249 A Year (2/2)
In contrast to many bandit gangs, they were a group of people with affection and loyalty for each other, and would not hold back from taking revenge against, let alone run away from, a strong opponent. Like a wounded wolf, Elder Du howled toward the heavens and became wildly ferocious as he led the mass charge toward the knight.
It was twelve versus one, with the only bystander being the little girl standing transfixed in the tall grass. The bloodshed caused by the bandits during the robbery had already petrified her. In comparison, the killing which was currently taking place in front of her eyes was relatively simple, and did not showcase any horrific scene which could rouse her from her daze.
The knight looked like he was dancing as he fought. Every action he performed, whether it be advancing, retreating, turning, or striking, was executed efficiently and seemed to have been rehearsed. The bandits also exhibited their good teamwork as they met him head-on, pursued, struck, and eventually collapsed. They seemed to be enjoying themselves as much as a dog was when chasing after a bone.
The young girl slowly comprehended the scene in front of her eyes. Instead of twelve bandits encircling a knight, it was the exact opposite. The knight would never rush into the group to hack and slash, but would rather maintain continuous movement to keep himself positioned on its periphery. Throughout this process, the bandits were always at different distances away from him, such that there was always one of them face-to-face with him alone, whom he would kill with a lightning-fast swing of his saber, while their companions were always a step too slow to rescue their brother or to catch hold of him.
The last surviving bandit was Elder Du, who was utterly oblivious to the collapse of his brothers. As he remained wholeheartedly focused on avenging his boss, his howling became increasingly monotonous. This was because there was a strong buildup of force in his heart, but he never had an opportunity to exert it upon the quick-footed knight. The buildup continued to a point when it urgently needed to be released. ”I can chop a tree as thick as the rim of a bowl,” he thought to himself right before he suffered a strike on the neck. His thoughts immediately disintegrated as silently as silk.
He happened to be standing a few steps away from the young girl, while still raising his saber, when he keeled over in a perfectly straight posture, with the tip of his saber narrowly missing her legs by several inches. Yet, she continued to remain motionless.
The knight sheathed his saber and gestured toward the young girl to cover her eyes.
Having seemed to be petrified, the young girl reacted very quickly instead at this moment. She immediately raised both hands to cover her eyes. Soon, she heard a strange whistle, and a gale which nearly knocked her off her feet arose abruptly. A puffing sound was then heard after the gale stopped. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, she made a tiny gap in her fingers and peeked outward. She was unable to close her eyes thenceforth.
A giant black bird which was a head taller than the pale-faced knight, with red feathers and eyes, was gleefully pecking on the eyeballs of the dead bandits. After every two pecks, it would make a little hop with alternate legs to express its immense joy and satisfaction.
She finally understood why the knight had covered the horse's eyes, albeit she could not bring herself to close the gap in her fingers.
The bird leaped towards Elder Du's body and ate its favorite food in two successive pecks. It then turned to face the little girl and saw through the gap in her fingers that her pupils were green in color and sparkling like a gemstone reflecting the moonlight.
Shrouded by the shadow of the giant roc, the little girl imagined that its pair of crimson eyes could shoot blazing fireballs at any time. Although she was astonished to the point that she forgot to breathe, she was not the least bit afraid. In fact, she believed that the bird was the most beautiful living thing she had ever seen, and thus slowly reached out her hand, hoping to get a touch of its body of silky smooth black feathers.
The giant roc soared up and leaped over the young girl's head, before continuing to peck on the eyeballs of the corpses. It was not an animal which would casually allow humans to touch it.
”What's its name?” The girl was completely fascinated by the giant black bird, and began asking the knight questions about it.
”It isn't a pet, and so it doesn't have a name. But some people call it the giant red-crowned roc, while others call it the Demon Bird.”
The girl nodded her head thoughtfully.
When the giant roc had eaten enough snacks for the day, it hopped towards the knight and pecked gently on his body twice before it soared high up, produced a gust of wind, and quickly disappeared into the sky.
The knight mounted his horse, and after removing its blinkers, he turned it towards the direction of the route he came from and slowly advanced forth.
After a brief hesitation, the young girl took the short saber from Elder Du's hands and used it to unshackle her slender calves. She then followed a few dozen steps behind the knight.
As the sky became darker, the black-clothed knight riding on a black horse was on the verge of blending into the night. The young girl accidentally tripped over and could no longer see where the knight was when she raised her head once again. ”Wait for me!” she cried out, but her voice disappeared into the wilderness and did not even echo.
The young girl raised the short saber and shuddered. Had she not vowed to never cry ever again, her entire face would be soaked in tears already. Nevertheless, a teardrop formed in her eye, and she had to put in all effort to prevent it from flowing down.
”Why are you following me?” a voice asked from above her. A moment or so ago, the knight had returned to her side, yet she did not even hear the clattering of the horse's hooves.
”I... my parents were murdered and I was later sold to somebody else. But I want to take revenge and hope that you can... help me.”
”I won't help anyone to take revenge when I have yet to take my own.”
”You can teach me kung fu and I'll take revenge myself.”
”I also don't teach kung fu. Killing is very simple. You have a saber in your hand, just swing it across.”
The knight departed once again.
The girl trotted and followed him closely. Based on an intuition which only children possessed and which she had not completely lost, she knew that the knight would not forsake her.
”The bird doesn't have a name, but do you?”
”I'm... called Yang Huan.” The knight provided one of his two names.
”I also have a name. I'm called...”
”I know your name.”
”You know? How?” The girl widened her eyes in surprise and nearly tripped once more.
”You take your maternal grandfather's surname Tie and your maternal grandmother's name Linglong, right?
The girl named Tie Linglong paused her footsteps, her green eyes fixed upon the knight whom she had never heard of. All of a sudden, she began to sob, flinging to the four winds her promise to never cry ever again.