“Monsterization is such an interesting topic! Just, how does that even work? How can simple will shape the process?

I thought that the line between a ‘monster’ and a ‘humanoid’ was more than well set, blurring only for Kins and Half-monsters. But this? Humanoids that can summon the same cocoon of monsters? We must research this!”

-Fragment of a diary, unknown.

Dan pov

Just when Dorel vanished with a flash, Dan released the sigh that he had been holding in for a few minutes. Defenders weren't famous for their capabilities to hold their own in battle, and, regardless of what Callen's skills said, he couldn't relax the tension in his body.

Dan looked at his Quest.

*Quest: Retrieve the survivors.

Objective: The citadel of Oran has successfully repelled the monsters, but many of its citizens have been kidnapped. Retrace them, then bring back home as many people as possible. They don’t have much time.

Reward: ??? *

It’s been a while since I was on scouting duty. Dan frowned. Let’s hope that we’re not too late. He glanced at Arthur. The evolved slime was wobbling with his whole body. He’s an Explorer or something, right? “Wanna come with me, little guy?”

Arthur looked left and right, before pointing at himself. “Me?”

“Yeah, why not? I bet that Space will come in handy, and you need experience.”

“If… if you think that I won’t slow you down… okay. Thanks, Dan.”

The Trickster winked.

Callen frowned slightly. “It’s going to be more taxing on the Core.”

“Didn’t you assign him a Quest too? We’ll just do both of them together.”

“I didn’t give him one. He’s not like your team; he’s still on the level of a recruit. A talented one, perhaps, but no more.”

Dan smiled a humorless smile. “He is part of our team. His inexperience is why we’ll go together, nothing else. Plus, isn’t Space made for a searching Quest?”

Callen frowned. “The Core doesn’t have much mana, but… you’re right. Two fresh scouts will do better than a single one. Be careful.”

Dan grinned, giving the slime a strong pat on his shoulder. The way that his ‘skin’ rippled was a bit… unsettling. “Don’t worry, we got this!”

Arthur nodded, determination now burning in his eyes. “I won’t disappoint!”

The duo laid their hands on the Core, and the world flashed white.

They appeared in a well-lit room, in front of a startled mage. People were bustling behind them, briefly stopping to see what the flash was about.

Upon seeing the two people wearing Templar gear, they resumed their hurried steps. The startled mage sighed, swiftly putting away a blue-green potion. “Thanks for coming, friends. I didn’t expect this quick of an intervention.”

Are those wild Windpetals? Weird. Dan smiled. “No rest for the righteous, am I right?”

She let out an exhausted chuckle. “Indeed. I’m Lyla, pleased to meet you.”

The duo shook hands. “Dan here, Inquisitor.” He gestured at Arthur to present himself.

The little guy awkwardly repeated the gesture, even if he partially engulfed the woman’s hand in his. “H-hello, I’m Arthur. I’m an Explorer.”

She didn’t show any sign of discomfort at the weird interaction. “Pleased to meet you too.” She smiled. “It’s truly Divine providence that the Cleansing Angel had exactly the people we needed for both of our Quests.”

Dan froze. “What.”

Lyla lost part of her smile. “The missing people and the heretics in the city…?”

Oh, crap. He shook his head. “I have a Quest for the missing people. Callen didn’t mention any heretic.” And even if he did, I’m not sure that I would’ve taken it. Don’t want to bust a Hub that it’s minding its own business.

Lyla pinched her nose, sighing. "That's… mildly irritating." She replied with a death stare at the Core. "Please, can you help with that? Our Inquisitors are already busy with the kidnapped people, they can't also comb the city."

Dan grimaced. Astill, what do I say?

Noticing his hesitation, Lyla pushed on. “You could scout the city while Arthur goes out in the wilds. He’s an Explorer!”

“I can do this!” The slime supplied.

Dang it. “Let’s hear what should we expect first. He’s new to the team.”

“Thank you!” She then cleared her throat. “A Coven. We are dealing with witches who have taken a liking to kidnap our people and corrupt the monsters. We found their Lair, but this… apocalypse has delayed our plans.” She glanced at Arthur. “Your job will be to find the Lair. Expect a lot of corrupted monsters in the way.” Then she looked at Dan. “You’ll search and capture the agents in the city, neutralizing their mess. We’ll handle the interrogation.”

The last phrase made Dan shudder.

“Both of you, we have no idea where the witches are. Fighting them all together will be difficult, but not impossible, not with our support.”

Shit. “Are they monsterized?” Dan asked. I wonder if they’re cousins. Aunt Zeya didn’t talk about the others too much.

Lyla shrugged. “It’s possible. They had access to plenty of monstrous meat and plants. Of course, they needed time to perform the ritual, and they probably haven’t gotten it.”

In most cases, witches were a bit of a controversial figure. These women usually sat in solitary huts in the woods or near a village, minding their own business. Many delved into Curse and Wood magic, playing with hexes and alchemy and making them both wonderful healers and terrifying foes. Sometimes, they formed a Coven with two other witches to amplify their magical might by sharing their Power stat with each other.

Hags, on the other hand, were always a nightmare made real.

It was said that when a witch dug too deep in her magic, a strange hunger would wake inside her, forcing her to feed on raw monstrous flesh. The witch would then consume the corpses during an unknown ritual that would kill her and force a cocoon to be conjured around her dead body.

At the breakage of the cocoon, a newly born Hag would walk out with her mortality left behind with no remorse. These terrifying creatures’ powers varied depending on the consumed monster, also gaining some sort of leadership over the rest of the consumed species. In general, they tainted their chosen attunement into becoming a tool for nightmares to come. A Coven of Hags? They could attack someone in their dreams, sometimes enthralling them.

As it seemed to be the case now.

Dan grimaced. “What a pain in the ass. Arthur, Hags are around Tier 2 in power. They might not be there, and they might be newly evolved, but… are you sure that you want to face them?”

He nodded. “Yes!”

Please, Astill, protect him. Dan sighed. “Very well, let’s get to it.”

Dan and three other people exited the building, all of them blending in the surroundings in their way.

The debriefing assigned a specific zone each, with some houses highlighted as suspects. The Witches’ or Hags’ thralls were often commanded to keep themselves out of sight, as the people familiar with them could easily see through their domination.

Dan was pretty sure that this was doubly true within a Paladin city. He had also hidden the fact that his talents included mental warfare, making a joke to find his various targets. It would be easy to slip up more than it was safe to, and he didn't want to put Nashariel in more danger than she was already in.

The invisible Trickster quickly dashed among the unsuspecting citizens, soon arriving at the closest building. The herbal shop had all its curtains closed, and an explicative ‘closed’ sign hung out of the door.

Dan conjured a double, also invisible, and handled its control to his secondary mind. As opposed to Nashariel’s, his skill gave him a secondary focus, instead of a semi-intelligent construct. He had been a bit disappointed, but he could control roughly half more images without getting a massive headache.

He had the mirage go inside from below the door. The image looked around. Nothing out of place, for now. He swapped himself with the mirage, leaving it out in case he needed a quick escape.

Now inside the house, Dan conjured ten images and sent his silent doubles to check every room. He smirked. Astill, I love Mirage. Glad that the boss talked me into it.

His copies reported that the shopkeeper was currently sleeping on his bed.

He kept shuddering, murmuring incoherent things before turning left and right.

Dan delicately prodded his mind. He found several purple tendrils latched onto the man’s psyche, restraining the brain.

Dan shivered, retreating. Found one. He swiftly went out of the building, taking out the small artifact given to him by a sergeant. He pushed some mana in it. “The herbalist is compromised. I’ll keep searching.”

“Thanks, Inquisitor. We’re on our way.” A masculine voice replied.

No compliments? Dang. Dan put the artifact back, suppressing a chuckle. Back to work.

He found three other people in his zone, faithfully following the list. Fortunately, or unfortunately, not every highlighted place had hidden a thrall. Dan was sure that the Paladins had missed some places, but that didn't matter to him yet. There were still a few people on the list, and he was already planning to scour the entire city to help Arthur.

The young slime was talented but he lacked experience. His true fighting style, though… He shivered.

Dan entered the hunter's hut, searching for a couple of wounded hunters that had yet to return to the outside. The moment his real self materialized, a bone-deep chill gripped Dan in his grasp. Something’s wrong!

A sickening presence filled the hut, making the Flux as murky as a swamp. “Well, well, well. I finally found you! I have to say, I didn’t expect you to be so quick! Are you a hare, by any chance?” A feminine voice asked.

Not humanoid. Crap, I must hurry to Arthur! If one of them is a Hag already…Dan let out his most charming smile. “Wanna tell me where you are? I may decide to pay you a visit.”

“A little hare shouldn’t joke with a wolf.” The Flux darkened some more, purple spikes appearing on every surface. “Of course, this wolf isn’t unreasonable. After all, you don’t have time to lose since my… less civilized sisters are always starving. Does the hare understand?”

Something prodded against Dan’s head, trying to exploit his worry for Arthur. He scoffed, sending the most powerful [Mental spike] that he was capable of casting back at the Hag. “Fuck off, I already have a Boss.” He subtly modified his spell, hoping that the pain would cover his trick.

The woman shrieked. Her presence vanished, and the spikes approached quicker than how fast Nashariel could say ‘duck’.

Dan simply switched himself with the copy left outside. A small sprinkle of paranoia always pays off! He mused, seeing the hut intact. Must’ve been only a mental attack… or Mind and Soul? He sent a double inside, swiftly checking for anything.

The mana signature of the place felt shattered, but nothing else was amiss. There were no people inside either.

Dan took out the artifact. “The witch detected me. I evaded her, but the hunters weren’t in their home. I can confirm that they’re Hags.”

Some loud curses came out from the mirror. “Understood, glad you’ve survived. She has assaulted us too, and one team has gone missing. Come back, we need to rethink our plan.” The voice, a woman this time, replied after taking a deep breath.

“How is she doing it? Can she split their mind?”

Dan heard the man pinching his nose. He sighed. “We have no idea. She must have a way to keep watch on all of us.”

“Damnation! I feel fine, mind if I stay out there? I haven’t checked the rest of my zone yet.”

“Do as you wish, Comrade, but be careful. Now that she has been found out, she might-”

The artifact fell silent.

But Dan heard the explosion near him loud and clear.

The Trickster turned, the wind almost sending his cloak flying. For fuck’s sake! Not a moment of fucking tranquility! He started running.

And why they’re always explosions!? He asked himself, avoiding some flying rubble.

Dan rushed toward the explosion, his invisibility turned off. He noticed a quartet of Paladins throwing radiant slashes left and right, caring not for who was the target.

As soon as they saw him, tho, they all locked gaze upon him.

The missing team has been enthralled! Dan conjured twelve weak copies, mixing himself among them. He wasn't sure how to disable them, but sure as dawn, he was able to pin them down.

In barely more than a second, half of his copies were gone, cut and burnt by the thralls’ skills. Still, the rest of them conjured nets and clubs and mauled the four people. He had to keep the gloves on for this one, as they weren’t truly enemies.

Mental control sucks. Unseen, Dan sent a mental spike, directing it at the immaterial tendrils. They were severed, but the Paladin’s ears started to bleed profusely. Shit, that’s a no.

He vanished from sight, renewing the number of copies. That done, he muttered a spell of misdirection woven from Mist, Mirage, and Mind with the barest touch of Ice.

He had practiced a lot while the boss was unconscious.

Within the purplish fog, the four people’s movements slowed to a crawl. They looked left and right, slashing against nothing but empty air as Ice crept up their limbs.

Dan used the distraction to have his copies help the screaming people around him to evacuate while also rescuing the wounded. He personally focused on the [Confusion], pumping it with mana and Trickery, his fourth resource.

A few seconds later, a squadron of Paladin arrived on the scene.

“They’re enthralled, I’m disabling them!” Dan shouted through a copy.

They nodded, steeling their gazes. After that, they slashed several waves of purely golden Radiance against the group.

Dan froze on the spot. Did they just…?

The skills cut the air with an angry whistle, landing precisely on each thrall. The slash’s light dragged out the tendrils, searing them to nothing more than a bad memory.

The now-free Paladins looked around themselves in horror, their weapons falling to the ground.

Thank Astill. Dan sighed, allowing his copies to vanish. “Any other place that needs help?” He asked. Is this what Lyla meant for interrogation?

They nodded. “Four. Thank you for your assistance but, please Inquisitor, find the Hag as soon as you can.”

“Onto that.”

Dan helped the other teams to suppress the thralls. His Combined spell was a goddessend for non-lethal takedowns, just as he had designed it to be. Well, he had designed it to let the others have an easier time while training, but whatever.

The base was relatively empty inside, but the same several people still looked at the enchanted map, serious as ever. None of them showed any kind of wound, but they sometimes clutched their heads for seemingly no reason.

“I’m back.” Dan announced himself.

A few heads turned toward him. “Good to see you well, Comrade.” Said the same man that answered his artifact the first time. “Found anything else?”

Dan shook his head. “No. How are the others?”

“Most are in the city, helping and fighting the thralls. We’re mostly fine, but Lyla has been forced to bed. The witch… Hag focused her first.”

Damn.“I’m no healer, but I have some potions for you.” He grabbed a handful of liquid health in glass, passing them at the Paladins. He hadn’t forgotten about his alchemy either. Lots of new ingredients here, I wonder how they taste?

They nodded. “Thank you. Can you bring one to Lyla too? She’s in the back. We’ll wait for the rest of the teams before starting out.”

“On my way.”

He hurried, finding the woman whimpering while downing the rest of her blue vial. Her ear bandages were still wet and red. “Intense day, uh?” He started, getting out a vial.

Lyla glared at him, then eyed the red potion. “Just give me that thing.”

Dan chuckled. “What happened, by the way?” He asked.

She greedily downed the potion, letting out a disgusted retch. "Gods, what do you put inside these potions?!"

“Eh, city made. What can you do.”

Lyla shook her head. “The witch assaulted my mind, then the others’. Not much to say.” She coughed some blood.

“How did she do it? I mean, most mental skills require a line of sight or an area.”

She hesitated. “I don’t know. Covens are…”

Dan smiled. “I mean, assaulting all the different parts of the city is impossible by normal means. And the people in the map room too? That’s gotta be a massive scrying spell.”

Lyla stood silent, except for some bloody cough.

“You see, very few people know, but my aunt is a witch too. She taught me lots of herbs, their effects, and where to best find them. So, when I smelled Windpetal, one of the ingredients needed to brew a Polymorph potion…”

Lyla bleached.

“And the fact that my attacker knew about my hurry for Arthur? Two plus two never makes five, Lyla. If that’s even your name.”

The first thing that Dan had noticed while entering the room? His mana signature was still well imprinted in the monster's head.

“Lyla is the name I was born with, yes.” She chuckled briefly. “The hare won against the wolf, today.” She relaxed against the pillow, seemingly at peace. “That wasn’t a health potion, wasn’t it?”

Dan smirked, allowing the illusion to vanish. The little drops of liquid remaining inside his vial became dark green. "Dragon's flame. A gift from a dear friend of mine.”

Lyla closed her eyes, wincing. “Tricked by a fucking Templar. What a joke…”

Dan let out a grin. “I’m a Trickster, after all.”

She barely mustered the strength to open her hatred-filled eyes. They were quickly coloring a wolfish yellow, and fur started to grow around her cheeks. “I hope that my sisters will devour your friend.”

*Torment/Mind/Wood-Mastermind Hag Lvl 128 has been slain.

Reward assigned. *

Dan quickly got up, returning to the main room. “Where’s Arthur?!” He shouted.

“How’s…?”

“Dead, she was one of the Hags.” The Paladins all looked at him with wide eyes. “Later! Arthur!”

The sergeant quickly muttered a few words, then talked with the other side of the artifact.

Dan almost snarled when he wasn’t able to hear the words.

He gritted his teeth. “I’m sorry, Comrade. He’s missing.”

“Damn it all!!!” Dan shouted. He shot through the door, devouring the road as fast as he could.

He bitterly remembered how insistent Lyla had been at sending Arthur at the Hags. He accelerated even further, muttering a Wind/Lightning spell to greatly speed himself up at the cost of his stamina.

Damn it!