Kael laughed, his silent amusement making his form flicker wildly. If anyone could hear him, they'd be chilled by the sheer malice in his laughter.
The hunters were split now—one group angry, the other defensive. But both sides were on edge, watching each other like they were already enemies.
Kael enjoyed the spectacle. As an invisible soul, he couldn't interfere with them directly—at least, not without using the creatures under his control.
"You guys can't come with us," one of the hunters finally said, his voice firm. "You might be infected."
Another hunter nodded. "Bringing this back to the village would be suicide. We can't risk it."
A heavy silence followed. Nobody wanted to be the next one coughing up blood.
Then, one of them broke it. "Am I the only one who thinks this all started after we caught that damn owl?" His gaze flicked to the cage. "It didn't even try to escape. Just let us take it. That ain't normal."
The group turned, eyes settling on the owl.
Kael's mouth pulled into a slight frown.
"Guess I still ain't perfect at making deaths look natural," he muttered to himself. "Figured out in less than a week... disappointing."
...
Kael's amusement dimmed—only slightly. He tilted his head, watching as suspicion spread like wildfire. Some hunters still eyed Rian and the infection, but now, more than a few sets of wary eyes flicked toward the caged owl.
The same owl that had been silent. Watching. Waiting.
It didn't stir. Didn't flinch.
And that unsettled them.
"The damn thing's too quiet," a hunter muttered. "I've seen wild owls before. They don't just sit there."
"Let us catch it too easy," another added. "Maybe it's sick. Maybe it's spreading something."
Lira let out a sharp breath, shaking her head. "Enough. We don't have time for wild guesses." Her gaze shifted to Rian, then to the others who had buried Jace. The green blotches on his skin had spread, veins darkening beneath.
He wouldn't last much longer.
"We decide now," Aric said, voice grim. "The ones who touched Jace stay behind. The rest move on."
The division was final.
Rian opened his mouth, but the words never came. The looks on their faces—the hesitation, the fear—said everything. He was already dead to them.
Beside him, Davon and Hens exchanged wary glances before stepping away, tension lining their shoulders.
Kael's gaze sharpened as one of the hunters reached for the cage latch, fingers hesitating. The others stood a few feet back, uneasy. Suspicion had latched onto the owl like a parasite. If they acted—if they killed the body he had so carefully infected—it would ruin everything.
He had to act first.
The owl twitched.
A slow, unnatural movement. Feathers ruffled as though something unseen crawled beneath its skin. The hunter froze.
Then, it moved.
Talons flexed. Wings gave a slow, deliberate stretch—too slow, too measured. Its head turned, fixing him with an unblinking stare.
The man swallowed hard. "Tch… thing's creeping me out," he muttered, stepping back, suddenly unwilling to open the cage.
Kael smirked.
"Leave it," Aric said, dragging a hand down his face. "We've got bigger problems."
No one argued. They had already exiled their sick, already convinced themselves that was enough. The owl could wait.
For now.
Kael exhaled, his form flickering in the shadows. That was close. But not enough to concern him. Not yet.
His gaze slid back to Rian, Davon, and Hens—standing apart from the group, abandoned.
Kael's grin widened.
He would make sure their fate was a gruesome one.
Just as Kael prepared to act, a voice cut through the air.
"My, oh my… kids these days. No manners, no fear, no sense of self-preservation."
A ghostly figure drifted toward him, gliding effortlessly. Too fast. Too smooth.
Kael's first instinct was to assume the man couldn't see him. But when he glanced at the hunters, he realized they weren't reacting at all. No startled looks, no drawn weapons—nothing.
His form flickered.
Did he just talk to me?
The old man chuckled, stopping just a few feet away. His grin was almost amused. Almost.
"Standing around like a lost pup, are we? That's cute. But tell me, kid… shouldn't you be running?"
"Oh my god… he's talking to me!" Kael's voice wavered between shock and excitement. It had been so long since anyone had acknowledged him—let alone seen him.
The ghostly man sighed, shaking his head. "Of course I'm talking to you. Who else would I be wasting my breath on?" His smirk didn't quite reach his eyes.
"But tell me, kid—aren't you a little too confident, just standing there while the soul wraith is coming for you?"
Kael's gaze snapped to the dark figure chasing the old man—a black, ghostly mass with eerie, shifting features, its presence radiating something far worse than death. His throat tightened.
"What… what the hell is that?" he muttered, eyes locked onto the eerie entity as it glided toward them with unsettling purpose.
The soul wraith looks like a black phantom, dark mist drifted out of it, blending with the crimson forest... it had hollowed eyes, with a creepy smile plastered on it's face... as it flew it let out a creepy laughter.
Kael felt danger from this creature... like his natural nemesis.
The old man breezed past him—then, without warning, grabbed Kael by the collar and yanked him along.
"I see you're new to this," the old man mused, almost amused. "Your luck's real bad, kid." He let out a dramatic sigh. "Tell me, what do you call a fresh ghost who just stepped into hell?"
Kael didn't answer, too busy stumbling alongside him.
The old man grinned. "A miserable ghost."
Then he laughed—loud, wheezing, utterly unbothered by the nightmare gaining on them.
Kael barely had time to process the joke before the old man continued, voice tinged with something between amusement and warning.
"Soul wraiths," he said, motioning toward the black specter. "They come from a special realm—dragging poor, stubborn souls like you and me straight into the underworld. And you, my boy, are officially on their list."
The words barely settled in Kael's mind before the old man did something completely unexpected.
Still laughing, he threw Kael backward—straight toward the soul wraith.