FAMILY ABOVE ALL: BATTLING AGAINST GODS

 

Three little kids stood in front of a shop.

Though the shop was only one floor, it was still quite big.

In front of the stall was a signboard on which was written "Night Crawlers."

"You can get what you are searching for here." The sweet voice of a little girl drifted into the ears of two young boys.

As Arlo gazed at the shop, he couldn't help but marvel at its appearance.

The shop was glittering with black color, and he guessed it was the same material from which his room was built.

Arianne as if noticing his fascination spoke at this moment, "It is called Darknite. It is a mineral that can only be found in the northern continent."

Arlo was a bit surprised the girl could read his thoughts but he still spoke, "Thank you."

During their brief walk to the shop, Arlo had asked her who she was.

She simply replied, "My mother owns a small shop in this city." before she fell silent. No matter what he asked regarding her background, she gave no more answer.

However, after telling her what they were searching for, she brought them to the shop in front of them.

For that, Arlo was a bit grateful. Considering he and Joe were both from different races, he didn't know how the people here would react if they asked for directions.

Entering the shop, what entered Arlo's divine sense was groups of bat-like creatures that he now knew were called Crawlers, hanging down the top of the shop.

At the back of the shop, an old man was working on a crawler spread on the table.

Even though Arlo felt he was old, the old man's body was still filled with vigor. In addition, his pale face together with his black snow-white streaked hair gave him quite a handsome appearance for an old man.

The old man shifted his attention to them after they entered the shop.

His gaze rested longer on Joe than the others. After a bit while of observation he voiced out, "How may I help you?"

"We want to get some night crawlers," said Arianne as she took the initiative to speak.

"Oh! How many would you like?" asked the old man.

Arianne did not respond this time, but instead turned her head slightly to Arlo as she looked at him with a questioning look.

After considering the size of the sled he brought with him, Arlo spoke, "About ten would be enough."

"How do you plan to move them?" he asked once more.

"There is a sled just outside the shop," said Arlo.

"Okay!" the old man nodded and asked no more questions.

"Marvin!" he called out.

A door located at the back of the shop opened before a middle-aged man came out, "Yes master."

"Bring down ten crawlers and place them on the sled outside.

"Yes!" the middle-aged man responded politely.

He immediately sprang into action and did as he was told.

Arianne moved closer to Arlo and asked, "Do you have money to pay?"

Arlo didn't even have to think about it as he replied with a "No!"

However he quickly clarified before the young girl could react, "But I have this!" said Arlo as he took out a token.

When Arianne saw the token, she nodded her head, "That is enough!"

When Arlo took out the token, the old man inadvertently saw it too and he voiced, "I see you were taken to that place."

Arlo didn't quite understand what he meant, but the old man didn't bother clarifying.

.....

The trio walked together with Arlo and Arianne in front, and Joe further back.

Arlo pulled the sled along with him using his left hand and he didn't seem disturbed in the least.

Joe on the other hand had been silent ever since that 'incident'.

No matter what Arlo said to him, he didn't reply.

Arianne on the other hand didn't even bother with him, treating him as if he didn't exist in the first place.

The trio walked in silence.

Arlo was a bit surprised. He thought Arianne had approached them with an ulterior motive, however ever since they left the shop, she had not asked them anything. She simply escorted them back to the gate.

Thinking about what happened in the shop, Arlo smiled bitterly.

After getting all the crawlers, the old man didn't bother asking them to pay.

Before they left, Arianne decided to ask if the man had beast meat.

And to their surprise, he did.

He brought out several chucks of meat and handed them to him.

He estimated it would be enough to feed him and Joe for a week or so.

However, he didn't dare to ask where the meat came from.

Reaching the gate, Arianne suddenly stopped, "This is where we say goodbye."

"Thanks for your help today. I will be sure to pay you back in the future." Arlo nodded his head at her.

She just smiled and didn't respond.

Seeing this, Arlo continued toward the gate with Joe following behind him like a lifeless husk.

It wasn't until after they left the vicinity of the city that Joe suddenly collapsed on the ground as he gasped heavily for breath.

Arlo was pulled out of his thoughts on their encounter with Arianne, as he let go of the sled and quickly approached Joe, "What is wrong with you?"

Joe looked up as he gazed at Arlo, his eyes filled with terror, "Th-that girl is a monster."

Arlo was dumbfounded.

"Of course, she is a monster. She is a vampire after all," he said subconsciously.

However, Joe suddenly grabbed his clothes and pulled fiercely as he mumbled, "No you have it all wrong. You can't tell as you are just a human, but I felt it. She is not just a vampire. She is something else entirely, a monster!"

Looking deep into the eyes of his newfound friend, Arlo didn't know how to respond.

So he just kept quiet and waited for him to recompose himself.

…..

A week later.

Arlo sat in a lotus position in his room.

He had been in intensive training this past week and was quite satisfied with the results.

His missing arm had regenerated up to his hand. He believed in just two days, his arm would have regenerated completely.

That wasn't the only thing he accomplished from his training.

After adjusting to the darkness, for a bit more than a week, Arlo was surprised to find out he could now see a few meters around with his normal eyes.

His divine sense range had also increased to a whooping ten meters.

The artifact spirit had told him this was a result of constantly using his divine sense.

The most important thing, however, was that Arlo could feel himself touching upon a barrier.

After informing the artifact spirit about it, he learned that it was a sign he was about to break through and become a real warrior.

Arlo was so excited to find out if he would be able to summon two astral warriors upon his breakthrough.