Cloud fiercely galloped throughout the vast and beautiful open fields of House Huntingborne. The horse sounded happy. Being able to experience the joy of running again must have been intoxicating for him. The wind breezed through Godric's brown hair, and he laughed after seeing Cloud after seeing the joy in his eyes.

"You've missed this, haven't you? Haha!" He signaled the horse to run faster, allowing them to enjoy the sweet, fresh breeze of the breathtaking plains.

Their journey was far as they continued to travel for a long while, and Godric spotted animals and beasts of different kinds in the distance who were in the middle of migrating. He was astounded at the sight, as the beasts varied in size and proportion with a good number of them being bigger than a house, or wide enough to cover an entire river. He had never seen such beings before.

The world is an amazing place, He thought to himself. If not for Wyatt's sacrifice, I'd never would have lived to see this. Godric was saddened at the thought of remembering his friend. Deep down, he wished that Wyatt were still alive so that he could pay him back for what he did back then, but that wish was slowly fleeting away as he knew it was impossible considering how Rosetown's guards were rotten to the bone. His friend was most likely dead by now. It was the bitter truth that he never wanted and could not swallow, but the more he thought of it, the idea became bearable but not enough to the point where it still did not hurt him deeply.

He was also a wanted man, so returning to Polifio lands was a death sentence. Being in Gillsberry, despite only a few meters away from House Huntingborne's territory, was a suicide in itself. He considered himself lucky to even be alive. The young man daydreamed about things that could have been.

Godric was so lost in his thoughts when suddenly Cloud neighed loudly, snapping him back to his senses. The horse halted and he saw, in the distance, that an abnormality of an elephant was charging toward them. The animal had tusks the size of a fully grown tree, its size was bigger than the Whiteflower itself, with each foot big enough to flatten Godric and the horse. It was slow, but one swing could easily bring down an entire fortification as if it were made out of sticks.

The ground quaked and trembled as it rampaged closer and closer to them. "By the Divines!" Godric cried out. "Those hunters are no joke! Are these the kind of monsters they find joy in killing? A sane person would flee at the mere sight of such beasts!" He immediately grabbed the reigns and signaled the horse to run in another direction to outmaneuver the beast, as Godric had no intention of being crushed to death.

"Ride now, Cloud!" The horse neighed and followed his command, however, Cloud quickly ran toward the monster, which surprised Godric.

"Cloud? What are you doing?" He was confused at the horse's actions, as they were only a stone's throw away from the beast that flailed its ginormous tusks and nose wildly. "Cloud!" He screamed and braced for impact as they were within reach of the abnormality, but the horse quickly sprinted underneath its body, dodging the tusks and nose. Within seconds, they were already a considerable distance away from danger. Godric let out a relieved breath as Cloud slowed down his pace. "You either must be mad, or brave!" He quipped.

"You're quite a spirited fellow. I think I'm now beginning to understand the bond you had with your former rider." He patted the horse on the head. "Let's continue then. To the caverns, boy."

As they continued their journey, Godric spotted people going in and out of the fortified, hilled city of Stagvalley, the ancient seat of House Huntingborne with its three-towered castle proudly standing out like a mountain in the middle. The young man stopped for a moment to admire the scenery. In the distance, he saw men on horseback who Godric recognized as part of the Great House's legendary cavalry. The soldiers on strong horses ran freely across the fields, patrolling the area.

Godric assumed that it was because they were making sure that no wild beast like the one they encountered earlier was within reach of the city. After a while, he came across a few men on horseback who waved at him, prompting Godric to stop and wait for them.

They were dressed in light armor and leather, and their armored steeds were of impressive caliber. Draped over their armor was a long brown cloth with a deer embroidered. They stopped in front of Godric, showing no intent of violence.

"We didn't mean to halt your journey, traveler," one of them said, raising a hand in a gesture of peace. "Dreamers, hunters, and vagabonds are always welcome here in the sacred plains of Stagvalley. We are merely handing out a caution to those not of these lands."

"And what would that be?" Godric asked.

"The great hunt is drawing near, and the lady Tryst has picked up on something foul, but she does not plan on sending any men toward the source, as it normally disappears again after the Great Hunt ends." The other soldier replied.

Godric was quiet for a few moments as he took the time to understand further the situation he would be in. House Huntingborne, known for their fierce cavalry, brave, free-spirited people, and legendary status, were aware of the danger lurking in their lands and now had opted to stay away from the trouble instead of facing it head-on.

"Thank you for the warning, good sir. I'll be sure to keep that in mind. I'll be off now and hopefully, I'll see you two again during the great hunt." Godric said as the soldiers smiled at the invitation. The blood of hunters truly ran in their veins, as it was evident on their faces.

"It would be our honor, traveler." The soldiers nodded at Godric, then went back to resume their duties. Their horses were faster than Cloud despite the armor that covered their bodies.

Godric continued to head toward the mountain ranges despite the warning given by the soldiers for he was already too far into this journey to back out. He stopped after some time to look at the map the elves gave, hoping he would find a nearby safe house.

He observed that he was already too far from where they were, but an odd one stood out as it was marked near the mountain range. It was a peculiar place for a safe house considering its location and distance from the others, but it was near where the caverns were located. Without hesitation, he and Cloud traveled in that direction as fast as they could. The more they traveled, the stranger the beasts turned and the more wary he became.

Hours passed, and the morning turned to afternoon. The two of them were almost at the mountain ranges. Godric ordered Cloud to move slower while he attempted to study the area around them. He was intrigued, for he noticed the animals in the area were sleeping or walking in all but one direction.

As they approached, Cloud slowly began to act out of behavior, as he refused to head toward where the elven safe house was located. Godric attempted his best to calm the horse. This must be it, He thought to himself. The caverns are up ahead, along with the safe house. He got off Cloud and directed him to an area where other harmless animals were sleeping. "Here boy," he said. "Get some rest, you've earned it. I'll be taking it from here." Cloud protested at first, but Godric was patient and calmed him down to the point where the horse slept soundly.

He took off his cape, which fully revealed his armor and weapon, which gave off a slight green hue. Godric then began to walk toward where the stone mountains would meet the ground. The mountains even at the lowest elevation provided a breathtaking, yet imposing sight. He used his mana-imbued vision and saw that the entire area was painted grey. He walked for a few minutes, hoping to find even the slightest trace of mana. The lands below were dyed in grey except for one spot, which had a slight tinge of blue. It was located on a dangerous ledge that overlooked the surrounding fields, with the city of Stagvalley protruding on the horizon.

"There it is." He said to himself. Godric carefully climbed to the spot and after he had arrived, noticed that the safe house was indeed invisible to the untrained eye, as it only stood out as a wall of jagged rocks and stone. Using his mana-imbued vision, he searched for a passageway and found a segment marked with an elvish symbol.

"This must be it," Godric said as he firmly touched the mountainside and inhaled deeply.

"Edro." The young man spoke the word taught to him by the elven prince.

The world was silent, but within a few moments, the mountain began to shake as if something deep within had been activated. A section of the stone wall suddenly moved violently, slowly opening a doorway that revealed a passage that led downwards. Godric cautiously entered the dark area, and out of the corner of his eye, saw wood and coal which he used to make a torch. It lit up a small portion of his surroundings in an orange hue, revealing a stone interior with elvish carvings on the walls.

Godric ventured deeper into the safe house. He placed his hand on one side of the wall to know where he was and noticed that there were candles that he could ignite to light up the place even more. He lit up each one, and soon the entire area was clear enough for him to see.

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The place was decorated with barrels, a few beds, a weapon rack, a wooden chest, and finally a map posted on the stone wall that provided information about the fields of House Huntingborne. From the looks of things, Godric presumed that this was abandoned not too long ago. He checked the barrels and found cured meat and elvish bread inside. Feeling hungry, he decided to help himself with the food. After a brief rest, he opened the wooden chest and found a few dusty books, a generous amount of gold and silver coins, and precious gems.

Rumagging through the chest, he took the coins and gems for future use and did not find any reason to decrypt the writings on the books as the first pages only spoke of the routine activities that the inhabitants of the safe house usually did. However, before he was about to close the chest, he noticed that one of the books had a piece of paper sticking out of it, and he saw a word written in the language of Men.

Curious, he immediately picked up the book and carefully took the paper. The writing was shoddy, almost as if the person who wrote it had difficulty scribbling down the details in the first place.

"It has been two days...elves took me here...spear was taken..." Godric attempted his best to read out the messy writing. "Cure has been found...flower...must go back...Father is waiting..." Godric gasped as he immediately dropped the paper. A spark lit up inside the young man.

Could it be? He thought to himself.

Without hesitation, he headed toward the weapon rack, and there, settled on the weapon rack, was a majestic spear of unmistakable human design. Godric grabbed the weapon and immediately ran out of the safe house. He rushed to the caverns which were close by as he reached out to the gods.

"Divines, be merciful." He prayed.

A thought ran in his mind that somehow, the old man's son was still alive. His body was not present in the safe house and the spear was still in good condition. Godric hoped that he would be able to find him inside the caverns so that the both of them could get what they wanted. A few minutes passed, and he arrived at the entrance of the caverns. The smell was repulsive, as the area reeked of corpses and fear. Godric braced himself as he slowly and cautiously entered.

As he entered, he immediately held Death's Lament in one hand with the spear in the other. The caverns were cold and damp. He heard strange noises that came from deep within the earth. Droplets of water trickled down from sharp stalagmite rocks on the ceiling, far from his head. He maneuvered his way deeper inside, being careful not to make too much noise while being cautious of the pointed rocks that could fall and impale him at any moment.

There was no need for a light source, as the caverns were home to the glowing fungi that Godric was familiar with. He recognized them instantly for they were native to Mistveil Forest which made Godric wonder whether this place was once a haven for elves in earlier times, before Men had come to take over and settle in the Huntingborne lands. The more he progressed, the noises became louder and the foul stench worsened as it clogged his sense of smell, but he continued nonetheless.

He eventually found himself in an open area littered with the remains of the dead. A mixture of elvish, and human weaponry were scattered alongside bones and skulls of varying sizes.

Godric walked cautiously while he inspected the broken-down armor, but the thing that stood out to him the most was a large, gaping hole that punctured through them. No human-made weapon would be capable of such destruction as the damage looked like it came from the stinger of a bee-like creature, which broke through the protection and based on the result, would have easily penetrated through skin and bone.

He continued deep down into the pits and ventured far enough to reach a point where the route had now forked off into two directions. He stopped to relax, gather his wits, and retrace his steps, which fortunately enough he was still able to remember, but now he thought long and hard about how he should approach this situation.

Godric pressed his back against the cold, damp stone and took time to think of a solution. "What now?" He asked himself. He thought long and hard, but soon a chilling observation left him quiet and somewhat nervous.

Why is it so quiet? He thought to himself.

I heard no voice asking for help, no wicked charm, nor did I feel any urge to enter the place against my will. Is my mind playing tricks on me, or is this part of the witch's plan? Has it already placed me under a spell?

He focused again and looked at the two passageways, yet still, he could not find an answer to this mystery. Moments later as he still contemplated on a decision, a horrifying noise echoed out from one of the two pathways, one that belonged to a beast that Godric was unfamiliar with. He steeled himself as it growled louder and louder, but to his surprise, another noise echoed through the caverns which rivaled the monster's own, it sounded as if the two were in a struggle.

The latter unmistakably was from a human. There was no doubt in his mind. "By the Divines, someone is alive!" Godric immediately rushed toward the source to assist in the fight. He marked down the route by forcefully slashing his sword on a huge stone, forming a noticeable mark that could assist him in finding the way out.

By the time he arrived, the noises had already gone, signaling that the fight was already over. The area was darker, and a cold chill filled the air. On top of the carcass stood a figure who did considerable damage to the monster. The monster's one eye bulged out of its now deformed socket. Its face was bashed beyond recognition, and its legs were crushed. Godric had difficulty seeing the culprit behind such violence, as no human would have been able to do such a thing. He now had doubts about whether this being was even human to begin with.

Godric prepared himself for a fight, for this might finally be the Witch that many have warned him about.

The being approached him, growling. "Show yourself!" He screamed. The glowing fungi were scarce in this section of the caverns, but they provided him with enough light to see the figure in front of him.

To his surprise, the figure was not of a woman or a monster. It was a man, no more in his late twenties. He had a wild look, accompanied by long, messy black hair and a beard. He wore badly worn-out armor that was barely hanging onto his body, as parts of it were missing, revealing scars and bruises.

"By the Divines," Godric gasped. "Y-you're alive! Come now! We've got to get you out of here. I know the way out." He lowered his guard and approached the man, but to his surprise, the man lunged at him like a wild beast, baring his teeth which now had fangs. He attempted to grab him with both hands, but Godric reacted in time and kicked him hard in the chest which halted his advance.

However, the attempt was subpar at best for his opponent only stopped for an instance, but he never moved even a slight distance from Godric's attack. Godric used his mana-imbued sight to gain insight into his opposition, and to his great surprise found that this man was a mana user, like him. However, his raging, blue mana overwhelmed the natural color of life as streaks of red sparked uncontrollably outside his body.

"Shit." Godric cursed as the man began to growl more aggressively, noticeably angered at Godric's attempt earlier.

The man-beast howled, and the entire cavern shook at the sound. Godric stepped back to regain his footing and breathed in slowly. For the first time in a long while, he was anxious. He looked at his opponent who seemingly was now filled with bloodlust, as Godric braced himself for the fight of his life.