Whispers Among the Tall Grass
Now, the System's voice barked once again inside the Eastern Hunter's head.
[Hell Hunt System!]
[The Human Arena Hunt!!!]
[Target: Disguised Monsters (Sinful Humans).]
[Threat Level: X]
[Location: Savvan]
[Warning! Among them hide the monsters in disguise. Your task is to eliminate them all!]
[Reward: 3 monsters slain = 150,000 Goldi.]
Rumors had long circulated about a village in the Western Territory, a place where sinful humans were cast away without mercy. Thieves, oath-breakers, adulterers, rapists, traitors of blood and clan—those who defiled their own names.
They were not granted swift death. Their punishment was to be released.
Ito chuckled softly, his eyes narrowing. He never imagined being an Official Blood Hunter could be this thrilling.
"Sinful humans and disguised monsters—there's only the thinnest line between them. A single misstep could endanger other hunters. And if I make a fatal mistake, the System will hurl me straight into the punishment dimension."
Zhen only looked at him, expressionless.
"Humans are beneath beasts here. I like the Western Clan's rules. You?" Ito sneered, chin tilted high.
"I don't care."
Then the Northern Hunter's System pierced through his reverie.
[Hell Hunt System!]
[The Human Arena Hunt!!!]
[Target: Disguised Monsters (Sinful Humans).]
[Threat Level: X]
[Location: Savvan]
[Completion Conditions:]
• Slay every breathing creature in the human arena.
• Destroy them by severing the brain.
• Use the Broukirakh Shield.
[Threat Analysis:]
• Target: mid-tier spell manipulation monsters.
[Failure Prediction: 50%]
[Reward: Eradicate every breathing thing = 1,500,000 Goldi.]
[Warning!!!]
[If you fail, your eyeballs will be torn out, and your fingers shortened!]
[Region Analysis: Savvan]
[Category: Village of the Sinful Humans – Western Territory]
[Regional Traits:]
• A mute savanna—fond of stealing the hunters' voices.
[Regional Threat Level: S]
[Warning!!!]
[Hunting Official Blood Hunters is forbidden!]
The western sky burned in shades of copper-red, opening a passage toward dusk.
Each heavy step was rewarded when the savanna spread open before them. The dry wind brushed their skin, heavy with dust—suffering, and a faint trace of hope.
The grassland stretched endlessly, waist-high blades swaying in silence. At its heart rose a stone arena, stained with old blood, where the forsaken were forced to fight until death swallowed them in vain. Screams, sobs, and curses forever haunted that place.
Ito stopped, parting the tall grass as he peered ahead.
"I can smell the fear of humans from here."
Zhen kept walking in front of him, his eyes flicking toward the sharp edge of a blade of grass. He wasn't admiring the bleak scenery, but weighing his next move.
His voice slipped out, quiet, almost like a serpent's hiss.
"I won't hunt the Disguised Monsters or the Sinful Humans."
The Eastern Hunter's brows shot up in surprise.
"Hah! Then what are you going to do?"
The Northern Hunter's gaze turned to the looming stone arena in the midst of the savanna.
"I'll hunt the Official Blood Hunters. They're my target."
Ito's lips curved into a crooked smile. He was startled, but masked it with feigned ease.
He let out a short laugh, shifting the tension aside.
"So we are in tune after all. But I think you've got the order wrong."
"Then tell me the right order."
Ito drew closer, his tone coaxing.
"First, we kill the Brutal Hunters. They have no rules. If we take out the Officials too early, the Brutals will break loose. Once they're gone, then we execute the Officials. And only after that, we wipe out the Disguised Monsters and the Sinful Humans."
Zhen stayed silent, as though carefully weighing his words.
His gaze sharpened, yet in his heart, he smiled in satisfaction.
"Fine. But I need your Broukirakh Shield. It's the only thing that can withstand a frontal strike from the Brutals."
Ito chuckled, not expecting it would be this easy to sway him.
"Of course."
Smoke unfurled from the Eastern Hunter's palm, laced with moss-green sparks. They twisted, solidifying into a colossal shield around the Northern Hunter.
He exhaled sharply across his hand, and the Broukirakh Shield took form—solid, unyielding.
As if satisfied with the performance of the magic itself, Zhen searched for an opening to chart a separate path.
"It's better to use a scatter-route strategy while sharpening your warrior's skills. We'll regroup at the center of the arena. Use your combat training—strike at the brain until it collapses. Every five meters, there are large stones. Take them as your killing tools." His black eyes moved side to side, voice sharp and commanding.
Ito hurried to comb through the grass on the opposite side, but soon realized he didn't know the way through.
He shouted after the retreating back, "Can you repeat that?"
The Northern Hunter turned, shoving Ito's back with a harsh slap.
He smacked Ito's face left and right, all while forcing him down the path he had just crossed.
"Look carefully, if your eyes work. There are stones stacked along this trail. You must take them and crush your prey's skull—shatter its brain, and be done with it. Then repeat, over and over." With a final push, Zhen hurled Ito forward and left him behind.
The Northern Hunter had switched paths deliberately—not because of Ito's cry, but because he saw this trail was not taken by the Official Blood Hunters. It was the path of the Disguised Monsters.
Do not take this path, Master. Those stones have been placed by the Disguised Monsters, used as eyes to count every hunter who sets foot in Savvan. It is better to switch paths with the Eastern Hunter.
"Is that so?" He turned his steps around, though his pride resisted.
The tall grass before Ito led to the path of the Official Blood Hunters.
Loyal companions always serve their master, no matter where they are. Sometimes, man ought to feel the sting of shame, to question himself—for reason and thought are the greatest gifts.
Yet why do you choose to lower yourselves? Even Zhen found no use in pondering.
"You there! Official Blood Hunter?" A group of them blocked his way, brandishing spears nearly three meters long.
Zhen nodded in answer.
"Which clan do you hail from?"