Chapter 12: Whale Transformation Sickness |
After falling, the Watchman grabbed a tree branch, using his momentum to swing himself toward the other side.
However, in the very next moment, an unprecedented sense of lethal danger washed over him. Something deadly was approaching at breakneck speed, causing every hair on his body to stand on end.
He slightly turned his head, his eyes darting toward the source of the peril, only to see an ordinary knight''s sword slashing toward him at an astonishing velocity.
Faced with a life-or-death crisis, the Watchman immediately discarded his bow and arrows, drawing the dagger from his waist with a forehand grip to block directly in front of himself.
The blades clashed, sending a shower of sparks into the air.
The sheer force sent the Watchman flying backward. He tumbled across the ground, carving a long trench in the dirt before slamming hard into a tree trunk.
"His Attribute Value is roughly between six and seven," Nemus murmured. He slightly withdrew his sword, reigning in his own power, and slowly approached.
Even with Nemus holding back, the Watchman simply could not withstand a force that surpassed the peak limit of the Black Iron Rank.
He felt his arm completely twist and fracture. The shattered blade of his dagger was embedded deep into his flesh, and a severe, agonizing ache racked his entire body.
Staring at the approaching Nemus, a beastly roar tore from his throat as stark black spots began to manifest across his skin.
As the black spots spread, the broken blade lodged in the Watchman''s arm was forcefully squeezed out. He grabbed his mangled limb and snapped it back into place, his wounds healing at an unnatural rate.
"Whale Transformation?!" Nemus paused in surprise before a deeply intrigued smile curved his lips.
The Floating Whales were creations of a bygone, extraordinary era, originating from the Gods themselves.
Yet, these behemoths were far from being carefree sanctuaries. Peculiar beasts, such as the Nest Beasts, were indigenous horrors unique to the Floating Whales.
Moreover, living atop a Floating Whale for prolonged periods caused a portion of the population to develop afflictions intrinsically tied to the leviathans.
Whale Transformation Sickness was an incredibly infamous example.
Those afflicted with this disease would first develop black spots on their bodies. Soon after, they would gradually lose their human rationality, descending into feral beasts.
During this process, a Whale Transformation patient would gain formidable strength and develop a macabre craving for human organs.
The most fatal aspect, however, was its highly contagious nature.
In the later stages, the patients would grow cetacean vocal organs, allowing them to emit whale songs. These eerie melodies actively altered biological life, thereby spreading the Whale Transformation Sickness to others.
Because of this, the general consensus upon discovering an infected individual was to slaughter them immediately during the early stages.
But the problem here was that Watchmen were supposed to be immune to Whale Transformation Sickness!
Every poison has its antidote; the disease was not entirely without a cure. For instance, the Deep Well Water required to become a Watchman acted as a preventative measure.
Ordinary wells in the village were relatively shallow. Only a true deep well could pierce the surface crust and reach the actual flesh and blood of the Floating Whale.
Consuming this Deep Well Water granted a person immunity against Whale Transformation Sickness.
However, Deep Well Water was a strictly controlled resource, utilized exclusively during the initiation of a new Watchman.
Furthermore, it carried a series of severe side effects.
Because of these extreme limitations, Whale Transformation Sickness was widely considered a terminal, incurable affliction.
The fascinating thing now was that an individual possessing immunity to the disease had actively induced a state identical to a Whale Transformation infection.
"If the White Whale Church found out about this, they would absolutely lose their minds!"
"I just wonder, what is the price for such power?" Nemus asked aloud.
The Watchman did not answer. Instead, he lunged forward like a battering ram.
Having entered the black-spotted Whale Transformation state, the Watchman''s physical strength had skyrocketed tremendously.
This was not surprising.
Patients who mutated to the absolute extreme could even elevate their Number, transforming into literal whales and ascending to the Iron Rank.
"Still, it is far from enough..." Nemus smoothly angled his sword upward, slashing directly into the charging Watchman. However, the physical feedback was completely wrong.
It felt exactly like driving a blade into a thick rubber tire.
A strange, shock-absorbing resilience within the Watchman''s body soaked up and neutralized the brutal impact of Nemus''s strike.
Using that very momentum, the Watchman literally ricocheted away, launching himself backward through the air.
This had been his escape route all along.
He had thoroughly prepared for this maneuver, curling his body to accelerate his backward flight. The instant his feet hit the dirt, he darted madly into the thicket.
Simultaneously, sharp claws erupted from his once-normal hands. As he sprinted away, he casually swiped his arms, felling several massive trees to blockade the path behind him.
The Watchman was intimately familiar with the local terrain.
Capitalizing on his head start, he rapidly vanished from Nemus''s line of sight.
Nemus did not rush in pursuit. He simply stood upon one of the fallen trunks, calmly gazing up at the bright moon slowly rising into the night sky.
Downs and Purr arrived quietly behind him.
The cold moonlight, seemingly joyful to no longer be obstructed by the dense canopy, cascaded over the trio and stretched their dark shadows across the forest floor.
"Lord Nels, are we not going to chase him?" Downs asked, his voice laced with humiliation and frustration.
During this ambush, aside from taking an arrow, he had accomplished absolutely nothing. This crushing sense of powerlessness deeply infuriated him, especially since he now possessed demonic power and viewed himself as vastly superior to ordinary mortals.
"When a beast is wounded, it inevitably retreats to a place it deems safe to lick its wounds," Nemus replied smoothly.
"His value has changed. We need him to lead us directly to the buried treasure!" Nemus glanced at Downs, opting not to comment further on the shepherd''s exasperated demeanor.
Nemus''s expression shifted slightly. His shadow began to writhe and contort upon the ground, as if something monstrous were frantically stirring beneath his human shell.
A wisp of sheer, unadulterated demonic aura erupted from Nemus. Downs instantly felt as though he had been plunged into a terrifying illusion of Hell itself.
The absolute hierarchy among demons caused Downs to tremble uncontrollably.
Beside him, Purr was shaking as well, but out of pure, intoxicating excitement. This oppressive aura, this suffocating feeling—this was his true Abyss!
Raising his hand, Nemus expertly chanted incantations in the Demonic Language. A strand of deep shadow materialized from the earth, swiftly molding into the shape of a canine Demonic Monster.
Demonic Spell: Summon Monster - Shadow Hound!
Under normal circumstances, Nemus was highly reluctant to utilize the original power of his true demonic form.
Demonic power had a corrosive nature. Using it would brand this seemingly pure human vessel with an unpredictable taint, which could easily expose his true identity when facing experts from the Church.
Right now, however, Nemus deemed the Watchman valuable enough to warrant an exception to his rules!
The pitch-black Shadow Hound swiftly clamped its jaws around the broken dagger blade. Without hesitation, it sprinted into the dense forest, flawlessly tracking the Watchman''s scent.
Nemus and his two subordinates followed closely behind, maintaining a leisurely, unhurried pace.
Just as expected, the Watchman''s brain had not yet been completely eroded by the Whale Transformation Sickness. Once he had put enough distance between them, he began running in convoluted circles to throw off any pursuers.
It was not until the latter half of the night that he finally ceased this deceptive tactic and headed straight toward a specific region.
What he did not know was that, hidden within the shadows, a Shadow Hound was trailing him from afar.
This time, his usually sharp instincts and premonitions were heavily disrupted by his chaotic, beastly state of mind.
He remained entirely oblivious to the impending danger silently closing in on him.
Deep within the wilderness lay a hidden cave. Not long after the Watchman slipped inside, Nemus arrived at the entrance, guided flawlessly by the Shadow Hound''s tracking.
However, Nemus suddenly furrowed his brow. A bizarre, low-frequency sound—one that ordinary human ears could scarcely detect—began echoing from within the cavern''s depths.
Whale Transformation: Whale Song!