While sitting in my own dominion, my friends and I were holding a drinking feast, celebrating the victory of having subdued many other dynasties. Laughter filled the hall, and cups clashed one after another.
Then
suddenly, a sound was heard.
The laughter stopped.
The music died.
The sound came from the gates of the dominion.
An uneasiness I couldn't explain crept into my chest.
Slowly, I stood up and walked toward the door.
The moment I opened it
An old, wrinkled woman stood before me. Her back was hunched, her face carved with deep lines, and her eyes were far too… empty.
With a trembling voice, she asked me for water and bread.
A freezing fear wrapped around my heart.
Because there was a rumor told in this land.
They said that old women would come asking for water and bread,
and those who gave them what they wanted…
would suddenly disappear.
No trace left behind.
No scream.
Only silence.
The woman kept staring at me.
Without blinking.
As if she wasn't waiting for my answer
but for my fate.
"Ah… of course," I said.
Just as I turned my back to give her the bread and water, I heard footsteps behind me.
My friends had arrived at the door.
When I turned back toward them, I felt something inside me break.
Because the old woman…
was gone.
No footsteps.
No wind.
No shadow.
As if she had never existed.
We quietly returned inside. When the door closed behind us, even the warmth of the hall failed to comfort me.
I told my friends everything that had happened.
The expressions on their faces changed instantly.
No one laughed.
No one made a joke.
Because they all knew the same truth:
Those who vanished in this land
never returned.
We had already planned to investigate this matter.
But after what happened, our decision became final.
"We were going to look into this sooner or later," I said.
"I think… we'll have to move faster now."
Everyone nodded in silence.
There was no curiosity on their facesonly tension.
Because we all felt the same thing:
This was not a coincidence.
And that old woman….
had chosen us.