"Ok, I can do this! I just have to stay stealthy!" A boy said as he readied his twin daggers.
With a swift motion, the brown haired boy sprung up from out of the bushes and straight for his target.
"CROSS-CUT!!!" The boy shouted with determination.
The blades sliced deep within the thick skin of the creature. The beast hissed with pain and swung wildly with rage.
"Damn it! It activated its hidden ability." The boy muttered. The green monster charged recklessly at the boy, growling with hatred. "C'mon ya big bastard!" Before the boy could unleash his attack, a large blade was plunged deep within the throat of the beast, causing it to bleed out.
"Too slow ya rookie!" A man with silver plated armor said to the boy.
"That was my kill! MINE!" The boy shouted. "What are you even doing here Vance? Aren't you level 5 already?! Go to your own zone and let me level up!"
"No way kid. I'm saving you all the trouble and slaying the BattleBeast myself." Vance said.
"No, you're just keeping other heroes from advancing. You're a cheater!" The boy said.
"What did you say?! Just because you're from Hazen Reach doesn't mean jack shit. You're still just a little level 1 kid. You're never going to be a hero like me." Vance said.
"Fine! If you don't wanna piss off, then I challenge you to a fight! I'll show you not to mess with me!" The boy said.
"I'm level 5 ya little shit. I'll crush you." Vance said with pride.
"Go ahead and try." The boy replied.
Vance lifted his broadsword to the sky. "I am Vance Elliott! Level 5 Brute."
"I'm Shiro Tatsugami! Level 1 Rogue!"
"CLASH!!!" Both said in unison.
Shiro wasted no time running up to Vance, sending his multiple, rapid slashes all over his body. Vance parried most of Shiro's attacks and decided to counter.
"Overhead Slash!" Vance lifted his sword and brought it down swiftly towards Shiro. Shiro narrowly evade Vance's special move by side stepping. Shiro pushed off of the ground and sent Vance a vicious double kick to the chest, knocking him back. "Not bad for a level 1 Rogue."
"Quit talking! This is a fight!" Shiro yelled as he sprinted at Vance.
Vance smirked and prepared for a counter strike. "That's it. Keep running to me."
Once Shiro had closed the distance, he slid underneath Vance's legs, avoiding his second attempt at an Overhead Slash. Once behind him, Shiro had jumped up and spun himself around in the air giving Vance a bone breaking 540 kick to the back of the head. Vance had stumbled to the ground. "You shouldn't underestimate me because of my level. You're weak, regardless of the trash you talk." Shiro said. He then turned around and began to walk away. "Stay outta my way. I'm gonna be a hero just like I promised her...and then I'll go back and save her along with the rest of my home." Shiro said to himself.
"A hero huh? Don't make me laugh kid. You're no hero. You're just a lost kid that doesn't know what to do with himself." Vance chuckled. "Hazen Reach is gone and you aren't gonna save it you little bastard!"
"..." Shiro turned around and faced Vance. His green eyes now a deep shade of red. He stared at Vance with hatred. "Don't tell me what I can and can't save."
"They all died. You're just a lucky little shit that got sparred. You ain't gonna save shit in this world." Vance said cracking up as he got off of the ground.
"Cross-Cut!" Shiro ran up to Vance with his arms crossed. When he got in reach, he slashed Vance with an "X" shaped motion, effectively splitting his face open. Vance dropped to the floor dead with his face opened like a fruit. Shiro turned away from Vance's corpse and went on to go search for any BattleBeast.
-TWO MONTHS AGO-
(SHIRO'S POV)
"Shiro that's not fair! You went twice!" Said a small girl.
"No I didn't. I just made you think that I went twice." I said. The little girl pouted and looked away from me.
"Why don't we go do something else instead Maddie." I offered to the little girl.
"Are we gonna do more hero training?!" Maddie asked excited.
"That's the plan." I said to her as we left the chess board.
"Did you go on any cool adventures while you were away?" She asked me.
I felt a pang in my freaking chest when she asked that. I knew she hated when I left her, and I hated lying to her when she asked about this "hero" life. I wasn't a hero, far from it, but I didn't want to tell my little sister that I was nothing more than a thief, a criminal that has to constantly get bailed out of prison by their father. I wouldn't be able to withstand the thought of her hating me.
"Uh, yeah. I slayed bad guys and evil BattleBeast. Took out an undead army single-handedly, fought killer fish people, kissed a mermaid and made a dragon my best friend." I said to her.
My sister looked like she was gonna explode. "WHAT! NO WAY! THAT'S INSANE SHIRO!!!"
Truth is, I always wanted to be the hero that everyone looked up to, the one that people cheer for when they see you. The knight in shining armor. The symbol of peace...but instead, I end up in a cell for something stupid and our father has to bail me out. I can get off the hook given the fact that the King of Hazen Reach is my father. I probably stress him out though.
"Shiro!" Maddie snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Yeah?" I responded.
"What's wrong with the sky?" She asked. I looked up confused until I saw what she was talking about. Surely enough, the sky was red. I could see a skeletal dragon flying in the distance. My eyes widened. I scooped up Maddie and ran to the throne room. "Shiro what's going on?!" Maddie asked with a scared look.
"Don't worry, we'll be fine." I said to her.
"Is it the bad people again? The people that hurt mom…" She asked. That question hit me bad. I won't ever forget that day. I was such a damn coward! "Shiro!" I was once again snapped outta my thoughts.
"Y-yeah Maddie?" I asked as we neared the throne room.
"Daddy can't beat the red man again. He's not like he was before, right?" She asked.
"...Right...he is different than before…" Dad was much weaker this time. He can't use any of his abilities and is much older. He can barely use his massive sword.
"...You can beat the bad guys, right? You do it all the time!" She said happily. If only she knew how wrong she was. "You…you are gonna beat them right?" She asked.
"Shiro!" She shouted
"Huh?"
"You're gonna be the hero and save Hazen Reach, right?" She questioned.
"Yeah...of course." I should've told her the truth right there.
"You promise?" She asked. Why did she have to ask that?
"…yeah... I promise." I shouldn't have made that promise. I should have told her the truth, but yet again I was a coward and I knew it too.
Once we had entered the throne room, that was when my life changed completely and I knew that I wanted to make her proud of me. I was going to be a Hero!
-PRESENT-
"CROSS-CUT" I shouted at my opponent. I slice the beast easily with my daggers. I sheathed my blades and checked my stats on my ID. I was finally level 5. I had unlocked a new skill as well. I nodded and put away my ID. I brought out my map and checked it for my destination. "Rai Town is still a good ways north. I could probably make it there by sun down." I stuffed the map back in my bag and continued forward.
-THREE HOURS LATER-
I had finally reached Rai Town. It wasn't anything special, just a plain old town. The people seemed pretty friendly though. I had looked at the various shops. Most of which were closing for the night. I walked around the town looking for an Inn or at least and old shack to stay the night. I stumbled upon and place call Cozy Oaks Inn. I stepped inside and right away was greeted by beautiful blonde girl. Her icy blue eyes looked into my jade colored ones.
"Hello, and welcome to Cozy Oaks Inn. My name is Hannah." She said to me.
I rested my arm on the counter and grinned at her. "Hello my sweet. I'm Shiro, and yes I'm single." I said flashing her a smile. "I'm new in town, ya know? Mind showing a guy a good time?" I wiggled my brows like an idiot. "You run this place alone, right? Tough job for a pretty babe like yourself." I said to her as I moved in closer.
"Oh, no. My husband and I run it together. He is usually helping the blacksmith right across the street." She said with a giggle.
"Husband?!" I asked loudly. Just then, a tall brown skinned male walked in. The dude had muscles on his muscles. He brushed past me, knocking me to the floor.
"Hello dearest." He said as they locked lips in front of my eyes. Damn this was messed up. Once they parted, the man looked at me with an intimidating stare. "Who's the wimp?"
"Oh this is Shiro. He's new in town and needs a place to stay." Hannah said.
"Oh uh...n-no that's fine I'll just-"
"You can sleep in room three." The big man said.
"... That's really not necess-"
"GO TO YOUR ROOM AND SLEEP, BOY! I'M TRYING TO CANOODLE MY WIFE!" The man shouted.
"OK, OK...Damn!" I said back to him.
I quickly got upstairs to my room. I dropped my bag and flopped onto the bed. First time in a while since I used one of these. The amount of stress I went through up to this point plus the comfort of the bed put me to sleep instantly. I finally made it to Rai Town though. And they say that this is where the greatest heroes start.