Velmo's heart ached as he saw Rosaly's tears and heard her cries.
He couldn't hold in his anger anymore.
Suddenly, the wind encasing his body vanished and in the next moment, he quickly plummeted towards the ground. Betraying the speed of his descent, he landed gracefully at Rosaly's side.
Without a word, he gently draped his cloak around Rosaly, intentionally hiding his tense facial expression from her teary eyes.
"That's the Jade Tempest! This is bad!" Valon thought briefly, panic beginning to rise in his chest.
In his current state it would've been better to run.
But he couldn't just leave Xaryus and Zadius behind. Especially after he had spent so much hard work and time cultivating their talents.
Reluctantly, Smiling Blade turned away from Balki and faced the new threat that had descended into the clearing.
Similarly, Balki turned away from Valon to face the Jade Tempest.
No words were said but Zadius could feel it: A gut-wrenching and brutal clash was inevitable.
"Four." Velmo counted silently, scanning the battlefield as his animus soaked muscles tensed. He was preparing to tear his opponents apart before they could even make a move.
However, his rage subsided for a brief moment after feeling a soft tug on his clothes. Turning back, he saw Rosaly grasping the end of his shirt tightly.
"…The two young boys had tried to save me." She said, her eyes filled with a silent plea.
There was a moment of silence between them. Velmo gently removed Rosaly's hand and gave her a soft, reassuring nod.
"Two." Velmo thought, revising his calculations.
Soon after, the winds that encased his body returned like a protective armour, shifting his hair and clothes, fuelled by his wrath.
"Wait, Jade Tempest. We can strike a deal." Balki tried to negotiate
Velmo vanished… The area where he stood exploded with a violent burst of wind, nearly tearing Rosaly off the ground.
Balki's eyes went wide in shock.
Before he could process where the Jade Tempest had gone, the jade eyed man had already reappeared in front of him. His body low and his fist arcing through the air.
Velmo's fist crashed into Balki with devastating force, breaking through his chest plate with ease.
Balki could feel his sternum cave in from the strength of the blow, his eyes almost rolled to the back of his head from the blinding pain.
Wind howled and Balki was launched from the clearing, crashing through several trees before coming to a bloodied and mangled halt.
He was sprawled across the forest floor, staring up at the canopy above, struggling for air.
Almost distracted by the nauseating pain, he weakly moved his hand back to his side in an attempt to stop more of his innards from leaking out.
But it was already too late.
Too much of his blood had gushed out of the wound when he was thrown out of the clearing. Even pressing his hand against his side required too much strength.
"What a way to meet my end… At least that tempest bastard will kill Valon alongside me."
The thought of Valon being brutalised by the Jade Tempest caused Balki to laugh out loud.
Each time he exhaled, he coughed, trying not to suffocate from the blood that was quickly filling his lungs.
Soon enough, Balki's hoarse laughter faded…
Back in the clearing, Valon's sweat rolled down his face like a waterfall.
He couldn't see the Jade Tempest's movements, "Shit, shit, shit!" Valon screamed.
<
Valon's sword lashed out, its path of attack swift, elusive and violent.
But it never had the luxury of biting into Velmo's flesh. The Jade Tempest had casually turned his body away, stepping just out of the attack's main path.
Valon's attack wouldn't have found purchase but it would have at least touched the Jade Tempest's armour.
However, just before impact, the protective winds around Velmo's body knocked the attack aside.
"Tch, I expected as much." Valon cursed inwardly, readjusting his feet and thrusting his blade towards the Jade Tempest.
Velmo's gaze sharpened.
"Be glad, Smiling Blade. Your life has been spared by the King of Rosa." Velmo declared softly before he erupted in a jolt of motion.
He cleanly smacked Valon's sword out of his hand.
Before Valon could react, Velmo slammed his fist into his side: knocking the wind out of his body.
Stumbling back, Valon struggled to maintain his footing.
His core was nearly ruined from overuse, his soul aching from damage, and Velmo's blow had almost made him throw up.
"Are you sure you're not trying to kill me?" Valon gasped, coughing up blood but still managing to wear a crooked, blood-filled smile.
Velmo had heard enough, and his patience had long run thin.
"Shut up." Velmo ordered.
Not allowing Valon to gather himself, Velmo quickly spun around, raising his foot into the air and slamming his heel into Valon's chin.
The blow sent Valon spinning through the air and tumbling across the grassy ground like a ragdoll.
Just like that the two monstrous awakened within the now devastated clearing were subdued.
An air of relief washed over the clearing, but Velmo's gaze was still glued to the Smiling Blade.
"He had the audacity to lay his hands on Rosaly! I should behead him here and now… but the King's orders are absolute." He thought.
No longer sensing any animus coursing through Valon's body, Velmo released a long sigh; all his anger flushing out of his body with it.
"What would have happened if I hadn't seen that explosion?" Velmo thought wistfully, glancing over to the plume of smoke still rising into the air.
Hearing the sound of irregular footsteps, he shifted his gaze to the young princess.
She approached him slowly, wincing with each of her small steps.
"Is something wrong Rosaly? Are you hurt anywhere?" Velmo bombarded Rosaly with a plethora of questions.
Besides the dirt and soot on her body he hadn't seen any serious injuries; if there were any he would have rushed her back to Rosa so she could be treated by a healer.
Velmo was ready to drag Rosaly back to Rosa, but he was interrupted.
"T-The two boys… they escaped." Rosaly said.
Relieved that Rosaly didn't seem hurt, Velmo gave her a tight hug. He knew she must have been scared even though she was raised to be strong no matter what she experienced.
"I'm aware, but your safety takes priority." Velmo replied, running his hand through Rosaly's hair.
By that time her childish tears were already starting to dry up.
She felt as if things were finally going to return to normal. But that wasn't necessarily a good thing.
Whilst Rosaly was revelling in her sense of safety, Velmo flicked the centre of her forehead.
"What the heck was that for!?" Rosaly groaned in pain, her tears almost returning in full force.
"That's for wandering out of your guard's sight… Be grateful, because your sister isn't going to be so merciful." Velmo said with a satisfied smirk across his face.
On the other hand, Rosaly was distraught.
Just as one set of danger was dismissed, another had revealed itself.
"She's going to kill me." Rosaly mumbled in defeat.
All of a sudden, home didn't feel as safe anymore.