Capítulo 11: First duel.
Khazak couldn't comprehend what he was seeing with his own eyes. Before him lay the corpses of the "Aragars," creatures that were the stuff of village legends. These beings stood between 1.8 to 3 meters tall and, though not particularly intelligent, were somewhat capable of communication. Their skin was a shade of grey, and they had bulging eyes. Males bore large, spiraled, and curved horns, while the females had shorter horns that curved slightly upwards.
These creatures, which normally walked on two legs, were known to fight with whatever wooden weapons they could find or simply use their horns. However, the Aragars that now lay lifeless on the ground around him were equipped with something unusual—heavy iron axes and hammers, clearly the work of skilled blacksmiths.
The weapons scattered among their corpses were not typical of these creatures, adding another layer of confusion to Khazak's already overwhelmed mind.
Normally, these creatures didn't travel in packs, yet there were six Aragar corpses scattered around the area. As Khazak tried to make sense of what he was witnessing, a roar echoed from a distance, followed immediately by that familiar sound of a sword cutting through the air—and then, silence. The roar was abruptly cut off, leaving no trace of its source.
Driven by curiosity, Khazak continued to move forward, making his way toward the sound. He soon spotted a clearing and rushed toward it. Upon arriving, he found even more Aragar corpses scattered about. In the center of the carnage stood a humanoid figure, its presence commanding and ominous. Just as Khazak locked eyes with the figure, it disappeared.
For a few moments, an eerie stillness fell over the clearing. But then, that same cutting sound reverberated once more, this time much closer—too close. Khazak froze in place, fear gripping him as he felt a long, slender Ōdachi blade pressed against the front of his neck from behind.
**Reagon's pov**
Reagon sat cross-legged at the cliff's edge, his favorite liquor in hand, keeping a watchful eye on the vast forest below. Based on his experience, he could confidently say there were no extremely dangerous creatures in this forest. If Khazak couldn't survive against what he might encounter here, it would be better for him not to embark on this journey at all.
After observing for a while, Reagon set his drink aside and turned to the young Fenrir lying beside him. He sent a pulse of mana toward the creature, causing it to stir and rise to its feet, looking up at Reagon with curious eyes. Reagon sent another wave of mana, this time embedding a simple command: "Jump." Fenrir's eyes widened momentarily before it obediently hopped in place. The creature had reached a level of maturity where it could understand basic commands.
Pleased, Reagon sent a more complex message: "How are you?" Fenrir tilted its head, staring blankly at him for a few moments before giving a soft bark. It was clear the young Fenrir couldn't yet grasp more complicated or emotional commands. To grow more, it needed food, which was essential for its natural development.
With a small grunt, Reagon placed his hand on his thigh and stood up. He took a deep breath, then vanished from sight for just a few seconds. Luna remained where it was, completely unfazed by his brief disappearance. When Reagon returned, he held a small fawn, which he tossed in front of Fenrir. Luna sniffed the fawn a few times before hungrily devouring it.
As Fenrir ate, Reagon settled back into his spot near the edge of the cliff, drink in hand, and resumed his silent vigil over the forest.
**Khazak's pov**
Khazak was drenched in cold sweat, frozen in place with the sharp blade of a sword pressed against his neck. His hands were raised slightly, his own sword abandoned on the ground. He trembled with fear, his entire body shaking uncontrollably. Then, he heard a delicate, yet firm, female voice.
"Who are you, and what are you doing here?"
Khazak tried to respond, but as soon as he began to speak, the sword pressed closer to his throat, forcing a small whimper out of him.
"I'm asking you one last time—who are you?"
Words tumbled from Khazak's mouth, almost against his will.
"I'm Khazak... I come from a nearby village."
The girl let out a menacing "hmm" and said, "Then what are you doing here?"
"Training... I'm here to survive for a month as part of my training... I swear I'm not an enemy. I swear!"
Tears welled up in Khazak's eyes as he spoke. He couldn't die like this, not on the first day of his trial.
"I see..."
The girl withdrew her sword from Khazak's neck slowly, and then, in an exhausted motion, she plunged it into the ground and collapsed to her knees. She was barely holding herself upright, and as her eyes began to close, she caught sight of another approaching aragar. Moments later, she lost consciousness.
Khazak, now faced with this new threat, felt utterly helpless. The aragar before him was massive, standing around two meters tall, with nothing more than a crude piece of hide covering its body and a large chunk of wood as a weapon. It was breathing heavily, bloodlust clear in its eyes as it stood before Khazak and the unconscious girl.
Suddenly, an odd sensation washed over Khazak—a wave of confidence he hadn't felt before. His breathing quickened, and despite the fear twisting in his stomach, he found himself gripping the sword on the ground and standing tall. Two hands on the hilt, he faced the aragar head-on.
The creature took a heavy step forward, its foot slamming into the ground with force, shaking the earth beneath them. Khazak, despite his trembling legs, smiled—a defiant, almost reckless grin. The aragar stared at him for a moment, seemingly puzzled by the boy's courage. Then, in a thick, guttural voice, it clicked its tongue against the roof of its mouth and, with surprisingly poor speech and with deep voice, said:
"I am Regar, son of the mighty Ragar. Who are you, little human?"
Khazak, gripping the handle more tightly and moving his sword slightly forward with a smile on his face, said:
"I am Khazak, son of the blacksmith Ronny. Let it be a fair fight."
After saying this, the aragar opened its arms wide and roared into the air. Then it lifted the wooden log in its hands and started running toward Khazak. Ready for this, Khazak swiftly dodged the descending log aimed at his head. As he sidestepped, he made a shallow cut on the aragar's wrist with his sword. The aragar looked at the wound on its wrist and then quickly turned to face Khazak, its breathing becoming more rapid. It raised the log again and began swinging it randomly toward Khazak.
Khazak, despite trembling in fear, studied the aragar closely as it continued to retreat. Once he figured out its movements, he picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at the aragar. The aragar roared again, grabbing the log with both hands, and charged at Khazak, swinging the log above its head. As the aragar brought the log crashing down toward Khazak's head with all its might, Khazak stepped to the side.
The hard and heavy log grazed Khazak's left wrist, leaving a sharp pain, but with the adrenaline surging through him, he leaped toward the aragar's head before it could make its next move. Grabbing onto one of its horns with one hand, he pressed his feet against the aragar's large, muscular chest and stabbed the sword into the aragar's chin. The aragar let out a pained groan and slowly toppled backward.
As the aragar fell, Khazak lightly landed on the ground, panting heavily, and watched the aragar collapse with a smile on his face. He felt incredible; he had single-handedly killed a creature twice his size. As he caught his breath and looked at the fallen aragar, his thoughts began to settle. The first thing he did was retrieve the sword lodged in the aragar's head. After that, he glanced at the long sword planted in the ground not far away, where the girl lay.
When Khazak approached her, he could hardly believe his eyes. She was wearing a delicate dress of a beautiful skin tone, had long white hair, and a small and short body. He couldn't comprehend how she could have killed dozens of the aragars he had just struggled to defeat, but now she lay defenseless on the ground. In reality, this girl had saved his life; had he encountered that pack of aragars alone, he would have had no chance of survival.
But he could not leave a defenseless girl lying there. He made up his mind and began to carry her on his uninjured right shoulder, slowly dragging her along the ground. After what felt like hours but were only a few minutes, he spotted a slope. He hurried toward it, but due to the weight he was carrying, he was moving slowly. Finally, he found what he hoped for: right in front of him was a slope that was not small at all, and on top of that, he was fortunate enough to hear the sound of a nearby stream.
A relieved smile spread across his face as he laid the girl down in front of a cave and went to the stream without taking his eyes off her. After searching a bit, Khazak found two pieces of flint and rushed back to the girl's side. He tore a piece from his clothing and randomly struck the flint together. Then, he gathered some dry grass and stuffed it between the fabric and a random stick. After blowing on the flint and striking them together, he managed to start a fire.
With his makeshift torch, he entered the cave. When he stepped inside, a few bats, frightened by the fire, fled the cave. After exploring a bit more, Khazak decided it was safe and grabbed the girl by the shoulders, dragging her inside. He noticed that she was breathing heavily, and upon realizing this, Khazak placed his hand on her forehead and felt a heat radiating from her body. She was going into hyperthermia; her body temperature was much higher than it should be.
Realizing this, Khazak quickly stripped off his clothes and ran to the stream. Soaking his clothes, he rushed back to the cave, folded them, and placed them on the girl's forehead. She seemed to relax a bit. After this brief moment of relief, Khazak, exhausted from his efforts, collapsed next to the girl and fell asleep.
Estado de energía semanal
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