A "Damsel" In Distress

CHAPTER 08 : ANNA CROFT

CHAPTER 08 : ANNA CROFT

Way back 15 years ago, when Kim Dokja was a 15 years old boy. 

Kim Dokja was one of the orphans raised in the orphanage. His father was abusive while his mother was a caring person. His mother died protecting Kim Dokja from his father, and in return, the father also died in the hands of the mother taking him with her to death, which left Kim Dokja alone. 

Currently, he was being ordered to pick apples at the back of their orphanage. It was a small forest and no wild animals could be seen there, so it was safe for a young boy like him to go there alone. Also, Kim Dokja was already used to the job, since he was often the one who plucked apples. 

As Kim Dokja was walking inside the small forest, he couldn't help but feel strange. The surrounding was the same thing as he always saw, however, something was telling him there was something different from the atmosphere. 

For example, the apple tree was located near the entrance of the small forest, yet it was nowhere to be seen. That's why he decided to go a bit deeper to look for another tree. 

When Kim Dokja couldn't see the tree he was looking for, the strangeness of the situation made him somewhat scared. He also had a feeling that everytime he took a step, his distance from the orphanage was getting farther than it seems.

Until he decided to look back, and there he saw the orphanage from quite a distance, like what he felt was a lie. Kim Dokja sighed in relief and returned his gaze only to be shocked. He discovered that he was inside a cave! 

He shifted his gaze to the location where he came from. Kim Dokja flinched when he saw the orphanage and the small forest in his eyes distorted until it changed to a pitch black.

“W-what?” His voice trembled in fear. 

Clank! 

Then he heard a door being opened. When Kim Dokja returned his gaze at the front, a door magically materialized in front of him. It was blinding with light contrary to the darkness of the cave. 

「Come… Oh, poor child.」

It was the voice of a woman coming from inside the door. He hesitated for a moment before he eventually entered the door. Kim Dokja couldn't feel a trace of hostility coming from it. Also, as a child, their instinct of survival was very sensitive, and his instinct was telling him the entity was a good being. 

After Kim Dokja entered, the door slowly closed. What he saw inside was an audience chamber. There was also a big throne placed in the middle at the end of the chamber. It was at that moment he saw a dazzling blonde woman with an incomprehensible expression. Her left eye also oddly had a red swirl in it. 

Even though he was scared of the eeriness of the situation, Kim Dokja bravely asked. “Excuse me… May I ask who you are and why I am here?” 

The woman smiled at him before answering.

「My name is Anna Croft, a prophet… You are here because we're destined to met.」

Kim Dokja was shocked when he learned the identity of the woman. ‘A prophet!’ However, it only lasted for a second. ‘What does she, a prophet, want from me?’

As if reading his thoughts, Anna Croft started talking. 

「Do not fret. I'm merely here to told you about the truth.」

“Truth?” Kim Dokja curiously asked, prompting Anna Croft to point to his left chest. A seemingly hologram appeared in the air and formed an old clock. Currently, its hand was struck at 04:23.