Chapter 415: Chapter 412 – A Quiet Battle
The night grew thicker at the edge of the dense forest. The small campfire still burned dimly in the center of the clearing they had chosen for rest, its yellow-orange flas dancing slowly across the faces of the three girls seated around it. Crackle... crackle... The sound of dry wood burning broke the night’s silence with a calm rhythm, while a cold wind blew gently, carrying the scent of wet leaves, damp soil, green moss, and a faint trace of tree sap dripping from the tall trees around them. The sky above was pitch black, with only occasional faint red stars piercing the thick canopy of leaves, as if the night world had deliberately closed itself off from light.
Sylvia sat with her back straight, her gray rchant cloak neatly folded in her lap. Her cold red eyes stared unblinkingly into the fire, as if pondering sothing far deeper than the forest itself. Her long black hair, tied loosely, swayed slightly in the breeze, and her expression remained calm, almost emotionless. To her right, Stacia leaned comfortably against the rough trunk of an old tree, her thin novel open in her lap. She turned the pages with lazy movents, firelight reflecting off her silver-gray hair. Across from her, Alicia sat with her still sowhat stiff human body, though far more relaxed than the previous night. She held an empty clay soup bowl, her eyes watching the darkness beyond the fire circle with a vigilant yet calm gaze, as if learning to read every shadow.
"It’s colder tonight than I expected," Stacia muttered without lifting her eyes from her novel. Her voice was soft, almost a whisper. "But I like it. No city noise, no zombie army roars, no Zark reporting every hour. Just the wind, crickets, and the sll of a wet forest."
Sylvia smiled faintly, the corner of her lips barely visible. "This is exactly what I need right now. A few nights like this before we truly start training hard. Our bodies and souls need to adjust after yesterday’s fusion. Too much power flowing all at once... it feels like a river that just flooded."
Alicia nodded slowly, her finger tracing the rim of the empty soup bowl in slow movents. "I’m starting to feel... comfortable too. This body is still foreign, but I can feel the wind on my skin, the cold creeping to my fingertips, even the slow pulse in my neck. It feels... alive. Before, I only floated. I never truly touched the world like this."
The three of them fell silent for a mont, savoring the rare tranquility. The campfire continued to crackle softly, its light reflecting off the small gleaming scales on the two zombie horses standing silently beside the carriage. The two undead creatures did not sleep. Their red eyes glowed faintly in the darkness, faithfully guarding the night without a sound, as if they were part of the forest itself.
But the forest was never truly safe.
Just as they were about to lie down to rest, the darkness surrounding the clearing began to shift. The soft rustle of leaves grew heavier and more nurous, like many feet moving slowly across a carpet of dry leaves. Shadows between the trees moved silently, almost invisible to ordinary eyes. Then, a pair of glowing green eyes appeared in the darkness, followed by dozens more pairs of the sa glowing green eyes like hungry green flas from hell.
A pack of wolves.
Not ordinary wolves.
Their bodies had evolved to stand nearly two ters tall on their hind legs, thick muscles bulging beneath coarse black-gray fur wet with night dew, long fangs gleaming like butcher knives, and curved claws like sickles ready to tear flesh. The pack leader was even larger, nearly three ters tall, its body like a living giant shadow with the brightest green eyes and a savage aura that pressed down on the surrounding air. The fur on its back stood on end, and its breath released thick white steam visible in the cold night air.
They silently encircled the small clearing, forming a perfect ring that sealed off every escape route. Their green eyes glowed in the darkness, waiting for the perfect mont to strike. The strong sll of blood and wet fur grew heavy, mixed with the aura of hungry, savage predators.
Sylvia, Stacia, and Alicia imdiately sensed their presence. Yet the three of them remained seated without moving. There was no panic, no hurried words. Only the sa cold gaze from all three, as if the wolves were nothing more than a passing night breeze.
Stacia quietly closed her novel without making a sound. Alicia set her empty soup bowl down on the grass with slow, careful movents, as if unwilling to disturb the peace. Sylvia continued staring into the campfire as if nothing was happening, but inside her body, the Chains of Abyss pulsed softly, ready like snakes awakening from slumber.
One wolf at the edge of the circle could no longer hold back. With a low, chest-rattling growl GRRRRR... it leaped forward with deadly speed, its sharp claws spread wide, fangs ready to tear flesh and bone.
Just as those claws were about to touch the ground in front of the campfire
SCHLIIIIIIICKKKKK!!!
Pitch-black chains erupted from the earth like living, hungry snakes from hell. Their spear-like tips stabbed upward through the wolf’s stomach with terrifying force, piercing bone, flesh, and spine before bursting out its back. The wolf only managed a cut-off scream of pain GRRRAAAHHH before its body was lifted high into the air and slamd hard onto the ground. Black blood sprayed violently, soaking the grass around the campfire with warm splatters.
The rest of the pack instantly flew into a rage. Their leader let out a savage roar GRRRROOOOOOOAAAAAARRRRR!!! shaking the entire forest and sending nocturnal birds flying in terror. Dozens of evolved wolves charged at once from every direction like a flood of fur, fangs, and bloodthirsty claws.
But Sylvia still did not move from her seat.
Her Chains of Abyss moved on their own.
CLANK CLANK CLANK CLANK CLANK!!!
Blackish-purple chains exploded from the ground around the clearing like a rain of living hell chains. Each chain moved with lethal speed, their sharp tips stabbing, coiling, and tearing apart any wolf that drew near. One wolf was wrapped around the neck until its bones snapped CRACK! Two others were impaled from below and hurled far into the bushes. The pack leader tried to charge with its massive claws, but black chains instantly coiled around both its legs and yanked it down hard BOOOOMMM!!! making the earth tremble.
On the other side, the two zombie horses that had been standing motionless now moved. With a single powerful kick from their front legs THUDDD BOOOOMMM!!! Several wolves trying to approach the carriage were sent flying like rag dolls, their ribs shattered into pieces. The zombie horses made no sound, but their red eyes burned brighter, as if enjoying the task of cleaning up their queen’s enemies.
The battle lasted only a few minutes, yet it felt like a small hell in the middle of the silent forest. The wolves’ roars turned into broken screams of agony. Blood sprayed everywhere, soaking the grass, trees, and even the carriage canvas with dark red stains. The Chains of Abyss moved without pause, like living snakes thirsting for souls. Every ti one chain finished a target, it instantly leaped to the next with a cold tallic rattle CLANK CLANK CLANK!!!
Sylvia remained seated, casually holding her empty soup bowl. She didn’t even lift a finger. Only a faint dark aura emanated from her body, controlling all the chains like extensions of her will.
Stacia closed her novel and leaned back more comfortably against the tree trunk. "They were brave enough to attack tonight. Evolved wolves usually prefer weaker prey."
Alicia observed everything calmly, her human body no longer appearing stiff. "Evolved wolves... their strength is decent. But still far from the threats we faced back in Nocture."
One by one, the surviving wolves began to retreat with tails tucked in fear. The pack leader tried to rise once more, but the Chains of Abyss instantly wrapped around its neck and slamd it back to the ground THUDDD. Its final roar sounded weak and desperate before its massive body stopped moving forever.
The forest fell silent once more.
Only the soft crackling of the campfire and the slow dripping of blood from the chains sinking back into the earth remained.
Sylvia placed her empty soup bowl on the grass. She stood up and wiped her hands with a small brush against her robe. "Clean it up," she said coldly, her voice almost emotionless.
The Chains of Abyss moved one last ti, dragging all the wolf corpses into the darkness of the forest and burying them underground without leaving a trace of blood or fur. The two zombie horses returned to their silent stance as if nothing had happened.
Stacia stretched lazily. "A rather lively night for a vacation. We should be more alert tomorrow. This forest is more alive than I thought."
Alicia nodded, her hand touching the ground beside her. "I’m starting to get used to this body. I didn’t panic at all just now. It feels... like I can react faster already."
Sylvia smiled faintly, her eyes still fixed on the dying fire. "Good. That’s what I need from both of you. Let’s rest now. Tomorrow’s journey to Eldridge is still long."
They sat back down around the fading campfire. The once-threatening forest night grew quiet again, as if the forest itself feared the three simple-looking girls sitting in its midst. In the distance, the faint howl of other wild wolves could be heard, but this ti farther away and filled with fear, as if the surviving pack was fleeing.
Sylvia stared into the campfire once more, her cold red eyes glowing faintly. "Tomorrow we will continue to Eldridge. And after that... the real training will begin. The dinsional rift there will give us the energy we need."
Stacia and Alicia simply nodded in silence. The campfire crackled once more... as if agreeing with their queen’s words.
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