“That’s disgusting,” Ben mumbled, covering his nose.

  He had followed Le’Vieux through the bushes and tree trunks for almost fifteen minutes. The further they advanced, the more everything looked dry and dead. The entire area appeared to be covered in a dark mist. When he looked, he realized there were no leaves, only shriveled-up branches.

  The ground had also drastically changed. The mixture of grass and gravel had shifted into what looked like sloppy mud covered in a glaze of slimy mold. Luckily, Ben and Le’Vieux managed to avoid most of it by using the remaining small patches of dead grass as stepping stones.

  “There’s no worse smell than death and decay,” Le’Vieux mumbled.

  “I don’t suppose you’ve got a gas mask in your special storage?” Ben asked as his stomach churned like a cement mixer.

  Le’Vieux motioned to stop before putting his finger to his lips with a “Shh.” He then took a peek at the area beyond and only turned back after a few moments. “The area looks clear of hostiles.” He then advanced further, motioning Ben to follow.

  Dozens of piles surrounded the lake where water met land. Each was around a meter in height and looked like they held over a hundred eggs. When he moved closer to them, Ben noticed they were covered in a clear slime, allowing him to see through the eggs that had thin membranes. Pitch-black worm-like creatures twitched, twisted, and turned in the embryonic fluid. They seemed to react to any nearby movements.

  “What the heck are these things?” Ben asked, stopping in his tracks.

  “Not Frogmen.” Le’Vieux replied.

  Ben frowned, “What do you mean? I thought you said this is supposed to be their nest.”

  Le’Vieux scratched his head. “Yeah, it’s supposed to be.” He pointed at the creatures within the eggs, “But they look exactly like those neck leeches. Frogmen look more like tadpoles in the egg stage and are much bigger. They also don’t leave the nests unguarded like this. Almost always, they have multiple nest mothers caring for them. I’m unsure how those creatures got into their eggs like that.”

  Ben carefully thought about everything he had seen up to that point. He cross-referenced it with his knowledge of biology and some of the horror films he had seen. “Hmm… I might have a theory about what’s happening here.”

  Le’Vieux moved closer. “All right, I’m listening.”

  “I believe those neck leeches require a host to function properly. They take control of the body while making modifications to suit their purpose. The ones in the horde must have been the males chosen to fight for and defend the nest. The nest mothers must have been modified to give birth to eggs containing leeches to expand their population.” Ben explained, motioning at the eggs.

  Le’Vieux nodded before pausing a moment. It looked like he took some time to process the information before replying. “Hmm, that makes sense now. It explains why the normal-looking ones we encountered were away from the horde and in a brain-dead state—pushed out from their nests without food and water.”

  “Yeah, they got out of there while they still could.”

  Something caught Le’Vieux’s attention as he stared into the distance. He then pointed there, “What’s that supposed to be?”

  Ben twisted his head, following a slime trail to a pile near some bushes. It looked like it was composed of a large number of dead bodies. “Certainly not a pile of eggs.”

  Every step they took towards it, the harder it became to breathe. The stench of death reached its worst point as they stopped a few meters away from it.

  “That explains the stench.” Le’Vieux scoffed.

  Goosebumps pricked the skin around the back of Ben’s neck as the contents of his stomach rose to the back of his throat, making it hard to breathe. The pile of horror before him was a sight that would give any sane person nightmares for months on end. He stepped back and let Le’Vieux check it out.

  “Damn it,” Le’Vieux almost gagged. He moved away from the pile and faced Ben. “These are the corpses from the outpost. The hunters are mixed in with them, too.” He shook his head in disbelief and then let out a huff. His hands scrunched up into fists before he started to shake.

  Ben crossed his arms and stepped back after noticing that the Frogmen in the pile looked like the normal ones without any dark patches. He wondered why they would be taken like that and piled near the nest. After going over a few theories, he scratched his chin and asked. “What if this is how they infect the host?”

  Le’Vieux gave him a confused look as if he was talking nonsense. "What?"

  Ben cleared his throat. “Yeah, that’s what I mean. A dead host is an easy option with no struggle and resistance. All they have to do is wriggle along that slime trail and hop right in.” He pointed his finger down his throat, then pointed at the pile. “Look, all the bodies here are not infected. The Frogmen have no dark coloring.”

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  Upon hearing that, Le’Vieux double-checked the pile. “You're right about that. Look, no matter what, we can't allow these things to get out. What would you say is the best way to destroy all this?”

  Ben felt he would be asked that at some point and was prepared with an answer. “Burn the shit out of them until nothing is left… Though I’m not sure how we will go about that.”

  We sure could use a flamethrower right about now.

  Le’Vieux nodded, putting his hands together. A few vials containing a gleaming orange liquid appeared. “I think these will suffice.”

  Ben stared at them with a raised eyebrow. “What's that?"

  “When the liquid within contacts the air, it explodes into a scorching hot inferno.” He moved them forward for Ben to take. “Here, take a few… You’ll lose more than a few layers of skin if you're not careful with them.”

  Huh, magical grenades?

  After that warning, Ben stopped his hand in mid-air and hovered it above the vials before asking, “What would you say is a safe throwing distance?”

  “A dozen feet at the minimum,” Le’Vieux replied. He then motioned with his head in the direction of the eggs. “Come on, let’s get this done.”

  Ben softly pressed the vials and took a few. He followed Le’Vieux’s movements, who had started throwing them like Molotov cocktails at the piles.

  Surprisingly, the clear liquid burned easily, engulfing the area in flames. The heat became unbearable, and Ben sweated like he was sitting in a sauna on overdrive. Looking up, he saw the smoke had risen to the clouds, further contributing to the darkness.

  Le’Vieux hurried towards him and gave him a little nudge on the shoulder. “We need to get our backsides out of here before we’re burnt alive.” Motioning the dead and dry flora surrounding them. He then started hopping towards the direction they had come from.

  Just as Ben started following his steps, a blood-curdling shriek filled the air like a siren. “What the heck was that?” He twisted his head around in every direction to no avail.

  Le’Vieux, who didn’t stop moving, yelled, “Hurry up, we don’t have much time. I’ll tell you when we’re back at the outpost.”

  When Ben caught up, he noticed something wasn’t right with Le’Vieux.

  They returned to the outpost as the sky started to dim. The evening was taking hold, and the temperature slowly crept towards zero. Once through the gate, Ben parked in the storage area.

  Le’Vieux instantly jumped out and hopped toward the gate, closing what little remained. He shot toward the closest unbroken barrel and moved it toward the gate. Glancing at the van, he yelled, “Help me with this!”

  Luckily, the window was open a little, so Ben heard it. “Hang on. I’ll join you once I’ve checked the van.” Due to Le’Vieux’s obnoxious nagging, they had left the lake in a hurry, and he didn’t get a chance to give the van a once-over.

  [Van Stats: Condition 52%, Fuel 17%]

  He let out a sigh when he looked at his magic pool.

  [MP: 23/50]

  Damn it! Not even half as much as I need.

  Remembering the Mirium potion that Le’Vieux had given him, he grabbed it from the door compartment. Using his teeth, he yanked off the cork. The blue liquid started to glow like a firefly and let off small glittery sparkles that floated away before vanishing. He moved it closer to his nostrils and took a sniff. It smelled like really strong vodka.

  Hitting the repair skill, he waited for his magic to diminish when suddenly the van stopped glowing. He put the vial to his lips and chugged it in one big gulp when a buzzing sensation filled his stomach and spread to the rest of his body. He noticed his magic pool started to fill, and when it got almost full, he continued the repair procedure till completion. After that, he used the remaining MP to refuel.

  [Van Stats: Condition 100%, Fuel 42%]

  [MP: 0/50]

  Then, he quickly checked to see if he'd unlocked any more skills that could prove useful for any upcoming battle,

  [More skills will unlock at Level 5.]

  Sighing, he turned off the engine and made his way to help Le’Vieux. It took them almost ten minutes to pile up enough barrels until the gate seemed sturdy enough to take an elephant on.

  Le’Vieux took some breaths of relief. “Glad that’s sorted now.”

  Ben crossed his arms. “What’s going on? Is this something to do with that shriek we heard?”

  “It came from the mountains that are north of the nest. You probably don’t know their significance, so let me explain. There’s nothing there except an old network of caves there that lead to the Feruslands. Long ago, during one of the old fairy wars, my predecessors collapsed them off to prevent the slightest chance of invasion.” He motioned around the area with his hand, “These mountains lead to almost every region of the kingdom and are a logistical nightmare to defend. I believe the fairies must have made it through somehow and are no doubt behind this damn nightmare.”

  “Are they that powerful to spook someone as strong as you?”

  “Indeed, they are. One of them can take out an entire platoon of my knights. I pressed you to get here quickly because it will be nighttime soon, and their power is known to increase exponentially during darkness. We wouldn’t want to be caught out there, especially after fighting a horde like that. We need to try to get some rest today and prepare. We will head out there at first light.” Le’Vieux explained.

  Ben crossed his arms. “Are you being serious? Shouldn’t we wait for your knights to arrive before going out there?”

  “They will arrive in the afternoon, and we can't wait that long. Every second those caves are open increases the threat to the kingdom and its people. We must eliminate all threats and ensure those caves are sealed shut. Don’t forget that nest mothers are still out there and can lay more eggs. You’ve seen what they did to the Frogmen. I can’t risk the same thing happening to my knights.” Le’Vieux replied. He then started gathering pieces of wood from the ground.

  Ben realized he was right and figured that if the knights started turning into infected zombies, that could be dangerous for everyone. “I understand what you mean by that.”

  Le’Vieux paused with his wood gathering. “I know you might not want to come along for that. It’s a massive undertaking you are not yet equipped to deal with. I can't force you to come with me, but I have to go no matter what, even if it leads to my death. That is a knight's oath to protect his people no matter the cost.” He motioned ahead, “Let’s get inside.”

  Le’Vieux led him to the communal area near the entrance, where he started piling wood near one of the few fireplaces. Once the embers were burning, he grabbed a couple of chairs from nearby and placed them close to the heat.

  Just as they were about to start chatting, another shriek filled the air. This time, it was louder and sounded like it was nearby. Not even a second passed when the splintering of wood could be heard bash after bash.

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