We had packed up. What we could carry went into the backpack or were hung from its sides. Kassa is in my arms. I have to decide where to go.

First off, we’re definitely following the road. The reason being it would take many days or more before I usually stumbled into one, and because Kassa is with me, I don’t think I can completely abandon civilization.

There are then two choices, following the road through God’s Win and continuing at another exit from the city, or past the camp with the mass grave. I look at Kassa. She actually looks quite excited. But I don’t want to bring her past that camp again if I can help. And I feel like I should say goodbye to Gorar.

It will also serve as a small test as to whether Kassa, in her robe outfit, can be dragged through the city. I wonder how suspicious it would seem to have a child so covered, since most I see run around with only a long shirt, like I wore when I was kid in this world.

It’s the same day and the sky is starting to darken. The gates of the city close when it gets dark, but I think we can make, even while holding a comfortable pace for Kassa in my arms.

And so, I run until I make it to God’s Win. It is darker than I thought, and in fact, Gorar is currently in the middle of closing the gate. Pity I don’t get to gauge people’s reactions to Kassa, but maybe it is safer to just run around the city’s perimeter.

“Oy, Gorar!” I cry out.

“Yian!” He greets me. He then makes a weird face as he notices the small body in my arms. Kassa seems to have fallen asleep.

“What’s this then?” He asks me.

“Ah, I have been taking care of this girl… She…” I check to make doubly sure she is sleeping, and it seems she is. “Her parents died under unfortunate circumstances and I have been caring for her since.”

Gorar makes a weird face. “Wouldn’t it be better for her if you left her to a church somewhere?” Of course, I can’t tell him why I can’t do that, but a memory of another person springs to mind.

“I knew someone who grew up in such a place… They seemed to think it was horrid, so I am taking care of her this way.”

“But… She won’t have any friends, if she lives away from everyone… No one makes it through life alone” Gorar has a pitying look in his eyes.

“Well, let me let you in” he says, as he starts opening the gate again, but I stop him.

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“I actually just came to say goodbye. I am leaving, remember?”

“Yeah, but are you going to travel during the night?” His words make me remember that it isn’t exactly normal.

“No sweat, I have things under control” I try to assure him. “By the way, can you tell me a bit about what is in the vicinity? Where does the roads from this city lead to?”

Gorar scratches his chin a little. “Well, we are the edge of the dukedom. If you head back the way you came, you will make it to Satir, a mining town, and past that there is a serious of smallish trading hubs that eventually lead to the old human capital.” Well, there is one way I am certainly not going.

“Then the southern road leads to Hove’s End, the seat of the duke in our small dukedom. I don’t think you want to get closer to him.” He’s right.

“The northern road leads to The Human Republic. There’s not much traffic now, but I heard they are negotiating some proper trade routes and it will probably start up again soon.”

“The Human Republic?” I ask. He blinks a little.

“How familiar are you with the outcome of the war?” He asks me. I don’t really care about being suspicious anymore, since I am leaving.

“Basically nothing at all.”

“Well, after the war, the human territory split off into three large countries and a dozen or so smaller ones. The large ones are the remnants of the old government. Though they still call themselves the human territory, they are now more commonly known as the old country, or the hero’s country. They try to rule things as they always have.

Far to the east you have The White Order. They didn’t quite get what they wanted when they started the war, but they are the largest country as of now. They are a bunch of lunatics and the rumors I have heard don’t paint the new-born country as doing well at all. It is almost as though a bunch of extremist priests have little idea of how to actually run a country.” It feels a bit evident he doesn’t like them much.

“Then, to the north you have the Human Republic. While they are the smallest of the three, they seem to be attracting a lot of immigration right now, what with the “everyone can become someone”-mantra they have going. They think humans should rule themselves, not be subject to loose interpretations of God or the heroes.”

“Then, what lies in the last direction?” I ask. I have firmly noticed when I ran around the city before, that there were four roads leading out of the city and Gorar had only accounted for three of them.

“The western road was supposed to be a new road leading to the frontier, but it was cancelled as it became apparent we were no longer able to feed the Silvestri. Now it just fizzles out to a dirt path.” There’s a word I haven’t heard before.

“Frontier? What is that?”

Gorar looks at me a little confused. “The frontier of the human territory obviously. Beyong that are the wild lands of subhumans. I wouldn’t recommend going there. They usually have only little coin, and mostly convicts are sent there to claim more land for humankind… or their country now, I guess” He scratches himself a little.

It was a shocking piece of information and I feel a little excited. “Then, Silvestri are living out there?” I ask, perhaps a little bit too enthusiastically, since Gorar gives me another weird look. “Ah, yeah, that and worse.” It stings me a little that even the man I have seen as nothing but kind-hearted and dutiful dislikes the Silvestri.

“Then, thank you for everything, Gorar. Just one last question.”

“Shoot, friend.”

“Which way is west?”