Moonlight stretched across the rocky plains, painting the road in silver.

  Sai lifted his gaze toward the sky, studying the moon and the scattered stars. They had already covered half the distance to the village Master Karandash had mentioned. A few more hours, and they would reach it—if nothing delayed them.

  He shifted his attention to the caravan workers.

  Fatigue was clear on their faces.

  Yet none complained.

  None slowed.

  They moved in silence, steady and disciplined.

  The road itself was empty.

  No travelers.

  No distant lights.

  Nothing but a vast rocky expanse stretching endlessly in all directions. Low hills rose here and there, scattered like sleeping beasts beneath the moonlight. Sparse trees dotted the landscape—twisted things covered in thorns, their branches clawing at the sky.

  It wasn’t hard to see where Veyrasha’s reddish stone came from.

  Sai’s gaze drifted toward the front of the caravan.

  Rose walked beside Mardukir, listening intently as he spoke. From the way her shoulders moved, she seemed completely absorbed in his story.

  Sai felt something stir inside him.

  Relief.

  She had adapted well to the caravan.

  She was laughing. Talking. Engaging.

  But beneath that relief… something else lingered.

  A faint, uncomfortable tightening in his chest.

  He frowned slightly.

  What is wrong with me?

  Am I… jealous?

  The thought startled him.

  No.

  That was ridiculous.

  Before he could dwell on it further, a calm voice cut through the night.

  “They’re closing in.”

  Sai turned sharply.

  Kaveh stood a short distance away, his tone devoid of panic or urgency.

  “You were right,” Sai said quietly. “They’re surrounding us. What do we do?”

  Kaveh glanced toward Zamirah, who was walking near Narishta.

  That single look was enough.

  Zamirah reacted instantly.

  “Narishta,” she called sharply, “form the caravan. Now. We’re under attack.”

  Without hesitation, Narishta began issuing commands. The workers pulled the animals inward, forming a defensive circle. Guards moved quickly, positioning themselves around the perimeter.

  Commander Sharruk stepped calmly beside Karandash.

  No shouting.

  No panic.

  Just readiness.

  Sai and Kaveh moved to face the unseen attackers.

  Though the enemy had not yet revealed themselves, Kaveh’s expression remained steady. He extended his hand slightly—

  A translucent barrier formed around the caravan.

  Sai positioned himself to support Rose and Mardukir if needed—but only with ranged attacks. If anyone could handle close combat, it was Mardukir.

  Then—

  Five arrows struck Kaveh’s barrier in rapid succession.

  They shattered against it harmlessly.

  The attackers revealed themselves.

  Seven figures emerged from the darkness, bows drawn, releasing another volley toward the caravan.

  Meanwhile—

  Rose listened eagerly as Mardukir continued recounting his story of the Umman Erbi invasion.

  He was a gifted storyteller.

  “And I grabbed the creature by its tail,” he said, grinning. “Ripped it clean off. It fell writhing on the ground. I pulled my sword from another corpse and took its head before it could rise again.”

  Rose’s eyes widened.

  “How old were you?”

  “About your age. Maybe a little older.”

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  His expression darkened slightly.

  “We were trapped—only a few hundred from my clan and fewer than two thousand city guards from Althamira. The camp was already broken, the gate shattered, and we were fighting in the middle of it as they kept flooding in.”

  He exhaled.

  “The insects kept pushing through the shattered gate, piling over each other. That was our advantage. If they had surrounded us from all sides…”

  He stopped mid-sentence.

  Rose slowed.

  “What is it?”

  “The caravan has stopped.”

  Rose frowned.

  “What?”

  Mardukir’s eyes hardened.

  “We’re under attack.”

  He didn’t hesitate.

  “Prepare yourself.”

  Rose’s answer came instantly.

  “I’m ready.”

  There was not a trace of fear in her voice.

  Mardukir smiled once—

  Then burst forward toward the attackers just as another wave of arrows cut through the night air.

  The arrows shattered once more against Kaveh’s barrier.

  “Now!” he shouted.

  Sai raised his hand—

  A blinding flare of light erupted toward the archers, washing their position in searing brilliance.

  Rose and Mardukir were already moving.

  The light burst behind them, leaving them untouched while the attackers cried out in disorientation.

  Rose reached the first archer in a heartbeat.

  Her spear drove straight through his chest.

  She released her mana instantly.

  The force detonated within him, tearing through bone and lung. He collapsed before he could even scream.

  To her left, Mardukir crashed into another attacker.

  His small round shield slammed into the man’s face with a sickening crack. In the same fluid motion, his blade swept across the man’s throat.

  Two down.

  Five remained.

  The remaining attackers abandoned their bows and drew steel.

  Three rushed toward Rose.

  Two veered toward Mardukir.

  Rose advanced without hesitation.

  The first of the three raised his sword defensively—

  Too slow.

  Her spear slipped beneath his guard and pierced his abdomen. This time she used a tighter burst of mana—controlled, focused. The internal shock tore through him without scattering force wildly.

  He dropped instantly.

  The second attacker lunged from her right.

  She pivoted, ducking beneath the strike, using the shaft of her spear to redirect the blade before reversing her grip and driving the spearhead upward across his throat.

  Blood sprayed into the dust.

  He stumbled backward, choking.

  The third hesitated—just for a breath.

  Rose stepped in and thrust cleanly through his sternum.

  A sharp pulse of mana erupted.

  He fell.

  On the other side—

  Mardukir fought with brutal efficiency.

  The first of his opponents attacked recklessly.

  Mardukir caught the blow with his shield, twisted his body inside the man’s reach, and drove his sword through the ribs at an upward angle.

  The second tried to circle him.

  Mardukir advanced instead of retreating.

  Shield first.

  The impact knocked the man off balance.

  One decisive slash ended it.

  Silence settled over the road.

  Seven bodies lay scattered in the moonlight.

  Rose stood still, scanning for further movement.

  None.

  Mardukir wiped his blade clean against one of the fallen men’s cloaks.

  “You’re not bad,” he said casually.

  Rose glanced at the corpses.

  “They were weak.”

  “For us,” Mardukir corrected.

  They began walking back toward the caravan as if returning from a brief errand.

  After a moment, Rose looked up at him.

  “Can you finish the story later? I still want to know what happened when you were surrounded in the camp.”

  Mardukir looked at her carefully.

  She had just killed four men without hesitation.

  And all she wanted—

  Was the rest of a battle story.

  For the first time, he wasn’t sure whether to be impressed…

  Or unsettled.

  “We’ll finish it later,” he said quietly.

  And they returned beneath the cold, indifferent moon.

  Kaveh lowered his hand.

  The barrier of light dissolved into drifting particles before fading completely into the night air.

  “I don’t sense any more attackers,” he said calmly.

  Sai extended his awareness for a moment longer before nodding.

  “Neither do I. It seems Rose and Mardukir handled them.”

  He glanced toward the darkness ahead.

  The two figures were already walking back toward them—steady, unhurried.

  “Yes,” Kaveh replied quietly. “Judging by the way they’re returning… it’s over.”

  Moments later, Mardukir approached,wiping the last trace of blood from his blade with a cloth pulled from his pocket.

  “Any danger nearby?” he asked.

  “None,” Kaveh answered. “Just those seven who were following us.”

  Mardukir gave a short grunt.

  “They were weak. At least compared to us.”

  He placed his hand casually atop Rose’s head.

  “This little one could’ve handled them herself. Just a handful of desperate fools.”

  Rose immediately brushed his hand away.

  “I told you—stop touching my hair. Do you know how long it takes me to fix it?”

  Despite the tension still lingering in the air, Zamirah snorted softly. Even Sharruk allowed the faintest curve at the edge of his mouth.

  “Why would men that weak even attempt attacking a caravan?” Rose asked.

  Mardukir looked at her.

  “They weren’t weak,” he corrected. “Not really. If this caravan had been without us, they would’ve slaughtered everyone just as easily as we slaughtered them.”

  Rose paused at that.

  Luck, then. Not strength.

  Zamirah approached from behind.

  “Master Karandash says if the danger has passed, we continue immediately.”

  Kaveh nodded once.

  “I sense nothing else nearby.”

  “Good,” Sharruk said. “Form up. Move.”

  Rose hesitated, glancing back toward the dark shapes lying scattered across the rocky ground.

  “What about the bodies?” she asked.

  “Leave them,” Mardukir said flatly. “Karandash is in a hurry. And I doubt they had anything worth taking.”

  Rose gave one last look at the still forms—already blending into shadow beneath the moonlight.

  Then she turned and walked back to the front of the caravan.

  As she passed Sai, she gave him a small wave.

  “Hey! Later you’re telling me more about those glowing desert creatures you mentioned,” she said to Mardukir as they resumed their position. “You said they taste good.”

  Mardukir stared at her.

  “Is this really the time to think about food?”

  “Do you have any more smoked meat?”

  “No. You ate it all.”

  Behind them, a caravan worker shouted:

  “Move out!”

  The wagons creaked forward once more.

  The rhythm of hooves and wheels returned to the night.

  Sai walked in silence beside Kaveh.

  “How much farther?” he asked quietly.

  “Perhaps an hour,” Kaveh replied. “I suspect that’s why they attacked now. We were close to the village. It was their last chance.”

  The road grew quieter as they advanced deeper into the rocky plain. The night desert was not truly silent—distant creatures stirred among the stones, and unseen insects chirred in irregular patterns.

  Then—

  Faint shapes appeared on the horizon.

  Low structures.

  Lantern lights flickering in the distance.

  Rose pointed ahead.

  “There! I see it!”

  Mardukir nodded.

  “Yes. We’ve arrived.”

  A small settlement emerged from the darkness—clustered buildings of the same red stone as Veyrasha, their windows glowing warmly beneath the night sky.

  Rose exhaled in relief.

  “Finally. I can eat something warm.”

  “When are you not hungry?” Mardukir muttered.

  Rose ignored him, still staring ahead at the village lights.

  Mardukir smirked slightly.

  “You know,” he added casually, “this village has a proper bathhouse. A real one. I plan on enjoying it before we move again.”

  Rose blinked and turned to him.

  “A bathhouse?”

  “Yes.”

  Her eyes narrowed slightly.

  “A public bath?”

  Mardukir glanced at her sideways.

  “In the Eastern Continent, most people use communal bathhouses. Not everyone bathes at home. They’re places to relax. To talk.”

  Rose tilted her head.

  “You all bathe together?”

  “Men and women separate sections,” he replied dryly. “Calm down.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him.

  “I wasn’t panicking.”

  He smirked.

  “You’ll see when we get there.”

  Rose turned her gaze back toward the village lights.

  A new land.

  New customs.

  New dangers.

  Behind them, seven bodies lay cooling beneath the desert moon.

  Ahead of them, warmth, noise, and unfamiliar traditions waited.

  Rose felt it again—that quiet pull in her chest.

  This was what it meant to be an adventurer.

  Not just battles.

  But discovery.

  Experiences no story could fully capture.

  The caravan rolled forward into the waiting glow of the village—

  And somewhere beyond the horizon, the vast Eastern Continent watched in silence.

  Their journey had only just begun.

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