A few hours later..
Shhhnnkkk..
One of the long bladed ends of Tyson's weapon pierced through a wild rabbit just as he'd thrown it. Pulling the sword back up from the ground he removed the rabbit from his blade. It had been a while since he had something other then his smaller prey but now that he had stuck himself with Fae and Chi he could not afford them becoming weak either. He could not afford to let his meals remain small when he had to feed more people. Fae was a vampire and had a smaller appetite as long as he did not over exert himself but Chi was still human as far as he could tell and would require more then the both of them. Since he had trained himself well for surviving the garden each year Tyson could handle going a few days without eating but Chi could not.
Turning to look at the house in the distance where the other two were resting while he searched for food. Sensing someone else near by he kept himself alert. The presence of the man was familiar and one that he would never forget as long as they were both alive. Gritting his teeth together behind that demonic mask of his he turned around quickly. With a swing of his sword he nearly cut the man in two though the man was able to quickly dodge him by jumping back.
"First Rank and yet your mingling with a couple of newbies. How bold of you, Tyson." The man spoke. Long red hair hung down his left shoulder as he kept it tied in the back. Black leather pants were worn under a black long sleeved shirt that hat holes purposely cut into the sleeves for the man's own sense of style. A pair of red and white headphones were wrapped around his neck because he enjoyed bringing his own music to listen to each year. Just below his golden eyes he had a red tattoo that was like a line straight across below his eyes with two smaller red lines that went downwards toward his cheek.
"Zeal, you're ranker among the ten just as I am so what are you doing here?" Tyson asked while glancing down at Zeal's black belt. The man kept a line of silver bullets attached to the belt so that he could use them if the need arose. He did not require a gun to shoot them because he was capable of sending a bullet flying at an opponent with his hand that was just as deadly if not more then an actual gun.
"Forget it. I'm not after your newbies. I just wanted to remind you that hauling around those two you need to be careful or you're going to agitate the others. Only ten of us can get out alive and if you're protecting them, Tyson, that's like telling the others that you're the one who's deciding who lives and dies this year." Zeal glared at Tyson as if he was insinuating something.
"Maybe.. Maybe I am." Tyson was not sure whether or not his own words were an answer or if he was asking himself simply what he was doing himself. He was growing tired of being pulled back into the dimension every year for the sake of a god who had grown bored and wanted to use them for it's own entertainment.
"Tyson, don't joke with me here, I'm seriously trying to warn you." Zeal wasn't sure what he meant with that response but he was not willing to fight against Tyson. Zeal currently held the rank of second among the top ten survivors. He was just below Tyson in rank but they were both so close in their capabilities and rank that they naturally did not mess with each other. Having survived countless battles over the years he had come to consider Tyson a friend even though he was not certain if Tyson considered him one in return. Hearing the stories about Tyson from the other ten as well as over hearing things from Numen when in his presence he had come to understand a bit about him. Understanding a bit why he kept himself closed from from others Zeal did not have the heart to judge him by his cold demeanor.
"Zeal, I have a favor to ask of you." Tyson's face turned towards the house once more as he spoke. Not liking the idea of asking another for help especially another person surviving among Numen's Garden he had to usher every fiber of himself he could to push out the words.
"You're not seriously considering.." Zeal felt like he could guess where Tyson was leading the conversation. Hoping that he was wrong in his judgement he only continued to listen to what the man had to ask him.
"You've survived years in this place just as I have. Though not as many.. I'm sure you can understand how tiring this all is.. I'm going for the mountain peak this year." Tyson said with a heavy heart.
Among Numen's Garden not many would come to be aware of the terrain. Only those who survived and returned every year would gain knowledge over the garden inch by inch. Many things would change every year but certain things would always remain the same. When your life was at stake each year you'd want to gain knowledge and keep watch over everything to learn every bit you could. One thing that the top ten survivors knew well was that at the very peak of the mountain among Numen's Garden was one terrain that people very rarely dared to challenge.
"You're planning to take a chance against Numen?! Are you insane?!" Zeal blurted out loud before realizing how loud he had just been. Sighing a breath of relief that nobody was around to hear him he debated on scolding the man.
Every survivor who had attempted to make a raid on Numen's mansion at the peak of the mountain over the years had all ended in failure. Most had lost their lives to his hand while others were simply killed just trying to make it to the mansion alone. Traps were laid around the mountain that kept the survivors naturally pinned down the mountain away from the mansion so that he could watch in peace from his own room. Nobody alive knew what the inside of the mansion looked like except for a slim few who the god would bring inside for personal meetings if he caught interest in someone. Tyson had been one of the few who had personally been pulled inside before so he was well aware of the viewing room but not much else because he was not allowed to wander at will. He was not even aware of whether or not the god had servants but he was sure he did because Numen was not the sort to cater to himself.