Prologue: The Village of Red Eyes (Part 12)

Several guards ran frantically between the towers.

Panic.

Real panic.

Not the numb silence that usually haunted the North Wall.

The young guard nearly stumbled down the stone staircase.

His breathing was ragged.

"WHERE IS ELDER MAGNUS!?"

Another soldier immediately pointed toward the main tower.

"In the inner hall!"

The young guard took off at once.

Meanwhile, Yun Yun stood trembling before the massive outer gate.

Not from the cold.

From fear.

Kaien was still out there.

And with every passing minute, the feeling only grew worse.

Lyra stood silently beside her.

Even her hands looked slightly tense now.

She had long since closed her diary.

Yun Yun immediately turned toward her.

"We can't just stand here!"

Lyra didn't answer immediately.

Then she quietly said,

"I know."

That was bad.

If even Lyra had no answer...

...then the situation was truly serious.

Suddenly, the great doors of the main tower opened.

Several guards hurried outside.

Behind them...

...Magnus appeared.

Long black coat.

Gray hair.

Cold expression.

His red eyes looked frozen solid.

The guards immediately rushed toward him.

"Elder Magnus!"

Magnus silently stared toward the forest.

The young guard swallowed nervously.

"O-Out there... something out there is wrong."

"I know."

His voice remained completely calm.

Somehow, that made everything worse.

"We heard wolves howling."

"Then suddenly... nothing at all."

"And now... that sound..."

Even now, his voice trembled.

Magnus remained silent for several seconds.

Then he slowly turned toward the outer gate.

"How many?"

"Only the boy."

No one spoke.

Yun Yun felt her heart grow colder.

Slowly, Magnus turned toward her.

Then he calmly said,

"Then there is no reason to waste soldiers."

Complete silence.

At first, Yun Yun didn't even process the words.

Then her eyes widened with fury.

"...WHAT!?"

Magnus remained completely still.

"The North Wall will not be weakened because of a single child."

"HE'S GOING TO DIE OUT THERE!"

"Then he was too weak."

The wind howled violently between the walls.

Yun Yun began trembling.

With rage.

With despair.

"You sick monster..."

Several guards immediately lowered their eyes.

Nobody spoke to Magnus like that.

Nobody.

Yun Yun stepped even closer.

"YOU were the one who sent him out there in the first place!"

Magnus looked down at her.

No emotion.

Nothing.

"And?"

Yun Yun froze.

Even Lyra raised an eyebrow ever so slightly.

Magnus took another step toward her.

"If a human cannot survive even a few minutes in the outside world..."

His voice remained ice-cold.

"...then sooner or later, they would have failed anyway."

Yun Yun looked ready to punch him in the face.

It was obvious.

But suddenly, Lyra stepped forward.

Slowly.

Calmly.

Her red eyes met Magnus's.

"I believe you are forgetting something."

Magnus remained silent.

"I am Lyra Vesperis."

Several guards immediately tensed.

The family name alone changed the atmosphere.

Lyra continued.

Completely composed.

"If something happens to a member of the Vesperis family..."

She paused.

"...my father will become very interested in why the North Wall watched a child die."

No one spoke.

Several guards exchanged nervous glances.

Everyone knew Eryndor Vesperis.

Magnus, however...

...suddenly smiled.

A Smile that felt wrong.

"An interesting girl."

Lyra didn't react.

Magnus slowly turned his gaze back toward the forest.

Then he calmly spoke again.

"Even so, nobody will open the gate."

"WHY!?"

Magnus turned slightly toward her.

This time...

...his expression grew more serious.

Almost...

...cautious.

"Because something has awakened out there."

No one spoke.

Even the guards stopped moving.

Yun Yun felt her heart skip a beat.

Lyra narrowed her eyes ever so slightly.

"So you know about it."

Magnus glanced at her.

Then fell silent again.

Somehow, that silence alone was answer enough.

"What... is out there...?"

Magnus didn't answer.

The wind swept icily through the walls.

Then, suddenly, that deep breathing echoed from the forest once again.

Not human.

Not animal.

Something else.

Several guards immediately staggered backward in panic.

One even began to pray.

Slowly, Magnus closed his eyes.

"...Too early."

At the same time...

...far out in the snowy forest.

Silence.

The snow had turned red.

Torn remains of demon wolves lay scattered everywhere.

Kaien rested unconscious against the tree.

Pale.

Trembling.

His eyes had long since faded back to blue.

Before him, the black mass slowly shifted.

The golden, serpent-like eyes calmly studied the corpses.

Then...

...the creature suddenly moved.

Several severed wolf heads landed in the snow before Kaien.

Wet.

Heavy.

Blood stained the white ground dark red.

Silently, the creature observed Kaien for several moments.

Then it spoke again.

That deep, distorted voice.

Almost as though multiple voices were speaking at once.

"You are not ready yet."

The shadow slowly pulsed.

"But soon..."

The golden eyes narrowed slightly.

"...soon the time will come."

Suddenly, something black began forming from the mass.

As though the shadows themselves were thickening.

A long, thin syringe slowly emerged.

Filled with dark liquid.

The creature slowly knelt beside Kaien.

Then carefully lifted his arm.

"Do not be afraid."

Its voice sounded almost calm.

Almost friendly.

Somehow, that only made it even more horrifying.

"This is merely a sedative."

The needle slowly pierced Kaien's neck.

SCHLK.

The black liquid disappeared beneath his skin.

Kaien twitched slightly in his unconscious state.

The golden eyes silently observed him.

"...So the pain to come will not be as unbearable."

No one spoke.

Snow fell soundlessly between the black trees.

Then the creature slowly leaned closer to Kaien's ear.

"After all..."

Its voice softened almost imperceptibly.

"...you must not die too early."

For a brief moment...

...it almost felt as though darkness itself were smiling.

Then the black mass slowly dissolved back into the mist.

Vanishing between the snow-covered trees.

Leaving only Kaien behind.

Alone in the red snow.