Mara was moving rapidly toward the east.
A burning desire for revenge raged within him—
because he wanted to take revenge on Ajina.
He thought to himself—
"There's no need to panic…
I won't step back anymore…"
He tried to calm himself—
"Just think of this forest… as a simple garden…"
Then—
suddenly, something caught his eye…
and he froze in shock.
Before him—
countless dead bodies lay scattered.
Mara whispered—
"What… is this…?
How can there be so many bodies here…?"
Suddenly—
he took a step back.
For the first time,
fear was clearly visible in his eyes.
He spoke slowly—
"Their age…
they must be around 10 years… or even older…"
In that moment, he realized something—
and with a trembling voice, he said—
"Could it be…
they were all participants…?"
Then—
suddenly, the air grew heavy…
Suddenly—
Mara's mind seemed to lose its clarity.
He held his head
and sat down on the ground.
His breathing grew heavier…
Then—
a thought struck him.
With a trembling voice, he said—
"Why didn't I say 'Sweet Chamber'…?
What could it mean…?"
He remembered—
"Sir had said…
if you look at the Earth and say 'Sweet Chamber,'
you can return home…"
He quickly looked up—
but…
there was no Earth in sight.
Mara panicked and said—
"What… kind of world is this…?
Why can't I see Earth…?"
His eyes fell back on the bodies—
"All of them… are covered in blood…"
He thought to himself—
"What should I do now…?
Should I move forward… or not…?"
After a pause—
he whispered—
"I'll move ahead a little…
maybe I'll find someone…"
Mara moved forward slowly.
He said cautiously—
"I hope I find a human…
not a spirit…"
He paused and thought—
"But… does Sir even have the power to defeat spirits?"
Mara looked closely at the sword in his hand.
He muttered—
"What is it about this sword…
that allows it to break a spirit into particles…?"
He sank deeper into thought—
"Is it really just this sword…?
Or is it something beyond that…?"
Then he remembered—
"Sir said…
that during the hunt, we can create our own weapons…"
A faint spark appeared in his eyes—
"That means… even if my sword breaks,
I can still destroy a spirit using something else…"
He questioned further—
"Then why were we given this sword in the first place…?"
The question pulled him deeper into confusion.
After a moment, he thought—
"If I keep overthinking this…
I might lose… even with this sword…"
Mara scratched his head in frustration and said—
"I don't understand anything…
this Red Moon… and our home…
why are they confusing us like this…?"
He took a deep breath and recalled—
"When they brought the swords from the basement…
there were six in total…"
"Four of us were given one each…
and the remaining two—
one was given to Jeroen Sir…
and the other he kept for himself…"
Suspicion began to grow in his eyes—
"And then… both of them left,
taking those swords with them,
making some excuse about work…"
Mara grew more uneasy—
"What kind of work could that be…?"
He fell silent for a moment—
"All these questions…
are pulling me deeper into confusion…"
He looked around—
"It feels like we're just here for a trip…
that's what it looks like…"
His voice lowered—
"But… what's really happening…
I can't understand anything…"
Suddenly—
Mara's eyes caught a large figure
flying in the air.
He quickly hid behind a tree.
He whispered—
"What kind of trouble is this now…?"
Gripping his sword tightly,
he prepared to strike.
Then—
he suddenly turned back.
A flying creature
was approaching him, carrying something.
The creature was slightly bigger than Mara…
Suddenly—
something slipped from its grip
and fell right in front of him.
Mara panicked.
As soon as he looked at it—
a strong, rotting stench filled the air.
With a trembling voice, he said—
"This… is a human corpse…"
He looked up—
and saw a vulture
circling in the sky above.
Mara grew even more frightened.
Then—
he sensed that the vulture
was about to descend.
In the next moment—
it dropped down
and landed on the corpse.
Seeing this, Mara's fear intensified…
He felt nauseous,
and his body grew strangely heavy…
Mara gripped his sword tightly with both hands,
preparing himself to step out.
Then—
the vulture began tearing into the corpse.
Mara thought to himself—
"What is happening…?
I need to drive it away…
or everything will be ruined…"
Gathering his courage,
he moved toward the vulture.
But suddenly—
the vulture lunged at him.
Mara quickly stepped back.
Then—
the vulture returned to tearing the flesh of the corpse.
Unable to bear the sight,
Mara shut his eyes—
and began striking blindly with his sword.
The vulture swiftly flew back, avoiding the attack.
Mara slowly opened his eyes…
and thought—
"This vulture…
it looks weak… and sick…"
Then—
the vulture let out a terrifying scream.
Hearing it,
Mara was completely shaken.
He felt—
"This… is far more powerful
than it appears…"
Mara thought to himself—
"Its voice is so sharp…
if I hear it again…
it might take my breath away…"
In the next instant—
without wasting a second,
Mara dashed forward.
With full force,
he struck directly at the vulture's neck.
And the moment the strike landed—
the vulture
began to break apart
into glowing particles…
Then—
a massive explosion erupted.
Along with it,
a deep and radiant light spread across the area.
Within that light—
a terrifying echoing sound could be heard.
For a moment,
Mara lost his balance.
The sandalwood sword in his hand
suddenly began to burn…
Mara was stunned—
"What… is happening…?"
Then—
his gaze shifted forward…
and he saw—
multiple vultures approaching him.
Wounds were now clearly visible
on Mara's face.
His breathing was heavy…
but his eyes still refused to give up.
He gripped his burning sword tightly—
and whispered—
"Come…"
"Will Mara be able to defeat the vultures…?"
"Is all of this… part of someone's plan?"