**An Old Man from Pompeii**
"Why is this happening to us? We are truly an unlucky, cursed city."
"And I am cursed too. I am a coward who deserves to die in the worst possible way. Ever since I was a child, I was afraid of everything."
"I was always bullied and beaten by everyone. All I could do was run away, never even trying to defend myself."
"I got married and had a beautiful daughter. I don't know why this beautiful woman agreed to marry me, but she told me she loved me. To this day, I don't understand why she would love someone as wretched and cowardly as me."
"But she got what she deserved for that—she died."
"Yes, my wife died because a bandit raped her in front of my eyes and killed her. I couldn't do anything but watch, cry, and hold my daughter so she wouldn't see what was happening."
"Am I really a man?"
"And today, now that I am old and incapable, here is my daughter being raped in front of my eyes by a stranger, and all I can do is cry. Even if I were young, I wouldn't have done anything. I know I'm a coward."
"When they first came here, they told us they were here to protect us from the attack of the Heavenly Spiders, and they succeeded in that."
"They killed all the spiders, but only because we had a strong and large army. Our city was known for its giant army that terrified all other cities."
"But after the war, our army and population dwindled, and since that moment, they started killing and looting, forming gangs from the remaining youth who became the absolute authority here."
"And we just watched. It would have been more merciful if we had been killed by those spiders instead of living this cursed, miserable life."
"Now, this city is nothing but old people, children, and women."
"They kill the children, rape the women, and beat the elderly. How can they have any heart? My daughter has been assaulted dozens of times, and now, the beautiful flower has withered, devoid of any life or resistance. She looks at me with disgust and contempt. She tried to commit suicide, but they wouldn't let her. In her eyes, I am the weakest and filthiest man in the world."
"I sit here crying, leaning my body against the wall, just watching."
"She is dying, both inside and out."
"But enough is enough."
"I decided to scream, decided to die defending her. I'm no longer young, and this miserable life no longer matters to me."
"I attacked the man assaulting my daughter with all my might, hitting him on the head with a large rock, but nothing happened."
"He looked at me, and I looked at him. I spat in his face. I saw my daughter looking at me and crying. This girl had never cried in front of me before."
"The man pulled out a sword that had been hanging on his body all along, looked at me, and was about to stab me. I was scared of death, trembling, so I closed my eyes, not wanting to feel the blow. I don't know what closing my eyes has to do with pain, but I did it because I was afraid."
"Suddenly, everything stopped."
"I heard a groan—was that my voice? Did I die without feeling it? I didn't know what was happening, so I slowly opened my eyes, terrified of what awaited me."
"Would I find that the sword had pierced my body, or what?"
"Damn it, I'm really scared. Why do I have to die?"
"And when I opened my eyes, I saw that the man who was raping my daughter and about to kill me had a blue energy sword piercing his intestines. The man looked at me in shock, trying to look behind him."
"But before he could do anything else, a strange black sword pierced his neck. His head fell to the ground. The sight of his head falling was terrifying, but it relieved my heart, making me happy. I, who fear the smallest thing, was happy to see a head cut off in front of me."
"And suddenly, behind him, a child appeared."
"Yes, a child."
"No more than 16 years old, with a strange, frightening smile on his face—a smile that made my heart and body tremble with fear."
"This child is more dangerous than anything I've seen in my long life."
"I can't call him a child now, not with those features showing on his face."
"He is a monster, more dangerous than any beast."
"This monster was enjoying all the blood on his body, blood that proved he had killed more than one person before coming here."
"He looked at me with an expressionless face, just looking, then he approached me."
"I thought I had escaped the sword of the rapist, only to fall into the hands of this monstrous child. There's no escape from death now."
"
"Wh...what? My name isn't Khaled, but if you want it to be, I'll make it my name from now on. And whoever calls me otherwise, I'll curse them and insult them," I said, pleading with him, looking at him."
"But suddenly, he started laughing. His voice was loud—was he mocking me or laughing at my misery and weakness?"
"He walked past me, picked up a piece of cloth, and put it on my daughter's body. He smiled at her, a smile like that of a normal child, and gently stroked her hair with a strange tenderness. The monster who loved blood turned into a child again and said calmly:"
"
"When he finished speaking, a young man, slightly older than him, came carrying a dagger in one hand and in the other, the head of a man who used to love killing old people. I knew him well because I used to hide from him so he wouldn't kill me. And now, his head is a toy in the hands of the person holding the dagger."
"
"But when Khaled saw the head on the ground, he threw down the head he was holding and stabbed the other man's head forcefully with his dagger, smiling. His body was soaked in blood."
"Who are these people, and what is all this energy radiating from them?"
"I am a man who has lived a long time, always a coward, running from the strong. So I know them well—these two are maniacs who love killing more than anything else, more than the beautiful girl who was naked in front of them."
"I don't know what kind of monsters I encountered today."
"But suddenly, I heard curses and insults coming from outside the house."
"
"
"These voices were coming from outside."
"(I think our guests have arrived at the party, Joker)," said the one called Khaled."
"
"But before he turned to leave, we heard a voice."
"(Thank you.)"
"It was my daughter's voice."
"My daughter spoke. My dear daughter finally spoke after all this time. I hadn't heard her voice in so long."
"The child looked at her and smiled, saying nothing, just smiling."
"They headed outside, so I followed them to see what would happen."
"Waiting for them outside were more than 400 people, including six strong men who were responsible for this curse that we are living in now."
"All these people were gathered against just two."
"But there was no fear on their faces."
"Instead, there was a wicked smile."
"The one called Khaled started laughing loudly."
"They really don't know fear. Why are they so happy? They're going to die now. They can't possibly win on their own."
"I looked around and saw many women, elderly people, and children standing, watching the battle. Everyone's face showed a mix of fear and hope. Everyone was praying for them to win."
"These monsters are heroes, but the worst kind of heroes, loving death and killing. That smile on their faces foretells the destruction that is about to happen."
"But everyone knows that. Everyone knows they love blood, yet there is still hope in those eyes that have become empty of life."
"And suddenly, the child said some strange words."
"Like 'Warrior's Cry.' I didn't understand the meaning of these words, but I believe they have something to do with his power."
"His body began to emit majestic blue energy."
"And many blue swords began to appear above him. I believe there were more than 80 swords."
"The sight was terrifying; this person became surrounded by so many swords that he looked like the King of Swords sent from heaven."
"The swords suddenly launched, and with them, his friend beside him, racing with the swords."
"Those swords killed more than 160 people, each dense blue sword piercing two bodies at the same time."
"And his friend was cutting off many heads. The battle had started, but what I was watching was a massacre in every sense of the word."
"I found myself smiling unintentionally; my face moved on its own."
"I felt my blood boiling, my heart exploding as I watched these men's entrails spilling out, and a river of blood flowing from them."
"Someone started chanting Joker's name, and when the others heard him, they followed,
This child was our savior, sent from the heavens.
Everyone was shouting and chanting his name.
And he did nothing,
except kill and smile.
He just smiled and killed.
He truly was a monster.