In the silence of the rain, I could still hear my father's words echoing in my ears.
"Saga, you are my weakest child. You don't have talents of your sibling; you are just an ordinary child born into a family of geniuses. I cannot show favoritism to my children, but I have a piece of advice for you. If you want to survive, you must build a relationship, find someone you can call a friend. If you want more than just survival, you must find meaning and purpose in your life. Leave this house and grow, my son."
In the end, half a year had passed since I leave my house and I just wandering in the direction the wind took me, with the sword he gave me, which was the only thing he ever gifted me.
Building a relationship?
Make friends?
Looking for meaning and purpose in life?
I don't even know where to start. I feel like a lost lamb.
Just as I was thinking that my life would never change and that I would continue to lose my way, my keen ears picked up the sound of light footsteps in the distance.
I focused my vision on the rain-drenched street, and a silhouette began to emerge as time passed.
A woman with long, white hair walked gracefully with an umbrella in her hand. She wore a white shirt and black trousers. Her top was covered by a black jacket, and she walked effortlessly, even in high heels on the wet road.
My primary concern was the sword sheathed at her waist, as her golden pupils stared intently at me.
My instincts told me this woman was no ordinary figure, and my hand reflexively grasped the black-sheathed sword, ready to be unsheathed.
Just as the woman was almost within my striking distance, her feet stopped, and a voice echoed softly in my ear.
"Please, there is no need to be wary because I'm not here to fight you. Instead, I have a proposition for you, Saga Pratama."
Lowering the sword that was almost out of its sheath, without lowering my guard, I said, "You know my name, but I have never known you or remember ever meeting you. What business do you have with me, Lady?"
"Everyone is the main character in their own life story, and the main problem everyone often faces in their lives is the meaning and purpose of life itself. My name is Svetlana, and I would like to recruit you into an organization that is interested in harnessing your powers. The organization will ensure you get what you want."
Finished saying what she felt needed to be said, the woman who call herself Svetlana extended her right hand, awaiting a response to her offer.
For a moment, I fell silent, hearing the echoes of my conversation with my father.
Could this be the beginning of a relationship? Was this what my father meant by building a relationship?
But accepting and building a relationship wasn't easy, especially since I knew nothing about the organization that was trying to recruit me. I wasn't the type to trust strangers easily, and it seemed Svetlana realized that too.
Yet, if I just stood there and didn't respond, nothing would change. Getting started required action, and if I never started nothing would change.
As I hesitated over the choices I was presented with, the sound of heavy footsteps was quite clear to be heard, and from a distance, dozens of men armed with weapons appeared, their angry gazes directed at me and Svetlana. At that moment, I couldn't help but smile and reply, "Help me finish this quickly so we can get out of this rotten place."
I took a stance and drew my sword from its sheath. A black-sheathed sword, long like a katana but curved like a keris. A sword my father had called "The sword of the unworthy." A name that suggested he never had any hope for me, but nonetheless, I was quite happy because this sword was a gift from him.
Meanwhile, Svetlana drew her rapier to the side and took her battle stance.
A fat-bellied man with a giant club shouted loudly towards me, "I don't know who you are, but you dare to injure and kill my men when I'm not around; today will be your death!"
I glanced behind me, where many lifeless bodies lay gathered inside an abandoned house. They were the men who had tried to rob me earlier and ended up dead at my hands.
I looked at the fat man and said calmly, "If you don't want to lose your men, you should teach them not to mess with others. Unfortunately for you, you don't have another chance."
I signaled Svetlana, and within seconds, we both lunged forward and attacked the nearest men, stunning the group of thugs.
Svetlana swiftly thrust her rapier through the hearts and necks of the still-stiff thugs. Their brains couldn't keep up with the speed of Svetlana's attack, and by the time they realized what had happened, it was too late.
At the same time, I moved swiftly, cutting down every enemy in front of me before standing face-to-face with their leader.
The fat man reacted quickly, swinging his club, targeting my head. His anger grew when he realized I'd taken the initiative to attack first, despite their attempts to surround and instill terror by numbers.
A shockwave erupted as his club struck something. Unfortunately, his smile faded when he realized I'd managed to deflect his attack with the sword's sheath.
"You-"
Before he could finish his sentence, my right hand moved, slashing his body in two diagonal pieces.
As expected from a group of thugs, upon seeing some of their own die so easily at the hands of a woman while their leader was torn in two, those behind immediately ran away. However, Svetlana and I had no intention of expending any more energy chasing and hunting them.
While swinging my sword to clean the bloodstains, I looked at Svetlana and asked, "What kind of organization wants to recruit me? And what kind of job awaits me?"
"About that, let me explain."
My question to Svetlana was suddenly answered by a hoarse, unfamiliar voice. What surprised me and made me reflexively attack was the fact that I hadn't noticed his presence all this time.
A whistling sound rang out as my sword collided with something hard. But what made it all the more terrifying was the fact that what collided with my sword wasn't a weapon but a finger, more precisely the index finger of a man in gray suit. His gaze was bone chilling cold, exuding a powerful and threatening aura.
"I understand if you were shocked and attacked me reflexively, and I forgive you for that. But I will strike back if you attack me again," the man said with a casual smile, yet filled with a real threat.
Ignoring the thugs' corpses and the flood of blood on his feet, the man opened his mouth and explained everything that I need to know.