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Chapter 226  [Hollow Town] [8] [Conflict]

A few seconds passed; they stared at the forest, their expressions dull while they remained speechless.

A broken scream echoed from within the forest, making them flinch in response.

Since morning, the scream hadn\'t stopped for a single moment. It continued, making them all fear what was inside.

Who was screaming? And why?

They didn\'t dare to think deeply about it; the dark secret of the town made them even more anxious.

"...We should call the church," a voice echoed within the place, making people look in that direction.

A lady in nun attire walked forward to the center of the crowd.

"That\'s the only way I can think of," she said, her voice heavy. "...The church—"

"I\'ve already tried it," another voice echoed, cutting her off.

They looked towards the voice and found the old man, the director of the orphanage, with a sullen look.

"The church clearly told us they do not want to help," he said, his voice echoing in the silence. "...Especially not this cursed town."

A heavy silence lingered; they couldn\'t say or do anything but just listen to the horrifying scream echoing from the forest.

The gloomy clouds covered the evening sun like a blanket, light barely illuminating the place.

"Why aren\'t we sending the outsiders?" one of the old ladies grumbled, her voice venomous. "They\'re here to investigate, so they should check the forest as well."

A silence followed her words. Nobody said anything but just looked at each other.

"I agree," another lady voiced out. "They should check the forest as well."

One by one, all the people of the town agreed with her words.

Their voices grew firmer as more people acknowledged the idea.

"Have you guys gone mad!" the director of the orphanage yelled, making them all silent.

"We don\'t even know what\'s inside! How can you suggest sending them in?"

"My child is gone because of them!" one of them yelled. "...Those monsters usually take one child, but they took tens of them last night!"

"Yeah, it was all because they killed the monster!" another one yelled, anger filling his voice. "They should check it themselves!"

The others agreed, their voices echoing within the streets.

"Enough!" the orphanage director yelled, glaring at them all. "We don\'t have time for all this!"

His gaze moved upward as he looked at the retreating light. "...It will be night in just a few minutes."

The townsfolk flinched at the mention of night.

"I\'m going home."

One of them moved, and following him, everyone soon entered their houses.

Now only the old man remained in the empty streets, his gaze moving to the corner of the street.

A boy with white hair stood there, leaning against a wall.

.....

.....

\'They are terrified, huh?\'

I thought as I looked at the townsfolk running back to their homes.

I\'ve been listening to them for a while, and they are behaving exactly how people in fear behave.

"I am sorry," the old man bowed as he walked towards me. "They are all—"

"It\'s fine," I replied with a light shrug as I turned around. "We should return to the orphanage."

The old man quietly nodded, walking beside me.

[...What are you going to do?]

\'Is it too late for us to run away?\'

[It is.]

\'Fuck.\'

I grumbled, rubbing my temples in frustration.

Things never go as planned, no matter how much I try to control them.

There were clues all around the place, but it took me a whole day to come to a conclusion.

...Not that it matters, because I\'m bound to be stuck here.

"What are you thinking, my lord?" the old man mumbled, bringing me back.

"Do you know how this town was created?" I asked, looking at him.

He tilted his head in confusion but replied nonetheless, "...A priest made the first house, and people followed him."

"...Do you know who that priest was?" I probed further, squinting my eyes.

"...M-my lord."

"Just answer me."

He drew in a deep breath as he replied, "A-a devotee of the Primordial Demoness."

I nodded my head in response. Now it all makes sense.

The orphanage quickly came into view, where two people stood at the gate.

"Yo!" I greeted them as they looked at me anxiously.

"What is happening?" Nella asked, walking beside me.

"Nothing much," I replied with a light smile. "We are just fucked."

"Huh? What?"

"Get ready, we will be leaving soon," I said, patting her head once.

"Where?"

"Just get ready."

The old man nodded towards me as he walked into the orphanage, while I turned to look at Aimar.

"Did you check?" I asked, looking at him.

He shook his head in response. "It\'s blurry inside. I can\'t see a thing."

"Figured," I replied with a light shrug. "It\'s not easy to look inside the forest."

"What now?" he asked, looking at me.

"I have a task for you," I replied with a small smile.

.....

.....

.....

"Are you fucking serious, Azariah?" I turned to glance back at Nella, who yelled in frustration.

"Why, are you scared?" I asked, smiling at her.

"Stop smiling," she grumbled, glaring at me. "Otherwise, I won\'t be able to stop my urge to punch you."

I chuckled as I looked forward.

We stood at the entrance of the dark and gloomy forest with dried-up trees and the sound of screaming echoing from within.

"I hate you," Nella grumbled as I started walking in.

"Hate me all you want," I replied without looking back. "...But we have work to do."

"You seriously want to check a forest with creepy screams?" she grumbled, walking beside me. "...How stupid can you be?"

"I\'m not stupid," I replied, glancing at her. "I\'m just confident I can take care of whatever is screaming."

"...Yeah, I\'m running at the first sight of a ghost," she whispered, her voice serious.

I shrugged in response while extending my hand, and a magic circle illuminated the place.

I carefully walked, making a path for her to follow.

The forest was weirdly silent, with just the sound of screaming resonating from time to time.

"Azariah," Nella whispered softly. "...What are you going to do after this?"

"Nothing," I replied, gazing around the darkness. "The festival is just around the corner, so I\'ll join. What about you?"

"Well, the summit is happening in two months, so I need to get ready for that," she replied, and I nodded my head softly.

"I plan to drop out of the academy," I informed her, making her halt. "Maybe just after the summit."

"...Why?" she asked, frozen in place.

"I don\'t want to run away," I replied, shrugging. "...I have plans that I can\'t do if I stay at the academy."

"...I see." She nodded weakly. "...I will miss you."

My steps halted as I heard her words.

"Stop that," I whispered with a small smile. "You don\'t care about me."

"I don\'t have anyone," she replied, her gaze on me. "...If anything, you\'re the only one I ever cared about—"

"Shut up!" I yelled, making her flinch. "...Stop saying bullshit."

I don\'t know why, but her words triggered me. They made me feel uncomfortable at my core.

"Bullshit?" she whispered weakly. "I\'m not lying—"

"You wouldn\'t have left if you cared," I snarled, glaring at her, my voice trembling with anger.

"Did you forget what you did that made me leave you!?" she snapped, walking closer towards me.

"And? You could have stayed even after that," I replied, glaring at her. "But you chose to walk away."

I know my words are selfish, but that\'s what I truly wanted at that time.

"I did!" she nodded vigorously, standing inches away. "I did it because I knew I wouldn\'t be alive for long. I separated from you so you wouldn\'t feel sad when I died!"

"No! You\'re just being selfish," I snarled, looking down at her. "You know nothing about sacrificing yourself for others, so don\'t fucking—"

"Then what about you!?" she yelled, pushing me back. "What is your great sacrifice!? You tried to force yourself on me—"

"And you know damn well why I did that!" I yelled back, stepping closer.

"Sword Maidens are required to be virgins, and you know what?

I was fucking ready to make the entire empire my enemy just so you could live!"

"What a way to justify your actions," she replied, clapping her hands.

"And what did you even think at that time? That I would fuck the entire world just so I could have two minutes of happiness with you!?"

"Two minutes?" I whispered at the absurdity of her words.

"Yeah, that\'s how long you\'re going to last anyway—"

I grabbed her firmly by the waist before slamming her against a nearby tree.

I pressed her soft body down with my own as I glared at her.

"You know I can still fuck this world," I whispered, looking into her eyes.

She blinked; her normal eyes turned pure white, and so did her hair.

Bringing her face closer, she whispered, her voice serious, "Try me."

She flinched as I gently touched her stomach but still tried to keep her calm facade.

She licked her dry lips, her breath quickening as I brought my face closer to hers.

But at the last second, I pulled back, and she sighed in relief.

"...Fucking coward," she groaned as I stepped back, releasing her.

"I would have done it if I were sure I loved you," I clarified while making another magic circle to illuminate the gloom.

"...I see." She whispered, and for some odd reason, I sensed sadness in her voice.

I turned around, but just as I did, my breathing stopped.

In front of me stood a living Redom...

...With no skin on its body.