The Gamer's POV-Chapter 242: Heralds of Madness [2]

After Cedric spoke, Aurora and Celeste nodded in agreement.

He then looked at Celeste.

She rubbed her sweaty left hand on her backside nervously and, with her right, she pointed behind her, then said timidly, "I’ll get ready."

She then turned away and walked a few meters before stopping on a patch of flat, dusty ground.

"Come, Lilith," she muttered as she raised her right hand.

Pale, flickering flames began to coalesce around her palm, turning into a small, jagged dagger. As the weapon formed, she dropped to her knees and turned pale. She gripped the hilt with both hands and raised the blade to her chest. In that position, she puffed out air a few times to ready herself, while also tightening and loosening her fingers on the hilt to find her grip. After a few moments, she gritted her teeth and drove the dagger into her own chest. Then her eyes went dull and her head slumped over.

Meanwhile, Aurora tapped her chest twice. From that spot, a liquid metal that shimmered like ice began to spread until she was wearing a beautiful, silver, form-fitting armor.

Finely spun, intricate silver filigree traced elegant patterns across the breastplate and gauntlets, and a gossamer cape of transparent, shimmering silver lace unfurled from her pauldrons, catching the dry wind and trailing softly behind her. Her blue eyes gleamed, and a delicate, crystalline crown also materialized atop her head, making her look like a regal goddess of the frost.

Seeing her don her regalia, Cedric lifted his head slightly and blew out a large amount of green smoke that wrapped around his entire figure. Following that, the Yoroi began to take shape over his body. The form-fitting armor appeared piece by piece over the kimono that had first appeared.

It was important to note that even though regalia were to be damaged, they would mend themselves over a few days, or longer depending on the severity of the damage. And so, despite losing his a while back, a fierce, skeletal menpo mask appeared over his mouth and a conical hat that had two long horns of blackened bone appeared atop his head.

At the same time, some meters away, Aika took a drag from her smoke pipe and when she exhaled, rather than the blue smoke from before, a thick green smoke flowed out of her mouth and and engulfed her figure. By the time it dissipated, she too was clad in her regalia.

...Then, suddenly, Celeste’s form caught on fire and her body began to stretch and shift until a demoness was standing in her place.

She slowly turned and gracefully walked over to Cedric and Aurora, her massive frame casting a long shadow over them, and causing them to look up at her.

Since everyone was now seemingly ready, the four decided it was time to set out to the Stone-Crag Wastes.

***

Leaving the horses behind, they set out towards the maze of rocky spires in the distance.

Both Cedric and Aurora had stuffed their ears with the wax to block their hearing, while Celeste had stuffed in the linen that she had gotten from Cedric. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

As for Aika, she didn’t need any. Just like the murder of ravens high above, she too blurred her hearing, focusing only on Cedric’s hearing, which currently was completely blocked.

The minutes passed as the four crossed the rocky landscape, getting closer to the labyrinth of rocky spires, which were over ten meters tall and spread out for as far as the eye could see.

When they eventually reached the entrance of the maze, they shared a brief, knowing nod. Moving as one, they slipped quietly toward the nearest spire and pressed themselves behind it. Secure in the shadows of the massive stone pillar, they all turned their gaze toward Cedric, waiting for his lead.

Currently, Cedric’s map was opened in front of him, and on the display, he could see that the next several hundred meters were clear. Zooming out, he saw six red dots somewhere to the northwest.

He then turned away from the map, looked up, and gave the mental command. Almost immediately, the murder of ravens that had been hovering in a circle above quietly began dashing northwest towards the direction where the creatures were located.

Then, looking back to his team, Cedric gestured for them to follow him. The girls followed him tensely into the shadow-choked labyrinth.

As they moved in tense silence, Cedric couldn’t help but feel really weird about the fact that he couldn’t hear anything. It felt uncomfortable, and the fact he couldn’t speak, made it feel even more claustrophobic.

’I’m not usually one for talking, but now that I’m forced to be silent, I have this ridiculous need to say something.’ Cedric thought, fighting the sudden, intrusive urge to break the quiet.

He stole a quick glance at the girls. Aurora was armed with her glaive, while Aika held the unsheathed katana with its tip angled toward the earth in her left hand.

Beside them, the Demon Queen moved with a terrifying grace, and her height made the gaps between the spires feel even tighter.

Cedric looked away, returning his focus to the map as he continued to lead them forward in absolute silence.

Not long after, the five ravens reached the area where the six Heralds were located. Upon arrival, the birds descended, perching quietly on the jagged peaks of the surrounding spires. Through their eyes, Cedric could see the six Heralds, and gods... they were just as terrifying as he remembered.

The creatures were gathered in a circle, feasting on the corpses of what looked like a strange breed of lions. These beasts, which had wings folded against their backs and the sharp, hooked faces of eagles, were called griffins.

Only one of the griffins was alive, yet it was already bloodied and battered. This beast seemed to be driven mad by the presence of the Heralds, as it kept hitting its head over and over again against the jagged base of the stone spire.

Then, suddenly, one of the Heralds turned its attention to it. It lurched over, and using one of its hands, it grabbed the griffin by the head, lifting the thrashing creature off the ground with effortless strength, then smashed it back down against the rock, sending blood splattering across the base of the spire.

It stared at the now dead griffin for a few seconds, and then... it suddenly began to convulse, bursting into a strange and eerie laughter.

As it laughed, the creature raised its bloodied hand and rubbed the gore across its front-facing face. The features were those of a hideous old man, completely asymmetrical, with one eye sitting significantly lower than the other. Its nose bore an injury that had never properly healed, leaving the bone jagged and exposed, while a wide, evil grin stretched across its lips. After smearing the blood over its skin, the Herald stuck out a tongue so long it reached its chest and began to lick its hand clean.

Suddenly, as if something caught its attention, it slowly looked up to see a raven looking at it with its glassy, obsidian eyes.

The Herald’s expression shifted from twisted glee to a sharp curiosity. However, after only a few seconds, it began convulsing again in a terrifying laughter. And as it did, it tilted its head to the side, revealing its second face.

It was the face of a beautiful man with perfect, chiseled features, but then the man’s lips widened unnaturally up to his ears, making the handsome countenance look like a stretched, fleshy mask. Its lips then began moving frantically as if whispering something really quickly.

But when it noticed that the raven still kept looking at it without moving an inch or showing any signs of madness, its grin slowly vanished. It shot the raven a contemptuous look, and its expression darkened into a mask of pure, cold hatred, sending a shiver through Cedric’s spine.