First Encounter

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

Blanc immediately turned towards the source of the noise. It seemed to have come from the deeper part of the forest. Wasting no time, he sprinted in the direction of the scream.

Blanc admired the Holy Knights since when he was a child. They are the protectors of mankind. They never back down. They always help those in need of assistance even if they have nothing to gain from it. This was their code. Blanc aspired to be a Holy Knight. He hoped that someday, he'd be able to join their ranks. Venturing deeper into the forest after dark isn't a wise move. Especially if one is ill equipped and not prepared. But he couldn't back down. If he ignored a cry for help, he wouldn't be able to look himself in the eye. His sense of justice won't let him back out. Hoping that he would make it in time, he fastened his pace.

***

As he got closer and closer, he was able to percieve many things. He could see sources of light in the far off distance and sounds of a battle could be heard. The clang of metal clashing against metal broke the tranquil silence of the forest. This was most likely a case of bandits attacking a caravan for goods. He decided to mask his presence to the best of his abilities and sneak.

Bandits were a part of the scum of humanity. They typically lived in places near civilisations and thrived off of innocent travellers. They would rob them of their belongings and hoard them in their hideouts. Ambush was their primary means of attack.

Blanc got close enough to be able to make out what was happening. A bunch of figures wearing dark clothes were battling against a few armoured soldiers on a forest path. The soldiers were trying to protect the carts and civilians behind them. Bandits usually didn't equip armour. Heavy armour would limit their mobility and hinder their movements in the forest. The soldiers were at a heavy disadvantage. They weren't able to keep up with the quick movements of the bandits. They were falling down one by one. Blanc was still quite far. He wouldn't make it in time. The thick stench of blood permeated the surroundings. He could see bloody corpses laying motionless on the ground. There were some bandits, but it was mostly soldiers and civilians. It was then that the last few soldiers met their demise. Blanc's heart sank. He wasn't able to make it in time. The bandits raised a battlecry to celebrate their victory. Their vulgar cries pierced the silence of the night.

With anger and regret fuelling his movements, Blanc moved faster than ever towards the scene. With no soldiers to protect them, the innocent people were the next target. With menacing expressions, the bandits started moving towards the civilians. The civilians weren't able to move a muscle. They were struck by fear and despair.

"Please, just let me make it in time" Blanc thought to himself.

Just as the first bandit was about to go for the kill, Blanc burst through the bushes into the scene. He made it.

"TAAAAKE THIIIIIIIIIS!!!" he screamed as his wooden sword found its way to the head of the bandit.

After confirming that the bandit went down, he swung his sword around taking down two more of them. The bandits were in a disarray because of this unexpected attack. Not giving them a chance to regain their composure, Blanc continued to take them down one by one. One of the quicker bandits snapped out of it and attacked Blanc. He doged the bandit's sword by a hair's breadth and countered, knocking the bandit down in the process. However, things were not looking good. Even though Blanc managed to take down 7 of them, there were still 10 of them left. They were no longer confused. Enough time had passed to wear down the advantage that he got because of his surprise attack. They were now attacking in an organised and precise manner. Each blow targeted a vital point. It was getting harder and harder to dodge and the bandits began blocking and evading his blows too. The difference in combat experience was becoming more apparent. Blanc stood no chance against them. Fatigue had started to kick in and his movements were getting duller. Upon noticing this a bandit threw some dirt on Blanc's face in order to blind him.

"Uggh" groaned Blanc as his vision went dark. He instinctively used his sword to shield his head from a strike. He got lucky, and felt the thud of a sword embedding itself in his wooden sword. However he wasn't able to stop all the blows.

"AAARGH"

A sword slashed his back. A bandit took the advantage of Blanc's temporary loss of vision and snuck to his back to deliver a blow. Seeing that they had weakened him enough, a bandit took his sword away and two of them grabbed him from behind. He tried to struggle in hopes of getting free, but it was of no use. They were too strong.

"Let go of me! Let go of me you scums! Let g-AAAH" Blanc was forced to exhale and cry out in pain when a punch found its way to his stomach while he was cursing the bandits.

"Quit your yapping, will you? Otherwise it won't end well for you"

said a bandit.

"You should consider yourself lucky. It seems that our boss has got interested in you. So he asked us not to kill you. For now." he continued.

While Blanc was left gasping for air, a slightly better equipped bandit presented himself before him. He had a sturdier looking sword as compared to the other bandits and his clothes were better than those of his subordinates.

"You did quite a number on us, didn't you, you brat?" He said as he propped Blanc's face up by grabbing his hair.

Still unable to catch his breath, Blanc was unable to say anything to him.

"Brat, he's talking to you!" said the first bandit as he drove another punch to his stomach. Blanc was beginning to feel faint after this. He was hardly able to stay conscious. His mouth had a metallic taste of blood now.

"Now now, there's no need for violence. We're not barbarians after all" said the leader of the bandits with a vulgar grin.

"You seem to have a knack for combat" he said.

"With that in mind, I'll give you two choices." he continued.

"The first is to die a slow and painfully excruciating death to make up for your sin of humiliating us" he said with a serious tone.

"Or.... " he continued while grinning.

"Join us, and I'll spare your life. I'll even reward you handsomely. What do you say?" he offered.

"I- I'd... rather die.... than be with... people like you" spat Blanc while barely clinging onto his consciousness.

"Now that's too bad, I have no interest in fools who consider themselves too good for the world. What a waste of talent." lamented the leader

"Throw him to the ground. I'll finish him off" he said to his underlings.

Blanc was thrown to the ground. He couldn't even muster enough strength to stand.

"Any last words kid?" enquired the leader.

"Go... Die" said Blanc.

"Heh" chuckled the leader as he raised his sword.

Just as he swung his sword in a smooth arc in order to behead Blanc,

"W-ww-what is this? Wh- AAAAH"

the screams of his subordinates caught his attention and causing him to stop right before his blade reached Blanc.

As he turned towards the direction of the screams, what he saw horrified him. Most of his underlings were dead. Their corpses mangled beyond recognition. The culprit was looking for its next victim. Its wolf like body as dark as the night, and Its glowing red eyes that would remind one of purgatory, were enough to strike fear into anyone unfortunate enough to come across it.

It was a demonic beast.