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It was high above the two that rode quietly on the stallion; the enigmatic overseer of balance watched as she walked on the sky itself as if the invisible air bore platforms beneath her heeled boots.

Crescentia quietly hummed to herself as she spectated the slumbering Emilio from the sky, “He grows with each encounter. If this continues, he may become a force of destruction soon enough. If that’s the case, I will eliminate him without hesitation.”

There was no falsehood embedded in those golden eyes that belonged to Crescentia; the woman of a youthful appearance spoke only the truth in those words.

–

As he woke up with a yawn leaving his lips, he blinked a few times to find the light of day long gone, and the veil of the night replacing it.

More surprising to him was the absence of overbearing trees and foliage enclosing around him as he heard the monotonous trots of the stallion’s march; the forest he found himself growing sick of was no longer around him.

“…We’re out of Tseurilia?” He muttered.

Vandread must’ve heard him as he responded not a moment after, “It’s been an entire hour since we left it. You’ve been snoring like a bear back there.”

A small tinge of embarrassment came over his cheeks, “I-I was?!”

“No.”

“Oh…” He let out in surprise and relief.

The shock came from the anomalous instance in which the stoic, pragmatic man actually tried his hand at a joke.

“Good timing, though,” Vandread said.

As the man uttered such, he pulled the reins to stop the stallion at the clearing they had ventured to. In comparison to the forest, which was cramped with endless trees, Emilio found himself in a vast, luscious plain with a healthy stream running through it. Mountains stood off in the distance, as ancient as the countries themselves, if not more._.

“Guess it needs some rest, huh?” Emilio said, hopping off of the stallion’s back.

Vandread tied its lead to the nearby tree, securing it tightly, “He’s not like our old one. But, that’s fine.”

It seemed as though Vandread had a particular fondness for animals, or perhaps just horses; he watched as the dark-skinned man stroked the stallion’s fur for a moment. There was a simple enough explanation he could come to on his own, though he wouldn’t ask it directly: it was likely due to the lonely nature of Vandread’s adventuring that such beasts were his only companions.

Maybe he’s a bit human after all, he thought.

–

“How far out are we from the next town?” He asked.

Vandread was quick to set up their temporary camp; a fire was made, though with the help of Emilio’s magic, and the food supplies given to them by the Verma was put to use as the man grilled the meat over the flame.

While the meat was cooking, they split a large stick of bread, which made the young man’s question come out with crumbs.

Vandread answered, “You see those mountains to the north?”

“Huh?”

He looked over to where Vandread was pointing, having to squint due to the obscuring nature of the night to make out the position of the two, neighboring mountains.

“Yeah,” he said.

“Larundog is between those two mountains,” Vandread told him, “It’s farther than it looks, though. But once we’re through there, it’s not far before we reach Vasmoria.”

“We’re almost there, then?” He said almost in relief.

For a moment, it looked as if Vandread wanted to say something on the side of pessimism, but after looking at the blonde-haired boy, he simply agreed, “Yeah.”

The meat they were given from the Verma was tender, taken off of what was probably a well-fed, probably nurtured animal; it was also already seasoned, which made for a good, hearty meal.

“Mind going to the stream over there and refilling our canteens?” Vandread asked.

“Sure,” he nodded.

He caught the two canteens tossed over to him before heading down after the meal; it wasn’t a far walk, but it was enough to where he could feel the solitude of the starry night hanging over the valley once he’d reached the stream.

Swishhh.

The crystal clear water flowed down its natural path as the moonlight reflected off of it. It was a relaxing sight, enough for him to simply sit there for a minute as he took the time to relax and just take in the scenery.

“–” He watched the water.

Reaching down, he swept his hand through the fresh aqua, feeling its cool touch against his fingertips.

He didn’t take it for granted; being able to be outside, breathing in the fresh air and doing things like this–it was something he could only achieve in this life.

After a few minutes, he remembered what he initially came down to the stream to do, filling up the canteens with fresh water, which were naturally filtered by the mystical items, before heading back to the campsite.

“Almost thought a goblin snatched you,” Vandread said.

The deadpan way the scar-etched man spoke was as if he was simply speaking what was on his mind, which took a moment for Emilio to process as a joke before he sighed.

“I’ve graduated from goblins, I’ll have you know,” he replied.

Vandread was sharpening one of his blades, responding without looking up, “Nobody graduates from goblins. Everybody can fall victim to those vermin.”

“Sure,” he exhaled.

There was no point in trying to deny the words coming from the man who had him beat in experience by a lightyear. It was no surprise that even somebody with the prowess of Vandread held goblins in such high-regard of their threat level; the man acted with supreme caution in the face of any enemy.

“Get some sleep,” Vandread told him, “It’ll be a long day tomorrow; we’re sure to run into some nuisances before Larundog.”

“What about you? I already had some rest earlier, but you’ve been awake this whole time,” he asked.

Vandread leaned against the stone that sat behind him, “Don’t worry about me. I can go a lot longer than you without needing a wink.”

“If you say so…”

The truth was, he was still tired; his body was incredibly sore and aching still, though he did his best to keep it to himself.

After the battle against the chief, I must’ve really worn my body out, he thought.

Under the sparkle of the stars that hung in the abyssal sky above, in spite of the uncomfortable, natural bedding he found himself laying on in the plain, he found himself being gently guided into slumber.

Though the dreams he experienced were forgotten as quickly as they were felt, he did remember one recurring concept between them: a formless entity that always smiled at him and a woman with hair as pale as snow with eyes, regal and gold; icy and powerful.

–

The next day came swiftly; Vandread didn’t waste any daylight as he got the boy up and going at dawn.

“…Ahh…” Emilio yawned.

It was on the stallion again, riding on its back while Vandread guided it through the quiet, luscious plains of Milligarde’s valleys; this one in particular was known as ‘Artems Emerald’. Sometimes he failed to appreciate the beauty of it; amidst his impatience to reach his destination, he sometimes only looked forward, but not at what was around him.

The ‘Emerald’ part of the region’s name was obvious to him in how green and vibrant it was; the plains stretched on and even the distant mountains were covered in grass and trees.

I’m ready to see it all, he thought.

He didn’t realize what sort of scale came with venturing between the two mountains, but he soon came to realize it as they approached the colossal mounds of rock and grass; the ground sunk down, leading to what resembled a ravine-turned-trail.

It looked as though it wasn’t a natural occurrence, however; more as if it was dug out by shovels and pickaxes.

“I’ve never seen something like this…” He said, looking around.

“It’s been like this,” Vandread said, “It’s the work of kobolds.”

Simply, the grass pathway led downhill, lowering into a passageway low into the ground as if cut out by a mountain-sized shovel. It was clammy and dark in the ravine, but the sunlight did manage to reach down into it, somewhat.

“…Kobolds?” He repeated.

Vandread nodded, “They’re not too different from goblins on the broader scope of things; small, aggressive, and dumb as rocks.”

“What’s the difference, then?” He asked.

Keeping the stallion calm in its pace, Vandread looked around carefully, “Well, for starters, they’re a lot more tricky; they can take the form of other objects. So, be on the lookout for anything that stands out—like an inanimate object moving.”

The cautionary words from the dark-skinned companion of his only made him uneasy as he nodded and prepared himself, sliding his staff out from the hold on his back before keeping his eyes peeled.

In the claustrophobic ravine, there seemed to be quite a few tunnels that led into dark caves, which were ominous in the howls of wind that emitted subtly from within.

It seemed to grow darker the further they moved into the ravine; the way the rocks higher up jutted out and foliage grew, it blocked out the sunlight above.

“Anything else I should know?” He asked nervously.

Vandread was quiet for a moment, “I’d say they’re a lot more cowardly than goblins. Goblins are cowardly, but they’re also recklessly stupid and violent. Kobolds will try more annoying maneuvers.”

“I see…”

Just then, as he used his staff to manifest a small light in the form of a fire sphere, Vandread quickly spun around to look at him.

“Don’t do that–!” Vandread yelled.

“Huh–”

He was perplexed by what the man was warning him about, but he realized it the moment the light gave off from the flame; unintelligible growls and murmurs echoed from all around.