You shake your head vehemently. "No. I won't stand by while you all give in to worthless bandits. I'll stay, and fight them off tomorrow."


Eliza's eyes widen. "You're still hurt! They're near fifty strong, if you fight them, you'll die!" She's begging you particularly hard.


"I've fought worse odds. I can handle them." To prove your point, you get out of the bed and stand up, Eliza moving quickly to sit you back down. You shrug her hands off.


"Please, don't. These men will slaughter you."


"I can do it." You shoulder your way past her, to your knapsack. There, you slip into your clothing, and grab your sword. "I'll watch for them. When they come, I'll kill them all." A bloodthirsty grin makes its way onto your face. "Watch." Ignoring any further pleas from Eliza, you carry onward and leave the room. You see that it's a small hut, the only door leading directly outside; it's night, which means you have time to set up.


You go to the largest tree in the center of the village, scaling up it and sitting on a branch. There, you wait. And wait. Then you wait some more.


The sun is high in the sky, the villagers are out in the fields, and your ass is sore by the time the raiders finally do come. The villagers milling about pause in their work as they watch them, all with fear written on their faces. The raider leader, a large and burly man in chainmail, raises his arms up high. "People of this fair village! We have come to accept your surrender. Should you resist, we'll kill all of you. So please, resist."


Isaiah steps forward, head down low. You note the bandage on his cheek, where the cigar was jammed into his face. "Please, don't harm us. We surrender. You are free to take all the supplies we have."


The raider leader lets out a small tsk, shaking his head. "Really? That's all? How disappointing." You're about to jump down and attack him, when...


"I guess we'll just have to kill you anyway." The raider leader pulls out his sword and runs it through Isaiah's chest. Your blood begins to pump viciously. "Kill them all."


That's when you finally jump from the branch. You were too late. Isaiah is dead, because you took too long to just jump down and kill them. You're no hero.


You land on top of the nearest raider, his head crushing beneath the weight of your boot. The others quickly turn their eyes to you and stare in awe. You unsheathe your sword, then start swinging with a primal yell. A few men are taken down by your blade, while the others go on the attack. You bring up your blade occasionally to block attacks, swinging when you see an opening. It's a slaughter for them.


By the time you take down a few dozen, the others begin to retreat. Their leader yells at them, calls them cowards, but stands his ground. "FINE!" He unsheathes a blade of his own. "I'll do it myself!" He goes on the attack, swinging the sword at you. You block it, then swing, but the raider manages to leap out of the way. Damn, if you weren't still recovering, you could have gotten him. Still, it's been a long while since someone managed to dodge one of your attacks. This should be fun.


The two of you continue on like that for a while; he strikes, you block, you strike, he dodges. It's almost like a dance between two experienced partners. This man, he's well trained, and a far better swordsman than you are. There's one difference though, and that is while you lack strength, you make up for it in raw power.


It also helps that you picked the winning side in this battle.


Slowly, the villagers start to gather courage. Before you know it, rocks are being pelted at the raider. He ignores them well enough, but they throw him off enough that he starts to barely evade your attacks. Then, after a longer time, some start pushing forward with pitchforks and other tools in hand. They attack, but the raider attacks back and they retreat before they get killed.


But, their attacks are all you need, and soon, one of your swings eventually makes its way into his hip. He lets out a yell of agony, dropping his blade and falling into a kneel. You don't waste any time letting him have his last words, instead bringing the blade down right onto his head, bisecting it down the middle.


There is silence.


Then, defeaning cheers.


The town is safe. You've done it.


There are no celebrations afterwards however. The bodies of the raiders are burned, Isaiah is brought to his daughter. The others return to their homes, some continue to work. Eliza picks out a plot in the cemetary, and the gravekeeper gets to work. You approach her as she watches. Her father has been set down in a coffin not far from the grave.


Her eyes are red and puffy. She's been crying all day, no doubt. You place a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry I couldn't save him," you say.


She turns to look at you, no malice whatsoever on her face. "I know."


"What will you do now? Manage the inn?"


She sighs, shakes her head. "I don't know. My father was all I had."


You nod. "... I'll leave you be."


Then, you walk away.


You have a decision to make. Stay here in this village and live out the rest of your days, or continue onwards into the great unknown.

You you'll leave. You defended the village, and now nothing is left for you here.

You spend the next few days in the hut where you were told to recover, Eliza visiting you every now and again. She's going to manage the inn, because that's what her father would have wanted. You make it no secret that you'll leave; she looks sad when you say you will, but accepts it nonetheless. You almost feel sorry for her, like you might stay if only to help her, but you know you can't.


A few days later, you've fully recovered, and you pack up your things. As you step onto the open road for the first time in almost a week, it feels liberating. You missed this. But, before you go, you hear someone calling your name. Turning, you see Eliza, waving wildly. She smiles faintly, then calls out, "Be sure to come and visit sometime!"


You let out a laugh, then call back, "I'll be sure to if I'm in the area again!" With that, she heads back to the inn, and you continue onward into the great unknown.


THE END