Chapter 48: Old enemies and narrow roads.

Hunter let out a long sigh and raised his head to look at the man, his face as expressionless as it could get. "Cade," he said the name flatly, his voice carrying all the enthusiasm of a man reading bad tax reforms on a Sunday afternoon. His eyes shifted down to the black, two-headed snake wrapped snugly around the man’s body. The creature moved like living silk, its twin heads swaying in perfect sync as if trying to decide who to bite first.

Cade let out a loud, theatrical laugh and slapped a fake smile onto his face. "Hunt! Man, it is so good to see you! I cannot tell you how much I have missed you."

The words could not have been more false. Cade was terrible at pretending, while his mouth was smiling, his right fist was clenched so tightly the knuckles were turning white, vibrating like it was about to launch into a bone breaking punch.

A few feet away, Zyra twisted her mouth. The tiny hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. She could practically smell the trouble cooking, and if it boiled over, it was going to attract many eyes.... something she absolutely did not want. She quietly took three very deliberate steps backward, silently trying to project the vibe of ’I don’t know this man, I have never seen this man, I am just a lonely hunter like many folks here.’

She did not know what their issue was but she was certain that the two men did not get along. Just as she was certain that Hunter could get himself out of the mess on his own, while she crept away and found the hidden dungeon.

One sharp look from Hunter stopped her cold. She paused her escape and stood around, clapping her hands softly, eyes darting around nervously.

Hunter and Cade continued exchanging the kind of passive-aggressive words only true frenemies with a bad history could manage.

"You look nicer than when I last saw you. Skin has become a little whiter than normal." Cade commented.

Hunter scoffed. "It’s what happens when you bathe often. You should try it sometime."

Zyra blinked.

Cade looked around, exaggeratedly blocking the sun with his hand. "Hey, where’s Achilles anyway? I figured he’d be here already. You know how he is, always following you around like a lost puppy, wagging his orange tail."

Cade’s cronies didn’t even try to hide it.... they burst into a chorus of loud, mocking laughter that echoed off the trees. One of them actually slapped his knee like it was the funniest joke he’d heard all year.

"Or a lost chick!" one yelled, sneering at Hunter’s face.

"I have never liked those two, they carry themselves like they are better than the rest of us." another chimed in, nudging his buddy with an elbow. "If they were females, they would be Soul maidens."

"Well, Achilles has the hair down already." One bellowed.

More from the group sniggered.

They were practically vibrating with high school bully energy, entirely content to ride Cade’s coattails while flexing for those that watched.

Zyra rolled her eyes so hard she thought they might get stuck in the sockets. Great, she thought, not only are we walking into a literal beast pit, but we might be doing it with a comedy troupe of absolute clowns alongside us.

Hunter remained completely silent. He just stared at them as if they were clowns. Without uttering a single rebuke, he made the men’s laughter turn nervous and then fade sadly. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

His display of authority without trying was so infuriating that Cade’s lips thinned. "Look," he said, trying a new angle with a sharp smirk. "Why don’t we hunt together today? Just like the good old days! Remember when we were younger, when we were full of life and you were actually enthusiastic about the job?"

"I’m not interested," Hunter said coldly.

Cade’s smirk turned ugly. He took a heavy step forward, closing the distance between them until they were practically chest-to-chest. "Fuck you Hunter. Why do you act like you are better than me? You know, you still carry yourself like you are a god or something. It’s that exact same arrogance that got my brother killed. Are you proud of yourself, killer?"

"Back off," Hunter warned.

The air around them instantly turned to ice.

"I haven’t forgotten about that, Hunter," Cade hissed, his voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "Not for a second."

Then, the two-headed snake’s mouths unhinged, stretching wider and wider until they were absolutely massive. It was a terrifying, hypnotic sight; the jaws opened up so impossibly wide that you could have easily shoved a whole baby elephant down its throat without it even gagging.

Zyra froze, her jaw dropping almost as low as the snake’s. "System," she thought, locking eyes with the twin eyes of the snake, "Details."

[Twin fang viper: strengths; Can attack from different angles, can still fight even with one head injured, nearly impossible to sneak up on, the heads regenerate, venom causes paralysis.

Weaknesses; Heads with different minds can disagree, poor coordination in tight spaces, thin scales less protective barrier, slow when satisfied, loves eating beast eggs.]

"Eggs perfect." Zyra said, eyes locked on Hunter. She kept giving signals for him to stay calm.

Hunter didn’t flinch. He didn’t yell. He just told Tyrant to stand down and looked at Cade with cold, dead eyes that sent a shiver down Zyra’s spine. It reminded her of the story she had heard about him ripping out the guts of high-level beast. This man didn’t need his half-life beast to handle what looked like a mid-level snake.

A loud, piercing squeak echoed through a speaker, saving them all from an immediate fistfight. Everyone turned toward the mildly raised platform where the Ground Master was tapping the small hand supported microphone.

"Alright, listen up, you savages!" the Ground Master bellowed. "A quick reminder: absolutely no fighting outside the entrance! Save the bloodbaths for the beasts please. Now, for the usual rules before we let you all inside, new hunters listen well."

He cleared his throat, reading off a crumpled piece of paper like a bored flight attendant.

"Rule number one; Half of the stones you collect belong to the government. Call it a tax, call it a robbery, we don’t care, just pay up at the exit.

Rule two: There are no rules inside the dungeon, if you die, it’s not our business. If you are robbed..." he paused. "Still, none of our business."

Rule three: Life isn’t fair, and neither is the dungeon. Deal with it.

Rule four: The dungeon is a total blind spot. There are no cameras in there, so we have absolutely no idea what happens to you. In other words, watch your back because you are on your own.

And rule five: If you’re rich enough to afford private security, buy it. We have soldiers that can protect you inside for a fee. If not? Good luck to you and your half-life beasts."

Zyra clenched her fists. "No rules, huh."

Beauty rotated on the virtual screen. [Yikes! Sounds like a brawl. Host, keep you guard up.]