The Founder's POV

Chapter 16: Victim

"Another wave of monsters ahead!"

Jen called out loudly from atop a tree before jumping down with agile movements.

It had been almost three days since we arrived on the island, and the tree was getting closer and closer.

We traveled at maximum speed and crossed a vast area, but the distance to the tree was truly beyond my expectations.

I quickly lowered my head upon noticing a wooden puppet appear out of nowhere.

Since reaching the inner part of the island, we started encountering these strange creatures, neither I nor Jen knew anything about them.

They were pure wooden puppets, but they bled when injured and cried out in pain.

And those cursed mutterings... they constantly sent shivers down my spine.

Despite all these creepy attributes, the puppets had modest abilities, but they resembled humans somewhat.

Their strength ranged up to rank G/F+, nothing dangerous to me.

My sword moved slowly, and it seemed that the puppet's eyes sank into the depths of sloth when looking at my sword; despite its speed, it was unavoidable.

Yes, it seems that the Commandment of Sloth works on inanimate objects too, an interesting piece of information.

I sliced the puppet's head like butter and surveyed my surroundings for anything else. The puppet screamed loudly in pain, but I did not hesitate to crush its head under my foot.

Making a loud noise here would be dangerous, plus I really hated their sounds.

These puppets helped me gain some experience, but the massive power difference between us made it barely a challenge.

I became more vigilant, at least...

I looked at my long hair tied back, considering that cutting it at the start of every fight was somewhat ineffective, I heeded Jen's advice and decided to tie it and keep it at the same length.

I hadn't transformed into beast form since entering the island, but my hair had grown longer since I last used it on the mountain of fog and I hadn't cut it.

"When do you think we'll get up there?"

I asked Jen the same question I had repeated all day, but he still patiently answered my questions, seeming to have gathered his emotions some time ago.

'This is how an assassin should be...' I nodded internally.

"An hour or two at most, I'd better think about how to climb all this height.."

I asked myself that question too, but I ignored it to maintain my spirit, I can't imagine myself climbing that tree without rest.

The city we wanted to reach literally reached the clouds..

'I hope we find elevators there or something...'

If there was indeed a civilization up there, I suppose they had invented at least one way to ascend.

As I thought about it, I suddenly stopped walking.

"Jen.."

"I know.."

Sweat poured down my face, we were surrounded from all sides..

Dozens.. No! Hundreds of wooden puppets surrounded us from every direction..

Atop the highest nearby tree stood a person with a pale face and blue eyes, black hair darker than night, and a somewhat slender build.

Of medium height and posture as straight as a ruler, his aura was also menacing.