Chapter 72
Late afternoon approaching evening. In the middle of Street No. 11 Suncrise, two people stood atop the bell and clock tower, not merely relaxing, but having another purpose there.
Coincidentally, the building remained intact and completely untouched. In contrast to the row of houses several dozen meters to the east.
Although the demonic horse attack was uneven, strangely, no one passed by, and only the suffocating air made the center of the main road feel gloomy and terrifying.
At the roundabout, which consisted of a park, a fountain, and even merchant stalls, there were four branching roads serving as alternative routes from other streets, and there were still some intact items there; such as household tools, decorations, and boxes filled with fruits, vegetables, and meat.
Seeing that sight, they had confirmed that the residents living around here had evacuated to the west of the Tezny district, specifically at the corner of Senggong Street.
"Hey, Aaron," said Zavi, leaning against the wall barrier. "Are you sure you want to stay here waiting for nightfall?" he asked to confirm after recalling the previous instructions.
Aaron inhaled and exhaled deeply before speaking in a calculating tone. "Do you doubt my plan?"
"Maybe, yes." Zavi turned and observed the surroundings from atop the bell and clock tower.
Although they had clashed with Felina for several minutes, straining their newly formed teamwork. However, with the idea proposed by Aaron, the conflict subsided, and the two of them were now beneath the bell and clock tower, sitting and waiting so as not to worsen the situation.
Below the bell and clock tower, beside it was a security post where Felina and Zuhen stayed, sitting on a cracked long bench.
"Sir?" Felina said hesitantly, "are you sure you want to help that man achieve his goal?"
Her face showed prolonged anxiety as she did not know what was in his mind.
Meanwhile, there were countless problems swirling in his head since he first regained consciousness and since he was first attacked by Aaron that day.
The supernatural ability of an Exorcist, whether first or second level, was extremely troublesome for someone who became a "Magnet" of Tell, a supernatural entity commonly referred to as a ghost.
Even now, Tell's form had been distorted and was forced to take the human form of a young girl around 13 or even 14 years old to restore its energy.
Zuhen felt slightly uneasy as he realized two things; the fear of being seen as a strange man by the two of them, Tell walking around the roundabout searching for something, and even though he knew Felina did not think anything strange about him, it was enough to burden his mind.
All this time, those questions were like fog hanging in the air, waiting to be swept away by the wind.
'Enduring that immeasurable loneliness makes my brain feel like it's burning. Yes, that damn Exorcist is connected to the war 500 years ago, and I never expected to be affected by this for the second time. Damn you, Heinn Warlock.'
He recalled the moment when he stood at the gap between life and death while fighting the man with black marks beneath him. Although he knew that man was at the second level, Extraction, it was enough to leave him battered, and the way that man used his ability was difficult for Tell's attacks to catch.
That incident happened 6 years ago, after his attempt to save Felina Ronatte along with several others from that cruel ritual.
"Sir?" Felina whispered with concern. "Why are you spacing out with such a gloomy expression?"
Once again, there was no answer.
That triggered a deep sadness that weighed on Felina's mind, her chest felt tight, her heart as if sliced by thousands of blades, enough to make her feel sick and think about ending this suffering forever.
She immediately stood up and walked toward the bell and clock tower with heavy breaths and heavy steps.
'Leaving him alone is the best option for now,' she thought, trying to calm herself and her mind.
As she climbed the winding concrete stairs for several minutes, she finally arrived and was greeted by the two of them staring at her with strange looks, enough to irritate her.
"Typical men," she muttered irritably, "why are you staring at me like that?" she asked in confusion.
Aaron let out a short sigh. "So confident."
Zavi turned, observing the surroundings from the tower and chose not to respond to her sharp attitude that irritated him, even though he knew she disliked him because of the previous incident.
'I don't know what happened between the two of them, but thinking back, Sylvia, the woman who was the root cause of me ending up in prison—if I hadn't been with her, who knows what would have happened. But remembering how much she cared about me, I'm reminded of her again, even though she has a similar personality.' His gaze shifted toward Felina.
Realizing he was looking at her, and not knowing what was on his mind, she grew slightly annoyed and said in a restrained tone, "See? You really are staring at me. You stalker."
"It seems she really hates you, huh?" Aaron murmured calmly while glancing at both of them.
Zavi sighed.
"That's just your imagination," he said with his mouth slightly open. "And it seems night will fall soon."
Realizing that time had passed quickly and without noticing any strange signs around the tower or the streets at the roundabout for several minutes.
They finally descended the bell and clock tower, approaching Zuhen who had been alone for quite a while.
And as they turned left from the tower entrance, they realized that Zuhen was still sitting, leaning against the wall, asleep with his head resting.
Aaron understood what Zuhen was experiencing when he first saw him, and of course, they didn't know until Aaron explained it to strengthen his connection with them.
"That's a natural reaction when he was swept by the shadows that prevented him from seeing the real world. He might be a bit shocked, but the input he received at that time was overwhelming, so it's only natural."
Seeing them remain silent to process his words, Aaron quickly added in simpler terms.
"In short, his memories are overlapping. The present becomes the past, and the past becomes the present."
Both of them nodded, understanding what he had just said.
Felina let out a short sigh as she glanced to the side. "So, can you return him to normal?" her blue eyes locked onto Aaron.
"... 15 minutes, he will recover on his own," Aaron replied calmly, not wanting to trouble himself by helping.
"Tch, troublesome." Felina continued walking back and sat beside Zuhen to keep watch.
Zavi, who stood on the right side of the tower entrance, simply watched her from afar before shifting his gaze to his left.
"So, are we going to start now?" he asked with a faint smile.
"Wait," Aaron replied hesitantly. "There's something strange moving quickly toward here." he murmured while glancing around.
"What?" Zavi was startled upon hearing that.
'Something moving toward here? What is that, could it be the creature following Mr. Zuhen?' he thought uncertainly, but clearly it was a fact since he had seen it leave earlier.
The longer they waited, the stronger the sense of alertness rooted itself in Aaron's shoulders.
Then, that thing got closer.
"What is that?" he muttered in confusion, staring at something strange ahead.
"That is?"
'That winged creature I saw before.' Zavi froze as he recalled the incident that happened to Forn.
Not long after the appearance of that winged creature, whose body was slightly larger than the one belonging to Forn and whose wings spread wide, nearly covering the area below it, hovered not far from the bell and clock tower where they stood.
The two of them stood in silence as they realized the destructive presence before them.
Aaron had already suspected something strange when that unsettling feeling appeared in his mind. But he didn't expect that creature—the winged monster that often possessed a host body to manifest in this world—to appear in such a different form.
'Was there assistance from another creature or person that triggered its transformation without its host?' Aaron thought, worried that an unavoidable battle would occur here.
A whistling sound followed.
Dozens of foxes with grayish-white forms appeared, their purple eyes sharply staring at the prey flying not far ahead.
'He... has already done it? If so, this might be very helpful.'
As Aaron finished his thoughts, shadows flowed from his hands and formed a pool of shadows beneath his feet, producing a boiling water-like sound.
On the other side, Felina knew the winged creature had appeared not far from where she was. Even so, she remained calm, as she disliked relying on others and focused only on herself and those close to her.
'Damn it, this time please help.' she thought with a restless expression.
Meanwhile, in front of the tower entrance, the two of them stood in silence while thinking of their respective plans to defeat that creature.
"Hey, Aaron," said Zavi without turning. "Can you find the person who summoned that creature?"
Aaron paused for a moment after hearing that request, then chuckled softly as he replied with a faint grin, "Take care of yourself, and don't die so easily."
Zavi sighed softly. "That's what I should be saying to you."
Although they had only known each other for a few days, and as the well-known saying goes; a man can easily become friends, even with an enemy, an animal, or any other living being, as long as it doesn't bite, then it can be called a friend.
That was the well-known saying Zavi remembered from when he was still on Earth.
Then, Aaron's body split apart and vanished in an instant as if swallowed by the earth.
Realizing that, Zavi focused on remaining still, even though it was extremely difficult. But he would do it, as this was the perfect time to test his new fighting method to utilize the full potential of the Prisoner ability.
'Just as I thought, that creature hasn't moved at all, and I don't know when it will attack. But before that...'
"Move!"
Hearing that command, the foxes let out a short growl before moving swiftly toward the creature.
The pack of foxes clawed at the building walls to make it easier to attack. One fox climbed onto a rooftop first, then leaped from one roof to another with rapid movement, and just a few meters before reaching the creature, it prepared to strike.
But... the winged creature attacked the fox in an instant, without moving, reacting with a threat that could kill it.
It finally moved, slamming the house with its rough hand.
Thud!!
The house the fox had stepped on was flattened to the ground. Another fox that remained, standing two houses away from the previous one, halted its movement due to Zavi's command, its gaze fixed on the creature while growling.
'It seems that creature is different from the one Mr. Albert fought before.' Zavi thought as he prepared himself.
He didn't know what abilities were unlocked at his first level. But realizing that what he currently knew was already quite troublesome for enemies and could be manipulated, he didn't care much about seeking two or three abilities at the same level.
Move. The fox changed its original target, turning to attack another part of the winged creature, the wrist.
As Zavi knew, the creature was weak against powerful attacks that destroyed its arms. Although Albert had used ordinary water mixed with potions and talismans, and combined with a talisman bearing a star and crescent symbol, he was able to defeat that creature easily.
But Zavi wasn't entirely sure whether his modified attack would work.
'Huh, no harm in trying before that creature becomes feral.'
Meanwhile, the fox managed to dodge every attack launched by the winged creature "Resse." And as Resse's focus shifted to the fox that had crawled onto its wings and attacked its body with claws and bites.
Zavi began to move his body. The fox disappeared instantly. Realizing that, Zavi put his right hand into his pocket and took out two talismans given by Aaron.
Electrical talisman and movement restriction.
As he attempted to aim the two talismans, which were dozens of meters away from his position, he was slightly careless.
In an instant, the creature flapped its wings, and seconds later, it arrived and hovered directly above the bell and clock tower.
'Not enough time, this... this is different from what I've faced before.' he thought in panic, standing still as his eyes locked onto Resse hovering above him.
On the other side, Felina was shocked, her mouth slightly open, her chest tightening as she saw Resse appear and hover right above her.