Ethan and Marie worked efficiently, guiding the shaken hikers back toward their vehicles. The group moved in tense silence, their earlier terror still hanging over them like a shadow.
Ethan offered the occasional reassuring word, but his thoughts were elsewhere. His eyes kept darting to the surrounding forest, his body on edge, half-expecting the demons to return.
When they finally reached the clearing where the hikers' cars were parked, Ethan turned to Marie, lowering his voice so the others wouldn't overhear. "What if the demons co after them again? Sowhere along the way?"
Marie shook her head with a small smile, the kind that hinted at the knowledge she wasn't quite ready to share. "That's not for you to worry about. Elias's sense covers this whole region perfectly. If there's even a flicker of danger, he'll know—and he'll deal with it."
Ethan nodded, relieved, though her words stirred new questions in his mind. He glanced toward the horizon, where the distant mountains frad the sky.
"How strong is Elias, really?" he asked after a pause. "If he can sense everything in this region, couldn't he have just… settled this quickly himself?"
Marie chuckled, the sound light but carrying a note of understanding, as if she'd been waiting for him to ask. "Oh, believe , he could. But that's not how he operates."
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"
Marie's smile widened, and there was sothing almost wistful in her expression. "Because that old man is always preparing soone else for the fight. , Celia—both of us. He keeps saying it's a 'holy duty' or sothing. And who knows how many years he has left? At least, that's what he keeps saying."
Ethan frowned, her words stirring an unease he couldn't quite place. "So, he's just… training his replacents?"
"Sothing like that," Marie replied, her tone casual but not dismissive. "He thinks it's important. And honestly? He's probably right. Soone's got to take over when he's gone."
Ethan glanced at her, his mind turning over the implications. The thought of soone like Elias—a figure so calm, so unshakable—speaking about the limits of his own ti was unsettling.
But before Ethan could ask more, Marie straightened, her expression shifting back to the practical.
"Anyway," she said, nodding toward the hikers as they began piling into their cars, "our job is done here. Let's get moving."
Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire
Ethan followed her lead, but the questions lingered, unanswered, as they made their way back into the forest. But before he could say anything, the system notification chid.
=====
[Mission Complete: Protect the Humans from Demons]
Objective: Ensure the safety of the humans from the approaching demon threat.
Reward:
1. 7,500 EXP
2. 15 Ascension Points
=====
Ethan smiled at the next notification of him leveling up. 'Still, no mories restored.'
As they walked back toward the mountain, the forest around them felt quieter, though not entirely at ease. Marie glanced at Ethan, her steps light and unhurried.
"We can take our ti," she said casually. "Besides, I'd bet you've got a lot on your mind right now—like, oh, I don't know, how on earth we're dealing with demons?"
Ethan snorted, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Thanks. That will be helpful."
Marie laughed, the sound bright in the stillness. "Fair enough. And let guess, you're not going to ask Elias? Because you already know he'll speak in riddles or give you just enough to drive you mad with curiosity?"
Ethan shook his head, his lips twitching into a faint smile despite himself. "Exactly. He loves that, doesn't he?"
"Oh, he absolutely does," Marie said, grinning. "Making people wonder is his favorite pasti. But, you know, it's not all bad. Sotis, he shares sothing interesting enough to make you stop complaining."
Ethan raised an eyebrow at her, unconvinced. "And this is one of those tis?"
"Could be," Marie teased, her expression turning thoughtful. "This is what Elias told before…"
***
The mory unfolded like a scene from an old war story. Elias had just returned, his usual composed self, from delivering his report. The room was dimly lit, the shadows playing across the faces of Captain Cole, Tanner, and Mara.
While Captain Cole maintained his usual calm, Tanner's hands trembled slightly as he gripped the edge of the table. Mara's wide eyes darted nervously to the door as though she expected sothing monstrous to burst through at any mont.
"It's just like sothing out of a horror film," Tanner muttered under his breath, his voice shaking. "All this talk about creepy rituals and otherworldly powers… it's insane."
Mara nodded quickly, her face pale. "Captain, you don't think… that stuff Elias reported about the Feroshians—it's not really going to happen, right?"
All eyes turned to Captain Cole, who sat with his fingers steepled under his chin. For a long mont, he didn't answer, his steady gaze fixed on the table as though weighing his words carefully.
Finally, he nodded. "It's possible," he said, his tone even but heavy with aning. "This world has always been ho to those who seek otherworldly powers. Families, cults, organizations—they've been trying for centuries. Most fail, but so succeed. If the Feroshians are turning to that path, it wouldn't be the first ti."
The room fell silent, the weight of his words sinking into the air. Tanner's knuckles whitened as he gripped the table harder. "And what if they do succeed?"
Captain Cole's expression didn't waver. "Then it becos our job to stop them," he said simply.
Captain Cole straightened in his chair, his gaze steady and unwavering. "First, we need to report everything we've learned to the base. What happens after that is up to the higher-ups. They'll decide what to do with the troops surrounding this region."
Mara's brow furrowed, her voice uncertain as she asked, "Wouldn't it be better to just pull the soldiers back? Get them away from Stonepeak Ridge before anything happens?"
Tanner scoffed lightly, shaking his head. "Logically, yeah, that's the smartest move. But we don't know if the Feroshians could still pull sothing off without the other countries' soldiers nearby. For all we know, they've already accounted for that possibility. At least if we intercept them, we've got a fighting chance."
Captain Cole's lips tightened into a faint grimace, but he gave a small nod. "Tanner's got a point. Sotis, pulling back isn't the solution—it just gives the enemy more room to maneuver."
He leaned forward, his voice lowering slightly as though speaking sothing he'd rather not say aloud.
"But let's not kid ourselves. The higher-ups don't always care about us—not the way they should. They'll fra it as a mission for the country or a necessary sacrifice," he said, his tone laced with a faint trace of bitterness, "We've heard it all before. What they won't say is that we're pawns in a ga they've already decided how to play."
The room fell silent for a mont, the weight of his words pressing down on them.
"And if Squad 9," Cole continued, his voice asured but firm, "decides to relay this information, we'll likely see factions form among our own ranks."
Tanner chose to interject, believing that it would make him better in the captain's eyes, "So will agree to pull back; others will push to stay and fight. That division? That's exactly what the Feroshians—or any other opportunistic group—would want. It would leave us vulnerable, not just to them, but to other countries who'd be all too happy to strike when we're at each other's throats."
Mara and Elias exchanged uneasy glances, the tension in the air palpable. Elias, who had remained silent, finally spoke, his voice quiet but resolute. "Then we can't afford to make a mistake. The way we handle this has to be precise."
Captain Cole nodded. "Exactly. We're walking a fine line here. One wrong move, and we'll do more damage to ourselves than the Feroshians ever could." He stood, his sharp gaze sweeping over the group, but he did not say anything.
Tanner leaned forward, his elbows resting on the edge of the table, a furrow forming between his brows. "What about the warehouse, Captain?" he asked, his voice low, as if even speaking about it might stir the shadows. "What are we supposed to do with it?"
Captain Cole didn't answer imdiately. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the window, where the faint light barely pierced the heavy air of the room.
He stood as still as a statue, his expression calm yet weighed down by the decisions ahead. When he finally spoke, his voice was deliberate, every word chosen with care.
"We keep an eye on it," he said. "Every movent, every shadow that crosses its threshold—we track it. When they act, when they're ready to move or begin whatever Elias heard about, we'll know. And when we know, we report."
His words were t with silence, the kind that doesn't rely fill a room but seems to seep into the very walls. Then, he took a deep breath, his tone hardening slightly. "But if we have the chance—if the mont cos when we can eliminate the people in charge of this ritual—that would be better. End it before it truly begins."
The three of them—Elias, Tanner, and Mara—exchanged uneasy glances. None of them spoke, but the thoughts behind their eyes were easy to read: they all knew how impossible that would be.
The people at the heart of this operation wouldn't be sitting idly by, waiting for soone to disrupt them. They'd be fortified, shielded by layers of protection, likely surrounded by the best they could muster.
Tanner was the first to break the silence, his voice colored by a nervous sort of humor. "You're talking about taking down the big players, aren't you? The ones behind all this? You know they're probably holed up in so fortress by now, right? Guarded like their lives depend on it—which, to be fair, they probably do."
Mara, more serious, shook her head slightly, her voice almost a whisper. "Even getting close would be a death sentence. If they sense we're there… well, we'd be lucky to get out alive."
Elias, who had remained quiet up to this point, leaned back in his chair, his gaze steady. "I know you have faced worse," he said simply, though his tone carried no bravado. "But we'll need details. Precise ones. If we go in blind, we won't get a second chance."
Captain Cole finally turned back to them, his face calm but shadowed with an unspoken weariness. "I know," he said quietly, though his words carried the weight of soone who had already accepted the danger. "It won't be easy. But we don't get to wait for easy."
He stepped forward, his voice growing firr. "For now, we focus on intelligence. We watch the warehouse, we gather everything we can, and when the ti cos, we strike. But only when we're certain."
The room fell silent again, but this ti, it wasn't hesitation that filled the air. It was sothing deeper, a shared understanding of the grim reality they faced.
Tanner, Mara, and Elias nodded, their doubts buried beneath the trust they placed in their captain. He had led them through impossible odds before, and if anyone could navigate the dangers ahead, it was Captain Cole.
But even so, the shadow of what was to co lingered, heavy and unspoken.
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