Chapter 2096: Werewolf
Shard, who had left home, naturally did not know about the conversation happening there. By this time, he had already left the Dragon Nest, traversed through the short forest, and seen the Saint George Stone Bridge under the night sky.
During the day, the Saint George Stone Bridge was quite bustling, but by nightfall, there were almost no pedestrians. Gas lamps only existed at the end of the bridge near the city’s walls, and the entrance leading to the northern countryside had only some moonlight and the glow of hand-held kerosene lamps.
Several cloaked and hooded figures on horseback were already waiting for Shard by the bridge. Thanks to the Witch Detector emblem, Shard wasn’t worried about mistaking them. As he approached, he saw that the participants in tonight’s action were Miss Belindel, Miss Matilda, and two other ladies of the Nine Rings.
Though this was Miss Belindel’s territory, she didn’t have many people to call upon. On one hand, her own combat ability wasn’t strong, making it inconvenient to recruit followers. On the other hand, since this was Moon Bay, hiding was also a challenging task.
Therefore, under her command, compared to the Eleven Rank ladies Miss Galina, Miss Benanis, Megan, and Audrey, they were few. These two Nine Rings ladies were probably the core members among the followers.
The four people led five horses. For the sake of convenience, even Miss Belindel did not wear a skirt but pants that accentuated her figure. Seeing Shard eyeing her, the witch under the hood seemed a little uneasy, but fortunately, Shard quickly averted his gaze.
"Mr. Watson, can you ride a horse?"
"Yes, in winter, I often rode through the countryside and woodland at Randall Valley."
This was true.
"Why did you come from outside the city?"
The witch asked again, glancing toward the direction of the woods from which Shard had come. Miss Matilda handed the reins to Shard, and he patted the head of the chestnut horse with a tuft of white hair on its forehead, which behaved very tamely.
"I went outside the city to handle some matters. Let’s set off now. How long will the journey take?"
"If we’re lucky, less than an hour."
The witch said as the four ladies swiftly mounted their horses, and Shard also got onto his saddle, ready to depart. By this time, Miss Belindel also noticed the longsword hanging on his waist, and she raised her eyebrows a little in surprise before finally reminding:
"We don’t know what will happen tonight. Although Vanessa said you are very skilled in combat, aside from Matilda who is of the Six Rings, the others here are all of higher rank than you. If we do encounter any trouble, stand back and use your Temporal Magic to help control the situation."
"Understood."
Shard agreed with a nod, adjusted the sword scabbard at his waist, then shook the reins and followed the four ladies along the unlit country road.
Miss Belindel’s horsemanship was quite impressive, as Lecia had said, girls from grand noble backgrounds received such training. She led the way in front, and the others followed behind. The group of five set off from the Saint George Stone Bridge, first heading north along the country dirt road, then turning northwest at a Five-Forked Road centered around a huge locust tree. They then bypassed rural fields and villages, entering the northern part of Moon Bay Region, known as the "Whisper Hills."
This woodland was an important source of local timber and a key forest area controlled by the Wood Family, but this was not the group’s destination. The forest was not ideal terrain for horses, but Miss Belindel found a small path seemingly used by lumberjacks for transporting timber, leading the group further northwest.
Across the rugged ravines between the hills, on a twisting mountain path with a nearly sixty-degree slope, they raced. They directed the horses over a small wooden bridge set up over a mountain stream, leaped over a creek in the ravine, and even used whistling to scare away surrounding wolves. Eventually, they veered off the forest path and up onto a hill, stopping beneath a giant tree in the southwestern part of the Whisper Hills.
The size of that giant tree certainly couldn’t compare to those sealing the "Interstice of Life and Death" on Sicarl Mountain Summit or the unstable space on Green Island. It wasn’t the tallest tree nearby, but its massive canopy, extensive root system, and age-worn textures testified to its ancient existence.
The massive roots made the ground around the trunk uneven, while the slightly leaning trunk’s surface was wrinkled yet in the night resembled a human face.
Without summoning a light orb, the maids retrieved torches from saddle bags for lighting. Shard dismounted with them, and Miss Belindel introduced:
"Here it is. It is uncertain if this ancient tree is the oldest in the Whisper Hills, but it is at least a thousand years old. Villagers from nearby villages even come annually to pay respects, believing it holds the ability to ensure favorable weather for the coming year."
The five horses were tied a little farther away among the trees. The two Nine Rings ladies stayed behind, while Shard and Miss Matilda followed the Great Witch of Destiny.
The witch did not hold a torch; she looked up at the crown of the ancient tree. Starlight filtered through the canopy, softening the witch’s features:
"Based on information I interpreted from the family’s documentation and my own divination investigation, this tree is tonight’s target."
As she spoke, she placed her hand on the trunk, waited a moment, and then spoke to Shard and the others:
"This tree has element traces, not very obvious, so it seems we have found the right place."
"Miss, what should we do next?"
Miss Matilda asked, and the witch drew a Divination Card and then told everyone:
"Look for any nearby caves, but don’t stray far from this tree."
With a Diviner present, investigations would become incredibly simple.
"No need to look, I’ve found it."
Having a spatial ability user would also make things even easier:
"Underneath this tree is hollow, there’s a secret cave between the roots. It has only one entrance, and the internal space isn’t large."
"How did you find it?"
The Witch was somewhat surprised:
"Spatial Ability?"
"Yes, Perception Space, follow me."
The ancient yet crooked giant tree stood at the top of the low hills, and Shard led the four ladies down, making a large circle around the hilltop edge like tiers of platforms, finally stopping at the stone cliff on the southwest side of the tree.
From here, the position of the giant tree atop the hill was about two meters in height. Although the cave entrance could be seen by parting the thick weeds, finding it in the darkness without Shard’s guidance would not be easy.
"Claw marks."
As everyone prepared to enter, the Witch pointed to the faint marks to the left of the cave entrance. Some sharp claws had marked this spot before, and Shard’s first reaction was dragon claws, but upon closer inspection, he realized it absolutely was not.
Even though the claw marks appeared vague, it could not be assumed they were left long ago. The Witch began drawing cards again, and the three maids used perception-type arcane techniques, while Shard closed his eyes:
"Heart of Stone."
The woodland at night was ideal for using this kind of perception arcane technique, and besides the five heartbeats including his own nearby, Shard also perceived a strong heartbeat like ripples resonating from the deepest part of the cave:
"There’s something inside, just one, and it’s not human."
The Great Witch of Destiny’s divination also yielded results:
"Moon, teeth, blood."
The black-haired maid, whom the Witch referred to as "Maggie," added:
"I smell wolf stench."
"A werewolf?"
Shard inquired curiously:
"Are there such things in the Moon Bay Region?"
Although in some strange literary works, werewolves often appeared alongside the Vampire Kind, in reality, the number of active werewolves was far fewer than those akin to Mr. Benhart representing modern Vampire Kind. Moreover, Vampire Kind often lived in groups, or at least had the same clan nearby, while werewolves usually roamed alone.
Vampire Kind detested being compared to werewolves and believed werewolves were not a separate race, but cursed ones suffering from "beastification disease." This view is not entirely wrong, as Vampire Kind can control whether they reveal an inhuman appearance, but during a full moon, unless provided with a Master Alchemist’s concocted "Wolf’s Bane Potion," werewolves are sure to transform... This world does indeed have three moons.
"I don’t care much about the forested areas outside Moon Bay City, maybe it’s a well-hidden fellow."
Miss Belindel was also amazed:
"I’ve never heard of werewolves locally before. But tonight the Yellow Moon is full. Although werewolves do not have the bloodthirsty instinct and tearing effects of dual claws during a Red Moon full, nor the immunity to Holy attacks during a Silvermoon full, tonight their physical abilities and recovery will be greatly enhanced, so be cautious."
Everyone nodded, continuing to follow the Witch deeper into the cave while consuming magic potions or applying temporary passive states to themselves.
The winding passage was damp and chilly, with tree roots penetrating the rock walls like claws. Inside the cave, a faint odor lingered, and after walking over fifty steps, the maids’ torches illuminated the spacious cave under the giant tree on the hill, shaped roughly like a gourd, with a narrow center. It seemed that the werewolf inhabited the outer cave, with straw beddings and a recently extinguished campfire visible by the wall.
As everyone looked toward the embers, a wind blew from above. The furry black creature lying on the top of the cave wall, with wide yellow eyes, leaped down towards the woman standing at the front of the group.
Boom~
Its successful fall caused the entire cave to tremble briefly, as fine dust sifted down from the cave ceiling, and simultaneously, the group’s phantom disappeared into the air.
"Weakness Curse!"
"Exorcism Holy Light!"
"Alarad’s Beast Banishment Spell!"
The three maids’ arcane techniques followed closely as the werewolf landed and braced, while the Eleventh Rank Great Witch of Destiny raised her hand and unleashed a famous High Ring Sorcery:
"Death’s Finger!"