A hunt to provide food for the army was the first task for Frazer’s group. They’d been told not to question Raven’s orders, and since going against the very first assignment would raise further eyebrows, none of them questioned anything. Even the fact that Amedith was accompanying them.
Dressed in his usual spy clothes–a gothic touch with a hint of makeup–he blended right in with the girls. Keeping his identity hidden and also making him seem more vulnerable than he truly was. However, with Rose, his adoptive mother, poisoned by the dryad, his eyes kept staring at Muena’s back ever so often.
’One strike and I can kill her...’ The ever-bright light of justice rooted deep within his very soul was being swallowed by the darkness of revenge. His eyes hollow, his lips pressed shut, and his body stiff in every movement, the magus was seconds away from tearing the dryad apart. But then, he heard a whisper, a whisper by Will-O hiding in his long, false hair.
"Control yourself, I don’t want you to do anything you will regret later." The fairy’s words were laced with concern for her son-in-law.
Shaking his head, Amedith snapped himself out of that murderous trance. A moment too late, and he would’ve lost what little he had left sacred, his noble heart with a fine line drawn between the good and the bad.
’We don’t have any proof yet. Shut up, head, just wait and confirm first. I don’t wanna kill someone who doesn’t deserve it.’ Unlike numerous others in his group as well as extended companions, he wouldn’t raise his sword against anyone who wasn’t proven to the absolute as guilty of something horrendous.
"Hey...Uhm," snapped out of his head by a woman’s voice, Amedith lifted his head to look at the slime girl. Wearing plain clothes, the voluptuous yet young woman held a faint smile, a hint of melancholy held within her pressed lips. Angstfully, she walked beside the spy, unaware of just how much her true feelings were trickling out through the facade on her face. "Can I ask you something?"
"What is it?" Amedith inquired, and the two lowered their pace.
Staying behind the rest of the group that now wandered through the desert for game, the girl and the magus engaged in a rather secretive conversation, thanks to the smile-girl’s effort to walk slower so that the magus would match her pace.
"I just wanted to ask," holding that same timid smile, she glanced at her companions for a second before shifting her attention back to Amedith, "How...how is it like staying around your leader? The hero, I mean–Raven, he’s the only guy from your group, isn’t that right? Same as Frazer and our group."
Gulping her anxiety, she flashed a toothy smile and prayed that her party members didn’t hear her say anything.
"Why do you even ask such a strange question?" Amedith questioned her in return.
Unsure how to get things back on track, the girl awkwardly looked to the front and heaved a sigh.
"I...I don’t know." Her response was questionable, but sensing no malcontent from her, Amedith decided to answer after all.
"You’d be better off asking the other girls, they’re his lovers. Lily and I are lovers too, but in the end, we’re sort of a family since the initial four, Aria, Mel, Raven and I, were raised alongside each other in an orphanage back home."
Furrowing her eyebrows, Josare glanced down at Amedth with a hint of confusion in her eyes.
"Isn’t there a priestess, too? What about her?" The mention of Erika reminded the girl of the crazy feat that was rumored to be her doing. And since it came to her mind, she couldn’t help but add to the question before Amedith could even start responding. "I heard she sank a city into the hells, no way that’s the truth, is it?"
"Hmm?" Carelessly turning his head forward, Amedith hummed for a bit while wandering his own thoughts. "She’s a year or two older, I’m not exactly sure, much to be honest. She raised us alongside the nuns, but after a while, she too became part of our little group and eventually our family."
Looking up again, Amedith stared right into Josare’s eyes and nodded.
"And yes, she sank the city to the hells. But Raven made her bring back the innocent folks of the city. Most of them joined our armies while the others are now staying in Athenia, either worshipping Athenia or just doing whatever they want so long as they’re not breaking any laws decreed by our king."
"Your king..." Josare muttered to herself, trying to imagine what Athenia must be like.
"Yeah, Milo Ran Ex ’Thania. He’s a greater king, better than the giants here by a mile."
"Hmm..." Staring at Amedith as they continued to walk, Josare pondered for just a moment whether she should abandon ship. Compared to Frazer and everyone around her, Raven’s group felt warmer, especially since they considered each other family.
’But then again...’ Bringing her attention to the dryad, Muena, her heart instantly folded. There was no way she could betray that woman–not through the force of alliance but due to the fear of what might happen next. ’If I do that, I won’t be the only one to pay the price. Damn this woman!’
Clenching a fist by her side, Josare swallowed that thought and began moving at a much faster rate than Amedith. Watching her chasing after her companions in the front, the magus realized what their conversation was all about. An exchange of information, albeit one without much of a defining end.
’Was she looking for something but didn’t find it?’ Amedith thought and though he was right, there was nothing he could do now as Josare realized that her efforts to break from the group would only end up hurting her more than simply staying quiet.
Like a spider, the dryad had everyone entangled in her web–a web that wrapped around their bodies, whether her victims realize it or not. Even Raven and his party have succumbed to it to a degree, and now, with plans to move forward with the army, her trap eagerly awaits their arrival in that dense, dark forest.