The younger bandit sneered, brandishing his short sword. "You think a stick will save you, brat? I'll cut you into—"
He never finished.
Jin Mu-Won lunged first. The sudden ferocity startled the bandit, who stumbled back as the branch whipped through the air. The wood cracked against his jaw, snapping his head sideways.
"Argh!"
The bandit slashed wildly. Jin twisted, the blade grazing his ribs. Pain flared, hot and sharp, but he didn't retreat. Instead, he stepped closer, inside the man's swing, and rammed his forehead into the bandit's nose.
Crunch.
Blood sprayed. The man staggered, cursing.
Jin's vision blurred from the impact, but his grip on the branch never faltered. He drove it forward like a spear, jamming it into the bandit's throat. The man choked, clutching his neck.
Jin dropped the branch, snatched up a jagged rock from the ground, and smashed it against the bandit's temple.
Once.
Twice.
Again and again, until the man collapsed in twitching silence.
---
The clearing fell deathly still.
Jin Mu-Won stood over the corpse, chest heaving, his hands soaked in blood. His body screamed with pain, yet a strange calm settled over him.
So this… is the taste of killing a man.
He looked at the body, then at the two bandits still watching. Their faces had lost their smugness. Fear flickered in their eyes.
Jin wiped blood from his face, his lips curling into a faint smile.
"Next?"
---
The leader's eyes narrowed. This boy is dangerous. He fights like a cornered beast — reckless, but cunning. If we underestimate him again, we'll end up like Jae.
But retreating would mean losing face. And more importantly… he wanted to know how far this "cripple" could go.
He motioned to the second bandit. "Test him."
---
Jin Mu-Won bent down, picking up the dead man's sword. It felt heavy, awkward in his hand, but there was a strange satisfaction in the weight.
His body trembled with fatigue, but his eyes shone cold and sharp.
"Good," he whispered. "The furnace burns hotter."