Chapter 27: Johanna & Ruth

"Why did you do it?" Hydro said bluntly.

The two strangers stared at Hydro with surprise and amused gazes. The two strangers wore red noble uniforms, but one of them had a hood over they're head while the other didn't.

The stranger who had no hood was a man with silver hair along with sliver eyes and pale white skin. The man also had a single scar on the right side of his face. The stranger with the hood stared with glowing eyes. Even though Hydro could only see half of they're face, the stranger had a long snout that matched similarities to a fox.

"What are you applying pup?" chuckled the hooded stranger.

"You are not a Beast man, you're human. I can still smell the blood coming off your hand." Hydro said bluntly as he pointed at the stranger's bandaged hand.

"Ha! He got you, Johanna. What now?" laughed the scarred man.

"Shut up Ruth!" growled the hooded stranger as they're appearance shifted into a human form.

The stranger soon removed they're hood to reveal a woman's face with short black hair and dark brown eyes.

Jesse?!

Hydro froze for a moment before he got pecked by Cairo.

"SHE LOOKS LIKE THAT HAT GIRL!" Cairo squawked.

"Hat Girl?" Johanna titled her confused.

Hydro immediately pinched Cairo's beck shut as he nervously laughed. "You look a lot like someone we know."

"Is that right?" Johanna smirked as she gently petted Hydro with her gloved hand.

Hydro leaned into Johanna's touch before he flinched away. The atmosphere Johanna creates was shockingly similar to Jesse's, however there was something different about Johanna's presence... something menacing.

"You still didn't answer my question. Why did you do it? Why did you turned that man into stone? And how?" Hydro said with a stern expression.

Johanna chuckled darkly. "Didn't you know the saying that curiousity killed the cat? But don't worry little one, I have no intention of turning you into stone yet~"

Hydro shivered from Johanna words but managed to keep his composure. "Why did you did it?"

Johanna chuckled again before she nonchalantly answered. "I was ordered to do it. Nothing more, nothing less."

"You were ordered to do it?" Hydro said.

"That's right. My boss told me to do it, so I did." Johanna said in a casual tone.

I don't understand, Hydro thought as he stared down on his paws. Cairo and Artty returned onto Hydro's shoulders, while they tried to comfort him.

"People killed other people.... but you don't feel anything?" Hydro muttered under his breath.

Johanna laughed at Hydro's scared and confusion expression. "Listen pup. Killing someone changes you, in drastic ways. However, if you carried on killing. The feeling soon becomes numb to you."

"Why do you kill?" Hydro asked.

"Because it's mandatory of me." Johanna responded.

Before Hydro could ask anything else, someone in the distance. "GOLDIE!"

Hydro turned around and saw Bùtóng approaching him with a worried expression.

"Bùtóng...?" Hydro muttered.