Night fell, and the street was silent. I was walking alone, trying to gather my thoughts. What would happen to Marco?
My footsteps seemed a lot more prevalent, as it was quiet. I could feel my heartbeat and my heavy breathing.
The only thing that lit the streets were the lanterns that were hung upon the towering rods of steel. The moonlight was so beautiful, like a lullaby. It calmed me.
My worries were finally taken off Marco. I guess it's safe for me to walk back home now.
"Excuse me? This... is Anore, right?"
I jumped, upon hearing the voice. Something had passed my detection? I turned around, slowly.
The person who was speaking was a bland boy, with black hair and black eyes. He looked... very average. There was nothing at all special about him. (Refer to Chapter 7)
He wore shoulder armor on his left arm and a black collared shirt. There was a longsword held on his back, towering over his head.
With him, a girl stood to his side. Silver-haired, with dark blue eyes, and a straight face. She looked right through me as if there was something behind me. She was an elf, as indicated by her sharp ears.
On her back, a large shield was worn. It appeared to be a kite shield, protecting her entire back from rear attacks.
"You guys don't know where you are...?" I asked, confused.
"We're supposed to be in Sar, but our boat went a little bit... of course." the man said, looking around. He looked ashamed.
"Oh. I see. You are in Anore."
"I knew it, Aerith! I told you we went of course!" the boy's calm demeanor switched to a much more aggressive one. Despite this, the girl's behavior did not change at all, calm and expressionless.
"I don't know why you're yelling at me, Rar. It's the captain of the boat's fault, not mine."
"Wait. Was the boat even actually set on its course to Sar? What did the paper say?"
"It said Anore."
"Th-then why didn't you tell me, you idiot!?"
"That's because you insisted on us going on to it."
"Damn... it!-"
I interrupted in the middle of his sentence. I saw his eyes dart to me, his mouth still slightly open.
"Uhm... excuse me. If you don't mind me asking, where are you guys planning to go?" I asked. I asked this question because... the name `Sar` seemed like it... connected to me, in some way.
I don't know where my body exactly is, but I have a vague thing that tells me where it could possibly be. Like, a compass. My brain compass tells me that it's somewhere near this 'Sar' place.
"We're going to the Adventurer's Registration. This hothead is Rar, and I'm Aerith. But most people call me Silva." the girl, or Aerith, said.
Suddenly, the roar of an orc could be heard. Multiple. An orc attack? The only people who heard it were me and the other two visitors since they were all asleep.
Orc attacks like this were common in a small village like this. But, in a group this large? From the sound of it, there seemed to be about 12 of them.
Normally, they would come alone, or in duos. But... 12?
"We just got here, and this place already seems pretty strange. 12 orcs is a big number."
12 orcs is a pretty big number. There are no weapons that I can use, either. Will I really be able to... defeat them all-
[Cast: Shadow Glide]
Rar dashed passed me, at an almost undetectable speed. Before I knew it, he had already been at the village's gate. Aerith followed him, without even using a cast. At least, that's what I think. It looked like sheer strength.
I can't believe I expected that I was the strongest person here! I need to be more humble!
I sprinted, trying to catch up with them. Finally, I reached the gates. There were a lot more than just 12 orcs, and they didn't look like regular orcs.
They were a lot less muscular, with red skin instead of green skin. Normally, orcs looked muscular, with green skin. This... was it a mutation?
[Cast: Umbra Hands]
The shadows rose from the ground, grabbing orcs and ripping them in half.
[Cast: Iron Trident]
In Aerith's palm, a trident, made of presumably iron, was formed. She gripped tightly onto it, slicing through the tough skin of the orcs. At an extremely impressive speed, to add onto that.
"Will these waves of orcs ever end?!" Rar whined.
"Aerith! Throw me a weapon, please!" I exclaimed, yelling at Aerith. She nodded. Out of thin air, a steel blade was created, and she threw it to me. I caught it.
Finally, I was able to help. Killing orcs was a lot easier than killing humans. Their skin was thick, but with the weapon given to me, it was fairly easy.
"Have you guys seen anything like this either?!" I said as I defended myself from a group of orcs.
"Nope. Something like this... has to be a mutation!" Rar yelled, as he also defended himself. He was starting to get surrounded, but he had not even taken out his sword yet.
"Guys... these orcs are coming from the forest! There's a narrow space that we can get through to reach it." Aerith screamed. She was right.
"Well, someone has to go, while we all defend it! It's gonna be dangerous, though-"
"I'll do it."
The two of them looked at me for a second, then nodded.
"I'll try to make a pathway for you to go through, alright?!" Rar said. I nodded.
[Cast: Dragon of Erebus]
From Rar's shadow, a dragon rose. Its eyes were glowing purple, and it grew bigger. It cut through the orcs, just enough for there to be a pathway that I could go through.
Faster and faster, the pathway became narrower and narrower. I dashed for it, as quickly as I could. If I had aimed incorrectly, I would've slammed into one of the orcs and died.
Finally, I landed on the ground. The forest was dark. Wouldn't it have been better if they sent Rar here instead?