by Za1d3
Every time he swung his dagger, a giant incorporeal fist swings in the same direction mimicking the dagger. It was like watching a god tearing away the wings of insignificant insects with little to no effort.
The battle had lasted all the way throughout the night into the morning of the next day.
While it was cutting down the soldiers, the priests, magicians, and archers started to harass the demon while trying to help those on the verge of death. Instead of fighting the front soldiers, he swiftly turned towards those in the rear who had incurred his wrath, decimating the whole rear guard in a matter of hours.
Whether through sheer luck, strategic planning, or exhaustion of the other party, the remaining paladins, knights, and mercenaries were able to slowly whittle down the demon as his fatigue grew over the ceaseless fighting.
Someone managed to break through his armor and another even managed to slice through his hand that had held onto the dagger.
Eventually, the knights were able to pierce the demon’s legs with spears which slowed his mobility. A third spear through the vertebrate fully destroyed his mobility, resulting in the mountain of corpse.
Even when immobilized, the dark one fought to the point where no one wanted to approach the mountain of corpse. With deserters and so many dead, the army had been reduced to a measly few hundred of the most steadfast from the previous hundred thousand.
Eventually, the remaining paladins, seeing their inevitable ends. Invoked the Tri-Form Secret skill of Thullga, the God of Sacrifice. Sacrificing all their lives to pierce the three blades into the demon before morning, sealing his strength and sapping away his life.
The knights and mercenaries who did not flee during the battle and survived after the Tri-Form skill, were so exhausted, that when the bandits came out to loot, none were able to put up any resistance and were massacred.
“And that’s what happened to the remainder of the army. Heheh. Sorry.”
“Big brother, are you done? I want to test out this sword.”
“Yea, go ahead.”
Seeing the younger bandit bringing up a sword and raising it over his head, Gladis was resigned to his fate. He had been unconscious for too long and his body refused to heed his commands. There was nothing more that could be done, and no one who could help him.
*KHSCHUNK*
Chapter 2 – Once Again
‘Will I be denied this time too?’ – The thought resounded in his mind for the twenty-seventh time.
Twenty-seven.
That was the number of times he had been thrown back into this world, only to be promptly dispatched and returned to the empty void to wallow in his own regret at how powerless he was when it truly mattered, and his sorrow.
Memories that the Entity otherwise known as Rhultal did not want to remember yet could never forget flashes through his mind.
Broken and bleeding parents even before he had yet come of age. His life growing up in the hands of those who would step on him and use him for their own purposes. Watching those he love and cherished in agony and mercilessly slaughtered. His hatred that sought out power. his lack of control allowing the darkness to slowly overpower him, his pain at what he had become when that was all over, and the people who allied with the monsters and brought him to his death.
Yet for some reason he did not die. His body may have lost all functions and the body has rotted with the passage of time, but his spirit can recall everything he’s done, and the knowledge of his past remains solely his without dispersing into the ether. unable to move on, eventually his spirit would merge into a being for the cycle of life, but upon birth, for reasons unbeknownst to him, he would most definitely be culled upon the sweet air of freedom; excruciating pain, followed by death.
Over and over this event has already occurred twenty-six times, and this was the twenty-seventh. He had already understood that this was his own private hell for everything he has done.
Bracing himself for the inevitable fate that follows, the thing that was once known as Rhultal falls silent relinquishing his will and anticipation at the prospect of finally being whole. He silently waits for the hands of death to drive him back. He heard shouting and yelling, and at some point it felt like the hands of death were upon him. For what felt like eons, he waited with abated breath. Yet death did not follow. Instead, what he felt were two wavering hands full of warmth, grasping holding onto him. The entity remained in silence, unwilling to make a sound. After an eternity, the hands holding him start shaking, and he felt the atmosphere change. A soft cry could be heard. Suddenly, the arms were clinging on to him as if clinging onto its dear life, and a loud wailing noise erupts.
Surprised at this turn of event and the possibility of life, the entity opens his mouth and starts crying with all the strength that his tiny body could muster.
As if in accordance to his cry, the wailing stopped and a sound of sobbing delight could be heard.
Confused yet elated, he sought to use this chance to once again walk upon Lovis.
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Stuck in a body without the ability to do anything and yet to open his eyes, he patiently awaited the day when he will finally see the light. He would cry as a baby would when hungry, but other than that, the majority of his time were spent in silence.
The days went by, his feeble body grew little by little, and as his vision came, he was able to cast his eyes upon the world for the first time ever since that day.
From what he can gather, he lived in a small house with a mother and a father. The house had three rooms; a bedroom, a kitchen, and a living room. There was an outhouse in the backyard. The bedroom consisted of a small two-person bed with a chair and a small table; in the corner of the bedroom was a chest containing clothes. In the kitchen, there was a small fire pit for cooking and a shelf for dishes and pots hanged by the wall. The living room was simplistic and only had a plain table with two chairs around it decorated by a vase with some flowers inside.
Occasionally he would be brought outside. There were many small houses like the one he lived in. from what he can estimate, about 15-20 houses were in this village with a hall for meetings and a slightly bigger house which probably belonged to the leader of the village.
His mother would take him with her whenever she goes on errands. His father was never really around, so he was always with his mother.
—————————
As the first cycle of season passed by, the entity was turning one. Understanding and knowledge of his new surroundings had become clear to him.
He eventually realized that he was the only child of the family. His father’s name is Troyle Paltos and his mother was Adalina Paltos. Their family was poor and his father was mostly away due to work; as a soldier guarding the outskirts of their village. With little pay from his father’s job, to help supplement the low income, his mother worked commissions; washing clothes or running minor errands for the villagers.
There was little respect towards his family, his mother would spend her time diligently washing other people’s clothes, but upon receiving the laundry, they would scorn her and accuse her of being lazy and not washing thoroughly just to lower her payment.
“Look here! There is a tear here now, why should I pay you the full amount of 6 erns after you ripped one of my shirt?”
“I’m very sorry madam, but that shirt was already ripped when you dropped your clothes off and asked for the wash.”
“There is no way that I would not have realized that one of my shirt has a tear in it! Here! In consideration for your work, take this 2 erns and be off, otherwise I am bringing this up with the Elder!”
“No madam! Please don’t! I’ll take the 2 erns, I am very sorry about the tear! Please forgive me!”
Almost after every job, events like this would occur. His mother would get only a fraction of the agreed upon pay, and would be ridiculed with accusations of things she did not do just to haggle her out of a full pay. There was no other choice but t
o accept the meager giving’s since her husband was rarely at home, and who knows what the villagers would do to her and him if she had tried stepping out of her station. Sure there were those who sympathized with his mother, but those were the minority and most were in the same situation, so no one raised a helping hand.
He had begun understanding the language shortly after being able to see, and quickly learned by listening to his mother and people.
His mother had given him the name Kaidus, his full name was Kaidus Reilt Paltos. She would often cuddle him and sing him sweet songs, tell him of her childhood, of sadness and happiness, how she met his father, and would always whisper how much she loved him. Sometimes she would just talk to him like they were having a conversation, other times she would look at him and cry while holding him. Telling him how sorry she was.
He never understood why she would cry seemingly out of nowhere. This woman who gave him another chance at life, at retribution.
Born towards the end of Alivai, after the seasons of Fulta and Rinol had passed, he had already begun to crawl. At the end of Grunei he had started walking.
The seasons had flew by, and his first birth cycle came.
After making stew out of the small piece of scaly hare that she obtained earlier for 2 erns – almost half of today’s wage – and a couple of edible plants and roots, his mother ladled a modest portion into a small bowl, telling him to eat after making sure it had cooled enough for him. As he ate, she ladled herself a bowl, and slowly sipped her soup.
Noticing that his bowl had pretty much all the hare in it, he looked at his mother inquisitively.
Aware of his gaze, she gently smiled at him then tells him happy birthday, and as if recalling a deep sadness, she slowly tear up and started sobbing as per the usual.
Through the course of the past year, she would talk to him: while doing errands, bathing him, putting him to sleep, feeding him. His parents could not afford a baby sitter, so his mother was always with him. In that year, he had never spoken a single word. He used to cry when he was hungry, but after eating, he would quietly fall asleep or lay about while his eyes darted around at the environment. even after learning how to crawl and walk, whenever he was hungry, he would just crawl or waddle to his mother and tug on her skirt signaling his hunger. He had adapted to his small body, and by the time he started walking, he had already weaned himself of her milk and had started eating her cooking. He had always wondered about the sadness in his mother.
After months of deliberation on the reasons, for the first time he spoke to his mother.
“Why do you cry?”
“!!” – was the reaction he got.
Chapter 3 – Adalina
Adalina was born Adalina Drallfus in the small village of Nultulk. she was from a lower class family who grew up working in the fields with little education. her family consisted of: her parents, two sisters and a younger brother. she was the second eldest of the siblings.
When her sister turned 16, her sister was married off to a lumberjack’s son from a nearby village. Adalina had delusions of one day leaving home and marrying a handsome merchant who she would travel the seven continents with. alas, such fancies were not to be and even before she was old enough to marry, she had caught the eyes of a local innkeeper. When asked for, her parents refused her to him due to the fact that the village knew he was not a decent man, with two prior wives who already left him.
one day as she was gathering water from the river, bandits had attempted to kidnap her. a young soldier that was passing by had seen the incident and made a ruckus and interfered, resulting in the kidnappers running away. seeing that the kidnappers were actually people affiliated with the innkeeper, she begged for the young man to take her with him.
That was how she met Troyle.
On their travels, she disclosed to him why she wanted to run away, and what he had saved her from. the young soldier also told her of how he was one of the few mercenaries that were hired by her village to solve the amber fox infestation in the nearby forest. He had finished talking to the village elder and was on his way back to report to his company head when he saw the kidnapping. after the rendezvous with the mercenary band, she decided to stay with them, learning various things from the older females there.
The mercenary band did a lot of traveling due to the nature of their work, and she would follow them. helping to cook, cleaning, and washing dirty laundry. when she has time, using what little knowledge that was taught to her by her father and various trials and errors; she would scavenge for edible plants, berries, nuts, and roots during the travel. Adalina had only planned to follow the band to the nearest highly populated town where she could find work and try to live on her own, but after getting to know the people in the mercenary company, and Troyle, she decided to stay with them.
She eventually fell in love with Troyle, and after four years with the mercenary band, they got married. during a job, Troyle injured his left shoulder and was not able to able to work as a mercenary anymore, so they bought a small house with the money they had saved up, and settled down in the village of Hilthu on the southern edge of the Darsus continent.
being outsiders, the villagers were indifferent to them which was just fine. after recovering to an extent, Troyle was conscripted to join the village guards and sent to the outskirts of the village. only to come home once every five days.
As the days went by, and Adalina became pregnant, she felt the weight of loneliness disappear. she spent her days doing what little work she could in her pregnant state, and talking to the life that was growing inside her.
It was a horrible birth and even though she thought she would never make it, the child was birthed safely. as if stillborn, the baby made no sound after entering the world. the midwife slowly lower her ears to his chest and mouth to listen for any indication of breathing. upon closer examination, the child had ash gray hair, and two birth marks on his chest that looked like scars.
the midwife, seeing his hair and birthmarks started shouting “Demon! It’s a demon!” and as per the religious doctrine of the Holy Hainl Order pertaining to those with silver hair. she was about to crush his tiny neck with her hands.
“Remove your hands, before I remove your head from your neck!”
Yet before she could, a sword was leveled on her neck. luckily that day, a replacement had been sent to call Troyle back when she had gone into labor. seeing the fury in his eyes, the midwife relented and gave him the newborn then briskly left the room and the house altogether. Troyle looked at the newborn inquisitively with a face full of confusion and doubt then at Adalina. Troyle had dull red hair, and Adalina had sleek black hair, yet the color of the child’s hair was gray. doubt and confusion were the only things occupying his mind.
‘Could she have been fooling around while i was out there putting my life on the line to defend this village?!’
in anger, Troyle lashed out at his wife.
“IS THIS WHAT YOU DO WHEN I’M OUT THERE PROTECTING THE VILLAGE?!”
in his anger, he had forgotten her faithfulness, and mistrust had clouded his mind. Adalina tried to convince him that she would never do that, and that the child was truly his, but Troyle would not listen. seeing the murderous eyes of his mercenary days, Adalina slowly rose up from the bed. Strengthened by willpower alone, she attempted to fight for her child’s life. with a speed unlike that of one who had just given birth, she quickly snatched the baby from Troyle. clutching him to her breast, she begged and pleaded Troyle to believe her.
outraged and perplexed, Troyle promptly exited the room before he could do anything unforgivable.
left in the dim lights of flickering candles, Adalina gently caressed the newborn in her arms. fearing the worst, she silently waited while holding onto the child. bringing his tiny body up to her ears, she could hear a low breathing sound, she could see his tiny little chest rise up and down with each subsequent breath. her relief was short-lived, as the breath started slowing. not sure what to do and
with what looked like impending doom hovering over her child, Adalina cried. all the happiness when she found out that she would be a mother came crashing down, and nothing but grief remained. clinging onto the baby, she let out her despair.
“NGHGAAAAAAAAAA! NGHAAAAA!” – As if telling her he was there, the child started crying with all his might.
like a ray of light piercing the darkness, her sorrows disappeared. as if a child’s adorable trick had gotten the best of her, a light laughter could be heard mixed with her diminishing sobs. As she watched the tiny bundle of life in front of her quiet down and fall asleep, she decided to name him Kaidus, with Reilt as his middle name meaning ‘Silent one’.
After that night, rumors of Adalina giving birth to a demon spread across the village.
———–
After calming down and thinking things through, Troyle did not go back into the house that day. instead he went around the village asking for information and looking for clues on anyone who came through the village with gray or white hair. No one had any information, and those who did, were old people telling him of legends with people with gray silver and white hair. no one in the town had white hair; most of the villagers hair color was predominantly brown, there were only three people with blue hair, seven families with blonde, a few of those with red like him, and two other families with black like Adalina.
no one had ever seen anyone with anything close to gray hair not to even mention white, ever since times immemorial.
looking at the evidence before him, Troyle had no choice but to accept the facts that his wife was faithful, and that he was out of line.
With the midwife’s incessant spread, and Troyle inquiries, the rumor of Adalina giving birth to a white-haired demon quickly became known throughout the village.
———–
With the rumors going around that her child was a demon, Adalina could do nothing but take their jeers while bringing up her child. the indifferent attitude towards their family when they first moved in was now full of contempt. after much investigation and deliberation, Troyle had apologized to her and believed that Kaidus was his child, but when he is off on patrol, he could not protect her from the glares of the villagers nor their scorn. Her previous abundant jobs of helping out around the village slowly declined, and the previous payments drastically dropped to barely a fraction of their prior pay. always having to bring her child along when she is working, she can feel the disdain from those she passes, yet the majority of the gazes were not even focused on her, but at the child whose sin was being born into this world. she hated herself for this. she hated how; due to her love, she had brought him into this world, and because of that love, unable to set him free from a fate of hate and loneliness.