After reaching the tavern, Vayu noticed the same waiter from last time. He ordered a few dishes he remembered enjoying before, while Ruru chose something of her own. Once the waiter left, Vayu remained silent for a while, casually watching the crowd, before finally asking about what had happened to her group that day. When Ruru recounted the entire incident, Vayu's expression shifted into mild surprise. He already knew the reason behind what happened today but didn't reveal anything, after hearing it, he felt guilty about her group. He asked her a few more random questions before asking the real question, keeping his tone light, before finally saying, "So… how many demonic crystals did you manage to collect today?"
"About one hundred and forty" Ruru replied "That's almost three times what we usually get" despite the impressive number, there was no excitement in her voice "We almost died" she added softly as the memory replayed in her mind, she was sure she will die today but the bull brothers didn't gave up till last and made their way out. Vayu nodded, then continued asking seemingly unrelated questions and after a while, he asked again
"How do you obtain demonic crystals?"
Ruru was startled as she stared at him, confused, as if she hadn't understood the question at all. "Just like everyone else," she said slowly "From demonic beasts "
Vayu watching the change in her expression said "Oh not that, I meant… how do you remove them?"
Her confusion deepened, but strangely she didn't doubt him much and after a brief pause, she answered her voice steady.
"When a demonic beast dies, there's a demonic crystal inside its head. After killing it, we extract the crystal"
As she spoke, her hesitation from earlier had completely vanished. Watching her closely, Vayu understood—she was entirely under the influence of charm and illusion, then he asked, almost casually, still being careful
"But aren't demonic beasts allowed inside the city? Why don't people kill them there?"
Ruru looked at him blankly, her expression empty, as she began to explain:
"There are two types of demonic beasts, one those who are intelligent and useful to shapeshifter and the other that is consumed by its demonic nature and immerses itself in slaughter" she seemed like a lifeless doll when she spoke "All demonic beasts possess a demonic crystal inside their head. The stronger their demonic nature, the larger the crystal grows, and the more demonic energy it can absorb" suddenly the waiter came and Ruru stopped talking , when all the dishes were laid on the table, the waiter went back, Ruru continued without looking at the food "Not all beasts surrender to their demonic instincts. That's why some are allowed to live within the city… while others are hunted". Vayu quickly nodded and started eating the food, he didn't know how long the effect would last, so he ate quickly, keeping his movements natural.
After finishing, he smiled lightly and said,
"Since you earned so much today, thank you for treating me to the meal and… please be careful the next time you head out, alright?"
Ruru nodded happily, unaware of the reason why she felt happy, to her it felt like it was the right thing to do as she had bumped into him. When the waiter came back, she paid the bill without hesitation. The two of them left the tavern together, walking in silence until they were a fair distance away. Then Vayu stopped and gently said,
"Hold my hand for a moment."
Ruru did as he asked, very carefully Vayu reached into her memories and erased every trace of the questions he had asked, along with the moment she paid the bill. If they ever met again, she would remember only this, a polite young man who had offered her a meal and was very gentlemanly in nature. Then he searched the memories related to demonic crystal extraction, learning far more than he had expected as Ruru and her group knew many dangerous zones, migration paths, regions saturated according to the type of beasts living there and forbidden zones. When he was done, he withdrew without causing harm to her memories. Ruru blinked once as she felt slight pain, then smiled faintly as if nothing unusual had happened. Vayu released her hand and after saying goodbye he turned away and left quickly— without once looking back. By the time the effect wore off, Ruru had almost reached her home. A faint sense of unease washed over her as fragments of the night slowly returned, but nothing felt out of place.
I must be exhausted, she thought. After everything she had faced that day, the fatigue alone was enough to explain the heaviness in her head. She went inside without another thought and fell asleep the moment she lay down.
Vayu quietly slipped through the streets and disappeared into the shadow when he reached near the lab. His mind was already racing, arranging everything he had learned into usable plans for the next day. The first problem was obvious, he needed a lot of money, not just that, he didn't even possess proper weapons. While shapeshifters could fight using their own bodies, relying on claws, fangs, Vayu was different. He could draw out only ten percent of those abilities. Against true shapeshifters or high-ranked demonic beasts—that limitation could easily get him killed.
Which meant he needed equipment, for his fragile defense and a nice weapon. Until he could increase his control and draw out more of his borrowed strength. Vayu considered many ways to earn money, but every option carried the same danger of exposure. No matter how careful he was, acting alone increased the risk. Then a simpler thought surfaced in his mind.
Why not join Ruru?
Both bull-men in her group were injured. If he accompanied her on hunt, he could earn some money, while getting familiar with the surrounding terrain and observe without drawing attention to himself or getting himself killed. The next morning, Vayu left his hiding place early and followed the general direction Ruru had taken the previous night. After walking for a while, uncertainty crept in—he had no idea where she actually lived or which path she had taken. He searched for some time, but found nothing. All his plans he had made were turned to waste as he started walking back, another realization struck him. Their group had came from the western side, so they must usually go out from there, without wasting time Vayu transformed and sprinted toward the western gate.
When he arrived, the area was already busy. The city was big so there was one gate in each side, the gate was made of heavy iron, to Vayu it looked majestic as he had never seen soo much iron at ones, even the length of the gate was very big for him, although the gate could not stop a shapeshifter, it could delay or alert the others. Here shapeshifters were gathered in small groups, while some were recruiting, others were waiting to be recruited. Voices overlapped as parties searched for specific abilities or specific shapeshifters for their hunts. But Vayu didn't pay attention to any of that as he looked into the distance and soon he saw a brown eared bunny with a staff in her hand coming towards him. Vayu quickly leaned against a tree near the gate, arms folded, eyes closed, blending into the background. He didn't wait long as Ruru appeared in front of him, a staff resting in her hand. She spotted him almost immediately and walked over. Stopping in front of him, while she studied his face. Vayu slowly opened his eyes.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I'm waiting for my team" Vayu replied calmly.
"You're a hunter too?"
He nodded once.
After a brief pause, Ruru asked, "Can I join your group?"
Vayu shook his head "My team doesn't like adding new members"
Her expression fell instantly. Vayu's answer to her question wasn't surprising and she was expecting that but still asked. Among shapeshifters, trust was fragile. Some people joined parties only to lure them into ambushes, while others accepted new members, then murdered them for their equipment. Because of that, most groups avoided outsiders completely. Ruru had been genuinely happy to see him—but now disappointment flickered across her face. Then Vayu spoke again.
"How about I go with you today instead?"
She looked up at him surprised—then a smile appeared on her face.
After a moment of thought, she nodded "Alright"
Vayu inclined his head in agreement. Together, they headed out of the city, moving toward a region known for horned rabbits—those creatures were weak, but they were very fast.
For Vayu, this was perfect.
Low risk, familiar ground and a chance to observe… without revealing himself.