Rude Awakening

Felix watched as Sofia left the room. Dim morning light illuminated the place as the sun barely travelled over the horizon. He got up unhurriedly and dressed while observing the town from the room's only window.

Despite leaving his clothes out to dry, they were still damp. The coldness of those clothes made him appreciate the warmth he had felt the night before. A smile escaped his lips as he remembered, with probably too many details, the events that occurred in this room.

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he looked out the window, searching for signs of his prey, until he saw her pacing the street below.

Just as he prepared to leave, he sensed movements on the other side of the door. He could have waited to see who it was, but he'd rather not take any chances, so he simply chose to leave through the window.

Fortunately, the window opened just enough for him to slip through. As he couldn't easily reach the street since his room was on the third floor, Felix chose to go for the roof instead. Since the town was relatively small and the houses tightly packed, navigating the roofs should be straightforward.

As he was scaling the building, the door suddenly came apart and fell on the ground as two goons rushed inside the room, only to find it empty.

Hearing the loud crash, Felix wondered why they would bother attacking him when Sofia had already stolen everything he had of value unless they acted independently.

As he reached the roof, he could still hear the goons trashing the place in frustration. The stupidity of such an action couldn't help but make him laugh. The innkeeper was obviously in cahoot with them, yet they would destroy the place just to vent a little.

Scanning the streets below, Felix finally found Sofia again as she approached a secluded alley. Using the roofs as a pathway, he made his way stealthily toward his destination.

Although the sun was rising and most townspeople were already up and about, most were only preoccupied with their lives and wouldn't take the time to check the roofs above. As such, Felix made his way to the alley quite quickly.

As he perched himself on the roof's edge, overlooking the alley below, he saw Sofia meeting three men who had been in the inn last night. They were part of that "Raging Beasts" gang or whatever. Their voices echoed off the alley's wall as if someone listening in on them never crossed their minds.

Contrary to Sofia's nervous appearance, the three men seemed quite relaxed, as if such a thing was as natural as breathing to them. Theft was undoubtedly one of their most significant source of revenue.

"What do you have for us today, little girl?" one of the men asked sneeringly.

Sofia unfurled the cloth she held, revealing the sword and pouch she had stolen. The three men's smiles grew more expansive, obviously aware of the value of these objects. Although the sword initially seemed ordinary, the scabbard material was exceptionally high-grade.

These men were professional thieves adept at appraising merchandise. They had seen countless swords in their line of work, and this one had them all beat.

The man who spoke first reached for the blade in Sofia's arms before examining it more closely. The scabbard was black and made of an unknown metal that was way more robust than iron. The hilt, from guard to pommel, seemed made of the same material, but the handle was wrapped in a cord layer for a better grip.

The man then tried to pull the blade out, but he was unable to. Sofia was quite puzzled, as she had already tried to pull the blade, and it came out quite easily. As she told this to the others, the men frowned at the revelation and ordered her to remove the blade, which she did quite successfully.

"An artifact!" one of the men exclaimed as they inspected the blade.

Surprisingly, instead of the usually metallic swords, the sword was pitch black and seemed made of something resembling bones.

The man holding the blade hastily resheathed it before wrapping it again in the same cloth that Sofia had brought.

As one of the men left with the blade, the other two busied themselves with the remaining pouch. Inside were quite a few silver and bronze coins, as well as two gold coins.

The men were quite happy with their loot, and Sofia waited impatiently for her cut. However, she was sadly disappointed when the men only gave her two silver coins for her trouble.

Upset by the unfair treatment, Sofia tried to argue with them, only to be met with an open-handed slap from one of the men.

Sofia recoiled from the impact, tumbling down on her side, somewhat dizzy. As her head cleared, she stood on her knees, begging to meet her brother, who is also part of the gang. Unfortunately, she was also denied this.

Still on the roof, Felix watched the whole scene play out apathetically. Even when the girl was hit, he showed no intention of doing anything and watched on. Any third party would wonder if this was even the same man who had tenderly held that woman last night.

Although Felix wasn't that cold-hearted, he was naturally a pragmatist. The fact that they had spent a night of passion together doesn't excuse the fact that she had stolen from him. He wouldn't go as far as to say she betrayed him, as he never really trusted her in the first place. That's why he was watching and hadn't confronted her yet.

As he watched, the young woman grew more desperate in begging, and tears started falling from her eyes. Such a sight struck Felix to his core. Usually, this wouldn't be enough to move him as he was much too used to suffering. He had roamed the battlefields from a young age. In the field of battle, pain and grief are commonplace. One must either adapt to it or become a corpse.

Felix chose the former, yet he couldn't help but feel something different for the woman below. As attractive as she was, Felix wouldn't usually be so quick to bed a stranger, yet it had happened. He first chalked it up to the woman's charm, but now, it seemed to be something more.

 As Felix mused over his feelings, the woman below was still begging, her desperation growing by the second. Exasperated, the remaining two men finally couldn't take it anymore. One of them used the back of his hand and struck her once again in the face, leaving red marks on her cheek.

Just as she was pushing herself back up, the second man kicked her in the stomach. The blow propelled her into the air until she hit the ground with a thud and rolled a little afterwards. She clutched at her stomach in pain, gasping for air.

The sight made Felix's blood boil. Throwing caution to the wind, Felix leapt from the third-story high roof he was on to the alley below.

Just as the two men approached Sofia again, clearly enjoying the situation, one was suddenly flattened on the ground, cushioning Felix's fall.

Just as the second man was about to alert the rest of his gang by screaming, Felix used his elbow to hit him right in the throat, cutting off his ability to make a sound. As the man was reeling back, reaching for his throat, Felix used his knee to hit him right in the stomach just like he had done to Sofia, only to finish him with a right hook to the face.

Unexpectedly, as Felix was beating a man half to death, the one he had fallen on was still conscious. As Felix was distracted dealing with his punishment, the second man rose to his feet with difficulty before reaching for his sword.

Meanwhile, Sofia was still on the ground, watching the scene play out. Once she saw the second man pulling out his sword, she tried calling Felix to warn him, but she still hadn't caught her breath. The sudden action only intensified her pain. She tried to work through the pain but to no avail. The words were left stuck in her throat.

Fortunately, Felix was already aware of the second man's action. He threw the man in his hands in front of him just as the other man swung his sword. As the man cut up Felix's human shield, the man's sword got stuck into his comrade's body.

Unable to pull it out, the man released his sword and tried to retreat. Felix unsheathed his shield's sword before thrusting it into the man's heart, killing him on the spot.

While the events played out, Sofia was still on the ground, stunned and in pain. The last thing she saw was two bodies hitting the ground simultaneously as Felix approached her. She seemed to hear him say something before she finally lost consciousness.