1 Chapter 1 Vol.1

Chapter 1:Death

I felt an urge to kill, to die, and take my final rest but it all seems to fade along with a current that is accompanied by a warm fluffy sensation on all of my senses. Slowly, I heard muffled sounds became clearer and it was the sounds of hooves and the creaking of a wagon. I can only feel that I am laying on a stiff floor, and suddenly a cheerful voice resounded, 'So I see you're finally awake, you look dead beat even after sleeping for 3 days.'. I cautiously opened my eyes and could only see pitch black, I pushed my body up into a seating position with effort to check my surroundings. A dim light slips through a gap behind me, and that's when I see what I was looking for. A woman leaning on the wagon while sitting crossed leg and all dressed in black with sakura colored hair as her most definitive traits in the darkness.

''Where am I? Who are you?'' [-]

''We're passing the gates of Sike Mura, the guards here are lax and we'll pass through them just fine if you're quiet.'' [Woman]

The wagon stops, and after some chattering noises, it proceeds to move again into the bustling sounds of town folks.

"That's our stop, we should get off now, and don't forget your sword ok." [Woman]

I wondered what sword she's speaking off but then my left hand hit something and I just grabbed onto it instinctively. I picked it up to see that it's a sword just as she said. With the restlessness of trying to figure out the situation I just proceeded to do what I was told and decided to do the thinking later. I jumped out of the moving wagon after her and almost fell over embarrassingly. We walked towards a tavern, now that I could get a better look she is very tall, wears a veil alongside a black cape with protruding teeth that were lined on the top of the collar. She sternly treads into the building but like a flip of a switch the aura she gives off just suddenly grew sharper. I felt odd when comparing it with the behavior she displayed earlier. She pushed the door of the tavern gently and entered with the gaze of everyone on her. After we went inside, the sounds died down and their faces turned green, they all began evacuating the premises. We settled down and began ordering our food while people were trying to get out of the tavern as respectfully as possible.

The chef had to come out of the kitchen to take our orders after the waiter chickened out and left the tavern with others. He is holding himself well, but he seems to be a little bit stiff.

''Wine.'' [Woman]

''Erm... anything big, thanks.'' [-]

After finishing the order, a woman, purple hair with horns and dressed in black entered the tavern just like clockwork. The woman paced towards the table and gave a light bow to the woman facing me.

''Good afternoon reaper, the demon lord welcomes your presence. May I ask the purpose of your visit?'' [Purple haired woman]

''We're heading north, we're just here to buy some supplies to bear the cold.'' [woman]

''Understood, the demon lord would kindly provide you the necessities, they can be prepared before daybreak, you can stay at the inn across the street for tonight with the child.'' [Purple-haired woman]

''Thanks, please extend my gratitude to her.'' [Woman]

''No, on the contrary, I should be thankful for your understanding and swift cooperation, please enjoy your stay and I wish you two the best of luck on your journey.''

[Purple-haired woman]

After a light bow, she left the tavern. She seemed different from the others I've met and what's a demon lord. Dinner is served, the chef places my meal on the table. The size of the meat is humongous, but it certainly looks appetizing.

''You're very lucky, the lord hunted it personally. I would have kept it for myself if it weren't for you kiddo.'' [Buff old man]

''Thank you very much, I will enjoy it.'' [-]

I engulfed the meal at my own pace while the woman just observes. Seeing her from the front, she is very elegant pink hair, pink eyes, a tall nose, thin lips, a sharp jaw, a very well proportioned outline, and very well endowed. But, her outfit looks kinda edgy...

After I'm finished, she asks.

''Can I get your name?'' [Woman]

''I can't remember anything...how did I end up here?'' [-]

''You faced a dragon.'' [Woman]

That wasn't the response I was expecting, but I figured that I should know more about my current situation better as a priority

''And you're?'' [-]

''Caliope Mori, goddess of death'' [Woman]

''What did I do to deserve a meal with death?'' [-]

''I had decided that I would take you in as your guardian.'' [Cali]

''...'' [-]

She leans forward, looks into my eyes, and said

''It's fine to doubt my words, but I am simply asking for a little bit of your trust in exchange for mine. It doesn't have to be immediate so you can take your time. We will get to know each other better along the way.'' [Cali]

Ending the sentence, she made a light smile. I don't think I can make a correct judgment based on my limited knowledge, everything is not making any connections. But I could at least sense that her response was genuine.

''It's late, go clean yourself up, you can sleep or explore Sike Mura on your own. We can pick up where we left off tomorrow .'' [Cali]

She left the table and proceeded to exit the tavern. I stood up and walked out of the tavern while feeling lost under the starry sky. The streets were silent contrary to the noises that were heard before we entered the tavern, but there is light leaking out of the seams of every building.

''It's quiet..., too quiet.'' [-]

I try to investigate the reason behind it by peeking into the houses. The villagers were all huddled together with their family members in their own houses. After that, I retraced the path where the carriage took when I disembark and eventually reached the gate of the village. The gate is massive, but there was no one there which is something strange. I walked closer to inspect the walls and find that the bricks are all blackish with a purple hue and it feels cold to the touch. I walked along the wall until I went back to where I started to get a feel of how big Sike mura is. At last, I went to the middle of the town where I could see an ominous-looking building that looks unusual from the rest. The building looks like it was made of the same material as the walls of Sike mura but it has a slightly darker hue. The most eye-catching part of it is the pathway to the entrance is blazed by flames alternating between red and blue and a red carpet is laid between the flames. It looks menacing and I would have wanted to take a look inside. However, I wouldn't want to cause any problem especially to a lord that even Cali O'... What's her name again... never mind, I should write that down somewhere next time.

Just as I was going to turn back, the creaking sound of the door resounded and the door was flunked ajar on its own. Witnessing this, I turned around immediately and ran in the opposite direction of the building. After going far enough, I persisted to get back to the inn without rest even though I couldn't run anymore. After I reached it, I couldn't take it and just decided to go to sleep immediately. My body aches everywhere and only then I realized my sword is still in my hand, I placed it beside the bed and then fell into a deep sleep.

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The pace of the story might be a little slow but I hope y'all can be patient and keep reading it to explore the stories that I had intertwined for them. Please do leave a comment and like for chapters that you like so that I can tell what kind of content my readers like.