If quick, I survive. If not quick, I am lost. This is death

-Sun Tzu

"Shit, I can't see well."

In the center of the arena, a battle was coming to an end. Guaran, one of the greatest generals in Barrania, on one side, and Mengus, one of the best arena fighters in the whole Kingdom. Face-to-face, two different worlds, in a clash for glory.

"Not bad kid," Gearen smiled at Mengus, his rotten and crooked teeth ambushed him.

"Brush your teeth once or twice a year at least geez... No wonder I smelled something foul."

Sword in his right hand, and shield in his left, Gearen kept smiling at Mengus while softly hitting his shield with his sword.

Mengus stood tall, not showing fear, only a sword in his hand. In front of him on the floor, a broken shield. Gearen was smart, "General smart" not "Arena smart". With giant swings, he only kept aiming at his shield, until it broke and scratched his forehead. The hot blood run down his face now, making it harder to see in his left eye.

"I was in worse situations than this... for sure..."

"Don't just stand there," Gearen kept on teasing Mengus, "aren't you one of the strongest in the arena? All I can see is a young inexperienced kid. Show me something else now, come!"

"I'm not falling for those Jedi mind tricks old man!"

Gearen looked confused for a second. "WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!"

Not knowing what he just did, Mengus made Gearen mad. He rushed at Mengus full force. Mengus, not having a shield to protect himself, had to use some different methods of fighting.

The Super Secret Method of Fighting Without a Shield: RUN!

Mengus quickly dashed to the side, narrowly avoiding Gearen's charging attack. Mengus knew he had to rely on agility and speed.

The arena, filled to the brim, cheered their hearts out. Mengus circled the arena, using the wide space to his advantage. Gearen swung his sword and rushed towards Mengus trying to catch him, but Mengus was always faster than him. Gearen lost his breath, running around trying to catch Mengus tired him out.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

"Run old man, can't catch me?" Mengus teased Gearen trying to get into his head.

"Be a warrior, and stop running away! Fight me!" Gearen shouted at him, trying to catch his breath.

Mengus didn't hesitate, he saw his opportunity to go on the offensive. He pressed forward, the crowd erupted into cheers. Gearen, now on the defensive, struggled to fend off Mengus's attacks.

The shield couldn't endure the heavy hits of his sword, cracking in the middle, the long sword cutting through it and landing on Gearen's head.

Mengus brought Gearen to his knees.

The arena fell silent for a moment before starting to celebrate. Mengus, breathing heavily, stood in the center of the arena victorious. The clash has ended, leaving Mengus victorious and top of the leaderboards.

Mengus raised his sword high in the sky, acknowledging the cheering crowd. Gearen, kneeling on the arena floor, offered a nod of respect. The old general, despite his confidence at first, had been outmaneuvered by The Super Secret Method of Fighting Without a Shield!

Mengus approached Gearen, who was still catching his breath, with a smirk.

"Maybe next time, brush your teeth more often, old man. It might improve your battlefield skill."

"You little fucker," Gearen laughed, the echo roaring in the blue sky.

The Super Secret Method of Fighting Without a Shield: RUN! had become a legendary maneuver, and Mengus, with his unique blend of skill and humor, had etched his name into the history of the Kingdom by being ranked as number one!

Now, it is time to go home.

* * *

Mengus had been away from home for more than a year, traveling through distant lands, conquering arenas, and improving his skills as a warrior. His victories had earned him fame and respect, he was known across the Kingdom and in every arena. But now, his heart wanted to go home.

In his past life, he spent all his time playing video games. He had problems, he knew that, but he couldn't do anything to help himself. Many tried to help him, but you can't help a person who doesn't want to heal. He got another chance in life, and in this life, he wanted to improve on himself, and his goal was to make his parents proud.

In the land, he grew up in, Barrania, children from a very young age are into fighting with wooden swords, the warrior lifestyle was everywhere.

So one day he thought: "What if I win in an arena fight? Would that make my parents proud?"

But over the years he decided to not stop there, he wanted to become number one.

"A weird feeling to explain, now that I finally won, I am anxious about what they're going to say. Are they going to be proud of me? Or will they hate me for not writing to them or coming back home for such a long time?"

Only one way to find out, the village was close, with only a few minutes of riding left, but then, the scent of smoke reached his nostrils long before he could see anything. He urged his horse to hasten its pace, and his party followed him. As he got to the top of the final hill, the view that met his eyes shattered his mind.

His village lay in ruins. Flames leaped into the sky, eating everything inside the village. The houses he remembered, the ones where he shared laughter with his family and friends, were only charred remains now. Heads on spikes around the village, people's torsos hanging from the wooden walls.

Lysa was right behind him, her hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe there are survivors, we should go check." She said.

"Yeah... We should." But he didn't move, he couldn't. The fear of seeing his parents dead froze him in place.

"Who could've done something like this?"

A question left better un-answered for now.