Timeless Hero Without a Goal

34th Tick: The First Town 7

“What’s going on?” Rose muttered.

She was unable to see a thing, but around her, in a sphere around here, the darkness was shattering, leaving her there. She tried walking forward, Thomas asleep on her shoulders. She adjusted him, holding him in her arms as he slept peacefully. She stepped forward, trying to find out what was going on. Had she invited the danger over to them? Or was it the work of a separate party?

Soon, the darkness dissipated and Rose looked at what was left. The town was by no means small, it was roughly twice the size of Rose’s hometown. Yet wherever she looked, there was nothing but broken houses. She looked back, seeing someone walk out of the forest. Even the guards had been mysteriously taken away or even killed. Rose looked at the figure walk out. He wore a hood over his head, but Rose could make out the important details. His skin was dark, his teeth were sharp, and his hood failed to hide his horns. He was slim, kind of like Amon, but radiated a dangerous aura. Rose kept her eyes in him as he walked out slowly, his eyes hidden.

“Who are you?” Rose demanded.

The demon paused and faced her. His red eyes were sharp, but there was a kind of lifelessness to them. He had short black hair styled like a swirl. He looked young, around his late teens. However, Rose knew that demons did not look their age, their lifespans were significantly longer than humans. He faced her, mildly surprised by her presence.

“How are you alive?” He asked her.

“I asked the question first.” Rose countered.

“But I asked you a question, human.” He said, the air getting heavy around them.

Rose stood firm, not willing to show any form of weakness. She lifted her head and said, “There is no need for you to know My Magic.”

It was a lie, but she needed to lie to get through. The demon was dangerous, and she doubted Thomas’ protection would work on someone like him. The demon simply ignored her statement and question, approaching her. He had his eyes locked onto Thomas who was in her arms. He reached out and pointed at Thomas, saying, “This child, does not have a soul. Why is that?”

Rose realised something. The demon, unlike the other demons she had previously encountered, was relatively short, shorter than herself. Rose replied, “I don’t know.”

“Not knowing...” The demon muttered. “I was once like that...”

He paused, looking up. “Or was I?”

He shook his head, pulling down his hood. He looked at her, his red eyes completely lifeless. He said, “Human, I do not know what you plan on doing, but I suggest you one thing.”

He walked away, a darkness engulfing the trees. In the darkness, there were faint figures of faces screaming in pain, shouting for help. He looked back, his red eyes glowing in the darkness. “Do not disturb my plan.”

He walked off, leaving Rose all alone. She swallowed her saliva and calmed herself, her knees trembling. She looked towards the town and walked there, hoping there was supplies to last her. She searched a few areas, and as she thought, there were bags of food and barrels of water and alcohol. She sat beside a devastated building and ate a piece of bread in silence, thinking furiously. The conversation with the demon was odd, she felt like she got a few clues by talking.

She thought about it, the demon general responsible for the merging of the demon realm and human world was probably the same one they were looking for. She could guess that the demon she just saw was the demon general.

She scratched her head, the feeling she got from him made sense that he was a demon general, but something seemed wrong. Thomas had said that he was looking for the demon general which Amon had killed not too long ago. Thomas had mentioned before of wanting to probably reverse time just so he could ask questions. However, it seemed that demon general was still alive, why was that?

“How complicated.” She complained.

Rose had thought she found a safe place to take refuge, a place where she could relax. She wanted to wash herself, have a meal, talk to people. However, reality was harsh, the humans had lost to the demons, and these were the consequences. Rose looked at a building and approached it, pushing a few pieces of wood aside without applying too much pressure on her left arm. She was looking for medical supplies, but could only find a few pieces of clothing. She removed the ripped cloths on her injuries and wrapped them with new clothes. She sucked in her breath and tried extending her left arm all the way. Maybe it was because of the food in her belly, the wound started to hurt a lot more. Some time when she was doing that, Thomas had woken up.

Thomas walked over clumsily, holding the pocket watch. He waved it in front of him, then poked her leg with it. He looked at her, Rose picking him up and looking around. She grabbed a water-skin she found, filling it with water. She grabbed a small bag of food, hanging it by her waist. It was not much, but it was enough to sustain her for a day or two. Her plan was to wait for the climate to change again, and hopefully she would be able to find the next town quickly. She tied Thomas to her back and started making her way west, where her gut directed her to.

Rose once again entered the forest, the creatures staying away from her as she navigated it. She was unsure if the island even had two towns, the next town could have been on a separate island. The merging of both worlds made the geography confusing, Rose did not like it at all.

When she made it to the edge, she sat down, unable to continue her journey. The sun was high in the sky, and the island started to rumble. Rose looked back, what she assumed to be a mountain previously Rose and stood on two feet. Rose looked at it and commented, “That is one angry wall.”