When Sain's eyes met those of one of the soldiers, time froze for a few seconds.
The soldier shouted:
"Sir! I saw someone moving over there, near the forest!"
The carriage halted abruptly, its wheels grinding against the dirt road.
The back door burst open, and a tall man stepped out — his black armor gleaming beneath the pale sunlight, the insignia of command etched into his shoulder.
His gaze was sharp, voice colder than steel.
"Get him," Commander Jack ordered. "Don't let him escape."
The soldiers charged toward the trees, their boots hammering the earth like thunder.
Sain turned and ran — faster than he ever had in his life.
His chest burned, his breath came in ragged gasps, and his thin legs fought against the roots and mud that sought to pull him down.
Branches whipped across his face as he slipped between the shadows of the forest.
For a brief moment, silence — he had lost them.
He stumbled beside a massive rock and leaned his back against it, chest rising and falling violently.
He whispered through clenched teeth:
"Damn you… my legs… move… please…"
But the sound of pursuit soon returned — heavy footsteps, labored breathing, and curses breaking through the fog.
"That bastard vanished!" one soldier growled.
"When I find him," another shouted, "I'll make him regret being born!"
A voice rose from behind them, calm yet sharp as a blade.
"Enough," said Jack. "You fools don't even know who he is. Catch him first. If he resists, break his bones — but keep him alive."
Suddenly, one of the soldiers spotted movement behind the rock.
"There he is!"
He lunged forward, grabbing Sain by the neck.
But desperation gave Sain the strength of madness.
He twisted violently and bit the man's cheek — hard.
Blood burst from the soldier's face as Sain tore away a piece of flesh and spat it on the ground.
The man's scream echoed through the forest, raw and piercing.
"Get him!" shouted another soldier.
They swarmed around Sain, weapons raised.
Then Commander Jack appeared through the crowd, fury blazing in his eyes.
He seized Sain by the collar and slammed him to the ground, kicking him again and again — each strike heavier than the last.
"Sir! He'll die!" one of the soldiers yelled, stepping forward.
Even the bitten soldier, clutching his bleeding face, tried to pull Jack back.
Jack finally stopped, his breath harsh, his boots dripping with dirt and blood.
He looked down at Sain's trembling body — still conscious, barely.
"How dare you wound a soldier of Avirion?" he said, his voice trembling with restrained rage.
"You insult the kingdom itself, boy."
Sain raised his head weakly, blood running down his chin.
And then… he laughed — a hollow, broken sound that made even the wind fall silent.
"Your kingdom?" he said through his cracked lips.
"You send armed men to hunt a starving boy… and you talk about honor?"
The soldiers bristled with anger, ready to strike him again, but Jack raised his hand.
"Enough! You hypocrites — you held me back from killing him, and now you're eager to beat him? Idiots."
He spat on the ground and shook his head. "I'm surrounded by fools."
For a moment, only the rustling of the forest remained.
Then one soldier asked, hesitantly:
"What do we do with him, sir?"
Jack's eyes darkened.
"Take him to the carriage. Commander Henderson will want to see this one."
He smirked coldly.
"Throw him in with the other brats — the exiles from the border villages."
Two soldiers lifted Sain's limp body.
His eyes fluttered shut as the last thing he heard was the creaking of the carriage door and the muffled sobs of other children inside.
And then — darkness.