Chapter 2-1: Hallguna

PART 1: THE LAST WORK OF THE MESSIAH

In a forest where little light came through, a young boy of about 14 years old walked silently in the middle of the woods, and at the foot of each moss-covered tree, he cut down plants with gray leaves.

"Hmm… That should be enough".

He was inserting one last plant into his bag when a growl came from behind him.

''Hey shit, I've been spotted... So the tilip's* odor removal limit is only about 20 minutes. That's short''.

When the boy looked behind him, a medium-sized beast with completely black fur and a single eye on its face was standing there, the half-open mouth of the beast revealed long, sharp fangs.

It was a grokin, one of the most dangerous beasts that could be encountered in this forest.

Its sense of smell was one of the sharpest in this forest, the only fault of this predator was the growl emitted when it found prey, warning the target of its presence.

His back legs were already tensed, ready to pounce on the boy at any moment.

'Sigh. Now that the female has spotted me, the male should arrive soon and two against one is out of the question, it would be too dangerous so I only have one solution left... Run away'.

When the grokin lunged at the boy, he managed to dodge it with relative ease before speeding away, sailing into the woods with the furious beast chasing him.

The boy picked up stones during his run which he then threw at the beast to slow it down as it turned between the trees.

'I'm almost there… hum !'.

To his left, the boy saw another grokin with red spots, the male was there!

"Tss, this one has already arrived, I'll have to use it."

An object appeared next to the boy, a small gourd coming out which he grabbed before the object disappeared again.

"Sorry you two, but we're parting ways here."

He broke the gourd against a tree, releasing into nature a scent that was difficult for anyone to bear.

Assailed by this foul odor, the grokins stopped their pursuit and returned to their den, moaning.

"If they had been that fast during the chase, I wouldn't have been able to get far."

The young boy had climbed to the top of a tree, it was the place he had chosen to avoid also being a victim of this perfume.

He began to sniff her body before making an unpleasant face.

"I hate it even if I didn't take it head on, if I go in like that, this smell risks killing Komi."

The boy began to move again. With great agility and flexibility, he jumped from tree to tree in search of the nearest water source, without realizing that he had been observed from the shadows by a person.

His quest for water had led him to the outskirts of the island, in front of him there was only water as far as the eye could see.

He bathed quickly, threw away the infected clothes, and put on new ones made of wool and cotton.

"Okay, it's time to go home".

As he was about to leave, he saw something shining in the water, he picked it up among the stones.

"It's stone, Nah, it looks like an egg, what a funny shell".

The shell of this egg was glowing, it was as transparent as water when suddenly it began to change its appearance.

''Incredible... It took on the same color as me but kept its shiny appearance. It must certainly adapt to its environment to camouflage itself. I knew animals were capable of it, but this is the first time I've seen it from an egg."

The boy looked at the egg for a few moments before deciding to place it in his bag to see if it would fit the contents, then he set off for home.

The village and the island shared the same name, Hallguna, which meant 'Land of Rest' in Sooni*.

The inhabitants have always lived on this island without being able to leave it they have never tried to leave.

They thought for a long time that they were alone in the world until a "being" from elsewhere washed up on the island before others after him did the same.

This was a phenomenon that rarely happened, and they decided to call these beings 'ieruk'*

Everyone born on this island had identical physical characteristics, a contrasting fair complexion, eyes as dark as the abyss, and sparkling hair of pure white, everyone had them except...

-Look who's there, isn't it Habel 'the fake ieruk'?

-Hahahaha!

A group of young boys the same age as Habel started joking at the sight of her.

They all stood in front of him, preventing him from continuing on his way.

Habel sighed as soon as he saw them, knowing that they certainly wouldn't let him pass without trying to cause him trouble.

He gave the leader of the group a contemptuous look and said: <<Do you think that the fact there are more of today will change result, Hayak?< p>

The group stopped laughing. It's true, they had already tried 5 against 1, but they had been beaten miserably. Today they came to 10, some of their victories.

(Keep looking down on us, Habel, there are a lot more of us than last time and in case things go wrong, I can always use what Komi gave me).

-Don't be afraid guys, today we will make him pay for all the humiliations he put us through.

They began to surround Habel, leaving her no escape route. They gripped the sticks tightly in their hands as they waited to launch the attack.

'Hmm… They seem motivated and ready to fight, unfortunately, I don't want to waste my time with them. The frightened will be enough'.

''I've always taken it easy with my punches to avoid an injury that would prevent you from becoming 'warriors', but this time, I won't hold back. Hayak will certainly be able to get treatment at his komi when I'm done with him, but you? Humff, come closer!! ''.

Habel put himself in a fighting stance making everyone else tense because of the natural fear he inspired in them and above all, the words he had just spoken still echoed in their minds.

Habel's grandmother was the only healer capable of treating them in case of serious injuries and if he didn't allow it, That of Hayak? Impossible!

A heavy silence fell within the group, they were all under great pressure, some began to step back unconsciously before one of them began to flee causing a chain reaction of all the rest, leaving behind them a Hayak stunned.

-Eehhh, come back! He just says that to scare you. he shouted.

''Ah good ? ''.

Habel placed a hand on Hayak's shoulder and whispered these words to him, the latter jumped with fear and began to sweat profusely, Habel had come behind his back without him realizing it.

''I'm just saying that to scare them, you say. I think you've forgotten who I am, my dear brother''.

he said with a smile on his lips before taking action.

-N-no, No, No-NOOOoooo!!!