Echo reads

Karman-Shadowstone town

When Karman saw the outline of the roof hidden in the darkness through the blinking green light in the distance, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. As he finished walking alone through the steep foggy canyon, it was hard to imagine the winding end was a forest. A breeze past, the dews of the leaves on the top of his head slipped into his collar, which torn by wild dogs. Fleshly coolness caused him to quickly pull up the hood behind his neck. The dirt beneath his feet smelled like the odor of stinky animal carcasses mixed with rich cheese. Somehow it reminded him his childhood, once he hid in the basement of a roadside Inn. The smell sprang into his nose and almost suffocated him. 

He ran faster, and the splashing dirt gradually covered up the red and swollen wounds on his ankles. A result of being tied by chains for a long time. 

I need food. He tried his best to endure the convulsions caused by hunger. There must be people living ahead. Please, Solene. 

On the way to the thorny thickets under the green light, an intermittent sound came from the inside of one house, purring, accompanied by heavy wheezes, like the ripping sound of a rag piercing into Karman’s eardrums. He slowly crawled to the ground, like a spider, slowly moved towards the wood waste pile on the right of the house, I need to try to avoid making noise, I don’t know what is happening, but it will not be a good thing, he frowned deeply. 

The foul odor became thicker when he got closer, which aroused the urge to vomit. He had to use his left hand to pull up a few unstained fabrics on his chest to cover his nose. He was quietly lying down beside a piece of moss-parasitic wood now. Its rough surface made his palms ache, and he listened vigilantly to the sounds inside, slightly sideways to use his better hearing left ear. 

“Hiss…” Then it grumbles.”Ow…… “. Within the crackling noise, the low roar of the beast echoes. 

Your filthy wild dogs! he fumbled into the pocket above the inner waist of the coat, meet you again, huh? The scene of wrestling with it in the narrow muddy road of the foggy canyon still lived in his mind. It made him clench his teeth and also reminded him the purple swollen wound above his arm was still faintly painful. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down, carefully straining his ears to hear how many dogs were inside. 

He had no other choice but to eat, otherwise it would be impossible for him to walk to Shadowstone on foot. 

Now he was holding the dagger, his eyes fell to the bloody rust that was still black on the opening blade. It was a long time that it got polished, the blade side had become somewhat pitted. But  now this was his only weapon. Holding the dagger in his backhand, he saw the broken window in front of him, so he tiptoed, step by step. He noticed the glass fragments landing on the tan dirt, carefully avoiding them. 

After he made sure that there were no other abnormal noises caused by his movements in the house, he peered at the window carefully. 

The house was gloomy, and Karman could only see many hemp ropes hanging in front of him. It seemed like they wrapped around a large wooden beam near the roof. Other ropes that fell on the ground were snaking into the darkness. Then they resurged near the wooden boards next to the stairs, illuminated by kerosene lamps rolling aside. Because the lamp was too far away from him-it almost rolled to the door, so he could only squint along the splashing light to distinguish his surroundings. Soon, he saw the blood stains that had seeped into the wooden board. 

Now, the house was deadly quiet, as smooth as water, as deep as this darkness. Perhaps they have already left. He stood up a little more and saw the cracks and cluttered footprints left at the door while the light was dimming. I should go in and scrape what was left. He exhaled gently. Make it quick! Everything is fine. 

So he walked to the side of the window, slowly stood up and then approached the edge of it. First, he walked in with one leg. When he stepped on the smooth board, he turned the other half of his body in. In this moment, he was at the intersection of the darkness inside the house and the faint light outside the window. The sudden decrease in brightness made him unconsciously blink his eyes. 

He didn’t have anything to light. Now it was pitch black in front of him, except the lamp area. Then he came up with one idea. He bowed up, picked up a rope that had slipped to the ground, bent it to form a circle, and forcefully threw it in the direction of the kerosene lamp. Missed.  Calm down, he told himself, then quickly hiding inside the darkness and observe. 

Nothing happened.

Now I would get the lamp by myself. He glanced at the door not far from the kerosene lamp again: the footprints were cluttered and overlapped, they were clearer now, more fresh blood on the ground. They did not go far, his heart began to pound, what should I do, will they be on their way back again? He hated his hesitation, pursing his lips. Finally, he was slowly walking towards the door while his right hand grasped the worn dagger firmly. The increasingly bright light of the kerosene lamp stung his eyes. He felt like he was a moth drawn to the flame. 

He picked up the kerosene lamp at last and turned around to look. He had already observed the wooden planks on the stairs when he was at the window before, but he did not know what really happened. Now he could clearly see: There were at least five or more corpses, and they were wearing yellow prison clothes that were even more tattered than his. They were layered on top of each other, with twisted hands and feet. Two of them were shot with a feathered arrow each in their left and right eyes. Their mouths opened wide, revealing uneven teeth. The bloody gums showed that several teeth were  pulled out. You can even see the rough edges. Also there were black arrow-like brands on their tongues. He ruffled, and as a result, he hit the nearest corpse. He hurriedly lowered his head and saw that this person had a feathered arrow that pricked deeply into his forehead. The arms and palms that were bundled to produce purpura. His body parts were targeted by a very large number of short wooden arrows, just like a hedgehog. 

This blood…Along this person’s densely prickled hands, the blood traces were extending, more large clumps of blood were formed, rubbed and blurry. All of these hinted the corpses were dragged around no long before…

This place was grasping his heart even tighter, I needed to get out of this place. However, just when he wanted to move his legs, a screeching wind was approaching.  Then he found himself unable to move. 

“Very well,” a man with a fluffy brown-gray hair and a blue leather coat dressed in a black cloak appeared besides the window where Karman had just hidden, stooping and showing his black and yellow teeth, turning his head and merrily said to the crouching girl, “Nice Shot, your last lesson.”

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