#001

The moon hanging in the sky was enormous. The moon, which had approached the ground as if to swallow the land, scattered pale light like snow in all directions. The dragon stood beneath the silver light, just as it had on the day they first met. With its beautiful golden hair cascading long, and a face sculpted from sorrow.

“You said you could do anything for me.”

Not a single gust of wind blew. The surroundings were so quiet, it was as if to prevent any excuse of not hearing the dragon’s words properly. It was so silent it was sad.

“Then, Cullen.”

The dragon’s blue eyes gazed at the sword in Cullen’s hand. The unfathomable blue eyes seemed capable of drowning him with their gaze alone.

The smiling eyes, forming a gentle curve, and the calm corners of the lips were kind. That was the face that had looked down at him from the bed, and that was the face that had smiled quietly when he turned back in the vast, open field. It was gentle and lovely.

“Die.”

It was too gentle a voice to wish death upon someone who loved him.

“I loathe you.”

So much so that he couldn’t possibly refuse the request.

“Therefore, your death is the only way to make me happy.”

So very gentle…

It was enough to make one want to die just by hearing it.

Yulek, the mountain keeper, came when Cullen had just returned from the graves.

It was around the time the sun was completely setting. A deep purple hue spread across the mountain ridge where pointed fir trees rose like spires.

Time flowed faster in the mountains. It was so in a different sense than a battlefield where every minute and second determined life. Leaving the night sky of his hometown, which he had revisited after many years, Cullen sprinkled soil over the last pit.

He straightened his back before five small mounds. His dark purple hair, no different from the night sky, was disheveled, with a few strands falling onto his forehead.

Sticking the shovel, its handle worn and on the verge of breaking, into the earth, Cullen quietly gazed at the mounds. Beneath them, in the shape of small graves, there were no bodies. Instead, small objects were buried.

The bodies had been crushed and ground into dust in distant lands. Cullen was finally able to bury his comrades after five years.

Cullen observed a moment of silent prayer. With a cold, white face that revealed no sorrow, he remained silent for a few seconds, then briefly glanced at the three large graves behind the small mounds. Overgrown with weeds, they looked like they had been made a very long time ago. In the distant past, more than ten years ago.

The moment any emotion tried to coil within Cullen, he turned away as if to sever it. He stepped away coldly, as if he had no reason to look any further.

He slowly descended the mountaintop. After walking for about 20 minutes, he reached a small wooden house. A peculiar stillness, untouched by human hands for a long time, enveloped the house. As if he had lived there yesterday, Cullen familiarly opened the back door and entered.

He quietly scanned the dark interior of the house. Dust clung to everything like cobwebs. Lacking the warmth of a hearth, a heated floor, or heated stones, the house was as cold as the outside.

Cullen looked at the kitchen with its rusty pot, then changed direction. The sound of his boots echoed on the floor. He slowly headed towards a room. Opening the door, he saw a small bedding. Gazing at the small bed, the kind a boy might use, he slowly sat on it.

He was tired. He had just returned to his hometown this morning, having run for three full months. The fatigue, caused by making graves since morning, finally caught up to him. To catch a short nap, he slowly lay down on the bed.

It was then that he heard a knock on the door.

“Cullen, it’s me, Yulek. Someone is looking for you.”

Stopping his movement to slide the dagger under the bedding, Cullen slowly sat up. His lavender-dark purple eyes shifted their gaze.

Yulek, as the mountain keeper, was an old man who had guarded the mountain ever since Cullen lived there as a child. He had no reason to seek him out at this hour, having met him this morning.

When there was no answer from inside, Yulek knocked again.

“It seems urgent, Cullen. Why don’t you come out? You’ve come a long way.”

The moment Yulek’s anxious voice was heard for the second time, Cullen sheathed his dagger at his waist and walked silently towards the door. His finely honed senses detected a presence outside. Yulek was lying.

It wasn’t one person who had come to find him. The faint sounds of hushed voices indicated the number of people. They seemed to have left their horses not too far away.

The fact that they were suppressing their presence meant they were trained individuals. If there were many surrounding the house, Cullen had only one choice.

He reached out and grasped the doorknob. Small scars, incongruous with his pale skin, remained white on the back of his hand. He slowly opened the door. The cool night air rushed into the cabin, and at the same time, Yulek’s face appeared.

“Thank goodness, you were home.”

Yulek looked greatly relieved the moment he saw him. The wrinkles around his eyes clearly showed traces of fear, and his hunched shoulders were visibly timid, unlike when he roamed the mountains in the past.

The reason for his fear was behind him. Behind Yulek stood a crowd of knights clad in gleaming silver armor. The knights, who half-surrounded the house, numbered about twenty. Cullen scanned them with an indifferent expression.

Judging by their restrained demeanor, they were all skilled individuals. He could escape, but it would be unavoidable to sustain injuries. Yulek’s life would also be uncertain. However, it was none of Cullen’s concern.

“Are you the one this person is talking about?”

The one who spoke was a middle-aged knight at the very front. His face, bearing the mark of a life lived through considerable years, looked stubborn. His jaw was firm, and his nose bone was slightly crooked.

He scanned Cullen with sharp eyes. Then, two young knights holding torches beside him quickly stepped forward slightly. The light shone brightly onto Cullen’s face.

“My name is Cullen.”

Cullen replied calmly. Because their eye levels were similar, the middle-aged knight’s sharp gaze met his.

The knight stared at Cullen’s dark purple hair, cold face, and purple eyes for a long time. After observing his face for quite some time, he scanned Cullen’s attire. Only after seeing the leather trousers that encased his long legs, the worn but sturdy boots, and the white cotton shirt that slightly revealed his collarbone did the middle-aged knight move. He turned his body back.

“His eyes are indeed purple. However, it would be best if Lord Lasano confirmed it once more.”

Cullen slightly shifted his gaze. Someone slowly walked out from where the torchlight did not reach. The figure, cloaked in a long black robe, stopped walking only when they were right in front of him. The moment he saw the crest embroidered with gold thread, Cullen realized the situation was stranger than he had anticipated.

A longsword crossing a full moon and a heart within it was a widely known symbol in the world. Even Cullen, who lived his life uninterested in worldly affairs, knew what that crest meant.

“I shall examine him, Sir Gabi.”

With those words, the man slowly removed his robe. As his fair white hands, which had never known hardship, gently pulled the robe down, silver hair cascaded down. Following the long silver hair that poured down elegantly were red eyes. The red eyes set in a kindly smiling face proved his identity.

The one called Lasano was a priest of the goddess. Belonging to the one and only Aksha Temple in the world. Those who heard the words of God. A place only children marked with red eyes could enter.

There were countless temples in the world, but only a select few priests called High Priests came from the Aksha Temple. This man was a High Priest.

“I don’t know what this is about, but…”

Cullen, who had maintained silence, spoke upon seeing him. A High Priest was not someone one saw often. The appearance of such a person meant that something unexpected was happening. And Cullen disliked situations he could not control.

“The person you are looking for is not me. I am merely a hunter.”

“That’s right, knights. I’ve known this young man since he was little, and he couldn’t have done anything terribly wrong. He might say hurtful things without thinking, but he’s not a bad person.”

Yulek, who had suddenly stuck close to Cullen’s side, offered a not-so-helpful defense. The priest smiled at his words.

Though the red eyes, which many people never encountered in their lifetime, might seem strange, Cullen looked at his smiling face without emotion.

“We are not here for anything bad, so please be at ease. We just need a simple confirmation.”

“Then finish quickly. I need to sleep.”

Sir Gabi, the middle-aged knight, frowned. He did not hide his displeasure and warned Cullen.

“How insolent! This is a priest of the Aksha Temple. You are not in a position to give orders. If you value your life, do not wag your tongue carelessly.”

Cullen had not changed his expression since they appeared. It was not because he was particularly brave or scared. His emotional fluctuations were extremely minimal.

“I do not value my life, so I will do as I please.”

Of course, it was sarcasm. Half of it was sincere, but Cullen had a reason not to die now. He could say this because he possessed the skill to escape from here. There was also no reason to welcome intruders who foolishly invaded his territory.

“Oh dear, Cullen!”

Yulek sighed beside him. At his sacrilegious reply, the knights simultaneously drew their swords halfway. The sharp sound of metal echoed through the air. The High Priest, who gestured to stop the knights, still had a smiling face.

“Everyone, calm down. As Cullen-nim said, it would be best for everyone to finish quickly. You must be tired from your long journey, so you should rest, shouldn’t you?”

“Cullen-nim…”

Gabi grumbled discontentedly. Fortunately, the priest did not prolong the time. He smiled, his red eyes looking almost bewitching. Yulek secretly muttered to Cullen, wondering if the priest was male or female. The priest opened his mouth.

“What I will do from now on is simple. I will cast a simple spell, and if a reaction appears, it will prove that Cullen-nim is the one we are looking for.”

Magic.

Cullen calmly observed the other. Magic was a power used by very few, so rare that the word itself held scarcity. There were only three beings capable of using magic. The priest of the goddess before him, a sorcerer, and lastly, a dragon.

However, the majority of the world would die without ever seeing even their hair. This was especially true for dragons. After all, dragons existed alone.

“What reason do I have to do that?”

It seemed he had gotten entangled in a troublesome affair. Cullen thought this and replied.

“You impudent fellow!”

Gabi exclaimed, unable to bear it any longer. Lasano let out a soft chuckle. Cullen continued.

“I have no desire to obey the words of a stranger I’ve just met.”

Lasano seemed unfazed. His smile flickered under the crimson light. Lasano opened his mouth.

“Cullen-nim is certainly brave. Seeing as you are unconcerned even with so many valiant knights before you… Well, Sir Gabi, I somehow feel that this is the one.”

Lasano reached out as he finished speaking. Cullen reacted simultaneously. As the flowing black robe made a rustling sound, the dagger hidden at Cullen’s waist also quickly revealed itself. It happened in the blink of an eye.

When Yulek blinked, a situation that would make him faint was unfolding. Cullen held a dagger to the throat of the Aksha Temple priest, and the priest had his finger on Cullen’s forehead.

“Lasano-nim!”

With Sir Gabi’s shout, the knights drew their swords, assuming a combat stance. Gleaming blades surrounded them like ice spears.

Yulek wished he could faint right there, but the young man beside him, who seemed devoid of human emotion, showed no change in his expression. He wasn’t like this when he was young, he thought.

“If you don’t want your throat slit, take your hand away.”

Cullen said quietly. His tone was polite, but the content was terrifying. A thin red line appeared on Lasano’s white neck. The priest showed no fear. He just smiled.

“Then Cullen-nim will not be unharmed either. Swords will pierce your heart.”

“That remains to be seen.”

Unless there were archers, it wouldn’t be difficult to escape immediately. Moreover, wandering through the dark mountains would be more advantageous to him. Since they hadn’t brought hunting dogs, escaping from here wouldn’t be difficult.

Yulek… Cullen thought for a moment. If he were to die, it would ultimately be his fate. He had acted cautiously enough.

Lasano remained silent. Even with the dagger, sharp enough to cut flesh without forceful thrust, at his throat, he was calm.

It was then that he felt something strange. The finger touching his forehead began to feel hot. Lasano’s eyes turned a peculiar silver. It was in that fleeting moment that Cullen made his decision. He tightened his grip.

The instant he sensed the anomaly, as he was about to forcefully cut the opponent’s throat.

“Sir Gabi.”

The warm heat that had begun to spread on his forehead gradually disappeared. Lasano’s eyes returned to red, and he lowered his hand. Then he smiled faintly. Like someone who had encountered something joyful, he narrowed his eyes.

The blade was now firmly embedded in the priest’s neck. Blood flowed down. Cullen’s lips tightened slightly at the incomprehensible situation. How could he speak?

“We must return to the capital as soon as possible.”

The blood from the High Priest’s neck, which had flowed thickly, stopped. The wound Cullen had inflicted slowly disappeared from the priest’s neck, as if someone were erasing a trace. His eyes narrowed, observing the bizarre sight.

“What do you mean, Lasano-nim! Now is not the time to be…!”

Sir Gabi, who had been ready to strike Cullen at any moment, exclaimed urgently. Lasano acted as if he couldn’t hear any of it. He slowly lowered his hands, spread them as if in reverence, and quietly knelt. The wind blew with a whoosh at the opportune moment.

The knights faltered at the priest’s sudden action. Sir Gabi’s eyes widened upon seeing his behavior, and Yulek wore an expression of utter confusion about the chaotic scene.

Lasano, humbly lowering himself, looked up at Cullen and said,

“Noble blood of Larkhan, I, Lasano, a humble servant of the goddess Aksha, greet you.”

Cullen’s expressionless face wavered for the first time. His purple eyes beneath his deep, straight eyebrows slightly contorted. Lasano did not wait for his reply.

“Sir Gabi, prepare to escort the noble one. He may very well become our Emperor.”

All eyes turned to Cullen. Without retracting the dagger he held to Lasano’s neck, Cullen stared at the dozens of people looking at him with expressions of shock. An owl hooted in the distance. As if mocking this situation.

Cullen finally uttered a word. It was close to a monologue.

“The most absurd thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”

However, this time, no one moved their swords. Was the magic directed at them instead of him? The knights, who had all frozen like stone, slowly sheathed their swords.

Despite still wearing a look of shock, Gabi assumed a posture first. He slowly knelt on one knee. The sound of armor clanking echoed, followed by similar sounds in succession.

Dozens of knights obeyed him. Lasano, standing up from the front of those who prostrated themselves, extended his hand to Cullen and said,

“Another Larkhan, I must escort you.”

It was a sight that could not possibly be mistaken for a joke. Yulek beside him began praying with a pale, almost fainting complexion. Cullen looked up at the sky for a moment. The moon was large and bright. As if it wouldn’t be strange if it collided and ended this world.

As if foreshadowing his future.