Earthling in Uncharted Dimensions

The sword went into the sheath as the man grinned while looking over his shoulder.

"Hey, look what we have here!"

The man turned towards the boy and lifted him like a dead rabbit. The boy could not resist the grown man's strength.

The bandits displayed their curiosity as they had just found a naked boy hiding behind a bunch of vines.

"We're so lucky today. We've got ourselves an elf boy!"

Two of the bandits licked their lips while running their eyes over the naked body of the boy. Their piercing stares made the boy uncomfortable and he squirmed helplessly.

Dragging him along, the bandit displayed his barbaric smile before devouring his prey. After throwing the boy into the hands of a fellow bandit, the man said-

"Tie him down."

The man who caught the boy used an empty pair of shackles to bind the boy's hands and legs and he was added to their hostage collection.

The sound of a sword being unsheathed attracted the attention of the other 6 men.

"This is an elf boy. So there should be an elf settlement nearby.

You know what that means, right?"

As he grinned at his fellow bandits, his eyes squinted and the face scared the souls out of the women and children.

"That means more slaves to sell!!"

The man laughed and the whole band laughed. Their display of pleasure overwhelmed the cries of the shackled.

"Hey you, don't let them escape!"

Commanding at one of the bandits, the bandit leader drew his second sword and charged into the ruins. His fellow bandits scattered into the surrounding and they moved towards the ruin's direction.

The man left behind to watch over the hostages turned around with his hands placed over the twin daggers resting on either side of his waist. His eyes scanned the surroundings like a hawk watching for any potential prey.

Sensing the silence in the air as a positive sign, the man decided to take a rest after fatigue from the previous work took over his body. He found a suitable place to lie down under a tree. Before that, he did not forget to double-check the durability of the shackles.

...

A few minutes later.

The bandit had fallen asleep in the absence of any significant noises. The chirping of birds was a lullaby to his ears and he slumbered peacefully.

"Hey..."

A hushed voice made the boy turn his head and a teenage girl was looking at him eagerly. There were a few more females near her, ranging from little children to a granny.

"Who are you?"

The girl of almost 19 years old voiced out her curiosity. She was cautious to not awake the bandit and was frequently glancing at him.

The boy could only stare at the girl with a frown. Not that he wanted to, but the girl's eyes were checking out his naked elven physique.

The boy was sitting in a way that he hid his nakedness. But the stares from the opposite sex made him uneasy.

"I don't-"

"AAAHHHHH!!!"

When the boy had just begun his reply, a scream rose from a distance. The sudden cry brimming with pain and fear jolted the shackled and the bandit jumped up with sluggishness covering his eyes.

It took him a moment to recognise the source of the voice and he pulled his twin daggers before charging ferociously into the ruins.

*rustle*

The masculine tone in the screams faded into the air and the figure of the bandit left to guard vanished from sight. Everyone including the boy was sitting motionless while breathing as shallow as possible. The silence that now existed in the atmosphere had the scent of blood.

Cowering in fear, incoherent voices could be heard from a distance. It was as if a troop was storming the area. The sound of metal clashing each other could be heard and the shouts and screams filled the air.

The next second, the bandit who just ran into the ruins came back charging at the hostages. His eyes displayed fear and the need to survive. Stumbling and stabilising, he leapt forward with the hope of reaching the shackled women and children.

But...

*swish*

An arrow penetrated the air and the bandit from his behind that the tip of the arrow came out of his front. With the force of impact and the running momentum coupled, the man collapsed on the ground and slid towards the feet of the hostages.

A moment of silence and the screams were released. The women and children cried out loud as they saw a man dying with his eyes open wide in disbelief. When the lifeless body slid and finally rolled over with the momentum, the expressions on the dead man's face was horrifying.

The revelation that the bandit is dead, enveloped the women with an unspeakable comfort. Their eyes produced tears like a small stream that flowed down their cheeks and onto their tattered clothes.

The teary eyes rose and saw a group of soldiers in silver-clad armours walking out of the ruins. Their faces were smeared with blood and the swords in their hands were cleaned in the screams of the bandits.

Seeing this unexpected appearance, the boy turned to look at the women and he saw tears of joy in their eyes. There was a certain expression of calmness in those muffled sniffs.

"Huff...huff..."

The man leading the group of soldiers took off his headwear and his face of late-thirties were revealed. When he took off his helmet, his face full of sweat drops was visible.

Following their leader, the soldiers took off their helmets and the boy was surprised to see women in the troop. The female soldiers quickly neared the women and consoled them that all the bandits were dead.

While checking whether they were okay or not, one female soldier caught the sight of the odd one.

She jumped up and looked over to call for her superior.

"Miss Aleria, we have an elf here."