Haha….haha….hahaha….

Gray…..I’m going to die….I’m going to die…..

Bones…hurt….stomach…..want eat…….head…aches…….throat…..dry……body….weak.

You wouldn’t listen. If you screamed out for help, then they might have let you out. But no. You decided to keep your pride and persist on this meaningless suffering. Hero this, Hero that. What does it even matter if you’re going to die anyway?

Hero…..

Oh lookie here, the cell door opened.

Door….open?

Hector has finally come to visit you. Look, those yellow eyes of his are sparkling with excitement.

“Rise and shine, Lars! Hmm? Are you still alive?”

My hair…pulled up. Face…slaps. Hector’s eyes….towards me.

“Look! I’ve got you a special treat!”

He offers you a glass of water.

Water? I need it. I need it!

“Wow, are you really that thirsty? Licking it down like a dog! I might have broken you already! Sorry about that.”

I wish he used the term ‘cat’ over ‘dog’ instead.

Refreshing! Water! My savior! More! More! More!

More water….I’m starting to gain some of my sanity back. Am I seriously licking down a glass of water? How did I become so pathetic?

“This is taking too long. Drink faster,” Hector grabbed the glass of water and forced me to chug it all down my throat.

“Aghk! Damn!” I cough out some droplets.

“It seems that your mind is still intact. That’s great news! I think you’ve learned your lesson by now.”

Hector pulled my chin upwards and stared straight into my eyes. “So, are you finally going to take my offer? Work for me, Lars. This is your final chance.”

“Tsk…..I….”

Master. This is your last chance. Are you seriously still thinking about rejecting his offer?

But-

Is this ideal you seek truly worth dying for? The way I see it, both options won’t make you a Hero. The only difference between the two is that one choice will end your life forever. No one’s going to thank you for it. Your life is meaningless. Aren’t you afraid? Knowing that everything you did has been all for nothing? Knowing that you could never make a positive impact in this world? Knowing that you could have been able to achieve so much more in this world?

Or…..

Knowing that Alessia will never get the justice she deserves?

I……no. Alessia. My promise….there’s still something I have to do for her!

Clenching my teeth, I forced myself to mutter the words I had to say.

“I-I accept. I accept your offer,” I looked away.

“Yes! Finally! That’s a good boy!” Hector patted my head. “But that won’t be enough to prove your loyalty. So I’ve set up a little test!”

He clapped his hands, signaling two men to enter the room carrying a slave with a bag covering his head. They chain the slave to the wall, leaving him no way to escape despite all his struggling.

“Who is he supposed to be?” I asked.

“He’s a slave I want dead. Simple as that,” Hector said bluntly.

“W-Wait a minute, you want me to kill him?”

“Duh! Obviously! What else could you possibly expect?”

To kill another human. That’s only something I’ve been able to do in a virtual simulation. I’ve never actually taken a life before…

“W-What happens if I don’t?”

“Oh! Then I’ll spare his life and let him go!” Hector smiled. “But I’ll blow your head off in return!”

Basically, it’s his life or yours, fufufu.

My teeth started to chatter on their own and the shivers started to surge through my blood. I scratched my head intensely and breathed heavily, looking back and forth towards Hector and the slave.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

What am I supposed to do?!

“If you were really willing to serve me, you wouldn’t disobey my very first order, right?!” Hector’s smile started to widen and his golden eyes glowed with a sadistic glimmer.

“P-Please! Spare my life! I don’t want to die! Have mercy!” the slave screamed.

I stared at the slave, hesitant to move even a single finger. My heart could not bear to see someone else suffer. Why is this happening?

“I have a daughter to return to, I don’t want her to live without a father!” the sound of intense sobbing came out from the bag.

Family…..no. This isn’t right. Killing an innocent man isn’t something a Hero would do. Even to the very end, I must stick to my ideals at all costs! I can’t be selfish, what I must do is to lay down my life for others! Just one person. One person is all I need to save! Then I can die peacefully knowing I did something!

Master, don’t do this. Stop being an idiot and take care of yourself for once! You still have so much to live for!

“I refuse. That isn’t a heroic thing to do,” I gave my answer to Hector. “Kill me if you want.”

“Oh, thank you so much! You are a blessing!” the slave sniffled.

“Pfft. Seriously? Hahahahahahaha!” Hector’s laugh echoed throughout the room. “Even now, you still choose to do the right thing? I can’t say I didn’t expect this, but it’s still something that surprises me! That’s what I like about strong-willed humans! Once they turn into a tool for me to use, they bring out the best results!”

“So what? It’s not like I’m useful if I’m already dead,” I chuckled.

Master, listen to me! Listen to the true desires of your heart! You still want to live!

Sorry, but I’ve already made my decision. This is for the greater good. This is what my Master would have wanted me to do.

That’s not true! Arthur-The Hero Artorias wouldn’t want this!

“Who says you’re going to be dead?” Hector looked with a mischievous grin.

“What? Are you going to spare me?” I said in confusion.

“No. I’m going to give you a good reason to kill that man.”

“Ha? As if there’s ever going to be a good reas-”

Hector put his arm around my neck and placed a finger on my lips.

“Shhhhh. Let me tell you something. That man over there has no daughter. What a liar,” he whispered.

“W-What are you talking about?”

“Fun fact! He’s a notorious sex offender who used to have a bunch of female slaves in Sector 24. I just so happened to catch him in the act and made him my slave instead!”

“Sex offender? That means…”

“Yes, the man you are trying to sacrifice your life for is an evil monster. Upon hearing that, do you really think it’s worth it to let that man roam free, HEEEERO?!”

I bit down on the bottom part of my lip. My hand shakingly grasped itself into a fist and the stress started to get in my head.

Is this really for the greater good, Master? A righteous boy’s death, for a sinful man’s freedom. Do you really think it's best for this world? Who knows how many more victims that man could have?

Damn it!

“Shut up,” I address both Gray and Hector.

I shoved Hector's arm away from me and started walking towards the slave.

“N-No. Wait, why are there footsteps getting closer?!” the slave tried to wiggle his arms around. “Stop! Please don’t do this! I’m begging you!”

Stopping just a few inches in front of the man, I decided to ask him a question.

“What is the name of your son?”

“M-My son? It’s um….J-Jerry! Jerry’s my son! I need to go back to him!”

So that’s how it’s going to be…..

There’s your answer, Master.

I shove my hands towards his throat and start to squeeze my fingers against his carotid arteries. He tries to shake his head around, but I kick him in the face and continue to place the pressure on him.

“Aghk…why?”

“I thought you had a daughter.”

“W-Wait!”

“Hector was right. You are a dirty liar.”

T-This is justice, right? This is fair, right? This is for the greater good, right? RIGHT?! Killing is wrong, but I don't have a choice! I have to live! It’s the only way! Why should a guy like him get to live instead of me?!

“I’m sorry, I have no other choice!”

“Shut up, you selfish bastard!” the slave screamed back at me.

The next thing I knew, the bag covering the slave disappeared, revealing a familiar boy with an orange undercut. I could never forget that face. It was the very face that framed me for murder.

“Marko, you bastard! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you! Give me back my family!”

I raised my fist against him and threw a barrage of punches towards his face. Shadows started to form around me, whispering all sorts of incomprehensible gibberish. My vision started to grow darker, but I didn’t care. Each hit felt pleasurable, as if I had finally let go of my harboring feelings and lashed it all out against this punching bag of a human being. He deserves this. He does. He’ll pay!

“DIE!”

Lars, that’s enough. Calm down.

“Huh?”

My eyes blinked and saw that the person I was punching wasn’t Marko, but the slave with a bag over his head. The cloth had been ruddied with a bloody red and the body hung downwards in silence.

“W-What did I just do?”

Hector clapped his hands. “Bravo! What a performance! I must say, that was just wild! I didn’t think it would end this way!”

“I-I didn’t mean to….”

Own it up, Lars. You did this. You let it happen. You have to accept that.

I hung down my head in shame and stared into my swollen knuckles. I killed him. In cold blood. Was I truly capable of such things?

Was that truly….me?

[Black Skill Unlocked: Bloodlust]

A Black Skill…..why? I never even used it.

The Black sword feeds on doing evil acts. You killed someone in such a brutal fashion and now you have been rewarded, fufufu.

No. I don’t want this. This can’t happen again. This feeling, it’s like I’m losing sight of myself and who I wanted to be. I can sense it. I’m becoming a monster. The darkness calls out my name, but I can’t let it take me! Even if I can’t be a Hero anymore, even if I’ve betrayed my ideals, I will continue to grasp on to the light. And that’s why…..

Even if it’s unreasonable….

I…will never kill ever again.