, it was more powerful, and another one would finish it off. If only there weren’t so many of them. Amid more frenzied flutters, Seiki could feel one starting to wrap itself around his leg. He was still running and could hear spindles from the Old Lady hitting the ground around him.

  There was a burst of faint smoke and all three Ittan-Momen lifted off him. Seiki looked and
saw them going after what appeared to be a white fox. Now, Kentaro’s earlier explanation made sense: a kitsune was a fox spirit. It was Mairin.

  Seiki knew he had to take advantage of this opportunity and get close to the Old Lady, but through her endless hail of spindles, there was no opening. Gritting his teeth, he rushed in regardless. A spindle struck his right leg, and another grazed his shoulder. He was so close to her now that he could feel the chill her body was giving off. Taking his stance, he used his Focused Strike, which landed on her torso, sending a wave of cold up his arm.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 125/180.

  She screeched. “Die!” and suddenly her two hands shot out. To Seiki’s shock, they had turned into long strips of cloth. Ducking, he avoided one, but the other slapped him across his right side. His vision blurred as his health dropped to less than a third.

  Of course, elites dealt double damage, he quickly reminded himself. White sparks flew around him as the houshi’s heal landed, adding back about a third of his health. Seiki caught his breath and kicked the cloth arm.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 125/180.

  A terrible realization struck him. Her arms took no damage. He had to get close and hit her body. He ducked again to avoid another swing when he had another realization: her arms were growing longer and longer. Her right arm swooped, and Seiki had to roll out of her range.

  He took a quick glance at Mairin who, still in fox form, was running around in a large circle around the loom. She and Kentaro had managed to kill one of the Ittan-Momen already, leaving four still in pursuit.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 65/112.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 99/112.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 112/112.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 112/112.

  The spirit gave him no rest. Once he was too far away, she threw out a rain of spindles. Seiki started to realize there was no way to completely avoid them. Her arms were growing longer and longer, and a hit from them could be fatal.

  “I’ll Hinder her,” Kentaro shouted to Seiki. “She’ll be slower. Get close then. It only lasts for four seconds.”

  Seiki watched as Kentaro’s blue swirls hit the Old Lady. Four seconds was a lot of time. Seiki easily dodged her slowed cloth arms and he closed in once again. His energy had just charged and was enough for another Focused Strike. Avoiding a spindle, he leapt up and performed the move. The connection sent another wave of chill down his arm.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 70/180.

  Using the last bit of the slow advantage, Seiki also landed a kick before having to roll out of the way as her arms swung by.

  Kentaro let out a cry. One of the Ittan-Momen had abandoned the fox chase and was going after him. Within seconds, it was on top of him, trying to smother him. Kentaro swung his staff around wildly, but it only did a few points of damage. The white fox came shooting forward as she tried to get the monster off the houshi. In the fray, two Ittan-Momen caught up and began to wrap around the fox, dropping her life to less than a third.

  Seiki knew they would die if he did nothing. He turned and ran toward them. He grabbed one 52/112 Ittan-Momen from around the fox. Mairin’s magical smoke met it, ripping it in half. Kentaro had now managed to give the kitsune a bit more life and she bit one of the remaining Ittan-Momen, forcing it to let go.

  Seiki felt a jolt as a spindle struck his back. Realizing that he could not fight enemies on both sides at the same time, an idea flashed in his mind.

  “I’ll draw them away!” he cried, as he quickly took a jab at two of the Ittan-Momen, then kicked at another one. They fluttered angrily and came after him. Seiki turned and ran. Another spindle from the Old Lady missed him by an inch.

  Now that he was on the move again, he could better avoid her projectiles. He was not as fast as Mairin in fox form, but he could occasionally swipe the Ittan-Momen away as they got too close.

  White sparks surrounded him, filling up a decent portion of his missing life. He glanced and saw that Kentaro was almost out of energy. So was the white fox.

  “You can’t outrun them,” cried Kentaro. “Use your area ability.”

  Seiki blocked another attack from the closest Ittan-Momen. “My what?”

  “He doesn’t have it yet!” Mairin cried. She was suddenly back in human form. “You Hinder them. I’ll heal.”

  The Old Lady had been targeting Seiki this whole time but, at this point, she was starting to notice the other two. Seeing the Old Lady turning her attention away, Seiki dived at her. He was still a few energy points short of a special move, yet he managed to land a hard roundhouse kick. Again, the impact sent chills down his limb.

  “Die!” the Old Lady was still screaming. One of her cloth arms caught his left leg. He felt his body getting heavier as his life dipped. Her other arm swept under him, knocking him to the ground. At the same time, an Ittan-Momen dropped down around his shoulder, quickly tightening itself around his neck.

  He had been saving his Focused Strike for the Old Lady, but the situation forced it. In panic, he rolled on his back and used the special move on the Ittan-Momen that was coiled around him, ripping it apart. At this moment, Kentaro’s Hinder came swirling around the Old Lady, slowing her movement and giving Seiki four seconds of room to breathe.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 42/180.

  Seiki kicked away the spirit’s cloth arms and struggled to his feet. He felt a different kind of heal: faster and more acute than Kentaro’s, though slightly less potent. In three small bouts, his health was brought back up to more than half.

  He glanced above him. Two Ittan-Momen still remained.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 83/112.

  Ittan-Momen [Level 6]. HP 78/112.

  Seiki’s heart sank when he saw how much life they still had.

  “I’ll get one of them,” shouted Mairin. She dashed forward in fox form, leapt high and snapped at the lower Ittan-Momen. Seiki had not been hitting it, so it went after her.

  “I’ll get the last one. You deal with the old lady,” yelled Kentaro. His Hinder hit the other Ittan-Momen. It slowly wriggled in the air as it made its way toward the houshi.

  The Old Lady was showing one of the other tricks up her sleeve. Her cloth arms had grown very long and she was lashing them at the ground where Seiki was standing with such force that dust was exploding wherever they struck. As one arm hit the ground, the other swung in a wide loop, casting out spindles in every direction. Seiki had just used his Focused Strike to kill one of the Ittan-Momen and it would be a while before his energy charged back up, so he was forced to do it the hard way.

  Heart pounding, he dodged her arms and ran around the loom. He had noticed that the Old Lady never moved from her place. As long as he was dodging from side to side, there was a split second between her lashing out on the left and right of the loom.

  One glance at his group informed him that Mairin had managed to kill her Ittan-Momen and was assisting Kentaro in dealing with his. Seiki took his chance.

  Knowing that it was far better to take the spindles than her lashing cloth arms, he waited till she lashed down with her right arm. As soon as it hit the ground, Seiki leapt up and landed on it with both feet, betting on this maneuver not causing him damage.

  He felt the impact, but no life drained. Phew! The Old Lady shrieked as she tried to lift up her arm, which was now trapped under Seiki’s weight. She twisted her body and swung her left arm across the loom. Seiki had already started running up her arm, gritting his teeth as a hail of spindles shot out from her left and struck him across his right side. A single spindle wasn’t enough to endanger his life. But when a dozen of them hit at once, his HP quickly dropped below a third.

  Three fast bouts of healing landed on him, followed by blur swirls around the Old Lady, giving Seiki another precious four seconds. He jumped, connected with a forceful kick on her shoulder, and as he dropped to the ground, spun around and
threw two successive punches at her.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 1/180.

  The spirit was screaming in rage. Now that her right arm was free, she turned around and lashed the long strip of cloth at Seiki. He knew that a direct hit right now would be lethal, so he rolled over the ground and took a sweeping kick at her leg. Chill shot up his leg as his attack connected.

  Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 1/180.

  No damage? Puzzled, Seiki struck her with his knuckles. Again, nothing happened. Seiki started to panic as he saw her cloth arms swishing in from both sides, raining spindles at him. Her hoarse cackle was deafening. Mairin and Kentaro were yelling something, their heals barely keeping him alive against the volleys of spindles.

  Then he looked up and saw it.

  Haunted Loom [Level 6 Elite]. HP 50/50.

  With the last of his strength, Seiki lunged forward and connected his Focused Strike on the loom. The world was filled with an ear-splitting crack and a long scream. The old spirit spun around faster and faster, her arms high above her, waving in the violent upward wind, and she exploded into a cloud of gray dust. Seiki’s body was experiencing flashes of hot and cold sensations that he was not sure were health or damage. Then, everything was deathly silent, except for the white healing sparks now filling up his health again.

  Old Lady of the Loom slain. 80 XP gained.

  Quest completed: Old Lady of the Loom [Level 6 Elite - Group]. 80 XP gained.

  The abrupt silence felt deafening, although he could hear his heart beating against his ribs. Seiki looked around. The Old Lady had vaporized, leaving only a broken old loom in the moonlight beside him. Seiki heaved a sigh of relief. Mairin and Kentaro rushed to his side.

  “That was crazy,” said Kentaro as he helped Seiki up.

  Both him and Mairin seemed as shaken as he was.

  “What was that all about?” Kentaro wondered, giving out a soft whistle of relief, probably referring to the fact that the Old Lady had her health frozen at one point.

  Seiki understood now. It was only when the Old Lady was that low in health that he could attack the real target: the loom. He was lucky that he had a Focused Strike ready then, as normal moves would have required more time than he had.