The path to Dravenhart wound through the forest like a ribbon of dirt and shadow, sunlight flickering between the leaves. The air was thick with the earthy scent of pine and rain-soaked moss — quiet, except for the rhythmic crunch of boots and the soft hum of Finn's endless curiosity.
"Did you know Dravenhart used to be a trade hub for alchemical stones?" Finn said, pushing up his spectacles as he glanced at Zelene. "Some texts even mention that the first Auryn was—"
"—a bedtime story?" Ray cut in, smirking. "You talk a lot for someone who trips over every tree root."
As if summoned by fate, Finn stumbled, clutching his satchel with an indignant noise. "I'm observant, not clumsy."
"Observant," Ray echoed, amused. "Sure."
Zelene tried not to smile. Their bickering had become a constant hum on this journey — comforting, almost.And in between their jabs and laughter, she noticed subtle things: how Finn's eyes wandered to the horizon with the kind of hunger only dreamers had, and how Ray, though still recovering, walked a little stronger each day. The limp had faded. His voice no longer rasped when he spoke.
He was healing.
But then… the forest went still.
The birds' chatter ceased. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Zelene slowed, every instinct tightening like a bowstring."...Do you hear that?"
Finn blinked. "Hear what?"
The answer came a heartbeat later — the sharp snap of a twig, the rustle of leaves — and then chaos exploded from the shadows.
Figures burst from the underbrush, blades gleaming, faces hidden beneath tattered scarves.Bandits.
"Stay close!" Ray barked, shoving Zelene aside just as an arrow hissed past and buried itself into the dirt. He drew his blade with a metallic whisper, blocking another strike before it reached them. His movements were precise, but there was still stiffness in his shoulder — the strain of recovery clinging to every swing.
Zelene's pulse roared in her ears. "I can protect myself," she snapped, ducking under a swing. She snatched up a broken branch, parried the next blow, and slammed the end into a bandit's ribs. He wheezed and collapsed with a grunt.
Her heart hammered. The old instincts returned — cold, efficient, practiced.Another lunged. She rolled, seized his fallen sword, and rose in one motion, the blade heavy but steady in her grip.
When the next attacker came, she turned sharply, blade flashing, cutting across his arm. The man howled.
Ray risked a glance her way, panting, half-grinning. "Remind me not to argue with you again."
"Remind me to make you rest when this is over!" Zelene shot back, striking down another.
But Ray stumbled, his knee buckling — pain flashing across his face. He barely blocked the next attack, his strength faltering.
Zelene's eyes widened. "Ray!"
Without hesitation, she pushed forward — slicing her way through two more assailants to reach him.Ray caught her wrist before she could take another step, their faces inches apart — her breath ragged, his uneven.
"Don't—" he rasped. "It's fine."
"It's not," she said, voice shaking, half from adrenaline, half from something else.
But before either could move, a shout erupted behind her. One of the bandits — bloodied, desperate — lunged toward Zelene with a dagger.
She barely had time to turn.
Then — thunk.
A rock cracked against the man's temple with startling precision. He swayed, blinked stupidly, and dropped like a sack of flour.
Zelene blinked, momentarily frozen.
A few paces away, Finn stood stiff as a statue, clutching another rock with both hands, his expression somewhere between terror and pride.
"Uh…" he stammered, voice shaking. "Stay back, or I'll—uh—throw… more rocks?"
Zelene just stared at him.The silence stretched for a moment.
Then she exhaled — a breathless laugh breaking through. "Rocks, Finn?"
He flushed crimson. "It worked, didn't it?"
Ray coughed, smirking through his labored breathing. "Surprisingly effective. We might have to arm you with a whole sack of them."
"I'm serious!" Finn protested. "You can't laugh at—at improvised tactics!"
Zelene shook her head, biting down a smile. "Fine. Thank you, General Rockthrower."
"Very funny," Finn muttered, but there was relief in his tone.
Zelene turned back to the fight — only a few bandits left now. Her movements flowed like instinct, sharp and precise, the sword an extension of her will. The last man dropped with a dull thud, the echo of metal fading into the quiet that followed.
The forest stilled once more — eerily calm after the storm.
They stood amidst the aftermath — dirt smeared, chests heaving, breaths mingling with the scent of iron and soil.
Ray wiped sweat from his brow and sheathed his sword. "You all right?"
"I'm fine," Zelene said, though her hands trembled faintly as she wiped a smear of blood from her cheek. "You shouldn't have pushed yourself."
Ray's gaze softened. "You'd have done the same."
Zelene said nothing. Their eyes met — just long enough for the air between them to shift, heavier now, laced with something unspoken.
Finn broke it first, collapsing onto a fallen log with a groan. "You're both insane. And you're welcome, by the way — I just saved her life."
Ray arched a brow. "You threw a rock."
"An accurately aimed projectile," Finn corrected, pointing dramatically. "Precision and timing."
Zelene finally laughed — the sound raw and genuine, easing the tension that had built like a storm around them.For the first time since the ambush, the forest felt alive again — cicadas humming, wind sighing softly through the trees.
When her laughter faded, Zelene looked toward Finn, still smiling faintly. "You did well. Thank you."
His ears went red, and he pretended to inspect his satchel. "Well, someone had to help while you two were… heroically flirting in the middle of a battlefield."
Ray choked on air. "We were not—"
But Zelene only walked past him, hiding her smirk as she cleaned the blade against her sleeve.