After hours of steady marching, the scouting party finally reached Starleaf Village… or what remained of it.
Captain Martin came to an abrupt stop, his wary eyes scanning the scene before he muttered tensely:
— "I don't know why, but this place unsettles me… stay sharp, all of you."
Kaiden and the others nodded, spreading out according to the captain's orders. He divided them into groups to search the houses, while he searched alone.
Kaiden moved with one soldier at his side, entering house after house, only to find nothing. Every home stood empty.
What made Kaiden's chest tighten, however, were the dried bloodstains smeared across walls and floors—old enough to have lingered for days, perhaps weeks.
When the party regrouped, each soldier reported the same findings. The captain muttered in clear unease:
— "Strange… no signs of battle, no resistance, not even evidence of monsters breaking in. Only blood… as if someone wiped out the entire village without effort."
As they exchanged words, the atmosphere shifted. The rustle of trees carried with it a nameless dread.
Then—without warning—a soldier collapsed to the ground, his throat slashed, crimson spraying across the white snow. Kaiden froze where he stood, his eyes wide in horror as he stared at the corpse.
Panic rippled through the men. They drew their swords and formed a circle, backs pressed together.
A second passed… nothing.
Then the rustling returned—louder this time. A shadow darted toward one soldier's neck, but the man ducked on pure instinct, losing only strands of hair instead of his head. His face blanched, his hands trembling as he gasped in terror.
All they saw was a fleeting silhouette, its features swallowed in black.
The captain shouted:
— "This isn't natural… I doubt we'll all make it out alive. Kaiden! We'll buy you a few seconds—mount your horse and ride back! Report what happened here!"
Kaiden stood in shock, unable to process. The captain seized his shoulder and barked harshly:
— "Do you hear me?! Don't lose your composure!"
Kaiden's breaths shook. Slowly, he nodded.
— "…Understood."
But just as he was about to move, his instincts screamed: Get down!
He ducked—and in that instant saw another soldier staggering, blood pouring from his mouth. Behind him stood a figure, its hand buried deep in the man's chest, ripping out his heart.
The stranger withdrew his hand slowly, the dripping organ dangling between his fingers before the body collapsed lifeless into the snow.
He lifted his gaze toward them. Tall, dark-haired, with burning crimson eyes and a distinct scar across his lips. A cruel, mocking smile curved his bloodstained mouth as he licked his fingers, savoring the kill.
For a moment, Kaiden felt time itself freeze as their eyes met. Then Captain Martin shattered the silence, charging with a fierce attack, the remaining soldiers rushing after him.
But the stranger caught their blades with his bare hand—snapping the captain's sword with a single effortless motion.
His voice dripped with mockery, the smile never leaving his face:
— "A herd of weaklings…"
Before Kaiden could react, a sudden kick slammed into his chest, hurling him across the clearing. He crashed against a tree, spitting blood, forced to watch the massacre unfold.
It didn't take long for the scene to descend into hell. Soldiers fell one by one, torn apart like butchered meat. Even Captain Martin, with all his experience, met a brutal end—his sword shattered, his skull crushed beneath a merciless kick.
Kaiden lay sprawled on the ground, his heart pounding wildly, his arm broken, his sword useless at his side. Every fiber of his being screamed to run, but his body refused to move.
Lifting his eyes, he saw the stranger approaching with cold, steady steps—those crimson eyes burning like twin embers in the darkness…
The stranger's footsteps were slow, heavy—each strike of his boots against the earth tolling like a funeral bell in Kaiden's ears. His chest rose and fell in ragged bursts, blood dripping from his lips onto the dirt. He tried to drag himself backward, bracing against the ground with his unbroken hand, but the searing pain in his fractured arm burned like fire.
The red-eyed man drew closer, staring at Kaiden for a moment before lifting his head, inhaling deeply as though savoring the scent of fear radiating from him. A faint, crooked smile curved his lips as he spoke in a low, piercing voice:
— "You know… your eyes scream louder than your mouth."
Kaiden's entire body trembled. His instincts howled for him to run, yet his legs refused to obey. The man raised his bloodstained hand, droplets still dripping onto the ground, and reached toward him slowly—relishing every second of his terror.
At that instant, Captain Martin's words echoed in Kaiden's mind:
"We'll buy you a few seconds… run, and tell them."
A desperate will to live erupted within him. With a raw scream, he pushed off the ground with all the strength he had left. Staggering to his feet, he lurched forward, running toward his horse tethered at the edge of the village. Swords scattered, blood spilled, corpses of his comrades strewn around him—he did not look back.
The stranger made no move to chase him right away. Instead, he only smiled, his crimson eyes glowing like embers as he muttered darkly to himself:
— "Let the prey run a little… meat tastes sweeter when it believes it has escaped."
Kaiden seized the reins, hauling himself onto the saddle despite the agony wracking his body. He kicked the horse hard, and it bolted at full speed. The wind lashed his face, blood still spilling from his mouth, but he didn't stop. He could hear nothing but the furious pounding of his heart, threatening to tear through his chest.
And behind him, in the ruins of Starleaf Village, the stranger stood amidst the field of corpses. He tilted his head back toward the darkened sky—his hoarse, guttural laughter echoing through the hollow remains of the ghostly settlement.