2022-10-16 17:02:15Even before the sun rose, Alex had been standing alone on the middle of the village. He looked around only to find nobody came yet.
“Damn, if they knew what I know, surely they wouldn’t be lenient like this,” Alex grumbled.
While waiting for the villagers, Alex looked around and saw the remnants of the fallen demons. On his first journey, he was too late in learning that he could use them to power up his equipment. That was one of various factors which made him struggling along the way and suffer significant casualties. But this time it would be different. Using that as a lesson, he was determined to give himself a head start.
The roosters started to crow as the villagers started to show up. They were still at a loss of what to do, judging from their empty expressions.
“Morning! Though you guys are a bit late, I will overlook that for now! First thing first, feed yourselves! Nothing can be done on empty stomach!” ordered Alex.
When the villagers finished cooking and started eating, Alex made another announcement in front of them.
“Alright, so here’s what I want you to do for today! You see the lying bodies of the demons around? Collect their body parts, such as wings, horns, tails, you name it! Beside their hearts, you can toss the other organs together with their flesh in containers. They will come in handy later!” explained Alex.
The villagers were confused to hear that but nobody dared to protest.
“Senor, I think you’re going too far,” argued Salieri. “The thing you asked them to do was unsightly, especially when there’s food in front of them.”
“Rasheed thinks that is disgusting,” said Rasheed too. “Now Rasheed lost appetite.”
Alex expected this kind of reaction. But he was in no mood for explaining.
“You will see what I mean later. For now, I need you guys to enter the woods and bring materials like wood, vines, anything we can use to make a training camp,” told Alex to his comrades.
The civilians looked at each other and worried that Alex’s plan would make them expelled from their land. After all, a training camp was supposed to be made for soldiers, they thought. If one was built here, it could only mean that they would be sent elsewhere to give space for the arriving soldiers.
“Everyone, I am pretty sure that our hero has something in mind. He is not the type of person who acts without any reasoning. For now, let’s just proceed with his plan,” mediated Pandora while flashing Alex a seductive wink.
“Thanks Pan, I owe you one,” whispered Alex when Pandora passed by him.
“No big deal, handsome. Though I must warn you that nothing from me comes as free,” replied Pandora enigmatically, leaving Alex with his wild imagination.
As the party members shepherded by Pandora to the forest, the villagers began to gather the body parts of the demons. Some folks with weak stomach threw up while trying to mutilate the bodies, but in the end, they successfully salvaged the remnants all the while cleaning up their villages.
The day was almost over when the makeshift training camp started to show forms. A little bit unfinished here and there, but by tomorrow it should be ready to use. As simple as it was, Alex appraised that would suffice for the time being.
“Good job today, guys!” applauded Alex. “Now prepare yourself a dinner and rest early. Tomorrow will mark the start of your special training!”
Like before, the villagers who heard that couldn’t even speak up. After a day full of hard labour, all they wanted to do was exactly like what Alex told them to.
The villagers returned to their huts and Alex was about to do the same as well when Helene stopped him.
“Sir Hero, do you have time for me?” requested Helene while pulling lightly Alex’s cape, leading the two of them away from the remaining crowd.
“Anytime for you, cutie pie,” said Alex excitedly. He felt lucky tonight, though he was still wondering whether it was too early to make a move on her.
“I appreciate all the things you did for us, but I’m concerned about your approach,” opened Helene. “You see, it would be easier for us to execute your command if we at least have a glimpse of objective behind it. The way you behave could be wrongly perceived as tyrannical.”
Alex was a little bit disappointed. He thought Helene wanted to discuss about something else, but it appeared he put his hope a little bit too high. Anyway, he also realized that he had been a little bit overprotective toward his land caused by his experience where his kingdom and his beloved were snatched away from him. Unconsciously, that resulted in his current behaviour which could be easily misunderstood.
“Hmm, I see some truth in your words. Thanks for heads up, Helene. I knew I could always count on you,” said Alex while he patted Helene’s head. “Maybe one day you can give me another kind of head, if you know what I mean.”
“What kind of head, Sir Hero? I don’t understand,” asked Helene curiously. Alex just laughed while dragging Helene to meet the rest of the party.
“Squad, sorry for not telling this earlier, but I want to tell you guys a little bit about myself,” started Alex. “Please make yourself comfortable, for this one will be a little bit long story.”
Then, Alex proceeded to reveal the reason behind his cold and firm stance. Why he knew a lot about this world, the abilities and skills of his comrades, and stuff like that. He couldn’t tell them the entire truth, though. At least, not for now. So, he covered that by using his dream as an excuse.
“So, in summary, thanks to my dreams, I somehow caught a glimpse of everything in general,” finished Alex at the end of his explanation. “I know it’s quite hard to believe, but I need all of you to put your faith in me.”
The party rosters were still digesting Alex’s story, but eventually they decided to accept the fact that up until now, each and every Alex’s action was decisive and well-executed.
“Everything about you is weird,” responded Stella. “But your exploits so far were not too shabby, so I will give you a chance in the meantime. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get my beauty sleep.”
“Yeah, you will need lots of that,” mumbled Alex who had always loved to tease Stella as a way of showing his affection toward her.
“What do you imply?” interrogated Stella furiously, followed by the laughter of the rest of the party. Amidst the barrage of Stella’s light punches, Alex smiled to see his party members’ morale boosted. They went to sleep after with such a cheerful vibe.
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The next morning started with a brighter mood. The village looked cleaner than previous day thanks to the villagers who worked hard despite being clueless of what Alex was going to do to them. After they had their breakfast, they marched toward the meeting point. There, they see Alex and his peers were already on their place.“Morning, fellas! I see you’ve been doing a terrific job in executing my commands,” praised Alex. “For that, you have my deepest gratitude. For today, I would like you guys to prepare yourselves in case the demons attacked again.”“But the demons had been expelled already…” responded one of the villagers. He looked like he was in charge of the people there. “I don’t think they will come again anytime soon.”“True, but that was only because me and the gang were around,” replied Alex, countering the chief’s argument. “We are heroes of justice, but you people are not the only ones who need us. We can’t be here forever. It’s about time to stand up for your own good.”
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It was exactly a week since the training regime started. Alex evaluated the situation and decided the time had come for another safety measures.“Folks, you surprised even me with your stunning growth! At this rate, you won’t need anyone’s protection anymore!” acknowledged Alex. “I guess you lot are ready for the next in our plan!”“Before, apart from meals and occasional rests, your days were filled with nothing but scheduled training. From now on, everyone will train only for half a day!” declared Alex, followed by the hoorays of the people who thought their exhausting days were behind them.“Another half of the day will be utilized to reinforce the village and surrounding. I’m talking about making defensive ditches around, pitfalls, and other defense mechanisms!” continued Alex, quickly extinguished the villagers’ joys. The hoorays turned to boos real fast.“Now, now, don’t be like that! This will be useful in the long term, consider this as your future investment,” said Alex, atte
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Even before the dawn broke, Horat already left the village. He couldn’t wait to defile Alex’s reputation in front of King Romeus.As soon as he arrived, Horat went to have audience with the king, who had been eager to hear Horat’s report.“Your Majesty, I regret to inform you that the Hero you put great faith on, has abused the authority you’ve granted,” said Horat, beginning his subjective report.“I witnessed the Hero was trying to rival you there, acting like a king. He tyrannically ordered the villagers to commit illegal logging, plundering and pillaging the resources which I am sure without your permission. He even had the gall to enlist the civilians into his wannabe army, forcing them under harsh training. Women and children were exploited as labourers to manufacture the weapon,” exposed Horat. “I suspect he was trying to usurp your throne.”“Outrageous! Aren’t the party members there? Why didn’t anybody stop him?” interrogated King Romeus.“They seemed like they’re under the H
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“Cheers!” yelled the villagers as their wooden mugs clashed. Laughters were heard all around. The vibrant vibes were beautified by a full moon, too. Truly a night worth celebrating. Nobody would have thought that this cheerful village was once about to be ravaged by otherworldly beings before.It was quite a feast they’re having. For this special occasion, simple yet appetizing dishes were served, complemented by homemade beers and wines. Everybody was enjoying this festival which was held to celebrate their victory over the demon horde.“Sir Hero, we apologize for this plain hospitality,” said the village chief to Alex. “Though it may not be much, but we do hope that you at least found our sincerity through our offerings.”“Old man, are you kidding me? This is the best meal I’ve eaten in a while!” praised Alex after gulping an entire bowl of onion soup. “The last time I was about to eat lavishly like this, those damned demons had to come and interrupted my dinner!”Helene who sat bes
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The citizens flooded the roads when the heroes returned from their mission. They already heard the triumph Alex and his peers achieved through the merchants and travellers coming from the village. That was why they were so enthusiastic to welcome the champions back to the capital.The hero squad and Tristan’s army waved at the crowds, enjoying their minute of fame.But that bright atmosphere suddenly turned gloomy when they arrived at the castle gate. The guards stationed there stopped them and treated them like fugitives.“The king has been waiting for you,” explained the guards abruptly. “Make haste!”“Chill down, Hero. Maybe the news about your exploits hasn’t reached his ears yet,” calmed Tristan down. “Go ahead and have the audience with Your Majesty. There is some paperwork I need to do first.”“No big deal, I’m not obsessed with fame anyway,” replied Alex while leading his party to the throne room. He is prepared to receive any kind of harsh words from King Romeus.As they ente
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