Chapter 1

                                    

                                          
Roman Beltrius Sanders woke up to the sound of the birds chirping. He stretches and smiles at the birds flying outside his window. It was so peaceful in the morning.
                          
But, like every morning, the sound of a hunting rifle going off disturbed his peace and quiet.
                          
Roman sighed and shut his window. He really needed to stop going to sleep with it open. Especially since winter was just around the corner.
                          
Roman got up, went to his closet and pulled out his outfit. He decided on his white shirt, a red vest and black pants. He headed down the stairs to collect his black boots.
                          
"Dad?" Roman called out once he entered the living room. He got no vocal response, only a tap coming from under his feet. Roman smiled, his father was already hard at work.
                          
Roman grabbed his boots and headed to the kitchen. On the table, there were two plates, one with food and one without. There was a note next to the full plate that read: I ate already so don't worry about me, go out and have some fun! -Dad
                          
Roman chuckled at the note and sat down to eat his breakfast slowly. He ponders over what he will do today, deciding to return the book he borrowed from the library then get another one to read.
                          
He sighed and mumbled to himself "I don't even know why I pretend like I'm going to do anything else. There's nothing remotely interesting about this town."
                          
Roman finished his breakfast and headed to the door. He paused to pick up his basket and put on a fake smile before heading out.
                          
He hummed as he headed down the path from his secluded home to the "busy" town. "Busy" because it was the exact same amount of people, every day, doing the exact same things.
                          
It wasn't that Roman necessarily hated the town, he just found it to be boring. Very boring.
                          
Roman walked to the corner and began to count down from five. Once he hit one, he pointed as the baker turned the corner. Roman smiled, it was like clockwork "Bonjour Sean!"
                          
The baker named Sean smiled back "Bonjour Roman! What are you up to today?"
                          
"Oh! I'm going to the book shop to return this book I borrowed. It was an amazing read, you should–"
                          
Sean waved him off "That's nice. MARK! WHERE ARE THE BAGUETTES?!"
                          
Roman sighed. The same conversation from the day before, ending at the exact same point. He continued his walk. Every time he counted down from five, someone would walk out of their shop and greet him. First Sean the baker, then Justine the merchant, next Ethan the farmer.
                          
Then it was the twins Gabby and Lilly, who not-so-subtly whispered about him which Roman did not react to, only kept walking. Roman was used to this. It happened every day, from everyone in the town.
                          
It was no secret the town did not like Roman. For as long as he could remember, they thought he was different, odd, a freak. When he was young and naive, it would bother him to no end. He tried his best to fit in, to be popular. He decided to do what most of the young boys in town did and picked up a sword. There were also guns but his father strictly forbids him from ever touching one.
                          
He trained day and night to become the best fighter in all the town. He was close to even rival Decarus, the most popular guy in the town. He was the best hunter, the most athletic, and the most handsome.
                          
Roman didn't see the appeal.
                          
One day, Decarus and Nat invited him to join them hunting. Nat was Decarus right-hand man. He followed him around like a lost puppy. They took Roman to their favorite spot.