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"They shouldn't know, right?" Bart asked, frowning. "Didn't Heimdall discover the giant dragon? Could it be we have a traitor?"
Hela didn't offer much explanation, only saying, "It's irrelevant now. The point is—Skadi knows the location of the dragon."
"So what's about to happen is not just a dragon hunt… it's going to be a dragon battle," she continued. "Everyone here knows the rules of the Hunting Festival. Hunters are allowed to harass each other to a degree, but outright plundering of another team's prey is forbidden. And absolutely no serious fights—no injuries."
She gave a cold glance around the group.
"You must all exercise restraint. No matter the provocation, do not strike first."
Hela added in a stern voice, "Lord Ullr will definitely be watching from the shadows. Our every move will be under his scrutiny. This isn't the time to get reckless."
Bart's eyes lit up with an idea. He turned and patted Rowe on the shoulder. "Hey, Rowe—don't you have that middle-finger spell? I remember it's only good for irritation and doesn't cause any real damage, right?"
"Wait, what kind of spell is that?" Some hunters who didn't know Rowe looked over in surprise.
Rowe didn't elaborate, just nodded. "I'll do what I can."
Meanwhile, the Skadi Hunting Group was also deep in discussion. Roxas leaned forward and said, "That dwarf with the warhammer… he has a spell that seems specialized for harassment. Your Highness, we should watch out for him."
"What kind of spell?" Skadi asked calmly.
Roxas shook his head. "I'm not sure. I overheard them mention it, but no details."
Skadi thought silently for a moment. "Any spell classified as an attack spell will inevitably cause some level of damage. If he's foolish enough to harass, let him. The moment he makes a mistake and one of ours is injured, the scales of judgment will tip heavily in our favor."
She added with subtle emphasis, "In past Hunting Festivals, the first side to cause injury always ends up losing."
As the teams settled down for rest, Shilute sat behind Rowe, gnawing silently on a pile of stones—one small stone at a time.
Later, as the others lounged around, Heimdall pointed at the stone muncher with curiosity. "Rowe, where'd you find this little guy?"
"I picked him up out of a trash heap," Rowe replied casually.
Heimdall raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical. "Trash heap? I thought he might be a Kronan at first, but Kronans don't eat rocks... This is the first time I've seen a creature that feeds on stones."
He gestured at the pile of rubble beside Shilute. "He eats this much every day?"
"Yeah," Rowe nodded. "I have to find large stones and break them into chunks just so he can eat. Luckily he eats rocks—otherwise, I'd be broke feeding him."
Heimdall crouched and playfully teased Shilute with a glittering ruby, waving it just out of reach.
Shilute's eyes sparkled. The moment he saw the gem, he froze, completely fixated. The stone in his hand fell as his mouth hung open, drool puddling beneath him.
"You want this, little guy?" Heimdall teased, slowly lowering the gem.
"Hey!" Shilute squeaked and jumped excitedly, scrambling to grab it.
After a moment of amusement, Heimdall chuckled. "One thousand runes."
He tossed the gem.
Before Rowe could say anything, Shilute snatched the ruby out of the air and swallowed it in one gulp. He let out a satisfied grunt, then rolled over on the ground, clearly pleased. "Heeey…"
Rowe froze. "One thousand runes?!"
Heimdall laughed. "That was from my dad's collection. I stole it. A thousand runes is probably a conservative estimate."
Rowe's eyes bulged. "Spit it out! Spit it out now! That's a thousand runes! I could buy two weapons with that! Spit it out!"
Shilute looked upset and let out a pitiful noise but didn't cough it up.
Heimdall laughed harder. "Relax. I was joking. I wouldn't dare steal a thousand-rune gem. My dad would kill me."
Rowe exhaled sharply. "Then… how much was it actually worth?"
Heimdall scratched the back of his head. "No idea. It's probably not worth much. There's a whole box of these things at home. I just grabbed a few."
He then pulled out several identical rubies and tossed them all toward Shilute. "Here. Take them all."
Shilute squealed in delight, dove onto the gems, and swept them into his mouth two at a time. After devouring the last one, he laid on the ground, rolling and mumbling contentedly.
"Heeey! Wooo!"
Rowe: "…"
But then, as Shilute rolled, he suddenly stopped.
Frozen. Silent. Motionless.
Rowe's heart skipped. He rushed over and scooped the little stone creature into his arms. "Shilute?"
The creature didn't move.
After examining him, Rowe noticed his breathing had slowed. He had… fallen asleep?
His brow furrowed deeply.
Since the day he found him, Shilute had never once slept. Not even once. It was as if he didn't need to.
And now, suddenly—after eating a few gems—he'd passed out?
Heimdall crouched beside him. "Is he poisoned? That shouldn't happen with stones, right?"
Rowe shook his head. "I don't know… This is the first time I've had to care for a creature like this. I can't even guess how his biology works."
He paused, gaze still on the sleeping Shilute. "Let's wait till morning. Hopefully he'll be okay."
Night passed.
By dawn, the two hunting groups—Hela's and Skadi's—were already assembling at the gathering point.
Rowe blinked away his sleep, rubbed his eyes, then looked down at the still-sleeping Shilute beside him. He gave him a gentle pat.
"Huh…" Shilute yawned, blinked awake, and looked around in a daze.
Rowe exhaled, relieved.
But then, as he looked closer, his eyes widened.
Shilute was… bigger.
Just slightly, but definitely larger than before.
He had eaten countless stones before and never changed. But after a few rubies? He'd grown overnight?
"Does this little guy grow by eating gems?" Rowe thought to himself.
And then… he felt it.
A heavy, suffocating, invisible force creeping toward him.
The oppressive aura of poverty.
But there was no time to dwell on it—Hela was already assembling the teams.
Rowe hastily joined the group, over a dozen hunters now gathered from six different teams.
Skadi's side was also ready. Their hunters stood on the opposite end, eyes scanning the competition.
The tension in the air thickened like mist.
"…The Hunting Festival is halfway through. If past patterns hold, the decisive moment is upon us."
Hela gave Skadi one final glance, composed herself, and issued the command.
"Move out!"
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