"Well," Jin said, his voice calm and casual. "My name is Jin. My juniors are coming to this forest to train. So I suggest you guys leave while I'm still being nice."
He smiled. It was a lazy, arrogant smile that didn't reach his eyes.
The bandit in front didn't like that smile. With a loud yell, he charged, swinging his heavy sword in a wide arc aimed right at Jin's neck.
Jin didn't even take a step back. He just ducked.
The sword whistled through the air, missing him completely. As the bandit's momentum carried him forward, Jin moved. He pivoted on his heel and delivered a hard side kick to the man's ribs.
CRUNCH.
The bandit flew sideways and slammed into a tree with a grunt. He slid to the ground and didn't move again.
Jin stood up straight, looking at the others. He brushed a non-existent piece of dust from his shoulder.
"That was rude," he said, his tone light, as if he was scolding a child. "Trying to cut my head off while I'm talking."
The remaining seven bandits didn't waste any more time. They spread out, surrounding him. Their faces were grim.
Jin sighed dramatically. "As I was saying, guys. I'm just asking you to leave because my jun-"
TWANG.
An arrow shot out from the trees, aimed straight for his heart.
Jin didn't even look at it. He just leaned his body to the left. The arrow zipped past his chest and buried itself in a tree behind him.
He turned his head toward the archer. "Are you even listening?" he asked, his voice full of fake disappointment. "Don't you guys have the etiquette of dialogue?"
A big bandit with a thick beard laughed . "Are you confused, kid? We're bandits, not some royal ass-kissers."
And then they all charged at once.
The fight exploded.
Two swordsmen rushed from the front. A man with a heavy axe swung from the right. Another tried to stab him from the left.
Jin became a blur.
He sidestepped the first sword, letting the bandit stumble past him. He used the back of his hand to smack the second sword away. He ducked under the axe, the heavy blade swinging over his head.
He was now inside their circle, a wolf among sheep.
He jabbed two fingers into the first swordsman's throat. The man dropped his weapon, gagging.
He spun, his leg sweeping out and kicking the second swordsman's knee from the side. The leg bent the wrong way with a sickening pop. The man screamed and fell.
He grabbed the arm of the axe-wielder and twisted it, pulling the large man in front of him like a shield. The bandit trying to stab him from behind ended up burying his knife in his own friend's shoulder.
It was chaos. But Jin moved through it with a calm, deadly grace. He was untouchable. He flowed between attacks, his movements fast and efficient. A punch here, a kick there. Every move had a purpose. Every strike took a man out of the fight.
After a few more seconds of this one-sided battle, he gracefully jumped back, putting some distance between himself and the last few bandits who were still standing. They looked at him with fear in their eyes now.
Jin looked them over and clicked his tongue. "So this fight isn't going to end," he said, shaking his head as if he were bored. "You guys are tough, huh."
He glanced around, then his eyes landed on a fallen tree branch. It was about the length of a short sword, and looked pretty stiff. He walked over, picked it up, and gave it a test swing.
The bandits stared at him, confused. He was going to fight them with a stick.
Jin just smiled.
He moved forward again. This time, he was even faster.
He dodged a clumsy sword swing and smacked the man hard on the side of the head with the branch. The man's eyes rolled back and he collapsed.
He spun, using the branch to block a knife thrust, then whipped it around to crack the man across the jaw. Another one down.
He moved through the last of them like a storm. He was a whirlwind of movement, the simple tree branch a blur in his hands. He dodged, he weaved, and he swung. One by one, the bandits fell to the ground, unconscious.
Soon, it was quiet again. The only sound was the crackling of the campfire.
Jin stood in the middle of the clearing, surrounded by the bodies of the defeated bandits. He wasn't even breathing hard.
He looked at the ten unconscious men lying on the ground. He looked at the tree branch in his hand, then tossed it aside.
He slapped his own forehead. Hard.
"Ugh, idiot," he complained to himself, his voice full of real frustration. "And now I have to drag all of them out of the forest."
He started pacing back and forth.
"Why didn't I just leave two of them awake? They could have carried the others. Now I have to do all the work. Whyyy!"
***
The next morning, the sun was bright.
All the first-year students of the academy stood in a large group at the edge of the forest. The trees were huge, their tops so high they seemed to touch the sky. The forest looked dark and a little scary, even in the daylight.
Ivan stood at the back of the group, just looking.
'Okay,' he thought to himself. 'This is my second time here. I know I had a bad experience last time. I know I quit.'
He took a deep breath.
'But my soul has seen worse things than this forest. I can do it. I have to.'
"Hey! Ivan!"
A familiar voice called his name. It was Orion. His friend was waving at him, a big grin on his face.
"What are you waiting for? Come here already! We're stuck together for this test, remember?"
Ivan felt a small, real smile touch his lips. He nodded and started walking toward his friend. The chatter of the nervous students filled the air.
Then, a loud voice cut through the noise.
"Attention, please!"
It was Commander Valerius. He stood in front of the crowd, his face as serious as ever.
"Listen carefully," the commander said, his voice booming. "This is a survival test. But there are new rules this year."
A murmur went through the crowd.
The commander waited for them to be quiet.
"Once you step inside that forest," he said, his eyes scanning all of them. "You are allowed to steal from each other. You are allowed to share with each other. You are allowed to attack each other, and you are allowed to protect each other."
A wave of shock went through the students. They started whispering loudly to each other.
"The only thing that is prohibited," the commander continued, his voice getting louder, "is killing each other."
He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in.
"We will be watching you from the sky."
As he said that, a massive shape rose up from behind him. It was a giant eagle. It let out a piercing cry that echoed through the clearing.
The students stared in awe and fear.
The eagle circled once above them, then flew high into the air, positioning itself above the vast forest.