Morning came. Ryu and the Master woke up early, and since there wasn't much food left, they left the house without eating anything, saving the food for the little girl and her mother.
Walking behind the Master, Ryu asked:
"Master, where are we going?"
The Master kept walking and said calmly,
"We're going to help these people."
Ryu gave a small smile and followed him.
They kept moving until they came across a middle-aged man.
"Hello, may I ask where the commander of this city is?"
The man replied,
"The city's commander ran away."
Ryu asked,
"So who's in charge now?"
"A brave young man."
"Where can we find him?"
"He's in the eastern district—where the monsters usually attack."
"Thank you, sir. Take care."
They headed toward the eastern part of the city.
The eastern district was far more ruined and devastated.
Destroyed houses… completely abandoned…
They kept walking until they reached the eastern command post.
There were only a few wounded soldiers there.
The Master and Ryu approached them.
"Good morning. Could you tell us who the city's commander is?"
One of the injured soldiers forced himself up and said,
"He's inside. Did you need him?"
Ryu said,
"Yeah. We want to help in destroying the monsters."
"Pffft. You? Destroy monsters?"
"Fine, fine… you can go inside and talk to him."
They entered and came face-to-face with a young commander who looked like he had aged fifty years—his face and arms covered in scars.
"Hello, how can I help you two?"
The Master said,
"We just arrived and saw the state of the city. I passed through here long ago… it used to be a prosperous place."
The commander began explaining.
"Well… where do I even start…
It was about a year ago.
A strange monster attacked our city. Even though we suffered heavy casualties, we managed to defeat it.
Before we could finish it off, it escaped.
Everyone was busy tending to the wounded, and since the monster was severely injured, we assumed it would die… so no one chased it.
But after a month…
Small, weak monsters started attacking the city.
Since they were small, we could kill them easily.
Months passed, and their numbers grew—and they got stronger.
Eventually the former city commander organized a team and went to track down where these monsters were coming from.
After searching for a long time, they finally discovered it—
the eastern mountain.
They attacked the monster nest… but it was too late.
The mother monster had already healed itself, and the monsters protecting it had grown incredibly strong.
The team was completely wiped out… only one man survived.
The great commander of the city was killed as well.
After that, people panicked.
The monster attacks increased… the rich fled… the officials fled…
and only the poor were left behind.
We've been protecting them with everything we've got.
We even requested help from the central government, but since the capital is far away, we're not sure reinforcements will arrive in time.
Little by little… we're losing hope.
Only a few of us are left. The rest are dead or gone."
After a few seconds of silence, the Master said:
"Can you show us that mountain?"
"Yes. It's right in front of us.
We've tried so hard to stop them, but their numbers kept growing."
The Master said,
"I'll save this city—but under one condition."
The commander let out a small laugh.
"If you can save the city, I'll do anything you want."
The Master said,
"I don't want much. Just all the treasure obtained from the monsters is mine."
(Usually wherever monster nests are, gold and gems are found.)
Without hesitation, the commander said,
"Even if you wanted the entire city, I'd give it to you—if you could really destroy those monsters."
"Alright then. I'm going."
The Master stood up, and Ryu got up to follow him.
The Master told him:
"Stay here. It might be dangerous for you."
"I want to come too! I want to see your power."
"No, kid. You'll see my power when the time comes."
"Now go back to that little girl's house. We'll meet again there."
Ryu grumbled in frustration and slowly walked off.
After Ryu left, the Master turned back and said:
"Alright, alright… now let me tell you the second condition."
"Huh? Wasn't that the only condition?"
"Well, my student has a good heart—he'd feel bad asking.
But I'm not like that.
I want a hundred gold coins."
"What?! A hundred?!!"
"Before coming here, I checked things out.
This place isn't that poor yet."
"Well… that money was for when a merchant brought supplies. We were supposed to use it to buy goods."
"Fine. I'll give it to you."
The Master said,
"Good. You'd better keep your word."
And he headed toward the monster nest.
End of Chapter 20