[h3]Below Rebirth's Rise, Eastern outskirts of Yharnam[/h3]
Skinner's eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched with suppressed anger as Farren mocked and goaded him, flaunting his immortality in this ferocious Hunter. But though his irritation was obvious, he did not act upon it; the bestial hand holding Farren's wrist maintained a firm yet careful grip, immobilizing him without causing unnecessary pain or injury, and the bone blade at his throat remained still and stable.
“I can teach you my Caryll –,” Skinner began, only for his sentence to be cut off by the very audible, supernaturally loud and piercing sound of a resonant bell, soon followed by the noise of the elevator starting to move again. Skinner's eyes instantly went wide with undisguised fear; all the rage and confidence from before vanished and gave way to an expression of pure terror.
“The Pthumerian is alive?” he breathed, his eyes flicking rapidly from the elevator to Farren, to Torquil and back to the elevator, and back to Farren again. Swallowing, Skinner begged: “Please... don't.”
Without waiting for acknowledgment of the request, let alone agreement to it, the giant half-beast Hunter relinquished his hold on Farren and withdrew the blade from his throat, only to instantly quickstep backward – leaving the air he darted through crackling with shed hairs still containing traces of electric energy – and raised and crossed his arms in front of him, drawing an X with his hands up and elbows down in an effort to shield himself.

In the elevator, the Moonborn Bell in Ophelia's hand produced a sound that was reminisce of the one they had heard from Pallid's bell, and weirdly visible waves of distorting reality spreading from the elegant little silver bell. She did not have to wait long... or at all, it turned out. As soon as the tiny clapper made its first contact with the lip and produced the first “ding”, a glowing circle appeared on the floor of the elevator in front of Ophelia. It was just like when Pallid had summoned his Mad One, except now the hole ripped through reality shone with pale white radiance rather than ominous red. On the second “ding”, the familiar form of the Shopkeeper appeared to simply rise out of the hole as if standing on an elevator of their own.
They stood, facing Ophelia, and cocked their head. They were, quite noticeably, unarmed.