The Laughing Swordsman

Apollo continued giggling to himself while hovering in the air. Bright blue lightning bolts larger than him danced around. They seemed to sprout from his bokken.

The lightning bolts dragged themselves across the ground, leaving deep black scorch marks.

Apollo's head slowly raised. A gleam passed by his eyes, as though he wanted to know who was next.

Suddenly, something flashed towards Apollo. The bright blue lightning bolts coalesced around it as though they were living creatures moving by instinct.

Yet, when they got close to this object, they suddenly rebounded away. Moments before the strange object approached Apollo, his bokken flashed.

A crisp clang rang out, sounding almost like a metal sword being sharpened.

The object's trajectory shifted. At that moment, Apollo's eyes just barely caught onto it. The strange object was actually a chunk of gold that was in the shape of a cone. It was very thin, long, and smooth. Overall, it looked incredibly sleek.

The golden spike suddenly spun around, tracing a long arc towards where it was launched. The golden spike plunged towards the ground until it was caught by someone's hand. It was a pale and elegant hand, however, there seemed to be hidden strength behind it. The hand looked as though it had never worked a day in its life.

"Haha, you have good eyes..."

A melodious voice rang out. It was as though a guitar was delicately strummed, letting out the notes of a soothing love song.

The owner of this voice was a young man with neat brown hair and sky blue eyes. A subtle smug smile was on his face. He stood there casually, as though he were in his own backyard.

He had high cheekbones and slightly sunken cheeks. Despite the arrogance his face exuded, there was a strange beauty one could not deny.

The man was wearing a black suit that accentuated his shoulders. He had a suit lined with gold and engraved with various patterns that lightly resembled leaves one would find in nature. The most noticeable pattern was four golden hours that came together to look like a crown.

The man twirled the golden spike in his hand and slammed the end on the ground, letting out a clear tap. Except, instead of a golden spike, it was a golden cane. The transition was so sudden, the average person would only realize this change after the transformation already happened.

The head of the cane was in the shape of a cobra. The man's fingers rested comfortably on the cobra head, gently caressing it. It was as though the man did not see a cobra, but a cute puppy.

The man's sharp eyes inspected Apollo in the distance, who was hovering in the air. The corner of his lip turned up confidently.

"Let me introduce myself."

The man held his arm near his waist and bowed formally. Yet, despite the apparent respect, it somehow seemed mocking. Then he slowly stood up straight once again, raising an eyebrow provocatively.

"I am known as Kylan Noia. The first prince of the Obrad Empire and one of the twenty-five giants."

Apollo steadily turned his head towards Kylan. He did so wordlessly, as though he were a wolf, unhurriedly stalking his prey.

At that moment, someone appeared next to Kylan.

"Wah! Are you we both know you? We've been looking for you all this time!"

Kylan's head snapped to the side.

He saw a little girl with long purple hair staring at him. The two green beady eyes were filled with excitement, akin to a child that found a cookie.

It was Layla.

Her tail swayed enthusiastically, letting out soft jingles in the air. She would also tilt her head from one side to the other every few seconds. That made the bell on her collar jingle as well.

But despite the sounds those bells seemingly made, Kylan did not notice Layla until she was right next to him.

Kylan's eyes narrowed while the grip on his golden cane became tighter.

Who the hell was that girl and how did she get there?

Despite Layla's innocent look and overly friendly way of speech, Kylan's guard immediately shot up. After all, he was not an idiot.

The empire was under attack, and someone was able to sneak up on him easily. It was rather simple to connect the dots.

However... Kylan decided to try something. A friendly, yet empty smile appeared on his face. He waved casually, as though Layla was an old friend.

"Hello there. You said you've been looking for me? May I know what for?"

Layla giggled and clasped her hands together. Her furry ears twitched, filled with energy.

"To play! After we play I can get the super cool elixir!"

Layla raised her hands in the air while her tail swayed enthusiastically.

As for Kylan, the smile on his face twitched. For some reason, when Layla said 'play', an ominous feeling rose in his heart. He did not say another word.

Instead of agreeing, he slammed his golden cane on the ground. A sharp snap resounded throughout the city, while the cobblestone path under Kylan cracked.

Layla tilted her head to the side. She curiously looked at the small hole Kylan made in the ground.

"...Is friend trying to play with the floor?"

Kylan laughed with a mocking undertone. He touched the bottom of his lip with his forefinger and middle finger.

"I wouldn't exactly call it playing..."

Suddenly, a massive golden square pillar shot out from the ground, sending Kylan high into the sky.

"...but it isn't too different."

Countless other golden square pillars shot out around the original. Some were close to the size of the original, while others had the thickness of a rubix cube.

Layla was brought up as well by the other golden pillars. However, the unstable footing made Layla wave her hands wildly in the air in an attempt to balance. Unfortunately, she ended up tripping and falling down.

Kylan let out a small sigh.

"Now.... let's begin."