Chapter 154: Before the Hunger — The Lord of Ruin (Part III)
Eleven Days Until Arrival
There was an old saying in Hrafnheim.
"Winter does not hate you. It simply asks whether you deserve spring."
Every child learned those words.
Most repeated them.
Garrick lived by them.
The Horns of Warning
Three days after the Festival of Embers, the peace of the village was shattered.
A deep horn echoed through the valley.
Once.Twice.Then a third time.
The sound rolled through the snow-covered mountains, scattering flocks of ravens into the pale morning sky.
Torvald was already outside before the final note faded."Everyone inside!"
The village transformed in an instant.
Children were carried into longhouses.
Archers climbed the wooden watchtowers.
Blacksmiths handed out spears that had been forged not for war, but for desperate days like this.
Garrick grabbed his father's hammer.
Torvald stopped him."No."
He handed Garrick a shield instead.
"A shield?"
"If your first instinct is to kill..."
Torvald met his son's eyes.
"...you've already forgotten what you're protecting."Astraeus watched the exchange without interrupting.A faint smile crossed his face.The White Wolves
From the edge of the forest emerged a pack of enormous white wolves.
Their fur blended almost perfectly with the snow, making them seem like ghosts drifting between the pines.
There were more than twenty.
Their ribs were visible beneath their coats.
They weren't hunting out of cruelty.
They were starving.
The villagers tightened their grip on their weapons.
Lord Cassian, who had remained in the village after the festival, drew his polished sword."Kill them before they reach the walls."
His voice was cold.
Efficient.Certain.
A Different Choice
Astraeus stepped forward."No."
Cassian frowned.
"They'll attack."
"They might." "They will."
"Perhaps."
Cassian's patience wore thin.
"And your solution?"
Astraeus looked toward Freya.
"How much dried meat do we have left?"
The healer blinked.
"Enough for... perhaps two weeks if we're careful."
Cassian stared at him in disbelief.
"You cannot be serious."
Astraeus simply smiled.
"I rarely am."
Then his expression became calm.
"But I am now."
Garrick's Decision
Torvald looked at his son.
"Garrick."
The young man understood immediately.
Without another word, he disappeared into the storehouse.
Moments later he returned carrying several heavy sacks of preserved meat.
His arms strained beneath the weight.
Cassian stepped into his path.
"If you feed predators..."
"They'll return."Garrick hesitated.
His father's lesson echoed in his mind.
What are you protecting?
He looked at the wolves.
Then at the frightened children watching from the windows.
Then back at the wolves.
Finally...He walked past Cassian.
Hunger Recognizes Hunger
Astraeus slowly approached the edge of the village.The wolves growled.
Their breath formed clouds in the freezing air.
Their yellow eyes never left the food.
He placed the meat on the snow.
Then...He stepped back.
No weapons.No threats.No fear.
The largest wolf approached first.
It sniffed cautiously.
Then began eating.
One by one, the others followed.
The growling faded.
The tension melted away.
The only sound left was the crunch of snow beneath heavy paws.
Cassian's Anger
"You've delayed the inevitable."
Cassian said.Astraeus nodded."I know."
"They'll be back."
"They might."
"They'll still be hungry."
"They will."Cassian clenched his jaw.
"Then what have you accomplished?"
For the first time...Astraeus' smile disappeared."I gave them one more day."
Silence.He looked toward the wolves.
"Sometimes..."
"...one more day changes everything."
The Cub
As the pack disappeared into the forest...
Garrick noticed something.
One small wolf cub remained behind.
Its front leg had been caught in an old hunting trap half-buried beneath the snow.
The rest of the pack had vanished.
The cub whimpered weakly.
Without thinking...Garrick ran forward.
Cassian shouted."Leave it!"
The cub snapped at Garrick's hand in fear.
Blood trickled from his fingers.
He didn't pull away.
Instead...He gently broke the trap apart.
Freed from the iron jaws, the cub limped a few steps before collapsing into the snow.
Freya hurried over and wrapped its injured leg.
Cassian watched in disbelief.
"You waste medicine..."
"...on an animal?"
Freya met his gaze.
"I use medicine..."
"...on those who are hurting."
A Lesson in the Snow
That evening...Garrick sat outside the forge, watching the cub sleep beside the warm embers.Astraeus joined him.
"You knew it might bite you."
"I know."
"You still helped."
Garrick nodded.
"It was afraid."
Astraeus looked at the stars appearing above the mountains.
"Fear makes people do painful things."
He said quietly.
"The mistake..."
"...is believing fear is who they really are."
Those words settled deep within Garrick's heart.So deeply.
That ten thousand years later.
When he stood as the Lord of Ruin, surrounded by endless destruction...
He would still remember them.
And wonder...When had fear stopped being something he felt.
And become something he was?
Across the World.In another kingdom...A young scholar named Thalenna looked up from an ancient manuscript.
She had just read about a northern traveler who convinced starving wolves not to attack a village.She smiled."Impossible."
Yet she carefully copied the story anyway.
Years later.That forgotten tale would inspire her first great theory:Understanding an enemy was often more powerful than defeating one.The same philosophy would one day shape her into Thal'Zorath.
The Seven Stars.
Though separated by kingdoms...
Were already beginning to influence one another.
Their stories were weaving together.
Just as fate had intended.
Late that night...Astraeus stood alone at the edge of the forest.
Auren quietly joined him.
"You knew someone was watching."
Auren said."I did."
Hidden among the snow-covered trees...
A cloaked figure silently observed the village before disappearing into the darkness.
Astraeus' expression grew thoughtful.
"The world is changing."
Auren nodded.
"And the Seven Stars are beginning to move."A cold wind swept through the forest.
Far beyond the northern mountains...
Something ancient stirred beneath the ice.
Not the Hunger.Not yet.
But the first whisper of the force that would one day tempt four heroes to abandon hope.
The first shadow had begun to fall.
Eleven Days Until Arrival.