Light bathed the room enough for Kuro to see the whole situation. The stranger with strikingly similar raven-like dark hair clashed with Chomper. Each attack that the hound attempted was met with shards of metal being sliced as easily as a knife through butter. Kuro’s eyes stopped in the corner where there lay a woman he'd seen a million times. His stomach turned at the sight of her unconscious state, but luckily she didn’t look too hurt. Kuro’s relief had to be cut short as he couldn’t risk being identified here. With nothing on hand, he pulled his hood over his head hoping the shadows would be enough to conceal his face.

"Sera… What are you doing here?" Kuro mumbled. “And with him of all people…”

Chomper was covered in broken edges with barely able to keep his weight above his paws. He wielded a shattered sword in his jaws in an attempt to parry the shining blade. Each blow upon the blade shaved Chomper's sword until it was no more. The hero saw victory in hand and prepared one final swing that would be all he needed to take the hound down.

Kuro rushed in with no plan in mind but to get between the two combatants.

"Get away!" Kuro roared leaping into the air.

A solid tackle to the Hero's abdomen gave Chomper enough space to limp away. Before the two could hit the ground, Kuro sprang up ready for what came next. He could not give the swordsman the range to swing his weapon. Kuro shot out a punch aimed directly square into his opponent's chest, but before the blow could land energy surged out from the blade forming an aura that threw Kuro back.

"That was too close for comfort! Not bad for an NPC humanoid mob!" The swordsman remarked.

“What did you just call me!?” Kuro barked back. “En pee see? I don’t know what that is, but it sounded insulting!”

The distance was deadly. Fighting someone with a sword while unarmed was difficult but this was no ordinary blade. The holy sword radiated with a golden menace as Kuro swallowed his nerves. He knew he needed some sort of weapon, but Kuro’s was eaten like a snack.

“Snack…” Kuro thought. “That’s it!”

Kuro examined the room. The light from the sword made it easy to find his target in the darkness and to his luck, it was exactly where he expected. It was his only hope, but a gambled one.

“What’s the matter demon? Is that all you’ve got? Stop running around and I’ll make you pay for what your pet did to Sera!” the swordsman declared.

“And what about you? I’d say you’re guilty of animal abuse! You’re the one that came in here, weapon swinging!” Kuro retorted.

Kuro felt like a hypocrite accusing the swordsman, but his words ignited a fire in Kuro’s heart. The Hero stood in the place where Kuro was supposed to be and fought for who he was supposed to fight for. Sera was precious to him, and it stung Kuro’s heart to see the one she chose over him now protecting everything he held dear. In a dash, Kuro made for the dark pole that withstood Chomper’s fangs with the swordsman in pursuit. The gap closed between the two and he pulled the blade back to gain more power for his swing.

Whoosh

A golden arc cut through the air and only air as Kuro stayed beyond the blade’s reach. The pole was at Kuro’s feet, but there was no room to pick it up. Two more swings went wild as Kuro’s nimble footwork revealed the gap in skill between the two. One more misplaced attack gave Kuro the room to launch a punch to drive the swordsman away. It landed square on his chin but a familiar strange sensation on Kuro’s knuckles made the otherwise clean blow feel dirty. The swordsman was pushed back and steadied the blade once more ready to engage.

“Whatever magic you’re using feels like cheating,” Kuro complained as he kicked the pole up to his hands. “Good thing your swordplay sucks!”

“You haven’t seen anything yet!” The swordsman retorted.

His holy sword waved in the air and ignited. Crackling sparks of magical energy surrounded the blade as its glow spread around the swordsman. He pulled the handle to his cheek while the blade aimed directly at Kuro. A flash of light pushed the swordsman forward into a charge with his sword at the ready for a mighty blow. Kuro in a similar stance held the pole aimed at his target and moved to meet his target. Range was in Kuro’s favor as the two weapons clashed allowing him to parry the blade’s slash with his weapon’s tip. A blast of magical energy took Kuro’s breath away as it cleaved the ground in the path of the sword’s slash.
“I’m just getting started, demon!” The swordsman yelled while their weapons clashed.

A quick glance at the destruction behind him made Kuro’s heart skip a beat. Down to his very soul, Kuro’s instincts yelled at him to avoid his certain death. Slash after slash his opponent was on an indiscriminate rampage of attacks. Each one, Kuro led away from him at a hair’s breadth right before they unleashed a stream of light. Unease grew with each parry as the swordsman’s movement got sharper with each cut he made toward Kuro.

“You’ve got to be kidding me, he’s getting better and better by the moment. The holy blade is way too strong,” Kuro complained in his head.

CLANG!

Deadlock. Kuro was caught. The sword radiated with power against the dark pole in his hands. This was the end of the line. Both warriors held their ground against the other. A single second of weakness meant certain death for Kuro. Sweat ran down his cheek.

“To think that my end would come from the very sword I dreamed to wield.” Kuro thought. “I hope Chomper got away at least.”

The swordsman’s aura was ablaze and he was drawn to the blade. His weapon grew heavier on Kuro’s forcing him to draw every bit of strength he could muster. One last mutual push broke the clash from both ends. Kuro swung his weapon to match the swordsman for one final strike.

Whoosh! Crackle!

A shadow flew past Kuro before either of them made contact. Bolts of lightning soared through the air before the shaft of an arrow stuck out of the swordsman’s shoulder before he fell to the ground. He groaned with pain as the light left his eyes. The sword he wielded was on the ground next to him while he shuddered on the ground with each bolt. The lights shined above Kuro as Milly emerged from the stairway holding a bow with an arrow trained at the intruder. She released the tension away from the arrow and ran towards an exhausted Kuro.

“That’s what you get for hurting my puppy!” Milly cried.

She pulled out a small black box from her coat. From its end lightning danced from two metal prongs before she put it in his back. He tensed up once more before falling unconscious. Milly knelt down to check for a breath as she sighed.

“He’s fine. Help me carry these two out. You move this dummy,” Milly ordered.

Kuro nodded as she moved to pull Sera out of the doorway she leaned by. A few bumps and bruises on her showed that Chomper only bit into the steel she wore. The holy sword sat on the cobblestone floor ripe for the taking. Kuro couldn’t help trying to take the sword, but this time it felt even heavier than before, stinging his hands even worse than the last time. He sighed, then using the Hero’s hand to grab onto the weapon he was finally able to move it.
“Well, that’s just ridiculous. Why did that work?” Kuro complained.

In the forest clearing among the ruins, Kuro met up with Milly who just finished leaving Sera somewhere safe.

“Grab Chomper’s stick, I need to get a few things,” Milly sighed.

“Oh, okay. Take your time,” Kuro replied.

The two returned to the tower while Milly scurried up the stairs. Kuro stood in the center of the room holding the pole and gazing at the lights from above. He stood there amazed at the sight of the handmade stars twinkling above him. A few moments passed before Milly’s figure emerged from the stairwell. On her back was a large pack that stood above her and clattered with each step. She pulled Kuro by the arm insisting that he followed her out as she walked without a word. Without protest, Kuro followed the girl as her hair bobbed with each step. Her pace was quick and before he knew it, Kuro followed her to the forest’s edge.

BOOM!

Kuro turned back while he was still being dragged away. The windmill that was turning at the top fell as the top level of the tower collapsed in on itself. The stonework fell apart piece by piece until it matched the ruins that surrounded it. Kuro turned back to the girl who only marched forward but wore a face that was holding back tears.

“So… Do you want the job or not?” Milly whimpered.