It had been three years since the incident at the Cranberry Village.
After killing Al, Gunner eventually killed the rest of the villagers except for his mother. She was afraid and was forced to flee with Gunner without knowing why she and her son were spared.
"Mother, have some meat."
Gunner grilled meat on top of thin sheets of rock. Under it was burning wood, crackling from the heat.
He stabbed the meat with a fork and passed it to his mother.
Just like Gunner, she had black hair and blue eyes. Her long hair hung behind her as she stared at Gunner in a daze. Her face was nothing exceptional, and she appeared haggard.
Gunner had grown a lot ever since then. His muscles grew bigger, and he lost the innocent look on his face. However, he still looked deceiving.
His mother's name was Maria. She took the fork from him and bit into the meat.
After they escaped the village, Maria had been lost in thought. Everyone in the village died except her and Gunner. It was traumatizing, to say the least.
Gunner felt sad about her current state, but he endured, believing that it was temporary.
"Gunner…"
Her raspy voice called out.
"Yes?"
Gunner tilted his head. His mature yet kind face was lit up by the fire.
"I have been wondering, what meat is this?"
Upon hearing her long sentence, Gunner's eyes lit up.
"They're delicious, right, Mother?"
Gunner smiled and nodded his head.
"Yeah…"
Maria averted her eyes and nodded back. This was not the first time she asked this question. Each time, Gunner would avoid answering the question.
The meat tasted delicious, but the taste was odd. She couldn't put her finger on what animal it was. Or rather, if it was even an animal.
Maria gulped, suppressing the guess in her heart, and silently ate the cooked meat.
Mother has been asking so much lately. I need to hunt animals. I don't want Mother to break.
Gunner took a bite of meat. Feeling satisfied with his cooking, he smiled.
In the corner of the cave, Valatina chuckled lightly. She had been following the duo ever since then. She never showed herself to his mother.
Gunner has become a devil so it's not cannibalism for him, but he is twisted to keep feeding that to his mother. Kakaka.
She was amused. She knew it was only a matter of time before his mother realized what she had been eating.
The night deepened as the outside grew quiet.
Gunner walked outside of the cave after seeing Maria fall asleep. Behind him followed Valatina. She was like his shadow, always maintaining the same distance.
"Kakaka. You are almost at the next stage. Since you are a human turned devil, you need to improve your transformation ability. Once you reach the next stage, you can transform parts of your body without doing a full transformation."
If anyone saw Gunner, they would never imagine that he was a devil because he kept his human appearance by default.
Licking his lips, Gunner spoke. "Do I need to drink more blood?"
"Kakaka. They have no more effect since there are only mortals here. Why don't you eat their hearts raw?"
"H-Heart…"
Gunner's face twitched, looking apprehensive.
"Oh? You hate eating their heart?"
"Yeah… I tried biting one a while back. I still prefer drinking blood."
Gunner frowned.
"Kakaka!" Valatina laughed.
Gunner walked along the sides of the mountain. He sniffed the scent of humans in the air.
Before long, he reached a human settlement.
A campfire with dying embers was surrounded by mud houses covered with leaves. Gunner blinked and took a step forward, making a sound.
"Who's there!?"
In an instant, someone walked out of one of the houses. He was a tall and buff man wearing only shorts.
He held a sword with both of his hands. He saw Gunner, and the two stared at each other.
"I got lost…"
Gunner scratched his cheek.
"It's midnight."
The man relaxed after noticing that it was a teenager. He sheathed his sword to its scabbard and placed it beside his hip.
"I'm sorry."
Gunner smiled wryly.
You're so nice, but I have to kill you.
"I am Osas."
"Gunner."
Osas walked up to Gunner and scanned him from head to toe.
Gunner wore a robe and high boots, making him quite peculiar in his eyes.
"You hate mosquitoes?" Osas asked, smiling.
"Haha, yeah. They always make my skin red."
"Hahahaha. You know, mosquitoes die trying to bite my skin?"
Osas joked further to lighten the mood. He opened his arms wide, mentioning his bare torso.
"Impressive."
Gunner smiled. I have to confirm that later.
The two talked for a few more minutes. Osas tested the waters and found Gunner to be likable.
This guy is friendly. I wonder where he's from.
Osas brought him into his mud house.
Inside, he explained who they were.
He was a part of a group of bandits. He wasn't supposed to say that but the flow of the conversation made him do so.
They usually wait beside a road and pillage the passing caravans. Sometimes they would get lucky and find women to have fun with.
Gunner is such a nice guy. I feel like I can talk to him about everything.
As they chatted, Osas grew weary. He laid on his bed made with loose fibers and dozed off.
Gunner blinked at the sight.
My abilities are wonderful.
Gunner learned how to speak friendly from Valatina. He also learned how to hypnotize others using a subtle technique using magic. It made Osas sleepy without any clue.
"You are getting better, my apprentice."
Valatina appeared at the corner of the mud house. She rested against the wall, smiling ever so slightly.
"Thanks for the praise, Master."
Gunner crouched in front of the sleeping Osas.
He tapped his chest to confirm that he was really asleep.
"Hmm… Time to eat."
Gunner pulled out a slender knife from within his robes and slit the side of Osas' neck. He cut the jugular vein, and it squirted warm blood all over.
Osas' eyes widened as he woke up in a jolt. However, the cut reduced the blood pressure in his brain, making his head sluggish. He tried to resist and scream but Gunner covered his mouth and shook his head.
"Shh!"
When he saw the calm look on Gunner's face, Osas felt extreme fear. His pupils shrank and shook. He realized he met the devil, the so-called devil from Cranberry Valley.