Ding Ding
The final bell of the day echoed over the wide fields of Macheon.
Ro-han straightened his back, dirt and soil staining his sweat soaked shirt with the rays of the setting sun glistening upon his dirty skin.
"Another day finished."
Among the scattered workers, Ro-han slung his rusty tools into his pouch and made his way to the tool shed to set them down.
The rusted brackets holding up the shelves creaked as the tools of the workers were set upon them. No one said anything, neither greeting nor goodbye. No one ever did.
Ro-han slid his hands over his waist rubbing the dirt off of them, his hand gliding over the old broken sword.
He stepped out of the shed onto the narrow street leading back into town, passing shuttered homes, some vacated and others lived in.
All of these houses look the same, no matter if people live in them or not, He thought.
Crime and gangs ruled over the lawless zone, where the town of Macheon lay, and anyone without backing is subject to their whims.
I wonder where father is...
A blood curdling scream echoed throughout the alley, cutting Ro-han's mind off.
"Aaaagh!"
The woman's voice broke the sacred silence of the lawless zone.
Ro-han's eyes scanned for the source of the scream with his eyes only, to avoid any unwanted attention.
As he looked around, his eyes landed on the unfortunate scene of the woman, obviously lost, losing her belongings to a small-time gang of young men, too irrelevant to even be named, where he accidently met the eyes of one of the men.
He was used to such scenes. Too used.
Ro-han knew what he had to do, and acted accordingly.
His gaze met the floor, and his hands kept to his sides, not changing his pace.
They didn't even bother looking his way.
With his head down, Ro-han continued on his way towards his old home, the one where his father last left him 7 years ago.
Finally reaching his shabby house, Ro-han instinctively reached out his hand and forced open the creaky old front door, which had long been off of its hinges.
Stepping into the musty entryway, he continued off into the main room and rested down on his straw bed.
I'm not sure why, but I've gotten unusually tired today... I'll just go to sleep a tad early.
With this thought, Ro-han's tired mind drifted, and he fell asleep.
...
"Dad!"
A young Ro-han's tears covered his cheeks as he wailed and sobbed at the foot of his house's front door, his right hand stretched out reaching for his father's back.
"Don't worry Ro-han, I'm never coming back"
His shoulders jolted slightly as he heard his father's words, and a deep, quick breath took him over.
Suddenly, the floor vanished beneath his feet...
...
"Hk—!"
Ro-han jerked upright, chest rising fast, sweat beading across his brow.
"Haa…"
He breathed in, the stillness of the room pulling him back into reality.
"I'll go out a little bit to get some fresh air..."
Ro-han stepped out of his straw bed, and walked over to the back door.
The moonlit night had covered the sun's shine beautifully, with the bright stars dotting out the night sky.
As he walked over to the main road, Ro-han reached over to the hilt on his waist. Rarely had he taken it out, and almost never outside of his house.
"What's so important about this that father had to give it to me before he left?" Said the boy under his breath.
He scanned the broken sword more thoroughly than he had ever done before, the little piece of the blade remaining on the hilt brightly shining under the moonlight.
What is this... He thought.
A strange shape had been carved out of the back of the handle. Too intricate to be a mistake. Too ugly to be stylistic.
It felt raw, unpolished, unlike the rest of the hilt. Like nothing he had seen before.
"Look who it is! Aren't you the one who passed by us during the evening?"
Said a boy, familiar to Ro-han only through his attire and entourage.
They were the ones who stole from the lady during the afternoon
Quick on his feet, Ro-han replied
"I don't know who you are. I think you have the wrong guy."
Another boy chuckled.
"Funny. Because I remember that face. You looked right at me."
Another member of the group stepped closer, cracking his knuckles.
"Yeah. Didn't even blink. Thought you were better than us or something?"
Ro-han didn't answer. He couldn't outrun them. Couldn't outfight them either.
His hand slowly put the hilt back to his waist.
I should've stayed inside.
One of them stepped forward. Taller than the rest, with scar lining his cheek obviously the leader of the gang.
"Think you're too good to talk, huh?"
Before Ro-han could respond, a heavy fist crashed into his stomach.
He doubled over; air ripped from his lungs. Another blow struck his back, then one to his side.
He slammed the ground hard gravel biting into his palms.
"Check his pockets!"
"He's got something on his belt—grab it!"
"That's enough."
A sharp voice cut through the noise.
One of the boys, younger than the rest of the group, stepped between Ro-han and the young men.
"He's not worth it. Let's go."
The leader turned. "What, you feel bad for him now?"
The boy shrugged. "No. I just don't want to waste time on some no-name. Let's find someone who'll fight back."
A tense pause. Then the leader scoffed.
"Tch. Whatever. You can have you broken shit back"
He spit on Ro-han's face, threw the sword next to him and walked off. The rest followed—grumbling, laughing.
The younger boy lingered. His eyes met Ro-han's for a second.
Then he turned and disappeared into the night.
Ro-han tried to sit up, but the world spun sideways.
"A- a-..."
He couldn't put together even a single proper word, and soon faded into darkness.
...
Ro-han's eyes creaked opened, His ears slightly ringing, and a bright lantern-light above him flooded his vision.
"You're lucky you are alive, kid."
Said a rusty, deep voice.
"Had I not injected internal energy into you, you would have already died"
Ro-han cleared his throat and sat up, "Who are you?"
"Not even a proper thanks after I saved your life? We've got quite the cautious don't we."
The man continued "But no, you're right to be suspicious. I am a friend of your father's. The name's Yeon Seok-min, but you should call me uncle."
A friend of my father? Ro-han gathered.
"Why did you save me?"
"Your father would hunt me down to the end of the world had I not saved his son. Old man Jin was quite the doting one"
The man chuckled.
Ro-han stayed silent, taking the middle-aged man's words in.
Yeon Seok-min let out a quiet sigh.
"You won't survive the next time if all you've got is silence and a hilt."
He stood up, cracking his neck.
"Rest for now. At dawn, I'll start teaching you how to fight, but don't expect too much, I've never taken in a disciple before. Meet me at the courtyard then."
Ro-han's eyes widened.
I won't have another chance like this!
He sat up straighter, fists clenched in the blanket.
"Y-yes, sir. And… thank you."
Yeon Seok-min gave a slight nod, already turning away.
"Good. Let's see what your capable of."