On the day before Aaron's battle with the sea terror on the endlessly stretching bridge, two figures walked through muddied farmland.
"Did you know that over seventy percent of all air-filled caves were dug by humans? Legend says that they were made to prevent whatever ancient disaster flooded the world from destroying civilization again. Personally, I don't believe that; however, if I rambled on further, then you might run away…"
Turning her multicolored eyes towards Raphael swiftly, she watched him let out a wry smile as they walked through the fields.
"I have a mission to do. I can't run away."
His white-hair fluttered in the wind as he replied to the woman calmly, his smile like a brilliant beam of heavenly light.
She's beautiful…
Shaking his head and scolding himself inwardly for thinking such thoughts about his contractor, he gazed ahead, noticing a red flag waving in the wind.
"What's that?"
He pointed towards the object, and Ashly followed his hand, a look of realization coming over her face.
"Oh, that! It's the opening ravine of the caves! How exciting that we are almost there!"
Jumping with joy, she ran ahead, leaving Raphael to chase after her, his breath heavy as he trudged forward.
While his external injuries from the first mission might've healed, his core was nowhere near full strength, and his muscles were tight in various places.
To add onto this, ever since the moment his magic had failed him, leaving him for dead in the stomach of a giant, a patch of darkness had wedged its way into his mind.
I can't defend myself, nor protect anyone else…
Nearly tripping over a tree root, he arrived at where the woman gazed blankly at a strange object sitting in the sand.
"This is unusual…"
Her words were brief; her normally long-winded response was shortened as she reached her hand downward to grab whatever she saw.
Raphael, who stood next to her, squinted slightly, the shape of a straw doll soaked in what appeared to be blood now resting in her hands.
"Ew!"
Throwing the object out of her hands in disgust, Ashly hurriedly attempted to wipe the crimson substance on her pants.
"Ew! Ew! Ew! Gross!"
Finally, cleaning off a substantial amount of the color from her palms, she looked at Raphael, who was staring blankly.
"It's probably nothing…"
He quickly reassured the woman, shrugging off the feeling of worry that had begun to cement itself in his heart.
"Yes, it's probably nothing… We should head down into the caves before that storm hits."
Mentioning the massive dust storm following the pair from a distance, the harsh winds, and the messy orange mist beginning to fall to the ground, she faced the hatch that sealed the caves.
Looking at her dyed hands with a look of disgust, she disregarded her own emotions as she grabbed the handle, pulling at the gateway into the depths with all her force.
The sharp sound of the rusted hinges breaking away startled Raphael, but, as the woman smiled at him, all he could feel was joy.
"You ready to go deeper? Because I am!"
Beaming with excitement, she practically jumped down the rough wooden steps that lay behind the hatch, the white-haired boy only able to follow slowly.
Maybe this mission won't be as bad as I thought.
…
Aaron's eyes took in the ruined buildings that appeared in the distance, light fumes of smoke billowing from their chimneys.
Some were in shattered pieces, barely even standing on their rotted stilts that clung to the mountain sides tightly.
Others looked like they were besmirched with wet dust, their forms standing proud even in the poor weather.
"There it is."
Focusing his gaze on a large building taking the central position of the tiny village, he watched as groups of people exited with heavy wooden crates in their hands.
Walking over slowly, he waved to the nearest clergyman, a young man with short brown hair and a scraggy beard.
"Hello, sir. I'm here as part of the Hunters' Guild."
Turning his head to look at the blond boy, the brown-haired man smiled welcomingly, acknowledging the boy quickly.
"Ah, yes, I was told you would be coming. Come with me."
Signalling him forward, the two men walked through a crowd of churchgoers and nuns who had begun the preparations for the festival.
Noticing the look on Aaron's face, the clergyman laughed lightly, explaining the situation to him in a soft tone.
"Every year in early November, we hold the harvest festival to commemorate the end of the planting season. Even if we don't actually harvest the plants until spring, it's been a longstanding tradition to hold this festival in the fall."
Passing a group of nuns building a stage, the words of the man brought another question to the blond boy's mind.
"When did this tradition start?"
An odd feeling had crept into his bones, one unexplainable by normal means.
His words lingered in the air for a moment as the man paused to answer.
"Maybe four hundred years? It's poorly recorded in the history of this cathedral, so we truly have little idea."
Nodding his head at the man's words, Aaron helped him push open the double doors of the building, the scent of wood overpowering his nose.
Is this a sawmill?
Cracking a smile at his own joke, he scanned the room, admiring the architecture for the first time.
Long vertical windows were carved deep into the walls, providing a nice angle on the bare orange mountains to the onlookers.
Dozens of benches lined the floor leading upward to the central pedestal where the priest stood watching the two men walk ahead.
"Father Braun, our assistant is here."
Bowing their heads, both Aaron and the clergyman showed their respect for the holy man.
"Thank you, Elijah, for bringing him here. You may leave us now."
The priest spoke firmly, a certain kindness exuding from his speech that warmed the blond boy's heart.
However, on the inside of his mind, he remembered the Old Man's words, the warning to never pray to a deity nor acknowledge one.
It was his only rule when it came to helping Aaron, and one that he wished not to break in case it held a deeper significance than just an ancient feud.
Watching the brown-haired man leave, the boy bowed once again to the remaining priest, listening to him as he spoke.
The man's black hair was tied into a manbun, his brown robes swaying in a gentle breeze allowed in through the open doorways.
"Hello, my friend."I must offer my thanks for your help today. We have had a terrible year with many of our members disappearing… Ah, I nearly forgot. You can call me Mr. Braun or Father Braun if you care to do so."
His ominous words sent a chill down the boy's spine; yet, disregarding that, the latter nodded and quietly spoke.
"Sir, what can I help the Church with?"
Raising his eyebrows at the young boy's polite speech, he gazed inward at his soul, attempting to pinpoint which god he worshipped.
Scanning him from head to toe, the priest noticed not a speck of divine energy coursing through the boy's body, an odd sight for someone born in any of the safe seas.
"From which sea do you hail, boy?"
While pitching the question, the black-haired man furrowed his brow curiously.
Confused, Aaron answered him without hesitation, a sensation of warning creeping down his spine.
"I am from the Sea of Dreams, sir, but I don't understand how this is important to what I shall do?"
His response left the priest startled, yet, as he quickly composed himself while clearing his throat, he spoke again.
"It doesn't matter… Anyway, all you must do for us is help organize our storage facilities downstairs. If you can complete that, then there is nothing else you must do."
Taking a step down from his podium, he began to approach the blond boy slowly, his orange eyes glowing in the dim light.
"Organize the storage, got it. Could you point me in the direction I need to go?"
Asking the man his question while once again bowing his head, he felt a firm hand be placed onto his shoulder, the words of the priest echoing in his ears.
"Yes, of course. If our representative were here right now, she could've led you herself, but she is preoccupied…"
Trailing off his thought, he stretched out his hand, giving the boy specific instructions to follow before they went their separate ways.
"There is a door behind my podium, from there you'll enter a hallway that descends into a staircase. Once you reach the bottom, continue straight until you find the door labeled 'White'. That is all."
Patting the blond boy on the shoulder, the priest said his goodbyes before heading to his own quarters to finish the festival paperwork.
Watching the man leave, Aaron could only sigh while hearing Penelope's snickers from inside his mind.
『Cleaning duty for the top-ranked hunter! How comedic!』
Grumbling at her words, he walked ahead, the doorway the man had mentioned coming into view quickly.
Placing his hands against the hardwood, he pressed down, feeling the hinges work their magic and open the gate for his entry.
Beyond the door, a long dark hallway stretched far ahead, the curvature of the flow identical to what he had imagined.
『It's strange that there is a hallway that leads down, only to change into a staircase that descends even faster…』
The girl spectated as the boy walked down the corridor, his feet going down the wooden steps at a quick pace.
Reaching the bottom, a seemingly endless hallway expanded outward; though, after less than ten steps forward, he spotted his objective.
Thank you to whoever designed this place… I thought I was going to have to walk for another day for one room…
Looking down at the handle, he turned it slowly, listening to the lock creak as it was pushed open.
How much organization could there possibly be…