บท 100: Don't pay, yet to be published

"What was that?" Aden muttered, a sliver of unease snaking down his spine. The carriage's sudden stop in the middle of nowhere sent a jolt of apprehension through him.

Frowning, Aden reached for his katana, the familiar weight of the hilt grounding him as his fingers brushed its cool surface. "It seems I was right," he murmured, his voice laced with a steely resolve. "That bastard wasn't going to let me go that easily."

Suddenly, a blur streaked through the air, the tell-tale whoosh of its passage barely registering before a deafening boom erupted. Aden instinctively drew his katana, the blade meeting the strange projectile in a shower of sparks. The impact sent a shockwave through him, throwing him backward. He landed hard on the carriage seat, the breath momentarily knocked out of him.

"AARGH!" he roared, a strangled cry escaping his lips as the brutal impact sent a wave of pain radiating through his body.