***

Tristan sat quietly, his gaze fixed on the sky above. "I never expected Cheryl to be a hero," he murmured to himself. "What do they want from her? Whatever it is, I have to save her. But first, I need to gather information about Brighthold."

Sheyla, noticing Tristan lost in thought, approached him cautiously. "Tristan, are you okay?" she asked softly.

Tristan turned to her, his expression distant but composed. "I'm fine. Just... a bit shocked," he admitted.

"Who were they?" Sheyla inquired gently.

"They were the family who welcomed me, someone with nothing, with open arms," Tristan replied, his voice carrying a mix of sorrow and fondness. "And... my first friends."

"Oh... I'm so sorry for what happened to them," Sheyla said, her tone filled with genuine sympathy. "So, what will you do next?"

"I plan to rescue Cheryl, their last family member" Tristan answered, his eyes now alight with determination. "Cheryl have been taken by those dark mages. Do you know where Brighthold is?"

Sheyla nodded. "Yes, Brighthold is one of the largest trade cities under Duke Crimsenne's. My family also serves under the Crimsenne household," she explained.

"Oh, is that so? What about your home? Is it have the same direction to Brighthold?" Tristan asked.

"Umm, no," Sheyla replied. "My home Redwatch is on the border of Sylvaria Forest, to the south of Wyrmford City, while Brighthold is to the north of Wyrmford."

"I see," Tristan said thoughtfully. "Alright, I'll ask Uncle Darian about his plans first."

With that, Tristan stood and made his way back to the room where Darian rested. When he opened the door, he was startled to see Darian lying on the ground.

"Uncle, what's wrong?" Tristan asked, rushing to his side.

"It seems... this is the end for me, Tristan," Darian said weakly, tears rolling down his cheeks. "Please... save Cheryl. That's my final request."

"I will, Uncle," Tristan said firmly. "I was already planning to rescue her. You can rest now."

Darian gave a faint smile. "Thank you, Tristan. I'm sorry... for burdening you with the responsibility that should've been mine."

"It's no burden, Uncle. I've always thought that all of you is my own family," Tristan reassured him.

"Thank you, Tristan... Thank... you," Darian whispered before drawing his final breath.

Tristan gently laid Darian's body down, his expression somber. Reaching into his spatial storage, he retrieved several pieces of cloth he had collected from the monsters. Carefully, he wrapped the bodies of Dheryl, Darian, and Alya, then placed them inside the storage space.

Sheyla watched in silence before asking, "What will you do with their bodies?"

"I'll bury them next to the graves of my parents and Eclipse's parents," Tristan replied.

Eclipse let out a soft, approving sound. "Kyu kyu."

"Where are their graves?" Sheyla asked curiously.

"Near the cave where I live," Tristan answered. "We'll go there first before heading to your home. I'll escort you."

"Really?" Sheyla said, her voice tinged with surprise and joy.

"Yes," Tristan affirmed. "Let's leave now so we can make it there before nightfall."

"Alright, let's go," Sheyla agreed with a nod.

"Lead the way, Ecy," Tristan said, gesturing to Eclipse.

'Kyuu,' Eclipse responded confidently, hopping off Tristan's shoulder and taking the lead.

They continued their journey, following Eclipse as it led the way. Along the path, Sheyla suddenly remembered something and turned to Tristan, her curiosity piqued.

"Oh, by the way, you mentioned that you knew my aunt. Earlier, you diverted the topic, so now, tell me the truth!"

Tristan glanced at her and sighed internally. "What a troublesome girl," he thought before replying nonchalantly, "Umm, Alinda Ciyane is my mother."

"Oh, so you're a fan of hers, huh? Wait, whaaat?!" Sheyla exclaimed in shock.

"Alinda Ciyane is my mother, and my father is Gran Ciyane. My name is Tristan Ciyane," Tristan clarified.

"Wait, wait. So you're saying... you're my cousin?" Sheyla asked, her voice rising.

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

"Yeah, that's right," Tristan replied matter-of-factly.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Sheyla pressed.

"Yesterday, my priority was saving Uncle Darian," Tristan explained.

"You're right about that," Sheyla admitted, pausing for a moment before continuing, her tone softening. "So, Aunt Alinda... she's really gone, isn't she?" Her expression turned somber.

"Umm," Tristan responded with a nod, confirming her fears.

Sheyla began to cry quietly as they walked. "Why are you crying? Haven't the Ciyane family shared anything about my parents' fate with the public over the past few months?" Tristan asked.

Through sniffles, Sheyla managed to reply, "They said Aunt Alinda and Uncle Gran disappeared in the cursed forest of Netherbane."

"And what else did they say? Did they mention anything about how they disappeared?" Tristan pressed further.

"Um... they didn't say much. They only mentioned that your parents vanished during an expedition into the cursed forest," Sheyla answered, her voice tinged with sorrow.

"So, they didn't mention the betrayal, huh? Why? Are they afraid the Roussanne family would side with my parents?" Tristan thought silently, his expression hardening. "I see. In that case, we'll visit their graves as well," he replied.

"Alright," Sheyla responded softly.

"Oh, by the way, Father would be so happy to know you're still alive," Sheyla said with a faint smile.

"Why would he be?" Tristan asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Because Father cherished family deeply, especially Aunt Alinda. When you were born, he even planned to throw a grand celebration, inviting all the nobles in the kingdom. But Aunt Alinda stopped him," Sheyla explained.

"Really?" Tristan replied, surprised.

"Yes, it's true," Sheyla confirmed with a nod.

"Then I'll only escort you to the gates of Redwatch. I don't want to risk meeting your father," Tristan said firmly.

"What? Why?" Sheyla asked, confused.

"I don't want anyone to know I'm still alive. I need to grow stronger, strong enough to avenge my parents," Tristan stated.

"Avenge them? What happened?" Sheyla asked, her curiosity piqued.

"For now, it's better that you don't know. Knowing would put you in danger," Tristan replied.

"But it's not dangerous for you?" Sheyla pressed.

"Are you seriously asking me that?" Tristan said with a wry smile.

"Hmm, you've got a point. No one else could take down a demon and dozens of monsters alone like you did," Sheyla admitted.

"Exactly. Alright, let's keep moving. We're almost there," Tristan said, gesturing for her to follow.

After a short while, Tristan, Sheyla, and Eclipse arrived at Tristan's cave. "Here we are. I'll start digging graves to bury Uncle Darian, Dheryl, and Aunt Alya. You can visit my parents grave or do something else if you'd like," Tristan said to Sheyla.

"Alright," Sheyla replied.

It didn’t take Tristan long to dig three graves and lay Darian, Alya, and Dheryl to rest. Once finished, he approached Sheyla, who was sitting at the cave entrance, gently stroking Eclipse.

"I'm done. Should we rest for the day?" Tristan asked.

"Yes, let’s rest. I’m exhausted," Sheyla replied.

Tristan pulled out some sleeping gear and handed it to her. "Here, you can rest first. I’ll go wash up at the river," he said.

"Okay," Sheyla answered.

She entered the cave, while Tristan headed to the river to clean himself up.

After cleaning himself up, Tristan returned to the cave and got ready to sleep. However, Sheyla suddenly spoke up.

"Umm, Tristan?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yeah? What’s up?" Tristan replied.

"Umm, I don’t know about you, but... as far as I remember, we haven’t had dinner yet," Sheyla said.

"Oh, right, you’re right. Sorry, I’ve been preoccupied with some thoughts." Tristan quickly took out his cooking gear and started preparing a meal.

As he cooked, Sheyla spoke again. "Why don’t you come and live with me? I’m sure my father would be delighted to have you stay with us," she suggested.

Without stopping his cooking, Tristan responded, "It’s not that I don’t want to, but it’s not the right time yet. By the way, what’s your father’s name?"

"His name is Lucien Roussanne," Sheyla replied.

"Alright. At the very least, I’ll make sure to greet Uncle Lucien," Tristan said.

"Really?" Sheyla asked excitedly.

"Yeah," Tristan confirmed, handing her a plate of food. "Here, eat up. After that, let’s rest. We have a long journey ahead. By the way, do you know the way to Redwatch?"

Sheyla chuckled awkwardly. "Hehe, I don’t."

"Haah, I figured," Tristan said with a sigh.

"Hehe, sorry," Sheyla said again, embarrassed.

"That means we’ll need to head to Wyrmford, the nearest town from here, and ask for a map," Tristan explained.

"Oh, wouldn’t it be faster if I just took you to Wyrmford? You could ask the nobles there to send word to Uncle Lucien," Tristan suggested.

"Oh, that makes sense," Sheyla replied.

"Alright then, it's decided," Tristan said with a nod.

They finished their meal together.

"Thank you for the food," they both said in unison.

"Alright, let’s get some rest," Tristan suggested.

"Okay. Good night, Tristan," Sheyla said softly.

"Good night, Sheyla," Tristan replied.

(Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up)

(Skill: Tracking-Level 6)

(Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up)

(Skill Mana Control-Level 28*)

(Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up)

(Skill Spell Creation-Level 14)

(Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up)

(Skill: Cold Blooded-Level 18)

(Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up) (Skill Level Up)

(Skill: Observation-Level 20) (You reach the specified level) (Now you can observe 2 times faster)