A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

The girl's breath hitched in her throat. Her small hands clenched into fists as she turned on her heel and bolted back toward the village centre. Her frightened steps sounded dull on the mud road, as each hurried movement was punctuated by the distant, rhythmic clicking of the beast's claws against the packed earth.

The creature did not pounce, nor immediately attack. Instead, it took slow, deliberate steps forward, its amber eyes sweeping over the village with a haunting, calculating gleam. Its head tilted slightly, those unnerving whisker-like tendrils quivering as if tasting the very air for fear.

The father and his fellow guard took a step back, gripping their spears with white-knuckled desperation. More of the village's fighters rushed to the palisade, drawn by the earlier roar.

A full thirty more men and women arrived, each carrying whatever weapons they had—which actually weren't bad. Despite their reluctance to interact with the kingdom they lived in, they happily took the weapons that were offered them by Naeku's order. Meanwhile, their expressions ranged from steely resolve to outright terror.

As soon as these guards showed up, it became clear this village was relatively inclusive, as there were humans, vampires, and shapeshifters among them. They even took a sensible formation with the Arcanists in the back row, showing the experience they'd built up over years of fighting beast hordes.

Despite the Bastet-Seti family's efforts, however, not all smaller villages worked this way.

Whatever the case, one of them, an older man with the typical crimson eyes of a vampire and a scar running down his cheek, called out. "We stand together! It has not attacked yet. We hold the line!"

The beast let out a guttural, chittering noise, its head swaying side to side. Inhaling sharply, its chest filled in an unnatural, exaggerated manner. A strange hush fell over the village as the guards looked on with bated breath.

"D— Do you think there's any more of them…?" one female werelion asked, her furry transformed legs quivering, the sword in her hand trembling.

But before anyone could answer, the creature exhaled.

A keening, unnatural wail burst from its gnarled throat—not quite a roar, not quite a scream, but something worse. It was a sound that wormed its way into the bones, sending ice into the villagers' veins.

The livestock in their pens shrieked in terror, some collapsing to the ground in spasms. Children inside their homes began to wail, their cries blending with the beast's unholy sound.

The guards winced, their knees wobbling, but they held their ground. The older warrior stepped forward, spear poised. "You want to scare us, monster?" he bellowed, forcing strength into his voice. "You'll have to do more than that!"

The creature tilted its skull-like head, considering him. Then, with an unsettling grace, it moved—not forward, not toward the guards, but sideways. Slow and methodically, it slunk along the perimeter of the village.

Despite the time of day, torches burnt along the palisades to brighten the dark forest outside their perimeter. This caused the monster to cast a jagged shadow over the huts and roads, making it seem all the more menacing. Every step it took was a silent declaration: it was in control.

Meanwhile, no one noticed the shadow was somehow different from what the creature actually looked like…

A low, murmuring terror rippled through the village. Mothers pulled their children close. Farmers gripped their tools with shaking hands. The beast was not attacking—it was playing with them, savouring their fear. It did not need to tear through the palisade. It had already sunk its claws into their minds as the pressure of its third rank weighted heavily on the guard's shoulders.

One of the younger guards, an Arcanist barely past twenty, lost his nerve. With a strangled yell, he raised his hand and conjured a grey metal circle, quickly conjuring shards of metal. The shards whistled through the air, striking the creature's bark-like plating with a dull thud before falling uselessly to the ground and dissolving back into aetherium.

The beast stopped.

For a moment, there was nothing. Then, the creature turned toward the young man, its burning eyes locking onto him with a chilling precision. The young guard gasped, his breath coming in shallow, terrified bursts.

Then, the beast moved.

It did not charge or sprint. It simply took one step—one slow, menacing step. Yet the sheer weight of its presence sent the young man stumbling backwards. Within moments, he turned and ran, his courage shattered.

"F— Fuck this!" he cried out.

"Fikado! Get back here!" the older vampire screamed without looking back, but the young man didn't listen. He'd been wanting to get out of this village for a while already, and this was the last straw. In a panic, he ran back towards the village, hoping to grab his little sister and flee to the nearest city before that monster got to him.

A deep, guttural sound rumbled from the creature's throat. Amusement.

The older guard gritted his teeth. "We do not run!" he barked. "Hold your ground! Do not show it fear!"

But that first guard was simply the first of many. As was often the case, a route had a way of cascading, and by the time the time he barked his last word, two more guards had started running.

Truthfully, the entire village was already unravelling. The beast had come not as a conqueror, but as a terror incarnate. It was not here to slaughter them all—it was here to make them break. Continue your saga on My Virtual Library Empire

And piece by piece, the village of Warka Daro was shattering under its gaze.

Of course, the villages didn't know this. All they felt was more fear than they'd ever felt before, and all they saw was a creature straight from their nightmares. They were absolutely sure he'd kill them all and bathe in their blood if they didn't get out of there.

And what were they fighting for, anyway? This dump wasn't worth the lives of their loved ones. One by one, the guards sprinted back to the village in order to get their family and flee, praying the monster would delay its assault just a little longer.

Their leaders had tried to underplay the benefits, but they were all aware that the kingdom they lived in had offered them jobs, food, and housing if they moved to one of the cities… and their fear was making it all the more attractive.

Soon, it was only the older vampire left. Yet, by now, his hands were shaking as well, and his feet were beginning to shuffle back. "D— Dammit!" he scowled. "C— Cowards, all of you!"

At that point, the monster finally took a step forward into the village… and the man instantly broke. Without another word, he dropped his spear and ran, not daring to look behind him. He didn't want to know when the claws would pierce his back…