Having a person to travel with was nicer than Rhenor had thought it would be. Maybe it was because that person was Kaz, and he'd developed a fondness for him, but even beyond that it was nice to not feel quite so lonely. Rhen hadn't really realized that he'd missed the company of others, but he apparently had because the prospect of traveling distances like this alone sounded much more daunting than it had before.

Of course, traveling with Kaz also had some downsides. At first, he couldn't walk for as long as Rhen could without pauses, which had been inconvenient, which made Rhenor wonder how the man had initially gotten to Arlow. But Rhen hadn't minded too much. He wasn't that eager to meet this Elaya person, after all. He realized it was entirely for selfish reasons, which was why he hadn't said anything to Kaz, but it didn't stop him from feeling resentful.

He just didn't look forward to becoming a hindrance, or even worse—parting ways for good. He liked Kaz a lot, and he didn't want to say goodbye once they reached Sigallah. But if he had to watch him and Elaya make googly eyes at each other, Rhenor was probably better off alone.

Of course, it was entirely possible he was completely misreading what Kaz and Elaya's relationship was, but he couldn't help but assume things from the way Kaz talked about her. Though to be fair, he had used that same awe-filled tone to talk about a supposedly rare bug he'd found yesterday, so maybe it meant nothing after all.

Rhenor looked away from the campfire he'd been tending to so he could glance over to where Kaz was sleeping, huddled under his coat with only his hair sticking out from under it.

Rhen wouldn't lie and pretend Kaz's habit to sleep for far too long didn't annoy him just a little, but seeing him like this was also quite amusing and endearing, so Rhenor kept his grumbling to himself.

From time to time, he also still got the knee-jerk reaction to get angry with Kaz for the reason he was this way, but thankfully Rhen had been getting better at ignoring that. It wasn't like Kaz did it on purpose, and he hadn't chosen to be born into a privileged family.

Honestly, the fact that this man had been rich and still had risked his life to save a village of people he knew nothing about should be enough for Rhenor to not hold his now former status over his head.

As he heard Kaz groan, Rhenor looked back into the fire, adding more wood to it just to look busy. He doubted Kaz would appreciate knowing that Rhen had been watching him sleep.

"G'morning," Kaz mumbled, yawning as he sat up, blinking owlishly and rubbing his eyes. "Do you ever sleep?"

Rhen chuckled, shaking his head. "Shockingly, yes."

Kaz opened his mouth to say something, but it just turned into another yawn. Rhen just smiled to himself and reached into his bag for something to give him to eat. Kaz seemed to have a deep appreciation for meat, but they didn't have much of that left. Not that that was such a problem—Rhenor could just hunt for more, though it was a shame they couldn't bring that meat with them unless they dried it, and they didn't have that kind of time.

A bigger problem—though mostly only for Rhen, apparently—was that he'd eaten the last of their bread two days ago. They would have to stop in a town or village soon. And maybe get some of that dried meat, too.

Kaz hummed as he ate the meat as soon as it was given to him, wrapping his cloak around himself. "I really miss tea."

"I kind of do as well," Rhenor admitted, sighing. Boiling water out here was a hassle, and tea certainly wasn't a necessity, but he did wish they had some with them. It was nice to relax with, especially since they still had quite a long way to go if the weather was to get warmer. Traveling south for a week wasn't likely to make too much of a difference.

"We need some supplies anyway. Might as well stop in the next village or town we come across."

Kaz visibly tensed up, and Rhenor knew very well why. It wasn't the first time he'd had this reaction.

"No one will recognize you. How could they?" Rhen reminded him as gently as he could while trying not to feel tired of saying this. There was nothing dangerous about going to a town this far away from the Capital, even with Kaz's banishment from the kingdom. Rhenor doubted that even if they came across members of the royal army, anyone would recognize Kaz, let alone remember that he shouldn't be in the kingdom anymore.

"You're right," Kaz muttered, slowly beginning to chew on his breakfast again. "It's just...well, you know. I get nervous."

Rhen resisted the urge to laugh. Kaz seemed to be constantly somewhere between being excited and nervous, so yes, Rhenor did know. But he also knew it wouldn't help the situation if the other man thought he was making fun of him.

"It's okay. It will be a short stop," Rhenor assured him. Rhen wasn't that ecstatic about the idea of dealing with other people for a significant amount of time, so this was more than fine with him. He usually just got annoyed with everyone easily. Kaz somehow managed to avoid that for the most part, but he was an exception.

"Besides, didn't you travel with people to Arlow?" That had been something Rhen hadn't thought to question before now, but there was no alternative here. Surely Kaz couldn't have walked the distance from the Capital all the way to the northern border.

"Well, no," Kaz said, scratching the back of his neck. "I, um, I had a horse."

"Oh, you did?" Rhenor supposed that made sense. He still found it a bit odd that the dragons hadn't just taken it upon themselves to force Kaz onto a ship or something like that, but then again, this was Kaz they were talking about. Rhen doubted he was a threat to the kingdom. "What happened to it?"

Kaz looked down, looking ashamed. "I, uh, gave it to a farmer near Arlow. I don't know where exactly. I don't actually, um, know how to take care of a horse. Not when there's snow everywhere, anyway."

It was getting increasingly hard not to start laughing, but Rhenor somehow managed. He had no problem believing that. Kaz didn't seem to have any of the more practical skills necessary to survive in the wild, but Rhenor had been trying to teach him some, and Kaz was a quick study.

Well, quick for the most part. He wasn't doing too well with archery, but his sword fighting on was getting better. Either way, Rhen had no problem teaching him, even if it took a while. It wasn't like he had anything else to do, anyway.

"I wouldn't mind a horse," Rhenor muttered, sighing. That was a lie. This trip was going to take a good while, and he didn't care one bit.

"Yeah, me neither," Kaz echoed, also sighing, though it sounded much sadder. "I know the Capital and Sigallah are far away from each other, so we should have plenty of time, but I don't want to miss Elaya."

Rhen grimaced. Even though he wasn't actively trying to slow them down in any way, he still couldn't help but feel guilty about not being very supportive. Kaz sounded heartbroken at the idea of not reuniting with Elaya, and no matter the context, Rhen didn't like him being sad.

"It'll be fine," Rhenor said, giving Kaz as big a smile as he could manage with this topic. "We should be much closer to Sigallah than your friend, and I assume she isn't planning on going all the way to Sigallah only to leave again immediately."

Kaz nodded, giving Rhen a tiny smile back. He didn't look relieved at all, but comforting people had never been Rhen's strong suit, so he was at a loss as to how to make Kaz feel better.

"Sorry, I know I'm overthinking," Kaz said, heaving another sigh. "It's just.... I'm really worried about her. If I knew she was okay, I wouldn't be so...on edge."

"I know." Rhenor looked down as well as he nodded. "But if we don't meet up with her in Sigallah, it doesn't mean it's over. We will find her, all right?"

That did make Kaz's smile grow more genuine, and Rhenor relaxed a little. He needed to work on his comforting skills, although he knew that wouldn't fix everything. Keeping up with Kaz wasn't an easy thing for him, both intellectually and emotionally.

Extinguishing the campfire and collecting their things, they set out again, walking back to the road and following it. Even though Rhenor didn't know these parts, not even from a map, they'd already passed a few villages, so he knew they'd come across another one eventually.

They walked in a mostly comfortable silence, though Rhen could tell Kaz was still worried about Elaya. He had been wearing the same pensive frown on and off for days now. Not even giving him food seemed to help, which was about the only trick Rhenor had in store when it came to making people feel better.

"Aren't you worried someone will recognize you in Sigallah?" Rhen asked before thinking the question through as it randomly occurred to him. Sigallah wasn't the largest city around, but it wasn't small either, and it was a coastal city, so there were a lot of people from all over the kingdom, and beyond it.

"Well, yes, of course I am," Kaz replied, his shoulders slumping. He stared at the dirt road as they walked in silence for a moment before looking up at Rhenor again. "But I don't have a choice. And hopefully we won't stay there for long either, so no one will notice me." He cleared his throat, raising his head a bit more. "Erm, I mean, unless you want to stay."

Rhenor frowned at him. What did that mean? "Are you saying you'd stay if I wanted to stay?"

Kaz's cheeks reddened a tiny bit as he looked down again. "Well, yes, if you wanted me to."

So Kaz wanted him around even after being reunited with Elaya. That was nice to know, though Rhenor wasn't sure if he could handle that for long, if his assumptions were correct.

"If you won't want to travel with me anymore, though, I'll understand," Kaz continued in the meantime, sighing. He actually looked sad about that possibility. Rhenor grimaced, avoiding his gaze.

"Let's...not worry about that just yet, eh?" He almost physically cringed at that, but Kaz didn't seem too bothered by what Rhen had just said.

"Yes, of course, you're right. As usual," Kaz said, nodding. He was still avoiding Rhen's eyes though, and he didn't look happy. Rhenor sighed, patting his shoulder, once again amazed at how soft the fur coat Kaz was wearing was. No wonder he slept so well.

"I'm not right that often," Rhenor told him, giving him a sad smile. He doubted that Kaz thought otherwise, but he still felt a need to say it. Maybe he just didn't like being put on a pedestal.

"You are, though," Kaz argued, which Rhenor hadn't been expecting, but at least now the other man was smiling at him. "About pragmatic things, anyway."

Rhenor laughed. All right, he would take that. "Good, and you can be right about scholarly things."

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

Kaz grinned. "I could ramble for hours on end about theoretical magic. But I doubt you want to listen to that."

He blushed again, looking away while Rhenor pondered the fact that he actually didn't know anything about magic, and Kaz did. He had used it, after all. Maybe Rhen should ask about it since they didn't really have much else to do but talk, anyway.

"What do you know about practical magic?"

Kaz's head sprung up to meet Rhenor's eyes, his eyebrows as far up on his face as they would go. "Oh, well, not that much to be honest. As in, I've never really tried it. Even that spell I used back in that cavern...."

He touched his forehead, looking deep in thought. Rhenor had almost forgotten that Kaz used to have a pebble on the cord that was tied over his forehead and hair. "My mother gave me that stone when I was little. I never thought I'd use it."

Rhenor almost came to a halt at how sad Kaz sounded. The other man kept walking, but his shoulders had slumped considerably, and he was keeping his gaze focused on the dirt road.

"Is she...?" Rhenor wasn't sure how to approach this, but he was sure he knew the answer already.

"Dead, yes," Kaz answered, nodding grimly. He was still firmly staring at the ground. "It's not that long ago that she.... Well, you know."

Rhenor stayed silent. He wanted to comfort him, but yet again he had no idea how to do that, so not saying anything was most likely the right thing to do. Rhen had a knack for making these situations even more painful and awkward, so they just continued walking, this time in a very uncomfortable silence.

Finally, after a few minutes Kaz broke it with a sigh. He gave Rhen a pained smile. "Sorry, I'm usually not this depressing."

"No, no, it's okay," Rhenor said immediately, shaking his head. The last thing he wanted to do was make Kaz feel like he needed to apologize for sharing something that wasn't positive. Rhen was sure that his silence just helped Kaz think that, but Rhenor was still convinced that saying something would have made things worse.

"Anyway," Kaz said, clearing his throat. "Magic."

"Magic." Rhenor sighed in defeat. Well, he had asked, after all.

"Right, so there's fire, earth, water, death" Kaz said as he listed them off on his fingers. "And then, theoretically, air, light and darkness. If those can be used somehow, no one knows how. To use it you need totems representing the elements, usually with a rune, so you can imagine why that would be difficult to do with air, light, or darkness."

Rhenor nodded. He wished he could say he knew these basics, but he hadn't. But he couldn't feel embarrassed about his ignorance, either. The dragons had forbidden sharing any of this knowledge, which made learning it difficult, and Rhenor hadn't gone out of his way to educate himself either.

He wasn't even sure why he'd asked Kaz about it to begin with. Morbid curiosity, he supposed. And knowing how it worked wouldn't hurt. And then there was the fact that this was very illegal, and he quite enjoyed spiting their mighty overlords.

"Then there is also artificial magic."

Rhenor blinked at his companion. "Artificial? You mean manmade?"

"Well, dragon-made." Kaz chuckled at his joke, though Rhenor had no idea what was funny about it. There was magic the dragons had made? Magic could be made?

The shiver that went down Rhen's spine had nothing to do with the cold weather.

"I wish I knew more about that, but unfortunately not even I could get to that kind of knowledge."

Kaz was getting a bit starry-eyed once again, and the horror Rhenor was feeling got all the more intense. He had no idea what this artificial magic could do, and already he knew it was unnatural. You couldn't just go and create another kind of magic. That was just...wrong. He had no idea why, but he knew this with every fiber of his being.

"That device we destroyed back in Arlow was powered by artificial magic. That's why it could do things normal magic doesn't allow—in this case work as a part of a system to detect magic use."

Rhenor hadn't even thought to question that when Kaz listed off the kinds of magic. But if all magic was elemental, it would make sense. The question was how this draconic magic worked to bypass the laws of magic.

"But I know so little about it that I have no idea how it actually works, or how it is powered. Or how the energy is manipulated within these devices to get the desired effect."

At this point Rhenor stopped listening as Kaz continued babbling. He was far too disturbed to listen. He'd never heard about this magic existing, but he doubted that meant this kind of magic was used rarely. And judging by what had happened in Arlow, it wasn't stable, either, which made it dangerous.

"Anyway, as I said, I don't know a lot about that," Kaz in the meantime continued. "I just find it fascinating."

When Rhenor didn't say anything to that Kaz seemed to pick up on Rhen's lack of enthusiasm concerning the subject, and he promptly shut up, preferring to stare straight ahead instead. Rhenor spent the next half an hour thinking about what he'd just been told, not even noticing the awkward silence.

Once they got on top of a hill overlooking the surrounding fields, they finally spotted a village in a valley by a mountain, chimney smoke rising up over it. It was maybe an hour's walk away.

Without even looking his way, Rhenor could tell Kaz had tensed up. "We won't be there long."

"Yes, I know, I know."

He didn't sound very confident, but he didn't say anything else as they started walking down the hill. The closer they got to the village the easier it got to walk on the road because it was much more heavily used than the field and forest paths they'd been using. There were more official roads of course, but Rhenor had no desire to use those, if only to protect Kaz's identity.

"You really don't like magic, do you?" Kaz asked out of nowhere once they were about halfway down. "I mean, I supposed I understand that, but why ask me about it, then?"

Rhenor sighed, adjusting the way his bag hung from his shoulder. "Magic is...fine. I have no desire to get involved in it, but it might be useful to know something about it."

Kaz nodded thoughtfully as he stared off into the distance. "Well, there isn't much else to know unless you have a talent for magic, which I don't think you are." He glanced over at Rhenor then, grimacing. "Uh, no offense meant."

"None taken," Rhenor replied. He had no idea how Kaz could tell, but maybe it was somehow obvious. Kaz did seem to know much more than him in general. "So you are? Talented, I mean."

"Well, a little, yes. It's...in my family."

Rhenor frowned in thought. Interesting. While he didn't remember his parents, he was certain that at least one of them could do magic to some extent. He hated the dragons for many reasons, but he had to admit that they most likely had never executed anyone for the use of magic wrongly.

This thought process was making him angry. He'd better stop.

"If it runs in families, then I might be able to use magic."

Kaz scratched the back of his head, avoiding Rhenor's eyes. What had he said wrong this time? "It doesn't really, um, work like that. I mean, maybe you do have affinity for magic, but we can't really test it, can we?"

Rhenor frowned. That had been more than a little strange, but he was going to ignore it. Kaz had a point, either way. They couldn't use magic if they didn't want to be killed, and Rhen was fine not even trying.

"How do you know I can't use magic, anyway?"

Kaz turned his head to fully look at him, his eyes narrowed, studying him. "I'm not sure how to explain it. I just get a feeling about people."

Rhenor wouldn't lie, he'd been hoping for a bit more substantial evidence, but he supposed he would take it. Why was this bothering him, anyway? He didn't want anything to do with magic. That crystal Kaz was still carrying around in his satchel was enough to make him nervous. And Kaz only used it as an everlasting torch.

Now that he thought about it, it was a bit strange that the crystal wasn't enough to trigger the alarm system the dragons had in place, but if he could count on one thing, it was that Kaz would never do something that would betray his location, so Rhen knew there was nothing to worry about. Aside from the thing itself.

"And you aren't getting that feeling from me?" It was a pointless question, but Rhenor felt a need to fill the silence.

Kaz shook his head, peering at Rhenor closer. "Not even a little. Which is interesting."

Rhen was starting to feel a little insulted. "How is that interesting, exactly?"

Kaz didn't seem to pick up on his annoyed tone. In fact, he looked excited yet again. "Well, usually, most humans I've come across have some magical potential. And I'm getting nothing from you. It's just fascinating. I wish I still had access to the Royal Library, so I could see if I can find out something about this phenomenon."

Rhenor definitely felt offended, but he also knew Kaz wasn't trying to insult him, so he kept it to himself. Unfortunately, Kaz seemed to have noticed Rhenor glaring.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's not a bad thing, necessarily." He was giving Rhenor such a pleading look it was really difficult to not feel silly for getting offended by this in the first place.

"It's fine, Kaz."

The other man said nothing and kept his head down until they reached the village. It had looked smaller from afar, but it turned out to be about twice the size of Arlow. There were around thirty buildings in total, most of which were positioned in two circles around a well in the center. There were also a few houses off to the side, and one a bit more in front, which was the first one he and Kaz passed by.

As they kept walking, Rhen noticed that one of the houses stood out to him. It was one in the middle of the village, on the other side of it. Just the sheer size of the stone walls and pointed wooden roof screamed that the person who owned it had money. Rhenor automatically disliked whoever it was.

Since it wasn't even noon yet, there were quite a lot of people around, going about their daily tasks of cleaning, shopping, and conversing about anything and everything. And Rhenor wanted nothing to do with any of them. Not interested in being gawked at he just walked past, ignoring the stares they were getting. Rhen doubted these people got many visitors.

Unlike him, Kaz had raised his head now and was looking at everything around with excitement, despite having been afraid of being recognized earlier. Rhen hadn't thought he was that much of a people person, though looking at him more closely, Kaz seemed to be in awe of the buildings more than the people.

Noticing him looking, Kaz whispered: "I appreciate good architecture."

Rhen chuckled to himself, shaking his head. Not paying any mind to the whispering of a man and woman on their right, Rhenor finally spotted a wooden shop sign with the drawing of meat on it, hanging above the door of a rather large house. Hopefully, this butcher wouldn't be too difficult to barter with.

The bell rang as Rhenor walked in, revealing a small room with a counter. All around hung all manners of meat, from beef to pork to rabbit, with smaller cuts, smoked or salt-cured, presented in small, wooden boxes on the counter itself.

"I'll be right with you!" came a sing-song-y female voice from somewhere in the back where Rhenor couldn't see because there was a wall separating the shop and what was presumably storage or living quarters.

Rhen looked at Kaz when he saw him walk up next to him, noticing that he was practically drooling at the sight of the meat. Rhenor resisted the urge to grin. He hadn't expected Kaz to like meat so much when he'd met him, but it was quite endearing for some reason.

"All right, here we are," said the shop owner as she appeared. She was surprisingly short for this part of the kingdom—a fact somehow even more obvious due to her relatively wide shoulders and toned arms. The woman threw her messy blond braid over her shoulder and wiped her hands on her blood-splattered butcher's apron. "Oh, I've never seen you here before. Traveling?"

Rhenor wrinkled his nose in distaste. He had a problem with nosy people, even when they meant nothing by it. They should still mind their own business.

"Yes, and we need supplies." He had tried to keep his voice neutral, but he'd definitely failed when he saw the butcher raise an eyebrow and smirk at him.

"What would you two like, then?"

Rhenor turned to Kaz. "Pick something out, hm?"

The other man's eyes widened. "Really?"

Rhenor just nodded, huffing out a laugh as Kaz peered down at the meat closer for a moment before starting to point with his finger, ordering. For a second, Rhen was concerned he'd buy out the whole shop, but he seemed to be very selective. Probably due to his elite standards.

Rhenor sighed internally, disappointed with himself. He really needed to stop doing that.

"Are you boys planning on staying?"

Rhenor didn't appreciate being called that, but he supposed the woman did look middle aged, and therefore technically had the right to use that word. What he appreciated even less, though, was the continued questioning.

"Because if you are, I would advise against it. We've had some animal problems lately."

Rhen frowned. Well, that had gotten his attention. "What do you mean?"

The woman hummed as she wrapped up Kaz's choice of meat into paper. "This past week, we've had attacks at night from what people here have been describing as a massive cat."

"A massive cat?" Was he meant to imagine a mountain lion, or an actual, although abnormally large cat? Either sounded unlikely.

"Well, someone has also used the words horror and demon."

She picked up all the meat and gave it to Kaz, who seemed to have stopped paying attention to the food and instead was now listening to the butcher intently. He was getting that curious spark in his eyes again.

"Whatever that thing is, it's broken into a few houses and scared the people inside half to death. But it hasn't killed anyone yet, thank Hermea. I've yet to see it, but I hope I never do."

This was sounding crazier by the minute. But who was Rhenor to judge that accurately? He didn't know anything about magical creatures, and he hadn't exactly traveled much either.

He reached for his coin pouch, taking out three talons and putting them on the counter, hoping that it would be enough. Rhenor wasn't used to buying meat. Seeing the woman take them with a smile made him wonder if he had given her too much, but he decided not to dwell on that.

"Is there anything else you can tell us about this?" Kaz asked with far too much enthusiasm for Rhenor's taste, his hands full of packaged meat.

The woman shook her head. "Not really, sorry. But you can ask around. It's all everyone is ever talking about lately."

"Okay, we will." Kaz still sounded too excited about this. He turned around to give Rhen an unsure look. "Um, we will, right?"

Rhenor shrugged. As long asKaz did all the talking, Rhen didn't see why not. He was somewhat curious aboutwhat was going on here as well, and they could afford to spend a little time tryingto figure it out. Besides, maybe if there really was a dangerous animal andthey got rid of it, they might get some coin from it, as well. Rhenor certainlywouldn't mind making a few extra talons.