Chapter 1 - The Child…
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AN: I basically started writing this piece on a whim after reading a ton of novels (from this site and others; mainly noveltranslations, a subreddit on reddit).
I’ll apologize now for future updates that will probably contain a couple plot holes or inconsistencies.
Also I’m writing this story mainly based by my enjoyment and sparks of ideas I occasionally get. So don’t expect updates at a consistent schedule.
Criticism is welcome, but don’t expect a masterpiece, cause it won’t be.
tldr: Wrote this on a whim, updates whenever I feel like, don’t expect a masterpiece.
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Humans…. Such fragile creatures… Creatures that depend on tools to survive… Creatures that yearn for warmth and gather around it for protection… Creatures that die without that warmth…
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Yet… on my stroll I spot a small hill of snow on a flat plain. It looks rather suspicious but it doesn't intrigue me enough to inspect further.
Until… the hill moved, slightly. I quickly run to the hill to examine what’s moving.
Close up, I see a small tinge of red between the holes of the hill. I remove the snow and find a small basket with a crimson cloth covering it. Then I heard it. A small; almost hushed cry come from within the basket. A child… Human…
Humans… Such despicable creatures… They kill our kin without mercy yet when we return the favour, they seek revenge. They always use such vile means to kill us; either through poison, fire, or, luring other monsters to fight us, then finishing us off when we’re weak. I despise them all.
Yet… I don’t feel anger towards this child…
Strange…
Perhaps I only pity that this human is just a child, alone at that.
I decided. I’ll protect this child until I can find a human town willing to take it in. Or if his parents take it back. The latter seems unlikely though…
Don’t get me wrong; I still despise humans, but no matter how indifferent I am towards their lives, no child should have to die because nobody wanted it.
Perhaps I'm just soft-hearted or appealing to my morals, but I’ll do it because I can, that’s all.
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I bite the handle of the basket and start heading back to my cave. I use my mana to sense the child’s current state. It’s weak, almost on the verge of death. I'm not certain about a human’s body structure but I remember hearing from my mother that mana also flows through their veins, just at a slower and less concentrated rate.
Knowing this, I slowly repress my mana flow into a weaker state and start infusing it into the child.
After a few minutes, the child’s condition improves slightly. As I enter the my humble abode I check around for anything that might of wondered in here. Nothing…
I lay the basket down as I try to recall what humans ate.
I don't remember...
Maybe something in the storage would be suitable.
The ‘storage’ is what I refer to as a place where I keep intriguing objects I find on unlucky humans who've tried to slay me.
I scan around and spot a smooth silver object piled up. Then it hits me. Right! Humans stored food in these containers so they don’t go bad for when cold befalls their lands.
I guess it’ll be okay for the child for now. Now… How do I go about feeding it? Do I force feed it? Do I just leave the food for it to eat?
I heat the food to a suitable temperature and leave it within the basket. Suddenly, my fatigue overcomes me and I decide to sleep around the basket… just in case.
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As I awaken I check up on the child. Hmm… it hasn't touched the food. Then I scan its condition. His condition is poor… Weak and… cold?
Oh right. Humans don’t have fur so they make some sort of covering to keep themselves warm.
I head to the storage and check for some cloth with fur. I take one about the size to fit within the basket. It’s frozen. I gently apply some mana to it and it heats up.
I take out the can and cover the child with the cloth.
Then I attempt something that no beast should do… transform into a human.
It’s simply forbidden; a taboo that shouldn't be broken.
Yet… for this human child… I would.
I haven’t seen my parents since I was born. I was left alone and cold, using my wits to survive in this bleak frozen world…
Perhaps my isolation has finally gotten to me…
As I feel my figure start to change I slowly lose consciousness…
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I awaken again as the new perspective comes to view. I attempt to balance myself imitating how humans usually stood. It takes me about an hour to adjust my balance and center.
I check up on the child. Condition is improving, slightly hungry, and still cold.
I spread my mana around the cave and it begins to warm up.
I take the food laid beside the basket and warm it to a suitable temperature. I slowly feed the chunks of ‘food’ to it.
Huh, it doesn't eat much, I suppose. Perhaps it can only hold so much currently.
I lay the food down as I set a protective barrier around the basket and a second layer around the cave’s entrance which also traps the heat in.
This gives me about two days before it deactivates.
I grab a set of coverings fit for humans and put them on as I leave. Ugh, they feel so uncomfortable… how do humans deal with this feeling?
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I feel my current state of mana. How little…
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
I guess another reason why beasts don’t transform into another form is because the mana flow changes and you become weaker due to having little experience and or the limits set by the form.
I circulate mana throughout my body and infuse it towards my lower half. I quickly sprint but immediately trip due to the unexpected momentum.
Right… I can’t travel like that anymore. I apply a small wind force that pushes me backwards as I start to descend the mountain that I've lived my whole life.
At the foot of the mountain I spot an anomaly. A towering wall surrounds an area filled with these ‘tower-like’ objects. A gathering place for humans, it seems. Then in the corner of my vision I spot something peculiar.
It’s a large ‘container-like’ object with rounded circles at the bottom being pulled by horses headed towards the walls.
Oh, I remember; this is a caravan, the optimal way of long distance travelling humans use on land.
Then, something odd occurs…
A group of different humans appear around the caravan, surrounding it. They carry masks and heavy killing intent.
Huh, so despicable to the point that they kill their own... what a vile race.
This’ll probably be the best way for me to piggy-back into this human establishment.
I wait for the masked humans to strike before making my move.
A large build human starts yelling something towards the caravan while the two riders brandish their weapons.
After a brief moment, they start fighting as I quickly launch myself from tree to tree until I've arrived just above the fight. Well, the fight is basically over as the two riders are just lying on the ground motionless.
The masked humans force out two other humans with smaller figures and longer hair. Perhaps they are the female of the race? I take that assumption as I prepare to strike.
I circulate my mana as I land on the ground.
I gather surrounding soil and rocks and form spears of earth. I hold and propel them with wind as they travel to their unsuspecting targets. The large man yells something right before he falls, along with the rest of the masked humans.
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(Bandit Leader P.O.V.)
Hehehe… two young girls, they’ll be good slaves. Or maybe I should start a small brothel, with my turn first, of course.
Towards my side I hear some unusual rustling.
“Who’s there?!”
Before I could turn my head I feel an immense pain as I lose my vision and fall.
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(Girl P.O.V.)
On our final day before reaching the capital we encounter some bandits. Usually I would have nothing to worry about but these bandits seem to practice dark magics.
They quickly overpowered our two trained guards as they open the door to the caravan. A large-built man with an insidious smirk approaches me and my sister.
Our faces are pale, knowing what would probably happen to us.
“No! Stop! I'm the 1st princess of this city!” “You’ll never live to see the day if you lay a single finger on me!” I attempt to threaten them to stop.
The large man, starts laughing loudly like he’s being overcome by a disease. “Oho… a princess huh?” “You’d sell very well then, hehehe.”
My mind shatters, as I get lost in my thoughts.
At that moment I hear a ‘woosh’ sound as screams fill the air.
A short while after, I regain my composure and find the large bandit dead, along with his group.
I spot a young man with pure white hair and a rather defined face starts walking towards us.
He kneels down beside our guards and briefly closes his eyes. After a short delay a shining light permeates and enters them.
A couple minutes later the guards awaken, looking confused.
I quickly realized this young man just saved our lives. I approach and bow before him. “Thank you for saving us, I will remember this forever.”
I wait for him to respond but get no answer. After an awkward silence I look up and find a confused face looking at me.
I just realized the features of his face and hair colour doesn't match anyone that lives on this continent.
“Do you not speak our language?”
He continues staring at me in a daze and slightly nods. Then, he points towards the city in the distance.
“Do you want to go there?” I convey my question with a couple of hand signs.
He nods slightly and bows towards me, replicating my previous actions.
I quickly raise his head and shake my head slightly while saying “no need, you've done so much for us, this is the least we could do.”
I don't think he really understand, but probably senses our tones and feelings. I gesture towards the caravans as our guards and my sister bow towards him, speaking their thanks profusely.
He raises their heads and shows a gentle smile before shaking his head slightly; almost like he’s gesturing “no need, it’s fine.”
We enter the caravan while our guards prepare to set off towards the city again. We sit in awkward silence as my sister and I sit on one side as he does on the other.
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Chapter 1 END
Thanks for reading!
PS: If there are any grammatical mistakes of suggestions you'd like to make to me, please PM me. I don't have the whole storyline planned out that far yet so a couple suggestions would be welcome! Thanks!