Beneath the Giant Tree, the rustle of a passing breeze could be heard again, along with the wingbeats of unknown insect beasts far in the distance.
The Faith Wizard who had yet to unleash his full strength was struggling to move his eyes. Ruger was walking nearby, but whenever he passed, his position always lay just slightly outside the wizard's field of vision. The light in the towering Silver Werewolf's eyes was slowly fading.
Ruger walked at an unhurried pace and glanced at the writhing thing over there. It was the liveliest of the group. Through the restraints of the Boundless Cage, Ruger could indeed sense two souls within it. The Faith Wizard who had yet to unleash his full strength had been right: his companion named Robin had not died completely, nor had he completely turned into a monster.
The instant Ruger's gaze fell on the thing, it went still. It sensed his attention, but it was neither frightened nor pretending to submit. Rather, its instinctively writhing, stretching body could no longer move. Sensing his gaze, it produced even more malice. Before Ruger could expend any additional reserves on it, it plunged itself into stronger restraints and greater torment. The cage, which had loosened because of the two entangled souls, tightened again, becoming the tightest of all those present.
As for the last one, the one-armed fellow with the burst eyeball who had likewise swayed and collapsed at the final moment, it was his good fortune that the Boundless Cage could still restrain him steadily. That proved he was still alive.
Ruger strolled past, naturally replenishing the reserves within the patterns of his demon body as he went. None of these fellows required any additional expenditure from him.
It was not that they were all brimming with malice. Some