Chapter 1 – The first step

In a lifeless village, where everyday life is looking for something to do with their lives, villagers speak worried about the rise of passengers in the last years. Recently more outsiders passed by through the town, although it is good for business, they cannot lower their guard because of the possibility of being robbed from what little they have.

Someone starts talking over a box about the recent monster attacks in the area, the inhabitants are more concerned about how active the world has become. A young man in rags and covered in dirt carrying a slightly large sword and a sack in each hand goes into the village in search of a tailor.

People give him the right directions, and as the young man walks his way everyone looks at him and talks behind his back. After a short tour he arrives at his destination and inside he meets a man with gray hair so white that the young man's eyes squint when trying to look directly at him.

The old tailor drops a chuckle, a sign of being used to giving the same first impression for a long time. Unlike the rest of the people, he ignores the appearance of the young man, and when pointing it out the tailor responds:
“In this line of work the first thing you see in a person is what a customer can become. Each person is a work of art yet to be sculpted.”

The young man appreciates his wisdom and holds a conversation while his measurements are being taken:
“What kind of outfit will you want? Preferred colors? Usual postures?”, the tailor is very methodical about the details of his work.

The young man is quiet trying to answer each question clearly enough, the conversation is more of an interrogation.

“I want an outfit to travel, to cover the most essential, to resist the cold, walk a lot, be able to carry objects easily. I guess blue and black. I am more used to having my legs open and moving my arms, so take into account the area of the upper back, knees, and crotch.”, the mental effort to remember each question and formulate a clear and concise answer to each of them leaves a good impression on the tailor.

«Specific requests, he must have a clear objective», thought the tailor, “What is your objective? If you can tell me.”, asks the tailor while taking measurements of the young man's exercised body.

“Eventually I will take the King's Mountain Challenge far to the west and reach the top of the world, then I will be able to fulfill my goals.”, answers the young man in a serious expression, but full of motivation, a fire that the old tailor has seen more times than days he has lived.

The tailor claims that it is a suicide, even his lifelong friends left the town in search of adventures when they were young and then they were never heard from afterwards. He is the only one who has lived so long by having his feet on the ground and asks the young man to be realistic.

“There is no point in living if you do not at least try to reach your goals, whether dreams or ambitions.” says the young man with complete honesty that his words reach the heart of the tailor, they even made him feel young once again. “Although you say that it is a suicide, there is nothing else I want to do with my life, it is the only thing of which I am completely sure. Besides, it is not just for me, it is no longer just my dream.”, he says as he turns his gaze to his sword.

The young man appreciates the old man's concern and assures him that he is not just any person.

«That look, this young man is determined», the tailor deduces when he saw the face of his unusual client up close, until he saw more closely, «Those dark circles, how much have you cried in your short life? »

«You remind me of an old friend, but it is precisely this aspect that led me down this path», the young man thinks when he notices that the tailor is leaving professionalism aside.

Returning to the business, in addition to the outfit, the young man orders a few more garments and the clothes are stocked swiftly. From the sack he carries with him, the young man pays the tailor with a piece of gold little larger than his fist.

«Is this guy crazy? With this he would be able to buy a dozen luxurious suits», thought the tailor since the people have not gone through good times in many years. “Where did you get such a large piece?”, the tailor asks and gets the young man puzzled.
“I do not know; my teacher gave it to me for completing my training and to start my journey. He mentioned that it would help me stay in shape.”, the young man stands as he opens the sack and shows that there are many more pieces of comparable size occupying the entire space of his sack.

“I have never managed money, being an orphan, I only received what I needed to live if I fulfilled my duties in the temple. With or without money, I will live as I please.”, says the young man as he hands over the chunk of gold ore.

While the tailor worships the payment with bulging eyes reflecting such treasure the young man asks about the piece of cloth that framed on the wall.

“It is my greatest treasure, a piece of elf robe, very sturdy and light and has a great story behind it.”, the tailor replies with considerable pride and nostalgia, which was enough for the young man to ask enthusiastically to hear the story and the tailor is excited to have the opportunity to dust off his story.

"When I was young, as young as you, I was an apprentice in the family business, my father was an excellent tailor, so much so that he received orders from wealthy families from faraway places. One day a royal visited us and asked for a specific outfit, but my father refused, as it was impossible to get the most important material.

The reputation of the family fell because of the rumors that began to circle around, so I decided to grab the bag and go to the forest to get what caused so much trouble. I easily found it, but then I discovered the reason it was impossible to get it, the forest was infested with monsters and I was too deep to get out right away.

I was at the mercy of a large monster and just as I was about to get devoured the monster fell to the ground, completely stiff and I could see that he had received arrow shots. From among the trees came a man carrying a bow and told me to run for my life, but while saying it the monster moved again and I shouted with everything I had "Behind you!" and ended up injured because of me.

After easily finishing off the monster, I could clearly see that it was an elf, with long ears, very white skin, and incredibly young appearance. He retreated deep into the woods and all I could pick up as a souvenir was that piece of cloth from his robe. I never got to thank him for saving my life, but thanks to that I managed to live long enough to vindicate my family."

The young man listened to every word very carefully, thanked him, and asked how long his assignment will take. One day, so he has enough time to rest at the inn, get ready, and start his journey off on the right foot.

With an equally exaggerated payment, they give him a feast for himself and the most luxurious room, for a small town. At night, the young man spends his time discovering what a mirror is and makes his best attempt to remove all facial hair.

The young man looks in the mirror with his bare upper body, seeing how his body is toned, covered with scars, and remembers how he got every one of them. A jingle sounds and he sees the crystal pendant hanging from his neck, looking deeply into it in a deafening silence.

«Just look at you, after so much training, I am sure the two of them would not recognize you. Does it matter? We each took our own path, so there is nothing more to think about, there is nothing but to move on. », thinks the young man who clearly has not had much interaction with people in a long time.

After spending hours chatting with himself and baffling staff and guests with the noises of the shower and the mess of bathing utensils, the young man fell asleep like rock in the greatest invention ever, the bed, something he never had in his life.

The next day the young man soon began to wear his travel attire, hard-lewn boots, pants, tunic, jacket, long half-finger gloves, as well as a bag at the waist and even included a strap to carry the sword on his back. The fact that the tailor considered that the young man uses the sword was a great gesture.

While the young man talks a little more with the tailor, a ruckus sounds in the distance in addition to the voices of the people. When they leave, they notice that the town is under attack by werebears, beasts of five meters high, and there are at least ten of them.

The young man goes towards them, but out of nowhere fire comes out and the beasts start falling one by one, a few flee while from the fire rises a young man with reddish hair and his fists are covered by flames. The "firebrand" boasts of his victory, but one of the werebears rises to attack him from behind and is suddenly thrashed to the ground by a punch of the young man.

“Oh, thanks for covering me. You are a good person.”, the firebrand says very carefree, but the tailor approaches the scene and asks if the two of them are "adepts".

Both answers affirmatively and receive the news that in the village there is rejection towards the adepts, so they must retreat, far away.

They run away once people start gathering with pitchforks and shouting "Adepts! Adepts!" and the young man cannot help but engrave in his mind the image of the hatred they feel towards him without knowing him.

After getting away far enough, the two adepts rest to catch their breath a little, the firebrand presents himself as Guilian, a globetrotter who has spent some time touring the surroundings. The sword is laid on the ground and Guilian is reciprocated.

“My name is Chris; I am just starting my journey.”, despite the presentation Guilian only received a name and vague information, but it is the best thing Chris could get out, “What else do you want me to tell you? There are few relevant things in my life.”

Guilian asks him if he is really 'one of his own', as he does not believe that Chris is an adept, he only punched the werebear, but Chris immediately shows him that he is wrong. He is an Earth adept, he simply does not move earth, he uses his powers to increase his own strength.

“It is not about the power you have, but how you use it.” Chris explains as he manipulates the earth to prepare a bonfire, “Do you think it is possible that a human without powers could knock out such a beast with brute force?”

Guilian is a little intrigued by how the power of the Earth becomes brute force, but Chris decides not to respond, it is not like they know each other enough. Therefore, he invites Chris to travel together, the two defeating monsters while making their way into the world seems like a great idea.

“Well, where do you suggest we travel? Do you have anything in mind?”, ask Chris because it was Guilian who proposed such an idea, it is certain that he has something planned.

“No idea, I am a globetrotter, I just travel without planning. I take advantage of the opportunities that come my way.”, answers Guilian with a very blatant carefreeness that makes Chris sigh.

Chris mentions that he wants to go to the forest that the old tailor mentioned, he wants to do something about the old man's pending thanks.

“Wait, why do you want to go there?”, Guilian asks a little puzzled, “It is just an old man you saw a couple of times, isn't it?”

“Is there anything wrong with it? Maybe no one noticed it, but I heard what the villagers were saying behind my back, when I got to town, when I was having dinner at the inn, even while I was in the bathroom.”, Chris replies bluntly, “That tailor was the only decent one in the whole town, I want to reward his good heart. Life is only one and for him it is impossible to close that business, I do not want to give up on him, I cannot leave it unfinished.”

«Is him serious? He speaks with total clarity, he does not lie, he does not hide anything. His intentions are clear as water», Guilian thinks as he gazes at Chris's determined gaze.

Guilian laughs aloud, finding Chris's words refreshing, tells him that he is the first guy he knows that would dare to do something like that. Guilian thinks it is a great idea to venture into the monster-infested forest to find the elf village that no one has confirmed its existence for longer than the surrounding towns and villages exist.

“Are you serious or are you just being sarcastic?”, Chris asks as he realizes that his own idea sounds crazy once someone else says it.

“So, can I go with you? I have already toured the villages of this entire region and you do not miss much.”, Guilian asks ignoring the debate with Chris —«You're a weirdo, but hearing your reasons, I can't let you go alone, Iwould hate if you died so soon after I met you. »

“Do what you want.”, Chris replies after giving a big sigh.

«Which of us is dumber? Me for wanting to go or Guilian for following me? Anyway, I cannot allow that tailor to be left with such an unfinished business», Chris debates in his mind about his own intelligence and the influence of his first partner.

“Hey Guilian, I wanted to ask you, how did the werebears end up arriving in town? Yesterday one of the villagers only mentioned that the attacks were in the vicinity.” Chris asks curiously, he found the attack very sudden.

“Ah that, I do not know, they just came suddenly, they are very rude, I was eating orc meat outside the village, and they ruined my food. I wish we could go back to the village to devour their flesh as revenge.”

«Then it was your fault, firebrand», Chris concluded without much effort.

After half a day of walking, the two arrive at the famous forest and enter without considering that it is about to get dark. While Guilian uses his flaming fists to illuminate his surroundings, Chris guides the raid by perceiving the surroundings with his earth powers.

Once again, Guilian tries to figure out how Chris uses his powers, so Chris relents this time. By trying to control the surrounding earth, that area is like a part of his body, you can recognize the shape, position and everything that is in contact.

Among the trees, a female figure is resting quietly until something disturbs her. A smell that only gives bad omen, so she begins to jump among the foliage. Chris suddenly stops Guilian, says that something is watching them, but from one moment to the next, Chris warns him that a creature is approaching to attack them. He holds Guilian and pulls him to dodge the monster's onslaught, revealing its true figure.

A 10-meter-long, fully armored centipede prostrates in front of the two of them as Guilian prepares his fire to counterattack, but Chris stops him on the spot, warning him that his fire could set the entire forest on fire, wreaking havoc.

“Trust me, I will fight this time.” says Chris as he draws his sword and takes a stand.

«Impressive, just his pose shows how much concentration he gets in an instant. How many years have you prepared to have this level? » Guilian thinks as he watches Chris, as he entrusts his life to a guy he met that same day.

Despite how big his weapon is, he holds it with one arm and Chris runs straight to the centipede in a mutual approach. Chris slides underneath the creature and gives it a sword attack strong enough to lift the centipede and fall lying down.

Chris cannot relax yet, his sword hit it, yet he did not cut it, he must find a better angle to deal a critical attack. Immediately the monster rises and attacks a second time, Chris hits it with his left fist, turning it over and discovering his jaw.

He jumps to attack the same place, calm his breathing, concentrates his force on a single point, the shell was weakened by the first attack, a stronger attack must finish the job. With a sword attack faster than sight, the centipede begins to spill its fluids as it contorts from suffering, attacking both adepts with its huge body.

Chris stops the attack, covering Guilian, with his increased strength, although it is difficult to resist because of how slippery his body is from the fluids. As Chris holds as long as he can, a projectile fly straight at the centipede wound, leaving a huge hole running through its head, and falling to the ground.

The battle was intense despite lasting less than a minute, but Chris cannot stop breathing because of the shortness of breath, so his sight begins to fade and he falls face down to the ground. While losing consciousness he manages to see a few feet approaching the illuminated area as Guilian's voice drifts away.

As everything gets cloudy, a very deep memory in his being comes to the surface:
“What's your name?” a girl with a sweet voice asks tremblingly.
“Chris.” responds sharply a child with a lack of brightness look.
“You don't have many friends, do you?” the girl replies a little annoyed.
“You do not have to be with me. No one forces you to do it.” Chris maintains his barrier of indifference.
“That's not true, no one should be alone, at least... I do not want to be alone.” says the girl as she lowers her gaze, starting to speak more saddened.
“Do what you want.” says Chris resigned to the company.
“My name is Karen.” the girl introduces herself with a smile.
“…”
“Can you at least answer me?” Karen asks irritated by Chris's lack of manners.
“Why? You want company, I do not, talking is not necessary.” Chris is trying to cut off the possibility of conversation.
“You yourself said to do whatever I want; I want to talk.” Karen replies with a lot of longing in her eyes.
“You talk, I don't.” Chris tries to get rid of her.
“Even if you don't like it, now we're talking, ha, ha.” Karen’s strategy paid off.

«Now that I think about it, that is where I began to feel again, my heart began to beat and I began to feel alive. There is not a single day I do not regret how things ended» Chris reflects as he clearly dreams of one of the most special moments in his life.

Chapter end