527 – Mischievous Demon

I feel around with [Presence Perception], searching for Aruane.
However, I’m not able to pick up on her presence.

『I’m certain it was around here… Though I’m not sure which way they went afterwards…』

The treant calls out to me with [Telepathy] from my back.
It would be good if they were still nearby… But if they’ve gone far, I’ll have no choice but to check the whole area.
No, there’s no use worrying about hypothetical.
If there aren’t any tracks, then I’ll check the nearby area first.

…According to Aro, none of them could manage to land a single hit against Aruane.
Someone that strong has to be equivalent to a high-level A rank.

But, if that’s the case, then it can’t have been hard for her to beat the atlach-nacha.
Did she use some clever scheme to escape…? I’m frustrated by just how little I understand the situation.

Should I try searching from the air? The fog makes it harder, but I feel like I should be able to cover more ground that way.

No, it’d raise the risk of Lilixira finding me.
It’s best not to be optimistic and hope I can quickly take her down.
It’s not like she would reveal herself if she wasn’t confident of her victory.
In the first battle too, she carefully shaved down my MP, then fled right when it got dangerous for her.
I could perhaps defeat her, but in this situation, fighting now poses a risk to the atlach-nacha.

In the midst of my frustration… I notice a distant, creepy presence.
My [Presence Perception] is working.

But… Is this really Aruane? The presence certainly is human sized, but it feels very strange.
Between all the powerful humans I’ve met – the Hero Irushia, Volk, and Lilixira – the presence seems markedly different.

『Hey Aro… Is Aruane really a human? She’s not a monster, right?』

“U-umm…”

Aro hesitates in her reply.
At the same time, the suspicious presence moves.
At any rate, I can’t let her get away.
I pick up my speed to chase the presence down.

I kick off the ground to fly, scanning ahead for the source of the presence.
Coming into view, I see a green-haired little girl riding atop a giant four-eyed wolf.
She has conspicuous rose ornaments in her hair.
Her features are a match to Aro’s description.

Though it’s completely unrelated to her fighting ability… The fact that she was able to tame a fenrir five times her size is proof of her high level.
The fenrir’s abdomen has been cut open, and it’s bleeding as it runs.
Did Aruane do that…? All four of the fenrir’s eyes are staring in different direction, and it seems to be acting strange.

Aruane glances backwards at me.
Our eyes meet.
As though she’s a kid who just pulled off a prank, she sticks out her tongue and says something.
I can’t hear what she said, but… I wonder if it might have been ‘Aah, I’ve been found’.

I scan the surroundings.
I can’t see the atlach-nacha… Did she manage to get away? Should I try searching for her first? No, I can’t risk Aruane getting away, since she’s my best clue.
I’ll defeat her, and interrogate her for information.
To do that, I’ll first check her status.

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[Aruane]
Species: Elfingle Huma
Condition: Starvation (major), Berserk (minor)
Lv: 90/90 (MAX)
HP: 666/666
MP: 751/751
Attack: 991
Defence: 375
Magic: 571
Speed: 821

Characteristic Skills:
[Vampiric Blood: Lv-] [Impulse of Hunger: Lv-] [Demon Eye of Reading: Lv6] [Grisha Language: Lv3] [Presence Perception: Lv6]

Resistance Skills:
[Physical Resistance: Lv4] [Magic Resistance: Lv5] [Poison Resistance: Lv6] [Starvation Resistance: LvMAX] [Loneliness Resistance: LvMAX] [Frenzy Resistance: Lv9] [Instant Death Resistance: Lv4] [Curse Resistance: Lv4] [Confusion Resistance: Lv3]

Normal Skills:
[Blood Doll: Lv7] [Vampire: Lv7] [Poison Fang: Lv5] [Poisonous Blood Claw: Lv5] [Dark Sphere: Lv3]

Title Skills:
[Mutation: Lv-] [Atavism: Lv-] [Cannibal: Lv9] [Fiend of the Great Prison: Lv-] [Calamity: Lv9]
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…No wonder Aro and the others couldn’t win.
Her stats outstrip Volk, the strongest ordinary human I know, and are even a match for Lilixira’s.
No, her physical stats are far greater than Lilixira’s.
Is such a person really possible?

It might be best to not think of her as a human.
Seeing all her skills is a little frightening.
[Cannibal] is usually only ever seen in the statuses of monsters.
It’s the title skill that once really drove home just how gloomy the world of monsters is, and yet she has it at the maximum level.
[Cannibal], [Fiend of the Great Prison], [Calamity]… It’s clear that she’s an enemy to humanity.

I’ll check the skills I’m not familiar with.

【Characteristic Skill [Impulse of Hunger]】
【Upon receiving the [Starvation] status condition, the [Berserk] condition is also applied, raising the physical abilities.】
【When this happens, the user will prioritise actions to alleviate the [Starvation].】

…It looks like this is the cause of the strange status condition.
In exchange for hazing over the target’s thoughts and making their movements monotonous, [Berserk] allows for faster and more powerful movements than the stats would suggest.
She might be intentionally keeping herself starved make herself more powerful.
I haven’t seen [Berserk] many times before, but from what I’ve seen, I think I can expect her to effectively have about twenty percent greater stats.

【Normal Skill [Blood Doll]】
【The user’s blood can be freely manipulated.】
【By placing the blood in the body of a living being, the target can be manipulated like a puppet, but depending on the target’s status, this effect can be resisted.】
【If the target is a dead body, then they can be freely manipulated regardless of their status.】

…This must be how she manipulates dead bodies, as Aro told me.
The fenrir’s probably being manipulated in this way.