Chapter 17
Elior POV
The Next Day
I woke up after a surprisingly comfortable night's sleep.
For a moment, I forgot where I was.
Then I felt something soft moving against my chest.
I looked down.
Luna was still sleeping peacefully.
I smiled.
"Morning, sleepyhead."
Kyuu…
She slowly opened her eyes.
After freshening up, I prepared breakfast.
I ate my own meal while giving Luna her milk.
She seemed particularly happy about breakfast.
"You really like milk, huh?"
Kyuu!
"I'll take that as a yes."
After breakfast, I packed everything I needed.
Today, I was wearing an outfit similar to yesterday's.
White shirt.
Black trousers.
Black formal shoes.
The only difference was the robe.
Yesterday had been red.
Today, I chose blue.
I placed Luna inside my chest pocket once again, leaving enough room for her to comfortably move her head outside.
"Ready?"
Kyuu!
"Let's go."
I stepped outside the cave and transformed into light.
Instead of flying at my usual high speed, however, I decided to take things slowly.
There was no reason to rush.
I wanted to enjoy the journey.
Luna seemed to enjoy it too.
Her little head poked out from my pocket as she looked at the scenery below.
The mountains slowly disappeared behind us.
Forests stretched endlessly across the landscape.
Rivers reflected the sunlight.
Small settlements appeared occasionally before disappearing behind us.
Luna's golden eyes were filled with wonder.
I smiled.
Well, it was the same for me the first time I flew.
Even now, I still remembered that feeling.
Being able to move freely through the sky was one of the best parts of my magic.
A few hours later, I finally saw my destination.
A small village appeared in the distance.
Little Dale.
According to the mission request, it was a small village located far west of Hargeon.
I began descending.
As soon as I got close enough, something immediately felt wrong.
I could smell blood.
A lot of it.
My expression changed.
"Luna."
Kyuu?
"Stay inside my pocket."
She looked at me curiously.
"Don't come out unless I tell you."
Kyuu…
She nodded.
I landed near the entrance of the village.
The moment my feet touched the ground, I began walking.
There wasn't a single person in sight.
The village looked abandoned.
Doors were open.
Some buildings had been damaged.
Several carts had been overturned.
There was an eerie silence hanging over the entire place.
I closed my eyes.
My magical perception spread outward.
I sensed them.
People.
A lot of them.
They were gathered somewhere near the center of the village.
I immediately started running.
The closer I got, the stronger the smell became.
Then I reached the center.
And froze.
I had seen death before.
But never like this.
Not in either of my lives.
Around twenty people were gathered around a large pit.
Most of them were elderly people and children.
Their faces were pale.
Some were crying.
Others simply stared blankly at the ground.
I slowly approached the pit.
Then I looked inside.
My stomach twisted.
My body went numb.
I had to force myself not to vomit.
There were dozens of bodies inside.
At least fifty.
Most were men.
The expressions on their faces were enough to tell me that their final moments had been filled with terror and despair.
I immediately looked away.
Thank God I told Luna to stay inside my pocket.
I took several steps backward.
My hands were trembling.
My breathing became uneven.
Calm down.
I clenched my fists.
Calm down.
Being emotional during a mission would only make me careless.
And carelessness could get me killed.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Again.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Slowly, my breathing stabilized.
The villagers had noticed me by now.
An elderly man with a long beard eventually stepped forward.
He looked exhausted.
His eyes were filled with grief.
"Who are you, kid?"
He looked at my guild mark.
"Whatever you want… it isn't here."
His voice became bitter.
"This place is already dead."
I swallowed.
"I'm a wizard from Fairy Tail."
I took a breath.
"I'm here because of the quest your village posted."
The old man's expression changed.
"I see…"
He looked away.
"But you're late."
His words hit harder than I expected.
I lowered my head.
"I'm sorry."
Thoughts immediately began rushing through my mind.
If only I'd come here sooner.
If I'd taken this mission first.
Maybe I could have stopped them.
Maybe those people would still be alive.
I clenched my fists.
Is this my fault?
No.
Logically, I knew it wasn't.
But knowing something logically didn't stop the guilt from appearing.
I took another breath.
"I know I'm late, sir."
I looked at him.
"And I'm sorry."
I bowed deeply.
"But if there's anything I can do to help…"
I raised my head.
"Please tell me."
The old man stared at me for several seconds.
Then his expression softened.
"It's not your fault, young man."
He sighed.
"Come. We should talk somewhere private."
He led me away from the others.
We stopped near one of the damaged houses.
He looked around before beginning.
"The bandits came here about a month ago."
I listened carefully.
"Their leader had been injured during some previous conflict. They came here because they needed a place where he could recover."
I frowned.
"At first, they only demanded food and money."
He clenched his fists.
"They beat people. They stole whatever they wanted. But we endured it."
"Why?"
"Because we believed that if we cooperated, they would eventually leave."
His voice trembled.
"We were wrong."
He looked down.
"Three days ago, their leader finally arrived."
I remained silent.
"He ordered his men to take all the women in the village."
My expression hardened.
"The men refused."
The old man swallowed.
"They finally decided to fight back."
He looked toward the center of the village.
"They picked up whatever weapons they could find."
His voice became quieter.
"It wasn't enough."
I already knew what came next.
"Their leader was on another level."
The old man closed his eyes.
"He killed every man who tried to stop him."
My fists tightened.
"And then…"
He paused.
"He took the women."
Silence.
"Only the elderly and children were left behind."
I looked toward the village.
The broken houses.
The empty streets.
The frightened faces.
The pit in the center.
Everything suddenly made sense.
"Where did they go?"
"Their base is deep inside the forest."
He pointed toward the trees in the distance.
"About two hours from here on foot."
"Do you know exactly where?"
"We can show you the general direction."
I nodded.
"That's enough."
The old man looked at me.
"Young man…"
"Hmm?"
"Please…"
His voice broke.
"Save them."
I looked into his eyes.
"I will."
There was no hesitation in my voice.
I turned toward the forest.
My mind was already made up.
I was going to kill them.
Every last one.
Especially their leader.
I had never taken a life before.
Not in my previous life.
Not in this one.
I had fought magical beasts.
I had sparred with Irene and the others.
I'd fought plenty of opponents.
But none of them had been a battle to the death.
And yet…
I wasn't nervous.
Maybe it was because my emotions were still numb from what I'd seen.
Maybe it was because I was still trying to process everything.
Or perhaps it was because some part of me had already decided that these people had crossed a line that couldn't be uncrossed.
I came from a modern society.
From childhood, I had been taught about right and wrong.
I knew that taking another person's life was something serious.
I knew killing wasn't something to take lightly.
But there were also people who deliberately chose to hurt others.
People who had no hesitation about destroying innocent lives.
And now I had encountered them.
I didn't know how I would feel afterward.
I didn't know whether I would regret it.
But I knew what I had decided.
I would rescue the women.
And I would make sure these bandits could never hurt another person again.
I turned around.
Before leaving, however…
"Luna?"
My hand moved toward my chest pocket.
The little white fox poked her head out.
Kyuu?
I looked into her golden eyes.
"You heard everything, didn't you?"
She nodded.
I sighed.
"I don't want you seeing what comes next."
Luna's ears drooped.
I gently stroked her head.
"Stay with the villagers for now."
She looked reluctant.
"I'll come back."
I smiled.
"Promise."
She stared at me for a moment before quietly nodding.
I carefully took her out of my pocket and placed her in the old man's arms.
The old man looked surprised.
"Take care of her for me."
He nodded.
"I will."
I turned toward the forest.
The wind blew through my hair.
My expression became cold.
Time to finish this.
I took my first step toward the bandits' hideout.