Chapter 53 – The Maggot Kings
Rin had never felt the weight of his death domain as he did now. The realm, once a quiet land of forgotten souls, had shifted into something darker, more dangerous. The sky was now a twisted shade of red, as though the very air was bleeding. The land stretched endlessly, cracked like the surface of a long-dead corpse, and amidst the decay, there rose the city — a place that seemed to pulse with hunger.
The city was unlike any that Rin had ever encountered, not in the Mortal Realm nor in the domains of the dead. It was not built of stone or wood, but of something more sinister. Its walls, if they could even be called that, were constructed of writhing masses of flesh, bound together by something ancient and foul. The air was thick with the smell of rot, and everywhere, the ground squelched underfoot as though it were alive, breathing with each step. It was a parasitic city, one that thrived on the memories of those who passed through it.
At the center of the city stood a towering structure, shaped like a giant cocoon, pulsating with a grotesque, living energy. This was where the Maggot Kings dwelled — bloated, bloated beings that were neither alive nor dead, but something between, existing only to feed on the memories of those who entered their domain. They were parasites of death, drawn to unstable truths, to guilt, to the repressed emotions that clung to souls in their final moments.
Rin had been drawn to this place by the very pulse of the city. He could feel it, a gnawing presence in his mind, pulling him toward the center, toward the Maggot Kings.
He walked through the streets, feeling the weight of their hungry gazes upon him. The creatures, half-formed, twisted beings, were drawn to him as he passed. They were creatures born of memories lost, beings that thrived on the anguish and regret that clung to the soul like a parasite. They were drawn to Rin, sensing the vibrant regrets that still flickered in his mind — the moments of hesitation, the memories of lost opportunity, the guilt that had followed him from the Mortal Realm and into this domain.
Rin knew they saw him as prey.
The Maggot Kings were the rulers of this city, bloated monstrosities that fed on the fading memories of those who wandered into their grasp. They had no need for names, for they consumed memories faster than they could be born. They lived in the void between worlds, parasites that thrived on instability, on the weaknesses of the soul. And now, they saw Rin — a being full of vibrant regrets, a soul full of unstable truths.
Rin had no intention of being their prey.
A shudder ran through him as he felt the presence of the Maggot Kings drawing near. He could feel the air growing thick, the weight of their intentions pressing down upon him. Their forms emerged from the shadows, grotesque beings with bloated bodies, their skin stretched thin, mottled with patches of rotting flesh. They were crowned with remnants of forgotten names — words that had been torn from the fabric of reality and stitched into their forms, like weaponized symbols of death.