Chapter 3: On the run

The man unleashed a flurry of flaming shots that were extinguished upon contact with my skin. "This must be a fluke, you're only a child!" He exclaimed.

I moved quickly, taking advantage of his state of shock. Grasping my sword, I lunged towards him, thrusting the blade at his right shin before he had time to understand what was happening. "Ahh!" He shouted in agony as he realized the extent of his injury. His right leg was now immobile, so he tried to flee by hopping on his left leg. I reacted quickly and hurled my sword at his other leg, causing him to collapse to the ground.

I approached the man as he was writhing in fear, gripping his leg. In a menacing voice, I asked, "You have nowhere to run now, do you?" I felt as though my body was not my own, like I was being taken over by a force that had only one goal, to kill.

"This doesn't change anything, your mother is still dead!" he yelled crazily. Ignoring his words, I was filled with rage and drove the blade into his neck repeatedly, until I had no more energy left. The weapon was so worn out that it snapped on the last strike. I backed away, looking at the corpse with contempt, and uttered the words, "Pathetic."

After realizing what I had just done, I shook my head roughly, "W-What was that? When did my combat ability become so fluent? That person just now, was not me." I said in curiosity and fear after my actions. I had just killed someone and there was no going back after committing such actions.

Watching his body more closely, I could see that he had on a decently expensive business suit that marked "V" with a circle around it. 

"Crap, that sign marks the territory of the influential Velk Round Table (The leaders of the village Tomo stays in). If they were to discover this, it would be trou-" Before I could even have finished my sentence, I heard footsteps rapidly approaching from outside the house. "We know you're in there, come out or we will come in there and drag you out by force!"

What? I questioned. How are they here? "In five seconds if you don't come out, we'll be coming in!" They shouted. 

Wasting no time, I jumped through one of the windows that was behind the house. Muttering to myself in disbelief, "Do they realize I'm just a child?" I packed away the herbs and supplies I had gathered into my Dimensional Storage space, which was located at a secret spot with a small opening beneath the building. Then, I sprinted off towards the forest.

Glancing back over my shoulder as I sprinted away, I spotted my former home engulfed in azure flames. It had to be Stein Cole, the village chief and the strongest fire mage there. Nobody else wielded that specific hue of fire. 

I had encountered him a few times in the village, but not enough to gain an accurate understanding of him. He seemed to be very active in battle exhibitions and meetings in other villages, so why was he here? I pondered.

I refused to keep staring behind me and instead hastened into the woods, putting as much distance between myself and my past as possible because there was no going back.

A profound sadness swept over me as I recalled the circumstances that had led me here. The adrenaline of the moment had kept me on edge for a while, but that feeling eventually faded. The images of my beloved mother and the home that had been destroyed by fire came flooding back to me. "I'm so sorry, Mum," I uttered mournfully.

(Fun Fact! Velk is the leadering members of the village and is notorious for their ruthlessness and corruption. They possess extremely capable members and are all experienced in battle, this is why Tomo had chosen to run instead of waiting to explain himself.)

(Another Fun Fact! Vulcan is the god of fire and is often praised by everyone in Elkwood, the village Tomo belongs to. The villagers of Elkwood has a special connection to Vulcan due to this, saying specific incantations in respects to Vulcan before casting a spell.)