The clang of metal rang through the air. Albaras leaned against a wooden post on the porch, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on Kian and Rederick locked in a heated sparring match. Kian, wielding a small dagger with playful confidence, darted and weaved like a shadow between his opponent’s strikes. Rederick, in stark contrast, moved with disciplined precision, his every swing calculated and efficient. His sword, woven with white ribbons that fluttered in the wind with his blade stuck at the end, seemed like an extension of his arm, each motion fluid and controlled, letting the blade move like a whip.

  Their clash was a hypnotic dance. Albaras chuckled. ‘Good progress… and an entertaining show.’

  A distant sound of hooves caught Albaras’ attention, pulling his gaze from the sparring match to the road ahead. Kian and Rederick ignored it, focused solely on their training. A lone rider approached, his horse skidding to a halt as he swung down mid-motion. The animal’s flanks heaved with exertion, its coat darkened by flecks of sweat. Albaras’ eyes locked on a sealed note affixed to the saddle, its edges frayed and worn from hurried travel.

  The rider strode forward, breath heavy but gaze steady. Rederick and Kian froze mid-spar as the messenger broke into a run.

  ’Who among you is Albaras?’ he demanded. heaving as if he might collapse, yet some unseen force held him upright, as if the world would burn if he fell. ’My lord von Houzen requires his aid. The other hunters pointed me here, said this was where he lived.’

  Albaras stepped forward. ’I am the one you seek.’

  The rider approached, extending the message. “Here you go, sir.”

  Albaras took the scroll, eyes narrowing at the wax seal an insignia of a manor flanked by two mills, pressed deep into the parchment. He broke it cleanly and began to read.

  The note spoke of an attack within the Dukedom, in a region known as the Cross. Governed by four nobles, each ruling over a section of it.Six survivors had been found across the territories. All were so horrifically mutilated, they had to be put down.

  Albaras′ grip tightened around the parchment. A low chuckle slipped from his helmet, growing louder, rawer.

  ’Sounds like quite the adventure,’ he muttered with glee, his laughter turning wild, spilling out of him like a storm.

  The rider instinctively stepped back, looking at the sparring partners well moreRederick since Kian is barely visible with his cloak looking more like movable wind instead of a human thing.

  As Rederick glanced over. Kian seized the moment and swung for his leg. His strike glanced harmlessly off his armored flank. ’Got him!’ I yelled, grinning beneath the rags bound around my face, barely visible through the cloth.

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  Unfazed, Rederick raised a brow toward Albaras.‘What do we do about this contract?’

  Albaras looked at Kian. Is it time that he would decide what will happen next. You could hear his heart pounding even outside of his body. ’There’s a contract we could take on,’ he said, voice brimming with something close to delight.’You might meet some more hunters along the way, my dear little boy.’

  Rederick noticed how my body shivered.He stepped away, heading toward the stables.

  ’If someone needs help, then we should be there to help them, right? The hunters make evil their prey.’ Kian sounded so proud saying it. Rederick looked at him it was as if he was at the brink of tears, but no one now what kind of tears

  ’Alright, Kian. Gather the supplies,’ Albaras said, catching my eagerness.’Rederick, prepare the horses. I’ll draft the response that we will go.’

  The rider watched us scatter to our tasks. Alright I will go back spread the word of your coming. As fast as he came, he had left. Soon after him we went as well.

  Leaving the hunters’ land behind, they crossed into Drech and soon encountered the border guards, who signaled them to halt.

  One guard stood stiffly, his body rigid and his skin unnaturally pale.

  Rederick moved beside me, his eyes narrowing as he studied the trembling guard standing near a building topped with a lookout tower. High above, a shadowy silhouette loomed at the tower’s peak, its indistinct form casting an unsettling presence over the scene.

  The tense guard saw us and began creeping toward the entrance of the building.

  ’Where are you off to?’ asked the head guard, easily identifiable by the blue badge on his right shoulder. His tone was friendly, but he gestured towards his anxious companion with mild curiosity.

  The tense guard hesitated, glancing nervously at him. ’I… I’m just getting the package,’ he stammered before hurriedly slipping inside.

  Albaras met their gaze, adjusting the purple cloth draped over his shoulders. ’We’re heading to the Cross, good sir,’ he replied, his tone as friendly as ever, carrying the easy courtesy of a traveler meeting new acquaintances.

  He paused, his helmet flicking briefly toward the entrance of the building. “Forgive me if we’ve met before as I don’t recall,” he added smoothly, before gesturing toward the door of the building. “But is everything alright with him?”

  ’I don’t know,’ the guard replied, his brow creasing. ’He’s insisted on staying here, even though we’ve been trying to send him home for days now.’

  The nervous guard, visibly shaken, stepped outside holding a small basket. He approached me hesitantly, his voice quivering as he extended the offering. ’S-some food for the road,’ he stammered, his hands trembling as if barely able to keep hold of the basket.

  Albaras, noticing the shaking in the guard’s stance, asked gently, “Did he encounter something... or someone?” His voice was calm yet probing.

  ’He wouldn’t say,’ the head guard replied curtly, ″He looked fine and the next day he looked like that. If could only listen to his wishes that was the only thing that makes him at least approachable.″

  Albaras tilted his head, his gaze flicking to the tense guard nearby. ’How intriguing,’ he murmured, the faintest hint of amusement curling at the edges of his voice.

  Turning to his companions, he declared firmly. ’Well, we should be on our way.’ He glanced back at the head guard, his tone steady as he added, ’Farewell, gentlemen.’ With a curt nod of acknowledgment, he signaled for their departure.

  As they rode off, the weight of unanswered questions lingered in the air, thick with the unspoken. Behind them, unseen, the tense guard collapsed, his struggle hidden beneath the cloak of urgency that had driven their departure.