The corpse of the humongous wolf sat there motionless, none of the party members approaching it. Instead, they were found huddled up near the campfire, joyous shouts coming from the warm orange light.

Keeping their minds off the near-death experience they just had, Dan yelled in excitement, “A toast to ourselves! Cheers!” They did not have any cups, but they could still fist-bump and drink from the watering hole nearby, their heads fully submerged in the water like an ostrich burying its head in the sand. Ren and Archie did not waste any time.

Immediately, two ‘plop’ sounds could be heard from the water body, the two men immersing themselves in the cool embrace of the water. Dan, however, was a little too eager.

“Cannonball!” he shouted as he flopped belly-first into the pool with a big splash—the water getting sent out in all directions—the ripples of the impact traveling across the entire pond. Ren and Archie were spared, half their bodies already underwater—the other half too close to the ground to fall. Lest, on the other hand, was a completely different story.

The wave washed across her back like a tsunami against a dam, the force of the impact so great she toppled over, falling flat onto the now-wet dirt, mud getting all over her light tunic, the water turning it slightly translucent. Enraged, the seemingly miniature human walked up toward the unruly three, dwarfed by the height of Archie—who had unspokenly agreed to a breath-holding contest underwater with Ren—and the size of Dan.

“Hey, we almost just died! Would it kill you to be more serious? What if more Beasts appear?” she scolded the group, their attitudes carefree despite being in this desolate wasteland of a world.

“Oh, Lest, relax a little. Beasts always run from the corpses of Minor Monsters, none will come near us tonight.” Dan replied.

“Besides, we deserve a lil’ vacation, don’t ya think—Whoa, put on a shirt!” Dan turned around, face flushed with embarrassment.

Looking down, Lest assessed the current condition of her outerwear. “Huh? What do you—”

This time, it was her turn to be embarrassed.

“L-Look away!” she said, covering her chest with both arms as she quickly turned around. Just then, Archie emerged from the water, breaking the surface with a large gasp.

“I lost? In a breath-holding contest? What sort of Artifact magic is this?”

Ren, emerging right after he did, quickly replied. “Looks like we’re even now. No more extra night watches, right?” His short hair now looking like a flat starfish slapped onto his head, losing any semblance of texture or volume.

“Hey, Dan, I don’t owe him anything now! Wait, what are you doing? Why're you looking away from the trees?”

Turning his head around to investigate the nightmare which Dan could not even bear to look at, what graced Ren’s eyes was nothing if not a spectacle, the best thing a person could witness. “Uh, Ren, what’re you looking at all wide-mouthed and—Woah.”

The sight was indeed something to behold.

No, it was not Lest changing or anything dirty like that—get your mind out of the gutter.

The morning sun broke through the treeline, a flash of green appearing, ensnaring both the men’s gaze on its dazzling beauty. Its golden rays shone through the openings between tree trunks, forming into a sort of beam. These beams came together in harmony, coalescing into a remarkably uniform image, like a puzzle pieced together to form an elegant scene. The shadows cast by the big ball of gas were long and elusive, as if showcasing what the future of the majestic plants held in store for them, taller and grander than anything could compare. Even the little shrubbery around the trees looked like they were on a spotlight. The ferns hooked onto the trunks of the bigger flora like they were meticulously placed for optimal visual appeal.

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Ren caught his breath, taken away by the beauty of his view.

“Wow.” he said.

“Wow.” Archie said.

“What?” Dan continued, his back still facing the treeline, unwilling to sacrifice his dignity for whatever the two were looking at—in fear that Lest was still there. All three of them suddenly became enraptured in a trance, staring at their ideal version of beauty.

“It’s beautiful,” they said in unison.

Ren and Archie were referring to the sunrise before them, Dan referring to the splash area of his dive—somehow managing to spill out of all sides of the lake, drowning the nearby grass and flowers in a flash flood.

Lest, meanwhile, was trying to find an extra shirt she could wear, hiding behind a tree near the campfire, open enough that she would be noticed by the three combatants should a Beast attack, but not open enough that they would notice her if she wasn’t actively seeking attention.

Or so she thought.

‘Oh, Advanced Ones, please bestow upon me the blessing of a new tunic!’ she prayed, arms extended outwards in an awkward fashion, as if presenting something.

No such blessing occurred.

Out of the blue, Ren approached her, his own tight-fitting shirt warm and dry—the two things Lest desperately needed.

“So, uh, what is this…ritual?” he asked, clearly confused by her weirdly positioned arms.

Tracing them back to her body, he realised that…he could see through the light leather tunic.

The chaos that erupted next felt like it was played in slow motion, yet sped up at the same time.

Ren shot his eyes and head down, looking straight at the muddy grass beneath him, while simultaneously he started…rambling? Debating? He didn’t know what he was doing, spouting random words in hopes of explaining himself.

“I’m sorry I didn’t notice, I swear I saw nothing. Won’t happen again, please forgive me. I saw nothing…”

He also started taking off his shirt, wanting to offer it to Lest. In hindsight, he should have explained that first.

Seeing Ren start to take off his shirt, Lest turned more and more flustered, face now coloured pink in embarrassment. Not knowing what to do, she slapped him across the face. Mind you, it was not a light slap at all.

‘Piak!’

The sound echoed through the empty clearing, Ren snapping back to his calm, rational mind.

‘Wait, what am I doing? Why am I taking off my shirt? Why is Lest in front of me? Wait…Lest is in front of me.’

He blinked. Once. Twice. And a third time. He then proceeded to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming, a thin red streak appearing across his forearm.

‘Oh god. This is real.’

Realising 120% of his latent critical thinking skills, he deduced that something must have gone horribly wrong to end up like this, putting two and two together and coming to the conclusion that…Lest had asked for his shirt.

“Oh, you wanted my shirt, right? Since yours was already drenched? Here.” Now completely topless, he tossed the shirt onto Lest’s shoulders, running back to the pond in chagrin at his own tomfoolery.

‘Shit, shit, shit. What am I doing, what am I doing?’

Deciding to copy Dan’s entrance, he stylishly jumped into the air, doing a barrel roll as he landed into the water like a dolphin. He made the right decision of not emerging for as long as he could.

Drawn to the commotion, Dan and Archie approached the lone tree, discovering Lest frozen in shock, with Ren’s shirt hanging on her shoulder.

“Lest? Are you alright?” Dan asked, waving his rough hands in front of her, as though waving at Lest—all while trying his best not to look at her.

“He…” Lest responded.

“He?”

“He gave me his shirt,” Lest finished, clutching the tunic in her arms.

“Oh, close enough to share clothes now? Looks like we’re third-wheeling, Dan.” Archie chimed in mischievously, nudging his elbow at Dan.

“Well, I…uh, he gave me the shirt so…we’re not actually…well, like close.” Lest stuttered, her words barely coherent.

Sighing, Dan eventually interrupted her unintelligible ramblings. “Alright, alright, I understand, just…wear the clothes now. Please.”

They turned around to give her space to change comfortably, going back to Ren, who was still hiding under the surface of the still water.

“You can come up now, she means no harm.” Archie said, his voice sounding muffled under the surface of the lake. Not understanding his sentence, Ren stayed underwater for about another minute before resurfacing for air.

“Finally, thought you’d be down there forever. Listen, Lest knows you panicked, there’s nothing between the two of you.” Dan explained.

“Actually, there may be something between you two, but that’s something for you to know, not for us to find out,” Dan added with a grin.

Ren, oblivious to the meaning that Dan hinted at, heaved a sigh of relief. “That’s great. Wouldn’t want any misunderstandings between us.”

“So, are we going to do anything for the morning? Or are we going to have a huge party? I mean, I have food and we have drinks and a perfect pool right here!” Ren asked, voice tinged with excitement.

“If you call this a vacation then I’d say I’m all for a good one, I vote whatever Ren’s voting for!” Lest called out from the treeline.

“I think they have the right idea. We deserve to have some fun after that littlescare.” Archie said as he jumped into the river himself—his clothes soaking wet, sticking to his lanky body—as the water splashed all around.

“What am I ever gonna do with you kids…alright if we're gonna have fun let’s make this day count!”

They spent the rest of the morning eating, laughing, and simply enjoying each other’s company—no Hunters, Minor Monsters or Beasts in sight.