Chương 397: Hearing Them

(Korin POV) Eskar left through the woods without another word. He jumped from the tree, and within seconds, the thick plants hid him from view. Korin watched until he was gone, then stayed among the branches. His face was hard to read, but his hands slowly tightened into fists. He's rude. We should kill him. He doesn't deserve to live. Rip his heart out. Drown ourselves in his blood. Tear him apart. The voices rushed into his head. They spoke over each other so fast that Korin could barely understand them.

All he could feel was anger, hate, and the need to hurt someone.

"Shut up." Korin dropped from the tree and landed hard on the ground. He looked down the path Eskar had taken.

"He doesn't know what it's like." So? The answer came at once. It was calm and cold, like someone speaking from a grave. Did your father know what it was like when you killed him? Korin froze. His eyes flickered, and his fist slammed into the tree beside him. CRACK. Bark broke beneath his knuckles.

"Shut up!" His voice echoed through the forest. He was angry, but fear was hiding beneath it. He could feel the voices pushing deeper into his mind. You are a murderer. You cannot control us. Soon, we will break free again. Then you will finally accept what you are. What we are. Korin shook his head and took a slow breath.

"No. I won't." The voices laughed. Their laughter was quiet and cruel, they enjoyed watching him struggle. Funny. That's what he said too. We still took control of him. You are much weaker than he was, father killer. Something inside Korin snapped. He drove his fist into the tree again. CRACK! The trunk split. Cracks spread through the bark, and a moment later, the tree fell into the plants below.

"Just stop." His anger was gone now. He sounded tired.

"I don't want to hear you anymore." The voices did not care. They started repeating the same words in his head. Kill them. Kill them. Kill them. Korin covered his ears, but it changed nothing. The voices were not coming from outside. They were inside him. He forced himself to walk toward camp. His steps felt heavy, and his breathing was rough. He hoped that getting away from the forest would help. It didn't. He still knew where he was. He still knew what was real. But every thought soon became the same nightmare.

He saw Vale lying dead in the grass. Nym covered in blood. Eskar lying motionless. Nova. Caesar. Everyone he had grown close to. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. They were all dead. And his hands were covered in their blood. Korin stopped beside another tree and leaned against it. He stared at his shaking hands.

"Goddammit..." His voice trembled.

"Why won't you leave me alone? Why did this have to be my curse? What did I do to deserve this?" For once, the voices did not laugh. One of them answered in a calm voice. What did you do? Korin slowly looked up. He expected another insult, but the voice continued. Let me tell you, father killer. You are his heir. That will always be your greatest crime. Korin frowned.

"You're saying my Enigma caused all of this?" The voices gave a quiet laugh. Who else could have given you this curse? We did not kill your father. We are not the ones whispering death into your mind. He is. His mind is the reason we exist. Korin's eyes widened.

"So as long as I have this power, you'll keep following me? All because he told you to?" Exactly. You're not as stupid as we thought. Their tone soon changed. The small bit of humor disappeared. When you return, though, that little sister of yours will make a nice meal. Korin went still.

"If I kill my Enigma... will you disappear?" The voices burst into laughter. You really think you can kill the source of your own power? Are you stupid, or are you just blinded by hate? Korin closed his eyes and took a slow breath.

"I am both. Now answer me." The voices chuckled. No. Then they went quiet. They did not disappear. Korin could still feel them somewhere in the back of his mind, but their voices had faded. His father's death. The voices. His curse. His Enigma. Slowly, everything began to make sense.

"It was him." Korin's teeth clenched.

"My father's death... these voices... all of it was his fault." He had made Korin kill his father. If nothing changed, he would make him kill someone else. Then another. Then another.

"I'll kill him." The words left Korin in a quiet whisper.

"When I find him, I'll kill him. I don't care how hard it is. Even if it's impossible, I'll kill him." For a moment, the forest was quiet. Then something inside Korin began to break. Vale and Nym were not here. Usually, they helped keep him calm. They reminded him that he was still himself. He was more than his power. More than the voices. More than the guilt he carried. But they were gone. There was no one here to pull him back. This time, Korin had to do it himself. The bloodlust slowly returned.

His breathing grew rough, and his hands began to shake as the voices grew louder. Kill them. Kill them. Kill them. Korin dropped to one knee and covered his mouth. He could feel a strange smile forming beneath his hand.

"No... I can't let you take control." His whole body shook as he pushed himself up. His legs nearly gave out, and he grabbed the nearest tree to keep himself standing.

"I need to get back to camp." Then he ran. Branches struck his arms and face. Leaves scratched at his clothes. His legs felt heavy, but he kept moving. The voices screamed inside his head, but he refused to listen. He pushed himself harder. Soon, the trees began to thin. The lake appeared ahead. Korin stumbled into the clearing, breathing hard. The evening wind moved through the grass, and the lake was calm again. The huge serpent had already returned to the water, leaving only a few ripples behind.

Korin stood there for a moment and tried to catch his breath. The bloodlust was still inside him, but he was holding it back. Barely. Then he heard a familiar voice.

"Korin?" He turned and saw Vale standing several meters away.

"That you?" Korin stared at him. Something changed. The voices became quiet. They did not disappear, but they became soft enough for Korin to think again. Just seeing Vale made some of the tension leave his body.

"Yeah. It's me." He took a step forward and forced a tired smile.

"Sorry. I've been having some trouble with my powers." Before he could say anything else, his legs gave out. Korin dropped to one knee. His body suddenly felt too heavy to move. Even lifting his arms took more strength than he had left. Vale rushed toward him.

"Hey! Are you alright? Take it easy, alright?" Korin tried to look up, but Vale's voice already sounded far away. Too far away. The world around him began to blur. The trees faded, and the grass became harder to see. Vale's voice slowly turned into a distant echo. Korin tried to hold onto it. He couldn't. Then everything went dark. For a moment, there was nothing. Then he was somewhere else. Somewhere from long ago. He saw his father. He saw the blood. He saw his own hands. Then he saw that final moment again.

His father's face. His eyes. The way he had looked at Korin before he died. A voice came from inside the memory. It was a voice Korin had spent years trying to forget.

"Live on..." Those were his father's final words. The last thing he had said before Korin's own hands took his life.

"Please..." Korin stopped breathing.

"No..." Tears filled his eyes. He stared at the grass, but he could barely see it anymore. The memory came back again, clearer than before.

"Live on."

"Please." Korin's body began to shake. His fingers dug into the grass as his chest tightened, but the memory would not leave him. His father's voice echoed through his mind one last time.

"Live on..." Korin lowered his head. Tears fell onto the grass.

"No..."