The hell have I been sent to deal with this time?

It was the question immediately on his mind when he got to the first site, landing and shifting back to his hominid form to find the destruction that had been left behind by the beast he was hunting, along with the unfortunate group who’d stumbled into it as they’d been clearing the land.

No bodies remained, they never lasted long out there, but the signs of battle did. Foast could see examples of all sorts of combat, from earth magic that had warped the land to fire magic that had scorched it. Marks along surviving trees that had to be the products of swords and spears and others that had to have been from claws but if they were from an inhabitant of the world or whatever invader he was hunting he couldn’t say, leaving him to wonder at what else could have been involved that he just couldn’t see.

Depending on how they were used, the destruction left by both water and air magic could be easy to mistake for that of earth given the threes’ characteristics as physical magics once enough time had passed but that wasn’t where his mind went, instead suspecting something far less tangible as he looked around.

The attacks he was seeing were spread throughout the area, something that could have happened as a result of whatever they were being aimed at moving around at high enough speeds but that felt wrong too. Not enough of the differing types of blows were being centered on the same place to make it look like multiple people were targeting one thing.

So what then? He asked himself. A herd could make sense. Gods know, there’s enough of these awful bastards on the world for them to have run into one, especially since this group would have been specifically out to hunt down that exact sort of thing anyway, but…

But previous investigators hadn’t thought so and neither did he. As he did his best to pull apart the various attacks he saw, trying to figure out where each warrior or mage was roughly when either casting their spells or striking out, trying to pull apart how the battle might have gone and finding pure chaos, the biggest conclusion there was to be made was that the group who’d gone out to try and clear out some of the monsters that had come to their world had almost all immediately descended to attacking each other.

Dark magic then. He groaned. Attack their minds and make them fight one another, at least that’s my best guess. And an excellent reason to have come alone.

The nature of his conglomerate soul meant that he could rely on the highest value from any creature he killed when it came to the aspects marked on his card, with his dark resistance being on the high end at fifty-five. Still not high enough to give him a perfect resistance to such a thing but despite his more recent sleeping troubles, the skill he’d worked so hard to raise to its peak had left him with a strong mind. He wasn’t easily conquered by that application of magic thanks to the collective souls that made him up, but that wasn’t true of anyone else.

Had he come with a party of second tiers then he would have been fighting a battle on all sides, made worse for the fact that he’d need to protect himself from his allies as well as keep them safe from each other. He remembered well what Peac said, maybe they would all be willing to die if that was what was needed but he was less so. As powerful as any third tier was, there were so few of them. It was the second tiers who were the true hope for the world and even if their numbers had grown significantly in the past few years, losing even a handful would be a blow when the next wave drew ever closer. He knew he could survive whatever was thrown at him, no need for any other deaths in the process.

Still, he knew that others would want to be informed, desiring updates on where he was given his own perceived value and with no other way to give it, making sure the area around him was safe first, he knelt down and clasped his hands, starting to pray and not stopping until he was answered.

Foast.

“Velmet,” He said in a reverence he hadn’t completely managed to shake, even after all of his years as a third tier. “I’ve come to give you an update.”

Then, when you’re ready.

“I’ve made it to the first site and having investigated, I’m comfortable saying the contender is likely a holder of dark magic or some variant. I’ll be doing a quick re-examination of the next four locations too to see if I can confirm that at all and from there, begin my hunt in proper.”

Have you gotten their scent yet?

“I won’t know for sure until I’ve looked at the next few spots to compare. It’s been long enough that it could have easily faded and there’s no doubt other beasts have made their way through but I do smell demons.”

Of course, chances were just as good that those were different groups that had come to scavenge any remains that had gone uneaten by whatever monstrosity had driven them to kill each other but through it all there had to have been some real clue, he just needed to find it and no matter how powerful any demon might have been, their weaknesses were plain.

Their violent nature would always give them away in the end. Even if they could suppress it for a time, that was just to enable more carnage. What higher functions they had were wasted on them and the only thing that made them the top predators of the galaxy was their overwhelming numbers alone. A beast like that would be discovered in no time.

And you? Velmet asked, sparing some concern for her believer. You came out alone I see, but are you rested enough for that? We’d all prefer your lack of sleep didn’t end up causing your early ascension.

“I’ll be fine,” He said confidently. “I’ve slept well enough the last two days that my stamina will cover me until this job is done.”

That better be true. I’m in no rush to have you up here by my side.

“What a sad thing to hear from one’s goddess,” He said back as a small smile touched his lips. “But not to worry, I intend to live a full, long life before I join you. If you’re going to have eternity with me then I just need to make sure my life is filled with the sorts of stories to make it an enjoyable one.”

...I’d rather you had a gentler life, you know. She practically whispered in his thoughts. One that could leave you with some peace of mind, just enjoying your dalliances until your time is up.

“You know as well as anyone that gentle lives don’t birth third tiers.”

And yet, my past mortality is exactly what makes me wish it for you, even if it’s not meant to be.

“Then perhaps, for you, I’ll seek some peace when this war is won,” He conceded. “But until then, I have my part to play and my role to fill.”

Then do it well. If you find something, let me know.

“Of course, Velmet. You’ll hear from me again soon.”