(Eris POV)

Great… Just great! I told ya we shoulda' just wen' fer the small one first then the big one! [Bait]

Inadequate tribute… [Laverna]

To serve such a small thing for Master… This one humbly thinks it is not suitable as a tribute as well. The buck would've been a better choice than the doe. [Denna]

I have to agree with the meat head though… Now we've lost both of the deer. It's not looking good for us… [Eris]

Yeah! If we're da' ones who're gonna go back without a kill, Imma be so pissed! Wait… Who ya callin' a meat 'ead?! [Bait]

Try again… [Laverna]

Mmm… We can probably follow-- [Denna]

A blast of Quarks interrupted my thoughts, the air shifting noticeably.

My sword immediately appeared in my hands, everyone of me switching into battle mode.

My eyes darted around to check the area around me, all of my senses tuned for the slightest hint of movement.

After a few minutes passed with nothing happening, I slowly got out of my stance though my senses still remained alert.

Only until another minute passed with nothing happening did I relax a little.

This must be what Lian Li was talking about in the morning. [Eris]

Mmm… Insidious… [Laverna]

It is this one's humble opinion that we should head back to Master. [Denna]

Heh, I agree with her there. Master woulda know wat' to do. [Bait]

Reaching a consensus, we turned towards the way we came and began the trek through the undergrowth in the direction of the beach.

Since we had been chasing a deer through the bushes, we had inadvertently moved quite deep into the island.

The silver lining was that our chase wrought quite a destructive trail so it wasn't really that hard to follow it back.

 I didn't manage to walk very far before spotting the behind of a deer that looked like it was grazing just off the trail.

Hmmm? Isn't that the buck we were chasing? [Eris]

Eh? Dat's right! Hey! Hurry! We coulda bring it back after all! [Bait]

I unsheathed my sword, preparing to cut it down when the deer keeled over unexpectedly.

Frowning, I approached it warily until I was right on top of it, looking down at the buck that was completely still.

Dead… [Laverna]

The eyes… They are red and bleeding… [Laverna]

I switched my gaze to the deer's head and sure enough, the eyes were blood red and crimson liquid poured out of the corners. Not only that, blood was also starting to pool out of its nose and ears, creating a small puddle underneath its head.

My sword flashed out, cutting off the deer's head in a single sweeping motion.

The decapitated deer made no movement even as the head rolled away from the body.

Was that necessary? [Eris]

Hey! Ya can't be too sure 'bout these things! What if it's cursed or sumthin'? [Bait]

Fair enough. [Eris]

Cause of death…? [Laverna]

This one thinks it has something to do with the brain… Though we might need to cut it open to be sure. [Denna]

No need for that. I don't think we would be presenting this as tribute for Master. [Eris]

Agreed… [Laverna] [Denna] [Bait]

In that case, let us continue back to the beach. [Eris]

Wait… This one thinks she sees a... Well? [Denna]

Eh… Now that ya mention dat… Dere's 'nother well right over there. [Bait]

Following the directions, I spotted the wells that I found, the closest one merely a few metres away.

Both wells were made out of stone and looked completely out of place within the forest. Not to mention the fact that I distinctly remember that there weren't any wells when I came through this place the first time.

I made my way cautiously to the closest one, peering over the edge slowly.

Since the forest was already dark, I could barely see anything and the well looked bottomless in the darkness.

I picked up a stone off the ground and tossed it in, waiting for it to hit the bottom.

There was silence for a second before a soft 'plok' was heard, indicating a body of water was there.

I stepped back from the well, a little confused.

This island is supposed to be deserted, right? [Eris]

When Alpha and our followers did a search of the area, that's what they had reported it as. [Denna]

So why are 'dere these 'ittle wells all over da' place? [Bait]

You don't suppose it means this island was inhabited before? [Eris]

Negative, Alpha had explicitly said that there were no signs of civilisation found. This one thinks a well would be a clear indication of past civilisation. [Denna]

Quark Blast… [Laverna]

Hmm… That is true, the whole place got a weird feeling ever since that blast. Could it have changed the island somehow? Not to mention the fact that deer just died like that too. [Eris]

Yeah, I dunno about 'chu… But dis' place is given' me da' creeps now. Could we go find Master now? [Bait]

Agree… [Laverna]

Just as I looked up from the well, I spotted a figure standing by the second well, this one distinctly human and feminine in form.

She was wearing a white robe that stretched to her knees and had a head of long, black hair that covered her face as she slouched forward.

As though she had been waiting for me to see her, she slowly lifted up her thin arm with her fist clenched into the air.

Her index finger then unfurled, pointing it up towards the air.

Against my better judgement, I tilted my head upwards, only to see nothing but the canopy of the forest above me.

I immediately leapt back, my sword slashing out in an arc in front of me as I lowered myself into a combat stance, fully expecting the girl to have taken advantage of my lapse in concentration to attack.

Surprisingly, she did not come to attack me.

But the more mysterious thing was that she was no longer at her original spot either, having disappeared into thin air.

Before I could recover from my half-crouch, I felt the rush of air behind me aiming for my head.

Kicking the ground, I rolled away from where I had been, turning around to face my adversary only to see an empty space too.

The place where I had been was doused with water, a wooden bucket that was typically used to draw water from wells dropped beside it.

Heh… That thing got us good... [Bait]

Not funny… [Laverna]

This one is not amused either. [Denna]

Ha… Hahaha… That girl wants to play with us? She thinks that we are some kind of play thing she can humiliate us with like that? [Eris]

WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?!! [All]

VErY GOOD! SHE THiNKS WE WANT TO pLAY?! hAHAHAHA! We'LL SHOW HEr HOW WE LIkE TO PLAY! WE WilL SHOW HER HOW IT'lL FEEL WheN WE PLAY WITH HEr! mAKE HER REGRET AND SuFFEr! TEAR THIS LITTLE BASTARd TO TINY, TINY PIeCES! BUrN heR HAIr! tHIS PIeCE OF SHIT WILL DIE!!! YOU HEar THAT? DIE!! SHE ThINKS We'rE HER PLAYtHINGS?! No… THAT LITTLE bitCH Is OUR PLAYTHING!! READY OR NOT?! HERE WE COME!!! [???]

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