Realm Lord
Chapter 130: A Story of Sheep

Chapter 130: A Story of Sheep

The silence that settled over the throne room was heavy with exhaustion and contemplation. Kay, Arthur, and Aziel had collectively decided to simply sit and rest while they waited for Lara to wake up from her unconscious state.

They didn’t talk much during those long hours of waiting. Aziel was far too tired, his body aching from the ordeal they had all endured. Every muscle in his frame screamed for proper rest, and his eyelids felt like they were made of lead. Kay was still mentally recovering from his brush with death, his mind struggling to process everything that had happened to him. The memory of darkness, of feeling his life slip away, lingered like a shadow at the edges of his consciousness.

Arthur, meanwhile, was completely lost in thought. There was so much to think about, so many pieces of a puzzle that refused to fit together properly. The story from the altar room was still fresh in his mind, every detail etched with crystalline clarity. Everything he had witnessed in the king’s memories played on repeat in his thoughts, along with the strange, overwhelming emotions those visions had stirred within him.

’It doesn’t make any sense,’ Arthur thought, his brow furrowing as he stared at the ornate ceiling above. ’Even pressured by desperation, none of the king’s decisions made any logical sense. Hell, the spell itself didn’t make any sense either.’

The more Arthur reflected on his experiences, the more frustrated he became. He had learned a great deal about the realms during his relatively short time here, but perhaps the biggest revelation was how little humanity truly understood about any of it. At the end of the day, they were all stumbling around in the dark, grasping at fragments of knowledge that might not even be reliable.

’It’s so incredibly frustrating,’ he mused, clenching his fists unconsciously.

As Arthur continued wrestling with his troubled thoughts and the rest of the group maintained their weary vigil, a couple of precious hours slowly ticked by. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Lara began to stir. She gradually dusted off the lingering haze of slumber that had claimed her, blinking slowly as consciousness returned to her tired mind.

The moment her eyes focused and she saw Kay sitting there, awake and very much alive, relief flooded through her entire being. Without hesitation, she grabbed him into a deep and strong embrace, holding him as if she were afraid he might disappear if she let go.

During the time they had spent waiting for Lara to wake up, Arthur had already taken the initiative to confirm that the spell had indeed been broken. The oppressive magical energy that had permeated every stone and corridor was finally gone, leaving behind only ordinary architecture and blessed silence.

Now that the spell was truly broken, there were other pressing matters that needed to be addressed. They weren’t home safe quite yet—there was still one major problem that had been weighing heavily on Arthur’s mind. He had been thinking about this particular obstacle the entire time, but fear and hesitation had prevented him from bringing it up earlier. However, he could not afford to wait any longer.

"Uh, Lara," Arthur began, his voice carrying a note of nervous uncertainty. "I’ve been meaning to ask... It’s great that we’re going to be able to leave the castle and all, but... how the hell are we planning on getting through that termite field surrounding the walls? Hell, now that the king is dead, they have no reason to be scared of the city anymore. I’d say we’re pretty lucky we haven’t been ambushed yet."

Arthur’s concerns were entirely valid. The massive termite creatures that had established their territory around the castle walls were formidable adversaries, and without the king’s presence to keep them at bay, the group would be walking into extreme danger.

Lara let out a sly, knowing smile before responding to his worried question. "It shouldn’t be a problem if we leave soon enough. Now that the spell is broken, the windows actually show the outside world as it truly is, and as you can clearly see, it’s nighttime. Those termites sleep pretty heavily during the dark hours and won’t bother us as long as we move while it’s still dark out."

Arthur stood there staring blankly for a long moment, processing this crucial piece of information. His expression suddenly shifted to one of sarcastic exasperation. "That... would have been nice to know earlier."

The absurdity of the situation struck both Lara and Kay as amusing, and they couldn’t help but laugh at Arthur’s deadpan delivery. The sound of their laughter was a welcome relief after all the tension and fear they had endured.

Soon after this exchange, they all began to prepare for the moment they had all been desperately waiting for since first entering the accursed castle—the moment they would finally leave this place behind forever.

They departed the throne room and the hallway beyond it, and for the first time since entering the castle, they were able to traverse its corridors freely. The experience felt genuinely weird after everything they had been through. The walls no longer shifted and changed, the passages remained constant, and their footsteps echoed normally through the stone halls.

As they walked through one of the castle’s many long corridors, Aziel broke the comfortable silence with a question that sent chills down everyone’s spine. "Do you guys think the monster of the halls is gone now that the spell is broken?"

Just hearing those words—"monster of the halls"—sent icy tendrils of fear racing up Arthur’s spine. The memory of that terrifying presence was still far too fresh and vivid.

Lara spoke up thoughtfully, "Who knows for certain? In the end, I still have no idea what that thing actually is or why it’s here in the first place. To be completely honest, I hope I get to leave this castle without ever finding out the truth about it." She turned to Arthur with curious eyes. "Did you see anything about it in the king’s memories?"

Arthur thought back carefully for a moment, mentally replaying the vivid memories he had experienced in chronological order. After a thorough mental review, he responded with certainty, "No... no, I didn’t see anything about it at all."

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air for a moment before being broken by Kay’s sardonic comment: "Great..."

Fortunately for all of them, they never did encounter the mysterious creature during their journey out of the castle. Where had it gone? Was it still lurking somewhere within the castle’s depths? These were questions they might never find answers to, and perhaps that was for the best.

After what had been weeks for Lara and Kay, and almost two weeks for Aziel and Arthur, they finally reached the main entrance. With trembling hands, they opened the heavy door and were greeted by the magnificent sight of the open sky and the sensation of fresh air filling their lungs once again.

All four of them took deep, grateful breaths, basking in the simple but profound beauty of being outside the damned castle at last.

"I never thought I’d be so happy to see the damn sky," Aziel said, staring up at the brilliant stars scattered across the night sky and laughing with pure joy and relief.

They all took a precious moment to fully appreciate the outside world—the cool night breeze, the scent of grass and earth, the vast expanse of star-filled darkness above them. It was a moment of pure, uncomplicated happiness.

Finally, Lara took a deep, steadying breath. "Alright, seriously though, if we don’t want to become termite food, we should hurry."

She took a determined step forward before turning to look at the rest of the group with a smile that held all the hope and determination in the world. "Let’s go home."

And with those simple words, they had finally escaped the ever-changing castle. After long months spent in the mysterious and dangerous Second Realm, Aziel and Arthur were heading home at last.

...

Far into the depths of the Second Realm, in a distant field of dead roses, rested the body of a friend long thought lost. His skin had turned grey with death, his eyes dull and lifeless, the blood that covered both him and the roses beneath him having long since dried to a dark, rusty brown.

But then, something impossible began to happen. The roses around his still form began to bloom with new life, their petals unfurling in vibrant crimson beauty. His grey skin slowly gained color once more, the pallor of death retreating as warmth returned to his flesh. His dull eyes began to grow bright with renewed life.

...

It is not real.

It is all a lie.

The story is not over.

Time is running out.

[End of Volume 1 A Story of Sheep]

A/N: Hey guys abtho here, looks like that’s a wrap on volume 1! I just wanted to let you all know how grateful I am for any of you who have made it this far! I hope I can continue to make a story you enjoy and read! I’m a relatively new author and this was a rather expansive story and world I decided to take on a make, it has proved to be extremely challenging and has put me in tough spots more than once. But nevertheless, we persevere and I’m very happy to be already going into volume two after almost two months since I started realm lord! I hope you all enjoy volume two!