Rewrite System 89 Feaster

The shout comes from within the forest and we can see two figure running out of it towards our camp, one holding a torch and another holding onto his bleeding arm. Behind them are a small pack of malnourished looking wolves with their whole body covered in splotches and open wounds that's already leaking puss.

Rather than nervous the team has different kind of excited looks on their faces. except for me and two people that's still missing, everyone jumps into action and prepare to fight the oversized pack of canine.

Seeing them all rushed to the trees I could only sigh. I can understand their excitement however, through the whole 5 days journey in the caravan the reconnaissance team met no hostile ent.i.ties at all through the greying plains and even the next day after the team spread around. Now at this forest outskirt they finally got some action which they can let out some frustration out on.

But they overlook one thing, the one holding the torch are unmistakably Jareth from his gear but the other guy are from the 3rd team and he is a berserker. For him to get hurt by just some ordinary wolves are not natural.

Well whatever, my duty isn't the front line anyway. as an alchemist my duty is to provide backline support or to care for the non priority wounded after battle. They should be able to handle the battle even if the wolves are stronger than normal so I went ahead and prepare a few clean clothes as matt from my bag.

When I opened the bag, Flo sticks out it's head to look at me before turning to the direction of the battle with interest. I ignore him and grab the cloths beside him.

After I set everything up, I waited for them to finish on their end so we can wrap things up. soon, two disheveled looking young adults join me in waiting. some shouting and flashes of spells later, the party return relatively unharmed except for the berserker. while cleaning and treating his bite wounds and scratches, I noticed that he twitch a lot but I decided to say nothing about it.

Most of the group look at the two youth in disapproval as they had their share of supper but all in all it was quiet for the rest of the night.

The next morning we enter the forest after packing everything, this time I let Flo out and walk alongside me, which garner the attention of the party especially the females. they all look at it in either repulsion or disgust but oh well, not everyone understand cuteness.

The party are walking in a weird formation, rather than one ent.i.ty the party are walking with their own comrades with the berserker's team upfront, Roland's team in the center, Buue's team at the rear. I am walking along with Roland's team just to avoid walking with Aerith.

Jack, their thief, keep on talking and talking through our walk that I just naturally block his words and hearing only mumbles from him. tho I'm quite curious as to why Flo keep on staring at the panting berserker upfront since I let him out it is not to the point I would reach out and ask him just.

Around midday we decide to take some rest at a small clearing as the sky turn dark with clouds.

As we rest I couldn't help but check out the trees, even if they look decaying and sick, their leaves are still intact on it's branches although it now had turn black. I also take a few samples of the black liquid oozing from it, who knows it might be useful for something.

As I was busy with my own thing, Roland and Buue are busy planning out our route over the map chart at the side along with their team, as for the couple they are still throwing dog food around. Flo are still staring at the berserker who just stood at one side watching everyone, for some reason I found his gaze a little unsettling when it met mine.

Truthfully speaking I'm just trying to ignore the oddities and the signs but that gaze is the last straw, something that can make me feel danger can't be anything good. so I draw the sword at my side and walk next to Flo.

Buue noticed what I'm doing and he was cut off by a loud screech. The berserker screech before his body start convulsing and rippling like something is moving under his skin.

"s.h.i.+t, Flo combat mode!" hearing my command, Flo bark before it's body expand in sizes until he is almost as big as a rhino, his soft little paws replaced with strong legs with sharp black claws, his cute innocent face replaced with a fierce wolfish look with a black horn protruding it's forehead and razor like fangs showing as it growls, his hairless tail grows in length and turn into some kind of chain blade with hook like blades at its sides.

Out of all it's transformation the most noticable would be it's skin, the hairless skin on him turn into sleek black scales as armor, courtesy to the dungeon creatures.

Just as Flo finished with his transformation, the berserker explode into b.l.o.o.d.y mist before something shoot out in high speed out of it.

Before I could react, Flo already move ahead of me and swat away a couple tentacles like thing before it could reach me, but some people aren't that lucky.

"Aaah!" the couple at the side was caught by the tentacles and currently being dragged quickly across the ground.

The party snaps out of their shock and draw their weapons but just as they are about to come to our aide, the ground start shaking violently.

All around us, paws started breaking through the dirt, creating holes which those sickly looking wolves from yesterday start rus.h.i.+ng out off.

I turn to let Flo cover my back as I focus on the newcomers, opening my map a frown quickly form on my face. Other than the blob of flesh with tentacles that used to be the berserker, the map doesn't detect any other hostile ent.i.ties.

I know for certain that the system could by pa.s.s low grade status concealment which somehow include low grade concealment in general, but if the wolves are not visible does that mean the map can't detect creature with higher grade concealment?

Shaking off the thought, I return my focus to the situation at hand. The rest of the party are overwhelmed and starting to get pushed back, Flo are still in a stalemate with the thing as he keep swatting any tentacles coming out way, while the wolves in front of me are just growling while it seem to look for an opening.

Honestly speaking my stance still have many faults but unlike the.. let's call it feaster, the wolves doesn't make me feel any danger, clearly they are small fries considering they doesn't attack the feaster and instead seem subservient to it.

As for the couple.. let's not get too graphic but other than the tentacles holding their limbs and covering their eyes, their clothes are in taters while slimy looking tentacles enter them through their mouth and rear and private part for the girl. there are also another kind of tentacles with tiny little mouths wrapping around their body and drawing blood while the tip is engulfing the guy private part.

Shuddering a bit from the sight, I look back at the party. It doesn't look like they can hold on much longer and their escape route are slowly being enclosed by the wolves.

Suddenly, the wolf in front of me started choking like it's going to vomit, drawing my attention to it. I almost thought it truly is sick if the thing it vomit is not a tentacle being projected out of its mouth towards me.

Chopping it off I throw a quick napalm solution towards it, catching it on fire. yet despite being covered and having it's flesh melting, it showed no sign of being in pain not does it care much about it as it and it's friends start charging towards me.

Cutting them to pieces doesn't take much but everytime I cut them another takes its place, with their almost endless numbers, I quickly abandon the thought of exterminating them.

"Flo get to the others, we're retreating!" I commanded him when I jump on his back.

He quickly turn away from the feaster and rush towards the party with me taking over the duty of cutting and chopping any tentacles it sends our way, it was also at this moment I realize the number of tentacles it has doesn't decrease and instead keep on growing while the couple started to look like they've lost all their strength with white liquid flowing from their parts.

The party seem to catch to what I thought as they quickly hop on when we reached them and I order Flo to get us as far away from here. After a distance away, I couldn't help but offer a silent apology for the couple.

After riding for a hours we reached a cave at the side of a mountain, we all got off to investigate it and a.s.sess if it was safe enough to be our camp as night will soon be upon us and there's no telling what might be lurking out there in the rain.

Finding the cave empty, we set up camp and build a small fire. No one said a word, the somewhat cheery atmosphere yesterday is no where to be seen, even Aerith look grim and devoid of her usually playfulness.

I don't see any of them twitch but with the scratches they all have, I think I know what they are thinking. Sighing I sweep my gaze over them as I check their status with the system.

"All of you can relax, none of you are infected." I casually told them, which earned me some surprised looks while some in disbelief.

"You can talk?" Roland ask with a somewhat stupefied look.

"What does it seem like I'm doing, Telepathy? but back on topic, none of you are infected. don't you all remember that I treated him last night?" I said before noting their expression, Roland's team look confused while the guy still had that dumb look while Buue is silently urging me to continue and Aerith looking more relaxed. only Jareth look at me with distrust.

"That night I saw him twitching a lot through the treatment and twitch even more often after. This morning, he look out of breath walking the same distance as all of us when it shouldn't be possible with our average statuses, not to mention Flo is not on guard against any of you." I explained and finish with gesturing to the sleeping dog beside me.

"How do we know you're not the one who turn him?" Jareth said from the back, making Buue shook his head.

"Jareth, haven't you seen him fight? He is not strong enough to fight that thing, so why would he put himself in danger by making that thing? Besides he's been with all of us since the start and with all the gawking he did on our journey here it should be his first time being outside." Buue reason to his son, Jareth seem to want to refute it but a look from Aerith made him shut his mouth.

But that doesn't important, what's important is Buue saw me when I was acting like a b.u.mpkin the first three days out on the caravan! Almost instinctively I hide my face between my knees, which earned the chuckles of the female members of the party.

*Gaooo~*

It was then a weird noise come from Roland's general direction, making his friends laugh while he scratch the back of his head with an embarra.s.sed look.

"Sorry, now that all the tension is gone I guess my hunger catch up." he said with a small laugh. It's probably due to dealing with Val but after he said that I took out a medium size wooden box from my bag and open it.

Within it are neat rows of sandwiches, it still look relatively fresh due to the preservation formation put in the box.

"I forgot I had these, you guys want some?" I offered, which they gladly accepted, even Jareth although he hesitate slightly.

The power of food and hunger sure are something, I thought as I chew my own share of it.

After the light dinner, almost everyone quickly fell asleep. seems like today's event drain them more than I thought. for the first watch, me and Jareth sit by the fire with Flo watching the entrance.

We didn't talk, but I think he slowly lower his guard but also annoyed seeing I'm more focused with my load out than the guard duty. If you ask why I need a load out, it seems an inventory is not a common thing as everyone here have their own luggages. so it's better if I keep the fact I have one.. or should I say two, to myself.

I keep swapping what I think will or won't work against the habitants of this place after that fight and when I was satisfied with my load out, it was already bright.

Looking around, I found everyone already packing and Buue looking at me like he is about to explode.

"Either you sleep while I carry you or we don't move at all." he said before picking me and my bag up without hearing my reply.

Although he's carrying me like a sack of potatoes, I decided I shouldn't argue seeing the amused expression the others has.

"Welp, at least Flo is sleeping soundly." I silently cursed my luck for being handled roughly while my pet is being cradled by a girl.