Eternal Night: Building an Empire from Scratch

Edgar let out a deep sigh as he leaned back against the sofa, streching his body.

The room was quiet after he was done absorbing the Nightmare Stones.

He looked toward the dark sky and realized that the Eternal Night had already returned.

The people of the Fortress had retreated into their homes, while soldiers continued patrolling the streets and Soul Guardians silently watched the surrounding forest.

Edgar rubbed his forehead. ’Where did Hera go?’

He had expected her to be waiting inside the house, but there was no sign of her.

He stood up and walked through the rooms, checking the kitchen and the small sitting area before eventually reaching the stairs.

"Hera?"

Edgar frowned when nobody answered and checked the upper floor.

Her room was empty as well, but even Reeba was nowhere to be found.

’Where did she go?’

Edgar walked back downstairs before stepping outside.

His eyes immediately swept across the settlement.

He remembered seeing Hera with Semele earlier, so his attention naturally turned toward the house where the mysterious woman had been staying.

Edgar began walking toward it.

The settlement was quiet beneath the Eternal Night.

As he approached Semele’s house, he noticed two familiar figures standing near the entrance.

Hera and Semele were talking quietly.

Edgar slowed down when he noticed Hera holding something wrapped in a small packet.

The moment Hera saw him, her eyes widened.

She quickly moved the packet behind her back. "Edgar?"

Edgar raised an eyebrow as he approached. "What are you doing here?"

Hera gave him an awkward smile. "I could ask you the same thing."

"I was looking for you."

Edgar stopped in front of the two women before looking at Semele. "Why are you here with her?"

Semele placed both hands behind her back and smiled innocently. "We were simply spending some time together."

Edgar looked between them. "Doing what?"

Semele’s smile became slightly more mischievous. "Discussing you."

Edgar blinked. "Me?"

Hera’s cheeks immediately turned red. "Semele!"

The mature woman laughed softly.

"What? It’s true." Semele stepped slightly closer to him. "Nothing you need to worry about."

Her crimson eyes briefly moved over Edgar before she smiled. "Although, I must say, you’re looking particularly handsome tonight."

Edgar stared at her without understanding the implication. "Are you feeling alright?"

Semele laughed. "I’m perfectly fine."

Hera quietly covered her face with one hand.

Edgar looked toward her. "Come on."

He reached out and grabbed her hand.

Hera looked at their joined hands before quietly following him.

Semele watched them leave with an amused expression. "Good luck, little Hera."

Hera’s ears became redder, but she didn’t turn around.

---

Edgar and Hera walked through the quiet streets together.

Edgar eventually glanced toward her. "What were you hiding?"

Hera immediately looked away. "Nothing."

Edgar raised an eyebrow. "You were definitely hiding something."

Hera tightened her grip around his hand. "It’s just something Semele gave me."

"What is it?"

"I’ll show you later."

Edgar studied her face before deciding not to press the matter. "Alright."

Hera smiled softly. "You’re not going to ask again?"

"No." Edgar shrugged. "You’ll tell me when you’re ready."

She smiled and rested her head lightly against his shoulder while they continued toward the house.

"I’m glad."

Edgar glanced at her. "Don’t spend too much time with Semele."

"She’s teaching me many things, though."

Edgar immediately became suspicious. "Like what?"

Hera’s face became bright red. "Nothing important."

Before Edgar could ask anything else, a sudden sensation pulled at his consciousness.

’The Soul Network.’

He closed his eyes as his consciousness entered the Soul Network, and his vision suddenly changed.

For a brief moment, he was looking through the eyes of one of the Soul Guardians patrolling the outer forest.

The Guardian stood beneath the trees, staring into the darkness.

Edgar’s breathing stopped as he felt something moving beyond the forest.

They numbered in the hundreds.

His vision shifted toward the distant darkness, but the creatures were still too far away to see clearly.

Edgar immediately opened his eyes. "Hera, get inside."

She looked at him with concern. "What happened?"

"Stay inside the house."

His voice was serious enough that Hera didn’t argue.

Edgar immediately turned around and rushed toward the Fortress Wall.

Hera watched him disappear into the darkness before quickly entering the house.

---

Edgar reached the outer wall within moments.

Andrew was already there with several soldiers, discussing the placement of the newly constructed traps.

The moment Andrew noticed Edgar’s expression, his smile disappeared. "Young master?"

Edgar stepped onto the wall. "Get everyone ready."

Andrew immediately understood that something was wrong. "What happened?"

Edgar didn’t answer immediately as he walked toward the edge of the wall and stared into the darkness.

The soldiers around him quickly grabbed their weapons.

Gordon wasn’t present, but the soldiers had already been trained to respond to Edgar’s orders.

The Fortress became tense within moments.

Edgar’s eyes slowly moved toward the far end of the forest.

"There."

He raised one hand as the central Watch Tower immediately responded.

Its lighthouse-like structure began glowing, and a brilliant beam of light suddenly swept across the darkness.

The forest was illuminated, and everyone froze in their place.

Hundreds of creatures stood between the trees.

They were enormous.

Each one towered over the surrounding vegetation, with some reaching heights comparable to the Fortress Wall itself.

Their bodies were vaguely humanoid, but calling them human would have been a mistake.

Their limbs were unnaturally long, with thick muscles stretching beneath layers of blackened flesh.

Some possessed arms that dragged along the ground, their fingers ending in curved claws that carved deep grooves into the soil with every movement.

Others had multiple joints in their legs, allowing their massive bodies to crouch unnaturally low before suddenly rising to their full height.

Their heads were perhaps the most disturbing part.

Most had no recognizable faces.

Instead, their heads were covered by stretched layers of pale flesh, with enormous mouths splitting across their faces.

Rows of uneven teeth filled those mouths, some of them long enough to resemble daggers.

Several possessed additional eyes scattered across their skulls.

Others had empty sockets filled with flickering crimson flames.

Their bodies were covered in old scars, missing chunks of flesh, and strange bony growths that protruded from their shoulders and backs.

Some even had enormous horns curling from their skulls.

The soldiers standing beside him slowly tightened their grips on their weapons.

One young soldier whispered, "What are those things?"

Nobody answered, and when the creatures noticed the light, hundreds of monstrous heads slowly turned toward the Fortress.

For several seconds, they simply stared before one of the giants opened its mouth.

ROOOOOOOOAR!

The sound shook the forest.

Within moments, the entire forest seemed to be screaming.

Andrew’s face became pale.

"Young master..."

Edgar remained silent as the creatures suddenly began moving.

At first, they walked, but it took them no time to accelerate.

The ground began trembling beneath their enormous feet.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The giants charged toward the Fortress.

Trees snapped beneath their bodies as they pushed through the forest without slowing down.

Edgar quietly mumbled, keeping his composure. "Fire."

The Watch Towers immediately reacted.

A series of massive bolts erupted from the Fortress.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

The projectiles tore through the darkness before striking the approaching Nightmare horde.

BOOM!

Several creatures were pierced through their chests and thrown backward.

Another bolt tore through the skull of one of the giants, causing its enormous body to collapse.

The soldiers immediately cheered.

"Direct hit!"

"Keep firing!"

The ballistae continued launching projectiles.

One after another, the bolts tore through the charging horde, but the Nightmares didn’t stop.

The creatures behind the fallen simply stepped over their bodies and continued charging.

Edgar’s expression became increasingly serious.

’There are too many.’

The ballistae could kill them, but the number of creatures approaching the Fortress was overwhelming.

He quickly activated the Watch Towers as more bolts were launched.

The front ranks were torn apart, yet hundreds remained.

Edgar’s gaze moved across the horde. Only then did something catch his attention.

One of the giants at the very back was different. It was walking at a casual pace.

And sitting on its enormous shoulder was a small figure.

Edgar’s eyes narrowed as the creature looked almost like a human child.

...A little girl.

She sat calmly on the Nightmare’s shoulder while the enormous monster carried her toward the Fortress.

Unlike the creatures surrounding her, she wasn’t roaring.

Her small legs dangled over the giant’s shoulder while her pale hair moved gently in the wind.

The girl’s face was almost completely hidden beneath her long hair.

But Edgar could see her eyes, and they were staring directly at him.

Edgar’s breathing became slow.

For some reason, the moment their eyes met, every instinct in his body screamed that something was terribly wrong.

The little girl slowly raised one hand, and she pointed directly toward Edgar.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

Edgar’s expression became completely cold. "...So you’re the one leading them."

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