Borandelwalock is my name and I am a mercenary.

Two years ago, I used to be a knight, the most handsome knight in the entire army, but those nobles! Those. Bloody. Motherfucking. Nobles!

Being myself born in a noble house, I easy climbed the ranks in Knighthood and was soon the commander of an entire regiment. But I had a sin: Honesty.

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to do what my heart said. Always helping others, and going out of my way to do the right thing. This was the reason I was famous among the commoners, something the nobles couldn't bear.

So they formulated a plan.

One night, a wench came into my room with torn clothes and the next morning, I was accused of slavery and maltreatment.

Normally, I would have woken up at the slightest presence even in my sleep but that night I didn't. I couldn't. There had to be something in my food or drink last night! Something! But I had no evidence.

I was banished. I tried to plead to the King, but the nobles ganged up on me and I was stripped of both my duties and my honour.

Since then, I have become a changed man. As a mercenary, you work for the money and righteousness is something you eat for breakfast. It was something we scoffed at, even me.

There is no need for righteousness in this world. This world is rotten.

That is why, when a commoner tried to stop my mercenary partner(lackey), I inwardly burst out in laughter.

"Hey baby, wanna have some fun?"

It was a line I had grown tired of hearing. The one who said it was Growsowenk, and as I said before, he's my partner. But it was better to call him an underling, for he could never be my partner with his level of strength. It was obvious to anyone that he was jealous of it too. And not just my superior strength, but also my superior looks. But I didn't care, so I didn't say anything.

Right now, we were in the Robert bar, mostly famous for its weirdly short name than its food, which I found equally weird.

*sigh*

The waitress who brought our beers had been giving me a suggestive look before my ugly partner opened his mouth. She gave a sigh as if to say "there goes the mood" and turned around.

"Hey, hey. What was that sigh for? Am I not good enough for you?"

Growsowenk grabbed her wrist and pulled her as he stood up. The waitress struggled but he enjoyed the more she did.

"Don't you know it's bad manners to touch a lady without her permission?"

That was when the STRANGER intervened.

"And who the fuck are you? Her mother? HAHAHAHAHA"

*silence*

The entire bar went silent at his hysterical laughter and looked once at him and then at the stranger.

The stranger was a man with black hair and commoners clothes. His face was right above the line that divided the good looking with their uglier versions.

"Oh no sir, I am nobody's mother. But I sure remember doing yours."

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!

I couldn't remember the last time I laughed so hard! And it wasn't only me, but the entire bar that was ghastly silent just a moment ago!

As the laughter died down in a minute, one could see my partner's face as red as a tomato, possibly with anger or embarrassment or a mix of both. He had let go of the waitress's hand and she had scurried off to a distance.

"BASTARD! HOW DARE YOU!?"

*BAM*

A huge sound was produced as Growsowenk slammed his fists onto the table that the stranger had been sitting on.

But what was strange was that the table didn't move an inch.

I narrowed my eyes at the stranger.

He is no commoner.

There was something definitely strange about the man.

"Sir, I do humbly request that you keep it down. You are ruining everyone's day."

My partner, who had failed to notice the peculiarity with the table, gave into his rage.

"YOU'RE DEAD!"

"Not here."

As Growsowenk swung his fist, it was I who stopped him. I didn't care whether the stranger would win or lose but the resulting collateral damage was simply unnecessary.

I wasn't doing what I thought was the right thing. I did it so I wouldn't be caught in my stupid partner's mess. Yes, it was selfish.

"Can't we all settle this like gentlemen?"

The stranger suggested something cowardly, but from his expression it was hard to tell. It was almost as if he couldn't bother to care.

"Get your ass out of here, motherfucker. I'll show you how this world words, like gentlemen do. *smirk*"

His quirky comment would have been quirky enough, if only he hadn't shown off his disgusting smile as a follow up.

I noticed the Stranger's gaze towards the waitress to which this all started.

As I looked around, I noticed the waitress was standing holding her head down, averting her eyes from the Stranger's gaze. And it wasn't just the waitress but everyone in the bar, everyone but me, were looking at him with eyes of pity. They were thinking it was the end for the man. But no one stood up to help him.

This is what you get for trying to help those who don't have the power to help you back.

*sigh*

"Sure, go ahead." Said the stranger.

Everyone believed it a sigh of resignation, as him accepting his own fate.

Helping others requires power, something that I did not have and thus ended up here. Let's see how you fare out on this path you've chosen, young man and how long can you continue should you manage to survive today's ordeal.

Growsowenk was the first to head out and stood ready right in front of the bar, waiting for the stranger. I stood at the side, away from where the fight would seem to take place.

3rd came the stranger through the gates of the bar, after me and then most of the patrons followed.

The stranger stood in front of Growsowenk at a distance with crowd on either side. The people passing by seemed to get curious and joined in the audience.

From my view, the stranger was to the right and my partner to the left, both without any weapons, but for different reasons.

The stranger, for one, did not have one in the first place, and as for Growsowenk, I assumed it was a matter of shame, should he face off a 'weakling' with no weapons, with one himself.

"You know, I really don't wanna do this..."

The stranger again said something again which caused everyone to feel a tightening in their chests. Some among the female crowd turned back, believing unable to look at the obvious outcome. But. No one came forward to help.

"Scared, aren't ya? Don't worry, I'll make it as painful as possible."

I shifted my gaze from my partner who was crackling his knuckles, to the stranger. It was for a moment, I felt...like I saw him shrug his shoulders... before I was on the ground, panting and my heart beating so hard, I could vomit blood.

*heavy breathing*

....

My mind was blank as I struggled to ease my breathing.

I don't know how long it took, before I came back to my senses and noticed the situation. Everyone that stood there to watch the free show, now lay on the earth,unconscious. Even I had hardly retained my senses and was almost on the ground too, barely kneeling and sweating profusely.

I suddenly remembered feeling an intense heat wave, so intense, in fact, to have caused the event I was currently witnessing.

The person who happened in the epicenter was nothing more than a remains of charred bones, and from where the remains lay, I assumed it to be the loser of the bout: My dead partner.

I immediately turned my head towards the only man who could have done such a thing. Surely he couldn't stay unfazed at something of this magnitude either?

But no matter where I looked, the man called Stranger could not be found.

That moment, three things awoke in me, call them feelings or epiphanies.

First, was fear. Fear of the man, and that awesome power, which seemed to belittle that of any mortal.

Second was realisation, of what true power meant. Far different and leagues above from what those petty nobles indulged in.

And the third was was desire. For a similar power, so I would not need to bow down to any. The desire, to be able to do what I want to do again, without the care for repercussions.

I need to find that man and make him take me on as an apprentice!

There was apparently a fourth thing too.