Snow crunched beneath their boots. The blizzard had finally given up its rage, leaving the world in a haze of white silence. Misty breaths rose from their lips, though Haruno noticed she wasn't shivering. The warmth rolling off the Null Handmaidens was like walking between six walking furnaces, each radiating an intense, pulsing heat that melted the snow in wide circles around their feet. Steam trailed behind them. For once, the world didn't feel like it was trying to freeze her to death.
Haruno glanced at her surroundings. The trees, stripped bare by the storm, stood as black silhouettes against the sky. A faint aurora shimmered beyond the clouds, tinting the horizon green and violet. She looked around and realized something strange.
The whisper of the Worm of Ezmutheria that had haunted her mind for days was gone. She stopped walking for a moment.
"It's quiet."
Enheduanna turned to her. "You are not hearing it anymore?"
"No. It's… gone."
"Good. That means it's sleeping. You will wake it soon enough."
Then, raising her hand, Enheduanna summoned the void itself. They were inky tendrils of darkness twisting into existence above her palm. The air rippled and folded inward as the void solidified into a beautiful black odachi. She held it out to Haruno. The long blade balanced perfectly across her palm.
"You'll need this."
Haruno accepted it with both hands. The weapon was surprisingly light.
"Thanks."
"Don't thank me yet. You'll be bleeding by the time you're done using it."
Naelle, walking on Haruno's right, shook off the snow off the top of her hood and sighed.
"We can't help her anyway. Master's orders. The worm is her fight alone. We're only allowed to intervene if she's about to die."
"That's fair," Syraleh said from behind them. "Trials are meant to test strength, not teamwork."
"Still," Naelle went on, pouting a little, "I hate just standing there. We've fought a lot of stuff but now we're supposed to just watch?"
"She's got a point," Iserra chimed in, kicking at a chunk of frozen snow. "This whole 'sit and watch' rule feels so boring."
"That's because Master's pissed," Enheduanna said bluntly. "He analyzed our mission in the entertainment district, and he wasn't happy."
That got everyone's attention. Rielinne, who had been walking quietly with her hood drawn low, raised an eyebrow.
"He said something?"
"Oh, he didn't need to say much," Naelle said, rubbing her arms with a dramatic shiver. "You could feel the disappointment radiating off him like a heatwave. The man looked at us once, and I swear my heart stopped."
Esmodra frowned in confusion. "He uh… didn't yell?"
Syraleh chuckled. "He doesn't yell, rookie. He just looks at you. That's worse. You'll wish he'd yelled."
Enheduanna sighed, brushing snow off her cloak.
"He told me he was disappointed that we weren't efficient enough. Said we 'played too much' and wasted energy on theatrics. He wasn't wrong."
Naelle laughed. "Oh, come on, we had fun! You saw those idiots running around like chickens after I blew up the front gate!"
"I saw you laughing while doing it," Syraleh said dryly.
"I multitask," Naelle shot back with a smirk.
Haruno listened to their banter quietly. They weren't what she expected at all. For a group called "Null Handmaidens," they were full of life, chatty and teasing each other, almost like sisters.
"So," she began, glancing at Syraleh, "why do you all serve him?"
Syraleh's steps slowed down. The others looked toward her, waiting for her to answer.
"We're trained assassin maids from the House of Argemenes. Serving someone of his bloodline is the highest honor for us. That's our purpose."
Haruno tilted her head. "So it's loyalty?"
"More than that. It's respect. The House raised us, trained us and gave us everything we are. And.our Master isn't like the others. He treats us like people. He doesn't order us around like toys. He listens to us. He trusts us."
Naelle grinned, crossing her arms behind her head. "He even lets us eat on duty sometimes."
"Only you do that," Enheduanna corrected.
"I call it stress relief!" Naelle defended, sticking out her tongue.
Haruno couldn't help but smile faintly.
"So you all like working for him?"
"Like?" Iserra scoffed. "We adore him. He's strict as hell sure, but he pushes us to be better. The Argemenes way used to be merciless. Train until you break, or die trying. But he changed that. He actually cares."
Enheduanna nodded in agreement. "He's also planning solo missions with each of us once this chaos is over."
That got the others talking instantly. Naelle clasped her hands dramatically.
"Oh, thank the Goddesses! Finally some one-on-one time!"
"Don't sound so desperate," Syraleh muttered, though she was smiling too.
"Desperate? I'm realistic. I've seen that man in combat. He is literal perfection. I'd follow him into hell barefoot."
Esmodra blinked. "Wait, solo missions? Like, actually alone with him?"
Naelle turned to her with eyes twinkling.
"Yep. Just you, him, and the promise of death or glory. Usually both. We have asked a lot of times to do this but he said he was too busy or he did not feel like it. I'm glad he actually agreed."
"Or maybe," Iserra said teasingly, "Naelle just wants to be alone with him for other reasons."
Naelle gasped dramatically. "You wound me!"
Rielinne, quiet until now, muttered softly, "You said the same thing yesterday."
That made everyone laugh.
Haruno watched them with an amused smile.
"Do you… love him?"
The laughter faded a little. Iserra looked at her and looked like she was thinking about it.
"Define 'love.' Loyalty-wise? Absolutely. We'd die for him. Romantically? Nah. None of us have a chance."
Haruno blinked. "Why?"
"Because he's Phaser Argemenes," Naelle said with a half-laugh. "He's too handsome, too powerful, and too important. He's an heir. He's not the type to fall for someone like us."
"Speak for yourself," Enheduanna said with a small grin. "He did once call me his most efficient assassin."
"That's not flirting!" Naelle shot back. "That's performance feedback! And since when did you start talking so casually? You are always cold!"
"I'll take what I can get."
Even Haruno snorted at that.
"Sorry," Haruno said, smiling. "I didn't mean to pry."
"Don't worry about it," Iserra said, waving her hand. "You're fine. It's just complicated."
Naelle grinned mischievously. "But hey, I wouldn't mind being a mistress."
The group collectively turned to her with their faces blank. Syraleh sighed.
"Naelle."
"What?"
"You're shameless."
Naelle placed a hand over her heart.
"I call it ambition."
"You call it delusion," Enheduanna muttered, brushing snow off her sleeve.
Naelle stuck her tongue out again. "At least I'm honest about it."
That earned her another chorus of laughter. Haruno smiled quietly, watching them tease each other as they continued walking toward a dark valley ahead. The snow under their feet hissed into steam with every step. As the group climbed the final hill, the faint tremor beneath the ground reminded her that the Worm of Ezmutheria hadn't forgotten her.
This time, if she lost, she would die and loop. And if she does, she would forget all of this.
'No. I'll be the last Haruno to come here. I will make sure of it.'