“So tha’s why he was talking like that ‘nthe morning…” Ria started to comprehend her situation, at least through her own worldview. “I’ve been sent off who knows where, witha swindlin’ gut who knows what’ll do and now he’s dragged me alone in the forest—”

“Au contraire, Mahatma!” I happily interjected. Truly I did feel sympathy for Ria; it may not have been the usual reaction, even if the call had rudely barged in, but this sort of rough start made her malaise understandable. Her dislike for me could have been tempered a little more with the facts of the matter, but I wouldn’t hold it against her.

Because although she spoke, it was the talk of a delirious meat jelly, unending and grating. Letting Ria express herself probably felt therapeutic, but when I could, I tried to keep her from spamming chat with slanderous words.

“*Tagalong Girl* expressed her own desire for adventure! Now I realize that you may think that to be an irresponsible decision as well; however, consider this! We have a clear objective—this is a good way to teach her the basics of traveling life without getting off track. She can also serve as an alternative companion considering your *frankly unreasonable* dislike of me. Rest assured that neither of you will be facing any danger under my watch.” Admittedly I would be able to give the meat jelly a run for its money with my own ramblings on occasion. My words weren’t exactly intended to accomplish the impossible task of calming her complaints, just tripping them up for a moment.

“Waita, wait a minute; you actually brought’er? Whya-creep—draggin’ us to brainwash us an’ do whatever you want…”

“Please, do your best to convey a coherent thought when lodging a complaint and I will do my best to address it.” Ria continued to murmur about, flailing about with movements to weak to call thrashing. Instead her limbs jittered about as if they’d forgotten how to move, rapidly depleting the scant amount of energy she could call upon.

As non-threatening and impotent as it looked, Ria’s erratic motions worried Tagalong Girl, who remained some distance away.

“Come now, there’s no need to worry about her, she’s no strength to do anything. Besides, this is still Ria, she wouldn’t harbor any intent to harm you.”

“How would you know? This doesn’t seem like something you have knowledge about. She could be in the process of transforming into something else.” Tagalong Girl’s breathing started to become uneasily measured—I wanted to rub my temples over everyone getting worked up over non-issues. However, as the adult, I put my exasperation aside and attempted to mediate.

Setting Ria down, who quickly lost steam, I supported her with and went over to Tagalong Girl. Disparagements of my character aside, there didn’t seem to be anything that suggested Ria was no longer herself, and I wondered why the situation would have Tagalong Girl so worried. Sitting down cross-legged by her side, I slightly hunched over. I didn’t want to be imposing, but my height wasn’t exactly adjustable. Worried eyes flickered between myself and Ria, their tiny owner unsure of her companion and wishing I would change my mind.

“Alright little one, if this is going to be a problem, tell me about it. Why are you so worried about Ria? Go on, whatever you’re thinking, just tell me.”

“There are clearly signs of demonic power in her. Even if it can be cured in the future, it poses a danger now. I thought you would realize this and give up sooner.” What a flinty glare she gave to Ria, how cold. It looked to be a situation where she lacked an ounce of childishness, which slightly worried me.

“Why would you be in danger? Look, at the very least there’s nothing that can happen right now. I’m around, so there’s nothing to worry about. I’ll teach you how to stay safe on your own as we go.”

“What if she can’t be cured? This is dangerous, and needlessly well-meaning.”

“If you have an aversion to danger, you’ll never accomplish anything grand. If that’s the case it would be better to just sit in a village. Life is precious, but don’t let it fritter away. I have respect for those who have lived a full life.” It felt like others were more receptive to my ideas so long as I didn’t use my own words. Tagalong Girl looked thoughtful and glanced uncomfortably from me to Ria.

Turning her gaze downwards in introspection, after a while she looked up, startled that I was still sitting there.

“Okay.”

J-just ‘okay’? That’s how we’re resolving this for now? Aye-ya-yai, even if you are a child, and this is a nice way to wrap things up, that seems inappropriately brief, does it not? At the very least give me a small monologue to explain why you have conceded!

With that settling into its temporary conclusion, while chatting with the little one, Ria expended the rest of her energy and returned to her slumber. Her rant alone took the little amount of energy she managed to store up and waste it all away. Being able to act at all without having been supplied mana was still quite an improvement over her original state, but mostly I felt thankful at the return of peace and quiet. Time to get back in the saddle, I helped Tagalong Girl up, carried Ria, and we all piled on the back of .

Moving at a moderate pace so we all got used to the odd positioning, the forest passed by leisurely, the ground softly responding under the strike of the hoofbeats. Turning to the right and slightly back, if I strained my eyes, slivers of images could be made out of Salt Village and the surroundings. But quickly it became unrecognizable.

I realized it quite a while ago, but it really began sinking in how little of the world I actually explored thus far. Glaucen and Salt Village were the only settlements I had visited(with the exception of playing merchant that one morning). Unreliable narration also permeated the land, lacking a literate populace and tolerant government, this was an inevitable emergent property of the land. Despite the time settling and getting a feel for the theme of the world, all was still new and unknown. Familiarizing myself with my skills—character creation as it were—finally finished and the adventure started.  

“So what do you know of the wilds?” Several hours of trotting along in silence passed, and while one can’t be expected to hold a conversation for the entirety of a long trip, we were just setting off. My knowledge came primarily from Ralph and Castor, while I planned to share with Tagalong Girl, I also held hope that she might know of something that I did not.

“Only what has been told to me. I have no personal experience traveling.”

“That was a rhetorical question. It was meant to get you talking.” I rolled my eyes, catching sight of a strange grey bird with ragged feathers and a scaly beak. “There, what’s that bird?”

“It’s just a bird, isn’t it?”

Th-this backwards place...of course why would a bunch of peasants go around classifying fauna? If it didn’t help or hurt, why bother with it? Still, not having colloquial classifications of creatures made me feel exasperated. Did I have to forge all my tools alone? Am I the first giant?

“Alright, we’ll skip that one and talk about some of the more relevant creatures. Name some of the things that would pose a danger to travelers near the woods.” Picking myself up and moving on, I decided to start quizzing her on common creatures. That would present a simple springboard for us.

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“Wolves, goblins, snakes, poisonous insects, reeters, tigers, boars, and kiilef; though I’ve never seen any of them. Castor never mentioned encountering them, so I took it they are rarely seen on the road.” SMH—oops, it seemed she noticed. “They weren’t a major issue. I thought supplies would be more important to focus on.” She grumbled indignantly.

“*Yet you couldn’t figure that one out either.*” I couldn’t help but quip back, a bit miffed at the lack of education.

Well, if anything too powerful existed, the sustainable level of civilization would be lower than it already was. I deduced that the dangers of the current zone were low enough to be risked even by an unguarded merchant.

Then again, we did not travel by road. Instead, we blazed directly east, the reasons for going straight through the forest were two-fold—Ria was not the most inconspicuous, and the disguise she wore could only be paper thin if it was to hold up on horseback. The second being our group as a whole didn’t make much sense. Without luggage, sitting three to a horse, with one ill, and another still a child. Even if altruism fit Tiaism, our party grabbed attention like uncited claims on the internet drew skeptics. Until we scavenged up better accommodations and a disguise, we would stick to the forest.

The ease with which minnies could be kept out of sight just happened to be a side benefit.

With the grave shadows circling around us, they would at least slightly help with keeping undesirable encounters at bay. Not that their absence would have had much of an effect, my own strength felt sufficient for most encounters expected from the woods.Even so, as night fell I recalled Ralph and Castor’s stories and began feeling slightly uneasy.

Those beasts typically regarded as ‘most dangerous’ were not what I worried about, bear and tiger analogs and whatever other large carnivores could be occupied and beaten down. Pack hunters only reached the level of wargs which I had no trouble with, and intercepting a speed based creature would only take a touch of mana and stamina.

Things that lurked and watched in wait, preparing to launch an ambush, or came in numbers would be the greatest threat.

Outmatching monsters in combat came easily, and magic only furthered the divide. Yet I still slept, even if I did so less frequently than most beings of the world. Tagalong Girl lacked practice in keeping watch, nor did she possess the capability to fend off an attack. On top of that, she was still young and needed to sleep. The slothful Ria need not even be mentioned.

That would not always be the case though. I hoped as a native of the world Tagalong Girl would know at least something of the dangers. Other than the names it seemed I needed to teach her; an educational game of telephone, from OGP to Ralph to me to her.

Before setting out I naturally tried directing conversation to try and gain more insight into the encounter tables of Derriad. I may not have been completely certain with many of the facts, not having witnessed them for myself, but compiled with my current knowledge of the world, I had at least some confidence. So I spent the rest of the day lecturing Tagalong Girl of what I knew about the forest and its denizens.

The first thing I went over with her was about the strangest of my worries, the kiilef. Almost absurd, it was the least recognizable creature to me, so I had inquired more deeply about it. A juxtaposition of unassuming and lethal, calling it the killer rabbit of Derriad is the best way to convey it.

I only ever heard kiilef described, but despite how much Castor played up their viciousness, I could still discern what they looked like.

A long, furry body about a foot in length, with an elongated neck, beady eyes and tiny limbs.

So, in Earth terms, a weasel.

One might be aware that weasels already acted aggressively, related to wolverines and even more closely to the Honey Badger. Even so, on Earth they would stick to attacking and eating something only a few times their size.

Not in Derriad though, why settle for something only two or three times larger than themselves? Hunting in packs like a swarm of land-borne piranhas, they latched on to their meal, devouring it alive. Usually kiilef wouldn’t began feasting right away, after digging in with their teeth and claws they would wait for their victim to bleed out before gorging themselves. Castor told tales of times caravans suffered an attack by groups that strayed from the forest; once the kiilef latched on to a creature, there was nothing to be done. Death didn’t come quickly, but bites removing several chunks of flesh in the middle of nowhere meant there would be no way to save them.

The furry balls of death allegedly preferred larger targets that had more trouble removing them, however that instinctual velleity wasn’t enough to put me at ease. We needed to play it safe and prepare for the worst. Making sure no swarm got the drop on us would be the most effective way of doing so.

“Forward left, upper branches.” Tagalong Girl relayed as slight noises rustled the branches,

“Mmn, good catch.” It may have only been a rough approximation, but I used to create disturbances at random points during our lessons. Hoping to develop a subconscious attentiveness, any extra help her ears could offer would be acceptable. In all honesty, even I felt a bit skeptical of the results, but that was all I had come up with that could be done while lecturing her at the same time.

However, other than teaching Tagalong Girl about predators of the forest, and the occasional jolt when the horse misstepped causing Ria to slightly slip from my grasp, nothing happened. I really was too used to adventures being distilled down into a series of encounters every few miles while traveling. There’s a balance to be struck between visible progression and the slow route that immerses you.

Personally, the carefully manufactured balance present in MMOs and linear narratives is one of the reasons I found them so captivating. This is likely what separated myself and many others from those who didn’t spend as much time in constructed worlds, and it seemed Derriad was much the same as Earth in that regard.

Not encountering danger at every turn may be seen as a blessing, but acclimating Tagalong Girl to stressful situations was important. If we journeyed unimpeded until a truly dangerous obstruction appeared, shock would be the only result.

The soft sounds of nature were all that accompanied us though. Strange birds chirped peacefully, and shapes refused to move threateningly within the shadows. Under the gentle shade of the canopy, we continued through the richly colored forest for the remainder of the day.

When the sun began to set, with I figured we could proceed longer. Castor typically only traveled about seven hours a day—while Ruffles may have been reliable, those two were also rather leisurely in their travels. Since produced a constructed summon, nine hours seemed more appropriate for beginners. I wouldn’t immediately push us for 15 hours a day.

Yet even if we started out around noon, Tagalong Girl’s shifting behind me put a stop to that delusion taking place in the near future.

At first I ignored it, readjusting was normal on long trips, and we’d not even matched Castor’s lazy pace. Then continuing on, her movements did not cease, so I decided I would at least wait for Tagalong Girl to speak up for herself. However in close quarters, her shuffling about only served to irritate me as well. Tolerating it for a while, in exasperation I spoke up first.

“You don’t need to remain quiet if there’s something you want to say. We’re going to be together for a while, so speak up if you need to.” As much as the position of party leader clearly belonged to me, I wanted some of the control spread out among us. Well, it was still only the first day out, so hope remained to rebalance our responsibilities.

“I just need a break before continuing.”

“If you’re sore, say so.” Sighing inwardly, I dismounted with Ria in my arms. “We’ll break for the night here. That will give some extra time to teach you how things are done.” Not that there was a large amount to do considering our lack of a tent, and Inventory made bear bags unnecessary. Despite being focused on constructed narratives, I was familiar with the outdoors, even if we lacked the supplies to carry out many camping rituals. Roughing it boiled down to slightly clear the area and start a fire. The detritus of the forest floor happened to be mostly dry, which served as excellent tinder.

could have started the fire, but instead I coached Tagalong Girl in how to use a flint and steel. While young, she wasn’t totally ignorant of how to do so, never having seen a lighter before, and couldn’t escape the necessity of such a basic skill even in Salt Village. Luckily she was unaware of the different builds, and taught her the usages of each.

Fueled with wood from my Inventory, we enjoyed a modestly sized tipi fire. Again I went over the methods of chikan preparation with her, bringing out two and leading by example. Drolly resolute through the process, a slip of her unpracticed hand ended up with a piece of offal sticking to her face. Chuckling at her comically serious expression, quickly swept things up, followed by . Looking over to me, she furrowed her eyebrows—my amusement did not amuse her.

After roasting our dinner on a spit, we sat down to feast on the distinctly non-fishy meal. Scooting Ria closer to the fire, she woke up with a quick tap to the horns, bolting upright. I presented her with a rough wooden bowl of shredded chikan.

“Eat up.” Quickly taking the bowl from my hands, Ria began stuffing tiny handfuls of food into her mouth without hesitation. A bit over half a minute shouldn’t have been enough to wolf down an entire bowl of chikan, but she made it happen. Despite the resigned look in her eyes, a will to be independent remained. Letting her scarf down food like that may have been a choking hazard, but I couldn’t bring myself to take away that small bit of self sufficiency.

Eating by the firelight keeping strangely quiet, Tagalong Girl bounced her head up and down on the verge of sleep. I planned on trying to have her stay up to learn what to watch out for in the night, but at it’s core that was just the same as being alert while traveling. A brute force test of perception. Practice would help refine the ability, but mostly you just needed to know how to stay alert and not doze off.

Seeing Tagalong Girl would not make it through the night, I gave up on the plan. Removing several of the blankets from the packs, I set some out for her before using a few to tuck Ria in.

“Aye, just nod off little one. I’m not making you stay up late today.”

“No need...to watch?” Failing to suppress an adorable yawn, Tagalong Girl pulled a blanket closer around her.

“You’ve already killed your night vision staring into the fire like that. Rest up well tonight, I can handle keeping watch.” Tagalong Girl wrapped herself up tightly, sitting up for a while longer before finally laying on her side to fall asleep.

Moving the grave shadows closer to form a tighter perimeter, I still wasn’t reassured enough to fall asleep.

Well, whatever. I could just stay awake and deal with anything that disturbed us personally.