There are three mountains in the mountain range that the group has to cross before arriving at the Roaring Winds Village. As its name suggests, the mountain range is windy and the sound produced by the rustling of the leaves and the beasts' growls give off the terrifying name of the mountains, roaring winds.
A group of six people was traveling to the top of the second mountain when the man in blue robes exclaimed with an excited face, "Leader! Leader! The Miracle Peach tree has borne two fruits. Look! Look!" He kept pointing at a tree with two glowing fruits.
Valkin took the two peach-colored fruits in his hands and handed one to Yllana. "Keep it. That could help you raise your power to the next level if you eat it."
Lucien stared at the fruit in Yllana's hand and he felt like snatching away the fruit and throwing it away but he kept silent.
Yllana thought for a while and decided to keep it, "Thank you Val."
Valkin glanced at Lucien's reaction. "I hope you like it."
Lucien grabbed Yllana's arms, "Let's keep walking. It's getting dark," he grumbled on the side.
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Nighttime
"Lucien, what good does being a mage give you?" Yllana stared at the campfire. Lucien was leaning on a tree behind her. She turned her head to face him waiting for his reply.
Lucien crossed his legs and looked into her eyes, "Mages, if powerful enough, can take down an empire with just one spell." His gaze darkened and there was an eerie layer of frost in his tone. He seemed to have drifted to a memory.
Yllana was curious about his answer. It's true that powerful mages can destroy vast lands with spells. But there are only a handful of mages who are powerful enough to do that and they are under the Emperor's power so they couldn't betray the kingdom. Since mages are a great help in battles and are being hunted for these purposes, there are only a few who practice being a mage. But being a natural-born is different. It means that she has an innate talent to cultivate being a mage. She has a higher chance of attaining power in a short period of time. But her thoughts keep drifting back to her life as a knight. Only a seer can give her answers. She was determined to find one to know the next step on her path.
While mulling over her thoughts, she felt a hand cover her eyes and pulled her gently down. Her body fell on something soft and she held on to that familiar hand over her eyes. "Sleep now, you idiot," whispered Lucien over her ear.
The other four men sitting in a distance away from them saw how 'sweet' Lucien was and cursed the couple who were shamelessly displaying their affections. Valkin stared at Lucien coldly, a glint flashed in his eyes.
Lucien lowered his gaze and noticed that look in Valkin. He smirked and just continued covering Yllana's eyes until she fell into a deep slumber on his lap.
When morning came, Yllana felt something soft covering her. She grasped the soft cloth and pulled it closer to her. When she remembered where she was, she opened her eyes and looked at the sleeping guy above her. She was lying on his lap while he was leaning on a tree with his eyes closed. She looked at the cloth on her and recognized it as Lucien's black cape. He was wearing that yesterday on their journey but he draped it on her while she was asleep.
"You're early today." Lucien mumbled with his eyes closed. Yllana's face turned red. A red-haired girl with red eyes turning red, an embodiment of fire. A corner of his lips raised as he noticed that she didn't move. He slowly opened his eyes and saw her flushed cheeks. Her red eyes were like fires of hell calling out to him. He frowned and flicked his finger on her forehead. "Get up."
Yllana quickly sat up and massaged her forehead that Lucien inflicted with pain. This guy clearly doesn't regard her with respect. She wonders why does he like hitting her head. Back then he also hit her with his staff. He even calls her idiot most of the time.
"Lucien, that hurts." She glared at him and threw his cape at his face, "Thanks anyway." Then she got up and started to look for a stream to clean her face.
When she walked quite a distance away from their camp, she heard the rushing water behind a few large boulders. She climbed the huge rocks and saw a running stream below. She went down hastily not noticing a group of who were below the rocks.
Lucien waited for Yllana on the spot where she walked away from. It has been a few minutes and he still didn't see her shadow from the distance. His gaze went cold and he squinted his eyes, 'Something's not right. She usually moves fast.' He followed the path where she disappeared into never leaving any word to the rest of their group. It was quite far from their camp.
"Come on, can't we take down this little girl?" a grumpy man with burly arms was licking his lips as he watches Yllana staggering within their encirclement. These are mid honor rank rogues with daggers and swords. She couldn't take them down and she might just drag the rest of her group if she ever screamed and ask for their help.
She was bleeding heavily with the wounds on her arms and shoulders. The six men who surrounded her are hunters. Who would have thought that they would take an interest in her? No one could blame them though because Yllana doesn't know how attractive her red eyes and red hair are. She was still holding the dagger on her hands. 'Lucien, where are you?' She couldn't stop thinking that maybe she could escape if Lucien was around. 'Should I scream?'
Lucien heard a few men talking below large boulders. His heart sank. 'This girl is a magnet for trouble,' he thought. He summoned his blood staff and took a peek at the scene below. He noticed the woman in red being surrounded by six rogues. His lips curled into a sneer as he swept his gaze to the six men.
Yllana's eyes grew cold and she looked at the group in front of her. Without any warning, she dashed to the man in the farthest right and threw her dagger at his stomach. When the dagger hit him, his grip on his sword loosened and Yllana clutched on the handle in a flash.
Thud!
The man fell on the ground. Yllana didn't stop. She easily cut the man's throat with his own sword before she pulled her dagger from his stomach. The man's blood splattered on her clothes painting a bloody figure with red hair dancing in the wind. 'Five more,' she thought. She drew a deep breath and swung the sword to the nearest man and met his sword leaving her defenseless behind her.
One of the men rushed to hit her back but she managed to throw her dagger onto his head. She gritted her teeth as that man fell on the ground. When she sensed that the other three were approaching her, she pushed the man in front of her with all her might. She staggered back and wiped the sweat on her face. Her hands are trembling and her vision was starting to blur.
'I need to grow stronger.' She took this oath and smiled. If she ever survives this event, she will start cultivating again to raise her power.
With the four people approaching her, she felt a hand land over her eyes. "Don't look," the cold voice sounded calming to her soul and her tense body relaxed. 'He's here.'