"Private 18, break through."
"Roger that."
Inside a forest filled with large trees, two groups of people were walking inside. The large trees provided them cover from any hostile encounters from above while the large tree trunks and roots gave way for them to hide from beasts.
One of the men, presumed to be the leader, ordered one of the other men, persumed to be a subordinate. Private 18, the man who was ordered, rushed out from the group and jumped up into a tree branch.
He looked around for a moment, finding nothing worth reporting before going down and moving forward silently.
He raised his hand up to signal the group behind him that it was okay to proceed but suddenly, his head turned to behind him, seeing a man wearing a long coat with his face covered in a towel.
The man in the long coat stared at him before closing his eyes and nodded his head as the man felt his lungs twist and his breathing turn rather haggard.
The man stared at the Hunter that suddenly appeared behind him as his vision dimmed, tears fell from the corner of his eyes as his pupils shook.
"...Please, mercy, family...."
The man muttered before slumping down as he took his final breath.
The hunter only closed his eyes before closing the man's eyes and turned to look at the group who were now moving towards them, unaware of what had happened.
The man leading the group curled his lips to the side and softly muttered, "This place gives me weird vibes."
One of the men near him turned his head around and let out a chuckle, "Yeah, as if something's looking at us from the forest."
Another one joined the conversation with a smile, "Maybe there are ghosts inside the forest. After all, before the pandemic, this place was a red zone for inhabiting witches."
"Witches, hah, i can't believe our ancestors believed in that. How utterly uneducated they were back then, im thankful there is free education in our generation. Those poor women must've been resentful due to them..."
A man sighed, "Maybe all that resentment gathered inside the forest, we might meet ghosts of resentful witches if we continue."
"Do you think we'll meet a witch inside? I want to meet one..."
"Well, you already met one. Have you forgotten?"
"Met? Since when?"
The man stared at him seriously, "Your mother."
"..."
"..." He just smiled as his victim stared at him in bewilderment.
"Well, if there are ghosts, we could just ask for a priest back home to exorcise all of 'em. It would only take a few dozen Benz..."
The leader let out a loud cough, prompting the men to stand in attention and stop talking. They looked at their surroundings seriously with caution.
Seeing that, he shook his head.
"Though it is rather weird that the Queen would send us on a covert mission. Are there people living inside the forest?" Muttering silently, the man shook his head.
"Anyhow, i only need to scout the entire area before we can go back home. If we're lucky, we might get even more benz for this mission. After all, the queen herself asked this."
They quietly trudged the dark and gloomy forest. They continued their march for a while before stopping in a small area big enough to house them all.
"Set up the tents! Remember, no camp fires are to be made. We don't want to catch the attention of beasts!"
The leader, Arvo, ordered his men as they all saluted before walking to the carts that they were carrying with them. They started moving the supplies around the area and created a small campsite.
Arvo took out his pocket watch and stared at the hour hand for a moment, then he looked up at the cloudy sky before nodding his head.
"Private 18 should come back soon with a report of the surroundings..." Arvo muttered silently.
"Leader, some beef jerky." One of his subordinates walked towards him and handed a small plate with beef jerky on top of it.
Arvo grabbed it and nodded his head. The subordinate then turned around and joined with the others.
"Eya, Jones! You should invite us to the wedding after we're done here."
"Ha! As if im inviting you louts. I reckon you'll only eat the prepared food and leave as soon as you're finished!"
"Woah, we promise not to do that, man! Believe us, have we ever lied to you before?"
The man who was about to get married chuckled and pointed accusingly to the man in white bandana, "Lied? Of course, every single time! You especially!"
Laughter filled the camp, though quiet laughter, because they were whispering to each other.
Looking at them forming into one huge circle, he let out a chuckle as they whispered to each other. They do this so that beasts can't hear them.
"Pretty disciplined already... I still remember the time when they were just some ragtag group of unprofessional idiots. Look at them now."
Chuckling, he saw one of his subordinates wave at him, inviting him to eat with them.
Arvo smiled and walked towards them. Well, tried to anyway.
A small object was suddenly thrown at the center. They stared at it for a moment before they instinctively grabbed their weapons, which were just beside them.
They ran away from the object and readied themselves. The object made some noises before it exploded, creating a large smoke around the area.
"Smoke Balls!? Its an attack! Ready yourselve-" Arvo screamed on top of his lungs as he ordered his men, but he suddenly felt his head become light.
His head flew out of his neck, and as he was rotating, he saw a glimpse of a woman with a weird weapon staring at him in the eyes before his vision once again span to his subordinates
Which were slaughtered one by one. Arvo stared at the scene for a moment as his vision slowly dimmed.
"Please! Please, mercy! I have a mother i need to care!"
"Jeral!!! You fucking bastards!!"
"I-I thought this was just a covert mission!? Why are they killing us!?"
"Gahhhaa!!! Noo! Please, wait. I'll give you anything you want, just let me live! I can't die!!"
"Aarrghhhh!! You demons! Why are you doing this to us!!? We are humans! Humans!!"
"Help me! Helpp!!"
Screams erupted from the camp. But it only lasted for a moment before the forests regained its tranquil ambience.
The smoke cleared after a while and 5 Hunters in different outfits showed themselves, then they started searching every body for anything they can find. They then rummaged around the carts before putting everything they found into the cart and ran off, leaving the bodies.
"That should be everything. Let's go back to camp and report what happened to the First Hunter."
"Affirmative."
Before they ran off, the 5 hunters bowed to them and closed their eyes in respect before they left the place, not intending to stay any longer.
Soon after, the smell of blood caught the attention of many beasts, who all rushed to the scene and devoured the bodies of the corpses.
Arvo stared at the entire scene before blacking out forever.
One of the beast was a tree shaped being, it grabbed the beasts and stabbed their hearts with its flesh like branches. It then devoured every from the killed beast before turning its attention to the other beasts who grabbed some corpses and ran away.
Seeing that the beasts have escaped, the tree like beast let out a grumble that sounded like drums hitting each other before grabbing the corpses that was left behind and devoured them all.
It then dug its roots deep into the soil and planted itself into the scene, absorbing the blood that had spilled from the fight earlier. The tree then stood still.
The hunters a few tens of meters away stared at it for a moment before one of them pulled out a map from a bag and looked at it for a moment. He then marked something on the map and turned to the others with a nod.
The other hunters also nodded their heads and one of them dashed out of the scene to report what happened to their superiors. The other 4 hunters dragged 4 carts worth of loot towards the direction where the hunter had dashed to.
***
"A whole platoon was wiped out while they entered the forest? They have managed to set camp before getting ambushed by what you guys presumed to be beasts..?"
The hunter, Vinos, nodded his head to the man infront of him while standing in attenting with his hands behind him. The man stared at him for a moment, before grabbing his temples and massaged them softly.
"This is the 3rd party that fell into the beast's hands this week. Are we destined to always be alone?"
The man, Klein Hielms let out a sigh of disbelief before sitting down to the stool.
"Well, any clue as to where they come from?"
Vinos stayed silent for a moment to think before opening his mouth to speak.
"This group should be part of that same organization that kept trying to contact us. They should be asking us for help judging from how weak their military might are."
Klein chuckled, "Weak? We shouldn't really underestimate people from the outside. Someone out there must be versed in the Arts of "Sase" and helping the human race survive the pandemic."
Vinos just shrugged, "Well, i can't help but see them as someone weak. Being killed by beasts, from the outskirts of the forest no less. I fear their weaker than we give them credit to."
"Anyhow, return to your posts. And please do make haste wity the materials you guys looted, it may serve as useful clues to uncover what they're trying to do."
Vinos nodded his head and turned around, he grabbed the cloth and opened it up, revealing what they were in was a tent.
Klein stared at his leaving back before turning to the paper that he held in his hand, crumpled and bloodied.
He read it for a moment before letting out a sigh. He stood up and walked to his bed. He lied down and muttered.
"Good grief."