Sitting at the back, right on the edge of the cart with one foot swinging in the air, Gabriel admired the beautiful green landscape bathed in sunlight that stretched as far as the eye could see. The traces of water left by the rain gave a damp feeling to the scenery, but the landscape was only even more beautiful because of it.
Gabriel, after admiring this spectacle for so long, began to doze off and eventually fell asleep. But his nap was short-lived before a nightmare brought him back to reality.
This nightmare showed him a child. If he lost nine years of his life, he would be the exact double of that child. Two men in suits were dragging the child by the hand and by force. The boy screamed before turning his head to look for help toward a woman standing there, staring at him with eyes as black as the abyss.
Then he saw himself in an elegant dinner, accompanied by several people who were eating and talking, while he seemed sad and indifferent to their joy.
The scene shifted, and he saw himself standing while all eyes were fixed on him as if he were not human.
Then he was in what could be taken for a high school cafeteria where, once again, everyone was staring at him while he was trembling, when a hand suddenly burst out from behind to grab him.
It was at that moment that he woke up abruptly from his dream. The man in front, surprised by his violent awakening, asked:
- Is everything alright?
- Um, yes! Did I sleep for long?
- No, just a few minutes. We're almost at the bridge. That's where you're heading, right? But the sun won't be long before setting, so I'm a bit curious — what are you going to do over there?
- A quest!
- Ah, of course. Judging by your equipment, I should have guessed you were an adventurer. I also wanted to be an adventurer once, but one day, I took an arrow to the knee. Hahaha, life doesn't often give us gifts, does it?
- That's true. You're a wine delivery man, right? Do you like it?
- You can't hide anything from you. My family has been wine deliverers from generation to generation. When I was a teenager, I was put under terrible pressure to abandon my dreams and take up the torch of my sick father. So in the end, I gave in and crossed out my life as an adventurer. After that, my life became very calm and boring. Always the same thing, over and over again. But later, at some point, you get used to it. And when that happens, you simply feel at peace. So yes, I like this calm and peaceful life.
- I see! Your parents imposed their vision of the world on you, but in the end it was for the better. Said Gabriel, as if he wanted to murmur something else. But tell me, aren't you angry at your parents? Well, those who forced your hand? Have you never... hated them? He asked in a more severe tone.
- At first, yes. I thought they had ruined my life and shattered my dreams, but now… I can only be grateful to them. Thanks to them, I've known a very peaceful and long life. Long enough to soon become a grandfather. My eldest son became a knight in the capital, and his wife will soon give birth, and my eldest daughter also got married and already has a child. Today I live with my very young granddaughter and my wife. What more could I ask for? I am happy. With age, I've come to believe that every thing, every decision we make in this world has a good side and a bad side. It's up to us to choose which one we want to see. And you, young man, do you have parents? How are they?
At the man's question, Gabriel lowered his eyes with a sad and thoughtful expression before answering.
- I don't know. It's been three years since I left home… but I'm sure they're doing very well. He replied with such certainty that the old man understood the weight he carried within him.
- I see. Family life isn't easy. But you know, it's not easy for a parent either to lose a child. Even if it may seem difficult, you should try to forgive them and reconcile with them… oh, I'm meddling in things that aren't my business. Sorry, kid.
No, don't apologize. Gabriel replied, but in his mind, he was thinking:
" It's true. I hated my family more than anything in the world... but since I've been in this world... and despite my nightmares... I often feel the urge to see them again. How are they? What are they thinking right now? Do they miss me? Do they think about me too? I sincerely wish I could know, and also... see them again, even just one single time. "
Thus, they continued their journey until the Crooked Bridge, where the cart stopped. It was a large bridge shaped like a serpent above a pit in which a small river flowed. Gabriel got down from the cart, thanking the man for the ride.
- The sun will soon set, so don't linger too long around here. The old man warned him.
- Yes, I'll be quick. Thanks again, sir…
- Albert!
- Mister Albert! Thank you!
- No, it was nothing.
Mister Albert continued on his way across the bridge. As for Gabriel, he went down into the river and continued his path along its bank. A beautiful river with clear and transparent waters.
After thirty minutes of walking, he came out of the river by climbing up the pit before entering a bright forest. The sunlight was already beginning to turn into a deep orange that illuminated the forest.
But barely had he begun his walk when Gabriel felt something like hostility very far ahead of him, behind a large hill. At full speed, he rushed through the forest toward that hill and climbed it. Under the setting sun, from the top of the hill, Gabriel witnessed a true one-sided battle being fought between a group of adventurers and a horde of Hobbs.
Gabriel went down a little toward the middle of the hill and hid behind a rock to observe the battle.
The Hobbs were creatures that normally stood over two meters tall, possessing a body morphologically similar to that of a human, along with a carapace made of a mineral similar to but harder than stone, which covered their entire bodies. They were very tightly bonded and almost never attacked alone.
At the bottom of the hill, the Hobbs, with their backs to Gabriel, were cornering their opponents: a small group of badly injured adventurers who had formed a circle around the only tree in the area, which itself stood on a small hill, a kind of slippery slope.
Two of their members were lying on the ground beneath the tree. A swordsman was engaged in close combat with the enemies, supported by a mage and an archer hidden in the tree, and all three of them were completely out of breath.
The swordsman chained his attacks. Five Hobbs rushed at him with spears. Gripping his sword with both hands, he charged at the Hobbs in return. Their spears were no match for his great sword, which shone by the grace of its runes. He first cut their spears, and then, thanks to a series of successive strikes, he slashed the belly of the closest one with an upward blow.
He dodged the punch of another before slicing his neck without completely severing the head. Then he followed up with a high leap onto another, cutting him from head to toe without managing to split him in two. Then he blocked the punch of another with his sword and followed with a spin to sever the arm cleanly before sending the head flying. He was completely covered in blood. But barely had he finished when more of them rushed toward him.
- Don't stray too far, Rubel!
Shouted the mage, dressed as a witch with a large hat, a cape, and a magic staff in her right hand, along with a lamp in her left hand.
She was a young red-haired girl with a few pimples on her cheek and round glasses. Her long, curly hair flowed down her back and passed over her shoulder.
Rubel had listened to her warning and had moved closer to her. He looked very young, surely in his mid-teens, maybe even younger. He was brown-haired and carried a large red sword along with a half-armor. When he moved closer to the mage, she had just finished an incantation.
Then, without hesitation, raising her lamp toward the sky and shaking it slightly, she unleashed flames all around the tree, forming a wall of fire over three meters high rising from the ground. Her act had the effect of blocking the Hobbs' assault and giving her teammates a moment of respite.
- It never ends! How long can we hold out like this? Rubel asked as he caught his breath.
- I don't know! The plan was to eliminate their leaders to throw them into disarray, but we failed, and as a result, the two strongest members of the group are down and dying. I'm almost out of reserves, and you're seriously injured. In other words, this is going badly. The Hobbs are creatures of the earth. Their carapace is a formidable shield. If only I had learned lightning spells…
The young mage bit her lips when her pessimistic and worried gaze met that of her friend, whose pupils shone like stars.
- Stop, it's useless! We must fight to the very end, that's all. Trust me, we'll all make it out.