The tiger-like monster immediately attacked. With a furious roar, it lunged at them.
Miel stepped forward, raised his large shield, and blocked the sharp claws of the monster. White marks appeared on the surface of the shield while the monster retreated.
It glared at them, then attacked again. This time, Kara stepped forward to confront it. Brandishing her sword, she parried its claws, then struck at the monster's side. A wound opened up, spurting blood.
The monster howled in pain, then stumbled back. It bared its fangs hatefully at Kara, preparing to pounce. Before it could, though, two attacks came at it quickly. A fireball crashed into its chest while an arrow struck its shoulder blade.
Elias knocked another arrow, meanwhile, Sera's wand glowed again, preparing another fireball. With their teammates' support, Kara and Lugh rushed forward and engaged the monster in close combat.
A flurry of blows between steel and claws were exchanged, almost too fast for Kaiser to perceive. Under the combined efforts of the five teammates, the monster eventually fell.
Dealing the final blow, Lugh cursed. "Damn! This one was absurdly strong for an Awakened Monster."
Kara nodded with a small frown, then dug into the monster's head. From there, she produced an almost transparent crystal filled with stardust… a soul crystal.
She studied it for a moment, then tossed it to Lugh. "Your kill."
Already accustomed to this, Lugh gladly accepted it and stored it in his pouch.
Kara turned to Kaiser who was standing nearby, carefully monitoring their movements. From the fight against the Awakened Monster, he could tell that they were strong and experienced, on par with the talented Awakened in his clan.
"Can you fight?" Kara asked.
He nodded, "Basically…"
She smiled wistfully, "Good. To survive on this Rogue Continent, one must have strength."
After scavenging some meat from the corpse, they continued hunting around the outer region of the Black Forest. They didn't venture into the inner region because it was fraught with monsters that surpassed their abilities. As for the core region? It was even out of consideration. Only people at the Ascendant or Transcendent Realm could hunt there.
When the crescent sun started to set, they stopped to set up camp. Miel quietly grilled the meat they had gathered while Sera, Lugh, and Elias exchanged light talks.
"You're staring blankly for too long. Doesn't suit your beautiful face."
Kara gave Kaiser a light smack on his back, then sat beside him.
"Beautiful?"
He frowned slightly. Even though he knew his appearance and voice was appealing, he had never been associated with the adjective 'beautiful'.
Giving Kara an odd look, he thought. 'What a strange woman…'
His thoughts circled back to his quest: Kill the last Voidborne. While they were hunting, he had tried looking for clues to who among them was a Voidborne. However, he couldn't find anything strange in any of them.
'Perhaps I haven't met the Voidborne yet?'
Yet, his instincts told him he had. Ignoring his dilemma, he listened to Kara tell her story.
"You see, I used to live in the Main Lands too. Just like any other Kaeonian citizen."
She started with a melancholic smile.
"Our family of three worked as farmers, earning enough to stabilize our home. My parents weren't Awakened, because they quit their quests out of fear of dying. To top it off, my mother was pregnant with me by then."
Kaiser raised a brow. Getting pregnant at the age of seventeen was a bit… peculiar. He refrained from using a rude word.
"Unlike them, I had big ambitions. I always wanted to become an Awakened. So when the time came, I took the test and passed. My parents were relieved and happy… until the war started."
Her expression turned dark, though she didn't show any signs of rage. "We lived on the outskirts, so we were caught up in a skirmish. My parents died, while I was kidnapped and trained for the war—to fight against my own kingdom. Luckily, I met Elias and the rest who helped me escape. And that was how I came to this place for the past two years."
"Two years?" Kaiser tilted his head. "That's… quite a while."
The young lady turned to him with a serene expression. Through her eyes, Kaiser saw her heart. He saw sadness, longing, melancholy, indignance, and a bit of relief.
'The eyes is the way to the heart…'
They remained silent, gazing at each other before someone coughed.
"Ahem… food is ready."
Miel turned away, handing the plates of food to them. Surprisingly, he was a skilled cook, having enough experience to create a tasty meal from random ingredients.
Kaiser took a bite, then fell silent. Although it was a bit shameful, he had to admit that Miel's cooking skills far surpassed his. Nevertheless, he enjoyed the dinner.
After eating, they all set their tents, then came a dilemma.
"Are we the only ones, uh… normal?"
Lugh asked with a weird expression on his face. Beside him, Miel and Elias were silent, both having incredulous expressions.
Standing opposite them were Kara and Sera who were glaring at each other with smiles.
"Kara, don't be unreasonable. There's no extra tent for Kaiser. Why don't you let him stay with me? Unlike you, I don't snore at night, so he wouldn't be uncomfortable."
Faced with her best friend's venomous remark, Kara's smile widened, though it didn't reach her eyes.
"You shouldn't bother yourself. I know how much you roll in bed. We can't have you suffocating a young boy, no?"
At this point, Elias was unwilling to listen to their veiled insults any longer.
"Ugh. You two, stop it already. Kaiser stays with us. Why would he stay with you two? You're of different genders!"
The two women glared at him but fell silent, unable to refute him. Their argument had indeed been unreasonable.
"I'll stay with Elias."
Kaiser said, putting a seal to the issue. Thankfully, it was solved just like that and everyone went to sleep.
At midnight, Kaiser's eyelids trembled, then snapped open. He looked to the side, seeing Elias's sleeping figure. Then, his eyes narrowed as he caught sight of a small purple figure approach him stealthily. It was without form, moving like water.
A single glance at it, and Kaiser felt a chill run down his spine. Although he wasn't sure what it was, he didn't need anyone to tell him that it shouldn't be allowed to touch him.
Unfortunately, the thing was too fast and arrived at his feet.
Snap-!