"Grrr."
The ghoul growled after taking a few steps back.
Now, they could see it clearly.
The body was drenched in water, wearing a torn shirt, showing a bloody gash across its chest, with some of the ribs visible.
It didn't take a genius to understand that what they were seeing was not a living human.
Despite seeing it walk around, the fishermen realized their friend was long dead.
"Ghouls are fast and agile. They are a higher form of undead. You need to crush their head to kill them."
Zephyr informed the group.
While playing the game, he had killed many hundreds of ghouls. So, he knew their weak points.
"So, focus your attack on its head." He added, throwing away the cracked bamboo pole in his hand.
Ghoul could be killed by using physical attacks or by light or fire elemental attacks.
Currently, they have no one who can use elemental attacks, so he passed on the information about physical weakness before taking out the knife he was carrying.
His voice brought the fishermen to their senses. They grabbed their weapons and observed the ghoul that leaped away.
Moments ago, they were relieved to see the face of the ghoul. But now, realizing that it was an undead wearing their friend's face, they clenched their jaws.
Their love had turned to hate as they wished to decapitate the damned creature.
However, unlike Jack, none of them were powerful enough to kill the monster. So, they clutched their machetes tightly and waited for their chance.
Meanwhile, the ghoul that jumped away fell on the ground and crouched, standing on all four limbs like an animal.
Then it observed with its hollow, lifeless eyes.
Zephyr felt a chill go up his spine as he saw the intelligent glint in the monster's eye.
While they were reeling back from the initial attack, it was strategizing.
Then, a second later, as if it came to a conclusion, the ghoul changed its method.
This time, it swiftly backed up into the fog, disappearing from their vision.
Other than the sound of swift footsteps blitzing around them, they couldn't hear anything else. Then even that disappeared into the noise of rain.
Zephyr felt his chest tighten in apprehension.
It could attack them from anywhere.
The ghoul was smart.
Understanding that there existed someone in the group who could kill it, the monster retreated to find an opportunity.
'I hate this.'
Just as Zephyr cursed it in his mind, he saw a shadow flicker far away.
The fishermen came closer and stood in a circular formation around him.
Though they had not seen a ghoul before, they knew it was a dangerous undead creature. So, they huddled together for safety.
Meanwhile, Zephyr was gathering mana while keeping a close eye on his surroundings.
An indescribable amount of fear was flooding his mind, activating the adrenaline in his body.
The fight or flight response was kicking in, sharpening his senses.
"The next time it reveals itself, it needs to die."
He talked aloud.
"Undead, like a ghoul, can fight tirelessly for hours, even at the cost of sacrificing their body. We cannot do that. If we fail to kill it, it will follow and hunt us down. It might even follow us back to the village."
He was speaking aloud so that the members of his group could hear him.
Because of Zephyr standing up to save Jack, they trusted everything he said.
When the village was mentioned, the fishermen found the courage to face danger. After all, their family was there.
They couldn't let a monster invade their village.
Even if it meant dying here.
Zephyr expected such a reaction. That was why he chose his words carefully.
Honestly speaking, if others chose to escape, the first one to die would be Zephyr. He couldn't allow that.
That was why he informed them about the possible danger, subtly influencing their thoughts.
"Tak."
Just as he was done speaking, they heard a loud cracking sound coming from behind them.
The ghoul had left the mangrove forest and water field. It was behind them, in the grass field.
Everyone turned around to look in the direction of the sound.
But there was nothing.
Even as the lightning illuminated the foggy ground, they couldn't see anything.
'Sh*t.' Suddenly, Zephyr realized something.
He quickly turned back in the opposite direction.
Before he could react, a dark shadow came from their side.
It was too fast.
It didn't even make a sound until it caught one of the fishermen by his neck.
*Splurt*
Blood flowed out like a river from the neck of the fisherman as the nails of the creature drilled into the soft tissue.
"AAAAHHHH…"
He tried to scream. But his scream was cut short abruptly when the ghoul clamped tighter on his neck, breaking his vocal cords.
The fisherman was standing just a few feet away.
Zephyr saw everything that happened in extreme detail.
The splattered blood even fell onto his robes.
Finally, reality hit like a bitch.
Death was real.
He could die.
And someone died.
With thought streaming through his mind, he stood there wide-eyed as the ghoul dropped the man on the ground.
At that moment, Zephyr realized that he didn't even know the name of the person.
And yet, he was manipulating him, trying to use him as a tool to save his own life.
And, it worked.
It saved his life.
But someone else died because of his direct action.
The reality that death was real struck him again. Through death, he was once again reminded that each one of his actions have dire consequences.
Though his decision to stay and fight was the most optimal one. He still used them as shields to protect himself. The thought gnawed on his conscience, or what little remained of it.
Guilt silently drilled into him. At the same time, a boundless anger, at himself and at the ghoul, sprouted in his mind.
The creature had to die.
He decided.
The moment the body of the man hit the ground, the ghoul tried to jump away again.
It wanted to repeat its guerrilla tactic to kill them all.
But Zephyr was not going to let it leave that easily.
By coming and attacking one of them, it had given himself a chance to counter.
He can't allow it to leave like that.
So, consumed by anger, Zephyr lifted the knife he was carrying.
Just as the ghoul turned to flee, he threw the knife with everything he had at the exposed back of the creature.
He was aiming for the undead creature's head.
The knife glistened in the rain, flashing forward with immense speed.
"Swishhh…"
It rotated as it soared through the air.
Then it sliced the first thing that came in contact with its sharp edge.
"Sss…tk"
An ear fell on the ground.
Zephyr had missed his target. He was aiming for the back of the head. But he only hit the right ear, slicing it off in the process.
To an undead, it was not an injury worth mentioning.
Watching the ear fall, Zephyr felt stuffy.
The failure to strike his target made him more than angry. He wanted to scream. But he bit down and held it in.
Action fueled by rage will not negate his incompetence.
So, he decided to focus.