Roan walked through a small dirt road which followed a winding path through a grassland. The sun was just beginning to rise causing the sky to be covered in a red hue which slowly grew bigger.
The dirt road led to a town named Fayoor, Roan's destination. It was to the east of Tolaga and deeper into the Ceres kingdom.
Roan had walked through the whole night contemplating the decision he had taken. Leaving the town was something he would have eventually done. Spending his whole life in a frontier town with a couple of thousand people wasn't the reason he had worked so hard as an adventurer. But leaving the town abruptly was nothing like what Roan had thought. His dream was to leave the town after they became a renowned adventurer and travel the world with Seth and Lela. But now he was running away in fear.
But the town didn't hold much importance to him at the moment. He had lost his friends and the only person he cared about now was Ruth. Maybe Cecilia too. But the feelings he once had for her seemed to have nearly faded away in just the last few days. He did not know the reason but the best guess he could make was the awakening. His awakening as a Necromancer had dulled his feelings. His guilt of killing people, the pain of losing his friends and even the lack of fear when he had left the town at night. All of these feelings had dulled.
Roan suddenly stopped walking and stood in the middle of the road, frozen as his mind crashed and his chest constricted. Hot tears streamed down his face as he nearly lost control of his body and fell to the ground. It all made sense now. Why he never cried after the second day of losing his friends and why he ran around doing missions for the guild like nothing had happened? Awakening had suppressed his feelings and emotions so much that he couldn't even mourn the loss of his loved ones.
Roan cried as he stood in the middle of the road for a minute or two and then all the emotions were swept away again like nothing had happened.
'What is happening to me? ' Roan thought as he wiped away his tears. And that was when a sound of creaking wheels slowly came closer to Roan from behind.
Roan turned around to see a cart being pulled by a mule. It reminded him of Alvis and Zek but it couldn't be them. Instead, an old man was driving the cart.
Roan stood at the side of the road and let the cart pass but the old man driving the cart glanced at Roan and stopped the cart.
"Need a ride boy? "The old man said with a smile.
Roan was surprised by the abrupt offer but he subconsciously nodded his head. He was exhausted so the old man's offer was a lifesaver.
"Come on then. " The old man said after seeing Roan nod and Roan quickly approached the cart. The old man slid to the side to make space for Roan to sit.
Roan sat on the space which was barely enough to sit for one person. His body rejoiced after finally getting some much-needed rest. His body seemed to have gotten stronger and more resilient which he hadn't noticed before.
"Probably because of the awakening. " Roan thought as he made himself comfortable. Everything happening to him at the moment revolved around him becoming a Necromancer but he didn't have much knowledge of it. He was in dire need of some detailed explanation. He did have the book given to him by the mysterious magus he had met on Mervielle but the book didn't have much to offer besides some basic information, a couple of spells and the most important, meditation technique which helped in growing one's ether pool. He hadn't practised the meditation technique that much after he had tried it for the first time but even then his ether had slightly grown bigger. He didn't know if his progress was good or bad. He severely lacked knowledge of magus.
If he had awakened as any other kind of magus then he could have tried to get into the Imperial Arcane Academy in the capital city. Maybe he had enough talent to get in. But as he was a Necromancer, it wasn't possible. And he would certainly his life if he were to even try.
"So, where are you going? " The old man asked, pulling Roan away from his thoughts. Roan turned to the old man who was smiling at him and let out a small smile to not seem rude, "Fayoor town. "
"Just the place I'm going. You're in luck. "The old man's smile widened. His kind was wrinkled and the smile nearly caused his eyes to be covered by the saggy skin.
The old man seemed a kind man. He had given Roan a ride of his own volition. So, out of politeness, he asked, "Are you a merchant? " as he turned to the back of the cart. There were small wooden boxes in the back of the cart filling it to the brim.
"No, I'm no merchant. I am a farmer. These are just some vegetables and grains from my field. Nothing much. "
Roan nodded at the answer. Roan wasn't surprised that the old man wasn't a merchant. He didn't look like one.
The duo made some small talk as the cart travelled through the peaceful meadow. And after an hour of travelling, they finally arrived at Fayoor town.
Roan jumped down from the cart as he looked around and let out a small smile. He waved goodbye to the old man who too waved back at him as he drove away his cart.
The town seemed to be not much different from Tolaga but he could still see some differences. Like, the streets were a bit more crowded and the houses were a bit more rundown and dense. But the wall looked tge same and the guards walking on it too nearly were dressed same as the guards at Tolaga with their leather armour and steel helmet.
This town represented the new chapter of his life which Roan hoped didn't end like the first one.