Wira : The Peerless One from Mount Tarakan

Rainbow Valley Village slowly began to breathe a sigh of relief. The tranquility, briefly torn by the presence of the Night Shadow Sect, now gradually crept back. Villagers, who had been hiding behind doors or amongst the bushes, one by one started to emerge, looking at Wira with a mix of awe, wonder, gratitude, and apprehension. They whispered, pointing at the dark-clad youth as if he were a mythical being.

Wira, oblivious to the crowd of eyes on him, stood at ease. He turned to Laksmi, who was still frozen behind him. "They're gone, Laksmi. The troublemakers are no longer here."

Laksmi let out a long breath, realizing she had been holding it for too long. Her legs felt weak, and she nearly collapsed. But she managed to steady herself. She looked at Wira, the innocent youth who had just incapacitated dozens of martial artists and sent a sect leader fleeing in terror, as if it were merely a morning routine.

"Yes… yes, they're gone, Wira," Laksmi replied, her voice still trembling slightly. "You… you're incredible."

Wira frowned. "Incredible? Does that mean I can find a bride now?"

Laksmi massaged her temples. Goodness. She had forgotten how naive Wira was. "No, Wira. It means you're very amazing. Very strong." She then looked around. Some villagers slowly began to approach, led by Aunt Suri, whose face held both relief and worry.

Aunt Suri stepped closer, her eyes filled with gratitude as she looked at Wira. "Young Wira… thank you so much. You saved our village. We… we don't know how to repay your kindness."

Wira scratched his head. "Repay? Repay kindness? Grandpa said, if you help someone, you don't need to be repaid."

Aunt Suri smiled faintly, understanding Wira's innocence. "Yes, young man. But we still have to thank you. Come, let's go inside the house. You both must be tired."

As they walked back to Aunt Suri's house, villagers became bolder in their approach. They whispered, trying to get a glimpse of Wira, as if he were a legendary hero who had just descended from the heavens. Some small children, who had been terrified moments ago, now dared to creep a little closer, looking at Wira with curious eyes.

Inside Aunt Suri's simple home, the atmosphere felt warmer. Aunt Suri prepared warm tea and light snacks. Laksmi, slowly recovering from her shock, sat beside Wira. She observed Wira, who was still curiously taking in his surroundings.

"Wira," Laksmi began, her voice softer. "You… you weren't hurt at all?"

Wira shook his head. "No. Why? Should I have been hurt?"

Laksmi sighed. "Of course not. But… that fight just now, it was very dangerous. Jati is a strong martial artist. And his men were well-trained too." She remembered how Jati had desperately attacked Wira, while Wira had merely parried and dodged. "Your power… what did your grandpa teach you?"

Wira smiled. "Many things. Grandpa taught me Sura, breathing techniques, how to split rocks with my bare hands, and tame tigers." He spoke as if these were the most ordinary things. "But he said, those are all just basics."

Laksmi nearly choked on her tea. "Basics?! Taming tigers is basic?! Destroying swords with bare hands is basic?!" She pointed outside, to where Jati's shattered sword lay in pieces.

Wira frowned. "The sword? Oh, that was an accident. I thought he was shooting fire, so I reflexively blocked it."

Laksmi fell silent, then slowly shook her head. She realized that Wira's understanding of power and danger was vastly different from ordinary people. To him, it was merely a reflex.

"Listen, Wira," Laksmi said, her voice more serious. "This power you possess… it's very rare and dangerous. You can't just use it casually in front of others. The world out there won't understand. They'll be afraid, or worse, they'll try to capture you or use me to get to you."

Wira looked at Laksmi. His innocent expression turned slightly serious. "So… I shouldn't help anymore?"

"It's not like that!" Laksmi quickly explained. "Of course you can help. But you have to be wiser. And you mustn't tell anyone about Sura or your grandpa. Let people think you're just… a very powerful martial artist. Don't let them know more."

Wira nodded, trying to digest this new lesson. This was about how to interact with humans, a lesson far more complicated than martial arts techniques. He realized that despite his strength, he truly needed Laksmi's guidance to survive in this unfamiliar world.

Meanwhile, outside Aunt Suri's house, whispers about the mysterious youth from the mountain had already begun to spread. The story of Wira's unexpected power would soon travel from Rainbow Valley Village, like ripples in still water, to all corners of the martial world. And whether he knew it or not, Wira had carved his first mark, one that would change his own destiny and the world around him.

The next few days in Rainbow Valley Village were a continuous lesson for Wira. He learned that money was a medium of exchange, not just paper. Laksmi patiently taught Wira about the price of goods, how to bargain, and why he shouldn't just take things, even if it was just a delicious-looking piece of cake. Wira often misunderstood, sometimes offering to chop down a tree in exchange for a bag of crackers, leaving vendors baffled.

"It's not like that, Wira," Laksmi would explain, stifling a laugh. "You have to use this money. This is called a silver coin. One silver coin can buy ten crackers."

Wira, with his innocence, tried to understand. "So, if I have a hundred silver coins, I can have a thousand crackers? Wow, that's a lot!"

Furthermore, Wira also learned about more subtle social interactions. He learned not to stare too long at village women, let alone comment on their "chest muscles." Laksmi even gave him a brief lesson on clothing, telling him to wear his headband neatly and not to wear his shirt inside out. Despite often frustrating Laksmi, Wira was an obedient student, though he required much repetition.

"The most important lesson today," Laksmi said one afternoon, as they sat by the tranquil river. "Here, we can't just use our strength carelessly. Your power… it's immense, Wira. People could get scared, or they'll become suspicious. Especially those martial artists, they will definitely come looking for you."

Wira stared at the water's surface. "Grandpa said that too. I need to be careful. But why should they be afraid? I wasn't attacking them."

"They're afraid of something they don't understand," Laksmi explained gently. "Especially power like your Sura, it's very rare. Perhaps no one even believes it's real anymore. They might think such power is extinct. If you show it too often, the martial world will be in an uproar, and everyone will hunt you down. Not just the Night Shadow Sect, but also other sects who want to control your power."

Wira fell silent, pondering Laksmi's words. The concept of being "hunted" was something he understood, though the reasons were different. On the mountain, he hunted animals. Here, he could be the one hunted.

"So, I shouldn't practice my techniques anymore?" Wira asked with a hint of sadness in his voice.

Laksmi gave a small smile. "It's not that you can't. But you have to be more careful. Your grandpa wouldn't want you to become a fugitive, would he? We have to be careful how we tread in this world. There are many eyes everywhere."

Wira nodded slowly. He began to feel a new kind of burden. Not a physical burden, but a social one. This world was truly complicated.

A few days later, a large group of merchants arrived in Rainbow Valley Village, bringing goods from distant cities. They also brought news. Amidst conversations about the prices of spices and silk cloth, strange whispers could be heard.

"I heard, Jati 'Beardie' and his men returned from an expedition to the east empty-handed. They even say his heirloom sword was destroyed," a stout merchant told his comrade.

"Not just that," another merchant added, lowering his voice. "They say they encountered a mountain demon near Mount Tarakan. A youth who incapacitated Jati's entire party with bare hands, without even a scratch. Some eyewitnesses in that village even say the youth had a blue-silver aura…"

The news, like the wind, spread. Jati 'Beardie', known for his cruelty and invincibility in that region, was now a laughingstock for fleeing from a "mountain brat." The rumor of a "mountain demon" with strange power and a blue-silver aura began to become a new legend, sparking curiosity, fear, and even greed among the martial world.

At Aunt Suri's house, Laksmi heard the whispers from afar. Her face turned pale. She looked at Wira, who was busy helping Ayu weave bamboo. Wira chuckled as Ayu pointed out a mistake in his weaving. He looked so normal, so innocent, yet in the eyes of the world, he had now become a target.

"We can't stay here too long, Wira," Laksmi whispered to herself. "This world isn't ready for you."

She knew that Wira's lessons about humans would soon become lessons about survival.