Chapter 53: The Fallen World

Far above the cathedral, the resistance of the world had finally collapsed.

The world that was being conquered was small by summoner standards.

A fantasy realm called Eldorwyn.

Once it was a beautiful world.

Now it laid dying.

Darkness bred creatures prowled through its ravaged forests.

Entire villages had vanished silently overnight.

Summoners loyal to the cult marched proudly through burning cities wearing their hollow crown insignias.

Those who resisted were sacrificed.

Those who surrendered disappeared into the catacombs to join the cult beneath the cathedral.

The sky itself had begun cracking.

Reality weakening under the Hollow King’s influence.

The world merging into the twisted amalgamation of realms possessed by the cult.

And hidden beneath the ruins of a shattered watchtower…

One survivor still breathed.

A young woman pressed trembling hands against her mouth to stay silent while cult soldiers searched nearby.

Her name was Lyra.

And she was absolutely terrified.

She wore torn ranger leathers stained with ash and blood.

One arm hung injured at her side.

Dirt covered her face.

Through a crack in stones, she watched black-robed cultists drag prisoners through the streets.

Children.

Families.

Anyone still alive.

A cultist laughed nearby.

“By tomorrow, this world core will belong to the King.”

Another spat onto the ground.

“Then we move against the dream valley.”

Lyra froze.

Dream valley?

The first cultist lowered his voice.

“The horror summoner has accelerated the prophecy.”

The second cultist shuddered slightly.

“I heard the Hollow King itself spoke ill of his existence.”

“That creature in the hotel?”

“Yes.”

Silence followed.

Then the second cultist muttered nervously:

“I don’t really want to fight those monsters.”

The first laughed.

“Doesn’t matter. Once the king’s vessel awakens, nothing stands a chance.”

The voices faded as they moved away.

Lyra remained frozen beneath the rubble.

The horror summoner.

She had heard rumors about him.

Travelers had whispered about a strange world where monsters protected people.

A living hotel ruled by nightmares.

At first, she had dismissed the stories as nonsense.

Now…

It might be the only hope left.

⸻

Escape

Night fell over Eldorwyn.

The crimson eye in the sky watched silently.

Lyra moved through the ruins carefully.

Every step hurt.

Every shadow felt alive.

Twice she nearly got caught by patrols.

Once she had to hide beneath a pile of corpses to avoid detection.

The cult controlled almost everything now.

Except one place.

At the edge of the ruined capital stood an unstable emergency summoning gate.

Originally designed for merchant transport.

Now barely functioning.

Lyra approached carefully.

The magical circle flickered weakly.

Damaged.

Unstable.

A dead summoner lay beside the controls.

The cult had clearly tried to disable it completely.

Lyra’s hands shook.

She wasn’t a summoner herself.

Only a ranger.

But she had watched enough gate operators over the years to understand the basics.

Hopefully.

Behind her, distant screams echoed through the ruined streets.

No time.

She shoved magical crystals into the broken control slots.

The circle sparked violently.

One crystal exploded.

Another cracked.

The gate flickered open briefly.

A distorted image appeared beyond it.

A crowded market district.

Not Eldorwyn.

Another world.

Lyra nearly cried from relief.

The portal destabilized immediately after connecting.

She jumped through anyway.

⸻

The Market

Lyra crashed hard onto the grey stone.

Noise exploded around her.

Voices.

Music.

Laughter.

The smell of cooked food and spices filled the air.

For several seconds she simply lay there staring upward in shock.

The sky here was blue.

Normal.

No giant eye watching from above.

People crowded around her quickly.

A merchant gasped.

“She came through an emergency gate!”

Another man pointed toward her torn clothes.

“She’s injured!”

Lyra struggled weakly to her feet.

“No— wait…”

Her voice cracked badly.

Several guards approached cautiously.

“Miss, calm down—”

“Where’s the hotel?”

Everyone paused.

Lyra grabbed one guard desperately.

“Please.”

Tears filled her eyes.

“I need someone to take me to the Nightmare Hotel.”

The crowd exchanged nervous glances immediately.

One old woman whispered:

“The horror place?”

Another crossed himself protectively.

Lyra’s knees nearly buckled.

“The cult is coming.”

The market quieted.

Fear spread through the nearby crowd.

“What cult?”

Lyra looked toward the distant horizon.

As though she could still see the burning sky of her dying world.

“The Hollow King.”

Several people immediately backed away.

One older merchant paled visibly.

“You shouldn’t say that name.”

Lyra’s breathing shook.

“They’ve taken seventeen worlds already.”

Silence fell.

A passing traveler slowly lowered his hood.

“Seventeen?”

Lyra nodded weakly.

“And they’re preparing for war.”

The traveler stared at her for a long moment.

Then finally sighed.

“…I know the road to the hotel.”

Relief nearly made Lyra collapse.

The man adjusted the sword at his hip nervously.

“But if we’re going there…”

He looked toward the distant mountains surrounding Mystic Blood Valley.

“…then I hope the stories about those monsters are true.”