Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 670: Fog Monsters

Chapter 670: Fog Monsters

"Do you think the others are alright?" Arwen asked while seated in a moving carriage along with Nadia and Ana.

Due to no longer having their luggage with them and a desire to avoid standing out as much, the trio had opted for traditional Henosian wears, with Arwen spotting a blue chiton dress while Ana went with a red dress.

As for Nadia, hers was purple with a scarf over her head which she styled in a way that was similar to the way the women of Judah did theirs.

Perhaps not all of them were willing to completely do away with their usual brand of fashion.

"They should be," Nadia replied. "There is no reason why not."

"But the continent is currently at war, and Ulysses is in the Abyss; they could be in danger."

"Well, they aren’t completely helpless and if they need our help, surely they’d reach out to us."

"But what if they can’t?"

"Arwen... now you’re just being pessimistic," Nadia said in slight exasperation, causing the young lady to retreat into herself as she replied.

"Sorry."

"Perhaps your worry for them is born out of something else." Ana calmly pointed out.

"Well..."

"Is something bothering you?"

Arwen hesitated before ultimately nodding in response.

"What is it?"

"It’s Riona. Sometimes I’m scared that she might just take over and I won’t be able to do anything to stop her. I feel helpless."

"Arwen..."

"I haven’t forgotten how I was unable to do anything as she took over the last time, I just... Do you think it’s safe that I remain free?"

"Would you rather we seal you away?" Ana asked.

Silence followed for a bit before Arwen replied. "I don’t know."

"We could easily do so now but there’s a reason we don’t."

"Why?"

"Because we believe you are stronger than Riona. So instead of succumbing to fear, how about facing the source of your trauma head-on?... I know it’s difficult, it was the same for me as well, but know that when you are ready, we will help you, just as I received help when I needed it. Remember, we aren’t just a team, we are family."

Once she was done speaking, Ana reached out her hand, gesturing for Arwen to take it while a warm smile lingered at the corners of her lips.

Arwen hesitated, still struggling to accept the goodwill offered to her.

The incident with Riona left a mark, one that she struggled to ignore but was not so easily forgotten.

It made her feel helpless and weak and made her understand that she could harm those she cared about.

What if someday Riona once again asserted dominance and conquered her, what would she do then?

Would she have no choice but to watch as her friends were murdered?

Perhaps it would be better if she were sealed away; that way, such a future would not happen.

"Arwen." Nadia suddenly called out, jolting her from her spiraling thoughts.

Her eyes were wet, causing her vision to be blurry. "I’m scared."

Nadia moved to sit beside her and a moment later, embraced her tightly.

"We are here for you always." She whispered softly, allowing Arwen to bury her head in her chest.

Ana moved over as well and joined in the hug, making for a rather intimate moment between the trio.

Alas, it did not last as barely a moment later, the carriage stopped moving, and the outside grew eerily silent.

Their carriage was not the only one as they were a part of a merchant’s caravan headed to Nysodosia so it was rather odd that they had stopped so abruptly, without so much as a whisper from outside.

There was no movement in the aether, so it wasn’t apparent if the reason for this was mystical, but unwilling to take chances, Nadia and Ana immediately prepared for the worst-case scenario.

Unfortunately, Arwen was rather vulnerable at the moment, so she couldn’t join in, but that didn’t mean she planned on holding the other two back.

The last thing she’d wish to do would be to see them suffer because of her.

Ana knocked on the carriage wall as she called out to the carriage driver but there was no response.

Meanwhile, Nadia raised up the curtain blocking one of the carriage door windows and peered outside only to find their surroundings covered in a grey fog.

"Something is wrong," Nadia stated with Ana nodding.

"Most likely a mutant."

"I can’t see anything," Nadia said before asking. "Do we step out?"

"What are the chances that fog has spatial properties?" Ana asked back with Nadia responding.

"I can’t say."

"Stay here with Arwen. I’ll check things out."

"Alright."

Taking a deep breath, Ana opened the carriage door and rushed outside before quickly closing the door behind to avoid any of the fog getting into the carriage.

Only once she was outside did she finally hear sound and it was not the good kind.

From the audible sound of metal cutting through flesh to muskets being shot wantonly, she understood that their caravan was under attack by a rather formidable mutant judging from the fog, which reduced visibility to the bare minimum.

Letting out a sigh, she exerted her Will and instantly, everything paused.

She looked to the side to find that something had been inches away from catching her by surprise.

It wasn’t human, judging from its cylindrical body but she couldn’t make out anything else as the creature was invincible.

If not for the fog, she wouldn’t have even been able to see the outline of the creature’s body.

"Definitely a mutant." She remarked before proceeding to reach forward and grab it, after which she gave it a quick death.

Once she was clear on what she was meant to be targeting, she didn’t hesitate to erase the rest, causing the fog to finally dissipate.

With the fog gone, Nadia and Arwen stepped out of the carriage to join Ana outside, their attention drawn to the dead victims on the ground.

Of their caravan numbers, which was nearly a hundred, almost sixty had died at the hands of the invisible mutants, half their bodies devoured while the rest were covered in a powdery substance.

The owner of the caravan was seated at a corner, his gaze unfocused as he appeared disillusioned.

The trio approached with Ana leading the conversation. "What attacked us?"

The man glanced at her, before letting out a tired sigh. "We call them Bordas."

"Fog Monsters?"

"That’s the rough translation. They are capable of reflecting light away from them and they produce fog, two things that make them difficult to catch."

"How come we ran into them here?" Ana asked. "Wasn’t this meant to be a safe passage?"

"How else?" The owner shot back in slight annoyance. "This is clearly done by the defenders."

"How can you be certain?"

The owner scoffed. "You three are truly foreigners. You are unaware of how wars are fought in Henos. Here, apart from man and machine, mutants are also used to deal damage to the enemy."

The ladies exchanged looks with one another before Ana asked. "Does this mean Nysodosia is under attack?"

"... I’m afraid so." The owner muttered, quickly realizing that perhaps, he should not have embarked on this journey in the first place.