Army of the Damned

VOLUME 3 Chapter 3

With his party taking the quest to investigate and hunt down a demonic pack of animals in a nearby forest. The ride only took about half an hour before they reached the location.

Northwest of the town. There wasn't really much. Apart from the open plains on the other side and then the large usual forest that leads towards a mountain, Jackson in his full silver plate armor hops down the drivers bench. "Well, I might as well do some basic stuff like the old times. Bahamut, be sure to control the spread of your fire as usual."

"M'Lord, These are usually accompanied by a Herd or Pack leader which could prove fatal for someone who hasn't encountered them before. I suggest you take things slow if need be. Do not charge head on as its abilities might surprise you." Checking the buckles of his plates and scabbards, he tightens his helmet's chin strap before looking at her. "Hmm, I hope they're tasty, Master." Alana and Jackson look at Bahamut after saying the sentence. "I thought a joke would be appropriate."

This made the Knight nod his head as he lifted the visor of his helmet, showing his surprised face. "Look at this, the little dragon is cracking jokes. Did you eat something? Bwahahahaha. But then again, please try not to eat their high level units like last time. I had no proof at all to return to the Association building with that Goblin Warlord we killed."

"Of course, Master. Though it did taste pretty good." he just shrugs his head before turning around and staring down the thick shrubbery of the forest and in the midst of it, he could see the Countess' sharp nose on his peripherals, prompting him to look at her.

She sat stood still, idling as if nothing was going on inside her head for once. "What? Cat got your tongue, Alana?" Stepping forward, she stood right by his side. Her usual stoic expression back on. "The girl at the desk was heavily pushing that we get Adventurer's Identification, M'Lord."

"No. We'll do that if this is going to be a full fledged thing. But for now, let's just find our way through the system first." She nodded as he turned to the bushes. With a heavy breath, he steps into the treeline. Alana and Bahamut in tow behind him.

Looking at the barks of the trees, the slight rustle of a branch's leaves would take his attention as slowly but surely, his adrenaline started to pump and run amok in his veins. "M'Lord. Over here." Stopping, he turned to his left, though met with some shrubs, bulldozing through it he saw Alana with Bahamut hovering around her.

Her gloved finger was pointed towards a tree with scratches on its side. It has four large scratch marks and had no sign of being made in a relaxed method as it slowly led right up to the crown of the tree. Looking straight up, they all could see that most of its branches had been taken down, with only a handful left. "Master, this is quite a normal thing for a predator turned prey to do. Reach for higher ground for safety.

"Can you identify what animal it was?" attaching herself on the side of the tree, the Dragon licked the mark before silently observing it. "It seems to be normal wolves, Master." followed by a few sniffs here and there, she detaches herself and began hovering again. "Wolves? So it's more than one?" Bahamut looks up and down before turning to him. "Yes, Master. Multiple."

"Oh, indeed. She's correct, M'Lord." Turning to Alana who was behind the tree, the entire section of the barks there had been peeled off, with some still hanging by the thread. "Oh... that's not good." With his gaze locked into the dark forest, the Dragon hovered near him, the sound of her flapping wings ringing inside his helmet. "I sense nothing. M'Lord. Though, if we continue in that direction and then turn a bit left, there's a section of this forest that seems to be silent."

"Could be just wolves though which would be a waste of our time. M'Lord, I suggest we just head straight into the dungeon's front door and see if they've taken a nest around it." Lifting her hand, she points further leftward than the direction Bahamut gave. "Alright, that's the objective anyways. Let's go."