19 Hunters Incoming
Watching Butterbell, who was fervently guarding Moonlight, even though the flamehowler sat calmly, Moonlight let out a sigh. "Relax, Butterbell. None of them are going to attack us," she assured him.
"We can never be certain, your highness," said Butterbell, keeping his eyes and sword pointed at the flamehowler.
Moonlight smiled gently. "Believe me, I'm certain."
"Pardon me for asking, but why are you so certain that they won't attack us?" Butterbell inquired.
Before Moonlight could respond, Orochi chimed in confidently, "Because I'm here," her voice carried a hint of pride.
Butterbell shifted his focus to the red-haired woman dressed in red, who regarded him with a stoic expression. Her presence overwhelmed him for a moment, and then he asked while still pointing his sword at the flamehowler, "And who might you be?"
Creambell interjected, "She's Orochi, the ruler of the Serpent Forest."
As Butterbell processed this information, his eyes slowly widened in realization. "THE EIGHT-HEADED SERPENT!" he exclaimed.
Creambell nodded in response. However, Butterbell couldn't help but chuckle in disbelief. "I don't believe it. She's just an attractive woman. There's no way she can be an ugly eight-headed snake."
Orochi looked down at Butterbell, her expression now tinged with anger. "Why do you think all these creatures haven't torn you to pieces yet?"
Butterbell's laughter ceased as he met Orochi's glaring eyes. He glanced around and observed the water salamanders and the flamehowler, all sitting calmly in their places. Seeking confirmation from Creambell, he locked eyes with him, and Creambell nodded once more, affirming that the woman was indeed Orochi. Butterbell's fear was palpable as he swallowed hard and said, "Please excuse my ignorance."
"Just because Finn went through all of this to save you pixies, I will excuse you for now," Orochi replied with her usual stoic demeanor.
"Thank you," Butterbell stammered, his eyes still filled with fear as he looked at Orochi and swallowed again.
In the meantime, a strange noise of continuous wood creaking reverberated in the air, coming from the remains of the house. Everyone's focus shifted in that direction, and they witnessed a cubic structure emerging from the remaining wooden floor of the house. In a matter of seconds, a wooden chamber with a door, resembling a room, stood on the ruins of the house.
"What is that!" exclaimed Moonlight, her curiosity piqued.
"Probably my room," Orochi replied calmly as she began walking closer to the newly formed chamber.
Meanwhile, the pixies exchanged puzzled glances and directed furrowed eyebrows at Finn, silently asking for further clarification. Finn sighed and explained, "This is the first time for me as well. There's a new ability I activated recently that allows me to make a contract with other beings, enabling me to use one of their abilities. In return, they get a customized room in Nightmare."
"So you are no more a ghost. Now you are a landlord ghost," Butterbell remarked, his tone slow and mocking.
Finn, accustomed to Butterbell's comments, chose to ignore it and followed Orochi toward the room, with the pixies trailing behind him. As Orochi reached the door of the room, she noticed a nameplate that read, "Orochi, The Ruler of the Serpent Forest."
Observing this, she remarked, "Didn't I say it's my room?"
"Yep," confirmed Finn.
Orochi then glanced to either side of her. All the creatures were still waiting for her next orders. So, she simply instructed, "You all can go now. However, you must not damage this house, nor will you attack the pixies and Finn."
Soon after she issued her instructions, the salamanders gracefully dived back into the lake, and the flamehowler swiftly retreated to the depths of the forest. Orochi then placed her hand on the door handle, but before turning it, she sternly stated, "Don't come to my room without my permission."
"Got it," Finn replied. Orochi turned the doorknob, and as she entered her room, everyone caught a fleeting glimpse of its interior—a pristine, blank white space. Once inside, she closed the door behind her.
"What should we do now?" asked Creambell.
"Now that you know there's no more danger from the creatures of the forest and lake, maybe you can finally enjoy a peaceful night's sleep," Finn suggested.
Moonlight yawned and said, "Maybe you're right. I've expended a lot of magic today, and it's taking a toll on my body." She then turned to Finn and asked, "What about you?"
Finn glanced at the lifeless water salamanders lying on the island. "Perhaps some cleaning," he replied.
The pixies went to their resting place for the night, seeking much-needed rest. Meanwhile, Finn set out to clean up the deceased creatures using his devouring skill. However, he encountered a problem: he didn't have a rope to tether the bodies and teleport them to the surface of the house. So, he transformed a section of the remaining standing wall into a short rope.
Once he had the rope ready, he proceeded to tie the first water salamander's body and attempted to teleport it to the remains of the house's floor. However, when he tried to activate his devour skill, it simply wouldn't work. Perplexed, he made a call to Manual and inquired, "Why am I unable to use the devour skill?"
Manual replied, "Most part of the house is broken. You need to gain at least 50% of your Health Point (HP) to start using your devour skill again."
Finn muttered to himself, "Hmm... so it all comes down to HP." He then asked, "Manual, how can I replenish my HP?"
"Sorry, I only have the knowledge of things that are already a part of you," replied Manual.
"Isn't healing myself a part of my job?" asked Finn.
"No, you don't have any skill which can heal you," replied Manual.
"Wow," Finn exclaimed in surprise. "That has to be the worst thing about being a house. I mean, people back in my previous world could heal themselves, and they didn't even have magic. Alright, let's check my stats. How much HP do I require?"
In the next moment, the transparent screen appeared and displayed all of Finn's / Nightmare's stats.
"Health – 3000 / 7500
Mana - 6000 / 6000
Armor – 500
Physical Damage – 1500
Magical Damage – 1200
Contracts – 1"
After examining the stats, Finn murmured to himself, "Contracting with a supreme beast definitely boosted my stats significantly. But I didn't expect that Orochi's room would constitute 2500 of my HP. Impressive."
He delved deeper into his stats and skills. Meanwhile, the pixies had fallen asleep beside a bonfire they had kindled to ward off the chilling breezes.
As time passed, the sun gradually rose above the horizon, casting its warm light, yet neither Orochi emerged from her room nor did the pixies awaken. Several more hours slipped away, and the pixies finally stirred, but Orochi remained secluded within her chamber.
The pixies engaged in hushed conversations among themselves, while Finn experimented with the new skill he had gained from his contract with Orochi. This skill was called Mirage, allowing him to create multiple illusory copies of the house. It was effective at deceiving the visual senses of others, but in the end, they were nothing more than convincing illusions.
In the midst of their activities, a man's voice rang out, breaking the tranquility. "So, you're here, Pixie Queen. We came searching for you, just because we heard that you are exceptional at pleasing men," the man taunted with a mocking tone.
The attention of everyone on the island swiftly shifted to the source of the taunting voice. Four men were approaching, walking across the frozen lake towards the island. The man who had spoken was bald, his face marred with numerous scars. He wore a complete suit of metallic armor and wielded a massive sword. Behind him trailed another figure, their face obscured by a purple fabric that revealed only their eyes. They, too, were clad in purple attire, concealing even their fingers and toes, and held a substantial staff crowned with a crystal globe.
The third person wore a robe of green and white and held a staff resembling a tree branch. The last member of the group was a colossal figure, standing around 10 feet tall with a hulking physique. He was bare-chested but wore full trousers below the waist, with metallic knuckles adorning both of his hands. Additionally, he carried the lifeless bodies of two White Akuma Bears, creatures classified as a threat level C.
"Hunters," Butterbell and Creambell said in unison, their expressions clouded with concern as they rose to their feet, readying their weapons.
"How dare you speak to the queen with such disrespect!" Butterbell shouted angrily, leveling his swords at the approaching hunters.
The bald man scoffed, his tone filled with mockery. "What are you gonna do, huh? Kill us?" He laughed, joined by his three companions.
Butterbell and Creambell seethed with anger as the hunters drew nearer to the island. Finn, unsure of the situation but willing to lend a helping hand, stood beside the pixies.
Just as the hunters were about to set foot on the island, the man in purple abruptly shouted, "Stop!"
Everyone froze in their tracks, their attention now fixed on the man in purple. "There's something off about this island. Don't step onto it," he cautioned.
