Chapter 12 - Tired

The Blood sun reigned the sky, and the shadows of the thick crowns were present everywhere. Blood-red clouds surrounded the Blood sun as several dark fissures in space were present everywhere. The sky looked like a broken piece of glass as if a mighty force had attacked it, nearly shattering into a million pieces.

The winds waved calmly as the leaves rustled. Asher was panting, coughing up blood several times. Blood flowed from his eyes and nose, staining his already bloodied face with even more blood. 

His body had reverted back to normal; the previously golden hair was now back to its original raven-black color. The golden runes had vanished from his face as the flames from his eyes had disappeared.

"How did I-" Asher mumbled halfway before coughing up another load of blood, staining the grass beneath him. Since it was morning, the entire world had regained its bloody crimson hue as if stained in blood. 

Asher had his back against a tree as he held his knees, trying to regain his stamina. He looked ahead at the bloody trail of grass from where he had run as a bead of sweat drooped down from his hair.

"I have to escape." Asher said restlessly as he fell down on his back, staring at the red sky above him. 

'I am tired.' Asher thought as he resisted the urge to close his eyes; running for an entire day straight was just too much for him. He gritted his teeth as he held his head in agony.

Severe pain convulsed within him; he had been bearing it when he was escaping the archer's last night. However, now it had been built up by even more fatigue.

Soon, unable to resist anymore. Asher closed his eyes. Finally getting a hint of sleep.

Several hours had passed. Asher finally woke up groggily. The grass beneath him crunched as a cold air crashed into him.

'The season is changing.' Asher thought as he felt his back straightening due to the cold wind. The grass was somehow wet beneath him as he stood up. As he did so, a severely foul smell entered his nostrils.

"I really need to take a bath." Asher said with a yawn as he finally stood up. Beside the tree, a small sword with a curved hilt and a blade lay. It was his tachi. The white blade shone with magnificence even when the moon was over the horizon.

'Let's move.' Asher thought as he picked up his blade and started to move seemingly towards the citadel. He could not see the giant structure from here due to the trees. However, he felt something within him guiding him towards the citadel.

'Maybe this is intuition?' Asher contemplated internally as he started to move towards the citadel.

It seemed that the abominations were asleep. Asher, who had developed a sort of a sense of danger, felt completely safe. 

'Weird.' 

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A couple of years ago, Asher was strolling along a road. The road was broken and jagged at various places. The sky was blue as several clouds covered it. As Asher strolled, he saw several broken houses beside him. 

The voices of children playing in the houses entered his ear, distorting his expression.

'Are they really happy here?' Asher thought with a grim expression as he moved ahead. A vague growl entered his ear as he kept on moving.

'I need to eat.' Asher grimaced internally as he halted, looking to his left. Several children were playing there as a fencing surrounded them. It was a park where some children who had parents at least could go there.

'Where is he?' Asher thought as he shook his head, continuing to move in the same direction. A couple of minutes later, he finally came to a halt.

In front of him, a giant gate lay, made of several bars, the one they use in prisons. On each side of the gate, a single man stood wearing silver and blackish armor. 

As they saw Asher, their faces broke into a frown, showing clear distaste.

"Yes?" One of them said as he approached Asher, his eyes narrowed as if ready to beat Asher the moment he moved.

"I want to enter the Inner districts." Asher said, the the man's eyes widened. The man let out a small sigh as the other man behind him started to laugh.

"I am sorry, you are in the outer districts right now, I can only allow you into the middle districts." The man said with a hint of amusement, seemingly holding himself from laughing out loud.

"Well, yesterday, I saw you give a woman a card that could lead her straight into the inner districts. Are you faking information here? Should I tell this to the department?" Asher said with a nonchalant expression.

The man's eyes widened as the smile suddenly wiped off his face. The other guy also stopped laughing. Soon, the man slowly brought his hand to his back, reading to slash Asher's throat.

"Don't even try, I have told my friends that if I don't return by tomorrow, report the department that I am dead." Asher said once again with a yawn, seemingly tired from all this talk.

The man instantly brought his hand away from his sword. His face turned grim as he brought out a small golden-silverish slip.

"This is a one-time entrance to the inner district. Give this to the guard there and he will allow you to enter." The man said, giving the card to Asher.

Asher took the card, ignored the other man, and moved towards the gate. As he reached the gate, he looked at the other officer.

"Would you mind opening this gate?" Asher said as the officer nodded. The officer then knocked on the gate as a golden set of patterns appeared in the form of a shot circle.

Soon, the gate started to open as Asher entered. Instantly, a fragrance entered his nostrils as his face broke into a grim expression.

"This smell is so heavy," Asher said out loud as he moved ahead. Several men who were passing by stared at him as he said that.

'I can't careless.' Asher grimaced internally, right now, his goal was to enter the inner districts. Nothing more.