In a matter of seconds, everyone gathered near the tree. Jin, Conrad, and Dean were guarding in three different directions, with Conrad positioned in the front. Meanwhile, Celia and Evelin leaned against the tree bark. They had decided to use the tree as a shield, such that the ghouls could only attack them from the front. This way, the ghoul couldn't risk flying straight into the tree and would have to glide at a lower velocity, letting Conrad detect them.
Given the situation, Jin felt that it was a well-optimized plan.
But that thought didn't last for long.
"Lian!"
Jin closed his eyes. Inhaling deeply, he let the world around him fall silent. Instead of letting the beast approach him, he moved his focus to his senses. The subtle shift in the air, the rustling of leaves, and an incessant scratching sound on the nearby branches—every single piece of information bombarded his brain.
He readied his sword as an impractically inaudible clatter of teeth slithered in his ears. The ghoul was gliding right above the ground, its jaw aimed at his legs.
Something else caught his attention.
'Two…'
He lowered his sword. Slowly opening his eyes, he looked at the ghoul flying toward him.
Just as the ghoul was about to sink its teeth into his sheen, Jin's foot vanished and connected with the beast's skinny skull. The kick sent it flying back as its body rotated fiercely like a turret.
Before it could hit the ground, another ghoul appeared out of nowhere. It failed to notice the beast barreling toward him. The two collided instantly, their heads cracked open at the impact. Tangled in each other's limbs, the ghouls rolled away from the cohort.
Regarding the dead pair from the corner of his eye, he regained his defensive stance.
'These beasts… if not for the dark, they are woefully inadequate. You can crush their heads with your feet alone, and their weight is nowhere near enough even to move someone from their place. Their intellect, though… these creatures are considerably smarter than the pincers.'
It had been the fifth pair to attack them since they formed a defensive encirclement using the tree as a wall. However, they weren't just flying toward them for no reason. They were probing their encirclement, testing what the cohort was trying to achieve. It didn't take them long to realize it was nothing but a last-ditch effort at survival.
After that, they came in pairs to check which link was the weakest. They'd never strike everyone at once. The ghouls only targeted one person at a time, draining them of their remaining energy and will.
The ghouls were hunting them.
And Jin couldn't help but agree that their strategy was working. For mindless beasts, they had a keen understanding of the cohort's worn-out figures. It also didn't take them long to find the weak link in their cohort.
Jin quietly threw a glance at Conrad.
'... He is at his limits. I can't risk him overdoing it when we are already down two members. They are targeting Dean and me to wear us down. It is their only choice if they want to get rid of Conrad. Once he is gone…'
Surrounded by nothing but darkness, the cohort was heavily relying on Conrad's core ability. He didn't know what a 'radar' meant, but that was the word Conrad had used for his ability. It was a strange ability that let him scan and store the nearby terrain and objects occupying that terrain.
Being an ability that revolved around storing the information gathered, using it continuously for more than what it was meant for seemed like a fearsome task, even for Jin. Unlike him, who only momentarily dived deep in his sensory perception, Conrad had been doing it for more than an hour now.
He could only imagine the splitting headache Conrad must have been experiencing. That only made him more susceptible to sneak attacks.
'Dean, on the other hand…'
"Dean, to your right!"
The next instant, a ghoul emerged from the darkness. It dove in overhead and spread its wings before it could reach its prey. The sharp talons were facing Dean, just a few inches away.
He stretched his hand forward… and grabbed the ghoul by its bony legs. His torso twisted like a lumberjack striking a tree, his legs planted firmly on the ground. The ghoul swung in an arc before making contact with the ground. Its head breached the dirt, burying itself from the momentum.
Dean didn't stop there. He lifted his leg and smashed the ghoul's head into a thousand pieces. The blood splattered on his face, his eyes wide open. The sight was so gruesome that Conrad couldn't even watch any longer. Jin, too, retracted his gaze as Dean released the dead ghoul from his grip.
'I… I'll handle that once we're out of here.'
However, Jin wasn't a fool.
This was even beyond his grasp. Even if his plan for the pincer nests had worked, they still lost a member of their group. But they neither had a plan for the ghouls, nor were they in any state to make one. Two people were already immobile, while Conrad was about to collapse anytime soon, and Dean was simply using his rage as energy to keep moving.
As for himself… if things went south, he was going to escape himself, even if that meant leaving the group behind to die. The thought disgusted him, but with things being as they were, he didn't have a choice.
As time passed, the attacks became more frequent, more lethal. Instead of just targeting one person now, they target both Dean and Jin, occasionally a single ghoul landing in Conrad's range to wear him down.
'At this rate… Conrad is going to fall sooner or later…'
It was an inescapable situation, and they were out of time. It reminded him of a memory, something that had happened decades ago.
It was a preposterous endeavour, facing an entire sect with a measly group of a dozen martial artists backing him. He was too young to understand just how big the world was, and that he was nothing but a frog in a well. Before his sword could reach the sect leader, the entire group was subjugated and imprisoned for several days without water or food.
Being confined in a close space changed people. The people he considered his comrades turned on him and blamed him. When push came to shove, they tried to kill him. Hunger made people do things… things the words couldn't explain.
Fortunately, a turn of events led him out of the confinement alive.
But by then, all his comrades were already dead.
*****
Celia was leaning against the tree. Her eyes were closed, dormant essence flowing across her body. All this time, she had been refining and storing essence into her reserves, hoping to gain at least some of her strength.
However, that wasn't all she was doing. Even now, as essence slowly filled her reserve, a small amount of essence quietly travelled to Evelin. It wasn't efficient at all. If she wanted to heal Evelin, she needed to pour all her essence into her ability. However, doing so would exhaust her even further.
And she was already about to pass out.
So, she did the least she could do. Giving the larger chunk of her ability to her, she only kept enough essence to keep her awake. She couldn't heal Evelin, but this allowed her to keep the unconscious girl alive.
But that wasn't what occupied her mind, though.
'Is it related to the outpost? Perhaps the gate…'
For some time, Celia felt like she was forgetting something important. With no plan or energy left to survive, they needed any sort of information, as long as it served its purpose. Yet, the harder she thought, the more her thoughts slipped apart.
Whatever it was, though, she could feel that it was connected to their situation. Something that they could use to get out of here.
She clicked her tongue.
'No… something I've seen before. What have I seen before that could help—'
Out of nowhere, the sound of a chilling siren spread throughout the nest. It wasn't loud, but rather, it was similar to a sharp whistle. The sound sent a shiver down her spine, making her tremble for a moment.
Suddenly, the attacks stopped… No, the ghouls were still there. They had stopped midair, flapping their thin wings to stay in the air. All of them turned their scrawny heads toward the source of the sound in unison. Even the constant scratching that surrounded them stopped, as if the sleeping ghouls were also attracted to the sound.
'Crap!'
It hit her like lightning. Pushing herself off the ground, she roared in a shaky voice.
"We… we need to move. Now!"
The three moved in an instant.