It was quite a sight to have three beautiful women in a tent with him in the dead of night, but Damon couldnāt really feel happy about it.
In fact, he was feeling uneasy. Yes, that was the word, uneasy.
Seras came to his tent, and once again he was caught in a compromising position with a young woman, but he didnāt let that bother him.
What did was Seras coming to his tent.
"What... what do you want," he asked with a nonchalant expression.
She shook her head.
"I was thinking of killing you, but after the war games you did impress me, and here we are. You know why Iām here, donāt you."
Damon took a moment to think about why this woman would be here in his tent.
He glanced at her up and down, then closed his eyes.
"Youāre about the same age as my mother."
Seras narrowed her eyes when he said that.
Then he smiled.
"Thatās totally fine, because I like āem old enough to birth me."
Serasās face scrunched up further in disdain and disgust when she saw his expression.
"Thatās not why Iām here. I came here because youāre the only one with a functional bath in this godforsaken place."
Damon paused. He smiled, realizing his mistake, but he couldnāt back down now.
"Ohh... ohh, sorry. You were giving mixed signals. I sort of thought you like āem young. I figured youāve been single since ancient times, so youād want to experience a younger guy. I... my bad, my bad."
He stopped himself when he felt a cold killing intent from her.
Seras crossed her arms.
"I should have killed you when I had the chance. And Iām not that old. If anything, Iām actually quite young."
"Whatever you say, aunty."
She grabbed his neck, crossing the distance in an instant.
"Say that again. I dare you," she whispered coldly.
"Cough, cough. I wasnāt trying to be rude. I just mean you were friends with my parents. If my mom was still alive, sheād probably make me call you aunty, and Iād remember you fondly as the big-breasted aunty," he squealed as she crushed him.
Her face scrunched up further, a cold smile on her face.
"Congratulations, Damon Grey. Itās like every time I spend time around you, I feel my anger grow. Fine, fine. You chose suffering."
"Ahhhhhhhhh!"
An ear-piercing scream shook the air, but it did not come from Damon. It came from outside the tent.
Damon glanced at Seras, who let him go as he dissolved into the shadows. Then he slid out of the tent after Seras.
They found the members of the expedition force all armed to the teeth with weapons, carrying glowing artifacts and illuminating the dark forest as if expecting something to appear, but Damon sensed nothing.
A few members of the unit were crouched down around someone. These people were obviously healers, their magic attempting to save this personās life.
Knights and mages with barrier magic formed a circular perimeter around them. Damon and Seras approached.
When Damon reached them, he noticed it was someone from the nine hundred Seras had brought. This man was clearly a priest. Damon had not noticed since he was wearing armor and didnāt carry any sign that showed he was with the temple, but apparently the temple had contributed people to this expedition as well.
There were thick black veins on his face. His breathing was shallow, and strange black marks were moving around his body.
Damon glanced at Seras, her expression cold.
"Heās been cursed." He crouched down, looking at where his armor had been pierced. Something had done this, but it wasnāt any monster Damon recognized.
"Did you kill the monster that attacked him," he asked, but it was obvious they didnāt. What Damon was really asking was whether they had seen it.
And sure enough, it was as bad as he thought.
"We didnāt see what did this," one of the knights said, looking into the dark forest.
Damon glanced at Seras.
"This man wasnāt one of the night watch, which means he was in the inner part of the camp. Yet something managed to sneak in past all of our senses and take out one of our people."
Seras crossed her arms, her expression cold.
"Whatever it was must be very intelligent. It didnāt kill him when it could, which means itās not gone yet. It must have the goal of slowing us down, knowing we wonāt leave one of ours behind to die."
Damon narrowed his eyes, his danger sense tingling.
That was the worst type of monster to encounter. No, a horror. That was what these types of intelligent entities in death zones were called. A monster was different from whatever this was.
Damon was about to say something when Seras raised her hand to stop him. She crouched down next to him and leaned closer, her face stiff, her eyes serious.
"Do you hear that," she whispered slowly, just loud enough for him to hear.
Damon didnāt hear anything. The forest was silent. Completely quiet. Not even the sound of night critters.
His eyes widened with realization.
The forest was quiet.
She whispered slowly.
"The forest. It knows we are here. Itās watching us. And this is just the beginning."
When she said that, all his hair instantly stood on end. In that moment, Damon felt the same eerie sensation as waking in the Duhu Mountains with all the abominable horrors there watching you.
At that moment, Damon felt a gaze. Something was looking at him from the side, in the darkness, as if urging him to look its way, telling him it was there.
No one could see in the darkness. No one but Damon.
His eyes were of shadows. His heart was bathed in shadows and illuminated by the darkness of Lazarakās divine spark. There was no darkness he could not see.
And when he looked into the darkness, it stared back.
There, in the tree line, right under the trunk of a large tree, it gazed back at him.
It was tall.
No, it was hunched.
It was close.
It was far.
It was looking at Damon.
He was looking at it.
At that moment, it was as if only the two of them existed.
Then Damon blinked.
It was gone.
Yet still there.
Seras noticed his gaze, but when the lights shone, all they saw was an old tree, like one of many in the forest.