Book 3. The Long Journey. Chapter 69. Departure.

“Whew,” Laien breathed out, a content smile sneaking upon his face. “I’ve still got around one-fifth of my strength left. Thanks to the Profound Mystery of the Mist and the Profound Mystery of Inferno, I managed to save quite some energy. I’m still quite far from using this kind of strength in an actual battle though, preparing to use it takes way too much time,” he mused, gazing upon the converged layer of grey-white mist that covered the whole village. The thought about all the people who died there… no, about all the people he had killed passed through his mind, but it didn’t cause his heart to as much as waver. He had made up his mind about his actions; he hadn’t acted thoughtlessly. Thus, he wasn’t bothered by the results of what he had done.

“Time to leave,” he said to himself and turned around, then began walking back up the hill, towards everyone.

As he walked, Laien looked over the faces of those who were in turn looking at him. The competitive expression on Yin’s face made him want to chuckle, while the ‘well, that’s to be expected’ expressions of his seven original guards weren’t much of a surprise. Similarly, he knew very well the mixed looks of awe and reluctance on Reian’s and Jasmine’s faces; he had seen many people back in the Sarkcente Kingdom look at him the same way. On the other hand, he didn’t expect to see both Sirius and Kasha had none of that reluctance in their gazes. He could still understand Sirius since the old man appeared to have a good impression of him, but did he ever do anything to make friends with Kasha?

“You are really strong,” Arslan said with a smile, complimenting Laien in a simple but honest way. “I wonder if I can really catch up to you…” he added in a troubled manner. He remembered clearly that he had told his father, Laien and Yin that he would catch up if not surpass the latter two, but now that he had seen the level of Laien’s strength, even though he didn’t quite understand it entirely, he couldn’t help but grow worried. Training with all he had… he would that be enough for him to wield this kind of strength in seven years?

“Who knows?” Laien asked with a calm smile and by the force of a habit he had developed over the years, tousled Arslan’s hair. “When I was your age, I was much weaker than you are now. If you train hard enough and if you are lucky enough, you might as well surpass me,” he said amiably and meant every word he uttered. He understood that him being where he was amounted not only to his innate talent and hard work, but also to a large amount of good fortune. He had met so many people who helped him grow over these past years… without them, he would still be a talented dual practitioner, but he wouldn’t be anywhere close to his current level.

“I will try,” Arslan said with a chuckle and smiled at Laien happily. He was a bright child, so he made use of Laien’s words and stopped worrying too much; if luck was a part of what one needed to grow strong, then there wasn’t much he could do about it.

“They’ve come,” the black-cloaked man, Gahar, informed out of the blue. Following his gaze, everyone looked at the part of the forest that was at the foot of the hill, just a few meters above the level of the grey-white mist. “Want me to deal with them, or would you rather do it yourselves?” he inquired, turning his eyes towards Laien and Yin.

“You mean that hunter?” Laien picked up quickly, but was a little displeased that he couldn’t spot anyone despite having had the place pointed out by Gahar. “I’m too tired to run after them. If you want to help, go ahead,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. There wasn’t anything fun in chasing after some random guy who wasn’t all that strong, so if Gahar was offering to help, then he had no reason to refuse; it wasn’t like Yin would be interested in hunting those guys down anyway.

“Then, give me a moment,” Gahar said with a laugh and roused his Qi, his figure instantly dissipating into shadows as he moved away at a high speed.

“This movement technique…” Reian frowned heavily; Jasmine’s and Sirius’s expressions also changed. The three of them were extremely clear on how dangerous the Guild of Shadows was and they also were able to tell that no normal darkness-element movement technique would achieve the same presence-erasing effect Gahar had just displayed. They were almost sure that he was a member of that Guild, but if so, then why was an assassin of that level acting as a guard for those two youths? Were they somehow connected to the Guild of Shadows?

“Good thing he noticed them,” Yin said with a little sigh. “I was trying to pay attention, but I didn’t spot anyone,” he admitted rather unhappily. He was innately advantaged as far as senses went, but the black-cloaked man… Gahar… “Ah, whatever. I’ve gotten too used to thinking about him like that, no point trying to change that now,” he told himself and laughed inwardly. Either way, being outdone by that man left a sour aftertaste in his mouth.

“Even you didn’t spot them?” Laien asked, pretty surprised by that. He knew full well that Yin’s eyesight and hearing were on another level, so did it mean that the black-cloaked man was actually quite amazing? They had taken him to be a fairly strong martial master of the third rank who quite obviously had ties to the Guild of Shadows, but was there no to him than they had thought?

“Stop rubbing it in,’ Yin said with a laugh. “It’s not like you noticed them either, or like anyone else noticed them,” he pouted playfully.

“Huh?” The side of Laien’s lips quirked upwards in an amused smile. “How I was supposed to notice them without paying attention?” he asked with a laugh, getting straight into another silly exchange he tended to have with Yin from time to time.

“Isn’t it all about noticing danger even when you are relaxed?” Yin pointed out with a little smirk. “What’s the point in having good senses if they don’t help you when you need them,” he mused aloud, then chuckled as he agreed with the point Laien thought about in response; what he said could as well be applied to him, so this argument was pretty much a double-edged sword.

As she watched the two youths engage in a casual chat, Sarah could only sigh quietly. Be it their behavior or the things they were and weren’t impressed with, those people truly belonged to a different world. She had been startled when that black-cloaked man disappeared all of the sudden, but those kids and those guards treated it as something normal. She had always dreamed of living in the world those guys were in, but she knew she was neither strong nor talented enough to join it.

The next second, Gahar returned and appeared from within shadows, once again startling some of the villagers, including Sarah. “Here,” he said calmly and raised his hand slightly. Some greyish fog left his interspatial ring and within split-seconds, transformed into five cleanly beheaded corpses.

“I don’t know how that Zakar looks like, so it would be helpful if someone could identify him just to be sure,” Gahar requested straightforwardly, his glance stopping on Sarah. From what he had seen it was this girl who acted as a leader of the villagers, so it should be her job to take care of those things.

Sarah nodded and approached the copses. If she was so weak-willed that a slightly gruesome sight would cause her to whimper away, she would have never survived up until this day. Thus, she took a good look at the five heads and after a few seconds, frowned heavily. “Zakar isn’t amongst those five. Didn’t you see him anywhere nearby?” she informed and asked the black-cloaked man, failing to realize that her question could be interpreted as a rude one.

As a result, Gahar snorted at Sarah and responded angrily. “If I saw him, I would have killed him too. There was only five of them. As for your hunter, he either didn’t come with his men or he chose to hide somewhere else. We don’t have enough people to search the forest, so if you want to chase someone who knows how to erase his tracks we can only rely on luck. I’d say we have less than ten percent chance of finding him if we start now.”

“Less than one in ten, huh.” Laien scratched the back of his head. “Do you guys think it’s worth to try?” he inquired, looking at Jasmine and Sirius in particular. Those two were the most experienced ones here, so if they said it was worth the hassle he wouldn’t argue not to at least try.

Jasmine smiled at Laien, happy to see that he was open to opinions of others instead of making all the choices on his own. “As much as I like to tie up all the loose ends, I think it’s a waste of effort this time around. If our chances were closer to half-half I would have told you to chase that man, but since leaving him be shouldn’t be too big of a nuisance we can just leave him be,” she explained briefly, seeing no reason to go overboard to chase one relatively weak hunter.

“I agree.” Sirius nodded. “If we feared retaliation, we wouldn’t have gotten involved in this whole thing in the first place. Those people must have had relatives and friends in other villages either way. One man here or there won’t make much of a difference,” he elaborated on the point, guessing that Laien and the other two boys would like to know the reasoning behind his and Jasmine’s words.

“Okay,” Laien said with a happy smile. He wouldn’t have trouble with traveling, but he was tired enough to prefer to avoid fighting or doing anything exhausting at least for half a day. “So, where do you want us to take you? Ruishi Federation or the north?” he asked Sarah, leaving the previous subject be so swiftly that it took the sixteen years old girl a moment to realize she was being asked something.

“Sarah,” Albert spoke up. “I think we should try going to the Ruishi Republic. The north will soon get into a war with the south and what do you think will happen to us then? We will all be enlisted into the army and used as disposable meat shields. Ruishi Federation has always kept their neutrality, so it should be better to stay there,” he suggested strongly. Up until now, the two of them had mostly been fantasizing about fleeing the village and living elsewhere; they hadn’t taken all the future circumstances into account. However, if they were to make a choice then Albert wanted it to be the most reasonable one not only for the next month or year, but for the rest of their lives.

“I must agree with your boyfriend,” Jasmine said with a calm smile. “From what I know, the north hates not only Ikarians and all those of Malazan faith, but they also don’t exactly love the southern Euleanians either. They’ve pretty much cut off all the contact with the south and it’s needless to be said that they are on guard against anyone from Arkaria. The details of what’s exactly going on in the north is a mystery to us, so going there would be a gamble,” she elaborated on the point, but then added with a chuckle.

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“It would also be a pain to bring you all the way to the north,” she said with blatant honesty, seeing no reason to allow this group to abuse their kindness. They were already doing a lot for them because the three little masters wanted to lend them a hand, but they weren’t obliged to act against their own interest. It would be good if those villagers didn’t forget about it.

The expressions on Sarah’s, Albert’s and some of the villagers’ faces changed when Jasmine poured a bucket of cold water on top of their heads. Yes, the lighthearted attitude of Laien’s had caused them to momentarily forget what kind of position they were in. It was already a great kindness from Laien to even ask them about where they would like to go; they should keep in mind what would be convenient not only for them, but also for those who were helping them.

Still, it was understandable that they were unconsciously prioritizing themselves after everything they had been through. Knowing that, Jasmine had chosen to reprimand them indirectly instead of picking a harsher method.

“Ruishi Federation it is,” Laien said with a laugh. “If I recall correctly, it could be around three thousand kilometers from here? Walking is going to take months, so we should go to buy some horses somewhere nearby. Any suggestions?” he inquired and glanced around. Would Ruan have something to say, or would Reian pick something and stick to it stubbornly?

“Tuln Village,” Albert blurted out somewhat randomly. Then, he blushed a little when everyone looked at him in a questioning way and proceeded to hurriedly explain. “It’s a large village of fifty thousand about two hundred kilometers from here. They are known in the region for rearing horses, so we should be able to buy a lot of them for cheap there.”

“Sounds good,” Laien said contentedly. “I guess most of you are tired, but how about we at least get out of this area before resting?” he suggested, preferring not to stay around this frozen village. If some people found them here, it would be annoying to explain everything to them after all.

“I know a good place where we could rest,” Albert spoke up, this time more confidently. “Twenty kilometers from here on the way to Tuln Village there is a large plain by the riverside. Five years ago a big fire broke out in that area, so all trees burned down and only some of them started growing back so far,” he explained, beginning to feel a bit awkward towards the end now that he had calmed down. He wasn’t used to being polite to anyone, but this boy who was younger than him possessed both unimaginable strength and influence; he couldn’t help but have his tone turn rather mild.

“Great,” Laien said with a laugh. “Reian, you said you have carriages, right? Let’s use our horses for the time being. I’m sure they won’t be happy about it, but we can make it up to them later,” he proposed straightforwardly. In normal circumstances, it would have been close to an act of madness to use the elite War Horses and Hisan Horses to pull carriages, but the only other option was to have all those tired youths walk on their feet. Just one glance was enough to tell that a vast majority of them was either always half-asleep or barely awake; not only had they gone through hell this night, but they also were then healed with magic what increased their physical exhaustion.

Reian laughed helplessly, for once agreeing with Laien completely. “You can go ahead and enter the first carriage. We will take care of everything, so go ahead and rest,” he said and produced a large, comfortable-looking carriage with proper windows and curtains. Compared to the carriages that merchant, Shamar, and his family traveled in, this one appeared to be of an even higher class.

“I will take you up on that offer,” Laien said with a smile. He couldn’t wait to spend some time meditating on the Profound Mystery of the Mist. At the moment, he could only use it in the most basic, rudimentary way, but as long as he put some effort he would be able to integrate it into all his magic and techniques. “Well then,” he mused aloud and jumped up into the air, creating a small foothold from water as he opened the door to the carriage. His smile grew wider when he saw the fluffy interior covered with pillows, carpets and other soft materials. He didn’t waste any time and went inside, pled up three pillows by the back wall and rested against them.

“Should I help with anything?” Arslan inquired, sending Reian a questioning gaze. If there was anything he could do, he would try to do it.

“There will be some things later on, but not now,” Reian replied after a second of thought. He could have asked Arslan to help with some menial tasks, but there would be little point to that as Arslan already knew how to take care of horses or how to set up a carriage. On the other hand, it would be a good idea to have Arslan talk with the villagers once they had rested some and once they had enough time to accommodate to their new circumstances.

“Mm,” Arslan nodded and jumped into the carriage, glad to be able to sit down and relax in Laien’s company.

Yin didn’t ponder the problem for long either as he followed Arslan immediately. With Laien growing stronger so quickly, he couldn’t afford to slack off when Laien trained else sooner or later, Laien would surpass him before he could notice it was happening.

“Johan, how about you go with them?” Sarah suggested to her little brother. It was Johan who brought those people to help; it would be good for him to establish a friendship of a kind with those three young masters. Perhaps one of them would take him in as a servant! If so, then Johan would have a much better life ahead of him than he would ever be able to achieve on his own. After all, it wasn’t surprising for a servant of a supreme expert to lead a life better than that of many of the nobles and if anything, the life of such a servant would certainly be safer and more comfortable.

“I, uh,” Johan alternated between looking up at Sarah and down at his feet as he fidgeted nervously. Previously, he had been desperate so he didn’t think twice about pleading for help, but now that the worst was behind him he once again returned to being the same shy boy he had always been.

“Go ahead,” Jasmine encouraged with a smile. “We don’t have enough horses to let just the three of them ride alone in such a big carriage. In fact, your older sister and her boyfriend can join you after everyone else is finished preparing,” she said amiably, seeing no reason for Arslan not to get acquainted with some common people of Eulene.

The last time, Sarah and Albert had been too concerned with Jasmine’s additional comment and thus they hadn’t quite paid attention, but this time the two of them couldn’t help but blush awkwardly. Boyfriend? They had never talked about things like love and marriage… but if one looked at them, then he would probably come to a conclusion that they were a couple. In fact, they liked each other quite a lot, but due to how savage the life in their village had been they hadn’t had a chance to be in any intimate contact with each other; they hadn’t even kissed!

But… would they actually be able to do all those things in the future? As they thought about it, they turned back into the children they were, but they both quickly suppressed those feelings soon afterward. It was much too soon for them to relax and try living normal lives. First things first; they would need to get everyone to safety and make sure they were all right, then they could focus on themselves without any worries.

“We will join them later, thank you,” Sarah said amiably and bowed slightly to Jasmine before leaving with Albert.

In turn, Jasmine chuckled in amusement. That girl spoke normally to the three little masters, but she was acting so formal with her. Did she still not realize it was those three youths who made all the important decisions in their group, or was it because those three were children and she was an adult? If she thought about it, it was probably the latter of the two reasons.

“I’d better get to apologizing to my horse already,” Jasmine mused with a smile. Her mare was quite a temperamental one, so without some treats, she would never agree to be bound to a carriage and serve as a common workhorse. “It’s a good thing I’ve acquired quite a few treasure troves during all those years. A normal White Guard would turn purple if he saw what I’m feeding this gluttonous horse,” she thought to herself, unable to stop grinning at the prospect of feeding diamonds to pigs.

As the preparations were being made outside, Laien glanced at Johan who entered, or rather was hesitating to enter the carriage as he stood on the ground by its door. “Are you going to stand there until tomorrow? Come in,” Laien said with a laugh. Out of all kids and youths he had met in his life, Johan was possibly the most timid one. It was hard to imagine that the same kid had struggled to run away from a bunch of adults for many hours and then pleaded them to help his sister and the others.

“U-uhm,” Johan nodded and pulled himself up, then crawled into the carriage in a fairly agile manner. Unlike Laien, Yin or even Arslan, he was only a martial practitioner of the first rank and in addition, was very tired. There was no way he could jump nearly a meter up in his state.

“What to do…” Laien wondered quietly. He and Yin were both interested in training at the moment, but Johan appeared quite restless despite having seated himself comfortably. Should they just leave him to Arslan, or allow him to naturally fall asleep from fatigue? Wasn’t there some good way to make a kid relax quickly and easily? “Ah, that might work,” he recalled one particular thing and looked for the second, much weaker spiritual bond of his. He quickly sensed the presence of the small spiritual beast that was napping within his spiritual sea; the puppy perked up instantly, sensing his attention. It barked in a cute manner, asking if it was supposed to come out. When it sensed confirmation from Laien, it moved out of his Spiritual Core and materialized within the carriage.

“Ah, this guy,” Yin laughed a little when the puppy looked at him warily. The little one was about twice as big as it had been two months ago, but he was still fairly small. He would do for a companion for Johan and Arslan just fine.

“Felix, go play with them,” Laien said lightheartedly and flicked his finger lightly, pointing specifically at Johan.

Johan was a bit nervous when the strange puppy with dim-blue, almost metallic fur ran up to him and barked energetically while wagging his tail. He didn’t quite know what to do since he had never had a pet before, but Felix made the choice for him as he jumped onto his lap and began snuggling into his side in search of the most pleasant position to lie in.

Still a bit nervous, Johan petted the dim-blue-furred puppy with his hand ever so lightly. “Wow, so soft,” he exclaimed in surprise. He could already tell that the puppy’s fur was delicate, but he didn’t expect it to be so nice to touch! Where did Laien find a puppy like that and how did he make him appear out of thin air? He wanted to ask, but the one thing was that he was too hesitant to actually speak up and the other was that Laien had already closed his eyes and began meditating.

“A spiritual beast,” Arslan said merrily as he moved over next to Johan. “I didn’t think Laien would have a spiritual beast. I heard about them, but it’s the first time I’m seeing one. Didn’t Yin say this one is called Felix?” he mused aloud while scratching the puppy behind his ears. Though, the moment the puppy heard his name being spoken, he turned his head around and looked at Arslan curiously. Was there something this boy wanted from him, or did he speak his name randomly?

Arslan chuckled and flicked Felix in the forehead ever so gently. The puppy shook his head in response, then barked playfully, startling Johan so bad that he jumped a little.

“There, there.” Arslan patted the puppy’s head with a bright smile on his face. “Laien and Yin are training, so try to be quiet, okay?” he asked of Felix, wondering if the puppy could understand his word. However, this doubt was erased the moment Felix barked again, though this time much more softly. It looked like he could understand them just well.

“Um…” Johan looked at Arslan, but the words for some reason wouldn’t come out of his mouth. He could talk to his sister or those he knew just well, but for some reason he would always get overly nervous when trying to chat with someone else. Feeling that he was being pathetic, he lowered his gaze, his eyes tearing up a little. Why couldn’t he be more like his sister? He had gone through so many terrifying things, so why couldn’t he bring himself to talk normally to Arslan? He felt stupid.

“You must want to sleep, huh?” Arslan brought up with a smile, making no comments on Johan’s overly shy behavior. “Go ahead. We can always talk later,” he added cheerfully, then went back for his own pillow and laid down first at Johan’s side. Since there would be nothing better to do, he could as well doze off for the time being.

Johan was a bit confused at the development of this short conversation, but he also felt strangely relieved. Yes, first he would sleep, then he would try to talk properly with everyone; and just as his thoughts changed to be along those lines, his eyelids slid down by themselves and he instantly fell asleep while still sitting. Thankfully, he was leaning against a pillow and the floor of the carriage was soft and fluffy, so no matter what he would have a good night… or a good day of sleep.