Nefarious

6.Hidden Identity: Part I

At the northern border of the Nightingales' territory, a large crowd had begun to gather. Tension hung in the air, as if something significant was about to unfold.

The sun had already shown itself in the sky, yet the air in the surrounding area was still chilly.

Beyond the thin light veil, another world awaits in the form of a forest.

The dense foliage and big branches of trees caused the sunlight to barely penetrate, resulting in a gloomy and murky ambiance.

No birds or critters were making noise inside the forest, only howling, groaning, giggling, etc. All types of eerie noises were only heard.

Everything inside the forest was deadly.

That's because of the poisonous miasma that was floating around freely in every place.

It's the infamous forest, Soul-Eating Forest.

Others call it the Forbidden Forest.

Today is different from most days when the entrance to the woodland is silent.

Groups of armored soldiers gathered around the opening.

People were chattering, discussing, sharpening their blades ...

These brought life and brightness to the otherwise dark and silent area.

All of their emotions could be seen on their faces.

Some of them had a strong sense of purpose and excitement.

But, there were also a few of them who appeared soulless, powerless, and afraid.

Amid the uncertainty of their survival, they brought themselves together to test their luck collecting spirit stones.

There was little doubt that the majority of those seeking entry into the forest shared similar objectives.

Spirit stones

Spirit stones were valuable objects that could only be obtained after slaying a monster or a demon.

They were used in different ways, such as in alchemy or weaponry.

Thus, a single spirit stone could fetch a hefty price, even the lowest type of it.

Some people who wanted to become rich desperately would choose to gamble their lives, just for a string of hope that they'd hopefully go home with a piece of spirit stone and a barely intact limb.

Unfortunately, only the strong could walk out alive from that damned wilderness.

"It's almost 7! We must prepare ourselves now before we enter. Make sure that all your valuables are with you" a fully armored soldier loudly reminded his troops.

"Yes, Chief."

Afterward, other people who were silently waiting under the trees and by the rock, decided to join their groups as well and did one last preparation.

Small and huge groups began to gather gradually.

At the appointed hour, they must enter.

Everyone who intended to enter was urged to do so at seven in the morning and return to the entrance before dusk.

Because as dusk falls, the forest will be overrun with demons and monsters, making it difficult for anyone to run even just a meter.

If not, they will leave all their hopes behind and accept their fate.

They will perish at the demon's hands or the monster's teeth.

And they will become another fertilizer for the forest.

Back to the people gathered outside the barrier, it was clear that aside from the size of each of the groups, their clothing and equipment were significantly different.

Some of them were wearing uniform armor from head to toe, and some were not.

It was obvious that those groups who were fully equipped were soldiers from noble families, while the others were only mercenaries.

Although the latter was not fully clothed with the highest quality of armor, their skills and experienced reflexes were to be praised.

You could say most of them were capable and experienced at entering the demon's lair.

A short, thin, cloaked figure, like an invisible air, was standing behind the soldiers and mercenaries and was attempting to avoid drawing attention to himself.

He's alone too.

Under his ragged scarlet cloak, he was only wearing a black-fitting shirt and a pair of pants. A silver dagger was safely fastened to his waist.

Half of his face was covered in white mesh fabric.

He resembled a naked soldier in the middle of a battlefield. So vulnerable.

Though he appeared unkempt and unprepared, there was no fear in his eyes.

Beside a shadowy oak tree, he was scrutinizing the people around him with calm and emotionless eyes.

Although he tried to blend in, a burly flaxen-haired soldier still noticed him and called him out.

"Hey!"

"..."

"Hello?"

"..."

"Hey, don't ignore me. I'm friendly OK" He walked towards the young man while waving his right hand and showing his yellowish smile.

He had no idea that someone would come up to him and strike up a conversation.

He gave the burly man an emotionless sidelong glance.

"You look cool and mysterious right there kid. I like you. What's your name?"

The soldier honestly confessed his impression of him and tried to reach and tap his left shoulder.

The young man swiftly dodged his hand.

"Whoah. You're fast! You have a good reflex kid. That's good! Anyways, I don't have any ill intentions toward you. My name's Carlos. I'm a soldier of Count Sullivan."

"Vie"

"Huh? What's Vie?"

"My name"

"Ah! Quite a short name but I think it suits your appearance. Nice nice! Very mysterious indeed."

He raised two thumbs and complimented the young man.

Vie stepped back just as he was going to reach out and tap on his shoulder.

Carlo noticed Vie's wariness.

He assumed that V must be concerned that he'd take advantage of his youth and trick him.

Carlos asked him in a friendly tone again.

"Where's your group?"

"Alone" Vie shortly replied.

He was surprised that someone like him would enter the forest without any support. That can't be, he will die.

"Huh? It is too dangerous for you to go alone. You should go back and find a group."

"..."

"I sincerely suggest that you should go back to your family instead. Don't waste your life here. You won't last long if you go alone. "

Carlos looked at the young man with full sympathy and tried to convince him not to enter.

"I can't. I need spirit stones."

Carlos speculates, 'Perhaps his family is struggling financially. Or perhaps his mother is ill and they need money for medicine.

Despite how weak and defenseless he is in the face of monsters and demons, he sacrifices himself to save his dying mother.

A pitiful soul.

While he may be putting on a brave face, he must be afraid underneath that torn cloak.'

Vie was suddenly surprised by Carlo's reaction. Tears were running down his eyes and cheeks.

Vie wonders, what's up with him? Why's he crying all of a sudden?

It was very unusual to watch.

A large man sobbing in front of a petite man.

"Vice-captain! We're done distributing potions. Oh, who are you talking to?"

Out of nowhere, a woman approached them.

"What in hell!? Why are you crying?"

The woman was shocked and pulled her handkerchief from her pocket and wiped his tears.

"This kid right here wanted to go inside the forest alone. On top of that, he wasn't even wearing any protection on his body.

Regardless, he's determined to gamble his life for a spirit stone so that he can save his dying mother", Carlos sniffled while explaining to her.

"What?! Are you intending to commit suicide kid?! Look, you only have a dagger with you. It won't make a scratch on those wretched monsters no matter how hard you try. You'll just waste energy and possibly endanger your life."

The woman spoke with irritation and a sense of worry in her voice.

"Ha. I d- "

Vie immediately clarified that they had misunderstood him, but Carlo cut him off before he could even say a word.

"Don't worry kid! I'll help you. Come with us!"

Carlos put his arm around Vie's neck and dragged him towards their group.

"But vice-! It's not a good idea. Captain won't even agree to this."

"Don't worry Medina. It'll be fine. Come on lad."

Medina was speechless.

This superior of hers has always been willful and kind.

Though this attitude is admirable, being overly friendly to a stranger, it's always been a bad idea.

Unable to persuade him, she futilely followed behind them.

As they walked towards the front, some of the soldiers and mercenaries noticed the young man who was being dragged by Carlos.

They were all silently mocking him because of his appearance.

"Captain!"

Carlos saluted.

The man who was talking to the woman paused.

He was wearing armor that was slightly more embellished than others.

Although he has a too-masculine-looking chiseled face, the long, loosely-braided blonde hair on his back softened the overall masculineness of his image.

"Carlos, where were you? Have you already checked the other soldiers?"

He faced Carlos and asked.

"Yes, Captain. They are waiting for your command to move forward."

Carlos replied with all seriousness.

"Good. Who is this?"

The Captain's olive eyes scanned over the young man's presence.

He looked skeptical towards him, mainly because V was covered almost from head to toe.

He seemed suspicious in his eyes.

Carlos pushed Vie forward and introduced him to his superior.

"Ah yes. This kid's name is Vie and he wants to enter the forest too. He is kinda alone, so I planned to ask for your permission to let him join our troops."

He spoke with a puppy's face.

"Eww. What in hell are you doing? Are you attempting to woo the young Master or are you practicing your creepy old guy look?"

Maya, who, besides the Captain and Medina's twin sister, jumped in the conversation and exaggeratedly retched to poke fun at Carlos.

"How could you say that? I'm not trying anything."

He responded innocently.

"Don't listen to her, Sir Carlos, she will never comprehend what cuteness is because, in the first place, she inherently lacks it."

Medina defended Carlos and glared at her twin sister.

"Medina! How could you say that to me, your sister."

"I already told you before that you should stop making fun of Sir Carlos."

"What?! I can't even make a joke about him. Are you truly that smitten with him?" Maya, with a smug face, revealed Medina's secret.

Medina was shocked by her sister's words.

She couldn't help herself from blushing brightly for a moment.

"Maya!!! I'm going to rip off your hair. You b***h!"

"Ohhh... calm down Sister. Your kind Sir Carlos is watching you. Hahaha"

Medina dragged her sister away from the three men.

Now that the two noisy women were gone, the Captain broke the silence.

"Why do you wish to enter the forest ... alone?"

The Captain asked calmly at Vie.

The young man didn't reply. He stayed silent.

Carlos sensed the awkwardness, so he decided to answer the question for Vie.

"Uhmm, you see, Captain. He needs spirit stones to exchange them for money. He's poor and in need of money; despite not being fully equipped; he's resolute on throwing his life away in the hope of getting a piece of spirit stone to save his family from hunger."

"Is that true?"

He stared at Vie's eyes directly. In his lifeless gray eyes, there was only nothingness. Instead, he felt as though he was being dragged down a dark chasm with no hint of danger.

It was difficult to tell what was going through his head.

The Captain was completely preoccupied with thought and was dazed for a moment.

"Young master? Young master?"

The Captain's unusually prolonged silence caught Carlos' attention and called upon him.

He pulled himself out of his stupor.

On the other hand, Vie was in a dilemma.

He was supposed to hide in the shadows and enter the forest after the soldiers and mercenaries. Yet, unexpectedly, Carlos saw her presence.

His plan of sneaking in was already out of the question.

To avoid getting unnecessary suspicion from them, he must lie.

"Yes. My mother is terminally ill. The doctors prescribed a medicine but it was too expensive. If I don't get the medicine as soon as possible, my mother will die."

Vie changed her tone of voice, like a helpless rabbit. He tried to show scarred and innocent behavior by twisting the edge of his cloak and his head pointing down the dirt.

"Why are you hiding your face?" He asked again to regain himself from the awkward silence earlier.

Vie slowly raised his face and replied.

"My, my face is ugly and covered with hives."

"Hah. Really?"

"Yes Sir"

The Captain scrutinized Vie again. Eventually, he felt no strange or alarming aura around him, aside from his appearance.

He decided that there was no harm in bringing him in with his troops.

"Alright, you stay by his side. Don't wander away from our sight."

He pointed at Carlos.

"Carlos, keep an eye on him too." After giving his permission, he walked towards the front, telling the other knights about the situation.

"Welcome aboard, kid! By the way, he is our captain and the young count of Sullivan. His name is Dylan and he is a good man."

"Oh..."

"Our priority today is just to reduce the number of monsters and demons inside the forest together with the Imperial Knights. Since the magic barrier is too old, there's no guarantee that it can keep the monsters and demons at bay. Thus, we are here to help."

"Why not ask for help from the family who created the barrier?"

Vie curiously asked Carlos.

"The Emperor had already sent the heirs of the Nightingale family to recreate a barrier. Unfortunately, they were all unable to do anything about it. They all said that they need more time and resources to be able to recreate it. However, no matter how hard they tried, there was no success at all."

"Ahh..."

"The Emperor at that time grew tired and decided to stop financing their duchy until they made a result. Unfortunately, the Nightingale has already vanished."

"Why? What happened?"

"I do not know exactly what happened. I only heard rumors that each family member was gradually dying of a strange illness. Five years ago, the last Nightingale descendant passed away at a young age. With his life, the Nightingales legacy has ended."

"..."

He grabbed both of Vie's shoulders and looked him in the eyes.

"Anyways, don't wander away, and always stay close to me. So that you won't die. Understand?"

"Yes"

"Then, let's go, Lad!"

The time arrived, and each group went inside the forest.

The highest-ranked group came first, followed by the lowest.

Before Dylan's group entered, they were following the soldiers of Terrell Duchy.

When they saw that the young count, Sullivan, had left the poor-looking man, Vie, in his group, they started taunting them.

"Look! They let a scrawny kid join their troops. Hahahhaha!"

" Are they stupid? What's the use of that weak kid in their troops? "

"Hahaha what a bunch of nitwits."

"Hey Young Count of Sullivan! You got there, a silly bait with you huh... I never thought that your noble self would turn out to be...you know, using a shortcut to lure those freaky monsters haha"

A brawny soldier with a big scar on his cheek emerged from the opposite troops.

He was wearing a set of armor made of gold and a bunch of necklaces that held enchanted gems hanging on his veiny neck.

He was taunting Dylan, who was not affected at all. He was just looking straight into his face with his cold eyes.

"Ahh ... Sir Bullton your talking claptrap again. I was certain that I made it clear to you that taunting me would only make you look more pathetic. I don't want to make your face more hideous than it is now."

Dylan, without blinking, retorted at him.

"You !!!"

"Yeah! It seems like you have a thick face, showing your damn face to our captain. After, he kicked your butt in the duel"

Medina yelled in reply.

"Shut your trap scumbag and go back in line! You may be a soldier of Duke Terrell but keep in mind you are talking to a noble. Compared to you, a soldier, our young master is a Count. Get that inside your thick head!"

Maya bravely confronted Sir Bullton.

"Watch your demeanor" she was seething with anger while glaring at him.

"Tch! Ugly bitch...If I were you I'd watch my back after stepping inside the forest. Who knows what will happen inside."

Sir Bullton went back in front of his line with an evil smile on his face.

"Word of advice Kid, don't approach them. They are not known for being fair and merciful. I have a bad feeling about them."

Carlos whispered to Vie.

"They're like demons," Vie whispered back.

"Hahaha! Exactly, kid. Haha, I like your humor."

Carlos laughed while Vie's eyes darted in front of them.

"Move forward!"

Dylan shouted towards his men and led them beyond the barrier.