《No Longer Feeling Vol.1 [The Bellken Escapades]》


 Prologue: To Nobody, I Died Today

    Himura Sat¨­


    Inside a dirty underground city, various screams and battle cries resounded in the small hallway. In one of the large rooms, there were four beings, fighting. I am one of them, I duck as one of the residents of this world raises one of his two right arms and tries to hit me with a right hook.


    Instead it hits the wall, destroying a chunk of it and revealing the room next to it. I take one step back, quickly sheathing my scimitar. I then step forward, both hands are holding the large sword on my back. I pull it slightly before leaving the scabbard through the hole on its side.


    The being tries to block with its three arms, caught by how fast I managed to draw my sword. Even with a powerful vertical slash, due to his thick muscles, I manage to only cut four centimeters deep. The being pulls back his left arm, ready to punch a hole in my chest.


    A mage''s staff, fitted with a blue gem, then strikes his stomach. The bloodied steel of the staff confuses the being before being knocked back. Its user is arguably stronger than him, I turn my back on him and look at the second being which she was fighting. She grabs a table with both hands and throws it up slightly before dashing the three-armed being.


    Without even as much as a word, as if the both of us were one, I dashed towards the table, kicking it towards the insanely fast being, as I landed, I duck and grab a crossbow. Securing a bolt to it, I see the man dashing to the left, his sad expression still plastered all over his face. I fire the bolt before following up by throwing my oil lamp.


    Instinctively, he cuts the bolt with the grotesque blade coming out of his right arm but then dashes back as the oil lamp lands and burns its surroundings. ¡°I see.¡± I thought to myself before pulling out two filled waterskins from my pouch. He cautiously watches me as the fire gets to the broken table, trapping him.


    I took off most of my clothes and armor leaving only my pants as well as my pouch and three of my weapons, which only left me with my sleek single-edge blade made entirely of metal. I open both of the waterskins and a gel-like clear liquid pours out onto my body.


    It covers my body like an oil and I slick my hair back before slathering my blade with it as well before approaching the being, still on the same spot, surrounded by fire. With a single step, I was set on fire, the being starts to become terrified at the sight of me but readies himself. And then, I dash towards him¡­


    With an annoying ring from my alarm clock, I open my eyes, body sweating. There¡¯s not much to expect in my mundane morning. I heated some left-over broth and took a nice chunk of rice then I placed them in a medium-sized bowl. I purposely take my time eating while watching the news.


    As the news reporter speaks about something uninteresting, I find myself staring at the mirror. Insanely pale white body to the point that asking if I am a vampire would be an insult to the vampire. My contrasting black hair was a bit long at the back but I like to keep it that way. From experience, the people around me seem to appreciate whenever I tie it into a low ponytail since it¡¯s trending. Personally, I also split my hair in the middle but more importantly, I just like how low maintenance it is. You simply cut the back into an appropriate size, trim the sides then shorten my bangs for just a tiny bit.


    I turn my eyes to the news as it starts to speak about the ¡°Pixin¡± statistics. Unsurprisingly, seven people died near my area to some druggie high on pixin. The drug known as ¡°Pixin¡± is a highly addicting energizing drug meant for soldiers that is characterized by turning your spit and eyes pure red.


    But as the 13th War Of Kiloo-or came to an end and the soldiers addicted to pixin went home, they began to have violent tendencies as a side effect and as people made more bootleg versions of pixin, the effects got worse until it spiraled to what it is today.


    The announcer ended his announcement as I am fixing my hair. Like always, I wore a long-sleeve white button-up, black colored slacks, black shoes, brown belt, and a digital watch. My sleek satchel and motorcycle helmet was on the side of my door.


    On a table near the door were two things, an old wooden katana and a switchblade. As I grab the switchblade I hear the announcer speak the same robotic-like warning, ¡°And remember, those high on pixin are people who renounce their right as a human, if you come across one, remember to take proper action even if it is a lethal one.¡±


    After concluding his announcement, I walk to the door, satchel in hand and my switchblade safely tucked away. ¡°What a world to live in.¡± I say sarcastically before opening the door¡ª ¡°Argh!¡± I exclaim as the sun shines on me.


    The mall three streets away had a reflecting roof which perfectly shone the sun on my apartment. I duck as I put on my motorcycle helmet. The sun still hurts my eyes but it was manageable.


    Going to my apartment complex¡¯s parking lot, I see my gray motorcycle with a note on it. ¡°Stop crashing it!¡± It says. It was from the local mechanic, the new gray paint shows me that he fixed it after I drove it to some druggie the other night.


    I laugh to myself before starting it. I headed out but before that I made sure to pass by her shop and honked a few times to thank him.


    In eight minutes, I reach my destination. Ofree Academy, a college. I parked my motorcycle in a shaded spot in the parking lot and went inside the main building.


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    Unsurprisingly, most of the students lazed in the lounge area, thanking a particular student who brought and installed an air conditioner on their first day of being here. I thank him as well, as the heat was killing me, thankfully, though I may look pale, I still had the body of an average 18 year old so the heat was not boiling my blood.


    Seven subjects for today, should''ve been nine but the last two professors stopped teaching for ¡°unforeseen circumstances¡±, the academy says so anyway.


    I entered my first class, half of my classmates were already there, talking nonsense about the new technological breakthrough or something. Honestly, even narrating this to myself is boring me to death so I sit in my usual spot.


    My relationship with all of them is purely just to have acquaintances, some of them might be powerful someday so better keep them in contact, especially when my career is a tough field to be in.


    We talk about the same nonsense for a while but it is unbearable talking about things that do not even interest me. All six of my classes go on routinely. I talk to classmates, the professor arrives and teaches, then leaves, before doing it all over again.


    My head hurts, talking to yourself is sometimes overwhelming. It makes you want to punch your disembodied voice but thankfully, the professor is here, Mr. Freemor.


    I look at the mirror to see my pleasant expression still holding up well. ¡°How long do I have to keep this up?¡± I think to myself. I then look at the professor.


    While I take notes from his lesson, each of his words echoes in my mind, pounding it into my brain so that I could recall it for the test. ¡°We are beings of the present, not the past nor future. To worry about oneself in the context of the past or future is to reject your current state of being. Never in your small, meaningless lives should you be worrying about anything but the present because in the end, you will reach your future whether you molded it in the present or not.¡± Professor Freemor states as he closes an unknown book, marking the end of his class


    ¡°In reality, we barely count as beings from the present, it¡¯s the only state in which we are able to exist but we are never able to stay in the present. Every millisecond, our present becomes the past and then we hop into a new present dictated by the past. We are and will always be the horse that endlessly chases the carrot on the stick, the future which is held by our rider, the past.¡± My mind added as his previous words echoed through my mind.


    I close my eyes and then I open them again. My vision no longer blurry, I find myself in the hallway along with many of my classmates. ¡°Say Sat¨­, how¡¯s that freelance thing going for you?¡± One of the guys asks. ¡°Great, my previous wins from art competitions netted me some great attention, now I turned it into paying customers, though if all goes well, I might not be a freelancer anymore.¡± I responded.


    My classmates sang praises for me, genuinely impressed, though I don¡¯t see why since I planned this years ago so I felt this was expected. They are probably just being nice and supportive. Before reaching the gate, I split up with them. I said my goodbyes and just smiled as they left.


    I sigh, as I return to being expressionless. To the left of the main building were multiple buildings. These two-story buildings were separated into small rooms which housed members of certain departments.


    Inside the art department, in a certain room on the second floor lies a beautifully empty canvas, around it were multiple palettes of color. The clumps of paint were dried from yesterday so the outer edges were hardened.


    In the distance were me sitting, pondering as I looked at the canvas. Pure like its color, it was maddening. The image of purity is the image of stillness and that fact was infuriating. Yet even so, I can¡¯t seem to pick up my brush and defile its purity.


    I¡¯ll admit that painting is not my forte, the creation of concepts and ideas, concept art is what I truly excel at even if there is no use in the field I am in. To trust the process and to draw with your emotion, yet nothing drives my hand to pierce this canvas.


    At that moment, I got a call from my phone. It rang once, then twice¡­ As I slowly pick it up, I hear her voice, that begging tone that I despise so much. I ended the call after talking, then I breathed in, then out. I closed my eyes and before I could breathe in¡­


    Another white hallway, a feel of sterilization lingers. White, an abomination that removes all emotion, pure calculation. Moving through the hallway of this depressing building, I find a certain room. Inside were my people, my family.


    Father like always, expressionless. Mother still in her begging tone. My older and younger siblings¡­ I have already forgotten their name. Surrounded by a pure white screen, another laid on top of a white bed, my grandmother seems to have requested for her personal colorful blanket.


    Beside her is a glorified timer, beeping showing her heart rate as if that matters now. She sleeps like a kid. As I waited beside her, each beep from the machine felt louder and louder, or maybe it was my heart. I could feel it somehow¡­like an hourglass with very loud sand.


    A hand pats my head, with eyes that sees through everything, she stares at me. ¡°Find¡­¡± The rest of her sentence becomes blurred as my breathing becomes ragged. White cover, the somewhat rusty creak, cold emotionless eyes.


    I find myself riding my motorcycle at high speed. When will it be ¡°I am doing¡­¡±? Midnight approaches as I hear a scream beyond me. I accelerate before performing a wheelie then slamming the front wheel into a man.


    I pulled on the brakes but the speed was still too much so I jumped out and let the motorcycle crash into a nearby pole. From my satchel, I pull out my switchblade. Still wearing my helmet, I deepened my voice and spoke. ¡°Fuck off¡­¡±


    The woman, whose single-shot stun gun and steel baton are no longer functioning, runs in fear, leaving me all alone. ¡°Kinda wish that she didn¡¯t leave.¡± I said as thirty-ish pixin-induced people.


    With pure red eyes and drool, they dashed at me. The first one holding a pipe tries to smash my head diagonally. I put my left foot back, putting my body to the side of the pipe and at the same time, I stabbed him in the throat.


    I grab his pipe and dash back, almost falling on the guy that I crashed into. A quick look tells me that he¡¯s still alive despite crushing his skull. I kick his head, stabbing the shards of his skull deeper into his brain then continue to run away.


    ¡°Haah¡­haah¡­haah¡­¡± At the fourth street, I was already out of breath. I know I can still fight, but my body can barely keep up and so I regressed into a coward and ran away from them. But they won''t stop, soon I¡¯ll have to fight again.


    It seems that fight would be now as one of them appears wielding its makeshift cleaver, I dodge to the right, then wrapped my arm around his extended right arm before punching his stomach with my right, stunning him just enough that I could slash his throat open.


    That was stupid. Blood pours into my eyes, the consequences of my action appear quickly as in my blinded state, one of them slams something thick into my skull. It didn¡¯t hurt, the shock was more overwhelming.


    As the shard of my skull stabbed my brain, the man kept hitting me, my brain became mush, at the same time the rest wildly hits me as well, my arms, legs, any tangible thing that they could see they smashed, stab, and slash.


    It didn¡¯t hurt but something inside me did¡­I lost, is that why? It was one against thirty, why did I expect? You are a nobody, an abomination in this colorful world. As the blood pours into my pale white arms, in my barely functioning brain, I still managed to hate it.


    I could feel my final blow coming soon, yet time never stopped, no light that appeared, no memories that recalled. Pure and utter darkness, a consciousness but no body. I have been narrating my death for quite a while, maybe time did slow dow¨C


    ¡°A large whack¡­ flesh squished¡­and blood splattered. 22 dead¡­¡± The reporter said, almost in a mechanical tone.

 Neither Curse nor Blessing

    Himura Sat¨­


    A phantom pain pangs on my body, the feeling of getting your skull crushed, your limbs slowly sliced off, and your organs being filled with your own blood.


    It was as if it never happened, yet my brain can recreate it so vividly. But right now that isn¡¯t a concern. With a faded green skin and tattered cloth covering their body, I sit around five lifeless bodies of small mysterious creatures. Their noses are pointed and the way they talked gave me the impression of goblins characterized by the media.


    And so I decided to refer to them as such. Only weird thing is that they are all so different, one has teeth similar to sharks, one has a stinger, and another has a second left arm. I look up hoping that the goblin with wings hasn¡¯t found me yet.


    Some time ago, it passed by me but I hid under the leaves of the trees. These trees sprouted long and thick vines in their branches, when I ran into them, it was like crashing into a hard rope but thankfully, my switchblade could cut them fine.


    I wiped the purple stained switchblade with one of the goblins tattered clothing then I took his rusty hatchet. Inspecting it shows me that it definitely was not made for him, as the hatchet was practically half his size.


    I chop the vines as I head into a random direction. Stone buildings overgrown by vines in the middle of circular clearing. The ground was filled with long grass but strangely, not overgrown. I stayed cautious in case there was someone inside those things so I made sure to never go out into the clearing.


    Some time later, I encountered another one. Different buildings yet the same circular clearing. No sounds of life or activity, as if there is nothing alive or at least intelligent in this forest. Attracted by the sound of flowing water, I went left and found a river. I sat in a nearby tree after washing my face.


    I threw a rock at the river, fresh wind ruffled my messy hair. Without proper grooming or at least a hair tie, I look disheveled. I touch the back of my head. ¡°It¡¯s starting to get long too¡­¡± I said to myself.


    I looked at the blade of my switchblade, after a second, I stood up and cleaned it extra well. With practiced precision, each stroke of my switchblade shortened the side and back of the hair. Prolong use of hair products made my hair sit a certain way, so with much effort, it returned to a middle part that flowed back.


    I sat back at the tree, throwing more rocks into the river. Usually nature in real life never felt relaxing but this untouched nature gave an entrancing aura. ¡°Yet in the end¡­¡± I opened my switchblade and held it in a reverse grip before stabbing a goblin behind me. A quick look shows me that he had wings.


    ¡°Everything is not as untouched as it may seem.¡±  I said, standing up, following the downstream of the river.


    Continuing my path, I found a peculiar sight to the right of the river, the vines which sprouted from the tree¡¯s branches seemed to be cut in an uniform manner suggesting that somebody did this. I have no clue who or what did this but it does tell me that it is a path and so with a couple steps back, I jump over the river.


    Still following the river¡¯s stream, this time I walk in a path free of annoying vines. The sun would soon go down and was not about to fight goblins or some other creature in the dark so I tried to run. Five minutes later, I was out of breath already so I was forced to walk.


    ¡°...¡± Thirty minutes have passed and nothing has happened. I found myself wishing that something could come and attack me. As my body relaxed and my mind less alert. My thoughts began to wonder. ¡°Haah¡­haaah.¡± I breathe in then I breathe out. I closed my eyes and when I regained my vision, I found myself slumped to a tree, nearby, I could smell the nasty scent of vomit.


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    I died, I definitely died yet how am I alive? I start to panic, unusual. ¡°What is this?¡± A mysterious sound reverberates, I look at where the sound would be but there was no one there. ¡°An illusion, is it the sound of my bones breaking? I am still getting slaughtered and this is just a hallucination? Oh god!¡±


    I could feel myself spiraling down, but a part of me still has a grasp of reality, or at least this reality. But even if there is still a part of me that is calm, my body certainly is not. The usual ragged breathing. ¡°Here it is again¡­¡± I closed my eyes and found myself walking.


    Looking back, I could see a small puddle of spit. Unsurprisingly, the first vomit brought out all I had and my second vomit was nothing but a painful act to release what little I had inside. My head hurts, but my heart rate is slowing down.


    Feeling my neck, I could feel being stabbed by something. I touched my neck and once again, the pain returned. Pulling something out, I felt something akin to plastic. ¡°Oh yeah, the material on my motorcycle might have pierced me whilst I was getting battered.¡±


    My entire mind worked to keep myself from getting reminded of that again. I threw the plastic away and took a good look at myself. ¡°Same clothes, same switchblade, no phone or wallet, and still inside this weak pathetic body.¡± I sigh. ¡°Average body of an 18 year old my ass, you could barely run!¡± I said, berating myself.


    ¡°Considering that creatures here attack me as well, I should probably consider and finally do some exercises or something¡­or at least run so that I can have better stamina.¡± I said as if I actually have time to do this.


    I have no clue where I am, and unless I could find some civilization, I would quite literally be fighting for my survival. ¡°Fighting for my life would make me stronger in time, but that implies me winning¡­¡±


    I take a look at my switchblade. ¡°Could I even win?¡± I ask. Although minute, I could feel my hand shaking. I won before but¡­I shake my head. This loss, I don''t know how to feel about. I know it is something big and serious and should I really be treating this loss as a mere statistic?


    I feel infuriated, for what reason I do not know. I could feel saliva building up in my mouth so I shook my head and cleared my thoughts.


    ¡°I can¡¯t take a hit, not even a single one.¡± I would lose if I even get hit once, this shitty frail body, I hate it so much. ¡°And it¡¯s maddening knowing that it¡¯s still my fault.¡± Give me something to point at and blame all my problems. It was childish but sometimes I can¡¯t help it anymore.


    ¡°Yet in the very end, because it is always my fault, I will still take a step and fix this problem.¡± With that thought in mind, I walked forward, more steadily this time which stirred up a foreign feeling in me.


    As I walk even more, I start to wonder, where are the goblins? Actually, are those even goblins? They had weird mutations. Looking up, I could see some sort of a tall stone-like structure, though I can¡¯t make much of it because of the trees but it seems I am close.


    A feeling stirred up in my stomach. ¡°What will happen if I find someone? How will I explain myself about being here?¡± I ask myself, my footsteps slowing down as I try to think of a solution.


    ¡°?????? ?? ?????? ???? ????? ???? ?????? ??? ????, ? ????, ?''? ??? ??? ?????? ???? ??????? ??? ????????? ??? ????????? ????? ? ??? ?????.¡± Whilst in a crossroad nearing the structure that I saw I heard something. I immediately hid myself in a nearby tree. My heart rate was slowly going up but instead of calming myself down, I listened. ¡°?????, ?? ???? ??? ?? ? ????? ??? ???? ??????.¡± A manly voice full of himself.


    ¡°?? ???, ???''?? ????? ???? ???? ??? ??????????!¡± A woman, the same as the first voice that I heard, spoke in an exasperated tone. I couldn¡¯t hear their conversations clearly so I peeked through the trees only to see the backs of five people.


    There was a woman with a staff, a slim man with a spear, a large man with an axe, a old man who seems to not even part of this group and most particularly, The short-haired woman, brownish skin, a bow with pattern akin to a spiraling tree root and the most particular of all, pointed ears.


    ¡°An elf? Maybe another one of those mutations like the one I saw with goblins¡­¡± I pondered but for now, that does not matter. What were they speaking, I heard gibberish but this feels foreign.


    I found myself unable to ponder anymore, instead choosing to make my way closer to that structure and soon enough, I found it.


    Bricks and wood, they were floating. It created a structure of a tower but nothing seems to be connected. More importantly, it didn¡¯t abide by the laws of physics. I feel¡­tense, I never expected this. Looking down, I could see the roofs of buildings which are surrounded by a stone wall wrapped in roots of greenery.


    The river never made it inside the city but is very close to it. Looking deeper, I see a flag which makes out from this distance. I could feel my breathing becoming ragged yet when I opened my eyes, my was still at the same point.


    Was I nervous? Extremely so but I never ran from a challenge. In my head, a question pops into my mind. ¡°Where the hell am I?¡± A question which showed all of my confusion, nervousness, and fear throughout this entire ordeal which I find myself in.

 City of Mystery

    Himura Sat¨­


    A fascinating structure stands proud behind a stone wall. There is a gate near the river where a small line of people and wagons wait to be allowed entry.


    Staying near the crossroads, I look closer at the people in front of the line. At the side of the gate was a lightly armored man with a spear resting on his shoulder. He stood proud as he looked at some sort of paper while the man in front of him had simple clothes. From the surface, it seems to be a simple exchange between a guard and a traveler.


    The guard handed his papers back and the man gave the guard something which gave off a glint before hopping to his carriage and entering the city.


    From what it looks like, I won¡¯t be able to enter the city without some sort of permit and a bit of something else. ¡°Not like I can converse with them anyway.¡±


    Staying within the forest, I decided to circle around the wall trying to find some sort of way to get in and with a few minutes of walking I found a hole. At the base of the wall is a hole in which a mysterious liquid slowly leaks out. As much as I wanted to approach it, there were still guards present at the top of the wall.


    I was losing time but I decided to wait and risk whatever is in this forest than interact with any of them. Soon a calming color envelopes this place as the sun slowly sets. It has been 30 minutes, looking at the guards, they were conversing about something and then a large man with black armor walks towards them, wrapping his arms around them both and dragging them somewhere.


    His face showed a hearty smile as the two looked at him somewhat defeated. I didn¡¯t pay much attention after that, as I ran towards the hole. I slid down a small hill, and thanks to the grass it was quite smooth and oddly satisfying to pull off.


    The liquid that was leaking out spread through the green grass, I jumped from scattered wood until I could finally reach the hole. Now that I was close, the mysterious liquid had a nasty smell, enough to almost make me vomit but I stayed collected.


    Looking inside the hole, I heard a sloshing sound and before I could even deduce what that was, I backed up as the mysterious liquid shot out the hole. This one had a nastier smell as I came to realize that the liquid was made out of poop, pee, and whatever else there was.


    Dread fills my mind as I realize that this was a sewer pipe. ¡°What was I even expecting?¡± I think to myself as I look inside the sewer pipe, my white button-up over my nose. Deeper into the pipe was a dim light, the distance from it would only take me 30 seconds to reach it.


    I waited for another minute to see if anything would come out but seeing as nothing was happening, I immediately climbed inside, thankful that the sides of the pipe were not wet. I try to be fast but since I was avoiding the smelly trail of liquid, I might slip and step on it if I was not careful.


    I look back and try to see if anything was happening outside since I plan to go back out if someone sees me. I emerge from the hole and my body stiffens up. I see a guard, his back is turned to me.


    With quick thinking, I looked around and took a smelly bucket. I silently walk towards him ready to put this bucket over his head and make a run for it to the streets.


    A loud snore. It seems this was not necessary. I dropped the bucket next to him and silently ran past him and finally saw the inside of this walled city. Stone and wood buildings surrounded the paved stone road. The people stared at me with curiosity but a second later moved on, it was not surprising considering the difference of our clothes.


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    Even those wearing extravagant clothes did not look like me at all, even less with those with simple ones. The people had weird mutations as well, far too many to describe any of them. To describe them in a simple artistic way, all of them had far too different silhouettes. I watched all of this in stunned silence, only interrupted by the rumble of my stomach.


    ¡°Ah shit.¡± I look around trying to find some sort of marketplace. I was not fond of stealing but if push comes to shove, I would have no choice. Seeing nothing on both ends of the streets, I turn to the large and tall structure.


    Stone and wood, it seems it was not just a stone tower but instead a building put together to create this tower-like structure. ¡°Are those¡­windows?¡± Looking deeper, there were glass windows in those buildings as if to confirm my assumption.


    Of course, I could not ignore how they were floating, only connected by stone bridges. Somewhat fueled by curiosity, I headed towards it, considering I had no destination at this point.


    It was hard to be subtle, looking at fascination as seemingly normal people walked around with various changes in their body. The reason it was hard to be subtle is because I stand out like a sore thumb.


    Everyone took a look at me and as much as I want to say that their staring was rude, I was also staring at them with at least some subtlety.


    Uncomfortably, I made my way to the structure. Looking to my right, there was a large area filled with pitched tents. There was dried meat, fruits and vegetables, and whatever random things someone could sell.


    They continue to speak in their weird language, to me, it was gibberish in a literal sense. Listening to the people closer, I could not grasp a structure on their gibberish. No sound or tone and even the way their tongue moved felt that they had no structure.


    Before I could take a step into the structure, I stopped and looked at the sun. With the sun no longer on the horizon, I resist the urge to explore. ¡°...what now?¡±


    A man with no plan shouldn''t be doing anything but making plans. ¡°No food, no water, no money, no shelter, can''t understand their language, and only a switchblade in possession.¡± Beyond the things that I don¡¯t have, I also have many questions about this place.


    ¡°Alright, one at a time. Food, I can''t buy them here so I''m going to have to scavenge them outside. For berries, I have no clue how to tell when it''s poisonous or not so somehow catching animals would be better¡­if I can that is. Actually, if these people have these changes then small animals definitely would have too, possibly making them harder to catch and maybe making them too poisonous. Also I¡¯m not willing to eat raw meat so I''m gonna need a fire.¡± A few minutes pass by as I plan my next move, realizing that I shouldn''t be standing around, I try to find a cleaner sewer pipe to crawl out of.


    ¡°In an emergency, I would just drink from the river but I would rather find a way to boil it¡­which also needs a fire. Alright, river it is then.¡± I found another sewer pipe, of course, it was still being used but at least it was in a more slum-like area. Besides that, I have seen other people use it to leave the city as well.


    The people here gave even weirder looks, even more so when I ignored them and climbed into the pipe, leaving the city. I look to the forest as darkness engulfs it. ¡°...¡± I feel doubt creeping into me, I look at the full moon.


    When I saw it earlier, I had thought to explore the forest hoping that the light would be enough, but then again, I have never experienced a full moon without any artificial light around. As I feel the shine of the moon on me, I look back at the forest. It was barely dim, pretty much still dark.


    ¡°It seems my plan isn¡¯t gonna work, now I gotta find a place to stay¡­¡± After saying that to myself, I looked back at the moon¡­and saw a gleam of some sort. Before I could speculate on what I saw, the moon as if naturally began to brighten becoming similar to the sun.


    ¡°...cool¡­¡± I said in the back of my head, as if trying to suppress it. When I saw those goblins and people, I wondered if I was even on the same planet but I know technology and simple creativity could recreate all of it but now I am certain. The moon, a celestial body suddenly getting brighter? That is out of this world for me and since the moon is property of humanity, not to some asshole or country but to all humans, nobody would dare light up the moon.


    Now I know that I am not on my original planet, perhaps not even in the same universe. The questions of ¡°Where I am?¡± now expands but I could answer that later on. I look back at the forest, now a lot clearer than before. ¡°Looks like it¡¯s on my side today.¡± I said before entering the forest.

 An Opportunity to be Made

    Himura Sat¨­


    The moon shone like the sun yet I felt no heat. As the cold wind caresses me, I found this uncanny experience to be oddly satisfying.


    I roll my sleeves up to my elbow then take the sleeve button and buttoning them up which makes it somewhat tight but secure. Now their blood will not spill on my sleeves. ¡°Chrichrichrichri¡­¡± A goblin laughs, as if he actually managed to ambush along with his entourage.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t my first fight, you know¨C¡± I said in my language before opening my switchblade and stabbing an approaching goblin in the left eye¨C ¡°I know how to detect when someone is sneaking up on me.¡± I said, putting my intent in my words, hoping it would be enough to get through the language barrier.


    The goblin earlier looks distressed. ¡°I could hammer it in more.¡± I said and as if naturally, I took on an artificial arrogant smile. The goblin looks even more distressed. ¡°Chrigaahh!¡± The other shouts, covering his eyes. The goblin earlier is probably wondering if he is the one getting ambushed.


    ¡°I was hoping to stab that goblin and kill it in one shot, but I guess I''ll do this.¡± Before the goblins realized that I was simply lying, I took advantage of what little I had and lunged at a goblin to my left, stabbing its neck. Another tries to be brave and rushes me but I kick his chin. Although weak, they were weaker so my kick broke his neck.


    A glance doesn¡¯t tell me whether he is dead or not, at least paralyzed if I have to say. The first goblin tries to run but I grab my hatchet with my left and raise my arm to my right shoulder and throw it. It misses so badly that for a second, I wondered if I was demented.


    There were three left. ¡°Funny how only one of them has a noticeable mutation. Does that mean it doesn¡¯t happen to everyone?¡± Two goblins try to charge at me, but one slips because of a tree root while the other steps on his head. I drop and turn my side to him, his feeble mind doesn¡¯t even realize that I took a stance to sweep his leg.


    My right leg floated above the ground and made him fall. I also accidentally hit a nearby tree root with full force. ¡°Arggh!¡± I exclaim in a growling tone, failing miserably to suppress the unexpected pain. ¡°Never knew fighting such a small opponent would be so hard.¡± I said, hoping that the goblin earlier does not come back.


    I stood up with a bit of stagger. It was my first time doing leg sweep and the fact that I had done it much lower than it should have made my body get an uncomfortable ache. The second one finally recovers, after stabbing the first one in the neck and before it could even make a move. With practiced movement, I change my grip into reverse one, stabbing his neck in a quick in and out action.


    Looking at my hand, there was no blood thankfully. ¡°Cgrahhhh!¡± The mutated goblin shouts as if in an echo but in reality, there is a bulge in his neck which had a second head. I picked the goblin¡¯s small spear and chucked it to the goblin. Fortunately it hits, though it didn¡¯t pierce him deep enough as he still charges at me¡­but it looks weird.


    The goblin tumbled for some reason. ¡°So two heads still allows you to move even if the main head is dead¡­¡± I conclude as the second head tries to charge at me but miserably as he was facing the back of the body, unable to turn his head. Honestly it was pathetic so I put my left foot forward and made him slip.


    He looks at me angrily. I held the knife normally and stabbed his stomach. I did not know where the heart or his second neck was and since he was wriggling with such vigor, I did not want to chance it.


    Looking back at the first goblin, he already bled out from his left eye and died. I took his dagger which seems to be quite new as there was no rust on it. I wiped the switchblade with their clothes and left the area, hoping that no goblins would try to find me, especially those flying ones. ¡°They¡¯re quite terrifying.¡±


    In a circular field that has an abandoned structure, there is quite a scene occurring. ¡°The fuck are those?!¡± I exclaim as bones attach with one another creating what I could only describe as skeletons, the monster kind. Only one of them has a humanoid structure as one did not have a lower half while another seemed to be a four-legged beast of some kind. ¡°Definitely not a horse¡­¡±


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    Looking at my two weapons, none of them would be great against them so it would probably be best to not fight them. Hidden behind a bush and a tree, I sneak away to another direction but before that, I carve an arrow to a tree, indicating where the city should be.


    After sneaking for a good distance, I stood up and walked around. Before I could go far however, a disgusting rotting smell engulfs an area. I could feel my stomach hurting just from smelling it but fueled with morbid curiosity, I headed to the source of the smell anyway.


    One¡­two¡­six bodies laid around a tree. The only one that was seemingly human had a chunk of stomach cut out and was the only one rotting. There is a deer some distance away, it looks unharmed yet does not seem to move, making me think that it is probably dead. Four goblins were laid around him, holding weapons stained with dry blood. All three had small cloth containers which had black berries.


    I turned my gaze to the bush which seemingly had taken root inside the tree. I took a berry and crushed it with my foot, making it burst with a somewhat black liquid. My gaze returned to the man. ¡°I should probably go, any longer and I might throw up.¡± I have no clue what berries do but seeing dead bodies around this berry bush already tells me enough.


    Before leaving the area, I approached the man, closed his eyes whose final gaze might have been one of fear. I then took his sword and small waist bag. I go back near the skeletons which seem to have not moved.


    I unsheathe the sword. ¡°Finally, a sword!¡± I exclaim in my head, unable to contain my excitement for such an unexpected boon. ¡°Well maybe a bit expected, this place is dangerous and I¡¯ve been taking some weapons from goblins so a sword shouldn¡¯t be surprising.¡±


    The sword was weird, had somewhat longer than a shortsword around 40 centimeters, crescent-shaped guard, oval handle which enabled two-handing, and a flat pommel. What made it weird however was the blade. It was triangular in shape, similar to a cinquedea and due to the length, the base of the blade was very wide.


    It felt foreign in my hand, yet oddly comfortable. It is clear that the one who made it put his passion into it. I squeeze it even further, the sword feels balanced, as if it was not made for someone specific, a weapon meant for everybody perhaps.


    I put it back to its sheath and tied it around the left side of my waist. I open the waist bag which I have tied to my back side. Rummaging through it yielded an empty pouch with two strings inside the cloth and the rest being the same black berries as before.


    I tried to throw it away but an unexpected sound of crashing bones surprised me and I immediately hid deeper. Slowly, I peeked around the tree and saw a peculiar scene. ¡°Hold on¡­I recognize them.¡± Although the features were not that memorable, I did remember that woman on my far left.


    Ears shaped almost like a knife, a bow with a tree root-like pattern going in a spiral, and now looking closer, sleek iron armor that only covers her legs and arms. She shoots an arrow with a large but blunt tip, hitting the humanoid skeleton right in the head. A seemingly old man, stands beside her, only armed with a hammer in one hand and a parchment on the other.


    Another woman, wearing a long flowy robe and a hat, on the back stands still, holding a wooden staff fitted with a pink gem. As the skeleton without a lower half crawls towards her, she extends her arm towards the skeleton. The skeleton was stopped forcefully. Her hand closes to fist and the skeleton¡¯s head is crushed through some sort of mysterious force.


    The two men, one wielding an axe and the other a spear fought the four-legged beast. The beast tries to bite the man with an axe but he jumps to the side while raising his axe, striking the beast¡¯s rib, destroying and killing it.


    They all regroup in front of the abandoned structure. The knife-eared woman speaks gibberish in a complaining tone while the other seems to be exasperated. The old man did not care for their gibberish pointed at him but instead he unrolled his parchment revealing map of some sort.


    He points at the abandoned structure and discusses something with them and then he lights up a torch and the group descends to the abandoned structure.


    That should be all there is. I should just continue exploring the forest hoping to stumble into more stuff but something within my mind begins to scheme. ¡°I need money therefore, I need a job. Jobs exist within that city. The problem is that I am a nobody and I can¡¯t even understand any of them.¡±


    I check everything I have and its qualities. ¡°There is a chance they could try to kill me if I approach them without speaking so to make my intentions clear, I need to save them. I don¡¯t need money at the moment but what I do need is existence. The proof that I am alive, in short, I need a place in their society. If I can do that, the rest of my current problems will be easier.¡±


    After finishing my inspections, I head towards the abandoned structure. The plan is simple: Follow them without detection, pray for their misfortune, save them from it, gain their favor and let them know my intentions, and then, stick with them until further developments.


    ¡°But it¡¯s a gamble, it would be better to stick to this forest since I know I can solve my predicaments here.¡± I stay silent for a few seconds, as their torch grows dimmer, I ask myself, ¡°Isn¡¯t everything a gamble?¡±


    My livelihood, my financial status, everything I have worked for was a gamble. It was because I had nothing, I despised begging and receiving help out of pity or kindness. That is why I left, to make my own place in society.


    Then again chances, I have never liked that but I can never deny nor escape their existence. ¡°Opportunity, that¡¯s a better word. Turn chances into opportunities and have the skill to take it. In the end, all of my skills are always about those two things.¡±


    I almost found myself laughing at that revelation. My plan, although rat-like, is a solid one, this forest will act as my backup plan. I took one step into the structure, the air warned me of certain death but I did not care to listen. And so, I followed them, hoping that the jaws of death would try to bite them so that I could save them from it.

 A Weirdo

    ???


    The crackling sounds from the torch was uncomfortable so I stuck behind this group. ¡°Astoria, can you come closer, the torch isn¡¯t gonna kill you.¡± Alcor comments. ¡°Not happening.¡±


    I ended the conversation quickly, I did not want to talk about this. ¡°Suit yourself I guess,¡± He says, giving a firmer grasp on his large axe. Looking around, the old man wasn¡¯t lying about this necromancer being a parasitic bastard since he has taken over a good chunk of the catacombs.


    No longer were the walls surrounded by stone walls, overgrowing moss and vines but instead, enormous amounts of bones replaced the stone wall. I have been told that these are not from dead bodies but instead made of magic, never heard of such magic but I have no information to dispute it so I believed it for now.


    Question is, why are they serving as walls? It would be better for them to come alive and attack in this cramp path. ¡°Perhaps, there is another reason¡­¡± I hear weird noises.


    Looking closer, I could feel a skull stuck to the wall slowly gain its signature eye. A pure blue color, but before it could fully connect, I smashed the skull to bits with a punch. The sound was enough to alert this group. ¡°The necromancer is using these skulls to spy on us.¡±


    Alcor clicked his tongue, realizing that we have probably already been seen. ¡°So that''s the thing I¡¯ve been feeling.¡± Cynthia comments. ¡°You know?¡± I ask. ¡°No, it was just a feeling so I didn¡¯t know.¡± She adds.


    ¡°Either way, keep smashing every skull you see.¡± The old man, holding the torch said. ¡°I¡¯ll alert you if I feel it again.¡± Cynthia asserts.


    We continue to walk along the path mentioned by the old man, strangely there are no monsters around. I hear another weird noise and a small but distinct sound of bones falling. I turn my eyes to the side, trying to look behind me without  turning my head.


    ¡°There.¡± Cynthia points at a skull above to the left of Kin and he stabs the skull with his spear, destroying it. Looking at his hand, I see it tensing. Cynthia looks at me, specifically at my eyes. The twitching of my ears already told her everything so I approached the group.


    ¡°So how long are we gonna ignore that thing behind us?¡± I ask. Walking at a natural pace, the old man stayed silent while we discussed in a hush tone.


    Alcor responds, ¡°Until it gets close enough to our attack range.¡± Kin silently agrees with him. ¡°But it is helping us. I¡¯ve been feeling small chunks of mana appearing then disappearing just as quickly.¡± Cynthia defends the one following us and I was keen to agree. ¡°I¡¯ve been hearing bones falling a while ago so it''s at least covering our back from that necromancer.


    ¡°If it wanted to help, then it should have joined us a while ago, but he¡¯s not even stepping into the light of our torch.¡± Alcor refuted. Whatever is following us stays in a distance far enough for us not to see it but close enough for it to use our light as its own.


    We stayed silent for a while. I could still hear weird noises behind us but I could also hear a sound similar to footsteps. ¡°If you''re trying to be hidden, you¡¯re not doing a very good job.¡± I comment.


    In a slanted tunnel, the old man states that we were almost there. Looking slightly up, I could see the end of this slanted tunnel but before we could, Alcor almost trips. Before we could even get a laugh in, we heard rumbling from above.


    First it was just bone rattling and then there was a large pause. I draw an arrow laced with flammable oil at its tip and use the torch to light it on fire. Shooting it forward with my bow, I could see a large opening above at the end of the tunnel.


    Something opened up, and considering the bones that fell, it was clear that it was not a contraption of the necromancer. ¡°RUN!¡± I shouted as a large boulder suddenly fell from the opening and rolled into the slanted tunnel. The slant would make the boulder faster and eventually crush.


    However, as I ran down with my group, I saw Alcor carrying Cynthia on his shoulder. Cynthia had both of her arms extended, the staff glowed meaning an immense amount of mana was being channeled. Thanks to her psychic magic, the boulder faced resistance, allowing us to still outrun it.


    Unexpectedly, it was the last thing I saw before my vision turned dark and felt something grabbing my mouth and arm. My race allowed me to see in the dark a lot better than most creatures so it shocked me to see the one following us to be humanoid.


    I grab my dagger from my hip ready to break out of its grab but before that happens, I was pushed away. I turn quickly only to see a man in severely unfitting clothes considering where we are as well as a standard issue sword on his hip. ¡°A noble?¡± I think to myself, looking at his clothes.


    I plant my feet firmer to ground, my dagger sheathed and my bow in hand. I know he cannot see me yet for some reason he points at where the boulder is. ¡°Shit!¡± I exclaimed, I heard a step and immediately turned back at him to find him going ahead into the dark. ¡°Are you insane?!¡± I shouted only for his shoulder to move by my voice and continued to run.


    Seeing no point in stopping him, I head down trying to see if they are fine. ¡°You guys okay?¡± I shouted on the other side of the boulder. ¡°Barely¡­¡± Cynthia responds, breathing heavily. She channeled her magic so hard that she was barely able to get a breather.


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    I hear a crack from the boulder. ¡°Stand back!¡± Alcor warns as another loud crack reverberates. He fills his body with air and with a loud shout, the boulder splits in half. Alcor breathes out a large amount of air, his muscles slowly returning to normal.


    I comment, ¡°Damn, minotaur¡¯s blessing huh?¡± They all squeezed through between the boulders. ¡°Yep, I ascended three days ago. Allows my body to take in air and use it to reinforce my muscles.¡± Alcor explained as he squeezed through the boulder. I tilt my head to see behind them. Skeletal clanks, raspy breathing, and god knows whatever seems to be on our trail. ¡°Well we might wanna go, the guy following us went ahead into the dark so our asses are no longer covered.¡±


    ¡°Oh yeah, he was cute.¡± Cynthia commented. ¡°You saw his face?¡± I ask then she responds, ¡°I saw him grab you, and no I didn¡¯t, I just wanted to see Alcor¡¯s reaction.¡± She says as she looks at Alcor, when I turn to face him, Alcor was already looking away from me.


    As we walked, we took turns teasing him. I look up to feel a presence. Before I could take a good look at him, he had already moved. ¡°Guess he was waiting for us huh? Say, what do you think will happen if we just ran for it and left him in the dark?¡± I ask. ¡°What do you think, dumbass?¡± Seeing the chance, Alcor retorts.


    ¡°Augh! I¡¯m hurt o lover boy!¡± I immediately shot back, in an obviously idiotic manner which almost earned me a smack in the head. Alcor calms down however and clears his breath. ¡°Look I don¡¯t trust the guy, but seeing as he was covering our asses, I¡¯m willing to not kill him immediately.¡± He spoke in a tone of disguised hate, not surprising considering his group was ambushed by a few so-called companions a few days ago.


    ¡°He could also just be here for the necromancer as well.¡± The old man adds. We fell into thought, it was definitely convincing, afterall he hired us for the same reason. ¡°True, and he¡¯s armed and dressed quite nicely actually.¡± I also add.


    Without saying anything, we concluded that was probably a noble going here for revenge. The necromancer has been taking people, both peasants and nobles. The only reason everyone is acting normal is because the nobles are becoming¡­let¡¯s say¡­a pain in the ass, which allows the guards to hide the kidnapping among commoners and put all the attention on nobles, pretty much a win-win situation if you look at it objectively. The government gets to hide the fact that commoners have more than triple the amount of people going missing compared to nobles as well allowing the nobility to be the attention whore that they are.


    And so, for the time being we allowed him to share the light of our torch, in return we let him kill whatever''s on our way, probably allowing him to vent. Probably best if we do not get in the way, we would much rather not have him go to the guards and complain about us.


    I walk ahead of the group, allowing me to get a better look at him. His pants mixed in with the dark quite well but as for his clothes in his upper half was quite confusing. His clothes and skin blended so well that if somebody else saw him, they might think he is half naked.


    His shoes were nice too. ¡°I get revenge but seriously, only a sword? You really think that¡¯s enough?¡± I ask in my head. A few more minutes of walking and we see a few bodies of ghouls and skeletons.


    A close inspection shows me a lack of revenge-filled strikes. Slashes from the head, neck, heart, or stomach can be seen but that was all. This was calm and calculated which confuses me even more.


    Soon we approached a fork in the tunnel. Three pathways going straight, left, and right appeared. The guy in front of us went straight ahead and as for us, the old man directed us to go to the right.


    ¡°Looks like he wasn''t here for the necromancer.¡± I conclude¡­or so I thought. Vaguely, I can hear familiar footsteps behind us. Whether he realized that he went the wrong way or he chose to pick a random direction so that he can be behind us again is up for debate.


    ¡°I do wonder why he''s so desperate to not be seen or talked to¡­¡± Before I can finish that thought, we start to approach a light in the distance. The atmosphere became even more tense, even I, who was not even good at magic, could feel the negative mana emanating at this distance.


    Cynthia, drinks her potion filled with liquified mana. The moment we reached the edge both Alcor and Kin took out their whetstone from their satchel as their weapons were dulled.


    As they do so, I pass them and look at the gigantic caverns. Makeshift braziers lit up the room, unlike what I expected, the cavern was not filled with bones. The cavern was almost circular and right below us was our target.


    An army of skeletons stood still, waiting for the necromancer¡¯s command. The necromancer himself was carelessly throwing weapons he had obtained somewhere. Even in this distance, I could tell that he was thin, barely any skin or muscles if you look even deeper. In the end, he himself was practically a skeleton.


    I looked around the edge, I needed to find stable rocks to put my grappling hook in so that we could descend. In a distance about one-fourth of the cavern¡¯s area, I find a set of jagged rocks. When I pulled on them, I could feel nothing even after pulling it at full strength.


    I grab an old but reliable hook at my hip  attached to a rope in my backpack. As I slowly dropped the rope down, I could feel my backpack becoming considerably lighter. The rope did not reach the ground, only a small flat platform. This leaves us with no escape after jumping down, it was do or die.


    I go back to the group, walking sideways and hugging the wall to avoid slipping. They were all ready, a single nod from each of them was exchanged but before we head to my rope, I look back into the darkness. As expected, the guy was still waiting, still unaware that I could see him even in the dark.


    The old man extinguished the torch and we headed to my rope. Aside from Alcor who almost slipped, due to his large muscular body, we descended into the small platform without being found. This is where the old man would stay. If we die, somebody has to let the people know and also because if he died, no one would be able to pay us.


    I grab my bow with my right, channeling mana into it, the spiral roots spins, and the shortbow transforms into a longbow. From the left side of my hip, I took four arrows from the quiver, putting one into my bow and three in my right hand along with the bow.


    Alcor drinks his potion which seems to have a bad taste as he tries to resist spitting it out. I have no clue what effect it has.


    As I pull on the string, I place my index finger on the iron tip and softly, I spoke, ¡°?????.¡± A five word spell which sharpens anything a thousand times. I could feel the tip increasingly becoming even more lethal, as if a thousand arrows were infused into one.


    ¡°As long as my aim stays true, the winds on my side, and my bow working as intended, nothing in this world will ever block my arrow.¡± Although visually, nothing changed, anyone who has dabbled in magic would know that I just casted a spell which unfortunately includes the necromancer.


    He turned to us but it was too late, we already jumped down, and my bow was already pointed at his head. Before landing, I let my arrow fly, swiftly heading into his head but a small brown hexagonal shape barrier appeared in front of his head. It delays the arrow for a millisecond before turning it slightly to the side and as the arrow pierces the barrier, instead of hitting his head, the barrier redirects it to his side, hitting some poor skeleton instead.


    ¡°Dark magic and now earth magic?!¡± I resist the urge to click my tongue. The barrier was born from mana and the fact that it was small tells me that despite his disheveled look, he was a capable mage. I put another arrow into my bow. ¡°We have to get closer to him, which means, we have to get through his army¡± Alcor inhales a large amount of air, signaling the start of our fight.


    I know for a fact that despite his army, four of us were enough to get through them but somewhere in my heart, I could feel the seeds of doubt growing.

 A Bad Plan with a Great Execution

    Himura Sat¨­


    Am I demented? No, I must be demented for this plan to be even conceived. I mean, who in their right mind would have planned to enter the dark hoping that the five people that I am following would not just outright kill me.


    I got lucky, I realized that just from seeing that lady with the staff do some weird psychic-float-some-shit-up magic. Thanks to her, those weird glowing skulls on the ceiling were destroyed due to her whenever she curls her hand.


    ¡°Lucky¡­¡± That fact infuriates me to no end. It might have saved me but the fact that I could not do it through my skill alone made me irrationally angry. I squeezed the spear that I was holding harder. I took it from one of the skeletons when I unexpectedly went ahead of them.


    Looking deeper, there is not much to say, it was about 140-160 centimeters in length. The tip was like a short broadsword and in this darkness, I could not tell whether it rusted or new. ¡°Just a short broadsword with an absurdly long handle.¡± I comment.


    From the distance I could hear the distant clankling and shouts reverberating. Finally heading into the light, although not that bright, makeshift braziers blinded me instantly.


    As tears appear and my vision, blurry. I did not see how narrow this ledge was and so with my second short step, I fell into what seemed like a gigantic cavern. Panic ensues within the first millisecond of me falling. In the second millisecond, with adrenaline starting to rush through me, I push my body forward returning to standing position. Then, for the next three seconds, I grabbed the ledge with my left and stammed my body into the wall.


    My feet could feel solid ground but this was clearly worse than before. The ground was only as long as my feet, good thing I was facing the wall, or else I would have gotten vertigo. ¡°Owww, I wanted to have a good entrance.¡±  I complained to myself as I made my way to a rope that they probably used.


    I glance to the four fighting below, both them and the old seem to have noticed me. ¡°It might still be possible.¡± I conclude, hastening my pace so that they don¡¯t notice me. Soon enough, I reach the rope. I grab the rope with my left and turn towards them, waiting for the perfect opportunity.


    Surprisingly, they were holding their own. Both men held the skeletons back with their strengths, sweeping them, like dust. I felt envy, seeing them with such strength.


    The archer with the knife-like ears was peculiar. Usually you would think she would stay in the back but this one was in the front like the two men, in between them. Her bow was longer as well but had the same design and the tip of her arrows was large, almost blunt which whenever shot, pierced through three to five skeletons at once and since she was firing them three at a time in a cone-like shape, it cleared a lot of space between them. It was almost like those arrows were specifically made to crush these skeletons.


    The lady with the staff, with her weird magic, grabs those same arrows and gives them back to the archer. Sometimes she crushes a couple of skulls by curling her hands or sometimes she would also extend both of her arms in pushing motion and as such the skeletons were pushed back forcefully.


    But despite my compliments, they were making no progress, the man in the middle of the cavern kept reconstructing the skeletons. ¡°If I joined them, I could turn the tides in their favor.¡± Realizing that the last minute of me looking at them was the perfect opportunity, I quickly climbed down, hoping that my left would not get rope burn.


    The old man notices me, I nod at him before jumping down. The lady with the staff noticed me as well as the others, but they were too preoccupied. I slam my spear to the group, standing upright.


    Although my hair has always flowed back due to my hair products, it only stayed that way because I do not move a lot. But since I have been more dynamic lately, courtesy of the monsters in this world. My hair stopped flowing back and instead returned to its natural flow. It was like the aftermath of fighting pixie addicts.


    Anyway, using both my hands, I push them back, only for a few strands to return to my forehead. I grab my spear and looking at it, I comment, ¡°Huh, this spear¡¯s blade is pure black.¡± And then I exhaled. That was the last thought I had. That exhale was like a switch, a ritual of some kind. It helps me focus, clear my inquisitive thoughts, and focus at the task and the task is¡­killing him.


    I stare at the man in the middle of the cavern, planting my feet firmly and grabbing the spear with both hands. The man looks back at me and then, he slams his staff in front of him and lifts up his right arm, opens his hand and moves it as if he was grabbing something invisible then spoke something. The lady with the staff shouts something with a distressed tone.


    Violent crackling noises reverberated which slowly became even more violent until a purple javelin-shape appeared which looked like it was made out of lightning. The next second he threw it at me. The archer, who was in front of me, already dodged it but surprisingly, me as well.


    As the lightning approached me, I felt a weird sense, sensational but terrifying. I could not think about anything, it was similar to seeing, smelling, or touching something dangerous. Pure panic ensues and your body would try to instinctively try to survive whatever it was.


    This lightning was foreign so it is not surprising that curiosity might have slowed me down for half a second or so but instead the next thing I knew, my body, full of panic, rolled to the side and avoided it.


    I did not need to look at the cavern wall to realize that it would have killed me if I got hit. But nonetheless, at this moment, I could care less but experiencing it. After the archer fired three more of those big-tipped arrows, I dash past her.


    I am decent at two-handed swords and knives but that is all, I do not have a single experience on how to use a spear, only bits of knowledge I obtained here and there. Following the spearman''s action, I swept the skeletons but with my strength, I only managed to bat them away.


    But that was all I needed to do, as long as I can push them back, I can advance. I was already so far from the group that skeletons behind me, slowly chased me. The man in the middle once again, starts to lift his right arm.


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    I hear a shout behind me and the lady with the staff tosses her staff to her left hand and with her right, she flings it towards the man. In response, rocks and bones flew towards him. At the same time, the knife-eared lady pulls out a regular barbed-tip arrow from her quiver, places her index finger on the tip after pulling her bowstring back then fires it towards him.


    The man remains unfazed as he extends his left arm, opens his hand as if commending those projectiles to stop. In response, multiple small brown hexagonal shape barriers appeared, blocking every single projectile except for the arrow in which he tilted his hand slightly, which also tilted the barrier blocking the arrow slightly and as the arrow pierced the barrier, it went to his side instead.


    Judging from how small those barriers were, he was precise in creating those barriers. Despite his look, he was a professional, calm, and precise yet his eyes tell me otherwise. The man flung the lightning at me after saying something but this time, I was aware of it, of course, the weird sense appeared once again but this time, I dodged aware of both the weird sense and the lightning.


    As the lightning passed me, the weird sense disappeared. Not even a single second has passed and three big-tipped arrows pass me, clearing my path towards him. These arrows were larger, looking back, the archer was floating and was holding a greatbow instead of a longbow.


    I ran before the skeletons could catch me. I ran up his makeshift spiral staircase and onto his circular platform. I look at him for a second, and we both engage in combat.


    Back to the group, the archer floats back down, the lady with the staff seems exhausted. The archer speaks in a thankful manner and returns their focus to the skeletons around them.


    The man with the axe inhales a large amount of air before holding his axe at the very end of his handle with hands and then recklessly, he spins, splitting the skeletons in half. After stopping, the lady with staff pushes them even more, granting more space while the man with a spear covers for him as the man with the axe vomits.


    The lady with staff puts her back to the cavern wall, she rests her staff on her shoulder, raises both of her arms slightly and then clasps her hands together, creating a mysterious force around the platform, preventing the skeletons from interfering.


    Back at the makeshift platform, I try to stab him thrice. The first one, he grabbed his staff with his left before summoning those barriers again, hitting them felt like I stabbed a wall despite the fact that it was floating in open space. The second, he simply side-stepped, and for the third, I directed it to his head. As a reaction, he simply moved his head a little, making it, as if my attacks were useless and weak.


    The man simply lifted his right arm, extended his thumb and index finger which made two barriers appear between my extended right arm. With his extended finger, he closes them in a pinching motion and in response, the barriers move towards my arm.


    In panic, I moved my arm away but as for my spear, it was cut, falling to the floor. What is left in my hand is the three fourths of the shaft. The barriers disappear as he drops his arm while back-stepping. A fast crackling noise reverberated and floating in his hand was pure lightning. It had no solid form but it was certainly similar to a knife, almost like how previous ones were javelin-shaped.


    He then lifts his arm up, letting go of the lightning at the right moment so that it heads towards me. I took one step back in panic, crouched ever so slightly before side-stepping to dodge it. Before a second passes, I do the same motion, throwing the shaft towards him which he summons a barrier to react.


    After raising his arm above his head, a javelin-shaped lightning materializes which he throws at me. I grabbed the hatchet on my belt and threw it at him as I dodged. Unexpectedly, it collided with the lightning, destroying the wooden handle and leaving a melting iron on the ground .


    Only two and half seconds has passed but at that time, he has summoned two lightning simultaneously while making a barrier in between. While I, in comparison, have lost my spear, nearly lost an arm, and did nothing to hurt him. I exhale, bottling up the feeling of doubt, anxiety, and inferiority inside me.


    As he dashes back, I follow with a dash as well, pulling out my sword at the same time. Since I have only used a wooden katana, I have severely underestimated the weight on an actual sword, forcing me to use both of my hands.


    I slash horizontally which was blocked by a barrier. I pull slightly, before striking his head which was also blocked by a barrier. He jumps back, pointing his staff at me. The brown gem fitted at its tip glowed dimly with purple color.


    I dodge to the left as the lightning attacks my previous position. Placing my left palm to the pummel, I thrust my sword towards his neck. In response, he guided my sword with his staff, it then glowed a dim brown, summoning a barrier which blocked an arrow.


    ¡°???''? ??? ??? ????!¡± The archer shouts, I could feel her tone being pointed towards me and so I continue to pressure him more, walking and dashing perpendicular to him to block his path, making him unable to get away from his spot.


    The man looks at the archer, a luxury I could not afford as I was still attacking him. The archer had dipped an arrow into something slimy and dark which she then put into her bow.


    My stamina had long since ran out, at this point I was running purely on instinct. Although I did know how to use a two-handed sword, the last time I actually wielded one seriously was seven years ago, making my experience with it practically non-existent.


    It did not help the fact that everytime he took a step in a direction, I hopped towards it, cutting him off which meant I was using more energy than he was. The man in question growled for a moment before biting his staff as it glowed a dim brown, summoning a barrier slightly above his foot, a few feet away from us.


    At the same time, both of his hands began to make crackling noises. Reacting accordingly, I dashed towards him as he jumped into the air and landed at the barrier. I also jumped but I used his foot as my platform, stopping him from jumping from another newly created barrier.


    I grabbed his staff to stabilize myself before lifting my arm and slashing him. Due to our distance, I pulled slightly back, maximizing my slashing power. I only managed to get halfway in severing his left forearm and it made it harder when he struggled violently to get the sword off.


    I started to flex what muscles I had which resulted in a pang of pain emerging from my forearm but beared with it as after two nerve wracking seconds, I finally severed it. With his channeled lightning, he tries to kill me by stabbing it to my chest after raising his arm.


    Through crude maneuvering, I dodged it by hopping his back but unfortunately, the blade of my sword melted in half. I pushed the sword to his head, slathering his face with remaining melted residue that was still on my sword.


    He screams and I look at the archer. We did not exchange gazes as by the time I looked at her, an arrow was flying towards us. The man, still full of energy, managed to move his head so that it only nicked his neck.


    For some reason, the barrier at his feet disappeared and we dropped back to the platform. I felt a gust of wind going up, but looking down, I did not see anything that caused it.


    With his remaining arm, he touched his neck and looked at the mysterious liquid. He did not have that much time however as I rushed him with my spear blade, my sword discarded. For whatever reason, instead of using his magic, he swung his staff instead but I met it with the spear blade, almost pushing me but allowed me to get closer. A pain in both my forearms emerges as a result


    Finally his staff begins to glow again but at the same time a gust of wind heading downwards could be felt, he looks at the source of the wind but like before, it came nowhere. Looking closer, the same arrow was heading towards him again.


    A quick gaze to the archer shows that her left arm was extended, moving it as if the wind was at her command. With such a discovery, I was not going to let that chance slip. And so, dash towards him, almost falling due to exhaustion.


    The man side-stepped the arrow but as his gaze followed it, he saw me, low the ground, the spear blade in both hands, and charging towards him. As she channels another lightning, the archer lifts her open hand, curving the arrow upward and then she closes her hand and pulls it towards her chest which then makes the arrow go back towards him, passing me.


    The arrow hits his shoulder and at the same time I stab the spear blade at his stomach and with one final desperation, he tries to hit me with his staff. I let go of the spear blade and with insane practiced precision and speed, I reached in my pocket, opened my switchblade, switched into a reverse grip, side-stepped as a reaction of his attack, and finally, pushed myself up then stabbed him in the neck.


    The accumulation of stab wounds killed him before he made another move. We both drop to the platform. My victory could be felt across the entire cavern as more than half of the skeletons collapsed. The lady with staff, realizing that the man can no longer bring back the skeletons, lifts her staff high into the sky which then glows a beautiful bright pink.


    The mysterious force that I cannot even care about crushes the remaining skeleton into shards and the lady with the staff almost drops to the ground but the man with the axe catches it.


    It was a beautiful sight, a woman who fueled her all into that magic, on the verge of collapse was caught by the man she loved. The three who saw the scene could not help but smile, solidifying their victory. The archer spoke to the two in a casual and joking manner.


    During that moment, I stayed silent, drool pouring out of my mouth as I tried to catch my breath. Kneeled to the ground next to a disgusting corpse, the only thing that kept me awake was absolute elation of victory.

 Cruelty of These Savage Lands

    Himura Sat¨­


    With what little energy I have left, I stood up. I put my switchblade back in my pocket after cleaning it, took the spear blade and placed it in my belt, and I stole his staff as well.


    Using the broken sword, I start to carefully take out the gem. Since it was made of wood, I chopped the branches which surrounded the gem and soon, I pulled it out. The gem looked mediocre but for some reason, aside from his hands, lightning was shooting out of it.


    I try to focus and intent into it, imagining a javelin made out of lightning but unsurprisingly, no crackling sounds were heard and the gem did not glow. I tried again, this time speaking the words that he spoke in a low tone.


    ¡°Eigh-ecte-ini-inge¡­¡±I spoke crudely, of course, nothing happened. The man spoke it as if it was one word and to put it simply, their language is not very kind to my tongue. I gave up and placed the gem inside my bag instead.


    I threw the sword to the pile of bones at my feet and headed into another tunnel away from the group as they were starting to approach me. I would rather not talk to any of them and if they were approaching to fight me, I was very underequipped.


    As I approach the tunnel, I see an armored skeleton beside the entrance. Before looking at anything, I took his long sword. Pulling it out, I could feel its weight. It had the same design as the previous sword but it was slightly heavier and longer, about 90 centimeters in length. Unlike the previous however, the scabbard for this one had a clamping device which allowed it to attach my belt.


    The clamping mechanism has a circular section that could spin seamlessly even with the scabbard. The circular section had a triangular-shaped hole which allowed for the scabbard to be placed in.


    Putting the sword back in, I moved the sheath up and down and it moved smoothly. The compartment allowed me to draw the sword in various vertical angles however it made the horizontal movement very limited and due to that fact, I can only draw the sword vertically facing as any horizontally or diagonally facing draws was practically impossible.


    I kneel back down and check on the armored skeleton. The chin was more smooth, meaning that this one was female. There is still some flesh attached to her cheek, a single maggot was wiggling around it.


    Her armor bore an unfamiliar insignia, a barrel in the middle and two swords piercing through it diagonally. I tried to look further but I felt a finger touching my left shoulder. Turning my head, I see the knife-eared woman with a light smile, slightly kneeling.


    I stand up, she says something I can not comprehend. ¡°...¡± I stare at her blankly. ¡°Welp, I can¡¯t run away anymore, it''s best to act natural. Now then, what is she speaking about? Her tone is light, it¡¯s a bit too early for any banter so she must be thanking me or something.¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡± I nod slightly, she seems satisfied with my response. The rest of the group approaches me. They all spoke to me and the way they spoke was similar to the knife-eared woman so I just nodded to all of it. The man with the axe however extended his hand to me, it was probably a handshake so I shook it.


    Their gaze turned to the tunnel, I stood behind them as they approached it. The old man lights a torch revealing what was hidden in the darkness. A single wooden door at the end of the tunnel, looking at the wall, there were sconces. The man with the spear took the torch and lit each and every sconce as we approached the door.


    The old man, after a few seconds of hesitation, opened the door. The exaggerated creak made me feel paranoid but as the light entered the room, it revealed a small bedroom of sorts.


    Dilapidated bookshelves surrounded the walls yet the books in them showed no decay. They were in good condition and inspecting their covers showed a particular set of scribbles, they were not connected and had equal space in between. Chances are, each individual scribble holds some sort of value that when connected would give meaning. Since there were a lot of scribbles, I feel that it would be unlikely that each scribble would hold their own meaning.


    I encountered a particular book as the rest of the group were rummaging around. The cover was filled with the same nonsense scribbles but it had what I can describe as a magical circle. There were two circles, one outer and inner and in between them were some sort of runes. Some more inside the inner circle and oddly, they seem to not resemble any pattern, it feels like everything in this magical circle has an actual meaning.


    I put it inside my bag for later, maybe I could even use it to decipher their language. To make sure that happens, I needed a way to compare different writings so I can recognize some sort of pattern. I turned my eyes to the notebook on the nightstand beside the bed which weirdly was in the middle of the room.


    I took it discreetly, the owner was probably him. And just for the sake of it, I took another random book without them seeing. I did this because I did not know how they would react to me casually taking these books.


    On a table near the bed, there was a hammer, dusty and bloody. The head was rectangular shaped, wedged in a well-designed handle. The side of the head was another one of those magical circles though this one was more complex. Looking deeper, each line was precise which was impressive considering how small the entire thing was.


    I stood next to the door since nothing was of my interest anymore, fiddling with my long sword as the old man slowly becomes irritated about something.


    After a minute, I let go of my sword and let it drop to its scabbard. Looking back up, I see that every single bookshelf was destroyed after they pushed it aside. Each of them was looking at the wall for a reason. I doubt that this was all there in here and so I also approached a wall.


    I grab the hammer, I strike the wall lightly which gives a thunking sound moving to the right, I keep doing it and as I approach the knife-ear woman who was putting her ear on the wall, I hit a particular spot in the wall which gives more of a lighter thunking sound.


    I look at her and she moves away, giving me the honor. I wind up and hit the wall, the hammer¡¯s magical circle glows a black color before the impact and the wall crumbles exaggeratedly revealing a set of stairs going down.


    I put the hammer back in my bag as they approached the stairs. They try to discuss something but the old man hurries in a somewhat irritated tone. I follow behind them, lightly massaging my right forearm with my left.


    Dark, damp, and rot is detected by each of my senses. Evil was done in this place, the severity of it? That I do not know. But it seems I would be forced to find out as with a simple push of the door, the horror of what that man¡­that thing has done was seen.


    I stayed expressionless while the rest looked at the scene, shocked. Even with a lack of expression, the matter of the fact is that each of my senses was assaulted. A purpose to kill that man awakens but I already did kill him but I did so for my own selfish reason.


    Stolen story; please report.


    Hooked bodies laid in suspense in the air, their skins peeled perfectly and thrown aside. I approach a barrel on the side of this large room, am I that masochistic that I would make this situation worse?


    ¡°Probably.¡± I conclude, opening the barrel, the knife-eared woman looked on in absolute horror. The barrel was filled with exactly one body which was then infested with an ungodly amount of maggots, perfectly taking the flesh off the bones.


    It was perfect, a system that utilizes the gluttony of maggots yet the only thing that remains a mystery is how he can perfectly peel off the skin.


    I shake my head, in this morbid scene, I choose to be impressed instead of being shocked or angry. ¡°How cruel can you get?¡± I ask, reprimanding myself but in the end, I know that this means nothing. I only did this to pretend that I made myself feel better.


    The old man searches among the hanging bodies. The lady with the staff vomits in the corner, supported by the man with the axe. The knife-eared woman held back a vomit while the man with the spear guarded the entrance with a grim expression.


    Back to the old man, he seems to be looking for a specific body but looking at the bodies, without their skin, they practically looked the same. At the corner, I could see stingers, wings, and more. Connecting the strings, I know that these were probably mutated parts of these people.


    The old man looks on in despair, despite my earlier observation, it seems I was wrong. He looks on at a specific body deep into the room.


    The despair made his knees weak and he dropped to the floor. Approaching him, I looked at the body he was so devastated at. He was muscular, it was obvious that he did a lot of physical work, looking like an old man, even at his age, he was also muscular.


    Brothers perhaps or maybe a coworker. But no man would despair to this degree if he was just a mere coworker so he has to be someone close. Relatives¡­family¡­or maybe lovers. I could probably make an accurate guess if I can actually understand what he was murmuring.


    He looks down, holding himself back to scream but his eyes, which as they say is the door to the soul, convey his true feelings as his tears clash with the dirty floor.


    Those clear tears, corrupted by the sins that have happened. The mood is sad, that was a fact yet I feel nothing for him. Why would I? It is not like I can understand him anyway.


    He tried to stay tough, looking down to hide his tears but he was severely failing at it. How annoying, my lack of understanding of their language was proving to be more problematic than I thought but even so I need to convey my condolences.


    I patted his shoulder and gave him space. As I do so I wondered whether I was doing this to fulfill my selfish objective or to simply be supportive.


    ¡°What a stupid question.¡±  I know for a fact that I am not supportive of him, my previous thoughts already proves that. A minute or two passes, and he says something to the lady with the staff.


    In response, she nods, tearing the hooks off of the ceiling and placing the body to the middle of the room, she then crushes to the barrel, spreading the wood, maggots, and bone around.


    The knife-eared woman, with slight disgust approaches the mountain of mass. She poured something into the mass but she also took an arrow and dipped it in the same liquid.


    It was a flammable oil, as when she put the arrow into the torch, it was lit on fire. We leave the room quickly, wanting not to get caught by the smoke and cooking flesh.


    Nothing more was said, we left and started heading for the city, the same city that I was before. Before we saw the wall, I silently split it up with them though I caught the gaze of the knife-eared woman as I left.


    Through the hole and finally back to the city, I body relaxed, ignoring the gazes of the slum¡¯s residents, I found a secluded corner and silently, I threw up a bit. How disgusting, that horrifying scene now trapped into the crevices of my mind, I start to wonder if I would be able to sleep at all.


    This place, to put it simply, is crude, disgusting, and now, savage. Ignoring the wonders that they can do, I see them as people who clearly need to take regular showers. Seriously, if some lady could make some stuff float mysteriously, why has nobody thought of making water extremely accessible? It was even more off-putting when it came from those ladies, they were beautiful, sure but their stench is nearly indistinguishable with the guys.


    I clear my head, now is not the time to think, my scheme has not bore fruit yet. I stood up and ran towards the gate. Gasping heavily, I walk calmly as I approach the opening gates and meet the same group, the knife-eared woman in particular seems to be leering at the guard.


    Thank goodness that I actually know social cues and whatnot because if not they would have immediately known that I cannot understand them. The man with the spear raises a hand slightly, greeting me and the other¡¯s gazes fall on me.


    I followed them listening to the tone of their gibberish. The knife-eared woman often speaks in a joking tone, some mocking, and some ironic. The lady with the staff seems to be the calmer one, often speaking in an exasperated tone at every squabble that the knife-eared woman and the man with the axe has.


    Speaking of, he speaks confidently and strong, standing up for every statement he has even if those statements were responded with laughter. The man with the spear did not like me so we stayed at the back, silently listening.


    The old man led the group and assuming that the gate they went through was at the north, we would now be in the south-east part of the walled city. A sizable rocky building was in front of me, the old man entered the house and lit the torches at the corners before compelling us to go in.


    On the right side were racks on racks of the same weapon, the same sword that I have. Although varying lengths, the design was the same and at the wall of the same side were glass displays where there were weapons of a more intricate design.


    On the left side was a giant grindstone. Analyzing it tells me that a mechanism near the floor could be pushed with your foot which would then spin the stone, allowing you to grind your weapons. At the far corner was the forge, messy and unclean, it was marked with years of usage of it.


    As the old man went inside the backroom, the rest of the groups looked at the weapons displayed while I approached the grindstone. I spun the wheel and the water at the bottom made the stone wet. Sitting on the chair, I look beside me to see the leather for wiping your weapons.


    I stopped the wheel and pulled out my switchblade and started grinding. I took my time, it was precise and well-practiced. The group gazes on my switchblade. The handle had an ornate design but I did not think that it was worthy of attention.


    Ignoring the weird gazes, I wipe it with the leather before moving on with my long blade. This time, I let the wheel spin and using my experience of sharpening my switchblade, I grind away, removing all of the chipping.


    As I do so, a thought occurs, ¡°That sign¨C¡± I glance at the sign¨C ¡°The hammer has the exact same symbol even down to the small precise writings inside those circles.¡± As I conclude, another scheme comes to mind.


    The backdoor opens as I finish grinding and an old man puts a tray full of coins and multiple pouches on the table near the door. The group approaches and I follow them. There were coins of brown, silver, and gold but there were also coins in between, such as brown coins with a silver trim and silver coins with gold trim.


    The old man put the same amount in every pouch and gave them to the group leaving me with nothing. The old man, seemingly somber, speaks in gibberish and with little coin left, he grabs all of it and placed them inside a smaller pouch and handed it to me.


    He continues his gibberish by pointing at the racks of weapons. The group looks at me expectantly. I have no clue what they want me to do so I begin speculating quickly. His tone can¡¯t be trusted but it has something to do with weapons. Since I did gain the same amount of coins and the fact that I made it look like they would not have survived without me earlier, it would be safe to assume that he wants me to pick an additional reward.


    Rejecting the additional reward is not an option that I would pick so I approached the rack but I stopped and pondered. There was a bit of guilt so instead of picking up more weapons, I approached the shelves, opposite of the grindstone.


    The old man seems to be selling some miscellaneous stuff as well such as bandages, leather strips, and a bit of armor. I take some bandages and leather strips then I try to back away but the old man speaks in an insisting tone. It does not take much time to know what he was trying to tell me.


    I began pondering even more, looking back and forth at the racks and shelves. I stop thinking about the weapons, there is no point of getting another at this time and as my gaze begins to move I glance at the knife-eared woman. No protection on her torso and hips yet her entire legs and arms were.


    I look at gauntlets on the shelf. ¡°I would be slow and easily tired with this long blade and combine it with the weight of the gauntlets¡­well let us just say that even a 12 year old me would win against me with these conditions.


    I say that yet I took it, wrapping it with my arm. This would serve as training equipment as well as armor. I breathe out. ¡°Hey,¡± I say to the old man, obviously he could not have understood what I said but he turns to me after hearing me speak. By the time he looks at me, I toss the hammer towards him and with surprised expression, he catches it and at the same time, with my other arm, I take the shin guards,


    He holds the hammer, staring at the exquisite engraving, his fingers run through the crevices and as another second passes, an overwhelming feeling overcomes him, it seems as his shoulders start to shake. ¡°?? ???????!¡±


    I turn to the door, lifting my leg to turn the handle. There is a feeling of unbearable emotion of guilt mixed with something else. The knife-eared woman stares at me and smiles as I leave. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me so kindly, it''s unbearable¡±. The group approaches the old man by the time I kick the door to close it.


    I sigh and look at the streets, different creatures walking around, barely anyone that even resembles a human. Almost all of them had glowing eyes, looking at the buildings, the ones open before were closed and the ones that were close were now open. I look up into the bright moon. The night is not young for this city does not rest.

 In a Restless World, Schemes are Conceived

    Himura Sat¨­


    A cold breeze brushes my cheek. Sitting atop the stone wall, I tap on the wall, creating a clunking sound. I lift the gauntlet with a bit of effort to inspect it. A solid iron plate covers the top part of my forearms. There are many gaps between the plates which show the leather underneath. Each plate was attached to the leather with multiple pins, it was not uncomfortable since before wearing the gauntlet, I wrapped the bandages throughout my entire forearm. I then use the leather strips and tie it in a spiral pattern going up and down before securing it tightly.


    Turning to my hands, the top of my hands was protected by the steel plating, each joint of the fingers had a gap allowing my fingers to function like normal. My palms and the lower half of my forearms included straps near the elbows and wrists to tighten the gauntlet.


    The shin guards were a lot simpler, only having a single solid plate and three straps to tighten it. I sigh and look up to the moon. The brightness has gone down considerably and yet when I turned to the city, there were people still going around, houses still filled with light, and work still being done.


    From what I can gather, people with eyes that glowed slightly were the ones active while the people such as myself were now sleeping. I turn my head to the stone tower within a certain distance of the wall. I felt something for some reason.


    I yawn. Considering that I have not slept for an entire day in my world, and another day in this place, my body is begging to just collapse right at this moment. Looking back to the city, I try to find a place to sleep. I cannot get into any inns or hotels even after getting a few coins for obvious reasons so I have to look for an alternative.


    As I go down, I see a ladder in an alleyway. ¡°...¡± I pondered for a few seconds, looking around trying to see any flying creatures around. I took my chance, I feel that this is probably illegal but I do it anyway. If I stay longer my heart might feel heavy and make me not do it at all. I cannot have that, besides, the roof of this random house is probably safer than the alleys.


    Laying down on the clay shingles, my back is already hurting but in the end, I still slept like a baby. Still, as I drift into slumber, I could not help but feel something again.


    After god knows how many hours, I heavily opened my eyes, the land had an orange-like hue that is slowly turning blue. Activity in the city is still the same with the diurnal species active in the morning finishing their work and going home.


    Looking around, the ladder was gone. ¡°Ah shit.¡± I said to myself in a tired tone. My back was aching but other than that, nothing happened to me. Looking at the small pouch, there are still the same three silver coins and two bronze coins inside like yesterday. My long blade is next to me, my switchblade is in my pocket, my spear with a broken handle was near my leg, and everything was still in my bag.


    I feel dirty, I want to take a bath but to do that I need to get off this roof first. Looking at the edge, I saw a balcony next to this building. I jumped and a young woman inside saw me land. I put a finger in the middle to my mouth, asking her to keep quiet as I jump and land into the alley.


    I fell on my butt but I stood up as fast as I could and left before the young woman could take a look at me. I walk to the same hole near the slums as I comb my hair with my hand as my hair is currently resting on one side because of the way I rested my head.


    Leaving the city, I find myself in the same river as before, the same place where I washed my face. Looking around, the goblin''s body was gone, probably eaten by something. On the way, I was grabbing some sticks and now, I place them all in a line surrounding an area, hidden in the grass.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    This basic alert system will do for now. First and foremost, I drank as much water as I could. My body suddenly feels a lot energized unsurprisingly and then I take off all of my clothes and hang them in a branch. I sat in the river, washing my hair, sometimes drinking it, and generally just enjoying myself as I began to think again.


    ¡°Hmm¡­what to do with my coins¡­¡± I ponder. The best move right now is to observe the people use their coins to buy certain stuff so that I have an idea on how to buy things for myself without talking.


    ¡°That also means that I should not be wasting my time here.¡± With that, I leave the brief movement of peace that I had in the river and basked in the sun as I dry myself on the grass. After some time, I put on my clothes and with a head tilted, I walk back to the city while squeezing the water out of my hair.


    Behind the trees near a river was a certain knife-eared woman, holding a knife. A bow hung around her body like a backpack and a quiver by her waist. Hanging on her forearm was a towel. ¡°...¡± She remained silent as I passed her without me noticing.


    Back in the city, I was in a line of three people. I peek in front to see what they were doing and eventually it became my turn to talk to the vendor. ¡°???? ?''?? ????, ????¡± She asked in her gibberish language. With a bit of hesitation, I spoke crudely, ¡°Ve¡­re¡­a¡­du.¡± I felt embarrassed for a moment, how long had it been since I felt this way?


    ¡°??? ?????¡± She responded as I was opening my coin pouch. I did not know what she was saying but I realized that I have not specified what kind of bread and how many so I pointed at a circular loaf and raised one finger at her.


    I have no clue how much it was, but according to the lady at the very front earlier, it should be more than my 2 copper coins and so I gave her a silver coin. She hands me the bread and 7 copper coins with a silver trim.


    After getting it, my eyes laid at the drying large price of meat hanging. My mouth was watering at the sight of it. From the looks of it, the meat is probably the thigh of an animal.


    I wanted to buy it as well. But I could not quite catch what the man said in front of me in the line and so I could not ask for it. ¡°...¡± After a few seconds, there was desperation in me and I pointed at the meat, handing her my last silver coin.


    She grabs a knife and cuts a nice chunk of it. The man earlier handed 2 silver coins and was nearly given half the meat so I was confident I could get something with the silver coin. I bow and smile to her slightly, she seems to be flustered at that but I was turning around by the time she did respond.


    As darkness began to encompass the land, I enjoyed my bread and meat. The bread sucks compared to even stale bread in my world but the meat is at least bearable.


    Looking up, the moon was not as bright as last night. ¡°There goes my plans.¡± I said to myself, disappointed. Even after searching casually, I still could not find the same group as last night and since I have no light source, I probably will not be leaving this city.


    As I wandered around, I found myself walking atop the stone wall. The bread was nice, food from my home was still better but it was nice. The dried meat also had a surprisingly good taste but then again, it was my first time eating smoked meat so I have no basis for it.


    I sigh and clear my thoughts, feels like that''s all I have been doing recently. I sigh again. ¡°It would be understatement so say that I¡¯m fucked. I lack so much information and I hate that fact. Thankfully, that earlier event helped me realize that I have chance of learning the basics. It would take time but it was plausible. But that¡¯s the problem, I need time to learn and to get that time, I need money to survive.¡±


    I think back to my days here, ¡°Apart from art, fighting is the only thing I can do to make money. But somebody else will have to do the talking which means¡­¡± I look back to that knife-eared woman, out of the entire group, she seems to be the one that trust me the most. And so, if I stick by her or maybe we team up because we ¡°coincidentally¡± have the same goal then I might be able to earn money. That might work if I am lucky.


    ¡°What a leech¡­and creepy too.¡± I mutter at the back of my head. It was night, she would probably be awake like last night, hopefully. As I look around, I notice that there were a lot more armed people walking around and a half of them are diurnal. ¡°Is there some sort event or something?¡±


    Actually, there were a lot armed people including guards and looking around there were almost nobody is simple civilian clothing. A chilling breeze passes me and as if the world was listening, the answer came quickly.


    Looking up, gigantic green fumes coming from god knows where was swirling around the moon until eventually, that fume turned green then at that moment, loud and aggressive growls came outside the wall and from the moon.


    In my stunned silence, I was both mesmerized and fearful as flying creatures with imp-like proportions assaulted the city. ¡°Crazy thought, but I think that¡¯s not good.¡± I said to myself sarcastically, reminded of the cruelty this world possesses.

 The Green Moon

    Himura Sat¨­


    Quickly pulling out my long blade, I slash at the flying creature. The creature''s body was surprisingly frail but there were a lot of them, more than a hundred by the looks of it. "Welp, might as wel¨C" As I was about to comment something, another assaulted me with its claws but I managed to bat it away from me only for another to go for my throat.


    Oddly enough, I feel that tingling sensation again but it quickly disappears as I move out of the way. The creature flies up and rushes into another armed man, the creature I batted away tries to do the same but I stomp on its head, killing it.


    More and more seem to swarm me so I swing my long blade killing maybe three. I could not tell as I was already exhausted. Haggard and slumped against a building, I watch as another flies towards me but just barely, I move out of the way.


    I''m tempted to unequip my gauntlets but I don''t have time. My sleeves were folded up above my forearms and I did not trust the wrapping I had to cover me. My feet were heavy as if I was carrying stones for boots. "Haah¡­haah¡­haah¡­"


    As another twenty rushes towards me and the others on the street. In that moment stone bricks hit enough of them to disperse. Looking back, men and women wearing brownish cloaks and staffs fitted with brown gems, the same as the one I have. With their off-hand, they raise their arms slightly the bricks that made up the roads float up. They thrust their staffs up in the direction of the flying creatures and in response, the bricks flew at high speed.


    Many of the bricks missed but the men and women held their staffs with both hands and with precise movement, turned the bricks around, and then they moved their staffs in a sweeping motion which then hurled into the flying creature''s brain.


    The bricks stood still for a moment but they then pulled on their staffs back which recalled the bricks back to their sides. I stand up, my stamina somewhat recovered. The mages, if I am not mistaking it, disperse into different areas of the city.


    Thanks to them I was finally able to think for a short while. Looking at a nearby gate, there were people wielding spears stabbing the creatures beyond the wall, and all around the streets were men and women fighting the flying creatures, some getting killed.


    The sight made me want to vomit, but staying expressionless, I ready myself. "I know it''s been years but how am I this shit at sword fighting? Have I forgotten the different types of attacks, the maneuvers, the stances, and all the million things that should be embedded in me by now?" I said, frustratingly, "I know it''s been years and I''m not exactly fighting people, but my experience should at least help me not die and most importantly, conserve my energy."


    A creature flies towards another man, pinning him down but I intervene by kicking it away. As it flies, I move my entire arms, heavily slashing down, cutting it in half. Another creature flies towards me with another one behind it.


    I align my arms and blade in a downward diagonal then, I push my forearms forward, cutting the torso deeply. And with a quick pull, the blade was just above my right shoulder, the blade behind me and the pommel aimed at the following creature.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    Thankfully, these creatures are stupid enough to not care about my telegraphed attack. "I should have telegraphed a downward slash instead to trick them¡­if they weren''t stupid that is," I remark. I stun the creature with the pommel but it was very close to me so I take one step back with my left foot while raising the handle with both hands, and at the perfect moment, I slash downwards.


    The long blade rests near my lower torso, aimed slightly upward. I thrust my blade into another creature, going halfway through the blade before dying. I cut the air to push the body out of my long blade.


    Three more creatures rush me. I flick my wrist and slice the side of the neck of the first creature. I put my right leg on it and crushed its skull. For the second one I cut vertically then for the third, I push the handle towards its chin and while stunned, a bolt shoots through its chest.


    I hop back then dash forward. My arm is like water but at the perfect moment, I harden it as I slash in a downward right diagonal, moving not just my arms, but my entire body as well. I catch my breath. With that attack, I was starting to feel myself again. My entire body feels softer like dough.


    Previous experiences were useful but I moved like a robot and with dynamic enemies like these, I forced myself to slowly modify those techniques just to win. I was starting to enjoy myself, not the act of killing, which was disgusting but the fact that I had to improve to win.


    No drug could ever replicate the elation I feel when I improve even for something minor. Swordsmanship was starting to become free-flowing, just like whenever I wield my switchblade. "Part of the reason that I started preferring knives to swords was because of the feeling flow that I feel, like water in a river for example." But it seems, I was mistaken to dismiss swordsmanship as a blocky fighting style meant for only fighting people.


    I cut my line of thought and look back. The man I saved earlier was on his knees, crossbow in hand. We nod to each other, and he reloads his crossbow as I dash forward towards more flying creatures. Putting my blade inside the scabbard, I continue to run.


    Another creature beyond the walls rushes me as the gate is breached. I push the handle down slightly, and the attachment of the scabbard moves in response. I stop in my tracks and slash it with one hand lightly, even when my entire body supports that attack.


    With the blade above my head, I take my left hand and hold the blade with both hands, then slash his face downwards, sliding my left foot back. Blinded, it tries to grab me with both arms but I slide my left foot further, dropping slightly, dodging the attack.


    I slash his throat horizontally but it gets stuck. I then quickly place my left hand at the halfway point of my blade and continue the slashing motion, cutting deeply enough that the creature falls to the ground. I dodge its blood and body. "Haah¡­haah¡­haah¡­"


    I wipe the sweat off my face. If I have to guess, it''s been less than ten minutes since this green moon appeared. The next moment, a dome-like shape barrier appeared over the city. Above the dome, a magical circle glowed slightly before disappearing. The green hue that was over everything was gone and the color returned to normal.


    The monsters outside the dome bashed at the mysterious barrier but nothing happened. The ones still inside were killed by people clearly stronger than me. Behind me, there was a light that I could not help but stare at. Atop of the tower was the source of the barrier but the light was blinding so I could not see who it was.


    The light felt calming like a fire of a hearth. The people sighed in relief. There was no shout of victory or cries of loss, just relief. I found myself sighing as well, looking at the green moon, I wondered about the fates of other cities yet right now, I know nothing of this world but there is one thing I''m certain of. "Just for tonight, no monsters will ever assault us again."

 Wonder

    Himura Sat¨­


    Looking down at the wall, there was a puddle of vomit. I wipe my lips at the sight of it. The creatures of the green moon try and try again to break through the barrier but to no avail. Outside the barrier, the green hue covers it all, the sky, the trees, all of it.


    I look to my left and move out of the way as a cart hauls the bodies of the armed people. Looking back to the city, everybody was cleaning up. Some of the shops even started being open again. ¡°As if this is a normal occurrence¡­¡± I shudder at the thought that the moon might change into something terrifying again.


    Looking beyond, there was nothing, no villages, walled cities, nothing near this city. As I try to look further, I look back to the top of the tower. The source of the light was long gone. ¡°I wonder if I can go to the top.¡±


    I pull the scabbard out of its attachment and sit down, hugging the long blade as if it were a teddy bear. ¡°Abandoned structures, trees for miles, and barely any roads for traveling.¡±  This place isn¡¯t some fantasy medieval world but a post-apocalyptic one. ¡°With magic apparently¡­¡±


    It was about damn time I stopped being in denial. Instead of referring to things in a neutral way, I need to start taking what I know and referring the things that I understand to the things I see here. Magic exists, there¡¯s wizards, mages, witches, and all that fantastical bullshit. My thoughts turn grim. ¡°And if people like them exist here then there must be an equal or stronger opposition out there.¡±


    I shudder but stay expressionless. There was rational fear that was developing in my heart. ¡°I can beat monsters, I just have to be smarter but magic users? They study meaning they are probably smarter while I¡¯m a man with nothing but a pointy needle. I¡¯ll die in less than a second if someone wishes for it.¡±


    I hang my head low and close my eyes, the night is still young so I¡¯ll probably just walk around trying to find the knife-eared woman. ¡°How creepy¡­¡± I say to myself as I start to fall asleep.


    Slowly raising my eyes, I look at the sun for a brief moment which blinds me instantly. I groan in pain before becoming expressionless again. I sigh, I really get a good sleeping schedule.


    I went back to the river and took a shower. It was extra refreshing with this hot weather. I took my time, staring at my hanged clothes which miraculously had no cuts or blood stains. The flow of the river was very nice. I look at my arm, soft as water but then, I strengthen as I swing in the water.


    When I did so, there was cramping pain. Last night might have been less than ten minutes but my muscles made it felt like three hours of grueling killing. I went back to the city and with nothing to do but ponder, I decided to do so while climbing the tower.


    Looking around, there are shops that are more magically oriented. There are also shops with herds, some with really creepy jars filled with monster parts, and many more. This scene stayed the same as I climbed higher. ¡°Haah¡­haah¡­fuck these stairs, why is the elevation for each stair so short? I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯ve taken more steps climbing these stairs than walking on a flat path. And each was so long that I can¡¯t even skip every other stair¡± I complained.


    Intrusive thoughts made me want to look below but I resisted. I¡¯m so high up that it doesn¡¯t matter that I¡¯m not scared of heights, it was still scary. Reaching the top, it was disappointing. Foundations for buildings were placed as if this tower wasn¡¯t high enough. The entire tower was the same shops but with less and less people as I climbed.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    I stand near a parapet and look beyond. Still no cities but surprisingly There were about two villages, one beyond the river that I washed myself in and the other, was next to these two mountains. Surprisingly, none of the villages were destroyed after last night.


    As I stare at the village near the two mountains. ¡°What the fu¨Chuh?¡± Either the sun is making me hallucinate or one of the mountains just moved slightly. Considering how the moons are in this place, I would not be surprised if the first possibility is the right one.


    ¡°That¡¯s future me¡¯s problem, not mine.¡± I shake my head. Looking down, there was a church-like building bearing a symbol of an upside down ¡°T¡±. There was also an empty field next to some large building. If I remember correctly, it is a station for guards.


    As I go down, my stomach grumbles. Considering I¡¯m pretty much out of money, there¡¯s nothing I can do to satiate myself. ¡°, I could eat the raw flesh of an animal outside the walls¡­¡± Absolutely not.


    ¡°If I can learn how to make fire out of friction then that idea might not be that bad.¡± As I walk towards the slums and leave via the sewer. I need a flat piece of wood, a stick, and something flammable. I believe those three are the key to making fire.


    I took several branches from trees while also trying to find bird¡¯s nests for the flammable material but since this place is full of monsters, unsurprisingly there were no birds around. Oddly enough, there were barely any goblins around. ¡°I wonder if they¡¯re nocturnal¡­¡± I ask, though yes, I killed a few here and there but none of them were a part of a pack like the other night.


    I look at the branches and place them near the river. As I stare at them and realize how stupid I look to the inhabitants of this world. Some of them would probably be wondering why I just didn¡¯t set it on fire with magic or something.


    Still, I can¡¯t deny I¡¯m excited to attempt this. Some primal urge to make fire was strong but I collected myself as I began to think on how to get the rest of the materials. I stare at a tree and remind myself about some of the dead trees around here. I took my switchblade out and began carving a piece of bark.


    I try to pull the carved piece out but since I have no idea what I¡¯m doing, I only manage to pull a small piece of it. Back at the river, I use my switchblade to shave several sticks to make tinder. Will it work? No idea.


    Attempt 1, I placed the stick to the bark and started the spinning motion while pushing down. The stick broke almost immediately,


    Attempt 2, Found a stronger stick, did the steps again but the pain in my forearms came back so I stopped.


    Attempt 3, After recovering, I tried again but this time, I tried to not strain my forearms but instead used my upper arms to spin the stick. The stick broke again. ¡°God fuckin dammit.¡±


    Attempt 6, Got the motion down to a tee, when I looked for an ember, I could not find it, placed a tinder but it didn¡¯t catch on fire. I tried to touch the area where the ember should be, it was not a good idea.


    Attempt 14, I sigh and start to focus. My legs surround the bark, preventing even a slightly weak breeze from extinguishing the ember. The rest of the tinder was on top of where I would spin the stick.


    I start spinning the stick. Three, maybe five minutes have passed since I started. I could smell the smoke but I was not getting tricked this time so I continued to spin the stick.  I wanted to see actual smoke but I was not spinning it fast enough to create such an effect and so after a minute passed, I pulled the stick out and gently pushed the tinder nearer. I unwrap my legs, hoping the wind might help..


    I gently blew on the tinder and soon, a dim light emerged. I continue to blow them¡­millions of years of human history and I, Himura Sat¨­, have just created fire. My face stayed expressionless as I continued to feed it stick but on the inside, ¡°HELL YEAH! BEHOLD I AM THE WIZARD OF FIRE!¡± I screamed. It was most definitely childish but I¡¯ll take what win I can get.


    I stand around the fire, looking. It was mesmarizing. ¡°Now I can cook food¡­but where is the food?¡± I was stunned, I looked around. Denial won¡¯t get me anywhere, I forgot that I need food to make cooked food. I want to tear up but I can¡¯t, never been able to for years now.


    Stand up, expressionless. I looked at the river, took my clothes off and hung them then tried to catch a fish with bare, inexperienced hands. ¡°...GODFUCKIN¨C¡± The words used to berate myself would be better left unrepeated.

 The Hunter

    Astoria


    Drunken and cold, I open my eyes to see the sun piercing through the window of this old tavern. Looking around, most of the people here are also still asleep. Elves, Drows, Tieflings, Orcs, Humans, you name it.


    I groan as I rest my head on my arms over the counter. As the barkeep approaches, I sluggishly raise my head and ask, ¡°Soup and¡­mead, put it on my tab like always.¡± The barkeep narrows his eyes. ¡°I already paid my tab last night¡­stop acting like I haven¡¯t been paying it consistently.¡±


    ¡°Consistent my ass, but fine, Aldia!¡± He shouts at his daughter. ¡°Update her tab make it 5 rellnarius, this time.¡± I clasp my hands, thanking him and I try to get more sleep. His daughter deducts about 14 bellnarius and writes the remaining 4 rellnarius, 99 hellnarius, and 86 bellnarius under my name.


    I chug about half of the honey mead before digging in. I relish the soup, As I chew, I notice a hint of olmeria spice. ¡°No wonder, it¡¯s 14 bellnarius now. But still¡­¡± I look up at the barkeep. ¡°New meat?¡± I ask.


    ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s been less felalel around so I used warg meat. The meat tastes like ass, but a bit of olmeria spice is enough to create this culinary miracle.¡± He brags and can¡¯t deny it, turning warg meat into something bearable is a culinary miracle.


    I wiped my lips with my thumb and left the tavern. Looking at the second floor, the symbol of a drunken crow stands old but proud. ¡°It¡¯s too early for this¡­¡± I complained. I go back to the river and just walk around waiting for my hangover to be gone, I already washed myself like a day ago so I don¡¯t really need to wash myself again.


    Looking around, that weird noble isn¡¯t around. I recall when I saw him wash himself on the river. Nothing special about him, didn¡¯t notice me when I stepped on some sticks. ¡°Or maybe he did, nobles take their time with this kind of stuff, right? Maybe he left early because he noticed me.¡±


    I shake my head, who cares anyway? I was quite far from Bellken so I placed my backpack and my black cylindrical container at the base of a tree. I pat myself to look for some of my things. My quiver is still on the left side of my waist, my dagger is still hidden inside my pants. And every knife is still hidden among my armor.


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    I take my bow and place it on the river. A few minutes passed by and eventually, it became larger. From a longbow on a shorter side to a great bow, almost the size of me. I also began cleaning the blood off on some of my arrows.


    As I did so, I began to smell something burning coming from the direction of Bellken but near the river. ¡°I swear, if it¡¯s those god fucking goblins, I will start putting them on stakes,¡± I complain as I move down the river.


    I didn¡¯t try to hurry; the smell wasn¡¯t getting worse so it¡¯s probably a campfire. But the question is, who would camp this far out? The answer would come ten minutes later when I finally reached the source of the fire.


    ¡°Oh, him again,¡± I said to myself, hidden among the trees. I didn¡¯t want to show myself since he was probably a noble. ¡°Probably.¡± I tried seeking some gossip at the tavern last night and it seems nobody even knows about him. I thought his house must have been slaughtered by the necromancer but only the well-known ones were taken.


    Apparently, people only started seeing some guy wearing nice clothes about a few days ago but even then, it was probably someone else. It was only yesterday that he was officially seen by many. Not like you could miss him; he was the only guy who wore nice clothing while wearing gauntlets and shin guards.


    It was somewhat similar to my situation, but at least my torso was reinforced with leather. He was dodging their blood, trying to avoid staining his clothes which unsurprisingly, people recognized as noble-like.


    And now, said noble is camping in the outskirts of Bellken, tired from probably catching that fish he was cooking over the fire. ¡°That stick is too small fo¨C¡± There was a crack then seconds later the fish fell to the fire¨C ¡°Annnd, it¡¯s burnt.¡± I hold my laugh as he quickly grabs it out of the fire. He blew on the fish, trying to get the dirt out.


    A few minutes passed and he tried to eat it. It tastes like ass unsurprisingly, but he was still expressionless. I wanted to tell him to find a flat piece of stone or something before trying to cook but my ears caught an interesting noise nearby.


    ¡°Guess I should¡¯ve made stakes,¡± I said assuming that there were stray goblins running around again, running towards the source of the noise. Staying hidden, I look at the empty field to see a few monsters around.  ¡°That¡¯s not a goblin,¡± I say to myself. ¡°Damn, are the catacombs getting clogged up again?¡± I say to myself as more and more monsters make their way out of the stone structure.


    The catacombs are an ancient megastructure used as a graveyard for the dwarves back then. Now, it¡¯s a maze where the monsters can only get out but sheer luck. They must be quite lucky for this many monsters to get out. ¡°¡­or maybe, somebody led them here.¡±


    Either way, I can¡¯t complain, it¡¯s free money after all. I check my bag and make sure that extraction tools are still inside before throwing my backpack to a nearby tree. I ready my bow and got some arrows only to be reminded that my current arrows are made for a long bow, not great bows.


    I sigh, it would take at least a few more days for my bow to shrink back to a long bow. ¡°So, I guess in the meantime, I¡¯ll buy some arrows after selling their parts.¡± I remove my quiver, my great bow, and my black cylindrical container then throw them to the same tree.


    A dagger in my right hand in a reverse grip, then three throwing knives placed between the fingers of my left hand. A breath out and focus. A melitabr approaches my direction but before it could even notice, I place my dagger to its throat.

 Monsters and Knives

    Himura Sat¨­


    ¡°In my defense, I never cooked anything above an open fire,¡± I say to myself. While eating a burnt fish, I look at the river to see even more fish swimming downstream. There weren¡¯t a lot of fish or even any at all in the afternoon so I was under the impression that the monsters outside don¡¯t let any fishes to exist here.


    I look back to the campfire made with wood that releases no smoke. Actually, there is smoke, but the moment the smoke leaves the warmth of the fire, I stop seeing it but the smell is clearly there. ¡°This totally won¡¯t have long-lasting effects on my lungs,¡± I say, sarcastically.


    I look up to the sky and think to myself, ¡°What now?¡± My core problems are pretty much solved. I have a way to get food, water can be purified when I eventually somehow manage to get a container. I was starting to not have a need for money anymore meaning I don¡¯t even have to find that knife-eared woman and hope she gives me a job or something.


    I have no clue what to do now. I don¡¯t want to spend my time training and though I¡¯m willing to try to decipher their language, it¡¯s also starting to lose its purpose. ¡°Theoretically, I¡¯m pretty self-sufficient.¡± That fact alone brought me a feeling of elation. A feeling gained through the skill of nobody but myself.


    I sigh as I remove the remains of the fish from the stick. ¡°I wanna draw¡­¡± I complain to myself as I draw on the ground with my stick. I imprint the simplified image of the human body. I draw another image of the same body but this time, I warp it into the shape of what I wish; small, annoying little shit of a body that resembles the body of a goblin.


    I pull my long blade out of its scabbard and marvel at it. It¡¯s a sword, of course, it¡¯s marvelous. I want to fight, the emotions I gain from fighting for survival are indescribable. The scheming of the best next move, the fear of death, and the of elation knowing that the fear will never claim you. ¡°Well, the last part is kind of false now, and yet that feeling is still there, stronger than before.¡±


    ¡°SKREEEEEEEEE!¡± The sound of a whistle reverberates through my ears. The sound made me point my blade in the direction where it came from but the sound was clearly far from here. Who in their right mind would follow such an unpleasant sound? An idiot, of course.


    I put the long blade back to its scabbard and put the fire out. I grab my waist bag next to me and I walk to the source of the noise. Making sure not to make any noise to make sure that I don¡¯t get ambushed by the one that made the noise.


    The noise was similar to a bird¡¯s screech so maybe some sort of bird monster awaited me. ¡°Can¡¯t hurt to what it was. It would allow me to learn how to deal with.¡± I say to myself as if I was trying to convince myself to not run away despite the fact that I already know how dangerous this is.


    This cycle of idiotic excuses is hurting my brain as the layers of lies are so many that I don¡¯t even know what thoughts are genuine. I held back an urge to berate myself and soon approached another empty field.


    There is a bag on a nearby tree and I place my bag next to it. I grab the broken spear out of my bag and run into the empty field. I throw the spear at a nearby monster which misses horribly. Seven monsters lay on the ground, full of stab wounds and the remaining six were monsters of various forms.


    The one I threw my spear at, is a monster that has a humanoid shape with a head that has very long rough fur. The left arm is long and has four fingers while the right arm is short but at the midway point, just after beyond the elbow, it seems to be split in two.


    The two parts of the hand only have two fingers each. The gap between the forearm is lined with many sharp jagged teeth. With my quick analysis, I focus and I draw my long blade. The monster tried to bash me with the long arm like a whip but it was so slow that I simply closed the gap between me and it.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    The right arm tries to take a chunk out of me but I slip under the long arm and go behind it. I grab onto its shoulder with my left and quickly raise my foot. I kick both its knees forward causing it to kneel and then I place my long blade at its throat with one hand at the handle and the other at the other end then I try to slice its neck but the fur didn¡¯t allow me to do such a smooth kill on this monster so I had to hack its throat.


    The monster falls on its back, bashing me with its weight. As I hack through the fur, it flails, hitting me on the left side of my face. The monster¡¯s right arm elbows my side before trying to bite me again but thankfully, I got through its fur in time.


    Another monster approaches me, a creature with guts half exposed and a foul odor; a ghoul probably. I pivot with my right foot and push the body away then I kick the knee of the approaching creature. Like fighting a skeleton, it works like a charm and the ghoul falls towards my thigh.


    I aim my blade at its brain and quickly stab its head before it can even nibble at my thigh. The last creature, with a form similar to a humanoid rotting lizard, walks towards me as its throat begins to swell. There was a smell beyond revolting and I didn¡¯t know whether it was acidic or just really disgusting but either way, I didn¡¯t want my clothes to get even more dirty.


    ¡°Run, run, FUCKEN RUN!¡± I shout as I run towards a tree and hide behind it. The monster spits the foul liquid, practically melting the tree that I was taking cover at. It only took half a second for the acid to completely go through the tree, making it fall and leaving only the base to be standing.


    I dash to another tree as soon as the acid stops but upon taking a glimpse at the monster, the strong acid seems to have torn through its throat. Seeing this, I make a mad dash towards the monster and almost try to slash its throat but I quickly switch to a thumb grip. I bash the side of the monster¡¯s head and leave it to die by its own acid.


    At the same time of my first engagement, on the other side of the field, there was another battle occurring.


    Astoria


    I spit my whistle out of my mouth while grappling another melitabr. I kick its stomach, grab a throwing knife, and stab it through its thick neck to the point that the entire knife is inside the neck. It growls in pain and tries to move away from me but I grab its head and bash it against mine.


    What tiny amount of blood this creature has, pours out of its nose and onto my brown hair. ¡°Tch, bastard¡­¡± I murmur. I need something deeper. ¡°This damn thing can barely bleed, however¡­¡± I turn my head to see a broken Bellken spearhead on the ground. ¡°Good enough.¡±


    I punch the melitabr at the side of its head and quickly crawl towards the spear and grab it. An oka raises its crude spear and tries to stab me but I spin my body with my legs like a tornado and hit the oka by the back of its knee. However, the knee did not move much. ¡°That exoskeleton is annoying, makes me wish that the God of ascension would grant that to me though.¡±


    I wrap my legs at its knee then grab the crude spear which the oka tries to lift up. I push it down with my left hand then let my lower body lift me up close to it. I bash the exoskeleton at the right side of its chest which did not do any damage but it made the gaps slightly wider and seeing that, I switch to a reverse grip and stab its chest.


    Before it falls to the ground, I grab its falling body and use it to cushion myself by switching places. I look behind me to see a skeleton slowly approaching. ¡°How are you moving, the bright moon happened a few days ago. I swear if there is another godforsaken necromancer¡­¡± I say to myself, exasperated. Though I don¡¯t really mind, if there¡¯s something to kill, it¡¯s a potential business.


    I grab a throwing knife from one of the bodies and throw it at its cranium. The knife didn¡¯t do much and bounced back towards me but I threw it with enough force at it fell. I look in front of me to see the melitabr standing up. Its arm full of teeth has a throwing knife stuck to it. The throat was empty of a throwing knife. ¡°Let¡¯s change that.¡±


    I mock it and grab the throwing knife from earlier. I place it between my middle and ring finger. With my throwing knife in my left hand and the spear to my right, I dash towards it. The melitabr opens its arm, I smile slightly and when both of my feet are off the ground, I open my mouth and speak the same familiar words, ¡°????.¡± Infusing the ¡°Yu¡± and ¡°Iss¡± parts of the spell with mana, I direct the spell at the output located at my back.


    The spell closes the gap, catching the melitabr surprised. I stab the spear inside the arm and forcefully close it by punching with my left and pushing with my right. The spear pierces the arm leaving half of the handle inside. I grab it with my right in a reverse grip and weave back and forth from the left side of its arm to the right in a boxing stance.


    Before its other arm could make a move, I uppercut its chin with my left then stabbed the spear to its neck. ¡°Now where was I? Oh right, they barely have blood but a good hit at the neck still kills it.¡± As I finish my statement born out of purely mocking the melitabr, I look back at the skeleton. I throw my spear at it and as it spins, I infuse my mana to the ¡°Yu¡± part of ????, and direct it to my right palm.


    I push my arm slightly then created a tether at the spear¡¯s tip. The spell releases at the end of the tether which spins the spear faster. The skeleton was no match for it and it immediately falls, its head crushed. The reanimated nikal¡¯s acid seemed to have melted its throat and it died on the spot. I look back at the weird man, standing up and I sigh to myself. ¡°Finally done.¡±

 The Monster Killing Business

    Astoria


    We round up the 13 monsters and then we grab our bags. As I take out my extraction tools. Wrapped in leather, I take out a sharp iron knife and an iron prying tool. I also take out a few empty pouches from my bag and begin approaching one of the bodies.


    The weird guy looks at me, wondering what I am doing. ¡°Oh yeah, nobles and shit.¡± I open my mouth and speak to him. ¡°You can sell their parts to most mage dealers in the tower or you could sell it on the black market, your choice.¡± He nods in response.


    He takes out his fancy knife and begins taking out the teeth from one of the monsters. As I take the teeth and eyes, I begin to think to myself, ¡°Thankfully, he¡¯s the one who heard my whistle. I could have probably taken out all of them by myself but if I fail, I would have need to go back to Bellken for supplies and that would be more than enough time for somebody else to kill them and that¡¯s something I didn¡¯t want to risk.¡± I take out another tooth forcefully using my prying tool to pull it out whilst my knife cuts deep into their gums.


    The guy approaches me and tries to hand me 14 teeth in near-perfect condition. Just looking at it made me want to take it, unlike mine where some of the teeth cracked. His would probably fetch for a higher price. However, I was the one who called for his help. Anything apart from splitting it would be unfair so I shake my head and let him keep the ones that he takes out.


    I watch him go to another and the way he takes out each tooth with such precision was almost suspicious, but then again, I don¡¯t know anything about nobles. Observing him further, his face doesn¡¯t even change much, maybe he¡¯s still experiencing shock or something. With good precision, he also takes out the eyes but he didn¡¯t take them for some reason.


    I toss him a pouch and I guess correctly as he begins putting the eyes into the pouch. After a considerable amount of time, I managed to extract 26 teeth and 4 eyes, the rest is with him. ¡°Hey, thanks for this,¡± I say as I hand him his broken spear back. He takes it and nods.


    He didn¡¯t say a single word as we headed back to Bellken, whether he was mute or something was not my business but at least he could understand me. We arrive at the tower before entering, I clap once then wrap my hands with each, leaving only my index finger from my right hand to point up. ¡°Praise be the ascension,¡± I murmur to myself and then we begin to step foot into the tower.


    At the very middle of the tower is a peculiar building by a homunculus. The story says that she has the body of the 15-year-old, meaning she died at that age and then was revived. How many years she¡¯s been living as a 15-year-old, I don¡¯t know. All I know is that she¡¯s older than me, that¡¯s pretty obvious considering her shop is on the base floor of the tower.


    Makes me pretty nervous honestly, I never talked to anybody older than me before. I turn the knob and then open the door. The creak did not help to make me feel better as the sight of a humble shop came into view.


    Shelves of monster remains as well as books were lined up on each side of the wall. The room was only illuminated by a single candle on the counter. There was not a single ray of sunshine inside. ¡°What do you want¡­Astoria, was it?¡± A girl sitting on a high chair said to me.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    I show her my pouches full of monster parts. ¡°Hmm¡­show me.¡± She commands. Garbed in pure black pants, a turtle neck, and a pure white coat, she was definitely intimidating but not in a scary way, however. I don¡¯t feel her intent and her expression is quite relaxed.


    Seeing that, I relax as I hand her two pouches. She takes one tooth with a gloved hand and with her other hand, she covers her circular glasses. The next moment, I expected some sort of magic to occur but nothing happened. She pours the rest into the table and begins inspecting them.


    She had an expression of dissatisfaction; I could not help but feel shame. ¡°In my defense, this is my first time collecting parts¡­¡± I try to smile while looking away. ¡°Yeah, yeah, you are a mercenary as Alcor stated. But next time, bring the entire tooth, I don¡¯t care if there¡¯s still gums on it.¡± She responds.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± I smile slightly. She looks at me for a brief moment before putting the teeth back into the pouch. ¡°We always do¡­¡± She murmurs. It took a few seconds for her to inspect the eyes. If I remember correctly, Alcor said it like this, ¡°Oi dumbass, treat every part with precision, for eyes specifically, you just need to make sure that the eyeball isn¡¯t damaged.¡± I remember nodding at that information before insulting him back.


    ¡°Here, 14 hellnarius.¡± She hands me 14 silver-colored coins. ¡°Thank you,¡± I respond as she turns her attention to him. He hands her his pouch and inspects it before giving him about 16 hellnarius. Both of them did not speak a single word to each other. Her I can understand, nothing much to say to a job well done but him? ¡°Like talking to a wall.¡±


    We both left the shop and went our separate ways. ¡°See ya around,¡± I say, in response, he nods and bows to me. Kind of weird seeing someone bow to me but I wave at him as I walk away. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll buy the arrows later,¡± I say to myself as I head straight to the Drunken Crow.


    I opened the door and felt a lot more energized than before. It¡¯s almost nighttime after all. Aldia already poured a beer for me the moment I sat at the counter. ¡°Ughhhh.¡± I groan as I drink from my mug. ¡°Told you monster hunting is not easy,¡± Aldia comments as she cleans some mugs.


    ¡°Yeah, awkward too if you¡¯re with that weird noble,¡± I respond, drinking some more. ¡°Ooh him again, he¡¯s quite popular for somebody nobody knew for a week ago.¡± She responds, intrigued. ¡°Well yeah, that guy wears decent clothes, can fight, and sleeps on a roof. Everybody wants to know what¡¯s his deal is!¡±


    ¡°Well, you know that¡¯s not all.¡± She smiles with a hint of sadness in her eyes. Looking around, everybody here is wounded. Despite the atmosphere, the state that all of us are in is quite depressing. ¡°Yeah, everyone here is fighting to survive whether it¡¯s killing monsters or pouring beer.¡±


    I drank a bit more. Alcohol works its magic as it goes down my throat. Not many stories of happiness come by here so a few rumors here and there are not so bad, at least we have something to entertain ourselves with.


    The doors open and a bard steps inside. All of us turn our attention to him as he sits on the stage. Aldia hands him water and he begins clearing his throat. He strokes his lute and begins his poetic singing, ¡°Fire, fire, o the bird rages¡­Betwixt the horns, Kioi wages¡­The war upon the walls, arrow purges him¡­His eyes set upon Bellken, his fire still within. His army rises from the catacombs and leaves their grave¡­for their land will always be for the brave.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Nobody cheered. We throw a rellnarius to the stage as thanks and after collecting it. He tunes his lute and begins singing the usual tavern tunes. ¡°Kioi huh? Looks like your necromancer problem isn¡¯t done yet huh?¡± Aldia turns to me, handing me another mug of beer.


    ¡°He seems new,¡± I comment looking at the bar. ¡°Yeah, being a bard in Bellken is not easy after all, this city isn¡¯t nearly big enough to have an appreciation for the arts.¡± She comments as she looks at him with wonder. ¡°Someone has a type. But do you think he can even withstand your father¡¯s intimidation?¡± I tease her.


    ¡°Oh, shut up, still though he looks wounded.¡± She murmurs to herself. ¡°Well yeah, being a bard isn¡¯t easy here, the value you have here is whether or not you can give us mercenaries information that might give us a new source of cash. And to do that, you have to risk your life making sure your information is true.¡±


    I finish my mug. ¡°Here,¡± I throw her a rellnarius. ¡°Throw this coin to the stage and strike up a conversation. You only have one shot though, unless you want your father to find out where some of his few coins have gone.¡± I leave the tavern. It turned night and people were starting to go home. ¡°Guess I¡¯ll go take a nap somewhere¡­I wonder how it feels sleeping on the roof.¡± I say to myself as I wander around.

 An Egotistical Idiot

    Himura Sat¨­


    My mind recalls that scene earlier. Organs, vile liquids, and whatever else was shelved as if normal. Frankly, it was disgusting. ¡°To think my first ever job will be as an organ harvester. Oh, how far I¡¯ve fallen.¡±


    Usually, another voice berates me but honestly, ¡°It just can¡¯t help.¡± I see myself shrugging in defeat but honestly, I hate that word. Just accepting that I can¡¯t do anything about a situation is pitiable. It¡¯s a sign of weakness. Everything has a solution; I¡¯ve always believed that. And if you can¡¯t, that¡¯s simply a sign of weakness.


    I sit up, messing with my hair while trying to think as if it would help. I lay back down, ¡°Ow!¡± And a shingle hits my back. I stare at the moon, hoping that it doesn¡¯t change suddenly. ¡°My god man, pick an avenue, either you despise anything out of your control or you accept it!¡± I shout at myself.


    ¡°And how long are you planning to laze about? For someone who talked about training, all you¡¯ve done is go back to the same roof and watch the stars!¡± Okay, but the stars are nice though. ¡°True, but you could be stamina training or something. Just run laps at the wall or something. And no, you can¡¯t say that you¡¯ll be better as you fight more, we are barely getting by here.¡± As much as I agree, that¡¯s a statement fueled by the need to survive.


    ¡°When we died, did we do everything that we ever wanted?¡± I argue in my mind. Using topic disgusted me to the core but I have to say it even if I¡¯m doing so as a bullet against myself. ¡°There no point to doing things for the future or the past because we are creatures of the present and that is all we would ever be,¡± I recall what Mr. Freemor said. ¡°You know you¡¯re contradicting yourself, right?¡± My voice cuts in.


    I stop before recalling that memory. I stare at the stars and just let myself wonder as if one of those stars. In the end, my core belief is that experience will always beat training. In fact, I¡¯ve never learned anything that I studied. Art and fighting in general were all things that I experienced.


    It was also where I learned to see its value. I sigh. ¡°I don¡¯t have to explain myself. You already know why we act the way we do.¡± But the question is, what do I want to do in the present? I smile slightly internally, and in a child-like voice, I murmur my desire. ¡°¡­¡± That desire is pretty much impossible but you know what?


    Fuck this world and its dangers, fuck the monsters that could snap me like a twig, and most of all fuck conforming to a mold. I¡¯m still no better than the me before arriving here.  ¡°Greedy and egotistical,¡± I say to myself. It is true but¡­were it not for those evils, I would not have gotten this far. With that, I close my eyes, not caring for the future and yet looking forward to it.


    I open my eyes as there was a paining ache in my back. I yawn as look upon the stars. The moon still shines normally. I sigh in relief as I look forward only to see that the ladder is gone again. I look over the edge to see the same woman closing the door on the balcony.


    I wanted to wait for her to close before jumping but unfortunately, she saw me. Using my hand, I shoo her away from the balcony before jumping. Before she could speak, I jump off the balcony and enter a street. Since the moon isn¡¯t shining brightly, I just wander around the city.


    I headed to the marketplace first and bought a loaf of bread and a chunk of dried meat. I eat as I walk around and eventually find myself outside of a peculiar building. Unlike other buildings, this one looked pristine and shiny like nicely polished silver. Just above the first floor was some sort of symbol which I describe as a silver-colored upside-down ¡°T¡±.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    I left the vicinity immediately as I saw some people coming out. ¡°I¡¯d rather not be talked to about their God or something,¡± I say to myself. A part of me wanted to just surrender myself to a God and hope that all of my problems would go away, but I quickly dismiss that thought.


    Looking at their clothes, both men and women wore the same long flowy dark blue robe. Their symbol hung around their neck symbolizing their faith. ¡°It might be quick to assume that it¡¯s a place of worship but I could feel it. The holiness, the feeling of being out of place, so many emotions that I feel whenever I find myself in sacred grounds.¡±


    The rest of my walk was uninteresting. This is city doesn¡¯t have much in tourist attractions. I look at the moon and surprisingly, I find myself yearning for the sun. It was my only way of being able to see and right now, I wanted to just leave. ¡°If I stay here for too long, I fear that I will eventually become a part of their society.¡±


    I don¡¯t have much in terms of learning about this world and unless somebody were to teach me how to speak their language, I won¡¯t make much progress being here either. If I ever want to learn, my answer would lie beyond these walls.


    Thoughts of adventure, learning, and survival consume my thinking as I find myself in a secluded corner of the city. I sit down at an alley where the moon didn¡¯t. It was nostalgic in the worst way possible but there was no point dwelling in that now. I close my eyes and let my worries weigh me down like a blanket until I can no longer be awake.


    I find myself at the river; drinking and washing. In my bag were two loaves of bread. Honestly, I find it disgusting that I¡¯m putting food in the same container as the bloody pouches once filled with the remains of monsters.


    But I cleaned my bag and everything else in there so it should be fine. ¡°Right?¡± I put my clothes back on, wrap the bandages and leather strips into my arms, and wear my gauntlets and shin guards. I then grip my blade, making sure that it¡¯s really there.


    My switchblade was in my pocket. A broken spear, brown gem, pouch of coins, 2 empty pouches, and 2 loaves of bread were the only things left in my bag. The rest I cleaned out. I sigh one last time before officially going on an adventure.


    I follow the river up so I know where to go back when I need to resupply. I encountered a few goblins here and there but since it wasn¡¯t nighttime, it was easy enough to kill them. Usually, I take their weapons afterward and place them in the base of a tree as a marking just in case, the river just suddenly disappears.


    Hours have gone by and I notice that many of the trees aren¡¯t that tall. Most of them only need me to jump to grab a branch. The tall ones only needed me to jump from a smaller tree and it was easy enough.


    Every tree in this forest also tends to curve at the top so a tall enough tree has enough curvature that allows me to lay down. Using one of the goblin¡¯s hatchets, I wedge it in a tree, acting as some sort of stepping stone. I jump forward, almost falling and eventually reaching the top.


    I jump to a taller tree and climb up. Eventually reaching the top, lay down at downward curve, hoping that I don¡¯t fall. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m seeing a flaw in this plan. I might move during my sleep and fall down.¡± I say to myself. As the sun goes down, I find myself bored. The moon rises and I watch it move as I nibble in a tiny chunk of bread.


    Nothing about my situation was ideal, but for some reason, I find it more fulfilling. Whether it was because of my child-like wish to do this or something, I could not tell. Only time will tell of the reality of what I¡¯m doing but until then, I¡¯ll keep enjoying this.


    I closed my eyes and waited for morning, eventually, I fell asleep. But a few hours later, I snap back awake barely holding on to the tree. Heavily disoriented and feeling like my heart was grasped tightly, I could barely think. Looking below me, I could see a few goblins roaming about. I keep my mouth tightly shut and climb back up.


    I kept my hand tightly on my blade, ready to strike, but in the end, they didn¡¯t spot me. I eventually calm my beating heart and continue to wait for the sun, nibbling more bread in the meantime. I open my eyes as the cold morning breeze brushes against me. This awakening would definitely be better if I woke from an actual bed.


    I made my way down, somewhat shivering. I let the cold river water wash my face, it was uncomfortable but energizing. I check if all of my items are still there and thankfully, it is. With nothing more to check about, I continue to walk up the river. After a day¡¯s worth of travel. I find myself in a ruined town.


    Destroyed stone buildings overran by nature surrounded this small town. Before looking around, I look beyond the ruins. Two horn-like shapes protruded from the two hills and in between them were what looked like a huge ravine.