Prince of The Abyss

Aether glanced at the village... trying to see if the goblins had reacted.

And sadly for them, they had.

They were going to have to fight...

”Damn it.”

Aether clenched his fist, feeling a deep pain in his hand.

’How am I supposed to fight...’

In a moment like this, he really wished he had also trained his left hand, but he hadn’t; he had hardly used his left hand.

Aether summoned Voidpiecer, giving it to his left hand... but the chains got in the way... he could fight, but it was very uncomfortable.

’So I’m really going to have to fight with my injured hand?’

He sighed, taking back the sword in his right hand... feeling the guard eat at his hand with each movement of his arm.

...

Yet as he was about to take a step forward, Kade put his hand in front of him.

”I... I’ll do it.”

Aether’s eyes widened; it almost made him laugh.

”What are you saying? Just leave me to do this, you will get yourself killed with that wooden blade.”

However, the boy’s will didn’t waver, the fire inside his eyes... it burned brighter than he had ever seen it. It was almost like something had awakened inside of him with the coming of his Will.

But it made him wonder if what awakened was a good thing...

He wondered if this new hope... was born from desperation... to be stronger, so that he could protect his family.

It could get him far... but at the same time it could kill him.

He knew better than all, after all, the times he had fought with this feeling. He had lost most of the time, if not all the time... so he knew that even if he stopped him now, it won’t help, the next time he would offer again, until he can’t stop him anymore.

...

Well, he had come alive out of all the times it had made him do something reckless, so maybe...

’It’s not like I have a choice, with my injury, I can hardly keep the blade in my hand... someone with a wooden blade probably has a higher chance of winning...’

Aether chuckled, slapping Kade’s hand away.

”Fine, you really are a brat, you know... I do wonder if you got that from me, since people do say the student takes after their master.

...

Kill them. Don’t you dare come back if you can’t after what you did now. I’ll make sure death is better than the training I’ll put you in?”

The boy nodded, a little nervous because of the last comment... but he knew what he was coming to.

”From what I saw, there are around twelve goblins that fight with daggers, four with bows, and their leader, who seems a little bigger than the rest, fighting with a hammer. The rest, either females or children, you can choose to spare them if you want; this tribe doesn’t seem to train their women, which is a very poor decision.”

Kade put his backpack down, so that he could get his sword out... a wooden blade, yet one that had killed bigger things than some... goblins. It had killed a human being; a little goblin will be nothing for it.

...

...

’Alright, Kade, you can do this... just some monsters that want to kill you... nothing special.’

He sighed.

Sometimes, he wondered if it had been a better idea to stay home...

’To rot alongside my family? Not doing anything to help them other than some housework? Yeah no... I prefer a change, even if it means risking my life.’

With that, he stepped through the bushes, into the village, where the goblins were already waiting for him.

Really, this was going to be really hard. Even if he had killed a human before, it was only one, so he could focus on him, but now, even if they were weaker, there were more... he didn’t have the skill to multitask as Aether did.

He couldn’t just drive forward and kill everyone that approached him in seconds, even with others attacking him from behind. He wasn’t his master.

But that isn’t really an excuse... after all, he is the one who offered himself.

And not only that, he insisted on doing it.

Kade took a deep breath, but before he could finish it, the small goblins jumped towards him. He stepped out of the way, but in exchange tripped and fell.

Getting back to his feet, he looked back where a goblin was already coming for him, with his dagger close to his head. So he twisted his body around, holding his blade horizontally so the dagger would hit it...

But he hadn’t expected the dagger to cut into the blade...

’Damn it.’

Taking advantage of the fact that his strength was superior, he pushed with his sword, winning the class, making the goblin stagger off balance...

But now... how was he going to kill him... after all, his blade could never stab someone, he could try and beat him to death, like with a bat, and just like he had done with the bandit, but if he remembered correctly, that time, he almost died because of this method.

...

There was another one... but it was... a little bolder.

...

Kade grabbed the bandit by his head, putting his other hand on his shoulder...

And ripped his head off.

Blood spilled out everywhere, even staining his face, but he had killed him.

Yet he was too focused on the front attack of the goblins, forgetting about the archers, so he didn’t see the arrow heading for his shoulder.

...

It hurt... it really did. But when you have eleven more goblins coming for you to cut your head off with your dagger, it’s not like you can really cry about it.

Taking the arrow out, Kade ran away, getting some distance between himself and the goblins.

If he couldn’t take them all at once, he was going to slowly kill them one by one.

And he wasn’t going to have to wait for long, as he was already being attacked, many were sticking together, which was making it hard for him, but seeing one jump in the air... he knew it had made a big mistake.

He grabbed him, stepping out of the way before the others could get to him, and ripped his head off.

This was the advantage he had, he was both stronger and faster than all of them...

Yet they had numbers.

Kade glanced at them, seeing how nine remained...

...’ Wait suddently there be...’

Quickly turning around, he put his blade in front of the goblin’s attack, stopping it, but damaging the blade even more.

He had gotten too laid back. Goblins may be dumb, but when it came to fighting, they had their methods.

Though... these events only separated them.

...

Blood spilled out as the third lost its head.

”Not there are really nine left.”

...

...

He hadn’t thought fighting some goblins would be so hard... but here he was, in a sea of dead goblins, and with his body beat up, either from arrows or cuts from daggers... it had been a long fight.

But he had done it... or rather, he was close to finishing.

There was one last one.

The King himself.

He hadn’t expected him to stay and wait for his army to be killed, but goblins are really egotistical, so it probably didn’t consider he was worth its time until the other died.

There was a big difference between the goblins and their king... he was taller and wider, but he also had equipment, a steel blade and shield.

...

But he was one opponent. This time, he could actually focus... but damn did he wish he had fought him first.

Kade dashed forward, thrusting his blade at the King, but he blocked it with his shield, making him lose balance, a chance the goblin did not waste, as he rammed himself into Kade, with the help of his shield.

He didn’t stop until they hit the wall of one of the huts.

Kade tried to fight back, but as much as he tried, he could never get past its shield. After all, how was a wooden blade supposed to beat a steel shield?

So after getting played with and being rammed into numerous walls. He knew he had to do something.

...

He closed his eyes... something that caught the goblin of guard..., but in his eyes, it was just the boy giving up.

...

...

’A new... river has opened up?’

...

As the King was about to deliver the last blow, the wooden blade suddenly started burning... actually, the blade wasn’t burning, but rather... fire had enveloped it in its might.

It wasn’t making the wood burn... it was helping it.

After all, the fire had come from inside his body.

Kade gripped the blade, thrusting it once more, the goblin trying to guard with the shield yet again.

Although... this time, when the tip of the blade hit the shield... it fought, trying its best to get through the defence of the shield.

Though the goblin didn’t let it beat him, putting all his strength into this clash.

Not knowing... that the shield was burning.

...

...

...

In the end, the blade broke through the shield.