"Here, I'll make a list of supplies for you." Natasha took out a small notebook and began writing on it.
Bronya and Seele leaned in, listening carefully as Natasha explained the needed items.
Natasha started by saying:
"If you're going to Rivet Town, just follow the northern mountain path downward. It won't take long before you see it."
Accompanied by the sound of scribbling, she continued murmuring:
"We're almost out of steel plates and bandages for fixing broken bones. There's a market in the center of Rivet Town—the residents left a lot of goods piled up when they evacuated. It'll be hard work, but please look for them."
Zeig raised his hand and mumbled for a while.
Bronya glanced at him and translated:
"The Executor says he has steel plates and bandages, and plenty of them. If needed, he can supply them right now."
Natasha paused for a moment and said to Bronya:
"Is that really what he just said?"
Seele also said to Bronya:
"I just saw him flip the middle finger again. Bronya, you're not making this translation up, are you?"
Bronya shook her head seriously:
"I've already told you—I was personally raised and trained by the Supreme Guardian. There's no need to worry about communication. I can understand his meaning with just one look."
"As for the middle finger… it's an intense gesture, so I naturally omit it and only translate the general intent."
Natasha nodded and smiled lightly:
"I appreciate Zeig's kindness, but if we can recover supplies in Rivet Town, it's better to do so. After all, those were originally ours—we shouldn't abandon them carelessly."
She continued writing while speaking:
"Then there's medical alcohol. I stockpiled quite a bit at the orphanage because the children often got into fights. I didn't take it with me when we evacuated… I hope it hasn't expired."
"Finally, painkillers. There should still be a batch in the old laboratory. I hope the monsters haven't destroyed them…"
She gently tore out the page and handed it to Bronya, smiling:
"This should be enough to tide us over for a while. Be careful on the road, and don't push yourselves."
Seele memorized it silently:
"Steel plates and bandages, medical alcohol, and painkillers… Got it. Piece of cake."
She slung her scythe over her shoulder, looked at Bronya and at Zeig who was crawling on the ground, and said confidently:
"Let's go. We'll try to get back as soon as possible."
After bidding farewell to Natasha,
Seele and Bronya walked side by side.
Completely ignoring Zeig's behavior behind them, they chatted on their own.
Bronya murmured:
"If we hadn't happened to pass by… were you really planning to charge into the Fragmentum alone?"
Seele acted as if it were nothing and shrugged while walking beside Bronya:
"Yeah, what's the big deal? I'm already used to it."
At this point, she suddenly remembered something.
The first time she met Zeig, he had also been alone deep inside the Fragmentum.
Back then, Seele had found the remains of many Fragmentum creatures—some horribly twisted, some only half-intact.
There were no signs of struggle around the remains; it was as if they had been killed in a single strike.
Unconsciously, while walking with Bronya, Seele tilted her head slightly and glanced back at Zeig.
At that moment, he was holding his tablet and silently following behind.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Seele asked Zeig.
"?" Upon hearing her, Zeig looked up, hummed twice, then lowered his head again.
Bronya translated:
"He says he's looking for a song with a stronger rhythm to add some atmosphere to the disco hall."
"Disco hall? What's that?" Seele frowned.
"It should mean a place for singing and dancing—at least that's what I translated." Bronya said with certainty.
"Are you sure this translation skill of yours was taught by the Supreme Guardian?"
Seele couldn't understand it at all.
Zeig had only hummed twice behind them, yet Bronya could translate so many words.
Was royal education really that miraculous?
"Putting that aside for now, going into the Fragmentum alone is still too reckless. Try to avoid it in the future." Bronya advised:
"According to Silvermane Guard regulations, patrolling the Fragmentum requires at least a team of four, and they must be equipped with a dedicated communications officer."
Seele snorted coldly, completely unconcerned:
"You said it yourself—those are Silvermane Guard rules. Don't apply them to me."
She glanced back at Zeig and continued:
"Besides, didn't your spy Executor run around alone in the Fragmentum too? He didn't even know the way in the Underworld—I'm the one who brought him back."
Bronya: "…"
The two walked for a long time.
Gradually, they left the area of Boulder Town.
Mist began to appear around them, making their vision increasingly hazy.
Under the permeating fog,
they felt the surroundings grow much darker.
Seele and Bronya instinctively heightened their alertness.
"Wait—where's Zeig?" Seele turned around and discovered Zeig was gone.
Bronya said calmly:
"He says not to worry about him."
"?"
Seele stepped in front of Bronya and stared into her eyes in shock:
"You're translating when you didn't even see him! Is this still a matter of higher education? Do you dare say you're not fooling me?"
Bronya ignored the accusation and explained:
"Everyone's constitution is different."
Seele stared at Bronya's eyes in fear and said tremblingly:
"I may not have read many books, but don't think you can brush me off with that."
"I'm very serious. Please believe me." Bronya remained steadfast.
The two took a few more steps.
Suddenly, Seele felt she had stepped on something.
"Hm?"
Looking down, it was actually the corpse of a Fragmentum creature!
"Careful!"
She pulled Bronya back half a step and became wary of their surroundings.
Soon, along the path ahead, they discovered more and more Fragmentum creature remains.
All of them lay on the ground, their bodies emitting a faint glow.
They were in the state of about to vanish.
Seele cautioned:
"These Fragmentum creatures just fell—less than a minute ago!"
Bronya observed their condition and nodded:
"Yes, let's be careful."
The two proceeded slowly.
Along the way, dying Fragmentum creatures were everywhere.
Creatures that once made people tremble in fear were now piled on the roadside like trash.
Some weren't completely dead—their fingers still twitched slightly.
Seele clearly saw that a humanoid monster had three of its five fingers brutally snapped off, as if someone had beaten it to death barehanded without even using a weapon.
At this moment, both of them grew increasingly uneasy.
As they continued forward, the scene became even more outrageous.
The road ahead was carpeted with Fragmentum creatures.
Seele and Bronya stepped on this carpet made of monsters and could still hear their pained wails.
Bronya looked down and analyzed:
"Look—the cuts here are very clean. That person has already started using a sharp weapon here."
Seele nodded. That guy probably got tired of bare hands being too slow and pulled out a weapon.
Looking at these half-dead Fragmentum creatures, she could imagine the scene of that person charging into the monster horde, mowing them down like a lawnmower.
Finally, light appeared through the distant permeating mist.
"Rivet Town is here." Seele reminded.
But right after saying that, Seele froze.
She felt like she had stepped on something—and it didn't feel like a Fragmentum creature.
Looking down,
it was a black-haired man lying horizontally in the pile of monsters, holding the greatsword Judgment of Shamash.
Seele's foot was on his face, while Bronya, not paying attention, was standing on his stomach.
Seele swallowed hard and slowly moved her foot away.
On Zeig's face, now bearing a shoe print, his golden pupils were glaring at her.
Seele: "…"
So Seele put her foot back.
Seele: "Ha, now he can't glare at me anymore."
Bronya: "…"