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Chapter 769: Time for Hunt

"Find them," said the emperor with a frown. The woman beside him was Eloisa, with her long curly hair and freckled face. She stared at the trench with interest before turning toward her ruler.

"And do what?" she asked for more intel. "Our goal has been achieved, and the citizens now think of Arthur Silvera as the enemy. So this is what you wanted, right?"

"It's far from enough," said the emperor as he stared at the sea of buildings. "The commoners now know that he is their enemy, but the outsider gravitates people into believing him. If not for the fact that I baited him into the villainous role, then he would have won."

"Then, why did he not justify himself?" asked Eloisa with a frown.

"As young and immature as he is, the outsider is a natural at understanding others' perception of him. I watched him use the perfect timing to make them believe in him, and now was not that time."

"Not the time for what?"

"To extinguish their doubts. The people are wary, and an attempt to convince them would make him look like a liar, further discrediting him. He understood that words are not going to be enough."

"Does that mean he'll try something else?"

"The moment he sat foot in Ilios," said the emperor while turning away from the edge, "a storm started brewing. We are about to witness a great change in this nation."

"Are you afraid of him?" asked Eloisa as she stared at his back. The emperor stopped walking and turned half of his face. If anyone else asked this, their heads would roll. However, Eloisa was special.

"I have been told about his arrival ever since my childhood," said the emperor with a smile. "Afraid?" he smirked. "I was only afraid he would never appear."

***

It was dark inside the vessel, and the cold water left them shivering. Nevertheless, Arthur used his runes to navigate the vessel downward and fortified it whenever it showed signs of being crushed by the water pressure.

Sounds came from outside the vessel, but the four could not see what was happening outside. However, they all knew that they were being pursued, putting everyone on edge.

"Sister Night," called Haro before she turned toward the man. "Is this man one of your acquaintances?" she asked while looking at the corpse on the ground. "He… saved me from Erin, just like you did."

Layla was silent in response, and she again glared at Arthur for not saving him. And again, Arthur felt compelled to tell her the truth. However, he had no idea if he could trust them with such a secret that would compromise their plan.

"He is dead now," said the steel warrior as she crouched down and placed her hand on his chest. "His body is so cold now. I heard you saved him, but in the end, that is what killed him," she said to Arthur.

"I know people like you," said Arthur without looking at them and inspected the vessel instead. "You need to blame someone or something, or otherwise you would blame yourself. The forger was locked underground for months, and where were you?"

"Those words are familiar," replied Layla after a pause. Although the two of you are enemies, you are similar. I mess up many things, but I always seek to fix them. How did that work out for you?"

"You were respectful until I refused to do what you asked," said Arthur with a frown before turning toward Ai. "Is this the person you chose to befriend, Saint Ai?"

"Saint?" muttered Layla with confusion.

Ai was silent in response, shrinking under Arthur's eyes. Then, he turned around and sighed before spreading his arms around the vessel.

"We left the locked space and can now teleport out of Helios," said Arthur as his telekinesis runes disappeared and were replaced with a portal. "Hang tight as we cross this portal. It will get bumpy!"

After he warned them, the vessel entered the portal. It started shaking as it passed through countless layers of compressed space, crossing great distances in a split second.

The shaking stopped before the vessel fell, making them bump their heads to the ceiling, except for Arthur. Then, it crashed into something, and Layla undid the steel to see where they were.

Sunlight escaped through the peeling steel as it disappeared from existence under the warrior's command. It stopped when the hole was big enough for them to leave, but none of them did.

Arthur teleported them toward a beach outside Helios. This was one of the few 'safe' beaches in the world, making it a rare sight for everyone. It was a part of the Anodyne Gulf, an extension of the Great Blood Ocean.

"Are you going to leave?" asked Arthur from behind them, and Layla snapped out of it. She stepped aside, and Arthur jumped on the yellow sand, his boots sinking into it.

"You brought us all the way here?" asked Layla with shock. "This must be a day away from Helios. Even though you managed to teleport us such a distance, what the hell are we doing here?"

"I came here because I have things to do," said Arthur as he took off his boots, threw them away, and then did the same for his robes. "This is the safest place to hide from the emperor. You can build a house with your astral blessing."

"Are you going for a swim?" asked Layla as she climbed out of the vessel, followed by Ai and Haro. The three women saw Arthur taking off his shirt, but Ai was the only one to look away.

"Do I look so carefree?" said Arthur while glancing at them. He then folded his clothes and placed them inside his subspace before heading toward the waters. "I need to hunt."

"Have you lost your mind? Unfortunately, this is not the time to hunt!"

"That's right. It is not. This is the time to grow stronger," replied Arthur as he walked into the water. "This place can get chaotic, so keep a safe distance or build a barricade."

"What for?" asked Layla, but the man leaped into the water and dove, disappearing. The whole incident was surprising as he teleported straight toward this beach. So, she turned toward Ai. "Do you know what he is doing?"

"Well, he said he would be hunting," said Ai as she turned toward her as if it was obvious. It made Layla sigh, and Haro started snickering before walking back to push the vessel offshore.

"We need to hide this, lest someone sees it," said Haro as she started pushing the vessel. Layla watched her and nodded before walking back to aid the archer.

"Um," started Ai, compelling Layla to turn toward her. "Even though I wanted to help, I failed everyone. I should have never told you about the revival."

"You did nothing wrong. That man is the selfish one."

"That's wrong!" objected the healer while shaking her head. "Seika is… complex. Although he could revive people, he would have to give them a part of himself. And the last time he did that, Seika watched the person he loves die in front of him."

"…that man went through such a thing?" frowned Layla as she lowered her head. "I would have never imagined."

"No one would because Seika is such a person. He hides his feelings and acts as if everything doesn't bother him. However, the moment I asked him to revive another person, I lost his trust."

"If you knew as much, what made you do that?"

"I wanted to help you, Layla," said Ai after a pause. "I came here to help the Seika, but I met you, and that changed me. The Seika is still the person I care about the most, but I care about you too."

"I care about you too, so I hated seeing how he treated you. You deserve more than a man who treats you like that."

"You say that because you care about me, but he did nothing wrong. I overstepped my boundaries when I asked him to give up a part of himself for a stranger."

"That's another way to see it," said Layla while ruffling through her hair. In any case, we are stuck here until things cool down. Then, he will be back, so there is a chance to mend things. Until then, let's work together to build a small hut."

Ai was silent before nodding. Then, the warrior left and joined Haro, and the two pushed the vessel toward the cliff. The healer turned toward the rolling waves, knowing that the Seika was somewhere underneath them.

Layla thought that his words made no sense, but Ai knew better. The Seika realized that his strength was lacking and that he needed to grow stronger before returning to Helios. Therefore, he came here to grow stronger.