With Vorde and Patrick leading the way, their path never once aligned with the obvious.
They avoided the main roads entirely, steering clear of trade routes, patrol lines, and any path that would naturally draw attention. Instead, they moved through forgotten trails, narrow passes carved between rocky ridges, and concealed routes once used by smugglers and deserters. Some paths were barely visible, overgrown and abandoned, while others wound through terrain that seemed intentionally hostile, as though it existed to discourage passage altogether.
Vorde moved with quiet certainty, his experience across multiple kingdoms evident in the way he navigated without hesitation. Patrick, on the other hand, guided them through the subtler dangers, pointing out patterns of patrol movement, warning them of areas that seemed empty but were anything but.
