Crack. Crack.

The sharp cracking sound jolted Astra awake. Rubbing his eyes, he looked around and noticed that the mist was thicker than usual, dimming the glow of the surrounding fruits.

Crack. Crack.

Astra turned, trying to find where the sound was coming from, but the thick mist covered everything.

He squinted into the fog, and then—he froze, eyes widening in horror.

A towering, humanoid plant creature loomed before him. Its body was entwined with glowing blue vines, crystalline flowers glistening on its limbs. Its elongated, flexible arms extended outward, crowned by luminescent petals.

Though eyeless, it bore a small mouth lined with sharp teeth and pointed ears. The creature was crouched over, gripping Hylax’s lower body in its hands.

A wave of panic surged through Astra as he watched in disbelief. The creature sank its teeth into Hylax's torso, tearing through muscle and bone with a sickening crunch.

Blood spurted from the wound, and Astra could hear the nauseating sound of bones cracking and flesh ripping. Hylax’s body twitched lifelessly as the monster feasted.

H-How? Where did it come from? Why hasn’t anyone else noticed? Astra thought frantically.

Not knowing how to deal with the situation, he frantically scanned his surroundings, desperate for any sign that someone else had witnessed the unfolding horror.

His heart pounded in his chest as he noticed the silhouette of Ejio. Astra was the closest to the monster, second only to Ejio, but he didn’t wake up.

How can he still be sleeping through this? Does having four eyes affect his ears or something?

His heart pounded in his chest as he noticed another silhouette, Astra felt a glimmer of hope as his gaze locked onto the figure, and his expression grew grave. The person waking up was none other than Aria.

Why did it have to be her? Anyone else… just not her, he thought bitterly.

Though their journey hadn’t been long, he’d already formed a low opinion of Aria. His impression of her was not great. She had unique blood that could heal and buff their allies, but she was timid and prone to screaming.

They treated her like a helpless child. Her combat skills were poor, and she needed constant attention, even requiring nutritious food to use her abilities to their fullest.

Astra slowly reached for his gun, bracing himself for the worst. He knew that if this creature could silently kill Hylax—one of the strongest prisoners—without alerting two others at Hylax’s level, it could easily finish him off, too. His gaze shifted to Aria, watching her reaction closely. Cold Sweat dripped down his face, which felt strange because of the thick, cold faint blue mist surrounding them.

Aria's eyes finally landed on the horrifying scene before her. Her expression shifted to one of terror, her body trembling and breaths quick and uneven—but she didn’t scream. Astra silently commended her for that.

Her gaze fixed on the creature, Aria glanced down, searching her bag for her knife. But her bag was under Asa, who was leaning against a tree nearby, still asleep with his hammer in his grasp. Determined, Aria bit down on her thumb, drawing blood, and inched closer to Asa, attempting to slip her thumb inside the clasp of his hooked beads to wake him.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Asa’s eyes snapped open, locking onto Aria, who quickly put a finger to her lips, signaling him to stay silent. Noticing her trembling hands, Asa’s eyes flicked around and landed on the creature. Fully aware of the threat now, he opened his mouth to let Aria offer her blood.

As Asa drank Aria’s blood, his muscles tensed, and his grip on the hammer tightened. Aria stepped back, fear clear on her face as she shakily wiped the blood from her palm onto her clothes.

Asa gestured for her to head toward Biya, and she obeyed, inching her way over with caution. Asa moved forward, every step deliberate and quiet, fully aware that the creature could attack at any moment. His eyes scanned the thick fog, trying to locate any threats beyond the immediate horror in front of him.

Hunched over Hylax’s body, the creature tore through flesh and bone with chilling indifference. The sound of crunching and ripping filled the air, grotesquely loud, as if the creature either didn’t care who woke up or was simply oblivious to the others’ presence.

The noise stirred the others from their sleep. Biya, the farthest from the scene and sleeping on a tree branch, jolted awake, her heart racing as she struggled to maintain her balance at the horrific scene unfolding below. Her eyes widened, tears welling up and blurring her vision before quickly transforming into anger. Steadying herself, she hardened her expression.

"I'll avenge you, old geezer..." she muttered.

Agro, the fourth closest to the creature, awoke with wide eyes, beads of sweat forming on his brow. He froze, paralyzed by fear, unwilling to make the first move and waiting for the others to act.

Zor, on the other hand, was overwhelmed, too terrified to even move. Agro remained rooted to the spot, unable to look away from the monstrous scene unfolding before them.

Astra positioned himself on the ground, aiming his gun at the monster. Glancing around to gauge the others' actions, he spotted Aria approaching Biya, who perched on a branch. Aria reached out, biting her thumb to draw blood, then pressed her bloodied thumb to Biya’s lips, offering her strength.

Biya, without hesitation, accepted the blood, a spark of energy igniting in her gaze. She closed her two regular eyes and opened her third eye, drawing her bow and holding it steady, her aim fixed on the creature for several tense seconds. Then, she lifted the bow higher, aiming above.

What is she doing? Astra wondered, his heart pounding.

Biya took a deep breath, her hand steady as she released the arrow. It arched gracefully through the air, soaring high before curving downward in a wide loop. The faint sound caught the monster’s attention; it paused mid-feast, its gaze tracking the arrow's descent.

Just as the arrow was about to strike, the creature reached up and snatched it effortlessly, mere inches from its face. In that split second, Ejio—who Astra thought was asleep—sprang forward, sword aimed straight for the monster’s neck.

But the creature reacted instantly, raising its right hand to block, its claws gripping the blade tightly and stopping Ejio’s strike.

Then, out of nowhere, a spray of glowing blue blood erupted from the creature. Astra couldn’t see immediately what had caused it, but then he noticed an arrow piercing the monster’s mouth—the creature had narrowly avoided a headshot with its impressive reflexes.

Seizing the moment, Astra pulled the trigger just as Agro appeared behind the creature, spear in hand, shouting,

“Die, you monster!”

But just as Astra's bullet and Agro’s spear neared the creature, a thick, icy mist burst from its body.

Ejio instinctively held his breath, but the biting cold of the mist stung his eyes, forcing him to shut all four tightly. He raised his two-handed sword defensively, bracing for whatever might come next.

Through the dense fog, the monster's claw lashed out, striking Ejio with brutal force. He was thrown backward and crashed into a tree with such force that it broke apart upon impact.

However, the force didn't stop there—Ejio flew through the air and hit the ground with a loud thud, causing cracks to spread out beneath him. Groans came from his lips as he lay on the broken ground, dazed from the brutal blow.

It's not that accurate, but the monster looks like this.

image [https://files.catbox.moe/xowsmv.jpg]

𓆩✧𓆪