4

As I walked, I heard a scream filled with fear, terror, panic, and despair.

Unconsciously, I accelerated to my maximum speed, using fortification and wind magic to reduce wind resistance. At that moment, I reached a speed of about 100 kilometers per hour. At this speed, I could already see the skyline of the village, but something was wrong. Absolutely.

The trees were destroyed, and there was a thick metallic smell in the air.

"N-no... this can't be..." - I muttered to myself, my face full of fear and anxiety.

But fate is such a bitch. I saw something I'd never considered, believing the gods would protect the village.

Everything was ruined, the corpses of people lying everywhere, torn apart while their fresh blood flowed on the ground or adorned the walls.

But I ignored them and hurried to my house, ignoring the people who were already dead. They were acquaintances of mine, but that was all. The only one I really cared about was my mother.

My house was destroyed, there were some holes in the walls, and the door was kicked in.

I began to tremble all over, thinking that this was all a dream and that I would soon be awakened by my ever-smiling mother, whose smile warmed my old heart.

As soon as I entered, I saw something I never wanted to see or experience.

My mother's body was lying next to the bed. There was a football-sized hole in her stomach, oozing thick red blood.

"M-mom..."

"A-answer m-me, please..."

But there was no answer.

Tears began to fall from my eyes. It became hard to breathe and my nose became congested. My heart began to beat frantically and my mind was busy denying reality.

*Knock-knock*

I slowly walked over and wrapped my arms around her cold body. Her eyes were still open and it was obvious that she had been crying a lot.

Seeing this sight, I burst into tears like a little child. Unconsciously, I began to recall the memories of our time together.

"My little baby, when you grow up, you will take good care of me, won't you?"

"Of course I will! I'll never leave you!"

She showed a smile as bright as the sun itself.

***

"Hee hee~ you're so cute Colin~ I could fall in love with you~"

"If it's going to be you, I don't mind!"

"Hehe~ you'll have lots of women, but don't forget your mother, you little heartbreaker~"

"I promise!"

***

"I'm s-sorry...if I had stayed, you...no, the village wouldn't have suffered..."

"Because of my own selfish desire to become stronger, I didn't pay attention to your safety..."

If she were alive, I'm sure she would have just smiled and stroked my head, reassuring me that everything would be okay.

***

I don't know how much time has passed, but I can't see the sun anymore. I slowly laid down her cold body.

My eyes fell on the pendant I'd made. Slowly and carefully I took it off. When I opened the wooden part, I saw my portrait and my mother's portrait burned into the wood in a round shape. Although this pendant was made of simple materials, my mother was so happy that she was radiant all day long. A day later, when I noticed it and told her to open the pendant herself...she just made a blank face, then she cried hard when she saw her and my face burned into the wood.

Slowly I put it around my neck and buried all the inhabitants, after which I burned the whole village.

I took nothing from there, neither meat nor water. If I can't find everything myself, then I'm not worthy of wielding this power.

I put on my dark leather robe and headed straight for the forest. From there, I would head east to reach Athens. Even though this village was far away, the locals knew where the city of Athens was.

"The gods are useless. Why did we make these sacrifices in the first place? Is it hard just to protect the common people from all sorts of beasts... I had my hopes up for nothing, too, knowing the legends associated with them."

"Useless rabble from another world. Refugees who have settled here and become arrogant, knowing that almost no one can stand against them. Afflicted... I will kill each and every one of you. Either I kill you or you kill me." - His face twisted in disgust and anger, but not for a moment.

"First, I must become stronger... I also need to improve my clothing and find some mage records. Maybe use the dead apostles? A good idea to learn more about magic. But that's something for later."

"I also need to create a moving and spatial storage spell. Learn more about confining fields and creating mystical codes."

"Maybe use Medea? She's a mage too, and a strong one at that. She's out of my league right now, but I'll try her in the future. I believe in my talent for magic."

***

Six Months Later

On a sunny afternoon, you might see a boy walking through the hills full of magical beasts. He was dressed in a dark robe that matched his dark hair and eyes. His face was indifferent to the beasts around him. But suddenly his eyebrows furrowed and his eyes narrowed.

"Somewhere out there, a strong magical beast." - He muttered to himself.

"Right in my way. Judging by the amount of mana, it has about 4% of mine. I'll try to kill it with my 2.5%" - With those words, he disappeared, leaving only the broken ground he stood on.