Kai Pov
When I regained consciousness, all the pain I'd been ignoring throughout the battle crashed over me at once. I winced in agony, staring up at the vast sky above. Instinctively, I tried to move my hands, only to feel the cold bite of metal against my skin.
Reality flooded back—I had been knocked unconscious during the fight. Looking down, I saw chain cuffs locked tightly around my wrists. With effort, I managed to sit up and take in my surroundings: a small fire crackled nearby, surrounded by men from the battle who were standing around, talking in low voices.
They noticed my movements almost immediately.
"Hey, Brenton," one called out. "He's awake."
As I scanned the unfamiliar terrain, the old man stepped into view, a self-satisfied smirk stretching from ear to ear.
"Wakey wakey, brat," he taunted. "Sleep well?"
I fixed him with a deadly glare, refusing to dignify his question with a response. Instead, I spat at his feet. His grin faltered momentarily as he glanced down, but when he looked back at me, that infuriating smile had returned. In one swift motion, he stepped forward and delivered a brutal kick to my face.
My head snapped backward, and I found myself sprawled in the grass. Groaning, I rolled to my side and spat out blood before dragging myself back to a sitting position.
"What do you want with me?" I demanded, anger lacing every word.
Brenton studied me for a moment before letting out a soft chuckle. "We want the coin a little runt like you is worth."
I paused, considering his words carefully. "Slavery is outlawed, you know. Where are you going to sell me? There can't be many buyers here in Irdath."
His grin grew wider as he knelt before me, closing the distance between us. "Irdath? Who said anything about that? We're taking you back to Eldoria with us. We can catch a real pretty penny for you over there."
His words hung in the air, bringing with them a wave of panic that threatened to drown me.
Eldoria? That's across the sea!
"What the hell are slave traders from Eldoria doing all the way in Irdath?" I asked urgently.
"You foreigners catch a pretty penny over there," he explained, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "Most of the slaves in Eldoria are malnourished and weak-minded with little to no... spark in them. You people, on the other hand..." He chuckled darkly. "Well, it's like you're born with flame in your hearts. You foreigners make for good workers."
I gritted my teeth. "Why us? I'm sure there would have been plenty of easier targets for you to capture. I mean, you lost men trying to capture us after all, so why?"
His smile vanished instantly, and his tone lost its nonchalant giddiness, replaced by cold seriousness. "Enough questions, boy. Get some sleep. Soon the rest of the convoy should be here, and after that, once my two mages come back with your little friends, it won't be long till you say goodbye to this country for good."
He stood up abruptly and stalked away, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I sat there for what felt like hours, my mind racing. Most of my thoughts centered on Maya and Rowan—had they escaped? Would they be okay without me? But soon, my thoughts turned more... selfish.
I don't want to be a slave again. I can't be. I won't be. After everything I went through in my last life, I was willing to die before spending another second in a cage, and that hadn't changed in this life. If it came to it, I'd either escape or die trying, but I would never be a slave again.
My frantic thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching hooves. Looking to my left, I saw men on horseback leading a large horse-drawn cart made of solid oak—large enough to carry many people inside.
Or many slaves.
Brenton and his men met with the new arrivals while the slave cart was pulled closer to the fire... closer to me. They didn't put me in right away; we were all still waiting in tense anticipation for the arrival of the two mages sent after Maya and Rowan.
I was confident in Rowan's abilities, but seeds of doubt still lingered in my mind. I had to see—I had to be sure.
As if answering my silent plea, the two mages emerged from the distant treeline just minutes later, making their way across the plains toward our camp. They looked disheartened and exhausted, but more importantly, they were alone. Maya and Rowan were nowhere to be seen.
They had escaped!
A single tear of pure relief trickled down my face. At least my sacrifice hadn't been in vain.
Brenton seemed to reach the same conclusion, his face contorting with rage as he moved to intercept the mages. They were too far away for me to hear their conversation, but it clearly looked tense, with Brenton growing increasingly agitated. Eventually, the mages walked past him toward the convoy, leaving Brenton standing alone for a moment before he turned back to me.
He approached and knelt down to my level. I couldn't help but smirk.
"Looks like you didn't catch them after all," I said, arrogance dripping from my voice.
Brenton's stare seemed to cut right through me as he spoke with a flat, emotionless tone: "Your friends are dead, boy."
His words hung in the air, suspended in a terrible silence as we stared at each other.
"W-what?" I stammered, stunned.
"They were caught but fought back. My mages didn't have the strength to simply subdue them without being killed, so instead, they killed your friends."
I stared in disbelief, unable to form words as he continued, his previous grin sliding back onto his face.
"Such a shame, really. That little fire brat would have made me some serious coin, but what are you gonna do?" He stood up and turned to his group. "We're done here! Put the boy in the cart with the rest, and let's get moving. I want to leave this god-awful kingdom as soon as I can."
He glanced back at me one last time, flashing a cruel smile before walking away.
I didn't move. I didn't blink. I didn't make a sound. I just sat there, staring into nothingness until rough hands grabbed me and tossed me into the cart. I barely noticed. I had fallen into a trance, unable to process what I'd just heard.
I refused to believe it.
As the cart began to move, jostling me against its cold wooden floor, my emotions finally caught up to me. The first tear fell, then another, then another. I lay there, staring blankly at the wall of the cart while tears flowed endlessly down my face.
But I made no sound. It was as if I'd lost my ability to speak—to move. My mind had gone blank, my body crying purely on instinct.
That emptiness didn't last long. Soon, another emotion began to seep in, battling against my overwhelming grief.
Anger.
That desperate, infectious anger I'd tried so hard to keep down was now seeping into my bones. As my consciousness drifted back, my emotions hit me like an anvil. My friends were…dead, I could feel my body start to convulse almost as if it was trying to reject the information. My tears flowed and my mind felt like it's going to explode. I don't want to feel this pain—this insatiable ache in my heart that felt like someone was slowly crushing it in their fist. I don't want to face this reality, not now… not ever.
The anger that I had spent the past year trying so desperately to suppress now seemed like salvation, a way out of my suffering, a way to escape these emotions.
So I decided, as the cart rolled down the bumpy road, that I would let this anger consume me completely. I would let it take away my sorrow and my grief. I would let it replace my pain with rage and fill me with the power and drive to do what must be done.
Tonight, as I lay here crying, I decided that these would be the last tears I shed. After tonight, no more tears will be spilt for the lives of the dead...
Only blood.
[End of Vol.1 Favored by God]
Author note: Well, that's a wrap on Volume 1 of "Favored by God"! I had an incredible time writing this volume and building this world. This is the first series I've ever written, and I really feel like I've improved with every chapter, little by little. I still have a long way to go, but I think I've made large strides since the beginning of the book! This has been a welcome challenge for me—from keeping up with deadlines to crafting the intricacies of this world, I've loved every step of the journey. I'm very excited for you all to read the next volume! I had a blast creating it, and I truly believe I'm going to get to stretch my legs as an author with Volume 2. The build-up is finally over, and now you'll really get to see what this world I've created is all about! I also want to give a heartfelt thanks to everyone who has stuck with it and made it this far. Each and every one of you provides the motivation for me to keep creating chapters and posting consistently every week. Whether you're reading on Tapas or WebNovel, I appreciate you all, and I hope you continue to follow along with Kai, Maya and Rowan's journey!
That's all from me for now—I hope you'll tune in next week for the start of Volume Two!