If the West boasts the mysteries of the densest forests and the fertile grasslands providing Hele with their daily nourishment, not much of the same can be said about the Southern areas of CANDEMARO. While most towns share the fertile land stretching down to the valley, rocky terrain greets travelers once they follow the Naga River down to its waterfall. Even so, the thinning of the woods and several pockets of good soil has given the people in the South a multitude of products to develop.

As Aiden takes a turn to the path away from the Naga River, his eyes, which was glued to the Southern Postal House since then, has shifted down to a mark he is nearing: The Southern Digma town of Mado.

Keeping the map away in his pocket and focusing on the dirt path glistening under the rays of the high sun, Aiden recalls one of the stories about the town the weavers of Hele has shared to him once.

"Majority of our beautiful fabrics go to the Histres* of Mado. They are the ones who furnish clothing pieces to be sold in the four ends of CANDEMARO!"

"Though they are quite eccentric in their demands for precision, they are the most favorable people to do business with."

"Aside from Histres, that town is also home to Pacifie, the best restaurant in all of the country!"

"For us Encantos, it can be harsh to travel to the stone cities, for there is none to forage within their boundaries, but Pacifie is like an oasis in the desert: the local produce harvested in the nearby grasslands and cliff sides make their way on their plates to quench your hunger!"

"I bet you'll crave for their food even if you're not hungry at all!"

The thought of food has given Aiden quite a daydream as he nears the notorious town. The sun is up high on its heavenly throne, which makes the Water's Son's craving all the more justified. He dashes towards the dirt path, looking onward until he finds the stone arch marking the entryway to Mado. Controlling the urge to whoop in excitement, Aiden approaches the arch. As he does, he notices its uneven, chipped edges, as well as signs of sacrifices left by either foot of the arch. One of the artifacts left on the right foot of the arch; just above the carving of the town's name, is a polished opaque blue stone nestled on a dirty-looking cloth. Seeing the item has reminded Aiden of his family gem which currently sits inside his mother's golden staff.

Aiden looks on to the lone road leading inside of town. The sides are lined with low buildings made of smooth white stones, their porches extending to claim some of the road, seemingly to give visitors a good view of the products they are selling. Because it is high day, many has put up their awnings to keep the harsh sunrays away from their crates and displays. As Aiden enters town, he finds joy in recognizing some familiar weaving patterns on the fabrics of the awnings. Halfway down the road, he realizes that there is not much people outside, making his initial thought of the town less magical. He looks over his shoulder, recounting if he has met any wagons along the way. The dust is undisturbed behind him. The more he walks through town and peers to the vendor stands, he finds no one tending to the shops, or if he finds a clerk, they sit by the shade, looking glum and bored.

A strange premonition eventually creeps through Aiden. What could have happened? He approaches the next stall-- a fruit shop-- and attempts to strike a conversation to the clerk. The clerk, who seems to not be interested in a sale, waves their hand dismissively to Aiden. The Water's Son sighs and goes on his way, trying the same attempt in a different stall, but all the clerks seem too tired to talk; others rudely shut their shops at Aiden's nose.

Scoffing at the last attempt, Aiden turns a left to one of the alleys, fuming yet confused of the unruly attitudes of the shopkeepers in Mado. As he stomps in the middle of the alley, he notices the glowing light of an overhead wooden sign dancing in the air. He reads the sign: Pacifie. Looking at the front window of the establishment, Aiden finds the "open" sign and decides to enter without knocking.

He fumbles with the knob for a second, but manages to swing the door open, greeting out of respect: "Corde ioi K'raas jahn.**" He subconsciously bows as he greets, before looking up and around the quaint space.

"Welcome to Pacifie, young Encanto~" a small, cheery voice croaks from the counter ahead.

Aiden turns to the old lady behind the counter, his eyes gasping at the recognition, prompting the lady to produce a triumphant, toothy grin that highlights the wrinkles of her face.

"It's been a while since we received an Encanto visitor, yes?" The old lady says as if to answer Aiden's confusion. She prepares something as Aiden arrives to sit at one of the tall seats by the counter. "It's usually we Digmas who visit Hele for trade."

Aiden is still bewitched by the new aesthetic of the place, as well as the old lady's precision for knowing his identity that he almost missed the tall chair by the counter. Sitting down, Aiden clears his throat and chuckles. "Oh, there has been a problem up on the northern road, so I've come to travel south to get to my destination."

The old lady has placed out a large metal ornate kettle of hot beverage and has been pouring Aiden a cup when she hears the remark. Her face droops sadly as she smoothens her grey hair. "Is that so? We haven't heard of that news." Sliding the ceramic cup and saucer of brew to Aiden, she sighs. "That is another problem."

"Another?" Aiden repeats with a raise of his brows. He accepts the cup with his palms, glancing worriedly at the old lady. "It has been a month since the landslide has blocked the forked path in the North."

At the revelation, the old lady gasps. "Oh dear, it has been that long now?" Her gaze drops on the bar and it is obvious that the news is more than worrying for her for other reasons.

"What's wrong?" Aiden asks.

It has taken the old lady a sharp inhale before she answers: "Well, it's just that... It's been that long since anyone has left town to do business."

Aiden does not understand the relation of the two and politely asks to explain some more.

"I think; it will be easier to show it to you. Come. Let us heed to the arch." The old lady invites, hopping down from her pedestal and out of the counter.

Aiden has not taken a sip from his brew and he subconsciously asks for the old lady's arm to assist her as they approach the door. As they arrive by the doorway, a tall man wearing an apron over his long checkered shirt and brown pants enters, greeting the old lady and Aiden with a small confused bow, asking where they will be going.

"Great timing, Ira!" The old lady claps in glee. "We are just about to visit the arch. I wish to show this young Encanto the source of our misfortunes!"

"Why bother?" Ira sighs, scratching his head beneath his beret. "Nobody can get out and the misery is continuously eating out our fellow merchants' morale!"

The old lady dismisses the statement with a wave of her hand and tugs Aiden with her out of the restaurant, instructing Ira to flip the sign to "close". Aiden glances as Ira begrudgingly obliges and trails behind them. As Aiden follows the old lady to the eastern part of town, he finds more and more proof of Ira's statement. Most shops at this end are closed, many townsfolk look out to their windows, the glow in their eyes seem to disappear over the horizon. As Aiden looks on, he notices another stone arch at the end of the main road.

"Oh, I didn't know there's another stone arch at the end of town." He quips as they stop in front of it.

Ira, who has caught up with them, shakes his head. "There shouldn't be."

Sensing another wave of queries as Aiden begins stuttering, the old lady tugs Aiden's arm past the stone arch. Upon passing under the arch, as if by some ethereal power, Aiden recognizes the stores at the front of town. When they walk forward some more, he recalls seeing the awnings with the Heleian embroidery.

"W-What is happening?!" he shrieks in utter horror.

The group stops on their tracks in the middle of the road. Ira's lips purses grimly.

"That's exactly our question for over a month now..." The old lady answers, mirroring Ira's disheartened expression. "...Out of nowhere, the eastern end of town sprouted an arch identical to our sacred stone arch and it keeps redirecting people who pass by it to the entrance!"

The revelation has Aiden tightening his jaw. As he stares down the road leading to the eastern exit, he is filled with an unknown fear of the experience. He looks around, finally understanding the glum looks on the townsfolk's faces.

"How about fellow visitors like me? Have they not successfully entered town like I did?"

The old lady shakes her head. "You are the first one to arrive in town successfully, young Encanto. I doubt the others has noticed because of their melancholy." She shrugs, dusting off her faded cream apron.

"We haven't heard any news from the Southern Postal House as well." Ira adds with another exasperated sigh. He gestures a hand to the shops nearby "They, and our fellow men returning from trading in Solferino are our sources of news of CANDEMARO. Their absence has also greatly confused us. Some theorize that they might be experiencing some problems, too."

Aiden remains silent as they return to the restaurant. As Aiden looks on to the alley, he notices a crown of trees on the distance, just behind some buildings, as well as a towering cliff behind it. Before he enters, he turns to Ira, pointing to the woods.

"Has anybody attempted to cross the forest to go around?" He asks. "Or scale the cliff?"

Ira shrugs, his brows furrowing to recall the event. "There was one attempt a few days before your arrival." Aiden watches as Ira's eyes twitch, as if remembering an annoying episode. "That brash child said he'll attempt to give out a signal once he made it out, but we haven't heard anything from him. And with the current level of morale around here, I doubt no one is hopeful about his survival."

"It's a grim one, but are the woods around here that dangerous?"

"Not particularly... Just, people around here are ... Superstitious." Ira leans down to whisper his last words, but the old lady hears it still and smacks the boy on the arm.

Aiden watches Ira flinch in pain at the attack while the old lady cackles. They follow her back inside the restaurant and back to the counter.

"Your doubt will not save you in the future!" the old lady begins. Her voice is beginning to sound like Loire whenever she begins an academic lecture. The uncanny similarity has Aiden bracing on his seat as he listens some more.

"Believe us when we say that those woods are as enchanted as the Beda Rainforest in the West! Even with numerous sacrifices and prayers to Halli for protection, one can still fall victim to it!" the old lady continues with a raise of her finger.

Aiden gulps at the tale. With his sufficient experience with the undocumented areas of the Beda Rainforest, he can surely relate to the sentiment.

Ira throws his arms as soon as he takes a seat beside Aiden. "Whatever, but yes, since then, we had no other attempts to go through. It can be a curse from the divine children, who knows."

"That can't be right, though," Aiden chirps. "The divine children were historically loving parents. All tongue-speak in Hele portrays them as caring individuals. It will be unlikely such they can wish for a misfortune."

Ira falls silent to the revelation and the old lady cackles triumphantly, slapping Ira on the arm before she slides back inside and back behind the counter. "Precisely, young Encanto! That's why I strongly believe that an outsider with malicious intentions are behind this whole situation!"

"How now?" Aiden asks.

The old lady excitedly claps as she climbs back to her pedestal. "I am not sure too, but! it's the only possibility!"

"Come now, you don't have proof of such a thing." Ira says, slamming one of his palms on the counter. "Besides, we haven't seen any outsider in the past month except---" Ira slowly turns his head to Aiden, leering suspiciously at him.

Realizing the suspicion, Aiden raises his palms, obviously shaken of the doubt. It didn't last, though, because the old lady smacks Ira's cheek this time, shaking away the heaviness in the air before it even formed.

"Get a hold of yourself! Doubting a pure-hearted Encanto like that!" The old lady exclaims, her declaration placing Aiden's heart at ease. "Why don't you stay for the night? We cannot offer much due to our predicament, but Ira will happily share his room with you!"

The invitation shocks both Aiden and Ira. At the old lady's insistence (and threatening), Aiden gives in to the offer and Ira is forced to share his lodging for the night. As a worker indebted to the owner, he doesn't really have any power to decline.

The restaurant Pacifie is one of the few buildings in Mado to have a second floor. Their notoriety has inherently required so, and as the climb the wooden staircase, Aiden peeks at the open space at the front area of the floor, the wooden tables and chairs are similar to the ones he found below, but all are neatly stacked on one side, and the empty space has given him a feeling of sadness.

Ira's room is at the end of the second floor. The shopkeeper welcomes Aiden inside and prepares an extra wooden floor mat on the carpeted floor. "You have to excuse my Baa***, she can be pretty obnoxious." He begins upon finishing the setup.

"I don't mind." Aiden says with a reassuring smile as he places his knapsack down on the mat. "It seems that I can learn a lot of things from the two of you." Aiden nods, moving to the window, which gives a good view of the cliff on the far side of town. "Still, it's saddening to have known of your situation. If it's only possible to get pass that woods--"

An idea pops in Aiden's head and he turns to Ira. "Can I ask if the person who attempted to cross the forest flew over it in some way?"

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

The question is as senseless as Ira had describes the old lady and he looks at Aiden judgingly. "Is that a real question? We are Digmas, not gifted ones like you are. Of course he trekked the woods, not flew over it!"

"Then, it can be possible...." Aiden mutters, dismissing Ira's skepticism. "I can try and fly over it!"

A moment of silence passes. Ira's expression is a cross between disbelief and hopeful. Sure, if his old lady says Aiden is a pure-hearted Encanto, it must be true. But she fails to account for his eccentric wits. Still, the proposition, as strange it may sound, might be worth a shot. However, seeing Aiden's enthusiastic expression is irking Ira for unexplained reasons.

"Huh..." Ira finally grunts as a reply. "Let's try that tomorrow morning."

"No, now is also a great time!" Aiden interjects, grabbing his knapsack and pulling Ira by the arm.

"Are you crazy?!" Ira whispers. "Baa is already sleeping! Plus, it's the dead of the night! We won't be able to see anything!"

"I'm good with that, though!" Aiden grins.

The statement catches Ira off-guard and he mulls over it even at Aiden's instructions to fetch a bucket full of water. As soon as he has it on his hand, Aiden is able to drag Ira towards the thin group of trees. The worker hasn't had the energy to back out now.

"Now, how do you plan on flying over this woods again?" Ira sighs dubiously, placing his hands on his waist.

Aiden grins at him and hovers both of his palms to the bucket of water. In a moment, the water slowly travels from the bucket and into two big globs under Aiden's glowing palms. As Ira blinks profusely in both confusion and amazement, Aiden directs his palms to the ground and the blobs of water on his palms seems to gurgle as the glow of Aiden's palms slowly cover it. Ira gasps as the water spouts to the ground at the same time, propelling Aiden a good few meters from the ground.

Shaking his head to wake his shocked self, Ira beams in excitement. "I-It might be possible! Oh!" He wipes his face off of the mist coming from the streams. He grins widely to Aiden.

"Right?" Aiden chuckles. "It'll be easy to find me with my glow, so you will know if I have successfully reached the cliff."

"Right, yes!" Ira calls out. "Please, when you successfully get out, send some assistance for our situation!"

Aiden nods to him and proceeds to propel himself to the darkness, past the trees and towards the cliff side. In the absence of the trees of the Beda Rainforest, Aiden finds this clump of trees shorter than the ones he used to scale. Even so, he finds it amusing that he is able to get a clear view of the forest, thanks to his time sparring with Mirano in the Beda Rainforest

As he cruises past the woods, the thought of his Duko'o has reminded him of fond memories he had with him. He wonders of his condition now that they are apart. Not thanks to his momentary zoning, Aiden fails to notice that his water beams have thinned out in the brief glide through the air and he dips down until he crashes to a grassy knoll within the woods.

The quick sequence has left a disturbance which echoes past the woods for a few seconds. Catching his breath as he sits up, Aiden sighs in relief to find nothing hurting in his body. He scans the area, which was quickly consumed by the silence. His senses pulsate at the sudden interruption, but everything within the shadows is still clear to him. Attempting to stand, Aiden winces under his breath at the sharp twinge of pain on his side. Other than that, he seems to be relatively fine. His efforts failed to get him by the cliff side. He deduced that it will be best to meet with Ira, thinking that the worker must have witnessed his fall and might worry about his condition.

As he traverses a way to exit the woods, Aiden finds the solitude uneasy. Even within the Beda Rainforest, a sacred place for the Encantos, the tiny skittering and rustling beyond the documented areas indicated the presence of life; albeit it is one that they have not understood yet. The more Aiden walks past the trees, the silence suggested something off. Coming to what he thinks a clearing to lead back to Mado, Aiden runs past a tree trunk, and by the corner of his eyes and heightened senses, notices something by the foot of it. He has taken a heartbeat to retrace his steps to the tree, but it must have been fortunate for him to have considered the idea, since a sharp beam of light emerges from that very tree trunk, cutting across the air where Aiden had run, and hitting another tree across it. The impact made the tree branch spark and as Aiden turns to look at it, the branch is already consumed by a thin flame.

Thinking that another similar attack may occur if he pressed forward, Aiden rolls on the ground backwards, warily approaching the side of the tree trunk where he recognized something. Carefully peeking on it, his senses suggested a messy arrangement of fallen tree debris. Some of the twigs and dried leaves show signs of burning, which is similar to the blazing branch across Aiden. Gulping, Aiden quickly shoots a sharp beam of his water through the side of the debris, hoping that destroying it will not prompt another one of those terrible light beams. He was correct.

As the arrangement falls into disarray and Aiden cautiously tiptoes towards the actual debris that now litter the forest's ground, he gasps upon recognizing the same opaque blue stone among the fallen twigs and leaves. He also recognizes some sort of cloth that got wet at the process. As Aiden unfurls it, he gasps at the illustration in it. Drawn on the cloth in black ink was a large intricate circular symbol. Aiden has only seen such a symbol once; albeit not the same one, in scrolls about Usor Sorcery. There is no doubt. The symbol on the cloth is a Circle and the gem, which Aiden promptly crushes on the heels of his boots, was a Charm; two of the three fundamental elements of Usor Sorcery.

Angry at the grim conclusion he has arrived at, Aiden rips the cloth with his hands. The insolence of Usor Sorcerers caused the misfortune of the people of Mado. He scans the area once more; determined to find the perpetrator. In his sprint out of the forest however, Aiden realizes that there were more than one discreet arrangement within the woods as multiple beams of light begin activating as he runs past it. Still reeling with fury, Aiden masterfully hops over the branches, brandishing water from his own hand to a thin whip and destroying every other arrangement he comes across to. Once its stone and cloth are thrown to disarray, Aiden immediately crushes the stones and rips the cloths in half, keeping one torn cloth and a stone with him. Huffing, Aiden realizes that he must have taken a while to destroy every arrangement and worries that his long absence may have concerned Ira. Running out of the woods, Aiden is determined to meet the worker, despite wondering where the owners of the Circles and Charms are.

As he exits the woods, however, Aiden is greeted by a horrific scene: Ira slumps on the ground, bloodied, and a group of five muscular robed Sorcerers stand in a neat line in front of him.

"What have you done to him?!" Aiden hollers as he dashes towards them, catching the group's attention.

The smug looks on the Sorcerer's faces are evident even in the moonless night, but Aiden did not care for their mocking eyes. His eyes burn with fury as he releases another two streams of water, flailing his arms in large circling motions to immediately catch each of the Sorcerer's heads with his glowing water. All five Sorcerers struggled with the immense discomfort eerily similar to drowning in the deep waters. While some attempted to mouth a Chant, in hopes of calling the power of their Circle and Charm from the woods, their voice cannot escape the water. Brows furrowing, Aiden closes his distance with the now helpless Sorcerers, the intensity of the glow emanated by his waters seems to make his head hurt. Fortunately, all of the Sorcerers pass out in the middle of retaliating, and Aiden immediately withdraws his hands, exhaling heavily. He wish to collapse as well at that moment, but seeing Ira unconscious on the ground has the Water's Son sprinting to his side, gently lifting the worker to his arms.

"W-What... happened?" Ira groans as soon as Aiden lifts him.

"Oh thank K'raas, you're breathing! Let's take you back to the restaurant, yes?" Aiden exclaims, his knees buckling in a hasty attempt to carry the heavier Ira. The pain in his side resumes at the action and he sneers, but continues to try lifting the worker to his shoulders.

"Strange... M-Men... From..forest..." Ira croaks.

Aiden assures him about it and gently lifts the worker some more, running back to Pacifie once he has him secured on his back. He leaves Ira sitting on a chair and he sprints through the empty road of Mado, towards the stone arch, and checks the arrangements on both feet of the arch. Finding that both contains the same arrangement as the ones in the woods, Aiden clasps his hands and places it near his heart, whispering apologies to the divine children for what he is about to do in front of a tribe's sacred archway.

When he finishes, Aiden grabs the remnants of the other opaque stones and returns to Pacifie, wakes the old lady up, and fills her in with the situation as they tend to Ira's wounds together.

The old lady was already shaken to be interrupted in her slumber, but a surge of youthful energy seems to fill her body at the Water's Son's report of the arrangements and the involvement of Usor Sorcery. Once Ira is all patched up and laid down on a makeshift bed from the restaurant's chairs, the old lady races to her neighbors, rousing them by rapping on their doors and hollering, "By Halli! Rejoice! Rejoice!"

Several townsfolk immediately got up at her rather frantic calls and quickly join her on the ground, many carrying lamps and torches as Aiden leads them to the mouth of the woods where they found the unconscious bodies of the five Sorcerers lying on the wet dirt. Aiden then explains the situation to the rest of the townspeople while several other male Digmas tie up the perpetrators. He procures the wretched stones and cloth he has retrieved, further detailing how it worked. His narration eventually gained affirmation from some Digmas who has had at least some knowledge of Usor Sorcery. Some townspeople, carrying their lamps, return to their shops. Others turn to check the veracity of Aiden's words by going to the west and east entryways to their town. As the crowd dissipates, Aiden settles on one of the chairs inside Pacifie, head tilting towards the lit lampshades by the restaurant's doorway. His sea eyes seem to be clouded with fatigue that he almost did not notice Ira stirring from his makeshift bed and sitting up, looking all confused.

Seeing Aiden near him has made Ira exclaim, ranting about the horrible men who appeared just as he was about to follow Aiden in the woods upon the sudden anomaly in his flight. Ira's concern for him has made Aiden guiltier of his late reaction to the notion. As he stares at Ira's bandaged face and swollen limbs, he wonders if this tragedy could have been prevented... had he been quicker in prioritizing the worker's welfare more than giving in to his anger.

Taken by his guilt, Aiden places a hand on Ira's shoulder, his voice strained as he speaks.

"Apologies, Ira. I should have met with you first before I looked for those Sorcerers' equipment... then, you won't--"

"Do you think I am one to easily bow down to anyone?" Ira interjects with a firm voice.

The worker's words ring in Aiden's ears, and he shivers at the weight of its meaning. As Ira places his own hands to Aiden's shoulders, the light from the restaurant seems to reveal to Aiden an unsheathed blade strapped in Ira's belt. The Water's Son shifts his gaze from the blade then to Ira, who flashes a small, confident grin. His expression dissolves to something softer soon, though.

"They're ruffians, alright. However, I lack the academic expertise to properly deal with them. I intended to be in that situation, but I did not expect for them to wreck my face this much." Ira's tone hardens as he runs his palm over the bandage. He glances back to Aiden, still grinning. "I'm so relieved you came to my rescue." Ira offers a deep bow to Aiden as he mutters, "Thank you."

The unlocking of the door echoes in the space and the two turns to the door to find the old lady opening it for a townsperson of great muscular build, sporting a full ginger beard, checkered shirt, and black overalls beneath his brown cloak.

"We've confirmed that the stone arch on the eastern exit is gone! The kids are playing across it to make sure they can advance eastwards!" His rough voice is brimming with joy and he spares Aiden a bow. "Thanks to you, young Encanto, we can finally move Eastwards to sell our ceramics!"

"Ah, that reminds me!" Aiden exclaims, energy seems to surge through his exhausted limbs as he stands up. "I'm supposed to be going to the Southern Postal House now." He turns to the old lady. "How much do I owe for the lodging?"

The three Digmas glance at each other and chuckle heartily before shaking their heads.

"Young Encanto! The debt has been paid tenfold. We are the ones who now owe you something." The townsperson chimes.

Ira approaches the door in a limp, but he smiles at the sentiment. The old lady disappears back to the counter.

"Our Great Mother Halli has told us to repay kindness with another act of kindness. We call it Selatari****." He explains. "Inhereting Halli's strength and drive for war, we have historical ties with violence and because of it, we are a tribe seen to be independent."

The townsperson agrees to Ira's explanation, showing his fists to Aiden, as if telling it is his main fighting weapon. "Historically, we are people who might not need any help; because we're already strong and all. But the advancing times and the thirst for innovation; plus, the Dark Ages... The Digmas also changed."

Aiden hears the old lady place an item on the counter. He sees her signaling for him to come closer, so he obliges. Sitting on one of the tall chairs, the old lady continues the statements. "For arriving to our aid during our difficult times, we offer this to you," The old lady reaches out for Aiden's palm. She places a small golden ring on his hand, its centerpiece featuring a small carving of Halli's profile. "Should you arrive in a similar predicament, Mado will be more than happy to return the favor."

Aiden glances at the ring with awe then to Ira and the townsperson who both smile at him at the notion.

"We haven't caught your name yet." The townsperson reveals, earning a gasp from the old lady and Ira.

"That's right! You were about to leave town without doing so!" The old lady exclaims playfully.

"I haven't gotten yours as well," Aiden chuckles while scratching his head. "I believe it's an equal sentiment."

"Huh, I'm pretty sure Ira over here would have told you by now." The old lady gives Ira a dissatisfied glance. "How rude. I am Pau Pacifica, owner of Pacifie!"

"My name is Aiden Maris; The Water's Son and Duko'o to Mirano Suri." Aiden says firmly, his hand subconsciously reaching out to the crystal affixed on his choker. He glances to the townsperson whose beard moves as he gurgles a laugh.

"Gayat is the name. We will be heading out soon. If you're visiting the Southern Postal House, we'll gladly give you a lift! At this time, we will be reaching the Postal House before the sun sets tomorrow!" Gayat relates.

"That's great! I highly appreciate the offer! Do you need any assistance with loading your wagon?" Aiden asks, grinning widely out of excitement as he follows Gayat out of Pacifie, Old Pacifica and Ira looking on while smiling.

Despite other Digmas' uncertainty for letting the hero who saved their town help out, Aiden eventually assisted them in filling their cargos. As they prepare to leave, old lady Pacifica and Ira emerges from the restaurant with several leather bags of food for Gayat, his companion, and for Aiden.

"Come visit us whenever you're nearby. We'll prepare a feast worthy for an Encanto Hero." Ira says as he hands Aiden his ration.

Aiden chuckles shyly. "Tea with you and Old Lady Pacifica will be most appreciated in my return. I wasn't to fully enjoy it after all."

"Baa Karine, we shall be going now! Hail Halli and may we return with a fruitful profit!" Gayat calls as he tugs on the horses' reins.

As the wagon begins to move, Aiden waves a hand to Old Lady Pacifica and Ira until he cannot see them from the horizon. Looking up to the sky, Aiden finds the first rays of the country's sun stretching to give the sky a speck of its orange hue. He inhales slowly, still at awe of the happenings in one night.

"By the way, Aiden," Gayat's companion calls from the front of the wagon. "We have confiscated several items from those hooligans. We thought it may serve your academic purpose, so we collected it. The items are in that box." He points out to a small wooden crate near Aiden.

With his interest piqued, Aiden rummages through the items; which is a variety of bound memos, journals, and notebooks. As Aiden scans through the materials, a thought comes to his mind.

"By the way, Sir Gayat, why did you call Old Lady Pacifica as 'Baa Karine' earlier?" Aiden asks.

"Hm? Oh, it's her title. Why?" Gayat relates.

"It's amusing because in Hele, we also use a similar word to give titles, but to our tribe leaders." Aiden chuckles.

"Really? It's the same for Digmas then!" Gayat's companion chirps. "I didn't know we Digmas share vocabulary words as the Encantos~"

"You learn something new every day," Gayat adds with a laugh.

Aiden joins with a small chuckle and proceeds to return to his reading. It has taken him a few more minutes to realize what the Digmas meant by their reply. "Eh?! Old Lady Pacifica is Mado's Leader!?" Aiden shrieks in surprise. He has been lodging with the highest authority of Mado all this time without his knowledge?

Gayat and his companion laugh heartily at the innocence.

"I thought it was pretty obvious, given that she offered you one of our town's emblems as thanks!" Gayat exclaims.

Aiden shakes his head, his face burning red from embarrassment.

"I guess it doesn't matter which tribe you're from: Ignorance is inherent for everyone!" Gayat quips in the most playful tone.

Blushing madly, Aiden whines as he hides his face in one of the journals he opened. "I-I'll make sure to do my research soon!" He declares amidst the Digmas' laughs. As he shakes the journal, though, several scrap papers drop from within its pages and Aiden picks it up to place back in the wooden crate. He noticed a writing on the last paper on his hands and Aiden brings the paper near to the lamp hanging by the corner of the wagon.

With a clearer vision of the words, Aiden reads the inscription: "Project CONDE". A few more scribbles, these more garbled, are written below the header. Aiden gently pushes the paper closer to the lamp to read it more clearly, but Gayat's wheels hit a stray pebble on the road, rocking the wagon and letting Aiden push the paper too far that it catches on fire. He reflexively withdraws his hands and puts out the flames, careful not to get any of it on the small wooden crate. When he finally extinguished the fire however, none of the paper is left intact. Aiden's jaw tightens as he watched the ashes ride the wind. Whatever Project CONDE is; it doesn't sit well with Aiden at all. The question bugging Aiden now as he keeps the wooden crate to the side is, why?

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To be Continued...

*Histres (n.) Ent.,: tailors and dressmakers; someone who is skilled in the craft of dressmaking.

**Corde ioi K'raas jahn (Expression) Ent.,: "I come with K'raas' heart" a common Encanto greeting whenever they enter a home/establishment.

***Baa (n.) Dig.,: old female relative; usually grandmother.

**** Selatari (n.) Dig.,: Ancient Digma Concept of gratitude. A showcase of thanks by offering a product or service out of kindness to repay the kindness of other people to Digmas.