Chapter 260

The watcher steadily tracked Sivar’s movements, trying to determine if he was a filthy demon or simply an ordinary human.

As he followed, the truth that gradually revealed itself was very simple.

‘…Is that comfortable?’

It became clear why Sivar was deemed a “wild man.” The watcher couldn’t suppress his astonishment at Sivar’s behavior.

Eating bugs or mushrooms on the go was one thing – perfectly reasonable in a rural area.

But watching him chow down on the raw entrails of hunted animals was something else entirely, showcasing his true wild nature.

He was eating far too much to begin with. If there was something remotely appetizing, he just scooped it up.

He didn’t even bother to clean the dirt off of things he found. He just shoved it into his mouth as-is.

He was even marking his territory regularly, leading to all sorts of thoughts swirling in the watcher’s head.

‘Seems he’s got good instincts, so I can’t carelessly show myself.’

If it were up to him, he’d take the chance to use holy water during a meal.

However, Sivar was cautious, occasionally looking back or coming this way.

It didn’t take long for the watcher to feel a chill run down his spine, making it hard to act.

‘It looks like it’s going to be tough to find an opportunity.’

His instincts were so sharp that hiding was a more pressing concern. So, the watcher decided to stick to observing.

Most importantly, the sun was beginning to set. While today was a disappointment, there were still plenty of chances left.

After all, there was life in the academy too. Even if Rize was there, he could be careful.

‘Holy water is just ordinary water to an ordinary person.’

Even if other gods, like Chaos or Gulrak, blessed him, the holy water wouldn’t do anything at all.

It would probably just replenish some lack of divine or magical power and be done with it. Still, the watcher didn’t let his guard down.

No matter how strong a person was, rest was essential. Sivar hadn’t taken a break since entering the forest.

He’d even been hunting monsters here and there, so he should need to rest soon. That would be a prime opportunity.

‘…When will he finally take a break?’

He didn’t seem to take any breaks. Was he munching on bugs and mushrooms to recharge his strength instead? He just wouldn’t stop moving.

Eventually, as the sun set, the watcher gained nothing. Sivar packed up the things he’d gathered and headed back to the academy.

There was a makeshift bathroom at the forest entrance, so he could wash up there. The watcher clicked his tongue in disappointment.

‘His stamina is insane. I’ll have to account for that.’

Time was plentiful, and opportunities remained. It was just today that felt regrettable.

At that moment, the watcher was about to cease his activities and head back.

“You’re coming with me.”

“?!”

He heard a voice he had never heard before from behind. The watcher jumped in surprise and turned around, but…

Thud!

With a jolt to the back of his neck, the watcher’s vision quickly faded to black.

“….”

The hunter looked down at the collapsed watcher and then turned to glance at the academy.

More specifically, the entrance where Sivar had just entered. Unlike before, Sivar was now looking in this direction.

In other words, he had seen the hunter and the fallen watcher.

[…Into the darkness.]

The hunter went stealthily as he took the watcher away. Naturally, no one was left at the forest entrance.

Sivar stared blankly at the vanished watcher and the hunter before turning away.

‘So there was someone watching after all.’

He had known someone was keeping an eye on him. He hadn’t done anything wrong, so he had let it slide.

But he never expected there would also be a hunter. No, he had thought about it but found it strange that he wasn’t being targeted.

It felt like they were protecting him from the watcher. It might have been a mere illusion, but based on that recent action, he held some suspicion.

‘Could they possibly know this body of mine?’

While not entirely impossible, he did think there might be a connection. After all, the demons’ grand plan revolved around this body.

Somehow, hope blossomed momentarily but was snuffed out for some reason, and the anger was now being expressed.

Now that hope appeared right before him, the demons must have also mentioned it. That seemed the most plausible explanation.

‘For now, it seems they won’t be targeting me.’

He felt like he could roam through the forest at ease now. But that didn’t mean he would let his guard down.

He still had no idea when a demon might turn on him. They could try to forcibly take him away at any moment.

Sivar moved his feet forward. The mushrooms and herbs he had gathered today were looking pretty decent.

Most of them would be delivered to Eli. By now, she might be brewing some tea back at Rod’s Residence.

‘First, let’s wash up a bit.’

If he went in with blood on his hands and face, he’d definitely hear complaints from Rod. He really didn’t like Rod’s nagging.

Luckily, there was a makeshift bathroom near the forest entrance, so washing up wouldn’t be an issue.

Just when he was about to wrap up all his preparations and head back to Rod’s Residence.

“Sivar?”

“Yeah?”

“It’s nice to run into you here.”

In a twist of fate, he met a familiar face. It was Rize.

Dressed in her usual nun’s habit, she greeted Sivar with a bright smile.

Sivar, equally pleased to see her, returned the greeting cheerfully.

“Hi.”

“Hello.”

As Sivar greeted her, Rize smiled back, giving him a slight nod. When she bowed, her unusually large chest became quite prominent.

Sivar tried his best to avert his gaze from wandering that way. That’s just fake chests, he whispered to himself.

Then Rize peeked behind Sivar with a gentle voice.

“Did you just come back from the forest?”

“Yeah. Here are the herbs and mushrooms.”

“You brought back quite a lot. And that blood…?”

“I caught a monster.”

“Oh. That’s a relief.”

Relief. In her expression, Sivar felt a peculiar vibe.

As if she were worried he might have caught something other than a monster.

Or perhaps she was just glad he hadn’t gotten hurt. Given Rize’s nature, the latter seemed more likely.

‘This is why context is so important.’

As long as one doesn’t strip away subjects and objects like someone else does, there shouldn’t be any confusion.

Especially considering Rize was a follower of Chaos, so she’d understand, but Luna… let’s not go there.

He was very curious about why Luna wasn’t a follower of Chaos.

“Shall we head back then? I also have business with Rod.”

“Sure.”

“But you didn’t pick up anything weird again, did you?”

“….”

Sivar said nothing. He simply continued walking forward while keeping his gaze ahead.

After they returned to Rod’s Residence and began sorting today’s haul…

“Sivar? This is a poisonous mushroom!”

“Really?”

“Yeah. You won’t die if you eat it, but it’ll give you terrible diarrhea. You didn’t eat this, did you?”

“Yeah. I had a lot.”

No wonder his stomach had felt off today.

*****

“Ugh…”

The watcher blinked awake, feeling a numbness at the back of his neck, though his mind was gradually returning.

His head was pounding like crazy, but he forced himself to open his eyes. His body was one trained for moments like this.

As he finally regained half of his senses, strange voices reached his ears.

“He’s coming to.”

“Good. Let’s see how far he can take this.”

Not one, but two voices. His mind snapped to attention upon hearing them.

He tried to move, but it was all in vain. His body had already been tied up to a chair.

In a moment of confusion, the watcher realized that the surroundings were filled with darkness.

In the pitch-black void, only two things were visible: the eyes glowing like a beast in the dark.

One shone a brilliant blue, while the other gleamed an even darker navy.

“Hey. Are you awake?”

The voice from the navy light posed the question. The watcher blinked in confusion.

He couldn’t wrap his head around this situation. He knew he’d been kidnapped, but he couldn’t fathom who was behind it.

“Who the hell are you?”

“You don’t need to know that. Just answer my questions. We have no intention of taking your life.”

The navy demon replied to the watcher’s query. Though it was hard to trust, it was true in a way.

If they killed him, the Gaia sect would surely grow suspicious. For now, he needed to be kept alive.

“How much do you know about the boy you were following?”

“What… what?”

“You know, the red-eyed kid. How much do you know?”

Are they talking about Sivar? The watcher frowned.

Why on earth would they be asking about the subject of his surveillance? Still, he intended to answer.

After all, he didn’t know much either. All he’d seen was Sivar living like a wild man.

“Not much. I just arrived recently. I’ve only observed his life as a wild man.”

“What? It hasn’t been long?”

“I only operated in the forest, so I had little knowledge.”

“Ugh. Unlucky us. What a disappointment.”

This was an opportunity to find out how Sivar lived at the academy. But unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time.

After a moment of disappointment, the watcher asked, “So who the hell are you? Why are you doing this?”

“We?”

The navy demon pondered the question briefly before glancing sideways.

To the side stood the hunter, still upright and stoic. His loyalty was clearly discernible.

Then the navy demon shrugged his shoulders and uttered something incomprehensible.

“Just think of us as distant relatives. Essentially, we’re very special princes.”

“…Princes? Are you royalty?”

Only then did it click. Now he understood why they were asking about Sivar.

If Sivar was royalty from a nation, it would make sense that they kept an eye on him.

It’s not unheard of to be born into royalty without knowledge, only to discover one’s lineage later in life.

But Sivar had been born and raised in the wilderness, leading to all sorts of issues.

“Though we’re even higher up the ladder, that’s not entirely wrong. Anyway…”

The navy demon moved on, ignoring the watcher’s confusion.

“How about we strike a deal?”

“…A deal?”

“Yeah. We’re both curious about that kid, right? But we can’t go into the academy because of some circumstances.”

The reason, of course, was that they were demons.

However, from the watcher’s perspective, all he could see was the blue and navy lights floating around, making it hard to gauge their intent.

If he had figured out their identity, he might have even considered a suicide pact or staging a revolt. The demons held the upper hand, after all.

“You keep an eye on Sivar at the academy, and we’ll handle the forest. That way, we can share the load. Don’t you think?”

“That’s laughable. It sounds like you’re the only ones benefitting from this.”

“Really? Then, I guess there’s no choice. Hunter.”

“Yes.”

At the navy demon’s command, the hunter received the order.

“Throw this guy into the Chaos Forest. He’ll go missing anyway, so the parasites won’t even notice.”

“Wha… what?”

“Understood.”

While the watcher was still flabbergasted, the hunter responded in a serious tone. Once again, the upper hand lay with the demons.

If they killed him, the Gaia sect would catch wind of it. But if he simply went missing in the Chaos Forest, it would be a different story.

Even if the sect went searching for missing persons, they’d only learn he had entered the Chaos Forest. Beyond that, they wouldn’t know a thing.

What if an investigation into the missing persons was launched? That would make Rod notice and apply pressure.

“Wait, hold on a second…”

Thud!

Just as the watcher attempted to say something, the hunter struck him at the back of the neck, knocking him out cold.

The navy demon took no further action, as if it deemed him no longer useful. They really intended to toss him into the Chaos Forest.

“I’ll take care of this.”

“Right. Don’t even want to eat him.”

Next, the hunter hoisted up the watcher and carried him away, intending to discard him in the Chaos Forest.

Of course, not directly into it but rather tossing him far from the border. Given it was pitch black outside, the effect would be heightened.

With the hunter gone, the navy demon was left alone. He pulled something small from his pocket.

A tiny glass vial. Inside it was a clear liquid. The holy water the watcher had on him.

“Parasites act just like this.”

Clank!

He angrily threw the glass vial against the wall. The holy water trickled down the surface.

“The saint isn’t a fool; he’s surely watching.”

He scoffed derisively.

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