As Damiond saw the soldiers retreating, he ordered his monsters to come out of the cave. The ant monster cleared the snow for the worm monster as they both crawled out of the cave.
The reason Damiond wanted these monsters back was mainly because of the worm monster. The ant monster was at most a low-level creature, easily replaceable. But the worm monster—due to its unique ability to dig caves—was rare and hard to replace.
As the phoenix knelt down, the ant crawled onto its back, injuring the phoenix with its sharp eight legs. But in no time, those wounds healed themselves.
The ant monster settled on top of the phoenix. It swung its wings, flying upward, and then grabbed the worm monster with its two feet. Carrying both of these monsters was hard for the phoenix, but not impossible. With a strong flap of its wings, it lifted both creatures and vanished into the storm after a few moments.
At the same time, a bone hit Damiond on his back. As he looked back, the woman was sitting beside the fire, resting her back against the wall.
"You know, it's too late to reflect on your mistakes," she said in a mocking tone.
Damiond's face lit up with anger and annoyance as he replied, "How many times do I have to tell you? I'm controlling the monsters, not just sitting around."
"Yeah, yeah. Keep telling yourself that," she replied, completely unserious.
A vein popped on Damiond's forehead, but this time he stayed silent. He knew she would only annoy him more if he argued.
He had already ordered the phoenix to come back with the other two monsters, but it would take some time. He walked back toward the fire, grabbed a piece of meat hanging over it, and lay down beside the flames, resting his back against the cave wall.
The woman looked at him, her face full of irritation.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
A small smirk appeared on his face as he took a bite of meat. After finishing his meal, he closed his eyes, taking a small nap. He could feel her gaze falling on him, sharp like a blade cutting through his soul, but he didn't pay it any attention.
After some time, as he sensed the phoenix nearing, he opened his eyes. Instead of calling them in, he walked outside. Reaching the entrance of the cave, he saw all three of his monsters—the phoenix, the worm, and the ant—all looking at him. Or at least facing in his direction, since two of them didn't even have eyes.
His army had grown, but it was nowhere near enough for now. So he ordered the phoenix to go hunt—kill as many humans and monsters as it could.
For the ant, he gave different orders. It needed to scout around for a new cave or shelter near their current location. After all, he didn't want their home smelling like corpses. It already stank enough after dragging in a few dead bodies.
As for the worm, he ordered it to come inside and start digging. For now, the plan was to escape toward the south. Most of the western and eastern areas were already under the control of sword master and mage families. And the north? That area mostly belonged to the beast families—not to mention they didn't welcome outsiders, no matter where they came from.
So logically, the south was the best option for now. It was mostly tribal lands, and neither mage nor sword master families had real influence there. At most, just a few proxy groups. The south also had huge mountains and jungles that stretched so long, you could travel for months and still not escape them. Even if his family's soldiers followed him, catching him or tracking him would be nearly impossible.
As his other two monsters left, he walked in front of the worm and returned inside the cave. In a storm like this, coming back to a warm shelter felt like pure relief. The sound of burning wood made him yawn, even though he had only taken a short nap.
He thought about what to do next, but nothing came to mind. They had enough wood for now; he'd gone to chop some yesterday. The food supplies were also enough to last for a while.
With no other plan, he walked to the fire, sat beside it, and leaned back. He closed his eyes—not for a short nap this time, but for proper sleep.
When he woke up, a beautiful aroma of cooked meat filled the cave. As he looked around, he saw the Elira putting more wood on the fire. The delicious smell made his stomach growl.
But before eating, he focused his mind and checked what his monsters were doing. The worm had already dug a few miles of tunnels. In a few more days, it would be enough to escape this place.
The ant was inside a new cave and—
As Damiond focused his mind on the phoenix, his whole body shivered at the scene. Almost a hundred humans, including a few aura masters… fifty wolf monsters… and some other beasts were lying dead across the ground in the new cave the ant monster had found.
His eyes widened for a moment. He knew the phoenix had some intelligence of its own, that's why he had given it the role of commanding the other two monsters. But this… this was on a whole different level.
Such precision. Such a clean massacre. The bodies weren't just randomly scattered—they were piled, organized almost, like trophies. Blood soaked the ground, steam still rising from the flesh that had been burned.
For a second, Damiond felt his stomach twist.
The phoenix stood in the middle of the cave, its wings slightly open, glowing faintly like embers ready to burst. Its dark red feathers cracked with burning light, its eyes scanning the area like it was proud of what it had done.
Damiond couldn't help but feel a chill crawl down his back. His own creation… made him nervous.
"Maybe I overdid it…" he muttered under his breath, but deep down, a small grin still tugged at the corner of his lips.
If even he was getting scared of his own monster… then his enemies wouldn't stand a damn chance.