It was dark.

‘Where is this?’

Vision was blocked. Below, everything was black.

‘Is this a volcanic area?’

The ground was oxidized, turning red, and above it yellow flames blossomed.

Sparks from the flames floated in a sulfuric stream, and toxic gases rose from various places.

Rotten corpses were tangled on the ground.

The corpses of monsters had decayed on the ground, their joints melted into a grotesque shape.

Flags were planted here and there on the ground, and rusty armor and helmets were left on the sulfuric stream.

“Monsters?”

They were the corpses of monsters. Bones were buried deep, and these monster corpses were larger and stranger than others.

Horns sprouted from the skull of the monster, and what looked like ribs were embedded in the ground.

It was a grave made of bones.

‘Gurgling’

Nothing was there.

Only blackness, no form.

Just existence.

Charlotte passed between the graves.

Beside her….

An intangible pressure crushed down on Charlotte.

“Huak!”

It felt as if her lungs were filled with water. Her vision wavered.

Her breath caught in her throat.

Scratching her neck with her nails, the skin tore away.

Torn skin flapped, and her neck was streaked with red lines.

“Don’t bite your tongue.”

A low voice woke Charlotte.

Charlotte felt a foreign object in her mouth. A thick fingertip touched her tongue.

“Relax.”

Her breathing trembled. Her face turned pale, one cheek spasming.

Both of her arms were strangling her neck, her mouth filled as she bit his fingers.

“Charlotte, loosen your arms. Stop strangling yourself.”

Charlotte let out a shallow sigh.

“You seem to have calmed down.”

“……”

“Are you okay?”

He held Charlotte’s wrists and laid her down properly.

“Lower your arms and relax.”

Her vision flipped once again.

Charlotte lay flat, looking at the ceiling. Her shallow breath trembled.

“Stop biting.”

She kept grinding her teeth on the foreign object in her mouth; his fingertips twitched. Ah, she was still biting.

“I had to put my hand in your mouth in a hurry because you bit your tongue.”

Benjamin pulled his scratched hand out of her teeth.

“……What is it?”

“First, fix your breathing. Your neck has stiffened.”

A taste of bitter blood filled her mouth.

She really seemed to have bitten her tongue.

His fingertips were scratched red by her teeth.

“Weren’t you in your office?”

Her breath trembled rapidly. Her airway felt tightly blocked.

Her complexion turned pale. Her breathing was cut off, and her face lost its color.

“……Why are you here?”

“The delegation from Taran had just left. You seemed to be napping a bit too long, so I came to wake you.”

Charlotte, who was rambling, felt regretful.

‘The New Year’s ceremony is over.’

The delegation from Taran had all left. By now, they would have already left the port of Poputa.

The schedule was all finished.

As she tried to get up, her arm weakly collapsed.

Her body buried itself back into the blanket. Her long hair tangled like a spider’s web.

“I’ll call Hwanggung. Wait.”

“……It’s hard to breathe.”

After sending off the delegation, her breath had remained heavy.

She had felt this way yesterday, too. A feeling that her body had become disconnected from the world.

“I saw the grave.”

It was a place piled with bones and corpses. Rotten bone fragments were buried in the ashes, and the entire place seemed like a grave.

“That’s something you shouldn’t see, strange.”

His answer was ambiguous.

As if asking, why are you seeing that?

“You saw the monster’s grave.”

“……What kind of grave?”

“When the monster border zone enters its active period, those who are sensitive start to feel it and wake up first. They are close to the gap in the border zone, and when the gap opens, they unconsciously touch that place. They were the ones who had been fighting monsters for a long time.”

His eyes lowered.

“……Why do you look like that?”

Instead of answering, he bowed his head.

Aaron wrapped a bandage around Charlotte’s neck.

“Be careful when going outside today. The neck is a vital area. You shouldn’t show any scars on it to the outside world.”

“And the rest of the body?”

“…For that, I must consult a poison expert. May I?”

Benjamin spoke to Charlotte, who was leaning against the bed.

“Would you like to be alone for a moment? Shall I call the chamberlain?”

“It’s fine. Just go.”

Benjamin led Aaron out.

After the bedroom door closed, Benjamin looked back at Aaron, who bowed his head slightly.

“It is as recorded in the royal archives. Your Majesty has indeed seen the demon’s tomb. Prepare, their active season is coming.”

When the demon’s active season begins, they become even more ferocious and rough.

“A long extermination is about to start.”

“The timing is unfortunate, just as the royal family is stabilizing.”

“I had anticipated it would be around this time. However, this season is different. It feels as if things that shouldn’t be above the ground are crawling below.”

The royal family had organized demon-hunting teams to reduce their numbers.