Axel had found a figurine in the ancient records that matched the creature he had killed. It must be a wendigo. It was described as a creature that loved human flesh and could hibernate for long periods without feeding, akin to a winter sleep. This hibernation could last for many years, and the wendigo was said to be as intelligent as a human.
Although Axel was usually calm, he was excited now. He had found another piece of evidence to corroborate his deductions all this time. He believed he could find more.
Maxwell looked at Axel and said, "It's said to be as intelligent as a human. Have you ever tried speaking to it?" "No," Axel was certain the creature wouldn't communicate. Axel never trusted the words of an enemy. If the creature had anything true to say, it would have pleaded when facing death.
If the wendigo gave them false information, it could cast doubt on their investigation. Axel didn't want to confuse himself with something he couldn't verify as true or false. He didn't believe the wendigo, despite its intelligence as described in records, knew much because its activities, according to the records, involved feeding and sleeping.
"Why didn't you try speaking? Maybe we could have learned something," Maxwell looked at Axel inquisitively. "I was sure it wouldn't speak," Axel responded, and Maxwell fell silent after that. He didn't comment on what was true or not because he wasn't sure.
Axel had entered the forest before the RV reached the town. They usually preferred staying in the forest. Axel intended to do some exploration today, while Felix and Maxwell would replenish the water and fuel supplies for the RV.
Considering the supernatural nature of the missing persons cases, Axel decided to conduct his investigation in the forest. After dressing appropriately for the forest, he strapped his axes to his belt and retrieved a map of the area from a drawer in the Rv.
Maxwell usually obtained maps of the places they would travel to in advance, and these maps had accumulated in the drawer.
With the map in hand, Axel descended from the RV. Felix began driving the RV after Axel got off. As they went their separate ways, Axel explored the forest. He wanted to take a shortcut through the forest to reach an asphalt road. The common thread among the missing persons was that they had passed through this road. Despite extensive police investigations, nothing had been found. Recent announcements advised against using the road.
Now only the police passed through that road. They disguised themselves as civilians to deceive the culprit. However, things didn't go as planned, and two police officers went missing. After that incident, everyone believed the area was cursed, and even the police were hesitant to go there.
Axel's biggest suspicion was a vampire coven. One single vampire couldn't have killed so many people in such a short time. Another point was that despite extensive searches, no bodies or traces of missing persons were found, even in the forest.
These vampires could be hiding the bodies. Axel couldn't figure out how they did it.
"Could there be another wendigo?" This question lingered in Axel's mind. Wendigos also consumed only human flesh. But wendigos left some clues behind. Perhaps there could be an advanced version of a wendigo. According to ancient records, there were creatures stronger than wendigos. While Axel wasn't afraid of them, the emergence of any such creature would mean humanity discovering a part of the supernatural world. If humans discovered these creatures, vampires might be next.
Currently, humans didn't believe in the things found in ancient ruins or Egyptian pyramids because there wasn't a single piece of evidence to verify their existence. But if they found such evidence, their first step would be to confirm its authenticity.
Axel believed the likelihood of humans and vampires living together peacefully was very low. The majority would want to destroy vampires. Some would want to experiment on them. A great war could break out. Axel didn't want to live in a chaotic world.
Sometimes, Axel found what the Volturi did to be right. Those men might have been blinded by power and foolish, but they did a good job of ensuring vampires weren't discovered.
Axel knew that if he wasn't ruthless, other vampires wouldn't fear them. If the Volturi hadn't been ruthless, vampires wouldn't have taken them seriously. For now, Axel wasn't bothered by the existence of such a group, so he never fought with them. But if the Volturi caused trouble for Axel, he could kill them.
If there was a community, a leader or responsible individual would be needed. The Volturi did this somewhat well. There was no guarantee the next leader would be better. Most living beings became arrogant when they acquired power. Axel wasn't one of them. He just wanted to be free. He would do whatever he wanted.
Axel wasn't always selfish. In a war between humans and vampires, he was immortal thanks to his abilities. But he worried about Felix and Maxwell. He cared about their safety, so he was cautious.
As the sun moved across the sky, Axel reached the road rumored to be cursed. The surroundings were eerily silent. Not a single living being was in sight. Occasionally, birds could be seen flying in the sky. The sun beat down from above. After examining the road, Axel began walking as if stranded by the side of the road. He walked through the tall trees along the road.
He had seen a few animals on the way but hadn't found any humans yet. But then he encountered a car. The car doors were locked. There was no one inside, and it was clear that no one had forced their way into the car. Since the car windows were completely closed, he couldn't smell what was inside.
Axel began to inspect around the car. When a strong wind blew, Axel caught the scent of blood. He followed the scent and searched for its source. When he found drops of blood on the ground, he traced it with his finger and brought it to his nose. When he smelled it, he opened his eyes. The blood was human. Axel couldn't pick up any other scent, no matter how hard he tried.
Axel had many suspicions. If a vampire had been hunting humans, it would have killed the people on this farm too. If it had been a wendigo, it would have done the same. There had to be something else at work here.
As Axel walked through the cornstalks, he gripped his axe. He was focused on the scents of the humans he had detected, but they weren't speaking. Axel wondered how he should handle this situation as he approached.
In truth, this situation didn't concern Axel, but when he considered the possibility of a vampire army forming, he wanted to check this place. There had to be a reason why no bodies of the missing persons were found. Axel emerged from among the cornstalks. The farmhouse was within sight, and no one was in the yard. Axel sensed one person in the barn and several others inside the house.
Axel didn't want his face to be seen in a situation where he wouldn't kill the person in front of him. If the people on this farm were innocent, Axel would be in trouble.
Axel took a black mask from his belt and tied it over his face. His mouth and nose were covered. Only the top of his nose was uncovered. Since he sensed only humans around, he put his axe away and
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