Jarad when opened his eyes, found himself lying on what felt like a wooden table, someone had wrapped his whole body with warm woolen blankets that had formed a warm cozy cocoon around him. Although the blankets were keeping him warm, he could not move his body in the process which was making him uncomfortable.

As he moved his head, he saw that he was some sort of old building, there were tons of people, hiding there from the coldness of outside, most of them looked weak, and based on the clothes these guys were wearing, he figured that they were all poor people.

“Look like someone is awake.” He turned toward his right to see an old man with a grey bushy beard, wearing black color robes, with silver angel wings around the neck. He was a priest, of the church of Lord Tibba.

“Can you speak my child?” the old man asked. “Yes,” he replied in a hoarse voice.

“It seems like you would need some more rest.” The old man then put a hand on his head, checking his temperature. “Your fever has stabilized, which is a good thing.”

He then tried to move his body, but the sheets didnt let him move, they were wrapped tightly around him. “Father… help.. me up”

At his request the father started removing the sheets one by one, slowly the weight that he was feeling on his chest started vanishing, and he finally could breathe properly. Father helped him sit up straight.

‘It is a miracle by great Tibba himself. I was saved by his grace’ he thought as he looked around.

“So, care to tell me your name stranger?” Father asked

“My name is Jarad.”

“Are you a merchant Jarad? What are you doing here?”

He started stretching his arms and legs which had gone numb. “I am a Royal Servant here to meet Baron Geon. But my entourage got lost in the snow last night, and I got separated from them. And then I was attacked by a white magical beast, because of which I lost my horse and directions”

The priest frowned upon hearing this, “Lord have mercy on the souls of your people” The old man then tapped his shoulders, paying respect to the dead. “And, are you telling me that you encountered the beast and left to tell a tale about it?”

He nodded, it was pretty shocking, most normal people like him aren't lucky to survive an onslaught of a magical beast and live to talk about it. “Father, have you sent a report to a noble about the presence of a magical beast in this place?”

The old man smiled. “We have my dear child, but the thing is that noble household won't be able to do anything to the beast.”

Father’s words and his smile confused him, was that beast so powerful that there was no awakened one in the kingdom that could care for it? Was it something else? “What do you mean father?”

“That beast that you saw last night. It is a hell walker.” His eyes opened wide apart. 

Hell Walkers are the creatures of hell, according to the scriptures of Great Tibba, a time of reckoning would come for beings that occupy this world, and from that day onwards hell walkers would roam the place, killing sinners left and right, only leaving good and innocent souls behind, they will only go away, when every being has been cleansed of its sins.

“Father, are you saying this is the end of the world?”

“Unfortunately it is. And you, my child a kind-hearted soul, that is why the monster didnt come after you.”

He was speechless, he was a big believer in the Great Tibba, he had followed the scriptures left behind by the great one, and he prayed to Great Tibba every day without any break. But this was just absurd, he didnt know how the world would end, but he knew for sure that this was not how it would end.

That creature that he saw was a magical beast, he was 100% sure of it, this priest was delusional about being the end of the world, this was not, this weather out there was an anomaly, but other than that, there was no actual proof that the world was going to end…

He mingled in the church to get to know where he was, according to the people he was currently in a church made by the pilgrims many years ago, probably around the time when the Gorgon Kingdom was formed. This church was located near a small poor village, as the temperature started decreasing, the villagers with houses in bad shape, started living there.

This church was made of stone and sturdy walls, it was made in such a way that the place could accommodate around 100 people and it could remain hot for long periods of time, according to the priest, the stones walls had ventilation ducts, which are spread around the church like veins in the human body.

These ducts are connected to the fireplace in the basement, because of which these ducts thoroughly heat the stones of the church, and the binding agent of the stones facilitates in trapping the heat inside, thus this was one of the only livable places in the local area, or so did villagers said. Last night what he thought were the angels of the Lord Tibba, were actually the lanterns hung around the church.

Luckily someone was by the glass window of the church when he came and fainted nearby, they brought him in, covered in as many blankets as they can, and now here he was, sitting in the corner of the church, looking around the crowded area before, thinking about what to do.

Although the church seemed like an ideal space to rest and recuperate, he couldnt help but shake off the feeling that this place wasn't safe, maybe it was his paranoia speaking, but he trusted his gut. Staying put in a place like this could have many problems, he knew it, but the question was whether these people knew it as well

The first and foremost problem was the monster out there, he didnt what kind of strength that monster possessed, and if he was being optimistic, then that monster wouldn't be able to able to make holes in these walls, but what about the glass panels which was were all spread across the church, and some of them were even big enough for the monster to make its way in.

Secondly, the church architecture would keep them warm, but without food, water, and other supplies, surviving in this kind of cold would not be easy, they would need to find supplies as soon as possible.

The third problem that he faced was his toes and some fingers of his right leg had turned black, he knew what that was. It was frostbite, one of the major causes of death in cold regions. There was no cure for frostbite, that a normal person could procure, the only cure for frostbite was a potion made by an alchemist, but those things were very expensive, he could afford them, but there was no way that he could find a potion out here.

If he couldnt get the potion in time, then he would have to amputate the affected fingers, and if he were to trust the statistics of the book that he read, he knew that the wound would only get worse after the amputation, which meant that there might be a possibility in the future where he would have to amputate his whole arms and legs.

‘I cannot stay here, not when there is a monster lurking outside. I should leave this place and continue my journey outside, and reach Baron Geon’s manor as soon as possible.’ He decided.

With a plan in his mind, he went to speak with Father, he was the leader of their group, and he would need his help if he ever wants to make it to Baron Geon. He decided to ask for help, and in exchange he decided to donate some supplies to the church for these people’s survival.

It was a very fair offer, and he thought that it would surely get the attention of the priest, but he had not anticipated the priest’s reaction…

“You want to go out? And that too, towards that sinner’s den? And you want me to send my people with you? I dont think so young man.” He had not anticipated this type of reaction from the priest.

“I have a duty to perform Father, I have to go to the city, no matter what.”

“My child, first of all, you are in no shape to travel. You are exhausted, you have frost bites and you dont look like a kind of a guy who would be able to handle the cold. You would die out there… But if you insist on going, I am going to stop you. But I am sending anyone from the church to accompany you.”

He was not backing down. “Father, I know that I will die out there. But without proper supplies, you guys will too. So if you help me get to the city, I will make sure that you are appropriately rewarded for your services.”

“What you are asking me is too much, I cannot ask another person to accompany you when there is a chance that they will die.” But before he could refute the old man’s words, both of them heard a loud noise.

BAAM

Both of them looked towards the main door of the church, a bearded tall man entered the church by flinging the door with full force, the man then hurridly started locking the door behind him, then he stood at the door, trying to block anything that wants to come through it.

No one paid attention to the man, except for a few, like Priest and him, they saw that the man was terrified out of his mind, that man was breathing heavily. Before anyone could ask the man about his erratic behavior, they all started hearing it.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG

Someone started banging at the door, it was evident from the sound that many people were banging on the door, but the man remained adamant, he didnt move an inch, he didnt want to let anyone in. Slowly people started getting aware of what was happening, they all started standing up, looking at what the commotion was all about.

It is then that the banging abruptly stopped, all at once. And then the whole church was clouded in a cloak of silence, the moment became so tense that only sound breathing was heard throughout the church. Before anyone could understand what was happening out there, the ceiling of the church broke, and a hulking white mass came barreling down, startling everyone.