They walked the main street together, searching for the most imposing building. The zone remained largely unexplored, but that could wait. Halo had his clothes. Now they needed supplies, and then they'd return to the castle.
They found themselves before a towering stone structure. Its upper floors featured ornate balconies, and a well-stocked shop sat at street level.
This was the exact direction Mill, the guard of this land, gave Halo upon their first encounter. He'd initially given Seraph the exact direction, and she found him. But looking at the shop from behind, he wasn't so sure.
They exchanged glances and entered the shop without a moment's hesitation.
Halo had thought this was a food supply shop, and it was, but it was more cluttered than expected. Shelves packed with jars lined the walls on three sides. The counter opposite the entrance overflowed with vegetable baskets. Tables facing the counter displayed cuts of meat.
This troubled Halo for a moment. He knew excessive heat made vegetables lose their color and nutrients, so he was used to shops having large windows or displaying produce outside. But this place had only one small front window, yet all the vegetables remained in perfect condition.
"Is that you, Halo?"
An elderly man with grey hair and glasses and a white attire that seemed too styled for this ruined world appeared from a door behind the counter with a smile. It was Mill.
He was supposed to be the guardian of this land, and Halo had expected to see him in armor like the Knights he saw beforehand and Noah, but unfortunately, he wasn't. This gave him more reasons to believe Mill's trust in his strength was through the roof.
Halo gave him an observant look with an unreadable expression while his mind still dwelt on the unusual situation of the vegetables.
"I wasn't expecting to see you anytime soon. Are you here for the Hawks' tournament too?"
Mill's words finally grabbed his attention as he raised a baffled eyebrow. Liam, however, casually walked toward the counter and handed Mill the list of supplies needed.
"Hawks? Tournament? What for?"
Mill's expression shifted into a confused look as if he had forgotten the person he was speaking to. But when it finally hit him, he smiled.
"I nearly forgot… You know nothing about Mirror Steppe."
Mill said and began gathering everything written on the sheet in his hand.
"Vile of Hawks holds a tournament every year to select one lucky person to join their cohort."
Halo frowned. He'd seen many posters and people speaking of these Vile of Hawks. He believed there was more to them, but unfortunately didn't have much time to dwell on them. But now, it started to make a little sense.
"The Vile of Hawks… what are they?"
Mill paused mid-action and turned to him for a moment. Then smiled.
"They are the most popular cohort in this part of the Voiceless region. They are known and respected by everyone."
Halo's eyes narrowed as he recalled cohorts from the game. The world's brutality made group play appealing, with players teaming up to complete Purposes together. Larger numbers meant better safety and efficiency. But it wasn't without drawbacks.
He'd never joined a cohort. Only heard of them once, when another player tried to recruit him in-game. He'd refused. The game hadn't been his to begin with.
It was only natural to believe that there was a leader, and having some people under them came with principles that restricted their freedom just to ensure their safety.
But he didn't understand why a mere cohort would get such attention. Anyone could form a group, so why?
"They are quite remarkable. They once stood for seven days on the walls without food, holding back the Sinners until dawn finally broke."
Halo's expression couldn't turn any darker. He wasn't impressed, even though he knew he couldn't do that himself, but he was sure Liam and Seraph could.
"They say the Seventh number fights better than the First, but I've seen them all, and that's a lie, I'd go with the tenth. Some say one of them destroyed an entire castle… it's still a mystery who it was really, but I'd vouch for the tenth…"
Halo rolled his eyes in annoyance. He was tired of the tiring mysteries. Not long ago, he dealt with the mysteries of Kysa, which he was still living in fear of, and now they bring someone else up? He wasn't going to have that.
Still, he had to admit that destroying a castle alone was impressive. Castles in this world were supposedly controlled by higher beings, entities like whatever ruled the Changing Malicious Solemn, his current residence.
He wasn't sure if 'higher beings' meant higher-ranked humans or gods, but regardless, he was certain it was an incredible feat.
However, while he stood there, he spotted some strange things about Liam. Initially, he thought it was because he was speaking with Mill and hardly paid him attention, but from how his hands trembled, he knew it went beyond that.
"When you are in trouble and you see them around or even just a member, you know it'd all be over with before long."
Halo heard Mill loud and clear. But he was watching Liam. Watching him rush to pay, frantic and urgent. Grab the supplies. Turn around with eyes that looked utterly desperate.
"We… we need to go! There's a strong Sinner. Seraph is struggling."
The moment the words left his mouth, he walked past Halo and walked out of the shop. But Halo was caught, dazzled for a moment.
A Sinner that worried Seraph? That was bad. He'd seen her and Liam handle Perverted Sinners without breaking a sweat. For both of them to be concerned… Beast Sinner minimum. Possibly worse.
He gulped bile.
Without looking back at Mill, he waved dismissively, grabbed his clothes, and chased after Liam.
He'd never seen a Beast Sinner before. Not in the game, not in this world. But he knew they were stronger than anything he'd faced.
Even though his fear stirred. He couldn't shake off the burning desire to fight one. He had trained enough for this. He was ready.