How do I beat this thing? 

It has body hair like a gorilla. That means fire should do the trick. 

I ask in loud voice, "Hey, do you want to talk things out?" 

It roars very loudly. My ears start ringing. 

I shout, "You could have just replied ‘no’ in a gentle way. Anyway, I don't carry any matches. But I can make my own fire instead. Let me give you a taste of it." 

I clench my fist.

Suddenly, an arrow hit the Hollowgrath's chest. And fire ignites from there. The Hollowgrath ran away. 

What just happened?

Where did the arrow come from?

I turn around. 

Four humans come to me running. Two women and two men. They are around thirty four to thirty eight years old, maybe. 

A woman who is holding a bow asks, "Are you alright, mister?" 

I reply hesitantly, "Yes. Thank you." 

"What are you doing in this depth of the forest?" The man with a sword asks. 

I reply, "I was taking a shortcut. Then..." 

- "Where are you going?" 

- "To Alnovir."

Another man with a shield says, "What! No one goes there; everyone wants to escape from there. Are you an idiot or something?" 

A woman with a magical staff says, "Behave yourself. He might have a reason. We are going there too, aren't we?" 

I ask, "You are going to Alnovir?" 

The swordsman says, "Yes. To sell some golden treasure. The king of Alnovir pays the highest price for such things." 

A woman with the bow says, "Gornor, let him come with us. He is alone and unarmed. If we leave him, he won't be able to reach Alnovir alive." 

The swordsman says, "You are right. Hey, join us." 

I say, "Thank you for your kind offer. But I can't trouble you that much." 

Gornor says, "It's no trouble. We are in a good mood. We will soon be rich. Join us to Alnovir." 

I accept his invitation.

We start walking. 

After walking for a little bit, I see a road. There is a horse carriage on that road. A woman is waiting near the carriage. They talk to the woman about what happened. Then she starts the carriage. I get on the carriage with them.

These five humans are an adventure party named 'Dawn Light'. They travel from one place to another. They buy products at a cheap price and travel to places where the products can be sold at a maximum price. 

Recently they found a treasure box in which they found some golden glasses and plates. The artwork on it seems pretty ancient. The King of Alnovir has a keen interest in these kinds of things. That's why they are traveling to Alnovir. When they were passing through Thronreach Forest, they heard the roar of Hollowgrath. They thought someone might be in danger, and they rushed to save him. And they found me. 

They are very friendly. 

The swordsman is Gornor, the bow lady is Elisa, the shieldman is Liorath, the mage lady is Hilishiya, and the lady who drives the carriage is Darknia.

Liorath says, "That's a weird dress." 

Ah! 

Elisa says, "Hey, Don't be rude. It is a rather unique dress." 

Gornor says, "Yes, it is. Mr. Agni, do you want to sell this dress?" 

I smile and reply, "I am sorry to say that I don't want to." 

Elisa says, "Maybe it's very special to him. Don't make him uncomfortable." 

Gornor says, "Figures. If I had this kind of dress, I wouldn't want to sell it either." 

I smile. 

Darknia says, "Where are you coming from, Mr. Agni?" 

I reply, "From far north." 

Hilishiya says, "From the Corlian Kingdom?" 

It's a human kingdom in the north. 

I reply, "Yes." 

Liorath says, "That far! You sure are something else." 

Gornor says, "Why travel so far to Alnovir?" 

I say, "I want to vi...." 

Darknia interrupts and says, "Be ready, everyone. Bandits!"

The moods of everyone change. 

I ask, "Bandits here?" 

Gornor replies, "It's normal. They usually choose a place like this where no one can come to help. But don't worry, Mr. Agni. We are strong. Just don't step out of the carriage." 

Gornor gives me a knife and says, "Take it. If things go wrong, protect yourself." 

I take the knife.

Darknia stops the carriage. The road is blocked with a heavy wooden log. A group of ten people surround the carriage. Gornor, Liorath, Elisa, and Hilishiya get off the carriage. 

Judging by the looks of those bandits, they seem to be powerful. Eight swordsmen and two mages. 

One of the swordsmen, who seems to be the leader, says, "You two, this is the only option for you. Leave your valuable belongings, carriage, and these three women. If you do that, we won't hurt you." 

Alright, that's enough to boil my blood. But I stay still. Let the Gornor's party handle it. 

Gornor says, "Move your logs and go away." 

The bandit leader laughs and says, "We will send you to the afterlife." 

I don't think Gornor's party can win this fight. Those bandits won't fight fair. If I wait here for the moment they need my help, Gornor and Liorath may receive fatal wounds. And I don't have any healing magic. 

When I was facing the Hollowgrath, they didn't wait for me to fight or ask for their help. They heard the roar and rushed to help. They noticed that I wasn't hurt, but they didn't wait. They thought I could not survive; they helped. The same situation is here now. 

And I can't be responsible for their deaths.

I step out of the carriage. 

Gornor asks, "Mr. Agni, why?" 

The bandit leader shouts, "You there! Give your weird dress to us." 

Ah! 

I say, "Mr. Bandit Leader, I have two questions for you. Can you answer me honestly?" 

The bandit laughs. 

The bandit leader says, "Sure, kid. I’ll fulfill your last wish." 

I ask, "Did you kill your previous targets?" 

Bandits laugh again. 

The bandit leader says, "What do you think, kid? We are not saints here. We kill men and sell women. Simple." 

I clench my fists and ask, "Second question, can you leave us alone if I give you my dress?" 

The bandit leader says, "Are you an idiot or something? Do you know the price of one woman is worth more than five hundred golds? But, we will let three of you go, if you hand over those three wome...." 

I shout, "SHUT YOUR FILTHY MOUTH!" 

The flame on me ignites. 

I push off the ground with my toes and get close to the bandit leader in the blink of an eye and strike a punch on his mouth. His head rips clean off from his shoulder and burns with the dark blue flame. 

Everyone is shocked. 

I don't stop. With the knife Gornor gave me, I kill the other nine bandits one by one. Two of them tried to fight back. But that didn't change a thing. 

All ten dead bodies burn to ashes by dark blue flame.

I turn around. 

Gornor and others are terrified. It's a normal reaction. Now that they are scared of me, I am on my own. 

But it's better this way, because all of them are alive and unwounded.

No, I don't resent this power that makes people scared of me. I am grateful to this power, which let me save others from evil.

I smile at them.