《Heavens Arquebus》


 Chapter 1: In the quiet winter

    As slowly the sun started to come up on the beautiful January morning, a loud bang could be heard in the far distance. The otherwise peaceful winter farmland was shaken, the birds fled from the barren trees and in the field a mouse quickly went back into his hole. In the distance there was a single light coming from outside a small smithy in the middle of a big field. The light emanated from a storm lantern that stood outside on a wooden table. In the light of the lamp a boy could be seen fiddling around with a long musket that was roughly the size of the boy himself.


    About 30 seconds after the last shot, another bang followed, this time it was accompanied by the sound of lead hitting steel. The young boy ran up to the target he had just hit. With the musket slung over his shoulder, he peered at the target, there was a nice solid dent in the steel target. While Theo had hit the second shot, which had produced the violent sound upon hitting, the first bullet did not hit. After admiring his hit for a while, he slowly looked to the left of the target, where a big fist sized hole could be found in the wood/earthen barrier. Although the power of the bullet was evident by the fact that it had buried itself deep in the wood and mud. It wouldn¡¯t mean anything if it didn¡¯t hit its target.


    After shooting twice I walked back to the table, where 4 more bullets remained on the table. I reloaded the musket one more time. I rested my weapon on the wooden table, as I looked through the telescopic sight and aimed at the target while slowing down my breathing. Then a millisecond before I was about to fire and nail the target¡­ ¡°Will you stop with that loud damned noise so early in the morning!!¡± I fumbled with the gun, almost dropping it. As I turned around I looked right in the eyes of my very very angry grandpa Kerkin, in his thick woolen pajamas. As he stood there in the door frame ready to kill me just with the look in his eyes, I could hear one of the remaining bullets fall from the table. As he put his hand to his wrinkled face riddles with burn marks, he disappointedly said ¡°Damn youngsters these days¡­ Nevermind, did you at least hit the target once?¡±. As I pointed my eyes down to the musket in my hands I answered ¡°Yes, though it seems to hit a bit to the left of where I aim, so I''d like to try these last 4 bullets to see if the gun is accurate enough¡±. But my grandpa Kerkin shook his almost completely bald head. ¡°No son, we don¡¯t have the time for that, if it hits at least once every 2 bullets, then it''s good enough for the frontlines. The king''s army is asking for quantity, not quality¡­ Those damned fools. Well, not like it matters to me¡­ Get ready to bring these guns to the collection point at the military academy¡± As always grandpa was trying to hide his true feelings. He knew very well that lives were being lost at the front, and that at any moment his son and daughter in law could be the ones that ended up dead. Secretly this fact scared him to death, but he always tried to put on a strong face and not show his perceived weakness.


    As I loaded up the cart with the last couple of muskets that were bound for the military academy, I stared at the one I''d just test fired half an hour earlier. I wasn¡¯t happy with it, it just didn¡¯t shoot straight, it had no business going to the front line. However it was like grandpa said, the foolish king Herald had ordered masses of weapons from all across the country to be made for the war against the demons. To keep up with the demands of the old king, sacrifices had to be made in the form of quality. In fact, there muskets that were being made for this war were quite old technology in some regards, a lot of newer weapons were being made but because of perceived complexities in their design they weren''t pushed into service. It pained me, because these weapons would end up in the hands of soldiers not unlike my own parents. Soldiers without magic would get issued muskets instead of swords, spears and alike. This was because magic users could not only wield powerful spells, but also enhance any object they touched with mana, however as soon as they¡¯d let go of the spell that enhanced the object would quickly fade from the object. This meant that soldiers with magic were best off using close-in weapons or casting spells and amplifying the spells with magic stones. These were usually embedded in wands and staffs for ease of use. This left muskets and other firearms to be used by people who couldn¡¯t use magic to level the playing field. After all, a hit from a gun was way more powerful than a hit from a normal sword that was not enhanced with mana. But in reality however these magicless soldiers were cannon fodder and only the most skilled soldiers would survive longer than a month. To then give them weapons that wouldn¡¯t even hit their target felt to me like I was an accomplice of the very demons who killed them. Then again, a weapon is better than no weapon.


    As I slowly opened the big barn doors I was blinded by the now low hanging sun that was slowly rising toward the sky. Now that shooting had stopped for a while the birds had flown back to the barren trees and were sending their song across the quiet winter landscape. Before I set out on my 2 hour long journey with the sluggish cart, I grabbed my personal weapon. Of course the chance that a situation where the weapon was needed would arise was small. However if it did, then i¡¯d like to make sure i could do something about it. Inaccurate or not, 25 muskets and their spare parts would make for a good profit on the black market for any bandit. So with that in mind I grabbed my gun from the rack on the wall.


    The rack had space for 5 guns in total, however these days it was quite empty. My mother and father had taken their own guns to the front when they were called up, grandpa Kerkin liked to modify his own gun a lot so his was gone as well. So that only left my own gun, a long rifle with a revolving magazine. After taking my weapon from its wooden supports it left the rack empty. Sometimes I did wondered why there even was a 5th spot on the rack, but whenever I asked Grandpa about it, he¡¯d smile and say something along the lines of ¡°Well, if your curious about it, then go find someone who can fill that spot with a weapon.¡± After that he¡¯d return to his work with a stupid smile


    The snow was thick and it creaked a lot under my boots as I struggled to keep the cart going through said snow. If I wouldn¡¯t be dragging a cart behind me I would¡¯ve actually enjoyed this nice long walk along this dreamy winter landscape. However the big block of dead weight on wheels constantly brought me out of my dreams back into reality. If only my family was a little richer to afford a horse and carriage like all the big blacksmith companies that get to live inside the city walls. Even the student blacksmiths at the academy could make use of the academy''s carriages for transport. Sadly my family didn¡¯t make enough money to get a horse and a carriage. ¡°The Strikte family is a long line of blacksmiths that prefers quality and tradition over money!¡± has always been grandpa¡¯s motto. In reality though my family was quite poor and couldn¡¯t acquire the right materials to make quality products. This is why, unlike the big blacksmiths in town my parents were called up to serve in the army. Our blacksmith wasn¡¯t big enough to be considered critical, or even necessary for the war effort.


    While I was thinking about all of this I looked down at the thick layer of ice covering the lake I walked past. In the summer this lake served as my grandpa¡¯s favourite fishing spot, causing us to frequently eat fresh fish, something even most nobles couldn¡¯t claim. This now ice covered lake also meant the beginning of the Underwood forest. a nice calming forest where the old pine trees towered over you as you walked through. And as sturdy and old as the trees were, they made an excellent source of wood. This was demonstrated by the local lumberjack Gary, who was always up early to cheerfully knock the old and trusty trees. Normally I would greet Gary, however today he didn¡¯t look cheerful and greetable as he stood there arguing with a guard¡­ It didn¡¯t seem to be just any guard, it seemed to be a guard from the military academy. Apart from guarding the school grounds, they also guarded special events like training exercises and other events outside of school grounds. Though I didn''t specifically stop to hear what they were arguing about, from what I could make out Gary wasn¡¯t happy about something and was letting that fact be known. All the while the guard stood there with a apologetic smile as if saying ¡°I¡¯m very sorry, but please don¡¯t shoot the messenger¡±


    As I walked into the forest a guard came walking towards where Gary and the first guard were arguing. Clad in pure white uniform with yellow decorations the guard strided on with an air of confidence. When we were about 5 meters his eyes fell on me, and he called out. ¡°Hey boy, yes you!¡± Really not wanting to talk to the guard that had a stern look on his face, I quickly looked around for an escape, but alas. When the guard closed in he spoke with a serious voice ¡°You better get out of the forest quickly, we''re closing it off.¡± I was slightly confused by this information, so I asked ¡°Ah, why..? And for how long?¡± If I really had to talk to him, then I''d rather finish up the conversation quickly and get on with my trip. The guard replied ¡°A combat examination will take place in the forest, it will be dangerous to be close to this place, especially for someone like you without any mana¡­¡± he said condescendingly while his eyes glowed from what I presumed was a mana detection spell. At the sound of his words my eyes turned slightly cold. I didn''t mind the fact that I had no magical powers. But the fact that people who did have those powers used that fact to look down on me was something I minded. Not that I had the confidence or power to do something about it, but that exact fact that I couldn''t change it is what annoyed me so much. I replied to the guard with a simple ¡°Ok¡± and lifted the cart off the ground before moving on slightly annoyed.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    About halfway through my journey I put down the cart and quickly ate something. As I sat on the cart and rested my cold feet, I could hear the drum of feet in the distance. After a while of wondering what was approaching I could slowly see a group of academy students. Likely the ones that were about to have a combat examination in the forest. Approaching in their Navy blue uniforms. From the looks of it the large guy wearing the same white uniform as the guards was their teacher. Now looking at the students I could see that a lot of them were having a hard time marching in the cold. Not that I had any sympathy for them, most of them looked like rich snobs who¡¯d spit on me for looking poor if they got the chance. As they walked by 4 students in front stood out to me though. Compared to the others they looked way less tired while marching along with some serious firepower in their hands.


    One of them was a short student with a bit darker skin than the rest, this was rare in the Kingdom of Auria, let alone here in the north of the country far away from most major cities. That combined with her out of place looking weaponry in the form of a large club embedded with black mana stones and her large wooden shield probably meant that she was an exchange student from a different country. Next to her was another female student who was happily chatting with her. This second student had long blond hair and green eyes. On her back was a big quiver with abnormally long arrows sticking out, in her hands was a large long bow that from the looks of it had a very high draw weight, meaning it required a lot of strength to even attempt to use. Behind them were 2 male students. The first one was a large guy that looked like a giant, especially compared to my short stature. With big friendly eyes and orange hair he looked like he wouldn¡¯t even hurt a fly. However the great sword at his hip told a different story, a story you wouldn¡¯t be able to tell if you crossed its owner the wrong way. And last but not least there was a gloomy looking guy with long black hair. As his dark eyes met my blue eyes I sensed something was off. Where the rest of the students were looking forward to the forest, and paid me no mind, this guy looked me right in the eyes as if sizing me up. Ofcourse not wanting to look intimidated I stared back. Then I realised it, there was something in those eyes that wasn¡¯t completely human. Sadly I couldn''t put my finger on the cause of that feeling before the student quickly looked away at a tree in the distance. As I followed his line of sight into the distance I saw a black dot take off from the tree, which I presumed was a bird. However there was no way that a normal human would¡¯ve heard that bird take off from its branch from this range.


    By the time I was done looking into the distance in amazement and pondering this guy''s humanity the group had already walked by. And since my snack was also long gone, I decided to put my thoughts on hold and continue down the icy road with my horrible cart, to the military academy that slowly came into sight through the morning mist.


    When I arrived near the gates of the academy grounds I waited in a long line of other blacksmiths and their assistants who were also delivering their weapons that day.So I decided to follow the pack and stand in line. In front of me was a large carriage carrying a lot of weapons. Because of that fact there were guards in armour standing in front and behind the carriage. As I dropped my cart down onto the cobblestone road that led into the academy grounds, the 2 guards at the back looked back at me. One rather quickly turned around again when he had determined I wasn''t a threat. The guard on the left of the carriage looked at my cart curiously for a second, and then his face lit up, seemingly having recognized something. ¡°Hey you are Kerkin¡¯s grandson aren¡¯t ya kid?¡± I looked up from the cobble road surprised, I had not expected anyone to recognize me here. So I answered with an uncomfortable ¡°How do you know that?¡± The guard laughed and answered. ¡°You sure are straight to the point, just like your grandfather. I recognized your cart from last year''s blacksmiths guild meeting. You see my master and your grandfather go way back. Is the old man doing alright?¡± Now it made more sense, my grandpa somehow always had connections in high places, even though we were a rather poor and backwater blacksmiths family. He always received praise from his colleagues, Sometimes it seemed like some even revered the kind old man''s name. After thinking that over, I told the guard. ¡°Ah I see, he¡¯s doing mostly alright. However, lately his back is hurting a bit, which is why I''m in charge of delivery this time.¡± A shout came from in front of the carriage, and before walking up to the gate the guard quickly answered ¡°I hope your grandpa gets better, best wishes kid. Sadly I have to go deliver the goods now.¡± And so my brief conversation with the carriage guard ended as they moved to the interior of the Academy grounds.


    After waiting for a while I was called up by one of the guards so I picked up the cart and moved up to the wooden box that had been erected for the verification of the many blacksmiths and their paperwork. As I walked up to the box a guard happily greeted me. ¡°Hello kid, you seem a bit young to be an independent blacksmith, where is your boss?¡± I told him ¡°Oh I''m from the Strikte family, my grandpa is at home with a sore back so I thought I''d deliver our weapons this year.¡± And the guard now understanding the situation replied. ¡°Oh that is very understandable, well I suppose as long as you have the paperwork it won¡¯t be a problem.¡± While the guard was going over the papers I gave him I thought to myself that this was the friendliest guard I''d run into all day. Then again I also couldn¡¯t imagine that many of the rich snobs that called themselves blacksmith would take it well if a guard was rude to them while also making them wait in the cold. After putting a couple of stamps on my papers, the jolly guard returned my papers with a smile. ¡°You may proceed kid¡±


    I picked up my cart and moved through the massive iron fenced gate that shielded the academy from unwanted visitors. As I stepped foot inside the massive grounds of the military academy I saw plenty of white and navy blue uniforms moving around like colonies of ants between the massive buildings. A guard in a white uniform pointed me towards the storage building where all the weapons were collected. Before I was allowed in, an employee of the storage building checked my papers again. While that happened I observed the big and slightly cumbled logo above the big doors of the storage building. The logo showed an old arquebus style firearm descending from the heavens onto earth. Sadly the letters under the logo were too damaged to read, though I did recognize the logo from somewhere. In fact I was pretty sure I''d seen it before on one of grandpa¡¯s old books. I should have asked him about the logo when I got back home. However before I could finally go home, I had to now put all the weapons in a crate as per the employee¡¯s instructions. After that however the hardest part of my job would be done.


    As I was putting the guns and their spare parts into an assortment of boxes, I overheard a conversation between 2 of the storage building''s employees. ¡°Have you heard? Apparently the top brass¡¯s personal men are searching for a demon spy.¡± said employee number 1. His colleague replied nonchalantly ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry Jim, that happens all the time, I mean this is a military installation after all, you¡¯ll get used to it if you work here as long as I do.¡± The first employee, apparently called Jim, sighed ¡°Well fair enough I guess, tho isn¡¯t it at least a little exciting boss? I mean it could be literally anyone. It could be you, it could be me!¡± Employee number 2 who was apparently the more senior one of the 2 shook his head ¡°Jim shut up and get back to work before I take your talk seriously and report you to top brass for being the suspected spy.¡± As I turned around, having finished unloading my muskets I saw Jim quickly walk off and help one of the blacksmiths unload their cargo.


    Now that the hard part of this small journey was over, I picked up my now empty cart and started to head home back to Grandpa Kerkin. If anything the now empty card was a blessing compared to the block of deadweight i was carrying behind me before. It no longer got stuck in the mud nor did it require as much strength to move on the unpaved road back. With the sun now right above my head signalling the start of afternoon. I couldn¡¯t wait to get home and eat lunch. However as the forest once again appeared in the distance it very quickly became apparent that getting home was going to take a while¡­

 Chapter 2: The long road home

    I was walking down the narrow farm road toward the forest when I spotted something that made me drop my cart. On the side of the road a person laid very still. As I approached the figure clad in the white guard uniform, it remained motionless face down in the mud. When I looked closer I saw that there was a trail of blood coming from the man that led back into the forest. As I rolled the man over onto his back, I quickly realized that he was dead. The claw marks on his face and upper body barely made him recognizable as the man who had been arguing with Gary only a couple of hours earlier. My mind raced as I tried to figure out what had happened here. This couldn¡¯t have been a wolf, it would¡¯ve had to be much bigger. Maybe a bear? No the man would¡¯ve never made it this far out of the forest if it had been one. It felt as if there was no animal instinct behind this man''s death. Instead it felt as if there was a cold calculation that no matter how far the man ran, he would not reach anyone who could help him. Whatever had killed this guard was strong and smart. Strong and smart enough to beat a military academy guard, who in the kingdom of Auria were known for their strength and speed in battle. Some are strong enough to take out 10 men on their own. While all of these thoughts raced through my head I ran back to get my rifle from the cart. Because whatever had killed this man, probably wouldn¡¯t shy away from killing me either.


    I decided that while checking the amount of bullets I had on me, I should sit down. Adrenaline was racing through my system and was clouding my judgement. If I ran back now and alerted the guards at the academy, whatever was in this forest would have the military academy¡¯s full might to deal with. However something bugged me, this guard was here dead alone. None of the other students or guards were near and that made me suspicious. There was supposed to be a whole class of students here doing a combat examination. For a guard to die, must mean that something went very wrong. Then it suddenly struck me, the guy who some hours earlier had stared me down with his inhuman eyes¡­ A shiver ran down my spine as I realized that, if I went into that forest, that gloomy guy with his amazing hearing was highly likely to find me and if he did, he would kill me. The temptation to run away back to the military academy was very high, and a second before deciding that I would go through with that plan I stopped. A loud growl came from the forest, it sounded otherworldly. This growl was quickly followed up by a high pitched scream and the breaking of wood. Through the thick forest I could see snow fly up and one of the old pine trees fall. I watched in awe, because I knew that to cut one of those trees, old man Gary would take at least 2 or 3 days. But this man, no this demon had just cut one down in an instant.


    However, I knew that there could only be one reason for this demon to launch another violent attack¡­ There were still people alive in that forest, and they were fighting for their lives. As i realized this unnerving fact i started walking toward the forest, leaving my cart behind. Although I felt that the rich students from the academy were annoying and respectless. Leaving them to fight and die at the hands of that demon was something I could never do. Even if my chances of killing the demon with my rifle were practically zero. I still felt a weird sensation that told me I had to try until the last bullet left the barrel of my rifle and the last drop of blood left my body. While slowly picking up the pace that I walked at, I realized what I had to do. So I grabbed a long purple blade from my bag. It was a bayonet made out of Arcana steel that could stop a demon''s healing factor for as long as it was embedded in the demon''s flesh.


    Though I was no religious man, as many do in times of war and violence i turned my eyes skyward and began an old family prayer. As i walked steadfast forth into the forest, with adrenaline rushing through my veins, i whispered under my breath:


    ¡°May the Gods of War bless my opponents as they raise their blades, for it will be the last time they do so. May the Gods of Peace comfort my opponents as they cry tears of blood while they lay dying in mud. May the Gods of The Harvest bless my opponent''s family, for their children who raised their weapons against me will never return home.¡±


    As the prayer ended I cocked back the hammer of my rifle, this caused the revolving magazine to rotate one of the 4 bullets in line with the barrel. The whole mechanism was set into place with a mechanical ¡°clunk¡±. The rifle was now ready to be used in its intended role: To kill, mane, or otherwise hurt the demon in that forest.


    Though the fear that gripped me told me to stop and turn back, the adrenaline in my veins told me to run and kill. So I ran into the forest that echoed with the wailing scream of someone who¡¯d just witnessed death. I ran and I ran, leaving the cart and the dead guard far behind me. As I ran the forest returned to its unnatural dead silence, no bird chirped, no animal dared to show itself in the fight between demon and man. In the dead silence the only thing I could hear was my own footsteps and my own heavy breathing. While I ran toward the last sound I heard, I saw several dead bodies to my left and right. Some had their guts laying in the red soaked snow, and some had their heads separated from their shoulders. If anything the demon had not left any chance that these people would live, giving most of them a quick death. The sound of my own footsteps and breathing soon made place for the sound of steel hitting wood. The loud bangs became louder and louder as I entered a clearing. Finally I stopped running as I looked in awe of what I saw before me. 2 entities were exchanging blows at a rate I couldn''t follow with my eyes. One was clad in a gold yellow energy and every time the giant club came down sparks flew. On the other side there was a figure clad in a black fog moving as if dancing. At first it looked like the black figure was on the defence, but after looking closer I realized that it was just toying with the figure in gold yellow. Then with a giant crash the demon in black attacked pushing the yellow figure back with immense force


    The tanned girl in blue uniform who gave off the gold yellow energy stood before her bow wielding friend, protecting her from any other attacks the demon might launch. As she breathed heavily with a face contorted from pain, she let out a powerful shout ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve got you filthy traitor!¡± The demon, whose facial expression was unclear because of the fog, answered gleefully. ¡°My dear friend, rest easy. You do not have the strength to fight, let alone kill me. So sit back and relax while I kill your friend and have her screams echo through the forest.¡± When those horrible words left his mouth I could see the eyes of the girl open wide as a large great sword flew into the demon''s hands. The sword had come from a large bloodied figure that was slumped against a tree. The only recognisable part of the mauled face was a pluck of orange hair¡­ When my eyes snapped back to the demon that was slowly approaching the girl who¡¯d cursed at him earlier but then he suddenly stopped. As I raised my rifle to shoot the back of the demon''s head, said head slowly began turning in my direction. In the distance I heard a girl shouting and I saw multiple arrows flying right by the demon''s head. However as I stared into the demon''s eyes the only thing I could focus on was his threatening voice. As if toying with me he spokeSupport creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    ¡°Did you really think I wouldn''t notice you approaching from all the way outside the forest? Since you are not my target, let''s make a deal. If you drop that long metal spear looking thing, then I''ll let you go. However, raise your magicless hands against me, and you will endure a thousand years of pain.¡±


    I was frightened and stunned by his words. Then however my adrenaline took over once more, turning the fear into hate. With the rifle now raised fully I took aim at the foul creature in front of me. When I zeroed in on my target I pulled the trigger, this set in motion a chain of events that would decide the rest of my life. The trigger being pulled caused the firing pin to slam into the back of  the percussion cap, igniting the powder within the chamber and propelling the bullet down the barrel. The bullet flew out of the barrel and was accompanied by an earth shattering noise that could be heard for kilometers. As the bullet flew closer and closer to the demon''s skull he instinctively evaded the shot. I had missed.


    However the muzzle flash and deafening sound that accompanied the bullet at this close range rattled the demon and he staggered. It was clear this demon had never encountered a gun before and his sensitive hearing was overwhelmed by the loud sound at close range. I questioned how such a powerful demon could be stunned by a sound that must¡¯ve been decently common on the battlefield. However I decided that was a question for later. Before I could make my next move the tan girl pressed the advantage, shooting forward towards the staggered demon. As her giant club hit the demon square in the chest the black mana stones embedded in her weapon glowed yellow. Then a second later a giant lightning bolt hit the demon at the exact spot where she¡¯d hit his chest. The demon flew back into one of the large trees behind him. As he hit the tree a volley of arrows impacted the demon through the kicked up snow.


    To kill this wicked creature the only thing we had to do was hit him directly in the heart. As soon as his heart stopped beating the demon would die. The snow that¡¯d been kicked up by all the action slowly cleared. Realizing something was up I quickly cocked back the hammer of my gun. The mechanism once again set into place with a mechanical ¡°clunk¡± now lining up the second bullet with the barrel. I aimed at where the demon had been knocked into the tree, but he was gone¡­ Then I heard a terrified scream from the blond girl that had shot the powerful arrows earlier. The look on her face was one of pure terror as she screamed ¡°Watch out, above you!¡± As I looked up and saw the demon descending on me from above, his face contorted in a hateful smile, his eyes locked on to me with intent to kill. I raised my rifle, but I quickly realized that it¡¯d be futile. The demon was descending faster than I could raise my gun to meet him. As I closed my eyes as if accepting my death there was a loud crash as the demons claws bit into wood. The tan girl with her large shield stood in front of me and blocked the demon''s killing blow. I staggered back for a bit out of shock, but as soon as I realized that this wasn¡¯t the afterlife yet I raised my gun once more and took aim.


    Now that the tanned girl had blocked the blow that was meant to kill me, it meant that her bow wielding friend was now left without defence. The demon realizing this jumped back off the shield and sped towards the bow wielding girl. The tanned girl sped after him but she was too slow. As I took aim it almost felt as if the demon was slower than before. I took aim a bit in front of the demon''s speeding figure. As my sights aligned I pulled the trigger once more. The second bullet flew down the barrel and past the tanned girl toward the demon. The bullet steadily approached the demon as he sped towards the archer. 15 meters, 10 meters and finally at 5 meters before the archer was to be impaled by the demon, the bullet finally hit. The demon''s skull shattered as he took a lead bullet straight to the skull. It was no killing blow, but as the blood flew from his cracked skull he fell over and slid through the snow, leaving a bloody red trail behind him.


    The demon''s healing factor instantly set in, however before he could recover from the headshot 3 arrows found their mark. The first arrow went through the demon''s right shoulder, the second one through his guts and the last one through his slowly recovering skull. The 3 arrows came from the blond Archer that had almost been impaled seconds before. She had a cold and aggressive look in her green glowing eyes. However, the green glow and anger started to fade from her face and the archer stumbled backward shortly before falling into the blanket of snow that lay on the ground. She¡¯d burned through an immense amount of mana in a short time and had passed out. The demon now growling and trying to get up was hit directly in the spine by the huge club that the tanned girl wielded. Just like her last solid hit the moment the giant club made contact, mana stones on the club started glowing and a lightning strike descended from the heavens striking the demon in the heart. As the lighting hit and the thunder echoed the demon screamed out in pain before going silent. Now that the foul demon had finally been killed the tanned girl leaned on her giant club before also collapsing into the snow.


    As the adrenaline wore off I tried to collect myself as I stumbled over to where the 2 academy students lay in the snow. My task here wasn¡¯t done yet, the demon was seemingly dead, but if the wounded students in front of me didn¡¯t have their wounds treated they¡¯d still die. And if their wounds didn¡¯t get them, the freezing cold would. I kneeled near the blond archer that had lost consciousness first. As I did I heard a faint growling, and before I could get to treating the wounded I got up again. The demon was staring directly at me with his big cat-like eyes. Though barely gripping to life, the demon was still alive and still very much angry.


    I acted quickly and put my boot on the demon''s head pushing it into the snow before planting the Arcana steel bayonet squarely in the demon''s heart. the growling slowly stopped as the charred body of the demon stopped resisting my boot. Now that the demon was finally dealt with I could finally turn my attention to the wounded. Behind me I heard groaning as I turned around the archer was trying to get up, her face covered in blood and contorted in pain.

 Chapter 3: Death and Despair

    As I helped the wounded archer up from the ground, I asked her ¡°Are you alright?¡± She looked at me angrily ¡°Do I fucking look alright?¡± Kind of taken aback by this I softly replied ¡°No, no you don¡¯t.¡± The archer glared at me intensely. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for you helping us earlier I would''ve kicked the shit out of you for that comment.¡± she said with her face still contorted from the pain. I decided it was no use arguing so I changed the topic. ¡°We should get you and your friend patched up and out of this forest.¡± I said while handing her my first aid kit. ¡°I luckily didn¡¯t get hit by anything, so I''ll help your friend in a more comfortable position. Oh, and I assume you know how to bandage yourself?¡± I remarked. ¡°Well normally I''d use healing spells, but I suppose this will do yes.¡± She said as she started the bandaging process. In the meantime I was busy dragging the tanned girl toward a tree. With all the armour she was wearing it wasn¡¯t easy. Looking closer at the armour it was well made and had served its owner well. But it was clear that the battle had worn it out. There were several places where the demon''s claws had dented the armour and some of the chainmail was ripped to pieces. Luckily however there was no place where the armour had failed to protect. As I propped the still unconscious knight against a tree I asked the archer out of curiosity  ¡°Archer lady, how long were you guys fighting before I arrived?¡± There was as brief silence as the archer kept bandaging her wounds. She didn¡¯t look up from her task when she replied  ¡°I¡¯m honestly not sure¡­¡± As the adrenaline started to wear out and the realisation set in of what had just taken place the archer started to cry. I was slightly taken aback by this and didn¡¯t know what to do. I wanted to comfort her in some way, but I couldn''t find the words myself. I¡¯d seen what had become of her classmates. Most of them were dead, at least I didn''t see any that were still alive. Besides she didn¡¯t seem like the type that wanted to be consoled while emotional, that would just make it worse. After thinking for a second I remembered that some students looked quite cold when I had stopped for my snack hours earlier.  So as I walked up to her I undid my thick coat and draped it over the shoulders of the archer who¡¯d finished up bandaging her wounds. She grabbed the large coat and completely covered herself in it before softly whispering ¡°Thank you¡­¡± I nodded and remarked. ¡°We should get you and your friend out of the snow. You stay here and watch over your friend, I''m going to go and get my cart that''s a bit up the road. Once I come back we can transport her with it.¡± The archer nodded in agreement but didn¡¯t speak.


    I felt bad about leaving her there, but there was no other choice. I had to go get the cart so we could transport her friend. So I walked down the road, rifle in hand. As I reached the end of the forest and moved out of the tree line I could see movement near my cart. There were 2 men clad in their white guard uniforms. From the looks of it, they were deciding on the same thing I was earlier. Move back to the Academy and get reinforcements, or head into the forest with just the 2 of them. When I reached the 2 guards they looked concerned and confused. The first guard, a tall and buff man with an eye patch and stylish beard, called out to me. ¡°Boy, are you alright?¡± Even though I didn''t get hit by the demon, I must''ve not looked to be in great shape after the exhausting fight. ¡°I¡¯m alright, however there are 2 wounded students in the forest, one of them is unconscious.¡± The tall guard nodded, then the second one spoke up as he twirled his mustache. ¡°What the hell happened here, do you know boy?¡± I answered as I walked past him to my cart. ¡°I¡¯m honestly not entirely sure myself. I came back from delivering muskets to the Academy, then I came across your dead colleague. As I moved into the forest I came across 2 students who were fighting a demon, so I helped them out.¡± The guards'' faces went into shock, ¡°A-a demon you say? Here, are you sure kid?¡± the second guard said as he finally let go of his mustache. The second guard put his hand on my shoulder ¡°Oi boy, is it dead?¡± I turned around and assured him, ¡°Yes sir, I''m quite sure it''s dead.¡± The first guard looked at the second, and concluded. ¡°Very well, Randal report to the commander and get our healers and guards to secure the area. Boy what''s your name?¡± The second guard named Randal nodded and started running back to the academy. ¡°I¡¯m Theo sir, Theo Strikte.¡± I answered him. As the guard took my cart from me he said. ¡°Very well Theo, you may call me Tradan. Now please guide me to where the students are.¡± Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    As we walked towards the tree line Tradan asked me something with a somber face. ¡°Say Theo, do you know what happened to the other students from my class?¡± I looked him in the eyes and saw the look of a concerned father figure. ¡°You see, as their class¡¯s teacher it''s my responsibility to return them all home safely.¡± I stayed silent for a bit, I''d always thought of the academy''s people to be rich nobles with only a care for the money in their pocket. However this man had a genuine concern for his students as any good teacher would. So I should answer him fairly. ¡°Sir Tradan, I''m afraid that none of the people I passed while on my way to the clearing were alive.¡± Tradan nodded as a tear slipped from his eye down to his cheek into his beard. As we reached the first body Tradan kneeled before the lifeless corpse. Now that I looked closer the shock of death was still visible on the young boy''s face. Then Tradan who with his large figure sat before the dead body began to shake and cry. As he closed the boy''s eyelids and hugged his student one last time. For this moment I looked away, up at the sky. The sun was starting to go down on the silent pine forest. The day was about to end as if nothing happened. Tradan stood up and gave a salute to the dead boy. As we moved on we passed several more bodies, as we did Tradan closed the eyes of many and shed a tear for them all. Tradan¡¯s actions got me thinking about something. What was a human life worth? After all, in the grand scheme of this rotten world this was just a drop in the ocean. about 26 families would mourn the loss of their loved ones. However, to most of the country this would be reported as a statistic in a grand war and move on. I and the 2 students fought for our survival, but even if the 3 of us had died, what difference would it make to the rest of the world? As this depressing train of thought spiraled on we entered the clearing.


    Tradan and I worked our way through the bushes and got into the clearing, his eyes that were red from crying lit up. He dropped the cart he¡¯d been carrying for me and sped off toward where his 2 students were sitting against the tree sharing the big coat I''d offered. From the looks of it, the tanned girl who passed out because of mana exhaustion had woken up while I was fetching the cart. Tradan embraced the 2 like a father who got to see his children again after months of being gone. I realized then that a human life was worth as much as you were willing to invest in it. With this sudden realization in mind I grabbed my cart and started walking over to the 3 Academy personnel.


    After a quick conversation with the 3 I said my goodbye¡¯s as they left for the academy and I left for home with the cart.

 Chapter 4: A goal worth fighting for

    It had been six days since the fight in the Underwood forest. Things had been calm for me, a little too calm. Life went on and so did work, thus I found myself walking through the Amerus city center. Grandpa Kerkin had tasked me with picking up a bunch of gunpowder from another weaponsmith. Luckily this time it wasn¡¯t a cargo big enough to require the cart, since dragging that thing all the way from home to Amerus and back would¡¯ve been a pain in the ass. While walking through the cheerful streets that made up the walled city of Amerus, I thought back to the aftermath of the fight with the demon.


    After I''d walked out the forest and went home I had told Grandpa Kerkin in detail about the events of that day. Though he didn¡¯t believe me at all until the first newspaper started rolling in. The Amerus academy hadn¡¯t released a very detailed statement. They said the investigation was underway into what people were beginning to describe as ¡°The great thunder of Underwood forest.¡±


    Though the events of that day were rather serious, and slightly depressing. Naming it ¡°The great thunder of Underwood forest¡± did bring a smile to my face. It gave the story some heroic flair with a mysterious allure, even though I knew exactly what the thunder part was referring to. The 2 massive lighting strikes the tanned girl casted onto the demon where quite unusual and mysterious from a distance. Especially if you didn¡¯t know what was going on.


    With the gun powder in my bag I looked through some of the stalls that were hosted along the main road of the city. The armour on display caught my eye, in the fight with the demon I realized just how fragile I was. If the demon had managed to hit the one strike it had aimed at me, I would''ve been dead. Especially because I didn''t have magic to reinforce or heal my body. Though I didn''t expect to get into any more demon fights, I was interested in the makings of armour plates more now than ever. Especially after seeing how well the armour the tan girl had on protected her from the demons claws.


    After browsing the stalls for cool trinkets and armour I decided to return home. At the large gate of the city a young boy was yelling out to get people to buy his newspaper. I took one and threw the kid a coin. I was curious to see if the academy had already released a statement on the incident.


    I passed through the large gate of Amerus city. As I started my leisurely walk back home I began to read. And sure enough there it was, the statement by the academy. As I read through there was a lot of the normal stuff you¡¯d expect. Condolences to the grieving families, a statement about how this should never happen again. But then I stumbled upon a section that stood out to me. ¡°We will be ever grateful to the boy, Theo Strikte who helped turn the tide. He and his rifle were a godsend.¡± - Tiana Redwall


    As I read the article, It explained my actions that day in great detail. I was bewildered by the praise that Tiana gave me in the article. Especially because we didn¡¯t even really know each other. The only interaction we¡¯d shared was in the fight.


    The more I closed in on home the more excited I got. I couldn¡¯t wait to tell grandpa Kerkin about this. He hadn¡¯t fully believed me before, but now my name was on the page. So it should hopefully convince him of what¡¯d happened. As i happily opened the door, I shouted


    ¡°I¡¯m home grandpa!¡±


    There was no answer, just a faint murmuring from the living room. So now slightly disappointed I busted into the living room newspaper in hand. I was about to start bragging about the praise I''d gotten, when I froze. As I¡¯d busted into the room I noticed that there were 2 pairs of eyes looking at me. 2 red eyes that belonged to grandpa Kerkin who¡¯d already started shaking his head. The 2 deep brown eyes however belonged to Tiana. Her face lit up and she tried her best to suppress a smile. Admittedly it must¡¯ve looked quite goofy for me to bust through the door, just to freeze up.


    Then grandpa Kerkin spoke up


    ¡°Kid can you stop embarrassing me in front of your new client.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    ¡°My new client? But what about the quota of muskets?¡±


    ¡°And here I thought I''d raised you better than this boy. Didn¡¯t I teach you to prioritize your woman''s needs?  Miss Tiana¡¯s new weapon should have your full attention. I¡¯ll finish up those muskets in a jiffy, don¡¯t you worry.¡±


    ¡°First of all, she¡¯s not my woman, I barely know her. Second of all, who''d you prioritize when you divorced grandma huh?¡±


    ¡°That makes sense. I mean, I cannot think of any women that would travel the 2 hour distance to our smithy, just to see you.¡±


    As I was about to clap back at Grandpa, our argument was interrupted. Tiana, who could no longer suppress her laughter, was now full on cry laughing.


    ¡°I- I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t hahaha.¡±


    She picked away a tear that was rolling down her cheek.


    ¡°Ah I¡¯m sorry, please do continue, this is very entertaining.¡±


    Both me and grandpa Kerkin looked at her stunned. Then grandpa leaned in and whispered behind his hand.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got good taste in women, kid keep it up.¡±


    I glared daggers at the old womanizer that was my grandpa. The conversation was about to derail once more. But Tiana, who¡¯d overheard everything spoke up


    ¡°Thank you for the compliment, old man, but allow me to introduce myself.¡±


    She stood up and we shook hands


    ¡°I am Tiana Redwall, cadet at the Amerus military academy.¡±


    ¡°Theo Strikte, blacksmith. It''s an honour to meet you like this.¡±


    ¡°No no, the honour is completely mine Theo. if not for you I¡¯m not sure I would¡¯ve been alive today. It''s a shame that I couldn¡¯t bring Rose with me today. I¡¯m sure she too wanted to thank you for your actions¡­ However, ever since the funeral she¡¯s been cooped up in her room and won¡¯t leave.¡±


    Her face darkened with worry for her friend. Though it was clear she herself was also still grieving the losses she¡¯d suffered.


    ¡°Thank you¡­ And my condolences¡­¡±


    The situation was very awkward, I''d have liked to give her some heartfelt words. However, I was unsure of what to say.


    ¡°If I may ask though, what brings you here today? I heard you¡¯d like a new weapon?¡±


    As I changed the topic her face lit up a bit again.


    ¡°Yes, although I''d like to change up my equipment in general. But that is for later, for now I¡¯d like you to make me a new weapon. Though I''ve grown quite attached to my club, it slows me down alot. I felt that in the fight with the demon this slowed me down too much. So much that I could not protect those around me.¡±


    As she said this I looked at the big club that leaned against the table. As I''d noted before it was embedded with mana stones. Though a lot of mage wands included many powerful mana stones, it was rare for melee weapons. Most soldiers that utilized melee weapons, wouldn¡¯t cast offensive spells with their weapon. They used spells to get them into a position where they¡¯d be able to kill with their melee weapon. This meant that whatever spells they casted had short incantations and weren¡¯t amplified by a magic stone. However Tiana here used the club to inflict max damage with every hit. Though chanting and then casting spells like that meant utmost concentration and dedication. Doing that while also fighting at the speeds that I saw Tiana fight, the concept alone is insane.


    Of course there were several ways to approach this problem. If she were to pick up a new faster weapon and change her fighting style it could fix the issue. Another way was for her to shed armour but keep a shield. This way she could be more mobile, but still protect others. The weapon would matter less in this solution¡­


    ¡°Hey smith boy, you think you can do it? Or is my club so interesting that you¡¯re going to keep staring at it?¡±


    After having my thoughts interrupted I looked up to see Tiana with a slight grin on her face.


    ¡°Oops sorry I got lost in thought. I can certainly do it. However I''m uncertain if it''s your weapon that needs to change or your other equipment¡­ I¡¯d like to observe your fighting style more. I would also appreciate more context to where you want to go with your fighting style. After all, I''d hate for your weapon to not be compatible with your fighting style.¡±


    I also said this, not just because it was true. But also because I felt like there was a chance she¡¯d end up pushing herself too much. After all, she¡¯d just lost a lot of her classmates. The fact she wanted to improve after that fight was admirable. But wanting to improve too much after such a traumatic event was an easy pitfall. Of course this wasn¡¯t an issue I should''ve been concerned about. After all, I was just a mere smith, not a coach. But I felt that maybe caring for this person a little more than was expected was the right move.


    ¡°Haha, don¡¯t worry about it smith boy. Normally people keep staring at me. So only having eyes for the weapon is a nice change of pace. As for the weapon or not, I will put faith in your skills. I have sparring sessions every Friday at 13:00. Be at the academy gates by then, and I¡¯ll let you in.