Blue lotus
Chapter - 38
As they ventured deeper into the forest than before, they encountered a group of people walking calmly past them, completely indifferent to their presence, focused solely on the purpose that brought them there.
They were part of a Chalog hunting group, one that had recently gained fame for its unusual hunting methods. Instead of setting traps and ambushing monsters when they were off guard, they headed straight for the monsters’ nests. Before doing so, however, they meticulously prepared their plans, including backup strategies in case of failure, and involved two individuals with special abilities to minimize risks.
Why were they so reckless in taking on such work? The answer was simple. They were paid an astonishing amount by their client. Yes, roughly equivalent to two months’ wages in the Kingdom of Norn.
They did this job to make ends meet and to send part of their earnings back to their families. They worked strictly according to orders, asked no questions, and had no idea what the client intended to do with the flesh of the mutated creatures.
The group’s permanent members numbered around ten, but what the three of them saw now were only five people, two women and three charismatic men.
“What do you think about those people earlier?” Zavi asked curiously.
While pushing aside thorny branches blocking his path, Moreira glanced to the left first, followed by Esvalen, who carefully observed their surroundings.
“That man has a very strong and interesting aura, in my opinion. And that woman is very beautiful,” Moreira replied with a faint smile.
“That’s not the answer he’s looking for, Lord Moreira. Do you really think he’d be satisfied with that?” Esvalen let out a small laugh before continuing. “What he means is, what kind of ordinary people would dare come to such a terrifying place full of monsters?”
Her expression suddenly turned serious. Two seconds later, she handed something to both of them. The pounding heartbeat, the sound of breathing, the surrounding atmosphere. Zavi and Moreira could feel it all vividly, as if they were truly there, inhabiting the body of one of the hunters.
“What is this!?” they muttered at the same time.
“So, what do you think? Focus carefully, and don’t forget there’s a thorny branch right in front of you!”
Upon hearing that, Zavi failed to control his body properly. Too focused on the vision, he accidentally slammed his head into a large tree trunk.
Buk!!
The collision echoed for a few seconds before Zavi cursed in irritation. The perspective of the hunter he had been seeing abruptly cut off, startling Moreira as well when he heard the curse.
“…So he got hit too.” Moreira thought.
“I was too focused on watching it. Sorry, sorry for swearing just now,” Zavi said quietly, rubbing the back of his head.
Rustle… Rustle…
All three of them suddenly turned around, their gazes locked onto the moving bushes ahead. They looked at each other, nodded, and decided to move silently to find out what lay behind them.
“One, two, three… Open.”
After hearing Zavi’s signal, Moreira pushed aside the tall, dense bushes in front of him. To his shock, once he stepped through, the bushes closed behind him, and his legs felt as if they were being pulled by something. He slipped downward into a steep, dark ravine.
“Ah…”
Just two steps beyond the bushes, strangely, neither of them heard the scream nor the rumbling sound of collapsing earth.
A few seconds later, both of them shared the same uneasy premonition, sensing that something had happened to Moreira earlier.
Then the two of them pushed the bushes aside, slowly slipped through, and emerged onto a narrow stretch of land about a meter wide. The view ahead was pitch-black, as if they had entered a different world entirely.
“Did night fall this quickly? Esv—”
Before he could finish his sentence, Zavi turned to the side, only to be shocked by the sight that Esvalen had vanished without leaving behind any sound or trace.
“This can’t be real. What kind of place is this?” he muttered in disbelief, his heartbeat growing erratic.
He stepped forward to check whether Esvalen had fallen into the ravine ahead. There was nothing. Darkness was all Zavi could see.
“It’s been a long time since we last met. I don’t want anyone else interfering with this meeting.”
The voice sounded cheerful, its tone distinctly feminine. Its unseen presence only added to Zavi’s confusion amid his panic.
“Who are you…? Are you talking to me?”
“Of course,” she replied with a light laugh. “I spoke to you before, but you—”
Her voice abruptly cut off, making Zavi even more curious about who he was actually talking to.
“Ah… Why am I being interrupted again?” he muttered irritably.
Zavi’s eyes widened. The world seemed to tilt ninety degrees.
As he blinked several times, Moreira suddenly appeared beside him, standing stiffly, his expression confused as if he couldn’t remember what had happened just minutes ago.
There was no ravine ahead of them. Only trees, bushes, and tall grass stretching across their view.
Meanwhile, Esvalen’s eyes were wide open, her face drenched in cold sweat from the extreme fear she had felt.
“Why… Why can a level five talk so casually with that person?!” Her gaze was fixed on Zavi, who was speaking with Moreira.
“Who are you, really?” she murmured in disbelief, pulling out a clean piece of cloth to wipe the sweat from her face.
Esvalen chuckled softly. “Interesting. So you’ve found it already.” She lifted her head, staring at the leaves overhead that blocked the sunlight from reaching the ground.
“Why are you smiling to yourself? Is something funny?” Moreira asked with a doubtful look, feeling as if he were being laughed at.
Level five, an evil spirit, Mastering. A mysterious woman who had once met and even spoken with him before, taking the form of someone the original Zavi loved, Aurora Chevalya.
“Tch. Why does she always show up at the most critical moments? Who is she really? It feels like she wants to tell me something but keeps failing every time. Is it intentional? Or does she want me to figure it out myself?”
His brows furrowed, and thinking about it made him let out a small laugh.
“It’s pointless to dwell on useless things, as long as she doesn’t interfere. Though… didn’t she just interfere? Damn it. I’ll find out who she really is, whether she’s human, spirit, monster, or even a being of higher existence than me.”
Since too much time had already passed and evening was approaching, he decided to continue their journey to gather the ingredients for the herbal potion. Terami flowers, blue lotus flowers, mint leaves, and crystal particles.
In a quiet swamp area, dozens of blue lotus flowers floated gently on the surface. But the calm didn’t last long after Esvalen picked two of them.
A group of starving crocodiles, or rather, creatures that had mutated into horrifying monsters, Chalog hunter types, emerged from the swamp water contaminated with spiritual energy. The murky water churned as five of them lunged toward Esvalen, attempting to devour her, but failed.
“Run.”
That word surfaced in their minds the moment they saw the five monsters charging at them with their jaws wide open.
They ran, evading the pursuit while pushing through dense bushes, creeping thorny roots, and massive tree roots rising from the ground.
Not wanting the creatures to chase them out of the forest, Zavi decided to draw his revolver.
Bang! Bang!
Gunshots shattered the silence, accompanied by the monsters’ pained roars. The Chalog, originally animals that had mutated into grotesque monsters, saw one of their companions get shot, slowing their movements.
The remaining four Chalog were enraged, moving even faster than before.
Realizing that his earlier action had provoked the monsters’ fury, Zavi increased his pace, carefully dodging obstacles ahead.
Bang! Bang!
The gunfire echoed once more, white smoke pouring from the revolver’s barrel. A bullet pierced through the eye of one Chalog, spraying dark purple blood in all directions.
“ARGHHH…”
The scream of agony echoed through the forest. Other Chalog that heard the sound were drawn to it, rapidly converging on the location.
“Hey, do you want even more Chalog to come after us?” Esvalen muttered in frustration.
They suddenly stopped, hearing the rustling of leaves and footsteps approaching from all directions.
“What should we do, sir?” Moreira asked anxiously, feeling that his life might soon end.
“Ah… This is my fault!” Zavi replied, opening the revolver’s cylinder and reloading it fully.
They were now hiding behind thick bushes, surrounded by tree trunks forming a square, with one large tree leaning downward toward the bushes.
Zavi decided to climb up and observe the surroundings while waiting for the monsters to attack, planning to shoot them until they were dead.
“Is something coming again?” Esvalen asked. “It feels like they’ll appear any second,” she murmured, her face tense with worry.
Zavi continued scanning the area, finding no signs that the earlier monsters would return.
“You two should go ahead. I’ll handle the rest,” Zavi said with a faint, confident smile, believing he could defeat the monsters and follow them out of the forest.
They obeyed his order. Meanwhile, Zavi assumed the monsters had given up and returned to their nest.
He was wrong.
A few seconds later, the remaining three Chalog hunter types appeared in search of him.
Two of their companions were dead, and they sought revenge for the intrusion into their territory and the killing of their kin.
“ARGHHH…”
They roared in unison after confirming their target perched atop the tree.
They charged at full speed, the ground trembling beneath them, jaws opening wide as they leaped several meters toward him.
Then, from the left—
A mysterious figure appeared, moving at incredible speed. With a single step, it effortlessly killed all three Chalog.
Zavi stared in disbelief, then smiled.
“Hehe. More trouble again.”
The newly arrived monsters surrounded Zavi, all of them locking their gazes onto him.
