𝘗𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳-𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳-𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳-𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳,

𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘩,

𝘞𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘩,

𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳-𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳,

It was a heavy pour down,

The thrumming of rain made the sight even terrifying.

It was a peaceful tribal village in the middle of the Green Willow forest. Every time the soldiers came to collect taxes or regular checks, it would be lively and happy.

They treated the soldiers with respect and utmost hospitality. All the previous memories made it hard for the soldiers to accept the sight in front of their eyes.

There were hundreds of thick wooden logs with sharpened edges nudged into the ground, planted all around the village like fencing.

You might say, what is the big deal about it? It is just the village's defence line. So, why were the soldiers flabbergasted?

Well, the villager's bodies were, skewered on top of them. Their blood leaked down the brown wooden logs colouring them red. The water puddled near the village was dyed red.

Due to the village being in a narrow valley, water would always stagnate around it during the rainy seasons.

Now, for the soldiers on top of a mountain, the sight they saw made their hearts heavy. Some even puked due to the impact it caused on their brain. Even after long service in the army, many soldiers would have never seen such a sight. Have you seen a village floating on a pool of blood sourced from its habitants?

The atmosphere turned heavy. All soldiers' faces were in disbelief.

The captain broke the silence, " Fast, Go! Check for survivors!" he shouted.

Soon he received a reply in unison, " Yes, Sir,"

𝘕𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩

𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘱-𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘱

The horses galloped at their top speed, rushing down the mountain in a jiff.

The people whose bodies got pierced by the razor sharp wood were already obviously dead long ago, but there were still a few lying on the ground.

The soldiers lifted the bodies of the ones on the ground, slightly slapping their cheeks, saying, " Hello, you alive?"

All their efforts were in nought.

Until

𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩,

𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩,

𝘗𝘵𝘶𝘪!

A black haired teenage boy coughed up a gallon of blood.

" Captain, one's alive!" The soldier shrieked in joy.

As soon as the captain saw him, he knew, ' He's on his last breath, a lot of blood loss,'

" Vice, take care of the situation here. I am taking this chad to the city. Get the wagon ready!" He instructed the vice-captain and got to action soon.

After giving him first aid, they safely transferred him into the wagon and set off.

𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘱,

𝘕𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩,

A whip made the horse pick up its speed.

Inside the cabin,

The boy breathed with difficulty.

𝘎𝘢𝘴𝘱,

𝘎𝘢𝘴𝘱,

The next moment, his eyes jolted open, and his nose instantly picked up a suffocating earthy smell making him cough.

𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩.

" Young man, are you able to speak,"

The boy looked around, confused, ' Where am I?' His thoughts were clear to everyone.

His brain soon processed all the information he had.

" The village..." he started.

The captain's eyes drooped, and he lowered his head.

𝘚𝘰𝘣, 𝘴𝘰𝘣,

Poor boy, tears ran down his cheeks.

" Don't worry, we will punish the criminals," the captain tried to console him. But, this backfired. The boy glared at the captain, his eyes asking, ' Will I get the ones who I lost if the criminal gets punished?'

" I'm sorry," the captain replied meekly.

The boy did not utter a word during their journey after this. He remained depressed.

' This will be a very traumatic experience for him. His life will get affected,' the captain sighed inwardly.

A few hours later,

The city of beginnings, core area, floor 1,

The city was an architectural masterpiece, a breathtaking beauty, and a smile emerged on the faces who viewed it for the first time.

(pic)

But, the boy's eyes remained dead, his face emotionless, grieving.

A local clinic was their first stop.

The city's 4th unit guards' captain was waiting for them there. The vice-captain had already informed him about the situation.

" Hey you, the nurse, take good care of this boy. He has gone through a lot," A middle-aged man who adorned a pale silver armour stated.

Innumerable cuts and bruises covered the boy's body. Blood loss was excessive. The nurse used anti-septic on his wounds and covered them with bandages.

Throughout this process, he was crying, not out of pain but in misery. He was the sole survivor of a tragic event, the extinction of the Green Willow forest tribes. His dead-looking eyes openly showed that he had lost all hopes in life.

" One, One... Person," He mumbled.

The middle-aged soldier turned back and held the boy's shoulder, furiously shaking it, " Come again, what did you say?"

After a long time, the boy opened his mouth about the incident. Throughout the journey to the capital, he remained silent, making people around him think that he had lost his voice.

"..."

" It was one person. It was one person who killed them all!"

He painstakingly mustered up the courage and shouted.

The captain's face glowed, ' Finally, a lead,'

" His figure immersed in shadows, he rushed in swift like a cheetah and slit their throats in seconds," the boy continued,

(pic)

" He was taller than any of us, towering at about seven and a half feet,"

" He laid the corpses on top of each other, stepped on top of them and laughed like a maniac,"

(pic)

" Blood was a delicacy for him. After tasting some, he said, ' It's been a long time since I had such a treat. From now on, I will be having this often,' with a wide smirk on his face,"

(pic)

" All I could do was hide behind, act dead, covering like a coward while his vile acts continued. All my brethren resisted bravely while I, I,"

his words trailed off.

" I can understand your pain. Take some rest, little boy," the captain placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. " Give him a room to stay,"

Then,

The captain looked into the eyes of the 4th unit head, " This does not look good. Some old criminal is resurfacing. Let's go to the spot and investigate and inform the higher ups immediately,"

𝘕𝘰𝘥.

That was the right decision.

There were a lot of ethnicities that encouraged drinking blood, the ones who adopted the Vikings' way of living, some demons, a few species of beast men, vampires and many more.

Just one murder for blood can be considered a crime, but for the person to exterminate a whole village?