I still vividly remember that experience...
The sensation of falling seemed to wrench my soul out of my body. My entire body was covered in goosebumps. My vision started to slow down, allowing me to witness every detail of my surroundings. Time seemed to distort, moving inch by inch.
Although I felt the slowness of time, it was short-lived. The speed of descent suddenly increased dramatically. Parts of my body that were previously trembling violently now went limp. I could feel the wind rushing past me from behind, tousling my hair. The sound of my clothes flapping in the wind and the sounds reached my ears. And then, my body collided with the raging river current. All the reactions I experienced happened in an instant...
*Splash!*
I fell into the swift of the river current...
"KUHAH!" I tried to gasp for air, struggling to breathe in the river current. In fact, taking a single breath was a difficult challenge in this situation for me.
(Damn it! My back hurt when I hit the river current! was also severed by that bastard! The left arm was also severed by that bastard! Despite these conditions, I managed to pull him into the river!) I thought while moving with difficulty. (Now, survival is a dealbreaker, no compromises!)
Even though I had lost focus due to the experience just now, I tried to keep everything in the middle of the swift river current. Take care of all the items by hugging them tightly while curling up. Despite the relentless strength of the river current, I forced myself to protect my neck for avoid a head injury. As I expected earlier, due to the swiftness of the river current, several river stones hit my head area, including the neck of mine...
*Thud!* *Thud!* *Thud!*
Luckily, I could keep the neck safely. However, another problem arose, and it was a severed left arm of mine. This effect makes my body condition becomes weak. With the limp condition that I already felt, making my eyes blurry. Until finally, one of the river stones hit my chin...
*Thud!*
The heavy impact earlier made my consciousness shake. My vision became increasingly hazy. The combination of these two events made me lose consciousness. As a consequence of this incident, I blacked out.
...
I witnessed a scene. A scene reveals a little child. The little child was crying in the corner of a dark room. Although the room was dark, there was a solitary open window. The little child was crying because of somehow what he was thinking. He cried without sound. Even when he tried to scream, it was as if the sound was trapped and didn't come out.
Witnessing that scene, I felt pity for him. Though I didn't know who is he...
The way that he cries...
The way that he expresses his emotions...
The way that he suffered...
It's all so heart-wrenching.
The little child seemed to hold a burden. An unspeakable burden. A burden that is hard to describe. Perhaps, his burden was something that words couldn't adequately describe.
'Kkh... kkh!' He said with difficulty while crying. He cried while holding his throat.
Without realizing it, my tears fell watching that scene. Noticing this reaction,
Soon following, I heard several steps entering the room. The footsteps belonged to a woman. She's a woman with tanned skin and short black hair. She began to speak toward him,
'Get up! You weren't born as a weakling maggot!' while glaring at him. 'Stand up! You were born as a child who is capable of shattering the rock cliff. The rock cliff called life!' She said assertively but with a loud intonation.
Despite the woman saying in such a way, the little child still cried. Realizing that his demeanor hadn't changed, she slapped him hard on the cheek. Due to the hard slap that was made, it jolted him...
*Plak!*
I just silently watched the event. On the other hand, after she slapped him, she spoke with a mix of remorse and self-reflection,
'Maybe I wasn't a good parent to you! I, too, am a lowly being!' while holding the little child's cheeks with both hands tenderly. 'However, you're my only ray of hope. Stronger than a comet, tougher than a sea cliff, more... so much more than I am. So, wake up!' Her words carried a soft tone. Even though it seemed soft in tone, yet, her intonation held immense power.
I was suddenly taken aback by her words. Even so, for some reason, her words ignited a spark in my motivation. A motivation to endure. A motivation to survive. A motivation to live and embrace my life.
Unexpectedly, the woman turned towards me as if she had aware of my presence. I thought that she wasn't aware or noticed of my existence earlier. However, it seems I misjudged her.
As I tried to open my mouth, the woman uttered to me,
'Rise the fuck up!'
...
My eyes started to slowly open. From what I'd previously experienced, I realized that I had fainted before...
(How long have I been passed out??) I thought confusedly.
Before I could get up, there was a face of an abnormally large creature in front of my face. The distance between my face and the creature's face is only a few inches.
(What a Fucking shit is this! I barely just woke up and was already visited by death before my face!) I thought while looking into the creature's eyes.
***
Adolph, who had fled from the enemy's pursuit, has arrived in the kingdom of Angendal. She also met Mr. Schmidt and Emilia in the same place.
At the inside residence of Mr. Schmidt's acquaintance...
"Damn it! If I could help him... if I could fight that bastard!" Adolph complained while squeezing both hands together.
Mr. Schmidt just kept quiet and didn't say anything...
(I realized my irresponsibility. However, I have no other choice!) While looking down.
Emilia, overwhelmed by the weight of the situation, could only weep bitterly realizing that fact...
"Big brother Nagao... there's no way...!" Her voice quivered with despair as she struggled to hold back her tears.
Meanwhile, a man with a white face named Mr. Eddie Otis spoke out,
"Based on what you've just said and what I predicted, then there is one worst possibility," He said frankly.
Adolph's expression contorted in shock, mirroring the disbelief and alarm that gripped her. Mr. Schmidt's muscles convulsed until his veins were visible, and his face held the same intense emotion. Emilia's tears flowed uncontrollably. The three of them display different reactions, but they have the same meaning.
In the midst of that condition, Mr. Schmidt reacted strongly,
"That brat won't die that easily!" he strictly speaking.
"But you didn't know how the enemy Nagao is facing!" irritated Adolph as she stood up. "Ah, I forgot. I shouldn't have to argue with someone who is selfish and has different goals!" she said while looking intently at Mr. Schmidt.
"What did you mean?!" he angered and turned his stare sharply towards Adolph. "Did you think I don't have a dilemma when he gives me a horse, huh?!"
"Father... Big sister Adolph... please don't fight...!" Emilia said sadly. Her hands were trying to hold the two clothes from Adolph and Mr. Schmidt though she was trembling. Her tears flowed non-stop.
Noticing the demeanor Emilia was showing, both of them fell silent again. However, Adolph immediately removed Emilia's hands gently from her clothes as she sauntered out from the place. Realizing the actions that she had committed, Mr. Eddie uttered his words,
"Are you sure that even though the chances are almost impossible, Mrs. Adolph?"
"Should belief need to be believed when the choice is made out already?" She said assertively before she left.
Mr. Eddie whistled as he commented,
"Finding interesting companions is like finding the needle in a haystack," while looking at Mr. Schmidt.
"Eddie, I needed your help!" While staring at his acquaintances.
Getting a reaction from Mr. Schmidt, he just sighed and replied,
"Only this time because you're my old friend," While calling the butler by snapping his fingers.
After the butler came, Mr. Eddie immediately whispered something to him. The butler nodded and said,
"Soon, I immediately prepared for you, Sir!" He said in a submissive tone while withdrawing.
"If I were you, I wouldn't let that rose fly in the middle of a storm," he gestured with his head to Mr. Schmidt.
"Your casanova attitude never changes, dammit!" while doing the fist bump.
"I am what I do!" While replying to Mr. Schmidt's fist bump.
Adolph until Mr. Schmidt started preparing to leave, except Emilia. Mr. Eddie also came along with five guards to keep them company. After everything was prepared, they set out to find Nagao.
***
Nagao, who had just woken up from fainting, found himself face-to-face with a large creature. The creature possessed a round face filled with claws and thick brown fur enveloping its muscular body. His teeth were visible when the creature sniffed Nagao's face.
Caught in this harrowing situation, he couldn't help but remain silent. Even though he was silent, his right hand moved slowly while groping for what he could find. While watching the creature's movements, he maintained his unwavering gaze.
He started to feel something. Nagao felt that the object he was holding had a rough and uneven surface. Realizing that what he was holding was a rock, he tried to grab it while maintaining his body position. However, before he could react, the creature suddenly let out a deafening roar in his face...
*Roar!*
The creature's roar shook his senses. Suddenly, Nagao experienced shock and speechlessness. The intensity in his eyes until the heart rate has increased dramatically. The muscles tensed, sweat poured profusely, and an involuntary reaction of urination in his pants became an inevitable reaction to the overwhelming terror.
Instantaneously, the creature mercilessly tore Nagao's clothes. Its movements involved clawing, biting, and forceful slamming ensued. The relentless attacks rendered Nagao unable to react as he should. His chest until his back became the target of the creature's actions. As a result, the torn wound until several bite marks scattered all over his body...
"ARGGHH!" he shouted in a tone full of agony. All that pain can be felt clearly by him. "HURT! STOP IT, YOU BASTARD!"
Unexpectedly, the creature hurled Nagao into one of the trees with its ferocious mouth...
*Swoosh!* *Bam!*
"Khh!" Blood spurted came out from his mouth due to hitting a large tree trunk.
At that moment, a notification board appeared before Nagao...
[Side mission: kill The Goliath-Bulldog Bear.] (0/1)
"Your joke this time... is the pinnacle of extreme ludicrousness stage... you goddamnit!" Nagao seethed in anger, his gaze fixed upon the bear.