"Are you even alive?"
The words echoed immediately in his mind, ringing hollowly, like stones dropped into an empty well. For a moment, a frown creased his brows, but Auren quickly transformed it into a puzzled expression.
"If I wasn't alive, would I be sitting here talking to you?"
She shook her head slightly, her eyes never leaving his.
"It's not that. Your eyes—there's nothing there. I can't see anything in your eyes. That has never been the case except when I stare at... dead people."
Her voice grew somber towards the end of her statement, trailing off like the last notes of a funeral dirge.
Auren observed her for a moment and then said plainly.
"What? So you're likening me to a dead person because of that?"
She shifted slightly and bowed her head, shoulders hunching forward.
"I am sorry."
He continued to observe her in silence, studying the contours of her face. Then he shifted his attention to the last meat that was already filling the air with its sweet, tempting aroma.
Auren removed it from the fire and began shredding the charred parts with bare hands, his fingers metallic beneath the heat that would scald ordinary flesh.
"So, the other person. How would you describe them?"
"Arrogant and full of himself, but seems to be the strongest by pure combat skills. He also has red hair too."
Auren froze at the mention of red hair, his fingers stilling mid-motion.
There was only one family, one house that he knew that had red hair, at least in the Province of Hope.
"...Lucien... Lucien Don Ryusmont. Talk about a twisted play of fate."
A pale grin forced itself onto his face, cold and humorless as winter frost.
Meredith hesitated for a few heartbeats but eventually asked:
"You know him?"
"Yes, I know him. He's a very troublesome and persistent guy that wouldn't stop asking me to fight him during the Sword Academy and Preschool."
"Oh. I see. No wonder he is good with the Sword. Although you're better."
Auren stared at her blankly, surprise flickering across his features.
"Didn't know you were good at compliments."
She looked at him strangely, causing Auren to furrow his brows in confusion.
"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"
Her tone was flat, and her face void of any emotion, a perfect mask.
"What is... a compliment?"
Auren frowned with surprise, his eyebrows shooting upward.
"Huh? You don't know what a compliment is?"
Her gaze remained impassive, still as a frozen lake.
Auren's eyes widened with amazement, realization dawning slowly.
'Oh dead archons... she really does not know what a compliment is.'
She trembled slightly, the corners of her mouth twitching almost imperceptibly.
Auren frowned, leaning forward to scrutinize her face.
"Are you... chuckling?"
But Meredith did not respond. She just shifted her attention to her meat and continued eating, her eyes carefully downcast.
Auren was not sure what just happened. Or rather he was, but couldn't quite believe it.
'Did I just get played?'
Damn right he just did.
However, she did not come off as that kind of person, so he was quite surprised by this hidden facet of her personality.
He exhaled and ate in silence, his mind churning with troubling thoughts.
'If Lucien is here, that means my cover will get blown easily. Not that I care, but the several conclusions they might reach after being certain that I was killed would rather be bothersome. In the end, they'll find it easy to conclude that the Archon must want them to kill me, that I am not real, just conjured by the trial. Knowing Lucien, who wants nothing more than to surpass me, he will most likely take this more seriously than the others.'
Auren frowned as he ate, his jaw working mechanically while his mind raced ahead.
'And if he is able to convince others to believe this nonsense, I am most likely doomed. Dealing with Cursed Creatures is different from dealing with humans... although they are still Nascents and don't have their abilities explicitly awakened, they are still Blesseds in the end. I can't fight them all.'
However, killing them was not impossible. He just had to be sketchy, strategic, and meticulous about it.
He shook his head slightly, brushing away the dark thoughts like cobwebs.
'No. Let's not think about killing them so quickly.'
He was finding it easy to resort to killing recently—he needed to be concerned about that. But then again, Auren was unforgiving and vengeful. He was not going to be childish and take out his anger on people who merely wanted to uphold the will of the Archon of Light.
The true ones who owed him were the true Upholders of Light, from the lowest sentries to priests, to the Pontifex, and finally dragging the Light Archon, Hope, down for a serious conversation.
That didn't mean he wouldn't gracefully grant death to any human foolish enough to irritate him.
'Thinking about dragging Hope from his throne seems like a pipe dream...'
However, since he was considered dead...
'I don't mind wasting my entire life chasing a pipe dream. As long as it involves disgracing Hope.'
His crimson eyes glinted with cold resolve, reflecting the dancing flames before him—a small fire compared to the inferno of vengeance burning within.
Meredith shifted, studying his expression with cautious eyes.
"Again... you look like you want to kill someone... a lot of people."
Auren forced a smile, the gesture not quite reaching his eyes.
"Please do not mind me..."
He glanced at her hand. She was thoroughly done with her portion of meat, leaving only dry bones and was eyeing his remaining food with quiet intensity.
Auren hesitated for a moment, then frowned and divided the meat in his hand into two, offering her half of it.
Meredith bowed her head and received it with humility, her voice soft.
"Thank you."
She immediately went silent and continued to eat, savoring each bite like it might be her last.
After watching her for a few seconds, Auren said:
"You can go to sleep after eating. I'll stay awake and keep watch."
She nodded without looking up and continued eating, focused entirely on the task.
Auren observed her until she finished. She cleared a small space, lay on the ground, and curled into herself as she drifted off.
He continued to study her for several moments, recognizing that she wasn't truly vulnerable in sleep. Her folded position, the calculated placement of her spear within easy reach—all spoke of a practiced and mastered act of caution, honed through countless nights of danger.
Of course, he was the same. The only reason he volunteered to stay awake and keep watch was that he didn't trust her enough to sleep in her presence.
Meredith, on the other hand, seemed to be quite the simple person, or at least skilled at appearing so.
Auren scoffed under his breath.
'What a strange girl for real.'
A few seconds later, Auren heard... or rather felt... a footstep. The subtle vibration traveled through the darkness surrounding him, raising every instinct for survival he possessed.