The heavy snowfall forced Vynx and his party to extend their stay in the remote mountain village. With the weather as bleak and hazardous as it was, their only choice was to remain indoors and wait for the storm to pass. Luckily, the women had a few borrowed books on hand to keep them entertained, and Vynx had yet to finish reading his predecessor's journal. The inn room was filled with a comfortable silence for once; the quiet crackling of fire and the occasional turning of a page were all that transpired for the better part of the day.

At night, Sophia worked on mending any torn clothing by the fireplace, while Vynx settled into bed with Hilde and Soleil. The paladin was still in sombre spirits and lay with her back to the rest of them. Her nightmares had come to an end, but guilt continued to gnaw at her mind. Sleep would only come thanks to Laven's magic, which fell upon the trio like an invisible blanket.

To Vynx's surprise, he found himself in an oddly familiar room within the dreamscape that night. It was the same attic chamber that Hilde occupied at the chapel where they had first met. The priestess was with him this time instead of the usual scheming succubus.

"Ah, I can't believe this actually worked. I'll have to thank Laven later," Hilde exclaimed. She looked around the attic in delight, thrilled to see that every detail resembled the room in reality.

"Huh, what's this all about?" Vynx sat up on the small mattress and gave Hilde an amused smirk. "I didn't expect you to invade my dreams tonight, Hilde."

"I wanted to test something with Laven. She mentioned that she could create a dreamscape from a person's memory and that she could also pull multiple people into a dreamscape so long as they are asleep within a close proximity," the cleric explained. "Well… I wondered if she would be able to create something from the memories I've lost… but I suppose that was not possible." Hilde smiled sadly. "Still, it was very kind of her to remake my room at the church like this. I… was feeling a bit homesick."

"Look at you doing favours for others! I'm proud of you, Laven," Vynx thought cheekily to his hidden shadow.

"Shut it. I'm only doing this because she asked with such a pathetic look on her face," Laven returned in his mind.

Hilde giggled as she watched Vynx's expression. "Thank you for letting me borrow your dreamscape. Even if it's not exactly what I hoped for, it's nice to have a little getaway to ourselves."

"Feel free to use it whenever you like. It's pretty awesome, I'll admit." Vynx grinned and lay back in bed with his hands behind his head. "What kind of memories were you hoping for anyway? Something to clue you in about your past life?"

She lay back next to him and nodded. "Yes… It was a bit of a silly request, but I hoped that Laven would be able to uncover something that I had forgotten. Unfortunately, it seems like everything from that lifetime is truly lost to me." Hilde stared at the window by the bedside with a wistful gaze. Outside, the skies were as clear as could be. The snow and frost of the Cobalt Mountains were nothing but a distant concept in the dreamscape. 

"I'm sorry to hear that. The whole revelation must have been a pretty big shock for you," Vynx murmured. He hadn't been able to find the right opportunity to talk to Hilde about everything they had learned from Alfred, but now seemed like as good a time as any. The hunter rolled onto his side to face her before asking, "How are you feeling, Hilde?" 

"I'm… not entirely sure, to be honest." Her eyelids lowered as she turned back to meet Vynx's eyes. "Of course I'm grateful to learn the truth behind my abilities… knowing that my reaper was actually a blessing from an old god and that it saved me in my final moments… I now feel more at ease learning to wield my powers for good," Hilde said. "Yet… I cannot help but wonder what my past life was like. What kind of person was I? Where did I come from? Who were my friends and family? The possibility of encountering them again... and not even being able to recognize their faces... it saddens me." 

Vynx draped his left arm over her and pulled Hilde in gently. "I... sort of understand. Well, it's kind of the opposite case for me, but… sometimes, I feel like I can recall the original Hunter's memories at the edge of my own. The people and places he's written about… they feel familiar to me, even if I have never seen them in my life." Vynx let his hand run up and down the cleric's back in a soothing rhythm. "What I'm trying to say is… I know how precious those memories are. And I know it must be hard not being able to remember your previous life."

"Oh Vynx…" Hilde gazed at him with sympathy. How different they were, yet alike in their longing to understand the past just beyond their reach. She placed her hand softly over his chest, tracing the scar that ran across the hunter's skin. She remembered what Vynx had said before—about how he, as a homunculus, did not even possess a soul. Yet there was no doubt that Vynx was his own man, made up of the experiences and memories he had created on his journey. Hilde could feel his heart beating steadily under her palm. "I don't mean to dwell on the past forever. There are simply… moments like these where… I'm afraid."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm… afraid of losing you too." The words slipped from Hilde and hung heavy in the air. The grief from Garreth's funeral and the cries of poor Caroline weighed on her mind, a reminder of how easily a bond could be severed at any moment. Despite working so closely with death, the looming finality of their fate terrified the cleric. Their existence was a sheer miracle, but what was between them could only exist in one fleeting lifetime. 

Vynx felt a lump well up in his throat as he searched for the right words to say. He wanted to reassure her, to quip that he would be around for a long, long time. Yet someday, he knew that his existence would flicker out like the rest of the homunculi who came before him. That part didn't scare him so much as the thought of losing Hilde before his time was up. She was still a human, even if she had managed to cheat death once already. Her kind eyes and sweet voice had shown him a warmth that no one had ever given him before. Vynx fully understood her fears, as they were reflected in his mind as well. 

"I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to make things so serious—"

"I've never been afraid before… but I don't know what I would do if I lost you," Vynx admitted. Their relationship had become a comforting part of his life. The daily routine of waking up with her warm body next to his, the whispered prayers she recited each morning before they started their days—Hilde was as important to him as living itself. Just imagining her or any of his companions gone made his blood run cold. He hugged her tightly and held her there, as if to engrave the moment into his heart. "Stay with me... Please."

Hilde recognized the words and the faint quiver in Vynx's voice. She nodded and squeezed him tightly in return. "I will. Always." As the hunter buried his face into her shoulder, Hilde felt his hands gripping tightly to the back of her nightgown. On the battlefield, Vynx had always appeared impervious to the dangers around them. Yet now, she could feel the hunter trembling ever so slightly in her arms, fighting back the very same fears she had. "Vynx… No matter what happens, I'll never forget you," she whispered. Hilde decided that she was done chasing the past when there was someone who needed her in the present. She cupped his face in her hands and pressed a tender kiss to his lips in a silent promise.

The snowstorm subsided late into the next morning. Vynx had no complaints about having a chance to sleep in; he and Hilde had spoken well into the night within the dreamscape, and waking up with her curled up in his arms was a sight he cherished. But as much as he would have liked to stay in their cozy bed all day, he knew that planning their next move was up to him. 

At breakfast, Vynx continued flipping through his predecessor's journal while absentmindedly munching on a platter of sausage and potatoes. He was grateful that the Hunter had kept such detailed notes and profiles of his targets (even if it was only at Alfred's insistence). While enough time had passed for the vampiric nobility to replace many fallen Lords, it still gave him a good idea of where their territories and castles stood. Only towards the end of the journal did Vynx find specific mentions of the Royal Family and Purebloods. The concept of vampires reproducing was a rare circumstance in the first place. Nevertheless, it seemed that the Vampire King had kept quite a few brides and sired several Pureblood heirs. 

Rainer du Randt

Elise du Randt

Leanne Orine

Rudolf Orine

Marianne Brugère

Willem Caffier

The names crossed off the list were the Pureblood Princes and Princesses that the Hunter had slain during his assault on the King's abode. It seemed that the Pureblood children carried the maiden names of their mothers. The eldest heirs, Rainer and Elise, were reported to have their own territories and had thus been absent from the castle at the time. Their mother, the first Queen, was also missing during the attack and had not been seen in years. 

Vynx twirled his fork in his right hand as he pondered the implications of it all. Family drama, perhaps? The journal offered only a small glimpse into the inner workings of the vampire nobility, and Vynx could only imagine that the internal politics of such a family were as messy as the affairs of human royalty. What interested him was the fact that despite Rainer being the firstborn son, Elise was chosen to inherit the throne over her brother. However, that did not detract from the influence and power that Rainer held over the rest of vampire society. The King had assigned him with the most important territory to govern: the land containing the human kingdom's capital. 

"That would explain why we ran into him at Jaunus' place. That territory is right next to the city," Vynx muttered. 

"It is my duty to deliver judgement upon those who would disrupt the balance my father maintains…"

Vynx recalled the Prince's words and narrowed his eyes. He glanced down at the sleeping white bat in his chest pocket and patted the outside of the fabric softly. It began to click for him: the Prince had been given the task of "cleaning up" any negligent or traitorous vampires in the kingdom, ensuring that their main "food supply" would be safe from the predation of any overly ambitious Vampire Lords. It would explain why organized attacks on the capital were rare and why Vampire Lords like Conrad had to act in such secrecy to avoid the Prince's ire. Now, he only wondered why Rainer was given such a task instead of the more respectable role of leading their kind.

"A difference in ideals, perhaps?" Laven's voice tickled the back of his thoughts. Vynx had nearly forgotten that she could hear all of his musings. 

"Maybe. There isn't much on Elise aside from rumours about her being the most dangerous one of them all," Vynx ruminated. Her territory sat near the border of their kingdom, right next to their rivalling neighbour country. Vynx almost had to pity the foreign armies that must have accidentally crossed into her lands. 

"So which one are we taking out next?" the succubus asked bluntly. 

Vynx scanned over the list of names again while taking a sip of black tea. "As much as I'd like to settle things with that pompous Prince, getting rid of him before the rest of the Vampire Lords might spell trouble for the capital," the hunter thought. "He keeps the rest of them in line, and things would probably descend into chaos if his territory were left up for grabs."

"So we simply take care of every other Lord first, is that it?" Laven snickered. 

"That's what I've been doing, but I doubt that I can take them out faster than the King can make new ones," Vynx grumbled internally. "No, I'm taking a step out of my predecessor's book and going right for the heart. This battle will never end unless I strike the source."

"That's a rather bold approach. Do you even know where the King resides?"

"Unfortunately, that's the hard part. Not even Sophia knows where the King's been hiding ever since his battle with the original Hunter." Vynx suspected that his predecessor had left a nasty mark on the King, forcing him into recuperation for the last few decades. The journal had mentioned something about a "forbidden weapon" created by Alfred that would ensure the King's doom. Though the Hunter had ultimately failed to slay the King, whatever happened in that battle was enough to force the King to retreat and keep a low profile ever since. "Man, I sure wish Alfred gave me some awesome weapon," Vynx sighed aloud.

"You have a sigil that heals you from practically any injury," Laven scoffed. 

"Yeah, but I need firepower!" he complained. "Just imagine… A gun that could blow any vampire up into pieces." Vynx set his mug back on the tavern table and shut the journal. "Without magic, the only edge I've got is this durable body of mine."

"Hello? Have you forgotten exactly who you're talking to?" The succubus was annoyed enough to finally show her face across the table from him, manifesting in the opposite seat in her human form. 

"I uh..." Vynx awkwardly looked around to make sure none of the other patrons had seen the succubus suddenly appear. Thankfully, they were all either engrossed in the morning paper or in their own conversations to have noticed. He then looked back to Laven and coughed. "I'd… appreciate your help with whatever you can do, Laven."

"Certainly, but I'd like something in exchange," Laven began. A cruel smile crept upon her lips as she analyzed the wary hunter. "By lending you the full extent of my powers, I will need something… valuable in return." Her violet eyes flicked towards the priestess sitting by the fireplace not too far from them. Laven set her hand on the table, and a new infernal contract appeared beneath her fingertips. "Do we have a deal?"