No trust in the team

"Saint of the Second Solo-Division of Scouts under the great Monarch and General Gehrman...?" Eirwen repeated quietly, still trying to process what was happening.

He knew his luck was quite literally otherworldly, but he hadn't expected someone to find them this quickly.

'Don't tell me I'm going to become an Awakened this easily,' he thought, a hint of amusement on his mind despite the torturous deaths he had endured in that other Realm. He had always been good at shoving traumatizing memories into a dark and distant corner.

Still, Eirwen gripped the silver longsword tighter, not intending to let it go. A faint shimmer flickered beside him as Aegis Mirror materialized.

"Hey, hey, calm down. No reason to be so tense, kids." The figure said in a pleasant tone, finally stepping out of the dust and revealing himself fully to Eirwen's eyes.

The Saint was tall -about the same height as Eirwen- and rather lean. His black, lightweight armor was smooth, lined with sharp edges that gave him a strangely dangerous and agile look.

Eirwen neither stepped back nor forward, holding his ground. "Why should I believe your words?"

The Saint merely chuckled in response, his orange hair -its crimson-tipped strands flickering akin to flames- dancing in the air. "Why would I lie to a bunch of Sleepers? If I wanted you dead, you'd be dead already, and no one but the Monarch would even notice."

'Arrogant kid,' Leviathan's voice echoed in his mind. 'But he isn't lying. Not someone we can compete with. Yet.'

"That's true, but what if you're just some psycho who enjoys playing with his prey?" Eirwen asked, straightening up as he spun the longsword in his hand.

The Saint snickered, lifting his right foot as if taking a casual step. "You talking about yourself by any chance?" His voice was teasing, but before Eirwen could react, that single step somehow closed the entire distance in an instant -bringing him right in front of him.

"You might look all beautiful and innocent," he mused, his burning eyes locking onto Eirwen's, "but I can tell what's going on in that head of yours."

Eirwen flinched slightly but didn't back down, forcing himself to ignore the crushing pressure radiating from the Saint. He was certain the man was actually suppressing it so the three of them wouldn't simply fall to their knees or faint.

"Sure, you can," he replied.

His Voice was deliberately dismissive, keeping it as casual as possible despite the sweat gathering on his brow. "Are you here to help us or give me therapy?"

"Help you guys, of course." The Saint flashed a wide grin before glancing around with mild confusion. "But I was told there were at least five of you. Did someone die by any chance...?"

Shaking his head, Eirwen nodded toward the titanic monoliths behind the Saint. "Two more are somewhere in there. They went to search for some food."

The Saint turned, his burning eyes piercing into the depths of the stone forest as if he could see through every single atom and crevice. His expression remained at ease, but there was something unsettling about the way the two orange eyes moved across the gigantic boulders.

Using the moment, Eirwen reached out to Leviathan through their mental connection. 'You think you can kill him like you did Marcel if something happens?'

He had no intention of blindly trusting a Saint -especially one that moved like some kind of phantom.

The answer came quicker than he expected, dulling his senses for a split second. 'I can't even step outside your body, boy. But of course, with time I will be at least as strong as the image created by the Spell in your first Trial was.'

A short silence followed before Leviathan's voice returned, colder and heavier. 'And then, a Saint will be nothing more than a bug.' There was something dark and menacing in the way he said it, sending goosebumps down Eirwen's back.

Turning around, the Saint suddenly spoke again, snapping Eirwen out of his thoughts. "Stay here and gather whatever you need to take with you." He took a step back, and suddenly, the air around his body twisted in strange, almost terrifying ways.

'This pressure!' Eirwen groaned though clenched teeth, instinctively stepping back.

It wasn't as overwhelming as what he had felt against Marcel, but there was also a clear difference.

Marcel had radiated pure killing intent, while the Saint before him remained creepily composed. That alone made it much easier to withstand the Transcendent aura.

"I'll be back soon. Your two guys might be in big trouble if my eyes aren't deceiving me," he said before taking a step back.

And in that single step, he vanished completely. No trace of him remained -except for the crater left behind from his harsh landing earlier.

"This speed-" Seraphiel whispered behind him, his tone both understanding and worried. Yet, there wasn't as much worry in his voice as one would expect from someone who just heard that his brother was most likely in danger.

Eirwen's head snapped back at the whisper, his golden eyes wide and his forehead damp with sweat. "What was that again?"

"Eh- Nothing." The short Dreamer answered abruptly, slipping back into his usual cold demeanor.

But it was too late. That brief reaction had already confirmed Eirwen's theories.

***

'You said there was something wrong about their uncle, didn't you?' Eirwen asked Leviathan, striding past both Seraphiel and Andromeda as he made his way back into the cave.

Before Leviathan could respond, Eirwen pressed on. 'Both of them have been acting weird. Unlike Andromeda and Eliot, who are clearly unsettled by this place, those two don't seem to care as much.'

His thoughts sharpened as he pieced everything together. 'I'm sure they know exactly where we are.'

Leviathan's voice echoed in his mind alongside a mental nod. 'What I smelled on that wrinkled man back then was the stench of Cocytus. He was here once.'

Analyzing everything carefully, Eirwen stepped back into the dim cave and leaned against the uneven wall.

"I don't know why they're hiding things from us, but if anything happens, we can just get rid of them," he muttered under his breath.

For now, there was nothing better to do but wait for the Saint to return.

With that in mind, Eirwen shifted his focus inward, pushing his consciousness toward his Cores and Souls, searching for a way to interact with his new Attribute.

A subtle connection formed instantly, and a strange, pulsating sensation emerged from two distinct points within his Unholy Core.

Somehow, Eirwen instinctively knew how to use his new powers, as if the knowledge had been implanted within him alongside the Attribute itself. Or perhaps it was Leviathan's influence, his knowledge seeping into Eirwen's mind without him realizing.

The two of them have been influencing each other in strange ways lately.

Either way, he focused on the two pulses, channeling Essence into the brighter one.

The air around him shifted immediately once enough Essence surged into the light.

And it wasn't just the air -tiny flakes of snow scattered across the ground began to stir, responding to his will. They slowly gathered into a swirling pool of white powder, bending under his influence.

Eirwen manipulated the snow for a few moments, testing the limits of his control before finally severing the connection with a ragged breath. It was rather tiresome to use without any practice

Two pairs of footsteps echoed somewhere behind him, but Eirwen was too deep in thought to acknowledge them. Shadows veiled his face, obscuring his expression from anyone who might be watching.

'Maybe I should just kill the two brothers anyway. Getting the Saint would also be nice.' He thought as a wicked grin curled onto his lips -one that wasn't quite his own.

Eirwen could now obtain the powers of what he devoured.

-------

Ay wsp, thanks to anyone who read this far

I noticed from last time that if you guys interact in any way (simply leaving a comment is more than enough) it helps promoting the story in a way, so I humbly ask of thee to help me)