성황의 아이들 [1]

86

It was a world where the sun had completely disappeared.

A frigid air devoid of life's warmth.

From the sky, a sticky rain fell incessantly, covering a land of countless, rapidly cooling corpses—a realm of death.

It was only later that Nate realized the viscous fluid wasn't rain but blood. Everything—the sky, the earth—was steeped in a deep red hue.

Standing alone under the crimson sky, Nate remained quiet.

This was the visage of Delcross post the advent of [Catastrophe].

Had equilibrium finally been shattered?

[Ha ha.]

A faint laugh echoed from somewhere.

Slowly, Nate moved his feet.

Every step he took squelched against the sprawled corpses of soldiers that covered the vast plains. Puddles of spilled blood formed splattering sounds beneath his every step.

Soon in his sight lay a crumbling city wall.

Or should it even be called a wall anymore?

With its semi-broken gates and partially remaining stone walls, what once was a fortification now stood soaked in blood.

And in the center of that gate hung a horrendously mangled corpse.

Hundreds, if not thousands of dull blade wounds had torn it to a degree beyond recognition. It took Nate a while to even figure out that this had once been a human.

A deed carried out by someone harboring a hideous grudge.

As Nate frowned, a voice whispered in his mind.

[That man was the king of Rohan.]

Was it that good-for-nothing Amelia was so obsessed with? How did he end up like this?

[It's the retribution he deserves.]

The voice conveyed no emotion, making Nate feel all the more uneasy.

Surveying his surroundings, Nate moved towards a patch of dry ground untouched by puddles of blood.

But he had to stop, lost for words. Lying before him were people he knew all too well—now lifeless.

The young woman lying with her face to the sky wore a tattered dress, a small dagger embedded in her chest. Though her hair had shortened and her face had aged, she remained beautiful in her pale, lifeless visage.

Amelia.

[A pitiful sprout. I nurtured it with care through its neglected youth, only for it to wither in its small pot without ever blooming. She was a child full of dreams and talent...]

Beside her lay a young man in black armor. Arrows pierced his back, and he lay fallen.

Though his face had grown sharper and harder with age, a youthful innocence still lingered on his pale features.

My son.

[A child with great potential. I built fences around him, worrying he might fly away. In the end, he mustered the strength on his own. I should have let him spread his wings earlier...]

Nate's hand began to tremble.

The other kids...

[Stop. You're not ready to handle this.]

Hwaak.

With those words, he was abruptly pushed out of that red world by an intense force.

The sky and the ground inverted, and in an instant, his vision blurred and he found himself in a completely different place.