I Was Not Meant To Exist-Chapter 51: the big one starts to destroy the sky

The warm sunlight from the east slowly began to appear, that light trying to pierce through the dense mountain ranges.

The warm light turned cold when it touched the mist surrounding the mountains that stretched for thousands of kilometers.

In one corner of the mountain range, a hole as wide as an adult’s waist could be seen in the sky above the mountains, that hole becoming the source of the cold mist, mist that kept moving as if trying to cover the entire mountain range.

No sound escaped when the mist covered them, birds flew away the moment the mist approached, insects were unwilling to come into contact with the mist.

But for a moment, the mist stopped coming out of the hole in the sky.

The silence remained the same for a while, until finally something came out of that hole, something trying to pierce through it.

A sound like shattering glass could be heard, and from that hole, a giant index finger appeared, the finger green in color with a sharp nail decorating its tip.

The finger moved slowly, its long nail touching the sky beneath the hole.

The sound of shattering glass was heard again as the nail pierced the sky, and the giant finger slowly moved downward until it touched the ground.

The hole in the sky that had once been small now turned into something like a gate from another world.

From that crack, the mist slowly appeared in even greater amounts, trying to invade lands farther than the mountain range.

The ground trembled not long after, and from that crack something began to wriggle out along with the mist, its numbers continuing to increase over time.

Slowly they separated themselves from the mist, their forms beginning to appear, they were smaller monsters, monsters preparing to descend from the mountains and charge at whatever they passed.

After some time, a giant green hand emerged from that crack, the hand once again shattering the sky like glass.

That hand opened the gate wider than before, causing even more mist and monsters to pour out.

The giant green hand revealed more of itself, a giant face lowered itself and came out from the gap, its face covered in mist, but its green skin could be vaguely seen with glowing red eyes piercing through the fog.

The giant’s first step made the earth around it tremble, its steps spared nothing, even the smaller monsters that came out with it were trampled beneath it.

With every step it took, the sound of bells could be heard, but they did not come from the green giant itself, the sound of those bells came from something on its head.

On the green giant’s head could be seen the silhouette of something sitting cross-legged, with two bell bracelets wrapped around each of its wrists.

The sound of those bells became the only sound within that mist.

The mist and the horde of monsters began descending from the steep mountain range, and their first destination was the northernmost fortress.

Hundreds of kilometers away from that mountain range, an ancient fortress stood facing the Silent Mountains and turning its back on dwarf territory, the fortress looked damaged in many places, but it still stood firm as the spearhead against the Silent Mountains.

Slowly the fortress began to be illuminated by the eastern sun, a dwarf who had his eyes closed stood at the highest part of the fortress, with a giant bell visible beside him.

The sunlight reached his sleepy face, but what he received was not warmth, but a gust of something cold.

The skin beneath his long beard began to feel the chill, and he slowly opened his small eyes, those eyes seeming able to pierce faraway distances, but they suddenly trembled when he saw something that should not have happened.

The dwarf’s hands trembled, he ran toward the giant bell and rang it with all his strength.

The sound of the bell echoed throughout the fortress, causing its inhabitants to wake up or stop whatever they were doing.

The loud ringing of the bell was followed by the dwarf’s shout.

"THEY’RE COMING!!! THEY’RE COMING!!!"

That voice echoed for a few moments.

Chaos erupted in an instant, they prepared themselves beneath the sunlight that had only just begun to rise.

—-

Meanwhile, in the eastern region closer to the sunlight, in a place thousands of kilometers away from that fortress, a city could be seen, a city that was slowly beginning to show its own kind of activity, very different from the fortress in dwarf territory.

The city began its day peacefully, although several vehicle horns filled the air.

In one corner of the city, in an area where almost every house looked the same, a young man with short black hair was standing in front of the door facing two other people.

One of them was an adult man with long gray hair, and the other was a woman with black hair, carrying a small child.

The black-haired woman spoke first, her voice sounding sorrowful.

"You only came back yesterday, but today you’re leaving again already, Alex?"

Alex gave a small nod, smiling at his father and mother as the warm sunlight touched his back.

"This time it’ll only be for a little while...."

Alex paused for a moment and thought.

"....Maybe I’ll be back tomorrow?"

He looked at his father and mother and spoke enthusiastically.

"You remember what I said yesterday, right? Katarina is going to treat me to a meal!...."

Alex chuckled in satisfaction.

"....I’m going to make her treat me at an expensive restaurant..."

His father let out a sigh while his mother only nodded with satisfaction.

"Hey, hey, you can’t be like that! You have to have some shame in front of a girl!"

Alex only shrugged indifferently.

His mother, who was carrying Aisy, just shook her head and whispered to Alex.

"Your father used to be exactly the same..."

Alex, already able to guess, nodded in agreement and whispered back to his mother.

"I know, that’s why I turned out like this..."

The two of them laughed together, even Aisy looked happy even though she didn’t understand.

Meanwhile, his father kept denying it.

Their morning conversation lasted for a while, until the sunlight was slowly covered by thick clouds and a cold wind blew over them.

Alex’s back shivered even though he was already wearing his black winter coat.

He looked at his parents one last time before leaving.

"Well then, I’m off, okay?"

His mother’s face turned sad again, and they hugged for a moment, Aisy joining in to hug him too.

"Come home quickly and safely, okay?"

Alex chuckled as he patted his mother’s shoulder.

"I’m only going to the capital, how could I not come back safely?"

After Alex said that, his mother started nagging again, but was eventually stopped by his father.

"I can take you to the station, you know."

Alex shook his head.

"I want to try taking the bus there..."

His father nodded in understanding, and the three of them finally let Alex leave.

Alex walked out of the yard, his footsteps carrying him past houses that looked exactly like his own.

He glanced slightly up at the sky, where the sun was slowly beginning to be covered by thick clouds, and Alex let out a sigh, his breath beginning to produce visible mist.

Suddenly, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

"Damn...I should’ve just gotten a ride."

After walking for a few minutes, his steps finally brought him to the bus stop near his house.

He looked around, people were passing by on the sidewalks or waiting for the bus just like he was.

’It’s all peaceful....’

A blue bus pulled over and stopped briefly at the bus stop.

Alex got on the bus, and it was fairly crowded inside, so Alex just stood there while looking out the window at the buildings he saw along the road to the station.

After a while, he arrived at Ashton City Station, entered it, and immediately boarded his train, staying silent and simply following the flow.

Feeling at ease, Alex spoke to Krystal in his mind.

’See? Nothing strange is happening...’

The train car Alex boarded felt warm, and he let out a sigh as he leaned comfortably into his seat.

A slight smile appeared on his face as the train began to move.

’Isn’t this going to be an easy day, Krystal?’

Krystal stayed silent for a few moments.

’Usually when it starts this calm, it ends up being difficult later...’

Alex clicked his tongue, looking at his reflection in the glass while also watching the city scenery.

’Don’t ruin the mood, damn it. What could even happen in the capital? Yeah...unless it’s an all-out war, of course...’

Krystal let out a quiet sigh.

’I’m bored....nothing interesting is happening.’

Veins bulged on Alex’s forehead as he gritted his teeth.

’What do you mean?! Yesterday was a rough week for me!’

Krystal, feeling bored, didn’t answer again, and Alex’s journey went very smoothly, without any disturbance at all.

After a few hours, the train finally arrived at the station in the human capital.

The moment he stepped out, he kept looking in every direction.

There were far more people passing by compared to Ashton City Station, and the size of this station was several times bigger than the station in Alex’s city.

All kinds of food aromas filled the air, and Alex, who kept staring at the endless crowd, felt like he was going to get lost.

’Damn...turns out Ashton City really is just like a village...’

He kept walking, trying to find someone he knew.

Luckily, it didn’t take long before he saw someone familiar. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

His height stood out clearly compared to the people around him.

Alex smiled faintly when he saw Aril standing there waiting for him.

Alex waved his hand, trying to get his attention, and Aril turned around. He was wearing a winter jacket the same color as his brown hair.

Alex walked over to him, and though they had only been apart for about a week, with how long Alex’s journey had felt, it seemed like they hadn’t seen each other for months.

"Oi...big boy."

Alex slung an arm around him even though their heights were very different.

"How’ve you been? Damn...you should’ve come to that desert. It was absolutely insane, man..."

Aril chuckled as he looked at Alex, who was smiling like a madman.

"I already heard the story, damn...did you die there?"

The two of them naturally began walking toward the outside of the station.

"Of course! Only Ken and I managed to make it out together, man."

Aril nodded in understanding.

They descended the elevator in the station, and beside them was a large glass wall whose view directly faced the human palace.

Alex saw it for the first time, and his mouth nearly fell open.

Aril nudged Alex because of his overreaction.

"Have you never seen that palace before?"

Alex shook his head, his gaze still fixed on the human palace even as he slowly descended.

"Does Katarina live there?"

Aril looked at Alex strangely.

"Of course she does, what exactly did you think?"

Alex swallowed hard, still staring at the magnificent palace.

"Can we go there? Do you think Katarina will invite us?"

Alex slowly descended lower and lower until he could no longer see the palace from the elevator.

But the palace still stood magnificently in its place, a palace standing almost in the center of the city, its gleaming white walls displaying the elegance of the human palace.

And within the palace grounds, in one corner of the palace, a stretch of green grass could be seen, with all kinds of flowers growing upon it, and in one part of that garden stood a magnificent white luxurious pavilion.

Inside the pavilion sat three people around a round table, the aroma of tea drifting fragrantly with the winter wind, while the scent of bread completed it, and the cold breeze did not make the skin of those in the pavilion shiver.

One of them was the king, with a red cloak draped over his shoulders, his dark red hair neatly combed, and warmth radiating from his blue eyes as he looked at the other two.

His gaze shifted to one of them, a woman with long smooth blonde hair, and from her blue eyes radiated calmness, she wore the same red cloak as the king, she was the queen of humanity, she was Katarina’s mother.

The queen turned to look at Katarina, a sigh escaping her lips.

Katarina sat there still wearing her nightgown, her tired eyes visible, dark lines beneath them, her dark red hair still messy.

"Are you not comfortable sleeping in your room anymore?"

Katarina turned to her mother and shrugged, tilting her head slightly.

"No...why would mother think that? I just couldn’t sleep..."

The king, hearing that, chuckled while wiping his lips with a white napkin.

"Did you have a fight with Julian or something? You met him yesterday, didn’t you?"

Katarina looked at her father and yawned for a while.

"Father shouldn’t say that. He just lost a lot of people in his life."

The king leaned back against his chair.

"Is that so..."

The king held his forehead and pinched it.

"....I even forgot because there’s been too much work..."

The queen placed her hand over the king’s hand on the table and gently stroked it, giving him her attention.

"You should rest whenever you can..."

Katarina, seeing how close her parents were, turned her face away slightly.

’Too bad his day off isn’t today...’

The queen looked at her daughter, Katarina. She smiled gently.

"I think the trial will go well...so after the trial, invite your friends here."

Katarina drank her tea, slightly remembering what happened in Julian’s treatment room yesterday.

"They come here often....what would make it special again?"

One of the queen’s eyebrows rose, and she gave a small nod.

"So you really did have a fight, huh?..."

Katarina swallowed hard and tried to deny her mother’s guess.

Her mother smiled faintly and gently stroked Katarina’s hand as well.

"Was it because of that artifact?....."

Katarina only remained silent upon hearing her mother’s question, no longer trying to deny it.

Seeing that, the queen let out a sigh, looked at the king, and pinched his hand, the rare sound of the king in pain now being heard in the pavilion.

"...I already told you to deliver that artifact directly to Dragon Heart."

Katarina, seeing that, smiled a little, and a small laugh escaped her lips.

The king rubbed the arm that had been pinched, wanting to defend himself.

"I already said, the Dragon King doesn’t want visitors right now. He only asked us to wait."

The queen clicked her tongue like an annoyed person, of course, it did not reflect the image of a queen at all.

"Even so!..."

The queen turned to Katarina.

"...look! Our child ended up fighting with her friends!"

The king also looked at Katarina.

There, Katarina only shook her head.

"I’m not fighting, mother, father. I was just talking normally..."

The queen’s eyes narrowed as she looked at Katarina.

A sigh escaped her lips, and the cold wind blew over them.

Suddenly, the queen remembered something.

"You also have those other friends, right? I mean Ken, Reva, and that child, right?"

Katarina gave a small nod in agreement with what her mother said.

The queen clapped once.

"Well, I want to meet that child who came back from death. I think he’s interesting since he could come back to life."

The king began leaning forward, staring at Katarina.

"That’s true, that child. He came back from death...."

The king stroked his chin and thought for a moment.

"Even that golden cat seems interested too..."

The king tapped the table.

"Invite him, Rina! We have to hear his story..."

Katarina chuckled when she saw her mother and father interested in Alex, who had returned from death.

’He might ask for a very high price...’

’....If that’s the case, then we’ll just eat and talk here later.’

Katarina finally nodded, agreeing to what her father and mother wanted.

Katarina drank her tea again, then remembered something else.

’Maybe father will leave today. If I do that, maybe I can change the stage a little?’

Katarina slowly looked around, seeing not only the flower garden, but also the palace and the servants busy with their respective tasks.

’This palace is beautiful....would it be okay if I stained it just a little?’

Katarina’s thoughts raced on, weighing what better thing she should do today.

’It should be fine...yeah, it’s better to discuss the technical details with him later.’

Katarina had finally made her choice, and she looked at her mother and father, who were talking.

"Father..."

The king, hearing himself called, turned toward Katarina.

Katarina played with her fingers, looking slightly hesitant.

"This is about the Bone of Malakar..."

The king’s face showed slight surprise, but he tried to listen.

The queen also wanted to hear what her daughter was about to say.

Katarina let out a sigh.

"This is only a suggestion...what if the Bone of Malakar is kept here until the dragons arrive later?"

The king’s eyes widened, and he stroked his chin.

"Why? It’s unusual for you to suggest something like that."

Katarina scratched her itchy cheek.

"Well...father knows, so many people became victims at the Overmas Mansion, they were even framed..."

The king smiled faintly, folding both of his arms.

"Then what difference would it make if it were here? There are servants here too...your mother is here, and right now there isn’t even a guard team. Only Black is guarding this palace..."

The queen remained silent, looking at Katarina, her gaze filled only with curiosity because this was the first time her daughter had ever given the king advice.

Katarina shrugged and stretched out her hands toward her father and mother.

"Even so, the two of you are the strongest pair in all of humanity...even demons would probably think twice before coming in here."

Silence fell between the two of them, but it was quickly broken by the laughter of the king and queen.

Their laughter brought warmth in the middle of early winter.

Katarina also chuckled when she saw both of her parents laughing.

’Yes...this is the best place...’

The queen wiped away a tear that had accidentally slipped from her blue eyes.

"I’m not that strong, you know..."

Katarina chuckled as she began praising her mother.

"Mother...in this world, the number of people who can break through your defense can be counted on one hand, right?"

The queen became even more delighted hearing Katarina praise her, and she started hitting the king’s shoulder repeatedly.

The king only stayed silent while his shoulder was being struck by his wife.

He looked at Katarina and smiled faintly.

"Yes...that’s worth considering. I’ll think about it, of course..."

Katarina nodded in understanding, and their conversation continued for a while until their time together came to an end.

The king and queen left first for the place where the trial would be held.

Katarina watched them walk hand in hand through the cold air.

Her heart beat faster, and her blood began to heat up in the middle of the cold air.

"All that’s left is the trial and talking with that idiot..."

Katarina slowly rose and began walking toward her room to get ready.

"...I hope there won’t be too many victims this time."