Kate walked over to Merlin with a first-aid kit in her hands.
"Give me your hand."
Merlin held out his palm.
Kate opened the kit and carefully wrapped the cut.
"You didn't need to cut yourself that deeply."
Merlin looked at his palm.
It wasn't that deep, he thought to himself.
Kate glanced at him and shook her head.
She finished wrapping his hand and closed the kit.
"And try not to reopen it."
Merlin nodded.
He looked around the camp.
Most of the others were already settling down for the night. The fire in the center of the camp flickered quietly.
Then Brody stood up.
"We're running low on food."
Merlin looked at him.
Then he looked at all the things they had carried from Lilith.
Surely that's enough food, he thought to himself.
Harvey glanced at Merlin. He noticed his confusion.
"I know what you're thinking," he said. "But that food isn't ours."
Harvey smiled.
"We're only transporting it."
He stretched his arms.
"What better time to go hunting?"
Brody nodded.
Leon stood up.
"I'll come with you."
Brody looked toward Merlin.
"You too."
Merlin knew he had no choice, so he followed.
"You need to learn how to survive outside the city."
Merlin glanced at his bandaged palm.
He still wasn't entirely sure how to use the weapon now that it was part of him.
"Fine."
The three of them left the camp.
The farther they walked, the quieter it became.
The ruined road disappeared behind them, replaced by patches of grass and scattered trees.
Merlin looked around.
After his encounter with those creatures, he couldn't help but wonder what they were going to hunt.
Leon walked ahead of them, holding a pendant in his outstretched right hand.
After a while, he suddenly stopped.
Brody raised a hand.
Merlin stopped as well.
Leon pointed toward a cluster of bushes.
Something moved inside.
Merlin narrowed his eyes.
A bunny stepped out of the bush.
An arrow pierced through it almost instantly.
Merlin looked behind them.
Kate stood some distance away, her bow still raised.
She was so far away that Merlin couldn't recognize her at first.
He stared at her for a moment.
How did she even hit that from here?
Leon just casually put the rabbit in a bag.
"Thanks!" Harvey shouted.
Kate just casually waved.
They advanced, making their way deeper into the woods.
Merlin looked back.
The trees were already between them and Kate. She couldn't assist them from here on.
They continued walking.
Leon pointed again, but Brody quickly stabbed it with his spear. It fell.
It was an antelope with four horns. They cut it up into smaller pieces and put them in the bag they had brought.
After that, Leon kept pointing, and they kept killing.
Merlin only watched.
Suddenly, Leon stopped. The pendant in his hand vibrated rapidly.
Brody stopped beside him.
Merlin stopped as well.
Leon stared ahead.
There was a large opening between two rocky slopes.
A cave.
But something about it had caught his attention.
Brody looked toward it.
"What's wrong?"
Leon didn't answer.
He raised the pendant in his hand.
It began to vibrate more.
Brody's expression immediately changed.
"A dungeon."
Merlin looked at the cave.
A dungeon? He asked himself.
Whatever it was, the reaction alone told him it wasn't something they wanted to find.
Leon took a few steps toward the entrance.
The cave descended deep into the ground, disappearing into darkness.
He stopped.
Brody looked at him.
"We need to tell the captain."
Leon nodded.
Brody turned around.
"Kate."
She was already some distance away.
Brody turned to go meet her and handed her the bag of their hunt.
"Go tell the captain we found the First Monarch Dungeon. We're going in."
Kate nodded.
She turned and started running back toward the camp.
Merlin watched her disappear between the trees.
He looked back toward the cave.
Brody and Leon stood at the entrance.
Merlin remained a few steps behind them, staring into the darkness.
Harvey turned back to look at Merlin.
"Stay ready," he whispered.
Merlin concentrated and thought of the name Requiem.
It was like he heard a voice saying the name in his head.
Suddenly, red and grey particles started to flow out of the veins of his wrist.
The scythe materialized in about two seconds.
Merlin stared at Requiem.
It looked different.
The blade now had a faint red glow.
Now he could also sense its presence. But there was something else, for some reason, it felt like Requiem was humming to a melody one he couldn't hear.
"What a weird thought."
The cave didn't look particularly large from the outside.
But the darkness inside seemed to stretch much farther than it should have.
Leon slowly raised the pendant in his hand.
Its glow had changed.
The faint green light that usually surrounded it had become much brighter, illuminating the walls around them.
Something was written across the stone.
Merlin couldn't understand the symbols.
They didn't look like any language he'd seen before.
Leon stared at them.
"That's strange."
Brody glanced at him.
"What?"
Leon lowered the pendant slightly.
"After all the years since its creation, the dungeon is still active."
Merlin looked at him.
He didn't know what that meant.
Before he could think much about it, a deep rumble came from somewhere beneath them.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Brody tightened his grip on his spear.
"Let's go."
They entered.
Merlin followed.
The moment they crossed the entrance, the sounds of the forest disappeared.
No wind.
No insects.
Nothing.
Only their footsteps.
Merlin looked back.
The entrance was still visible.
But it already seemed farther away than it should have been.
He turned forward again.
The passage descended gradually.
The walls were covered in strange markings, some carved directly into the stone while others seemed to be just painted onto its surface.
Every few seconds, one of them flickered.
Merlin stared at one.
For some reason, it made him uncomfortable.
He looked away.
They continued downward.
Then Leon stopped.
His pendant trembled.
Brody immediately turned toward him.
"What is it?"
Leon pointed ahead.
Something moved in the darkness.
Harvey stepped forward.
His cloak shifted as he prepared himself.
He materialized his staff.
So that's how he did it, Merlin thought to himself.
Brody raised his spear.
Merlin tightened his grip around Requiem.
A low growl echoed through the passage.
Then something rushed toward them.
Harvey moved first.
His cloak snapped outward.
The creature vanished beneath it.
A moment later, Harvey emerged several meters away, the creature crashing into the ground beside him.
Brody charged past him.
His spear struck another beast in the chest.
It fell.
A third creature came from above.
Merlin looked up.
It was already falling toward him.
He stepped back.
He held Requiem with both hands.
He held it close.
There wasn't enough room to swing.
The creature was almost on top of him.
Merlin spun the scythe sharply.
The blade cut across its side.
It landed hard on the ground.
Merlin stared at Requiem.
That worked.
He barely had time to think before another creature charged.
Harvey intercepted it.
His cloak blinded it before he shattered its legs with his staff.
Brody finished it with his spear.
Leon remained behind them.
His hands moved.
A faint glow appeared around his fingers.
The shadows around the passage suddenly shifted.
Something slammed into an invisible barrier.
Leon didn't even flinch.
"More are coming."
Brody looked down the passage.
"How many?"
Leon looked toward the darkness.
"Enough."
Harvey laughed.
"Then we'd better keep moving."
They continued deeper.