Welcome to the True Man’s World – 1.6

If it weren’t for her, he would have charged at the orcs instead of letting them pass by. He would have only stopped fighting when he had no choice but to flee. But now he had different priorities, and besides, it wasn’t like he’d wasted time. He’d leveled up and discovered a powerful Skill. For now, that was enough.

Trouble found them again soon enough.

Naturally. Just around the corner, an orc appeared out of nowhere—he hadn’t even heard it coming. It hadn’t made the slightest noise. Until now, that is.

"The abomina—!"

But it didn’t finish the insult.

It seemed that a fight counted from the moment hostility became apparent, meaning right from the start, or at least from the moment his hand went to rest on the sword’s hilt, which wasn’t much later.

So Max decapitated it with a single blow, silencing it forever.

Orc blood splattered him as the headless body collapsed. He was already so covered in blood that he didn’t notice the difference and didn’t even feel disgusted.

He glanced at Helen, but she didn’t react. As if she hadn’t seen anything.

She didn’t even wipe off the blood that had splashed on her cheeks. It was very little, but it was still the blood of one of the beasts that had committed that atrocity to her mother and who knows how many other elves.

It’s easy to say she’s being strong, he thought. But she’s just a child. She’s in shock, plain and simple.

And he couldn’t do anything about it—he wasn’t a psychologist.

He doubted the concept even existed. It would be an anachronism of epic proportions, so once again, he was the best she had. For better or worse.

After a while, they finally found the exit.

Well, to be exact, an exit. It wasn’t the same place through which he had entered this cursed cave, but what mattered was the result. They were free and safe, at least for the moment.

They could breathe without worrying that in the next exhale there would be more blood than air, due to a mace smashing their backs—or their heads—directly.

Helen’s small shoulders trembled as she cried in silence. Without the fear of death breathing down her neck, her mind could only go to one place. How irresponsible. Max was the only one breathing calmly.

“I’m sorry. I wish I’d gotten here sooner.”

“Huh? This isn’t your fault, sir. It’s just that…”

“What is it? You can tell me anything.”

“I didn’t want to be selfish, but my mother… I can’t stand thinking of her lying in there alone. And what—” for a moment, she thought she might throw up—“what they might do to her.”

There was nothing more they could do to her. But he didn’t want to imagine what those animals might do to the bodies either. It didn’t even have to be sexual, although that was naturally the first thing his mind jumped to because of the horrific image that would be burned into his memory for the rest of his days.

They could treat her like a hunting trophy, which would be just as awful.

He hadn’t seen any heads or limbs hanging around, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have those kinds of practices.

Their… traditions.

Which one of them had the more horrifying imagination?

Or maybe that wasn’t the point. Maybe the girl, a native of this world, knew exactly what awaited the discarded corpses. He felt like vomiting too.

“I’ll get her out of there and make sure she gets a proper burial.”

“Huh? You promise?”

“I promise, Helen. No matter what.”

The girl was silent for a while, and he thought she had nothing more to say, but then she threw herself at him, her small arms wrapping around his waist, her head pressing tightly against his chest.

As if he would disappear if she let go.

She trusted him, and not just because there was no one else. He had shown her that he was worthy of trust. So, as horrible and selfish as it seemed, it gave him a strange sense of comfort.

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No one had ever depended on him before. He had only ever taken, never given. That was it.

It was like proof that his second chance actually meant something, that he wouldn’t end up a shadow, hunched over in a hospital bed again, like some kind of scarecrow. Surrounded by false expressions, fake smiles, and equally fake words: a sweet poison that killed him slowly. Everyone around him, just shadows as well. Complete strangers.

“I’m going with you.” It didn’t sound like a question, but she didn’t sound entirely sure of herself either.

Max shook his head gently. He didn’t even have to think about it. He had let her help and she’d done her part. The question wasn’t about whether she was capable of succeeding. There was no need for her to go through that again. He would manage on his own.

“Is there somewhere I can take you? Did your mother and you live in this town?”

Little Helen shook her head against his chest.

“We were just passing through.”

“To where?”

“To a tribe.”

“I imagine it’s still far away.”

“You imagine right.”

“Then I’ll find you a place to stay in town.” Max instinctively stroked her back. He should at least be able to collect part of the reward. Even though he hadn’t killed all the orcs, he’d taken out a good number of them and the bastard who led them. “You wait for me there. You don’t have to do anything else.”

“How do I know you’ll come back?”

“I won’t die.”

“How do you know?” she insisted. “That’s what my mom used to say over and over again. She said everything would be okay.”

“I know. I know very well because I’m the chosen champion of Ares, God of War.”

For a moment, he thought she’d look at him strangely, wondering who the hell he was talking about. Ares hadn’t exactly made things easy for him, and the last straw would be discovering that the god had sent him to a world where neither he nor the other Greek gods had any presence. It would be better to look like an idiot now in front of a kid than to discover the truth at a truly critical moment. But that didn’t happen.

“Really?”

“Really.”

“You did arrive just in time. But then, why did my mother…?”

She broke down into tears again, her tiny body, burdened with far too much weight for her age, shaking violently, like leaves trembling in a cold wind blowing through the dry branches of the trees.

Would it be better to let her believe that? That it had been divine intervention, but that her mother would have suffered horribly anyway, only she had been saved? Survivors of tragedies like that often felt guilty, but maybe Helen would find comfort in thinking someone up above was watching over her.

For better or worse, he had to make a decision quickly, and that’s what he did.

“Ares didn’t send me to save you. He didn’t send me for anything, really. He gave me power and told me to do whatever I wanted, that he’d just watch.”

It was just a coincidence, in short. Was that easier to accept?

“Oh.”

He couldn’t tell what she meant by that.

“Shall we head off? To town, to find you a room or something.”

She nodded almost imperceptibly. She pulled away from him, breaking the embrace, though almost with reluctance. He thought how strange it was that she hadn’t even hesitated to hug him despite all the blood. He thought he’d much rather see her scared, desperately trying to scrub away the stains than this total lack of reaction.

Max and Helen walked hand-in-hand toward Ethos. It hadn’t been his idea, but he accepted it gladly, squeezing her hand back tightly and intertwining his fingers with hers. He’d say it was like having a daughter, but naturally, he felt more like her older brother.

As they arrived at the village, they drew many stares. It was uncomfortable, but he couldn’t say he hadn’t seen it coming. A small fishing village wouldn’t be used to warriors in full armor strolling around, much less one covered in blood from head to toe. He hadn’t found a stream to at least wash some of it off. Though to be honest, he had only looked half-heartedly.

Helen hid behind him, squeezing his hand tighter.

Maybe it wasn’t just him they weren’t used to seeing; perhaps they weren’t used to seeing other species either. Max bit his lower lip. Could he afford to leave her alone?

He wandered through the village. Of course, it wasn’t large, but he hadn’t seen half of it, having only gone from the coast to the blacksmith and nowhere else. He wasn’t looking for an inn but rather the town hall. He had to collect the reward from somewhere. The inn could wait until he had cold, hard cash in hand.

If he didn’t change his mind first. He was now sure that the stares Helen attracted were making him nervous. Damn nervous.

He felt the urge to walk up to any of them, shouting in their faces and spitting on them. He had the urge to reach for his sword again.

But until they did something, he wouldn’t cross that line.

He wasn’t any kind of hero, but he was at least a decent person.

He found the town hall and went inside. The treatment they received wasn’t much different from outside. If this kept up, he was going to lose his damn patience. He challenged every stare. She’s not some animal; she’s just a child. For God’s sake, you’re the animals. Incapable of behaving decently.

Helen continued trying to hide behind him, but it was impossible. The stares came from everywhere.

Still, the receptionist wasn’t busy. Max approached him. The sooner he finished this, the better. He needed the money, regardless of where he decided to leave her until he could return with her mother’s body.

“Quite the look you’ve got,” the man said, looking him up and down.

“Sorry I didn’t have time for a bath. I was too busy hunting monsters and saving people.” Max smiled. The man wouldn’t understand the reference, but Max didn’t care. It hadn’t been intentional, but now that he’d started, he might as well finish. “Family business.”

Max pulled the mission paper from his pocket and placed it on the counter.

“I see. You took care of everything?”

“No.” He could have lied, but they would’ve checked easily. Besides, he didn’t want to wait any longer for his damn money. “But I killed many, and I also took care of their current leader.”

“Yeah. And you picked her up there?”

“I saved her.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty intact for an elf who spent time with orcs.”

“Look, I’m not here to chat, especially not about that. Just give me my reward, and I’ll be on my way.”

The man shrugged.

“Well, I suppose that kid proves you were there, and the blood tells the rest of the story. Where else would you have found an elf?”

He disappeared into the back, but not for long. He returned with a bag of money. Gold coins, Max realized as the man set them on the table to count them. Max wasn’t stupid. The receptionist seemed irritated that he didn’t trust him. It was all there, in fact, but who wouldn’t check first?

“Are you going to keep her as a pet?”

Strange. Suddenly, his knuckles burned. He saw fresh blood splattered across them. Ah, yes. He had broken that bastard’s nose.