Chương 19: Childrens Laughter

(Warning ⚠️: Includes depiction of sexual violence, although, it's not portrayed with too much detail.) The snowflakes crashed over the wooden houses in front of an open, cleared-out forest turned farmland. The wind carrying it amplified the airy whites into wrecking balls that made the wooden pillars tremble violently. Inside, three little children, two girls and a boy, stayed huddled behind an older, more mature white-haired girl.

Sylvia Serayna, the big sister of her two young siblings, felt her heart palpitate at the sudden arrival of the blizzard. Since waking up earlier, she'd been increasingly getting this bad feeling. Like something was wrong. She'd at first paid the feeling no mind, and went about her business of collecting water from the well, filling up the buckets and pouring them back into the water tank under the foundation of their house. It kept the water from turning to ice during the cold season.

Except that the whole time she'd spent carrying buckets worth of water from the well at the edges of the fenced field of their farmland, she'd felt as if something was observing each of her movements, down to the beating of her heart and the intake of air through her lungs. Several times, she'd even flinched away from the dark forest beyond the fence when a forceful gust of wind blew and washed over her. The sensation felt akin to something sinister touching and caressing her very skin.

And now, when the day's activity had finished, and the villagers had mostly returned to their homes and were asleep, she couldn't help but frequently go outside and check on the village guards. Her back and forth from bed had stirred up her two siblings too.

"Sister, sister, read us something." The grayish-haired little ones, her two sisters, tugged on her sleeves eagerly. Her only little brother, on the other hand, just yawned, "Big sis Sylvi, how about you read us this?" He pushed a thick, hardcover book toward her. Its surface was smooth and leathery.

"Tales of Immortals." To divert her thoughts from sinking into worry and anxiety again, Sylvia focused on telling this story instead. She began reading it to the three children as they lay on the bed.

"Long ago, the world of Everlight was a paradise. A land of immortals, flying barges, and peaches and fruits that granted eternal life upon consumption." There was no hunger, no limit on the amount one could eat. No limit on the amount of land one could hold. There was no common man, no average man, no rich and poor. Everyone was equally powerful, exalted, and devoid of need. What moved them was never a need for survival, but a need to quench their curiosity and endless thirst for knowledge.

"And then, on a certain day, the stars in the skies began to go dark one by one. And while some of the great immortals flew up to check what was happening, a small door manifested around the heart of the great kingdom of Lysium. The domain of the great immortal, Boundless Essence." The children's breathing turned rhythmic as her soothing voice lulled them to sleep. At this point, she noticed footsteps growing louder outside the house.

Thinking it was probably her father and the guards dealing with some wild beasts, she focused on putting the kids firmly to sleep.

"The first immortal went through the door purely out of curiosity to explore the structure. He came back after a day, with a scroll that shone with brilliant gold." Look at this treasure. According to the texts I've found in the hall beyond that door, it has an interesting thing called Beast Craft written within it! You can make actual life with the help of this scroll! he said, eyes full of excitement. Creation of life wasn't something the immortals had ever done.

They could change the weather on a whim, freeze the ocean with a breath, and split mountains with a flick. But creating life? That was something they'd never attempted. The Venerable World Titan can make Colossus giants. It's time I do the same! the man said ambitiously, before walking back inside the door. But before its entrance closed, the door mysteriously vanished. The immortals of the kingdom searched exhaustively for the door, but it was truly gone.

It was said that from then on, one could hear the laughter of children at the center of the capital city of Lysium at night. And a year later, the gate reappeared. This time, numbering in the thousands, as they surrounded the capital from all sides.

"Bursting forth from the myriad of doors came green-skinned individuals wearing golden armor and wielding weapons that shone with sinister red." They came in only a hundred initially, but soon their numbers expanded as they flooded the streets. The immortals slaughtered the first thousand of them before another ten thousand emerged from the same doors. This time, the green-skinned ones were replaced by gray-skinned individuals towering ten feet in height. They introduced themselves as Ogres.

The ten thousand Ogres, too, were soon put down by the thousand-strong population of the capital city, Uruk. But it was as if they were endless. The third wave came knocking a day after the second. This one featured more lithe-built individuals with slightly purple skin. They introduced themselves as Lesser Oni. Their attacks were craftier, more sinister. Their weapons carried poisons that weakened an immortal's innate blessings upon touch. This wave, led by an Oni of deep purple, slew the first immortal.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. The subsequent wave featured a thousand True Oni. They slaughtered ten percent of the immortal forces. This broke the immortals' morale greatly, and as the fifth wave hit, they scattered everywhere, fearing for their lives.

"Just then, the sky shone with a brilliant Neonic Glow, as a single beam of light thundered down over the war boss of the True Oni, killing it instantly." The immortals turned at this, their eyes shining with renewed hope, screaming out in joy, their voices almost cracking from the emotion behind them.

"The Great Immortal Boundless Essence!" A figure clad in the Aura of Boundless Essence of the wilds blinked down, the landing sending the True Oni scattering by the thousands. The Neonic Air around the Great Immortal hissed and lashed out against the mists of corruption wrought by the forces of the Myriad Doors. The laughter of children turned even more fanatical as it resounded all throughout.

"??" Sylvia's eyes and head snapped back to the door of her room.

"That sound!" It was the same sound described in the books. The sound of children's laughter. It came from beyond the door of her house.

"Those are usually made by goblins that invade our village… don't tell me!" She looked over her siblings; each of them was fast asleep. She didn't wake them, and instead went to the window and opened it. The blizzard outside had lessened slightly, with two torches burning at the gates of the village compound, where her father and five other villagers stood guard with spears, swords, and maces. Their faces were hardened and grim as they stared into the distance, toward the fields ahead.

The dark forest beyond the facing farmland was lit with red dots. Tens, no, there's more than a hundred of them! The creatures of darkness, the goblins, made sounds of both laughing and crying, resembling acutely the cries and laughter of children. The eyes still waited, unmoving, not yet attacking. Sylvia wondered, and to an extent hoped, they were only there to scout. Just then, she felt that tingling sensation of something observing her in particular. Her head snapped back toward the forest.

She saw a pair of glowing purple eyes staring right back. Sylvia instinctively flinched back, dropping to the floor. The sounds of whistling arrows and sprinting followed her fall, as her father's voice boomed over the village perimeter.

"Every able man, come out with any and all weapons you may have! Women, hide behind a safe place with the children!" …. It was as if the rest were a dream. One moment, Sylvia was watching her father, the only one with a beast core, sweep across the fields, cutting down the goblins like weeds. The next moment, a giant, purple-figured beast stood before him. With one punch to the gut, it knocked him out, and with her father's fall, everything else began to collapse too.

The goblins used the gap left by her father's fall to pierce past the frontlines. And as they reached the homes, the men still holding the front immediately abandoned their positions, running off to save their own families. Sylvia scrambled to find the only dagger she normally used to chop vegetables. Her siblings were already awake, her little brother seemingly on alert, while the rest cried in fear at the disgusting cries of the two-legged beasts.

"Sister, you go hide, I'll distract them!" her little brother gritted out, even as his fists and feet trembled.

"Noo, leave my child, you bastard!" came the cries of their neighbor, Uncle Jin. Hearing the fearful voice of a man who always maintained a proud, strong demeanor made even Sylvia tremble. She heard footsteps stop before their house door. She immediately went over, grabbed her little brother, and took him and the other two toward the underground water tank area.

"Noo, sister, what's happening? Why are you putting us here?" The two little ones cried out. She sealed their mouths with her hand.

"Don't speak. Everything will be fine."

"But sister!" Her brother protested against the notion, tears streaming down at the knock on the door, which turned increasingly more violent.

"Don't worry, Fang, you just sit tight, our father will return soon and save us. You know how strong he is, right?" Fang slowly nodded.

"Now go inside and sit tight, and no matter what happens, don't come out."

"B-But!"

"No buts. Do it for your little sisters. Aren't you a man?" The boy gritted his teeth, and as if steeling himself, he went inside, half-submerging himself in the water, while Sylvia bid them farewell with a cheerful smile, closing the lid over them. Crack! The door splintered to bits as several small, four-foot green-skins flooded in. Their faces were almost repulsive, twisted into even more sinister smiles. Each held stone axes, wooden spears tipped with sharpened stone.

"St-Stay back!" she yelled in warning, brandishing the dagger with her delicate, trembling hands as she backed away. The first of the ten that had entered her house laughed loudly, licking its lips in a disgusting manner, and hurled its axe right at her. Sylvia instinctively swung her dagger in an attempt to stop it. With a clang, her dagger struck the stone, sweeping it aside as the shock of impact reverberated through her hands.

"Hekekekek""Kekekekeke" The goblins laughed hysterically. The sound came from everywhere around her, followed by the wails of men and the pained cries of their women and children. Their helplessness made Sylvia's blood run cold, and she felt the strength drain from her legs. Right then, another goblin threw its weapon, this time a spear. Sylvia closed her eyes in fear; another clang rang out, followed by a sharp sting running down her palm, as the dagger fell.

Right then, something sank into her stomach, making her reel back and slam against the wall. She looked up to find two goblins towering over her, one fist balled. It struck her again, this time right in the face, followed by a kick to her side.

"Ughh…" she groaned weakly, her surroundings darkening further. The hideous creatures extended their hands, ripping at her clothes. She tried to resist, kicking and flailing with all her strength. The result was a sharp swing of their weapons that left her on the floor, blood flowing freely, drenching her. Through the last stretches of her consciousness, Sylvia saw the towering purple beast come through the door, and she lost consciousness. ….

The next time she woke, she was being dragged by her legs by the purple beast. Her body scraped and slid over the grass and rocks. From the corner of her bleeding eyes, she saw her village burning, men's heads staked on spears as goblins paraded them around, and women stripped of their clothing, surrounded by multiple goblins each, all laughing with that pure yet sinister childlike smile. Looking at this, she recalled the tale of Immortals.

How the Great Immortal had descended in their people's dire need and vanquished the evils. As her heart began to give in to the cruel reality of their fate, she picked up a different, distinct sizzling sound of something burning. The beast dragging her stopped suddenly, letting go of her feet, and looked far into the distance, toward the village. It took Sylvia a minute to find the strength, both mental and physical, to look back at her village one last time.

Following the Lesser Oni's gaze, she looked back, her eyes slowly widening. In the burning, dark plains of her former village, surrounded by red eyes and the wails of women and children, a single figure swept through the darkness, Neonic Aura cladding his person that roared against its corruption.