I Can Devour Monsters' SSS Talents

”What do you mean, the path? Have you seen something like this before?” Tavern asked with a frown.

”We were in the forest for six days, and during that time I saw many things, at first the monsters were attacking each other, and in the end we saw creatures from the same pack eating each other, even when there was food right beside them.”

”Their goal was not hunger, they just wanted to kill.”

Tavern stayed silent for a long time, then said something very quietly.

”When the beast ate its brother, the cities closed their gates, when the intelligent ones killed their brothers... there were no cities left.”

A short silence followed, the sentence described the current situation very well.

”What is that?” Rindo asked.

”An old saying, something our children hear from the older generations.” Then a kind of bitterness appeared in his voice.

”Until today, I thought it was just a legend.”

Seris understood that even ordinary Cindari people had kept pieces of the First Calamity in the form of stories and warnings passed down from one generation to another.

But the truth had become so old that no one believed it anymore, now the legend was alive in front of their eyes.

Tavern then left after making sure that they were not responsible for what had happened there, he had to return and deal with the situation.

After he left, the two of them also returned to the main base.

”We move right now.” Then Seris looked directly at Rindo and said.

”In this situation?”

”Exactly because of this situation, if we wait until tomorrow, maybe half of your people will no longer be themselves.”

”And every hour, the number of people we can trust becomes smaller.” Cassian, who was standing a little farther away, nodded.

Rindo looked around, several infected people had been restrained in the distance.

The sound of fighting was still coming from the western part of the city, then his eyes fell on one of the report panels, almost everyone who had been infected until that moment had one thing in common.

They were weak, and in terms of level and power, they were all among the weakest people left.

”There is one more thing, so far none of the high-level people have shown any signs.” Then he mentioned this point.

”All the cases we recorded were from the weaker groups.” Cassian confirmed.

”So either stronger Awakened are more resistant to the infection...” Seris thought for a moment.

”Or the infection is not strong enough yet to affect us too.” Rindo continued.

Neither of these two possibilities was comforting, the first only meant that the weaker ones would fall first, the second meant that the stronger ones had not been affected yet.

”Then someone has to stay here.” Marcus put his arm across his chest.

”Please don’t say me.” Ethan looked at him.

”You two are staying.” Rindo looked at them and said, one person was enough to control the situation, but it was better for two people to stay just to be safe.

”Great.” Ethan sighed.

”Marcus, you handle the internal defense, Ethan, coordinate the restraint groups and the medical center.”

”Me?” Ethan raised an eyebrow.

”Yeah.”

”Why?”

Rindo gave him a short look.

”Because unlike the things that come out of your mouth, when things really get bad, you don’t run away.”

”That was a terrible compliment.” Ethan stayed silent for a few seconds and then shrugged.

”Don’t worry. I’ll translate it for you. He means he trusts you.” Marcus said.

”That made it worse.”

The atmosphere became a little lighter for a few seconds, but only for a few seconds, another scream came from the distance and everyone remembered why they were standing there.

”The weaker people stay inside Ashfall, the stronger people either come with us or stay to defend the city.” The Student Council President said in the end.

Seris looked at the blood-red sky, for the first time she fully understood what could happen if Black Silence reached Earth.

At first, maybe only a few humans would become more aggressive.

Then a few murders.

Then cities.

Armies.

Countries.

Billions of humans with fears, hatred, and grudges that the Calamity could turn into weapons.

Black Silence did not even need to destroy the cities itself, it only needed to make the people destroy them by themselves.

”If this thing enters our world...” Cassian also seemed to be thinking about something similar and said quietly.

He did not finish his sentence, there was no need.

”It must not enter.” Rindo said seriously.

This time no one disagreed.

Even Seraphina, whatever disagreement they had about Lian, one truth did not change.

If the Calamity found a way to Earth, they might no longer have a chance to save anyone.

They did not have much time to prepare, the main group gathered their things in less than an hour.

Seris sat on One, the ant’s body was still not completely healed, but it moved much better than the day before and was able to carry one person.

Aren was also placed on a mount taken from the Cindari, with the help of one of the Awakened.

Seraphina, Liana, Cassian, and Selina were ready.

Rindo was giving his final orders to Marcus and Ethan when Tavern’s voice came from behind him.

”Where are you going?”

Rindo turned around, Tavern was standing there in the same blood-covered armor.

Beside him was the same young woman in the white Rootcrown robe who had been with him during the first negotiation, and several other high-level soldiers were also standing behind them.

”We’re going to stop whatever started this chaos.”

”Where?” Tavern looked at him for a few seconds and then asked seriously.

”Are you going to stop us?” Rindo did not answer directly.

Several Cindari’s hands unconsciously moved toward their weapons and Seris also gave Tavern a cold look.

”No, I’m coming with you.” But after a few seconds of silence, the Cindari commander said.

This time several Humans clearly frowned, the young Pendragon said nothing, but her hand tightened around the handle of her sword.

”Why?” The Student Council President asked.

Tavern looked at the walls of Vhalaris, the city his army had come to take back, now it was falling apart from the inside even without a war.

”If there really is no way out of this world, just as you told me, then I will at least try to save what is left.”

Six days ago, before the temporary truce was made, Rindo had told the Cindari many times that they really did not know a way out of this world.

The Cindari still believed that the only way to save their race was to escape from this world, and they did not know the real truth that their leaders had hidden from them.

At that time Tavern had not believed Rindo’s words, but now he had no other choice, and besides, the evidence showed that these humans really were trapped here.

”I came here to save my race, if the way to save it is not escape, then maybe we have to save this world.”

”If you want to come, that is your choice, but you do not give us orders in the middle of the mission.” Then Rindo shrugged.

Tavern nodded and then raised his hand, eight Cindari separated from the forces.

All of them were high-level units, a swordsman, a mage, two heavy soldiers and a root controller, two archers and the same white-robed Rootcrown woman.

Seris focused on the woman for a few seconds, from their first meeting she had noticed that her mana presence was strange.

Dense, controlled, and very calm, but she still did not know what her role was.

”These are enough.” Then the Cindari commander said calmly.

Rindo gave his people a short look, in his opinion, every extra person meant a few more seconds against the moving dead.

And in a battle where the whole plan was based on buying time, a few seconds could be the difference between victory and destruction.

”We move.”

The Ashfall gate opened.

Humans and Cindari moved along the same path for the first time, not on two sides of a battlefield.

Not as friends, not as allies who trusted each other, but only as creatures that had finally understood that if the Calamity won, there would be nothing left for them to fight over.

One moved his legs forward, Seris was the only one sitting on his back, the wind gently moved her hair aside and her eyes were fixed on the horizon.

Somewhere in the distance, the Giant Graveyard was located, and Lian was probably there too, her fingers slowly tightened around the handle of her sword.

The same question was still in her mind.

Was Lian alive? Or was only his body left?

She had no answer.

But what she had seen when she came out of the cocoon was still fixed in her mind.

Purple eyes, inhuman coldness, One being thrown away with a single strike and then—

That pause.

”Lian... we’re coming.” Seris’s eye became colder.

....

At the same time, very far from Vhalaris, there was no wind.

The Giant Graveyard was covered in heavy silence, the Titan was still trapped under the ground and rocks.

Its body stretched like a huge mountain range across the graveyard, and seven ancient chains had pinned different parts of its body to the ground.

One of the chains slowly shook.

Only once.

Then again...and the sound of metal spread through the silence of the graveyard.

A human hand was placed on the surface of the chain, the fingers slowly moved over the ancient writings.

A purple light shone in the darkness and a voice that once belonged to Lian Vorhelm said without the slightest emotion.

”Finally.”

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then—

Crack.

A very thin crack appeared on the first ring of one of the seven chains.