First Outing II

"Do you guys really want to do this?" I asked as I weaved through their attacks, my senses were trained enough that even while on edge I could dodge their basic attacks.

They swung their swords down at me all at once and that's when I noticed it. The absurd difference between us.

"Why are their swords moving towards me so slowly? And there's no power in them!" I nearly shouted.

A young man with dark purple hair appeared out of thin air in front of me.

"Stay behind me, Young master!" he said.

"You're mother Serena's son, Cedric, Why are you here?!" I asked in confusion.

I was shocked but it seemed my father wasn't joking when he said he was around me at all times.

"Where did the other one come from?!"

"Doesn't matter! Attack again! We outnumber them!"

Their slow unrefined movements towards us were too obvious. I continued to dodge as I searched for an opening, a naive tactic for a first-time combatant.

"He dodged it again!"

"How did he do that?!"

"I'll take care of them, Young master!" said Cedric.

He was fighting two of them on his own and the leftover two swung at me, once again I could spot their wide openings.

"This has gone on too long!" I said as I released my Aura and let it flow through my veins to my fist as I punched the closest one to me in the chest.

A loud cracking sound resounded.

"Ughhhhhhh!!!"

Even Cedric was shocked.

"What?"

The man fell to his knees and began coughing blood while holding his chest.

"Agghhhh!!!!! *Cough* *Cough* *Cough* Ughh!!"

The other three moved back in confusion.

"What's wrong Ramon?! He barely touched you, what's wrong with you?"

The man looked towards me with a deep fear in his eyes as blood flooded out of his mouth and nose…

"M-Monster!! THEY'RE ALL BROKEN!!! Aghh!!!"

"What?! He barely touched you!"

Fear soon filled the 3 men left standing and they began to move away slowly.

"Attack him from a distance! Don't let him get to you, he's n-not n-normal!"

Their faces of absolute fear and the man I punched's face of agony were sights I would never forget. Hurting another human was foreign to me.

"I thought he was stronger! I barely used any power.."

"They're just scum, Young master! They deserve this!" Cedric shouted.

I moved towards the man to check him.

"Are you okay? I didn't mean t-"

"No stay away! Monster!! Kill him!"

"It's not my fault! You're just too weak I thought you were strong-"

I suddenly realized that I had only ever trained with my father, and I was used to going all out against a war hero with decades of experience. Mercenaries that hadn't even achieved Aura were only pitiful sights to me.

"You guys started this, I just wanted to find your boss, and I wasn't going to hurt you-"

That was when disaster struck.

[You Have Slain Apprentice-Ranked Swordsman X1! All Stats +5 For First Kill!]

Suddenly the man I punched froze and fell on his back unmoving.

My mind was shocked beyond belief.

"I killed him?!" I shouted.

"Are you okay, Young master?" Cedric noticed the strange expression on my face.

"He killed Ramon! You'll pay for this you bastard!"

"Let's attack him while he's down!"

"I don't feel anything. I killed a man and yet I feel nothing, no remorse, nothing. Am I a monster?!" I couldn't help but shout.

I felt nothing. Killing a man felt like swatting a fly, maybe this was the normal reaction or maybe I was shocked to the point of thinking something was wrong with me. Maybe the novel's world had always been such a place. Maybe I looked naive to those around me but I was an office worker only a while ago and now I had killed a man.

I commited murder and that fact engraved itself on my soul.

'I truly feel nothing, I know I killed him in self-defense but for me to not feel anything can't be normal!'

Cedric barely blocked them and was injured in the process with wounds on his chest and arms.

"Ughh!! Run young master!" he shouted

"no!"

I noticed Cedric was reaching his limit and In an instant, I leaped forward and struck out punches with my Aura-covered fist on each of the three men.

The three men were knocked out cold on the ground.

"Are you okay, Cedric?"

"It's okay, y-young master! I'm honored to give my life for yours!" he said.

"Don't disregard your life like that! I'm sorry, this all happened because I was too naive!"

Needles appeared in my hands and I instantly poured in my Mana and stabbed them into his body.

"Circulate your Mana quickly!"

I didn't really know Cedric yet, and this was only the second time I had met him and yet he was ready to give his life for mine without hesitation. Such loyalty could not go unrewarded.

"Young master, what is thi-"

Soon the bleeding stopped and his condition stabilized.

He touched his injuries in disbelief and then he knelt on his knee with his head lowered.

"I'm ashamed you had to use your knowledge to heal me! This is all due to my weakness!"

"It's nothing, your life is worth more than some Mana, go home and get a healing potion," I said.

"Huh…? Are you worried about my life? I'm sorry for my weakness, young master!"

He strangely shifted as if this was the first time he had heard such words.

"Stop calling yourself weak, you're such a strange fellow."

I got curious about Cedric and used the System Eye.

"System Eye!"

NAME: Cedric Godrend

AGE:15

LEVEL:15

SWORD: Apprentice(Capped Due To Defect)

MAGIC:2nd-Circle

STATUS: Physical-56 Metaphysical-75

Skills:[Stealth Mastery],[Advanced Footwork],[Genius Talent],[Absolute Loyalty].

Info: A [Shadow] raised for the heir of the Fellsword family, absolutely loyal to the heir. has genius talent in both magic and the sword and mastery over stealth and swordsmanship. Cannot form Aura due to a birth defect that blocked his veins, but can be cured by a large amount of Aura and Mana needling treatment.

"There is no better ally in this world, I have to help you then."

I turned off the system eye.

"Do you trust me, Cedric?"

"Yes, Young master! My life is yours if you want it!"

"Then lay on your back and close your eyes."

"Yes, sir."

I released my Mana and focused on the needles.

The healing knowledge practically took over my body and covered my fingers with my Mana to the point they were shining. It then began stabbing into his body with extreme force.

"Ughhhh!!" he shouted in pain.

"Just endure it!"

Just as I told him, he grit his teeth and held it in.

I continued injecting Mana and Aura into his veins interchangeably repeatedly and surging it to slowly tear down the slight blockage in his veins. A minor defect that he was born with.

AN HOUR LATER.

The skill stopped and Cedric coughed out black blood.

"*Cough* *Cough*! I…..I can f-feel Aura flowing!"

I had a funny thought…