Chapter 465 An Individual
Chapter 465 An Individual
"Yep, confirmed it. With my spatial magic, you can easily travel with me."
When Shin mentioned that after returning, both Pekka and Rekka now had enthusiastic expressions on their faces.
They thought they had to give up their plan of leaving the place, but it looked like Shin's plan would work just fine!
"And this way, I can even store all of you inside. What do you say?" Shin asked.
Pekka and Rekka initially wanted other souls to stay here, to look after their area. They didn't want any other souls to take over the place.
But they too realized others were also excited to take a look at the outside world. Mostly they would be trapped inside the inventory, but they could still see what was going on outside if they wanted.
Pekka and Rekka smirked at Shin's explanation. Both of them turned back and stared at all the souls who were right behind them.
"Did you not hear him?"
"Whoever wants to join us, come and gather here!" Rekka screamed with all his might, his voice echoing throughout the place.
Indeed, as he announced that, all the souls almost instantly vanished and appeared in a cluster quite close to Shin.
Without wasting any further time, Shin explained to them about his spatial magic and stored them away in his inventory.
The large space was now empty, devoid of life, with the shadow wolves being the exceptions as they hid away in Shin's shadow.
Either way, Shin was now ready to leave the desert, which he did almost instantly, running away from the valley.
"I need to know what has happened..." His heart was restless, causing his throat to dry up.
Again and again, only the worst possibilities kept flooding his mind. But Shin stood strong, trying to stay positive without jumping to conclusions.
Using his skills, it didn't take him long to reach the edge of the desert.
Ahead was the Bona Kingdom... Or at least, it should have been.
"Wha-?" Shin was puzzled at the sight of broken walls and the burnt remains of the kingdom.
It hadn't been long since Shin had left the place, and the last time he had seen it, the walls stood tall!
But now, only silent ruins covered the area.
"What just happened?" Shin had no idea about the situation, completely confused. It was as if a large storm had been stirred, yet he was somehow left out.
He activated his all-seeing eyes, trying to find even the slightest clue, only to end up more confused.
"No corpses either?" Shin was baffled, as not even a drop of blood or any bodies were found in the surroundings.
"That's weird... with such large-scale destruction, how can there be no casualties?" Shin thought about it for a second or two.
He couldn't waste his time investigating the situation, but it was indeed surprising. Nevertheless, ignoring it, he was about to leave when a bright flash of red light surrounded the ruins of the kingdom - it was as if the light descended from the sky!
Shin raised his gaze, looking at the night sky. There appeared to be a hole through which the light pierced down to the earth, and from the light, something descended, whose mere presence caused Deoras and the Shadow wolves hiding away to tremble in fear.
With their fur raised, every strand feeling the mighty presence, all the shadow wolves cowered.
Numerous portals covered in a red haze opened up, and from them, various beings descended - each with a different shape.
Most of them had wings on their backs, red skin, and a spear in their hands. Two horns adorned their bald heads. Their eyes were sharp and red, like their rough skin. A tail with a pointy tip extended behind them. They were naked, with the only exception of a small bush-like covering that concealed their pelvic region.
Some were gigantic, which made them devoid of wings. With large portals opening, they walked down, behind and around Shin, surrounding him and facing the being that was levitating in the sky and still descending.
They all bowed down with respect and fear.
"M-master..." Deoras and the others were forced out of the shadows.
Shin was surprised by what had happened, seeing them appear outside.
Forcibly, all the shadow wolves ended up kneeling on the ground, their bellies touching the earth. It was as if a dominating pressure weighed down on them.
Shin was the only one among the 1000 beings in the vicinity to stand strong. Despite feeling the pressure, his gaze remained as sharp as ever. He refused to bow down!
*Ding*
[Strong killing intent detected.]
'Yeah, I can tell that much,' Shin said to himself as his eyes met the individual.
The individual had a red glow surrounding him, making it hard to look at him, but Shin's all-seeing eyes made the task easier.
Two horns sat on his head, and he had long, brownish-red hair that fell to shoulder level. Following that were earrings or ear ornaments that were similarly red. He had bright golden eyes combined with red skin and a well-defined six-pack that was revealing. The being in front appeared to be a young adult, presumably male.
With a gigantic club in his left hand, resting on his shoulder, the being stared directly at Shin. Adjusting his royal shawl that clung to his upper body, he continued to gaze at Shin, releasing the killing intent and bloodlust without any attempt to hide it.
He blinked once or twice before a smile appeared on his face.
"Shin?" he called out. His voice was not too loud but audible. Shin heard it loud and clear, and he stared more intently upon the mention.
He expected lightning to strike as usual when his name was called out. However, even after a few seconds, no such thing happened.
"No thundering... then..."
[Yes, by no means is he inferior to you.]
Shin nodded, agreeing with the system.
"Alright, time to return to human form..." muttering to himself, he changed his form and regained his human appearance. It had been a little inconvenient, which was why he had changed to the wolf form a few hours earlier. But now, he transformed.
He walked a few steps further and then raised his head again, replying to the initial calling of his name, "Yes?"
And the moment he did that, a bigger smile replaced the previous one, followed by a chuckle and laughter.
"Shin! I knew it! It was you!"
The being vanished and reappeared in front of Shin almost instantly.
"My eyes couldn't follow his movements!" Shin was rather surprised by the sudden teleportation.
The being took a step and then hugged Shin.
"Shin!"
It wasn't an attempt to kill, for the killing intent and the bloodlust had already subsided.
However, the hug was tight and strong.
"Ugh..." Shin could feel his bones crackling, and it seemed the individual felt it too.
Creak-
Upon this sound, the individual broke his hug, taking a step back. With a playful stare, the individual chuckled, "Come on, dude, so weak?"
Shin didn't know who the being was, but it was as if he knew Shin. Shin merely nodded his head without saying anything else.
"Your powers have been sealed or something?" the individual inquired.
Shin didn't reply to this either. With his gaze fixated on the ground, he merely nodded his head.
"Looks like you've been through some stuff," the individual said with a soft voice filled with sympathy. "But nevertheless, you fulfilled your promise, and I will do so mine."
"Promise?" Shin was surprised.
'What promise is he talking about?' While confusion shrouded his mind, he didn't let it show on his face.
"Tell me, where is Aella?"
"Uh... what?" Shin couldn't understand the situation.
'How does he know about Aella?'
'Who is he!?'
Again and again, he was being baffled and puzzled.
"You want my help to free her, right? Come on, tell me. Whom should I kill? Where to go?"
Shin understood the gravity of the situation. He did not want to let the stranger know that he knew nothing about him, but he didn't want to let go of the opportunity either.
He had made no promise, but there seemed to be a misunderstanding. The man was ready to help him, so why reject?
"In the forest, my clan..."
"It's not just Aella; all of my people are in danger..." Shin said, trying to bring the man to help him further.
"What!? Who dares to put my friend's men in danger!? Who is it? Tell me, and I will rip their arms, cut their heads, and drag them to your feet," the man's hair fluttered as he spoke, as if he was enraged.
His voice was like a roaring lion, carrying pressure.
"Ahem, you can do that later... for now, I need to reach the town first," Shin said.
Hearing that, the man calmed down.
"Let's do that first," he replied, releasing the pressure under which the shadow wolves were.
Deoras and the others remained in their places, merely watching them converse.
Shin turned back, about to leave when the man stopped.
"Where are you going?"
"Uh, to the forest?"
"..."
"A walk? Why not teleport?"
Upon this questioning, Shin thought that the being might end up suspecting or doubting something. Hence, to cleverly tackle it, Shin said, "I thought we could exchange a few words on the way..."
"But you are right. Their safety is first! We can chat later... Why don't you teleport all of us to the center of the forest that lies ahead?"
Hearing that, the individual chuckled and replied, "Surely!"
'Safe...'