Black Sword and Fragments [Vol. 1: Unforeseen Conspiracy]

Prologue

Prologue

“Allastor! Allastor!” His own name rattled around his head, though he wasn’t sure whether it was his own voice or Luna’s. His knees buckled beneath him, shaking so violently it felt like an earthquake had erupted inside his legs. He clutched at his chest, his heart hammering a frantic beat. Sweat poured down his face, blurring his vision. He could feel the deep thrum of fear coursing through every inch of him.

“This is insane—insane!” he rasped, his voice cracking under the weight of his terror. His gaze darted toward Luna, her pale face dazed, her lips trembling but silent. He needed her to speak. He needed her to say something, anything, to break this suffocating silence. “Luna! You said the creatures in this forest can talk, right? They can reason, can’t they?” His voice rose, trembling and desperate, barely keeping the sobs from spilling out.

Luna’s wide, unfocused eyes finally flickered toward him, and she gave the faintest nod. It wasn’t enough to reassure him, but it was all she offered.

“All right, then. All right. That’s—good. That’s good,” he muttered, though his voice betrayed him. His words were a feeble shield against the icy grip of panic tightening around him.

Then he heard it. The steady, heavy footfalls of the beasts that crept closer, vibrating the ground beneath him like the drumbeat of doom. Allastor’s breath hitched as he turned to face them. His blood ran cold.

The creatures, towering and golden-skinned, were unlike anything he’d ever seen. They resembled goblins, but there was nothing primitive or dim-witted about them. Their eyes gleamed with cruel intelligence, their grins sharp enough to cut. They held weapons grotesquely large and hideously jagged—a gleaming axe, arrows dripping with the stink of decay, and a greatsword so massive it looked absurd in any other context but this nightmare.

Allastor’s sword felt pitifully small in his trembling hands. His grip on the hilt tightened as the creatures closed in. The blade seemed to mock him, as if it knew it stood no chance against the monstrous arsenal before him.

“H-Hey!” Allastor stammered, his voice cracking. He took a shaky step backward, the uneven ground threatening to topple him. “If you can talk, then you can listen, right? Let’s not—let’s not do this, okay? There’s been a misunderstanding. We’ll leave. You’ll never see us again, I swear!”

His plea hung in the air, fragile and desperate. For a moment, he thought—hoped—that they might understand.

And then they grinned. Slow, malicious, hungry grins.

“No, no, no...” Allastor whispered, his throat dry as sandpaper. The weight of inevitability pressed down on him. His knees gave way, and he stumbled backward.

The beasts readied their weapons, the air crackling with menace.

“Luna!” Allastor screamed, his voice raw. “Run! Run now!”

Luna snapped out of her stupor, her eyes wide with shock. “What? No! What about you?”

“There’s no time! Just go!”

“I won’t leave you!” she cried, her voice breaking.

“You have to!” Allastor roared, stepping between her and the advancing creatures. His sword shook in his hands, but he held it steady, glaring at the beasts as if his defiance alone could hold them back. “If you don’t run, they’ll kill us both. You have family waiting for you—don’t waste your life here!”

“Allastor...” Her voice was barely a whisper now, laced with anguish.

“Go!” he bellowed, his voice cracking under the weight of his desperation.

Luna’s fists clenched at her sides, her face a mask of agony. But she obeyed. Turning, she fled, tears streaming down her face. Her heart screamed at her to turn back, but her legs carried her forward.

Allastor’s gaze lingered on her retreating form for a moment. “Stay alive, Luna,” he murmured.

Then he turned back to the creatures. They closed in, their weapons raised, their eyes alight with bloodlust. Time seemed to stretch and warp as they attacked. Arrows screamed through the air, an axe swung toward his neck, and the monstrous greatsword arced toward his chest.

Allastor’s life flashed before his eyes—a kaleidoscope of memories, laughter, and loss. His lips twisted into a bitter smile.

“So this is it,” he muttered, tears streaking his face. “What a pathetic end...”

He braced for the pain, for the final blow.

But it didn’t come.

A brilliant yellow light burst into existence around him, forming a protective barrier. The weapons clanged against it, their deadly momentum halted.

Allastor’s eyes flew open, disbelief etched across his face.

“What... what is this?” he breathed.

The creatures recoiled, their snarls turning to expressions of shock. One of them hissed, its voice trembling. “Impossible! A Godite Ranker!”

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Derived from Chapter 18-19