Ed looked at the monster emerging from Fidel's throat and took a deep breath. Earlier, he had used his Hunter's senses to carefully examine Fidel and found no trace of dark creatures, no hint of any monstrous traits. He had assumed that Fidel was just an ordinary human.

But it turned out Fidel wasn't the monster— the real monster was hiding inside him!

This was a monster Ed had never seen before. His Low-Level Monster Codex didn't react at all, indicating that this creature exceeded the scope of what the Codex could identify.

The previous ambush had been powerful, and it had made almost no noise. If it hadn't been for Ed's Killer Intent Perception, he figured any ordinary Black Iron Hunter would have been pierced through the back by the monster by now.

The creature had been strong in the surprise attack, but now it was a direct confrontation, and with three Black Iron Hunters present—including Ed—there was no way this monster was getting away.

Ed gripped his steel sword tightly, continuously wounding the creature, trying to leave it alive so he could study it carefully to figure out what it was, and how it was able to hide inside a human body.

Toronto and Anthony understood Ed's intentions. Both of them had been startled by the surprise attack. If either of them had been the target, one of them might have been killed outright!

But Ed, as if he had eyes on the back of his head, was able to defend himself with his sword.

The creature resembled a black serpent, expanding in Fidel's throat. By this point, Fidel had stopped breathing—he was clearly dead.

Just as Ed was about to take control of the creature, something unexpected happened. The monster, which had been fighting moments before, let out a painful howl, then, within a very short time, it transformed into a puddle of black liquid.

It was only then that Fidel's body fell heavily to the ground.

Toronto and Anthony rushed over to check, but found nothing.

Meanwhile, the limping old village chief had long since disappeared. The moment the battle started, he had quickly hidden away in a secret corner, using his cane to hobble out of sight.

After seeing the monster inside Fidel's body die, the old village chief hobbled back, his face full of fear, and he hurriedly said to Ed, "Master Hunter, Fidel turned into a monster... he... he wasn't like this before. I..."

Ed waved his hand, signaling for him to stop. "Right now, the most important thing is to go back and protect Alice. She's critical."

Anthony, however, disagreed. He spoke up directly, "Ed, this isn't just some bounty mission anymore. We need to go back to the Association. Continuing on might put us in danger."

Both Toronto and the old village chief turned their gaze to Anthony. Toronto's expression was one of confusion, as if wondering why they should leave when things here weren't even over yet.

The old village chief, on the other hand, was fearful. He even knelt to the ground, grabbing Ed's leg and crying out, "Master Hunter, that monster earlier was just like a human under normal circumstances. There might be other monsters in the village. If you leave, we're finished!"

"Master, Master, if the bounty isn't enough, we can gather more!" he pleaded desperately.

Anthony's expression was serious as he addressed Ed, "Ed, you're the team leader. This situation is too bizarre. I've never seen that kind of monster before, and I've never heard of anything like it. If we continue, it could really be dangerous."

Toronto glanced at Anthony, then at Ed. He stood behind Ed without speaking, silently indicating that he would follow Ed's lead.

Ed took a deep breath. Although the monster hadn't been recognized by the Low-Level Monster Codex, based on his judgment, the mastermind behind it hadn't acted directly, meaning they weren't completely certain of their success yet.

The erased footprints in the forest, the ghouls that Fidel had mentioned outside the village—these were all meant to mislead them, to make them leave.

Besides, there was no time to waste. Now that they knew they had been discovered, the enemy would certainly not sit idly by. If they left now, the entire village could be in danger!

Ed had taken on this bounty mission, and the deal had been made. He didn't want his first bounty mission to end in failure.

He turned directly to Anthony and said, "Here's what we'll do: Toronto and I will stay here. If you want to go back, I won't stop you, but I will consider it as you quitting the mission midway."

Anthony gave Ed a long, deep look. His task was to monitor Ed, not to risk his life helping the villagers here. The bounty was worth only so many gold coins—hardly enough to risk his life for.

He lowered his head slightly, apologized to Ed, and then walked away without another word.

The old village chief, watching Anthony leave, tried to call out to him, but Ed stopped him directly.

The old village chief looked at the remaining two—Toronto and Ed—with great anxiety. After a moment of hesitation, he finally asked, "Master Hunter, it's just the two of you now. Do you think you can handle it?"

Ed forced a smile, feeling helpless. He certainly couldn't just tie Anthony up and force him to stay.

Although the situation here was strange, Ed didn't feel it was extremely dangerous. Aside from Fidel showing a murderous intent toward him earlier, he hadn't sensed any killing intent from anyone else since entering the village.

It was odd, though—the mastermind behind the scenes seemed to just want them to leave. If Fidel hadn't been discovered, the monster might never have appeared. And in the end, the monster had killed itself, completely destroying its body by turning into a puddle of black liquid, clearly to erase all traces.

Ed himself was a Silver-tier Hunter, and Toronto was very clever. If they really encountered any dangerous situation, leaving wouldn't be all that difficult for the two of them.

Suddenly, Toronto spoke up. "Captain Ed, Ford still hasn't returned. Could something have happened to him in the forest?"

That reminded Ed—he had been wondering why Ford hadn't come back yet. But right now, the most important task was to protect Alice, and also to gather everyone in the village together to ensure no one ended up alone and vulnerable to the mastermind's attack.

In the forest near the village, Ford was sitting on a rock, watching the fire in front of him with satisfaction. He especially enjoyed the sizzling sound of the rabbit roasting on the fire, with oil dripping and hissing.

He had walked through the forest for a while and found nothing. There were no ghouls, and not even any larger game to speak of. After a lot of effort, he had managed to catch a rabbit.

Ford wasn't stupid—he knew the sooner he returned, the sooner Ed would assign the next task. All he needed to say was that he had been investigating the forest, and when the mission was completed, Ed would be obligated to share the bounty with him.

This way, there would be no danger, no effort, and yet he would still complete the task.

It was perfect!

Ford's smile was wide as he hummed a tune, sprinkling some seasoning on the roasted rabbit, completely unaware that something in the shadows of the forest was slowly moving closer.

In the village, on the main square, all the villagers had been gathered together. Each person was kept at a certain distance from one another, their faces displaying fear, unease, and also vigilance, with wariness and suspicion.

Just moments ago, the Hunter who had appeared in the village had ordered everyone to gather in the square and warned them not to leave. Even going to the bathroom required someone to accompany them.

The old village chief and the Hunter said nothing, which only intensified the villagers' fear and unease.

At this moment, in front of the iron cage where Alice was held, Ed stood, watching the curled-up figure of Alice, lost in thought.

He wanted to understand why someone who appeared to be such an ordinary little girl was the key figure behind the mastermind's scheme.

Just then, a piercing scream came from outside the village. A familiar voice cried out, "Ed! Toronto, Anthony, help! Please, help me!"

Toronto immediately moved to rush outside, but Ed quickly stopped him, speaking directly to Toronto, "I'll go check what's going on. Stay here and make sure no one gets close to Alice."

Afterward, Ed scanned the area, lowering his voice to remind Toronto in a whisper, "If anything happens, just hold onto Alice and buy time. I'll be back soon."

Toronto looked at Ed in surprise, then nodded and responded, "Got it, Captain. You're really smart—I hadn't thought of that."

Ed gave a small smile, hoping that nothing would go wrong. After all, kidnapping a little girl didn't exactly feel like something he'd want to do.

Without further hesitation, Ed dashed toward the village's outer edge.

At that moment, Ford, limping and followed by a horde of ghouls, was stumbling toward Ed. One of his legs appeared to be injured, severely slowing him down, which is why he couldn't shake off the ghouls trailing behind him.

What a troublesome guy—so foolish.

Before Ed could speak, Ford, seeing Ed, cried out as though he had found a savior, "Ed! Ed, help me, please help me!"

"I'm sorry for what happened earlier, it's my fault! Help me!" Ford continued, desperation in his voice, "I can't run anymore!"

Ed looked at Ford, who was trembling with fear—nothing like the arrogant figure he had seen back in the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association's mission hall. Now, Ford was a pitiful sight, covered in injuries, with his leg hindering his escape, and a large group of ghouls hot on his heels.

Ford, seeing Ed, froze for a moment before shouting, "Anthony, where's Toronto? There are too many ghouls! You can't do this alone! Where are they?!"

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