In the shadowed depths of a dense forest far from the safety of Mordell's kingdom, a Warlord scout team was on the brink of catastrophe. The team, comprising members from various guilds, had been tasked with surveilling a group of Ifrits, demon-like entities usually solitary by nature. Yet, recent activities suggested something more sinister—a potential gathering or organization among these fearsome creatures.
Jax, the team leader from the GoldenAge Guild, ranked 72nd, pressed forward, ignoring the escalating risks. Alongside him was Ann, also from the GoldenAge Guild and ranked 77th, sharing Jax's reckless confidence. Contrasting their aggressiveness was Mye from the Shadowbliss Guild, ranked 74th, a specialist in communication and intelligence gathering, and Ray, from the Terraformer Guild, ranked 83rd, who served as the group's tank and healer.
As they approached the suspected Ifrit lair, Mye expressed her concerns with increasing urgency. "We don't know what we're dealing with. I strongly advise a retreat with the data we have." She was met with Ray's agreement, who added, "I'm with her. There are at least 15 normal Ifrits, and those two larger ones are an unknown factor. If a fight breaks out, my support magic can only hold for about five minutes."
Jax, driven more by pride than prudence, snapped, "Enough! I'm the team leader here! If you don't like it, you're welcome to head back, but remember the consequences of abandoning a Warlord mission."
Ann smirked, bolstering Jax's decision, reveling in the authority it afforded her over her peers.'Yes you commoners know your fucking place'
However, Ray's acute senses soon picked up a change: several Ifrits had vanished from their initial spots. "Hey, where did they go?" he questioned, a hint of panic in his voice.
Before any magical defenses could be raised, chaos erupted. An unseen Ifrit lunged, its swift attack decapitating Ann and sending her head rolling to Jax's feet. The Ifrits, now descending from the trees with terrifying agility, had completely surprised the Warlords.
"Impossible! How did they detect us?" Jax cried out, his voice laced with disbelief and fear as the team retreated deeper into the woods. Ray quickly cast protective spells on Jax and Mye, while Mye tried to send an information signal using her conjured message hawk. In the chaos, a wooden dagger flew barely missing Mye striking Jax and pinning him to a tree.
"Mye, don't look back! Send that message!" Ray's command was desperate, but Mye couldn't ignore her teammate's screams as the Ifrits began to devour Jax alive. The horror intensified as one of the mutated Ifrits appeared, impaling Ray with brutal force. Mye thought she was seeing things as it appeared the Ifrit purposely missed her and went after Ray. She witnessed Ray's final moments, as a magical energy ball was cruelly forced into his mouth, his head exploding in a gruesome spectacle.
Frozen with terror, Mye stumbled, tripping over a branch. As she looked up, the mutated Ifrit smirked at her, displaying Ray's mangled corpse as other Ifrits feasted. It dawned on Mye that these creatures were not just mutating; they were evolving, gaining abilities that defied their known biological constraints.
Frantically, she inscribed everything she had witnessed into the message hawk, her eyes streaming the memories directly into its magic-infused essence. As she dispatched the hawk, another mutated Ifrit landed before her, encircled by others.
Her heart sank as the lead Ifrit spoke, its words a garbled but unmistakable threat, "No escape… Warlord die." The signal to attack was clear, and the Ifrits closed in.
Resigned to her fate, Mye steeled herself, her final thoughts a whispered apology to her loved ones. As the creatures tore into her, her screams echoed through the forest, a chilling testament to the terrifying evolution unfolding within the Ifrits.