Everything was dyed orange and crimson beneath my eyelids. I could feel the sun's rays wash over my face. In response to morning's arrival, I sluggishly covered myself with my elbow. I wasn't really a morning person, from the looks of it.

"I hate waking up in the mornings," came a distant affable voice.

I couldn't help but agree with Mara's eloquent opinion. Was she, by any chance, a prodigy of sorts? Whoever looked at the world in that manner couldn't be anything other than a paragon of our society. Just kidding, obviously.

"I'm hungry~" growled Logan.

"Let's wake up Gray, then," said Edward. "It's already morning."

"Screw that," affirmed the barbarian, knitting his brows in an attempt at intimidating his prey. "Let him sleep for a bit longer. Let's just look through that backpack already. I'm starving. No, I'm dying precisely because I'm starving."

I rolled my eyes beneath my arm.

"I'm kinda hungry too," Mara joined in, tying her messy hair as the clank of her heels on the plaque below reached my ears.

"Or we could just eat Lucas," said Logan, eyeing the beast tamer on the floor.

"No, you won't!" roared Lucas, standing up as he felt a wave of coldness wash over him. It was more than just fear, and straight-up terror.

"Oh, so you were awake," chuckled the barbarian. "Since when?"

"I don't care about that. So, should we wake Gray up, or search through the bag?" asked Mara as a shadow loomed over me. Yeah, I felt her presence. The heat emanating from her body and her loud voice, to be exact.

"Shouldn't we let him rest a bit more...?" questioned Lucas, feeling a knot in his throat.

"Don't worry about that," replied Edward in his usual, calm voice. "I know you're awake, Gray. How about you stop pretending you're asleep?"

"Is he awake?" escaped from Mara's lips. I could feel her hot breath against my ear. Stop that. It's annoying. Consider how would you feel if you had someone disturbing your deep slumber in this recalcitrant manner. "Are you awake, Gray?"

I stood still.

"I was just bluffing," admitted Edward, probably shrugging his shoulders. "Thought I might catch him off guard."

"He is awake," said the barbarian, arms crossed as he watched my figure.

Logan and his superhuman instincts... I hoped that sixth sense of his could actually come in handy when we were in actual danger.

"Really? So that's how it is, huh," came yet another breath in my ear. "Thanks for opening the window last night. I appreciate it."

So she noticed what I did, huh... There was no reason for me to acknowledge it, though. By saying that, she was most likely trying to nettle me. I couldn't allow that to happen.

"Yes, I am awake," I told her, my voice vapid as I slowly pushed her face away with my palm. I wanted to put some distance between us. "I am wide awake."

"H-how did you know," stuttered Lucas, unable to comprehend what just happened as his eyes popped toward the bearded behemoth beside him. "Were you bluffing too?"

"No," Logan shook his head. "I know he's a light sleeper. That's all."

He would obviously assume something like that since I had always responded to his calls, even in the middle of the night. Even when I was within the Underworld, I still picked up his call quickly. As long as I noticed someone was trying to contact me, I'd rather get over with it than stall for time. Reyna's message was an unfortunate exception in that regard.

"Just go in the kitchen downstairs," I grumbled. "I'll bring the cans myself."

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"Are you sure? We could help—"

That wasn't an option. I'd rather not have them find the artifact by accident.

"I'm the porter. I know where each item is within that backpack, and I'd rather keep it that way," I shot Lucas's offer down, realizing he was still probably worried about Melody to a certain extent. I had to put his mind at ease, or else he'd do something too fervid for me to rectify. "And don't worry. Everyone will eat their fill."

"I understand," he replied, a firm twitch in his expression.

With that, I was certain he got the hint.

"Don't forget to bring some water as well!" yelled Logan, who was already in the kitchen.

"Yeah," I replied, my throat dry while I tried to carry everything that we needed in both my hands. I'd rather not take another trip upstairs, if possible. Let's get everything done in a clean swoop!

"I'm going to freshen myself up for a bit," said Mara, carrying a half-emptied bottle. I think it was the one from the last night...

"You mean take a piss," scowled Logan, not caring about how petulant that might sound to her. Meanwhile, I just put everything on the table and made myself somewhat comfortable. Ignoring him, Edward and Lucas did the same. "Don't you?"

"Can you just drop dead already, you bastard?!" she hissed, smoke rushing out from her ears. "Why the hell are you so inconsiderate towards a lady? You know Ava hates you because of that!"

"Uh..." Lucas grumbled, feeling the full impact of Mara's obstinance. Even Edward couldn't help but cover his mouth with his fingers. I tried my best not to show any kind of reaction as well. There was no room left for debate. That was a low blow, yet Logan didn't seem to be affected by it. In fact, it made him reveal his irking smile once again.

"I never regarded you as a lady, to begin with."

"I hope you choke on your food and die!" trailed her voice as she got out.

"Ha! Some like that would never happen to—" then he choked on something. He wasn't eating anything, so it was rather weird to see him struggle. Was he faking it? "—Guh! G-Gray! W-water!"

"This again?" I couldn't help but ask, Logan's figure overlapping with Connor's. Yeah, if we ignore the fact that one of them is the heir to a prominent guild, and the other is someone that makes a living through sheer brutality by slaying beasts, then I could argue that both of them are rather similar. I'm referring to their personalities, obviously. Physically? Not so much.

I took pity on Logan as I saw him slamming his fist against his own chest like a gorilla, and threw him the bottle.

"Is that bitch some kind of witch...? She almost killed me!"

"Cause of death: choking on his own spit," Edward declared.

I never knew that Mara could wield classified magic. Probably the ability to lay curses on others. Even though I'm not a scholar, it was an intriguing and probable theory if you were to ask me. We must figure out more about her ability...

"Maybe you shouldn't provoke her too much," I suggested out of the kindness of my heart. "It might be lethal."

"He's right about that one," Edward backed me. "You don't know when she might get so pissed at you she'd rather cut your balls off with her saber."

"No way that'll happen," he shuddered. "You're just joking, right? You know I need them."

Who doesn't?

"Or what," pushed Edward further. "Ava might fill the divorce paper she keeps hidden from you because you don't have them?"

"Shaddap," he roared, taking a step back as he covered both of his jewels with his hands. "Let's not talk about my balls! It's not funny!"

"Why not?" I asked, pointing toward Lucas, who had just taken a seat at the table beside me. "Even he finds it funny."

"No, I don't," he yelped, unable to hide the slight twitch in the corner of his lip before he reluctantly gave in. "Well, just a little bit."

"Even you?!" roared the barbarian, now betrayed. "I thought we were friends!"

"We met the other day! We barely know each other!"

"Then it was just me, Lucas...?"

"Precisely."

"You little—"

"Lucas got you there," interrupted Edward. "You can't deny it."

Logan grinned as though the entire charade that just happened never existed, to begin with. What is he scheming this time, I wondered to myself. Although I had no idea, I got a bad feeling as we made eye contact.

"But Gray fell for my act."

"You're gravely mistaken," I said.

"Am I?" he doubted. "Is that truly the case?"

"It is."

"What's going on here," the mysterious lady darted back into the room, confusion plastered over her face. "Did I miss something?"

"Nothing important," responded Edward.

"Oh, but I heard the fuss you guys made, you know?" Mara grabbed a can of food from the table before taking a seat. "What were you talking about? I'll join in the fun as well."

"The fun's already over, unfortunately," I was the one to break the news down to her.

"Why are you so mean to me?" she cried, visibly shaken by my firm declaration.

"I'm not being mean to you, Mara," I corrected her, drawing everyone's attention. "I simply doubt you'll find the subject we talked about interesting. That's all."

"Are you implying that I'm not smart enough to follow along with the subject?" she asked in an intimidating tone, tapping her finger on the table. "I dare you, Gray. Try. Me."

Well, if you went as far as to provoke me for an answer, then I have no other choice but to oblige to your will.

"Logan's balls."

"Logan's what—" she paused, a blank look on her face. While she was recovering from the unexpected train-like jab she just received, the others burst out into a fit of laughter. Logan was the one in the lead when it came to the number of decibels produced, shortly followed by Lucas.

"Damn you!" Mara yelled as she hurled the object in her hand. I saw it coming but didn't bother moving. The can went past me. Even when upset, she intentionally threw it in a way that'd avoid harming me. How endearing.

I guess those kinds of reactions were the reason I enjoyed taunting her so much.