Chapter 7: The Sword of the Sky

After an hour had passed, the group set up camp in a suitable spot amid the cedar trees. Oran's group was already well-prepared; Celine had cooked the food while everyone sat on the worn tree trunks, forming a circle and embracing the fire in the center.

Both Ren and Leon were staring into the fire, their eyes devoid of life. They had been subjected to successive shocks and had reached the limits of their human bodies, which led to a deterioration in their mental health. Both Mona and Lina witnessed their expressions, and worry filled their faces without a single word being spoken.

At that moment, Celine prepared the food and served each of them a bowl of soup in a wooden container with wooden spoons. Celine sat down, and the group began eating. After they finished their meal, an air of tension lingered among them until Oran suddenly jumped in and said:

"Do you know what happened to you, Ren, during your embrace?"

Ren replied,

"I don't remember well, but before I fell, my sword trembled as if speaking… Let's exchange… I don't recall anything after that until I came to on the aftermath of the battle."

Oran shook his head and said,

"Do you know, Ren, that you were the one who defeated the Wolf of Catastrophe? You came to suddenly, yet you were not yourself… You killed the wolf with a single blow! But do you know that the only loss we suffered was not increasing our efficiencies? The wolf's corpse completely evaporated, leaving you with no blood to absorb. We do not know what lies hidden behind the gate, so we must set off as quickly as possible towards the Western Desert, for we do not know what may happen tomorrow."

There was no hint of surprise or shock on Ren's face; he accepted it simply, no longer affected by anything. Even Leon showed no astonishment or reaction. Oran looked at their expressions with concern, as it seemed they had both sustained psychological injuries.

At that moment, sensing the tension in the air, Celine stood up and said:

"Let's introduce ourselves. My name is Celine, and this is my father, Theron. We have come from the Western Desert with Oran."

Mona stood up and shook Celine's hand, saying:

"My name is Mona, pleased to meet you, Celine."

Celine smiled and replied,

"The honor is mine, Mona. Let's become friends."

Lina, smiling, said:

"Pleased to meet you, Celine. My name is Lina; I am the sister of both Ren and Leon."

Celine responded kindly,

"Nice to meet you, Lina."

Oran stepped forward toward the girls and said,

"I am Oran. It's a pleasure to meet both of you, Mona and Lina."

Mona and Lina answered together,

"The honor is ours, Oran. There's no need for formalities—we are friends now."

Everyone returned to their places, while Celine remained alone, approaching Ren and Leon. She extended her hand with a bright smile toward Ren and said,

"I'm Celine."

Ren remained seated, then extended his hand to shake hers and said in a tone devoid of any emotion,

"I'm Ren, pleased to meet you."

Celine smiled gently and replied,

"The pleasure is mine, Ren."

Then she turned to Leon, who reacted just as Ren had. Celine did not complain or worry about their responses; her beautiful face continued to shine with a smile. She sat beside Mona and Lina on a long trunk that could accommodate the three of them, facing Ren and Leon, while Oran and Theron sat together, with Theron positioned on a rock in the middle.

At that time, Oran took out Ren's old book, and Ren looked at it and said,

"Can you read it?"

Oran replied,

"Yes, I lived in that ancient era, where I sealed myself when I was on the verge of death, surrounded by a horde of monsters numbering ten thousand. I remained asleep during that period, and when I awoke now, I asked Celine about this catastrophe, but she told me that history had never recorded it! I was surprised by that, yet I couldn't find any reason for this era to vanish from history… Perhaps we will find something within this book."

Ren and Leon looked at Oran, then Ren said,

"We were heading to the Western Desert to investigate this matter… It is truly mysterious. A whole era of history has vanished from humanity… There must be hidden forces behind it."

Leon added,

"It is indeed mysterious… Anyway, can you start reading it while we listen?"

Everyone looked at him expectantly, and then Oran began to read:

"Chapter One, Part One of the Legends of the Sword of the Sky…"

---

(In the heart of ancient history, during the era of demonic wars, in a harsh world where the seven regions battled for the title of the strongest…)

(In the Western Desert, where the sun scorched the golden sands, and the rocks stretched to the horizon with nothing growing except small cactus shrubs, the slaves walked barefoot on the burning sands, shackled with iron chains, carrying bricks on their backs while the overseers' shouts echoed: "Work! Work!")

(The overseers' whips sliced through the air with every lash, showing no mercy to the slaves, for they were merely tools. They were given neither water nor food, and if one died, another was brought in his place, for the slave trade was flourishing and was cheaper than feeding them every day.)

(At the head of a moving caravan, their leader sat holding a chicken's thigh while eating it. An overseer stood before him and said, "Have you given me orders, my lord?")

(The leader replied, "How are things going with you?")

(The overseer responded, "Everything is proceeding smoothly, my lord.")

(The leader laughed and said, "That is not good! Whip them harder… We must hurry in building this wall!")

At that moment, one of the slaves collapsed from exhaustion. An overseer saw him, approached, and slapped him forcefully, yet the slave did not react; his strength had utterly deserted him as he murmured:

"Mercy… mercy… please!"

But the overseer paid him no heed, instead unshackling him and grabbing his leg, then began dragging him across the burning sands toward the caravan leader.

Overseer: "This slave is exhausted, my lord, and is of no further use."

Slave (pleading): "Please, have mercy, my lord! I have a wife and children… Have pity on me, I beg you!"

Overseer (angrily): "Silence, slave! How dare you ask for mercy?!"

The overseer raised his whip and began lashing him mercilessly, while the slave screamed in pain.

Caravan Leader: "Stop beating him."

A glimmer of hope and joy appeared on the slave's face, but it quickly vanished as the leader continued with a sinister smile:

"I have a better idea… We can offer him to my pet!"

The slave's hopeful features faded, and he began trembling and pleading:

"I'm sorry, my lord! I will do anything… I promise! I will never stop working, please have mercy!"

But the caravan leader paid him no attention and hurled a stone at him. The slave's screams echoed everywhere as the other slaves watched the scene in abject terror. They quickly picked up their pace, fearing they might suffer the same fate.

Caravan Leader (with a mocking smile): "Did you see that? We can punish them in this way. They will have the honor of becoming a meal for my pet, don't you agree?"

Overseer: "Yes, my lord. They will be honored to serve as food for your leopard. This method will force them to work even harder."

Then he bowed slightly and said,

"Pardon me, my lord, I will go about my work. Do I have your permission?"

Caravan Leader: "You may leave, but if you see another slave starting to slack off, do not hesitate to bring him to me… We can enjoy his performance as he begs for mercy."

Overseer: "Yes, my lord!"

Sef al-Sama, one of the slaves who carried the bricks, was not like the others. He had witnessed with his own eyes the sight of the caravan leader's leopard devouring one of the slaves in a gruesome manner. His eyes filled with intense hatred, and he murmured within himself:

"I will kill you all one day!"

Sef al-Sama was distinguished by his silky silver hair that reached his neck and silver eyes, making him look much like Ren, except for the hair and eye color; for Ren had black hair while Sef al-Sama's were entirely silver.

Ideas began to flow through Sef al-Sama's mind as he sought a way to escape this predicament. "During the night… that will be my chance. When everyone is asleep, I will pounce on one of the overseers, free myself from these shackles, and then run away to my freedom!"

Escape Under the Moonlight

Night fell, and the moon shone prominently in the sky, casting its cold light over the desert, intermittently hidden by drifting clouds, while the stars twinkled quietly. The slaves lay on their backs, gazing at the sky, contemplating with heavy sighs, wishing in their hearts:

"Will we ever be free?"

At that moment, the overseers stood on tight patrol, guarding the slaves to prevent any escape attempts. Some overseers, however, were overcome by drowsiness and reclined on the sands, while others remained vigilant.

Sef al-Sama cautiously opened his eyes and began to crawl silently into the desert sands. Suddenly, he leaped onto one of the overseers, using the chain that bound his hands, wrapping it tightly around the man's neck, and pressed his head into the sands so as not to make a sound. The overseer immediately lost consciousness.

Sef al-Sama then took the key, freed himself from the shackles, and slowly moved forward, ready to flee. Before he ran, he glanced back one last time and said in a soft yet angry voice:

"I will return… I will take revenge on all you human creatures!"

Revealing the Dark Past

At that moment, Oran closed the book he had been reading and said,

"I will resume reading it later; we must move now."

Everyone was focused on the story, their faces etched with sorrow. Ren spoke reflectively:

"It seems that he described humans as creatures… Their treatment of the slaves was so cruel, even though they were humans like them. This world is truly harsh, but why wasn't the hero's name mentioned?"

Oran answered,

"I do not know either. Only his title was mentioned: Sef al-Sama. He became famous by that name in all seven regions during ancient history."

Ren thought for a moment and then said,

"I understand now… Perhaps no one at that time wanted the bloody history to be widely known."

This part of the story affected the entire group, and sorrow appeared on their faces—especially on Mona, Celine, and Lina. Mona spoke sadly:

"It must have been dreadful… Slavery spread across all seven regions, and the arrival of the demonic catastrophe made things even worse. Ren, you once told me that humanity was one step away from extinction. Fortunately, the hero Sef al-Sama emerged… Otherwise, we might not exist today!"

Ren nodded in agreement and added,

"Yes, that is true, but why was the truth hidden? We should have known the heroic deeds of Sef al-Sama. Something dangerous must have happened that led the hidden forces to erase that bloody history. If we had known the truth, we might have dealt with the demonic catastrophe better, and perhaps we would have known how to seal it for good… But now, we still do not know what is being concealed!"

Leon jumped in enthusiastically and said,

"You are right, Ren! Perhaps the hidden forces tampered with people's memories so that they completely forget and move on with their lives, bypassing those painful memories. That era was called the Demonic Wars, and it is clear that it was a terrifying time, so much so that no one even wanted to remember it!"

The Demonic Catastrophe and the Age of Chaos

Oran spoke in a calm voice, though his eyes carried the weight of the past:

"Your point of view is logical… I have seen it all with my own eyes. Women and children were raped, and once the deed was done, they were slaughtered immediately. As for the men, they were enslaved until death. And whoever tried to escape had his legs tied to two opposing horses, then made to run until his body was torn in half! Mercy was just a word—it did not exist in reality… It was so cruel. Or perhaps… perhaps the demonic catastrophe was sent to purge humanity of those monsters who claimed to be human."

He then sighed and continued:

"In any case, we must pack our belongings… We do not know what may happen tomorrow. This is only the first wave of the lower-ranked monsters, and we do not know if more will appear, or if they will be replaced by monsters of higher ranks. We won't be able to hold out for long—it's best that we move now, while daylight still exists."

"You're right; let's move!" Leon said firmly. Then he turned to Mona and Lina:

"Come on, pack your belongings… We do not know what may happen!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, quickly gathered their belongings, and set off toward the Western Desert, where an unknown fate awaited them.

---