Chapter 33: Peaceful Night.
Claire suddenly rose to her feet and stretched lightly before offering the two of them an apologetic smile.
"Sorry, I’ve got something I need to take care of. You two enjoy the rest of your evening."
She gave them a small wave before slipping out of the tent.
Damien stared silently for a while before his gaze fell on the table once again. The night had long since blanketed the sky, but Damien didn’t seem that intent on leaving, so Yuri couldn’t help but ask.
"Are you leaving anytime soon?".
Damien raised his head.
"No, why do you ask?".
Yuri let out a quiet, "Oh," before falling silent once again. With Claire gone, whatever little conversation there had been between the two of them vanished almost entirely.
"I want to get some rest," Yuri suddenly said, breaking the silence.
Damien gave a small nod.
"Yeah, you should."
The tent fell quiet once again, neither of them making any move to leave. It wasn’t until a thought suddenly crossed Yuri’s mind that she spoke again.
"You don’t have a tent... do you?"
Damien shook his head.
"No, I don’t. I kind of just crashed here and watched you sleep for the last four days."
Yuri’s expression went completely blank.
In Damien’s defense, it wasn’t entirely his fault. Back when they had first arrived at the camp, someone had been assigned to show them to their tents. Unfortunately, the poor fellow took one look at Priesty after it set Yuri down, turned around and immediately ran for his life.
"Where did you sleep? There’s only one bed".
Damien shrugged.
"I didn’t. Contrary to popular belief, dead people don’t really sleep. Though... I probably could if I actually tried."
He fell quiet for a moment before glancing toward the entrance.
"I should go find another tent."
Yuri didn’t know how to respond.
A heavy snowstorm still raged outside. After everything Damien had done for her over the past four days, she couldn’t bring herself to send him out into the cold.
"Don’t leave, we can share this one for now, but please get another one when you return from your scouting mission".
Neither of them spoke again.
Yuri quietly stood up and made her way to the bed. She pulled the blanket over herself before turning onto her side, facing the wall.
Damien watched her for a moment before dragging the small wooden chair closer to the bedside. He sat down without a word, resting one arm against the backrest as though that had been his intention all along.
The tent fell into silence once more, save for the muffled howl of the blizzard outside.
Yuri opened her eyes.
"I don’t mind if we share the bed as well, you should get some actual sleep before you leave tomorrow".
Damien’s internal battle lasted only a few seconds. In the end, practicality won.
He climbed onto the bed, deliberately keeping to the very edge, leaving enough space between them for another person.
Neither of them spoke again.
Yuri slowly closed her eyes, the tension she’d unknowingly carried over the past few days finally beginning to melt away. For the first time since arriving in the Tower, she didn’t feel the need to stay on guard.
Damien remained awake, staring silently at the ceiling of the tent. The blizzard continued to howl through the frozen wasteland.
Inside, however, It was strangely peaceful.
... ...
The following morning.
Yuri blinked a few times before instinctively turning toward the other side of the bed.
It was empty.
The blanket had been neatly folded, the small wooden chair returned to where it had originally been, as though nobody had ever occupied the tent with her.
Yuri quietly sat up.
"He really doesn’t sleep".
A faint smile tugged at her lips before disappearing just as quickly.
...
Damien, meanwhile, was already making his way toward the smithy. The morning air bit at his skin as the familiar clang of hammer against steel echoed across the camp.
It was finally time to collect his bow and arrows.
The rhythmic clang of steel echoed throughout the smithy as Hannah stood before the forge, one hand steadying a glowing blade while the other brought the hammer down with inhumane precision.
Without even looking up, she spoke.
"Morning, dead man. You’re really a morning person, uh".
"I’m also a night person".
"Hey Hannah".
Hannah set the glowing blade aside and disappeared toward the back of the smithy.
She returned moments later carrying a neatly wrapped bundle, placing it on the workbench in front of Damien.
"Your order."
Damien unwrapped it in silence.
The bow was exactly as he had requested. Every inch of it was a deep, matte black, its sleek frame resembling a modern compound bow more than the crude hunting bows most people were familiar with.
Despite its size, the limbs folded inward through a cleverly crafted mechanism, reducing it to a compact form that could easily be secured to his hip.
Damien pressed lightly against the mechanism.
Click.
The limbs unfolded smoothly before locking firmly into place.
Click.
They folded back together just as effortlessly.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
Beside it rested a black leather quiver containing thirty arrows. Their shafts were stained the same pitch-black color as the bow, even the arrowheads had been blackened, leaving only the white feathers at the tail untouched.
The contrast made them stand out just enough to be recovered after a shot without ruining the weapon’s dark appearance.
Damien picked up one of the arrows, giving it a careful inspection before returning it to the quiver with a satisfied nod.
"I must admit, I was skeptical at first, but Hannah. You’ve proved yourself to me, this is fine craftsmanship".
"So what do you think?". Hannah asked.
Damien was genuinely satisfied, but one weapon was never enough. If his fight against the Chief had taught him anything, it was that the Tower had a nasty habit of forcing people into situations they never prepared for. He had no intention of making that mistake twice.
"I love it, but can I have that glowing one-handed axe as well?".