Edward crouched above the carcass of the Regal wolf, absorbing his power. He could feel his strength and aura growing in the process. On the contrary, the corpses of the ordinary wolves brought such a small amount of blood essence that it was barely worth his time to absorb their power.

This was a tricky opponent. I wasn’t expecting him to be able to ignore my attacks. That’s why knowledge about monsters is important. I need to update my monster handbook. I should share it with the others too, who knows when they will have to face such monsters by themselves.

However, in my case, if I want to explore the wilds, I will be confronted with other monsters with unknown capabilities. I won’t have the chance of having someone describe their abilities to me. I have to be more careful when confronted with monsters for the first time. Also, I should try to replicate his ability to prevent healing and mark an opponent with my aura. With my teleportation and my speed my mobility is great, if I can mark opponents, I could try hit-and-run tactics against difficult-to-kill monsters.

Edward stood back up and resumed his journey toward Agripin. He didn’t encounter other trouble along the way, reaching Agripin at dawn. He could see the familiar wooden walls of the village. However, it seems to have had its fair share of trouble. The walls were covered with claw marks and the number of torches and guards manning the walls had increased significantly. The walls look battered but they held at least. Looks like I’m not too late.

Edward walked calmly to the city, waving at the sentinels. “I see somebody on the road!” one of them exclaimed, alerting the others.

“No way, with the number of wolves roaming around, how could anyone cross the forest? Especially at night!”

The guards pushed each other to get a better look. Edward repressed a laugh. He removed his helmet. “Hey, guys how are you doing? It’s me, Edward, I’m back.”

“Edward! Oh my god, it’s true. Welcome back!” One of the men on the wall exclaimed. “What are you waiting for? Open the doors, you dumbass!” He shouted to the guards manning the door.

Edward shook his head. He could have simply teleported passed the door, but it seemed right to enter the village properly. By the time the doors were opened, Balin and Caspian were waiting for him on the other side, both grinning.

“Welcome back to our hero!” Caspian said grinning.

Edward shared a bear hug with Caspian and Balin, following them to the guards’ barracks while the doors were being closed behind him.

“Is everything all right? Your aura feels different and stronger.” Balin asked him.

Edward grinned proudly. “Well, it is. I reached the predator stage.”

Caspian and Balin stopped in shock, not believing their ears. “You what?!”

Edward laughed. “I do have quite the stories to tell you.”

Caspian interrupted him. “Just one thing before that. A group of adventurers came some days ago and Leyla left with them. Not long after we suffered from a wolf attack. It is the first time they dare to attack the village frontally and with such numbers. I’m concerned about Leyla’s safety, have you met her?”

Edward patted him on the back. “Don’t worry they are all safe in Gobéliard. Actually, those wolf attacks are the reason why I’m here.”

The group sat in Capsian’s office, Edward explained his adventures starting from when he left Agripin. He had a lot to tell them and several hours went by, the group listening attentively. Their face turned grim when Edward recounted the increase in the number of attacks, how new monsters’ variants able to use aura were appearing, and the fact that mana was increasing all over the world. Edward finished with the reason he was there.

“That’s why I would like to relocate Agripin’s inhabitants to Gobéliard. Agripin is isolated and the monsters’ attacks will keep increasing. I won’t be available all the time to protect you and I don’t know for how long this mess will keep going. I already cleaned Gobéliard’s surroundings and the city has better defenses than Agripin. Moreover, Gobéliard is in the middle of a technological revolution with the spreading of runes usage. I’m sure the city will be able to accommodate all of Agripin’s inhabitants.”

Caspian frowned, thoughtful. “Moving so many people is not a small issue. Most of the villagers are normal humans. They will be slow and exposed on the outside, perfect prey for monsters. How many will die in such an endeavor?”

Edward shook his head in disagreement. “They don’t have a choice. Staying here would only delay things. Right now, I am able to protect you. But what if the situation continued to worsen? You all will be trapped inside the village’s confine, with walls growing less and less adequate to monsters becoming increasingly more dangerous and numerous. The more you wait, the more difficult it will be to move until it will be too late. This is nothing like the Bloodmaws, I can’t stop the source of the phenomenon. I already cleaned the path on my way, right now is the best time to move.”

Balin put his hand on Caspian’s arm. “Edward is right. We are too isolated, already the wolves’ attacks did a number on our walls. We won’t be able to protect the village forever. Besides, Edward is a predator now, he is strong enough to protect us. And the situation is not what it was, we are no longer the only awaken to protect the villagers.”

Caspian sighed. “I guess you are right. But the villagers won’t be easily convinced. Leaving the village will be like forsaking their life for some of them.”

“I will show them the corpse of a Regal wolf. Such a monster should make them understand what they will have to confront if they want to stay here.” Edward answered to calm Caspian’s worry.

The matter was settled with that. Caspian and Balin discussed how to organize everything for the best. They decided to announce a gathering for noon, this would leave Edward a few hours to fetch the corpse of the Regal wolf that he had killed on his way to Agripin.

One more round trip to the Vipin Forest. If I had known I would have brought his corpse with me, it would have saved me the trouble of going back. Still, it wasn’t that far from Agripin, it shouldn’t take too long. And I will have time to rest back to peak condition while the villagers prepare their belongings.

Edward once more left for the forest under the confused look of the guards. Edward was moving at a fast pace, not wanting to lose time. He was fast enough to overtake a normal human sprinting at full speed, but it was just a jog for him.

It was daytime, the sun shining brightly in the sky, and it hadn’t been that long since Edward crossed the path in the other direction. He didn’t encounter any monsters and quickly reached the location of his fight with the Regal wolf. At least, he was pretty sure that he was at the right place. He had a doubt because there wasn’t a single corpse in sight. Only the bloodstains and the damaged path and trees indicated there had been a fight at this place.

Edward felt a shudder along his spine. What the heck? It hasn’t been that long since I left. Where did the corpses go, were they all eaten or what? As soon as he got this thought, he knew it was right. Not much time had gone by, and it was in the middle of a forest teeming with monsters. One of them must have jumped on the free meal in front of itself. The fact that it wasn’t afraid of the carnage, and that it was able to devour all of the wolves, not even leaving a bone behind was, however, concerning.

Fuck it, I’m out of here. I will find another way to convince the villagers. I just hope that whatever this monster is, it ate enough to leave us alone.

Edward didn’t linger any longer and left for Agripin. On the way back he sensed one lone wolf roaming in the forest, it was away from the path still in the undergrowth, and too far away to be seen. Edward had detected it only thanks to his aura.

Some wolves are already coming back. I wasn’t expecting to see them so soon. The villagers shouldn’t wait too much time before moving. Considering the size of the forest I won’t be able to kill all the monsters residing inside of it. I can only secure the path for a small amount of time.

Edward entered Agripin without bringing any monster remains. Not knowing why he had left and come back, the guards let him enter with a bemused face. It was already close to noon and the villagers were gathering in the main place. Balin saw Edward coming back empty-handed. Edward looked him straight in the eyes and sent him through telepathy. ‘The monsters’ corpses are gone. Something must have eaten them. Sorry.’

Balin flinched not expecting Edward to be able to communicate with him through telepathy. He nodded grimly after regaining his composure. Edward joined Caspian and Balin on an elevated platform. Whispers disseminate through the crowd when they recognized Edward. His figure was deeply engraved in their mind as the one who saved them from the Bloodmaws.

Caspian, Balin, and Edward waited for some more time, letting the latecomers show up. The meeting had been arranged for noon without further details on the timing, there were no watches in this world. The concept of time was blurrier and more flexible than on Earth.

When everybody was there, Caspian began his speech in a deep voice loud enough to be understandable by even the furthest away in the crowd.

“My friends, we thought that we were finally free of worry after dealing with the Bloodmaws. It pains me to tell you that is not the case. Monsters are growing more numerous and ferocious by the day. Not only near Agripin but everywhere at once. Soon our walls won’t be enough to keep them at bay. We must move out. Edward, who already dealt with the Bloodmaws in the past, secured the path toward Gobéliard. He is also participating in the improvement and renovation of Gobéliard’s defenses. He will help us reach the city safely. I ask you to prepare your belongings. The departure is planned for tomorrow.”

A torrent of questions was raised in the crowd. One villager managed to make himself heard over the hubbub. “Do we really have to leave? We took take of the Bloodmaws and we pushed back the wolves attacking us. We have more awakens than ever before. Isn’t that enough to deal with the monsters?”

This time Edward replied. “If it were simple wolves, yes, maybe. The problem is that the monsters are growing stronger as well. Variants able to use aura are appearing. Many of you don’t know what that represents so let me explain. Aura can basically cut through anything not reinforced by another aura. A single attack will cut through the walls.” Edward took out one of his daggers and extended it with his aura, he threw the aura blade at the top of the walls. The blade cut cleanly through the wooden pillars, removing a good twenty centimeters of the wall where it went through.

The demonstration silenced the crowd. Seeing how the aura blade cut through the wall like paper was more effective than any explanation.