The exiles had formed a tight circle, their backs were turned inward, keeping watch on their surroundings.
In the middle of the circle, Ellie stood behind the sitting elder.
"Why don't you just stay at the edge of the forest? Surely that would be safer?"
"It's not that simple, boy. If we stay, we'll all get slaughtered. And the next batch of poor souls will be thrown out here to replace us."
Ellie blinked.
"Why would they do that?"
The elder's eyes were distant, as though he wasn't talking to her anymore.
"Listen, boy. Sending us out here cuts down on the mouths they have to feed, sure... but that's not the real reason.
At first… when they sent people out, they gave out supplies. Water, dried meat, even blankets. Each time, though, they started giving out less and less."
"There's one thing they never stopped doing," the elder continued, his voice tight. "Every group… every damned time, they made someone bleed. And they make sure everyone didn't abandon that person one way or another like cutting someone else or worse."
His eyes burned with something between grief and rage.
"Many thought it was a warning if anyone dared to try staying near the forest. But like I told you. They didn't need no warning, they could kill us if they wished to. No. They need us to survive. They need us to... lurk out something."
Ellie felt a chill that had nothing to do with the cold.
"This time, they didn't give us a damn thing. No food. No water. Not even a firestarter. That means whatever they're trying to lure out…"
His voice dropped even lower, almost shaking.
"It's close. A day's travel, maybe less."
A lump formed in her throat, making her cough before speaking.
"Surely, there must be a way. The forest is too big to guard all of it, right? Maybe there's a weak spot somewhere?"
"You're suggesting we sneak back in?" the elder asked, his voice low.
"Boy." The elder cut her off. "The sentries can spot anything that tries to get in from the floating island."
'Right. The surrounding area of the forest is flatland. What to do? What to do?'
Ellie considered leading one of the beasts here, using it as a distraction to sneak into the forest while the guards were busy fighting it.
'That won't do. I am not fast enough to outrun those giant beasts.'
Her mind spun faster.
'What about setting the forest on fire?'
The flames would spread fast in the cold dry forest. With all the smoke and the chaos, the guards would have no choice but to prioritize putting out the fire.
She looked around at the exiles, huddled together for warmth. People who had nothing left, clinging to each other anyway. There was Ray among the group, being nursed by a kind mother. Ellie had given him over to a widow just in case anything went wrong.
'Am I ready to let everyone else die for my cause?''
Her stomach twisted painfully.
The fire wouldn't just draw guards. It would draw the beasts too. The old, the weak, the children... they wouldn't stand a chance, especially when their forest was set ablaze.
She swallowed hard, her throat burning as if the flames were already there.
'Only if there isn't any other way.' Ellie thought to herself.
"There's something I need to tell you, though."
Ellie's voice was low, and steady, as she stood behind the elder.
"What is it, boy?" the elder asked without turning around.
"Do you know about the side effects of consuming mermaid's blood?"
The old man's brow furrowed. "I've never heard of such a thing."
"Well, it's a well-kept secret. If people knew, the value of mermaid's blood would plummet."
"And why's that, lad?"
"Simply put—mermaid's blood can make a person go crazy."
The elder let out a deep, rough laugh, his voice hoarse from the cold and age.
"I went crazy a long time ago, boy."
Ellie's eyes narrowed. "When?"
"Eighty years back. I first set foot on that damned continent. Saw things no man should ever see and I lost my damn mind." His voice was distant, like speaking to a ghost from his past. "The last thing I remember was our goddess arriving on the battlefield."
Ellie's breath hitched.
"She wiped away those years of suffering from my mind… before sending me back here." His voice softened for a moment. "She never came back. And the world grew colder without her."
"So you really don't remember anything at all?"
"Not a thing."
'How convenient.'
"The demi-humans. Is that why you are angry at them? For not sailing east to save your goddess?"
The elder didn't answer the question. His head lowered to the snow beneath him, his shoulder lumped down a bit.
"I don't mind losing my mind," the elder finally spoke, his voice trembling. "I was never right in the head after that time, anyway. Truth is... I didn't deserve to forget."
"I'm sorry," he muttered, his body trembling. "I'm so damn sorry. I should've died with the others. If I wasn't so... incompetent, the goddess wouldn't have had to step in. This world... this frozen, miserable world... it's my fault."
"I left behind a world like this for you youngsters to suffer in. I'm the one who should've stayed behind in that damned war. Not her. Not the goddess. I should've been the one who didn't come back."
The exiles around them were silent, heads bowed. No one dared to interrupt.
"But the least I can do now... the only thing I can do... is not cause any more trouble for you kids." His eyes, wet with unshed tears, looked up at Ellie before taking a look at each and every trembling backs surrounding them.
The wind howled again, but this time it felt quieter like even the cold itself mourned with him. Ellie uncorked the waterskin with steady hands, though her heart wasn't nearly as calm. She tilted it carefully, pouring its content over the elder's open wound.
Despite the weight of his words still hanging in her chest, she couldn't help but feel a flicker of curiosity sparked inside her. It was unclear if her blood actually caused divine madness or if that was something only she suffered from, a twisted side of "Thief of Divine Light". Was the madness in the blood... or in her?
Upon coming into contact with the crimson-tinged liquid, the wound reacted almost immediately. The bleeding stopped, and at the same time, skin began pulling together, slowly knitting itself shut.
"Elder?" Ellie asked.
But came no response.
The elder sat rigid, his head bowed forward. His body had gone unnaturally stiff like a statue.
"Elder... are you alright?"
Again, there was no response.
Suddenly, the elder's body jolted before somersaulting into the air. His single leg kicked off the ground with terrifying force, launching him into the air from his sitting position, and turning his body backward in the air. His arm shot toward her shoulder, fingers curled like claws. Without hesitation, she grabbed his wrists, twisting her body, and threw him over her shoulder with all her strength. The elder slammed into the frozen ground with the combined force of his momentum and Ellie's throw, snow exploding around him. For a moment, everything was still.
Then the shouting began.
"Elder!"
"What are you doing?"
"Stop him!"
The circle broke as people spun toward the middle. Some ran toward Ellie while others to the elder's side, rushing to help him up.
"Get away from him!" Ellie shouted but no one listened.
Those who tried to help him up were tossed aside like rag dolls. One man crashed into the snow, coughing from the impact, while another woman cried out as she tumbled backward.
'He's only after me.'
One man grabbed her arm, trying to hold her still, maybe to stop her from attacking the elder again, but she broke free. She turned and pushed him hard enough that he stumbled.
Before she could look back at the elder, he had already barreled into her, pinning her down to the cold ground. Ellie's hands shot up, catching him by the face. His teeth snapped inches from her nose. Her arms trembled, muscles burning as she pushed back against his strength. He wasn't supposed to be this strong. He was an old man, missing a leg, for crying out loud.
He pressed down harder, his jaw gnashing like a rabid beast. Saliva dropped on her face. But there was also something else. Thin streams of tears rolled down the elder's weathered cheeks.
"Elder!" Ellie gritted her teeth.
"Fight it!"
But the only response was a guttural, broken snarl and the tears that kept rolling. Then, in the middle of his guttural snarls, his voice broke through.
"I... I remember it now."
His face was still twisted with madness, but something flickered behind his tear. For a brief moment, it wasn't the monster staring at her — it was the elder again.
"Everyone… everyone got turned." His body trembled, fighting against itself. "Boy... you... need to kill me. Now."
"Kill me!" His voice exploded, louder this time. "Before I hurt someone!"
The people around them froze in place. Some stared in horror, others in disbelief.
"Elder, no!"
Ellie could feel the weight pressing down on her slowly growing heavier again as the elder's eyes dimmed, whatever humanity he had left was slipping away.
Not wasting a second more, her hands shot up, one gripping the top of his head, the other locking around his chin. She twisted hard and fast. A sickening crunch echoed through the air as his neck wrenched to the side, bending at an unnatural angle. His body spasmed, but Ellie didn't stop.
Her muscles screamed, but she forced her left hand back while her right hand held onto the elder's chin, pushing him up, building up the travel distance for her left hand. Then, she struck upwards with everything she had. Her fist slammed into his twisted jaw, snapping his head even further, the bone giving way with a grotesque _pop_. His head hung limply, half-detached, his body collapsing onto her like a broken doll.
Ellie didn't move. She stared up at the sky, her heart pounding so loud it drowned out all the screaming and crying around her. Ellie pushed the elder's body off her and sat up slowly. Her eyes fell on the elder's face. The twisted snarl was gone. His expression was peaceful now, almost like he was finally free.
'Sorry for making your last moment so unsightly.'