Time for a talk

A heavy feeling reverberated in his head as he slowly felt his consciousness coming to him. He kept his eyes closed and only moved his head a little. As he heard nothing, he realized that he must've been taken somewhere. Not wanting to open his eyes yet, he started thinknig. Who were they attacked by? Why? What was objective of the Hunter who hurt them? Youngwoo knew that if that person wanted them dead, he would be regressing now. Then... that person didn't want them dead. Were they also after Iris' Wardstone? Wait... could it be?

'Are there more people with a skill like 'I want to do better!'?' A raging thought appeared in his mind. No... there was no way, right?

He gritted his teeth, attempting to strain his muscles. His right hand was pierced through, but the wound was bandaged. Other than that, it seemed he wasn't hurt, but he was bound to something, presumably a chair, unable to lift a finger easily. Suddenly, he felt something hit him in his stomach. He groaned and opened his eyes.

First thing he noticed was that he didn't leave Savi's room. He was in a chair opposite of the desk. There was a woman sitting behind the desk, looking at him with a pistol sitting on the wooden surface and Iris' Wardstone in her hand as she toyed with it. She had blonde hair reaching to her chin, and her eyes were pure blue. She looked familiar... no, wait, didn't he know her?

"Ieva?" Youngwoo asked, feeling his mind puzzled. Why would she be here? No, wait, why would she attack him?

"You awake? Good."

"What? Why? Where's Savi?"

"He's safe." Responded a man from his left. Turning around, he noticed a familiar soldier outfit. "Ya better worry 'bout yourself now."

"D-Donnie? What?"

Ieva took initiative in the talk:

"What does Shadow Cult want from me?"

"...what?" Youngwoo turned to her. Suddenly, he felt a hit from Donnie. Seeing a notification pop up, he groaned again. "Donnie, what the hell?! Why have you bound me?!"

"Just answer the question. It'll end much easier for you that way." Said Ieva with a cold tone. "What does Shadow Cult want from me?"

"What? What's Shadow Cult?!" Youngwoo fought against the ties, but was powerless to do anything. They were tied too tight for him to even move his hands freely.

'WHY?!' He was so close. All he had to was find a secluded place and start presenting all the sword dances. And now it seemed that he'd need to regress. No, think about it. There must be a way out!

Ieva squinted her eyes, as if she was looking for something amiss in him. She wasn't sure what this man was playing, but she believed what Donnie said. After all, it fit her suspicion all too much. No, this man, Youngwoo, was most definitely with Shadow Cult.

He took a long, deep breath, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. Then, he asked:

"Can we... talk about this calmly?"

"Depends." She replied coldly, pulling the back of the gun; a single bullet flew to the floor, and another was loaded in its place. "Will you answer me?"

"Only if you answer me one question."

"Answer YOU a question?! Who the fuck do you think you are?"

"Apparently, I'm a person who has very important information to you. All I'm asking for is answering one question. After that I'll tell you everything you want to know."

Ieva looked at Donnie. They seemed to be contemplating what he meant by his words. Clearly, they were reserved towards him. But Youngwoo didn't understand why. He got that Ieva was wary of him in the beginning (just like Hilda was), but he thought that he didn't do anything to make himself seem more suspicious. Then, he wanted her to explain it to him.

"Fucking Clairvoyant." She hissed and turned to the window. With a quick motion, she pulled the curtain, obstructing the window. "Should've known better. Barricade the door." Ieva commanded Donnie, who did as she said without a word.

'Clairvoyant? Does she mean that girl that saw the end of humanity?' Youngwoo wanted to simply ask who Ieva was talking about, but he felt like he wouldn't be able to get to her. He looked around a little, trying to find a way out. There was a simple one already at his disposal; he could've just bit his tongue to bleed out, but he didn't want that. After all, even if he regressed, this situation would repeat itself. No, he first needed to know what to do better to avoid this situation.

"You're a fucking annoyance." She said, coming closer to him. She aimed her pistol at his arm. "What does Shadow Cult want of me?"

"I don't know. I have no clue what Shadow Cult is."

"Bullshit." She pulled the trigger.

Youngwoo screamed momentarily, feeling his left arm pierced through. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to only groan in pain. He noticed how Donnie flinched on his left. It was clear that he won't stop Ieva since he seemed to agree to this situation, but was this too much for him to bear? Note taken.

"I... I don't know... I don't fucking know, alright?!" Youngwoo screamed at Ieva. "What the fuck is Shadow Cult?!"

"Don't fucking play with me!" She put the gun to his forehead. "First you want to kill me, then you try to get to Hilda! What the fuck do you people want from us?!"

'She's not gonna listen...' Thought Youngwoo as he started looking down at his blood dripping onto the floor. Ieva seemed to be lost in her animosity towards him. However, he got a clue from her just now. 'First, they want to kill her, then get to Hilda...?' Youngwoo knew well that Ieva was supposed to die a month ago. Then... 'She misread my intentions? No... she misread the whole situation. But it's not like I can convince her to truth... think...'

"Why... why do you think I am with Shadow Cult, Ieva?" He asked. "What have I done to be placed with them?!" He might've not known what Shadow Cult is, but he figured they weren't a particularly nice group.

"..." She put the gun away from his head. She then walked up to the desk and put it on wooden surface.

Suddenly, Donnie walked up to her and started whispering something with her, hidden from Youngwoo. Taking his moment, he looked around the room. Savi was laying on his bed, all covered in sweat and clearly in pain, but he was **** and alive. Good to know. Searching for some way out, he failed to notice any sharp objects he could use. Hell, even if he would find one, both his hands were basically useless until he got healed. No, if he wanted to get out, he'd need to find a way for them to untie him. This was the worst situation to be in.

'Even if I bind the Wardstone to myself, I'll lose it the moment I die. I'll have to redo this. Fucking hell...'

[The Tower doesn't agree with your thoughts.]

'...what? What does that mean?'

[Iris' Wardstone can become a bound item. It will not vanish from its owner even if they were to regress.]

'...you are, by far, the WORST magical guide I have ever worked with.' [Reference]

Now he needed to figure out a way out. Well, to be honest, Youngwoo didn't have many choices anyway. He had to bind the Wardstone to himself, but seeing that notification asking for confirmation disappeared, he figured that it was out of reach. Did he have to hold it in his hand? Or would being in a close proximity be enough? Well, only one way to find out.

However, before he managed to talk to Ieva, she turned around and showed him the Wardstone.

"What is this? And how did you know it would be here?"

"It's a quest item."

"Bullshit."

"It is!"

"Then who is 'TM'? Why would that person know this thing, Iris' Wardstone was it, would be here?"

"..." 'How do they know about TM?' "...where are you getting that from?"

"You have talked with TM yesterday." Said Donnie.

"Wait... you were awake?" Youngwoo let his head a little. "...the quest giver."

"What?" Asked Ieva.

"TM is the one who gave me the quest to get Iris' Wardstone. But neither they nor me are with Shadow Cult."

"...where are they? And who are they?"

"...why would I tell you? You won't believe me anyways."

"Because if you tell me, and what you're telling is true, I'll let you go. I'll even forgive you fucking around with Hilda."

"You won't believe me. Just off me and I'll see you tomorrow."

"...?" She looked at him with surprise on her face. What the hell did this man mean? Has he lost all meaning of life? She was actually willing to believe that he might've not been affiliated with Shadow Cult, and now he pulls a stunt like this?

No, there must've been more to his behavior. Ieva was sure of this. She wasn't afraid of hurting him to get what she wanted. But then again, she didn't want him dead. Hilda would hate her for life if she were to kill him. She also wouldn't lightly take news that he was hurt by her. No, this was beyond what Ieva expected. She sincerely wanted to off Youngwoo before, and she didn't even prepare for possibility of him actually being innocent. Now, she needed to somehow **** him into subordination. She looked at the Wardstone and smiled a bit. She had the tool.

"Alright then. I guess I'll get my answer when I break this apart." She placed the stone on the desk and hovered a hand over it. "Disassemble." She concentrated mana and cast a spell.

Suddenly, surface of Iris' Wardstone cracked noticeably. With a glint of worry, Youngwoo watched as it slowly broke into pieces that started to float around it. Something came out from inside. Was it a small ball of light? Why wasn't it visible before? Well, that was probably a question for later. As the process finished, Ieva was holding the ball of light with a pondering expression.

"Ieva?" Asked Donnie. "What's going on?"

"I... I'm not sure. It says that I can bind this thing to me. What does that mean?"

"What?!" Asked Youngwoo. 'For fuck's sake, no!' "Don't!!!" He yelled at her.

"Oh? What?" She looked at him. "Why?" She smiled a little. "Is that so important to you?"

"..." He gritted his teeth. This woman, how could she be Hilda's sister? They seemed like polar opposites. "Tower's Master." He said weakly.

"What?"

"'TM' means Tower's Master. I need Iris' Wardstone to clear a quest from them."

"..." For a moment, Ieva looked a little dumbfounded. She looked at Donnie, who didn't know how to reply. "You got a quest from Tower's Master?"

"It's a long story. Tower's Master wanted me to get Iris' Wardstone."

"Ugh... you just keep on bullshitting."

"It's true!"

"You know what? I think I know what I'll do. I'll give it back to you once I can can prove you're not with Shadow Cult."

"..." 'So she's not going to bind it, at least.'

"Until then, I want to bind it." She replied to a notification.

"NO!" Youngwoo tried to lunge forward, but only managed to tilt himself forward enough to plant his face on the ground.

But, it was already too late. Wardstone shone with brilliant light and disappeared. Ieva took a deep sigh and looked at something.

"Hey, I got a skill from that!" She made a wide smile which Youngwoo couldn't see. "I see why he wanted that..."

And suddenly, Youngwoo heard sound of Ieva cocking her gun at something.

"Who the fuck are you?" She asked.

"..." There was no answer.

"I'm asking you! Who the fuck are you? How did you get here?!"

"Ieva, man, who ya talking to?" Asked Donnie, clearly confused. "There's nobody there."

"WHAT?! Don't you see her?!" Ieva asked, moving about a little. "Iris? What do you mean 'a sealed soul'?!

'...what?' Thought Youngwoo as Ieva approached him a little. What was she speaking of? Well, he did understand the name 'Iris'. The stone was named Iris' Wardstone, so if anyone appeared, it would make sense for it to be Iris. The question was: why did she appear? What did it mean that she was 'a sealed soul'? Well, Youngwoo was almost certain that it meant that the Wardstone was where she was sealed in.

"Stay the fuck away!" Ieva fired a few shots from her gun.

"Ieva, calm down! There's nobody there!"

"How the fuck is there nobody there if she's there?!!!" Ieva was clearly panicking. She came all around Youngwoo, as if circling someone.

Youngwoo, in the meantime, was greeted with a notification.

[You are owner of Iris' Wardstone. In accordance to the quest, you may **** binding. This will remove the Wardstone from the person that's currently bound to it and bind it to you instead.]

[Would you like to **** binding?]

"Yes, for fuck's sake yes! **** binding!" He shouted to the Tower.

[Initializing binding...]

Suddenly, he heard a thumping sound. As he **** himself to look, he saw Ieva laying on the floor, convulsing. She held her gun, but her mouth was foaming. Wait, was this supposed to happen? Was this what forcing binding did to its current bond? Somewhere inwardly, Youngwoo felt bad for doing it as he shivered lightly. But what was that? Before Donnie managed to rush to her side, she suddenly stopped.

[Binding successful.]

With a heavy groan, she slowly lifted herself to a sitting position. Still feeling remnants of pain reverberating through her body, she cleared foam from her mouth.

"Fuuuck... That FUCKING HURT! What did you do?!" She aimed her gun somewhere above Youngwoo.

Surprisingly, Youngwoo heard a response:

"I did nothing. It was his doing." A beautiful, clear voice of a woman. He couldn't see her, but he was sure she was a sight to behold.

"Iris?" He asked.

"Oh, would you look at that, he's a smart one." She replied, but there was a glint of sarcasm in her voice.

"The fuck?!" Asked Ieva, pointing her gun at Youngwoo. "Who's she? How do you know her?"

"That's Iris. She was sealed in the Wardstone." Youngwoo had already figured out the reality of Iris' Wardstone. Well, truth be told, he had his speculations before. He suspected it would be some kind of a drone or the likes, but a soul of a person was also a possibility. This was Tower, after all.

"Huh. Unprecedented." Said Iris. "Tw-" A gunshot was heard, and she was cut off.

Dead silence filled the room. Ieva looked with terrified expression at Youngwoo. She didn't mean this to happen. She could've sworn on her life that this wasn't her intention. It was simply that she had gun aimed at Youngwoo, and her hand... there was a momentary spasm that **** her to constrict her fist.

"No... No no no no no!" She lunged forward, trying to stop bleeding from side of his chest. Seeing as there were ropes in the way, she took out a small knife and cut them quickly. Donnie also rushed to his side.

For a few long moments, they tried to stop the bleeding. Turning him on his back, they started taking off his shirt, pressing onto the wound and taking some bandages. However, Youngwoo suddenly moved his hand and blocked them. He pushed away their hands. He was accepting his fate. Ieva felt some tears escape her eyes as she said:

"I-I'm sorry... I... I didn't want this to h-happen... Lee... I'm sorry..." She broke into tears.

Youngwoo smiled. He rose his hand. As Ieva wanted to grab it, he suddenly turned it around and showed both her and Donnie a middle finger.

"Fuck... you... and I'll... see you... tomorrow." He said weakly, and fainted. [Reference]

"Well, that's just disappointing." Ieva heard Iris' voice, but didn't pay it no mind. "Wait, what's happening?!"

Ieva suddenly turned around, but the woman who haunted her just a minute ago was nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Youngwoo was faced with a notification.

[You have died.]

[You have been killed by Tinkerer.]
[There are 6 skills possible for selection.]

24 hours earlier

Ieva suddenly rose from her position in the bed. She took a few ragged breaths, and started looking around whilst slowly calming down. Recognizing her own room, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Fuck, what a weird ass dream..." Noticing how the sun was about to rise, she took a hold of her phone. Suddenly, she noticed a message from Donnie.

'Wait... what?' She put her phone down and looked around. She looked at the message again. 'Fuck... I must've read it at night and didn't even know. My imagination... too damn wild.'