The night after the strange crack in the sky, Elderglen felt… different.
Not louder.
Not darker.
Just wrong.
Renor Kael sat outside his house, leaning against the wooden fence as he looked toward the distant forest. The sky above it had returned to its usual color, pale and quiet, as if the strange fracture from earlier had never existed.
Most villagers had already convinced themselves that nothing unusual had happened.
"Just lightning in the clouds," someone had said.
"Strange weather," another added.
But Renor wasn't convinced.
The memory of the sky tearing open still lingered vividly in his mind.
He rubbed the back of his neck.
"…Maybe I'm just overthinking."
Behind him, the door creaked open.
His sister Mira stepped outside carrying a lantern.
"You're doing it again."
Renor glanced back.
"Doing what?"
"Staring at the forest like it owes you money."
Renor snorted.
"I'm just thinking."
Mira sat beside him, placing the lantern between them. The soft golden light flickered across the ground.
"About the sky thing?"
Renor nodded slowly.
"It didn't feel normal."
Mira shrugged.
"Well, nothing bad happened."
For a moment, Renor thought she might be right.
But then the ground trembled.
It was small.
So small that someone standing might not even notice.
But Renor felt it through the wooden fence behind him.
A faint vibration.
Mira blinked.
"…Did you feel that?"
Renor nodded.
"Yeah."
Both of them turned toward the forest again.
The trees stood silently in the distance.
But the air above them looked slightly distorted, almost like heat rising from a fire.
Renor's stomach tightened.
The tremor stopped as quickly as it had started.
A long silence followed.
Finally Mira stood up.
"Well… I'm going to sleep."
"Already?"
"If monsters come, I'd rather face them after a good nap."
Renor chuckled.
"Fair point."
She walked back inside.
Renor remained outside a while longer.
The lantern flame danced gently in the wind.
At first everything seemed normal again.
Then he noticed something strange.
His shadow.
It was moving.
Not swaying with the lantern light.
Moving.
Renor frowned.
He slowly raised his hand.
The shadow copied the motion… but a moment too late.
A chill ran down his spine.
"…Okay."
He stood up quickly.
"Now that's weird."
The lantern flickered again.
His shadow stretched across the ground and for a brief moment, it looked like something else.
Something with claws.
Renor blinked.
And it was gone.
He rubbed his eyes.
"Alright… I'm definitely tired."
He grabbed the lantern and headed inside.
But that uneasy feeling stayed with him.
Something in the world had changed.
And it hadn't finished changing yet.
The next morning began like any other.
Farmers prepared their tools.
Merchants opened their stalls.
Children ran through the village laughing.
Yet whispers spread through Elderglen like wildfire.
Renor heard them everywhere.
"Did you feel the ground last night?"
"My chickens went crazy around midnight."
"The dogs wouldn't stop barking."
Near the well, a group of villagers argued loudly.
"I'm telling you, the forest isn't safe!"
"It's just animals!"
"Animals don't make the earth shake!"
Hunter Bram stood in the center of the crowd again, his expression darker than yesterday.
"I checked the northern trail this morning," he said.
"And?"
"…The ground is torn up."
"By what?"
Bram hesitated.
"Something big."
The villagers murmured nervously.
Renor approached the group.
"Did you see it?"
Bram shook his head.
"No."
"But I heard it."
"What did it sound like?"
Bram stared toward the forest.
"…Heavy breathing."
A few villagers laughed nervously.
But others looked genuinely frightened.
Renor crossed his arms.
"What if it's not an animal?"
Someone scoffed.
"You're starting to sound like him now."
Another villager shook his head.
"Those monsters only exist in stories."
"Exactly. They appear in faraway Rift Zones, not here."
Renor stayed quiet.
But deep down…
He wasn't sure anymore.
That night, the fear finally became real.
The attack happened just after sunset.
A scream echoed from the southern edge of the village.
Then another.
Renor jumped from his bed instantly.
"What was that?!"
Outside, people were already shouting.
"Something's in the fields!"
"Get inside!"
"Lock the doors!"
Renor grabbed the nearest tool he could find a heavy iron shovel and rushed outside.
The village square was in chaos.
Villagers ran through the streets carrying lanterns and torches.
"Where is it?!" someone yelled.
"Near the wheat fields!"
Renor's heart pounded.
The wheat fields.
His feet were already moving before he realized it.
By the time he reached the outskirts of the village, several hunters had gathered with bows and spears.
Hunter Bram stood at the front.
And beyond him…
Something moved in the wheat.
The tall golden stalks shook violently.
Then it emerged.
A creature about the size of a wolf but wrong in every possible way.
Its body was thin and twisted, covered in dark gray scales. Long claws scraped against the ground as it crawled forward.
Its eyes glowed red.
The creature hissed.
Several villagers stumbled back in fear.
"…Monster," someone whispered.
Renor stared.
He should have felt terrified.
Everyone else did.
But instead…
He felt something else.
Curiosity.
His eyes studied the creature carefully.
The way it moved.
The way its muscles tensed before each step.
The way its glowing eyes scanned the humans.
It was dangerous.
But it was also fascinating.
Hunter Bram raised his spear.
"Stay back!"
The monster suddenly lunged.
The hunters fired arrows.
Two struck the creature's body but the monster barely reacted.
It slammed into Bram, knocking him to the ground.
People screamed.
The creature raised its claws
And Renor stepped forward.
Before he even realized what he was doing.
His grip tightened around the shovel.
His heartbeat slowed.
His eyes locked onto the monster.
The creature turned toward him.
For a brief moment
Man and monster stared at each other.
And somewhere deep inside Renor's mind…
Something stirred.
A strange voice.
Faint.
Whispering.
As if the world itself had just noticed him.