The stench of blood.
Everything before my eyes was pitch-black.
I thought I was blind. I twisted my neck and looked at the flame to the side.
That's when I realised I was lying on the ground face-down.
I slowly started to feel my limbs again as my vision got restored. I tried to curl my fingers. I could feel strength coursing through my stiff fingers once again.
My hands cracked as I curled my fingers up to form a fist like a robot that wasn't lubricated.
Great, my arms and legs are still attached to my body.
I touched my face. My facial features are still there. I don't feel any pain anywhere other than some pain in my spine due to the odd position I was in. It seems the stench of blood I could smell didn't belong to me.
I tried to push myself up from the ground to stand up. While my body felt somewhat weak, I could still stand up while using the wall as support.
'Where am I? I remember I was in a car accident and flew out while I was out with the leaders. I thought I was dead for sure, but it looks like I still have my senses and I'm still alive. That said, where on Earth am I?'
I was surrounded by walls with fire-torches sitting on them. Below my feet was a luxurious red-wool carpet which gave me a strange feeling. The air, in particular, gave me a strange feeling since it carried a strong stench of blood.
It looks like I'm in a corridor right now. But why would I be in a corridor when I had just gotten into a car accident? Further, these ornaments don't look like they belong to the modern-era. Surely there aren't people who still using fire-torches as lighting.
I touched my body.
I was still dressed in my formal-suit. There were a few tears in my white shirt, but otherwise, I had no injuries. I don't have any of my belongings with me. My bag, wallet and mobile phone probably flew out with me. I've lost any chance to call for help now too.
What, I dimension travelled?
No, no, no. No way. Come on, as if. As if I could just dimension travel out of the blue… But… But if I really have dimension travelled, does that mean I'll have two big-boobed moms come and fight for me?
But then I don't have anyone around me…
I checked out my left and right. As aforementioned, I'm in a corridor right now. I can either go forwards or backwards. But it's the same either way for someone with no sense of direction like me.
I'm not panicked. I've gone through lots of turbulence as a secretary. The most important thing in times like this is to not get scared. I must think of a way to get away safely. Otherwise, as a secretary, I'd be devoured by the strange people around me like sharks.
I heard footsteps. Though walking bare feet on a carpet makes subtle sounds, it sounded relatively loud to me due to the silent surroundings.
I felt a slight rush of adrenaline and ran towards the sound of the footsteps. I need to find someone who can tell me where I am. I really want to see someone right now. Anyone will do.
There was a turn ahead in the corridor. I continued listening to the erratic footsteps while running. If I'm correct, we should run into each other at the turn.
"Do you know where this is?!"
"Aah!!"
I rushed over to the turn and shouted. However, the other person got knocked flying away upon colliding with me.
I looked, shocked, at the little girl that fell down because she collided with me. However, before I could show my shock, I heard a fierce whistling wind.
I subconsciously ducked my head and felt a heavy metal object swing pass my head. There was flash of light as the sound of the heavy metal object crashing into the wall rank out in my ears. Before I could react, I saw the sword that just swung past my head get withdrawn.
A sword?! Is this a real sword?
That was the first time I had felt myself nip the boundary of life and death. It was a different feeling to when I got into the car accident. I didn't feel anything when I had the car accident. But this time, I could clearly see a sword thrusting towards my head. The strong gust of wind and the cold emitted from the metal told every cell in my body that I was in danger of dying.
I'll die!!
But it looks like the individual didn't intend to kill me. After the sword was withdrawn, the wielder didn't follow up by thrusting toward me. Instead, I saw it being raised up high and aimed at the young girl.
The thin young girl in front of me fell on the ground. She cried as she desperately backed off. However, the ice-cold wall behind her blocked off her retreat. Her eyes were filled with shock and terror. The sword was reflected in her red eyes.
"May God forgive my sin."
A cold voice came from the sword. The sword moved upwards silently and was aimed at the girl.
The girl had nowhere to escape to. The wall had blocked her off. She cried loudly and the tears that ran down her red eyes were like pearls of blood. There was no way she could stand up with the way her legs were quaking.
"Don't… No… Please… Please… Don't kill me, don't kill me!! It has nothing to do with me… My… my… my father never gave me any attention… I just live here… I have nothing to do with them! None!! None!!"
She was pleading. However, her voice was that of a child and powerless. It was hopelessly feeble compared to the heavy metal. There was no way it could stop the sword cutting down on her.
She'll die.
She really will die.
What can I do? I don't have anything on me. Can I push this person with metal armour away? I reckon I'll get cut in half. How do I save this child? What can I do?
"Don't… No!! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!! No!! No!! Save me!! Please, save me! No! No… I don't want to die! I really don't want to die!!"
The young girl's cries were accompanied by her tears and the sword coming down. The last thing she did was shift her gaze to me and cry loudly.
What can I do?
Do I… save her?
What else can I do?
But am I just going to watch this young girl get killed before my eyes? She's just a girl at the end of the day. What has she done to deserve getting hacked to death?!
I couldn't think of any idea, but my body had already moved.
I don't know where I am, but it looks like I have indeed dimension travelled. I don't know where I've come to, but nowhere on the globe would there be people who would slash at someone with a sword, right? Since I've dimension travelled, it looks like I'm already dead.
I don't know how I'm going to continue living, or maybe I should say, I don't feel any need to live. I have a surreal feeling like this was just a dream to me, a hallucination of mine.
I want to be a hero then since that's the case. Every guy has a dream to become a hero like this, right? My dream of being a hero back in the other world got dashed long ago. So please let me at least leave as a hero for this girl, in this world.
I leapt over and hugged the child tightly. I held the young girl tightly in my arms.
As I held her tightly in my arms a nice fragrance hit me. The fragrance was mixed with a prominent stench of blood. So the stench of blood came from her? But no matter, blood and kids don't go together.
The heavy sword and strong gust of wind came from overhead. My body tensed up due to fear.
They say that your life flashes before your eyes right before your death. However, my mind was completely blank right now. I couldn't think of anything. The only sight before my eyes was the girl's terrified expression.
I've never seen such a pretty girl. I reckon she will be a national-level beauty when she grows up. It's a pity, I didn't get to interact with many beauties in the past. Usually, it was me helping beauties meet my boss. Whatever happened after that was none of my business. This was the first time I held such a pretty girl in my arms. It doesn't matter if it's just for a few seconds.
"It's alright."
Those must be my last two words I leave behind.
The fierce wind of death brought toward me by the sword whistled loudly next to my ear.
I closed my eyes and waited for my final moment. How embarrassing. I was given a good opportunity and yet I'm wasting this second chance at life. But it's fine I guess. At least I did something I wanted to do, for once.
This girl will be able to remember me for this, right?
*Clang!*
The sound of the sword grinding against the wall rang out right next to my ear. It almost made me grind my teeth.
I hugged the child tightly.
I could still feel the threat of the sword at my neck even though my eyes were closed. I waited for it to cut me down. However, it didn't move in the end.
After a good while of silence, I cautiously opened my eyes and looked up overhead.
A head of silver hair swayed gently in the air. A pair of blue eyes stared at me. She wore a metal breast-plate and scars were visible under the lights provided by the flames. She didn't wear any other protective gear, and I didn't have the time to see any more protective gear because my eyes were captivated by her face. I said that I had never seen a girl prettier than the girl in my arms right now, but I now want to say that this girl was so beautiful she could make one forget to breathe. Underneath her cold sharp eyes was a straight nose. Her slightly pale lips looked ample, and she had a tender beauty mark. She looked at me, but her expression wasn't gentle.
Her sword stopped on my neck. She didn't swing through.
Well, it was close enough to cut into my skin. If I were to budge a little, it would cut into my neck.
We looked at each other without saying a word. We just silently looked at each other.
Her sword was still on my neck, and the child was still in my arms.
I don't know how long the silence lasted, but then her cold-ample lips then uttered a word: "Move."
"No."
Yup, that was the conversation we had at our first meeting