Return of the Demon Sovereign (Book 2) [MxM]

The ride back to New Azor was enveloped in an uneasy silence. The events in Maymer Woods weighed heavily on everyone's minds, but none more so than Erebus. He had traversed realms where time flowed differently, but this experience was something else entirely. Unlike those other places, there was no sense of distortion, no warning. It left him deeply unsettled, pondering how time could have been manipulated without his awareness.

The woods harbored a malevolence that Erebus couldn't quite identify. It was an insidious presence that seemed to lurk just beyond his understanding. Despite his reluctance, an instinctual part of him acknowledged that he would have to return to those cursed woods one day.

As they approached the gates of New Azor in the early morning, the familiar skyline brought a small measure of comfort, but it did little to dispel the lingering questions and foreboding.

The tall white walls surrounding the city screamed fortitude. It was easily defensible and unscalable. The archers and cultivators could see out kilometers from atop them. The massive gate had numerous guards standing by and directing traffic. They had to stop by several checkpoints to verify their identity before they neared the walls because no undesirable was let in.

People saw the walls as a beacon, but Erebus saw it as another prison.

As they rode in silence, the weight of unspoken questions hung heavily between them. The journey had been long and tense. The only sounds were the rhythmic clopping of hooves and the occasional rustle of leaves. Finally, unable to bear the silence any longer, Leo turned to Erebus, his concern evident in his eyes.

"Erebus... what happened in there?"

Erebus tensed when he heard the question. He had been waiting for Leo to ask about the Maymer Woods, but he wasn't sure he had an answer.

"I'm still not sure," Erebus said honestly after a moment of hesitation. "I wasn't in there for longer than five minutes, but that was enough to force me to retreat."

"Instinct?"

"Perhaps," Erebus said. "It was... eerie. There was nothing in there. Nothing at all. The mutated beasts ran inside, and I was right on their trail, but then it was like the woods swallowed them whole. I couldn't sense them. I couldn't sense any creature."

"But something was there," Leo confirmed quietly.

"Nothing that lived or breathed... unless the woods themselves were alive," Erebus shook his head. "Or something that hid between the trees, something unseen... and I believe there was a rune carved in the ground."

Leo hissed. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know. I believe the only way I escaped was because I heard you calling my name, and I Shadow Stepped out of there. I fear that any other cultivator would have died."

Leo released a shaky breath. "I'll alert Father that no one is allowed in those woods. Hells. I may request we help the village move."

"Better to burn the cursed thing to the ground," Erebus whispered.

The suspected rune unsettled him the most. He had never seen anything like it before in his long years. How large was it in its entirety? Did it cover the woods completely?

And if it was a rune, who carved it? Who had the proficiency in earth mana to undertake such a feat?

As much as he hated it, his mind wandered to one cultivator—someone who held a Titan core and was powerful. Someone who had created a massive chasm that swallowed an army and Erebus alike.

Erebus knew he couldn't ignore the enigma of Maymer Woods forever, but for now, he pushed it to the back of his mind, focusing on the immediate tasks that awaited him in the city.