The village of Soleil was, to put it mildly, utter dogwash. Houses of cobblestone and thatched roofs long weathered by neglect. The fields, once a golden sea of flowing wheat, were now barren—not having seen harvest in two years. Along the streets, sickly men and women stumble towards the market, hoping that perhaps some trader from the nearby cities finally took notice of their plight.
Of course, there were none. A series of wars and monster raids had caused the village's population to dwindle, to many outside it seemed as though the place was nothing more than a ghost town. A bad omen for surrounding cities of what could befall them if they ever lose their delicate balance.
A few hundred paces east of it lay a forest. It is from here that those monsters emerged, taking down livestock and harming the fields for every time they went. Dozens of adventuring parties went in and never came back out, that was one of the reasons why the village fell on hard times anyway. Sometimes, curious men and women would go into the forest, some wishing for death, some simply wanting to know. They also never came back out.
I should've remembered all those events when I decided to head out here to forage, because now I know what exactly it was that got all of them. A boar the size of a house growled in front of me. Steam came out of its nose with each breath, a byproduct of its body heat evaporating its liquids. It was thirsty, and as a human, I was 75% water.
I felt a tremor in each step it took towards me, I couldn't think, not at all. What is there to think? That in just a few short minutes I would be nothing but food? Like the others? Like my mother and father before me, like my uncle that was so set on revenge. Did his blood run cold as mine did when he saw this beast? Ah… my hands have frozen, my fingers have gone numb. The grip on my sword was ruined. I can't fight back at all.
If I were boar food, would he even enjoy me? Ah, boars with such a heightened spirit probably have a more refined taste. He probably prefers the more sophisticated meals—honestly maybe I can use that as an opportunity to survive. Maybe if I keep my wits about me, I can escape before he finishes turning me into a nobleman's meal. That's right, that's the plan.
Still, that was a plan born out of the hope that bors like this wouldn't be this sort of feral beast. They're not sapient at all, and I'm simply a fool. It was in front of me now. I could feel the moisture of its snout, the acrid stench of blood in its mouth from a fresh meal. Obviously, I was next.
Then, there was the desperation born out of that fear. Perhaps a last ditch effort by my primal instincts to survive. I grabbed the sword that had fallen beside me, and slashed at a wide arc towards the boar's snout. My sword had been dulled from years of neglect—it was passed down to me by my late father after all. I never expected it to cut through any part of this boar at all. Still, it did, a tiny scratch that did nothing but anger it further.
It growled, then roared a mighty roar that shook the heavens above. The forest around me trembled, birds flew high to escape its wrath. This was it, my life was over. I let my curiosity get the better of me and I will pay for it with my soul. I can almost hear the sounds of the people this creature ate, screaming, yelling at me before it pummels me to the ground.
I heard the sound of a sharp crack coming from one corner of the forest, followed by the searing noise of burning flesh. The beast growled in pain as it turned away from me. I looked hesitantly towards the source of the noise, and found nothing but an empty darkness in the middle of the forest.
The boar was angered deeply as it turned towards where the spell was fired. Without hesitation, it charged towards it, but was stopped in its tracks by another spell. This time, rather than fire, it was a strong burst of lightning that tore through the beast's flesh. I felt myself shocked as well, but it didn't feel like it stung, if anything the blinding light was more damaging.
Silence followed after, the boar's soft whimpers were the only noise. Then, laughter, "Fufu~ Looks like I'm already entertained just coming out here for the first time." It was the soft voice of a young woman, so thoroughly entertained by what she had just done. She stepped out of the dark shadows of the forest and revealed herself.
She looked like a mage of considerable reputation. Long, flowing dark dress, pale white skin that matched her hair, and a hat almost as wide as the canopies of willow trees. In her right hand was a wand made of unfamiliar wood, a faint purple color glowed between the cracks. She was beautiful, more beautiful than any woman I have ever seen in my life. She didn't look frightened either, almost too peaceful despite facing such a large beast. In fact, she looked playful.
"Let's see~" She continued, her wand raised as though to cast another spell, "That firebolt was a bit too weak, but that lightning bolt almost fried you. You're still standing though, and, oh?" Her gaze went over to me. She looked like she was filled with curiosity at just my appearance, "Seems like I have this opportunity to show off," She giggled once more. I am quite scared out of my mind.
"Well, kid. Watch and learn, you'll see how a great witch handles such measly threats!" Her wand began to glow with a violent purple haze that coated the forests surrounding us in its hue. I had never felt such pressure from the air before, it was as if everything was being sucked towards the tip of her wand, then—she fired.