Dispersing all the Arcanas that he had not used yet, Alnea walked next to Yuri, just as she dispersed the ring of black fog back into the darkness of the canyon. And though she did not look injured, from the sweat on her forehead, he could tell how much stressed she was in the fight.
“I told you that we should look for a different beast.”
“Did you see how I led the fox into the trap with my Dark Blades?” Cecilia said, joining them with a smug grin on her face. “My Arcanas are not that useless anymore, are they?”
“…None of your blades hit the fox though.”
“You arrow hit it only because of the chance I created for you,” Cecilia said with a scoff. “Some people don’t even know how to be grateful.”
Ignoring Cecilia’s playful tantrums, Alnea turned towards Yuri, and said, “Was that fog Death’s Touch, or Death’s Breath?”
“…Neither,” Yuri said, withdrawing her Aspect back into her body. “It is a mix of both… just executed in the style of ‘Wall of Corrosion’. I came up with its idea during the fights that he we have had in the last two days. It was originally just an experiment that I did in my free time… but it works better than I had imagined.”
Turning towards him with a smile, she added, “And I said that I could handle it.”
“…Try to keep your experiments to a limit,” Alnea said, trying to ignore the smug voice in his head. “You should wait until you become a True Wanderer before incorporating more than one Mystery in an Arcana.”
“…Combining two or Mysteries in a single Arcana is indeed dangerous,” Cecilia said, joining them with a grin on her face. “But I am sure that it is nothing for Yuri.”
“…Why are you girl getting crazier with every passing day?”
“…At least we are not crazy enough to feel pity for the beasts that we kill,” Yuri said with a teasing smile. After a moment of silence though, the smile in her eyes turned into concern. “Are you alright?”
“…Using it once in a while is not too dangerous. And my will is much stronger than what it was when I created the Arcana. I should be fine even if I use it a dozen more times.”
“…And you call us crazy,” Cecilia mumbled, before turning towards the beast on the ground. “The fox isn’t too heavy. We should be able to carry it in its entirety.”
“You mean I should be able to carry it in its entirety.”
“…I have to lead the way.”
“…Using the new Arcana, and a High Grade Martial Style has drained most of my Spirit Power…”
“Fine, fine, there is no need to make so many excuses. I am used to carrying our prey anyways.”
“…Think of it as training your body.”
“Yeah, right. One experience of Fortune Spring is better than a year of such stupid training.”
“Fortune Springs that increase physical strength are not too common.”
“Fortune Spring themselves are not too common. And yet, we have been finding them with an average of one Fortune Spring within a month. If we try enough times, we are bound to find a one that can increase my physique.”
“We will see… For now, we should get moving. Other things can wait until we reach our camp.”
“Fine…” Alnea grumbled, and shifted his leather bag to his chest, before squatting down, with his back to the fox’s body. With Cecilia’s help, he then grabbed on to the front legs of the fox, and pulled them over his shoulders, before getting up, so that the fox’s headless body kept hanging from his back, adding probably around two hundred kilograms to his shoulders. Not enough to make him buckle, but enough to make him slow down to crawl.
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Thankfully, they had a clear route back to their cave. Still, their crawling speed, and the need to avoid some of the stronger, and stubborn Oren Beasts stretched their journey to roughly over an hour and a half. By the time they reached the cave, Alnea was practically drenched in sweat. Even though he not leading the way, and had fought only once, casting his Arcanas from a distance, he was much more tired than his two friends.
His hunger forced him to stay awake, and complete his duties for a while. But when his stomach was full, not even Cecilia’s nagging, or Yuri’s pouts were enough to stop him from drifting into the land of his dreams. Into the land of…
Alnea Oathkeeper. The Abandoned son of the Oathkeeper clan. The man abandoned by the Origin Sea itself. Or so the world knew him as. A powerless human, who could not even stand against Novice Attuners…
When he had beaten all the Novice Attuners, they had sent Adept Attuners against him. They were much more difficult to deal with than Novice Attuners, but if he relied on his Oathkeeper Arts, and used some sneak attacks, he more than capable enough of taking down some of the weaker Adept Attuners. And if luck was with him, which seldom was, he even had a chance of fighting off some of the stronger Adept Attuners.
Master Attuners though, they were far too strong for him. It was not just a matter of lack of Aspects. Master Attuners were like a different species in themselves, their bodies comparable in strength to Aspects Beasts. Not to mention the special abilities they had. Surely, they would be able to take him down, the Acolytes of Origin had thought. And so had Alnea Oathkeeper. Until the day he had felt the call of his Oath. Until the day he had felt the call of his sword. So what if he could not use Aspects? He still had his Oaths. And they were enough.
Raising the ‘Sword of Oath’ in his hand, Alnea Oathkeeper faced the three Master Attuners, and said, “Let me show you the strength of my Oaths.”
Alnea woke up more Serene than ever. And it was not just because of his dream. Even before he opened his eyes, he could feel a soft sensation under his head. Not like the hard, rocky ground he usually woke up on. But not like the pillows he had used back in Anneve… The softness was more like the laps of his master. However, it was not exactly like his master’s lap either.
Instead of the warmth, and sense of security that he felt from his master, the lap he was resting on gave him more of a cosy feeling, the kind that he had never felt before. It gave him a feeling of Serenity… that resonated perfectly with the Serenity of his Heart… and something even deeper. It resonated with his Spirit itself. He could not point out exactly was it was, but for a moment, he could feel himself becoming one with the lap he was resting on. And when he opened his yes, he understood part of the reason why the lap felt so Serene.
“The sleeping beauty is finally awake.”
“…I would prefer if you would call me the sleeping handsome,” Alnea said, closing his eyes in protest, refusing to get up from Yuri’s lap.
“There, I finally see your cheeky side once again,” Yuri said, pinching his nose for a moment. “I was almost starting to believe that you were my mother in disguise.”
“…Have I been so bad recently?”
“You surely have been nagging a lot.”
“…I was just a little worried.”
“And did worrying help?”
“…I just don’t want you, and Cecilia to get hurt. Is that too selfish of me?”
“…I remember how you once told me that everyone is selfish for one thing or the other. And that you are the most selfish person in the world. What is so bad about being a little more selfish?”
“…Did I really say that?”
“You sure did.”
“…I really am a little too cheeky.”
“Good that you know,” Yuri said with a chuckle, while gently stroking his hair. “Being selfish is not bad. As long as you are not selfish for yourself, everything would be fine.”
“…Is there a but?”
“…Is your selfishness for us, or is it for the sake of your Heart?”
“…Is there a difference?”
“Don’t run, Alnea.”
Indeed, Alnea thought. It was time to stop running from the truth.
“…It is for my Heart.”
“…You may have taken the Oath to become the greatest Wanderer, but I am not going to let you leave me behind. And Cecilia will not give without a fight either. Believe in us. And let us face the dangers with you.”
“…Do you remember the things that happened last year?”
“…Many things happened last year. What exactly are you talking about?”
“The things that I told you about… My dreams, and the curse of my fate…”
“…I remember everything.”
“Almost a year has gone by… Time surely flies by fast.”
“That is why we need to treasure every moment that we have with each other.”
“…Counting the time, Inkah’s month should be almost upon us.”
“…What are you trying to say?”
Opening his eyes, Alnea looked directly into Yuri’s crystal blue eyes, and said, “The curse of my fate… I think it has come back.”