A cave, with a single entrance. Inside, the light from a fire illuminated a group of people. They looked more like vagabonds or bandits due to the rags they wore instead of clothes.
"Are you sure we can light a fire here? My father said caves sometimes fill with explosive gases from within," said the youngest among them, fear evident as the torch approached a pile of wood to start a fire.
"Your father this, your father that. You told us you ran away from him, right? If a fool like you escaped, he can't be very smart," said a burlier one, causing laughter among the group. Without further thought, he brought the fire closer to the wood. No one mentioned it, but the boy's comment had seeded doubt in them.
With tension, the leader brought the fire closer and ignited it. Silence reigned for a few moments, but upon seeing nothing explode, the group released a sigh they didn't realize they were holding.
"Bah, I told you, kid. Your father just talks rubbish," he said, gloating. The rest of the group, like ducklings following their mother duck, vigorously nodded in agreement with their leader's statements.
"E-Okay, maybe nothing exploded this time, Mr. Anthony, but it doesn't mean it's always safe," said with fear. As he finished his sentence, he instantly regretted it upon seeing the icy stare Anthony was giving him.
"What did you call me?" he asked in a low voice, promising endless suffering.
"S-Sorry, I meant Chief Anthony," he tried to correct himself, but it was too late. Anthony was upon him, about to beat him.
"Ch-Chief, what's that over there?" Fortunately, one of the subordinates interrupted the chastisement, pointing towards the cave entrance.
The entire group looked over and were stunned. They saw a two-meter-wide, floating, bloodied sphere at the entrance. The sphere seemed to feed on the blood of the fresh bodies they had left there earlier.
The group looked at each other, seeking knowledge in their gazes about the situation, but unfortunately, no one had any idea what it was. Pleading ignorance, they could only trust one thing: their swords. The group drew their weapons and cautiously approached the phenomenon.
"Boom!" The ball exploded, spraying blood everywhere and staining the group red. Obviously, everyone was scared.
"AHHH! I'M GONNA DIE!" shouted one, trying to wipe the blood blurring his vision.
"SAVE ME!" cried another, rolling on the ground.
"Shut up! It's just blood!" spoke the leader, the voice of reason, while observing what the ball left behind with a smile.
A pale girl, as white as a sheet, with hair to match. She had good proportions and wore a simple black dress. That girl was unconscious on the cold cave floor.
The leader couldn't let such a beautiful lady suffer cold, he told himself with a sadistic smile. He resolved to take her...
"I'll postpone your punishment for now, Wine. I have things to do..."
...
"Ugh, what happened?" he wondered, confused. He had a terrible headache. The last thing he remembered was about to try out the new character and...
"Is this a hospital?" he wondered, looking at the uneven stone ceiling. No, definitely not. He felt movement in his leg. When he looked down, he saw something that terrified him.
A strange man was removing his heels. "Wait, heels?" he was confused for a moment, but quickly realized he had other priorities.
He didn't know who this bald man was, but if he was taking off his heels while he was unconscious, it couldn't be anything good. He assessed his situation. Fortunately, the man hadn't noticed he had awakened.
The man was very burly; he wouldn't win in a struggle. There was nothing else around him except a torch a few feet away. For some reason, the torchlight blinded him... so he shifted his focus to the darkness, where surprisingly he could see clearly.
He had no options. He could try to struggle and then escape into the darkness, but it wasn't a very... positive plan. Should he let the man do as he pleased? Should he pray he'd be left alive afterward? A shiver ran down his spine at such a situation.
The man seemed to notice his movement; it was now or never.
"Boom!" He kicked with his free leg towards the surprised man's face. His leg, much slimmer and smoother than he remembered, hit him squarely in the face.
The force behind the kick made the man's head turn instinctively and he staggered back, falling backward. It seemed both the boy and the man were surprised by the force of that kick. Breaking out of his daze, the boy started running strongly into the darkness, nearly stumbling several times due to a change in balance he didn't understand.
"Tch, come back here!" he heard the thug shout behind him, but he didn't stop. He had plunged into the deep darkness. He could see perfectly, sadly it seemed there was nothing to see other than the walls of a bleak cave. He saw a light in the distance and ran toward it.
He stopped abruptly when he saw it was a campfire where a group of men were laughing and drinking. He wasn't stupid, he knew they were with the rapist. He couldn't confront them or maneuver around them to reach the exit beyond.
The boy bit his lip, thinking of a way out, some clue that could help him escape. But no matter how much he searched and thought, nothing came to mind.
It was certain that he would lose against a group of five, but maybe against the burly one alone, he would have a chance.
He didn't know what was happening, how he got there, or why they put heels on him. But he knew his advantages, knew that unlike before, he could see in the dark like a cat and his body was several times stronger than it was. Why these changes? He didn't know, like most things that were happening. But he had to adapt or suffer.
An idea fixed itself in his mind. If he played his cards right, it was possible.
"This won't be a bandits' cave anymore; it'll be my cave," he thought as he melded into the darkness and headed deeper inside, searching for the would-be rapist...