Chapter 32: The Hunter And The Preys
The trail of my obsidian dagger was a flatline, severing the hand that was intended to choke Tahlia's throat into mush.
Simultaneously, a spell projectile hit the helmet of the Lone Rider and combust into an immense explosion of heat, wrapping into the dark-steel of the entity and digging inside the hidden skin and skull.
Then lastly, Lupina's sword thrust jammed into the armored chest of the Wild Hunt's stray. However, the power and sharpness was not enough to pierce the protection.
But it was enough to push the Lone Rider back, staggering it into a state of wary and confusion before escaping back into the fog with a blink of an eye.
"Verina!"
Panicked, Lupina immediately rushed toward Verina to check up on her.
Lupina didn't even see the Lone Rider until the last second it emerged back with the fog. Her fully-awake eyes and jagged breathing was a sign that her mind wasn't the most stable at the moment.
However, my eyes were latched at that member of the Wild Hunt until the last second.
Despite their attempts, it appeared like neither the spell projectile nor Verina's raged thrust ever damaged both the helmet and the armor.
"Just how hard that is!?"
I held a tight grip on the severed hand and threw it down, freeing Tahlia from a chokehold. In curiosity, I aimed my Hardmelter and blasted a single canister worth of loose-gap pouring into the gauntlet.
"... Is this even metal?
The gauntlet was still there, with the residue of the corrosive slime barely chipping on the exterior of the cold dark-steel that the piece of armor was made from.
"Narcissus, should we run??" Lupina said with rugged breath.
Verina was hanging on Lupina's back with her hand still holding tight on her musket, still looking emotionless despite her wound.
Though, I didn't notice any dripping of blood. Lupina must have given her Potion of Healing for Verina to sip, since I still saw the item within her Inventory section of her detail screen staying at 40% durability, or in this case, the amount of content.
"... That 'thing' is still in this vicinity." Just by looking at Tahlia and Lupina's own expression alone, they should still sense the piece of Qliphoth Object nearby. Not to mention, the faint rippling wave above was still there. "Can you still move, Lupina?"
"I-I can," Lupina anxiously chuckled. "Or else, we will die here, am I right?"
"Verina, can you still aim your musket?"
"I can just use more lifelines to make my spell projectile seeking the target I appointed." Whilst both arms over Lupina's neck and shoulder, Verina chambered another spell into her musket. "This relentless mutt will act as my legs. I can still fight."
Lupina smirked. "I take that as a compliment, ahaha."
"Should I still attempt to use my Hardmelter?" Tahlia asked.
"Yes."
"Also, thank you for saving my life…"
"There's no reason for gratitude."
Every person in the team would be as important as their own queen within a chess game.
Lost a single one of them, the whole faction would get significantly weaker.
Even though Tahlia barely posed any threat to the Lone Rider, his existence as a variable was worthy enough to break through all sorts of situations, just like how he lunged and slammed his body at the Qliphoth Object to save Lupina.
"The Lone Rider is still in this proximity, but why didn't I sense any active malice?"
Lupina checked the surroundings. Despite her heightened senses and instinctual prowess, she didn't seem to be able to pinpoint the position of the Lone Rider.
"Just like how we didn't actively pursue it, the Qliphoth Object seemed to be doing the same." I tried to make sense of what was happening, and how this piece of Wild Hunt was even here in the first place. "There must be something wrong with this one, it didn't act like what I assumed a Qliphoth Object should be."
Was it an error in the coding of the game? An anomaly of this world? The Qliphoth Object should relentlessly attack anything on their own.
It shouldn't be hiding like this unless the information screen outright states it, or hints at it.
Then again, the information screen wasn't the end-all be-all of the Calamity Object, so it might be the same case with the Qliphoth Object.
Unless…
[Mythos Reference: Manifested by folklore of the Wild Hunt from various European mythologies, a spectral procession of huntsmen often associated with death and disaster]
They were huntsmen!
It might not be stated outright, but according to the information on the internet regarding the Wild Hunt, there were more than one version depending on the region and cultures.
The legend typically involves a ghostly or supernatural group of hunters passing through the sky or across the landscape, often accompanied by hounds and horses.
This spectral hunting party is led by a mysterious and powerful figure, such as Odin in Norse mythology, King Arthur in British folklore, or a variety of other mythical or legendary leaders depending on the region.
But at their core, they were huntsmen!
I didn't know the objective truth about the Wild Hunt in this world, but this Lone Rider might be more of a hunter than an actual relentless cavalry that leaves imminent destruction in their wake.
Then again, they might also possess a different gimmick and behavior the moment they were not riding their steed.
So many possibilities, so little path to the actual truth.
"Running will only fatigue us even further," I calmly informed them. "It might follow us regardless. Other than that, have you all noticed something important?"
"Something important…?" Tahlia questioned.
"There isn't any Calamity Object approaching us." I checked my surroundings and spammed my intent to open their information screen in case that it was picked up by the system, ensuring the reliability of my statement. "We already had 20 minutes of downtime before we encountered the Wild Hunt's stray rider, and I doubted that this single piece of Wild Hunt spawned outside of the influence of their original pack, since that was not what a Wild Hunt meant to be.
"And we're in the Ordeal of the Midnight. The amount of downtime that we have should be far lower." I dug through the ancient, repressed flesh hanging inside the Lone Rider's gauntlet, scooping it out with a makeshift stone knife. "The presence of that hunter might have prevented the Calamity Object from manifesting near us.
"Or maybe, it was actively killing them all to ensure that our eventual clash is unbothered."
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone