Roughly another week went by since our escapade to the lake. The time has finally come for me to honor my part of the contract.

I took my time making my final preparations, and I’m finally ready.

Well, I’m saying that, but fact is that most of the preparation I did these thirty days was to prepare myself mentally, I didn’t force myself to train anymore on aina-training nor on physical training.

I know it may have sounded ridiculous, but in my opinion, giving the spirit as well as the body a well-deserved rest is just as important as training relentlessly.

Time has finally come.

Today, at dawn, I will depart to find that one creature I trained myself so relentlessly to challenge, the Primordial Fire Dragon, Amira.

What do I know about that dragon?

Little to nothing.

What is my own pronostic of winning?

I have absolutely no idea.

From what I know, primordial dragons are said to be far more powerful than apostles, even for Solomon. Then, each one of them holds dominion over an element, as the title implies in the name, and the dragon I’m setting up against has dominion over the fire element. That sums up pretty much all I knew about the Dragon Amira.

My pronostic at winning, whatever it is, relies solely under the assumption that that dragon is somehow stronger than Solomon, maybe three or four times, beyond that I would be good for dead. That’s it, right, I, currently, am confident that I can overpower Solomon, I trained two years and I’m confident on that claim now.

That’s pretty much it.

I’m 15 now, 6 years within these woods, 5 among which I would have spent alone if it weren’t for Hon. Things have to be settled now.

I know that I’m being hasty now, but one might understand my stance if I were to wait any longer. I knew that time would fly so fast without any regard for me or whatsoever.

I know it is a strange thing to say but the time I spent within those woods went so fast, all that firstly thanks to Han, maybe it is also because I choose to purposely ignore the curse of time, or because deep within I knew that despite all the misery I’ve been through here, I somehow had fun.

That’s it. I had fun, I found company with Han, Heon, and Nia. If I stretch out with Ezra, the scavenger wyvern, that’s quite a little pack that I managed to make in those 6 years spent here.

I am very happy with their presence and with the state of things, but this has to come to an end. I have no right to impose my own contentment on either Han or Nia.

My own satisfaction over this situation doesn’t change a thing as to what I have to do.

I clearly know what I have to do and I’m going to do it.

***

"Hurry up."

"Yeah, yeah. Where are you taking me again, this time? Another Wyrm-infested lake? "

This morning, just after I woke up, I was urged by Nia since apparently she had something to show me, somewhere, once again.

I had been urged since the morning, but it was only now in the middle of the afternoon that we left home.

Once again, above her flying spear, she said.

"No, it is not. In fact, what I want to show you is somewhere you’re familiar with. "

"Somewhere I’m familiar with, huh?"

With the direction we were heading, I already guessed where that could be.

One weeks has passed since Nia and I talked about how weird we were behaving around each other, though that didn’t magically solve the problem, at least it was less awkward since we talked about it.

It is there, but we’re not pretending it’s not there anymore, so it feels less uncomfortable to be around each other.

After several dozens, if not hundreds, of kilometers, we finally arrived at what I suppose was our destination.

"What did you bring me here for? Challenge me in a fight or something like that. "

We are currently in the middle of an immense wasteland of easily a hundred square kilometers, which two years ago was still a verdant plain, but my incessant training and activities in this place have reduced it to this current state.

Now that I’m here, I feel somehow responsible for how much damage I inflicted on this poor place, but it was just that due to how far it was from home, I could unleash myself without having to hold back.

"No, why would I do that? It’s not like I would have had a chance of winning anyway."

"Then why?"

"As I said, there is something I wanted to show you. But since we got earlier, I guess we’ll have to wait a bit. Luckily, I brought just what was needed. "

Unlike last time, this time she brought with her some basic equipment for camping, mainly a handwoven mat, a very primitive pillow and a basket full of fruits.

"Okay, but you did say that we got here earlier? We’re already at the end of the afternoon, straight up to dusk. When is it supposed to be then? "

She didn’t immediately answer, instead she looked up at the sky and said.

"Nighttime, when the moon and the stars will be shining brightly in the sky."

"Eh? I’m somehow curious as to what it is now. "

Using the mat, we sat up in the middle of nowhere and waited for the time to come.

To make the wait go faster, we talked about random things. Some ended shortly, while others could go on for some time before we changed the subject.

"Hey, Hôn."

"Hum?"

"Last time, you asked what I would like to do once I reach the human continent.

"I did ask that?"

"Yes, you did. Back then, I said I didn’t know. But now, I think I do. When I’ll be there, I think I’ll start writing stories. "

"Just like your father did?"

"Yes, just like my father did."

"That’s a good thing... to know what you want to do. Besides I find the prospect of weaving a story into oneself a beautiful dream. "

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"I don’t know much about the process of becoming a writer, but I’ll make sure to read what you’ll write in the future."

"Thanks," looking around and up above, she added, "That should be time."

She stood up, then proceeded to untie her hair, then arrange it into a twintail.

"You know, since I was a child, I have had a strange obsession with the sky.

"Why?"

"I don’t know. You might think I’m delusional, but I just have the impression that something is calling to me from there, really, really far away. So far, so far that all I hear is faint and undescriptible whispers. Weird, isn’t it? "

"Well, I’m not very well-placed to call it weird, but yes, it is weird indeed."

She simply smiled and added, "Wanna see something even weirder? What if I told you that I can hear nature, no, I think it would be more accurate to say that I can hear the earth whispering?

"I would say that that’s very weird indeed."

"I knew you would say that."

She walked away, putting a certain distance between us, then said, "Not only can I feel her whispers, but also her heart beating. Do you want to hear it too?"

Without waiting for an answer, she graciously raised her hand, then started doing steps that left me quite confused, but soon I realized that it was a dance.

One can quite imagine that a dance without background music can get pretty awkward, but that wasn’t the case here.

Under the dark-blue and starry sky, she danced.

Her hair was radiating with a golden brilliance, with its sky-blue ends emitting a very hypnotic blue that resembled that of the blue open sky.

Around her, eight small bubbles appeared, each containing within their blue membrane a particular and singular color.

With each step she took with her dance, a strange ripple was emitted from her, covering the entire room with its redundancy. It was, as she said, it sounded like a pulse.

She was dancing without any music, yet a melody was clearly audible in the background, that of the pulse, combined with a strange sound that associate with ice crackling, and finally a strange audible breeze, astonishingly the three distinct didn’t produce anything cacophonous instead it meshed perfectly produce a soothing, gentle and pleasant melody.

She was neither exuding mana, nor actively controlling Aina the way I usually do, yet I felt a strange change in the surrounding area.

It was indeed precise that we were in the middle of an empty wasteland, and that was particularly thanks to us and our said trainning. That same wasteland was, right now undergoing a strange and sudden change.

It became more and more visible with each pulse, as the barren wasteland regained more and more of its lost greenery. Grasses sprouted from the barren, followed by bush and, finally, trees that appeared as if by magic around us.

On Nia’s side, she was finishing her dance and was, I believe, making the finishing step.

Though I couldn’t only appreciate it through Han’s eyes, I wasn’t spared by the grace and holiness of what we were witnessing.

Somewhat entranced, I somehow didn’t notice that she was done with it, and was now in front of me.

"How was it ?"

"How was it, huh? I don’t know what to say. Was it your father who taught you to dance like that."

The sight of the bloodthirsty Solomon, dancing around and shaking his hips, crossed my mind.

"Of course not, idiot. I came up with it myself. "

Pouting with a humph, she was about to turn her back to me, when I instinctively reached my hand out to her.

"Wait- I didn’t mean to say it like this, instead,..." This time, voluntarily, I pulled her toward me, and pressed her head onto my chest. "Sorry, but I sucked at describing something as abstract as a dance, but I think my heart will tell you enough."

At first, she tried to move away, but she soon just laid her head on my chest.

"It beats fast… but what am I supposed to understand from that? "

"Haha… Fair enough. I don’t know how to explain it, but I liked it. "

"So, how did you do that? I did feel you using your mana and aina for a moment, but I didn’t feel that any of them interfered in the rising of all of this. "

That’s it, it felt like it was neither of both, instead it felt like the grasses and the tree naturally grew, but there was nothing natural in thel growing at such an incredible speed.

Standing and spreading her arm as to show me the world behind she said, "As I said, I can hear the whisper of earth."

"Euh? Are you saying and implying that you can talk to you can talk to the earth? "

As if expecting my answer, she said, "Not talking, earth has no mouth, so she doesn’t speak, but she does whisper. There are no words exchanged, just understanding, in a way… I think it is the same as with dragons. "

"Dragon, huh?"

It was true that she shared some weird relationship with dragons, this area of the forest is teeming with powerful mythical beasts but dragons are kings among them, yet for some reason, I can’t explain why she is able to, let’s call it that, befriend Dragons and other Dragonoîd.

At first, I thought that it was only the Wyvern she calls Ezra who was acting friendly because she knew the benefits she would reap by remaining at our side. But as time went by, I realized that it wasn’t just Ezra but every dragon and dragonoid. Though it only works on dragons and dragonoîd, it was as if she had some sort of pacifism skill that allows her to befriend magic.

Pacifying dragons was one thing, but claiming to be able to control and communicate with Earth itself was entirely something else.

Naturally, being me, I couldn't help but ask.

"What else can you do with that?... I mean, what else can you ask Earth to do besides this? "

She shook her head.

"I barely learned how to do this a few weeks ago. Almost two years ago, I did use this, no, misused this… "

Almost two years ago?

I then remembered that one time, I allowed her to go hunting with Heon. That time, I arrived too late to witness anything, the surroundings were destroyed in a very strange manner. It was like nothing I've ever seen before.

"I remember it, back then, you mean what you did-"

"Not what I did. All I did was wish for that snake to die a slow and painful death, but it was clear from everything around me that life was plummeting... It was not within my control."

Talk about being able to inflict damage on something without having to inflict physical damage on it.

Well, maybe not so much if you can’t control it.

"I see."

"I know this is a strange gift, but I’d like to never use it that way again."

"Don’t worry, it’s not like I will ask you to use it. I mean, at first, I did somehow train you, but it was mainly because I thought that would be useful to you. But, you’re not me, I mean, just look at you. This place is one of the most dangerous places on earth and you’re doing fine. I have no say as to what you want to do with your magic, your aina, or even less with this strange ability of yours, whatever it is. How you use it is all up to you. "

A strange silence took place for several seconds, then she said.

"Thanks."

"What are you thanking me for?"

Thinking back, when I invited her to join us, from what I’ve seen so far, maybe she would’ve been able to fend off for herself even if we didn't take her in.

"Hey, Nia."

"Hum?"

"Come here." I waved.

She was hesitant at first, but still approached.

"Reach your hand out."

Reaching out for my neck, I took the pendant, I made from Solomon’s ring, off, then put it in her hand.

She said nothing for a moment, then asked, "Why?"

"Why "why?", this does belong to you in the first place."

"Not that, I mean, why now?"

"Well, I don’t know. To be honest, I don't remember why I took the ring in the first place; I believe it was to give you a reason to, perhaps, "hate" me, or at the very least, to hold me responsible for what I did to your father, but that didn't happen. Strange, isn't it? "

Just as I was about to let go of her hand, she vigorously pushed the necklace onto me.

"Keep it."

"As I said, I don’t-"

"Keep it!... I haven’t forgiven you, yet! So keep it, please."

I must admit, I was slightly taken aback by that response, so it took me a few seconds to muster a reply.

"Okay, but why wouldn’t you keep it first? I will take it back once this is all settled. I can’t afford to have it destroyed amidst the fight. Are you okay with that? "

She nodded.

With that, we left the heavy subject and discussed until the time came that she felt sleepy, which came exactly a few minutes before dawn.

***

A few hours later, we were back on the peninsula.

I had brought Nia back to her "bed".

I had not much to bring with me for this expedition, so in a way, I was already finely ready to go.

"Hey, Nia, I think I’m ready to go. Don’t you have anything nice to say, like, some sort of short farewell? I might be gone for some time, you know. "

Since I got no answer, I ventured, "If... Should I not re-" only to be interrupted.

With a still sleepy voice, she answered, "Umh... I don’t like farewells. "

"Then... What about wishing me luck."

"Wishing you luck, huh?"

I felt a strange stare at me.

"What?"

She approached, then murmured something to my ears.

It had nothing to do with farewell and even less with wishing me luck, yet upon hearing it, I couldn't help but break out into laughter.

"Hahahaha… I’ll do my best, to return as fast as I can then. "

I reached my hand out, then said, patting her, "Take care of yourself during our absence. It shouldn't take too long. "

With that, I left her chamber, and landed on the ground.

Just as I was about to go, Nia called me with a name that has been long since used.

"... Good Luck."

Heon, who was laying on the corner, next to Ezra the Wyvern, stood up and approached.

"And you too, Heon, good luck and take care of him."

"..." She let out a short yet somehow majestic howl.

"I’m not sure if I translated right, but on our behalf, thanks."

With these words said, we embarked on yet another journey.

***

“Han.”

“Hum?”

“It’s been some time now. About what happened that day in the lake.”

“Ah, that. What about it?”

“You said we would talk about it later on, about the headaches and what I saw… back then.”

“... Are you sure you want to talk about it?”

“On second thought, I don’t think I want to. I think and feel that this would be best left untouched.”

“I, too, do think so. Is that all?”

“Yes, I think that’s all.”