Tristan crouched near a trail marked in the dry earth and observed the deep footprints carefully. They were still fresh; the dust hadn't even fully settled.
'These tracks… they weren't made more than a few minutes ago,' he estimated mentally.
'If I'm fast, I can definitely catch up to them.'
But a doubt arose. Did he really want to find whatever was ahead? Was it even wise to approach?
Tristan sighed, running a hand through his dusty hair. He had already made his decision. If he wanted to understand what was happening in that region, he couldn't stop now.
Besides, maybe he could collect more red cores along the way as easily as last time.
He began following the tracks with careful steps. He moved quickly but discreetly, using every rock, bush, or terrain feature he could to conceal himself. From time to time, he would stop, close his eyes, and use his heightened senses to scan the surroundings. Silence was his ally — and his greatest protection.
'What are these things doing?'
After some time following the trail, he finally spotted the ones responsible. They were three creatures, resembling primates, each over two meters tall. Their muscular bodies were covered in runes.
But what really caught Tristan's attention was what they were carrying.
A snow cat — a feline with thick white fur, almost the size of an adult tiger — was being dragged by the monsters. The creature still struggled, resisting bravely, but it was bound with thick, heavy metal chains.
'These things are smart enough to use tools?'
Disbelief washed over him for a moment.
Tristan covered his mouth with his hand, thoughtful, as old memories flashed through his mind. Creatures like these, in stories, were usually brutal and mindless. Zombies, chimeras, vampire thralls... always dumb and disposable. Only the servants of ancient vampire lords or liches had any real intelligence.
Maybe those legends were exaggerated. Or maybe... the creator of these beasts was someone even more dangerous than the villains of those tales.
Even so, something didn't add up. All the Marked he had encountered so far possessed only one red core, and none had shown signs of using magic.
'In the end, as impressive as they seem, aren't these creatures actually kind of pathetic?'
Comparing them to the creations of the great villains from the stories, so far, was a compliment they didn't deserve.
Maybe he was wrong in his earlier assumptions, and there was something more involved in all this.
***
Tristan decided to keep watching where the primates would take the captured feline. He stayed as far away as possible without losing sight of the targets — which, thanks to his enhanced vision, gave him a good advantage.
If it were nighttime, he could watch them like a hawk from over a kilometer away. But with the afternoon sun scorching the sky, his vision was less potent. Even so, he managed to keep several good meters between him and the creatures, enough to feel relatively safe.
The problem was clarity. Even with his heightened senses, he could only make out the beasts' outlines at that distance.
They were fast. Within minutes, they crossed an entire plain with surprising agility.
As he followed them, Tristan noticed something curious: the Marked carefully avoided the thick, white mist that covered parts of the region. They always veered away and kept their distance.
'Do they sense what's wrong with that mist? Or did someone instruct them to avoid it?'
With that in mind, he doubled his attention to his surroundings. Every detail could be important.
After a long time trailing the creatures, boredom started to creep in. Tristan considered turning back — until the terrain changed. After crossing ravines and winding paths, the beasts' steps led him to a hidden gorge.
The sight made him hold his breath.
It was like a bizarre zoo. Creatures of all kinds were gathered: bipeds, quadrupeds, and others with dozens — or even hundreds — of legs.
He sharpened his senses to try to understand better. Some of the creatures looked familiar.
'That centipede... it's the same as the one that attacked the mushroom village.'
There was also another feline similar to the snow cat, but this one was huge, almost the size of an elephant.
Tristan kept observing. Hares, giant worms, and many other strange creatures made up the group.
Soon, he noticed a pattern: they were all arranged in rows, like an army. Most were motionless, like statues. Some, however, patrolled the area or carried captured prey.
There were many creatures he believed he could easily defeat. If he could get a red core from each one, it would amount to a fortune that could make a big difference in his future.
Of course, he would have to find a way to isolate them first.
'Uhm... where are they going?'
The primates began disappearing from his line of sight, forcing Tristan to move. He quickly searched for a higher point and found a rock that could offer him a better view. He climbed carefully, staying alert for any sentries or suspicious movement.
He was still about five hundred meters from the creatures. He considered it a safe distance.
From atop the rock, he finally saw it. A hidden cave, and something inside was moving — it looked like a gate slowly opening.
Tristan grew tense.
'Was I detected?'
He prepared to run, muscles taut. Then a small figure emerged from the gate. It was human-sized, but its body was strange. It had arms, but no visible legs.
'Are those... leaves?'
The figure was too small and full of intricate details to distinguish at a distance, making the scene even more unsettling.
'Uhm...'
Tristan cloaked his body in his concealment magic, the Darkness masking his presence, and decided to get closer. He descended from the rock and moved slowly, crouching, controlling his breathing, jumping from shadow to shadow.
As he advanced, he saw the Marked laying the captured animals before the mysterious figure. It raised its hands and began tracing symbols in the air, fingers dancing with precise movements.
'What is he doing?'
Tristan took a step. Then another.
Suddenly, the figure stopped moving. It remained still for a moment... then turned, looking directly in Tristan's direction.
'Shit.'
Tristan's body was concealed, but the stranger still stared at him.
He tried to stay calm. Maybe it was a coincidence. Maybe the stranger had just glanced that way by chance.
'Maybe he's not someone bad...'
Even with that thought, the essence was already coursing through his body, ready to act.
And then, the worst happened.
The figure raised an arm, and a magical formation appeared before him. Two concentric circles, filled with runes, symbols, and complex geometric shapes, began to shine brightly.
'Damn it!'
It was a magic array. Tristan recognized it instantly.
Before he could think twice, he spun his body and started running, senses on high alert. And then he saw, from the corner of his eye, the runes on the bodies of all the Marked lighting up — a menacing glow — and in perfect synchrony, all those creatures turned their heads toward him.