We continued switching between practice and lazing about for the rest of the day. There was the option to explore the area or even visit the Cathedral proper but we were more interested in resting. Being on the move for the better part of a month had been exhausting, even with the rest we had in the capital of Eterios.

Alex seemingly ignored the meeting with Catori, though I found her looking at me deep in thought from time to time. My other self was rather giddy in my soul even though I was not sure how much Alex had accepted that we were somewhat the same even if separate.

Cerberos returned late in the evening in a small rented coach pulled by a sturdy man. It was called a dragsha, or so I was told but Alex was convinced it was a rickshaw. I saw the resemblance even with the much wider seat and space for luggage. People in this world were a little more powerful so it would be much easier for a servant to pull all that on their own. Apparently, it was the personal vehicle of Cerberos’ master with the man pulling it being his distant cousin who had gone from a quarrying job to this.

Jane did not come back that night. She sent a messenger that she was needed in the Cathedral and would come pick us up in a few days.

With how late it was, we had little interest to talk and simply got some rest after confirming we would go along with the hunter the next day. For that, we took our carriage. With the five of us, it was an easy decision.

The trip took longer than expected, even bringing us outside of the walls. I took to the air to get a better look at our target location and quickly noticed how the streets and buildings were squeezed in between rocky cliffs and gorges. They were only a few metres tall for now but extended more and more towards the northeast. I was a little curious as to what happened to create such a landscape.

When I landed in the carriage and asked Cerberos, he surprisingly had an answer for us.

“Out there is where they found the star shard”, he said, “It has drastically changed the land and even this far from the crater there is a ton of shift because of it.”

“Wait, that’s public knowledge?”, Alex asked.

“Yes. There’s nothing there but wasteland once you get far enough. They don’t want people travelling to their death so everyone knows.”

“Wasn’t there another country?”, Circe asked.

“That’s more northwest from here. It basically hugs the crater as close as it can. They get a ton of stone from there.”

It took another half hour to reach the house where Cerberos’ master lived. It stood on an elevated ridge with stairs cut into the rock. The building was made of the same limestone everything else around here was. At least there was a good layer of dirt allowing for some vegetation.

We were greeted by the man that had brought Cerberos back the previous evening who took our carriage into a hut built right on the cliff. There was a place for horses as well and he promised to take care of them.

The [Eagle Hunter] waved us to follow and we made up the stairs, myself sitting on Circe’s arm. I heard the door open while we were hidden behind the rock and a voice called out.

“You’re back, Cerbi!”

It was clearly a woman though she sounded distinctly scratchy. Almost like she had to hold back significantly or she would let out something like my [Intimidating Screech]. Finally, she came into vision.

“I am”, Cerberos said, “And I brought my friends.”

Before us stood a harpy. The woman was on the shorter end, somewhere between 150 and 160 centimetres tall. Circe was not too far off from meeting her eyes. Her arms were proportionally too long and had golden feathers going off the back like wings. On each hand was a sixth finger extending as long as half her arm again and further increasing her wingspan. Her hair was also replaced by golden feathers and she had talons for feet but everything between her knees and face was human.

“Oh, nice to meet you! I’m Yria, the golden harpy.”

A man walked up behind and she nuzzled her head in the groove below his chin.

“And that’s my master, Jericho”, Cerberos said.

The man nodded with a grunt. His face was rough but friendly with golden hair and blue eyes. A clean beard covered his chin.

“Hello!”, Circe waved, “I’m Circe and this is Fio. Those two are Alex and Hera.”

The harpy eyed me for a moment. I tilted my head and she copied the motion. Then, Jericho’s hand landed on her shoulder.

“Let’s go inside”, Jericho said.

Within a minute we were all seated around a comfy table. I spotted a loft in the back that was filled with piles upon piles of pillows. Several scratches in the bannister showed that Yria commonly flew, or jumped, up there.

“So, you are the folk that got him a vacation?”, the [Hunter] said.

“Sort of”, I answered, “We had to push him a bit.”

“Oh!”, Yria said, “You speak! How?”

I pushed the arcane speaker up with a bit of darkness. She blinked.

“That little thing? How does that work?”

“Ah, well…”, I hesitated.

“It’s artificing”, Alex jumped in, “Fio learned from the dwarves.”

That made the couple blink.

“You are very interesting”, Yria said, “My instincts tell me to fight, to chase you. But you are polite.”

“Thank you”, I said, “I guess I’m not the biggest fan of other raptors but that only matters if they’re non-sapient.”

She nodded, her head moving in rapid shifts.

“I haven’t met many”, she said.

“You’re a really good hunter, right?”, Circe suddenly asked.

“Mh? Yes. I am.”

“Why don’t you two have a competition!”

I clicked my tongue. Yria blinked.

“Like, who can catch the most prey? And then we can have a feast!”

Alex slapped her forehead.

“You just want to eat?”

“No! I want to see how Yria hunts!”

The woman in question squawked as she turned to her husband.

“My, you’re lively. Let’s take it slow, alright?”

Circe pouted.

“I want to thank you lot for getting the boy to visit his home. It’s been far too long.”

“Of course”, I said, “I just made a friend and asked him to come along.”

Jericho nodded.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it”, he said, “Come with me, boy.”

Cerberos stood with him and they left out the back entrance.

For a few minutes, we were just sitting still at the table, Yria carefully observing all of us. Then, Circe started again.

“So, about that competition…”

Alex sighed.

“No.”

“What?”

“Not a competition. Circe, if you want Fio to go along, call it a challenge.”

“Okay… So, about the challenge?”

This time, I nodded for her to continue.

“It’s about who can hunt more prey between the two of you. And for the reward… I get to pet you!”

“No”, both of us said in perfect sync.

Circe pouted. Alex and Hera laughed.

“I have an idea”, Hera said, “If Missus Yria wins, I will give her a massage. If Lady Fio wins, I will provide a selection of delicacies.”

The harpy grinned.

“I like it!”, she said, “What do you say?”

I blinked.

“Well, if it makes Circe happy? I guess we could do it. You definitely have an advantage in knowing the area, though.”

“Right. You want me to show you around?”

“Do you have something to carry prey easily?”, I asked.

“… my talons?”

“Then don’t show me around. I have a Skill that works as a large storage.”

“Oh. That is strong.”

I nodded.

“How do we count points? Pure mass? Edible mass? Do we put certain points on certain prey?”

“Hmm… we have lots of small things here. Not much that’s larger than a dog.”

“Then points per prey?”

“I’d say three points for every animal you hunt”, Alex said, “And another two extra if it’s larger than Fio.”

Yria tilted her head.

“You can do that?”, she asked me.

“I can.”

“Cool.”

“And only things humans can eat”, Circe added, “So we can make a feast!”

“It will take some time”, Yria said, “You need to drain the blood and dress the kill. Maybe tomorrow? The feast.”

Circe pouted but nodded.

“What do I hear there?”, Jericho asked as he came in. He stood behind his wife’s chair and she leaned into him. Cerberos got a little squeeze from her hand.

“We’re making a challenge!”, the harpy said, “And a feast tomorrow!”

“That sounds fun. Where will you be hunting?”

“Out over the old node.”

With that settled, we settled into small talk. The hunt would happen just after lunch when most viable prey was resting. I found out that Jericho was not just Cerberos’ master but also his father. His mother had succumbed to sickness shortly after the boy was born. Only once Yria came around did Jericho finally open up again.

At some point, Catori returned from moving the starling saying she was fed up with it. I was grateful she had done so before we started to randomly swap. When I caught her up on the plans, she immediately wanted to join in. On the account of not having a body to do so and likely being unable to acquire one, we decided to work together with only our main body instead. Whenever one of us failed a target, we would be swapping control.

The meal was simple, if tasty from what the others told me. Yria preferred raw meat just like me, even though she could eat processed food, and I got my own portion of it. I was not very hungry but it was a nice gesture nonetheless.

Then, it was time for the challenge.