The castle shattered into countless fragments, debris blasting outward in every direction and destroying everything in its path.
Everyone who had entered the castle grounds—including the police, Liam, and his three friends—was hurled nearly thirty meters away from the castle pathway.
In front of the gate, the area was instantly filled with helpless bodies, some of them crushed to death beneath the castle's collapsing ruins.
The explosions happened three times, and the fourth was especially devastating, creating a massive cloud of scorching black smoke and dust that engulfed the surroundings of the castle.
Half an hour after the explosion. The sky turned gray, thunder roaring loudly, signaling that rain would soon fall.
Meanwhile, Liam slowly regained consciousness. The moment he opened his eyes, a sharp pain flared at the back of his head, the first sensation he felt after waking up.
"Ahh… it hurts," Liam groaned. The pain gradually spread throughout his body, especially around his shoulders.
Thunder boomed relentlessly, making Liam's heart increasingly uneasy. He tried to stand despite his vision being obscured by dust. But when he attempted it, his legs failed to support his weight.
Plukk!! He fell again, his forehead slamming hard against the stone road. Liam refused to give up, forcing himself to stay calm and trying to get out of there to find a safe place, all while enduring the scorching heat searing his back.
Around him, Liam could barely hear anything except thunder, the pounding of his own heartbeat, and his steady breathing. He also had no idea how long he had been unconscious.
After the first explosion, a powerful shockwave had swept away anyone standing on the castle pathway, including several visitors—and Liam himself.
Separated from his three friends, he was flung to the right, and worse still, his head was struck by debris from the second explosion as it flew past him.
Meanwhile, Liam tried to find his wristwatch. Perhaps due to sheer luck, the watch was still hooked onto his trousers, though his coat pocket had been torn open by friction.
Click…
"3:20 PM… huh?" He closed the watch again, slipped it back into his pocket, and began crawling in search of help.
The air, thick with ash and remnants of the explosion, made Liam's breathing ragged. Every breath felt heavy, his chest burning with pain. His vision blurred, his body weakening. Within the haze, his consciousness slowly faded. His eyes closed, and the world around him sank into silence.
Half an hour after Liam passed out. He lay weakly on a bed inside one of the tents. Leo and Zeta had already regained consciousness earlier, waiting anxiously for Forn and Liam, who had yet to wake up.
Leo felt guilty, believing that his invitation had caused his friends to bear such suffering. Reflexively, he clasped his hands behind his head and bowed slightly, silently praying to Goddess Yarandrela for them to awaken soon.
Goddess Yarandrela was known to wield vast influence, especially in the Forgenate District, Leo's homeland. However, in the Tezny District, only a handful of people still worshiped the goddess at the main church. According to the elders there, Castle Eaurealis was believed to be an ancient relic from an era when gods and goddesses—including Yarandrela—still descended upon the human world.
Outside the tent, rain poured down violently, accompanied by echoing thunder and fierce winds that battered the tents housing the castle explosion victims.
Later, they were all moved into the home of a doctor whom Zeta knew. Forn and Liam remained unconscious, lying weakly on the bed as the doctor examined them.
"Are they going to be okay, Mr. Aghris?" Leo asked worriedly, glancing at the rain streaking down the window.
"This friend of yours," Aghris said, pointing at Liam, then continued, "His condition is fairly serious, but he should regain consciousness soon."
"As for the young lady lying over there, her condition is stable. There are no fatal injuries, and she should wake up in about twenty minutes."
After saying that, Aghris left the room, heading downstairs and leaving them alone.
"The rain is really heavy," Zeta muttered, trying to ease the previously heavy silence as he looked at Leo, whose face was filled with despair.
4:30 PM. The heavy rain had stopped, the atmosphere returning to normal, though still shrouded by the aftermath of the horrific incident.
They both woke up at the same time, and once again, Liam was plagued by a nightmare of Zavi's death. Cold sweat drenched his body, and his breathing suddenly became labored.
Beside him, Forn, who had just awakened—carefully observed Liam's pale face. Sensing something was wrong, his eyes widened, and he immediately sat up on the bed.
"Hey, why do you look so pale?" he asked, watching Liam's trembling hands.
Liam closed his eyes and took a deep breath, calming both his mind and body. When he turned again, his hands were no longer shaking.
"It's nothing. Just dizziness from the earlier impact," Liam replied calmly, glancing around the room.
An unfamiliar room. The thought suddenly surfaced in his mind. But he didn't dwell on where he was. All Liam could think about was the lingering pain in his head and his racing heart, still affected by the nightmare.
Then he tried to get out of bed, standing up to check whether his legs could move as he commanded.
Thud!!
His feet touched the floor, immediately greeted by the cold surface of marble. Forn stared at Liam's behavior in confusion.
'What's wrong with him?' he wondered.
He quickly stood up, approaching Liam and trying to help him walk despite his body not having fully recovered.
"Don't push yourself, Zavi!" Forn said gently, supporting Liam's fragile body.
Slightly irritated, Liam immediately sat back down on the bed, choosing to rest until he fully recovered. To ease the sudden awkwardness, he decided to ask Forn something, while also gathering information about this world.
"There's something I want to ask," Forn stopped mid-step as Liam continued, "Do you know about that prophecy?"
Forn's body froze instantly, his eyes shooting sharply toward Liam. "Why bring that up all of a sudden? Of course, everyone in this city believes in that apocalypse prophecy—but there are a few who don't, including me."
Hearing that, Liam immediately thought of Ren, who also didn't believe in that strange prophecy—just like himself. Suddenly, memories of Zavi's previously mysterious daily routines resurfaced in his mind.
"One more thing, about the increasing number of deaths. There's no way a skilled killer could murder people like that," Liam asked again.
Forn walked back and sat on his bed, fixing his gaze on Liam with a serious expression.
"I couldn't find clear information about the victims' deaths. But there was one strange detail, someone noticed a small black dot at the base of the corpses' necks."
Liam was startled, turning sharply. "A black dot?"
'I remember Zavi had a black dot on his neck,' he thought.
"Yes," Forn replied, continuing, "I know the person who discovered the body. Do you want to meet them? Besides, a year ago, someone next door to my house died the same way."
Liam instinctively touched his chin. Before he could speak, Forn answered the unspoken question.
"No need to hesitate. I know what you're about to say." Liam closed his mouth and straightened his gaze.
"If you want, we can meet that person tomorrow," Forn said as he tidied his pillow and bed. After that, he lay down, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Five seconds later, Liam lay down as well. He turned toward the window separating the two beds, only to be startled by faint footsteps approaching the room from outside.
Liam immediately shifted his gaze, at the same time Forn slightly raised his head. Both stared intently at the door, waiting to see who would enter.
The doorknob turned. Click. The door opened, followed by two familiar figures, and one unfamiliar black-haired man wearing glasses, unknown to both Liam and Forn.
Leo and Zeta walked closer to the two of them, who were still staring. Meanwhile, at the doorway, Dr. Aghris smiled, relieved to see that they had finally regained consciousness from their injuries.
Leo smiled. "Hey, Zavi. Are you alright? Sorry if I... Don't worry about it," he said with a frown.
'Besides, they were the ones who invited me to the castle, so why do I feel guilty?' he thought as he nodded, then glanced at Forn and Zeta.
"Ah, that. I'm fine, anyway, that incident was caused by—ah, a crime?" Zavi made a tick sign with his two fingers, then pointed ahead.
From the doorway, Dr. Aghris overheard the conversation. He pressed his glasses before stepping closer to them.
"Sorry for butting in," he said calmly.
Zeta glanced over and said, "It's fine, sir. They're discussing the castle and the person who caused its destruction.
"I see," he said, pressing his glasses. "I'll excuse myself for now, and I'll be back." He immediately turned around and left the room.
Those who heard this just nodded, unconcerned, except for Zeta, who thought there was something bothering him at the moment. Thinking about it, he sat down in the chair in the left corner of the room and waited for him to return.
Then, Dr. Aghris returned after they had waited quite a long time and were curious about him. Their curiosity was answered, contrary to their expectations, when they saw Dr. Aghris carrying a tray with four bowls of hot soup still steaming and spreading its aroma throughout the room.
"Huh, this person is definitely not wrong. I thought he was going to take something," muttered Zeta, a little surprised, looking at Aghris who smiled slightly at her.
'You're wrong, Zeta, I'm not what you think I am,' thought Aghris.
"Please take one at a time, be careful, the soup is still hot! If you want a drink, just say so, I'll get it right away," said Aghris calmly.
Then, "Here,
Miss Zeta. Please take your portion."
"Ah, thank you," she muttered softly, her cynical gaze fixed on Aghris standing in front of her.
She shrugged slightly, responding with a slight smile, then left the room with the tray tucked under her arm and around her waist.