Dungeon Raider System-Chapter 773: Devil’s cross Part 1
The moment Bella ran away with Uriel's prize there was nothing else to discuss between those present, though Uriel would have loved to argue that he didn't get what he asked for in exchange for his silence it was actually one his employees the one who took it.
Sam was on a quest of his own and Hathaway needed to figure out his next steps after confirming he wasn't human.
Thankfully to him, he was in his company's territory which meant he was safe and he decided to take Mark along with him since he now felt responsible for the pitiful heavenly rank hunter possessed by a cryptid that for some reason flinched whenever any of the Dungeon Raiders so much as looked his way.
It wasn't until hours later after exiting the cave and heading north that it finally dawned upon Uriel that he could have asked for a zeppelin or at least a ride to wherever the Mapple corporation headquarter was located, but by that point he was too embarrassed to admit his lack of thinking and just continued walking in silence along with a pensive Luna and a very flustered Nika.
"I can't believe he's the son of the devil." Nika muttered to herself.
"Really? I mean, I get that he was fun to be around most of the times, but he's always been kind of a jerk. I thought his mean streak came from his father, the corrupt politician, but now we know he's the son of Lucifer it kind of makes sense." Uriel replied and Luna added.
"There's also a disparity between the story I know about the so called fallen angel and what actually happened, so I'll hold my thoughts about that for the moment. About Sam, he has always been a lustful creature who peeps on women while they change, he's responsible for the deaths of who knows how many people and he also sided with cryptids to destroy a city.
Which part of that makes him sound like a good guy?"
Unable to reply in any sensible way, Nika shifted her focus towards the landscape in silence, but just thinking about being so close with a direct descendant from the 'enemy' itself gave her the creeps. To Nika, it didn't matter if Sam was actually a nice person, just being the son of the 'devil' was enough to trigger Nika who was deathly afraid of everything supernatural.
The fact that she herself had powers that couldn't be explained easily by science and that she had killed many creatures that appeared in the lore and mythology somehow didn't affect her, which had always left Uriel puzzled.
"By the way, where are we?" Alice asked upon noticing some signs with words in a language she didn't understand.
"Oh, we're just entering Spain it seems." Uriel replied dismissively.
"Didn't you say it was one of the most dangerous countries in Europe?" Alice asked and her answer came in the form of an uncanny smile being drawn on both Uriel's and Luna's faces at the same time.
Uriel had mentioned that Gibraltar was considered British territory, but he intentionally glossed over the fact that it was much closer to Spain that it was to England just to mess with Alice who, in his eyes, should have known it since she also studied archaeology.
But the reason why Luna smiled was completely different. She actually wanted to visit Spain since the spanish traditions and legends had always intrigued her. For some reason she couldn't understand, the stories they passed greatly differed from the neighboring countries and she wanted to investigate the reason for that.
Though after so long without being able to study properly, she was craving any sort of knowledge she could acquire and she was hoping for a cryptid infested country.
What she found instead was a seemingly endless walk with people who didn't want to make conversation or listen to her stories. Every time Luna wanted to tell a story she was shushed by Alice and whenever she wanted to strike a conversation with Nika she replied in monosyllables making it feel as though she was talking to a wall.
A couple days after crossing Spain's border and camping outdoors, the group was starting to get worried since they had yet to encounter a single city. They encountered a couple POIs, some of which were destroyed towns, but they had yet to see a single living person.
In the early hours of the morning, only a few minutes after starting their travel, Nika saw a stone cross by the side of the road near the top of the hill they camped at. Apart from the amazing view that extended as far as the eye could see, she noticed how the cross was beautifully crafted and she couldn't help but get closer and kneel on it.
"What are you doing?" Luna asked with curiosity.
"She's praying, it's highly disrespectful to bother people while they perform their religious rites." Uriel scoffed.
"Does that apply to witches too? If I remember correctly you killed a whole lot of them while they were praying too." Luna rebuked causing Uriel to fumble a few choice words, though he didn't speak them out loud to avoid disturbing Nika.
"There must be a town or something nearby, this cross has been polished and clean spotless. There's also flowers by the side of the shrine." Uriel said when the rustling sound of some bushes at a distance alerted the group.
"No!" A youthful voice followed by a lean boy who couldn't have been older than fourteen ran towards the group to the best of his ability, though in the eyes of the hunters it seemed as though he was moving in slow motion. "Don't do it, don't pray in front of that cross!" The boy warned, but it was too late as Nika was already crossing herself hinting that she had finished her task.
Upon noticing this, the boy flinched, his face filled with horror. He then turned to leave, but was easily caught by Uriel who didn't even need to use Dash.
"Explain yourself." Uriel glared at the boy, his eyes devoid of emotion almost causing a heart stroke to the poor boy.
"Stop, you're doing it wrong. Speak," Luna said and pushed Uriel away causing some relief in the boy's mental state, but that changed when she proceeded to grab him by the collar and lift him off the ground albeit not much because of her stature. The boy cried for help and for Luna to let him go while kicking and screaming, but Luna's grip was too much for him. "Uhm... this isn't working."
"You guys are wrong in the head, just give him some space and he'll speak." It was Alice's turn to push Luna to the side and she held the teen in an embrace as she pressed him softly against his chest which finally got him to calm himself and explain the situation.
"You need to listen to me now, that is no ordinary cross. It's the devil's cross and whoever prays in front of it will become evil." The boy said somewhat expecting the newcomers to doubt his words and call him a liar, but what happened instead was both Luna and Uriel darting to the cross to inspect it.
Uriel was looking for carvings while Luna attempted to pick any scent she could in hopes of finding anything that could prove to be helpful. When that failed, Luna proceeded to inspect Nika who let her do while blinking a couple times in astonishment.
"I don't feel any different," Nika said as she patted herself. "maybe it doesn't affect hunters."
"It does! Especially with powerful hunters. Whoever prays in front of the shrine becomes a mean evil version of themselves. It's causing our town a great suffering!" The teen became teary eyed, but he put on a tough face. "That's why I camp nearby, so this won't happen to people, but I'm afraid it's too late for your friend. You will have to put her down, for your own safety and that of others."
"Woah! Chill, I'm me... there's nothing wrong with me." Nika raised both hands in a claim of innocence, though she still flinched when Uriel walked closer.
"I'm not going to hurt you, you idiot. I just want to see if there's a flux disturbance. Alice, don't forget to warn me if Nika tries to do something funny or you'll regret it." Uriel's words left no space for hesitation, though Alice was already looking on to Nika's future and nothing had happened.
After a few seconds of examining Nika with the 'nerd glasses' that allowed Uriel to see flux energy it became clear there was nothing different in that aspect and he came up with a theory. "Maybe it doesn't affect her because she was already evil to start with."
"Evil? Me!?" Offended, Nika placed her hand over her chest as she let an exaggerated gasp.
"It's certainly a possibility, but I need more data. Take us to your town." Luna looked at the teen with an innocent face that contrasted with her previous violent outburst and he looked each hunter in the eye as he pondered whether it would be a good idea or not to bring them over.
"I'll bring you with me, but only with one condition," The teen declared as he pointed at Alice. "I want her to kiss me."
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