Chapter 382 — Treasure I

Goosebumps erupted across her entire body.

’Taste?’

Her mind recoiled from the implication.

’He’s going to–’

"I– I am betrothed to my future husband!"

The words burst out in accented English, panic overriding every other thought.

"You... you shouldn’t have any thoughts about me! My father will– he’ll kill you! He’ll destroy everyone! You can’t– please don’t– I’m promised to–"

"Hm?" The masked man tilted his head further. "It seems you have misunderstood something."

He released her chin and stepped back.

Then he walked toward the bodies of her fallen companions, crouching beside Thalas’s corpse and lifted his mask slightly.

His hands moved to the elf’s torso, fingers pressing against the flesh.

Then he tore it open.

RIP

Ribs cracked as he pulled the chest cavity apart with raw strength.

Serath’ana’s eyes went wide.

"Y-you–"

The masked man reached inside, pulled out the heart, and bit down.

Crunch

His teeth tore through the organ, swallowing it without hesitation.

Then he moved to the liver, the lungs, consuming every important organ.

His movements were efficient, like someone finishing a task they found necessary rather than enjoyable.

Sob

Serath’ana started crying.

’Demon! He’s a demon! A demon pretending to be human! That’s why... that’s why he can do those things! That’s why he’s so strong! That’s why he’s eating them!’

"T-This isn’t real."

Her voice came out as a broken whisper, mind desperately trying to reject what she was seeing.

"This is a dream! This is the human world! This isn’t real! Father will come! General Kethran will save me! This isn’t happening! I’m still at home! I haven’t left! This is–"

The masked man moved to Ralen’s corpse, repeating the process.

Tearing open the torso, extracting organs, consuming them one by one.

Serath’ana couldn’t look away.

Her mind was screaming at her to close her eyes, to look anywhere else, but her body wouldn’t obey.

She just hung there, suspended in the air by invisible force, watching as he consumed her companions like they were nothing more than meat.

When he finished Ralen’s organs, he stood up, adjusted his mask again and turned back toward her.

She’d gone silent, her eyes closed, lips moving in what might have been prayer to the World Tree she barely believed in.

He came closer, standing beside her suspended form.

"...Did you shoot any arrow at the raven?"

Serath’ana’s eyes snapped open.

She started sliding backward instinctively, forgetting she was being held by Telekinesis, her legs kicking uselessly in the air.

Her head shook frantically from side to side.

"N-no! I didn’t! I swear I didn’t! I wanted to capture him, not kill him! I told them to stop shooting but they wouldn’t listen! Please! I didn’t hurt him! I wouldn’t– I didn’t–"

The masked man’s hand came down on her head.

She flinched violently, entire body going rigid, eyes squeezing shut, waiting for pain.

But the hand simply... patted her gently.

Like someone rewarding a well-behaved pet.

"Good girl."

His voice came out softer now, almost approving.

Serath’ana’s breath caught, hope flickering in her chest.

’He’s... he’s going to let me–’

"Though..." The hand on her head tightened slightly. "You still tried to capture him."

Her eyes went wide.

"You wanted to make Kuro your pet." His voice dropped lower and colder. "For that..."

The Telekinesis holding her intensified suddenly.

"I’m afraid I still have to eat you."

"NO! WAIT! PLEASE–"

The invisible force around her body began to compress inward from all sides, crushing her.

CRACK

Her ribs started to give way under the pressure.

"AHHH!"

She screamed, pain exploding through her chest as bones cracked.

She tried to move her hands, tried to reach for anything, but the Telekinesis held her completely immobile.

Her arms were pinned to her sides, her legs couldn’t move and she couldn’t even turn her head.

’Father... I’m sorry... I wasn’t strong enough...’

Her vision started to fade, consciousness slipping as her body reached its limit.

Then–

CRACK

The silver necklace around her neck shattered on its own.

The artifact sensed death approaching, sensed its wearer’s life force dropping to critical levels and activated.

Light exploded around her body, pure white and blinding, the emergency teleportation triggering automatically.

The crushing pressure vanished.

The masked man’s crimson eyes widened slightly behind the mask.

Then she was gone.

Just... vanished.

Teleported away in an instant, leaving only fading light and the lingering smell of Aura-burn.

****

Damian stood there, staring at the empty space where she’d been kneeling.

"..."

Several seconds passed.

Then he sighed, the sound muffled by his mask.

"She really was someone important... to have such a life saving thing on her."

He glanced back at the blood-soaked earth.

’Eating them one by one like that...’

The thought came with a flicker of disgust that had nothing to do with morality and everything to do with efficiency.

’It’s weird and inefficient... Takes too much time and leaves too much evidence.’

The Devourer Body Art was powerful, but the method was crude.

Biting, chewing, swallowing...

Like some kind of beast.

’Though I have to admit, elves taste better than giants... Sweeter somehow. The giants were way too salty.’

The observation was detached.

’Still, I need to find a way to absorb them without... that. Without actually eating...’

The art was his own creation, still developing and incomplete.

There had to be a better method buried in its principles.

Something faster, cleaner and more refined.

’Something to figure out later.’

His crimson eyes turned in the direction Kuro’s memories had shown, toward where the treasure was forming.

’So... the elves are here with permission. Part of the peace negotiations.’

The pieces connected in his mind.

’That explains where some of the SS ranks are. Kaiser, Elizabeth’s grandfather... they’re probably dealing with the elves at higher levels.’

It made sense.

"Anyways..."

His lips curved behind the mask into something that might have been a smile.

"A treasure to increase talent, huh?"

He started walking, the black clothes blending with the shadows between trees, leaves crunching under his boots, blood still wet on the ground behind him.

"I guess I need one as well."