King's Kou: Do not awaken the knight in the beast

Chapter 21: Hell is in the air

 A giant silhouette slithered in the forest. He didn't do much to conceal his appearance or his presence. He wanted to make himself known to his prey.

"Tweet tweet tweet!"

The flock of birds resting on the branches of a spruce tree scattered away in the skies after a bear covered in moss clashed against the trunk. Her stomach was profusely bleeding from the puncture made from a unicorn's horn. Her babies were cowering in the corner, just waiting for their turn after their mother.

"It's morning! It's morning! The sun is wide awake."

His long and elongated body wrapped around the bear cadaver, squeezing out more blood from his fresh kill. He didn't like his meal too juicy to the point that it felt like he was eating porridge.

"Make my bed, wash my face, it's time to earn my keep."

The bones of the mother bear snapped in half. Her tongue was out on display.

"The sun is shining, Elysians are coming, the Sheols won't dare to peek!"

He smiled widely from the amount of blood he managed to wring. The green bear cubs got onto their fours, escaping the same fate they might end up with if they remained.

"Oi, don't run away!" the predator called out before clicking his tongue. "Meh, I'll find you later."

He hummed the tune engraved permanently in his memory and continued singing.

"Line up! Line up!

With the knights she's here to pick.

Who is next? Basil is next,

Say bye bye to the nuns."

Despite the strong metallic odor that Basil had extorted from his prey, his nose was hauled up to face the brightening skies. He was close to the Capital of Canaan, Hiraeth. Creatures of Sheols wouldn't be able to get near to the walls because of the barrier cast around the city. There were farms outside of the city and the farmers were smart and wise enough to have priests put a protective spell on their area. The spells weren't because of animals or beasts lurking around to destroy their crops, but mostly because the farmers might become the food stuck between the attackers' teeth.

The source of the stench was close by. There was a stream near there. It smelled like blood from a human but something was mixed with it. Basil shrugged his shoulders.

"Good night good night

It will be a scary night.

Did my chores, had my supper, it's time to hide from them!

The moon is full, the sky is dark, no child should be awake."

From afar, a man crawled over the shallow rivulet. Clear water turned bright red as soon as the water flowed past him. He had kept calling for help. He had kept telling her to stop. He was defiled as a man. A monster was growing inside of him. He could feel its malicious heartbeat. It was devouring him alive from the inside as he sensed his organs shifting.

"Ding dong! Ding dong!

With claws they come to play.

Who's next? Who's next?

The nuns will stay and watch.

Close your eyes, cover your ears, you'll be just okay."

The sky over Hiraeth abruptly darkened which caught Basil's eyes. It was surely not nature's own doing. The pink color of the electrical discharges were familiar but he didn't want to believe that Kou was there. It would be suicide to come inside a human's territory. Basil had faith that Kou could manage, but he recently heard that the viels who were captured partnered up with their tamers and worked with them.