HBWnovel Chapter 78: The Creeping Terror (3)
Chapter 78: The Creeping Terror (3)
Chapter 78: The Creeping Terror (3)
The Blood Demon awakening was an event that Amon and Yue had been preparing for the past eight years. While unsure if the monster would appear in this timeline, they had spared no expense preparing for its eventual onslaught.
Echelon had been deployed beforehand, allowing twenty skilled operatives to be deployed to Mistwood. Naturally, Bane had to command them from the shadows to remain unnoticed. Nevertheless, the information they gathered proved helpful as Amon now had a detailed map of the misty woodlands.
Amon navigated the forest confidently through the fallen trees and shattered rock to arrive at a dense thicket. He observed his surroundings, paying additional attention to the depressions on the ground. While there were no signs of blood spill or flesh, Amon could identify the crime scene just by the sinister residual mana that lingered in the air.
"So this is where they found the bodies." Amon frowned and continued to look for clues.
"Yeah, and they seem fresh. So the Blood Demon must have awakened recently." Yue added on while in deep thought.
The pair were out hunting for clues, and as people who knew the Blood Demon better than anyone alive, they could hypothesise what had occurred here.
The Blood Demon's modus operadi was simple. Find a victim and drain them of their blood. If it found a formidable opponent, the Blood Demon would bide its time by laying an ambush or escaping to fight another day.
Despite having a Dragon's residue soul, it employed cowardly tactics, making the Blood Demon a tricky foe.
Preying on the weak and ambushing the strong. Amon felt a tinge of disgust as he thought of the gruesome beast. After living in the Solaris House for eighteen years, it was inevitable that some of its code of honour had latched itself into his psyche.
"Let's see..."
Amon closed his eyes and focused everything on his mana sense. Weaker individuals may not feel it, but the intense leftover mana the Blood Demon dripped was appalling enough to make Amon twitch. As he opened his eyes, Amon was greeted by a faint red stream resembling a trail of blood. Without hesitation, the Knight followed the stream down the thicket and towards an empty cave just a hundred metres away.
Subconsciously, Amon summoned his trusted blade and firmly held onto its handle. He was ready to jump to battle at any given moment. His senses heightened, he could feel every drop of water, every frog's croak, every leaf rustling. But unfortunately, even as he delved deeper into the foggy cave... Amon couldn't find the Blood Demon.
What he did find was...
"Bloodless corpses and carcasses... And so many of them."
Amon was stunned to see over a hundred dead animals and humans littered all over the cold, mineral ground. They were haphazardly displaced, meaning the culprit who did such a gruesome thing couldn't bother to dispose of the bodies properly.
"There are so many of them, yet the residue of Demonic mana feels so weak. They must have been dead before the Blood Demon got to them."
After the earthquake, there were bound to be thousands, if not tens of thousands, of dead carcasses just lying around. Not to mention, all the missing humans passed on in hard-to-reach places. Although the Blood Demon grew stronger by absorbing the blood of living creatures, dead bodies did the trick for now.
The Blood Demon was likely still weak and seeking strength, but eventually, when it regained a certain degree of its vitality back... That's when it would begin hunting humans for blood.
"I can't sense its presence here... It must have left a long time ago."
Amon lowered his blade and relaxed a little after realising that there weren't any significant threats in the cave. Heaving a deep sigh, he continued investigating the cave, hoping to find any morsel of information that would help with locating the Blood Demon.
Alas, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn't find anything that could lead to the Blood Demon. The only thing of note was the bloodless corpse at the far corner wearing a pharmacist's cloak. It had one arm ripped off, which was rare for a bloodless corpse, but nothing too suspicious.
But just as he was about to leave, Yue appeared from the entrance and stopped the young Knight.
"Wait, let's collect some evidence."
"What?"
"Hehe, don't worry. I know what to do."
Yue didn't explain much to Amon and reached for the displaced arm of the corpse. Unlike girls her age, she wasn't averse to death and the profane. Comfortably placing the arm in her storage, Yue glanced around the cave again before exiting.
Realising the work here was done, Amon opened his palm and condensed a fall of scorching hot sunfire. The flames engulfed the mossy cave in an instant, burning all the bloodless carcasses and corpses.
Amon exited the burning cave without taking a second to mourn the dead and continued his hunt for the profane.
❖❖❖
When Yue's spell was completed, a sinister red smoke billowed out from the scars and cracks in the arm. It was repulsive and disgusting but solid proof that a Demon had corrupted the arm.
"Demonic mana... You're right; it's hard to mistake that!"
The Commander's eyes instantly lit up. Rubbing the bottom of his chin, he carefully observed the faint traces of the Demonic mana, wondering how Amon could detect it without Yue's spell. But his concentration was broken by Amon's iron-like voice.
"While we're dealing with a Demon, it seems to be weak at the moment. And since we know it sucks the blood of its prey, we will need to keep as many living people away from the forest."
"What's your point?"
"Please suspend the search for missing people," Amon demanded without remorse. "At least until we discover and eliminate the threat. We can't risk sending our Knights to die in the forest."
Amon's actual motivation was to prevent the Blood Demon from obtaining the bodies of the Solaris Knights and strengthening itself to unbeatable heights. So before that happens, he would have to locate the Blood Demon and eradicate it from the face of the earth once and for all.
But the officers in the tent didn't know that. All they saw was a noble Knight willing to protect his comrades at the expense of his safety.
"Are you planning on hunting the Demon yourself? It's too dangerous!"
"No, I'll be going with my... f-f-fiancée, Yue Elune." Amon struggled to push those words out of his mouth, but he somehow managed. "Also, I will take my squire along. Us three will be sufficient."
"Your fiancée? And your squire?!"
The Commander was utterly aghast. As one of the most talented Knights of his generation, Amon Solaris was an asset to be protected. Yue Elune was the heiress of the Elune House, and Leon Bright was hailed as the hero who tamed Ascalon.
All three were precious members who couldn't be lost, yet Amon was trying to bring them on a dangerous hunt. Naturally, the Commander would be frantic.
But a loud wail silenced the tent before he could breathe a word of denial.
"W-What?"
All the Knights rapidly hurried out of the tent, some with their blades drawn. It didn't take long for them to trace the scream's source. A despondent widow crying out at the sight of her deceased husband's bloodless corpse coming back to life.
Its hollow eye sockets were gleaming red, and a vicious stream of red mana streaked out from the bloodless corpse. It looked like it was set ablaze, but given how easily it moved, all the Knights knew that the corpse wasn't burning.
Instead, it was searching... yearning for something.
Its hollowed-out eyes stared straight at the tent as it limped its body forward. It was frail and weak, meaning anyone could have stopped its advance. But no one moved forward.
All but one.
Without a moment's hesitation, Amon sliced the bloodless corpse in half. And before it could even touch the ground, his solar mana engulfed the zombie in purifying flames. In less than three seconds, Amon had given the corpse a second death.
'It must have reacted to the severed arm.'
Amon concluded immediately.
The Blood Demon's signature ability and the one that brought fear to the general populace... Its ability to create zombies from its victims was displayed for the first time today. Judging from the bloodless corpse's behaviour, it resonated with the severed arm Yue brought back and yearned to obtain it.
The stunning scene paralysed Mistwood Hamlet. Many were silent, while others cried out for help. Even the officers' expressions froze when they realised what they were against.
And Amon turned to his Commander and asked once more.
"Please send the order, Commander. Suspend the search operations, and let us hunt the Demon."
Amon's question may have been asking for permission, but his tone suggested he wouldn't accept anything but a firm nod. And unconsciously, the Commander gave the order.
"A-Approved!"
"Thank you..."