The Horsemen’s Chamber was vast and expansive, its immense size emphasized by the cool, echoing emptiness that filled the thick air, only broken by the frequent clips and clops of the Horsemen’s hooves. The walls, made of smooth, polished dark stone, reflected the faint light that filtered in from some unseen source, casting an ethereal glow throughout the room. The temperature was cool, almost chilly… and isolating.

At the far end of the chamber, an imposing altar stood against the middle of the end wall. The altar was crafted from a dark, obsidian-like material, its surface smooth and flawless. Atop the altar rested a large, radiant ruby, its crimson facets glinting in the dim light. Encased within this ruby, a man appeared to be frozen, his figure perfectly preserved as if captured in a moment in time.

The man within the ruby was hauntingly still, his features calm and serene. His skin was pale, almost alabaster, contrasting starkly with the vibrant red of the gemstone. His eyes were closed, giving the impression that he was in a deep, unending slumber. His body was slender, an elegant pale frame gracefully enveloped by long, silky silver hair that cascaded around him like a shimmering waterfall, seemingly determined to shield him.

The ruby itself was a marvel, its surface flawless and clear, allowing an unobstructed view of the beautiful man encased within. It emitted a faint, pulsating light, casting a soft crimson that illuminated the altar and the surrounding area.

“A… person?!” Fallen contemplated as he lay there on the cool, glistening dark floor, his eyes glued to the man in the stone. He looked so peaceful, so elegant and graceful as his smooth, thin arms hugged his slender body; it was beautiful… yet haunting and chilling.

‘He looks like a person….’ Fallen’s gaze wandered down to the man’s feet, which appeared normal like that of a real person—no hooves.

‘What… is he?’ The question echoed in his mind, though he knew it would never be answered as the Horseman slowly approached from behind. He could feel it with every step through the subtle vibrations of the floor.

“Kts!” He gritted his teeth as he clenched his fist. His gaze shifted to his left forearm, which the dagger’s chain tightly clung to. A faint colour mixture of red and light purple peeked between the end and small gaps; he felt his hand slowly becoming numb—the chain was too tight against his fragile skin.

“Tss!” He gripped his left forearm with his right hand, the blood flowing from the wound on his forehead now clumpy and flaky. His eyes became bloodshot as he tightened his grip, reddening his skin further.

The Horseman’s stony arm slowly, yet somewhat hesitantly, reached for his head again, and he could feel its every movement, the coolness seeping from the gaps in its stony, cracked body.

Sheeeeng!!!

The sound echoed as the Horsemen behind them began to look frantic, their steps all over the place, raspy sounds escaping their lips as they looked on.

Fallen quickly turned and smacked the leader’s arm away with his dagger, and now they were just staring at each other. Fallen was still on the floor, his back to the man in stone, his body shaking as his expression appeared panicked.

"What the hell is this thing made of?!!" He gritted his teeth, eyes locked on the Horseman, whose expression was one of indifference… and something else, something unreadable— fascination, maybe. It leaned over, its arm still extended, unharmed as sparks flew from the harsh contact with Fallen’s dagger.

Fallen felt a chill go down his spine as the dagger just grazed against the solid arm, as if he were trying to cut stone. His dagger did absolutely nothing, except leave a few pathetic scratches.

There was an unreadable glossy glint in its dark marble eyes as it continued staring at him, unmoving like a stone statue, its hair occasionally stirring stiffly with the faint, raspy whispers.

Fallen kept his eyes on it, frightened, before its gaze slowly began to move, as if it were checking out his body; the glossy glint became clearer the longer its gaze lingered.

It sent a chill through Fallen’s entire body as he realized:

"It doesn’t even look like it wants to fight me… it wants something else."

Its gaze finally stopped wandering, landing on his chest, which rose and fell rapidly in fear, mirrored in the hollow sockets where its eyes resided before Fallen turned his head away as it slowly pushed his dagger to the side with the slightest effort, flames sparking from the contact.

The Horseman knelt, reaching for his chest with its other arm.

Fallen helplessly watched as it knocked aside the hand that gripped his dagger, its eyes fixed on one thing—his chest.

It rose and fell faster as he desperately tried to back away from the approaching fingers, one thought running through his mind: ‘either this thing fully overestimated his skin or underestimated the sheer sharpness of its nails’, but whatever it was, it didn’t matter now—he was doomed.

"No…" his voice cracked lowly, and the Horseman’s head seemed to shift at the sound, its lips frowning slightly as a low, raspy sound emerged from its throat.

But it kept approaching as he backed away until he just suddenly faced downward. The Horseman held the back of his head as it slowly drew him closer, going for his heart before he…