"Have you learned the way to your village?” Astraea asks as they travel through the busy streets of Periculand Town.

  ?elare passively glances at the numerous people they pass by.

  “Yes. It took us a couple of days, but there's no way he knows we are here. I'm almost certain his future knowledge is something he has to meticulously plan out and I think I've figured out how it works, but it is complicated. I'll spare you the details.”

  She nods and follows behind, her gaze focused on him.

  They reach a small camp area at the edge of the town with four people sitting around an unlit campfire. A woman notices them and stands up, waving, and calls out.

  “?elare? I didn't expect to see you again. Come and introduce your friend!”

  The two of them walk briskly over and the three other seated people look between themselves. The blond smiles as he talks.

  “Hanan, I have to thank you again for your help before. This is my… friend, Astraea.”

  The purple-haired girl gives a courteous smile as he continues, “Unfortunately, we're in a very big rush and so we don't have time to spend chatting.”

  Hanan frowns slightly and says, “Don't tell me you're going back into the forest. You know how dangerous it is.”

  The mage averts his gaze and scratches his head, and a few seconds pass in silence before Astraea speaks up.

  “We need to go now. It was nice meeting you.”

  She takes his hand in hers and begins walking. He exclaims in surprise, and Hanan chuckles, waving as he is half-dragged away. She shouts, “Good luck with whatever you need to do!”

  Once out of sight and earshot, ?elare says, “Let me obscure us.”

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  They stop walking, and he forms two barriers, one of light element and one of sound element. He nods and steps in front of Astraea, still holding hands, and he leads them through Periculand Forest.

  On their journey, they see a few monsters. These range from Simulacros, fungal creatures which root in corpses and mimic the person, to a single three-metre tall fungal giant. None of what they pass notices them, and eventually the dense atmospheric mana subsides, until there is only a fraction left. Finally, they arrive at a hamlet. There is nobody else around, and all is quiet save for the soft rustling of wind through the trees.

  The boy releases Astraea's hand and runs ahead, stopping outside the largest of the wooden buildings. He turns back with a solemn expression and says, “I can't risk meeting the Elder yet. Novus may have some form of vision of his home.”

  The healer frowns and replies, “We can meet him after it is all over.”

  He sighs and nods, walking back over and guiding her for a significant distance to a cave entrance in a hill.

  ?elare holds his palm to the air and conjures a floating orb, then he steps into the tunnel. Astraea follows behind, and they reach an uncovered trapdoor. He turns around and speaks.

  “This is the final stretch. Beneath us is a staircase which leads to the monster’s chamber. I'll tell you everything I know about it now, though.

  The girl nods and leans against the cave wall with crossed arms, waiting silently.

  “They are theorised to be creatures empowered by greater beings, be it an Elemental, a Spirit or a Dragon, who all have a single, powerful gimmick.”

  The mage crouches down and opens the trapdoor as he continues.

  “The reason a deal is even possible, like in the legend of Luzian, is because the power they granted also restricts them. Lying and breaking promises are two things they cannot do, but each creature has its own personalised rules on top. We'll figure those out soon.”

  He lowers himself down the square hole and says, “Come on.”

  Astraea follows him and they descend the spiral stairway which eventually gives way to a large chamber. At the far end lies a coiled, serpentine creature with the thickness of a bough.

  “The passive pull of this creature is unbelievable. I'm so much better than I was when I first came here, yet I still need to focus or my mana will be drained.”

  Astraea lets out an inquisitive hum and says, “How are we to awaken it?”

  In response the mage opens his mouth and slowly turns to the beast.

  “I'm not sure. Perhaps we can shock it with a huge mana influx?”

  The girl shrugs and walks over to it, and ?elare tilts his head, observing. He then gasps in horror as she stomps on the monster’s long body.

  In a fraction of a second, its head shoots up toward her with an open maw, and its twenty-centimetre fangs plunge into her shoulder.