They led them through the forest and it didn’t take long for the village to appear, the forest is more like a backyard to the village and it was guarded by a low stone wall.

The girl who called herself Joyce turned to them and pointed at the village. "This is it, where we live."

Even though they came from the back, the gate was still guarded by two hard-looking men who stared at them blankly as they passed.

"Where are you taking us?" Azaroth asked as they passed more red mud houses. The houses here are built together and as they passed, curious eyes followed them from doorways and windows.

"To the village head!" Joyce answered.

Azaroth nodded, noticing that the man already left them to go forward, probably to give warning in advance to the village head. By the time they reached the center of the village they had gathered a sizable amount of people following them and whispering.

One thing Azaroth noticed among them all is that they looked weak, their muscles and bones looked like something that would snap under their own weight. And not only that, there’s a general kind of depression over them all, a sadness. Or fear.

Joyce finally stopped in front of a mud house that’s four times bigger than the others and had five guards guarding it. They carried swords and spears and they were filled with essence. Still, from the way Azaroth felt them with his own essence they looked like the novice level.

Finally the village head came out together with the man who first saw them. The village head is a short bald man with a head full of scars. He looked at them as if he’s weighing the worth of meat at the market. "So you are the strangers."

Azaroth waited, the village head is an Initiate-level Awakener so he adjusted his own shield to only show the power of novice level. When Stallus and the others saw him do that they adjusted theirs as well.

"Where are you from?" The village head asked in irritation now that he’s confirmed that they are below him in rank. "Are you thieves come for our fruits?"

The village head is holding a walking stick which is in fact an enchanted tool and he rubbed the head of the stick as he waited for a response.

Azaroth hesitated, as if he’s nervous. "We are not from here. We found ourselves here by mistake."

The village head’s face lit up. "Are you merchants? We can sell you fruits for weapons and meat."

Azaroth shook his head. "We are no..."

The village head interrupted them, a small sneer on his face, the reason he didn’t make a move already is because they might be from Greytown and that’s something he must absolutely avoid. "Then who are you?"

Azaroth sighed, he’s getting tired of this but he needs the information. "Okay. We were recently dropped here by the Arc, can you tell us where this place is and what’s going on around?"

The silence that followed his words could be cut with a knife. The people flinched and the expression on the village head changed, from surprise to shock. Because there hadn’t been a new prisoner in who knows when?

The village head studied them and a plan began to take root in his mind so he smiled. "Is that so? Then I will be glad if you follow me to my place and we can talk."

Stallus and the others were surprised that Azaroth asked just like that because shouldn’t they keep it a secret and try to gain information? But apparently it seems Azaroth wanted to take the head on.

Azaroth shrugged and followed the village head without hesitation and with no reason to say otherwise the team also followed, the whispering of the villagers following them.

Azaroth resisted the feeling to look back, since he’s more sensitive to bloodlust than his team he’s able to detect the way the villagers looked at them. The look on their faces isn’t weak, it is like predators looking at prey.

He said nothing and entered the building and the inside consisted of a hall with a grand wooden chair at the center. It is where the villagers gathered to talk.

Azaroth and his team sat on the mat laid on the ground.

The village head tapped the floor with his wooden stick. "We will give you food as we talk."

The old man shook his head. "I can’t believe you are children dropped into this cursed place! What crimes did you commit! But then that’s how the Inferno Legion always does it! They just drop anyone they want into the prison and accuse them of working for the monsters."

Azaroth nodded calmly. The main war was against the monsters but each territory fought their own battles. There wasn’t any cooperation among the new world powers.

"I will tell you now. First of all, you should know that there’s a limit to where you can go in the region. You might not see it but there’s a big shield over everything here. Anyway, the prisoners were put here and not all of us came from the same place or had the same power so of course there’s conflict on how to manage the resources!"

"Unlike others, I and some others didn’t focus on Greytown at that time and directly moved to establish different villages. Maybe I should have fought for a piece of Greytown as well!" The village head said bitterly.

"Why?" Azaroth asked calmly.

The village head snorted angrily and waved. "The most important resource in this prison is food and Greytown has two enchanted tools that create food for them. The rumors are that it’s as big as a house and you need monsters to power it. You fuel it with monster bodies!"

"With that, Greytown quickly became a place where the powerful gathered and the leaders are now leading everyone here! If you don’t comply with them then you die!" The small figure of the man quivered slightly.