I walked along the sidewalk illuminated by the orange sky of sunset and the lamp posts that were gradually being switched on.
Someone was looking at me, and I noticed it out of the corner of my eye. The gaze was hostile with hints of mischievousness. It was coming from a young boy, perhaps half Caelum's age.
I noticed such a gaze thrice now, and it was most certainly bothering me. There was no subtlety in such a gaze and it seemed to be intentional.
As if the boy was wanting to be found.
Warily, I made sure my wallet was safe inside my clothes. I kept a hand in my pocket, grasping it just to make sure I won't lose it without knowing how I did.
I then tried losing the boy by taking random turns and ducking behind other people. I picked up my pace and broke into a jog, dodging pedestrians, random stalls, and posts.
The boy gave chase, and I realised then that losing him would be difficult. I wasn't familiar with the streets.
Thus, I abruptly turned a corner and made my way down an alleyway that was void of people. There, I unsheathed my dagger as I waited.
The young boy came running after me, and I extended my foot. The boy tripped over my leg and fell face-first into the stone pavement. He landed with a harsh thud, but I knew that he would be alright. None of his limbs bent in any weird manner.
A few bruises would be all that he would have.
Shiiing—!
"Traitor!"
The boy yelled out as he drew a small dagger of his own. It was a dagger rustier and smaller in size than the one I used. It had a blade that was half a foot in length and has multiple chips along its cutting edge.
Clang—!
I hurriedly parried the boy's frenzied attack before kicking him away. The boy went tumbling backwards, spitting out a mouthful of saliva. If I had kicked a little harder, I felt like he would've vomited out his dinner.
"Who are you calling a traitor?" I gestured with my blade, "What bullshit are you spouting?"
"You killed brother Javin! You killed uncle Ysoff! You killed sister Nia! You killed everyone!" The boy spouted names I was not familiar with.
"Did I?" I waved my dagger again, and the boy flinched. "When did I do such a thing?"
"Yesterday! In the mountains. You've been hiding your magic this whole time!" The amount of rage being exuded by the child was palpable. His face looked villainous in the darkness of the night.
If I left this child be, I had a bad feeling that he would come for me in the future.
I squinted. Dealing with so much hate is something I was unfamiliar with. After all, I was never accused of murdering someone. The most hate I got was when I killed off characters that people loved... but those were the sources of my joy.
I just loved it when people complained.
"What makes you think that I did it?" I asked the boy, slowly making my way forward and approaching him with a threatening gaze.
I watched as the boy quivered, his rage seemed to be fighting with his fear.
It was likely that he feared me and what I could do. My status as a wizard in his eyes was terrifying to him.
How amusing.
"Y-you... You stay away! Don't come closer! Aunty May told me!" The boy grew ever more fearful with every step I made.
Aunty May? Hmm... that's interesting. That name rang some bells in my brain.
"What did she say, exactly?" I pushed on, ignoring the shaking child before me. I was leering down at him now, with my blade at his throat. He was backed against the wall with snot and tears running down his face.
"She... No!" The boy cried out despite the knife at his throat, "I refuse to tell you anything else!"
He then slammed his dagger against mine, effectively freeing himself from my grasp. He attempted to rush out, but I was faster.
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him backwards, choking him a little in the process.
"We're not done yet, child," I growled. "I for one, am no traitor. Whatever this Aunty May told you is wrong."
"No! Lies! Traitors always lie!" The boy cried out, his voice echoing through the night, but no one was coming to his aid.
But I knew that somebody was watching us right at this moment.
"I can prove it to you. We can hunt down the traitor together. You just need to stop crying like a damn baby and think straight." I shook the boy as I forced him to look me dead in the eyes.
"I can help you get revenge," I spoke slowly, so that the child might be able to comprehend the message in my words.
The word revenge triggered something within the boy. He calmed down, and the look in his eyes regained a bit of clarity. He no longer tried to wield his dagger against me, but I made sure to disarm him before letting him go.
"How can I know that you're telling the truth?" He asked as his anger subsided.
"I'll show you. We'll kill him tonight."
...
Killing another human... Oh, what a dilemma it was.
I've killed off characters in my stories and that's the closest I've ever been to murder. I had never gotten physical with anyone even in my life in the past. All my achievements had been gained through my weaving of words, nothing more, nothing less.
In fact, last night's incident with the ram was the first time I killed something other than insects and spiders.
I was a greenhorn when it came to granting death unto one's enemies.
Perhaps that was why I impulsively said those words.
I subconsciously knew, that in this world I created, murder would become part of everyday life. When war would ravage these lands, killing another intelligent being would never be the end of it.
If I killed one, I would have to kill their entire squadron, or else they bring death to me instead.
Although there was a pacifist path to immortality that I knew of, it wasn't something I could guarantee. Though to be fair, even my current path was uncertain. Pacifism straight to immortality was simply exponentially harder.
After all, I wasn't some genius at fighting, nor was I a genius in anything at all.
I was simply the author of this world. Its creator.
And perhaps, starting from today, a killer within it.