That year all Roham's commodities were destroyed by grasshoppers. He couldn't gain a good harvest and that was the reason he couldn't pay the taxes. It wasn't only him; pests ruined many farms and many other farmers broke down. He made a handy spinning machine for his wife so she could sew. Making fabrics for clothes could earn good and enough money to spend a year with a full stomach. One day while she was in the basement, couldn't hear any sound from outside. If there was an alert she didn't notice that. The agents burnt the house down without any checking. They could take the tackle stuff instead which was enough, but they just wanted money. After she got locked there, no one helped her even after hearing her screams. Roham painfully had lost his wife Sarah, and his non-born child. The next day they took the body out of the burnt house and released Roham on that dark blue day to bury his wife with a heavy sorrow and a deep enmity. Daniel knew about that crime and was so ashamed for it and couldn't look into his eyes anymore.
Last week another big horrible crime happened by a noble boy who was always drunk. He left the bar and got to his house; Iham was an old blind man who had a daughter and she was the boy's maid. On that doomed night, she was sweeping the house, but he raped the poor girl and killed her afterward by cutting her vein, witnesses were scared of revealing the truth. Iham was drowned deeply in rue. He had nothing to lose and he couldn't accept that injustice against her daughter, the fire of revenge flared in his heart. The world got shameless, man's life wasn't even like jungle rules. Overindulgence erased humanity's feelings, and fear made everyone gray.
The old man got a sharp kitchen knife and strode out toward the bazaar when he heard the Nobel boys' laughter. He walked to that guy and his friends who thought he is a panhandler, so he kicked him and he fell on the ground. Then he made fun of his weakness, but the old man used the opportunity, took out the knife from his sleeves, hit the boy's arm. He got injured, but it wasn't a serious wound. He unloaded his sword from the pod and cut the old man's throat, blood came out of his body like a waterfall. He died so fast, he knew that it's going to happen, but his pain was couldn't be ended by sitting and doing nothing.
Some people normally came over and put the body on the carriage and left like nothing bad had happened and that man was never born. The others were keeping their daily works and never cared that blood was covered everywhere, like a red river. Those slayers left quickly, the tyrant libertine has no mercy.
Athor's tolerance was filled out and couldn't accept more deaths. Silence had no meaning for him almost every day someone got killed. There was another worse thing, the parents who were selling their children for labor works only for having some coins and let those pigs abuse them. A nasty man who owed a place called Shadi bought the young girls and dressed them making up their faces and after putting on pieces of jewelry make them ready for his customers. So many of these children tried to run away but got killed.
However, sometimes they got killed by the customers for rejecting their requests. No one had ever objected to their dirty felonies, but it was about 3 nights that someone unknown whom the people called "the spirit of night" helped the innocents and murdered some of the nobles who tried to kill children who ran, he punished them and saved many of them.
So many of the nobles were scared and didn't go around the Shadi house and tried not to get into the empty streets, by the actions of the spirit of the night some people gained their courage back, such as Maria, the beautiful girl who was working in Simon's bar. She got attacked by a drunk guy. She gathered her courage and had hit the man's hand with a knife. After that, no man ever dared to trouble her or even staring at her.
Recently that wasn't only about cruel people getting killed. Spreading rumors over the land got stronger, that people started to vanish in their farms, around the mountains and forest. All rumors say the Black dragon awakened and came out from under the ground after thousands of years. He was too hungry, so it caught someone every night.
Only their bloody clothes were left behind so to confirm its return and show that it will be all people's fate. Out of fear, they had to lock the doors and windows to keep their sweet life safe.
Athor moved to the bazaar, but again saw that stranger with the light cloak, hidden his face under the hood, Angel flew to him and again he was looking at Athor.
He wasn't happy that his bird used to do it over and over, in those days everybody was hidden behind their masks, he couldn't trust simply and didn't know what he wanted by following and stalking him everywhere, but why Angel was so nice to that stranger and sat on his shoulder fearlessly? Maybe he wasn't a bad person.
*
He sold the pears and went to the smithy in the east of Tegan near the forest. It was near the road passing from the middle of the woods. He wanted a dagger and the best place was Edward's smithy. He was rushing and walking quickly to reach there before the dark rise up. He didn't intend to be surprised by the wolves. As he got there, he couldn't believe what he saw there. Daniel was forging a sword strongly and was hammering the hot iron, but why would he work there?! His dire white wolf was sitting beside the palisade which had a hung lantern on it. It was glaring carefully into the forest. It seemed something caught his attention. Daniel was drowning in his work and didn't learn about Athor presence. His mind wasn't in that world.
Athor approached Edward. He was so confused about how to tell him about his request. While he was playing with his fingers, he said "Hello sir" He didn't know what to say, it was the first time being there. Edward seemed to be a very serious and strict person.
"Hey, young man. Do you need anything?" he said while he was checking some forged daggers.
"Sorry sir for taking your time, but I need a knife," Athor said that after taking a deep breath. Edward skimmed at him then turned to his work "It's a wasting of time being here boy and it's better for you to leave, you can find a knife in all stores".
Athor wondered he didn't expect that answer. He wanted a dagger, not a kitchen knife, he didn't feel safe recently, not only officials, but those red people in a black cloak made him worried, then said "Sir, I want a dagger, not a kitchen knife".
"How old are you?" he said after watching him
"Sixteen, sir".
Edward placed the daggers in a box on the table "You are so tall in this age", "if you want a dagger, you must make it to your own" and pointed to the daggers and Daniel.
Daniel picked the blade up by a tong and located it inside the water box, then he brought it out and started hammering it again. Sweat was dripping down from his face. Now Athor learned that why this good fellow had the best sharp stunning sword in the whole land. He made it by the power of his soul not with the thirst of authority for killing purity. He noticed Athor presence, walked forth to him, and shook hands with him, "hi Athor, welcome here", then returned to work.
"Hello, sorry I didn't want to disturb your work".
"it's ok, go ahead with your business".
Athor turned back to Edward and said, "How much should I pay?"
"Do you want to pay me for your effort?" he said and went toward Daniel.
He got happy and thought they just look like each other in beliefs of course, "Excuse me, when can I start?"
Edward asked him to head back tomorrow early morning; he was a complicated person just like Daniel, but not a bad man.
Athor walked to his hometown, he saw the stranger who was following him, and he came out of the library. It didn't make sense to him. No one could see or look at those folks in the cloaks! Till now he never talked to someone about them. Who were they?
"Why am I trusting so hard? If I keep that way no longer I can find a good fortune", he thought as he went through new things recently.