Chapter 91: At Night
After the last hunt, they had returned to their hideout, the only place where they felt more or less safe for the night. It was already their second evening there — and, for once, dinner tasted like victory.
A real feast awaited them.
They were sharing the remaining elk meat hunted that morning. They’d salvaged all four legs — two had been devoured at dawn, and the other two were already roasting over the fire, their fatty aroma filling the makeshift shelter.
Maggie sat alone, perched on a rock a bit off to the side, arms resting on her knees, keeping a close eye on her portion of meat as it grilled just the way she liked it — slowly, evenly, until the smell was strong enough to wake the appetite of a dead man. The fire crackled softly in front of her, casting dancing light across her closed-off face. Not a word escaped her lips.
Dylan had settled a little further away, out of the commander’s line of sight, enjoying one of the rare moments of calm without pressure. Élisa had slipped in beside him, a chunk of meat in one hand, the other resting idly on his knee.
"You know," she said while chewing leisurely, "this world might be rotten, but it still has a few interesting bits."
Dylan raised an eyebrow, curious. "Like what?"
She took her time to swallow, then turned toward him, eyes gleaming with that spark she always had when about to tell some improbable story.
"For example... did you know there’s an entire continent here that humans have only explored about five percent of — and that’s over a thousand years?"
Dylan stayed silent, his expression frozen.
"It’s so huge you could walk your whole life and never reach the end. And what’s still unknown over there... it’s dizzying. There are stories about plants that could make spirit essence absorption look like child’s play, or fruits that can rejuvenate even the dying."