“Come again!?” Lola asked in surprise. She couldn't quite believe Nel’s demand and asked again to make sure. “Is that really what you want? Just a little help with a monster?”

Nel shrugged his shoulders, “Sure.”

“Well, fine!” Lola stared at his face for a few seconds and agreed. She didn't see any harm in helping him out for a little bit. In any case, she was glad he didn't ask something outrageous like one of her equipment.

“Thank you,” Nel smiled at her. “I’m Nel, by the way.”

“You can call me Lola,” Lola responded. Her tone regained the coldness she had initially displayed. Nel didn't mind it, though. As long as she helps him, he can forget everything else. “So, what are we hunting?” She asked.

“A Moon-marked bear,” Nel said. “If possible, two of them.”

“Moon-marked bear!! Are you mad!” Lola screamed. “They are tanky as hell. We might not be able to kill one even if it stands still and let us attack for an entire day. Change your target, or I’m not going!”

She was clear about Nel’s strength after their brief fight. He was as powerful, if not a bit stronger than her. She didn't believe he can penetrate through the thick hide.

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Nel said. He was aware of what Lola was thinking and couldn't help but laugh at her in his heart. She really didn't know anything about hunting. Or perhaps it was the fault of her upbringing. In any case, Nel had his work cut out for him.

“What do you want me to do then?” Lola asked. “And… can you please release me!? It’s uncomfortable in this position.”

“Hmm! Oh! Sorry, I forgot about it,” Nel apologized, but he didn't make any move to release her from those bonds. “I want you to attack its vitals while I have its attention.”

“If you are sorry, then why have you not released me yet?” Lola questioned with an edge in her voice. “And that sounds like an easy job. I’m in. Don’t blame me if we fail, though,” she warned.

“I won’t,” Nel laughed. He had given her the role after taking her invisibility skill into consideration. In fact, her job was so simple that she couldn't flunk it even if she tried to.

“So, where are these bears?” Lola asked. She had already given up on asking Nel to release her and made herself comfortable while lying.

“Their dens are there,” Nel said, pointing a finger towards the deeper part of the woods. “It’s rare for them to come out of their dens given how lazy they are. But we are in luck. It’s noontime.”

“Is something going to happen during noon?” Lola asked, feeling confused. She didn't know much about this kind of monster aside from their despair-inducing defense. In fact, she had only seen them in recordings and pictures.

“That’s right,” Nel nodded his head. “They’ll come out of their dens at this time.” He stood up and stretched before smiling at her. “Let’s go catch some bears!”

“Hey~ aren’t you forgetting something?” Lola said through gritted teeth. She struggled a bit as she climbed to her feet but managed to do so ultimately.

“Ah! Yes, excuse me!” Nel made a ‘surprised’ face, with eyes wide and mouth opened, before going behind her to remove her bind. However, there was a teasing smile on his face which she fortunately couldn't see. Poking fun at her was surprisingly entertaining to Nel.

Lola rubbed both her thumbs after getting free. There was a dull ache in the bones of her digits. Behind her mask, her green eyes teared up.

She gave a displeasure-filled snort at Nel and went invisible.

Suddenly, a cold metal pressed against his neck, nearly breaking his skin. “I could kill you right now, you know!” Lola whispered next to Nel’s ears in a cold voice. Behind her mask, her pink lips stretched to a triumphant smirk.

However, Nel wasn’t the least bit afraid. Before Lola could further gloat at her supposed victory, she felt a sharp thing pressing against the side of her ribs. It was Nel’s dagger-shaped speartip which he had removed from the shaft and using as a normal dagger.

A deafening silence hung between them. Seconds later, Nel felt the cold metal disappearing from his neck and sighed. He broke out in a cold sweat.

“I still won,” Lola argued. “I could’ve cut your neck before you can even stab me.” She was feeling unconvinced about the outcome of this bout. She couldn't swallow the hard pill of defeat a second time.

“I’m a master of Empowering,” Nel said in a steady tone. Rubbing the place where Lola tried to stab, he turned around and continued walking into the deeper part of the wood, “For a split second, I can make my skin harder than steel. Are you confident you can stab through steel within a breath before my dagger puncture a hole into your lung?”

“...” Lola couldn't say anything. She wasn’t confident of achieving such a feat. She excelled in taking out her target by surprise. Most of the time, her opponents were less intelligent monsters. Rarely had she ever fought with a human opponent and therefore lacked experience when dealing with them.

Nel saw through this weakness of hers and exploited it to defeat her twice in a row. He sighed, not feeling proud of this achievement. Defeating a noob had no meaning, after all. “Follow me!” His repressed voice echoed in the silent forest.

Lola clenched her fist tightly, almost digging her nails into her palm. Behind her mask, her eyes had already turned red as she gritted her teeth and breathed heavily. “Don't cry! Don't cry!” she repeated under her breath.

“Hey! Are you coming or not!?” Nel stopped and looked back, staring towards Lola.

“Co- coming!” Her voice nearly broke. Nel rose an eyebrow after hearing her nasal voice. Lola had her back towards him and was doing something with her mask.

After a few seconds, she finished whatever she was doing and came up to Nel in a subdued manner. Her shoulders were droopy as she dragged her feet along the muddy ground. She even sighed a few times, successfully destroying the “mysterious” persona she displayed.

“Were you crying?” Nel asked teasingly. He was walking in the front with all his senses sharpened. This forest was a bit dangerous as a few poisonous species of snakes live here.

“I was not!” Lola denied. “I wasn’t crying at all! Don't slander me!”

“Hah! Really?” Nel shook his head. “I can understand how you feel. Believe me!” He said, remembering that time he met the young man with bull-image. “Oh yeah, since you are from outside, do you know about people who wear a bull logo on their chest?” Nel asked curiously. He had seemingly developed an obsession with finding any information about those people.

“Huh! A bull logo? Are you talking about Taurus Family?” Lola exclaimed in surprise. “How did you know them? Wait! Did you get your ass handed to you by one of them?”

“...” Nel exercised his right to remain silent. He will not dignify that with a response. That experience was a really embarrassing matter to him.

“Pfft!! Serves you right!!” She cursed. Behind her mask, a happy smile lit up on her oval face. She cleared her throat and continued her explanation while giggling between a few words. “Well, Taurus Family is a guild made by a bunch of international runaway criminals. They are a violent, disgusting, and greedy bunch. More than that, they target other hunters instead of monsters.”

“They are bad news,” Lola said ominously.