After leaving the Griffin vicinity we were on our way again as I looked forward as Liora peered to my right again.
'She is looking at Evangeline again.' I thought, curious and slightly puzzled.
I kept walking but I still asked
"What are you looking for, Liora?" I asked, curious.
Liora looked at me and moved her head horizontally, signalling it's nothing.
Then Liora started looking forward.
After walking for a while
I look at Liora again and she was looking towards Evangeline again.
'She's looking at her again. But why can't she tell me?' I thought, questioning myself.
As we walked I kept thinking about it
'I thought I could be a parent she could tell everything to. Is it something I won't like? Does she thinks I'll get angry? Is she scared of me?' I thought as the questions kept piling up with no answers.
'Wait, Scared? Could she be scared of not be but..... Evangeline?' a sudden possibility came to mind.
I stopped walking, Evangeline stopped two steps away from me.
She turned around and asked
"What happened?" Evangeline said, curious.
Liora was still looking at Evangeline.
"I need to talk to Liora about something. Can you wait here?" I asked.
"….Okay." Evangeline replied.
I took Liora behind a tree a little away from Evangeline, where we could still peek at her.
I put Liora on the ground and went down on one knee.
"Is something bothering you, Liora? Do you not like Evangeline? You can tell Papa everything." I said politely, though I worried inside.
Liora moved her head horizontally and signalled a denial.
"Then why were you looking at her?" I asked, curious.
"Liora wasn't looking at her." she replied.
"Then?" I questioned, confused.
Liora slid a little to the side and pointed at Evangeline.
"Liora was looking at her dwess. It's pwetty," Liora said.
Sudden warmth filled my chest.
'I was overthinking it, as always.' I thought.
I sighed with relief.
"Do you want a dress like that? Papa will buy a lot of them for you soon." I smiled.
Liora shook her head no.
"Liora loves the dress Papa bought for Liora." she replied with a smile.
'I'm sooo blessed to get a such a nice daughter.' I thought, my mind filling with happiness.
"Listen, Liora — you shouldn't call her 'her.' It's not right." I said.
Liora looked at me, confused.
"You can call her…" I started, thinking.
'Onee-san? No…. If she's like Liora's sister. It look weird if I like her. Hmmm..... How about Evangeline? No… - What about mom? – No No No. It's too early. I don't know about these feelings myself. – Yeah it is too early –...…...' I thought as a dozen clumsy emotions tumbled through me.
"You can call her Miss, or Miss Eva." I finished.
After that I picked up Liora and we joined Evangeline.
"Are you done?! You look happy." Evangeline asked, curious.
"Yes. I found out Liora got great insight on art." I replied as Evangeline looked at me puzzled.
'Maybe she'll become a artist in the future.' I thought, feeling proud and imagining Liora with a brush in her small hands.
With that, all of us started moving forward.
We kept walking until the greenery vanished and a rocky path began.
Before us loomed the mouth of the canyon, a jagged wound in the earth where stone walls rose like colossal sentinels. The entrance narrowed into a shadowed passage, the sandstone cliffs pressed so close together it seemed the mountain itself had been split apart by some forgotten god. Sunlight poured down in fractured beams, painting the rock in shifting bands of gold, crimson, and ash. The air cooled as the path funneled inward, and the silence thickened — each step sounded louder, as if the canyon swallowed noise whole and held it captive. Dust tasted faintly metallic; the scent of old smoke and crushed stone rode the breeze.
"I thought you said we needed to pass a valley?" I asked Evangeline.
"We followed the spirit's path. If we followed my path we would have crossed a valley and it would have taken another day. I didn't know about this shortcut." Evangeline replied.
'I'd only seen canyons in pictures until now. They… look wonderful,It is incredible.' I thought, fascinated by the brutal geometry of the place.
"Liora, hold tight." I said as she grabbed my shirt quickly.
I bent my left knee, planted my right foot, and let a blast of wind launch out in all directions as I pushed us skyward.
Cutting through the air, we rose above the rim. Below us, the great canyon sprawled like a living scar.
From the sky, the canyon revealed itself not as a single cleft but as a winding fracture carved deep into the earth's flesh. Cliffs unspooled in jagged ribbons, their reddish layers folded and curled like the skin of some ancient beast. The gorge twisted across the barren plateau in snaking curves — narrow where the walls pinched close, wide where the cliff mouths gaped like throats ready to swallow a traveler whole. Light and shadow chased each other along the stone, and small avalanches of grit slid into the darkness with soft, grainy voices.
At its heart, the chasm funneled into shadow, swallowing anything that dared peer too far. To the untrained eye it might have looked like a road, but to me it felt like an artery split open — a channel that led down and down into secrets and old blood.
Liora clung to my chest, her small body pressed to me. Heights still made her tremble.
'I guess this isn't a scenery a kid would be fascinated by to look at.' I thought as I rested my left hand on Liora's head and we descended softly
"We're down, Liora. You can open your eyes." I said.
Liora peeked at the surroundings and slowly opened her eyes but still kept grabbing my shirt.
"How was it?" Evangeline asked.
"It looks incredible. I've never seen one up close." I replied.
"You have them in your world too?" Evangeline asked.
"Yeah. But I've never gone to one." I answered as we started walking toward the entrance.
Inside, the canyon walls soared, squeezing the sky into a thin ribbon above. Sunlight filtered down in broken beams, painting the red and gold stone in shifting hues. The air ran cool and dry, smelling of crushed mineral and old smoke; every footstep echoed with a hollow clarity. At points the walls pinched so close the passage felt claustrophobic, then opened just enough to let breath and wind slip through, as if the earth itself were shepherding any who entered deeper into its secret heart.
We walked, scanning the rock. Even Liora watched with wide eyes. After a while I stopped.
"I think we've enjoyed this enough. Let's speed up." I said, and I jumped—not high, just enough to land on the top of the canyon wall. Evangeline followed.
"You're really impatient." Evangeline spoke.
"I'm just excited." I replied.
"Tell me more about your world. What's it like there?" Evangeline asked.
"Liora, do you want to hear about Papa's home?" I asked.
"Papa's home?" Liora blinked, confused.
"Yes. Papa came from far away." I said.
"Liora wants to know." she replied.
"Okay. So, There are metal carriages people use to move around—like the one we traveled in before, remember, Liora?" I said. Liora nodded, and we kept walking as I told them about my world.
After some time we reached the canyon's edge. Before us lay a desolate plain—craters and shattered earth scarred the ground, blackened patches of soil like old, congealed wounds. Charred timbers and splintered shields littered the field, half-buried in ash and dust. The wind carried a sour, iron tang; the taste of old blood and rot hung on the air. Farther out, shapes moved in a slow, terrible chorus: thousands of bodies, some reduced to rattle and bone, others bloated and wrong, staggering with torn flesh and broken limbs.
I felt my pulse quicken and heat flood my face. This was what I had been hunting.
Multiple kinds of creatures crowded the plain. Skeleton soldiers in rusted armor clanked as they shifted, empty eye-sockets like hollow moons. Human-shaped corpses shuffled with knees buckled and mouths split raggedly open, teeth bared in a permanent, hungry scream—jaws torn, ligaments frayed, chunks of skin flayed, sinew exposed and dark with dried blood. Ghouls slithered between them, slick with putrid fluids, their fingers tipped with blackened talons. The whole field roiled: a tide of teeth, bone and rotting cloth that rolled from the canyon lip to the horizon.
'UNDEAD! FINALLY.' I thought, choking on my own excitement as my breath came quick.
'I have waited so long. Just a bit more and I'm coming there.' I thought, forcing myself to steady my heart.
"Liora, can you stay with Evangeline for a while? Papa's going to go and take care of those monsters." I said.
Liora looked at me, worried, and didn't answer.
I leaned down and whispered into Liora's ear. "You can tell Evangeline that you like her dress. She'll be happy. Do you want to talk to her?"
"Happy?" Liora echoed, and we glanced back at Evangeline.
"Yes. She'll be happy."
"Liora will tell her." she said.
I walked to Evangeline and stopped in front of her.
"Liora has something to tell you." I said.
Evangeline looked at Liora and smiled.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Umm… Your… dress is… really pwetty." Liora stammered.
Evangeline's expression flickered—surprise, then warmth—and she recovered quickly.
"Thank you. Your dress is beautiful too." she replied, smiling as Liora brightened.
"Papa got it for me!" Liora added, proud.
"Oh? Do you love your papa?" Evangeline teased.
"How about you both talk for a while? I'll be back soon." I said, and handed Liora to Evangeline. At first Liora hesitated, then climbed into Evangeline's arms.
I summoned a small table and two chairs from inventory and set out food—simple rations that would keep them occupied.
"Eat something. It might take a while," I said. They sat and began to talk, The small scene was a moment of calm amid the ruin. I raised a thin earth wall between us, and the barrier shimmered into place.
'That was easier than I expected—common topics really help', I thought as the barrier shimmered into place.
'Is it ready Sebas?' I asked.
[ Yes, Master. ]
The wall disappeared, and I stepped forward, appearing before them.
I let the white jacket slip open, the fabric falling loosely around my shoulders, soft and worn at the edges. Underneath, the black tee hugged my frame, simple but sharp, the deep color pulling focus against the brightness of the jacket. The sleeves of the jacket flared slightly with the breeze, giving movement to the crisp lines, while the collar stood half-raised, adding a casual edge. Every fold and crease caught the light differently, casting shadows that accentuated the contrast.
"What's with the sudden change of attire?" Evangeline asked, puzzled.
"I'd had enough of the old outfit. It wasn't my thing." I replied
'So I told Sebas to remake my clothes like this. I wouldn't mind prince-like outfits, but they really wouldn't fit the vibe I want right now.' I thought.
I glanced across the battlefield. My weapon shivered into being behind me from inventory—an enormous greatsword, iron biting the air. Its point sank into the ground and buried itself with a dull, final thud. I stepped back, feeling the heft of it through the earth.
I reached back and wrapped my fingers tightly around the hilt of the greatsword, feeling its weight and the cold metal biting into my palm. With a sharp, controlled motion, I hurled it high into the sky, the wind whistling past as it arced upward. Dust and small stones scattered from the force, scraping against my boots.
I bent my knees, channeling every ounce of my power through the ground beneath me. The earth seemed to push back, propelling me upward in a burst of wind and energy. I shot toward the sword like a bolt, muscles straining and heart pounding. In a heartbeat, I met it midair, gripping the hilt firmly as the canyon stretched wide below me, the wind whipping my hair and jacket, the battlefield awaiting my strike.
Excitement surged through me, a wide grin spreading across my face as I murmured, "Let's… begin."
to be continued…