Jin’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach. Firearms were rare. A true stuff of adventure novels. After all, who’d want to shoot a mere hunk of metal if artefacts offered so much more at possibly even half the price and without the need to buy gunpowder? Yet the boy had to deal with his reality. What he had read in the stories about pirates and ley line hunters was now an actual threat.

“Think about it,” he spoke to the man. “You can see the aura around me. You know I’m a wizard.”

“Yeah, but I ain’t stupid, kid. That aura? That’s nothing. Cool thing about bullets is that they are hard to predict. Their force, I mean. You’d need a much stronger armour to escape unscathed.”

“Maybe. But have you considered that I’m just an apprentice? Do you think my master will let you live if he finds out you killed me?”

“And have you considered that I wouldn’t have to kill you?” the man spoke and aimed his gun lower. “You try anything and I’ll shoot you in the leg. The pain alone will be enough to teach you a lesson. Not to mention the–“

He didn’t get to finish. From a stance with raised arms, that could only signify surrender, Jin bolted towards the man. The pirate was more stunned not by the fact that the boy would do so, but rather by the way in which he ran. Not a single attempt to avoid a direct line of sight. The man bit into his lower lip and fired. Whatever was about to happen would be the boy’s fault.

Jin’s aura flickered and its edges shifted from firm into a more viscous shape. It flew downwards, gathering around his legs. As the gunshot overshadowed the noise of the rain and the smell of gunpowder flew into the pirate’s nostrils, the bullet bounced off of Jin’s protective magic.

The aura crumbled into a dozen golden pieces. The impact was enough to shatter it. The boy had no time to look and assess the damages. He only knew that walking was still possible and only hurt a little bit. That meant his defences had worked.

He stopped in front of the pirate. His fist reached backwards and magic began gathering around it once again. Jin wasn’t too skilled. There was little time to conjure up a truly powerful blow. He had to make do with the little time available.

A fist clad in golden magic dug deep into the pirate’s stomach. The impact was overpowering. He dropped to the ground and quickly curled up. Sickness settled upon him within a few seconds. Like getting hit with a metal beam attached to a construction machine.

Jin quickly kicked the pistol away as soon as it hit the ground. He raised his fists and got ready to face the man in a hand-to-hand combat. Little did he know that one punch of his enchanted fist would be enough.

“Thanks for letting me know where you were aiming,” he remarked and a smug smile spawned on his face.

“Here! He’s over here!” he heard someone yelling from the maze of containers. The trio he had left behind called for reinforcements.

“Damn!” he muttered and quickly looked over his shoulder. The way out of the cargo hold was still blocked by the steam escaping the pipes. To make matters worse, the pirates were already approaching him. There was no time to hide.

Four men and one woman gathered around him. The man with the wooden club seemed to take the role of the leader. The two newcomers were armed with mere rusty knives. That much calmed Jin down a little. They didn’t seem to be used to fighting.

The group surrounded him like birds of prey.

“Don’t let appearance fool you. He’s a nimble little devil,” the club-wielder instructed the others.

Jin scanned his surroundings. There was nowhere to go. The way out behind him was cut off and all other directions were occupied by the attackers. The only escape route seemed to lead straight through them.

The man swung his club in a wide arc as he approached the boy. There was little panic in Jin’s heart. The attack was too slow. His aura moved up to his head to block the strike. He barely felt the impact.

Moving the magic around for an attack would be difficult. With all of his aura around his head, he leaned forward and jumped up. The metal helmet along with the condensed enchantment proved a truly traumatic experience for the pirate’s jaw. He fell backwards to the ground, barely aware of what happened.

“Now! He’s unprotected!” one of the four yelled out.

Jin tried to move his aura around and gather some more magic in the meantime, but there was little opportunity for it. Although the weak paper-like armour around him managed to catch some blows, it didn’t protect him completely.

He quickly jumped away. His aura was finally forming into a protective shell, yet a few cuts around his arms were a proof of its weakness. Now that the pirates knew they could hurt him, they seemed way more confident. Enough to throw at least some of their caution to the wind.

Three of them moved closer while the fourth picked up the club and joined them a moment later. They may have been less experienced than their leader, but these people were truly well organized. Jin shifted his magic. Most of it protected his head, then a large portion went into his fists, and whatever remained was there to block the hits to the rest of the body.

They traded blows while the boy kept backing away deeper into the cargo hold. There was little time to even breathe. Every successful punch he managed to land did briefly stun the pirates, but whenever one would slow down to lick his fresh wound, the remaining three would cover him. It was a never-ending struggle. The only question was who would drop down first.

Jin got struck way more often, but felt few of the cuts and impacts. The pirates, on the other hand, knew that each hit they received would truly hurt, so they made sure to approach carefully. They too got punched from time to time, but far less frequently than the boy.

Finally, after a minute of two of his struggles, Jin finally found something that could help him. While backing away, a tiny gap between two cargo containers greeted him. To divert the attention of the pirates, he tossed his helmet at them before quickly jumping into the minuscule opening. Their hands reached for him, but his small stature proved to be the ace he needed. Didn’t take long before he made it to the other side. Finally, he had some room to breathe.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

He clenched his fists and gathered as much magic as he could. It would take a while before the men would catch up to him, so he had to use the opportunity. Much more refined aura was necessary. He tried his best to visualize it. A layer of armour that would protect him but would also automatically feed magic into his hands, for an even stronger attack.

Strokes of black liquid flared up at the edges of his aura. When the pirates arrived, they stopped for a moment to fully contemplate what the hell was going on. No longer was the boy just slightly glowing. There was something akin to a golden flame dancing around him now. It was rough, unrefined, and an amateur work at best, but to them, it still looked like the most terrifying spell they’d ever seen. Attributed mostly to the fact that they had barely seen any up until that point.

Jin took a stance and a deep breath. Rushing into the battle was unwise. That much he knew. It wasn’t a lesson Manuel would teach him. Rather, it was a common topic in the adventure novels he loved to read every once in a while. A calm observation of the situation was needed. His body was drowning in the overwhelming amount of magic, yet he knew all of it was just temporary. Saving it up and using it wisely was key.

“Get some help!” one of the pirates called out to their allies, who quickly turned on their heel and ran away.

Jin gritted his teeth. This was just as he feared. He had to go on the offensive, much to his dismay.

The plan was simple—to rush directly at them and hope the armour would suffice. Jin moved his leg, yet a single step forward turned into a leap. The remaining half of the pirates that remained behind covered their faces in fear of an approaching attack.

The young wizard waved his arms as he flew through the air. He miscalculated. His control over the magic was lacking and so the single step caused the volatile aura to blow off some of its charge, propelling him forward like a projectile. His mind worked fast enough for him to at least deliver a punch to the first pirate he came into contact with. For the scoundrel, it meant lights out. Anything after the impact faded into nothingness.

The other man managed to move away. His heart was pounding. The boy’s technique looked far more dangerous than it actually was. After all, only the craziest of wizards would be brave enough to essentially turn himself into a protectile.

Jin fell to the ground and let out a loud groan. His hand hurt after the punch. Quickly he got up again, but a sharp pain in his leg reminded him why too much magic is generally a bad idea.

“Damn it!” he muttered quietly to himself. His wizard skills were still a massive gamble. One that he was quickly losing.

The aura around him diminished, shrinking back into its more natural form. He couldn’t risk another one of his steps turning into a magic-powered leap.

He stood still. If the pirate would realize he got hurt, he would surely use it to his advantage.

Shortly after, Jin found himself facing the man’s blade. His skills with the dagger were lacking. There was no technique behind the attacks. A simple stab followed another. Sometimes a slash intruded upon them, but those were just as ineffective.

Jin gritted his teeth. Every step hurt like hell and punching with his right hand wasn’t much different.

His aura cracked at several places. Too many stabs got blocked by it and the boy could hardly keep repairing it on time.

Dreams of heroic deeds left his mind. He had little chance of catching up to the two who went to get reinforcements, and this one man alone was proving to be enough of a threat. Seconds passed and Jin couldn’t help but think about the possibility of an actual fighter appearing to help his comrade.

No, that sort of thinking was wrong. There was a threat right in front of him. Getting rid of that man was step number one.

Jin waited patiently for the moment when the pirate would consider stabbing ineffective and would opt for a slash instead. When he finally raised the dagger high, the boy clenched all his muscles. He spun on the heel of his injured leg and delivered a single kick into the pirate’s vulnerable stomach.

The magic erupting from the blow looked like a shower of golden sparks that practically covered the man. The pirate tumbled to the ground and dropped his weapon.

Jin yelled, trying to endure the pain. He limped backwards. His golden aura gathered around the injured foot. He hoped that through some instinct, it would begin healing. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case. The pain wasn’t subsiding one bit.

He looked over at the pirate. Judging by his prolonged stay on the floor, he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. This battle was won, but a much harder one would soon follow. The boy turned to the exit and took a couple of steps before he was forced to lean against the container next to him. He sighed. There was no chance of catching up to the pirates. All he had to do now was to prepare for their arrival.

Slowly, he made his way to the exit. There was an at least somewhat open space there. Certainly much better for a fight than the cramped up labyrinth of boxes. Should they bring more firearms though, he would barely stand a chance. No matter where he’d face them, it seemed he’d be at an enormous disadvantage.

His heart beat like crazy. The likelihood of him making it out of there without help was next to none now. Nevertheless, there was something that drove him forward. They surely wouldn’t kill him, that much he knew. Manuel would go look for them the moment the ship would be reported as missing. If the worst would come to happen, he could always surrender and wait to be rescued as a prisoner.

Briefly, his blood boiled at the idea of his friends getting hurt at the hands of these thieves. He did not want to be saved. He wanted to be the saviour. The one to triumph. Just like the heroes whose legends he used to read.

The open space of the exit area welcomed him with open arms, along with three pirates already waiting for him. Jin recognized two of them. They were the ones who went to get help. But only one man came to their aid. There was something odd about him. Something that sent shivers down the boy’s spine. He was different. Stoic and old. He radiated natural authority. His strength was clear from the first sight, yet, there was something else too. It took Jin a while to figure it out, but the moment it finally clicked, his mind descended even deeper into despair.

“Jin Cloudhopper. You didn’t grow a bit since we last saw each other.”

He recognized the face. It was the one he saw countless times before. Back when they were just starting with their delivery jobs, he thought he saw the same man everywhere. The same face, just always slightly different. It nearly drew him insane, until one day, he simply stopped seeing it, shortly after their first trip to a swamp. So why did he see it now? Why was that man standing before him? And most importantly, why did he speak like he knew him?

“Y-You… are the druid?” he muttered, fearing the answer.

“Indeed. Though I am more than that, as you will see.”

The two pirate goons looked at each other and shrugged. “Druid? What’s that runt talking about?”

The elder sighed. “Ah, yes, you two are still here.”

“Of course we’re here, you geezer! You know that kid?”

“Naturally. He’s one of the reasons we’re here.”

“What?” the two dropped their guard. Nothing made sense to them. “I thought we were here for the expensive tech this ship was carrying.”

“Good. It was best for you think that.”

The old man moved faster than anyone would suspect for someone his age. Each of his palms landed on the chests of the rogues beside him. Dark blue aura shot through their bodies and out of their backs, yet left not a single scratch. They fell to the ground at the elder’s feet. Their blank stares responding to nothing.

Jin took a single step back. Facing a seasoned pirate warrior was a scary thought. Standing against a wizard was horrifying.

“W-Who are you?” he whimpered. All the courage he once felt was now gone.

“That is a long story,” the man replied and sat down. “Please, sit. We have much to talk about. The truth is a rather… complicated matter.”