A Shocking Request.

"YOU WANT US TO WHAT!?" Vernon nearly fell off his seat with a voice that could be heard through half the village.

"Yes… Please… It's the only way…" Taylor pleaded, still coughing vigorously.

It had now been several hours since Taylor had woken. The previously blue, cloudy sky was now dyed a shade of bright orange, and the festivities from the food of the adventurers had drastically slowed.

The Hollow Slayers had sat in Taylor's room for that entire time, discussing the various things that had occurred. Taylor was blown away by all that they had missed, and their tone and face began to dampen until suddenly, they suggested something that caught all off guard…

"You want us to go to the mountain right now to slay the monster!? Why!? Shouldn't we wait until you're better before we go!?"

"Uh uh…" Taylor's head shook. "You told me that the village had nearly all but run out of food, and that your new supplies won't last for long right?"

"Y—Yes but—"

"Then, we should save them…" Taylor coughed, grasping their chest. "There is no guarantee that I'd get better soon. By then it'd be too late… If we defeat the monster, then the land would go back to normal and they would be able to plant again… The faster the beast is killed, the bigger headstart they would get for growing food."

"SCREW THAT!" Vernon roared. "If you're not feeling too well, just say the word and we'll ditch this entire village and go back home! There, you can see the best doc—"

"No Vernon… It's okay…"

"WHY!! It's their damn fault this even happened to you!!"

"Yes… And it's their fault I'm still alive… They were desperate… I don't blame them… We all… Want to survive right?" Taylor smiled with heavy breathing. "Seeing pain on the face of Iris… Or, god forbid leaving them for dead… Oh… I don't think my heart could even bear the thought…"

"Ah—" Vernon's mind spun in high gear, but no matter how much he thought, he couldn't form a response.

But, that was when he felt a slight tap on his tense shoulders. "Just let it go…" Lisvern soughed before turning around and sighing at the still bedridden Taylor. "You're way too nice for your own good, you know that?"

"Ah… I guess…" Taylor scratched their reddened cheeks.

*Ahem…* his stiff limbs stretched in the air, Lisvern stood up for the first time in hours. "So! It's decided! We'll begin preparing right away! Any objections Adam?"

"Nope, none from me." He shrugged.

"Wait wait wait! Why aren't you asking me!? How do we even know that we're strong enough to win without Taylor!? We'd be down a member!"

"You sure about that?" Adam raised an eyebrow. "I think that you're forgetting that we have a new member that joined us for this mission,"

"Alucard?" He muttered.

"Yes! Mr. Alucard can help you…" Taylor brightly smiled. "He seemed like a very nice person… He's even stronger than me…"

"Hmmm? Is something the matter?" Taylor questioned.

"Still don't like the guy huh?" Lisvern asked, but Vernon gave no response.

"You do understand that without him, Taylor may have been dead, and we would have never figured out the elder's deception right?"

"Yeah yeah… I get that! I'm still just feeling… mixed…" He gritted his teeth, eyes closed.

"Man, you can't still be mad about what ALMOST happened right? Even though it was necessary."

"Can you please not bring that up? And, of course, it's not because of that! The guy just rubs me the wrong way… Something is off about him and I can't put my finger on it…"

"Umm… What almost happened? What are you all talking about?" Taylor interjected.

"NOTHING!" Vernon vigorously shook his head. "Anyways, if we're gonna go now, we better prepare before sundown! One of you go and inform Alucard about this. Let's get going!" In haste, he abruptly left the room.

"Mhm… let's make it quick, I'd rather not travel through the forest in pitch black darkness…" Adam bowed towards Taylor before following right behind him.

"Well, seems like we're gonna be fulfilling your wish! I gotta get going too! Please take care of yourself okay!" With a skip in his step, Lisvern beamed as he waved away walking towards the door.

"I'll be fine! You guys are the ones… who need to be careful! Please… promise me you'll come back alive and well…"

"Huh???" A look of confusion dawned upon Lisvern's face before immediately returning to his normal, jolly self. "Who the hell do you think I am!? Of course, I'll come back alive! I'll take care of everyone! And just to make you feel more at ease, I will make you that promise! We'll all be back alive in no time! Don't you worry okay!"

"O—Okay…"

"Well if that's all! Next time you see me, it'll be with the head of the beast terrorizing these lands!" He laughed his way towards the open door, hands firmly on his hips before he turned around to give his final goodbye that filled Taylor with warmth. "See ya!"

Taylor's smile persisted, despite being now all alone. But, it was not long until they curled up into a ball, hugging their still stained bed sheets as the loneliness and paranoia began to set in…

"You promised me… okay?" They inwardly muttered, before abruptly, the sound of knocking intruded their space, and the figure of a shy, hazel eyed girl shuffled her feet in.

"Ummm… Sorry for intruding sir adventurer… But… I'm here with the second dose of your medicine…"

"Iris…" Taylor's eyes lit up, smiling as they coughed.

"Oh! Please don't talk too much! It must still hurt!" She panicked.

"It's okay… I'm happy you came… please… my allies won't be by my side for a long time… Would it be okay if you were to stay here and keep me company?"

"Ah— Ahhhh…" Iris's cheeks reddened and she began to panic. "It's okay… I'm not really an interesting person. I'd only bore you."

"Nonsense!" Taylor smiled. "I would love to know more about the village. And, more… about you… You do have a gift don't you?"

Iris did not know how to react. She had already known that Taylor had given her words of friendship, but her brain had yet to even fathom nor accept it all. She was still in a state of disbelief.

"Ahhh… I'm sure someone else could—"

"No… I want my saviour to do it… Do you not wanna be my friend that badly?"

"No no no! That's not it!" She vigorously waved her hands.

"Then what?"

" — It's… It's just that I… I don't feel…" Iris's shaky eyes were closed, but when she took a peek through her lids, her entire demeanour changed and she began to reconsider.

"You don't feel what?" Taylor's puppy eyes glowed brighter, and Iris could no longer resist.

"Nevermind! Please ignore what I said. I'm just being weird. It would really be an honour to keep you company!" She bowed deeply.

"Great!" Taylor cheered, although it was not long before their coughs would once again attack.

♦️ ♦️ ♦️ ♦️ ♦️

Under a thick, withering tree, Alucard sat, waiting in the safety of the shadows deep in thought, peering up towards the mountain.

He had been there when the Adventurer Taylor had woken, and he eavesdropped on their initial conversations, to ensure all was good. Now, it was simply the time to wait…

And for the past several hours, that's all he did.

But that was when he heard the crack of a small tree branch, and his senses heightened.

"Who's there?" He casually yawned.

"Oh… And here I thought you were asleep! Really hard to sneak up on you huh?" Alucard recognized that voice, it was without a doubt that of Lisvern of the Hollow Slayers.

"Please, you give me too much credit. I was simply lying down, that's all…" He scratched his head. "Anyways, what brought you here at a time like this?"

"Straight to the point huh? Well, this might be a little bit of a shock. But, we're all gonna leave right now to fight the beast on the mountain.

'HUH!?' Alucard nearly blurted, his eyes shooting wide awake under his mask.

"You wouldn't believe what happened! Taylor miraculously woke up! So, we decided to go slay the beast right now! You mind joining us? Vernon and Adam have already packed all our supplies!"

"..."

Alucard's brain spun in high gear. He had already anticipated that Taylor's awakening would help his goal of slaying the beast. His main goal was to complete the request in time for the house of wisdom, as such, he had already thought of many ways to convince the Hollow Slayers to fight as soon as possible. He did not expect to do absolutely nothing.

"Alucard?"

"Oh, my apologies, my mind is still a little slow. I'd be glad to help! I'm the one who suggested to do this mission after all." Alucard had several questions he wanted to have answered, but he decided to reserve them for later.

Lisvern smiled. "Great! When you're ready, we'll see you at the forest entrance from the back of the village! Don't be late! It would be trouble if we were forced to travel at night!"

"Understood, I promise to not take long."