Musou Knight: Crow of Cinders-Chapter 82: A Bully

Chapter 82 - A Bully

He thrust. My halberd turned, deflecting the spear with a resounding clank. The impact rattled my arms, but my opponent faltered. My parry swung toward his shoulder while my halberd screeched against his spear shaft, sending sparks flying.

The borrowed horse stumbled, nearly throwing me off. I tightened my grip and forced myself to stay seated. For real, my stamina was the real enemy here, not the rider, not even the horse.

The student roared, unleashing musou attacks. His spear jabbed in rapid succession. Each strike glowed faint red. That warning told me I couldn’t parry them.

With the strength of my core, I tilted my body, leaning to the side of the horse. His jabs pierced nothing but air.

While I was off balance, my horse slowed, letting him surge ahead. Shifting my weight, I pulled myself upright again.

"W-What?!"

His eyes widened as I closed in behind him. He clearly hadn’t learned the "Dog Fight" tactic in horseback battles. Well, I had.

My halberd swung for his back, crushing leather armor and biting into flesh.

Being cut down, he toppled from his horse, rolling across the ground. His mount stopped and neighed, almost stepping on its master.

My horse didn’t wait. He leapt over the fallen student and kept galloping.

I sighed, resting the halberd on my shoulder. "Choose a better lord, dumbass." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Freed from pursuit, I pulled the reins. The old horse snorted as though it was relieved, slowing to a near halt.

Should I go back and claim loot?

Nah. Killing too many aristocrat kids would draw unwanted noble attention. Surviving under the eyes of Louis Zen and Sylveria was already hard enough. Provoking more enemies would be dumb.

I regretted losing my cool against Minz earlier. Should’ve kept it quiet.

Oh well. Irreversible now.

I stopped overthinking and focused on the path ahead.

The forest track was wide enough for a modern car, but thickets crowded the roadside.

SQUEEZE.

My horse flinched, stepping on something squishy. He froze. I looked down.

Dead squirrels littered the road.

The horse reared in panic, raising front hooves. My butt clenched hard, and my legs gripped the saddle. When he landed back on four feet, my balls sent pain signal to my brain. I sat there for several seconds, gritting my teeth.

Riding an unfamiliar horse was brutal on my body. My nuts screamed for mercy. My quads burned, and my inner thighs ached. Spare me.

While resting, I gazed ahead. The road was covered in black feathers, scattered among small dead animals.

Perched on the trees above were black birds.

Ravens.

They were bigger than Cow-Cow before he stole my food. Their necks looked fluffier, but their eyes... were red.

Their eyes weren’t supposed to be red.

Anomaly.

I recalled Lenitia’s advice. Pulling out the three maps, I scanned for clues. Two landmarks matched: a bird statue, and a tree with black birds perched atop.

I clicked my tongue. Too many trees, too many ravens. I had the urge to dismount and investigate, but I remembered her advice not to waste my time dismounting.

Man, at a time like this, I wished Lenitia was here. Her insight as a former huntress would have been useful.

Wait.

There had to be a trick.

I exhaled deeply, listening to the voices of nature while my eyes swept through thickets, trees, and distant bushes.

Seven trees were occupied by ravens. They never flew away or changed locations, simply sitting still like statues. However, their heads turned, and their eyes blinked. They were definitely alive.

Welp. No helping it. I had to keep moving. I urged my horse forward, but he refused.

Looking down, I saw the reason.

A decayed body lay across the path. Most of its flesh had decomposed or been consumed. The area was overrun with white worms, and they spilled out onto the ground.

Yikes.

Oh well. I should just burn everything.

I touched the corpse with my halberd, channeling musou energy. The blade ignited, and flames spread across dry leaves, feathers, worms, and carcasses. As commanded, the fire avoided my horse.

Yet the old beast panicked anyway, thrashing and leaping over the burning ground.

It got so dangerous for both of us. I let go of the reins, freeing him. He bolted back toward the starting point and ejected me. I jumped off and landed on the ground, looking at the fleeing uma... I mean horse.

Ah, crap. I had done it.

I got dismounted. I might have failed this test.

Haiya.

I turned toward the ravens and the trees. This was their fault.

Stomping across the burning ground, I approached one of the trees. White smoke spilled from my nose, gasoline filled my mouth. I was ready to scorch the place.

But when I touched the trunk, the entire tree turned white and transformed into a tall jar.

"Huh?"

A tall vase?

I almost dropped my halberd, then hugged it tight. It had been a long time since I’d last seen one.

My first thought was to smash it right away, but then I remembered—I hadn’t prepared any container to haul a fresh roasted turkey or a whole roasted pig. Worse, if a giant jar of wine appeared, I’d have no way to carry it while juggling a halberd and the black mist sword.

I peeked inside the vase. A metal token rested within.

Number 5.

How did I know the number? How did I read the local language? Dunno. I forgot how.

Pocketing the token, I slung the tall vase over my shoulder. Only a fool would abandon a precious food-spawner.

While carrying it, I turned to the other trees. Could they spawn vases and tokens for the other students? If so... could I be a dick and steal them all?

I cackled. Easy choice.

I touched another raven tree. As expected, it transformed into another tall vase. Inside was another token, having the same number as mine.

Hehehe.

Ah, it felt good being a bully.

I broke the vase on my shoulder and the one in front of me on the spot. As for the tokens, I kept everything.