Episode 315
“Mom! So are we going on a trip with everyone in our village?”
The innocent question from the child.
The boy’s mother forced a smile and played along.
“That’s right! We’re all going on a trip to another city for a little while.”
“Yay! I’m so excited! I have to make a lot of friends there!”
“……”
The boy, who had never been to another city in his life, was overly thrilled.
He felt like an adventurer exploring a strange world, just like when he first entered the forest when he was even younger.
For a moment, he felt a bit uneasy watching his mother hastily wrap their belongings in a cloth, but that feeling quickly faded away.
As the faces of the city’s people, accustomed to long lines, filled the scene, the boy’s heart swelled more with excitement than fear.
What’s there to be scared of?
They had Uncle Brown from the bakery around the corner, who always filled the air with the smell of freshly baked bread every morning.
Sure, Grandfather Deck looked intimidating with a huge, mountain-like build, but he always greeted them with a smile.
And there was Aunt Bono, who always carried around some strange object that reflected her odd personality.
For some reason, everyone looked a bit grim, but the mere fact that they were all going somewhere together made the boy happy.
‘Where are we going? What kind of people will be there?’
His mother hadn’t told him the exact destination.
It was the same when he asked Uncle Brown, and he couldn’t muster the courage to ask Grandfather Deck or Aunt Bono, but honestly, who cares?
Just going out is already enough.
“…May the blessings of Yggdrasil be with us.”
Just before leaving the city.
His mother and the other adults clasped their hands together and bowed deeply.
With the somber atmosphere, the boy mimicked their actions with a sidelong glance.
They all seemed to be bowing towards the Central Church far away.
There were so many complicated words that he didn’t understand, but many of the adults had tears streaming down their faces or were quietly shaking their shoulders.
‘Is it really that sad to just go for a little while? Adults are such crybabies.’
Even though it felt strange to be leaving the city he was born and raised in, the boy didn’t shed a single tear.
Seeing the adults’ sad expressions made him feel oddly proud.
He felt more grown-up than the crying adults.
“For the safety of the citizens, exiting during the migration is prohibited. Even if Altife appears, do not be afraid. Our heroes will surely watch over you.”
“I will show you.”
As I tried to step out of the castle gate, a group of unfamiliar people appeared and said that.
As soon as they finished speaking, Mom and Uncle Brown clapped and welcomed them.
Grandfather Deck clicked his tongue, worried that these young ones wouldn’t be able to hold their ground, but when the boy tilted his head and looked at him, he quickly said it was nothing and avoided his gaze.
“Altife… I’ve heard of it.”
The boy thought, holding his mother’s hand, about the word Altife that the strangers mentioned.
According to Grandfather Deck, who was heavily drunk in the past, Altife was scarier than a pack of wolves.
Mom had said not to bring up such topics, so he didn’t hear the details, but they said it was scarier than a pack of wolves with sharp fangs and gleaming eyes… but he didn’t know since he had never met one.
After some complicated words were exchanged, they finally passed through the castle gate.
The boy’s heart raced.
His lips curled up involuntarily, and he gripped his mother’s hand tighter.
His eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought of what experiences awaited them.
…At least for the first two days.
“Damn it. Your face is a total mess!”
Aunt Bono shouted while looking at his face with a shiny round object.
People around her said there was nothing different about her, so she shouldn’t worry. She was still pretty. But that only made her angrier.
Grrrr—
The boy, watching the scene from the back of the line, felt pain as his stomach growled.
What was scarier than Aunt Bono was the signal coming from his body.
“Mom. I’m so hungry.”
“…….”
“Mom…. My legs hurt so much, and my back hurts too.”
“…….”
“How much longer do we have to walk? Huh? Huh?”
“…Just a little longer. We’re almost there.”
“You always say that…. I’ve already slept four times and still can’t see it.”
A city that doesn’t appear even after continuing to sleep outside.
After two days, the boy was exhausted.
His once sparkling eyes lost their color, and his legs, which used to stretch confidently, now could barely carry himself and his baggage.
“I want to rest. I want to go home….”
“…….”
“It’s tough. I don’t want to walk anymore. Let’s go back, mom.”
The boy kept tugging at his mother’s hand.
But no matter how much he pulled, his mother didn’t even glance at him.
The way his mother ignored him while he was struggling so hard burst the stress and fatigue he had been holding in.
“Ah, Mom! Can’t you hear me? I want to go home! Let’s hurry back……!”
Smack—!
The boy’s head whipped around.
His cheek stung.
An angry mother.
As the boy was left confused, it was his mother who finally exploded.
“I said we’re almost there! Do you think you’re the only one who’s struggling?”
“…Huh, Mom.”
“Everyone is the same! We’re all struggling! How long are you going to throw a tantrum at me? I’m tired too!”
With her face scrunched up and breathing heavily, Mom was visibly upset.
Grandfather Deck, startled, stepped in to stop her.
“Are you out of your mind, hitting a child!”
“……Huh?”
After a moment, she realized what she had just done.
The boy, trembling, touched his own cheek.
Still in shock, his face muscles twitched.
“…Ouch.”
Her palm felt warm.
“I really just hit that kid.”
“I- I didn’t mean to….”
As the thought of having committed an irreversible act crossed her mind, her mother’s hands began to tremble uncontrollably.
“I’m s-sorry… Mom… Mom is… just really struggling… so please stop.”
“……”
“It must hurt a lot, right? Mom did something terrible to her son… I’m sorry—.”
In that moment,
The armored figures guard the long line of citizens, like an army of ants, shouted loudly.
“—Everyone, prepare for combat!”
“Citizens, please remain calm and wait patiently! We will protect you with our lives!”
The armored people moved in perfect unison, ready to intercept someone approaching from afar.
The boy and his mother also took in the scene.
The approaching figure was dressed like a person.
Wearing a black suit and having black hair, he looked unmistakably human.
‘Is that… Altife?’
The boy couldn’t understand why the armored people were so vigilant.
He wasn’t wearing armor, wasn’t wielding a great sword, and was just one person, not a pack.
‘Is this person more dangerous than a pack of wolves?’
Just as the boy’s mind was getting tangled, one of the armored people shouted.
“Stop moving and back off, Vargan! If you come any closer, you will meet your death!”
The one called Vargan exchanged words with the armored figure for a while.
Though he was too far to hear exactly what was said, it was clear that Vargan was mockingly laughing at the armor-clad men.
Whether the conversation went well or not, the armored people charged with drawn swords.
But then—
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
Instead, it was the heads of the armored figures that began to roll.
Without knowing what had happened, more than a dozen lives were snuffed out with ease.
“Ah, Altife….”
Someone whispered in terror.
“…It’s a monster.”
Swoosh—
A huge maw opened behind the man in the black suit, and bizarre-looking monsters poured out in droves.
Red creatures more brawny than Grandfather Deck, who seemed frightened.
At a glance, the boy realized these monsters were what Altife had been.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
“Ahhhhhh!”
“Run! Run—!!”
Screaming, people began to flee in the opposite direction.
Uncle Brown from the corner bakery too.
Grandfather Deck with a menacing look on his face.
Aunt Bono, who dropped her cherished item.
All were stumbling and fleeing for their lives.
“Le- let’s go quickly! Hurry!”
His mother also grabbed the boy’s hand and fiercely led him away.
He had never seen his mother so pale before.
“Move! Move! Get out of the way!”
“Mom! Dad!”
People scattered in all directions.
They strained every nerve to escape from the monsters.
“You have to hold my hand tight! Do you understand? You must never let go!”
“Y- yeah… but Mom… over there….”
While rushing along with his mother, the boy pointed to a distant spot.
There, he saw a man departing swiftly.
That man seemed blocked by something transparent. He crashed into the air but couldn’t move forward at all.
“What the heck! What is this?!”
Thud. Thud—
As more people arrived, they kept tripping over the mysterious transparent barrier.
A stuck moment often leads to falls.
People bumping against walls in a hurry.
Searching for gaps.
But soon they realize there’s nowhere left to run. Terrified, they look back.
*Creeeek.*
Monsters charge forward, grinning disturbingly wide.
Faster than an enraged horse, they close the distance in the blink of an eye, leaving people trembling on their legs.
“Gaaaaaah!”
“I-I hate this…! Go away!!”
“Ugh, gaaaaaah!”
Finally, the Altife stab at the fleeing humans with their long, tail-like appendages.
Those struck begin to transform.
Their skin swells, hardening and turning red.
Just like the other Altife… countless people are being forcibly turned into monsters.
Everyone the boy knew in his neighborhood.
The kind neighbors who used to greet him with a smile.
Now they’re monsters, grimly grinning as they approach.
*“P-please… save… me.”*
The chaos intensifies.
And eventually, the boy’s mother, who is gradually becoming a monster.
Even as her body distorts, she tries to protect her son.
The heroes who once defended them are long dead, devoured by the Altife.
All the neighbors have turned, drooling as they stare hungrily at this mother and son.
“……”
Vargan approaches, eyeing the area.
He came to confirm if there were still any unaffected individuals and found the boy’s mother, half-transformed, shielding her child.
Three scattered corpses of other Altife lay nearby.
Though her mind might have been fading, she still fought back with the half-hearted strength of an Altife.
“Save you?”
*“You can’t take… this child.”*
The boy, shaking like a leaf, seemed paralyzed behind his mother.
Vargan looked at the boy with a blank stare.
Then, turning away, he smirked subtly.
“Don’t worry.”
Soon, the boy’s mother collapses, losing consciousness.
Her entire body has undergone Altification, transforming her into a mindless monster. The boy bursts into tears, screaming.
“Mom…! Mom—!!”
Vargan clamped his ears at the noise before lightly gesturing for one of the Altife to move.
The Altife approached the boy, drooling and eager to tear into him, but had no choice but to obey Vargan, the Executor.
*Swish—!*
In an instant, tentacles pierced the boy’s temples, and he gasped before frothing at the mouth, becoming a unique Altife just like his mother.
“Today’s harvest from this city stands at 114 special entities. Standard ones, 7,000, I believe. Not a bad haul at all.”
Vargan surveyed the surroundings filled with the red army.
The Altife’s greatest strength and terrifying feature is how easily they can bolster their ranks.
This makes it feasible to ambush refugees fleeing the war and increase their numbers.
“Let’s move out.”
*Creeeek!*
*Keraak!*
The red horde began to mobilize at Vargan’s command.
Trailing far behind were massive nests that resembled mountains.
*Ku-goo-goo-gooong—.*
Moving Nest.
A colossal fortress sheltering dozens of Altife within, steadily advanced towards the holy ground under the protection of the Altife swarm.
