Artist was sitting casually by the fire, a makeshift grill propped up on rocks with several large fish sizzling over the flames. The smell of freshly caught fish wafted through the air, and Isaac’s stomach growled even louder in response. What was more surprising was the sight of a fishing pole jammed into the rocks nearby, its line cast deep into the ocean, the tip swaying slightly with the movement of the waves.

  “What the…” Isaac muttered, blinking in disbelief as he approached the camp.

  Artist glanced over his shoulder, grinning as he spotted Isaac. “Oh, hey! You’re back! Look what I caught.” He motioned toward the grill with a smug expression, flipping one of the large fish over with a stick.

  Isaac raised an eyebrow, dropping his haul of crabs and fish onto the ground. “Where the hell did you get all this?” He gestured toward the fish sizzling on the makeshift grill and then at the fishing pole jammed into the rocks.

  Artist shrugged nonchalantly. “You were taking your time, so I figured I’d do a little fishing. Found that old pole washed up further down the beach, tied it up with some string from Spunk’s stash, and jammed it into the rocks. Turns out this place isn’t as barren as it looks. Got a good haul while you were out there scavenging.”

  Isaac shook his head, both impressed and annoyed. “You couldn’t have mentioned that before I went digging through the rocks for crabs?”

  Artist chuckled, not missing a beat as he turned one of the fish on the grill. “Well, I had no idea if it would actually work. But hey, now we’ve got plenty. You did good with those crabs, by the way.” He glanced at the pile Isaac had gathered. “We’ll throw those on next. Between the two of us, we’ve got a feast.”

  Isaac let out an exasperated sigh, as he could tell Artist was lying through his teeth, but couldn’t help cracking a smile. “Of course you did.”

  Spunk, still clutching the half-finished Fluffy, hovered around the fire, eyes wide with excitement. “Yay, fish! You’re the best, Artist! I didn’t even know you could fish.”

  Artist grinned, taking the praise in stride. “Well, Spunk, I’m full of surprises.”

  Isaac, shaking his head, sat down near the fire, the warmth from the flames easing the chill of the night air. As Artist expertly handled the grill, Isaac looked out at the fishing pole swaying gently in the breeze, waves lapping against the shore.

  He had to admit, despite the absurdity of the situation, they were in a better spot than he had anticipated.

  The crackling fire and the smell of fresh fish filled the air, creating a moment of calm amidst the chaos. The curse, Verside, and their next move—those would come soon enough. For now, they could at least enjoy the simple pleasure of a well-earned meal.

  "Guess we can call this a win for today," Isaac muttered with a wry smile. Without thinking, he reached into the fire to grab one of the cooked fish, his hand plunging into the flames like it had countless times before. But the instant his fingers touched the searing heat, pain shot through his hand like lightning.

  Isaac jerked back with a hiss, clutching his hand as the flames licked across his skin, leaving it red and throbbing. The sensation and subsequent realization hit him hard—his Phoenix soul, the source of his immunity to fire, was locked away. He wasn’t invulnerable anymore.

  “Damn it!” he cursed under his breath, staring at his burned fingers in disbelief.

  Artist’s head whipped around, eyebrow raised as he stifled a laugh. “You alright there, Fire boy? Forget something?”

  Isaac clenched his jaw, flexing his hand as he bit back the frustration. “Yeah… I forgot I’m not fireproof anymore,” he muttered, his voice laced with irritation. The Phoenix had been a part of him for long enough that his immunity to flames had become second nature—something he hadn’t even thought twice about until it was too late.

  Spunk hovered closer, concern flashing in their eyes. “Oh no! Isaac, are you okay?”

  “I’ll live,” Isaac grumbled, waving his hand to shake off the lingering sting. He shot a glare at Artist, who was still grinning.

  Artist chuckled, shaking his head. “Guess losing the Phoenix is more of a problem than you thought, huh?”

  “Thanks for the reminder,” Isaac snapped, though the pain in his hand quickly subsided. The burn was minor, but the lesson was far deeper than the physical sting—he was vulnerable now, like everyone else. A grim reminder of the curse and just how much had been taken from him.

  Artist, finally taking pity on him, used a stick to pull the fish from the fire. “Here. You might want to try a less direct approach next time.”

  Isaac rolled his eyes, accepting the fish with his good hand. “Noted.”

  As the three of them settled in to eat, the brief moment of humor faded, replaced by the quiet weight of what lay ahead. Isaac chewed thoughtfully on the fish, his mind still half-distracted by the day's events. After a few bites, he grimaced, glancing down at his meal.

  “Man, I wish I had some kind of spices or something,” he muttered aloud. “This fish could definitely use some flavor.”

  Spunk, who was happily munching away on his portion, looked up and nodded in agreement. “Yeah! Remember that meat you gave me before? That was delicious! This fish is kinda… plain.”

  Artist, who had been quietly eating his food, cast passing glances at both Isaac and Spunk, listening to the conversation but keeping his thoughts to himself for the moment. His eyes flicked to the fire, then back to his food, an amused smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

  Isaac raised an eyebrow at Spunk, pausing for a second. “Wait… you mean the meat I gave you from that beast I killed? That wasn’t seasoned at all.”

  Spunk hovered closer, eyes wide with excitement. “Really? It was so good! Way better than this fish.”

  Isaac blinked in disbelief, a hint of confusion crossing his face. “Spunk, I think you just prefer the taste of beast flesh. Because I didn’t add anything to that meat, though to be fair it was good.”

  Spunk’s tiny face lit up with realization, as if that hadn’t occurred to them. “Oh… maybe that’s it! Monster flesh is just tastier!”

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  Artist couldn’t hold back a small chuckle, finally joining in on the conversation. “Well, that’s one way to develop a palate.”

  Isaac shook his head, half-amused. “Never thought I’d be traveling with a talking hedgehog that prefers the taste of monsters over normal food, though in hindsight that's probably the least of everything that's happened the last few days.”

  Artist grinned as he poked at his fish with a stick. “Could be worse. At least we’re not on the menu.”

  Without missing a beat, Spunk nonchalantly added, “Yes, and what’s a hedgehog?”

  Both Isaac and Artist froze mid-motion, their eyes going wide as the word sunk in. In perfect unison, they shot to their feet, scrambling backward.

  “I thought we had a deal!” they shouted simultaneously, their voices a mix of shock and panic.

  Spunk blinked innocently, tilting their head. “Oh, relax! It was just a joke… probably.”

  Isaac groaned, rubbing his face with one hand. “I swear, I’m losing it…”

  Artist laughed, though there was still a hint of nervousness in his eyes. “Yeah, I’m keeping one eye open tonight.”

  Both Isaac and Artist nodded in agreement, the tension easing slightly but not entirely gone.

  Artist leaned back, glancing at Isaac with a curious look. "Alright, so what's the plan for tomorrow? There's a town less than a hundred miles from here. It shouldn’t be too hot—at least not as bad as the outpost was. We could resupply there and figure out our next moves."

  Isaac exhaled, feeling the weight of the conversation shift toward practicality. He sat back down by the fire and reached into his bag, pulling out his brand-new map. The paper felt crisp beneath his fingers as he spread it out on the ground in front of him, tracing the lines and contours with focused intensity. His brow furrowed as he tried to figure out where they were.

  Before Isaac could even ask for help, Artist, already sensing what was coming, leaned over and pointed to an area along the coast. “Right here,” he said, his finger tapping a small, seemingly insignificant spot on the map.

  Isaac’s eyes widened as he followed the path Artist indicated, noting the staggering distance between their current location and the Wildwood Outpost. “Wait... this can’t be right,” he muttered, looking at Artist in disbelief. “How long was I out for?”

  Artist leaned back casually, shrugging as he poked at the fire with a stick. “A few days. You were in rough shape. Had to drag you half the way here while you were out cold.”

  Isaac blinked, the information sinking in. “A few days?” He ran a hand through his hair, staring at the map in shock. “No wonder we’re so far from the Outpost. I didn’t think...”

  “You were in pretty bad shape, Isaac,” Artist cut in, his tone light but serious. “I thought about leaving you behind a couple times, but Spunk kept nagging me, so I dragged your sorry self the whole way.” He smirked. “You’re welcome, by the way.”

  Isaac shook his head, still processing the time he’d lost. "A few days... damn. That explains why I'm starving." He glanced back at the fire. "Anyway…I assume the city you mean is Aureus Rome?”

  Artist nodded, glancing at the map again. “Yeah, Aureus Rome. Shouldn’t take too long if we keep a decent pace. There are a lot of small shops in the outer ring of the city, so it shouldn’t be hard to resupply.”

  Isaac nodded, piecing it together. “Guess that’s why you led us out here in the middle of nowhere?”

  But just then, Spunk, who had been distracted by food and their half-finished plushie, suddenly screamed, “No, no, no! We are not going to Aureus!”

  Isaac turned to Spunk, confusion written across his face. “What do you mean?”

  Spunk hopped to their feet, dropping both their food and the plushie, eyes wide with urgency. “The only reason Artist brought us out here is that Aureus is recruiting for a dungeon raid right now! He’s planning to make us go into it!”

  Isaac turned his head, glancing at Artist, who responded with a sinister grin that sent a chill down Spunk’s spine.

  “That place is gonna be crawling with Kraken Guild members!” Spunk continued, their voice trembling with dread. “Not to mention every hunter from cities across the coast! You really want to throw us into that mess?”

  To Spunk's horror, Isaac simply returned Artist's grin, an almost reckless glint in his eyes.

  “Yeah, I think I remember something about a raid being mentioned at the outpost.”

  “Sounds like a party,” Artist said, a hint of mischief in his tone. “We could use some excitement, right? Plus, the way I see it, that’s your best bet in dealing with that curse…what better way than to go to learn from the source right?”

  Spunk stared at him, mouth agape, a soft whimper escaping as they grasped what was coming next. They turned to Isaac, desperate for some resistance to the plan, but were met with the same reckless excitement mirrored on his face.

  Isaac's grin widened, his eyes burning with anticipation.

  “You know what?” he said, his voice brimming with dangerous excitement.

  “Artist’s got a point. If we’re gonna break this curse, we might as well go straight into the heart of it. Besides…” he shrugged nonchalantly, “It’d be a good chance to build our strength for our next fight with Verside…we’re in his territory so who knows, he might be closer than we could imagine.”

  Spunk’s shoulders slumped in defeat, realizing there was no stopping the inevitable now.

  “I can’t believe this,” they muttered under their breath, their head drooping as they whimpered, “We’re doomed...”

  Isaac noticed Spunk's growing anxiety and placed a reassuring hand on their small shoulder. “Hey, relax,” he said, his tone soft but confident. “We’re gonna do this smartly. We won’t just walk into Aureus as ourselves, we’ll be disguised.”

  Spunk’s eyes widened with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism. “Disguised? How are we going to do that?”

  Isaac smirked, holding up his hand. “Like this.”

  With a swift motion, Isaac summoned the outfits he'd bought at the Bizarre Bazaar. The air shimmered briefly as the clothes appeared—colorful, rugged, and perfect for blending into the chaos of a city full of hunters and adventurers. At least Isaac thought so.

  Isaac handed the folded clothes to Artist, the bright pink windbreaker resting conspicuously on top. Artist raised an eyebrow, an inquisitive look crossing his face as he held up the windbreaker, letting it unfold fully. A grin spread across his face as he inspected the fabric.

  "You know," Artist said, slipping the windbreaker on, "I actually like this. Way better than that prison getup." He adjusted the collar, looking pleased. "Plus, it’s kinda flashy. I can work with this."

  Spunk, who had been watching quietly, tilted their head and then perked up. “Hey, the windbreaker matches your eyes!” they pointed out, grinning excitedly.

  Artist raised an eyebrow, amused by the comment. He looked over at Isaac, who was trying to hold back a laugh. “Well, I guess I’ve got a signature color now,” Artist said with a chuckle, striking a mock pose as if showing off a designer outfit.

  Isaac couldn’t help but grin as he finished adjusting his own new clothes. “Perfect. Now we just need Spunk to stop worrying and we’ll be all set."

  Spunk held out their tiny paw, a mischievous grin spreading across their face. “Wait just a moment!” they said, digging into their inventory with surprising speed. Moments later, they triumphantly pulled out a pair of clippers and scissors, the blades gleaming in the firelight.

  “You said you needed haircuts along with your new outfits for your disguise!” Spunk declared, flicking the clippers on with a loud buzz.

  Isaac raised an eyebrow, taking a cautious step back. “I-I never said..wait where did you even get those?” he asked, eyeing the clippers warily.

  Artist was equally perplexed. “And why do you even have those?” he added, edging away from the over eager creature.

  Spunk grinned wickedly, advancing toward them with gleaming eyes and clippers at the ready.

  “Details, details!” they laughed, lunging toward the two of them. “Come here, I’ll make you both beautiful!”

  Isaac and Artist exchanged a quick look of amusement and panic crossing their faces as Spunk once again lunged forward and both Artist and Isaac jumped back in alarm.

  "Wait, wait! Hold on!" Isaac yelled, trying to dodge behind Artist. "I was not ready for this!"