The muffled groaning of the runners crept closer, and as they entered the large chamber everything was empty. One of them possessed an aspect that allowed to look through darkness, but the old man vanished.
"Where the hell could he have gone?? A senile old man can't escape us, so where is he?!"
A big burly man with a rugged beard slammed his fist against the wall, metal swords and shield clattered.
A shorter guy with a thug-ish face continued to look around, paying no mind to the brainless tantrum of their leader. He found it odd that there were no footsteps after entering the chamber. As if the old man simply took off flying or teleported.
"Landon!" The supposed boss called out. With a last glance across the room, the thug turned around and returned to his side.
Riley wanted to breathe a sigh of relief. He had veiled the trio and clamped their mouth shut. At the moment he had no clue how much could be veiled about them; it was just their physical bodies or also sounds.
So, the safest option was to just be quiet.
'This is scary! Who was I fooling thinking I could fight those violent looking people? I'm not Sunny or Nephis.'
He chastised himself while looking around for an exit. If his memory served him right there would be one just down the stairs in front of them. Or at least it would help them get away from the thugs.
Riley picked up a loose stone and chucked it as hard as he could. It bounced across the great chamber until eventually reaching the throne.
Despite not seeing anything, he had memorised the immediate surroundings enough to guide them out of the room.
He summoned the [Lantern of Dread] when they were out of sight and earshot. The sparks lit up the dark slightly, but it was immediately shadowed by the true light which shone brilliantly.
The old man stared in awe but remained silent as instructed.
Riley's veil had been casted to the side. Instead, he turned back to Lucy. And whispered softly.
"Do you know my name Lucy?"
She looked at him confused for a second.
"Why wouldn't I? But I'm c-curious how you know mine."
He smiled, a sliver pain already digging into his heart.
'So, this is how it will feel to slowly be forgotten. I've got to use this aspect as little as possible.'
"You told me when we first met, it's alright if you don't remember, you were quite scared."
He flashed a warm smile and pulled them along. The old man looked like he had plenty of questions, his aspect was still a mystery to Riley, and he secretly hoped it was something combat based.
'Even if it was combat based, he is old. Do I have it in my heart to let an old man fight my battles?'
He didn't. Instead, he would be direct.
"Gramps, what's your aspect?"
The old man closed his eyes and reopened them with a strange expression.
"[Quick Draw], it said something about fast reloading."
Riley fell to his knees and praised the dead gods. An archer would be the best way to avoid combat with the thugs.
"Ah so then you must have a bow, right?"
The old man scratched the back of his head and looked to the side.
"I don't...all I got was a quiver of wooden sticks."
'Great, that is exactly what I needed. An archer with no bow.'
A small hand tugged at his sleeve, Lucy was staring up innocently at him.
"Actually, I have a bow. I c-could give it to him if you would like me to."
Riley shot his fist up triumphantly. He was already reaping the rewards of not leaving Lucy behind.
After the transfer, they quickly made their way into the courtyard where more skeletons laid on the ground in their eternal slumber.
It felt surreal for him to actually be experiencing the novel he had grown to love. But a part of him wished that he could be at home, embraced by the safety of a blanket on the couch.
A wishful sigh left his lips as they walked through the dark city. He wasn't quite sure where to head directly. Food was important, and water even more so.
"Gramps, got any more memories?"
"Ah!"
His eyes lit up and a sea of sparks brought a small bottle into his hands. A clear liquid swirled inside with every shake of the bottle.
'It might be best to be the first to take a drink. To show my definitely not fake confidence.'
Riley grabbed the bottle from the old man's hands and drank a bit of the liquid. To his delight, he was not poisoned.
"It's just water, you are a life saver gramps."
They all took a bigger drink and began wandering the dark city. There was not much for them to see anyway, but it was more like a sightseeing tour for Riley who wanted to see the cathedral sunny lived under.
"Wow, several months here? No thanks, I would've loved a cozy bed in the castle."
Lucy and the old man exchanged confused glances. They questioned whether their leader was sane.
"Actually gramps, you got a name? It's a bit awkward to keep calling you that."
"Richard."
'Seems fitting.'
"Well Richard, my name is Riley and this is Lucy. I am hoping to find another two or so people before embarking toward the Hollow Mountains. The ultimate goal would be to reach the Bastion, but I don't quite know how long that would take."
Richard's face paled at the thought of crossing the dark mountains. Even regular humans knew of the various death zones scattered across the dream realm.
All in all, Reilly figured the Hollow Mountains would be the easiest and least painful.
And there was a reason why he had asked Ariel a question regarding the Hollow Mountains. That is why he was given a memory like the [Lantern of Dread].
'Ah finally, We've reached the gates.'