After finding a safe hiding spot for Cassie, Sunny and Nephis advanced to confront the scavengers. In the distance, two hulking silhouettes loomed. Miguel followed behind, calm as ever—probably just showing off.
With her lips pressed into a thin line, Nephis threw a glance over her shoulder.
"Keep up."
Then, like a runner poised on the starting block, she dropped into a crouch, inhaled deeply... and launched forward.
"Damn!" Sunny cursed, diving into the deep shadow cast by the labyrinth wall to follow. He sprinted with everything he had, but the distance between them kept growing.
He couldn't help but recall their first time walking together—crossing the bridge into the Academy. Was this his fate? Always following behind Changing Star?
Nephis moved like an arrow loosed from a bow, her silver hair trailing behind her like a banner. One hand gripped her sword low, the other cut through the air with each stride.
But you didn't come here to see Nephis, did you?
Miguel blurred forward, turning into a mirage. In one explosive step, he closed the distance in a blink, reappearing in front of the carapace scavenger. The monster reacted instantly, swinging its pincers with terrifying speed—yet they passed through thin air. Miguel had already teleported a few meters behind.
Spinning like a buzzsaw, he lunged for the beast's legs. But the scavenger wasn't waiting to die—it moved one of its pincers, forcing Miguel's blade to clash against its adamantine armor. The impact was so jarring it threw the Yamato off-course, leaving Miguel exposed.
The beast retaliated with a vicious pincer strike aimed at his head.
"You're too slow" Miguel muttered.
He vanished mid-motion and reappeared two meters above the pincer. As he descended, he executed a diagonal slash, severing the pincer clean off with surgical precision.
Before he even hit the ground, Miguel teleported again, delivering a wide horizontal cut that cleaved four of the creature's eight legs clean off. The scavenger collapsed, screeching in agony. Miguel didn't hesitate. His blade flashed again, piercing the thin concave point behind its head—the armor cracked, and with a final twitch, the monster went still.
[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Carapace Scavenger]
[...The demon within you merges with your human self.]
Miguel scoffed and wiped imaginary sweat from his brow. "Too much damn effort for two miserable soul fragments. At this rate, I won't saturate my core even after a year."
[Soul Fragments: 35/1000]
He turned just in time to see Sunny and Nephis finish off their own target, almost in sync.
"You guys good?" Miguel called out.
Sunny, for some reason, looked away awkwardly, while Nephis stood behind the hulking corpse of the slain scavenger. Miguel didn't ask questions—he was already making his way back to Cassie.
As he approached, Cassie called out hesitantly.
"Miguel?"
He didn't answer. Instead, he had the brilliant idea to pull a prank. Mimicking the screech of a scavenger with terrifying accuracy, he watched as Cassie froze, her face drained of all color.
Pure, primal fear overtook her face. She didn't even scream—if a scavenger was near, that meant her friends were dead. There'd be no one left to save her.
Miguel's smile disappeared instantly.
"Oh no... Cassie—I... I didn't mean to scare you."
Tears welled in her eyes. A horrible sinking sensation filled Miguel's chest.
"I'm so sorry—damn it—I'm garbage, I swear."
He dropped to his knees, then all the way to the ground, bowing low in front of her, his forehead against the mud.
"Please don't cry. That was a stupid joke. I'm sorry."
Just then, Sunny arrived and blinked in disbelief at the sight.
"Stop tormenting him, Cassie. The poor guy's already groveling."
Cassie suddenly giggled, and Miguel lifted his head in shock.
"...What?"
"I was just messing with you. No need to fall apart over it," she said, smiling sweetly. "That's what you get for trying to prank me."
Miguel stared blankly.
'She's not as innocent as I thought...'
"Quit fooling around," Nephis said flatly as she walked up.
Before they moved out again, Nephis turned to the others.
"Memory?"
Miguel shook his head. Sunny, on the other hand, perked up.
"Let me check..."
He focused for a moment, then grinned.
"I got an Echo."
Nephis's eyes widened slightly.
Cassie gasped. "An Echo? You actually got one?!"
"Yep."
Sunny summoned it without hesitation. A few sparks of white light spiraled in the air, quickly forming the solid shape of a carapace scavenger. Its black chitin gleamed under the dull light. Sunny patted its back with pride.
Miguel looked at the Echo, It was practically the same as the originals with the slight difference that it lacked the mindless fury, "We should make Cassie sit on it."
Nephis studied the Echo, then nodded once, approving.
Cassie tilted her head. "Wait... are you saying it can carry me?"
Sunny chuckled. "This bad boy's built like a tank. Trust me, I've ridden a few. Plenty of room—especially when they're not trying to murder you."
Cassie hesitated but eventually nodded. "Alright. If you say so."
Miguel yawned. "Let's get moving before I get sleepy."
They hoisted Cassie onto the scavenger's back, used the golden rope to fashion a set of makeshift reins, and retrieved the soul shards from the dead beast. Then, the group moved out, narrowly avoiding another encounter.
With Cassie riding comfortably atop the Echo, their speed greatly improved. Sunny and Nephis led the group at a steady jog, aiming to make up for lost time. Occasionally, they had to take detours to avoid other packs of scavengers, but for the first time in a while, things felt... manageable.
Even peaceful.
That peace didn't last.
Sunny noticed the wind picking up. At the same time, Cassie suddenly asked them to stop.
Nephis and Sunny both looked at her, frowning.
"What is it?" Sunny asked.
Cassie released the reins and tilted her head.
"Do you hear anything?"
The three looked at each other, then shook their heads.
"No. Why?"
"Help me down."
Once they helped her off the Echo, Cassie knelt down and pressed her ear to the ground.
Miguel watched her with narrowed eyes, then slowly glanced toward the sky.
"What do you hear?" Nephis asked cautiously.
"...Murmuring," Cassie whispered.
A cold silence fell over the group.
Then a drop of water landed on Sunny's cheek.
He looked up—and froze.
Dark, stormy clouds were gathering, swirling across the sky at an unnatural pace. Within moments, they would blot out the sun.
And when that happened...
His eyes widened. "No... not now."
Miguel muttered, "This damned Attribute gonna get me killed one day."
Sunny agreed grimly.