Luan looked at the bent spear in his hand, the only thing that was left of his family. 'At least my family wasn't the ones who killed me…'
He chuckled bitterly, then hurled the spear at the nearest building in his view. The spear impacted the building with a loud bang and shattered the bricks used to make the houses.
Not caring about the house that was now collapsing on itself, he bent down and covered his eyes as hot tears dripped down onto the floor. Sniffles occasionally accompanied the tears, but it stopped after a while.
After that, the tears stopped falling.
Still, Luan's hands never left his face.
This lasted for hours until the moon and the stars were on full display.
The moonlight cascaded down upon Luan, causing him to feel a soothing sensation across his body.
The wind flowed softly, caressing Luan's body with care.
The annoying voices of the crickets and nocturnal animals died down, leaving the place in serenity.
It was as if the night was consoling him.
Luan seemed rooted on the same spot until the beautiful songs of the lark resounded in the area.
His hands left his eyes, revealing bloodshot corneas and two blue pupils that were deeper than the depths of the ocean.
"Mom, dad… watch over me," he muttered in a grating voice.
He took a last glance at his bloody surroundings, then went back to his house. He stepped over his own puddle of blood and picked up the cane that looked like the bark of an ancient tree. Then, he walked deeper into the house and picked the sack he used to carry the mutilated boar into the house.
He walked out of his house, leaning on the cane for support whenever he occasionally stumbled. A bitter sigh escaped his mouth as he slung the sack over his back.
He had no home, no family, no power, and no wealth–the four things that could make his situation less painful.
He felt that he had two options–to kill himself, which would end his pain and bring him relief almost immediately, and to survive.
Normally, he would've chosen the first option without hesitation, but after seeing the village chief kill himself because of the overwhelming difference in power between him and the witch, suicide rubbed him the wrong way.
That only left the second choice.
To survive.
The problem was that he knew he couldn't survive in his state. One of his hearts was punctured, and he was but a normal human without any of the supernatural powers that were displayed in the fight earlier.
He didn't even know how they did it.
But he had to leave, lest the witch came back and found him.
He would die, for sure.
And when facing certain death and a 99% chance of death, anyone would choose the path where they had a slim chance of survival.
And yes, Luan felt that he had more than one heart since he was still hearing the vigorous thumping of a human heart.
'Although my logic is strongly against this, I'll have to venture deeper into the forest if I don't want to be discovered and killed.
'And even if I'm discovered, no one will want to go through the trouble of pursuing me if I'm so deep inside the forest.
'Still, I have to be able to not only survive, but how do I even do that…?'
As his thoughts wandered, Luan raised his head and his gaze focused on the forest ahead of him. It was morning and the sun was beginning to peek out, so the forest looked homely and welcoming.
But Luan knew. He knew how horrifying the forest could be at night. He had once been stuck there, after all…
A stifled curse found its way to his mouth as memories of being chained to a tree by the "adults" of the village came back to him.
'In short, I have to be fast and careful when I step into the forest and follow the rules I used to survive that night.
'Don't see, don't hear, don't move, don't breathe.'
He stopped leaning on the wooden cane and started walking towards the first set of trees as the sun came out in its full glory.
He walked into uncertainty, but his face was apathetic and his eyes drooped like he was about to fall asleep, a far cry from the steely determination that had taken root in his many hearts.
As he walked, he saw some squirrels observing him curiously, but a simple glance was all it took to make them run away.
'I'd like some animal companions though…'
Suddenly, Luan froze and looked up ahead.
There were five men there, each of them walking towards him while joking with each other.
When he saw them, they also saw him. They looked at his bloody chest, his hair that was stained by blood, and his father's bow on his back, but didn't think much of it.
One of them who had a bow whispered something to his companions before blocking Luan's way.
"Well… if it isn't the child of the dog and the bitch. I see you've been allowed to carry that excuse of a bow. That bastard was getting useless anyway, so giving it to an actual bastard makes sense."
Luan's face was apathetic, but his grip on the cane had changed, ever so subtly.
"Hm… and what's all this blood? Did your cursed parents finally do us a favour and end it themselves? Oh how touching, but don't be sad, I'm pretty sure you'll join them soon.
"A worthless death is only right for worthless people after all."
The man grinned at Luan, and his friends also added their comments while sneering at Luan.
As they spoke, the scenes of his parents being used like puppets and dying because of machinations far above them flashed past his vision.
He raised his eyes, which were eerily calm and serene like a placid lake, removed the austere blade from its sheath and cut through flesh, muscles and bone in one fluid motion.
Before anyone could react, the bowman's head was already rolling across the floor.