Liora walked into her room after her training session was over, on her way, she crossed paths with Alfred, who seemed to be in a hurry. She brushed it off, chalking it up to an order he must've received from her father.
She pushed the door open and walked into the room, once inside she stretched her arms and put aside her sword.
Liora then flopped onto the bed and decided to take a small power nap, given she had nothing else to do, except wait for it to become night time so she could go Slime hunting again.
---
Back at Chris...
Chris steadily rose from his bed after a good dinner with his mother last night, today was the day that he would be leaving and heading over to Stone Bridge.
Chris walked over to his window and stared out into the village, watching it bustle with activities as usual. Ever since the incident in the Dark Woods, Jack had been avoiding Chris out of fear.
Elara took notice of this and tried asking Chris about what happened, initially Chris tried his best to lie and come up with excuses, but Elara was firm and eventually forced the truth out of him.
At first she was shocked about what Chris told her, Jack and his subordinates tried to ambush him and almost killed him in the forest, and that made her blood boil.
She wanted to tell the village lord about this and give Jack a piece of her mind, but Chris prevented her from doing so.
'Guess it's finally time, huh?' Chris noted with a bit of a sad expression, during the last few days he had been spending alot of time with his friends and family. Elara, his mother and little Mia.
Chris turned away from the window and walked out of his room, making his way downstairs and into the kitchen.
There, just like always, he found his mother preparing breakfast for them. "Good morning." Chris greeted as he took a seat at the breakfast table.
"Good morning to you too, Chris." Jade said with a warm smile, her eyes still focused on the meals she was preparing for them. "Give me a few minutes, I'm almost done."
Chris nodded and proceeded to look around the room, a huge sense of nostalgia hit him as he recalled his first few days in this new world. His many accidents, and the times he and his mother spent together, will always be something he will cherish deeply.
As he continued to look around, his eyes caught sight of a large carry bag that was seated by the front door.
'What's this...?' Chris thought as he raised an eyebrow with a confused expression, wondering to himself as to why that was there.
"Mother." Chris called, "Why is there a huge carrier bag infront in the front door?" Chris asked.
Jade turned her head back to look at the bag before returning her gaze to Chris,
"Oh, that's for your journey to Stone Bridge. It's packed with your clothes, a map, a tent, and food that should last the whole journey."
Jade said as she finished preparing the meals for them, walking up to Chris and handing him his plate. "This is going to be our last meal together for the time being," Jade added, her expression turning to that of sadness for a moment.
"You're just a child, yet you are already so grown up." Jade said as a smile formed on her lips, "I'm very proud of you."
Jade's words struck a cord on Chris's heart and he felt a strong warmth spread through his chest, "Thank you." Chris said, a tear escaping his eye and rolling down his cheek "For everything."
Jade gently extended a hand and wiped the tear away from Chris's face, her touch carrying strong motherly affection. "Now then, let's eat, shall we?" Jade said as she withdrew her hand from his cheek and began to dig into her plate.
Chris nodded and also began to eat his meal, finding it as delicious as always. As they continued to eat, the room was silent, but the air was filled with a comforting warmth.
...
Chris stood infront of his house, the giant carrier bag strapped to their back. It was a bit heavy, but he could manage. Plus. If he ever got tired, he could just make his Skeletons carry it for him.
He was waiting outside for his mother, because she had a gift to give him before he went. As Chris continued to wait, Jade finally walked outside, carrying the sword she used to use as an adventurer.
"Here, take this, and use it well." Jade said as she extended the sword to Chris, smiling warmly at him.
"Mom, i can't take this..." Chris tried to refuse, shaking his head lightly. But Jade was persistent and wasn't going to let him go without taking her gift.
"Just take it, it would make me happy if you used this in your adventures." Jade said, stepping closer and extending the sword towards him more.
Chris sighed, a small smile on his face as he didn't have the strength to refuse anymore "Alright, I'll take it." Chris said as he grabbed the sword.
As he did, a notification window popped up next to him.
[You Have Received Jade's Sword] The window read
[Description: A sharp silver sword, embedded with the crest of the Royal Shield's guild. This sword has seen countless battles and conquered many, enchanted with magical properties that allows smooth magic circulation into the blade, makes this sword very powerful in it's own right.]
'H-huh!?' Chris exclaimed inwardly in suprise as he read the system popup next to him, not only was this the first message of an weapon he had received, but the sword was also apparently very powerful.
"T-thank you," Chris said while stuttering, still a bit shocked by the description of the sword. "I'll make sure to treasure this."
Jade smiled, bending down as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a tight hug. "That's my boy." Jade said as she hugged him, and Chris returned the hug.
The hug ended as they pulled away from each other and Jade rose to her feet, "Go now, you have a long journey ahead." Jade said, and Chris nodded.
With a heavy heart, Chris turned his back to her and began walking towards the village gates. Jade's smile faded a little as she watched him leave, but she had to stay strong and hope that he returns home safely.
As Chris continued to walk, he gazed around the village one last time, taking it all in to memory. Just as he was about to leave, a voice called out to him,
"Leaving already? And without even a goodbye?" Elara's asked, her arms crossed as she leaned against the walls of the gates.
"Elara," Chris uttered in suprise, not expecting to see her see him off. "I didn't think you'd come see me off."
Elara pushed herself off the wall as she approached him "Of course i did, what kind of friend would i be if i didn't? And how could you consider just leaving like that? The least you could've done was atleast say goodbye to little Mia."
Elara scolded him, and Chris started to feel guilty and remorseful for not doing that. "Elara, I'm-" Chris was interrupted as Elara suddenly hugged him.
"Don't apologize, just do better. I'll make sure to tell Mia you said goodbye, so just go and focus on your journey." Elara said as she pulled away, not even giving Chris a chance to hug her back as she then proceeded to walk back to the village.
He watched her leave for a few seconds, "Thanks, Elara." Chris thanked her before turning around and leaving, it was time to begin his journey.
---
...
Night time arrived, and Liora was finally ready to sneak out again. The power nap she took earlier had helped her gain alot of energy, so much that she felt she could stay up the entire night.
"Hehe," Liora grinned as she rose from her bed and walked up to her window, looking at the guards patrolling outside of the mansion. She knew that she couldn't escape without the help of Lisa, if she tried jumping out of her window, she'd be caught instantly.
But Lisa wasn't an available option right now, as she was sound asleep, and nearly impossible to wake her up.
'Hmm..let me think.' Liora thought as she pressed her hand on the window and began to tap her fingers on the glass, in a small rhythm as she contemplated deeply.
'Oh, i know!' Liora found the solution, she just needed to create a distraction that could lure the guard in one spot for her to escape.
The plan was that she would summon a couple Snow Rabbits into the courtyard and make the guards chase them. Then, she would jump from her window, into the courtyard, and use her Rock Golems to carry her over the tall walls and into the capital.
'Easy enough, now let's try it.' Liora thought as she gently opened her window, doing it as quiet and discrete as possible to avoid gaining the attention of the guards.