Back in the village, inside the cold, damp pit, Lina sat curled up in a dark corner, her frail body occasionally slightly trembled. She wrapped her arms tightly around her knees, while her head rested against them. She didn't mutter a single word or even made a sound.
The events of the day weighed heavily on her mind. She was interrogated by Gabo, the Chieftain, and the elders of the tribe relentlessly. They demanded to know what she saw in the mountains, what the fallen light looked like, and why she took the ancestral knife with her.
But even so, she remained silent, even when pain wracked her body, the bruises on her skin were throbbing and the faint metallic taste of blood on her lips, she still endured no matter what.
'I hope both him and the mountain guardian are alright…' she thought as her mind drifted to the mysterious figure she saw in the crater. 'I can't have them getting involved in my affairs. This is my burden to carry.'
The muffled sounds from the tribe's ceremony sounded faintly through the earth above her. The chants and cheers slowly faded as night fell over the village.
Millus returned to the village under the cover of darkness, his body blending seamlessly with the shadows. From his position above, he scanned the settlement below, he took note of the key individuals inside the village.
His crimson eyes focused on Magbo, the Chieftain. 'That big guy with all the tattoos… he feels even weirder now that I see him again. His energy is… different.'
After ensuring the area around the pit was clear, Millus slipped into the shadows and evaded the guards stationed nearby. His movements were silent and precise as he descended into the pit.
Inside the pit, the air was thick and suffocating as the pit was a confined space, but Millus's attention was solely on the curled figure in the corner.
Her fragile body was hunched in the darkness, her knees were pulled close to her chest. Which seemed to have made her shrink further as Millus approached, her injuries were painfully evident, the bruises on her face and body and the faint blood stains on her lips were visible.
"She's all bruised up… even her hands and feet were not spared," Millus thought grimly. His jaw clenched at the sight. 'What did I expect, these people are savages.'
Then he stepped out of the shadows, his lean frame illuminated faintly by the moonlight filtering through the wooden logs above.
Lina's breath hitched as she felt the air shifted. Then she slowly lifted her head and looked toward the figure standing before her. Her eyes immediately widened in shock when she recognized him.
"You…" she whispered with a trembling voice. But as quickly as she looked up, she then quickly hid her face between her knees again, she was ashamed to show her disheveled state.
Millus sighed softly, his expression softening. 'Every woman… no matter the world or dimension, they all share this same instinct of vulnerability when it comes to their looks,' he thought, then a faint flicker from an old memory surfaced. It was but for a brief moment, a face of someone he once knew flashed in his mind, but it was gone before he could even grasp it, but one thing is certain, it was a person very close to him.
Then he took a step closer, his tone becoming gentle. "Don't be afraid. I came here to help you."
Lina stared at him and remained silent, then she buried her face against her knees.
"I won't hurt you," Millus continued to say, his voice remaining calm and reassuring.
Then after a long pause, Lina finally spoke, her voice was barely audible. "I… I'm sorry for being rude… I can't show you my unsightly self."
Millus knelt down in front of her, his crimson eyes met hers. "It's alright. I don't mind. You can look at me."
Hearing this Lina Hesitantly raised her head, her inflamed and swollen face coming into full view. Millus's gaze softened further as he took in the extent of her injuries. 'I should heal her… and take her away from this place and bring her back to the mountain,' he thought,
Millus became extremely determined, he extended his hand toward Lina, then he prepared to use his skill to take a glimpse of her memories. His fingers hovered over her, and he closed his eyes, channeling mana into the space between them.
A single drop of blood crystallized before it touched his skin, as the skill activated, a flood of images washed over him.
He saw Lina's life through a droplet which includes her childhood filled with fleeting moments of happiness and the crushing weight of loss. Her mother's kind face appeared amongst her memory, her voice sounds soothing as she told Lina stories about the future. He saw her mother's final days, the tragic events that brought Lina to the Bear Wolf Tribe.
And then, something unexpected happened.
In one of Lina's memories from her childhood years, on one particular day, which her mother cradled her in her arms, she sang her to sleep. As the scene played out, her mother suddenly turned and looked directly at Millus.
Millus stood frozen in place, he was too stunned to speak.
The woman's face was vague and obscured, as if shrouded in mist. Even with his incredible perception and intelligence status, he couldn't fully discern her features. But she smiled at him, it was a warm, knowing smile that pierced through the haze.
"I leave her to you, dear savior," the woman said softly. "Her future-"
The memory was abruptly cut off, that left Millus standing in stunned silence.
An Inexplicable Connection
Millus opened his eyes, his expression was unreadable. Lina stared up at him, her face was riddled of confusion and concern.
"…Are you alright?" she asked hesitantly.
Millus didn't answer immediately at her question. His mind raced of multiple possibilities, the woman's words was ringing in his thoughts. 'Her future… What did she mean by that?'
He looked down at Lina, with a soft gaze. The thought whispered in his mind, unbidden and unsettling.
Shaking off the strange feeling, he refocused on Lina. "Don't worry about that," he said to her softly. "I'm going to help you get out of here."
Lina blinked for a few times, her expression was a mix of awe and confusion. "How will you do that… uh…" she paused for a moment after realizing she didn't know his name yet.
Millus gave her a calm smile. "Don't worry, I have a plan. And my apologies for not introducing myself earlier. You can call me Millus."
"Millus," she repeated his name softly, her voice barely above a whisper.
Millus laughed softly, the sound was warm and reassuring. Lina couldn't help but blush faintly after seeing him, her cheeks and ears were tinged with a soft pink hue.
"Now, let's clean up those injuries you have," raising his hand. A faint crimson light shimmered around his fingertips before it enveloped her.
The bruises and cuts across her body began to vanish, her skin regained its smooth, and unblemished state.
"But," Millus also added, his tone was rather pragmatic, "this won't replenish your energy or the blood that you've lost, so make sure to eat back in the mountain, this'll have to do for now."
Lina examined herself in awe, she tried flexing her fingers and touching her face. "It's amazing," she whispered to herself, as she marveled at his power. 'I can only heal small scratches… but he… She glanced up at him,' her admiration for him was evident.
"Well then," Millus said, which interrupted her thoughts, "I'll send you to the mountain now."
Before Lina could respond, a glowing magic formula suddenly appeared beneath her feet, its intricate lines pulse with mana.
"W-wait!" her voice stammered while trying to reach out toward him. "Savior!"
But before she could even grab his hand, she suddenly vanished in place, she was carried away by the spatial magic Millus casted.
Millus smiled faintly, as he watched her disappear. "Kaela should take care of her," he murmured. Then, he glanced upward as if addressing someone unseen, he added, "Thanks for the assist, Veda."
Veda had been the one to guide Millus in creating the spatial manipulation spell. Since, unlike teleportation, which involved pinpointing coordinates and traveling through space instantly, spatial manipulation worked by folding the fabric of space itself thus shortening the distance between two points that Millus had already visited.
"Well," stretching his arms with a satisfied grin, "I've got a new weapon for my reward, and another skill. Not a bad day."
His thoughts shifted to the new skill, Polymorph, which allowed him to alter his physical appearance temporarily. He could change his race, size, or even mimic someone else entirely.
"This'll come in handy," he muttered. "Hopefully, it'll keep things from turning into a bloodbath."
But before making his next move, Millus considered his stats. His earlier experience with activating his Intelligence stat lingered in his mind, when he used it to understand how to use Memory of blood on the hunter.
"What happened to me when I used it earlier?" he asked Veda.
Veda responded in her usual calm tone, "The Intelligence stat heightens your mental capacity, processing ability, and comprehension to their fullest potential. However, it suppresses empathy and emotions, prioritizing logical outcomes over everything else. You will become cold and detached."
Millus frowned slightly as he weighed the consequences his actions might cause. "...I see. Then I'll try to use it sparingly. But for now, I'll just use it to figure out what this village has to offer."
Then with a deep breath, Millus activated his Polymorph skill, his form instantly shifting and molding until he appeared as Lina had before he healed her, she was bruised, battered, and pitiful. Then his expression became icy, his mind sharpened by the partial activation of his Intelligence stat.
He moved to the corner of the pit, taking in the same position Lina had earlier. His crimson eyes, now turned dull to match hers, he scanned the village methodically.
Every detail was noted, every possible outcome were calculated. The warmth and humanity he carried moments ago were stripped away, and now it was replaced by pure logic.
"…Operation: Acquiring Lackeys, commence," he muttered under his breath, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
And so, the first stage of his plan to create and control worthy people in the tribe began
End of chapter