Helping them

"What the-!? What happened to them!?" Jack exclaimed in shock.

"!?" They were all startled by the sudden increase in the eerie brightness of the monsters' deep reddish-glowing eyes, but more than that they all became more aggressive and began shaking the tree.

Dread filled as they knew that the tree wouldn't be able to withstand their aggression for long.

"Shit!!!" Job cursed, recognizing the imminent danger as the tree swayed under the relentless assault.

'This...!' Nicole noticed something strange as she nervously peered down at the monsters' gathering point.

"J-Job!! W-What now!?" Nick asked Job with growing anxiety.

"Grab onto the branches tightly, or you might fall!!" Job advised the group, his voice filled with urgency.

Meanwhile, Kalsie, who had been observing from the shadows, was also taken aback by the sudden ferocity of the monsters. While he had initially planned to somehow avert the monster from them but he now understood the immediate danger faced by the four young people.

'Damn it!!! If things kept on like this, I don't think they will be able to survive!!' although his own heart was pounding, Kalsie after taking a deep breaths and remembering what his father taught him, he stepped into the open area to help them.

Kalsie wasn't someone who would leave a group of distressed people aside when their life was on the line, no matter how tough the situation was. Furthermore, he already knew their critical weakness, so he wasn't as nervous as he previously was before.

As he approached the group from the front, his view was obscured by the fog, but then the slight moonlight soon revealed his human form, and his eyes distinguished him different from the monsters.

Jack was the first to spot Kalsie and called out in surprise.

"What?! Is that a person!?!?"

"Where?! Shit! You're right!!!!"

"Eh!?! P-Please h-help us!!!!"

Although they couldn't see Kalsie's face clearly due to the lingering fog, the moonlight provided enough illumination for them to recognize his humanity, and they urgently appealed for his assistance.

Kalsie didn't utter a word in response but rather placed his index finger over his lips as a signal for silence.

He then moved stealthily toward the gathering of monsters, aiming to intervene without alerting the creatures to his presence.

In response to Kalsie's signal, Job immediately hushed the group. 

"Shush! Keep your voices down. We can't attract more of those monsters towards us."

They all immediately closed their mouths, realizing their error, but their eyes remained filled with nervousness and hope.

Kalsie didn't rush in to attack the monsters immediately. Instead, he moved quietly and deliberately toward them, stopping when he was just three meters away from the closest creature. 

'It seems that guy was right. Despite being so close, they didn't notice me... they are definitely attracted to the noise!' Kalsie, although his heart was beating, he stood still.

When he had overheard Nick blaming Nicole for attracting the monsters with her scream, it gave him enough confidence to approach the creatures up close. 

While he wasn't completely sure if the theory was accurate, he still had another plan in mind. But know it works; the fact boosted his confidence to face against the creatures.

While Kalsie moved closer to the monsters, the hearts of Job and the others raced with anxiety.

They had initially expected Kalsie to go and call for help or come up with a plan to save them. But seeing him approach the monsters directly left them anxious questioning his intentions.

"Brother... what is that person doing? Shouldn't he call for help?" Nicole couldn't help but express her unease, feeling restless about Kalsie's actions.

"I don't know, but... I hope he knows what he's doing," Jack replied, sharing Nicole's concern.

Nervousness gripped them all as they realized their fate rested solely on Kalsie's actions. If anything happened to him, they would remain stranded without anyone knowing their plight.

"Isn't he that—?"

"GROWL!!" Before Job could finish his sentence, one of the monsters suddenly turned toward Kalsie, who was only one meter away, and lunged at him.

"Watch out!!!!!" Jack's shout rang through the tense air, as the group feared for Kalsie's safety.

Contrary to their expectations, Kalsie didn't dodge or retreat from the approaching monster.

Instead, he swiftly unsheathed his sword and raised it towards his left, executing a horizontal slash at the monster's neck.

As his sword hummed under the fog and the moonlight, the monster's head, along with its body, fell to the ground with a thud and ceased all movement.

Immediately after, a white orb emerged and entered Kalsie's body, confirming his earlier suspicions about it.

'It's the same feeling...' This time, the sensation didn't shock him but rather confirmed his increasing strength.

"!!" The onlookers were left speechless as they witnessed this unexpected turn of events.

They stared at Kalsie in disbelief, unable to comprehend what they had just witnessed.

The monster they had struggled to defeat was dispatched in a matter of seconds, and the mysterious orb further deepened their confusion and shock.

Their shock reached such levels that they couldn't utter a word and merely gaped at Kalsie.

However, their momentary respite was interrupted when the dull thud of the monster's head hitting the ground drew the attention of other nearby monsters.

"Growl..." The creatures turned their focus from the people in the tree to Kalsie.

"Tsk." Kalsie clicked his tongue in frustration at realizing his error.

He hadn't expected the muffled noise to draw the monsters' attention. With the situation out of hand, it prompted him to use his initial plan on the spot.

"GROWLLLLLLL!"

More than thirty monsters, now fully focused on Kalsie, lunged at him.

"COME HERE, YOU MONSTERS!!!!" Kalsie shouted, drawing the attention of all the pursuing monsters towards him as he retreated to his right.

Seeing all the monsters chasing after him, Kalsie turned toward the group of four and issued a swift command, "I will lead these monsters away from here!!! You all follow the direction of the moon and wait for me at the seashore!!!"

Without waiting for their response, he darted into the dark woods, confident that no monsters would remain behind to pursue the others.

"Wait—!" Job wanted to say something but halted himself in fear of attracting the monsters back to their location.

As all the monsters lunged after Kalsie into the woods, the group knew they had a precious opportunity to descend from the tree.

"Let's leave this area quickly before those monsters corner us once more," Job advised his companions, addressing Jack and the others.

They wasted no time and hastily descended from the tree.

"W-Where should we head?" Nick inquired nervously.

"Where else? Follow the moon and gather at the seashore," Jack replied on Job's behalf.

"Seashore? I thought I misheard it, but it appears that... we're quite far away from our city," Job remarked somberly.

As he uttered those words, a heavy silence descended upon the group, their expressions betraying the unease that had settled in their hearts.

They hadn't anticipated finding themselves so far from their home city.