After walking around aimlessly, trying to find the boss monster in the challenging forest terrain, Jash and Caera finally found a cave near the only river inside the dungeon.
It was inconspicuous at first, making the twins circle it once before they finally noticed it due to the putrid smell.
"Why does it smell so bad?" Caera complained, covering her nose with her left hand, wielding daggers in her right.
Although Jash appeared nonchalant without trying to shield his nose, he nodded wordlessly as he stood in front of the cave, his senses sharpened with a primal warning.
The air hung heavy with the metallic tang of blood, mingled with the earthy scent of damp moss and fresh bark.
He had a hard time differentiating them at first, but he managed to work with it within a span of seconds.
'Thank whoever gave me the past life memories, or this would be so much worse,' he felt gratitude towards the memory giver for the first time.
If not for having seen and felt the vivid sensations of far worse scenarios, he feared that he might've fainted from the strong scent of blood.
"Just what happened here?" Caera muttered in a confused tone, barely holding herself from puking at the sight of the cave's entrance.
"I don't know about that, but it sure screams that it is the location of the boss monster," Jash responded as he scrutinized the entrance.
Just like the nearby walls, it had rocks mounting it before a wide gap appeared. Though it appeared entirely dark due to the lack of light.
With the trees working as natural camouflage in front of it, few rays of light pierced the dense canopy, making it difficult to find the irregularity due to the decreased visiblity.
It seemed the perfect place for a boss monster to settle, but the confusing thing was the red pool on the ground around the entry, with ominous claw marks all around.
Rivers of crimson stained the earth, contrasting starkly against the verdant hues of the forest floor, a stark reminder of violence amidst the tranquility of nature.
'It seems like some infighting occurred here?' Jash guessed in his heart as he observed the nearby areas for any clue.
A few scars marred the tree trunks, jagged claw marks etched onto the bark with desperate effort that spoke of the helplessness against a formidable foe.
Each mark seemed to pulse with a foreboding energy, as if the very essence of the creature that made them wasn't spared any mercy.
Looking at the haphazard and light marks, Jash formulated a scenario where two (F+)-rank wolves fought each other along with their followers, vying for dominance.
'Wait a minute! Isn't there that wolf too? Did it really go after its own kin?'
Jash shivered at just the thought of fighting such a crazy monster; alas, the boss monster, new or old, was supposed to be inside.
His hand tightened around the hilt of his sword, the weight of familiarity and memories of a lifetime filled with battles etched into its familiar grip.
His heart remained as calm as a serene lake despite the frightening scene in front of him, a mixture of caution and finality driving him forward despite the ominous signs before him.
Turning his head to face Caera, he approved of her adjustment to this nightmarish scene.
"Adjust as much as you can, we're going in," he whispered in a hushed tone, wary of even the whistling wind as his senses tingled.
Every nerve in his body tingled with awareness, every sense attuned to the slightest hint of danger in this abnormal place.
"What? Why?" Caera questioned his decision in an alarmed manner, unable to understand the change in his attitude.
Wasn't he the one who kept persuading me to ignore that berserk wolf? So why, of all times, is he saying something like that now!?
"Keep it low!" Jash commanded before explaining, "The wolf you wish to fight is probably inside too, and if not, it's still worth it if it belongs to the boss monster."
Hearing his reasons, she stood stunned before a disgusted expression appeared on her face. She just couldn't get used to this sight of carnage.
In that moment, she felt a hand clasp her shoulder, surprising her as she looked at his determined expression and steeled herself.
"I am the stronger one! I should be the one consoling him," she mumbled to herself as she clenched her fists on the dagger's hilt.
In that moment, as the twins stood at the threshold of the wolf den turned river house, they knew they weren't contending against merely a beast of the wild.
They were going to face off an embodiment of raw, untamed power that dared to challenge even one's sanity in the deepest part of the forest.
Meanwhile the two, Kesha and Emma, were observing them with Emma frowning as she muttered, "I hope they don't enter."
For some reason, she was feeling uneasy for a while and all it took was a single glance at the anomaly for her to hold it accountable for her feelings.
Beside her, Kesha wore a serious and determined expression as she meticulously observed the twins' movements before speaking.
"I think they will go in."
Hearing her, Emma immediately glared at her, "Kes, can't you say some nice word-"
"Look," Kesha interrupted as she pointed to the distance, "They're going inside."
"There's just no way-" Emma's words got stuck in her throat as she froze on the spot before blaming Kesha.
"You just jinxed it Kesha!"
Kesha just shook her head at her sister's exaggerated worries and jumped to follow the twins from a distance where she could hop in to save them any time.
Despite her grumbling Emma too followed, staying a bit closer to the twins, just in case, as she still blamed herself for not being able to prevent Jash from getting cursed two years ago.
Although no one else blamed her, she herself did.
As she followed the twins, they came across many disgusting sights, such as the entrails and viscera of wolves, and some small animals with their heads squashed on the ground..
Caera naturally couldn't hold it in for a long time and puked multiple times, emptying her already empty stomach, just releasing bile.
Each time this happened, Jash stayed by her side, making sure she adjusted as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, his bravado only gave rise to suspicions in Emma's mind.
Even though she knew that Jash was a talented genius, given his unconquerable achievement during his awakening, she couldn't help but doubt.
After all, raw talent and experience were two entirely different things.
One might be talented in fighting, but if they never bothered practicing, they would find the idea of hurting and injuring someone slightly repulsive.
This was one of the reasons Emma had been scrutinizing Jash for any discrepancy since she saw him remain calm while Caera threw up.
Fortunately, Jash didn't show off his sword mastery, which could be considered at the level of a veteran A-Rank hunter.
Naturally, his body couldn't handle it right now, but his sword mastery was truly terrifying.
Well, just his indifference made her skeptical, let alone seeing his mastery of combat.
Unaware of such things, Jash walked further into the cave, dimly lit with luminous moss, before he finally entered a larger cavern.