The next days passed in a blur of blood, movement, and silence. Ray barely stopped except to rest and recover, his body adjusting to the rhythm of his hunts. The presence still followed him, always lingering at the edge of his awareness, but it never made a move. Whether it was waiting for something or simply playing with him, Ray didn't know, and he didn't care. If it wanted him, it could come and get him.
One hunt stood out from the others. He had stumbled upon a group of nightmare creatures - twisted hybrids of octopus and crab, their slick, segmented bodies shifting as they moved. They weren't much of a threat, just Awakened Monsters, but there were enough of them to make things annoying. The fight was messy. Their armored bodies deflected normal strikes, forcing Ray to aim for joints and softer spots between plates. When the last one finally collapsed, leaving behind a pile of twitching limbs and spilled essence, he felt the familiar pulse of a new memory settling into his soul.
When he checked later, the memory was... interesting. Not something he could use, but interesting. It wasn't a weapon, but it could barely be called an armor, maybe utility. Even the spell wasn't too sure. It was something like a backpack, extra appendages that grew from the back- extra arms, ending in thick, chitinous claws, strong enough to block incoming attacks or crush bone. He imagined them forming over his own body, heavy and unwieldy, and immediately dismissed the idea, especially because his Aspect ability, was already the perfect defense, and he couldn't find much use in the claws. But Effie?
Effie fought fast, aggressive, pushing forward with no regard for defense. She was strong, but her biggest weakness had always been taking hits she didn't need to take. With this, she wouldn't need to slow down. She could just block and keep going. Ray wasn't stupid, he had seen her fight, aggressive without many regards for her own safety, nearly beastly even, so if anyone could use this memory, it was her.
He made up his mind to give it to her, when they met and moved on.
The last day arrived sooner than he expected. Ray made it back to the meeting spot and waited. He wasn't surprised when Effie didn't show up immediately. It would've been more surprising if she did. So he leaned against the wall, stretched his sore limbs, and simply existed, letting his mind drift.
The next morning, she arrived.
She looked as smug as ever, rolling her shoulders like she hadn't just made him wait a whole extra day.
"Didn't expect you to be so early," she said, grinning. "Figured I'd take my time."
Ray just raised an eyebrow. "You forgot, didn't you?"
"Absolutely not." She folded her arms. "I was... busy. Guiding, and hunting. You wouldn't understand."
Ray let out a snort. "Right."
They didn't waste any more time. After a quick exchange of stories - Effie's version was full of exaggerated fights and near-death experiences, most of which Ray doubted - they set off toward the castle.
Ray had gotten a lot of soul shards over the past two weeks, more than he had ever expected, and there was one thing he wanted to do before anything else.
The memory store.
Their journey back to the castle, was as smooth as the first time. With Effie's help, they completely avoided the many fallen nightmare creatures, that were striving through their territories.
Also, no awakened beasts bothered them this time. The journey took merely a few hours, before they reached the foot of the mountain.
The way uphill, was as steep as ever. This time Ray didn't argue about it though. It wasn't rare, that nightmare creatures would storm up the hill and attack the settlement, making this steep uphill their first defense.
The Sleepers were doing their things like always, but when both of them reached the start of the camp, some still came forward and greeted Effie.
Ray had already figured out that she was well liked in the outskirts, or rather everywhere that was not the castle.
Apparently, they tried to recruit her multiple times, but she refused them time and time again. Resulting in some bad blood between them. Regardless, they never did anything beyond some insults here and there. Even when counting the people living in the castle, Effie was renowned for two things. Those being her ability as a guide and her prowess, that was said to be as strong as most of the lieutenants of the king.
The last time, when both were on their journey towards the walls, Ray inquired about the hierarchy of the castle, in turn learning about the apparently messed up and crazy king.
Though, from what he understood, Ray couldn't really share that sentiment. Sure, he was relatively new to this place in general and had basically spent no time at all at the settlement, but the person from the stories seemed too… pragmatic, to seriously hate him.
Even with this opinion, Ray never once voiced it, the king's name was already a taboo in the outskirts, and Ray wouldn't just set a target on his back like that.
After fully arriving at the top, Ray thanked Effie for the help and transferred her the memory, he had gotten.
This, in turn, caused her to look at him baffled. He just replied, "Just see it as payment, you had to make three tours after all, and that one doesn't fit me at all," making a two-finger salute, Ray could only be seen walking towards the castle.
When he reached it, two guard stood in front of the entrance, crossing their weapons in front of him, barring entrance.
Ray raised his hands, upon seeing this, showing he meant no harm. "Relax, I just want to rent a room for a week and maybe take a look around the entertainment corners a bit."
The guards looked at each other for a second, before retracting their weapons, letting Ray step through.
He entered the large gate directly, and as he walking inside, he was met with a grand entrance hall, with a relatively small reception desk. Behind which stood another Sleeper, this time a girl in more or less casual clothes, they were at least not appearing like a normal armor memory to him.
"How can I help you?" the girl asked him, as he was walking towards her.
Ray leaned against the counter as the girl behind the reception looked at him expectantly.
"I need a room for a week," he said.
She nodded and pulled out a small book, flipping through it. "That'll be one Awakened soul shard."
Ray didn't even hesitate. He reached into his pouch and placed a single shard on the desk. The girl took it without question, slipping it into a small container before pulling out a brass key and handing it to him.
"Room twelve, second floor," she said. "Anything else?"
Ray tapped the counter absentmindedly. "Yeah. Where's the memory store?"
This made the receptionist go silent for a moment, "Only with invitations."
"Invitation? What do you mean?" asked Ray baffled, having heard nothing like this from Effie.
"Only the host can freely enter the Memory Store, others need an invitation," the girl replied matter-of-factly.
Ray blinked for a moment, "Okay… and how do I get one?"
Hearing this, the girl rubbed her fingers together in a certain way, that Ray immediately understood. They wanted cash, or rather, Soul Shards for that.
"How much?"
"Five."
Ray just pulled out the necessary amount and handed them over, he had collected quite a few in those weeks.
Quick hands came forth, and took the shards from his hand, before he could even process it. This truly took him off guard.
The girl then pointed toward a hallway leading deeper into the castle. "Take that hall, follow it, go up the stairs, then straight until you see the open door, with the sign above, normally there is always someone there. You can't miss it."
"Got it." Ray glanced at her outfit, then at his own armor. "And… where'd you get those clothes?"
She tilted her head, amused. "There's a tailor in the castle. Sometimes other clothes can be a good change, compared to a memory, you know."
Ray hummed to himself. The armor was useful, but it got annoying sometimes. He wasn't planning on giving it up, but not having to walk in a set of dark steel armor would be better. Still, that could wait - first, the memory store.
Taking the key, he turned and made his way through the castle halls. The air inside was cool, the stone walls absorbing most of the outside heat. The place was well-kept, but it had the feel of something old, something that had been rebuilt and repaired countless times.
As he walked, he heard soft whistling echoing down the corridor. The tune was light, almost lazy, yet somehow perfect, like every note landed exactly where it was meant to.
Ray turned a corner and saw him.
A man with auburn hair, casually making his way in the opposite direction, hands in his pockets, whistling as if the world around him didn't matter. He had a handsome, effortless look to him, the kind of person who seemed to belong anywhere he stood.
Ray didn't think much of it - until the moment they passed each other.
The second it happened, a vision slammed into his mind.
A battlefield, littered with soldiers. They stood in formation, their weapons drawn, their expressions hardened by war. Then-
Flames.
A dragon's fire washed over them, turning steel and flesh alike to ash. Screams filled the air, bodies crumbled, and yet - one man remained.
A lone soldier, standing amidst the burning ruins of his comrades. The fire hadn't spared him. His body was scorched, his armor melted into his skin, but he was alive. Alive, and watching everything turn to dust.
Ray sucked in a sharp breath and snapped his head toward the man he had just passed.
The whistling stopped.
The auburn-haired man had turned as well, looking at Ray with slightly widened eyes, clearly startled by the sudden movement.
For a second, they just stared at each other. Then the man's lips quirked up in a small, polite smile. "Uh… something wrong?"
Ray hesitated. He didn't know what that vision meant, or why he had seen it. But something told him that pressing the issue now wasn't the best move.
"…No," he said finally, shaking his head. "Just thought I recognized you from somewhere."
The man raised an eyebrow, but didn't question it. "Well, if you remember, let me know." With a small wave, he turned and continued on his way, whistling once more.
Ray stood there for a moment longer before exhaling and pushing forward. Whatever that was, he'd think about it later. That was a new kind of vision his Flaw gave him.