As if a trend had formed among them, everyone began opening up about the reason for their eventual descent into the path of a hunter. Soon, the bonfire became the place of chatter.

’Was nobody interested in this?’

Not invested in the conversation much, Michael found an excuse and got away from the group. Not far away, he found a place high enough to look at the clear sky without any distractions.

As he sat, a slow, cold breeze moved through the air, gently lifting and swaying his hair around.

’Now this is much better...’

Looking at the stars slowly appearing, a pure smile appeared over his face. While enjoying the moment, his thoughts couldn’t help but wander into the conversation they were having prior.

’What was my dream!?’

Thinking he looked around, but for some reason, not a single honest answer came to his mind.

’Well, I was always fascinated with space.’

Looking at the sky, he found a start. But soon he knew this was a lie. Sure, he was curious about the space and wanted to learn more about it. But having no way of going there, he slowly forgot about it.

Michael always thought of himself as someone practical; he knew there was no point in wasting his time and energy on something impossible. To him, using that time to gain something felt more valuable.

’Well, I’ve got that goal... but.’

Something else came to his mind, but in the end it wasn’t satisfactory either. In the end, he thought there wasn’t any point in pondering over the question and soon turned his head away.

’Anyway, who needs a goal when I can just live my life...’

He had put it away, but deep down, Michael was aware of how shallow of a person he was. There was a goal he was following, but it wasn’t something of his own; it was, in a way, forced upon him.

Even though it was that way, he wasn’t actively against fulfilling it, nor was he whining about it. But was he interested in it? The answer is no. He was doing it because he had to do it. Not because he wanted to do it.

’Let’s get this over with...’

Closing his eyes, he began enjoying the calmness the howling of the wind brought and let himself drown in the peace.

"So, you are here..."

Suddenly, a voice called out, disturbing his peace, but for some reason, he wasn’t mad this time.

"Oh! Hey Misha. Come sit... the view is great from here." He replied, smiling.

"Don’t mind if I do..."

Saying so, she moved toward him and sat right beside him. Seeing her sit beside him, Michael couldn’t help but contemplate her intention.

’This close...’ 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Seeing the moonlight resting softly on his face, giving it a pale, quiet glow, and his hair fluttering like that, Misha couldn’t help but blurt out.

"Looks handsome today..."

"Huh!!"

"Huh!!"

"Where did this come from..."

He replied, a blush forming on his face.

"Nothing."

Misha whispered, giving no further explanation to him. After that the silence between them settled again. It was comfortable and unhurried, like there was no end to it. As if it had always belonged there.

Then, almost without thinking, or maybe because she was thinking too much about it, Misha slowly moved her hand and placed it gently over his.

It was barely a touch.

Michael felt it immediately, but he didn’t say a word. He didn’t move and simply looked down at her hand on his, and a smile spread across his face. Not the usual grin he wore, it was something softer.

Michael didn’t pull away his hand; he didn’t speak. He just... let it be.

The wind moved again through his hair, and the moon held its place. And the two of them sat there, neither of them willing to be the one to break whatever this was.

Then, after some time, when the stars had shifted just slightly, Michael exhaled slowly. As if he had been holding something in for a very long time.

And then, gently, almost like he was afraid, he leaned sideways and rested his head on her shoulder. His eyes fell closed. After which he didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to.

With eyes widened, goosebumps, and a roaring heartbeat, Misha somehow managed to sit very still, not daring to breathe too loudly. She could feel the slight weight of him against her, and she was happy to bear it.

The moonlight hung above them both as she did the same.

After a much-needed rest, the group packed everything and began their journey toward the dungeon.

While one of the caravans was filled with the hunters discussing their plan of attack. The other had Templar, and a few of his people.

’It’s somewhere around here..’

Looking at the pendulum in his hand, the Templar took a peek out of the caravan.

Soon another day passed, and the forest, which was sparse hours ago, had begun to grow thicker. After moving through the forest for a while, the pendulum shifted slightly to the left.

Seeing the change, he quickly instructed the caravanner.

"Take left from here.. we are about to enter Milka’s lair, so be vigilant about it. Inform any abnormalities you see outside."

After a while, the pendulum had stopped moving. Templar knew it meant that the entrance must be somewhere within a km-wide radius. Looking at their position in the jungle, Templar heaved a sigh of relief.

’Phew! It’s good that it is in the outskirts.

Calling everyone, he instructed everyone to look for the entrance.

"We are here... let’s spread out and find the sigil... be careful, there might be beasts around here.."

Hearing this, everyone nodded and began looking for the entrance. Everyone tried finding it in their own ways.

Adam communicated with the animals around it and asked to look for any anomalies. Soon, he gets a positive reply from a rodent.

"Sir, we got it..."

Informing the Templar, he called everyone back. Looking at the sigil with a golden radiance around it, the group began their last-minute conversation. Well, they had revised everything, so after a quick word between themselves, they were ready to enter it.

"It’s time. Let’s go." Adam said as everyone nodded.

Soon, all of them stepped on the sigil. Nyron slit his hand a little and let a drop of blood fall on the ground. The moment it touches the sigil’s rune, the blood evaporates as its glow increases slightly.

Almost instantly, a notification appeared in front of everyone simultaneously.

[Do you want to enter the dungeon?]

[Yes/No]

They looked at each other and nodded their head. Disappearing from their spot, they appeared inside a dark room with notifications prompting in front of them.

[You have entered a unique dungeon: Dungeon Of Greed]

Before they could process what had happened, two new notifications appeared, hinting at the horror they were about to experience.

[The Curse of Final Destination has been applied.]

[The Curse of Offering has been applied.]

’We are fucked..’ Chills ran down his spine as Michael read the description of these curses.