Deep inside the forest, the huge hidden beast stood completely still.
For the first time since it woke up, it was truly shocked.
"…What…what did I just witness?"
It stared in the direction where the humans were standing, its sharp senses still focused on them.
"That woman with violet hair…"
Its jaw tightened.
"To think that from earlier… I was already pulled into her illusion."
The beast clenched its claws against the ground.
"I didn't even realize it."
That fact alone made it uneasy.
"I am a strong third-realm demonic beast," it muttered. "And yet… I didn't notice when it started."
It replayed the moment in its mind. The strange delay. The confusion.
The feeling that something was slightly off, but never dangerous enough to trigger full caution.
"…Her illusion didn't attack me directly," it said slowly. "It blended into reality."
The beast snorted quietly.
"That level of illusion control… Is she a third realm cultivator?"
