Chapter 27: The Silence Before the Storm
Night descended upon Emberthorn Forest.
Thousands of campfires illuminated the massive clearing occupied by the Human Army. Their orange flames flickered beneath the crimson canopy, casting dancing shadows across countless tents and armored soldiers.
From above, the camp resembled a city of light hidden within a sea of darkness.
Laughter echoed throughout the camp.
Many soldiers sat around fires sharing food and stories.
Others sharpened their weapons.
Some played cards.
A few even sang songs.
Despite marching toward what the royal decree described as a "Demonic Threat," very few appeared concerned.
After all...
How could anyone fear an enemy that most people believed never existed?
A young soldier tossed another branch into the fire.
The flames crackled loudly.
"Do you know what I think?"
His companions glanced at him.
"What?"
"The royal family found some ancient ruins and got scared."
Several soldiers laughed.
Another shook his head.
"No, no. I heard a noble’s son got lost in the wilderness. Now they’re using the army to search for him."
The group erupted into laughter once more.
Nearby veterans simply rolled their eyes.
The younger soldiers had spent the entire journey creating ridiculous theories.
Anything sounded more believable than demons.
Two thousand years.
That was simply too long.
Entire civilizations rose and fell within such a period.
Most people viewed demons the same way they viewed mythical beasts from children’s stories.
Interesting.
Entertaining.
Not real.
Far away from the campfires, Commander Aria Valencrest stood atop a rocky hill overlooking the encampment.
The cold wind carried the sounds of thousands of voices.
Yet her expression remained grim.
Something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
The sensation she experienced earlier had never completely disappeared.
Instead, it lingered at the edge of her perception.
Like unseen eyes watching from beyond the darkness.
Footsteps approached behind her.
"Commander."
Aria turned.
The veteran general from earlier stood nearby.
"The scouts have returned."
Immediately, Aria’s eyes sharpened.
"What did they find?"
The general hesitated.
That alone was enough to concern her.
"Several scouting teams failed to return."
A heavy silence followed.
Scouts disappearing wasn’t unheard of.
But multiple teams vanishing on the same night?
That was another matter entirely.
"Were any bodies found?"
The general slowly shook his head.
"No."
Aria frowned.
No bodies.
No signs of struggle.
Nothing.
It was as if they had simply vanished.
The general continued.
"The surviving scouts reported something unusual."
"What?"
"They found abandoned villages."
Aria’s eyes narrowed.
"There shouldn’t be villages this deep in Emberthorn."
"There shouldn’t."
The old general’s expression darkened.
"But there were."
The situation became increasingly troubling.
Ancient records mentioned settlements once existing near the eastern territories before being abandoned centuries ago.
Most historians believed those stories were exaggerated.
Now it seemed they might have been true.
"Anything else?" Aria asked.
The general nodded.
"The villages were empty."
"Empty?"
"No people. No animals. No signs of recent life."
The wind howled through the trees.
Even Aria found the report unsettling.
An entire village abandoned without explanation.
Combined with the missing scouts...
The pieces painted an unpleasant picture.
"Increase patrols."
"Already done."
"Double the night watch."
The general immediately nodded.
"I’ll inform the officers."
As he departed, Aria remained standing atop the hill.
Her gaze drifted toward the eastern horizon.
Darkness stretched endlessly beyond the forest.
The same darkness that had swallowed multiple scouting teams.
Hours passed.
The camp gradually quieted.
One by one, soldiers retired to their tents.
The laughter disappeared.
The songs faded.
Eventually, only the crackling of campfires remained.
Midnight arrived.
Then something strange happened.
The forest became silent.
Completely silent.
Aria immediately noticed.
So did the guards.
The insects had stopped.
The birds had vanished.
Even the wind seemed weaker.
The unnatural stillness spread throughout the forest like a blanket.
Several soldiers awoke from their sleep.
Some felt uneasy without understanding why.
Others instinctively reached for their weapons.
The silence wasn’t peaceful.
It was oppressive.
As though the entire world had suddenly become afraid.
A guard standing near the edge of the camp frowned.
"Do you hear that?"
His companion listened carefully.
"Hear what?"
"Exactly."
The second guard realized what he meant.
There was nothing.
No sounds whatsoever.
The silence itself felt wrong.
Suddenly-
A distant horn echoed through the darkness.
The sound froze every soldier in place.
It was deep.
Ancient.
Unlike any instrument created by humanity.
The note lingered across the forest for several seconds before fading away.
The camp immediately erupted into chaos.
Soldiers stumbled from tents.
Officers shouted orders.
Weapons were drawn.
"What was that?"
"Enemy attack?"
"Where did it come from?"
No one knew.
Aria mounted her horse within moments.
"Form defensive positions!"
Her voice cut through the confusion.
Thousands of soldiers rushed into formation.
Years of training quickly overcame their panic.
Spearmen moved forward.
Archers prepared their bows.
Knights assembled near the front lines.
The army transformed from a camp into a fortress of steel.
Then the horn sounded again.
Louder.
Closer.
This time everyone felt it.
The ground trembled.
A faint vibration spread beneath their feet.
Many soldiers exchanged nervous glances.
The trembling continued.
Growing stronger.
Stronger.
And stronger.
Something was approaching.
Something massive.
The eastern edge of the forest suddenly erupted into motion.
Countless birds exploded from the trees.
Entire flocks fled into the sky.
Animals followed moments later.
Wolves.
Deer.
Even predators.
All running in the same direction.
Away from whatever was coming.
Fear spread throughout the human ranks.
Nature itself was fleeing.
Then the first shape appeared.
Far beyond the trees.
A dark silhouette.
Several soldiers squinted.
"What is that?"
More shapes emerged.
Then more.
And more.
Hundreds.
Thousands.
An endless tide of shadows began appearing beyond the forest.
The moonlight illuminated them.
And for the first time...
Humanity saw the truth.
Massive horned warriors.
Creatures clad in black armor.
Monsters with crimson eyes burning like embers within the darkness.
Towering figures larger than any human.
Twisted weapons forged from unknown metals.
An army.
A gigantic army.
Stretching beyond the horizon.
The soldiers stared in absolute silence.
Many forgot how to breathe.
Others stood frozen in disbelief.
The stories were true.
The legends were true.
The nightmares were true.
The demons existed.
After two thousand years...
They had returned.
At the front of the endless horde stood a colossal figure wearing black armor.
Its crimson eyes slowly swept across the human army.
A smile appeared beneath its helmet.
A cruel smile.
The ancient horn sounded one final time.
This time, the demons answered.
Hundreds of thousands of monstrous voices roared simultaneously.
The sound shook the heavens.
Fear swept through the Human Army.
Because at that moment, every soldier understood the same terrifying truth.
Tomorrow would not be a battle.
It would be humanity’s first war against the demons in two thousand years.