Christopher woke up slowly, as if his mind were emerging from a heavy slumber. His body jerked when the pain surged again in his head, as if a dagger were still lodged behind his eyes. He placed a hand on his temple and groaned, then muttered in a tired voice:
"Damn… the side effects are still strong."
He remained lying down for a moment, breathing slowly, until the dizziness slightly subsided. He sat up heavily, pulled a cloth handkerchief from his bag, and wiped the dried blood stuck to his nose and mouth. Then he slowly stood up, opened the small water jar beside him, and began washing his face.
When he looked at his reflection in a metal plate placed nearby, Christopher frowned slightly. His face looked pale, and his eyes were watery from the severe headache. He muttered, in a tone filled with a hint of sarcasm:
"I really overdid… the act."
He took off his torn shirt, which clung to his body from sweat and blood, and prepared to wear clean clothes… but his eyes suddenly stopped at his right shoulder.
He froze, his throat went dry, and he stared in silence.
There… was the mark.
Clear, dark, pulsing with a faint aura… a black crown pierced by a slanted sword, and beneath it smoky roots stretching as if they were breathing.
"…Impossible." Christopher whispered.
He slowly brought his fingers closer to the mark, as if it might vanish if touched too roughly. He touched its edges, but it wasn't just a tattoo… it was etched spiritually, as if something beyond mana had left its mark on him.
"I… didn't put it there."
His voice trembled for a moment. He was completely certain: when he used the technique on Cole, there was no direct connection between him and the mark. It was just a symbol placed on him… not the other way around.
Christopher continued examining the mark with suspicious eyes, then sighed deeply and pulled himself away from it, as if ignoring it would make it disappear. He muttered bitterly:
"What now?… The disc is conspiring against me?"
He let out a small nervous laugh, then shook his head. He had to focus, no time for doubts now.
---
After minutes, he sat on a small rock and took out the last of his remaining food: a piece of bread and some dried fruits. He looked at them for a moment, then bit into the bread without appetite.
"Last meal…" he said in a low voice, then looked at the leather bag which had become annoyingly light. "And last coin."
He had no choice. Returning to the village now was impossible, especially since the descent from the plateau would take a long time, and he had no money even if he got down.
He thought for a bit and said calmly:
"I'll just hunt my food."
---
Christopher stood at the edge of the plateau, the cold air brushing against his tired face. In front of him, the Forest of the Greats looked calm… a false calm, teeming beneath its surface with life and death.
He took a deep breath and said in a low voice:
"What fresh air."
Then he jumped nimbly onto the sloping path and entered the forest.
---
Twenty minutes passed as he walked cautiously between the tall trees and tangled roots. The forest was eerily silent, no birdsong or rustling leaves. Only his tense breathing and the sound of his footsteps on the mud.
The thick dew on the shrub leaves clung to the hem of his robe, and with every step, he looked around with wary eyes, searching for signs of animals. Time was merciless; if night fell, the situation would become dangerous.
Two hours passed, and he went deeper into the forest. The air grew denser, as if the trees themselves were holding their breath. As he crossed a narrow stream, he spotted something moving between the opposite branches.
He crouched slowly behind a tree trunk and watched.
A deer.
It was beautiful, with golden-brown fur and antlers adorned with a twisted elegant knot. It drank from the stream without worry. Christopher's heart raced, not out of awe but hunger. He slowly raised his hand, readied his sword, and began moving silently.
But he suddenly stopped.
The deer raised its head, froze, then… looked upward.
A thick branch exploded above it, and from it fell a creature that nearly blocked out the light with its size. It was a muscular mass covered in black spotted fur, with red eyes and fangs protruding even from its closed mouth. The deer let out only one cry before a massive paw struck and tore it in half.
A first-rank demonic beast.
Christopher gasped silently. The beast now stood over the prey, devouring it, its sound like rocks shattering. But… after a few seconds, it stopped, raised its head. Its nose twitched, and its red eyes slowly turned toward where Christopher was hiding.
"Damn…" he muttered as he slowly rose.
The beast roared. The ground shook, and it charged as if pushed by the wind.
Christopher leaped back, barely dodging the first paw. He hit a tree trunk and fell to the ground, but his body moved instinctively. He threw dirt into the beast's eyes and jumped to the left.
The beast growled, its eyes glowing with rage.
"This isn't a fight I can win." he thought as he retreated.
But he didn't run. He couldn't. If he turned, his back would be exposed.
Suddenly, he stopped. He turned, and stared at a broken tree trunk to his left… then looked at the beast.
"Maybe…"
He ran toward it again, this time shouting. The beast charged too.
Before it could strike him, Christopher slid on the ground at a strange angle, and used the beast's lean to drive his sword into its right leg. Blood burst, but the beast didn't stop; it struck him with its other paw.
Christopher flew through the air and hit a trunk, screaming in sharp pain, feeling his chest bones crack. He fell to the ground, breathing heavily, blood filling his mouth.
But his eyes…
His eyes had not lost their shine.
The beast approached slowly, limping slightly. Christopher crawled on the ground until his hand touched something… a large rock, half broken.
"You need a distraction."
He took a deep breath, then hurled the rock at the beast's face. The beast recoiled for a moment. In that moment, Christopher moved.
He jumped to the beast's left, ran around it toward the broken tree trunk he had noticed earlier. The trunk was slanted, with a sharp branch like a spear.
Christopher climbed the trunk quickly despite the pain, and when the beast jumped at him again…
He deliberately slipped off the trunk.
The beast didn't expect it.
Its massive weight jumped straight toward Christopher, but he had already slid to the ground beneath the trunk…
So the sharp branch pierced straight into the beast's neck.
A choking sound and a desperate scream were heard, then silence.
Christopher lay beneath the nearly dead beast, breathing heavily, soaked in blood.
"I… can't believe that worked." he whispered.
But he didn't get up right away. His eyes stared at the beast.
With excitement.
He hadn't felt this rush, this focus, this life… since he was digging in a lost king's tomb in his old world.
"Am I… longing for the feeling of danger?"
A dangerous thought, but it didn't leave him.
Christopher rose from beneath the beast's body with difficulty, breathing through his aching chest, then looked at the giant corpse before him, his eyes gleaming with life.
He patted the blood-covered body and said, smiling despite the pain:
"Hahaha… you've become my dinner, you fool."
He let out a short laugh, half mockery, half ecstasy. But…
BOOM!
The ground shook beneath his feet, and a deep explosion echoed from the west, making him freeze in place.
He slowly turned, his gaze drawn toward the source of the sound, not far, maybe hundreds of meters away. He squinted and muttered in a low voice:
"What now?"
He moved lightly, bypassing the thick trees, keeping a safe distance, until he reached the edge of a small slope overlooking the battlefield.
There… was a squad from the Sacred Temple, eleven fighters, their white armor shining despite the dirt, the temple's emblems clearly etched on their chests. Swords, spears, shouting orders… everything seemed organized.
But their opponent…
A girl.
Alone.
Of overwhelming beauty, with long black hair cascading down her back like a curtain of night, her eyes covered with a band of snow-white cloth, as if blind… and her face? Like a doll, emotionless, calm as if unconcerned with everyone around her.
She wore a dark fabric, its edges adorned with threads and metal buckles. A long, tattered black cloak, and a hat.
"Beautiful…" Christopher muttered unconsciously, rubbing his beardless chin.
He frowned slightly, then glanced at her alluring chest for a moment… before suddenly shaking his head strongly:
"Focus."
He whispered mockingly to himself, then stepped back slightly and watched intently.
The battle was about to shift.
A scream.
A charge.
Then…
"First Sky Burn!" the girl shouted, in a low but powerful voice.
The air shook, and the mana on her sword ignited like a dragon's roar.
Her sword changed. Its color became deep red, and fiery sparks began to fly from it, like a small meteor resting in her hands.
With one strike… WHOOSH!
One of the temple men was completely burned. He screamed, but didn't even finish before falling as a charred corpse. Another scream, and chaos in the ranks.
The girl continued her advance like the shadow of death. Another strike, and she sliced a man in half, flames devouring his body as he fell.
The squad leader stood at the back, his face covered in dust and sweat, and shouted:
"Watch out! She's a first-rank hunter! Her element… is fire! She's exhausted, but still dangerous! We've been chasing her for days—keep draining her and she'll fall, she's nothing but a wounded beast!"
As soon as he shouted, it was as if a spark ignited in the hearts of his soldiers. Their morale suddenly surged, and they began shouting together with excitement, striking their armor with spears like a victory parade.
"Haha! You're tired at last, blind girl!"
"We'll guide you to the light—by force!"
"We'll purify you quickly and painlessly, just surrender!"
As for Christopher… he remained silent behind the tree trunk, his eyes unblinking, his mouth half-open in astonishment.
"A hunter?" he muttered, his mind frozen for a moment.
He quickly scanned the forest edges around him, as if the temple had planted eyes in every corner. A hunter… in an area under the temple's control? That alone was unbelievable.
Then… his mind suddenly recalled the words of Saintess Elene…
Christopher looked at the battlefield again, where sparks flew with every strike.
"So… this is her?"
He touched his beardless chin, his eyes glowing with interest.
"Looks like things are more exciting than I thought…" he muttered softly, before a small smile appeared on the corner of his lips.
He knew very well that the temple never pursued anyone with such ferocity unless there was something behind it… something important. She couldn't be just a hunter.
"I wouldn't believe it even if they swore before me… no one is hunted this seriously just for being a 'hunter.'"
Thoughts began racing in his mind.
"Does she carry a secret?… A treasure?"
He swallowed hard, took a cautious step back while placing his hand behind his back, then continued observing the battle with intense interest.