When Eídal double-checked that the thorcam [containing emotions] was functioning properly, the familiar screen appeared once again, though no one seemed to notice it. The content hadn't changed, except for the percentages of some emotions.
"Hey, you! Are you just going to stand there? Do you want me to drag you again?!" Pia was starting to get frustrated.
At that moment, they were on a plain, along the main road. The city walls were visible in the distance. Other than the cart, the heroine's group, and Eídal himself, there was no one else in sight.
Seeing that Eídal wasn't moving, Astrid, who had been watching him out of the corner of her eye, also stopped. Just as she was about to say something, Eídal took a deep breath and, without a word, sprinted forward. Without warning, he broke into a run…
"Hey!?"
Astrid's eyes widened, and she raised her hand as if assuming a defensive stance. But Eídal dashed past her.
"What the—?"
His real target was Adriano, who continued walking, unfazed. Before he had time to react, Eídal slammed into him.
"What the hell?!"
It's curious how emotions can enhance physical strength.
Both of them tumbled, rolling over the gravel. The shove had been rough, and the bags Adriano was carrying scattered across the ground, along with some gems. Then, the ground beneath where Adriano had been standing cracked with a terrifying Cragg!
The gravel road sank as if it were sugar being sucked into a funnel, like quicksand. Adriano, who had been on the verge of shouting at Eídal, gritted his teeth. Meanwhile, Astrid scowled in displeasure. Pia still couldn't understand what was happening.
Suddenly, an eerie echo resonated through the area:
"Ex Luto…"
The voice was deep and reverberating, coming from the hole that had formed in the ground.
"Ex Luto…"
"What the hell is this?!"
"Ex… Luto… You, who have been chained by my sin, accompany me into the mud. Ex Luto…"
Off in the distance, the chant echoed again and again. At that moment, the sound of horses neighing could be heard in the distance. It was the cart that had passed them moments earlier. When Eídal looked up, he noticed the man struggling with the reins of his horse.
Again, the chant echoed:
"Ex Luto. Ex Luto. You, who have been chained by my sin, accompany me into the mud."
"Hi! Hiii, hiii, hiiii!"
In an instant, the man, the cart, its contents, and the horses were swallowed by the earth. It happened so quickly that Eídal could only raise his hand as if trying to stop it. Something had definitely devoured the man.
Astrid, who was supposed to be the first to act, merely watched with an annoyed expression. Eídal shot her a look that said, "Why?!" But before he could express his frustration in words, the chant repeated again, sending chills down his spine.
"Ex Luto. Ex Luto. You, who have been chained by my sin, accompany me into the mud."
"It's coming!" Pia leaped to the side.
Adriano also grabbed Eídal and jumped onto a rock at the side of the road. Eídal couldn't help but let out a muffled squeak. Honestly, he was surprised a human could jump that far.
The ground where Pia had been standing sank. It followed the same pattern that had attacked Adriano and the man with the cart, which meant the next move would be…
"Ex Luto. Ex Luto. You…"
This time, the chant echoed beneath Astrid. But she didn't move. Instead, she gripped her bag more securely and, with impeccable grace, lifted her leg high above her head. Even though her skirt rose in the process, it somehow didn't look obscene or ridiculous, but elegant—like watching an athlete or dancer, someone with immense flexibility. Eídal couldn't help but wonder if it was even possible for a human to raise their leg like that.
Watching the ground beneath her, Astrid waited for the chant to repeat.
"Ex Luto. E—"
When the echo returned, Astrid stomped on it as if crushing a cockroach. The gravel below cracked, like the shell of an egg.
"Ah!" Eídal shouted.
The road literally split apart. Fragments of rock, along with Pia, Adriano, and Eídal himself, were lifted several centimeters off the ground from the impact. And that was just from a single stomp.
Astrid's elegant foot was now embedded in the middle of the road. Then, in an instant—Eídal would swear it only took a fraction of a second—Astrid twisted her leg, as if digging, and pulled it out forcefully, bringing several large rocks from the subsoil with her. It was as if the rocks were being drawn to her foot, like a new center of gravity.
Eídal broke into a cold sweat, his thoughts racing chaotically:
'Tell me you're joking. How could she have so much power? No, no, no, no, no. Even among the heroes, this has to be a joke'.
Two movements, and the road had been erased from the map. There was no trace of the man with the cart, nor any sign of city guards coming to help.
Everything that had been hidden underground was now exposed. Amidst the dust, a massive black shadow appeared in front of Astrid. There wasn't enough time for Eídal to make out its shape or color. Moving faster than the human mind could process, Astrid spun and, with a kick, tensed the air. In the end, both the shadow and the dust vanished.
Although, in truth, the shadow had been kicked away so quickly that Eídal hadn't even noticed it.
"Are you okay?" Pia asked from behind him.
"Ah!"
When had she moved to stand behind Eídal and Adriano? Still disoriented, Eídal could only nod with a shaky, "y-yeah." If it weren't for the thorcam [containing emotions], he might've wet himself out of fear.
Two more figures emerged from the ground, surrounding Astrid. Now that the dust had cleared, Eídal could finally see the form of these creatures.
They were enormous, like hulking men. Their veins and blood vessels were visible beneath their skin, which made them look like bald rats. However, their heads resembled those of worms. They had no eyes, ears, or nose; instead, a large, vertically-opening mouth took up what should've been their face, filled with sharp, spike-like teeth.
Around their necks, piercing through their skin, were several black lumps resembling tumors or frog eggs. Standing about two and a half meters tall, both creatures wielded a type of large, flat bat, adorned with blue and black scribbles. The bat, over a meter and a half long, appeared to be made of steel, with obsidian blades embedded along its sides. It was a weapon known as a macuahuitl.
On the other hand…
"That thing doesn't have eyes," Eídal whispered, trying not to speak too loudly so as not to distract Astrid, who was closely watching the creatures' movements.
"You're wrong, it does," Adriano countered. "Look at the lumps around its neck, do you see them? Those small lumps have eyes, and even mouths."
The tumors actually had tiny faces, but compared to human proportions, the eyes were quite small, while the mouths were excessively large. As Eídal looked more closely, he realized the tumors were wriggling, like fish gasping for air. Honestly, it was hard to put into words just how repulsive it was to see so many little mouths moving.
The chant echoed again. The lips and teeth of the main head began to move in a wave-like fashion, forming words without a tongue: "Ex Luto. Ex Luto." And from the small tumors on their necks, the tiny mouths synchronized to continue the chant: "You, who have been chained by my sin, accompany me into the mud." That completed the phrase:
"Ex Luto. Ex Luto… You, who have been chained by my sin, accompany me into the mud."
Beside him, still on the rock, Pia spoke:
"I didn't think the Sollozantes would come this far."
"Huh? Sollozantes?" Eídal was confused.
"You didn't know? What cave were you dragged out of, thief? Oh right, you said your name was Eídal, didn't you?"
Pia was still harsh toward Eídal, but Adriano intervened:
"Pia, leave him alone. Now's not the time to be teasing."
"But Adriano… Ugh, don't look at me like that. Fine, fine. Ahem. That's what those bald rat things are called, 'Sollozantes.' The name doesn't really fit, does it?"
"They look strong," Eídal commented.
Eídal's voice was full of pessimism, but Pia, patting him on the back, tried to soothe him:
"Don't worry, don't worry, everything will be fine. Well, to stop them, you have to destroy both their heads and tumors at the same time. Which, in theory, makes them immortal. But hey, everything's going to be okay!"
"And you say that so calmly?!"
That outburst was what marked the start of the battle.