NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 321: Mist Panthers
Liora stood at the edge of the forest, looking at the thick mist in front of her.
Behind her, ten Vornis units marched in formation silently.
They moved like soldiers. No roars. No wild steps.
Just the steady, metallic rhythm of unstoppable machines.
She glanced over her shoulder and smirked.
"Didn't think I'd be commanding an entire steel platoon today."
None of them responded, of course. They didn't need to.
She stepped forward into the fog. The Vornis followed without hesitation.
"Stay sharp."
She pointed her finger toward the fog.
"Scan for movement. Live targets only. If it dies, I'll scrap your plating."
The lead Vornis flicked its tail once, acknowledging her order.
Liora chuckled. "Yeah, yeah. I know you get it."
The deeper they moved into the forest, the thicker the mist grew.
Visibility dropped fast, but Liora didn't slow down.
She spoke again.
Mostly to herself, but loud enough for them to hear.
"Funny. Lucius said you're perfect machines, but I think you've got personalities hiding under all that steel."
One of the rear Vornis turned its head slightly, tracking something in the trees.
Liora caught it. "Found something already?"
The beast didn't move. Just stared forward, scanning.
Liora exhaled. "No fear, no hesitation. You really are built different."
She reached out, tapped one of the Vornis on its shoulder plating.
"Let's see how good you are at capturing, not killing."
The beast's claws reshaped instantly.
Blades folding in, spikes retracting, shifting into blunt restraint tools.
Liora grinned. "There it is."
She stepped deeper into the fog.
"Alright, steel soldiers. Time to hunt."
Suddenly, something went past behind her. Fast. Silent.
Liora spun and shot her hand back.
Snap.
Claws stopped midair. She held something struggling in her grip.
A panther-like beast hissed, its fur semi-transparent, fading into the mist.
Wind stirred around its body, claws twitching with wind charge.
Liora looked down at it. "Sneaky."
It slashed.
Blades of wind shot toward her chest.
She raised her left hand.
CRACK.
The blades shattered on impact.
Liora didn't blink. "Nice trick."
Her eyes flared. "Scan."
---
[Name: Silphra]
[Species: Mistborne Stalker]
[Rank: Elite-Tier]
[Element: Wind]
---
[Stats:]
[Str: A]
[Vit: B]
[Agi: A]
[Int: A]
---
[Abilities:]
[Miststep Ambush – Teleports short distances through fog for surprise attacks.]
[Razor Pelt – Wind-charged fur slashes nearby enemies.]
[Fog Veil – Summons thick fog to block sight and scent tracking.]
[Laceration Claws – Strikes create wind blades with extended range.]
[Predator's Patience – Turns invisible when still in mist.]
---
Liora raised an eyebrow. "Elite-tier, huh?"
The Silphra hissed again, twisting in her grasp.
"Not strong… but smart."
She tightened her grip. "And if there's one of you... there's probably more."
She glanced back toward the Vornis units.
"Master didn't specify what he wanted but seeing your interesting ability... I might as well have caught you."
The panther tried vanishing again but Liora slammed it down, knee on its back.
"No disappearing."
She opened her palm toward the sky. A silver glow flared from her wrist.
"Vault. One slot."
---
[Beast Capture]
[Target: Silphra]
[Process: Storing within the Eternal Vault]
[Status: Executing...]
---
The beast vanished in a second.
Liora stood up, brushing her hand off.
"Alright. Let's catch a lot of them."
She turned to the Vornis leading the squad.
"Scatter. Sweep the fog. Bring them back alive."
The lead Vornis nodded once before disappearing into the mist.
The others following in perfect formation.
Liora smirked again and cracked her knuckles.
"Now this is getting fun."
---
Each Vornis spread out through the fog like silver phantoms.
Their eyes glowed faintly, shifting and recalibrating.
Liora narrowed her gaze, watching from the side.
"They're enhancing their vision systems."
One by one, the Vornis tilted their heads, targeting their preys.
Even through the thick fog, nothing escaped them.
The first Silphra jumped between trees.
Vornis-02 raised a claw.
Flash.
A glowing seal appeared across the fleeing beast's back.
Terminus Hunt was engaged.
Liora smirked. "Good. Marked."
Another Vornis dropped from above, landing without sound.
It lowered its stance.
Click.
A panel opened on its back. A cannon extended but not for destruction.
Instead, it fired a net woven with energy threads.
The Silphra barely blinked before it was wrapped mid-leap, yanked straight to the ground.
Another tried to vanish into the fog.
Vornis-04 turned its head, eyes pulsing with predictive patterns.
It ran, fast—no sound—then fired.
The net snapped forward like a whip, catching the beast by its hind leg.
Thud.
It crashed into a tree, dazed but unharmed.
More Vornis units emerged from the mist in coordinated formation.
Each one aimed. Each one fired.
Nets launched like artillery—non-lethal, reinforced, precise.
PFFT. PFFT. THUMP. SNAP.
In minutes, six Silphra were down, wrapped and struggling on the forest floor.
A few tried summoning fog to hide—but the Vornis didn't need vision anymore.
Their seal locked the targets' positions down.
One Silphra shrieked and jumped, claws glowing.
Vornis-07 caught it in mid-air with a rotating tail-shift. Its blade had retracted into a flat restraint disc.
Smack.
The beast hit the ground hard but alive.
Liora walked calmly toward the center where the captured creatures squirmed.
"Ten minutes. And you've got a whole pack."
She looked over at the nearest Vornis.
"You're machines, but I'd swear you're hunting for fun."
No reply, of course. Just another net being prepped.
She opened her hand, ready to vault them.
"System, store them all. Same slot as the previous Silphra."
---
[Beast Capture]
[Target: Silphra]
[Process: Storing within the Eternal Vault]
[Slot Status: Silphra x12 Stored in Single Slot]
[Status: Executing...]
---
Each restrained Silphra vanished in rapid flashes.
zip, zip, zip
Only the Vornis remained, resetting their net launchers and scanning for more.
Liora lowered her arm.
"Twelve… not bad."
She cracked her knuckles.
"Let's see if we can find more of them."
She glanced into the thicker fog ahead.
"Or maybe something similar. Stealth types. Ambushers."
The lead Vornis took off without a word, the rest following like hounds on a trail.
Liora smirked, pacing behind them.
"Bring me everything that moves."