You stopped in front of an inn. Before leaving that place, you needed to refuel; luckily, the money you left the old man weren't the only ones you owned and so you decided to go in and take a seat at the table.

It was a lair full of soldiers. As soon as you stepped in there, they all turned to look at who the newcomer was...but your composed and noiseless attitude didn't seem to catch their attention and you could sit comfortably.

«Beer for me.»

A few minutes later, the owner brought you what you had ordered. You took your time to drink everything from the mug.
The chatter around you got louder and louder; of course, there were also women in there and they seemed to be enjoying themselves as they sat on the tables and in front of those rough men, in an inappropriate way.

The rise of prostitution over there didn't seem strange at all, but it bored you to see young women who sold themselves for a few meager coins...

Your gaze went to a lively and sunny girl, probably the youngest of all, who continued to laugh serenely in the middle of the group; she was wearing a light dress, similar to pale skin pink, and it was evident that she didn't change it very often...her hair was tied behind the neck forming a large braid, which had loosened over the hours.
For a moment, you wondered why a girl like her had done such a miserable choice.

«I guess we don't have much of that in this short life...» You thought about returning to focus on your beer. It tasted awful.

When you finished, you left your money on the table and headed for the exit; out of the corner of your eye, you looked in the direction of their table and noticed only the girl was already gone.

• • •

You weren't going to stay in that hole of place for much longer. You needed to get back on the main road and maybe you would have found what you were looking for somewhere else.

Basically, you followed the trajectories of the mercenaries, but while they were busy fighting, you sneaked into the middle of the battle and stole whatever was possible, in their place...of course, you ignored the civilians and preferred not to steal from their corpses, even if it wasn't always like that...

However, you hated that shit. Even if you were no longer a mercenary, you acted like one; that's why you felt the need to escape, to find an alternative to the life you had lived up to now. So, you had decided to start a long journey, aimlessly and discovering new places, hoping to find yourself at its end.

One thing was certain...you wouldn't have trusted anyone, not after what had happened years ago at your old camp.

As you walked away from the small village and people, something caught your attention... it sounded like the plaintive voice of a woman.
There was no one around who could go and have a look but you. Not that you were interested, you had other thoughts on your mind, but there was a possibility that there was someone in danger and you didn't want to have her on your conscience at all if something happened to her...

So, you placed your hand on the hilt of the sword, as you approached the forest just outside the main entrance; that was where the voice came.

But you stopped when you saw the young girl from the inn, together with a man; in reality, those strange cries you had heard were just the moans she did every time that other one touched her. Anyway, you should have expected that and let it go.

You were ready to leave them in their privacy, until you heard another scream and this time it came from the man.

«You...what the fuck you think you're doing!» He barked at her as he rubbed his bottom lip that had just been bitten.

«Sorry, but I won't do anything with you if you don't give me what I want...these are my terms, honey~» The blonde braided girl started giggling and buttoning her dress again, clearly no longer interested in giving her body.

At that point, the man gave her a hard slap that knocked her to the ground.

«Huh!? Do you think I care about what you want, bitch? If you don't want me to kill you, you'd better do what I tell you–» Despite those threatening words, she didn't seem to give up.

«Stop whining! ...anyway, I can see a mile away that you have a small one over there.» She said mischievously as she got up by herself «If so, I'll look for money elsewhere.»

The man was sick of her and raised his sword.

«You're not going anywhere, you little whore!»

Meanwhile, you had been watching the whole scene. Sooner or later, that girl risked dying if you didn't react.

In a few moments, your blade struck his with a metallic roar.

«And who the fuck are you, get out of the way!» He was trying to pull you back, but to no avail.

«Man, I advise you to let it go and walk away.» You said referring to him in a stern and contemptuous tone.

Anyway, the soldier tried to lunge at you,but it wasn't fast enough, as most of his senses were gone because of the alcohol. He didn't realize it, but he was thrown to the ground, no longer a weapon in his hands and with his forehead in contact with the tip of your sword.

«Leave now.» You have sentenced.

That man couldn't do anything else in those conditions, not without anything.
You watched him closely as he walked away; meanwhile, a few light footsteps over the grass were approaching you.

«...thank you, sir.» She said. The girl tried to look you in the eyes, but she couldn't because of your outfit. Just then, you saw her scared expression and her gaze fixed behind you.

«L-look out!!»

She was shocked. Apparently, you had noticed earlier that asshole hadn't given up and, with some charge, he tried to surprise you.

With a quick snap, you turned around swinging the sword; the blade came into contact with something soft and was stained with blood at that point. Some red splatters reached your face, now no longer hidden.

The man's screams reached the other side of the forest as his hand fell to the dirt with the sword. He continued to fidget on the ground as he tried to stop the bleeding by tightening around his wrist.
The other thing that shocked him was when he saw your female face, dirty with his blood.

«I had warned you. Now, go fuck it.»

• • •

«You are...» Her voice came weakly from her mouth.

«You are a woman.»

You stared at her with your deep and fearless eyes. A few short tufts of hair fell on your forehead now that you were no longer wearing the hood on your head.

«So what?» Your answer left a puzzled look on her and she smiled nervously.

«W-well, this is my first time mistaking a woman for a man, hehe...» In addition to your short, pulled back hair, she obviously noticed your outfit.

She noticed your dark, padded clothing that covered your curves; then, she stepped up to you and stretched out her arm to you. But you backed away.

«You have blood on your cheek!» She warned you.

You wiped with the back of your hand, worrying little if you had removed it or not. Instead, you clean the sword before putting it back in its scabbard.

«...take care.» It was time for you to go, but the other one grabbed your arm.

«Wait! You can't leave me like this!» She said and clung to you more. She was slightly shorter than you, so she raised her head to get a better look at you. The frown on your forehead gave you an even less feminine look.

«I think I've done enough and, as you said before, I'm a woman so you can't expect anything else from me.» You hadn't forgotten that girl had been willing to have sex with a stranger in order to earn money.

«I don't want your money.» She stood in front of you screaming «On the contrary, I ask for your protection!»

Her smile met your grim gaze. For a brief moment, you regretted stepping in to save her...

«I've already saved your ass, what else do you want from me...» Your tone didn't scare her, she was more and more excited.

«You know, I don't do this because I want it...I do it to survive, but it's not always that simple, especially when I get the wrong one...I admit I'm a whore, but that doesn't mean I deserve to be killed and you were the first person who helped me for real! That's why I need you!!»

You cursed the very morning you decided you were going to buy a new pair of gloves in that lousy place. You didn't care and didn't want to hear more from that easy girl.

«Your problems have nothing to do with me.» You adjusted the hood on your head. «And I have to go now. Good luck.»

The young prostitute looked at you as you walked away; she couldn't let you go, at least not alone. Inside her, something had changed, thanks to your gesture. She wanted to throw away that horrible life she had and follow you wherever you went...

She wasn't going to give up easily and before retreating, she wiped away a tear before it could roll down her fair cheek.

• • •

The sun was setting. You were ready to face the chill of the night and the long journey you would have had to travel, discovering another unknown land, but you decided to rest. You needed to get your energy back and that was why you stopped to get a bed to spend the night.

Before closing your eyes, you thought why you were doing all this, again, and you got a headache, particularly where there was the scar, on the side, above the left eyebrow; even if only a few years had passed, you couldn't forget what James had tried to do after the death of your father.

«Fucking bastard, why didn't I kill him that night...»

Of course, that was a bad way to fall asleep, even if it wasn't the first time and were hoping the next day would have been better...

But the worst was yet to come, or so it seemed to you. Your mood worsened further when, the next morning, you failed to get a horse for the journey; the stable guy of the village had lost the last one due to an illness, while the few available belonged to other foreigners.

You were going to hit that man hard and steal one, but you thought better of it; luckily for him, you weren't interested in beating up a civilian now...

Before leaving, you limited yourself to preparing your supplies in a bag and preparing the blade of your sword; you always did it, as if it were a ritual. Ever since you were a child, you had learned to take care of the weapon that would have saved your life.

It was the only thing you could trust. The rest didn't matter to you, feelings including, so you didn't get attached to anyone...

But then, why did that girl suddenly appear in front of you? She was there, sitting on a rock in front of the village entrance and, unlike the day before, she was totally alone, as if she were waiting someone.

She turned in your direction when she heard noises.

«There you are finally, it took your time! I was tired of waiting...»

Something was wrong and your patience as already running out at seven in the morning. You didn't stop to answer and set out on the path until she grabbed your cloak.

«I want to go with you!» She said in a shrill voice ignoring your threatening gaze.

«Hey, stop bothering me—»

But suddenly, some black shadows appeared and surrounded you. The other didn't let go of you and moved closer, worried.
On the contrary, you recognized them; they were the soldiers you had seen at the inn with the other women. Among them, it couldn't miss the bastard you had faced the day before.

«...she's the one who cut off my hand!» The man pointed his finger at you, but his comrades believed he was referring to the girl next to you.

«Huh? That brat did this to you? Ahahahaha!» The soldiers all started laughing together.

«No, not her!» The others thought he was joking, as they didn't imagine that a woman could be hiding under an armor.

«Well, we'll take care of it then...» The four men drew their swords and stood on guard by surrounding you two.

«We'll kill the hooded one and then have fun with that bitch.» One of them concluded.

You couldn't help but face them all in order to get out of that uncomfortable situation. The young prostitute looked at you with a puzzled look.

«D-don't tell me you want...» Apparently, she had been able to read your mind.

«Oh yes...» You replied with a psycho smile.

Soon, you got rid of the cloak completely and ran in the direction of the first one, who was in front of you. The speed was your strong point, thanks to your build and light armor, and it was almost difficult for the enemy to react accordingly.

As a result, you penetrated his defense by hitting him in the chest.

«Agh!»

His cry alerted the group, who watched as he fell to the ground.

The next one's footsteps approached your right and, turning three-quarters, you parried his surprise shot. That opponent growled like an animal and, with all his strength, tried to beat you by placing all his weight on his sword.

Soon, he had to realize the mistake he had made; you let your blade slide downward by moving your body sideways. That gesture made him lose his balance and unable to fight back. You pierced him at shoulder height.

The third was more challenging. He seemed more prepared than the others and tried to scare you by swinging his club over the head.

«Don't think you can get away with this!!»

The club flew towards you, but you managed to dodge it. Meanwhile, the girl was scared and she was rebelling against her attackers by kicking or biting them.

Your gaze went to her when you heard a deafening noise and saw her knocked to the ground, with her blood on her face. The soldier grinned at it and, with the mace chain, managed to take your sword away from you.

«Ah! You're dead now!»

He tried to grab you, but you did a somersault between his legs and popped up behind him. Then, you took your hunting knife and stuck it in his leg.

He knelt on the ground. To make sure he never got up again, you cut off his tendons.

Once finished, you reached the girl by throwing away the soldier on top of her.

«T-thank you!» She stood up by herself and adjusted the skirt of the dress.

It wasn't over. There were still two others left, but they didn't seem to be around anymore. Either way, you went back to get your sword.

«Maybe they ran away after they saw you fight, you were really great!» She hasn't stopped complimenting you, although you didn't really care.

On the contrary, you weren't sure about that and just stared around you for a long time waiting for them to come out...

Not even a second passed. A blow to the head caused you to fall forward and be slightly stunned. A few drops of blood fell to the ground beside you, while the girl was terrified.

«You fuckin' bitch, you think you are like us?!» A soldier appeared behind you and abruptly grabbed your shirt collar under your armor.

«Now I'll show you who the man really is here, ahahaha!»

You banged your back against the rocky ground. You ignored the pain on your neck just thinking about freeing yourself from his grip on it. At that moment, he stepped on top of you to block your movements; the sword had fallen beside you and reached out to retrieve it, but the other kicked it off with one foot.

He blocked your attempt to punch him in the face and hit you on the cheek, then he tried to rip the armor off you; to avoid that, you tried to stop the blade of his sword even with your bare hands, causing them to bleed...fuck the gloves, you thought, you would have done it without them too!

Of course, you wouldn't have given up that, but you didn't know how much you could endure.

«Damn it...it won't end like this!»

• • •

You could hear his laughter as he tried to make you succumb to his will.

«Stay still, bitch!» He screamed at your face.

To get up off the ground, you needed to hit him. Unbeknownst to him, you grabbed and butted him full in the face. His nose began to bleed relentlessly and he walked away in pain.

«You...!» While he kept complaining, you went to retrieve your sword, after making sure he was unarmed.

You had blood on your left ear and neck from the earlier blow, but it didn't bother you. In comparison, that fight was just a breeze...

Suddenly, you saw some stones thrown at the man; you turned around and saw the girl picking them up from the street.
The other got distracted and you took the opportunity to attack him with a quick shot. Again, your attack was successful.

«Shit, if it weren't for that diversion...» You didn't want to admit it, but it helped you.

You advanced towards her. You noticed her blood on her mouth and her cheek that looked purple.

«That won't come off so easily.» You just said.

«...I don't mind. It was worth it, anyway.» She was referring to the fact that now you were talking to her there, thanks to that.

«Well, I think it's over–» You stopped when something touched your temple.

«Ooh, I don't think so...»

The one-handed man was back and was aiming a weapon right at your head.

«Even if you're a woman, you got the balls to do that, huh?» He started talking «But you'll soon regret what you did, you filthy–»

There, his voice broke and a slash went through the air, towards the man who had tried to kill you. The girl's expression changed and she seemed almost enchanted by that vision.

When you turned around, you stood staring at that giant thick blade that, with a single blow, had torn a human being to shreds. Only a monster could be capable doing such a thing...

Wrapped in a black and frayed cloak, a tall, dark-looking guy had dragged that big sword towards him, now covered in blood and flesh.

«So, this is what Death looks like...» You thought with pursed lips.

«Phew, we missed a little!»

Suddenly, you heard a small, high-pitched voice, but you didn't know where it came from...until a small winged creature with a human appearance emerged from the depths of that cloak; but his attitude changed when he saw the condition of the corpse.

«Ugh, why do you always have to overdo, Guts!»

The man didn't answer, ignoring his words; on the contrary, his attention had fallen on you and just then, you realized that he was looking at you with his only good eye.

Despite that intervention, you didn't let your guard down and didn't loosen your grip around the hilt of your sword.

«T-thanks for saving our lives, sir!» You looked bored at the prostitute when she said that. After all, it was you who saved her ass for the second time.

But he didn't even answer her.

«No one asked him to step in, anyway.» You turned to the stranger in a hostile tone.

The atmosphere was getting tense so the girl took a step forward.

«H-hey calm down, this man helped us!» She screamed.

He placed the giant sword on his shoulder with the strength of one arm.

«I was just passing through.»

Either way, you didn't like that guy. You turned and went back to collect your cloak, now covered with dust, ready to go on your way. You didn't want to meddle in an awkward situation again.

But that little girl seemed to have been born on purpose to annoy you...

«Why don't we all leave together?!» The prostitute exclaimed «We need a strong and mighty man like you sir, you never know what we can go through!»

The man stared at her for a moment, while you didn't understand why all that was happening, without you having done anything for that.

«Oy, wait a minute, who told you you'd come too...this journey doesn't concern neither of you.» The girl looked at you with incomprehensible enthusiasm.

«I told you, I don't want to stay here!» She ran in your direction «And you don't want to wander through the woods alone, do you?»

«...that's what I'm trying to do from the start.» You answered and the other one snorted.

«Come on, we'll be a great team! And you? What do you think, sir?» Suddenly, she turned to the warrior. Judging by his attitude, he would never have accepted such a thing, it was evident that he didn't like company, just like you!

But then, why wasn't he saying anything? The sound of his armor didn't make you take your eyes off him; despite being the only one, when he looked at you with his eye, you felt a shiver that you had never felt before and that ran down your spine.

You had a bad feeling about it...

«Anyway, the next town is several miles from here, we can go there...» The girl added suddenly; if so, you could have found easily what you were looking for.

But you had to know what the man's intentions were.

Inside of him, he had no intention of sharing the journey with other people, but Puck, the little elf who accompanied him, had insisted not to let him travel alone...somehow, the fairy being had sensed there was something about Guts that had changed, because of that meeting, but sadly without knowing the details. Not yet.

The black warrior slowly passed your figure.

«I don't mind if you follow me.» He just said with some grumbling.

But you raised an eyebrow, clearly confused. When you said you would have done that??

«Oh, that's a great idea!!» The girl cheered happily as you stayed silent and let that thought fade away.

«Oh yes! I'm Lily, although it's not my real name but I prefer that more! It seem to understand that your name is Guts, right? That's really creepy, but cool!» She approached the black warrior again without even considering you and chatting as if you had become great friends.

He simply nodded, not understanding the girl's enthusiasm.

But his gaze fell on your profile, which was in the meantime shocked and irritated, and chuckled silently when he saw that.

Eventually, you gave up. On the other hand, it was advantageous there was someone who knew the right way to go, thus avoiding unnecessary dangers, but you couldn't understand why that guy hadn't replied.

Just like you said, there were choices that couldn't be changed, or because there was no better alternative...in the end, you walked on the road along with that weird group, skipping any presentation.