"What, you don't want to fight?" Yoichi belted defiantly, trying to grab the dark muddy arms with his big hands. Before the faceless man could answer, the young tamer used his sharp black claws to hit the four arms that held his ankles glued to the ground.
The claws cut off his arms sharply, freeing his leg, but only for a few seconds. When the mud returned to the mud, other arms popped up from the ground, having plenty of material to regenerate.
"Bend the knee before me!" Ogai ordered, turning his palms and moving down his elbows. Suddenly, in addition to Shioko, Yoichi and Enatsu were also forced on their knees, trapped by dozens of dark hands, who strongly clutched every part of their bodies.
"Don't try to attack me with your demons, or I will kill you instantly" the hooded man spoke, turning his dark face towards Shioko. Nobu, above her head, had already begun to fly towards the enemy, ready to hit him with a sharp air current.
Shioko's Hotasagi, Enatsu's Moruba, and Yoichi's little dragon remained motionless behind their tamers, receiving direct orders from them not to attack. "Excellent. That's what I call 'respect'. Now we can finally talk," Ogai added.
When his arms relaxed along his hips, the muddy hands that enveloped the bodies of the three tamers solidified instantly, becoming as hard as rocks. "Fuck! I can't move!" Shioko mumbled, in an evident state of agitation.
Next to her, Enatsu had tried to free her during Yoichi's attack, but without success. Being made of a liquid and viscous material, each time they were destroyed, the arms grew faster than before.
Interrupting his attacking position, the void summoner stepped forward, toward Yoichi. "Who the hell are you?" Yoichi muttered, speaking in a low voice because of the effort to free himself from the grip.
"I was told that you of Tentochu were a gruff and rude people. Well, I'm sure I'll get used to it," Ogai snorted. He crossed his hands behind his back and began to walk sideways. "You believe you are here for a precise reason. But actually, that reason doesn't exist. The only real reason that subconsciously pushed you in this place was to meet me. Our meeting was already written".
"Um... I beg your pardon, noble Ogai, but... there must be a mistake! We're just three demon tamers on a mission, we had to retrieve a necklace and then go back home! If we have anything wrong in any way, I beg you to forgive us!" Enatsu whined. Setting aside his dignity, the merchant had no intention of fighting against an enemy capable of immobilizing him and his friends with a simple hand movement.
"Oh! The necklace, right... right… haha... HAHAHA!" – suddenly changing the way he was speaking, Ogai showed his true devious and mean nature, bursting into an evil laugh. The big demon which slept a few meters from him snorted from its nostrils, starting snoring again soon after.
"Did you really think you'd find the necklace and collect the loot? I can't believe it. Your stupidity exceeds my expectations, it's like taking sweetbreads from a baby", continued the mysterious man, shaking his head.
"What?! How does he know about the loot?! Who the hell is this man?! Yoichi thought. A chill of cold ran through his back and the expression on his face unconsciously showed his amazement.
"How... how do you know about the loot and necklace? No one can know except..." as he spoke, the young tamer was interrupted by another unexpected event. Instead of answering his question, Ogai raised a hand and snapped his fingers.
A sound of footsteps broke the silence and the second figure hiding behind the large rhino demon came on the scene. Limping on his bandaged legs and leaving a glimpse of the rest of his injured body under the long ruined leather coat, the man's head was covered in a large cowboy hat.
Yoichi and Enatsu's gaze inevitably fell on that unmistakable-looking man. Shioko also looked at him, unable to figure out who it was.
*gulp* - Yoichi swallowed empty, trying to hold back the disdain. "You... you are..."
"Hyobe. Yes, here he is, in flesh and blood. The man who 'hired' you to find his defunct wife's necklace, granting you a worthy treasure" the hooded man interrupted, letting his guest approach. Hyobe took another step forward, obeying Ogai's call as a house-trained pet.
His gaze was turned downwards and the blood-bleak yellowish bandages covered his neck to his chin. The steel-tipped boots did not escape Yoichi's attention, who perfectly remembered the appearance of the man who had entrusted him with his very first quest.
"What a piece of shit!" Enatsu boomed. Unexpectedly, the young merchant let the anger take over, trying to free himself from his stone prison. He pushed his arms and shouldes forward but failed.
Yoichi continued to stare at the scene before his eyes, trying to connect the pieces of that intricate puzzle. "Why? Why have you betrayed us?" he inquired, looking for a rational and empathetic response from the man in the cowboy hat.
"Poor, little, naive tamers... the heartbreaking story of his late wife and best friend dead in this cave would have convinced anyone, wouldn't it? I'm deeply impressed, Hyobe. I didn't think these fools would take the bait without objection," Ogai replied. His arms along his hips.
The man in the iron-tipped boots slowly looked up. His eyes were filled with anger and resentment: around the brown pupil, the part that was supposed to be white was reddish, as if she had cried until a few moments before.
"Can you tell me who the fuck is this man? Do you know him?! Grrr... you! Get me out of here and fight me, if you have the balls!" Shioko yelled angrily.
The archer's words generated a new silence. It was broken by Hyobe's dry mouth which opened and dared to speak. "Nothing personal, boy. I had to do it... I would do anything to get my Yako back and... I... I..." the man began to sob and his speech was interrupted by sincere crying.
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