Mythical Creatures Hunter-Chapter 70 - 68: A strange little village (4)

For a moment, none of them moved. Every eye was fixed on the masked man sleeping in the chair.

His head was tilted slightly back, one arm hanging off the armrest, and his breathing was so calm it was almost insulting to Tell and the others.

Isaac was the first to move. He turned to Oliver.

"Is he actually serious about what he said earlier?"

Oliver kept staring at the masked man, his brows drawn tight.

"I think so. He is not the type who enjoys joking or anything like that."

After saying that, he turned back to Isaac.

"But why would they want to get rid of us specifically? Didn’t you say he saved you or something like that?"

Isaac nodded slowly, his shoulders sinking.

"Yes, that is what he did. But ever since then everything has been falling apart. Everyone believes the death of the Great Guardian was the beginning of the disaster."

Oliver looked at the masked man again, his eyes narrowing a little.

"I can’t blame them much. He has always acted in a completely mysterious way, never explaining anything. Even if I were in their place, I would have doubted him."

Isaac lowered his head slightly.

"No... all of this is my fault."

Oliver turned toward him sharply.

"How could it be your fault?"

Isaac swallowed, then spoke slowly.

"The village offered a sacrifice to the Great Guardian every year. The sacrifice had to be one of the village’s children. So every year we held a draw, and this year the choice fell on my daughter."

His eyes reddened, and his fists tightened so hard his knuckles pushed through the skin.

"I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t hand her over to die. So I hid her. And I claimed that I had delivered her as required. One parent must take the child alone to the Guardian’s Cave, and everyone believed me. No one suspected anything."

He took a very long breath.

"But because of what I did, the Guardian turned on us. He began attacking the village, killing children, tearing out people’s eyes. Everything began because of my mistake."

Oliver raised his eyebrows, shock clear on his face.

"But didn’t the villagers discover the truth? That you didn’t offer the sacrifice?"

Isaac shook his head.

"No. When the masked man killed that creature, the children who had died returned. And some of those who had lost their eyes regained them. I used that chaos and everything that happened. But a few days later, a disease swept through the village, and my daughter died... and this time my wife with her."

By the end of his words, his voice was fading.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I don’t know. Maybe because I wanted to unload some of the guilt inside me."

Oliver stood there, unable to form a proper reply. He was looking at a man completely broken inside and out.

Lemur was sitting on the floor near the masked man’s feet, his wide eyes never leaving the man’s sleeping face.

Tell floated slowly in the air, her wings beating softly.

She said nothing, but the story’s effect showed clearly on her features, something like sadness or pity or a mixture of both.

Tell suddenly rushed forward in the air, wings fluttering hard, staring between Isaac and Oliver.

"What exactly are we going to do now?"

Despite his obvious confusion, Isaac was the first to answer, his eyes darting nervously between their faces.

"They won’t come here now, not until I return and tell them that you all fell under the effect of the herbs. This is your only chance. Leave the village immediately."

Tell tilted her head toward him.

"And in that case, what will happen to you?"

Isaac’s shoulders rose in a small, helpless shrug.

"I can handle myself."

Oliver cut in, hands on his waist.

"I don’t think so. People who sacrifice their children to maintain a bit of stability will not let you live if they discover you helped us escape."

Isaac lowered his head.

"At least I will bear that. I can’t allow the man who saved us to die like this."

Oliver answered immediately, his eyes drifting to the masked man sleeping in the chair.

"Don’t worry about him. I don’t believe for a second he would let himself die so easily."

Isaac asked, anxiety clear in his voice.

"And what about all of you?"

Tell answered this time. She hovered right in front of his face, her hands clasped.

"Don’t worry about us. In the forest, we have no chance without him. Running now is not an option."

While they were talking, Lemur kept staring at the bag of herbs on the table for a long time.

Then, as if making a life changing decision, he reached out quickly, grabbed a huge bunch of the herbs, and shoved them all into his mouth at once.

A few seconds passed before he dropped to the ground and sank into deep sleep.

Oliver looked at Lemur, then let out a sharp sigh and sat on the ground between the sleeping masked man and Lemur lying on the floor.

"Alright, that seems to settle everything. All we have to do now is stay here and wait."

...

On the other side of the village, the old man was sitting inside his dim hut, holding his twisted staff.

Outside, the villagers waited anxiously, whispering, gripping the farming tools in their hands.

From the bottom of the staff, strands of dark energy began to rise slowly, gathering around the bones fixed to it, then rising toward the skull.

The black light spread gradually through the hut, and soon a fog like shape formed in front of the old man.

A distorted head appeared, with one enormous red eye staring directly at him without eyelids.

The old man’s voice trembled slightly despite his attempt to sound confident.

"I did what you asked. Everything is ready."

The creature’s voice rose, sounding as if it came from the bottom of a deep well.

"And are you certain it will work?"

The old man smirked with arrogant mockery as he looked at the creature’s head. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"The effect of those herbs is strong enough to put the Skullbreaker to sleep for months. Imagine what they can do to a human."

The deep voice returned, sharper this time.

"But that man is not just a human."

The old man gave a short, smug laugh.

"Didn’t you tell me he is human? Are you afraid of him because he managed to defeat you?"

The dark energy froze for a single second.

It was obvious the creature felt insulted by his words.

Suddenly the dark power surged violently from the staff, spreading across the entire hut.

It wasn’t sparks. It was thick, crushing waves.

The more the power increased, the more the tattoos covering the old man’s body glowed.

His frail body couldn’t endure the pressure. His knees buckled, and he collapsed to the ground hard.

He tried lifting a hand to support himself, but his fingers trembled uncontrollably. Even breathing became a struggle.

His chest shook uselessly, his skin turning blue, his forehead hitting the ground as he fought just to stay conscious.

And still, even as he was on the verge of fainting, he didn’t let the staff fall. His grip remained locked on it.

When the tattoo’s glow finally faded, he gasped violently for air, shoulders trembling as he dragged breath after breath into his lungs.

The mythical creature’s expression didn’t change at all as it stared at him.

"Remember this well. I am the only reason you are still alive after all these years. And even in this pathetic state, I can end your life at any moment."

The old man lifted his head, his face twisted with pain, fear, and humiliation.

Slowly he forced himself to his feet, struggling to appear composed even as his body shook.

He stared at the creature for a moment before speaking in a low, submissive voice.

"If that man is just a human, then how did he manage to wound a great mythical creature like you... to the point that you are like this?"

The creature leaned forward slightly.

"He uses a collection of strange tools. Take them from him, and everything else will become very easy."

A short silence followed. The old man swallowed hard, lowering his head in a fake show of obedience while hiding his anger.

The creature remained still for a moment, then began to fade from sight.

Seeing that, the old man muttered with heavy annoyance, "How dare he speak to me like that."

Then he brushed the dust off his clothes and left the hut immediately.