Caleb Manning still lay unconscious in the cave, completely unaware of the outside world.
No one knew whether it was the Holy Water Malachi Arcanus had fed him that was taking effect, or if Caleb's fate simply refused to let him die, but the breath that had once grown so faint it was nearly snuffed out now gradually became steady and strong.
The fever burning through his body also began to recede; while the festering boils and red rashes had not yet disappeared, there were clear signs of improvement—he was no longer in immediate danger.
Who knows how long passed before Caleb finally drifted back to consciousness, peering at the unfamiliar cave before him, and the sunlight streaming in from the entrance.
He stared in a daze, almost unable to believe he was still alive.
He clearly remembered being hunted down by wave after wave of Beastmen. He had lost count of how many he'd killed, only recalling that it was a great many; every Beastman who tried to kill him had ended up dead.
