Just as the hunters' laughter began to fade,
the temperature in the tavern plummeted.
It was already the end of October, and the Blackwater Corridor was already biting cold.
A light snow had even begun to fall over Whitestone City.
But the cold at this moment was different.
It was a bone-chilling cold that seemed to seep into one's very marrow.
Almost simultaneously, the five hunters cut their laughter and stood up abruptly.
They stood back-to-back, instantly forming a vigilance formation.
The scar-faced assassin's eyes were as sharp as knives.
His perception spread out like an invisible spider web.
It swept through every corner of the tavern, pierced through the walls, and extended into the streets outside.
Once, twice.
There was nothing.
No energy fluctuations, no sound of breathing, no heartbeat.
Not even a rat.
"How is it, boss?"
The ranger asked in a low voice, his fingers already on the bowstring.
The scar-faced assassin frowned and slowly withdrew his perception.
He shook his head.
"No one."
He walked back to the fire and sat down, shrugging with feigned ease.
"It's probably just the weather turning."
"The Final Month is approaching; it's normal for the temperature to drop."
The man carrying the net gun relaxed slightly and followed suit, sitting down.
"Boss, where do you think this Dark Tide... will break out?"
He scratched his head, his tone carrying a hint of curiosity.
"When I was coming in, I heard people from the Bounty City saying it would be inside the Wall of Sighs."
"Apparently, the Blood Demon tribe went in and captured the Demon Hunter Cass."
"They're looking for some Demon King and want to wake up that Demigod... to cause another event like The Silent End."
As he spoke, his voice grew smaller and smaller.
"Actually, I think... we were a bit reckless entering this time."
"Maybe we should—"
The scar-faced assassin shot him a cold look.
His gaze was like an icicle.
The net gun man immediately shut his mouth and shrank his neck.
"Hmph."
The scar-faced assassin sneered and tossed a piece of firewood into the flames.
"Demons entering the Wall of Sighs? People say that every year."
"Did you see the dwarves react? They didn't let out a single peep."
"I've been shipping goods through here for over ten years; I've heard enough rumors to grow calluses on my ears."
"The Wall of Sighs has stood for sixteen years, and the Dark Tide has broken out eight times."
"If they were going to do something, they would have done it long ago. Why wait until now?"
He spat on the floor.
"Those bounty hunters have courage smaller than a mouse."
"They start crying for their parents the moment they hear a rumor."
"It serves them right that they can only stay here earning a pittance from the dwarves."
The net gun man nodded with a sycophantic smile.
"That's true. What we make in one trip is enough for those people to live on for several lifetimes."
The scar-faced man curled his lip but didn't respond.
He turned his head to look out the window.
The light snow had begun to fall again, and the sky was a murky gray.
"Alright, enough nonsense."
He stood up and brushed the dust off his leather armor.
"Hurry up and rest. We need to reach Shadowmoon City before dark."
"Don't keep our 'important guests' waiting."
He glanced at the two elderly people in the corner whose breaths were weak, his tone becoming a few degrees colder.
"These two old fogies won't last long."
"If they kick the bucket halfway..."
He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear.
The ranger's expression also darkened, and he instinctively touched the potion pouch at his waist.
He thought of those "things" that were invisible but omnipresent along this path.
Those spectral demons that would whisper in one's ear and let out sighs.
Even a hunter like him, who lived on the edge of a blade, couldn't help but shudder.
Facing those existences, they were like infants in swaddles.
Completely powerless.
Even with potions to resist the mist and a guide to lead the way,
this journey was still traveled with a heart-stopping fear.
They would rather take a trip through a Forbidden Zone filled with terrifying demons than come to this dreadful place again.
The group stopped talking and quickly packed their gear.
The fire was trampled out, the embers emitting trails of blue smoke.
The two elderly people were roughly pulled up and staggered after them.
Just as they pushed open the broken door of the tavern and were about to step into the snow,
a piece of broken brick suddenly fell from a beam on the second floor.
It plummeted straight toward the back of the scar-faced assassin's head.
The assassin's eyes turned cold, and without even turning his head,
he reached back and caught the brick steadily in his palm.
His movement was so fluid it seemed he had expected it.
In the next second, his figure vanished from the spot.
When he reappeared, he was clinging to the opposite stone wall like a gecko.
The poisoned dagger in his hand turned into a streak of eerie green light as he lunged toward the direction the brick had come from,
stabbing out fiercely!
Puff!
Before the dagger even touched the wall, the sharp battle force had already pierced through the stone.
It left a hole the size of a bowl.
Debris trickled down.
The hideous murderous intent on the assassin's face only lasted for an instant
before it turned into bewilderment.
Behind the hole,
there was only the empty second floor and drifting dust.
There was no one, no presence, not even a trace of warmth.
He narrowed his eyes and sensed the area carefully several more times.
Finally, he flipped back down to the ground.
His expression carried a hint of gloom and confusion.
There was nothing. Could it have been an accident?
After thinking for a moment, the assassin set aside his doubts.
Perhaps it was just a loose piece of masonry due to years of neglect.
"...Let's go."
He said no more, stowed his dagger, and turned to step into the wind and snow.
The others looked at each other and hurriedly followed.
The two elderly people were dragged along, vanishing at the end of the street.
Dead silence returned to the tavern.
...
In the air above the tavern,
upon the staff shrouded by the Shroud of the Gloomy Night,
Eve leaned gently against Lin Gui's back, her hands resting on his shoulders.
She peeked out from beside Lin Gui's shoulder, her purple eyes filled with curiosity.
"Was that you?"
Lin Gui watched the hunters' silhouettes as they vanished into the mist.
"No."
Eve raised an eyebrow.
She followed Lin Gui's gaze, looking at those few blurry figures.
"I thought you would take action against them."
Lin Gui turned his head slightly.
"Why would you think that?"
Eve smiled, her gaze falling on the side of Lin Gui's face.
"Because you would feel sympathy, you wouldn't be able to bear it."
"Like the compassionate priests or the merciful and righteous knights in stories."
"You would get angry on behalf of strangers and even draw your blade."
Her voice was soft yet clear.
"Just like how you are willing to deliver these... long-severed longings,"
"braving the Silent Sea and breaking into the Wall of Sighs."
Lin Gui was silent for a moment.
He tilted his head and looked into Eve's eyes.
"Then what about you?"
"Would you also find it unbearable?"
"Would you also get angry over the injustice, discrimination, and evil before your eyes?"
"O Lady Saintess of the Holy Church of Light?"
Eve's expression froze for a second.
She seemingly hadn't expected Lin Gui to ask such a question.
Then, her lips curved into a faint, bitter smile.
"In this world... good people cannot survive."
Her voice was very light, as if stating a fact she had long since accepted.
"I once saw a Holy Saint who spoke for the people being nailed to a stake by those very same people to be burned alive."
"I have also seen revolutions that hungered for fairness being buried underground without a sound."
She paused, her eyelashes drooping.
"Within the Church... I have seen too much."
"So much that... I forgot how to feel anger long ago."
When she said those words, she was prepared in her heart.
Prepared to receive Lin Gui's usual coldness or mockery.
She even looked up slightly, trying to catch that expected indifference on his face.
However,
what she saw was a smile.
The corners of Lin Gui's mouth were slightly turned up.
That smile was faint, yet exceptionally clear.
Like a ray of sunlight leaking through a gap in the gloom.
There was no mockery, no detachment.
Instead, it carried a... nearly bright warmth.
Eve was stunned.
She had never seen such an expression on Lin Gui's face before.
She had seen him cold, weary, cynical, playful, relaxed, and helpless.
But she had never seen a smile like this, one that seemed to still believe in something.
In that moment, she even forgot to breathe.
She just stared at him blankly.
Looking at that smile was like looking at a hallucination that shouldn't exist.
Rate on N.U.
