After everyone was healed, the leader walked up, calling over the younger ones from the back. Darian then looked at the little demonic beasts — they were about the size of Earth wolves now.
"You sent people away?" Niara asked quickly.
The leader shook his head. "Impossible. They were dead set on killing us."
She clenched her fists tight, eyes fixed on the ten she-wolves. They and the leader were the only adults left from the hundreds that used to live there.
The leader let out a painful sigh, then explained what had happened: they were surrounded without a single attempt at negotiation from the assassins.
But he was sure they were looking for someone. Part of them blocked the exits, while the others came in searching. They could only have been after Niara and Darian.
The Abyssal Corrupted Wolves were direct allies of Celestia Academy. Who would be insane enough to try and wipe them out without a reason? Sure, they were seen as disposable support, but they'd always helped this universe.
The leader didn't know the reason, but he had no doubt that Darian and Niara would come out of the tomb in another day. After all, they were in the middle of the trial. And if Darian really was the one his ancestor foresaw, he'd come to save them.
So, he had to make the worst decision of all.
He gave the order to go all out and kill as many assassins as possible. He found a gap and ran to the Sealed Nest, locking himself inside — it was the only way to protect his race until those two came out.
There was a barrier inside, built over generations. It wasn't that strong, but it would still take those assassins days to break through it. And as the leader, he was the only one who could activate it to seal the entrance.
Inside were the younger generation, and ten she-wolves who had just given birth and couldn't fight.
In the end, his people managed to kill a lot of them by using a brutal tactic — three of theirs for one of the enemy. Then, when the assassins found nothing in the tomb, they moved on to the Sealed Nest to finish the job.
Luckily, the she-wolves used their own bodies to absorb the poison and keep the young ones from being exposed. They'd hold on for a while — their race was highly resistant to that kind of thing.
Darian listened closely and nodded, piecing things together.
Right after they arrived, he had activated his curse and seen the past of the worst of the assassins. The man had thick, pitch-black karma — not quite Risen-level, but way heavier than anyone from Earth Darian had ever seen.
And then he saw something new. It wasn't a past life filled with dark, scary deeds. He saw this guy's current life.
That had never happened with people from Earth. But when someone did a lot in a single life, Darian realized he could see it clearly.
Even though it had special conditions to trigger, it was basically a cheat-level power that let him see into the past.
And what he saw...
The assassin was talking and making a deal with a Mannaz who had a familiar voice. It was the same voice from Niara's past — the so-called King with Dragon Blood.
During the talk, the King said:
"The Elder got her current location. She's among the Corrupted Demon Beasts and seems to be staying still. You need to act now, don't give her a chance to escape. She's still weak, and this is our last shot."
The assassin replied seriously: "And if those beasts try to protect her?"
"Take a big enough group to wipe the whole race out. No one can survive. The Elder's been wanting to get rid of them for a while, just never had the chance. That bitch is known for being a bloodthirsty lunatic — it'll be easy to justify the massacre. Even if people investigate, if you clean it all up, the Elder will help cover it," the King said coldly.
With that, Darian was sure those were memories from just before the attack. As for how the Elder knew Niara's location, she had explained it when the trial started. Because of the Summoners' emblem, the Academy could track everyone.
Darian understood a lot in that moment. His curse let him see the past through someone's black karma.
The massacre the assassins committed against the beasts created that karma. All the connections before, during, and after the event that created the karma could be seen. Darian still didn't fully know how to choose what he saw, but if it was the most recent thing, it was easy.
"These assassins were hired by the King of the Dragon Mannaz and also... helped and encouraged by a very influential Elder at Celestia Academy," Darian said seriously, making Niara narrow her eyes.
"The Abyssal Corrupted Wolves are useful for protecting vulnerable places from the Risen. The Academy and the Summoners would never agree to exterminate them without a reason. I'm sure... that Elder and that King are both helping the Risen on purpose."
Why did that Elder want to kill such helpful beasts for so long? Darian had seen the past of the beast leaders — they'd never harmed anyone. Quite the opposite, they helped the living all the time.
So, he was almost sure of the reason. Knowing the universe's past, full of betrayal lurking in the shadows, there was only one explanation: there are traitors infiltrated in the Academy and among the important Mannaz.
The beast leader tensed up hard but looked straight at the slug without backing down. "You, sir…"
"Yeah, I received the full inheritance," Darian replied, nodding.
A light shimmered, revealing that small canine fang again.
The leader's eyes went wide. "That belonged to my ancestor…"
"Yep. Anyway, you won't be targets anymore. They won't be dumb enough to try again—Niara could expose a few things and cause trouble. And the last thing traitors want is attention. They'll treat this as a failed assassination attempt and just try to cover up all the deaths…"
The leader nodded. The death of so many in his race meant nothing to the people at the academy. Even if they found out what had happened, they wouldn't care enough to look into it. That Elder would just bury everything anyway.
"Luckily… not everyone died," Darian said, glancing at the young ones.
"Don't worry. The power of this nest hasn't been weakened. I'll burn everything I can to help these kids grow fast."
The king had said something Darian now understood. That was another trait of Demon and Divine Beasts—their bodies could evolve quickly if given the right resources.
In less than a year, they could be born and become fully grown adults. Sure, they'd still be mentally super immature, but with proper training, they could fight using their adult bodies reasonably well.
"And we can also breed fast. Fortunately, ten young adult females survived," the leader added, making Darian freeze for a second, even though he got what that meant.
Niara nodded in agreement. The king was the only adult male left and would have to work hard to repopulate his race with those ten females. So, along with the young ones who'd grow up fast—most of them children of those who died—they could pair with the offspring of the ten females and rebuild their numbers quickly.
Darian let out a sigh and asked, "Since the assassins came here, I can come whenever I want now too, right?"
"Yeah, but we're really close to the galaxy's edge. This is where the Risen attacks are the most common. Most planets out here are either corrupted or abandoned because of the danger. No one's blocked from entering, but almost no one dares to come," the leader said with a nod.
Darian nodded back. "Good. I'm still too weak for now. But I'll be back soon. I've already got plans for you. Are you in?"
The leader trembled. All the wolves behind him understood instantly too.
Right away, the leader bowed. Then the others followed, perfectly in sync.
"It'll be an honor to fight at your side, sir. We'll die following your orders without hesitation," he said, bowing deep.
Niara gave a slight smile. Darian, on the other hand, felt weird about it. He remembered the book and how much the protagonist hated this kind of thing—it felt too much like worship.
Just then, Niara felt her emblem vibrate. She picked it up—it was a time warning.
"Six hours left," she said.
Darian nodded. "Let's head back…"
They exchanged glances. A cold, wild light flickered in both their eyes, perfectly in sync. They were thinking the same thing, with the same purpose: they weren't letting this go. Not a chance. They were indirectly responsible for all those deaths… and someone was going to pay for it.