A gust of cold wind blew through the streets, carrying a scent of sweet pollen and floral fragrance that teased in the air.

It was a weird sensation that tickled Hope's nose and tongue when one downed on too much sugar, almost like a dreamlike wintry taste.

'Dreamlike...?'

Hope blinked at that thought.

How odd.

Those words rolled strangely in Hope's mind, almost as if the infected air guided him with those ludicrous thoughts. And yet, that guidance was pushed out of his mind like an intruder.

'How strange...' Hope frowned. 'What's next? The smells of starlight?'

As the normal noon gray sky lit above, Hope began walking instead in the middle of the street, passing through the broken shelled motors, stepping over cracked asphalt and tailed tall grass, and reaching down the first block towards the glass dome.

The building was bigger than when he had first looked at it. No more was it a distant structure, but a looming sleeping giant.

Back on the roof, where he climbed the tall crane to view the cityscape, Hope thought it was a simple tall stone building with a luxurious glass dome on top, plus the four columns.

But because of the way it faced him then, he didn't see the rest of itself pulled from behind.

From where he was now, Hope saw stone made out of white bricks stacked into a stretched looming wall of about 90 meters in height—its length almost double that, circular windows like black eyes crossed along its top layer, arched windows in the next. But from the base to the glass dome, it soared higher for another 10 meters or so, pillars evenly spaced like bones aligned in an orderly fashion that hugged all around its body.

Intricate patterns and designs carved into the exterior of the rooftops, creating a dizzying spectacle of light and shadow.

But the mystic glass dome was the most dramatic piece with its humped shell and flicked edges that seemed as if some artisan had made it into a hat and perched it on top of a whole other imposing structure.

'Very...luxurious...'

And at the bottom of the building, a structure that was not so luxurious—that seemed to be built with less crafted hands—were barricades of several high foot metal plated gates with barbed wire curled over.

How could he have missed this sight when traveling through the city?

Well, it wasn't like he would sit in the passenger's seat or on top of the carriers to gaze at the scenery.

Glimpses of it maybe, but the towering plain buildings already covered much of its grand treasures from where they drove on low ground.

Even if he was one of the convoy's escorts, the government had their own strict regulations for his team. It was one of the strangest side jobs Hope had ever been assigned to every once and a while.

But Hope shrugged the idea out of his mind as it no longer concerned him now. It was not in his position to ask questions. And he wasn't willing to be imposed with more unnecessary mysteries than necessary.

"..mn...."

Hope turned and saw the boy's head bob against his shoulder, his eyes flickering open and closed like blinking shutters.

"We almost there...?" The boy managed to mutter.

"Close."

As Hope started to approach the second block to the glass dome, the cluster of cars decreased. About a quarter down the block, a strange wave of red swept across the street.

Sweet heady fragrance started to stir in the air as the distance closed between them. Hope blinked as the outline of the red started to become clearer up close.

Flowers.

Red flowers.

Rippling across from the chilling wind, they swayed in unison as tiny yellow particles winked as they hovered between petal to petal.

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Right. It was just as the guy 'Marcus' said about red flowers bordering Sector Two's settlement.

But he had also mentioned of rumors stating people collapsing—either in death or in sleep—as they neared this chary worked created by an Awakened. Hope doubted it was death. Especially with all the pollen loosely floating in the air.

But...

'An Awakened did this?'

Hope frowned.

He knew that Awakened were 'gifted' and 'strong' with their powers, but to have accomplished this sort of feat before him created doubts in his mind.

So, if not an Awakened...then a Master?

The bank of flowers was about 200 meters thick that cut through the street like a river running red past small mass of black and brown stone and broken motors casted to the side.

As it streamed across, it climbed even up the ruined walls on each side of the street, disappearing over the rooftops, almost like sight of a waterfall as Hope's eyes followed its course.

Hope paused.

Then looked back at the boy who was still battling off sleep in one desperate attempt.

His head bobbed as he tried to remain focus on the mystical sight. It wasn't like anything either of them had ever seen before, especially with such a vehement color that flourished on a ruined land.

The boy's eyes trembled with shifts of wonder and fear, probably recalling all the stories his father had told him about this presumed 'haven.'

'One way to find out if that's true.' Hope thought.

He would have encouraged the boy to stay awake due to his starvation, but there wasn't anything he could do for him at the mercy of another Awakened's power. Hope's own aspect was tailored for one purpose. Not the tangent power of preventing sleep by any means.

As Hope neared closer to the bank of flowers, he felt the weird sensation return and tingle inside his mind. As if wet words slurred a lazy spell for him to follow in pursuit with the boy's slumber.

A strange action.

But it felt weak.

What would happen if a person with an aspect's power, a shred of a god's, came across god's wrathful curse?

Hope hummed in thought. 'About to find out then.'

"Go to sleep, kid." Hope said as he picked up the pace and started to stride through the river of red and blinking pollen.

Being finally fully intoxicated by the smell, the boy's head lost strength and fell limply on Hope's shoulder. His breathing softened, his grip loosened, submitted yet again to another aspect's power.

Light.

The boy was too light.

As much as Hope still felt itched to run, there could be anyone watching them right now from a distance. But exactly where?

Psshh- Psshh Psshh-

The flowers hushed as Hope brushed past them.

Their petals, a bright fiery of red and orange, appeared in contrast to its ruffled and airy texture—thin layers of wrinkled paper attached to its stem.

But within each flower, black eyes with crowned pupils sat in its center as they seemed to turn and follow his movements, their heads mysteriously bowing at the presence of a possible predator in its midst.

It was like a whole crowd of eyes gazing, observing them as Hope broke in its formation.

'Let's...say that's normal.'

Pssh- Pssh-

But Hope felt something else wrong.

Maybe it was from the Awakened's power.

But it came not from the red crowds at his feet, but another element more ominous.

Hope looked at the shadowed pile of black and brown stone nearby in the thicket of flowers. At least, that was what he had mistaken them for at first sight.

But now up close, he stopped to observe its organic form. His eyes trailed over the dimpled layers and rumpled folds as a grotesque smell started to mix in the air with the sweet fragrance. The crumbled mass releasing a smell of a long dead corpse.

'Wait...' Hope frowned and tilted his head.

It wasn't stone that his eyes observed. But a Nightmare Creature.

Hope's instinct hummed at the realization, and he begun to quickly look around and gaze at the other mass of stone—more laid figures, more dead monsters buried within the flowers. Bodies of Nightmare Creatures sporadically spread around like casted rocks in a river of red.

'Mm...well, doesn't seem like a bad idea on the Awakened's part.' Hope thought.

It wasn't just a battle with humans after all, but a battle with invading monsters.

But the further Hope went on, some Nightmare Creatures were also reaching towards the edge of the bank. Hope stared at their heads and noticed pinks of flesh cratered around small sunken holes; their faces splattered with brains, blood, and skull fragments like those from impacted bullets.

Shiiiing-

Hope froze.

His mind went hot and cold at that moment.

A light gleamed from one of the glass dome's rooftops like a star.

It probably would have seemed harmless to anyone else.

But Hope's eyes immediately flitted to that direction, catching a strange movement that alerted his body to act.

Open.

He was out in the open.

And right now, he didn't seem like any other ordinary human being standing in failed enchanting spell.

Shiiing~

The light seemed to have trembled.

'Face...' An instinctive voice whispered.

But even before its warning, Hope had already started summoning his shield. The familiar sparks illuminated their starry lights as they danced in a circle, melting into its physical form.

And Hope swung his arm up.

Blocking his view just in time before-

Bang!

"Erk!"

Hope grunted as he was lurched back.

The sound of small thunder and the clash of metal deafened his ears for a second.

The piercing weight shook from his hand throughout his body like cold shivers.

Hope stumbled as he regained his footing and tightened his other grip on the boy who almost slipped off.

Shiiing-

'Shit again-!?'

Hope raised his shield again, waiting for the exploding weight and the sound of thunder to occur.

But the light disappeared in a blink.

"..."

Hope paused as he counted the seconds.

After the tenth second, down at the end of the block, two figures slipped past the metal gate and started to walk towards Hope.

'Tsk. More people...' Hope frowned and shook his head. Obviously, there would be people. But it was the type of people he may have to come across. 'Never mind that. All I have to do is reequip, have a ration of some food and weapons, rest a bit, and I'll be on my damn way.'

Right. It wasn't that hard. The opportunity for shelter was within reach.

Although, Hope couldn't shake off the feeling that it was going to be anything but easy.