Chapter 3-2 Hilda

After defeating the pack of Lycans and crossing the Lone Bridge, the trio finally managed to get back to the Village square. Opening the wooden gate, they came to an area with many small stone pillars with chalices on top to light fires within. In the center was the same stone dais that was at the Ceremony Site, but the main difference was that there was a large mechanism attached to it, which appeared to be a large chalice. "Where are we now?" Ethan questioned, as he looked around. He hadn't been here when he first came to the Village, so this was all new to him.

"This is the Altar, which means we should be near the Duke's station." Alice stated.

Sure enough, it was Hilda who saw the caravan that belonged to the obese man as he sat on the sill and stared at the group coming towards him. "There you are. I had a feeling you would pop up here." He grinned at the group with his jolly demeanor.

The child bolted over to him, seemingly just as happy to see him out of the three. "Hi Duke!" The man merely chuckled as the child approached him. He then turned back and saw the others, his cheeks on his face spread even more upon seeing the pair.

"I see the Winters siblings have been reunited at last. Looks like your search for your brother has come to an end." The Duke told Alice.

"My mission isn't over yet," Alice stated as she had her hands on her hips. "I still haven't found Mia or Rose… They weren't in the Castle."

"But surely it all wasn't a waste." The Duke chimed in.

Alice was ready to say more, but Hilda spoke first. "We managed to collect the Mold Sample from the Castle. Oh!" The child rummaged through her bag. "And I found this!" She held up a yellow, dirty flask for the Duke to examine. "I don't know if it's valuable, but I found this next to the Root." The merchant looked the object over, musing as he scanned it from where he was.

Ethan saw the object she was holding and raised a brow. "What is that?"

Alice shrugged. "I dunno… But for some reason it was near the Megamycete Root and Hilda was drawn to it. I can only speculate that it must be important if the Lady of the Castle hid it deep underneath her tower." Alice suggested.

The fattest of the four smiled as he kept his eyes on the item the child possessed. "Why, Hilda has your daughter right in her own hands." Duke stated as he gestured to the flask. This made the child look at the flask more closely, turning it around as she didn't see a baby inside. Alice and Ethan on the other hand were confused and slightly disgusted.

"What are you talking about?" Alice questioned, as she didn't like where this was going.

"Take a closer look." The Duke insisted. The child began to scrape the dirt on one side off, as she saw something coming into view. It was a white slip of paper attached to the container which had the label: HEAD. Alice and Ethan looked closer at the label, and were beyond words when they saw what it said. Ethan glanced at the Duke for a clearer explanation, but he merely shrugged to get him to keep going. The older Winters grabbed the flask from the child and dusted off the rest of the side, only to see another note which said: Rosemary W. Ethan was so distraught, he ended up dropping the flask as his whole body was shaking. Alice's eyes widened as she felt her stomach become queasy, like she was about to vomit. Hilda wasn't sure how to react, as she appeared neutral while observing the reactions of the adults. "That flask seems to contain her head." The Duke pointed out nonchalantly. Ethan knelt down, staring at the container that apparently held part of his daughter. He was visibly shaking, trying to comprehend everything.

"N-No…" Alice shook her head in disbelief. "T-That can't be…"

"Rose is-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence!" Ethan shouted at the Duke as he grabbed the flask. He stuttered with his words, staring at the jar as he felt like he would cry. "T-This is impossible! T-This can't be true!"

"Your daughter's essence is still intact. Her powers are strong despite her age." The Duke remarked to Ethan.

"H-How… How could someone… Why would they do this!?" Ethan demanded an answer, as he was upset.

Hilda tried to ease his anger. "Rose can still be saved…" She tried to reassure the man while approaching him.

Ethan glared at her as he raised his voice. "Saved?! From this?! What the hell are you talking about?!" He didn't want to shout at Hilda, it wasn't her fault. But he was already trying to process what had happened to his daughter, that the anger was flying in every direction.

"Ethan, calm down." Alice reached for her older brother.

"Don't tell me to calm down! Look at what they did to my daughter! To your niece!" Ethan screamed as tears began to gather in his eyes.

"Getting hysterical about it won't solve anything." Alice was trying to be the calm one in this situation. Ethan grunted, gripping the flask as he dared not say anymore since he knew they would just tell him to cease his anger. "Hilda, what do you mean Rose can be saved?" Alice asked the child.

She stared up at Alice, hearing her question but kept her lip shut and eyes on the ground, fiddling with her fingers. Alice figured the child was scared to speak since Ethan would yell at her again. Instead, the Duke decided to give them the information. "There's a house with a red chimney on the western side of the Village. The man who lives there knows more about this. Go seek him out then come back and I will explain more." He offered.

Ethan gritted his teeth as he glared at the fat man with pure rage. He didn't want to go on a goose chase, he just wanted his daughter back. "Quit holding out and get to the damn point!"

"Ethan!" Alice grabbed hold of his arm, raising a brow at him with a stern expression. "I know you are upset, but shouting around and waving that flask is not going to fix Rose!" She snapped at him, causing him to listen. "If there is a way to save her, we have to trust the Duke and Hilda. They know more about this than we do. And it's not like we have any other options." She pointed out. Ethan seemed as if he wanted to protest, but upon looking back at the flask that contained the head of his daughter, he began to calm down through breathing. As much as he hated to admit it, Alice was right. He needed answers and the man at that red chimney house may know them.

"I know… where the house is. I can take you there." Hilda offered shyly.

Hearing that made Ethan sigh, as he knew this was the only way to save his daughter, if that was still possible at this point. He handed the flask to Alice and turned towards the kid. "Alright, come on Hilda, you're with me." The young girl jumped at what was said, but didn't argue in case he would be more upset.

Alice adjusted her bag after putting the flask inside for protection. "Alright, let's go."

Ethan raised a hand up to her. "No. It's just me and Hilda that's going." He declared.

Upon hearing this, Alice became judgmental. "Ethan Winters, we are not going to be splitting up!"

"I have been out of the loop for way too long. I'm helping get my daughter back."

"You can't honestly expect to go out there while you're-"

"I'm not that injured." He argued as he cut his sister off. "I can hold a gun just fine. And I'll make sure to protect Hilda. We'll go in, get the information, and get out. Besides, you should get a rest yourself."

"I'm not the one that has been through hell and back."

"We both know that's a load of bull." Ethan rolled his eyes, as she was just as much involved in this mess as he was. "Look… just, stay here. We'll be back. Please. Let me do this Alice." He seemed to be begging at this point, as his eyes held a plea to be involved. Alice was still against the idea, as she had just reunited with her brother and didn't want to part with him yet again. She could see how desperate he was, however, and maybe if he learned what happened to Rose and how to fix it, it could put his mind at ease. It was his child they were saving, he did have the right to do anything to ensure she was safe and healthy again.

"Just don't do anything stupid. I don't want to have to bring you out of the Village in a body bag."

Ethan nodded as he agreed to that condition, then took out his handgun and motioned for Hilda to follow him. She walked with the older man as they headed down to the iron red gate, back to the Graveyard near the Castle and the Maiden of War statue. It didn't take much looking to find the large, red chimney attached to the house. Ethan quickly went over and tried to get through the large gates, only to be stopped as they were not able to be pushed easily. "Damn it…" He cursed. "Must be locked on the other side."

"There should be another way to get in." Hilda reassured him, as she scanned the area to find an opening. She noticed the gate across from the Maiden statue was opened now, and without thinking, rushed forward.

Ethan watched her go, and called out. "Hey, don't go wandering off!" He warned and ran after her.

"It's alright, I know where to go." Hilda reassured as she went through the entrance and looked around, noticing a house to her left with blue shaded walls. When she saw it, she stopped in her tracks, eyeing the home as it looked familiar to her. The young girl walked inside slowly with Ethan following close behind. As she headed up the steps to the porch, she opened the door and peeked inside. The place was in a disarray just like all the other houses after the Lycan attack. Furniture was either torn to shreds or thrown around, claw marks on the walls along with splatters of blood, no bodies though, which wasn't a bad thing as the last thing Ethan wanted for Hilda was to see a corpse. Hilda slowly walked around the living room, a sense of longing and guilt washed over her.

Ethan noticed the trance the kid was in, making him raise a brow in concern. "Hilda, are you okay?"

"This is Elena's house… she lived here with her father." Hilda explained in a somber tone.

Hearing that made the memories in Ethan's mind go to replay. Remembering Leonardo and his daughter, Elena. How he saw them before finding Luiza and how scared Elena was. He saw Hilda running her hands on the wall with the scratches, most likely from the Lycan's who attacked the house. She may have been a kid, yet knew what death meant. "I'm… sorry I couldn't save them." Ethan apologized, the guilt coming back to him.

The kid turned towards the Winters, giving him a sad smile. "I know you did all you could. And you tried at least… I just wished I could have said goodbye."

"...Did you… know Elena and her father?" Ethan asked.

"Elena helped Luiza out with the kids at the Orphanage, so I saw her often. She would sometimes invite me to her place. But her father didn't like me all that much." Hilda kicked the floor as she spoke the last sentence, which meant she didn't care for Leonardo.

"Well, he doesn't really seem to like anyone inside or outside of the Village. Elena told me that herself, so don't take it personally." Ethan tried to reassure her, as he was reminded of how he was treated not just by the man, but a lot of the survivors. He started to question why they hated outsiders so much. Maybe they were so secluded, they just didn't get too many of them? Or… did Miranda put into their heads that outsiders were a taboo? It did make Ethan question when and where this treatment of foreigners started. However, he couldn't worry about that now, he needed to find a way to get to the house with the chimney. He started to look around the house in the hopes of finding a clue. His eyes found a note in the living/dining area that was resting on a table. He picked it up and read it.

'I heard a scream from the house with the chimney. I was going to take a look but the way was blocked by debris. Going to have to take the long way around. Who would have thought the hole in the stable walls would come in handy… If I'm not back by morning… you should go to Luiza's house alone. -Father.' Ethan read the note out loud for Hilda to hear as they realized that Leonardo must have written it.

"He must have gotten attacked at the house… that explains how he was injured when I saw him." Ethan realized. "Probably a Lycan…"

"Do you think the person who lives in the red chimney house was also attacked?" Hilda wondered. If that were the case, that would make getting the information more difficult. But Ethan knew it wasn't out of the realm of possibility.

"We'll have to find that out ourselves. At least we know where to go from here. Thanks Leonardo…" Ethan set the note down. Hilda wasted no time as she went to a room with a loom over to a small narrow hallway littered with boxes. Ethan followed her through until they were at a door that was bolted shut. He figured this was where they needed to go, so he began to undo the lock. Before he could open it, the two heard a loud crash outside and the snarls of a beast. Hilda gasped, staying away from the window which was next to the door. "Stay behind me." Ethan stated as he held up his gun. Once he opened the door, they were taken out to a backyard with a shed that had hay laying on the ground and tools on the shelves inside. This had to be the stables the note mentioned. He noticed a wooden shelf that was blocking the doorway, but it was easy for Ethan to move it. "There we go…" He sighed, ready to head out, but kept his guard up as he knew something was nearby. His ears picked up the roar of a lone Lycan that jumped from the roof of the shed and quickly approached him. Ethan was faster though, as he aimed the gun right at it and shot it a few times before it finally fell down to the ground. Once it stopped moving, he grunted in annoyance. "Damn… those things are sturdy…"

Hilda and him headed out of the house and stables, down a small pathway as they passed by another body that was laying next to a blue tractor that blocked their way. "If we could get past this tractor, we can take the shortcut to the house." Hilda noted as she examined the farming machine.

Ethan noticed a yellow jack that was placed under the vehicle. He could use that to lift it, but there was one problem… "The handle is missing," He realized. "Maybe it's nearby." He began to look around, recognizing this area as this was the way he came from when he first got to the Village.

Hilda looked around as well, until her eyes caught sight of a large fence with a red sign stating: DO NOT ENTER in white paint. The young girl walked over to it, leaving Ethan alone for a minute as she figured the part could be in there. When she got to it, she realized the fence had a lock on a chain. Hilda was discouraged for a moment, until she remembered the lockpick tool the Duke gave her. Taking it out, she unlatched the keyhole and watched the padlock drop to the ground. Hilda giggled at how easy that was, and slowly slipped inside the small crack of the fence to see what was on the other side. She recognized this place as the Workshop, where two buildings rested inside. They both looked old and in pieces now, logs and metal were scattered around with a water tower above her. The child figured she needed to go into those houses to find the missing piece of the jack, so she tried to keep going.

She only took a few steps until her ears picked up the faint cocking of a gun. Hilda turned to her right, as she saw a woman standing there with a shotgun in her hands. Another survivor! Her clothes still appeared sewn together, as she wore a mint blue silk robe à l'anglaise (closed-bodied gown) with a square neckline that had lace trim which matched the sleeves. Her hair was long and brown, reaching past her shoulders as it was the same shade as her eyes, which glared right at Hilda. "Don't move!" She warned.

Hilda saw how upset the woman was, as well as agitated, not that she blamed her. "I-I didn't mean to bother you. I just-"

"I said don't move!" The woman shouted louder as she held the weapon right up to Hilda's face. Her finger on the trigger as she was ready to shoot a child without hesitation.

"I'm… only for something. I don't want to hurt you…" She tried to tell her.

"Like I would believe a bastard child such as yourself." The woman scoffed. "You're going to turn around and go back the way you came!"

Hilda winced as she was called that, but didn't let it get to her. There were more oppressing matters to tend to, but it seemed no amount of pleas would change this woman's mind. Hilda's eyes managed to catch sight of a smaller figure that was standing in the doorway of the brick and wooden building to her right. A boy with glossy blue eyes breathed slowly as his body rocked back and forth in a trance. Some of his teeth looked sharper than the others and his fingernails were overgrown to the point they looked like claws. His brown hair appeared wild and unkept with tints of silver in the strands. "I… think your son needs help, ma'am." Hilda tried to tell her.

The woman merely cocked her gun and pressed it closer to Hilda's head. "Don't tell me how to deal with my son! This doesn't concern you." She stated, ready to shoot the child.

For a moment, Hilda thought she would have a bullet through her head and it scared her more on the inside rather than the outside. "Don't even think about it." Ethan called as he approached, pointing his own weapon right at the brunette. The woman now had her attention on the Winters, both of them at a standstill as they used their guns to intimidate the other. The blond soon caught sight of the Lycan child in the house, which made him be reminded of Luiza. He changed the position of the gun so the barrel was aimed at the beast.

"Stop!" The woman quickly stood in the way, blocking the fire so if he shot, she would take the bullet instead.

"You need to move. We have to kill him before he fully turns." Ethan stated, as all he could think about was Leonardo and Elena, along with the other survivors who didn't make it because one of their own suffered the same fate as that child. And he would be damned if he was going to let it happen again.

"Kill him? That's my son you're talking about!" The woman cried as she kept her gun right at Ethan. Once again, not hesitant to pull the trigger.

The child was aware of how tense the situation was. Even though she knew what that boy could be capable of should he fully transform into a Lycan, it was clear that this woman was just trying to protect her son as best she could, even if she couldn't prevent the inevitable. "Ethan… leave them alone." Hilda told him in a calm manner. She had to respect the love of the mother, something she never truly had as far as she could remember. Even though the older man didn't want to take any chances, it would be foolish to start a fight and waste ammo on a resident that wasn't infected. It didn't concern them what would happen with the woman and her son, so he lowered his weapon as the woman stepped back while keeping hold of her shotgun.

"Philip dear, go back inside." The lady told her son gently, while she kept her eyes on Hilda and Ethan.

The Lycan boy merely looked up at the brunette, yet he still appeared in a trance. He spoke, but his voice was hoarse. "Ma…ma…?"

Hearing that word caused the woman in mint blue to turn around. She went over to be by her son as she set her weapon down, holding his shoulders so she looked at her boy. "Yes, Mama's here, baby. Mama's got you." She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close to her chest as she tried to not break. Hilda and Ethan could only watch, seeing how strong the bond between the mother and child was. Ethan empathized with the pain this woman was feeling, and realized that shooting her or her son was not going to make anything better. Even Hilda knew how devastated the woman was, holding onto her half-transformed son while her body was shaking. "Those monsters… they did this to us." Her voice became less angry and was replaced with sorrow. "Why? We gave the Lords and Miranda our loyalty, our sacrifices and put up with their rules. And where were they when we needed them the most?! Why?! Did they allow this to happen?!" She sobbed in frustration as she cursed them out. Again, Ethan nor Hilda blamed her for being upset. All she could do was spit venom at anyone and be forced to watch her son's sanity slipping away, unaware of what was happening to him.

"Pa…pa…?" The child tried to form a word as his glass colored eyes stared at everyone, not understanding what was happening.

The woman sniffled as she picked up her son, holding him in one arm as she still held the shotgun with the other. "P-Papa went to get you food, Philip. He's inside… waiting to eat right now. Come on… Let's not keep him waiting." She began to walk away from Hilda and Ethan, heading to the house with the logs next to it. Once she stood in the doorway, she looked at them one last time. "Just go… take whatever you want in that house, but leave us alone…" She begged before shutting the door and went inside her home with her child.

Hilda felt sympathetic for the mother and her son, seeing how broken they were and knowing that their fate was set in stone. "They didn't deserve this…" The child muttered as she looked at her boots. "It isn't fair."

Ethan looked at the kid, all of his anger was diminished as he rubbed the back of his neck. He knew nothing he would say could make the situation better, but they both needed a pep talk to keep going despite the obstacles. "I know," he began. "I know things look bad now, but we can't be held down by the past and our failures. I have let so many people down since I came to this Village. And even though I don't know who they were or their lives, I know that seeing them die in such horrific ways… it still haunts me. But what's important now is that we focus on finding out how to fix Rose and get out of here. We still have our lives, and we shouldn't waste them. So let's make sure their deaths aren't in vain by getting out of this place."

Hilda looked up at the older man as her green eyes went wide. "You really think we'll make it?"

Ethan put on a smile and reassured her. "We're going to get you out of here, Hilda. You'll be safe with us, we won't let anything happen to you." Ethan promised, as he was starting to get a bit attached to the kid. Oddly enough, he noticed how much Hilda looked similar to himself and Alice. No wonder he mistook her for Alice's daughter. Still, he would keep to his promise as he could only see a young girl who had experienced more death than anyone should in their lifetime. Sure, she was strong since she made it this far, but now she had people to look out for her. He held out his hand towards her as she stared at it. This time, she didn't hesitate to take it and nodded up at him.

With that event behind them, they went to the other house that was not occupied by the woman and her son. There wasn't too much left in that decrepit house aside from a few shelves and tables that had seen better days, as well as a locked cabinet. Ethan went over and saw a padlock with a number dial on it, meaning a simple key would not be enough. "Looks like we need a combination. Check around, it might be around here somewhere." Ethan told Hilda.

Hilda looked around the small space, checking over what little furniture there was until her green eyes caught something on an iron workbench. Her fingers grasped a photo of a humanoid figure with machines and wiring on the back. A shining orb attached to the skin as the flesh looked stitched up and gray. As Hilda looked at it closely, her eyes shrunk as she felt her body shaking. She felt out of touch with reality as her ears heard faint voices that were coming all around her.

"Why do you want this kid anyways? She's on death's doorstep, though she was pretty tough."

"Then she clearly has now use for you. I will take her off your hands and in exchange, give you some information about your Mother."

"Hilda? Hey, Hilda!" Ethan called out to her, causing the child to jump and be brought back to reality. She turned to see the older man looking at her with concern. "Are you okay? You were just staring at that photo and looking out of it."

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind as she looked back at the picture and sighed. "I just… the image took me by surprise."

Ethan leaned over to look at the image and was just as horrified. "It is kind of disturbing," he admitted. "I haven't seen something like that walking around the Village though. Hopefully we won't have to run into it anytime soon." He decided to take the photo from her so Hilda wouldn't be out of it again. He turned the picture to look at the back and noticed a message written on it. 'Look out the window.' it said. Ethan was confused at first, looking around the room until he saw something on the wooden sill of the window. There was a zero and four in that order painted in yellow. As he looked through the glass, he saw a zero and seven painted white on the brick side of the house and a blue zero and eight on the tarp next to the house. When he put the numbers together, he realized it had the same amount of digits as the lock. Ethan turned and began to put the numbers in order: 040708. Once the code was put in, the lock unlatched and he removed it. Opening the doors of the cabinet, he saw what was inside: An M1911 handgun, a better and more upgraded weapon than the smaller gun he currently had. "Looks like I got myself an upgrade." He took the weapon and cocked it, as it would be able to use the same ammo he had.

Hilda crouched down to look at what else was in the cabinet. To her surprise, she saw the jack handle laying on the floor in a semi-rusted state. Though it still looked to be usable. She reached in and grabbed it, presenting it to Ethan. "Good find, Hilda." He praised her. "Come on, let's head back." He noted as he carried the gun while Hilda held the jack. They exited the house, heading out to the field and back to the fence.

Before they could open it, Hilda felt a chill over her body then grabbed Ethan's pants. "Wait!" She warned, making him stop. "Monsters! A pack of them!"

Ethan looked at her as she said that. They must have sensed the noise and shouts and followed them. He decided to take his shotgun out to prepare. "Stay behind me." He told her, keeping his eyes on the gate. Once he opened the barrier, he could see four of the Lycans standing on the rooftops of the decaying houses. He didn't like getting into a fight with Hilda so close, but they wouldn't allow him to pass. It was a hassle and would end in bloodshed, but he handled far worse. Ethan was smart enough to lure them into the small field so he could get a better shot at them. He began to fire bullet after bullet, taking them down one by one. Of course, he took a few bites from them and it hurt, but they were the ones that ended up dead.

Once they were down for the count, Ethan panted as he took out the healing juice he kept on him and poured it over his hands and body to numb the pain. "Are you alright?" Hilda asked in concern.

"Yeah… I will be. How about you?" He asked, to which she nodded indicating she was alright. "Come on, we have to get to that house." He stated, as they had wasted a lot of time dealing with this wild goose chase. They headed down the pathway and found the blue tractor. Hilda knelt down and inserted the handle into the lift, but she let Ethan pump the handle as he was stronger. After a few twists, the back end of the vehicle was raised up. There wasn't much space, but it would be wide enough for them to crawl under. "Go, go." Ethan told her. Hilda got on her hands and knees, crawling under the machine as she followed the wooden board and yellow wire. Once she was on the other side, Ethan began to scoot his way underneath to try and get to Hilda. Just as he was about to get to the other side, the child suddenly pushed him back under the tractor. He was confused at first, until he felt the machine above him shake while the growl of a Lycan above him could be heard. She scooted close to him and covered her mouth, trying to stay hidden with him. He held her close, remaining silent as well until the beast jumped and ran off. Once Hilda calmed down, Ethan figured that was the sign to move forward. Once they were up, he reloaded his weapons just in case there would be an upcoming fight.

They soon continued their way, going down the path with the hanging goat heads, which meant Ethan was back at the place where he first stumbled into the Village. It didn't take them long to find the house where he met the old man who gave him his first weapon upon arrival. "Back here again…" He sighed, as it hadn't even been that long since such events happened.

The child pressed forward, looking at the iron insignia gate as a smile drew on her lips. She headed over and began to use her lockpick, messing around with the gate until she heard a click. "This way!" She told Ethan, opening the gate and running up the ladder to reach the roof of a small shed. Ethan tried to call for her, but she was already ahead. Despite how shaken up she was, the child had such energy and will to press forward. He tried to keep up with her, as they jumped over some boards and planks until Hilda seemed satisfied. "We're here!" She pointed to her left, where the house supporting a red chimney could be seen.

Ethan was just as pleased as they made it to their destination. "You sure know your way around the Village." He stated. Hilda gleamed at that comment and carefully climbed down from the roof onto the snow in the yard. He jumped down with her, as they walked around the field that had chickens running around. Seeing the animals made Ethan think out loud. "I could definitely go for some chicken wings right about now…"

"I wonder why the animals are still alive. The Lycan's should have eaten them at this point…" Hilda pondered.

"Well, they were feasting on the villagers when I came here. They must have been after bigger meat." Ethan shuddered, remembering seeing the stockpile of bodies below that one house. Oddly enough, they all looked fresh and hardly devoured. If the Lycans were as animalistic and feral, why didn't they tear apart the meat they hunted? Unless, like some animals, they were keeping them fresh to feast upon later? That just made them even more dangerous.

Once they approached the front door, Ethan was about to check if it was open. He tugged on it, but of course it was locked on the other side. Before he could even tell Hilda what they could do next, he watched her quickly climb up the yellow and red ladder onto the roof, standing on the shingles. Ethan grunted out of annoyance, following the kid as she did not know how to slow down. Then again, he was just as eager to get the information himself. Once they were both on the roof, they followed the yellow wire leading them to a hole. Just as they approached, Hilda held out her arm for Ethan, as she sensed something inside. The two heard the grunting of a familiar B.O.W. She looked up at Ethan, and knew what he had to do. This time, he was the first one to enter the house. Jumping down and crouching inside the kitchen as he slowly approached the back of the Lycan. He took out his shotgun, raising up the weapon quietly and blasted the monster's head off with one shot.

The dead beast fell to the floor, right next to the corpse of the old man that was where the monster stood. Ethan realized they were too late to save yet another villager, and he feared they wouldn't get the information they needed now. Hopefully he left something behind that would at least explain what was going on with Rose. Hilda slowly slipped down the hole, entering the room and began to explore while Ethan checked the body of the resident of the house. The child noticed something on the table, with the flower printed cloth. Resting there, was an open book and a white chest decorated in gold vines and red roses. The child saw the treasure and her eyes lit up, reaching over and opened the lid to see what was inside. There was a piece of paper with illustrations, showing pictures of a key with crow wings and a ring, arrows pointing to the parts to show what they were called. There were some words written on there, which she read. 'The Winged Key is just a single piece. Three more parts are needed to make it whole.'

She picked up a brass key with a pair of feather wings from the chest, examining it. She was stumped for a moment, until she remembered something. Reaching into her satchel, she took out another key, the one she picked up with Alice from the caves connecting the Ceremony Site. Once she put them together, she got a new key: The Four-Winged Key. She giggled, looking at the item.

"You found something, Hilda?" Ethan asked, approaching her.

The child turned and looked up at him. "I got a new key! This should open up other locations around the Village. And maybe this is what Duke was looking for!" Ethan wasn't sure why he would send them here just for a key. But if it meant they could explore the other parts of the Village, they could find more information and hopefully the rest of Rose and Mia. "Oh! Can I keep the chest?!" She asked, pointing to the box.

It was an odd question, yet Ethan wasn't going to stop her. "I don't think the guy is going to be using it anymore. So, it's all yours." He told her. Hilda smiled and reached, grabbing the box and stashing it in her bag. As she did, she accidentally knocked over something else. She noticed a journal had fallen down, which piqued her interest. Ethan noticed it, but it was Hilda who grabbed it with her sticky fingers. She turned the pages as she saw that the entries were dated this month.

'February 1st: Today I sacrificed two goats to Mother Miranda, as I do every month. Mother Miranda seemed happier when I gave her my goats. Usually she is pretty neutral whenever we offer her such sacrifices, but she was far more pleased this time around. Perhaps this is a sign she is taking care of us despite the Lycans becoming more hostile.

'February 3rd: I offered wool to Mother Miranda today. Before I left, she called me back and asked for a favor. I couldn't refuse, so I heard her out. She instructed I find her a list of drugs and tools in the next few days. What for, I wonder? Then again, I shouldn't pry in case I anger her.

'February 8th: I managed to find all the items Mother Miranda requested, but I do not know what she wants them for. There have been no messages from her since she gave me the request. Did something happen to Mother Miranda? If there is no word from her by tomorrow, I might have to seek out one of the Lords for more information.

'February 9th: I was instructed to take the items to the cave church at sunrise. But what I saw was… frightful. The great Four Lords were there and Mother Miranda was holding a child. She whispered something and touched the child… I can't explain it well but… the child… turned into a white crystal? Then… then… she… I couldn't help but speak up and I asked her why she did such a thing. Mother Miranda just smiled at me. "This child has been chosen. She will return to her original form soon enough. Once the ceremony is complete." Then she gave each Lord a part of the crystal in a flask and they left. I forgot to bow to Mother Miranda before I fled. I'm still shaking. What did she do? What happened to that child?'

Once she was done reading, she handed the journal to Ethan so he could read it and get caught up. There was no doubt that the child they turned into said crystal was Ethan's daughter. It appeared she was divided up into those flasks and given to the Lords. Ethan still didn't understand what was going on, but he knew if there was a way to save Rosemary, he was going to do whatever it took. "Rose…" Ethan breathed, as he bit his lip.

Hilda reached over, holding onto the man. "I'm sure Duke will be able to tell us more about Rosemary." She promised him. He did admit, it was nice she was trying to console him, but there was still so much he couldn't process.

"Come on… let's head back." Ethan ordered, as they headed out the door to get back to the Altar.