Dion, after he left their sight, he began walking slowly and vigilantly. He had already come across a sleeping, large bear-like creature.
He tried to silently squeeze through the gaps of two trees and avoid stepping on fallen twigs or anything that made noise.
After his awakening was completed, the super senses he initially received got nerfed so badly that he could hardly see in the dark. But his hearing and senses of smell were a little better.
'Damn! If my paranoia is wrong, I will kill it. Also, I selected a random direction. Let's pray the next village isn't far away. Drastic action is cool but the repercussions aren't funny.'
Suddenly, his ears picked up a light but crunchy sound from behind. Dion snappily turned back. His eyes darted around in search of what or who was coming. If not for his improved hearing, he wouldn't have heard it.
Using his thumb, Dion unlocked his box.
He held his breath. His heart galloped wildly like an untamed stallion. Beads of sweat began forming on his forehead. Even his palm slowly turned slick with sweat.
Now, Dion was ready to drop Karen and attack with the chain that took the life of the jailer.
"What a sharp hearing," a human voice commended from the dark.
But Dion kept his vigilance. Humans can be more dangerous than wild beasts. Walking upright doesn't make them any better than beasts. Some of them are just talking beasts camouflaged in a different skin with vicious intellect.
"It's me. No need to be tense."
Dion saw Liana emerging from the depths of the dark woods.
Squinting his eyes, Dion stared at Liana. If he read Luke to be a lurking serpent, then he couldn't fathom what Liana's goal is.
"Why are you following me?" Dion asked.
"I'm not comfortable with Luke, so I decided to join you," Liana said with a calm smile.
It is her calmness that made her difficult to read.
"Why wouldn't you feel comfortable around Luke?" Dion questioned.
"Well, if you are informed, you should know that elves have the 'eyes of truth'. So, it helps me see through the facade. Luke has a darkness lurking in his heart," Liana explained because she saw Dion still being tense.
Dion nodded and then asked, "Why should I let you follow me at the risk of you working with Luke? Maybe this might be a game or his plan."
Liana placed one hand on her waist. "Untrusting, I see." Then she used her other hand to rhythmically tap her forehead with closed eyes while thinking.
Dion tilted his head in confusion at what 'black art' she was performing.
"Got it." Liana's eyes snapped open. "I know the next village."
"That makes you 'Luke' in different skin and gender," Dion retorted calmly.
"I have good eyes. If you travel in the dark, your chances of dying are about ninety percent. With me, your chances of survival increase to fifty percent. If that's not enough, I have a way of communicating with nature and trees which helps avoid danger. My healing ability is a plus.
And lastly, I know the way to a village in this direction. Going in a circle without a source of water will just drain you," Liana placed her chips on the table.
"With all that, why can't you go solo? Why bother going with somebody?" Dion asked, not believing her easily.
"Because those are all supporting abilities. I can't fight." Liana folded her arms across her chest.
Dion stared at her for a while.
Dion rummaged through his brain in deep thought, 'This is just 'Luke' in another form but I have no choice but to go with this one. I can't keep walking aimlessly in the dark. The previous beast nearly woke up because I saw it late.'
"Fine, come with me." Dion continued his journey with a partner he wouldn't want.
Liana asked after walking in silence for a while. "Why did you suspect Luke? I don't think you have any kind of ability to do that since you have a battle-type bloodline." However, she kept her tone low to avoid attracting unwanted attention.
Dion trailed behind in silence, refusing to talk. Liana led the way but Dion kept rapt attention with vigilant eyes, not to inadvertently follow her in direction towards Luke's proposed direction.
"Who is she to you? The girl on your back. You guys seem close," Liana asked.
"You never talked before when with Luke, so why can't you be quiet now?" Dion groaned in frustration.
"Nothing interested me then. But the relationship between you guys' sparked my interest. It's not a secretive and forbidden relationship, right? So you can just tell me," Liana pressed on.
Dion was quiet for a moment before replying, "Two strangers from the past with different goals and lifestyles meet each other in the present at a crossroads and decide to cooperate. That's our relationship."
Liana's brain short-circuited for a moment as she tried to process what Dion said. She couldn't glean anything useful from what he just said.
"So, what happens to the future?" She couldn't help but blurt.
"Leave that to fate," Dion responded.
Suddenly, Dion heard another sound from behind. He sharply turned around. Even Liana turned as she heard it.
Dion threw Liana a skeptical gaze. His eyes seethed with suspicion. Even his stance became guarded.
"It's not me," Liana quickly defended herself.
"Would you continue hiding? I see you, Luke," Liana turned and yelled at the dark, where the sound originated.
"You got me. The eyes of elves truly see the distance and tear apart the facade," a calm voice echoed from the depth.
It made Dion's heart clench as he felt a bad premonition.
Dion and Liana stood side by side, their gaze fixed upon the dense and mysterious forest that stretched out before them. The air was heavy with anticipation as they remained vigilant, their senses heightened, ready for any sign of movement or danger.
As the night wore on, a profound stillness enveloped the surroundings, broken only by the faint rustling of leaves carried by a gentle breeze.
Suddenly, amidst the inky blackness, a pair of vivid green eyes materialized, gleaming like ethereal emeralds. They seemed to hover in the distance, captivating yet enigmatic.
Dion and Liana held their breath, their hearts pounding in their chests, as the enigmatic eyes steadily drew nearer.
"Elf bloodline… no, that's not right. I can't feel anything. Wait… slit eyes…" Liana stared deeply at the incoming being with held breath.
Dion held his breath because the pair of eyes made his skin crawl.
As Luke stepped into their field of vision, Dion's eyes widened in disbelief and astonishment. What he saw defied all logic and comprehension. Luke, once a familiar face, now appeared transformed, his features distorted and infused with an eerie presence.
Green scales adorned Luke's neck and extended down his arm, glistening in the faint light. They seemed to shimmer and flow, lending an otherworldly quality to his appearance. The sight of those reptilian scales juxtaposed against his human form sent a shiver down Dion's spine.
A sense of unease washed over Dion as he noticed black saliva dripping from Luke's mouth, forming dark, viscous droplets that fell to the ground. The sight was disconcerting, evoking a primal instinct to retreat from the unknown.
But it was Luke's tongue that held Dion's gaze. His once ordinary tongue now split like a forked serpent's tongue. It slithered out from his mouth, darting between his lips as he licked them in an unsettling manner. The unnerving sight made him cringe.
Confusion and a mix of emotions flooded Dion's mind. He struggled to reconcile the image of the familiar face he had known with this unsettling metamorphosis. Questions multiplied within him.
Dion's disbelief mingled with a creeping sense of foreboding.
However, Liana reacted differently; she moved a step backward in fear.
She stuttered, "A-A-A Nagani bloodline… that i-is half-corrupted."
"What's Nagani?" Dion asked as he could feel her fear.
"Serpent."
Dion calmly stated, "It's just a serpent. We can–"
"You don't understand. He's half-corrupted, meaning he's changing into a beast. An evil one. Being a beast means he could use the element of the beast. POISON! Even his physique is boosted." Liana explained anxiously, her eyes not leaving Luke.
Luke just kept looking at them with playful eyes like a predator watching its cornered prey joke. His all-green eyes with a slit in the middle blinked.
Luke smirked and displayed his lengthened pair of canines that had elongated like the fangs of a serpent. He spoke playfully, "Well, well, well…"