Odyssey Of The Sword Dancer

3. Baronia

Stepping out of the house, I couldn't help but appreciate the cool wind brushing past my face.

Walking down the cobbled streets, I saw different kinds of activities going on. From merchants trying to sell their goods, to street brawls due to all sorts of reason.

The town of Linwald was as vibrant as ever.

None of it was new to me, but for some reason I couldn't help but pause before a man sitting by the roadside.

He had burn marks all over his body. Once in a while someone would stare at him with pity, but that was all. People with the same conditions could be found around the city.

This was the norm around here, which was terrifying if you thought about it.

But considering the threat Baronia was facing it was an expected situation.

While Earth had it's wars and pollution among other problems, Baronia was faced with a bigger problem. Humanity was on the brink of extinction.

From a population of twenty-one billion, Baronia was down to roughly just seven billion. All this happened because of the existence of the race called... dragons.

They weren't originally from Baronia.

They invaded the planet and slaughtered most of the humans on it.

With a sigh I kept on moving forward.

Baronia has gone long beyond medieval times, but at the moment it certainly didn't look like it.

Cobbled roads, brick houses, and wooden stalls. this was what Baronia looked like, or at least _this_ part of Baronia.

But there was one thing they couldn't do away with.

I raised my head up, and right in the center of the town was a square tower and on its four sides were huge screens.

They were mostly used to pass important information to the people.

Only people of at least **C rank** talent could live in the cities and metropolises.

And that was if you could afford it.

But let's be real, anyone that was at least **C rank** lived in luxury.

While those with meager talent ended up in the towns and villages.

Baronia was really messed up.

I kept on navigating through the streets and just when I was about to get to Zac's house, I heard commotion in an alley.

I kept on walking.

I wasn't about to get involved after just leaving my sick bed.

But that was until I heard Zac's voice, and he sounded hurt.

Wasting no time, I turned around and ran into the alley. "What did that idiot get himself into now."

Getting there I saw Zac on the floor, surrounded by three boys.

"Look who it is," a boy with red hair said, a grin visible on his face, with the way he carried himself, he was clearly the leader of these group of fools. "I thought you died."

I stopped in my tracks and looked up at the heavens. And let out an exasperated

Of all the people in the world, it had to be these idiots.

I knew them more than I would like to admit, they were the official bullies of the original Kyle.

Well, that was about to change.

My body was in top condition, and I knew how to throw a punch or two from my time on Earth.

So yeah, this was going to be a piece of cake.

Or at least that was what I thought. When I took a step forward, I noticed my hand was shaking.

Seriously?

"Hey Leo, the weakling is scared," another boy said with a smirk.

Leo, the boy with the red hair, took a step forward and cracked his knuckles. "Why don't you run back home, or do you want to be bedridden again."

Now, this was one of the disadvantages of merging with the original Kyle- or at least what was left of him.

While they thought I was scared of them, it was actually the effect of the constant bullying, which had caused to the original Kyle to be frightened when he came in contact with this idiots.

And while I did feel fear, I knew I could handle them.

This was probably going to be the last time we met, so I was going to make sure they knew their place.

"Kyle you don't have to do this, just leave, beating me up is the worst they can do," Zac said, trying his best to stand up.

I didn't answer him, instead, I got into a stance.

"Get him," Leo said with a barely contained grin. The two boys ran forward, both throwing a punch at me

I blocked the first blow, dodged the second one and moved in close. I grabbed both their heads and slammed them together, they staggered back, giving me the opportunity to land a clean hit.

I punched the one closest to me right in the face, then kicked him in the neck, leaving him chocking on the ground.

When I turned around the other boy had already regained his bearing.

"Arrggh!" the boy threw out punch after punch, but I sidestepped all of them. I saw an opening and landed a clean uppercut.

-Clap

-Clap

-Clap

"I don't know how but you've gotten stronger," Leo said. "But all you're doing is delaying your loss."

I knew what Leo was capable of, even with no prior training, he was a great fighter. But still, I was sure I would win.

"Let's find out," I said.

We both ran forward, Leo threw out a punch, and I responded with a punch of my own. We both dodged and began to rain blows on each other, with only a few connecting.

We both jumped backwards and took a stance.

Leo had clearly lost that little bout of ours. But he still didn't look worried.

"This is kind of fun, just don't lose too early," Leo said while taking a stance of his own.

He ran forward and threw a kick at me, raising my arm, I blocked the attack.

I shoved Leo's leg aside, causing him to lose balance. Giving me the chance to land a clean punch on his face, I attempted to kick him in the chest, but Leo sidestepped the attack and surprised me with a punch to the face.

I staggered back but Leo caught me by the neck and kicked me in the stomach.

I felt all the air leave his lungs.

But bearing through the pain, I broke free from Leo's grip and gave him an headbutt. Leo staggered back, giving me the chance to recover from those hits.

I was beginning to lose focus.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

This is nothing new to me, I knew I would come out victorious at the end

I opened my eyes and ran forward with Leo meeting him head on. I ducked beneath his fist and punched him in the stomach.

This continued for a while.

I dodged each attack Leo threw at me and landed one of my own. "Stop running!" Leo screamed and threw a particularly reckless blow.

Bingo.

I dodged the punch, causing Leo to lose balance. Gathering all the strength I could, I landed a clean blow on Leo's stupid face, breaking his nose in the process.

I kicked him in the chest, causing him to lose his balance and fall.

I raised my leg and stomped on him over and over again.

That was for the original Kyle.

Looking up, I saw that Zac had taken care of the other two during my fight with Leo.

"Let's go." I turned and walked out of the alley with Zac behind me.

"How did you do that?" Zac asked, amazed at my seemingly new capabilities.

" Oh, uh, that was all in the heat of the moment," I said. "I'm not really sure I can pull that off again.

"You're joking, right," Zac said, a frown visible on his face.

He clearly didn't believe a word coming out of my mouth.

"No, I'm not," I said, looking at him from the side of my eye. "And besides, I was coming to your place, to remind you of tomorrow's journey."

...Yeah, I was changing the topic.

I wasn't about to tell him about my transmigration. He was probably going to think I'd been punched a bit too hard during the fight.

And besides after what happened back on Earth, I wasn't sure I was ready to trust anyone right now.

"Of course I remember," Zac said.

"Then let's go make sure you packed everything you need." I said.

Zac looked like he wanted to argue, but he just sighed and kept walking. "Fine."

No more words were said between us.

Because tomorrow was going to decide the rest of our lives.

We were about to step foot in the grand halls of Sentinel Academy.

The birthplace of warriors who stood at the forefront of the war.

Warriors who stood beneath burning skies with unyielding hearts.

The birthplace... of Slayers.