C4 – Beast

“I said…” Etienne dragged his tone. “Waren, you don’t want to pick on the poor apprentice, do you?”

“That’s Julius’s magic necklace, not yours,” Waren replied in a gruff voice.

“But it’s not yours to take. What gives you the right?” Etienne slowly stood up.

“Because I’m smarter, younger, and stronger than you,” Waren mocked. “I get what I want.”

“The Devil Hunter’s job isn’t to bicker among ourselves, but to fight off outsiders,” Etienne retorted. “There’s a Blade Demon lurking nearby. Why don’t you go fight it?”

“Give me that necklace,” Waren demanded as he brushed past Etienne and instructed Shire.

Shire gazed at the necklace that the two were fighting over. It was the most beautiful and expensive item he had ever seen. Made of pure gold, the chains intertwined and it was heavy. At the end hung a green gemstone pendant, shaped like a diamond and exquisitely cut. As he gazed at it, he could hear the sound of magic flowing. It seemed to be a magic tool, but he wasn’t certain of its effect.

Wizards often imbued their spells into objects to make them powerful. It required skill and cost a lot, so every magic tool was expensive.

“There’s no need to break it. Put it down,” Etienne said.

Waren relinquished his hold on the necklace first, and Shire carefully placed it back with the remains. The corpse was still warm, and everyone was fighting over the body.

“What’s the function of this necklace?” Shire inquired of Etienne.

“Julius’s shield necklace can resist the effects of other spells,” the aged hunter replied while examining the necklace in Shire’s hand. “This necklace has saved his life many times, but sadly…”

Shire gazed up at Waren.

Waren was taller, more experienced, ferocious, and had faced hundreds of battles. Whether dealing with demons or humans, he was superior to Shire. Etienne was just injured and over fifty years old. If they fought with their lives on the line, the old hunter and the young apprentice would perish in the fight.

Although he knew the situation was dire, he couldn’t bear to give the treasure to someone like Waren. Shire pondered to himself.

“Move aside and stay put,” Waren demanded.

“No,” Shire didn’t say much. He would rather use his actions to defend his decision. “It should be buried with Mr. Julius.”

“You fool! How could he let the treasure be buried deep underground?” Waren fumed. “Hand it over. Our chances of winning against the demons will increase. It can prevent their incantations and interfere with their evil spells.”

Shire was deeply suspicious. Would they really fight the demons?

“If you die, would you want us to bury your possessions with you or fight for them?” Etienne didn’t approve of Waren’s approach. “I completely agree. It’s best to leave the inheritance to the living. Waren, you should go and bury Julius.”

“Bury that idiot? I need a shovel for that!” Waren cursed.

“Shire, bury Julius’s body properly. Use the necklace as his burial fee,” Etienne ordered plainly.

“Sure, go ahead. Let’s see what you’ll use to dig the grave,” Waren sneered.

Shire remained silent and picked up his sword. The blade of the Fallen Blade had already bent, leaving some unseemly curves, but it could still be used for digging. Shire quietly dug and chiseled away at the ground with his slightly twisted sword.

“With that thing? Let’s see how long it takes you to dig. You’re so foolish,” Waren mocked, enjoying watching Shire make a fool of himself. However, he soon fell silent.

This was because Shire had dug a proper grave.

He had dug for an hour and was exhausted, but he had successfully dug a pit that was more than one meter in length and width and three fingers deep.

Shire bravely picked up Julius’s burnt and decaying remains, which were still hot to the touch. His face was gruesome to behold, and his body was riddled with holes from the devil’s blade, with much of his spine missing.

“Disgusting,” Waren frowned at the sight.

Shire fearlessly touched the corpse with both hands and placed the body in the pit. After the fire had consumed the remains, Julius’s body had shrunken enough to be buried in the shallow and small pit.

Shire carefully gathered the remaining burnt ashes with his hands and sprinkled them into the pit, leaving only the black human-shaped remains where the fire had burned.

Once finished, he pushed the soil he had dug back into the pit to create a small mound. He buried a Devil Hunter who had fought and died in Twilight Forest like this. It might not have been an honorable end, but it was peaceful nonetheless.

While alive, the Devil Hunter had given up everything to fight against the ghosts from other worlds. After his death, he deserved to rest in peace.

Although the Fallen Blade was made from Julius’s spine, it was composed mainly of Fallen Devil Substance. Shire couldn’t bury it in the ground, as it would likely cause disaster.

If given the chance, he would have buried Denver as well. Poor Denver, his dear friend, had been left forgotten beneath a tree. Shire felt sorrowful.

He rose to his feet and bowed to Julius’s body. The large tree nearby was still burning, with a tough trunk that was likely to burn throughout the night. The surrounding heat was so intense that Shire was sweating profusely.

After witnessing Shire’s actions, Waren remained silent and continued to eat.

“Put that necklace on. Julius will be pleased,” Etienne suggested.

“Hypocrite,” Waren muttered under his breath. “Master and disciple are two of a kind. You have no shame in stealing from the dead.”

Shire picked up the green jewel necklace and solemnly placed it around his neck.

Etienne patted Shire’s shoulder.

“I hope you can become an outstanding Devil Hunter,” he said.

Shire felt anxious and thought, “I just want to survive.” The surroundings were dark and quiet, and he had no idea where the Blade Demon was hiding.

“What’s troubling you?” Etienne noticed that Shire was in a bad mood.

“The devil,” Shire replied, as he was the only one still thinking about it. “Where could it be hiding?”

“It searches for its host in every nook and cranny,” Etienne explained, stroking his beard and chin. “If it moves with its true devilish form, it will experience constant pain since this world hates it. Therefore, it has to find a creature from this realm to hide inside its body, and use that body to resist the pressure of this world.”

“Can animals be used?”

“They cannot be wild beasts or insects, because once the demons possess them, they cannot perform any of their natural functions. If the target is a foolish creature, the demon will also become foolish. At the same time, the target cannot be too weak. If we slay the body that it possesses, it will become weakened, and will be easily banished or captured by us. Therefore, it will try its best to find a sturdy outer shell.”

Shire remembered that there were devils in their Hunter Palace. The Hunters could trap them in the real world for an extended period, making it impossible for them to return to hell.

“So they can only be humans,” Shire concluded after pondering for a while. “Devils must parasitize humans.”

“Not necessarily. Demons can also infect the minds of dragons and parasitize on them. High-level dragons are much more intelligent than us and have firm minds. However, if they are infected by demons, they become very paranoid. The same goes for elves and dwarves. There are records in history of dwarves attempting to forge demons. Elves, on the other hand, tend not to concern themselves with the affairs of the world. But in theory, they too could be tempted by the devil. There were even those who attempted to make demons attach themselves to apes, which are very human-like animals. We don’t have them here, but I’ve seen them in the south… Shire, if you encounter Warlocks and Magi who use demons as “experiments,” and you see one die, remember that certain knowledge is taboo. Exploring it can lead to disaster.”

“But if we don’t study them, we’ll never understand how they come about,” Shire couldn’t help but interject.

“Of course, but the prerequisite is that they have already become like this.” Etienne pointed at Shire’s luggage, where there was a dead devil blade. “This thing is a demon’s pet. Its vitality is limited. As long as we can delay it, it will eventually weaken. The demon power that supports its movements will dissipate, and it will become a lifeless object… However, this thing still has some of the characteristics of a demon. We can study it slowly.”

“Have you studied it before?” Shire asked.

“A long time ago, I participated in it.” Etienne thought back to the past. “At that time, I had friends who I could call ‘friends.’ They studied these things to explore knowledge and developed their own views. The Deadwood King, the Blade Demon, and the Copper Prince liked to create tangible evil beings. The Horned Sovereign and the Ox-Head Demon created all sorts of evil beings to invade the world, and this was within the realm of what we could fight and kill… The most terrifying thing about the Abyss Devils, which is what Shire will eventually encounter, is their abstract nature. They don’t have a specific form… I don’t know how you will deal with those devils when the time comes.”

“What should I do?”

“Fighting those types of demons is too dangerous. It’s difficult to describe. You’ll find that your spells, swords, and crossbows are all ineffective against them. Your reliable companions will also be separated from you. As a Devil Hunter, you can only rely on yourself. This is why we work alone and stay away from civilization. We knew we couldn’t trust them, so we had to cultivate the ability to fight alone… Strong, very strong. So that you can defeat everything and find out where the demons really are. You have to walk to their true bodies alone, cut them out of their hiding shells, and then use the banishment spell to send them back.”

“You haven’t taught me the Banishment Curse yet,” Shire reminded him.

“I’ll teach you when we safely leave the forest,” Etienne replied, shaking his head.

Etienne seemed tired and sat down to rest.

The three Devil Hunters sat beside the burning tree, staring at the charred trunk.

Shire couldn’t help but wonder if they could really defeat the Blade Devil. Could they emerge victorious with just the three of them? They had agreed to meet at a location in Twilight Forest known as Dew Camp Stone. If they set out the following morning, they should arrive there in time… But would he be able to survive? He was just a new hunter recruit.

“How old are you?” Waren suddenly asked, breaking Shire’s train of thought.

“Seventeen,” Shire replied.

“Why did you become a Devil Hunter?”

Shire was taken aback. Why was he being asked this?

“I had no other choice,” he answered truthfully.

“Would you risk your life to fight the Evil Demons?”

“Yes,” Shire replied, puzzled. Didn’t he understand the purpose of being a Devil Hunter?

“Please don’t,” Waren shook his head. “Life is the most important thing. If you ever find yourself in a life-and-death situation, remember that your life is always more important. Just ask Julius, and he’ll tell you the same. He would stay far away from here and refuse to participate in any operation, no matter how much he was beaten or coerced.”

“……”

“Do you think I am too greedy? Ferocious?”

“No.” When Shire said something that went against his heart, he actually felt that someone like Waren was a stain on the Devil Hunter.

“Take a good look at Etienne. Have you ever seen him smile or get angry while you were observing him?” Waren jeered at him with a cold tone.

Shire turned towards the old hunter next to him. Etienne appeared lifeless, with his eyes closed and his white beard and deep wrinkles making him look old and tranquil under the glow of the fire.

“Humans are beates driven by their desires. Do you believe your actions are noble? You must understand that the abnormality lies with…all of you,” Waren said with an ugly grin.