The wind caused by the panic-stricken Roc was strong enough to force the men to shield themselves by raising their arms in front of their faces. This was enough time for me to close the distance between us. Remembering my five-year training, I focused on my breathing to keep myself calm. Then, I let the darkness in.

I felt my strength immediately increasing, but at the same time, I felt the urge to kill and destroy rising along with it. This was the feeling of bloodlust if I was able to control it. Activating my bloodlust not only heightened my senses and my strength. It also made me more powerful in magic. One skill that I was training for was to enchant my blade, giving it a dark red glow around it. Whenever I injured my enemy the magic would block their energy flow, thus weakening them both in the body and soul... is what I really wanted it to do, but I was just 13 years old and had no idea what I was doing.

So instead, the blade had a ‘hellfire’ effect, causing severe burns on opponents. I guess you can damage the soul with it as well. I mean it’s fucking hot. And, by Nu, the whizzing sound of energy pulsating around a blade was intimidating as ‘hell’. Do you get it? Yes? I guess I need to see myself out now.

Standing right next to one of them, I took the leisure of inspecting him closely. He wore dark gray garments that were pretty worn out and dirty. Tucked in a belt was a pretty shabby scabbard, full of dents and chipped at the edges. It was once lacquered deep red, but the color had faded to baby pink over time. The guy was still busy shielding himself from the wind gusts, so I nonchalantly stabbed my blade right into his torso. His flesh sizzled as it came into contact with my blade.

Using the palm of my hand, I plunged it deeper until the tip exited his body on the other side. The man gasped in terror as I cut through his body like toast. Thunk. His upper body fell motionless to the ground, followed by his lower half. Even though the wound area was immediately cauterized, the damage was too much. The air was filled with the scent of grilled meat. My blade was so hot, his flesh and inner organs were still sizzling as his consciousness slowly slipped away. Since he no longer was a threat to me, I shifted my attention to the two remaining men who became visible the moment my first opponent sank to the ground.

Unfortunately for them, they did not have night vision. The only light sources were the fading embers and the night sky at the entrance of the cavern which was currently partially blocked by a gigantic feathered fiend that was frantically trying to retrieve its egg. Its claws were too large, however, so all it could do was helplessly scrape at the entrance. The human traffickers drew their blades, trembling both visibly and audibly. They knew roughly where I was since the dim light of my glowing blade gave my position away. By clasping the hilt of my blade with both hands and holding it in front of me, I took a guarding stance, eagerly awaiting their attacks. Naturally, they didn’t disappoint me, charging at me - or rather at my blade - with a battle cry.

What ensued was pretty much an intense battle in partial darkness. The girls who were at the far back with the horse could only hear the dull clanging sounds whenever my hot blade crossed with theirs. But truth be told, no matter how epic it may have looked like with me easily parrying the haphazard blade swings of my opponents, I was struggling. Even though I could clearly see my opponents, they kept me busy with their attacks. I found no chance to strike during an opening or just push them back with the help of magic. In addition, the crazy Roc began to annoy me. Well, that’s what you get if you think you’re the greatest action hero but are actually just a little brat.

Woosh. I felt a slight breeze enter the cave. When I turned around, Violet stood there, holding the egg in her hand. In one swift bowling movement, she rolled the egg towards the Roc which gladly grabbed onto it and flew away with a pleased screech. In the next moment, she suddenly appeared next to me, her red eyes focusing on the taller man. With an elegant yet slow motion, she moved the palm of her hand up and stopped just a few inches before his chest. Then, she executed a powerful punch that happened so quickly, nobody but me could see it coming. The man was sent flying out of the cavern and fell to his doom with a loud scream. The next villain did not fare much better. Using only the hilt of her blade, she parried the attack of the only man left, grabbing his left arm and throwing him on the ground. I regained my composure and stabbed the man through the chest without using added magic. Since there was no heat to cauterize the wounds, blood aggressively splattered onto my face, making me look as if somebody had just emptied a can of tomato sauce on me (I guess toast, grilled meat, and tomato sauce make a great sandwich? I’m hungry now). The man gurgled one last time before bleeding to death.

I knew I was in trouble. She really didn’t need to make me flinch in pain, but she did so nevertheless. Violet was angry, questioning whether I wanted to die by overestimating myself. To the terrified girls in the back, it must have looked strange to see a young boy drenched in blood, his figure slightly illuminated by embers, nodding in submission, while a strange, dark-skinned woman was staring blankly at him. After she finished throwing one disorganized emotion at me after another, she glared at the girls in the back, her eyes glowing. Even though they were gagged, they screamed in terror, fearing they would be thrown to their deaths as well.

However, without wasting another thought, Violet simply marched right out of the cavern, taking the easy way down by jumping off the edge. I knew she would be waiting for me in the valley once I made my way back with these girls. And knowing that she was the resentful type, I had to accept my fate at receiving either a second scolding or an evil glare when we met again.

I sighed audibly as I wiped my face clean with my sleeve. Or at least I believed I did so. Actually, I kind of massaged it all around my face like some kind of wicked beauty mask, sending even more shivers down the spine of the captives. Alas, they were tied and gagged, so all they could do was keep on screeching with muffled voices. I faced them with a smile as friendly as I could. Unfortunately, the ghastly make-up and creepy boy smile were too much for them to handle. They all passed out right on the spot.