I had been following them — fifty-one of Windan's finest warriors — through the frozen wastes beyond the border.
I wasn't one of them.
I was a spy from Kazmara, sent to watch their movements and report their plans. If they were preparing to strike my kingdom, I had to know.
I thought I was hunting prey.
I didn't realize I'd walked into the jaws of something far worse.
The sea was frozen solid, stretching into the horizon like a sheet of black glass. The Royal Guard marched across it without hesitation. I trailed at a distance, keeping to the shadows.
Then the forest came into view.
It was wrong.
The air didn't move.
The trees didn't sway.
And in that unnatural stillness, the ground was littered with human skeletons — thousands of them—no signs of battle. No decay. Just… death.
They stopped moving. So did I.
That's when I saw him.
A figure stood upon a slab of black stone, his body exhaling mist like a living shadow. The fog coiled into the earth, and the ground seemed to absorb it. Even from far away, I felt it pressing on my soul.
No magic I knew could be sensed.
No aura could be measured.
It was as if the world itself wanted to pretend he wasn't there.
I froze.
---
The Royal Guard leader stepped forward — Captain Able. But before he could speak, the figure moved.
It wasn't even an attack. Just a twitch.
And my heart almost stopped when I saw the Guard — fifty men — crumble into dust.
Then… they returned. Flesh knit itself over bone, armor reformed over their bodies…
Only to be killed again. And again.
Fire. Ice. Blades. Crushing force.
Each death is worse than the last.
Then a black flood burst from the figure's hand and struck the Guard. Their bodies twisted, armor warping, faces contorting into shapes no longer human.
They weren't soldiers anymore.
They were… things.
One of them — I would later learn his name was Avkai — turned toward Captain Able. Even through the corruption, he seemed to recognize him.
With a roar, he hurled Able across the frozen sea, far into the distance.
That was the last I saw of him.
---
I should have run.
I told my legs to move.
They didn't.
Fear held me like a chain.
When the killing stopped, I tried to slip away. That's when real chains shot from the ground, wrapping around my legs and dragging me forward.
Fifty pairs of eyes turned toward me — all filled with cruel delight.
> "Look at him shake."
"Another one to play with."
"Don't kill him yet… I want my turn."
They fell on me like wolves.
Steel tore through my flesh.
Ice froze my blood.
Fire devoured my skin.
I died.
I came back.
Died again.
Came back.
Over and over. Each time worse.
By the end… I didn't want to return.
By the end… I just wanted it to stop.
The figure on the stone — the one they all served — finally stepped down. His face was still hidden by shadow, but his eyes burned with an ancient, merciless light.
He pressed his hand against my chest.
Something burned through my veins, twisting my bones, clawing into my mind.
What… is this… horrifying feeling…?
From the swirling black mist, a new shape emerged — another monster joining the ranks. Its limbs bent unnaturally, its skin shifting as though something beneath was trying to tear free. The others gave it no special regard; in this place, worth was proven only through killing.
The Demon Lord turned away from it and stepped back onto the black stone that loomed above the chamber like a shadow given form. His presence was a crushing weight, and when he spoke, his voice rolled like an endless storm.
> "You will go to Windan.
Do not leave a man or woman breathing.
Slaughter the children where they stand — let their screams be the song that carries my name.
Tear down their walls. Burn their homes until the sky itself turns black. Rip every tree from the ground, poison the soil so nothing will grow again.
I want rivers thick with blood. I want the world to choke on the stench of their dead."
He took a step forward, and the stone beneath his feet cracked like splintering ice.
> "Erase them. Erase their name, their history, their hope. Let Windan vanish as though it had never been born."
The chamber stayed silent for a heartbeat — the stillness before the slaughter — and then erupted into jagged, monstrous laughter. Growls, hisses, and guttural roars echoed against the walls, a symphony of cruelty.
The Demon Lord's gaze darkened, and then… he released it.
For a single minute, his true power surged outward in a wave. It tore through the Domain of Darkness, spilling beyond its borders, racing across continents.
The skies shivered.
The seas trembled.
Every mage in the world staggered as their magic recoiled in terror. Kings rose from their thrones, choking on dread. Farmers in distant fields froze mid-step, their breath stolen by an invisible hand.
Every soul — beast, man, or spirit — felt the same truth crawl through their bones:
Something had awakened that should never have existed.
The wave faded, leaving the world in silence.
The Demon Lord spoke one last time, his voice colder than death.
> "They will learn what true fear tastes like."
He turned toward the darkness beyond, and his army moved as one — footsteps pounding like war drums, marching toward Windan's final dawn.
---
The chamber fell silent. Only the faint swirl of dust remained where Captain Able's body had been moments ago. Queen Altharia lowered her trembling hand, her heart heavy with the weight of the life she had just taken.
She straightened, her sorrow turning into steel.
> "Assemble the ministers! Mobilize the army! Send messengers to every kingdom — Kazmara, Orvelin, Duskron, Solgard, and more. This is no longer Windan's war — it is the battle for humanity."
Her voice echoed with unyielding resolve.
> "Prepare every sword, every mage, every soldier. Anyone who can fight — must fight. Or our future will vanish."
Before the ministers could carry out her command, the deep toll of the palace bell thundered through the marble halls.
It was not a ceremonial chime — it was the alarm of war.
Then… it came.
A wave of raw, suffocating power tore through the kingdom, unseen yet crushing. The walls trembled, the marble floor vibrated, and the air itself felt heavy enough to drown in.
The Queen staggered, gripping the edge of the war table. Her breath caught in her throat. Her body shook — not from weakness, but from something deeper… her very soul recoiling in terror.
Around her, Windan's strongest mages collapsed to one knee, their magic faltering. Generals gritted their teeth, unable to stop the trembling in their limbs. Even seasoned guards felt the cold crawl of fear down their spines.
What… in the gods' name… is this?
Queen Altharia's eyes widened. She didn't need a messenger to tell her where this came from.
Domain of Darkness…
She forced herself upright, fighting the weight pressing on her chest.
> "Hold your ground!" she commanded, her voice cutting through the suffocating air. "Ready the city — now! This is no longer preparation… this is survival!"
The wave faded as quickly as it had come, but the fear it left behind clung to every heart in Windan.