"
Jala gazed over the horizon of the yellow rocky plains continuing their march alongside the carts. "
"
"
"
"
"
"
""
"
As their caravan came ever closer to their destination, the sight of the tunnel became much clearer. Along with a glaring issue,.
Jala ceased at once, halting the carts behind him.
"
"
Everyone in the carts stepped out and up to the tunnel in shock. Before them, the tunnel had laid in complete ruin.
********
In the encroaching night, Jala threw a small bundle of sticks into a scorching campfire. He then turned to Lillian, who paced back and forth, deep in thought..
"
"Hmm?" Jala turned to one of the curious Bremwall residents.
"
"
"
Jala sighed exhaustedly. "
Lillian clenched her teeth. She whipped around to face Lucius. "We could carve our way down the cliff! Just like over a week ago."
"Lillian, I already told you. Creating a staircase to Earth magic is too risky. Not only is our group too big, but we would need to expend more energy for the size and weight of the carts. And this is not mentioning that going down the cliff as tall as a castle is a large ask, even for you. The last thing we need is to be caught vulnerable again if another horde of monsters attacks us."
"And?" Lillian retorted.
Lucius paused for thought. Almost unsure how to respond. "Perhaps a walk and fresh air will help."
Lillian stomped her feet and glared at Lucius. "I don't need fresh air." She growled. "We need to find a way to get from this stupid mountain to that village! And I refuse to take a two-week detour further up the mountain!"
Lucius hung his head down in deep thought. After a minute, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He glanced and found Mishti serving pouches of water. "
"
Mishti chuckled. "
Lucius sighed.
"
" "Unlike me?"
Lucius turned a glare to Jala. Even Lillian stopped, hearing Jala.
"There's no point in hiding it. Look… I've already accepted this fate. The second I freed you from the ice prison was the moment I knew that my life was near its end. The only thing I want is to exact revenge on Azar."
Just as Lucius was about to speak up, Fren suddenly joined.
" " " Jala glanced at Lucius, who relented and waved him away.
" Fren's perked up. A subtle smile rose from her usual blank expression. Jala stood up, but before he could leave, Lucius spoke once more. "Jala. Remember what we've discussed. About your magic."
"I understand…"
Fren listened to the two and passed unsure glances at the two. Not long after, Jala pulled her along, with Tellan following closely behind.
Kajd, who drank with Terk and Gail, watched as the two distanced themselves from the camp and hid behind a large boulder. He side-eyed the sight and growled.
" " " Terk grabbed a Kajd's mug and poured a barrel of ale from Bremwall's stash."" Terk joked.
Gail raised a cup. " " " Kajd ignored Terk and took a swig of his drink. He then passed a glare in the direction Jala and Fren had left. Memories of Jala completely dominating the Valtrop rang through his mind. " ********
Tellan sat on the sidelines watching Jala and Fren.
Fren, Nervous, tried to keep her full attention on Jala's hand. He starts with a small, intense blue flame.
""
" Slowly, the blue flame shrank and turned red and orange and shrank even further until nothing was left.
" Fren did as Jala said. As she did, her eyes widened as she felt an intense cold. " " Feeling an intense cold, Fren pulled her hand and saw an icicle form before her.
" " " " Fren looked back at Jala. "Y..Yeah."
" Embarrassed, Fren turned her head with flushed cheeks, flushing red. " "< That's fine. As long as you can use it. Now hold your hand out and manifest your fire>"
Fren did as Jala told, conjuring her fire magic in her hand.
" Fren put all her concentration into the fire in her hand. " Jala kept his eyes on the fire, keeping track of her progress. He sighed. " " " Fren's attention drew back to Jala, surprised.
" Not seeing any change to Fren's fire, Jala glanced at her, now noticing her gaze on him. " " " ********
Lillian Sat in front of the destroyed tunnel, mulling over any idea she could come up with. She looked up at the ever-expanding wall of stone and magic crystals.
"Traversing down the cliff is out of the question… Trying to clear their way could take months. Then, taking the detour could take a couple of weeks."
Lillian clenched her hand. "This is ridiculous!! No matter what we do, it's like we're destined to never return home!"
"Lillian," Lucius called.
Lillian glanced back and saw Lucius approaching. "What is it?"
"If it means that much, you can go on ahead back to the castle."
Surprised, Lillian turned back to Lucius.
"B…But-"
"You obviously have your human sister on your mind. If you leave tomorrow, you can reach the castle in three or four days on wing. I only ask that you capture my brother alive if you can."
"Don't be ridiculous, Lucius. I can't just leave you behind, especially not with Jala. And the demon who killed those children."
"So what will you do then?"
"Isn't it obvious? I don't like it but since the only thing we can do is take that detour. B… B-but… If we can get to Kasak faster, it'd be appreciated…"
Lucius gave out a sigh of relief. "I'll see what we can do… But for now, you should get some rest. I'll worry about the details."
Lucius offered a hand to Lillian. With some gestation, she took it and pulled backup.
"Alright. If there's anything I can do to help, just let me know."
"Of course."
Unknown to Lillian and Lucius, a small demon kept a close eye on them. Not wanting to get caught, they retreated into the camp, staying silent not to draw attention. They were met with Kajd.
" The small demon vigorously shook their head.
Satisfied, Kajd smirked." ********
" Rakon stood from a stone table. He clenched his teeth in frustration.
" " " Rakon sighed, frustratedly. " " Rakon sat back down, crossing his arms. " " " Gaz stood back up and bowed. " Rakon watched as Gaz left his sight. " Rakon then turned a glance to a pile of ruined parchment papers. "