The Laughing Swordsman

Only at the very edges of Lena's clothes could the ends of black veins be seen. They pulsated ever so slightly, as though it was in no rush.

Nonetheless, Lena was in a dire situation. Part of the transformation had already taken over her body.

Yet, she didn't seem to notice.

Talon rushed over.

"Sister, your body!"

He grabbed her arm and pulled back the sleeve. There were countless bulging black veins spread across her arm. It was hard to even find a tiny patch of normal skin, especially closer to her shoulder.

Lena smiled bitterly.

"Brother, I haven't cleaned the table yet. Can we talk about whatever it is afterwards?"

She proceeded to dust the table with her other hand. It was as though she couldn't care less that a patch of black flesh had essentially consumed half her body.

Talon furrowed his brows.

"There's no time for that! We have to leave this city. But more importantly..."

He gently brushed the top of one of Lena's black veins.

"...we have to stop this."

Lena tilted her head to the side.

"Stop what?"

Talon frowned.

"Don't you see? Some black flesh is trying to take over your body!"

Lena smiled bitterly.

"Oh, brother. You are making a big deal out of nothing."

Talon blinked a few times in confusion.

"How is this nothing? Quickly, we have to do something, anything!"

Lena rolled her eyes.

"Just look at your own body. Something similar is happening, no?"

Talon shook his head.

"This is happening to me because I can fully control whatever this black flesh is. If I didn't, then it would've stolen my body from me!"

Lena laughed.

"Brother... all I need to do is endure and it will be fine."

Talon was getting a little exasperated.

"What do you mean? I've overpowered the black flesh, so you can do the same!"

Lena waved her hand dismissively.

"And I've already done the same. Can't you see, brother?"

Talon fell silent, pondering over the situation for a moment.

It seemed his sister really did find some way to at least suppress it, else she would've turned into the black beings like everyone else.

Talon sucked in a deep breath.

"Can you... control it?"

Lena shook her head.

"No."

Talon reached towards his sister.

"Then-"

"Brother."

Lena cut him off. She raised a hand and made a stopping gesture, but did not stop her dusting.

"Trust me on this, ok?"

Talon looked down at the floor.

"I... I just don't understand."

Lena chuckled.

"While you have learned how to stand up against the pain, I learned how to endure it silently."

Talon blinked a few times.

"What? But you were just trained to be a maid, right?"

Lena let out a soft sigh.

"And in being a maid, I learned what it meant to smile through the pain."

Talon found it hard to gather the words.

"...What did mother do to you?"

Lena shook her head.

"That is not important. Just know, the moment I decide to resist the black flesh, it will devour me."

Talon's jaw dropped slightly.

"O-Oh..."

Lena sighed.

"Anyways, I need to finish cleaning your room."

Talon shook his head.

"No... we can't stay here anymore."

Lena tilted her head to the side.

"What do you mean?"

Talon grit his teeth.

"There is no longer a place for us here, or any of the townsfolk for that matter. The giants have decided it is better to transform everybody into monsters to fight against some intruders."

Lena smiled.

"Just because things get a little worse, doesn't mean we have to run."

Talon shook his head.

"This is more than just a little worse. The entire empire is essentially discarded! The only thing left here are enemies, as the giants have fallen out with everybody else in this empire, including you and me!"

Lena raised an eyebrow.

"But you are a giant, no?"

Talon clenched his fists.

"...No, not a real one, anyway. I can trust that you will be fine, but you have to trust me on this."

He looked at his sister dead in the eye.

"We have to get out of here."

Lena sighed, letting a helpless smile form on her face.

"Alright brother, I suppose we can flee."

Talon nodded.

"Thank you."

He grabbed his sister's hand.

"We must be quick."

With that, Talon bolted out of the room, essentially dragging his sister along with him.

...

Apollo hovered high in the sky and raised his bokken defiantly. Arcs of lightning formed across his body before snaking towards his blade.

It would've looked a little better if Layla wasn't trying to grab at the arcs of lightning like it was a slippery fish.

Regardless, when she noticed Apollo began swinging his sword down, she hurriedly wrapped her hands around his. A few arcs of lightning snaked down both of their hands.

Apollo's bokken shone brightly, almost as though it was a second sun.

And like that, a blinding light plunged down towards a giant reformed being. It was as though a comet came down for the earth.

An earth-shaking explosion resounded.

A nasty and needlessly violent cut had formed down the middle of the giant reformed being. Before the two halves could fall to the ground, they dissipated into black flakes.

As for Apollo, his landing made a massive crater. He was almost crushed by Layla's weight. He fell to one knee, but held himself up with his free hand.

Layla's increased weight gradually disappeared. After a few moments, Apollo stood up effortlessly before taking to the skies once more.

Like this, Apollo and Layla had worked together to take care of several giant reformed beings.

Apollo found out he could directly take care of them with a single strike if Layla decided to help him.

As such, he flew up high into the air, where the giant reformed beings couldn't touch him. From there, he could directly slash them apart, while the beings were helpless to do anything about it.

However, stronger beings were forming.