Thud, thud, thud.
In the darkness where even the moonlight was hidden, unfamiliar tremors echoed across the ground. Birds, startled by the enormous rumbling that shook the earth, took flight into the sky, and animals fled in every direction, desperate to escape the sound.
Thud, thud, thud.
The booming noise, as if something heavy had fallen from the sky to the earth, continued to repeat, moving swiftly, and if one listened carefully and calmly felt the vibrations, they would notice that smaller tremors were interspersed between the larger ones.
As the clouds parted, the creatures that had been holding their breath in the half-revealed moonlight saw a massive black shadow rising up into the sky. That shadow traced a parabola and fell toward another place, followed by another rumble and vibration. Immediately after, a relatively smaller sound and tremor rang out, and the black shadow soared into the sky once more.
Each time the black shadow landed on the earth, trees snapped and fell, and the ground was deeply gouged, leaving marks behind.
-Hirde. Are we still far?
The identity of the black shadow was Elde Toquas. Known as the Great Glutton or Lesuwi Kato, the Feller of Trees, he was one of the three Managers who ruled the Forest of Evil in the absence of Granviphra.
-How much longer do we have to go before we reach the place you mentioned?
Elde Toquas was always known for his lack of patience and capricious nature, but being forced to flee, leaving behind his followers and territory, made him all the more irritable.
-We’re almost there.
Even amidst the powerful, destructive impacts, the one always running lightly just ahead of Elde Toquas was Wabutu Hirde. Called the One Who Runs with the Wind at His Back, he resembled a red leopard in form, and like Elde Toquas and Duru Satal, he was also one of the three Managers.
They had now left the Forest of Evil and arrived at the Jodik Region, where the southern mountain ranges stood like barriers. Though it could not compare to the Forest of Evil, it was a land of dense jungles and several wide, winding rivers that flowed like veins through the land. Before the last great war, countless tribes had formed large and small settlements here.
However, during the last war, Raiven and his Beast Army conquered this place, and now there were no settlements left. Only wild Beast Army creatures and monsters, ownerless and feral, roamed according to their nature.
-How many times have you said that already! I haven’t even had a proper meal!
-We’ve already eaten enough on the way here to be twice what you used to eat in the forest.
-You expect me to be satisfied with that tasteless, low-grade prey?
Toquas had swallowed countless Beast Army creatures and monsters along the way. But as he said, the unfamiliar prey didn’t suit his taste, and above all, the unchanging reality of fleeing only further inflamed his savage hunger.
-Just a little farther.
Hirde moved his chin, pointing at a mountain range. It was a place where two ranges overlapped, and behind them rose a high peak. The very center of that spot was where Hirde was headed.
-There? What’s there? What could possibly be there to satisfy my appetite?
-This is where Raiven, one of the Demon King’s Corps Commanders, once ruled. In the past, this place was filled with beasts far fiercer than the ones you just ate your way through. But what’s truly important is there.
-There?
-Yes.
Hirde didn’t say more, but the conviction in his voice made Toquas stop grumbling and quietly follow him. Of course, he didn’t stop shoving anything that appeared in front of him into his mouth.
With Hirde’s speed and Toquas’s enormous, formidable leaping power, they soon reached their destination. At the center, surrounded by mountains and peaks, was a plain that at first glance seemed ordinary. There were trees and plants, but not as dense as the places they had passed, and no special creatures could be seen.
Toquas, feeling not only disappointment but also anger, could not hold back.
-Is this what you promised? This pathetic place with nothing special at all!
Toquas reached out, ripped up a nearby tree, and hurled it at Hirde. Of course, it posed no threat to Hirde. He lightly stepped on the flying tree in midair, leapt, and landed behind Toquas.
-Have patience. I never said this was the end.
Hirde passed him and headed to a spot. When he stood before some seemingly ordinary rocks, the red stones embedded in his back began to glow. In response, strange symbols appeared on the ground in front of the rocks.
When the symbols faded, a huge staircase leading downward was revealed. It was so large and wide that even Toquas could crawl inside with just a slight stoop.
Let’s go in.
Hirde quickly descended the staircase made of black obsidian, and Toquas followed behind.
-…What is this place?
He crawled down the stairs on all fours, his massive body hunched. It wasn’t impossible to descend, but the space was far from comfortable.
-This is the place Raiven, the Demon King’s Corps Commander, valued most.
After coming to the surface, Raiven considered this place the most important. He was never interested in the destruction of the surface world or the coming of Goddess Nyx; he simply followed the Demon King’s orders out of an old oath.
What he truly desired was just one thing: to strengthen his own power. And this place was the key.
-He gathered countless Beast Army creatures and monsters here.
-Ho. And why’s that?
Even as he asked, Toquas instinctively licked his lips. Thick, venomous saliva dripped down his chin onto the stairs, and wherever it touched the obsidian, its sheen faded.
He wanted to increase his own power. But it couldn’t be done by ordinary means, so he thought of a slightly different way.
For some reason, Hirde didn’t say more. It was clearly a deliberate silence, hiding something, but foolishly, Toquas no longer cared. He only imagined the prey filling the depths below, moving his limbs faster, drooling even more onto the floor.
-So, how much prey is down there? Don’t tell me there’s only enough for one meal? If that’s the case…
Hirde knew well what would have followed—that Toquas would consider eating him instead. Of course, in a real fight, Toquas couldn’t be sure of beating Hirde. But Toquas always looked down on the other Managers, so it was a threat he could make.
-Don’t worry. That won’t happen.
But even at that rude remark, Hirde showed no reaction. Without any sign of displeasure, he simply continued down the stairs ahead.
-…Come to think of it, you’ve changed a lot.
This time, even the usually oblivious Toquas sensed something was off.
-What do you mean?
-Weren’t you once so proud you were called a king? But since you left the forest and returned, you haven’t shown any of that pride.
He said nothing, but in that silence there was an ominous feeling. Yet Toquas still didn’t stop descending. As his name implied, his hunger and arrogance kept driving him downward.
-Besides, you were more attached to your territory and kin than anyone. You only cooperated with the Demon King’s army for their safety. But now you’ve abandoned them and come here so easily.
-Nothing is more precious than one’s own life.
Before they knew it, they’d reached the end of the stairs. At the bottom was a huge door, made of black iron. At its center was the image of a massive beast, presumably Raiven, and countless bizarre shadows radiating out from him, all sculpted in relief across the door.
-Of course. But the reason you brought me here instead of your kin can’t be just kindness, can it?
-…I already brought many of them.
At that moment, Toquas froze, hand outstretched, struck by the deep sadness, contempt, and even murderous rage in those words.
-What are you…?
Only then did Toquas realize something far more serious was at play than he had thought. But regardless, the jewels embedded in Hirde’s back began to shine again, and the heavy, black door slowly started to open to both sides.
-Wait, wait!
Toquas tried to stop Hirde. The indescribable sense of foreboding wafting out from the widening crack in the door made his wild instincts scream in terror.
-It’s already too late.
The moment Toquas tried to retreat with his massive body, a black shadow shot out from the gap and enveloped him. Like a nest of vipers, the shadow sank its fangs into every part of Toquas’s huge body, dragging him with overwhelming force that he couldn’t resist.
-Wh-What is this! Hirde! What have you done!
Toquas swung his arms with all his might, twisting his body. He shot out his tongue like a cannonball and spat venomous saliva. But nothing could shake off the shadows pulling him in.
As the door opened wider, more shadows stretched out. Toquas, helplessly dragged inside, saw an even larger shadow within. It was like the maw of a predator he had never seen before. Elde Toquas—the name that meant Great Glutton—was nothing compared to the absolute, merciless hunger of that maw, which would never know satisfaction and was now about to devour him whole.
-Wabutu Hirde!
Toquas accepted his fate. No, he had no choice but to accept it. There was no escape. Soon he would be sucked into that mouth, disappearing without a trace, and no miracle could save him from death. He could only shout Hirde’s name, filled with curses and rage.
-Farewell, Toquas.
Hirde pressed himself against the wall beside the door, careful not to touch Toquas’s venom or the shadows, and watched in silence.
At last, Toquas’s massive body was sucked into the door, and his form was lost in the darkness. When even the last trace of his existence had vanished, a dozen or so voices, eerily similar yet distinct, spoke from within the shadows as if they were one.
-Well done, Hirde. As promised, I will no longer order you to bring your kin. Not that you could, now that Granviphra has revived.
-…Thank you, Beast Army Corps Commander Raiven.
Facing the countless glowing eyes in the darkness, Hirde bowed, his body filled with fear, anger, contempt, awe, and gratitude. The jewels embedded in his back shone even brighter in harmony with the eyes in the shadows.
“Then, I’ll be off.”
The next morning dawned, and it was time to leave the study to head to Feltecheryu, where Baglos was.
“Alright. Take care.”
But I just couldn’t bring myself to take a step. Since last night, all my conversations with her had gone like this. We talked about many things, but it was all surface-level; nothing important was ever said.
“Why?”
She asked, watching me stand still. Come to think of it, for the past few years, she had always led the conversation. Trapped here, she’d speak to me out of boredom or ask questions, and I would answer—our conversations always followed that format.
What should I say? In this situation, where nothing will change no matter what I say, what am I supposed to say?
Just like always, no matter how cowardly or irresponsible it was, I would simply take a step back and hope time would solve everything. But for her, time in this place was no different from being stopped.
Unchanging surroundings. An ageless body. And I was the only one she could meet. There was no one else. Time passing changed nothing. Even if I dumped everything on her and she somehow came to a conclusion, could there truly be any resolution in an environment and under conditions like this?
She does not forget. In this stagnant space, with no other stimulus at all, any conclusion she comes to will leave traces and remnants that will endlessly haunt her.
That can never be a solution.
…No, it’s all nonsense. The reason I’m so preoccupied isn’t those twisted, self-justifying ideas. If it were, why wouldn’t I have corrected the deception and illusion I’ve been feeding her, instead of just shoving it aside behind the passage of time and a paltry sense of guilt?
The reason I’m so preoccupied, the reason I’m pretending to tackle the problem and try to resolve it, is simply because I have a feeling that if I leave things as they are, our relationship will change. It’s just my own selfish anxiety. Nothing more, nothing less.
“Is it perhaps something Granviphra said that’s weighing on your mind?”
At my question, her expression stiffened slightly. It wasn’t so much that she was trying to hide it, but more that she seemed surprised I’d asked.
“Did that one… say something?”
If I hadn’t noticed the small hope in her cautious question, I might have been better off. Then I wouldn’t have felt the disappointment that followed so keenly.
“No, I didn’t hear exactly what was said. But I can tell it’s on your mind.”
“…I see.”
“I don’t know what Granviphra said to you. And even if I did, I doubt there’s anything I could say or do to help.”
She looked at me with eyes that wanted to argue, but the words never made it past her lips.
And taking advantage of that moment, I spoke to her.
“But I hope you’ll at least remember this.”
A somewhat trembling voice, mixed with a plea beneath the surface. I was speaking my true feelings to her under the guise of deceit. And just like a seasoned beggar, hiding a sly smile as he cunningly seeks sympathy with his misery, I was already certain of my success.