"Everyone okay?" Blanc asked, screaming so all could hear him.
None of them were harmed.
Indeed, a victory on multiple fronts.
"How are you feeling, my love?" Blanc asked, turning towards Miyanna as she tried to free her sword from the gorilla's body.
"I'm… fine… but this sword, fuck," she sighed, giving up trying to pull it out, "I can't get it out, can you help me?"
Blanc was surprised that the only issue Miyanna had was the stuck sword.
He thought that maybe she would be shaken to a certain level, but it seems that her previous kills, as she tried to survive or as a soldier, hardened her soul enough.
Still, with a smile, he replied, "But of course."
He went next to her, grabbed the sword, and with a groan, he managed to pull it out.
Though filled with blood, the blade held strong. No chips appeared as they cut through bone.
Yet another moment in which Blanc found himself proud of the gift he bought for her.
"Here you go," he said, handing over the sword to her, but not before continuing, "You did well, I'm proud of you."
Miyanna's adrenaline rushed out of her body as if it wasn't there, to begin with, at Blanc's words.
"Th-thanks," she stuttered, grabbing her sword.
With a warm smile, he then turned towards the others.
Each of the adults managed to be the one to kill one of the gorillas, meaning that Kael and Lune were left with no harvest.
"Kael, Lune," Blanc called out to them.
And they approached running.
"What is it, brother?" Lune asked.
"If we find more gorillas next, we'll have you kill them for their harvests, okay?" he asked.
And the twins nodded sharply.
"Good, go rest, and protect us while I show Miyanna how to harvest. Could you do that?" Blanc asked.
"Yes," Kael replied, "Do what you have to do, for we are here."
"My," giggled Celine as she approached them, cleaning the blood from her sword, "Such bravery."
"Indeed," Blanc laughed as he patted his younger sibling, roughing up their hair, "Then get to it."
With the two saluting sarcastically, they went to grab their bags and the water inside them.
"Do you hear others nearby?" Celine asked, "They made quite the sounds, after all."
Blanc focused deeply on her request, yet nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Although neither did the first time when they found the water.
The waterfall above them was making too much sound for Blanc to be able to focus on anything else.
"Nothing," Blanc shook his head.
"I will keep watch with Kael and Lune until you two are done, then I'll get to mine, okay?" Celine asked.
"All right, however, it would be best if someone were to explain to Miyanna what was happening while I do it; otherwise, it might be too much for her first time," Blanc said.
"Ah, I think you are right," Celine grinned, "I remember how much it was for her the first time for other things too."
"You know I can fucking hear you, right?" Miyanna sighed, clearly embarrassed as she approached the two.
"Was I wrong, sister? You covered your face with the pillow for half the night," Celine asked, grinning from ear to ear.
"Be-because you two were watching me and making fun of me," Miyanna stuttered.
"We were not making fun of you, my love," said Blanc, "It only looked cute how different you were in bed."
"I'll show you cuteness, just you wait," Miyanna threatened.
A usual sign of aggression she shown when the embarrassment reached a certain level.
"Still," Blanc continued, turning to Celine, "Can I ask you to explain things to her?"
"Of course," Celine replied, nodding gracefully.
With confirmation, Blanc moved towards the pool that stood below the waterfall, where the gorilla he had killed painted the pool crimson.
He grabbed one of its large hands and, with a groan, began pulling it out of the water, hoping the constant waterfall would clean the pool soon enough.
However, he rejoiced in the coldness the water brought to him as he pulled the gorilla.
The others will surely be happy to take a bath in it, Blanc thought to himself.
Once out of the pool, Blanc removed the arrow from the gorilla's forehead and kneeled in the mud beside it.
Before he began, he looked at Celine and Miyanna one more time as they looked from the other side of the pool.
With a nod from a talking Celine who began explaining things to Miyanna, Blanc removed his cape and long-sleeved tunic, and with his upper body naked for his wives to see, he placed his hand upon the gorilla's chest.
His mind once more fell below the surface of the world as the harvest for Raw Vita began.
The world fell silent, the waterfall behind him, not even a whisper in his ears.
His body stiffened as usual, his mind calm as if under the water of the pool next to him.
It was not long until the wisps, serpents of crimson and amber, started slowly doing their dance out of the gorilla's chest and towards his own.
Once the serpents touched his chest, they began pulsing slightly, following his heartbeat as they entered deeper and deeper until they found his heart and the placement for Blanc's new Marks.
The Raw Vita of the gorilla has been harvested.
And the outline of a new Mark, a handprint of a gorilla, appeared on his right pectoral muscle, opposite to the one on his left, the one he received from the old woman he killed.
The White Mark of the Gorilla stood proudly on his chest.
But there was another, one that was not visible on his upper body but on the sole of his left foot.
The outline of a footprint made by a gorilla stood there.
Though the size of this new Mark was smaller than the actual size of the gorilla's foot, it meant the same thing.
The ritual was soon to be over, but right before his mind returned to the surface, for a moment, he felt as if he were the gorilla itself.
He felt relaxed and happy as he felt his body cool down in the water of the pool in which he and his brothers stood. A good day.
But then something happened. His brothers were being attacked.
By what?
He felt rage surging inside him.
He began pounding on his chest, but then…
Darkness.
Blanc's eyes opened as his conscience returned to him, a sad feeling deep in his chest as he looked at the gorilla who lay dead before him.
"I'm sorry," Blanc whispered, placing his hand slowly on the gorilla's shoulder, "And thank you. You and your brothers will be with us now."
"Blanc seems to have returned," Celine realized. "Did you understand my explanation, Miyanna, dear?"
"I-I think so?" she muttered, as she was slowly getting nervous as she stared at the new Mark on Blanc's chest.
"Remember, you will feel as if you are drifting away. You can open your eyes, but never, and I mean never, take your hand off the beast's chest once you begin," Celine instructed.
"Okay," Miyanna nodded, taking mental notes.
"Are you ready, Miyanna?" Blanc asked as he approached them, leaving the gorilla he had just harvested behind.
"Is more explaining able to calm me down?" she asked.
Celine smiled warmly at her while placing her hand on Miyanna's shoulder, "I fear not. Only experiencing it will calm you down."
"Then there's your answer," Miyanna sighed as she replied to Blanc's question.
"No point wasting time," Blanc said, grabbing her hand. "Good luck, my love. If you panic, just open your eyes and you'll see us here, watching over you."
"O-okay… I'll be going then," she stuttered, taking a step towards the gorilla, but not before changing her mind and kissing both Blanc and Celine, a thing they only did at night.
"I'm off," Miyanna said, now really heading towards the gorilla.
"She's more scared of the harvest than the killing," Celine giggled in a whisper.
"I call that cute," Blanc replied as they watched her kneel down and, with a sharp exhale, press her hand over the gorilla's chest.
And as they guessed, Miyanna's eyes opened the next moment once she began the ritual, looking for them.
When they offered her a smile or a nod as support, she closed them back, focusing.
In a minute, the wisps found her chest too, and placed their Mark on her skin, though it was not visible to them since Miyanna had clothes on.
They were curious, but they knew they would be able to see it properly at night, so they let go of that thought just as Miyanna opened her eyes, her mind returning to her and her body relaxing.
"Miyanna?" Blanc asked, seeing her somewhat confused.
"You were right," she muttered, as she began opening and closing her fist, "It really is different."
"Now, dear sister, you are in name, marriage, body, and soul a true Noble Blood," Celine laughed quietly, but soon turned on her heels, "I guess it's my turn now."
"Want to go and watch Celine too?" Blanc asked Miyanna.
Her bronze eyes turned to watch his own with great warmth flowing inside them, "I like the sound of that."
"Let's go then," Blanc replied, offering his hand to her.
Which she accepted gratefully, getting on her feet and walking towards Celine just as she was about to begin her own harvest.