The searing pain in my chest seeped deep. It ran along my left arm as well. I could barely sleep through the night, having painful spasms every now and then. The ordeal got much easier when I felt two soft and warm hands grip my right hand. They gently caressed them and eased my worries as I rested. Then, the sun began to rise, which caused my eyes to flutter open. My entire body felt on fire. My head swiveled back and forth. I tried moving my hand, but a tug was all I gave.

Lying next to me, still sleeping, was Lukia. She pulled my arm closer to her, snuggling them into her chest. Plump and firm, she had definitely grown properly. I couldn't breathe properly in this situation. Trying everything but to no avail. It would be impossible to escape without waking her. Thankfully, she stirred and loosened her grip enough for me to slip out.

A damp cloth brushed against my hand, causing me to turn and look at her own hands. They were wrapped in dirty bandages. I could see the skin underneath was darkened and heavily scared by a burn. Instinctively, I laid my hand on hers and gently called upon my magic to heal her hands. The moment my mana poured into her; the burning sensation shot through the marks on my body. A gasp of pain escaped me, and I couldn't complete healing her in time.

"Caleb!" Gale's voice rang out. Rushing to me after hearing my cry. Everyone else seemed to wake up soon after at this time. "Are you alright? What happened?" Gale propped me on the tree.

Stumbling to her feet, Lukia moved to my side in a hurry. She held my shoulder and arm concerned. I didn't know what to think about her being so close, but it just didn't matter at this point. I gripped her hand in mine and took a breath. "I tried healing her hands, but partway through, my body began to burn up... I think...whatever that Stalker did to me, it's causing the marks to inflict more pain upon using any magic of any kind..."

Herk quickly places his hands on them and starts chanting his words to heal the curse back. The sudden activation of the curse caused the bandages to soak further and needed to be changed. Lukia tried to volunteer but was dismissed because her hands were still recovering. Herk and Gale would be responsible for my treatment.

"Can you ride with us still?" Gale asks, looking at me worried. My body had grown used to the uncomfortable feeling, and I stood on my own feet. My face still showed the signs of agony. Forcing a smile was easier than I realized, and I nodded. Speaking would drain too much of my energy, and feeling heavily sick would hinder my movement.

"Take it easy, we will get you to the temple on the other side of the mountains. Whatever it will cost, we will ensure you will be cured of this infliction. If it had spread without my aid, you might have been closer in the dirt."

"I appreciate your efforts, Herk. What about Lukia, her hands are burned..." My voice became raspy with each word. Herk sighed and turned to her before responding back.

"Guess she'll have to heal herself. I could, but I need to focus on your survival for a while. Don't push yourself; otherwise, it will begin to spread further into your body. We can manage it at this stage, so I am not so worried about it. You're a tough kid, I got my hopes in you to make it with us." Herk rubbed my head out of habit for kids. A soft chuckle rumbled through my throat. I took a swing of the water we had, which soothed the burning briefly.

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"Yann is going to help pack up the camp with Ivian. I need to look at the path we need to take once we hit the mountain path. You three can stay here until it's time to head out." Pulling out a map from his bag, he starts marking our location and seeing the details to understand the route.

Half an hour passed while we waited. Herk had finished doing his incantations on the curse. I overheard them while they were treating me about what kind of curse had taken hold of me. An implant curse is something when a creature, upon dying, can implant a deep sensation into its victims that corrupts the body in its pain. Thankfully, I had repelled the ooze that the Stalker became after Lukia had finished off its main body. Witchcraft is seriously dangerous. It is equivalent to the darkest of magics Demons have conjured in power and cruelty. No wonder any witchcraft is considered the greatest of sins in the Empire and Heistorm, respectfully.

Ivian and Yann brought the horses around for us to saddle on. It took a moment, but getting on my horse caused my body to ache. Sweat poured out of my skin extensively. My body was fighting off the curse like any other sickness, but instead, it didn't do much of any good, just draining my body as the day progressed.

In formation, Gale readied everyone to proceed. Lukia was surprisingly quiet during our preparation. I figured a part of her felt guilty about my situation, but I would rather it be me. Unknown to the party, Demon kin and those with higher magic capacity tend to fare better against curses like the one upon me. It's a dark magic that consumes the body and the magic within. Having a large pool or strong hold on magic in the blood tends to halt the progress of curses. They did not, however, say anything about the activation of curses when magic was expanding. It must have been the type of curse the Stalker inflicted upon me that did something as such.

"We ready to set out?" Gale shouted to the group. Everyone nodded in response, and he quickly began to move forward. We followed in our three groups like before. Lukia stayed with me in the back like before. My elbow nudged into hers as we rode.

"I know that look. Don't be feeling guilty over what happened to me."

"Cal-...Caleb... What happened last night? I could have avoided any of that, but instead, I got too confident, and you had to save my life. Now you are suffering in my stead once again."

My hand tapped her shoulder, which drew her attention. Her eyes were filled with sorrow. I lifted my head up and smiled at her. "I wouldn't hesitate to do it again if possible. We're in this together, me, you, and everyone else—no point in clinging to guilt. If you want to feel better, focus on helping us get to Barou's temple. You can repay me by not faltering now."

Lukia's eyes lit up by my response. She covers her mouth as she giggles. Her expression shifting back to normal as she holds a warm smile. "You're absolutely right. I don't know why I got so worked up over it."

"At least you can realize it then it is fine. I'm counting on you to protect me if I need it. But I won't try to rely on you. I am still going to continue to fight despite this pain. This quest has been one of my life's most stressful moments, and we aren't even halfway through it. Adventuring and taking on a Platinum quest at our current level is risky, but if we continue and do our job, we'll be on our way being the best party this world has seen. The Phantom Blades will be known across the seas."

"Okay, big guy, dreaming on like that is Gale's thing. Don't make it yours now, too."

"What can I say, having dreams is just another form of adventure."

The mountains to Barou appear in front of us. Finally, we have reached the first major stretch of our journey and now begin moving on to the second. It's been less than two months since we rode from Saiana. With the given detours and time of recovery, we are slightly behind, and this mountain will take us a month to bypass safely. Time was still against us, but we continued to ride, determined to fight on despite the setbacks...