With a deep exhalation, along with a faint sense of unease, I summoned the runes.
Flick--!
The shimmering runes flickered into existence. And it was then that I saw it:
Name: Dean
Origin name: UNKNOWN
Dark Core: Dormant
Dark Fragments: [7/1000]
Soul/ Arcane Relics: [Forgotten Blade]
Traits: [Contingency], [Scion Of Divinity And Profanity]
Aspects: [Scion Of Emotions]
Innate Ability: [Foresight.]
"One fragment." It was just like I suspected. "The reward gotten from absorbing soul shards isn't equal to that gotten from killing."
The realization sent a cold chill through me.
My hands twitched as my heart thundered in the tense silence.
Thump-! Thump--!
The longer I thought about it, the more the scowl on my face deepened.
It was as though something, someone, or perhaps fate itself, was trying to force me onto this cold, brutal, and merciless path.
My body tensed at the thought.
'On the bright side of things though, there was now a way to avoid arousing suspicion.' I told myself, even if that did little to quench the plethora of emotions seething within me.
Because at the end of the day, no matter how hard I tried to convince myself, I knew I had still end up giving in to the darkness within. I-I had still end up loosing myself to it.
The thought darkened my features and sent a weird feeling through me.
Though, on the bright side of things.
"With this method of absorbing soul shards, I now have one more trick up my sleeves in respect to the grim future." I nodded.
Step. Step.
It was then that I heard approaching footsteps.
"..."
I raised my head up to face the approaching figure.
"Morning."
The words escaped her pale lips.
'Weird.'
I tilted my head a little. Something about the crimson haired lady, felt… off.
However, I couldn't find out what it was. So,
"Morning."
I also said,
She paused for a few seconds, as though finding the right words before eventually stretching forth her hands.
"...?"
"You want me to hold them?" I inquired with a frown.
"No!" She glared at me.
'Then what?!—'
It was then that I caught a glimpse of the three soul shards wrapped in her hands.
"Oh," My brows perked up.
"Yeah." She nodded. "Here is your share of the soul shards."
The crimson haired lady handed over to me, the three soul shards. Though, at that moment, a frown crept onto my features.
"I—"
I considered telling her, "I didn't really need the soul shards," and probably even give it to her. After all, the stronger she was, the better our chances of surviving if we were to ever become a true cohort, or anything of remotely close design. But, on second thought, upon considering the dire circumstances surrounding the way I levelled up, I decided against it.
Mia raised a brow. She said:
"You said something?"
"Um," I shook my head. "N-nothing."
"...Oh- Alright."
She nodded with the same blank expression before walking away.
"Huh..."
I exhaled deeply, though I felt a little bit disappointed. I didn't know why at first, but it soon dawned on me.
'I could have helped out. But unfortunately, for my own safety, I couldn't afford to.'
"Perhaps a day will come when I will be able to trust you,"
I muttered under my breath as I stared at her walk away.
"Until then, I had better keep these damn shards."
That was even more so, when considering the fact that the more soul shards I had for the upcoming crisis we might encounter, the better our chances of surviving. Even if only barely.
With a tense expression, I walked towards the broken window. Staring down at the barren landscape, its ruined surface teemed with nightmarish creatures of all kinds.
A dark expression crept up my face at the harrowing sight.
However, considering the fact that not all dark creatures could enter a dune structure, I allowed myself to calm down. Even if it took every little ounce of willpower within me to do so.
At this point —even if such never really happens in this cursed and wretched land— I could only hope for the best.
"How ironic..."
That the same person who despised hope still ended up giving in to it.
***
Aezel soon woke up. Calmly leaning the blind girl against the wall, he stared at her for a few minutes or so, his expression unreadable.
With a light exhalation, he turned, and walked towards us, joining in the small circle Mia and I had created earlier on.
Flick--!
The crimson haired lady made use of her strange, incandescent flame —even if I found it a little bit extravagant to do so. And indeed it was— she was able to roast a large portion of the nightmarish creatures.
As she did so, a dark corrosive energy seeped out of the carcasses before being burnt into nothingness.
"Oh." My eyes gleamed at the sight. "So apart from healing, her flame also has a purifying effect.'
"Interesting, " I muttered under my breath, eyes squinted in amusement.
However, more than that, I was filled with every little bit of joy. After all...
'With her by our side, or rather, with her flame, we no longer had to worry about food poisoning, or in worst case scenarios, being corrupted.'
"Hah..." The thought brought a smile to my face.
The faint smile lingered as I took a small bite out of the portion of meat that had been handed over to me.
"....!"
My eyes lit up at the taste. And as though I hadn't eaten for weeks, which was honestly quite close to it, I hurriedly muched on the barbeque until nothing was left.
Nothing but bones anyway.
With a satisfied gulp, I shifted my gaze towards the blind girl. It was then that I realized that she was still asleep.
"Weird."
I tilted my head a little, then glimpsed at Mia and Aezel.
However, judging by their calm expression, it seemed to be a normal thing. So... it could be said that I was worried for nothing.
I shook my head.
"Wait... why am I even worried about her?" A light frown marred my features.
With a dark expression, I rose to my feet and walked to the edge of the dune structure, sitting there and calmly enjoying the silent comfort while it still lasted.
For some time, no one said anything, and we all sat in a tense, suffocating silence. Which was quite okay to me.
However, after a while, we had to come together in order to discuss the plan for the next few days. And the crimson haired lady seemed to have her fair share of words to say:
"...With what you said about nightmarish scavengers crowding the north. The most logical step would be to move south as soon as we can. Of course, west and east are also acceptable."
Aezel nodded.
"I also explored the east a little. But I wasn't confident enough to make it to the next dune structure before the dark mist made its next appearance. Hence I had no choice but to change direction."
He paused, as though finding the right words.
"That's why I think the next best course of action would be to spend today scouting a path to the nearest dune structure, and move there tomorrow at the very least."
And once again, I had to give it to Aezel.
Compared to the first thoughts I had of him being an arrogant and overconfident kind of person, he was actually quite the opposite.
He was shrewd, cautious, and even if I hated admitting to it, he was actually quite… smart.
Aezel turned to face Mia, the scowl on his face deepening.
"Do you have any idea where we are?" He paused, as though contemplating. "Would there be a Human Acropolis to the east?"
Mia shook her head with a grim expression.
"I've never heard of a region that fits the characteristics of this place. In any case, we have to continue moving forward to find out."
It was then that her expression darkened. If only barely. She then said:
"We'll either find an Acropolis or well… die. Hence, the east is quite a logical path to explore. Plus, it's probably the safest. At the very least, it doesn't have a horde of nightmarish scavengers crowding it."
"Makes sense." I nodded.
Though, the term, "human acropolis" left me confused. However, if I had to guess, it was probably a safe zone of sorts.
As for what kind of safe zone? That was what I had no idea of.
'Being ignorant in this wretched land is really as damned as it can get,' I thought in exasperation.
…It was then that the blind girl rose to her feet, or rather, her knees.
Flick--!
Creak.
Her face paled, while her body shivered violently, as though she had been thrown into the depths of a frozen region.
"..."
Sccrrch...!
As she shivered and gnashed her teeth together, she looked as though she had seen a ghost, or rather, something far worse.