The Serpent's First Kill

As I made my way forward in this journey, I found myself staring at dazzling city lights. The view from the top is beautiful combined with melodic sounds of birds and people's laughter. I was in awe… I have never heard of this city before. I decided to explore. I found the gate which leads inside the city. There were many guards guarding the gate, checking for any dangerous visitors as they passed through. The process was easy as they found no weapons or substance in me. They let me through and as soon as I stepped foot inside the city, the scenery became more beautiful from up close.

I was greeted by an elderly man with a smile plastered on his face. "Welcome, visitors! To Emerald City where joy and laughter is found!" He said.

My eyes scanned my surroundings. Each street has many bright lights which set the mood. There was no darkness inside, but only light. Despite it being night time, people are still active and walking around the streets. Children playing with other children while adults hanging out with their fellow adults. This scenery reminds me of Borne…

At night, whenever there is a festival, the city would always be lit in bright lights. People walking around in the city with a smile on their faces. Such peace could never be restored again… I miss those days. But they are now in the past. I am at the present and have to focus on what is in front of me, and not what's behind me. Such thoughts could ruin every opportunity that might appear.

I began to walk around the streets. Wherever I go, I always find places to be packed with people. It is such a surprise, considering the fact that there is Ragnarok going on outside. The deeper I walk to the middle of the city, the more I find adventurers, mages, and knights walking around the area. But, they have no intentions of harming people. Rather, they were enjoying themselves instead. One mage stood out to me the most. She was like a pirate. She dressed as a pirate. She talked like a pirate. She walked like a pirate. Everything she does is like a pirate. Is she… a cosplayer? Or is she an actual pirate? Anyways, I resumed walking the street, finding more and more weirdness but fun.

I spent four hours roaming around the city. So far, it isn't that big like Borne but it has lots of buildings, unlike Borne, it is spacious and also has a lot of buildings, but not this much. Emerald City is indeed bright. After four hours of just roaming around the city, I found myself tired. I booked a room for myself to lounge in. As soon as my body hit the soft mattress, my eyes closed and I fell into deep sleep.

"Today was fun." I whispered to nobody.

After sleeping for about twelve hours, my body felt light and new. I have recovered all my energy that I lost after journeying for months with no rest or little rest. I was about to pack my stuff, until I heard screams from the outside.

"Ahh! A monster has broken into the city!" A lady screamed. Soldiers, mages, adventurers, travelers, and many more that were about to leave the city began to prepare to fight. In the plaza, a huge scorpion-like monster appeared out of nowhere. Its scales are thick like steel, and its color is dark green. The scorpion monster roared, pushing everyone back. After the first roar, explosions echoed and shook the ground. More monsters appeared around the city.

"This place is surrounded by monsters! Everyone, run away!" The citizens of Emerald City began to run away from the monsters. But they began their onslaught against the humans. Soon, the clean and bright city has turned into chaos and gore. What was once filled with laughter, has now turned into a scream of horror.

A monster was about to kill a little girl until a blast of magic struck the beast, killing it on the spot.

"Are you okay, little girl?" The pirate lady from last night said. The little girl nodded her head. "Don't worry, I will protect you. Go and run to safety." Soon, more mages and knights joined the fight.

What about me? Well, I have no intention to join this fight. I focused on Cecilia's scent, but to my surprise, monsters surrounded me. They didn't give me any pause. Without hesitation, they began their onslaught against me.

"How annoying…" I released a shockwave that pushed the monsters away from me. Their bodies went into shock for only a few seconds. Before they could move, I killed them immediately. I was about to run away, but more monsters kept appearing. I have no intention to join or help anyone, but this is getting annoying. With no time to spare, my eyes flared in gold. The entire city was soon covered in darkness. Everyone was surprised by the sudden change of surroundings.

"I have no intention of joining either side. But think of this as a token of a gift for making me have a good night last night." The monsters that were covered in shadows burned into dark flames, leaving nothing but their ashes behind. After the gruesome battle, my shadows dissipated and I left the city with no intentions of looking at it or hearing everyone's thank you.

I feel strong… But I wasn't satisfied with the results.

"I should've just waited until the whole city was about to be taken by the monsters so I could at least destroy it as well." I sighed. "Oh well… This works too." And I resumed my journey, following Cecilia's scent.