Light gradually entered my eyes. I began sitting up on my bed once I have shook off the feeling of drowsiness and looked out of the window. The sun was still covered by the far horizon. The sky was still pitch black with faint traces of blue, signaling that it would be morning soon. Crawling out of my bed, I head over to the kitchen and downed a cup of water. My eyes shifted around the small house, taking in every detail of the place which housed me for the past few years, even during the darkest period of my life. I still remembered the day I was told my parents died. Since that day, I lived alone in this small house. Sometimes Ieyasu, Sayo or the villager elders would pop by to visit me, though I feel that they were just checking up on me. Other than that, I spent my time here, alone and in peace. Eventually, I began to ponder about all the things I will miss about this place after I have left for the Capital.
This was the place that also contained all of the memories of the times I had once spent with my deceased parents, even if I was unable to remember most of it. Sure, life might become even harder now that I can never get to sleep on my bed ever again, but at least I am confident I can manage. I remembered how this bed was my only comfort after a long hard day of training. My mentor was surely a devil when it comes to training. All of his so called 'training' involves us doing things that even the able-bodied adults in our village can't do. Those days were hell, and many times I thought that I would have died. Even if I sometimes resent him for this, I was still thankful to him for what he has done for us.
I went to the nearby stream to wash off the sweat which had accumulated throughout the night. It was snowing, just a little, making the temperature of the environment cool. My village was situated in the northern part of the Empire, which constantly snows all year round.
I dipped myself into the water and felt the cold water stimulate my nerves. Even if I had lived in a cold environment throughout my life, I had never been able to get used to cold water. Even when the other villagers said that I would become gradually become accustomed to it, I did not.
There was still a few hours before our departure to the Capital. I have always wondered what life outside of the village was like. Since my parents were merchants, they would often travel to different cities and villages in the Empire to sell their goods, I would always ask them for stories of the outside world and how everything was like, which they were always happy to tell me. Every time they went off on their journeys,i would only see them again after a month. Since they don't wish to put me into unnecessary danger, I was always made to stay at home and look after the house. When I was will young, they would hire a babysitter. Over time, they would stop hiring one since I was able to live on my own. Living alone was boring, and the only thing that kept me going was the thought of my parents coming back. Thus, the news of them dead was a shock to me, knowing they may never come back.
While I was within my reverie, I heard the sounds of movement. It was approaching the stream where I was. My mind was brought out of my thoughts and instantly I readied myself for combat. No one in the village wakes up this early in the morning. The only other possibility would be a Danger Beast.
I waited and continue waiting. The sound of movement was still there, and getting louder with each passing second.
"Eh? Tatsumi? What are you doing here so early in the morning?"
Sayo emerged from the forest.
I relaxed, knowing that there wasn't any danger nearby.
"I'm just taking a bath. I will be getting out soon."
"I see."
I proceeded to walk out of the water, hoping to head to where my clothes are.
" Ermm…...is it okay for you to stay for a while?"
I stopped my actions. Throughout her question, her face was red. She must have been feeling unwell and wanted me to stay in case she gets into trouble.
"Okay."
I went back to the spot where I was before. The water was still cold, and I am slightly shivering. How did everyone else get used to this? This is just uncomfortable.
She went to where my clothes are and began to strip. Trying not to be rude, I looked away, which was hard to do. My eyes seem to be attracted to her, even though I tried my hardest to look the other way.
Eventually, I resolved myself to push my body underwater, hoping that this will prevent myself from any attempts to peak at her. I forgot how long I was underwater, as the next time I surfaced, Sayo was already in water. The water covered most of her body, which was a relief.
"Tatsumi, are you scared?" She said after a while.
Our backs are now facing each other.
"Not really, why?"
"We are going to the Capital. Even though I always wanted to go there, I can't help but feel scared. We will be in an unfamiliar place, and who knows what might happen. Should anything bad happens, who will help us. Just thinking about it makes me scared."
I remained in silence. It is normal for her to be scared. She always lived in the comfort of the village, where something bad seldom happens. Going to a unfamiliar place with strangers everywhere, being uncertain of the future are common things that people would fear. Even I had once feared about what would happen to me in the future, and that was when I had shut myself in my house, silently crying over why my parents left me in this world. I was worried about how others would look at me, about how they may abandon me, just like my parents.
"I think it's normal to be scared. Since we will be alone in a place we don't know. But at last we have each other. Friends who will always stick together through thick and thin. Should anything happen, Ieyasu and I will protect you."
I wasn't sure what her expression was at that time and neither can I see it. But if I have turned around, I would have saw her face, red as beet.
"Thank you."
…
I double-checked my belongings and my equipment, making sure that I have brought everything that I needed. I have changed into fresh new clothes.
Hearing a knock at my door, followed by the voices of my two friends calling me. I picked up my bags and equipment and head towards the door. Just before opening the door, I turned and looked around the house. It was now empty, with only the books on the shelves left untouched. Taking a final glance at the room, I turned around and opened the door. The smiles of both Ieyasu and Sayo was what welcomed me. I slowly closed the door, trying my best to take in as much as I can see into my mind. Once the door was fully closed, I proceeded to lock it. I turned the lock, hearing that click for the last time.
Maybe when I have enough money to spare, I might buy myself a house just like this one and spend the rest of my life living inside of it.
The three of us walked towards the gate of our village. Everyone in our village has gathered to say their well-wishes and farewells to the three of us. As we approached the gate, everyone surrounded us and began speaking to us one by one. Some were giving us trinkets, others gave us tools and clothing, some even gave us more food and money for our journey. Finally, the village elder approached us.
"You three have grown so much and done so much for this village. It pains me to have to send you off to the Capital, towards an uncertain future where anything can happen to the three of you. As a gift, take this statue."
He passed a miniature statue to me, who accepted it humbly.
"Keep it close to you, and when you are in trouble, j-"
"Sell it right?" I cut him off with a straight face.
"NO! DON'T DO THAT! When you are in trouble, keep it close to you and god will offer his help to you."
At one side, Ieyasu was laughing at my joke, while Sayo was chiding him for laughing.
"Tatsumi, among the three of you, you are the most reliable one. Even in grave danger, you are able to face it with a calm mind and make sound decisions. I entrust their well-being to you and hope you would take good care of them and not let them get themselves into trouble." the village elder said.
"You can count on me. I won't let these two get into any trouble when I'm around."
"Alright. Now make haste. The journey to the capital would be long and hard. So please be alert and safe at all times. May we meet each other again in the future and the best of luck to you! " the village elder said as everyone waved their hands to the three of us, bidding us farewell.
The three of us waved back at them and began to walk away. Towards an unknown future in the Capital. Who knows what would await us there.
...
To say that our journey was smooth sailing was pretty kind. It was anything but smooth. Just days after leaving our village, we were ambushed by bandits.
" Guys, we are outnumbered. If I wasn't mistaken, there was a bandit hideout nearby. Prepare yourself. I doubt we can escape without a fight. It's best we do not fight against them head-on. Just go on defensive, like what we do during our training. Sayo, shoot anyone you find in your range. Ieyasu, protect our rear. I will lead the way and try to find a way out of here."
I swung my sword to parry someone's sword. It was pretty exhausting, given that I have to look out for danger at every direction. From the corners of my eyes, I can see that Ieyasu himself isn't having an easy time either, holding off a bunch of bandits. Sayo was shooting her arrows from her crossbow, which are coated with the poison that their mentor gave.
The three of us went into the forest, thinking that this was the fastest route to get us to the Capital. However, it wasn't long before we noticed that we have been surrounded by bandits and now we were fighting our way of of the forest.
Bandits began to fall one by one. However, every time one is killed off, two more would take their place. It's like as if they have an entire army on their side. Before we realised it, we were overpowered. Ieyasu was exhausted and reaching his limit soon. Sayo is running out of arrows and is currently equipped with her hunting knife. Ahead, just a few more meters is the way out of the forest.
"Ieyasu, switch with me. I will defend the rear."
Ieyasu went ahead of me while I slowed down, waiting for Sayo to overtake me. We continued with this formation for the rest of the journey out of the forest.
Perhaps it was a stroke of bad luck, or pure coincidence, someone threw a knife at my legs. I was forced to stop to avoid getting injured. It was at this time that bandits jumped into my path, effectively blocking my escape route and cutting me off from the rest of my friends. I am now surrounded.
"RUN! WE'LL MEET UP AT THE CAPITAL!" Seeing that we are in an unfavorable position, I asked for them to run ahead and hopefully meet up again when it's safe. Using the flare gun, they aimed it towards the ground. A bright flash of light that lasted for several seconds emerged at the spot here it was fired at. When the light subsided, Ieyasu and Sayo are gone. Seeing that both Sayo and Ieyasu were able to safely escape from this place, I let out a sigh of relief.
"Boss, they've escaped."
"At least we have this one to entertain us before we kill him"
All the other bandit roared in agreement.
Analyzing his situation, I tried to formulate a way to escape. There are two best way to get away from this situation. One of it would be to use the pistol to get away. It could work but I may still have people on my tail. The second would be to kill them all off. This is favorable as I would effectively get rid of anyone on my tail. It would also help make this route safer for future travelers. Only problem would be how long before I run out of stamina. I will need to exercise extreme precaution.
"What's the matter boy? Giving up?" One of the bandits taunted.
Silence. I remained in silence, mentally preparing myself for what's to come
"Well if you're giving up. For killing my comrades, I SENTENCE YOU TO DEATH!" It seems that his guys has a flair for theatrics
He charged towards me. I waited his strike and countered his strike when it came. Since he was caught off-guard, I rushed forwards and stabbed my blade through his throat. More bandits began to charge towards me, each one angry that I had killed off their comrade. I dodged all of their slashes and countered their strikes, dealing the killing blow whenever an opportunity arises. This continued for the next few minutes until only a handful are left. By now my muscle are sore and my bones are aching. It hurt to move.
"Out of energy are we? Well that's just too bad. I was beginning to enjoy this fight. What a pity. Well whatever. DIE! " one of the bandit said as he swung his sword towards my head. Relying on willpower, I raised my sword to block. Since I can't muster up any strength, the blade crashed against each other, before his blade slide off of mine. He fell forward in surprise. Maybe he didn't anticipate that there wasn't any power in the block or something. This created an opening, which I intend to fully utilize. I turned my body, bringing my blade with the momentum, slicing the bandit in the chest. He fell to the ground and slowly bled to death. I readied myself for the next strike, wherever it may come from, I could feel myself about to collapse at any moment.
Looking at the remaining bandits with dead cold eyes, I started to charge towards them, using whatever strength I have left. The remaining bandits, who somewhat began to fear me, ran for their lives in every direction. I charged, hoping to hunt them all down. It didn't work, as the first step I took cause me to fall face first into the ground.
"I have to meet up with Ieyasu and Sayo." I said to myself as I tried to push myself off the ground in which I laid. However, as I was too tired, I fell unconscious, succumbing to the darkness, which claimed my vision.
…
Two merchants were passing through the forest when they noticed a young boy on the ground, unconscious. He laid amidst a pile of bodies, all scattered across the ground around him. They got out of their caravan and went towards him. They checked him for signs of life before carrying him onto their caravan.
"He's exhausted."
"I wonder if he was the one responsible for all these corpses?"
"In any case, we better get him a place to rest. It would be dangerous to sleep here. Bandits run rampant around this area."
"Yeah, let's just let him rest in our caravan. Surely he must also be heading towards the Capital."
"Okay."