The Record of Unusual Creatures

Hearing the news about an enemy commander’s capture on the frontline, no one raised an eyebrow. Even White Flame did not sound concerned. “Another prisoner?” she said.

Y’zaks’ crossed his arms, laughing. “Oh, this one’s just the same as the previous one,” he said.

Everyone was indifferent, but it was for a reason.

It took Lanina some time to capture the first master-class demon hunter. Everyone was excited at that time. They thought that they would be able to extract valuable information from the captive, but their enthusiasm died down as quickly as it rose. These captives were strange; they had not been able to obtain any meaningful information from them.

The demon-hunter warrior who came to report his findings clearly knew this; his face said it all. But he still explained, “The one we captured this time is a high-level commander. Master Fanny believes it’s necessary to let the elders and leaders interrogate him personally.”

White Flame’s brows were knitted together while Elder Gregowen nodded lightly. “Bring him here. Let’s see who this ‘old friend’ is,” the elder said.

A while later, a few elven magicians escorted a prisoner in.

This tall male demon hunter was wearing the robe of the Council of Elders. He was in tatters due to the brutal battle. His masculine and rugged face was filled with anger, while his curly, dark brown hair was soaking in sweat and blood. It was stuck to his forehead as if he had been caught with egg on his face. Circles of elven runes were restraining the captive and extracting his energy to strengthen the shackles. But even under the restraint of the magic fetters, the demon hunter’s eyes were still full of hostility. He was not dispirited in the slightest.

This soldier of the Council of Elders was extraordinary, judging from the fact that it took three elven magicians to escort him in. Elven magicians were the most superior forces under Y’zaks’ command. They were his most prized soldiers.

Seeing the man, White Flame was stunned. She called out quietly, “Claude?”

“You know him?” Hao Ren whispered.

White Flame nodded and was somewhat depressed. “Claude trained with me. I guess you already know that I was called the top brass among the younger generation of demon hunters,” she said.

She was not boasting but merely stating a fact. Even though she was part of the top brass, she was not particularly proud of it. Nonetheless, she would not shy away from mentioning it.

Hao Ren nodded. Then, White Flame continued, “In fact, during our training days, there were two geniuses; he was the other one. Claude is older than me, plus his understanding of runes and affinity is way better than any other demon hunter. After training, I followed Teacher and left Coldfrost Citadel while Claude succeeded his father in the Council of Elders. As the council’s a hermetic group, Claude rarely ventured outside. The otherworldling families did not know about him. He was a very gentle person. I just never expected to see him in these circumstances.”

Claude, the demon hunter, turned his head around. He looked at White Flame, full of resentment and hostility. “White Flame! I should’ve known earlier; you’re a heretic!” He snorted.

“Claude, you…” White Flame’s brows were pulled together. “Do you really know what you’re doing? Why did the Council of Elders become like this?”

“The Council of Elders must get rid of the heretics!” Claude roared. His eyes were burning with righteous fire. Just like the previously captured demon hunters, he neither looked disoriented nor showed signs of mental derangement. However, he was extreme in his words and deeds, and he was unreasonable. “All of you outside the sacred land is just dirt, and you should be cleansed away!” Claude said.

“When did everyone else except the Council of Elders become heretics?” Elder Gregowen asked calmly. “What do you want?”

Claude did not change his attitude one bit even in the face of an elder. He kept repeating the same words; “heretic,” “cleansing,” “monster” and things like that. But his mind was sound, as though his every word and action were genuinely conforming to his earlier worldview.

In fact, the other captured demon hunters were just the same as he was.

That was the reason for their indifferent reaction when they heard the news of an enemy commander’s capture. They were tired of it, not because the captives were tightlipped or mentally deranged, but because of their strange behavior. All these demon hunters had in their minds were the cleansing of heresy and eradication of the unusual creatures. They had a clear state of mind and objective. Other than that, they knew nothing else. The MDT had examined the mental states of all the captives, and they were all mentally sound. The question was, how could they wake people who had not lost their mind in the first place?

Elder Gregowen shook his head in disappointment. Not accepting defeat, Vivian looked into Claude’s eyes and asked one last time, “Do you know who I am?”

Claude was a little confused when he heard her voice. He stared at her for a moment and suddenly went berserk. His eyes turned red, and he lunged at Vivian as if he was seeking vengeance. “Heretic! Heretic! Kill her! Kill her!”

Claude’s sudden violence stunned Vivian; she was rooted to the spot. Hao Ren, who had been watching the demon hunter with suspicion all this while, sprang into action. He leaped in between the two, blocking the demon hunter. He raised his leg and sent Claude flying with a front kick. The three elven magicians activated their restraining runes as electric light burst out of the rune chains, keeping Claude under restraint.

Even then, Claude was still shouting at Vivian angrily, “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you!”

The insanity, bloody-red eyes and bulging veins of the demon hunter looked frightening. Lily immediately turned to ask White Flame, “How was your relationship with him?”

“We were just acquaintances. He was in a different combat group. Why—” White Flame said.

“Oh, that’s good then,” Lily said, not waiting for White Flame to finish. She raised a brick out of nowhere and smashed it down on Claude’s head. “So, I won’t have to hesitate when I do this!” she replied.

The brick hit Claude with a loud bang.

When Claude was finally down, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Vivian patted herself on the chest. “Did I provoke him or something?”

“Strictly speaking, you’ve provoked all demon hunters. After all, you did beat up their ancestors. But, I don’t think that’s the reason,” Hao Ren said, scratching his jaw while looking at Claude with a thoughtful look. “Nonetheless, I’m afraid that the Council of Elders’ change of the temperament has something to do with you,” he said.

“Me?” Vivian pointed at herself. “Haven’t we also captured other demon hunters sent by the council before? They didn’t react like that,” she said.

Hao Ren was puzzled. He looked at Gregowen. “Elder, do you know if Claude’s any different from the other demon hunters?”

Elder Gregowen had an inkling of what Hao Ren was asking. His face looked solemn. “He’s the attendant and herald of the first sage,” he said.

“The first sage? The one who’s locked himself in a room for thousands of years to the point where no one knows if he’s still alive or dead?” Hao Ren’s eyes widened. “Is he really alive?”

“There have been all sorts of rumors,” said Elder Gregowen, spreading his hand out helplessly. “But we never thought that any of the sages would leave us. Although the first sage hasn’t come out for many years, he still gives us instructions from time to time through his herald.”

“Meaning, Claude knows firsthand the condition of the first sage?” Y’zaks asked, breaking his silence. Glancing at the young demon hunter who was lying on the ground unconscious, Y’zaks nodded at the three elven magicians and said, “Lock him up and guard him carefully. Once he gives out any information, report to me at once.”