The Duty of a Knight

Fear gripped him as he gazed into the eyes of the beast. His legs were shaking and his grip felt weak. The leader could not comprehend what was happening in front of him. He no longer knew what to do. It took him fifteen years to gather his followers to get to this point. The amount of sheer riches and treasures that he had accumulated over time were enough to make petty nobles envious. The life he was leading wasn't that bad. He could have anything that he desired. But all of that was taken away from him in mere moments. It felt like something was crushing his heart. He had no hopes. No matter how many underhanded tactics he used or how hard he tried, he could not win against the enemy in front of him. This was the first time that he felt like this. He felt despair.

Blanc who was barely clinging to his consciousness had no idea what was going on. He had accepted that he was about to be killed and was waiting for that swift blow that would end it all. However, that blow never came. Instead of that, what greeted him were agonizing screams of people. In a confused state, he looked at his executioner. The leader was frozen in his tracks. His expressions were those of fear and shock. He looked in the direction that the leader was staring towards and his eyes widened. He saw a demonic beast make a mess out of bandits and civilians alike. It did not discriminate against those who were trying to fight it and those who were not. Death came to all equally, and in a single strike. Blanc's heart sank. He wanted to save them. He didn't want anyone to die. He tried to get on his feet. But he couldn't even muster enough strength for that.

The leader could not take it anymore. He dropped his sword and everything else that he was carrying to get rid of any unnecessary load. He just had to survive this. As long as he didn't die here, he could start over. There was no way that he could win here. Retreat was the only option.

Seeing this, Blanc asked while shouting, "What are you doing?! Aren't those your men?! Are you just gonna abandon them?".

He turned towards Blanc and said in a shaky voice with the little strength that he had left, "Kid, that thing is a monster, there's no way that I can win against that. I'm not risking my life for these bastards. At least they can prove themselves useful to me in their last moments and buy me some time to escape."

Saying so, he bolted in the direction opposite to the beast with all his might. His figure disappeared in the darkness of the night.

"AAAAAGH!!!" resonated a scream from the direction that he ran towards, followed by two more of those beasts emerging from there. One of those beasts was carrying something limp and lifeless in its mouth. It was too dark to make out what it was, but Blanc knew that it was the leader.

"Hahahaha.... This must be a bad dream. There is no way that this is happening" Blanc said to himself as he started to deny the reality of the situation.

He couldn't do anything. He wasn't able to do anything. All these people here are going to die. He himself won't make it out alive. There was no hope. He felt like kicking himself. Why was he trying to play hero? A country bumpkin like him was better off doing odd jobs around the town. What a fool he was. He wanted to become a Holy Knight. What a joke! Someone like him wouldn't be able to accomplish that in a thousand years. He came here to save people but ended up getting captured himself. Now people are dying right in front of his eyes and he can't even stand up. He was a disgrace. Perhaps it was his punishment. He thought that he was someone special. That he could do anything. His arrogance had led him to his downfall.

He glanced at his surroundings. It was like a scene from hell. The people were getting slaughtered. It was a one sided massacre. Some were trying to hide in their carts. Some of them tried running, only to meet their demise by the hands of a demonic beast in the dark. Some were huddled together, trying to comfort each other in their last moments. Among these, he noticed a family of three. The mother and the father were comforting their child. This reminded him of the children back at the orphanage. He wondered if they would feel sad if he died. He won't get to eat another one of Lia's meals again. What a shame.

While he was lost in his thoughts, a demonic beast had made its way to them.

"NOW!!! RUN AWAY!!!" commanded the man in a stern voice as he threw dirt on the eyes of the beast and jumped at it, trying to buy them some time to escape. On his cue, the mother grabbed the child and started running.

"What are you doing? You can't win against that. Don't make yourselves suffer more" preached Blanc to no one. His voice was no louder than a whisper.

Angered by this, the beast swung its paw in a full arc and the man's body couldn't bear the strain. After shaking its head in to get its vision back, it went after the woman and the child. It didn't take long for it to catch up to them. Mustering all her strength, the woman threw her child away and screamed,

"RUN MISHA!! RUN AWAY!! YOU HAVE TO LIVE ON!". She picked a stone on the ground and threw it towards the beast to get its attention.

"OVER HERE YOU DUMB MUTT!" she taunted the beast.

"No! Don't do it! There is no hope" pleaded Blanc to no one.

Clearly annoyed, it decided to go after the woman. She ran with all her might. She had to buy as much time as she possibly could to give her child a chance to escape. This game of tag lasted for about thirty seconds. She tripped over a root that she couldn't see in the dark. Grounded, she realized that this was the end for her. Noticing this, the beast slowed its pace and took its time approaching her, as if to play with its prey. After it closed the distance, it stood in front of her to take a last look at her and bared its fangs.

"DON'T BULLY MOM YOU MONSTER!!!" screamed the child as he hit the side of the beast with a stick, breaking it in the process.

"Misha! Why are you here?! Run away! Now! Hurry!" pleaded the mother.

"No! I will protect mom!" said Misha defiantly.

"Please stop! Don't do it! You can't win!" pleaded Blanc yet again.

The beast didn't take kindly to this interruption and looked menacingly at the one who attacked it.

"NOOOOO!!! Why can't I move! I don't want this! Move!" cried Blanc desperately as he tried to muster all his strength to get up.

The beast swung its paw towards Misha.

"MISHA NOOO!"

She jumped in between the beast and her child and pushed Misha away to shield him from harm. Her death was instant. She was no more than a lump of meat now.

This broke Misha's spirit.

"Mommy?"

He fell to his knees seeing the state of his mother. Tears began forming in his eyes. His mother died protecting him. He was the cause of her death.

"No, this can't be happening. No! I have to hurry. Why won't these damn legs listen to me!" cursed Blanc as he tried to use his hands to position his legs to get up but fell again in the process.

Meanwhile he beast approached the child. As if to grin at his plight, it bared its fangs yet again. Not wasting any more time, it swung its paw.

"NOOOOO!" screamed Misha in horror.

"MOVE DAMNIT!" screamed Blanc with the last bit of his strength.

*ba dum*

Something awoke within Blanc.

*ba dum*

He felt the power pulse through his veins. Time had slowed down. Everything was moving very slowly. His wounds no longer hurt. He was able to stand now. He saw the paw of the beast slowly approaching Misha. He had to hurry. He looked for his sword. It was in a terrible condition. It was badly chipped and could not be used anymore. The leader's sword caught his attention. Gleaming in the light of the torches and the moonlight, it looked beautiful. He picked it up and dashed towards the beast. His movements seemed much more faster. He never felt lighter. It felt like he was walking on air.

After picking up some speed, he crashed sword first into the face of the beast, effectively taking out one of its eyes.

The beast crashed into a bunch of trees because of the momentum. Regaining its stance, it howled in pain. The rest of the demonic beasts heard the howl and rushed to help the injured beast.

Misha was in awe of his savior. Just as he was about to get killed, he was saved by the boy in front of him. He kept staring at him.

Assessing the situation, Blanc decided to lead the battle away from the masses in order to avoid any accidental damage. Looking around, his eyes met Misha's.

"Now listen to me carefully, I want you to gather everyone and run in that direction. There's a town that way. Please hurry, I'll lead these beasts away" he instructed Misha.

Misha could only nod.

Confirming that Misha understood what it is that needs to be done, Blanc provoked the beasts.

"I'm here you dumbasses! Catch me if you can!"

He drew their attention and sprinted deep into the forest. Once he got far enough, he turned around to face the beasts. With his newfound power, he felt like he now had the strength to take on anything. He took a stance and readied himself. As soon as the beasts had caught up, he launched himself at them.

***

The battle continued for a long time. However, Blanc did not manage to kill a single one of them. They were sturdier than he had imagined. His strikes only left shallow wounds. Their fur seemed to protect them from any damage. They were nimble and were able to dodge many of his blows. He decided to focus on their unprotected parts, like their stomach and face otherwise he'd never be able to defeat them. He looked for a perfect opportunity and he got it. He dodged a beast pouncing at him and got under it. He readied himself to strike the beast and-

*ba dum*

His vision got blurry. The strength was leaving his body. The world around him seemed to be spinning. Unable to keep standing, he fell to his knees.

"So I reached my limit, huh?" he said to himself.

The beasts understood that he had weakened. They cautiously encircled him, cutting off any chance of escape. Even if he was about to die, Blanc felt elated. Even if he couldn't save everyone, at the very least, he saved the life of that one little boy.

"Misha, was it? I hope he grows into a good person" said Blanc as the beasts pounced on him. He had no regrets.

*zap*

*crackle*

A beam came out of nowhere, burning all the demonic beasts to a crisp. The smell of charred flesh permeated the air. A burly man in a shining armor made his appearance.

"Man, now where did these come from? They're such a pain to deal with." he said.

"Hey kid! You alright?" he addressed Blanc.

He wanted to reply but words refused to leave his mouth. His vision was getting dark.

"Hey kid!"

Blanc fell into a deep slumber.