Eastern Imperial Border

Six weeks have passed since Lanthim departed the family estate, standing on the banks of what had once been a great inland sea. All that remained was the endless salt flats stretching for thousands of miles from north to south. The distance needed to cross west to east was about eight hundred miles, just two hundred miles greater than Lanthim's projectable range.

As things were now, he would either have to traverse the two hundred miles until he could use Malvakin, allowing him to cover the remaining six hundred miles with a transportation spell. Having such spells was instrumental in his leaving the estate; twice on the route here, he sensed someone following him.

In both of those times, he had been resting from ensuring continued use of these transportation spells; the use of regalia like Frienriha had allowed him to have a slightly larger reserve of mana to pull from if needed. However, due to Regalia's limited functionality in transferring mana from said regalia to its user, if Lanthim used most of his mana on a spell, he would need help to pull mana from the regalia.

This would happen for one primary reason: Regalia requires purified mana from its user to function; even the smallest amount will cause a reaction. Due to Lanthim's lack of purified mana, once a spell was cast, all he needed was enough to activate Frienriha to replenish his supply of mana; however, almost every time after he jumped to his following location, he would not have enough to trigger his regalia.

It had taken all his energy to get this far, looking at the incredible Salt Flats before him.

'Salt as far as the eye can see, and with winter coming, the winds will be horrendous; this will be interesting."

A cold breeze brushed the back of his neck as he thought this. Winter in this region would not be as intolerable as it would be further north, but that did not mean that that thing would be pleasant during his crossing of this dangerous obstacle. With the winds blowing with such terrific fury out of the north, taking the salt and sand with it, the danger of getting torn apart by these winds and the matter they could stir up seriously was something to think about.

Looking out into the expanse, he could see small areas where small gusts of wind would pick up the salt and, with great speed, move it along. Watching this take place, his hands began to grow cold; raising his hands to his face, he used his warm breath to warm them, but to no avail; the sensation remained.

'If only there were a crossing that did not require me to go over two thousand miles south, things would not be this way.'

Lanthim kicked the ground below him in annoyance, scraping up the grass that had been there. After creating the same action twice over, he was now standing in a large hole; in his mind, he had been trying to push his projectable range further to no avail. Suddenly, after his third kick, he sensed something, sadly not in front of him but behind.

'Still looking for me?'

A great frown was on his face; now he had another unneeded distraction to deal with.

'They have not found me yet.'

Feeling increasingly irritated with his situation, Lanthim moved out of the hole he dug for himself and began slowly down the steep banks of the ancient inland sea. There was no wind then, so he began to feel somewhat safer with this decision. Placing his feet on the salt bed, he could feel the vastness of the thing he had entered.

Still feeling the presence of those looking for him getting closer did not stop Lanthim from further admiring the greatness of what he was seeing.

'I can't believe the difference this perspective gives, so vast, so white."

Awe filled the boy as he looked out at the dunes and flats of endless white; the sheer beauty of this place sent shivers down his spine. Letting these feelings soak in, he looked to his left; not even half a mile due north, he sensed something that had not been there just a moment ago.

Stolen story; please report.

A man stood there. His features were that of a Demi-human, and his ears and tail, the only things that could distinguish his race, were of the purest black. His eyes were green with an extreme sharpness to them.

This man's dress was that of an adventurer, mostly wearing what looked like light-segmented plated armour over his legs and arms. His torso was comprised of even lighter leather armour. However, even though this individual seemed underdressed for his line of work, the speedy recovery of a small boy was perfect for the job. Looking at each other at a distance, Lanthim felt he knew this person.

Starting to think about this, a second person arrived behind the man, who was now looking directly in the boy's direction. A woman, from what Lanthim could feel from his location, this person he recognized as soon as she arrived on the scene.

'To think that it would be Milty."

Smiling softly, he could not help himself; ironic as it was, she would always be there to find him no matter where he went.

"Young master, you must come home. Your mother is greatly disturbed by your sudden disappearance."

Milty's voice carried on the wind to his ear as if she was standing right beside him. However, he knew she would not come, at least not in a way that would be friendly.

"I am sorry, Milty, but I can not go home. I must know things, and they are in the east, away from my family."

Feeling determined to keep proceeding, Lanthim could not allow anyone to stop him. At the same time, he felt great unease in what had been transpiring since he had left. Holding both hands behind his back, he tried to resist any action that would show nervousness or agitation.

"You will forgive me, young master; I am instructed to bring you home, not ask if you wish to return. Please do not make this harder than it needs to be."

Milty's voice bore the unconditional evidence of her purpose, and Lanthim could feel the coldness in her words. She was here for one reason: to take him home.

'Advance to the ends of the living world, Malvakin.'

Silently reciting the activation incantation for this Regalia, a large gust of wind spread out from Lanthim's location. The location of this Regalia on the body was his legs, from the soles of the feet to the thighs. He felt his entire body change as mana from Malvakin began to saturate his muscles, strengthening them. His skin became more flexible while increasing toughness, finally reinforcing the bone.

As Milty and her companion stood covering their faces as the salt was being blown about, Lanthim finished his preparations. As the winds began to lessen, Milty saw Lanthim again. She could feel the activation of the regalia. Still, because she had never seen many of them used in the past, she had yet to learn what it was capable of.

"I must insist you do not try to flee, young master. It will be a long trip home if you struggle."

Milty seemed genuinely annoyed by the young boy's actions.

'I travel all this way to get you; all I get is pig-headedness.'

The feeling of wanting to give the little monster a good beating would not disappear, so she folded her arms and waited for his reply.

"I am sorry to cause you such trouble, Milty; however, as I must go, I will go."

Stating this with a troublesome smile, Lanthim disappeared; all left were the traces of mana left behind when he stepped off.