"You weren't thinking of leaving without your guardian, were you?"
Riku turned with a smile already forming.
From the mist stepped Lila, cheeks pink from the cold, her braid tied up in a loose knot. She carried a small satchel over one shoulder and wore a travel cloak that had once belonged to her brother.
Riku chuckled. "Let guess... official village escort?"
"Official 'make sure the city doesn't steal you away' task force," she replied, mock serious. "Sanctioned by absolutely no one but myself."
Lysaria gave a soft, amused sigh. "And here I thought this was going to be a quiet trip."
Together, the three climbed aboard the cart, and the lone horse, nudged by Riku's light command, began the slow roll down the gravel path out of Elowen.
----------------------
The night before their departure, Riku had given Barou a small, polished sigil stone — a flat disc etched with runic glyphs and set with a single mana channel.
"This will let us talk, if sothing cos up," Riku had said simply.
Barou had examined it without suspicion. After weeks of impossible blessings, he had learned that Riku's "miracles" were best received without too many questions.
Now, as the cart dipped gently along the forested roads, Riku felt a quiet confidence settle in.
If anything truly threatened Elowen... he'd know. And he could return in a blink.
----------------------
The journey to Vintross would take four days by cart. The path was a narrow rchant's route — winding through thickets, across shallow creeks, and along crumbling stone bridges.
Lysaria had ntioned the risk of bandits more than once. Lila, while excited, kept her dagger close. But the road remained calm.
Unbeknownst to them both, Riku had quietly layered their cart with two enchantnts before they'd left — one to hide their scent from beasts, and another to gently misdirect the eyes of passing patrols or wayward rogues.
The birds sang peacefully. The breeze remained soft. And not a single ambush or wild beast crossed their path. Soon, they reached their destination.
By the fourth evening, as the cart crested a low hill, the road widened into a dusty plateau — and beyond it rose the stone walls of Vintross.
But it wasn't the walls that drew the eye.
It was the crowd outside them.
Hundreds of people had gathered — ragged, sunburnt, and dust-streaked, wrapped in cloaks patched too many tis to hold shape. They sat huddled in clusters near the roadside, others standing with outstretched hands or hollow eyes, staring at the gates as if hoping they would open with divine rcy.
Makeshift tents lined the outer fields — nothing more than cloth stretched over branches. Children cried. Old n coughed. Young won bartered for stale bread.
A heavy stench of sweat and smoke clung to the air.
Closer to the gates, however, the scene changed.
A second group had ford there — cleaner, better-dressed travelers under shaded carriages, guarded by retainers or hired swords. These were the ones allowed to pass, waved through after whispered exchanges and the clinking of coins into armored palms.
The city guards were clearly under strain — sweat dripping from beneath their helms, their uniforms dusty and fraying — but their posture didn't falter.
Riku brought the cart to a halt just beyond the final bend in the road.
Lila stared, wide-eyed, her earlier excitent fading into stunned silence.
"...They're starving," she whispered.
Lysaria's expression was unreadable — her lips pressed into a tight line, her knuckles pale where they gripped the cart's edge.
Riku remained quiet, gaze scanning the entire periter — the posted guard rotations, the way poor petitioners were herded to one side, the ledger scrolls pulled out only for the wealthy.
A familiar hierarchy.
"They won't let us in easily," Lysaria said at last.
"Is it similar at Luxsia as well?"
"No, we accept all people there. They are provided with food and water, and even a place to stay."
"Really, and how many people co there?"
"Well..." Lysaria struggled to answer that question. In reality, not many people ca to seek shelter at Luxia, which was really strange given the situation.
"Nevermind, you do not have to answer. Riku muttered. He tilted his head toward the finer caravans. "We'll need to walk a tight line."
The cart slowly rolled forward again, approaching the front of the line where a tal gate flanked by torch-lit pillars marked the city's threshold.
A guard stepped forward, blocking the path with a spear.
"Halt. State your nas, business, and sponsor."
Lysaria had stepped forward, her golden sash catching the firelight. "Vestal of the Inner Fla, Church of Light, traveling on assignnt. These two are under my protection."
The guard captain, already tired and eager to move on, had barely checked her crest before waving them through.
And so the cart rolled forward — past the thick walls, past the scent of dust and hunger.
Inside the walls, the contrast hit like a slap.
The roads were paved in worn cobblestone, narrow but intact. Lanterns lit every corner with golden fla. Elegant balconies overlooked the streets, and colored banners fluttered from open windows.
But it wasn't life — it was performance.
Noble carriages rolled slowly past empty storefronts with shining glass. The taverns were open, but quiet. Markets displayed carefully arranged fruits — just a few apples or loaves, clearly for show. And everyone walking the roads — rchants, innkeepers, scribes — wore smiles too wide, spoke too softly.
Vintross wasn't thriving. Compared to Elowen, it was clearly a city pretending not to drown.
They stopped before a wooden building with a curved roof and etched brass signage.
"The Amber Hearth"
Its paint had begun to flake, but it still looked cleaner than anything else nearby.
Inside, the air slled of warm ale and lavender oil. The main room was mostly empty — two off-duty guards drinking quietly, a rchant wiping his brow at a corner table.
A thin, sharp-eyed woman behind the counter looked up as they entered.
"Welco. Rooms or als?"
"Both," Riku said. "Three rooms, and als please."
The woman slid a worn sheet of parchnt across the table.
Lila looked at the prices and choked on her breath.
"Th-Thirty gold coins for a room?" she hissed. "That's more than we spend in a year in Elowen. I don't think our village has seen a single gold coin like forever."
Lysaria stepped forward calmly and placed a small pouch of coins on the counter.
"Vestal travel fund," she said. "We'll take the rooms for two nights. And three als, please. Sothing hot."
The innkeeper nodded, weighing the pouch carefully before slipping it under the desk.
"Upstairs. First door on the left. Dining room's still open."
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