"Should we go after her?"
Von sighed, looking deflated. "Nah . . . There wasn't anything important in my bag anyway. Let's just get to a town and sell the loot we got."
He stuffed the rest of the bags into his arms, muttering under his breath, "Why are all won like that . . . ?"
Cappy flew beside Von, chuckling to himself. "You know, you really have a knack for getting yourself into trouble with won. Rember that ti in the tavern? You thought you'd impress that woman with a line, and she smashed a tankard over your head! Turns out she was the 'Tavern Terror.' She was more interested in fighting than flirting. And you just had to be her next victim!"
"Can we not start that?"
He hovered, chirping. "Oh, and the warrior princess! Man, you called her beautiful, and she drew her sword faster than you could blink. She almost sliced your head off! I'll never forget the look on your face when you almost wet your pants."
"I did not!"
Cappy was laughing so hard he almost fell out of the sky. "And the rchant's daughter! You told her you liked her necklace, and suddenly her dad's planning a wedding. I still don't know how you escaped that one! Seriously, how are you still alive?"
Von let out a nervous laugh. "Ahahaha. What can I say? Won can't resist ."
Cappy smacked it beck, wings fluttering. "Resist? More like they're lining up to take you out — permanently."
Von rolled his eyes, grumbling under his breath as Cappy gleefully relived his many near-death encounters with won.
Horizon followed after him, keeping pace as they moved toward their next destination.
anwhile, Lydia ran, her heart pounding as she clutched Von's stolen bag.
A dragon slayer! Horizon was a dragon slayer! And Von had to be one too, right. The elf looked strong enough to be one.
She grinned wickedly as she darted behind a large tree, far enough from their sight and safely hidden from the dragons circling the skies above.
Excited, Lydia eagerly opened Von's bag. Her face twisted in horror as a nauseating sll hit her nose.
"W-what the hell?!" She dumped the contents onto the ground, recoiling at the sight. Rotting food spilled out, accompanied by vials of blood, moldy potions, and clothes that looked like they hadn't been washed in years.
Her stomach churned, but more than the disgust, fury boiled inside her.
"Are you kidding ?!" She kicked the bag furiously. "Not a single gil! Nothing! They're poorer than !" she scread, fuming as her dreams of a quick fortune crumbled to dust in front of her.
Lydia bit her lip, her eyes narrowing. "Just as I thought. The only way I'm getting rich is by taking back that egg. I've already got a dealer lined up for it."
Determined, she made her decision and slipped into the shadows, trailing Horizon and Von into the forest.
The dense canopy of trees above concealed her from the dragon's gaze, a fortunate advantage. With the Red Moon nearing its end, the dragons were already retreating, unwilling to be trapped in Eternia for a year.
The forest was eerily silent, the beasts hiding from the dragons, making it easier for Lydia to follow them undetected.
As she drew closer, she activated her skill, [Stealth], her presence vanishing into the background. Horizon and Von were none the wiser.
"When the mont's right, that egg is mine," she thought, a sly grin spreading across her face.
She darted a glance ahead, her eyes catching on a massive tree. Curiosity piqued, she muttered to herself, "What are they up to?"
Ahead, Horizon and Von stood at the edge of a cliff, gazing down at a vast clearing of flowers and grass. Streams of crystal-clear water snaked through the valley, towering rocky hills rising here and there.
It was breathtaking — a serene and untouched landscape. But Lydia knew better.
This was no peaceful haven. It was the infamous Sky Talons, the lair of the deadly Harpies.
Beautiful as it seed, this place was laced with danger. One wrong move could an death.
"What are they planning to do down there?" Lydia muttered under her breath. Normally, adventurers avoided this place, terrified of being snatched by Harpies and dragged high into the sky, only to be dropped to their deaths.
Her thoughts were cut short. "What the—!" Lydia slapped a hand over her mouth, stifling her gasp as she watched Horizon and Von suddenly leap over the cliff's edge.
Heart racing, she hurried to the edge, peering over just in ti to see them casually strolling through the clearing below, like they owned the place.
"Alright, this will be our new lair!" Von declared, arms crossed, as if staking a claim on sacred ground.
Horizon nodded, grabbing a stick and driving it into the earth. "This is our territory now."
Lydia stared, eyes wide. "Are they insane?" she whispered, unable to believe what she was seeing. "They're stealing territory from the Harpies?!"
Von pumped his fists, full of energy. "Yosh! So, where do we start? How do we do this?"
Horizon shot him a confused look. "I was hoping you knew what to do."
"Huh? ?" Von pointed to himself, baffled.
Horizon nodded, completely serious. "You're an elf, right? Aren't elves supposed to be good at crafting?"
"Von might be an elf, but his crafting skills are nonexistent," Cappy quipped, fluttering around. "The last ti he tried to make sothing, he glued his own fingers together."
Von sighed heavily. "I'm starting to think having you around was a mistake."
Cappy snickered, unbothered.
"So, what's the plan?" Horizon asked, turning to Von. "Chop so trees?"
Von nodded confidently. "Yeah, that's step one. Then we'll tie them together and build a house."
"Got it. Let's get started then," Horizon said, already eyeing the nearby trees.
Lydia watched from her hiding spot, eyes wide in disbelief. "Are they idiots?" she whispered, utterly dazed. "They're really gonna build a house in the middle of Harpie territory?!"
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