The sky wept, as if even the gods were shedding tears for the slaughter about to unfold below.
Lightning pierced the pitch black darkness, illuminating Ashveil Castle with sudden flashes of light on the border between the Demon Empire and the Human Kingdoms.
The rain brought with it a freezing cold that pierced the bone, along with a deep sense of despair.
Every drop that struck the castle walls washed over the armor and clothes of the demons, turning the dried blood from yesterday's battle back into a liquid and making it flow like a crimson river.
The fog wrapped around the walls like a living creature.
The castle courtyard reeked of panic and despair.
The demons who witnessed General Asmerius lose his head in yesterday's bloody clash still had not recovered from the sheer horror of that moment.
Horned helmets that once stood proud were now dragging on the ground, and clawed hands trembled as they tried to grip their weapons.
"Do you hear that?" whispered a hulking, red skinned orc to the shivering goblin next to him. "The ground is shaking... They are coming."
"Holy Auralis..." The goblin's voice was barely audible over the chattering of his teeth.
"Saint Evarion is coming. The Chosen of Light... They will turn us to dust. If even General Asmerius was destroyed with a single swing of his sword, what can we do?"
Fear had spread through the entire garrison like an infectious disease.
The army of the Holy Auralis Empire was not just superior in numbers; they were fanaticism forged in steel.
Their armor blessed by the gods, weapons enhanced by magic, and most importantly, that monster marching at their front... "Evarion."
The latest report from the scouts wiped away the last crumb of hope.
The enemy army was only four hours away. A fully equipped and armored army of ten thousand men was marching toward this ruined castle.
The situation inside was pathetic. With the general's death, the chain of command had broken, leaving authority to Commander Korvak.
Korvak was horrified when he counted what he had left: 693 people... Not even 700. Including the wounded, the demoralized, and those without even a weapon, not even 700.
The nearest reinforcement unit was a day away. The math was simple; this was not a war, it was going to be an execution.
Commander Korvak stood under the rain on one of the castle's battlements.
His flame red cape was soaked through, clinging to his shoulder.
Since he was a fire element user, the faint steam radiating from his body created a mystical halo around him when it met the rain.
However, the expression on his face carried the cunning of a cornered fox rather than the resolve of a hero.
The messenger crow from Demon King Scorvion had reached him at the first light of dawn with a parchment in its claws.
The order was absolute: "Ashveil Castle will be held at all costs. Down to the last drop of blood of the last soldier."
"To the last drop..." Korvak muttered, gritting his teeth. He crumpled the parchment in his hand and turned it to ash with a small fireball he conjured in his palm.
"He expects me to die here for these pigs while he sips wine on his throne."
Korvak was not the kind of demon to sacrifice his life for nothing. His ambition had always been greater than his loyalty.
He turned his eyes to his soldiers gathered in the courtyard, huddled together in fear.
He was going to use them not to save them, but to create a cover for his own escape.
He slowly walked down the stairs and stepped onto a raised stone block in the middle of the courtyard.
His voice, amplified by magic, echoed over the thunder.
"Listen to me, Children of Hell!"
The crowd flinched at their commander's voice. Faces turned toward him, searching his eyes for a glimmer of hope.
"Orders have arrived from Demon King Scorvion!" Korvak shouted. His voice was filled with a theatrical rage.
"Do you know what he commanded us to do?"
He paused for a brief moment, increasing the demons' curiosity and tension even further before dropping the bomb.
"To die!"
"He ordered us to stand here, inside this pile of stones, against a divine army of ten thousand, and sacrifice ourselves just so he could buy a little more time!"
Grumbles began to rise from the crowd. Their shock was slowly giving way to anger.
Korvak continued, his voice turning even more venomous.
"We spilled our blood for the Empire. We left our friends, our brothers on that field yesterday. And what do we get in return?"
He threw his arms open dramatically.
"Instead of sending us help, they are sending us to our graves! The nearest support army is two days away! By then, not even our bones will be left!"
He spread his hands wide, the rain washing his face as if the running water were tears.
"But..."
"But! I, your Commander Korvak, will not abandon you to die!"
"I swear upon my soul and my blood!"
"This castle is no longer a strategic point, it is a COFFIN! And I have no intention of getting into this coffin. If our King does not value us, then we will not waste our lives for him!"
The fear among the soldiers was giving way to a feral desire to survive. "Let's run!" someone shouted from the back. "We won't listen to someone who left us to die!" roared another.
Korvak watched the effect he created with satisfaction.
His plan was working. If the army rebelled and fled, he could blend in and slip away with the excuse that he "could not maintain control".
If he ran alone he would be declared a traitor, but if he fled with the army... it would just be a retreat.
Right at that moment, in the darkest corner of the courtyard where even the light of the torches hesitated to reach, there was a figure isolated from all this chaos.
A youth, maybe sixteen or seventeen years old. The armor he wore was nothing more than old, rusty pieces of metal held together by leather straps, hardly fit to be called armor.
His soaking wet pitch black hair clung to his forehead, and a single, curved, obsidian colored horn protruding from the left side of his forehead stood out among his hair.
That was not the only thing setting him apart from the rest. His right eye was wrapped in a dirty bandage, with fresh blood seeping through it.
His remaining left eye was as black as the night, but there was no sign of life in this blackness, only a bottomless void.
The young boy did not seem to be listening to Commander Korvak's fiery speech.
He was crouching down, watching a swarm of ants trying to make their way along the edge of a muddy puddle on the ground.
While massive combat boots and armored greaves rushed around, these tiny creatures were putting in an incredible amount of effort to carry a single grain of wheat to their nest.
Even if the world collapsed and the heavens split open, their only concern was that grain of wheat.
Because they wanted to live, and to live, they had to struggle.
'How alike we are...' the youth thought without moving his lips. 'Only our burdens are different.'
Right then, a blue screen, more real than the world and brighter than the rain, appeared before the boy's single eye. A translucent panel that only he could see.
[ NEW SYSTEM QUEST ISSUED ]
The boy read the text without blinking. His heart rhythm did not change, his breathing did not quicken. He was as calm as if he had been expecting this.
Quest: Defend the Castle
Difficulty Level: SSS
Time Remaining: 23:59:59
Failure Penalty: Certain Death
Reward:
100 Eclipse Points
+10 Years of Lifespan
Item: Tears of Orion
His eyes fixed on the phrase "10 Years of Lifespan". A bitter, almost mocking smile appeared on his lips. For him... time was more precious than anything else.
Then his gaze shifted to his own stats.
The cruel realities stood before him as mere numbers.
Current Stats
Rank: F
Elements: Ice ❄️
[ Attributes ]
Strength: 4 (F) 4/10
Agility: (E minus) 6/20
Endurance: (F) 3/10
Mana: (F) 17/100
Intelligence: 68/100 (C)
Luck: ???
Eclipse Points: 13
[ Bloodline: Locked ]
[ Blessing: Curse of Equality ]
∆ Skill Description
When this skill is activated, a translucent field forms around the user and the opponent.
No Outside Interference: No one from the outside can enter, and no one from the inside can escape.
Principle of Equality: The greater the price the user pays (for example, sacrificing their most precious memory or lifespan), the user's power increases equally to the price paid. The opponent spiritually feels the "weight" of what the user sacrificed. This can slow the opponent down or cause them to hallucinate.
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