30 The Paymen (1/2)

”What was that?” The tremor took them by surprise. The patrolling spearman was unable to hold the ground, and fall of his butt.

”Did it start again?” The shield-bearer plunged his shield in the ground, tightened his grip. The nightmare was still fresh in their mind.

After the attack from the enemy, the strange phenomenon had started. The whole city of Yeomcheon rocked for one whole day, before falling silent. But the tremor at city centre continued for months.

The city centre of Yeomcheon became off-limits. The Chararch was already in ruins. The broken skeletons of the houses and shops remained standing around the city a centre, to show the remnant of the glamorous past.

The main army had already left the city. Those who remained were the remaining of general Andlat's corps. The general herself was stationed here to protect the entry point of Torria, where Akai, Vorn, and Riyasu left under the command of General of West with 120,000 strong armies.

It was not that, the quakes had totally stopped after that day, but it was neither frequent nor strong as today.

”Could it be the remaining energy of the crystal?” The young swordsman asked with fearful eyes.

”But…” before he could say the next word another strong shock sweep the land from underneath his leg.

One of the soldiers, around the city centre, reported it to the general. The constant tremor attracted other patrolling squads too.

”When did it start?”

”At morning there was a small quake, but soon the frequency increased, and it is now stronger than the morning.” The guard answered the captain.

Before the captain to ask again the tremor rocked the whole city. Not too distance away one of the two storied buildings was reduced to rubbles.

”Move away, don't go too…” The captain couldn't complete his sentence before a chasm appeared through the city centre. The crowd was broken into chaos, but the tremors stopped after the chasm appeared.

”There is something. It's moving.” A shout grabbed the attention of all those who were present there. But another entity entered the city centre at the same time.

In the presence of General Andlat, everyone was silent, nobody knew whether was it because of her charisma or her frightening reputation, but none. dared to talk. The thing which was crawling out of the chasm concerned them more for the moment.

It was naked, without a shard of cloth on its body, the view confirmed the gender of the one. His long hair wasn't letting others see his face. The whole body was full of dark spots, nobody could recognize the body colour him. Though the structure looked like a human nobody could be too sure. What peculiar was something was coming out its back.

He was supporting himself with his four. His tries to stand, send him on his four again.

Before one could fully observe the thing one brave soldier moved forward without hesitation.

He went straight to him, but rather than attacking him, he went and support him to stand up.

”You have grown. But you should have taken a bath. It's hard to talk” The soldier said

”That is the first thing you talk about after I came out of the underground after… How many days I was underground?” The thing asked.

”It is 7 months and 12 days. It's good to see you back, Captain.” Chanakya said with a smile on his face.

*********

The evening of the same day

”Are you sure you could do that? That is impossible even for the whole army. Or... had you found something underground?” Even with Andlat's surprised expression, her voice was still seductive.

The manor, of the previous city lord, was stood unscratched through the tremors, those rocked the city from time to time. The room was too big for just two of them, but what confused Kinoya, was the design of the room.

”That is not important. What is important whether the general want to do it or not?”

Andlat was surprised by the response of Kinoya, who was standing before her. Not just her, even the guard of the general acknowledged his intelligence, but she felt that the air around him had changed.

He was talented but also respectful. But the boy in front of her was different. Neither fear nor respect was present in her eyes. Arrogance won't be the right word to explain it. It could be said that the boy is now confident, the shard of hesitation that could be felt before, now vanished completely.