After an intense battle, Xeron emerged victorious, and
the strange monster lay defeated before him. "That should put an end to
all these monsters," he remarked to himself. "Still, I can't help
wondering: how did it get here? And… what exactly was it? I've never seen anything like it before."
Xeron lingered for a moment longer, pondering these
questions, when suddenly, to his immense surprise, he heard a voice coming from
behind him. "So, you defeated the Shoukan."
Xeron turned round, startled. Standing behind him, having
seemingly appeared from nowhere, was a tall man in a long dark cloak. A hood
was drawn over his head, so that Xeron could not see his face. "No
matter," the man continued. "This was merely a test run. Next time it
will be much stronger."
"What? Next time?" repeated Xeron. "What
are you talking about?"
"Nothing that concerns you, adventurer," said
the cloaked man.
"If you're the one responsible for that creature's
appearance," said Xeron, pointing at the fallen monster, "then I'm
afraid it does concern me, since I was the one hired to defeat it."
"And you would destroy the next Shoukan when it
arrives?" asked the man.
"If by "Shoukan", you mean monster, then
yes, I will," said Xeron defiantly.
The hooded figure nodded. "I see," he said.
"Well, I cannot allow that to happen. Your mission, and your life, end
here."
The man waved his arm, and suddenly Xeron was engulfed in
a blast of magical fire. He had just enough time to cry out in agony before
collapsing to the floor.
***
Xeron awoke in a strange room, staring up at an
unfamiliar ceiling. He had no idea where he was, or how long he had been
unconscious for, but he did know that whatever that cloaked figure had done to
him, he shouldn't have survived it. It had felt like a lethal blow, and yet
here he was, not just alive, but apparently completely unharmed.
Looking to his left, Xeron noticed a girl sitting in a
chair by his bedside. She was fairly pretty, with long blonde hair and large
sky-blue eyes. Noticing him looking at her, she smiled at him. "Finally,
you're awake," she said. "How are you feeling?"
"I… I feel great," admitted Xeron, much to his
surprise. "Where am I?"
"You're back in Tirera, at my house," said the
girl. "You're safe now. You were pretty badly hurt when I found you; it's
a relief you're okay."
Xeron blinked, then shook his head slowly. "It's not
just a relief," he said. "It's a miracle. That attack felt like it
should have killed me… yet I feel perfectly fine. Not a single scratch. Not
even Water of Life works that effectively." Slowly the realization began
to dawn in Xeron's mind. "Are you, by any chance…"
The smile began to fade from the girl's face. "Am I…
what?" she prompted.
Xeron decided to just come out and say it. "Are you
a Witch?" he asked.
The girl bolted to her feet, tipping the chair over
backwards, a look of shock on her face. "W-what?!" she exclaimed.
"How can you make such an accusation?!"
"Believe me," said Xeron quickly, "I have nothing
against you if you are. I just-"
"I'm not a Witch!" insisted the girl, though
her sudden panic made Xeron doubt her all the more. "You just… made an
excellent recovery is all! I…" The girl continued to stare at Xeron like a
frightened rabbit for a few seconds, then span on her heel to face away from
him. "…go. Please."
"What?" said Xeron, caught off-guard by this
sudden change in demeanour.
"Since you're feeling so much better, why don't you
just leave?" snapped the girl.
Xeron eased himself up into a sitting position on the side
of the bed, then stood up, something he knew he shouldn't have been able to do
so soon after such a heavy blow. Regardless of the girl's insistence, there was
definitely magic involved here. "Not without knowing the name of the girl
who saved my life," said Xeron. "Magic or no magic."
The girl was silent for a moment, trying to give him the
cold shoulder, but eventually decided that if it would get him to leave, she might
as well tell him. "Tara," she said. "My name is Tara. Now please…
go."
"As you wish, Tara," said Xeron. Without
another word, he picked up his backpack, walked past her and left the room. He
did not look back, and so did not notice Tara watching him leave, her
expression a mixture of sorrow and relief.
***
As Xeron left Tara's house, he noticed the mayor standing
outside, waiting for him. Judging from the length of the shadows on the ground,
it was late afternoon, and the sun would soon set. He had been unconscious for
only a few hours, then, assuming it was still the same day.
"Oh, hey, you're awake," said the mayor, as
Xeron emerged from the front doorway. "How are you feeling?"
"Pretty good, considering I just got knocked
out," said Xeron.
"About that… what exactly went on in there?"
asked the mayor. "We heard this almighty rumbling sound coming from inside
the cave, and when we went in to see what was happening, part of the cave had
collapsed and you were lying there unconscious. What happened?"
Xeron decided to go through it from the beginning.
"Well, I got as far into the cave as I could, and there was a strange
monster there. It looked like the smaller monsters were spawning from it. I
took care of it, but then this guy appeared… I think he was probably a Witch.
He said some things I don't quite understand, then cast some kind of fire spell
on me. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in this house."
The mayor nodded, taking in this information. "So
the Witch was responsible for the monster, which was responsible for the
infestation?" he summarized.
"I believe so," said Xeron.
"And the monster's gone, but the Witch is still at
large?" asked the mayor.
"Yes," said Xeron. "The cave should be
clear from now on."
"Assuming that the Witch doesn't strike again,"
added the mayor.
"Somehow," said Xeron, "I'm not sure they
will."
"You can never be sure with Witches," said the
mayor, the contempt visible on his face for a moment before he continued.
"But let's hope not, eh? Anyway, since the cave's been cleared, I'd call
that a successful job. Here's your reward, as promised." The mayor handed
Xeron a small sack of gold, and some health potions.
"Thank you, sir," said Xeron, swiftly putting
the gold away in his pack.
"While you're here, why not stay the night?"
offered the mayor. "It's kinda far to the next town, and I'm sure you need
your rest. We'd be happy to have you."
Xeron pondered the offer for a moment, then nodded.
"Sure, I guess I could stay the night," he said.
"Glad to hear it!" said the mayor. "I'll
talk to the innkeeper, and get him to reserve a room for you."
"Thank you, sir," said Xeron.
"Well, I'll be seeing you, then," said the
mayor. "I have other things to attend to for now. Thanks again for your
help." The mayor smiled at Xeron, then headed off back towards the village
hall.
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