The Path of Ruin

*(A/N: For privileged: A few days ago I had to spend a few days in the hospital because of an illness. Then I was discharged, I spent one day well... and then it seems that they couldn't cure the illness because I had to spend almost five days in the hospital last week. Then I spent two days resting. And now, hopefully, I'm back... I have nothing more to say, I apologize.)*

*******

The group of five started their journey shortly after introducing themselves.

Although they didn't know each other very well, they did their best to maintain their professionalism. So it was Scher, Pecera, and Matthew who settled into the carriage. Baroch and Kael were constantly on the move, as they should have been, for the safety of their journey.

Baroch, though a normal human being, was skilled. His movements, his stealth, his observations... everything gave Kael the feeling that he could be trusted.

And Kael was... good. He was practicing what he had learned from Hakon, and in this way, he was training constantly while doing his job.

About stealth, for example.

It was almost impossible for him to be as quiet, as hidden as Baroch. The difference in experience between them was too great... but Kael made up for it with something else.

Baroch was human, but he was not. He was a bearer who could use eon. And the uses of eon, even when not for a blessing, a curse, or a path, were extremely wide.

So wide that it could solve the problem of secrecy, even if only a little bit, to a certain extent.

Eon circulated very slowly through Kael's blood vessels, seeping gently outwards at the same time at his will. The density of the eon that seeped out was quite low, so it couldn't travel far, but by controlling this small amount of eon, he could suppress the sounds he made.

There was no way to disguise his appearance in this way... but he was almost completely silent and that was enough for him. So the only thing he had to be careful about was not to be seen, rather than not to be heard.

And that way, he could move much more easily in the forest, while at the same time improving his technique and his use of eon.

With Kael and Baroch as scouts, the group completed the first day quickly and smoothly. They had left the capital in the morning and by now, the sun had already set and the sky was slowly giving way to the darkness of night.

That's why they had set up a camp. Not a big camp, but quite enough.

They had left the cooking to the scholar, Scher, since he claimed to know how to cook. The rest of the group was... resting for the moment. Baroch was with the group as they were standing in a fixed place, while Kael was walking around the perimeter of the group.

He had told the four that his intention was to go around, to take out animals and creatures if he could find them. And... that's what he was actually doing. He was looking for creatures for his curse, he was scouting the area for possible dangers.

But... that's not all he was doing. It wasn't just the dangers, the creatures that he was watching. On the contrary... he was also watching the group itself.

And it was quite clear who he was mostly looking at. A person called Matthew, who claimed to be a bearer, just like him.

'Bearer, huh...'

No, there was no way he was a bearer. Discover stories with mvl

The more he observed him, the more Kael was certain that this person was a follower. The reason he was certain of this was because he had studied Matthew's eon.

Everyone's eon had a certain shape, feel, color, more... But in bearers, these characteristics seemed to be rather pale. No matter how powerful they were, eon made itself evident only when a person had unleashed their full potential.

But when he looked at Matthew's, it didn't have pale qualities.

'Sharp, like the general's. But... different too.'

It was hard to say exactly. But... the fact that he could feel it even when Matthew wasn't actively using eon explained a lot.

'Either he's a really powerful bearer or he lied.'

Well... there was no problem with him lying, actually. So what if he hid the fact that he was a follower? He might not want to reveal his power, after all... It was perfectly understandable.

Still, Kael wanted to keep an eye on Matthew. Something about him made him feel uncomfortable.

*******

On the third day of the journey, the calm before the storm was finally broken... and Kael found something.

"Bandit tracks."

"How big?"

The leader of the group, Pecera, asked seriously, though her expression didn't waver much. Kael replied calmly.

"It's hard to be sure, but there must have been at least seven or eight of them.

They seemed to be heading in our path."

Pecera thought for a moment, staring at the ground.

"They must have been novices if they left a trail behind them..."

Her eyebrows raised slightly, she looked at Kael with a suggestive expression.

Kael sighed slightly.

"I can go ahead and handle it. If there's anything I can't handle, I'll come back. Is that okay?"

Pecera nodded in agreement. And with that, Kael turned and disappeared into the trees without a word.

The bandits he had tracked down were not difficult to locate.

There were a little more than he had expected, nine of them. But they didn't seem to be waiting for the group heading for the Barony of Halve in particular; they seemed to be waiting for some random passer-by.

Kael watched the men secretly, silently. He made sure none of them were bearers. He decided they were no threat to him after a short while... and finally acted.

He withdrew the eon that blocked the sound he made, then walked with slow steps through the bushes in an exposed way.

He quickly attracted the attention of the bandits. The four on his side of the road quickly turned towards him and asked with a very serious expression.

"I'm only going to ask you once. Are you bandits or not?"

Maybe it was unnecessary to ask the question... but it wouldn't hurt to be sure.

Maybe they were innocent people waiting on the road...?

"Huh? What the fuck are you saying, brat?"

The man talking to him paused, turned around, and looked at his three friends. Then a smile appeared on all of their faces.

"Seriously... what are you doing here? These are dangerous roads for children... I wonder, are you traveling with a group or something?"

Kael couldn't help rolling his eyes.

For a moment, just a moment, he wanted to think good things.

Without giving him any answer, he pulled out his daggers.

"Are those daggers? Those are dangerous things for you-"

The man's words were cut short. His eyes widened, staring blankly into the center of his forehead.

As his body slowly fell to the ground, the last thing he saw was the hilt of the dagger piercing his skull.

"H- huh?"

The other bandits looked at the body of their friend, not understanding what had happened. Then, all of their eyes slowly turned towards Kael.

What they saw was that the eyes they were sure were brown a few seconds ago now had a silvery glow.

As Kael spread his eon throughout his body along the blood vessels, he sprang into action.

He instantly took the second man's head, grabbed the third man by the hair, slammed him to the ground, and kneed him hard enough to crack his skull. The last man he tripped and threw his dagger through his heart.

It all took two seconds, no longer, no shorter.

And that was enough time for it all to end.

"Tch."

He didn't even need to use eon... had he overestimated them?

He stopped his eon circulation, then walked towards the last of the five. He didn't ask them any questions. He simply walked at them with his daggers, making his intentions clear from the start.

But this time, he did not kill them instantly. He gave them a chance, deliberately creating openings in his stance. And he realized that they were not so weak.

They were stronger than the trio he had killed in the street when he first entered Greenveil Town, for example.

He killed the remaining five bandits in this way without using a drop of eon, without breaking a sweat. In the end, when he looked at the five corpses around him, he took a deep breath.

'I've gotten stronger, I suppose.'

In his previous state in the town, he would not have been able to kill these men without using eon.

But as he was now, it was as if... he was crushing ants with his foot.

'Is it my training with Hakon? Or is it the curse that has strengthened me with my kills over the last two months?'

He hung his daggers at his waist, turned, and moved to rejoin his group. All the while, he kept thinking.

'Or both...'

It was... satisfying to be able to see his progress in such a clear way. He couldn't lie.