He was expecting all of the guards to stare at them as they left the hut. Zane still being covered in and reeking of blood and guts and Mira smelling no better. But all three of the surviving guards were crouching behind a bush, away from the large campfire with dire bear meat still cooking over it or the dire bear pelt that hung down from a large construct of three beams. All of them were staring off into the distance where a large figure stood in the snow.

As Zane's anger, rage and fury faded he began to feel a familiar overwhelming feeling.

What is that doing here? Why does it even know I'm here?

As soon as the figure spotted Zane it began approaching the hut slowly, leaving behind deep footprints in the snow. The guards crawled away from the bushes, past Zane and Mira, hitting the railing of the front porch with their backs.

"W-What is that?" Mira asked. "W-What is this feeling? It feels as if something is trying to crush me."

Mira sank to the ground, holding her head between her hands.

So she can feel it as well now. But why? Is it because she used the rune? Because she used aura? Is that why I could feel it but no one else?

The figure stepped over the bushes the guards had hidden behind and approached Zane. It looked like a knight, dressed in completely black armour, the parts where its humanoid body would be visible were white. It looked like it was made of a thick smoke. Zane stepped up to it and looked up into the two slits where its eyes should have been, but all he saw was a white flame.

"Who sent you?" Zane asked.

The figure didn't answer it just kept on staring at Zane with the flame inside the otherwise empty, black helmet.

Can this thing even talk?

It just kept on staring at Zane for a while. After a while, Zane heard the door open and someone steps outside.

"W-What is that!?" Xavier screamed.

The figure looked up at the tall man that had just left the hut and then back down at Zane before it turned around and walked back into the forest. Once Zane stopped feeling the overwhelming feeling he had felt he turned to Mira who was still on the ground and crouched down to her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, putting one hand on her shoulder.

She slowly began nodding.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry. It's just that . . . that, feeling, was . . . quite overwhelming," she said. "What was that?"

"Don't know, this is the third time I've seen one of them but I still have no clue what they are," Zane said.

"What is all this about!? What was that!?" Xavier asked loudly.

Zane, not wanting to deal with him, glared up at Xavier who immediately stepped back a bit.

"I-I think the meat is ready," one of the guards said, trying to save the situation.

Ah right.

Zane, Mira and the guards sat down around the fire and each grabbed a piece of meat, stuck on a stick. But Xavier kept his distance.

"I thought you wanted to experience what it's like to live like a wild animal? Now come here and ear. Or do you want to wait until dinner?" Mira asked him.

"N-No . . ." Xavier said, as he slowly walked to the fire, sat down and took a piece of meat.

Is he a little kid?

It was some of the most delicious meat Zane had ever eaten, and judging from the looks on the faces of the guards, Mira and Xavier, they thought the same. Once they were done eating they extinguished the fire and the old man that lived in the hut brought them their horses.

Where was he during this whole thing?

They climbed up on their horses and began their journey back to the city. It was quiet the entire time. Zane and Mira rode at the front of the group, Xavier stayed at the back and the three guards surrounded him.

After a few hours, when the sun was already beginning to set and disappear behind the mountaintops. When they reached the gate to the city the small demi-human looked up at Zane and then back at Xavier before opening the large gate. They entered the city and rode towards the large ramp in the back. Just like when they left Zane could feel the eyes of many of the citizens in them, but this time he could also hear whispering. But he couldn't tell if it was about the missing guard or the fact that both he and Mira were covered in blood.

They rode up the ramp and were greeted by servants on the platform.

"Mistress Vermillion, master Larcadia! What happened!?" one of the servants asked with a shocked expression.

"It's dire bear's blood," Zane said as he jumped off his horse.

He walked up to the servant and pointed back at Xavier.

"Make sure that idiot never goes hunting again," he said before leaving.

Zane walked up the stairs and entered the mansion where he was greeted by the servant that woke him that morning.

"Ma- Zane, what happened?" she asked.

"Nothing," Zane said."Would you bring me my clothes to the bathing room and get my armour somewhere where it can be cleaned?"

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"Of course," she said with a smile on her face as she followed Zane upstairs.

He turned and entered the corridor that led to the bathing room while the servant went to his room. Zane put his armour into one of the baskets, quickly grabbed a towel and then headed inside the bathing area. No one was there. He sat down in the warm water and stared up at the wooden roof far above him, watching as the steam rose upwards and left through the gaps between rood and mountain. He felt the last bits of his remaining anger leave his body as he became calmer and calmer and relaxed more and more.

"Ah Zane, you went straight here, good," Mira said as she entered the bathing area with a towel wrapped around her.

She walked over to the opposite side and sat down in the warm water, facing him. It went up all the way to her shoulders.

"I'm sorry for his . . . behaviour," Mira said.

"Don't worry about it . . . I'm used to dealing with incompetent idiots. But really, I didn't expect to meet someone as idiotic as Rex this soon," Zane said.

Both Mira and he began laughing, remembering their time in the tower together with Rex Aldamillion.

"Still a miracle that we made it out of that thing . . ." Zane said.

Mira nodded with a bright smile on her face.

"But instead we got those two . . . artefacts and we had the experience," Mira said.

Zane smiled and leaned back, again staring up at the roof far above them.

Still can't believe I got all the way here . . . from the son of a simple farmer to the bodyguard of the son of the Vermillion main family head. But I still have no clue whether or not I want to continue doing this for the rest of my life . . . I mean guarding such an incompetent idiot is impossible. Although he'll probably just die sooner or later, and the way he acts it's definitely sooner.

"By the way, the way you screamed at Xavier since when did you do things like that?" Mira asked.

"Anger changes you, makes you do things you wouldn't normally do," Zane said. "In my case it's scream, I just scream a lot. You should have seen me when I thought those goblins in the second camp."

Mira chuckled.

"Have you always been like that?" she asked.

"No, used to be I was a pretty talkative guy, gave people my proper opinion and all, but that changed after the incident. Now I'm only really my old self when I'm angry," Zane said. "Although it really just feels like I'm telling myself things like that because it's the easy way out of all of my problems."

"Then why don't you try it?" Mira asked.

"Try what?"

"Be more talkative, be your old self. I mean you've already become friends with those three . . . what were their names again . . . ah yes, Veral, Igarem and Lovana," Mira said. "Then there's that servant, I heard her call you Zane so that's a start."

"Maybe you're right, maybe I should try to be my old self again, after eight damn years of . . . whatever I've been doing for the past eight years," Zane said.

He had a smile on his face, he smiled in anticipation of something new.

"And hey, if it helps you can always scream at Xavier, I'm sure Holvin won't mind," Mira said.

Both began laughing again. After a while, they decided to get out of the bath. Zane left first, dried his body and entered the small room with the baskets in it. The basket in which he had put his armour was gone, in its place was another one that had his clothes in it. He put on his clothes and left the bath.

"Ah, Zane, you're done," the servant said.

He smiled and nodded at her.

This might be my first chance.

"T-That reminds me . . . what's your name?" Zane asked, more quietly than he wanted to.

"Oh, my name . . ." She smiled brightly. "My name is Iva-"

Before she could finish tears began welling up in Zane's eyes as the face of a blond-haired woman with long golden blond hair and blue eyes, as blue as the ocean came to his mind.

"A-Are you alright?" the servant asked with a concerned tone.

Zane snapped out of it and Ivara's face disappeared from his mind.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine," Zane said.

"Anyway, my name Ivana Kalwaris," she said.

Kalwaris?

"So your family has been serving the Vermillions since the founding of Kalwa then," Zane stated.

Ivana nodded.

Couldn't imagine serving this damned family for four thousand fucking years, hell I barely managed a few days.

"Oh, yes. Dinner will begin soon and I'm supposed to wait for lady Mira Vermillion," Ivana said.

"I'm here," Mira said as she left the corridor.

"Great, master Xavier is waiting for you downstairs," she said to Mira.

"Oh, how nice of him," Mira said sarcastically.

Ivana just smiled at her.

"I'll go down first," Mira said to Zane. "You two can . . . do whatever, just be there in time for dinner."

Zane nodded as she walked towards the stairs and left them alone.

"What d-did she mean by that?" Ivana asked.

"No clue, guess all Vermillion's are like that no matter how well you think you know them," Zane said.

Ivana chuckled.

"Oh how right you are about that," she said. "Ah, I meant to ask. What really happened?"

"I might tell you later, but I really don't want to deal with any of them wasting my time by yelling at me for missing dinner," Zane said.

"I'll be waiting," Ivana said with a grin on her face.

Zane smiled back at her. He walked up to the stairs and went down to the first floor, then down to the dining hall.

I had a real conversation . . . guess I can do this after all.

Zane had a feeling of happiness within him, but there was also this sudden uneasiness that filled his mind. He felt as if something was wrong. But he suppressed the feeling and entered the dining hall, his coat almost dragging across the carpet on the ground. He walked up to his chair next to Mira and sat down.

"Ah, Zane," Holvin said. "I am glad that all went . . . well, considering what my son did."

"Father, why wo-" Xavier began but Holvin interrupted him.

"No, it has to be addressed. You would be dead. Not only that but you nearly caused him to die as well. What if he had died? What would you have done then? Do you think there is even a slither of a chance that I would find someone as capable as him to be your bodyguard? Someone capable to take down a dire bear almost single-handedly? You can be glad that you were born into this family, and you can be even gladder that I am your father and that I value my child so much!" Holvin said, quietly enough so that only a few people could hear what exactly he was saying.

Zane looked around the table, everyone who could hear what Holvin was saying looked at the table, among them were Veral, Igarem and Lovana. Those that couldn't understand watched confused as Xavier's face reddened from embarrassment.

"I understand father, please just . . . not here," Xavier said.

"Fine, but keep in mind that you endangered the life of your future wife," Holvin said before raising one hand and snapping.

Once he snapped the servants brought out food and cutlery, then disappeared behind the door again. Everyone began shovelling food on their plates immediately and then they began eating. It was fairly silent, especially at the head of the table where Holvin and Xavier sat. Neither of them said a word, Holvin because he had nothing more to say and Xavier because he was too embarrassed to open his mouth for anything but food.

His father's words must have gotten to him. Kinda makes me a bit disappointed that my speech didn't leave as much of an impression.

After a while, people began leaving the room. Xavier, who had tried to finish as quickly as he could, got up first, turned to Mira.

"I'll be going now," he said before quickly leaving the room.

After some more time had passed Zane was just waiting for Mira to finish. Once she was done eating they left the dining hall as well. They walked up to the second floor where Mira stopped for a second before turning to Zane.

"Looks like . . . you have a . . . visitor," she said, pointing to the door of Zane's room.

Ivana stood in front of it, smiling at him.

"Anyway," Mira said. "I'll head to bed now, good night."

"Good night," Zane replied as he watched Mira walk into her room, glancing back at him for a second.

He then walked to his door where Ivana greeted him.

"So, are you ready to . . . tell me about what happened?" she asked with a grin on her face.

"Sure," Zane replied as he opened the door and let Ivana inside.