Nick didn’t bother to reply. He held his sword in front of him, scanning the trees for signs of the hidden archer. She couldn’t be too far away, given the density of the overgrowth.
While this was an unpleasant turn of events, he wasn’t too worried about the weapons pointed in his direction. He had already sized Greg and Shaun up, and he was dead certain that they were lying about their weapon skills, along with almost every aspect of this situation. By now, Nick had witnessed a wealth of evidence indicating that the men were weaker than himself and poorly suited for battle in general.
He was honestly surprised that they had lived this long, especially after the night of the blood moon. While the sniper in the trees posed a genuine threat, he was confident that he could defeat both men without relying on his spells or wand.
Unfortunately, he was still a novice with his sword. Nick wasn’t sure that he could disable or disarm the pair without critically wounding them in the process. Maybe I can use my mana darts to take them out long enough to steal their blades, then force them to surrender.
While he thought the matter through, the men advanced on his position with swords at the ready. They could attack at any moment, but were clearly hesitant to do so, despite their threats and show of bravado.
Case in point, instead of charging, they continued speaking, hoping to talk their way out of this without meeting Nick sword-to-sword. “Just drop your blade, and we can all walk away from this unharmed,” Greg pleaded, his composure unraveling now that his robbery had fallen apart before his eyes.
“Unharmed?” Nick felt his anger rising as the full implication of what they intended became clear.
“You would leave me out here to starve, with only a dagger to make my way through a bog full of ravenous beasts, let alone the next global event? What the fuck is wrong with you? We could have worked together. Formed a team and fought side-by-side to save our people and our planet. Instead, you’re out here preying on your allies. You are utterly reprehensible and a disgrace to humankind.”
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Both men took a step back at the venom in Nick’s tone, realizing at last that they had bitten off more than they could chew. He knew that they would either run or attack him soon, but he was too angry to care, walking toward the duo as they hastily backpedaled.
“You can lie to yourselves but not to me. Dress it up all you want, but you’re sentencing me to die, not just taking what’s mine. You are murderers, or nearly so, and I’m afraid that I can’t leave you out here where you might harm someone else.
“The fate of the Earth and our entire species is at stake, you shit-eating cowards, and you’re trying to shoot us in the foot before the race has even begun. I am deeply, truly disappointed in both of you, and I don’t appreciate what you’re forcing me to do.”
He brought the blade into a neutral position, ready to attack or defend himself as needed. By now, one thing was abundantly clear, Nick wasn’t going to let this slide.
“I’m not giving you my equipment.” He analyzed their stances as he steeled himself to spring into action. He wasn’t sure that he could pull this off without crippling or killing the inexperienced muggers, but the encounter had reached the point where he no longer had a choice.
Meanwhile, he gathered his will, preparing to conjure some mana darts as needed. He was reluctant to use his pain-inducing spells on another person, but it was better than cutting them down with his blade.
Before he started sword-swinging or spell-slinging, Nick tried to intimidate the men into surrendering one final time. “I had to risk my life time and time again to acquire my gear. If you want to take it from me, it’s only fair that you risk yours as well. Drop your weapons or prepare yourselves for a world of hurt. My patience has reached its end.”
“Shit. Fuck you man,” Shaun was still working up the nerve to follow through on his threats. Nick grimaced, ready to take Shaun out with his first attack before moving on to his partner. “You don’t know us. The hell we had to go through since the System arrived. It’s anarchy out here, and the only way to survive is to look out for yourself. Just remember that you asked for this.”
Shaun tensed his body, preparing to charge in time with Greg, but waiting for something before he did. “Aya, where are you? Fucking shoot him already.”