Chapter 364: Pit Of Broken Legs And Despair

Aisha’s thoughts wandered back to that very morning.

Along with the letter Cassius had left for them, there’d been a pot of stew set aside, labeled in his handwriting as something he and Julie had made together last night. He’d even written that the dish was prepared entirely by Julie, with only his guidance hovering over her shoulder.

Reading that, Aisha’s face had drained of all color then, because everyone knew Julie’s cooking was usually closer to poison than food. Every past attempt of hers had ended in disaster, charred, bitter, foul, and inedible.

The idea of eating something made by her was like willingly signing up for food poisoning that could last the rest of their journey.

She had flat-out refused, but Skadi, whose stomach had been grumbling loudly since dawn, couldn’t hold back.

The wolf girl had dipped her spoon into the pot with no hesitation and shoved a mouthful into her mouth. Aisha had nearly covered her eyes, sure Skadi would collapse instantly.

But instead, the girl’s ears twitched, her eyes widened, and then her tail had started wagging furiously. She’d swallowed and looked at all of them with shining eyes.

"This is...actually good! This tastes so good!"

The disbelief in Skadi’s voice had been so strong it sent a chill down Aisha’s spine. Even Julie had gone slack-jawed.

She’d thought for sure her little "addition" of berries into the stew would’ve ruined everything, and she hadn’t even tasted it herself last night, too flustered after running off from Cassius.

But now, taking her own spoonful, Julie had burst into tears of happiness. "It’s delicious...I can’t believe it actually worked out..."

Even Aisha herself had finally given in, cautiously sipping from a spoon with every expectation of gagging. Instead, her eyes widened in shock. She hadn’t wanted to admit it, but it was good. Really good.

Now, riding along, Aisha fixed her sister with a sharp, suspicious look.

"Which is why I’m still wondering...did you really make that stew, or are you just taking credit for Cassius’s work? Because honestly, it doesn’t add up."

"What are you even talking about, Aisha?" Julie puffed out her cheeks in frustration, her knitting needles clicking as she jabbed them together. "He’s the one who told you himself. He even wrote it in the letter in his own handwriting! Do you think I’m forging letters now?" She lifted her chin proudly. "I really was the one who made it. I did it with my own two hands."

"Don’t be so proud, Captain." Aisha scoffed, unimpressed. "You didn’t suddenly wake up one day with talent. The only reason you can even knit or cook now is because Cassius has the patience of a saint and the skill of a master."

"...You’ve been hopeless at both for years, and now suddenly you’re pretending it’s all you? Please."

Julie bristled for a moment, ready to snap back, but then she paused. Slowly, her irritation faded, and to Aisha’s surprise, she smiled instead. A soft, genuine smile of acceptance.

"I know, Aisha. You’re right...It’s not because I suddenly changed. It’s because of Cassius."

Aisha blinked, caught off guard, while Julie’s voice was quiet but warm, as she continued saying,

"That’s why I’m so grateful to him. After everything, even though I doubted him at first, I’m honestly happy now that he came into my life."

"Yes, yes! I agree! Meeting Master was the greatest day of my life!" Skadi bobbed her head so hard her braid nearly bounced out of place. "Even better than the day I ate that magical steak at that tavern, ugh, it was so juicy and divine, I still dream about it even now." Her tail wagged at the memory, though she sighed wistfully. "But Master tops even that steak!"

"Hmph...I suppose...I suppose that’s true." Aisha muttered in a shy, reluctant tone. "He has changed things. It’s been...fun, with him around."

That quiet confession hung in the air, and suddenly the three of them grew somber.

Their laughter and teasing drained away, replaced by the weight of absence. Cassius wasn’t with them right now. None of them knew where he had gone, and the emptiness of his presence struck harder than they expected.

For a few moments, silence stretched.

Then Julie exhaled lightly and pointed ahead, her voice soft but lifting the mood.

"It looks like we’re approaching a town. Skadi, you can finally buy some snacks to fill that endless stomach of yours."

Skadi instantly perked up, tail wagging so hard it brushed against her horse’s flank. "Yippee! Finally! I thought I was going to waste away and die on the road! I’m going to eat until I burst!"

But when they passed under the town gates, their excitement withered.

The streets, which should have been bustling with people, were empty. No voices, no chatter, no merchants calling out. The windows of the shops were shuttered, doors bolted. Not a single person stood outside.

Julie’s smile faded as unease crept in. "What...? Where is everyone?"

They rode further in, their hooves clopping on stone echoing through the stillness. Here and there, the smell of food drifted from houses, cooking fires still burning, stews bubbling away, but there was no sign of life.

Tables set with plates, tools abandoned in place, even laundry still damp on the lines. The whole town looked alive just hours ago...and yet it was completely deserted now.

"It’s not abandoned. People were here not long ago. So where did they all go?" Julie’s voice was hushed when she spoke again.

Aisha sniffed the air, her nose twitching faintly.

"I can smell it. Someone’s been cooking. Fires are still burning. People are here. But..." She trailed off, her eyes narrowing. "It’s like they all vanished at once. As if something pulled them away suddenly."

Skadi’s ears drooped uneasily, her appetite momentarily forgotten. "That’s...creepy."

The three of them pressed further down the empty street, confusion gnawing at them. Then, without warning, a blur darted from one alley to the next, a boy, perhaps thirteen, sprinting as though late for something.

He moved quickly, his arms pumping as he tore past them without so much as a glance.

Aisha’s instincts flared. She jerked on her reins, turning her horse sharply. "Hey! Stop, stop, stop, little boy!" She shouted.

At her voice, the boy skidded to a halt, dust kicking up beneath his heels. He spun around, glaring at her with a defiant, scrunched-up face.

"Little boy?!" He snapped. "Why are you calling me that? You’re talking like you’re so much older, but you don’t look any older than me! We’re probably the same age! Who do you think you’re calling little?!"

Aisha’s jaw dropped.

"What, what did you just say?!" She stammered, her voice cracking with fury. Then she all but exploded, pointing a finger at him. "You little brat! Did you just say we’re the same age?! Same age?!"

"...You tiny shit, I’ll show you who’s older!"

She stood in her stirrups, ready to leap down and throttle the boy where he stood, her face red with rage.

"Enough!" But Julie quickly cut in, grabbing Aisha’s arm before she did something reckless. "Calm down."

Then she turned toward the boy, her tone softening instantly as she leaned forward with a gentle smile.

"Hey there. We just came into town, and...well, it’s strange. There’s no one around. Do you know what happened? Did something go wrong here?"

The sight of beautiful older sister stunned the boy. His face went red, and he glanced quickly away, stammering. The anger drained right out of him.

"I-I don’t...I mean, I was asleep for most of the evening, so I didn’t see everything. But..." He shuffled his feet, glancing back down the street nervously. "The hunters went into the forest earlier. They found something, something really crazy, something no one had ever seen before."

"They came back shouting about it. And then the whole town...well, everyone decided to go see it. Even people from other towns nearby. They all went."

Julie’s brows furrowed. "Something in the forest? What was it? Do you know what they found?"

The boy shook his head quickly.

"I don’t know. I just know that everyone said you have to see it with your own eyes. And I can’t stay here while everyone else is there! My friends are probably already at the front! I’m not missing this!"

Without another word, he darted past them, sprinting down the road again until he vanished around a corner.

Julie exhaled, straightening in her saddle.

"Something strange, found by hunters, and now the whole town, and even outsiders, rushing to see it...Could it be some kind of ancient relic? Or maybe a demon beast spawned in the forest?"

Aisha shook her head sharply.

"No. That doesn’t make sense. If it was a relic, people wouldn’t just rush in blindly. If it was a demon beast, approaching it would be suicide. The townsfolk aren’t that foolish."

"For everyone to go, it must be something they’ve never encountered before. Something so unusual they couldn’t stop themselves."

Skadi’s ears perked again, her voice brightening suddenly.

"Maybe it’s Master! Maybe this is what Master’s been preparing all along. Maybe it’s him! That’s why everyone went running, because of him!"

Julie and Aisha both turned their heads sharply toward her. For a moment, they were skeptical. But then, almost at the same time, they remembered who Cassius was. The strange, impossible things he could do. Slowly, unease shifted into the realm of possibility.

"...Could it really be him?" Julie murmured.

Aisha frowned, lips tightening, but she couldn’t dismiss it. "It...might be."

They exchanged a look, silent agreement passing between them.

Julie was the first to break it. "Talking won’t get us anywhere. Whatever it is, we need to see it for ourselves. If it’s dangerous, the people need protection. Let’s go."

Aisha gave a sharp nod, Skadi’s tail already swishing in eager excitement.

With a squeeze of their heels, their horses surged forward, following the direction the boy had gone. They galloped out of the silent town, hooves drumming against the dirt road as they entered the shadow of the forest.

The deeper they went, the more signs of people they found. Tracks in the dirt, trampled grass, branches broken from too many brushing past.

Soon, they began passing groups on foot, villagers, hunters, merchants, even children, all hurrying in the same direction, carrying baskets and lanterns, speaking in hushed tones.

By the time the three riders pushed further in, the forest opened up into a wide clearing. And there, spread before them, was a sight that stole the breath from their throats.

Hundreds of people. Men, women, and children alike. Some were perched on rocks, others craning their necks, standing on tiptoe. The whole clearing was filled with bodies, circling around a central point.

When the mounted trio appeared, the murmurs shifted. Recognition rippled through the crowd. Whispers of "The Holy Guard" darted from mouth to mouth, and like a tide parting, the crowd stepped aside, making way for them with reverence.

Uneasy, Julie, Aisha, and Skadi dismounted, moving forward on foot. The air grew heavier with every step.

Then they reached the front of the crowd. And they saw it.

A pit. A massive ditch carved into the earth, wide as a pond, its sides sloping enough that a child could slide down and scramble back up. But what filled it...

Their breath escaped from their lungs.

It wasn’t empty.

Crammed inside, packed shoulder to shoulder, were men. Hundreds and hundreds of them, probably over 500 men.

A sea of humans. Bruised, beaten, gagged, their bodies pressed together in the confined space.

Groans and muffled cries of pain echoed upward. They squirmed, crawled, tried to move, only to collapse against each other again.

But it wasn’t just their condition that made the three pale.

It was their legs.

Every single man’s legs were broken.

Not twisted sprains. Not minor fractures.

Their legs were completely shattered. Snapped at grotesque angles, bones jutting out beneath torn flesh. Limbs bent in ways they were never meant to bend.

It was as if someone had methodically broken each pair of legs before tossing the men into the pit, ensuring they could never climb out.

The ditch itself wasn’t a prison. Anyone with working legs could have crawled free with ease.

But for these men, it was a grave.

Julie’s hand flew to her mouth, her face draining of color. Aisha froze, her fists clenched at her sides, her breath sharp, while Skadi’s ears flattened, her eyes wide as her tail drooped to the ground.

Around them, the townsfolk murmured in awe and horror, whispering among themselves. No one knew what to make of it.

The three of them also stared, unable to look away.

They couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

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