"Mmmmm!"

Sebastian stood on his tiptoes, making strange straining noises as he raised his arms. Every few seconds, he'd lose balance and drop from the tip of his feet back flat, but he'd lift himself once again.

Out of the six leaders on stage, only two hands were raised in favor of allowing Artie to stay. As luck would have it, both of those hands belonged to the same person. Artie appreciated the man's support. It put a smile on his face.

Sebastian gradually lowered himself, realizing no one else would be voting in favor of Artie. He looked discouraged as he dropped his hands, giving the others on stage a look of surprise. No one bothered to look back; they maintained their stance confidently, sure it was the correct choice.

"Phillip, come on man, this is wrong." Uttered Sebastian, looking glumly at the bright man who'd previously spoken up for Artie.

The person he addressed turned his head away, unwilling to retract their decision.

"He'll die out there, guys, you can't b-"

"It's alright," Interrupted Artie, raising his head and revealing his fair expression.

Sebastian ceased his persuasion. He lightly stomped the ground, clenched his fist, then moodily looked down. Seeing this, the light smile on Artie's face stretched even further. Sebastian was practically a stranger, yet he became upset on his behalf.

Artie held back his disappointment and reassured the man.

"I've already survived four days out there alone; what's a few more?"

His tone was easy-going and loose, but he fought back the embarrassment of loss inside.

The man broke from rank and unhurriedly walked to Artie. Much taller, Sebastian stood before him and placed his firm hand on his upper arm.

Artie playfully swiped away his touch, brushing his hand off his bicep. Sebastian's hand lingered in the air near Artie for a moment before returning to his side.

"It's no big deal," Muttered Artie, freely bumping his left shoulder into Sebastian's, his body only budging an inch.

Behind him, Wana had stepped up to the platform's edge and nodded in conclusion to the crowd.

"So be it. Come morning; this hunter will be indefinitely discharged from the town."

She placed a hand over her heart as she spoke; her tone was sympathetic and even slower than usual as she communicated.

"It's our own weakness that's brought us here. I wish we, as a town, had the strength to defend you, but right now, it's not possible." Said Wana, turning from the crowd to Artie.

"Forgive us."

Though she spoke directly at Artie, her voice was still raised to the level others could hear. Because of this, he presumed her words were just to impress and appear compassionate in front of the audience.

"You're just doing what's best for the people." Shrugged Artie.

It appeared as if the woman would continue, but Artie flipped his head away from her.

"End of story," He mumbled, rotating his body towards the stairs and beginning to step away.

Even though he wanted to disguise his woe, he found hints of his discontent seeping out in his words and on his face. Artie braced himself as he approached the edge of the stairs, for odors to ravage his nose and for the little whispers of people to hammer his ears.

 

<>

 

"Wait!" Objected Sebastian, standing determined at the center of the stage.

His voice stopped Artie and all others as they turned their attention to him.

"I have a proposal to make." Declared Sebastian, his energy unusually strict.

He looked intensely at Artie, who already had one foot on the stairs.

"Don't go complicating things more Seba-"

"Shut up." Interrupted Sebastian, peering dangerously at the gray-haired man.

He returned a look of awe, clearly taken aback by Sebastian's opposition.

"Heh," he laughed, brushing back his colorless spiky hair and straightening his back.

The wooden stage creaked when he took a giant step forward. Angered by Sebastian, the man started to scowl and move forward. He walked with a swagger, either intentional or because of the heavy sword on his back.

There was an invisible storm that formed between the two. One that became increasingly brutal as the gray-haired man stomped closer to Sebastian

"Make me," He barked, bumping his forehead against Sebastian's.

Physically, the tattooed man was larger. His exposed arms were bulkier, and he stood a few inches taller. On the other hand, Sebastian had earned the title man-child from his first encounter with Artie. Despite his goofy personality, he peered very threateningly at the man in his face.

"Sebastian, Skull. This isn't the time nor place." Asserted Wana.

"Won't take long," Responded the big-eared man, casually grabbing the handle of his stone sword.

Very few hunters carried weapons as large as his. The hilt alone was two feet long, then the blade itself stretched another five feet. Artie thought the sword looked unusable, like a prop or a decoration for someone who wanted to seem impressive.

The stage cracked again under the man's feet. He unbuckled a leather strap that tied the weapon to his back, then tightened his grip on the handle. With one arm, he swung the stone sword straight up towards the sky, his body being pulled with the motions of the colossal weapon. Displaying his power, he twirled it before stabbing the heavy sword into the wooden stage.

A sharp fracturing sound traveled across the stage, and wooden debris flung up from the floor. The area around the impact became damaged, and a portion of the weapon became lodged in the wood.

"Go ahead, pull out that wimpy ass bow."

Artie looked from the two over to Wana, who'd stood idly by as the farce continued. Curious about why she allowed the conflict to persist, he noticed how deeply she peered at them. Her stillness, and her emotion, were both doll-like.

"Skull," she said calmly.

"…"

Artie had met a handful of extraordinary people, but none of them held a candlelight to her. With the sound of her voice alone, the entire feeling of the air changed. Shivers traveled down Artie's spine, and he felt his heart become more active.

"Go back to your post," She commanded, her piercing red eyes meeting the man she addressed as "Skull."

Breaking away from the woman's gaze, he lifted his sword from the ground, then slung it over his shoulder. Without a word, he walked away from Sebastian and back to where he previously stood.

"Sebastian, the floor is yours," declared Wana.

"Mhm, I'll be brief."

"I propose we use the fact that he's being hunted."

"If we lure the beast northwest, we can pit it against the second God type roaming there."

"They'll kill each other, then there will be no need to ban him from town."

Sebastian looked from Wana to Artie.

"That's, of course, if you're willing."

Once the man finished explaining his plan, Artie felt his opinion of him sinking drastically.

"Isn't he just suggesting I be bait…"

"I would expect that of others but not you."

"Even if that wolf thing did follow me, the second monster might kill me before it caught up."

Upon realizing something crucial, Artie's eyes widened, and he gently tapped the brace around his right arm.

"It has to catch up… It's not that fast at tracking. If it was, it would have found me days ago. So as long as I stay moving-"

Artie stopped tapping his brace and deeply sighed.

"Do I really want to spend the rest of my life running from that thing…"

Withdrawing from his perplexing thoughts, Artie returned to the moment to address the offer presented to him.

"What makes you so sure they'll fight each other?" Inquired Artie.

"Most of the monsters we've met have been territorial. And unlike your stalker, the one northwest is real nasty. If they meet, they'll definitely tear each other apart." Explained Sebastian.

"They're the ones going around summoning boss monsters. And now I'm supposed to clean up their mess?" Thought Artie, low-spirited and demoralized.

He shook his head faintly, then placed a hand over his eyes. As he took time to think, the audience became impatient and began gossiping, each individual voice blurry and indistinct.

"I'd like to live… to settle, to make friends."

Artie uncovered his face then closed his fist in front of his mouth. It was rare for him to think about the future; having such a strong desire was electrifying and warmed his body.

"I can't do any of that if a monster is following me," Muttered Artie as he raised his sights to Sebastian again.

"Okay, I'll do it."

Sebastian smiled broadly and clapped his hands together to honor Artie's decision.

"Great, we'll leave tomorrow," Grinned the man, notably cheerful.

"No, Sebastian, you'll stay here." Asserted Wana.

Stumped, he faced her and threw his arms outward. As he expressed his displeasure, he squirmed and started pacing.

"WHY, he'll need someone to cover and break him free if the monster casts fear!"

"I'm going!" He ranted

"Cast fear?" Inquired Artie, watching the man throw a tantrum.

"YES, it paralyzed half our team before the fight even started. You'll need someone to break you out of it." Explained Sebastian, making a plethora of hand gestures as he spoke.

"Then you'll have to educate him properly before his departure. You, however, are an irreplaceable hunter. I can't force you, but consider the consequences if we lose a guild leader now." Said Wana.

Sebastian hummed a low tone to himself and arrogantly tapped his chin as if in deep thought.

"Hmm, okay, considered it, I'm going." He blurted out, grinning tauntingly at Wana.

Wana stared at him, a slight irritation displayed through her squinted eyes.

Artie walked from the edge of the stage, over to Sebastian, then slapped his back.

"You think a Lil fear attack will work on me?" Objected Artie, his hand tingling after hitting the man's solid back.

"Besides, I'm just luring one monster to another; I'm not going to stick around long enough to be attacked." Continued Artie.

Sebastian looked at him suspiciously… He then lunged his head within an inch of Artie's before frowning and staring angrily at him.

"Are you SURE?" He questioned loudly; his face so close Artie could feel his warm breath.

"I'm sure," exclaimed Artie, pushing the man out of his personal space.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I don't want to spend the rest of the day upon this depressing stage."

 

<>

 

Artie backed away from Sebastian then made his way down the stairs. The lighthearted man tried to follow, but Wana held him back while she announced the new arrangement. There were mixed responses from the people; some delighted at the opportunity, while others simply wished for Artie's banishment. At the time, he had no interest in their opinions; he merely made his way through the crowd to an open area.

Once the trial was over, Artie thoroughly searched the thousands of people as they started to leave.

Half an hour after Artie assumed his lookout, most people had cleared out of the market-like area, and vendors began to rebuild their stalls.

More time passed, and Artie felt his feet beginning to ache. His stomach growled, and the setting sun led away along with its warmth.

"Cold," He whispered, tilting his head upward.

The orange sun nearing the horizon, the light bluish-green sky darkened. Tired and pained from his injuries, Artie wistfully glanced at the retreating people one last time.

When his search bore no fruit, he sluggishly turned, then joined the departing crowd.

Exiting the market, he traveled along the dirt road between the town's buildings. More people were present than he wanted, all of them speaking about the trial and their disapproval of him.

"Watch it!" Yelled a man some distance behind him.

There were more startled voices at his rear, and the commotion approached closer with every step he took. With his distant hearing, he heard the sound of heavy steps. Someone was running and bumping into others as they traveled down the dirt road. Hoping it wasn't trouble, he strayed as far off the road as possible.

The same hurried steps arrived within a few feet of him. He then heard them change course from the center of the crowd, then head directly towards him.

Apprehensive, Artie clenched his fist and walked faster.

A hand abruptly grabbed his shoulder. Even though he heard it coming, it startled him. Irked, Artie slung his head around angrily.

"Get your han-"

He paused in surprise, identifying the owner of the hand that so rudely stole his attention.

"..."

His defensiveness settled as he relaxed his balled-up fist and composed his tense face.

"It's been a while."