They Who Watch over the Night: A Wuxia Series (Legend of Raven Book 3) by Konstantin Zaitsev

Author:Konstantin Zaitsev [Zaitsev, Konstantin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-05-01T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

A Second Heart

There were people who found running meditative. When they ran, their minds were clear and they didn’t think about how to put their foot jumping over a stone on a forest track or how to breathe properly. Unfortunately, I wasn’t one of those people. Running had always been and would always be a challenge for me, and only absolute control over my body allowed me to run not only fast, but also for a long time.

Mei-Li didn’t weigh much even with her armor, but when you were carrying an unconscious person whose body’s only mission in life seemed to be to slip off and trip you, she seemed to weigh a ton. I had to constantly shift her weight around while at the same time trying to not fall behind Ju Gen and his caravan. The horses weren’t moving all that quickly, but with Mei-Li on my back, it felt like we were in the middle of the rush hour.

Trying to keep up, I stopped thinking after about twenty minutes. I didn’t care about anything. The only thought in my mind was where to put my foot next. Every cell in my body was focused on not falling behind and not tripping over rocks, roots, or horse dung. The damn horses were shitting on the move — then again, what were they supposed to do, ask for a bathroom break? — and it was only thanks to the merciful Heavens that I hadn’t yet slipped and fallen face-first into one of the smelly piles of shit.

“Breathe more evenly. The most important thing is to continue breathing. While you breathe, you can still stand.”

Even Tinjol’s voice sounded like it was coming from a distance. I was well aware of the fact that I would die if I were to stop breathing, that was how human bodies worked. If you went against a good fighter without knowing how to breathe properly, he’d wipe the floor with you already in the second round before you could figure out what was going on.

Sweat was pouring into my eyes and my lungs were burning, but I didn’t care. Step by step, I kept running with Mei-Li on my back, maintaining a good speed with the caravan. An hour had passed when I realized that we kept speeding up and then slowing down, almost like on purpose. Was Ju Gen testing my stamina or something? That cheeky little bastard.

Soon, my body began to give up. My muscles were sore to the point of cramping and my throat was as dry as the Sahara. I reached for the core to nourish my muscles with energy but was immediately scolded for it.

“Do not!” Tinjol cried out. “Do that and you will be running away from the caravan, praying to all the Gods and ancestors that Ju Gen does not catch up with you.”

“If I don’t use it, I’ll fall behind, and then both Mei-Li and I will be in trouble. My body isn’t meant for this.

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