Someone is watching...

Those words were as terrifying as they were strange.

Lucy frowned and turned to Geor who had a confused on his face as well.

He shook his head.

Nero took a deep breath and straightened his posture.

Then he closed his eyes and slowly reached out.

The connection between him and Gungnir was faint and fleeting, so he couldn't quite hold on to it. He didn't know if it was the distance or the strange occurrences happening.

Either way, he couldn't get a hold on it.

Something told him that if he could, perhaps he would be able to lead them out of the fog.

He grimaced as his frustration mounted.

His eyes widened as he went into a coughing fit, speckles of blood flying from his lips.

Lucy's expression changed,

"I think this is enough. You are hurt. You shouldn't be walking around like this."

Nero wiped the blood off his lips then shook his head,

"No, I'm fine."

He turned to the other two.

"I think it's okay for now. You both can head back. I'll keep looking."

Geor frowned and shook his head,

"No. That's good dangerous."

Nero shrugged,

"From what I can tell, there aren't any Abominations around. I'll be fine."

He was lying.

He could sense a few Abominations within the forest.

However, for some reason, they seemed to be ignoring them.

He didn't have a lot of time left.

{Vineheart} had been working hard to heal his internal wounds. However, to do this, it had to burn through his Ein Sof reserves.

As such, he was left with little to none and would soon begin his transformation.

He needed energy.

He needed corruption.

The golden glow in his eyes threatened to leak out...

Sucking in a deep breath, he slowly calmed himself.

Lucy stared at him intensely for a moment. Then she sighed,

"If you want to be a lone for a while, then that's fine. But if there's any trouble, don't expect us to come running right away. You'll have to keep yourself alive."

Nero nodded firmly,

"I won't expect much."

Lucy chuckled dryly then turned to Geor who had a hesitant look on his face.

She snorted, "Let's go."

Geor turned back to Nero. Seeing the look of silent determination on his face, he sighed then turned around and began walking away.

As the two disappeared down the path, Nero didn't waste any time and darted right into the forest.

As he sank into the darkness, his body began to change.

The sound of bones cracking and popping, the sound of flesh tearing and stretching traveled with the fog as his transformation began. His flesh hardened and blackened.

His spine stretched as he became taller, his limbs stretching as well. His arms and legs became much more muscular too.

In just a few moments, he had transformed from a devilishly handsome human to a terrifying looking Abominable fiend.

The golden glow in his eyes cut through the darkness like a beacon.

Nero shot into the darkness, riding on the shadows.

His eyes darted around as his nose flared, seeking the scent of his prey.

Within the forest, he could sense several stronger Abominations nesting away.

He could see them thanks to the Ein Sof signatures they gave off.

A large beast with two curved tusks and an elongated spine lay in a small bubbling pit of black sludge.

Around the pit, were the bones of smaller creatures scattered around.

Air bubbles rose to the top of the sludge pool, as the creature slumbered.

Then its eyes— a deep, poison green, snapped open.

It could sense something approaching. It rose from the depths of the dark pit and snarled.

Then it crawled forward and stayed still.

It was a creature of the darkness, born and nurtured by it.

It stalked from the cover of night and waited until prey was close to strike, its elongated spine snapping out with lightning speed to enable it snatch prey swiftly.

The sound of feet rapidly hitting the earth resonated out...

The beast shot out, its eyes a bolt of green in the darkness.

Unfortunately for it, the thing that sought it out was far more attuned to the shadows.

The only thing the Abomination saw as its head disappeared behind a row of sharp, white teeth, was the more horrifying visage a being could witness.

In all its corruption, the Abomination, as its skull was crushed, felt more fear than it had ever felt in the rest of its life combined.

Nero's eyes were wide as he bit down harder, savoring the rancid taste of the Abomination.

His teeth were now sharp enough to easily tear through the hard hide and flesh of the Abominations, his jaws string enough to crush their bones too.

The bitter taste of brain matter bursting into his mouth filled him with endless disgust.

But he had no choice.

He continued to devour, the scene terrible and gruesome, yet hidden in the black, away from any gaze.

Nothing should see him in such a state.

After the final bite, Nero was shocked to realize it wasn't enough.

A frown appeared on his monstrous face,

'Why? Why am I not recovering enough?'

At the moment, after several kills, he was well over the count of two hundred Seals of Sin.

It shouldn't be this was.

He frowned.

Then his eyes widened as he turned his gaze to the back of his hand.

The crimson rune was glowing bright.

With the help of Heretic's Eye, he could clearly see the rune siphoning the Ein Sof within him.

Nero grimaced. But the grimace manifested as a rather terrifying grin on his monstrous face.

'Damn it!'

He dropped to all fours and began running, his clawed feet gripping and digging hard into the earth.

He needed more prey.

His gaze, gilded with bloodlust, were frenzied as he locked onto the position of the next Abomination.

In a matter of moments, a certycorner of the forest was filled with the disgusting sound of flesh being chewed and bones being crushed...

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