Lina kept scanning the horizon as the caravan trudged onward, searching desperately for any sign of shelter. Meanwhile, Kael and Renn supported the small girl between them, refusing to leave her behind. There were now only seven prisoners left — including Kael, Lina, and Renn. They continued walking through the endless Undead Wasteland, their bodies pushed far beyond their limits.
During the day, the ground burned like a frying pan beneath their feet. Now that the moon had risen, the temperature had plummeted. The earth turned bitterly cold, sharp as ice spikes, cutting into their already bleeding soles with every step. The freezing wind cut through their thin white tunics, making the pain from their chains even worse.
Suddenly, Lina pointed ahead.
"I think I found it…" she said, her voice filled with fragile hope. "There — that abandoned chapel. It can be our temporary shelter. We won't risk any more harm to the others."
She encouraged the group to move faster, as if they had finally found a small piece of heaven. The moment they reached the old chapel, Lina pushed the heavy door open and helped the exhausted prisoners inside as quickly as possible.
Kael hesitated for a second — the last time he trusted Lina's choice of shelter, things had gone terribly wrong. Still, he had no better option. With Renn's help, he carried the small girl inside.
The interior of the chapel was utterly abandoned. Wooden chairs and tables covered in dust stood silently in the dim light. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.
Kael instinctively told the prisoners to sit down and rest. "We'll move again at dawn," he said.
The six others — including Lina and Renn — nodded wearily. Some collapsed onto the long benches, while others simply sat on the cold floor, too tired to care.
Kael began searching the chapel for any scrap of food, opening drawers and cabinets one by one. But there was nothing. The harsh realization hit him: they were in the Fallen Dream. Food was almost impossible to find in this treacherous realm. They would be lucky if a kind Hunter found them — or even luckier if they survived until morning.
Kael sighed heavily after closing the last empty drawer. He gripped the edge of the cabinet, murmuring under his ragged breath,
"Damnit… there's no food. We might die of starvation before anything else…"
He slammed his fist against the cabinet in frustration. The loud bang startled the prisoners who were trying to rest, but none of them spoke. They were too exhausted. They simply zipped their mouths and remained silent in the cold, dusty darkness.
Lina approached Kael quietly, her eyes soft with concern as she saw how deeply frustrated he was about their lack of food. Starvation was a very real threat now.
"Kael…" she said gently, placing a hand lightly on his arm. "I understand we have no food, but at least we have shelter to take cover in. That's something."
She offered him a small, weary smile, trying her best to brighten the heavy mood despite how dire everything felt.
Kael wiped the sweat and grime from his face with the back of his hand and exhaled shakily.
"I know… but we can't just let these people starve to death," he muttered. "Am I right? We have to find a way…"
While Kael tried to calm himself, a series of deep, guttural growls echoed from outside the chapel — low and hungry, belonging to huge creatures prowling the night.
Kael froze instantly. He raised his hand sharply, gesturing for everyone to stay silent.
The prisoners who had been trying to rest jolted awake, their eyes wide with fresh terror. One of the younger girls whimpered softly before clamping her hand over her mouth. Another boy clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white. No one dared make a sound.
The growls grew louder, closer, as if the beasts were circling the chapel. The cold night air carried the sounds straight through the cracked walls, making the wooden benches creak and the dust shift.
Lina's heart pounded. She glanced at Kael, then at the frightened faces around her. In the dim moonlight filtering through the broken windows, she could see the exhaustion and fear etched on every prisoner. Some were silently crying. Others stared at the door as if expecting it to burst open at any moment.
Kael's jaw tightened. He moved quietly among the group, motioning for them to stay low and keep still. The last thing they needed was for whatever was outside to discover them.
The chapel fell into a tense, breathless silence — broken only by the occasional distant growl and the soft, ragged breathing of the terrified prisoners.
The growls outside grew louder and heavier, coming from multiple directions at once. It sounded like the creatures were hunting in coordinated packs. Kael's stomach twisted — these growls were different from the stray-dog-like beasts they had encountered earlier. These were deeper, more feral, like the roars of savage predators.
Unable to sit still, Kael crept toward one of the broken windows and peeked outside. What he saw made his blood run cold.
The Awakened Beasts outside were humanoid lions — massive creatures standing on two legs with powerfully muscled bodies covered in scarred, tawny fur. Their manes were matted with dried blood, and their glowing amber eyes scanned the darkness with terrifying intelligence. A whole pack of them prowled around the chapel.
Kael slowly backed away from the window, careful not to make a sound. He returned to the group huddled on the long chairs and around the dusty dining table. He sat among them and let out a silent, ragged breath. Fear gripped him tightly. Even one of those lion-like beasts would be nearly impossible to fight — a whole pack would slaughter them in seconds.
He leaned in close and whispered to the prisoners, "Stay silent and try to sleep. I'll stay awake and keep watch. We can't let them hear us."
Turning to Lina, he added softly, "You too, Lina. Get some rest. I need you to regain your strength for tomorrow's journey."
With what little gentleness he could muster despite his own exhaustion and fear, Kael helped the others settle down. He guided the younger ones to lie on the benches, whispering quiet reassurances even though he had no real experience comforting people. Some closed their eyes out of pure fatigue, while others stared at the ceiling with wide, sleepless eyes, too terrified to rest.
Kael remained seated near the door, back straight, ears straining for any sound from outside. The growls continued to echo through the night — sometimes closer, sometimes farther — a constant reminder that safety was only an illusion.
Time dragged on agonizingly slow. The night in the Fallen Dream felt far more treacherous than the day, as if the darkness itself fed on fear. The prisoners could barely sleep. Every distant growl or scrape outside kept them on edge, their bodies tense even as exhaustion pulled at them.
Kael stayed vigilant beside the main door, refusing to rest. He kept his gaze sweeping across the chapel and the broken windows, constantly calculating the chances of the Awakened Beasts forcing their way inside. His hands trembled slightly from fatigue, but he forced himself to stay alert.
As the hours passed, the growls gradually grew fainter, as if the pack had moved on to find new prey. Kael remained seated, surprised but unwilling to relax. He tried to figure out where the beasts had gone and whether this was truly a moment of safety or just a cruel trick.
Then, without warning, a heavy thud echoed as one of the Awakened Beasts was violently thrown through the chapel door. The massive creature landed motionless on the floor, its body broken and lifeless.
The impact jolted awake every prisoner who had finally managed to drift off. They scrambled up from the benches and chairs, faces pale with terror, and rushed toward Kael.
Lina's voice trembled with fear as she asked him, "What's happening? What are those?!"
Kael didn't answer. Instead, he quickly pulled the prisoners behind him, using his body as a shield. Everyone stared in horror at the dead beast lying on the floor. The growls outside suddenly grew louder again — fierce and chaotic, as if the pack was now fighting something far more dangerous.
In that moment, every prisoner silently prayed for someone — anyone — to save them from this nightmare realm.
Kael gulped hard, his throat dry with fear. He slowly moved forward to check the broken section of the wall where the creature had been thrown through. Each step was cautious, his heart pounding in his ears.
The growls outside grew louder, now mixed with sickening bone-crunching sounds.
He reached the gap and carefully peeked out. His eyes widened in shock.
Those Awakened Beasts were fighting a tall figure — one that stood seven to eight feet high, matching the height of the beasts themselves.
Kael immediately recognized it. It was the same towering undead they had encountered in the cave earlier that day — the Bounded Shroud.
He quickly cupped a hand over his mouth to stifle any sound, backed away from the wall, and hurried back to the prisoners.
"Stay put and stay quiet," he whispered urgently.
Lina looked at him with wide, concerned eyes.
"What was it? What did you see?!"
Kael took a deep, shaky breath, trying to steady himself. After a few seconds, he finally managed to speak, his voice ragged and trembling.
"That figure we met… in the cave you told us to hide in during the day…"
The news hit the caravan like a physical blow. Gasps of fear and panic rippled through the group. Their lives felt like they were still hanging by a thread.
Lina's eyes widened in pure terror.
"WHAT? T… THAT FIGURE? YOU MEAN THE 'BOUNDED SHROUD'?!"
Kael nodded grimly. The same question burned in everyone's mind:
Why was the Bounded Shroud here now, at night?
No one could speak. Their trembling lips refused to form any words as the brutal sounds of the fight continued just outside the chapel walls.