Zero waited 5 minutes for Pia to leave but she was still looking at him with a shocked look.
‘This girl is starting to freak me out here. I told her to leave but she’s still here so I guess I’ll just throw her out.’
Zero walked passed the still Pia, grabbed her by the collar, and proceeded to toss her out of the house. Zero wasn’t gentle about it so he threw her a few feet from the house and then shut the door. He then looked at Pia and said, “I’ll be leaving tomorrow and I won’t tell the villagers about you so goodnight.”
Saying what he need Zero closed the door and not wanting to be disturbed he cast a lingua he just thought off "Inaudible Fortis Aer." This type of mid-level spell would create an impenetrable barrier made of compressed air that would prevent anyone from entering the protected space without permission. The barrier would be invisible and near-solid, making it hard to detect and even harder to pass through, while being silent and hard to notice, making it a very effective way to protect something or someone.
Zero then walked to the bed and lay down. His silence spell was still in effect so even if Pia were to bang the air wall with her fists he wouldn’t be able to hear it.
‘These lingua spells seem to take quite a bit of mana when compared to the sigil magic I learned before. However, once you understand the language used it’s easier to craft new spells as opposed to the sigils where you’d have to create or alter a sigil. Although I’m curious as to why there are only 8 schools of magic and no branch of summoning or creation magic. Hmm maybe there are and this soul simply wasn’t high-level enough and didn’t know about it.’
With that thought, he closed his eyes and went to sleep as there was nothing to gain from staying up all night. Zero opened his eyes when he heard a rooster cry in the morning. When he looked out the window he saw a magical creature that resembles a rooster, but with a few distinct differences. Firstly, its feathers are a brilliant gold color that shimmer and shine in the sunlight. Secondly, its comb and wattle are made of a hard, shimmering gold material that is said to have healing properties. The bird called a golden rooster has the ability to lay golden eggs, which is the reason why gold is considered a worthless rock in the world of Aetheria.
‘People on earth would kill for that chicken.’
Yawning Zero got up and looked around the house for a sink to wash his face when he realized that there was none. He looked out the window again to see Pia with dark circles under her eyes drawing water from a well to wash her face.
Zero then exited the house to also get some water from the well. When Pia saw him walking towards her she backed away and eyed him closely watching his every move as he ignored her and drew some water. When he finished washing his face he turned to Pia and asked, “I thought everyone in the world had sinks and running water how come there aren’t any here?”
“You must come from the human capital if you believe that. You, humans, took our technology to advance yourselves but the nobles hoard it while regular people suffered. I was surprised too when I first visited a village and found they didn’t even have a concept of medicine yet even though they have had our knowledge for years.” said Pia
“Ah well, it’s the way of the world I’m sure even in your fallen kingdom there was a system like that. You must not have seen it being at the top. In every society there need to be a top and a bottom so that people at the bottom have something to work towards.” said Zero before walking away
Zero knocked on the village chief's door. When the old man opened the door Zero smiled and said, “Good sir I wanted to thank you for your hospitality last night and to inform you that I’ll be leaving now.”
“I see well I hope you have a safe journey. I appreciate all the help you gave us in clearing the debris around here. Here is a bag containing some bread, dried meat, and some water. Safe travels.” said the old man as he handed a bag to Zero
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As Zero prepared to leave the village, Pia couldn't bear the thought of being alone again. Pia couldn't help but be drawn to him and she made the bold decision to follow him, secretly trailing him as he made his way out of the village.
Zero was aware of her presence but he ignored her, thinking that either she would eventually stop following him or the beasts would kill and devour her. However, as Pia continued to follow Zero they eventually came across a pair of predatory eyes that looked at them from some bushes a few feet away.
The creature exited the bushes and it was a large, black wolf with piercing, red eyes that seem to glow in the darkness. Its fur is sleek and glossy, almost as if it's made of shadows. It had an elongated snout and razor-sharp teeth. The people of this world called it a Shadow Wolf and as its name described it had the ability to manipulate the darkness. It could create a cloak of darkness around its body that makes it completely invisible, and it can also use this cloak to intimidate its enemies, making them feel a sense of fear and dread.
The shadow wolf leaped out of the bushes and dashed toward Pia as it seemed to deem her to be the weaker of the prey. The shadow wolf is a creature of the night, thus it is rarely seen during the day, and it is said that it only emerges from the shadows when it senses danger or when it is hunting. This was why the attack was unusual since it had boldly attacked them in the morning.
‘I wonder what’s wrong with it? It has no wounds and doesn’t look to be starving so it should have no reason to break its habits. Hmm maybe someone is controlling it?’
Pia managed to barely dodge the first attack by the wolf. Zero, however, seemed uninterested in the potential danger and simply observed the situation with a detached gaze.
The Shadow Wolf let out a deafening howl and lunged at Pia again. Pia immediately recognized it as a dangerous predator and knew that she had to act fast. She quickly raised a revolver that she had strapped to her tight and fired at the creature, but it was able to dodge her shots with ease. Pia's heart was racing as she realized that this was a battle for survival.
Zero watched the fight from the sidelines, his expression unchanging. He made no move to protect Pia or assist her in the battle. Pia had briefly looked in his direction and when she noticed his behavior she felt a sense of betrayal and disappointment. She had thought that although they were strangers and didn’t have the friendliest of meetings he would at least attempt to assist her.
The fight between Pia and the Shadow Wolf was intense and chaotic. The Shadow Wolf was a formidable opponent, its speed and agility making it difficult for Pia to hit it with her revolver. It lunged at her with its razor-sharp teeth, attempting to take her down. Pia, using her revolver, managed to dodge its attacks and fire back. The Shadow Wolf was able to dodge some of her shots but some of them hit their mark, making the creature let out pained howls.
Pia's heart was racing as she struggled to fend off the creature. She knew that one mistake could mean the end for her. She was quick on her feet, moving and dodging the Shadow Wolf's attacks, trying to find an opening to shoot it again.
The Shadow Wolf was relentless in its attack, it kept coming at Pia, sensing its prey was vulnerable. Pia was sweating and her hands were shaking, but she kept her focus, determined to come out of the fight alive.
The creature was fast, but Pia was able to keep up with it, using her revolver to shoot it again and again. The Shadow Wolf howled in pain and fury, but it refused to back down. Pia had to shoot it a few more times before it fell to the ground, motionless.
The creature let out one last howl and then lay still. Pia was breathing heavily, her hands shaking from the adrenaline rush. She had barely managed to defeat the Shadow Wolf, and she knew that she had been lucky to come out of the fight alive. Her attention turned to a clapping noise and she instinctively turned to shoot but her revolver turned mana into bullets and she was now running close to empty so it couldn’t fire.
When she calmed down enough to realize what was going on she saw Zero smiling and clapping. He then said, “Congrats on surviving I thought the wolf might kill you there for a second.”
“What the hell is wrong with you!? Didn’t you see me being attacked!? Why didn’t you help me!?” asked an exasperated Pia
Zero looked at her for a few seconds before chuckling. He then said, “Look I’m on a journey and you decided on your own to follow me. I have no obligation to help you or to even risk my life for your sake. If you want to follow me then protect yourself and if you can’t the village is back that way.”
After saying what he need Zero turned around and continued to walk without any consideration for Pia. Pia couldn't help but feel a sense of anger and resentment towards Zero. She had expected much from him but at the very least she expected him to help her in a dangerous situation. Instead, he had simply stood by and watched as she almost died and if she hadn’t had a revolver she might have died. She realized that she couldn't trust him and from that moment on she was more cautious around him. However, she still continued to follow him as he walked.
After a few mintues of silence, Zero asked, “That thing you use is a revolver correct?”
A shocked Pia asked, “How do you know that name? This technology was developed by the alves and only a few prototypes exist currently. Who are you really?”
“Oh, so the alves created guns that run on mana. This destroyed kingdom of yours is becoming more and more interesting the more I hear about it. As for who I am I’m just a regular person on his way to the human kingdom capital.” answered Zero
“Don’t take me for a fool. You know mid-level lingua which is known only by members of the tower and elves. You also seem to know about the technology we alves kept hidden from the rest of the world. I don’t know what you are but you’re anything but ordinary and I even doubt you’re human.” said Pia causing Zero to laugh