A bedroom that served simultaneously as an office. Lunaria sat at her desk, beginning to record in a diary with a quill pen.
It was a completely blank book. She had never written anything in it before. Only today did she begin.
"I write this based on intuition. I do not know if it will be useful or not in the future."
Lunaria believed her intuition was quite strong. And, thanks to that, she began keeping a diary. There was a powerful feeling that she had to do it. That feeling emerged right after she met Kaelan Veradis.
"When we were about to hunt and seek supplies, Reynold and Rebecca found someone. This person remembers nothing; he even seems not to recognize his world. His name is Kaelan Veradis."
Lunaria wrote about their initial meeting, about how she searched for Kaelan's identity in the city but found nothing. She also wrote about the events in the court up until the present.
"Surprisingly, he is a Devourer. I can say with certainty that he truly does not know, but he seems very familiar with the Devour Art."
Lunaria had her suspicions about Kaelan, but there was something else that made him more interesting. It was about how Kaelan genuinely knew nothing. His memory loss felt strange.
"I have my suspicions, but I will reveal them when I find something else."
Closing her book, she stared at an application beside her. It was regarding the proposal to add a new member to a certain group.
It was the file containing Reynold's proposal for Kaelan to join his group. Lunaria also remembered the good reasons Reynold had presented, leaving her with no reason to refuse.
"Whether you bring disaster or a ray of light... you need to prove yourself, Kaelan."
One week since Kaelan joined the Radiant Covenant.
Kaelan was beginning to get used to many things, including the food. The suspicion toward him had also lessened, though they certainly remained vigilant.
During that time, Kaelan practiced using his power. He began to understand and grew accustomed to utilizing the Devour Art quickly.
Basically, he only needed to imagine a clear and detailed form. He needed to focus himself to maintain it, especially when controlling blood. It truly felt like having a new limb.
Because he was quite skillful, Kaelan was to undergo his first mission. With Reynold leading, the other already familiar member was Rebecca. Then there was the addition of a small boy and his pet, a rat with red eyes.
Gathering in the hall, Reynold crossed his arms as a smile played on his lips.
"We will take a mission to hunt Wolfhorns. But before that, I will introduce our new member—Kaelan Veradis!"
Kaelan gave a strained smile. "Nice to meet you." He offered a greeting, but everyone simply looked at him flatly.
Especially Rebecca; she only glanced at him briefly before averting her gaze. Meanwhile, the little boy, who was around 15 years old, only stared at him without saying anything.
"As you know, this woman who is like ice is Rebecca. Just like me, she is Os Medulla—bone and marrow mutation, stage one. She looks apathetic, but she actually cares a lot. You can trust her!" Reynold seemed to ignore the actually heavy atmosphere as he introduced his members.
"This boy is Drake Grego, Mantis Organa. Brain and organ mutation, stage one. Though he is young, he is very capable. Drake is able to utilize small monsters for support. He is also able to recite Cursed Prayers."
A boy with brown hair and skin, his eyes were black and his body thin. He nodded, and after a nudge from Reynold, the boy spoke.
"Sorry if I was impolite before. You can call me Drake."
Kaelan nodded and smiled. "Just call me Kaelan."
Kaelan was quite curious about the Cursed Prayers. However, before he had a chance to ask, Reynold had continued.
"I will explain the mission. We are going to hunt Wolfhorns."
Wolfhorns were wolves with large horns on their heads. These monsters roamed the outskirts of the city and lived in packs.
They would occasionally harass people entering and leaving the city. Every time that happened, an extermination request would be filed. Furthermore, Wolfhorns were among the types that were edible.
"Our formation is simple. Rebecca and I will be the frontline, Drake will provide support. And Kaelan, you will protect Drake and monitor the situation. You can also assist."
Kaelan's presence was able to cover the empty position and make them a perfect team.
Reynold and Rebecca were essentially the main attackers, and Drake was only able to provide support. However, if that were the case, Drake would have no protection.
Therefore, Kaelan's presence greatly filled the void. He would not only be able to protect Drake but also attack and observe the situation.
"Sangu Carna is a very helpful mutation because it has high flexibility. Take the Captain for example; she can do almost everything herself."
Reynold then explained how to attack a Wolfhorn.
First were the horns. They needed to sever the horns so that the monster would weaken. A Wolfhorn acted based on signals emitted by its horns.
Then, if the horns were severed, they would lose the ability to know their opponent's location. That was the best time to kill them.
"We only have ten seconds before the horn grows back. Therefore, we need to be careful and remain coordinated."
Even weak monsters were extremely deadly. Kaelan began to understand more deeply the sentence: carelessness will bring a greater misfortune.
They left the city and moved toward the south. Kaelan observed his surroundings once more. He was currently walking in the middle with Drake, while Reynold led and Rebecca guarded the rear.
"May I ask? I'm curious about the Cursed Prayer." Kaelan started the conversation.
Drake looked at him for a moment before seeing Reynold, who didn't seem to mind.
"Cursed Prayer is a way to use the curses that are around us. It's like you recite a series of words to move nature."
Besides the Devour Art, there was also such a thing as a Cursed Prayer. A series of ancient languages that, if recited, would be able to influence the curse.
Basically, it used language to create phenomena in nature. The phenomena were not limited to manifesting natural elements, but even something that looked horrific.
"You will need a talisman or some kind of sacrifice to use a Cursed Prayer. Usually, a talisman is the most effective as a medium to activate the curse."
Apparently, not everyone could use a Cursed Prayer. One of the strong reasons was because using it was synonymous with interacting directly with the curse.
"If you are careless, you could instantly become a monster or die without even realizing it. Therefore, there are fewer people capable of using Cursed Prayers." Reynold helped provide an explanation.
Drake nodded and smiled. "I have a resistance to the curse. That's the reason I'm able to use it without worry."
Humans are adaptive creatures. Even in the midst of cursed land, humans will find a way to live within it. Humans are like a stain that refuses to vanish easily.