As darkness fell, silence engulfed the entire forest, which had only moments ago been ablaze with a fierce battle in which hundreds of savage beasts had fallen, their corpses scattered across the area.
At that moment, Rian finished gathering all the corpses into a single pile—towering and massive—formed by stacking hundreds of bodies atop one another. In that silence, the only sound heard was the snap of Rian's fingers. A scorching wave of fire instantly swept through the area, devouring the dead beasts' bodies until nothing remained but ash.
On the other side, Carlos was tending to the injured Raven, trying to treat his wounds.
I don't know what happened… but what did he do to end up with injuries like these?
Soon, Rian returned to where Raven and Carlos were.
Rian: I already gave him a healing potion earlier, but it seems it wasn't enough. Are his injuries really that severe?
Carlos replied,
Carlos: No. Judging by his physical appearance, there are no serious external injuries—at least not on the surface. It seems he's suffering from an internal injury. I've never seen an injury like this before. But looking at the situation more carefully, this isn't something caused by any of those beasts… it's something far beyond that.
Rian: In that case, I think we should stay here tonight and camp in the forest. Tomorrow, we'll decide what to do. Everything depends on whether Raven's condition improves or not.
With that, the two ended their conversation and lit a fire to stay near for the night. Fortunately, Carlos had come prepared and brought some essential supplies with him. Because of that, staying in the forest overnight was the best possible option.
Throughout the night, Carlos and Rian took turns standing guard. In this way, the team spent the night within the forest.
Early the next morning, one of them awoke from a deep sleep and was met with an unfamiliar sight.
Huh… did they really catch up to me here?
Raven was astonished by what he saw. His two companions were sleeping deeply, sprawled out on the ground, and the fire they had lit had already gone out. The sight of them sleeping looked incredibly childish, which amused Raven and made him laugh softly.
After that, Raven got up and headed toward the site of his previous battle, only to be shocked once again. All the beasts were gone. The corpses that had been piled high the day before had completely vanished, as if nothing had ever happened. Raven immediately realized that his companions had already taken care of everything, so he turned back and returned to where the rest of the team was.
By then, the sun had already risen and morning had arrived.
"Ughhh… what is this annoying light?"
"I just need to sleep a little longer…"
Rian muttered as he tried to shield his eyes from the sunlight.
Carlos suddenly woke up as well—his awakening frantic. He quickly looked left and right, but found only Rian beside him.
"Tch… where did that idiot disappear to this time? Hey, hey—Rian, wake up! Can you hear me? Wake up, something's wrong!"
"Hah… what do you want?"
"Get up! Raven has disappeared again!"
"Huh? Raven disappeared? I want to sleep more… don't bother me."
"Hey! Don't you get it?! Get up! Raven is gone again!"
The moment those words were repeated, Rian sprang to his feet, panic clearly etched across his face.
"What? Disappeared? What do you mean?!"
The two of them hurriedly stood up and began searching for him again.
Rian: RAAAAAVEEEEN! Where are you?! Can you hear me?!
Rian shouted Raven's name at the top of his lungs. Moments later, a voice responded from among the trees.
"Stop shouting already. I'm right here."
Rian turned toward the source of the voice.
"Huh? Where? From where did that voice come?"
Soon, the silhouette of a figure emerged from between the trees.
"It's me—Raven. I'm back."
"Raven! Where were you?! I nearly went insane when I woke up and couldn't find you!"
Carlos's tone was slightly harsh, filled with clear reproach.
Raven answered their questions calmly.
"I was just taking a walk nearby."
Although the answer wasn't convincing, Raven's presence alone was enough to put them at ease. With the issue resolved, the team prepared to resume their journey and return home. Carlos packed his bag, which contained some basic supplies, and got ready to depart.
Rian: Alright, let's head home.
His voice was filled with enthusiasm, and the brightness of his smile felt as if it dispelled the darkness of the forest itself.
As the team moved on and neared the forest's entrance, they were faced with two choices: either head toward the royal capital of the Kingdom of Arcadia—Arka—or return to the city they had last visited.
Carlos: Considering the supplies we're carrying, returning to the previous city is the better option. The distance to Arka is very long, and we don't know how far the nearest settlement on the way there is. So going back to the last place we stayed is the best choice.
For some reason, among the three of them, Rian was clearly the happiest about returning to the previous city. This was suspicious to both Carlos and Raven, but their lack of resources forced their hand. Who knew what it was that made Rian so happy in a situation like this?
On their way back, several questions surfaced in Carlos's mind—questions he had wanted to ask before but never found the right moment for. Now was the perfect time.
Carlos: Hey, Raven. There are two questions that have been on my mind, and I need honest answers.
The moment Carlos said that, the atmosphere shifted. Tension and seriousness filled the air.
"How did you manage to defeat all those beasts on your own in a single day? To be honest, even I wouldn't have been able to do it with the efficiency you showed. Hundreds of beasts in less than a day—it's something even a fourth-level mutant would struggle with. So how could a third-level mutant accomplish that?"
"…I knew it. I knew you'd ask this question."
Raven sighed lightly before continuing.
"Alright. I'll tell you everything you don't know—not just the answer to this question, but other things as well. First of all, how could a third-level mutant take down that horde of beasts alone? The answer lies in a single word."
"Gluttony."
"Gluttony?"
The term was unfamiliar to both Rian and Carlos.
"What do you mean by gluttony?"
Raven: What I mean is exactly that—gluttony. The desire to devour your enemies, to consume their lives and turn them into fuel for your battle. That is gluttony. It's the unique ability I possess. To put it simply, it's ineffective in one-on-one fights—at least for now—but against a horde of beasts, it's completely different. Every time I spill the blood of one of those beasts, what remains of its life is converted into energy that feeds the wielder of this ability. By continuing to fight them, I harvested the power necessary to keep going. With every kill, every stolen life force, my strength kept increasing more and more.
"That's how I alone was able to wipe out that entire horde."
"…Are you saying that an ability called Gluttony is that powerful?"
Rian was truly shocked by what he had just heard. An ability like Gluttony was nothing short of a nightmare for any opponent.
But Raven wasn't finished yet.
"Listen carefully—I'm not done. Even though you might think this ability is extraordinary, it's not without its flaws."
"Flaws?" Carlos asked, curious.
"Yes. Flaws. The power I steal from my enemies doesn't last long. I can't retain it permanently. I only have a limited amount of time before that power is consumed. The principle behind this ability is sacrifice—so long as there's sufficient life energy, my strength continues to rise. But once that energy is exhausted, I return to how I was."
"There's also another fatal flaw at my current level. The amount of energy my body can contain is limited. If I recklessly continue absorbing the life force of my enemies, I'll suffer severe internal injuries. It could even lead to my soul shattering… and death."
"That's why this unique ability can be considered a double-edged sword."
End of Chapter