Upon waking up, Riley looked around their makeshift camp. It was still dark, and it had been for a very long time.
He lit the lantern to actually see those around him, and they all turned to him, their eyes squinting hard after their eyes had grown to not need it.
"P-Put that thing away!"
Yara complained, and Riley did as he was told. The world was plunged back into darkness, but he quickly found that it wasn't truly dark. He could see faintly, the things close to them, enough to not trip over any jagged rocks or stumble into any shrubbery.
His legs creaked and he winced as he put pressure on his legs. The bite wound had been tied over using torn clothes, and the blood was no longer leaking. But that did not mean he was in the clear.
Instead, he felt more like just keeling over and begging to be carried by his teammates.
'That's not something that radiates "Good Team Leader" energy.'
He chuckled to himself and dusted off whatever debris had clung on during his rest.
"Alright guys, today we will be marching on as usual. I believe I have found a way to traverse great distances with a bit more ease…"
The others looked up with surprise and glee. Lucy couldn't contain her joy as she ecstatically buzzed around him in circles.
"However, that will require us doing some more hunting…"
Their faces instantly fell. A hint of confusion dwelled in their hearts, but he could still feel small trickles of fear entering his [Dread Core].
Part of their hesitance was out of fear for their leader. Among them, only he had suffered a wound, and though it had mostly healed up, they could see his chest trembling with every breath.
Richard was the first to move forward and placed a hand on Riley's shoulder.
"Wouldn't it be better if we rested? We don't doubt your ability, but we are concerned about your health."
The others nodded in agreement, especially Lucy who was anxiously playing with the hem of her shirt.
'These guys…should they really be worrying about me in a place like this?'
Riley sighed, sitting back down.
"Very well, we can rest for another two hours. But the more time we waste, the longer it will take to reach safety."
The rest began scattering around. Seeing as everyone was awake now, they felt at ease momentarily. Lucy had gone to retrieve the soul shards, Richard wished to inspect the cliff's edge so Yara and Dari went with him.
Riley just sat back and pondered.
'We really have to succeed in getting it. Depending on the type, it could save us days of travel. And even up our survival chances!'
He tried to think through the possible options. There was an option to try and get the same echo Sunny had at the start, but that would require Riley to jump into the water and kill one.
'Nah, too risky. And it doesn't look like the sea has any desire to retreat.'
The next option was to kill more hounds. One would be big enough to carry all of them with relative ease.
'It would be great, but something tells me we won't be seeing them for a while.'
And there were not many monsters mentioned in Shadow Slave for him to hunt around him. There was no way creatures didn't dwell in these lands, Riley was sure of it, but betting on fighting the correct ones would be pure chance. And Riley had never been lucky.
He cast his gaze onto the distant mountains, a faint light peeked over its jagged tips.
Seeing that light alone instilled hope in his heart. They had escaped thugs, traversed a portion of the distance and prevailed against a pack of nightmare monsters. It all tasted sweet.
He wandered over to Lucy, summoning his scissors preemptively.
"Need some help?"
Lucy turned back around, splatters of blood coloured her face and a creepy smile donned her face.
'Creepy.'
She pushed a few shards against his chest.
"These are the ones I've gathered so far, I figured it would be best to funnel them to you."
Riley felt slightly touched. Between the five of them it appeared he had the least combat experience, or even experience facing a beast. So the thought of strengthening himself did sound appealing.
But…
He was already an awakened, so feeding them to the sleepers would be the best course of action.
"You guys should have them, I wouldn't feel comfortable taking them away from people that are more capable than me."
He played the same awkward laugh whenever he tried to drown the truth.
Lucy looked up, touched at his noble sacrifice. But she hadn't allowed a tear to muddle her face, instead, she darted toward the remaining hounds and carved out what was left of the souls shards.
====
After what felt like an adequate break, he recalled them all at their small camp. With the help of Richard and some small shrubbery nearby, the light blazed once more.
"I have been curious, have any of you received any Memories from our earlier battle?"
Richard summoned a necklace with sharp fangs dangling down. It was crudely decorated with fur from the hounds around the strings that held everything together.
"I think it might be best suited for Lucy, considering she is close quarters." Richard extended his hand to the younger girl and the transfer was made.
"Hehe, it feels like a trade for the bow."
Riley then turned to the couple.
"What about you two? Anything special?"
Yara shrugged her shoulders and looked over at Dari, who she had her arms wrapped around.
"I did get a Memory, an armour type."
He closed his eyes and summoned the rugged piece of armour. Several pieces of skin peaked through from the patchy black and brown fur.
"Pffft- What's with the caveman fit??"
Lucy rolled on the ground laughing, Richard stifled a laugh.
Riley had managed to suppress his smile, but a single word could break the dam.
"You guys are just too funny. Haha, yeah laugh at me more!"
Now no one could hold back, running and tackling Dari to the ground and laughing in unison.
'I hope this moment can last forever.'