—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The Watchmen’s lights were getting closer.
The hunting dogs, with their noses to the ground, were closing in.
‘Come out.’
Simon pulled a skeleton from his subspace.
He gave it the command to stay still and lie down in the grass.
“Cami, this way.”
Simon took the trembling Camibarez’s wrist and lowered their posture.
After a sweep of lantern light passed, he led her from behind the tree to a large rock.
He then summoned another skeleton from his subspace and ordered it to lie down.
Currently, Simon could control up to two skeletons at a time.
‘I have to use everything I can.’
Simon picked up stones from the ground and stored them in his subspace, while quickly assessing the situation, absorbing as much information as possible.
How many Watchmen were there?
How many of them carried lanterns?
Their weapons, the breed and habits of the dogs, the terrain, the wind direction, the sound of the stream.
They currently had the wind at their backs, confusing the dogs, but the wind could change direction at any moment.
It was time to make his move.
‘Now!’
Simon’s eyes widened.
The skeleton lying under the tree sprang up and started running.
“There!”
The Watchmen reacted instantly, and the hunting dogs barked loudly, chasing after the skeleton.
“Half of you follow! The rest, continue forward!”
“The other dogs are still picking up the scent!”
As expected of professional hunters, they weren’t completely fooled by a single decoy.
Simon then sent the skeleton hiding by the rock running.
“That’s the real one!”
“Catch it!”
The Watchmen and the dogs rushed to the side.
“Cami, run!”
This was their chance.
Simon and Camibarez, hidden behind the rock, turned and sprinted in the opposite direction.
‘We haven’t completely lost them. Some are still on our tail!’
Simon glanced back as they ran. Several Watchmen were still pursuing them.
“Keep going, Cami!”
“Okay!”
Woof! Woof!
The hunting dogs, having picked up their scent, were closing in, tearing through the undergrowth.
No matter how fast a human was, they couldn’t outrun a dog.
“Cami! Use any Hemomancy spell you can in the direction of the dogs!”
“Got it!”
Camibarez cast a spell as she ran.
Blood spurted from a small magic circle that appeared on her index finger.
She twisted her waist and swung her arm back, flinging the Jet Black-laced blood.
The wind carried it towards the approaching dogs, staining the grass.
Woof! Woof, woof, woof!
Growl!
The scent of vampire blood was strong, potent enough to be used in high-end perfumes.
The dogs, agitated and excited by the thick, bloody scent, began to thrash around in the grass.
Simon and Camibarez took advantage of the distraction and widened the distance between them and their pursuers.
Thump! Thump!
Their hearts pounded with adrenaline.
Simon started to worry about Camibarez’s stamina, but she was stubbornly keeping pace, right behind him.
“There they are!”
Lantern light briefly brushed their backs.
At the same time, they heard the twang of bowstrings.
Thud!
Crack!
Arrows suddenly flew past them and thudded into the ground, making Camibarez cry out.
“T-They actually shot! What should we do?”
“It’s okay.”
Simon said calmly.
“They saw our uniforms. They wouldn’t dare injure Kizen students.”
As Simon said, the arrows had landed far ahead of them, a clear warning shot.
“Those bastards…!”
“Stop! I said stop!”
As if they would.
Simon grinned and pulled an imaginary lever.
Whoosh!
A subspace opened beneath them, and the stones he had collected earlier rained down on their pursuers.
It was just a simple barrage of rocks, but the Watchmen, mistaking it for dark magic, stopped and raised their guard.
“Cami, this way!”
“Okay!”
Thanks to Simon’s quick thinking, they bought themselves some time.
While it seemed like they were running aimlessly, Simon had actually been following the sound of water.
They finally reached the stream.
‘Oh no.’
It was a cliff.
A sheer drop down to the stream below, and the opposite cliff was quite a distance away.
“Cami! Remember that jumping technique from Martial Combat? Can you do it?”
Her face pale, she squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head.
She was one of the two students who couldn’t jump across the ravine in Martial Combat class.
Woof! Woof!
But they didn’t have time to hesitate.
The barking of the dogs and the lantern lights were getting closer.
“Simon, I’m okay.”
Camibarez forced a smile and pushed Simon’s chest.
“Go on ahead. Even if they catch me, I won’t say anything about you…”
“Excuse me.”
Simon swiftly scooped her up into his arms, turned, and sprinted across the grass.
‘The sensation of Jet Black beneath my feet!!’
Boom!
Black smoke erupted from his feet like an explosion, and Simon took flight.
Below was a dizzying drop, above the large, full moon.
The cold wind against his face and the thrill of nothing beneath his feet.
For a moment, he felt a sense of exhilaration as he descended.
Whoosh!
He landed on the opposite bank with a scraping sound, just barely making it.
Simon quickly slid down the slope and set Camibarez down.
They both pressed themselves flat against the ground.
“Where are they?”
“They’re gone!”
Lantern light flickered above them.
After a few minutes of carefully scanning the area, the lights retreated.
“Let’s go this way.”
“Move! They can’t be far behind!”
Woof! Woof! Woof!
The lights and the barking gradually faded, and then the sounds disappeared completely.
Simon finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew… Cami, are you alright?”
Camibarez looked dazed.
Then, as her eyes met Simon’s, tears welled up.
“I really thought we were going to be caught. Thank you. Thank you for saving me…!”
She burst into tears. Simon silently patted her shoulder.
‘She was so scared, yet she said it was okay if they caught her?’
He felt like he was beginning to understand her personality.
After a while, Camibarez calmed down.
They stood up and brushed the dirt off their uniforms.
“Let’s go back. We’ll have to take a detour to avoid the Watchmen, is that okay?”
“Yes.”
They stepped back into the darkened forest.
They decided not to use their lanterns, as it might attract monsters or the Watchmen.
Fortunately, the moon was bright enough to light their way.
They walked for about an hour.
‘…Where are we?’
They seemed to have wandered deeper into the forest than they intended.
The surroundings were eerily unfamiliar.
The trees grew taller, their dense foliage blocking out the night sky.
Glowing eyes, belonging to either animals or monsters, appeared and disappeared among the trees.
Unsettling cries made them jump, their nerves on edge.
The midnight forest had a primal quality that stirred a deep-seated fear within them, making them almost wish they had been caught by the Watchmen.
Even Camibarez, a vampire, seemed frightened, clinging to Simon’s sleeve and looking around nervously.
‘I have the map in my head, but I can’t figure out where we are.’
Were they lost?
No matter how much they walked, they felt like they were going in circles.
‘I’m tired, and my body temperature is dropping. What should I do?’
“…Simon.”
Camibarez said, her face pale.
“Do you hear that?”
“The owls?”
“No.”
She pressed closer to Simon, her voice filled with fear.
“Voices…”
“…….”
Simon closed his mouth and focused on listening.
Indeed.
Faintly, he could hear it.
He couldn’t tell if it was an animal, a monster, or a person, but he could hear an indistinct voice repeating something.
“Let’s go.”
He had heard that there were people living in the forest on Locke Island.
If it was a person, they might be able to get help.
They nodded and moved towards the sound.
-#$#@%@#^@.
They listened intently as they walked. The voice gradually became clearer.
-@$%@^Have mercy.
-$톰íRemove this fate @%#$^@ Almighty @$@%Mother.
The voice was cold, monotonous, and dry.
-$††@^We worship you @%@$$^Holy and.
What was it saying?
He frowned, trying to make sense of the words, when…
“…Simon.”
Simon was startled.
Camibarez was crying, her face contorted with fear.
The corners of her mouth were twitching upwards in a strange, almost grotesque way.
“What’s wrong, Cami?”
“…Run.”
-#$^$#*#Mother, the only one above %@%* Glory to you.
“…We have to run.”
“Run? What are you talking about?”
“Ugh. Ah. Ah. Aaah…!”
She began to convulse and thrash.
Simon grabbed her and ran in the opposite direction of the voice.
But the voice was getting closer.
-@#$@#Have mercy on us. The sins of the world#@$@#$@.
Simon pushed through the bushes and finally reached the source of the sound.
He saw an altar.
Someone in a long gray robe was prostrated on the ground.
Their arms were outstretched, palms facing upwards.
Unidentifiable objects and animal entrails hung from the altar.
Beneath it, an animal, its chest pierced with a dagger, thrashed weakly as a sacrifice.
Puddles of blood stained the ground crimson.
And in the center of the altar,
Something large was placed there.
Simon knew what it was, but he couldn’t believe it.
Something that absolutely shouldn’t be on Locke Island.
Something that absolutely shouldn’t be at Kizen.
A cross.
It was a cross. Why was a cross here?
A naked woman was grotesquely bound to the cross, her body entwined with thorny vines.
The figure prostrated below the altar raised their upper body, recited a prayer, then prostrated themselves again, palms facing upwards.
Simon felt his blood run cold.
‘…A Priest!’
A Priest was at Kizen.
Kneeling, bowing, and praying within Kizen territory.
‘I have to run.’
He had seen something he shouldn’t have.
If they were discovered, it would be over.
Camibarez, terrified by the gruesome sight, was frozen in fear.
Fortunately, she had her hands clamped over her mouth, preventing any sound from escaping.
As Simon put his arm around her to leave,
Rustle.
The sound of grass being trampled.
The praying Priest stopped.
“…….”
“…….”
Simon’s throat went dry. He slowly turned around.
‘!!!’
The Priest was standing, staring at them.
In the darkness beneath their robe, their eyes seemed to gleam.
Simon’s legs tensed.
“Run!”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
