Chapter 37: Savage Tide.
Sollivan gazed at the overcast sky, which barely allowed sunlight to pass through and illuminate the ground below. He felt a sense of urgency; if it rained, the effectiveness of the materials he had prepared would diminish.
Shhh!
Huff!
Suddenly, Darnell emerged from some bushes, panting heavily. Unlike his previously imposing appearance, his body was now drenched in sticky sweat mixed with monster repellent. A few small scratches marked his armor, indicating that his return journey had not been smooth.
A look of astonishment crossed his face as he spoke with a hint of shock, "The monsters have started gathering in small groups. They’ve stopped attacking each other and are now heading toward the enemy camp." He paused for a moment, then asked with a furrowed brow, "But what about the treasury area? We didn’t deploy any monster attractors there."
In truth, he wasn’t asking out of concern but to confirm his earlier suspicions. As expected, Sollivan calmly replied, "Don’t worry, I’ve already taken care of it."
"You? How did you manage that?" Darnell realized Sollivan wouldn’t give him a straight answer, but he asked anyway.
Sollivan shook his head indifferently and said, "We need to move quickly. We don’t have much time."
Devlin was bewildered by what was happening but didn’t fully understand the situation. He harbored no suspicions toward his master and quickly moved to Sollivan’s side, gripping the armrest of his chair. Both of them then turned to Darnell, who hadn’t moved, and asked, "Aren’t you coming?"
A look of hesitation flickered across Darnell’s face, freezing him in place for a few seconds before he sighed in resignation and went to carry Sollivan. As before, they headed toward the treasury, but this time they didn’t run. Instead, they moved quickly and cautiously, as their path was now filled with monsters. However, since they were on the outskirts of the forest, most of the monsters they encountered were small and weak. The repellent kept them at bay, and even the slightly stronger monsters that noticed them were no match for Darnell, an Arcane at the peak of the early Path-Opening realm.
Thus, they reached their destination relatively safely. But when they were about a third of a mile away, Sollivan ordered them to stop.
Darnell and Devlin looked at the small, sticky swamp nearby and grimaced at the foul smell emanating from it. They complained, "Why are we stopping in this disgusting place?"