’What the heck did he just call me?!’
’C–Cutie?!’
A wave of goosebumps crawled up my arms so fast I almost shivered. Every muscle in my body screamed at me to quietly vanish from this entire region and pretend this interaction never happened.
But before I could decide between fleeing or burying myself six meters underground, a shadow dropped right in front of me.
"..."
It was the hunter.
He appeared as if the distance didn’t exist at all, towering over the half-melted ice spikes with that same irritating ease.
"Are you alright, cutie?"
’...This guy REALLY said it again.’
My lips twitched so hard they almost folded into my face. I had to actively remind myself that punching him would probably shatter my arm, break my disguise, and ignite some sort of tribal blood feud.
So I inhaled once to calm myself down.
And on the surface, I was serenity itself, but inside, I was anything but that.
"...Name’s Lumin," I said, meeting his molten-amber stare without a single flinch. "Thanks for the save."
’...’
’Great. Perfect. Why do I sound like a damsel in distress accepting help from a passing hero? What’s next, do I curtsy? Should I faint dramatically? Maybe thank him with fluttering eyelashes?’
’Urgh, please kill me!’
"Hm." Meanwhile, the tall guy nodded, stepping back just enough to size me up properly. The bone axe rested on his shoulder like it weighed nothing.
"I am Uru’en," he said, "of the Salom Tribe, and..." he tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing with faint amusement, "I get the feeling our help wasn’t needed."
But I didn’t respond.
Mostly because I wasn’t sure which would spill out first: an honest explanation or pure sarcasm.
Instead, I shifted topics.
"Where exactly is this place? And that monster, what was it?"
My voice stayed calm and cool, even though a whole chunk of my dignity was trying to escape my body.
Uru’en didn’t hesitate.
"This is the Kaelor Verge," he said, gesturing at the silver-barked trees and the jagged stone ridges beyond. "You’re standing near the border cliffs of the Luthaire Lands. And that monster..." His lips tightened ever so slightly. "A Vorash Strider. Nasty things. This one managed to escape us while we were busy with its horde."
He turned back to me, one brow lifting with casual interest.
"So tell me... what exactly is a cutie like you doing wandering alone out here?"
There it was again.
Cutie.
My brain immediately auto-translated it into Lumin out of self-preservation.
"Thank you," I said stiffly. "And, as I mentioned just now, my name is Lumin. I’m a traveler... and a healer." I kept my tone composed. "I was heading toward Viremont’s territory, but now I’m not sure I’m even facing the right direction."
Uru’en gave a short, approving hum.
"You’re pretty brave to travel like this. Alone, I mean." His gaze swept the terrain behind me, then returned. "And yes, you’re going the right way. However..." His voice lowered as he tilted his head toward the horizon, "you’ll need to wait a few days if you want to cross into the next region."
I blinked.
"Why? Is there some problem?"
My eyes flicked briefly toward the hunters who were already hacking apart the corpse of the Vorash Strider, cutting the tough hide, and collecting valuable parts. They worked with a practiced efficiency that made my earlier struggle with the creature feel... a bit embarrassing.
"Well... you could say that," Uru’en muttered, following my gaze, and then looked upward above the tree line, toward the drifting heavy clouds tinted with deep violet. His eyes softened with a seriousness that didn’t match his earlier tone. "...Night is coming."
He shifted the bone axe off his shoulder.
"So cu-I mean, Lumin, why don’t you come with us to our tribe? I can offer you a place to stay and explain everything."
’Hmm...’
I had already planned to look for shelter. There was no way I would risk sleeping out in the open with whatever else lived in this territory. But the offer from him...
’No. Stop. Don’t think suspicious thoughts. He’s not kidnapping you. He won’t eat you. He’s just being nice.’
’Well, probably.’
"...Alright," I finally nodded. "Thank you for the hospitality."
Uru’en chuckled, low and warm.
"Good. Then let’s head back." He raised a hand and called to the others, "I’m taking our guest home. You three finish up and catch up."
"Understood," one of them called back, though he shot me a long, lingering look... before shaking his head slowly. The other two did the same.
I stiffened.
"..."
Why.
Why did they all shake their heads like disappointed uncles?
A cold sensation crawled across my ribs.
’...Could it be?’
’No.’
’No, no, no. It can’t be.’
Right?
’...Right?!’
"Are you alright?"
Uru’en’s voice cut into my spiraling thoughts like a blade through frost.
He took a half-step closer, peering at me with brows slightly furrowed. "You look a little pale."
I forced myself to breathe.
Then I shook my head quickly. "It’s nothing. I just... remembered something."
A terrible excuse, but he didn’t question it.
And, fortunately or unfortunately, right at that moment, I really did remember something.
’Wait... I haven’t checked his status yet.’
My fingers twitched.
I focused on him.
A faint ripple brushed past my senses.
And then—
━━━━━━━━◇◆◇━━━━━━━━
Name: Uru’en Drakari
Age: 18
Race: Snow Barbarian (Drakari Clan)
Path: Warrior (Axe Crusher)
General Health Status: Excellent (Peak Physical Condition)
Resonance Tier: Peak Tier 4
━━━━━━━━◇◆◇━━━━━━━━
My eyes widened before I forced them back to neutral.
’...Peak Tier 4? At eighteen?’
That... actually explained everything.
The raw strength. The speed. The overwhelming aura. The ability to casually bisect an alpha-tier beast like it was a watermelon. Even the muscles. The race. The path.
Everything aligned perfectly.
Except for the age.
’...Seriously? Eighteen? What kind of barbarian baby formula do these people drink?!’
I let out a slow breath. Although I was an anomaly myself, I had the system and master to thank for that. And I could already guess his archetype.
He’s probably a prodigy, his clan’s genius, or even the son of the clan chief.
’...Yeah, that’s probably the case... Hmm?’
I must’ve gone silent longer than expected, because Uru’en tilted his head again.
"You remembered something important?" he asked.
I snapped out of my thoughts and nodded once. "Yeah. Just... something I needed to check."
"That so?" His voice softened a tone, surprisingly gentle. "If anything is bothering you, you can tell me once we reach the tribe. My people aren’t hostile. Especially not toward someone like you."
Especially not toward someone like me..?
Why did that sound... intentionally reassuring?
"This way."
He gestured for me to walk beside him as he started toward the forest trail.
I followed silently while stretching out my senses.
The other hunters worked behind us, still cutting, still burning, still occasionally glancing my way like they were watching a lamb walk willingly into a wolf den.
Which obviously didn’t help my nerves.
Uru’en glanced sideways at me, noticing my stiff steps.
"You don’t have to be nervous," he said lightly. "Salom welcomes guests."
’Uh huh.’
’Sure.’
The way those guys looked at me totally screamed "welcome."
I swallowed.
"...Nighttime is really that dangerous?" I asked, partly to distract myself, partly because my curiosity was clawing at me.
Uru’en’s expression shifted.
The easy playfulness vanished.
Only calm seriousness remained.
"Yes. For outsiders, especially."
He looked ahead, toward the deepening violet sky.
"The nights here belong to something else."
"...What?" I asked, my curiosity growing.
"..." Uru’en stopped walking.
His eyes scanned the treeline, then the cliffs, then the darkening sky. He didn’t speak until he was absolutely certain no one or thing was paying attention.
Only then did he lean slightly closer.
His voice dropped to a near-whisper.
"Because when the sun disappears..."
"...the Night Devourer wakes."