As I dove forward, my only thought was to shield Wiktor. In that fleeting moment, my life flashed before my eyes. I can't die like this. The thought surged through me, raw and defiant. I WON'T DIE LIKE THIS.
It felt as though my sheer will bent the fabric of reality itself. The arrow, once destined to strike, veered off course, whipping past me in a blur.
"Joshua! Are you all right?" Wiktor's voice cut through the chaos, frantic and filled with concern.
"I'm fine," I replied, my breath steadying as I forced myself to stand. Though outwardly calm, a storm of questions churned within me. What had just happened? How had I survived?
The bandit who attacked us froze in horror, his bow trembling in his hands. "No… no, that's impossible! The arrow—it was going to hit him, but it just… flew out of the way." His voice cracked with panic as he stumbled back. "I need to alert the captain. This—this isn't normal!"
I turned my gaze toward the direction the arrow had come from—a dark cave etched into the rocky hillside. Faint sounds of movement echoed from within. It was their camp, their hideout.
"Wiktor," I said, pointing toward the cave. "We should go in."
Wiktor's face tightened with resolve as he gripped his weapon. "Alright. It's time to wipe these scum off the face of the earth."
We walked cautiously down the passageway, the dim light from the cave entrance quickly swallowed by darkness. Faint echoes of laughter and the muffled cries of women drifted through the tunnels. My heart pounded as fury ignited within me.
Without a second thought, I broke into a sprint.
"Joshua, wait—!" Wiktor called out, his voice laced with urgency.
But I didn't listen. I couldn't. My mind was consumed by the cries, my soul weighed down by the thought of what these monsters were doing. I wouldn't let these barbaric men live another day.
Rage blinded me, but my resolve burned brighter. Every step forward was a promise—to strike down every last one of them.
Then, out of nowhere, figures emerged from the shadows, encircling me. Their weapons gleamed faintly in the dim light as they closed in.
"Damn it," I muttered through gritted teeth. My heart sank as realization hit. I should have known this was a trap.
The archer—the one who fled—had warned them. I'd been reckless, charging in without a plan, and now I was surrounded. My fists clenched as I prepared to fight, knowing Wiktor was somewhere behind me.
"This was stupid," I admitted under my breath, but there was no time for regret. I steeled myself, every muscle tensing. If they thought they had me, they were wrong.
The bandit leader then appeared behind them, laughing. "HAHAHAHA, you kids are really stupid."
I responded, "When my friend arrives here, you won't be singing the same tune. He is a mage."
The bandit leader responded, "Him, a mage? I doubt a mage would be in these parts, let alone one of your age."
I steeled myself for combat.
The bandit leader shouted, "GET 'EM BOYS!"
The bandits started closing in from both sides of the cavern. I could hear explosions in the distance. "Seems like Wiktor's caught up in a fight himself. It seems like I have two options: live OR DIE."
I then ran at the bandits in front of me. Their punches felt slow—very slow. It was not time that was slow, but my perception of time. I dodged one and tripped him, and he dropped his sword. I caught his sword mid-air and stabbed him in the back.
The bandits stopped moving. One of the soldiers muttered, "He is better than he looks. Take caution."
I pulled the sword out of the back of the soldier and smiled. I then ran at the bandits in front of me with newfound confidence. I dodged a blow from a sword and sliced one of the bandits in half.
"HAHAHAHA!" I laughed. I sounded like a person going insane. All my mind could focus on was their deaths.
"DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!" I shouted, striking them down one by one.
An arrow was shot at me from behind, but I shocked everyone by catching it with my hands. I then threw the arrow back at the archer with so much force that his head exploded.
"Pathetic excuse for human beings," I said, wiping the blood off my face.
The leader looked horrified at what he just saw. His best men had just died by a person who only looked 16.
"H-how? This should not be possible!" he stammered, eyes wide with disbelief. He then looked at me with rage and ran at me like a brute, screaming, "DIEEE!"
I quickly disarmed him and sliced his arm off. The leader cried out in pain, holding his arm, or at least what was left of it. "AHHHHH YOU MONSTER!" he yelled out.
"Quite ironic, isn't it?" I said coldly. "You kidnapped many women and children to do God knows what with. I am delivering justice."
The leader's face twisted with horror. His eyes widened, a shiver running down his spine as if the word itself cut through him. His breath quickened, desperation painting his features.
"JUSTICE? JUSTICE? YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS! YOU'RE SO NAIVE! PEOPLE WILL DO ANYTHING FOR MONEY OR POWER! THERE IS NO JUSTICE IN THIS WORLD!" He continued, desperate, but I sliced off his other arm before he could finish.
His eyes bulged in terror as he watched the blood spill from his stump, his body trembling uncontrollably.
"AHHHH!" He howled in agony, but it was the fear in his eyes that spoke louder than his screams.
"If there is no justice in this world, I will create a world where every man or woman will face justice, no matter if they are a noble or a peasant. I will make a world where they will face justice equally."
The leader's face went pale as the full weight of my words sank in. His body trembled, hands shaking as he clutched his remaining arm in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. His gaze flickered between the growing puddle of blood and my unflinching face.
Still wheezing in pain, he cried out, "SPARE ME! SPARE ME!"
Men tremble for their daughters, women weep for their lives, and all you can do is grovel and prepare to die.
The bandit leader's eyes widened with raw terror, his body shaking violently as his pleas fell silent in the face of inevitable doom. As I brought my sword down on his neck, his last expression was one of absolute dread, the fear taking over completely.
With a final, swift movement, I chopped his head clean off. Blood splattered across the cave floor. I swung my sword to rid it of the gore, a detached smile tugging at my lips.
"Hmm, a new weapon... I could get used to this sword," I murmured. But then, reality came crashing back into my mind. "Oh, that's right. I should check on Wiktor."