The breeze isn't slow, yet it's oddly warm...

I took a step forward, the sound of crunching dirt breaking the silence in the air.

There's not a single person in sight...

This place feels... tightly knit; everyone likely relies on everyone else, but even the Demon's outpost had more of a community feel than this does right now.

I looked back; Rena wasn't far behind; she still lingered in the trees, taking in all the details.

Glancing again at the barren town, I narrowed my eyes.

Actually...

"Stay here. I'm going to see if I can get a map or just some information..."

"Mm"

Her response was quick, seemingly on instinct, while she still looked around as if not hearing a word; however, she still stopped, so it was fine.

I looked back.

There are still pillars of smoke, yet not a soul in sight...

I closed my eyes for a moment and reoriented myself to face the centre cluster, where two buildings stood out to me from the rest.

They're covered in glass... and it's easy to look inside--unlike with the segmented, framed windows of the others.

My breaths were slightly shallow as I walked, the warm air like a thin blanket covering my face; it wasn't suffocating, but it achieved a similar suppressive sensitvity.

It feels... off.

Is this doctrine really weakening me somehow?

I've been using it as an excuse, but maybe something really is degrading this body over time...

The light is fading now too, but I can still see it if I squint my eyes... It could be the blessing wearing off as well, I guess.

Huh...

While my eyes were still squinting, I noticed that there was no light coming from any of the buildings or from any of the clusters I could see, despite the smoke.

There were no steps trailing the paths--no flattened grass either.

Where are all the people? The... Humans.

I moved up to the glass of one of those buildings and peered carefully inside.

There are foods grouped into different piles and placed into rather aesthetically pleasing carved containers.

Everything is just lying out in the open...

Should I just break into these places and take what I need? It's not going to be much anyway.

That sense of discomfort hit me again.

There's something ticking in my mind, ticking in just the right way, like rocking the water in a bath until it overflows.

It was the same with that mist earlier, but if they have a decent map of those caves, it'd be invaluable.

Even just a map of larger towns nearby that Rena could travel to...

I can just use my mana sense to know the vague direction of the outpost as well, but those caves aren't so conveniently linear, and I'm sure there are some daring people who'd be interested in spelunking.

Abruptly, I stopped mid-stride and peered at the window, but not through it this time.

It wasn't clean glass, but I could make out the vague shape of buildings in the distance behind me.

Then, the image warped slightly.

In that moment, a gaze swept up my body like a thousand ants crawling up my skin, and I barely retained my focus.

Suddenly, within the reflection, I spotted a large figure barrelling across the ground, their form slightly blurred by the dirt kicked up in their wake.

I tensed, resisting the urge to turn around and lose the small advantage I'd gained by noticing.

In a flash, they were right at my back.

A thick fist flew out, but mine shot out in an arc only a moment before.

An immense amount of tension filled my arm, and the back of my knuckles slammed against the side of this guy's surprised face with a satisfying crunch.

Despite minimally using,

[Monumental Shift]

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Not an ounce of pain lay in his golden eyes as he flew away.

I thought the momentum had reversed, but I wasn't even given a moment to think.

A long blade streaked through the air from my side, vastly faster than the previous attacker, and pointed directly into the armour gaps around my arms.

I barely rotated my wrist in time.

The blades edge slid upward; deflected; yet the woman, who appeared as nothing but a mirage to my unused eye, seemingly raised her knee in kind, slamming it against my arm.

I wanted to reach for my sword, even attempting to still do so; however, she pivoted in her foot and slammed her leg into my chest.

Flying back, I hit the building at a sharp angle and dug my arm into the wall, tearing out brittle chunks of wood to slow my momentum.

It didn't look that strong... and she's fast—that must have been a skill.

Like when those Rottas attacked, my senses returned to me the moment they struck.

Thankfully, I have that experience; otherwise, I would have been caught much more off guard than I had been then.

They didn't strike again immediately.

I looked through the splintered wood drifting through the air and saw Rena in the distance, poorly hiding behind a tree.

At least she hasn't ran out.

[You are in [Weakening Field] : -15% to Strength stat.]

[You are in: [Fatiguing Field] : -15% recovery speed.]

[[Dulled Sense] has been resisted.]

Well, shit.

"Adrian!"

Huh?

I looked up to see that Angel not too far away, her sky-blue hair flowing in the light wind; it was far more soft than the expression plastering her face, yet her eyes betrayed her lack of a desire to kill.

She knows this body?

I looked around my surroundings, ignoring her for second and ignoring the stare I could feel from behind.

Add the brute to the side who's already recovered, and that's three people...

"Why are you here?"

I don't want to draw the sword immediately, but I can only speak as if I know them while avoiding their names.

What a pain in the ass.

"Don't give me that shit. What the hell is going on!?"

It suddenly struck me just how tired she looked, but there's unmistakable grief behind her anger.

"You, you... she... Rita."

Her grip was so tight on her blade that it was shaking.

Friends? Did they come here of their own accord? How do I even respond naturally?

My mind was racing, and there wasn't anything I could use to my advantage around here.

Hmm...

"This has nothing to do with you. There are things bigger than you can handle."

I straightened my posture slightly as I spoke, trying to exude a kind of aura, like I'd been guided by some greater purpose.

If I'm not distant like this... If I try to act friendly, they'll see through the façade instantly.

She shook her head, a sour expression warping her face.

"It... It doesn't matter! WE are a team, and I would happily die with you. Did you never trust any of us?! -at all..."

She bit her lip, drawing blood, and her face scrunched in conflict—this obviously wasn't how she was expecting this to go.

The more she spoke, the more I felt a weight being pushed on my heart.

Dammit, why did they all have to be so close?

Suddenly, another voice came from the side.

"Cut the crap, Laurie. We saw it. There's no mistaking it, with how ruthlessly she was cut down."

Laurie...

Laurie looked away. His blunt attitude was too painful for her.

He was tall and muscular, with thick sideburns, and his reddish-brown hair was like a smouldering flame, whose embers of rage flickered within his eyes.

He's bigger than me, but from that attack earlier, he's no stronger—even with the weakening, but that doesn't account for any skills, and he could have been holding back...

That might be unlikely if he knows Adrian well.

"Did you do it?"

He was seeking confirmation, so I readied myself.

Here goes...

"Yes."

Before I even finished speaking, a bestial roar resounded into the open air.

Through his hate-filled gaze, I caught a glimpse of his wings flapping into a burst of speed, and he rushed forward.

His fist flew towards my abdomen, and the thick blade at my side smoothly unsheathed, ready to shield his blow.

The instant they collided, a vibrating shockwave pushed through my body. My muscles froze for a second, giving me only a mere flash of time to push my blade into the ground and let the force carry through me and fling my feet into the air.

It must be some kind of skill.

Using my grip on the hilt as a pivot, I yanked the blade into the air and flipped around.

He didn't react adequately to my strange, unexpected movement, and before he could turn around, I slammed my palm into the side of his ribcage from above.

It was the bloodletting style—a rupturing blow.

Just as before, the pain didn't faze him; instead, a leg came lurching towards me.

I could only lean away, barely in time.

Reaching out, I attempted to grasp his leg in the air; however, the earth suddenly shook, and my balance faltered.

My feet rose off the ground, and I curled inward to stay upright.

From the corner of my vision, a snaking fist of stone suddenly wrapped around my body and gripped tightly against my torso.

I tensed, ready to tear it away with brute strength, but two tentacles of light grasped my arms.

[Monumental shift]

My eyes gleamed with a sudden strength as I actively poured more mana in this time.

My leg tore through the hardened earth's grasp like it were wet paper, but before I could pull myself free, a burly arm looked around my throat, and with an immense burst of strength, he pulled me to my knees.

Shit, the same skill? My bones would have snapped if I'd tried to stay upright.

"Even with Arsch's ward, you're this strong... but it's still weaker than me now."

His voice was cold, and his grip- tight around my neck.

My mind had already caught up, and an attack came to mind, but Laurie's voice rang out again.

"Calm down, Kesef. We came to bring him back and find out what happened..."

Glancing over, I saw the tentacles of light protruding from her back and frowned.

I don't know enough about these various styles--alignment, I guess.

At least they're not rushing to kill me all at once.

Hmm, he mentioned a ward.

The other boy, who vaguely trailed the line between teen and adult, had walked into my view, a strange look colouring his face.

In fact, this was shared by the two I could see.

Was it the way I fought?

It seems to have confused them, but I doubt it's enough to tip them off to anything.

Sure enough, the looks vanished as they threw their confusion to the side in favour of getting back to the main topic.

Laurie took a few breaths to herself, exchanging glances with the others of the group before looking back at me.

"W...why? I just don't understand. This doesn't make any sense. None. At all. I- we need to know. The consequences don't matter."

The grip around my neck loosened slightly—it seemed to be agreed that she was speaking for all of them and that they all felt the same way.

Feeling the complex emotions in their eyes, I don't really want to kill these guys... but if I can't catch them off guard more than once, I'm not even sure I can.

I'm lucky they haven't really been trying up to this point...

Clenching my teeth, I looked away, a sudden frustration boiling up from within.

I don't like not being in control, not at all.

I looked around at them.

They seemed to take my expression as a sign that I was struggling with being honest.

I have to come up with a plan here.