After resting and recovering a fraction of their strength, they split up once more, maintaining a distance that was not too far apart.
Reynold had requested this in the hope that Bovoy might have left some tracks behind during his escape. Unfortunately, Bovoy was not careless; he had left nothing to be tracked.
Capturing a member of Eternal Darkness alive was a significant breakthrough. They would be able to obtain information regarding the organization's true objective.
An evil and extreme organization like that always harbored plans beyond reason. Generally, the appearance of their members signaled impending misfortune. Consequently, every city remained highly vigilant against infiltrators.
They were much like the Outcasts, who would occasionally sneak into a city. However, while Outcasts rarely caused major trouble, it was impossible for Eternal Darkness not to stir up chaos.
Wherever they went, catastrophe always followed. For that reason, Reynold was meticulous, searching for even the smallest clue. On the other side, Drake had already dispatched another letter detailing what had occurred.
They would wait at this location and set up camp until Lunaria arrived. Not even the slightest oversight could be permitted, or the city of Aztec would be threatened. And so, several hours passed since the letter was sent.
Lunaria and her group were expected to arrive soon. Even though it was now night, there was no reason to delay. They needed to move as quickly as possible.
Kaelan was currently retracing the path of his earlier battle with the madwoman.
The forest atmosphere was now darker than usual; it was night. Daytime in this world was dark, yet they could still manage to see. But the night was different—there was almost nothing to be seen. Maximum visibility was a mere meter.
Kaelan required a light source to explore. He walked cautiously, while still allowing the needle-prick wounds on his left hand to remain.
At that moment, he witnessed something moving in the distance. It came from the spot where the corpse of the Eternal Darkness woman had been left.
A Big Eater? A Wolfhorn?
Kaelan guessed at the two monsters he had encountered. However, the characteristics of the figure before him were different. Kaelan felt a sense of familiarity with the two figures.
As he approached slowly, Kaelan discovered a familiar hammer and sword. Rebecca and Reynold.
He exhaled a sigh of relief and approached them.
"What are you doing?"
Upon noticing the light and the voice, Reynold and Rebecca, who were kneeling on the ground, immediately turned their heads.
There was blood on their mouths and faces; they seemed to be chewing something slowly. Like a taster carefully judging a flavor. In their hands was a clump of black flesh that emitted a faint gray smoke.
Kaelan was stunned. With a single glance, he realized what Reynold and Rebecca were doing.
The meat in their hands came from the mad girl of Eternal Darkness. Reynold and Rebecca were chewing that flesh in their mouths.
The horrific sight was enough to make anyone recoil and fall to the ground, as Kaelan did. He dropped the lantern in his hand.
"Y-you are eating—" his stomach acid surged instantly, and Kaelan vomited whatever he had eaten today.
Reynold immediately threw away the meat in his hand. He grabbed a handkerchief to quickly clean the blood from his body.
Rebecca appeared indifferent as she stood calmly. She swallowed the meat in her mouth and immediately took another bite. Her gaze was flat, and she allowed Kaelan to witness it.
Kaelan vomited the contents of his stomach once more. He felt utterly nauseated and revolted by what was happening.
Reynold approached and tried to reach for his back, "Kaelan, calm down and listen—"
"STAY AWAY!"
Kaelan brushed off Reynold's hand. He instantly kept his distance from both of them. The horror was indescribable and deeply disgusting.
"...You are monsters," Kaelan said in disbelief. "Why do such a heinous thing?"
Kaelan tried to buy time; he needed a moment to stop trembling and compose himself. It was too difficult for him to process what he saw.
"What else?" Rebecca answered. "To become stronger."
To do something so vile just to become stronger... Kaelan could not accept it. What made them any different from monsters?
"Is eating your own kind worth it just to become strong?" Kaelan felt nauseated once again. But this time, he could hold it back.
"Calm down! You surely don't know about this yet—"
Without waiting for an explanation, Kaelan threw his lantern. Seizing that opportunity, he fled as fast as possible to avoid being caught.
He did not know what was happening, but his suspicion was that Reynold and Rebecca had become monsters. They had suffered too much corruption, causing them to lose their minds.
Yes, it must be! They were corrupted and had turned into monsters!
Kaelan could hear footsteps running after him. He could see how fast Reynold and Rebecca were running. Even though both of them carried lanterns, they were still able to move remarkably well. Without looking back, Kaelan increased his speed until he cleared the forest.
He found a light glowing in the distance. Vaguely, he could see Drake waving his hand in the air.
"Oi, Kaelan!" Drake called out. "The Captain has arrived!"
At that moment, Drake noticed something odd. He could see Kaelan running desperately and in a panic toward him, with Reynold and Rebecca right behind him.
Drake realized Kaelan seemed to be fleeing from the two of them.
"What happened?" Lunaria walked to his side. She stared at Kaelan, who looked strange. "Why is he so terrified?"
Lunaria quickly caught on. Without hesitation, she was ready to draw blood to attack whatever was scaring him.
"Run!" Kaelan screamed. "Rebecca and Reynold have become monsters!"
"Hey! Don't just make wild accusations!" Reynold shouted loudly. His shout was far more powerful than Kaelan's.
"He dares to spread slander?" Rebecca looked angry. "I should just kill him!"
Lunaria realized there was something that looked like a misunderstanding. She halted her intent to attack at any moment. Her instincts currently felt no terrifying latent danger.
As Kaelan stopped in front of her, panting heavily, Lunaria held Kaelan's shoulder and asked him to be calm.
"Tell me slowly and briefly... what did you see?" Lunaria asked.
Kaelan took a breath as he saw Reynold and Rebecca arrive. Without hesitation, Kaelan made a wound on his left hand and stood ready for battle.
Reynold, on the other hand, only raised his hands and gave a wry smile. He appeared unresisting and made eye contact with Lunaria.
"They... are cannibals! I saw them eating the corpse of the Eternal Darkness member!"
Lunaria immediately understood what had happened and why Kaelan was filled with terror. The experience of witnessing it directly must have been horrific.
"Kaelan, they are not monsters."
Lunaria acknowledged it with certainty. However, Kaelan could not easily believe it until he heard the main point.
"They are your comrades, our comrades. They are still the Reynold and Rebecca you know."
Lunaria confirmed that nothing was wrong with either of them. However, Kaelan felt strange and found it hard to believe until Lunaria explained.
"You may not remember it, but let me make it clear," Lunaria looked directly into his eyes, her voice almost like a whisper to him.
"Like the name implies, Devour Art is a technique to devour curses and make them your own. The method is simple—"
Kaelan was not ready to hear it, but he needed to. Kaelan had to know, even if he did not want to know the bitter truth.
"To become a Devourer and increase the power of mutation... what you saw is how one increases their strength. That is the Devour Art."