The Bandit Purge

 

In The Pharmacy

A group of people rush towards the pharmacy and bang frantically at the door.

 “Stacy, Stacy!” they holler, panting. “We need your help.” She yanks the door open and glares alarmed at the throng. 

“What’s going on?” she asks.

“Someone is injured.”

It is the villagers. They seem panicked and scared as they ask for her help. 

I am woken up by the ruckus that is outside. I wake up and head outside to see what is going on. 

I wonder what has happened that got everybody so riled up. Are the village guards back or what? I am shocked to see Granny Alma crying and Light, his shirt soaked in blood, lying inertly on the ground. It seems like he is bleeding but since Stacy is there, I bet she has probably healed him with a potion. Kelvin and Luke are crying beside their friend as he is unconscious.

“Wait, what’s going on here? And where’s Amy?” I ask.

Everyone looks at me with frowns on their faces, and then tell me what has happened. 

As Amy, Light, Kelvin, and Luke were gathering herbs and hunting rabbits, they encountered bandits. They didn’t grasp the number since it all happened so fast. 

They say the bandits wanted Amy but they tried to protect her. Both Kelvin and Luke were knocked out and when they woke up, Light was on the ground bleeding and Amy and the bandits were nowhere in sight. They then rushed the injured Light back to the village and told the news to the villagers.

“To think they would actually pass this side,” says the village chief.

“Do you know something about the bandits, Chief?” asks Stacy.

“Indeed I do,” he says, warming up to the subject. “These past few months, the bandits have been active in this region. The neighbouring village was also attacked and their children, girls to be specific, were kidnapped. They probably didn’t come to this village since it’s near the Silent Demon’s Forest and they would have to take a detour to get here.”

“There have been bandit activities in this region but none of them attacked the villages since they were poor,” says Stacy. “They usually attacked merchant caravans but since they hire adventurers as escorts, bandit activity decreased. So, why now and why are they kidnapping girls to be specific?”

“That’s why I sent the village guards to the neighbouring village, to see if they can gather information but if my guess is right, they probably want to sell them off into slavery,” says the chief.

“This is bad. When will the village guards get back?”

“Probably when it gets dark.” 

I am awestruck. I made a miscalculation. I assumed that the only dangerous things in this world were monsters, but I forgot about the most dangerous thing - humans. With their greed, humans are willing to kill and sell one of their own for money.

I am furious with myself. The incident took place about thirty minutes earlier, and as we speak, it looks like the sun is about to set. Waiting for the guards to return is only going to delay us much longer. I have to find her... and kill those guys who took her.

“I’ve got to go.”

 

I am in the forest atop a tall tree. The scope of my Mana Sense is too small so finding them that way is highly unlikely. I figure I have to use Farsight. By concentrating my mana in my eyes, I can enhance my field of vision like a telescope and see things from a distance. But it puts a heavy burden on my eyes so I can only use it for about ten seconds. If I go beyond that time, I get woozy and my vision dims, so I need to find them in those ten seconds tops.

“Farsight.”

I activate my Farsight and begin to search the area. I can feel those seconds counting down in my head.

1, 2, 3.

I need to find them. Where did they go?

4, 5.

I need to find something, even if it’s little. There has to be a trail.

6,7,8.

I can feel myself getting more anxious as each second lapses.

9, 10, 11.

Something, there has to be something out there. Please tell me you left something Amy, anything.

12, 13.

As the seconds pass by, I feel the veins in my eyes turning red. Blood starts dripping down my eyes as I am searching. Finally, I manage to see a lock of hair on the road. I turn off my Farsight and rush towards the location.

Since she was picking up herbs, she probably hid the knife and as the wagon took her, she left pieces of her hair behind as a trail. If that’s the case then I will find her in no time.

I then feel a sharp pain in my head. Using Farsight for more than ten seconds places a toll on my mind and eyes but I can’t complain after getting this far. I'll find these animals and kill them. I'm going to kill them all.

 

Night Time. The bandits are spending the night in the forest. There are a total of fifty bandits. Some are sleeping and some are having a fun.

“Ha haha, to think we’ll get this kind of merchandise in a back street place like this,” one hoarses as he chews away on a stick of tobacco. “I guess this is our lucky day.”

“Yeah, we got much more than we would have in a lord's territory,” another bandit concurs. “And the best thing is that we didn’t even have to worry about law enforcement since this place is so far to a town.”

“Yeah, but it was kind of boring, especially those guards of the village we hit. They didn’t even put up a fight.”

“Kekeke, and to think we would find a lost lass on our way. Who would have thought that there was another village there? We should have hit it too, you know.”

“You heard what the boss said. He said even if we had hit it too, we wouldn’t have had enough space to put the other merchandise. And it would’ve been a hassle considering the distance we have to travel.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to see more blood,” he says, licking his knife. “There’s nothing more fun than watching the look of despair in people. Especially if they think someone will come save them.”

One of the bandits then turns his head towards wagon and smirks.

“Don’t look at the merchandise like that, okay? And besides, we managed to bag quite a beauty on our way back. We should get at least five gold coins for her alone and as for the others, since they are still young, we might get one gold coin for each.”

The bandit then frowns. He frowns the moment he looks at someone who is amongst them.

“But do we really have to share our money with ‘him’? He didn’t do much on this job.”

He looks at the guy who is sitting at a distance alone. The guy is wearing a red-hooded attire. He has a small wand in his hand. He glares at the bandit who is talking in annoyance.

The boss of the bandits then appears.

“Hahaha, don’t glare at my boys like that now. You wouldn’t want to make me look bad now, would you?”

The hooded guy clicks his tongue and looks down. The bandit boss then slowly walks towards him. He is a bulky guy with muscles as big as that of a giant. He has dark hair and light skin that is covered in grime from head to toe. Now, his skin looks slightly brown.

“Hahaha, you don’t need to fret Fire Slayer, you'll get the money you worked for. After all, if it wasn’t for you being here, then another adventurer would have been here sticking their noses where they didn’t belong. And I would have been forced to kill them, which would alarm the guild. So, you’ll at least get paid for just being here.”

“That’s not what we agreed on,” Fire Slayer retorts. “We agreed that I’ll get 30% of the reward after we sell the merchandise. Don't forget whose been protecting you guys from-”

“I think you’re mistaken here, kid,” the boss cuts in before he could finish. 

The boss sits beside besides him and loops his monstrous arm around his shoulder.

“I don’t need protection from anyone, especially not from a weakling like you,” he continues. “Just because you’re a Brank adventurer doesn’t mean you’re all that great. Remember who it was who got you there in the first place.”

A cold sweat starts dripping down Fire Slayer’s face followed by a huge gulp. It is understandable, after all the man besides him isn’t an ordinary bandit. The man beside him is none other than Beret, also known as ‘The Carnage Bringer’, who is on the top ten wanted bandits’ list in the continent with a bounty of 50 gold coins.

“Now, you gonna take what I give you and you gonna shut your mouth after that. Do we understand each other now, Fire Fly?”

The bandits, who are at ear-shot of the conversation, start laughing. After all, their boss’s words are always final.

“It’s Fire Slayer boss, not Fire Fly,” says one of the bandits derisively, laughing.

“Oh, sorry about that,” the boss chuckles. “It's just the way he is shaking so badly made me mistake him for a Fire Fly.”

Beret ‘The Carnage Bringer’. Born with unnatural strength and immense bloodlust, just like his big brother who is on the top five in the most wanted list in the continent. Even B-rank adventurers don’t stand a chance against this guy, especially if that B-rank is a mage type like me.

Born in the slums, he and his brother grew up unleashing a reign of terror in the slums. But for unknown reasons, they went their separate ways, putting together bandit groups that would forever be feared by the masses. With his immense body and strength, no one has the guts to pick up his bounty quest.

I got involved with him because of my greed. Thanks to him, I was able to rise in the ranks from C-rank to B-rank, and I also got immense money from him. 

“Now, Fire Slayer. Tell me you understand.”

With the scarlet red eyes that look like the blood from his victims, he glares at Fire Slayer.

“I... I understand.”

“You understand what exactly?”

“I understand that I'll accept whatever you give me, boss.”

“Good, now don’t be so tense and drink up,” says Beret as he hands him a cup filled with beer. “We've got an early morning tomorrow but that doesn’t matter.” 

Meanwhile, Amy and the other eighteen kids who are kidnapped are in a cage in the wagon. At seven years old, Amy is the oldest, while the others range from four to six years of age.

The kids are shaking in fear. After all, they did witness these people butcher and slaughter a lot of people they knew including some of their parents.

“Don’t worry guys, there’s nothing to be scared of,” says

Amy. “Someone will come and save us, I promise.”

“Really big sis? But when will they come?”

“Soon, he’ll definitely come.”

The guards watching over them start laughing.

“Hahaha, she’s lying to you, kids,” berates one of the guards. “No one is coming. Who would be so stupid to come here? And even if they did, they wouldn’t even make it half way to here, so throw your hopes out the window. The sooner you accept reality, the better.”

“He’ll come and when he arrives, you guys will be sorry!” squeals Amy with an intense look in her face. 

The bandit feel a little annoyed with Amy’s look of determination and slaps her. 

“Hey, don’t damage the merchandise, or do you want to have the ‘talk’ with the boss?” shouts one of the bandits.

“Sorry but this brat’s look pissed me off, that’s all.”

“It’s just a brat, don’t take her seriously. Soon, she’ll see that no one is coming.”

Even though Amy had said those words with confidence, she is as scared as the kids deep down.

In the forest standing atop a tree, I look over them as they drink and laugh merrily. I finally managed to catch up to them using the trail of hair and Farsight. Using Farsight a number of consecutive times in a day has made my vision blurry and I feel light-headed. Well, that is to be expected since I didn’t even get enough time to replenish my strength after my fight with the orcs.

I use Mana Sense to accommodate my lack of vision. I sense about seventy people, amongst them the nineteen captives.

It's weird though, even though I am tired, I am unexpectedly calm. Even though I know I am going to kill people, I am completely unfazed by it. 

“It’s time to begin.”

It's only a matter of time for the village guards to get to this place using the trail I left them. But before they get here, I need to finish off these guys.

I leap from the tree and land on the ground as silently as the feline. With my quick speed, I charge at the bandits closest to me. Using Mana Blade, I behead them instantly.

I have just killed a human being and I feel nothing. Maybe something broke inside me when I came to this world or maybe... something broke inside me long before I came to this world but I just never realised it. 

I just killed five bandits like they were nothing but bugs. I sense one who seems to have a strong presence in the middle of the camp. I should just go and finish him off. Beret and the other bandits are drinking around the bonfire at the center of the campsite.

“Since you came here, why don’t you show yourself?” Beret suddenly speaks, and the question is clearly not directed at any of the bandits. They stare, confused.

I step out from the shadows of the trees. He is able to sense me even though I concealed myself with mana. How did he find me?

“Oh, come on, don't look so confused,” says Beret, standing up. “Even though you masked your presence, you failed to mask your bloodlust. Even though you only released it a little but someone like me who is sensitive to bloodlust could never miss it.”

Oh, I see. So, bloodlust can give away my position. That's something I won’t repeat.

“So, what do you want at my campsite? Tell me and I might just spare your life.”

I don’t respond. I stare at him intensely with my cold, soulless blue eyes.

“You are not much of a talker now, are you? Tell me, what is a snot-nose brat like you doing here anyways?” “To kill you and everyone here,” I declare.

The bandits start laughing. One of the bandits steps forward.

“Don’t worry boss, I'll take care of this brat.”

He pulls out his sword and walk up to me, brandishing the blade as he goes along.

“Hehehe, don’t worry kid, I won’t kill you,” he says. “I'm just gonna beat your ass and cut off all your limbs so don’t be afra-”

With a flick of my dagger, I slash his face in half. He drops to the ground in the pool of his own blood. I am not in the mood to talk with these guys.

The other bandits are shocked and leap to their feet, swords drawn and ready to duel. 

“Heh, to think a little brat like you killed one of my best men that easily,” says Beret. “You guys stand back, I’ll take care of this kid myself. To think you can manifest mana at your age! Too bad a genius like you is going to die here trying to play hero.”

He immediately releases an intense surge of bloodlust. The other bandits are pushed away by Beret’s bloodlust.

“Everyone, get back!” screams one bandit. “If you’re not strong enough, the boss’s bloodlust could knock you out in an instant.”

“Hehe, that kid is done for. There is no way a brat like that can withstand this intense bloodlust.”

I stand there with my head down, unfazed.

“But guys, why hasn’t that kid gone down yet?” “Maybe he is scared to even move,” Jokes one bandit.

“No, to me he doesn’t seem to be scared at all.”

Damn, what’s with this kid? Beret wonders. Why isn’t he down even after experiencing the full extent of my bloodlust? What’s this feeling, this feeling of uneasiness?

“So, this is how you use your bloodlust? I guess I should thank you, I learned something from you today.”

What’s this kid talking about and why can he still talk so easily? He should be trembling in fear.

I raise my head slightly and release my own bloodlust. Everyone freezes in fear. Beret’s bloodlust is completely overwhelmed by my bloodlust, filling the entire campsite.

What’s this? This bloodlust, why is it so calm and yet cold? It’s like time stopped. Usually, when bloodlust is released, it rushes like a river that has a waterfall and overwhelms the enemy. It’s usually so intense that you start seeing the person in front of you as a demon or a grim reaper or some terrifying monster. But his feels like there are a dozen knives all around me, and if I were to move even just slightly, I'd get killed. I'm sure they also feel it.

Beret ponders all this as he looks at his men who are paralysed by fear. His hand begins to shake.

What! I'm shaking? There is no way a little punk like this can make me scared. There’s no way, I’m Beret ‘The Carnage Bringer’, nobody scares me, no one.

He manages to pull himself together and charges at me with a great sword.

“Just because you can release a little bloodlust doesn’t mean you’re on my level,” he jeers.

He swings his sword and pummels me into a tree. As a result, the other bandits are released from the bloodlust’s fear and immediately fall down on their knees gasping for air.

“Cough, cough... just what was that?”

“I couldn’t move or do anything.”

“It was that kid’s bloodlust. Huff, huff… but he’s done for. Nobody can survive a full force of our boss’s attack. The kid is dead for sure.”

A cold sweat breaks from Beret’s forehead. 

“Don’t go killing me off so easily.”

The bandits are shocked as they see me looming from the cloud of dust unscathed.

“How is this possible? No one can withstand our boss’s attack, so why is he unscathed?”

“This is unreal, maybe the boss went easy on him?”

“Yeah, the boss definitely went easy on him. There is no way a kid like that can withstand our boss’s full force.” Beret doesn’t respond but simply stares at me.

What are these fools talking about? I definitely attacked him with the full brunt of my attack and yet nothing. Even if he protected himself with mana, it’s not possible to block the entire force of my attack. It's either he’s pretending to be unscathed or I'm fighting someone... no, something very strong. I've been having this feeling of uneasiness ever since this kid showed up. I need to finish him as fast as I can.

He looks at his men.

It seems they haven’t fully recovered from the bloodlust from earlier so I can’t count on them for now. Fire Fly seems to be recovering well but he’s still shocked. I guess he’ll do.

He turns, only for his eyes to find a glaring emptiness where I earlier stood. 

“Huh, where did he-“

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you to never look away from your enemy in the midst of a fight?”

For a moment he is stunned by my voice and waves his swords about, slashing the emptiness around him. I grab his face and slam him hard into the ground. 

The bandits stare in awe. None had seen what had really happened. Even Beret doesn’t know how he has been battered into the ground. Veins pop up on Beret’s forehead.

“How dare a puny kid like you pin me into the ground?” he roars, swinging his sword towards me. I dodge it. 

He stands up and mana starts radiating from his body. He charges at me with his sword imbue with mana.

What's with this guy? He's full of openings. Even though I planned on getting him angry, I didn’t think he would actually charge at me with an obvious move like swinging his sword.

Hehehe, I've flattened him with this for sure. Beret thinks to himself, smiling in satisfaction.

“So, this is all you can offer, huh? I guess I should blame myself for having high expectations of you.”

He is shocked. As the dust starts to clear, he is puzzled by the fact that I stopped his sword with my bare hands. I hold the edge of his sword and punch him in the abdomen, sending him crashing into a tent.

“Sorry guys, but I'm on the clock here so I'll have to make quick work of you.”

I then charge directly at the bandits, and they charge at me, swords already drawn. I slash at the bandits with my Mana Blade. Using my Mana Double, which is a technique where I create an exact copy of myself, I manage to divert their attention and then strike from behind. The Mana Double doesn’t have any combat capabilities. In short, it’s like an illusion to trick the enemy.

Suddenly, the remaining bandits retreat and begin to huddle around a figure crouched with his back turned, near the fireside. Hmm, why are they standing around that guy? It's like they are protecting him.

It is Fire Slayer. He stands up and suddenly the wand in his hand bursts into flames.

“Mega Fireball.”

Shortly after he utters these words, a giant fireball hurtles toward me, making a defeaning explosion as it goes. I leap out of the way and it smacks against a tree, engulfing it in flames. The impact is big enough to blow me away, lobbing me into the bushes.

Beret finally stands up from the rubble.

“Hehehe, I misjudged you Fire Fly. Well done.”

To think this kid hurt me that much with just one punch. But, it’s all over now. Even though he managed to dodge the mega fireball but the force should have been enough to cause significant damage.

He's not standing up anytime soon. Fire Slayer chuckles slightly.

With this, Beret shouldn’t look down on me. I’ll probably get extra on the money I'm going to be paid. That was a mid-tier version of a fireball spell. Only talented people can perform that kind of spell.

Now, I bet the kid is de-

He almost swallows his tongue as a whistling sound fills the campsite. I re-appear, dead in front of him, along with mangled debris of the trees. 

I see now. The bandits were shielding him so that he could finish chanting.

“Your magic is a little annoying. I guess I'll have to start with you.”

What? How did he get here so fast? And how did he get past everyone?

There is a glint of metal as I raise my dagger to cut him down, but Fire Slayer is pushed out of the way by one of the bandits. I manage to cut his right arm and the head of the bandit who saved him simultaneously.

“Tsk!” I click my tongue in disappointment.

“Aaaaaargh,” Fire Slayer screams in pain.

Beret jumps in with an attack that pushes me away from Fire Slayer.

“Huh, I was actually sure that I was going to get his head but I guess an arm is worse than death for a mage-type fighter.”

As I am standing there, with my blue eyes radiating with the moon’s glow and blood smeared on my body and white hair, I stare at Beret as fear starts to set foot in him.

What’s with this kid? I get that he’s strong but to think he’d be this calm facing this number of people. And he doesn’t even blink twice when killing someone. I think we might have put ourselves in a hole here.

I walk towards him. I should finish him before anything unexpected happens. But my vision becomes even more blurry and I stagger.

Hmm. This is my chance. He probably used too much mana in this fight and now he is running out.

I have reached my limit, even I can tell. He takes the chance and delivers an all-out attack.

“Take this. Devastating Slash.”

I can’t react in time and the attack connects. The attack sends me scuttling across the campsite. I grab at my chest, coughing out blood.

“Hahaha, it seems the kid has reached his limit.”

Beret approaches slowly while dragging his sword. I am coughing and panting and this emboldens him.

“I have to admit, kid. You had me running for my money there but that puny body of yours can’t handle any more of my strikes. This is where it ends for you. Maybe in your next life, you shouldn’t play hero.”

He raises his sword and is about to strike. Seeing the opening, I plunge my hand directly into his heart.

“I already know that. But I guess I can’t change a habit, especially when dealing with scums like you.”

“How...” he coughs, choking on his own blood. “How did you...”

“You shouldn’t have looked down on me, and you shouldn’t have kidnapped Amy. Your greed is what got you killed today.”

“My brother, he won’t... huff, huff... he won’t let you off-” “Don’t worry, if he comes my way, I'll send him your way.”

And just like that, Beret is dead with his heart gouged out of his chest. The remaining bandits are shocked by what has happened. Despair sinks within their hearts as they start to panic. After seeing the strongest person they know die in front of them, they don’t know what to do. Some cry out in fear and start running, while some cry out in anger and charge at me.

But it doesn’t matter. None are going to make it out alive. I charge at them killing everyone, whether they are fleeing or fighting back, I massacre each and every one of them. After a few minutes, I am standing amongst a pile of bodies of the bandits. The rain begins to fall so ever slightly, as if it is washing away all the blood in the forest. I then hear the sound of someone groaning and panting.

Hmm, I guess I left one mouse alive, huh?

It is Fire Slayer. I didn’t notice him since he was so scared, he didn’t dare to fight nor run but hid himself underneath the corpses.

He killed everyone. Each and every person is dead. He slaughtered everyone, even the ones who surrendered, he just didn’t care. And now I'm next. There is no way this boy is human. Not even a single hesitation from him.

“Now, it’s your turn Fire Slayer.”

“Please, please don’t kill me,” he pleads. “I was forced to work for them. They are the bad guys, so please spare me.”

What am I saying? This boy killed everyone, even the ones that were begging and making excuses. I’m so dead.

I stagger and brace myself on the tree. I've reached my limit. I should finish this guy before-

“Captain, the bandits are on this side,” a voice rings out, followed by the sound of hooves. 

Shit, they’ve already come. And that Fire guy takes the opportunity to flee. I can’t chase after him in the state I’m in. I need to leave before they get here.

I then run into the forest. I don’t notice at the time that Amy actually catches a glimpse of me as I am leaving. Even the rain and the blood can’t hide my blue eyes and white hair.

The village guards enter the scene.

“In the name of the Goddess, what the hell happened here?”

“It’s a massacre.”

The village guards are shocked by what they are seeing.

“Captain, have you ever come across something like this?”

Light’s father, Gerard, who is the captain of the village guards walks to the center of the campsite. He is a bulky kind of guy and is the strongest in the village.

“No. Of all the years I've lived, I have never seen such a scene.”

“Did... did a monster do this?”

“No. Whoever killed these guys used a blade. An awfully sharp one at that. I can’t tell if there were more than one person or not.”

One of the guards walks through the corpses. He sees the body of Beret.

“Hey Cap. Check this out.” Gerard is stunned.

“Is that who I think it is?”

“Yeah. Beret ‘The Carnage bringer’. Whoever killed him did us a favour. I don’t think we would have won against this guy even if twenty of us attacked him at the same time.”

“You are right. But who could have done this? There is one thing I know for sure.”

“And what’s that?”

“The person who was here was helping us. If we were to put everything together from the trail, which even a blind man

could see, and these guys. It's obvious.”

A guard comes rushing to the captain.

“Captain,” he says, panting. “We’ve found the girls. They are all on this side.”

“Are they alright?”

“Yes. They are fine.”

“So, did they see what exactly happened here?”

“No, they say they were at a separate part of the campsite. The only thing they heard were screams.”

“Huh, I see. We should take them back to the village for now.”

The girls are then released and they set off.

 

In the forest, I am still rushing back home. I can feel my breath getting heavier and heavier. I need to get home and drink a potion. I was so angry that I didn’t even think of bringing a potion. It was a foolish move on my part.

In my haste to get home, I keep falling over, near passing out. If I pass out now, I might not survive. I must keep going. With determination, I pull myself off the ground and start running again. 

I manage to get home just as the sun shimmers over the horizon. I manage to pull the last bit of strength I have left and drink a high-level healing potion and immediately collapse from exhaustion.

 

I wake up three days later. Both my exhaustion and wounds are completely gone. I notice two things after I wake up. The first is that my mana core seems to have expanded, at least twice from what it was. The second is that thanks to me overusing mana, my mana has now gotten denser than it was and my control over it has improved. That means that all my mana techniques have at least gone up by a level.

I also learned many things from the bandits, like using bloodlust and such. That Beret guy was strong. If I was lacking even slightly, then I would have died for sure. And that guy who was able to escape, Fire something, he used magic against me. 

If that last attack had connected, then I would have suffered a lot. I guess my Mana Barrier still needs improvements. I think it’s time for me to start with my magic training. I can train with magic whilst at the same time, hunt bandits. I wasn’t able to get their loot three days ago but next time, I should. It'll come in handy in the future.

Well, I guess it’s time to go to the village and check things out.

 

At The Village

Everyone in the village is cheerful. It seems that they are happy with Amy’s return. The village guards didn’t tell the villagers about what happened in the forest with the bandits so the villagers think they were the ones who took care of them. They only told the chief of the village and Stacy since she was trustworthy. 

The other children who were kidnapped were taken back to their village but since their village was somewhat destroyed by the bandits, the villagers soon moved to our village after a week's time.

It seems the village chief allowed them to move in.

 

At The Pharmacy

*jingle*

“Oh, look who’s back. If it isn’t the hero!”

“What... what are you talking about Stace?” “Well, weren’t you the one who saved Amy?” A cold sweat rolls down my forehead.

“I think you’re mistaken. I mean, how can I take down over fifty bandits alone?”

“Maybe, I am but I never said how many bandits were there,” she says, eying me squarely. “And you haven’t been in the village for the past three days now, so how would you have known?”

Damn, Stacy’s intuition is always spot on, but I can’t give in.

“Well, it doesn’t matter anyway, kid. So, what do you have for me today? Or are you here to get those potions you left behind?”

“The potions please.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. They are in the back room on the table. I made plenty so you won’t need to worry about potions for a while now.”

I then take the potions and leave.

Sigh, he’s still hiding his strength even now. But the level of his growth is terrifying. I heard from the captain of the guards that the leader of the bandits had a bounty on his head. It's a good thing that the captain didn’t cash in the bounty because that would bring attention to this village, which is something they don’t want to happen. Sigh, I wonder how far this kid can grow? I'm actually looking forward to it.

 

I go to granny Alma’s inn. As I stand outside the door trying with every fiber of my being to enter, I can’t bring myself to open the door.

I guess there is no need for me to check up on her. I'm sure she’s fine. I’ve got to go back home and start my training. It's better that way.

I didn’t realise it, but Amy was actually looking at me from the window with eyes that longed to talk to me, as I turned around and left.