The ruins trembled.
Dust rained down from the cracked ceiling as a low hum rolled through the Witherpine forest, a sound like a great horn struck underwater. Seth staggered to his feet, still trembling from the aftershock of absorbing the Vestige Fang.
The system's faint glow lingered in his vision.
[Relic Consumed: Vestige Fang]
New Trait Gained – Echo Maw (Passive):
Your strikes now drain minor mana from relic-tuned creatures.
Status:
Health: 84%
Stamina: 29%
Mana: 24%
Corruption Strain: 4%
His body still ached, but the strength from the two relics coursed through him like hot iron. For the first time, he felt… dangerous.
Not invincible.
But no longer weak.
He gritted his teeth and forced himself upright, gripping the altar for support.
Outside, the humming stopped.
Silence fell again — but not the natural kind. This silence was held, like the breath of the forest itself was waiting for something.
And then, he felt it.
A pressure, heavy and suffocating, like the air was being crushed. His chest tightened. His relic-tuned blood reacted. Every instinct screamed.
The Ashbrand was close.
Seth crouched and moved deeper into the ruins, careful not to disturb the piles of stone or brittle roots. Every step echoed louder than he wanted. His body still wasn't used to this heightened state, his senses sharp enough to pick out the sound of his own heartbeat.
He passed broken columns etched with ancient runes. The glow from his body reflected faintly off them — blood-red against pale stone. He pressed his palm against the carvings as he passed.
What were you? he thought. Another Devourer? Another mistake buried by time?
[Devourer's Instinct Triggered.]
Relic residue detected nearby.
Minor fragments: inert. No immediate danger.
Even here, the world whispered to him. His path wasn't random anymore — it was guided. He felt like his blood had threads reaching out, pulling him toward… food.
But that wasn't what mattered now.
Escape did.
Outside the ruins, heavy boots sank into the damp forest floor. The air shimmered faintly with heat. A shadow passed between the broken pillars.
Seth froze.
He pressed himself against the remains of a wall and slowly tilted his head just enough to glimpse the figure outside.
The Ashbrand.
Closer now.
Its armor was a patchwork of ash-gray plates, each etched with scripture that glowed faintly like smoldering embers. Its greatsword, blackened and jagged, dragged along the ground with a faint hiss. A halo of chains hovered behind its shoulders like broken wings.
And it wasn't alone.
Two of the gray-robed Inquisitors trailed behind, hands raised in quiet prayer. Their relics — floating shards of glass and bone — circled their bodies like protective guardians. The runes they murmured carried through the air like whispers of a curse.
"Residual energy is strongest here," one of them said. "The Devourer is near."
"The Ashbrand will find him," said the other, voice flat. "It always does."
Seth's throat went dry.
Devourer.
They already know what I am.
He glanced around the ruins, eyes catching on a collapsed archway that led to a deeper chamber — half-buried, its entrance a narrow crawl space. It might be his only chance.
He dropped low, crawling into the narrow gap just as the Ashbrand entered the outer ruins.
From the shadows, Seth watched.
The Ashbrand stood still for a moment, the chains on its back clinking softly. Then it moved — slow, deliberate, head tilting like a hound catching a scent. Its helm's visor glowed faintly with two burning coals.
It raised its left hand.
A faint red light swept across the ruins — like a wave.
[Alert: Relic detection scan active. Remaining hidden is advised.]
Seth held his breath. Every muscle locked. The scan passed over him — a warmth that brushed against his skin like the touch of hot iron.
For a second, he thought it had found him.
Then, nothing.
The Ashbrand lowered its hand. It said nothing, but its head tilted toward the east — as if it sensed a false trail.
The Inquisitors followed.
Seth didn't move for a full minute.
When the sounds of their boots faded into the forest, he finally exhaled. His body shook, not from fear, but from something sharper — anger.
He pressed his forehead to the cool stone.
"They'll keep coming," he whispered. "As long as I have this power… they'll never stop."
[System Notification.]
Suggestion: Devourer evolution requires growth. Relics grant strength. Seek. Feed. Survive.
Seth pushed himself up.
The ruins were quiet again, but the forest beyond was still crawling with danger. Staying here would only get him cornered. If the Ashbrand's sweep didn't catch him next time, something else would.
He turned to the cracked altar once more.
It hummed faintly, the ghost of the Vestige Fang's memory still lingering. The image of that bone-masked woman returned to him — her voice as calm as death:
Eat the fang. Become the maw. We are not the first.
Seth clenched his fists.
"I'll survive. I don't care what I become."
He stepped out of the ruins, moving southeast, away from the Ashbrand's trail.
[Objective Added: Escape Witherpine.]
[Optional Objective: Seek relic traces – next scan radius: 400m.]
The forest ahead was dark and unwelcoming, but the system's faint glow painted invisible paths before his eyes — places where mana pooled, where relic traces lingered.
For the first time, Seth felt like the world itself was revealing its secrets.
And the first whisper of true power stirred within him.