The Price of Impulsiveness and a Strange Encounter

I, Helter, the Great Swordsman, once a down-on-his-luck individual with no prospects, embarked on a journey with Lu Ren, who had just become the Hero, due to a twist of fate.

Now, after the serpent incident, we had finally reached the forest entrance.

“Fantastic, all the luggage is here!” Lu Ren exclaimed, rushing towards the mountain of bags.

Without a word, I unceremoniously dropped Crimson Aironi onto the ground.

“Hey! Why did you throw me down?!” Crimson Aironi yelled upon impact.

“I need to carry the luggage now. My apologies,” I replied.

“Carry the luggage… but at least be gentle! Is this how you treat your future teammate?!”

“I acknowledge your presence, but I absolutely do not consider you a teammate.”

“Then what am I?!”

“A punching bag for training, or a wooden dummy for sword practice,” I stated.

“Bloody hell! You big oaf, you’re truly a scoundrel!”

He was cursing again. Had my seventeen light cuts not taught him a lesson? I should have struck harder!

I reached back with my right hand, gripping the hilt of Black Lion.

“Hey! Helter! Stop!”

Lu Ren immediately rushed over to restrain me.

“Why? Why are you stopping me again? This guy is just stubborn! He won’t shed a tear until he sees his own coffin!”

“But look at all the injuries he’s sustained! Eight snake bites, one devastating long-range throw, one Rising Dragon Punch, seventeen sword slashes… it’s truly pitiful. You wouldn’t be happy if this happened to you, would you?”

Seeing Lu Ren defend him, Crimson Aironi quickly scrambled over and clung to her leg.

“The Hero is so much more merciful! Learn from her! I advise you to be kind, understand?!”

He was gloating!

“Move aside! With this sword, I’ll make him question his very existence!”

“Helter, that’s enough. Even if Crimson Aironi has a sharp tongue, you need to stay calm! You weren’t this impulsive before!”

Impulsiveness… The word stirred unpleasant memories within me.

The last time I heard that word, I had just arrived in the Capital City, roughly six years ago. Back then, filled with ambition, I had left my starter village and journeyed to the Capital.

I formed a team with three companions, and I was their captain.

Convinced of our strength, I accepted a mission far beyond our league: to subjugate Evil Wind, one of the Four Bandits.

The Four Bandits were notorious villains operating near the Capital City. Each led their own faction, perpetrating acts of arson, murder, and robbery against nearby villages. It felt like it was time to deliver them some retribution.

Yet, this sense of inner justice was, in fact, merely impulsiveness. My three companions had warned me, but I had brushed their concerns aside. Ultimately, I led them to their demise. Only I returned to the Capital, covered in blood.

This was the price of impulsiveness.

“Alright, I’ll calm down…”

I withdrew my hand and walked heavily towards my backpack.

“Good, you’re calm now.” Lu Ren patted her chest and let out a sigh of relief. “Let’s get going. Key, Crimson Aironi, make sure you both keep up.”

“Wait! Hero!” Crimson Aironi clung desperately to Lu Ren’s leg. “I’m severely injured; I can’t walk! Helter needs to carry the luggage, so… could you, perhaps, carry me?”

“Oh… alright.”

Just as Lu Ren was about to hoist Crimson Aironi onto her back, I interjected. “Hold on! What good is bringing a cripple along on an adventure?!”

Lu Ren paused. “Oh, right…”

“What the hell! What kind of grudge is this?!” Crimson Aironi yelled. “What do you mean by leaving me here after making me this miserable?!”

“Leaving Crimson Aironi alone here doesn’t feel right. He’s a team member, after all,” Key said earnestly.

“It’s simple, Miss Elf. You can use some protective magic, right?”

“That’s right. Wait, you’re not planning to…” Key began to sweat profusely.

“So, couldn’t you just look after this kid, Crimson Aironi?”

Lu Ren clapped her hands. “Exactly! Well said!”

“Not well said at all! Sir Swordsman, I admire you so much; you can’t make me stay with this chatterbox! The Hero won’t agree…”

“I agree, no problem!” Lu Ren said, her face expressionless as she casually dropped Crimson Aironi. “You two can wait behind enemy lines for our good news!”

“Hero! No! I can’t be away from you for too long, or I’ll disappear!” Key shrieked like a pig being slaughtered.

“Disappear? How long until you disappear?”

“About a day, I suppose…”

“Then there’s plenty of time! No worries! Helter and I will be back soon!” Lu Ren said, patting Key’s head meaningfully.

“But is it appropriate for an emissary of the gods like me to be stuck with a mere mortal? Besides, what if another sudden incident like the serpent attack occurs? I can’t guarantee I can protect him!”

“Let’s go, Helter!” Lu Ren completely ignored Key’s subsequent protests.

And so, Lu Ren and I entered the forest.

“Wait! Let’s leave the luggage here too!” Lu Ren said, pointing at my backpack.

And with that, the forest adventure truly began!

A short while later…

At a gathering spot for medium-sized animals.

“This might be the strangest thing I’ve ever encountered in my life,” Lu Ren murmured, cold sweat beading on her forehead as she gazed ahead.

“Indeed… what the hell?” I, too, was at a loss for words.

As you can see, after the serpent incident, we were now surrounded by a herd of wild boars—the kind with brown fur and two tusks protruding from their mouths. They had encircled Lu Ren and me.

The very presence of a wild boar herd was already strange, but…

“Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!”

Even stranger was that they were standing upright and speaking! They wore animal skins and wielded spears, like a tribe of uncivilized savages!

“Wait, wait a minute! Could Darwin’s theory of evolution actually be true? Through natural selection, we evolved from monkeys to our current four limbs, and these wild boars, constantly harassed by hunters, have also gradually evolved, step by step developing their own civilization!” Lu Ren began spouting her usual nonsensical theories.

“What’s a ‘big-eared mosquito’? Is it a mosquito with really big ears?”

“Oh dear, this is bad, this has escalated to an interspecies issue… I can’t believe we’ve stumbled upon something so incredible!”

“Hey, Hero, calm down!” I said, shaking Lu Ren.

“Don’t bother me! Am I not calmly thinking right now?!”

“You’re already rambling! Try to be as composed as I am! Since they can speak, we can surely communicate with them!”

“You’re right! Helter, you’ve gotten smarter!” Lu Ren unexpectedly praised me, then nervously stood before the group of boars. “Everyone, please don’t get agitated! I’m sure you’ve all heard of the great Hero!”

“Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!” The boar-men continued to chant those two words relentlessly.

“Surely they don’t only know those two words?” Lu Ren looked at me in horror.

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

Just then, I spotted a boar-man dressed like a judge stepping forward. His tall, exaggerated wig and ostentatious attire were simply too conspicuous to miss.

“Hero?”

The judge boar-man spoke.

“Yes! As expected, some recognize true greatness!” Lu Ren excitedly rushed forward, extending her hand for a handshake.

“Wait!” I pulled Lu Ren back. “There’s killing intent… it doesn’t seem friendly either.”

“Death sentence!!!!!!!” The judge boar-man roared, and all the boars’ eyes turned blood red!

“Ah! What happened? They don’t welcome someone as great as the Hero?” Lu Ren drew her short sword.

“Perhaps that’s the case… Martial Skill – Swift Slash.” I quickly drew my greatsword and cleaved a charging boar-man in half at the waist.

“What do we do now? They’ve surrounded us!” Lu Ren frantically stabbed at the boar-man punching in front of her.

“We’ll cut a bloody path and break through!”

At that moment, my fervent heart began to pound once more!

Finally, I could fight again!