A/N 12,000 words. Yes. Really. I swear the next few chapters will be shorter. Anyways enjoy.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

Farming, talking about everyday topics like wondering what the weather was like, organising supplies, giving out supplies, rehearsing their impressions of the originals and of course, tending to the injured.

Well... "injured" was probably too strong of a word to use.

"No!" A Zeno fake yelled out as he crossed his arms and continued laying down on the mat.

The Aria and Yukari fake who had been "attending" to him the past few days were pleading with him, asking him to move so that someone else could take the mat. There wasn't enough for everyone so the mats were usually reserved for the sick and injured.

"NO! I still have a really, really bad headache!" He complained stubbornly.

He angrily tossed and turned on the mat. The Aria and Yukari fake didn't dare put their hands near that temper tantrum.

"What is the matter here?"

Immediately upon seeing which Lily fake had said that, the Zeno fake perked up with an excited smile as if he wasn't throwing a tantrum just seconds ago.

It was the Samurai and Lily4339.

Zeno sat up and exclaimed, "Samurai!"

Everyone looked at him. Realising that he was meant to be having a "really bad headache", he instantly laid back down and began groaning in 'intense pain'. "Owww! Samurai! Help!"

The Samurai looked at the Aria and Yukari fake who were both giving her 'that look'.

She walked up to where he laid and knelt down to him, "Zeno please... I need you move for someone else."

"WHAT!?" He looked up at the Samurai, his eyes were already beginning to tear up, he acted as if he was just betrayed, "But! But! My headache! It still hurts!"

Oh no. The Samurai was strong but not strong enough to resist the pleads and cries of her people, no matter how selfish it was for.

"Zeno..."

"NO! I DON'T WANT TO!"

Everyone else looked at each other. Pulling him out would cause a huge commotion and bother the others so they weren't sure what else to do.

The Samurai sighed.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

"Samurai?"

"Yes?"

"He... he's faking it isn't he?" While it was true that he was originally injured, it was nothing severe and should've healed days ago. Yet the fake remained adamant that he was still hurt and needed to be attended to.

"Correct."

"I think they just wants your attention." Lili felt slightly hypocritical for saying that. Only slightly. She would never do something like that.

"Most likely yes. But he is barley three months old..."

"I know... But he still should know better."

It was obvious that Zeno fake had realised that injured fakes got to talk with the Samurai a lot more than those who weren't injured. Or perhaps they simply liked the life of having others take care of all their needs for them.

Lili took one look around the 'injured' area. He certainly wasn't the only one.

There was really only one temporary solution they had to this. In secret, they marked several areas as the "injured-not injured" sections where they transferred all the people pretending to be hurt, so that the actual injured people could get more attention. But they still had to have people 'take care' of the ones pretending in case they got suspicious.

Of course, the Samurai could simply force them to leave. That would've been a much more simpler solution. But she didn't have the heart to do that so that was what they resorted to doing.

"It is indeed very troublesome behaviour..." The Samurai continued, "however, I very much prefer they pretend to be hurt rather than deliberately hurting themselves to be there. We... had a few people do that in the past."

At least, that's what she told herself.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

"This is-"

"One of the other secret exits, yes." Answered the Samurai.

Lily could tell because when walking past she felt a small breath of hot wind fly through her. They had placed a torch at the entrance but from there, it was an upward dark tunnel that lead to who knows where in the surface. She looked around and noticed that there was barely anyone here.

"And everyone is aware of them?" She asked.

"Yes. But no one uses them besides me and-"

"Those Arthur hunters?"

"Yes."

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

Being someone who followed her around, the Samurai and Lily had many different conversations. Lately they would often talk about Julie and about what she might be doing right now. The topic of Julie's mother also came up again. It seemed that even without Julie present, they would always end up talking about her mama, Lily joked. This eventually led the Samurai to say:

"I actually have a daughter myself."

It was common for fakes to start referring to each other as family such as brother or sister so Lily didn't think much of that.

Noticing that the Samurai didn't use past tense, Lili asked, "Do you know where she is?"

"No. I do not."

"Aren't you worried about her?"

"Yes, but not for the reason you are thinking. She is more than capable of taking care of herself, believe me."

"But don't you want to see her again?"

"..." The Samurai stopped for a moment, she looked down at the rocky ground intently for a moment before saying, "I... am not ready to face her again... not yet, at least."

Lily didn't want to seem like she was prying into personal business, so she didn't question it any further out of respect.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

"You don't have to follow me in there." The Samurai said to Lily as they were about to enter the 'real' injured area.

To be honest, Lily often threw up in private after visiting these areas of the underground caves. By now she had lived here for a long while but even so, the sights she saw in that area would often still be too much for her stomach to handle.

Regardless, she puffed up her chest and nodded.

The Samurai smiled and said what she always said each time they entered this area, "Just know you can leave whenever you want."

Most had missing limbs. Permanent scars from burns. Green and purple infected wounds. Broken bones that left them immobile. The smell of flesh rotted the air here.

Their routine began which mainly involved replaced bloody bandages that made Lily's hands shake, feeding them and applying the limited medical supplies that the Samurai had found in the surface. Some of which included healing items dropped from certain monsters.

Their eyes. Oh god their eyes, Lily thought to herself. They were devoid of any positive emotion as if the very meaning of their life had been sucked away from them. Some didn't have eyes.

Both Lily fakes were attending this one Elizabeth fake in particular who, in the past, had both of her legs cut off by a slave owner.

She laid there on the mat, clutching a hard, sharp rock in her arms.

The Samurai eyed the sharp rock carefully. Slowly and gently, the Samurai reached for the sharp rock with the intent of taking it away from her.

Her fingers only managed to graze the rock before the Elizabeth fake immediately began clutching the rock closer to her as hard as she could. She glared at the Samurai with deranged and hysterical eyes, her breathing escalating to an insane degree.

"Elizabeth, please... You're safe here."

Elizabeth said nothing but she refused to let go of the sharp rock.

The Samurai could've ripped it out of her hands. But this Elizabeth fake had placed all her comfort within this sharp rock for all the wrong reasons. She had tried before and it caused a loud panic attack which managed to trigger the others to also do the same like some sort of chain reaction.

As they finished their final task and exited the area, Lily asked, "Samurai, she... that rock... she wouldn't actually do that to herself right?"

"... That... Depends."

The pair walked away in silence as the thought lingered through minds. They have had some people cut themselves which in turn, required more bandages to use but so far, nothing as serious as...

"Has anyone... done it?"

"No. Not-" The Samurai stopped herself but not in time for Lily to guess correctly that she was about to say 'not yet'.

It didn't surprise her. Unfortunately, it was a possibility. After all... there are fates worse than death out there. Especially for all the female fakes.

That Elizabeth fake, the one clinging to that rock with the sharpest part pointed at her neck... she wasn't the only one who had that idea in their heads.

"I'll be visiting them again tomorrow, you sure you want to come?" The Samurai asked.

Lily nodded. If she was going to follow the Samurai wherever she goes, she would have to get use to it one way or another.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

It was a day just like any other.

Spread across the main, large open area were Aria fakes chatting and critiquing each other's wings, Yukari fakes trying to resurrect a dead worm, Elizabeth fakes fanning their wooden fans that barely gave any wind, Eve fakes sitting around trying not to blink their eyes to appear creepy but failing, Zeno fakes running across the caves like ninjas, Jack fakes pretending to shoot at a wall with their wooden handguns that had no ammo, Lily fakes punching the air, and Arthur fakes making cool poses with their wooden sword and shields.

The night plum fields that were growing in the dark corners of the cave were going smoothly. The only minor issue would be that harvesting in the dark can lead to a few plums getting stepped on here and there. Because of that, they had recently installed rope and small wooden stakes to make it easier for the farmers.

The plums were a slow but significant step towards being a more self sufficient community rather than just relying on the Samurai's hunts. Bringing the soil here was indeed one of the more troublesome task the Samurai had to do but it was so worth it in the end. It was one of the few plants that could actually grow without any sunlight so they were quite fortunate that the Samurai managed to find some seeds for it as well. The plum fields had thankfully lessen the Samurai's work load, slightly but it "made all the difference" the Samurai would say. The taste that made everyone wince was naturally a different story but most people dealt with it. Hunger always comes first after all.

There were also fakes trying to make miniature wooden huts like they had done before, however, the Samurai was currently in the injured area and without her assistance, their progress was incredibly slow. Slow yet it gave them something to do as they chat. Something to bond over while also making them feel useful. It gave them a purpose. That was what mattered in the Samurai's eyes.

Many fakes also helped cook the monster meat that the samurai provided, all around the large bomb-fire they had made as well as many smaller, persoanl campfires for the smaller groups.

Casual clamour filled the caves as usual. A group of fakes had gathered in the main area near the main exit to chat as they usually would.

"I heard it's actually not good to make large fires in an underground cave."

"Really?"

"Yeah apparently it can cause damage to ordinary caves and there's also other scientific problems I heard that I didn't really understand so I'm not actually sure."

"Well this isn't really an ordinary cave anyway."

"Yeah! This place used to be a monster nest right?"

"Apparently the walls used to move on their own."

"Oooh really? That's creepy."

"Used to be filled with ghost rats I believe... before the Samurai wiped them all out of course."

"Wow."

"I know right."

"The Samurai sure is amazing."

They all hummed in agreement.

"How's the building going by the way?"

They went quiet, smiling awkwardly.

They all looked at the nearby huts. To call them huts, however, would be a bit too generous.

They started laughing. Compared to the first one that the Samurai build as a trail test, the ones they were making looked like abandoned drafts.

"You'll get there one day." One of them giggled.

"Haha, you think?"

"No I was joking."

"Oi! I would love to see you try."

The banter caused a small uproar of more laughing.

"It's a lot harder than it looks, you know."

"I know, I know, I'm just messing with you."

"Soon we'll have an entire town in here!"

One of them chuckled in response, "I think we'll need bit more space for a town."

"And probably another two decades."

"Yeah but still, can you imagine-"

A foot stepped into the cave. There was nothing particularly loud about this footstep but once one or two people noticed, it caused a chain reaction that caught everyone's attention and before long, they were all staring. Someone had appeared from the main entrance, he was a fake just like them. But it was odd sight since only the Samurai used that entrance. What was even more unusual, was the fake's appearance. He had bruises, cuts, wounds all over him. His body was shaking and his clothes were torn beyond recognition.

He was an Arthur fake and everyone knew that number on his cheek. He was one of the "four Arthur hunters".

"Arthur, what happened?" A Yukari fake called out gently, "Where are the others?"

His body was still shaking and his wide open eyes stared back at everyone.

He began to cry, "Everyone, I... I... I'M SO SORRY! I-"

Then, at that moment, a sword from behind was plunged straight through Arthur's chest.

His body twitched and convulsed, blood spilling from his mouth, his eyes stretching outward. Then he stopped moving all together.

Everyone's expression remained the same as if what they saw hadn't fully registered in their minds. Filling themselves with countless incredulous thoughts as if believing that they were just all having the same nightmare.

It was meant to be a day just like any other.

The person who murdered Arthur in front of them... was a human. Even worse, he wore the armour of a solider. Everyone knew that armour very well. He belonged to the same soldiers who have been hunting every fake in the world ever since they came into existence.

"Well, well, well! WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE! A NEST OF FILTHY DEMONS!" The solider bellowed for the entire cave to hear, "Quite the infestations we have on our hands!"

Upon hearing a voice that they had never heard before, their thoughts and fears were finally settling in.

The solider was tall, built and dangerously armed. He had the hugest wicked grin on his face which on its own, was enough to send inner panic attacks. But regardless, they all remained silent, slowly backing away step by step as if convinced that the solider could shoot them at any moment despite only having a sword. While most were completely frozen, one fake in the back immediately began sprinting deeper into the caves towards the area were all the injured fakes were.

"Tell me, you demons! Where is this "Samurai" that I have heard so much about?!"

No one answered.

"Anyone?!" The solider took a sudden step forward with the clear intention of jump-scaring the fakes which worked, "Aww, come on. I would love to meet this 'saviour' of yours..."

Still no response. No screams. No cries. Nothing. Just silent trembling as they backed away, step by step.

"BAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH!" The solider laughed like a deranged hunter, "I guess it doesn't matter. ALL OF YOU ARE DOOMED EITHER WAY!"

The solider eyed the Elizabeth and Aria fakes with a thirsty glare, gulping hungrily with an even wider grin. He raised a certain amount of fingers, "Because, there are three- yes, three..."

After hearing what he had to say next, everyone stopped backing away and froze.

"THREE GENERALS! THAT'S RIGHT! THREE GENERALS ARE ON THEIR WAY HERE RIGHT NOW! BAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! YOUR SAMURAI WON'T STAND A CHANCE!"

Many fell to the knees with quiet tears. There were others who began having actual panic attacks out loud. Seeing all the hope get suck out of their eyes filled the solider with immense, endless euphoria. He laughed and laughed as panic spread across the community.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

On the surface of the dessert, there was a moderately sized army of which consisted for soldiers in armour with swords and shield, archers dressed in lighter armour, mages dressed in red robes and a few healers holding staffs, all marching on foot. Many soldiers were slouching while the mages grumbled as they were sweating profusely in their robes under the clear sky where the hot sun flew. They were lead by three individuals riding on camels. The three individuals wore the same themed jacket.

Riding in middle was a young man with short black hair and beneath the jacket, he wore light, silver armour. He had two floating swords by his side and he looked incredibly upset.

General Ennard: The Sword Bringer

On the left side of Ennard was a much slimmer man. He wore the same jacket as Ennard but the rest of his attire couldn't be any more different. The pattern of his shirt was made to mimic the scales of a snake and in his hand, he fiddled with a shiny purple dagger. "HAHAHA! You don't very happy Ennard! I mean did you seriously think every general was going to show up just to clear out a mere camp of fakes."

General Venom: The Slithering Apothecary

"Don't tell me you're scaaaared?" Venom taunted.

"Silence, imbecile!" Ennard glared. He clearly did not think highly of Venom, "I will personally deal with you if you speak again!"

"That's enough Ennard." Said the other general on the right.

The general on the right was almost two times the size of Ennard and Venom combined. To suit his size, the jacket he wore was naturally much bigger than the others. Enhanced by skills, his muscle were built to an insane size and were wrapped in this thing metal-like substance. An armour that he had earned through completing a dungeon.

General Bane: The Gravity Tank

"You should be grateful that the two of us showed up at all. Clearing fake camps is usually a one general job." Bane continued.

"Exactly, you're quite lucky you know! If all my Elizabeth toys weren't broken, I wouldn't have bothered coming to this tiresome desert." Venon said as he licked his dagger, his tongue was unusually long and managed to wrap around the whole dagger, just barely caressing it. At the same time, he shoved his hand down his pants as his mind began fantasying.

"You disgust me." If Bane wasn't there, Ennard might've killed him right there, "This time is different, they have-"

"A fake with a different skill tree, yeah, yeah, you told us already." Venom interrupted with a casual yet rude hand gesture as if he was brushing it to the side. He seemed way more interested in increasing his Elizabeth collection.

"THIS IS SERIOUS VENOM!" Ennard yelled back.

"You mentioned a Lili fake with a Samurai class rather than a Brawler like the original correct? That does fascinate me hence why I came," Said Bane, "but skill resets makes you weaker than a child. There is no way she's grown strong to verse even one of us in the time that fakes have existed. You're just being too paranoid."

"I'm sure the scout I sent is already having a blast in there already! HAHAHAHA!" Venom laughed, "one solider could kill every single one of them if you gave them enough time."

"Tch!" Ennard scowled but said nothing else. If he was just being paranoid then that would've been the ideal situation. And yet the last words of that one Arthur fake he killed. They stuck with him ever since leaving the camp.

He then heard the faint noise of someone yawning behind him. He immediately turned around and yelled, "Who was that?!"

The soldiers in the front stood up straight as soon as Ennard turned around but it was still clear that their inner thoughts were filled with complaints. Having to travel this far into a desert while carrying heavy equipment put all of them in a nasty mood, however, the glare of a general still scared them regardless.

"Leave them alone Ennard, I honestly don't blame them when they've got such a bothersome General to lead them." Venom laughed.

Ignoring him, Ennard spoke out, "We're almost there! Be on high alert everyone! This won't be like the other demon hunts we've done!"

Some soldiers in the back rolled their eyes sarcastically.

The young General turned and gestured his arm towards the mage team, "Mages! Begin casting! Prepare to unleash: Heaven's Meteor."

"What?" The lead mage flinched, "But that-"

One look from the General caused him to stop, "Yes General."

The mages clicked their tongues and grumbled silently under their breath. 'Heaven's Meteor' was the mage's most powerful skill but it required immense preparation and had a long casting time. Not to mention, even though the skill belonged to one person, it needed to drain huge amounts of MP from all the other mage in order to work which would leave them all beyond exhausted. To use it on mere fakes just seemed wasteful. So behind Ennard's back, they began casting a smaller, easier spell. It's not like a non magic user like him could tell the difference anyway.

When the entrance came into their sight, Ennard raised his sword, "For the ones we lost, the innocent lives we couldn't save... WE MUST BRING JUSTICE! Death to all demons!"

The army chanted back, "Death to all demons!"

Venom smirked while Bane eyed the entrance carefully, "Death to all demons."

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-I-I-I-I-

...

Meanwhile, back in the underground caves, panic was slowly beginning to rise.

"A g-general?"

"Three of them?!"

"No way! No... No! No! No!"

"That has to be a lie... right? right?"

"Oh my god! oh my god! oh my god!"

"What do we do?!"

"THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO YOU PATHETIC FOOLS!" The solider laughed, "YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD HIDE FROM US?! DID YOU REALLY THINK YOU COULD ESCAPE FROM YOUR SINS!"

He crouched down to Arthur's corpse, grabbed his head, pulled it up by the hair and began waving it at the other fakes, "And guess what? Did you know...it was this fake who led us here! HAHAHAHAHA! How does it feel!? BETRAYED BY YOUR KIND! I EXPECT NO LESS FROM SHAMELESS DEMONS! OH WHAT A POOR FOOL THIS FAKE WAS! He kept spouting how his precious samurai could easily defeat all of us! HOW DELUSIONAL! BAHAHHAHAHHAHAHA!"

His voice was hysterical, his nostrils flaring and widening large eyes.

"Death to all De-"

A hard, clenched fist dug itself deep into his gut before he could finish that sentence. He coughed as a chunk of saliva flew out of his mouth upon impact. He saw the faint glimpse of blonde golden hair. He knew that hair very well.

What? The solider thought to himself. He could've sworn that there was no one was in front of him since everyone in the cave was backing away from him. So how did this one Lily fake get so close to him without him noticing? Directly in front of him, no less. There was no way she was that fast... right?

The solider would never get to know the answer to that question. His eyes rolled back as he collapsed gently onto the Samurai's arm.

One second later, a gust of wind blew past everyone's head despite the fact that they were deep underground, silencing everyone. The Samurai placed the unconscious solider on the ground before she... wrapped her arms around Arthur's body and embraced him.

Everyone only saw her back so they could not see her expression, but her arms... her arms were shaking.

After a moment, she gently laid him down before standing up to face her people.

"EVERYONE!" The Samurai cried out with her loudest voice but there was a slight tremble in her tone, "Do no fear! I will fight! I will protect all of you! There is nothing more precious to me than this community that we've been able to build together! I only wish to continue sharing memories with all of you! I swear I will not let any harm get to you! SO PLEASE... BELIEVE IN ME AND LIVE ON!" She could not help but worry about those traumatised one in the injured area. Once they hear that Generals are on their way, they may actually take their own lives... She shook her head. Right now there were more pressing matters to attend to.

The older ones pushed themselves to the front and faced the Samurai.

"Samurai I..." They all looked at her, worried and scared.

Their leader placed a hand on their shoulders and embraced them, "Take care of everyone please. I'll be back, I promise."

With that, the Samurai picked up the unconscious soilder and began making her way up the tunnels.

Lily4339 finally managed to reach the main area. They were in the injured area just moments ago but as soon as the news came to them, the Samurai vanished from her spot.

She ran past the older ones and dove into the entrance.

"Samurai!"

Still carrying the unconscious solider on her shoulder, the Samurai looked back.

Lily panted for breath. She didn't really think about what she was going to say until now, "You'll come back to us... right?"

A small, sad smile rose in the Samurai's lips, "Yes... Yes I will."

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

The Samurai ascended the upward tunnel.

Step by step she went up. As she did, voices from her memory echoed within her head.

'Tada! We managed to kill a desert weasel!'

The unconscious solider was huge compared to her body but she had carried far heavier things in the past.

'We know...we wanted to lessen your burden as much as we can.'

Almost there. Weird. She had travlled up and down this path hundreds of times yet this time felt like two eternities combined.

'Alright then! Come on my brothers! 'Arthur hunters' move out! Ready, 1, 2, 3. Go!'

It was time. She had arrived.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

Lily4339 was planning not move from that spot until the Samurai returned.

It wasn't going to matter how long it took, she was going to wait here, fully believing that she'll come back.

But then, she heard something in the distance behind her, back in the main area.

Worried by the noise, Lily turned around to check.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

The Samurai saw them as soon as she emerged from the cave. They saw her as well, including the generals.

How many were there? Hundreds? She wasn't sure yet. But she did count three jackets. She knew those jackets well. They were generals no doubt.

She placed the solider in front of her like a shield and positioned the sharp edge of her katana directly below the solider's his neck.

She was using him as a hostage. The Samurai loathed the idea of stooping this low. But as immoral as it was, she had no other option. She knew very well that the humans would not bother negotiate with a mere fake like her otherwise.

She opened her mouth to speak but then...

She saw something coming from above, straight towards her.

Was that a... no... it couldn't be...they wouldn't do such a thing... right?

But as it came closer and closer, the reality of it settled in. It was a fire ball. A large one. Were they perhaps too far away to see? No, they definitely saw her holding the unconscious solider which means...

The fireball collided into her, the cave and the solider, engulfing them in a a fiery explosion that sent sand and flames everywhere. The cave entrance remained in tact, it was a lot more durable than it looked, but unfortunately the same couldn't be said for the hostage.

For a brief moment, the Samurai couldn't help but just stand there and watch. Watch as the unconscious solider's body get completely engulfed until nothing of his body remained.

"Direct hit!" Said one of the soldiers. It seemed his skill allowed his eye to zoom in on things, "Waiting for smoke to clear..."

The General waited silently besides the soldier. Although that silence was quickly broken by-

"BANE!" Ennard screamed as he marched towards said general, "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! SHE WAS HOLDING ONE OF OUR MEN HOSTAGE!"

"Correction, one of Venom's men and Venom already gave his approval." Bane objected with an unsympathetic look, he wad getting increasingly annoyed at Ennard's pretentious attitude, "He was probably dead anyway. You of all people should know how savage demons can be. Besides, that was the Lily fake you were so worried about right? If she was able to defeat Venom's scout then you were right, she is different, well...she was different. Better off sacrificing one solider to deal with the main threat as soon a possible. You should be thanking me. You have nothing to worry about now."

Ennard clenched his fist hard until you could see his veins, glaring, "You murdered your own soldier."

"It's a soldier's duty to die for their country is it not?" He was close to punching this man. Trying to ignore him, he gestured to one of his other soldiers, "Tell my mages to prepare another fire ball just in case."

"Yes general!" The soldier gladly turned around to go to the back lines. Standing right next to two arguing generals felt too intense for his taste.

"Another one?" The mages grumbled.

"General's orders!" The soldier repeated for the third time.

The mage complained more under his breath, "We're fighting fakes here, not dragons. What are they thinking?"

One of the healers, who was positioned behind the mages, decided to get a drink of water from his canteen and sit down in the sand for a bit since he didn't have anything to do for now. The desert trip and the fiery flames of their spells had left his throat incredibly dry. He deserved a bit of relief at least.

"Hey! Can I some water too?" Asked another healer who was stationed next to him.

"No! Get your o-" He stopped as he looked passed the other healer's shoulder. Was his eyes playing tricks on him? Was he hallucinating? Surely he was. Not a surprise considering this heat. But then again, this healer had never seen a hallucination appear so closely to him.

"What's wrong?" His fellow healer asked, completely unaware of the fact... that the Samurai was standing directly behind him.

The three generals snapped their heads to the back as soon as they heard one of the soldiers yell.

Everyone stared incredulously, unblinking and frozen. Most didn't even pay attention when the Samurai emerge from the cave but now... now they were all looking at her. There she was, still standing as the entire fourth division of mages along with their healers all laid on the sand around her like rag-dolls.

"When did she-" Ennard looked back at the cave entrance as the smoke cleared. She wasn't there anymore, "A decoy? No- most Samurai's don't have that ability. Did she go around? But she would have to fast enough to-"

"KILL HER!" Cried out General Bane.

Archers aimed. Mages chanted. Soldiers charged.

The third devision of mages and healers felt their bones shiver with intense dread as they witnessed the Samurai's eyes glare at them next.

Arrows and fire balls were fired.

Several soldiers stood in front of the mages to protect them. Their hands were shaking. Shaking? But why? She was just a mere fake. What could a fake possibly do-

One soldier who was protecting the mages, looked up and for a split moment, he could've sworn he touched noses with the Samurai who seemed to have dived towards them. It was the last thing he felt as huge strikes of lightning came crashing down on the entire mage devision, sending them all flying.

She bolted towards the next. Archers who stood in the way were obliterated like the sand in the wind. Soldiers formed lines with shields but she ripped right through them. They were flabbergasted beyond all their beliefs. Their fellow comrades, dropping like flies right in front of them. Was this even real? The second devision of mages and healers went down as quickly as the last two.

One left.

They managed to surrounded her with spears and arrows. The Samurai slid her katana back into its sheath which in turn, unleashed six large streams of thunder that dashed everywhere, knocking them all out.

One enemy would charge in, only to feel a spark of electricity go through his neck before falling down to the sand.

She was going so fast that small, sand storms were following her.

The last remaining mages panicked as they saw her bolting towards them.

But the man to finally put a halt to the Samurai's rampage was none other than General Ennard himself.

CLANG!

The clash sent air flying in all directions, pushing the mages back. There he was, standing on top of a wall of flying swords dug into the ground which the Samurai's weapon had collided into. In his hands were two more silver swords. With veins pulsing from his legs and hands, he swung both blades in a 'X' form.

The Samurai jumped back to dodged.

Then, sprinting from the left with inhuman levels of speed was General Venom.

The tip of the Samurai's foot that landed first on the sand just barely pushed her back in time to avoid a fatal strike. But Venom's dagger landed a small cut on her check which immediately turned purple.

She didn't have to look to know that General Bane was right behind her. Bane clenched his giant metal fist and delivered a huge blow to the Samurai's hip while she was still in mid air.

However, two things occurred when his fist connected:

Firstly, the Samurai's entire body suddenly felt heavier as if a force was pushing her to the ground.

Secondly, upon the impact of his punch, an electrical force automatically slashed all three general's across their chest. They all bled from the wound.

The Samurai coughed out blood as she was sent flying back, crashing into the shields of approaching soldiers.

The three generals coughed as they grasped their wounds that had appeared out of nowhere.

"What was that?" Venom asked.

"A damage reflection skill perhaps," Bane answered, "Shouldn't be a problem..."

The wound that the Samurai's passive skill had given them was already beginning to heal on it's on.

"But that power... How is she already that strong? It should be impossible to reach that level in such a short amount of time."

Venom licked his lip as he narrowed his eyes in the Samurai's direction, "She probably just got lucky and was given an insane skill tree."

Ennard ignored those two and looked at the last remaining mages, "Is everyone okay?"

They nodded as they all stood up, still shaking. They were still in disbelief. A fake shouldn't be able to wipe out soldiers who have had years of training, let alone, land an actual hit on generals.

Ennard looked over at where Bane had sent the Samurai flying. He had expected her to continue her rampage but instead... she was kneeling silently on the sand, surrounded by fallen soldiers, clutching a particular shield close to her chest. The shield has an emerald green colour to it unlike the others ones which were all silver.

The other enemies surrounded her from a distance, pointing their spears and arrows. However, after seeing their fellow comrades get obliterated within seconds, none had the courage to actually attack.

It put the entire field at a temporary, silent stalemate for the moment.

Ennard knew that shield and hence knew what the Samurai was doing. This may be their only chance.

"Mages! Quick! Activate Heaven's Meteor!" Ennard ordered before several flying swords appeared above him, "Do not worry, I will save anyone who's in the range of fire..."

He'll have his sword pull the soldiers out of the range. He would have to precise. He may end up accidentally stabbing some of them but that was still better than being instantly killed.

The mages were quiet.

"What's wrong?" Asked the sword bringer.

"W-we..." The mage's hands were shaking as he told Ennard, "I h-haven't started casting the skill yet..."

The general went silent, "...What..."

He had ordered them to prepare the skill and they hadn't started, meaning they went directly against his orders. If they started now, it would take a while before Heaven's Meteor can be activated and that's assuming the Samurai doesn't get to them first.

The mage panicked, waving his hands while stuttering profusely as excuses shot out from his mouth, "I-I- We didn't think they would be that strong! They're just fakes so we thought, we thought- and the skill takes a lot of energy and, and-"

Ennard glared at him, causing the mage to squeal. The mage braced himself for punishment, however... Ennard did not say anything, he did not give another order, he did not punish him, he did not yell, he did not unleash his frustrations. He simply glared at them briefly, before he proceeded to just leave them.

"Generals!" Ennard called out to them, "Order your men to stand down."

Venom and Bane silently stared back at him.

"As you can see, this is not an opponent we can afford to underestimate."

The two generals said nothing. But for the first time in their life, they both agreed with him.

Standing side by side, the three of them grabbed their own jackets. With one swing, they took them off and threw them into the air. The jackets flew in the sky for a few moments before they proceeded to fade and disappear into nothing.

Bane's body grew larger and more muscular, stretching his special armour to its limit.

Venom stabbed his own neck, causing his entire body to turn purple and grow actual scales.

"Blade Fleet!" Ennard summoned a grand total of 100 homing, flying swords.

"Death to all demons!"

Few minutes earlier, back to the Samurai who was kneeling there. She was clutching a shield that she took from one of the soldiers.

This shield was different to ones that most of the soldiers had. It was a special shield. The shield had an emerald green colour to it rather than the traditional iron one. It had the pattern of a gallant horse on it.

She knew this shield. Because it was the same shield she gave to-

...

...

"R-really?! We can have these?" One of the Arthur hunters was almost about scream out of joy as he held up the Samurai's present. A brand new shield.

They were each given a shield of their own, even better, they each had their own distinct pattern and colour. They were shields that the Samurai had found on her journeys.

One of the Arthur fakes, the youngest among the four, admired the emerald shield with sparkles in his eyes that were covered in mud.

His brother was already posing with his new gift while the other jumped up and down.

"A-are you sure?"

The Samurai smiled as she gently rubbed his head. He was actually taller than her so it was quite the interesting sight, "Of course! Frankly, I don't even know how to use a shield so it's all yours. But there's something you need know about shields, so listen to me carefully okay,"

The four arthur fakes leaned in closely.

"Shield are not meant for fighting monsters... they are meant to protect lives... So be sure to use these shields to protect everyone here. You know... like heroes!"

The four Arthurs all let out an adorable "ooooo's" at the same time before nodded excitedly.

The Samurai smiled and went to pat their heads again but to her pleasant surprised, all four of them tackled her to the ground into a giant, bear hug.

"THANK YOU SAMURAI!" They all exclaimed at different volumes.

"You're the best!"

"Thank you so much!"

"We'll protect everyone together!"

She laughed as she hugged them all back.

...

...

The Samurai wept. She cried. She screamed and cried even more.

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! It's all my fault! It's all my fault!" The Samurai cried. Her hands shook as she held the shield in her hands.

It was her fault. She said to herself. She should've been more alert. She said to herself. She should've paid more attention. She said to herself. They had supplies to last for weeks so the Samurai thought she could finally take a break from going outside. If she had gone on her usual hunts, she would've known the army was coming. If she wasn't so careless, she would've noticed the Arthur hunters were gone. If she had worked harder, they would still be alive. They were dead because of her. She said to herself. They were dead because of her. They were dead because of her. They were dead because of her. They were dead because of her. They were dead because-

"Death to all demons!" She heard the three generals coming towards her.

Right... right... This was no time to mourn.

With the two katanas sitting restlessly in her sheaths, the Samurai stood up. The poision in her cheek was spreading. If she moved a lot it would certain spread faster but she did not care. The gravity de-buff that she received from Bane's skill was still active but she did not care.

Due to the choas caused by her, no one realised the dark clouds that slowly formed in the sky until the sun was blocked out. They saw a flash before the howling roar of thunder bellowed the entire field. Was this a natural occurrence or was it due to-

After one deep breath, she unsheathe her first katana and pointed it towards the sky. A bolt of lightning struck her. Once she was covered in electricity, she charged head first towards the generals.

In response, the Generals launched themselves straight towards her.

Bane bashed the sand beneath him which caused the gravity of the sand to reverse itself so within a larger circle around him, the sand began falling upwards at a moderate pace.

Ennard locked onto the Samurai which caused 50 of his flying swords to start homing towards her while he stood on two flying swords to fly.

10 throwing knifes protruded from the skin of Venom's arms which he ripped out and threw with a grin as he sprinted around the circle.

Within Bane's circle, spots to put your foot down would appear and disappear. But wherever Bane stood, the sand remained still.

The Samurai bolted around the area, ricocheting of the flying swords and daggers like a bullet.

Then she saw a chance and took it. She bounced off another flying sword before dashing right towards Bane like a bolt of lightning. Bane reacted by throwing his giant fist but he aimed too high as the Samurai flew past him, landing a clean cut on his legs. He felt lightning surged through his organs and bones in the inside but remained standing.

A flying sword stabbed her in the arm. Venom came diving in with his dagger, completely unaffected by the rising sand. The Samurai blocked the dagger then swiftly bolted away to evade another fist from Bane.

The flying swords were fast, almost as fast as her since she was under the effect of Bane's gravity. Because of Ennard's swords, she could not stay in the same spot for longer than half a second. She flew, ran and bolted around and around, but the flying swords did not give up unless the Samurai sliced them.

Another knife cut her in the knee. The wound instantly turned purple.

Ennard came flying from above with a blade aimed at her back. The Samurai turned around and their swords clashed with another loud clang.

At the same time, two swords stabbed the Samurai's back.

Suddenly, an electrifying slash left a wound on the three generals' faces, similar to before when Bane first punched her.

"So the cooldown of that skill is that long," Ennard observed as her and the Samurai exchanged mutliple blows, zooming left and right all over the place. The Samurai constantly changed spots to avoid the homing swords but wherever she went using lightning, Ennard followed with more swords.

The soldiers didn't know what they were watching as their eyes could not follow. The only ones who could follow these two sword users were Bane and Venom. Venom would always be right behind Ennard, throwing knifes and sometimes even be close to stabbing the Samurai's eye.

Bane ensured that the Samurai stayed in his gravity circle to ensure the environmental advantage. He was the slowest among the three but was still catching up despite his large size and she wasn't sure how.

Any unfortunate enemies who were too close to the battle were immediately slaughtered in the cross fire of their battle.

They had to actively move away due to how mobile the battle was. The Samurai and the three generals often brought the battle to the other soldiers, wiping them out instantly. At this point, it was hard to tell whether any mages or healers were left but it was probably safe to assume they had all been wiped out.

This barely helped the Samurai's battle as whenever she dealt damage to them, they would heal within minutes due to their passive regeneration. Since it was a three vs one, the rate of which she was landing hits was too slow. On the other hand, while the Samurai also had the regeneration passive skill, her wounds were still piling up too fast.

The Samurai tried bolting to the sky but Ennard followed her with Venom who rode one of his flying swords. Venom managed to slice her again in the arm while the Samurai managed to cut his face. The poison within her felt as if an animal was eating her insides.

She bounced off one of the Ennard's homing sword just in time to dodge Ennard from slicing her neck. Venom came back swiftly from above with his dagger. The Samurai blocked with her katana. Strings of lightning surged through Venom's body, damaging his insides but he endured it.

It was then, the Samurai discovered how Bane was able to keep up with them because one second she was facing Venom and in the next, it was Bane.

Whether it be a teleportation or switching skill, Bane was now above her instead of Venom. Not wasting a second, Bane bashed his fist into the Samurai's head, sending her crashing back to the ground.

Some soldiers tried to run but when the Samurai crash landed on the sand, they were sent flying back. It was as if the fight between the Generals and the Samurai was starting its very own artificial sandstorm. Ennard and Bane dove towards her, fully knowing that this battle was far from over. Venom, who was now on the ground, sprinted towards her as well.

Then, a thunder bolt from the sky struck Bane in the back while several pillars of lightning were fired from the ground towards Ennard. Ennard used multiply swords like a shield to block one attack while avoiding the other ones.

Venom stopped and waited for the other two to get down. Fighting her one on one would be suicide. Even he knew that. It soon became clear that the Samurai was waiting for him as she emerged from the smoke made of sand and began dashing towards him.

She swung her katana, Venom swiftly blocked the first strike and then dodged the next. But as seconds flew by, she managed to leave severals cuts on Venom's neck, legs, arms and chest. Then with one thrust, the Samurai impaled Venom's palm with her blade. Venom flinched and his face constricted in pain. He gritted his teeth. He wouldn't be a general if he couldn't handle a lot of pain.

With one swing of his other arm, Venom stabbed his main dagger deep into the Samurai's shoulder, "Poison Agony!"

At the same time, it triggered the Samurai's reflection skill as an electrifying slash from nowhere automatically slashed his back. To add onto that, a bolt lightning entered into Venom's body through his hand and began frying his insides.

Despite both of them being in immense pain, they were both silent as they glared at each other.

Ennard came flying in, sending 20 swords to attack.

Still holding tightly to her katana, the Samurai lifted Venom up and threw him towards the incoming flying sword with immense speed. She winced when the dagger was forcefully pulled out of her shoulder since Venom had an iron grip on it.

The flying swords flew around Venom and towards the Samurai.

20 swords so 20 times the Samurai swung her katana to cut them all. Another 30 swords, another 30 swings of her katana. Lightning surrounding her katana as it sliced everything it came across.

The three generals regrouped and immediately charged again, not sparing a single second.

A group of soldiers and archers decided to head to the cave entrance, ostensibly to kill the fakes inside and potentially get a bonus reward but really, they just wanted to escape the battle field that had turned into their actual definition of an instant death.

But it turned out to be their biggest mistake as right before they were about to enter, one solider looked back and made close eye contact with none other than the Samurai herself as the three general were right on her tail.

Whether it was the Samurai's katana, Ennard homing swords, Venom's dagger or Bane's fist, those soldiers died within the next few seconds. Even the cave entrance itself got obliterated, leaving only a hole in the ground.

Even with majority of the army defeated, their battle raged on.

None of them spoke, for if they did, it may result in their instant defeat.

They fought and fought. Using skill after skill. The Samurai would inflict wounds on them and they would heal. They would inflict wounds on her and yet she would keep fighting.

Swords clashed, thunders roared, gravity flipped, daggers evaded.

They zoomed across the dessert, not giving either side a break.

"She's a monster! Venom thought to himself, H-how many times have I stabbed her. The poison is enough to kill giants within mere minutes and yet... and yet she... Don't tell me she's becoming resis-"

Venom leaned backwards just in time to avoid the Samurai's katana from slicing his head off.

Venom and Bane switched places but the Samurai had learned this by now as she smoothly avoided the heavy blow from Bane's huge fist.

Ten swords descended from the sky like raining bullets. She zig zagged through the sand to evade. Ennard attacked again, wielding his twin swords. The Samurai blocked, their weapons clashing for who knows how many times. Electricity shocked Ennard's inside but it did not faze him as a flying sword came from behind stabbed her in the leg.

Triggering her passive skill once more, all three Generals were automatically attacked by an electric slash.

Venom dived in and thrusted his dagger. The Samurai moved back to dodge before slicing his arm. His skin was tough so she failed to slice the arm off but it still left a deep wound.

Bane placed his hands on opposite shoulders as a ball of gravity force wrapped around him. He then propelled himself forward at the speed of a cannon ball. Bolts of lightning struck both Venom and Ennard, giving the Samurai a chance to prepare for Bane.

Holding the katana with both hands she swung her weapon as Bane flew towards her. With that one swing, she slashed Bane. His gravity ball was sliced into two while Bane remained in tact. But as she did, the gravity curse on her doubled in its effect which was Bane's plan from the start.

It wasn't that it directly made her slower, it simply required more energy to move faster.

Ennard and Venom recovered and joined up Bane as the three of them once again unleashed their attacks on her.

How many hours has it been since they started? They must've went through the entire day as their regenerations and endurance continued to prolong the battle by an insane degree.

The sun was soon replaced by its counterpart. But just like the sun, the moon hid behind the clouds of lightning as the artificial sandstorm they created ravaged the surrounding sand hills.

Then, after countless flying swords were sliced, after countless fist were avoided or parried, after countless knives and daggers were thrown...

The Samurai's first katana shattered into pieces.

The metal pieces lost their electrifying touch as they fell and touched the ground...

"I am a General, I will not be defeated by the likes of a mere fake..." Venom scowled. At that moment, he remembered all the times the original hero Elizabeth screwed him over and over, making him so furious that he took in many Elizabeth fakes as slaves to abuse and break in order to unleash his frustration. Yet the only thing he could picture at that moment was the original Elizabeth covering half her expression with a fancy fan as she defeated him with ease in a duel, "Curse you..."

Venom's body fell down to the sand as the final moments of life left his body.

General Venom: The Slithering Apothecary... had been slain.

The two other generals stared in utter disbelief, panting heavily for air. She actually did it. A fake had slain a General for the first time in all of history.

The Samurai reached for her second and final katana.

From there, the battle went downhill real quickly.

Seeing her body covered in Venom's poison and shaking, both Ennard and Bane launched desperately towards her.

"Gravaton's Might!"

"Justice STRKE!

The Samurai slowly slid the sword out of it's sheath while diving towards the two generals.

"Hidden Skill:" For a brief moment, when the lightning from above flashed, the two generals saw two large wings of lightning protruding from the Samurai's back, "Phoenix Claw!"

She sliced them the exact moment her final katana left it's sheath, zooming right past the two generals.

Her final katana and Bane's armour both shattered at the same time as Bane fell to the ground, his eyes turning white.

General Bane: The Gravity Tank had been slain.

With that, the desert grew silent.

The entire army had been wiped out even though the attacks of their battle weren't even aimed at them. It seemed that all the soldiers and mages had been obliterated purely by the cross fire.

The Samurai limped a few steps forward as she dropped the handle of her final katana.

Now weaponless and her body filled with active poison, she took a few steps forward, one by one, panting and panting. She looked down at hands. They were bleeding, purple and shaking. Her clothes were torn and her vision was starting to become a pure blur. She breathed in and then breathed out. It felt like the very air of her breath was enough to shatter her inner bones but she continued breathing. Breathing in... then breathing out...

"Please..." The Samurai said softly, "let us stop this... Ennard."

The last remaining General stood back up, clutching his bleeding arm as two swords floated by his side. His armour was broken beyond its use and his clothes were equally as torn as the Samurai. The floating swords themselves looked as if they were barely able to stay airborne as they wobbled.

"Stop?... how can I stop?" Said the last general.

"..."

"I... I had a wife and son..." Ennard began as he remembered the memory, "She... she was sweetest person I ever knew."

...

...

The baby slept peacefully in her arms as they couple sat at the front of their house, watching the sunset. They leaned on each other, focusing more on the baby than the actual view of the sunset.

"He's so small..." Ennard commented as he compared to size of his son's head to his own hand.

His wife laughed softly, "Well, of course. What did you expect?"

Ennard scratched his head with an embarrassed chuckle.

"But I'm sure he'll grow big and strong just like you."

"Hahaha, perhaps so... although it would be better if he grew up in a world where he wouldn't need to pick up a sword."

"True..."

The couple sat there as a different kind of silence entered. The type of silence when someone is hesitating to say something. But finally, after a silent moment, she spoke:

"Ennard... Must you fight with the demons?"

"Of course, it's our job to stop evil."

"But not all demons are evil..."

Ennard didn't know how to respond to that. He simply embraced his wife as they both watched the baby sleep.

"She was kind, noble, selfless...she even sympathised with your demons...but then... then you-"

They sky was blood red. Cannon balls fired. People screamed. Fire spread everywhere. The walls, the buildings, the streets, covered in the bloodshed of both sides.

"GET BACK HERE SOLIDER! THAT'S AN ORDER!"

Ennard ignored his general as he ran and ran. He was directly going against orders but he didn't care. He continued running as fast as he could no matter how much it burned his lungs.

"Please, please, please, please..."

Every ounce of hope he had left was sliced in half when he saw the smoke of flames coming from the direction of his village.

He sprinted into the village, calling out her name desperately, hoping to find her safe.

Then... he saw her.

Ennard fell to his knees.

There she was. Hanging. Limbs torn off and eyes gouged out. His son... no mercy was spared to him either. The demons around them, danced and laughed as they celebrated their plunder.

Ennard screamed. He screamed and yelled, tears evaporating from his eyes.

The demons looked towards him and started backing away... as a fleet of flying swords appeared around the future general.

...

...

"TORTURED! BUTCHERED! SHE WAS INNOCENT! SHE HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU DEMONS AND YOU KILLED HER! ...and my beloved son... of god he... HE WAS BARELY A MONTH OLD!"

Tears mixed with pure rage fell from his eyes, "So how can I stop?! How can I rest, knowing you wretched evil demons are still out there, putting all our loved ones at risk?!"

The Samurai turned around, faced Ennard and placed her hand on her heart, exclaiming, "We fakes have loved ones too! Family who we hold dear and mourn for-"

"LIAR! DON'T TRY TO DECEIVE ME YOU DEMON!"

"..."

"Time and time again... I've seen your kind betray each other at every given moment." He remembered the time he watched an Arthur murder his own "sister" to save himself, "Even the ones you are protecting right now... they're bound to betray you one day."

"They will not. For I believe in them just as much as they believe in me."

"Is that so? Then what about those those four Arthur brothers you mourned for..."

The Samurai flinched.

"THEY WERE THE ONES WHO LED US HERE YOU KNOW! THEY WERE COWARDS!"

When breaking into a slave camp, Ennard had witnessed how some beastmen had sliced off their own tongues just to ensure they never tell the humans about their secret sanctuary. Compared to them, the Arthur hunters were pitiful. He didn't even need to resort to torture, all he had to do was threaten them and they were immediately on the ground, crying and begging, saying they would do anything.

"They were pathetic! COWARDS! LEACHES! They choose to lead their own kind into slaughter just to save themselves rather than die honourably like men-"

"THEY WERE JUST CHILDREN!"

Ennard froze. He's trembling fist, he's shaking swords, his tears, all of it froze at that moment, "...What?"

The Samurai breathed in and then breathed out, "Arthur9882... he just turned four months. Arthur5568, Arthur3789... 3 and a half. The youngest, Arthur6708... he... HE WAS BARELY A MONTH OLD!"

The Samurai's deadly glare from before had disappeared. She broke down, right in front of the general, crying.

Ennard watched the Samurai's face as she cried. He had seen fake tears before and what he was seeing now were not fake tears... it was as if they were the tears of a... mother who just lost their son...and yet despite that, he saw no vengeance in the Samurai's eyes. Just sadness and sorrow.

For just a brief moment of frozen time, Ennard remembered the one picture that always lingered behind his mind ever since that day. The picture of an Arthur fake embracing his beloved sister, shivering in fear at the sight of him.

He clutched his face with his both hands. His hands... there was blood on them. A lot of blood.

General Ennard had dedicated himself to killing fakes...he had murdered hundreds, if not, thousands of them...

...was he...

...evil?

...

...

...

NO. That's can't be! He is and always will be a man of justice!

He took a step forward, stomping his foot on the sand, "Lies...LIES! LIES!LIES! LIES! You don't love each other! You don't have emotions! Everything about your kind is a lie! You're fakes! Demonic facades! So in the name of Justice... I WILL SLAY ALL OF YOU! DEATH TO ALL DEMONS!"

Five swords appeared from above and launched themselves at the Samurai.

The Samurai did not move this time. She didn't even know if she could in her state. She had no weapons and her skills were on cooldowns. But her mind was already too focused on the four Arthur's death. She just cried and cried as if they had been kept shut in her this whole this.

The flying swords drew closer and closer...

But then...

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Thunder Blade"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Sheath's Wrath"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"A Samurai's Will"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Projectile Immunity"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Poison Resistance IV" has upgraded to "Poison Resistance V"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Regeneration IX" has upgraded to "Regeneration X"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Endurance XII" has upgraded to "Endurance XIII"

...

The Samurai had no weapons left... so she summoned the starter wooden katana.

All the flying swords failed to hit her as they all went straight through her as if she was a ghost.

Another huge bolt of lightning struck her. Engulfed in lightning once more, the Samurai dashed towards Ennard, swinging her wooden starter weapon at the general.

This was it. He had no more energy to fight or even dodge. So he simply watched as the wooden blade came closer and closer. He cursed his weakness as the electrifying weapon touched the surface of his skin. With this final strike, it was going to be Ennard's lost.

But then...

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Golden Justice"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Sword Dance"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Blade Fleet" has been upgraded to "Blade Fleet II"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Justice Rain"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Regeneration XII" has been upgraded to "Regeneration XIII"

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"Endurance X" has been upgraded to "Endurance XI"

...

Their weapons clashed once more, sending a giant sound wave in all directions.

Ennard's sword turned golden. 10 flying swords appeared, then 50, then 100, then 1000 more.

They both jumped back, still facing each other.

On one side, there was a giant fleet of golden swords and on the other, thunder strikes flew everywhere around her.

They both cried out as loud as their lungs could cry as they bolted straight at each other to finish this battle once and for all. They clashed. A clash that caused a huge explosion to erupt in the middle of the dessert as the new sun rose slowly rose from the horizon to signify a new day.

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"True Justice"

...

...

...

...

...

New Skill Unlocked:

"A Mother's Cry"

...

...

...

...

General Bane, General Venom, & General Ennard

vs

The Samurai

...

Winner:

The Samurai

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

The Samurai limped slowly through the descending caves. Very slowly.

She tripped over a rock and fell to the ground. She laid there for a while before picking herself up and continuing.

She left a trail of blood as she limped.

Would she even survive after this? Maybe. It was possible. She'll have to get the older ones to take care of her for weeks, probably months even.

Step by step she went down. At times, if there were any spots where she was meant to climb down, she would instead let herself fall and hit the ground, wait there for a moment before picking herself up and continuing. It obviously hurt but she didn't want to keep everyone waiting.

What usually takes around 10-15 minutes to traverse, must've taken her about half of the entire day.

But finally, she was almost there. She could already smell the night plums from here.

She wondered what everyone would think, seeing her in such a bloody mess. She may very well faint right in front of them which will obviously scare them.

Besides that, she thought about the other things they would have to deal with afterwards.

Firstly, the most obvious, they would have to move. It won't be long till they find out three generals are missing but it'll be enough time to migrate out of here... well hopefully. Saying goodbye to this place will be hard for both the Samurai and many others. They had lived here for so long that many had grown attached it. She knew a handful of fakes who were going to need a lot of convincing but they'll have no other choice.

They'll definitely send a more powerful force once they find out that a fake took out three generals, maybe even the original heroes will come after them.

Secondly. they have to burry Arthur's body. Make a grave. Hold a funeral. For all four of them. She would most certainly need help with setting all that up but that shouldn't be a problem. The Arthur hunters may have been reckless but they were beloved by many for their cheerful optimistic attitudes so they'll be volunteers.

It will be very sad to leave their graves here but it was for the safety of everyone else.

Her mind began imagining what the funeral was going to be like. She wanted to cry again. The others will surely cry as well.

But that's what communities are for. You survive together, work together, laugh together, mourn together... and move on together.

...

-I-I-I-I-

...

The Samurai stood there, motionless and staring.

The plum fields...

The huts...

The supplies...

The place where they always set that huge bomb fire...

It was all in ruin.

The field had been ravaged. Every plum either gone or squashed, leaving behind a field full of footprints and black goo.

The huts had all collapsed. There were ashes signifying that a lot of them were burned down.

The supplies... There was barely any left. It had been ransacked, the bags ripped to shreds and the small pieces of good and the raw juice of meat spread out everywhere.

The pace where they always set that huge bomb fire... the same place where they would eat and celebrate together... it was filled with debris, scraps, and... blood.

Her heart fell. At first, the Samurai's mind reach for the natural explination which filled her with dread. Did some soldiers get through? But how? She made sure to get all of them unless... were their hidden ones? No. The fakes were severely underestimated, there's no way they would go through the trouble of setting up a secret, more stealthy force.

But then what happened here? A monster maybe?

"Yukari!" The Samurai tried to call out as loud as she could but she barely muster a shout, "... Lily! Jack! Ari-"

The Samurai began coughing viciously as she fell to her knees. She coughed again and again until blood came out. Her vision was getting blurry and her head was spinning. Was this it? Was she going to die here without even knowing what happened to her people?

She was about to black out but then a voice woke up her.

"S-Samurai?"

A voice called out softly. A voice that sounded identical to hers. A tiny spark of hope lit up in the Samurai's eyes.

It was Lily4339. But she was in a poor state. Her entire right arm was covered in burns and she had a wound on her head that was dripping blood down her face.

"You're back...oh thank the heavens...I knew it..." She said with a weak whisper, "I knew you would come back alive..."

The Lily fake stumbled slowly towards the Samurai.

Unable to stand anymore, the Samurai remained kneeling, coughed again before asking, "Lily... what happened here?"

Lily4339 stopped. Her eyes widening and arms shaking. She began to cry, trying to find the right words to describe what she saw, "T-they... everyone..."

"Were there other soldiers? Did a monster attack?" The Samurai asked with a trembling voice.

Lily shook her head as the tears began streaming more and more out of her eyes.

The Samurai became confused, "T-then where is everyone?"

"They... everyone..." It was at that moment, Lily just broke as everything began to pour out, "EVERYONE RAN AWAY!"

The Samurai's worried expression fell greatly upon hearing those words. She listened silently as Lily poured out everything she could remember.

"As soon as you left...Everyone panicked! They all wanted to run! They started taking and hoarding whatever they could hold onto. Then people started stealing from each other. It escalated so quickly. Arguments broke out. Many people got mad. They started getting violent and then...then...oh god... they... some were killed..."

Remembering the memory was giving Lily a panic attack. All the people she knew. All the fakes she saw as friends. They had all turned insane by the fear and hysteria that infected the entire community. Panic only caused more panic which in turn escalated everything.

The only things that remained of the community were scraps, crushed leftovers, debris, the Samurai, Lily... and dead bodies.

To add onto the ones who were killed in fights, there were the tragic unintentional deaths. For example, the caves were quite narrow in a lot of places and when you have hundreds of fakes all panicking and rushing through it, there are some who are bound to fall, hit the ground, and get repeatedly stomp on by the incoming horde. With no one to help the ones who fall, they eventually die from the hundreds of fakes running over them... and for those who were too injured to move... they choose to end it for themselves rather than wait for what they thought was going to be them impeding doom.

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I tried to stop them but... but... none of them believed in you!"

The Samurai was silent. She looked at the ruined fields, the burnt remains of the huts, the debris, and then at the bodies... Everything she had spent building. The community that took almost her entire lifetime as a fake to create... Gone within an instant.

The Samurai closed her eyes... and collapsed.

"Samurai?... Samurai! SAMURAI! SAMURAI!"

...

To be continued...

...

A/N: And that is the end of the Samurai flashback.

Once again, sorry for late update, I had exams which I was stressing over but now I am on holiday so hopefully chapters will come sooner especially since I have finally finished the Samurai's flashback so I can go back to normal length chapters.

Anyways, thanks for reading this far, I really appreciate it and special thanks who take the time to leave a comment and for all the typo corrections. :D

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This chapter was finished on the 10/11/2022