"Ahh…What a colorful place this is, we've only been here two days, but I believe I've just felt one of my lungs collapse–ha-ha…hff!" The man wearing pale, clown makeup with orange hair kept into a ponytail laughed like a jester before coughing up.
The clown-faced man caressed the gash on his arm before wrapping it up with a gauze, humming to himself.
"Shut it, will ya?" The man with standout red hair said, focusing on the campfire in front of them as he propped up a massive, horned beast's carcass above the flame, sighing to himself quietly, "...Why was I paired with this clown?"
The chosen campsite was a clearing between cliffs, tucked away behind twisted, blackened trees that acted as a cover from the eyes of unwelcome monstrosities.
Keeping watch for beasts, the woman with bright-red hair and a scarred, but muscular body kept her hand by her sheathed sword, "They weren't exaggerating how dangerous this place is. The first squad already got wiped out–hell, I'm surprised we even made it so far. A couple close calls already."
"What're you thinking, Veldalla? Is this mission a bust?" Roan asked for her opinion, sitting by the rocky, blackened cliff that acted as cover.
Veldalla looked off at the distance before sitting down by the campfire as well, shrugging her shoulders, "Probably. How're we going to discover anything when every beast around here is at least a Massacre-level threat? It feels like every moment breathing is fought just to survive."
"I wonder, are beasts really what we're after here? Hmmm…" Lawrence grinned, speaking as if knowing something else.
"Spit it out, clown," Veldalla said, "You know something about this mission, don't you? It just doesn't make sense to me–why would they send a gold-rank adventurer on a quest like this? Hell, I'm a ruby-rank and I feel way out of my depth here."
Though the two other adventurers of renown showed their open doubts to the clown, Lawrence only laughed it off, grinning to himself.
"What's funny?!" Veldalla gritted her teeth, frustrated with the man that seemed to take nothing seriously despite the dire situation.
The tense environment, where death could ensnare anybody one second to the next, left some on edge; winds that smelled of rotten flesh swept through the land, creating a permanent fixture of death in the atmosphere.
"Forgive me, but you see, I have the unique gift of finding humor in everything. I apologize if my attitude has offended you," Lawrence smiled.
Roan sighed, "Calm down, Veldalla. Getting angry isn't going to solve anything," the red-haired adventurer said, acting as the leader naturally as his rank stood above the rest, "Lawrence, you seem to have your own idea about what this expedition is about. Mind telling us your thoughts?"
"...Hmm," Lawrence smiled, leaning against the rock wall while sitting, "Tell me this: what reason is there to explore this land?"
Controlling her frustration, Veldalla grumbled before responding, "Well, it's always been a goal by the Foundation to understand the Godless Continent. With it being as dangerous as it is and unknown, it's a risk leaving it unchecked if we get blindsided by anything coming out of it. That's our goal here, isn't it?"
"Wrong~," Lawrence playfully said, pointing at the crimson-haired woman.
"Huh?! What am I wrong about then?!" Veldalla barked.
Coughing into his hand while retaining his smile, the pale-faced man answered, "We're here to hunt people. Though I'd hardly call them "people" anymore, perhaps demons that thrive on utter chaos, like myself."
"The fuck are you talking about?" Roan asked with a raised eyebrow.
"The Children of Chaos," Lawrence finally answered.
Such words were enough to bring pause to the other two companions of the clown-faced man, weighing down like a deafening storm.
"That group? We've never had any leads on them though," Veldalla said.
"Yeah, I've tried my hand at tracking them down a few times in my career–nothing. How the hell did the Foundation get anything on them?" Roan wondered.
Lawrence laughed to himself, drawing their gazes to him again as he grinned, softly placing his hand against his chest, "Why, I told them, of course. If you're wondering how I knew about this–I used to be a member of the Children of Chaos. Yes, yes."
Immediately upon admitting this with an open smile, the end of the eyepatch-wearing woman's sword was stopped just a few inches from the clown's neck, only stopped by Roan, who stopped it with nothing but his hand.
"Stop it, Veldalla," Roan ordered.
"Why–? He just admitted to–"
"--To formerly being a member of the Children. I don't like his smug ass anymore than you do, but if we're at each other's necks like this, it'll be that much easier for this land to chew us up and spit us back out," Roan told the woman.
Hesitating for a moment, Veldalla finally sighed before retreating her sword, sheathing it before sitting back down.
"Oh, my. That was scary," Lawrence said with his unmoving smile.
Roan looked at the clown-faced swordsman, "You're not off the hook yet. Explain yourself–now. Or I won't stop Veldalla the next time she lashes out at you."
Sitting there for a moment, the peculiar man with skin as white as snow itself shrugged his shoulders, lifting his hands in submission to the request, "Well, you've forced my hand! I'd rather not be cut down by that brawny woman there."
"Tch," Veldalla clicked her tongue, "Just talk."
Lawrence nodded, "When I was a part of their organization, this is where our main base resided. It's a fortress located in the northern sector of the continent. As I said, I am a former member–so please, do not treat me as if I am an enemy currently. I assure you that I am on your side. I wish to see the Children of Chaos crumble."
The explanation was given, though it didn't seem to ease the tension between the three very much as the situation was far too grim to relax even for a moment.
"So, that's how it is, huh?" Roan sat down, resting his arm on his knee.
"Why the hell would they not tell us that? Even worse, they stuck us with a former psycho from that group without telling us?" Veldalla said sharply, "I oughta cleave those worthless old men in half if I make it back."
Lawrence laughed, "I assure you I am not anything like the Children you're familiar with," the clown pointed at his own head, "I very much still have my mind intact, you see."
"Doubt it," Veldalla breathed out.
The information revealed by the clown-faced man didn't exactly turn the situation into a favorable one for the group. Still, all that could be done for the time being is to lick their wounds and rest, using what little time of reprieve was available to eat up and regain their energy.
"If they were after that organization of freaks this whole time, wouldn't it have been better to send the Nihilum Core in?" Veldalla wondered audibly.
"Not happening," Roan said, taking a piece from the beast cooked above the campfire before getting a bite from it.
The eyepatch-wearing woman looked over, "Why not? You can't tell me it was the right call to send ruby ranks into this place–it was a suicide mission."
"I'm not saying it was a good decision, but the Nihilum Core would never be sent on a mission like this. They're glorified bodyguards for the Heads. They wouldn't risk their precious guards when they can just throw others into hell," Roan explained with a sigh.
It seemed like the entire expedition was a bust–an outing that used the lives of adventurers as ammunition for information.
"Sounds about right from what I've heard. We're the sacrificial lamb, it seems," Lawrence said with a smile.
"Hell no, not me," Veldalla sighed angrily, "I'm not kickin' it in this hellhole."
"Well ain't that a pretty dream. Hate to say it, but living isn't exactly guaranteed in this place–hell, I think death is what's guaranteed around here," Roan said, looking up as rain pelted down against his red hair.
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om