Chapter 251: To the Capital (3)

Corpses filled the surroundings.

The plaza, which had echoed with people’s voices just yesterday, was now filled only with the stench of blood and rising smoke. There, one man stood firm. The warrior, Wolf. His worn sword was cracked and on the verge of shattering, and his face was covered in dried blood. The soldiers following him bowed their heads not in respect, but in fear.

Before Wolf’s eyes lay three massive ravines. They were the sites of immense destruction, carved out with just three swings of his sword. Before the scar left by one swing across the front of the church could even be filled, the capital had suffered another deep wound, shaking the very ground.

Corpses and what were presumed to be chunks of flesh lay scattered everywhere. A quick glance revealed that countless people, including the core of the rebellion, had perished. Those who hadn’t died were busy fleeing, and Wolf didn’t have the energy left to chase after them.

The flag the nobleman had proudly flown was now ashes, and his armor, fused with the cobblestones, had taken on a shape that only grave robbers would appreciate.

Wolf gasped for breath, tossing his head back. He hadn’t trained in a long time, and just three sword swings had left him exhausted and struggling to move. He considered himself lucky that the rebels were cowards.

“Wolf-nim.”

A commander approached him from behind. The man’s legs were trembling, and his face was etched with exhaustion. Wolf remembered that face. It was the commander who had been ordered to bring his family. But he was empty-handed, and when his eyes met Wolf’s, he showed even greater fear.

Wolf asked.

“Speak.”

“The mansion has already burned down, but your family members escaped safely.”

Wolf looked around. But all that were present were the commander and Wolf’s terrified soldiers. Wolf asked with a smile.

“Oh? So, where are my family members now?”

Wolf tried to mask his anxiety with a smile. Beneath his rough and ignorant nature, there was an effort to make a positive assumption.

Perhaps the commander was trying to be clever. It made no sense to bring family members into the middle of such a battlefield. Seeing as he hadn’t brought the soldiers either, maybe the family was already resting safely within the city walls.

Wolf took a step towards the commander, offering a magnanimous smile. His steps clearly conveyed the intent to kill if positive news wasn’t delivered. The commander reflexively stepped back with every move Wolf made.

Wolf paused at his movement and scanned the commander’s appearance again with his eyes.

He didn’t look like he had just come from a battle. But strangely, his attire seemed incomplete. Wolf said to the commander.

“Where are my family members now?”

“Yes. Wolf-nim… uh, that is…”

He had come prepared for death, but anyone would tremble in fear when faced with a crisis. Wolf said.

“Speak quickly. I ordered you to bring my family, so why did you come alone?”

“Th-that is…! It has been confirmed that they already left by ship…!”

“Ship? What ship? What are you talking about?”

Wolf couldn’t comprehend the words spilling from the commander’s mouth. Wolf’s family had never once mentioned any plan to escape by ship. They had always told Wolf they would be by his side.

“I heard it was a ship heading to another continent. By the time we found out, the ship had already departed…”

Wolf’s face turned bright red. Tears welled up in his eyes, and his expression contorted strangely. It might have looked comical to an outsider, but for the commander facing Wolf right then, it was far from amusing.

Wolf shouted.

“Don’t lie! My family! They wouldn’t abandon me! I brought them this far! I earned money for them all this time! And yet they ran away, leaving me behind! It’s a lie! That’s a lie! My family wouldn’t do that!”

The commander yelled.

“Th-this was confirmed at the port! Wolf-nim’s family members were already on the ship…! Gack… Gaaack…!”

The commander’s next words wouldn’t follow. Because Wolf had grabbed him by the collar and lifted him into the air. His grip on the collar was like a log, unyielding, and the tightening pressure felt like it would snap his neck at any moment.

“Gggack……. Gack…!”

The commander let out a scream of pain. But Wolf’s face looked even more pained than the commander’s.

“You! You sold out my family and you’re lying! What do you know! They were the kind of family who swore we’d be together forever since the back alleys! They wouldn’t abandon me! I told them I’d protect them! I told them they only needed to trust me! How dare you spout such bullshit about running away!”

Wolf threw the commander onto the ground. The commander’s body, plummeting from a short distance, exploded as if crushed by a giant hammer. The blood flowing on the ground and the pieces of internal organs stuck to the armor further stimulated the soldiers’ fear.

Some fainted, claiming they’d made eye contact with the warrior Wolf, while others started crying, wetting themselves. It was a pathetic sight, unbecoming of an army that had just suppressed a rebellion. Wolf, even while looking at the mangled remains, didn’t seem to have calmed down. He shouted at the commander who was still waiting behind him.

“Find my family right now! The rebels must be hiding them!”

They were the family who swore eternal loyalty. They were the family who always met his endeavors-whether it was roughhousing in back alleys or aspiring to become a knight-with smiles. If someone got hurt and came back, they fought as one, and they always tried to cover up each other’s minor mistakes. They were poor, but every day was passionate and happy.

“Aaaargh!”

Wolf screamed. Wolf wanted to believe his family hadn’t abandoned him. He wanted to say the tears streaming down his face were from sorrow, not betrayal.

Wolf’s roar echoed through the capital. The few survivors crawled into holes in the slums or huddled together amidst the rubble of collapsed houses, trembling in fear.

People prayed for the warrior’s arrival. They prayed for someone to defeat that wicked demon and usher in a new era.

An old woman, wrapped in rags, strolled leisurely down the street. Her face was pockmarked, and her eyes were clouded white, unable to see properly. Soldiers, reluctantly searching the surroundings, frowned upon seeing the old woman and kept their distance.

The old woman hummed a tune and began to dance in front of the soldiers. Her thin arms and a belly that protruded like a tadpole’s. Her grotesque appearance, like a monster from myth, made the soldiers turn their heads and walk away.

Mid-dance, the old woman stopped, arms spread wide in a dance pose. Staring intently at the ground, she began moving her head in sync with the movement of a cockroach crawling along the path. Then, she swiftly scooped up the cockroach with her hand and popped it into her mouth.

With a crisp crunch, her lively dance resumed. Watching her shimmy and twirl around the street from within their ruined shelters, the refugees, trapped like prisoners, felt an inexplicable surge of anger.

“You crazy old hag. Dancing now? If you’re gonna go mad, at least do it gracefully!”

The old woman paid no mind to the citizens’ curses. She simply smiled contentedly, looking up at the sky with her arms outstretched.

Afraid to draw attention, people could only glare at the old woman, grumbling under their breath. Like someone under a spotlight on stage, the old woman gracefully rose onto her toes, reached towards the sky, and spoke.

“A warrior shall come.”

What was the old woman seeing? She exclaimed, reaching out with an ecstatic smile, as if gazing upon heaven.

“A warrior riding a white horse shall come to the capital.”

Even those who had cursed the old woman, and the guards searching the area, looked at her with strange expressions. It was a rumor they’d always heard, but today, it carried a different weight.

“Riding a white horse with dozens of legs, the warrior shall come here.”

People stared blankly at the old woman. The old woman, flushed with satisfaction, spread her arms wide and began to dance again. No one cursed her dancing anymore. Leaning against the ruins, people began to pray, awaiting the warrior who would one day arrive.

The guards stopped their search and sat down on the spot. They sighed deeply, patted each other’s shoulders, lit cigarettes, and exhaled. The old woman’s dancing faded into the distance. Watching her recede, one soldier asked his companion.

“Do you think a warrior will come? A real warrior.”

“I don’t know.”

His colleague blew out smoke. He knew nothing. He could only pray. Praying that the warrior would die, hoping someone would end this cruel tragedy. Hoping the world would find happiness.