Two days.
Two long and tiring days had passed since Aki left Flats, and she was already sick of the snow. It didn't help that it was getting late, making everything colder. How anyone enjoyed hiking, much less camping, was beyond her.
Even so, having lived in this world for roughly two years has acclimated her to this kind of living. From what little she can recall of Earth, living as she was now would have been practically impossible for her.
She had come quite a long way from who she had been when she first came to this fantastical world.
Aki smiles as she leans against a tree for a respite. Regardless of how she started, positive things emerged from her new life. She had to find the good in all the bad after all. If she didn't, how could she keep her sanity after everything she experienced?
"Tsar'jar is my world. Not Earth. I'm never going back there." Tears began to well under her eyes. She squeezes her wrists tightly. "I barely remember Earth and can't even remember who I was before coming here. So why? Why do I miss it so much?"
Ethereal howling and the sounds of magical combat nearby snap her to attention. She wasn't about to let herself die because of a few tears, nor was she going to let people get killed while she was nearby. Aki pulls out her newly acquired river stone amulet and heads towards the sound of battle.
Where there's a battle, there's a road.
Aki finds a pair of covered wagons protected by armoured people slinging spells and slashing swords at seemingly nothing. One more wagon lies broken on the road, both its horses lying in a puddle of their own blood. Aki doesn't have to look closely inside the wagon to tell bodies are lying within. Whether or not they were dead, she couldn't tell.
Bluish-green light appears in brief flashes around the remaining fighters who've taken to actively attacking. Familiar features within the light make her start.
They're fighting spectres.
No wonder they were struggling this much. As weak as they are, they need to be struck with purification magic in order to be hurt. Otherwise, it would be like throwing a pebble at a wall and expecting it to break. Further, unless a weapon has an enchantment, there's no way to hurt them physically.
To make matters worse, though they can phase in and out of the material world, they need to be in the material world to be attacked.
Fortunately, that also means they can only attack in this state.
"Too bad I have exactly what I need to beat you." Aki raises her amulet and focuses her mana. "Spectral Bind."
Golden chains erupt from the ground and weave together to form a chain netting encompassing the space over the wagons. It hovers briefly before slamming down harmlessly over the people but forcefully bringing five spectres into view. Aki swings her arm down and manipulates the snow at the road's edges to form bubbles over all of them. Once sealed, Aki punches forward, purifying the water-sealed opponents.
Ethereal screams of pain echo amongst the trees as the spectres and Aki's magic vanish in a brilliant flash of golden light.
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LE: 55 HP: 200
MP: 200/250
SP: 50
[Cold: Physical and mental reactions reduced by 50%]
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"Good thing I got here when I did. Surprise attacks against them are so much easier." Aki looks down at the ones still standing.
They're holding more torches now to better illuminate the area. Even at this distance, she can see that all of them are covered in injuries of varying severity. Their clothing is tarnished and damaged, but aside from the first wagon, none look badly injured.
Already some of the mages of the group are trying to use whatever mana they have left to heal their companions.
Now that they aren't fighting, Aki notices the mismatched armour some wear while others look rather fashionable, and a third group are unarmed and wearing regular clothes.
To Aki's surprise, lit by the firelight are dark grey, pale white, and yellowish dog tags hanging from the necks of all the armed people.
The familiar feeling of invasive mana from practically all over threatens to submerge her. She clenches her jaw tightly as she forcibly pushes back the prying eyes. All four fashionably armoured people below raise an eyebrow or stiffen slightly.
No, that wouldn't be quite correct to say fashionable. Unlike what looks to be the civilians and guards, those four wear clothes that she'd never seen in Tsarjar. She was by no means stylish, considering how poor she was and how little time she had spent in any city or town in the past year.
Still, she was almost certain that their outfits were what you'd expect a fantasy adventurer to look like rather than how they actually look like.
It's been a year - or two if one counted from the expected one - since the Storm of Arrival. Could they actually be like her? If so, why would they walk around dressed like a shining beacon for the Old Guard?
"No way, that can be right. Maybe they're just really rich and eccentric adventurers? Well, they can use the Analysis skill, so… is everyone a genius now or do I just suck? I thought it was rare to have!"
Aki raises her hands in greeting as she descends to the road.
She hoped they weren't hostile to her after she could block their skill. "I saw that you needed some help. Also, I can use healing magic so…"
Some group members exchange a few short words while others raise their guard as she approaches. Two of the better-equipped adventurers don't bother looking at her due to being locked into a rather heated whispered conversation with the rich-looking passengers inside the wagons.
However, a girl with messy brown hair clad in brilliant green robes and a red tippet runs cheerily to her and grabs her hand. The girl's glasses reflect the firelight, creating a rather intriguing visual with one broken lens.
"Oh, please do! We need all the help we can get here. My friends won't admit it, but we're tapped on MP and don't have enough potions to heal everyone and finish our super-important quest!"
"Phoebe! What the hell? Why're you telling a total stranger about our stuff? Haven't you heard about privacy?" shouts a young blond man wearing a very fantasy-like steel and leather armour with a red headband.
The girl named Phoebe giggles sheepishly and shrugs.
"No, no, help us! These adventurers were expensive enough as it is, so I won't be paying you here and now, but I will send word for some reward to reach you for your deeds." Says a ratty-looking man wearing dirtied but very fancy clothes.
His eyes bulge out of his head when Aki gives him a confused look. "I am Viscount Estrels' cousin, Verityu Estrel! I am on my way to a very important wedding in New Pinacca a week from now, and we need our colour guard if we are to be presentable! I will personally speak to my cousin about a reward once there, so you have no reason to deny this request!"
Aki isn't particularly pleased with how he's talking to her, but she looks over at the now-lit broken wagon.
Blood covers the scene.
All the passengers are out of the debris; while some are badly hurt, none are dead. She gives the noble a quick and awkward curtsy before rushing to help.
Four men, and three women, all torn up but breathing. The sight and smell of their mangled bodies nearly make her puke, but she steadies herself. She'd seen far worse than this.
Aki raises her amulet over the body in the centre - a woman with a chunk of flesh missing from her neck and her garments torn down the front - and channels mana into the stone.
She feels an icy hot sting pierce her hand and spread out as her own mana swirls with the mana she'd been collecting in the river stone. A faint silvery light spreads out from where she's standing and creates a ring around the injured. The mages who'd been trying to help hurriedly step out of the way.
"Hopefully, I have enough," Aki says to no one in particular. "Lunar Heal."
Warmth envelops her where she stands. She can hear the nearby snow audibly melt, and the smell of blood fades.
Opening her eyes, Aki watches the damaged flesh of the injured repair itself. Dirt and grime are purified by the silver glow, and the blood on their bodies dries quickly. Even a visible old scar on one of the men's faces vanishes, leaving only clear skin.
Seconds later, the light fades. If they weren't so dirty and covered in their own dried blood, one would think they were merely sleeping. Their chests rise and fall steadily, and one even begins to softly snore.
Aki lets out the breath she'd been holding. Her head hurts. She's exhausted. Sweat beads along her brow and her legs wobble slightly as she steps back. Some adventurers and mages rush past her to check on the colour guard, though she can't tell exactly what they're doing. The world is spinning so fast that she can barely focus.
Glancing up, it's no wonder. Her world may be out of focus, but the ever-strange status bar has yet to waver in clarity. She sighs. Even with the MP boost from her charged item, she had only a point of mana left.
"Woah… that was amazing!" Phoebe shouts. She excitedly hops around Aki, the light reflecting vibrantly off her glasses as she moves. "What spell was that? Where'd you learn it??"
"Uh, it's just," Aki wobbles, her knees buckle, but Phoebe catches her before she falls. "I'm low on mana…"
"Oh, duh! Here, here! Drink this." Phoebe pulls out a small vial of a teal liquid and pops it into Aki's mouth.
"Again, Phoebe?? What are you-" protests the same adventurer as before but gets cut off by Verityu and his noble companions.
"Oh skies above, my deepest apologies for my lack of manners, Lady Acolyte." Verityu and the others bow respectfully toward her. "For an Acolyte of Mune to be here! Even with torches, it's quite dark before spring. Added that you are much younger than I expected; surely this is forgivable?"
Noticing what the nobles did, all but four of the adventurers in the travelling party offer her a small bow or curtsy. The four adventurers, however, merely look between Aki and the ones bowing, confused, before giving awkward nods of the head or similar. Phoebe, however, looks at Aki like she's a pile of riches and smiles widely.
Aki pushes off Phoebe - who then goes to rejoin her allies - and wipes her lips. Thanks to that drink, her mana is mostly restored now, but she's still mentally drained.
Their behaviour is off-putting until she recalls that the people in this part of the continent are typically reverential to people like her. That is to say, Acolytes of Mune. Even if she is pretending to be one.
She waves dismissively and nervously curtsies back. "It's perfectly fine. Uhm, even if my symbols are clear on my cloak, you were in a… dire situation. I ge- I mean, It's understandable."
"Yes, well, now that we're clear with that, I would like to ask you if you would graciously accompany us to New Pinnaca," Verityu asks, his town much more polite and proper while eying the clasp on her cloak. "I believe Viscount Estril would wish to speak with you. Of course, I'll also let him know about your deeds here."
"Perfect, I was actually heading to New Pinnaca. So if you don't mind me tagging along, I'd be… happy to." Aki nods gratefully. She wasn't sure if she preferred his old tone or this one, but at least he wasn't what she'd consider a total creep of a noble. "How… how are we going to do that, though? You're down a carriage and horses."
Verityu forces a very fake-sounding laugh. It's clear he took offence but is trying to hide it. "We will have the adventurers walk alongside the wagons and reach the city within the week if we make haste now! Now, please excuse me."
Aki makes several attempts to help her new travel companions arrange themselves, yet every time, her assistance is denied or delegated to light work. An unfortunate frustration that comes from the reverence of her assumed identity.
Still, things could be worse, Aki thinks. These travellers could have been bad people looking for trouble or unwilling to allow her passage with them.
Ultimately, Aki busies herself, checking their surroundings to ensure no other wandering spectre or ghastly creature comes upon them before they depart. Monsters had already appeared here once, so it was best to remain vigilant.
Nearly three hours pass before Aki hears her name called. With the assistance of the oddly dressed adventurers, the guards had managed to ramshackle another impressively built cart to be pulled along and reinforce the walls of the remaining wagons.
She blinks in surprise. Aki isn't much of a craftsperson, but she can tell as much that the craftsmanship is of a highly skilled level.
"Right this way, Lady Acolyte!" Verityu urgently waves to her from the lead wagon. "Join me up here. Of course, the front is the best spot for one of your status! Come, come."
Aki sighs. He's not bad, but simply looking at him felt exhausting. She didn't want to imagine riding a week in the same space with him and his noble companions.
Red and green flash by out of the corner of her eye. Sparing a glance, she sees the strange adventurer party packing into the newly built cart. It would be insulting to deny a noble their requests outright, but she also wanted to listen in on the adventurers.
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(Tactician Lv. 1 - Insight granted)
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"I appreciate the invitation. However, It's best for me to ride in the middle wagon." Aki tells him, already making her way to sit next to the driver. "I mean no offence. This is the best spot for me in case any more spirits appear. You're welcome to join me back here or ride off the back of your wagon if you'd like to… uh, converse."
"Ah… yes, well," Verityu looks between Aki and the more comfortable front wagon. "Your devotion as an Acolyte is admirable. Then may we conversate during our camps."
Verityu climbs into his own wagon with that last exchange, and the caravan is off.