Chapter 87

A black beast made of black fog, 10 meters high and 30 meters long, invisible to everyone in the city, opened its wolf mouth wide and howled. Although no one in the city heard its cry, negative energy and mana from everywhere began to pour into its mouth, making it grow larger and larger. Its body also began to grow due to the transformation of the surrounding mana and negative energy into cursed energy. Screaming once more, the beast absorbed everything it could and its form began to change. It became more and more powerful, and at some point, it learned to transform the souls of slaves. Previously, it looked like a simple wolf made of spiritual shadows, but the more it ate, the more it changed.

First of all, inside his two large eyes, two more small human eyes grew, then three more and more and more... As the energy flowed into his mouth, his eyes began to consist of many different eyes together, making one on each side. His spiritual body also acquired green notes of the spirit of decay and disease. Now it consisted solely of pure cursed energy and the absorbed souls of slaves, the number of which represented the number of his eyes.

Name: None

Race: Vengeful Cursed Spirit of Decay and Disease [Special+] Lvl 1

Having absorbed all the negative energy, the dark world was cleansed, but for the wolf, this was only the beginning. He split into two parts and flew to two different places as streams of spiritual power. In the first place, he entered Alice's body, and in the second, he entered Morgan's body.

Their bodies were left in places with a rich accumulation of corpses and negative energy, they were not all burned, which is what the damned spirit took advantage of. He needed a container to gain even more power. The bodies of Alice and Morgan in two different places began to simultaneously transform into moving flesh, which captured nearby corpses, starting the subsequent transformation.

Despite the holy amulets and blessings placed, they were too weak to affect the curse, the most they could do was stop the spontaneous birth of the undead, nothing more. The curse did not feel any restrictions.

The moving mass of flesh absorbed nearby corpses and assimilated them to begin creating a body. The bones within it began to form a skeleton while the flesh clung to it forming dense muscle fibers, forming a body over it, black fur grew in some areas, while others remained empty with visible rotten wounds.

Both monsters looked like huge, diseased wolves, and the only thing that distinguished them from any creature known to the world was their eyes. From each corpse, all the eyes were added to the main ones, forming a single eye put together like a puzzle from the eyes of dead beastmen.

A slave entered the crematorium for another corpse, he stopped and saw in front of him an 5-meter Wolf, with several hundred eyes that simultaneously watched his every move. The slave froze from primal fear and wanted to scream, but before he could even open his mouth, the wolf tore off his head and swallowed it, adding two new eyes to his vision.

[Congratulations, you have promoted your race, Vengeful Cursed Spirit of Decay and Rot [Special+] Lvl 1 > 2]

Having created their bodies, both wolves continued to eat corpses, increasing their physical mass, absorbing souls and mana. One of them was immediately distracted, he turned his head, feeling the danger to his mistress. Growling quietly, the Wolf released a dark fog from his mouth that began to spread in the building and to the nearby streets. The fog consisted of light curse energy, muffled the sound and infected everyone with disease, causing them to rot from the inside. Having destroyed the wall, the wolf broke into a run, continuing to pursue the victims, exhaling fog from his mouth. In a few minutes, the curse caught up with the beastmen of the gorilla tribe. Having waited for the moment, he quietly came out from behind their backs, revealing himself and growling quietly. He was 6 meters tall and 12 meters long. Small two-meter monkeys were no match for him. Having rushed at full speed, the curse missed. The gorillas scattered from him and managed to confuse him, but this only provoked the curse. He had much to learn and he rushed after them, trying not to make too much noise.

The gorillas couldn't run away from him, he was stronger and faster than them, opening his mouth he slammed it, but missed again. The Beastman accelerated to half his speed at one moment and he missed him out of surprise. Out of irritation, the Curse exhaled mist at one of them, his skin began to turn red and fester, but he continued to run, managing to close his eyes tightly and hold his breath, relaxing only when the attack ended. But the curse didn't care, this Beastman would die sooner or later anyway, he was too weak. Accelerating, the curse attacked a healthy one, and managed to touch his hand with its teeth, spreading the disease.

The curse continued to attack the beastmen and toy with them, forcing them to fight for their lives in every way. The beastmen tried to hide in buildings, or in pits, tried to entangle it among other people. But the curse did not care, it destroyed all obstacles, spreading a black fog. The curse's hunt was loud and many of the people nearby heard it, but the fog invited the sounds enough to hide it from most of the city and change the sounds to make them normal for the slums.

Over time, the curse grew tired of playing with its victims. In one swift motion, it grabbed one with its teeth and bit it in half, which required considerable effort, which only added to its pleasure assimilating such a strong body. After swallowing it, the curse quickly ate the other beastman, adding new eyes. Just then, a new notification popped up before its eyes.

[Congratulations, you have received the title [Beastman Slayer] [Common] for killing 10,000 representatives of this species.]

Licking his lips, the Wolf continued to exhale the mist, killing people nearby. Smelling the scent of his next victim, the slave master, he went to him, expecting him to receive a lot of delicious food and cursed energy.

Having chosen a path, the curse slowly began to move towards him. Listening to the eerie silence that he left behind, the fog spread from him to a great distance and killed so many people. The curse walked through the streets, it saw many rotting corpses, sometimes eating them, gaining new eyes. His body slowly grew, as did the strength and amount of cursed energy.

Catching a slight noise, the wolf turned his gaze and saw that in the distance, on the wall that separated the slums, there were many burning torches. Many people were gathering there, realizing that something was wrong, or perhaps they were alerted by the black fog in the slums. The curse exhaled more fog and turned to find the slaver. He was still too weak to challenge the city's defenses, but soon he would kill them all.

Speeding up, the Curse broke into a run, trying not to destroy the streets and buildings. After a few minutes, he stopped near a five-story building with a high stone wall. It resembled a small fortress and was designed to protect against slave revolts. Noticing several observers standing and looking at the black fog, the wolf headed towards them, among them were several people with weapons, which interested the wolf.

The curse jumped over a 5 meter wall and landed, causing a small earthquake. Growling, the Wolf exhaled the fog and watched with pleasure as several dozen people ran out into the street with weapons in their hands. They all froze in horror and only a few of them were able to pull themselves together to start running away.

The wolf gave them a few seconds and stopped enjoying the primal fear. His hunting instincts roared and he rushed at those who tried to escape. His movements caused a great gust of wind, and the sound of his jaws closing resembled a chomping explosion.

His movement brought the people to their senses and they began to run around him like ants, shouting something loudly. Slowly swallowing a pile of crushed flesh, the wolf raised his paw and with a small lunge crushed several people at once, and then swallowed three more.

At the top of the building he noticed a bright light, turning several eyes to it he saw three mages casting a fireball. Not paying attention to them the wolf rushed at the next victim, crushing it with his teeth. The nearest people began to understand that they could not survive and as the only option they rushed at him with weapons. The wolf stood to see how it would affect him, the weapon was able to cut his flesh, but for him it was not even a scratch, all the damage instantly closed. People shot arrows at him, others hit him with swords and spears, people saw that all the damage instantly closed and because of this even more fear grew in them. Having enjoyed their despair the wolf closed his jaws with a loud bang, biting several people in half.

The mages on top of the building finished casting their spells and sent three fireballs a meter in diameter at him. They crashed into his flesh, leaving severe burns, but they healed later a few seconds, leaving rotting wounds on top. The wolf sighed, baring his teeth, and decided to try something new.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Breathing out a black beam of cursed energy, he crashed into the mages, not noticing their thin barriers of mana. The mages lived only a split second before their bodies disintegrated in the air, as if from a very strong flame. The wolf was satisfied with this and rushed for the next victim.

The people ran away from him for hundreds of meters and hid in the building. Without thinking twice, the wolf started running and crashed into the building, almost destroying it. The collision caused a loud noise for hundreds of meters and the Wolf was sure that the defenders of the city would soon gather. The wolf found himself in the ruins, his body was badly damaged, but immediately began to grow together. With difficulty, the wolf stood up under the weight of the building and threw off a bunch of stones, dust and corpses. Exhaling more fog, the wolf's nose twitched and he smelled the slave trader, he managed to escape. Leaving behind bloody ruins filled with black fog, the wolf went after the victim. While everyone who lay under the rubble died in terrible agony, rotting from the inside.

The wolf walked around the building and started running, feeling that the smell had become much weaker, the target was quickly moving away from him. Switching to a full-fledged run, behind the hill the wolf saw a slave trader with guards on horses leaving the gate. They noticed his arrival, the face of the slave trader and guards was full of fear and despair. The wolf enjoyed it, opened his mouth wide and sent a black beam of curse energy. It instantly touched the horses and people, scattering them to the wind like dust, touching the gate and stone wall. Running closer, the wolf noticed that the only thing left of the group were pieces of metal badly damaged by erosion. The same thing happened with the wall and gate. The wooden gate was completely destroyed, and part of the wall was eaten away by erosion, leaving a path for the passing beam. Exhaling even more fog, the Wolf went to the ruins to eat the corpses.

***

Meanwhile, the city's guards were gathering on the high wall, preparing for defense and watching the slums. The entire area was covered in a thick black fog, and the sounds of explosions, falling buildings, and terrible screams of people could be heard. Several observers noticed one, perhaps two, huge wolf-like creatures that were wandering around the city and breathing out fog.

An emergency was declared, people were evacuated to the most protected area, all the troops of the city were mobilized, along with the priests, which confirmed the worst fears. A curse was born in the slums. This caused a mass preparation of all siege weapons, soldiers ran around the wall like crazy, while officers constantly gave orders.

On the wall, one of the city's senior officers looked out at the black fog and wondered what would happen next. He belonged to the Daran tribe and had several traits from the famous beast of the Mountain Daran. Large black ram horns grew from his head and he had hooves instead of feet. He was dressed in full enchanted steel armor, a 1.5 meter sword hung on his back, and he held a tower shield in his hand. All equipment was [Special] level, the pinnacle of what the Republic equipped senior officers with.

Name: Andrey Faxmel, 301 years old

Race: Beastman of the Daran clan [Uncommon] Lvl 200

Class: Elite Sword and Shield [Special] Lvl 321

Class: Major of the Beastman Republic Army [Rare] Lvl 277

Major Faxmel was a famous warrior in this part of the republic, 15 years ago he rose to the [Special] level, thereby raising his rank to Major. He sent a report to the capital and asked for help, and received a positive response. His troops will soon be ready to destroy the curse, with the help of priests, church warriors, magic turrets...

But he still could not find peace.

His keen instincts warned him of the rapid approach of a strong man, sensing his aura high above the city, Major Faxmel recognized it and began to wait in silence. A minute later, a Beastman of the Lishin clan landed next to him, it looked very much like a majestic white heron, with only a hint of something human. Upon landing, it carefully folded its wings into the white and gold robe of a Bishop and bowed lightly.

"Greetings Major Faxmell, the church is ready to move at any moment. We have managed to gather 1000 of our forces, rest assured the curse will not stand before our prayers."

Name: Tzirin Winter

Race: Beastman of the Lishin clan [Uncommon] Lvl 200

Class: Bishop of the Holy Church [Special] Lvl 389

Class: Holy Mage [Rare] Lvl 310

"Thank you Bishop Winter, it's good that you're with us, what have you found out about the monster's abilities?" Major Faxmell asked calmly, not taking his eyes off the city.

"Not much actually, the black fog is the effect of the curse, it has a concealing effect, makes one rot and causes various diseases, it is enough to touch the fog and it will not stop until the person is cleansed of the curse. The curse that is responsible for this probably has a physical body, but I can't say how it got it. Perhaps one of the slaves discovered the bloodline of a strong cursed ancestor."

"Thank you Bishop, there are 5 [Special] ranks in the city now, I hope we have enough strength to get rid of him."

"Don't worry Major Faxmell, this is a young curse and there are over 1000 church members here."

Major Faxmell turned his head and glared at the Bishop, as if he was talking nonsense. After all, the Major had fought the damned before and it had never been easy, and such a strong curse meant he expected the worst.

"Bishop, I mean no disrespect, but let's be honest. The slums have always been an eyesore, and to some extent we are both responsible for that through our own inaction. It doesn't matter now, the slums would be a great place for any curse to feed, but I am concerned about two things. Whether there is a Curse Master behind it, and how strong it really is."

The bishop narrowed his eyes and raised his wing, stroking the long beak. He considered for a few seconds before answering.

"I agree with you, we shouldn't sort things out. As for the master of curses, I'm not sure. But if he is, things could get much more serious. We can't estimate his power without seeing him yet, the fog is preventing that." Major Faxmell nodded silently and the Bishop continued his speech. "I must give you a temporary blessing and consecrate your weapons."

"Of course, thank you very much Bishop."

The Bishop's beak stretched slightly into a barely noticeable smile and he began to pray, folding his wings together.

"Oh Great and Merciful Holy Goddess.

In this hour of confusion we turn to you.

The curse that hangs over us,

It weighs heavily on our hearts.

Grant us strength and courage

In the fight against dark evil,

Help me overcome my fear,

What constrains our spirit.

Fill our souls with light,

Show us the way to salvation.

With your help we can

Meet your enemies face to face.

Be with us in this difficult hour,

And protect us from trouble.

May your mercy strengthen our faith,

And let the light of victory shine again. Amen."

The Bishop's body began to glow with a soft yellow light, the longer he recited the prayer, the stronger the glow became and the stronger the Holy Spiritual Power was felt. Placing his hands on Major Faxmel, a holy aura surrounded him, driving away uncertainty and fatigue. Over time, the dense holy aura completely flowed into the Major and his weapons, giving them the ability to better resist curses. As soon as the last word left the Bishop's lips, the blessing was fixed on him and the light began to slowly fade, forming a holy spiritual power that would support him in battle.

The major raised the tower shield and swung it slightly, causing a strong gust of wind. He did not feel tired for a second, his body, hardened in harsh battles, was able to calm down over a long time, and his mind and spirit were stronger than ever.

"Thank you Bishop, that will be much appreciated." Major Faxmell nodded gratefully.

"All for the sake of faith." The Bishop bowed. "I should go on to pray for a temporary blessing, but I want to remind you that it does not protect against physical attacks, just in case."

"Of course, I have encountered this. Our forces are gathering at the main gate and preparing the wall for defense, I will give the signal to attack as soon as the preparations are completed."

"Okay, but I'm not sure how wise it is to go into the fog at night, it muffles sound and blocks vision, of course blessings can block the poisonous effect of the fog, but the more of them there are, the weaker it will be. Perhaps it would be wiser to stay on the wall, next to the barrier, and pull all the troops here?"

Major Faxmell thought about the Bishop's words, but he couldn't quite understand it. Perhaps he wanted to destroy the slums completely, perhaps he wanted to give the curse time to grow, or perhaps he truly believed that this was the best choice.

"I'll think about it."

"Of course, please forgive me." The Bishop bowed again, flapped his wings and flew away, under the gaze of Major Faxmell.

"I hope this will be enough to meet the curse." He said, removing the scabbard from his shoulder, and took out a heavy longsword with a shiny double-edged blade.