Chapter 749: Prophesy of Death
The gathering suddenly grew eerily quiet. Every single one of them patiently awaited Northern's response. He suddenly felt an invisible pressure drop on him; if he wasn't going to answer the question before, the gaze of everyone on him suddenly became too overbearing.
Northern shrugged with an air of indifference.
"Just get tossed into a continent crawling with monsters."
He said, his tone dry and detached.
The lady's eyes widened, and in a sudden burst of energy, she rushed toward him. She moved with such swiftness, it was as if the small flame at the center of their group didn't even notice her passing.
"Oh my days! You are one of its survivors!"
She crouched in front of Northern, holding his hands with her eyes widened as she exclaimed, her words tumbling over each other in her excitement.
"That explains so much! Oh my days, yes, of course-it all makes sense now!"
There was not a single soul who did not know about the event of the dark continent. Everyone just prayed and resonated with the kids given such a brutal fate, with heavy and praying hearts.
It was why someone like this lady... whoever she was... would suddenly change towards him and look at him with so much compassion and pity in her eyes.
Now, let's not talk about the fact that it was utterly discomforting and displeasing for Northern.
But the whole world felt sorry for all of them. Most especially those who had their kids and younger siblings safe in the Central Plains.
Northern wondered what category the lady fell into before shifting himself slightly away from her.
The moment she got closer, he got a clearer view of her enchanting face, its effect just like before pressed on... insidiously drawing him into a pit of darkness.
Amazingly, she had two different eye colors, something he had not even noticed all day. Her brunette hair was overflowing, cascading down her shoulders to the middle of her back, but several strands at the upper part were slightly disheveled.
Now that he saw her up close, he realized what he'd mistaken for gothic beauty was the shadow of sleep deprivation etched into her features.
She moved back and collected herself, apologizing.
"I'm sorry. I have just always wanted to meet one of you guys. I have so many questions I want to ask..."
She cleared her throat with a hint of embarrassment.
"Don't mind me. It's just... what happened to you all-it's hauntingly beautiful in its way. I just want to linger in that experience for a moment."
That statement changed everything, and Northern realized.
'She's insane.'
What did she mean "hauntingly beautiful in its way"? Who was this lady and why was she still staying so close to him even though he had given the cue to move away?
She clearly got it... but she was treating it as nonexistent.
Luckily for Northern, someone was also thinking like him.
He noticed tension building beside him before he even turned his head.
The other girl-sharp-eyed and quiet until now-fixed the strange woman with a cold, piercing glare.
"You're crowding him."
She said, her voice as sharp as a blade. The quiet tone somehow felt louder than the lady's earlier outburst.
The brunette, startled by the sudden confrontation, blinked and straightened herself. For a fleeting moment, her mismatched eyes narrowed, but the disarming smile she wore quickly returned, though it was far less genuine now.
"I wasn't trying to make anyone uncomfortable."
She said softly, raising her hands in mock surrender.
"I just... couldn't help myself. Meeting someone like him is rare."
The girl beside Northern didn't waver.
"Curiosity has its limits. Keep your distance."
Northern remained silent, observing the exchange with no idea what to do or how to interfere.
The air grew heavier, the tension palpable. The mercenaries around the fire exchanged
glances, unsure whether to intervene or let the situation play out.
Gareon eventually cleared his throat, breaking the standoff.
"Enough. We've still got a long way ahead of us, and the last thing we need is to be at each other's throats. Save your strength for what's out there."
The brunette hesitated, then sighed.
"Fine."
She took one last glance at Northern before retreating to her seat.
The girl sitting beside him exhaled and glared at him, whispering:
"You should learn to stand up for yourself more... there's nothing nice in just letting people
have their way. Sometimes you have to show that you have limits."
Northern was silent as the girl admonished him. He wasn't quite sure how to respond or what to respond, and all that just made him realize a disheartening fact.
'Am... I shy?'
Come to think of it, he didn't think he had held a normal conversation with someone of the opposite gender without being angry at them, wanting to kill them, or considering them a
sister of some sort.
Being shy was unthinkably absurd of him; maybe he wasn't, but right now, he couldn't find another reason for why he found the situation so awkward and couldn't handle it properly.
Northern sighed softly and stood up.
"I'll keep watch through the night."
He did not wait for anyone's response and just walked away.
"Excuse me for a minute."
The lady sitting next to him also stood up and immediately went after him.
Northern stopped after getting quite far from the caravan and noticing she wasn't stopping or
going a different way.
He turned around and asked with a dry tone.
"Can I help you with anything?"
She extended the half bread to him.
'Seriously...'
He looked down at the bread, sighed, and collected it from her.
"Thank you."
As he turned to leave, her thin, silvery voice broke the quiet, carrying softly in the darkness,
tinged with an odd loneliness.
"Say... earlier, you were measuring everyone, right?"
Northern did not respond, only halting to listen to her.
She hesitated, then pressed on.
"Who do you think will die next? Or... do you think everyone will make it?"
The silence stretched between them, the only sound the faint rustle of the cold wind through
the trees.
Just as she began to shift back, her question unanswered, Northern turned sharply. His cold
eyes locked onto hers, sending an involuntary chill down her spine.
"You."
Her breath hitched, her head tilting slightly as a small frown formed.
"Pardon?"
"I think you'll die next."
He said, his voice devoid of emotion, cutting through the quiet like a blade.
For a moment, she stared at him, stunned. Then, to his surprise, a burst of laughter erupted
from her, sharp and brittle.
She wiped a small tear from the corner of her eye as her laughter faded into something quieter -something more determined.
She met his gaze, her eyes burning with a strange, fierce resolve. Then she said softly: "Maybe some of us won't make it. But if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that I'm not dying."
Northern studied her for a moment, his expression unreadable.
Without another word, he turned away, walking deeper into the woods. Her words hung in the air like a challenge, echoing in the space between them.