16 Eye.

Edwin looked at the beheaded corpse on the ground. The over-sized rat still spilled blood, further sullying his boots. The rat's head laid on it's back, seemingly looking Edwin's into eyes.

Reminded by the warm sensation of blood running down his foot, he quickly pulled out a band aid and applied it to his wounded calf. Edwin then checked on the others.

Mark had broken his shin. Bent at an unnatural angle, the injury looked hideous. Maria was already applying a splint, while Margit was already taking care of the hole. According to protocol, they had to gather twigs and place a small bonfire on top the hideout. One had to light it, in order to let the coals fall into the shaft.

The young rats would be incinerated and smoked out of the nest. Most trees were able to stand the heat, and in many cases even profited from the additional nutrients. The practice was cruel and unusual, but it had it's merit. It was cheap, effective, and it didn't require any special materials.

The four of them had their doubts about the practice at first, but after the attack they were pretty eager to start. They could understand why farmers were willing to go as far as coexisting with other beasts, just to get rid of these little pests.

Margit and Maria suggested that they'd be the ones to take care of the tasks, while Edwin and Mark rested. Edwin moved, careful not strain his calf too much while moving to Mark. Sitting down beside him, he started talking.

''How's your shin?'' Edwin asked.

''About as good as you'd expect.'' Mark answered in a mildly sarcastic tone.

Edwin nodded, and opened his index. He contacted Christopher about the incident, and quickly got a reply. 'Move to the Grinding plant, I will pick you two up from there.'

Edwin relayed the message to the others before trying his best to walk. He and Mark went to the roadside to wait for a passing farmhand.

A small carriage carrying hay soon arrived, a farmhand sitting at the front. The young man didn't hesitate, and let the two hop onto the back of his carriage. Resting on the hay was much more comfortable than resting on the dirty road.

''What even happened to the two of you?'' The young man said.

''Root-rats.'' Edwin replied with a tinge of embarrassment his voice.

The man gave a hearty laugh, before replying. ''Must have met one of their mothers. These bastards can get really aggressive when they have their young. It even happened to me when I was of your age.'' The farmhand seemed to be understanding of the situation, and didn't make any remarks.

Edwin nodded, and took a nap.

---

The Hundred eyes domain.

The man of silver was currently resting on his throne, looking at the injured Edwin. Since a lot more time had passed than last time, he wasn't actually required to go through the gruesome rebirth. The Cursed of Sight had become a bit more fond of Edwin. After all, he was the only human he had seen in thousands of years.

Edwin was standing in front of the cursed, trying to see his body.

The man in silver suddenly spoke. ''I've underestimated how interesting human life is. I want you to serve me now, and in the future. Of your own free will.'' He continued. ''I'll release your shackle, but you'll have to take one of my eyes.''

Edwin raised an eyebrow. None of what happened in this dreamworld applied to his real life, so how could he take one of his eyes? ''It's simple, really. I'll just engrave it onto your soul.'' Hundred eyes replied, quite literally reading Edwin's thoughts.

Edwin had many questions, and a deity-like creature to answer them. The man in silver then kept speaking, shattering his plans. ''If you are curious as to what will change for you with my eye, you'll have to find out yourself. Five seconds, yes or no. I do have all day, but I do not want to spend it this way.''

Edwin then reluctantly nodded. Hundred Eyes was pleased, and smiled. He waved his hand, and numerous eyes appeared around Edwin. To him, it felt like all of them were staring into his soul, absorbing all knowledge of his being. In reality, they could only temporarily absorb the knowledge before discarding it. All of Hundred Eyes' servants had the same flaw, they could only temporarily absorb knowledge.

One of the eyes inevitably shot forth, embedding itself into Edwin's forehead. The flesh on his forehead boiled and deformed, until an eye was recognizable. The eye blinked a few times, before sinking into his skin. What was left was the tattoo of an eye. It moved a few times, before finally nestling itself onto the back of Edwin's right hand.

The man nodded in satisfaction. He now had 99 eyes left, and lost an almost undetectable amount of essence.

''You did well, my servants usually are quite picky with their hosts. Surely you'll have an interesting fate.'' The man in silver said.

''This is a part of my power, use it well.'' The cursed of sight said, before returning Edwin to the land of dreams. The cruel deity initially planned to subdue and break Edwin. Turning him into a suitable host to return to the world of the living. He could fill the vacuum, and once again reign supreme although without his brothers.

However, after thinking a little, he decided to let the little one go. He knew what approached, and wanted to take advantage of that. Sparing the little boy was just an extra, and in the meantime he could enjoy his show.