CHAPTER 181: EARLY CHRISTMAS

The old hydro plant groaned like a dying beast as the dungeon portal sealed itself behind them. A cold wind blew in through the hollowed window frames, carrying the smell of wet concrete and rust. The sound of dripping water echoed somewhere deep in the structure.

Lucen shoved his hands into his coat pockets and exhaled, white vapor curling into the night. "’Well. That was a date to remember.’"

Varik didn’t answer. He walked, steady as always, boots crunching across broken glass. His silhouette, broad-shouldered and unbothered, moved as though the fight had never happened.

Behind them, the other hunters still lingered in the gloom. Their whispers carried, sharp, urgent, desperate.

"...shouldn’t be possible—"

"—he’s lying about his level, has to be—"

"—Varik covered for him, why—?"

Lucen grinned faintly at the noise, tilting his head toward Varik. "’They’re gonna talk whether you like it or not.’"

Varik didn’t slow, didn’t even look back. "Not to anyone that matters."

The confidence in his tone made Lucen chuckle. ’Gods, he says it like the world just bends when he tells it to.’

Still, he could feel eyes drilling into his back, suspicion thick in the air. It clung to him like damp clothes. Lucen rolled his shoulders and kept walking, boots echoing beside Varik’s.

—

The night outside was sharp with cold. The hydro plant sat on the edge of the forest, and the trees swayed in the wind, their skeletal branches scratching together like bones. A narrow road snaked away toward the city lights in the distance.

Varik stopped at the roadside, scanning the dark horizon. The others filtered out behind them, but none dared draw close. They kept their distance, their voices hushed, like jackals wary of the lion in their midst.

Lucen leaned against a bent streetlamp, smirking. "’So. How long before they convince themselves I’m some kind of freak experiment?’"

Varik’s eyes flicked to him, calm and unreadable. "Don’t encourage it."

Lucen snorted. "’I’m not. I’m just saying, they’re going to chew on this until their brains bleed. Why not give them something fun to choke on?’"

"Because you’ll regret it."

Lucen arched a brow. "’You always this much fun on post-dungeon walks?’"

Varik ignored him, pulling his phone from his pocket and tapping something into it with gloved fingers. His tone stayed low, almost casual. "We’ll head back to the bunker."

Lucen tilted his head. "’Straight to lock-up, huh? Don’t even get dinner first?’"

Varik pocketed the phone and finally looked at him fully, that steady, immovable gaze pinning him down. "It’s safer."

The grin on Lucen’s face twisted into something sharper. "’For me, or for them?’"

Varik didn’t answer.

The silence stretched, heavy with unspoken things. The wind howled through the broken plant windows, rattling metal frames.

Lucen clicked his tongue and pushed off the streetlamp. "’Fine. But I’m ordering food once we’re there. And don’t give me that look, you owe me.’"

Varik’s brow ticked just slightly. "For what?"

"For letting you have the guardian’s kneecap. Teamwork, remember?"

The faintest flicker touched Varik’s mouth, a shadow of a smirk. But it passed quickly, his expression smoothing back into stone. He turned toward the road.

"Let’s move."

Lucen followed, still grinning.

—

The van that picked them up was nondescript — black, dented at one corner, the kind used for official transport no one wanted to look at too closely. The driver didn’t say a word when Varik slid into the front seat. Lucen climbed into the back, sprawling across the bench with his boots kicked up.

The ride was silent save for the hum of the engine and the faint buzz of the heater. City lights rolled past the window in fractured lines, smeared by condensation.

Lucen tapped a rhythm against the glass with his knuckle. "’You think they’ll buy it?’"

Varik didn’t turn from the road ahead. "They’ll have to."

"Mm. You don’t sound worried."

"I’m not."

Lucen smirked faintly. "’You’ve got this whole unshakable rock thing going for you. It’s hot, I’ll give you that.’"

Varik didn’t respond. He rarely did when Lucen decided to poke him like this. But Lucen could see it in the angle of his jaw, the way his fingers tapped once against his thigh before stilling. A subtle shift, irritation, maybe. Or thought.

Lucen leaned back, folding his arms behind his head. "’Still, it’s only a matter of time before someone smart enough starts asking the wrong questions. You can’t keep shoving them all down forever.’"

"I can."

Lucen laughed softly. "’Gods, you even say it like you mean it. No wonder people line up to follow you.’"

Varik’s eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, catching Lucen’s reflection. For a heartbeat, something unreadable passed between them. Then he looked back to the road.

Lucen’s grin lingered, sharper now. ’He’s already thought this through. Every angle. Every threat. And yet... he still keeps me close.’

—

The bunker loomed at the edge of the city, a squat, reinforced building half-buried into the hillside, its entrance guarded by steel doors thick enough to stop a tank. The air smelled faintly of ozone and disinfectant as they stepped inside, boots clanging against metal flooring.

Hunters came and went in the corridors, voices echoing, but when they saw Varik, they moved aside without question. Eyes dipped, shoulders stiffened. Respect, fear, reverence, all tangled into one.

Lucen trailed behind him, smirking. "’You ever get tired of people parting like the sea every time you walk by?’"

Varik didn’t break stride. "No."

Lucen chuckled, low. "’Bet it makes finding a seat in the cafeteria real easy.’"

This time, Varik almost gave himself away. His shoulders shifted just slightly, like the edge of a laugh was buried deep and refused to come out.

Lucen caught it. Of course he did.

And it made his grin widen.

—

They reached one of the private rooms tucked into the bunker’s lower level. Spartan space, steel walls, a narrow cot, a desk stacked with reports. The air was cool and still, humming faintly from the ventilation system.

Varik stepped inside first, setting his sword down with deliberate care. Lucen followed, tugging his gloves off finger by finger.

"Hungry?" Varik asked suddenly.

Lucen blinked. Then smirked. "’Thought you’d never ask.’"

Varik’s expression didn’t shift. "There’s a place nearby. Better than the cafeteria."

Lucen tilted his head, amused. "’Wait. Varik, the stone wall, is offering me dinner? Mark the date, I think history just bent.’"

Varik didn’t rise to the bait. He just grabbed his coat again and opened the door.

Lucen chuckled, slipping his gloves into his pocket. "’Lead the way, big guy.’"

—

The restaurant was tucked into a side street, its windows fogged, the smell of grilled meat and soy drifting out into the cold. Inside, the lights were dim, the tables wooden and worn smooth by years of use.

Lucen slid into a booth, stretching out comfortably, while Varik sat across from him like a soldier even off duty.

Menus were unnecessary. Varik ordered without hesitation, voice calm. Lucen added something just to see the waitress blink twice, then grin.

As they waited, the noise of the city filtered in from outside, distant sirens, muffled laughter, the hum of neon signs.

Lucen leaned forward on his elbows, eyes gleaming. "’You do realize this is going to drive them crazy, right? Those hunters. They’ll be gnawing at it for weeks.’"

Varik didn’t flinch. "Let them."

Lucen tilted his head. "’You really don’t care?’"

"I care enough to keep you alive."

The words hung in the air between them, heavy and unshakable.

Lucen’s grin faded into something smaller, sharper. He studied Varik for a long moment, the faint lines at the corners of his eyes, the way his hands rested steady on the table.

Then he leaned back, smirk curling again. "’You make it sound like I need babysitting.’"

Varik’s gaze didn’t waver. "You need protection. That’s different."

Lucen laughed softly, shaking his head. "’You’re something else, you know that?’"

Before Varik could answer, the ground rumbled faintly under their feet. A low, distant sound, like thunder rolling through the bones of the city.

Lucen’s grin sharpened instantly. "’Oh. Now that’s dinner entertainment.’"

Varik was already rising to his feet.

—

The floor shuddered again. Glass rattled in its frame, and the hanging lights above the restaurant swayed faintly. The hum of voices inside dulled into silence, forks hanging in mid-air, all eyes flicking toward the front windows.

Lucen leaned back in the booth, grinning faintly. "’That... isn’t a dungeon.’"

Varik was already standing, hand on the hilt at his side. He didn’t move fast, didn’t need to, but the weight of his presence shifted the entire room.

The waitress at their table blinked, pale. "W-what was—?"

"Stay inside," Varik said flatly, already turning.

Lucen rose more lazily, tugging his gloves back on. The air outside felt charged even through the walls, a heavy static pressing down like a thunderstorm about to break. It made his skin prickle.

He followed Varik to the door, shoulders loose, eyes bright. "’Feels like Christmas came early.’"