The Cycle of Fate

Chapter 27: The Mark

"Tentacles?" Lumian hesitated for a second before he recalled the right term to describe what had ensnared that mass of flesh.

Having thoroughly read Aurore's various novels and seen all the illustrations, he not only remembered every melodramatic plot twist but also learned about many strange things, like the tentacles of monsters.

Seven or eight deep black, membranous-covered tentacles wrapped around the mass of flesh, dragging it toward the nearby building ruins.

From behind the scattered stones, a figure emerged.

"He" had a humanoid shape, bare-chested, and barefoot, wearing only black pants.

But unlike a human, he had no head. Where his neck should be, there was only a stump, with the cross-section forming a vortex lined with sharp teeth. Between these teeth, patches of raw, red flesh were visible.

It was as if a human had replaced his head and part of his neck with a bizarre oral cavity. Even Lumian, who prided himself as an "expert decapitator," shook his head repeatedly, unable to find a place to strike.

The seven or eight membranous-covered black tentacles extended from the edges of the monster's "oral cavity," quickly hoisting the mass of flesh in front of it.

The creature's neck, now an orifice, opened wide, resembling a blooming trumpet flower.

The sharp, white teeth bit into the mass of flesh, and, like a snake devouring its prey, it swallowed it whole.

Watching this, Lumian silently chuckled to himself, "I thought you creatures didn't need to eat to survive, but it seems you do..."

He then fell into deep thought.

"In a place like this, filled with monsters, there must be very little to eat...

"So, does that mean some monsters prey on others, just like what I saw just now? Or maybe, all of them are both hunters and prey...

"If I come across a monster I can't handle, could I possibly lure it to another monster, let them fight it out, and then swoop in at the end to clean up?"

"Theoretically, it's possible, but it sounds dangerous. Who knows if the monsters might team up and kill me first..."

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Lumian noticed that the monster with the "oral cavity" where its head should be had begun to swell and contract its chest, as if digesting its meal.

This caught Lumian's attention, and he soon noticed something unusual about the monster's bare upper body.

On its left chest, right chest, and the lower part of its neck, there were three black marks that resembled stamp imprints.

"This..." Lumian's pupils unconsciously dilated as he tried to get a clearer look.

He had seen something similar before on the parish priest!

It was at the end of the Lent Festival when the priest's body had swelled, tearing through his clothes and revealing those black marks!

Upon careful inspection, Lumian confirmed that the three stamp-like black marks on the monster's body were of the same kind as those on the parish priest:

They were composed of unique characters and strange symbols, seemingly connected to an indescribable world.

The difference was that the priest had at least eleven or twelve of these marks, while this monster had only three.

"What are these black marks for? Some kind of brand from a hidden entity? The more marks, the greater the blessings received?" Lumian wondered, both puzzled and confused.