After finishing their drinks, Talon looked at Leen. "Well, I guess we will need to buy a lot of stuff, no?"
"Yes, mostly for survival purposes." She replied as she looked at her list. "I can find all of these things so it shouldn't be a problem. The rest is just planning and executing correctly."
"But, there is still one glaring problem," Talon replied seriously. "We have no idea what the Lost Mist Region is even like."
His words made Leen's face turn darker. She knew exactly what he was talking about. It was indeed the case, since this region was very dangerous, only the strong Sky Seekers were allowed to go there. Naturally, they have so information about it, but it's far from enough.
That also ant that they would have to go there, knowing nothing much about it and facing whatever threats lurk there with the few bits and pieces of info they can gather.
'That isn't very optimal. But, it is also the best we can do. This trip is bound to be a huge ss either way.' Find your next read on m_v l|e-
The duo's entire goal was to reduce the chances of getting into imminent danger as much as possible. Even though they already knew that it was bound to happen either way.
"... Though, the stuff you told so far… They seem good enough." He said in a calm tone. Leen had naturally researched this region before and that was where all their information ca from.
"I will try to find more things." She replied. "But, for now, we need to go buy the stuff necessary. Are you free now?"
"... Of course." He said. "Well, I have an hour give or take."
'I can't leave Arryn alone for too long. He must be quite anxious now.' He thought to himself. When he left earlier that day, the boy was still asleep. Luckily, he had already told him about the test so the boy shouldn't be too worried by the ti he cos back.
Leen stared at Talon for a mont before she nodded. "An hour should be more than enough to get everything. Let's go."
With that, the duo left the diner and headed toward the heart of the market district. There, they went from one shop to another, buying many items required for the trip. Things like a survival kit, tents, an axe to chop wood, clothes for cold nights, and even so survival food in case they can't find their own there.
Since Leen was very familiar with the area, everything took less than an hour to buy. Talon naturally felt a little bit embarrassed that he couldn't pay for anything since he still hadn't found a job yet. But, Leen didn't seem that bothered with it.
In her head, this was all a part of repaying Talon for his help during the first phase. In the end, they finished the trip by getting water containers and so purifiers.
"Hnnng, that was a trip…" Stretching his limbs, Talon looked at the sky. It was already night and the moon was hanging in the sky above them.
Leen stepped out of the shop carrying one bag, while Talon was carrying another bag. "Thanks for today, again. I have seen so new places in the city I haven't seen before."
The girl stared at him before nodding faintly. "No problem." She said.
"I will excuse myself then. I have so stuff to do. I guess we can et tomorrow to discuss how we're going to fight through this region when needed. Our styles might be close, but we need to cooperate, so I have to understand how you fight." Talon said.
It was indeed true that the two of them mostly relied on crushing power and enormous speed to overpower their enemies. But, so small differences like the footwork, thought process in fights, and other details could beco a huge hurdle in letting them cooperate if they don't know what the other is thinking of.
One day was naturally far from enough to actually achieve that.
"Is 8:00 AM fine with you?" Talon asked. "We can et up at Remi's diner like today."
"That's fine with ." Leen nodded as she was about to bid him farewell. However, at that mont, she heard soone calling for her.
"Leen?"
"Hm?"
The two looked in the sa direction at the sa ti, only to see a very familiar face. Soone that Talon had also t before.
***
*Earth*
Hyun-Jae opened her eyes, and yet all she could see was darkness. Nothing around her had any details on it, as if she was swimming in a sea of endless abyss. Looking around her, she felt intense unease wash over her entire body.
"Where am I?" She muttered under her breath as she tried to understand what was happening. Her mory was too blurred to rember where she was a while ago. 'Where did I go? Is this so kind of trap?'
She couldn't tell if she was in danger or not. But, she was certain she didn't want to be in that darkness.
Slowly, she stood up and looked around her. Her heart was beating loudly, and her skin felt cold for so reason.
'Why am I here? Who brought here?'
For so reason, her ability to critically think was gone, and all she had left were lost questions. It was as if her brain was numb.
With no other idea in mind, she decided to simply start moving. This place was so dark, she couldn't even see anything beyond a few inches around her.
She walked and walked, and walked. Ti passed slowly, and nothing seed to change for a long while.
Hyun-Jae grew even more terrified the more she walked. This darkness gave her this deep, primal fear that she cannot describe in words. Sothing about it felt familiar, for all the bad reasons.
'Am I completely trapped in here?' She asked herself as she looked around. The scenery was still the sa. So, she thought of sothing different.
She tried to channel her Aetheris to summon lightning. However, that was when she ca to the second shocking realization.
'My Aetheris… I can't feel it at all.' Her eyes widened slightly. 'What is this place?'
The fear in her heart grew even harder. Her head started racing with thoughts. The unease she felt at that mont was perhaps one of the worst feelings she ever experienced. Without her power involved, she felt completely vulnerable, in a place where she felt fearful.
It was as if she was now swimming in the depths of the ocean, with no arms and legs. The feeling was horrible.
As she was deep in thought, she heard a whisper from not too far away.
"Hyun-Jae."
"Hah…" She gasped as she looked up, only to see a silhouette standing not that far away from her. Her eyes widened as she recognized the back of that person. How could she not recognize it? After all, this was the sa person who had been in her thoughts for a long ti.
"... Talon…" She uttered his na in disbelief. Even though a part of her knew that this was just a fake image of him, she still could only feel her heart race seeing him again… If even in an illusion or a dream.
The young man didn't turn around at her voice calling for him. Instead, he simply stood there, not moving at all. Hyun-Jae didn't move imdiately and simply looked at his back. The longing in her eyes couldn't be hidden anymore.
'This is fake, Hyun-Jae. Snap out of it.' But, she quickly shook her head, trying to fight those thoughts. 'I cannot be seeing him here… He's…'
Clenching her teeth, she felt her eyes water for a mont before she closed them. She fought the raging emotions in her head before she shook her head and looked up, ready to deal with whatever this was.
However, her eyes imdiately landed on sothing horrifying. Two empty eyesockets, filled with nothing but an endless void stared back at her.
"... Hyun-Jae…"
The girl's breath halted as she stared at the abyss. The fear in her head exploded in one fell sweep.
"Hyun-Jae…" The creature said in Talon's voice, albeit with a very different tone than what she knew. Then, it moved its arms and simply put them on her face. The girl was completely crippled with fear.
The sa girl that had fought abominations of all kinds and never found herself completely frozen, was now unable to move at all even though she wanted to do that. 'No… Move… Move!! This isn't Talon! I need to move!'
Yet, her body didn't answer her requests. The grip on her face grew stronger as the monster stared deep into her eyes, dreadfully seeping into her very brain.
Than, the creature opened its mouth wide and from it ca sothing that shook Hyun-Jae to the core.
A//N: If you enjoyed reading, don't forget to support the book with GT and PS. Thank you!
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