"Sir! The wolves are breaking Jacob's squad formation!" A man roared, his face drenched in blood and sweat.

Upon hearing his words, a black figure flashed by, followed by multiple explosions that rocked the earth.

From the dust, Ajax's silhouette came to light, his steel armour painted crimson as he swung his blade to the side, ridding it of grime and guts.

However, he did not remain idle for a second longer as shadow tendrils burst from his back, impaling dozens of imgrave wolves within seconds and launching them at the approaching hybrids.

Screams, roars, and war cries echoed in the clearing as both men and beasts fought with teeth and swords.

Dozens of wolves have been felled by Ajax's blades, piling up and forming small mountains as their blood watered the ground.

However, their side was not faring well either. The wolves have been constantly assaulting them. The abominations hid in the crevices of the misty forest, using the darkness to their advantage as they launched attacks wave by wave.

Many squad formations have already been broken, leaving casualties left and right. Some were sliced by the razor-sharp claws of the wolves; others were dragged to the depths.

Ajax had to compensate as he ran back and forth, dealing with the unpredictable attack patterns of the abominations.

However, even he finds it difficult, as the wolves used their numbers to confuse him.

But he must try nonetheless.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" A burly man roared as he slammed his shield down, sending a shockwave that threw multiple wolves back.

Seizing the opportunity, Ajax blitzed forward, delivering a series of slashes and cutting the beasts into multiple pieces.

On the other side of the field, Merlin, Ajax's shadow, cast multiple attack spells, causing havoc and destruction in its wake.

The shadow remained calm as it stayed in the middle of the group, safe from danger. Meanwhile, Igram remained in the front, fending off the approaching wolves with his black great sword.

As noon came about, the war of attrition finally came to an end as the wolves slowly retreated.

Ajax stood in the midst of the carnage, his whole body drenched in blood.

The surviving warriors could not help but slump down as their bodies were filled with wounds.

There was no celebration, for their losses were too many. Ajax also knew that the wolves were doing it on purpose.

They would ambush their squad, slowing them down significantly, purposely avoiding him, and attacking the other members.

They would utilise their numbers to keep him busy as they burned through them like fire.

Once they've caused significant damage, they will leave and attack later should Ajax's squad continue their advance.

Unfortunately, it does not end well.

Wounded and tired, the men cannot take another ambush. The last time Ajax tried to go deeper, his squad was nearly wiped out.

By now, he was certain the mole knew his every move. But as for how? He does not know.

Another problem was Samael's disappearance.

Ajax denies Samael's death like it was the plague. He was insistent that the boy was alive because something like that would never take him down.

The lack of details also made Ajax suspicious.

But with Samael's disappearance, their source of information was halted. Sure, they got occasional reports from the other scouts Samael trained, but even they were starting to drop in numbers.

Ajax was sure of it. Someone was killing their scouts. That is why he was so reluctant and against the higher-ups plan to launch an all-out siege on ground zero. It was simply suicidal.

But they did not listen.

Ajax has seen significant movements within Stellaris. They were preparing a vast army and weaponry enough to take down a sanctuary.

But Ajax knows their plan will fail. The enemy was luring them into a trap, and they are walking straight at it.

But he could not do anything. His job was to maintain the assault forces advance; if he were to leave, they would all die.

He was the only thing keeping the warriors alive.

"Just where are you, Samael?" Ajax muttered.

***

Under the scorching heat of the sun, a figure traversed the dry barren lands.

Samael kept moving, whether it was day or night. enduring the heat and the cold.

From his stay here, Samael has deduced that the time here was the same as back in his original world.

12 hours in the morning and 12 hours at night. There were also monsters scattered at random. However, their numbers were few, but they made up for that through their ranks.

It seems the beasts here were of higher caliber. This made it all the more dangerous for Samael.

But he did not buckle. He kept his pace, enduring all the harsh torture this world threw at him.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Samael could feel it; his body was starting to adapt. Perhaps one day he could walk these plains without a problem.

Samael speared a glance ahead, and his brows furrowed. In front of him was what seemed to be a wall to a city.

But it was severely withered and destroyed. Cracks marred its surface, and its ballistas have long fallen and perished. It was desolate, devoid of any survivors, just like everywhere else.

Samael slowly made his way through its ruined gates, carefully observing the designs of the walls. Doing so, he couldn't help but wonder.

Is this what will become of Ergo if we fall under the fangs of the abominations? He wondered.

As he passed by the fallen city's gates, he found himself in a desolate town. The houses were neatly arranged along a stone pathway.

While it was destroyed and ravaged, Samael could still recognize the intricate designs of these ruins.

What happened here? He wondered.

Where are the people? Samael thought when he stepped on something.

Looking down, he saw white powder stain his shoes.

Bones, He thought as he smelled its scent.

Samael's mood fell grim as he connected the dots.

Without wasting more time, he proceeded forward, passing by multiple ruined buildings without casting another glance.

However, his attention was soon lured to the corpse sitting beside the road, leaning at one of the broken houses.

The skeleton wore a lavish grey garb decorated with blue gems. In its hand were a notebook and a sword shattered in two.

Samael approached the corpse, crouching down as he took the old notebook off its hands.

He delicately opened it, reading the letters and symbols in its pages, but to no avail. He could not understand a single thing as the language was different.

Samael was about to drop the notebook when the codex warped before him.

Analyzation complete. The language written in the notebook is called "Ichilon."

"Can you read it?" Samael asked, his voice low and raspy.

Understood.

Passage 143 of the year XX

The abominations have bypassed the gates. It is only a matter of time until they make it to the town square. I must flee! But where? There is no escape. They will always find you. There is nowhere to hide! Why has it come to this?! What did we do to deserve this?! A thousand years of culture are gone! Families and friends were killed under the fangs of these monsters! If anyone is reading this, please! Avenge us! I—

Message end.

Samael fell silent for a long while, his eyes staring blankly at the shattered collarbone and ribs of the corpse before him.

Judging by its wounds, it seemed to have been slashed downwards, as the cut was too clean to be caused by blunt force.

Samael tucked away the notebook as he paid his final respects. Afterwards, he continued on his path.

However, he was soon halted by abominations blocking the exit.

Samael carefully hid his presence as he checked his reserves. He was still rather low, as he was rationing it to regenerate his wounds.

The internal damage was yet to be healed, and his arm was of no use either. His axe was still damaged, but it seems he can use at least one ability.

I'll have to take them down without causing too much fuss, Samael thought as he slowly inched closer.

A few feet from the two beasts, Samael finally saw their grotesque appearances.

One of the creatures appeared to be humanoid. It was a woman with an extremely long neck and no facial features except for a mouth.

The other beast was a four-legged abomination that looked like a bull except its horns were extremely warped and its teeth were overlapping.

The two were engaged in combat, and it seems they have sustained some damage.

That will make things easier, Samael thought as he brandished Crimson Raven.

He had one chance. If he fails, he will die.

Not yet, Samael thought as he watched the two beasts approach each other with malevolent intent.

A few metres from each other, the two jumped at the same time, charging head-on with utter ferocity.

However, the long-neck abomination swiftly weaved to the side, dodging the charge attack of the bull.

Seizing the chance, it used its neck to tangle over the other beast, binding it down as it bit it multiple times, tearing its skin and flesh.

NOW! Samael thought as he dashed forward, gritting his teeth as he endured the sharp aches and extreme heat.

Samael landed in front of the two, positioning himself in the middle as he swung and casted.

"Void Cleave."

An onyx-black wave burst forward, taking the two by surprise.

The bull tried to dodge to the side, the same as the woman, but her neck forbade her from doing so.

The two could only watch as the Void wave cut through them, separating them into two pieces as their corpses fell limp.

Devoured Void Essence of "Screecher" [Metamorphosis II] +560

Devoured Void Essence of "Lithurna Bull" [Metamorphosis I] +530

Samael breathed a sigh of relief as he approached the two.

However, he refrained from butchering the screecher, as it looked too human for him. Once he finished his business, he proceeded to leave the city.

But he could not help but notice the increasing destruction of the land.

As Samael went on, the more he saw the changes in the terrain. There were now far more holes and craters scattered at random, and everything was more desolate.

Not only that, but it seems that the appearances of the abominations were also increasing as he delved deeper.

If his hunch was right, then things were not looking too good for him.

These creatures were of the same rank as him. To deal with hordes of them would be too much.

Another thing he noticed was that the call was becoming stronger. It was really familiar, which confused Samael even more.

It was as though he had felt such a thing before. When he asked the Codex, it did not give an answer as he lacked authority.

Soon, the scorching heat of the sun was no more as the freezing cold winds of the night nearly swept Samael off his feet.

He has been walking for hours without stopping, so he decided to halt and rest beside a ruined house and use the time to read the journal.

Samael found out the events that took place in this place.

It seems this world was named Yura. There were three major continents, and life was thriving... until the monsters attacked from the north.

It took the people of Yura by surprise. Within the span of a few months, the first major continent fell.

Millions died, and millions more fled to other continents, seeking help.

Upon receiving the news of these attacks, the other two prepared for the worst. They built a giant wall they named Tistana. They were confident that this wall would protect them.

But they were wrong.

Just weeks after the wall was founded, a giant winged abomination tore it apart.

This winged creature devoured hundreds and left everything in its path destroyed.

Thus, it marked the end of the second continent.

The last one was prepared to stand its ground. They fought valiantly, defeating hordes of these beasts, but there was no end to them.

They came one after the other, slowly overwhelming their forces, and soon they too fell.

The last testimonies said that this beast settled at the tower of Leo. A place where the strongest warriors gathered to launch one final attack.

There was no further news after that.

With a sigh, Samael closed off the notebook as he speared a glance at the tower of Leo on the horizon.

So this winged beast settled at that place? He thought.

It seems things are getting worse as the days go on.

"But so be it. If it stands in my way, I'll tear it to pieces," Samael said as the flames of determination burned in his pupils.

He was not going to run away.

He will do what he does best.

Kill.