-Callen-

  As we set off from the town, I couldn’t help but feel both nostalgia and relief. While I had left before, it had always been during some kind of crisis, and Callia was much the same with the exception of her trip with the fishing team. However, the aspect that made me the most relieved was that I didn’t need to suppress the anti-elvish sentiment in town for much longer. While through the day-to-day issues it didn’t come up, the fact that I was harboring an elf worked to delegitimize my authority in ways I never expected. Sometimes it would just be someone quitting because they refused to work for an elf sympathizer, but there were also cases of people vandalizing public projects.

  Everyone punished for breaking the law would further incite the public that I would protect an elf over them. Crescent had been my saving grace in this time. She helped the voice of reason reach those who I couldn’t. That’s why I felt confident enough to leave her in charge while I went to the capital. Looking back I saw her among the crowd of supporters who had stuck by me despite all the turmoil in the past days. Seeing all of them there really served to boost my spirits and remind me why I was willing to take up such a burdensome role.

  The paths were relatively clear of any major obstacle, as nobody in our group was weak enough to be attacked by the various monsters hiding in the woods. Even little Freema was already at a level similar to our guard escorts after having been rigorously trained by Callia. Grandpa took command of the group as we realized that most of us had little to no proper experience as a team traveling. We didn’t use any carriages like merchants or civilian escort teams, because everyone here was fully capable of defending themselves and could likely move faster without the carriage than with.

  We could’ve designed an aircraft to take us straight to the capital, but this might be one of the few opportunities we would get to properly experience the various settlements between Port Town and deeper human territory. Hew had all kinds of stories about his experience, but that was a couple hundred years ago. The journey from the forest passed with ease as Callia, Freema, and even Lexia darted around in the trees competing for kills.

  On the way to Portten we encountered Sir Fullart and the contingent of soldiers we had left to support Portten in case the Hive worms attacked in our direction. Since the worms had been eradicated, they had set off to settle back in Port Town after a long absence. After a brief meeting and exchange of information, we continued on our separate ways. With so much of the town's upper combat power leaving, I felt reassured seeing the experienced soldiers marching home. Hopefully there won’t be any big issues while we are away, but nothing is certain.

  Our arrival in Portten was met with cheers of thankful citizens. Apparently Callia’s honorary title of knight had made her a local hero, and as her twin brother, my own contributions hadn’t been forgotten. After a short stay at Sir Portten’s manor, we left laden with supplies for the journey deeper into the human heartlands. Most importantly, we were provided with a map of the entire duchy, which we could use to plot our journey. While it didn’t show the capital, it did show a path to the Great River that acted as the backbone of human territory. It functioned as a moat that protected the majority of people living along it and, with the regular patrols from knights, functioned as a barrier that deterred most monsters from attacking humanity.

  The boundaries of the Tallia kingdom are defined by the Great River, the Kal’Ren Mountains, and the ocean, forming a triangular cut of territory. However, the important part is that by following the river further south, we will eventually reach the capital. Even without the map it wouldn’t be too hard to find the way, and if we ever got lost, the simple rule of traveling west until you find the Great River would functionally guide us back on course. Still, it was nice to know which roads led where.

  We decided on the route through Lanious and Nox cities before following the river road south to Harlanou city. We had no experience with Lanious, but Reesia and Callia had been impressed by their fight against someone from the Nox family. It seemed like a visit would be the only defining reason to shape our route to the capital.

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  Ever since leaving the Portten, old memories from my early childhood have come to mind. The roads were already overgrown with weeds that seemed to sprout as fast as they burned. The only aspect that really defined what the road was was the level terrain that made it easier for carts to follow. That and the fact that off the sides of the main roads were borrows of small monsters lying in wait to ambush weaker travelers. I don’t know how much of a difference it would make going forward, but to keep Callia entertained, I gave her a flamethrower so she could entertain herself and make the roads safer. I almost forgot her ability to track anything with instinctual precision, as she easily found and cooked dozens of holes off the sides of the path. Her limiting factor was in fact that we were walking too fast for her to keep up with while enacting her pest extermination. (Freema also seemed a bit too excited to be trusted with a flamethrower).

  Up ahead we finally saw the gray stone walls of the fallen city of Eldraine. The walls on our side looked mostly intact, but luckily Callia could use her skills to track the worms that were waiting in the ruined structures. We followed Callia’s lead as she guided us through the city, keeping us clear of the worm infesting the ruins. As far as we could tell, there were no survivors, which gave an eerie presence to the city. Faint memories of what had once been an overcrowded city bustling with life, now reduced to a silent grave where even the bodies had been stolen.

  It must’ve been Master Yoren's teachings silently urging me, but I wanted to take this rare chance to investigate the lord's manor for interesting books. My idea seemed to resonate with everyone but for different things. Looting ruins was fully permissible by all laws and even encouraged because it would ensure that useful relics would be returned to society. If Callia couldn’t easily guide us around the worms, I wouldn’t easily take the risk, but it was easy enough to avoid the worms or eliminate them before they could attack us.

  As we moved deeper into the city, it was clear the worms thought they could catch us off guard, but we easily cleaned everything in our way and soon arrived at the castle. Our objectives were hidden records/books, treasure, hidden relics/tools, and survivors in case someone had managed to hide despite the annihilation of the city.

  The library sadly was completely ruined, as the worms burrowed through both wood and flesh, which meant most of the books were unrecoverable. Still, I emptied the library into my space. If I had time in the future, I could sift through for books that survived. The vault was also disappointing, but I suppose hiring mercenaries to fill his army had emptied most of whatever wealth Baron Eldraine had inherited. Still, a sizable sum similar to 3-6 months of tax for our town was recovered. The most exciting discovery was the relics. There was a sword that was sealed inside a hidden compartment of the baron's office and a mask in a sealed container. None of us were swordsmen, but it would make a great gift for Reesia’s next birthday. As for the mask, I wouldn’t trust something that was sealed until I had time to investigate it and Nightshade’s expert opinion.

  From the view of the main castle itself, we could see the damage caused by the worm. It was like a giant snake had ripped through structures and torn open a gaping hole in the southern walls. While I couldn’t see the details, Callia shared what she saw with me. The dirt contained countless trails following the main body like a tidal wave of snakes moving as one.

  Lexia’s deadline

  Lexia’s plan had gone nearly flawlessly up to a point, but despite finally becoming a trusted friend, she still lacked the leverage to make Callia and Callen follow her. Her growth in competition with the twins had been notable, and the forest around Porttown was a surprisingly fun hunting ground, but the journey to the capital threw off all her plans. She left with them on impulse because she didn’t want to see all her efforts wasted, but travelling with Callen meant she wouldn't be able to leave regularly to cool off her head.

  Even worse was that the twins were taking her other main investment, Freema, away to give her off to the lazy slobs in the capital. Callen and Callia didn’t know what the elves living in the comfort of the capital were like. They had given up on pursuing levels or even skills to enjoy their long lives as educators and bureaucrats. No urgency to improve themselves and content to enjoy their long lives without the danger that defines those who are truly great. Using money to hire guards and agents to protect their assets with no personal risks. If Freema ended up as some investment banker because of the twins, then Lexia would have wasted all the effort saving the girl from the Sea Serpent.

  Despite all the efforts Callen and Callia had put into the girl, she was still closest with Lexia. Lexia was quickly coming up on a deadline she didn’t plan for. If she couldn’t convince Callen and Callia to follow her before they left the duchy, then she would have to take Freema and report to her father with Freema as her prize instead of the prize she wanted most.