Chapter 76 Perplexing Problem

Aleshia realized that the booming sounds were more numerous than the few she had heard before. This increase made her stricken with worry, thinking that something had gone awry with the otherworldly magic she saw Lucia conjuring. Aleshia ran toward the booming sounds, invoking enhancement and supportive magics that enveloped her body in a shimmering aura. She increased her speed as she adjusted to the enhancement, determined to confront whatever awaited her at the source of the ominous sounds.

Aleshia ran for what had felt like many hours. Her steps became faltering as exhaustion began to set in. While she had been running, she had been continuously reapplying her magics.

Aleshia's chest heaved as she struggled to catch her breath. "What in the world? Why does it feel like I have been running for ages?" she thought, trying to ground herself. Her legs felt heavy, and her lungs burned with each gasp for air. Aleshia blinked, trying to escape her tunnel vision. She looked up to check the sun's position to estimate how long she had been running, but to her dismay, the sun had barely moved from its position since she last remembered it.

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From there, she tried searching for Lucia. When she finally saw her, Aleshia realized she was closer to Lucia than she had been at the bottom of the hill. When she turned back to look at the hill she had just descended, she noticed it was a significant distance away, confirming that time must have passed. Uneasiness appeared on her face as she tried to make sense of the strange passage of time.

Aleshia's thoughts raced as she struggled to make sense of the situation. 'This shouldn't be possible. It can't be that they are moving, as that would be too far,' she remarked inwardly, her brow furrowed in confusion. "I could plainly see them from the top of the hill, and I should have been running for at least an hour, judging by the distance from the base of the hill that I descended. But the sun has barely changed its position from where I last saw it being," she mused aloud, allowing her mind to grapple with the perplexing problem.

Aleshia was confused by the turn of events and finally stopped to catch her breath and focus on the task at hand. She began sketching on the dirt with a stick she found on the ground, creating a graph of the hill, her starting point, current location, and destination. She then traced the distance she had covered. Aleshia sketched the distance she should have traveled and how far she probably traveled and calculated the distance she had covered based on her estimation. With a remark, she added, "I remember feeling an odd sensation on the hill. It seemed like I was descending much more slowly than I had thought." Aleshia scribbled down her thoughts next to the rough drawing and began putting the pieces together in her mind for a better understanding.