Chapter 1037 Ghost And Demon
Chapter 1037 Ghost And Demon
Whisker watched two lines of light run across the ground in the direction of the other two men. Then, after a while, the array activated as mana became visible within the triangle. Any traces of mana could be seen and followed, allowing the group to assess if any mana has been used here in the past few days.
The cloaked man retraced his steps, and Whisker did the same. Since the feline did not use mana in his technique, he was safe from being caught. After combing the area for a while, someone among the group found carriage traces of mana.
"Xeloria has similar Runic Carriages, but have they reached this place before we did?" asked one of the two men as the three studied the traces. Whisker expected that these would be the ones Seika left behind. "Let's follow them for now and find their destination."
The three men rushed through the forest following the trail left behind. As the road became smaller, they found broken branches suggesting that whoever entered this place had a destination in mind.
Whisker rushed atop the trees, surveilling them from the shadows. However, even after the trail ended atop a hill, he had no idea who they were. They never took off their hoods, fearing being seen.
"The trail ends here, and there are signs of battle," said one of the men as he crouched down on the ground. His hand grabbed a handful of soil as he sniffed it. "The soil is tinged with iron. Someone bled here."
"The only structure that resembles a dungeon in this place would be this cave," said another man while carrying a map, pointing in a certain direction. "Whoever came here might have camped on this hill before entering the cave."
"That is our only lead," said the man leading them as he dismounted and walked toward the cave. "Leave the mounts here in case there are monsters in the dungeon. We cannot afford to lose them."
The three men, with Whisker tailing them, walked toward the cave in the distance. A foul stench made the feline frown, carried by a breeze coming from the cave. Seika did not mention this cave, as he only implied the dungeon to be a lie. If so, what was here?
"A strong presence is inside this dungeon," said the man in the lead as he raised his arm, stopping the other two. Whisker noticed tattoos covering his skin, reminding him of the time he was caught. "This is either a dungeon or a trap. Prepare yourself."
"I have a bad feeling about this cave, sir," said the man carrying the map. "There is a stench of dead bodies. We might encounter an unfortunate end here."
"If we want the clan to rise in the upcoming war, we have to risk our lives," said the man with determination. "Those who fear for their life can stay here."
After that, the man walked into the cave. The two men hesitated before following after him, leaving Whisker outside. Although he did not see their faces, he deduced their identities from the tattoos on the man's arms.
The Huntsmen Clan's chief had identical tattoos that Whisker had seen when he got caught. This proves that the one Haldor has been tipping off was none other than his clan before they relayed their movements to Lord Marshal.
A killing intent appeared in the feline's eyes, but he remembered what Seika had asked him. He did not want him to fight the spy, only to learn of their identities. Whisker was about to leave when a strange scream echoed from the cave.
Every animal in the forest began to flee away from the cave following the scream. Whisker was confused as he turned around, feeling the fur on his skin stand. This familiar primal feeling was one he experienced before when he first met Seraphine.
"A demon is here," muttered Whisker with a frown. Not all demons were bad, but it was safer to assume so when dealing with one. "Should I retreat or investigate the situation?"
Another scream, this time human, came from within the cave. An otherworldly aura exploded from within it, shaking the entire forest. Whisker gritted his teeth before jumping down and bolting into the cave.
Most men would run while facing a demon, but the feline had a mission. His instincts told him to do the same but his determination to scout for Seika pushed him forward. As soon as he entered the cave, he could see no more within the darkness. When he turned around, the entrance was gone.
"Dammit," muttered the feline before his eyes began to morph. They turned eerily beastly while growing bigger, enabling him to see within the cave. The darkness was nothing but a blanket covering the ground, enabling a certain predator to hunt his victims.
"No one moves! Keep your backs pushing against each other!" shouted the leader in the distance as the group looked around. Whisker made a split-second decision to hide behind a boulder and observe the situation.
One of the men was injured, but the scout could not see the enemy. A strange hum echoed inside the cave as splashing sounds reached their ears. Whisker could see a figure emerging from a lake, but the three men did not have similar visual acuity.
"Oh, he, hum, ha," the humming continued, making the three men almost wet their pants. However, Whisker could see that the newcomer was a woman, or something that disguised itself as such.
"She is coming again!" shouted the Chief as he took out a spear from underneath his cloak. "Do not let her ghost touch you again! It would rip apart your flesh!"
Whisker was confused by his words before the scene unfolded before his eyes. The woman coming from within the waters was beautiful, but two streaks of blood covered her face. Above her head floated an exact replica, but this woman was laughing manically.
"Hehehe," the ghost woman laughed as she floated around, staring at them with killing intent. "You all look so delicious!"
"This woman is a demon!" said one of the Chief's lackeys as he began unleashing his mana, wasting it just to scare off the ghost. It did not work, only making her salivate more. "If we die, we will not revive!"
"Find the exit," commanded the Chief while clearly in distress. He took off his cloak, revealing his toned muscles and giant mask. Whisker confirmed his suspicions but had no idea how to leave this place alive. "I will hold them off!"
One of the men stormed off to follow his commands, while the other one took off his cloak to fight as well. Whisker realized it was Wanji, the man defeated by Seika as soon as he entered the camp. He raised his fists to fight alongside the Chief.
"I will hold back the ghost, sir," said Wanji without hesitation, ready to throw down his life for his chief to survive. In response, the Chief gave a simple nod before the two men rushed forward.
Arthur was in 'Goldmine,' where the Golden Division trained. After he was accepted into this division by Jonathan of Silver Rose, he was assigned to a squad alongside his former members, Joey and Koby. The two men were waiting for him in their giant pavilion.
"Alexie!" waved Koby with the only arm he had. His expression was a lot better than before, making Arthur relieved. "Check out this giant pavilion! They say it's for the entire squad!"
Arthur looked around and could not believe it indeed. This giant pavilion had five smaller ones with gardens separating them. In the middle was a training ground and a common area, where Joey sat with Koby.
"Glad to see you two well," said Arthur as he arrived at the table and sat down with the two. "I actually made a special request to Knight of Silver Rose not to separate us."
"You did something unnecessary," said Joey with a frown as he stared at the liquor in his glass. "I wanted to be with some hot babe elsewhere."
"It seems the dungeon made you vain, Joey," said Arthur with a smile, triggering the man to slam his glass on the table. Liquor spilled, making its scent spread. The mage was quiet as he knew better than to interfere here. "Have I made you mad?"
"Mad is not the word," said Joey with a frown. "I'm just confused about how the two of you seem to be fine after the tenth trial. We walked away from our deepest desires, but for what? To be in this hell?"
"We are not fine, Joey," said Arthur as his smile faded. "However, we cannot pity ourselves for what we lost. Those who abandon their happiness have a different goal in mind, right? We chose to be unhappy as long as we achieve our goals."
"...I don't know if that was my reason," said Joey with self-ridicule. Koby seemed awkward and attempted to change the subject. However, Joey cut him off again while still staring at his liquor. "I would rather fight the ninth room's demon forever than live another second in that dream."
"You are upset because what you witnessed did not align with your reality," said Arthur with a returning smile. "The sweetest dreams hurt us the most because they can never be real."