Sympathy

"What the fuck are you?" Jack spoke, looking at the giant holding a dagger and bleeding unhealthy amounts with his back to the wall. The guy seemed severely injured; maybe he and the bear got into a fight, or that's the best he assumed.

"No, no, no. What the fuck are you?" Carus asked the little monster, who once shot a beard head off its body. It wasn't even proper to call this thing a person. It was tiny, which meant it wasn't part of the forest, and more importantly, it was much stronger than anything Carus had seen.

"Look first. I asked first, and second, look at yourself. What makes you think you are in any situation to ask questions?" He said this, cracking his knuckles with a smile as he walked towards Carus. Meanwhile, the giant, who had understood the last thing he would want was to get killed by this monster right now, sighed and started speaking.

"I belong to a village of giants." Carus began to tell his story to the tiny person, maybe hoping to find some sort of closure when opening up about it all. It was not like he had a choice anymore. He started being honest, not just with the person but with himself as well. It was a weird feeling to show vulnerability to anyone other than Rena. His eyes lit up with a certain flame when he talked about her. He was mad, and Jack noticed that, no doubt, but even the guy who never gave a fuck about others didn't ask him about it. Not because he was being sympathetic; hell no. He just had no intention of extending this sob story more than it needed to. So he just quietly listened.

When Carus was finally done narrating his tale, he felt nervous. He didn't want the other person to take pity on him or feel bad for him; that would only make him hate himself and his stupidity more. He didn't want to be told it's not your fault or everything will be fine if the person said anything like that. It would be like stabbing a knife into an open wound and twisting it for Carus, but the words he was afraid of, like that, never came. Instead, it was the sound of laughter. First it was a small sigh, then he could almost feel the man trying to hold it in before it finally exploded. Uncontrollable laughter as the man fell back on his ass while Carus could only stare at him. Did this guy not feel bad at all? Had he no sympathy? Or did the whole situation just amuse him? Carus could feel his blood boiling.

"HAHAHAHA DUDE You're such an idiot," Jack said, rolling on his back while holding his stomach. It was honestly starting to hurt because of how much he laughed before finally stopping as he lay on the ground, chuckling. "How big of an idiot are you not to see such an obvious trap? The girl who never talked to you before suddenly started talking to you as soon as you got power, and the guy who had every reason to betray you for the throne, you treated him like your older brother, trusting him blindly. What are you, a child? What is this rom-com where sh*t ends happily ever after? It's fucking life, dude. And life's a bitch. If you're expecting any sympathy from me, forget about it. You did it to yourself; you have no one to blame but yourself."

Carus opened his mouth angrily, as if wanting to retort against what Jack said, but he couldn't find words in his own mouth. He didn't disagree with any of what Jack said, and this monster's certain lack of empathy had helped Carus tighten his resolve further. Was he angry? Yes, was he sad? Yes, but will he give up in this certain situation? Fuck no. He still had his revenge, even if nothing else was left in the world. He'll do it simply for that.

As he looked at Jack standing back up, the image of him shooting a bear was still fresh in his mind. He knew if he was able to get this monster on his side somehow, maybe he would be able to overpower his brother and take back the village.

"Thank you, but I have a favor to ask. Please help me reclaim my village. I would bow down to you, but I am afraid if I try to do that right now, I'll bleed out more than I can afford. Please, I be-" Before he could even start begging, Jack spoke.

"Fuck off. The only reason I see not wanting to kill you is that you fixed my bad mood. I have no reason to be mixed up in your mess. You and your village could go to hell for all I care," he said, firm and loud with his words, making Carus realize that wasn't going to be an option. Then he'll do it alone, but can he really do it alone?

Jack did not care as he turned around to leave. A screen popped up in front of him after he read it. Jack's facepalm was so hard that a mark was left on his face. "For fucks sake," he muttered to himself before turning back and looking at the giant. "On second thought"