Arcane Innovator

As we arrived at our selected camping ground - a spacious clearing surrounded by tall trees and lush greenery, the sun was already slowly sinking towards the horizon, coloring the sky in various hues of pink.

Since this time around, I wasn't projecting out my aura; our small host was constantly being besieged by various packs of wandering monsters and beasts, which in turn left most of the beast hunters deadly tired by the time we finally made camp.

Being new and among the youngest in our group, I was promptly given the first watch alongside a few other unfortunate souls.

However, contrary to what others might have thought, I actually didn't mind. Thanks to my magically improved physique, I didn't feel tired at all being one of the lucky few alongside, I guess, the young hero over there by the fire.

'Yet he, for some reason, doesn't have to hold watch. Talk about preferential treatment,' I scoffed before sitting on a fallen log at the edge of the campgrounds and scanning the perimeter for any sign of movement in the surrounding bushes.

As the night draped its dark veil over our camp, a hush fell over the clearing, and the crackling of the campfire was the only sound that pierced the everpresent silence.

From time to time, I glanced over at the young hero, who sat by the fire, dutifully sharpening his sword with an intense focus.

At first, I thought he was just like those young nobles with a silver spoon in their mouth I met back in Ereneth, but after carefully observing him for the whole day, I had to reluctantly admit that he was the real deal.

During each of today's numerous encounters, he fearlessly joined the fray, leading the charge while almost effortlessly slaying every monster we came across.

'Have I finally met the so-called protagonist?' I chuckled to myself.

Back in town, I feared this would turn into a disaster, but as things stand right now, we might actually stand a chance even without me stepping in.

'Tomorrow, I can leave the bulk of the fighting to our Blessed warrior over there and take it easy. All I need to do is perform a few showy attacks in front of Malaric, and I'll have the Recommendation in the bag...' I smiled mischievously.

***

When it was time to resume our march in the morning. I once again joined Malaric, using this opportunity to gain some valuable knowledge about the local area.

"From now on, we need to be extra careful. The border is not far from here," Malaric said in a low voice that was barely above a whisper, as if afraid the very trees could hear us.

'Well, with how our surroundings now look, I can understand where he is coming from...'.

We quickly left the sprawling farmlands behind and began ascending into the hills surrounding the border.

As we continued, the path we were on became muddy and overgrown, making it difficult to navigate. The countryside likewise shifted, becoming a lot wilder and unwelcoming.

Everything was shrouded in mist while shadows danced amongst the massive trees that surrounded us on both sides.

The cool morning air seemed tinged with tension, sending shivers down my spine.

'Yeah, this is not creepy at all...'

Also, the monster's attacks became more frequent, suggesting we were indeed heading in the right direction.

I could see even Malaric getting on high alert as he whispered. "We're getting close to where the scouts were last seen."

I looked ahead, seeing nothing but fog. Luckily, I didn't have to rely solely on my eyes to be able to sense danger, so I employed my magic sense, scanning the area in a wide arc so that there would be no nasty surprises waiting for me there.

This sense of security, however, was a luxury not available for the others who seemed visibly apprehensive and fearful of what lay beyond the misty shroud surrounding us.

The atmosphere quickly turned somber, yet nobody tried to run away as they knew the weight of responsibility resting on their shoulders.

Even the previously arrogant-looking priests became quite frightened, mumbling silent prayers under their breaths.

'Hmm, that's weird. Why there are no monsters around?' I thought after another ten or so minutes of walking through the everpresent fog.

Until now, I was detecting dozens of life signs moving erratically in every direction and periodically attacking us, but when we left the forest behind and came into a small valley in search of the missing scouts, there was all of a sudden nothing, as if they all disappeared into thin air.

Furrowing my brows, I stepped to the side and paused, pretending to adjust the straps of my satchel while trying to make sense of what was happening.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath while spreading out my magic sense far and wide at its maximum capacity.

I endured the slight headache without flinching as I briefly overwhelmed my senses with essence and perceived the whole valley in a single go.

Still, the result was all the same - nothing.

The obvious answer would be that we were at last approaching the territory of the big, scary monster that was apparently the cause of all the chaos around Neufeld and also the target of our expedition.

But if that were the case, I should be detecting a massive essence signature up ahead right about now, yet I couldn't sense anything at all.

That could mean only two possible explanations - either the monster in question could somehow mask its essence, which would be quite a difficult task given its supposed strength, or...

"Are you okay?" Being lost in my thoughts, I almost jumped as I suddenly heard Malaric's voice from behind.

I quickly turned around, noticing that in that short while, the column of beast hunters had already passed me, and its end began quickly disappearing into the fog.

"Yeah, I'm fine..." I hurriedly told the worried-looking branch leader, hoping he didn't notice me doing anything that would be difficult to explain.

I smiled, pointing my finger in the direction of the advancing host while saying, "We should probably hurry after them so that we don't lose..."

But I never finished my sentence as, at that exact moment, I detected something that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand out.

'Oh, no...'

Up ahead, something terrible seemed to be lying in wait, and the column of hunters was walking straight toward it, blissfully unaware of the impending doom.

The fact that I could detect it now but not before appeared to prove my previous hypothesis that it was either somehow masking its essence or, more likely, hiding underground, where my magic sense couldn't reach it.

I frantically peered into the fog, my eyes shifting between the monster's supposed location and the small host, trying my best to spot something, anything.

Malaric must have sensed the change in my expression, raising an eyebrow in a silent question.

Yet I had no answer for him - at least not any I was willing to give him.

There was no doubt in my mind whether or not to warn him about the approaching danger, as I swore to never again jeopardize my personal safety for the sake of strangers.

Still, I couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for doing nothing at all. That's why I was so desperately trying to spot any signs of the hiding monster so that my warning could be explained by anything other than magic.

'Stupid fog... What are the damn priests doing?' I cursed inwardly, utterly frustrated with how everything went so wrong so quickly.

Even the venerable Priests of Light, who were apparently supposed to sense any malevolent energy from a mile away—one of the main reasons they went with us on this hunt—didn't raise any alarm, as evidenced by the everpresent silence.

For a few harrowing moments, I carefully weighed my options, unsure what to do.

I knew I had to decide quickly since if I was able to detect the monster's essence, it must have meant that it had already left its hideout and was only moments from attacking.

I glanced at Malaric, wondering, 'Will he believe me if I tell him I have a bad feeling?'

But before I could make a decision, the surrounding quiet was suddenly pierced by a high-pitched scream coming from the direction of the column, and then the proverbial hell broke loose.