Aisha really was light. Unlike every one else, the young Lady had somehow found a way to maintain her hygiene despite the terrible circumstances they were under.

Unlike him who smelled absolutely rancid, her fragrance was still soft and pleasant.

Nero's brows furrowed,

'I hope I don't stink too bad right now.'

His worries were quickly assuaged when the horrid stench of the bog wormed its way into his lungs, threatening his sanity.

Nero pursed his lips and trembled, holding back his urge to retch violently.

He felt Lucy's presence behind him. True to her words, she had managed to keep up with him.

The ground here was slippery, with muddy pits and sinkholes in some areas.

Nero came to a half slowly and pulled out the map Obed had given him.

His eyes quickly scanned the map before he tucked it away the next moment, stepping into a different path.

This continued on for a while.

Lucy looked all around, her face a bit pale,

"There's nothing but swamp here."

Nero glanced around as well. Despite the paths beneath their feet, there truly was nothing but bubbling, green, swamp mud water for miles and miles on end as far as the eyes could see.

There was a lack of presence of life.

At least that was only if one looked just at the surface.

The depths of Nero's eyes took on a golden tint.

Almost instantly, he turned off Heretic Eyes.

His face turned pale and sweat pooled above his brows.

There was something within the bog. Something ancient and evil.

Thankfully, the thing seemed to be in a deep slumber. Nero had taken his gaze away as quickly as possible so he wouldn't draw its attention and awaken it.

If that happened, his life was guaranteed to be forfeit.

Nero trembled and turned his gaze forward.

Absolutely not. He definitely wouldn't be doing that again.

He continued along the path, taking several detours and bends again and again and again.

Nero couldn't help but be amazed at how accurate the map was. He couldn't help but wonder if the Surveyors perhaps had some sort of mystical ability just like the White Prophets and the Crimson Crucible.

In the end, he chose to let that thought go as there were more important things to worry about.

With a single glance, he had seen not only the ancient evil within the swamp, but also an entire ecosystem of vile Aberrations.

The swamp was a breeding crucible for absolute fleshy corruption.

And those things, having smelt warm blood and fresh souls, seemed rather eager.

The thick, green surface bubbled. Then it broke violently.

Nero cursed and shot back avoiding a thick splattering of the green swamp water.

The sound of sizzling put fear right into the depths of his heart. The path of ground he has been about to step on had turned into greenish Brown sludge.

Nero gritted his teeth and glanced forward.

From the depths of the swamp, something unholy crawled forth.

It had a slimy, tumor covered skin with a layer of membrane that protected its flesh.

Its throat and chest was open, held within its body only by the membrane, so he could see the various organs within its body. The rest of the creature's body was even more ugly, with teeth growing out of the tumors on uts back.

And of course, there were two large eyes jutting out of the top of its head.

The creature made a low thrumming sound at the sight of them.

Its body trembled for only a moment, then it shot forward, reaching speeds that made Nero turn wide-eyed in a split second. Although its upper body was vile and disfigured, Nero had seen that its lower body was quite thick and muscular.

He threw Aisha to Lucy then brought up the Silver Blade, brandishing it with incredible speed.

The creature zipped past his blade, dodging it cleanly, before diving right back into the depths of the bog.

Nero grimaced,

"Get back, both of you!" He yelled out.

Then he focused his mind.

Right now, he couldn't care less if his secrets were revealed.

He waited silently.

With Heretic Eyes, he could see the movements around the mound he was standing on. He couldn't see the eidetic flow of energy existing in different patterns and with different intensity.

The intensity of the creature stalking him was that of a grade D Abomination.

He huffed lightly and his gaze turned lazy.

In the Southern Bogs, the sun was covered by a dense layer of grey clouds created from the toxic gases that were exhumed from the bog itself.

As such, there was a surplus of darkness, but not quite a lot of shadows.

That made the activation of the skill much more vivid.

Lucy watched with wide eyes as tendrils of darkness surrounded Nero's feet.

It was not darkness in the metaphorical sense.

No. This was darkness. Or better yet, shadows.

Inky black shadows.

The surface of the bog rippled again.

This time, who more similar creatures came jumping out.

The tumors on there backs split open to reveal the sharp teeth that shot right at Nero.

The golden glow in the depths of his eyes intensified as he took a step forward.

Then he disappeared.

Shadow Shift.

A glide with the motion of the shadows.

The intent of darkness, to move with an unnaturally cold fluidity.

The bone fangs shot harmlessly into the ground.

The Silver Blade cut through the black.

Beneath its edge, flesh, bone, wood, stone, and steel were all equal.

It cut through everything in equal measure.

Nero dug the blade into the throat of the first, pushing it deep.

A feral madness appeared in his eyes as he cruelly twisted the blade and pulled up.

The creature could only make a gargling sound as it choked on its own blood.

Nero turned his blade viciously a couple more times, making sure to properly scramble its organs before letting go.

The creature fell to the ground, a pool of blood and viscera following soon after.

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