Chapter 28: The Ghost Village
"So that's what happened..."
Right now, Elina was explaining everything to Fil. She told him in detail how they had dealt with the GrossRose and reassured him that they were all completely safe now. While she explained the situation to the village elder, Nuri was quietly focusing his magic to heal Alina. Fortunately, he was able to mend the raw wound on her leg. Although the puncture had been deep, Nuri managed to successfully restore most of the heavily damaged skin. However, it still left a distinct scar behind.
"I see... Thank you so much. I'm sorry I doubted you."
"It's fine. I can understand why you were skeptical," Elina smiled gently, holding the old man's hand reassuringly. "After all, we are still quite young."
While she was reminding Fil to be extra careful since there could still be other dangerous things lurking deep in the forest, she noticed Simon watching them from a distance.
"Excuse me..."
She didn't explain much to the elder before walking away to approach the boy. Simon noticed her coming toward him but remained entirely silent, waiting patiently for her to close the distance.
"Where is my cat?"
Elina let out a heavy sigh. She had fully expected that exact question, but how on earth was she supposed to explain it to him? Would he even be able to handle the grim truth? The boy already looked completely exhausted, as if life itself had been violently stolen from him.
For once, Elina didn't know what to say. This had always been the absolute hardest part of being a knight. It wasn't fighting bloodthirsty monsters. It wasn't constantly risking her own life. It was having to tell innocent people that something precious to them was gone forever.
"It's fine..." Simon lowered his gaze to the dirt. "I can already guess from your face." His voice was incredibly quiet. "I suspected it... but I didn't want to believe it."
The boy looked as though he had already accepted the brutal truth. Accepted his tragic loss.
Elina didn't know how to respond with words. Instead, she simply stepped forward and pulled him into a quick but deeply warm hug. The boy froze in shock for a moment, and then he tightly held onto that warmth as if it were his only salvation.
"It was my family..."
Elina simply listened, letting him speak. That was all she could possibly do for him right now. After Simon finally calmed down, she returned to Nuri and Alina. Although the boy didn't say anything else as they walked away, she could easily tell he was incredibly grateful. And somehow, knowing she had truly helped someone in their grief made her feel a little better.
"Let's get going. We still have to reach the central village." Elina looked out toward the distant, overlapping trees. "That's where the hooded man is most likely headed."
The siblings immediately stood up, their determination fully returned.
Then, Fil suggested that they take the specific route running near the river. According to the elder, it connected directly to the main village and was actually the fastest available path. The knights didn't waste any more time; they left immediately.
"How are we supposed to win against that person?" Nuri's voice sounded deeply uncertain as they walked. The hooded man was clearly stronger than all of them. Maybe he was even stronger than all three of them combined.
"Nuri, our mission isn't to defeat him." Elina glanced back at him over her shoulder. "Our mission is to investigate what's actually happening in this forest. Remember?"
Nuri immediately felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him. She was entirely right. He had completely lost sight of their real goal in his anxiety. But he couldn't help it; that man genuinely frightened him to his core.
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"I can't even begin to imagine what he needed that Soul Stone for..." Alina muttered, crossing her arms tightly as she thought about it.
That unique crystal was probably the real, singular reason the villain had come to this forest in the first place. Just what was so incredibly special about it that he was willing to go to such horrifying lengths to obtain it?
The journey to the central village took significantly longer than any of them had originally expected. Days slowly passed by. Yet, through sheer patience and perseverance, they eventually spotted the shapes of buildings rising in the distance.
"We're almost there..." Elina's voice grew distinctly more serious. "We need to be careful, okay? Remember what Simon said. If he's right, we probably won't be welcomed there."
"Yes," the siblings answered in perfect unison.
They could all feel their hearts pounding wildly against their ribs. Everyone was incredibly nervous. None of them knew what to expect.
As they slowly entered the perimeter of the village, they immediately understood exactly what Simon had meant. Everyone was present. People walked casually through the cobblestone streets. Merchants sold their goods. Villagers carried woven baskets. Everything looked perfectly, flawlessly normal.
Yet, something felt horribly wrong.
Nobody acknowledged the three knights. It was as if the villagers couldn't see them at all. As if they didn't even exist.
"Please give me one kilogram of meat. I'm going to have a feast today."
The villagers continued their daily routines seamlessly, but they felt significantly more like mindless puppets than actual people. It was as though they were blindly repeating actions they had already performed thousands of times before. No emotions. No life. Just empty, hollow shells continuing their routines endlessly.
"He was right..." Elina whispered. For once, even she didn't know what to say. This felt deeply wrong. She had never seen anything like it.
"This doesn't even feel like a village," Nuri noted, looking around carefully at the architecture. "I know this is supposed to be the central village, but it feels more like a city... almost like the capital."
He wasn't wrong. The place was far too developed and massive to still be considered a mere village. Normally, settlements of this size would have been officially renamed long ago, yet nobody here seemed to care, assuming they were even truly people anymore.
Crack.
The sharp sound echoed loudly through the stagnant air. All three knights froze dead in their tracks. A cold, suffocating feeling settled deep in their chests.
"That sounded like... bones cracking." Sweat rolled down Alina's face, and her breathing became noticeably heavier, as if her raw instincts were screaming at her to run away.
"I agree..." Elina's face had gone completely pale. "Run."
The siblings didn't hesitate for a single second.
"I'm sorry, but I did not come here to deal with ghosts!" Elina pointed frantically toward a nearby timber cabin. "Find a hiding place!"
The three of them immediately sprinted for their lives. Fortunately, they spotted an old cabin with its front door hanging wide open. Without a moment of hesitation, they rushed inside and slammed the heavy door shut behind them.
For a few tense moments, all they could hear in the darkness was the sound of their own heavy, ragged breathing. Then, Nuri carefully stepped forward and peeked through the window. What he saw made his stomach twist into painful knots.
The villagers outside had become even stranger. Their heads were actively turning at completely unnatural angles a full 180 degrees, as though they were searching the area for something. Or someone.
"Gosh..." Elina leaned her back heavily against the wall, sliding down slightly. "Please, I really don't want to deal with ghosts right now."
She looked genuinely, thoroughly terrified. Despite being an elite knight who had faced countless dangerous situations, ghosts seemed to be her one ultimate weakness. The siblings exchanged a quick glance, then simultaneously shrugged. Alina stepped forward toward her superior.
"Don't worry, Elina," she said, trying her absolute best not to laugh at the sight. "Even the bravest warriors can be afraid of ghosts." Her face had already turned bright red from the sheer effort of suppressing her laughter.
Elina sighed, defeated. Great. Now they would absolutely never let her live this down. At times like these, she really, truly missed Captain Caelen. When he was around, nobody ever had the time to be afraid. Which was exactly why nobody in the order knew about this particular weakness of hers. Now that it had been fully exposed to the rookies, she could only bite her lip and pray they forgot about it someday.
"Alright, jokes aside," Elina cleared her throat, forcing her professional demeanor back into place. "Let's see what's inside this place."
The three of them began searching the dark corners of the cabin. It didn't take them long to realize something incredibly strange. The entire place was covered in thick layers of dust, far more than there ever should have been for a recently vacated home. It looked as though absolutely nobody had lived here for a very, very long time.
Elina's brow furrowed into a deep frown. Simon had only noticed things becoming strange in the area recently. But judging by the ancient, undisturbed condition of this cabin... whatever horrifying plot was happening here had likely started much, much earlier than any of them feared.
"Damn it..." She clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white. Just what on earth was that man planning?