(Audun's POV)
That seems pretty doable though?
"LIKE HELL IT IS!"
Sunny immediately shot to his feet and gave me an extremely hostile glare.
His reaction cut through the tense, hopeless atmosphere that Nephis had created with her revelations like a hot knife through butter.
Cassie giggled, while Sunny continued to look at me like I had just left a bag of burning dogshit on his porch.
Nephis gaze flickered towards Sunny before a small sigh broke free of her lips.
"The first ruler of the bright castle was the first to try and escape the labyrinth, but they ultimately failed, with only a single member of the original cohort surviving in the end. That survivor would go on to become the second ruler of the Bright Castle and would try to reach the Gateway alongside a new party, but they all died too."
A complex look fell over her expression as she continued.
"After their failures, everyone gave up hope."
Sunny's mouth contorted into a dark smile.
"I don't blame them. Killing a Fallen Terror as a sleeper is a suicide mission... But..."
A flicker of hope flashed through his eyes as he glanced at me, but I deliberately ignored it.
Sunny sighed, turning his gaze back to Nephis.
"So, what's the plan now?"
Nephis fell silent.
"We'll create a hunting party."
The three of us nodded along without complaint.
Do you have anyone in mind?
Nephis nodded.
"Yeah."
I lingered for a moment, waiting for her to continue.
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"Do we... know them?"
Nephis nodded again.
"You definitely know one of them."
She paused for a moment.
"She's the only competent pathfinder that's not associated with another Hunting Party and probably one of the only people on the forgotten shore who would side with us after the show we put on in the Bright Castle."
Nephis gave Sunny a knowing look as he connected the dots.
A groan broke free from his lips as he rubbed his temples.
"You're not thinking of recruiting Effie, are you...?"
Nephis shrugged.
"Why not? She's probably the best unaffiliated pathfinder in the Dark City."
A trickle of sweat snaked down Sunny's forehead as he answered tentatively.
"She's... distracting."
Nephis raised an eyebrow.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
I offered up a silent prayer for my black haired friend.
Sunny's pupils trembled, pure terror spreading across his face.
"I... uh... d...whe... t....lo..."
He muttered a meek reply under his breath.
Cassie spoke up innocently.
"Sunny, did you say something?"
Sweat poured down Sunny's face as he murmured another reply quietly.
A sweet smile spread across Cassie's face.
"Sorry, Sunny, I didn't catch that. Could you speak up a bit?"
Sunny shot me a helpless look.
I shrugged with a sheepish smile.
Sunny's face was turning paler and paler by the second as he clutched his chest painfully.
"I CAN'T STOP LOOKING AT HER A-"
I covered my ears and closed my eyes as I nodded sagely.
'I'm gonna pretend that didn't happen.'
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(The Next Day)
For obvious reasons, Sunny was not allowed to join us as we set off to recruit our first member.
Nephis led Cassie and me to a make-shift cabin in the middle of a more populated area of the outer settlement.
It was a worn, unremarkable house by all measures, but my eyes couldn't help but drift to the large, damaged skull of a nightmare creature hung above the door.
The damages marring the once pristine white carnium served as an effective deterrent for anyone harboring less than honest intentions, though it didn't stop Nephis from brazenly knocking on the cabin's beat-up wooden door.
Seeing her summons go unanswered, I watched as the princess of the Immortal Flame clan's courtious knocks devolved into a series of savage, barbaric blows threatening to tear down the already worn-down entrance.
Before long, the faint sound of bare feet slamming against stone echoed from behind the wooden door.
The door burst open as the familiar visage of Effie appeared in the doorway.
"WHO THE FUCK IS IS-oh. It's you guys."
Her olive colored skin glistened in the morning sun.
Too much of her skin...
Nephis turned to me in a panic, just in time to see me scowl in disgust.
Please put on some fucking clothes.
Nephis froze as the words sat in the air.
Effie let out a harking laugh as a short chiton covered up her athletic figure.
"Whatever- wait... that face... you're still alive??"
I gave her an incredulous look.
Why would I be dead??
Effie let out a chuckle, a hint of respect in her eyes.
"Damn, you survived an encounter with a Spire Messenger, huh? That's quite the achievement..."
Effie narrowed her eyes as she scrutinized our group.
"Hey, wait- where's the pervy pipsqueak?"
Nephis shrugged.
"We left him at our cabin."
The huntress chuckled.
"Lil bastard had it coming..."
She trailed off as she looked up at the beaming sun.
"Hah~ So, what do you beauties need from little ol' me?"
Nephis sighed and gestured towards the door.
"Can we come in?"
Effie shrugged and motioned for us to follow.
The inside looked pretty cozy, decorated with a plethora of abominable materials and rustic furniture.
We got seated at a sturdy-looking table while Effie lazily plopped down on a bed covered in fur blankets.
"What's up?"
Nephis straightened her back and folded her hands on her lap.
"We're forming a hunting party."
Effie raised an eyebrow.
"Good for you...?"
Nephis, completely undeterred, continued solemnly.
"Be our pathfinder."
The huntress blinked before breaking into hysterical laughter.
"Man, you guys are hilarious!"
She continued laughing for a while longer, but she trailed off as she noticed our serious expressions.
"You're... kidding, right?"
Nephis shook her head, extending another invitation.
"No, I wasn't. Come with us and be our pathfin-"
"Nah, I'm good."
Nephis paused for a moment.
Effie leaned back casually and chuckled.
"You kids just got here a few days ago. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm more of a lone wolf, y'know?"
Nephis nodded.
"I'm aware."
Effie gave Nephis a weird look.
Nephis continued.
"I know that, because of your flaw, you have to consume a large amount of food to survive. Most hunting parties split up the spoils amongst themselves, but since you-"
"Hah~ It's a good guess, but that's not the main reason why."
Effie's eyes narrowed as the smile on her face faded.
"I don't hunt with others for one simple reason..."
She gave Nephis a steely look.
"They're all weak. Gunlaug will never allow anyone with strength to exist outside of his control. So, sorry, not sorry, I'm not going to be your pathfinder, princess."
Nephis paused, stunned by her response.
Effie sighed in exasperation.
"Look, if you spend a few more years here, we can talk about this ag-"
"That's it?"
Nephis' bewildered voice interrupted the huntress.
Effie blinked in confusion.
"What do you mean 'that's it'?"
Nephis tilted her head in confusion.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you refuse to work with others because they're too weak to stand up to the Bright Lord... Right?"
The huntress crossed her arms with a curious expression.
"Pretty much, why?"
Nephis gave me a loaded look and smiled brightly.
"Well, we're no longer welcome at the Bright Castle..."
"What does that have to d-"
"Because we killed one of Gunlaug's lieutenants."
Effie blinked.
"What?"
Nephis shrugged and pointed at me.
"Audun killed Harus in a challenge."
The huntress looked at Nephis incredulously.
"Him?? Cmon, princess... if you're gonna lie, at least make it believable!"
Nephis tilted her head in confusion.
"You haven't heard?"
Effie rolled her eyes.
My companion gave me a dark look as a helpless sigh escaped my chest.
Thinking for a moment, I reached into the [Bag of Holding] as Effie tried to rebuke Nephis.
"Look. I already said no. If you really want to recruit me, th-"
Thud
A large avian head flopped onto the floor, its cloudy eyes wide with a look of shock.
I reached back into the pouch and fished out a soul shard, tossing it to the hunter who was staring blankly at the head.
A beam of sunshine streaming through one of the windows fell on the severed head of the spire messenger, making its obsidian feathers gleam with a dull light.
I killed it yesterday.
Effie's gaze shifted from the head to me before she turned her attention back to a politely smiling Nephis.
"Is this enough?"
Nephis' eyelashes fluttered in anticipation.
The huntress blinked a few times before a slow giggle echoed in the cabin.
The giggle turned into a chuckle, and then that chuckle transformed into full-blown hysterical laughter.
As the gleeful bout of laughter concluded, Effie gave Nephis a predatory grin.
"y'know what? Fuck it. Why not?"
She took in a deep breath.
"Do I get a significant portion of the food we hunt?"
Nephis nodded.
"Can I crack jokes and tease you guys as I please?"
Nephis paused, but nodded a beat later.
Effie gave Nephis a more serious look.
"If you guys were serious about Prince Charming over here killing Harus, then it probably won't matter, but just to be clear, that gold fucker's targeted every person that's extended an invitation to me, and by recruiting me as your guide, you'll have to bear the full brunt of that tyrannical piece of shits resentment."
She scanned our group.
"Are you absolutely sure you wanna do this?"
Nephis smiled darkly.
"Of course."
Effie chuckled again and nodded.
"Well then, princess, you got yourself a deal."
The huntress let out a sigh and continued.
"Now that we've sorted that all out, respectfully fuck off. It's too early in the morning for this."
Effie flopped back onto her bed and wrapped herself in a cocoon of blankets.
"We'll meet tomorrow or something, I'm running a bit low on food anyway..."
We sat there in confusion for a few moments before a slightly irritated and muffled voice shouted out:
"Shoo!! Scram! Take the head and leave, I'm trying to sleep!"
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(A/N: Sorry for the late upload, guys. I got hit with writer's block while tryna make the interactions sound believable, and I still don't think I did a great job.
I ended up catching up on some of the novels I haven't touched in a while and started reading through my backlog of SS chapters I've been too burnt out to touch.
I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and I'll try and upload again by tonight after I finish training, but no guarantees as usual.
Thanks for the support, and drop a comment or a review if you haven't already!
See you guys in the next chapter!)