Kayla Argonaut pulled the string of her bow and aimed at the riverbank. She hid behind bushes, had the high ground, and the wind blew her scent (had she any) away from the river.

Her dressing in green and brown outfit allowed her to blend into nature. Untrained eyes would not be able to distinguish her, and the same could be said for trained eyes. Her presence was non-existent. Years of discipline had allowed her to erase her presence.

Whilst she was unmoving behind the bushes, still aiming for the riverbank, a butterfly flew and landed on her nose. Her eyes did not waver nor twitched at the disturbance. Her sight was still on the riverbank.

As soon as her prey came to sight, she released the arrow without any hesitation. The arrow flew and sliced the wind silently. When it hit the target, blood flowed near the riverbank and a life was extinguished.

The butterfly flew away from her nose.

Near the riverbank was a dead reindeer, shot through the eye and right to the brain—an instant death.

‘That’s dinner,’ Kayla muttered to herself.

To Isla,

I humbly request your immediate help for my tribe’s well-being. A monster lurks in the forest and lives has been lost. The forest has been banned; but, as a tribe of hunter, we’re facing a crisis for not being able to hunt because of the presence of the monster. I do not know when this letter will reach you, but my tribe needs immediate aid.

From Vynette

Isla sat inside the carriage, re-reading the letter which was sent to her. Her appearance, from top to bottom, was black. Her black hair reached her neck, her charming black eyes were like obsidian, and her black coat and trouser showed importance. Rested onto the carriage seat beside her was an ominous black sword.

‘Has there been any information about the monster that might be from the forest?’ Kayla asked the carriage driver. He was a driver and an informant who belonged to the association. He should know about the news about the monster who should be around the forest.

‘There were a few,’ the driver answered. ‘Most of them were C-rates. A notable one is Flesh. A C-rate humanoid monster which can regenerate wounds. It’s skinny, twice the height of an average male, and slightly stronger than a man, so tribes and villages could still drive it away. Nothing special about it, just hard to kill.’

‘… I see. But, are there any A-rate or higher rating monsters around here? This tribe I’m visiting, they’re a tribe of hunters and I doubt a C-rate monster like Flesh could bother them.’

‘As far as I’m concerned, there are only C-rate monsters around this area. However… there was a report that an A-rate monster had been missing from an area not too far from here. Nicknamed Warp, it’s able to teleport itself. A beastlike monster with a lion’s figure, only twice bigger, with hard scales covering its body. It was reported 3 months back, but when the agents sent from association was tasked to investigate, they found nothing.’

‘There’s a chance that Warp is here then?’

‘The possibility isn’t zero.’

Isla tilted her head up to see the orange sky. I’ll have to deal with an A-rate monster then.

‘Miss Isla, we’re here,’ the driver said. ‘You could see the village now.’

Isla looked at the hill to see the huts which she was familiar with, along with the tribes whom she knew well.

‘I wish I can send you farther Miss Isla, but this is as far as the carriage would allow me. I pray you the best of luck on your job.’

Before going out of the carriage, Isla smiled at the driver. ‘Thank you.’

At the bottom of the hill was a bald man carrying a spear, with tattoos all over his head. In that tribe, tattoos were considered as a special blessing that gave strength to those who had it. The inscriptions on the man’s head, in their scripture, read as strength and wisdom. Isla thought from his muscular figure and weapon, that he was the lookout of the village.

When his eyes caught the sight of Isla, he hid the spear behind his back and gave a bow. ‘You must be Miss Isla, the elder had awaited for you and wishes to see you.’

Receiving a bow was a gesture that Isla could never get herself used to. She gestured with her hand for him to rise his head, and only after he did she asked: ‘Where can I meet the elder?’

‘Please, allow me to guide you.’

Isla gave a nod and took his offer.

If there was anything about the tribe that had always amazed Isla, it would be about the manners of the people there. They might live far away from civilization, they might hunt animals, but by no means were they savage. The lookout had left his spear at his post as a sign of hospitality and trust. That was just how well-mannered he was.

There might not be stairs to go up the hill, but the tribe had made a clear path for people to ascend and descend. The people who Isla passed along the way gave her a humble greeting and she returned it. As the sky gradated from orange to blue, Isla arrived at the village which was lighted with torches.

‘The elder should be in the main hall.’ He presented the hut at the center of the village, the biggest one. ‘If she isn’t, then please make yourself comfortable and wait.’

‘Thank you.’

‘A pleasure.’ With that, the guard left.

Isla slid the curtain of the hut and allowed herself in. She had expected the elder to sit on her chair and granted her a warm welcome as she always would. But instead of anything peaceful of that sort, she encountered the unexpected. As soon as Isla entered the hut, she could hear her scream loudly at the top of her voice.

‘CAN YOU NOT LISTEN?!’ she shouted with red face. She might be old, but her voice still contained vigor. ‘OR ARE YOU JUST DEAF?!’

‘Grandma.’ Confronting the elder was a girl in her teen. ‘Those are the same thing.’

‘I TOLD YOU COUNTLESS TIMES! NOT. TO. GO. TO THE FOREST!’

‘For goodness sake!’ she snapped. ‘We’ve been eating fruits and vegetables for a month straight! We need meat for a balanced meal!’

‘Oh,’ the elder lowered her voice, though it was still hostile, ‘so you risked yourself only to get a balanced meal, eh? Stupid! Nuts for brains! Do you not have the brain to set your priorities right?!’

‘I DO, THAT’S WHY I—’

‘THEN WHY DID YOU LUNING GO TO THE FOREST?’

And the fight went on. That was the first time Isla had heard the elder use a swear word. Other than that word, she could have sworn she heard more swear words in their tribe’s language—words that Isla absolutely had no clue of their meaning. She just assumed it was a swear word judging from the intensity of the usage.

There was a lady who noticed Isla’s presence inside the hut. When she did, her eyes paced back and forth between the arguing elder and Isla. She looked confused and scared, but decided to approach the elder.

‘Elder, I apologize to disturb—’

‘Not now!’ She shooed her away.

Her words weren’t reaching the elder who was seeing red. To think that she, who was always so calm and collected, could be riled up and enraged like that was a thought that never once crossed Isla’s mind until that exact moment.

As much as Isla would like to leave them be and wait for the argument between them to cool down, Isla got herself a job to do and that concerned the well-being of the tribe. She interfered by clearing her throat and that failed horribly.

Again she cleared her throat, but louder this time. Still, that could not interrupt the heated argument between the girl and the elder. Isla let out a sigh and stepped in herself. ‘Can we please stop the argument?’

‘Mind your own business!’ they both said in unison.

‘Elder Vynette… you sent me a letter, remember?’ She produced a paper from her coat pocket and flailed it.

‘Isla? Goodness! Since when have you been here? I apologize! My stupid grandchild gets on my nerve.’ Grandchild? Isla looked at the girl who she had argued with. ‘Kayla, show yourself out. Now.’ The girl let out a sigh and left the main hall. ‘Isla, please sit down.’ The elder had prepared for her a leather cushion on the ground. Isla folded her leg and sat there. As she and the elder was settling down, the lady who had tried to interrupt prepared a cup of tea for the both of them.

‘Long time no see elder Vynette,’ Isla opened the conversation politely with a smile. ‘It’s good to know that you still have the strength to shout that loud.’

‘Please, forget what you see. That was unbecoming of me. Kayla is always able to make me lose my calm.’ She sipped her cup.

‘You said—that she’s your grandchild?’

Elder Vynette nodded.

‘I never knew that Sir Argonaut had a daughter. Who’s the lucky lady?’

The elder shrugged. ‘No one knows Isla. No one knows… He appeared one day with a baby in his arms and he said she was his daughter. Then he disappeared and I heard news of his death.’

‘I—see.’

‘Those talk aside, you’re here because you received my letter. I believe I have explained the circumstances there.’

‘Yes. There’s a monster inside the forest isn’t it?’

‘And it killed a few of my people.’

‘My condolences.’

‘… Ever since, I have banned people from going into the forest for their safety. Still, the tribe gets its harvest from the forest by hunting. Without being able to hunt, we couldn’t get to keep up with trading with other tribes. We’re facing a crisis and at this rate, we will have problem in the winter.

‘I wish the problem would end there, but despite the smiles that my tribe had shown you on your way here, their minds are clouded in fear. Our village is near the forest and the fear of the monster attacking this village gets them sleepless at night. It’s not good for the health.

‘I… would have preferred to settle this matter with our own strength, but I cannot risk the well-being of my people. With all sincerity, I beg you, please kill the monster in the forest.’

‘Please. No need to bow your head.’

‘I have to.’ She touched her forehead to the ground.

‘I will do it regardless on whether or not you bow your head, elder Vynette. I owe your son, Sir Argonaut, a favor. And even if I am not, it is also only right for me, as an agent, to help with troubles regarding monsters. Please raise your head.’

The elder raised her head. ‘Thank you, Isla.’

‘Don’t mention it. I could start the hunt now.’ Isla stood up.

‘No. I insist that you have yourself a rest for tonight at our finest hut. The moon isn’t shining today and carrying a torch would be a hinder.’

‘… I’ll take you on that offer then. Speaking of which, do you mind if I go to the training ground and visit the graveyard? I’d—like to dwell on the past for a while… and visit Sir Argonaut’s tomb.’

‘Please, do so. He would be delighted to be visited by his disciple.’

‘Thank you.’

Kayla stepped outside of the hut and looked at the sky. The sky was now dark and the elder was right, there was no moon that night. Without the torches to light up the village, Isla would not be able to see a thing. Hunting at night with a torch in hand against a monster would indeed be problematic.

Isla remembered the path to the training ground. She had spent an amount of time there and the path was ingrained in her body. It was during that harsh time when she had trained with Sir Argonaut. A painful time, but a memory that she now cherished.

As she walked, she wondered about Sir Argonaut’s daughter and wondered who the lucky lady was. For all that she could remember, Sir Argonaut had never had the love of his life. If he did had one, Isla doubted that he could keep his feelings for himself. He was a very open man after all.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

But there and then, he was not the type to get himself involved with any woman either. It was weird for him to have a child and this caught Isla’s attention. Perhaps, in that 1 year when Isla didn’t meet Sir Argonaut, he managed to find himself a lady and spent his time with her. As she wondered, time passed by, and she found herself in the training ground.

The training ground at that time was dark and desolate. Torches were lit and the training ground was usable, but no one used it at night. No one in their right mind would extend themselves and practice until night in that tribe. It made much more sense for them to rise early in the morning and use the training ground then. The training ground, just like Isla remembered it, still has a large open space with soft glass on the ground. Grass that allows people to fall down without receiving much damage.

People would spar using spears in the open area and use the trees on the side as target holder for practicing. Isla approached a tree and noticed a peculiar target which only had one hole right at the middle. Other targets had holes all over the target board because of practicing, but the one she was looking only had one hole in the middle. That got Isla curious. Was it a special kind of target board?

An arrow passed by her temple and hit the center of the target. Isla got cautious and quickly turned to see where the arrow was shot from. Her hand was instinctively holding the grip of her sword beside her waist. There, opposite to the target, was the elder’s granddaughter. Kayla was her name, Isla believed.

‘You shouldn’t stand between me and the target,’ she said.

‘You weren’t there before.’

‘I was here from before you entered the training ground.’

Was that so? If so, Isla didn’t notice her. On closer inspection, Isla noticed how low of a presence she had in the dimly lit area near a torch. ‘I—didn’t notice you there then, sorry. But still, you should’ve not shot the arrow when I was near the target.’

‘In real situation,’ she explained, ‘once the jig is up, I have to shoot regardless of the situation. I counted till 500 just now and when it reach 0, I had to shoot my target. That’s a must even if suddenly there’s wind, rain, or anything. I have to practice because it’s not like my prey is kind enough to allow me to have a second chance.’

‘You could’ve missed and hit me.’

‘That board has no other holes,’ she pointed, ‘because I never miss. I—can’t afford to miss.’

In the darkness, holding her bow, although her presence was low and almost non-existent, she looked rather formidable with the weapon. Isla wondered if that was because she was Sir Argonaut’s daughter. Perhaps she had inherited his charisma…

‘Why can’t you afford to miss?’ Isla asked.

She tilted her head. ‘Taking example of what just happened: if I had missed I would’ve hit you. If I miss my target, everything goes to chaos and that’s troublesome. I might even lose my life. Anyway, I’m going to practice a little more and I will shoot my arrow.’

With that indirect warning, Isla went out of the training ground and allowed the archer to have her practice time alone.

Isla walked to the graveyard, which was not far away from the training ground. There, in the newest section of the graveyard, occupying a plot of land, was where Sir Argonaut rest. His tombstone stood straight with pride, just like he did when he was alive. Isla offered a moment of silence for him and only after she did, she uttered: ‘Sir Argonaut, with all due respect, your daughter is an odd one.’

Isla’s day started early in the morning. She had risen up before the sun rose and had her breakfast. The moment when the sky was lit, she immediately headed to the forest with her sword beside her waist.

The elder was kind enough to offer a few of the tribe’s lookout to accompany Isla against the monster, but Isla kindly declined. She thought that it would be best if she went there alone. She was not exactly unfamiliar of the forest herself, as she used to train there too with Sir Argonaut.

Thus, Isla went to the forest. The people of the tribe was kind enough to send her off and wished her good luck. They were such good-mannered people.

It was particularly misty during that morning and that made the atmosphere rather morbid. Isla could usually tell when she woke up on whether or not she would be lucky on that day. She was not feeling unlucky that day, but she also didn’t feel lucky either.

While the carriage driver had told Isla about the monsters Flesh and Warp, it didn’t necessarily mean that the monsters she was about to face was one of the two. The behaviors of monsters were rather unpredictable and one would never know if there would be an even dangerous monster lurking inside that forest. Perhaps—it might be waiting inside the mist, prepared to lurch at Isla. Inside the mist, she had to be cautious. She remembered how yesterday night she would have died should that arrow aimed for her head instead of the target. Carelessness was an enemy on its own.

As she ventured deeper into the forest, she had yet to detect any monster. There weren’t any unusual trace on the ground except of that of animals. Some monsters usually marked their territory should they settle down on a place. Either by setting stones in a certain manner, clawing trees, or any sort of indication. Isla had encountered none of that so far.

After quite some time, she noticed blood on a tree bark. Isla could only assume that that was the blood of the tribesmen who were killed by the monster and got eaten. While feeling remorse, Isla continued at her job and considered how the blood might be a way for the monster to mark its territory. Unlikely, but it was noted in her mind.

She spent even more time inside the mist and saw a figure lying on the ground. Isla immediately thought of the worst and had expected the corpse of the tribesmen. And if their dead bodies were there, that would mean that the monster was close too. She pressed on closer to see that it was just one lifeless body.

Of a monster.

Humanoid monster, skinny and twice the height of average male, just like what the carriage driver had informed her the day before. A C-rate monster capable of regenerating itself, Flesh. The driver had told her that it was hard to kill, but there the monster was, lying on the ground.

The corpse had been there for a while, Isla assumed from the dried monster blood, though she could not tell how long had it been dead. Flesh had died from receiving 5 arrows to the head. It tried pulling the arrows out to allow itself to regenerate, but the arrowhead must have gone lose and it remained stuck inside its head. Hence, the cause of death.

Whoever had done it must have thought ahead of time and countered Flesh’s regeneration by loosening the arrowhead and letting it stuck inside of it.

Isla then thought; if someone in the village was capable of doing that, perhaps he or she might actually be able to help her out. Whoever did that must have had a bright mind. At least, it was worth a shot to point out who did that and determine on whether or not he or she might be able to help. Isla then dissected the monster and took its core, along with the arrow back to the village.

It just so happened that Isla returned just at the right time for having lunch. The elder invited her for lunch and insisted that she should have a break to fill her stomach before going on with her job. Isla was feeling a little hungry, so she accepted the hospitality.

She waited until the lunch was done. Only then did she brought up the arrow and told the elder of what she had found in the forest.

‘So you’re saying, that someone here is crafty enough to loosen the arrowhead to deal with that monster?’ She asked.

Isla nodded.

‘Yet, no one here had claimed of such feat. This person must have not wanted the attention.’

‘No one claimed the kill?’

The elder shook her head. ‘No one did. There and then, whoever did that might just be from some other tribe. You can never tell.’

‘I have the arrow that was used to strike the monster.’

‘Hand it to me then, let me see.’

Isla produced an arrow and handed it to the elder. The arrowhead and the shaft was separated. Isla had pulled the arrowhead out forcefully from Flesh.

‘This is without a doubt an arrow of out tribe… And it irritates me greatly…’

‘Huh? Why?’

‘It has Kayla’s name all over it… Even though I have told her not to go to the forest! That child doesn’t listen!’

‘The arrow has her name on it??’

‘What? No. When someone uses the arrow, some people would tweak it for their personal preference rather than just using it readily. Some people would trim the feather, sharpen the arrowhead, scrape the shaft, and other tweaks you can think of. This one has Kayla’s preference all over it. I know because she often spend her time honing her arrow.’

‘… Is it okay if I ask your permission so that she could aid me against the monster? I—want to see her work.’

‘She’s crafty. Too crafty at times. And that irritates me. If you promise me her safety and she agrees to it, then please go ahead.’

‘Okay. Where is she now?’

‘Good question. Lila, do you know where she is?’ She called her attendant.

‘That’s…’ the attendant’s eyes wandered elsewhere.

‘Look at me in the eyes Lila. Where is Kayla?’

‘She—um… She—went to the forest.’

‘She what??’

‘She went to the forest, elder.’

‘That child never listens! Does she not understand how dangerous the forest is right now?? That luning child!!’

Seeing elder Vynette worry caused some concern for Isla. To ease her worry, Isla decided to help. ‘I’ll catch up with her.’ Isla then up and left immediately to the forest.

Isla wondered if Kayla understood how dangerous the forest currently was. Sure, nor she or Isla knew for sure what kind of monster lurked inside the forest, but that didn’t mean that the area was safe. There were dead tribesmen because of a monster and Isla highly doubt Flesh did it. If anything, she was throwing away the possibility that Flesh killed the tribesmen.

Isla had wandered inside the forest for an hour or so. Although she was familiar with the terrain, the forest was still a huge amount of area. She might know her way around the forest, but she couldn’t tell where Kayla was. Although Isla felt that Kayla wasn’t the type of person to get herself killed, it was better to be safe than sorry. So she kept on going on the search.

The mist have cleared and that allowed better vision for her, but finding someone in that forest was still hard. Finally, she found someone. No, not someone, but something. She had found the monster which she believed had killed the tribesmen. A monster with the figure of a lion and scales all over its body, protecting it like an armor. An A-rate monster named Warp.

What was surprising about the monster wasn’t its size. Nor its hazardous claws or sharp fangs. What was surprising for Isla was that the monster was wounded. Not just any wound like a slash from a sword or a stab from a spear, but a stab from about eighty arrows all over its body.

Those arrows were just normal arrows that hunters use for hunting. Not an artifact. Someone had shot the arrow in such precision, that the arrow had gone through the gap between the monster’s scales and stabbed it. The monster looked weak from all those arrow wounds. And if Isla was not mistaken, it was dying. An A-rate monster was dying because of normal weapon. That, in itself, was an amazing feat.

As she wondered who could have done it, an arrow flew at the monster, it went through the gap between the scales and the monster let out a roar of pain. It then looked at the direction of the arrow and as its name suggest, warped to where it thought the archer was at.

In the blink of an eye, Warp had gone up the hill and had found no one there. It then retreated deeper into the forest and Isla followed it.

Once again, Isla had gotten herself an upper ground and observed the monster from above. Isla didn’t engage against the monster yet, as she wanted to know who had shot the arrow. If a group of people had done that to the monster, that meant that a certain tribe had a group of people capable of good teamwork. But if someone did all that to the monster alone, without an artifact, and manages to kill the monster, that meant that the person was destined to be an agent. If that was the case, then Isla could not possibly allow herself to miss the chance to recruit such talent.

Isla roamed around the perimeter of the beast in an effort to find the place where this certain archer might be positioning him or herself. Fair enough, after roaming for a while, she found that archer.

She was none other than the young teenager who could have killed her had she missed her shot. Sir Argonaut’s daughter, who had herself a low sense of presence.

Isla was barely able to notice her. She had camouflaged herself well enough and blended herself with the environment, so much to the point that she was hard to notice. She pulled the string of her arrow and was waiting for the perfect moment to release it. So still was she that Isla could barely tell she was a human with a bow. So calm and peaceful that a butterfly was resting on her head.

Isla observed her without giving her any disturbance. All of a sudden, she released the string and shot the arrow. That arrow, judging from the trajectory, was way off from its target. Isla had thought that the arrow had missed, but then remembered how her target board only had one hole; and it was right at the center.

A gust of wind blew, changing the trajectory of the arrow, and hit the monster right at the gap between its scales. Because the arrow had curved, Warp thought that the arrow had came from another direction and warped there instead to where Kayla was. As the monster went away, Kayla stood up and went on the chase.

‘Wait, hold on, you did all that?’ Isla asked.

Kayla then looked over her shoulder. ‘Yes,’ she admitted. ‘I don’t mind if you follow me. However, if you blow our cover, that monster is going to warp at us and kill us.’

Isla kept on following her. ‘How long have you been doing that?’ Isla now understood what Kayla had meant the other night. What she had meant by dying if she were to miss her target.

‘Ever since someone got killed by the monster.’

‘Alone? All by yourself?’

‘Grandmother would kill me if she knows.’

Isla got herself a lot of questions in her mind. One question stood out the most however: ‘Why do you do this?’ Isla needed to know. Was it because she wanted to avenge her people? Was it because she was a huntress who enjoyed hunting strong prey? Was it to test her skills? Isla needed to know the answer.

‘Grandmother had sent a letter to you the moment someone get killed. And you appear a month after that letter had been sent. If I did nothing while waiting, the village would have been destroyed by the beast and the people murdered. I knew that I had to do something the moment people were killed.’

Isla admired the girl. She, for the sake of her village, had decided to fend off the monster on her own. Braving herself against the danger, knowing that she would get killed with the tiniest of mistake, and fought for what was worth fighting. Even without an artifact…

As the day went on, Isla observed how Kayla had added more arrows on the monster’s body. She had explained that she had made her arrow from a sharp metal she got from trading with other tribes. Before placing the arrow on the bow, she had coated the arrowhead with a liquid. Poison, she explained. Something she concocted herself and could kill a bear with a single drop. It was no wonder that the monster looked weak.

As the sun dropped down, with the last of her arrow, she shot at the monster without missing and the monster fell down to the ground.

‘That should do for today,’ she strapped the arrow to her shoulder and was preparing to go back.

‘You’re not going to loot the monster?’ Isla asked.

‘It pretended to be dead a week ago. I’m not risking it.’

Isla liked how Kayla was not careless. It was true that the monster could fake its death to lure its hunter closer to it. As she got to spend time with her, the more she thought that Kayla was suitable to work for the association. She might not be able to fight, but she was a huntress through and through. She got discipline, perseverance, and crafty mind. A gem that’s left in the dark.

‘Are you interested in joining the association?’ Isla asked as they were heading back.

‘The association?’ Kayla asked back.

‘It’s an organization that specializes on dealing with monsters. You’re suitable for it. It is dangerous, but the job pays well and you get to go around places.’

‘Going around places sounds nice.’

‘Then you should join!’

Kayla shook her head. ‘No. I have—my own reason to stay here.’

‘… I see.’

When Isla and Kayla returned to the village, elder Vynette was about to scold Kayla an earful with her loud high-pitched voice. But Isla interrupted and told her of Kayla’s achievement. Kayla was shaking her head when she proposed the idea of telling the whole story, but Isla believed that the story was worth to be told.

During dinner, Isla had explained about Kayla’s achievement. How much of a gem she was with her crafty mind and ingenuity. How noble she was for wanting to protect the village without earning the recognition. When she explained, elder Vynette didn’t bat an eye or doubted the story at all. She believed it at face value. That, was not because she trusted Isla, but because she knew of her grandchild well enough for the story to be plausible. That was what Isla felt from her expression.

‘Come to think of it,’ elder Vynette said, ‘you used to want to see the world when you were younger, didn’t you, Kayla?’

‘That happened?’

‘I remember you saying that like it was yesterday.’ She closed her eyes for a moment for reminiscence. ‘Kayla, since you have talent, joining the association is a chance for you to spread your wings. And under Isla, I have nothing to worry about.’

‘Pass.’

‘I insist that you do.’

‘Grandmother, I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying and that’s that.’

‘For goodness sake, this is something you’ve always wanted! Just go!’

‘Pass.’

Elder Vynette wanted to erupt with rage; her face was red. But then she settled down. She understood what was holding her back. ‘Kayla, I know I’m old. But I still have years left of me. Enough years for you to go back and bring me and the others souvenirs.’

‘Oh please… you’re using that as an excuse to get rid of me.’

‘It’s good that we’re on the same page then.’

‘… Fine. But no dying without me. And I’m only going for… what, a month?’

‘A year.’

‘That’s too long…’

‘That’s just right for your first travel.’

‘… Fine.’

Elder Vynette then looked at Isla in the eyes. ‘Please take care of my granddaughter, Isla. She could be a handful, trust me.’

‘I will. And I don’t mind her being a handful. It’s settled then!’

‘Said your goodbyes yet?’ Isla sat on a rock at the bottom of the hill. Tossing an object in her hand.

‘Yes.’ Kayla slung her bow on her shoulder, quiver filled with arrows on her waist, and carried a backpack behind her. ‘What’s that?’ She referred to the object in her hand.

‘Monster cores,’ Isla answered. ‘They’re used to create artifacts.’

‘What’s artifact?’

‘You’ll see,’ Isla smiled.