__________ POV Ashton__________
The journey to the Swamps will take me at least 2 months. That is without any stops and with no need to rest.
That's also not taking into account any distractions or events that might happen on my way there. So the real journey might take a few weeks more.
I also have to circle back around where I came from. Otherwise, the journey would take at least 5 months.
And I am also moving at a pretty slow pace, I can't really hurry lest I want to attract another stupid swarm of beasts.
I've already been flying for a month. With short stops to rest and to do some light reading on the Compendium of the wild hunt.
It seems that Brion has been listed as a parasitic entity. So my gut instinct was right in not letting it touch anything at all.
Its methods of possession aren't really known at all. But the book called the seed indestructible. So I guess I'll have to hold on to it for quite a while.
I have already passed by the mountain in which I took out the Paps.
I really don't know what became of them, but I don't really feel like finding out. I already grabbed a specimen of their species.
I doubt that was every single one of them dead though. The mountain should still have quite a few left. This would explain why there are no other lifeforms still on the mountain.
It was just as barren as I remembered it. But I now know that the Paps are likely still present there.
There was also the nest of the Roc. I passed by it since I didn't wish to take an unexplored route for no reason.
It seems the mindless legendary beast didn't win that battle.
But that was to be expected. No matter how strong it looked to be, how much it dominated the fight in the beginning, it still went down to the legion of beasts.
Numbers are sometimes better than pure strength. Well, only if the numbers also have a certain level of strength.
A million ants would still get shredded to pieces against a Roc, but a million 'Blood Vultures' would likely peck its flesh away in minutes.
All I could see was its picked apart skeleton, a hole in its skull the size of a great tree. The fight was definitely not a short one though.
The forest is unrecognizable, the trees and the ground are all ruined beyond any recognition. It's quite clear that this Roc was completely overwhelmed once it had tired itself out.
I just continued my journey, not staying there for too long. And, I eventually reached the point I am at right now.
In front of a broken down camp, following traces of blood out of sheer curiosity.
I mean, it's not like I didn't warn Curly of how fucked this expedition was going to be. So their deaths are not on me in any capacity.
Well, assuming they died anyway. Beyond seemed to be strong enough to survive. So did Marione and Golem, but I can't be too sure, it depends on what they actually ran into.
I followed the traces of blood all the way to a large cave entrance. I think I can guess what has happened here.
This cave looks exactly like the nest of a certain powerful predator called 'The Bloodseeker'. I think it's grabbed the members of the expedition to keep for an evening meal or something.
I guess I can pay them a visit. I still have a long way to go until I reach my objective. I wonder how many of them are still alive?
I mean, the Bloodseeker is the weakest possible predator of this level. So I guess they do have some chances of surviving.
If the Bloodseeker ran into a swarm of beasts it would probably die in seconds. But I guess that's a bit of an unfair matchup.
This spider does have decent attack power, but it barely has any defences. It's simply not built to take hits.
I can actually take care of this spider without even using much Nen. So I guess I'll just enter this place without worrying too much.
The entrance was covered in a blood-red silky spider web. Now, this spider web would be annoying to break without using Nen. But I can always just enter through the small holes to the side.
The entrance of this cave is around 50 meters(164 feet) tall and 40 meters(131 feet) wide. It's not exactly a small beast per see, but it's also not really a massive one.
I entered the cave through a gap in between the web and the wall of about half a meter(1.6 feet). Then I started going in with minimal effort. Using Gyo minimally just to see properly.
There weren't any web traps along the way, but that's to be expected. The Bloodseeker wasn't really known as a 'cunning' beast even when it was intelligent.
Now it's even less so. It's probably even gone to sleep after securing some of its food. The food should be from the expedition team.
At least I think it's them unless there was another group of humans randomly camping near here.
I made my way through the long caverns. I eventually reached a large open area, I could see the spider in the middle.
It's a large spider with a soft red exoskeleton and a scorpion tail. It also has 10 slender legs that are covered in the same soft exoskeleton.
Its poison can be annoying, but it's just the type that causes hallucinations.
It seemed to be sleeping like I expected it to be. It's just in a sitting position with all of its eyes closed.
But it seems that the members of the expedition team are here. Two of them even managed to skillfully break out of their web bindings.
I could see Ging and Marione silently struggling to break out more of their teammates. But they weren't really making much progress.
They also haven't noticed me at all, I guess they are extremely focused on not making any sound.
Look at them be all crouched up and waiting for an opportunity to rip apart the webbing of their teammates.
I slowly walked up behind them and looked at them for a bit. They didn't look all that uninjured, I guess they did try to fight it at first.
There were also others awake, well, the only people that were asleep were Curly and that sushi chef. They likely didn't manage to resist the effects of the hallucinogenic poison.
"What are you guys up to?!" I said in a loud voice. Making everyone that wasn't under the effect of the hallucinations jump in fear. (or wiggle around I guess)
Ging slowly turned around with wide eyes, I just blinked a bit and stared at them. They were all giving me an angry look. While looking at the spider in fear.
It was still sleeping by the way. The Bloodseeker doesn't have the ability to hear or feel the sound waves that humans release.
"The spider's deaf," I said in an even tone, keeping a normal smile on my face. If Curly was awake he'd be able to tell them the same.
But it seems that he's focused more on his academic studies than on his Nen and poison resistance.
Then I could see Ging and Beyond sigh in relief. Marione still looked at me with some anger, but I guess it's more for me sneaking up on her.
I shrugged a bit and asked again.
"Soo... You guys need any help?" Looking at them struggle might be fun, but some of them are still people I get along with.
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