22:The First Hunt[II]

The Triads of Gulch.

That was the name of the team tasked with overseeing the place.

The tree over the raised mound had seen countless centuries pass by, yet it was undying. Legends have been passed in the Demon continent that this tree contains various treasures and a power that only the chosen one might inherit.

Their boss had been interested in this and was quite hopeful to find the treasure; alas, he didn't have any luck. So, they were positioned here to oversee people who approached this place and tried their luck.

At first, the boss didn't want someone strong, so they shifted to these guys as the three of them weren't too strong. Secondly, this seemingly ordinary place turns into a hunting nightmare, especially the tree that comes to life and starts hunting for any living being around the periphery after dusk.

During their watch, they had seen many people coming to try their luck, only to fail and get killed. A few even managed to enter inside but never came out.

But yesterday, they noticed a strange human going to the cursed place and entering. They didn't have much hope, expecting his fate to be like the others, but he got out.

And the moment he stepped out of the tree behind, they started striking.

The archer, hidden behind, shoots first. It was a deadly shot and would only pierce your chest a bit to let you live, but he reacted.

Next, his two partners appeared to fight him and took the opportunity to strike while he aimed.

The man seemed to be a teenager without much fighting experience, running around wildly while closing toward him by coincidence.

Just as the skeleton surrounded the boy, Grutal was about to ram him, and the archer was about to shoot, the boy dropped something.

SWOOSH!

A thick blackish mist erupted that covered the region.

"HUH! A smoke grenade... Krghhgggh..."

His words stuck in the middle as his whole body twitched in pain, a pulsating electric sensation spreading across his body. Then a hand grabbed him and yanked him out of the lying position.

"Did you watch enough?"

A cold voice emerged from behind along with a dagger placed over his throat.

...….

COUGH! COUGH!

Grutal emerged from the smoke, coughing violently, feeling his lungs on fire. As the smoke slowly dispersed, his eyes widened, and he screamed.

"What the fuck? Where did that little shit escape?"

Angered, he looked at Krux, who was equally clueless. Then they heard a loud voice.

"Hey!"

Grutal and Krux turned their heads in the forward direction and saw the archer named Mammon stepping ahead with his hand raised. They spotted a glinting dagger placed on his neck, which shook them.

"WHAT!"

Both Grutal and Krux looked at one another as if asking how he got there.

Grutal grunted with heavy gasps and looked at Mammon and the person behind, who seemed to be saying something.

"Drop the weapon, or I will kill him," the boy behind spoke coldly.

His threat irked Grutal, who rebutted, "Do you think I care?"

The boy tilted his head. "You don't care? Really?"

"OHH!So, sad, your friend doesn't care about you?"saying this he pressed the dagger.

"NOOO!"

"Don't do that. He cares…He cares….Grutal please drop your weapon."Mammon screamed in horror swaying his hands at Grutal who gritted his teeth in anger.

Noticing this, he smiled," What happened? Scared?"

Seeing Grutal not moving, the boy sneered at him and shouted, "It seems your mama didn't feed you enough milk to boost your courage."

Grutal's eyes became bloody, and thick veins emerged from his forehead.

Pulling out his war axe, he roared in anger, "FUCK YOUUU!"

Then, with a stomp, he lunged straight at Lukas. But hardly had he taken a few steps when a piercing invisible blast tore through the air and struck him.

"AH!"

A scream echoed, followed by a bang.

BANG!

His head exploded into pieces out of nowhere while his body ran for a few steps before stumbling down.

From the remains of his face, Lukas could spot a look of surprise that was screaming injustice, asking, 'Who the fuck pulls out a gun in a weapon fight?'

"AAAAHHH!"

The scream belonged to Mammon, who bent down, holding his shoulder.

Lukas, hiding the gun behind his shoulder, shot out with an impeccable aim that grazed past through his cloth and struck down Grutal.

When it comes to shooting a gun, more than practice, one needs good eyesight. Luckily, his eyesight was very good, and a little practice was enough.

The next moment, before Mammon could react, Lukas immediately moved, sliding his dagger across his throat, causing an eruption of blood.

Then, he ran toward the mage with a scream, "You are next."

Krux, who was frozen wondering what transpired just now, snapped out of his thoughts and commanded three skeletons. That was the best he could do to defend himself while he turned around to run.

His role was just to support while Grutal and Mammon did the main job of capturing the guy, as he was a noncombatant.

Lukas, understanding the thought process of that guy, sped toward their skeletons, who raised their swords to slash. However, before the swords could strike Lukas, a dark shadow erupted from him.

[Shadow Step.]

SWOOSH!

His figure melted into the shadow, with the world around turning dark. Spotting the shadow he wanted to hunt, his body sprang up with him already holding two glinting daggers, and the moment he shot up from Krux's shadow, he stabbed him in the back.

"ARGGHHH!"

Krux roared in pain and stumbled to the ground. Trying to suppress his scream, he shouted, "Spare me. I will—"

Even before he could finish his sentence and make an offer, he was cut off wildly.

"No need!"

Even before he could finish his sentence and make an offer, he was cut off wildly.

"No need!" a cold voice flickered with a dagger hacking down the back of his neck and then tearing it open.

"Roaches like you should be killed sooner lest they breed more like themselves."

Saying this, he nudged the dagger stuck on his neck and drew it apart to tear the gash.

SWISH!

Blood spurted out and got into his eyes, causing stinging pain and making him stagger a bit, but his eyes didn't flinch.

Soon, a silence descended across the desert as the blood seeped down, dyeing the grains in blue.

Looking at it, Lukas's eyes narrowed, followed by a question ringing in his heart.

"Why?"

The desert fell into a deep silence. The only sound was the faint drip of blood, now pooling and soaking into the sand, staining it a haunting shade of blue. The air felt heavy, pressing down on everything. Lukas stood still, his body tense, his breathing steady, but his mind… his mind felt far away.

"Why?" The question whispered in his thoughts, louder than the silence around him.

"Why am I not feeling anything?" He stared down at the lifeless body, but there was no disgust. No sadness. No remorse. Not even a flicker of conflict. His heart felt hollow like something vital had been stripped away.

"Disgust, sadness, remorse...Conflict..."

His heart felt empty with no flicker of any sign of life.

Death..It wasn't something similar.

He had seen his father's corpse and again he met death sapped the life of his mother slowly and slowly until what was left was a cold pale body.

At that moment, a certain cold voice devoid of any emotions replayed in his mind.

[Remember!Every power one gains comes up with its own set of consequences.]

[You too have to pay the price.]

"Is...So, is this the price I had to pay?"