America: The Cremator

Chapter 125 Upper-Rank C: Wendigo!

Seeing this, Suron immediately crouched down to bring his line of sight to Eleanor's and introduced them softly: "Hello, Eleanor, my name is Suron, and this is Hannah. We are exorcists from Seattle. To put it simply, we are professionals who specialize in dealing with monsters."

"We came here to kill the monster that kidnapped your sister."

Surong paused, then handed the drawing board and brushes with paper attached to them to Eleanor, continuing in a gentle tone, "But the problem is, none of us have ever seen what that monster looks like. If you don't help us, it will be difficult for us to find its weakness. Can you draw it?"

Eleanor looked down at the drawing board handed to her, remained silent for a long time, and finally reached out her pale, thin hand to take the paper and pen that Surong handed her.

She laid the drawing board flat on her lap, slowly opened the crayon box, which contained twelve colors, but her fingers swept directly over the bright and vivid colors, pulling out two crayons—one pure black and one blood red.

Su Long examined the two crayons. Perhaps because they were used less often, these two crayons were a bit longer than the others, and even the wrapping paper with glittery decorations hadn't been torn off.

Eleanor held the two crayons, her entire demeanor suddenly changed, her breathing became rapid, and her eyes were fixed on the blank drawing paper, as if some extremely terrifying scene had appeared on it.

Seeing this, Su Long silently stood up, took a half step back, giving Eleanor enough space, and waited quietly for her to start writing.

She held the black crayon, but instead of immediately sketching the monster's outline, she frantically scribbled along the edges of the paper.

"Swish, swish, swish"

The harsh friction sounded particularly jarring in the quiet room. Black lines intertwined haphazardly, like a dense and twisted thicket of thorns, or a bottomless swamp, quickly occupying most of the background of the drawing paper.

Hannah frowned with worry as she watched the girl's frantic actions, wanting to step forward to stop her: "Suron, she's like this—"

Surong raised his hand to stop Hannah, his eyes fixed on the easel, and said softly, "Don't interrupt her—she's already in the zone."

After laying down the base color, Eleanor switched to a red crayon and forcefully outlined the black lines with rough and forceful strokes, the crayon making a rustling sound as it rubbed against the paper.

The dark red blocks and black lines intertwine, creating an extremely oppressive, frenzied, and terrifying visual effect.

She focused on coloring the blank area reserved in the center of the drawing paper, using black and red crayons alternately in her hands. The originally chaotic black and red blocks gradually gathered and took shape under her brush, and the chaotic block of color gradually took shape.

As the two crayons grew shorter, reaching the point where they met the wrapping paper, Eleanor didn't care at all that the paper was getting in the way of her drawing.

Her movements grew heavier, each stroke meticulously outlining the monster's muscles and skeletal structure. Accompanied by a series of harsh friction sounds, the crayon wrapper tore as she applied the paint forcefully and slowly, spreading it evenly across the canvas.

Time ticked by, and the oppressive atmosphere in the room grew heavier and heavier.

After a full half hour, Eleanor finally completed the entire creative process. As she drew the last stroke, the monster's shape appeared completely on the paper.

Su Long immediately stepped forward, his gaze falling on the drawing board.

Against a backdrop of despair woven from black and red lines, a gigantic and ferocious monster lurks within.

It was a humanoid creature with a hunched back, its arms were unusually long, almost reaching the ground, and its fingertips had razor-sharp claws.

What's even more horrifying is its head, which isn't human-shaped, but a huge deer head with two abnormally large eyes and a gaping maw that stretches from its chin to its ears.

Su Long stared at the painting, his mind flashing back to the shredded meat and severed finger that the Border Collie had spat out in Jesse's yard.

Right.

This body size and this tooth structure perfectly match the terrifying bite force that can directly crush a human body.

Hannah swallowed hard as she looked at the painting, because Eleanor's vigorous smearing had already incorporated the glittery wrapping paper of the crayons into the artwork.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, the two largest pieces of glittering paper landed right where the monster's eyes were, causing them to emit a chilling, terrifying light.

"ah--"

A sharp, piercing scream shattered the silence of the room, bringing the two people who were examining the painting back to their senses. Turning their heads, they saw Eleanor huddled in the corner of the bed, clutching her head and sobbing uncontrollably, her body trembling violently.

Hurried footsteps came from the stairs, the door was kicked open, and Arthur and Mary rushed in. Mary immediately saw her daughter huddled in the corner, rushed over, hugged Eleanor tightly, and gently patted the girl's back.

Arthur turned around, his stubble-covered face flushed red with rage. He pointed a rough finger at the door and roared through clenched teeth, "Get out! You two get out of my house right now!"

Sulong didn't argue. He reached for the drawing paper and quickly left the room with Hannah.

Arthur followed closely behind, slamming the door shut behind him. He glared at the two men before him and roared, "What did you say when you came here? You promised to help Eleanor! You promised not to hurt her!"

And what was the result? Is this how you helped her? You drove her to a complete breakdown?

Hannah stood there, flustered, and hurriedly explained, "Mr. Arthur, please listen to me. We did manage to calm her down at first, and she cooperated by drawing the monster, but after she finished drawing this picture—"

Arthur interrupted Hannah furiously, taking a step forward, his eyes bloodshot. "I don't care what that damned monster looks like! I don't care if you succeed! Eleanor is our only daughter now, and I will not allow her to suffer any more harm!"

A brief silence fell over the corridor. In the room just a door away, the girl's sobs gradually subsided and finally subsided. The door was gently opened, and Mary walked out with red-rimmed eyes.

She slammed the door shut behind her, looked at Arthur, and whispered, "Eleanor is asleep. Arthur, control yourself and don't shout here."

Upon hearing his wife's words, Arthur's rapid breathing calmed slightly, and his tense shoulders relaxed. However, he still stared intently at Suron and Hannah, coldly issuing the order to leave: "Please leave. My family no longer welcomes anyone."

Surong didn't reply. He simply held up the drawing board in his hand, showing the drawing paper to Arthur and Mary.

Arthur's gaze fell on the painting, his body suddenly stiffened, and the words of expulsion he was about to utter were stuck in his throat. Mary covered her mouth, her steps uncontrollably backward, and her back bumped into the wall of the corridor.

They were all completely stunned by the image; even though it was just a drawing made with crayons, the raw sense of horror still emanated from the paper.

Looking at the couple's reaction, Surong said calmly, "This is the monster that has been appearing around the town recently. Thanks to Eleanor's contribution, she was very brave. At least we know what the monster looks like, and we will soon be able to learn more about it based on its characteristics."

"The day when we finally kill this monster won't be too far away."

After saying that, Surong didn't linger any longer. He turned around and went down the stairs to the first floor, with Hannah quickly following behind, carrying the Bible.

As darkness fell, thick clouds completely blocked out the sunlight, and the town of Castel was shrouded in a dense white fog and night.

In the living room on the second floor of Mayor Dale's house, the firewood in the fireplace crackled and popped. Mrs. Susan was still busy in the kitchen, Hannah was setting the table, Jesse and Dale sat at the table, smoking with troubled expressions, and Dania was looking through her phone's memos, organizing the clues she had gathered during the day.

Su Long walked to a small table, laid Eleanor's painting flat on the table, took out his phone and took a high-resolution photo of the painting, then sent it to Elena and made a phone call to her.

The phone was answered after only one ring, and Elena's efficient voice came through the receiver: "Sulong, what's up?"

Looking at the drawing paper on the table, Su Long said into his phone, "Captain Elena, could you please help me investigate some strange details? I've already sent the picture to your phone."

"Just a moment," Elena replied briefly, followed by a rapid, crisp sound of keyboard typing on the other end of the phone.

About two minutes later, Elena's voice came through again: "I've uploaded the basic text data to your phone via the encrypted channel. Based on the image features, this is a C-rank high-level anomaly. Wendigo, how did you manage to provoke a monster of this level? Do you need me to lead a team to provide support immediately?"

Surong shook his head, glancing at Dania and Hannah sitting at the table, and replied in a relaxed tone, "No need to trouble yourself. This thing isn't a B-grade anomaly. We have three experienced exorcists here, which is more than enough to deal with it."

Hannah, sitting opposite her, paused for a moment upon hearing the words "veteran exorcist." She pointed to her nose and asked with a puzzled look, "Me?"

Seeing her surprised expression, Surong nodded in confirmation: "Of course it's you, Hannah. Be confident, the Bible in your hand isn't just for show."

Hannah swallowed hard, clutching the Bible tightly to her chest, her voice weak: "But I've only had two real encounters—"

Su Long interrupted her, chuckling, "So what? You fought a B-rank Weird Shoggoth once, and a B-rank Weird Valak once. Those are definitely high-level matches!"

"Don't lose confidence in playing lower-ranked games just because you're on a losing streak in higher-ranked matches!"

"Besides, you're making $1000 an hour now. Are you planning to just stand here and do nothing?"

Upon hearing the words "one thousand dollars," Hannah straightened up abruptly. She took a deep breath, her eyes hardening: "You're right, I am a seasoned exorcist."

Dania chuckled, closed her notebook, and looked at Surong: "Alright, now that we know the enemy's details, what's next?"

Su Long opened his phone's email and quickly browsed the information Elena had sent him.

The dense text on the screen was reflected in his eyes.

As he looked at it, Su Long's brows furrowed tightly.