Aberdeen City, 16 years ago
Little Ansel heaved out a deep breath as they finally got out of the small tunnel.
It took him a while to get his bearings, and was only brought back when he felt something warm and equally dirty on his gunk-covered hand.
It was a little hand, covered with black-green stuff that looked so mushy and disgusting.
Still, he did not pull back his hand.
In fact, if he hadn't been so scared before he'd also realize that the hand she covered his mouth with was this very hand.
Little Althea, nicknamed Little Monkey, didn't seem to notice her handprint on the other boy's face.
She just pulled the boy and gestured for them to go. "Let's go!" She told him, her little voice a bit milkier due to all the whispering.
Ansel looked at her small hand on his, and nodded blankly.
"So, kid, where do you live?" She asked as they moved, looking down on him from time to time.
Nine year-old girls were generally more than a bit bigger than boys a year younger than they were. The two of them were no exception.
Little Ansel also had a timid personality and didn't eat a lot. So it was not surprising when the boy couldn't answer her question, and only stared at her.
"..."
The little girl mused that she had never heard him speak after hanging out with him for so long.
Couldn't he talk?
Like that cleaning auntie from the orphanage?
But before she could ask, they heard heavy footsteps not far behind them.
"There!!" The man yelled, sprinting. Even if they ran as fast as they could, their little feet were no match for the massive long legs of a grown man.
The man gestured to grab them but one more dose of adrenaline allowed them to avoid the grasp.
However, there were uneven rocks on the ground and they lost their balance anyway.
"You dare escape!" The man yelled and gestured to kick the little boy. But the little girl quickly grabbed his feet.
"Watch out kid!" She yelled, grabbing the fat leg with her whole body. Ansel saw everything and the quiet boy finally spoke up. "You—!"
"Run! I can handle it!" She said, flexibly letting go of the leg before getting kicked, avoiding the other man's hand and getting a few stones on her hand.
The timid boy could only do as he was told and ran past the trees and the bushes, sobbing, not knowing what to do.
_____
[28 days of Protection Period]
Bright Territory
Roaarrrrr!!
Hundreds of wild beasts approached the gates and the walls with massive force.
However, before the group of beasts could touch the wall, hundreds of wooden swords, and arrows met them head on.
They were standing on the wall, with just enough room for them, practicing their balance as well.
A few minutes earlier they had received notice to ask all citizens to help to deal with the beast tide.
In exchange, for every 100 monsters they dealt with, they would be receiving a certain amount of silver.
Ansel looked around as he killed a beast. No one seemed to be counting. How were they so sure about the number of kills?
Like seeing their stats, could lords have other omniscient capabilities in their territories?
Tsk. How annoying.
He vented his annoyance on the monsters, quickly getting in the zone and his rate of hitting critical shots skyrocketed.
[Used Stab (E). -3 Mana!]
[Used Stab (E). -3 Mana!]
[Used Stab (E). -3 Mana!]
[Killed! Gnomos (Lv1): +30 Copper, +30 Experience!]
[Killed! Gnomos (Lv1): +30 Copper, +30 Experience!]
[Killed! Hui Mouse (Lv1): +30 Copper, +30 Experience!]
[Killed! Gnomos (Lv1): +30 Copper, +30 Experience!]
[Used Stab (E). -3 Mana!]
[Used Stab (E). -3 Mana!]
[Killed! Gnomos (Lv2): +50 Copper, +50 Experience!]
The strongest mobs were at level 2, but fortunately the humans made up for it in number. Not to mention, the lord himself was at level 3, so they could manage.
Speaking of, that Micheal was really capable of wielding his sword. As long as the monster was level 1, he was sure to kill it in one or two attacks.
However, there seemed to be no end in sight, and eventually people started falling.
More or more people got injured or died and the morale was slowly dwindling.
Midway, the lord's group bravely went deeper into the fight and killed as many as they could.
Fortunately for them, the lord was also a good marksman, and he saved a lot of lives with his shots, earning him plenty of grateful stares.
With the lord and his cronies leading the way, newfound courage increased the morale of the whole territory.
Anyway, if they didn't fight now, the territory would fall, and they'd die anyway.
Ansel nodded in approval of his actions. He could at least acknowledge that the lord here wasn't so useless.
He threw away the sword with only 1 durability left and took out another. He also jumped down the wall, joining in the bloody 'fun'.
Tom and Artie joined them down, but Bruce understandably did not. He had a daughter to care for after all, he would naturally choose to kill from the safety of the wall, not risking anything for the sake of his Lily.
As they slashed through the mobs, gaining hundreds of copper and experience, they somehow found themselves near the lord's party.
Micheal and Ansel, at some point, even fought back-to-back.
"We work quite well together." Micheal said, slashing on a monster's eye.
Ansel didn't answer and jumped up, using his skills to push away the snap of the monster's teeth, and immediately making a sharp parry.
"Your brother taught you well, it seemed." The other man said.
But it was so subtle, combined with the cacophony of the chaos around them, Ansel wasn't sure what he heard.
This momentary distraction almost got him eaten though, so he forgot all about this.
Ansel immediately focused on the scores of enemies trying to eat a body part of his.
As he fought desperately, he could feel himself getting more and more skilled and he was energized.
No matter what, he ought to be strong enough to protect Althea when he found her.
He wouldn't be running away ever again.