The Laughing Swordsman

Apollo held his bokken tighter when he heard Layla's words.

He scanned the area around him, checking with his blind spot.

Sure enough, there were countless shadow monkeys perched on the tree branches.

They were looking at Apollo and Layla with hostility.

A small smile appeared on Apollo's face.

"Layla, this is your chance to play with them."

Layla cheered with her arms in the air.

"Yay!"

She dived into the fray, chasing after an arbitrary shadow monkey. The shadow monkey immediately ran away, but Layla was faster.

She easily caught up...

Then waited for the shadow monkey to continue running.

Apollo's eyelid twitched.

"...I should've expected this."

The rest of the shadow monkeys appeared to ignore Layla altogether. Instead, they leaped to Apollo.

Apollo felt a premonition of danger but did not react in time.

His chest was slashed. A shadow monkey ripped two lines deep into his flesh.

Apollo's bokken whipped out, smashing the shadow monkey into a pulp.

His pupils shook.

If the shadow monkeys surrounded Apollo, he would take countless hits for each one he killed.

For an easy victory, he would have to back up while he fought so they couldn't encircle him.

But...

Where was the fun in that?

Apollo dashed right into the middle of the group, wildly swinging his bokken.

He felt he hit something, but in the next second, he was slashed by three monkeys.

At this rate, he would actually die.

Apollo's eyes widened.

Slashes came from every direction. He could hardly dodge any of them.

Apollo's body was being torn to shreds.

...It made him laugh.

It felt like the time he was fighting with Willow.

Each time, he would never know where the next attack would come from. Yet, he had found a way to dodge the attacks before he even knew they were coming.

Apollo's eyes glazed over.

A shadow monkey slashed at his back, yet missed.

A few others slashed at him, but he slid right past.

Apollo had closed his eyes, giving up his sight altogether.

His body elusively slipped past the attacks. He leisurely moved out of the way before the shadow monkeys themselves knew they were attacking.

His steps were not hurried. Instead, they appeared to be a dance. Almost like choreography.

Apollo did not forget to slash with his bokken.

It too danced in the air like a ghost.

The red tassel lazily swung from side to side, accompanying his movements.

The number of shadow monkeys began to thin.

One after another, a carcass would fall to the ground. The stench of blood filled the air, yet Apollo didn't seem to notice it.

He let out little giggles as he danced with the wind.

At some point, the shadow monkeys got scared and scurried away.

Apollo stood still with his eyes closed for a few moments.

The corner of his lip twitched.

He had lost a lot of blood, but he had been in far worse conditions before.

He slowly opened his eyes and contemplated his situation.

How was he supposed to kill all of the shadow monkeys like this? Since they only appear in his blind spot, it would take way too long to find each of them.

Apollo rubbed his chin with his forefinger and thumb.

It's not like he had some tracking device that could lead him to-

There was a loud crash next to Apollo.

Layla was giggling and holding onto the tail of a shadow monkey.

The shadow monkey was desperately clawing against the ground in an attempt to escape, but it was futile.

Apollo looked at Layla.

Ah, never mind. He did have a tracking device.

Apollo's bokken flashed, bisecting the shadow monkey by its stomach.

Layla was giggling but pouted once she realized the shadow monkey stopped moving.

"Aw... why isn't friend playing anymore?"

Apollo smiled.

"That's because your friend is tired! Let's go find some more, ok?"

Layla perked up. She nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah!"

Layla happily skipped forward while Apollo trailed behind her.

After a few minutes, Layla suddenly gasped in excitement.

"Wow! So many friends."

While Layla bolted forward, Apollo followed closely from behind.

She stopped in front of a tree and then began giggling.

"Thank you, friends!"

Apollo furrowed his brows.

What was she doing?

Apollo scanned the area with his blind spot and noticed that many shadow monkeys were running away.

"Layla, your friends are getting away!"

Layla tilted his head to the side.

"But they gave us gifts! We need to show our appreciation!"

Apollo's eyelid twitched.

"But... they're going to get away!"

Layla waved her hand dismissively.

"We can find them later! Come on, try some!"

Layla picked at the air and held an empty hand in front of Apollo.

As for Apollo, he tilted his head to the side as a smile emerged on his face.

Was this girl really joking with him at this point?

Suddenly, Apollo sobered up. He remembered the time he believed Layla was joking with the shadow monkey.

He looked at Layla's empty hand with his blindspot.

...He saw a strange fruit.

It was glowing faintly with a soft white light, mixed with a tinge of yellow. It was in a similar shape to a banana, but much smaller. While Layla's hands were not big, they could easily hold a few.

Apollo picked up the fruit.

Then, he used his blind spot to look at where Layla picked the fruit.

There were a few small patches of these fruits growing from various sections of the tree. Many of these patches had missing fruits. It seems the shadow monkeys had picked off a few.

That was when Apollo recalled a detail from his request.

The shadow monkeys would be found near the penumbra trees.

If only they told him about the strange requirements for seeing these things.

As Apollo was lost in his thoughts, Layla picked a few more fruits from the penumbra tree.

She stuffed her face without hesitation.

She smiled dreamily.

"Mmm..."

Apollo raised an eyebrow.

...These were probably safe to eat, right?

Seeing Layla devour them like candies, Apollo worked up the courage to take a bite.