"Now then..."
From the moment Reona stored the map, Eldric kept his eyes locked on her every move. The eerie feeling that followed her two simple words crept under his skin, tensing his muscles instinctively.
In the back of his mind, doubts began to creep. Was this place truly a safe place for him? Or had it been nothing but a carefully constructed trap, luring him into a false sense of safety before the inevitable endgame? His memories of how these people had treated him early on resurfaced—his heart pounding as he recalled the looks of suspicion they shot him in the beginning.
For a split second, his mind raced through terrifying scenarios: Could Reona have been planning this all along? What if they weren't trying to help him at all but were after the place where he woke up from the very start?
The more he thought about it, the grimmer his expression became. Days of living in this place had nearly made him forget how they initially treated him—not as a survivor, not as a fellow human, but as a prisoner... as a monster.
Just as Eldric's mind spiraled into paranoia, Reona's voice pulled him back.
"Do you want to come with me, or would you prefer to stay here?"
Her question was so simple that it stunned him, breaking the string of dark thoughts swirling in his head.
"If I go with you... how dangerous will it be?" Eldric didn't outright reject the idea of accompanying Reona; instead, he measured the risks. If he was indeed marked by The Stalker, he needed to know how perilous it would be for him. This was his chance to determine if Reona's words about being marked were true.
Reona closed her eyes for a moment as if weighing the gravity of her answer. With a heavy breath, she spoke, "Truth be told, it is going to be dangerous..."
"Not just for you, but for all of us."
Eldric's brow furrowed, but he said nothing, waiting for her to continue.
"The longer we spend outside in the darkness, the more perilous it becomes," she added, her gaze locked on him. "So... what do you think? I can't promise you will be absolutely safe. But I can promise you that I'll do everything I can to keep you safe."
Eldric's mouth twitched at her assurance. After thinking for a while, he just gave her a simple nod, indicating his intentions.
"Very well." Reona clapped her hands together as if sealing their agreement. "We leave in six hours—me, Jeron, and you."
Her eyes then turned to Arian, who stood silently nearby with a faint smile. "Arian, you stay behind and look after this place."
Arian and Jeron nodded in silent agreement before both men quietly left the room tactfully, leaving Eldric and Reona alone.
"Now then..." Reona began, her voice steady as she faced Eldric. "Before we head out, there are some things you need to know."
Eldric's ears perked up. He couldn't help but feel a wave of unease wash over him, wondering what else she had been withholding.
"As you've already gathered, the entity that marked you is called The Stalker," Reona said. "It's terrifying, but not for the reasons you might expect."
Eldric, anticipating her explanation, held his breath.
"Though it looks menacing with its long limbs and rows of sharp teeth, in fact, its physical strength is nothing remarkable. Excluding its inhumane speed, it is physically weaker than a normal person—its strength is comparable to that of a child," Reona continued, her eyes clouded with distant memories. "But its supernatural abilities... that's where the real danger lies."
Eldric remained silent, his attention fixed on every word she spoke.
"It can control shadows," Reona said, her voice dropping lower. "Not only can it blend into the darkness, but it also creates illusions—decoys of itself." She exhaled sharply, her expression grave. "It strikes from the shadows with inhuman speed, often knocking its prey unconscious before they even know what hit them. Once you're down, it takes its time... peeling off your skin piece by piece. And then, dragging your bloodied, skinless body through the town, making you beg for death."
Her words plunged the entire room into an eerie silence as Eldric's breath was stuck in his throat.
"Gulp" Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, he couldn't believe he managed to survive against something like that. For a moment, Eldric was thanking his lucky stars. He didn't dare to imagine his miserable fate if he was captured by that thing.
"Do they have any weakness? Is there any way to beat it?" The more Eldric listened to it, the more he realized just how dangerous it was. He couldn't help but ask Reona if there was a way to beat The Stalkers. But his hopes weren't that high... If it was really that easy to kill those things, humans in this town wouldn't have reached such a miserable fate.
However, contrary to his expectations, Reona nodded in reply. "Though it is powerful, it does have a few weaknesses."
Eldric's eyes brightened with a glimmer of hope.
"For starters, it hates light. In the presence of any light, its shadow manipulation becomes completely useless," Reona explained. "And second... it's incredibly arrogant. It doesn't kill its prey right away. Instead, it plays with them, feeding off their fear and despair. It'll chase them for days until they're completely exhausted."
Eldric nodded, taking in each detail, his mind racing with possibilities.
"And the third thing," Reona added, her tone even more serious, "is that only one Stalker will ever hunt you at a time. It won't stop until either of you is dead."
For a moment, Eldric's heart soared with the idea of exploiting that weakness. But before he could fully formulate a plan, Reona's words dashed his hopes.
"That's only if you're alone," she said, shaking her head knowingly. "If others joined in to attack it, the rest of the Stalkers will join in too, and then it'll be a bloody slaughter."
Eldric's face flushed with embarrassment, realizing how naive his thoughts had been.
"Are there other Umbrals besides the Stalkers?" Eldric asked, desperate for more information. He wanted to know whether there were other types of Umbrals that he needed to be aware of.
In response to his question, Reona just shook her head. "No... just them and... The Festival."
"THE Festival?" Eldric's voice wavered. The mere mention of it sent a chill down his spine. He had barely escaped it once, and now it seemed even more dangerous than the Stalker itself.
Reona nodded. "No one knows what it truly is, but once you're close enough, it absorbs you—whether you're human or Umbral."
A nervous sweat broke out on Eldric's forehead as he vividly recalled the terror he felt during his near encounter with The Festival. Thinking about how he lost control of his entire body, Eldric's back was cold. He shuddered at the thought of what could have happened.
"Is there anything else I should know?" Eldric asked, hoping to pry any last bit of crucial information from Reona.
For a long moment, Reona was silent, her eyes closing as if in contemplation. When she finally spoke, her voice was quiet. "No... not for now."
Eldric didn't push any further. He could tell that whatever she was holding back would come out in its own time. He nodded, deep in thought, when Reona's voice broke through once more.
"Get some rest. We leave in six hours." She left the room, her footsteps echoing faintly as Eldric stood in the dimly lit space, alone with his thoughts.
---------------
While Eldric retreated to his room to rest, Jeron stood outside, frowning as he watched his mother leaf through an old book. He opened his mouth to speak several times, but each time he hesitated, holding back his words.
"Go on, speak your mind," Reona said without looking up from her book, sensing his unease.
"Don't you think we're moving too fast with the boy?" Jeron finally voiced the concern that had been gnawing at him. His usually level-headed mother was making decisions that baffled him. He couldn't help but think that everything was being done rather hastily without even a second thought.
"Oh?" Reona raised an eyebrow, giving her son a sidelong glance. "And why do you think that?"
"Really?" Jeron couldn't believe she needed to ask. "Are you seriously asking me that?"
"The boy's only been here for three days. We've already invited him to dinner, taken him on a hunt, and we are even talking about him having children with Sarah."
Reona's face remained impassive, much to Jeron's frustration. Shaking his head, he pressed on, "You're letting your emotions cloud your judgment. This is not like you."
"No." Reona's reply was blunt, leaving no room for argument. She didn't explain or justify herself—just answered with brutal honesty.
"If that's all, then I suggest you go prepare the supplies. It's going to be a long journey." She waved him off, picking up the book she'd set aside, losing herself in its pages once more.
Jeron's face twisted in frustration as he shot a glance in the direction of Eldric's room, his eyes flashing with innumerable thoughts...