This night was somehow so quiet. Maybe because of the heavy rain that has fallen since the afternoon, people were lazy to go out of their house. There were no paved roads in this city, so all the roads turned to muddy. Only in certain places such as the town center had rocky roads. So didn't expect the remote outskirts of the Dark Night's headquarters to have such privileges.
There were indeed some people walking around out there, but they could be counted on by finger. There was nothing else to do here except sleep and spend the day with sweet dreams, except for criminals such as robbers and hunters who did work at night.
Dimas and I were one of the few criminals. We did go out of the town gate into the woods not to hunt. But to escape as soon as possible from Glafelden.
There was a squad of elite cavalries chasing me here. I didn't know what they wanted. It's definitely not a good intention. If someone from the capital wanted to meet me on good terms, they should have come in a horse-drawn carriage and greeted me warmly, not sent a squad of well-trained knights to me.
According to the letter sent by Kak Indra, they had departed four days ago. The distance between Glafelden and Lurich was about 2,200 KM. It took more than a week to reach here. Which meant that in the next few days, they would be reached this city. That's why I had to leave right now to create some distance between us. Grussel was worried that the agreement between the two countries wouldn't stop an elite army from chasing me.
Who knew they would sneak into Elvian territory to capture me?
Kak Indra, who was in the squad, didn't tell us about their full strength. Either because he didn't have time or he was forbidden to reveal military secrets to anyone. So I was completely blind to my enemy's strength.
Our destination was Arnest City, which was west of the Northern Latitude Mountains, where the first spirit crystal was located. I didn't know if what I was doing was correct or not. What's clear was that we had no other choice.
"Anggi, c'mon!" exclaimed Dimas, who interrupted my daydream.
To get to Elvian territory, we had to cross the wide and deep Kalen River. We had walked north for about half an hour to find a section of the river that was shallow enough to pass. This was where the Dark Night hunter group usually began to act.
Dimas pulled a small raft hidden near the roots of a giant tree. With this thing, my comrade and I crossed the river and infiltrated Elvian territory.
Dimas had climbed first onto the raft on the river bank, holding out his hand to help me up. I flinched. For a moment lamented the man doubtfully. Feeling incredulous that taking his outstretched hand meant embarking on a spirit crystal journey full of dangers. I took a deep breath. This decision I had made before and could not be changed. So that my hand subconsciously accepted Dimas' hand.
When the two of us were on the raft and ready to cross, suddenly, my sense of hearing caught the sound of the leaves breaking underfoot. Dimas asked me what had happened, but I ignored him. My gaze turned sharply to the source of the sound.
Not long after, the sound of running footsteps was heard along with a girl who appeared from behind the trees. She reached the river bank panting. A large leather bag on her back made her like that. In her hand, she held a small lantern to light her way.
"K-Kak Shella!?" Dimas and I exclaimed almost at the same time.
"I-I… decided to come with you guys."
With a trembling and stammering voice, Kak Shella affirmed a very unbelievable statement. Dimas and I were astonished to hear that.
"Wait a minute! What are you saying? This trip is not a school field trip. It's full of danger, you know?" Dimas refused, trying to convince the girl.
"Of course I know. But I also want to do something. I don't want to sit idly at home while you guys struggle with dangers. I know various herbs, so I can take care of you when you get hurt. After all, I'm a Taekwondo member. I can take care of myself."
"That's not the problem!" said Dimas in a soft voice. "I'm not sure everything will go smoothly. If anything happened to you, I would feel guilty. So, Kak Shella should stay in the town."
"Why can't I come while Anggi can? Is it because I'm not a chosen race? Is it because I'm too weak compared to you? Is that what you think, Dimas?"
They looked at each other for a few moments. A strong look and ambition radiated from Kak Shella's eyes, as did Dimas's worried look. Even though they looked like they were staring at each other, they were actually arguing. I couldn't let the two of them go on like this.
"Okay, you can come along, Kak Shella! Looks like we really need your help!"
They both looked at me at the same time. One was full of happiness, while the other was full of disbelief. Kak Shella immediately climbed onto the raft and hugged me, making this series of logs sway on the river surface.
"Thank you, Anggi! You always understand other people's feelings!" cried the girl.
"Geez! It's up to you!" Dimas patted his forehead and sighed. It seemed that the man had lost his voice in this debate.
It took time for Dimas to fully accept this. I made this decision not without reason. Apart from needing a person who understood a lot about herbs, I also didn't want to waste someone who wanted to strive. It was like looking at myself, who determined to find a way back home.
Adding her, three people boarded this raft. Trying to take any risks to achieve the same goal. I wonder how far this small group's adventure lasted. Hopefully, we could really get what we wanted.
In two minutes, the raft arrived on the other side. The river in this place was not only shallow but was quite calm. So we just need to paddle leisurely without fear of being carried away.
From this moment onwards, this forest was an Elvian territory where humans were forbidden to enter. Since we were intruding, I told Kak Shella to turn off her small lantern so that our position would not be revealed. Rubiel's light above the sky was faint with a thin white mist between the trees. Very nice atmosphere, I thought.
I lead the way into the Elvian forest. My eyes could see as well as the day in the dark. This was the privilege I was grateful for after becoming Haier-Elvian. I chose a road that didn't have many tree roots across so that it was easy for my two friends to pass. The atmosphere in this forest was so quiet. There was only the sound of the breeze that sometimes gently caressed the nape of my neck. The sound of insects was only heard a few times. After that, it disappeared.
The Arnest Town was west of the Northern Latitude Mountains, which meant we had to climb the mountains to get there. For that, I intend to circle around Ruvia City to avoid the Elvian army. The closer the town, the more soldiers patrolling. It didn't matter if we had to traverse longer distances because safety was our priority. We walked north and headed towards the mountains from there.
After several hours of walking through the forest, we decided to rest for a while next to the roots of a giant tree that had a hundred meters high. The further inside, the trees growing in the forest were huge and tall, just like the giant trees in Ruvia City. The difference thing was, this area wasn't inhabited or managed by Elvian.
The atmosphere in this place was eerie. Because of the shady leaves, Rubiel's light couldn't penetrate down here at all. To an ordinary human, this was endless total darkness. Adding with the sound of howling animals were often heard, making anyone would feel very anxious.
I allowed Kak Shella to light her small lantern after observing the surroundings with Super Sense. My projection vision didn't see anything dangerous. Apart from the giant trees, all I could see within five hundred meters were birds perched on tree branches, bugs behind bushes, or dry leaves falling in a strong wind.
"Somehow, I feel this is a bad place," said Dimas. He sat leaning against the roots of a giant tree.
"In the first place, this forest wasn't a good one," I replied, holding my breath, trying to reactivate my Super Senses.
"I'm not sure this place is suitable for us to rest."
"What do you expect? A room with a comfy bed? We've been walking for hours and still can't find a safe and quiet place to rest. It's always like this. Nobody knows what lies ahead of us. It could be worse than now. You're sure we're in the right direction, right?"
"Wait a moment!" Dimas hung the short-sword to his waist and took something out of the poor-quality leather bag. It was a map. The man opened the map widely and brought the small lantern belonging to Kak Shella closer. After a while, Dimas nodded slightly. "We are already in the right direction. After this, we have to head west and walk about three hours to get to the foot of the mountains."
"We take a half-hour break, then continue our journey!"
Dimas and Kak Shella nodded in agreement. I took out a piece of crusty bread from the bag for the three of us. The supplies I brought were limited. I couldn't waste them without any calculations at all. Even though it's a little, it was quite filling the stomach. Because right now, we only eat to survive. If only deer or forest goats passed by, I would definitely make them as the additional meal. Unfortunately, no game has passed near us since earlier.
Aside the short bow and quiver on my back, I also carried a leather bag containing food supplies and some gold pieces. Grussel gave it to me when we parted. I didn't think someone as stingy as him would give me that much money. That really helped. It seemed Grussel did have a generous and loving side, as Dimas said.
Not forget to bring the viglet that Prince Keylan gave me in my shirt pocket. This thing would be my hidden weapon when it came to fighting. After training several times with Almira, this thing seemed to manifest Esze from my structure several times larger. At that time, I was very surprised when I saw the effect of the wind blast. Usually, I could only bounce a few things, but with this viglet, I could uproot a few trees with ease. A very great power, but very difficult to control. The last time I nearly blew up Almira.
"Haah…." I took a deep breath.
I didn't know why I remembered her. I'd never had a chance to say goodbye to that woman before. She might be angry when she found out I left without saying goodbye. Sometimes she could be an annoying person. But she was the closest friend I have in that town. Leaving without saying goodbye was really painful. I regret not being able to say goodbye to her.
Hopefully... fate would bring us back together.
When I was leaning back to relax on the roots of a giant tree, my sense of hearing suddenly heard a loud noise from far away. Dimas and Kak Shella were surprised to see me suddenly alert. They asked me, but I ignored them. I closed my eyes to activate Super Sense. The projection in my mind tried to look far to the north, the direction the sound was coming from.
I still saw nothing for three hundred meters ahead. Then try further until it reaches the limit of my ability which has a radius of about seven hundred meters. At that distance, there was still nothing to be seen. The noise was clear, like the flapping of a bird's wings. But the numbers are many and maybe in the hundreds. After some time waiting for the sound to clear, then I could see for clearly. Huge black figures flashed through the trees. They flew quickly here as if to match the speed of the wind.
"This is terrible!!" I stuttered.
"What's going on?" asked Dimas.
"A flock of Black Vampire Bats is heading here!"