“So, Ercole, can you tell me more about magic? You’ve talked about bits of it, and that your magic is weaker than mine, then all this about this weird language plant… How does that all fit together!?”

Ercole looked down at Dyo with a growing smug smile across his face. His hand then reached down into his saddle bag, bringing out a small leather-bound book. Flipping it open as he continued to steer his horse by his thighs.

“Oh, you do like to indulge me, don’t you? Well, I do quite like to share my notes and it’s a shame some of our other party members,” He looked at Shani, “Don’t seem to enjoy the wonderful mechanics of magic…”

“You said it yourself noble,” she muttered, “You cannot do much with it.”

“Not much, yes. But sometimes you can use it to make some magnificent creations. Not to mention its general utility to the rare few who know how to use it. You just have to be creative.”

“A spear can be used in many ways. But it does not need years of study, but gets better with it. A spear wins for me.”

“But you can’t manipulate the forces of the world with a spear.”

“You can kill a noble with a spear, that changes the world.”

“Not- quite in the same way though…”

She shrugged, “It is a way I understand.”

He sighed, “But anyway… In simple terms as to why your magic is stronger than mine, Dyo, is because your powers are innate to you, whereas mine are fabricated. I think I’ve already mentioned how the “auras” magic creates can be sensed?”

“You have.”

“Those show one’s innate power and any magic they are being infused with via channelling devices. Of course, channelling devices can only pull in, store, and expel so much magic. However, species that have been gifted by the world with innate magical power and channelling abilities have far greater powers, such as Agrippa. Changelings are magically blessed with shape-shifting magic, but humans can create lesser versions of those magics. It really only has minor effects, but a witch can create a potion that subtly alter one’s appearance…”

He chuckled, pulling out a small vial.

“I’ve done it myself, just to keep my body in good shape while I can’t spend time working on my form. But then there are…”

He pointed at Dyonaigus and then at Hreysti.

“Those who are descended from the gods and have a strong blood connection who have very, very potent abilities. Abilities that do not take much effort to manifest and might even occur as a natural process of their existence. Of course, most demigod bloodlines fade in power rather rapidly, with only the direct son of the deity possessing most of those powers.”

Hreysti jaw tightened, “And what about vampires?”

“Vampires are the only case where the traits in the bloodline are so strong, that they never weaken. Ƿó has only ever had three children, after that, it seems like he didn’t have any more.”

“Probably out of disgust for what he’d created…”

His eyes had slipped down to his feet, red eyes blazing with fire as the straps of his pack were dragged tight.

“You can’t assume that. The gods are fickle people whose goals and lives are mostly mysteries to us. The last records we have of confirmed direct intervention by them are thousands of years old, and it’s rare for them to talk to their children. I know that probably won’t comfort you, but silence and a lack of involvement in mortal affairs is a trait of gods everywhere.”

He grunted, his eyes still unmoving.

Ercole sighed, “But one of their few gifts is what we are looking for. The herb of knowledge. Created by Athervi, the Emoran goddess of knowledge, strategy, wisdom, justice and a few other things. As in the typical style for Emoran deities.”

“Typical- style!? They’re the gods! Ho-”

“Oh- uh- I forgot they’re technically your family… That might be slightly insulting now that I think of that.”

“And they’re the gods!”

“That too- uh- well…”

An awkward chuckle slipped from him as he felt Dyo’s gaze sear into him.

“No… Sacrilege… Intended?”

“Just continue with the herb.”

“Got it!”

A small sniffle came from Shani as she tried to stifle a laugh.

Ercole’s eyes narrowed, “What is it?”

“Can’t keep up your allure? Flustered at all?”

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His eyes somehow narrowed further, “Don’t push me.”

Dyo coughed as he flashed another look at Ercole.

“Alright! Yes, fine, the herb! I found out about it when looking through an old chronicle written by a Cudeshian scholar several hundred years ago about divinely blessed flora. And in that book was Athervi’s herb, only found in remote forests around, what was at the time, Emor’s domain. The only issue other than their remoteness to collecting them being a little satyr problem.”

Dyo raised an eyebrow, “But satyrs are just people, what’s wrong with them?”

“Not these ones... These satyrs were created by some of the other gods specifically to guard some of their domains.”

“Wait- You mean the Custyr?”

He snapped his fingers, “That’s them! Tribalistic sorta people that are slaved to divine contracts. Guess your education is fairly comprehensive in these matters! Well, as you know then, they’re a little aggressive towards any invaders and any harm to them might anger the gods.”

“So, why are we going to potentially anger my father’s friends and family, who may incinerate us in an instant?”

“Because if we can avoid conflict and slip in, we can take the herb. Then use a recipe I found to make a concoction that’ll give us a rather useful adventuring aid. That being the divine knowledge of language. The instantaneous and natural ability to talk to anyone in any tongue and understand them too. A gift straight from the gods!”

Hreysti sniffed, “And how are all of us going to sneak past a group of guards in an unknown forest?”

“By just coming up with a plan when we get there!” He proclaimed, overconfident pride filling his voice, “It worked well enough with our Black Knight friend after all.”

“Worked well my fucking arse…” Hreysti spat.

“Part of it was your plan though. You can’t blame it all on me! And it did work too! None of us died and we only came off with some bruises, minor cuts and uh- Your arm injury…”

“For physical ones…”

“I doubt we will have any incidents like we did then Hreysti,” He said, brushing it off, “I can promise you that. Now, what time does everyone reckon it is?”

“A few hours from sunset.” Shani instantly replied.

Ercole looked up at the sun for a moment before looking at Shani, “You know, you could give some scholars a run for a money with that speed.”

“You don’t need to be a scholar to know what the height of the sun means.”

“Fair enough. Well, if I read my maps right before setting off, we should be approaching a camping spot next to a lake. Though remember, take the water you need before bathing in it. I don’t want to drink any of your dirty water.”

----------------------------------------

Honestly, Dyo wished he’d taken up the offer of the tavern bath rather than just washing his body the more manual way. The two were not at all comparable in the cleanliness he felt after them. That and the room he had in a bath made it all the more comfortable.

They’d all agreed to give Shani and Agrippa private times and Ercole had been surprisingly fast. So that just left him, alone in the small clearing. Sandy dirt and trees all around with only a small hole through the shield overlooking a valley, all together creating a little haven.

He slowly arched his back, stretching and letting the tension in his body dissipate.

A few months of adventuring didn’t seem all that bad now. The sights were certainly nice, rivalling that of the countryside from his village. But… His mother…

He shivered as he tried to purge though thoughts from his mind. The thoughts of if her hea-

No!

It wasn’t good to think about it!

All he should think about was the road ahead. The road towards the herb, and then to Gaulik. Many, many miles away from home…

He let out a long sigh. Custyr weren’t the most formidable opponents according to legend, but they weren’t easy to defeat either. They were something to avoid for sure, if they could even find the grove the herb would be growing in, or even figure out what it looked like! Ercole’s chronicle didn’t actually say what it looked like! Well, it did, in relation to an extinct spice plant.

The bushes behind Dyo rustled, his head whipping around as his mind started to rush through magic-

Only to meet the gaze of Hreysti.

“W-Why are you here!?”

The vampire sighed, “I still feel dirty. It- It still won’t get off.”

“I see.”

“May I- Come in..?“

Dyo swallowed, stammering a little before, “Sure!”

He instantly regrated it as Hreysti took no time in slipping off his clothes. Not a single concern on his mind right until his gaze met with Dyo again.

They saw where Dyo’s gaze went. And then how it quickly flicked up to his face once Dyo realised that.

He made quick time after that with getting into the lake and submerging himself as far as he could. His white face turning to a now increasingly familiar red.

“You didn’t have to stare there…” He mumbled.

“I-I I’m sorry!”

“No, you don’t have to apologise! I- It’s fine…”

Hreysti’s head flicked away as he drew a shaky breath. But Dyo had noticed something else when he’d taken his clothes off. The scars. The scattering of faint, almost unnoticeable cuts around his body presumably from long ago… Though, it did seem the gash on his arm had already healed. Sealed up into a nasty, thick scar.

But Hreysti’s mind was focused on one thing, completely ignoring the Demigod beside him. Slowly, his hands started rubbing against his body, focusing on the crevasse and crinkles, his knuckles, his fingernails. Trying to rub invisible dirt from all of them. Away, away, away-

“Out! Out, damned spot!” His voice whimpered, so quiet as to be nearly inaudible.

His hands kept rubbing. Rubbing and rubbing until he finally stopped, his arms dropping limp to his sides. Warbling lips uttering a final small whimper.

“Hreysti…”

“It’s fine! I just need more water… It- It’ll surely go in time, it did last time…”

“But… There’s no blood.”

He stared at Dyo, then back at his hands. His trembling hands.

His chest started to rattle, the heaves growing larger as a nervous, almost maddened laugh started to bellow from him.

“But It’s still there when I close my eyes! It’s still fucking there!”

“It’s not rea-“

“I fucking ATE someone! I was in his guts! I was drinking blood from his insides like I was a dog! I-I- I might have not been able to remember it but I could tell I did that by the blood all over me and his liver half eaten in my fucking hands! With my fucking TEETH MARKS in it! You said I wasn’t a monster but there I fucking was! Tearing at him like a wolf… That blood was real…”

Dyo swallowed, slowly approaching the vampire as he put a hand on his shoulder.

“And we are all still with you. I won’t leave you… It- It happened but that’s gone! There is nothing that can be done to change it and that’s fine!”

“It could still happen when I’m around innocent people! I-I- I’m just cursed, blood thirsty-“

“And that is not what you are! You are not just the flesh craze or whatever Ercole called it! It’s just not what you are. You are not the monster eating people, you are the person worrying about what it might do and regretting its actions. Alright!?”

Hreysti took a few breaths, closing his eyes before embracing Dyo, holding him tight for a few solitary moments. Then gently letting go, settled.

“I… I appreciate it… But promise me that if it ever happens again, try to stop it. I don’t want to wake from it seeing that image ever again.”

He nodded, “I’ll try.”