CHAPTER 53: HEAR WE GO AGAIN (53)

Their breathing was ragged.

Boots scraping the dirt.

Heartbeat pounding in their ears louder than the screeches behind them.

"FUCKK! FUCKK! FUCKK!!" Ahrie kept shouting between gasps.

Min followed right behind, flailing a bit as he ran.

Charlotte was right behind, gasping, hair whipping in the wind.

Ahrie grabbed random stones on the ground as he sprinted. He threw one to the right—

CRACK!

The echo bounced off the walls.

Some of the monsters jerked toward the noise, sprinting away from them.

It worked.

Min looked at him, teary-eyed but proud. "You genius son of a—!"

He started copying him, throwing stones like a madman in every direction.

Charlotte joined in as well.

They kept turning—left, right, another right, another turn—until the sound of claws scraping faded behind them.

Finally, they stopped.

Gasping.

Sweating.

Silent except for the drip of water somewhere nearby.

Huff... huff... huff... they collapsed against the damp stone and gulped air like they’d been drowning.

"Almost died because of those stupid-ass, cringy people," Min spat, still shaky.

"FUCK THEM ALL," Ahrie growled, eyes already sharpening. "I’ll make their faces as chubby as I can."

Charlotte wiped her brow, then glanced up at Ahrie with a crooked smile. "Right—" she said, voice low and conspiratorial. "We should embarrass them in public." Her cheeks went pink, and she blinked, half-ashamed at how excited she sounded.

Ahrie’s grin widened, "Now that actually sounds fun."

After catching their breath, the three walked deeper into the new path.

The air shifted—soft light spilled from glowing plants and stones scattered around.

Drips of water echoed somewhere ahead.

They followed it carefully, stepping lightly.

Min leaned forward to peek around the corner—

And froze.

A face stared back at him.

"HOLY SHII—!"

He swung on instinct and punched it.

Ahrie and Charlotte rushed over, ready for a fight—

Only to find Min standing there, fist buried in what looked like a plant... with a leaf shaped like a face.

Min blinked, exhaled. "...The hell kind of botany is this?"

Ahrie cracked up.

Charlotte covered her mouth, trying not to giggle.

Her hand slipped into her bag, pulling something out as they moved on..

They followed the sound until it opened into a small clearing—

Clear water shimmered under the cave light, rippling like glass.

They stopped there to rest.

Ahrie and Min dropped flat on the ground while Charlotte knelt beside the pool, running her fingers through her hair.

"It’s so clear..." she murmured. "Oh—there’s fish!"

"Fish?"

"Fish!"

Ahrie and Min sprang up immediately.

In a world crawling with absurd monsters, the little silver things looked almost normal.

"OHHH! Looks tasty," Ahrie grinned.

He unsheathed his rapier and crouched beside the pool.

Thrust!—a clean stab.

One fish down. Then another.

He moved with a wild rhythm—slashes, feints, and quick flicks—cornering the fish before finishing them off with surgical precision.

"Diabolical," Min muttered, half impressed, half terrified.

Min was setting up the fire while Charlotte sat nearby, quietly grinning.

She slipped a small, suspicious-looking bottle into her bag and zipped it shut, smiling to herself.

Soon, the smell of roasted fish filled the air.

They sat around the fire, eating in silence for a bit before Min spoke.

"So... how do we deal with those three-armed freaks?" he asked, mouth half full.

Charlotte poked the fire with a stick. "They seemed to react to sound. I can probably lure them using my skill."

"Oww, what’s your skill?" Min asked, suddenly interested.

"I can seal sound."

Ahrie squinted, staring at her. I’ve heard that one before... he thought.

"How about you guys?" Charlotte asked.

"Oh, I can heal," Ahrie replied casually.

Charlotte blinked, glancing down at the rapier strapped to his hip.

"You... aren’t kidding?"

"Nope," Ahrie said, sipping from his canteen.

She turned to Min. "And you?"

Min looked at Ahrie, dead serious.

"So what’s the plan?"

Charlotte sighed. "Oii..."

They mapped it out quick and dirty.

"They’re blind," Ahrie said. "We distract or disorient’em with sound. Pick ’em off one by one."

Everyone nodded.

They rested, stretched, and checked gear. After a short break they pushed deeper, moving in a straight line: Min out front, Charlotte in the middle, Ahrie bringing up the rear, his eyes sweeping for anything that tried to slip up behind them.

Min lifted a hand, signaling the column to stop. He squinted into the dark. Three of those three-armed things stood ahead.

They locked eyes for a second, then melted into their roles.

Min took a breath and readied himself to bait.

Charlotte’s fingers tightened.

Ahrie eased his rapier free, staying low.

"On my mark," Min mouthed.

Charlotte nodded.

Ahrie’s grin was small and mean.

They moved.

Min crept forward, one step at a time, until he was close enough.

He glanced back and signaled. Ready.

Charlotte plucked a small jar from her bag and rolled it at the opposite side from Min.

"I’ll soften it," she whispered.

The jar cracked open.

A faint rustle... like grass swaying in the wind—spilled out.

The monsters twitched, heads turning toward the sound.

Min snatched a rock and chucked it at the nearest one.

The two drifted toward Charlotte’s trap, but the last one snapped its head toward Min and screeched.

"Oh, come on—"

Min bolted back toward Ahrie and Charlotte.

"Oii! My job’s done! Someone take over!"

Ahrie grinned, stepped forward—then immediately turned and ran the other way.

"Ekk—You bastard!" Min sprinted after him.

Ahrie laughed, spun mid-run, and charged the monster instead.

"Gotcha."

He thrust his rapier clean through its chest.

Both of them froze.

"...Eh?"

Ahrie pulled his blade free, slashed again just to be sure.

The thing collapsed, limp.

"They’re... that squishy?" Min blinked. Then started kicking the corpse.

"You almost gave me a heart attack, gae-sae-kki!"

The three of them eyed the last two monsters.

After realizing they weren’t that much of a threat, Ahrie’s excitement died on the spot.

"Boring," he muttered, twirling his rapier.

Instead of finishing them off, he and Min decided to play with them.

They killed one, left the other alive—just to mess around.

They split up, circling it from different sides of the tunnel.

"Over here, you useless freak!" Min shouted.

The monster spun toward him, charging blindly at the noise.

Ahrie clapped from the other side.

The creature jerked around and sprinted at Ahrie instead.

"Here!"

"No, here!"

"Too slow, dumbass!"

The monster suddenly stopped. Its head tilted—and cracked.

"Did that thing kill itself..." Charlotte muttered.

Both Ahrie and Min froze.

"...You broke it," Ahrie said.

"Bullshit, that was you." Min pointed back.

"Then why’s its head doing a 180, Sherlock?"

"Stretching?"

Charlotte just grinned quietly, slipping another empty vial into her bag.

They went deeper.

Ahrie and Min nagged at each other the whole time—no loot, no treasure, nothing.

Then they spotted it.

A chest. Just sitting there.

"OHHHH!" Ahrie pointed.

"OHHHH!" Min echoed.

They sprinted toward it like kids spotting free food.

Locked.

Ahrie jabbed his rapier into the keyhole. Nothing.

Min kicked it. Nothing.

Then he tried insulting it. Still nothing.

Charlotte walked over, sighed, and picked the lock in five seconds.

Click.

Ahrie and Min grinned at each other—then swung it open.

Empty.

"Oh wait, there’s something," Min said, grabbing a folded paper.

They unfolded it together.

"Fuck you. Already taken what’s inside."

Both of them froze.

Then simultaneously—

"FUCKK!"

They kept going even though the mood was dead.

Each step, their hope for treasure faded—so they switched plans.

If loot’s a scam, then monster parts’ll do.

"Which part sells again?"

"No clue."

They both scratched their heads, staring at a corpse like idiots.

Then—

The ground trembled.

The walls cracked.

The entire place started shaking.

"Shit—someone cleared it already!" Ahrie shouted.

They bolted.

Min and Ahrie each dragged a monster.

"Left? Right?!"

"Straight!" Charlotte yelled, sprinting ahead.

They burst out of the collapsing domain, gasping.

"Holy fuck..." Ahrie leaned on his knees.

The whole entrance caved in—dust swallowing everything behind them.

One by one, other seekers stumbled out too, coughing and swearing.

Ahrie and Min scanned the crowd.

No Xavier. No bitches.

The domain finally vanished

Some guild scouts nearby clicked their tongues.

"Vanishing Domain. Tch. Wasted my time."

Ahrie and Min sigh...

They headed straight back to their carriage, dragging the two monsters they got inside.

The ground was still shaking a bit, dust rising behind them from the collapsing domain.

They arrived where they parked the carriage...

The horse stood exactly where they left it—alert, ears twitching.

Still alive. Still guarding.

Ahrie and Min grinned.

They crept closer... step by step...

"Shhh..." Min whispered.

Ahrie nodded.

Then—

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The horse jumped so hard its front hooves almost left the ground.

Its eyes wide like it just saw death.

Ahrie and Min dropped to the dirt laughing, clutching their stomachs.

Charlotte giggled softly, shaking her head. She slipped something—another tiny bottle—back into her bag while smiling.

"Look at you," Ahrie teased the horse, still laughing. "Guard dog of the year!"

The horse snorted and turned its head away like it understood the insult.

"Oi, don’t sulk." Ahrie patted its back. "

They both kept teasing the poor thing until it stomped its hoof like it had enough.

When they finally stopped laughing, they dragged the two monsters closer and loaded them onto the carriage.

Blood dripped off one of them, leaving a dark trail on the grass.

Charlotte covered her nose, muttering something about the smell.

Ahrie stretched his back, looking at the sky turning orange. "Whew... finally done."

Min cracked his neck. "Now we just gotta sell these ugly bastards."

They climbed up the carriage—Ahrie at the reins, Min beside him, Charlotte sitting quietly at the back.

The horse took one big step forward... then stopped.

Its legs trembled. Veins popped from effort.

It looked back at them with the same dead expression it always had.

"...Why are we not moving?" Min muttered.

Ahrie blinked, then snapped his fingers. "Ohhh RIGHT. I forgot this weak-ass horse can’t pull".

The horse neighed, it was personally offended.

ARRRRGHHH!" Min shouted, throwing his head back. "I just wanted to rest".

Charlotte covered her mouth, laughing quietly at the two idiots arguing with their horse.

Min sighed like he was dying inside.

They hopped off.

Charlotte stayed on the carriage, watching as Ahrie and Min went behind it—hands pressed to the wooden back, faces full of regret.

"Ready?" Ahrie muttered.

And with that, both of them started pushing.

The horse trotted slowly ahead, the carriage barely moving an inch at a time.

Sweat dripped down their faces as the sun started to set.

Arriving at Glimmerfen—Probably in a few hours....