The night.
[Randall's POV]
Grumbling, I strolled back to the lounge, where the innkeeper stood.
As she played with her gray hair, her wrinkly fingers tapped the simple, wooden counter, while someone sitting on an armchair read a book.
"Nothing, nothing to do… Hm? Aren't you one of the youngsters who just arrived? Did you get lost?"
"Not really. I was locked out of the room, and I don't have anywhere to stay for the night…" I muttered, dejectedly.
"... What's your name?"
Still holding onto the pillow, I gave her an honest answer.
"Randall, I see… If you do something for me, I believe I can give you a solution to that, and a bit more."
Intrigued, I told her to shoot her shot.
"What…?"
And translated that to something she'd understand.
"I see. Either way, I think I left a box somewhere in the nearby forest. Would you mind fetching it for me?"
… Blind fetching? That sucks.
"Alright, I will… Any clues regarding the location?"
"Oh, just follow this," she told me, while handing over a compass-like item.
'I take it back. It's fine… Hopefully, it won't take long.'
I didn't give it much thought at first, so I walked towards the forest.
Both the tall, robust trees and the colorful yet rare flowers sprout towards the night sky, creating a mesmerizing scene. One nigh impossible to replicate in most of Earth's cities due to their concerning levels of light pollution.
Some large trunks of wood lay in the dirt, with moss slowly creeping up the outer shell, and grass popping out of the holes, thanks to the earth hidden in the insides.
I kept my eyes on this borderline magical scenario, as my thoughts slowly wandered.
"She would have loved to see this."
'... But she's not here. Not anymore-'
The yells of a few distant people brought me back with ease.
"Brother Jong, how's the search going?"
"Should appear in five- Nevermind, Brother Ben found the bastard."
"Then what are you waiting for? Bring me there!"
The owners of the two voices walked away… And I followed right after.
***
In the midst of a small clearing, four men and a woman surrounded a small, kneeling humanoid being. The sounds of chains reverberated across the opening, as the boy got down on his knees, pleading.
"Where's the bravery you showed mere moments ago, monster?!" Yelled the leader, while kicking down the chained human, with some wool poking out of his body.
The man with the dark overcoat calmly observed from one of the many nearby trees. In spite of the darkness of the night, and the hood civering most of his face, one could feel a glint of coldness emanating from his eyes.
"M'lady, remember we must bring in the rascal alive…"
"Yes, Brother Jong, I know. The boss wants the little slave alive, I know~" answered the woman.
From the distance, the hooded man created a lime scythe out of nowhere, and jumped off the tree.
Only to walk towards the group. Slowly.
But surely…
"P-p-please let me go… I-I swear, you'll never hear from me ag-"
An especially powerful kick cut off the sheep-like human's words, before a scoff escaped someone's mouth. "Be respectful towards the Lady, rascal," commented a bald guy.
"Wasn't he technically being respectful?" inquired another man, standing near the bald guy.
"No, Brother Peter. He did not address the Lady by her formal title, thus transforming his action into what can be considered a disrespectful one," clarified the bald guy, fully engrossed in the conversation.
"Thanks, Brother Yun-der. Would you mind carrying the little one, please?" asked the leader, while keeping a threatening smile on her expression.
"Your wishes are my commands, my Lady," answered Yun-der.
Just as the six hunters prepared to leave the area, with the prey, the hooded, lone figure descended from the trees, right in front of them.
The man kept his gaze on the kid for a fleeting moment, before addressing the group.
"Is that a slave?"
"Y-"
"No, it isn't. It's just our little brother, who chose to run away from home over not having meat for dinner," hastily took over the friendly leader, looking at Randall straight where his eyes would be.
"... As if," he muttered, before letting out a laugh. "We all know that's a lie."
Her façade disappeared, and she grumbled. "... Tsk. Brothers, you know what to do."
Ben, a lanky guy holding a normal, wooden staff, grabbed the passed out half-beast while creating a small, magic circle beneath his feet.
A fiery glow covered the bodies of the five assaultaints, boosting their speed slightly.
The others created a unique weapon out of thin air, each representing a particular thing, to some extent.
The leader swung her pinkish red whip, while Jong and Peter rushed forward with their longsword and spear, respectively, each taking a side to cut off the stranger's escape routes.
"There aren't many crimes that are as bad as killing…"
Calmly assessing the situation, the hooded stranger merely manifested his scythe towards the whip, shattering it in half, akin to a pair of adult, strong hands tearing a wet paper sheet apart.
"Agh!"
The leader straight up collapsed on the floor, clutching her throbbing head tightly.
"Slavery is one of them."
As for the rest of the group? They stopped dead in their tracks.
"What."
"The fuck."
"IS THAT?!"
As soon as the third one spoke, the hooded vanished from his spot, only the moonlight being barely capable of following his movement.
About a mere few seconds later, blood spurted out of ten wounds, all belonging to someone's Achilles' heel.
"Night."
Reappearing back on his place, the man knocked out the leader of the kidnapping squadron with the blunt end of the scythe. Naturally, the other six people suffered the same fate.
Even the kid.
"This body… Just how strong is it?" he wondered, while looking at his own hands.
Letting out a sigh, he got rid of the weapon, and carried every single one of the now-knocked out individuals back to the hotel.
"Sorry, Innkeeper, but your little box will have to wait…These people are way more important."
Thus, he woke them up, asked them some questions, and knocked them out again, only to deliver their passed out bodies to the entrance of a dark place.