The Gamer's POV-Chapter 211: Once Upon A Time [2]

The hollow ones were human? Although Cedric was completely shocked, it now made sense why he felt that strange familiarity from them.

Argentos sighed, then continued. "A long time ago, our goddess departed the realm and did not return for a long time. It was strange, because our mother never stayed away from the realm for too long, but we had no way of knowing where she was. So everyone waited, and day after day, we all prayed for her return. But she never came back. Then, one day, a deadly disease began to spread among the humans in the realm. No one knew its cause, or how to stop it, only that whoever died to this plague would have their facial features melt away into a smooth, featureless mask of flesh, leaving them as unrecognizable husks. We also noticed that it was hard to recall the names and faces of those who died to this plague. This made us understand that this wasn’t just any normal disease of natural causes. Something foul and evil was at play, and we had no way to stop it."

He paused for a moment.

After a long silence, he continued, "One by one, the human territories began to fall. Humans began to die in the thousands and before we knew it, this city was the last human stronghold in the realm.

"Unfortunately, even we could not escape the plague. And so, all of us became infected too. However, while we were all in despair, our mother finally came to us, or rather to me, through a vision." He looked at Cedric, and after a moment, added somberly. "When the others heard that, they were all happy because they thought that we would be saved. They believed that our mother had never forsaken us. They did not know that the instruction I was given in the vision was to kill every last one of us before more people died of the plague. She said I must absolutely stop people from dying to that plague."

He looked away. "Of course, I couldn’t challenge the words of our lady. However, I was hesitant to follow her command. It was then that she gave me her word that we would all be reborn. That she wouldn’t let us die."

His hand trembled. "Only then... only then did I accept the task. I set fire to the city while everyone slept. I watched the flames consume the homes of those I had sworn to protect, believing that the smoke was simply the beginning of our transformation. I thought I was clearing the way for a new life, just as she had promised.

"At the end, I too let myself be consumed by the flames."

He tapped his chest, then his forehead, before raising his hand slightly to the side. Then he clenched his trembling fist and brought it down, and a tear flowed out of his eye, carving a clean path through the dust on his metallic skin.

"But when I woke," he whispered, and his voice cracked, "there was no rebirth. There was only the ash, the silence, and this cold, hollow shell."

Cedric watched the tear fall, feeling the sharp pulse in his head sync with the creature’s grief.

Deep down, he felt a genuine pang of pity for Argentos. To have burned your own people based on a promise of salvation, only to wake up in a body of rusted metal, was a horror he could barely imagine. Yet his sympathy was quickly crowded out by the sheer weight of the revelation. Between the missing goddess, the plague that consumed the humans, and the royal family with their realms, there was simply too much to process.

After a moment though, he asked softly, "So she lied to you?"

Argentos didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he looked back at the mural and his gaze fixed on the fading image of the goddess.

"A goddess does not lie," he finally said, though he sounded as if he were trying to convince himself. "She simply sees things differently than we do."

Well, in a way he was right.

They had been reborn after all. Not just in the way that they thought they would.

He sighed, then added later, "I do not know where she is, or if she’ll ever come back. But without the goddess, the realm is bound to completely collapse. Between the bridges which one day suddenly began appearing in our world, linking it to the cradle, and the strangers who call themselves lords, everything is bound to end in chaos."

Slowly, he turned to Cedric, then studied his face for a long moment.

Eventually, he spoke again. "You are probably wondering why I suddenly decided to tell you our story."

Well, truth be told, Cedric was wondering that as well. Not that he minded really. After all, he had indeed learnt a bit today, about the gods, and about their realms.

But... why did Argentos suddenly decide to tell him that?

Argentos exhaled and replied, "Earlier today, I had a revelation."

"Huh?" Cedric blurted curiously. "A revelation? From the goddess?"

Argentos shook his head. "No."

Cedric arched a brow at that reply.

Argentos stared at the paintings on the wall for a brief moment before continuing. "It was from the first sibling of the royal family. The god of divine restoration and benevolence."

Cedric frowned.

The God of Restoration?

For some reason, when the name of that god was mentioned, Cedric felt a faint sense of familiarity. He couldn’t explain it.

However, almost immediately, the headache that had been simmering at the back of his skull erupted into a blinding white heat. It felt as if a rusted needle was being driven through his temple. It seemed the effect of his attribute was no longer enough to dull the mental strain, and he could tell that this was his cue to stop. But rather than stopping, he suppressed the pain as hard as he could and forced himself not to show it.

"So it’s because of this revelation that you decided to tell me about your history?" Cedric gasped as the pressure behind his eyes became unbearable.

Argentos didn’t reply immediately. He turned to look at Cedric, and when he noticed the blood now oozing out of Cedric’s eyes, nose and mouth, he let out a small sigh. Then eventually, he said, "According to the god of divine restoration and benevolence, he said he doesn’t mind what I do to you. Whether I kill you or let you go is up to me. However, he instructed that I at least tell you about my story."

"What?"

At that moment, Cedric’s head suddenly exploded. Blood and brain matter sprayed across the floor, the painted walls, and across Argentos, bathing him in a thick, warm coat of gore.

Cedric’s headless body then slumped forward, painting the stone in a grisly crimson. The neck stump bubbled for a final, sickening second before the last of his life force spilled out in a heavy, rhythmic pulse that drenched the floor.