Alasla: The New Age

Chapter Twenty-Five - Toto

Wedging his fingers into the creaks between the rocks over again, ignoring the blood that encased his skin, and dried beneath his nails, Paulie continue to make his way up to the mountain top of Mount Layat.

Mine 6 is way beneath him. Starting from this point, the only way to get up to the mountain is to climb with bare hands.

His grip tightened as another gush of blizzard gale swept by. Any mistake here would cost his life. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead as his scarf gradually darkens with the scarlet blood seeping through it. A breeze washed across his body, sweeping his scarf away into the mountains along with it, revealing the part of his face he conceals.

His cheeks that were covered by his scarf were frozen in layers of frost and ice. His neck had almost lost all of its flesh, it now presents him as an ice sculpture. That is what he is slowly turning into.

He doesn't have much life left. He'll have to witness that change in the world before he dies.

He is only sixteen years old. He didn't manage to live a legend as Layat did. He doesn't belong to one of the Five Families. He is just one side character who had devoted his whole life to trying to change something in the story of this world.

He had told no one about his condition. Not even Cecilia, who is like a sister to him. He doesn't want anyone worrying, the main characters, the Five Descendants shouldn't waste their time over someone like him.

It was done by the Scars when he was seven years old. He was quite like any other royal prince then, reading, talking, playing, training, writing. Around three of Garavia's most famous poems were written by him, but everything changed one night.

It was his seventh birthday. He stood at the tallest tower of the Marble Hall, which was at his disposal as his birthday present.

The night of Garavia was silent and deadly, unlike Ling. The danger appeared in all forms and directions— one false step, oops, there goes the person falling down a trench. One unnecessary noise, there goes the whole pack of hungry wolves sharing the person as their dinner. One moment of guards down to enjoy the beauty of the aurora night sky, the person is lost in the mountains and his body would probably be dug up a few years later if it hasn't been scraped clean by foxes and vultures.

As for tonight, the sky was clear. A heavy dusty cloud lifting off the mountains suggests a snowstorm was probably blowing away in the distance. The Northern side of Garavia had no other seasons except for winter, therefore Paulie was more adapted to the landscape of black, crystal blue, and white than the bright, Ling cityscape that made his eyes sore. He heard that the Flow Jungle night could feel quite fantasy-like; polished bridges built twisting around gigantic trees, lit by dots of firefly lanterns here and there, the quiet chirping of insects echoing within the canopies... He could visit that place one day. He was also interested in the sea, which meant he'd probably take a few visits to Luana too.

He didn't care much about the Scars at that time. He knew the names of the three strongest members— Abhijar, Monk, and Lucy. He knew that he and a few others were... He couldn't remember.

But a part of the past that had engraved itself into his mind is how he got the curse of the Frozen Heart.

The same peaceful evening when he was gifted this palace, he sat upon the balcony, admiring the beauty of his future Dynasty, dreaming of ruling over it one day. The first thing he will change is his father's slave rule because imprisoning harpies is dumb. The second thing he will change is to fix their relationship with Ling. He swear there's going to be a war going off soon if his father kept getting petty over those little bits of lands that matters like nothing to Garavia, the largest continent in the world.