volume 3 - Chapter 179 (1/2)
Chapter 179 – Dream
When Brendel took out the gemstone, a ray of grey light shot out from it and pierced through the mist, pointing towards a certain direction.
“What are you holding on to?” Faena asked.
“Why do I need to answer your question? Surely someone from the Empire would not care for what a citizen from Aouine has to say.” Brendel raised the gemstone higher, making himself a lighthouse.
“You—” She gnashed her teeth.
But Brendel ignored her and started walking, dragging the irate girl along with him. Both of them became silent, unwilling to speak to each other.
The light from the gemstone was a form of Mana Resonance, and it focused on something within the valley. The two of them continued to walk in the fog for quite some time, following the direction of the light as black rocks peeked in and out. A strong air current was flowing past their legs like a river’s water which slowed their progress.
The boring landscape made the weary duo sleepy as they continued walking, but it did not take long for the gemstone in Brendel’s hands to flash a few times before it dimmed. The youth suddenly became alert and focused his attention on his surroundings that seemed to be oddly bright. He pondered a few seconds, before taking out Veronica’s sword and dropped its sheath onto the ground.
“What is it?” Faena did not understand what Brendel was doing.
“We’ve reached our destination,” He said, pulling Faena to a large boulder and indicated for her to be quiet.
Even though it was his plan to get the fake Lernaia Hydra to fight Andesha, he did not want to be caught by the monster because Faena made a fool out of herself.
He narrowed his eyes and tried to see past the fog. There was a bottomless quarry ahead of them, and when he looked into it, he suddenly held his breath—
[What the f…..]
There was an incredible beast lying in the quarry. The strange shapes that he first saw were actually a pair of white s.h.i.+ning ears, leading down to a silver mane that glowed in the darkness. There was no fog around that beast, as though it was somehow pushed away by an invisible barrier.
When the youth took a few more seconds to look at it, he realized that it was a wolf that was just as big as the fake Lernaia Hydra. Its elegant snout was placed on top of its paws, with its body nestled up comfortably in a curvy ma.s.s. It gave off an aura that exuded magnificence, appearing more splendid than the most glorious mountains.
[A silver scar across its face and eye—]
Brendel swallowed as he looked at the mighty sleeping beast, even forgetting to breathe. Faena eventually discovered what was causing the youth’s shock. She nearly cried out, but her hands already covered her lips to prevent any sound from leaking out.
“What is this monster?” Faena whispered in disbelief.
Brendel took a deep breath and declared with s.h.i.+ning eyes:
“The Twelve Demonic Moon’s son, the Warg that is known as Hati!”
“What!” Faena cried out through her covered lips.
The Warg Hati was also known as the source of the Calamity of Wolves. As the Kirrlutz Empire’s northern borders were frequently hara.s.sed by the Winter Wolves, Faena knew about the lore quite well.
Hati was depicted as a half-G.o.d in various legends and stories, but no one believed that it really existed.
“H-h-how is this possible, y-you are mistaken, r-right?” Faena stuttered in terror.
“The colossal wolf with a body filled with snow-white fur, and the unmistakable injury left behind on its right eye during the fight with the Winter Warg—”
Brendel suddenly stopped himself.
[This could be a trick from the Demonic Nightmare Fog. If it managed to turn itself into the fake Ancestral Hydra, why not the fake King of Wolves, Hati?]
He suddenly felt Faena poking his waist. He turned around and saw her looking up in the air,
“B-Brendel……” She could only utter his name as though she had her tongue tied up.
The youth was on his guard when he saw her appearance. He looked up and also changed his expression just like she did.
The fog was changing its shape repeatedly, forming into various Ancestral Beasts, but it ultimately turned into a shape they were familiar with—
The Lernaia Hydra was before them once again.
Fifteen pairs of eyes suddenly opened up at the same time, revealing nothing but evil killing intent. Brendel and Faena’s hearts turned cold, and they felt as though they had been pierced by fifteen sharp swords and were nailed to the ground—
[…… It’s the opposite. This Hati here is the real thing. Indeed, it’s the true source of the Calamity of Wolves, and it is currently dreaming of creating chaos in the real world. The ident.i.ty of the Demonic Nightmare Fog is actually a dream of Hati that affects reality, and it’s strong enough to beat up everyone.]
“H-h-has…… it seen us?” Faena muttered.
Brendel shoved his hand to her lips:
“Are you stupid? It would have just attacked us long ago if it saw us. Stop talking unnecessarily, you’re going to attract its attention.”
The youth stared at the fifteen dragon heads once again.
[It’s the gemstone. The Demonic Nightmare Fog appeared because the gemstone was taken out and too close to it. But what does this gemstone have anything to do with Hati?]
He moved further into the boulder’s cover and pulled Faena in as well. The latter squatted down and placed her hands on the sides of her torn up dress.
“Did you plan on luring that woman here from the start?” She thought for a while and asked.
Brendel looked at her in surprise.