Fire...
Fire was everywhere...
From a distance, this place looked like a sea of flames swallowing the entire tiny village whole.
But unlike before, the cries, the screams, the pleas for help had all completely vanished.
Only silence remained, along with the sound of fire consuming everything.
Up in the sky, two figures in white robes with golden trim floated, their robes adorned with patterns resembling patches of dark mist.
Yes, they were Vladirovic and Elisova.
They hovered in midair, gazing down at the sea of fire below, their masks hiding their faces so no one could see what expressions they wore at that moment.
A mysterious, sinister, yet incomparably majestic and divine voice echoed in their ears.
"Anomaly... Lathel..."
Upon hearing the voice, Elisova and Vladirovic both bowed respectfully, one hand placed over their chest, the other behind their back.
"Guide the threads of fate... eradicate the anomaly..."
The voice resounded again, and both Elisova and Vladirovic bowed in response: "Yes, great Xal'veth."
Suddenly, Elisova spoke up: "Great Xal'veth, I praise your name and your greatness. But... do we need to take a detour to resolve that chaotic note?"
Vladirovic tilted his head to glance at her, but said nothing.
"Fate..." Xal'veth's voice rang out, causing both Vladirovic and Elisova to shudder: "The threads of fate are now intertwined..."
"Only fate's own knots... can unravel this chaotic string of destiny..."
"I understand, my great Xal'veth." Elisova answered respectfully. She then looked at Vladirovic, nodded slightly, and said, "Let's begin."
Vladirovic nodded as well, extending his hand, and an old, tattered leather scroll appeared, emanating an aura of time, divinity, and mystery.
A quill pen appeared in his hand, and he began to write strange characters onto the scroll, which floated in front of him.
Elisova waved the branch of flowers in her hand as if she were conducting a symphony.
Suddenly, space thickened, becoming viscous like a muddy swamp. Cold winds rose up, but all of them blew toward the burning inferno.
Around the area, a black mist emerged, enveloping the entire village. Though the place was being consumed by flames, the dark mist made everything eerily dim and suffocatingly grim.
"Ah! It hurts!"
"It's so hot! Help me!"
"Mother! Save me!"
"It's so hot! Help!"
The villagers' cries rang out, but were distorted, twisted into something eerie—like voices calling out from the depths of hell.
The dark mist grew ever thicker, smothering even the horrifying blaze that was devouring the village.
Wherever the dark mist passed, anguished souls appeared, writhing and wailing in torment and despair, like shadows dancing to the melody played by Elisova.
Within the dark mist, a colossal fish—like a whale—swam in circles, with two white wings like those of a swan and scales reminiscent of a crocodile's hide.
The creature circled above a house already consumed by fire, then ascended, like a whale breaching the surface of the water, and slowly vanished from sight.
At that very moment, beneath the burning rubble, a charred hand reached out and gripped the earth.
Slowly, a woman's body—burned so badly as to be unrecognizable—rose to her feet.
She opened her mouth, her face stretching unnaturally, the maw gaping wide like a cobra's.
The dark mist, along with the countless souls inside it, poured in like a flood into a bottomless pit.
Her mouth became the center of a swirling vortex, sucking everything inside—including the anguished souls of the villagers.
In her ear, a voice both sinister and holy, brimming with divine authority, whispered: "Follow my path..."
"Let despair and suffering shroud the entire world..."
...
"Where... where is this?" The woman slowly opened her eyes, finding herself standing in a strange place.
"Anna! I've been chosen, I'm going to become a knight..." A man's voice echoed.
Anna startled, feeling that the voice was oddly familiar, but she couldn't recall whose it was.
She looked up, gazing ahead.
Inside a humble house built of stone and wooden beams, she cradled a baby, only about five months old, in her arms. At her feet, a little girl of about two clung to her tattered dress.
At the doorway, a man stood with joy on his face: "Anna, I'll become a knight! Our family will no longer be poor. I promise I'll give you a happy life."
"My husband..." Anna whispered, tears suddenly welling up: "My children... my two children... Is this a dream?"
"If this is a dream... I... I don't want to ever wake up." Her trembling voice was saturated with happiness and hope.
She longed to embrace her children and the husband she loved most, but found herself unable to move at all.
Anna didn't understand what was happening. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move a single centimeter.
The man standing at the door smiled and said, "Don't worry. Just wait at home for my good news—I'll be back soon."
Upon hearing that, Anna seemed to remember something utterly terrifying. Her eyes trembled, her mouth gaping as if to say something, yet no sound came out.
"No! Don't go… my husband… please don't go…"
Cheng!
Suddenly, the scene around her shattered like a mirror being violently smashed.
"No!!!" Anna screamed, as she plunged into a void of darkness and uncertainty.
She reached out as if trying to grab onto something—anything—but in the end, could not grasp a thing.
Anna kept falling, surrounded by shards of broken glass, each reflecting the beautiful memories she'd stored in her heart.
She saw her beloved husband going out to hunt, practicing his swordplay in hopes of fulfilling his dream of becoming a knight.
She saw her two children happily playing together, saw their innocent smiles.
She saw the villagers, who, despite their poverty amidst a flourishing kingdom, always wore smiles, always helping one another as if they were family.
Anna trembled, tears streaming down uncontrollably, blurring the scenes before her eyes.
"Ha…" Suddenly, she startled awake.
Anna realized she was still standing in the same house as before—but something now felt deeply wrong.
The house was dark, wrapped in an atmosphere of mourning. The dim, lonely candlelight only made the air heavier, more suffocating with despair.
The sound of children crying jolted Anna. She looked toward a corner of the house and saw her eldest daughter huddled there, clutching her younger brother tightly.
Cheng!
Suddenly, the sound of something breaking rang out, drawing Anna's attention.
"Stop! Please, stop breaking things, just stop…"
Anna's eyes widened in shock as she saw a woman desperately trying to hold back a man.
No matter how hard the woman tried, she couldn't stop the man from smashing everything in the house.
Cheng! Cheng!
"Please… huhuhu… please… stop… You're not like this…"
Anna trembled violently, tears pouring down her cheeks as she realized that the woman was herself.
"Damn it!" her husband roared in anger. "Why? Why are you treating me like this?"
Looking closely, one could see his leg wrapped in white bandages; he held a crutch under one arm to stand upright, while the other hand smashed everything he saw.
"Why? Am I not good enough? Am I not strong enough? Why??!!!" he shouted, smashing things in a fit of rage and pain.
All Anna could do was hold him tightly, sobbing in utter despair.
"No! Please, stop…" Anna watched the scene unfold, the pain in her chest so suffocating it was hard to breathe. But just as she tried to say something, the image before her suddenly turned to dark mist, then faded away completely.
The next vision was even more horrifying—she saw the dark mist slowly take the shape of that same man.
He lay still on the ground, unmoving, blood streaming endlessly from his neck. His eyes were wide open, staring blankly ahead.
Anna trembled, wanting to rush to him, to hold him tightly, but she still couldn't move.
Suddenly, the man turned his head toward her, blood pouring from both his mouth and the gash in his neck like a river.
"Anna…" His voice was hoarse, as if something were blocking his throat: "Avenge me… avenge… me…"
"No! No!" Anna shook her head in terror, crying and screaming, "AAA!!!!"
Suddenly, everything vanished, dissolving into black mist and disappearing completely.
Anna stood alone in the darkness, unable to see even the faintest light. Weariness and despair overwhelmed her.
Just then, a ray of light appeared, filling her with warmth and a glimmer of hope.
"God…" Anna murmured. "Great Xal'veth…"
A colossal fish with two angelic white wings, radiating divine brilliance and majesty, appeared before her.
Accompanying it was a commanding voice, like an order issued from Heaven itself.
"Offer your soul to me…"
"I will grant you a second life and the power to destroy the heretics."
In that moment, the despair and anguish in Anna's eyes vanished, replaced by reverence as she gazed at Xal'veth.
Yet, just a second later, her eyes brimmed with hatred. She clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms, drawing blood.
Strangely, the blood that flowed wasn't red. The moment it emerged, it turned into wisps of black smoke, vanishing into the darkness.
Gritting her teeth, Anna channeled all her hatred into her voice: "Yes, great Xal'veth. Take everything from me—I'll hold nothing back."
"Give me strength… so I can avenge the villagers, my husband, and my two poor children."
"I swear… I will drown them all in the flames of hell."