NOVPUBAfter gathering the grisly claws from a hundred yetis, Zach looked at the ones around him. Yanael, Alzara, Soara, Mandra, and Visla. There was a gap to his left between himself and Visla where Nora usually stood in moments like this.
Zach gritted his teeth. Thoughts swirled around in his messy mind. But he did not let himself get drawn in. Instead, he focused on moving them to the next floor.
He hoped they would end up far from his family so that heuld get the chance to prepare himself mentally. But Zach wasn't infamous for his bad luck for nothing.
They didn't just end up close to the Evandiels on the twenty-ninth floor. They ended up in the middle of their camp.
Zach rgnized the emblems, the tents, and the warriors suddenly pointing at them with their weapons.
"...Zach?" A voice called out from behind them. The warriors of the Evandiel family lowered their weapons. They had suspected something once they saw the young man with red hair, but it was only when Leana, the third daughter of the family spoke that theyuldnfirm it and lower their guard.
Zach turned around, his expression frozen stiff.
"Leana," He answered simply. Before heuld do anything else, she had already thrown herself at him and forced him into a hug. The sister who had been the worst at showing affection.
Zachuld have avoided it or easily broken out of it. But in a weird way, he needed a hug, even if it was from the family that abandoned him. He also had to find out if heuld still feel anything from it. Could he feel the warmth he so desperately needed?
After a few moments, he wrangled his arms out of Leana's grip and put his hands on her shoulders. He pushed her back and freed himself from her hug. 𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝒎
Leana was a little surprised at his strength. She was several years older than him, and she had trained rigorously since she was young. Zach, on the other hand, had only trained the last few years.
"W-what are you doing here, Zach?" She asked, mostly out of curiosity since she hadn't had enough time to get over the surprise of seeing him where she least expected it. She hadn't had enough time to think about what it meant that Zach was on the twenty-ninth floor of the Labyrinth at this moment.
However, before Zachuld answer, a solid hand landed on his shoulder. It was a warm hand in the frozen and snowvered forest of the twenty-ninth floor. It was the hand of Leonidas, Zach's older brother and the eldest son of the family.
"Let's go to themmand tent," he said, shooting a glance around at the warriors who definitely weren't listening.
Leonidasuld tell that this would be anversation that was best kept to the family, even if only because theyuld not afford a loss of morale on the brink of a fight to the death against the Hydra.
Zach's eyes narrowed, but he followed his siblings without a word.
Leonidas led the way without looking back. Leana walked somewhere between Leonidas and Zach, occasionally glancing back at her younger brother. He had grown a lot in the years they hadn't seen each other. He was taller, more muscular, and his features were more refined.
But his hair was also redder than before, and his skin wasvered in faint burn scars. He also had auple of more maids than last time, all four of them looking like they were ready to kill. The barbarian girl by his side was no different, but she at least tried to hide her murderous intent.
All five of them had noticed the stiffness in Zach's body language as soon as his siblings appeared.
He hadn't talked much about how his family's betrayal made him feel. But this made it obvious why.
His family's betrayal had hurt Zach deeply. There was no way Yanael, Alzara, Soara, and Mandra would forgive them.
Visla shared that sentiment, but she was also a member of one of the three tribes who had fought the Evandiels for generations with blood and death on the line. It was in her blood to want to kill the Evandiels. Sheuld not help but feel tense when she was in the midst of the entire Evandiel family and their most elite troops.
Zach heard voices discussing matters inside themmand tent. He rgnized those voices. But they all died down once he entered.
Leonia, the snd daughter, Lilo, Lily, and Lexi, the triplets taking fourth, fifth, and sixth place. Nymur, Zach's father. Calserra, Zach's father. And, in arner, ready to serve, Nora's mother, the silver-haired maid, Victoria.
Zach looked at all of them except Victoria.
Leonia tried to keep hermposure, but Zachuld see her already trying to figure out how much he knew, how he had gotten to where they were, and how this would affect their plans. Lilo and Lily avoided his gaze. They felt guilt. Lexi did not avoid his gaze, but she also felt guilt. She was also apologetic and remorseful, though.
Leonidas maintained a calm expression. He did a good job trying to hide how flustered he was, but not good enough. Leana's eyes cleared for a moment as she remembered why Zach wasn't with them in the first place. She was worried.
Nymur's expression wasld, not like he had expected this exact situation but like he had expected to benfronted about his actions sooner or later. Calserra did not show anything on her face. But she glanced at Visla with narrowed eyes.
"Zach," Leonidas started, "I am sure you have a lot to say—"
"Me?" Zach interrupted, ffing. "I have nothing to say. It's all of you who have a lot of talking to do." He crossed his arms and sat down on a chair he made with his Blessed Defense skill. He was not going to use one of the chairs in the tent. There was only one for each member of the Evandiel family, after all.
