A few days later, Alden's injuries were mostly healed.
He still felt pangs and phantom pains here and there, but for the most part, he had recovered.
A blessing…
That came in the nick of time.
Why?
Alden's face darkened, surveying the path in front of him.
He would call it a rocky trail if he wanted to be more precise, but extended time in the Wilderness made Alden shy away from the specifics.
After all, in a life-and-death bout, details did not matter. What was most important was the result. His continued existence in a land where death was just around the corner was proof of that.
Shaking his head, Alden thought back to the journey he and Ignia made after his battle against the Devil.
It was gruelling.
He would be lying if he said otherwise.
Luckily, he didn't come across too many horrors whilst travelling.
Of course, he encountered more than his fair share of Beasts. Devils were on the rarer side, and Alden actively avoided them at all costs.
Thankfully, none of the Defiled sought him out, content to leave after a frustrating experience with their senses muddled. Alden had learned his lesson from his clash against the big wolf and now kept the metal disk active all the time. Even though it was a hassle, and he nearly came close to suffering from Mana Deprivation numerous times, it was necessary.
He just didn't have any other option.
So instead of complaining about it, Alden just suffered in silence.
…Something which had now become much more frequent nowadays.
Compared to his time in the Sanctuary, the young man rarely spoke, mostly conversing with his pet familiar through their bond. If he did speak at all, it was probably him muttering a curse, but even then, that sight had become a rare one.
Accompanying his newfound reticence was a change in terrain.
At the start of his journey through Nature's Grove, it was all trees, meadows and glades.
Now, the towering behemoths had become much sparser, and the ground had turned more barren.
In addition, multiple mountain peaks now dotted the horizon. He was slowly but surely walking towards the outer edges of Nature's Grove. Although, Alden had a long, long, long way still to go before he crossed its borders into another land.
Nonetheless, with the progress he had recently made, the young man found himself in front of a gorge situated between two lofty peaks.
Alden wasn't the greatest fan of narrow spaces. As part of a prank gone wrong when he was younger, before the death of his parents, he had accidentally gotten himself stuck in his wardrobe. And while he eventually broke out, extended time in such a narrow space - the small cabinet was all that his deceased parents could afford -, not to mention the small little critters crawling about and occasionally brushing against him, and the whole experience was just unpleasant.
Alden shivered at the memory.
He could tolerate tight spaces, provided nothing moved, like the insects that had roamed at the bottom of his closet. If there were living things, though, he would start to feel extremely uncomfortable.
'Who wouldn't?'
Unfortunately for Alden, right now he wasn't inclined to pass through a ravine.
Though, what choice did he have?
Especially since it was going to be dark.
Staying out here in the open would be inviting the Defiled to hunt him down in hordes, even with the Runic Item's concealment.
It was better to have some cover.
But did it really have to be a gorge?
Alden sighed and reluctantly entered the ravine. Ignia flew above him, scouting the immediate terrain for any signs of movement. After all, Alden did not know what type of creatures dwelled in this gorge… though he had his share of guesses.
Shaking his head, he focused.
The ground on the rocky trail was rough and bumpy. With every step he took, Alden heard a slight crunch as his feet stepped on some loose pebbles.
'Thankfully, the sound is muffled. It does beg the question… how loud it would be without the metal disk?'
Probably akin to a thunderstorm, considering sound echoed very far in a gorge.
Not wanting to find out, Alden hurried his pace. Eventually, he paused a fair distance into the ravine.
Alden scanned his surroundings vigilantly, feeling like something was off.
Slowly, with the help of Ignia's sharp eyesight, he caught the smallest hint of movement at the corner of his vision. The young man held his breath, not wanting to disturb whatever it was that moved.
He waited for a few more seconds, finally getting a good look at the creature. It was a few inches in length, smooth scales dotting its skin. It had a triangular head, and deep, round pupils.
The creature's body camouflaged greatly with the mountain, such that Alden barely noticed its existence. He shuddered to think what would have happened if he accidentally upset the snake and received a venomous bite for his troubles.
'Blasted Asterons!'
Letting the snake settle down, Alden inched forward again.
This time his pace was akin to a snail's.
Slow and purposeful. And excruciatingly sluggish.
Alden paid attention to each step he took. He scanned the immediate vicinity beside his feet for any Defiled serpents.
He held his breath whenever one snake got too close.
'Come on, come on. When is this going to end??'
Just as Alden thought things couldn't get worse, he paused.
A brief shadow fell over his face.
Standing in the middle of a snake-infested ravine, Alden mentally assessed his situation.
'So, not only am I stuck in the middle of a gorge filled to the brim with Defiled snakes, but their leader is also a Devil, possibly a Djinn?'
As he sensed the abomination's hair-raising aura from afar, Alden didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
At first, he took comfort that each serpent was relatively weak.
If he had disturbed the whole mob, only then would things get dire. As long as he remained as quiet as a mouse, there was quite a high possibility of him passing through the gorge unscathed.
Unfortunately, with the presence of a Devil or perhaps a Djinn - Alden couldn't quite tell from the sheer concentration of miasma surrounding him from all sides -, the chances of that happening were now very slim.
'Wait…'
Alden's eyes narrowed as he inched closer. The Defiled Serpent leader did not move. Nor was there any sign that it was responsive.
Rather, it seemed to be in a magically induced slumber - it still radiated a chilling aura, proving it was not dead. That said, it also could have been the carcass of a General or a Titan. Alden felt like that was unlikely, though.
Defiled of those ranks were said to be incredibly tall and large.
This serpent did not fit that description.
Then, the first possibility made more sense…
Had someone much stronger than him traversed this ravine before and put the harrowing abomination to sleep?
It certainly seemed so.
Swallowing a mouthful of saliva, Alden pondered his options.
He could, in theory, fall back and exit the ravine, doing his best to keep out of sight in the open expanse of land.
'No, too risky.'
He shook his head.
Although trudging forward was also a big risk, it was the tamer choice of the two. At least with this option, he knew what awaited him. He also knew his opponents.
With the former, that was not the case.
Gritting his teeth, Alden passed the sleeping serpent and rounded the corner.
The sound of muted rumbling came from afar.
He frowned.
Alden wondered what the source of that strange rumbling was.
With every step he took, the noise became louder. He winced and covered his ears.
Soon, Alden was out of the ravine.
Just as he was about to sigh in relief, the distant rumbling turned into a thunderous roar.
At the same time, he slowly came to a halt, his eyes shining like two liquid pools of starlight.
'Ah…'
He froze.
Alden instinctively knew where he was.
'...The Waterfall of Stars.'
A wide grin then spread across his face.
Finally, after what felt like countless epochs, Alden had made it to his destination.
Ignia cried happily through their bond.