episode_0148

A day has passed since the incident occurred.

That day, a red moon bigger than yesterday rose,

The number of victims has increased to five.

There was one from the Jujak tribe, one from the Hyeonmu tribe, and three from the Baekho tribe.

People were terrified.

As is always the case with the emotion of fear,

One becomes two, and two becomes ten.

Fear slowly consumed the nation of Suin.

The fear of losing one’s reason.

The fear that my neighbor might kill me.

The seed of distrust that was vaguely in my heart

Its size gradually increased.

“I have to control myself from looking at the moon”

The people of Nirai are prevented from seeing the moon.

A curfew was imposed after sunset.

But even that process wasn’t smooth.

If you’re human, you probably don’t know.

The water people have the characteristics of animals,

Naturally, this was because there were nocturnal inhabitants.

They refuted Na-rae’s decision as inconsiderate, as they sleep during the day and start their real lives at night.

“Aren’t you the ones who lack consideration? Is it that hard to tell people not to go out at night during a national crisis like this?”

“They’re just talking nonsense, saying it’s not their business. If I told you not to go out during the day and to only do things at night, would you easily agree and say, “Oh, I see?”

We say it’s a matter of livelihood”

“What’s so hard about enduring that for a few days…”

“Then you should quit your day job too…”

The voices that grew louder one by one became sharp knives

They flew to each other.

Different races,

Or even within the same race

The criticism grew louder.

“Everyone! Stop it all”

“My Lady, is this really the right decision?!”

“To think that we have to live in a country with such inconsiderate people”

The deepening emotional rift pushed each other away.

The nocturnal residents left, saying, “We won’t listen to you anymore,” and “We’ll handle it ourselves.”

Residents of Judo also raised their voices, saying, “If you break the rules, you should be severely punished.”

“…Everyone”

Narae lowered her head with a complicated expression.

The other priestesses were not bright either.

So who among them is truly at fault?

A day that passed without any notable gains.

The moon was bigger and brighter than yesterday.

The number of victims increased.

A total of 11 people.

The number of ships had increased compared to the previous day.

There was one person from the Jujak tribe, three from the Hyeonmu tribe, one from the Cheongryong tribe, and six from the Baekho tribe.

Of these, eight were committed by nocturnal residents.

“Yes, the priestess’s words were right”

“Selfish guys, they ended up causing trouble”

They somehow created a sinner.

Those who were accused of being criminals cried out in frustration, but their cries went unheard.

Ironically,

Half of the victims were fellow nocturnal beasts,

Among those possessed by the moon was the resident waterman who had been arguing the night before.

He even killed a nocturnal beast that had argued with him.

“Hey, I want to go home”

“Me too, I’m so scared”

The young children burst into tears and ran home.

The situation for the adults was no different.

People who usually greeted me warmly stopped making eye contact.

I didn’t apologize to my neighbors or express my gratitude.

The neighbor I met during the day comes to kill me at night.

A wall was built, and the gate was double- and triple-locked.

The third night passed.

Fortunately, the number of victims was reduced compared to the previous day.

This time, three people.

Both the perpetrator and the victim were nocturnal perpetrators.

Among them were those who had no choice but to go out to make a living.

“Die well”

“Breaking the rules and looking good”

Here and there, resentment and criticism erupted.

There was no one to mourn the victims.

“Oh, no. This won’t do”

Narae collapsed with a vain face.

His legs gave out and his tail and ears drooped.

Still, no one hastily reached out to her.

“I will go back first, Priestess”

“Us too”

“We too…”

Those gathered left the place as if they were running away.

The warriors also quickly handed over the prisoners and disappeared.

“Narae”

“My lord…”

I hugged Narae quietly.

Narae sobbed in my arms, holding back tears.

The streets were empty,

The square where I first set foot in Suin-guk was covered with fallen leaves rolling around.

It was such a complicated street

It’s been only three days since this happened.

Narae and I returned home.

The soldiers’ mood was also chaotic

Not properly trained.

Fortunately, Garam and Daom came forward as representatives and encouraged the soldiers.

The shamans, including Na-rae, had each returned to their respective places to take a short break.

“Narae, don’t worry too much”

“…Yes”

Narae, who had wiggled her body once, buried her face in it.

All you can hear is the sound of colorful breathing.

Neither I nor Narae said anything special.

Because it was so quiet outside

The sound of our two heartbeats was unusually loud.

A hand patting the back.

A small, sobbing cry.

A heart beating wildly.

There was nothing special about the room other than that.

The sun has set, a time I didn’t expect.

please

Hoping no one dies.

People who gather together as if it were a given now.

They looked at each other with anxious faces.

Who died?

Who killed him?

Who survived?

The neighbor I met yesterday makes eye contact with me normally.

Should I laugh or cry?

I can’t figure it out at all.

That guy isn’t dead.

That guy didn’t kill me.

I’m standing just a foot away

The invisible line that separated them became clearer.

“Will there be any victims?”

Narae bit her fingernails.

Garam and Daom, who had received the order, glanced around and nodded.

A couple of soldiers appeared carrying something on a stretcher.

“Oh my god!”

“It’s horrible”

It was a corpse torn to pieces.

The culprit is a lion swarm. He is called Leon and is one of the soldiers of the swarm alliance.

“Mr. Leon did this!”

“It’s no different from the Allied Forces”

“Who on earth did we trust when we went to sleep”

There was one more body on the stretcher.

It was Leon. Unable to contain his shock at what he had done, Leon took his own life, leaving behind the words, “I apologize to everyone.”

I can’t trust anyone.

No one can be by your side.

My neighbors, my friends, my family.

The people trembled in fear.

Narae sat down on the floor with a vain face.

When night comes, I die.

Me, my neighbor.

They come to kill me. I’m going to kill them.

I am lost, and someone who has lost me comes looking for me.

Indescribable fear crushed those who were burning with fighting spirit.

The resentment and fear that have no place to go

I had to find the cause somehow.

Before the anxiety and fear that is squeezing me kills me

“In the first place, isn’t this all because of the Baekho tribe?”

Someone said so.

“…Huh?”

All eyes were on him.

They are broadly four different races. Neighbors who worship different gods.

Resentment and fear inevitably found a place to go.

“Everyone, don’t say that…”

Narae held back her tears and opened her mouth.

That was not possible.

We are colleagues and family who live together.

If we start hating each other, it will sink endlessly.

“No! What are you talking about? It’s the clan’s fault”

The tiger man got angry and stepped forward.

Following this, many beastmen belonging to the White Tiger Tribe, including deer, dogs, and horses, rose up.

The small voices that were passing by became loud voices,

The shouting soon escalated into a fierce brawl.

“Stop! Can’t you stop!”

Cheong-ah mediated the situation that had become chaotic.

However, even under the orders of the shaman Cheong-ah, the water people were not easily calmed down.

Here and there, people appeared with injuries, and some even lost consciousness.

The warriors tried to suppress it by force, but

Is it because of the deepening conflict between them?

It seemed like they were subtly taking sides.

Fear turned to resentment, and resentment turned to hatred.

Hatred has drawn us together, and at the same time, has pushed us away.

The White Tiger Tribe and the rest of the races.

Two divided races faced each other across an invisible line.

The tiger’s mane gritted its teeth.

“In the first place, in the first place, this whole thing started because of that bitch!”

“That’s right, why are you blaming us for something that was my fault”

“You’re the same race as them. You’ve ignored us since long ago. Now you’re going to say we’re the same race?”

“That’s right, the first incident happened because your people ignored the Hyunmu people”

Narae was watching the scene as if she had lost her soul.

Friends who had been laughing together just a few days ago were now sticking their claws and teeth out.

“This, this. It’s all because of the fox priestess”

“…Huh?”

Someone from the Baekho tribe pointed to Narae.

Their gazes simultaneously turned towards Na-rae.

“Ah, ah. I, I’m you guys… I’m…”

The world went dark.

Narae felt that way.

Cold gazes and sharp words were directed at me.

“Come to think of it, the fox priestess is Nao’s younger sister”

“Aren’t you actually in the same group?”

“That’s right, I might be in contact with you”

No, no, I never did that.

Really, really I…

No matter how much I moved my lips, no words came out.

Narae crawled towards them with her body trembling.

“I, I…you guys…I…”

Bam-!

A stone flew in.

“Gyah”

Narae was hit by it and rolled around on the floor helplessly.

As one flew in, two followed, then three.

Before I knew it, dozens of rocks were flying in.

“These crazy kids!”

“The girl…The girl…”

I covered her with my body and protected her.

The baptism of stones became even more violent when I, a human, joined in.

The head was torn, bleeding, and the skin was torn.

Narae shiver and crawled into my arms.

Die.

It’s because of you.

I was unlucky from the start.

Bringing in a lowly human being.

A lot of criticism and hatred pierced through me and Na-rae.

We hugged each other and gritted our teeth.

Kwarrung-!

“You fucking bastards! You can’t do it properly!”

Suddenly, thunder struck.

The crowd suddenly became silent and turned their attention to the owner of the thunder.

The blue dragon and the shaman Cheong-a took a step forward.

“Are you going to do something like this? Are you guys still considered honorable after doing this?”

They kept their mouths shut.

Na-rae and I, covered in blood, groaned.

ah…

Only then did they put down the stones they were holding.

Everyone stepped back with a look of despair on their faces.

A crying Na-rae came into their eyes.

She’s not a bad person.

She is a woman who is more upright than anyone else.

They knew it themselves.

That Narae is different from Nao.

Shame and disgust rose to the top of my lungs.

Some of them were vomiting on the floor and sobbing.

“Get out, you little shits”

The Blue Dragon’s priestess bit people.

Like the tide going out

People dispersed in an instant.

“Narae, it’s okay now”

“The girl…the girl…is not. The girl…”

Narae just muttered like a madman for a while.

All I could do was hug her tightly.