LITMIR.BIZ

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like something falling, came from a nearby house. Rein hurried towards the building.

      “I need a healer urgently. The guy on my horse… he’s dying,” Rein stated. No one replied. As Rein began to turn back towards the exit, a man behind him opened the trapdoor of the cellar, sticking his head out.

      “Are you a Raedarian?” he asked.

      “Yes, but I’m not part of that army moving this way. I just want to help that lad,” Rein replied.

      “Well, if that’s the case, and this isn’t some trick, come in. But be sure, if you’re lying, we won’t forget it,” said the old man.

      “I’ll bring the guy; he needs urgent medical help. He won’t last long! He has already lost consciousness from blood loss,” Rein explained.

      “So, what are you waiting for? Bring him in quickly!”

      Rein ran to his horse, picked up the guy, and carried him to the cellar.

      “Be careful! Hold him by the hand and lower him!” The people in the cellar, several families judging by what Rein saw below when bringing the guy down, took him and carried him away. Rein didn’t go down to the cellar; instead, he stood there, seemingly lost in thought, and started waiting.

      “Hey, are you coming or staying there?” the old man said.

      This man turned out to be an old grandpa with a beard and completely gray, tousled hair, wearing a white sleeveless knitted shirt and brown-beige pants made of some herbal fiber.

      When Rein went downstairs, he saw a multitude of people looking at him with some suspicion, if not disdain, maybe even fear, as if they had let a lion into their abode.

      “Who are all these people?” Rein asked.

      “Some of those who, for one reason or another, refused to leave their estates,” the old man replied. “Their entire lives are here, and they can’t imagine life without these places.”

      “Are there still people in the village like these?”

      “Probably… I know many here, and I’ve seen that many didn’t want to leave the village, especially the elderly like me.”

      Passing through a surprisingly spacious cellar adorned with torches, accompanied by the people, they reached one of its rooms. Opening the door, the old man and Rein entered, while the others remained waiting outside. In this room, the guy lay on the table, and an old granny-healer examined him.

      “Felix…” the old man said. “I’ve known him since birth. He hasn’t been very lucky in life. His father owed the leader of the local bandits, and they didn’t wait long to show up, came straight to his house at night. They killed his mother, then his father right in front of little Felix, and then hit the child on the head with some iron object and disappeared. The boy miraculously didn’t become a cripple.”

      “He mentioned something like that,” Rein said. “Where is his grandma now? He talked about her too.”

      “Yes, after those events, only his grief-stricken grandmother remained. Her name is Lysanna, but I haven’t seen Lys for a long time,” the old man replied. “Maybe she left with everyone, but she’s quite old for such journeys.”

      Rein noticed the granny bustling around the guy. “What’s wrong with him? Can I help with anything?” he asked the granny.

      “I’m afraid there’s not much that can help this boy now,” she replied. “No matter what I do, I can only bring him back to consciousness, but it won’t help much. To save him, I have to remove this arrow, but it hit one of the main arteries. If I pull it out, he’ll almost immediately bleed to death. It’s a miracle he’s still alive.”

      Rein, angered, approached the granny and, grabbing her shoulders, pressed her against the wall.

      “Hey, easy there!” the old man said to Rein.

      “Granny,” Rein said, “don’t play games with me! Tell me what can be done to save him, or I’ll send you to another world along with him.”

      “It hurts, let go,” the granny said plaintively. “I don’t know; he needs a better healer, and there are none left here. His wound is too serious; they don’t heal after such injuries. He needs magic. A miracle to save him. I can only help you. I can stitch the bleeding wounds, or else you might die too.”

      After hearing this, Rein released the granny and sat on the couch where the guy lay.

      “I can only ease his suffering,” the granny said. “I’m very sorry.”

      Rein stood up and hit the wall several times with his fists, causing it to crack slightly.

      “Don’t hit so hard! You’ll break everything! This wasn’t built yesterday,” the old man said.

      It was so loud that one of those outside decided to check if everything was okay.

      “Everything is fine, Oris, let’s go out; it seems we’re not needed here,” the old man said to the man who entered the room.

      “But he!..” objected Oris.

      “Come on, Oris, let’s go,” said the old man.

      They left with the old man, closing the door behind them and leaving Rein with the granny and Felix.

      The granny stitched Rein’s side wound and applied a healing mixture to his hand, then cauterized the knife wound on his leg.

      “I used the same mixture on his wound as on your hand; it will relieve the pain,” the granny said. “And this should wake him up. I understand he’s dear to you, and you probably want to say goodbye.”

      “I’m not sure if it’s a good idea…” Rein said.

      But the granny was already holding a bottle emitting smoke to Felix’s nose. As soon as she did that, the guy immediately opened his eyes.

      At first, Rein didn’t know what to say to the bewildered guy, but eventually, he decided to ask:

      “Felix, right?”

      “Where am I?” Felix asked.

      “You’re in the village, Felix, and you’re dying.”

      “How? How can I be dying?”

      “You defeated them,” Rein answered, smiling. “All of them… But you got hit by an arrow, and now you’re dying.”

      Felix pondered for a moment, and then, even though it was hard to call him cheerful, his face began to dull.

      “No! You’re lying to me. I remember everything. I even lost to my own fear…”

      Felix shed a tear and closed his eyes again, but this time it was forever.

      “I’m truly sorry,” the granny said.

      Rein left the room, closing the door. Walking through the corridor, he observed worried and distraught people sitting under torches, huddled against the walls. Each subsequent step of Rein was filled with pain and despair, trailing behind him.

      “Stop!” the old man said to Rein. “How far are they from us?”

      “With their pace, they’ll be here at dawn. But you shouldn’t be afraid if you’re not warriors. At least not for your lives. Raedarian warriors don’t often kill ordinary citizens of towns and villages. Now it’s more beneficial for them to make these people new citizens of the empire.”

      “You won’t stay?” the old man asked. “We might need a warrior like you in case something happens.”

      “No, thank you! I don’t think I can pass through that storm with you,” Rein replied.

      Rein climbed the stairs, opened the hatch, and emerged from this spacious cellar, then left the house. There, he, taking out his sword, immediately started smashing everything in sight.

      After

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