NOVGO.NET Chapter 292: Kevin
Chapter 292: Kevin
The very moment we stepped out of the shadowed region, I almost cried happy tears. Almost.
Light touched my face for the first time in days.
…Okay, well, ’light’ was a generous word. More like less darkness.
The sky above still wasn’t whole. It was still broken, shattered pieces of reality suspended in the troposphere, reflecting the bleeding moonlight like shards of glass.
And the moon itself continued to spill its crimson glow like a waterfall of blood cascading down somewhere on the distant horizon.
But hey, at least the trees were thinner here.
At least we could move without worrying about something in the shadows lunging at us.
And, as Michael’s clone had told us, there were far fewer monsters the closer we got to the caldera.
It took exactly five minutes for us to understand why.
Because the moment we neared the next escarpment — another enormous step down the endless terraces of this cursed jungle — we all collectively felt a suffocating pressure descend upon us.
It wasn’t anything physical or magical or supernatural. No, no.
It was instinctual.
An instinctive, primal sense of dread crawled down our spines and settled deep into our hearts, setting every nerve ending in our bodies on edge.
My feet faltered against my will, and I felt my pulse stutter.
We didn’t have to guess where this overwhelming feeling was coming from — the caldera.
Miles ahead of us, atop the tall mountain where the Moon Eater was sealed, a terror so oppressive radiated in waves that it felt almost tangible.
It felt like we were walking through a violent river current, helplessly trying to push back against the gushing flow that was hell bent on drowning us.
Now, I could lie and say I wasn’t scared.
That I was brave when even the most courageous heroes like Michael and Alexia were hesitating to continue the journey on this route.
But that would be a lie.
In truth, when I felt that horrifying sense of foreboding seep into my bones, when my lungs tightened and my vision tunneled involuntarily for the briefest second…
The thought of tucking my tail and running in the opposite direction did cross my mind, just like everyone else in the party.
That fear was simply too strong for us to bear.
And we were humans.
Humans, who could rationalize our feelings and override instincts with logic.
But most Spirit Beasts, on the other hand, practically ran on instinct without a shred of intelligence. No wonder they wouldn’t dare step anywhere near this place.
Which was, I supposed, why the path forward had been wiped clean of predators.
Great.
At least the rest of our journey would be easy… until it was time to meet a creature that could wipe us out with a snap.
•••
We climbed down the escarpment and trudged through several more miles of jungle over the next two, maybe three days.
Time had blurred for all of us. Even Ray, who was vlogging daily, had forgotten what day it was.
Some claimed it was eighteenth. I claimed it was twentieth.
Who could say who was right?
…I was.
I was always right.
Anyhow, we continued forward.
Everything slowly blended into one long march punctuated by sudden waves of terror washing over us like cold tides.
We made a couple of stops to rest properly in between, so everyone was caught up on sleep.
Everyone but me. I was still not comfortable sleeping.
But since there were no beasts around, we still hadn’t had a proper meal, meaning everyone was still way too hungry by this point.
Way too hungry.
Ray once tried to chew on Vince. We had to pry him off.
So, yeah, they were “I’ll commit cannibalism!” level hungry.
And yet… strangely, this was the happiest I had ever seen them all.
Really!
They couldn’t stop giggling, cheering, and making unfunny jokes. Even I couldn’t help but join them sometimes.
Lily had recovered enough to hum little tunes while walking.
Vince and Kang were chatting. Chatting! Happily. And Kang was actually smiling. Smiling! Genuinely!
I nearly tripped at that sight. I had never seen that cringelord crack a smile!
At one point, Michael and I were mid-argument about something I can’t bother to remember, and Ray just… started singing a song like this was a musical!
“O~h, my! The sun’s gone hidin’, and the clouds are full of drama again!” He clapped. “O~h gosh! My boot just slipped off the pavin’, and Mikey’s yellin’ at Sammy in pain!”
And it worked. I don’t know how, but it worked!
Lily joined in, her voice still a bit strained but no less pleasant. “Ho~ly moley, it’s a messy mornin’, and I’m just tryna keep my hat on straight! O~h, boy, they’re startin’ right after the snorin’, but it’s nothin’ a tune can’t abate!”
Even Juliana — yes, I kid you not, even Juliana Vox Blade — began singing softly under her breath.
And her voice was absolutely, unfairly beautiful.
“So sing, sing, sing when the mood gets silly! Hum a little tune till the fumes start to dissi~pate,” she snapped in rhythm. “Hug a foe, or tickle ’em real firmly! And get back to lovin’ the journey you kinda hate!”
We all collectively lost our minds and started one after another like it was karaoke.
•••
Basically, we were enjoying ourselves.
The journey was also going smoothly.
For whatever reason, everyone’s spirits were as high as they could’ve been in a murderous jungle.
But still… even amid all that bizarre cheerfulness, the presence trailing behind us hadn’t vanished.
That feeling that someone was following us, watching us, stalking our every move never went away even after we exited the shadowed region.
So when we finally found a safe, open clearing to settle down, the first thing we did wasn’t unpack.
It was start a hunt.
After all, we couldn’t wait around to just slip up, giving whatever thing was on our trail a chance to sweep in and make an easy meal out of us.
And we didn’t.
With Kang and Lily’s help, we started tracking our stalker.
Soon, we surrounded an underbrush where we suspected it was hiding. Then we closed in on it.
Our weapons were raised, and it seemed like we were ready for everything… until we found—
“A… bird?” Vince scowled.
A very, very… adorable bird.
The thing was round, fluffy, bright-eyed. It was maybe the size of a mango, with a faintly glowing tuft on its head.
It had tiny wings and even tinier feet, dark blue fur, and a squeaky chirp that sounded like it was permanently apologizing for troubling us.
“…This thing was following us?” I dismissed my axe, utterly baffled.
“Oh my gods,” Lily gasped. “It’s so cute!”
“It is a monster,” I said firmly.
“It’s so cute
,” she repeated, firmer, glaring at me.
I rolled my eyes and turned to Juliana for support.
She didn’t say anything for a second.
I frowned. Because I definitely expected her to be the first one to suggest murder.
But instead, she just walked forward… bent down… scooped the little creature up… and held it to her cheek like she had found the meaning of life!
The bird chirped again, gently tapping her face with its tiny beak.
Juliana inhaled deeply. And then, with the most treacherous smile I had ever seen, she said, “Let’s keep it.”
Everyone except Alexia and I shouted, “Yeah!”
I stared at them like they were madmen.
They were talking about adopting a fucking Spirit Beast! Had they lost their minds?!
Michael had literal sparkles in his eyes.
Kang looked like he was witnessing his firstborn child.
And Ray was already braiding a crown of vines for that… that thing!
I exchanged a look with Alexia.
She whispered, “They’ve gone insane.”
I nodded slowly. “Possible. Beasts that affect the mind aren’t unheard of.”
“Yeah,” Alexia affirmed. “It has a strange aura. Maybe it’s affecting us.”
I didn’t waste any more time.
“Give me the bird,” I told Juliana.
“No,” she replied instantly.
My eyebrow twitched. “Give. Me. The bird.”
“No!” Juliana narrowed her eyes, turning away like I was demanding her life.
So I snatched it.
She froze, and the others gasped like I had kicked a puppy across a field.
I shoved the fluffy demon spawn toward Michael. “Kill it! Kill it fast!”
Michael gulped and looked at the bird.
The bird tilted its small head and chirped innocently.
Michael’s expression crumpled. “I—I can’t!”
“The fuck you mean, you can’t?! It’s a monster, you idiot!” I snapped.
“So you kill it!” Michael snapped back.
I groaned. “Fine, you pussy! But this is why you were my least favorite character in the game!”
Michael reeled back in confusion. “Wh-What?”
I ignored him and lifted my hand, intending to take the bird’s head off with a single chop…
But then I hesitated for a heartbeat.
The bird chirped again. I saw its eyes sparkling as it leaned forward and nuzzled my thumb.
“…Damn it.” My heart melted.
No, my brain melted! My dignity melted!
I stood frozen, staring at its adorably stupid face.
Alexia let out a long, suffering sigh like she was the only mature adult in a group of useless kids. “Give it to me.”
Before I could stop her, she snatched the bird, wrapped her fingers around its tiny neck, and squeezed.
The bird gave a last squeak as everyone gasped again.
And just like that… our unusually cheerful demeanor evaporated in a second. In its place, a crushing sense of terror abruptly dropped onto us like a boulder.
My knees nearly buckled.
Everyone else had a similar reaction. Vince whimpered, Ray’s face turned ashen, Michael’s eyes flew wide.
“…What the hell?” Lily breathed, folding over, hands on her knees. “What is this?”
It felt as if a haze on our minds had been lifted, one we didn’t even realize was there.
Our thoughts were suddenly so much clearer, allowing us to immediately recognize that our unnaturally jolly behavior for the last couple of days wasn’t normal.
Especially in a place like this, when we were marching closer to the caldera at a time when we should be feeling constant fear…
We were instead cheerful in a maddening, creepy, concerning sort of way.
But the instant that bird died, everything returned to normal.
“This beast,” Kang pointed at the dead bird at Alexia’s feet, “this thing… It was absorbing our negative emotions.”
We all stared at the corpse.
It made a lot of sense as soon as Kang put it into words. There was no other explanation.
This tiny bird had been feeding on all our fear and anger and stress and dread. It was why we had suddenly been so happy and bubbly all the time.
“…It could’ve been useful,” I murmured with a twinge of regret.
As if on cue… the bird’s supposedly dead body twitched.
Alexia recoiled, startled. “The fuck! It’s alive!”
It twitched once more, its twisted head flicked back into place, and then—
Pop—!
It stood up, looking perfectly healthy, its neck unbroken as if it hadn’t just been strangled fifteen seconds ago.
Everyone looked bamboozled.
The wave of fear pressing down on us instantly weakened again.
Well…
That confirmed it.
“Oh, fuck this thing!” Ray shrieked and unleashed a blazing explosion on the bird before I could stop him.
Flames engulfed the tiny creature’s body, reducing it to ash.
But when the fire cleared… the ashes piled up on their own and puffed like someone blew on them. And from inside that grey cloud, the same tiny, fluffy bird hopped out, shook itself off, and chirped.
Completely… utterly… unharmed.
•••
For the next hour, we tried everything to kill the bird. And I mean everything.
Ray threw it off a cliff. It returned.
Kang buried it under a boulder. It climbed out.
Vince tried to drown it in a puddle. It floated.
Michael tried blasting it with a lightning-infused punch. It sneezed.
I tried vaporizing it with a fire arrow. It rose from its ashes again.
Alexia attempted to choke it again. It died in her grasp, resurrected, and started licking her finger.
She almost screamed. I had never before seen Alexia lose her patience.
Finally, Juliana scooped it up and held it to her chest protectively. “Enough. Let’s keep him.”
“Him?!” I squeaked. “It’s a it! And it is a menace!”
“He is cute,” she said.
I threw my hands up. “It is cursed!”
“He is my pet now. And I’m naming him Kevin,” she added.
The bird chirped, as if in agreement.
I facepalmed.
Aside from Juliana, none of us was in favor.
But since we couldn’t kill it, and it was going to follow us anyway, we gave up.
And so… Kevin became our new pet.
Kevin, the indestructible suffering-eater.
Kevin, who grew stronger the more misery he consumed.
Kevin, who nullified fear— the only thing letting us move closer to the caldera without collapsing.
Was he useful? Sure.
Was he safe? Doubtful.
Could we do anything about it? I wished.
So we decided to go along with Juliana’s suggestion and keep it.
In Kevin’s presence, we weren’t allowed to feel fear or anxiety. So we didn’t regret the decision.
Not yet.