Ewan silently closed the door of the room he shared with Pavas, the girl already sleeping on the bed closest to the window. Even after spending the remaining hours of the day walking aaround the city, the girl had quickly become tired from all the traveling back and forth she and the young hunter - for the time being, her legal guardian - had done.
All afternoon, the young man had been stocking up on material, failing to obtain more precise information about the situation in Ylesse. The elements that kept coming back were that the army had retreated to occupy the armored cities nearby, and that the population had been evacuated in a hurry. The army had also restricted its communications to the bare minimum, with messages passing only through their own relays; this explained the difficulties in reaching Carciem and his barracks. It would surely take several days before an answer reached him, hence Ewan counted on this delay to gather more funds.
If he wanted to go as fast as possible without having to stop for days at a time in different cities, he needed enough money to just get supplies and not drag on. Traveling and camping with a Salamander was risky enough, so staying too long in the vicinity of houses, and the army or travelling hunters, was not the best thing to do.
In the midst of his reflection, Ewan pushed back the curtain in front of the window overlooking a busy street along the building, and slightly opened one of the glass panels to feel the fresh air rushing into the room.
It had been dark for a while in the village of Barbados, whose streets were still lit by large black street lamps with white stripes, and whose Elvine-powered lamps cast a soft, clear glow on the facades of the houses and the smooth road surface. The footsteps of the people who were still treading the pavement at that hour echoed off the walls and stone like a steady downpour. Although most of the residents and travelers had taken shelter for the night, many of the passersby were still present, a sign that the influx of refugees had not abated since the beginning of the day. The city would certainly remain bustling for the rest of the week, just as he himself would certainly be busy filling request after request to replenish his finances.
Granted, the monster extermination requests were much more enticing, due to their very large rewards that could be touched in one go; but they were quite dangerous when you had a little girl to look after. Ewan also refused to leave her alone in a village he didn't know well enough. He no longer had to be careful only for his own safety, but also for someone else's. As for Wynblow, she could certainly take care of herself, as long as she kept quiet and didn't cause trouble.
The wind blew slightly, and Ewan stood a little more in front of the half-open window to prevent the cold from directly reaching the little girl who was still sleeping behind him. The winter air had not yet completely disappeared, even if the snow was almost absent from this part of the continent. The trees were already seeing their buds produce a few flowers, and vines were greedily invading the facades of some buildings.
The ancient volcano that formed Mount Larshen was no stranger to this favorable climate very early in the year.
There was another gust, more pronounced than the previous one, and a discreet whistling sound reached Ewan's ears. Like air passing through a carillon, or between the bars of a prison.
Curious, he looked around to see where the sound was coming from, but the view he had from the inn room was rather limited. However, it seemed to him that the whistling was coming from above, and looking up, he observed the thick gray clouds that lined the night sky.
Frowning, he noticed a shadow swirling in the clouds, and wondered what kind of creature could be making that kind of noise. He watched for a few minutes as the shadow circled in the air, and had a terrible doubt. A long silhouette, large wings, and a spiky head. An appearance that made him think of...
Wait a minute.
She hadn't dared...?
The more he looked at the monstrous figure, the more he felt he was right.
What was she doing hovering above a city full of humans at night? If anyone saw her, it could get ugly fast.
"She's completely crazy!" He growled silently through his teeth.
His gaze still followed the blurred figure that wavered between mist and shadow, when the clouds lit up with a bright flash. The shape suddenly became clear and precise thanks to the lightning, leaving no possible doubt. It was indeed Wynblow, hidden in this sky turning to storm. However, Ewan could hardly look away, when a sharp pain struck his heart.
Bringing his hand to his chest and tightening his fingers on his clothes and down to his skin, he let out a pained groan as his feet gave way under him.
He closed his eyes and slowly sank to the ground, assailed by a strange vision.
Facing down, he could see on a smooth wall in front of him the sharp shadow cast by the figure of Wynblow. A huge roar of anger and rage rang out as the shadow opened its mouth to show its teeth.
The scene lasted only a few seconds, vanishing as quickly as the lightning that had briefly lit up the sky. The pain in his chest, however, persisted for a few more minutes, and the young man clenched his teeth while shivering with cold.
"Are you okay, Ewan?" A voice rose timidly.
The young man looked up, and met the worried gaze of the little girl, now awake.
He tried to smile despite the pain he still felt, and nodded.
He couldn't understand it. What exactly had just happened?
Had he really seen something? And what was that pain he had just felt?
It was as if he was suffocating, as if something was pulling on his heart to get it out of his chest.
However, that feeling was also fading now, like an illusion that hadn't really been there; and when he finally stood up and looked out the window again, the shadow moving in large circles was gone.