Caleb had broken a barrier. Something in him had snapped, and the hunter could feel it.
However, this only reinforced the fact that he needed to eliminate the man before him. He pointed his sword at Caleb.
"An abomination that shouldn't exist—that's what you are," the hunter said, but before he could lunge forward,
he was repelled by an invisible force. Yet, the boy in front of him wasn't the one responsible for it.
"What is the meaning of this, Hilda?" the man uttered her name, revealing he had a relationship with her.
Caleb glanced at her in shock, realizing she was the one who had intervened.
"You…" Caleb muttered, his voice shaky. He thought they had gotten along.
"I cannot allow you to harm the boy," Hilda said, stepping in front of Caleb.
"When did you get so sentimental?" the man asked with a wicked smirk.
"The moment I knew what it was like to be a mother," Hilda replied before clapping her hands,
sending the man a few inches away—though not as far as she had hoped.
"H-He's strong," Hilda thought. At that moment, she knew this would be a tough fight.
This was why she avoided hunters—especially those of the High Priest rank—because they were always a threat.
"Caleb, I know you don't trust me, but I need you to get the hell out of here!
I know I have no right to ask this of you, but please… look after Leila for me.
With your power, you're the only one I can count on," Hilda pleaded.
The truth was, she didn't know who Caleb was or the full extent of his power,
but she now understood why the priest was willing to make a deal with her.
And she also realized he never intended to keep his end of the bargain—he had no reason to.
"You've chosen to protect the abomination?" the priest asked, brushing dust off his robes.
"GO!" Hilda screamed at Caleb, snapping him back to his senses.
But that momentary lapse in concentration was all the priest needed.
He closed the distance in the blink of an eye, just like he had done with Eileen.
But Hilda was more agile than Eileen. She managed to land a blow straight to his chest.
However, the priest caught her wrist and snapped it in half, blood spraying across his face.
He looked disappointed. But Hilda wasn't going down easily—she managed to blast him away once more.
Or so she thought. He still had his grip on her wrist, refusing to let go.
"Very well then," the priest said, before running his sword through her.
Hilda coughed up blood, and then the sword's true effect manifested—a bright light poured from her mouth and eyes before she collapsed to the ground—dead.
Caleb witnessed everything. He couldn't believe what he had seen, but now there was no one left between him and the priest.
And whatever he did next, he couldn't let that sword pierce him.
"If you run," the priest said, "I'll take your friend over there and peel her skin off until she begs me to kill her—and even then, I won't.
The only way to protect her is to turn yourself in. You're a creature that shouldn't exist… You go against everything natural."
His voice dripped with disgust.
Caleb couldn't let anything happen to Eileen. He could easily run and save himself—but what would that make him?
"Take me," Caleb said, ready to give in. He knew fighting was impossible, and trying would only make things worse.
Caleb had always been a pacifist, despite his superior combat skills—but then the priest inflicted his first wound.
For a second, Caleb dropped his guard, and a sharp pain shot through his right leg.
He looked behind him—Hilda was moving.
"Y-You bitch!" the priest muttered, stumbling. Hilda had used a necromancy spell on herself in the event of her death.
She had known this battle would lead to her demise, and she'd prepared for it—even if she returned as something mindless.
Caleb saw an opening. He dashed toward the man, but to his surprise, the priest moved even faster than before.
The priest could barely react as Caleb grabbed his face and tried to slam him into the ground—but lacked the strength to uproot him.
The man stomped Hilda's head, killing her for good, before grabbing Caleb by the neck and lifting him off the ground.
"You've caused me far more trouble than I would have liked—but the outcome remains the same," the priest said, tightening his grip.
Caleb couldn't breathe—but that was the least of his worries, as the priest readied the same strange sword that had killed Hilda.
But Caleb wasn't going down that easily. He remembered what his father had taught him.
The moment the priest thrust the blade to impale him, Caleb kicked it upward, changing its trajectory toward his head.
But the priest's hand was in the way—and if he wanted to keep it, he had to let go of Caleb.
This allowed Caleb to escape his grip—a smart move despite being on the back foot.
But would it change the outcome of the fight?
Caleb didn't lower his guard again. He saw a brief opening to go for the kill—but he didn't take it.
This man was hunting him for reasons he still didn't understand—reasons that even Eileen had lied to him about.
But despite all the terrible things this man had done, Caleb didn't want to take his life. And he didn't know why.
If he truly was the evil creature the priest claimed he was—shouldn't the opposite be true?