Light and Triss continued to wander through that land until nightfall, setting up camp among the rocks with no better shelter available. They separated to gather branches from the few trees around them and then built a campfire, which they lit using magic.
Triss was somewhat disgusted with her companion; to Light, anything that moved could be food. Any visible insect, small lizards and their eggs—everything was food to him. Right now, he was roasting a purple snake they had found along the way.
"I didn't know you wanted some too."
"How can you eat those things?" Light, who was fixated on the snake in his mouth, looked at her, confused.
"It's just a snake… and what will you eat?" he asked, continuing to eat nonchalantly.
"Fairies don't usually need to eat."
"Oh, right." He couldn't care less about his companion.
"So, what's the plan this time, miss?"
"Simple: don't mess things up and kill the monsters. We don't need to be part of the main group for that. It's a simple mission."
"All missions are simple until everything goes wrong" Light reminded her, recalling his recent experiences. Triss, feeling offended, huffed in response.
"They're just irrational monsters. I'm sure even if we do nothing, the situation will resolve itself." He rolled his eyes, knowing how foolish his companion's words were. Long ago, she was a powerful and graceful being, so these monsters were likely far beneath the things she usually dealt with. Now, these irrational creatures were a threat to the grand and blessed Triss.
They took turns sleeping, and the next day, they continued to explore the region, with Triss constantly gathering information about the environment. Light followed her in silence most of the time. They circled the territory for a week, walking all day and avoiding the monsters while they understood the overall situation. Finally, Triss turned and shared her findings.
"This territory is most likely Dirgrad in the past."
"So, we've traveled back in time?" She explained the place to him again.
"The nature of the staircase is like that. Time and space don't mean much to it." Returning to her discoveries, she continued, "Currently, we have the first wave of colonists. Apparently, they are scouts, and more will come later. A few hundred men and women, among them, ordinary people are the minority. Some basic servants are Initiates, most of them Disciples, with a Guardian leading them—an elf."
"And how deep are we in trouble?"
"Our enemies are greater in number but are mostly Disciples. Despite some interference, I managed to locate two Apostles, and there may be more. The biggest danger in this place is the Faceless."
"What are those?"
"Faceless are monsters that can transform into others. They can twist their own flesh and skin to resemble others and mimic the intelligence of humanoid species. Due to the difficulty of altering their size, they must primarily disguise themselves as medium-sized people, never too tall or short." Light quickly absorbed the lesson.
"So, I could be replaced, and you wouldn't even notice?"
"I doubt that will happen, but yes, it's possible. They can imitate many aspects of a person and simulate several others." Light nodded.
"And what happened to Dirgrad's army?"
"About half of them died in the confrontation. The main members, including the Lord, survived and are gathering, preparing their own plans for this place, whatever they may be." Taking a deep breath, he moved on to the most important question.
"Did Ruari survive the confrontation?"
"I didn't find her corpse. It could have been incinerated and be unrecognizable, or she might still be alive somewhere. Locating a single individual without anything special about them is difficult among so many exceptional ones." His mood darkened, and his shadow grew denser.
"But I also have good news!" he grumbled.
"I hope it's the best news in the world."
"It certainly is. As soon as we get through this, we should be close to a relic, and then we can breathe a little." Feeling even worse, he ignored the reminder of his mission.
"You're really bad at cheering people up." Triss was confused for a moment.
"Forget everything and just go kill the monsters. The biggest problem is the Apostles, but with the arrival of the next groups, it should be easily resolved..." At that moment, Triss stopped talking, her gaze wandering around the area, as if she had detected something. In the next instant, she turned as if nothing had happened.
"Spill it. What did you see?"
"Nothing much..."
A woman's desperate scream was heard, begging for someone to help her.
"Maniac!" Light got up without a second thought, running toward the scream. The place in question was strangely dense with plants, quickly forming a forest. Soon, he spotted a monster that resembled a common bear, if not for an extra pair of arms and its three pairs of red eyes.
***
Name: [None]
Title: [None]
Status: Hunting
Rank: Initiate
Race: Hexaclaw Grizzly
Aura: 20
Strength: 3
Agility: 2
Endurance: 5
Skills: Sprint, Bite, Heavy Strike
Characteristics: Aggressive, Territorial
Observation: A common bear in the region's forests, known for its aggression and territorial behavior.
***
Someone was lying on the ground in front of the bear, desperate at the imminent attack.
[Light used Dash (Fast)]
[Mana 10/100]
In an instant, he was beside the bear.
[Light used Flame Manipulation]
[Mana 5/100]
Flames converged onto the blade, which sliced through the bear's neck at high speed, the creature falling without even realizing the attack.
[You killed a Hexaclaw Grizzly!]
[...]
With a single movement, he cleaned his sword. The moonlight penetrated through the leaves of the trees as Light turned around. A blonde elf with green eyes stood there, tears in her eyes, staring at him. Extending his hand to her with a gentle smile, Light asked,
"Are you alright, miss?" The young woman, still in shock, began to blush, her hands quickly brushing away the tears that had formed. Then, she accepted her savior's hand.
"Everything's fine now, thanks to you, my noble knight. May I ask your name?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.
"But of course, my name is Light, the envoy of Azrael."