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[center][h3]--Osprey - Village--[/h3][/center]
Traveling with companions again was a welcomed change of pace, it had been a while and better yet, these particular comrades mutually shared a goal that'd be deemed lofty by most adventurers; ushering world peace by ending the Blight [i]and[/i] Valheim. Bahamut willing, this quest would be her last, whether due to success or death, one thing for sure, until her last dying breath, her vow would remain. 

It took a few days of steady travel, but eventually, the group of nine adventurers, four chocobos, one moogle, and their wagon entered a rather... destitute village, which juxtaposed oddly with the fertile fields surrounding it. Eve already came up with a strong hypothesis for the cause before Izayoi confirmed it as fact, it was the empire's doing, of course it was, tyrants oppressing innocent people was as certain as the sun rising every morning. 

[color=d3d3d3][b]"..."[/b][/color] The Pseudolon was justifiably enraged, and to say that she didn't have a passing thought of simply torching every single Valheimr they'd encounter from this point onward would be a lie, but... no, she knew better, this wasn't a war they could win by being reckless. Such a "tactic" belonged to monsters and no matter how much the ignorant masses believed her to be, she's better than that. Fortunately, they hadn't encountered any Valheimr yet so far... or so she thought.

[color=d3d3d3][b]"...?"[/b][/color] Eve frowned in silent suspicion as her red eyes gazed up from under her hood at the leather-clad Viera spying at them from a tree branch. She was armed and judging from her movements, she was more trained scout and less housecat stuck on a tree. Eve's fingers twitched briefly, a barely perceptible gesture from the outside, but internally, her Eidolic ether circuits were already preparing to conjure a fireball to force the bunny down from her tree, but no... what was that again about being better than wild beasts?

Still, her apprehension remained even as the Viera stopped beating around the bush and practically admitted that she was spying on them by introducing herself. [color=d3d3d3][i]She and Izayoi know each other?[/i][/color] Twas' unsurprising in hindsight, well, if they were former comrades in the war then... [color=d3d3d3][i]On second thought... no, it's a one-sided relationship.[/i][/color] Alas, the trappings of being infamous. 

Having naught a connection with this shinobi of a Viera, Eve was content to keep in the background. If the rabbit-eared kunoichi already glared with such enmity toward their Edrenian comrades, the chimera preferred that she remained oblivious to the artificial eidolon technically hailing from Valheim, and a black mage at that. The last thing Eve wanted was sabotaging the group's chances at infiltrating Kugane. 

The shinobi offered an accord, trust her and she'd lead them to this 'old friend' of Izayoi's, something that the Blade Demoness wasn't keen on taking, but the Viera drove a hard bargain, enough to make Izayoi entertain the idea with Galahad first. Personally, Eve's sentiments were aligned with the Mystrel Samurai, the Viera had nothing to prove herself beyond a flimsy "Trust me, folks" 'assurance', however, she's also curious about what everyone else thought regarding the matter. 

Galahad brought an excellent suggestion, yes, Esben was a Garden operative, they were supposed to be Skael's elite espionage agents, the best of the best at their craft, with such a skillset, why should they risk themselves associating with an outsider? Though to be fair, Esben only beat the Shinobi by a few days, [i]but[/i], he had risked life and limb to vanquish those Valheimr scum together.

The platinum-haired weaponmaster chimed in, providing the opinion that they shouldn't simply dismiss the unnamed Viera's offer, considering the chokehold Valheim would undoubtedly have around Osprey's capital, trusting her might just be worth the risk.

[color=d3d3d3][b]"I don't trust her either, at least not without a stronger guarantee than her claim of working for Izayoi's associate,"[/b][/color] Eve quipped in a low voice - which was practically her default manner of speech anyway - before she turned her gaze at Esben specifically, [color=d3d3d3][b]"So, Esben, can you do her one better?"[/b][/color]