As the week passed, Elincia grew more excited for our little getaway to the Farlands. She smiled when she thought nobody was watching and hummed a lively tone as she worked around the orphanage. When Elincia was in a good mood, everything in the orphanage seemed to improve.

Especially my own mood.

I hid my shotgun on top of the wardrobe, far from the hands of the kids, just as someone frantically knocked at my door. Given the strength and rhythm of the hits, I guessed it was one of the younger orphans. As weeks passed, I became better at recognizing the respective noises of every inhabitant of the orphanage.

“Yes?” I yelled as I descended from the stool.

The door opened up and Virdian fell forward. The no-access rule seemed to count only for Elincia’s bedroom because Nokti and Shu jumped over Virdian’s body and rushed into my room. Nokti was wearing a worn-out beige dress with more patches than original fabric that was too big for her. Shu’s pillow cover and Virdian’s jacket were in a similar condition.

Considering their faces, Elincia had already told them about our trip. It was hard to tell if the snakefolk twins had been crying, but Shu’s eyes were swollen, her nose runny, and the front of her pillow case was wet with tears.

“Leaving?” Nokti croaked.

I sat on my bed and tied the laces of my traveling boots. The orphans took it as a sign to join. Soon I had Nokti and Shu by my right and Virdian to my left.

“We will be back before you even miss us.” I replied.

My words were not convincing enough because Nokti glanced at me with distrust.

“Danger?” She asked while I was securing my longsword to the side of my backpack.

“I’ll tell you a secret, but you have to promise you will not tell anyone.” I whispered as if I was about to communicate some sort of hidden knowledge. The kids quickly looked around and joined heads despite the fact we were alone in the room.

I closed my eyes and focused on my mana pool until the flames turned into a peaceful orb of light. Knowing I should save every single ounce of mana for the trip, I shaped a detailed monster bear the size of my hand. The kids recoiled in awe despite the size of the beast.

Soon enough, a bear, an Elder Black Wolf, a couple regular Black Wolves, and a Wendigo roamed across the floor of my bedroom.

“Don’t tell anyone, but those are the beasts I defeated during my last trip to the Farlands.” I said.

A blue little man with a longsword appeared on the floor and started fighting the beasts. First the bear, then the Elder Wolf, one by one the creatures fell to the kid’s amusement. I wasn’t going to tell them my shotgun did ninety nine percent of the work.

“Will you bring a wolf pet, please?” Shu giggled, wiped her face with the hem of her pillow case.

“I don’t think Black Wolves make good pets.” I replied.

Last time they almost bit my face off.

“Magic potato?” Nokti asked.

“Great Potate?” Virdian added instantly.

“I don’t know if there are magical potatoes in the Farlands.”

“Yes.” The twins replied in unison.

There wasn’t much I could do against their pleading tone.

“I’ll see what I can do. No promises.” I said as I dispelled my mana illusions. “Alright, you three. Take my backpack to the entrance, while I get my jacket.”

As soon as the kids left, my smile faded and an ominous feeling settled in my chest. I tried to reassure myself, the Marquis had no use for the orphans until the next tax season. It was only logical to leave them be until the conscription time arrived. And we had Captain Kiln’s word that the guardsmen would remain away from the orphanage.

“It’s necessary.” I said out loud if only to convince myself.

In the end, just before our departure, Nokti and Virdian managed to slide into our backpacks without anybody seeing. The weight gave them away, and we had to promise, for a hundredth time, that if we saw the so-called Great Potato, we were going to bring it back to the orphanage.

Leaving was the hardest part. Seeing Shu’s heartbroken eyes was almost too much to endure. The orphans waved us goodbye from the entrance of the manor, everyone was there except for Ash, but I guessed he was suffering the separation his own way. Soon the sight of the orphanage disappeared behind the old stone buildings.

Elincia and I stayed silent until we crossed the city walls. We put on our cloaks and the guardsmen didn’t pay us further attention. We left behind the smell of mud and stagnant water of the streets to enter the neglected farmland around the city. The weed-ridden farms were a harsh contrast with the lively marketplace, the everlit forges, and the busy workshops.

It was all part of the Marquis plan.

“Look, Sentinels.” Elincia pointed down the road where a group of five cloaked figures ran at unbelievable speeds towards the forest. “They don’t usually travel in such large groups.”

I couldn’t think of it but as a bad omen.

“Let’s hope it’s just a coincidence.” I said.

We adjusted our coats around our necks and walked down the road. The slate gray sky foretold a cold day and we had a long day before us. By midday, we reached the foothills of the mountain path that separated Farcrest’s valley from the Farlands.

“Can you smell it? The smell of untarnished nature?” Elincia stopped to take a deep breath as if she had been locked underground for a prolonged period of time.

“We are going to smell like tarnished nature before the end of the week.” I replied.

“Don’t worry. I packed an extra bar of soap just for you.” Elincia jabbed at my shoulder.

My obsession with cleanliness was already well known by the whole orphanage.

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The rugged terrain had not changed since the last time I walked that road.

Brambles, ferns, and young trees conspired to disrupt our advance but Elincia always managed to find a path between them. Maybe it was her elven blood, or maybe it was just experience, but she was always able to find the right path.

“It’s harder in the summer.” Elincia pointed out as we scurried between a bramble and a cluster of rocks, saving us from a big detour.

The crunching leaves under my boots was the only sound to break the silence of the forest. Elincia was right. The wind was crisp and cool and the trees were like dying torches with the red and yellow colors of autumn. It was just past midday and the sunlight briefly filtered through the canopy, casting a golden fiery glow over Elincia’s platinum hair. Autumn was in its last breaths and winter already threatened to strip away the last colors of the forest.

The path ahead twisted and turned, leading us deep into the heart of the forest and into the Farlands. Maybe it was the memory from the Black Wolves or the White Deer but everything around me seemed to buzz with magic. I Identified the forest bed around us, seeking for any alchemical ingredient that might be nearby.

“It’s too soon to start looking. This section must already have been foraged.” Elincia told me as I fell behind.

Wasn’t this what I always yearned for? No, I always wished for a world filled with magic and mysteries. What I had got was infinitely more than that.

“What are you looking at?” Elincia snapped her fingers at me.

I noticed I had my eyes fixed on her figure. The renaissance-style dress Elincia used to wear at the orphanage didn’t do her justice like the adjusted riding pants and the leather jacket she was wearing. Among the forest, Elincia seemed to be in her natural habitat.

“Sorry, what? I was lost in thought.” I said.

It was a lie but a believable one.

“Just don’t get left behind.” Elincia huffed as we climbed a step path between two rocks. She lent me a hand and pulled me up the boulder.

Behind us, Farcrest was a small gray spot among the abandoned farmland. A toy house with white fumes and delicate watchtowers among the walls. Months before, Elincia and I stood in the same spot. Back then we were two complete strangers. What was our relationship now? Colleagues? Associates? Friends?

A smile crept into my mouth, but I quickly erased it. The Farlands weren’t the place to act like a fool.

Elincia guided me to a more flattened area and we took the first break of the day. We left our backpacks by our side and sat against a mossy boulder that protected us from the wind. Then, Elincia unpacked a pouch of dried meat and offered me a stripe and I gladly accepted it.

We hiked through the rocky path leaving behind the security of the valley and delving into the Farlands. The path continued its way up the mountainside encompassed in steep cliffs on each side. The wind blew above the gorge whistling a distant and ghostly tune.

Elincia drew her bow and kept an eye on the ridges. The gorge was a great place for an ambush and we both knew Black Wolves commonly employed such tactics. She guided me over a path with massive boulders to silence our footsteps. Or maybe just mine. Even over dried leaves, Elincia’s steps didn’t produce a sound.

The silence was menacing.

The minutes extended like hours but no beast dared to attack us, perhaps by grace of the Sentinels that had departed ahead of us. When we emerged from the other side of the gorge, the Farlands stretched out before us in all its grandeur.

“Isn’t it beautiful.” Elincia stood beside me, looking in awe at the valley down below.

“Pretty as a painting.”

My answer didn’t seem to satisfy Elincia.

“Sometimes I forget Scholars are indoor creatures.” She poked at me.

I couldn’t say I felt the same levels of awe as Elincia, but seeing her so happy was enough to justify the hike. We were completely different, after all. Where Elincia saw the beauty of the untouched nature, I saw the promise of looming adventure and unearthed mysteries.

Elincia sat at the border of the precipice and drank from her waterskin. I joined her.

“I just noticed you didn’t bring your boomstick.” Elincia said after taking another gulp.

“Sadly I was too low on ammo to justify the extra weight.” I replied, showing her the single shell I had left.

Killing Wendigos was out of the question.

“No, it’s good, we aren’t here to fight. We got lucky with the Wendigo last time but realistically any monster bigger than a lone Black Wolf is too much for us.” Elincia said, as she glanced at the valley.

Elincia pointed north but before she could utter a word, the forest trembled. A rumbling sound emerged from the depths of earth, shaking the ground under my feet and almost making me trip. Down below the valley, the birds took off in a cacophony of frightened calls.

I reminded myself we were still in Lushian Valley. There shouldn’t be monsters so far south.

“An earthquake? A landslide?” I asked, hoping the cause of the rumble wasn’t a living creature.

“Maybe.” Elincia replied with a somber tone. She narrowed her eyes and surveyed the horizon but the forest remained silent. “Let’s stick to the mountainside and avoid the inner forest from now on.”

I nodded.

The mere thought of Elincia traveling through the Farlands alone, year after year, sent a shiver down my spine.

“If you are scared you can hug me any time.” Elincia grinned.

“I’ll take it into consideration.” I replied, arching my eyebrows.

As much as I understood why people loved the outdoors, I couldn’t completely understand why Elincia loved the Farlands. Nature and camping were nice, monsters on the other hand? Not so much. Maybe I wasn’t the biggest maniac at the orphanage.

The mountainside trail was narrow and the loose terrain made each step a potential hazard. The fact that a strong wind had started to blow didn’t help us to keep up the pace. Suddenly, the wind changed directions forcing Elincia to step on a loose rock. Her foot slipped over the border but she managed to hold onto a lone root.

“That was dangerous.” Elincia noted as she stood up again.

“We should get back into the forest.” I said.

Elincia nodded and we kept going forwards, always hugging the mountainside until the path led us down to the forest. When we crossed the treeline, it was late in the afternoon. The thrill of the journey had left me completely drained and Elincia seemed to feel the same way.

“Let’s call it a day.” Elincia said after half an hour. We were still near the mountainside but the trees and ferns provided us with protection against the wind and concealment against any monster on the lookout.

“Check this out.” Elincia pointed towards what seemed to be a random tree.

But it wasn’t. The exposed roots had gathered material until a natural barricade made of rocks, dirt, and leaves had formed. Not only that, an old and massive fallen tree blocked the path for the opposite side, creating a sort of a cozy cradle perfect for hiding from monsters.

“Bingo.” I replied.

Elincia looked at me with a questioning glance but didn’t push the matter forward. We had less than an hour of light to ready our camp. I cleared a small patch of leaves between a fallen tree and the depression on the terrain while Elincia gathered firewood. Luckily, the ground was dry although it lacked the cushiony characteristic of the forest bed.

As the sun hid behind the top of the mountains, the temperature dropped drastically. I put my blanket around my shoulders and kneeled by Elincia’s side as she used stones and small branches to hide our small bonfire in a nook on the ground. It was better to maintain a low profile.

Before Elincia could find her flint, I pulled mana from my reservoir and rubbed it together until a lone blue spark showered over the dry leaves. A moment later, a small yet healthy fire sizzled in the corner of our hideout.

“Showoff.” Elincia mumbled, flint in hand.

We wrapped ourselves in our blankets and sat shoulder against shoulder in front of the fire as the night fell. The birds hadn’t returned since the tremble and the forest was silent except for the rustle of the canopy. If there were monsters outside, we were going to hear them before they could see us.

Elincia fed the fire with a bundle of small branches and returned to my side.

“I’m glad you are here.” She said with a smile.

“I would rather be in a place without monsters.” I replied.

The elven woman rolled her eyes.

Suddenly, the earth violently trembled like an enraged sea, making me fall forward over Elincia. The tree whose roots formed the natural trench was ripped from the soil and a roaring thunder filled my ears as our shelter was sent flying through the air.

“Stone Giant!” Elincia yelled as a mountain of rocks blocked the sky in front of us.