Chapter 224: Beneath the Mask (1)

Their destination had been decided, and there was no room for delay.

By the time Ethan stepped out of his prison cell, night had already fallen.

Outside, the buildings still towered over the streets, their imposing heights and hostile architecture giving the city an unmistakably oppressive appearance. Constructed from dark and gray stone, they made Ashvarn a gloomy city in every sense of the word.

"It’s almost like I’m still trapped inside that dungeon..."

Ethan muttered to himself, struck by just how much Old Ashvarn resembled its modern counterpart.

After all, they had originally been one and the same city.

At first, he could hardly tell the difference between them. But as he wandered through the streets, the distinctions quickly became apparent.

Unlike the Legacy dungeon, which had been crawling with monsters thirsty for his blood, the streets of Ashvarn were filled with ordinary residents.

Living, breathing humans dressed in clean clothes, going about their daily business as they came and went.

The street corners were clean, without a trace of the foul-smelling, congealed blood that had stained nearly every corner of Old Ashvarn.

Here, in the new Ashvarn, death wasn’t lurking around every corner.

Compared to the past few months, Ethan found his present circumstances a thousand times better.

Even so, a certain gloom hung over the city.

Not a single member of the clan seemed to be smiling. Everywhere he looked, people wore miserable, downcast expressions.

"Looks like the news has reached the ordinary citizens... They must know what happened during the last expedition."

Raiden spoke from beside him, having noticed the same thing.

"Every squad except yours was wiped out. That’s six squads, at least thirty hunters who were considered among the very best."

This time, the voice belonged to Verso, captain of the Second Hunting Squad, who had accompanied Ethan and Raiden for some reason.

The others had gone their separate ways.

Moon and Luna had accompanied their grandfather to check on their family members, who had been under the care of the Witch of the Forest.

Chai and Alicia, meanwhile, had gone to visit their own families.

Alicia had a younger brother she looked after, while Chai’s mother was the only family he had left.

That left Raiden and Ethan, neither of whom had any family, along with Verso, who was in the same situation.

According to the latter, at least thirty hunters had died inside Old Ashvarn.

They belonged to the hunting squads numbered one through eight, excluding the Third Hunting Squad, which had survived, and the Second Hunting Squad, which hadn’t participated in the expedition at all.

In other words, eighty percent of the clan’s strongest hunters were now dead and buried.

"Thirty hunters... We’re talking about thirty families. How many parents have lost their children? How many lovers have lost the people they cherished? How many hunters have lost their futures...?"

Raiden spoke bitterly, finally beginning to grasp the magnitude of their losses after witnessing the sorrow hanging over the city.

"We spend our lives balancing between life and death. That’s what it means to be a hunter, to live closer to death than anyone else."

Ethan chose to disregard the prevailing gloom and the sacrifices they’d been forced to make to survive Old Ashvarn.

He saw little point in mourning the dead.

"You’ve got nerves of steel, buddy! You’re seriously amazing!"

Verso, who apparently had no reservations about saying whatever crossed his mind, immediately showered Ethan with praise.

Ethan stared at him for a while, looking as though he were dealing with a complete eccentric.

"I’m just a hunter doing his job. More importantly, I heard you bear a curse similar to mine. Is that true?"

Rather than indulge in pointless chatter, Ethan decided to steer the conversation toward something more useful.

He wanted to know about Verso’s curse.

The young man’s expression shifted slightly at the mention of it, but his usual cheerful demeanor quickly returned.

"Oh, yeah, yeah... Like I said earlier, I’m a cursed hunter, just like you."

Pulling back his sleeve, Verso exposed his wrist, revealing his curse mark to Ethan and Raiden.

The tattoo depicted a completed dark eclipse, surrounded by strange halos that radiated outward like rays of sunlight.

"Amazing... It’s almost identical to Ethan’s, except for the blood..."

Raiden leaned closer to examine the tattoo before raising his head.

"But... I don’t see any seal. Does that mean your curse is active all the time?"

It was a reasonable question.

Unlike Ethan, Verso hadn’t sealed his curse, which meant its effects remained active constantly.

"That’s right. I can’t seal my curse, because I’d die if I did."

Verso answered with a smile that concealed far more than it revealed.

"Die? How come?"

Raiden pressed him without the slightest regard for personal boundaries.

Ethan was grateful for that, since it spared him the trouble of asking himself.

Verso, on the other hand, answered without hesitation.

"Because I was cursed by Gluttony... the loathsome Gluttony of Night."

Ethan’s eyes widened slightly upon hearing the title Verso had mentioned.

It belonged to one of the Night Lords.

And not just any Night Lord, but one of the worst among them.

A being that embodied the concept of gluttony, or more precisely, hunger.

"Gluttony... That means you have to keep consuming something, or you’ll die. Is that right?"

Verso nodded in response to Ethan’s question.

"You’re pretty sharp, aren’t you? Yep, you’re absolutely right! My curse forces me to drink blood constantly, just like a vampire!"

Verso spoke mockingly, baring one of his fangs in an imitation of a vampire.

"A vampire... What the hell, man..."

Raiden chuckled at the strange term, but his laughter quickly faded as the horror of what he’d just heard began to sink in.

"Drinking blood... Human blood?"

"That’s right."

"That’s horrifying... What a disgusting curse..."

Raiden looked thoroughly repulsed by the very idea of drinking blood.

Ethan, on the other hand, remained silent.

He exchanged a long look with Verso, who was watching him just as closely.

’He’s hiding a lot of details...’

That was Ethan’s first impression after hearing about the effects of Verso’s curse.

’He wasn’t lying. What he said was probably true... But it wasn’t the whole truth.’

Ethan’s reasoning was based on his own experiences and everything he’d learned about the Golden Dawn Knight.

His own curse was devastating, tormenting him in several ways, including forcing him to hear the voices of the dead and drawing monsters toward him.

Ars had suffered from a deformed body that made him resemble a monster, along with a fatal weakness: his health points were permanently reduced to one.

Compared to those curses, having to drink blood seemed almost trivial.

That was precisely why Ethan wasn’t convinced.

He realized Verso was concealing something.

But he didn’t bother asking.

If Verso had gone to the trouble of hiding those details, he certainly wouldn’t reveal them simply because Ethan asked.

Unlike Ethan, however, Raiden rarely thought too much before speaking.

"What about the other effects? Does your curse give you some kind of ability or Blessing, like Ethan’s?"

Raiden’s question drew a quiet chuckle from Ethan.

"It does, but I’m sorry... I’d rather keep that a secret."

Verso winked playfully, refusing to reveal anything more.

Raiden looked disappointed.

"Come on, man... We’re your fellow hunters. Why would you hide your abilities from us?"

"Hahahaha! I love straightforward people like you, Raiden, but I prefer keeping my cards close to my chest. You know... Just like the protagonists in novels and games!"

"You’re a weirdo..."

Raiden sighed, finally giving up on questioning him.

He then turned toward Ethan.

"I’m heading to the Hunters’ Paradise now. There are quite a few people I’d like to see at least once before we leave. You coming?"

"I think I’ll wander around a little longer with the captain of the Second Hunting Squad."

Ethan declined Raiden’s invitation, placing a hand on Verso’s shoulder as though signaling for him to stay.

Verso understood the message and nodded several times.

"Yeah, yeah! We’ll take one last look around the city before heading to the capital! Who knows how long it’ll be before we see this place again!"

"All right, then... I’ll see you later at the Hunters’ Residence."

"Yeah. Be careful on your way."

Raiden went on ahead, while Ethan and Verso saw him off.

Verso kept waving cheerfully until Raiden disappeared at the end of the street. Only then did he turn toward Ethan.