Death Heir’s Devouring System

The unpleasant smell of the outer area wasn't anything new for Azrael, and from the looks of it, neither was it for the squad he was in.

"Follow my lead." Alexander, taking the front, commanded before increasing his speed.

'Quite fast,' Azrael noted, matching his pace.

A brief look of shock appeared on Alexander's face. He clearly hadn't expected a member of his squad to keep up with his movement speed—let alone someone whose steps were utterly silent.

'It seems his claim of being Seyra's pupil might have some merit after all.' With that quick assessment of the new Chosen, Alexander led them to their designated spot.

Azrael observed the distant Rift. Something deep within his very soul urged him to approach it, to enter and clear it. The feeling was similar to that of a starving man gazing at cooked meat.

'It's of the Savage Danger Level, so aside from Savage monsters, we would also encounter Feral ones,' he concluded.

"Hey."

Still in the middle of his evaluation of the Rift, a loud voice called out to him.

It was the bald man who had been trying to get Clara to exchange contact information before she had set her sights on him.

"Chuck." Azrael spoke, remembering the man's name. "What do you want?"

"This is your first mission regarding this stuff, right?"

A radiant smile spread across Chuck's face.

"If you have any questions or need help, you can count on me!"

Instinctively, Azrael's eyes narrowed in suspicion. It was clear the man judged it beneficial to get to know him—that was why he was offering his help.

'I doubt he would bother to get to know me if I weren't stronger than him,' Azrael thought inwardly.

"Good to know." After a second, he nodded, shifting his sight forward.

It looked like the man wanted to say something else, but in the end, he didn't.

The Chosen squad moved with staggering speed. The numerous Forsaken in the rural area could only get a glimpse of their blurred figures before they disappeared.

"Are they here to help us?" one of them asked.

"Don't get your hopes up. They're here to take care of the Rift, not to save our worthless lives," another called back.

Several minutes later, the team had reached their destination, positioned high on the roof of the HQ building.

Thanks to their vantage point, they had a clear view of the area. There were more monsters than the eye could count. At least the good news was that they had not yet charged at the human settlements.

"What are we going to do now?" Azrael asked, shifting his gaze to Alexander.

"We are going to break through the monsters' wave, making a path for the Proven group that is set to challenge the Savage Rift," Alexander spoke calmly. "Once the monsters stop coming out, we have to eliminate them all and secure the area."

After a second the man added.

"But before that, we have to confirm the extraction of the higher-ups."

Just as Azrael was about to ask how they were going to do that, a helicopter appeared on the horizon, moving toward the designated pickup point.

It must have been an exceptionally expensive flying vehicle, protected by a barrier, to approach so closely and withstand the vile Corruption emanating from the Savage Rift.

Shaking his head, Azrael suppressed a scoff. 'Cinder is several times better than this overpriced loud hulk of metal.'

As if on cue, the doors leading to the lower floors opened, and a few middle-aged men and women exited in a hurry, carrying suitcases full of documents.

They expressed their thanks to the Proven team for ensuring their safety before they were picked up by the helicopter and flown away.

'They too were Forsaken… The only difference between these ones here and the ones rotting in the streets is the wealth gap that divides them.' Azrael thought bitterly.

"The monsters are getting dangerously close to the settlements!" One of the Proven warned.

"Alright, let's keep them back!" The leader called out, leading the charge, his squad following behind.

Azrael, being the only Cleansed aside from the leader, was positioned at the front. His task was to injure the monsters as brutally as possible. Those behind him were to support him when needed and finish off the leftovers.

With a flick of his finger, he called forth Truth Devourer and attached Moonlight Tears to it.

'Knowing Seyra, this must also be a test. Otherwise, why would she send me to subjugate a Savage Rift rather than a Feral one?' Azrael thought.

He could more or less guess what his teacher was doing—she was both trying to push him to his limits while gauging his potential strength. Still, he wasn't going to complain.

The first sight of the abomination appeared before him.

A towering creature reaching 10 meters (~33 feet), its rugged skin blackened in color. Six limbs—two legs and four arms. Its two white eyes helped it perceive the world around it.

Name: [Unnamed]

Race: [Wanderer]

Danger Level: [Savage]

Corruption Rank: [Twisted]

"Don't falter!" Alexander called out, bringing the Proven back to reality.

"Most monsters will be at least this powerful. Don't engage it alo—"

The man's words were cut off by an explosion behind him.

Azrael's speed accelerated several times over. In a flash, he was behind the Wanderer.

With a flick of his finger, he called forth Gravebloom. The deadly scythe cut through the air in a graceful arc, severing the tendons behind the monster's knees.

A cry of pain erupted from the abomination as it collapsed to the ground.

Enraged, it spun, ready to strike Azrael—but it was already too late. He had jumped high, his scythe looming overhead like a guillotine of death. A heartbeat later, the weapon split the skull of the monster in two, drenching the ground in blood.

Unfazed, Azrael called forth Mother Needle and proceeded to pierce the being's neck several times in quick succession, ensuring the kill.

The entire exchange took only a few seconds… mere seconds for a single person to kill a being that powerful. The eyes of the Proven widened in shock.

"You killed it that fast?" Alexander exclaimed.

Azrael shrugged nonchalantly.

"In the Rift I was sent to, being able to take down an abomination with such power parameters was the bare minimum to survive."

It wasn't a lie. These Wanderers, even if larger, were about as powerful as the Unworthy Knights—the weakest of the knights they had been forced to fight when they were Marked.

"He is a monster," one of the Proven muttered in awe. Was the difference between Blessed and Cleansed Purity Rank really that vast?

"Good." A smile spread across Alexander's lips.

"Then from now on, I will be relying on you to help me clear a path forward," he called out, summoning his weapon.

At that moment, several mighty roars echoed through the vicinity, the ground beginning to shake.

Dozens of Wanderers, alerted by the death of their kin, dropped everything they were doing and charged headfirst toward the squad.

"How lucky," Azrael muttered, cracking his neck.

"It seems the prey is coming toward us of its own volition."