Matthew flicked his finger intently. Every move was slow and strained, the delay from him willing his fingers to move, and the action happening was mind-numbing and irritating.
He stared up to the sweeping arches of the White Temple, impatient shadow danced between them, cast by the roaring flame of the great iron braziers above them.
The polished white stone of the temple was split into four-by-four grids; the indents didn't disturb Matthew's rest, however. He felt the temple had a strange calming vibe to his agitated and depressed state.
A low sigh rolled off him as he got back to moving his fingers slowly. Parker had been talking beside him this whole time.
"We failed to climb the table this year, but next year we'll be in the top five, I promise. Changes in coaching have taken mediocre teams to championships."
"I'm not even listening anymore. I deeply regret my mistake of insulting your bum-ass team," Matthew said monotonously. He had a blanket draped over him and deeply wished he could use it to strangle Parker.
"Don't sound repentant, mate. We'll have to go over this one more time," Parker quipped.
Matthew glared at him, making the tanned boy laugh hysterically. Parker had a wide smile that showed off his dimples. His wavy brown hair was rough and uneven, but the sheen hiding under the dirt told of hair well taken care of.
His easy grey eyes were alluring and calm. His boyish face was at odds with his imposing stature, towering over him with rippling muscles hiding under his orange T-shirt.
Don't see people so tall normally. Looks like he plays some sport. Maybe rugby, from his accent.
Parker smiled at him for a while, holding eye contact for an uncomfortable amount of time. "Are we also shit? Like a bad team?"
Matthew continued moving his fingers, not really bothering to answer for an uneasy amount of time. He had hoped the pause would make Parker reluctant, but the fool still stared at him patiently.
"If you ask me to join you one more time... I won't be able to do anything because I'm crippled, but I guess that won't chase you away since you are a bully," Matthew sighed depressingly.
Parker looked suddenly alert, deeply disturbed by the fact he may have just made Matthew sad. He ignored the little jab at the end and asked,
"I'm so sorry. I just... you're so unique. I wish you wouldn't have to leave us one day. You scare the others a lot, ignoring them might be why, but I still think you'll fit in perfectly."
I could. Anyone could fit in perfectly anywhere, as long as they are wanted, of course.
"Unique as in a softer way to say freak," he answered dryly. "Do you know how maddening it is for me to be stuck here, relying on someone to keep me alive? I ignored them because they asked questions I'd rather not answer, and I wouldn't fit in. You know why? Because I don't want to."
I like being myself for once. It's been fun, and I like doing anything I want... most of the time.
"I see. You've hidden your skills and the details of what exactly a trial is, because you can't trust us yet. We'll have to work harder to change your mind then," Parker said happily, nodding as he stood and turned to walk away. "I'll give you the time you need, of course. We are always here if you need us. I think you will soon."
Matthew watched the giant of a man walk away and sighed irritatingly. He wasn't exactly wrong, but Matthew knew he had to balance working loosely with different groups to gain a true level of autonomy.
It was futile to pretend he could hunt alone. Too many things were beyond him right now. Even if he grew stronger, true monsters lingered ahead—calamitous beasts he had seen from the rising strata of the second levels.
And he expected the laws of the world bent a little further, something to accommodate the chaotic nature of the Dark Forest.
Ahhh, so annoying. It's an unfortunate nature of things. Nothing humans have ever done has been built alone. The foundations were set by others, and then by learning, trading, and building others, we created... the nightmare that is a recommendation algorithm.
He understood where Parker was coming from—he was very intuitive and prized teamwork. What he didn't think Parker understood was that it was futile. Anything built by people would crumble away and destroy itself.
The differing interests, backgrounds, and satisfaction of a group were its strength, but still ultimately its downfall. What he wanted was to gain their help and maintain a formal distance from their eventual problems.
——
Stella had finally escaped the people disturbing her. She sat down a bit hurriedly and took out a small cotton bag filled with paste.
"This will help with your burns. It's pine resin and—"
"How will we apply it?" he asked carefully.
Stella turned away, murmuring. "Well, you'll have to take off your clothes for some of the burn under, and we'll wash them thoroughly—"
"Yeah, sounds like something I'd like to do myself. Besides, I wouldn't want your little friends to get angry at me."
He glanced at the boys she had been talking to. They had been sending annoyed glances at him ever since he arrived. He was an outsider, of course, but he was also currently taking all of Stella's attention.
"Fuck you... I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. I just... Matthew, we need to take care of your burns now if you want them to heal properly, so you need to make this easy—"
"You're a bit of a pariah, aren't you? As pretty as you are, you don't have many friends among the girls. It doesn't seem like a self-righteous reason. Lemme guess—your first armament, it makes you prettier. Did I get it? You—"
Stella seemed a bit stunned to be suddenly complimented, then her annoyance increased with each second he spoke. She reached down and clamped her hand over his mouth. It smelled of chrysanthemum.
What a fitting scent for someone so dumb.
Her lustrous green eyes glared over him.
"First, I guess I should thank you for the compliment. It would be better if you had shut up from there. I go hunting with the boys a lot, I've been joining the fishers more, and more these days, so I haven't really had time for them…"
Stella paused, glancing over at the laughing group of girls wistfully. "And my first armament doesn't make me prettier... it was a cracked mirror and didn't come with any useful ability."
Matthew blew his warm breath over her hand. She yelped and pulled back. He narrowed his eyes, thinking.
"I don't think our first armament can't be useful. Gareth's allows him to create invisible shields for allies, and Parker's makes him stronger the greater his opponent is—but also weakens him against weaker opponents."
"He told you all that?" Stella asked, surprisingly shocked. "Weird. Mine is useless, though. It can shine a light, but it's inconsistent and is just good for confusing monsters. Its other ability only works when I die."
That's not right. I had concluded that the armament you got was tied to your style of playing their game. I guess people also don't normally reveal thsir first armaments, a tradtion maybe?
Someone had risen from the circle of chattering girls, making Stella flinch away to look like she wasn't staring. Matthew found it amusing and just continued watching. The girl leaving drew a lot of complaints from her friends and lingering gazes from the boys.
She was tall for a girl. Faint, clear blue eyes shyly fell on them. Her skin was pale and soft—it reminded Matthew of paper. He had the strange thought that if he touched her, his fingers might tear through her skin. Her lips were a faint red against the white, her nose sharp and straight.
A delightfully beautiful creature, dressed casually for work—similar to Matthew when he was taken. A light blue blouse and black, loose trousers. Her pale skin turned bright red as Matthew stared blankly at her.
"Hey Stella, I was going to ask about those lessons, if you aren't too busy."
Stella's eyes had been brightening as the girl approached them. She smiled joyfully.
"Jane, I'm so glad you're still interested. I'm free, it's just Matthew being stubborn and distracting me."
She said the last part while glaring at him, but he hadn't been distracting her. He was combining his information to think through a problem that had been on his mind. He stared at Jane like every other man in the room.
So is that why you have been watching me since? No, it doesn't track 'cause you were sneaking glances even when I talked to Parker...
Jane shifted uncomfortably. Stella punched him, light and on his uninjured leg, but her furious glare was far more painful. He sighed, flicking his fingers.
"Are you so eager to despoil my virtue? Give me a couple hours. I'll wash myself and apply your strange creams to my body."
"I'm not listening anymore," Stella said, a bit of her fury leaking into her voice. "If you don't allow us to take you behind a tent, then we'll do it here. Jane, I'm so sorry. He's so annoying. I'll be with you soon."
"I could help, I mean... you're a bit legendary at this point. I want to learn how you treat people—especially here," Jane replied calmly.
"Legendary?" Matthew asked.
"It's kind of, um, heroic… you know? You saved Mable. You're a hero. Imagine if you hadn't found them the night they ran into the Pale Maw."
Matthew twitched, smiling a bit sheepishly to cover his agitation. "Hehe, thank you."
After a few seconds of bickering, he decided to comply with Stella. He also was intrigued by this Jane, something was wrong with those pale blue eyes.
Might as well entertain myself while I'm crippled. I can't wait to get back to the Dark Forest. This is all so tedious... I hope I won't regret saying that.