The vehicle soon came to a stop at the edge of the forest, in a spot that was both well-hidden and ideal for a quick retreat.
Everyone had already eaten their fill on the way. After they got out, Sylvester Marshall gave the order for the driver to stay with the vehicle while the rest of them entered the woods.
The trees were incredibly dense, blocking out what little sunlight there was. Even though it was noon, the surroundings remained dim as the members of the Hunting Party cautiously advanced.
The woods were surprisingly calm. They hadn't been attacked, and this abnormality put Paige Summers on high alert.
She had some experience with wilderness survival.
'Even though there weren't any Mutant Beasts during the peaceful era, a forest like this would still be teeming with regular animals. And with so many plants, how could none of them be mutated?'
But now, there was truly nothing.
The silence was oppressive.
'There's only one explanation. This forest has a master.'
'In other words, there's a powerful entity here—something so formidable that it either scares off other creatures or has already eliminated them all!'
If she could figure this out, there was no way the Hunting Party hadn't as well.
A sudden realization hit her. 'It's very likely their target is this apex creature!'
The faint sound of footsteps crunching on fallen leaves reached her ears. Before long, sweat beaded on Paige Summers' forehead.
After walking for about twenty minutes, Sylvester Marshall, who was at the front, gave the hand signal to halt.
Sylvester Marshall called over the point man, Blue, and whispered a few words to him. Blue quickly vanished from sight, heading deeper into the forest.
All the others could do was wait.
In moments like these, time always seemed to crawl, but no one grew impatient.
Neither did Paige Summers.
She was wondering about the true purpose of this hunt. 'Is it just to kill something? And what exactly is my role in all this?'
The opportunity to find out soon presented itself.
After a wait of nearly an hour, Blue returned.
Although she couldn't make out the details of his report, the expression on his face was one of excitement.
Afterward, Sylvester Marshall also grew visibly excited.
Then, he beckoned Paige Summers over.
"There's a Mutant Beast nest up ahead. You and Blue will go over together. While they're not in the cave, steal the eggs from inside! After that, you run south, and Blue will head north. Ten minutes later, change direction and get out of the forest. The rest of us will provide cover. If any Mutant Beasts show up, we'll hold them off. So don't be afraid. Just run as fast as you can. Once you're out of the forest, we'll regroup where we left the vehicle. Got it?"
Paige Summers and Blue nodded in unison.
"Good. Go."
Blue immediately motioned for Paige Summers to follow, and the two of them sped off, one after the other.
Sylvester Marshall narrowed his eyes in satisfaction. He glanced at a thoughtful-looking Jayden Yeats, then gave a decisive wave of his hand. "Proceed as planned."
Up ahead, Paige Summers was sprinting to keep up with Blue.
His speed wasn't overwhelming; she was able to keep up.
The strange thing was, the man's presence was terrifyingly faint. If she weren't so close, Paige Summers suspected she might not have noticed him at all.
'Is this a superpower too?'
But Blue's abilities didn't stop there. After they had been moving for about ten minutes, they stopped behind a thick tree trunk. He gestured for Paige Summers to wait, then walked toward a large boulder by himself.
He moved slowly, his figure growing fainter and fainter until, after about ten steps, he vanished from Paige Summers's sight...
'He can turn invisible!'
Paige Summers's eyes widened in astonishment. But before she had time to mentally re-catalog the different types of superpowers, a thick stench drifted to her nose.
It wasn't just a foul, musky odor; it was the kind of stench that could make you pass out.
And it was coming from the direction where Blue had vanished.
Paige Summers paused for a few seconds before ignoring Blue's earlier gesture and moving swiftly. Instead of going around the boulder, however, she climbed directly to the top and peeked over.
What she saw stunned her.
She hadn't expected to find Blue right on the other side of the boulder. A pitch-black cave loomed a short distance behind him. He was trying to stuff a rather large egg into a bag, while at his feet lay another, equally large egg, this one caked in mud.
Suddenly sensing her approach, Blue jumped, a flash of panic on his face.
But Paige Summers pretended she hadn't seen a thing.
She gave a slight smile and simply retreated the way she came.
Blue was suddenly at a loss for how to react. 'Did she... really not see anything?!'