Ashes and Kingdoms

TL notes: It took 2 months, but we’re back! I’ve decided to put thoughts and sound effects in italics. Hopefully this will make things easier to understand. Well, at least we got some action in this chapter!

The west sky was dyed as if with an artificial vermilion color.

With the sound of bells, Fin and several soldiers followed by long shadows went outside the castle gates. The gate closed behind them and the sound of the bolt locking reverberated. The castle walls cast a purple shadow and the sky shone as if telling them to hurry home.

Fin and the group he was placed in split off into every direction and lit the bonfires to protect the town. The pedestal was enclosed so that it is protected from the rain and wind, and there was plenty of resin and oil inside for fuel. When he going to swap the flame after igniting the first torch, a nearby soldier stopped him.

“Not yet. First is just one. Those things will come and if new flame is not enough, we will use a new torch. Otherwise, we won’t last overnight”

Fin’s face stiffened and he nodded. He wanted to reply, but the inside of his mouth had become dried-up.
The golden afterglow was fading. When all the pedestals’ flames burst, they gathered at the edge of the castle walls, lit the last bonfire for themselves, and sat around it.

“You’re not lucky, eh?”

One of them started a conversation with Fin. Another one complained.

“The unlucky ones are us as well. Even that idiot Iguros is better than this fledgling of a boy”

Fin looked around in silence. One, two, … five people. There are only six people, including Fin. One person noticed the uneasiness in his gaze and grinned.

“Don’t worry, the area that the six of us are protecting is just from this gate to the watch tower. The area outside is under another group. Can you see it? There, the fire is was just lit”

In the direction of his finger, a small bonfire near the wall edge lit up. Fin sighed a breath of relief. Several of the soldiers snickered a little, but he couldn’t afford to be concerned with that.

Iguros had a sprain and suddenly Fin was ordered to become a new recruit in his stead. Which also means, the army corps don’t have any reserves. There’s no doubt that they’re barely making it by with these numbers. In other words, it shows how extreme is a loss due to death or injury.

(Will I survive?)

When he became aware of his anxiety, unwanted sweat ran down his back.

As if to ridicule at Fin’s nervousness, the area gradually became darker and darker. The bonfire shone like a jewel in the dark. Fin, who was squinting due to the brightness, caught some movement of another light source from the corner of his line of sight, and his body stiffened as he was startled. He unintentionally rose to his feet, but he felt a slap on his shoulder.

“Come now, just stand inside for a little bit longer, OK? I’ll switch with you soon, so for the time being, stop sitting and moving your eyes everywhere. You’ll tire yourself out, so come here. Even if you were to sleep right now, you won’t be able to, right?”

“That’s true”

Fin nodded with a stiff laugh. Okay, nodded the soldier, and when he quickly and quietly consulted with his close comrades, three soldiers touched the back of the wall and lied down.

“First up is me. I’ll go with you”

Yo! One of them stood up and swapped the flame to the torch.

“But, you gotta properly do your own job. Look at your torch. Don’t drop it”

He handed one to Fin and held onto another one. When he drew his sword, he left his nuisance of a scabbard there and stepped forward. Fin similarly drew his sword and stood beside the soldier.

“Idiot, go a little over there. Two people this close isn’t very efficient, eh? Do you intend to stick to my a.s.s?”

Pushed aside by his elbow, Fin blushed in both shame and anger and separated from him. He stood a little wider, wider than one would think would be acceptable. Modest self-a.s.sertion.

After that, Fin turned around once again to the wasteland and shuddered at the long stretch of deep darkness between him and the closest bonfire. He thought he saw scattered spots of blue lights in between the golden flames. No, are they really over there?

Fin unintentionally looked up at the sky, but the sun’s light had long disappeared. Starlight alone is not enough to light up the ground.

When he dropped his gaze, he understood for sure this time. There were an uncountable number of blue spots floating in the darkness. If it were just two groups of a set, then one would think they were the same as beasts like wolves, but in this area has three and it could possibly be a swarm of flying insects gathering. His fear became worse as being unable to see the figure caused his thought to be filled completely with what kind of monster it could be.

(Calm down, calm down. If not, you’ll fail)

Clatter Fin fixed his grip on his sword with his shaking hands and held his breath, remembering his practice from noontime.

If I go out to the area where the darkness reaches for a moment…anyways, just run and don’t stop. A sword’s purpose is to protect. Don’t think about defeating them. Drive them away, shake them off, send them flying.

Fin took a deep breath and fixed his eyes on the other side. He did not fix his eyes on just one place, but gave his full attention to the vast and vague field of vision. As if to immediately know where a bonfire had been put out somewhere.

The soldiers on the left started to slowly advance. Fin also moved his feet forwards, as if being lead forward. One step, then another, facing the darkness.

When he walked in between the bonfires, he suddenly felt like he had become one of the heroes that appear in epics. As long as these bonfires exist, the beasts of darkness will be repelled and he can deliver the finishing blow with the torch over his head and running away—

But, such a fantasy was short-lived. Creak In the moment that unpleasant sound reached his ears, things such as naïve hope and everyday thinking vanished.

Grind……Step, step, rustle……

In that instance, Fin had a flash back to when he was still with Oandus and the others in the windmill: they were all huddled in a room that they tried their hardest to keep lit as they waited for dawn to come.

(It’s the same sound. It’s them, they are coming)

Clatter, rattle, clatter When he heard that dry sound, he unexpectedly remembered a wooden rocking horse, but being reminded of that didn’t help to relieve his heart.

(Here they come)

Where? Where is the first?

He quickly looked around. And then—

“Right! Fin!”

A nearby soldier said, and at the same time, Fin also discovered it. One of bonfires on the diagonally right of the line was missing. On instinct, he ran out and repelled with his sword something that came rushing out from the darkness.

“Tch!”

In a moment, a pain as sharp as one that pierces through the arm ran through his body. Was I injured? he thought, but he had no time to be concerned about it. He ran with all his might to straighten the fallen bonfire and relight it. He felt the shadow that was there just a moment ago quickly took refuge into the darkness.

Immediately following, a sound that could pierce through the sky echoed and Fin held his sword above his head for protection. The second he took the impact, the sword had closely packed frost on it.

It can’t be Fin became wide-eyed. At that time, the frost had already disappeared and there was only a thin layer of dew on it. Yet, color was fading from the hand holding the handle. Fin held his right hand and briskly rubbed with his left hand that was still holding the torch.

As soon as a little bit of the feeling in his hand returned and he was relieved, the flame on his left disappeared. When Fin quickly ran over there, a black shadow was going to cover the top of the pedestal.

“d.a.m.n!”

He forgot Masod’s teachings and raised his sword overhead to slash at it. But just before that, the crouching shadow turned around and opened its mouth suddenly and widely, rushing towards him.

It was unexpectedly huge. Right away Fin leaped back a great distance and stood guard with his torch like a shield. What he saw on top of the pedestal was a giant black wildcat. And what’s more is, besides having three eyes that glowed a phosphorus blue light, the nose, ears, and limbs were indistinguishable.

The hand holding the torch lowered in the moment he was preoccupied by the sight. The beast abruptly bent over, and Fin jumped at the same time he came back to his senses.

(I’m done for!)

The figure of his body being eaten in a gulp quickly flashed in my mind. Without thinking of anything, Fin squatted there and only his left hand was high, raising the torch. But it was too late.

“Uwaa!”

The torch was sent flying with the impact. Fin couldn’t stand the pain, which was as if his arm was torn off. His arm was fine, but there was no feeling in it.

Although he was struggling with fear of pain, he looked over his shoulder to search for the beast.

“–!”

It was right beside him. Once again, the deep shadow arose within the black darkness. It opened its mouth, planning to tear up its prey.

Nellis’s figure appeared in Fin’s mind this time.

(I don’t want to die!)

While unaware of his mad cry, he thrust his sword in a daze. There was resistance, but the beast didn’t give even a scream. What the wide-eyed Fin saw was the imminent beast’s black fang as it didn’t stop even with the sword piercing the inside of its mouth.

(This can’t be)

Impossible. I won’t stand for this kind of thing happening.

Useless words spun around in the corner of his stunned head. Darkness flowed down the blade and the drips could be felt on his right hand. In that moment, chills ran through his whole body.

–It was without a double: hatred.

Hateful, hateful, hateful. I’ll kill you. I’ll get rid of you. I’ll remove ever little trace of you from this world.

The words were not necessarily clearly thought, but he had a hunch that it was the beast’s heart, or possibly the components that made up the beast. There is no way that this is the same as just a common wild animal.

(It’s no good. I’ll lose)

In front of such tenacity, anger, and hatred, human strength cannot even compare to it.

Understanding this terror, Fin was seized by despair and at his wit’s end, he froze. At this rate, it looked like his right hand and sword will be swallowed up — but, in a sudden moment, his field of vision became bright.

All of a sudden, the beast raised such a fierce scream that one would feel the worst guilt. While that was happening, Fin desperately tried to extract the sword. Within all commotion, Fin unintentionally let go of the sword.

“F**king idiot!”

When the insult reached his ears and he came back to his senses, the beast jumped back to escape in the darkness while the sword was still half-buried in it. Fin was out of breath and sat down in a daze, but someone grabbed his arm forcefully and made him stand.

“Not only did you let go of the torch, but also the sword. What the h.e.l.l did you hear during the day, you fool! Don’t fall asleep and quickly pick up your torch!”

Fin was yelled at and searched for his torch in a hurry. He took several steps away and knelt down, and the flame was covered by sand and was weakening. When Fin picked it up, a soldier came to help and restored the flame by touching his torch to it. The bonfire that was extinguished a while ago had once again shined brightly.

“Don’t be idle. Return to the wall and come back after borrowing someone’s sword. Hurry up!”

In other words, he was saying to get back to work. Two or three lights flicked in the far distance. When Fin rushed back to the castle walls, he received the sword from one of them who was awake.

“Don’t mess up again. I won’t save you. Get eaten by yourself”

What a far from reprimanding threat. Fin gave a stiff nod and ran back to his position. Although he wasn’t expecting any encouragement, his fear grew when he thought that his comrades might abandon him. It’s already hard enough to fight a beast; he is at the edge of a cliff.

(Save me)

He didn’t pray to anyone in particular. Someone, take me away from here. Save me. End this.

But of course, there was no response.

He lost all sense of time until the break of dawn. If he thought about dozing off for a mere second, he would be violently shaken awake. Although he was aware that he was injured in many places, in reality a bleeding wound couldn’t be found. He was just awfully tired and the dark stain of despair was gradually spreading to the corners of his heart.

The front line of bonfires were a little closer to the wall. If they were a little stingy by lessening the number of bonfires in the beginning, then they probably wouldn’t last a night. Fin’s feet were swollen in pain, and the hands holding the torch and sword were gradually becoming like lead.

But, he suddenly noticed after coming and going several times in the interval between nightmare and reality. His view became slightly bright. He looked idly at the ground. The pedestal where the bonfire was extinguished and stones of the highway that stretched far south. On that subject, he wasn’t fighting for a while now. Those blue spots couldn’t be seen.

Fin looked around absent-mindlessly.

Before long, the sound of bells announced dawn. When he turned around after someone tapped his shoulder, a soldier who had the same tired face gave a friendly smile.

“You survived, eh, youngster”