"Knights! Assume combat formation!"
A commanding voice thundered across the ruins.
Armored men shifted uneasily, murmuring among themselves as they stared at the fabled Village of Caledon.
A place most believed to be myth.
From within a shattered hut at the village's edge, Reiji crouched low, hidden behind splintered beams.
Observing.
"So the little girl was controlling this place called Caledon, huh? Better keep quiet and just watch for now."
He melted deeper into the shadows, close enough to listen without being seen.
"Rowan, are you certain this is Caledon?" a knight in heavy armor asked.
"Yes, Cornelius," Rowan answered, eyes practically glowing. "The tall trees, the ruins, the map coordinates. Everything aligns."
He pulled a scripture from his satchel and read aloud.
"Hidden at the heart of Aliaria Forest, at the border between the Western and Southern continents, lies an ancient village said to connect Paragonia to the world beyond–"
"Why read from those callous Earthborn scriptures?" a short knight in black armor sneered. "Do you fancy those deceitful, loathsome beings?"
Rowan shot him a glare.
"Admire them? Who would admire Earthborn after what they've done? I study them to learn their weaknesses– so we can defeat them, Mortus."
Cornelius barked, "Enough! We're here to strengthen the princess's army against the Gromble invasion. How can you do that if you keep on arguing."
Reiji blinked.
"Earthborn? Is that us? They hate us?"
"Come on now, Rowan," Mortus scoffed. "Lead us out of this cursed forest."
Rowan withdrew a leather chart and nodded.
"Men, lower your arms! We march!" Cornelius commanded.
The formation shifted.
Boots crunched.
Armor rattled.
Soon they vanished among the trees.
Only then did Reiji slip out from hiding.
"I now understand that little girl and that rabbit's reaction."
Reiji put his focus on the ruins.
"It looks like I was not the first person from Earth who arrived here."
"Father..."
He searched the village.
Caledon might have been small, but the architecture spoke of lost brilliance.
Domed roofs, ancient arches, moss-wrapped pillars, water channels weaving through a planned layout.
Stone, glass, metalwork.
All crafted with skill far beyond typical villagers.
"That hut they stuck me in completely doesn't belong here…" he muttered.
As he explored deeper.
With his power, he noticed a strange distortion at the village's center.
The air wavered, pulling inward like stretched fabric.
"The water canals all converge here."
He examined.
"It is warped. Like something is folding over itself."
He kept his distance, respecting the area's lingering energy, and returned to the ruined hut.
He cleared debris, lay back on the makeshift bedding, and stared at the broken ceiling.
"That distortion…"
"It must be part of her illusion magic."
He exhaled slowly.
"Why do I feel this strange pull? A connection. A concern for those two. For this world."
The beams creaked in the gentle breeze.
"Strange feeling."
He frowned.
"If they don't want anything to do with me, I won't disturb them. They must have discovered I was from Earth."
The sun dipped.
Shadows stretched.
Reiji drifted into a restless sleep.
But not long after.
*THUD.
*THUD.
*THUD.
Hooves thundered outside.
Reiji's eyes snapped open, and he peered through a crack in the hut's wall.
A drake rider approached.
"This guy came back."
He tied his drake, muttering a spell under his breath.
"Exi flamma, et consume in me voluntatem."
Fire bloomed in his palms.
"Clear."
Gentle flames flowed in a controlled circle, burning away the brush.
He gathered logs, set them down.
Then he invoked, "Ignite."
An ember leapt from his hand, lighting the campfire.
Reiji watched silently, trying to figure out how to approach without startling him.
"They called this guy Rowan."
Rowan suddenly stiffened.
As if he knew that there were eyes watching him.
Reiji stayed still, ready to counter if Rowan attacks.
Rowan reached into his drake's satchel and pulled out a small staff with a glowing crystal.
A flame formed in his hand.
Large and focused.
"Fireball!"
Reiji tensed.
*WHOOSH!
A piercing shriek followed.
"You could've just come out earlier and saved me the trouble of gathering firewood, Springgan!" Rowan snapped.
*SCREEECH!
From the shadows, a twisted wooden creature crawled forward.
It approached Rowan slowly, with its gnarled wooden limbs.
"A Treant?" Reiji whispered.
"Branch monster! How did you survive that fireball?!" Rowan yelped.
The Springgan lunged.
The flame in Rowan's palm grew brighter.
Then he released it.
"Flameball!"
A fiery blast struck the monster point-blank.
The explosion pushed Rowan back as the staff's crystal dimmed and cracked.
"Argh! My carnelian crystal broke again!"
He stomped toward the burning creature, muttering "You were not supposed to survive that fireball. You made me lose my focus!"
Rowan looked at his staff again.
"That caused me to lose 10 gold coins!"
Reiji watched from hiding.
"Could've jumped in and saved him… but I guess he does not need saving."
Rowan set up camp, then summoned a cinder spirit.
"That Springgan was tougher than a normal one. This place is really cursed." Rowan said.
A small, ember-like spirit that floats around him.
A sentry.
He settled down for the night.
Meanwhile, Reiji activated Proprioception.
"I should not let my guard down."
But after a few hours, he felt that power was taking its toll on him.
As well as the awareness held him awake.
"I won't be able to sleep like this."
So he deactivated it.
"Too much had already happened in too little time. I've done my part."
He took a deep breath and surrendered himself to fate.
"If I ended up dying tonight. Maybe that's a good thing. I just want to take some rest..."
Morning came.
Rowan woke up early and continued fortifying his camp, preparing for a long stay.
He looked around the area.
Then he noticed and approached the damaged hut.
Rowan grabbed his staff and imbued it with another crystal.
"The damage to this place seems recent… I didn't notice this last night."
He stepped inside.
He immediately froze, dropping into a combat stance.
"I wasn't expecting company," Rowan said sharply.
"Come out of there."