Weaving her way through the streets of the village, Lyla kept a constant eye on the woman with auburn hair in front of her. She made her way through the streets on the northern side of the village, near the pier. As she continued pacing behind her, Lyla could feel a myriad of emotions permeating the air around her.

It felt...somewhat similar to Tunsa, although she didn't like to admit it. Each person seemed to be working with a purpose in mind, and their lives seemed to hold meaning.

The soldiers who were getting ready to go off for their daily training sessions, the fishermen who prepared to venture out to sea...and the children who got ready to go for their morning lessons.

Although it somewhat reminded her of home, she didn't hate it. It was those whom had forced her hand and made her play along as if a puppet that she truly held hatred for. In truth, she knew she would always hold fond memories of the times before she'd been absorbed back into the royal family.

The woman in front of her finally turned into one of the side alleys, and Lyla followed behind her. At the edge of the valley, Lyla saw the view of the Azleth River as it stretched towards the far south, where she could see dense forestry being dimly lit by the now rising morning sun.

She still couldn't get used to it. Here, the mornings would be lit by the sun high in the sky. But at night, it was only slightly darker than it was in the day, although the Sun couldn't be seen. This concept felt alien to her, as she finally could empathize with how Kazen had felt when he'd arrived in the Forsaken Continent.

The woman stopped at the edge of the alley, as she entered the door of a two-storied building. A few seconds after the woman had entered, Lyla made her way to the entrance of the building, as she took off her hood.

Butcher's Inn...it's an inn?

Although this would usually serve as an ill sign, for some reason, Lyla didn't feel too worried. From what she could detect as she followed the woman, Lyla couldn't detect any signs of guilt. The only possibilities were that either the woman was a monster who felt no empathy, or she truly wasn't guilty. And from what she had seen in the village so far, she was more inclined to believe the latter.

She took a deep breath, as she opened the door and entered it.

As she did, she saw that the auburn-haired woman was tying her hair behind her, as she donned an apron.

Seeing such a sight, some of the men greeted her, "Amy, you're back again?! Is leaving your boy to your neighbours really a good idea?"

"We're glad to see you, but you really should take a break you know?"

Hearing those words, the woman whose seemed to be called Amy smiled, "It's only for another 4 days anyway. And besides...I really do feel happy coming here to see all of you every day, you know? It almost feels like a second home to me now…and you’re all my second family!"

"Ohh!! Amy!! You're really an angel, aren't you! How did that metal-minded brute even get to marry a woman like you..."

As the woman called Amy threw a spoon at one of customers at his outcry, Lyla finally noticed the other details of the inn she had entered.

What she saw was a cozy hall filled with tables. Men and women sat around round tables as they merrily chatted away, eating pieces of bread dipped with eggs and fried, together with strips of bacon with lines of honey tricking down their sides.

That really does look good...and maybe I do need a reason to talk to Amy anyway...

Lyla gulped, and hesitated before she firmed her determination, and went to one of the corner tables and sat down.

"Hi miss. I'd like to order what those customers are having!"

Lyla said loudly, with enthusiasm in her voice as she pointed to one of the tables beside her, where there were people eating the egg-bread and bacon.

Amy walked over to Lyla, as she bowed and smiled, "Sorry about this, but you'll have to order and pay at the counter before sitting down."

* * *

"I'd like to order one of those...egg toasts please."

As her face reddened at the laughter of some of the people sitting in the inn, she paid a few bronze coins she'd gotten from the blacksmith as she made her way to the corner table.

As she sat down and looked around the inn, Amy approached Lyla, seemingly having her hands free at the moment.

"You're new around here? It's always nice seeing a new face around these parts. Makes us feel popular, you know? Given that people think us Liuthians like isolating ourselves and all that..."

Lyla grew happy since her target had come to her, and tried to strike up some casual conversation first, "We're heading to Haslom, so we came here to take the ferry. But...my friend and I decided to stay for a bit longer. This place has been amazing!"

Hearing praise about her village, the woman beamed, "Right?! And if you take follow a guide and head east along the river, the cliffs there have a gorgeous view! You really should try visiting some time! And if you have any questions, you can always come back here to ask me!"

"Thanks! But...when will you be around? I heard some of those guys mention you'll only be working here for 4 more days?"

Hearing that made Amy realize her fault, as she smacked her head, "Ah! I forgot about that, sorry! I'll still visit here on the first day of every week on the evenings, so you can still find me if you'd like. If you're free, that is."

Making sure to take advantage of the flow of the conversation, Lyla quickly replied her, "I am curious though, is there a reason you're quitting? A gorgeous woman like you would always be welcome in a place like right? I could see that your customers love you!"

Amy grinned, "Well, that's because..."

* * *

"Your wife wasn't cheating on you."

Lyla said that as she faced the blacksmith, who was sitting behind the table of his desk in his room.

"I don't think she would either...but I am worried. What about my son? He's only two this year...who's taking care of him?! And if Amy's in any kind of trouble, she should at least tell me, shouldn't she?! I could at least help her! What if she's going through something painful alone..."

Seeing the blacksmith grow more agitated by the moment, Lyla quickly replied, "There's no need to panic. Your neighbours are taking care of him! And rest assured, there's no problem she's currently facing, and there's nothing to worry about. She’s just been working at an inn called the Butcher’s Inn down on 5th Street near the river for the past 2 weeks. "

The blacksmith finally calmed down a little, "...Then, what's the reason she's has to work there in the first place? If she needed money, she could have just asked me. I already feel bad for making her take most of the responsibility on raising our son…"

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Lyla grew silent, "...That isn't for me to say. You didn't ask me to investigate either, right? What I can promise you is that she isn't going through anything painful."

As she said those words, a clink sounded as a bag filled with 40 silver fell on the table. Lyla's eyes immediately darted to the bag, "Well...I suppose I could give you a little hint."

And Lyla smiled, while keeping her eyes fixed on the bag of coins, "...Is there anything special that's happening 4 days from now?"

Hearing that, the blacksmith pondered, "In 4 days? Do I have any requests to finish?...No, that's in 3 days."

"Perhaps...a kind of special day for someone?"

"A special day....ah! My birthday!"

Lyla nodded, "And what do you do for people on their birthdays?..."

"What do you do? Obviously, you'd get them presents..."

The blacksmith's eyes widened as he came to a realization, "So that's why...looks like I needn't have worried after all, haha!"

The blacksmith bellowed with laughter as he became filled with pleasant joy. Feeling his genuine emotions, Lyla couldn't help but feel infected by his joy as she put on a smile as well. After a few moments, the blacksmith finally realized he was in front of another person, as he coughed and tried to change the topic.

"W-well, I'm glad you were able to find out about this. Really, thank you."

Lyla waved her hand, "It's no problem, we should be the one thanking you. After all, we've already taken up space in your home for 5 days now...is he really not any better?"

The blacksmith shook his head, "Not yet. He's still stable, but...he might need a little more time."

As the blacksmith said those words, he went to the kitchen, as he brought out some dishes and placed it on the table, "Today, will you once again be..."

Lyla nodded, as she took the bowl of porridge, and entered Kazen's room.

* * *

Seeing Kazen still sleeping on his bed, Lyla sighed. She slowly walked up to him as she postured herself, and sat down on the side of his bed.

Then, she took a spoon of porridge as she blew on it to cool it down, slowly feeding it to him.

Though I don’t get how he’s able to swallow it while unconscious…

Although he was still unconscious, it seemed like physical body was still active. He instinctively gulped down the porridge as she fed it to him, and his breathing was stable.

It had already been 5 days since he’d fallen unconscious. Seeing the outcome of his enchantment, it seemed to Lyla that the blacksmith thought it’d be a good investment to get to know an enchanter, as he offered up a room in his residence.

And so, she’d been sleeping over here over the past 5 days. Not wanting to waste her time, she’d gone to explore the surrounding areas, and had offered to carry out the blacksmith’s request even though Kazen had succeeded in his enchantment to repay his goodwill.

Although…it’d be nice if he woke up sooner. We really do need to reach Haslom…

As if he had heard her thoughts, Lyla noticed that Kazen’s arm suddenly twitched.

He was starting to wake up.

* * *

Why…am I fighting against him once more?

As Kazen sat at the corner of the training hall, he watched as a black-haired man with golden eyes fought against a youth, exchanging blows every few seconds.

As he watched the battle, Kazen couldn’t help but be reminded of his loss in his spar.

And it was no wonder he was reminded of that battle, since the youth he saw before him now was…him.

As the battle reached its peak, he relived the scene where Richards broke his sword by exerting his moonlight imbued with ‘Sharpness’. And as the sword broke, the world shattered along with it, leading rise to a different view.

He felt himself as a gigantic worm, filled with the broken sword and its shards in his belly, causing him immense pain. He tried to use [Hibernation], and though it restored his flesh that had been pierced by the sword, the pain still remained.

Perhaps I could dull down its sharpness…

He slowly disintegrated the sharp edges of the swords using the acid in his stomach. The sharp edges slowly disintegrated over time, but rather than dissolving into liquid, the sharp edges simply broke off from the edges of the sword, into even tinier fragments of powdery steel.

Still, the end result was that Kazen felt less pain now, and he was glad for it.

Feeling all better, he finally started feeling the hunger from not having eaten for a long time due to his pain. And so, he burrowed into the earth, in search of food to consume.

After roaming for some time, he came across a wide ocean of grains boiled with milk, giving off a similar impression to that of porridge. He immediately dived into the sea of porridge, devouring it as he swam into its depths.

And when he was finally full, he wanted to return upwards, before he fell through the bottom of the ocean of porridge, suddenly appearing in a battlefield under a blood-red sky.

He suddenly felt like he could raise his hands, and so he did. He realized that he’d returned to his human body. And he looked around.

Dead bodies were everywhere, as the blood around him seemed to reach up to his ankles. He felt a foreboding emotion, as he slowly looked up and in front of him…only to see a man with dark green hair reaching up to his shoulders staring back at him.

His right arm had been severed, while the other held a spear filled with a metallic aura.

The man started channelling mana, as the spear on his left arm started to disintegrate. The man’s aura started rising, as he seemed to become the spear itself, radiating an aura of unparalleled sharpness. Then, the stump of his right arm started bubbling with green mana, as the man lost the sharpness he’d gained…and the stump of his right arm started growing.

And in seconds, his right arm had been replaced…by the blade of a sword, rather than a new arm. And although the man had lost his sharpness, he felt more dangerous than ever before.

And as he stared at Kazen, his lips suddenly curled into a melancholic, frightening smile…as he muttered.

Avenge me.

* * *

Kazen’s body suddenly shot upwards as he woke up, heaving and gasping for breath. His mind raced, as the thoughts that overwhelmed his mind started to make his head hurt.

In a spiral of confusion, Kazen…couldn’t help but start to question who he was. The dream he had in the Forsaken Continent…the vision he’d seen of the man with green hair…his identity in the Forsaken Continent…and whether he was even Kazen, all started to make him doubt himself.

“Are you injured? Is there something wrong?!”

As his mind was filled with chaotic thoughts, he heard a worried voice cry out, as he finally started to stabilize his breathing. His thoughts started to calm down a little, as he finally turned his face to look at the source of the voice.

He saw a blue-haired woman staring at him with her green pupils, her face somewhat close to his own.

And Kazen immediately inched back, as he knocked his head onto the wall at the back of his bed.

“Ah! I-I’m alright…just had a weird dream for a while.”

Lyla observed him with skepticism for a moment, before she grinned, “Well, look who’s shy now! Your entire face is red because my own face was close to yours, right?! Naturally, it makes sense for someone as beautiful as me to make your heart skip a beat. Even you’d said you wanted a gorgeous lady to work in case you lost the enchantment battle…”

And with the mood shattered, Kazen sighed, as he flicked Lyla’s forehead, causing her to yelp in pain as she held both palms across her forehead.

“Why’d you hit me! You know, who do you think kept you alive for the past few days?!”

Kazen immediately winced, as he realized he shouldn’t have flicked her, even if he meant no harm. It was only then that he looked around, noticing a bowl of porridge on the table beside the bed, and a mattress on the floor beside him.

Seeing this sight, the mind that had been spiraling into negativity and self-doubt eased finally eased itself for the time being, being replaced by an inexplicable emotion of warmth.

He could finally put on a gentle smile, as he replied her, “Yeah…I know. Thanks, Lyla.”

Lyla suddenly looked blank, as she replied, “W-well, good that you know! Even though you ended up fainting…at least your plan worked.”

And she fished out a bag of coins, as she shook it, making the coins within clink together.

With a grin, she exclaimed, “And now, we already have 120 silver coins! The blacksmith offered to buy the sword you had enchanted for 70 silvers, and he gave me around 50 silvers for helping him do several other tasks too. It’s a shame that one of the earth cores broke, but we still have 4 more! You know what this means?”

Hearing that his weapon had been sold for only 20 silvers higher than the original price, Kazen’s eyes twitched. Wondering what kind of point Lyla was trying to make, he asked her, “What?”

“It means we can finally get our gear and get going to Haslom, so hurry up and pack up!”