Do not judge a book by its cover. The proverb was too vague to believe. Why couldn't we define something by its appearance when it's the simplest and easiest way to protect ourselves from the potential dangers out there? We stayed away from wild wolves or brightly colored amphibians not only because we knew what they were capable of, but also because their hideous appearance gave us chills.

But Meyara had to give the phrase a chance since she had experienced it herself. She had always thought of Oxcross men as empty-headed people who only depended on their fists to solve any problem. That conclusion was not made without reason, words about their vices and fierce looks were spread in every nook and cranny of the kingdom. Meyara was no exception, but after one moment, she was willing to take back her words.

Despite their fearsome appearance, Oxcross’ leader was surprisingly kind enough to provide them with something very useful.

"I've never seen fur this soft," she said happily. Her snarky nature had disappeared since they left Oxcross Village. “Glory’s dress is incomparable to this. I have to keep it safely in my bag.”

Adriel shook his head disapprovingly. “Nuh-uh, we must quickly put on the robes. It's getting colder here. We’re almost there.”

The girl thought for a moment, seemingly difficult to make a choice. The thick brown robe in her hands was so warm and soft to the touch, she could barely resist the urge to rub her cheeks against it. There was not the slightest bad smell from the fur, even though she knew very well that the thing was made from the skin of a hunted animal. It was impressive, and with a bit of Oxcross' male touch, it was definitely more durable and useful than any other garment in this world.

“The Royal Family must have a lot of these,” the girl muttered in jealousy. Though unwilling, he put on the robe, a soft sigh escaping her lips automatically. "Wow, it feels so good, like a mother's hug."

"I know, right? They're not playing games," Adriel replied with a big smile on his face, feeling relaxed that they were back alone and no longer on guard. The gift they received was the cherry on top. He tightened his own robe he had been wearing since the first second he received it and smiled. The design was so similar to Meyara's, he almost wanted to say they looked cute wearing the same clothes, but he held himself back because he knew she wouldn't like hearing those words from him.

“But that is nothing compared to my magic,” the girl replied. "Once my magic returns, I can easily check the secret and make my own."

Adriel tilted his head at that, not expecting a sudden bragging from the girl. Meyara’s mind was very difficult to understand, that was the fact, but Adriel was still often caught off guard when the girl changed character in a split second. One moment she would happily praise the work of others, and then she would downplay everything as if she had never uttered any praise.

What an unexpected, strange, and unique girl.

“But cute.”

"What’s cute?"

Adriel's body jumped slightly at that. He stuttered after realizing that he had spoken his mind out loud.

“Th-the robe, of course. It's a cute color,” he stuttered in a stupid reply. His unintelligent, slow-working brain didn't have enough time to form another response, he almost wanted to throw it out of his head. There was no point in harboring a brain that only embarrasses his existence.

It was undeniable that his answer only made Meyara even more curious, it could be seen from the way she stopped walking, waiting for Adriel to walk a little faster to catch up with her. She might have been confused enough to ask why the young man found the slightly shabby brown color cute, as she just stood there with her inquisitive stare.

Adriel gulped at the sight. Apart from the petite girl who looked quite scary, the surroundings which had started to lose most of their color also made it hard to breathe. There are no more green plants, let alone colorful flowers. Not as dry as the desert they had passed before, dry grass still covered the ground. Adriel only felt that this place was exactly like the background of his childhood nightmare.

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The dry trees that no longer had a single leaf hanging down, the blackened branches that rivaled the rocks, and the large cave not far from where Meyara was standing were enough to make him want to go as far as possible. Their earlier conversation distracted Adriel for a moment, but now he felt that they had to get away from that place before an untoward incident happened.

People said that negative thoughts had their own negative energy that brought misfortune. Adriel didn't have to wait long to experience for himself what that meant.

Really, he should have tried harder to get rid of his paranoia because now his bad thoughts had made Meyara's tiny body pulled by an unknown hand that emerged from the cave, the one that Adriel had been eyeing all this time. The young man was too late to react so his hand missed by an inch from grabbing the girl's.

Meyara's scream echoed, calling Adriel to save her immediately. The loyal companion entered the cave without hesitation only to be stopped by a strange energy that made every muscle of his body refuse to move.

“That's why I found it hard to breathe even earlier,” he thought. His mouth felt so tight that he could not utter a word. "It's not because of my fear. My instincts were calling me, but I was too stupid to notice."

He stood there with his eyes and mouth wide open. Not moving even though he could clearly see how much struggle Meyara had to face to prevent herself from being carried further into the cave by a creature they had just seen for the first time.

They had only ever heard of it. The monstrous beings that lived in dark, spooky caves, under strange-shaped boulders, or abandoned bridges. Some people said they were also found in the mountains, but to this day Adriel had never once met anyone who had met them, let alone seen the creature with his own eyes.

Now he saw how those big eyeballs stared hungrily at Meyara, he forced himself to spell a few casts that burned his own hands. One of the abilities he had since Meyara tricked him with the same magic. He inhaled as much oxygen as he could, trying to increase the fire that was crackling in his hands.

However, the flames did not increase, so the disgusting-smelling green creature in front of him laughed.

"Just give up! My cave is my rule! No one can do anything here without my permission!"

Adriel clenched his jaw angrily. He may not be the best mage, nor the bravest human in the world, but he refused to be overpowered by a strange creature that looked like a giant rock covered in moss. Those big, dirty eyes had no right to look down on him. Especially since the monster looked no better than the rocks lining the road leading here.

"Let go of me, you disgusting monster!" Meyara kept shouting while hitting the big hands that were tightly wrapped around her waist. She winced, disgust overpowering fear and pain, even though her face was already crimson red from the pressure. It must be hard for her to breathe, even worse. “Adriel, bring sunshine here! They are afraid of it! That's why they prefer to rot while cowardly hiding in a smelly place like this!”

“How can I bring the sun here? Starting a fire is already hard enough!” Adriel replied while spelling all the attack spells he knew, but every attempt ended in vain.

Meyara coughed loudly. She could feel how her midsection was about to explode from the pressure the monster exerted, but she refused to give up. She had gone too far to let her chance slip through her grasp.

So even though her head was spinning, and every organ in her body was screaming for her to let fate take over, she forced herself to shout.

“Think about it, idiot! Before I kill you myself after I managed to survive!”

That was it. She might just be a frail girl, unable to even detect approaching danger long before the monster pulls her away, but she still had a trusted comrade who was willing to do anything for her even if his services were not properly rewarded. A young man who confidently became her student when Meyara herself was still not fully satisfied with her abilities.

Meyara groaned in pain before releasing the hand that was trying to push the monster's claw away. Her legs that were dangling in the air no longer struggled and only drooped helplessly.

Adriel, who became Meyara's last hope, grabbed his hair in frustration. He thought that Meyara definitely knew a way, but she couldn't say it out loud because the ugly monster could hear and mess up her plans. Moreover, the creature looked very ignorant and liked to frustrate other people from the way it laughed at the two poor teenagers. He should find a way out on his own.

Then he realized how Meyara kept trying to get her bag which was stranded not too far from the mouth of the cave. Several palm-sized spiders began to surround the object, attracted by the smell of the food that Meyara had brought. Adriel barely saw something shining peeking through the zip.

He immediately muttered thanks to his brain that finally worked for him.

***