- A Stranger Leaves...

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A/N: Sorry for not uploading, I had an issue with my computer, so here's two chapters instead of one. Enjoy.

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They left Neverdark soon after, together with one another, a bond growing between them. A bond that had not been there before, alluding them even during battle.

Lia was skeptical of their journey, knowing well that without Totlac they would have never been able to get to Neverdark as quickly as they did.

Though now that she looked back on it, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed knowing that she was rushing everything, fearing that time would run thin for them.

But now that they were on the road together, alone for one, she finally came to appreciate just how fast Totlac really was going. Setting out at first dawn, and only stopping when the darkness was too strong for his lanterns to pass through.

It took them a total of three days just to reach a nearby settlement - an outpost of sorts. A merchant hub for those who were on their way to Neverdark to rest and relax. Recuperate themselves before entering the famed city.

"Damn. I'm exhausted."

Groaned Rian, who was leaning against the booth wall from where they sat inside a local tavern.

"You're telling me. Three days… next time I see Totlac I've got to thank him."

Lia herself was more exhausted than she ever thought was possible. They had balanced traveling by day and sleeping by night, exchanging shifts to keep watch.

For Lia, to say the trip had been anything but exhausting was an understatement.

At one point she had attempted to buy horses from a traveling trader, only to discover the price of money for the first time.

'50 gold for a single horse. Not to mention 100 for one in Neverdark. What is this world coming to?'

She asked herself, as she rested her head on the table. It's cool surface and dim lighting, suffice only by candle light, was the perfect combination for the best nap she would have in three days.

But sadly it did not come to pass.

'I told you. You should have taken that 10,000 gold.'

Groaning to herself, Lia wasn't in the mood to be arguing with Cain all over again.

'You also said that it was enough to buy a castle. 100 gold for a horse…it must be one cheap castle.'

'I never said the castle was big.'

'Oh just be quiet and let me sleep.'

But just as she got a moment of silence from Cain, the waitress from the tavern came over to their table, barring food galore on the plates.

Lia's stomach just happened to instinctively growl, quiet enough that no one heard it, but loud enough that she woke from her potential nap.

'I should eat.'

For the past three days all it had been was the occasional river caught fish, pheasant, or rabbit. The latter of which was tough and dry.

'Finally I can get some good food in my belly.'

"...and one helping of rabbit stew."

Instantly hearing her words, Lia's head fell on the table once again.

'Never mind.'

A hot touch of wood and the scented smell of beef and gravy caught her nose, as her eyes slowly opened.

Before her sat a large bowl of rabbit, beef, and gravy potato stew. The sound of which when listed off didn't sound to appeasing mixed together, but to Lia it was like heaven on earth.

'Thank you gods…'

Before the last of the bowls had already been placed on the table, Lia -as well as Lukali and Rian had already begun stuffing their mouths full of whatever they could fit inside.

The waitress commented on the sight before her.

"Well, y'all must have been one hungry bunch of travelers to be eatin so fast."

The part barely gave much more than a nod, too busy shoving their faces full.

"All right then. I'll leave you fella's be."

Her voice was rich with a country style accent that strangely put Lia in a very appealing state.

'Good food served by the countryside. It doesn't get much better than this!'

'No, but it can get worse.'

Just as Lia was enjoying her meal and her small but calming feeling of peace, Cain instantly crushed it with just as few words.

'Not now…'

'Just look, Lia.'

Sighing, Lia paused on her erratic consumption of food, and turned in the direction Cain was suggesting.

Not too far away, across the large open floor of men and women, who danced to the sounds of the bard's music, Lia found herself staring at a group of four men, all dressed head to toe in black.

'What about them?'

'Look closer. On their shoulders.'

Heeding Cain's words, Lia turned her attention to their shoulders, where she was surprised to find a small insignia of an eagle and two arrows crisscrossing.

'What the…what does that mean?'

'They're Hunters…'

Awaiting Lia's response, Cain grew quiet and patient. However, he did not expect the outburst that came next.

'You mean you interrupted my feeding time for Hunters?!

Lia's mind yelled, vividly vibrating Cain's body at the sheer intensity of the sound.

'Feeding time? Well that's the first time I've ever heard it being called that -'

'Shut up!'

Lia returned to stuffing her face, her belly's rumbling and attempts to gather food were getting worse. Much worse.

In fact, Lia felt that if she could swallow the whole bowl of food this instant, she still would not have been full.

From inside her head, Lia could hear the sounds of Cain's mumbling as he groaned.

'For the love of…Lia!'

Flinching for his voice being raised several pitches, Lia instantly jumped in her seat, garnering the attention of Rian and Lukali, who momentarily pause their heavy eating to stare blankly at her.

Sighing, Lia relayed what Cain said to her, taking moments to pause and shove her face.

"Cain said…that those…guys…over there…are-'

'Lia!'

Again she flinched.

'Stop shoving your face and pay attention!'

"Fine, fine."

She mumbled to herself aloud, before truing back to Rian and Lukali.

"Cain said that those guys over there would be recognizable. And that we should be careful around them."

"Careful. Why?"

Asked Rian as his eyes also searched for the group of men she was talking about.

"They just look like normal Hunters to me. Except for that insignia on their shoulders, nothing else stands out about them."

Hearing Rian talk about an insignia, Lukali's interest peaked as he too began searching for the party in question.

But when his eyes made contact with the insignia on their shoulders, and his mind finally processed what he was seeing, his fork fell from his grasp, clattering on top of the table.

Catching this reaction, both Lia and Rian turned to glance at each other, before the latter questioned Lukali.

"Kid, you okay? You look a little shocked."

Luklai didn't answer, his mind too busy processing- or attempting to process what he was seeing in full entirety.

"Kid?"

Rian clasped the man's shoulder, giving him a light shake before Lukali snapped out of it, and turned to them with a worried expression on his face.

"S-Sorry. They just…"

"They just what?"

Asked Lia, whose own interest came to question Lukali.

"...I know them."

The answer shocked both Lia and Rian, who looked to Lukali for an explanation, only to find him somewhat hesitant to talk.

"What do you mean you know them?"

Asked Lia, her own mind suddenly throbbing from the potential situation they found themselves in.

"Some Hunters are more recognizable than others. Perhaps that's it?"

As Lukali failed to answer Lia, Rian offered up a possible solution, quelling the fears that Lia had growing inside her.

"No…that's not it."

But just as Lia's hopes began to rise and quell her fears, Luklai spoke, cruising those hopes from her mind.

"...then what?"

She said, cautiously with her fears on edge.

"They're part of my father's guild."

The answer was not what Lia was expecting, as she snapped upright with a bewildered look on her face.

"Your dad's guild? Those men belong to your father?"

Lukali just nodded his head solemnly, clearly still wrapped up in his own anxiety.

"Wait, hold on."

Before Lia could question Lukali further, however, Rian broke her train of thought. His eyes passed between the both of them in question.

"Who? Sorry but I'm still a little confused about this."

It was then that Lia's mind connected the dots, and she realized that Rian was never made aware of Lukali's situation, nor how the two of them came to meet.

Clearing her throat, Lia answered for Lukali, knowing that he wouldn't speak.

"Right, I forgot that you weren't aware. Lukali and I met in a guild. He offered up a partnership proposal to me, claiming that he would handle travel and expenses on this trip, while I dealt with the spiders."

"So you did the heavy lifting, and he provided the means?"

"Yeah, that's the gist of it. Lukali's reasoning for it was that we would share the credit so that he could prove to his father that he could be a Hunter."

Leaning over and whispering in Rian's ear, Lia spoke, hoping to not upset Lukali with these words.

"His father is one of the best Hunters around our area, so it was pretty important for Lukali to prove himself."

"Ah…well, that does make sense."

Turning to Lukali, Rian thought for a moment before clasping the man's shoulder and shaking him lightly, but playfully.

"So what's the big deal then? If you had planned on proving yourself to your old man, you've done that. There's no reason for you to be hiding now. Lift your chin up kid."

However, Luakli made no notion of doing so, and in fact, lowered his head even further as if the words only served to further crush him.

"Your father doesn't know you're here does he?"

It was only an assumption, but Lia had a nagging feeling that it was somehow true.

And her fears turned to reality as Lukali nodded his head.

"Also, he's not the best when it comes to parenthood. He views me as weak, worthless to him, who only cares about strength."

Rian mumbled to himself, though clear to the others who heard.

"The strongest often are. It's those who still hold some humanity that are truly the strongest."

And from her mind, Cain agreed.

'They all lose some battle once or twice in their life. But this is a fight very few will ever win.'

Lia's gut twisted, as she was once again reminded of the terrible fate that life had in store for people.

"But now you've won against those spiders. If anything, that's a successful hunt for me. Won't he accept you then?"

Lukali only shook his head, offering little to explain himself other than a few mesley words.

"But that's not what happened…"

Rian and Lia barely shared a glance at one another, knowing full well what those words meant, and what Lukali must have been feeling inside.

It had been on the second day that Rian and Lia had told him about what had really happened in the mines, and how Cain had barely been able to save his life, as well as Lia's on top of that.

But nonetheless, Lukali showed no signs of fear, shock, or remorse. He just looked empty.

And the first words he uttered to them from his mouth were words of apology.

"Sorry. I'm sorry I was so useless."

Now Lia understood where that logic had been beaten into him. And just as quickly as she realized that, did she feel an overwhelming sense of anger towards Lukali's father.

So much so, that it took Cain's interference to keep her seated.

'Look…'

Just as Cains' words faded, a shadow passed over their table, and Lukali's eyes grew wide, knowing exactly who it was even though his eyes were panned to the floor.

Instantly, Lia tensed up, sensing Rian doing the same next to her.

Like subtle clicks of a gear, the two of them turned their heads to meet the gaze of four men, dressed in black, and imposing a pressure that would have made any normal person suffocate.

Any normal person…

"Young Master."

And just like that, their voices filled Lia's ears, moving together, speaking together, and sounding the same between each other, not one difference to be found.

"We finally found you."