EFB Chapter 4 Cold-blooded
Chapter 4 Cold-blooded
The outer city streets were no wider than two carts side by side. The compacted soil was trampled down by countless feet, making it uneven, and piles of filth that had been shoveled to one side were stacked on both sides of the road.
Tenor carefully avoided the people huddled in the shadows, who could be homeless, bandits, or cultists waiting for prey; he didn't want to cause any trouble.
The dirt road smelled of dryness and fishiness from being exposed to the sun all day, mixed with the salty smell and the rotting smell of fish entrails that drifted in from the port.
This was a scent that Tenor had gradually grown accustomed to, but now he could keenly detect a hidden, yet instinctively wary, unusual quality within it.
No, it's not a smell, but a kind of instinctive feeling, similar to that of an animal.
The awakening potion made Tenor no longer entirely human; his other half, the half that belonged to the alien world, was warning him—danger was imminent!
Has the demon come after us? Was there a mistake in the assessment of the mission's difficulty? Or are there other uninvited guests?
Run faster, even faster.
With guards patrolling the inner city and revelry at night, cults would certainly not dare to kill anyone in public places within the inner city.
That would enrage the city's lord, Clothos the "Victor" of the Dionysus family—an imperial marshal with a large army who, if given the effort, could uproot their stronghold.
After walking a while, all you could see were the lights of the customs house in the distance; the rest of the journey was quiet and dark.
In such an environment, Tenor couldn't help but feel uneasy, as the feeling of being spied on grew stronger.
Like a pastry placed on a plate, a chill spread throughout Tenor's body.
There's an unknown creature here! I want to eat it!
Numerous gazes, like venomous snakes, slithered across Tenor's body, licking him from head to toe with their eyes.
How many monsters are lurking in the shadows? Hundreds? Thousands?
He had heard before that monsters roamed the city at night.
No one has ever seen such a mysterious creature, and many authorities would deny its existence.
Those who openly claim that "a shadow empire exists beneath the empire, and a sneaky humanoid race dominates the city at night" are mostly conspiracy theorists and lunatics.
The "Mad Emperor" Magnus once organized an army to attack the "Underworld," but to no avail.
Instead, some soldiers contracted the plague in the sewers, causing a widespread outbreak, which ultimately led to the overthrow of the tyrannical emperor by the Imperial Guard.
Drunkards and homeless people often disappear on the streets at night, and are seen as evidence of the existence of monsters.
If it's not entirely the work of cults, gangs, or slave traders, then we must find out that some kind of monster abducted them...
Then nobody knows what's causing the trouble—who has ever seen the "Shadow Monster of the Shadow Empire" that the bards spoke of?
The Shadow Empire was just an urban legend, but now it seems to have become a reality, with an unknown and mysterious group active at night.
Ternor was bold, but he would rather face the gleaming blade than endure the agony of waiting for an attack from an unknown creature lurking in the shadows.
Who wouldn't be afraid?
Calm down!
Ternor calmed himself, tore off his robe, and summoned the wildness deep within his heart.
Accompanied by a series of cracking sounds from within their bodies, the humans traveling in the darkness were replaced by a humanoid creature taller than the door frame.
A thousand thoughts were instantly suppressed by a cold will. This transformation was even more pronounced, as if a person had instantly lost themselves and were being controlled by a wild beast.
If one still possesses human emotions, one should feel fear, as if being replaced or possessed by another soul.
But Tenor knew that the unusual thoughts were not those of a beast, nor of anyone else, but of himself, influenced by his body.
Regardless of what his soul is, the alienated body is the objective fact—in this state, he is not human.
The spy in the darkness had not yet left, but Tenor was no longer flustered or afraid.
Because this new body lacks corresponding emotions, it's like a pure soldier.
Its cold, vertical pupils swept across the darkness, its sharp claws poised to strike, like a predator crawling forward on its hunt.
A faint smell of blood lingered in the air, indicating that the unknown creatures had already carried out a killing spree.
In Tenor's special perception, a hunched, thin humanoid monster was gnawing on half of a still-warm corpse in the room on the left.
Parents in this godforsaken place should avoid leaving their children alone in a room, and should also avoid being alone themselves.
What kind of monster is this? As Tenor took a few steps forward, he sensed three such silhouettes in his mind, like startled birds, silently avoiding him.
One of them darted into the sewer.
The empire possesses a drainage system that the surrounding barbarian tribes envy, but perhaps this isn't entirely a good thing.
Within just ten steps, more than a dozen monsters escaped from the edge of Tenor's perception.
They were numerous, but seemed as timid as mice. Since Tenor transformed, they no longer had the lustful gaze that yearned for flesh and blood; instead, they would only frantically land and then quickly look away.
As Tenor passed a pile of scattered wooden crates, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
A strong smell of urine suddenly filled the surrounding shadows, and a feeling of fear spread like a tide.
He smashed open the edge of the wooden box with his fist, and with a terrified squeak, a skinny, filthy rat covered in sores darted out like lightning.
Tenor grabbed it, holding the strange rat, which was about the size of a young human, in mid-air like a chick.
It twisted and struggled in agony, yet could not escape.
In an instant, countless obvious noises were heard, and many monsters scattered in a panic as their kind were captured.
Tenor examined it closely. The monster had a humanoid shape and humanoid features, but it was rat-like overall. It was filthy, had a lewd expression, and was very unpleasant.
It wildly swung its short knife, but it barely scratched Ternor's skin.
A high-pitched, trembling voice, filled with fear, emanated from the mouse's mouth:
"Lizard...lizard thing...I'll take you, I'll take you to the Blacktooth Clan's lair! Don't kill me! I know where the leader is!"
This creature appears to have a problem with its language function, and its way of speaking is quite strange.
It seemed to recognize the alien race that Tenor had transformed into, and believed that the two sides were not friendly.
The fact that it chose to betray its stronghold and leader's position in order to survive reveals a certain lack of self-confidence!
It was as if they believed that monsters like Tenor had the ability and the will to destroy them.
But Tenor's body did not react as it would to a demon, as if it were indifferent to such a creature.
Tenor speculated that they were not mortal enemies written into their genes, but rather some kind of ethnic group with whom they had formed an enmity later in life.
Tenor silently calculated the transformation time; only a dozen seconds remained. He had already scared away the rats and couldn't afford to waste any more time.
Torture this rat?
[Mission: Track the Blacktooth Clan]
[Difficulty: Desperate]
Status: Available
...Let's forget about it. It's impossible that only Tenor and the Skaven have met. There must be a reason why the Empire hasn't officially acknowledged the Skaven's existence all these years.
This is the most difficult task Ternor has ever undertaken.
He crushed the rat-man to death and threw it to the side of the road.
No longer maintaining his alien form, his body instantly collapsed into a human shape, donned a gray robe, and rushed towards the customs while the rats were scared away.
As if sensing something, he suddenly turned around and saw that the rat-man corpse that had been in the same spot had vanished.
Not wanting to cause any more trouble, which would involve a "desperate" difficulty mission, Tenor decisively turned his gaze away and left the area.
No demons or cultists appeared to stop them along the way; they only encountered this group of ratmen.
Tenor guessed that the ratmen were not with the demon lords—if they were, the demon lords and the rats should have surrounded and killed him together earlier.
If they are not friends, they may become enemies. Perhaps those demon worshippers also encountered the rat swarm when they were chasing Tenor, but they obviously could not deter the rat swarm like the alien species that Tenor had transformed into.
It's important to know that even the human-form Tenor initially felt threatened. If a novice professional couldn't control the rat swarm, they could very well become a 'missing person'.
There were twelve fully armed soldiers at the customs gate, and even more soldiers playing drinking games and having drinking contests in the tower.
When Tenor stepped into the light, he knew he was safe.
Strangely, the task did not indicate completion.
Now that he's come this far, will the demon worshippers continue to hunt him down?
"Whoosh!" The two guards at the front crossed their spears and blocked the passage.
The legionary soldier sitting on the stool glanced at Tenor, noticing his shabby appearance and realizing he wasn't someone who could make money off others, and his tone became lazy:
"Where did you come from?"
"I just came in and out of here. I was an adventurer commissioned by the ship's officer. You should remember me—a guy wrapped in a bathrobe." Tenor sized up the guards at the gate—just a group of well-trained ordinary people.
However, the warriors of the "Legion" are at least at the rank of novice; the "Legion" is the Imperial standing army.
Don't underestimate the gatekeepers just because they are low-ranking. Even high-ranking warriors have to wear full armor and carry long weapons if they want to break through the city gate.
Well-trained soldiers can pose a threat to superhumans. Even legendary warriors are essentially human, only their strength, endurance, and agility are extraordinary.
Even if he could split a bullet in two with a single sword strike, it didn't mean he could take a bullet to the face unless he grew a layer of hard scales like Tenor.
These gatekeepers can serve as early warning systems and, in conjunction with the tower guards, can stop or even kill high-ranking warriors. However, they are, after all, mortals and cannot detect special professionals with uncanny abilities.
Tenor understood that there was no reason why the demons couldn't infiltrate the inner city, and the crisis was indeed not over.
"Is that so?" The legionary soldier, acting as captain, suddenly lowered his voice and remained silent for a long time, until the guards blocking his path couldn't help but call out, "Boss?"
The legionary soldier responded in a strange tone: "Hmm... arrest him. I suspect he's possessing heretical books and has ties to the cult 'Emerald Order'."
As soon as the words were spoken, the guards at the front drew their swords, while the guards behind raised their crossbows and aimed in this direction. The towers on both sides seemed to be on alert as well, with noisy footsteps heard.
This was completely unexpected for Tenor. He had nowhere to hide heretical books; the gatekeeper was clearly just looking for trouble!
No! If the gatekeeper wanted to make money off the gatekeeper, he would have extorted money on his way back. If he suspected the gatekeeper of having ties with the cult, he would have done so beforehand.
In any case, it seemed that he would not be able to enter the inner city. Just as Tenor was about to reveal his alien form and break through the encirclement, he heard a short incantation.
The next moment, a white light swept across the city gate, and the "gatekeeper" let out a scream as a black shadow detached from him and fled into the darkness of the outer city at an extremely fast speed.