Becoming a Monster

Chapter 666: Chapter 665: This Isn’t Right

As the humans continued deeper into Ashenveil Forest, none of them could’ve known just how different the demon waiting for them had become from the one Varkesh encountered only days ago.

Although Bailey’s information was considerably older, the humans didn’t consider it useless. She had known Noah long before Varkesh ever encountered him, so much of what she told them was more personal than anything the beastkin could provide.

More importantly, Varkesh’s information was still recent.

Only a few days had passed since he entered the demon’s territory, which meant there was little reason for anyone to believe the strength he witnessed could’ve changed too drastically since then. Even after learning how quickly Noah and his creatures could grow, there should’ve still been a limit to how much any being could change in only a few days.

Because of this, the humans believed they had a fairly good idea of what waited for them deeper in the forest.

What they were becoming increasingly uncertain of was how much the demon already knew about them.

The spiders they kept encountering were largely responsible for that.

By now, almost everyone in the army knew to watch for the small creatures. They had already killed several since entering deeper into the forest, yet no matter how many they found, eventually another would appear somewhere along their path.

None of them attacked.

If anything, the spiders seemed to go out of their way to avoid being noticed. They remained hidden among the trees and shadows, doing nothing more than watching the humans pass.

Malachi was the first to discover one of them earlier in their journey.

His attention had been drawn to a nearby tree after sensing something sensitive to his own energy. It was faint enough that most of those nearby hadn’t noticed anything, but once Malachi focused on its source, he eventually found the small spider hidden there.

What interested him wasn’t the creature itself.

It was the dark energy coming from it.

“Is it a demon?”

Although he was curious, his actions said otherwise, as he didn’t hesitate to kill it.

The sudden action immediately drew the attention of those around him, especially after they realized the creature had done nothing besides watch them.

“Wouldn’t that alert the demon to where we are?”

Malachi looked toward the spider’s remains before turning his attention deeper into the forest.

“If these creatures are here watching us, then most likely the demon already knows.”

He remained silent for a moment, as if considering something, before his gaze slowly shifted toward Varkesh.

A skeptical hum escaped his lips, loud enough that several of those nearby naturally followed his gaze toward the beastkin.

“Although what concerns me more is whether the demon already knew we were coming…”

Malachi didn’t need to explain what he meant.

Most who already knew about his relationship with Varkesh understood exactly what he meant. Normally, Varkesh would’ve denied the accusation immediately, especially when it came from Malachi, but this time the words never left his mouth.

What Malachi was implying was too close to the truth.

Varkesh hadn’t told Noah anything about the humans’ plans. If anything, it had been the other way around. The demon was the one who ordered Varkesh to return to the city and lead the humans back into the forest within the next few days.

Because of this, denying Malachi’s accusation should’ve been easy.

Unfortunately, Varkesh was too nervous to trust himself to do it.

He could already feel the tension throughout his body, and with Malachi watching him so closely, Varkesh was afraid that opening his mouth would only make that nervousness more obvious.

Normally, he would’ve immediately shot back at the man for even suggesting he had warned the demon, but if his voice hesitated now, or his reaction seemed even slightly different from what everyone expected, his denial could accomplish the exact opposite of what he wanted.

So despite knowing his silence wasn’t much better, Varkesh kept his mouth shut.

Thankfully, Thalric spoke before Malachi could question him further.

“It would make more sense if these spiders had been here since the demon allowed him to escape.”

Malachi’s attention shifted toward the Guild Master.

“We’ve already confirmed that the demon is intelligent,” Thalric continued. “He let Varkesh leave knowing he would return to the city and tell us what happened here. Even if he didn’t know exactly how we would respond, expecting us to eventually send people back into the forest wouldn’t have been difficult.”

Thalric glanced at the spider’s remains.

“If he had these creatures spread throughout the forest afterward, then he wouldn’t need anyone to tell him when we were coming. All he had to do was wait until one of them found us.”

Varkesh said nothing, but Thalric’s explanation was closer to the truth than he realized.

Noah hadn’t needed Varkesh to warn him that the humans were coming. He’d expected them from the beginning.

The only thing Varkesh didn’t know was whether the spiders had been placed throughout the forest because of their attack or served some other purpose entirely.

Either way, that distinction no longer mattered.

As the humans continued forward, they encountered more of the strange spiders, and each one made it harder to believe their presence had gone unnoticed.

None attempted to attack the humans or interfere with their progress. They only watched from a distance, studying the army as though everything they were seeing was being relayed to whoever created them.

What they couldn’t determine was how these spiders were relaying their information. Whether the information was instant or the spider needed time to transmit it, they couldn’t tell.

Because of this, they kept killing every one they found, but it didn’t solve the real problem.

There was no way of knowing how many they hadn’t discovered.

For every spider they killed, another could’ve been watching from somewhere they hadn’t thought to look, and the possibility that their every movement was already being relayed to the demon made it impossible to know how much of their approach was still a secret.

It was one reason the army grew increasingly tense the deeper they traveled.

The forest itself wasn’t helping.

The deeper they trekked into the forest, the colder everything seemed. The darkness beneath the trees felt heavier than before, and even the atmosphere surrounding them seemed to carry a weight that hadn’t been there when they first entered.

If not for the powerful warriors ahead of them, many of the people there probably wouldn’t have been brave enough to keep going.

Thalric hadn’t said anything for some time, not even to his own men.

Every one of his senses remained heightened to the limit as he kept walking. It was almost as though he had conscious control over every nerve within his eyes and ears and every sensation traveling across his skin.

He listened for anything that didn’t belong while paying close attention to every sensation around him. The slightest change in the air, a sound so faint that most would overlook, or an unfamiliar presence was enough to make him focus on its source.

If anything around them was out of place, Thalric wanted to notice it immediately.

And that was precisely why he noticed the moment something focused on him.

At first, there was nothing for him to actually identify. He didn’t hear anything, nor could he see someone watching them from afar.

Yet his body still reacted.

The muscles along Thalric’s body instinctively tensed as a faint sense of danger washed over him.

It wasn’t as though he could physically feel another person’s eyes on him. What he sensed was the strength behind whoever held that gaze.

It was incredibly faint from this distance, enough that most people probably wouldn’t have noticed anything at all.

But Thalric was familiar with this feeling.

It was the same sensation prey experienced when it was being stalked by a predator it couldn’t see.

He couldn’t recall the last time he’d felt it.

‘This isn’t right.’ Thalric’s gaze furrowed as he looked straight ahead, trying to catch sight of what was out there.

There could only be one being behind that gaze, and Thalric was clearly aware of it. However, now he was certain that his worst fears were true.

The demon they were supposed to hunt was clearly stronger than what they were told.

Even he found himself glancing questioningly toward the beastkin. If he could feel such power from this far away, then Varkesh, who encountered the demon personally, should’ve had a better understanding of how strong it really was.

Everyone knew there were clear differences in strength even among S-rank monsters, and whatever Thalric was sensing was obviously near the upper limits of what could still be placed within that rank.

Or perhaps it had already surpassed it.

If Noah truly was a demon, then judging his strength by the ranks humans used for monsters might not have been appropriate in the first place. From what Thalric could feel now, the demon couldn’t have been too far from reaching the level of a Demon General.

And Thalric wasn’t the only one who noticed.

Malachi had also stopped walking, his attention focused in the same direction. The sudden change naturally confused those around him, but for once, the smiling saint didn’t seem interested in maintaining the expression that earned him his name.

“Thalric, you feel it too, right?”

Even the way he addressed Thalric was different. Whatever disagreements existed between them could wait when both men had apparently sensed the same thing.

With the two coming to the same conclusion, Malachi turned to his own men.

“Everyone, call upon our Gods’ warriors now!” He unhesitatingly ordered the Church to use one of their greatest trump cards without waiting for the demon to even appear.

His people showed only slight hesitation, fighting the urge to understand what was happening before they began their prayers.

But just as the old man by Malachi’s side was about to do the same, Malachi stopped him.

“Old friend, not yet. I fear your place in this battle may be beside the Heavenly Father, so that one of His chosen can take your place among us.”