Chapter 655: I already have strength
Silence still hung heavy over the ruined street, mingled with the sll of smoke and hot iron, when Strax finally looked up at the woman before him. The dead bear lay like a war offering at his feet, and the axe in his hand seed a natural extension of his body—heavy, brutal, but wielded with a lethal precision that left no doubt as to its strength.
He inclined his head slightly, the golden glow of his eyes reflecting the fresh blood on the blade.
“It was a fine hunt.” Strax’s deep voice echoed through the street, calm, almost respectful. “Despite the size of the axe, the cut was precise. Surgical. The bear didn’t suffer.”
The woman kept her eyes fixed on him, the weight of the silence between them stronger than any open threat. Her jaw worked, tense, as if the words were an unwanted distraction. Still, she answered coldly:
“Who are you, stranger?”
Strax smiled, not a teasing smile like before, but one that carried an ancient mystery, as if he knew more than he was saying. He took a deep breath, letting the smoke of the burned city fill his lungs, and then let out a low laugh.
“?” He shrugged. “I’m just so random guy. A wanderer. A man who decided to… restructure this place.”
The words hung in the air. The woman, her daughter still clinging to her waist, let out a short sound, almost a laugh. It wasn’t humor, it was disbelief.
“Restructure?” She shook her head, her disheveled hair falling over her scarred face. “That’s impossible.”
Strax raised an eyebrow in interest. “Impossible?”
She adjusted the axe on her shoulder, her voice like the crackle of dry wood in a fire.
“There are things in this world that don’t change.” Her eyes narrowed, cold and unwavering. “And this place is one of them.”
Strax was silent for a few monts, just watching her. Then he laughed. It wasn’t loud, but it was a deep laugh, full of irony and, at the sa ti, a dangerous acceptance.
“It’s true…” he said, with the tone of soone admitting an uncomfortable truth but not letting it get him down.
He turned away, letting the wind from the devastated street ruffle the reddish ends of his hair. He took a few steps, unhurriedly, as if the conversation had ended there.
His mother didn’t move. Her eyes followed his every movent, still alert, but she didn’t intervene.
Strax was about to disappear into the middle of the smoke-filled street when a sharp, desperate voice tore him back to the present.
“Wait!”
Strax stopped. His body remained still, but his golden eyes shone with intensity. Slowly, he turned around.
The girl stood a few steps ahead of her mother, her eyes watering, her hands nervously clutching the hem of her simple dress. Her voice was shaky but clear, filled with a gratitude that seed greater than herself.
“Thank you… for everything.”
Her mother raised her eyebrows in surprise. She turned to her daughter, confused by her reaction. “What happened?”
The girl hesitated, biting her lip. She was about to speak, but her mother instinctively raised the axe, as if already prepared to hear sothing she didn’t want.
Strax took a deep breath, raised his hand, and wiggled his fingers in an almost reassuring gesture.
“So thugs tried to take your daughter to…” He paused, letting the weight of the word linger in the silence. His golden eyes narrowed, filled with revulsion. “…the slaughter. If you know what I an.”
The silence that followed was thick, as if the air itself had stopped moving.
The mother remained motionless, but sothing changed in her eyes. The wild fire that had previously been aid at Strax now wavered, as if turned inward, toward sothing she was trying to contain. Her hand gripped the axe handle so tightly her knuckles turned white.
The daughter, noticing her mother’s tension, clung even tighter to her. “But he… he saved !” the girl said quickly, as if afraid the truth would turn into guilt.
Strax didn’t look away. His expression was serious now, without smiles, without provocation.
“I hate n like that.” His voice was low, grave, every word charged with sincerity. “There’s nothing more disgusting than worms who feed on the weakness of others.”
The girl’s mother stared at him for a long ti. The weight of his presence hadn’t diminished, but there was sothing different there. The distrust remained, but now mixed with a flicker of silent respect—or perhaps recognition.
Strax noticed, and a small smile returned to his lips.
“Don’t worry.” He squared his shoulders, turning around as if to leave again. “Your daughter is safe.”
But the girl took a step forward, her gaze fixed on him. “Wait!” she repeated, more firmly this ti.
Her mother placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to restrain her, but the girl didn’t back away. Her eyes shone with determination, despite the fear that still trembled in her voice.
“Please… don’t go yet.”
Strax stared at her in silence. For a mont, the hardness in his golden gaze softened. He tilted his head slightly, as if pondering sothing only he understood.
Her mother huffed impatiently. “Don’t talk to him like that. You don’t know who he is.”
“I know enough.” The girl’s voice cut through the air, surprising even herself. “He helped when no one else would.”
The silence that followed was broken only by the wind that carried with it the sll of the city in ashes.
Strax, in turn, laughed softly. It was a different laugh, lighter, almost human.
“That girl has more courage than half the n I’ve ever t.”
The mother pressed her lips together, but didn’t answer. Still, the grip on the axe in her hand relaxed, if only slightly.
Strax took a deep breath and turned his eyes to the young woman. “But you don’t need to worry about .” He raised a hand, the gesture calm, almost reassuring. “I’m no threat to you.”
The girl smiled, shy but sincere. The mother, however, remained firm, her gaze still fixed on Strax as if trying to read sothing he was hiding.
He didn’t back down. His golden eyes t hers, and in that brief instant, there was a mutual recognition. Two predators, two forces that didn’t intimidate each other, only assessed each other.
Strax was the first to break the silence.
“You two are interesting.” His voice was deep, almost a whisper that mingled with the wind. “Perhaps this place still has so fla hidden in the ashes.”
He turned again, ready to disappear into the destroyed streets.
But before he could take the first step, his mother finally spoke, her voice low but firm.
“Strange…” She paused, looking down at the bear’s body at her feet and then back up at him. “If you really want to change this place, you’ll need more than strength.”
Strax stopped. He didn’t look back, but the curve of a smile played across his lips.
“I already have strength, I just need the right people to give it strength.”
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