"We've sent out several search parties already, and none have returned, Your Majesty. I'm beginning to assume they have a stronghold within the forest. Shall we prepare Squad 3, my great king?"
"No, don't be hasty; a mere boy won't be a problem. Also, that forest is empty, filled with nothing but the most dangerous beasts known to these lands. As a boy, I heard the most gruesome tales about that place. Our men are probably dead along with the boy, no need wasting our effort. Although, if the boy shows up in any city, bring him to me alive. I want him to suffer and beg for his life before finishing him," finished Azuk with an evil laugh.
Azuk, the man who slew Hanz's father, walked along a cobblestone road. Around him was a town in a blaze. He was hard at work to achieve his plans. Every town or city that he desired would come under his rule or else face the consequences. Unfortunately for anyone choosing the latter, Azuk was a strong believer in building an empire on a strong foundation of fear and tyranny. Azuk's forces were overwhelming to any town or city; no city guards were able to seize their efforts. Hanz's home was proof of that. The Orcish Empire was so busy dealing with trade routes being blocked that they couldn't handle any other business. After what the elves did, the orcish empire would definitely feel the financial impact, as they relied very heavily on trade, and their biggest trade partner was the elves.
This small town, Olg Ra, was insignificant, rather a small rock on the path to a bigger city, but every person must obey and fear Azuk. The people of the town watched as their homes were burned and loved ones who dared to fight back got killed.
In the town's center, there was a big water well, stone bricks encircling the well. Azuk broke the wooden well structure above and stood on top of the stone bricks. The center was a circular area where most small shops had stands to sell goods; those stands were all burned down.
"I am your new king!" Screamed Azuk.
"This is what happens when you refuse my rule. When you defy me. When you oppose my beliefs. Beg and squabble for your lives or share the same fate as your fallen friends and family. You are all now a part of my new kingdom, don't forget that," Azuk exclaimed at the top of his lungs.
The townspeople began to cry and look away. Only less than a hundred people heard him. Afterwards, they got on their knees and begged for the mayhem to stop. Azuk was pleased that they all surrendered, but the mind of a cruel man will never settle. Azuk gathered a few dozen people and began to kneel them down in the town center. People gathered around still in fear and shock but now curious as to what the madman known as Azuk Smolg was about to do.
One by one, he slowly made his way around the line of people kneeled on the cobblestone. Rain began to pour down. The rain engulfed the whole town and turned the night sky dark gray. The rain didn't stop the blaze of fire that engulfed much of what used to be the town. The surrounding area was a mess with the sound of wood crackling and houses falling. Nothing could revert the damage done by the fire.
"Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe…" Azuk said as he walked in a straight line, tapping each head of the kneeled.
"…maybe, maybe, maybe, … you," Azuk swung his sword and swiftly decapitated the person he tapped and said you to. The people who were kneeled down watched in horror as the head rolled on the ground.
"Maybe!" Azuk yelled, patting the head of the next person but also raising his voice so the others could know that they weren't allowed to leave their kneeled position.
The villagers could only watch in fear.
"Your Majesty, I believe we should begin preparations for conscription. We have successfully taken 4 villages and 2 cities, well it appears 5 villages now, with fear being so fresh, striking while the iron is hot would greatly benefit your endeavor," spoke Azuk's 3rd in command. He is the brains behind much of the background work and slightly more intelligent than Azuk. Azuk knew this, and it's for that very reason he chose to have such a smart person in his ranks.
"Although I'm quite sure you have a point, Milgro, not quite yet. Let's make our way to the next city. It should only be an hour from here. I heard the guards there don't carry much backbone. Although it would be wise to keep our guard up, I believe it will be an easy grab before we begin preparations for conscription."
—
"The mornings in the forest were always very peaceful. Birds chirped all around, and the morning fresh air never felt so refreshing. As if to add to the normal morning routine of waking up and taking it all in, Hanz heard carving once again. Takagi was carving away at a log on the floor.
"Hey, I've been meaning to ask. You've been doing this every morning for the past few days now."
"Just keeping track of all the days I've spent here."
"Does each slash indicate a day? If so, why make a diagonal slash?"
"I guess they don't really know about tallying this way," thought Takagi.
"Here, take a look. After 4 slashes, you make the fifth one diagonal to represent a group. That group represents 5, making it easy to keep track of," Takagi explained.
"Wow, I'm truly impressed. Only nobles and the middle class are as educated as you are. Are you sure you weren't a noble?" Hanz asked.
"Oh boy, now what do I say? It wouldn't really be smart if I just spilled the truth about where I came from," he thought. "Maybe, but who knows," he replied.
"Here, look. This one marks 297 days since I've been here," Takagi said.
Takagi stared at the knife and looked back at all the tallies he had made. It had almost been 300 days since he was left to survive in the forest. He sat and thought about what the adventurers had told him. The only reason he never left the forest was because he didn't feel ready. He didn't feel like he was strong enough, that he could never pull his own weight. Every member of the adventurers' group was strong in their own right. If he were to return to them now, Buluni would surely embarrass him again. He knew what he had to do, and yet it still felt out of reach, even with all his rigorous training.
Every morning, Takagi woke up and not only hunted for his own food but also made sure that every day was the most rigorous training he had ever gone through in his life. Running was a regular routine exercise, climbing trees was a must, jumping was crucial, and swimming. Those, among other things, helped build his strength, but he still felt as weak as he did since the day he came to this world. Fighting was always a must to survive. With every place within the forest he explored, he stumbled upon new challenges, but none were as scary as his first real major challenge.
**(flashback)**
"FUCK!" Takagi screamed in agony.
He had to think quickly and didn't even know the first thing about treating any wound. The last wound he had ever treated was a small but slightly deep cut, but now was different. The bones of his legs protruded out and the pain was unbearable. Takagi couldn't handle the pain and feared that he would bleed to death. He had seen it in a movie once; whenever someone wanted to stop bleeding, they tied something above the wound to reduce the amount of blood flow to that area. He did just that.
Minutes passed, minutes turned to hours, and his condition didn't seem to get better. It had already turned dark outside, and the pain somehow seemed to subside. Takagi was going to go for a risky, possibly the wrong move for all he knew, a method to fix his legs. He pulled his legs into place so that the bones would align with each other. It was only second to the pain he felt when breaking them, but it hurt far more than he imagined, another excruciating pain.
"There they are, straight for now," he said shakily.
Takagi decided it was best to sleep until the morning.
Takagi awoke, still in the cave. He hated that he was in this predicament. He tried to move his legs, but there was no luck. It wasn't a dream. He thought everything that happened the day before was all a terrible nightmare. Maybe it never happened. The cave and unmovable legs proved otherwise. He felt hungry, and luckily for him, he had collected water and took a sip. He wasn't sure how long he could survive without eating, but his human past life made it clear that, as long as you have water, definitely longer than 3 days.
"Day 5," Takagi said out loud.
He had been down there for 5 days. According to his tally marks, he should be on day 71. Since the day before, Takagi could place half of his weight on one leg. It wasn't much, but it was progress that gave Takagi hope to live. His wound appeared to be healing faster than expected, but at that point, anything wouldn't surprise Takagi after all he was transported to a different world as a mixed-race being that he can't even explain. "It should be normal that my race would naturally heal faster than any human could ever, I mean I definitely have more strength and stamina than when I was a human. I bet even humans in this world are more robust. Fregran could be proof."
"Day 7."
The time was right. Takagi let the tied ripped clothing loose and started to get up. Days of practicing to be able to stand and squat paid off. He stood firmly and only felt a mild ache, but just enough to attempt his escape from the small cave. He turned around and could only see dark walls with the only hint of light coming from the exit. He couldn't clearly see since he first fell, but after a few days he started to adapt to the dark a little better. The cave didn't go any further than maybe a few 10 meters, but possibly not further. Takagi never attempted to leave the small area from where he fell. There were plenty of times that Takagi wanted to eat the wolf that fell, but decided not to. The night after he decided to leave the wolf it disappeared the next day, which sent chills down Takagi's spine. The reason the wolf was missing was probably due to a creature inside the cave waiting for an animal to fall to its death, maybe he was spared because he was still alive. He turned and gave a last glance at the small and only corridor that was in the cave that led to who knows where and turned back; he would not miss this place.
He began to grip the rocks around him, attempting to climb his way out. One leg and one arm at a time he elevated from position to position, it all seemed to go according to plan. Takagi missed a rock and fell. He showed much frustration, maybe he was weak because he hadn't eaten any food since he fell in, he thought. Finally, after a few strong attempts, he managed to make it above. All he needed was the last pull, and he was free.
"Finally!" He screamed.
He crashed on the ground and breathed heavily. He needed to train in rock climbing if he ever wanted to avoid getting stuck in the same situation.
***