Chapter 14
Looking at two familiar faces, Kiyotaka stood quietly. The silence between them continued as the two ladies slowly made their way towards him. Soon there were only a few meters of distance between them. Kiyotaka glanced at their thighs for a brief moment before descending towards them.
Climbing down from the corpse of a Scavenger, Kiyotaka extended his arm toward them and spoke.
"My name is Kiyotaka, pleased to meet you."
Silently observing the guy before her, Nephis slowly shook his hand.
"I am Nephis... and this is Cassie."
Without the need for further speech, he gestured for them to make themselves comfortable.
Soon enough, they were chatting around the bonfire, eating the somewhat cooked meat of the Scavenger. As they talked, they shared their experiences in the Dream Realm with each other. As someone who didn't know about the world beyond the Walls of the Labyrinth, the information they provided to him was very valuable.
After that, they took night shifts and slept peacefully one by one. As the water level rose to its maximum, fortunately, there weren't any disturbances throughout the night.
When dawn came, Nephis cooked a light breakfast for them. As they savored the taste, they couldn't help but notice a lone short figure in the distance. It was no one else but Sunny. Noticing him, they stood up and approached him.
---
Sunny was fighting his way through a swarm of Scavengers as he cursed whoever made this labyrinth.
'Curses!'
Just when he was beginning to feel desperate, his shadow suddenly saw something that momentarily sent Sunny into a stupor.
In the distance, two Sleepers were approaching him. Seeing Nephis and Kiyotaka dashing to his rescue made him feel happy.
Soon, the three of them fought back against the swarm as they retreated towards the hill where Cassie silently waited for them.
As time passed, the four of them stood on top of a hill.
Sunny couldn't help but steal glances at Nephis and Kiyotaka. Both of them displayed great swordsmanship and battle skills against the Scavenger swarm. Especially Kiyotaka, who seemed to adapt to his own and Nephis's styles very quickly.
Standing beside them, Sunny felt the need to become stronger.
---
Cassie had a dream. To oracles, dreams were the revelations of fate, and in the dream, she saw something she had to share with others. Sitting near the bonfire, she quietly spoke.
"I... saw it."
Nephis frowned.
"Cassie? What's the matter?"
The blind girl turned to them and smiled.
"A... a vision! I had a vision!"
'A prophetic dream?' thought Kiyotaka to himself. Yet again, he marveled at different Aspects and their abilities.
Meanwhile, Changing Star stretched her hand, as though prepared to summon her sword.
"Are we in danger?"
Cassie energetically shook her head.
"No, it's not that! People... I saw a castle full of people!"
She smiled and pointed with her finger towards the west.
"I don't know how far it is, but I'm sure it's in that direction!"
Sunny was suddenly petrified. His eyes widened in disbelief.
Noticing the confusion in the eyes of Nephis and Kiyotaka looking at him, he cleared his throat and spoke.
"There... towards the west, I have seen what lies in that direction! There are hundreds, maybe even more Scavengers lurking around, and not only Scavengers but also stronger creatures!"
Hearing the news, the others were momentarily silent before Nephis spoke.
"So what, it's just some Awakened Nightmare creatures."
Sunny was left speechless for a second. As he was about to ask Nephis whether she was crazy or not, he saw Kiyotaka packing his things and looking towards the west with his usual dull eyes.
'Crazy! They are both crazy!'