Chapter 351: [Vol.3] Quest 275- The Fawn & The Huntress

 

The next day, Cirrus woke up and took a bath.

"Ahh~… Say Nox, we don’t still bathe together, right?"

Nox, who is still in her owl, turns her head back.

‘Not really. We did it for a while, but eventually, we both got busy, and Artemis and Ai would take up the space in the tub.’

"Ah… I see…. Hmm…" Cirrus found this a bit concerning.

After getting out and clothing himself, Nox transforms back into her human form and stops him.

"Before you leave, why not store your board over there?"

"… You want me to carry it?"

"No, just store it in your shadow.""… I can do that!"

"Of course! Hey Hecton, you haven’t shown yourself yet, have you?"

"Who’s Hecton?"

Nox points down, and as Cirrus looks down, he can see his shadow shift, and from it, a head pops out.

"Holy fuck!!" Cirrus jumped back.

"My name is Hecton. I was a foe you faced and defeated later on in your life. I serve you as loyally as Nox does. I apologize for not introducing myself sooner, but it seemed you needed time for yourself."

"T-thanks?" Cirrus spoke a bit calmly. "So do I just… Put it in?"

"Yes, or I can simply take it for you if you wish?"

"Yeah, do that."

Hecton’s arms came out and he grabbed the skateboard, storing it in the shadow.

"Should you need my help, be it attacking, defending, or simply simple stuff in general, I will assist."

"Thank you, um, Hecton? Is that your name or what I gave you?"

"It is a simplified name of my actual name, which is Hecatoncheires."

"… Ah, I see. Hmm. It’s a bit hard to come up with a name for you?"

"There is no need; ah, I should mention you have another one like me, but she is currently out on a job for your older self, sir."

"Oh… Well, that’s fine. You can go back to whatever you were doing, Hecton."

Hecton nodded and went back into his shadow.

"Cool huh!" Nox said.

"… Yeah, he is pretty fucking cool!"

 

Down on the tower's first floor.

"?" Artemis felt an odd disturbance in the air. "Odd? What could that be?"

‘If it’s anything, Ouranos would contract us.’

Artemis checks herself to see if everything’s all in order.

 

Cirrus walks out of Nox’s room after changing and walks down to see Artemis waiting in her usual attire.

"Were you waiting long?"

"Not at all."

‘That’s a complete lie. I got up an hour early to get ready!’

"Then where do you wanna go?"

"Hmm… Shall we try hunting?"

"Sure, I mean, I've never really hunted before… Unless you count people?"

A brief silence falls between them.

"Don’t worry!" Artemis said smiling. "You can hold your own!"

"Okay!"

 

After getting ready with some bows and arrows, the two went to the nearby forest outside Orario.

"That’s a pretty cool bow you have. Who made it, or is it like a weapon from the heavens or something?" Cirrus asked, looking at Artemis’ bow.

"You made it; it’s called Artemis’ Silver Pride. You were going to call it Silver Moon or Artemis’s Pride, but decided to mix the two."

"I made that! Holy fuck, that’s cool!" He made a childlike smile that warmed Artemis’s heart.

‘I will remember this fondly!’ Artemis thought to herself, saving the memory deeply in her mind.

"Ahem! So we will be hunting for anything! Whether it's animals or monsters! If it is a monster, take their drops and magic stones. If it’s an animal, well, I’ll skin it for you, alright."

"Got it!"

Cirrus followed Artemis as she led the hunt. The way she moved was something Cirrus tried to imitate, as she moved quickly, quietly, and cautiously.

"…Hold."

Cirrus looks as she scans the area, and her movements stopped as she looked in a direction. Her eyes trained as she grabbed her bow and slowly notched an arrow. When it was fully pulled, she held it for a few seconds before letting it go.

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Fsh!

Aside from the sound of the arrow being shot, the arrow was as silent as the dead of night, a feat Cirrus never thought would be possible.

"That’s one; let’s go."

They went to where Artemis shot her arrow to find a stag with an arrow through its heart.

"Hm… Pretty good, but I’ve gotten a bit rusty."

"Killing a stag in one shot from like, 80, 90 feet away with a bow and arrow is rusty?"

"For me, yes."

"… I bet my adult self asked you for archery training, right?"

"Of course! He and you both have a thing for learning new things. Ah, we should probably process the stag quickly, Cirrus. You know about your shadow storage, right?"

"Yes, Nox told me, as well as Hecton."

"Good, now let me show you how to skin an animal." Artemis pulled out her carving knife as if it were always in her hand and processed the stag.

Cirrus could see why he would fall for her, a very strong and skilled huntress. Her archery was something to see with one’s eye.

‘… Huh? Do I have a morbid sense of love? I think my taste kinda changed?’ Cirrus was thinking to himself as he watched Artemis butcher a stag. The contrast between the brutal sight and the beautiful goddess made her more appealing. ‘… Geezus fucking Christ, I am kinda fucked up.’

After Artemis finished teaching Cirrus how to process the stag, it was Cirrus’s turn to hunt.

"Slow and steady. Keep your ears and eyes out."

"Got it."

Cirrus did the best he could.

'He's imitating my movements like he did when he first started. It’s adorable!’

Cirrus picked something up as they moved.

"There is something nearby… These steps… Humans."

"Are they doing anything?"

Cirrus focuses on the sounds, and then a piercing sound resonates through the forest. Cirrus opens his eyes to a flash of white.

It was the same feeling Artemis felt earlier in the day, but more potent. The feeling sent a shiver up her back.

"Cirrus, we need to—"

"Lady Artemis!" Cirrus quickly jumped back to cover for her.

After a few seconds, Cirrus opened his eyes again to find that nothing had happened.

"I’m fine, Cirrus." She pats his shoulder. "Something has happened… I’m having this uneasy fee—"

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

The sounds of heavy footsteps could be heard through the forest, and one of them was coming closer.

"Hecton, can you give me a sword? (Exousía, Adorn: Ceryneian)!!!"

From his shadow, his emerald-ruby sword came into his hands. Artemis got behind Cirrus as the sound came closer and closer until a nightmarish human head popped up from the tree lines.

"!!"

Artemis and Cirrus were frozen solid, not by fear, but by the existence of this creature; no monster had ever been recorded with this humanoid appearance; there was no hair anywhere other than the top of its head, or even distinct features other than its ugliness and how close it is to human appearance.

It extended its hand towards Cirrus and Artemis.

"Haaa!!!!"

Cirrus, with all of his strength, cleaved the monster's hand clean in half.

The giant monster appeared unfazed by the attack as steam emanated from the wound and slowly healed.

"Regeneration, I see." Cirrus then held Gram with both hands and quickly kicked it off the ground. He ran up its arm, cutting deep into it, and as Cirrus reached the head, he swung his sword with great strength, cutting its head off.

Slash!!!

Thud!!

He jumped back to where Artemis was as the body fell to the ground.

"Do you think it’s dead?" Cirrus asked, his blade ready to cut again.

"… It seems dead."

They watched as the body slowly turned to steam, taking with it the meat and soon the bones, leaving nothing behind.

"Yeah… it’s dead. Cirrus, change into your Stymphalian armor and take me up. If there is more, you need to take care of it, these monsters are far too much for level 2 or even level 3 adventures to handle."

"Got it."

Cirrus puts Gram back into his shadow, puts on his Stymphalian armor, and takes Artemis high into the sky.

"T-there are so many…" Artemis scanned the area and noticed several of them wandering and even running in herds. "Wait? What’s that?"

"You see someone?"

"Yeah, but… they're flying around with… steam?"

 

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