I'm gonna die; there's no mistake. There's simply no chance for me to survive this.
The cat, which was standing in front of Roland, was no longer in front of him; instead, standing behind the frozen boy, it took a sniff of his neck and licked its lips. Knowing that soon the boy would be consumed.
Plus, the mana that was coming off the boy was filled with life and felt as if it would taste divine. It was a shame that the kid was so small. Perhaps, letting it live for a while would be good so that later it would be bigger and more fulfilling to eat.
But this kid had injured the Cat's shoulder, and that was simply unforgivable.
Roland tried to turn his neck, but to no avail; before he could, he was hit with a paw so powerful he crashed into a tree, toppling it, breaking several of his bones, and immobilizing him.
To tell the truth, he simply wasn't dead because his body had instinctively used mana to soften his... "landing."
I can feel my mana rushing to my wounds, but it simply won't heal in time; with this much damage all over, concentrating it to one place isn't enough.
I'm losing consciousness. Ahh, I didn't wanna die.
"IT SURE FEELS GOOD TO BE BACK IN THIS BODY."
"OH? WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?"asked the voice, which was coming from Roland's body, with an ecstatically sinister smile. "IT'S A CUTE LITTLE KITTY!"
***
"THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH FOR NOW. YOU'RE WELCOME FOR THE SAVE, ROLAND. BE SURE TO PRAY TO ME WHEN YOU WAKE UP. YOU RUN ALONG, KITTY CAT; I'M SURE YOU'LL MAKE FOR GOOD TRAINING FOR ROLAND IN THE FUTURE."
"What's happening?" asked Roland, who didn't seem awake or even alive. "Aren't I supposed to be dead? Pray to you? Pray to whom? Ahh, my muscles hurt. I'm about to collapse. Why is there so much light around, and why is it so warm?"
Then Roland looked up and saw fire, all around him, fire that seemed to slowly be consuming the dried and cold forest. Looking left, he saw the Cat, which gave Roland one final glance and ran away in terror.
Then he passed out.
***
Opening his eyes, he could barely see a thing. He tried feeling for anyone's mana using his gift, but he was too exhausted to activate his ability.
There was a chance that the cat would come back and try to kill him. But that's when he realized that he was actually lying in bed and was looking down on his body; he could see that he was covered in bandages all over.
His body ached too much to move, and his mind was exhausted beyond belief.
Targeting a bit of regained mana into his neck, he tried to look around and see where he was.
It looked like a simple wooden house, decorated with tasteful furniture. It was nothing compared to his quarters back at the castle; however, it didn't look all that bad. At least it was much better than his house back on earth. If it even existed anymore.
"Most likely not; I'd wager it was destroyed not long after I joined the war."
Then a man walked in and took off his shoes at the door and looked over at Roland. The man's eyes were red and swollen, and he had a large bag under his eyes.
His hair was brown and slightly wavy; he had it slicked back. His beard was unshaven, and even some of his hair strands were loose and disheveled.
"Hey, kiddo, you're awake. How do you feel?"
"I feel alright, sir. But may I ask where I am?"
"Well, this is my house, and we're currently in the Village of Crossing."
"And where is this village located?" asked Roland.
"Between the lands of King Arthur and King Corian."
"I see, my name is R—Kleos, and what is yours?" Roland asked, nearly getting caught.
"Well, you have good manners for a kid, don't you? I'm Adam. It's nice to meet you, Kleos."
"Nice to meet you too, sir."
"So, Kleos, I've got a question for you," Adam said, dragging a chair over and dropping onto it backward. His eyes fixed on Kleos. "What happened there? You see, the two people who you seemed to be with were my wife and son." He said, in an unfriendly tone.
So that's why he looks so depressed. And from the looks of it, he's blaming me. Well, it's fine; I don't blame him.
"Well, Sir Adam, to be honest, I don't remember most of it. All I—"
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T REMEMBER?" He yelled, cutting Kleos off.
"All I remember is that there was this cat-like creature with human features." Kleos continued understanding the man's frustration. Instead, he ignored his yell, knowing doing the opposite would be troublesome. "Who cut and killed your wife and child? I watched it terrified, unable to do a thing, and then it slammed me into a tree, breaking most of my bones. Then I lost consciousness and woke up to a burning forest and a retreating Cat."
"Then I passed out once again and woke up here. Well, I also do remember hearing some kind of voice, but that's about it."
Adam sat there a while longer, looking down with his arms resting on his knees, interlocking his fingers. Then he exhaled, and when he looked up, it seemed as if he was about to cry, but he held it in, most likely not wishing to seem weak in front of the child.
"Haaaah, whatever, we're going to cremate them soon; come along. If you want. But rest up a little bit first; I'll call you." he said as he got up and then walked out of the house.
My body was taken over, wasn't it? I mean, it was the same voice as last time and the one I heard during my first baptism and when I got saved by Loki. Why the hell is a god taking over my body?
***
"Alright, hey, we're going to cremate them in an hour; do you want to come?"
"I would like to, yes, but could you tell me where my clothes are?"
"They are outside, but about those clothes, they are monster hides, aren't they? And then those eyes of yours, and even that large amount of mana you have. Who are you?"
"I'm a half demon, sir, and I was taken away by slave traders, and I managed to run away and have been living in the forest for 3 months."
"But eyes like those? Well, whatever, I most likely just haven't heard of your race. I would offer you more clothes, but the ones you have are much better than any I could offer. But would you like undergarments?"
Kleos was very happy to hear that he would be able to wear underwear and socks for the first time in 2 months. So, he accepted gratefully, got dressed, and exited the house.
Outside, he saw similar houses made of stone and wood. Plants decorated the place all around; the lush green atmosphere was calming his eyes but a little eerie. Since it was supposed to be winter.
Adam and Kleos trotted onwards, passing by stalls and houses with children playing in the yard, not understanding the tragedy that had befallen the village.
What surprised Roland most of all was that with some of his power back, he could sense strong mana exiting from the man beside him. A mana much stronger than his own. The man also carried a sword, strapped to his right hip. Which indicated that he was likely left-handed. He also carried multiple throwing daggers attached to his belt.
This made Kleos very curious, and he knew it was time to get some answers out of this man.