Being under an open sky made Blanc feel off as they walked.
Though they were heading north, toward the central regions of the Senvia Empire, he still felt unsafe.
They were walking opposite to the Iron Line, which, according to that soldier he captured that night, was marching southeast to bring further destruction upon the Empire.
Although a bad thing, it was a good thing for Blanc.
Still, without the Golden Forest to hide him, he felt naked.
Exposed.
The Domain of Blood Denegis was large enough for them to be able to walk unseen by prying eyes, even on open plains and hills, but it was an uncertainty the Golden Forest did not have.
Still, he kept it to himself, as it was too small an issue to trouble the others with it.
"Let's take a break here," said Blanc out loud.
It had been a few hours since they began walking.
Though in those hours they hadn't passed any village, as they took a road through hills just so that they would not be recognized, the stress of the possibility was more exhausting than expected.
So, when they found a small creek passing through a hill, Blanc decided it would be a good time to grab a bite or rest.
"Finally," sighed Miyanna, as she threw herself, butt first, to the ground. "You all have too much stamina."
"You are the one who lacks stamina, Miyanna dear," said Blanc, pulling a waterskin from his back.
"And we have to change that," added Celine, taking a seat near her.
"How? Will we illegally hunt in other Domains?" Miyanna asked.
"We can," Blanc replied, giving the waterskin to Lune, who sat in the grass near her twin, a few feet away from Celine and Miyanna.
"Wouldn't that create problems?" Miyanna asked.
Blanc nodded, "It would, yes. But it is not the only way we can harvest Raw Vita. There are other ways we can. Though those ways could create just as many issues."
"What ways?" asked Kael, curious.
"There are organizations that catch beasts and sell them to Noble Bloods too lazy or busy to go hunting," Blanc explained, "How do you think Valar got stronger? He hunted a bit, yes, but not all the time. He is the heir; he could spend his time learning how to manage a Domain rather than go hunting all day."
"Yes, and the diversity of their Raw Vita is quite something," added Celine.
"You know of them?" asked Blanc.
"But of course, I am the oldest daughter of Blood Maroux. I know most of the inner workings of the Empire," Celine replied.
"I thank the Vita every day for having you as my fiancée," muttered Blanc.
"And what's the issue?" Miyanna asked, unfazed by Blanc's words towards Celine.
"Well, firstly, they are way too expensive to be sustainable," began Blanc, "Secondly, they take away from the experience of hunting that beast. While you get stronger, you lack the experience of defeating it. And that can be as detrimental as not having strength."
"That sounds dumb," Miyanna replied.
"Why do you think that?" asked Blanc, before continuing, "Father used to say that a sharp sword in the hands of a child will soon harm the child than harm another. It's the same with strength without deserving it. You won't know how to use it, or it will make you overestimate yourself."
Miyanna couldn't argue with that part of his reasoning, so she changed the subject, "And when you say expensive, how expensive are we talking?"
Blanc took the coin purse from his bag and threw it to the ground. "This purse is filled with gold coins mostly. Upon my calculations, this much should buy us food, beds to rest in, and clothes for all five of us for most of the journey ahead of us. And we could spend it lavishly without batting an eye for quite some time."
"That's a Noble Blood for you…" Miyanna mumbled, thinking how easy her life would have been if she had that purse of gold fourteen years ago.
"Celine, love, how many beasts would this much buy?" asked Blanc.
"Four Marks at most," she said, after counting the coins.
The eyes of the twins and Miyanna jumped wide open at Celine's words, leaving them speechless.
Blanc chuckled, seeing their faces, "So you see, it is quite an issue. And while we could go the black market route to get them cheaper, that's an issue in itself because-"
"Because the black market can't be trusted," said Miyanna, finishing his sentence.
"Correct," he nodded, "That and many issues with where the beast is taken from and from whose domain, rules of conduct, and issues if they find out about it. It might be easier to infiltrate the wilderness of other domains and hope you don't get caught than worry about all that."
"We can also ask to be allowed in from the Domain's Blood, but during a civil war, you can't tell who's on your side," added Celine.
"So we're stuck then?" Miyanna asked.
"Somewhat, but we will figure it out," Blanc replied, pushing the issue aside. "Well then, shall we continue?"
With a nod from all but Miyanna, who only let out a sigh, they all got up and went on.
The terrain wasn't so difficult, nor the surroundings dangerous, to keep Blanc focused on everything around them, so, as they walked, they continued talking about what crossed all their minds or about the journey they had just undertaken.
"Brother," spoke Lune as she ran next to Blanc.
"What is it, Little flower?" Blanc replied.
"Where will we sleep tonight?" she asked.
"We don't have tents yet. Leaving the Domain will take us four to five days, depending on our speed. So, until we do so, we will sleep in the open. Going to the villages, cities, or inns in our Domain, especially in these parts, might give our identities to the wrong people," Blanc replied, "I'm sorry, Little Flower, maybe when we get to the edge of the Domain."
"It's okay…" Lune said, clearly not happy with the idea, but unable to do anything, as she knew arguing would not change it.
"I can help," said Miyanna.
"Huh?" muttered Blanc, "How?"
"I can just go to a city and buy tents myself," began Miyanna, "No one will recognize me. I'm no Noble Blood."