Eric Cat
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10 - Talent?
🕑 Added 2025-04-14 14:02:30 +0000 UTCI was walking out of the city gate, only the moonlight illuminating the monsters in front of me, as there were no streetlights or anything like that outside the city.
The goblins were coming, some small, fast figures with eyes blazing with fury.
There were kobolds mixed in, taller, with snouts full of teeth and claws holding crooked clubs.
I heard the soldiers behind me holding their breath, their swords shaking a little. They were good, trained to fight bandits or rebels, but monsters? That was another story.
"Stand firm." I said, without taking my eyes off the goblins.
The [Hunter's Night Vision] made everything look like day, every detail of the monsters clear... even the wrinkles in their green skin.
A goblin ran up to me, shouting something that sounded like a laugh.
I muttered: "Water Breath, First Form."
My sword cut through the air, and the condensed water on the blade followed.
The goblin didn't even blink before his head flew off, falling with a thud to the earth.
The soldiers behind me gasped. "By all the gods..." one of them whispered.
I didn't look back, but I could feel their shock.
Another goblin came up, brandishing a rusty knife.
I used Second Form, spinning the sword and making the water form an arc that caught him in the chest, throwing the beast against a tree with a thud.
"He's... he's playing with them!" another soldier said, his voice half frightened, half amazed.
I smiled, but kept my focus.
A kobold appeared, bigger, with a club raised.
He was fast, stronger than the goblins, and aimed at my head.
When the soldiers realized that I didn't intend to defend myself against this attack, many gasps arose, some even tried to run to me for help, but I just stood my ground.
Activating [Diamond Skin] for a second, feeling my body stiffen, the club hit my shoulder and broke, sending pieces flying.
The kobold's eyes widened in confusion, and I used the Third Form, cutting him in half with a jet of water that sparkled under the moon.
"How does he do that?" a soldier asked, sword still in hand, not knowing what to do.
"We barely hit those bugs!" It was true, I saw a goblin jump on one of the men, scratching his armor like it was paper.
The soldier screamed, trying to get free, but the monster was too fast. I raised my hand, using [Levitation Magic] and making the goblin float in surprise, then I threw it against a rock, where it fell limp.
'Fortunately the one who attacked the soldier was a Goblin, if it had been a Kobold the spell wouldn't have been enough...' I thought, confirming my earlier realization that soldiers wouldn't be much help.
"Prince Eric..." the captain muttered, his voice full of astonishment. "That's... impossible." He was looking at me as if I were a wizard of legend, not the prince he had known since he was a child.
I didn't stop, more kobolds were coming, at least five, running together with makeshift spears.
I used the [Sonic Scream], just a little, so as not to hurt the soldiers. The sound made the monsters stumble, holding their ears. Taking advantage of this, I attacked with the First Form again, cutting down two at once. The others tried to run away, but I levitated a relatively large stone with [Levitation Magic] and threw it, smashing them into the earth.
The soldiers were paralyzed, some with their swords down. "He's fighting alone..." one of them said, almost in a whisper. "We... we're useless here."
The captain shook his head, but didn't disagree. "No, man, we just cover for him. Look at that."
I stepped forward, feeling my blood throb.
A larger goblin, almost my size, appeared, holding a club full of nails.
He was smarter, even dodging my first blow.
I activated the Aura of Intimidation, just to test it out, and with that the goblin hesitated with wide eyes, and I slashed him with the Second Form, the water tearing through his chest like paper.
When the last monster fell, I stopped, taking a deep breath. The ground was littered with green and gray bodies, and the silence of the night returned.
I looked at the soldiers, who were staring at me as if I were a stranger. "Any wounded?" I asked, wiping the blood from my sword on the hair of a dead kobold at my feet.
"N-no, prince." The captain replied, still shocked. "But... how? How do you do it?"
I smiled, sheathing my sword. "Magic." I said with an air of mystery.
As magic was something common and accepted among people in this world, with fairies and witches wreaking havoc everywhere, explaining my powers with magic would be the easiest way to make people understand me.
"Let's go back. That was just the beginning." I said as I walked back inside the city gates.
As much as I wanted to continue the slaughter, this battle had consumed me more than I would have liked, both physically, magically and above all, mentally.
Although I kept my cool in the battle, now that the adrenaline was subsiding, the realization of having killed so many living beings was still getting to me a little.
Now I just wanted a warm, comfortable bath.
The soldiers followed me in silence, looking at me with a level of respect that perhaps surpassed even what they showed my father.
Among men, especially soldiers, strength is always respected, and when someone has a strength as great as the one I showed today, that respect can evolve into something even greater.
Arriving at the castle, I was surprised to see that my mother and father were still at the door waiting for me.
This made my heart warm in a way I hadn't imagined.
Unlike me, whose body was evolving to a divine level, theirs was still that of normal humans, and for them to endure the cold of the night just out of concern for my safety made me feel loved.
Smiling as I approached, I apologized to my mother. "I'm sorry mom, I didn't even have time to eat the cookies you made, but as hungry as I am, I'll want to eat these while I sink into a hot tub."
Hearing this, she just smiled and ran to hug me, ignoring the dirty blood on my clothes, or the stench it was causing me.
"Are you all right, Eric?" She asked worriedly.
"Yes, Mom, my body feels great, just a little tired." I said as I looked away.
"I didn't just ask about your body, Eric..." She released the hug and looked at me worriedly.
"I think killing so many creatures made me a bit sick..." I admitted openly, not ashamed of the conflict I was feeling. "Even though I know they're monsters, those who didn't die in a single blow still screamed in pain and agony... it's hard to forget those screams."
My mother was shocked by my description and didn't know how to respond, but at that point my father walked over and put his hand on my shoulder.
"The task of executing criminals lies in the hands of the king, Eric, and that's a weight we can't forget. Remembering those we choose to take the lives of is what makes us different from those we kill." He said in a heavy voice. "You may feel bad for taking the life of a monster, but think that by taking that life you prevented several others from being taken by those hands... or claws."
Hearing that made me feel a little better.
It wasn't enough to make me forget about it, but my father's point of view was useful.
Thinking of the frightened faces of the soldiers who would have died to that Goblin I sent flying with the levitation spell... if I hadn't killed that Goblin, he would have killed someone who had done nothing wrong.
My father shifted his gaze from me to the soldiers behind me, and whatever he saw made his eyes widen.
Not wanting to think about this battle anymore, I just said goodnight to everyone and went to my room, where fortunately I already had a bathtub with hot water that a maid had prepared for me.
Lying in that tub I finally began to relax, feeling as if the weight and dirt I had been carrying were being washed off me, leaving only a level that I can still control.
What I didn't tell my father or let on to the soldiers, and what disturbed me a little, was that I was beginning to enjoy killing the monsters.
My mind was starting to think of creative and "fun" ways to kill the monsters, and that scared me a little.
The efficiency with which I was doing it was taking off like a rocket during the battle, powers I'd never used before were being so useful in my hands as if I instinctively knew the right moment to use them.
'Maybe I have a talent for this? ' I thought in surprise.
--- Cat Notes ---
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