As the sounds of Aegiron's retreating footsteps faded into the distance, Chase turned and glared at Arthur. His eyes narrowed with irritation, his jaw clenched tight.
Arthur was the reason he wasn't with the others, staying in a much better hostel. The others, including Belinda, Kellie, and the rest, were going to be comfortable, living in a proper, well-kept building. And where was Chase? Stuck here, with Arthur, in this godforsaken place. The corners of Chase's lips curled into a thin line as he thought about it, but he didn't say anything at first.
Arthur, however, felt the weight of the gaze. He scratched his head awkwardly, his lips curling into a sheepish grin. "Heh, I mean... it's not that bad, right?" Arthur's eyes scanned the environment around them, trying to find any shred of positivity to cling to. The air here, though slightly colder, was still clean. The area had a quiet serenity to it. "Look, the environment's peaceful... You've got to admit, that's something," Arthur said, trying to salvage the situation.
Chase didn't respond immediately, his glare still fixed on Arthur. Arthur shuffled awkwardly on his feet, trying to ignore the tension in the air.
"Alright, alright, I know it's not ideal," Arthur muttered. "But hey, at least it's... private?" His gaze darted to the decaying house before him. His mind briefly entertained the thought that maybe, just maybe, the inside of the house would be better than its exterior. It couldn't possibly be worse, could it?
Arthur, eager to find a silver lining, walked up to the old wooden door. He reached out and placed his hand on the rusted knob, turning it with a slight grunt of effort. "I'm sure the inside will be better," he muttered, half to himself, as he pushed the door.
But the moment his hand made contact with the handle, the house seemed to groan, its ancient timbers creaking in protest. Arthur's eyes widened in confusion as the air grew heavier, a deep rumbling sound growing louder with each passing second. Before he could even fully turn the handle, the entire building seemed to collapse in on itself.
The walls cracked and splintered, falling away in pieces like dry leaves in the wind. The roof caved in with a deafening crash, sending a cloud of dust and debris into the air. The floor beneath them buckled, collapsing into the ground, as the structure disintegrated like a house of cards.
Arthur stood frozen for a moment, his hand still gripping the door, which had miraculously remained intact amidst the destruction. He looked at it in disbelief.
"What the hell?!" Arthur shouted.
As the dust settled, four goats—silly, bleating creatures—trotted out from the rubble, as if they had just casually wandered out of a collapsed house. Arthur, eyes wide, stood still for a few seconds, processing what he was seeing.
Then, his eyes narrowed in frustration. He could feel the hot burn of rage rising in his chest. The piece of sanity he had tried to hold onto evaporated in an instant.
"FUCKKKKKKKK!" Arthur screamed, his voice filled with the pent-up anger and disbelief he had been bottling up since Aegiron dropped them here.
Chase, having already been slightly amused by Arthur's predicament, couldn't help but let out a low chuckle. He crossed his arms, still glaring at Arthur, but there was a spark of amusement now in his eyes.
"Guess it really was that bad," Chase said dryly, his smirk widening as he took in the absurdity of the situation.
Arthur, however, couldn't care less about Chase's smugness at that moment. He fumed, his eyes burning with irritation, his chest rising and falling with each frustrated breath.
The goats meandered through the debris, completely oblivious to the situation, chewing on whatever they could find. Arthur's fury only grew. "Fuck this! I'm gonna kill Aegiron!" he roared, shaking his fists at the sky.
Chase stood back, his arms still crossed, watching Arthur lose it. He couldn't deny it—Arthur had a way of turning everything into chaos. And in that moment, the sight of him losing his mind over the destroyed house was almost too much for Chase to hold back his laughter.
But despite the absurdity of it all, a small part of Chase felt the same weight pressing down on him. This was, indeed, their punishment, and no matter how ridiculous it seemed, they were stuck with it.
The house had crumbled into nothing, leaving nothing but debris and those damn goats. There was no denying it now. This was their reality.
Arthur, still shaking with anger, turned away from the goats and toward the path that had led them here. He didn't say a word, but every step he took was laden with frustration and defeat. His grumbling curses filled the air, the only sound besides the distant calls of the goats.