The blood was still dripping from Andel's severed head when they left the castle. Nephis was holding it by the hair, her face as indifferent as always. It seemed as though carrying human heads was not even something worthy of changing facial expressions.
Levi kept Changing Star in his field of vision.
'How many people have you killed?'
The facial expressions of everyone else, though, ranged from astonishment to horror. People who had witnessed the duel stared at Nephis as though she was some sort of an avenging angel. The others treated her like a terrifying demon.
... But those were just the inhabitants of the castle. The reactions of the people of the outer settlement were strangely reserved, but even more intense. They had never seen one of them stroll into the ancient fortress and walk away freely with a severed head of a Pathfinder in their hands. Now, all of them were watching silently, an inexorable, dark, sweltering emotion burning in their eyes.
The unruly huntress opened the door before they even knocked, a hint of irritation in her eyes.
"What's with all the commotion ?! Can't a girl spend a day in ... "
Noticing the five of them, she froze.
Without so much as batting an eye, Nephis simply threw Andel's head to Effie's feet and asked:
"Can we talk now?"
Looking down at the macabre present, the huntress narrowed her eyes. Her face darkened.
A few moments later, she glanced up and said in a grim voice:
"Come inside."
***
Levi was standing , resting his back against the wall while the others stayed seated.
Effie asked in a furious whisper:
"What the hell have you done, princess ?! "
Nephis tilted her head and slightly frowned. Then, she said with a hint of sincere confusion in her voice:
"You wanted me to prove my strength. Did you not?"
The huntress stared at her in disbelief. Misunderstanding her silence, Neph blinked, then added:
"Oh. That head belonged to ... "
"I know whose head it is! Where did you get it ?!"
Sunny sighed and slumped heavily on one of the sturdy chests. Then he forced out a dark smile and said:
"Oh, by the way ... you might be the last human in the Dark City to learn this, but standing right in front of you is none other than Changing Star of the Immortal Flame clan, the champion of justice. She just walked into the castle, challenged the bastard, and killed him with one strike of her sword, right under everyone's eyes. By now, this must be the only thing people are talking about."
Levi noticed that Sunny had been uneasy since thay went to the castle. He would be lying if he said he wasn't worried about him.
Effie, meanwhile, blinked a couple of times and looked at them with a strange expression.
Then, she threw her head back and laughed out loud.
"Oh! Oh, gods! Did you really ?! This is priceless! I wish I'd seen their faces!"
When Effie finished laughing, she glanced at Changing Star with a dark, but gleeful expression.
"Alright, you have proven your point. But there's something you should know. Back when I refused to join the Host, Gunlaug made it clear that if he can't have me, no one else will. Ever since, any group that dared to invite me to join them ended up regretting their decision. By hiring me as a guide, you will be putting yourself in his crosshairs. Are you sure you want to do this?"
So there was more to her story ... no wonder she was so solitary.
In the ensuing silence, Shashi was the first one to speak. Her voice sounded amused:
"I mean ... it's a bit late to worry about that. Don't you think?"
***
The next morning, they were preparing to go on a hunt. A small crowd of slum dwellers gathered around to see them off, their dark eyes burning with a strange mix of hope and anguish.
By now, the story of Changing Star's clever ruse and heroic battle against villainous Pathfinder Andel had already flown all other the place, growing more and more unbelievable with each retelling. Now, these people came to witness her with their own eyes.
They were especially interested in the Starlight Legion Armor and the symbol engraved on its breastplate. Who knew that the Memory of a simple carapace centurion would have such an effect on the inhabitants of the Dark City?
And now, they were going into the Dark City to hunt monsters.
When the six of them were ready to set off, a sudden hum of voices made them turn around. The slum dwellers stepped aside, letting a tall young man walk through.
Levi frowned.
'Insolent mortal..'
Walking closer, Caster stopped a few meters away from them and gave a polite bow.
"Lady Nephis, Huntress Athena, Lady Shashi, Cassia, Sunless, Sir Levi. Good morning to all of you. I, Caster of the Han Li clan, would like to join your hunting party. Will you have me?"
A buzz of whispers rose from the crowd. People were shocked to see a warrior from the castle volunteering to join an outer settlement cohort. And one of such fearsome reputation, too!
After some time had passed, Changing Star simply shrugged.
"If you want."
Just like that, the proud scion of the Han Li clan had become the seventh member of their hunting party. It was strange to see their numbers grow after months spent alone in the Labyrinth, but that was probably inevitable.
Together, the seven Sleepers left the slum of the outer settlement behind and stepped on the road of white stone that lead into the cursed ruins.
... And just like that, the fates of every human in the Dark City were sealed.
The end had begun.
***
Their first hunt was surprisingly uneventful.
Guided by an experienced pathfinder and augmented by Sunny's stealthy shadow, they managed to avoid any Fallen creatures and arrive at the destination in one piece. There, the group hid in the ruins and waited for their prey to show up.
The plan of battle was discussed beforehand. After Effie had described the type of monster they were here to kill, complete with a detailed list of its strengths and weaknesses, Nephis quickly assigned different roles to different people.
Just like before, Neph was going to take most of the risk and lure the enemy into revealing its vulnerability. And after that Levi and Caster would attack to deal the fatal blow , Shashi would also be supporting with her blood manipulation in case something went wrong.
When the monster did show up, everything went perfectly. Nephis, Caster and Levi were able to finish the creature off without sustaining any injuries.
Sunny and Shashi, whose task was to join the fray if things went wrong, ended up not having to lift a finger.
Neither did Effie, who simply stayed with Cassie in case the blind girl needed protection. After everything was over, she laughed:
"Ha, this is the easiest meal I've ever earned!"
Effie's status in the party was a bit strange. Unlike the rest of them, she had not shown any desire to join the cohort officially. Instead, she was somewhat of a hired worker - her responsibilities included guiding the party through the ruins and providing them with information, and nothing else. She wasn't even required to fight side by side with them.
After the Nightmare Creature was dead, they quickly butchered it and left the scene of the battle loaded with a heavy weight of meat.
This was when something unexpected finally happened. And it happened because of Nephis.
After giving a fair share of the spoils to the vigorous huntress, she glanced at Sunny, Cassie, Caster , Shashi and Levi. Then, Changing Star said:
"I would like for you five to entrust me with your part of the meat."
'Hm..?'
Before Levi had an opportunity to ask a question, Cassie already smiled and said:
"Of course, Neph!"
Caster and Shashi did not linger, either. With a small bow, Caster nodded.
"As you wish, lady Nephis."
Levi looked at Sunny , he also reluctantly gave away his food with a muffled 'Fine.'
However when Nephis turned to Levi , Levi was not extending any meat. He simply stared at the Legacy with cold eyes. All of them looked at Levi , Nephis finally broke the deafening silence.
"Will you.."
"No." Levi interrupted her with a cold tone.
Why were the others giving up their own shares so easily? What was so special about this woman that everyone seemed to obey her with no questions? Levi was not going to agree , he had risked his life to get his own share , and he was not going to give it to her.
Changing Star reluctantly nodded , she seemed calm , however Levi could see bits of annoyance in her eyes.
"I see.."
Nephis gave them a final nod and continued walking up the white road.
When they returned to the outer settlement, she separated the remaining share of monster meat into two parts. One, much smaller part, she handed to Cassie. The other, incomparably larger part, she simply placed on the white stones in front of their lodge.
Effie looked at the whole process with curiosity. So did the slum dwellers who had gathered to welcome them back.
Sunny frowned:
"What are you doing?"
Changing Star glanced at him and then gestured to the small bundle of meat in Cassie's hands.
"This is for us to sustain ourselves. We will eat that meat until our next hunt."
She then looked at Levi.
"Levi will not benefit from this of course , since he disagreed to giving out his share."
She was about to turn away , but Levi spoke coldly.
"Who do you think you are?"
Levi was not angry because she denied him of food , he was angry because she was taking away his friends share too and with no explanation at that.
The cohort seemed baffled by Levi's outburst , especially Caster since he seemed to respect Nephis so much. However Changing Star only gave him a cold side-glance , then turned away , ignoring his presence.
"Hey!" Levi took a step forward , but stopped when he felt someone grab his arm.
Levi looked at his right , Sunny had grabbed him by the arm. When Levi stared at him with a cold gaze , Sunny simply shook his head.
"Tch.."
He pried his arm out of Sunny's grip.
Somebody from the crowd shouted:
"What about the rest? Are you selling it? What is your price?"
It was customary for the outer settlement hunters to sell some of their spoils. That was how people here fed themselves. The meat could be exchanged for items, services, or, in very rare cases, actual shards.
Neph turned to the people who had gathered around and looked at them with a frown. When everyone grew quiet, she said in a cold tone:
"My hunting party will not be selling any meat. Ever."
Before anyone had time to react, dismayed by that answer, she took a step to the side, gestured to the large pile of meat, and said:
"...Instead, we will be giving it away for free."
***
A dead silence hung above the edge of the outer settlement. The slum dwellers who had come to catch a glimpse of Changing Star or in hope of procuring some food were all looking at Nephis with a dark mix of mistrust, disbelief, and suspicion.
After a while, someone shouted:
"What trick are you trying to play? People here are hungry, Changing Star! Shame on you!"
Nephis crossed her arm, furrowed her brow, and answered:
"There is no trick. Everyone is free to take a small share of the meat to fill their stomach."
The young man who had accused her before laughed.
"Why would you just hand it out for free? Do you think that we're fools?"
Even if Levi hadn't given his share of food to Nephis , his friends had. He felt angry that Nephis was doing this , but even more that Sunny and Shashi were going along with this and not complaining , at least that was what he was thinking.
Meanwhile, Nephis pierced the shouter with a cold look, scowled, and said, a hint of anger in her voice:
"...Why? Am I not a human? Are you not humans? Does a human need a reason to help others of her kind in this cursed place ?!"
She took a step forward and looked at the gathered people, making them shiver under her heavy gaze.
"Shame on me? No. Shame on you all for forgetting who you are. We are people, not beasts. In the real world or in the Dream Realm, this is who we are."
Her words echoed above the white stones, mixing with the howling wind.
"Now come forward and take some food if you're hungry!"
The slum dwellers were still not convinced. However, their hunger was stronger than their wariness. Soon, the first of them stepped forward, tentatively took a small strip of meat, threw a furtive glance at Nephis, and then hurriedly walked away.
When the others saw that nothing happened to him, they became braver. Young men and women dressed in rags formed a messy line. One by one, they came forward, received their tiny piece of meat, and then disappeared with haste, afraid that it will be taken back.
Slowly, a new kind of light appeared on their faces. It was the same timid, weak emotion that Sunny had noticed in the eyes of the castle inhabitants after Neph had announced her name.
It was something that precipitated hope, or maybe faith.
Levi couldn't help but feel his distrust growing. He had thought that their relationship with Changing Star was getting better , however he had no intention to continue that relationship anymore.