The next morning, we set out for the MRC building, guided by Arwik's familiarity with the city.
This was the central hub of the MRC, far larger and more refined than the one I had visited in the previous city. The structure loomed over the surrounding buildings, its stone walls polished by years of activity.
Inside, the air buzzed with energy—mercenaries coming and going, deals being struck, and missions being assigned. The mission board stood at the center, overflowing with requests. There was no shortage of work to be done.
Arwik stretched, scanning the board with interest.
"Alright, let's find something that pays well and doesn't involve standing around like idiots."
The girl leaned in, scanning the parchment.
"Bandit hunts, caravan escorts, pest control"
She scoffed.
"Not much exciting."
I ran my fingers over the postings, stopping on one written in clean, expensive ink. The reward was generous. The request was simple:
Investigate the disappearance of a noble's hunting party.
The noble in question, Lord Alden Varos, had set out two weeks ago with a group of elite hunters. None had returned. His estate, located a half-day's walk outside the city, had sent word that something unnatural lurked in the woods.
A beast. Something old. Something that did not belong.
I handed the posting to Arwik. His eyes flicked over it before he whistled.
"Triple the usual pay for a search mission? That's desperate money."
"That means something went horribly wrong,"
The girl muttered.
Arwik grinned.
"Even better."
I took the posting and walked toward the front desk. The clerk, a bored-looking young man with black hair, barely glanced up.
"Monster hunt, huh?"
He muttered.
"Been wondering when someone would take that one."
"What do you know about it?"
The man exhaled sharply.
"Alden Varos was an arrogant bastard. Thought himself a great hunter. He'd take men out every year to track down beasts—sometimes real, sometimes exaggerated."
He tapped a finger against the desk.
"But this time, he was hunting something different. Something not from here."
I frowned.
"What do you mean?"
The clerk leaned forward slightly.
"The forest he went to—Hollowshade—is old. Older than the city, older than the first kings. Some say there are things in there that don't belong to this world."
He shook his head.
"But if you don't believe in ghost stories, the facts are simple—he and his men went in, and nothing came out."
I exchanged glances with the others.
Arwik smirked.
"I like it. Let's go."
The girl crossed her arms.
"If we die because you wanted to play hero, I'm haunting you."
I turned back to the clerk.
"Where do we report in?"
He handed me a sealed letter.
"Take this to Varos' estate. His steward will give you details."
I pocketed the letter.
As we stepped back into the morning sun, Arwik grinned.
"Monster hunts, missing noble, creepy forest—this is already shaping up to be a great day."
I wasn't sure I shared his enthusiasm.
The forest had waited for two weeks.
And whatever had devoured Alden Varos and his men was still in there.
I ignored my concerns as we made our way to the Varos estate.
The journey was uneventful.
Dead leaves cracked beneath our boots as we reached the iron gate of the mansion. An old man in a formal suit greeted us, his expression unreadable. When we presented the letter, he gave a weary nod and ushered us inside.
"The young lord left two weeks ago and never returned. I doubt his survival, but I must be certain. Your mission is to confirm his death. If you can bring back the body, there will be a bonus."
He handed us a map. A red line marked the path the hunting party had taken into the forest.
"I must warn you,"
He said, his voice heavy with sorrow,
"this forest is not to be taken lightly..."
The entrance was dense, the towering trees forming a labyrinth of twisting roots and gnarled branches. A faint mist clung to the air, choking our vision.
Something about this place felt wrong.
It wasn't just the silence. It was the way the trees leaned inward, as if listening. The way the ground felt too soft, like flesh instead of earth.
"Well… this place is… unusual,"
Arwik muttered, uncertainty creeping into his voice.
The girl stood closer to me.
We followed the map as best we could, though the layout felt strange—unnatural. Then, we found footprints in the mud, erratic and frantic. They led us forward, deeper into the mist, until they erupted into what could only have been an all-out battle.
The hunters had not been the hunters. They had been prey.
The earth was a swamp of crimson and brown, blood mixing with mud. Yet, no bodies could be seen.
Then, farther in the mist, I spotted something.
"Stay on your guard,"
I warned, my hand tightening around my sword.
"There's something dangling from that tree."
Arwik gripped his weapon. The girl clutched her dagger.
As we advanced, the silhouette became clearer—a body, hung from its own entrails, eyes bulging in silent agony.
Then, more appeared. Dozens. Hung from the branches like grotesque fruit.
"Goddamn…"
Arwik whispered, his face pale.
"This thing they were hunting…"
I exhaled, forcing down my unease.
"It's trying to send a message. It's far more intelligent than they thought."
None of the bodies were the noble's.
The trees thinned, giving way to an open patch of mud. And there, nailed to a massive trunk in a twisted mockery of a cross, was Alden Varos.
His blood was still fresh. He had not been dead for long.
The girl cursed.
Then, something moved.
A hand—thin, broken—gripped the bark.
And then it revealed itself.
A thing that tried to be human but failed. Its limbs bent at impossible angles, its thin, gray flesh stretched tight over deformed bones. In one misshapen hand, it held a sword.
It spoke, a voice echoing from deep within its broken body.
"Eh… hehe. I came back… I did. And this is how I'm welcomed… What's so wrong with me, huh? Don't look at me."
Then, it lunged.
Our blades clashed. Too fast. Too strong.
Arwik drew his sword, intercepting a blow that would have killed me.
His stance—his technique—I had seen it before. Crude, unpolished, but unmistakable. The style of the Knights of the Dying Sun's master, the swordsman.
The girl struck from behind, but the creature flung her aside effortlessly.
Arwik struggled. He wasn't strong enough.
And then, before I even registered it—my right arm was gone.
Severed at the shoulder, blood spraying into the mud.
"Shit!"
Arwik cursed as pain erupted from the stump that was once my arm.
The girl recovered, rushing forward. Her dagger buried itself in the creature's back.
It shrieked. Then, it grabbed her and slammed her into the ground.
Arwik's sword flashed, forcing it away.
The thing hesitated, its body twitching violently.
"Eh… what… what am I doing here? I died… but why?"
Its voice cracked, filled with confusion and rage. Then, it lunged again.
Arwik was losing.
And then—something inside me stirred.
My body shifted, twisted.
Bones sprouted from the raw stump where my arm had been. Veins wrapped around them, followed by flesh, then skin.
I didn't have time to think.
I grabbed my sword and struck.
The blade connected. I was sure of it. But something was wrong.
The creature didn't budge.
Its head snapped toward me, shaking uncontrollably.
Then its sword came down.
Splitting my skull clean in half.
Agony exploded through me. But my consciousness did not fade.
My skull mended around the steel. My body screamed as it forced itself back together, twisting in unnatural, painful motions.
I had no time to cry out.
Only one thing burned in my mind.
This thing must die.
Its sword still lodged in my head, I struck again. And again.
Chipping away at its body as its screams pierced the forest.
Arwik stared at me.
Stupor and fear in his eyes.
It didn't take long for the creature's body to give out.
Now, it lay on the ground, a twisted, mutilated heap of flesh and bone.
I gritted my teeth and ripped the sword from my skull.
Agony.
A scream tore from my throat as pain flooded my senses, my vision blurring.
Still, I forced myself to focus.
Up close, something about the creature felt… wrong. Not just its grotesque form, but something deeper. A lingering presence. I had seen plenty of unnatural things in this world, but this—this didn't feel like it belonged here.
It felt like it had come from the Red Horizon.
Arwik's voice was unsteady.
"What… what was that?"
The answer I could give him was few.
"I don't know,"
I muttered.
"It just… came like that."
He stared at me, his expression darkening with something between suspicion and unease.
I ignored him and turned to the girl.
Her body was broken—multiple fractures, bruises forming beneath her skin. None of them looked fatal, but the sight of her battered form left a strange, bitter taste in my mouth.
Had I grown attached to her?
I slung her over my shoulder.
Arwik moved toward the noble's body, still nailed to the cross. He grimaced as he pried the bloodied corpse free, draping it over his back.
The walk back was quiet.
Mostly.
Arwik spoke, but not about what had happened—not about the monster, or what it meant.
He was more interested in something else.
The power.
How he could acquire it.
Not how I had survived.
The steward's eyes darkened as he took in the sight of his master's mangled body.
For a long moment, he said nothing. Then, without a word, he turned and called for the family doctor, motioning toward the girl.
As the physician hurried off with her, we recounted what had happened.
"You're telling me… you killed that thing?"
His voice wavered, disbelieving.
"It wiped out an entire hunting party. Just the three of you…?"
"It wasn't an easy fight,"
Arwik admitted, then—without hesitation—he gestured toward me.
"If not for him, we'd all be dead."
The old man's gaze settled on me, scrutinizing. His expression shifted—wariness, something bordering on unease.
"Your badge says you're only grunt-level,"
He murmured.
"That… doesn't seem right."
A long silence stretched between us. His eyes lingered for a moment longer before he sighed.
"I'll send word to the MRC."
His voice was carefully measured, but I could tell he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.
He exhaled, tired.
"You should rest. I'll have rooms prepared—you're in no shape to travel tonight."
We didn't argue.