Their footsteps sank into the damp soil, melting into the silence, as if the earth itself was holding its breath. There was no sign of life... no flowing water, no distant roar, no creeping shadows.
Only... the scent of soil, and the sound of dry leaves crunching beneath their feet.
The employer, staring into the void ahead, said: "What did you expect? The monsters won't appear the moment we arrive. We have to wait... until one or two show up, then we take them down."
He said it with the ease of someone talking about moving a box or cracking a walnut... as if killing monsters was child's play.
I sat on a flat-ish rock, poured a bit of water into my dry throat, while everyone else settled into waiting positions: some took out light snacks, others started chatting to ease the tension.
Luxian—as expected—was surrounded by those wanting to get close to him.
Knox sat alone, his eyes gazing at the horizon without blinking.
The forty-something man? He was asleep... sleeping peacefully as if he were on a beach.
I shook my head in disbelief. Was he really that confident? Or did he simply think "monster hunting" wasn't even worth waking up for?
Me? I was drowning in my thoughts.
"So this is the new world... no way back. Will a monster suddenly attack us? Will the employer protect us? Or... will the weak be left behind as prey?"
I was in the middle of a storm of anxiety... until I heard it.
"RAAAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!"
The sound... wasn't normal. It was like something was dragging claws through my ears, pressing down on my soul. Like the air itself exploded into screams.
My hands started shaking, and my spear almost slipped from my grip.
I wasn't alone—everyone's faces changed, eyes wide, bodies tensed.
The employer shouted loudly: "Everyone behind me! Now!"
Everyone moved quickly... except me.
My legs were frozen, like roots of an ancient tree. I screamed inside: "What's wrong with you?! Move! MOVE NOW!" But my body refused.
Suddenly, I remembered something from anime... the ability to "paralyze with sound." And one of the ways to break it: pain.
I looked at the spear... hesitated. "I hate pain... I hate it more than anything." But I don't want to die.
I stabbed my thigh.
A muffled scream burst from my lips as burning pain spread like fire through my leg. Blood began to flow. The pain was unbearable... but it made me move.
Stumbling, I made it behind the line of workers. The employer yelled the moment he saw me: "What is this?! Why are you bleeding?! What did you do, you idiot?!"
I didn't answer. I couldn't.
"Go to the cart! There's a man there who'll treat you. Hurry!"
I went. Reached the cart, my mind foggy. The forty-something man—still the same—looked at me with slight surprise, then returned to his calm. "Lie down."
I lay down, and he began wrapping my leg expertly. Who is this man? I thought he was just extra muscle for the team, but he clearly knew what he was doing.
Another scream tore through the forest, but this time... I wasn't affected. Why? Why was I the only one who got affected the first time? Was it because I'm the weakest? Or... is something different about me?
Before I could finish the thought—
---
I saw it... the massive thing crawling toward us, its body looking like a mix of burning coal and mud. Its arm twisted around itself in ways only nightmares would show. Its face? Or what could be called a face, changed like a distorted painting unsure of what form to take.
It was more terrifying than I imagined, more than any monster I'd seen in anime or manhwa. I used to think monsters, being creatures from other worlds, would share at least some traits. But this... was completely different. Not like the usual ones from stories—this was stranger, more horrifying, like it didn't belong to this world or any world I knew.
Why? Why this shape? Are monsters really beings from other worlds? If so, why does this one look so uniquely terrifying? My questions crowded my head as I watched it, feeling so small and weak in its presence, like I was just a tiny piece of a much bigger puzzle.
---
The monster crawled slowly and heavily, and every time its claws touched the ground, the soil beneath would start to burn. Its cries were horrifying, unlike anything I'd ever heard—strange noises tearing through the air. I covered my ears, trying to block the sounds, but my heart was pounding like it wanted to burst out of my chest.
Suddenly, I heard the employer shout, ordering everyone to fall back immediately. He took a deep breath, then began walking forward with steady, imposing steps toward the monster. He held his wooden spear tightly, as if it were a weapon of destiny.
Without warning, he jumped high—so high I didn't think a normal person could reach it—and drove his spear deep into the monster's head. The monster screamed a painful, deafening cry, thrashing its massive body against the ground. The sound was huge, like an echo of unheard torment.
The employer approached the monster and slowly raised his fist. And just as the tension peaked, we all heard a massive sound, like an explosion:
"BOOOOOOOOOOM!"
That was the last thing I heard before everything went black.