Thanks to all who have looked and read this fiction so far. The last chapter was written by myself and this chapter was written by Aquatic - Idealist. You may notice the difference in our writing technique but we hope you like what you read regardless of who has wrote what chapter.

Chapter 2: Missed and Trapped

Shinon's motto for life was to live it to the fullest. After all, Shinon himself felt that he wasted his life, having spent it helping the 'whelp' Ike achieve the title of "Hero." What did Shinon get in return? Well, besides being mostly ignored, he got he title of "that lackey of Ike's with the red ponytail." Shinon could hardly forgive Ike for having brought him such a disgraceful recognition in the eyes of the commoners, but, pah, what could you really do when you're nothing but a side character when the hero is always praised?

So Shinon kept his resentment towards Ike, and with Shinon as his teacher, Rolf got an earful of how he ought to make a name for himself. One night, when everyone was asleep, Rolf snatched a Longbow, a Killer Bow, and the little Bow that Shinon made for him. Making sure that no one would see him, Rolf shed a few tears as he sped away into the night. It was time for Rolf to be independent and to achieve the dream that Shinon lost: to live his life to the fullest as his own man.

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The next day, the Greil Mercenaries were in an uproar. Rolf was gone! Where could he go? Crimea, having just recently been restored, had many bandits still taking advantage of the unfortunate travellers. In these times, the only way some people could live was to fend for themselves. Oscar and Boyd's faces were etched with worry, for neither of them could sleep at night knowing that their little brother was braving the treacherous roads.

After having searched for Rolf for two weeks, the Mercenaries finally decided to let their lives continue without him. None of them were in good spirits, especially Rolf's brothers, Titania, Mist, and Shinon. Titania was rather worried for the boy. She was the motherly figure of the Greil Mercenaries, and with Greil's death, she was the sole 'parent' of their family. Mist had always thought of Rolf as a very close friend, and she even shed a few tears when she learned that they couldn't't seem to find him.

But of all the people who were worried about Rolf, the only one who felt guilty was Shinon. He told Rolf to live his life to the fullest, and Rolf took it as leaving the Mercenaries forever. Rolf was literally following in his teacher's footsteps, and Shinon remembered how he was nearly skewered by Tanith's Pegasus Knight squadron. He did not want Rolf to face a similar experience of nearly getting killed.

But if they couldn't't find their young friend, then what could they do? All Ike and his comrades could do now was look longingly at the horizon and wish for Rolf's safe return.

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For two months, Rolf found work as a bounty hunter. After all, it was the only life he knew. At times, he was asked to hunt down tigers and other vicious creatures, which he expertly did with the various bows at his disposal. Then, one day, a group of strange men paid Rolf to join them in 'resolving a dispute.' Little did Rolf know, he was getting involved in a gang war!

The beginning of the 'job' seemed fine enough. All he had to do was sneak around and retrieve some document from a warehouse, and was warned that several enemies would be around to kill him off.

He'd been in similar situations before. In the last War, he'd fought with the Greil Mercenaries in the Daein capital of Nevassa, and he had to manoeuvre through several treasure rooms. A warehouse is basically a giant treasure room, so fighting in it would be a similar experience. There really was nothing to worry about.

So, hiding behind one of the crates, Rolf waited until a small band of gangsters entered the warehouse. With Killer Bow in hand, Rolf popped up from behind the crate and fired an arrow, killing off one of his opponents. He quickly equipped arrows and fired as fast as he could, taking out that entire group. When that was done, he sneaked around and found the document. Then, he returned to his employer's hideout.

The employers thanked him for the document, but soon, thirty members of the gang Rolf had attacked appeared and surrounded that position. Rolf and the gang he helped found themselves outnumbered. There were only twenty one of them, including Rolf himself. Rolf, remembering how Ike held off enemy troops even though they were outnumbered, decided to utilize that strategy to protect himself and his comrades, even if they were criminals...