Chapter 13: Chill of the Night

Slowly turning around, he looked at the 15 people standing outside his stall. They were all men, with their faces covered differently, some crudely and effortlessly. He gave them a helpless smile.

"Why do many? Aren't I just a kid?" He asked while sighing and scratching his head, while being showered with cold water.

A man, with his face half covered from the bottom, pointed at him using a short sword. He looked to be the leader, and the strongest among them. "You killed a beast, though a cub, it's still a beast. And you're going to be Frozen Huntsman in the future, I'm certain. So don't fool us, kid. That won't work."

Valier smirked, displaying his unfazed expression. "So you're gonna steal from me? Aren't you afraid of the consequences?"

"No. And that's part of the plan, but not the goal. We're here to kill you, kid. Better end you now, than let you grow into a proper Frozen Huntsman." The man spoke while advancing forward, with his men at his side.

Looking at them, who agreed with the leader's words, Valier's face slowly darkened. 'They aren't afraid of the consequences since someone is backing them. It seems that my sudden intrusion in the Frozen Huntsman isn't welcome by someone.'

It had to be expected. And he already knew that this would happen from the moment Peirus gave him the crystals in front of everyone. It wasn't just to test him if he's able to prevent the crystals from being stolen. And it wasn't just to provide him with money for him to rise as a hunter much easier.

Also, it wasn't just for compensation and future investment. Certainly, Peirus was planning on weeding out the people doing bad things behind his back. He's killing so many birds in one stone!

'There's a chance Peirus will pop up and defeat these men, and interrogate them about the person that sent them. However, there's also a chance he won't.' The men were already very close as he spoke in his mind. They were ready to launch at him, overwhelming him with their numbers.

Even with the bow and arrow he brought, the likely outcome of the battle will be his ultimate demise. There is no way he could brawl them all at once. He had no choice but to think of a way out. And he did, in a second.

"What's that!?" Valier exclaimed, pointing at the ceiling above the men while displaying a surprise face. Hearing his alarmed voice, all the men looked skyward.

Without prior notice, the torches around the room and the torches the men held died, plunging the whole room in darkness, startling all of them at once.

"What happened!?" "The light died!" "All of them!?"

The dark room became noisy, only to quiet down when the leader lit up one of the torches they carried. However, just as the leader felt relieved, his men pointed at the stall, making him look towards it.

It was empty.

"Where did he go!?" He glanced around, but Valier was nowhere to be found. That was when he caught sight of the twinkling stars through the open window above the showerhead. Instantly, he realized what had happened. They had been tricked!

"Quick, follow him!" Luckily, his men were quick to catch on and went into action.

….

While running under the moonless night sky, soaked in water, naked as the day he was born, Valier gritted his teeth, enduring the harsh cold winds slamming against his bare skin just to get away from the enemies.

Stealing a quick glance back at the bathhouse, men were swarming out from the front door. Not wanting to die, Valier speeded towards the area occupied by tents, where most hunters sleep at night.

'I just have to—!' His steps redirected as a knife passed by his left cheek, missing him by only a few inches. Looking at where it came from, the sight made him gulp with anxiety. There were so many enemies, and only one of him.

And they were catching up, especially the man holding a club lined with thorns. He was catching up, as he ran much faster than the others. In just a few moments, he was at Valier's back, and struck from above.

Thankfully, Valier noticed on time and leaped out of the way, rolling for a short moment before hastily getting up. However, before he could stand, he was struck in the side and was sent tumbling on the ground.

The one that kicked him was the leader, and he did not waste his time and dashed towards Valier with his sword prepared to kill. Seeing him coming, Valier quickly hopped away, dodging sword by hairbreadth from slicing his neck.

Gritting his teeth, Valier gave them a menacing glare as he stepped sideways, startling the man that was attacking as he only punched the air. Like a being slammed by a hurling rock, the man felt Valier's punch at the bottom of his rib in his side. He was sent soaring, and tumbling.

Valier might be a kid, but he wasn't someone normal. That was why he became a hunter in the first place, because his physical strength doesn't match his age. He was twice as physically stronger than those of his peers, leading him to be treated differently by them.

Seeing the ferocious punch, the leader paused for a second before pointing his sword at him. "All of you, attack! Overwhelm him!"

They did as they were told. They circled Valier, with their weapons ready. And without giving Valier a chance to do anything else, they all launched towards him.

Valier managed to dodge a few blows, and some sword strikes, but it did not take long for him to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of attacks. One wrong step backwards exposed his abdominal area, leading it to be slammed by a hard fist.

His heavy body got sent backwards, slamming to the people behind him. Without giving him a chance to stand, another man got near him, and stomped towards his face. Unfortunately for the man, Valier was quick to react and avoided the boot, and as retaliation, he gripped the man's leg, forcibly bringing it down, making the man lose his balance and fall forward.

After getting up as quick as he could, he got on top of the man and pulled the man's leg to the back, leading the man to scream in pain as his leg was stretched in a way it shouldn't. On top of him, Valier breathed heavily while scanning his surroundings for a quick second before leaping away.

[(Above Limit) is recommended to be used]

The green bar that came out of nowhere blocked his view for a short moment, but in a battle where he was being overwhelmed by numbers, that was enough to get him beaten. Before he could respond to the Guide, a fist came through the green bar, taking him by surprise.

BAM!

He almost blacked out by the strong punch that made his nose gushing in red. He landed heavily on his back, dizzy, and in pain. However, the men were bit minding his struggles, especially the leader that rushed forward with his sword raised high, aiming to stab him who was on the ground.

'ABOVE LIMIT!

In an instant, all his exhaustion vanished and he felt anew. Moreover, he felt his physical body stronger than before, twice stronger specifically.

As the sword was about to stab Valier's face, the leader was startled as it stopped mid way. Looking at Valier, his jaw almost dropped, as Valier was gripping the blade with his bare hands, bleeding noticeably.

It was then Valier redirected the sword to the side, dragging the leader along with it. Quickly after, Valier leaped and landed on his feet, and gave the leader a hard kick on the stomach, sending the man staggering away, leaving his sword still stabbed on the ground.

Valier got the sword and rushed for the enemies, who didn't back down at all. After all, Valier was only one, and Valier knew this himself. He may have gotten stronger, but against a group, he would still be overwhelmed by numbers.

Clang!

Valier wasn't that good with sword fighting, but it was definitely better to have a weapon than fighting with his injured bare fists. The weight and force he put in the sword made his opponent struggle to hold on, and he took this chance to slam his foot against this man's balls.

As the man bent over like a shrimp to his shattered jewels, Valier got on his back and jumped away from the group, freeing himself from the crowd. And knowing he wouldn't win without losing an arm or two, he discarded the idea of fighting and ran away.

"He's getting away!" The leader exclaimed, immediately going after thin. His men quickly followed in speed.

As Valier ran, out of nowhere, the cold night adding to his struggles, lessened, as something warm and fluffy wrapped around his shoulders. Startled by the unexpected object, he gripped it with his trembling hands while swinging his sword around him, hitting nothing. Looking to his shoulders, he realized it was a white cotton coat, which was damned expensive.

Turning his head, he noticed someone standing before the group of men. The person wore a white attire and held a sword that had a thin blue blade. Even without the guard of the sword, which was a beautiful craft resembling ice and frost, he knew who this was. The men also knew this person, and they stood unmoving, not daring to take another step.

'I knew it!' Valier almost jumped in joy, knowing that he's been saved from the clutches of unhealable injuries. Taking a breath of relief, he stood gazing at them, wanting to see where the situation would go.

"R-Retreat!" The leader shrilled while ditching his men behind as he ran in full speed. His men did not follow, as they were still unable to move, as they were frozen on the spot in terror. The Frost Hunter was the one standing in front of them. Who wouldn't be shaking?

Messing with one hunter was messing with all hunters. That was common knowledge. Yet they still decided to take this job as they desperately needed money. And now, they do not even know whether they will see the next rising sun. They had no chance to escape, and could only hope the Frost Hunter would give them mercy.

In a blink of an eye, Peirus blurred from view and emerged in front of the leader with his hand holding the man's face. In one, seemingly effortless, move, he slammed the back of the leader's head against the hard ground.

The leader groaned in pain while attempting to set his face free from the unwavering grip. However, all his efforts were fruitless. Peirus raised him off the ground, holding only his face, and covering his eyes.

"You deserve no mercy, however, if you answer honestly, then I may reconsider." Peirus spoke in a voice colder than winter, sending shivers into the petrified enemies. With a face neither happy or sad, just indifference, he asked, "Who sent you?

Trembling noticeably, the leader replied while stumbling over his words. "I-I don't k-know the per… person w-who offered the j-job. I… I just took it from a friend. He… He may know! I d-don't know anything!"

Peirus's gaze swept past the people under the man, and they all avoided his gaze. Releasing a small sigh, he dropped the leader to the ground. The leader's knees were shaking, as he sprawled on the soil. "Get up, guide me to this friend of yours."

Hearing his words, the leader stood up despite struggling to find his balance. Like a prisoner being guided towards his rope, he walked slowly, wanting to take his time to buy more time to think. However, Peirus was having none of it.

Feeling the cold sensation on his neck, he realized that a blade was an inch away from grazing his skin. An unintended gasp came out, as his face drained all color.

"Walk faster." Peirus commanded while standing still.

Knowing his head would fly if he disobeyed, he walked faster like his life depended on it, not daring to look back.

Peirus turned to Valier. "You should go home, and rest."

"I… I will. T-Thank you, sir Peirus." Valier stuttered while bowing deeply and turning away. Since Peirus wanted him to go home, there was no room for disobedience. What would happen next may be something Peirus did not want him to witness.

"I'll explain further tomorrow. For now, take care." Peirus voiced while turning his attention to the group of men left behind. After those words, he disappeared from their view, only to appear behind them with his sword descending onto their necks.

….

Taking large breaths of cold wisps, Valier tried his best to ignore the screams of deaths sounding from the distance as he was walking back to his tent. The peaceful night was no more, as it became filled with the shrills of terror.

After a few seconds, the night filled with silence once again. There were no longer any sounds, except his steps. Releasing a long sigh, he was once again reminded that this place isn't kid friendly. Humans are brutal, and that was nature.

In a place full of people constantly trending life and death, the true nature of humans will show itself. And it is far more brutal, where mercy can only be at the hands of the strong and capable. This night reminded him again how weak he was.

He has magic. He had used it, but it was still not enough to protect him at its current level. He needed to become stronger, and more powerful, so his life and death wouldn't depend on luck. He had to try harder!

Entering his tent, he glanced at Galleon for a moment before grabbing the book. He lit the candle using a matchstick and sat down beside. He had made up his mind. The faster he ranks up, the better.

"Vivi, can I learn a new spell now?" He asked in a low voice, almost whispering.

[Yes]

At her response, he mumbled solemnly, "Then I will learn the Wind Blade Spell."