"What does the system say about it?" Alice asked.

I closed my eyes and tried to bring up the information like Freki's summon. The only impression I got from it was a vague sense of strengthening my body and a change to my blood composition.

Shaking my head, I opened my eyes and shrugged. "Vague as usual. Something about changes to my body and blood. That's it."

She turned to Devon. "Are passive skills always this vague?"

"Sometimes," he replied.

Alice glared at me.

I held up my hands. "Hey, it's not like I'm do- Oww!"

Crouching, I extended my arm and saw a line of red stretch across the top of my forearm near my elbow. Twisting around, I saw the offending piece of stone embedded in the dirt.

"Devon, what the hell?!"

"Your blood. It's changed," he muttered, not the least bit bothered by my outrage.

"Devon. You can't just cut me with a rock!"

"Stop whining, pup. Focus. Look at your arm."

Every instinct inside me wanted to return the favor, but I kept it contained and shoved it deep inside. My arm didn't hurt; that was a plus. And as I looked down, he was right.

At first, I thought my arm had been coated in paint, or a bug had gotten squished, but as I ran my thumb along the pretty much nonexistent cut, I stained my skin with a tint of green that reflected bits of gold at certain angles. It looked familiar, exactly like the liquid lake of blood I found Rock-splitter in.

Wait… Bones. Blood marrow produces blood; is that why it's changed?

"Cain," Devon said, his words startling me.

I had enough time to see a blurring figure rushing from my front, and I tensed and lowered my shoulder.

It didn't matter.

I resisted long enough to feel the jarring impact as my feet tried to dig in. After the force traveled down my body, a firm hand made of immovable steel casually pushed me onto my rear end.

Devon retracted his hand and crossed his arms, towering above me. "Heavier, denser. You've inherited some of the Keeper's essence. The connective tissue should have been reinforced as well. This is why you lost a point in Agility."

"Was all of that really necessary? You could have just explained it."

"Cain. You couldn't move because I destroyed part of your spine. You recovered from that within the hour."

"What?"

It's only been an hour?

The early morning sky peeked out from overhead, and I sniffed the air to find roasted meat cooking over campfires while Crolus seasoned the porridge near one of the wagons.

"What happened exactly?"

"You began to scream. It woke everyone up, and when I tried to wake you, you flung me against the tree," Alice began.

"And then you started to shift as we held you down. We couldn't wake you up to stop, nor could we risk you rampaging through the caravan," Devon stated. "The only option was to paralyze you."

"Wait a second. Jarring impacts. You brained me!"

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"It worked."

Frustration welled up, and I breathed to let it out.

"Has this ever happened?"

"Not that I know of, but I'm not Astra. Ask her when we get back," Devon said as he started walking away.

"Where are you going?" I called out.

He didn't turn around, but he pointed toward the fireplace. "You just raised your stats. We need food before you eat the guards."

Is he joking? Was that a joke?

As soon as he said it, my stomach rumbled loud enough to spook the nearby horses. They whined and tugged at their reins, forcing a very tired-looking Yadalee to hop down from her bench and calm them.

I shot her an apologetic look, and she kept her face pointed in the opposite direction as she led the horses away.

Alice slowly walked over and patted my shoulder. "I'm sorry about the hunger."

I narrowed my eyes and slowly brushed her hand off. "Didn't you say that you enjoyed being hungry?"

She nodded. "I did."

"Then why are you comforting me?"

"Because it was only enjoyable since I got to eat more of Volto's cooking. You do not get to enjoy such an experience."

My eye twitched. The whole morning was weird enough to make me think I was in a fever dream.

"You're not mad about the stat boost?"

Alice tossed a heavy log onto the firepit, the ash plume spraying up the sides as it crashed into the pile. "I am."

"You are?"

"I am jealous. Angry that I am lacking. You are a pup in terms of training and time, yet you are more powerful than me. Yet you are my teammate. Your strength is my strength."

"I see. Uh, thanks."

"It wasn't a compliment. I'm angry, but it's not your fault. All you did was make the best of a situation and risked your life. What gains you made are deserved."

It was a strange conversation. And while she looked fine on the surface, the one look at the log she tossed into the pit showed that wasn't true. The pulverized wood that stuck out against the smooth grain of chopped wood stood out amidst the ash.

"You guys didn't talk to each other at all yesterday. Did you talk after I disappeared?"

She didn't respond, so I picked up some dried leaves underneath the trees and added them to the firepit.

"We did not."

Sticking my hand underneath the pile, I conjured a flame and lit the fire, "He saved you. More than anything else, his first thought was to save you. Dick move when it comes to me, but still not nothing."

She sighed and placed her axe into her lap, pulling out a small piece of rough stone that she used to sharpen its edge. "I know."

There wasn't much else to say, so I pulled out the scroll and tossed it over, while grabbing the sewing kit buried underneath the rest of my junk.

There were a few new holes in my pants and hoodie, and the edges were already fraying, the strings shaking in the light breeze.

My stomach felt like a gnawing pit begging to eat, but I tightened my abs and threaded the sewing needle. It grumbled loudly, but we both ignored it and focused on our own tasks.

***

I set the bowl down and glared at the cooking pot. It wouldn't cook fast enough!

"Does… Is that… Never mind. Forget I said anything, please," Yadalee whispered, shrinking further into the hollow of the tree.

Devon had returned with another large elk on his shoulders, casually flopping it onto the ground and calling for a guard to help. Volk looked relieved, and Crolus looked like he wanted to die. But I wasn't certain if it was his reaction to interacting with us or because he had to butcher another massive beast.

Devon saved him the time and ripped off an entire leg like it was nothing, handing it to the man.

After fifteen minutes, he returned with a parcel of wrapped meat that the hunter had torn to shreds just to dump in a cooking pot he had got from inside our wagon.

By the time the soup was good enough to serve, I was absently chewing on the wood of the bowl, trying to suppress the bottomless pit I called a stomach.

"I'm still hungry. I hate this. Where's it all going? I shouldn't be able to eat this much soup," I complained to no one.

"You raised your constitution by an absurd amount. Your body is starving for nutrients and is processing them as quick as possible. Eat until you can't. Or you'll continue to stay hungry," Devon instructed after putting down his own bowl.

I grumbled but lifted the steaming pot lid and used the ladle to fill my bowl to the brim. It took every ounce of self-control to sip at it slowly and taste the salty food.

Yadalee looked reluctant, but she eventually leaned forward and helped herself to another serving while Alice and Devon sat silently.

It was awkward and tense between the four of us, but the moment we were done, we'd pack up and continue the journey toward the capital.

I continued to eat another four bowls worth for my stomach to raise the white flag and call it quits. As I laid back, I summoned Freki and used his thick fur as a cushion. Turning and rolling my head to face Yadalee, I waved a hand. She blinked a few times before lowering her bowl and sitting up.

"Yes?" she asked hesitantly.

"How much further until we reach the capital?" I asked.

"About nine days. Now that we're beyond the mountain pass, it's a straight path for the next three days, and then we'll take the southern road down to get to the kingdom's crossroads. After that, we'll arrive at the capital."

"We passing any villages along the way?"

She nodded. "Two. A smaller outer village called Kellan's Hand, and a larger medium-sized village; Preltervale. I don't know if we'll be stopping or just crossing through. That depends on Captain Volk's orders."

I closed my eyes and sank into Freki's fur. "Thanks for the information."

"Right, no problem…"

Hopefully they sell clothes at the villages. I need new underwear.