First blood++

"URGHH, who teleported me this time" Aetheris grunted as he suddenly fell on the ground, he looked at the sky and saw that it night time and it was also going to rain

Aetheris struggled to his feet, brushing off the dirt and debris from his unexpected arrival. He gazed up at the dense canopy above, the leaves and vines tangled together in a lush, emerald embrace.

The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and decaying plant matter, and the sounds of the rainforest assaulted his ears - the chirping of insects, the chattering of monkeys, and the distant rumble of a waterfall.

Rain began to pour down around him, soaking through his clothes and hair, and Aetheris cursed under his breath. "Seriously, can't they see I'm trying to have a decent day?" he muttered to himself, his eyes scanning the unfamiliar surroundings.

Towering trees loomed above him, their trunks as wide as houses, and the underbrush seemed to writhe and twist around him like living serpents.

As he looked around, Aetheris noticed a figure watching him from the shadows. The figure stepped forward, revealing a hooded figure draped in dark, tattered robes, their face obscured by the shadows.

Their eyes gleamed with an otherworldly intensity in the dim light, and Aetheris could sense a strange energy emanating from them.

"Welcome, Aetheris," the figure said in a low, gravelly voice, their words barely audible over the din of the rainforest. "I see you're still as... Mysterious as ever."

"Who are you? Why do you smell... familiar?" muttered Aetheris as he sniffed the air. The scent of this man was slightly familiar.

"KEKEKE, to think that you would ask for my identity first instead of pissing your pants..." The figure laughed as a bright flame surrounded his body and revealed a robust half-naked man with many scars on his face.

"Wow, you look... average; I guess bumping into me earlier wasn't a coincidence, huh?" Aetheris pondered as he looked at the man while his eyes began to glow.

The man flinched as he subconsciously took a step backward; he never expected Aetheris to recognize him at all.

"Ehh? Did you just flinch, Oji-san...why don't your friends reveal themselves? To think that I would be ambushed by 19...no 20 people is not what I expected," Aetheris suggested as he sniffed the air; his sense of smell is so heightened that he can distinguish scents like flavors.

"Oi Kaleos, I told you that we should just kill the kid and get moving... you never mentioned that he was this good looking, should we enjoy him first...it would be a waste if we don't." A man licking his lips appeared from behind the trees as he spoke to Kaleos, the robust man; others followed his pursuit as they manifested.

Kaelos' expression darkened, his scars seeming to twist in annoyance. "Shut up, Gorthok. We're not here to indulge in your twisted desires. Our mission is to kill the boy, not to satisfy your depraved cravings."

Gorthok pouted, his lips curling into a sulky expression. "Fine, fine. But it's a shame. He's just so... radiant."

The other men, a mix of burly warriors and lean assassins, emerged from the trees, their eyes fixed on Aetheris with a mixture of curiosity and hunger. Aetheris' gaze swept across them, his mind racing with strategies and boredom.

"Radiant?" Aetheris repeated, his voice laced with disgust. "You're as twisted as your faces, aren't you?"

Gorthok's expression turned ugly, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "You little-"

"Enough," Kaelos growled, his voice like thunder. "We're not here to play games. Aetheris, you're coming with us. Resist, and... well, let's just say Gorthok will get his wish."

Gorthok slowly approached Aetheris with lust in his eyes, he wanted to assert his dominance and play with him a little bit.

*BZIP~ *

"To think you would try to defile my body, Oji-san isn't that friend of yours a little disrespectful" Aetheris sighed as he manifested near Kaleos, although they were a few hundred meters apart that wasn't a problem for Aetheris

*Badump Badump Badump Badump Badump*

"W-w-what are you, how did you... "

Kaleos subconsciously took a step backward as he wanted to run; what scared him was not that Aetheris suddenly appeared in front of him but the fact that in his right hand, there was a beating heart...Gorthok's heart

Kaleos saw the gaze in his eyes, it was not an innocent gaze but the gaze of a nonchalant murderer

"Kkkargghhh, how di.." Gorthok collapsed as he died; he didn't know how he died, but he would be glad that he had a painless death.

"Why are you silent Oji-san, could it be that you did not expect this...then are you guys a scouting team that disobeyed orders and engaged without permission" Aetheris pondered as he crushed the heart

Kaleos flinched again as he heard his words,

The other 18 people flinched as well as they remained silent since they were too shocked to speak.

"I guess you guys are cannon fodder who are trying to name for their selves... the fact that you were able to teleport me here means you placed a spell on me beforehand... perhaps a teleportation scroll with set coordinates

I guess it is activated under specific conditions and the fact that it activated when I was alone means...you were waiting for that moment and someone fed you some information..

no incomplete information about me... therefore that means you don't know what I am" Aetheris finished analysis his theory and seeing Kaleos sweating, made him feel more confident about his hypothesis

"What are you guys doing? We are the proud soldiers of the Thanatos clan. We won't be intimidated by a mer...."

Aetheris waived his right hand and the man who interrupted his talk with Kaleos rose from the ground as he began to levitate, using [Telekinesis] Aetheris clenched his right hand imitating a ketchup squeeze

*Splat~*

"Hahhh, Oji-san he's quite rude isn't he.. let's go back to the part where you are supposed to confess" Aetheris sighed as he created a cloth and wiped his hands, Kaleos looked at his dead disfigured team member with a gulp

"Judging by your expression you're curious about how they died, hmm it doesn't hurt to let you know... since you will follow"

"[SMOKE SCREEN]!!!" Kaleos shouted as he slammed the ground. A screen surrounded the area, completely blinding Aetheris.

"Hahhh, why do you have to make things difficult...[Gale]" Aetheris waived his hand as a gust of wind began to clear the smoke

"Oji-san, this is... and they had the audacity to run away; I was nice enough to call him Oji-san...I was even going to grant a painless death...is being benevolent so wrong?" Aetheris sighed as he looked at the sky; he was benevolent enough to give them a painless death.. but they were not even thankful.

"[Shadow clone] +[Mana barrier] " a barrier Manifested around Sebastian protecting him from the rain

"Take care of this cat and protect it from any harm, follow me but you must finish any survivors and collect loot from their bodies..start with those two"

....

Thank you for reading 😌 🙏