Leon’s POV
I made it to the village. There were about twenty, maybe a little more, but definitely not over thirty houses scattered around the place. Surrounding them were fields where villagers were busy picking crops. The second they noticed me, though, they got spooked and quickly backed away. Not long after, a massive guy, easily several times my height, came out of one of the buildings. He was carrying what looked like a huge stick with an axe blade on the end—probably a halberd. He had the look of someone who was this village’s defender.
“State your business here,” he said, voice low and threatening.
I raised my hands. “I’m not here to cause any trouble,” I told him. “I just heard this village had been hit by a string of kidnappings—women being taken—so I came to investigate.”
“How do I know you’re not one of them?” he asked, eyes narrowing with suspicion.
“You can tie my hands if it makes you feel better. You could even tie me to your foot so I can’t move,” I offered. “I’m willing to compromise.”
The guy glanced behind him, where a group of children, women, and elderly were huddled together, trembling like he was the only thing standing between them and danger. He turned his attention back to me, eyes locking on my wrist. He was clearly checking for something—the Eclipse tattoo, the mark those kidnappers probably had.
“Come with me,” he finally said, his tone sharp. “And make sure you stick close. You stray more than five feet away from me, and your head will be rolling on the ground. Got that?”
“I got it,” I replied, moving closer. When I was close enough, he turned around and led the way, not looking back.
We arrived at what looked like a barn. The big man pushed the door aside with a grunt, and we stepped inside. The interior was dim, the air thick with the scent of hay and dust. But the first thing that grabbed my attention was the sound.
“Mmmpphh! Mmmmph!”
There was a man tied up, his hands bound behind his back, his feet secured together, and his ass planted on the ground. His body was strapped tightly to one of the wooden columns, a gag shoved in his mouth, muffling his protests.
“This piece of shit,” the big guy growled, his voice dripping with disgust, “is one of them. He raped women in this village and kidnapped them. There were more, but I got lucky catching this fucker. The others ran off with the women they snatched.”
“Does he have a tattoo like this?” I asked, referring to the Eclipse mark.
I pulled out my smartphone and showed him the image. “Yeah, that’s it,” he said with a firm nod. “But there’s someone powerful with them. Someone even I couldn’t take on. A woman.” He paused, his voice dropping lower. “She was dressed like a man, but trust me, she was definitely a woman.”
I didn’t have a clue who he was talking about. Maybe someone in the Eclipse was disguising themselves, or maybe it was some weird order from Sesillian, given his twisted tendencies, to have his followers cross-dress. Either way, if this huge guy was admitting she was strong, that woman had to be no joke.
“Do you remember any features?” I asked, trying to get more information.
“Yeah,” he replied, his brow furrowing. “She had black hair like yours, and black eyes.”
That feature was definitely surprising. So far, the only other person I knew with black hair besides myself was my sister, Elise. Could this woman be connected to Lilith? Maybe another sibling of mine? It was a real possibility, but there were way too many variables to consider before jumping to any conclusions.
“Mind if I ask him something?” I turned to the big guy.
“Go ahead,” he grunted.
I pulled the cloth gag from the captive’s mouth, and he immediately started coughing, spitting out dirt and frustration.
“You fuckers,” he rasped between coughs. His eyes shot daggers at the big guy, venom dripping from his words. “You’re all gonna pay for this. Our Lord’s minions are already on their way, and when they get here, they’ll tear this pathetic little village apart.”
He was spitting threats, and not just words—his saliva flew everywhere as he ranted.
“All your women here will be raped! I’ll taste every last one of them! I’ll fuck them up while you watch, drowning in your own despair!”
I placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing slightly as I let a wave of deathly intent pour out of me. His mouth snapped shut immediately, eyes widening as he felt the suffocating aura I released. His gaze slowly shifted up to meet mine, panic creeping into his expression.
“You really think you’re gonna get that chance?” I whispered, my voice low and cold.
“E-Eek?!”
“Let me show you what real fear looks like.”
I unleashed every drop of my bloodlust, flooding the air around us with sheer, violent intent. His bravado evaporated in an instant, his eyes darting wildly in terror as his body trembled under the pressure. Every ounce of false courage he had clung to slipped right through his fingers.
“Now then, why don’t you tell me what you really are, and what your purpose is?”
The moment I asked that, he started mumbling something in a language I couldn’t understand—gibberish. It didn’t even sound human, but somehow, I knew exactly what he was saying.
In the shadows, we find truth, and in the darkness, we are reborn. The world will bow to our will, for we are the harbingers of the Eclipse, where light meets its end and our power begins
Then, suddenly, blood started leaking from his eyes, streaming down his cheeks and dripping onto the ground.
I immediately backed away, my instincts flaring as I activated my Guardian, shielding myself from whatever was about to happen. Just as I distanced myself, his head burst with a sickening splatter. Blood sprayed everywhere, and I watched in cold silence, protected by the shimmering aura of my Guardian.
I glanced at the man, and he had already grabbed a piece of plywood lying on the ground, using it as a makeshift shield.
“Looks like you’re used to this,” I remarked, noticing how calm he remained even after the guy’s head exploded.
“I’ve seen one of them die just like this in a nearby village,” he replied nonchalantly. “So yeah, I figured it’d end the same way.”
Before I could respond, someone came rushing in.
“Erick! They’re back!”
The big man let out a grunt, tossing the plywood aside as he moved quickly toward the door. Without hesitation, I followed him out of the barn.
