The Laughing Swordsman

Willow continued running through the forest with Layla on her back and Apollo holding onto her arm. They were both swaying around, thus shifting Willow's balance.

In fact, she had even collided with some trees earlier, gaining some quizzical looks from her passengers.

However, as time passed, Willow collided into trees less frequently. Even when she did, they were light collisions due to the fact she shifted her balance.

Eventually, she no longer collided with the trees at all. Her movements were still quite clumsy, but she seemed to be refining it by the second.

It was almost like Willow could predict the random movements of Layla and Apollo.

She found a hint of order within chaos.

Layla noticed that whenever she rocked around, that force would be used to direct Willow towards a tree branch. It was like Layla was piloting Willow. She turned from the left and right, not that different from a joystick.

Fascinated by this, Layla became even more violent with her rocking, threatening to break Willow's spine.

As for Apollo, he was simply enjoying the ride. They were by no means going slow and even violently jerked from side to side, courtesy of Layla.

However, this was nowhere close to what Apollo had to experience in the blue world. To him, this wild ride was somehow calming.

Willow was able to keep herself steady despite the violent rocking. In fact, she was gradually getting faster.

These erratic movements caught someone's attention.

It was a little boy, shorter than even Apollo and Layla. He was wearing a blue jacket, but the sleeves were too long for his arms, drooping down. He had a hood and from underneath, his curly dark green hair stuck out. The boy's face was a pale blue and had traces of baby fat. His irises and mouth were a dark purple.

If it weren't for his strangely colored hair and face, he would simply look like a cute kid wearing a jacket that was too big for him. However, one glance at the color would immediately make most wonder what species he belonged to.

The little boy's head whipped around so he could keep his eyes on Willow. His lips parted.

"Fast..."

The little boy quickly scaled up a tree before dashing after them. It was as though he had the instincts of a dog, chasing after anything that moved.

As for Willow and the others, they didn't notice the little boy that came after them. They were simply minding their own business.

The little boy frowned.

"So... fast."

He was by no means slow, however, Willow was not only fast, but moving erratically. This made her incredibly difficult to follow.

Nonetheless, the little boy was stubborn. He moved even faster, causing his hood to fly off his head. His curly green hair danced in the air, causing the boy to panic.

The boy hurriedly put the hood back on with his sleeves, keeping both sleeves on his head to keep it there.

Willow's speed was still increasing, however, the boy's speed was accelerating even faster.

At some point, he was just a few meters behind them.

This caught Apollo's attention.

"Um, who is following us?"

Layla turned around and looked at the strange boy chasing after them. A smile blossomed on her face.

"Oh, another friend! Hehe... so many friends."

Willow's eyes flew open, though she didn't stop running forwards.

"Ah, all of my attention was put towards dashing forward."

Her brows furrowed.

"I didn't even notice we were being followed."

The boy's mouth opened, revealing sharp, but tiny teeth.

"Rah!"

Layla giggled. She grinned, showing her teeth. They were like a normal human's, the only difference being the exaggerated length of her fangs.

"Rah!~"

The boy started to growl.

"Raaaah!"

Apollo looked back and forth between the boy and Layla.

"What are you guys talking about?"

Layla's furry ears twitched.

"The friend over there wants to play!"

The corner of Willow's lip twitched.

"That doesn't seem to be the case..."

Layla smiled cheekily.

"It is the case! Just watch!"

She proceeded to turn around, but kept her legs and one arm latched onto Willow. As for her other arm, it pulled back before slowly accelerating forward.

Her strike rapidly sped up, snapping out at the last moment.

The recoil from Layla knocked the air out of Willow's lungs, but she was still able to use the force to land on a faraway branch.

As for the little boy, his figure disappeared, leaving only a puff of dark green smoke.

A thunderclap echoed throughout the forest.

Trees were uprooted while snow danced violently in the air. However, that was it.

Once the chaos died down, the boy reappeared at the place he disappeared, unscathed. Unfortunately for him, the distance had widened considerably in that short moment.

The boy's eyes narrowed before he dashed forward, growling as he went.

Willow's eyelid twitched.

"Is this what you call playing?"

Layla tilted her head to the side.

"What else could it be, silly?"

Willow sighed.

"Alright..."

The boy was much faster than last time, closing in on the group in a matter of minutes.

Apollo smiled.

"I want to play too!"

He used one hand to hold on to Willow while the other raised his bokken.

The boy was only a few meters away when Apollo swung. His thumb pressed against the hilt, suddenly speeding up.

The boy disappeared in a puff of smoke. However, he left a few drops of black blood behind.

He reappeared in the next moment, with a small cut on his face. Black blood slowly seeped out of his wound.

The boy almost immediately disappeared once Apollo's bokken swung. However, Apollo's strike was simply too fast. By the time the boy disappeared, the blade of wind had already pierced part of his face.

If he was any slower, he would've been split in half.

The boy kept one hand on his face while the other held onto his hood. He angrily stared at Apollo.

An eerie purple mist gathered around the boy.