Chapter 148: Do you want revenge?
Lucy looked ahead with a serious expression as she tried to sense the levels of the monsters but failed.
"I cannot sense their level," Lucy stated. "Something is blocking me."
Night didn’t say anything, simply asked, "Can you now use Nightmare Mist?"
Lucy then looked at him with a chilling smirk, as blackish purple mist started spreading from her body like an aura.
It was faint, not like the dense mist Night emitted, but it was not because it was weak, but because it was of a different quality.
The giveaway was the weird way her shadows were behaving around the Nightmare Mist. It was as if they were connected in a unfathomable way.
That was not all. Her claws, her eyes, and her horns all changed to a solid blackish purple color.
Beside him, Jeffy and Teffy took a cautious step back.
Teffy even muttered, "Scary bas..." but then stopped midway, afraid of pissing Night off.
Night smiled. He was happy she could finally use it freely. It would guarantee her safety against most enemies.
What about the others? Night asked telepathically.
Lucy returned to normal and sent him a telepathic message in return. Everyone can use it, even Vivianne. You do not have to worry, you can summon us freely.
Then she added hesitantly, Though it would be better to not summon Vivianne. She is still not able to move properly...
Night was about to reply when he sensed a disturbance in the surrounding space. Jeffy, Teffy, and Lucy sensed it as well and immediately got into fighting stances.
Night also focused his senses as Blade appeared in his hand.
From the spatial disturbance, a figure stepped out. It was a humanoid figure fully made of smooth stone. It was six feet tall and had a sleek, streamlined body. Its eyes glowed a bright yellow color. It didn’t have a nose, but it had a fine line which looked like sealed lips.
It crossed its arms and looked at Jeffy. "You have the nerve to come back after stealing our Earth Essence?"
Jeffy shifted awkwardly, while Teffy whistled, looking up at the sky.
Before anyone could say anything, Night asked, "Are you the ruler of this place?"
Since the monster was well within his Nightmare Domain’s range, he sensed it clearly. It was strong, but it was not a Demigod. Which meant it was at or below Level 100.
The monster looked at Night and answered, "Yes. I am Argus, and I am the leader of my clan, the Earth Spirit Clan." It was said straightforwardly, not bothering to hide anything.
Seeing him take the lead while the others watched, Night introduced himself. "I am Night. I came here with my companions to check this place out, after I found out it possessed a City Core."
At the mention of the City Core, Argus’s yellow eyes flashed brightly for a moment, but he didn’t say anything right away.
After a few tense moments, Argus said, "I do not know how you came to know about the City Core, but it is better if you just forget about it."
Night looked at him in puzzlement. He didn’t think Argus was telling him to get lost politely. "Why?"
Argus didn’t answer verbally. Instead, he simply gestured for them to follow him.
Taking it as an invitation, Night and Lucy looked at each other and followed him. At the exact same time, his Main Body in Dream City and the four clones got ready in case it was a trap.
Jeffy and Teffy looked unwilling, but they still followed closely after Night.
Argus walked slowly, as if thoroughly enjoying each step he took, like he was seeing them for the last time.
Night and Lucy looked around curiously.
Jeffy looked on edge, while Teffy was relaxed, though the grip on his hammer was tight. Unlike the others, they took each step with caution.
By the time they reached the base of the mountain, Jeffy and Teffy were covered in cold sweat.
The slow, methodical pace was torturous for them. It would have been much better if Argus had just attacked them outright. At least that way they wouldn’t be constantly stressing about a trap.
Unlike them, Night was calm because his Nightmare Domain showed him exactly what was going on.
At first, it was not in his perception, but slowly he was able to notice a well hidden array that isolated this region.
𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢
Other than that, on the closest mountain, inside a deep cave, he saw a lot of monsters that looked exactly like Argus, but they were a lot weaker they were huddled together. Most of them were very small.
Those must be the children, Night assumed.
Many of the fully grown ones had severe signs of damage on their rocky bodies.
Standing near the base of the mountain, Argus stopped, turned around, and looked at Night. Guessing he was the true leader of the group, he spoke. "We were attacked by monsters from outside our world. Realizing the severity of the issue, I tried connecting with the Beast World Council, but I received no response. It is safe to assume that they have their own problems to face."
He continued, "At first, the attackers were just a bunch of wolves, but I fought them back easily."
Argus sighed heavily. "You see, we are a peaceful race. We do not believe in unnecessary bloodshed. If the other party is not murderous, we show restraint. The wolves had plenty of ways to harm our children, yet they only focused on fighting our warriors."
"Since they were not much trouble, I let them be after giving them a beating."
What Argus didn’t say was that as an Earth Spirit, their race had the innate ability to look directly into a person’s nature. That was the main reason he had spared the wolves, since they had not come here with malicious intentions.
If anything, even the wolves looked surprised when they ended up in this region.
This was also the reason Argus was willing to entertain Night. To Argus, he felt like a pure person. In fact, it was his first time encountering a human this pure; he felt more like a Spirit Race being.
Wolves? Are they like the ones I faced back then? Night thought.
"Then what happened?" Night asked aloud.
"That is when the real trouble began," Argus said. "If I had been merciless from the start, maybe this would not have happened."
Night saw the wounds on the other members of the Earth Spirit Clan and guessed the truth. "They were not the only ones who came?"
Looking at Night, Argus nodded. "Yes. It seems the wolves were just the bait to confuse us. It was already too late before I could do anything."
Argus spoke with a hoarse voice. "They came and did not spare anyone. The elders, the children, the women. They viciously killed everything they set their eyes upon." His aura fluctuated violently, as if he was reliving the horrific moments.
"While the others bravely bought us time, I only managed to save a small part of my clan and escape," Argus finished bitterly.
Night remained silent for a moment. Then he looked at the tallest mountain in the center and pointed his finger. "You sealed them in there?"
Argus looked genuinely surprised. "Yes. I used the array and sealed them on the main mountain with the others help. We were just about to leave this region when we saw you approaching. Besides, I sensed these thieves, i had some time to spare and came to vent on them to release my rage."
At this, Jeffy and Teffy were covered in cold sweat because the violent aura coming from Argus felt more like a Devil’s aura than an Earth Spirit’s when it passed by them. He meant business.
Lucy interjected, smoothly saving them. "But?"
Argus looked at Lucy and replied, "I saw Night here, and seeing a kindred spirit, I decided to warn you, lest you make the same mistake as us."
He was not joking when he said they were a peaceful race. Even when they were in such a shitty situation, he still had the presence of mind to warn Night.
It made Lucy look at Jeffy and Teffy in disgust, thinking only scum would rob such kind beings.
Night asked something that was bothering him. "Are you the only clan that lives here?"
Argus nodded. "While this city region is huge, our strength was uncontested here. The mountains empower us, so we managed to defend it for the past five years, but we cannot defend it anymore. Those otherworlders seem to have deliberately set their eyes here, and they came with a thorough plan."
Night understood. He guessed this matter was not simple at all.
He had some experience now, and he understood it likely involved a God, but whether it was a God from their universe or not was the real question.
He pointed at the nearby mountain cave and asked, "Are they the only people that are left of your clan?"
Argus nodded quietly. He didn’t ask how Night could see them through the mountain and the arrays.
Night would have felt terrible asking them for the City Core directly, but seeing as it was about to change hands anyway, he felt like he should try to get it for himself.
So he asked the most important question. "What is the strength of these enemies?"
"They are at the peak of the Mortal Realm," Argus explained, "but their true strength should be Demigod. It seems the laws of our world have forcibly limited them to the Mortal Realm."
Lucy and Night looked at each other. Understanding exactly what Night wanted, Lucy nodded.
Jeffy looked at Night and really didn’t like where this conversation was going, while Teffy looked excited instead.
Night looked back at Argus and asked, "Do you want revenge?"