A Struggle with Mercy

The western woods were famous for having numerous portals. Despite the number, the monsters that came out of them were low-level ones. The monsters in the area were smaller than others. The biggest ones were probably only as big as black bears. Those creatures were easy to deal with. Because of this, many people came to the woods to catch monsters. But after the devastating event with the giant spider, the government didn't want to take any risks and the woods were handed over to the military. The western woods became the Black Thorns' training ground. There's never been a report of high-level monsters appearing in the area, but we were told to proceed with caution. The western woods was a vast property and being careless would put you in trouble. We walked deeper into the woods. Daniel was holding the paper with the clues of the coins' whereabouts. The clues were written like riddles and the coordinates were confusing. We were lucky we brought a compass and Daniel seemed adept at using it. Daniel was leading us. He must've thought he really was the leader. Then, out of nowhere, a monster appeared.

It was a praying mantis, but bigger than us. It had scythe-like arms which looked sharper than blades. It looked strong. Its eyes were big and round. It was staring at us. Clarisse gasped. I guess the princess had never seen a monster before. I shook my head. How did she pass the exams? What was she doing there? Why join the Black Thorns? There wasn't any time for questions. Daniel handed me a dagger. He handed one to Mike too. The mantis moved slowly. It didn't seem hostile. Rather, it looked confused. That was weird. It moved cautiously. The four of us didn't move an inch. It got closer and closer. Then Clarisse let out a shriek. The mantis became alert and swung its scythes at us. We dodged it. My head hit a rock on the ground. Mike immediately came to my aid. Daniel saved Clarisse just in time. He threw a net over the mantis. It cut through the net effortlessly. The mantis was tough. Mike charged towards it. It swung its scythe again. Mike avoided it by sliding under the monster and stabbing one of its legs in the process. The mantis got distracted. Then Daniel came forward and cut its arms. The monster screamed in agony. It was disturbing. I could sense the pain from its cries. I did not understand why, but I pitied the beast somehow. The mantis took a few steps back and stared at us with wide eyes. It almost looked like it was begging for mercy. Tears fell from my eyes. Looking at it was heartbreaking. Daniel cleared his throat. I snapped out of it and wiped my tears away. They're monsters. They're the enemies. They must be exterminated. I gripped the dagger so hard in my hand it hurt. Then with all the strength I could muster, I threw the dagger straight to its heart. The beast wriggled a little then fell to the ground. It was dead.

We took a rest after the encounter. Clarisse offered to treat my wounds but I refused. I wanted some peace and quiet, and distanced myself from them. What was that? I couldn't shake the uneasiness. That mantis. I remembered its eyes. I remembered how it looked when I was about to end its life. It raised its arms slightly as if in surrender. Was it possible? Do they have feelings? Can we communicate with them? Those were the questions burning in my mind. We've been killing them left and right but never really tried to talk to them, to tame them. I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn't notice the crevice. And I fell into the dark hole.