New world, old customs.

The journey, if I may call it that, was quite swift and, in a way, welcoming.

In an instant, we were in a dream; then, before I could realize, the moment I touched the Good Hunter's hand, we found ourselves in a forest.

It took me a few seconds to look around and sense the atmosphere. The air was dense, as if something filled it beyond oxygen.

Only after observing the surroundings for a few seconds did I notice that the Good Hunter had changed partially; his eyes had changed.

"Your eyes are blue again," I commented, looking at those two clear blue spheres. They still seemed empty, but it was more natural than the black color they had become.

"Yes," the Good Hunter affirmed, looking at the night sky, at the moon. "This body is not my real self; it's just a puppet, a shell, so to speak," he pointed to his own body as he explained.

"I see..." Because I wanted to ask, because the creation of such... "shell?"

As if he sensed my doubts, the Good Hunter turned to me.

"When you have any questions, Doll, ask. Just as you taught me before, I will teach you now," he explained calmly, his voice flat as always, but this time, it seemed to have an extra warmth in his tone.

"I understand..." I repeated my words before asking. "Why change the color of your eyes? Why create such a vessel?" I hesitated to continue, but still asked. "Is this world dangerous even for you, Oh, Good Hunter?"

I didn't know how, but I knew that at some point the Good Hunter had become a Great One, not a baby or a newborn, but one in total maturity.

"The world we're in is dangerous, very, but not hostile," the Good Hunter said enigmatically as his eyes seemed to glow with Insight that humans could never dream of reaching.

"I created this shell for discretion, not out of fear, but to avoid unnecessary trouble, to avoid drawing attention from problematic beings..." He looked at the sky one last time, scoffing as if mocking something, before shifting his gaze to the ground, staring at the earth with the same intensity.

I blinked a few times, tilting my head to the side and confused by this action. The way the Good Hunter had mocked was incredibly similar to Gehrman's, it seems the Good Hunter had picked up several of the man's bad habits.

"Was your native world so dangerous?" I asked after recovering from my slight confusion. "I don't remember you saying anything like that in your stories." I was sure the Good Hunter had not lied to me, so there was something more to this situation.

Without turning his gaze away from the ground, the Good Hunter spoke again.

"This is not my native world." He seemed to hesitate for a moment, his expression becoming saddened for a single instant before returning to normal. "My native world is something I can no longer reach..."

The Good Hunter averted his eyes from the ground, his forehead slightly furrowed, and looked into the distance, watching something only he could see.

"My 'home' Earth, so to speak, bans, denies the supernatural as an absolute rule. Even my current self doesn't have the ability to pierce such a barrier."

After explaining, the Good Hunter nodded before pointing to his eyes with his left hand. Only then did I realize I was still holding his right hand.

Strangely, I didn't feel like letting go.

"To answer your other question, the eye color is just cosmetic. Just something I did for a very distant nostalgia..." At the end of his words, the Good Hunter began to walk, guiding me gently through the forest.

I followed closely without hesitation, our hands still together...

"Since this is not your world, where are we going then?" I asked after a few minutes of walking.

The forest, even at night, was silent, but that was to be expected; after all, the animals hid from a larger predator.

"Just wandering, seeing how far we can go. I have no destination in mind," the Good Hunter replied calmly. "We can pick up the pace if you want." The Good Hunter offered.

"No. This is fine as it is." I liked such a nocturnal stroll; it was... soothing in a way, even if I didn't know why...

Without further words, we continued walking through the forest, the moon shining faintly in the sky...

[…]

We wandered for a few days, without a concrete direction, just appreciating nature and each other's company.

We took a few breaks, as the Good Hunter no longer needed to sleep, in his words, but still appreciated the act. A remnant of humanity, in his own words.

So, while the Good Hunter slept, I lay beside him and slept as well, disconnecting in a way.

Curiously, we encountered some animals, creatures that resembled the beasts that terrorized the night in Yharnam.

The Good Hunter called them Phantasmal Species, the generalized term for Phantasmal Beasts, Magical Beasts, and other beings of that kind.

These, in particular, the Good Hunter called Manticores.

They were ferocious quadrupedal animals that attacked humans on sight, as the Good Hunter and I observed from the remains of bodies and small human settlements destroyed.

We quickly followed the tracks the moment we found them, with the Good Hunter not hesitating to do what he did best: Hunt.

It didn't take long until we found a small group of humans being attacked by these beasts, three of them.

They were fighting, or rather, decimating about twenty men who seemed to be fighting in a desperate manner.

I didn't take long to figure out why; the women and children fleeing a little further away were the reason why, even though being killed, they did not flee.

"Doll, please..." The voice of the Good Hunter echoed from my side. "Protect the children and women. I'll hunt..." Without further words, he accelerated, his body blurring even to my eyes and appearing in the midst of the beasts.

I didn't hesitate to follow his command, but a small part of my attention was still focused on the Good Hunter's hunt.

Even though he insisted that the body he was in, this shell, was restrictive, his movements didn't seem so.

He moved in a fluid and beastly manner, as if the simple act of hunting was ingrained within his being, his soul, that even in an artificial body, it wasn't hindered.

The moment the Good Hunter appeared in the midst of the beasts, the three Manticores turned quickly, their fur bristling, finally realizing they were no longer the predators in this hunt.

Before I could even reach the group of women and children, the hunt was already over.

The first Manticore was quickly killed with a fierce blow from the Good Hunter using the Saw Cleaver. The weapon, even after hundreds of hunts, was still intact, exuding a bloody aura.

The second Manticore, which was paralyzed, I guessed out of fear, was killed with another blow, as fierce as the previous one, practically tearing the beast's head from its neck.

In these few moments, the third Manticore moved, not to attack the Good Hunter, but to flee. It didn't even seem like a conscious action, but rather its body moving to escape on its own.

Fleeing from a much, much bigger predator.

It hadn't gone wrong; before the beast could take the first step, the Good Hunter appeared in front of the creature, thrusting his hand into its chest and tearing it apart in a single Visceral Attack.

The Good Hunter was flawless as always.

Taking my attention away from the Good Hunter, I went to the group of women who were still running, unaware that the beasts chasing them had been killed.

With a few steps, I covered the remaining distance and stood in front of them, forcing the group to stop.

They seemed frightened by my presence at first; then, without hesitation, they began to kneel, pulling down the children who hesitated with force.

"Mercy, O Great Goddess, please, save our husbands, fathers, and brothers, I implore you!" The first woman, who seemed to be the leader of this fleeing group, exclaimed while prostrating herself, not lifting her head.

I tilted my head to the side in confusion... Goddess? Why was she calling me that?

"Rise, miss, the Good Hunter has already taken care of the beasts that were causing you distress." I lowered myself slowly, helping the woman to stand.

With my actions and my words, one by one, the women began to stand up, holding the children who were still scared by all the events.

I smiled as gently as I could and took a step back.

It seemed to have been effective, as the leader visibly relaxed before widening her eyes and turning, looking to where the group of men was fighting earlier.

One by one, everyone in this group turned, looking in the same direction, only to be met with the scene of the Good Hunter talking to the group of men.

"Come on, you're safe now." I spoke calmly as I took the first step, guiding the group back, after all, the Good Hunter had made a request.

I didn't need to turn around to know that they were following me.

Approaching the group of men in front of the Good Hunter, I could see that the men looked scared, fearful even, with looks of both respect and fear in their eyes.

The Good Hunter seemed to ignore the looks and turned in my direction.

"Thank you for the help, Doll." He quickly glanced at the group of women behind me before saying, "No serious injuries?"

I shook my head denying. They were all tired, slightly malnourished, and with minor scratches, but no serious injuries.

"Good..." The Good Hunter said as he turned, facing the man who seemed to be the leader of the group. "You told me you were the leader of this group. May I know your name?" His speech was noble and calm.

Even now, the Good Hunter still maintained the manners and etiquette he had learned years ago.

"N... Naram, O Lord God, this one's name is Naram." The man said in a trembling manner but did not prostrate himself. It was likely that the Good Hunter had told him not to do so in the brief conversation they had before we arrived here.

The Good Hunter nodded in response and briefly looked at the wounded men and the dead.

"Take care of your wounds and the wounds of your men." The Good Hunter said as some little ones appeared on the ground next to him, bringing light healing items like bandages and antiseptics.

"Take these, perform your funeral rites, don't rush, when you're done, come talk to me." The Good Hunter handed healing items to the man who trembled as the Good Hunter approached him and turned, walking to a nearby rock and sitting down.

I followed his steps and sat beside him as we watched the group of survivors patch themselves up, cry for their losses, cry for being alive, and then start digging graves for the dead.

After a few minutes, while the holes for the graves were being dug, the leader, Naram, walked up to the rock where we were, hesitating.

"O Great Goddess and God, I thank you again for the help, for saving us." The man said the moment he approached, bowing his head.

I remained silent, letting the Good Hunter speak.

"Raise your head; I am not a god, Naram, I am just a Hunter." The Good Hunter said calmly as he stood up. I could sense the slight amusement in his voice when Naram compared him to a god.

Naram hesitantly lifted his head. I could see that he didn't believe the Good Hunter's words about not being a god, but he didn't say anything to contradict him.

"Tell me, Naram, what will you and your group do now? Do you have a place to return to?" The Good Hunter asked while looking at the group in the distance.

The trail of destroyed villages and settlements was a bad sign for this question. Confirming my thoughts, Naram shook his head with a sad look on his face.

"No, O Great Hunter, we have been wandering for weeks, hunted by these sadistic beasts." He had a furious and depressed look on his face, hating the situation he and his group found themselves in.

"They hunt us not for food but for amusement, killing a few of us before taking the bodies while seeming to laugh at our misery..." He finished, seeming to age years as he spoke.

The Good Hunter remained silent momentarily before responding.

"Did you have any destination in mind while fleeing? Or were you just hoping to shake off the beasts?" I could see the Good Hunter's eyes glowing with Insight, looking into the distance at something only he could see.

"We were seeking refuge, heading towards the great city of Uruk, Great Hunter." The man had a slight hope in his voice as he explained.

"I implore you, Great Hunter, please help us." Naram said after hesitating, bowing as he asked for help. "We won't be able to survive much longer alone, I implore you, I beg you, protect us on this journey!"

This time, he didn't hesitate to prostrate himself completely, putting his head on the ground.

"I have little to offer, but I can offer my life; I will become your slave, I will die if you wish, but please, I implore you, save my people!"

I could see tears streaming down his face as he spoke these words.

I remained silent and simply observed the interaction. It wasn't my place to speak; the Good Hunter would decide whether to help or not, and I would only follow.

But I knew the answer...

"Rise, Naram." The Good Hunter ordered, his voice becoming more serious.

When Naram stood up, the Good Hunter continued speaking.

"I don't want your life..." I could see Naram's eyes dulling, a desperation emerging in them before hearing the Good Hunter's next words.

"But I will help you, hunt the beasts that torment your people."

While we waited for Naram's group to finish digging the graves, to start walking, I asked the Good Hunter.

"Old customs?" I said.

"Old customs." The Good Hunter replied.

... After all, hunting beasts without anything in return was what Hunters did.

And the Good Hunter was the best hunter...

[...] -- [...]

Here is the second chapter. It was supposed to be released on Saturday, but I ended up being out all day. I apologize for that.

I introduced a bit of how the story will unfold in this chapter and portrayed the character of the Good Hunter and the Doll.

Well, feel free to comment on what you thought and share any theories you have about the story!