They are here!?

"Well, no choice, I should just carry it in my bag."

He collected the ashes and wrapped them in big leaves, storing them in his bag afterward.

He spent the next hour searching for a place to stay and rest; the forest was definitely big, and there were all sorts of natural spots and places to hide.

He wanted a place closer to a water stream if possible so that he would not need to travel just to collect water.

But there was, of course, the risk involved in getting entangled with other participants in this.

Water is an important resource, and there were bound to be people vying for it; they must be thinking the same as him.

He had awakened a water-attributed espera and could quench his thirst in dire need but not casually.

He had a very minimal amount of espera compared to others, and using water-attributed techniques would consume a lot of it, thus tiring him.

His main goal was to conserve as much energy as possible in order to be prepared for any unknown variables.

He simply could not afford the luxury to use his espera for the simple purpose of quenching his thirst whenever he wanted at the moment.

Having some espera reserves was necessary.

Gurgle... Gurgle...

It was not long before his ears caught the sound of flowing water.

He walked towards the sound's direction, and with some rustling with the bushes, he soon found himself face to face with a flowing water stream.

The water was clean and fresh; he neared the edge and drank a mouthful of fresh water.

Feeling refreshed from the earlier bloodshed, he tried to locate a nearby shelter for him to spend the time.

If possible, he wanted one that was not too far from the water stream.

In the end, after spending another 30 minutes or so, he was able to locate an isolated den made out of rocks.

It was not too deep nor too wide; he could hide himself within it.

He decided to make this his spot and brought some larger rocks from the surrounding area and shifted them towards the entrance to make it look more natural and discrete.

Stuffing his loot inside the den, he went out to look for stronger and better demons roaming in the forest.

His goal was to somehow enter the rankings that were eligible to receive a reward from the clan.

His cover was as good as blown; he knew the elders were already aware by now that he was training on the path of a physical exorcist so it would be foolish not to use this to his advantage and extort some rewards.

With his thirst quenched and his spirits buoyed, Oliver set about gathering supplies for the time ahead. He filled his water flask to the brim, ensuring that he would have enough to sustain him during the long hours of the hunt. He also gathered edible plants and fruits, supplementing his meager rations with the bounty of the forest.

It was a resourceful place, no doubt.

As he worked, Oliver couldn't shake off the feeling of being watched. The sensation prickled at the back of his neck, raising the hairs on his arms in unease. Glancing around warily, he scanned the surrounding foliage for any signs of movement, but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

'Am I being too sensitive...?'

He wondered, considering the two demons he fought earlier really made him quite on edge—so much so that he was even bothered by the continuous splatter of water against rocks.

Shaking off his paranoia, Oliver forced himself to focus on the task at hand. He couldn't afford to let fear cloud his judgment, not when his life depended on his ability to stay one step ahead of the demons that roamed the forest.

With his supplies gathered and his resolve steeled, Oliver set off once more into the depths of the forest, his footsteps echoing softly against the forest floor. The hunt was far from over.

In the next few hours, he encountered multiple demons.

There was a demon with a lush head of hair adorning its swollen head, which itself was as coarse as sandpaper. Its swollen head was fixed on top of a small ossified body.

Another demon he encountered had multiple scars and still-open wounds covering its torso, suggesting that it was either being hunted by other participants or was being accompanied by other demons.

One demon had the build of a tiny organism of blood and smoke with two barren eyes and a glacial malice. It had a bulbous head as thick as leather and a beak-like nose.

He had a tough time killing that demon due to its small size and fast reactions.

But in the end, he managed to finish it off.

The last demon could have been a good catch, and had he used the talisman to seal the demon inside, he could have been worry-free.

But his mind was not ready to accept this demon; he believed that he could definitely do better than this.

And not to mention... that tingling sensation of being watched had come once again...

Earlier at the water stream, he felt it was his delusion and he believed so since the sensation disappeared when he left the water stream to hunt deeper into the forest, but now suddenly it was back.

This time he did not think that it was due to the fact that he was on edge due to hunting demons.

Someone was definitely watching him...

And that someone was close...

Without delaying, he activated [Cosmic Void Gaze] and scanned the surroundings once more.

This time, he made sure to be discreet about it and not let the watcher know that he was searching for them.

He did not want to alert the observer or observers that he had felt their gazes on his back.

They were already being quite stealthy with their gazes and had it not been for him becoming stronger in the past couple of weeks, he might have completely ignored it or missed it.

But now, that was not the case.

He pretended to act naturally and started to handle the corpse, while occasionally looking around to see if there were any demons nearby, while instead, he was looking for the observers.

And he finally saw it...

'...Ah.'

His lips suddenly curled up into a sinister grin.

'They are finally here.'