"WHO ARE YOU?! ARE YOU THE ONE WHO KILLED MY MEN?!"
The bandit leader roared in fury.
A soft smile curved across my lips. In the blink of an eye, I appeared right in front of him and threw a punch straight into his gut.
If anyone else had seen the scene, they might have laughed — a ten-year-old boy throwing a punch at a burly, battle-hardened man.
But no one would be laughing after what came next.
BRAAAKK!!
The bandit leader's massive body was hurled backward, crashing through the wooden wall of the house and shattering it apart.
His torso was grotesquely bent inward, perfectly matching the shape of my fist.
Blood poured from his mouth, nose, ears, and eyes — a single blow had critically injured him.
"H-how…? I'm a former knight of Silver Rank! There's no way I could lose to a brat like you!"
Scarlet mana flared violently around his body, and his aura shifted, growing far more dangerous.
[Blood Rain Sword Technique]
He slashed his blade forward, and the single arc of energy split into many. At this distance, I shouldn't have been able to dodge them.
SHRRRIP—
My clothes were shredded into ribbons by the barrage of slashes.
Yet a smile spread across my face.
"Your sword technique is interesting," I said calmly, touching my chin as if deep in thought. "But unfortunately, you lack power."
Anyone watching might have been enchanted by how cute I looked at that moment — a boy casually analyzing a deadly attack.
But to the bandit leader, it was pure humiliation.
Despite my clothes being torn to pieces, there wasn't a single drop of blood on me.
If one looked closely, they would realize the truth — not a single slash had pierced my skin.
I clenched both fists and brought them up in front of me, taking a stance that mirrored a seasoned boxer.
Then, with speed far beyond what the bandit leader could follow, I appeared in front of him once again.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Blow after blow rained down mercilessly. Bones snapped one after another, blood sprayed through the air, and the bandit leader's screams echoed through the silent forest.
By the time he collapsed to the ground, unable to move, I stopped.
I walked back into the house, searching for anything valuable.
I found a pile of treasure — jewelry worth the entire annual income of a noble with the rank of Earl. It was a jackpot.
Then I found stacks of food, some already rotting.
And in the corner, locked inside an iron cage, were seven girls about my age.
With a simple slash, I destroyed the cage. As I looked at them, a surge of pity welled up inside me. That feeling hardened my resolve — I would become the strongest, so no one could ever harm me or those I cared about.
The girls were unconscious, clearly malnourished and neglected.
Green mana flared around my body as I activated a wide-range Life Magic Circle, enveloping all seven of them.
It took five minutes for their bodies to fully recover under the healing flow of my magic.
A skilled healer would look at me as if I were a monster — attempting such a feat was dangerous. A single mistake could cause mana exhaustion and death. Yet I maintained the flow, stabilizing the circulation without faltering.
When they finally opened their eyes, confusion clouded their faces. As they realized the situation they were in, each reacted differently.
I watched them calmly and offered a gentle smile — one that made their fear melt away.
"Does anyone still feel pain?"
They all shook their heads.
"W-what happened to the bandits?" asked a cute girl with black hair and emerald-green eyes.
"I defeated them all."
They gasped at my words but didn't doubt me. After all, not a single bandit had shown themselves since I arrived — a clear sign of their fate.
"Who are you?" one of them asked.
"My name is Zeref. And you?"
The girl didn't answer. Instead, she lowered her head as if deep in thought.
"If you don't want to answer, that's fine."
"It's not that… I want you to give me a name."
Her face turned bright red with embarrassment, and the sight was adorable.
A thousand questions formed in my mind — I was curious about who she really was — but I didn't want to overwhelm her with interrogation.
"How about Livy? Do you like that name?"
She nodded enthusiastically. The other girls looked at her with envy.
I sighed softly and smiled.
"Do you all want names too?"
All of them except Livy nodded.
I turned to the second girl — a demi-human with wolf ears, silver hair, and sky-blue eyes.
"How about Tina?"
Her tail began wagging as she smiled brightly. The pure innocence of her expression was irresistible, and I had to fight the urge to reach out and pet her tail.
The third girl was an elf. As a race with long lifespans but low fertility, elves were rare.
I named her Lora — silver hair, crimson eyes, and a quiet, graceful aura.
The fourth had golden hair and blue eyes. I could feel a strong affinity for mana radiating from her — perhaps even a divine blessing.
I named her Nora. There was a calmness in her gaze that was far beyond her years.
The fifth girl had black hair and blue eyes. She was shy and tried to hide behind the others whenever I looked at her.
I named her Sasa, though she eyed me warily — likely a result of the abuse she had suffered.
The sixth had soft pink hair and golden eyes. Even at her age, her beauty was striking.
I named her Mira.
The seventh was a demi-human cat girl, with silver hair and matching silver eyes.
I named her Mia.
"I can't bring you all to live in my family's mansion," I told them gently. "But I can give you a safe and comfortable home."
I channeled mana into my right hand. A swirl of violet mana formed in the empty air, and with a clawing motion, I tore open the fabric of space itself.
From the rift, a miniature house appeared on my wrist.
Then the seven girls and I stepped out of the bandits' lair.
When they saw the corpses scattered around, their bodies trembled in fear and disgust.
I immediately cast Life Magic again, soothing their emotions and calming their fragile hearts.