Agnus Empire, Asteroth Grand Duchy, Hell’s Gate Village.

The Hollow Mountain Range which bordered the Avalon Kingdom was a vast mountain range located on the outskirts of the mighty Asteroth Grand Duchy in the Agnus Empire.

It had numerous small and big villages scattered about and Hell’s Gate was among one of them.

Hell’s Gate village was neither small nor big. It was a fair-sized village with only several dozen families.

They relied on hunting and farming to get through the day. When the sun went up, they toiled and when it came down, it was time to rest.

The entire village was surrounded by hills and mountains along with an abundance of flora and fauna, a truly breathtaking scenery contrary to its ominous name.

Even the quality of the air there was fragrant beyond comparison.

Despite being situated near the border of the Avalon Kingdom, Hell’s Gate village was extremely peaceful and quiet.

Unlike the other villages within the Hollow Mountain range, it was completely unaffected by the violence and chaos caused by the two nations’ ongoing cold war.

Numerous gangs and bandits group came and went, and many villages in the area got destroyed over the years or occupied by bandits or other humanoid creatures, however, Hell’s Gate remained itself without changing as an eternally tranquil village.

The increasing surge of chaos and instability within the Hollow Mountain Range failed to break the peace and the tranquility of this small village.

It was as if there was an invisible and powerful force protecting this village, a force that didn’t allow anyone to disturb its peace and tranquility.

Hell’s Gate was a good place for those who sought peace. It was like an earthly utopia contrary to what its ominous name might lead one to believe.

At this moment, as the evening cast her dusky gown and the air became fresh and restful, the farming field of Hell’s Gate which was usually filled with hard-working farmers became desolate with not a soul to be found.

To them, the evening was a time to rest after the daylight efforts were made. It's when it felt good to enjoy the simple pleasures and ready oneself for the world of dreams.

While most of them preferred to stay at home with their family, others preferred to spend their evening getting drunk and gossiping. And there was no other place to do that than in Flint Tavern.

Flint Tavern was the biggest tavern in Hell’s Gate village. In fact, it was the only one in the whole village.

Despite being the only tavern here, the pricing was very reasonable and the food and ale were also pretty decent. Because of this, there were no complaints from customers.

As it was evening and also the time that everyone got off work, the little tavern was abuzz with patrons eating, drinking, and talking shit.

The shopkeeper was an old man around the mortal age of seventy with gray hair. His appearance was not too outstanding, but he was very hardworking, evident by the calluses on his hands.

“You look a little down lately Birch, Is everything ok?”

The owner of the tavern whose name was Flint was wiping a wooden mug with a piece of cloth as he asked a loyal customer that came in with a discouraged expression.

“Hah, my old lady is beefing with me. It's been a week since I've been sleeping in the barn with those damn stinky horses.”Answered Birch with a dejected expression on his face as he took another sip of his drink.

“No wonder you've been smelling like horse shit lately.” Another customer that was wolfing down a bowl of rice looked up and cut into the conversation with a mouthful of rice. “So what did you do this time. You cheated on her with a horse. Hahaha.”

Soon as the man’s voice faded away, the entire tavern explode into laughter. While some of them showed pity for Birch, others were laughing at his misfortune.

“Egor you fat fuck, goblin fucker, you better stop it with your joke. I am not in the mood right now. This time is serious, my old lady might really leave me.” Birch stood up as he angrily yelled at the Egor who didn't see it coming.

“Ok, ok! I got it. I just wanted to joke to ease the mood. Also, don’t take your anger on me, who told you not to keep it in your pants.” Answered Egor as he stood up to Birch.

“Alright, alright. Let's stop this. We're all here to drink and have a good time after a long day of work, not to fight.” Interrupted the shopkeeper as he tried to diffuse the situation.

“Also Birch, I got some interesting news that might cheer you up.” The shopkeeper added with a hint of excitement in his voice.

“The Sabertooth Gang has decided to attack our village.” He said.

“What! For real. Ohh shit, finally something exciting is about to happen.” Answered Birch with a look of excitement on his face.

“Hahaha, it's been almost three years since someone dare to attack our village. Let's hope they bring some good stuff with them.”Another customer added after hearing the news as well.

“I am more concerned about how the state of their corpses will be. Let's hope they will be left in one piece this time otherwise it would be hard to loot them.” Egor added.

At this moment, the entire tavern was brimming with excitement after hearing that news. Some even began to bet on how long the Sabertooth Gang would last until being decimated.

Meanwhile, in the very corner of the room, a middle-aged man was on the verge of breaking down after hearing that news.

‘What the fuck is going on? Are those people going nuts? How can they be so happy after hearing that terrible news?’

The Sabertooth Gang was the most powerful gang throughout the whole area with over one thousand members. They were practically the overlord of the Hollow Mountain range.

They were known for being extremely ruthless and barbaric. They have burned, plundered many villagers that defied them, and raped countless women.

Yet after hearing the news that these kinda low life and barbarians were coming to raid their village, instead of being scared shitless, they were all happy about it to the point they were taking shots to celebrate it.

Just what the hell is going on?

After living in the village for two months, he knew full well about the fighting power of the village. It was practically none, zero, zit. They didn't have any patrol guards let alone a militia.

Most of them were all farmers with no fighting experience. The only fighters they had in their midst were the hunters. However, even they were fake as well and cowards who only hunt rabbits and other defenseless animals.

The Sabertooth gang was like a giant monster compared to the little village; this was the difference between an elephant and an ant.

“Don't you people understand the gravity of the situation. If I were you, I would immediately start packing my bags and get the hell away from this place before the Sabertooth gang came.” Shouted the middle-aged as he interrupted the festivity. His voice was unnaturally serious since they were talking about the Sabertooth gang.

Meanwhile, the entire tavern fell quiet after hearing the middle-aged man's words. However, it didn't take long before they burst into laughter again.

In fact, they were laughing even harder after hearing his words. It was as of they had just listened to the biggest and funniest joke of the century.

Seeing this, the middle-aged man became even more shocked and pissed as he couldn't understand what was happening.

‘These people are crazy.’ He inwardly thought.

“So you are the new guy, no wonder.” Said the shopkeeper with an understanding look on his face.

“I understand how you’re feeling. But don't worry, everything will be fine. This village is the safest place throughout the whole empire. Even the emperor isn't as safe as us.” The shopkeeper added with a confident tone.

“What are you talking about?” The middle-aged was even more confused after hearing the tavern owner’s words.

“Ever wonder why this place is called Hell’s Gate village.” Egor interrupted.

“Huh!” Blurted out the middle-aged man with a confused look on his face.

“Well, where’s the fun of explaining everything to you. You'll understand everything tomorrow.” He answered as he shifted his gaze towards the small castle at top of the hill in the distance.

Not only Egor, but everyone was looking in that direction as well with a frightened expression on their faces. It was as if the most terrible fiend in this world was living there.

......................................................

Meanwhile, In the courtyard of the small castle, the wind was blowing gently causing the small bamboo garden to peacefully rustle. Bringing about a sense of serenity, like a poetic illusion.

In the middle of the small bamboo garden, was a little boy, roughly about ten years old sitting in a wheelchair all alone. The little boy looked very frail and weak, with a very thin physique.

He could be considered considerably good-looking, with that delicate small face and a pair of beautiful black eyes, which unfortunately appeared to be soulless and dead.

In this instance, the little body had a sorrowful expression on his face which was not fitting for his age. It was the kinda expression that no ordinary ten years old should be able to emulate.

“I can’t believe it’s already been ten years.”