The Destroyed City
Seiji's hands trembled, and his body shivered. He whispered in a low, quivering voice, "Don't tell me what I'm seeing now is real."
Seiji and Roko stood in front of the gate, frozen, unable to utter a word because of what they saw. On the gate, written in dark black with ornate letters:
"Welcome to the Old Kingdom, Valemir City."
What was written on the gate was a greeting, but what they saw was a newly made graveyard with bodies left unburied inside. The streets were filled with headless corpses, their clothes torn and soaked in blood, making it impossible to tell if they were nobles or commoners. However, the second sight made them realize that the corpses in the streets belonged to common people.
On the right, houses built from oak wood, belonging to the poor, were buried with their owners in the damp soil due to the abundance of blood. Only some wooden debris and severed legs remained. Along the streets, four meters wide, the sidewalks had been torn out and covered with severed hands. Most of the corpses had rotted, and there was no need to look further—the stench explained everything.
But what shocked them was not these scenes. Miles away, the limestone houses painted in bright, harmonious colors, known as the high-ranking nobles' houses in this city, were stained with large patches of blood. Over every house, ropes hung with bodies tied and hanged securely.
Roko took his first step into the city and said in a loud, booming voice, "Everything… everything is covered in blood, even the lamps. This incident is not like the one in the Wizard Empire." He paused for a moment, then spoke in a sharp, calm voice, "The one who did this possesses power."
Seiji approached Roko and said in a hoarse voice, "Yes, it's certain. Whoever did this is not human."
Roko looked up at the sky; the sunset spread before him. He said nothing as he gazed upward. "Just a few steps, and my feet are soaked in blood I didn't spill. No matter what I do or say, the scene before me makes me feel that this might be my last mission."
Seiji gritted his teeth in anger, then said in a voice full of rage, "With every step I take, I remember Valemir City, once one of the most astonishing tourist cities, now destroyed for an unknown reason. Even if ordered to return, I won't go back until I know what happened, no matter what."
Roko continued Seiji's words, saying, "The price… was our lives."
Roko bent down to examine the corpses. His glove became sticky after inspecting many bodies. After a while, he said in a deep voice, "The one who committed this massacre wanted to show their power. They stabbed the knights with their spears, hanged the nobles above their houses, scattered the commoners' corpses on the streets, and then destroyed their homes without mercy."
Next to him, Seiji examined the corpses with eager eyes. "They were all killed using the same technique, without exception."
Roko thought to himself, "There's no evidence or ability that would make you realize they were killed using the same technique. Do you want to pretend to be smart? I'll show you." He smiled faintly and mockingly replied, "And how did you know? Were you with them when they were killed?"
In a few seconds, Seiji's calm expression changed to one on the verge of exploding. He clenched his left hand tightly and shouted in a loud, booming voice, "You fool! I just want to know who appointed you as leader, and were they drunk when they did it?"
Roko replied in his sarcastic tone, "The Emperor made me the leader. Are you objecting to the Emperor's order? I didn't expect his deputy to be one of the rebels, what a pity."
Seiji was silent for a moment, then spoke in a calm voice that held no hint of serenity. "Just be quiet."
He continued, "It's very easy to distinguish between multiple techniques and a single technique. When I examined the corpses, I found that they were all killed at the same moment and with the same energy. Now I'll go check more corpses."
Roko turned and went to inspect the rest, away from Seiji. He said, eyes cast downward, "No use… there's no evidence here explaining what happened. I must use my clairvoyance ability, but I cannot use it on mutilated corpses. There are conditions for its application; I must search farther."
Roko continued walking until the distance between him and Seiji was ten meters.
"Impossible… did the killer do this deliberately? Do they know about clairvoyance? How is there not a single intact corpse?"
Roko stepped farther; blood covered part of his pants. He did not stop and continued through the sticky, rugged soil. There was no time to retreat; he could not delay.
After half an hour, Roko found the corpse of a young man, no more than nineteen years old. His face was intact, unlike the lower part of his body, which was mutilated. The scene was horrifying.
Roko said happily, "Finally, I found a face that isn't mutilated. I'll try using just a little."
Roko removed the dark glove from his right hand and touched the corpse's face. While attempting to activate his clairvoyance, a strong energy burst forth, sending blue sparks scattering everywhere.
Boom! A massive energy explosion occurred.
Blood shot from Roko's left eye. He fainted and collapsed beside the corpse.
The clairvoyance ability activated.
A young man with messy black hair was walking through the Old Kingdom.
He smiled widely. "Another beautiful day… only ten days left until the founding anniversary."
An old man, seventy-six years old, passed by him and weakly said, "Have you prepared, Loren? Only ten days left until your knightly test."
Loren laughed with a deep, emotional voice. "Don't worry, I've prepared well, but I'm still nervous. This test coincides with the founding anniversary, so it will be harder than the previous ones."
The old man smiled gently to reassure the scared boy. "Don't worry, Loren, I've also suffered." The old man could not finish his sentence. Panic appeared on Loren's face, and some blood splattered on his right eye as the old man's head disappeared before him.
Loren could only scream and flee. Screams echoed everywhere.
The crowd intensified and began to flee. Some tried to calm the situation, but their heads were torn off, and commoners' houses collapsed. The poor's homes also fell, and the screams did not cease.
Anyone who jumped into a hole to hide, even with their legs buried, tried to escape the streets, but their heads were raised and their bodies dead. There was no chance to flee.
Loren ran, overtaken by fear. No thinking, no alternative decisions—only panic and escape. "What's happening? Why are people falling everywhere?"
The knights tried to intervene, but every attempt failed. Their weapons, designed to protect them, killed them and spilled their blood.
As those who brought safety fell, this city was written with destruction.
When Loren moved away, fleeing became easier. A woman with a pale face fell before him; her head was severed, and her legs cut off.
Loren, who had a flicker of hope and because of a stumble, shouted, "Damn it, I don't want this! I don't want it!" He saw one last figure above him—blue hair strands visible, face obscured. In a deep voice, the figure said, "People seek power without knowing the reasons. When they cross the limits and write death as their fate, they beg to survive." Then the figure disappeared.
At that moment, the clock bell rang, announcing destruction. Nobles committed suicide in fear of meeting the same fate as the others. Within an hour, the founding anniversary dreams were buried, the Old Kingdom destroyed, and corpses scattered. No one remained.
End of Chapter