Everyone sat at the table eating breakfast as usual, the only difference being that Niko had left a few hours earlier in order to take part in a particularly important hunt. The morning was strangely quiet now that the sounds of bickering weren’t reverberating throughout the room.

But with the unusual silence came a feeling of serenity that was rarely felt within the lively household. Dirk messily helped himself to his oatmeal whilst Misha watched him with attentive eyes. Nadia ate silently, not having much to do now that her brother wasn’t making a ruckus.

The m’am, who gave off the same vibe as she always did, gestured to Nadia.

“So what are you doing today, honey?”

This had become a sort of routine in the mornings, it was presumably a way to always know where the rest of the family was, possibly in the event of an emergency.

“I’m doing something with the girls later.”

“Oh? I thought you didn’t want to watch the boys hunt anymore.”

She shook her head as her face morphed into one of annoyance, “Not those girls. I mean Mari and her sisters.”

Apparently the mere thought of that particular group of girls irritated her to such an extent.

“Learning to sew then are we?”

“Yep. Can’t expect you to do the mending forever, mother.”

She broke into another close eyed smile,

“That’s sweet of you. I’ll be counting on you from now on then okay?”

Her eyes lit up, “Understood!”

The m’am’s gaze lingered on her eldest daughter, she was obviously proud of how she raised her. She then turned to Malt.

“How about you, dear?”

Quickly swallowing his mouthful, he wiped his lips with a cloth. Noticing this, the m’am tilted her head curiously.

“I’ve been wondering about this for a while, but you’ve quite the manners, haven’t you dear?”

Nadia chipped in as well,

“Yeah, you always talk so politely. Were you a servant or something before you came here?”

He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, “Yeah, something like that.”

The m’am stared at him him intently,

“Hmm...well I suppose that makes sense. And? Your plans?”

“Well, I was just thinking I’d take it easy today.”

She nodded in approval.

“You’ve been working nonstop since you recovered, it’s probably best for you to take some time to rest once in a while.”

After this exchange, everything went silent again. It really was strange not having Niko at the table.

But just as things became tranquil again, the sound of a door being slammed open reverberated from downstairs. Quick footsteps promptly followed as the person hurriedly made their way up the staircase.

“Ah, you’re quite early honey. Already done with the hu-”

Niko stood hunched over the railing, gasping for air. The grim expression on his face made it obvious that something had gone amiss.

“...what’s wrong sweetie?”

After taking a few moments to catch his breath, his hands clenched dangerously around the wooden railing.

“It’s Pavel. He’s back.”

The atmosphere quickly grew thick and uncomfortable. Even Kirk, who was a child of barely five years, seemed to be tense.

But most concerned was Nadia. She was hiding it well for the most part, but the fear could still be seen within her eyes.

The m’am’s face bore an expression that Malt had never thought she was even capable of: anger.

“That filthy pig, if only he’d never come back.”

Everyone sat in tense silence, all seeming to have an idea as to what was happening, except for Malt of course.

Realizing that the mood was getting much too dire, the m’am’s face softened.

“Well, nevermind that.”

She beckoned to Niko,

“Come have a seat honey. Nadia, can you get your brother a serving of oatmeal please?”

Whereas she would usually show resistance, Nadia just nodded obediently.

“Yes mother.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. Misha and Kirk, just finish off and leave your dishes in the sink, alright?”

They both nodded simultaneously.

Now that everyone had something to do, she turned toward Malt.

“Can you follow me for a second, dear?”

Not able to muster words yet, he simply followed her into one of the bedrooms. As soon as they entered, she closed the door shut.

Her face became serious the moment they were alone.

“I need to ask a favor from you, Malt.”

Hearing her refer to him by his name was jarring, but he responded nonetheless.

“...what is it?”

She stayed silent for a few moments. Whatever it was she was going to ask there was obviously some weight to it. After some contemplation, she decided that she would risk it.

“Can you follow Nadia today?”

His brows furrowed in fake confusion.

“Huh? But couldn’t Niko protect her better than I can? He’s stronger than I am after all-”

Her face grew even more serious. Considering that it was the safety of her very own child that was at stake, it wasn’t strange that she was willing to go to such lengths.

No words needed to be exchanged. Just her expression was enough to convey what she knew, and what she was thinking.

After a few seconds of silent pressure, Malt eventually gave in.

“Understood, I’ll think up an excuse to follow her around.”

Her face finally softened. But an expression of guilt remained.

“...I’m sorry dear, for making you do this.”

“No, it’s no problem. You’ve helped me out these past few weeks more than I can tell you.”

Seeing as the look of guilt didn’t leave her face, Malt brought up his real reasoning.

“Plus, I wouldn’t agree to do something like this unless I cared about you guys.”

The guilt was largely erased from her face. What remained was a look of sincere gratitude, so pure and intense that it embarrassed him.

“Thank you kindly, dear.”

A little chuckle escaped his nose,

“No problem.”

***

A dozen or so figures sat around a large round table.

Among them were the elder figures of the village: Oleg, the m’am, and of course Nasir, to name a few. The others consisted of older villagers with good reputations, each a master of their own craft.

This was the collection of the village’s wisest and most experienced minds. In a community where a concrete government hadn’t been established, this was the closest thing to a senate that existed.

The room was dimly lit and the only exit in the entire room, the thick front door, which was sealed shut. There were no windows in sight. Unnecessary openings were counterproductive to the purpose of the room.

It was the most secure, and most private place in the entire village: the meeting room.

Everyone was squirming nervously, meetings were rarely called and when they were, the subjects were often grim.

Nasir clapped his hands together, gathering the attention of everyone present.

“I’ll get straight to the point. Everyone here is aware of the hunt that took place this morning, yes?”

Various yes’s were heard throughout the room.

“Good, well I’m her to deliver some rather...disturbing news.”

Their inklings had been confirmed. This was indeed going to be a serious matter.

After making sure he still had everyone’s attention, he continued.

“One of the older hunters guiding the boys stumbled across a deserter camp.”

The room instantly erupted into anxiety, mutters of distress and worry began to arise.

Nasir raised his hands, trying to control his audience, “Now now, calm down. When he stumbled upon it, they had all already been killed.”

The room grew even more confused. One of them men spoke up, “Maybe it was some kind of beast?”

Nasir shook his head.

“The wounds they’d received were, for the most part, clean and precise. Many of them had straight gashes and stab wounds on them. Hell, one of them was nearly decapitated. Whoever did this was obviously adept at swordplay.”

Some winced at the descriptions.

Nasir let out a long, drawn out sigh.

“That’s not all though.”

He reached under the table and produced a small flint arrowhead. At the sight of it, Oleg’s face grew pale.

“They found this at the scene, among other makeshift weapons. It’s a little crude, but they definitely knew what they were doing.”

Oleg massaged his temples, stressed.

“That kid...I thought he was just fond of making dark jokes.”

“So you’ve seen him make these kinds of things before.”

“Damn right I have! I was sitting right damn next to him while he was doing it!”

Nasir then looked to the m'am. She’d gone completely silent.

“M’am...you knew about this already, didn’t you.”

She looked as if she were being tried in a court procession.

“...how could I have not? I’ve seen the kinds of scars he has on his body. They’re not the kind you find on any old farmhand or labourer. Wherever he came from, he couldn’t have had a wholesome upbringing.”

“Now that’s something I can agree with. I already had an inkling before he admitted it, but he told me he used to be a soldier.”

Oleg slammed his fist against the table, “A soldier doesn’t just sneak off in the middle of the night to nonchalantly slaughter a couple men in their sleep, even if they’re bandits. And using the craft that I taught him on top of that! No, that boy isn’t a soldier, he’s a murderer I tell you.”

“A ‘couple’ you say? We sent out scouts and in just a few hours, they found two other camps, all completely wiped clean. That’s a total of eleven bodies spread across three camps, all within the span of a single night. I don’t think ‘a couple’ does the deed he did justice.”

The room went silent once again as the numbers sank in. A young man who seemed in every way to be a caring and compassionate person, had managed to kill eleven men within the span of a night.

It was a grim idea indeed.

Oleg was still clearly distressed,

“That boy...what’s he thinking just making his weapons right in front of me? And just leaving the bodies out in the open? Is he stupid!?”

Nasir shook his head.

“I don’t think he’s stupid. He seemed pretty reasonable when I talked to him. I think it’s more probable that he’s testing us. He wants to see whether we’ll stop him or not.”

“What do you mean? We obviously will, right?”

He looked into the man’s eyes, he waited for a confirmation, but he never received one. He turned to the others at the table, looking for anyone that would take his side. No one did.

They looked at one another with guilt in their eyes. They knew fully well that the morally “right” thing to do was to side with old Oleg, murder shouldn’t go without punishment after all.

But they shared a thought that they wouldn’t dare say aloud.

They were all aware of the looming threat. They knew that if nothing was done, the bandits would one day descend from the ridge and swallow up the village, they were no longer as able bodied as they used to be.

If they went off to try and subjugate the deserters, the village would likely just be left without many key workers. The younger generation, especially the hunter boys, refused to take action against them as well.

They joked that the humans wouldn’t pose a threat, often making fun of their cowardice and weakness. But it was obvious that they were actually afraid, a fear of the unknown paired with the tales of human cruelty made sure they wouldn’t dare take action.

No one wanted to dirty their hands and risk their lives to eliminate this looming threat.

And yet, one day, a person who willingly played the executioner came along. If they did nothing, their problems would be erased, so what was the harm in letting the boy do his thing?

After all, it was glaringly obvious that there was something...special about him, for lack of a more appropriate word.

Nasir clasped his hands together,

“That boy...there’s more to him than he lets on.”