Lord: I can see loyalty.

Vio stared intently at the enormous monster that was still writhing and occupied half of the cave entrance, suppressing the discomfort churning in his throat.

He held his breath and brought up the control panel.

Name: None

【Race:???】

Age: 236

[Faction: Haro Tribe Beliefs]

【Hobby:???】

【Features: ???】

Loyalty: Not loyal to you

[Status: Absorption, Imitation, Rapid Recovery]

Looking at the screen full of question marks, Vio's mind was also full of question marks.

He frowned. Since acquiring the system, although he hadn't been invincible, he had never encountered a situation like this, which was almost a blank slate.

This monster... can't even be detected by the system?

But his shock didn't last long; the battlefield wasn't a place to stand still.

"Archers!" Vio didn't turn around, his voice low and menacing. "All hands on deck! Target that black mud monster! Fire!"

The militia archers were momentarily stunned, but quickly recovered and suppressed their fear.

"Release!" Jimmy repeated sharply.

Whoosh whoosh!

The brief silence was broken by a barrage of arrows. Countless arrows and some crossbow bolts, with sharp whooshing sounds, shot towards the black mud monster occupying the cave entrance.

The arrow sank into the black mud as soon as it landed.

There was no blood, no screams, and not even the sound of arrows falling.

After countless tiny ripples spread across the surface of that writhing black mud, like pebbles thrown into calm water, all the arrows simply vanished.

It was as if I had been "eaten" by that monster.

On the surface of the black mud, countless open eyes blinked in unison, seemingly with some pleasure, or perhaps just an instinctive reaction.

[Status: Absorbed]

"Cease fire." Vio's pupils contracted slightly as he raised his hand.

The soldiers stared at the unharmed monster, their fear deepening.

"My lord, is this monster absorbing our attacks?" Jimmy asked in a low voice.

Vio didn't answer. He stared at the [Absorption] status on the panel, then glanced at the [Quick Recovery] status next to it, and made a vague judgment in his mind.

Ordinary attacks would probably be ineffective against him. Just as he was about to personally activate his breathing technique and step forward with his sword to test the waters.

"Outsider".

A sound suddenly rang out, not coming from the direction of the cave, nor from the monster, but seemingly ringing directly in everyone's ears.

Everyone froze in shock.

"Why are you outsiders interfering in the affairs of Mount Loba?" The voice was flat and emotionless, as if it were simply stating a question.

The lack of response was not due to a lack of desire, but rather because this phenomenon, beyond our comprehension, left everyone speechless for a moment.

The silence lasted for a few breaths.

"Could it be..." the voice rang out again, this time with a forced upward inflection at the end, as if deliberately mimicking some human emotion, "...again for so-called justice?"

Heh, heh heh, heh heh heh heh.

The voice emitted several intermittent, broken laughs, which sounded extremely unnatural.

"Then I will tell you the truth about the Haro and Cooper tribes."

Vio's heart skipped a beat. He glanced at Albright beside him. The Cooper chief was staring intently at the monster, his face a mixture of wariness, anger, and a hint of bewilderment.

the truth?

Vio glanced quickly at the panel.

[Status: Absorption, Imitation, Rapid Recovery]

It's imitating... what is it imitating? A voice? A tone of voice? Or... a human being?

Before I could think about it, the sound had already started on its own.

"I am not the monster you describe."

It paused, as if waiting for the reaction that the words would provoke, and it did get it.

The Southern soldiers looked at each other in disbelief, the Cooper Hunters' hands, gripping their weapons, froze in mid-air, and even Albright's pupils constricted.

"I am the will of the sacred forest itself. This mountain range, this forest, everything on this land beneath my feet—a hundred years ago, I was their soul."

The Will of Saint Forest? Vio quickly turned to look at Albright.

His ally, who had fought alongside him for many days, had a strange expression on his face at this moment. His lips moved slightly, but no sound came out.

He is the leader of the Cooper tribe, who has guarded the sacred forest for generations and is proud to have the "forest's sanctuary." Now, this monster that has taken over the sacred forest claims to be the true form of what he was protecting.

"Hundreds of years ago, I was the newly born core of the sacred forest. I used my own flesh and blood to heal the wounds and illnesses of both races, and used my power to bring withered trees back to life and make the prey abundant."

"The Coopers worship me, the Haro people venerate me, they call me the 'Holy Embryo,' and say I am a gift from God to the forest."

The voice remained straightforward, yet it resonated deeply with everyone.

"Then, they discovered that my flesh and blood could slow down aging."

Another silence fell, and this time, even the gurgling sound of the churning black mud seemed to soften.

"They started to take... little by little, and then more and more. They cut open my body, took my flesh and blood, boiled it into a soup, and applied it to the wounds and smeared it on the old man's skin."

"The truth is that it does work. The parts that were taken from me will slowly regenerate, but each regeneration consumes my power, making me weaker and more... chaotic."

"They called it 'God's grace,' but they never asked me if I wanted it."

Vio didn't speak, but kept staring at the slowly writhing monster, at the countless eyes that kept opening and closing on its surface, trying to find a flaw in it.

But those eyes were too chaotic; some were murky, some were scarlet like a pack of corrupt beasts, and some were just slits.

"Finally, the Cooper and Harlow tribes began a decades-long war over my flesh and blood," the monster continued.

"The same mountain, the same sacred forest, the same faith, became two hostile tribes, and my body was torn apart piece by piece, burned again and again, on their swords and altars..."

The sound paused for the first time.

"...How could I not be filled with darkness after being desecrated?"

Albright suddenly interrupted, her voice hoarse: "You're talking nonsense! Forest Sanctuary, our forest sanctuary passed down through generations, that's the blessing the sacred forest bestows upon its guardians!"

"If it were you, if you truly were the will of the Holy Forest, how could you bestow this power upon us, yet allow the Haro race to become corrupt and degenerate, turning around and slaughtering us?!"

In an instant, countless eyes turned to Albright.

"Forest shelter?" the voice repeated the word. "That's not a blessing, it's a brand, a so-called shelter you forged from the last bit of strength you stripped from me after I became too weak to resist."

Albright was speechless for a moment, then staggered back half a step.

"The Cooper warriors, possessing 'Forest Sanctuary,' cannot harm the Sacred Forest, nor can they harm me, can they?"

Valerie's face was ashen, and several Cooper hunters unconsciously loosened their bowstrings, their expressions extremely unnatural.

"At the end of the story, there is a young elder of the Haro tribe who has had enough of endless greed and war..."

"One night, he released the chains that bound me, and the deal was: to help the Harlows and drive out... the Coopers, who were already blinded by my black mud and flesh."

The voice paused again, and the Coopers and militiamen were completely stunned. In his words, the Coopers were the ones who had completely fallen.

"This is the truth about the Haro and Cooper tribes. A hundred years ago, a group of outsiders came here and were deceived by the Cooper tribe's appearance, helping the Cooper tribe kill countless Haro people."

"They thought they were upholding justice, and when they left, they probably felt just as convinced that they had done the right thing as you do now."

"And now, another group of outsiders has arrived."

The militiamen looked at each other, their hands gripping their weapons stiffly. The Cooper Hunters also lowered their heads, some even too afraid to look at the leaders at the front.

Even Jimmy's brows furrowed tightly, and finally his gaze fell on Vio.

Albright turned sharply to Vio, her voice urgent: "Count Vio! Don't be fooled! What it says may be partly true... but this monster slaughtered our people, polluted the sacred forest with black mud, and desecrated corpses; it is definitely not the so-called will of the sacred forest!"

"Its 'help' turned the Haro tribe into a bunch of inhuman, ghostly lunatics! Count Vio..."

Vio raised his hand to interrupt him, Albright's voice stopped abruptly, his chest still heaving violently.

Vio didn't look at him; he stared directly at the chaotic mass looming over the mountain pass, at the countless pairs of monstrous eyes that were watching him, and spoke in a very soft voice.

"and then?"

The monster remained silent for a moment.

"...Outsider." It spoke again, and this time, the stiff imitation seemed to have lessened somewhat.

"I did not want to implicate the innocent. You were deceived. Now you know the truth."

"Go back." Countless eyes closed simultaneously for a moment, as if waiting for them to leave.

"Leave Mount Loba and return to your southern deserts and towns. What happens here is none of your business."

Albright hurried forward and put his hand on Vio's shoulder, and Vio did not pull away from his hand.

He simply turned his head and looked at Albright, his eyes showing no wavering, no doubt, only his usual calm.

He then looked away and gazed again at the enormous creature that was closing its eyes and waiting for everyone to leave.

"Release the arrows."

Vio spoke clearly, his breathing steady.

The entire place fell silent. The militiamen were stunned, Jimmy was stunned, and Albright suddenly loosened her grip on Vio's arm.

The black mud monster that claimed to be the will of the Holy Forest opened all its countless closed eyes at the same instant.

"...What?"

The voice finally showed a slight fluctuation, but it was still impossible to tell whether it was shock or anger.

"I said," Vio's voice was calm and measured, "fire the arrows, didn't you hear me?"

This time, the militia did not hesitate.

Whoosh whoosh!

The second volley of arrows was even denser and more intense than the first!

Puff puff puff puff—!

Ripples spread across the surface of the black mud, and the arrow was once again swallowed, absorbed, and dissolved.

But this time, the monster reacted very differently; it was no longer so calm.

Among those countless eyes, some were tightly closed in pain, while others twitched violently!

[Status: Absorption Limit, Pain, Rage]

Vio didn't look at the panel; he stared at the enormous monster that was beginning to twist and tremble, and a slow smile crept onto his lips.

"Your words are full of errors and omissions."

His voice drowned out the sound of bows and arrows, reaching everyone's ears.

Vio didn't continue speaking. He glanced at the [Imitation] option on the panel and sneered.

Putting aside the suspicious imitation in the status column, more importantly, how could he easily let go of the group of Haro barbarians who killed his people?

The dark color spread from his right hand holding the sword, covering his forearm, shoulder, and chest like a tide.

"I never intended to stand on the side of justice."

He raised his head and looked directly into the countless pairs of monstrous eyes burning with rage.

"I am the Earl of the South, and I stand only on the side of the South."

The moment the words left his mouth, the black mud monster finally let out its first real roar.

It was no longer an imitation of a human voice, but a distorted, monstrous scream!

"Hoorayaaaaahh ...

The sound wave was like a real shockwave, making the air tremble! Several black mud pillars exploded on the surface of the sludge pool, and rubble tumbled down from the high platform!

But Vio did not retreat.

"Keep firing!" Jimmy's roar followed immediately. "Crossbowmen, keep firing! It can't absorb them all!"

Whoosh whoosh!

The third and fourth rounds of arrows rained down!

The arrows were no longer swallowed up; a violent reaction occurred on the surface of the black mud; the several pairs of scarlet pupils began to twist; and the massive body even shrank several meters into the cave.

[Status: Pain, Absorption Limit, Extreme Anger, Rapid Recovery]

"Its abilities have a limit!" Xavier said while giving orders. "It's been preparing for this battle the whole time! It's pushed itself too far!"

"Then fill it up even more!" Albright roared, shaking off all his previous hesitation and confusion, his eyes filled only with anger at being fooled.

"Cooper's warriors! Whatever it was before—now it is a monster slaughtering our loved ones! Attack!"

Valerie's spear flew out first, striking precisely into an eyeball that was writhing in pain.

The eyeball then exploded, black mud splattered, and the monster's shrill roar rose again.

Glenn silently swung the massive, door-like sword and charged forward.

He then leaped high into the air and descended from the sky to strike the monster!

The heavy, blood-stained magic ore greatsword tore through the air and slammed down on the black mud monster!

*Pfft!*

The sword had penetrated more than halfway into the ground when the monster convulsed violently, and countless eyes burst open at the same instant!

Black filth mixed with countless amounts of putrid fluid spurted from the wound.

The monster's roar changed, turning from anger into a wail of pain, and its massive form showed a noticeable retreat.

Vio also caught this moment. He no longer waited. His dark skin had covered his entire body, and his breathing techniques surged within him like quicksand.

He exerted force with his feet, and his whole body shot straight towards the black mud monster like a black cannonball!