Seto wanted to walk away, but Lora didn’t allow it.

“Where are you going? You should take responsibility for your actions. How could you leave me alone like this? The two men who are capable of protecting me are unconscious. What if a monster attacks me?”

Seto sighed. Women are such a pain, but she has a point, though.

“Are you sure about that?”

Lora frowned. She didn’t understand what he meant. “What am I sure about?”

“You were talking about two men, but I only see one man. The other one’s not qualified enough to call herself one.”

It took a few moments for Lora to get it, but when she did, she started laughing.

Seto was proud of himself. Although the joke wasn’t that funny, he was glad he could make the girl laugh. “Maybe we should help your brother. He seems like a reliable person.”

“He is, although he’s a bit overprotective, he’s very kind.”

Seto nodded and walked towards Theo while Lora was holding his arm. He tried to shake her arms off, but she kept her grasp firm.

“Wake up. My kick wasn’t that hard.” Seto poked Theo’s cheeks, trying to wake him up.

“Ah, what’s going on? Is my sister alright?” said Theo as he woke up, being very worried.

“Relax, relax. Lora’s alright. She’s standing next to me.”

When Theo’s eyes landed on his sister, he sighed in relief. He grabbed Seto’s hand and stood up. “Where’s Ivon?”

“Oh, that scum that tried to hit your sister? He’s lying over there.” Seto pointed towards a bloody pile of meat. He had messed up Ivon’s body so bad that even his mother wouldn’t recognize him. The pile consisted of flesh, bones that protruded from his leg, and wooden splinters penetrating his skin.

Although Ivon’s rumpled state shocked Theo, his shock was soon replaced with anger as he heard what Ivon tried to do to his sister.

“He tried to hit her? But it seems you saved her from the way you said it.”

Seto nodded, which caused Theo to sigh in relief. “It seems you’re a capable man,” he said, looking at Seto while his sister clung onto Seto’s arm, “it appears my sister has taken a liking to you. I don’t mind, though. You’re handsome and better suited than that dog who’s lying over there. Why don’t you stay at our house for a while? I want to apologize for my rude behavior earlier.”

“Please accept his offer. It’s the least we can do,” said Lora, almost begging him to accept it.

Seto thought about it. It didn’t seem like a bad idea. The sky started to get dark, and his stomach was getting empty. Were there any cons to this proposal?

“Sure, why not.”

Lora and Theo smiled when Seto accepted. Lora event went as far as to hug him.

“What should we do with that thing over there?” Seto pointed at Ivon.

“I think we should carry him back home, he’s scum, but he doesn’t deserve to die,” said Lora. “Brother, can you carry him?”

Theo didn’t like the idea of carrying that idiot, but he still agreed. He sighed, walked towards Ivon, kicked his face, and placed him on his shoulders.

“Roarrrr.”

Suddenly, an enormous monster appeared out of now where and roared at the trio. The beast overshadowed them with its three meters tall (9 feet 10) stature and yellowish muscular body. Its legs were short, and its face as ugly as shit. It carried a wooden tree log as a weapon and swung it towards Theo.

Theo dodged it, but he tripped. Theo fell, but he landed on Ivon, which reduced the impact. Ivon’s bones shattered, but nobody cared. “We’re fucked. That troll is too strong. We’re not an opponent for him,” said Theo, shouting from the top of his longs. He feared that the troll would hurt his sister.

The troll wasn’t interested in Theo anymore and focused his attention on Lora. 

Her breasts caught its interest and filled its brain with lust. The troll ran towards Lora at full speed. He didn’t even try to hide his plans for ravaging her.

Lora saw the troll running towards her, and she felt terrified. She wanted to run, but then she felt Seto’s hand embracing her tiny waist. Lora sighed in relief. Her fear went away as she was confident in Seto’s strength.

Seto saw the monster’s lust and smiled. Trying to ignore me?

He walked towards the troll while holding Lora’s waist. He didn’t seem afraid and took his time. He punched the air towards the monster, embracing himself for impact before the brute could even react.

Splash.

The troll exploded. All its guts and blood flew in all directions, engulfing everyone in blood. All the intestines and other body parts lay on the floor. There was a pool of blood, causing the air to smell like iron. 

Theo and Lora were both speechless about Seto’s spectacular performance. His strength shocked them so much that they forgot about their bloody state.

“Shall we get going?” said Seto.

The two didn’t say anything and nodded their heads.

I have to marry this man. Even if it costs my virginity, I won’t let him get away. Lora had determined her future goal.

 

***

 

The four of them didn’t speak much during the walk to the village. When they entered the town, the sky had turned dark.

“Lora, Theo, what on earth has happened to you two?” The single guard who was on his night duty saw the group and noticed their bloody appearance.

Theo took the initiative and cleared his throat. “I went looking for the cause of the explosion, and in the meantime, we met this man. His name’s Seto, and he saved our lives.”

Seto nodded his head which the guard returned. The guard’s suspicion of Seto became less when he heard that he saved Theo and the village beauty.

“I see… could you perhaps tell me what happened? The blood covering your bodies indicates that there was a brutal fight, wasn’t there? And what about him?” The guard pointed at Ivon, who didn’t look human at all and looked more like minced meat than a person.

Theo laughed when the guard pointed at Ivon. He tried to suppress his anger and forced a smile. “There was a brutal fight indeed. I will tell you later about it. For our other guest, let’s say, he got what he deserved. Can we pass now? We’re tired.”

The guard noticed that Theo didn’t want to continue this conversation anymore and let them pass through. The four of them walked through the gate while the guard kept staring at Seto. His looks are on another level, but he somehow gives me the creeps. The guard saw that Lora clung to Seto’s arm, which caused him to feel jealous. He fancied her for a long time, but now this tall lad was going to snatch her away. He wanted to say something but knew that they weren’t in the mood to talk.

When the four of them walked through the village to Lora’s and Theo’s home, they received many gazes. The villagers noticed their bloody appearance and whispered among themselves. Because it was getting dark, there weren’t any females outside. There were only men, but they couldn’t help but glance at the handsome Seto. His tall stature and eye-catching looks caused them to be envious.

Seto ignored them and followed the three of them. Lora wanted to start a conversation with him, but he kept quiet. He wasn’t interested in talking with her.

Knock, knock. Theo knocked on the wooden door of his house. His father opened the door and greeted them with a sincere expression until he noticed their miserable state. “What the hell? Son, what happened?” He saw an unfamiliar but handsome face and said, “who are you?”

Before Theo could answer his father’s question, Seto responded first. “Sir, my name is Seto, and your son and I met each other during his search in the woods.”

“He’s a good man, father. He protected us when a monster attacked us,” Theo said. “He’s amazing, a troll ambushed us, but Sir Seto defeated him in a glorious fight. It couldn’t even be called a fight. Seto punched the troll, and it exploded just like that.”

The older man’s eyes widened when he heard his son’s explanation. His respect for Seto grew, and he wanted to thank him. He looked towards Seto and said, “young man, I want to express my gratitude for saving my reckless children. Why don’t you come inside and freshen yourself up? That’s the least I can do. Why don’t you also stay and have dinner with us?”

Seto accepted the man’s offer. One shouldn’t look a given horse in its mouth. He was grateful for the offer.

Lora was excited when she heard that Seto would stay for dinner and the night. Her father noticed his daughter’s reaction but didn’t say anything. Then, the man looked at the thing Theo was carrying. “What is that thing that you’re carrying?”

“It’s Ivon.”

The man’s heart skipped a beat. His calm demeanor vanished, and he began to panic. “It’s Ivon? His father is sitting at our kitchen table. I don’t even want to know what happened. How are we going to explain what happened?”

Theo shrugged his shoulders. “Tell him the truth, that dog of his got what he deserved. He should know what kind of man his son is.”

Theo’s father wanted to say something about his future son-in-law, but he was interrupted by another voice. 

“Ivon? Son, what has happened?” Ivon’s father watched his son’s pitiful state and became sad. He looked at Theo, Lora, and Seto and clenched his fist. “I don’t know what happened, but I will make you pay for this.”