After combing through the village for valuables, the two of them ended up leaving with several farming scythes tied to Edric's back, a few changes of clothing for the both of them, and three knapsacks.
According to the map, the city was just west of the village, not too far from where they were, especially since Edric could move extremely fast for long periods of time without getting exhausted.
Only half an hour passed when they reached an area of the forest where the land sloped downwards and gusts of salty air wafted past their noses. The skinny sky-reaching trees also stopped at this point, and were replaced by shrubs, grass and flowers of all kinds that stretched until the massive city walls in the distance, forming what should have been a beautiful meadowy area.
Should have been, because the shrubs, flowers and grass were tainted by black goop, that gave the vegetation the appearance of demon limbs reaching out from the depths of an inky black well.
The ground itself was also completely covered in this odd substance, except for the road, which seemed to have been spared since it was slightly elevated from the rest of the terrain. However, even it was not completely safe, as its outer edges were already losing ground to the encroaching goop.
West of the massive walls was a black sea that expanded as far west as the eyes could see. It looked like the shadow of something massive in the sky, however, the monstrous tidal waves that slammed against the west walls of the city confirmed that this was indeed an ocean.
~What an ugly ocean,~ he thought to himself as he stared at it.
Despite its ghastly appearance, it had an odd mesmerizing quality, almost drawing him in the longer he stared. If it were up to him, he would've named the thing 'Abyss Oceania' instead of 'Doomed Oceania'.
A small part of the fleet Afina had mentioned earlier could be seen right next to the western city walls, no doubt where the harbour was situated. It was a feat of magic how these ships survived the lashings of this wild ocean. However, their size was nothing to scoff at, as even from this distance he could tell that a good number of them would put even the largest of Earth's cruise ships to shame.
"The first thing we're going to do is set up a meeting with your father. You're going to tell him how I saved you, make it sound good but mention nothing of me being a 'champion'," Edric said as they stared down at the city walls.
"Why? If you're looking to get onto father's good side then mentioning you're a champion is the fastest way," Afina replied after some thought.
It was a little relieving for him to know that she wasn't as dense as she led on and that she understood the sort of transaction he was trying to use her for. However, this was only going to make it harder for him to lie about not being a champion.
"Because I'm not a champion. Yes I was sent from the capital, but I wasn't sent here by a deity," he responded.
Afina stared at him for a moment, taking a side glance at the black knife in his hand.
"Then are you a priest?" she asked slowly. Though from the tone of her voice, it was clear that she was asking more for the sake of what she would have to tell her father than what she actually believed.
"Yes, I'm a priest," Edric replied, just as slowly.
"Good, then I'll tell him that... Mister Priest," she responded with a smile.
For a moment, Edric wondered just how smart this girl really was.
"Let's get moving," he said after a moment of silence had passed, before slowly making his way down the slope.
"Wait!" Afina shouted, prompting Edric to halt.
"We can't pass through the main gates. We have to go through the undercity," she continued.
"Undercity," Edric whispered, more to himself than anything else. He took a look back at the city walls, pondering the logic of a city beneath another.
"And how do we do that?" he asked after some thought.
Afina pointed a little to the east, where the shrubs grew to the height of houses. There the ground had sharp outcrops and sloped even steeper than where they were currently standing.
"There's an entrance to the catacombs just past the shrubs, which cuts through a portion of the undercity," she added.
Despite having scales to protect his body, he was still quite sceptical about taking such a path whilst the city gates were visible clear as day from where he was standing.
"And why can't we go through the gates like normal people?" he asked.
"Because the guards will accuse us of being infected and burn us at the city square," she replied. One would never have guessed that such a cute little girl could make such a serious face.
"Very well then, we'll go through the catacombs," Edric whispered in defeat, before heading eastward.
*
The journey through the tall shrubs was wretched and uncomfortable, to say the least. Despite having a natural layer of protection in the form of scales, this didn't stop the disgusting goop that slimed off of the shrubs from making its way in between the spaces of his scales, burning his skin slightly every time it did so.
The shrubs had thorns as well, which meant that they clung onto his hair, and clothing, slowing his movement quite a bit. Add in the throat-burning stench, and the fact that he had to carry Afina due to her frail body getting cut up, and that would sum up the entire journey.
*
The entrance to the catacombs came in the form of two large double doors that led underground. If not for the magic lantern that they had 'borrowed' from the village, Edric would never have entered the place.
For the most part, it was just a series of chambers with corpses packed neatly into rectangular cavities in the walls.
Occasionally though, they would find a sarcophagus, always with a statue watching over it. Sometimes it held a trident, sometimes a scythe, but always it was covered in rune inscriptions. Which put Edric on high alert, afraid that their presence might activate the runes, and have them running for their lives from a horde of undead.