A warrior held a sword on top of a hill among thousands of creatures and raised it. The weapon glowed. The creatures began to climb the small mountain. They killed each other, crushed bodies that were unable to continue the race, and growled. A huge glow came from the heavens, allying itself with the hero's sword, whose face, covered by the blinding glow, emanated a smile.

I got up and pressed my hand to my chest. I looked around at the clothes on the floor, the open closet, the sun hitting the edge of the bed, my sodden blanket. I noticed the lack of air in my lungs and took in all the air I could.

“It was just a dream” I whispered.

I threw my sweat-heavy t-shirt on the floor, sat on the bed, looked out over the vast fields of crops, and i stood up. It hurts me to have to leave the bed, if I could I would lie there all day while reading books. Books... The word brought my gaze to the floor.

Damn, I didn't tidy my bookshelf. Well, I can do that another time. It's morning. A peculiar smell led me to the kitchen.

“Good morning, sleepyhead." said my mother. "Your father made the coffee and went to work in the cornfield."

“He always wakes up so early."

“Good morning, brother” my sister, Emy, said through a mouthful of cereal.

“Good morning, Emy,” I said, unsure if I could hold back my laughter.

Fresh outside air filled the house as the door opened and my father figure walked in with a wide smile. He was always stunning. Tall, handsome, strong, he had a nice beard. I asked myself several times if I really took after my father in terms of stature, because while he is over one meter and eighty I'm just under one meter and seventy.

"Good morning, champion! Did you see the newspaper today?"

"I did not see. Is there anything interesting?"

“Oh, nothing… Just the test for the city defense guard. Nothing more."

"Serious? Let me see! Let me see!"

I picked up the newspaper excitedly and read it.

“The academy holds tests for guarding the wall today, the event will last all day”. I've waited for this day for six months. Since I started seeing adventurers with beautiful, shiny and detailed armor and weapons, a peculiar desire to be one was born in me too.

"I want to. I can go?"

"Thin like that?" My father laughed at his own comment. I rolled my eyes in response.

He called me to go training several times, but for fair reasons, considering physical training hard, I declined.

"He can. However, Lumi, they require some experience in some fighting style, with or without weapons..."

"I'm going anyway!" I brought my hands to my waist.

"What makes you want to go in there, champion?"

"I had a really amazing dream today. I'm inspired"

"If you can't, you can try to join the collection group"

“I don't want to be just a collector, Dad."

“Hey, they're not 'just' collectors."

My dad referred to the collectors as "a nice group." Honestly, I never quite understood why, but I'm curious to know more about it. Shortly after breakfast, he commented on the exposure of a Minotaur's body. Emy, my mom and I were scared at first, but we relaxed when he said the creature was dead.

I still have a good fear of very large monsters. I don't know. Maybe I should go see him. I can't be a guard if I'm afraid of big monsters, right? A Minotaur's Aura must match Royal rank. I've read in books about some who have surpassed that level and become a threat worthy of a King.

During the day, I performed the day-to-day tasks on the farm: chasing away squirrels and monkeys, calling the Farmer Cats, collecting and planting. Far from being difficult, with the exception of shooing away the monkeys. For some reason, they hide in the cornfield and attack when a person gets close. Nothing that could hurt anyone.

I returned to my room. It was already night. I dressed up a beige pants and a long-sleeve blue blouse. I grabbed an old, sprawled fanny pack that held three bronze coins, or all my money, and walked out.

"Are you going to take the test, soldier hair?" said my father, smeared with dirt and weeds.

"I'm going! I come back to tell you my victory" I said as I fluffed my almost non-existent hair.

The drive to Karin's town was, as usual, good. A little distant and scary. The entrance of the great wall is far from my house, I need to go around the dark forest and full of noise to enter.

I arrived at the gate of the wall and saw two soldiers. One of them wore dark gray iron armor and kept his sword sheathed on his back; the other, in leather armor and holding a bow and arrow as he watched the main road.

I gave a slight wave to the two and entered the big gate. The beautiful polished light gray cobblestone floor, the well lit houses with candles and magic poles, the local bustle and the smell of various spices in the air make me so… so happy. I smiled broadly as I walked towards the gym where the exam was being held.

I've noticed more groups with shiny gear, worn-out weapons, and potions around the shops; it's like every step I take I can see five Shadow-level adventurers. This brought me a question: If there are only Shadow adventurers here and the Minotaur is Real, could the person who captured him be here bringing so many adventurers from outside?

Well, that doesn't matter for the moment. The city is just more crowded than usual.

After turning several streets, I arrived at the big gym. There were two soldiers holding wooden spears at the door. They didn't pay much attention to me, they just let me in. The place is reasonably big. A magic chandelier, torches, shelves and chests with wooden weapons, people practicing. Typical of a gym made just for training.

I walked over to two men who were in the center with some paperwork. The man wearing a green cape with gold symbols gave me a sneering look, while the man next to him,who seemed to work out every day, only showed curiosity.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Can I help you? " said the black man with his arm longer than my back.

"Yea. I came for the test."

“You? Skinny like that? Do you even know how to punch?"

“Ignore this pathetic professor. Just fill in the form, please.”

I did what he asked. The form only required some basic information and a description of the purpose and reason for being here. The surrounding students were whispering something like Let's see the Minotaur or He's giant! I need to see this. It was clearly easy to see that everyone was at least excited about it. If you look at the faces then…

I handed the form to the strong teacher. He gave it a quick read and added the paper to the paperwork. The other teacher looked me up and down, as if I wasn't seeing. I looked away nervously, wanting to avoid causing trouble with anyone here. My heart fluttered slightly as I let myself be carried away by thoughts of failing to join the guard, until the sound of a clash of swords captivated my attention.

There were two students dueling. A girl wearing a long blue dress and using a kind of white magic in her hands, and a boy wearing torn leather pants holding a wooden sword with traces of metal. He looks pretty hurt compared to the girl. She conjured a sword of white matter and hit the boy in the belly. He grunted, but his sword was now on fire. He hit the mage in the back. She fell, grunted, but got up smiling. There were ropes around him.

If I had the ability to use magic, I would definitely choose fire.

"Nice fight" said João, my childhood friend.

"I'd say the strategy was risky" said Bruno, my other friend.

" Hey guys. Did you come for the test too?"

" You can be sure, I'll get muscular if I train here" João struck a pose with his muscles.

" Start. And you, Lumi?"

“I…”

" Lumi Kai! Please on the platform."

All the hairs on my body rose instantly. Butterflies fluttered through my stomach as my heart tried to jump out of my rib cage, and my eyes did their best to open. I wondered what my features were at that moment, but because of their laughter I chose to abstain me.

I walked to the platform; I staggered as I climbed the steps, and then I climbed. Many looks. Many people. I swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on keeping the strength in my legs.

My opponent climbed up on the other side. He held a wooden staff, had eyes of varying shades of purple, and a torn, dirt-stained green outfit.

"Ready?" The instructor said, positioning his massive arm between the boy and me.

I swallowed again, raised my arms the way I knew how, nodded. And he shouted:

"Begin!"

I brought my fist to where his head was a second ago. He was gone. I felt the tip of his staff collide against the pit of my stomach, it made me spit out saliva mixed with blood. I fell with my back on the floor, panting, coughing, trying to recover somehow. The instructor said something about stopping the fight and calling for a doctor, before approaching and touching my nose; but his voice was muffled by the hum and I barely felt the touch.

"Can you get up?" he asked, his voice distant and muffled.

I sat, dizzy, and looked around. Some were laughing, my friends worried, my opponent waiting beside the instructor.

“You can't expect much from a peasant." said someone whose voice was impossible to distinguish. Several whispers about me proceeded.

“I am.” A slight irritation in my voice, I felt my heart burn.

“Okay, let's move on. Defeat is of the Lumi'" The instructor stood up.

“You came unprepared."

“And you're very good."

"Not a lot. Not yet."

I climbed out of the arena biting my lower lip, clenched my fists until my fingernails drew some blood, and grunted. The worst thing was having heard several times he's weak and he can't use magic, it took away all the motivation that was already absent in me.

I ignored as much as I could until I left the place. I kicked a log and my foot burned. I sat on it and screamed; I looked around to make sure no one had heard, but there was no way; the once-full place was now empty.

I skipped training. I had been little interested in that, I just wanted to be a simple guard. Just it. Maybe I should have thought more, my goal was so shallow and pathetic. Become a guard? I wasn't even capable of that!

Bruno and João left after a few minutes, they said they passed. I was happy to hear, but frustrated with myself for being unable to do the same. We decided to go to a nearby restaurant to celebrate, they didn't comment on my defeat. And that must have been the best.

The hamburger restaurant was simple and inexpensive, compared to most, the waiter showed us a menu with new types of sandwiches.

"I want a Defin burger."

"Right. That's just three bronze coins."

Three? Only? I felt my heart tighten and a tear flow, but I gave him the three coins. I put the empty bag in my pocket, this made me slightly upset.

I bumped into one, two, three people who ran past the exhibition. I walked alongside João and Bruno with some difficulty, I felt my feet leave the ground when two huge men tried to pass. I'm squeezed between them, but I manage to get close enough to see a cloth covering something immense. .

If it were up to me, I would definitely be able to see the back and rear because I'm short. A tall red-haired woman arrived on stage, she raised her hands and all sounds slowly dissipated. Two guards arrived and held the cloth, directed their gaze to the woman for confirmation.

"My dear people... As everyone knows, Karin is in a neutral zone. No monsters or portals have appeared here in years" She paused. "But today Karin's adventurers and guards encountered this monster in the Mountains of the One-Eyed Being... And they won that fight!"

At this very moment, screams and applause echoed so loudly that I could barely hear my breath. The two guys beside me shifted enough that my ribs hurt.

I should celebrate, I thought. After all, it's not every year that a Minotaur is defeated.

"Yes, my people! We won!"

I raised my arms and screamed. Out of nowhere, silence came. The woman looked at the two guards,they were just as confused as she was, and returned her gaze to the crowd, as if she were looking for someone small and hidden.

I felt a shiver down my spine, a horrible feeling, an incomprehensible tremor in my legs. Whispers echoed, guards arrived, a translucent dark aura emerged. The cloth moved. A soldier shouted. The cloth rose.

I fell to the ground in front of the two men who squeezed me. Not only them, but everyone else there were wide-eyed and jaw-dropping as they looked at what was behind me. My heart was heavy, I didn't want to look, I wanted to run non-stop. I heard the sound of cloth against the floor and the screams began.

Running, people falling, screaming, crying. They all had one thing in common: They all knew they had to get away, that staying here meant the same thing as death. How did I know? The black aura passing like a stream of water near me told me that.

I turned my body slowly. The Minotaur was on his feet, holding a lifeless soldier's leg. Blinding red eyes, body with multiple cuts and black blood. He was alive - as much as he didn't look like it.

I haven't located the woman or the guards who came here; no one else was here. The monster glared at me and I swallowed hard as I tried to stay on my feet. My vision started to blur as he took his first heavy step. The ground shook and the stage was destroyed, the soldier's body fell among the rubble. Only then did I see other bodies there, at his feet. When did this happen?

It didn't matter anymore, I was next. The creature took another step towards me, kept its gaze fixed on me. My heart was getting faster and faster, my breathing more and more ragged.

A boy yelled not far away. The Minotaur looked at him and I knew he was next. The monster walked to stand next to the boy and raised its huge, muscular arm.

My legs, for some reason, walked —crawled— to him. Facing the Minotaur again I grabbed the boy who was screaming non-stop. The Minotaur bellowed so loudly that the ground began to shake, his aura grew stronger and his body more than bloody.

I felt hot liquid run down my leg as I screamed and cried and closed my eyes.

The sound of a sword being drawn came from the heavens, accompanied by a crash. The sound of cutting went from in front of me to a nearby house, and apparently, the house collapsed.

I opened my eyes and a man was smiling in the midst of the fire and the yellow sparks that moved as if they were alive, he was holding a jagged golden sword in the neck of the Minotaur lying on the ground.

“I'm glad I got there in time." said the man who wore armor with a moon symbol on his chest.

He was a royal guard.