After a Day Has Passed
During their journey toward the Western Desert, Oran discovered a cave, so they decided to camp there at sunset. Everyone entered the cave, while Celine and Mona began collaborating to cook food as the others sat on logs. In a corner near the entrance, Ren stood gazing at the sky. Soon, Oran, Leon, and others approached Ren, asking:
"Have you opened the gate in the sky? Do you not see what is being revealed?"
Ren replied,
"It's strange; the gate did open and the crimson moon appeared, yet I saw no sign of the demonic beasts entering."
Oran then remarked,
"Indeed, it is peculiar. But do not trouble yourself over it. Come on, let's go inside—surely the food is ready."
---
Mealtime and the Legends
At that moment, Mona and Celine distributed the dishes among everyone as they awaited their seats. While eating, Mona asked,
"Did anything unusual happen outside?"
Leon answered,
"Do not worry; nothing happened— even the monsters did not emerge today."
Mona placed her hand on her chest in reassurance.
After they finished eating, Leon leaped up and asked,
"Will you continue for us today with the legends of the Sword of the Sky?"
Smiling, Oran took out a book and began,
"Listen carefully… Chapter One, Part Two of the Legends of the Sword of the Sky."
---
The Story of the Sword of the Sky
Oran began to recount the tale of the Sword of the Sky:
After he freed himself from enslavement, Sword of the Sky headed to the city of Arian, where the marketplace was teeming with merchants selling their wares. Clad in tattered, old garments, he appeared to passersby as a vagrant.
As he walked, his stomach let out a strange sound—he was famished, having not eaten for three days since his enslavement. Clutching his stomach, he continued on, though he possessed not a single coin.
Three days earlier, the city's forces had attacked; every household's eldest son was forcibly recruited under the pretext of enlisting for war against other regions. In truth, anyone who dared object was immediately killed and forcibly taken into slavery.
Thus began the suffering of Sword of the Sky.
Inside his home, while he was having lunch with his parents and siblings, the door was knocked upon. His mother immediately went to answer it while his father hid Sword of the Sky, claiming they had a younger son. But the forces pounded on the doors to search the houses. When their leader turned his attention to his younger siblings, the father shouted,
"They are too young for recruitment—we have no older son!"
Without hesitation, the leader pointed his sword at the father; his head flew into the air before falling near their eyes. His mother dropped to her knees, her eyes wide open, before her screams began. The leader grasped her hand and pressed his sword against her neck, threatening the boy,
"Boy, if you do not leave your place, we shall kill your mother immediately."
The two younger siblings remained silent, their faces etched with shock and terror.
The boy asked,
"Did you not hear me? So you want me to kill her now..."
Sword of the Sky burst forth from his hiding place toward them. When he saw his father's head before his eyes and was about to speak, the forces pounced and threw him to the ground. Crying with tears filling his eyes, he glared at their leader and declared,
"I swear I will kill you! I will show no mercy, no matter how much you beg!"
And with that, the leader slaughtered Sword of the Sky's mother.
The leader then asked,
"Will you surrender quietly, or do you want us to begin with your siblings?"
Sword of the Sky looked at his siblings as silent tears fell, their shared hatred growing. He pounded his head against the ground repeatedly until he finally raised his head and said,
"I surrender; leave them be now."
The forces' leader intervened, saying,
"It seems we have reached an understanding. Very well, let us move on; we can leave the two children—take him to the caravan leader."
When the forces' leader met with the caravan leader, he smiled lightly as he pointed to the shackles being fixed on Sword of the Sky, saying,
"From today onward, you are nothing more than a slave."
Sword of the Sky was taken aback, yet he said nothing for the sake of his siblings. And so, he became a slave.
---
Sword of the Sky's Return Home
At that time, Sword of the Sky continued on, clutching his stomach, heading toward his home to see his siblings. Finally arriving, he knocked on the door. His youngest sister opened the door, and she leaped toward him, tears filling her eyes as she exclaimed,
"We missed you so much! We didn't know what to do without you."
Sword of the Sky patted his younger brother's head in an attempt to soothe him, saying,
"Do not worry, I am here now; everything will be alright."
Everyone sat down, until a woman emerged from the kitchen calling,
"Who's there at the door?"
She dropped the dish from her hands, which shattered, and asked,
"Is that you?"
Sword of the Sky replied,
"Yes, it is me, Auntie. Are you well?"
Tears began to flow as the aunt cried,
"How did it come to this? What happened to you all?"
Everyone sat down as Sword of the Sky began explaining everything that had transpired.
The aunt said,
"It must be so hard for you to overcome."
Sword of the Sky replied,
"I'm fine now, but it must be even harder for you. I had to take care of my siblings and witnessed the death of my parents and their funeral. I truly thank you."
The aunt added,
"It so happened that my husband and I came to see my sister when everything occurred. I thank my husband who helped me overcome this ordeal, and he even suggested that we adopt my sister's children if you plan to do so now."
Sword of the Sky answered,
"I am truly grateful to you and your husband for taking care of my siblings. Thank you sincerely. But I am now pursued; I must flee and avenge my parents. Can you take care of my siblings? I now pose a danger to you. I've only come to check on you. I apologize, but I'm starving— I haven't eaten for three days."
The aunt replied,
"Do not worry, I will take care of my sister's children as if they were mine. Lunch is ready; come and eat with us."
Thus, everyone sat down to have lunch.
Before he departed, the aunt handed Sword of the Sky some clothes and a bag of money, saying,
"These clothes are for you, and this amount should suffice for a while. I'm sorry, but this is all I can help you with right now."
Sword of the Sky changed his clothes and said,
"You have helped me greatly, Auntie, thank you truly. I must go now; take care of yourselves."
His siblings, worried, asked,
"Will you come back again?"
Sword of the Sky smiled and said,
"I promise that I shall return. Just wait for me."
The aunt replied,
"Take care of yourself too; don't worry—they will be in safe hands."
After thanking his aunt for the final time, he closed the door and departed toward an unknown fate.
---
Moving Forward and Painful Memories
While Sword of the Sky contemplated what to do with the money he had left, he noticed the forces assaulting a nearby house. He hid behind a wall, clenching his teeth as his hand gripped his fingers until blood began to flow. He started running away from the scene, and as painful memories overwhelmed him, he collapsed among the people. An old man, panting, noticed him and asked,
"What's wrong, my son?"
Sword of the Sky answered,
"Nothing, Grandfather, I just felt pain in my leg."
The old man replied,
"Do not lie— you were trembling with fear. Are you a fugitive from the forces? It appears they are patrolling to recruit youth."
Sword of the Sky said,
"Would that were so, but they do worse; they kill anyone who resists without mercy."
The old man said,
"You must have much to say. Come to my home; you can spend the night with me."
At first, Sword of the Sky refused, but after some thought, he finally agreed to spend the night in the old man's home. The old man welcomed him with a smile, saying,
"Come in, my son, my home is your home."
Upon entering, Sword of the Sky noticed the place was cold and desolate, lacking any warmth—as if no family could live there. He shivered at the chill.
The old man said,
"Please, have a seat; I will prepare some food."
Sword of the Sky found two chairs and a small table, and he chose one of the chairs to sit on while waiting for the old man.
At that moment, the old man brought two cups of shorba and offered one to Sword of the Sky, then said,
"Come, let's begin the meal, my son."
Sword of the Sky took his wooden spoon and began to sip the shorba.
After the meal, the old man asked,
"Do you have anything to say, my son?"
Sword of the Sky, trying to place his trust in the lone old man, began to recount everything that had happened. Tears streamed from the old man's eyes continuously as he asked,
"Are you alright, Grandfather?"
The old man replied,
"I am fine, but it was a grim affair; a few days ago, the forces stormed my house, took my grandson, and killed my wife. I accepted it, but when you told me what happened to you, I thought my grandson had already died. It is painful—I wish I had died that day."
Sword of the Sky tried to console him, saying,
"Do not say that, Grandfather. Perhaps he is still alive or has escaped. Trust in your grandson."
The old man smiled sadly and said,
"Then, what will you do now, my son? Will you continue to flee from your fate?"
Sword of the Sky replied,
"I will remain on the run until I find the strength to take revenge on this corrupt world. Corruption has spread in all the major cities, and in the Seven Regions, where slavery has become the system; slaves are gathered, sold at meager prices, and people are sacrificed in foolish wars for the title of the strongest. Someone must cleanse this corrupt world, and I will be that person. And if I die, then everything I said was but fury—yet I shall not regret it, for I will do everything in my power to accomplish it."
The old man continued,
"I place all my hopes in you. You must purify this corrupt world."
The old man gazed at Sword of the Sky with his silver eyes filled with hope, and as they conversed and even shared a few laughs, the room was briefly filled with a transient warmth.
---
The Night's Conclusion
At that moment, Oran closed the book and said,
"I will continue it later; it's gotten late. We must sleep so we can set off again tomorrow."
Leon interjected,
"But isn't it strange? The catastrophe hasn't yet appeared; the entire book speaks only of Sword of the Sky's past."
Oran responded,
"I have read only two parts of the first chapter, and there are many more chapters yet to come."
Leon nodded in understanding, while sadness filled the eyes of Mona, Celine, and Lina. Celine remarked,
"It must have been truly harsh back then, Oran."
Oran replied,
"It is indeed harsh—those demonic times, when the world was corrupt with pointless disputes and wars that shed rivers of blood at the expense of the people; oh, if I were to speak, my words would not suffice to express the massacres that occurred. But anyway, let us sleep."
After that, Celine and Mona prepared the bedding for sleep, and everyone eventually lay down.
When Celine awoke, she looked around only to find that Ren was nowhere in sight. As she was about to look outside, she saw Leon lying on his bed, gazing at the cave's ceiling in contemplation, oblivious to her awakening. She looked at him with sorrow, thinking that it must have been terribly difficult for them.
---
After Leaving the Cave
She stepped out of the cave and saw Ren sitting on the green grass, his head tilted upward as he gazed at the crimson moon. Feeling her presence nearby, he asked,
"What are you doing? Won't you sleep?"
Celine replied,
"I couldn't sleep; and since I didn't find you asleep, worry seized me."
Celine sat close to him, then asked,
"What are you looking at?"
Ren answered,
"I'm simply admiring this crimson moon."
Celine inquired,
"Is there something special about it?"
Ren replied,
"Not at all."
Celine laughed softly and said,
"Do you know? I experienced the same thing with Oran. What makes this crimson moon so special?"
Ren answered her,
"Nothing at all. I'm merely admiring it—I can't sleep anymore."
Celine said,
"I have nothing else to do; anyway, I'll stay with you here. Let's admire it together."
Celine spent the entire night by Ren's side, though soon sleep overtook her.
---
Morning's First Light
At dawn, before the others awoke, Ren roused Celine. She opened her eyes, then leapt up, her face flushed with bashfulness. Ren noticed this, and a slight smile appeared on his face. Celine's embarrassment quickly faded; she smiled at him before going off to wake the othe
rs, so that none would suspect anything between them.
Celine thought to herself,
"I must support them with all I can."
Everyone awoke in a bright morning, ready to embark on their journey anew.
Due to my work commitments, I don't publish chapters on Saturdays and Sundays, as I only have one day off. However, I still make sure to release 5 chapters a week—this week, I even published 7 chapters in just five days! Thank you for your support and understanding, and I hope you will continue to encourage me to complete this novel.