Inside the head volunteer's office, the atmosphere felt tense even though the midday sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating a desk cluttered with documents. The morning's horrific incident still haunted everyone's thoughts, but activities had to continue. The other volunteers were busy in class, teaching and calming the children who were still frightened after hearing the news of the murders at the town hall gate.
Nirea stood before Tadric with her arms crossed, her face full of determination. "We have to do something. If we let this continue, the school could be the next target. I can create a protective magic circle, at least for the school and the town hall."
Tadric rubbed his face, looking hesitant. "Nirea, you know how much Etherium that requires? Large-scale defensive magic isn't easy. It'll last a few hours at most before collapsing. Then what?"
"A few hours is better than nothing at all!" Nirea insisted. "It could give us time to prepare if something happens. And if needed, I can reinforce it later."
Tadric let out a heavy sigh. "You know, sometimes I think you have a delayed-heroism syndrome."
Nirea scoffed. "And you sometimes think too much like an old bureaucrat."
"Hey, I'm younger than you!" Tadric retorted in a protesting tone.
"But your head is starting to go bald."
"What?!" Tadric reflexively touched his head, while Nirea grinned smugly. However, the tension quickly returned as Tadric crossed his arms and looked at her seriously. "Alright, you can try. But I'll prepare other volunteers to stand guard in case something happens. We can't rely solely on magic."
Nirea gave a faint smile. "Believe me, I don't intend to be a martyr today. I just want to make sure we all survive."
With that decision, Nirea began preparing. She stepped outside, observing the schoolyard still filled with children and volunteers. Although the situation was calmer than this morning, the shadow of terror still lingered. No one knew who the perpetrator was, but everyone knew one thing—this wasn't over.
---
The two of them walked out to the open field in front of the open school, an area that also encompassed Beysolun's town hall. Tadric stared at the gate from a distance, the image of the guards' heads mounted there still etched clearly in his mind.
It had only happened this morning, and although the residents were starting to calm down, the air still felt heavy. Yet, this school had only been running for three days since its opening, after various exhausting negotiation efforts. This place used to not be a school, just an old building that was finally repurposed. And now, after all the hard work, a threat was haunting them again.
Tadric sighed. Was this the work of remnants of the former dictator's minions? Or was there another force pulling strings behind the scenes? He didn't know.
His gaze shifted to Nirea, who began chanting an incantation.
Slowly, Etherium energy flowed from her palms, forming a large circle that gradually enveloped the school and town hall. Tadric remained standing with arms crossed, observing how the magic worked. However, as time passed, Nirea's face grew paler. Her breath became ragged, her body trembled, and sweat began drenching her face and clothes. This protective spell was truly draining a massive amount of Etherium.
Tadric already knew this was a bad idea from the start. But if it could protect the school and town hall for the next few hours, at least it would be enough until the children went home.
Edric came out of the building after teaching, intending to return to his office. However, upon seeing the magic circle spanning the air, his brow furrowed.
"What is this?" he asked.
Tadric didn't turn. "See for yourself."
Edric watched Nirea, who was still standing even though her body was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion. Her sweat-soaked clothes made her figure more visible, and of course, Edric's dirty mind started working. He cleared his throat softly. "Well, to be honest, she looks... attractive in this condition."
Tadric gave him a flat look. "Shut up."
Edric just smirked, knowing he wouldn't get more of a response from Tadric. He saw Nirea about to fall, but before he could act, Tadric had already scooped her up first.
"I'll help—"
"One person is enough," Tadric cut him off, immediately refusing Edric's help.
Edric huffed. "Oh, alright, alright. I know my place." But in his heart, he grumbled, feeling like he was just a nuisance in this cliché romantic scenario.
However, before he could continue his complaints, suddenly a sound of something heavy hitting the protective barrier was heard.
THUD!
The shockwave echoed throughout the area. The protective barrier shook violently, as if just struck by something incredibly strong. Tadric and Edric immediately turned towards the source of the sound—the town hall.
"What was that?!" Edric exclaimed.
All the occupants of the school and town hall who heard the sound rushed out in panic. Some teachers and students spilled into the yard, while government staff began gathering with tense faces.
Tadric narrowed his eyes, staring at the sky above the town hall. Something was moving up there.
And it wasn't good news.
---
The parents who had earlier come to protest the open school's security now stood frozen in silence. Their fear transformed into something more primal—the survival instinct.
Some tried to push forward to ensure their children's safety, but other residents held them back, their faces deathly pale as they saw what had just hit the barrier.
Residents who saw it immediately screamed in terror, some retreating with pale faces, while others covered their mouths, holding back nausea.
"O-Oh my god… is that… a human?" one resident whispered, their voice trembling.
A man tried to approach, but his body shook violently. "Who… who would do this?"
The object that was thrown… wasn't just an object. It was a human body.
Not just a body, but the remains of a body.
Flesh torn as if ripped by a wild beast, bones protruding in unnatural positions, and most horrifying—a head almost separated from its neck, only connected by tattered muscle fibers and skin. The victim's eyes stared blankly, as if their death occurred in panic and extreme suffering.
The metallic smell of blood began to spread, even though the magical barrier still stood. Some residents immediately vomited on the spot, while others just stood rigid, unable to say anything.
Meanwhile, Tadric, Edric, and the volunteers stood frozen, their gazes fixed on the corpse. Even Edric, who usually joked around, could only swallow hard, his face tense.
Nirea, still weak after creating the barrier, looked at the body with a horrified expression. Her breath was still ragged, but she could sense something odd.
"This… isn't an ordinary murder," she murmured, her voice almost inaudible.
"Who… would be cruel enough to do this…?" one resident whispered, their voice nearly drowned by the tension hanging in the air.
And at that moment, a shadow in the distance began to move…
---
Behind the panicked crowd, amidst the sound of residents' footsteps running away, something moved within the shadows. Not just ordinary shadows—it slid with terrifying silence, merging with ruins and trees like a slowly pulsing dark mist.
On one of the rooftops, a hooded figure stood, their body shrouded in a tattered cloak torn in places. Beneath the hood, their face was hidden in darkness, but from behind the cloth covering the lower part of their face, something pulsed… like organic tissue moving on its own, as if something lived beneath their skin.
Their thin, almost skeletal-looking fingers pulsed strangely. When they moved their hand slightly, around them, white particles like dust scattered—but this wasn't ordinary dust. Each particle seemed to glow faintly, then vanished into the air, spreading silently in all directions.
From their body, small Etherium mushrooms crawled out, growing and shrinking in rhythm with their inaudible breath. They didn't need to speak, didn't need to growl—their mere presence was enough to make the air feel heavy. The Mycelic Executioner observed the situation from afar.
Eyes—or whatever was hidden beneath the hood—were fixed on one thing: the open school and the protective magic circle that had just been activated.
They didn't move hurriedly. There was no need to rush.
Their mushrooms had already spread.
In the shadows, behind building crevices, things that should have been dead slowly began to move. Body parts that were previously still now began to twitch. Ownerless fingers clawed at the ground, a head without a body shifted slowly, as if trying to remember how to speak. Flesh that should have been destroyed now began to be woven back together by faintly glowing white fungal filaments.
They were no longer human.
And this was just the beginning.