The Forest of Twin Disasters stretched almost endlessly, a place pulsating with magic essence that filled the air like an invisible current. The ancient trees loomed overhead, their thick canopies casting deep shadows across the forest floor.
Mana beasts wandered through the undergrowth, absorbed the magic essence in the atmosphere and channeled it into their very being. Their forms were varied—some graceful and sleek, others hulking and armored, but all bore a faint glow that marked their attunement to the magic around them.
Yet, not all the forest’s denizens were so majestic; demons lurked here as well, grotesque figures with charred skin, horns jutting from their skulls, and eyes that burned with a cruel, unearthly light. Some had leathery wings folded against their backs, while others crawled on all fours, their movements unsettlingly fluid.
Within the heart of this forest, something began to stir. It came from deep beneath the earth—a subtle vibration that grew into a rumble, rippling outward. The ground shook as if alive, and the trees quivered, their leaves rustling in a growing wave of motion.
—vrrrrrrrrm!!
—wooooonggg!!!
Crrrk! Ccrrrrrrk!
The tremor spread rapidly, cracking the forest floor in all directions, reaching hundreds of meters out. The very air seemed to thicken, charged with an aura that pressed down on everything nearby.
Mana beasts, sensitive to the shifts in magic, froze in place, their glowing eyes darting about. An instinctive dread overcame them, and soon, they scattered in every direction, abandoning their territories without hesitation.
Even the demons, drawn to chaos and darkness, felt a deeper terror wash over them. They retreated, slipping back into the cover of the trees, as though recognizing a force far beyond their own malevolence.
A section of the forest floor gave way, the earth collapsing inward and forming a gaping hole about two meters wide. The edges of the cavity were rough and splintered, the roots of ancient trees dangling into the abyss.
Darkness filled the hole, so deep that it swallowed all light, leaving the bottom obscured from sight. The air grew still and heavy, as if the forest itself was holding its breath, waiting for what would emerge.
Then, from the depths, an eye opened—large, unsettling, with stark white sclera and black pupils that seemed to pierce through the darkness. It blinked slowly, adjusting to the faint light that filtered through the forest canopy.
The gaze wandered, moving with a deliberateness that suggested awareness, perhaps even curiosity. It swept over the surroundings, taking in the fleeing creatures and the silence that had fallen over the forest.
A sound followed, low and resonant, like a voice that echoed up from deep within the earth. It was not entirely human, nor fully inhuman—a rumble that seemed to vibrate through the air and ground alike.
“Hmm?” It carried a hint of questioning, as though the being was waking from a long slumber, trying to understand what had disturbed its rest.
For a moment, the eye remained open, unblinking as it surveyed the forest, but then it snapped shut, and the rumblings ceased. The earth seemed to settle back into place, closing up within seconds, and the darkness reclaimed the hole.
The aura that had gripped the forest faded, though the tension in the air remained, leaving the mana beasts and demons wary.
Whatever had stirred beneath the forest had returned to its slumber, leaving behind an uneasy quiet, as if the land itself was unsure whether to feel relief or anticipation.
~~~~~
Damien sat lazily, his legs folded, his hands folded. and his eyes closed as he absorbed the essence from the essence cores surrounding him.
With his skill (Essence Devourer), Damien could absorb the essence from multiple cores as all he had to do was make the cores his target.
His eyes snapped open, revealing eyes that had become accustomed to his surroundings, his focus however, was on his summons.
They’d suddenly gotten up a few seconds ago and now that Damien was staring at both Fenrir and Cerbe, along with Luton who was bouncing happily atop the wolf’s fur, he noticed something.
They were all staring south as they’d sensed something Damien couldn’t. “Huh?” Damien didn’t know what they were looking at but he also joined them regardless.
“Uhm… Is everything alright?” His summons understood his words and so he’d expected from them when he asked a question and now, they’d outrightly ignored him.
However, before he could voice out his anger, his summons all turned to him and sat down back as though nothing strange had just taken place.
Damien remained seated even amidst everything. Seeing as he didn’t receive a response from his summons, he resumed what he’d been doing but then, something crossed his mind. He’s just attained level 30 and despite it being great, Damien refused to admit it.
“I feel stronger than I’ve ever felt,” Damien grinned and stared at his summons once again. It seemed like they were having a bad episode at the moment and so he simply wanted to avoid trouble by ignoring them.
However, for having ignored him earlier, Damien had a revenge plan.
“Attempt another Summoning. A new one.” Damien commanded without a shred of shame even while sitting in front of his summons. Their ears perked up the instant they heard him mentioning another random summoning, all three of them glaring daggers at him.
If looks were to be killers, Damien was sure he have died over a hundred times.
Ding!
The response made Damien’s head snap upwards as he watched the summoning panel display a line of texts that instantly brought a frown to his face.
«Slay 200 more demons to unlock another summon.»
“What?” Damien was completely dumbfounded when he read through it. “There’s actually a requirement before I can summon again?”
He turned to the side again, his eyes meeting with his summon and for some reason he could tell they were secreltly excited that it hadn’t worked.
Damien sighed and gathered all the used up cores in one place and then the unused ones in another place. “Luton, come get these cores as you normally do.”
“Don’t mess it up tho….”
—kabooooomn!
—bzztttt booooom!
There was a loud explosion followed by the sound of something Damien was quiet familiar with.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
The steps of mana beasts!
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A/N:
Hello dear readers, I’m writing this to I apologize for the late release of today’s chapter and also, to inform you all that you can now support with Golden Tickets as well!
Hehehe… Thank you all for making it this far and I also hope that you all will make it even further.
Uhmm, I think that’s all.
Wait! Give your power stones and golden tickets! What are you doing with it when yours sincerely really needs it? Don’t let me have to use my gun… Hehehe. Thank you all once again!