[Arthdal Chronicles] Fight for freedom

FLASHBACK CHAPTER 6: "I killed them all" (EDITED 06/22)

Yangcha's point of view - Few weeks later

I was supposed to meet her that night but when I arrived at the place we had decided to meet, she wasn't there. I searched but I couldn't find her. After a while, I came back to the Daekans' camp with a heavy-heart. I wondered why she hadn't shown up, it was the first time she missed one of our appointments and I didn't know why but I felt like something was wrong.

Maybe she didn't want to practice anymore. Maybe she didn't want me to train her anymore. Maybe I had not noticed I had done something wrong and she had run away. No, that couldn't be that, we had left each other with a smile two days before, why would she have smiled at me if it was to run away just after? It made no sense.

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The day after, still no traces of her. My worries grew. There was definitely something wrong and I had a bad feeling.

She couldn't have been captured by the Daekans, the others would have made a fuss about it and I would have heard about it for sure.

She was rather clumsy so what if she had fallen and got herself hurt badly?

I searched further in the forest but in the end, I had to resign myself to come back to the camp. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't search the whole forest.

I just hoped I was overthinking and whenever she was, whatever she was doing, she was fine and safe.

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The day after, I couldn't help it and went to search for her again. Thankfully the moon was full that night and so, I could see clearly in the dark.

I spotted her petite figure near the river and I let out a sigh of relief before I slowly approached her.

When she noticed me, she moved back, she looked scared, she was trembling. I squatted near her, telling her with my hand gestures that I wasn't going to hurt her. Then, I saw, the open wounds on her back, the wounds on her legs, arms and face. Her clothes were teared. She was covered with blood, purple blood, hers, and red blood too, especially on her hands.

The look in her eyes was proof that whatever she had gone through, it had hurt her in more than just a physical way. There were many questions I wanted to ask her but I couldn't rush her.

She looked at her trembling hands as if she was disgusted by whatever they had done then she looked at me. "Yangcha," she murmured with a shaking voice. Tears filled her eyes but she held them back. "I- I killed them all."

I frowned, wondering who was "them" she was talking about. Had her path crossed the one of some bandits? The Daekans and the Neanthals weren't the only danger in those forests far from the city.

I approached her, slowly. I wanted to take her hand to communicate with her but she didn't let me take it. She looked away. I put my hand on her cheek, stroking it softly. Our eyes met. 

"I killed them all," she repeated once again before she let the tears flow on her cheeks.

I took her into my arms, offering my shoulder for her to cry on and she accepted it. I gently stroke her hair. I could feel her tears humidifying my shoulder. And with every single one of her sobs I felt my heart ache, as if her pain resonated inside of me.

I had seen many people crying, begging for help, for their life to be spared. I had always been quite indifferent to them, I had never let anyone else's pain reach me. But it was different with her, I wanted to comfort her. Somehow, seeing her in that state made me angry at those who had dared to do such a thing when she had already gone through so much. I was angry because a bunch of random people had dared to do harm to the girl I had let in my heart. And I was angry at myself because I had not been able to be there for her, to protect her.