Val raised his sword and started circling Valenius, shouting, 'Attack!'

Valenius rushed towards him, swinging his sword wildly.

Val blocked every attack with ease.

Eventually, Valenius tripped over himself, and his sword clattered to the ground.

He let out a sigh.

Val tried to help but Valenius pushed his hand away and slowly got up, staring at Val, waiting for Val to speak.

Valenius's legs buckled beneath him.

Val then walked away, turning to face Valenius, and said, 'Now you have a lot to learn, but we don’t have time. Quickly, I’ll show you my movements, and you copy. Then, we fight.'

With that, Valenius walked behind Val and mimicked his movements as he swung the sword. “Now, also pay attention to my footwork. Try not to stay in the same place.”

After a short while of copying Val's movements, Valenius was ready to fight. Val blocked every movement that Valenius threw.

For a second, Val let his guard down, and Valenius successfully charged at him, knocking him to the ground.

Val grabbed his sword, his eyes closed.

The sword lit up, and his eyes opened wide, Valenius walked back, retreating swiftly.

Val got up, holding his red-lit sword, and quickly walked towards Valenius.

He grabbed Valenius by his clothes, and quickly lifted him in the air, pressing his sword to Valenius’s stomach.

Valenius started to breathe heavily when he felt the icy tip of the blade against his stomach.

Valenius's eyes widened as he stammered, “Val, I am sorry. Please don’t do this.”

Valenius saw that Val's eyes looked empty, and then a second later, Val shook his head, his wide eyes open. He released Valenius and turned to walk away.

After stopping for a few seconds, he looked at Valenius while his back was still turned.

Val’s gaze then lowered to the ground as he spoke, “I am sorry. I don’t know what came over me. We'll stop training now. Later, I will give you equipment and answer any questions you have, but then you must find a way to bring yourself home and stay there. But I am afraid I can't help you much more, and I am sorry.”

Valenius stared, trying to catch his breath, and just kept watching as Val went back to his room.

Valenius started to think about Val's change. Why was Eleantra there?

He started to rub his head out of frustration and dread and muttered under his breath, “What now?”

Valenius started to walk back to the abandoned village where he could rest while his mind raced. Back in his hut, he pondered what could happen to him when he leaves this place, this village.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Then, his thoughts wandered to Val. What was happening to him?

Valenius decided to go to Val's room and talk to him. As he walked through the abandoned village, the sun started to set. When he arrived at Val's door, he heard a loud bang and another clatter to the ground.

Silence followed. Valenius rushed through the door to find Val on the ground unconscious.

Valenius rushed over to Val, checking his neck for a pulse and letting out a breath of relief when he felt a thumping beat against his fingertips.

He started to look around the room to see what had caused Val to fall unconscious. Nothing out of the ordinary, he noticed a note sitting on the desk.

Val let out a loud gasp for breath, his eyes widening as he suddenly sat up, rubbing his head.

Val looked at Valenius, very confused, then lowered his head and got up.

Valenius watched him closely, still feeling puzzled.

Valenius stood, arms crossed. "What's going on? You attacked me, and now you're unconscious. Is everything okay? Are you hiding something from me?"

Val looked at Valenius with a sombre expression. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have attacked you. This world... I’ve been here so long that I can’t figure out what's real anymore. Sometimes, it feels like I’m trapped, kind of like PTSD. If you stay here long enough, You'll experience the same thing that I am experiencing. There are many dangers here that can take your life. They'll take everything from you and make you do terrible things just to survive. I see things that aren't always there, threats that aren't real, or at least I think they're threats. Sometimes, I get very confused. At times, my mind tries to make me forget or block out what I've done. I attacked you because it was instinct, a survival instinct. For those few seconds, I thought you were trying to kill me. That’s why you must leave. But before you go, I need to ask you a serious question: have you ever taken a life?”

Valenius shook his head and whispered, “No.”

Val let out a sigh. “I know this is hard to hear, but you need to be prepared. When the time comes, and you need to take a life—whether it's an animal, a person, or a creature from this world—you can't hesitate. Hesitation could mean your death. You need to get stronger, and smarter. That's the only way to survive here. Do you understand?”

Valenius nodded, his heart pounding.

“This world tries to make us forget, causing us pain, making us go unconscious. But I’m okay now. I want to show you how to use the gauntlet effectively.”

Valenius stood there, not moving. Val spoke, “I promise not to hurt you. Please, allow me to help you.”

Slowly and cautiously, Valenius approached Val.

As he got close, Val reached out, pressing a button on the gauntlet and taking it off Valenius. He started to inspect it, a small smile appearing on his face. Then, he looked up at Valenius, smiling.

Val responded, “This gauntlet is impressive and exactly what you need for your journey. I'll add objectives that I think you should complete. These quests will help you gain experience and get stronger, which means your strength, endurance and intelligence will increase the more you do and learn. The best way to improve is by completing quests, maybe earning some money along the way for better equipment. With your permission, I'll add these objectives to the gauntlet—essential quests, marked areas to explore, and areas to avoid. Most importantly, I’ll mark down places where you can find my safe zone, my huts where I have stored many supplies just in case I was running low, I want to share the locations just in case you will ever need them.”

Valenius allowed him to add the modifications to the gauntlet.

After making the adjustments, Valenius put it back on, and a menu popped up, listing quests, objectives, and locations, including Val’s safe zones.

Val said, “I want you to keep the sword, and here, take a bow.”

Val handed the bow to Valenius and asked, “Is there anything else you want to ask before you go? I must insist you leave soon, as I don’t know if I will have another episode and end up killing you.”

Valenius asked, “Is there anything I can do to help you?”

Val looked at Valenius with a sombre expression and said, “I am well past being helped. There is nothing you can do for me.”

Valenius then inquired, “What will you do?”

Val responded, “I will rest and try to figure out what the game wants. If we ever cross paths again, maybe I will find the answers you seek and be able to bring you home.

But I doubt we will see each other again. Now, I must insist you take your equipment and leave.”

Valenius nodded, gathered the equipment, and before leaving Val's room, he turned and said, “Thank you, Val.”

Val just stared back, nodding, while Valenius left the room and exited the abandoned village alone.