Chapter 11 : Sven's Past : First Mission, First Encounter

*Thirty Years Ago*

There was a celebration in a tavern in the North, and only men were there. The shortest man was about 2 meters tall, and despite the cold weather, they were wearing half-naked clothes that exposed the scars of war that had been etched on their bodies.

They all belonged to the same family... Sven's family. The Ironheart family.

The celebration was for Sven's 20th birthday. At this young age Sven was a very attractive man with long braided hair and his strong physique. This long hair meant that he had not yet completed his first mission. 

When a Northerner completes his first mission, they cut their hair and burn it. For them it was a ritual that represented the death of the naive boy and the beginning of his new life as a warrior.

20 years old, Sven was going to go on his first mission the next day. He must go alone to the north and hunt a demon or a demonic creature.

The Northerners got nicknames according to the first beast or demon they caught.

Sven was worried. Despite his appearance and his family's warrior traditions, Sven had a peaceful and inquisitive character.

After a celebration with fights and drinks. The next day Sven packed his warm clothes and backpack and set off. His father and his younger brother came to see him off, a boy of about fifteen.

His father expressed his trust in him, in other hand his brother, with a bit of youthful recklessness, said sarcastically,

"What's with the bag, big brother, are you going for a picnic?"

Sven had gotten used to his brother's insensitivity.

"My father and mother are in your care," he smiled and set off.

After hours of walking, he noticed that the light colored transparent ice around him was turning darker and darker. 

This was a sign that he had entered the demon territory. A little further on he saw the forest where his father said he had hunted in his youth. 

He made his way through the forest, surrounded by curious, small, dark blue and black reptiles and rodents. Unlike other Northerners, he knew these animals were harmless and he looked in their direction and said,

"Hey little pals," as he waved.

After a few minutes he eventually entered the forest. He picked up both axes hanging from his waist and focused on his surroundings.

These axes were big enough for a normal person to hold with one hand.

After a few minutes of walking in the forest, Sven came across a creature about the size of an adult male lion, it was a Draken and he recognized it by its appearance. Because Sven often read books about animals and creatures and fed the ones he saw around his house.

Drakens were a type of dragon, just like Wyrnn, and this species was about the size of the average adult male lion. Appearance : has a sleek, slender body, with an elongated, serpentine shape. Its upper body is covered in a smooth, scaly skin that ranges from dark gray to black in color. The lower body consists of a pair of legs, which are similar in shape to those of a dragon, complete with four claws each. It also has a long, whip-like tail with a sharp point at the end, which is used for balance and agility.

Sven bent slightly and stood in position for the fight. At first Draken looked at Sven curiously, but when he sensed Sven's threatening presence, he showed his mouth with a large array of sharp teeth and began to growl furiously.

After a brief eye contact, the Draken charged. When the distance between them was close enough, it jumped at Sven's head to bite. Sven shoved the reverse side of the axe into the drake's mouth, stopping it. Sven was so steady on the ground that the Draken's attack did not even shake him. With the side face of the axe in his other hand he struck it in the stomach and knocked it away.

Sven wanted to capture this creature, if possible without killing it.

Drakens were intelligent creatures. It understood that it had a stronger opponent, but it was not undignified enough to run away without using all its trump cards.

The Draken moved again, this time it flew around Sven instead of running straight at him. From down there Sven was able to see the creature's chest glowing with purple energy. Sven's blue eyes glowed momentarily and he transferred some of his mana to his axes.

The Draken moved the purple energy in its chest to its mouth and stopped circling Sven, then fired five purple energy cannons in a row. 

He managed to block the first three with his axe, the fourth struck him in the left shoulder and the fifth he dodged by jumping back. In pain, with his shoulder burning, he reflexively threw the axe in his right hand towards the Draken.

The axe pierced the Draken's left wing and passed through. With the hole in its wing, it lost its balance and fell on the ground.

Sven ran towards the Draken in pure rage, and when the Draken saw him, it ran away in fear. 

But unfortunately Sven was not as fast as the creature and the Draken had soon disappeared from his sight. However, Sven knew how to track and an injured beast could not escape from him for long.

Sven strapped his axe to his belt and, with the supplies from his pack, immediately applied first aid to his left shoulder, then wrapped it in a clean white cloth. 

Now it was time to track the beast. After a few hours of tracking it was already dark, but he finally came to a house in the middle of the forest. This house probably belonged to a demon and it was a small white house with a purple roof.

He took his axe from his waist, held it in a two-handed grip and walked towards the house then stood in front of the door.

The door only came up to his shoulder.

Sven began to break down the door with the axe. There was a scream coming from inside, but he ignored it and continued to strike the door with his axe. When the door was sufficiently damaged, he kicked it down and ducked to enter.

Inside, there was a woman leaning against the wall in fear, holding a small wand in her hand. In front of her, the Draken he had injured earlier was healed and it was growling at Sven as if it wanted to protect the woman from Sven.

...