The Freelancer

?????? POV

Humans are weak.

That was the first thing I 'truly learned' after being brought into this world.

This world that we share with Elves, Beastmen, Demoniacs, Angels, all sorts of beings each different from the other and unique in their own way.

There are even more unknown races that occupy this wide world of ours. Sure there's a map, but every now and then someone would show up half dead with a newer one that extends the edges by a bit. For as long as everyone can remember nobody has ever reached the end of the world, or perhaps return to tell the story

All of these races working together hand in hand, the world as we knew it is the result of such harmonious unity.

A unity with humans at the very bottom of the rung ladder.

The Beastmen gifted with overwhelming natural strength, those who don't possess said traits are instead granted organs that accord them absolute advantages over certain terrains. Elves, Demoniacs, and Angels are not as strong, but their aptitude for magic and longevity was more than enough to keep up with the other races in spite of their small number.

We humans do not have any of those.

Our bones are fragile and the arcane miracles have forsaken us. The only thing we are better at than the other race is our reproduction, but quality pales in the face of quality.

In this world, we are not allowed to dream. We are their slaves, sacks of flesh that they are free to do whatever they want with.

Humans are weak, humanity had long ago accepted that.

But not all of them.

A small tribe, no bigger than a hundred people, found a way. A method that will finally allow us to take back what is ours.

A method that necessitates blood and time. To complete our vengeance we ran away from our captors and secluded ourselves from even our own kin, all for the sake of creating the means to retaliate against the unjust brought about by those stronger than us.

I was the final result of that 'method'. Its very cultivation as well as humanity's last chance to fight back. Since my birth, both my body and soul had been tampered with and my life was filled with nothing but training. It's not wrong to say that I may not have lived at all.

But my life was a small price to pay. For in return I became an instrument of righteousness.

Without a name or any relatives, just a cause that is also the wish of many. The sole meaning of my existence.

But even so, it is impossible to change the world alone.

When I returned to civilization the situation was even worse than I thought. I was labelled as mad for believing that we can rise against the other races and ended up being hunted as a criminal.

All hope seems to be lost for me, that is until the gods that I thought had abandoned us heard my despaired howl.

A little girl who appeared before me out of nowhere one day. I had picked her up not out of kindness but out of necessity. In exchange for providing her with edible material (usually raw meat and vegetables) and a place to stay, she would perform chores and other domestic activities.

It was after a while that I began to notice that she was not normal, no. She was a holy woman revered by the gods themselves.

Starting from her unearthly beauty, even after being with her for weeks I would be rendered speechless every time I laid my eyes on her. She usually kept silent, and no matter what kind of tasks she does she would perform all of them to perfection with unparalleled grace.

After a while she starts to affect the things around us with our harvest being the first, growing more and more bountiful with each passing days.

Then there's the quarry. Usually, I could only find one or two each week but not long after I took her in wild chickens started to appear almost daily. So many were their number that I ended up with a chicken farm.

Fishes also start to appear on a nearby river. After months of emptiness, the net that I placed on a nearby river was suddenly filled with fish, and just like the chickens, the amount was large enough for me to construct a basic dyke.

The food, however, was only the tip of the iceberg.

One day, just like the day I met her, I found a wounded man who was at death's door.

He was unconscious when I find him with three Beastmen hunters nearby. Spiriting him away seemed to be a good idea at the moment, and later on, my gambit paid off and he introduced himself as Gale. As it turns out he was expelled from society for the same reason I am.

He was only the first of many.

After Gale, we recovered the couple, Norman and Ella. Starstruck lovers who were sentenced to death by their respective masters for their very love. And after that, it was the thinker, Esca. Whose intellect branded him as a monster.

We started to really grow after that. With our knowledge combined what was once a wooden shelter was transformed into a genuine home.

My mistake, which I am still trying to make up for today, is forcing our saviour to perform duties that undermine her true purpose. Luckily after our influx in numbers, I managed to cease that mistake in an instant.

And it seems that that is what the gods wanted because the very next day we something fell to our very lap. Something that we could only ever dream of.

Manpower. For runaways like us even if self-sustainment is possible fighting is an entirely different matter.

All of us are strong in our own ways, but the difference in numbers will always be there. Applying hit and run tactics could work, but then it'd only be a matter of time before they corner us after realizing that we are a threat.

That is why when we found a prison transport bringing about three dozens of human, that strays from their original route and into our territory, we know the day of reckoning is at hand.

Once liberated they are more than happy to fight for our cause. Their individual suffering would drive any men to tears. Yet all of them had put their past behind them. With a smile and a noble cause, their mission is to make sure that no one would ever again go through the hell they experienced.

Tomorrow everything will change. Yes, it will be the start of an uprising. A flicker of embers that will set this entire world ablaze.

The beginning of the fulfilment of my purpose, and it was all thanks to her.

I'm currently located in a church that we built in her honour. It was nothing more than a slightly modified house that she resided in, but once we gained enough resources and lands the first thing we'll do is to erect an actual place of worship for her.

And with our current force, that hope of mine is not just a pipe dream...

"GYAAAAAAH!"

Fear filled my heart in as a pained screech filled the air. I knew who that voice belonged to, it was the twins' who usually guard the village's front entrance.

They finally found us, it's time.

Just like always I'm armed with my trusty short sword and buckler. I was always thought to never go anywhere unarmed. Today, to my horror, that lesson finally bear fruit.

I spared one last glance at her room, then to the wooden statue of the god of wisdom, the diety that us human revered the most.

"Please, bless us in this war of ours..." The word left my lips almost naturally. I can only wish for the best no matter how terrible will things become.

As I arrived outside, however, it became clear that things are much worse than I imagined.

Corpses littered the ground right outside. Some were impaled by spikes made out of the earth itself, while others died from what I can identify as spear wounds.

I bit my lip at the sight but this is no time for mourning, no, vengeance is what needed.

To my relief, the perpetrators are now cornered. What comes after however was a shock, as we are not facing an army of earth mage.

It was only one person, alone he had raised our casualty to this level.

He was caught in a pincer, stuck between Norman and Ella both armed with their signature weapons. Nobody could escape their double attack, left alone come out unscathed.

Fully knowing what they are capable of the lovers charged at him in perfect unison. Yes! It's the end of the line for him!

My hope was once again shattered the very next second. He completely ignored Norman and went straight towards Ella, with a level of skill that I've never seen before he disposed of her without even breaking a sweat.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Norman broke into a fit of rage at the sight, his charge now brimming with ferocity and indignation.

To my shock, he somehow turned around just in time to block the attack. But Norman's rage empowered the blow enough to mess with his footing for a split second. He did not waste the opening and continued on the offensive whilst exhibiting the rage of a Berserker.

He got him on the ropes, so I believed. Norman continued to push on the attack, not giving him any breathing room to recover. Yet in spite of his endless charge, the killer remained untouched. He parried and dodge every single strike while being pushed back. It was only a matter of time before he regained distance, and after that Norman would meet the same fate Ella did.

I won't let that happen. I have lost too much today and I will not lose another friend, even if there is only two of us left with her help we can undoubtedly rebuild our force. My main concern now is to get all three of us out of here alive.

Another cog in my head was this man's identity and his purpose. Has the oppressor somehow learned of our holy maiden's presence? Sending their greatest warrior to crush us and stole her to be used?

Never! I will never let such a thing happen!

I dashed towards him as fast as my enhanced leg can take me, hoping that I can make it in time. With the two of us together, we can at least make a...

A black silhouette suddenly burst out of the tree lines, it was so fast that I almost mistook it as a cannonball. It hit Norman's unguarded flank, powerful enough to sent him hitting the ground. But what downed Norman wasn't a projectile, it was an animal, nay, a monster...

A Jaguar with inversed colour between its skin and spots. It wore black armour with golden accents, with a snake-tail snapping around apparently having a mind of its own. Two gigantic blades float around his facet, gleaming beautifully despite its rust-like hue.

It devoured Norman like a famished person, ripping into his carcass and sending blood and gore all over the place.

"Tez. What did I tell you about eating?"

The beast stopped after being addressed. It resumed a second later but with much more control and refined that you would not expect from an animal.

My worst fear has come true. I thought that I could save my friends but now I'm nothing more than another sitting duck. I should have prioritized her safety over my friends' and flee the moment I knew things were hopeless.

I was a fool for trying to play the hero.

Noticing my presence the spearman tapped the butt of his spear to the ground, earth spikes erupting with me as its target.

I quickly dodged the first but he simply repeated his spell over and over again. Slowing down even a bit spell death, and I'm running out of breath.

"...." He pensively stared at me as I continued dodging, fully knowing that he's on a manhunt that he couldn't possibly lose.

That's what I'm betting on.

This situation actually benefits me as my greatest ability, (crisis core), allows me to build up power the longer and more disadvantageous the situation I am in.

Even if he's ten or a hundred times stronger than me, this ability of mine ability will grant me the needed power to overcome him, or at the very least disorient him enough to give me an opportunity to disengage.

I could only pray that his tamed beast wouldn't come after me...

Not taking my eyes off him the 'chase' continued. I was at my very limit, but I was able to catch the interval between his attacks.

I dodged another stone spike and unleashed my stored energy. As I expected, the power I gained was beyond anything I have ever obtained.

If it's like this, then I can defeat him! With that thought, I charged forward.

He attempted to stop me by sending more spikes and even erecting stone walls. But his construct cannot harm me anymore. My mana surrounding my skin protected me from the spears he conjured, while the walls couldn't even slow down my assault.

It was my victory...

"A bit too soon to say that don't you think...?"

All of a sudden a sensation of weightlessness engulfed me, brown filled my vision and I found myself not being able to breathe. Opening my mouth was a mistake as something instantly flooded my inside and clogged my throat.

It was mud.

I clawed my at surroundings, forsaking my sword in an attempt to grab ahold of something and prevent myself from sinking further. After almost a minute of struggling I reached the edge and pulled myself up.

The first thing I did after surfacing was to vomit, belching the mud out and forcing myself to swallow the rest.

I was careless...

"If I can turn the ground harder than it originally was, then it's only natural that I can also do the other way around you know..."

As I had expected he was already above me. I am now completely at his mercy, although it was obvious what awaits me is execution. There will be no survivor, though considering my state it might be better to say that there is no survivor...

"The girl... The one the gods had graced us with... What do you intend to do with her...?"

"Isn't it obvious? Her skill is too dangerous for both this world and herself. I was paid to put an end to you guys, but I might as well put her out of her misery..."

"...Is it impossible? To let her live a normal life..."

"...You only consider that... now...?"

"...It was... for my cause..."

"And it's exactly because of that I know that it's impossible to convince you otherwise..." He shook his head in disappointment. "So those are your last words?"

"No, I must know one more thing. Did you really do this only for the reward?"

"...That's the first half. The other is to stop you guys from throwing this world into chaos..."

"And maintain the enslavement of my kin." I spat.

He didn't respond. Looks like this small act of defiance is my last victory, he raises his spear...

XxX

????? POV

"What a waste..." I sighed.

It was a dirty job that someone had to do, an act that must be done for the greater good. Staring at the corpse of a beheaded girl doesn't really make me feel that I was performing such noble deeds.

"Guess not all of us can live inside a fairy tale..."

The oppression that this girl had spoken off was already long gone. Humans were indeed exploited in the past by the other races, but almost a century ago the abolishment of human slavery was passed.

The current era of this world was one of peace and advancement, where every race lived hand in hand assisting one another.

Not everyone can accept that. The people who warped her into the person she is today held a grudge for something that they themselves did not experience.

It's more likely that they simply wanted to rule the world and was simply using history for their selfish wish. But their untimely end left behind only the girl.

For better or worse, their legacy has been put to an end.

"Now then... I can leave the rest to you, right? Kami-sama?"

"Yes. I thank you for your service, traveller blessed by the earth."

Tezca turned defensive and put himself between me and the guy who appeared out of nowhere with all his fangs and double swords bared.

"Stand down Tezca, this guy is our employer. In fact, why don't you two go take a break?"

I can tell that he was a bit worried for my sake. Nonetheless, he accepted his directive and reverted to 'their' non-combat form. Splitting into a bronze furred cat and a snake with stone-like scales.

"Sorry about that Kami-sama. Those two are really protective of me."

"I understand. If you do not mind, please allow me to take care of the rest. I also do not wish to sound rude but..."

"Yeah-yeah, I know the drill. Outsider interference is taboo and all that. You can relax, I'll get lost and never look back once I got paid..."

He nodded and snapped his fingers, a bag of 'I assume is my payment' falling to my feet.

"Thanks for that."

"No. It is I who must thank you. That other traveller's condition and the girl who took her in... You have averted a cataclysmic conflict with no winners... Even if you proclaim that earning guerdon is your motive..."

"...See you around then..."

To my relief, he didn't push his question and left to do his own thing. Probably taking care of the girl who got Isekai'd before me. The poor girl jumped too many worlds in once incarnation she ended up losing her own consciousness.

She was nothing more than a doll with OP skillsets, falling on the wrong place at a wrong time.

The god of this world tell me that my endeavour was noble, while the girl curses me for accepting a reward for doing so.

None of them is wrong.

The jobs paid and I averted a possible end of civilization at the cost of lives. That's how it is and that's how it's always will be. I'm as pragmatic as people get, so stuff like this wouldn't burden my conscience one bit.

In fact, I'm just worried whether or not will I be able to get another job in time. Sure the payment is always handsome but said jobs are extremely sporadic, so every time I got paid I couldn't help but to feel worried that I'd turn up broke...

Sensing my distress Tezca rubbed his head against my leg, while Poca slithers up to my arms. They're trying to cheer me up, I really don't deserve these guys...

"Sorry about that. I'll buy you guys something nice when we get back."

Both of them happily meowed and hissed respectively. the future is bright, at least these guys convince me so.

'Testing-testing~. Can you hear me Daichi~?'

Or not.

A chill ran up to my spine as his voice reverberated inside my head. I gulped, how the hell can this guy find me so quickly!?

'I have my ways!'

Should've thought of that.

'What do you want?' I finally replied.

'Don't be so cold like that! I can freeze to death because of your cold heart you know?'

'If you don't have a job for me, I'm gonna hang up.'

'Fine~fine~. Sheesh~ you're such a buzzkill, no wonder you're still a virgin~'

'I'm hanging up...'

'Alright fine! Do you really have to be so serious? I know you control mud and all but that doesn't mean you have to stick your pole inside of it all the time...'

'So what's the job?'

'It's more of a project rather than a job really...'

That makes zero sense. I'm a Scrooge, I only do jobs that brings profit. He of all people should know that I won't take part in 'projects' that may not clean up.

'Also I'm thinking of calling in that one favour you owe me.'

'...What the hell are you up to?'

Yeah, I owe the guy one. And as much as I would like to pay it back in full what I owe him is not very tangible.

The only currency he accepted at the time was a pact, so now I'm stuck under his thumb until he asked me for that 'one favour'. For him to waste it on a project of all things is just impossible...

'No need to be all suspicious. In fact, if I pulled this one off, you'd have a secure job for the rest of your life~. Trust me on this!'

I have zero reasons to trust that white snake of a person. But as a man I'm a man of my word, and if what he's saying is really true.

'Fine. I'll jump back, but I want fancy food when we chalk up on the details...'

'Tuna sashimi and a real-life mouse. Got it!' Damn this guy knows me (and by extension Tezca and Poca). 'Call me as soon as you get back alright! See you till then~.'

Just like that, the line went dead. I sighed. Looks like I'd still be under his thumb even if I completed this crap.

"Whatever, let's just get back..."

I then made a [jump] back home, returning all three of us back to earth.