Chapter 4: Dead Man Back In Town

Chapter 4: Dead Man Back In Town

The bustling town of Athenia–the home to the king, the hub of traders, but most importantly for Raven, a hunting ground of women. But alas, having heard of his death already, he wasn't quite welcomed with open arms as he'd expected. As he walked through the streets making his way to the inn his party used to lounge at, countless baffled gazes followed him.

Even those he once knew well and drank alongside with watched him from a distance with utter shock in their eyes. The news of his death had already spread throughout the town, and given his nature as a trying playboy, many taken men had been overjoyed. Some of their women, however, cursed under their breaths for having let a chance to lay down with the hero's aid slip through their fingers.

'To think I used to admire the passing gals at the bar with some of these idiots!' His fists clenched tight, he was looking to land it on a mark, and as things stood, the hero was his prime target. Even so, he knew he couldn't try something as stupid as trying to kill him, the hero deserved the worst for abandoning him when his life could've easily been saved, but constrained by his promise to the goddess, he was at least supposed to take over the party first.

"Once I have the others on my side and I'm on my path to eradicating the forces of evil, then you'll get the noose you bastard," making himself that promise, Raven ignored the glaring bystanders and headed straight towards the inn.

Getting to the inn while it was still evening, he wasted no time to burst right in. The thrashing of the door got everyone's eyes turning towards the entrance. Squinting their gaze, the groups of lounging adventurers looked on for a spell, but the moment they realized who it was they were all instantly on edge.

"What the fuck?!" Exclaimed a scantily clad mage.

"Am I drunk or is that–Raven?" Added a brutish, drunk warrior.

Many more words of doubt and confusion quickly flooded the whole place, but the moment Raven stepped inside, the whole place went quiet. Wearing a dastardly smile, he spanned his hands wide as if inviting them for a fight.

"Forgery aside, do you really think an acorn like that would impress that girl?" With a smirk, he watched as the hero's eyes widened, not in shock from the realization that Raven was back, but from the utter humility from the probable news.

"H-how are you alive?!" He asked, jumping off the bed with the blanket still covering his frail-looking frame.

"Did you lose some weight or did a witch hex you to get even more girly than before?" Moving closer, Raven leaned over to pick up the portrait. "I bet she'll prefer it if you had more muscles, and not those flimsy things."

Although he felt a cold stab in his heart from Raven's words, the hero reached beside the bed and picked up his sword. Pointing it toward Raven with a raging look, he barked as loud as he could in warning.

"Who the hell are you?! Raven died in front of my eyes, there's no way you're him!" His eyes shifted to the portrait in Raven's hand, the hero added further. "Give that painting to me!"

He tried to reach forward with the other hand, but almost exposing his naked body, he instinctively grabbed the blanket once more and covered himself again. As it all happened, Raven threw the forgery to the side and began moving closer to the red-eyed hero.

"You left me to die, but since I managed to survive, here's your present," clenching his fist, Raven punched the hero's pretty face. Having enhanced his body with a spell before coming in, the momentum from the punch sent the hero flying through the open window behind him.

Feeling as if a weight had been lifted off of him, Raven smiled to himself as he made his way towards the window. Gazing down through the streets, he couldn't help but laugh at the dazed hero laying butt naked in the bustling streets. Crowding around him, the locals gawked him like a hawk with looks of pure shock. Not just because the hero's aid had knocked the hero out of the window, but because of how unmighty their mighty hero was behind those armored pants.

'Rumors, rumors, I bet every girl in town will soon know just how unimpressive their hero really is.' Utterly satisfied from the bottom of his heart, Raven decided to get some ale and enjoy some time with the rest of the adventurers downstairs.