I should actually say that rather than me finding Paul, it was he who found me first.

He had a panicked expression on his face and as soon as he saw me; he ran towards me with fear in his eyes.

“Faustus, please help me. Harold is after me, and he has a bunch of new people who’re helping him! They’re all huge and strong. I ran away but Harold sent a person to tell me that if I don’t come to where he is, he’ll break a bone of my body for every single day that I stayed away from him.”

“Please help me!” He begged again.

Narrowing my eyes, I thought to myself, before decisively nodding.

“I’ll help you!”

“Alone? What about Alessia?”

“I can’t find her but I’m more than enough for Harold and his new goons.”

Hesitating, Paul gritted his teeth before nodding and firming up his face.

“Follow me!”

So I followed him to the spot where I first met him.

It was quite a long way and by the time we reached there; the sun was slowly sinking away - casting the world in darkness.

The night breeze felt cold to me and shivering - I pulled my doublet closer to me.

Paul, too, was shivering - even more so than me because of his thin clothes.

“I should give him a good cloak for his birthday,” I mused to myself.

Breaking out of my reverie, I found myself in a rather secluded dead-end alley where there were a bunch of soldiers sitting around playing dice.

I squinted, but I didn’t see any sign of Harold.

Turning my head around, I found Paul was shrinking back towards me and two thuggish-looking soldiers were blocking the path back.

Taking quick stock of the situation, I cursed inside.

Bal, where did Harold get these thugs and why wasn’t Harold here?

I was about to speak when my eyes widened as wide as they could be before my body instinctively reacted and jumped back.

Whoosh.

A blade danced by my cheek, slicing it open.

“Bal! This Balakash wants to kill me,” I screamed internally.

I wanted to yell out and ask him why he was trying to murder me, but the situation was developing too fast.

The people who were in front of me initially playing dice? Those people were now behind me and I was mid-jump, heading towards them.

They weren’t idly waiting around either as they drew their own blades and lunged, shortening the distance even more.

Twisting my body around violently, I chose the one in the middle who was a bit ahead of his companions.

Kicking him squarely in the shoulder, I sent him careening into the people on his right.

Using the momentum, I landed and turning; I thrust out my left leg, which drove into the sternum of the initial attacker, who ran right into it.

Kicking off using the momentum of the man and my leg that was extended, I sailed through the gap that the middle man had opened up.

Coming behind all of them, I skidded to a halt by bracing my feet, and then the realization hit me.

Paul.

Except they completely ignored Paul, which was strange but fine by me.

Quickly scanning the enemies, I counted 5, all of whom were uncovered by the silver rank forceshield but were wearing armor of various categories.

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That means I’m facing awakened soldiers or iron rank soldiers.

I relaxed before tensing up again as the possibility that one of them could be a disguised silver rank hit me.

As for gold rank? Impossible. They would never have required the ‘ordinary’ people otherwise.

Readying myself to the maximum, I calculated my plan of attack before executing it.

I crouched with my two hands on the ground and then like a sprinter -

I dashed forward like an arrow and dodged the point soldier's blow, before reaching the next line of two soldiers who, together with the first one, formed a triangle in the narrow alley while the last two soldiers guarded the entrance of the alley.

Dodging the attack of the second soldier, I gritted my teeth and sidled my body closer to the third soldier, and got within his reach.

That didn’t help with the dagger that tore through my skin and into my right shoulder bone, but because I was within his guard, his blow stopped there - lacking momentum.

Grabbing the soldier who had wounded me, I threw him at one of the soldiers guarding the alley.

Then I ran towards Paul, who was still standing petrified, before grabbing him and launching an attack with the fine dust - that I had gathered before when I crouched - on the remaining soldier who was moving to block the opening created by his fallen allies.

My shoulder throbbing in protest and yet, I shoulder-charged the last remaining guard who was momentarily distracted by the small amount of dust, and at that moment, I ignited my warforce.

For the entire time that the altercation had taken place, my warforce had been boiling, the familiar heat itching to break out and consume me.

But I had stopped because had I failed in my plan after triggering the warforce, I would not have had the chance to execute a second plan.

But now I triggered my warforce and my speed doubled, if not tripled, and my shoulder charge sent the soldier flying.

Without stopping, I was about to run further when a sharp pain pierced my left side.

Faltering, I staggered and almost fell while Paul, who I had grabbed, sedately moved out of my grasp and stood; playing with a dagger that had been stained red with my blood.

“You! Pau-” I cried out before the sharp pain in my side made me kneel on the ground heavily.

Walking closer, Paul smirked and played with the dagger as he said, “No last words, Faustus? I can give you a moment to say the-”

Abruptly, without finishing his sentence, He lunged at me with the dagger, only for my palm to come up and block the dagger with my flesh.

Then I clenched my fist around the dagger that had run through my palm.

Smiling hideously, I lunged forward and head-butted the stupefied Paul, who slumped to the ground immediately.

Then I felt a sharp pain in my back, but as soon as I felt it, I moved forward into a roll and came up gasping and biting my tongue to force back the pain.

Turning, I regarded the 5 soldiers who were like wolves who had smelt blood.

Then I looked at the path back and my wounds before sighing.

I underestimated them.

I knew I was heading to a trap.

But I thought it was a trap set up by Harold.

Not a trap set up by whoever was behind Paul.

A face flashed into my mind.

Bal, I’ll get my revenge if I get out of here.

But for now, there’s only one choice.

Ignite my body, Ignite my heart, Ignite my blood!

Turning crimson with the blood and the power of the warforce that suddenly surged even more powerfully inside me, I half-smiled at the soldiers.

Before I charged at them.

1v5.

Wounded vs professional soldiers.

So what! I am a Drayke!

I have trained under the devil, and I have stood through hours of his beatings!

Pain? What pain? Wounds? Bring it on!

——-

Blood splattered in the air along with bits of torn skin.

Groans and grunts sounded out one after the other.

Then the sound of staggering footsteps came before a heavy thud followed.

Faustus Drayke knelt at the end of the alley, an alley where he had brutally taken on 5 soldiers by himself.

All of them lived, but they wouldn’t move for a long time.

As for Faustus…

--—-

On one knee, I coughed up blood.

Tearing my doublet and shirt, I bound my wounds so that I wouldn’t die of blood loss at least.

My vision threatened to darken, but every time it did, I would bite my tongue.

A face in my mind spurred me on to stand, one inch at a time.

The face in my mind grew clearer and my breath became stronger and stronger until I stood unsteadily and turned around to the entrance of the alley.

“Sia…” I murmured.

Only to freeze as I saw a figure standing at the entrance of the alley.

A figure clad entirely in black.

The figure gazed at me serenely.

I gazed back in horror.