A Hunter is a very boring profession.
They were professional killers, born for slaughter from the start. Protecting Yharnam or safeguarding humanity's purity were just meanings added later by others.
Gehrman, who lived in the Hunters Dream all year round, was tight-lipped, only speaking in riddles to Goki whenever he returned, and in the end, he died swiftly.
In reality, most Hunters were like this. Whether they went mad at the edge of the nightmare or not, most would attack Goki without a word, intent on killing him. Only Old Hunter like Machine Gun Guy would give a warning beforehand out of resignation.
However, Goki wasn't always as cheerful, open-minded, and eternally optimistic as he is now.
In a world without internet or takeout, filled with twisted, sanity-draining monsters, where there were fewer than ten female characters, and it took a month to gather Materials just to eat fried chicken, and where constant death was a given, even Goki, with all his optimism, fell into self-isolation several times.
There is great terror between life and death. Goki, numb to the horror, almost became a Living Corpse. What kept his tenacious humanity and ultimately allowed him to defeat the Great Ones of Yharnam wasn't just the Doll Young Miss's companionship.
Every NPC, whether good or bad, helped Goki greatly in avoiding loneliness.
As the only person in the Yharnam Dream who still had a concept of time's flow during the stagnation caused by Rom, the Vacuous Spider, he even held more than one gala at Oedon Chapel. Whether it was the sharp-tongued but kind-hearted Old Grandma, the Tsundere Guy who loved to contradict, or the Technical Worker Older Sister chosen by Oedon, all had a good relationship with him.
Goki even made an Erhu himself, relying on the skills he learned in the Children's Palace as a child to liven up the atmosphere.
The thing Goki did most often was tell stories—stories from Earth, from Reach, from Deviluke, and even from the neighboring Lothric.
And in Terra, he didn't forget this little hobby. Whenever he and Skadi got tired of watching TV, before they embraced and slept, Goki would tell Skadi the stories he knew.
After all, for Skadi, things on land and things on Earth were equally unknown and interesting—she was more curious about Goki's childhood interest classes at the Children's Palace than about the Uka War.
So, Goki has maintained this good habit until now—facing three curious girls, he revealed everything he knew.
"And so, we crossed the eastern wilderness of Columbia and arrived in Kazimierz, where we happened to meet Margaret—I have to say, Charcoal-Grilled Sand Worm Legs are best when you make them yourself; what they sell in the city is basically adulterated mixed meat."
The moonlight illuminated the room brightly, reflecting a pale light from three golden tails. Goki leaned against the headboard, a rolled-up quilt like a burrito behind him, slowly recounting his "adventure" story of crossing the Columbia wilderness with a caravan not long ago.
In front of him, on the neatly made bed, three Kuranta maidens, who had never left the vicinity of Kazimierz since childhood, sat in their pajamas in various poses, listening to him tell stories of foreign lands.
"It's like, like a fated encounter, the kind they talk about in romance stories—come on, Brother Goki, tell us more about your daily life with Older Sister, please?"
As soon as Goki finished his story, Maria, who looked very similar to Margaret but with less seriousness and more gentleness, excitedly leaned closer to him.
Just a short while ago, she had planned to continue self-studying mechanics, but she abandoned her plan to fix the broken car at home tonight, pulling her Older Sister into Goki's room instead.
Maria was wearing pink underwear, embroidered with various cute little flowers, her youthful aura irrepressible—well, to be precise, it was an aura mixed with the fragrance of freshly washed shower gel and a faint scent of engine oil.
"There's nothing much to tell. Your Older Sister put a lot of effort into this competition. I just gave her a few pointers. Her perseverance is admirable. Margaret will gain something from this."
Looking at this 16-year-old Kuranta maiden, and the future Radiant Knight Operator of Rhodes Island, Goki reached out and ruffled her little head.
"Hehe~~"
As the youngest daughter of the Nearl Family, Maria, whose Knight talent was average, was not burdened with as many high expectations as her Older Sister Margaret, so she had less pressure and a naturally livelier personality.
Glancing at her Older Sister beside her, Maria suddenly bounced up, jumping onto the bed next to Goki, tightly hugging his arm, even burying it into her chest, which had already caught up to her Older Sister's since puberty.
At the same time, her golden eyes couldn't help but peek at her Older Sister, observing her reaction.
Although she was two years younger than her Older Sister, Maria, who had understood more "unnecessary things" since childhood, unlike Margaret, who was trained as a Crusader Knight from a young age.
Seeing her Older Sister's shy expression when entering Mr. Goki's room, and the way her horse-like body would suddenly jolt whenever Brother Goki was mentioned, Maria knew that her Older Sister was definitely smitten.
That's why she specifically put down her repair work and dragged her Older Sister to Brother Goki's room. This opportunity wouldn't come again. With her Older Sister's personality, you couldn't find a man compatible with her in all of Kazimierz even with a lantern. If Brother Goki didn't seize this chance... her Older Sister would probably spend her life with a sword and shield.
And, how to put it, although they had only known each other for a short time, Maria felt that if she had such a brother-in-law in the future, she would be much happier!
Talkative and humorous, and even when facing her grandfather's charge, he remained calm and composed, well-informed, and even possessed impeccable engineering knowledge—Goki repaired his own weapons!
In short, this future brother-in-law had successfully won Maria's favor.
"Brother Goki, how do you see Older Sister Margaret? Is there anything you want to know? I'm her biological younger sister, you know, I know very well what she likes to eat and what she likes to wear."
Having just met today, Maria already had the self-awareness of a younger sister-in-law, assisting her Older Sister.
Of course, if her Older Sister remained a blockhead and prevented her from becoming a younger sister-in-law... Maria wouldn't mind trying it herself.
After all, although her Family didn't object to Maria becoming a craftswoman, she still felt she was inferior to others.
However, just now, Maria was thoroughly encouraged by Goki. After listening to Brother Goki tell the story of Boa, a tribal craftswoman in the Sargon rainforest, she was filled with confidence for her future path as a craftswoman.
[If Older Sister doesn't cherish him, I'll take him myself!]
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