Chapter 16: You're the Devil

Wolves!

Emily never expected that a simple misstep would lead her to stumble into a wolf's den. Now she found herself completely surrounded by wolves. She didn't feel scared; ever since acquiring those inexplicable abilities, Emily seemed to have lost her sense of fear. However, Benjamin, standing in front of her, appeared to tremble at the sight of the wolves.

The wolf den was a natural hollow formed by the tree canopy. There were only two small holes caused by their fall, and escaping through them was virtually impossible. The holes were too small to squeeze through without getting bitten by the wolves.

It seemed that if they wanted to break free, they had to eliminate the wolves in front of them. However, Benjamin continued to face off with the wolves, showing no intention of attacking.

"Hey! Deal with them quickly!" Emily tapped his back from behind and urged.

"Don't act rashly! Don't let them bite you!" Benjamin's voice was serious, laced with a hint of panic.

Emily only knew that vampires and werewolves were mortal enemies, but were these ordinary wolves in their animal form also a threat?

"If they bite you, the wound will fester and heal very slowly," Benjamin explained concisely, realizing there was no time to elaborate. The priority was to make her understand the gravity of the situation and devise a viable escape plan.

Emily remained unfazed. Benjamin was afraid of being bitten, but she wasn't. After all, she was human. Worst case scenario, she could just get a rabies shot, right?

"Move aside!" Emily pulled Benjamin behind her and positioned herself in front of the wolf pack. The wolves were becoming restless, but the obvious alpha wolf, presumably the pack leader, hadn't given the attack command yet. Some of the other wolves couldn't wait and anxiously pawed at the ground.

"Don't be stubborn!" Benjamin pulled Emily back behind him again. This was the primal forest, and the wolves were full of wildness. Even their appearance differed from ordinary wolves. They were larger, with teeth bared and a ferocious demeanor.

Emily surveyed her surroundings, tore a wooden stick from a tree to use as a weapon, and without wasting any time, she pushed Benjamin aside and charged towards the wolf king. Due to the limited space, she couldn't leap into the air, so she simply teleported and swung the stick at the wolf king's head.

However, instead of knocking the wolf king down, the blow only made it more ferocious, further agitating the wolf pack.

How was this possible? She had put all her strength into that attack, yet it didn't even scratch the wolf king!

Emily finally understood Benjamin's apprehension. It seemed that this pack of wolves wasn't ordinary. But there was no time for further contemplation. She heard the wolf king let out a howl and the wolves behind it charged towards Emily one after another.

Emily swiftly dodged as a wolf lunged at her, causing it to miss and crash directly into the tree behind her with such force that it almost knocked it unconscious.

Benjamin was taken aback. How could a wolf be knocked unconscious with just one impact? Emily's previous strike was undoubtedly much more powerful. There was only one possibility—the tree!

All the wolves focused their attack on Emily, seemingly forgetting Benjamin's presence. Seizing the opportunity, Benjamin rushed over, grabbed one of the wolves by its leg, and forcefully slammed it against the tree trunk. As expected, the wolf whimpered a few times before collapsing to the ground, unable to get back up.

Emily imitated Benjamin's actions. As a wolf with a snarling mouth lunged towards her, she swung her stick like a baseball bat, hitting the wolf and sending it crashing into the tree. They noticed that every time a wolf collided with the tree trunk, the tree emitted a faint glow.

The wolf king, seemingly intelligent, ordered the pack to halt their attack upon realizing that their weakness had been discovered. However, the pack continued to glare menacingly, unwilling to approach recklessly.

Emily and Benjamin exchanged a glance and quickly moved to the side of a large tree, leaning against it. But it seemed that the tree wasn't as friendly as it appeared. Even with a light touch against its bark, they felt a sharp, needle-like pain. Benjamin, in particular, was in agony, dropping to one knee as his legs went weak.

Emily swiftly led Benjamin away from the tree, casting a quick glance at it. She could sense the tree emanating an aura of anger. But why would a tree be angry?

There was no time to ponder such questions, as the wolves began their assault once again. Emily crouched down, evading their attacks, and thrust her wooden stick upward. The stick pierced through one of the wolves' bodies, impaling it like a skewer. The wolf struggled for a moment, and then its blood gushed out, drenching Emily in crimson.

The hot blood, with its pungent odor, engulfed Emily. She tightly closed her eyes, enduring the repulsive stench.

This hot blood seemed to ignite something within Emily. Suddenly, she felt a surge of excitement, and every cell in her body became alive. A voice enticed her, urging for more! She wanted even more!

A sinister smile curled upon Emily's lips, appearing eerie against the backdrop of blood. Benjamin watched from a distance, his heart filled with alarm. This state of Emily was reminiscent of the Emily in the castle yesterday—a true embodiment of a demon. She was terrifying to behold, and an unexplainable sense of fear washed over him.

At that moment, the other wolves seemed to sense the aura of bloodlust emanating from Emily. They all began to retreat, no longer daring to attack. Even the wolf king appeared visibly stunned. This level of bloodlust was something they had never witnessed in this forest.

Emily tossed away the impaled "skewer" and approached the wolf king step by step. Surprisingly, the wolf king began to step backward, seemingly inclined to lower its head. The other wolves, witnessing their leader's retreat, huddled together in a corner, cowering in fear. If Emily still had a hint of sanity left, she should have taken the opportunity to grab Benjamin and run while the pack was displaying weakness. But she didn't. The wolves had already cleared the way out, and Emily continued to press forward relentlessly.

"Emily! Snap out of it! Let's go!" Benjamin suddenly grabbed her and shouted.

Emily snapped back to reality, her sanity seemingly returning. She looked at Benjamin and then at the wolves. In the next second, she grabbed Benjamin's hand and dashed out of the cave entrance. However, just as they had run less than ten meters, large branches blocked their path, seemingly conscious as they threw them into the air. The sensation was similar to when they touched the tree earlier—it stung like needles.

In mid-air, Emily's mind seemed to clear, and she wore an evil smile. With a sudden twist of her body, she kicked the air, altering the trajectory of their parabolic motion and leaping toward the towering tree.

Benjamin fell flat on the ground and stood up, gazing up at her. He watched as Emily launched herself towards the enormous tree, delivering a powerful kick that caused the tree, which normally required four people to embrace, to shake violently.

Emily landed on the ground with a thud, her stance stable and unwavering. As she looked up, she noticed a faint glow emanating from the tree, and then a ghostly figure floated out from the trunk, ethereal and insubstantial.

Both Emily and Benjamin were stunned. It was a translucent figure, appearing like a naked thirteen or fourteen-year-old child. The figure had hair tied into countless small braids, resembling branches rather than actual hair. The child glared angrily at Emily, not uttering a word, but Emily could hear a voice in her head questioning, "Why did you hit me?"

The child's demeanor was stubborn yet adorable.

Emily chuckled and replied to the child, "You shouldn't have provoked me in the first place! You brought it upon yourself!"

Benjamin looked at Emily talking to the child, utterly shocked by her behavior.

"You little rascal, are you a tree spirit born on this tree?" Emily reached out and pinched the child's face, which felt soft and squishy, but also strangely unreal.

"You're the tree-dwelling sprite! I'm a fairy! I'm the spirit of this tree!" The sprite glared back, shaking off Emily's hand, clearly displeased with her unjustified actions.

Emily burst into laughter. "Isn't that just a little sprite?"

"Hold on!" Benjamin interrupted her. "Are you talking to her?"

Emily nodded.

Benjamin became even more astonished. "What did she say? Why can't I hear anything?"

"Youngster, why can't he hear me?" Emily turned to the sprite and asked.

The sprite glanced at Benjamin and replied, "He lacks the aptitude and cannot comprehend the language of the spirits."

"Spirit language? Are you speaking the spirit language to me? Then how am I able to understand?" Emily was also taken aback.

"You!" The sprite pointed a finger at Emily's nose, her expression quite serious. "You are a devil!"

Emily burst into laughter, reaching out and pinching the sprite's face, shaking it from side to side. "With the way you look, you dare to call me a devil? I think you look more like a ghost!"

The sprite shrieked, pushing Emily's hand away and then pointed at Benjamin. "He can't touch me!"

Emily looked at Benjamin inquisitively. "Try pinching this little sprite's face and see how it feels."

The sprite snorted and averted her eyes. Benjamin hesitated for a moment, then reached out his hand, but he waved it around the sprite for a while. To him, the sprite was transparent and he couldn't grasp it at all.

Emily looked on in astonishment. It was true, he couldn't touch her.

"Now do you believe?" the sprite pouted, appearing quite cute.

"Well, fine, I believe he can't touch you, but why am I a devil?" Emily laughed as she looked at the sprite's expression.

The sprite stared at her for a moment and then shook her head. "A devil is a devil, born as a devil!"

Emily pinched her face again and patiently explained, "I'm just a different kind of human, unlike ordinary people. Remember that? If I hear you defaming me again, be careful or I'll pinch your face until it swells!"

Upon hearing this threat, the sprite looked at her with a sense of grievance, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Oh, so adorable!" Emily directly cupped the sprite's face and started kneading it.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!" The sprite screamed, trying hard to shake off Emily's "evil claws," but it seemed completely powerless against her.

"Are there any other sprites around? Come out and play together," Emily asked with great interest, looking around.

The sprite shook her head and pointed to the surrounding trees. "They are too young and cannot take human form." Her tone sounded desolate.

Emily burst into laughter. "But you look like you're twelve or thirteen years old!"

"But my actual age is already 1694 years old!" The sprite stomped her foot in frustration.

"Emily!" Benjamin watched as Emily enjoyed herself with the sprite, while he felt like a loner. Although he didn't want to interrupt, he knew that dawn was approaching. "We need to go back."

Emily looked up and noticed that the sky was faintly turning pale. It didn't matter much to her, but Benjamin couldn't stay out much longer. She glanced at the sprite and said, somewhat reluctantly, "Kid, I have to go!"

The sprite suddenly grabbed Emily's arm and pleaded with her eyes, as if asking, "Will you come back tomorrow?"

Emily found it amusing. Just a moment ago, the sprite had attacked them fiercely, and now it was pitifully begging her. If she gave it a tail, let's see if it could wag its way to the sky.

"We'll see how it goes!" Emily said with a mischievous smile.

The sprite burst into loud cries and clung to Emily's arm, acting spoiled as it said, "Come on, come on!"

Emily patted its head, nodded helplessly, and thought to herself, claiming to be 1694 years old but acting like a little child!

Seeing that Emily agreed, the sprite immediately stopped crying and smiled with blinking eyes. For over a thousand years, it had been alone. No one could see it, and it couldn't leave this tree. Although it knew that there were other sprites like it, there was no chance to meet them. The only way to escape loneliness was to wait for the surrounding trees to grow up and transform into human forms. But the largest trees around were only a few years old, and it would take a long time. Finally encountering someone who could talk to it, it couldn't let this opportunity slip away.