Chapter 13 : return home
I continued walking forward. Just then, I saw the two soldiers on horseback approaching me.
When they arrived, one of the soldiers called out, "Hey, kid. We don't know how you are lifting that, but we need all of it right now."
Hearing this, I shook my head in a clear refusal. "No. I am not selling this. Go look somewhere else."
"I am not asking; I am demanding," the soldier sneered. "The Minister has ordered us to bring a bundle of wood. Hand it all over. It would be a privilege for you to serve the kingdom. Out of pity, we might even give you one gold coin."
Hearing his arrogant words, I couldn't help but shake my head. As the saying goes, 'Those accustomed to the rod do not listen to words.' Still, I thought it best to give them one warning.
"I am not going to give it to you. Go rob someone else."
"You dare call us thieves? A puny boy like you? We'll have to teach you a lesson."
Both of them aimed their spears at me.
To call these two fools would be an insult to fools; they were far worse. I was walking while carrying such a massive bundle of wood, yet they still considered me a normal boy.
I set the bundle of wood down and activated my Telekinesis skill. I began to control their movements.
Slap!
The second soldier's hand shot out and slapped the first soldier across the cheek. The second man couldn't understand what he had just done.
"You fool! We have to teach this boy a lesson, not attack me!"
"Hey, I didn't do it on purpose! It just happened by itself!"
As soon as the second man spoke, he felt a sharp pain in his cheek. The first soldier had slapped him with full force, knocking out two or three teeth and causing blood to spill from his mouth.
"I told you I didn't do it on purpose, yet you hit me with full strength! You broke my teeth! Even if I had done it on purpose, I didn't hit you that hard!" The second man was boiling with rage.
The first man hadn't done it on purpose either; it was as if someone had controlled his body and forced him to use his full strength.
I stood to the side, laughing with a faint smile. I was the one doing all of this using my Telekinesis powers. By controlling their bodies, I was forcing them to fight each other.
They were now fighting each other. I stopped using my telekinesis on them because they had already started brawling on their own.
They fought for some time, but then they heard the sound of my laughter. Suspicion dawned on them that I was the one behind all of this.
"Hey, boy! What kind of dark magic did you use on us to make us fight each other?" the first man asked furiously.
Even though my secret was out, I didn't panic. Mocking their condition, I replied, "Yes, I did it. So, what are you two going to do about it?"
"We need to kill this freak quickly, or he will use his strange magic on us again," the first man said to the second.
The second man agreed. Picking up their spears from the ground, they both charged toward me to finish me off.
"Oh, you two still haven't learned your lesson."
I activated my Telekinesis skill. Slowly, they began to rise into the air and were immobilized in place.
"What is happening to us? How are we flying in the air like birds? This child must be a Rakshasa casting black magic on us!"
"Help! Help! Save us from this devil!"
I couldn't help but admire their vivid imagination for jumping to such conclusions.
I twirled my hand in a circle, and the two soldiers floating in the air began to spin round and round.
"How are we spinning in the air? I'm getting dizzy! I'm going to vomit! Someone save us!"
I kept this up for a while until I realized they had had enough. Then, I deactivated my Telekinesis skill.
Released from the hold, they both fell to the ground with a loud thud, groaning in pain.
Their heads were spinning, and combined with the pain from the impact of the fall, it felt like a punishment no less than hell.
"Forgive us! Spare us! We will never make such a mistake again, please!"
They turned in the wrong direction and began begging me for mercy, but I wasn't even standing there. Because of their dizziness, they were seeing me everywhere they looked.
"Alright, I forgive you both. Now, tell me the truth from the beginning."
"Thank you for forgiving us!" they cried out, still looking in the wrong direction due to their dizziness. They proceeded to spill everything, revealing every detail of their scheme.
"Oh? So you two had planned to swindle the entire one thousand gold coins? Hand over all the coins to me, and in exchange, take half of this wood."
I approached them and began patting them down to find the pouch of gold. After a few moments, I found it—it was a massive pouch. I tucked it safely into my bag.
Then, I separated half the wood from my bundle, placed it on the ground for them, and walked away with the remainder.
"Thank you! Thank you for not making our job difficult!"
By the time they fully regained their senses, they saw the bundle of wood they needed lying there, while I was already gone.
...
My mood was now excellent; just like that, I had made a profit of so many coins without any effort.
From their conversation, I had also learned the news that Prince Pandu and Madri had passed away today.
Some time later, I arrived at my house. I pushed the door, and it creaked open.
I took off my slippers to the side and placed all the wood inside the store room. Then, I closed the store room door.
To be continued...